tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-27418166196171045372024-03-15T00:25:05.847-07:00Conservative SatireHarriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.comBlogger199125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-47675922247851268562013-01-03T01:58:00.003-08:002013-01-03T01:58:56.639-08:00Shell ship grounding fuels Arctic drilling argue<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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There's no sign of a fuel drip from a petroleum drilling ship that ran aground on a remote Alaska island, the Coast Guard says of a maritime accident that has refueled debate over oil examination in the U.S. Arctic Ocean.<br />
The Royal Dutch Shell PLC ship was being towed to a Pacific Northwest shipyard for preservation when it went aground during a cruel storm New Year's Eve.</div>
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<a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img alt="shell ship" border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPFZ0dhO1BjOpWwWOHr1vgLV_WJfn-Ee9-uxHOciWOW4SXIq6YD_M2fBtmAcH3kpG2JBYUxQGZ1pBktmlpN0L9NNTomnyNAO3wXw0YGXpOgRyoEpN8YweXsed6w9tPiM12ENrrd1nGGn0L/s400/shell-ship.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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"There are still no signs of any sheen or ecological impact and the Kulluk appears to be stable," Coast Guard Capt. Paul Mehler said Wednesday night, after flying over the rig with a Shell representative and an Alaska Environmental Conservation Department official.<br />
He said he saw 4 life boats on the shoreline but there was no indication that other debris had been ripped from the ship.<br />
The overflight in drizzle and 35 mph winds showed a few birds but no marine mammals near the rig, said Steve Russell of the Environmental Conservation Department.<br />
Calmer climate conditions on Wednesday allowed a team of 5 salvage experts to be lowered by helicopter to the Royal Dutch Shell PLC ship to behavior a 3-hour structural assessment.<br />
After the grounding, critics speedily asserted that it has foreshadowed what will happen north of the Bering Strait if drilling is allowed.<br />
Environmentalists for years have said conditions are too cruel and the stakes too high to allow manufacturing development in the Arctic, where drilling sites are 1,000 miles or more from the closest Coast Guard base.<br />
For oil giant Shell, which leads the way in drilling in the border waters of the U.S Arctic, a spokesman said the grounding will be a learning experience in the company's yearslong effort to draw oil from beneath the ocean floor, which it maintains it can do safely. Though no wells exist there yet, Shell says it has invested billions of dollars gearing up for drilling in the Beaufort and the Chukchi seas, off Alaska's north and northwest coast.<br />
The potential bounty is high: The U.S. Geological Survey estimates 26.6 billion barrels of recoverable oil and 130 trillion cubic feet of natural gas exist below Arctic waters.<br />
Environmentalists note the Beaufort and Chukchi seas are some of the wildest and most remote ecosystems on the planet. They also are among the most fragile, supporting polar bears, the ice seals they feed on, walrus, endangered whales and other marine mammals that Alaska Natives depend on for their subsistence culture.<br />
"The Arctic is just far different than the Gulf of Alaska or even other places on earth," said Marilyn Heiman, U.S. Arctic director for the Pew Environment Group.</div>
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Thanks: http://www.usnews.com/news/us/articles/2013/01/03/check-of-grounded-drill-ship-stable-no-sheen</div>
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Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-76355500696579951392012-10-30T23:27:00.001-07:002012-10-30T23:34:40.319-07:00Sandy deals a gust to well-liked US websites<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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As New York City experiences the Superstorm Sandy which has disturbed the functioning of the city, analysts are still in the process of the estimating the cost of the hurricane. According to the BBC News Magazine, some analysts expected damage totalling $10 billion to $20 billion.<br />
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A Superstorm is usually referred to as the downgraded version of a hurricane.<br />
<br />
Investopedia, few months back did a study on the 5 costliest hurricanes in </div>
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<a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhNBchRO9QelFbTlqSVRrP0hsd4sY7I-HzxRAnVLgZHrKimF40a1SeX6z8EeL5HbkVicHKMlPDrbo6-wZREo0Qs3C3AZhQNHxFcoske9UpmekRXH5g87cVzVEnO2B-Fj2lsC5ELK4tI5IAv/s400/hurricane-sandy.jpg" width="308" /></a></div>
<br />
The Huffington Post and other popular US websites struggled
to get back on their feet Tuesday after superstorm Sandy knocked them out of
cyberspace.<br />
<br />
On its homepage, the Huffington Post blamed power outages triggered by Monday's
storm for "technical difficulties" as it offered readers minimalist
post-storm updates with no photos or links to other parts of its vast site.<br />
<br />
"We are working around the clock to get the site back to normal," it
said in a boldface editor's note.<br />
<br />
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<a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="252" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg0GN1F4oiaeGMG5E6QAfuLQITeS21eswt6mGuX4Qult9rLAtRbnurQY1c691yHdXQn80vHdHlULeARmiaYSrqbioNyOnx40jOIC6QWnjDRsKJFe_lO1B7q1HaqBjaoAiCG5KSHk3jgJ-h-/s320/sandy.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
The hip Manhattan-centric website Gawker and stablemates such as Jezebel and
Gizmodo were also out of action overnight, although Gawker managed to restore
minimal service using an old-school live blog format.<br />
<br />
Buzzfeed invited its visitors Tuesday to proceed to the website's Tumblr,
Twitter and Facebook accounts for fresh content, in the absence of homepage updates
since Monday.<br />
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On its Tumblr account, Buzzfeed said it was told by DataGram an Internet
service provider that also serves the Huffington Post and Gawker that it had
sustained serious flooding during the storm.<br />
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Thanks: http://gadgets.ndtv.com/internet/news/sandy-deals-a-blow-to-popular-us-websites-286555<br />
http://in.finance.yahoo.com/photos/ </div>
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Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-57232176421441233912012-10-05T02:58:00.002-07:002012-10-05T02:58:42.850-07:00DIY Halloween Costumes: Michelle Obama<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Halloween is hands down the best thing that has ever been invented. Every week this month, I am going to show you how to make a totally kewl <a href="http://www.costumecenterusa.com/boys-costumes-c-566.html"><b>Halloween costumes</b></a>, because I’m tired of seeing a bunch of you dressed like the Mario Brothers and/or sexy cats.</div>
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<a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img border="0" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjURIgZ7gnEnn8NyiNHof2xMbEMX866w2PKbcb6Rz6ijunThnfa8UYZ4xFDMFjrzdWn5-oGEwCHjCRzB_4kSyzSu8xn-aCx0I8pivKyNvH0NYbU791X1jy2rdkZ3lZiy-tQri8lpJ4E2TBq/s320/DIY-Halloween-Costumes-Mich.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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Halloween is supposed to be scary. When I imagine <b>Michelle Obama</b> getting mad, I feel like I’m about to shit my pants and then pass out. The first time I saw a picture of her, I was simultaneously shocked and amazed, as if I had just seen a public execution. Michelle Obama is just so, so, so much woman. Those biceps. That Harvard degree. It is truly terrifying. </div>
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<b>How to Make Your Own Michelle Obama Costume in Three Easy Steps</b><br />
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1.) Before you get too creative with this, the first thing you need to do is master the regular things that people notice about Michelle Obama. Michelle is one of the most fashionable first ladies in history. That’s a tough gig to pull off. Your outfits should be able to make people respect you, but also make them salivate at the same damn time. So for this costume, I would suggest picking out something that you may have worn to your grandmother’s 80th birthday party, where you may or may not have convinced your cousin’s boyfriend to eat you out in the back room. </div>
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Great. So now you want to add some extra effects. Find something cheap or old that you won’t mind ripping apart. You could tear a few seams open and fray the fabric in a few places to give it more of that “Hulk” vibe that’s so defining of her character. Also note that all first ladies love to wear pearls, so be sure to wear any pearl jewelry that you have. </div>
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2.) Next you have to build your Obama arms. These arms have received a lot of press over the past four years, so make sure you give this part of your costume all of the attention that it deserves. One of the easiest arm-building strategies I found was to use a shit load of socks. I happened to have these thigh-high knitted socks just lying around, but you could also use cheap spandex tights, or an old polyester shirt. You just want to make sure you’re choosing a material that will stretch and conform to the shape you give it.
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So once you put on your arm-tubes, just start shoving all of the socks that you own into the top opening near your shoulders. It’s going to look really fucked up at first, but keep molding and kneading the socks until you look like a body builder. </div>
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3.) Finally—and most importantly—is the mask. The Michelle mask is going to bring the whole ensemble together. Making masks is the easiest fucking thing in the world. You do not have to go to a costume store and spend 50 dollars on a shitty mold of plastic that will make your face sweat and smell like condoms. Just go onto Google Images and search whatever it is you want to make a mask of—which in this case is Michelle Obama—print it out, and then poke out holes for your eyes. </div>
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I like using string to attach the mask to my head, because it’s more malleable than, say, an elastic headband or a staple gun. </div>
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Thanks: <b>http://www.vice.com/read/diy-halloween-costumes-michelle-obama</b>
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Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-10041212254723434532012-10-04T02:17:00.001-07:002012-10-04T02:17:53.247-07:00Hotel Transylvania Review<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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The film tells a story of Dracula, the owner of <b>Hotel Transylvania</b>, where the world's monsters can take a rest from human civilization. <b>Dracula </b>invites some of the most famous monsters, including Frankenstein's monster, Mummy, a Werewolf family, and the Invisible Man, to celebrate the 118th birthday of his daughter Mavis. When the hotel is unexpectedly visited by an ordinary young traveler named Jonathan, Dracula must protect Mavis from falling in love with him before it is too late.</div>
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<b>Dracula </b>(voiced by Adam Sandler) is the owner and creator of <b>Hotel Transylvania</b>, a five-star resort where the world's monsters can be safe from human civilization. Dracula invites some of the most famous monsters like Frankenstein's Monster (Kevin James) and his wife Eunice (Fran Drescher), Murray the Mummy (Cee Lo Green), Wayne and Wanda Werewolf (Steve Buscemi and Molly Shannon), Griffin the Invisible Man (David Spade), Bigfoot, The Blob, and other monsters to celebrate the 118th birthday of his daughter Mavis (voiced by Selena Gomez). However, Mavis prefers to explore the outside world with her father's permission, but the village he directs her to is actually an elaborate deception to convince her of the threat of humans enough to coax her back.</div>
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<a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img alt="HotelTransylvania" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWU3wP9Mya3CqVUvLTfM0XJVpiujcPakd_91NrwFILIPOleRy-Co1vbWP9bR4GnJm4kZs4-8TTyVpvo4L9yF8nDViWTM85zmBaABhgsKq5armJavbnFw9LHFzctIVBy56E1ziBct5G8zgf/s400/HotelTransylvania.jpg" title="HotelTransylvania" width="400" /></a></div>
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However, this charade inadvertently attracts the attention of an ordinary young traveler named Jonathan (voiced by Andy Samberg) who was exploring the surrounding forest and he follows the staff to the hotel. Once Jonathan enters the hotel, Dracula frantically attempts to hide him from the patrons such as disguising him as a Flesh Golem named Johhny-stein with the later hasty cover story of being a relative of one of Frank's body parts. Eventually, Jonathan is discovered by Mavis and company, forcing Dracula to claim he is going to arrange Mavis' birthday party with a young perspective. In doing so, Jonathan manages to liven up the staid activities at the hotel, charming everyone, especially Mavis. Eventually, even Dracula begins to like the human, taking him into his confidence about his family's traumatic past after the vampire notices the young man knows something about them in a respectful manner.</div>
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Unfortunately, Chef Quasimodo (Jon Lovitz) realizes Jonathan is human and captures him to cook him, forcing Dracula to directly intervene by magically paralyzing the chef. Eventually, the birthday party happens and it is a raucous success until Dracula overreacts to Mavis and Jonathan's innocent kiss. Things get worse when Chef Quasimodo interrupts the party and reveals Jonathan's true nature. Even as the clientele are revolted, Dracula, in his ranting, lets it slip that he tricked Mavis at the fake village and Mavis is outraged at being manipulated by her own father but still accepts and expresses her desire to be with Jonathan even though he is human. For his part, Jonathan feels obliged to reject Mavis for her father's sake and leaves the hotel. Afterward, Dracula realizes that in his efforts to protect Mavis, he has broken her heart and now she tearfully wants to stay at the hotel forever.</div>
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Wishing to undo his mistake, Dracula persuades his friends to help him find Jonathan and even risks his destruction by venturing out in the daylight to do so. Learning that Jonathan is about to board a flight out of Transylvania Airport shortly, they race on and enter a town en route. At that town, Dracula and company are stunned to see the humans celebrating a monster holiday with many humans costumed as the monsters in tribute. To clear a path, Frankenstein tries to scare them, but finds the humans are cheerfully welcoming them instead and even provide a shaded route through the town for Dracula to proceed at maximum speed.</div>
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However, <b>Dracula </b>finds that he is too late with Jonathan's plane taking off. With no alternative, Dracula desperatly flies after it in broad daylight despite being hurt by the sun. With much effort, Dracula manages to reach the plane and resorts to mind-controlling one of the pilots (Brian Stack) to apologize and tell Jonathan that he wants him to return to be with his daughter. Jonathan accepts Dracula's apology and Dracula manipulates the plane back to the airport.</div>
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Later, Dracula returns Jonathan to Mavis, who tells her that she's his 'zing' and the reason why he had to reject her. Dracula gives his blessing to their relationship, Jonathan and Mavis kiss and the hotel has another party to celebrate his daughter's liberating coming of age before Jonathan and Mavis set off on their travels.</div>
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The film ends with Dracula and his friends being shown in Traditional animation during the credits.</div>
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Thanks : wikipedia </div>
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Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-41011870113812750532012-08-06T22:02:00.000-07:002012-08-06T22:02:38.411-07:00Obama congratulate NASA for Mars hallway<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">President Barack <b style="color: magenta;">Obama </b>says <b style="color: magenta;">NASA</b>'s successful mission to put a robotic rover on <b style="color: magenta;">Mars </b>is an "unprecedented feat of technology."<br />
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In a statement issued Monday shortly after the rover Curiosity landed, Obama said "Tonight, on the planet <b style="color: magenta;">Mars</b>, the United States of America made history."<br />
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He says the feat, which gives the space agency a much-needed boost, proves that even the longest odds are no match for American ingenuity and determination.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img alt="Obama praises NASA for Mars landing" border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhTC-5Wlhjyvp1qaUxaE6Z-yZTC5W4ceOPNT8eBuK25yGmtfPkJeblRDDRmTyMhd9Z3Fu5Kduv374RYcM67t1bc5UbOftor_o7AqzD6BHM8M35RWW5GHKpmhnC4e5LLTJ5LbMdVRZuKydUo/s320/Obama-praises-NASA-for-Mars.jpg" title="Obama praises NASA for Mars landing" width="400" /></a></div><br />
The president says the mission, which cost taxpayers $2.5 billion, shows that American preeminence "depends on continuing to invest wisely in the innovation, technology, and basic research that has always made our economy the envy of the world."<br />
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Obama also congratulated the <a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/search/label/NASA"><b style="color: magenta;">NASA </b></a>workers "who made this remarkable accomplishment a reality."</div><div style="color: orange; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="color: orange;">Thanks:</span> http://www.wandtv.com/story/19201688/obama-praises-nasa-for-mars-landing</b></div></div>Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-51983914995639614532012-08-04T02:56:00.000-07:002012-08-04T02:56:36.188-07:00Ice Age: Continental Drift Review<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><b style="color: magenta;">Ice Age: Continental Drift </b>(also known as <b style="color: magenta;">Ice Age 4</b>: Continental Drift or simply as Ice Age 4) is a 2012 American <b style="color: magenta;">3-D</b> computer-animated adventure/comedy film directed by Steve Martino and Mike Thurmeier, starring the voices of Ray Romano, John Leguizamo, Denis Leary, Queen Latifah, Seann William Scott, Josh Peck, Keke Palmer, Chris Wedge, Peter Dinklage, Jennifer Lopez, Wanda Sykes, Drake and Nicki Minaj.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img alt="Ice Age: Continental Drift Review" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjscSp_h23qlDVz0RHlEzckxGQmaoWnpwM2jLe8CPQFvM66qCuGumU8n33GgtW2qcy7UDYR-C8f3Z1IG6rShHUKzdCPvoqZVE6jE5_DWpcWKUxCRLaXnWpjta8u4TGsHJc_IOqVKZiGgN-G/s320/Ice-Age-Continental-Drift.jpg" title="Ice Age: Continental Drift Review" width="300" /></a></div><br />
It is the fourth installment of the Ice Age series, being produced by Blue Sky Studios and distributed by 20th Century Fox, and the first sequel not to be directed by Carlos Saldanha.It was the second Ice Age installment that utilises Digital 3D. It was released in the US on July 13, 2012, three to six years after its predecessors The Meltdown and Dawn of the Dinosaurs, and ten years after the release of the original Ice Age. This was the first Ice Age film to be shot in the 2.39:1 aspect ratio.<br />
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Despite receiving a mixed reaction from critics, the film became a box office hit, currently the 11th highest-grossing animated feature in history, with a worldwide gross of $653 million.<br />
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Story</b></u><br />
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As in the previous films, the protagonists are the mammoth Manny, the sloth Sid, the saber-toothed cat Diego, and, in a parallel storyline, the saber-toothed squirrel Scrat. Scrat's hunt for acorns triggers the break-up of the Pangaea landmass into the continents as we know them today. In the meantime, Manny and his wife Ellie deal with their teenage daughter Peaches who has a crush on Ethan. Peaches' best friend, a molehog named Louis, appears to have a crush on her. Sid's family(who had abandoned him), appear to have been looking for him, but it is revealed that they only want to leave Sid's annoying Granny with him and leave him again, leaving Sid to wonder whether his family loves him or not. When Manny catches Peaches hanging with Ethan after he told her not to, Manny and Peaches argue, then fall out. Soon after, the breakup of the continent separates Manny from his family. Manny gets stuck on a floating ice raft with Sid, Diego and Granny. A large moving landmass drives Ellie, Peaches, Crash and Eddie, Louis, Ethan, and a herd of other animals towards a land bridge, where Manny had told them to go.<br />
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Meanwhile, Scrat, also lost at sea, comes across an island and runs when he sees a skeleton. He then finds an acorn-shaped map, which leads to a mysterious acorn-filled island. Scrat decides to follow the map and find the island. As he begins his journey, he is captured by a gang of animal pirates on a large ship-shaped iceberg, who are sailing the oceans.<br />
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Manny and his friends are also captured by the pirate gang, led by a Gigantopithecus named Gutt. Gutt and the pirate gang attempt to shanghai Manny, telling him to forget his family and former life and join the pirates, but he refuses. Gutt takes this as an insult, and attempts to make the herd walk the plank, but they (along with Scrat, who continues his journey) manage to escape, in the process destroying the pirate ship. They rescue the female pirate saber-toothed cat Shira, who had been left behind by the pirates.<br />
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The group reaches an island and encounters a group of hyraxes, as well as the pirates, who are building a new ice ship elsewhere on the same island. The herd plan to steal the ship and use it to get home. The next morning, as the herd is preparing their plan, Shira escapes and rejoins the pirates, but gets choked and threatened to be killed by Gutt, after Gutt realizes that she had not attacked them but she had tricked Gutt into saving Manny and the herd. The herd, along with the hyraxes, overtake the new ice ship and, with some help from Shira, sail away. Gutt, in anger, quickly turns a new iceberg into a ship, propelled by narwhals, and chases Manny's gang, determined to get revenge.<br />
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Meanwhile, Peaches has been still hanging with Ethan and a group of teenage mammoths, but after realizing that they don't care about the danger and thinking that being a best friend with a molehog is ridiculous, she leaves them and returns to Louis. But by then, Louis has become convinced that Peaches doesn't consider him a friend after she told Ethan and his friends that they weren't friends. When Ellie, Peaches, Louis, Crash and Eddie reach the land bridge, they find it to be destroyed. Meanwhile, Manny, Sid, Granny and Diego encounter sirens, depicted as sharp-toothed creatures who take the shape of loved ones and attempt to lure the sailors. Fortunately, Manny realizes this and manages to steer the ship away from the sirens. Later, Scrat meets a siren, which uses the shape of his former girlfriend from the third film, Scratte, to attempt to lure him. Scrat blows a raspberry and ignores it, however the siren takes the shape of an acorn, causing Scrat to get hype and hug it. The siren changes back and attacks Scrat, but he is able to get away.<br />
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The next morning, Manny, Sid, Diego and Granny finally reach home, but, much to their horror, find out that Gutt and his pirate gang had beaten them to it and captured Ellie and Peaches. Manny attempts to turn himself in to Gutt in exchange for releasing his family, but Gutt doesn't keep his side of the bargain and prepares to kill the family. Louis, Crash and Eddie, come to their rescue, starting a battle, during which Peaches saves Manny, Diego distracts Gutt , and Sid and Granny are saved by Granny's presumed imaginary pet Precious, a gigantic Livyatan melvillei, defeating the pirates by spraying them after Sid blocks her blowhole. Shira tries to save Ellie but she is hurt by Gutt, as the heroes are about to escape,Manny realizes he left Ellie in the sinking ship with Gutt goes on to kill her. Whoever Peaches uses her abilities as half possum to save Ellie. But when Manny saves them from the sinking ship, Gutt attacks, making them engage in a final fight atop a ice raft. Manny manages to defeat him with his heavy body and using a log as a bat to smack Gutt far away. However he falls from the ice raft, but he is saved by Sid, Granny, and Precious. Manny then arrives in time to pick up the other animals including Ethan's gang, who are caught between the moving landmass and the ocean at the location where the land bridge once existed. Meanwhile, Gutt is killed when he ends up being tricked and devoured by a siren, taking on the shape of a female of his species. After sailing over the ocean, the herd and all the animals find another continent (where the hyraxes have gone, too) which they accept as their new home. Manny and Peaches reconcile, Manny finally admits that Sid is not the screw-up after all, Sid fixes Granny's problem of having no teeth, Diego and Shira become a couple, and Louis is finally allowed to be with Peaches whenever she hangs out with Ethan's gang.<br />
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The film ends with Scrat finally reaching the island on the map, Scratlantis (a Scrat version of Atlantis); a floating city filled with other sabre-toothed squirrels and nuts. However, Scrat, due to his nut obsession, grabs many nuts in a frenzy and eventually attempts to grab a giant one blocking a hole. He grabs it, despite the sabre-toothed squirrel leader's warnings, causing the city to sink to the bottom of the ocean, leaving Scrat in the middle of a desert in North America. Scrat's eyes burn, and he screams in pain and frustration. During the credits Manny, Sid, Diego, Ellie, Crash and Eddie, Peaches, Louis, and the whole gang dance to "We Are Family".</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><br />
</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Thanks: <span style="color: orange;">Wikipedia</span></b></div></div>Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-8340266783714464832012-08-03T03:21:00.000-07:002012-08-03T03:21:12.932-07:00Romney assure tax free for Olympians<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">In a country riven by taxation discord, Republican <a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/search/label/White%20House"><b style="color: magenta;">White House</b></a> hopeful <b style="color: magenta;">Mitt Romney</b> has hit on a populist measure that is a sure-fire winner: tax relief for US Olympians on the medals they win.<br />
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Some Republicans, including possible Romney running-mate Senator Marco Rubio, had already spoken out against the little-noticed element in the tax code that taxes athletes for bringing home gold, silver or bronze.<br />
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Yesterday a senior Romney adviser said the presumptive Republican nominee challenging <b style="color: magenta;">President Barack Obama</b> for the White House in November was also against the policy.<br />
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Romney headed the 2002 Winter Games in Salt Lake City, and "he believes that there should be no taxation of the type that you're describing," advisor Eric Fehrnstrom told reporters.<br />
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Romney is a multimillionaire former businessman and investor, and advocates significant tax cuts for individuals and corporations and simplification of the tax code.<br />
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The comments come a day after Rubio introduced the Olympic Tax Elimination Act in the Senate. Republicans and Democrats reportedly introduced similar legislation in the House.<br />
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"Our tax code is a complicated and burdensome mess that too often punishes success, and the tax imposed on Olympic medal winners is a classic example of this madness," said Rubio.<br />
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"Athletes representing our nation overseas in the Olympics shouldn't have to worry about an extra tax bill waiting for them back home."<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img alt="Romney assure tax free for Olympians" border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH-0AaokH4KVvc-COV9OK_5BBg2VFGWIVyXHqIuDO8-QzaHTOwOY8h7NVeBUTmmwTB6OvUUqFz97NxqeX_fmIc_oBVlhLAWg_bW0ugcuRHd90G7kskhl6cbTNFyw96Meo0KqjE8eit1GA4/s320/Romney-assure-tax-free-for-.jpg" title="Romney assure tax free for Olympians" width="400" /></a></div><br />
The legislation follows a report by the conservative group Americans for Tax Reform (ATR), which warned that athletes could be required to pay up to US$9,000 in taxes to the Internal Revenue Service for each gold medal.<br />
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That's not just for the medal itself; the US Olympic Organising Committee awards US$25,000 to gold medal winners, US$15,000 for silver and US$10,000 for bronze.<br />
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Fact-checker group PolitiFact rated the ATR report as "mostly false," arguing that most athletes are not huge earners like swimmer <b style="color: magenta;">Michael Phelps</b> and would not be subject to high tax rates, and that they could also deduct their training expenses, which often amount to several thousand dollars per year, from their income.<br />
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US lawmakers are currently locked in a fierce tax debate.<br />
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Republicans, including Romney, want tax cuts from the era of former president <b style="color: magenta;">George W Bush</b> extended for another year for everyone, while Obama and Democrats want the tax breaks extended only for families making under US$250,000, meaning wealthier Americans would see their taxes rise in 2013.<br />
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<span style="color: orange;">Thanks:</span> http://www.jamaicaobserver.com/news/Romney-promises-tax-relief-for-Olympians_12146136</b><br />
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</div></div>Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-80193042178403633242012-07-26T04:49:00.000-07:002012-07-26T04:49:19.576-07:00The Dark Knight Rises 2012 Review<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><b style="color: magenta;">The </b><b style="color: magenta;">Dark Knight Rises</b> is a superhero film released in 2012 by Warner Bros. It is directed by Christopher Nolan, who co-wrote the screenplay with his brother Jonathan Nolan and the story with David S. Goyer. featuring the DC Comics character Batman, the film is the third and final installment in Nolan's Batman film trilogy, and is a sequel to Batman Begins (2005) and The Dark Knight (2008). Christian Bale reprises the lead role of Bruce Wayne/Batman, with a returning cast of Michael Caine as Alfred Pennyworth, Gary Oldman as James Gordon, Morgan Freeman as Lucius Fox, and Cillian Murphy as Dr. Jonathan Crane. The film introduces the character of Selina Kyle, played by Anne Hathaway,[4] a cat burglar whose appearance in Gotham City sets in motion a chain of events that will lead Batman to come out of retirement, and Bane, played by Tom Hardy, the story's antagonist.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img alt="The Dark Knight Rises 2012" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKdqIPfv46caI6hx1MK290IfeTtotPGdXp2c4Mn4onBxuwtnJuYKtFnF7z9udexONXd-luWOn5yIG3FDEhlLKfLko-m9HuFxp_sOK_LqDCBeJsZBo-wYTL3tlMsLsamFZKXTwWg6zYO9yU/s320/Dark-knight-rises.jpg" title="The Dark Knight Rises 2012" width="300" /></a></div><br />
Christopher Nolan was initially hesitant about returning to the series for a third time, but agreed to come back after developing a story with his brother and Goyer that he felt would conclude the series on a satisfactory note.[5] Nolan drew inspiration from Bane's comic book debut in the 1993 Knightfall storyline, the 1986 series The Dark Knight Returns, and the 1999 storyline No Man's Land. Filming took place in various locations, including Jodhpur, London, Nottingham, Glasgow, Los Angeles, New York City, Newark, and Pittsburgh. Nolan utilized IMAX cameras for much of the filming to optimize the quality of the picture. As with The Dark Knight, viral marketing campaigns began early during production to help promote the upcoming film. When filming concluded, Warner Bros. refocused its campaign; developing promotional websites, releasing the first six minutes of the film and theatrical trailers, and sending random pieces of information regarding the film's plot to various companies.<br />
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<a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/search/label/The%20Dark%20Knight%20Rises"><b style="color: magenta;">The Dark Knight Rises</b></a> premiered in New York City on July 16, 2012.The film was released in Australia and New Zealand on July 19, 2012, and in North America and the United Kingdom on July 20, 2012 to mostly positive reviews. During a midnight showing of the film in Aurora, Colorado, a gunman opened fire inside the theater, killing 12 people and injuring 58 others, leading to international news coverage.<br />
<div style="color: blue;"><u><br />
</u></div><div style="color: blue;"><u><b>Story</b></u></div><br />
Eight years after the events of The Dark Knight, Gotham City is in a state of peace. Under powers granted by the Dent Act, Commissioner James Gordon has nearly eradicated violent and organized crime. Gordon feels guilty about the cover-up of Harvey Dent's crimes, but decides that the city is not ready to hear the truth. While following a lead in the abduction of a congressional representative, Gordon's speech falls into the hands of the villain Bane, who discovers the truth about Dent. Gordon is shot in the process of escaping and promotes patrol officer John Blake to detective, allowing Blake to report directly to him in hospital.<br />
<br />
As <b style="color: magenta;">Batman </b>has disappeared from Gotham, so too has Bruce Wayne, locking himself inside Wayne Manor. Wayne Enterprises is crumbling after he invested in board member Miranda Tate's clean energy project, designed to harness fusion power, and shut it down after learning that the core could be modified to become a nuclear weapon. Both Blake—who has deduced Batman's identity—and Gordon implore Batman to return. Bane attacks the stock exchange and bankrupts Bruce, forcing him to relinquish control of Wayne Enterprises. Correctly suspecting that his business rival, John Daggett, employed Bane to aid in this aggressive take-over of his company, Wayne entrusts Tate to keep full control out of Daggett's hands. However, Bane has other plans, and kills Daggett to take control of his construction empire.<br />
<br />
Following a trail left by cat burglar Selina Kyle, Batman locates Bane, who says that he took over the League of Shadows following Ra's al Ghul's death. In the following confrontation, Bane physically cripples Batman and places him in a prison from which escape is virtually impossible. The other inmates relate the story of how Ra's al Ghul's child was the only person, through necessity and the sheer force of will, to ever escape the prison. Batman believes that the child grew up to become Bane. Meanwhile, Bane lures most of Gotham's police force underground and sets off explosions across the city, trapping the officers and turning Gotham into an isolated city-state. Any attempt to leave the city will result in the detonation of the Wayne Enterprises fusion core, now converted into a bomb. Bane publicly reveals the cover-up of Dent's death and releases the prisoners in Blackgate Prison who were prosecuted under the Dent Act. The rich and powerful are forcibly brought before a show trial presided over by Jonathan Crane and given the chocie between death and exile.<br />
<br />
Bruce recovers from his injuries and retrains himself physically. He successfully escapes the penitentiary and returns to Gotham, enlisting Kyle, Blake, Tate, Gordon and Lucius Fox to help liberate the city and stop the fusion bomb. As Batman, he subdues Bane, but Tate intervenes and reveals herself to be Talia al Ghul. It was she who escaped the prison as a child, returning with her father and the League of Shadows to rescue Bane, the one person who aided her in prison. She plans to complete her father's work by destroying Gotham while avenging his death at Wayne's hands. Gordon blocks the bomb's ability to be remotely detonated while Kyle saves Batman by shooting Bane. Batman tries to force Talia to take the bomb to the fusion chamber where it can be stabilized, but she remotely floods the chamber. Talia dies when her truck crashes off the road, but remains confident that the bomb cannot be stopped. Using an aircraft developed by Fox, Batman hauls the bomb beyond the city limits, where it detonates over the ocean and apparently kills him.<br />
<br />
<b style="color: magenta;">Batman </b>is later praised as a hero and Wayne is presumed killed in the riots. After Bruce's funeral, Blake wants to reveal Batman's identity to the world as a tribute to Bruce, but Gordon reminds him that it is best left as a mystery to the uninformed. Gordon later finds that the Bat-Signal has been repaired. The Wayne estate is divided up to cover any debts, with the manor left in the city's possession to become an orphanage and the rest going to Alfred Pennyworth. Fox discovers that Bruce programmed the autopilot on the aircraft six months before he left to face Bane and Talia. Alfred witnesses Wayne and Kyle alive together at a café in Italy, while Blake inherits the Batcave.</div><div style="color: orange; text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="color: orange;">Thanks:</span> Wikipedia</b></div></div>Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-46868941432583784282012-07-25T02:38:00.001-07:002012-07-25T02:39:24.576-07:00PM, conservative states fail to reach disability deal<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">Prime Minister <b style="color: magenta;">Julia Gillard</b> and conservative state premiers have failed to strike a deal on the launch of a National Disability Insurance Scheme.<br />
‘‘I am very disappointed that we have not been able today to strike an agreement with either NSW or Victoria or indeed Western Australia on hosting a launch site,’’ the PM told reporters in Canberra following a Council of Australian Governments meeting.<br />
Ms Gillard explained that neither NSW or Victoria had been able to provide more money for the NDIS. In a bid to break the deadlock, Disability Reform Minister Jenny Macklin and NSW and Victorian ministers will continue talks tomorrow.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img alt="conservative states fail" border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgaEvcOy85CbqNVezzW6REtG9ifykvcHC2LipwXjtsqoerMO4XIE9rcH8H2tFlwl-6QKFNMrYFee5HSFN1N8rFdWG-GD-EfLO-F06UEJACaKv4QdX8VM-QvctzARQoyP7OaHV7iTmswPJ41/s400/conservative_states_fail.jpg" title="conservative states fail " width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">The Prime Minister said she was also concerned that WA’s proposal for a launch site would hinder the development of a national scheme, as opposed to a federation of state-based schemes.<br />
<br />
But Ms Gillard says the federal government has reached an agreement with Labor-run South Australia, Tasmania and the ACT to launch the NDIS in the middle of next year.<br />
The SA site will focus on young people, the Tasmanian site will focus on adolescents and the ACT trial will involve the entire region.<br />
Ms Gillard said that each of the states had "stepped forward" and had been prepared to work with the federal government and put money on the table.<br />
She said the federal government had made $1 billion available for the launch sites.<br />
"We can learn by doing," Ms Gillard said. SA Premier Jay Weatherill called today’s decision a "very important moment" in implementing the NDIS, labelling it a "first concrete step."<br />
But the COAG outcome received stinging criticism from West Australian Premier Colin Barnett, who said today’s meeting was an "opportunity squandered" and dismissed the announced launch sites as "small scale" in "small states".<br />
Ms Gillard said she was still open to including Victoria and NSW in the launch sites.<br />
<br />
"I would want to see further trials if that's possible," she said.<br />
Proposed trials in NSW and Victoria would have benefitted 10,000 people and 5,000 people respectively, she said. <br />
<br />
Victorian Premier Ted Baillieu said he wanted to see an NDIS in place and was still keen to participate in the trial. <br />
<br />
Mr Baillieu told reporters that his state had put in a "comprehensive" bid for a trial in the Barwon region and that the federal government had responded with some suggestions this afternoon. <br />
<br />
He said it was very difficult to consider these suggestions in detail while a COAG meeting was in full swing. <br />
<br />
NSW Premier Barry O'Farrell said he continued to be optimistic about the groundbreaking proposed NDIS, but added that he was also disappointed with today's result. <br />
<br />
He said NSW had more than $550 million on the table for the first three years of the trial - slated for the Hunter region - and that his state was already doing "heavy lifting" with respect to disability reform.<br />
Ms Gillard said she had asked NSW to provide an extra $70 million dollars and for Victoria to stump up $40 million. <br />
<br />
The Prime Minister added that the federal government had in turn offered $300 million to NSW and $100 million to Victoria to participate in the test sites.<br />
Disability advocate John Della Bosca said that today's result was "good in parts". <br />
<br />
The Every Australian Counts national campaign director said that a first step in an NDIS was always going to be good news.<br />
<br />
<br />
<b><span style="color: orange;">Read more:</span> http://www.theage.com.au/opinion/political-news/pm-conservative-states-fail-to-reach-disability-deal-20120725-22pzf.html#ixzz21cpf8oVw</b></div></div>Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-38700024610754083352012-07-22T22:36:00.002-07:002012-07-22T22:37:48.900-07:00Thief Breaks Into Aishwarya Rai's Home — Was Aaradhya in peril?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">Jalsa, the Mumbai home <b style="color: magenta;">Aishwarya Rai </b>shares with her husband Abhishek, daughter <span id="goog_1391140258"></span><a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/search/label/Aaradhya"><b style="color: magenta;">Aaradhya</b></a><span id="goog_1391140259"></span>, and Abhishek's parents Jaya and Amitabh Bachchan, was broken into over the weekend. Amitabh Bachchan informed the world of the fact on his blog:<br />
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;"><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img alt="Thief Breaks Into Aishwarya Rai's Home" border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjuClr8OBDQqm3syXlvYT5ruIfQ5RxY0IG7pFOdjHIB_dTSKzCtujZ6VqAQ3rGYuQxA2m4hGH3-WGjb3Skpw8pL1uTMr9Ufz-bmpHcdXeI1dlztPwiOQ55b4SRqVyzn5zHHVbeP5Yen5A20/s320/Thief_Breaks_Into_Aishwarya.jpg" title="Thief Breaks Into Aishwarya Rai's Home" width="400" /></a></div><br />
Spent some anxious moments yesterday since we had a break in! The guy was caught and is with the police now under investigation. Seems like a professional, for he had entered the most sensitive area of the house, Jalsa. Cops and security are in over drive now. In the end nothing is secure, irrespective of how much precaution one takes.<br />
<br />
The news is somewhat unnerving, as Jalsa is one of the most secure homes in the city. It's a huge bungalow and has excellent security, and yet a burglar was still able to enter the heart of the home. Amitabh didn't give many details about where in the home the criminal was found, only referring to him having access to the "most sensitive area" of the house.<br />
<br />
Was that "sensitive area" one of the family rooms? Is it possible that a thief not only entered the house but made his way to Aishwarya and Aaradhya's rooms? Was the family in danger at any point?<br />
<br />
The details of the incident remain unclear, and <b style="color: magenta;">Amitabh </b>didn't find it necessary to remark on them in further posts. He flew to London and had nothing more to say about the break in.<br />
<br />
Obviously the security at Jalsa will have to be improved. But if a thief could break into a building as secure as Jalsa, what hope do ordinary Mumbai residents have of their safety in the city? The Bachchans should be (and no doubt are) grateful that they can afford to live so securely to begin with.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Thanks:<span style="color: orange;"> http://celebs.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474981491664</span></b></div></div>Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-70008179129695769842012-07-19T03:10:00.002-07:002012-07-19T03:13:34.190-07:00Sex, drugs and religion: How VPs are vetted<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><b style="color: magenta;">Mitt Romney</b> vowed today he will pick a running mate who believes in "conservative principles," but gave no clue on who is or isn't on his short list.<br />
<br />
The VP search led by Romney aide Beth Myers presumably is still going on, as <b style="color: magenta;">Romney </b>tries to decide on a No. 2 between now and the Republican National Convention.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img alt="Sex, drugs and religion: How VPs are vetted" border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7xfUY4hJh8SW8VQHGC6hF2uTUHdULV5Jz0Ud5KgWs04aUk6JIqg-zEfWjo3HgE3apa-dOGvFNv2fQIqXlsS_OvYSifCSavU8aK2YWl_YCehbkkOrExLZFYm_AZYBwelrs2w-0dpKuUj6k/s320/How-VPs-are-vetted.jpg" title="Sex, drugs and religion: How VPs are vetted" width="400" /></a></div><br />
Ever wonder who goes on during the vetting of a possible vice president?<br />
<br />
Jason Zengerle of GQ has a fascinating read about being vetted by Ted Frank, one of the lawyers who helped conduct background checks on John McCain's potential running mates in 2008. Frank's work included vetting Sarah Palin, who was deemed "high risk, high reward" by A.B. Culvahouse, the man in charge of McCain's VP search.<br />
<br />
GQ calls vetting a vice presidential pick "the most invasive process in politics." There are lengthy questionnaires dealing with personal finances, drug use, church attendance, foreign countries visited and the like. Interviews are said to touch on sexual encounters, fidelity, and "what if" policy situations.<br />
<br />
Former Oklahoma governor Frank Keating, who was vetted in 2000 when George W. Bush was looking for a running mate, told GQ he was asked if there was anything in his life that would make him "vulnerable to blackmail or coercion."<br />
<br />
Former Indiana senator Evan Bayh, who was on Barack Obama's short list in 2008, had to pay for some extensive medical tests to determine the diagnosis of a vexing stomach problem. "They wanted to make sure I wasn't dying," Bayh is quoted as saying.<br />
<br />
Frank also briefly assesses some of Romney's most frequently mentioned VP possibilities. The risks:<br />
<br />
Ohio Sen. Rob Portman - "His ties to President George W. Bush" and years as a lobbyist. Portman was trade representative and budget director in the Bush administration.<br />
Former Minnesota governor Tim Pawlenty - His "dozens of speeches where he might've spoken ill of Romney," whom he attacked during his brief presidential bid last year. Pawlenty once derided what he called "Obamneycare," the health care laws signed by both Obama and Romney.<br />
Louisiana Gov. Bobby Jindal - He once wrote an article for the New Oxford Review titled "Beating a Demon: Physical Dimensions of Spiritual Warfare" and attended the exorcism of a friend.<br />
<br />
As for when Romney's choice might be revealed, the candidate said at a town hall meeting in Ohio today that he still hasn't made a decision. His wife, Ann, told ABC News that it's not a done deal yet.<br />
<br />
"We are certainly talking a lot. This last week, this last weekend, there was a lot of discussion," <b style="color: magenta;"><a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/search/label/Ann%20Romney">Ann Romney</a> </b>said in the interview airing tomorrow on Good Morning America. "There was a lot of talk. We're not quite there yet. And we're going to be there soon."</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><span style="color: orange;">Thanks:</span> http://content.usatoday.com/communities/onpolitics/post/2012/07/mitt-romney-vice-president-vetting-/1#.UAfZ391Z-0s</b></div></div>Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-20103195318520861682012-07-09T22:12:00.000-07:002012-07-09T22:12:29.792-07:00Wealthy Minority revenue Equals Majority Poor Loss<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">I can hire one half of the working class to kill the other half.<br />
Jay Gould<br />
<br />
Keep you doped with religion and sex and TV<br />
A working class hero is something to be…<br />
John Lennon<br />
<br />
The robber baron and the rock and roll poet expressed sentiments about the same social reality from radically different perspectives. Profit and Loss capitalism has enabled many recipients of crumbs from the banquet tables of the rich to enjoy the applied label of middle class given them by consciousness controllers in politics and media. But present realities find the religion, sex, tv and other consumer products less available to cloud minds and fill bodies under the delusion of equality and the cruel reality spoken of by the robber baron. That reality needs to be confronted by a united class and no longer tolerated by a divided humanity, now more so than ever.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img alt="Wealthy Minority revenue Equals Majority Poor Loss" border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAGTyoypc5z1_RcoaXERPDRrchIDz8W-VGpvJxyirNl67ENjtO_J-Nc_pKOwqj7-fwiVlCvSFoaiKySs1LRsx0lFy4qYn5m94tL3W1fahVgu5Z4p5Z3jY8iG8NwQcf5fWBwcgzy1e77qGW/s400/Wealthy_Minority_Profit_Equ.jpg" title="Wealthy Minority revenue Equals Majority Poor Loss" width="400" /></a></div><br />
As the global crisis causes national book juggling on a daily basis to maintain order, and that of international banking on a near hourly schedule, it becomes more apparent that the algorithmic accountants for the rich are operating to the detriment of most members of the race. Problems supposedly at the root of a crumbling financial structure are seen by minority profiteers as government’s profligate spending on people , terrifying foreign threats that call for expanded wars , and other lies perpetuated by mind managers to cover the gross injustice that is reducing more of humanity to debt servitude and abject poverty while the planet itself is threatened in all its life support systems . This happens as shrinking segments of the population increase their enormous wealth at phenomenal speed, destroying more of the social and natural environment as they do so and patting themselves on the back for being such masterful and benign dominators of life.<br />
<br />
Creatures of no observable skills or special talents amass billions of dollars and perform no useful work at all but actually bring about cultural and ecological devastation for which they are rewarded with more tax payer dollars. Economists too dumb to see the crisis predicted by many critics still wisely advise with ancient notions of a free market religion, supply and demand curves, and the “creative destruction” which does away with what they find useless - jobs for working people – and produces more profits for what they find divine – capitalists. These servants of a religious philosophy masked as secular finance call for total assault on the public sector in a form of national masturbation; by focused obsession on the economy’s private parts. The loss of jobs bring lower employment costs for the ruling minority and higher social costs to the working majority who still have some form of incomes and pay taxes to keep rulers rich and not allow poor people to drop dead in the streets. As they expend more for weapons, consumer goods and security products to protect themselves from the alienated who are alleged to threaten them from below , they are distracted from noticing the tiny group laughing at them from above while it dumps garbage on their heads.<br />
<br />
This does not describe 19th century reality but the present condition of a 21st century rushing backward for most while the minority at the top lavishes wealth on itself by robbing humanity’s future. A fast growing universal demand for democracy is slowly changing things despite interference and misguidance from rulers and their hired help, though it must speed up if we are to have a long range future. Some among the many reasons why:<br />
<br />
The incredible arrogance of western powers, especially the U.S. and <a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/search/label/Israel"><b style="color: magenta;">Israel</b></a>, insisting that Iran suspend activities – none of which exist - to create nuclear weapons – none of which it has – while the USA, the only nation to slaughter thousands with nuclear weapons, and <b style="color: magenta;">Israel </b>, armed with hundreds of nukes which they demand remain unmentioned in a global holocaust of silence, and <a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/search/label/Iran"><b style="color: magenta;">Iran</b></a>, not Israel, calls for a nuclear free middle east. Whether dubbed colossal chutzpah, testiculo grandioso or massive balls, this combination of breathtaking gall with microscopic brains endangers most of the world, beginning with Iran and the middle east.<br />
<br />
The same imperial master race/chosen people syndicate calls a conference on the future of Syria, but neither Syria nor neighbor Iran are allowed to participate in the discussion. Does that imply elephant testicles? Dinosaur balls? Gigantic gonads? Is there any fitting trash talk to cover this kind of pinhead, pea brained dementia?<br />
<br />
Possibly so, but what can we call the urge for what is named austerity, meaning cuts in programs for the most helpless in society so that the most wealthy can make more money and possibly, hopefully, prayerfully , or when the drugs kick in, then invest in creating jobs for them? That’s if the economic witch doctors, mullahs, priests and rabbis don’t decide that creative destruction would be better, thank you. How do you make fun of this in a way that can drown out the cries of those who suffer while this madness continues? Whether they are in pain from hunger, loneliness, despair at the bombs falling on their heads, or the countless other horrors that billions suffer while millions are confused into incurring more debt and paying for war while thousands smile as their servants deposit more millions in the bank for them. And that’s not all, for the moment.<br />
<br />
Weather irregularities ranging from heat waves to cold snaps to drenching rains and foul air are written off as typical acts of nature having nothing to do with what most of science has called climate change. While this pop title may be a trivialization of the issue, most responsible investigators from what is called the scientific community – a branch of material religious faith generally more reliable than snake dancing and prayer - are treating this as a serious threat to the future of the human race, while profiteers seek ways to make money by transforming old garbage into new sewage and calling it a green revolution. Not to worry folks, private profits will take care of everything. They will entail, of course and as always , much greater losses in order to create those profits, but as long as our rulers can languish in luxury they may leisurely invest in something that will eventually bring us jobs. Like maybe another war.<br />
<br />
Prevailing wisdom seems an oxymoron as it applies to ruling power, its politicians and its media. But expanding electronic methods of selling more consumer waste have also created a contradictory method of communication that the imperial regime is trying desperately to control, but at only limited success. Past populations could be kept murdering one another and drugged by religion, sex and tv when they weren’t directly doing so, but present distractions are too numerous and fast to be totally controlled by any authority. It is trying, desperately and with bloody efficiency, as it murders with robots , entraps with technology and relies on its smaller but more faithful captive class of professional indentured servants. But the tendency of more humans to say “enough” seems apparent.<br />
<br />
The escapist ploys still available by which to keep workers killing themselves when not being captivated by media or entrapped by newer versions of religion, sex and tv are more prevalent than ever. They can go anywhere and dull minds 24 hours a day, but they are not only suitable to listen to or watch; they can also enable people to broadcast their own messages, and while most of those can seem all too personal, the tribe of humanity is using them socially and coming closer together as the problems get worse. That growing togetherness offers hope for ultimate democratic action to take control of a social environment that demands real transformation of the race and its possibilities. Working class members of the human majority don’t all need to be individual heroes but they could take social inspiration from these closing quotes. Stay tuned.<br />
<br />
“The whole idea of compassion is based on a keen awareness of the interdependence of all these living beings, which are all part of one another and all involved in one another.”<br />
-Thomas Merton<br />
<br />
An individual has not started living until he or she can rise above the narrow confines of his or her individualistic concerns to the broader concerns of all humanity.”<br />
-Martin Luther King, Jr.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;"><b style="color: orange;">Thanks</b>:<b style="color: #666666;">http://www.aljazeerah.info/Opinion%20Editorials/2012/July/9%20o/Wealthy%20Minority%20Profit%20Equals%20Majority%20Poor%20Loss%20By%20Frank%20Scott.htm</b></div></div>Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-54293464854723638482012-07-05T22:43:00.000-07:002012-07-05T22:43:41.053-07:00Magic Mike Review<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><b style="color: magenta;">Magic Mike</b> is a 2012 <a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/search/label/Movies">movie </a>directed by Steven Soderbergh, and starring Channing Tatum, Alex Pettyfer, Matthew McConaughey, Cody Horn, Olivia Munn, Joe Manganiello, and Matt Bomer. The film was released by Warner Bros. on June 29, 2012.<br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img alt="Magic Mike Review" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhgVy9Jhs1MfAFTjnq3-0JFV-tBN_NxGXTpt7_6x8KmARnJQrapiIYWTbudbUhhp8O_IBLLW26Z7sj0H65k47ZoQkZMCAHASV6PRBzR38XYcrv6UmJm4PKYctgwaTwZ8gLJHvIFQWCibQQZ/s400/Magic-Mike_movie_review.jpg" title="Magic Mike Review" width="300" /></a></div><br />
Adam (Alex Pettyfer) is a slacker who, after losing a football scholarship due to a fight with the coach, moves to Tampa, Florida to live with his sister, Brooke (Cody Horn). He gets a job at a local construction company and meets Mike Lane (Channing Tatum), who also works there as a roof tiler. However, Adam quits on his first day after the supervisor catches him stealing extra sodas. As he's trying to leave his car will not start, so Mike gives him a ride home.<br />
<br />
The following day, Adam spots Mike about to enter a popular nightclub. After some begging by Adam, Mike gets him into the club, and Adam soon learns that Mike is a stripper known as "<b style="color: magenta;">Magic Mike</b>", who works at a club called Xquisite, and that he is at the club to promote the strip show to women. Adam helps Mike in exchange for $100 and is taken backstage at Xquisite, where he meets the manager, Dallas (Matthew McConaughey) and the other dancers - Ken (Matt Bomer), Tarzan (Kevin Nash), Tito (Adam Rodríguez) and Big Dick Richie (Joe Manganiello).<br />
<br />
The club's DJ, drug dealer Tobias (Gabriel Iglesias), provides the dancers with samples of refined GHB to improve their stamina. However, Tarzan ingests too much of the drug, and is unable to perform. Mike convinces Adam to fill in for him, and Adam is a hit with the customers, earning a good amount of money. After a double date with Mike and two of the club's female clients, Adam is convinced to join the Xquisite and Mike nicknames him "The Kid".<br />
<br />
Upon returning home, Adam is lectured by Brooke for staying out all night. He introduces her to Mike, and the two seem to be attracted to one another, although Brooke initially acts uninterested. Brooke later attends Adam's first official performance, but becomes embarrassed and leaves.<br />
<br />
Mike and Brooke's attraction continues to grow in the following months, despite that Brooke is dating a man who lives in Orlando and Mike has an on-again off-again relationship with a woman named Joanna (Olivia Munn). Adam delves further into the excessive lifestyle of the Xquisite dancers, using drugs and having sexual encounters with many clients. When Dallas announces he has a plan to move their act to Miami, Mike confides in Brooke that he wants to retire from the business in the near future and has been saving money and attempting to get a small business loan to pursue his dream of opening a custom furniture business. Mike later attends a hurricane party at Dallas' house, where the dancers celebrate the move to Miami. After Dallas tells Mike that he will only receive a 7 percent share in the business, instead of the 10 percent he originally promised, Mike becomes uncomfortable and leaves.<br />
<br />
At the same hurricane party, Adam becomes part of scheme created by Tobias to sell drugs to Xquisite's clients, and is eventually given a package of ecstasy. A few days later, Mike and Adam perform for a private party at a sorority house, and Adam brings the package of drugs with him. A girl that was given an ecstasy pill by Adam becomes ill, causing a brawl between Adam and the girl's boyfriend. Mike and Adam are forced to flee the scene, with Adam being unable to retrieve the package of pills. He tells Mike it's no big deal because the drugs were only worth $1,000. After cleaning up, the two go to Ybor City, where Mike sees Joanna in a restaurant having dinner with a man and, after confronting her, learns the man is her fiance. Later, at Xquisite, Dallas is infuriated to learn Mike didn't collect payment for the private show before the fight occurred. During the heated discussion, Mike confronts Dallas about the reduced profit sharing, which leads to a falling out between the two men. While they are arguing, Adam admits to Tobias he lost the drugs he was given.<br />
<br />
After that night's show at the club is finished, Mike and Adam go to a club. Mike brings home a girl he meets there, and Adam meets up with a party girl named Nora (Riley Keough) whom he originally met at Dallas' party and brings her back to Mike's house, nearly overdosing on Nora's drugs before being found by a worried Brooke the next morning. Brooke angrily confronts Mike and accuses him of failing to protect her brother as he promised and ends her friendship with him. Later on, Tobias' suppliers break into Mike's house looking for Adam, who owes them money for the lost drugs. Realizing Adam lied to him about the drugs' worth, Mike gives them $10,000 - the majority of his savings - to pay Adam's debt. Later that day, Mike goes to Brooke's apartment looking for Adam. She tells him that Adam no longer lives there and she believes he has moved in with Nora. She reveals to him that she thinks it's a mistake for the two of them to go to Miami, with Mike telling her that being a stripper is not who he is, and the reason he is going to Miami is so that he will someday be able to leave that lifestyle entirely, asking Brooke to believe him. Brooke tells Mike that she wonders if he, himself, really believes it.<br />
<br />
A short time later, during the dancers' final Tampa performance at Xquisite, Mike decides he's had enough. Pretending he needs to use the restroom, he instead leaves through the club's exit and drives away in his truck, effectively quitting. After deciding Mike isn't coming back, Dallas invites Adam to replace Mike as the frontman of the dancers. After leaving, Mike goes to Brooke's apartment. He tells her that he has quit and isn't going to Miami. He apologizes to her for not protecting Adam better. She then tells Mike that after he left her apartment earlier, Adam called her to tell her that Mike had paid off the drug dealers for him. She also tells him she has broken up with her boyfriend in Orlando. They forgive each other, admit their mutual attraction, and decide to begin a relationship.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b style="color: orange;">Thanks: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magic_Mike</b></div></div>Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-61300293211077710062012-07-05T05:03:00.000-07:002012-07-05T05:03:30.788-07:00Obama seeks to rev up blue-collar electorates with Ohio bus journey<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">Buoyed by a victory over healthcare reform but stung by poor economic data, President <b style="color: magenta;">Barack Obama</b> will try to rev up his re-election campaign on Thursday with a bus tour designed to appeal to struggling blue-collar workers in key battleground states.<br />
<br />
Obama will spend two days visiting cities in Ohio and Pennsylvania, states that could prove critical to his ability to garner the number of electoral votes needed to beat Republican <a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/search/label/Mitt%20Romney"><b style="color: magenta;">Mitt Romney</b> </a>in the November 6 election.<br />
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The president, a Democrat, is launching his first bus tour of the 2012 campaign against a backdrop of mixed poll numbers, fundraising challenges, and outside threats to an economy that could derail his chances of re-election.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img alt="Obama seeks to rev up blue-collar electorates with Ohio bus journey" border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjSrfJ_LY104U_mzT64RL7jwkY54KKQnVLjo8TqxfPnk3DiV7My3itSa3cUqP2SWC-qkvOG4AlF9atvX0QbzfiiFepgIAPYqHRh_4w0om2thx01lmCM2kNJ7pIt-8KtiPl38HY6B8-9zDc/s400/Obama_seeks_to_rev_up_blue-.jpg" title="Obama seeks to rev up blue-collar electorates with Ohio bus journey" width="400" /></a></div><br />
An average of polls by RealClearPolitics shows the president ahead of his Republican rival by a tight 2.6 percentage points in Ohio and nationwide.<br />
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Obama is polling particularly well with women and Hispanics across the country, but working-class men are up for grabs. The Ohio trip seemed aimed at least in part at shoring up support in that demographic.<br />
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"It's a race for blue-collar men," said Democratic strategist Bud Jackson, noting that that group was especially affected by the sluggish economy and especially receptive to negative campaign messaging that the president has failed to turn around the economy.<br />
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"The ability of the president to win over blue-collar men is more tied to the reality of the moment: are jobs being created and do people feel more optimistic? For him, the proof is somewhat in the pudding."<br />
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This may not be the best week to find that proof.<br />
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Data released on Monday showed U.S. manufacturing activity contracted in June for the first time in nearly three years, and monthly jobless figures on Friday are expected to show unemployment unchanged at 8.2 percent.<br />
<br />
<b style="color: magenta;">Obama </b>got a political bump from the Supreme Court's decision last week to uphold his healthcare law, but economic uncertainty in Europe and at home remain a major vulnerability. Romney is pressing his case hard that the president has not done enough to boost the economy.<br />
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<b style="color: magenta;">Obama </b>frequently stresses that the economy is not improving rapidly enough while emphasizing that his policies helped avoid another recession and saved the U.S. auto industry from extinction.<br />
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Ohio, one of the biggest prizes of the presidential election, is a prime place to test that message. A campaign official noted that the northwest part of the state and the western part of Pennsylvania were good examples of places where the economy had begun to recover and local employers were starting to hire again.<br />
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"The president will talk about his commitment to investing in American workers and creating jobs at home and the fundamental challenge we are facing in this country — the future of the middle class," said campaign spokeswoman Jen Psaki.<br />
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Ohio's unemployment rate is below the national average, falling to 7.3 percent in May, and the <b style="color: magenta;">Obama</b> campaign notes that it has fallen 3 percentage points since Obama took office.<br />
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Part of that drop is thanks to Obama's bailout of the automobile industry, the campaign argues, resulting in investment from U.S. automakers in the greater Toledo area. Obama will make stops there.<br />
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"It's an automotive outreach," said Kenneth Sherrill, a political science expert at New York's Hunter College.<br />
<br />
"Basically, it's outreach to people who voted for him last time around. What he wants to do is to mobilize them again and to reinforce their loyalty: 'I still care about you, I still like you, and you should like me, too.' It's to try to prevent defections."</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b style="color: orange;">Thanks: http://in.reuters.com/article/2012/07/05/us-usa-politics-obama-idINBRE86405820120705</b></div></div>Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-67703160346504681062012-07-04T02:44:00.000-07:002012-07-04T02:44:19.168-07:00Michelle Obama: “All This Just For a Flag”<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">The internet was buzzing this week with video of First Lady <b style="color: magenta;">Michelle Obama</b> apparently showing extreme disrespect to the American flag at a ceremony in honor of the victims of the September 11, 2001 terror attacks. As police and firefighters fold the flag to the sound of marching bagpipers, a skeptical looking Mrs. <b style="color: magenta;">Obama </b>leans to her husband and appears to say, “all this just for a flag.” She then purses her lips and shakes her head slightly as Mr. Obama nods. <br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img alt="Michelle Obama: “All This Just For a Flag”" border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizsBfq1McuWfAglMBws7d5IL47iEQw9wy6ZmIpf_jKL8rBrY-NgpFbmnhxfIq6ugwH1Aw8vzT1vFmk3ZnYiuedRQwGL6qaDgkXLuPXZUrL0cao7Hfi1oV7RXapm-CQYX19nvTZxkC-QNJg/s400/Michelle-Obama-All-This-Jus.jpg" title="Michelle Obama: “All This Just For a Flag”" width="400" /></a></div><br />
Just for a flag? If that is what she said it is regrettable. Even with all her years being around those who hold high public office Mrs. <b style="color: magenta;">Obama </b>does not seem to understand the purpose and importance of ceremonies. They reaffirm the bonds of loyalty and fellowship that cement our national unity. Yes, at one level a flag is just a colorful piece of cloth. But it symbolizes much more. It is the emblem of our land and all its ideals. It has been present at every major event of any importance to the country, battles, celebrations, meetings, and the lunar landings. It is a symbol of unity that transcends party, faction and time. It is something uniquely and explicitly American. Men and women have fought and died for it. Our enemies hate us for it and burn it in the streets. All that should mean something. <br />
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Perhaps Mrs. <a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/search/label/Obama"><b style="color: magenta;">Obama </b></a>thinks that all the pomp and circumstance she experiences in her daily life has something to do with her, rather than the unofficial office she holds. If so she should disabuse herself of that notion quickly. The official gestures of respect shown to her are the same shown to any First Lady, and if she wasn’t married to the president she would be just another citizen. Ruffles and flourishes are not hers by right, but by coincidence of marriage. Yet this is the same woman who said she had never in her adult life been really proud of America before her husband ran for president, so it is no wonder she might dismiss a flag ceremony as just so much nonsense. <br />
<br />
All this just for a flag? Has anyone said, “All this just for Michelle Obama?”</div><div style="color: orange; text-align: justify;"><b><br />
</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b style="color: orange;">Thanks: http://www.washingtontimes.com/blog/robbins-report/2011/sep/13/michelle-obama-all-just-flag/</b></div></div>Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-21172585293718164402012-07-04T02:15:00.001-07:002012-07-04T02:16:20.957-07:00Why is Aishwarya Rai not viewing baby Aaradhya to the Public?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><b style="color: magenta;">Abhishek Bachchan </b>explains why he and <b style="color: magenta;">Aishwarya Rai</b> are not showing their baby <a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/search/label/Aaradhya"><b style="color: magenta;">Aaradhya </b></a>to the media<br />
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Everyone is curious to see Aishwarya Rai and Abhishek Bachchan’s seven-month-old daughter Aaradhya, but the duo have been concealing the little one from the media. Abhishek explains why?<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img alt="Why is Aishwarya Rai not viewing baby Aaradhya to the Public?" border="0" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiTYiOVzB1Y-nJ4peNsqd2AH2xA8uo6vk2qM-bLdZIrRrZx8s1D4iWHGKpl5Jci7ghSftTyjXtOwzRNpARyhFyP8Y89ywTp723sMAcVEIBz5Pm5_i8DTiLMiMOXT1R6rDe8OXWmJnQyMni3/s320/Why_is_Aishwarya-Rai_not_sh.jpg" title="Why is Aishwarya Rai not viewing baby Aaradhya to the Public?" width="300" /></a></div><br />
When a blurry snap shot of a baby’s eyes goes viral on the web, one can understand the curiosity surrounding the child. So it could be that <b style="color: magenta;">Aishwarya Rai</b> has been fervently protecting her baby from the blinding strobelights of the hawkish paparazzi, lest the little one is scared.<br />
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Warding off the suggestion that they are being overprotective about Aaradhya, Abhishek recently said that he doesn’t want to “show off” his daughter to the world.<br />
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“I am not comfortable with that, I don't need to show her off. She is not an item that she has to be put up to display. She is a child and Aishwarya and I would like her to grow up as normal as possible. I do understand that her parents and grandparents (Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan) are public figures but she is not yet and let her enjoy that. I have grown up in this industry and have been in this position so I understand the curiosity,” Abhishek Bachchan told reporters.<br />
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And even as the world has yet to see the first full glimpse of Aaradhya, grandpa <b style="color: magenta;">Amitabh Bachchan</b> is enjoying playing with the little one.<br />
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“Ever realized playing with the 'little one' for just a few minutes could be equivalent to an entire two hour workout in the gym! Child is the father of man,” Big B recently wrote on his blog.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"></div><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;"><b style="color: orange;">Thanks: http://www.apunkachoice.com/content/article/sid100010237-revealed_why_is_aishwarya_rai_not_showing_baby_aaradhya_to_the_world/</b></div></div>Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-35578861673022954942012-07-02T22:27:00.000-07:002012-07-02T22:27:55.055-07:00Can Iran shut down the Strait of Hormuz?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">The last time Iran tried to close the <b style="color: magenta;">Strait of Hormuz</b>, the trade artery linking the oil-rich Gulf states to the outside world, the Revolutionary Guards had only a few rubber dinghies and primitive mines to achieve their goals. Next time, they will be far better prepared.<br />
<br />
For the ayatollahs, the <b style="color: magenta;">Strait of Hormuz</b>, which lies between Iran and the tiny sheikdoms of the Gulf, has become a national obsession in their long-standing confrontation with the West. They know that, for all their long-held nuclear ambitions, they will never be able to match America’s military supremacy. Even if they were to develop the know-how to fit a nuclear warhead to a ballistic missile, the odds are that the weapon would be shot down the moment it left its launch pad by one of the hundreds of anti-missile batteries the US has deployed around the Gulf region in anticipation of just such an eventuality.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img alt="Can Iran shut down the Strait of Hormuz? " border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhdLN5VcK-HpqF9nbQsAb1XVlCdyqpvFrQz_F7FqczY5532eY2zxyQuMQQhJt_bOW61o8Ssjt0za7brYXtGhU7FYa7BD53MCzFG2BOtWHdkZAE7DEzSmuP6dIPirzkf4TlSAMYM_D-Px2TH/s400/Can_Iran_close_down_the_Str.jpg" title="Can Iran shut down the Strait of Hormuz? " width="400" /></a></div><br />
So far as the ayatollahs are concerned, a far more effective way of attacking the West would be to place a stranglehold on their economies. As General Sir David Richards, the head of Britain’s Armed Forces, commented at the end of last year, that the biggest threat facing Britain is the parlous state of its economy. And the economies of Britain and the other major developed powers would be thrown into chaos if the Iranians carried out their threat to close the Strait of Hormuz.<br />
<br />
The free and uninterrupted passage of trade through this narrow passage of water is comparable to the importance of the English Channel in sustaining the prosperity of Europe, a status that is enshrined in the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea. On average, 14 crude oil tankers pass through the Strait each day carrying an estimated 17 million barrels, more than a third of the world’s seaborne oil shipments. In addition, it has become a vital conduit for tankers carrying liquefied natural gas from states such as Qatar, as the Western economies become ever more dependent on gas for their energy needs. <br />
<br />
At a time when tensions over Iran’s nuclear programme are reaching crisis point, it was almost inevitable that Tehran should start making ominous noises about closing the Strait if the US and its European allies follow through on their threat to impose wide-ranging sanctions on Iran’s oil industry.<br />
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Oil revenues make up around 80 per cent of Iran’s foreign currency earnings. The rial, Iran’s currency, fell 12 per cent this week after it emerged that all 27 members of the European Union had agreed to implement a complete ban on oil shipments from Iran. Overall, the rial has fallen 40 per cent in value in the past month.<br />
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The prospect of increased sanctions has prompted senior Iranian political and military figures to warn that the strait could be closed in retaliation. This week, General Ataollah Salehi, the commander-in-chief of Iran’s armed forces, threatened to attack the US Navy if it attempted to move an aircraft carrier into the Gulf.<br />
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To many, this is nothing more than the Iranians indulging in yet another tiresome exercise in anti-Western sabre-rattling. With parliamentary elections due in March, the regime is keen to demonstrate its refusal to be intimidated over its nuclear programme. But in view of the Iranian government’s inherent instability, it would be prudent for the West to be on its guard against any attempt by Tehran to disrupt such a strategically important linchpin for global trade.<br />
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The Iranians’ military capabilities have come a long way since the mid-1980s, the last time they made any serious attempt to disrupt Gulf shipping. On that occasion, angered by America’s deepening support for Saddam Hussein during the long-running Iran-Iraq war, the Iranians launched random attacks against the shipping of pro-American Gulf states such as Kuwait, forcing the US Navy to intervene on their behalf.<br />
<br />
Although the Iranians were no match for the US Fifth Fleet, which operates from Bahrain, they caused enormous disruption – and a sharp increase in international oil prices – by the simple expedient of dropping mines in the main shipping lanes, while the Revolutionary Guards attacked unprotected tankers from their rubber dinghies. Ultimately, the Iranian attempt to close the strait was foiled by Washington’s superior firepower. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"> But the ayatollahs vowed that, if ever the need rose again to blockade the Gulf, they would have the means to do so. Consequently the Iranian military has spent much of the past two decades overhauling its capabilities, to the extent that if the order were given to close the Strait of Hormuz it could actually carry out the threat – albeit for a few days.<br />
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Iran would be able to deploy anti-ship cruise missiles, submarines, mines and thousands of small watercraft that could be used in “swarm” attacks against shipping if the ayatollahs decided to impose a blockade.<br />
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Such is the confidence of senior Iranian commanders in their firepower that Admiral Habibollah Sayari, the head of Iran’s navy, recently boasted that closing the strait would be “as easy as drinking a glass of water”. And to prove the point, this week his forces completed 10 days of war games in which they successfully tested three anti-ship missiles.<br />
<br />
But if the Iranian military threat is much more potent than it was in the 1980s, the Pentagon insists that it still would be no match for US firepower. One aircraft carrier is able to deploy more air power than the entire Iranian air force, and it is difficult to argue with the assessment of most military analysts that it would take just a few days to knock out the entire Iranian military effort.<br />
<br />
Nor would the American response be confined to the Iranian navy, as any attempt by <b style="color: magenta;">Iran </b>to use military force to disrupt Gulf shipping would inevitably lead to America and its allies using it as an excuse to destroy Iran’s nuclear facilities, thereby resolving the nuclear crisis once and for all.<br />
<br />
Iran would, therefore, be taking an enormous gamble if it attempted to close the <b style="color: magenta;">Strait of Hormuz</b>, which is why politicians on both sides of the Atlantic dismiss Tehran’s sabre-rattling as a futile gesture aimed at persuading the West not to impose further sanctions. Nevertheless, Philip Hammond, the Defence Secretary, made plain in Washington yesterday that any attempt to block the strait would be illegal and could be countered with military force. But in a country where normal rational assessments do not apply, there remains the distinct possibility that, having acquired the means to close the strait, the ayatollahs will go ahead with their threat.<br />
<br />
Any hint of military confrontation could see oil prices soar by 50 per cent within the space of a few days, with potentially catastrophic consequences for the world’s leading developed economies. Iran, meanwhile, would react to any attack on its nuclear facilities by carrying out its long-standing promise to attack Israel, as well as mobilising the scores of sleeper terrorist cells it has stationed throughout the Arab world.<br />
<br />
It would not be long before a confrontation that began as a dispute over access to shipping lanes escalated into a major regional conflict. </div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Thanks:<span style="color: orange;">http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/middleeast/iran/8995261/Can-Iran-close-down-the-Strait-of-Hormuz.html</span></b></div></div>Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-35038240570990567032012-07-02T22:07:00.000-07:002012-07-02T22:07:47.964-07:00Ted opens pinnacle of the US box office<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><b style="color: magenta;">Family Guy</b> creator Seth MacFarlane's debut <b style="color: magenta;">film</b>, about a foul-mouthed teddy bear called Ted, has topped the US box office in its opening weekend.<br />
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The comedy, starring Mark Wahlberg, took $54.1 million (£35m), according to studio estimates.<br />
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Director Steven Soderbergh's Magic Mike, featuring Channing Tatum and Matthew McConaughey as male-strippers, was in second with $39.2m (£25m).<br />
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Pixar's Scottish fairy tale Brave fell two places to number three.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img alt="Ted opens pinnacle of the US box office" border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiIJpAkGId-u27NjvYf1qUQnGj5SPo_KreIKxRMwEywU7iqHnIIDIc-jBTlPa3TR2lAfThzwe-R9aMvSj7mnRd9AGDcUCO7vNv2_4c5_6ZDs1RKFKvN2qg5Hz4n5O3VDAjB4tlJgPt9jnZ3/s400/Ted_opens_top_of_the_US_box.jpg" title="Ted opens pinnacle of the US box office" width="400" /></a></div><br />
Ted, in which a childhood toy comes to life and proves to be less-than cuddly, has an "R" rating in the US, meaning children under the age of 17 cannot see the film unless accompanied by an adult.<br />
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Only two R-rated movies have performed better in their opening weekend - and both were sequels: Last year's Hangover 2 ($85.9m) and 2010's Sex and the City 2 ($57m). <br />
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Writer-director MacFarlane also provides the voice of the drug-taking, profanity-prone bear while actress Mila Kunis, who plays Meg Griffin in Family Guy, plays Wahlberg's girlfriend.<br />
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Magic Mike, inspired by star Tatum's own early career as a male stripper, also performed better than expected.<br />
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A 73% female audience watched Tatum's character Mike take newcomer The Kid, played by British actor Alex Pettyfer, under his wing.<br />
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Tyler Perry's new release Madea's Witness Protection was in fourth, with $26.4m (£17m), while <b style="color: magenta;">Madagascar 3</b>: Europe's Most Wanted fell to number five with $11.8m (£7.5m).<br />
<br />
Internationally, two big franchises got a head-start on their US openings, with animated sequel Ice Age: Continental Drift opening to $78m (£50m) and <b style="color: magenta;">The Amazing Spider-Man</b> in second with $50.2m (£32m).</div><br />
<div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;">Thanks: http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-18670838</div></div>Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-87813216349518350632012-07-02T21:50:00.000-07:002012-07-02T21:50:23.464-07:00Romney blames Obama of 'vicious lies' on Bain Capital<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">Romney blames Obama of 'vicious lies' on Bain Capital</div><div style="text-align: justify;"></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img alt="Romney blames Obama of 'vicious lies' on Bain Capital" border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2vGSmytpikgbC-E0q531_kbfigfyp5Pg7KBUBohzHmA3It52Ek4RjFGTTFD1qL6Qim3KzAuhM48Rc-NRUyitjG8a-2KNjRTtRNszDKqRWvsqAdCh1SmaT4KHiChUGflVCRzmM-1dfQwvI/s400/Romney_accuses_Obama_of_'vi.jpg" title="Romney blames Obama of 'vicious lies' on Bain Capital" width="400" /></a></div><div style="text-align: justify;">“So shame on you, <b style="color: magenta;">Barack Obama</b>!” cries out the voice in the latest TV ad from the <b style="color: magenta;">Romney </b>campaign, airing only in Ohio. Yet the voice belongs not to presumptive GOP nominee Mitt Romney, but to an unlikely figure to appear in any Romney commercial: <b style="color: magenta;">Hillary Clinton</b>.<br />
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The footage comes from the bitterly contested Democratic primary campaign of 2008, when then-Sen. Clinton – now President Obama’s loyal and steadfast secretary of state – complained about the Illinois insurgent spending “millions of dollars perpetuating falsehoods.”<br />
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“But that’s Barack Obama,” the ad’s narrator intones, before adding that the man who went on to win the presidency first attacked Clinton with “vicious lies.” <br />
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The ad also cites a Washington Post column from last month that denounced a particular Obama attack ad against Romney as “misleading, unfair, and untrue.”<br />
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Tough stuff – and the latest attempt by the Romney campaign to demonstrate that it intends to meet head-on the barrage of attacks it has faced on the candidate’s private-equity career at Bain Capital. The Obama ad denounced in the Post column was one that had suggested Romney outsourced American jobs overseas during his 15-year career at the Boston-based financial firm.<br />
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Those <b style="color: magenta;">Obama </b>ads in turn relied on a Washington Post news article, published June 21, that reported that six companies that Bain invested in during Romney’s tenure at the firm were “pioneers” in the emerging trend of outsourcing U.S. jobs to foreign countries like India and China.<br />
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The Romney campaign collected statements from the six companies’ current and former CEOs, all of whom maintained that they had in fact added U.S. jobs during their respective periods of affiliation with Romney and Bain. They also said their reliance of foreign call centers and packaging plants was solely to support existing foreign sales of U.S. exports. After a meeting with the Post’s editorial board, in which the campaign demanded a retraction of the June 21 article, the paper announced it was standing by its reporting.<br />
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Then the independent group FactCheck.org weighed in on the Obama ads, declaring “we found no evidence to support the claim that Romney -- while he was still running Bain Capital -- shipped American jobs overseas."<br />
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An Obama-Biden campaign spokesman told <a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/search/label/Fox%20News"><b style="color: magenta;">Fox News</b></a> that FactCheck.org “did get this one wrong.” Interviewed at the campaign’s headquarters in Chicago, campaign press secretary Ben LaBolt discounted the testimony from the current and former CEOs, and instead urged a reporter inquiring about them to talk to the workers who lost their jobs when these businesses shut down U.S.-based plants. <br />
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LaBolt also sought to cast doubt on Romney’s longstanding career narrative, which holds that he left Bain Capital in February 1999 to run the Salt Lake City Olympics.<br />
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“What the Romney campaign and others have tried to do is to extract <b style="color: magenta;">Mitt Romney</b> from his tenure at Bain,” LaBolt said. “Some of these jobs were shipped overseas after 1999, but the fact is that Romney remained CEO and sole owner of Bain Capital through 2001.”<br />
<br />
In support of that claim, Obama-Biden campaign aides uploaded state and federal disclosure forms that they said are “unambiguous” in showing that Romney continued to list Bain as his employer in 2001. A lengthy rebuttal sent to FactCheck.org by Obama’s deputy campaign manager, Stephanie Cutter, cited dozens of forms from 2001 and 2002 that listed Romney as the sole owner of Bain or its various subsidiaries and funds.<br />
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Contacted by Fox News and asked about the documents, a source at Bain Capital insisted that Romney never returned to the firm or did any substantive work for it, or for its “portfolio companies,” after February 1999. Some of the 2001 documents cited in Cutter’s letter clearly showed <b style="color: magenta;">Romney </b>listing his occupation with Bain as “former executive” and explaining his role in the firm and its offshoots as “passive…with no management capacity.”<br />
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Bill Burton, the former Obama <a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/search/label/White%20House"><b style="color: magenta;">White House</b></a> aide who now runs Priorities USA, a liberal super PAC that is spending $10 million on ads attacking Romney for his tenure at Bain, claimed the effort is materially benefiting the president’s re-election prospects.<br />
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“They're clearly starting to work,” Burton told MSNBC on Monday. “If you look at any of the numbers out there, any public polling or focus groups, they're clearly working. Our fundraising has picked up considerably, and the spending we are doing is having an impact.”<br />
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Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2012/07/02/romney-accuses-obama-vicious-lies-on-bain-capital/#ixzz1zX0vN6yD</div></div>Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-41661863645199387182012-06-25T02:55:00.000-07:002012-06-25T02:55:57.303-07:00Kris Humphries told ex that Kim Kardashian's sex tape was dramatic by her own mother, information says<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;"><b style="color: magenta;">Kris Humphries</b> trashed <b style="color: magenta;">Kim Kardashian</b> and her family in conversations and text messages to his former girlfriend, Myla Sinanaj, telling Sinanaj that Kris Jenner not only directed her daughter to shoot her infamous sex tape with Ray J, but to re-shoot it, because Jenner didn't think the first one was pretty enough, TMZ reports.<br />
<br />
Kardashian has subpoenaed Sinanaj in her divorce case with Humphries, and TMZ reports Sinanaj has a lot to say about what Humphries told her about his relationship with his famous estranged wife.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img alt="Kim Kardashian and Kris Humphries' Courtship and 72-Day Marriage" border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEif-rjnbKKYNqztx04yh0-9pxEiEyPEBgLfbx_sG8CCoreT1OXu16g2PXA5K-S_4NdjyNvENCkrFjP5mniXgoolIlwKUzHW-waQ3-JlxjJrg8lP4o5maUL833EZDSdRbbsaKf90wlHOn-X7/s400/Kim-Kardashian_and_Kris-Hum.jpg" title="Kim Kardashian and Kris Humphries' Courtship and 72-Day Marriage" width="400" /></a></div><br />
In addition to the sex tape claim, sources tell us Sinanaj has numerous text messages in which Humphries says Sinanaj is the love of his life, and he wants to get the divorce over with quickly so they can spend the rest of their time on earth together. <br />
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In several of the messages, TMZ was told Humphries says specifically that he's "moved on" from Kim.<br />
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The information is extremely damaging to Humphries, because he's alleging in his divorce that Kim has destroyed him emotionally by allegedly defrauding him into believing it was a real marriage, TMZ reports. It turns out Humphries has been seeing Sinanaj since mid-January, so his devastation argument may be hard to swallow.<br />
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Sources close to the Kardashians tell TMZ that Humphries is lying about the sex tape. They say Kim made it clear at the beginning of their relationship she would not discuss the tape because she didn't want to be judged by it.<br />
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<b>Read more: <span style="color: orange;">http://www.foxnews.com/entertainment/2012/06/21/kris-humphries-told-ex-that-kim-kardashian-sex-tape-was-staged-by-her-own/#ixzz1ynTr8XwM</span></b><br />
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</div></div>Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-67119286277804271512012-06-25T02:27:00.001-07:002012-06-25T02:28:33.641-07:00Disney Pixar's Brave heights US box office table<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">Brave, the latest animated feature from <b>Disney Pixar</b>, has made its debut at number one in the US box office chart, according to early estimates.<br />
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The film made $66.7m (£42.8m) in its opening weekend, knocking Madagascar 3: Europe's Most Wanted off the top spot.<br />
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Brave, about a princess in medieval Scotland, is the first Disney Pixar animation with a female protagonist.<br />
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Action thriller <b style="color: magenta;">Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter</b> was the second highest new entry at number three.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img alt="Disney Pixar's Brave tops US box office chart" border="0" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijYsiic1xLEABOPNfSRdRIQgvGq2kk1Zl9ty6hQhkgZD80vEFqvVmFGxPWwTlMknBrErOrERHObGhhAKKRg1gbNDw6JVqW0iMp7Tfz1VseJq4rqPtyQ71SjVTDHZxOWHel8Z7mskw75SSZ/s320/Brave_review.jpg" title="Disney Pixar's Brave tops US box office chart" width="230" /><span id="goog_433940992"></span></a><span id="goog_433940993"></span></div><br />
The film, whose cast includes the British actors Dominic Cooper and Rufus Sewell, took a total of $16.5m (£10.6m) over the weekend.<br />
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Brave, which will close the Edinburgh International Film Festival later this week, is the the 13th consecutive Pixar release to open at number one.<br />
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"Their track record is just unbelievable," said Paul Dergarabedian, analyst for box-office tracker Hollywood.com.<br />
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"The Pixar brand just carries so much weight with the audience. It doesn't matter almost what the story is about if it has the Pixar name."<br />
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Brave's heroine, who rebels against her family's plans for her to marry, is voiced by Kelly Macdonald, of Trainspotting and Boardwalk Empire fame.<br />
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Keira Knightley's latest film, Seeking a Friend for the End of the World, made its debut at number 10.<br />
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It's three-day takings of $3.8m (£2.4m) reflected the fact it had a more limited release than the rest of the titles in this week's Top 10.<br />
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Woody Allen's Italian romance, To Rome With Love, opened in five cinemas and made $379,371 (£243,905).<br />
<br />
That gave the film an average of $75,874 (£48,780) per screen, compared to the $16,028 (£10,307) screen average for Brave.<br />
<br />
<u style="color: lime;"><b>Review</b></u><br />
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<b style="color: magenta;">Brave </b>is a 2012 American 3D computer-animated fantasy adventure film produced by Pixar Animation Studios and distributed by Walt Disney Pictures. It was written by Mark Andrews, Steve Purcell, Brenda Chapman and Irene Mecchi, directed by Andrews and Chapman and co-directed by Purcell. The film's voice cast features Kelly Macdonald, Julie Walters, Billy Connolly, Emma Thompson, Kevin McKidd, Craig Ferguson, Robbie Coltrane and John Ratzenberger. To make the most complex visuals possible, Pixar completely rewrote their animation system for the first time in 25 years. It is also the first movie ever to use the Dolby Atmos sound format.<br />
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In Brave, set in the highlands of 10th century Scotland, a skilled archer named Merida defies an age-old custom, causing chaos in her kingdom. After consulting a witch for help, her family becomes cursed and Merida is forced to undo the spell herself before it is too late. Brave premiered on June 10, 2012, at the Seattle International Film Festival, and was released in North America on June 22, 2012, to positive reviews.<br />
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Preceding the film is a short film entitled La Luna, directed by Enrico Casarosa.<br />
<br />
In the Scottish kingdom of DunBroch, King Fergus presents his young daughter, Merida, with a bow and arrow for her birthday, to the discomfort of Merida's mother, Queen Elinor. During their outing, a giant bear named Mor'du, attacks the family with Fergus fighting off the bear while Elinor and Merida escape, at the cost of his left leg.<br />
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Years later, Elinor, who has since given birth to identical triplet boys, teaches Merida in the ways of the court, such as playing an instrument and proper manners. The princess is determined to practice her archery and explore the kingdom on her horse, Angus. The Lords Macintosh, MacGuffin, and Dingwall present their first-born sons to compete for Merida's hand. Merida chooses an archery challenge to determine her suitor, as she knows she is the first born of a great leader, enabling her to compete and she can defeat the others easily. Lord Dingwall's son wins by accident, but Merida enters herself as first-born of DunBroch and shoots the targets over Elinor's objections. The two have a falling out, resulting in Merida destroying a sewn tapestry depicting the family and Elinor throwing her daughter's bow into the fireplace. Only after Merida leaves in tears does Elinor realize her mistake; she tries to save the bow, but it is already damaged, leaving her to cry over it.<br />
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Fleeing to the forest, Merida encounters a trail of will-o'-the-wisps that lead her to an elderly witch's hut. The witch disguises herself as a simple whittler of wood, but as Merida notices her broom and talking crow, she sees through her ruse, and bargains with the witch for a spell that will change Elinor, thus changing Merida's fate. The witch conjures a small cake for Merida to give to her mother. In DunBroch, Elinor eats the cake and later transforms into a bear. With the help of the triplets, Merida and Elinor sneak out of the castle past Fergus and the celebrating clans. The pair return to the witch's cottage, where after tripping a Rube Goldberg booby trap they find a potion-controlled automated message left for Merida: the spell will be permanent unless undone by the second sunrise. The witch leaves Merida a riddle, mentioning that a bond must be repaired.<br />
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Merida teaches Elinor how to catch fish with her bow, and the two begin to reconcile; however, Elinor, for a brief period, forgets who she is and acts like a real bear, nearly mauling Merida. They are led by more wisps to the ruins of an old castle. In the throne room, Merida finds a damaged stone engraving with three brothers; a fourth brother had been cut off, just like how Merida had cut her mother off of the tapestry. Merida realizes that the curse had happened before, that the wayward brother was transformed into Mor'du, and Elinor will lose all traces of her humanity like Mor'du if they do not break the spell. They travel back to DunBroch to sew the family tapestry back together. To distract Fergus and the lords, who are on the verge of war after impatiently waiting to know which suitor Merida has chosen, Merida brings the four factions back together and with some direction from Elinor, declares that the sons should choose their own brides. Fergus goes to their bedroom and finds Elinor's ripped clothes and broken bed, mistaking his wife for dead. He bursts into the tapestry room where he finds Merida and Elinor as a bear. Elinor, once again reverting to a normal bear, attacks Fergus, and after realizing she has harmed both Merida and Fergus, flees.<br />
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Merida tries to convince her father that the bear is Elinor, but Fergus locks her in the room and sets off with the lords to capture and kill the bear. Merida is freed with the help of her brothers who retrieve the key from the maid. They were turned into cubs after eating the same cake, and the four follow wisps to where Fergus has captured Elinor. Merida defends Elinor by confronting Fergus, but he throws her aside and she is restrained by Lord Macintosh. She escapes, but Mor'du attacks the party. When the bear lunges for Merida, Elinor intervenes to protect her daughter and battles Mor'du. Elinor tricks Mor'du into attacking a weakened stone pillar, which eventually collapses onto and kills the demon bear. The group sees a wisp emerge from Mor'du's body, which reveals the human form of the fourth brother, whose spirit is now freed from the curse. He then flies away to join the other wisps. Merida puts the repaired tapestry on top of her wounded mother. But when the sun starts to rise, Elinor begins to permanently become a bear. Merida then bursts into treats and admits that it was all her fault and that she wants her mother back. As she sobs "I love you," the rift is mended, and Elinor and the boys return to human form. The kingdoms, having rekindled their own bonds, go their separate ways, except for young Dingwall who has apparently fallen in love with Merida, as the ships leave, though it is revealed Merida's brothers have stowed away on Macintosh's ship, causing Fergus to go after them and the ship. Merida and Elinor ride their horses through Scotland, both having changed for the better.<br />
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In a post-credits scene, one of the guards in front of the castle is awakened by the witch's pet crow asking him to sign for delivery of a large collection of wooden sculptures, which Merida had bought from the witch earlier in the film.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Thanks: <span style="color: orange;">http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-18576493 & Wikipedia </span></b></div></div>Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-77391166406517241532012-06-24T23:04:00.000-07:002012-06-24T23:04:34.355-07:00Will China surpass America in space?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">China's space plans are ambitious, incremental and extensive. Should Americans be worried that China will overtake us in both space exploration and military capability in space?<br />
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No, not yet.<br />
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This week, China successfully achieved its first manned space docking with the launch of the <span style="color: magenta;">Shenzhou 9 spacecraft</span> that carried two men and China's first female astronaut. Part one of China's Project 921, a 30-year plan for space exploration that was approved in 1992, is complete. This is progress, indeed.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img alt="Will China surpass America in space?" border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgrXkseQq5QjK8Eld34Ydfs4i6p8AUtNuSNozpZpaCbENMAbPDacYTEyvV7Eagwu6xsCe736bFZ7b96hkAh5ESvMk3gS3QEQVZAgAQfqI2iy6Bz6EEkMqAwjrr9PLOyqu5L29S0ZsYde9tg/s400/China_overtake_America_in_s.jpg" title="Will China surpass America in space?" width="400" /></a></div><br />
Project 921 is the result of China's fear of being left behind in the development of space technology. Part one was about attaining human spaceflight. Part two -- which is where China is now -- focuses on testing advanced technologies, like maneuvering and docking. Part three envisions a large (about 20 tons, the size of Skylab) space station.<br />
<br />
A manned mission to the moon was never included in the plan and has only recently become a topic of discussion in <b style="color: magenta;">China</b>. When talks do come up of putting a Chinese on the moon as early as 2016, they can rile U.S. officials and engender international prestige for China, especially as the U.S. space program appears to be floundering.<br />
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But China is not overtaking the United States in space. It is, however, advancing. The execution of China's space program has led to "tortoise and hare" comparisons with the United States.<br />
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During the Apollo phase, the <b style="color: magenta;">United States</b> advanced very quickly, launching many missions which culminated in reaching the moon by a decade's end. In contrast, China launches a mission about every two years, but takes large steps with each one and has a much longer timeline for achieving its goals. What China has that the United States lacks -- and what may give the Chinese an advantage over the long run -- is patience.<br />
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China's path to space is not without obstacles, though. Launching their large space station will require a new heavy lift vehicle, the Long March 5, which is still in development and behind schedule. And China's ambitions do not come with an unlimited budget, even though it has already spent billions.<br />
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In response, the U.S. needs to keep moving forward.<br />
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The <b style="color: magenta;">Obama </b>administration's decision to redirect the civilian space program to a private-public partnership is smart. A space exploration program fully funded by the government is unsustainable. The recent use of the privately developed Flacon-9/Dragon duo to resupply the International Space Station indicates that if the private sector can handle low-Earth orbit needs, then over time <a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/search/label/NASA"><b style="color: magenta;">NASA </b></a>can focus its limited budget on new, more distant exploration goals.<br />
<br />
But Americans are not known for patience. The real danger for the United States is in ceding space exploration and leadership to China because it lacks the political will to proceed at a steady, supportable pace. This will have broad strategic implications.<br />
<br />
Complicating the issue is the largely dual-use nature of space technology, which can be used for both civilian and military purposes. And it is difficult to discern whether military space assets are intended for offense or defense. The difference between a rocket and a missile is considerable in political considerations, but nominal in terms of technology. A country that possesses missile defense could also use it as a weapon.<br />
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So what can be done if we need to protect our space assets? One thing is clear -- weapons are not the answer.<br />
<br />
China's irresponsible 2007 anti-satellite weapon test exponentially increased the amount of space debris in orbit, which is dangerous to operating satellites. Space debris is now recognized by all countries (and militaries) as a threat to space assets.<br />
<br />
An International Space Code of Conduct is being discussed in the United Nations. It would state what responsible spacefaring nations consider acceptable behaviors in space. Though legally nonbinding, it would be a first step toward maintaining the sustainability of the space environment for use by all.<br />
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The United States largely knows what space technology China possesses, but it doesn't know what China's intentions are. The United States should try to better understand China's space goals.<br />
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However, NASA is prohibited by law from working with <a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/search/label/china"><b style="color: magenta;">China</b></a>. This makes no sense. If one believes that China and the United States are not inherently enemies, then working together on space projects -- with technology transfer controls -- will benefit both countries. If one believes that China is inherently a threat to the United States, then the adage "keep your friends close and your enemies closer" comes to mind.<br />
<br />
The script for U.S.-China relations -- and space relations in particular -- is constantly evolving. The United States can influence the direction, but only if we engage and persuade the Chinese to engage with us. It's one way of preventing a scenario of a galactic Wild West in which China has become the world's leader in space.</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b><br />
</b></div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Thanks: <span style="color: orange;">http://edition.cnn.com/2012/06/20/opinion/freese-china-space/index.html?hpt=wo_mid</span></b></div></div>Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-54856283417897064952012-06-24T22:50:00.000-07:002012-06-24T22:50:26.607-07:00Romney too timid on emigration<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">Now that President Obama has put the immigration issue front and center, <a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/search/label/Mitt%20Romney"><b style="color: magenta;">Mitt Romney</b></a> can't avoid the subject any longer.<br />
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Romney needs to answer two simple questions: "What specifically are you going to do about the estimated 800,000 "DREAM'ers" at the center of <b style="color: magenta;">President Obama</b>'s announcement last week - those young illegal immigrants under age 31 who, because they've graduated from high school or served in the military, are being told they'll be spared deportation? Would you deport them or let them stay in the United States?"<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img alt="Romney too timid on emigration" border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEheqQJ5saqTALY_3bRs3e2_MkG5jAPYS209cQGGosg7JWc4h9v9M0w1EiRwlcZEKjFlldFdfAwLtmIBIMG4QkG25uOFxAqkGQzRtlmg3yc2Vp3g1S8QrrcCQdIrHaGYDJraTRDP-PSrpFUE/s400/Romney_too_timid_on_immigra.jpg" title="Romney too timid on emigration" width="400" /></a></div><br />
And during his speech Thursday to the annual conference of the National Associat<span id="goog_1923571003"></span><span id="goog_1923571004"></span>ion of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials, here is the closest that Romney came to an answer:<br />
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"Some people have asked if I will let stand the president's executive action," he told the organization. "The answer is that I will put in place my own long-term solution that will replace and supersede the president's temporary measure. As president, I won't settle for a stop-gap measure. I will work with Republicans and Democrats to find a long-term solution."<br />
<br />
Surely, <b style="color: magenta;">Romney </b>must have an idea of what he thinks the proper solution should be. Why not share it?</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><br />
</div><div style="text-align: justify;"><b>Thanks: <span style="color: orange;">http://inamerica.blogs.cnn.com/?hpt=us_bn1</span></b></div></div>Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-31225561519297666812012-06-24T22:32:00.000-07:002012-06-24T22:32:45.783-07:00Prince William moves 30, succeed to half of Diana's estate<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">The Duke of Cambridge celebrated his first anniversary with <b><span style="color: magenta;">Catherine <a href="http://www.blogger.com/goog_229348760">Middleton</a></span><a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/search/label/Kate%20Middleton"> </a></b>and toasted <b style="color: purple;"><span style="color: purple;">Q</span>ueen Elizabeth II</b>'s <b style="color: magenta;">Diamond Jubilee</b>. And on Thursday, he adds another milestone to his list: his 30th birthday.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img alt="Prince William turns 30" border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg3FJ7kfN4VgUnu4U7DV6B9MtozmapMUlJnC4vyGMqf8VAOIyct-PLmCbeBSvs3CVC9PzMrgIV_D9clcDIadrQO3XcGqnw_GlgGpoNO6qGNOQz2Fxus3GdjtyeMYZblqlS-eIFS70an99Hr/s400/Prince-William_turns_30,.jpg" title="Prince William turns 30" width="400" /></a></div><br />
He's now also legally entitled to half of his mother's inheritance, which was left to him after <b style="color: magenta;">Princess Diana</b> was killed in a car crash in 1997. His half of the inheritance, according to The Daily Telegraph, would likely be around $15.5 million, with the current currency exchange rate.<br />
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William has been in the spotlight as the eventual heir to the British throne since early childhood. He's endured his parents' breakup, his mother's death and his own big royal wedding all while the world watched along with him.<br />
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The Duke of Cambridge has recently said he and his wife are excited about the prospect of bringing a child into the world.<br />
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“I’m just very keen to have a family, and both Catherine and I, you know, are looking forward to having a family in the future," he told ABC's Katie Couric before the <b style="color: magenta;">Diamond Jubilee</b>.<br />
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To celebrate William's big day, we wanted to take a look back at his life. After all, many people would say that he and Catherine have helped the royal family become popular again by making the monarchy more accessible to the public.<br />
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Click through the gallery above to see William's evolution from Diana and Charles' lovable young son to the Duke of Cambridge.<br />
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<b>Thanks: <span style="color: orange;">http://news.blogs.cnn.com/2012/06/21/prince-william-turns-30-inherits-half-of-dianas-estate/?hpt=us_r1</span></b></div></div>Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2741816619617104537.post-41946339231646562972012-06-21T23:27:00.000-07:002012-06-21T23:27:48.977-07:00Check out Emma Stone's 'Amazing' red carpet looks<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on"><div style="text-align: justify;">This is a message for <b style="color: magenta;">Emma Stone</b>: Maybe Jim Carrey, in all his creepy, close-up goodness, was onto something when he called her "all-the-way beautiful" in his YouTube love letter.<br />
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The actress has been casting her web of attraction around the world as she helps roll out the much-anticipated "<b style="color: magenta;">The Amazing Spider-Man</b>." Alongside her onscreen superhero and real life boyfriend Andrew Garfield, we've seen Stone walk the red carpet for premieres in Tokyo, Seoul, Moscow, London, Paris and Berlin so far.<br />
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/"><img alt="Emma Stone's 'Amazing' red carpet looks" border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjqT8ppsKZ6JQfd1qm9QGGETOsiRrgeXv5g_KroWdSnxu4Yk8fBZBNjmG_enm6Zv0hknlr5P2oTydgGV8fGKpsQDTdJXcxbb6KMzOUssrUnq9Hg_vMlubDKb6y8LY3AKJaePB_aMbRNJP54/s400/Emma_Stone's_'Amazing'_red_.jpg" title="Emma Stone's 'Amazing' red carpet looks" width="400" /></a></div><br />
Stone, a natural blonde who sometimes goes red, is the cover subject of the latest New York magazine. Her "Spidey sense is tingling," says a promo for the article, "she knows you're watching her." Great, now we really feel creepy. But the 23-year-old actress says of that Carrey video, "I was so flattered I can’t even tell you. Honest!"<br />
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That doesn't mean she's buying all the attention she gets for her looks. "The pretty thing ... It was never a value to me growing up," Stone told New York mag. "I always thought I was like the goofy, wonky one.<br />
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"I don’t actually recognize the person that’s out there," she says of her red-carpet persona. "It's like there’s this outside person, and there’s me."<br />
<br />
Thanks: This is a message for Emma Stone: Maybe Jim Carrey, in all his creepy, close-up goodness, was onto something when he called her "all-the-way beautiful" in his <a href="http://relieffromheat.blogspot.com/search/label/YouTube"><b style="color: magenta;">YouTube </b></a>love letter.<br />
<br />
The actress has been casting her web of attraction around the world as she helps roll out the much-anticipated "The Amazing Spider-Man." Alongside her onscreen superhero and real life boyfriend Andrew Garfield, we've seen Stone walk the red carpet for premieres in Tokyo, Seoul, Moscow, London, Paris and Berlin so far.<br />
<br />
Stone, a natural blonde who sometimes goes red, is the cover subject of the latest New York magazine. Her "Spidey sense is tingling," says a promo for the article, "she knows you're watching her." Great, now we really feel creepy. But the 23-year-old actress says of that Carrey video, "I was so flattered I can’t even tell you. Honest!"<br />
<br />
That doesn't mean she's buying all the attention she gets for her looks. "The pretty thing ... It was never a value to me growing up," Stone told New York mag. "I always thought I was like the goofy, wonky one.<br />
<br />
"I don’t actually recognize the person that’s out there," she says of her red-carpet persona. "It's like there’s this outside person, and there’s me."<br />
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<b>Thanks:<span style="color: orange;"> http://todayentertainment.today.msnbc.msn.com</span></b></div></div>Harriethttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07042726892380807348noreply@blogger.com0