| Memo To The FBI: Expand The Probe Of Economic Crimes
We need a special prosecutor and some zealous investigators who know something about white-collar crime waves. One suggestion: bring back former veteran FBI agent turned whistleblower Coleen Rowley, a recent TIME Magazine “Person of the Year," to head the taskforce. Rowley told me she used to work cases like this with the former Rudolph Giuliani, who once made a name for himself as the scourge of Wall Street crime families. (Maybe it takes someone with a Mafia patrimony to know how to smell the scammers and then use RICO anti-conspiracy laws to put them behind bars.) That was before Rudy decided to join another mob - the Homeland Security fearmongers to cash in on 911. Today's financial racketeers span the globe, and are not confined to a solo junior trader at a French bank who lost over $7 Billion on trades.
Large quake hits Papua New Guinea
A 6.7 MAGNITUDE earthquake hit Papua New Guinea's port city of Lae this evening, shaking items off shelves, bursting water tanks and plunging parts of the city into blackout. Australian Larry George, manager of the City Mission, said tonight it was a large quake that was felt for a long time. "It was a ripper, it emptied our shelves and smashed glasses." A water tank also burst and the power was cut, Mr George said. Lae often had small tremors but today's quake was the biggest many long-term residents had felt, he said. A staff member at the Lae International Hotel said televisions were damaged after falling onto the floor in guests' rooms. The US Geological Survey put the quake at 6.7 magnitude - not powerful enough to generate a tsunami - and 78km deep with its epicentre around 100km north of Lae.
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Kotsay's had success in Atlanta, both in the majors (.292 average with nine extra-base hits and 12 RBIs in 106 at-bats) and the Olympics. The two-time college player of the year hit .303 (10-for-33) with four doubles, three homers, six RBIs and 10 runs for the U.S. at the '96 Atlanta Olympics. Batting order: So what will the Braves' batting order look like, assuming Kotsay is in it? I'm going to take a stab, though this could obviously change and I don't feel too certain about much more than the 3-4 slots: SS Yunel Escobar, 2. Kotsay, 3. 3B Chipper Jones, 4. 1B Mark Teixeira, 5. RF Jeff Francoeur/C Brian McCann, 6. Francoeur/McCann, 7. 2B Kelly Johnson, 8. LF Matt Diaz/Brandon Jones. I believe Kelly could also bat leadoff (he and Yunel both thrived in the role last year), and I'm guessing with the Francoeur/McCann thing because that's what Bobby did last season, depending upon the pitcher.
Australian tourist dies in bike accident
It is pretty dangerous riding, driving or walking here," Lt Santangelo said. The accident caused major traffic delays on the final day of America's Thanksgiving holiday. The highway, the main thoroughfare in and out of the Florida Keys, was closed for several hours. .
'Evolution' to make debut in Fla. science standards
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Florida schoolchildren will be taught that evolution is a “scientific theory" through a compromise yesterday that left neither side satisfied although supporters of Charles Darwin's big idea were much happier than its opponents. That's because Florida's public school science standards for the first time will actually use the word “evolution" although the biological concept currently is taught under code words such as “change over time." More significant, though, the new standards require more in-depth teaching of evolution and hold that it is “the fundamental concept underlying all of biology and is supported by multiple forms of scientific evidence." That statement rankled opponents, some of whom had urged the State Board of Education to add an “academic freedom" provision that would have let teachers “engage students in a critical analysis of that evidence." Evolution supporters, including mainstream scientists and clergy, told the board before the 4-3 vote that the academic-freedom proposal was a wedge designed to open the door for injecting religious arguments into science studies.
Report: Online Dating's Bad for the Wallet
Not only do you have to worry about your heart while making dates online, but now your wallet is at risk, too. The Better Business Bureau reports today that complaints about online dating services are on the rise. The most common gripe? Poor matches. Consumers said they were set up with people who did not meet their criteria, including some who were already married or who smoked despite their request for a nonsmoker. And the bad dates came at a hefty price, with many services costing upwards of $50 a month. To protect your money (and heart), the BBB recommends that you be skeptical of advertising for online dating, do a Web search before signing up to see if others have complained about the company, and stand strong against high-pressure sales tactics and automatic contract renewals.
Op-Ed in today's Washington Post
Today, a presidential candidate accepts public financing at the risk of being discounted as weak and irrelevant. • The media must insist that future presidential debates each focus on a single issue. Candidates can hide behind sound bites when a debate covers every and all subjects. But when candidates must spend a full 90 minutes discussing health care or national defense, voters will learn who is for real and who isn't. • Political parties must fundamentally reform the dysfunctional presidential primary system. We need a better process in 2012 -- one that empowers all Americans. My preference would be four regional primaries, held at three- to four-week intervals from January to April. • Our citizens must be educated to use their powers for effective participation in the political process.
Bungee Connect beta goes public, adds oomph to development and ...
One thing we can take away from this announcement is that PaaS is now more than just pie-in-the-sky concept or a one-off product. It's gaining traction, and is offering companies a low-cost — or scalable cost — route to business development. David Mitchell, Bungee founder and CEO, sees PaaS as the wave of the future. He said in a blog post on the Bungee site: "In our view a platform includes all the systems and environments comprising the end-to-end life cycle of developing, testing, deploying, and hosting Web applications. Naturally, this platform must also be cloud based, a platform as a service. At Bungee Labs, we believe a transformation larger than SaaS is emerging, where end-to-end development, deployment and hosting platforms as provisioned as services over Web." Mitchell's blog post echoes what I said in an update last July: The net effect of these trends and examples is that the time, cost and risk of going from design to full production are deeply compressed.
Quick Tips: Small Biz Tax Prep
Maintaining a business diary or calendar is good back-up, too. For instance, if you take a client out to dinner, include details of the evening on the receipt and in your diary or computerized expense report. Take notes on your income as well, suggests Daily. In an audit, the more you can verify your business's transactions the better. Tallying expenses can be complicated if you work from home or travel frequently. Those who qualify for a home-office deduction can write off a portion of utility, rent and other payments; road warriors can deduct a portion of their food and travel costs, plus vehicle costs. Check out this story on writing off mileage. For more on business travel click . And to read up on home-office deductions click here. Gather Your Records Before visiting the tax preparer's office, business owners who opt for a computerized system can simply print out business records for the year.
'Lars and the Real Girl' a doll of a film
In a story that shouldn't make sense, but does, the family and the town adopts Bianca as their friend. She is asked to volunteer time at the hospital and be a model at the mall. Bianca is even elected as a member of the school board. All the while, one of Lars' cute workmates named Margo (Kelli Garner) quietly wants to date him, but she also wants him to be happy. Viewers are let into Lars' “issues" from his regular office visits to Dagmar, who treats Bianca's low blood pressure and talks to Lars about life. “Lars and the Real Girl" works because viewers can appreciate watching a small community sympathize and rally around a good young man in a world of emotional pain. The other reason the movie is effective is because of a strong performance by Gosling, who comes off more sympathetic than pathetic.
Spooner, Gudbranson top list of Ottawa-area draft prospects
With the exception of Shawn Lalonde, the first round of recent Ontario Hockey League drafts has been a virtual non-event for local hockey talent. Lalonde, who went ninth overall to Belleville in 2006 and has the NHL draft this June here in his hometown on his mind, is the only Ottawa-area player drafted in the first round by an OHL team since 2002 and one of only 13 locals dating back to 1997. All of that is going to change May 3 when the OHL teams hunker down in their respective war rooms and begin selecting the best players born in 1992. .
|
