The deputy oil minister says Iran will earn almost $70 billion from crude exports for the Iranian calendar year ending March 20 despite falling oil prices.
Akbar Torkan says Iran expects to earn $2 billion more than it did during the previous 12-month period ending in March 2008, according Monday's state radio report.
Torkan says the average price for Iranian oil was about …
PITTSBURGH Drop two bits into an old-fashioned mahogany jukeboxin a Pittsburgh tavern, and Helen Reutzel will spin a memory in theform of a song.
It's a jukebox with a twist - a human jukebox with a collectionof more than 100,000 records dating back to the 1920s and anassortment of customers who would never plunk a quarter intomechanical imitations.
"If you want to hear `Squaws Along the Yukon' or head-bangingmusic, you can. Helen has everything," said Dan Casagrande, 39,owner of Brandy's Restaurant, which has had Reutzel's "telephonemusic" for 10 years.
Pick up a black phone on top of the jukebox and a raspy voice ata studio across town cheerily asks …
VANCOUVER, Wash. (AP) — A prosecutor in Washington state says a woman who falsely claimed a stranger threw acid in her face will appear in court Wednesday.
Bethany Storro, of Vancouver, is charged with second-degree theft, accused of accepting donations after claiming a woman had splashed her with acid on Aug. 30. Police say she later admitted putting drain cleaner on her face.
Court records indicate …
A suicide bomber blew himself up Sunday in market in Pakistan's northwest crowded with shoppers ahead of a Muslim holiday, killing 12 people, including a mayor who once supported but had turned against the Taliban, officials said.
A purported commander for the militant group claimed responsibility for the bombing, saying the official was targeted for "interfering in our matters."
The bombing, in the town of Adazai, about 10 miles (16 kilometers) south of the main northwestern city of Peshawar, underscores the difficulty of combatting militancy in Pakistan, where the Taliban have carried out a series of attacks in recent weeks. The militants have said …
Centralisation of brain treatment has already been rejected oncein Scotland.
Today we can reveal a previous review into the country'sneurosurgery services concluded centralising treatment in theCentral Belt was NOT the best option.
Aberdeen's brain unit is under threat because of Government plansto base top level treatment in the Central Belt.
Medics and patients fear lives will be lost if specialistservices are taken away.
Now it emerges a similar plan was mooted seven years ago - only to be rejected.
Between November 1999 and May 2000 a group headed by the thenChief Medical Officer Sir David Carter reviewed neurosurgery …
How one community bank continues to thrive in a challenged economic climate by focusing on personalized service and technology, making it easy for customers to do business
Burke 8c Herbert Bank is a 24-branch community bank that has been "at your service" in northern Virginia since 1852. Unlike many competitors in its market, the bank has actually benefited from the market's uncertainty and consumer disillusionment from the last few years by attracting new customers with its unrelenting focus on service, while providing all the modern conveniences sought after by today's technologysavvy consumer. Burke & Herbert Bank has experienced record earnings for the last three years. It …
Italy captain Fabio Cannavaro had surgery on his left ankle Wednesday and is expected back in action in two months.
The operation lasted a half hour and Cannavaro was calm and smiling afterward, the Italian football federation said.
Cannavaro tore ligaments in Italy's first training session at the European Championship on Monday.
The operation was performed at Pelikangasse private clinic in Vienna under the supervision of Italy team physician Andrea Ferretti, with assistance by another Italian doctor and Real Madrid's physician.
"Everything went …
Chicago has seen an outbreak of a distemper virus that can bedeadly to dogs -- 76 cases reported in Chicago since April, whilenone were reported last year, the Department of Animal Care andControl said Thursday.
The virus is a 200-year-old killer said to be the leading cause ofdeath in U.S.-born-and-bred pets up until the 1950s when specializedimmunizations became available.
Officials don't know the cause of the outbreak but plan to meetnext month to study it.
Humans and cats cannot contract the virus, which is fatal about 50percent of the time in dogs, the department said. Pets that don'tcroak are usually prone to brain damage and other ailments, such …
The University of California-Riverside composts 1,700 to 2,000 tons of landscaping material every year in a system that has been used for at least four decades. The main feedstock is yard trimmings generated by maintenance of turf shrubbery and trees on the 320-acre campus. Yard trimmings are either used for mulch or taken to the almost three-acre compost site and formed into static piles about six feet high with tractors. The piles are capped with a sixto eight-inch layer of clay soil three or four times during the composting process. "You have to mix compost with soil anyway," says Robert Giese, assistant director of physical plant and landscape refuse services. Water is added once …
The widows of two miners killed in a 2006 coal mine fire in West Virginia have settled a wrongful death lawsuit against Massey Energy Co.
Details of the settlement weren't released Monday. The agreement came after four days of a civil trial in Logan County Circuit Court.
The widows of miners Don I. Bragg, 33, and Ellery …
Attention all lovers and shoppers: Lest you be caught off-guardwhen the holidays arrive in one short week, here are 10 delightfulideas for showing your love and then some.
What an inspiration it can be to receive a romantic gift fromyour partner. While women are usually better in this department, mencan pull off some surprisingly good bounty at the last minute.Remember, if you cherish your relationship, with just the right giftthis holiday season, you will reap the returns all year long:
1 Vosges Volcano Island Honey Truffles. Get twice the aphrodisiacby filling your sweetie's stocking with gourmet dark chocolatesfilled with luscious honey! If you can't go to …
Here are some differences between the Deepwater Horizon rig disaster April 20 and the oil production platform explosion Thursday in the Gulf of Mexico:
| TYPES OF STRUCTURES |
|---|
— Deepwater Horizon, owned by Transocean Ltd. and leased to BP PLC, was a semi-submersible drilling rig, exploring for oil and natural gas.
— The structure that exploded Thursday, owned by Mariner Energy Inc., was a stationary platform, producing 58,800 gallons of oil and 900,000 cubic feet of gas per day from a proven reservoir using several wells.
| SITE OF OPERATIONS |
|---|
— Deepwater Horizon was drilling in …
WINFIELD - A two-day make-up registration for incoming PutnamCounty kindergarten students will be Aug. 19-20 at Teays ValleyPresbyterian Church in Scott Depot.
Parents of children who will be 5 by Aug. 31 and have not beenregistered should call Velma Christy at 586-0500, ext. 153, for anappointment. The child's full name, birth date, Social Securitynumber, mailing address, parents' names and phone number arerequired.
Parents should bring a copy of immunization records, pertinenthealth information and a state-certified birth certificate. Ahospital certificate will not be accepted.
To request a certificate for children born in West Virginia, senda $5 check with the child's name, date and county of birth, father'sname and mother's maiden name to: Personal Vital Registrations,Building 3, State Capitol Complex, Charleston, WV 25305.
TOKYO - A Japanese court ordered the government to pay workers and families nearly $2.3 million in compensation for black lung disease contracted while digging tunnels in public projects, according to officials and news reports.
The Kumamoto District Court acknowledged the claims by 196 plaintiffs that the government failed to take measures to prevent the damages despite the foreseeable risk associated with the tunneling, court spokesman Kenji Imasaka said.
He refused to provide other details of the ruling. Kyodo News agency reported that the government was ordered to pay a total of $2.26 million to the victims.
The decision by the court in southwestern Japan comes just days after a similar ruling by the Tokyo District Court. That ruling, issued July 7, ordered the Japanese government to compensate 49 tunnel construction workers who developed black lung disease while working on state-ordered projects.
Black lung disease, also called pneumoconiosis, is a respiratory illness caused by inhaling mineral dust, often in mines.
DETROIT - Silver in hues ranging from chrome to charcoal grayextended its reign as the most popular choice for car and truckpaint across the globe this year, according to annual data collectedby a leading paint maker.
Pittsburgh-based PPG Industries Inc. said silver has been the No.1 color for nine straight years, accounting for 25 percent ofvehicle paint choices in the U.S., 35 percent in Europe and 34percent in the Asia-Pacific region.
In the U.S., silver rose from 20 percent of the market a yearago. White finished second at 18 percent and black was third with 16percent. Red was a distant fourth at 12 percent.
PPG, which includes shades of charcoal and gray in its silvercategory, said the color was popular because of new paint effectsthat make even dull shades of gray shine.
Americans' tastes have changed dramatically in the past 15 years.In 1994, green was the most popular color and only 8 percent ofbuyers chose silver.
Acting Commissioner of Finance D. Eric McClure told members of the Missouri Independent Bankers Association at their annual convention last month that Missouri state charters are "alive and well." The overall numbers have dropped, he conceded, but 23 new charters have been approved in the past five or six years, including the most recent one in Cassville in September.
The regulator also told the group meeting at Lodge of the Four Seasons on the Lake of the Ozarks that he is excited about the prospects for community banking. "It is here to stay," he said. He told the bankers they face challenges, but they have the management and staff skills to deal with adverse developments. The condition of Missouri state banks is good, McClure said, due to good management. There are a handful of "problem" situations, he explained, "but none I'm losing any sleep over." Missouri state banks have strong capital levels and asset quality still looks good, he said.
Voicing a couple of concerns, he noted that consumer debt loads are "very high" and banks are facing stiff competition on both the loan and deposit sides. His agency has detected "some deterioration of loan standards," McClure reported. A lot of lenders in banks today haven't seen bad times, he pointed out, and sophisticated risk management techniques are needed. "When you see a debt ratio that is lean and mean, have you shocked it to see the effect of rising interest rates or an economic downturn?" McClure asked.
The regulator told the MIBA members that they should "strive for a culture of excellence" in their banks, in performance and in safety and soundness. Representing the Independent Community Bankers Association, Thomas J. Sheehan, president of Grafton (Wis.) State, declared that in the present climate for banking legislation, parties don't mean much anymore.
"We have to support the people who will help us,"' said the ICBA president-elect, regardless of their party affiliation. On other matters, noting that 44% of ICBA's membership is considered ag banks, the association will continue to work with Congress to relieve problems in the ag sector. "We share your concern," he said. Another item on the ICBA agenda is raising the FDIC insurance ceiling, even though the agency has not shown much interest and large banks don't want it, according to Sheehan, because they have "something better," the too-big-to-fail concept.
Carol Gilstrap of the State Treasurer's office, pinch-hitting for State Treasurer Bob Holden, advised the Missouri bankers that state funds are an option for Y2K liquidity purposes. She suggested planning ahead, however, and not waiting until the last minute, which means having a current depository contract on file with the Treasurer's office.
A "hot topics" seminar on Subchapter S elections by banks was conducted during the convention by San Antonio attorney Patrick J. Kennedy, Jr.
Issues he addressed includedmarketability, taxation, fair value and strategies for reducing the number of shareholders to qualify for Subchapter S election.
Sub S status can actually increase marketability for investors, he said, because "very attractive cash flows are involved."
Queen Elizabeth II will pay tribute to Britain's armed forces in her traditional Christmas Day message.
The queen _ who is the symbolic head of the U.K. military _ will talk of the soldiers killed in Afghanistan.
More than 100 British soldiers have died this year in Afghanistan and 243 have been killed since operations began in October 2001.
The queen will also address the 54 member states of the Commonwealth in her annual speech which is broadcast from her Buckingham Palace home on Friday, Christmas Day. The speech will be broadcast at 1500 GMT.
Some details of the speech were released by Buckingham Palace on Thursday.
A Border Patrol agent killed by a suspected smuggler's vehicle he was trying to stop near the border was identified Sunday as a 32-year-old father of two.
Senior Patrol Agent Luis Aguilar was struck on Interstate 8 in the Imperial Sand Dunes Recreation Area about 20 miles west of Yuma on Saturday, said Agent Michael Bernacke, a spokesman for the agency's Yuma sector.
Bernacke said Aguilar was trying to place spike strips in the path of two vehicles believed to have illegally entered the country from Mexico when one of the vehicles hit him.
Both vehicles drove back across the border into Mexico.
The area is popular with off-road vehicle enthusiasts but also is frequently used by smugglers carrying people or drugs.
Bernacke said Aguilar lived in Yuma with his wife and children.
Family members declined to comment, said a man who answered the phone at their home and identified himself as Border Patrol Agent Ruiz. "He (Aguilar) was a terrific guy and everyone here took a big loss," Ruiz said.
The FBI is leading the investigation, and Bernacke said Mexican authorities were lending their full support.
A rare poll of Iranians says that few of them have favorable opinions of the United States, a view that has not changed much from before the election of President Barack Obama.
The survey, taken last month, shows that 29 percent of Iranians view the U.S. positively. In February 2008, a similar poll of Iranians showed 34 percent with favorable views of the U.S.
But at the same time, support in both surveys remains strong for democratic institutions like free elections and a free press.
The survey was conducted for Terror Free Tomorrow and the New America Foundation, a pair of Washington-based groups.
Obama has said he is open to dialogue with Iran in hopes of improving relations with that country.
Twenty-eight-year-old Stuart Dimson launched a company called Safe Solutions LLC in 1997 to transform weather-beaten shipping pallets into fine furniture. In the last eight months, Dimson's firm has recycled 550 pallets into a line of coffee tables, end tables, night tables, desks and dressers, as well as custom pieces such as credenzas. It recently completed an order for 345 night tables for the Sheraton Rittenhouse Square Hotel in Philadelphia which was renovated into a "green" hotel.
Safe Solutions' 1200-square-foot facility is located on seven acres in the mountains outside of the town of Durango in southwestern Colorado. "We have more than enough land because we don't stockpile mass quantities of pallets," notes Dimson.
Pallets are collected in a flatbed one-ton truck which can hold 35 pallets at a time. Dimson estimates that one-third of the pallets he sees are oak and the remainder maple, cherry, ash, poplar, beech and tropical hardwoods. Each piece of Safe Solutions' furniture is made from different combinations of hardwoods. "We don't tell customers that we can make a table entirely out of solid maple," says Dimson. "For us, it's not cost-effective to use one type of hardwood for a project because we would have to have a large facility just for sorting. When a pallet comes in, it's very difficult to tell what type of wood it is until we cut into it because each pallet ages differently from exposure to sunlight and moisture." He says combining hardwoods furthers Safe Solutions' goal to increase public awareness. "When people see different woods in a piece like ash and maple, they say that they can't believe that they're used in pallets."
Pallets are constructed of two types of boards - deck and runner. Dimson designed a hydraulic machine to pry the deck boards from the runner boards which are considered "prize pieces." The company makes all furniture frames out of the thicker runner boards to form the structure of the piece and uses the thinner deck boards inside the frame as paneling.
Most of Safe Solutions' sales are wholesale. "We're competing with much larger furniture companies for other hotel jobs," he notes. The night tables retail for $175 to $350 and dressers are around $600. "We're trying to make our products cost-effective so the general public can afford to buy them," says Dimson. "We're not saying: `It's green, it's recycled, now you have to pay a lot for it."'
A complete article on Safe Solutions plus other companies salvaging wood from deconstruction materials is in the latest issue of In Business, as part of a continuing series of how recycled products are used by sustainable enterprises. For subscription information, call (800) 661-4905 or visit our web site: www.jgpress.com.
Former U.S. goalkeeper Kasey Keller will fulfill a lifelong dream of finishing his football career in his home country and near his hometown.
Keller signed a two-year contract with the Seattle Sounders on Thursday, who will debut in Major League Soccer in 2009. Keller, from the Olympia area about 60 miles (100 kilometers) south, has played all but one year of his professional career in some of Europe's top leagues.
"There were different times where I was close to coming back to MLS," said the 38-year-old Keller, who played most recently with Fulham of the English Premier League. "But Washington D.C.? That isn't home. That's a four- or five-hour plane ride. Florida? I might as well stay in Europe.
"Now the idea of coming home is official," Keller said.
Keller was in four U.S. World Cup squads and earned 102 caps. He captained the 1996 U.S. Olympic team, and was the MVP of the 1998 CONCACAF Gold Cup, in which he helped beat Brazil 1-0.
But most of the time he was in Europe, playing with teams in the English Premier League, Bundesliga and Spain's La Liga.
"There are four pro leagues in the world that every professional player wants to play in, and I've been fortunate enough to play in three of them," Keller said. "Hopefully, in 20 or 30 years, MLS will be on par with those. It's only been around for (13) years. I've played for teams that started in 1885."
The organizers of the Tour de France announced the 20 teams that will compete in this year's race on Thursday, with defending champion Alberto Contador's Astana team not among the invited.
The Amaury Sport Organization can invite which teams it wants to participate. The International Cycling Union, however, wants teams from its ProTour circuit to compete in all major races.
That has caused a major split in the sport and led ASO to break away from the UCI's rules at the recent Paris-Nice race, which was held under French rules despite threats of sanctions from the UCI.
ASO has excluded Astana from its races this year because it believes the team has sullied the reputation of the Tour because of doping in the last two years.
Alexandre Vinokourov was caught blood doping at last year's Tour and Andrey Kashechkin tested positive several weeks later in an out-of-competition test.
"This selection is subject to the respect by each of the teams for ethics and honesty that must prevail in cycling," ASO said in a statement.
On the eve of the 2006 Tour, Astana _ then called Liberty Seguros _ was thrown out because several of its riders had been linked to the Operation Puerto blood-doping scandal in Spain. That decision left Vinokourov unable to ride in the 2006 Tour because he did not have enough teammates.
Rabobank is among those chosen. At last year's Tour, the Netherlands-based team kicked leader Michael Rasmussen out of the race just days before the end because he had lied about his whereabouts when missing pre-Tour doping tests.
The 19 other teams for the July 5-27 event are: Gerolsteiner, Team Milram, Quick Step, Silence-Lotto, Team CSC, Caisse dEpargne, Euskatel-Euskadi, Saunier Duval-Scott, High Road, Slipstream Chipotle, Bouygues Telecom, Credit Agricole, Cofidis, Francaise Des Jeux, AG2R-La Mondiale, Agritubel, Barloworld, Lampre and Liquigas.
ASO can withdraw any team before the race.
Garage sales and quilt raffles helped a determined group of female World War II veterans raise money to transform a rundown wall at Arlington National Cemetery into a grand stone memorial to women who had served their country in its 20th century wars. As those women now are dying off, their memorial is running short of money to maintain it.
With women now involved more heavily in combat jobs, those early organizers hope a new generation will step up to the challenge of keeping the memorial open so military women's stories will not be lost.
The dedication of the memorial that today is a visitor's first view of the cemetery was such a joyous event that 40,000 people attended in 1997. One of them was a 101-year-old World War I vet named Frieda Mae Hardin, who met with cheers when she told the crowd that women considering military careers should "Go for it!"
Even as a steady flow of visitors enters its doors, the deaths of about three-quarters of the 400,000 women who served in World War II has left the memorial honoring military women of all eras without many of its loyal benefactors, although some still visit.
"Most of them are in wheelchairs, and they are ill. All of their hair is white, and I look and I think, who knows how long we've got left. We just want to do our best while we're here," said Lorraine Dieterle, 84, who during World War II was stationed in New York as a photographer for the U.S. Coast Guard. She now volunteers at the memorial.
The recession and a post-Sept. 11 decline in bookstore sales inside the memorial have made it harder to raise the private dollars that comprise a large share of the memorial's $2.7 million annual budget.
Things looked so bleak last year that keeping the memorial open became an "iffy" proposition, said retired Air Force Brig. Gen. Wilma Vaught, 80, a Vietnam veteran and president of the board of directors of the Women In Military Service For America Memorial Foundation.
The memorial remained afloat thanks to a $1.6 million congressional appropriation and a special fundraising drive that has brought in $250,000. Still, paying bills remains a challenge, Vaught said.
"You're constantly wondering if you're going to get enough money to pay for the rent, pay for the electricity for the building, pay for the people that work," Vaught said in an interview near the entrance of the memorial, which features exhibits and rooms used for gatherings after funerals and support group meetings of families of the fallen. "It's always with you."
The fundraising problems come as U.S. service women serve in combat as convoy drivers and gunners. More than 230,000 women have served in Iraq and Afghanistan and more than 120 have died in the wars.
Memorial organizers hope the newest generation of female service members will step forward. They want more of them to donate as well as participate in memorial activities and enter their stories into the memorial's computerized registry, which includes the biographies of an estimated 241,000 of the 2.5 million women who have served in the U.S. military.
"For some women, they have this idea this is something you do when you retire, or it's something you do when you've done some accomplishment. That really isn't it," Vaught said. "The mere fact that you're serving is all that needs to be true."
The $22 million memorial took more than a decade to plan and construct. It was the brainchild of a group of female World War II veterans who felt the stories of the women who served in the war were too often left out of museums.
Dieterle recalled that she and other vets in Michigan held countless garage sales and sold doughnuts to raise money for it. Eventually, organizers were able to get the financial support of states across the country, foreign countries and corporations to help get it opened.
She described the dedication day as one of "exultation."
"I think half of the people that were there were World War II veterans," said Dieterle, who now lives in Fairfax, Virginia. "We were so excited about having our memorial."
Alice Konze, 89, a retired Army major who was stationed in France and Germany during the war, said it has been forgotten how much men deeply resented the military women who served in the 1940s in positions such as nurses and pilots.
"We did do unusual things and there was a need for women to get in, we ... in the military and the women who went to work in the factories really led the women's revolution at that time," said Konze, of Oxon Hill, Maryland.
On May 1, a temporary exhibit titled "When Janey Comes Marching Home: Portraits of Women Combat Veterans" featuring portraits and oral histories of female combat troops from the recent conflicts went on display. The memorial also plans a Memorial Day unveiling of the uniform, medals, and other items belonging to Cpl. Jessica Ellis, 24, an Army medic from Bend, Oregon, who was killed in Iraq in 2008.
When women from the recent conflicts enter the memorial's doors, organizers say they cannot help but get caught up in the stories of the women who came before them and to feel a connection.
One of them on a recent day was Air Force Maj. Linda Stanley, 52, who served as a nurse in Balad, Iraq, and made the trip days before her retirement from the military. She said it has taken her a long time to process mentally the death and destruction she saw in Iraq to the point she was ready to enter the doors of a place like the memorial.
Once inside the memorial she said she was glad she had entered. She had found a safe place.
"Anyone who goes to combat is going to be affected," she said. "Man, woman, anybody."
_____
On the Net:
Women in Military Service for America Memorial: http://www.womensmemorial.org/
When Janey Comes Home exhibit: http://janeycomeshome.com
Arlington National Cemetery: http://www.arlingtoncemetery.org/
Online member communications
We welcome your input on a range of topics to keep strategy on track, to spot trends and issues, and to share information and solutions.
CA Pulse is an informal, online hotspot for members only. Each month, CA Pulse asks a question or two about issues of interest to the profession. The results will be posted online and published in upcoming editions of CICA forum. Note: The data collected in CA Pulse is purely for the interest of readers and will not be used as part of CICA's official research programs.
Here's how to participate:
1. Look for the latest CA Pulse questions in each edition of CICA forum.
2. Log on to the "Members Only" section of the CICA Web site (www.cica.ca) and follow the link to CA Pulse.
3. Submit your responses.
This month's questions:
1. Over the next 3 years do you anticipate that your role will expand into new areas or will It become more focused on a specialized area?
* Expanded
* The Same
* Specialized
2. How will it expand or become more specialized?
BRISBANE, Australia (AP) — Australian Open champion Kim Clijsters advanced to the semifinals of the Brisbane International with a 6-3, 6-2 win over Iveta Benesova on Thursday.
Clijsters won the Brisbane title in 2010 and, after missing the 2011 edition, now has an 8-0 record in the Australian Open tuneup.
She raced to a 5-0 lead before Benesova, who ousted U.S. Open champion Sam Stosur in the second round, launched a comeback with a run of three straight games.
Benesova got an early break to lead 2-0 in the second set before Clijsters shifted up a gear and won six straight games to earn a semifinal meeting against Daniela Hantuchova.
Third-seeded Francesca Schiavone will meet Kaia Kanepi of Estonia in the other women's semifinal.
Results Saturday from a World Cup ski jumping meet on Granasen's large hill:
1. Thomas Morgenstern, Austria, 275.7 points (133-131 meters).
2. Gregor Schlierenzauer, Austria, 269.8 (134-129.5).
3. Tom Hilde, Norway, 268.2 (131-130.5).
4. Janne Ahonen, Finland, 261.9 (130-128).
5. Jernej Damjan, Slovenia, 261.5 (130.5-127).
6. Wolfgang Loitzl, Austria, 258.9 (127-128.5).
7. Adam Malysz, Poland, 255.7 (125-129).
8. Simon Ammann, Switzerland, 254.4 (127-126).
9. Andreas Kuttel, Switzerland, 252.1 (126-126).
10. Anders Bardal, Norway, 245.3 (124-124.5).
11. Michael Neumayer, Germany, 244.4 (125.5-125).
12. Roman Koudelka, Czech Republic, 243.4 (122-126).
13. Andreas Kofler, Austria, 242.8 (123-125.5).
14. Matti Hautamaki, Finland, 240.1 (125.5-121.5).
15. Noriaki Kasai, Japan, 239.1 (124-123).
___
Overall Standings
(After 2 of 28 events)
1. Thomas Morgenstern, Austria, 200.
2. Gregor Schlierenzauer, Austria, 130.
3. Tom Hilde, Norway, 120.
4. Bjorn Einar Romoren, Norway, 91.
5. Janne Ahonen, Finland, 68.
6. Simon Ammann, Switzerland, 64.
7. Matti Hautamaki, Finland, 63.
8. Jernej Damjan, Slovenia, 54.
9. Michael Neumayer, Germany, 53.
10. Adam Malysz, Poland, 51.
MICROSOFT, AT&T DON'T LIKE DOUBLECLICK BUY
Microsoft Corp. and AT&T Inc. urged regulators to review GoogleInc.'s $3.1 billion purchase of DoubleClick Inc., saying theacquisition gives the company too much control in the Internetadvertising market. It should be "stringently" reviewed by antitrustauthorities because Google is positioning itself as the sole brokerof online ads, AT&T said.
MOTOROLA GIVES UP BATTLE WITH INDIA
Motorola said it will drop a court case charging an Indian state-run telecommunications company with unfairly disqualifying it frombidding on a large contract. In November, the Delhi High Courttemporarily stopped India's BSNL Ltd. from …
A drug to prevent bone loss during breast cancer treatment also substantially cut the risk that the cancer would return, results that left doctors excited about a possible new way to fight the disease.
It is the first large study to affirm wider anti-cancer hopes for Zometa and other bone-building drugs called bisphosphonates. Zometa, made by Novartis AG, is used now for cancers that have already spread to the bone.
The new study involved 1,800 premenopausal women taking hormone treatments for early-stage breast cancer. Zometa cut by one-third the chances that cancer would recur _ in their bones or anywhere else.
"This is an important …
Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon raised a new condition for allowing Arafat to leave _ a U.S. guarantee that Israel would be able to prevent Arafat from returning if there are Palestinian terror attacks during his absence.
Speaking on Israel TV's Arabic service after the popular Arabic language channel El-Jazeera canceled an interview with him at the last moment, Sharon said that in order to win permission to attend the …
Israel accepts U.S. truce plan but Palestinian reservations remain00-00-0000Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon raised a new condition for allowing Arafat to leave _ a U.S. guarantee that Israel would be able to prevent Arafat from returning if there are Palestinian terror attacks during his absence.
Speaking on Israel TV's Arabic service after the popular Arabic language channel El-Jazeera canceled an interview with him at the last moment, Sharon said that in order to win permission to attend the …
Gospel sounds vibrate with passionate fervor
As a premiere to Black Music Month, Pam Morris, host and Gospel Festival coordinator, with Jim Law, executive director of the Mayor's Office of Special Events presented a festival that thrilled Chicago citizens in an historical perspective of gospel music utilizing every religious genre, even under cloudy skies, threatening rain and a very, very cool atmosphere.
Soloists, ensembles, choruses and instrumentalists of every stylized dimension blazed with passionate fervor as they sang with an overflowing power of amazing grace (the unmerited gift of salvation through the Saviour, Jesus Christ).
While thousands listened, …
The Government in early June devalued the peso for the first time since it entered the unofficial currency exchange eight months earlier. Government-run Cajas de Cambio S.A. (CADECA) bought dollars for 22 pesos, compared to 21 pesos a week earlier. However, CADECA also lowered the value of the dollar, selling it for 25 …
another host country because of the high crime rate.
"(Fifa) president Sepp Blatter would say he knows that the people of South Africa would host the world of football in conditions of safety ... It will take place in South Africa. It will be a resounding success."
Mbeki also spoke approvingly of a suggestion by UDM leader Bantu Holomisa that a steering committee of all SA roleplayers be formed to identify areas in which debate needed to be deepened.
"Perhaps we should together take a deliberate decision to institute a national process that will help us to identify ... the matters on which we should act in partnership, inspired by a …
Byline: Kristin Jackson Seattle Times
Ten years after its catastrophic blast, plenty of attention is being focused on the Mount St. Helens volcano.
And thanks to the anniversary of the May 18, 1980, eruption, the number of visitors to Mount St. Helens in southwest Washington is expected to surge through the summer.
From Seattle or Portland, Mount St. Helens makes an ideal weekend car trip.
Two full days really are needed to explore the Mount St. Helens National Volcanic Monument (a 110,000- acre preserve administered by the U.S. Forest Service) area since the main sights are spread out and roads within the monument are often winding and slow-going.
Here are some tips - and a rundown on some of the highpoints - for those planning a visit to Mount St. …
Police detained the owner and manager of a Casablanca mattress factory that went up in flames, killing at least 55 people, a police official said Sunday amid accusations of poor safety standards and locked doors that trapped workers.
Rescue workers found one more body Sunday and a sniffer dog was seen uncovering body parts a day after the blaze at the factory, located in a poor industrial neighborhood on the rim of Morocco's sprawling economic capital.
The latest official death toll was 55, including most recently discovered body, and six people remained hospitalized, Morocco's official news agency said, quoting the wilaya, or local government. The death …
Anna E. Hletko, 84, a homemaker who was active in Slovakianaffairs, died Monday at Sandalwood Healthcare Centre, Wheaton.
At the time of her death, Mrs. Hletko was serving as presidentof the St. Agnes Wreath No. 9, Slovak Catholic Society. Besidesbeing a 50-year member of the First Catholic Slovak LadiesAssociation, she belonged to and supported a number of otherSlovakian churches and educational and cultural institutions.
She was the wife of the late …
Byline: Jackie Stewart
First Business Financial Services Inc. in Madison, Wis., reported third-quarter earnings of $2.2 million, more than double its profit from a year ago, thanks to strong revenue and margin growth.
"Against the challenging national economic backdrop of the past three months, First Business delivered third-quarter profitability that is among our strongest ever," Corey A. Chambas, the president and chief executive, said in a press release Friday. "We've grown in-market deposits and continued to lower our deposit funding costs, while our asset quality continues to improve."
The $1.1 billion-asset company said that revenue rose 10.5%, to …
NEW YORK - The chain drug back-to-school (B-T-S) product mix relies heavily on products featuring licensed characters, and that's a trend that shows staying power into the future. Licensed products account for up to a quarter of total sales in B-T-S and home office supplies, according to The Licensing Letter, an industry newsletter. And licensed products are projected to generate up to $7.5 billion in total category volume next year.
The concept of licensing in B-T-S supplies has expanded to include marketing partnerships between school supplies manufacturers and the originators of some popular licensed properties. For example, Stuart Hall Co., a unit of Newell Co., is …
Byline: KENNETH C. CROWE II Staff writer
Saratoga County will make a final payment of $798,750 left on its $9.5 million jail bond on Dec. 15, making the county debt free.
County officials pointed out their status after State Comptroller H. Carl McCall warned that borrowing by the state's local governments could lead to higher property taxes.
``We're a cash and carry county,'' Board of Supervisors Chairwoman Anita Daly, R-Clifton Park, said Monday.
``I'm very pleased that no property taxpayer dollars will be spent on interest payments in 2001,'' Daly said.
The only outstanding debt the county had this year was $384,844 left from …
Byline: Combined wire services
NEW YORK - Eric Mangini's first big quarterback decision wasn't really a decision at all. In training camp, Chad Pennington won the starting job, no contest. Mangini hopes he doesn't have to revisit that choice, but it could be going in that direction.
Pennington is mired in the worst six-game stretch of his career, leading to questions about his job security. Monday, Mangini backed the popular veteran, praising his intangibles, but the coach opened the door slightly when asked if he's considering a change.
"Chad is the quarterback right now," said Mangini, using the popular "right-now" qualifier that coaches lean on when trying to avoid a long-term commitment.
Pennington will start Sunday against the defensively challenged …
British police say two U.S. airmen died when their car collided with another vehicle in eastern England.
Police say they were killed when their BMW collided with a car on a road in the village of Icklingham in Suffolk late Saturday.
The men were based at nearby Lakenheath …
The numbers continue to get higher in the wood recycling industry - more feedstocks to process, more companies filling infrastructure needs, more imaginative approaches to market development. A new report from the editors of BioCycle - Wood Recycling, How to Process Materials for Profitable Markets reviews the vast changes taking place with wood residuals and how they translate into opportunities.
In an opening chapter, the head of a ten-year-old company called California Bio-Mass, Inc. emphasizes that it takes a keen eye for detail to manage efficiently, safely and profitably to succeed in the industry. As the first rule to earning prof its from recycling wood, Dave Hardy …
Make it user-friendly: This is what The Retired Officers Association (TROA), Alexandria, Virginia, wanted to achieve in redesigning its Web site (www.troa.org). A 40 percent increase in use during the first three months following the redesigned site's debut indicate early success.
"Everybody likes this redesign--members, potential members, staff, and board members--which says a lot about its versatility and utility," says Lt. Gen. Michael A. Nelson, USAF-Ret., TROA president.
TROA hired an outside company to conduct usability testing, a process that measures a product's efficiency and effectiveness by observing users performing tasks. TROA invited eight …
100 YEARS AGO Nov. 12, 1907 PINE BLUFF - Chief of Police Al Stewart ordered five fine bloodhounds from a famous kennel in Ohio. The hounds will cost $125. …
Byline: MARV CERMAK Staff writer SCHENECTADY Police Chief Michael G. Moffett said the county's $1.1 million matching cost to fund a new countywide drug/vice police unit should instead be given to existing city and town police agencies to fight crime.
He asked Mayor Frank J. Duci and the City Council to make the request to the county. ``Existing local police agencies have already demonstrated their willingness to work together to meet countywide challenges,'' Moffett said in a Monday memo to Duci and the council.
``The city department has already established relationships with the State Police, the federal Drug Enforcement Agency and regional task …
General Motors Co. said Monday it lost $1.2 billion from the time it left bankruptcy protection through Sept. 30, far better than it has reported in previous quarters and a sign that the auto giant is starting to turn around its business.
The company also said it will begin repaying $6.7 billion in U.S. government loans with a $1.2 billion payment in December. It plans to repay the debt over the next eight quarters, but could pay it back as early as next year. But the money will come from funds loaned by the government.
GM said its improved performance was fueled by new products including the Chevrolet Camaro muscle car, and the Chevrolet Equinox and GMC …
Blues 6 Hawks 4
ST. LOUIS The good news is the Blackhawks were in position to beatthe Blues, arguably the best team in the NHL.
The bad news is they didn't, losing 6-4 in front of 19,780 fans atthe Savvis Center on Saturday. It was the Hawks' second straightloss, and it left them five games under .500 with another gameagainst St. Louis scheduled for tonight at the United Center.
"At the least, we could have earned one point from this game,"coach Alpo Suhonen said. "All the goals scored against us were badindividual plays."
The game was tied at 4 midway through the third period. But aturnover by right wing Steve Sullivan left Pierre Turgeon and …
A black-and-white photo of a small, open, wooden music box reveals a round compact and rosary tucked inside and highlights the box's wood grain as well as several small chips here and there. For the photographer, Kathy Breda of Troy, the image is a self-portrait, of sorts.
"I was raised in a family that treasures old photos and mementos," reveals the photo's caption. "They connect me to the past. A little at a time, mom has offered things to me. I remember sitting on her bed, winding up this music box and listening to the tune while she sat at her sewing machine. I finally remember the song. It's called 'Parade of the Wooden Soldiers.' "
Breda is one of 12 women from the Capital Region who recently took part in Our Story, a free photography and writing course through the Art of Labor …
Byline: Associated Press
MATTOON, Ill. -- An early morning tornado flattened buildings and injured three people Saturday as thunderstorms swept across the Midwest.
The twister destroyed at least 18 houses, three businesses and an apartment building in Mattoon, said Ed Gardner, coordinator of emergency services. Dozens of other buildings were badly damaged.
``It sounded like an old B-52 bomber taking off,'' said Gardner, who lives a block from some of the worst damage. ``I looked out the window, and the flagpole was bent over and the flag was sticking straight out.''
Authorities said there was no warning before the tornado, with winds speeds …
To the sound of midnight fireworks and pealing church bells, Slovakia joined the eurozone, putting it under the shared currency's protective umbrella amid a world financial downpour _ and underscoring the former Soviet bloc nation's economic progress.
The small alpine nation on Thursday became the 16th country to adopt the euro, a European Union project which also celebrated its 10th birthday this New Year's Day. With Slovakia, the currency will be used by 330 million people with an annual gross domestic product of more than 4 trillion euros ($5.6 trillion).
Joining up is a milestone for the country of 5.4 million people in a region where others have seen …
