No. 4 Louisville holds off Kentucky, 80-77

Louisville's Gorgui Dieng, right, dunks over Kentucky's Alex Poythrees, left, and Kyle Wiltjer during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Dec. 29, 2012, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)

Louisville's Gorgui Dieng, right, dunks over Kentucky's Alex Poythrees, left, and Kyle Wiltjer during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Dec. 29, 2012, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)

Kentucky's Nerlins Noel, right, blocks the shot of Louisville's Wayne Blackshear during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Dec. 29, 2012, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)

Kentucky's Nerlins Noel, right, gets a shot off over the defense of Louisville's Gorgui Dieng during the first half of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Dec. 29, 2012, in Louisville, Ky. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)

Louisville's Peyton Siva, right, goes over the top of Kentucky's Nerlins Noel for a layup during the second half of an NCAA college basketball game Saturday, Dec. 29, 2012, in Louisville, Ky. Louisville defeated Kentucky 80-77. (AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley)

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (AP) ? Russ Smith ranked Louisville's 80-77 victory over Kentucky on Saturday as one of the five favorites of his career.

Makes sense, considering he played a key role in ending the No. 4 Cardinals' four-game losing streak against the rival Wildcats.

Smith scored 21 points, including five of Louisville's final 13, along with seven rebounds to help the Cardinals hold off Kentucky in an up-and-down game.

The effort comes nearly a year after he came off the bench to score 30 in the Cardinals' 69-62 loss to the Wildcats in Lexington, one of two defeats last season to their in-state rivals that included last season's national semifinal. Kentucky went on to win its eighth national championship.

"This one probably ranks as one of the top five biggest wins of my life," said the junior guard, whose list includes last season's NCAA regional final, the round of 16 and Louisville's two wins that clinched the Big East Conference championship last March.

"We know where we messed up and we know the mistakes we made, but at the end of the day it's a win. It's not a conference win but it's a great non-conference win. It's a great win for the city. We're actually more happy for our fans than for ourselves. ... I guess revenge is the word, but it feels good beating the team that knocked you out of the Final Four."

Especially since that team, Kentucky, resides about 80 miles east and had recently owned the Battle of the Bluegrass. Louisville now has bragging rights, and Smith had help in getting them for the Cardinals.

Sophomore forward Chane Behanan had 20 points, seven rebounds and three steals, including a steal of Archie Goodwin's pass that led to his dunk with 18 seconds remaining that sealed the victory for Louisville (12-1) before a KFC Yum! Center crowd of 22,810.

"I feel like I could have done better," said Behanan, who had been banned from talking to the media this fall by coach Rick Pitino. "I took a lot of plays off throughout the game. I feel as though I could have gotten a lot more rebounds than I did. In a game like that you just give it your all to win it.

"It was my third time playing them. It just feels good to win, not for me but the city too."

Before fouling out Peyton Siva added 19 points for the Cardinals, who had to withstand several charges from Kentucky.

The Wildcats trailed 51-34 but outscored the Cardinals 28-14 to get within 65-62 before Smith's two baskets keyed an 8-5 run that gave Louisville some breathing room.

The Cardinals won despite four fouls by Smith and center Gorgui Dieng, who returned from a seven-game absence with a broken left wrist. The junior had six points, seven rebounds and two blocks.

"A great win for us because we had to battle a lot of bad foul trouble," Pitino said. "We survived with good plays from Chane and Russ. The offense and defense in the first half was spectacular then we lost our defensive presence in the second half because we were worried about foul trouble."

Goodwin scored 19 of his 22 points in the second half for Kentucky (8-4) and Ryan Harrow added 17 points.

Poor foul shooting hurt the Wildcats' comeback. They shot just 11 of 23 (48 percent) from the line, matching their percentage from the field.

Kentucky trailed 77-74 following a rare four-point play as Goodwin was fouled by Siva as he made a 3-pointer.

Kentucky coach John Calipari didn't call timeout after that, and Goodwin's turnover followed.

"Believe me, I was standing there thinking timeout and didn't call it," Calipari said. "That was the end of the game. I told them this one was on me and hopefully I'll do a better job.

"Stuff like that happens and I take responsibility. They (Louisville) deserved to win. But I didn't give our guys the chance they deserved with the way they played down the stretch."

Louisville also shot 48 percent from the field, but made 17 of 25 from the free throw line to win its seventh straight.

As might be expected from bitter in-state rivals, the early minutes were physical and intense with six ties and five lead changes. There were lineup changes for both teams.

Kentucky started 7-foot freshman Willie Cauley-Stein alongside 6-10 Nerlens Noel for the first time in an effort to establish a post presence against the Cardinals.

The Wildcats' move might have been a pre-emptive one with Louisville expected to start the 6-11 Dieng.

The Cardinals instead started 6-10 Zach Price but Dieng entered the game just 1:43 in and quickly made his presence felt with three rebounds, a block and a dunk that helped give Louisville a 12-10 lead.

Unfortunately for the Cardinals, the junior soon picked up his second foul and was replaced by Montrezl Harrell, who had seven points and four rebounds.

Louisville started 6 of 16 from the field and trailed 18-12, but went on a 13-2 run led by Behanan, who scored six points. He scored 11 points to help give the Cardinals a 36-28 lead at the half.

Kentucky came back behind three 3-pointers each by Kyle Wiltjer (14 points) and Goodwin, who finished 8 of 15 from the field. But Louisville survived because of a defense that forced 15 turnovers leading to 19 points and the end of a frustrating losing streak for the Cardinals and their fans.

"It finally gets the monkey off your back," Siva said. "You can stop thinking about it now and go out and play you don't have to get heckled by fans everywhere you go. For our fans this is like a national championship game. This feels good for them."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2012-12-30-BKC-T25-Kentucky-Louisville/id-ce6f35930de44368b271324fe6813110

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Badgers football: Stanford quarterback Kevin Hogan has come a long way

LOS ANGELES ? All Stanford assistant coach Pep Hamilton had to do this season was figure out a way to replace quarterback Andrew Luck, a two-time Heisman Trophy runner-up and the No. 1 overall pick in the 2012 NFL draft.

As if Luck?s shadow wasn?t already big enough, Hamilton found out in the spring that he had a new title. He was no longer just the Cardinal?s offensive coordinator, he was the Andrew Luck Director of Offense, a label created thanks to an anonymous donor giving, according to a news release, a ?very generous gift.?

Little did Hamilton know when the season began that the player he began grooming last season as Luck?s eventual replacement would end up igniting a late-season surge that resulted in a Pac-12 title. Stanford (11-2) will face the University of Wisconsin (8-5) in Tuesday?s Rose Bowl in Pasadena, Calif.

They haven?t forgotten Luck in Palo Alto, but redshirt freshman Kevin Hogan has shown signs that he could be the Cardinal?s next great quarterback.

?He?s definitely been a sparkplug for this offense,? Cardinal sophomore left tackle David Yankey said.

Stanford?s players and coaches spent the first few months answering questions about life after Luck. Close losses to Washington and Notre Dame in the first half of the season didn?t help matters.

?The Ghost of Andrew Luck wasn?t going to win us any games, unfortunately,? Yankey said.

Then along came Hogan, who began the season as the third-string quarterback but is 4-0 since replacing Josh Nunes as the starter. Each of those victories have come over ranked opponents, including a 17-14 overtime decision at then-No. 1 Oregon on Nov. 17.

The 6-foot-4, 224-pound Hogan ? his body type is similar to the 6-4, 234-pound Luck, who has led the Indianapolis Colts to the playoffs in his rookie season ? has completed 72.9 percent of his passes with nine touchdowns and three interceptions.

There is no doubt that the stars of the Stanford offense are still tailback Stepfan Taylor (1,442 yards, 14 touchdowns) and tight end Zach Ertz (66 receptions, 837 yards, six touchdowns), but Hogan has added a new dynamic because of his strong arm and ability to make plays with his feet.

?They did similar things,? Badgers junior linebacker Chris Borland said of Stanford?s offense now compared to before Hogan was inserted in the lineup. ?But from time to time he?d just make plays that they probably couldn?t have made previously.?

This isn?t the first dual-threat quarterback UW has faced this season. But unlike Nebraska?s Taylor Martinez and Ohio State?s Braxton Miller, Hogan is a pass-first, run-second quarterback.

?He?s definitely more of a passer, but I?ve seen him get the ball out when guys have him wrapped up,? UW junior defensive end David Gilbert said. ?He?s a big, strong kid. It?s going to be a challenge. We haven?t really played against a quarterback that has such a good combination of skills. Most guys who can throw don?t move that well. He?s got a good pocket presence and he?s a strong kid.?

Hogan had attempted one pass before Hamilton and Stanford coach David Shaw made the decision to replace Nunes after a slow start against Colorado. Hogan entered the game and led the Cardinal to six consecutive scoring drives.

So why didn?t Hogan have a bigger role earlier in the season? He?s the first to admit he wasn?t ready, primarily because he was having a difficult time grasping Stanford?s pro-style offense.

As it turned out, Hogan saved his best work for gamedays.

?I always knew he was a playmaker, but I didn?t know how well he?d adapt to the in-game checks,? Cardinal senior center Sam Schwartzstein said. ?He isn?t always perfect in practice, but come game time, he?s on point every single time.?

That sounds like Luck, who spent his final season at Stanford with Hogan watching his every move.

?His redshirt year,? Hamilton said, ?he had one job and that was to watch Andrew. ?Sit in the back of the room, be seen and not heard and emulate everything that Andrew Luck is doing, OK?? ?

To Hogan, the answer was a no-brainer.

?I?d just watch him,? Hogan said. ?I?d watch how he carried himself on the field as well as off the field. I?d watch his technique as well as his work ethic. He was a great manager of the game. He?s the ultimate leader of the offense. And just by watching him every day, and just by being in the room with him and around him really helped me.?

And, in time, helped the Cardinal even more.

Source: http://host.madison.com/sports/college/football/badgers-football-stanford-quarterback-kevin-hogan-has-come-a-long/article_2f2aa7ae-d38b-11e0-94dd-001cc4c002e0.html

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Hotel Kings Boutique Hotel London United Kingdom

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Aetna CEO Says ObamaCare Could Double Health Insurance ...

Aetna CEO says ObamaCare could double healthcare premiums.

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2. We Have Too Much Health Insurance Already by Dr. Tracy C. Miller One of the arguments for...
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4. Why ObamaCare Could Be Finished! In an effort to intimidate states (that is, Republican governors)...
5. FACT CHECK: Premiums Would Rise Under Obama Plan Buyers, beware: President Barack Obama says his health care overhaul...

Source: http://www.westernjournalism.com/aetna-ceo-says-obamacare-could-double-health-insurance-premiums/

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Courtland Rogers: Kieffer Delp Got Jenelle Evans Hooked on HEROIN!

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What happens to you if we go over the fiscal cliff

14 hrs.

Allison Linn , NBC News

Some lawmakers are back in Washington hoping to hammer out a last-minute deal to avert the so-called fiscal cliff, but so far it seems that there?s more name-calling than deal-making going on.

If no deal is ever reached, it will be more than just a political headache. Americans also could feel considerable pocketbook pain as taxes rise, unemployment benefits are cut off and an array of smaller changes take effect.

The cumulative effect on Americans? wallets could be enough to dent?significantly the already weak economy. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has said the combination of tax increases and spending cuts could be enough to send the nation back into recession.

That?s the worst-case scenario, and despite the considerable gridlock, most experts expect that Congress and the president will eventually come to some sort of deal. Experts also say that even if no deal is reached by Jan. 1, retroactive fixes and other dealmaking could prevent the most harmful effects from ever hitting most Americans.

Related: Consumers, businesses brace for fiscal cliff impact

Still, the Tax Policy Center, a nonpartisan think tank, says that nearly 90 percent of households?would be affected if we go over the fiscal cliff completely and no deal is reached.

A stalemate would have very specific effects on certain groups of taxpayers, such as students, parents and married couples who have benefited over the past decade?from certain tax law changes passed under the Bush and Obama administrations.

But the Tax Policy Center says that on average, taxes would go up for every income group, from the poorest taxpayers to the most wealthy:

• Americans in the lowest 20 percent of the income scale could pay an average of about $400 more in taxes.
  
• Middle-income households could pay about $2,000 more in taxes, on average.
  
• The top 20 percent of taxpayers could pay about $14,000 more a year in taxes, on average.
  
• The 1 percenters could pay an average of $120,000 more in taxes.
  

Here?s a look at some of the biggest issues likely to affect the largest groups of taxpayers if Congress cannot make a deal.

Tax rates will go up: If no deal is made, taxpayers can expect their tax rate to rise no matter what income group they fall in, said?Roberton Williams, senior fellow with the Tax Policy Institute. That?s because previously passed rate cuts would expire.

?Everyone who has taxable income will see a tax increase because of the rates,? Williams said.

Payroll taxes: For the past two years, the employee?s share of taxes paid for Social Security has been set at 4.2 percent instead of the previous level of 6.2 percent. That temporary tax cut would expire without a new deal, meaning almost everyone?s taxes would rise by 2 percentage points.

Translation: Your paycheck would be a little bit smaller.

?That?s the thing that people will see first,? Williams said.

Alternative Minimum Tax:? The Alternative Minimum Tax? was originally designed so that wealthy taxpayers would be forced to pay a minimum level of taxes no matter what. But because it was not created to account for inflation, over the years it has threatened to affect an ever-bigger group of people.

Congress has previously passed temporary ?patches? to keep lower-income households from having to pay more taxes. If no deal is reached this year, the latest patch would expire and the Internal Revenue Service says around 30 million additional taxpayers would become subject to the AMT.

Of course, every taxpayer?s individual circumstances are different. To see how your family?s tax rates could be affected, you can check out the Tax Policy Center?s individualized tax?calculator.

Taxes aren?t the only pocketbook problem Americans could face if a deal isn?t reached, because so much government spending is tied up in reaching a deal. But the most widespread effect would probably be on people who have been unemployed for a long time.

Unemployment benefits: About 2.1 million unemployed Americans are scheduled to lose federally funded unemployment compensation if Congress can?t reach a deal to extend the benefits plan by the end of the year. President Obama has said he?d like to see those benefits extended as part of a fiscal cliff deal.

The federally funded unemployment benefit extensions were introduced in 2008 while the country was in the depths of the recession. The extended benefits kick in after an unemployed person has exhausted his or her 26 weeks of state benefits. The exact amount of additional compensation depends on the unemployment rate in the person?s home state.

The unemployment rate has fallen sharply in recent months, but long-term unemployment remains a major?problem. About 4.8 million people, or 40 percent of the total number of people who were unemployed in November, had been jobless for 27 weeks or more.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/business/economywatch/heres-what-happens-you-if-we-go-over-fiscal-cliff-1C7753059

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Socialize finance! | MattBruenig | Politics

Seth Ackerman has a fantastic piece (a primer if you will) in the latest Jacobin. At the heart of the piece is an explanation of the economic calculation problem, and the challenge it poses to the realization of socialism. For those interested in this sort of thing, the discussion is pretty standard, but still worth reading and passing along to others.

The short is that without free-floating market prices, it is arguably impossible to make the economic calculations necessary to allocate productive resources well. Every bit of production trades off with an infinite variety of other kinds of production: the labor and material used in the production could be re-purposed towards other ends. A critical function of any economic system is determining how best to manage those trade-offs to produce what we most want.

In the status quo, the buying and selling of things at free-floating prices functions as a decentralized economic calculator. This calculator generates signals that are then used to align production. The chief task for socialist technicians is to figure out how to achieve their socialist goals without losing the ability to carry out the economic calculation necessary for production. The easiest way to do this is by preserving the market price mechanism, and socializing around it in various ways. This is called market socialism.

In his piece, Ackerman?s proposal for socializing around the market is to socialize finance. Those familiar with Gar Alperovitz will quickly recognize the proposal. In essence, the state would set up a sovereign wealth fund that purchases shares in existing companies. Such funds would quite literally socialize the means of production by transferring ownership of business equity from private individuals to the public state. Funds similar to this already exist in some limited ways, e.g. the Alaska Permanent Fund and public pension funds like CalPERS.

This idea is very commendable in many ways. Using a public wealth fund to buy equity in private businesses preserves the economic calculation function of the market, but redirects profits, dividends, and capital gains to the state. This would allow the state to capture the passive returns that wealthy private investors currently capture. The state could then distribute that extra revenue to the public through cash transfers (as they do in Alaska) or use it to finance valuable public investment.

I like this idea so much that I wrote a post a short time ago arguing that the federal government should exploit the super-low interest rates on treasuries to start building a sovereign wealth fund right now. Just as super-low interest rates make debt-financed public investment a no-brainer right now, it also makes debt-financed private investment a no-brainer as well.

With that said, it is important to highlight the limitations of this form of socialization. All this socialization does is wrestle away profits, dividends, and other forms of capital income away from private ? and generally very wealthy ? hands. While this is technically a socializing move, it does not necessarily have a significantly egalitarian or democratizing effect. Swapping out private owners for government owners does not necessarily empower workers in their own firms or ensure that low-income workers get a raise. To the extent that worker democracy and egalitarianism are critical goals of the socialist agenda, financial socialization will not, by itself, be sufficient.

To be fair, advocates of it have never claimed that it will be sufficient. The goal of socialized finance is very narrow: capture financial rents for the public. That?s a very worthwhile goal, and one that seems to be in reach. To increase income equality and worker strength, however, other programs and strategies are much more critical.

Source: http://mattbruenig.com/2012/12/27/socialize-finance/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=socialize-finance

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Vanguard cut fees on dozens of mutual funds, ETFs

(Reuters) - Vanguard Group, the largest U.S. mutual fund manager, reduced fees across dozens of its index-tracking stock and bond funds, following similar moves by competitors.

The fee reductions range from five-hundredths to one-hundredth of a percentage point per year. With many of the funds already charging low fees of less than 0.20 percent Of assets, some of the reductions were the equivalent of a 20 percent fee cut.

Intense competition among managers of index mutual and exchange-traded funds has led to sharp price cutting across the industry over the past few months. BlackRock , the largest ETF manager, and brokerage firm Charles Schwab both announced price cuts earlier this year.

At Vanguard's line of broad equity sector funds, such as the firm's Consumer Discretionary ETF and Health Care ETF , fees declined to 0.14 percent from 0.19 percent. Vanguard, based in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, posted a full list of the fee cuts at http://link.reuters.com/cut84t.

Vanguard raised fees slightly on three actively managed equity mutual funds, including on both share classes of the $17.6 billion Vanguard International Growth Fund. Fees on the "Investor" share class rose to 0.49 percentage point from 0.47 while fees on the fund's "Admiral" class rose to 0.36 point from 0.34.

(Reporting by Aaron Pressman; Editing by Steve Orlofsky)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/vanguard-cut-fees-dozens-mutual-funds-etfs-150523583--sector.html

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Top official: Whole society benefits from the state's care for press ...

Azerbaijan, Baku, Dec. 27 / Trend. Trend E. Mehdiyev /

For many years, Azerbaijani government has been showing care for the press and this benefits the whole society in general, Head of Azerbaijani Presidential Administration's Social and Political Department Ali Hasanov said.

He made the remarks at the award ceremony of the competition announced by Azerbaijani Fund of State Support to Media Development under the President on Thursday.

"The government has been taking care of the press for many years," Hasanov said.

Hasanov said that according to the concept adopted in this area, Azerbaijani Fund of State Support to Media Development under the President each year decides on certain issues related to labor and social problems of journalists.

"As a result of this attitude of President Ilham Aliyev to the press he was elected as friend of journalists. Next year, we will participate in the opening of the building, for the first time in the history of the country, built for journalists. Neediest and most productive journalists will be provided with apartments in that building," Hasanov said.

Significant events are to happen in Azerbaijan in 2013.

"Presidential elections are coming up in Azerbaijan. Work of media will increase during the year of presidential elections. The main issue is to satisfy the information needs of the Azerbaijani state and people by uniting, and to solve the existing problems in this area," he said.

Speaking of journalistic competition, Hasanov said that there are winners, but there are no losers in it, there are journalists who took the first, second, third and subsequent places.

"The first three places are awarded. Although others do not receive awards, they can participate in the competition next year, presenting even better articles. The main issue is that by holding these events, we demonstrate the care of the state and President Ilham Aliyev for the press," he said.

Do you have any feedback? Contact our journalist at agency@trend.az

Source: http://en.trend.az/news/politics/2103746.html

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Obama invites congressional leaders to cliff talk

WASHINGTON (AP) ? President Barack Obama will meet with congressional leaders at the White House on Friday in search of a compromise to avoid a year-end "fiscal cliff" of across-the-board tax increases and deep spending cuts.

The development capped a day of growing urgency. Obama returned early from a Hawaiian vacation while lawmakers snarled across a partisan divide, leaders in each party blaming the other for an episode of government gridlock that threatens the economy with a new recession.

Adding to the woes confronting the middle class was a pending spike of $2 per gallon or more in milk prices if lawmakers failed to pass farm legislation by year's end.

Four days before the deadline, the White House disputed reports that Obama was sending lawmakers a scaled-down plan to avoid the fiscal cliff of tax increases and spending cuts.

Administration officials confirmed the Friday meeting at the White House in a bare-bones announcement that said the president would "host a meeting."

A spokesman for House Speaker John Boehner quickly issued a statement that said the Ohio Republican would attend and "continue to stress that the House has already passed legislation to avert the entire fiscal cliff and now the Senate must act."

Top Senate leaders said they remain ready to seek a last-minute agreement. Yet there was no legislation pending and no sign of negotiations in either the House or the Senate on a bill to prevent the tax hikes and spending cuts that economists say could send the economy into a recession.

Far from conciliatory, the rhetoric was confrontational and at times unusually personal.

Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., accused House Speaker John Boehner of running a dictatorship, citing his refusal to call a vote on legislation to keep taxes steady for most while letting them rise at upper incomes. The bill "would pass overwhelmingly," Reid predicted, and said the Ohio Republican won't change his mind because he fears it might cost him re-election as speaker when the new Congress convenes next week.

Boehner seems "to care more about keeping his speakership than keeping the nation on a firm financial footing," he said in remarks on the Senate floor.

A few hours later, McConnell expressed frustration and blamed the standoff on Obama and the Democrats. "Republicans have bent over backwards. We stepped way, way out of our comfort zone," he said, referring to GOP offers to accept higher tax rates on some taxpayers.

"We wanted an agreement, but we had no takers. The phone never rang, and so here we are five days from the new year and we might finally start talking," McConnell said.

Still, he warned: "Republicans aren't about to write a blank check for anything the Democrats put forward just because we find ourselves at the edge of the cliff."

Brendan Buck, a spokesman for Boehner, responded in a similar vein to Reid's comments. "Harry Reid should talk less and legislate more if he wants to avert the fiscal cliff. The House has already passed legislation to do so," he said, referring to a measure that extends existing cuts at all income levels.

Addressing the GOP rank and file by conference call, Boehner said the next move is up to the Senate, which has yet to act on House-passed bills to retain expiring tax cuts at all income levels and replace across-the-board spending cuts with targeted savings aimed largely at social programs.

"The House will take this action on whatever the Senate can pass - but the Senate must act," he said, according to a participant in the call.

Boehner told Republican lawmakers the House would convene on Sunday evening. Rep. Tom Cole, R-Okla., an ally of the speaker, quoted him as having said "he didn't really intend to put on the floor something that would pass with all the Democratic votes and few of the Republican votes."

The risk of higher milk prices stems from the possibility that existing farm programs will expire at year's end, and neither chamber of Congress has scheduled a vote on even a temporary extension to prevent a spike. There have been unverified estimates that the cost to consumers of a gallon of milk could double without action by Congress.

The president flew home from Hawaii overnight after speaking with top congressional leaders.

Before leaving the White House last Friday, the president had called on lawmakers to pass scaled-down legislation that prevents tax increases for the middle class, raises rates at upper incomes and renews expiring unemployment benefits for the long-term jobless. He said he still supports a more sweeping measure to include spending cuts to reduce deficits, but said they could wait until the new year.

That capped an unpredictable week in which Boehner pivoted away from comprehensive deficit reduction talks with Obama to an aborted attempt to push legislation through the House that retained existing tax levels except above $1 million. Anti-tax Republicans rebelled at raising rates on million-dollar earners, and Boehner backpedaled and canceled the planned vote.

Without congressional action, current tax rates will expire on Dec. 31, resulting in a $536 billion tax increase over a decade that would touch nearly all Americans. In addition, the military and other federal departments would have to begin absorbing about $110 billion in spending cuts.

Failure to avoid the "fiscal cliff" doesn't necessarily mean tax increases and spending cuts would become permanent, since the new Congress could pass legislation cancelling them retroactively after it begins its work next year.

But gridlock through the end of the year would mark a sour beginning to a two-year extension of divided government that resulted from last month's elections in which Obama won a new term and Republicans retained their majority in the House.

The tax issue in particular has been Obama's first test of muscle after his re-election in November. He ran for a new term calling for higher taxes on the wealthy, and postelection public opinion polls show continued support for his position.

Boehner's decision to support higher rates on million-dollar earners marked a significant break with long-standing GOP orthodoxy, but the resistance among his rank and file so far has trumped him as well as any mandate the president claims.

___

Associated Press writers Alan Fram and Jim Kuhnhenn contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/obama-invites-congressional-leaders-cliff-talk-003155101--finance.html

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Dealing With a Business Class Downgrade | Business Travel Blog

On 12.26.12, In Travel Tips, by admin

We always talk about how to get upgrades but how do we handle getting downgraded from that coveted first or business class seat? It may not be an easy thing to except for many of us. The first thing we should understand is why the downgrade happens. Nine times out of ten, a downgrade is handed down because of a last minute airplane swap. This means the airplane may have gone from being a 757 to a 737 where there is a significant size difference and fewer seats in first and business class. The reason this happens is usually caused by some sort of mechanical issue. Hey, safety first, right?

Another reason, which is likely the most infuriating to most, is that the airline oversold the premium seats. Airlines strategically do this due to the last minute, no show reservations. It?s a statistical thing.

One reason for a sudden downgrade which I found surprising was that the airlines will bump a paying first or business class passenger to accommodate a Federal Air Marshal, who usually show up at the gate at the last minute due in part to 9/11.

The last reason, which again is no fault of the paying passenger, is the mysterious double booking. This happens when two passengers are somehow assigned the same seat. The winner of the seat will usually go to whoever paid more for their ticket. If you upgraded from economy and your opponent purchased their fare at a first class price, they win.

Getting some sort of compensation for your humiliation won?t be an easy task, but it can be done in some cases. It?s important to keep in mind that you weren?t singled out on a personal level by the gate agent so there isn?t a real reason to cause a scene by cursing and swearing, as hard as it might be. That rarely solves anything. The route of being kind and understanding will go a lot further. Writing to the airline can get results if you feel you have been wronged. More often then not, most downgrade cases do get reimbursed the difference in cost (if any) and whatever miles where used are credited back, so there is no need to panic.

Unfortunately for some passengers, there are no specific rules that actually exist in the U.S in regards to getting downgraded in comparison to carriers in Europe, which have far more stricter regulations. In Europe the airlines have seven days to reimburse the passenger 30 to 75% of the ticket cost depending on the length of the flight. In the U.S, it?s really up to the airline on how they feel it should be handled.

All in all, there is no real simple answer on how to deal with a downgrade other than being understanding and polite, even though you may feel you have been wronged and in return you want to rip someone?s head off, don?t. The best plan of attack is to reach out to the higher ups at the airline by filling out a formal complaint if you can?t get a resolution from the gate agent. It may take some time, but nine times out of ten, the airline will resolve the issue.

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Source: http://www.letsflycheaper.com/blog/dealing-with-a-business-class-downgrade/

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What HappensIif My NJ Employer Fails To Make Required Benefit ...

Under New Jersey law, employers must carry workers compensation insurance, either through an insurance carrier or a self-insurance plan. Although employers or their insurers can deny claims for very specific reasons, such as fraudulent activities by the claimant, the state takes employee complaints very seriously and offers a number of options to help ensure injured workers receive the benefits due to them.

The State of New Jersey Department of Labor and Workforce Development maintains an Uninsured Employer?s Fund (UIF) specifically to provide temporary benefits to employees who need them. When employers deny benefits ? or if they fail to carry the required workers compensation insurance coverage ? employees can file a complaint, generally by retaining an workers compensation attorney familiar with the complaint process and experienced in litigating these cases in court.

Filing a complaint begins a complex legal process that involves helping the employee receive all deserved benefits while filing possible criminal complaints against employers that do not observe their legal obligations. While the UIF can help employees obtain temporary relief, the courts look at a bigger picture. After determining the validity of an employee complaint, the court first attempts to pursue benefits directly from the employer, using funds from the UIF only when the employee cannot pay the claim.

Particularly when an employer does not meet legally required workers compensation insurance requirements, even an invalid employee claim can unleash a complex legal process. The state can levy penalties and restitution on employers found to be non-compliant to help fund the UIF and other programs established to protect injured employees. While New Jersey instituted reporting requirements to help reveal issues before an employee faces injury without benefits, employee complaints also serve to identify companies that require civil or criminal action by the state.

Source: http://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/what-happensiif-my-nj-employer-fails-to-25715/

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5 Ways to Promote Your Personal Training or Fitness Business ...

It is said that you have to spend money to make money, and in the case of business promotion this is generally (but not always) true. Even products that practically market themselves, like the iPhone or iPod, have massive advertising campaigns behind them to ensure that every person on the planet wants to run out and buy them. Of course, you don?t need to spend the millions on advertising that Apple does.

If you?re a personal trainer or you?re running a fitness business (creating workout DVDs and selling related merchandise or running your own gym, for example) you can find means of promotion that don?t necessarily require you to buy air time for advertising on a global scale. What you should do, however, is explore several different avenues of promotion so that you can reach out to the largest possible segment of interested consumers. And here are a few great ways to do just that.

With the new year upon us and seeing where the world didn?t end on 12.21.2012, fitness resolutions are about to blow up. Personal trainers will be booked for the next 3 months, gym memberships attendance will probably double for a month or two, and online health and fitness related searches are sure to increase. Use these tips to take advantage of the hype by getting your brand out into the public eye.

1. Word of mouth

   
   For personal trainers and fitness gurus, the very best form of promotion is a brand ambassador. You want your current clientele to talk you up. In some cases, such as fitness model Carrie Pullaro?s (right) personal trainer, the results they achieve will garner the notice of people in their lives, prompting them to ask. But you can certainly help the process along.

   For one thing, you could offer clients a free session if they bring in a friend. Or you might encourage them to bring in a group and give everyone a discount. Even if you don?t want to offer deals or freebies, a professional attitude and excellent service will speak for itself. The hope is that your clients will refer you to family, friends, and colleagues as a trusted source, promoting your business for you.

2. Social media

   These days you really can?t talk about business promotion without mentioning the role that social networking accounts play. Some important social media sites that you NEED to be on, include:

   • Facebook ? specifically a Facebook Fan Page for your business
   • Twitter
   • Pinterest
   • Instagram
   • Google+
   • Foursquare
   • StumbleUpon

   Whether you are active on these, or other social sites, it?s important to stay current and optimize your accounts so that you can use them to your best advantage. In some cases this could mean pushing discounts and deals through these platforms, or you might offer daily fitness tips or exercise tutorials as added value for clients and a draw for prospective customers. What you shouldn?t do is ignore the potential these forums have to help promote your business.

   One individual who uses social media with great success is Roger Lawson, aka Rog Law (right). His Facebook profile is the stuff of strength coach legend.

3. Apps

   There?s no denying that there are already plenty of fitness apps on the market. But whether you?re looking to bring in more clients locally or expand your business outside of your geographic region, creating a fitness app in keeping with your practice could be a great way to increase your brand recognition and boost sales.

4. Events

   Local clients provide the bread and butter for most personal trainers and some other fitness businesses, so promoting locally is a must. A good way to do this is by participating in local events. If there?s a street fair happening, you might want to purchase booth space so you can hand out pamphlets and give demonstrations. This is a great way to shake hands with people in your area who might be seeking your services.

5. Local promotions

   Aside from events, there are a number of ways you can promote your business in the area in which you operate. You can start with store signs that let passersby know when you?re running promotions (like discounts for new clients that sign up after the New Year).

   You might also create a mailing list and send out monthly newsletters with fitness tips (although this can also be done through email) or advertise via print, radio, and TV. And you could collaborate with related businesses like nutritionists or diet groups, health spas, or even other fitness facilities (gyms, yoga studios, etc.) in order to share business and ensure that clients have all the resources they need to reach their personal fitness goals.

Don?t miss out on the new year fitness traffic. Do you have any awesome ideas or strategies that you have or will use for your fitness business in 2013? I have about 100 of them, but I need to make time to put them into effect. If you have any great thoughts you want to share, please leave them in a comment below.

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About Project Swole - Project Swole is managed and mostly written by Steve, a formerly IFPA and ISSA certified personal trainer and sport nutritionist, who has been studying, practicing, and experimenting with fitness and nutrition since 1992. Please use the content at Project Swole to supplement the advice of your doctor or physician. All medical questions should be directed towards a qualified medical professional, and the advice provided at Project Swole should be used at your own discretion.

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Tags: Business, fitness, marketing, personal training, strategy

This entry was posted on Wednesday, December 26th, 2012 at 12:33 pm and is filed under Business. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.

Source: http://www.projectswole.com/business/5-ways-to-promote-your-personal-training-or-fitness-business/

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Just got a new iPhone, iPad or Android device for Christmas? Gameloft cuts popular iOS and Android games to 99?

This holiday season is not awesome for Idaho Senator Mike Crapo, a Republican member of the "Gang of Eight" and a Mormon bishop, after police caught him driving drunk in Virginia. This is what happens when you slug down too many egg nogs, hop in your car, run a red light in front of a police cruiser at 12:45 a.m. and then fail "several" sobriety tests. Police took the senator into custody, charged him with a DUI and released him on a $1,000 bail. ...

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/just-got-iphone-ipad-android-device-christmas-gameloft-150009359.html

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War For The Gods

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This topic is an Out Of Character part of the roleplay, ?War For The Gods?. Anything posted here will also show up there.

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Forum for completely Out of Character (OOC) discussion, based around whatever is happening In Character (IC). Discuss plans, storylines, and events; Recruit for your roleplaying game, or find a GM for your playergroup.
Welcome to "War For The Gods"

All reservations and questions may be placed here :]

Someone once told me 'trust those who seek the truth, but to doubt those who say they've found it'. I guess they were right. - [partial quote from Dexter]

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I'd like to reserve the second female vessel. I'll have a bio up soon. ^^

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Declining Health And Fitness: Mind Body Spirit Short Article ...

Yoga?s contribution to decline in the heart activity and blood pleasure, not to speak of its capacity to relief stress and get depression, is world famous. The right application of yoga poses has, without doubt, helped people with chronic low back pain, to alleviate their excruciating pain and improve their ability to move yet walk without n issue. The experts recommend that pregnant women and those with high blood pressure, sciatica and also glaucoma best maintain some yoga poses. Such people should undertake yoga only under the expert guidance of your yoga teacher.

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An individual can begin to bolster your bones in addition , joints, you want to talk to any doctor to see what they endorse. If you haven?t been active in quite some time, your doctor of medicine can assess in might want start with and what you might want to avoid, based on your current manual health. Though some people can quite frankly spring right straight into an exercise program, chances are solid that you could finish up doing more harm than good a person have go that route.

Changing benefits: The email list is endless. Among many any other important benefits of regular walking indicated by the studies are whom walking lowers fatigue levels, back serious pain relief, improves sleep, reduces depression but elevates overall mood, strengthens muscles and bones, and elongates life span.

As a result of abundance of calories and excitement they begin to exude, dogs contact ample portions within animal feed almost daily. This not alone helps to support their core metabolism muscles and bones, but also offers nutrients and minerals and vitamins needed to lively and move often.

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Source: http://www.naijakonnect.com/declining-health-and-fitness-mind-body-spirit-short-article-category/

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Look At These Fantastic Home Improvement Suggestions! powah ...

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Irrespective of how expensive or grand a residence is, there is constantly something that can be better. Maybe you have put off these enhancements as a result of expense or lack of information. If you have individuals reasons, continue reading for some helpful advice.

If you work with a licensed contractor, maintain mindful records. You are unable to keep this obligation as much as the professional. Keep copies for each invoice or contract relating to the task. This can help you and also the service provider remain focused on the job.

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Make sure you get your professional to signal files just before they start any venture. In case you are venture a costly home improvement task it may be worth the cost to enjoy about $150 to possess a legal professional review your home remodeling contract before you sign it. Everything, timeframes, distinct fees and assures must be included and clear and understandable.

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Well before the installation of new sections, you should fresh paint top to bottom lines on the walls. Regardless of your expertise, it seems like inescapable that a number of the aged walls will demonstrate through. To avoid this, you may look at the places the bedding of paneling will link. Fresh paint strips of your wall structure with a fresh paint shade which will greater match up the colour in the paneling.

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Budget uncertainty hangs over quiet stocks, FX

LONDON (Reuters) - World stock, commodity and currency markets were steady on Monday, with tensions over the U.S. budget dispute subdued by a holiday lull in Europe.

With a number of stock markets including in Germany, Italy and Switzerland closed for the Christmas holiday, the FTSEurofirst300 <.fteu3> was flat at 1,138.92 points by 1045 GMT and the MSCI index of global stocks <.miwd00000pus> was virtually unchanged at 339.97. The British, French, Dutch and Spanish markets were open for shortened sessions only.

Activity in other assets was also subdued, with spot gold edging up from a four-month low and Brent oil easing back under $109 a barrel.

Markets were left in limbo on Friday when President Barack Obama and U.S. lawmakers suspended talks until after Christmas on avoiding $600 billion of spending cuts and tax increases that threaten to send the economy back into recession.

Although there is no official date for talks to resume, the two sides still have few days after Christmas to find a compromise before the January 1 deadline when the measures start to take effect.

Most political experts and economists expect a deal of some form. If one isn't, the "fiscal cliff" could wipe as much as 4 percent off U.S. GDP next year, choking the global recovery before it gets going.

"The fiscal cliff is the only thing that is important for markets at the moment," said ABN Amro economist Aline Schuiling. "We were hoping the festive spirit would get everyone together and a deal would be done, but Obama has now gone to Hawaii for Christmas, so it looks like we'll have to wait."

YEN WEAKNESS

Most European bond markets were already shut for Christmas but one of the few to be open was in Britain where benchmark 10-year yields ticked higher.

Currency markets were also largely quiet. Against the backdrop of the fiscal cliff uncertainty, the dollar eased 0.2 percent versus a basket of major currencies while the euro climbed back above $1.32.

The major mover was the yen, which neared a 20-month low versus the dollar, after incoming premier Shinzo Abe renewed pressure over the weekend on the Bank of Japan to adopt a 2 percent inflation target.

The dollar was up 0.2 percent on the day at 84.42 yen. Chartists said the dollar needed to overcome 85.05 yen, its 200-week moving average, for it to make further gains.

"There has been some pretty significant yen selling all through the night and into this morning," said Peter Kinsella, currency strategist at Commerzbank.

"It is very noticeable we have not seen any retracement or dip in dollar/yen at all. The market is really saying they are convinced on yen weakness, and that is what we are going to see for the remainder of this year and in the course of next year."

STRONG FINISH

Trading on Wall Street was also expected to be subdued when it opens later, also for half a day. Futures pointed to the S&P 500 opening down 0.6 percent and the Dow Jones and Nasdaq 100 starting down 0.4 percent. <.n/>

The uncertainty over the U.S. budget is threatening to sour what has been a strong second half of the year for equity markets. The FTSEurofirst 300 is up 20 percent since June while the Euro STOXX 50 <.stoxx50e> has gained almost 30 percent. Both indexes are set to post their best annual performances since the post-Lehman crisis bounce of 2009.

Investors are now showing increasing appetite for European stocks. EPFR Global data reported that flows into equity funds have increased for the last 19 weeks.

"This year has been a year of transition, and now it's time to turn the page and move on, to start picking stocks again for the long term, companies exposed to the emerging consumer in places like Asia and Africa," said David Thebault, head of quantitative sales trading, at Global Equities.

Others warn that the euro zone crisis may still have some bite left, however. Elections are due next year in Italy and Germany, while Spain's government, companies and banks need to refinance huge amounts of debt.

"Policymakers in Spain will not be looking forward to the start of the year and January will probably be quite volatile in Europe," said ABN Amro's Schuiling. "The funding in the first quarter for Spain will be the test... Its deficit is now roughly the same as Greece's."

(Additional reporting by Blaise Robinson in Paris and Anooja Debnath in London; editing by David Stamp)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/asian-shares-steady-u-budget-concerns-weigh-002359300--finance.html

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We rank the 10 greatest college football defenses of the BCS era. See who made o...

College Football's Top 10 Defenses of the BCS Era

www.athlonsports.com

The BCS is wrapping up its 15th season of action and Athlon Sports is continuing its series of BCS rankings. We ranked the best performances of each BCS bowl game and we ranked the best teams of each BCS conference. Now, we break down the top defensive units of the BCS era (1998-present).

Source: http://www.facebook.com/AthlonSports/posts/508001212566898

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Watch a flying reverse triangle choke (VIDEO)

Canadian fighter Wolfgang Janssen doesn't have a nickname. Perhaps he doesn't have because his name is Wolfgang Janssen, and a nickname is not necessary. Perhaps it's because he can do stuff like this, and now will be known as the guy who won by a flying reverse triangle.

Janssen is an undefeated featherweight with all three wins by submission.

Thanks, MMA Fighting.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/watch-flying-reverse-triangle-choke-video-160653106--mma.html

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