China Private Equity Investment Holdings appoints CFO

BBR Staff Writer Published 23 December 2011

China Private Equity Investment Holdings has appointed Chow Ka Wo Alex as its CFO, effective immediately.

Alex experience includes three years as an executive director with Shenyang Public Utility Holdings Company, a mainland Chinese utility group.

Alex is a founder and managing director of Karl Thomson Financial Advisory, a corporate finance advisory group.

At Karl Thomson, Alex has been responsible for Investment Banking business since 2002.

Alex will continue in his positions at Karl Thomson and Shenyang Public Utility.

Alex previously worked with both Nomura International and Peregrine Capital, where he was registered as an Investment Representative with the Hong Kong Securities and Futures Commission.

In addition, the company saids Ernest Wong will remain as an executive director of the company, and will delegate his former responsibilities as CFO to Alex.

Source: http://privateequity.banking-business-review.com/news/china-private-equity-investment-holdings-appoints-cfo-231211

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Maradona fined over feud with rival coach

By MICHAEL CASEY

AP Sports Writer

Associated Press Sports

updated 1:54 p.m. ET Dec. 29, 2011

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) -Diego Maradona was fined 9,000 dirham ($2,450, ?1,901) on Thursday by the United Arab Emirates Football Association for verbally abusing a rival coach.

Maradona, who coaches UAE club Al Wasl, has been feuding with Al Ain coach Cosmin Olaroiu since losing an ill-tempered match last month. The 1986 World Cup-winning Argentine complained that Olaroiu and his staff celebrated the winning goal in an unprofessional manner. He later called Olaroiu rude and impolite and suggested it was the club's players, not Olaroiu, who deserved credit for its early season success.

Olaroiu, a Romanian in his first year at Al Ain, told reporters that Maradona's criticisms came from someone "who doesn't have a clear mind," a reference to the Argentine's history of drug and alcohol abuse. Olaroiu was not sanctioned over the comments because Al Wasl hasn't filed a complaint.

In its verdict, the FA disciplinary committee also cautioned Maradona and took him to task for calling Olaroiu "impolite." The committee dismissed a separate complaint filed by Al Wasl, which accused Al Ain fans of pelting its supporters with stones after the match.

Al Wasl officials could not be reached for immediate comment.

Al Ain Chief Executive Carlo Nohra said Maradona's sanction was justified and sent a message that such conduct would not be tolerated in the league.

"We are happy a decision has been taken in this case," Nohra said. "This was never really about Maradona but curbing coaches behavior toward one another. We all felt this behavior should have been picked up by the league anyway."

Since arriving in Dubai, the brash and colorful Maradona has made his presence felt. He has repeatedly criticized referees he claims were biased against his club and at one point suggested they should focus more on the match than trying to become celebrities.

He also kicked a fan for intruding on a photo shoot he was trying to take with a banner of support from his grandson.

"As a surprise from my daughters in Argentina and Manchester, they put a sign up for me in the ground that read: 'Grandfather, I'm with you. I love you. Benja,"' Maradona said after the incident. "I'd like to apologize to one of the fans. I was trying to unfurl and see the whole banner and, by mistake, I perhaps injured him."

On Wednesday, the 50-year-old Maradona defended his criticism of referees, and said they could benefit from his vast experience.

"I only say what I feel," Maradona told a news conference. "In the future, they will realize what I said was right. I have 35 years in the industry and that has made me realize certain things."

Maradona retired as a player in 1997, but battled weight problems and an admitted cocaine habit even before he left the game. He turned to coaching in 2008, taking over at Argentina and leading his country to the World Cup quarterfinals in South Africa. He was fired after the World Cup and joined Al Wasl in May.

Throughout his career, Maradona has never been shy about courting controversy.

In 2009, he was handed a two-month ban by FIFA from all football activities for expletive-filled rants after his team qualified for the 2010 World Cup.

He also has had a running feud with Pele, recently saying the retired Brazilian star must have taken the "wrong medication" when he suggested Neymar was better than Lionel Messi.

---

Follow Michael Casey on Twitter at https://twitter.com/mcasey1

? 2011 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Lebanon rallying around team

Ali al-Saadi gave Lebanon a 1-0 lead against South Korea and the sectarian chants echoing across Cite Sportive stadium suddenly gave way to a more hopeful cheer.

Off-field woes

Football in 2011 was dominated by events off the field rather than on it.

Source: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/45814678/ns/sports-soccer/

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Sexual assault reports rise at military academies. How is Pentagon responding? (The Christian Science Monitor)

Washington ? There has been a worrisome increase in the number of sexual assaults reported at America?s military academies, according to a congressionally mandated study released Tuesday by the Pentagon.

?One sexual assault is too many,? Defense Secretary Leon Panetta said in a statement in the wake of the study ? which found a 65 percent increase in reported incidents of sexual harassment and violence between 2010 and 2011. ?We treat each other with dignity in this institution. I expect everyone in this department to live up to that high standard.?

The Defense Department said it was implementing some changes in policy in the wake of the study findings, including new policies that senior defense officials said were meant to improve the treatment of assault victims at the academies.

IN PICTURES: Military women of the world

However the most concrete policy change, which facilitates the speedy transfer of assault victims should they wish, also obliges them to surrender a degree of protective anonymity.

The study found that there had been 65 reports of sexual assaults at the academies between 2010 and 2011, compared to 41 the previous year. It did not specify whether the number of reported incidents was indicative of a wider unreported problem, as is often the case with sexual assaults.

Mr. Panetta called the increase in sexual assault reports ?a leadership issue, first and foremost, so I expect us to lead with integrity and with energy to eliminate sexual assault and harassment from our culture.?

To this end, Pentagon officials are asking the academies to develop methods and metrics to evaluate sexual assault initiatives.

Advocates of sexual assault victims question why such metrics have not been developed earlier.

Part of the problem, they say, is that the Pentagon itself does not conduct any military-wide surveys on the incidences of sexual assault. Instead, defense officials release the number of official sexual assault reports they have received. If those figures go up, defense officials often argue that it simply means victims are more comfortable seeking help than before.

The Air Force recently commissioned its own Gallup poll of sexual assault throughout the force, the first service to do this. It found one in five women had been the victim of sexual assault.

Many of these statistics mirror the experiences of the general US population, say defense officials. ?We know that the military academies are similar to college campuses around the country in that sexual harassment and assault are challenges that all faculty, staff, and students need to work to prevent,? adds Maj. Gen. Kay Hertog, director of the Pentagon?s Sexual Assault Prevention Office.

Yet assault within the service academies is particularly egregious, argues Greg Jacob, policy director for the Service Women?s Action Network. Though ?military service academies are similar to civilian universities and colleges in their student demographics, in other ways they are unique.?

That?s because the ?vast majority? of higher-echelon officers come from the academies and ?are in charge of developing implementing and enforcing sexual harassment and assault policies in today?s military,? Mr. Jacob notes. ?Ending the widespread issue of sexual harassment and sexual assault in the military starts by ending it at the service academies.? 

In the meantime, a new Pentagon policy provides for the expedited transfer of those who have been the victim of sexual assault to be transferred, should they so wish.

The problem, some point out, is that in order to qualify for such a transfer, victims must file what the military calls an ?unrestricted report,? which requires a commander to launch a military criminal investigation, rather than a ?restricted report,? which allows the victim to remain anonymous.

The report found some positive developments at the academies. West Point named its superintendent to chair the Sexual Assault Review Board ?to ensure the highest-level awareness of the academy?s cases,? according to the Defense Department?s release. The Naval Academy established a therapist-led support group, and the Air Force Academy created an electronic reporting program to ?improve its 24/7 response capability.?

?We owe it to those who have been victimized, and to every cadet and midshipman," Maj. Gen. Hertog said, "to do everything possible to provide needed support and to hold those who commit sexual assault appropriately accountable.?

IN PICTURES: Military women of the world

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Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/crime/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/csm/20111228/ts_csm/442430

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Dos Santos doesn?t wanna revenge Minotauro Nogueira

Text and photos by Evelyn Rodrigues

The Brazilian Junior ?Cigano? dos Santos this Tuesday, November 27th, on an event promoted by the UFC with children with cancer held by ?It Ain?t Chemo? association. The event is part of ?UFC Community Program? and it happened at TUF?s gym, in Las Vegas. Besides Cigano, there were on the event names like Roy Nelson, Dominick Cruz, Travis Browne and Frank Mir. It was the first time Dos Santos stared at Mir after the bout on which the American broke Rodrigo Nogueira?s arm, a friend of the Brazilian, at UFC 140.

When asked about how he felt to share the same room with Mir, Junior stated: ?I didn?t even talk to him. I said hi to Mir because he said to me before?, said the Brazilian, who also claimed not to be upset about the outcome of the fight between the American and Nogueira. ?I just think it was a complicated fight for all Brazilians, mainly for us at Team Nogueira. He (Rodrigo) had the win in his hands and with Frank Mir knocked out in front of him, and, for some reason, he didn?t keep punching him, he tried to fit a guillotine choke and Frank Mir was lucky enough to grab his arm, and grabbed the chance when he had one?, said Junior.

?The problem was that he broke Rodriogo?s arm, and he has just recovered, and now he?ll stay some time off. But we know it already, I know what it?ll be the result of it: Rodrigo will comeback and bring much joy to all of us?, completed.

Junior dos Santos also stated he doesn?t want to revenge his friend?s loss. ?I don?t need to revenge him. I guess there?s no such thing, I guess he (Rodrigo) can do it himself. But I confess I have never picked out opponents and I won?t, but if someday I fight Frank Mir, absolutely it?d be an interesting fight?, affirmed.

Dos Santos might train again in 10 days

On a visit to Las Vegas to watch UFC 141, which main event will define Junior dos Santos?s next opponent, the Brazilian athlete takes some time off. The athlete remains in the city until January 3rd. ?I want to go shopping, spend some time with my wife. I know I?ll have a good start in 2012, but I can?t wait to train again?, stated the fighter, who also explained that his recovering after the knee surgery is going better than expected.

?It?s great. There?re 17 days I?ve gone through the surgery and I?m feeling fine. I just got to regain confidence and train again, but in 10 days I?ll be training normally?, completed.

As for Brock Lesnar VS. Alistair Overeem, a bout that will define his next opponent, the Brazilian said he believes it?ll be tied. ?It?s a tough fight for the both of them. I?m saying it?ll be 50-50, but Brock has more chances on the beginning of the fight because he?s more explosive and goes for it?, analyzed the champion.

Source: http://www.tatame.com/2011/12/28/Dos-Santos-doesnt-wanna-revenge-Minotauro-Nogueira

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Sexual assault reports up at U.S. military academies: report (Reuters)

(Reuters) ? The U.S. Department of Defense said on Tuesday that there was a rise in reports of sexual assault at the nation's military academies in the most recent school year and announced new policies to help victims.

The "Annual Report on Sexual Harassment and Violence at Military Service Academies" found that during the 2010-11 year there were 65 reports of sexual assaults involving cadets and midshipmen, up from 41 in the prior year.

To help address the jump, the academies are implementing two new policies.

Service members who have been victims of sexual assault will now be able to request an expedited transfer from their units. The military will now also retain records of sexual assaults longer -- in some cases as long as 50 years.

"We know that the military academies are similar to college campuses around the country in that sexual harassment and assault are challenges that all faculty, staff and students need to work to prevent," said Major General Mary Kay Hertog, director of the Sexual Assault Prevention and Response Office.

"However, when it does occur, we owe it to those who have been victimized, and to every cadet and midshipman, to do everything possible to provide needed support and to hold those who commit sexual assault appropriately accountable."

As part of the review process, Department of Defense officials visited the U.S. Military Academy, Naval Academy and Air Force Academy and reviewed academy policies and procedures. They also held focus groups.

Officials found most academy programs fulfilled or in some cases surpassed existing policies and directives, but Hertog said they have also identified areas for improvement.

(Reporting by Karin Matz; Editing by James B. Kelleher and Jerry Norton)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/crime/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111227/us_nm/us_military_schools_assaults

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The Pros & Cons of Google+ for Small Business

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Presidential race in Iowa quieter than in the past (AP)

DES MOINES, Iowa ? It's been a different presidential race in Iowa this year ? quieter.

Campaign headquarters have hardly been buzzing with activity, unlike the around-the-clock nature of past contests. Candidates have barely visited the state, compared with years when most all but moved here. And they have largely refrained from building the grass-roots armies of yesteryear, in favor of more modest on-the-ground teams of paid staffers and volunteers.

The final rush of campaigning here gets under way Monday, just a week before the Jan. 3 caucuses, and, to be sure, there will be a flurry of candidate appearances and get-out-the-vote efforts all week.

But that will belie the reality of much of 2011, a year marked by a less aggressive personal courtship of Iowans in a campaign that, instead, has largely gravitated around a series of 13 nationally televised debates, a crush of television ads and interviews on media outlets watched by many Republican primary voters, like Fox News Channel.

"We just haven't had as much face time," Republican chairwoman Trudy Caviness in Wapello County said. "That's why we're so undecided."

Indeed, people here simply don't know the Republican presidential candidates that well. And it's a big reason why the contest in Iowa is so volatile and why the caucus outcome could end up being more representative of the mood of national Republicans than in past years when GOP activists here have gone it alone by launching an unlikely front-runner to the top of the field.

With a week to go, the state of the race in Iowa generally mirrors the race from coast to coast.

Polls show Newt Gingrich, the former House speaker, having lost ground and Texas Rep. Ron Paul having risen, with both still in contention with former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney at the head of the pack. All the others competing in Iowa ? Texas Gov. Rick Perry, Minnesota Rep. Michele Bachmann and former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum ? are trailing.

But, in a sign that the contest is anyone's to win, most polls have shown most Republican caucusgoers undecided and willing to change their minds before the contest in a state where the vote typically breaks late in the campaign year.

There are a slew of reasons why the Iowa campaign is a much more muted affair than in 2008 ? marked by the iconic clash of Barack Obama and Hillary Rodham Clinton, who together employed almost 300 staff in Iowa and held blockbuster rallies. This year, there is no contested Democratic primary, given that President Barack Obama has no serious challenger. Only Republicans are competing, and those candidates are approaching the state differently, both visiting and hiring less. Also, like it did everywhere else, the race here started slowly ? months later than usual ? as a slew of GOP politicians weighed candidacies, only to abort White House bids.

Long-time Republican activists here, who often joke that they like to meet the candidates several times before deciding, have barely seen the candidates once, much less at all, and no campaign has more than 20 paid staff in the state.

All that's partly a consequence of how technology has changed both the political and media environments in recent years. Campaigns now can more precisely ? and cheaply ? target their pitches to voters from afar, sending personalized e-mails and YouTube video messages from the candidates to voters directly, and more campaign outreach is being handled by volunteers and through central national websites. And voters, themselves, now can go online and find information about the candidates without having to wait for the White House hopeful to show up in the town square.

"Caucuses don't exist in a vacuum. They're not the same every time," said John Stineman, a West Des Moines Republican activist who ran Steve Forbes 2000 Iowa campaign. "But everything else has changed. Why wouldn't the caucuses change?"

Part of the change has been driven by Romney's approach to the state.

The nominal GOP front-runner for most of the year, Romney has been far less aggressive in cultivating support in Iowa than in his failed bid of 2008. He's only spent 10 days in the state this year, compared to 77 days four years ago, in an attempt to lower expectations in the leadoff state where evangelical conservatives have harbored doubts about Romney in light of his Mormon faith and changed positions on some social issues.

Paul, the Texas congressman, has been focused more on building a national following than being a one-state candidate.

Gingrich only became a serious contender in the state a few weeks ago. And, until recently, he didn't have the money or manpower to launch a full-scale Iowa campaign, meaning more sporadic visits and a smaller team. He's struggled to reach all parts of the state more than once; it was just last week that he visited Ottumwa, seat of the county Caviness represents and a medium-size Iowa city uniquely situated in the southeast with its own small media market.

Likewise, Perry has not been to Marshalltown, a central Iowa GOP hub about the same size as Ottumwa and home of the state-run veterans home. It would seem like a natural spot for Perry, a former Air Force officer who has sought veterans support. But he also hasn't visited Fort Dodge, also another mid-size Iowa city in north-central Iowa on the way to heavily Republican northwest Iowa.

Those who have been struggling to gain traction ? and who lack the money of better-funded, better-known rivals ? are turning to old-fashioned retail campaigning in hopes of wooing voters the traditional way.

Bachmann is in the midst of a bus tour that has her crisscrossing the state. And Santorum, who never has broken out of the back of the pack, is betting that a year of one-on-one campaigning will pay off in the end.

Barb Livingston is proof that, for all the changes, there's still something to be said for the personal approach. She has struggled all year to find a candidate to back and is basing her decision on a personal impression she had ? except that impression was established four years ago, riding around Marshall County with Romney.

"When push comes to shove, I had a chance to meet him and travel around with," said Livingston, a former Marshall County GOP chairwoman. "He's someone personally I connected with."

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/politics/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111226/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_iowa_different_campaign

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amcgowanca: Time to go get the last gift I need to buy for this Christmas, then back home to work on a list of to-dos :) #lovingit

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IBJTheScore: Colts owner Jim Irsay says if Peyton Manning puts on an NFL helmet again it will have a horseshoe on the side of it.

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How Your House Works: Fireplace

December 23, 2011 6:30 AM

Classic brick-and-mortar fireplaces aren't exactly hot these days, according to Joe LaVecchia of New Jersey's Abbey Hart Brick & Stone. "We used to sell a million firebricks a year in the 1970s," he says. "Now it's more like eighty or a hundred thousand."

It's not that the hearth's allure has been extinguished?it's a cost issue. Between the prerequisite concrete foundation and a mason to do the job, a traditional fireplace can cost $10,000 to $15,000 to install. Then there's efficiency. Typical fireplaces draw and vent interior air that a homeowner pays to heat with a furnace. The image of dollar signs streaming out of a chimney comes to mind.

The most common alternative today is the fuel-efficient, direct-vent gas fireplace. Carpenters can install the prefab firebox, which costs a fraction of a traditional fireplace. Still, nothing duplicates a crackling hearth. The old flame?fascinating and elemental?dies hard.

CHIMNEYS: THE INSIDE STORY

1. FLUE Smoke rises through ceramic flue liners in about 95 percent of brick chimneys, Tyler McClave of flue-maker Superior Clay says. Round models span 3 to 36 inches in diameter; rectangular flues get as big as 24 x 24. But a 12 x 12 square is typical, and two flues often run side by side in a single chimney.

2. SMOKE SHELF Wood smoke rises from the firebox and collects along the smoke shelf, a horizontal termination that prevents smoke from traveling downward from the chimney and into the house. Located about 8 inches above the top of the firebox, the shelf? has a concave surface that collects rainwater and debris.

3. DAMPER The metal door atop the firebox closes when the fireplace is dormant to seal the drafty chimney from the home interior. It's not a perfect seal, McClave says, because a refrigerator-style rubber gasket can't last in intense heat. Common-sense note: Never light a fire with the damper closed.

4. FIREBRICK Also known as refractory brick, firebrick has an inherent ability to expand and contract with rapid heating and cooling. Face brick, which clads chimneys, cracks and fails when used to line a firebox.

Source: http://www.popularmechanics.com/home/improvement/interior/how-your-house-works-fireplace?src=rss

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Last U.S. troops leave Iraq, ending war (Reuters)

BAGHDAD (Reuters) ? The last convoy of U.S. soldiers pulled out of Iraq on Sunday, ending nearly nine years of war that cost almost 4,500 American and tens of thousands of Iraqi lives and left a country still grappling with political uncertainty.

The war launched in March 2003 with missiles striking Baghdad to oust dictator Saddam Hussein closes with a fragile democracy still facing insurgents, sectarian tensions and the challenge of defining its place in the Arab region.

The final column of around 100 mostly U.S. military MRAP armored vehicles carrying 500 U.S. troops trundled across the southern Iraq desert through the night along an empty highway and across the Kuwaiti border.

Honking their horns, the last batch of around 25 American military trucks and tractor trailers carrying Bradley fighting vehicles crossed the border early on Sunday, their crews waving at fellow troops along the route.

"I just can't wait to call my wife and kids and let them know I am safe," Rodolfo Ruiz said as the border came into sight. Soon afterwards, he told his men the mission was over, "Hey guys, you made it."

For President Barack Obama, the military pullout is the fulfillment of an election promise to bring troops home from a conflict inherited from his predecessor, the most unpopular war since Vietnam and one that tainted America's standing worldwide.

For Iraqis, the U.S. departure brings a sense of sovereignty but feeds nagging fears their country may slide once again into the kind of sectarian violence that killed thousands of people at its peak in 2006-2007.

Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's Shi'ite-led government still struggles with a delicate power-sharing arrangement between Shi'ite, Kurdish and Sunni parties, leaving Iraq vulnerable to meddling by Sunni Arab nations and Shi'ite Iran.

The intensity of violence and suicide bombings has subsided. But a stubborn Sunni Islamist insurgency and rival Shi'ite militias remain a threat, carrying out almost daily attacks, often on Iraqi government and security officials.

Iraq says its forces can contain the violence but they lack capabilities in areas such as air defense and intelligence gathering. A deal for several thousand U.S. troops to stay on as trainers fell apart over the sensitive issue of legal immunity.

For many Iraqis security remains a worry - but no more than jobs and getting access to power in a country whose national grid provides only a few hours of electricity a day despite massive oil potential in the OPEC country.

"We don't think about America... We think about electricity, jobs, our oil, our daily problems," said Abbas Jaber, a government employee in Baghdad. "They left chaos."

GOING HOME

After Obama announced in October that troops would come home by the end of the year as scheduled, the number of U.S. military bases was whittled down quickly as hundreds of troops and trucks carrying equipment headed south to the Kuwaiti border.

U.S. forces, which had ended combat missions in 2010, paid $100,000 a month to tribal sheikhs to secure stretches of the highways leading south to reduce the risk of roadside bombings and attacks on the last convoys.

At the height of the war, more than 170,000 U.S. troops were in Iraq at more than 500 bases. By Saturday, there were fewer than 3,000 troops, and one base.

At COB Adder, as dusk fell before the departure of the last convoy, one group of soldiers slapped barbecue sauce on slabs of ribs brought in from Kuwait and laid them on grills alongside hotdogs and sausages.

The last troops flicked on the lights studding their MRAP vehicles and stacked flak jackets and helmets in neat piles, ready for the final departure for Kuwait and then home.

"A good chunk of me is happy to leave. I spent 31 months in this country," said Sgt. Steven Schirmer, 25, after three tours of Iraq since 2007. "It almost seems I can have a life now, though I know I am probably going to Afghanistan in 2013. Once these wars end I wonder what I will end up doing."

NEIGHBOURS KEEP WATCH

U.S. and foreign companies are already helping Iraq develop the vast potential of the world's fourth-largest oil reserves, but its economy needs investment in all sectors, from hospitals to infrastructure.

Iran and Turkey, major investors in Iraq, will be watching with Gulf nations to see how it handles its sectarian and ethnic tensions, as the crisis in neighboring Syria threatens to spill over its borders.

The fall of Saddam allowed the long-suppressed Shi'ite majority to rise to power. The Shi'ite-led government has drawn the country closer to neighboring Iran and Syria's Bashar al-Assad, who is struggling to put down a nine-month uprising.

Iraq's Sunni minority are chafing under what they see as the

increasingly authoritarian control of Maliki's Shi'ite coalition. Some local leaders are already pushing mainly Sunni provinces to demand more autonomy from Baghdad.

The main Sunni political bloc Iraqiya said on Saturday that it was temporarily suspending its participation in the parliament to protest against what it said was Maliki's unwillingness to deliver on power-sharing.

A dispute between the semi-autonomous Kurdish region and Maliki's central government over oil and territory is also brewing, and is a potential flashpoint after the buffer of the American military presence is gone.

"There is little to suggest that Iraq's government will manage -- or be willing to -- get itself out of the current stalemate," said Gala Riani, an analyst at IHS Global Insight.

"The perennial divisive issues that have become part of the fabric of Iraqi politics, such as divisions with Kurdistan and Sunni suspicions of the government, are also likely to persist."

(Additional reporting by Rania El Gamal; writing by Patrick Markey; Editing by Tim Pearce)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/iraq/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111218/wl_nm/us_iraq_withdrawal

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Adobe results beat Street view, shares rise (Reuters)

Dec 15 (Reuters) ? Software maker Adobe Systems Inc, the maker of Photoshop and Acrobat software, released quarterly results that beat Wall Street projections, sending its shares up 3 percent.

The positive surprise came a month after the company announced plans to lay off 7 percent of its staff as it cut back on investment in some products and halted development of its Flash Player for mobile browsers, surrendering in a long-running war with Apple Inc over emerging Web standards.

The company said digital media and digital marketing, its core businesses, performed strongly in the quarter.

Adobe's concession to Apple and its late founder Steve Jobs, who famously derided Flash as an inefficient power-hog, came as the design software specialist warned that revenue growth will slow next year.

That is because the company is scaling back development of some products and shifting towards leasing other types of software via the cloud on a subscription basis, instead of selling licenses up front.

Adobe expects revenue in the current fiscal first quarter to dip due to seasonality but executives told analysts on a conference call that revenues in the second quarter would get a bounce thanks to the launch of new products.

"We would also expect Q3 and Q4 to follow normal historical patterns with a sequential decline in Q3 due to normal summer seasonality followed by a strong Q4," said Chief Financial Officer Mark Garrett.

The world's biggest maker of design software posted a profit, excluding items, of 67 cents per share for the fourth quarter, which ended December 2. That beat the average forecast of 60 cents, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Quarterly revenue rose 14 percent from a year earlier to $1.15 billion.

Adobe said it was targeting revenue of $1.025 billion to $1.075 billion for the current quarter.

Analysts on average expected revenue of $1.09 billion for the fiscal fourth quarter and $1.05 billion for the current quarter, which ends in February.

It said non-GAAP earnings per share in the current quarter would be 54 cents to 59 cents.

Shares of Adobe closed at $26.46 on Nasdaq and rose 3 percent to $27.26 in extended trading.

(Reporting by Noel Randewich, additional reporting by Jim Finkle)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/software/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111216/bs_nm/us_adobe

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Americans losing addiction to "CrackBerrys" (Reuters)

SAN FRANCISCO/NEW YORK (Reuters) ? To understand what ails BlackBerry maker Research In Motion Ltd in the U.S. market, just ask eBay Inc Chief Executive John Donahoe.

The world's biggest online auction site had about a hundred engineers developing new iterations of eBay's shopping app for Apple Inc's iPhone a few months ago, and another hundred engineers working on Google Inc's Android mobile platform.

EBay even had 50 people developing apps for Microsoft's Windows phones, but the e-commerce giant only had "one or two" working on RIM's BlackBerry, according to Donahoe.

"I still use the BlackBerry, but it's not the most developer-friendly platform," he told a group of chief technology officers at an event at Stanford University in June, when the subject of RIM came up.

By early November, it seemed Donahoe wasn't even using his BlackBerry much any more. When he met with reporters to talk about plans for the holiday shopping season, the CEO whipped out his iPhone to show how eBay's apps ran on the device. When Reuters asked Donahue about his BlackBerry, he said he still had it but didn't bother to bring it into the room.

Such stories are commonly found among RIM's once-loyal corporate and consumer customers, who are deserting the Canadian company after it has struggled to keep up with competitors' innovations.

RIM on Thursday posted a sharply lower quarterly profit, offered a dismal forecast for BlackBerry shipments this holiday season, and delayed the arrival of new phones using a make-or-break operating system in development, QNX.

"It's frustrating because I haven't heard anything good from them in a long time," said long-time BlackBerry user Kevin Nichols, the head of KLN Consulting Group, who was looking at Android and Windows phones at a Sprint Nextel Corp store in downtown San Francisco on Friday.

"They need to come out with new products soon, otherwise it looks like RIM may become the next Palm," he said, in reference to the collapse of the smartphone pioneer Palm Inc. Nichols ignored the latest BlackBerry Torch in a display case nearby, saying the device wasn't "new enough" for him to upgrade.

Even on Wall Street, where users once joked about their addiction to their "crackberries," loyalty is waning.

"The QNX delay is a concern," said Rob Romero, head of hedge fund firm Connective Capital. "Consumers like new products and vendors want something new to sell in their stores."

The chief technology officer of a Connecticut-based hedge fund said that when a top hedge fund manager wants to use an iPhone instead of a BlackBerry they can now switch, even though he prefers RIM security. "When they say I want an iPhone or an iPad configured, they get it," said the CTO, who declined to be identified.

RIM shares fell 11 percent on Nasdaq on Friday and hit their lowest level in nearly eight years.

SECURITY FEATURES

Research firm Strategy Analytics forecast RIM's share of the U.S. smartphone market to fall to 12 percent this year, a sharp drop from 2007, when RIM had a 44 percent share. By comparison, Apple, which just started selling smartphones in 2007, is expected to grab a 24 percent U.S. market share this year.

To be sure, BlackBerry still has its defenders. Robert Laikin, CEO of cellphone distributor Brightpoint, said that RIM represents between 5 percent to 10 percent of the 110 million phones his company handles globally every year.

"I still have a BlackBerry. When I talk to my friends who are business professionals, most of them still have a BlackBerry. Some of them have bought an additional device too," he told Reuters.

"All manufacturers I've worked with in the last 25 years have product delays. What RIM is going through isn't different," he said. "I believe RIM will survive because their product is very sticky."

There are still many companies who prefer their employees use BlackBerrys because they feel that RIM offers the best security features to protect corporate data. But these enterprise customers are shrinking, analysts said.

Gary Curtis, chief technology strategist at global technology consulting giant Accenture, pointed to improvements in security from Apple and Google mobile software in recent years.

"Choice and leveling of the playing field is the fundamental enabling factor for companies being able to say to employees, use the device you like," he said. "It's not a headlong rush ... but they're opening the door to more devices and people make their own choices."

Interviews with other consumers at phone stores on Friday illustrated why the former bastion of corporate smart phones faces tough competition.

"I'm a BlackBerry user but my company makes me use it," said a shopper called John who was playing with a BlackBerry Torch at an AT&T store in San Francisco. He declined to give his last name.

"Anyone who is anyone at my company has an iPhone, but they make us use BlackBerry still," he added. "I think I might break mine and buy an iPhone. The touch screen on this Torch works pretty well, but the iPhone is just easier to use."

A Sprint store manager said BlackBerry phones would sell better if they had more apps. But some app developers aren't interested in the BlackBerry platform, partly because the technology is difficult to work with.

"Of the companies that pitch to us, I can't think of any that are starting out by developing an app for the BlackBerry," said Theresia Gouw Ranzetta of venture capital firm Accel Partners, which invests in mobile app developers.

Hotel Tonight, a start-up backed by Accel's Ranzetta, has developed apps for the iPhone, Android phones and an HTML5 version for its last-minute hotel booking service.

"Will they make a dedicated BlackBerry app? Not on the roadmap," she said.

(Reporting by Alistair Barr in San Francisco and Sinead Carew in New York; Editing by Tiffany Wu, Gary Hill)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/internet/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111217/tc_nm/us_rim_customers

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AACR & IASLC to host molecular origins of lung cancer conference

Public release date: 15-Dec-2011
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Natalie Poole
Natalie.Poole@aacr.org
215-446-7155
American Association for Cancer Research

What:

The second AACR-IASLC Joint Conference on Molecular Origins of Lung Cancer: Biology, Therapy and Personalized Medicine will bring together scientists to share the latest findings in the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of the nation's leading cause of cancer and cancer mortality.

The conference, scheduled for Jan. 8-11, 2012, in San Diego, is jointly sponsored by the American Association for Cancer Research and the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer.

The conference will feature a series of groundbreaking oral presentations and hundreds of abstracts including:

• prevention of tobacco damage using antiestrogens;
• the role of tumor suppressor genes in small cell lung cancer;
• a phase 2 study of sorafenib in patients with stage IV disease;
• new tools to measure circulating tumor cells;
• new data on microRNA and KRAS mutations

When:

Jan. 8-11, 2012

Where: San Diego Marriott Hotel & Marina San Diego, Calif.

###

Press Registration and Hotel Accommodations:

To register, please visit http://www.aacr.org/LungCancer or contact Natalie Poole in the AACR Communications Department at Natalie.Poole@aacr.org or 215-446-7155.

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Public release date: 15-Dec-2011
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Natalie Poole
Natalie.Poole@aacr.org
215-446-7155
American Association for Cancer Research

What:

The second AACR-IASLC Joint Conference on Molecular Origins of Lung Cancer: Biology, Therapy and Personalized Medicine will bring together scientists to share the latest findings in the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of the nation's leading cause of cancer and cancer mortality.

The conference, scheduled for Jan. 8-11, 2012, in San Diego, is jointly sponsored by the American Association for Cancer Research and the International Association for the Study of Lung Cancer.

The conference will feature a series of groundbreaking oral presentations and hundreds of abstracts including:

• prevention of tobacco damage using antiestrogens;
• the role of tumor suppressor genes in small cell lung cancer;
• a phase 2 study of sorafenib in patients with stage IV disease;
• new tools to measure circulating tumor cells;
• new data on microRNA and KRAS mutations

When:

Jan. 8-11, 2012

Where: San Diego Marriott Hotel & Marina San Diego, Calif.

###

Press Registration and Hotel Accommodations:

To register, please visit http://www.aacr.org/LungCancer or contact Natalie Poole in the AACR Communications Department at Natalie.Poole@aacr.org or 215-446-7155.

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2011-12/aafc-ai121511.php

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Obama marks Iraq war's end with a salute to troops

President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama arrive on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2011. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)

President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama arrive on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2011. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)

President Barack Obama pauses while walking from Air Force One to Marine One, background, at Andrews Air Force Base, Md., Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2011. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen)

FORT BRAGG, North Carolina (AP) ? President Barack Obama on Wednesday saluted troops returning from Iraq, asserting that the nearly nine-year conflict was ending honorably, "not with a final battle, but with a final march toward home."

Marking the conclusion of the war at a military base that's seen more than 200 deaths from fighting in Iraq, Obama never tried to declare victory. It was a war that he opposed from the start, inherited as president and is now bringing to a close, leaving behind an Iraq still struggling.

But he sought to pronounce a noble end to a fight that has cost nearly 4,500 American lives and more than 100,000 Iraqi lives.

"The war in Iraq will soon belong to history, and your service belongs to the ages," he said, applauding their "extraordinary achievement."

All U.S. troops are to be out of Iraq Dec. 31, though Obama has pledged the U.S. will continue civilian assistance for Iraq as it faces an uncertain future in a volatile region of the world. Even as majorities in the U.S. public favor ending the war, some Republicans have criticized the withdrawal, arguing that Obama is leaving behind an unstable Iraq that could hurt U.S. interests and fall subject to influence from neighboring Iran.

Sen. John McCain of Arizona, Obama's one-time rival for the presidency, issued a particularly harsh verdict on his handling of Iraq. "I believe that history will judge this president's leadership with the scorn and disdain it deserves," McCain said on the Senate floor

Obama, appearing with first lady Michelle Obama, highlighted the human side of the war, reflecting on the bravery and sacrifices of U.S. forces now on their way back home. He recalled the start of the war, a time when he was only an Illinois state senator and many of the warriors before him were in grade school.

"We knew this day would come. We have known it for some time now," he said. "But still, there is something profound about the end of a war that has lasted so long."

Obama noted the early battles that defeated and deposed Saddam Hussein and what he called "the grind of insurgency" ? roadside bombs, snipers and suicide attacks.

"Your will proved stronger than the terror of those who tried to break it," he said.

Upon his arrival at Fort Bragg, Obama met with five enlisted service members who had recently returned from combat. He also met with the family of a soldier killed in Iraq who was the most recent, and potentially final, U.S. fatality of the war.

Obama's approval rating on handling the situation in Iraq has been above 50 percent since last fall, and in a new Associated Press-GfK poll, has ticked up four points since October to 55 percent. Among independents, his approval rating tops 50 percent for the first time since this spring.

With the economy foremost on people's minds, fewer now consider the war a top issue. Fifty-one percent said it was extremely or very important to them personally, down from 58 percent in October, placing it behind 13 of 14 issues tested in the poll.

It's the president's first visit to Fort Bragg, which is home to Army Special Operations, the 18th Airborne Corps and the 82nd Airborne, among others. Special Forces troops from Fort Bragg were among the first soldiers in Iraq during the 2003 invasion and its paratroopers helped lead the 2007 troop increase.

In his speech, Obama said that Iraq "is not a perfect place."

But he added that "we are leaving behind a sovereign, stable, and self-reliant Iraq, with a representative government that was elected by its people. We are building a new partnership between our nations."

___

Associated Press writer Martha Waggoner in Raleigh, North Carolina, and AP Deputy Polling Director Jennifer Agiesta contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/89ae8247abe8493fae24405546e9a1aa/Article_2011-12-14-Obama/id-b57a3698d5944202a6863452f291b406

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Mother's stolen ashes returned to NH woman

ROCHESTER, N.H. (AP) ? A stolen urn containing the ashes of her mother has been returned to a New Hampshire woman, who had been taking the container to bingo games for good luck.

WMUR-TV reports (http://bit.ly/v6yuN2) police said the urn was returned to Diane Bozzi sometime between Monday night and Tuesday morning. They have no suspects.

Police said the urn was stolen from Bozzi's van last week in Rochester by someone targeting unlocked cars. She said the urn was in a bag she was planning to take to a bingo game.

Bozzi pleaded for the urn's return. She and her mother loved playing bingo together. Before her mother died in 2002, Bozzi promised her she would take some of her ashes with her to play. Her mother agreed, saying she would bring Bozzi luck.

___

Information from: WMUR-TV, http://wmur.com

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/aa9398e6757a46fa93ed5dea7bd3729e/Article_2011-12-14-Stolen%20Ashes/id-fd9c654e2a8d450990925e9f552894da

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Is There Trouble Brewing at Green Mountain? (The Motley Fool)

Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (Nasdaq: GMCR - News) recently posted robust revenue and earnings growth in its fourth quarter. However, investors had higher expectations, and reacted by eroding one-third of the stock's value in response. This comes at a time when hedge fund manager David Einhorn has damaged the company's image.

Will relationships with fellow brewers Starbucks (Nasdaq: SBUX - News), Dunkin' Brands (Nasdaq: DNKN - News) and Caribou Coffee (Nasdaq: CBOU - News) be enough to carry them forward?

Let's see what's troubling the company.

A rocky quarter
Green Mountain's profits during the quarter increased to $75.4 million, which is nearly triple compared to the previous year. This was mainly caused by robust K-cup growth, which accounted for nearly two-third of the company's revenue. Earnings per share of $0.47 missed analyst expectations by just $0.01. However, this was not the reason for investor concern.

The company earned revenue of $711.9 million in this quarter, a staggering 91% increase from the year-ago period, but that failed to meet the average expectation of $760 million. Green Mountain has been surprising the market and beating revenue estimates for over two years now. So, what has led to this drop?

Blame it on the change
Management feels that there has been a change in the ordering pattern of wholesale customers. Apparently, wholesalers bought too much from the company in the last quarter and balanced that out by purchasing less in this quarter. In other words, wholesalers over-ordered earlier, which led to low revenue growth in this quarter.

Hedge fund manager David Einhorn, however, highlighted that Green Mountain's inventory levels and capital expenditure trends are responsible for a severe weakness in the company. He pointed out that inventories, which are up 356% compared to last year, are growing faster than the company's sales.

Additionally, the company's increasing capital expenditure is a concern. Green Mountain spent extensively on K-Cup and next generation K-Cup coffee packaging, thereby doubling its capital spending to $290 million in fiscal year 2011. It plans to spend an additional $700 million in the next fiscal year. The rise in capital expenditure far exceeds the estimated growth of the company.

Foolish final thought
Dark clouds are looming over the coffee giant. But there are some positives to look forward to as Green Mountain has projected sales growth for the next fiscal year at 60%-65%. Stay updated about Green Mountain to see if the company gets roasted or manages to brew strong results by adding it to your Watchlist. It's free. Click here.

Fool contributor Navjot Kaur does not own shares in any of the companies mentioned in this article. The Motley Fool owns shares of Starbucks. Motley Fool newsletter services have recommended buying shares of Starbucks and Green Mountain Coffee Roasters. Motley Fool newsletter services have also recommended creating a lurking gator position in Green Mountain Coffee Roasters. Try any of our Foolish newsletter services free for 30 days. We Fools may not all hold the same opinions, but we all believe that considering a diverse range of insights makes us better investors. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/personalfinance/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/fool/20111206/bs_fool_fool/rx167785

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Panel to release report on Olympus scandal Tuesday: report (Reuters)

TOKYO (Reuters) ? An expert panel appointed by Japan's Olympus Corp to look into an accounting scandal at the disgraced firm will release its findings on Tuesday, Kyodo news agency said in a weekend report, opening the way for possible criminal complaints against former company executives.

Olympus has admitted to using murky M&A deals to hide losses on investments stretching back two decades. Its current management has blamed ex-president Tsuyoshi Kikukawa, former executive vice president Hisashi Mori and former internal auditor Hideo Yamada for the scheme and said it was ready to take legal action against those found responsible.

The 92-year-old maker of cameras and endoscopes is battling to remain listed on the Tokyo Stock Exchange, but if the panel finds involvement of organized crime syndicates -- as has been speculated -- that outcome would be difficult.

Tokyo police, prosecutors and the Securities and Exchange Surveillance Commission (SESC) have launched a rare joint investigation of the scandal, and are likely to step up their probe after the panel report is released.

Potential criminal charges could include filing false financial statements, fraud and aggravated breach of trust -- an offence that can include embezzlement -- although proving breach of trust could be difficult because of the need to show that the offence had been committed for personal gain.

Olympus also needs to meet a December 14 deadline to file its financial results for the six months to September in order to avoid an automatic delisting.

Former Olympus CEO Michael Woodford, who blew the whistle on accounting tricks at the company after his sacking from the top job in October, has launched a campaign to oust the current board and replace it with his own team of candidates led by him as nominated CEO.

That has set up a battle between Woodford, an Englishman who was a rare foreign CEO in Japan, and current Olympus President Shuichi Takayama, who plans to stay on, at least in the short term, to try to get the company back on track.

The Olympus affair has fanned doubts about corporate governance generally in Japan as well as revived concerns about ties between "yakuza" gangsters and companies.

Attention will also be focused on what the panel, led by a Supreme Court judge, has to say about the role of outsiders in the scandal, including Akio Nakagawa, a banker with lengthy ties to Olympus and whose firm Axes received a mammoth advisory fee in the purchase of U.K. medical equipment maker Gyrus in 2008.

(Reporting by Linda Sieg; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/business/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111204/bs_nm/us_olympus_investigation

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Saturday night and Sunday afternoon (Balloon Juice)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories Stories, RSS and RSS Feed via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/169530735?client_source=feed&format=rss

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Official: 13 hurt when fans storm Okla. St. field (AP)

STILLWATER, Okla. ? Thousands of fans stormed the field and tore down goalposts after Oklahoma State's 44-10 victory over archrival Oklahoma, leaving at least 13 people injured, including two in critical condition, medical authorities said early Sunday.

Michael Authement, who heads the command post at emergency medical provider LifeNet EMS, told The Associated Press that a throng so big took to the field as the game ended that some fans were trampled and one person fell at least 15 feet onto concrete during a wild celebration by Oklahoma State fans.

No. 13 Oklahoma State routed the Sooners on Saturday night to win the Big 12 championship and make its case to play for the BCS national title. The Cowboys (11-1, 8-1 Big 12) snapped an eight-game losing streak in the rivalry and won their first outright conference title since 1948 in the three-team Missouri Valley.

"They won the game and stormed the field and ripped down the goalposts and some were jumping off the stands and hit the field and others got trampled. It was a nasty deal," Authement said.

He said the crowd was so big it took police at least 45 minutes to clear fans from the field at Boone Pickens Stadium in Stillwater. "There were thousands of people. Thousands of people stormed the field. You couldn't move there were so many people," he added.

AP photographs showed fans climbing atop the yellow goalposts and tearing them apart amid a crush of people on the field. Scores of hands stretched out to pull down the goalposts during the celebration.

Authement said nine ambulances, including six from LifeNet, rushed 11 of the injured away and the two in critical condition were flown to Oklahoma City hospitals. He said he knew of leg fractures but didn't have any details on the extent of the injuries, though two of the 13 had minor injuries and were treated at the scene and released.

Lesser injuries included broken ankles, ankle sprains and back sprains, said Shyla Eggers, public relations director for Stillwater Medical Center, adding eight injured came to her hospital. She told AP that her hospital received six of the injured in ambulances, two in private vehicles and at least two of the patients have been admitted and would undergo surgery on broken ankles.

"Our staff that was on hand took care of it. They were just very busy," Eggers said. "Game day is always busy."

She had no immediate details on the more serious injuries, saying two people were flown from the scene to hospitals in other cities in Oklahoma.

An Oklahoma State University police central dispatcher said she had no immediate details to release when contacted by AP and the public information officer did not immediately return messages seeking comment. Stillwater police and the Oklahoma highway patrol also had no immediate comment.

Authement said the fans began storming the field with about 20 seconds left in the game. He said he had reports of people falling and being trampled in the surge. "It lasted 45 minutes, I'm sure before they got the field cleared," he said.

He said he was handling game night duty when a magnitude-5.6 earthquake rocked central Oklahoma and the same stadium as fans departed minutes after Oklahoma State had beaten Kansas State. The Nov. 5 temblor, which could be felt as far away as Wisconsin, was the strongest in the state's history when it rattled players in the locker room and set the stadium press box rippling as the last of some 58,000 fans cleared out.

"This was way worse than the earthquake," Authement said.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111204/ap_on_sp_ot/us_oklahoma_st_fans_injured

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