It’s a scary world that we live in now. Before, all we had to worry about was criminals invading our home and robbing us for physical good, but know we have to protect our valuable information since cybercrimes are on the rise. Hackers are out there to steal information and regular citizens aren’t the only ones in harm’s way.
Now that the Internet has redefined our lives and businesses, break-ins are virtual and the new currency is information — personally identifying information, to be exact. The rush to an online economy has stood conventional wisdom on its ear, and all the locked front doors on the planet won’t make us any safer. They won’t protect our governments, either, as Virginia’s administration is now learning. Hackers claim to have broken into a state-run prescription drug database — run by the Prescription Monitoring Program — last month and stolen or deleted 8 million patient records and 35 million prescription records. They demanded a $10 million ransom for the safe return of the compromised data, or threatened to sell it to the highest bidder.
As the debate continues over whether this is the biggest cybercrime attack in history, the reality for regular folks is frightening: There are no safe havens anymore, and not even governments — who we entrust with our most private information — are immune. We can lock our doors at night, but we have no control over the myriad third parties that touch our data after we relinquish control.
If the government can’t even keep their valuable information safe, what hope to we as regular citizens have? None so far. While the state investigates whether an actual breach occurred, officials have confirmed that all of the compromised data is safely stored on backups and the systems themselves have been secured from further attacks.
But while this high-stakes game of cybercrime brinkmanship plays out, the system in question, the Prescription Monitoring Program, remains offline and unavailable. This unresolved outage is costing the state and its citizens dearly, and calls into question plans to overhaul the entire health care system with adequate doses of technology and process.
We should be really worried right now since the government is looking to have our health records go digital. As health records go digital, can governments at all levels assure us what’s happening in Virginia won’t also happen to electronic health records (EHRs) around the world? Although public-sector agencies almost always claim to be using the latest security tools and processes, they can’t guarantee our government-run health care infrastructure will be inviolable.
But as governments hurriedly plan and deploy platforms, systems and processes to automate the business of managing bureaucracy and accelerating service delivery, the risk of cybercrime only grows more and more each day. Massive new public data repositories represent irresistible targets of opportunity for identity thieves. It’s fair to question whether governments at any level possess sufficient technical and process maturity to keep our data safe from cybercriminals.
As citizens, we can only hope that the government we trust our most valuable information with can figure out how to stop these cyber attacks and create the best possible security infrastructure in place before all our identities are stolen.
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Sep 22, 2009
If Governments Aren't Safe, Are We?
K Alliance Prepares for Microsoft Windows 7 Release
According to a K Alliance spokesman, “We’ve been working behind the scenes to develop comprehensive self-paced training courses designed to empower users while delivering key skills required of the new operating system.” K Alliance has developed several Windows 7 courses, each with a unique focus. For example, courses are available for end users who want to understand how to work with the new features of Windows 7 as well as for IT professionals who must learn how to deploy, configure, upgrade, migrate, and integrate Windows 7 into the network infrastructure. IT certification courses involving Windows 7 have also been developed by the K Alliance creative team.
In addition to releasing several tightly focused courses covering Windows 7 for end users and IT professionals alike, K Alliance also offers the training in several different formats. Many of these courses, such as the Windows 7 training DVD, are self-paced, which means that trainees learn how to use Windows 7 at their leisure by watching videos on their computers. Certified instructors explain the new features while demonstrating tasks on screen so that users can see Windows 7 in action. In addition, Microsoft Windows CBT training allows users to work in a simulated Windows 7 environment and try the steps for themselves – even without Windows 7 installed on the computer.
K Alliance has leveraged the power of the Internet for online access to the self-paced online classes as well as live, online classes. The live classes allow students to experience Microsoft’s latest operating system and learn from a certified instructor in real time from any remote location. Finally, a network deployable course is available to corporations looking for a complete training solution.
Microsoft developers have been developing Windows 7 for quite some time. At the same time, curriculum developers from K Alliance have been developing the training that Windows 7 users and IT professionals will need as they adopt the new operating system.
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BofA to face SEC trial, exits loss-sharing deal
By MARCY GORDON
The Associated Press
Tuesday, September 22, 2009; 12:05 AM
WASHINGTON -- Bank of America Corp. now faces a trial with the Securities and Exchange Commission over billions in bonuses paid at Merrill Lynch, after a judge threw out the bank's $33 million settlement and rebuked the agency for not pursuing charges against executives.
The news comes as Bank of America executive Anne Finucane prepares to meet Tuesday with Rep. Edolphus Towns, D-N.Y., about BofA's takeover of the troubled investment bank. BofA missed a Monday deadline to turn over details of the hastily arranged acquisition to a congressional committee.
The SEC had accused BofA of failing to disclose to shareholders that it had authorized Merrill to pay up to $5.8 billion in bonuses to its employees in 2008 even though the investment bank lost $27.6 billion that year. BofA had agreed to pay $33 million to settle the charges without admitting or denying wrongdoing, saying it didn't violate disclosure rules but wanted to avoid litigation with the SEC at a time of market uncertainty.
But U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff last week called the proposed settlement a breach of "justice and morality," and ordered a trial. He questioned why individual executives at Bank of America weren't charged, and said the settlement unfairly penalized shareholders.
"The SEC gets to claim that it is exposing wrongdoing on the part of the Bank of America in a high-profile merger, the bank's management gets to claim that they have been coerced into an onerous settlement by overzealous regulators. And all this is done at the expense, not only of the shareholders, but also of the truth," Rakoff wrote in his ruling.
Both the SEC and BofA have defended the earlier settlement proposal as appropriate. But after Rakoff's ruling, the agency weighed its options, either to go to trial or attempt to renegotiate the accord with Bank of America.
On Monday, the SEC said it will "vigorously pursue" its case against Bank of America, adding that it could seek to bring additional charges if supported by the record of evidence that develops in the trial - meaning it could charge individual executives.
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Bank of America spokesman Scott Silvestri said the bank's position "continues to be that the (disclosure document) met all legal requirements."
"We intend to vigorously defend ourselves in court," Silvestri said in a statement.
The SEC trial comes as Bank of America faces pressure from other fronts. The New York Attorney General's office is doing its own investigation into the Merrill Lynch deal and has been drafting what are likely to be civil fraud charges against top bank executives in the coming weeks.
Also, the bank missed a noon deadline Monday to provide additional information about the Merrill Lynch deal to a congressional committee.
Rep. Edolphus Towns, D-N.Y. and chairman of House Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, told the bank in a letter Friday that it was hiding behind attorney-client privilege, which Congress can refuse to recognize during its investigations. Silvestri declined to comment on whether or not the bank met the deadline, but said Anne Finucane, a member of Bank of America's executive management team, will meet with Towns Tuesday to discuss the matter.
Separately Monday, Bank of America agreed to pay $425 million to government agencies, including the Treasury Department, to exit an arrangement under which public funds might have been used to shoulder losses on $118 billion worth of risky assets from the Merrill Lynch takeover. The option was never used, but the government has argued that the bank benefited from the promise of protection.
The move is part of a broader effort by the bank to reduce its reliance on various forms of government support. Charlotte, N.C.-based BofA has been one of the largest benefactors of the government's financial rescue program, receiving a total of $45 billion from the taxpayer-financed $700 billion financial bailout program.
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AP Economics Writer Jeannine Aversa in Washington and AP Business Writers Stephen Bernard and Candice Choi in New York contributed to this story.
Sep 21, 2009
Leading Economic Indicators Rise in August
A private forecast of economic activity rose in August for the fifth straight month, the latest sign the recession has ended. The Conference's Board leading indicators point to an economy on solid ground early next year, though some analysts caution that a rising unemployment rate will restrain growth.
The Conference Board said Monday its index of leading indicators rose 0.6 percent in August. That follows a 0.9 percent gain in July revised up from 0.6 percent. Economists surveyed by Thomson Reuters had expected an 0.7 percent gain last month.
The indicators are designed to project economic activity in the next three to six months. The August results support many analysts' projections that the economy started growing again in the current July-September quarter and will continue to gain in the fourth quarter.
Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke last week said the recession was "very likely over."
The recession's end "is no longer a source of heated discussion ... but whether or not the economy can keep grinding forward (and at what speed) is still a big question mark," Jennifer Lee, an economist at BMO Capital Markets, wrote in a note to clients Monday.
Some analysts worry that any current economic growth will falter as unemployment rises from the August rate of 9.7 percent to above 10 percent. But the leading indicators provided a rosier outlook for next year, said Bank of America Merrill Lynch analyst Ethan Harris.
"This is good news, no question about it," he said. "The data's more of an argument against the so-called double dip. They're all looking like next year's going to be a solid growth year."
A measure of supplier deliveries, rising stock prices, an increase in consumer expectations, a jump in building permits and the "interest rate spread" boosted the index in August.
That spread is the difference between yields on 10-year Treasurys and the federal funds rate, which the Fed is keeping at a record low near zero. The funds rate is the interest banks charge each other for loans. A big difference between it and the 10-year Treasury is viewed as positive because investors are willing to lend
Gold hits 1-week low on dollar, flirts with $1,000
By Lewa Pardomuan
SINGAPORE (Reuters) - Gold slipped below $1,000 an ounce for the first time in almost a week on Monday after failing to revisit last year's record, with sluggish offtake from jewellers across Asia stepping up the selling pressure.
Gold hit $1,023.85 on Thursday, its strongest since March 2008 when it struck a record of $1,030.80, on uncertainties over the sustainability of the global economic recovery, but the dollar's rebound from a 1-year low eventually spurred selling.
Spot gold was quoted at $1,000.30 an ounce by 0505 GMT, down $5.85 from New York's notional close on Friday. Bullion, which gained as much as 16 percent this year, fell to an intraday low of $999.05 an ounce on Monday.
"I think investors are probably a bit cautious. We've got here, where does it go next? Some people might sort of view now the upside from here has been more limited," said David Moore, commodities strategist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia.
"I am a bit of a bear on gold. I think gold would go back under $1,000. I think the physical demand for gold is still very weak. When investors start to look elsewhere, I think the gold price will fall back."
Trading was muted, with Japanese markets closed for a long holiday but dealers noted selling from speculators in other parts of Asia, driven by worries over the IMF's plan to sell gold and a firmer dollar.
The physical market in Singapore was closed for a Muslim holiday and purchases from jewellers in another bullion trading centre, Hong Kong, were scarce although gold has dropped more than 2 percent since hitting last week's multi-month highs.
The U.S. dollar gained against the euro in thin trade on Monday, extending a rebound late last week on short covering ahead of a Federal Reserve policy meet on interest rates and a Group of 20 summit.
Dell to acquire Perot for $3.9bn
Computer giant Dell is buying IT services provider and fellow Texan firm Perot Systems for $3.9bn (£2.4bn).
Dell said the takeover, which it hopes to conclude between November and January, will help it provide a wider range of services to its customers.
The all-cash deal will see Perot shareholders receive $30 per share, a 68% premium on the company's closing share price on Friday.
Perot is owned by billionaire Ross Perot who twice ran for US president.
He ran as an independent candidate in both 1992 and 1996.
'Premium asset'
"We consider Perot Systems to be a premium asset with great people that enhances our opportunities for immediate and long-term growth," said Dell's chairman and chief executive
"This significantly expands Dell's enterprise-solutions capabilities and makes Perot Systems' strengths available to even more customers around the world," Michael Dell added.
While Perot specialises in IT support for the likes of hospitals, government departments, and banks, Dell is best known for its personal computers.
Mr Perot said the sale was a "great opportunity" for his company, which he founded in 1988.
Mr Dell said the "the acquisition makes such great sense because of the obvious ways our businesses complement each other".
The takeover news comes a month after Dell reported that its second quarter profit fell 23% from a year earlier to $12.8bn, as it continued to be hit by the global slowdown in sales of personal computers.
BofA skips Congress deadline, faces new SEC threat
A Bank of America branch is pictured in New York May 7, 2009. REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton
By Rachelle Younglai and Joe Rauch
WASHINGTON/NEW YORK (Reuters) - Bank of America
The standoff with the House oversight committee heightened the chances lawmakers may subpoena the bank and raised the stakes for a Tuesday meeting between a senior bank executive and the committee chairman.
Separately, the Securities and Exchange Commission said it could pursue additional charges against Bank of America after a federal judge last week rejected a $33-million settlement between the bank and the regulator.
An SEC statement made no mention of dropping the case that alleges Bank of America misled investors over bonuses paid to Merrill Lynch employees. "We believe that this disclosure failure violated the federal securities laws," the agency said.
Bank of America is defending itself on multiple fronts over the Merrill deal, including shareholder lawsuits and a threat by New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo to file civil charges against top executives.
Despite its legal battles, Bank of America announced on Monday it would exit a $118-billion asset-guarantee program it entered with the U.S. government on the heels of its January 1 purchase of Merrill Lynch.
Charlotte, North Carolina-based Bank of America said it will pay a $425-million fee to exit the facility that was never formally signed but was laid out in a term sheet in January.
Shares of Bank of America, which had closed 2.2 percent lower to $17.25 in regular trading Monday, were 4 cents higher in after-hours trade following word of its exit from the government support program and the SEC statement.
SUBPOENA COULD BE ISSUED
An aide with the House oversight panel said its chairman was disappointed Bank of America missed the Monday noon deadline, especially after it submitted reams of unhelpful documents such as an announcement of an annual nut sale featuring "This Year's Crop of Mammoth Pecan Halves."
"The subpoena is the next logical step," said the aide, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Edolphus Towns' House Oversight and Government Reform is investigating details surrounding Bank of America's purchase of Merrill Lynch, including the disclosure of pre-merger losses at the investment bank, what funding commitments the U.S. government made prior to the deal and what legal basis the bank may have had for backing out of the transaction.
Some lawmakers believe Bank of America was forced by the U.S. Treasury and the Federal Reserve to go through with the Merrill deal as part of efforts to prop up the banking system during last year's financial crisis.
Others are critical of Bank of America for not giving more information to shareholders about Merrill's financial condition and for letting Merrill pay bonuses before the deal was completed on January 1.
"We are working with the committee on a plan to provide them with the information they need," Bank of America spokesman Scott Silvestri said in an emailed statement.
Anne Finucane, the bank's global chief strategy and marketing officer, will meet with Towns on Tuesday to discuss providing the necessary documents "without violating attorney client privilege," Silvestri said.
The committee has said information relevant to the investigation be disclosed, and the bank must waive attorney-client privilege to do so.
The committee aide said Towns will hear what Bank of America has to say, but he was not expected to back down from his request for the documents.
In a September 18 letter to Bank of America Chief Executive Ken Lewis, Towns said the bank has produced documents "clearly irrelevant" to an August request by the committee for all records from September 1, 2008 through January 16, 2009.
Those documents included an invitation to attend an East Asian investment conference, written in Chinese, emails from employees to Ken Lewis about his "'awesome' performance on 60 Minutes," and emails to employees about company discounts at retailers.
Forex-Dollar tentatively higher, sterling depressed
While expanding a jump witnessed late last week since traders covered short positions ahead of a Federal Reserve monetary policy meet and a Group of 20 summits, the dollar, on Monday, gained in thin conditions.
Following the Bank of England specified Monday that an increased attention on Britain's economic imbalances after the global credit crisis has resulted in fall of sterling's long-run sustainable exchange; the suffering pound ceded further ground.
On Friday, the pound plummeted to as low as $1.6210, from $1.6256, late in New York. It was the same time when it lost over 1.1 percent on fiscal and banking sector worries. The early Asian trade witnessed the euro rising to a five-month high against the pound at 89.29 pence.
Since Japan is closed until Thursday, due to holidays, volumes in Asia were on the lower side.
In the meantime, the euro eased against the U. S. dollar to $1.4688, after it lost nearly 0.2 percent on Friday, though strong support is seen around $1.4640. The euro had a firm hold on yen with around 134.35 yen.
After witnessing a gain of over 0.3% on Friday, the dollar climbed up on the yen to 91.50 yen.
A source said: "Resistance is seen around 91.65 yen, with Ichimoku chart formations showing a clear break of that level, opening the pair to test a target of 92.02 yen."
The dollar .DXY was up 0.18 percent at 76.52, against a basket of currencies, off a one-year low of 76.01 struck on September 17. In spite of this, the index has lost more than 2 percent this month as rumors floated that the U. S. dollar was fast replacing the yen as the preferred funding currency for carry trades.
Pattrick Bennett, Asia forex and rates strategist at SocGen in Hongkong said: "We could see some consolidation after the recent fall in the U. S. dollar. But this is unlikely to lead to a reversal in the broad weakness we have seen in the U. S. dollar as this is a liquidity driven rally and investors are taking on more risks."
Dow, S&P hit by commodities; Nasdaq up on biotech
By Rodrigo Campos
NEW YORK (Reuters) - The Dow industrials and the S&P 500 index fell on Monday as a drop in oil and other commodity prices hurt energy and materials stocks.
But the Nasdaq rose, buoyed by a broker's upgrade in the biotechnology sector.
Light crude futures fell more than 3 percent, settling below $70 a barrel, hurt by concerns about demand despite hopes for economic recovery. The Reuters-Jefferies CRB index of commodities <.CRB> tumbled 2.2 percent, its largest percentage drop in five weeks.
The dollar index <.DXY> rose 0.5 percent after three weeks of declines and further hurt commodity prices, as investors scaled back short positions in anticipation of the Federal Reserve's decision on interest rates later this week.
Energy <.GSPE> and materials <.GSPM> ranked among the S&P 500's worst-performing sectors, with oil services company Halliburton Co
"The market has risen in the last several months, based on the idea of the reflation trade," said Chip Hanlon, referring to bets on rising prices of hard assets as the economy recovers.
Hanlon, president of Delta Global Advisors Inc in Huntington Beach, California, said people can expect that when stocks sell off, the U.S. dollar will rally, which "will inflict particular pain on raw materials."
The Dow Jones industrial average <.DJI> dropped 41.34 points, or 0.42 percent, to end at 9,778.86. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index <.SPX> fell 3.64 points, or 0.34 percent, to 1,064.66. But the Nasdaq Composite Index <.IXIC> gained 5.18 points, or 0.24 percent, to close at 2,138.04.
The benchmark S&P 500 has risen 57.4 percent off a 12-year closing low in early March, partly because of a strong earnings season that is winding down and optimism that an economic recovery is gaining strength. Investors' appetite for riskier assets had reduced the U.S. dollar's safe-haven appeal.
Adding to the overall negative tone in Monday's session, the Conference Board's index of leading indicators posted a slightly weaker-than-expected gain in August.
Among the top drags on the Dow Jones industrial average was Caterpillar
The Dow's leading laggard was American Express Co
The Nasdaq rose slightly after Robert W. Baird upgraded Celgene Corp
Computer maker Dell Inc
Shares of American International Group Inc
Volume was below average on the New York Stock Exchange, with about 1.20 billion shares changing hands, compared with last year's estimated daily average of 1.49 billion. On the Nasdaq, about 2.42 billion shares traded, above last year's daily average of 2.28 billion.
Declining stocks outnumbered advancers on the NYSE by a ratio of 2 to 1, while on the Nasdaq, about seven stocks fell for every six that rose.
Much Debate But Little Drama Expected at Fed
When Federal Reserve policymakers meet this week, there is likely to be plenty of spirited debate behind closed doors. But the announcement of its result Wednesday afternoon is poised to be a snoozer, by conventional measures.
The Fed is almost certain to leave the federal funds rate, which it controls, near zero. The Federal Open Market Committee will probably also leave language in its statement that the weak economy is likely to "warrant exceptionally low levels of the federal funds rate for an extended period," though a tweak is not out of the question.
The big question around the table is likely to be a straightforward one: How strong, and how lasting, will the incipient recovery turn out to be? Some Federal Open Market Committee members, in recent public appearances, have hinted that they think the economy will soon be strong enough that the Fed can begin pulling away its support. Many in this wing also fear that the sheer volume of money that the Fed has created risks an outburst of inflation in the not-too-distant future, and so they want to wind it down as soon as possible.
The consensus of the committee, though, appears to be that the recovery is sufficiently fragile, and the risk of inflation sufficiently remote, that the central bank needs to keep doing (almost) all it can to support the economy. And the panel members see there being so much slack in the economy, given the 9.7 percent unemployment rate, that there is unlikely to be an inflation problem anytime soon.
Here are the questions Fed-watchers will be looking for answers to in Wednesday's statement: How much will the FOMC upgrade its assessment of the economy compared with its August meeting? Will policymakers give a more solid indication that a program to buy up to $1.25 trillion in mortgage backed securities will be allowed to expire in the months ahead? And will Jeffrey Lacker, the president of the Richmond Fed and one of the inflation hawks, dissent from the committee's decision, preferring to start raising rates? If so, it would be the first dissent in more than a year, and a sign that a period of strong public consensus among the Fed leadership could be nearing an end.
-- Neil Irwin
NEIL'S MUST READS:
The Wall Street Journal explores how the end of the finance boom has made the sector a less attractive place to work, Christopher Hayes argues for a bit of inflation in a paper at the New America Foundation, and the Minneapolis Fed publishes a fascinating conversation with former Fed Chairman Paul Volcker.
[Rumour] Microsoft to launch two iPhone competitors next year, possibly tablet too
UPDATE: 9to5Mac has just released a sketch of the new Turtle phone. Scroll down to check out the same.
It’s Monday morning and you know what that means: a hot, fresh tidbit right off the rumour mills. The buzz across the Web is that Microsoft is set to launch two competitors to Apple’s iPhone – called ‘Turtle’ and ‘Pure’ – early next year, finally throwing its hat into the hardware arena.
All information regarding it is hush-hush, and is said to be classified under the ‘Project Pink’ moniker. Leading Apple-related news site 9to5Mac said that the new phones would be made by Microsoft in cooperation with hardware manufacturer Sharp and would bear a resemblance to the Sidekick LX – originally developed by Danger Inc., which MS acquired last year. In fact, they'll be co-branded as ‘Microsoft+Sharp’ products.
“One device is ‘squircle’ in shape like the past Zune's buttons. The slide-out keyboard houses the microphone at the bottom and it is meant to be open when being used as a phone. This device is code-named ‘Turtle’ and looks like a dressed up Motorola QA1,” wrote 9to5Mac. “The other device is more traditionally-shaped candybar slider and is code-named ‘Pure’.”
The site also claims to have received a few photographs of the prototype, although they haven’t put those up. By their estimation – backed by reputed writers from CNET and other sites – the new devices should be unveiled at CES in January 2010.
Move over, iTablet!
Meanwhile, Mary-Jo Foley of CNET news has written that she has been receiving increasing number of tips from industry sources that Microsoft is going to come out with its own tablet computer soon.
A few months ago, the possibility of an MS-branded tablet had sprung up after a few patents were filed and the company’s Chief Experience Office J Allerd – who has been noticeably absent from public appearances over the past few months – was said to be likely heading the whole project.
“No word on whether Microsoft will field a Microsoft-branded Surface/Tablet combo or rely on one or more hardware partners to produce multiple designs,” she writes. “I wouldn’t be surprised if Microsoft is waiting for Apple to show its iTablet hand before trotting out its revamped Tablet.”
US Proposes New Network Neutrality Rules
The US has proposed new rules that would require Internet companies to respect the principle of "network neutrality".
The head of the Federal Communications Commission's (FCC) said that "all web traffic should be treated equally".
He proposed two new rules to guide the FCC's approach to network neutrality, the BBC reported.
The first would prevent Internet service providers (ISPs) from discriminating against bandwidth-intensive web-content and applications by slowing or blocking it.
The second would mean that ISPs would have to be more transparent about how they manage network traffic.
The two new rules join four previous guiding principles of the FCC, which state that all consumers must be able to access "lawful" content, applications, and services, and attach non-harmful devices to the network.
Networks on both sides of the Atlantic have long argued for a two-tier system, where those that can pay are given priority over those that cannot.
"There are few goals more essential in the communications landscape than preserving and maintaining an open and robust Internet. t is vital that the Internet continue to be an engine of innovation, economic growth, competition and democratic engagement", FCC chairman Julius Genachowski said in a speech at the Brookings Institution, a Washington think tank.
Obama Takes Media to Task for Coverage of Racial Controversy, Wilson
The president of the United States uses the Sunday morning talk shows to broadly scold the news media for playing up what he called "rude" and "outrageous" political comments, and urge the 24-hour news networks to consider giving more of a platform to those who demonstrate decency and civility.
Diplomat. Financial regulator. Cheerleader. Doctor.
President Obama's worn all these hats since taking office. Now he's assuming a new role: media critic.
The president of the United States used the Sunday morning talk shows to broadly scold the news media for playing up what he called "rude" and "outrageous" political comments, and urge the 24-hour news networks to consider giving more of a platform to those who demonstrate decency and civility.
Obama blanketed the airwaves Sunday, appearing on ABC, CBS, NBC, CNN and the Hispanic network Univision in a bid to promote his health care plan. But he also very deliberately used the unprecedented media blitz to chide those journalists who cover him, delivering a similar lecture on every network except Univision about the importance of changing the way media prioritize stories.
"The easiest way to get on television right now is to be really rude. If you're just being sensible and giving people the benefit of the doubt, and you're making your arguments, you don't get time on the nightly news," Obama said on ABC's "This Week."
"You might on Sunday morning," host George Stephanopoulos countered -- to which Obama said, "But if you say something outrageous, you're there in a hot second."
He continued that thought on NBC's "Meet the Press."
"The easiest way to get 15 minutes on the news or your 15 minutes of fame is to be rude. ... That's something that I think needs to change," Obama said, lamenting the habit of "plucking out a sentence here or a comment there."
The president was evidently agitated by the coverage the media have given to stories that sprouted as a result of Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., shouting, "You lie," at Obama during his health care address to a joint session of Congress more than a week ago. Coverage of the outburst seemed to overshadow coverage of Obama's health care plan itself, and later evolved into coverage of racial controversy after several prominent Democrats, including former President Jimmy Carter, claimed critics like Wilson were racially motivated.
"The media loves to have a conversation about race," Obama noted on NBC. "This is catnip to the media because it is a running thread in American history that is very powerful and it evokes some very strong emotion."
Obama dealt with a similar media furor over race in July after he waded -- to his detriment -- into the case of a black Harvard professor who was arrested at his house by a white Cambridge police officer. Obama said the police "acted stupidly," but following enormous uproar walked back his statement and played peacemaker by inviting the officer and professor to the White House for a beer.
Dealing again with the issue, the first black U.S. president made clear Sunday that, while some of his critics and supporters surely are motivated by race, most of them are not.
And he urged the media to look for less controversial content, offering somewhat of a wish list on CNN's "State of the Union."
"I think it's important for the media -- you know, not to do any media-bashing here -- to recognize that right now, in this 24-hour news cycle, the easiest way to get on CNN or FOX or any of the other stations -- MSNBC -- is to just say something rude and outrageous," Obama said. "And, you know, part of what I'd like to see is all of us reward decency and civility in our political discourse. That doesn't mean you can't be passionate, and that doesn't mean that you can't speak your mind. But I think we can all sort of take a step back here and remind ourselves who we are as a people."
The president squeezed in the same point on CBS' "Face the Nation," accusing the media of viewing "extreme elements" and "conflict" as "catnip."
"Meet the Press" host David Gregory subtly pointed out the irony of appearing on five Sunday shows, which gave him an extensive platform to discuss substance and policy, in order to denounce TV news.
"You get a lot of air time too, though, and your views are not rude," Gregory said.
"I do occupy a pretty special seat at the moment," Obama conceded.
House Republican Leader John Boehner, though, disputed Obama's assertion that "rude" voices are dominating the debate.
"I don't know that the tone of the debate has gotten out of control. It's been spirited," Boehner said on NBC. And he blamed Democrats for prolonging the controversy over Wilson and race, since Democratic leaders drew out the conflict with a vote on the House floor to formally admonish Wilson -- even after he apologized to the White House.
"It didn't need to happen. It was over with. As the president said, it's time to talk about health care, not talk about Joe Wilson," Boehner said.
Fending Off Failure in Afghanistan
By The Editors
Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal, the top military commander in Afghanistan, in a confidential assessment submitted to Defense Secretary Robert Gates, warns in grim and urgent language that he needs additional troops — from 10,000 up to 45,000 more in the next year — or the conflict “will likely result in failure.”
The assessment, made public by The Washington Post, says that success “will not be attained simply by trying harder or doubling down on the previous strategy.” We asked some experts on Afghanistan strategy how should additional troops be deployed? What types of specialized personnel are needed now?
Stock futures signal dip; Palm in focus
(Reuters) - U.S. stock index futures pointed to a slightly lower open on Wall Street on Friday, with futures for the S&P 500 down 0.2 percent, Dow Jones futures down 0.2 percent and Nasdaq 100 futures down 0.2 percent at 3:37 a.m. EDT.
Robust sales of the Pre smartphone helped Palm Inc (PALM.O) post a smaller-than-expected loss, but a tepid second-quarter sales forecast and a plan to sell more shares helped snuff out a rally and sent its shares down nearly 2 percent on Thursday. Palm shares traded in Frankfurt (PALM.F) were down 1.5 percent.
American Airlines will team up with British Airways (BAY.L) and Qantas Airways (QAN.AX) to expand their alliance with cash-strapped Japan Airlines (9205.T), two people with direct knowledge of the talks said, to beat off a rival offer from another airline. The proposal, to include a capital injection from American Airlines but may not bring money from British Airways (BA) or Qantas, is aimed at thwarting Delta Air Lines (DAL.N) -- a member of a rival alliance that is also in talks to invest in JAL.
Boeing Co (BA.N) will be in the spotlight after the head of Airbus said in remarks published on Friday that the European planemaker faces two further "difficult" years and does not rule out making further production cuts if necessary to adjust to demand. "I certainly cannot exclude that we will cut back production even more," Chief Executive Tom Enders told the Wall Street Journal in an interview. "I think we still have two difficult years ahead of us."
Penn National Gaming Inc (PENN.O) is in negotiations to buy the bankrupt Fontainebleau Las Vegas casino and resort, the Wall Street Journal said citing a source with knowledge of the negotiations.
Oil prices fell toward $72 a barrel on Friday, as a fall in Asian equities markets weighed on sentiment and encouraged investors to take profit.
In Asia, Japan's Nikkei average .N225 slipped 0.7 percent on Friday, with financials hit after consumer finance firm Aiful Corp (8515.T) said it was asking for debt repayments to be rescheduled. China's key stock index fell more than 3 percent, as a slew of upcoming new share issues sparked profit-taking.
European shares were down 0.4 percent in morning trade, led lower by banks such as BNP Paribas (BNPP.PA) and Barclays (BARC.L), as investors were taking a breather after recent lofty gains.
U.S. stocks slipped on Thursday after a three-day run-up on concern recent gains were overextended despite the latest round of solid economic data.
The Dow Jones industrial average .DJI fell 7.79 points, or 0.08 percent, to end at 9,783.92. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index .SPX was down 3.27 points, or 0.31 percent, at 1,065.49. The Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC was down 6.40 points, or 0.30 percent, at 2,126.75.
(Reporting by Blaise Robinson; Editing by Mike Nesbit)
Sterling was ripe for a fall, says Bank of England Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/money/article-1214883/Sterling-ripe-fall-says-Bank-England.h
Fears over the parlous state of the public finances may have helped trigger a stampede away from the pound, Bank of England analysis suggested.
Sterling could also have been driven down by worries that the banking crisis has left a 'permanent' dent in UK incomes, making Britain a less attractive market.
The arguments came in an article analysing why sterling proved so vulnerable during the financial crisis, suffering its biggest slump against a basket of currencies since the 1970s.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/money/article-1214883/Sterling-ripe-fall-says-Bank-England.html#ixzz0Rj8OR4Th
Weak pound: Sterling suffered in the slump against various currencies - it hasn't done as badly since the 1970s
Having staged something of a recovery earlier this year, the pound on Friday finished down 1 per cent at $1.62 against the dollar and at 1.10 euros, well below levels before the crisis broke.
The Bank's Quarterly Bulletin suggests that a number of long-term factors left sterling ripe for a fall.
In particular, foreign investors may have taken fright at the size of Britain's bombed-out banking sector, which is four times gross domestic product, and the £1.3trillion cost to the taxpayer of bailing it out.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/money/article-1214883/Sterling-ripe-fall-says-Bank-England.html#ixzz0Rj8SjCSU
Easy-Money Fed Fueling U.S. Dollar “Carry Trades”
A fascinating thing just occurred in the global interest rate market: For the first time since 1993, it became cheaper to borrow dollars than Japanese yen! The three-month dollar-based London Interbank Offered Rate, or LIBOR, slumped to 0.292 percent, compared with the yen-based LIBOR rate of 0.352 percent.
I know. You’re thinking: “Who the heck cares?” But this development is big — and so are the potential implications. It’s all because of something called the “carry trade,” which I’m going to get into right now …
The Carry Trade Explained …
Let’s say you’re an international investor looking to boost your returns. One way to do that is to use leverage, or borrowed money. The cheaper you can borrow that money, and the greater the yield you can earn by investing it, the larger your returns. Every single basis point, or 1/100th of a percentage point, less you spend in borrowing costs falls right to your bottom line.
The carry trade is just a global version of this game. Investors seek out the lowest possible short-term funding costs by finding the economy whose central bank is being the most generous. Then they take that money, sell the country’s currency, and invest the funds in currency and asset markets that yield more.
That’s essentially what the world did for ages in Japan. Japan’s twin busts in stocks and real estate caused the country’s central bank to slash interest rates to near zero in the early 1990s. Japan also flooded its economy with trillions of yen in excess cash.
But the money wasn’t used by companies and consumers to spend and invest at home … they were burdened by excess capacity and gun-shy about borrowing after getting burned in stocks and real estate. Instead, the money was used by global investors to fund investments elsewhere.
There was enormous profit to be had in this game because the rest of the global economy did fairly well during Japan’s “Lost Decade.” You could borrow yen at, say, 0.5 percent and invest in places like the U.S. at around 5 percent. It was a veritable gravy train of profits, derailed occasionally by events like the Long-Term Capital Management blow up in 1998.
What the Carry Trade Did to the Yen and Global Markets … And What We May See Happen Here
The mechanics of the carry trade require that you sell the carry currency and buy foreign currencies against it. So one of the side effects is that it depresses the value of the borrowed currency.
Another side effect is that the carry trade helps inflate global asset bubbles.
Last time around, it did this by transporting the excess liquidity being created in Japan to foreign shores.
Now, thanks to the Federal Reserve’s incredibly easy policy stance, we may be in for “Carry Trade Round Two.” Only this time it’s not Japan’s currency that’s being sold relentlessly to fund risky bets …
Lufthansa likely to cut administrative jobs at its headquarters
Going by the information forwarded by a spokesman of the Cologne-based carrier Deutsche Lufthansa AG, the recession-hit company intends making a notable reduction in its back-office administrative costs over the next three-year period.
Lufthansa said in a Sunday statement that the economic crisis has forced it to look at ways to slash its expenditure in the administration department at its headquarters.
Though a Sunday report in a German daily newspaper, Handelsblatt, said that the carrier would likely cut 15 percent of the jobs in the administration department by 2012; the spokesman, speaking on the condition of anonymity, refused to conform the figures saying that there has been no mention of the proposed lay-offs in the company's plan announced in its last week's employee bulletin.
Noting that Lufthansa, like other airlines worldwide, has been at the receiving end of the blows from lower demand for air travel and rising fuel prices, the spokesman said that the savings planned this time round are distinct from the July-announced proposals which included the elimination of nearly 400 Lufthansa administrative jobs applicable to the passenger division.
Incidentally, as per a staff memo obtained by Reuters in July, Lufthansa planned to slash yearly costs by 1 billion euros by 2011, resorting to a nearly 20 percent cut of the 2,000 administrative jobs in its passenger airline
Forget Pluto, NASA probe finds darkest parts of moon are coldest places in the solar system
WASHINGTON — Astronomers have found the coldest spot in our solar system and it may be a little close for comfort. It's on our moon, right nearby.
NASA is making the first ever temperature map of the moon. They found that at the moon's south pole, it's colder than far away Pluto. The area is inside craters that are permanently shadowed so they never see sun.
Temperatures there were measured at 397 degrees (minus 238 Celsius) below zero. That's just 35 degrees (2 Celsius) higher than the lowest temperature possible.
It is also about a degree chillier than what's been found on Pluto.
The information is from NASA's Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter which started its science mission last week.
On the Net:
NASA Puts Lunar Electric Rover to Desert Test
Source: Technology Review
Class: SYNDICATED NEWS
SYNOPSIS: On the moon, the 12-wheeled, battery-powered LER would have a range of about 150 miles.
If NASA astronauts return to the moon in the next decade, they'll get to cruise the lunar surface in style.
The space agency's current plan is to send humans back to the moon by 2020, and this includes using a new exploration vehicle called Lunar Electric Rover (LER). About the size of a small pickup truck, LER has 12 pivoting wheels that enable the rover to move in any direction and turn on a dime; it features a tilting cockpit for close-up views of the terrain; and it runs on batteries and fuel cells.
Fla.-bound space shuttle Discovery stops in Texas
AMARILLO, Texas — The space shuttle Discovery is making stops in Texas as part of its cross-country flight to Florida.
The shuttle is being ferried atop a modified 747 aircraft, known as a Shuttle Carrier Aircraft. Discovery landed from space Sept. 11 in California.
A refueling stop was made Sunday at Amarillo's international airport, and the shuttle was greeted by dozens of well-wishers and space enthusiasts.
It left at 2:17 p.m. EDT, landed in Fort Worth at 3:15 EDT and is expected to stay overnight at Barksdale Air Force Base in Shreveport, La. The shuttle should reach Kennedy Space Center in Florida on Monday.
Discovery landed at Edwards Air Force Base in California after completing a two-week, 5.7-million mile mission to the international space station.
On the Net:
Obama faces battle with Pentagon hawks to achieve nuclear-free goal
US military chiefs argue that cuts in America's arsenal would spur proliferation
US president Barack Obama speaks at Federal Hall in New York. Photograph: Jeff Zelevansky/Reuters
Five months ago in Prague, Barack Obama used one of his first foreign policy speeches to call for a world free of nuclear weapons. Ever since then the White House has been engaged in a race to turn that declaration into real-world policy. The first obstacle is the Pentagon.
According to officials with knowledge of the inter-agency bargaining, the US defence department produced a draft nuclear posture review that did not just fall short of Obama's vision. In some ways it appeared to be moving in the opposite direction.
The current Pentagon take on US nuclear doctrine envisages maintaining a stockpile of thousands of weapons for the foreseeable future, partly in the name of "extended deterrence". Supporters of that doctrine argue that without a large arsenal, allies abroad will lose confidence in Washington's willingness and capacity to defend them from attack.
The US currently has a deployed arsenal of some 2,600 warheads, with a 2,500-strong reserve and another 4,000 awaiting dismantlement. Significant cuts in the operational warheads would, the argument goes, lead countries like Japan to build a nuclear force of their own. Cuts would paradoxically spur proliferation.
A recent British parliamentary delegation to Washington was surprised to be told in the Pentagon that Britain was one of those countries that would lose faith in the transatlantic alliance if the stockpiles were cut, even though British policy is to encourage those cuts.
The Pentagon, under the leadership of the defence secretary, Robert Gates, is also wedded to the idea of building a new generation of warheads, arguing that only that can guarantee that US nuclear weapons will work, and so allow for deeper cuts and a permanent ban on tests.
The arms control teams in the White House and state department, led by Gary Samore and Ellen Tauscher respectively, argue that there are other ways of ensuring reliability, and that developing new nuclear weapons is the worst possible sign to send to the non-proliferation treaty (NPT) review conference next year.
Joseph Cirincione, head of the Ploughshares Fund which sponsors debate on nuclear policy, said Obama was not just up against existing doctrine, but against a huge industry. "There is $54bn spent [annually in the US] on nuclear weapons and weapons-related programmes. That's a lot of contracts and a lot of jobs, and right now it's a battle for budgets," Cirincione said. "The new weapons programmes are seen as a way of guaranteeing funding and jobs in the infrastructure. Obama is trying to convince [the weapons establishment] that he is going to look after them in ways other than building new weapons."
This is a difficult time for Obama to enter a gruelling bureaucratic battle with the Pentagon, since he is already in a fight over troop deployments to Afghanistan.
But his arms control advisers are aware they only have a narrow window of opportunity to bring about radical change before their agenda gets bogged down in Congress. "There's a strong commitment to live up to Obama's Prague speech, but Afghanistan is dragging all the oxygen out of the room," said a European official.
The looming deadline is next May, when the world's government are supposed to come together to review the non-proliferation treaty, which has succeeded over the past four decades in keeping the number of nuclear weapons states in single figures. But with North Korea's departure from the treaty to build an arsenal, and rising suspicions over Iran's intentions, the NPT is under extreme pressure.
If, as in 2005, May's review conference fails to find common ground between states with nuclear weapons and those who do not have them, many fear that the barriers to untrammelled proliferation could fall away. About a dozen Middle Eastern states are exploring the creation of civil nuclear power programmes, which will give them the option of building weapons at a later date.
"If Obama can't rescue the NPT at this conference you might be looking at the end of the treaty," Cirincione said. "It's already on shaky ground. If you can't shore it up in 2010, you face the real possibility that it won't be there in 2015."
Iran led the resistance to new anti-proliferation measures in 2005, rallying developing countries behind the claim that the weapons states were trying to impose double standards – keeping their weapons while denying nuclear technology to the have-not nations.
The strategy being pursued by Obama, with the support of Gordon Brown, is to make such significant strides towards disarmament that Iran can no longer credibly make that argument next May. "This is about isolating the Iranians, and denuding them of the arguments they made in 2005," a British official said.
Stopping Iran's enrichment of uranium – which Tehran insists is for civil power generation and which the west alleges is ultimately for building a bomb – is an even harder task. Many officials in western capitals privately fear nothing can prevent the increasingly autocratic regime in Tehran from developing an arsenal, or at least the capacity to put together weapons at short notice. If diplomacy has any chance of succeeding, they say, it will have to backed up by the credible threat of international sanctions.
That requires Russian backing, and one of the reasons Obama sacrificed US plans for missile defence in eastern Europe last week was to win that support. Whether he has succeeded may become clear in the next few days, as the focus shifts to the United Nations assembly in New York.
A second treaty at stake is the comprehensive test ban treaty. But Obama's hopes of winning long-awaited Senate support for a treaty first agreed internationally more than 13 years ago, have had to be put on hold, at least until Congress has debated his healthcare reforms, the budget, and at least two other pending treaties, on the law of the sea and the International Criminal Court.
US ratification of the test ban would be represent a significant step towards bringing it into force, but the White House says it will not bring the treaty to the floor of the Senate before it is sure of the 67 votes needed to ratify.
Interviews blitz
Facing a perfect storm of a week, as his big foreign policy challenges threaten to collide while his principal domestic healthcare problem remains unresolved, Barack Obama embarked on an unprecedented media blitz today, with five separate morning television interviews.
During a marathon session in the White House's Roosevelt Room, Obama recorded interviews with CNN, CBS, NBC, ABC and the Spanish-language network Univision. But he snubbed Rupert Murdoch's conservative-leaning Fox, which he accused earlier this year of being "entirely devoted to attacking my administration", prompting one Fox host to describe the administration as a bunch of "crybabies".
In the interviews, Obama reprised the same themes - healthcare, Afghanistan and the need for a strategic review, race, the economy and prospects for resumed growth, Kim Jong-il and his apparent revival. ("He's reasserted himself".) Obama hasn't finished re-asserting himself though. His attempt to seize back the initiative will culminate tomorrow night in an encounter with the late night chat show host David Letterman, his first appearance on the show as president.
AT&T Tilt 2 (Touch Pro 2) coming on Oct. 18th?
AT&T may be a few weeks behind Sprint, T-Mobile, and Verizon in launching the Touch Pro 2, but it seems they’re not holding off without good reason: Windows Mobile 6.5.
As is well known by now, October 6th is the big day for Windows Mobile 6.5 – the day in which the first 6.5 handsets (and ROM updates for older handsets, presumably) will hit the shelves. According to a report earlier this morning by BGR, AT&T was working to get their ducks in a row for a day one launch of their Touch Pro 2 (which they call the Tilt 2). A few hours later, however, they updated the story with new details: purportedly due to a last minute bug, the Tilt 2 release date had slipped back two weeks to October 18th.
Either way, it’s looking like AT&T customers can look forward to getting their Tilt on sometime before the end of October.
AT&T to launch the Tilt 2 on October 18th? [UPDATED]
Oh no, we’re not done just yet ladies and gents. We already know October 6th is going to be a glorious day and now it looks like AT&T subscribers will be able to join in on the fun. Have you been feeling left out, wondering when AT&T would finally launch the HTC Touch Pro2 that is already available from T-Mobile, Sprint and Verizon? Dry those eyes, as AT&T apparently had a good reason to hold off on the launch. According to our ninja, AT&T is preparing to launch the Pro2 — dubbed Tilt 2 by AT&T as we already know — on October 6th. Since the release will come after Windows Mobile 6.5 becomes a reality on the 6th, it’s a safe bet that the Tilt 2 will pack WinMo 6.5 right out of the box if all goes according to plan. Sure, it might have taken a while but AT&T fans can now take solace in knowing they’ll be rocking 6.5 while other Pro2 owners are busy trying to upgrade.
UPDATE: It looks like the target release date of the 6th will be missed due to a few bugs that still need to be ironed out and tested. The new target is apparently October 18th.
Sep 20, 2009
McChrystal: 'Failure' Without More U.S. Forces in Afghanistan
The top U.S. and NATO commander in Afghanistan, says in a confidential report that without additional forces, the war against insurgents will end in failure.
WASHINGTON -- Gen. Stanley McChrystal, the top U.S. and NATO commander in Afghanistan, said in a confidential report that without additional forces, the war against insurgents there will end in failure, The Washington Post reported Monday.
McChrystal's grim assessment of the war was published on the Post's Web site, with some portions withheld at the government's request.
"Although considerable effort and sacrifice have resulted in some progress, many indicators suggest the overall effort is deteriorating," McChrystal wrote in his summary.
The report was sent to Defense Secretary Robert Gates in August and is now under review by President Barack Obama, who is trying to decide whether to send more U.S. troops to Afghanistan.
While asking for more troops, McChrystal also pointed out "the urgent need for a significant change to our strategy." The U.S. needs to interact better with the Afghan people, McChrystal said, and better organize its efforts with NATO allies.
The Pentagon and the White House are awaiting a separate, more detailed request for additional troops and resources. Media reports Friday and Saturday said McChrystal has finished it but was told to pocket it, partly because of the charged politics surrounding the decision. McChrystal's senior spokesman, Rear Adm. Gregory Smith, told The Associated Press on Sunday that the report is not complete.
"The resource request is being finalized and will be sent forward to the chain of command at some point in the near future," Smith said from Afghanistan.
Obama denied asking McChrystal to sit on the request, but he gave no deadline for making a decision about whether to send more Americans into harm's way.
Obama said in a series of television interviews broadcast Sunday that he will not allow politics to govern his decision. He left little doubt he is re-evaluating whether more forces will do any good.
"The first question is, `Are we doing the right thing?"' Obama said. "Are we pursuing the right strategy?"
The war has taken on a highly partisan edge. Senate Republicans are demanding an influx of forces to turn around a war that soon will enter its ninth year, while members of Obama's own party are trying to put on the brakes.
"No, no, no, no," Obama responded when asked whether he or aides had directed McChrystal to temporarily withhold a request for additional U.S. forces and other resources.
"The only thing I've said to my folks is, 'A, I want an unvarnished assessment, but, B, I don't want to put the resource question before the strategy question,"' Obama said. "Because there is a natural inclination to say, 'If I get more, then I can do more."'
Adm. Mike Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told Congress last week he expected McChrystal's request for additional forces and other resources "in the very near future."
Other military officials had said the request would go to McChrystal's boss, Gen. David Petraeus, and up the chain of command in a matter of weeks. The White House discounted that timeline, but has remained vague about how long it would take to receive the report and act on it.
McChrystal found security worse than he expected when he took command this summer to lead what Obama described as a narrowed, intensive campaign to uproot Al Qaeda and prevent the terrorist group from again using Afghanistan as a safe haven.
In the interviews taped Friday at the White House, Obama said he's asking these questions of the military: "How does this advance America's national security interests? How does it make sure that al-Qaida and its extremist allies cannot attack the United States homeland, our allies, our troops who are based in Europe?"
"If supporting the Afghan national government and building capacity for their army and securing certain provinces advances that strategy, then we'll move forward," the president continued. "But if it doesn't, then I'm not interested in just being in Afghanistan for the sake of being in Afghanistan."
Obama has ordered 21,000 more troops to Afghanistan, increasing the number of U.S. forces there to a record 68,000, and watched as Marines pushed deep into Taliban-controlled districts ahead of Afghanistan's national elections in August.
The disappointing outcome of the voting -- no definitive winner weeks later and mounting allegations that the incumbent President Hamid Karzai rigged the election -- is coloring both Obama's view of the conflict and the partisan debate.
Sen. Carl Levin, the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, has told Obama he wants no new troops request at least until the United States makes a bolder effort to expand and train Afghanistan's own armed forces.
On Sunday, Levin addressed the give-and-take over McChrystal's report.
"I think what's going on here is that there is a number of questions which are being asked to Gen. McChrystal about some of the assumptions which have been previously made in the strategy, including that there would be an election which would be a stabilizing influence instead of a destabilizing influence," said Levin, D-Mich.
The Senate's Republican leader, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, said Obama should follow the military's advice. McConnell said Petraeus "did a great job with the surge in Iraq. I think he knows what he's doing. Gen. McChrystal is a part of that. We have a lot of confidence in those two generals. I think the president does as well."
Obama spoke on CNN's "State of the Union," ABC's "This Week," NBC's "Meet the Press," and CBS' "Face the Nation." Levin and McConnell were on CNN.
Is Microsoft Pushing the Zune HD Towards Yet Another Fail?
The Zune HD is the greatest Zune till date! The gorgeous screen, the HD radio, the works. It’s all there on the new Zune. So why do I think that Microsoft is pushing it towards failure? Because it is not giving buyers and users enough incentive to buy it, use it and recommend it to other people.
The Zune is a media player that is largely eclipsed by the iPod. Being in the same league as the Apple PMP is reason enough for it to need to some serious effort behind capturing market share. However, instead of doing that Microsoft is now concentrating on a sure-to-backfire model for content distributions and third-party action. So what is the third-party support on the Zune like right now? The answer is simple – there is no third-party support in the sense that Redmond has surrounded its Zune castle with a deep and wide moat. Microsoft has not opened up the Zune to potential developers. Instead they are making their own apps and giving them away for free to the public.
Let’s switch sides to Apple for a moment. For decades, computer business owners have wondered about the proper way of selling software for mobile platforms. Most of the attempts have failed. In fact, most of the attempts to sell software of any kind have met with very little success or utter failure. With that in mind, it is a wonderful eco-system that we get to see in the iTunes App Store. Finally, a model of selling software that really works for everybody involved. Easy purchase flow and quality content ensures that customers are happy, proper revenue means developers are happy and the all round success, profitability and growth of the system means Apple’s happy too.
So when we finally have a successful solution, what do we do? If we are Google, Palm, Nokia or similar – we try our best to adopt that model. So we have the Android Marketplace, Nokia Ovi Store and the Palm Pre App Catalogue. However, if we are Microsoft, we choose to close up our platform and hand pick developers for the Zune Marketplace. Some analysts are saying that Microsoft is actually doing a good thing by not trying to compete with the 75,000 apps that Apple has for the iPhone and the iPod Touch. But that is really not a good idea if you ask me.
Users like you and me want usability and options. Lots of options to choose from is a good thing in such cases. Instead we have Microsoft giving us only a few apps to play with on our new Zunes. The apps are well made, no doubt about that. But the annoyance kicks in before the app launches.
Microsoft has chosen another failure-bound model to support its app development – forced advertising. Before an app launches, it will show you a fullscreen ad (that cannot be skipped) that can delay your app launching by anything between 20-30 seconds. The ads actually play before the app is launched and not during.
If Internet history has proved anything, it is this – electronic media consumers DO NOT like forced ads. They don’t even like ads that are nonintrusive.
Apple has made it quite easy for itself though. Its phone and PMP both can use the same app store. The entry point is a free application that is used by almost each and every one of its customers. Microsoft will not be able to reach this kind of integration for obvious reasons. But it can at least give the Zune a little more functionality so that consumers have more reasons for wanting to buy it.
The Information: Google Bookworms
By Valentina Romei
Published: September 19 2009 00:22 | Last updated: September 19 2009 00:22
The Google Books Search tool allows users to search Google’s collection of online books; when the project is completed it could give access to 20m out-of-print titles in US libraries alone. Such mass digitalisation would radically change access to information, and the project continues despite several copyright-related lawsuits against Google around the world.
Use of Google Books, tracked by comScore, rose by 20 per cent from June 2008 to June 2009, reaching almost 28m monthly unique visitors worldwide. The largest number of visitors is from Europe, with about 8.6m connections to the site, followed by North America and Latin America.
The preponderance of American libraries participating in the project has contributed to Google Books’ popularity among Latin American internet users; American libraries stock mainly English- and Spanish-language books.
About 6 per cent of internet users in Latin America used Google Books last year; in the US it was 4 per cent. Countries with smaller internet populations concentrated among the more highly educated tend to appear near the top of the table. China, only 0.1 per cent of whose vast army of internet users visited the site, is bottom.
5 INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION AMENITIES
Introduction
Do you appreciate the finer things in life? Well, when visiting outer space, be sure to stay at the International Space Station (ISS). This 15-nation, multimodule space station is the orbital destination for any serious connoisseur of upscale accommodations. Forget five stars; you can see thousands of them from this establishment.
The ISS is far more than an excellent view and an unparalleled off-world research facility. During your stay, you'll enjoy a number of fascinating amenities, as well as the best entertainment options in the cosmos. Come with us now as we sample conditions aboard one of the most amazing places you could ever hope to tether yourself to for a good night's sleep.
Buzz Lightyear Goes to Infinity… And Back!
Buzz Lightyear, the favorite spaceman of children everywhere, has just returned from a long stay in space. He spent 468 days in orbit, spending time on board the International Space Station. A partnership between NASA and Disney Parks, Mr. Lightyear’s goal in spending such a long time in space was to inspire children across the planet to study science, technology and mathematics. It was all part of the Space Ranger Education Series that NASA put together.
Buzz was lauched into space on May 31, 2008 on board STS-124. He just returned on September 11, 2009 on STS-128. I’m sure he was a worthy companion to the ISS crew. While technically not a human, Buzz did break Russian cosmonaut Valeri Polyakov’s record for time in space on one voyage. Polyakov spent 437 days on board Mir in 1994-5.
At the Magic Kingdom at Disney World, both Buzz Lightyear and Edwin “Buzz” Aldrin, of Apollo 11/Walked on the Moon fame, will be honored in a parade on October 2, 2009 at 2:45pm.
A 12-inch doll, Buzz Lightyear didn’t take up too much room in the cabin, but I’m sure he enjoyed the ride. Here he is, floating around the cabin, and checking in on important mission tasks.
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