Passing through razor-wire cordons and police checkpoints, Iraqi voters Saturday took another step in the nation's quest for stability in provincial elections that were carried off without major violence but tarnished by claims of flaws and threats of challenges.
There were reports of isolated violence and unrest.
The voting began under a security net that appeared even more extensive than Iraq's last elections in 2005. Voters passed through several choke points and then individually searched — men in the open by police and women in tents by teams that included female teachers and civil workers.
The purple fingers a sign of their participating in the election.
Each region carried its own distinctive mood.
Even before a single ballot was counted, Iraqi officials were basking in the successes — watching millions of voters wave the purple-tinted fingers that have become symbols of the country's hopes for a workable democracy.
President Barack Obama hailed the elections as significant, peaceful and important steps toward Iraqis taking responsibility for their future.
But election observers and others were examining a growing list of complaints, including claims that hundreds of people — perhaps more — were wrongly omitted from voting lists in areas across Iraq.
But there was huge amount of confusion,said a Belgium-based election monitor who visited polling sites in the Mosul area in northern Iraq.
It was unclear whether the alleged problems were isolated or could cast doubts on the entire election. Results are not expected before Tuesday. But possible challenges were already leaking out.
But any political bitterness could further complicate another difficult task ahead for Iraq's leaders: getting hundreds of factions to accept the results as credible and then start hammering out alliances from among 14,000 candidates for the influential regional posts. Some are expecting there is a fraud and said some will try to fill those blank ballots, and will complain about the violation.
Zakiya Tahir, a 71-year-old woman who cannot read, pointed to a poster of a local candidate supported by al-Maliki. She have nothing to do with the politics, She just want to feel safe again.
The overall picture, however, was close to the goals set by Iraqi officials desperate to portray a sense of order and confidence nearly six years after the U.S.-led invasion.
A senior Sunni leader in the western Anbar province — where former anti-insurgent militias were seeking political gains — alleged that voters couldn't reach polling stations because of the traffic ban and others in Fallujah found the door shut.
In the southern Shiite city of Basra, voter Hadi Thegil stared angrily at election workers when he was told he wasn't on the registration list, which is compiled using information form Iraq's ration card system. He left muttering: "I feel robbed."
The U.N election observers described the elections in mostly positive, the rules were followed. They weren't aware of confusion in the station they visited.
A Shiite lawmaker also found the election process generally good, but noted the real test is yet to come: how the major political bloc perceive the outcome.
It will be a huge job sorting it all out. A total of 440 seats are at stake on the various provincial councils in the election — covering the whole country expect four northern areas.
The winners then will have to forge working coalitions from a potential patchwork: veteran political groups amid the many newcomer candidates. There also are still questions about how to ensure sufficient representation from the approximately 3,900 women candidates.
In some parts of Baghdad, checkpoints were spaced 30 yards apart and Iraqi security forces, including special forces in combat gear, conducted foot patrols.
U.S. soldiers were also out in force, but remained well away from polling centers. The U.S. military assisted in security preparations for the elections, but said troops had a back seat role in the election day operations.
In Tikrit, Saddam Hussein's hometown about 80 miles north of Baghdad, three mortar shells exploded near a polling station, but caused no casualties.
Hundreds of Iraqi Kurds stormed an election office in the disputed northern city of Khanaqin after claiming many of them were not on voting lists. There were no reports of serious injuries. The incident was part of lingering disputes between Kurds and the Arab-run central government over control of the city near the Iranian border.
In Kurdish autonomous region — which is scheduled to hold elections later — special polling sites were created for Iraqis who have sought refuge from violence in other parts of Iraq. A refugee here said who fled Baghdad two years ago.
In the western Anbar province, the Sunni tribes which rose up against al-Qaida and other insurgents — and led to a turning point of the war — are now seeking to transform their fame into council seats and significantly increase their role in wider Iraqi affairs. Turnout in Anbar was about 2 percent in provincial elections four years ago.
And in Iraq's Shiite south, loyalists to prime minister al-Maliki appeared to receive a boost from the offensives last year that broke the hold of Shiite militias in the key city of Basra and other places.
In nearby Mosul, considered one of the last urban strongholds of al-Qaida in Iraq and other insurgent groups, Sunni Arab parties urged for a high turnout to counter Kurdish ambitions to extend their influence over the city.
The Sunni decision to boycott the last provincial ballot in January 2005 handed control of Mosul and the surrounding province to the Kurds — even though they make up less than a third of the population.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Iraq shoe sculpture removed
In Baghda – The director of an Iraqi orphanage says a sculpture honoring an Iraqi journalist who threw his shoes at former President George W. Bush has been removed.
Fatin al-Nassiri says Iraqi police told her the statue had to be removed from the orphanage in Tikrit because government property should not be used for something with a political bias.
She says the sofa-sized statue of a shoe was taken down on Saturday after being unveiled on Thursday.
Iraqi journalist Muntadhar al-Zeidi threw his shoes during a Dec. 14 news conference in Baghdad. Throwing shoes at someone is a sign of extreme contempt in Arab culture.
Fatin al-Nassiri says Iraqi police told her the statue had to be removed from the orphanage in Tikrit because government property should not be used for something with a political bias.
She says the sofa-sized statue of a shoe was taken down on Saturday after being unveiled on Thursday.
Iraqi journalist Muntadhar al-Zeidi threw his shoes during a Dec. 14 news conference in Baghdad. Throwing shoes at someone is a sign of extreme contempt in Arab culture.
Octuplets mom obsessed with having kids
The woman who gave birth to octuplets this week conceived all 14 of her children through in vitro fertilization,has been obsessed with having children since she was a teenager,and she is not married, Angela Suleman said and a grandma of the 14 children. Angela Suleman is not supportive to Nadya Suleman who decided to have vitro fertilization.
The eight babies — six boys and two girls — were delivered by cesarean section weighing between 1 pound, 8 ounces and 3 pounds, 4 ounces. Forty-six physicians and staff assisted in the deliveries.
Nadya Suleman, 33, got all her 14 children with no husband, she give birth Monday in nearby Bellflower, and remain in a few days in hospital, and her newly born babies for maybe a month. The babies were progressing daily, with all eight breathing unassisted and being tube-fed.
While her daughter recovers, Angela Suleman is taking care of the other six children, ages 2 through 7, at the family home in Whittier, about 15 miles east of downtown Los Angeles.
Nadya Suleman always had trouble conceiving and underwent in vitro fertilization treatments because her fallopian tubes are "plugged up."
Angela Suleman, Nadya's mother, warned her daughter that when she gets home from the hospital, "I'm going to be gone."
There were frozen embryos left over after her previous pregnancies and her daughter didn't want them destroyed, so she decided to have more children.
Her mother and doctors have said the woman was told she had the option to abort some of the embryos and, later, the fetuses. She refused.
Nadya Suleman wanted to have children since she was a teenager, "but luckily she couldn't," her mother said.
"Instead of becoming a kindergarten teacher or something, she started having them, but not the normal way," he mother said.
Her daughter's obsession with children caused Angela Suleman considerable stress, so she sought help from a psychologist, who told her to order her daughter out of the house.
Angela Suleman said that her daughter is a grown woman the she maybe wouldn't have had many kids then. And that she is responsible and didn't want to throw her daughter out.
Little psychological research has been conducted on the reasons some mothers seem hooked on repeated pregnancies. David Diamond, a co-director for the Center for Reproductive Psychology in San Diego, said mothers can be drawn to repeat pregnancies for a number of reasons, with some finding the experience so satisfying they choose to become surrogates.
Diane G. Sanford, a psychologist and author specializing in women's reproductive mental health, said while she doesn't know much about Nadya Suleman's background, women that have obsessive-compulsive disorder can become fixated on different obsessions.
Yolanda Garcia, 49, of Whittier, said she helped care for Nadya Suleman's autistic son three years ago.
Nadya Suleman was pretty happy with herself as she like kids and she wanted 12 kids but became 14 kids in all. All her kids were through in vitro.
Garcia said she did not ask for details.
Nadya Suleman holds a 2006 degree in child and adolescent development from California State University, Fullerton, and as late as last spring she was studying for a master's degree in counseling.
Her fertility doctor has not been identified. According to Her mother all the children came from the same sperm donor.
Birth certificates of the four oldest children father identified as David Solomon. No other information available about the father of the other children.
The doctors implanted Nadya Suleman far fewer than eight embryos but they multiplied. Experts say this could be possible since Nadya's system has likely been hyperstimulated for years with fertilization treatment and drugs.
The news that the octuplets' mother already had six children sparked an ethical debate. Some medical experts were disturbed to hear that she was offered fertility treatment, and troubled by the possibility that she was implanted with so many embryos.
"You should always shoot for one," said Dr. Marcelle Cedars, a professor and director of reproductive health at the University of California, San Francisco, Medical Center, who worried about the increased risk of potential health complications for the babies.
Others worried that she would be overwhelmed trying to raise so many children and would end up relying on public support.
"This woman could not comprehend the ramifications of having eight children of the same age at the same time," said Judith Horowitz, a Parkland, Fla.-based psychologist and author who works with couples on fertility issues. "After Pampers stops delivering the free diapers, then what?"
The eight babies — six boys and two girls — were delivered by cesarean section weighing between 1 pound, 8 ounces and 3 pounds, 4 ounces. Forty-six physicians and staff assisted in the deliveries.
Nadya Suleman, 33, got all her 14 children with no husband, she give birth Monday in nearby Bellflower, and remain in a few days in hospital, and her newly born babies for maybe a month. The babies were progressing daily, with all eight breathing unassisted and being tube-fed.
While her daughter recovers, Angela Suleman is taking care of the other six children, ages 2 through 7, at the family home in Whittier, about 15 miles east of downtown Los Angeles.
Nadya Suleman always had trouble conceiving and underwent in vitro fertilization treatments because her fallopian tubes are "plugged up."
Angela Suleman, Nadya's mother, warned her daughter that when she gets home from the hospital, "I'm going to be gone."
There were frozen embryos left over after her previous pregnancies and her daughter didn't want them destroyed, so she decided to have more children.
Her mother and doctors have said the woman was told she had the option to abort some of the embryos and, later, the fetuses. She refused.
Nadya Suleman wanted to have children since she was a teenager, "but luckily she couldn't," her mother said.
"Instead of becoming a kindergarten teacher or something, she started having them, but not the normal way," he mother said.
Her daughter's obsession with children caused Angela Suleman considerable stress, so she sought help from a psychologist, who told her to order her daughter out of the house.
Angela Suleman said that her daughter is a grown woman the she maybe wouldn't have had many kids then. And that she is responsible and didn't want to throw her daughter out.
Little psychological research has been conducted on the reasons some mothers seem hooked on repeated pregnancies. David Diamond, a co-director for the Center for Reproductive Psychology in San Diego, said mothers can be drawn to repeat pregnancies for a number of reasons, with some finding the experience so satisfying they choose to become surrogates.
Diane G. Sanford, a psychologist and author specializing in women's reproductive mental health, said while she doesn't know much about Nadya Suleman's background, women that have obsessive-compulsive disorder can become fixated on different obsessions.
Yolanda Garcia, 49, of Whittier, said she helped care for Nadya Suleman's autistic son three years ago.
Nadya Suleman was pretty happy with herself as she like kids and she wanted 12 kids but became 14 kids in all. All her kids were through in vitro.
Garcia said she did not ask for details.
Nadya Suleman holds a 2006 degree in child and adolescent development from California State University, Fullerton, and as late as last spring she was studying for a master's degree in counseling.
Her fertility doctor has not been identified. According to Her mother all the children came from the same sperm donor.
Birth certificates of the four oldest children father identified as David Solomon. No other information available about the father of the other children.
The doctors implanted Nadya Suleman far fewer than eight embryos but they multiplied. Experts say this could be possible since Nadya's system has likely been hyperstimulated for years with fertilization treatment and drugs.
The news that the octuplets' mother already had six children sparked an ethical debate. Some medical experts were disturbed to hear that she was offered fertility treatment, and troubled by the possibility that she was implanted with so many embryos.
"You should always shoot for one," said Dr. Marcelle Cedars, a professor and director of reproductive health at the University of California, San Francisco, Medical Center, who worried about the increased risk of potential health complications for the babies.
Others worried that she would be overwhelmed trying to raise so many children and would end up relying on public support.
"This woman could not comprehend the ramifications of having eight children of the same age at the same time," said Judith Horowitz, a Parkland, Fla.-based psychologist and author who works with couples on fertility issues. "After Pampers stops delivering the free diapers, then what?"
Beijing’s Bird’s Nest shopping complex
The area around Beijing’s massive Bird’s Nest stadium will be turned into a shopping and entertainment complex in three to five years, a state news agency said.
Officially known as Beijing National Stadium, the showpiece of the Beijing Olympics has fallen into disuse since the end of the games. Paint is already peeling in some areas, and the only visitors these days are tourists who pay about $7 to walk on the stadium floor and browse a pricey souvenir shop.
Plans call for the $450 million stadium to anchor a complex of shops and entertainment outlets in three to five years, citing operator Citic Group.
The only confirmed event at the 91,000-seat stadium this year is Puccini’s opera “Turandot,” set for Aug. 8—the one-year anniversary of the Olympics’ opening ceremony. The stadium has no permanent tenant after Beijing’s top soccer club, Guo’an, backed out of a deal to play there.
A symbol of China’s rising power and confidence, the stadium, whose nickname described its lattice of exterior steel beams, may never recoup its hefty construction cost, particularly amid a global economic crisis. Maintenance of the structure alone costs about $8.8 million annually, making it difficult to turn a profit.
Now the ones very proud Architecture of a pride China became a profit problem, since it glorious opening during the 2008 Beijing Olympic, with a great fireworks that looks like fake display of fireworks because of its unique beauty, now look likes a white elephant, and the government looking for any hope to turn it into a profitable area , a shopping complex for tourists and locals and visitors coming from different corner of the globe.
Its started to fade, and forgotten after the olympic.
Officially known as Beijing National Stadium, the showpiece of the Beijing Olympics has fallen into disuse since the end of the games. Paint is already peeling in some areas, and the only visitors these days are tourists who pay about $7 to walk on the stadium floor and browse a pricey souvenir shop.
Plans call for the $450 million stadium to anchor a complex of shops and entertainment outlets in three to five years, citing operator Citic Group.
The only confirmed event at the 91,000-seat stadium this year is Puccini’s opera “Turandot,” set for Aug. 8—the one-year anniversary of the Olympics’ opening ceremony. The stadium has no permanent tenant after Beijing’s top soccer club, Guo’an, backed out of a deal to play there.
A symbol of China’s rising power and confidence, the stadium, whose nickname described its lattice of exterior steel beams, may never recoup its hefty construction cost, particularly amid a global economic crisis. Maintenance of the structure alone costs about $8.8 million annually, making it difficult to turn a profit.
Now the ones very proud Architecture of a pride China became a profit problem, since it glorious opening during the 2008 Beijing Olympic, with a great fireworks that looks like fake display of fireworks because of its unique beauty, now look likes a white elephant, and the government looking for any hope to turn it into a profitable area , a shopping complex for tourists and locals and visitors coming from different corner of the globe.
Its started to fade, and forgotten after the olympic.
Choco marble loaf
Ingredients:
2/1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
2/3 cup sugar
1 can ALASKA CONDENSADA 300ml
1/3 cup ALASKA EVAPORADA
2 eggs
2/3 cup melted butter
1/4 cup chocolate syrup
preparation:
Pre-heat oven to 250F. Line a loaf pan with wax paper or foil. In a bowl, sift all dry ingredients. Blend in ALASKA CONDENSADA, eggs, melted butter and ALASKA EVAPORADA. Pour into prepared pan and set aside about 1/4 cup of the mixture. Blend chocolate syrup in the remaining mixture and blend well. Pour over the pan and swirl chocolate mixture into the batter using knife. Bake for 45 minutes or until top is firm to touch and when toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the middle of the cake. SERVE...
2/1/2 cups flour
1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. baking powder
1/4 tsp. salt
2/3 cup sugar
1 can ALASKA CONDENSADA 300ml
1/3 cup ALASKA EVAPORADA
2 eggs
2/3 cup melted butter
1/4 cup chocolate syrup
preparation:
Pre-heat oven to 250F. Line a loaf pan with wax paper or foil. In a bowl, sift all dry ingredients. Blend in ALASKA CONDENSADA, eggs, melted butter and ALASKA EVAPORADA. Pour into prepared pan and set aside about 1/4 cup of the mixture. Blend chocolate syrup in the remaining mixture and blend well. Pour over the pan and swirl chocolate mixture into the batter using knife. Bake for 45 minutes or until top is firm to touch and when toothpick comes out clean when inserted in the middle of the cake. SERVE...
AV360 Windows fake Updater
I was traumatize yesterday when early dawn I wake up to start clicking my PTC sites, but at around nearly 5:00am maybe, I was alerted by an online scan that my computer was infected with virus especially trojan, and other computer deceases, and a AV360 which look like an windows security center logo appear and suggesting to download, me being worried about my laptop health download the said software but I can not complete the download unless I will purchase their product, but my malwarebytes' an anti-malware alerted that its a malware, a fake updater, WHHHAAATTT? I was shocked and the malware so aggressive always making a popup every now and then, the I click the terminate.
Also my AVAST and AVG, and AVIRA also reacted that its a VIRUS, so I started my AVAST scanning my laptop, and also my superantispyware, and the virus still looking for way to be downloaded, until I finish scanning using my superantispyware and need to restart to completely deleted the viruses, but I stay not to restart since my AVAST not yet finished the scan, and the virus popup again informing that I was infected with win32[DOT} Monster{ Dot] fx, but I don't believe becaus I know its already a virus and suddenly my laptop started to logoff... being worried I press hold the power button to force closed my laptop and stay for a while and open again my laptop, thanks the spyware was gone, and start again my AVAST scanning, and also my AVG, after that I scan using my AVIRA another anti-virus software and my malwarebytes' it was the whole day I scanning my laptop of possible viruses in it.. after I finished I started my Firefox.. My God! my AVG alerted again that Firefox.exe in my Program Files was also infected with an exploit webattacker its from maybe www dot mjwallhack dot C0M, so its a hacking attemp, I delete the said infection but to no success , so I use manual deletion and run my backup. And started scanning again... Its so traumatized me, that's the feeling of being a victim of hacking attemp. So guys be careful of downloading software from unknown publisher so it may compromise your computer system. Don't close the popup or any unknown windows uising your mouse and click the closed(X) of your windows, just click the Ctrl+W to closed a certain windows.. Be safe..
Also my AVAST and AVG, and AVIRA also reacted that its a VIRUS, so I started my AVAST scanning my laptop, and also my superantispyware, and the virus still looking for way to be downloaded, until I finish scanning using my superantispyware and need to restart to completely deleted the viruses, but I stay not to restart since my AVAST not yet finished the scan, and the virus popup again informing that I was infected with win32[DOT} Monster{ Dot] fx, but I don't believe becaus I know its already a virus and suddenly my laptop started to logoff... being worried I press hold the power button to force closed my laptop and stay for a while and open again my laptop, thanks the spyware was gone, and start again my AVAST scanning, and also my AVG, after that I scan using my AVIRA another anti-virus software and my malwarebytes' it was the whole day I scanning my laptop of possible viruses in it.. after I finished I started my Firefox.. My God! my AVG alerted again that Firefox.exe in my Program Files was also infected with an exploit webattacker its from maybe www dot mjwallhack dot C0M, so its a hacking attemp, I delete the said infection but to no success , so I use manual deletion and run my backup. And started scanning again... Its so traumatized me, that's the feeling of being a victim of hacking attemp. So guys be careful of downloading software from unknown publisher so it may compromise your computer system. Don't close the popup or any unknown windows uising your mouse and click the closed(X) of your windows, just click the Ctrl+W to closed a certain windows.. Be safe..
Top In-Demand Careers of 2009
Career Training for Office Jobs
What do hospitals, retail centers, executive offices, and manufacturing plants have in common? They all need someone to sit at the front desk. A nationwide demand for administrative assistants, customer service representatives, and receptionists means that you can put your office management training to work. Here are a few special skills in demand in 2009, according to a survey by Office Team:
* Technical aptitude: Including Microsoft Office as well as accounting, payroll, and human resources applications
* Multilingual ability: Communicating with culturally diverse consumer groups is the biggest drive behind bilingual and multilingual hiring
* Continuing education: Hiring managers like to see employees continue their education by securing Certified Professional Secretary (CPS), Microsoft Business Certification, and other training.
Education plays a real role in the workforce. During times of high unemployment and higher job competition, boosting your resume with a career training program can make a big difference.
Training for Legal Careers
Salaries are expected to increase across the board for legal workers in 2009, according to Robert Half Legal. With specialized training in the form of an associate's degree, you may land a job as a paralegal, legal secretary, legal receptionist, or office clerk. Check out some of the salaries that may be available to graduates with the two-year degree:
* Case Clerk (zero to two years' experience): $32,000-$41,000
* Junior Paralegal (two to three years' experience): $40,500-$49,200
* Legal Receptionist: $26,750-$38,000
* Office Clerk: $27,000-$37,250
Use a degree or certificate to obtain the specialized education you need to enter the legal field. According to Robert Half Legal, most law firms and legal departments expect paralegals to hold at least a two-year college degree.
In this changing economy, popular jobs may see more competition. Hiring managers may expect applicants to be able to start on the first day with a strong set of skills. Rise to the challenge with the help of an online degree or certificate.
What do hospitals, retail centers, executive offices, and manufacturing plants have in common? They all need someone to sit at the front desk. A nationwide demand for administrative assistants, customer service representatives, and receptionists means that you can put your office management training to work. Here are a few special skills in demand in 2009, according to a survey by Office Team:
* Technical aptitude: Including Microsoft Office as well as accounting, payroll, and human resources applications
* Multilingual ability: Communicating with culturally diverse consumer groups is the biggest drive behind bilingual and multilingual hiring
* Continuing education: Hiring managers like to see employees continue their education by securing Certified Professional Secretary (CPS), Microsoft Business Certification, and other training.
Education plays a real role in the workforce. During times of high unemployment and higher job competition, boosting your resume with a career training program can make a big difference.
Training for Legal Careers
Salaries are expected to increase across the board for legal workers in 2009, according to Robert Half Legal. With specialized training in the form of an associate's degree, you may land a job as a paralegal, legal secretary, legal receptionist, or office clerk. Check out some of the salaries that may be available to graduates with the two-year degree:
* Case Clerk (zero to two years' experience): $32,000-$41,000
* Junior Paralegal (two to three years' experience): $40,500-$49,200
* Legal Receptionist: $26,750-$38,000
* Office Clerk: $27,000-$37,250
Use a degree or certificate to obtain the specialized education you need to enter the legal field. According to Robert Half Legal, most law firms and legal departments expect paralegals to hold at least a two-year college degree.
In this changing economy, popular jobs may see more competition. Hiring managers may expect applicants to be able to start on the first day with a strong set of skills. Rise to the challenge with the help of an online degree or certificate.
Recession Proof Jobs
With all the recent worry over the economy, which jobs are still safe? Check out this set of careers slated to remain a great pick for anyone considering an education-even in this current difficult period for profits and growth.
According to some surveys, careers in business, IT, and law are among the fields expected to yield top careers in the coming year.
Technology Careers on the rise.
1. Network administration (LAN, WAN)
2. Windows administration
3. Desktop administration
4. Database management
They can each be learned in an associate's or bachelor's degree program online. Bachelor's degrees in computer science, information science, or management information systems (MIS) are generally considered ample training for administrators. Desktop support professionals in smaller companies may only hold a two-year associate's degree in the field.
Looking for job that challenges your creative side. Career training in artistic and creative careers can land you high starting salaries. Check out starting salary ranges for some of the top creatice jobs for 2009, according to the creative group.
Graphic designer
Desktop publisher
Motion graphics specialist
While no other career training pogram can guarantee a particular salary, the portfolio-building training you receive while working towards a degree in graphic design, desktop publishing, or animation can help prepare you to enter the field with confidence.
According to some surveys, careers in business, IT, and law are among the fields expected to yield top careers in the coming year.
Technology Careers on the rise.
1. Network administration (LAN, WAN)
2. Windows administration
3. Desktop administration
4. Database management
They can each be learned in an associate's or bachelor's degree program online. Bachelor's degrees in computer science, information science, or management information systems (MIS) are generally considered ample training for administrators. Desktop support professionals in smaller companies may only hold a two-year associate's degree in the field.
Looking for job that challenges your creative side. Career training in artistic and creative careers can land you high starting salaries. Check out starting salary ranges for some of the top creatice jobs for 2009, according to the creative group.
Graphic designer
Desktop publisher
Motion graphics specialist
While no other career training pogram can guarantee a particular salary, the portfolio-building training you receive while working towards a degree in graphic design, desktop publishing, or animation can help prepare you to enter the field with confidence.
Obama economic strategic
President Barack Obama said Saturday his administration will outline a new strategy in the coming days for spending billions of federal dollars to pull the nation out of an economic crisis he described as "devastating."
Obama and his top advisers are weighing how to structure the remaining $350 billion that Congress approved last year to save financial institutions and lenders from collapse. The new president also warned there is no single action that would allow his administration to fix the struggling U.S. economy, a stark statement at the end of a week that saw hundreds of thousands of Americans lose their jobs.
Obama and his aides spent his first two weeks in power working on the nation's economic troubles. The final three months of last year sent the economy into its worst downhill slide in a quarter-century. The economy stumbled backward at a 3.8 percent pace, government economists said Friday; that rate could accelerate to 5 percent or more this quarter.
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner met with the administration's top officials and advisers in recent days, trying to finish a plan to overhaul the $700 billion bailout program that is already half gone. Geithner previously said the administration is weighing the possibility of using a government-run "bad bank" to buy up toxic assets that are weighing on the books of financial institutions, but some officials now say that option is gone because of potential costs.
Many of the measures under consideration could end up costing taxpayers hundreds of billions of dollars beyond the original $700 billion price tag. Aides would not rule out the possibility of the administration's asking for more than the $350 billion already allocated.
Obama didn't commit his administration to any decision Saturday but broadly described his ideal final package.
Obama's message — largely repackaged from a week of White House statements — was as much for the country as it was for lawmakers: Pass the separate American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan or things are going to get worse.
Obama last week won passage of a separate $825 billion economic stimulus plan in the House — without a single Republican vote. It now heads to the Senate, where Vice President Joe Biden predicts the measure will fare better among GOP lawmakers.
Republicans pledged on Saturday to work with Obama, although leaders cautioned against treating government spending like a "trillion-dollar Christmas list" and renewed their opposition to much of the bill's spending.
Republicans said they hope the administration takes into account their wishes.
Obama and his top advisers are weighing how to structure the remaining $350 billion that Congress approved last year to save financial institutions and lenders from collapse. The new president also warned there is no single action that would allow his administration to fix the struggling U.S. economy, a stark statement at the end of a week that saw hundreds of thousands of Americans lose their jobs.
Obama and his aides spent his first two weeks in power working on the nation's economic troubles. The final three months of last year sent the economy into its worst downhill slide in a quarter-century. The economy stumbled backward at a 3.8 percent pace, government economists said Friday; that rate could accelerate to 5 percent or more this quarter.
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner met with the administration's top officials and advisers in recent days, trying to finish a plan to overhaul the $700 billion bailout program that is already half gone. Geithner previously said the administration is weighing the possibility of using a government-run "bad bank" to buy up toxic assets that are weighing on the books of financial institutions, but some officials now say that option is gone because of potential costs.
Many of the measures under consideration could end up costing taxpayers hundreds of billions of dollars beyond the original $700 billion price tag. Aides would not rule out the possibility of the administration's asking for more than the $350 billion already allocated.
Obama didn't commit his administration to any decision Saturday but broadly described his ideal final package.
Obama's message — largely repackaged from a week of White House statements — was as much for the country as it was for lawmakers: Pass the separate American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan or things are going to get worse.
Obama last week won passage of a separate $825 billion economic stimulus plan in the House — without a single Republican vote. It now heads to the Senate, where Vice President Joe Biden predicts the measure will fare better among GOP lawmakers.
Republicans pledged on Saturday to work with Obama, although leaders cautioned against treating government spending like a "trillion-dollar Christmas list" and renewed their opposition to much of the bill's spending.
Republicans said they hope the administration takes into account their wishes.
Monday, January 26, 2009
Obama stimulates big merchandise sales
A Barack Obama T-shirt sells for five dollars on K Street in Washington. An Obama bronze medallion costs 60 dollars through the official presidential inauguration committee outlet.
The US is a wash in Obama merchandise, ranging from refrigerator magnets to baseball caps to Obama-style coffee (half Hawaiian, half Kenyan) capitalizing on the image of the new president.
Obama coffee mugs, key chains, scarves and baseball caps are flying off the shelves. The Washington Post and The New York Times sell commemorative books and special editions of their inauguration issues.
People want a bit of history, they take the advantage of Obama's popularity,this is not only the first black president, it's the first president in a long time that makes sense to people.
Online retailer eBay had Obama's items for sale on Friday, including an Obama pin and an "Amazing Spiderman Barack Obama" comic. Amazon.com had several thousand, including Obama bobblehead dolls and action figures.
Some items come from the presidential inaugural committee, which operated a Washington store until Thursday and continues to sells through its website, using the proceeds to defray the costs of the inauguration events.
Sales of inauguration medallions are a tradition dating back a century but that the marketing of memorabilia has taken on a new dimension.
Yet virtually anyone can sell items with the presidential or inauguration seal or Obama's image, with many calling themselves sellers of "official" merchandise.
The store, which sells items ranging from barbecue sauce to framed Obama prints, will remain open indefinitely, Ellis said. Shoppers can also have their picture taken with a lifesize cardboard cutout of Obama behind a replica of the Resolute desk of the Oval Office.
Our new president is invigorating interest in government and the office of the presidency and politics.The interest in Obama may continue for some time.It's going to continue in the short term because he is even more in the limelight than he was three months ago.
The younger generation is used to wearing their brands on their shirts and their hats.Up to now their brands have been Apple and Facebook, so Obama is the first political brand of this generation.
The US is a wash in Obama merchandise, ranging from refrigerator magnets to baseball caps to Obama-style coffee (half Hawaiian, half Kenyan) capitalizing on the image of the new president.
Obama coffee mugs, key chains, scarves and baseball caps are flying off the shelves. The Washington Post and The New York Times sell commemorative books and special editions of their inauguration issues.
People want a bit of history, they take the advantage of Obama's popularity,this is not only the first black president, it's the first president in a long time that makes sense to people.
Online retailer eBay had Obama's items for sale on Friday, including an Obama pin and an "Amazing Spiderman Barack Obama" comic. Amazon.com had several thousand, including Obama bobblehead dolls and action figures.
Some items come from the presidential inaugural committee, which operated a Washington store until Thursday and continues to sells through its website, using the proceeds to defray the costs of the inauguration events.
Sales of inauguration medallions are a tradition dating back a century but that the marketing of memorabilia has taken on a new dimension.
Yet virtually anyone can sell items with the presidential or inauguration seal or Obama's image, with many calling themselves sellers of "official" merchandise.
The store, which sells items ranging from barbecue sauce to framed Obama prints, will remain open indefinitely, Ellis said. Shoppers can also have their picture taken with a lifesize cardboard cutout of Obama behind a replica of the Resolute desk of the Oval Office.
Our new president is invigorating interest in government and the office of the presidency and politics.The interest in Obama may continue for some time.It's going to continue in the short term because he is even more in the limelight than he was three months ago.
The younger generation is used to wearing their brands on their shirts and their hats.Up to now their brands have been Apple and Facebook, so Obama is the first political brand of this generation.
Indonesian Muslims banned from practicing yoga
Muslims in Indonesia are banned from practicing yoga that contains Hindu rituals like chanting, the country's top Islamic body said Monday, echoing concerns by some religious groups elsewhere about its effect on their faith.
Though not legally binding, most devout Muslims will likely adhere to the ruling because ignoring a fatwa, or religious decree, is considered a sin.
The decision in the world's most populous Muslim state follows similar edicts in Malaysia and Egypt as the ancient Indian exercise gained popularity worldwide in recent years.
Cleric Ma'ruf Amin said the Ulema Council issued its ruling over the weekend after investigators visited gyms and private yoga classes across the sprawling nation. Amir said those performing yoga purely for health or sport reasons will not be affected.
But yoga practitioners immediately criticized the decision.
Yoga solely to strengthen their bodies and minds. Little or no spiritual element to it.
Yoga — a blend of physical and mental exercises aimed at integrating mind, body and spirit — has become so popular in the United States that many public schools have started offering it as part of their physical education programs.
But there, too, yoga has come under fire, with some Christian fundamentalists arguing its Hindu roots conflict with their own teachings.
A few secular parents are also opposed, saying its spiritual elements could violate rules demanding separation of church and state.
Though there is no Jewish law against yoga, which is widely practiced in Israel, some movements that insinuate idol worship are frowned upon, but not banned, by rabbis. This is to avoid misunderstandings that followers are praying to entities other than God, the sun for instance.
Indonesia is a secular country of 235 million people, 90 percent of them Muslim. Most practice a moderate form of the faith, though an increasingly vocal extremist fringe has gained ground in recent years. They have in some cases succeeded in influencing government policy, because many leaders depend on the support of Islamic parties.
The Ulema Council decided to investigate the need for a yoga ban after religious authorities in neighboring Malaysia issued their own fatwa late last year.
Many people there protested, insisting they had been performing yoga for years without losing their faith. Eventually, even Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had to step in, assuring Malaysians they could continue with the exercises as long as they didn't chant.
The Ulema Council's annual meeting on fatwas over the weekend also debated whether to issue an edict banning smoking in Indonesia, one of the world's largest tobacco markets.
But cleric Amin Suma said Sunday those talks ended in a deadlock.
Though not legally binding, most devout Muslims will likely adhere to the ruling because ignoring a fatwa, or religious decree, is considered a sin.
The decision in the world's most populous Muslim state follows similar edicts in Malaysia and Egypt as the ancient Indian exercise gained popularity worldwide in recent years.
Cleric Ma'ruf Amin said the Ulema Council issued its ruling over the weekend after investigators visited gyms and private yoga classes across the sprawling nation. Amir said those performing yoga purely for health or sport reasons will not be affected.
But yoga practitioners immediately criticized the decision.
Yoga solely to strengthen their bodies and minds. Little or no spiritual element to it.
Yoga — a blend of physical and mental exercises aimed at integrating mind, body and spirit — has become so popular in the United States that many public schools have started offering it as part of their physical education programs.
But there, too, yoga has come under fire, with some Christian fundamentalists arguing its Hindu roots conflict with their own teachings.
A few secular parents are also opposed, saying its spiritual elements could violate rules demanding separation of church and state.
Though there is no Jewish law against yoga, which is widely practiced in Israel, some movements that insinuate idol worship are frowned upon, but not banned, by rabbis. This is to avoid misunderstandings that followers are praying to entities other than God, the sun for instance.
Indonesia is a secular country of 235 million people, 90 percent of them Muslim. Most practice a moderate form of the faith, though an increasingly vocal extremist fringe has gained ground in recent years. They have in some cases succeeded in influencing government policy, because many leaders depend on the support of Islamic parties.
The Ulema Council decided to investigate the need for a yoga ban after religious authorities in neighboring Malaysia issued their own fatwa late last year.
Many people there protested, insisting they had been performing yoga for years without losing their faith. Eventually, even Prime Minister Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had to step in, assuring Malaysians they could continue with the exercises as long as they didn't chant.
The Ulema Council's annual meeting on fatwas over the weekend also debated whether to issue an edict banning smoking in Indonesia, one of the world's largest tobacco markets.
But cleric Amin Suma said Sunday those talks ended in a deadlock.
Job-killing recession more layoff
The recession is killing jobs at an alarming pace, with tens of thousands of new layoffs announced by some of the biggest names in American business — Pfizer, Caterpillar and Home Depot.
More pink slips, pay freezes and other hits are expected to slam workers in the months ahead as companies desperately look for ways to survive.
There's certainly other firms beneath them that will lay off workers as quickly or even quicker.
Looking ahead, economists predicted a net loss of at least 2 million jobs — possibly more — this year even if President Barack Obama's $825 billion package of increased government spending and tax cuts is enacted. Last year, the economy lost a net 2.6 million jobs, the most since 1945, though the labor force has grown significantly since then.
The unemployment rate, now at a 16-year high of 7.2 percent, could hit 10 percent or higher later this year or early next year, under some analysts' projections.
Obama called on Congress Monday to speedily enact his recovery plan, warning that the nation can't afford "distractions" or "delays."
With the recession expected to drag on through much of this year, more damage will be inflicted on both companies and workers.
The mounting toll was visible Monday as roughly 40,000 more U.S. workers got the grim news.
Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc., which is buying rival drugmaker Wyeth in a $68 billion deal, and Sprint Nextel Corp., the country's third-largest wireless provider, said they each will slash 8,000 jobs
Home Depot Inc., the biggest home improvement retailer in the U.S., will get rid of 7,000 jobs, and General Motors Corp. said it will cut 2,000 jobs at plants in Michigan and Ohio because of slow sales.
This year could be as bad as last year in terms of layoffs.
In response to deteriorating business conditions, Caterpillar Inc., the world's largest maker of mining and construction equipment, disclosed nearly 20,000 job cuts, most of which already have been made. They include 5,000 new layoffs of white collar workers, which will occur globally by the end of March.
Earlier actions included the elimination of 2,500 Caterpillar workers through a buyout offer announced in December, the termination of about 8,000 contract and temp agency workers, and the reduction of 4,000 full-time factory workers through firings and buyouts.
Texas Instruments Inc., which makes chips for cell phones and other gadgets, will cut 3,400 jobs due to slumping demand. The Dallas-based company said Monday it will slash 12 percent of its work force — 1,800 jobs through layoffs and another 1,600 through voluntary retirements and departures. And Brooks Automation Inc. said it plans to get rid of 350 jobs, or 20 percent of its work force. It will be the second round of cuts for Brooks, which makes software and equipment for chip manufacturers.
Oilfield services provider Halliburton Co. said it will eliminate jobs in markets particularly hard hit by the recession, though it didn't provide details. Its larger rival Schlumberger Ltd. said last week it will cut up to 5,000 jobs worldwide in the first half of 2009 and consider further reductions this spring.
The flurry of layoffs comes on the heels of similar action by big-name companies just last week.
Microsoft Corp. said it will slash up to 5,000 jobs over the next 18 months. Intel Corp. said it will cut up to 6,000 manufacturing jobs. And United Airlines parent UAL Corp. said it would get rid of 1,000 jobs, on top of 1,500 axed late last year.
And there's no end in sight. In a survey by the National Association for Business Economics, 39 percent of forecasters predicted job reductions through attrition or "significant" layoffs over the next six months, up from 32 percent in the previous survey in October. Around 45 percent in the current survey anticipated no change in hiring plans. About 17 percent thought hiring would increase.
A new report by the placement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas found that companies are often turning to a creative combination of measures to cut costs — beyond layoffs. Those measures include pay freezes or reductions, forced vacations, travel cutbacks and the elimination of year-end bonuses.
Not all the economic news was as grim Monday. Sales of previously owned homes and a separate barometer of economic activity each logged unexpected gains in December. But economists didn't view them as signs of improvement.
Economists said the uptick in home sales was due to sinking prices spurring buyers. In the other report, a government-influenced balloon in the nation's money supply largely affected the outcome.
Wall Street closed moderately higher. The Dow Jones industrials rose 38.47,or 0.48 percent, to 8,116.03, after briefly moving into negative territory.
The National Association of Realtors said sales of existing homes rose 6.5 percent to an annual rate of 4.74 million last month. Buyers took advantage of dramatically lower prices, especially in distressed states like California, Florida and Nevada, where foreclosures are soaring.
The nationwide median sales price sank to $175,400, down 15.3 percent from a year ago. That marked the biggest annual drop on records going back to 1968. The median is the middle point, where half the homes sell for more and half for less.
For all of last year, existing-home sales totaled 4.9 million, down more than 13 percent from the previous year, and the lowest since 1997.
Meanwhile, the Conference Board's monthly forecast of economic activity rose 0.3 percent in December. But that pickup was influenced mainly by federal efforts to ease the credit crisis, which caused the supply of money to expand. If the jump in the money supply were excluded, the board's index would have dropped sharply, economists said.
The national economy, meanwhile, is continuing to backslide.
Many analysts predict the economy will have contracted at a pace of 5.4 percent in the fourth quarter when the government releases that report Friday. If they are correct, that would mark the worst performance since a 6.4 percent drop in the first quarter of 1982. The economy is still contracting now — at a pace of around 4 percent, according to some projections.
More pink slips, pay freezes and other hits are expected to slam workers in the months ahead as companies desperately look for ways to survive.
There's certainly other firms beneath them that will lay off workers as quickly or even quicker.
Looking ahead, economists predicted a net loss of at least 2 million jobs — possibly more — this year even if President Barack Obama's $825 billion package of increased government spending and tax cuts is enacted. Last year, the economy lost a net 2.6 million jobs, the most since 1945, though the labor force has grown significantly since then.
The unemployment rate, now at a 16-year high of 7.2 percent, could hit 10 percent or higher later this year or early next year, under some analysts' projections.
Obama called on Congress Monday to speedily enact his recovery plan, warning that the nation can't afford "distractions" or "delays."
With the recession expected to drag on through much of this year, more damage will be inflicted on both companies and workers.
The mounting toll was visible Monday as roughly 40,000 more U.S. workers got the grim news.
Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc., which is buying rival drugmaker Wyeth in a $68 billion deal, and Sprint Nextel Corp., the country's third-largest wireless provider, said they each will slash 8,000 jobs
Home Depot Inc., the biggest home improvement retailer in the U.S., will get rid of 7,000 jobs, and General Motors Corp. said it will cut 2,000 jobs at plants in Michigan and Ohio because of slow sales.
This year could be as bad as last year in terms of layoffs.
In response to deteriorating business conditions, Caterpillar Inc., the world's largest maker of mining and construction equipment, disclosed nearly 20,000 job cuts, most of which already have been made. They include 5,000 new layoffs of white collar workers, which will occur globally by the end of March.
Earlier actions included the elimination of 2,500 Caterpillar workers through a buyout offer announced in December, the termination of about 8,000 contract and temp agency workers, and the reduction of 4,000 full-time factory workers through firings and buyouts.
Texas Instruments Inc., which makes chips for cell phones and other gadgets, will cut 3,400 jobs due to slumping demand. The Dallas-based company said Monday it will slash 12 percent of its work force — 1,800 jobs through layoffs and another 1,600 through voluntary retirements and departures. And Brooks Automation Inc. said it plans to get rid of 350 jobs, or 20 percent of its work force. It will be the second round of cuts for Brooks, which makes software and equipment for chip manufacturers.
Oilfield services provider Halliburton Co. said it will eliminate jobs in markets particularly hard hit by the recession, though it didn't provide details. Its larger rival Schlumberger Ltd. said last week it will cut up to 5,000 jobs worldwide in the first half of 2009 and consider further reductions this spring.
The flurry of layoffs comes on the heels of similar action by big-name companies just last week.
Microsoft Corp. said it will slash up to 5,000 jobs over the next 18 months. Intel Corp. said it will cut up to 6,000 manufacturing jobs. And United Airlines parent UAL Corp. said it would get rid of 1,000 jobs, on top of 1,500 axed late last year.
And there's no end in sight. In a survey by the National Association for Business Economics, 39 percent of forecasters predicted job reductions through attrition or "significant" layoffs over the next six months, up from 32 percent in the previous survey in October. Around 45 percent in the current survey anticipated no change in hiring plans. About 17 percent thought hiring would increase.
A new report by the placement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas found that companies are often turning to a creative combination of measures to cut costs — beyond layoffs. Those measures include pay freezes or reductions, forced vacations, travel cutbacks and the elimination of year-end bonuses.
Not all the economic news was as grim Monday. Sales of previously owned homes and a separate barometer of economic activity each logged unexpected gains in December. But economists didn't view them as signs of improvement.
Economists said the uptick in home sales was due to sinking prices spurring buyers. In the other report, a government-influenced balloon in the nation's money supply largely affected the outcome.
Wall Street closed moderately higher. The Dow Jones industrials rose 38.47,or 0.48 percent, to 8,116.03, after briefly moving into negative territory.
The National Association of Realtors said sales of existing homes rose 6.5 percent to an annual rate of 4.74 million last month. Buyers took advantage of dramatically lower prices, especially in distressed states like California, Florida and Nevada, where foreclosures are soaring.
The nationwide median sales price sank to $175,400, down 15.3 percent from a year ago. That marked the biggest annual drop on records going back to 1968. The median is the middle point, where half the homes sell for more and half for less.
For all of last year, existing-home sales totaled 4.9 million, down more than 13 percent from the previous year, and the lowest since 1997.
Meanwhile, the Conference Board's monthly forecast of economic activity rose 0.3 percent in December. But that pickup was influenced mainly by federal efforts to ease the credit crisis, which caused the supply of money to expand. If the jump in the money supply were excluded, the board's index would have dropped sharply, economists said.
The national economy, meanwhile, is continuing to backslide.
Many analysts predict the economy will have contracted at a pace of 5.4 percent in the fourth quarter when the government releases that report Friday. If they are correct, that would mark the worst performance since a 6.4 percent drop in the first quarter of 1982. The economy is still contracting now — at a pace of around 4 percent, according to some projections.
Bermuda Triangle
The Bermuda Triangle (aka Devil triangle) is a triangular area bounded Atlantic ends of the Miami, Bermuda and Puerto Rico. Legend says that many people, boats and planes and any other solid object have mysteriously disappeared in the area. The disappearance, however, depends on who is counting and location. Triangle size varies between 500 to 1000 square miles to three times more depending on the author's imagination. (Some include the Azores, Gulf of Mexico and West Indies in the triangle.) After some time should mystery from the time of Columbus. Even so, the estimates vary between 200 and 1 000 incidents in the past 500 years.
Many theories have been trying to explain the extraordinary mystery of the disappearance of ships and planes. Evil aliens, crystal waste Atlantis, people with bad devices or other technologies antigravitaţionale strange, vortexuri to a fourth dimension assumptions are favorites of prose writers of the fantastic. Strange magnetic fields and oceanic flatulenţele (methane gas from the bottom of the ocean) are preferred explanations minds more technical. Weather conditions (thunderstorms, hurricanes, tzunami, earthquakes, high waves, currents, etc..) Unhappiness, pirates, explosive cargoes, incompetent navigators and other human and natural causes are the explanations given by investigators in May skeptical.
Many ships and planes that have been identified as being in the Bermuda Triangle were not there at all. Investigations have not yet presented scientific evidence of the existence of an unusual phenomenon involved in the disappearances. Therefore any explanation, including scientific ones such as those based on the release of methane gas in the bottom of the ocean, magnetic anomalies, etc.. The real mystery is how the Bermuda Triangle became a mystery.
In short, the mystery of the Bermuda Triangle became a mystery on a mass media which transmitted without investigating speculation that something mysterious is going on in the Atlantic Ocean.
Many theories have been trying to explain the extraordinary mystery of the disappearance of ships and planes. Evil aliens, crystal waste Atlantis, people with bad devices or other technologies antigravitaţionale strange, vortexuri to a fourth dimension assumptions are favorites of prose writers of the fantastic. Strange magnetic fields and oceanic flatulenţele (methane gas from the bottom of the ocean) are preferred explanations minds more technical. Weather conditions (thunderstorms, hurricanes, tzunami, earthquakes, high waves, currents, etc..) Unhappiness, pirates, explosive cargoes, incompetent navigators and other human and natural causes are the explanations given by investigators in May skeptical.
Many ships and planes that have been identified as being in the Bermuda Triangle were not there at all. Investigations have not yet presented scientific evidence of the existence of an unusual phenomenon involved in the disappearances. Therefore any explanation, including scientific ones such as those based on the release of methane gas in the bottom of the ocean, magnetic anomalies, etc.. The real mystery is how the Bermuda Triangle became a mystery.
In short, the mystery of the Bermuda Triangle became a mystery on a mass media which transmitted without investigating speculation that something mysterious is going on in the Atlantic Ocean.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Sout Korean killed at Subic Shipbuilding
A South Korean expat Choi Dong Baek working here was killed Sunday when a forklift operated by Menti Dacanay ran over him at an assembly facility of the Hanjin Heavy Industries Corporation-Philippines.
Police reports Choi Dong Baek, a 51-year-old supervisor at the sprawling shipbuilding complex located at the Redondo Peninsula in Subic Bay. He was run over by a forklift operated by Menti Dacanay, a Filipino worker, at around 12:45 a.m. at the vicinity of assembly shop C where metal works are done.
Baek was rushed to the San Marcelino Hospital where he expired at about 1:30 a.m. Authorities are still investigating the cause of the accident.
Baek was the first South Korean killed this year and is the first expat to be fatally involved in a work-related accident. His death raised the total number of work-related deaths to 19 since Hanjin's construction and shipbuilding operations began in 2006.
A 19-year-old Filipino worker, Raldon del Rosario, died when a metal base of newly installed canvass door fell on him last Friday. He died of massive head injuries, also injured Camalao Bochie, 24, who suffered leg injuries.
Police reports Choi Dong Baek, a 51-year-old supervisor at the sprawling shipbuilding complex located at the Redondo Peninsula in Subic Bay. He was run over by a forklift operated by Menti Dacanay, a Filipino worker, at around 12:45 a.m. at the vicinity of assembly shop C where metal works are done.
Baek was rushed to the San Marcelino Hospital where he expired at about 1:30 a.m. Authorities are still investigating the cause of the accident.
Baek was the first South Korean killed this year and is the first expat to be fatally involved in a work-related accident. His death raised the total number of work-related deaths to 19 since Hanjin's construction and shipbuilding operations began in 2006.
A 19-year-old Filipino worker, Raldon del Rosario, died when a metal base of newly installed canvass door fell on him last Friday. He died of massive head injuries, also injured Camalao Bochie, 24, who suffered leg injuries.
President Obama avoid devisive stand
Obama was sworn in Tuesday with huge support — 68 percent in a Gallup poll released Saturday — and incredible optimism from the public; Bush left Washington with record-low job approval ratings.
A picture of poise, Obama didn't get rattled when Chief Justice John Roberts flubbed the oath of office, an exercise repeated a day later to ensure constitutionality. He breezed through his speech — which repudiated Bush's tenure though never personally attacked him — without a misstep. Even with the weight of the country's troubles now on his shoulders, he was relaxed as he twirled his wife, Michelle, at celebratory balls.
President Barack Obama opened his presidency by breaking sharply from the former President George W. Bush administration, but he mostly avoided divisive partisan and ideological stands. He focused instead on fixing the economy, repairing a battered world image and cleaning up government. Obama overturned a slew of Bush policies with great fanfare. He largely avoided cultural issues; the exception was reversing one abortion-related policy, a predictable move done in a very low-profile way. Obama was making good on his promise to bring change. Yet domestic and international challenges continue to pile up, and it's doubtful that life will be dramatically different for much of the ailing country anytime soon. His biggest agenda items — stabilizing the economy and ending the Iraq war — are complex tasks with results not expected soon. Even as Obama made broad pronouncements and signed a stream of executive orders to usher in a new governing era, his actions leave unanswered or unresolved questions, including how he will close the Guantanamo Bay prison camp for suspected terrorists.
He decreed that interrogators must follow techniques outlined in the Army Field Manual when questioning terrorism suspects, even as he ordered a review that could allow CIA interrogators to use other methods for high-value targets. Also, while a new White House rule limits staffers' previous lobbying activities, exceptions were made for at least two senior administration officials.
Certainly, some Republicans are griping about Obama's economic stimulus plan and closing Guantanamo. But their protests are somewhat muted, perhaps because little of what Obama has done thus far is a surprise. He had prepared the country and Congress for such steps during the campaign and transition. He also has emphasized a pragmatic, bipartisan approach, and enjoys broad public support.
Most of what he tackled came in areas where there is agreement across the political spectrum for a new direction, although the country is divided over shuttering Guantanamo. Obama long has emphasized solutions over partisanship, and he doesn't seem eager to address issues — at least for now — that create great ideological divides.
So far, Obama's only real brush with issues that stoke partisan passions came when he revoked a ban on federal funding for international groups that provide or promote abortions. He did that quietly by issuing a memorandum late Friday afternoon. The move was expected; the issue has vacillated between Republican and Democratic presidents.
Maybe not. But he has yet to face a crisis head-on as the country's leader, and it's only then that his confidence truly will be tested.
Still, Obama clearly has made the transition to governing.
In a mix of symbolism and substance, Obama used a host of executive tools to put his stamp on the country without having to go through Congress, making statements from the bully pulpit and signing White House directives.
He pledged to take bold steps to reverse the recession while meeting with his economic team, and told top military officials to do whatever planning necessary to execute a responsible military drawdown from Iraq. He issued new ethics rules for his administration and pledged to preside over a transparent government.
He ordered the Guantanamo detention center shut within a year, required the closure of any remaining secret CIA "black site" prisons abroad and barred CIA interrogators form using harsh techniques already banned for military questioners. He also assigned veteran troubleshooters to the Middle East, and Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Throughout it all, Obama demonstrated noticeable stylistic differences with his predecessor.
The high-tech Obama chose to keep his cherished BlackBerry, becoming the first sitting president to use e-mail. He made an impromptu visit to the White House's cramped media quarters just "to say hello." He also was spotted at one point ducking into the White House press office to consult with an aide. Bush avoided both areas at all costs. That sort of deferral to someone else in a public setting and admission of a less-than-perfect command of the facts was never Bush's style.
A picture of poise, Obama didn't get rattled when Chief Justice John Roberts flubbed the oath of office, an exercise repeated a day later to ensure constitutionality. He breezed through his speech — which repudiated Bush's tenure though never personally attacked him — without a misstep. Even with the weight of the country's troubles now on his shoulders, he was relaxed as he twirled his wife, Michelle, at celebratory balls.
President Barack Obama opened his presidency by breaking sharply from the former President George W. Bush administration, but he mostly avoided divisive partisan and ideological stands. He focused instead on fixing the economy, repairing a battered world image and cleaning up government. Obama overturned a slew of Bush policies with great fanfare. He largely avoided cultural issues; the exception was reversing one abortion-related policy, a predictable move done in a very low-profile way. Obama was making good on his promise to bring change. Yet domestic and international challenges continue to pile up, and it's doubtful that life will be dramatically different for much of the ailing country anytime soon. His biggest agenda items — stabilizing the economy and ending the Iraq war — are complex tasks with results not expected soon. Even as Obama made broad pronouncements and signed a stream of executive orders to usher in a new governing era, his actions leave unanswered or unresolved questions, including how he will close the Guantanamo Bay prison camp for suspected terrorists.
He decreed that interrogators must follow techniques outlined in the Army Field Manual when questioning terrorism suspects, even as he ordered a review that could allow CIA interrogators to use other methods for high-value targets. Also, while a new White House rule limits staffers' previous lobbying activities, exceptions were made for at least two senior administration officials.
Certainly, some Republicans are griping about Obama's economic stimulus plan and closing Guantanamo. But their protests are somewhat muted, perhaps because little of what Obama has done thus far is a surprise. He had prepared the country and Congress for such steps during the campaign and transition. He also has emphasized a pragmatic, bipartisan approach, and enjoys broad public support.
Most of what he tackled came in areas where there is agreement across the political spectrum for a new direction, although the country is divided over shuttering Guantanamo. Obama long has emphasized solutions over partisanship, and he doesn't seem eager to address issues — at least for now — that create great ideological divides.
So far, Obama's only real brush with issues that stoke partisan passions came when he revoked a ban on federal funding for international groups that provide or promote abortions. He did that quietly by issuing a memorandum late Friday afternoon. The move was expected; the issue has vacillated between Republican and Democratic presidents.
Maybe not. But he has yet to face a crisis head-on as the country's leader, and it's only then that his confidence truly will be tested.
Still, Obama clearly has made the transition to governing.
In a mix of symbolism and substance, Obama used a host of executive tools to put his stamp on the country without having to go through Congress, making statements from the bully pulpit and signing White House directives.
He pledged to take bold steps to reverse the recession while meeting with his economic team, and told top military officials to do whatever planning necessary to execute a responsible military drawdown from Iraq. He issued new ethics rules for his administration and pledged to preside over a transparent government.
He ordered the Guantanamo detention center shut within a year, required the closure of any remaining secret CIA "black site" prisons abroad and barred CIA interrogators form using harsh techniques already banned for military questioners. He also assigned veteran troubleshooters to the Middle East, and Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Throughout it all, Obama demonstrated noticeable stylistic differences with his predecessor.
The high-tech Obama chose to keep his cherished BlackBerry, becoming the first sitting president to use e-mail. He made an impromptu visit to the White House's cramped media quarters just "to say hello." He also was spotted at one point ducking into the White House press office to consult with an aide. Bush avoided both areas at all costs. That sort of deferral to someone else in a public setting and admission of a less-than-perfect command of the facts was never Bush's style.
Kung Hei Fat Choi
Chinese New Year or Spring Festival is one of the most important day of Chinese holidays. It is calle the Lunar Ney Year, especially by people outside China. The tradition begins on the first day of the lunar month (Chinese正月; pinyin: zhēng yuè) in the Chinese calendar and ends on the 15th; this day is called Lantern Festival. Chinese New year's eve is known as Chúxī means Year-pass Eve.
The Celebration is considered a major holiday among the Chinese and has influence on the new year celebrations of its geographic neighbors. It is the most important oe the traditional Chinese holidays. It is the time of the largest human migration, when migrant workers in China, as well as overseas Chinese around the world travel home to have reunion dinners with their families on New Year's eve. The aboriginal Taiwanese people, Koreans, Mongolians, Nepalese, Bhutanese, Vietnamese, and formerly Japanese before 1873. In Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and other countries with significant Han Chinese populations.
Although the Chinese calendar traditionally does not use continuously numbered years, its years are often numbered from the reign of Huangdi outside China. But at least three different years numbered 1 are now used by various scholars, making the year 2008 "Chinese Year 4706, 4705, or 4645.
The 2009 date for Chinese New Year is January 26.
In the Gregorian calendar, Chinese New Year falls on different dates each year, a date between January 21 and February 20. This means that the holiday usually falls on the second (very rare third) new moon after the winter soltice. In traditional Chinese Culture, lichun is a solar term marking the start of spring, which occurs about February 4.
Today, our Chinese brothers and Sisters around the world is welcoming the year of the Earth Ox, which symbolizes strength gathers through unity, harmony, obedience, courage and hard slog.
Each Year is named for one of the twelve animals in turn: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig.
Alongside the 12-year cycle of the animal zodiac there is a ten-year cycle of heavenly stems. Eachof the ten heavenly stems is associated with one of the five elements of the Chinese astrology, namely: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water. The elements are rotated every two years while a yin and yang association alternates every year. The elements are thus distinguished: Yang Wood, Yin Wood, Yang Fire, Yin Fire, etc. These produce a combined cycle that repeats every 60 years. For example, the year of the Yang Fire Rat occured in 1936 and in 1996, 60 years apart.
It is a time when families visit the oldest and most senior members of their extended family, usually their parents, grand parents, or greatgrandparents. Members of the family who are married give red packets (ang pao) containing cash to junior members of the family, mostly children and teenagers. Red is the favorite color for Chinese New Year clothing and decorations, as it is said to bring good luck. Since it symbolizes fire, it is believed to ward away evil.
The houses doors are decorated with gold and red scroll that are inscribed with wishes with good charms, and windows are opened at midnight to out the evil of the past year and let in the luck and prosperity of the new year. The most colorful of the celebration is the dragon and lion dance. An enormous dragon and lion dance head, with a long body of colotful fabric, performs and energetic dance manipulated by skilled operators.
The food are serve during the Chinese New Year are mostly symbolic since Chinese believe food can directly affect one's fortune in the coming year. Dining tables are filled with food to ensure prosperity and abundance in the new year. Dishes or ingredients are chosen that will bring good luck, and long life, and hapinnes. It also signifies the end of winter and is a celebration to welcome spring in the company of family and friends, with Chinese music and dance, lanterns and feasts, and the thundering beat of drums, and fireworks ro dispel the bad and bring in good luck.
The Celebration is considered a major holiday among the Chinese and has influence on the new year celebrations of its geographic neighbors. It is the most important oe the traditional Chinese holidays. It is the time of the largest human migration, when migrant workers in China, as well as overseas Chinese around the world travel home to have reunion dinners with their families on New Year's eve. The aboriginal Taiwanese people, Koreans, Mongolians, Nepalese, Bhutanese, Vietnamese, and formerly Japanese before 1873. In Mainland China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Singapore, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and other countries with significant Han Chinese populations.
Although the Chinese calendar traditionally does not use continuously numbered years, its years are often numbered from the reign of Huangdi outside China. But at least three different years numbered 1 are now used by various scholars, making the year 2008 "Chinese Year 4706, 4705, or 4645.
The 2009 date for Chinese New Year is January 26.
In the Gregorian calendar, Chinese New Year falls on different dates each year, a date between January 21 and February 20. This means that the holiday usually falls on the second (very rare third) new moon after the winter soltice. In traditional Chinese Culture, lichun is a solar term marking the start of spring, which occurs about February 4.
Today, our Chinese brothers and Sisters around the world is welcoming the year of the Earth Ox, which symbolizes strength gathers through unity, harmony, obedience, courage and hard slog.
Each Year is named for one of the twelve animals in turn: Rat, Ox, Tiger, Rabbit, Dragon, Snake, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog, and Pig.
Alongside the 12-year cycle of the animal zodiac there is a ten-year cycle of heavenly stems. Eachof the ten heavenly stems is associated with one of the five elements of the Chinese astrology, namely: Wood, Fire, Earth, Metal, and Water. The elements are rotated every two years while a yin and yang association alternates every year. The elements are thus distinguished: Yang Wood, Yin Wood, Yang Fire, Yin Fire, etc. These produce a combined cycle that repeats every 60 years. For example, the year of the Yang Fire Rat occured in 1936 and in 1996, 60 years apart.
It is a time when families visit the oldest and most senior members of their extended family, usually their parents, grand parents, or greatgrandparents. Members of the family who are married give red packets (ang pao) containing cash to junior members of the family, mostly children and teenagers. Red is the favorite color for Chinese New Year clothing and decorations, as it is said to bring good luck. Since it symbolizes fire, it is believed to ward away evil.
The houses doors are decorated with gold and red scroll that are inscribed with wishes with good charms, and windows are opened at midnight to out the evil of the past year and let in the luck and prosperity of the new year. The most colorful of the celebration is the dragon and lion dance. An enormous dragon and lion dance head, with a long body of colotful fabric, performs and energetic dance manipulated by skilled operators.
The food are serve during the Chinese New Year are mostly symbolic since Chinese believe food can directly affect one's fortune in the coming year. Dining tables are filled with food to ensure prosperity and abundance in the new year. Dishes or ingredients are chosen that will bring good luck, and long life, and hapinnes. It also signifies the end of winter and is a celebration to welcome spring in the company of family and friends, with Chinese music and dance, lanterns and feasts, and the thundering beat of drums, and fireworks ro dispel the bad and bring in good luck.
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