Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/301235823?client_source=feed&format=rss
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Thursday, April 25, 2013
Wednesday, April 24, 2013
Reliance Communications Partners With Twitter To Offer Free, Unlimited Access To The Service In India
For those in the United States and other locations that are lucky enough to be able to purchase huge data packages for their smartphone, thinking about deciding to “tweet or not to tweet” based on the cost that it could incur is a foreign concept, pun intended. For cell customers in India, it’s a very real situation, and Reliance Communications has partnered with Twitter to bring free, unlimited access to the social network to its prepaid GSM subscribers. This is yet another example of how important Twitter has become in our daily lives and how integral the communication platform is to locations all over the world. The service be be bundled with live cricket match updates, the most popular sport in the country. A customized version of the Twitter app has been created, reminding customers that they’re getting free access thanks to Reliance Mobile. If someone taps a link to an outside site, they will be reminded that doing so might incur extra charges. Reliance is the first operator to partner with Twitter in India, and its Chief Revenue Officer of Wireless, Nilanjan Mukherjee had this to share: We are delighted to be the first operator to partner with Twitter in India on Twitter Access and offer the first of its kind unlimited Twitter access on our superior network. Our partnership with Twitter in India further strengthens our offering on the social media platform and is in line with our continuous efforts to offer innovative products with incredible affordability for our customers. Since prepaid cell phones are prominent in countries like India, signing deals like this make the services more attractive. Back to how important cricket is to India’s culture, though. Mukherjee feels like this announcement could cause a “significant shift” of cricket fans to move over to Reliance. That’s knowing your customers. [Photo credit: Flickr]Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/-6dE4dIKRD0/
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AAPL: sweeter dividend, sour outlook
Apple (AAPL) will give shareholders $100 billion over the next two years by boosting its dividend 15 percent. Although AAPL beat earnings and revenue estimates for the quarter, it says revenue could fall this quarter.?
A man leaves an Apple store with an iPhone and an iPad in his hands in central Beijing earlier this month. AAPL stock initially rose after the electronics manufacturer announced a higher dividend and a stock buyback program. But it pulled back after Apple suggested its revenue could fall this quarter, which would be the first time in many years.
Alexander F. Yuan/AP/File
EnlargeApple?is opening the doors to its bank vault, saying it will distribute $100 billion in cash to its shareholders by the end of 2015. At the same time, the company said revenue for the current quarter could fall from the year before, which would be the first decline in many years.
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Apple?CEO Tim Cook also suggested that the company won't release any new products until the fall, contrary to expectations that there would be a new iPhone and iPads out this summer.
Apple?Inc. on Tuesday said it will expand its share buyback program to $60 billion ? the largest buyback authorization in history. It is also raising its dividend by 15 percent from $2.65 to $3.05 per share. That equates to a dividend yield of 3 percent at current stock prices. The average yield for the 20 largest dividend-paying companies in the U.S. is 3.1 percent, according to Standard & Poor's.
Investors have been clamoring for?Apple?to give them access to its cash hoard, which ended March at an unprecedented $145 billion.?Apple's?tight grip on its cash, along with the lack of ground-breaking new products has been blamed for the steep decline in its stock price over the winter.
News of the cash bonanza coincided with the company's release of a poor quarterly outlook for the three-month period that ends in June.
Apple?released its fiscal second quarter earnings after the stock market closed Tuesday. The company's stock initially rose 5 percent to $425 in extended trading, then retreated $2.63, or 0.7 percent, to $403.50 as the CEO talked about new products arriving in the fall.
The shares are still down 40 percent from a peak of $705.07 hit on Sept. 21, when the iPhone 5 went on sale.
"The decline in?Apple's?stock price over the last couple of quarters has been very frustrating for all of us ... but we'll continue to do what we do best," CEO Tim Cook said on a conference call with analysts after the release of the results. But he reinforced that the company's job is not to boost its stock price in the short term.
"The most important objective for?Apple?will always be creating innovative products," he added.
Apple's?results beat the consensus estimate of analysts who follow the company, though it posted its first profit decline in ten years.
Net income was $9.5 billion, or $10.09 per share, down 18 percent from $11.6 billion, or $12.30 per share, in the same period a year ago.
Revenue was $43.6 billion, up 11 percent from last year's $39.2 billion.
Analysts were expecting earnings of $9.97 per share on revenue of $42.3 billion, according to FactSet.
For the quarter that just started,?Apple?said it expects sales of $33.5 billion to $35.5 billion. In the same quarter last year, sales were $35 billion. Wall Street was expecting sales of $38 billion.
The June quarter is generally a weak one for?Apple, since consumers tend to wait for the next iPhone, which the company usually releases in the fall. But a year-over-year decline is a signal that?Apple?is failing to capitalize on the continued growth of smartphone sales. Sales are tapering off in U.S. and other mature markets, and not many consumers in India and China can afford iPhones.
"Our fiscal 2012 results were incredibly strong and that's making comparisons very difficult this year," said Cook.
Apple?shipped 37.4 million iPhones in the latest quarter, up 7 percent from a year ago. That confounded expectations that shipments might fall, but it was still a weak number compared to many previous quarters, when shipments doubled year over year. The average wholesale price of an iPhone also fell to $613 as?Apple?cut the price of its oldest model, the iPhone 4, to appeal to buyers in developing countries.
Apple?started paying a dividend last summer and has been buying back a modest number of shares, enough to balance the dilution created by its employee stock option program but not to make a dent in its cash pile. The company says it's now expanding the buybacks, which started in October and are set to run till the end of 2015, from $10 billion to $60 billion. It's raising the quarterly dividend starting with the payment due May 16.
The company has faced continued pressure from Wall Street over the use of its cash, which earns less than 1 percent in interest. Investors reason that if the company has no better use for the money, it should be handing it over to shareholders. The company had said it was considering ways to use the money, and this year engaged in a public debate with a hedge fund manager who wanted it to institute a new class of shares to attract dividend-loving investors.
Paradoxically, cash-flush?Apple?will be borrowing money to support the buybacks and dividends. That's because two-thirds of its cash resides in overseas accounts. It doesn't bring the money into the U.S. because it prefers not to pay U.S. corporate income taxes on it. Instead, it will be using cash from U.S.-derived revenue and U.S. accounts, plus borrowed money.
Apple?is effectively betting that the U.S. federal corporate tax rate of 35 percent ? one of the highest in the world ? will come down in the future, or that there will be a tax repatriation amnesty period, as there was in 2004.
When a company starts doling out its cash to shareholders, it's usually a sign that its growth is stalling and it's finding it hard to identify good ways to invest in its own business. But?Apple?is still growing fast by the standards of large companies, and its cash pile-up is a reflection of the extraordinary success of the iPhone.
Compared to its earnings,?Apple's?stock price is low. In buying?Apple?stock, investors are paying $9.20 for every dollar of?Apple's?annual net income. By comparison, they're willing to pay $24 for every dollar of Google's profit.
That suggests investors have concluded?Apple?will never again launch a revolutionary product like the iPhone or iPad. The commitment to bigger buybacks may reinforce that impression, said David Tan, a Georgetown University assistant professor of strategy who focuses on technology.
"How are we going to read into what this move says about?Apple's?long-term prospects?" Tan said. "Does this mean this is all that?Apple?has left to offer or is this just something temporary while we wait for the next big thing from the company?"
Investors have grown increasingly frustrated with?Apple. The company has only been releasing updates to its existing line of mobile devices and?computers?since Cook became CEO 20 months ago instead of blazing technological trails as it did with the iPod's 2001 unveiling, the iPhone's 2007 debut and the iPad's introduction in 2010, said Lauren Balter, an analyst for Oracle Investment Research. At the same time, Samsung Electronics has been gaining market share with larger smartphone screens and other features while Google Inc. is creating a buzz with its own Nexus tablets. Google is also expanding into "wearable?computing" with Internet-connected glasses that are expected to go on sale late this year or early next year.
"The market is tired of the same old thing at?Apple," Balter said. "Investors are looking for innovation. The reality is that people are looking at other products now and they are looking at other cool features from competitors."
Apple?is rumored to be working on a "smart" watch and a revolutionary TV set, but it hasn't confirmed that. On Tuesday's call, Cook sounded slightly more open to making an iPhone with a larger screen, saying merely that Apple?would not ship a phone with a larger screen as long as that meant tradeoffs in other measures of screen quality, like brightness.
Cross Research analyst Shannon Cross said now that?Apple?has laid out plans for its cash hoard, investor focus will shift back to?Apple's?upcoming products.
"What I am hoping is now that we have gotten through this, people will start focusing a little bit more on the fundamentals," Cross said. "And I think the fundamentals this quarter showed that demand remains strong for their products. I don't think the?Apple?brand has been diminished at all, based on the numbers we have seen."
AP Technology Writer Michael Liedtke contributed to this report from San Francisco.
Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/qLIdCSG3ou0/AAPL-sweeter-dividend-sour-outlook
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Miami Gay and Lesbian Film Fest: Movies That Go Beyond Coming ...
During his eight years as executive director of the Miami Gay and Lesbian Film Festival (MGLFF), Franc Castro has seen change. "The characters have a lot more depth and are dealing with issues beyond coming out. This is exciting because our sexuality is only a part of who we are," he explains.
While "coming out" was once a prevailing theme in gay cinema, LGBT films have progressed right along with the people whose stories they tell. Universal themes such as unrequited love, triumph over adversity, and loss of innocence are prominent, as are quirky comedies, riveting documentaries, and even Mean Girls-esque teen flicks featuring highly recognizable adult actors in supporting roles as parents and teachers.
La Partida is set in cuba.
Location Info
Details
G.B.F.: 8 p.m. Friday, April 26, at the Gusman Theater, 174 E. Flagler St., Miami. Tickets cost $10, or $25 for both the film and opening-night gala.In the Name Of: 7:30 p.m. Thursday, May 2, and 6:30 p.m. Sunday, May 5, at O Cinema Miami Shores, 9806 NE Second Ave., Miami Shores. Tickets cost $11.
La Partida: 9:15 p.m. Sunday, May 5, at O Cinema Miami Shores, 9806 NE Second Ave., Miami Shores. Tickets cost $11.
Out in the Dark: 9:15 p.m. Saturday, April 27, at the Gusman Theater, 174 E. Flagler St., Miami. Tickets cost $10, or $25 for both the film and party.
The Rugby Player: 8 p.m. Monday, April 29, at the Colony Theatre, 1040 Lincoln Rd., Miami Beach. Tickets cost $11.
Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow: 5:30 p.m. Saturday, May 4, and 5 p.m. Sunday, May 5, at Coral Gables Art Cinema, 260 Aragon Ave., Coral Gables. Tickets cost $9.
This year's program features more than 65 films screened throughout ten days. That's a long way from the first festival 15 years ago, which featured 25 films during one weekend. Castro plans for MGLFF to continue growing under his direction. "We are bringing films that have world-premiered at Toronto International, Sundance, Berlin, South by Southwest, and Tribeca. We are the first major LGBT film festival on the calendar in North America, so in the next five years, I want to further solidify our position as one of the top LGBT film festivals, alongside Frameline in San Francisco, the oldest and largest LGBT film festival; Outfest in Los Angeles, the industry LGBT film festival; and Inside Out in Toronto, Canada's largest LGBT film festival."
With HBO Latin America as a sponsor and James Franco attending this year to receive an Ally Award, MGLFF shouldn't have much trouble becoming one of the world's top LGBT film festivals.
Castro was hesitant to choose favorites among this year's crop of 65 films. But we persisted, and he ultimately obliged. Here's what he has to say about the six MGLFF films you do not want to miss.
G.B.F.: Not surprisingly, the 2013 opening-night film ranks among Castro's top picks. Director Darren Stein, known for the colorful cult high school film Jawbreaker, hasn't strayed far from his previous subject matter. "G.B.F. is about popular girls fighting over the most sought-after accessory ? a gay best friend," Castro says. "We will be the first LGBT film festival to screen the film."
Out in the Dark: "This Israeli film will have you on the edge of your seat. The ending is intense," Castro raves. Out in the Dark tells the story of Nimer, a Palestinian student who falls in love with an Israeli lawyer and finds himself in an impossible limbo, denied acceptance for his nationality and his sexuality. MGLFF will host a Q&A with director Michael Mayer at the screening; the film will also follow Franco's Ally Award presentation.
The Rugby Player: In light of recent, potentially terrorist-driven bombings in Boston, the subject matter of The Rugby Player is particularly resonant. It's "a film about Mark Bingham, who was a passenger on the United flight on 9/11. It is believed that Mark, along with other passengers, stormed the cockpit and brought the plane down in rural Pennsylvania and prevented the terrorists from reaching the intended target of Washington, D.C. Mark was an avid videographer, so there is a lot of great footage of his life," Castro explains. MGLFF's screening marks the world premiere of the film, and Bingham's mother, Alice Hoagland, will be present.
In the Name Of: A tale about a conflicted gay priest might sound clich?d. But Castro insists there's more to Polish director Malgoska Szumowska's In the Name Of than first appears. "This film is beautifully shot and is topical with all the changes happening with the Catholic Church," he explains, noting the film won this year's prestigious Teddy Award for Best Feature.
Will You Still Love Me Tomorrow: This surprising Taiwanese film, Castro says, is "one of the best comedies I have seen in a long time." The story of ever-changing relationships, both in and out of marriage, won over audiences in Berlin and at Tribeca before making its LGBT festival premiere in Miami.
La Partida: Perhaps the most resonant film for Miami audiences will be La Partida. "This film shows not only the harsh reality of being gay in Cuba, but also the harsh reality of life on the island," Castro says. "It's a late entry into the festival, but anyone who comes to see the film will realize why it was a necessity to include in our film program this year."
More than 65 films, several filmmaker Q&A sessions, and other special events will take place this Friday through May 5 at venues across the city. Ticket prices vary. Visit mglff.com.
Source: http://www.miaminewtimes.com/2013-04-25/film/miami-gay-and-lesbian-film-festival-2013/
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Tuesday, April 23, 2013
Taraji P. Henson At The Cinema Society Screening of 'Mud ...
Actress Taraji P. Henson?showed her love for neon at the The Cinema Society Screening of ?Mud? hosted by Fiji Water and Levis held at The Museum of Modern Art in New York City. She wore a?Mary Katrantzou?spring 2013 bird and tribal printed dress ($1,160).
MUST READ:?FAB OR FUG: Jennifer Hudson?s Disco Diva Jumpsuit (POLL)
I am so impressed by Taraji?s style. I?ve watched her throughout the years, and either she?s got a new dope stylist or is really feeling being 40 and fabulous. And let?s have a dance party for those shoes! I know you beauties love this look, right? Or ?
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Lauryn Hill tax evasion sentencing delayed
NEWARK, N.J. (AP) ? A federal judge postponed Lauryn Hill's tax evasion sentencing on Monday but not before scolding the eight-time Grammy-winning singer for reneging on a promise to make restitution by now.
Hill pleaded guilty last year to not paying federal taxes on $1.8 million earned from 2005 to 2007. At that time, her attorney said she would pay restitution by the time of her sentencing. It was revealed Monday in court that Hill has paid $50,000 of a total of $554,000.
U.S. Magistrate Judge Madeline Cox Arleo criticized her for relying on the promise of a recording contract to pay the tax bill.
"This is not someone who stands before the court penniless," Arleo said to Hill's attorney, Nathan Hochman. "This is a criminal matter. Actions speak louder than words, and there has been no effort here to pay these taxes."
The reclusive singer didn't speak during the proceeding and left the court without commenting. Arleo rescheduled the sentencing for May 6.
The total Hill owes is in dispute. Hochman contends it is slightly less than $1 million, counting civil penalties and interest, while the U.S. attorney's office estimates it at a little more than $1 million. Hochman accused the government of trying to pad the amount because once it surpasses $1 million, the sentencing range for Hill under federal guidelines would increase from 24 to 30 months to 30 to 36 months.
Whatever the range is, Hochman said he would seek a probationary sentence for Hill, a 37-year-old South Orange resident who has six children.
After the proceeding, Hochman said Hill was about to sign a loan against two properties that would allow her to pay the remainder of the restitution before her next court date.
"I fully expect that by May 3 Ms. Hill will be able to pay back all the restitution she has," Hochman said.
Hill has a recording contract but hasn't yet realized any revenue from it, Hochman said outside the courtroom.
Hill got her start with The Fugees and began her solo career in 1998 with the acclaimed album "The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill."
At the time of her June arrest, Hill wrote in a long post on the Internet how she had rejected pop culture's "climate of hostility, false entitlement, manipulation, racial prejudice, sexism and ageism." She also wrote that she hadn't paid taxes since she withdrew from society to guarantee her family's safety but that she had always intended to rectify the situation.
"When I was working consistently without being affected by the interferences mentioned above, I filed and paid my taxes," she wrote. "This only stopped when it was necessary to withdraw from society, in order to guarantee the safety and well-being of myself and my family."
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/lauryn-hill-tax-evasion-sentencing-delayed-203152256.html
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Monday, April 22, 2013
Lawmakers want more surveillance on the ground -- and in the sky
With authorities relying heavily on video evidence taken by surveillance cameras of the Boston Marathon bombing, Rep. Peter King is calling for more cameras to be installed, spurring protests by privacy advocates. NBC's Tom Costello reports.
By Suzanne Choney, Contributing Writer, NBC News
The successful ? and massive ? law enforcement effort to obtain public video to help identify the suspects in the Boston Marathon bombing shows the need for more government video surveillance cameras, says one congressman. Perhaps drones, too, says a senator.
There are already government closed-circuit TV systems in cities like Boston, New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Philadelphia, Baltimore and Washington, D.C. Rep. Peter King, R-N.Y., a member of both the House Homeland Security and Intelligence committees, said the nation needs even more video cameras in public places.
"They're a great law enforcement method and device," the congressman told NBC News' Andrea Mitchell the day after the bombing. "It keeps us ahead of the terrorists who are constantly trying to kill us."
Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., told the Washington Post Friday that the Boston bombings are "Exhibit A of why the homeland is the battlefield," and that it would have been "nice to have a drone up there" to help track the suspects, brothers Tamerlan Tsarnaev and Dzhokhar Tsarnaev.
While lawmakers weigh the pros and cons of drones, government surveillance cameras in public areas ? parks, streets, buses, subways and rail stations ? have become common, but not as much as cameras put in place by department stores, banks, theaters and other private companies. In Boston, surveillance camera footage from the Lord & Taylor department store was used to help identify the bombing suspects,?The Boston Globe?reported.
How many cameras?
"The use of surveillance cameras is growing exponentially," Jim Bueermann, former Redlands, Calif. police chief who is now president of the nonprofit Police Foundation, told NBC News. "There's all kinds of rationales for them being used in the private sector, whether it's loss prevention or for the safety of people. In the non-governmental world, cameras are everywhere."
Government cameras, he said, are "less prevalent" because of their cost.
Figuring out just how many police security cameras are already installed in the U.S. is not easy. While NBC News has cited an industry study saying that roughly 30 million?surveillance cameras have been sold in the last decade, these include privately monitored systems.?
The American Civil Liberties Union determined that Chicago has 10,000 cameras, and this is considered the largest urban network. New York's planned security network around the new World Trade Center in lower Manhattan included 3,000 cameras, while NBC News has reported that Boston has just 300 cameras total.
(We asked the Department of Homeland Security for a full breakdown of government-operated video cameras throughout the nation, but were directed to individual state and local authorities.)
Bueermann, who retired in 2011, said Redlands, with a population of about 69,000, placed 120 police cameras around the city "in areas where we knew we had crime control challenges."
A camera was rolling outside a downtown bar when a fight broke out in late November 2011, and spilled onto the sidewalk. A man pulled a gun and shot another man dead, with the footage captured on camera, Bueermann said.
The shooter could not be identified from the?video, he said, so police put it "out on the Web, and within a couple days, they had the guy," thanks to what Bueermann calls "crowd-sleuthing."
A Google Street View image of a surveillance camera mounted on a Lord & Tailor department store. The camera reportedly helped investigators spot suspects in the Boston bombing.
Privacy concerns
While privacy and civil liberties groups have expressed concern over government video surveillance, those issues were a bit muted following last Monday's bombings.
"Instances like the tragic events at the Boston Marathon are good examples of how this technology can be used effectively in limited, well-defined circumstances," Amie Stepanovich, director of the Electronic Privacy Information Center's Domestic Surveillance Project, told NBC News.
Stepanovich says the nonprofit digital rights group is less concerned with proliferation, and more worried about how long public videos are retained and who has access to them "in order to prevent their use in inappropriate circumstances."
Concerns about inappropriate circumstances led the ACLU of Massachusetts and National Lawyers Guild of Massachusetts to file a lawsuit in 2011 against the Boston Police Department to obtain documents showing that surveillance done between 2007 and 2010, including video footage, was done of protestors ? not of criminals or terrorists.
The Redlands, Calif., police department has made a point about being "transparent" about what its cameras capture, Bueermann said. The public could "walk into our dispatch center, where the video monitoring stations were, sit down and watch how these video stations were being used," as well as "arbitrarily pick a time, date, camera and watch it."
'Ring of Steel'
Britain is the Western nation with the most government video cameras: 2 million or about one for every 32 people. In London ? where officials are upping security for Sunday's London Marathon in the wake of what happened in Boston ? the city's famous "ring of steel" network of government surveillance cameras will be in full force.
After the London riots of 2011, Scotland Yard had more than 100,000 hours of closed-circuit TV (CCTV) footage to review.
"London is one of the most watched cities in the world with CCTV cameras everywhere from public transport to the major landmarks and small side streets," Nick Pickles, director of Big Brother Watch, a British civil liberties group, told NBC News. "Yet this did not prevent the riots of 2011, or the atrocities of 7/7," referring to the July 7, 2005 terrorist bombings on subway trains and a bus which killed 52 commuters.
While government surveillance cameras are a "tool that can be useful," he said, "ultimately the focus of law enforcement should be preventing crime. CCTV undermines everyone's privacy, while diverting resources from approaches that have a much higher impact on reducing crime and improving public safety, or is used by lazy officials as a way to placate the public who want something done to make their neighborhood safer."
Despite this, arguments for more surveillance cameras in U.S. cities are likely to multiply in the wake of Boston ? and so are activists' calls for attention to the privacy concerns that come with them.
Related:
Secret weapon? How thermal imaging helped catch bomb suspect
Tech-savvy public plays unprecedented role in crowdsourced terrorist hunt
As Boston bombing photos and videos pour in, where do investigators begin?
Lawmakers voice concerns on drone privacy questions
Boston bombing aftermath: How you can help
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Sunday, April 21, 2013
IMF calls for more action to spur global economic recovery
By Sonia Oxley MANCHESTER, England, April 19 (Reuters) - For striker Wayne Rooney to be taken off the pitch because Manchester United needed a vital goal was once inconceivable but is now the reality facing a player whose future at the club is as shaky as his form. "We had to get that goal that mattered," was manager Alex Ferguson's reasoning on Friday for the decision to substitute the England striker in Wednesday's 2-2 draw at West Ham United. "As far as taking him off the other night, it was simple: he wasn't playing as well as Shinji Kagawa was. ...
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/imf-calls-more-action-spur-global-economic-recovery-185612927--business.html
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Saturday, April 20, 2013
Judiciary Committee takes up immigration bill
WASHINGTON (AP) ? A far-reaching immigration bill is getting its first test at a hearing of the Senate Judiciary Committee, where opponents of the legislation will be able to face off with its authors.
The committee includes New York Democratic Sen. Chuck Schumer and three other lawmakers who authored the bill to boost border security, fix legal immigration programs and eventually grant citizenship to some 11 million people in the U.S. illegally. The panel also includes skeptics of the legislation, including Republican Jeff Sessions of Alabama.
The legislation was introduced around 2 a.m. Wednesday, so critics say there's been insufficient time to digest it and they have pushed for more hearings and a long process.
Friday's hearing is the first of two the Judiciary Committee is expected to hold on the bill.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/judiciary-committee-takes-immigration-bill-074415744--politics.html
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German union calls one-day strike at Lufthansa on Monday
German airline Lufthansa and air travellers across Germany face another day of disruption next week after unions on Friday called for a one-day walkout in an escalating pay dispute.
A month after Lufthansa was forced to cancel nearly 700 European flights due to half a day of warnings strikes, the giant services sector union Verdi called for a full day of walkouts on Monday after management failed to come up with up an acceptable pay offer after three rounds of talks.
Verdi is calling for a 5.2-percent pay increase for 33,000 Lufthansa ground staff, plus employees of the subsidiaries Lufthansa-Systems, Lufthansa Service Group (LSG), Lufthansa Technik and Lufthansa Cargo, as well as those cabin crew members who are Verdi members.
But the union complained that the offer tabled by management represented an increase 0.4 - 0.6 percent over a period of 12 months.
"For employees that is a sharp reduction in real pay and in no way acceptable," said Verdi board member Christine Behle.
The airports affected will be Frankfurt, Hamburg, Munich, Stuttgart, Hannover, Duesseldorf and Cologne, plus the Lufthansa site in Norderstedt, northern Germany.
Walkouts are planned for Berlin from 2:30 pm (1230 GMT) and in the morning in Nuremberg.
Verdi accused management of "playing with employees' fears about their future and their jobs" in refusing to make any concrete guarantees.
Furthermore, by refusing to back down on demands for longer working hours, a reduction of employees' Christmas bonus and its "scandalous offer, management is provoking another warning strike," Behle said.
"It is in management's hand to defuse the situation and pave the way for a solution," she added.
A spokesman for Lufthansa said the airline expected to announce its contingency plans at the weekend for the strike action.
"It's too early to say at this point how many flights will be cancelled," said spokesman Helmut Tolksdorf.
Last month, some 700 out of a total 1,800 daily flights were cancelled.
Lufthansa shares were among the few losers on a generally firmer stock market on Friday, slipping 0.36 percent in late morning trade, while the overall DAX 30 index was up 0.49 percent.
Friday, April 19, 2013
DOL's 2014 budget request tips off coming enforcement blitz ...
The U.S. Department of Labor (DOL) is seeking $12.1 billion in funding in 2014?about the same as this year?according to federal budget documents released April 10. ?
But a peek under the proposed budget?s top line reveals plans to greatly step up enforcement of the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the FMLA and workplace safety laws?and a looming crackdown on independent contractor misclassification.
The Obama administration?s DOL FY2014 budget request includes:
- A nearly $14 million increase in funding to combat independent contractor misclassification, which the administration says ?puts law-abiding businesses at a disadvantage against employers who violate the law?
- $3.4 million more for the DOL?s Wage and Hour Division to enforce the FLSA and FMLA
- An additional $5.9 million to support OSHA enforcement of laws that promote workplace safety.
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Wednesday, April 17, 2013
IMF leaves Egypt after hearing from opposition
CAIRO (AP) ? A team from the International Monetary Fund left Egypt without getting broad backing from the opposition for a government economic plan aimed at getting a key $4.8 billion loan, political blocs said Tuesday.
Egypt's main factions say they agree in principle on the need for the loan, seen as a lifeline for the country's battered economy, but there are concerns over unrest if painful austerity measures linked to it are not backed by political consensus.
The IMF said in a statement that its delegation met with a range of political figures and Cabinet officials during the nearly two week-long visit that ended late Monday. In previous, shorter trips, the IMF has only focused on meeting with government officials.
The country's political polarization has further delayed reaching agreement around the deal.
Finance Minister El-Morsi Hegazi, who will meet with officials in Washington D.C. this weekend for annual IMF and World Bank meetings, said the government's meetings with the international lender were "fruitful."
But opposition groups including liberals, socialists and ultraconservative Islamists said the government was not being transparent about economic measures that it said could hurt Egypt's poor. They also accused the IMF of trying to curry support for President Mohammed Morsi's reform program.
Egypt's economy has been hard hit by the two years of turmoil that followed the ouster of longtime President Hosni Mubarak. The government is confident that the $4.8 billion IMF loan would not only cover part of its huge deficit, but also signal to investors that Egypt is again a safe bet after two years of turmoil that started with the 2011 uprising that unseated longtime President Hosni Mubarak.
Most in Egypt appear to agree that the country needs the IMF loan to unlock around $15 billion of aid and investment. It would help prop-up foreign reserves that were at $13.4 billion last month, down more than two-thirds of what they were prior to the uprising.
But in Egypt, where half of the country's 85 million people live at or below the poverty line of $2 a day and rely on government subsidies of wheat and fuel for survival, many are balking at the measures that might be necessary to secure the loan.
The opposition as well as bankers say measures by Egypt's central bank to regulate the devaluation of the local currency are linked to IMF conditions. The pound has lost 11 percent of its value against the U.S. dollar since early December, sparking concerns of wider inflation.
Opposition spokesmen from several groups said that they could not approve the plan because neither the government nor the IMF would fully disclose its details.
The Nour Party, an ultraconservative Islamist group that is the second-largest force in parliament behind Morsi's Muslim Brotherhood, said that the government has not made clear how it plans to spend the money, and criticized the IMF for "interfering" in Egypt's internal affairs.
"It is our right to know what the international requirements are that will be imposed on the country, which is requesting a loan, and if all countries requesting loans also face such meddling in so many details," the party said in a statement after the meeting.
The Congress Party of former presidential candidate and Arab League chief Amr Moussa also had reservations.
"They should have talked to people about what steps they are taking to get this loan ... and consult and ask for advice," said spokesman Ahmed Kamel, adding that the money should not be used "to put out (budgetary) fires."
Mohammed Gouda, a member of the Muslim Brotherhood's economic committee, dismissed the complaints and said discussion of reforms is taking place in parliament.
"But how can the government announce plans that are still being discussed and hashed out?" he said. "The plans change daily and publicizing them will create confusion."
An IMF official contacted for response referred The Associated Press to the lender's statement, which said that the "mission made progress" during its meetings.
"All sides concurred on the need to protect the vulnerable sectors of society when implementing reform measure," the statement said.
The IMF said the government intends to take "further actions" that tackle the country's fiscal deficit, specifically mentioning austerity measures that have begun to take shape targeting energy subsidies.
Meanwhile, a new government study Tuesday found that unemployment reached 12.7 percent last year, up from 12 percent in 2011. The budget deficit is expected to widen by more than $1.7 billion to reach $28.6 billion, according to state-run media.
Egypt has a long history of unrest over planned or implemented economic reforms perceived to hit the poor, notably the 1977 Bread Riots. Many Egyptians also feel that, with parliamentary elections scheduled for some time later this year, the president's party may be reluctant to push forward with painful subsidy cuts that may hurt them at the polls.
Expert Farah Haline, of the Rebel Economy blog, says the IMF wants reforms to appear as part of a homegrown plan.
"According to (my) meetings with IMF representatives and EU reps that work closely with IMF, the bottom line is there must be a political consensus," she said.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/imf-leaves-egypt-hearing-opposition-132243068--finance.html
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Tuesday, April 16, 2013
Taste of beer, without effect from alcohol, triggers dopamine release in the brain
Apr. 15, 2013 ? The taste of beer, without any effect from alcohol itself, can trigger dopamine release in the brain, which is associated with drinking and other drugs of abuse, according to Indiana University School of Medicine researchers.
Using positron emission tomography (PET), the researchers tested 49 men with two scans, one in which they tasted beer, and the second in which they tasted Gatorade, looking for evidence of increased levels of dopamine, a brain neurotransmitter long associated with alcohol and other drugs of abuse. The scans showed significantly more dopamine activity following the taste of beer than the sports drink. Moreover, the effect was significantly greater among participants with a family history of alcoholism.
Results of the study were published online Monday by the journal Neuropsychopharmacology.
"We believe this is the first experiment in humans to show that the taste of an alcoholic drink alone, without any intoxicating effect from the alcohol, can elicit this dopamine activity in the brain's reward centers," said David A. Kareken, Ph.D., professor of neurology at the IU School of Medicine and the deputy director of the Indiana Alcohol Research Center.
The stronger effect in participants with close alcoholic relatives suggests that the release of dopamine in response to such alcohol-related cues may be an inherited risk factor for alcoholism, said Dr. Kareken.
Research for several decades has linked dopamine to the consumption of various drugs of abuse, although researchers have differing interpretations of the neurotransmitter's role. Sensory cues that are closely associated with drug intoxication (ranging from tastes and smells to the sight of a tavern) have long been known to spark cravings and induce treatment relapse in recovering alcoholics. Many neuroscientists believe that dopamine plays a critical role in such cravings.
The study participants received a very small amount of their preferred beer -- 15 milliliters -- over a 15-minute time period, enabling them to taste the beer without resulting in any detectable blood alcohol level or intoxicating effect.
Using a PET scanning compound that targets dopamine receptors in the brain, the researchers were able to assess changes in dopamine levels occurring after the participants tasted the liquids.
In addition to the PET scan results, participants reported an increased beer craving after tasting beer, without similar responses after tasting the sports drink -- even though many thought the Gatorade actually tasted better, said Brandon G. Oberlin, Ph.D., post-doctoral fellow and first author of the paper.
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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Indiana University, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.
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Journal Reference:
- Brandon G Oberlin, Mario Dzemidzic, Stella M Tran, Christina M Soeurt, Daniel S Albrecht, Karmen K Yoder, David A Kareken. Beer Flavor Provokes Striatal Dopamine Release in Male Drinkers: Mediation by Family History of Alcoholism. Neuropsychopharmacology, 2013; DOI: 10.1038/npp.2013.91
Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.
Disclaimer: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. Views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.
Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/strange_science/~3/Mw5nxLqOeVA/130415124710.htm
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Monday, April 15, 2013
San Francisco's cable cars rack up accidents -- and millions in legal bills, settlements
Marcio Jose Sanchez / AP file
From left, Franco Garavanno, Gustavo Ferrari and German Garavanno ride a cable car up Hyde Street in San Francisco while visiting from Buenos Aires on Jan. 21, 2011. Cable cars are a top tourist draw in San Francisco -- but they also stand out for the inordinate number of accidents and the millions of dollars annually the city pays out to settle lawsuits.
By Paul Elias, The Associated Press
SAN FRANCISCO --?In this city of innumerable tourist attractions, the clanging, hill-conquering cable cars stand out as a top draw.
The quaint conveyances also stand out for the inordinate number of accidents and the millions of dollars annually the city pays out to settle lawsuits for broken bones, severed feet and bad bruises caused when 19th-century technology runs headlong into 21st-century city traffic and congestion.
Cable cars average about an accident a month and routinely rank among the most accident-prone mass transportation modes in the country per vehicle mile traveled annually, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation. Over the last 10 years, city officials have reported 126 accidents injuring 151 people.
After the latest serious accident ? when seven people were injured after a cable car slammed to an unexpected stop after hitting a small bolt in the track ? The Associated Press obtained through a public records request a listing of cable car-related legal settlements over the last three years.
Those figures show the city paying nearly $8 million to settle about four dozen legal claims.
The city has paid on average $12 million annually to settle all claims connected to its mass transportation system that in addition to cable cars consists of electric street cars and buses, which travel many more miles and carry many more passengers.
Two faces of an icon
City officials acknowledge that the open air cable cars, which ply only eight miles of track, produce a disproportionate amount of accident-related costs.
But they say the cars are a much beloved and valuable part of the city's life and character.
Their images are inscribed on the San Francisco Giants World Series rings. The cars have been immortalized in song and in television ads selling rice. And tourists line up dozens deep even in freezing weather for a chance to ride over the city's Nob and Russian hills.
"The iconic cable cars of San Francisco are a National Historic Landmark and we work every day to make them safer," San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee said, adding, "While accidents and injuries are down from just a few years ago, we are always working to improve the system as a whole."
Marcio Jose Sanchez / AP file
Visitors wait to board a cable car in San Francisco's Union Square in 2010.
Federal transportation figures show 19 injuries and 16 accidents last year, the second highest amount reported in the last 10 years. There were 36 accidents reported in 2004.
Two months ago, five passengers and two workers were injured after the bolt caused their cable car to slam to a sudden stop, tossing them violently inside the vehicle. The conductor had facial and tongue injuries and the driver suffered internal injuries and cracked ribs, transit officials said.
Legal claims are expected, as they always are after a cable car accident.
Nymphomaniac lawsuit
The city has been settling lawsuits almost since the cable cars began operation in 1893. One woman won a 1970 jury verdict of $50,000 after she claimed that a minor accident on a cable car she was riding turned her into a nymphomaniac.
"The 19th Century technology of the cable cars does pose some challenges," said Paul Rose, a spokesman for the city agency that oversees San Francisco mass transit. "While one accident is too many and we're always working to improve safety, these incidents are rare."
San Francisco remains the only place on the planet with a true, manually operated cable-car system serving the public.
First introduced in the late 1800s to save the strain on horses hauling carts up the city's steep inclines, the 15,500-pound cable-powered cars grip a continuously moving underground cable with pliers-like gear to travel the streets of San Francisco.
They are a San Francisco icon vital to the city's booming tourism industry.
A survey commissioned by the San Francisco Visitors and Conventions Bureau found the top four tourist activities in the city were dining, shopping, visiting museum and riding the cable cars. An estimated 7 million ride the cable cars annually, the vast majority tourists.
The biggest single payout over the last three years went to John Gainor, who received $3 million in November 2011 because his foot had to be amputated after it got caught between the cable car he was standing on and a parked vehicle.
Another $4 million went to the four victims of a runaway cable car that sped down a notoriously steep San Francisco hill before leaving the tracks and careening onto the sidewalk. The brakeman fell down outside the cable car as he was pushing it and couldn't get back aboard. A tourist from Texas suffered a broken femur and three others were seriously injured.
Linda Cvilikas, who tore tendons in her knee when a cable car she was riding came to a sudden halt on Nob Hill in 2011, said: "One minute I was standing and the next minute I was on top of my husband and a really large gentleman fell on top of me.
"That thing stopped and we all fell like dominoes," she said. The city paid Cvilikas $16,000 and her husband, John, another $2,500 to settle the Nebraska couple's legal claims. "It's safe to say that I won't be riding the cable cars again if I return to San Francisco," she said.?
? 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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