Obama's 2nd inauguration to draw smaller crowds

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Visitors coming to the nation's capital for President Barack Obama's second inauguration can't stay in the one place President Ronald Reagan's family once called an eight-star hotel. That spot is the White House, and it's booked for the next four years.

Still, inauguration-goers have a range of lodging options ? from crashing on a friend's couch to reasonably priced rooms to ones that cost thousands of dollars a night.

With second inaugurations tending to draw fewer spectators, finding a place to stay in Washington won't be nearly as difficult as in 2009.

City officials are expecting 600,000 to 800,000 visitors for the Jan. 21 inauguration, far less than the 1.8 million people who flooded the National Mall four years ago to witness the inauguration of America's first black president. Back then, some hotels sold out months in advance and city residents rented out their homes for hundreds of dollars a night. This time, hotels say they're filling up more slowly, with rooms still available and prices at or slightly below where they were four years ago.

"Very few hotels are actually sold out at this point, so there's a lot of availability," said Elliott Ferguson, CEO of the tourism bureau Destination DC, who added that he expected demand to pick up after Christmas.

In 2009, hotel occupancy in the city for the night before the inauguration was 98 percent, and visitors paid an average daily rate of more than $600 that night, according to STR, a company that tracks hotel data. This time, some hotels still have half their rooms available. As a result, some establishments have relaxed minimum stays from four nights to three and could drop prices closer to the time of the inauguration if demand does not increase.

Despite the muted enthusiasm, many of the city's posh hotels are still offering pricy packages. Visitors with an unlimited budget can check in to accommodations almost as grand and historic as the White House.

At The Willard hotel, about a block from the White House, rooms were still available starting at more than $1,100 a night with a four-night minimum. That's a far cry from the bill paid by President Abraham Lincoln when he checked out after his 1861 inauguration and paid $773.75 for a stay of more than a week.

At the Park Hyatt hotel in northwest Washington, where rooms start at $849 a night with a four-night minimum stay, the presidential suite is still available. For the 57th presidential inauguration next month, the hotel is charging $57,000 for a four-night package in the suite that includes butler service. And no one has yet booked $100,000 packages at the Fairmont hotel or the Ritz-Carlton.

A number of the city's luxury hotels plan special treats for guests, some of whom will be paying two to five times as much to stay during the inauguration compared with staying in the same room a week before. At the Ritz-Carlton, for example, where rooms start at about $1,100 per day, guests will get to bring home commemorative pillowcases embroidered with the official inauguration seal and their initials.

There are options for visitors looking to spend less, too, though some wallet-friendly choices have filled quickly.

Rooms at HI-DC, a hostel in downtown Washington, were sold out the day after the Nov. 6 election, with a bed in a dorm room going for $50 a night and private rooms for $150. With all the rooms sold, the hostel is finalizing plans for an election trivia night for guests.

Aunt Bea's Little White House, a six-room bed and breakfast in northeast Washington, still had two rooms available the week before Christmas, with rates starting at $225 a night. Innkeeper Gerald Duval said that included a bottle of champagne and a commemorative coin. There'll also be red-and-white bunting on the home's porch along with cutouts of the president and first lady.

Farther from downtown, the Best Western Plus hotel in Rockville, Md., was about 80 percent full with rooms at about $180 a night, down from a $209 starting rate. Director of Sales Ron Wallach said the hotel targeted some groups before the election, including students, journalists and the Secret Service, in order to fill its rooms.

Other travelers looking for budget-friendly prices may have success with websites like Craigslist or Airbnb, where homeowners offer their places for a price. More than 200 Craigslist housing posts in the area included the word "inauguration." Airbnb said it expected approximately 2,000 people to stay in Washington during the inauguration using its site.

Other travelers have told friends and family living in the area to plan on having guests. Lauren Hines and her husband had three people stay at their small Capitol Hill apartment during the 2009 inauguration, so many that one slept in a hallway. She and her husband now live in nearby Alexandria, Va., and planned to host her father-in-law, and maybe her mother-in-law, from Ohio. Hines said they didn't even consider a hotel.

"They know that they've always got a place with us," she said.

___

Follow Jessica Gresko at http://twitter.com/jessicagresko

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/obamas-2nd-inauguration-draw-smaller-crowds-084208167.html

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December 22, 2012 ? Santa Clarita foreclosure intel by REMAX's ...

Ah, foreclosures. ?They are all the buzz today and have been since we had started working in the real estate?representation?field back in 1998. In a healthy real estate market, there are about 1% of the homes that are being offered for sale that are Foreclosures ? the ?bank owned? type. ?Today?s current real estate market gives us about 20-30%. ?The rest of our market is over 55% short sales (pre foreclosures) and the rest are standard sales. (data compiled today, 12-22-2012, for purposes of this Blog Post on the SCV foreclosure blog)

Buying a foreclosure is going to be dependent on three things you, as a foreclosure buyer, need to be aware of.

• Striking fast - While most banks are giving a certain amount of time before ?offer number one? is looked at ? typically 7-14 days ? It does not harm a buyer to get the latest listings and view them quick. ?There could be that one ?bank? or that one Asset Manager that needs to get their numbers higher that will take the first offer submitted, if only within hours of that listing hitting the market.
• Consider Financing - banks love Cash. ?The next thing the REO selling world loves is 20% down payments or greater, those are conventional loans. ?Followed by the less than 20% down conventional loan, then onto FHA (3.5%) down, and VA (lower down yet). ?The reason why the bank loves cash is typically?appraisal?is never an issue with a buyer purchasing the home. ?The conventional appraiser is typically less stringent than the VA appraiser. ?For Foreclosure Sellers ? the less critical an appraiser is, the more money they will make.
• Inspection?Time-frames?- sweetening the deal - Ask your real estate agent about constricting your inspection time frames on the first offering you are going to make. ?It may set your offer apart enough from the others to get yours accepted without a counter offer. ?You can reduce your inspection time frames form the ?contract allowed? 17 days to 7. ?This will show the?Foreclosure?entity that you are serious.

When approaching bank owned and foreclosure inventory, to set yourself apart and to get the attention of the bank (foreclosure owner), could mean the difference between you winning what you want and not. ?Ask your local Santa Clarita foreclosure expert what they think your best plan of attack should be. ?Don?t forget the value in the Game Plan with regard to real estate. ?It will pay in the long run when you invest 45 minutes up front with your Real estate agent in their offices, exploring the market, your desires and your agent?s working practices.

Your New Foreclosures alert, Paris911?s Pre-Foreclosure Alert for Santa Clarita Valley CA, found a match.

?

Stage Radar ID Street City Zip State Type Sq Ft Beds Baths Sale Date Est. Value Est. Bid

Preforeclosure 512760688 19131 PLEASANTDALE ST CANYON COUNTRY 91351 CA SFR 1144 4 2.00 04/11/2013 $250,554.00 $331,772.00

Preforeclosure 512865815 23701 VIA LUPONA VALENCIA 91355 CA SFR 1893 4 3.00 04/12/2013 $430,129.00 $423,696.00

Your New Foreclosures alert, Paris911?s Auction Alert for Santa Clarita Valley, found a match.

?

Stage Radar ID Street City Zip State Type Sq Ft Beds Baths Sale Date Est. Value Est. Bid

Auction 505355601 24738 BRACKEN LN NEWHALL 91381 CA SFR 1728 3 2.00 01/17/2013 $444,592.00 $426,595.00

Auction 23819137 25930 SARDINIA CT SANTA CLARITA 91355 CA CND 1786 2 2.00 01/07/2013 $424,975.00 $679,676.00

Auction 517386679 28044 ROBIN AVE SANTA CLARITA 91350 CA CND 834 2 1.00 01/17/2013 $110,142.00 $195,414.00

Auction 520308149 23463 DARCY LN SANTA CLARITA 91321 CA CND 2952 4 4.00 01/04/2013 $492,364.00 $711,805.00

Auction 906614b 26336 PEACOCK PL STEVENSON RANCH 91381 CA SFR 2932 5 3.00 01/07/2013 $637,498.00 $836,474.00

Auction 509608527 25832 EL GATO PL VALENCIA 91355 CA CND 864 2 2.00 01/09/2013 $238,054.00 $370,425.00

Auction 23787963 27809 SYCAMORE CREEK DR SANTA CLARITA 91354 CA SFR 1593 4 2.00 01/04/2013 $329,876.00 $314,151.00

Auction 23800747 26961 RAINBOW GLEN DR 729 SANTA CLARITA 91351 CA CND 1007 3 2.00 01/10/2013 $135,942.00 $378,992.00

Auction 500585952 26075 MAGDALENA DR VALENCIA 91355 CA CND 1128 3 2.00 12/31/2012 $275,360.00 $392,171.00

Your New Foreclosures alert, Paris911?s Sold to Third Alert for Santa Clarita Valley CA, found a match.

?

Stage Radar ID Street City Zip State Type Sq Ft Beds Baths Sale Date Est. Value Est. Bid

Sold to 3rd 23801419 28911 LOTUSGARDEN DR SANTA CLARITA 91387 CA SFR 1572 3 2.00 12/20/2012 $294,080.00 $260,057.33

Sold to 3rd 687892b 25454 VIA DONA CHRISTA VALENCIA 91355 CA SFR 1927 5 3.00 12/20/2012 $214,059.00 $342,000.00

Your New Foreclosures alert, Paris911?s Santa Clarita Bank Owned Real Estate Alert, found a match.

?

Stage Radar ID Street City Zip State Type Sq Ft Beds Baths Sale Date Est. Value Est. Bid

Bank Owned 1020975b 16305 LOST CANYON RD SANTA CLARITA 91387 CA SFR 5663 4 5.00 12/20/2012 $2,371,842.00 $720,000.00

Your New Foreclosures alert, All Santa Clarita Cities ? NOD filings ? Updated, found a match.

?

Stage Radar ID Street City Zip State Type Sq Ft Beds Baths Sale Date Est. Value Est. Bid

Preforeclosure 505585778 17433 DUSTY WILLOW CT CANYON COUNTRY 91387 CA CND 2478 4 3.00 04/13/2013 $381,632.00 $568,866.00

Preforeclosure 513071761 20401 JANZER CT SANTA CLARITA 91350 CA CND 2368 5 3.00 04/16/2013 $311,345.00 $355,279.00

Your New Foreclosures alert, Paris911?s Sold to Third Alert for Santa Clarita Valley CA, found a match.

?

Stage Radar ID Street City Zip State Type Sq Ft Beds Baths Sale Date Est. Value Est. Bid

Sold to 3rd 503149024 18223 SOLEDAD CANYON RD 4 SANTA CLARITA 91387 CA CND 1098 2 3.00 12/21/2012 $140,667.00 $136,000.00

Your New Foreclosures alert, Paris911?s Auction Alert for Santa Clarita Valley, found a match.

?

Stage Radar ID Street City Zip State Type Sq Ft Beds Baths Sale Date Est. Value Est. Bid

Auction 513125739 25410 HUXLEY DR VALENCIA 91381 CA CND 1130 2 2.00 01/07/2013 $243,125.00 $408,422.00

Auction 509598382 24432 VALLE DEL ORO 202 SANTA CLARITA 91321 CA CND 889 2 2.00 02/11/2013 $144,462.00 $246,447.00

Auction 517480432 26938 BOULDER CREST DR VALENCIA 91381 CA SFR 3984 5 5.00 01/14/2013 $815,757.00 $1,007,005.00

Auction 507409752 18035 RIVER CIR 2 SANTA CLARITA 91387 CA CND 1127 2 3.00 01/07/2013 $145,864.00 $365,856.00

Auction 37421170 28492 FALCON CREST DR CANYON COUNTRY 91351 CA SFR 3882 5 4.00 01/07/2013 $473,500.00 $730,976.00

Auction 520405094 23615 DEL MONTE DR 346 VALENCIA 91355 CA CND 1030 2 2.00 01/07/2013 $260,023.00 $264,658.00

?

Santa Clarita Short Sale and Foreclosure intelligence by The Paris911 Team at REMAX of Valencia CA.? If it is distressed or being sold short ? we talk about it here. It is about the exacting real estate data as presented by one of the Top Real Estate teams that are populating the Social Networks including Google Plus.? We talk about the Bank Owned and Distressed properties issues that people want most.

Tagged as: bank owned, foreclosures, real estate owned, reo, santa clarita, santa clarita foreclosures

Source: http://santaclaritarealestate.paris911.com/2012/12/22/december-22-2012-santa-clarita-foreclosure-intel-by-remaxs-paris911-team/

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'Middle ground' of sea-level change: 'Intra-seasonal' variability impacts forecasting and ecosystems

ScienceDaily (Nov. 27, 2012) ? The effects of storm surge and sea-level rise have become topics of everyday conversation in the days and weeks following Hurricane Sandy's catastrophic landfall along the mid-Atlantic coast.

Ongoing research by professor John Brubaker of the Virginia Institute of Marine Science is throwing light on another, less-familiar component of sea-level variability -- the "intra-seasonal" changes that occupy the middle ground between rapid, storm-related surges in sea level and the long-term increase in sea level due to global climate change.

"These are cases when the water is just 'running high,'" says Brubaker, "but not from an obvious direct cause of a storm. It isn't necessarily windy, it's just an elevated water level without a clear cause."

Intra-seasonal variability -- which Brubaker says takes place on time-scales of 10 to 90 days and can add or detract a foot or more from the predicted tide -- is likely due to shifts in oceanic currents and large-scale movements of water masses along the coast. It often goes unacknowledged in discussions of sea-level trends, but can play an important role in water-level forecasts, coastal activities, and ecosystem health.

"Intra-seasonal variability has significant impacts," says Brubaker. "For instance, being aware of these non-tidal, non-storm anomalies is very important for forecasting. If you're experiencing a relative high during the approach of a storm, with water levels already elevated by a foot or more above predicted tides, that could make a big difference in terms of storm surge and coastal flooding." Indeed, graduate student Carissa Wilkerson, whom Brubaker co-advises, is studying how intra-seasonal anomalies combine with storm surge as part of her Master's research at VIMS.

Brubaker, who teams with researchers John Boon and David Forrest on the Tidewatch Forecast system at VIMS, says the Tidewatch forecasts account for at least some part of intra-seasonal variability by using as their starting point a moving average of the most recent 30 days of sea-level measurements. Other forecasts use mean sea level, a tidal datum that NOAA defines as the average measured over the years 1983-2001.

Brubaker notes that intra-seasonal variability can also impact marine life, most notably underwater grasses. Dr. JJ Orth, head of the Seagrass Monitoring and Restoration Program at VIMS, raised concern during a period of unusually high water in May 2011, noting that "with water levels this high above predicted, it means less light for seagrasses, and with light declining exponentially with depth it could mean added stress to plants at the deeper edges of the grass beds."

Periods of unusually low water could also affect seagrasses and other marine life, says Brubaker, but the impacts are likely to be less significant because the long-term rise in sea level tempers their effects.

The Summer 2009 Event

Brubaker's interest in intra-seasonal variability was piqued during summer 2009 -- when a prolonged period of high water affected the U.S. East Coast -- and again during the shorter period of unusually high water during May 2011, which he experienced first-hand while teaching a course at VIMS' Eastern Shore Lab in the seaside village of Wachapreague.

"The 2009 event got a lot of attention -- eventually," says Brubaker. "It wasn't dramatic and it took quite a while to gain much attention, but at some point NOAA posted a notice about it in response to questions and concerns from the public, who had noticed week after week of abnormally high tides."

Three NOAA scientists, Bill Sweet, Chris Zervas, and Stephen Gill, subsequently issued a technical report to describe and explain the 2009 event. They note that water levels of 0.6 to 2.0 feet above predicted tides persisted for up to 6 weeks in areas from North Carolina to New Jersey, with slightly lower elevations experienced as far south as Florida and as far north as Maine.

If intra-seasonal changes in sea level aren't generated by regular tides, storm surge, seasonal heating or cooling, or long-term sea-level rise, what is their cause? Sweet, Zervas, and Gill attributed the 2009 event to the confluence of two factors -- persistent winds from the northeast measured far offshore, and a slow-down in the Gulf Stream.

Brubaker says the northeasterly winds contributed to high water along the coast due to "Ekman transport," a phenomenon in which surface waters begin to move to the right of the prevailing wind because of the Coriolis force. "The Ekman transport associated with these winds would push the water towards the shore," says Brubaker. Persistent offshore winds from the northeast were also measured during May 2011.

The slow-down in the Gulf Stream contributed to 2009's persistently high water levels through the re-positioning of what oceanographers call a "geostrophic slope." "The Gulf Stream creates a geostrophic slope that's related to the speed of the current," says Brubaker. "If the current speeds up, the slope gets steeper, and if the current slows down, the slope levels off. We on the East Coast are on the low side of the geostrophic slope, so as the Gulf Stream slowed down during the summer of 2009, the slope flattened out and water levels rose."

Preliminary Results

Brubaker's interest in intra-seasonal variability focuses on using tidal records from the last 15 years along the U.S. East Coast to better understand the frequency, magnitude, and duration of high-water events in the region. He's also interested in how these events propagate spatially through coastal water bodies like Chesapeake Bay.

"Our results are very preliminary at this point," says Brubaker, "but there are a few things that stand out. One is that July and August are typically relatively quiet in terms of intra-seasonal high-water events. Another is that there is a lot of year-to-year variability. There seem to be more active years in terms of these events and then multi-year periods of relative quiet."

He says the data also suggest an intriguing correlation between the high-water events and the occurrence of El Ni?o in the Pacific, as measured by the "Oceanic Ni?o Index," a commonly used measure of El Ni?o-La Ni?a activity.

"You can't help but notice," he says, "that the spikes in the duration of high-water events seem to correspond to the very strong El Ni?o event in 1997-98, and again in 2009-10, which is the next biggest El Ni?o peak. There's obviously not a direct correlation through the years, but El Ni?o is known for its teleconnections and effects that happen at great distances. So it's not unreasonable to think that there might be some connection there. It's something we continue to keep track of."

Intra-seasonal Variability in Chesapeake Bay

Brubaker's study of how high-water pulses propagate through Chesapeake Bay has also produced some interesting preliminary results. "The magnitude of the peaks in non-tidal water level are pretty consistent across the lower, middle, and upper parts of the Bay," says Brubaker. "But their impacts can be quite different because of the different tidal ranges in those areas."

Brubaker notes that tides in Chesapeake Bay are driven by the ebb and flow of water at its mouth. "The tidal range is higher at the mouth of the Bay, drops to lower levels in the mid-Bay, and then picks up again in the upper Bay," says Brubaker. "Because of that, a coherent peak in water level during an intra-seasonal event will have the greatest impacts in the mid-Bay, where the tidal range is lowest."

Explaining further, Brubaker introduces the term "highest astronomical tide," or HAT, which is the highest high tide predicted for any particular tidal station. "Near the Bay mouth, at the Chesapeake Bay Bridge Tunnel, the HAT is 2.5 feet above mean sea level," says Brubaker, "but at Solomons Island in the mid-Bay, it's only 1.1 feet -- so there's a big difference. In 2009, water levels were elevated at all the tidal stations in Chesapeake Bay for about 6 weeks from June into July, but at the Bridge Tunnel they only exceeded HAT for 24 hours, a cumulative total of 2 days. At Solomons, by contrast, the water level exceeded HAT during almost every high tide. In fact, there was a period when the whole tidal cycle, from high through low tide, remained above HAT. All told, water levels at Solomons exceeded the HAT for a total of 15 days from June into July.

"The bottom line," says Brubaker, "is that the same rise in water level will have different impacts at different locations in the Bay. Even though the water rises uniformly, the relative impact will differ by location and the level of the highest astronomic tide. HAT is an important datum for ecosystems, and it should be an important datum for people too. City planners, waterfront property owners, and land-use decision makers shouldn't build too close to the HAT where they live. When they do, they're likely to get in trouble."

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Virginia Institute of Marine Science. The original article was written by David Malmquist.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

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Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/~3/6uavXhgthWI/121127111346.htm

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Ehud Barak says he's quitting Israeli politics

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak waves to media after a conference in Tel Aviv, Monday, Nov. 26, 2012. Barak shook up the Israeli political system Monday with the abrupt announcement that he is quitting politics and will not run in general elections in January. The defense minister made the surprise announcement even after polls showed his breakaway Independence Party gaining momentum after Israel's recent military offensive in the Gaza Strip. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak waves to media after a conference in Tel Aviv, Monday, Nov. 26, 2012. Barak shook up the Israeli political system Monday with the abrupt announcement that he is quitting politics and will not run in general elections in January. The defense minister made the surprise announcement even after polls showed his breakaway Independence Party gaining momentum after Israel's recent military offensive in the Gaza Strip. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak speaks to the media in Tel Aviv, Monday, Nov. 26, 2012. Barak shook up the Israeli political system Monday with the abrupt announcement that he is quitting politics and will not run in general elections in January. The defense minister made the surprise announcement even after polls showed his breakaway Independence Party gaining momentum after Israel's recent military offensive in the Gaza Strip. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak speaks to the media in Tel Aviv, Monday, Nov. 26, 2012. Barak shook up the Israeli political system Monday with the abrupt announcement that he is quitting politics and will not run in general elections in January. The defense minister made the surprise announcement even after polls showed his breakaway Independence Party gaining momentum after Israel's recent military offensive in the Gaza Strip. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak speaks to the media in Tel Aviv, Monday, Nov. 26, 2012. Barak shook up the Israeli political system Monday with the abrupt announcement that he is quitting politics and will not run in general elections in January. The defense minister made the surprise announcement even after polls showed his breakaway Independence Party gaining momentum after Israel's recent military offensive in the Gaza Strip. (AP Photo/Oded Balilty)

JERUSALEM (AP) ? Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak abruptly quit politics Monday, potentially robbing Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu of a key ally who enabled his hardline government to present a moderate face to the world.

Barring another comeback by the mercurial former general, Barak's departure marked an end to a distinguished and tumultuous career that spanned half a century. It began on a communal farm, led to military greatness and business success and a mixed record in politics that was highlighted by failed peacemaking efforts during a brief term as prime minister.

Despite polls showing his small centrist Independence Party gaining momentum following the eight-day Israeli offensive in Gaza that he steered, Barak said he would not run again for office in the Jan. 22 elections.

"I feel I have exhausted my political activity, which had never been a special object of desire for me," Barak, 70, said in a surprise announcement in Tel Aviv. "There are many ways for me to serve the country and society, not just through politics."

Barak will remain as defense minister until a new government is sworn in after the elections.

Still, analysts predicted that Israel's most prominent warrior-statesman of his generation had yet to say the last word and was perhaps still angling to keep his job after the election as a special appointment of Netanyahu, who is expected to be re-elected. In recent polls, Barak's party had been struggling to nudge above the electoral threshold needed to get into parliament.

"In his position, he did the smartest thing one could do," said Shlomo Avineri, a political science professor at Jerusalem's Hebrew University. "He's not as popular as an electoral candidate as he is a minister of defense. He's not going to say no if he's asked to be the next minister of defense. And he probably will."

Over the past four years, Barak gave Netanyahu's governing coalition a well-known face to deal with the international community and Netanyahu himself a loyal and seasoned partner.

The two men have been close since the 1970s, when Barak was Netanyahu's commander in the elite Sayeret Matkal commando unit. As prime minister, Netanyahu awarded Barak great influence in decision-making and made him his informal point man to the United States.

The Obama administration embraced him as a moderating influence on Netanyahu's hardline policies toward the Arab world and Iran's nuclear program. Barak was scheduled to depart Tuesday for meetings with U.S. officials in Washington.

His departure from politics comes at an uncertain time for Israel, with Islamist political parties rising around the Jewish state and a decision looming on whether to strike Iran's nuclear program.

The Netanyahu-Barak alliance had its strains over this issue ? with the prime minister reportedly objecting to Barak's newly moderate position that Israel should defer to the U.S. in deciding whether to attack Iran should sanctions fail to deter Tehran from attaining a nuclear bomb.

With opinion polls forecasting an even more hawkish government taking power after the January election, Netanyahu may face increasing heat from President Barack Obama in his second term without the moderating effect of Barak.

Netanyahu's hawkish vice premier, Moshe Yaalon, is expected to become defense minister if Barak remains on the sidelines.

In a statement, Netanyahu did not reveal his hand, saying only he "respects" Barak's decision to retire and thanking him for "his contribution ? over many years ? to the security of the state."

A protege of the assassinated Prime Minister Yitzhak Rabin, another former chief of staff, Barak was groomed for greatness. Born Ehud Brog, the eldest of four sons to Eastern European immigrants, he changed his name in the military to Barak (Hebrew for lightning).

He became Israel's most-decorated soldier ever, collecting medals and citations at a historic pace for his heroics on the battlefield and for leading daring commando raids.

As commander of Sayeret Matkal, Barak led the 1972 raid on a hijacked Sabena airliner on the ground in Israel with the commandos disguised as airline technicians. A photograph of Barak standing on the wing in white overalls as the freed hostages were disembarking has become part of Israeli lore. The following year, he led a commando operation in Beirut, sneaking into the city disguised as a woman.

Renowned as a brilliant military strategist, he rocketed through the ranks to become military chief of staff. In 1995, after 36 years in uniform, he made the quick transition to politics.

In less than four years, Barak was elected to parliament, held two top Cabinet posts, took charge of Israel's iconic Labor Party and was elected prime minister ? beating Netanyahu in 1999 ? on a pledge to reach a long-awaited peace with Israel's enemies.

But his stormy term in office lasted less than two years ? the shortest of any elected Israeli premier ? and he left under a swell of discontent for his unilateral withdrawal from south Lebanon in 2000, his failed negotiations with the Palestinians and Syria, and a violent Palestinian uprising that erupted under his watch.

Despite the dramatic collapse, Barak credited his wide-reaching offer at Camp David to withdraw from nearly all of the West Bank and Gaza with exposing Palestinian leader Yasser Arafat's essential rejection of peace ? a view endorsed by U.S. President Bill Clinton. By offering far-reaching concessions that had never been considered before, such as dividing Jerusalem and evacuating large settlements blocs, Barak also prepared Israeli public opinion for the types of steps it would likely have to take for future peace.

In 2001, Barak was crushed by Ariel Sharon in a special election. On the night of his defeat, Barak retired in dramatic fashion. Over the next few years, he amassed a fortune on the lecture circuit and in the corporate world. He purchased a high-rise Tel Aviv apartment reportedly worth more than $10 million, part of a lavish lifestyle that angered his socialist supporters.

In 2007, he returned to politics, easily recapturing the leadership of the Labor Party and becoming defense minister in a bid to rehabilitate a military that performed below expectations in a war against Hezbollah guerrillas the previous year.

But he remained personally unpopular and his party, which had led Israel to independence and governed it for its first three decades, had lost its public appeal.

After leading Labor to an all-time low of 13 of 120 parliamentary seats in the 2009 election, Barak enraged his dovish base by joining Netanyahu's coalition government.

Israeli hardliners didn't like him any better, accusing him of undercutting the West Bank settlement movement by withholding construction approvals, clearing squatters from West Bank homes and encouraging Netanyahu to support a slowdown in settlement construction. That slowdown, initiated by the United States, has since expired.

Barak eventually broke away from Labor to form his new party, Independence, with a few junior allies. Without its founding father, the future of the party is now in question.

Avraham Diskin, a political analyst at Tel Aviv University, said given Barak's resume "it just isn't worth the effort and humiliation" of fighting for his political survival.

"If he wants to be the defense minister in the next government, it depends more on the relationship he and Bibi have than on whether he has a very tiny section in the Knesset (parliament) or not," he said, referring to Netanyahu by his nickname.

Former general Danny Yatom, a longtime Barak confidant, said he will be remembered most for his attempts at peace.

"Barak's legacy is steadfastly defending the security of the state of Israel alongside a deep understanding that the conflict between us and the Arabs cannot be solved by military means alone," he said. "He tried when he was prime minister, but he did not succeed."

_____

Lauren E. Bohn contributed to this report.

Follow Heller on Twitter (at)aronhellerap

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2012-11-26-Israel-Politics/id-ff982b286567486e99aefaa980ba7147

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Valuable Home Improvement Advice To Remodel And Repair Your ...

So you?ve found this article. Now you should be ready for your home improvement project. Now is as good a time as any to make these changes. You probably have a lot of questions on how to start and what to do, but don?t worry, this article has you covered. Read on for some helpful hints to help get you on your way towards tackling your next project with confidence.

A good home improvement suggestions is taking the local conditions into account when doing a renovation. If the area you live in is windy, a deck might not be the best idea. If your renovation doesn?t make sense given your location, it may not add much value to your home.

The time you spend prepping your space before painting can save you both time and money on your home improvement project. If you are doing some painting, you must cover all furniture in advance. Paint can ruin furniture forever if it touches it. You can use sheets to put over your furniture so you can keep drips or splatters of paint away.

If you?re out of space in the kitchen, try a microwave which goes over the stove range. These microwaves replace the hood of the range and are available in many price ranges, depending on the features desired. Because most units have only a recirculating filter instead of a vent, they?re best suited for cooks who don?t require a strong venting solution.

Be certain to highlight the selling points of your house. Avoid blocking any windows that look onto a pond or water feature, and remove a canopy to display a tiered ceiling inside the master suite. Understand that keeping a view will increase the selling points of your home. This will showcase your home?s most special and desirable features to potential buyers.

Many home improvements are focused on making a home more energy-efficient, and one of them is simply purchasing a very useful bit of equipment. Instead of having all of your electronics plugged in, use a power strip. With a power strip, you can easily turn off, and back on, the power to all of your electronics. You can save energy by turning the strip off when you are not using it.

A great, simple project you can take on that sometimes goes overlooked is going around and removing the stains and spots in your carpets.? You would be surprised what a difference this makes in the look of your carpet and home.? There are many stain spot removers you can buy at the store or online that are powerful enough to remove set in stains.

Don?t leave anything out when you plan out your budget. When faced with unexpected expenses, your budget can take a critical hit as these pile up. By planning properly, you can stop this from happening and you are much more prepared for anything that may occur.

When considering home improvement projects, choose one room to tackle first. It is much easier to begin in one room and complete it before beginning the next project. You can also save more money if you plan ahead and coordinate your project with sales on the supplies you need. Plan carefully when you consider making improvements to your home if you want to save some money.

Now you are much more prepared when it comes to home improvement. You may have thought you were already ready; however, look at yourself now! These tips should help you get motivated to make changes to your home.

Source: http://joealdegueronline.com/valuable-home-improvement-advice-to-remodel-and-repair-your-home/

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Video: Could Rice be next Secretary of State?

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Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036697/vp/49892416#49892416

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Poland says university scientist planned to blow up parliament

WARSAW (Reuters) - Polish officials said on Tuesday they had arrested a radical nationalist who planned to detonate a vehicle loaded with four tonnes of explosives outside parliament, possibly when the president and prime minister were in the building.

Prosecutors said the man, a scientist who works for a university in the southern city of Krakow, had assembled a small arsenal of explosive material, guns and remote-controlled detonators and was trying to recruit others to help him.

A video recording taken from the suspect showed what prosecutors said was a test explosion he conducted, leaving a large crater in the ground.

Polish television, citing sources close to the investigation, said the suspect planned to copy methods used by Anders Behring Breivik, who killed 77 people in bomb and gun attacks in Norway last year and said he was driven by far-right views.

"The suspect does not belong to a political group or party. He claims that he was acting on nationalistic, anti-Semitic and xenophobic motives," prosecutor Piotr Krason told a news conference.

"He carried out reconnaissance in the neighborhood of the Sejm (parliament). This building was to be the target of the attack. He collected explosives and materials for detonation," Krason said.

Poland has no experience of militant violence in its modern history. Society is though deeply polarized between supporters of liberal values and those who believe the country is neglecting its Catholic roots and succumbing to foreign influence.

Earlier this month, a rally in the capital, Warsaw, by right-wing nationalists turned violent, when youths in the crowd started throwing flares and stones at police.

Earlier on Tuesday, prosecutors said they had initiated legal proceedings against the bomb plot suspect on November 5 and that Poland's Internal Security Agency would handle the case.

"The case looks very serious," Pawel Gras, a government spokesman, told TOK FM radio station. "We know that the possible targets were to be the president, the parliament and the government." (Writing by Christian Lowe)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/poland-says-extremist-planned-blow-parliament-100436666.html

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Leonid meteor shower may flare up Tuesday

The annual Leonid meteor shower hit its regular peak over the weekend, but stargazers who missed the event may catch the second act of the shooting stars show tonight and early Tuesday (Nov. 20).

November is the time of the Leonid meteor shower, when the meteors come swarming into our night sky view every as the Earth passes through a debris stream from an ancient comet. These ultra-swift?light streaks appear to emanate from out of the constellation of Leo (hence the name, "Leonid"), a star pattern that currently ?rises in the northeast at 11 p.m. local time, and remains in view for the rest of the night.?

The traditional peak for the Leonids occurred before dawn on Saturday morning (Nov. 17). Many reports however, indicate that this year's display was unusually weak, with most people reporting no more than five to 10 meteors per hour.?

But that's not the end of the Leonids for this year. The year 2012 offers some of us another chance early Tuesday morning (Nov. 20) when the Earth passes through another Leonids debris stream.

You can watch the Leonids meteor shower live online here on SPACE.com via a telescope feed from NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville , Ala. [Leonid Meteor Shower of 2012 (Photos)]

Leonid's comet legacy

The Leonid meteor shower is created by debris from the comet Tempel-Tuttle, which orbits the sun every 33 years. During the closest approach to the sun, the star's heat causes some of the comet?s ice to crumble off, taking some dusty debris with it. Those lanes of debris are what Earth passes through each November to create the Leonids.

The average Leonid visible to the naked eye is scarcely larger than a grain of sand. We know them best when they reach the Earth's upper atmosphere and flare into streaks of light from friction with the rarefied air. They enter the atmosphere at an immense velocity ? 45 miles per second (72 kilometers per second), or 162,000 mph (261,000 kph) ? and its kinetic energy is used up in such processes as the instantaneous production of light, heat and ionization.

Thus, such a small particle can be seen as a ?shooting star? from more than 100 miles away. Obviously, however, it's really the light energy that it develops and not the particle itself that we see.

How to see 600-year-old comet dust

This year the best time to look for the Leonids might actually come in the early morning hours of Tuesday, Nov. 20. Two veteran experts in the field of meteor science, J?r?mie Vaubaillonof France and Mikhail Maslov of Russia, have?independently calculated that the Earth is on target to pass directly through a small clump of dust shed by comet Tempel-Tuttle when it swept around the sun in the year 1400 A.D. [How Meteor Showers Work (Infographic)]

That interaction is expected to occur between about 12:30 a.m. and 3:00 a.m. EST, meaning that those living in eastern North America should have the best views. Maslov is forecasting 12:36 a.m. EST, while Vaubaillon says it will occur at 2:58 a.m. EST.

Still, don?t expect a tremendous number of meteors. Maslov, in fact, thinks the display will likely not exceed 15 Leonids per hour as seen from a dark sky location (even less if you?re trying to watch from a brightly-lit city).? Vaubaillon, meanwhile, concurs: "The density of particles doesn't look very high. Maybe a brief outburst at best."

So why bother looking at all? In this case, it isn?t the quantity, but the quality of the meteors you may see.

Super-bright fireball meteors?

When a comet releases particles into space most are indeed the size of dust and sand grains, but there are also some larger pieces too, ranging from pebble size to perhaps a child?s marble. Those kinds of pieces can create outstandingly bright meteors, or "fireballs," perhaps even meteors that explode in their flight across the sky, known as "bolides."

After a number of revolutions around the sun, most of the dust-sized particles become dispersed so only the larger pieces remain. Time is of no human consequence to these meteors. In the case of the clump of particles shed by Tempel-Tuttle in 1400, it has circled the sun 18 times. So if there?s anything left out there in space, there might at least be some of those larger pebble-sized pieces.

If so, then during that 2 1/2 hour interval beginning around 12:30 a.m. EST on Tuesday morning, there's a chance that stargazers may be treated to a few exceptionally bright meteors. [Surprise Fireball Lights Up U.K. Sky (Video)]

The dazzling Leonid meteors are well-known for leaving particularly long-enduring incandescent sky trails, sometimes lingering for many seconds or even minutes. With binoculars you can see these trains drifting against the backdrop of stars, indicative of swift winds in the very high atmosphere.?

Over the central and western United States and Canada, the Leonids peak will occur due earlier in the night (on Monday evening), but viewing circumstances are less favorable.

Along the West Coast for instance, the peak comes from 9:30 p.m. to midnight PST late Monday night.? At best, perhaps a bright Earth-grazing meteor or two might be glimpsed. Earth-grazing meteors are space rocks that enter the Earth's atmosphere at a low angle, from the point of view of a given stargazer, and appear to scoot slowly and dramatically along the horizon.

Or will Leonids Part 2 fizzle?

On the other hand, Maslov thinks that the meteor brightness will be ?somewhat lower than average.? Robert Lunsford of the American Meteor Society says:? ?It does not sound like anything exciting and that is why I did not mention it in my weekly outlook. But I hope ? that the meteors may be bright ? time will tell.?

?Bill Cooke of NASA?s Meteoroid Environmental Office at the Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama is also somewhat cautious.

"In this case it is probably more where or when the particles were ejected than how fast. The small stuff from 1400 may be perturbed just right to intersect the Earth, though in past showers older Leonid trails have tended to have larger particles, such as in 1998," Cooke said. "My advice would be to look Tuesday morning ? I will be."

Second chance Leonids: How to watch

If you plan to follow Cooke?s advice, here are a couple of tips: Make sure to stay warm and get comfortable.? Should you have a lawn chair that reclines, use it during your search for Leonid meteors since it will help keep your neck from getting stiff as well as make it easier to look at the night sky. Leonids will be streaking out of the northeast, but don?t stare at any one part of the sky; scan different areas ? just keep looking all over.

The Marshall Center is offering a live Ustream telescope view of the Leonids over Huntsville, Ala., from Nov. 16-20. So you can watch for Leonids on your computer screen if your local weather doesn't cooperate.

Final Leonid thoughts

Put simply, Leonids sightings may very well be very few and far between on Tuesday morning and perhaps they might not even show up at all.? But even the small possibility of sighting a Leonid fireball is indeed tempting.

Having witnessed a number of these over the years, I can assure you that seeing just one of those dazzlers will make your whole night. Hopefully, nature will be in a show-off mood in the predawn hours of Tuesday.

Good Luck and clear skies!

Editor's note:?If you snap an amazing photo of the Leonid meteor shower and would like to share it with SPACE.com for a possible story or image gallery, send images, comments and location information to managing editor Tariq Malik at?tmalik@space.com.

Joe Rao serves as an instructor and guest lecturer at New York's Hayden Planetarium. He writes about astronomy for The New York Times and other publications, and he is also an on-camera meteorologist for News 12 Westchester, New York.?Follow SPACE.com on Twitter?@Spacedotcom. We're also on?Facebook?&?Google+.?

Copyright 2012 SPACE.com, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/leonid-meteor-shower-may-flare-early-tuesday-190709592.html

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Nuclear One-Two Punch Could Knock Out Dangerous Asteroid

Destroying a dangerous asteroid with a nuclear bomb is a well-worn trope of science fiction, but it could become reality soon enough.

Scientists are developing a mission concept that would blow apart an Earth-threatening asteroid with a nuclear explosion, just like Bruce Willis and his oilmen-turned-astronaut crew did in the 1998 film "Armageddon."

But unlike in the movie, the spacecraft under development ? known as the Hypervelocity Asteroid Intercept Vehicle, or HAIV ? would be unmanned. It would hit the space rock twice in quick succession, with the non-nuclear first blow blasting out a crater for the nuclear bomb to explode inside, thus magnifying its asteroid-shattering power.

"Using our proposed concept, we do have a practically viable solution ? a cost-effective, economically viable, technically feasible solution," study leader Bong Wie, of Iowa State University, said Wednesday (Nov. 14) at the 2012 NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) meeting in Virginia. [5 Reasons to Care About Asteroids]

When, not if

Earth has been pummeled by asteroids?throughout its 4.5-billion-year history, and some of the strikes have been catastrophic. For example, a 6-mile-wide (10 kilometers) space rock slammed into the planet 65 million years ago, wiping out the dinosaurs.

Earth is bound to be hit again, and relatively soon. Asteroids big enough to cause serious damage today ? not necessarily the extinction of humans, but major disruptions to the global economy ? have hit the planet on average every 200 to 300 years, researchers say.

So humanity needs to have a plan in hand to deal with the next threatening asteroid, many scientists stress.

That plan should include deflection strategies, they say.?Given a few decades of lead time, a threatening space rock could be nudged off course ? perhaps by employing a tag-along "gravity tractor" probe, or even by painting the asteroid white?and letting sunlight give it a push.

But humanity also needs to be prepared for an asteroid that pops up on scientists' radar just weeks before a potential impact. That scenario might demand the nuclear option that Wie and his colleagues are working to develop.

A one-two punch

NASA engineers identified 168 technical flaws in "Armageddon,"?Wie said. But one thing the movie got right is the notion that a nuke will be far more effective if it explodes inside an asteroid rather than at its surface. (At a depth of 10 feet, or 3 meters, the bomb's destructive power would be about 20 times greater, Wie said.)

So Wie and his team came up with a way to get the bomb down into a hole, without relying on a crew of spacewalking roughnecks to bore into the space rock.

The HAIV spacecraft incorporates two separate impactors, a "leader" and a "follower." As HAIV nears the asteroid, the leader separates and slams into the space rock, blasting out a crater about 330 feet (100 m) wide.

The nuke-bearing follower hits the hole a split-second later, blowing the asteroid to smithereens. Simulations suggest the explosion would fling bits of space rock far and wide, leaving only a tiny percentage of the asteroid's mass to hit Earth, Wie said.

This is no pie-in-the sky dream: The researchers have received two rounds of funding from the NIAC program, and they say their plan is eminently achievable.

"Basically, our proposed concept is an extension of the flight-proven $300 million Deep Impact mission," Wie said, referring to the NASA effort that slammed an impactor into Comet Tempel 1 in 2005.

Demonstration mission coming?

The HAIV project is still in its early stages, and much more modeling and developmental work is needed. But Wie and his colleagues are ambitious, with plans for a bomb-free flight test in the next decade or so.

"Our ultimate goal is to be able to develop about a $500 million flight demo mission within a 10-year timeframe," Wie said.

The team's current work involves analyzing the feasibility of nuking a small but still dangerous asteroid ? one about 330 feet (100 m) wide ? with little warning time. However, it wouldn't be too difficult to scale up, Wie said.

"Once we develop technology to be used in this situation, we are ready to avoid any collision ? with much larger size, with much longer warning time," Wie said.

Follow SPACE.com senior writer Mike Wall on Twitter @michaeldwall?or SPACE.com @Spacedotcom. We're also on Facebook?and?Google+.

Copyright 2012 SPACE.com, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/nuclear-one-two-punch-could-knock-dangerous-asteroid-160319627.html

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?Oil could bankroll separate Scotland?

Both sides of the debate over independence were claiming major success last night after a new report on the economics of a separate Scotland.

The report, by the Institute for Fiscal Studies, stated that if Scotland had received income from its geographic share of oil revenues over the past few years it would have enjoyed a stronger financial position than the rest of the UK. This was seized on by Nationalists. But the report also made it clear that Scotland?s advantageous economic position would purely be down to the value of oil.

This prompted unionist politicians to warn an independent

Source: http://www.thetimes.co.uk/tto/news/uk/scotland/article3604474.ece

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Dinnington Lad well-prepared for William Hill Hotbox Bet Stakes at ...

Dinnington Lad well-prepared for William Hill Hotbox Bet Stakes at Newcastle

After doing very well in the trials, Dinnington Lad is geared up to prove his mettle at the competitive level. On his previous outing at the A1 level, the black dog remained unlucky, finishing fifth behind Blazedale Black. He baulked at the first bend, and could not recover thereafter.

No one should judge him on the recent trouncing, because H. Burton?s charge is well capable of doing well. On his latest trial outing, the son of Montos Mark covered 480 metres in just 29.67 seconds, grabbing the first rank by three lengths.

After a superb effort in the trials, he is all set for a crack in William Hill Hotbox Bet Stakes, a 480 metres Grade A2 meeting, being hosted by Newcastle on Tuesday, November 13, 2012. Without a shadow of doubt, he is fancied to be the first of this field to meet the judge.

Among Dinnington Lad?s opponents are: Any Plans, Borna Riva, Last Cigar, Holycross Rebel and Fortfield Melody. According to the schedule, the contest is due to begin at 21:07 GMT. A cash prize of 127 pounds is reserved for the ultimate champion.

Borna Riva is expected to gain plenty of attention from the punters. The brindle bitch is standing in the red box, looking good to make an impression. But we don?t see her as the best betting option because of her recent poor form. She is coming into this after two straight losses at this level.

Holycross Rebel?s hopes are not particularly high against this line-up. The black dog is in winning mood at the moment, but the victory came at the HC level. It is going to be very tricky situation for him.

Fortfield Melody is not one of the principal contenders on this occasion. Last Cigar does not inspire when drawn here. Although her form is not terrible, it is hard to rely on her.

Any Plans, on the other hand, is expected to play part in finish. Despite the fact that J. Wright?s charge was awful on his latest outing, no one should overlook the class he possesses. We wish him and others all the best.

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are the writer's own and do not reflect Bettor.com?s editorial policy.

Source: http://blogs.bettor.com/Dinnington-Lad-well-prepared-for-William-Hill-Hotbox-Bet-Stakes-at-Newcastle-a200880

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Stocks head higher as inflation pressure eases

Stock indexes are edging higher in early trading on Wall Street after the U.S. government reported that wholesale price inflation eased last month for the first time since May.

The Dow Jones industrial average is up 11 points at 12,767 shortly after the opening bell Wednesday.

The Standard & Poor's 500 index rose four points to 1,378 and the Nasdaq composite index rose 15 points to 2,899.

The Labor Department said wholesale prices slipped 0.2 percent in October as gasoline, and energy prices as a whole, trailed off. Food prices rose because of drought conditions.

Teen retailer Abercrombie & Fitch's stock soared 29 percent after the company reported a 41 percent surge in income, more than analysts were expecting. The company also raised its estimate for full-year earnings.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2012-11-14-Wall%20Street-Open/id-bba05371e76b40a6b988eaabfe574d9d

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Shopping and Product Reviews by Marcell Eward: Gift Basket - Elton ...

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Source: http://eltonclark.typepad.com/blog/2012/11/shopping-and-product-reviews-by-marcell-eward-gift-basket.html

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the New School: Gigantic Brewing's Ume Umai beer debuts at ...

Portland's is getting a taste of Japanese pub culture this Friday 11/16 when our first ever Izakaya festival takes place at the Jupiter Hotel. This unique fest shines a spotlight on Japanese art, cuisine, shochu, sak? and beer for NW drink connoisseurs and foodies alike. With Portland's craft beer-minded consumer in mind the festival has wisely teamed up with Gigantic Brewing to create a beer called "Ume Umai" brewed with Black Rice and Plums just for this event.

Izakaya is a Japanese word for pubs, drinking establishments that also serve food and cater more towards the casual drinking class for after work refreshment. Much like the brewpubs and gastropubs we make our 2nd home Japanese pub culture is thriving. While Sake may be the traditional Japanese alcoholic beverage most Izakaya's carry a variety of beer, wine and cocktails, whiskey is also a popular spirit there. Food is an equal accompaniment to the free flowing alcohol, many Izakaya's prefer larger shared plates that fit the communal shared nature of a traditional Izakaya. These pubs in Japan are often marked by a bright red chochin (lantern) like that depicted in the poster to the right. There is something beautifully quaint and romantic about the simple marker of a lantern to signify a warm place for food and drink.

In creating a beer for the Izakaya fest Gigantic owners/brewers Ben Love and Van Havig worked with local restaurant Shigezo. Sourcing enough Black Rice was somewhat difficult, only about 40 lbs were available at the local Asian grocery Uwajimaya and the remaining 44lbs were found at Gobuji in Beaverton.

Using a base of 85% Pilsner malt they left 15% of the mash for Black Rice that was prepared in huge cookers at Shigezo. "We had them leave the rice "as is" - not rinsing it, so that we got as much color and starch as possible," relates Brewmaster/Owner Ben Love. The cooked rice was added by the handful to the mash and stirred in. The enzymes of the mash worked their magic and extracted more sugar than thought from the rice resulting in a higher gravity than expected. "After the mash, the rice looked relatively the same, but when you ate it, it wasn't sweet. All the sugar was gone"

With just that 15% of the mash being black rice the wort picked up enough color to take on an orange-amber hue. Ben Love tells me that the Black Rice contributed an aroma similar to White Tea as well as a savory mushroom flavor and subtle black licorice-like spiciness.

Last week I joined brewers and volunteers to help slice around 1,260 pounds of Black Plums to be added to three 270 gallon wine totes and topped off with the beer which is how the beer earns it's unusual name "Ume Umai". Plums are a staple of Japanese culture and come in many varieties, "Ume" is the word used for plum and "Umi" means literally "yummy".The "Ume" is processed in different ways before eaten and is more tart than the western plum. The most popular plum dish is the "Umeboshi" a pickled plum typically enjoyed with cooked rice much like the ingredients of the beer. There is also "Umeshu" which is a sweet alcoholic plum wine.
Each Plum was hand sliced in half, the fruit brand sticker removed and then crushed by hand and tossed into the big plastic totes. We did not concern ourselves with the plum pit, that went in too. The black plum skin is tart, the inside sweet and modest crushing and slicing reveals a sweet meal for the still active eager yeast already pitched into the beer. Brewers hope that the dark skin of the fruit will contribute even more color to the finished ale and maybe even help it take on a purple tone.
Try the fruits of their labors on Friday at the Jupiter Hotel. I recommend purchasing tickets in advance, they are affordable http://celebrateizakaya.com/

Source: http://www.newschoolbeer.com/2012/11/gigantic-brewings-ume-umai-beer-debuts.html

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Show Business: [aabusiness] Kindle Publishing: How to ...

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Kindle Publishing: How to Commission a Cover That Helps Sell Your Ebook

by Marcia Yudkin

I'm a "word person," not skilled with images. That's great for writing, but it's a bit of a handicap when it comes to creating covers for my Kindle ebooks. Nevertheless, through trial and error, as well as observations of people I've watched go through the process, I have quite a bit of advice to offer when it comes to commissioning a cover that sells your ebook.

Work with someone who has already designed covers for other Kindle authors, whose style you like and who has excellent customer reviews. Don't hire someone who has top-notch artistic skills but hasn't done ebook covers before, as they would be learning on your dime and might very well make a blunder you don't catch.

For example, did you know that including the word "by" before the author's name on a cover screams "amateur"? If you don't know things like that, and your designer doesn't know, either, then you end up with a cover that looks somehow off to book buyers, although they might not be able to say why.

Research covers of successful books in your niche so you can give examples to your designer of what you want to look like or different from. For instance, for my latest business title, I noticed a trend from the big publishers of a lot of empty space on the cover and a central image. I gave four examples of that general trend to my designer, saying I wanted to look like I belonged in their company. Yet I also saw that on my exact topic, most of the covers were black and gloomy, and I said I wanted something sunnier and upbeat.

If you can come up with a concept or an image for the cover, that gives extremely useful direction to the designer, enabling him or her to concentrate their efforts on making it look artful and appealing. For example, for an ebook on marketing to introverts I told my designer I envisioned a New England-style stone wall with a section of the stones fallen out and sunlight pouring through the gap. She made that image look even better than my mental image of it. For an ebook on top ten tips on a certain topic, I asked for a cover with no image but an emphasis on the numeral "10." That also worked out great.

Warn your designer about any clich?s you would like the cover to stay away from. For instance, on the topic of creativity I instructed the designer, "No light bulbs, please!"

Finalize the title and subtitle for your book before giving the assignment to your designer and don't allow the designer to change their wording. The designer's job is getting the look right, not the text. Make sure the designer understands that the cover must include the title, the subtitle and the author's name, either along with an image or just making the most graphically of the other elements.

For ebooks, which don't get picked up and flipped through in a bookshop before purchase, it's crucial that the main title and author's name be readable at the small size of the thumbnails on online bookstores. It's also essential that the design make sense on the thumbnail, so the viewer isn't thinking, now is that a beehive or a car transmission? If the subtitle doesn't show up clearly at that reduced size, that's okay.

When you are creating an ebook series, plan how you are going to signify the resemblances for the series, which could be through the same general layout and color scheme or through a pattern of certain visual elements that stay the same with different colors and images. When a book shopper sees several of your series covers and other authors' covers together on their monitor, they should be able to recognize instantly which books belong to the series and which don't.

Ask for written evidence from your designer that any images used in the cover were properly licensed. Some of the biggest photo banks in the world now have Internet search programs where they find their unauthorized images and sue the users. Even if it was the designer who stole intellectual property without your knowledge or direction, you could be financially responsible in such a situation.

When you see what the designer has come up with, evaluate it with these questions:

1. Does it convey the emotional feeling this type of book should have?

2. Will the intended readers understand at a glance that this is the type of book they will want to buy and enjoy?

3. Can you read the title and author's name clearly at thumbnail size as well as in the larger view?

4. Are there any aspects or details on the cover that create the wrong impression, such as an outdated hairstyle or signage in an unfamiliar language?

Remember that the ultimate test for the cover is not whether you like it, but whether the readers you created the book for are intrigued and get motivated to buy it!

The author of 16 books and nine multimedia home study courses, Marcia Yudkin has also been selling ebooks on Kindle since the summer of 2011. Her Kindle ebooks include Kindle originals like Marketing for Introverts, Bullets With Bite and No-Hype Copywriting as well as digital versions of her paperback books. Check out her three-week teleseminar course for first-time Kindle authors at http://www.yudkin.com/kindle.htm .

Source: http://businessshownet.blogspot.com/2012/11/aabusiness-kindle-publishing-how-to.html

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PST: Ranking the 4 remaining goalkeepers

The signature touchstones of Major League Soccer?s 2012 playoffs to this point have included big weather, big upsets and big performance from the men guarding goal.

So let?s look quickly at the foursome of starting backstoppers remaining as the teams make final prep for today?s conference finals opening legs. In fact, let?s rank them:

1. Seattle?s Sounders Michael Gspurning: The veteran Austrian was among the league?s best this year, even edging Kansas City?s Jimmy Nielsen for best goals-against average (0.73). More than the numbers, of course, he?s essentially been a rock of stability behind a defense that?s only been stable-ish.

His performance in the series against Real Salt Lake was flawless, even if we talked more about the other fellow, Real Salt Lake?s Nick Rimando, whose exceptional night in Seattle overshadowed Gspurning?s good work. Still, he?s been everything they need.

(MORE: match preview for Galaxy-Seattle)

2. Houston?s Tally Hall: The playoffs have never been a problem for Hall, who is still in only his second year as an MLS starter. Houston?s big 2011 playoff run began with Hall?s remarkable 10-save performance as the Dynamo upset Philadelphia at PPL Park. (That was his first post-season match; not bad, eh?)

This year, Hall has done little wrong in allowing two goals in three matches. One bad choice to hurry out of goal got dicey in the Dynamo win over Sporting K.C. in Houston, but he?s generally been squeaky clean otherwise.

(MORE: match preview for Houston-D.C. United)

3. L.A. Galaxy?s Josh Saunders: The Galaxy was clearly better in 2012 with their starting man in goal, having suffered measurably as Saunders missed a chunk in mid-season due to personal reasons. Down the stretch, however, the 31-year-old Oregonian has not been at his best. There has been a wobble here and there, and then we all saw that ball he let wiggle free against San Jose. In the end, it didn?t crater the Galaxy playoff ambitions, but it certainly can?t add to the stores of confidence for Saunders (or his teammates).

4. D.C. United?s?Bill Hamid / Joe Willis: Hamid, United?s young starter, is struggling. So perhaps it?s just as well that Willis, Hamid?s young backup (although not quite as young) will guard goal today as Hamid sits out his mandatory one-game red card suspension. (Oh, and never Tweet while angry, young man. It?s unbecoming, and you should know better.)

Source: http://prosoccertalk.nbcsports.com/2012/11/11/ranking-the-foursome-of-surviving-mls-goalkeepers/related/

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If the Back to the Future Shoes Were Made Today, They Would Look Like This

The Nike MAG, which we lovingly know as the Back to the Future shoes, always had the aww-inducing charm of the 80's. Even though they were meant to represent style of 2015, the shoes were totally retro futuristic. These Nikes though? They look as if the Back to the Future shoes were invented in 2012. More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/eL9aV-PacMg/if-the-back-to-the-future-shoes-were-made-today-they-would-look-like-this

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Video: An inside look at FDNY?s heroism

The last days of Romneyland

From the moment Mitt Romney stepped off stage Tuesday night, having just delivered a brief concession speech he wrote only that evening, the massive infrastructure surrounding his campaign quickly began to disassemble itself.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/40153870/vp/49752182#49752182

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Don't stifle outsourcing, India tells America ? Business Standard

Sorry, Readability was unable to parse this page for content.

Source: http://www.thefinancialherald.com/?p=350542

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Guatemalans huddle in streets after deadly quake

Soldiers and rescue workers search for victims at a sand extraction site after a magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck in San Marcos, Guatemala, Wednesday Nov. 7, 2012. The mountain village, some 80 miles (130 kilometers) from the epicenter, suffered much of the damage with some 30 homes collapsing in its center. There are three confirmed dead and many missing after the strongest earthquake to hit Guatemala since a deadly 1976 quake that killed 23,000. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)

Soldiers and rescue workers search for victims at a sand extraction site after a magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck in San Marcos, Guatemala, Wednesday Nov. 7, 2012. The mountain village, some 80 miles (130 kilometers) from the epicenter, suffered much of the damage with some 30 homes collapsing in its center. There are three confirmed dead and many missing after the strongest earthquake to hit Guatemala since a deadly 1976 quake that killed 23,000. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)

Yellow taped is draped in front of a home damaged in a magnitude 7.4 earthquake that struck in San Marcos, Guatemala, Wednesday, Nov. 7, 2012. The mountain village, some 80 miles (130 kilometers) from the epicenter, suffered much of the damage with some 30 homes collapsing in its center. There are three confirmed dead and many missing after the strongest earthquake to hit Guatemala since a deadly 1976 quake that killed 23,000. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)

Firefighters transport a wounded resident into a public hospital after he was injured in a magnitude 7.4 earthquake that struck in San Marcos, Guatemala, Wednesday Nov. 7, 2012. The mountain village, some 80 miles (130 kilometers) from the epicenter, suffered much of the damage with some 30 homes collapsing in its center. There are three confirmed dead and many missing after the strongest earthquake to hit Guatemala since a deadly 1976 quake that killed 23,000. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)

Relatives of Rosa Ramos, who died in the earthquake, gather over her coffin at a morgue before returning her remains to her village, in San Marcos, Guatemala, Wednesday, Nov. 7, 2012. The mountain village in the municipality of San Marcos suffered much of the damage after a 7.4-magnitude earthquake struck off the Pacific coast on Wednesday. The quake killed more than 30 people and about 100 people are missing. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)

Rubble blankets a street after a magnitude 7.4 earthquake struck in San Marcos, Guatemala, Wednesday, Nov. 7, 2012. The mountain village, some 80 miles (130 kilometers) from the epicenter, suffered much of the damage with some 30 homes collapsing in its center. Dozens are reported dead and many missing after the strongest earthquake to hit Guatemala since a deadly 1976 quake that killed 23,000. (AP Photo/Moises Castillo)

SAN MARCOS, Guatemala SAN MARCOS, Guatemala (AP) ? Guatemalans fearing aftershocks huddled in the dark and frigid streets of this mountain town wrapped in blankets early Thursday, while others crowded inside its hospital, the only building left with electricity after a powerful earthquake killed at least 48 people and left dozens more missing.

Crews worked through the night in San Marcos, searching rubble for survivors and more dead following the magnitude 7.4 quake that struck Wednesday near Guatemala's border with Mexico.

Rescuers began employing heavy machinery early Thursday to search for more survivors.

"We started rescue work very early," said Julio Cesar Fuentes of the municipal fire department. "The objective is our hope to find people who were buried."

Residents venturing outside into the morning cold found the city paralyzed and businesses closed.

In the town of San Cristobal Cochu, firefighters picked at a collapsed house trying to dig out 10 members of one family, including a 4-year-old child, who were buried, fire department spokesman Ovidio Perez told the radio station Emisoras Unidas.

Volunteers carrying boxes of medical supplies began arriving in the area in western Guatemalan late Wednesday.

Eblin Cifuentes, a 26-year-old law student, and a group of his classmates already were collecting medical supplies as part of a school drive to provide aid for the only hospital in San Marcos, a poor, mainly indigenous mountain area of subsistence farms. When the quake hit, the group decided to bring everything they had collected.

"Thank God nothing happened to us and that's why we have to help out," Cifuentes said.

The quake caused terror over an unusually wide area, with damage reported in all but one of Guatemala's 22 states and shaking felt as far away as Mexico City, 600 miles (965 kilometers) to the northwest.

It hit hardest in San Marcos, where more than 30 homes collapsed and many of the colorful adobe buildings in its center were either cracked or reduced to rubble, including the police station and the courthouse. The temblor tore a large gash in one of the streets. Hundreds of frightened townspeople stayed in the open, refusing to go back inside after more than five strong aftershocks shook the area.

President Otto Perez Molina said that 40 people died in the state of San Marcos and eight more were killed in the neighboring state of Quetzaltenango.

Hundreds of people crammed into the hallways of San Marcos' small hospital after the quake seeking help for injured family members. Some complained they were not getting care quickly enough.

Ingrid Lopez, who bought in a 72-year-old aunt whose legs were crushed by a falling wall, said she had waited hours for an X-ray.

"We ask the president to improve conditions at the hospital," she said. "There isn't enough staff."

More than 300 firefighters, policemen and civilians dug desperately at a half-ton mound of sand at a quarry trying to rescue seven people believed buried alive. Among those under the sand was a 6-year-old boy who had accompanied his grandfather to work.

"I want to see Giovanni! I want to see Giovanni!" the boy's mother, 42-year-old Francisca Ramirez, frantically cried. "He's not dead. Get him out."

By Wednesday night, firefighters had dug out two bodies from the quarry, including Giovanni's.

Perez flew to San Marcos to view the damage in this lush mountainous region of 50,000 indigenous farmers and ranchers, many belonging to the Mam ethnic group.

"One thing is to hear about what happened and another thing entirely is to see it," the president told The Associated Press. "As a Guatemalan I feel sad ... to see mothers crying for their lost children."

Perez said the government would pay for the funerals of all victims in the impoverished region.

Efrain Ramos helped load a tiny casket carrying the body of his 6-year-old niece from San Marcos' morgue to a waiting pickup truck.

"The little girl died when a wall fell over her," a shocked Ramos told a reporter. He said the girl was playing in her room when the quake hit.

Sobbing uncontrollably, the girl's mother hugged the coffin wrapped with white lace and tulle.

Ramos said the family would escort his niece Rosa's body back home for a viewing.

The quake, which was 20 miles deep, was centered 15 miles off the coastal town of Champerico and 100 miles southwest of Guatemala City. It was the strongest earthquake to hit Guatemala since a 1976 temblor that killed 23,000.

Officials said most of 100 missing were from San Marcos, where people farm corn and herd cattle, mostly for their own survival.

Hospital officials in San Marcos said they had received 150 injured.

Perez said more than 2,000 soldiers were deployed to help with the disaster. A plane had made at least two trips to carry relief teams to the area.

___

Associated Press writer Sonia Perez-Diaz reported this story in San Marcos and Romina Ruiz-Goiriena reported from Guatemala City.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2012-11-08-Guatemala-Earthquake/id-3926746c015d44f78f8ac4f773aa8273

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