Dan LeFevour, the standout MAC quarterback from Central Michigan, has recently announced that he will show up at the NFL Scouting Combine, but that he will not participate in any throwing drills.

When is a quarterback not a quarterback? Only at the NFL Combine.

LeFevour joins a growing list including Jimmy Clausen and Sam Bradford, as all three are going to refrain from having their passing scrutinized in front of all the scouts and coaches in attendance at the combine.

Bradford and Clausen have an excuse, as they are coming off surgery.

LeFevour, on the other hand, prefers to wait for the Pro Day at Central Michigan, where he can throw at his own stadium and to his own receivers.

While many experts and draft analysts will be quick to note that this decision will cause LeFevour's stock to drop considerably, it might play directly into the hands of the Buffalo Bills' needs.

When we were asked to conduct a mock draft for the Bills back in January, I had LeFevour going to the Bills in the fourth round of the draft.

With all of the changes that have occurred in the Bills organization since I wrote that article, namely the announcement of switching to a 3-4 defensive alignment and Brad Butler's surprise retirement from football, the Bills will need to identify not one, but two starting tackles, a nose tackle for the new defense, and then a QB, in that order.

So if the Bills do not choose to trade down in the first round to secure additional draft choices in the second or third round, they might have to wait and pray that LeFevour is still there when the Bills' turn rolls around in the fourth round. That is why his decision to not do any passing at the NFL combine could be a blessing in disguise.

Why is LeFevour so Special?

For those of you not that familiar with LeFevour, he is a gifted and talented QB. LeFevour is out of the Mid-American Conference, and before you say so what, just note that he shares that distinction along with Ben Roethlisberger, Byron Leftwich, and Chad Pennington, who could be the veteran QB the Bills sign to mentor Dan.

During his career at Central Michigan, LeFevour put up some staggering numbers. He is the all-time NCAA leader with 149 touchdowns in his career. He is second all-time in career yardage leader with 15,898 yards gained.

For an offense that has been down as long as the Bills' has, the fans will have to exhibit more patience than is probably possible, while waiting for him to learn the NFL game before he is thrown into the fire.

He's a good-sized QB at 6'3″ and 229 pounds. He is a good runner as well, having gained over 700 yards in his senior year with 15 rushing touchdowns.

By the way, LeFevour began his football career as a running back in his freshman year in high school. Injuries forced him to become a QB, but his initial choice at running back has been demonstrated by his running totals amassed as a Chippewa.

Long Laundry List of Awards and Accomplishments

Here is just a partial list of some of the awards that LeFevour has amassed during his years at Central Michigan:

2007 All-MAC first team selection
2008 All-MAC second team selection
2009 MAC Offensive Player of the Year
2009 All-MAC first team selection
2009 Elite Quarterback Performer, College Football Performance Awards
2009 Elite National Performer, College Football Performance Awards
2009 MVP of the MAC Championship Game
2010 MVP of the GMAC Bowl
2010 Senior Bowl North team most outstanding player

How Did He Progress During His Four Years at Central Michigan?

Looking at his four-year statistics, you will note that LeFevour showed positive development and continued to excel as he gained experience.

His freshman year (2006): 26 TD passes to 10 interceptions. QB Passer Rating of 146, and he rushed for 523 yards with seven rushing TDs.

His sophomore year (2007): 27 TD passes to 13 interceptions. QB Passer Rating of 133 and his career high of 1,122 rushing yards along with 19 rushing TDs.

His junior year (2008): 29 TD passes compared to only six interceptions. QB Passer Rating of 144 and 592 rushing yards to go along with six rushing TDs.

Finally, his senior year (2009): Again a whopping 28 TD passes to only seven interceptions. A QB Passer Rating of 150 and 713 rushing yards with 15 rushing TDs.

Chan Gailey has been known to enjoy working with mobile QBs. If this kid isn't the working definition of a mobile QB, then who is?

If you want to learn more about him, you can check out a web site that has been put together by fans of LeFevour. It can be found at danlefevourfans.org.

Dan LeFevour, thanks for the decision to skip passing at the NFL Combines. Now, if only we can be assured that you will drop to the fourth round of the draft, we will be there waiting for you with open arms.

Activision Blizzard formed a new division to run its Call of Duty game franchise following the exit of two studio co-founders who pioneered what has become the biggest revenue generator in the video game industry.

The Santa Monica, Calif.-based parent company named Philip Earl to lead the Call of Duty unit and confirmed the news that Vince Zampella and Jason West, the Infinity Ward studio executives responsible for the smash hit Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2, had left the company.

Earl previously ran Activision Publishing’s Asia Pacific region and will expand the game franchise in new directions, including new geographic markets and new digital business models, the company said. Activision Blizzard confirmed in an SEC filing yesterday that it was in a dispute with the Infinity Ward executives, who were accused of insubordination and breach of contract. Zampella and West have stayed mum. They follow Grant Collier, another co-founder who left Infinity Ward last year.

As I noted before, it seems like a time-worn dispute in games. A small developer creates a smash hit. They get acquired by a publisher. They grow that franchise to enormous heights, and then the disputes start about who gets more compensation, bonuses, credit, and whether the team that started the franchise is still the right team to carry it on past its ultra-creative pioneering phase. It’s not unusual for game company founders to want to move on to a brand new idea for a game, and it’s typical for game publishers to want them to work on the same franchise for the foreseeable future.

Modern Warfare 2 was the biggest-selling video game in history and generated more than $1 billion in revenue from 15 million copies sold since November. That helped Activision Blizzard weather a storm in the game industry that afflicted other rivals such as Take-Two Interactive and Electronic Arts. An Activision spokesman didn’t respond to a request for comment.

Activision bought Infinity Ward in 2003 and rotates the Call of Duty franchise between Treyarch, which handles the World at War version of Call of Duty, and Infinity Ward, which creates the Modern Warfare games.

The company expects to release a new Call of Duty game from Treyarch this fall. In addition, Infinity Ward is in development on the first two downloadable map packs for Modern Warfare 2 multiplayer combat, for release in 2010. Activision Blizzard is in discussions with partners in Asia who could bring the franchise to online games in that region.

Activision Blizzard is announcing that a new game in the Call of Duty series is expected to be released in 2011 and that Sledgehammer Games, a newly formed, wholly owned studio, is in development on a Call of Duty game that will extend the franchise into the action-adventure genre. Sledgehammer is headed by industry veterans Glen A. Schofield and Michael Condrey. Schofield and Condrey previously created the DeadSpace shooting game for Electronic Arts.

Next Story: Ted Wang and Andreessen Horowitz try to reinvent the seed round Previous Story: Daimler to launch EV brand with China’s Buffett-backed BYD Auto

Dan LeFevour, the standout MAC quarterback from Central Michigan, has recently announced that he will show up at the NFL Scouting Combine, but that he will not participate in any throwing drills.

When is a quarterback not a quarterback? Only at the NFL Combine.

LeFevour joins a growing list including Jimmy Clausen and Sam Bradford, as all three are going to refrain from having their passing scrutinized in front of all the scouts and coaches in attendance at the combine.

Bradford and Clausen have an excuse, as they are coming off surgery.

LeFevour, on the other hand, prefers to wait for the Pro Day at Central Michigan, where he can throw at his own stadium and to his own receivers.

While many experts and draft analysts will be quick to note that this decision will cause LeFevour's stock to drop considerably, it might play directly into the hands of the Buffalo Bills' needs.

When we were asked to conduct a mock draft for the Bills back in January, I had LeFevour going to the Bills in the fourth round of the draft.

With all of the changes that have occurred in the Bills organization since I wrote that article, namely the announcement of switching to a 3-4 defensive alignment and Brad Butler's surprise retirement from football, the Bills will need to identify not one, but two starting tackles, a nose tackle for the new defense, and then a QB, in that order.

So if the Bills do not choose to trade down in the first round to secure additional draft choices in the second or third round, they might have to wait and pray that LeFevour is still there when the Bills' turn rolls around in the fourth round. That is why his decision to not do any passing at the NFL combine could be a blessing in disguise.

Why is LeFevour so Special?

For those of you not that familiar with LeFevour, he is a gifted and talented QB. LeFevour is out of the Mid-American Conference, and before you say so what, just note that he shares that distinction along with Ben Roethlisberger, Byron Leftwich, and Chad Pennington, who could be the veteran QB the Bills sign to mentor Dan.

During his career at Central Michigan, LeFevour put up some staggering numbers. He is the all-time NCAA leader with 149 touchdowns in his career. He is second all-time in career yardage leader with 15,898 yards gained.

For an offense that has been down as long as the Bills' has, the fans will have to exhibit more patience than is probably possible, while waiting for him to learn the NFL game before he is thrown into the fire.

He's a good-sized QB at 6'3″ and 229 pounds. He is a good runner as well, having gained over 700 yards in his senior year with 15 rushing touchdowns.

By the way, LeFevour began his football career as a running back in his freshman year in high school. Injuries forced him to become a QB, but his initial choice at running back has been demonstrated by his running totals amassed as a Chippewa.

Long Laundry List of Awards and Accomplishments

Here is just a partial list of some of the awards that LeFevour has amassed during his years at Central Michigan:

2007 All-MAC first team selection
2008 All-MAC second team selection
2009 MAC Offensive Player of the Year
2009 All-MAC first team selection
2009 Elite Quarterback Performer, College Football Performance Awards
2009 Elite National Performer, College Football Performance Awards
2009 MVP of the MAC Championship Game
2010 MVP of the GMAC Bowl
2010 Senior Bowl North team most outstanding player

How Did He Progress During His Four Years at Central Michigan?

Looking at his four-year statistics, you will note that LeFevour showed positive development and continued to excel as he gained experience.

His freshman year (2006): 26 TD passes to 10 interceptions. QB Passer Rating of 146, and he rushed for 523 yards with seven rushing TDs.

His sophomore year (2007): 27 TD passes to 13 interceptions. QB Passer Rating of 133 and his career high of 1,122 rushing yards along with 19 rushing TDs.

His junior year (2008): 29 TD passes compared to only six interceptions. QB Passer Rating of 144 and 592 rushing yards to go along with six rushing TDs.

Finally, his senior year (2009): Again a whopping 28 TD passes to only seven interceptions. A QB Passer Rating of 150 and 713 rushing yards with 15 rushing TDs.

Chan Gailey has been known to enjoy working with mobile QBs. If this kid isn't the working definition of a mobile QB, then who is?

If you want to learn more about him, you can check out a web site that has been put together by fans of LeFevour. It can be found at danlefevourfans.org.

Dan LeFevour, thanks for the decision to skip passing at the NFL Combines. Now, if only we can be assured that you will drop to the fourth round of the draft, we will be there waiting for you with open arms.

Activision Blizzard formed a new division to run its Call of Duty game franchise following the exit of two studio co-founders who pioneered what has become the biggest revenue generator in the video game industry.

The Santa Monica, Calif.-based parent company named Philip Earl to lead the Call of Duty unit and confirmed the news that Vince Zampella and Jason West, the Infinity Ward studio executives responsible for the smash hit Call of Duty Modern Warfare 2, had left the company.

Earl previously ran Activision Publishing’s Asia Pacific region and will expand the game franchise in new directions, including new geographic markets and new digital business models, the company said. Activision Blizzard confirmed in an SEC filing yesterday that it was in a dispute with the Infinity Ward executives, who were accused of insubordination and breach of contract. Zampella and West have stayed mum. They follow Grant Collier, another co-founder who left Infinity Ward last year.

As I noted before, it seems like a time-worn dispute in games. A small developer creates a smash hit. They get acquired by a publisher. They grow that franchise to enormous heights, and then the disputes start about who gets more compensation, bonuses, credit, and whether the team that started the franchise is still the right team to carry it on past its ultra-creative pioneering phase. It’s not unusual for game company founders to want to move on to a brand new idea for a game, and it’s typical for game publishers to want them to work on the same franchise for the foreseeable future.

Modern Warfare 2 was the biggest-selling video game in history and generated more than $1 billion in revenue from 15 million copies sold since November. That helped Activision Blizzard weather a storm in the game industry that afflicted other rivals such as Take-Two Interactive and Electronic Arts. An Activision spokesman didn’t respond to a request for comment.

Activision bought Infinity Ward in 2003 and rotates the Call of Duty franchise between Treyarch, which handles the World at War version of Call of Duty, and Infinity Ward, which creates the Modern Warfare games.

The company expects to release a new Call of Duty game from Treyarch this fall. In addition, Infinity Ward is in development on the first two downloadable map packs for Modern Warfare 2 multiplayer combat, for release in 2010. Activision Blizzard is in discussions with partners in Asia who could bring the franchise to online games in that region.

Activision Blizzard is announcing that a new game in the Call of Duty series is expected to be released in 2011 and that Sledgehammer Games, a newly formed, wholly owned studio, is in development on a Call of Duty game that will extend the franchise into the action-adventure genre. Sledgehammer is headed by industry veterans Glen A. Schofield and Michael Condrey. Schofield and Condrey previously created the DeadSpace shooting game for Electronic Arts.

Next Story: Ted Wang and Andreessen Horowitz try to reinvent the seed round Previous Story: Daimler to launch EV brand with China’s Buffett-backed BYD Auto

existing franchises for sale , franchises for sale

Blizzard of bad jobs <b>news</b> to hit Friday – TheHill.com

The White House is bracing for an ugly unemployment report on Friday made worse by winter storms. hit the East Coast last month.

Valve updates Portal end sequence <b>News</b> | PC | Eurogamer

Read our Valve updates Portal end sequence <b>News</b> for PC, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3.

More Borderlands DLC planned <b>News</b> | Eurogamer

Read our More Borderlands DLC planned <b>News</b> for PC, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3.

On Dec. 10, 2008, Alexandra Penney, the former editor of Self and Glamour magazines, was enjoying a second career as a professional photographer and artist. She had financial security, the apartment of her dreams in the Upper East Side of Manhattan and a sprawling studio in which she was launching her budding new career. The next day, she discovered that her investment adviser, Bernard Madoff, had massively defrauded his clients, including her. Over the next few months, Penney scrambled to sell her houses in Florida and Long Island, drastically cut back on her expenses and set off in a new career direction as a blogger and writer.

In her forthcoming book, The Bag Lady Papers: The Priceless Experience of Losing It All, Penney writes about her experiences dealing with the loss of her money and trying to rebuild her life. She shared some of the lessons of that experience with DailyFinance's Bruce Watson.

DailyFinance: After your money disappeared, you quickly began rebuilding your life. How long was it before you had another job?
Alexandra Penney: The next day. The morning after I found out about Madoff, I woke early, but couldn't look for work because nobody was open before 9:00. Then I remembered that my old friend Ed Victor was in London and would be up. Ed is a very prominent literary agent, and after I told him my story, he said that he would see what he could do. Ten minutes later, he called me back and told me that Tina Brown, an old colleague of mine from Conde Nast, wanted me to write a blog. So I just wrote about my experience, with no filter.

In your book, you talk about your luxurious lifestyle before Madoff defrauded you. What was the hardest luxury to give up?
Luxuries are easy to give up; the hard part is the things that you don't realize are luxuries. I found that the equilibrium and peace of mind that I got from having some money in the bank was a luxury, too. When that was gone, I was in a panic.

Before your Madoff experience, you had four properties that you owned or rented: a house in Long Island, a house in Florida, an apartment in Midtown and a studio. What happened to these places?
My landlord lowered the rent on my studio by a third, which made it possible for me to keep my work space. I'm trying to sell the house on Long Island. In the meantime, I'm renting it out. I sold the house in Florida and still have my apartment.

In the book, you spend quite a bit of time talking about Carmina, your maid. Does she still work for you?
Carmina still comes in for three hours a week. I do most of my own housekeeping, but she needs the money, and I need her. I couldn't not let her have income.

Suicide is a recurring theme in your book. After you learn about the Madoff scandal, one of your first impulses is to look into suicide, and your photographs after the event have also explored that. How have you dealt with those feelings?
After Madoff, I felt like I had lost control over my savings, my life and my identity. I felt like I had lost my dignity, my ability to do work. For example, I need a large work area, because the photographs that I work with take up a great deal of space, and it looked like I was going to lose my studio.

According to my internist, the realization that I could commit suicide — along with the fact that I didn't do it! — helped me regain my feeling of self worth and control.

Reading this book, it seems like this experience really helped you learn about what is valuable. Do you still hate Madoff?
I never hated him. I had a weird reaction: I was really angry one day after I spent 10 hours Xeroxing documents related to my case. Xeroxing isn't cheap!

Anyway, I never met the man; he was abstract to me. What I hated was the horrific feeling that I didn't have a cent in the bank.

What about your finances now? How is your life after Madoff progressing?
Well, the art market is improving, and I have a show in Chelsea that is going up soon. A friend of mine, Richard Story, is editor of Departures magazine, and he flew me out to Africa to do a story. I got to see amazing things that I never would have seen in my pre-Madoff days.

I was impressed with how quickly your son offered to put you up.
What a darling he is! His first words after Madoff were “Mom, you can come live with us.”

And so many of your other friends jumped to your aid.
Isn't that amazing? People are so immediately thoughtful and generous. Before I knew it, I had friends saying: “Can you do this?” “Will you come here?” “Here's some work for you to do!”

Three of my friends — Richard Story, Alex Mays and Patty Matson — all jumped to my aid. They literally came to my apartment and told me that “we have to find ways for you to make money.” Richard helped me with the Departures story, Patty sent art collectors to my studio and Alex helped me when I was first learning to write my blog.

And Ed Victor. Ed is like my guardian angel. How many agents call you every day to see how you're doing? When I think of Madoff's other victims, poor old women who never worked, I'm so completely lucky.

The Bag Lady Papers is being released by Hyperion books and will be in stores on Feb. 16.

This is an interview with Catey Hill, author of the hot new book SHOO, Jimmy Choo as well as the Money & Business Editor for the NY DailyNews.com

1. What motivated you to pen SHOO, Jimmy Choo?

Maybe I'd watched one too many episodes of Sex & the City, but when I moved to New York, I lived it up. I got an apartment I couldn't afford in Chelsea, went out way too much and bought shoes (and a million other things!) I couldn't afford on my credit card. The result (other than one too many martini hangovers and a stuffed-to-the-brim closet?): A pile of credit card debt, no retirement fund and not even a dime in savings.

But luckily, I was promoted to become the Financial Marketing Manger for Forbes Magazine, which was a giant wake-up call … At first, I'd be in a meeting and hear terms like Roth IRA, nod and pretend that, of course, I knew what they were talking about, and then race to my computer to Google it so I didn't later look like an idiot. Slowly but surely, I started learning more and more about finance. And the more I learned, the more I realized, I'd better do something about my not-so-sexy financial “situation.”

At the same time, I started talking to other women about their finances and realized I wasn't alone when I'd felt a little confused and intimidated by money management. And the more I looked into it, the more I realized there weren't that many personal finance books for women like me – young women in their 20s and 30s – written in a voice we relate to (not a mom figure tsk tsking us, but a girl our age who did this all herself, a girl who gets that its not an option to never again buy an amazing pair of shoes or go cold-turkey on nights out). So I decided to write it. And that's how SHOO, Jimmy Choo! was born.

2. Which section of SHOO, Jimmy Choo! did you enjoy writing most?

The “Spending Style” section was my favorite part of SHOO, Jimmy Choo! to write for two reasons. First, the advice in the section was one of the first – and primary – things that turned my financial situation around. Here's why: spending is the crux of our financial life – if we spend too much money, we won't have enough to get out of debt and save. So, once I started controlling my spending using the advice in this section, it set me up to meet the rest of my financial goals.

And second, because the “Spending Style” section approaches spending in a unique, and I think critical, way. The section helps us look not only at what we buy but also WHY we buy it. A lot of books look at what we buy and help us budget, but the “why” – the motivations, root causes and patterns – of our spending is critical to helping us spend less, but often overlooked in personal finance books. Until you get to the bottom of why you spend money, you'll have so much more trouble controlling that unnecessary spending.

3. If you could give a woman in her 20s just one piece of financial advice, what would it be?

The #1 piece of advice I'd give a woman in her 20s would be to make financial goals and a plan to stick to them. A lot of us – I was one of them! – just glide through life thinking we'll worry about retirement, saving and other financial goals later, that we'll deal with our debt when we make more money, etc. We have vague goals (things like: I'll be laying on the beach at 40 with a margarita in my hand and giant nest egg in the bank; or I'll save enough so I can quit my job and write a book – my personal fave! – etc.) But we have no solid financial goals and no real steps to make them happen.

4. You've gotten incredible press coverage, what's the most interesting question you've been asked so far?

It's funny: The book is a personal finance book but I get almost as many questions about shoes as I do about money management. I often get “Why do women like shoes so much?” (Ha, I'm no expert on why all women like anything, but I always just say “because they always fit and they always look good – even after those ten extra post-holiday pounds!”). Another favorite is “Can you please tell our audience what a Jimmy Choo is.” When I get to the part in my explanation about how much Jimmy Choos cost, it opens up a whole other set of questions – most of them involving “why on earth would a woman spend that much on shoes?” Once we go there, it's an entire interview about the shoes…

5. How did you personally learn about personal finance?

I learned in the trenches so to speak. I picked up the basics working at Forbes, and then just started reading every personal finance book I could get my hands on – which is how the idea for SHOO, Jimmy Choo! came about. To research for SHOO, Jimmy Choo!, I kept reading personal finance books and interviewed a bunch of financial advisors, economists and regular people about money management. I also took a job as the Money Editor for the New York Daily News online.

6. Do you think personal finance should be taught in schools – and if so, starting at what grade level?

I do think personal finance should be taught in schools probably starting in middle school and most definitely through high school. I certainly wish I'd been taught about checking and savings accounts, credit cards, student loans, auto loans and more. It could have saved me thousands of dollars, and I'm sure I wasn't any different from millions of other kids heading off to college or into the real world these days with little or no financial preparation. Since the financial choices we make early on can stick with us for decades, why don't we give kids the best shot to make the right financial choices in their lives by teaching it in school?

7. What's next for you?

I just started working on my next book – a guide to living fabulously on a budget. It's a companion guide to SHOO, Jimmy Choo!: Now that you've got your finances under control using the advice SHOO, Jimmy Choo!, the new book will show you how to keep them that way without sacrificing your sense of style.

Keep up with Catey's latest thinking by following her on Twitter at @cateyhill

http://removeripoffreports.net

When you think personal finance software, the first thing that comes to mind is probably Quicken. While Quicken has been a mainstay on Windows desktops for years, its Mac presence has been less than stellar. That changes today, with the release of Quicken Essentials for Mac. Re-built from the ground up and integrating lots of features from Mint.com, Quicken Essentials is a great addition to the Mac software space.

Quicken has always treated the Mac platform as kind of an also-ran. Although new versions of the tool appeared yearly (at least until 2006) alongside the WindowsWindows variants, the Mac editions always lagged behind in features, stability and even pricing options. Quicken Essentials for Mac, previously known as Quicken Financial Life for Mac, has been promised since Macworld 2008. After two years, it’s finally here.

Rebuilding Quicken for the Mac

Quicken Essentials for Mac is a native Cocoa app. This in itself wouldn’t be that noteworthy, except that previous versions of Quicken for Mac have not been built on Cocoa (or even optimized for Intel Macs), which has meant that there were user interface quirks and behavioral differences that made Quicken feel like less of a real Mac app.

With Quicken Essentials for Mac, the interface and program have been designed to use Mac OS X’sMac OS X core features and strengths. This is a really good thing, and it shows a commitment to the Mac platform. This is important because it has been nearly four years since a Quicken app was released for the Mac. QuickBooks has had more frequent updates, but for home users who want to manage their finances, this is a long time coming.

A Dose of Mint (.com)

In September, Intuit, the makers of Quicken, acquired the money management web app, Mint.com. The acquisition was controversial among some MintMint users, out of fear that Intuit would end up changing Mint into something different.

It’s still too early to assess how the acquisition has affected both product groups (Mint.com continues as a separate product), but consumers did get something out of the deal: Aaron Patzer, the founder of Mint.com, is now Intuit’s vice president and general manager of the company’s Personal Finance Group. That means that Aaron and the Mint team are now working on both Quicken and Mint.com.

I spoke with Aaron at the Future of Web Apps in Miami on Monday night, and he offered me some insight into his new role and the changes on the new Mac product.

Aaron described Quicken Essentials for Mac as “the closest thing to Mint on the desktop as you are going to get.” From a personal money management perspective, that’s really great, because it means that not only is it easier to visualize where money is going, but you can connect to more financial institutions through the program than ever before. More than 12,000 institutions are supported now, and a total of more than 18,000 is expected by the end of the year.

Categorization is also much easier in Quicken Essentials for Mac, which is again, a hat-tip to Mint.com

A Few Notes For Users

Quicken Essentials for Mac is designed for home users and while it supports basic investment tracking, it isn’t as robust as the Quicken for Windows offerings or the old Quicken Mac 2007. Better support for investments is planned for future versions of Quicken Essentials for Mac, but for right now, this isn’t really designed for users with heavy portfolios.

Because only 6% of Quicken users used the built-in Bill Pay option in Quicken, this was removed from Quicken Essentials for Mac. You can still track your bills and make sure you have the money to pay them, but you can’t pay directly from the app unless you sign up for Intuit’s Bill Pay service.

If you’re a TurboTax user, Quicken Essentials for Mac doesn’t integrate or export to TurboTax, although again, that type of support might be added to the future. If you rely on getting your Quicken info into TurboTax, you’ll need to use Quicken Mac 2007.

A Nice Start

This is a great rebirth of sorts for Quicken for Mac. After being virtually abandoned for such a long time, it’s nice that the most popular money management tool is finally back on the Mac and in style. Quicken Essentials for Mac is $69.99 and requires Mac OS X 10.5 Leopard or Mac OS X 10.6 Snow Leopard.

Mac users — what do you think about Intuit’s new commitment to Mac? What are your favorite Mac-based financial management apps? Let us know!

If you want to take control of your life, there are certain areas that require persistent tracking.  In order to track your life and make appropriate changes, you need to know what’s going on and to do that you need to track what’s going on.

Some people need to get a handle on their time (tools to track time wasted online).  Others need to better control their finances (tools for tracking expenses and budgeting).  There are also other resources that other people need to track.  These days there are tools that help in this task of tracking life’s intricacies but many of them are too complex for the needs of the everyday person.  We need something simple that we’ll actually learn and use for it to be a help.

That is why I would like to introduce you to a new start up you can use to track your life called 1DayLater.  The creators of 1DayLater originally started the project to help them track their valuable time as freelancers.  It turned out to be a tool simple enough that anyone can use and benefit from.

In my opinion a useful tool has two attributes : usability and benefit.  Let me show you how 1DayLater fits both of those attributes when it comes to tracking life.

Signing Up & Registering Is Virtually Painless!

The easier a website makes signing up and registering the better.  Obviously they should take security precautions but when they make it so complicated that you need to consult a help file or forums just to figure out how to register, they need to back off a bit.  1DayLater made the process a cinch by asking only the basics (there’s also a line for your phone number but it’s only optional).

Signing In Is A Cinch!

Once again, going with the “easier is better” philosophy, 1DayLater hits the nail on the proverbial head with the login process!  Email-password, bing!  You’re in!

Track Your Life With a Log!

Once logged in you are faced with the opportunity to begin logging your life!  To begin with, you can start logging your time by hitting the “start timer” button.  When you stop the timer, the time is automatically entered into the “value” field which can tell what kind of measurement you are trying to log.  You can also manually enter measurements into this field.  You can log measurements such as time, money and mileage.  Then you can tag the lot with a label in the “project/client” field and add the date and a note to finish off the log.  It’s all pretty straight forward.

Glance At Your Latest Activities

As you log your life, you can get a quick look at the activities you are logging.  They are sorted by date and project / client tag (which you can assign your own colors to in order to have a visual to keep them separate here and in the charts in the analysis area).  Here you also have the ability to edit the logs and delete them altogether. Very handy!

A Visual Analysis Of Your Life

There is also a nifty chart showing off time spent on different projects.  This could be key to getting an overall idea of where your time is going.  I didn’t see charts for mileage or money so I personally hope they are also incorporated too.

The Future Of 1DayLater COULD Be In Your Hands!

All I am saying is that they are a new start up and are working hard on new features!  For instance, they have released the ability to export data into a spreadsheet and are working out the bugs there.  They are also working on the ability to output to invoices and mileage claims as well as some apps.  As a new start up, they have been smart enough to offer a feedback forum to share what you would like to see them develop and a voting system to vote on other people’s ideas using Uservoice.

Right now 1DayLater is free but in the future there may be some features that will not be.

Let us know what you think about 1DayLater as a new start up.  Also, how do you track your life?

http://removeripoffreports.net

Green jobs have been the foundation to any of President Obama’s jobs speeches. “Building a robust clean energy sector is how we will create the jobs of the future,” he said in a speech last month. We’ve long argued that subsidizing jobs comes at the expense of others and will result in net job losses. Sunil Sharan, director of the Smart Grid Initiative at GE from 2008 to 2009, details in the Washington Post how smart metering will create jobs but destroy many more in the process:

It typically takes a team of two certified electricians half an hour to replace the old, spinning meter. In one day, two people can install about 15 new meters, or about 5,000 in a year. Were a million smart meters to be installed in a year, 400 installation jobs would be created. It follows that the planned U.S. deployment of 20 million smart meters over five years, or 4 million per year, should create 1,600 installation jobs. Unless more meters are added to the annual deployment schedule, this workforce of 1,600 should cover installation needs for the next five years.

Although a surge of new digital meters will be produced, the manufacturing process is highly automated. And with much of it accomplished overseas, net creation in domestic manufacturing jobs is expected to be only in the hundreds. In R&D and IT services, high-paying white-collar jobs are on the horizon, but as with manufacturing, the number of jobs created is forecast to be in the hundreds or low thousands. Now let’s consider job losses. It takes one worker today roughly 15 minutes to read a single meter. So in a day, a meter reader can scan about 30 meters, or about 700 meters a month. Meters are typically read once a month, making it the base period to calculate meter-reading jobs. Reading a million meters every month engages about 1,400 personnel. In five years, 20 million manually read meters are expected to disappear, taking with them some 28,000 meter-reading jobs.”

Job destruction through efficiency improvements isn’t a bad thing, but it is when the government forces it upon us. If new smart metering technologies are economically sensible, the private sector will introduce these technologies to the market. Just as the government shouldn’t attempt to create jobs, it shouldn’t protect jobs from being destroyed, either. Sharan writes, “nstead of creating jobs, smart metering will probably result in net job destruction. This should not be surprising because the main method of making the electrical grid “smart” is by automating its functions. Automation by definition obviates the need for people.” We replaced ditch diggers with mechanized agriculture equipment with the end result being a net gain in productivity and wealth. The process of creative destruction allocates capital and labor to better use, increases gains from productivity and makes us all better off. Using stimulus money for smart metering is unnecessary if it such a good idea.

The other way the government can destroy jobs through a clean energy initiative is to mandate and subsidize labor intensive, inefficient, and expensive power sources. If it takes more labor and capital to produce renewable energy, there is a net drain on the economy. Government spending will create some jobs to build windmills and solar panels and work at biomass plants but this diverts labor, capital and materials from the private sector that could be used more efficiently to create even more jobs

An Institute for Energy Research-commissioned study from King Juan Carlos University in Madrid by Gabriel Calzada found that, for every green job created, 2.2 jobs in other sectors have been destroyed. Furthermore, Spain’s government spent $758,471 to create each green job and used $36 billion in taxpayer money to invest in wind, solar, and mini-hydro from 2000-2008. The country’s unemployment rate is currently at 19.4%.

Losing jobs through increases in efficiency and productivity is a sign of progress. Losing jobs through government mandates and subsidies is a sign of Congress.

Search and advertising giant Google plans to build and test super fast fiber-optic broadband networks in a few communities around the U.S., promising up to a one gigabit per second service — a hundred-fold increase over what most Americans currently can subscribe to.

A 1 Gbps could let a user download a HD movie in minutes and is more than 1000 times faster than AT&T’s basic DSL offering.

The company, whose experience running a ISP is limited to a small, free wireless service in its hometown of MountainView, California, called the intiative an “experiment” in keeping with what it urged the FCC to do with its upcoming national broadband plan. The company is asking municipalities to apply to be candidates and said it will offer a competitively priced service to 50,000 to a half a million people.

Our goal is to experiment with new ways to help make Internet access better and faster for everyone. Here are some specific things that we have in mind:

Next generation apps: We want to see what developers and users can do with ultra high-speeds, whether it’s creating new bandwidth-intensive “killer apps” and services, or other uses we can’t yet imagine.

New deployment techniques: We’ll test new ways to build fiber networks, and to help inform and support deployments elsewhere, we’ll share key lessons learned with the world.

Openness and choice: We’ll operate an “open access” network, giving users the choice of multiple service providers. And consistent with our past advocacy, we’ll manage our network in an open, non-discriminatory and transparent way.

The announcement is not good news for the nation’s ISPs, which have long had a sour relationship with Google. Although Google interconnects with networks just as any other participant in the internet does, ISPs — including AT&T — have complained that Google properties such as Youtube should pay more to ride on their networks.

For its part, Google sees high ISP subscription fees and the U.S.’s slow connection speeds as hindrances to more profits. In the simplest equation, the more people who are online and the faster their connection, the more money Google makes from little text ads on the net. Any company who wants to make money anywhere between a user and an online ad has to fear that Google will try to drive the profits out of its business, whether that be a hardware vendor, a software company like Microsoft or an internet service provider.

Google is doing at least three things here:

1) It’s demonstrating to the public and to regulators that really fast broadband isn’t nearly as hard as companies like AT&T and Verizon pretend it is.

2) It’s sending a warning to large telecoms that they better start working to reduce prices and increase service or they might face a competitor they dont’ want to go up against, and

3) By partnering with municpalities, it’s learning/showing the nation how to bypass the current dominant telecom players by creating municipally-owned fiber infrastructure that can be rented to multiple service providers, who can then duke it out on price and service. If successful, that could create a model where Google uses its huge cash surplus to finance municipally-owned fiber optic networks, undermining its telecom rivals and speeding up the nation’s internet without ever having to run a consumer-grade network or learn how to do customer support.

If I were an executive at a large ISP, I’d be very unhappy with Google’s announcement. When Google enters a market, it usually destroys traditional ways of making money. ISPs want to find ways to measure internet traffic, and charge users by levels — even as their own upstream bandwidth costs continue to plummet. The rhetoric used to justify those decisions to consumer and lawmakers just won’t hold up if there’s an fairly priced, all-Fiber 1 Gbps connection just down the road.

Which is just the long way of saying that in a land where it costs “$35 a month to get an assymetric, slow DSL line that tops out at 1.5 Mbps, perhaps those traditional profits need to be destroyed.

Or even shorter — All hail Shiva the Destroyer.

Photo: Alice Popkorn

See Also:

• YouTube’s Bandwidth Bill Is Zero. Welcome to the New Net
• Broadband Providers Suck. Can Google Help?
• New Google Tools Determine if Your ISP Is Blocking BitTorrent
• Google Hunts for Undersea Fiber Capacity as Traffic Surges
• Google’s Submarine Cable Plans Get Official

Introduction Making money online is practically everyone's dream. However, just like starting a brick and mortar business, it isn't going to be easy. There are a lot of people out there trying to capitalize on your dreams and make money from you in your desperate attempts to figure out how to earn money online. We've written this mini guide to help you avoid scams, know what to look for, and what it takes to earn money online. There are many legit and many not-so-legit ways of making money online. Some are expensive, some are low cost. We're going to explore each one. However, be warned that there may be laws in your local area that require you to have a special license for selling via online. Because this is beyond our expertise, you will have to check out your local business center for more information about required licenses and registration. Legit Ways of Making Money Online The best and most legit ways of making money online are to explore reseller programs, turnkey and affiliate programs. Both ways require time and energy to get off the ground. Have no fear, we are here! Reseller Programs Reseller programs are basically companies who provide a product or service and allow you to resell their inventory in smaller parts enabling you to earn a profit from them. You can have physical inventory or you can have services to promote. The good thing about reseller programs is that most will provide the customer service for you. Some will even allow you to co-brand your logo or name seamlessly into their product or service. Some popular reseller programs are: • Hosting: ResellersPanel.com, Host Gator, APlus.net • Domain Names: Wild West Domains, Enom, Tucows • Software: Cisco Systems Affiliate Programs These types of programs normally pay you per sale or per click. For each lead you send the company, you will get paid a commission. These types of programs are good if you have a lot of traffic going to your website or if you network with a lot of people. Here are some websites that list available affiliate programs: • Commission Junction • Affiliate Guide Some popular affiliate programs: • Ebay • Google Adsense Turnkey Websites Turnkey websites are websites that are ready to go, all you have to do is “turn the key”. The majority of turnkey companies will allow you to co-brand your logo, set your own prices, provide your customers with support, include web hosting and a domain name. The downside is you may not have much control over the site content, display, colors and layout. Turnkey companies: • Wild West Domains Not-So-Legit Ways There are some misleading ways to make money online. Some ways are scams, others make it impossible for you to earn a decent return. The most common scams are: • working from home • multi-level marketing (also called MLM) • investing Of course, just being labeled these things does not mean they are not legit. But you should be wary. If it sounds too good to be true, then it probably is. What To Look For Avoiding online scams means educating yourself about what to look for. Here are some things you can do to protect yourself. Simple Searching Search engines are powerful resource providers. Enter the URL or name of the business into the search engine and see what comes up. Better Business Bureau Research BBB.org to see if any complaints were filed against the company. If they do have complaints, see if the company attempted to resolve them and in what amount of time. Remember, just because a company doesn't have a record with BBB, it doesn't mean they have a satisfactory customer base. The Fine Print This has to be the most common mistake people tend to make: overlooking the fine print. If it sounds too good to be true, it probably is. Read the fine print in user/buyer agreements. Look for any discrepancies and compare them to what they say versus what they actually provide. Ask questions. Conclusion Judge each opportunity you come across with skepticism and a closed wallet. Ask questions and tons of them. Good luck and may you have many profitable years ahead!

Green jobs have been the foundation to any of President Obama’s jobs speeches. “Building a robust clean energy sector is how we will create the jobs of the future,” he said in a speech last month. We’ve long argued that subsidizing jobs comes at the expense of others and will result in net job losses. Sunil Sharan, director of the Smart Grid Initiative at GE from 2008 to 2009, details in the Washington Post how smart metering will create jobs but destroy many more in the process:

It typically takes a team of two certified electricians half an hour to replace the old, spinning meter. In one day, two people can install about 15 new meters, or about 5,000 in a year. Were a million smart meters to be installed in a year, 400 installation jobs would be created. It follows that the planned U.S. deployment of 20 million smart meters over five years, or 4 million per year, should create 1,600 installation jobs. Unless more meters are added to the annual deployment schedule, this workforce of 1,600 should cover installation needs for the next five years.

Although a surge of new digital meters will be produced, the manufacturing process is highly automated. And with much of it accomplished overseas, net creation in domestic manufacturing jobs is expected to be only in the hundreds. In R&D and IT services, high-paying white-collar jobs are on the horizon, but as with manufacturing, the number of jobs created is forecast to be in the hundreds or low thousands. Now let’s consider job losses. It takes one worker today roughly 15 minutes to read a single meter. So in a day, a meter reader can scan about 30 meters, or about 700 meters a month. Meters are typically read once a month, making it the base period to calculate meter-reading jobs. Reading a million meters every month engages about 1,400 personnel. In five years, 20 million manually read meters are expected to disappear, taking with them some 28,000 meter-reading jobs.”

Job destruction through efficiency improvements isn’t a bad thing, but it is when the government forces it upon us. If new smart metering technologies are economically sensible, the private sector will introduce these technologies to the market. Just as the government shouldn’t attempt to create jobs, it shouldn’t protect jobs from being destroyed, either. Sharan writes, “nstead of creating jobs, smart metering will probably result in net job destruction. This should not be surprising because the main method of making the electrical grid “smart” is by automating its functions. Automation by definition obviates the need for people.” We replaced ditch diggers with mechanized agriculture equipment with the end result being a net gain in productivity and wealth. The process of creative destruction allocates capital and labor to better use, increases gains from productivity and makes us all better off. Using stimulus money for smart metering is unnecessary if it such a good idea.

The other way the government can destroy jobs through a clean energy initiative is to mandate and subsidize labor intensive, inefficient, and expensive power sources. If it takes more labor and capital to produce renewable energy, there is a net drain on the economy. Government spending will create some jobs to build windmills and solar panels and work at biomass plants but this diverts labor, capital and materials from the private sector that could be used more efficiently to create even more jobs

An Institute for Energy Research-commissioned study from King Juan Carlos University in Madrid by Gabriel Calzada found that, for every green job created, 2.2 jobs in other sectors have been destroyed. Furthermore, Spain’s government spent $758,471 to create each green job and used $36 billion in taxpayer money to invest in wind, solar, and mini-hydro from 2000-2008. The country’s unemployment rate is currently at 19.4%.

Losing jobs through increases in efficiency and productivity is a sign of progress. Losing jobs through government mandates and subsidies is a sign of Congress.

Search and advertising giant Google plans to build and test super fast fiber-optic broadband networks in a few communities around the U.S., promising up to a one gigabit per second service — a hundred-fold increase over what most Americans currently can subscribe to.

A 1 Gbps could let a user download a HD movie in minutes and is more than 1000 times faster than AT&T’s basic DSL offering.

The company, whose experience running a ISP is limited to a small, free wireless service in its hometown of MountainView, California, called the intiative an “experiment” in keeping with what it urged the FCC to do with its upcoming national broadband plan. The company is asking municipalities to apply to be candidates and said it will offer a competitively priced service to 50,000 to a half a million people.

Our goal is to experiment with new ways to help make Internet access better and faster for everyone. Here are some specific things that we have in mind:

Next generation apps: We want to see what developers and users can do with ultra high-speeds, whether it’s creating new bandwidth-intensive “killer apps” and services, or other uses we can’t yet imagine.

New deployment techniques: We’ll test new ways to build fiber networks, and to help inform and support deployments elsewhere, we’ll share key lessons learned with the world.

Openness and choice: We’ll operate an “open access” network, giving users the choice of multiple service providers. And consistent with our past advocacy, we’ll manage our network in an open, non-discriminatory and transparent way.

The announcement is not good news for the nation’s ISPs, which have long had a sour relationship with Google. Although Google interconnects with networks just as any other participant in the internet does, ISPs — including AT&T — have complained that Google properties such as Youtube should pay more to ride on their networks.

For its part, Google sees high ISP subscription fees and the U.S.’s slow connection speeds as hindrances to more profits. In the simplest equation, the more people who are online and the faster their connection, the more money Google makes from little text ads on the net. Any company who wants to make money anywhere between a user and an online ad has to fear that Google will try to drive the profits out of its business, whether that be a hardware vendor, a software company like Microsoft or an internet service provider.

Google is doing at least three things here:

1) It’s demonstrating to the public and to regulators that really fast broadband isn’t nearly as hard as companies like AT&T and Verizon pretend it is.

2) It’s sending a warning to large telecoms that they better start working to reduce prices and increase service or they might face a competitor they dont’ want to go up against, and

3) By partnering with municpalities, it’s learning/showing the nation how to bypass the current dominant telecom players by creating municipally-owned fiber infrastructure that can be rented to multiple service providers, who can then duke it out on price and service. If successful, that could create a model where Google uses its huge cash surplus to finance municipally-owned fiber optic networks, undermining its telecom rivals and speeding up the nation’s internet without ever having to run a consumer-grade network or learn how to do customer support.

If I were an executive at a large ISP, I’d be very unhappy with Google’s announcement. When Google enters a market, it usually destroys traditional ways of making money. ISPs want to find ways to measure internet traffic, and charge users by levels — even as their own upstream bandwidth costs continue to plummet. The rhetoric used to justify those decisions to consumer and lawmakers just won’t hold up if there’s an fairly priced, all-Fiber 1 Gbps connection just down the road.

Which is just the long way of saying that in a land where it costs “$35 a month to get an assymetric, slow DSL line that tops out at 1.5 Mbps, perhaps those traditional profits need to be destroyed.

Or even shorter — All hail Shiva the Destroyer.

Photo: Alice Popkorn

See Also:

• YouTube’s Bandwidth Bill Is Zero. Welcome to the New Net
• Broadband Providers Suck. Can Google Help?
• New Google Tools Determine if Your ISP Is Blocking BitTorrent
• Google Hunts for Undersea Fiber Capacity as Traffic Surges
• Google’s Submarine Cable Plans Get Official

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After weeks of turmoil in the capital markets, the European Union has provided assurances that Greece will not be allowed to default on its debt. Like AIG before it, Greece has proven to be the domino that must not be allowed to fall, lest traders next take a run at Portugal, Italy and Spain, and ultimately bring the notion of a united Europe to its knees.

But those assurances, which at root suggest that Germany has agreed — behind closed doors — to serve as the de facto guarantor of the debt of Greece, would come with strings attached. Greece would have to cut its massive budget deficit, reduce public sector salaries, reduce farm price supports and restructure pension commitments. In sum, to do those things that Greece had agreed to do as conditions of joining the E.U. to begin with.

And now Prime Minister George Papandreou of the Panhellenic Socialist Party has to pick up the pieces. And he is not happy.

In an odd show of gratitude for the E.U. pledge of support, Papandreou has responded by accusing the E.U. of failing to do its homework when his conservative predecessors fudged earlier deficit numbers. But the integrity of economic data is a long-standing problem for Greece, dating to audits that showed that Greece routinely dissembled in its published data and essentially lied on its E.U. application. But whatever the history, it is Papandreou who now has to carry the bad news to the electorate.

Or he can let Greece default.

Maybe it is time for someone to stand up and stare the markets down. Maybe it is time for someone to demand that in a world of open capital markets, it is investors who must evaluate risk and take risk, and if markets are to efficiently allocate capital over time, investors must be accountable for their investment decisions.

The fact is that losing money is part of the process. Markets are supposed to weigh and price risk, and in so doing allow for the efficient transfer of information. In the case of Greece, this information is supposed to be about the long-term affordability of farm price supports and public pensions and other spending, balanced against the ability to support economic growth and wealth creation over time to pay for those politically attractive expenditures.

But we are no longer in the world of markets, we are now in the world of politics. After all, when Goldman and others took AIG counterparty risk but were let off the hook and paid out billions of dollars, that was not the markets working, that was politics. And over the past year and a half, we have watched bailout after bailout for fear of markets doing what markets are supposed to do. But risk is an essential part of the process. Risk is what free markets are supposed to be about.

And it is time that a socialist stood up and said so.

Now, of course, things will not go well for the Greeks, should Papandreou choose to take this path. The Greeks will have to pay a heavy price for the failures of their representative government. But they will make the Germans happy. Because the German people want no part of this.

But at the end of the day, Europe will work it out. After all, too much is at stake. The E.U. countries staked their futures on the idea that being part of one big country is better than being a small country. France wanted a bigger platform to steer a new foreign policy freed from the hegemony of America. Poland wanted to trade in the Zloty for the Euro, as protection against having to trade it in for the Ruble. And, coming off of a century of European wars, they both wanted institutional arrangements that would harness German might.

This appears to be the path the world has chosen. For fear of “contagion” — the notion that as Greece goes, so goes Spain, and Portugal, and perhaps Italy — the E.U. will construct an institutional “firewall” to show that Greece will not be allowed to collapse. The only firewall standing between the E.U. and its planned “firewall” may be the German people, who are scandalized that their tax dollars will be used to fix a problem of someone else's making, and who may yet prove the last line of defense against the real contagion.

The real risk — the real contagion — as people from Main Street to the Bundestrasse understand intuitively, is the growing effort to take risk and accountability out of the financial system. It is the cascading issue of moral hazard. People — like derivatives traders — understand that risk does not go away, it just gets moved around. And they know that when the music stops, they end up paying the price.

In the U.S., the contagion is manifest in the refusal to take the steps necessary to break up the financial and political power of the largest financial institutions, to set limits on what is or is not allowable in the derivatives world, or to return risk to ownership of the financial industry. In Europe, it is the unwillingness to look at the institutional structure of the E.U. that severed currency control from national politics and fiscal policies, and made national fiscal crises all but inevitable.

For all the talk of financial reform in Washington, we are hamstrung by a system that allows affected industries with political clout to dictate policy, and in lieu of real reform we are marching down the path of more complex regulation, deluded in our fevered imagination that some team of smart regulators will ever be able to take on the political and financial power of our largest financial institutions, or match the cunning of well-incented and marginally shackled traders.

The irony is that while a socialist prime minister struggles to save his nation's pension system and safety net, his efforts may ultimately be undermined by the E.U. efforts on his behalf. The problem that the moral hazard contagion presents to Greece — and to the rest of us — is that only a return to robust economic growth can provide the real growth in incomes and the investment returns that will be necessary for nations or states to fund their massive future pension obligations. And each new action that we take down the path that we are now on that undermines the effective pricing of risk in the capital markets, undermines our ability to return to a functioning and growing economy.

A month after the earthquake, Haiti is a testament to human tenacity. In Port-au-Prince the other day, I saw people making bricks, cooking food on the street, retrieving usable planks from the rubble and using newly restored cell phone service to place calls to the outside world.

Haitians have begun to rebuild, using whatever they can find. All of us who care about this proud country's people must rally around them and turn this tragedy into an opportunity to help Haiti rethink and reconfigure.

Many have questioned whether the government in Port au Prince is up to the task of building a new nation that lifts people out of poverty and ends the negative cycle that has made Haiti the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere.

I do not share that view. The international community must do a better job this time in supporting the people of Haiti build a better tomorrow. First, we must first recognize that Haiti is a sovereign, democratic country that must take ownership of plans to construct a stronger, more resilient land. Experience has repeatedly demonstrated that solutions developed from the outside do not work.

In my talks with Haitian President René Préval, he has welcomed the international community's efforts to strengthen the government's ability to plan and lead the enormous task ahead. We can provide technical assistance and help Haiti harness the world's best talent in areas such as job creation, green energy and sustainable agriculture.

Some prominent voices have also called for the establishment of a multi-donor trust fund for Haiti. I support such a mechanism. But we need to be much more ambitious and go beyond just providing money; we need to partner with Haitians on new ideas of how to build the new Haiti. Reconstructing what was there before the earthquake is neither desirable nor sustainable. As President Preval told me, we need to help reconfigure Haiti for the 21st Century.

The Inter-American Development Bank is working with the World Bank, the United Nations, the European Union and bilateral donors on a post-disaster needs assessment for Haiti, which we expect to complete by mid-March. This assessment must be complemented by government leaders' strategic vision of what kind of country they want Haiti to be.

As donors prepare for our next conference, we are considering how best to organize a trust fund for Haiti and divide responsibilities. With 50 years of experience in Haiti and nearly $800 million in active development projects in the country at the time of the earthquake, the IDB stands ready to play a leading role in Haiti's reconfiguration.

Any multi-donor trust fund will require unquestioned transparency, a clear delegation of responsibilities and accountability. Such a fund must facilitate internal coordination within the Haitian government and external coordination among donors. The key is to minimize duplication and maximize the impact of aid dollars.

A trust fund for Haiti must publicly track the money flowing into the country and where it is going, ensuring that we streamline disbursements for projects, establish a uniform set of procurement standards and management practices and execute all reconstruction operations effectively and in the open.

The goal must be to place rebuilding efforts within a comprehensive development strategy. One need already identified by the Haitian government is decentralization, the establishment of housing and sustainable economic activity outside the capital. This is a chance for Haiti and its partners to build a reforested, rethought and renewed Haiti.

At the IDB, we are reviewing our undisbursed portfolio of $340 million in grants and loans to Haiti in the wake of the earthquake. Many of our projects for roads, water, sanitation and sustainable economic development are outside Port au Prince, in areas where tens of thousands have fled. With the government's agreement, we want to accelerate and expand these operations, working to attract new private investment that will be key to Haiti's future.

We are also working with the U.S. government and our other member nations to explore ways to bring further debt relief to Haiti. The IDB, as part of an international agreement, granted $511 million in debt relief to Haiti last year. A U.S.-sponsored fund is paying the country's debt service for Haiti's outstanding $447 million in IDB loans over the next two years, so no funds are leaving the country. But as several South American presidents agreed this week in their Haiti aid summit in Quito, Ecuador, we need to do more on debt relief, and we will.

But for any rebuilding strategy to work over the long term, donors must commit to follow through on their pledges. Already the TV cameras are starting to avert their gaze from Haiti. But the world must be ready to stay there for however long it takes.

The list of Haiti's needs is long and the time to move from the planning phase to execution is growing short. Let's listen to Haiti's leaders, coordinate our responsibilities and get to work rethinking and reconfiguring the new Haiti that its resilient people deserve.

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Do you remember the good old days when we learned in school about how to open a savings account, or how to apply for a loan?. . . Well neither do I. We all want things to be better for our children than they were for us, and one of the best ways of doing this, is teaching them Personal finance.

According to a study conducted by the *National Council on Economic Education in 2007, only 7 states in the U.S. required students to take a Personal Finance course as a high school graduation requirement: Georgia, Idaho, Illinois, Louisiana, Missouri, South Dakota, and Utah.Our neglect in teaching our teens how to manage their finances early in life can lead to devastating consequences. Credit cards, Checking, Saving, and retirement accounts, applying for loans, interest rates, etc., all of these, if not properly understood, could lead to decisions that can make life much more difficult for our children. One only needs to watch the daily news to see the effects of poor Personal Financial education.

On January 3rd of this year, the ** American Bankruptcy Institute reported bankruptcy claims jumped 40% in 2007. Credit card abuse, and the mortgage crisis have contributed greatly to this high rate. Learning about how credit card agreements work, and how to apply for a mortgage loan, could in part have diminished these problems. We must all take personal responsibility in teaching our children, either through our own personal knowledge, or by helping them find the correct information they need. We can all use some help finding the information on all these subjects, so here is a list of some websites that I feel have some great information available to you and your teen:

www.youngmoney.com
www.younginvestor.com
www.bankhs.com
http://life.familyeducation.com/money-and-kids/personal-finance/34481.html
www.choicenerd.com
www.consumerjungle.org

I have personally tested these sites, and find they are very informative. Your hands on guidance based on your experiences, coupled with the information found on these websites, will ensure you are helping your teen to make the right decisions when it comes to their Personal Finances.

* www.ncee.net/about/survey2007/NCEESurvey2007.pdf
** money.cnn.com/2008/01/03/news/economy/consumer_bankruptcy/index.htm – 40k

AP Articles Return To Google <b>News</b>

It appears they have kissed and made up… for now.

AMERICAblog <b>News</b>: The Hill: 'Cracks are beginning to show in <b>…</b>

<b>News</b> and opinion about US politics from a liberal perspective.

Stabroek <b>News</b> – Workers protest planned Air Jamaica sale to T&amp;T

Daily <b>News</b>, Sports, Business, Entertainment and more from Guyana.

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AP Articles Return To Google <b>News</b>

It appears they have kissed and made up… for now.

AMERICAblog <b>News</b>: The Hill: 'Cracks are beginning to show in <b>…</b>

<b>News</b> and opinion about US politics from a liberal perspective.

Stabroek <b>News</b> – Workers protest planned Air Jamaica sale to T&amp;T

Daily <b>News</b>, Sports, Business, Entertainment and more from Guyana.

AP Articles Return To Google <b>News</b>

It appears they have kissed and made up… for now.

AMERICAblog <b>News</b>: The Hill: 'Cracks are beginning to show in <b>…</b>

<b>News</b> and opinion about US politics from a liberal perspective.

Stabroek <b>News</b> – Workers protest planned Air Jamaica sale to T&amp;T

Daily <b>News</b>, Sports, Business, Entertainment and more from Guyana.

Monday’s attacks in Kabul showed again how the Afghan president is barely holding on to power. Gerald Posner on a new book’s untold story of how Karzai gambled to liberate his country by teaming up with the Green Berets.

On Monday, just before 10 a.m., four explosions and gunfire shook downtown Kabul. Twenty Taliban insurgents and suicide bombers had begun a brazen coordinated assault against the central bank, a shopping center, the ministries of finance, mines, and justice, and the popular Serena Hotel, leaving at least 17 dead and injuring more than 70, many of them police or security officers.

When the first attack began, deep inside his presidential palace, Hamid Karzai had just begun swearing in members of his new cabinet. Kabul was gripped by a frantic chaos during Monday’s day of terror. But witnesses say Karzai maintained a cool demeanor during the hours it took for his police and military forces to restore calm.

Although Karzai’s public image is as a cautious and quiet man, in Blehm’s writing he emerges as a charismatic risk-taker.

Karzai’s composure wasn’t surprising. He has always seemed as if he was plucked by Hollywood’s central casting to be the president of such a rough and tough country. Gucci designer Tom Ford improbably named Karzai “the most chic man in the world.” Good-looking, with a sober demeanor, and speaking perfect English that shows just a trace of his British educators, Karzai exudes confidence and capability as a statesman for a nation whose leaders usually end their tenures early. Since 1700, 25 of 29 rulers of Afghanistan have been deposed, exiled, imprisoned, or assassinated.

One of the best parts of Eric Blehm’s The Only Thing Worth Dying For: How Eleven Green Berets Forged a New Afghanistan may be the deconstruction of Karzai’s genteel image. Although the book is a detailed account of a post-9/11, U.S. Army Special Forces unit’s fight—against great odds—for southern Afghanistan, it’s the up-close and personal account of Karzai that may be most revealing. Blehm effectively weaves the tale of Captain Jason Amerine and his 10 Green Berets together with Karzai and his own tiny band of followers in the remarkable chaos that reigned in the country.

The Only Thing Worth Dying For: How Eleven Green Berets Forged a New Afghanistan. By Eric Blehm. 384 pages. Harper. $25.99.
On September 11, 2001, Karzai was in Pakistan, preparing to meet with several Western embassies the following day. As Blehm recounts, “Rather than wait for the United States to act, however, Karzai decided to launch his own insurgency.” In the weeks after the 9/11 attacks, an unarmed Karzai travelled by motorcycle with three friends to southern Afghanistan to urge Pashtun tribal leaders to rebel against the Taliban. The CIA considered his journey a virtual suicide mission and refused to put anyone on the ground with him, instead only wishing him luck and giving him a satellite phone. He was told to call his CIA handler once he raised an army inside Afghanistan. When Karzai was later chased into the mountains by the Taliban, he used that phone to call for help and was rescued by a Navy SEALs helicopter-borne team. That’s when he hooked up with the Special Forces team, ODA 574, at the center of the book.

There were half a dozen Special Forces teams like ODA 574 in Afghanistan after 9/11, but this is the first time a writer has gotten the cooperation of surviving team members, and finally Karzai himself. Blehm’s access pays off. He gives a blow-by-blow account of a mission that ends in tragedy for some of the soldiers but in triumph for Karzai.

When the Special Forces and Karzai first team up, the U.S. team leader, Captain Jason Amerine, told Karzai that “We’re here to learn what it is that you want to accomplish in southern Afghanistan and how we can support you.”

“That is something I have waited a long, long time to hear,” replied Karzai.

Blehm makes it clear there was no master plan for defeating the Taliban, taking control of the country, and chasing Osama bin Laden and al Qaeda. And in Washington, CIA Director George Tenet had little faith in Karzai’s ability to lead a popular uprising. At one point, the CIA went behind ODA 574's back to request a platoon of Rangers. Other bureaucratic obstacles later led Amerine to write in his journal: “It’s a fucked-up war when you are more worried about fighting your chain of command than the actual enemy.”

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1. I have been trying out Zoho and like the fact that you can integrate it with your website even when using the free version. I've also had quick responses when I contacted them asking about integration with Joomla!.

    Posted by: Robin Davidson |
   January 29, 2010 12:15 PM

2. I found freshbook very good.

   Posted by: Rashid Rupani |
   January 29, 2010 12:24 PM

3. I'm disappointed you missed out Subernova.com!

   I was using Zoho but found it bloated for invoicing and project management. For me Subernova is a lot tidier, cheaper and I can invoice clients from the old iPhone. I find the project management can be a little restrictive in some ways but still very functional. It's still being improved regularly and I find the guys over there are really good at listening to feedback.

   Posted by: AtomWorks |
   January 29, 2010 12:45 PM

4. I have been with freshbooks for years now and they get better each year. I only wish their reporting was a little better and let you fully customize the fields you want to output and query.

   Posted by: Darren Stuart |
   January 29, 2010 2:32 PM

5. It's always great to have lists to refer to for research (for myself, OR my clients).

   I have been using Freshbooks for just under a year and love their system. The time tracking and multi-currency capability (just introduced last month) really makes my life easy. I use the add-on desktop timer (Vista) to track my time without having to log into my account.

   Clients have the ability to log in and see an overview of hours accrued on their projects, or simply wait for the invoice that comes by email with a direct link to their account. Anything that makes it pain-free for my clients to use is a winner in my books!

   I use BaseCamp for project management, and integrates with FreshBooks seamlessly.

   Posted by: Crystal Coleman |
   January 29, 2010 9:41 PM

6. All of those applications are for the US market. I reviewed most of them and I like freshbooks the most. I have company registered in Poland – I'm using infakt.pl and I'm very happy.

   Posted by: MX |
   January 30, 2010 5:16 AM

7. Virtual zoo simulation game, create a magnificent zoo and help save endangered animals, online management mondozoo

   Posted by: zazu |
   January 30, 2010 1:46 PM

8. I have tried Freshbooks and Blinksale before, but non of them sounded quite right for my invoicing needs and budget as a freelancer.

   Later, I gave a try on CurdBee (yeah, their name sounds funny), which seems to come with absolutely no restrictions on number of invoices you could create or number of clients you can manage. Also, it is very easy to mange multi-currency invoices with CurdBee.

   Even there pricing is quite right for just $15 per month I could have totally unbranded invoicing + recurring billing and estimates.

   So Big Thumbs up for CurdBee!

   Posted by: Terry |
   January 30, 2010 8:49 PM

9. Yeah! Thumbs up for CurdBee! here too

   Posted by: Eric |
   January 31, 2010 4:58 AM

10. This was one of my new year resolutions and I've been reading and researching about the invoicing tools out there, where this went, great timing

    Didn't know about Curdbee before, but just had a look and I do agree with Terry. I was bending towards BallPark before, but I think CurdBee is offers great value and some really cool features at a very attractive price.

    Seems their free account is sufficient for me at the start as it supports PayPal and Google Checkout and hope I'd go for a paid account when I have more business. Anyway thanks for sharing great stuff!

    Posted by: Bill Vicks |
    January 31, 2010 5:03 AM

11. And also can use your own domain name for invoices and estimates sent from curdbee

    http://vesess.com/blog/2010/01/25/use-your-own-domains-with-curdbee/

    Posted by: Eric |
    January 31, 2010 5:03 AM

12. I'm enjoying seeing Project Bubble go from strength to strength.
    Suggest you follow on Twitter also to follow the development and actually shape the features.
    Perhaps lacking the features of the 'Big Boys' but growing and improving at an alarming rate.

     Posted by: mikcowans |
    February 1, 2010 11:42 AM

13. Can I add Moobiz http://www.moobiz.com to the list..

    Combines online invoicing with a range of integrated business management apps, such as CRM, project management, online shared calendar, website (even ecommerce).

    You get to add and remove the functionality you need to match your business and control the lot from one login.

    Posted by: Matt Fenn |
    February 1, 2010 1:14 PM

14. Do also try out www.cannybill.com. Not only does it handle all your invoicing but also web based order forms.

    Great for selling products, services, digital downloads, web hosting, domain names and even SSls!

    Posted by: Wladimir |
    February 1, 2010 1:43 PM

15. MinuteDock (http://minutedock.com) is a time tracker and invoicer that plugs right into Xero so you can have the best of both worlds – a decent time tracker AND a decent online accounting package.

     Posted by: James |
    February 1, 2010 7:05 PM

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Brad Pitt Angelina Jolie Suing <b>News</b> Of The World Over Split Rumors

Hollywood power couple Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie have filed suit against a British tabloid that published a report claiming the pair recently called it.

I agree just corrections in our foreign policy, national policy and how we regulate financial services would be a “Jobs Bill” without having the need for one.

But its this lack of political will to do so, will lead to a so-so jobs bill that like you said will get some new roads built, maybe repair some others, bridges and others things, maybe water ways.

But if you can’t afford to say install solar panels and State’s are cutting back subsidies, no job creation. If you than say, increase subsidies to the point that maybe families under $50K get up to 4kw of solar power for free installed (not free but paid for by the Fed) then that would create jobs because many middle class families in Sunbelt and Sunny States would SWARM on that.

You could do the same for Geo-Thermal Heating/Cooling in Snowy States once it melts…

I should point out that Maine Solar House has had several winters of Solar Energy so this is not just for sunny areas of the country.

Look “Green Jobs” are a reality, it just has to be massively adopted to create massive job growth and if the private sector is unwilling to do that without a profit motive attached too it, then that leaves the Federal Government and frankly I don’t see a problem with promoting clean energy and if you made it affordable by back stopping loans or giving direct funding too, MANY Americans are willing to switch to renewable power, trust me, unless you live in an apartment or some council controlled community where they also limit your access to TV to only OTA or Cable provided by the big 3-4 cable companies…

I don’t know what other “jobs” you want to create since our economy has switched from majority maker of things to a purchaser of things. Any regulation that comes out of Washington usually means the worker taking the grunt of what the outcome is because you don’t have the protection of a Labor Union or progressive Labor Dept laws. If you did, then as our trade agreements allow is the outsourcing of jobs wherever they can get the cheapest cost.

So without a total re-write of labor and trade agreements, you can only basically “grow” the jobs market by adding another sector. That’s what we did with the Internet boom. That added jobs that weren’t around before the explosion of the Internet.

So Green Jobs is a sector of growth and something Wall St is ready to invest heavily in. It doesn’t require years of class work, most of the jobs can be trained for in less than a semester at your local community college, I know I’m going to such a class at LA Trade Tech in Los Angeles.

Green Technology is the next big “Boom” in our economy its just a question of making hay with it because it will eventually crash when the market is saturated and mass adoption has taken place, prices will drop and demand will go down.

So if we can get 5-10 years of massive growth and improve our daily lives weather its lower energy cost or high speed rail/expanded light rail, I see this is a net positive.

You’re still going to have most of the jobs created by the Service Sector no matter what you do, more workers out there results in other services being used, creating jobs to meet demand.

The problem largely in our economy is that demand went down far enough to create job lost. Wall St’s mismanagement of credit services lead to big ticket items not being purchased, etc, etc.

You return this back to what is the normalcy with largely many of the bigger problems unfixed, people will largely shut up because Americans are a whole are SELFISH.

Most American’s won’t “Move Their Money”, won’t join a “Credit Card Revolt”, they are just waiting for the storm to be over (those with jobs) so they can go back to buying trinkets they largely don’t need (see IPad), most other Americans just want that as well.

Money And Message

By Kleinheider
Posted on February 4, 2010 at 7:57 am

Mike Morrow on the governor’s race:

So the race is beginning to be more about message than money, for those who have the luxury of making it so. Trying to campaign without resources is virtually impossible.

It’s a reminder that in politics, as in life, money can’t buy happiness, but it sure can buy peace of mind.

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I agree just corrections in our foreign policy, national policy and how we regulate financial services would be a “Jobs Bill” without having the need for one.

But its this lack of political will to do so, will lead to a so-so jobs bill that like you said will get some new roads built, maybe repair some others, bridges and others things, maybe water ways.

But if you can’t afford to say install solar panels and State’s are cutting back subsidies, no job creation. If you than say, increase subsidies to the point that maybe families under $50K get up to 4kw of solar power for free installed (not free but paid for by the Fed) then that would create jobs because many middle class families in Sunbelt and Sunny States would SWARM on that.

You could do the same for Geo-Thermal Heating/Cooling in Snowy States once it melts…

I should point out that Maine Solar House has had several winters of Solar Energy so this is not just for sunny areas of the country.

Look “Green Jobs” are a reality, it just has to be massively adopted to create massive job growth and if the private sector is unwilling to do that without a profit motive attached too it, then that leaves the Federal Government and frankly I don’t see a problem with promoting clean energy and if you made it affordable by back stopping loans or giving direct funding too, MANY Americans are willing to switch to renewable power, trust me, unless you live in an apartment or some council controlled community where they also limit your access to TV to only OTA or Cable provided by the big 3-4 cable companies…

I don’t know what other “jobs” you want to create since our economy has switched from majority maker of things to a purchaser of things. Any regulation that comes out of Washington usually means the worker taking the grunt of what the outcome is because you don’t have the protection of a Labor Union or progressive Labor Dept laws. If you did, then as our trade agreements allow is the outsourcing of jobs wherever they can get the cheapest cost.

So without a total re-write of labor and trade agreements, you can only basically “grow” the jobs market by adding another sector. That’s what we did with the Internet boom. That added jobs that weren’t around before the explosion of the Internet.

So Green Jobs is a sector of growth and something Wall St is ready to invest heavily in. It doesn’t require years of class work, most of the jobs can be trained for in less than a semester at your local community college, I know I’m going to such a class at LA Trade Tech in Los Angeles.

Green Technology is the next big “Boom” in our economy its just a question of making hay with it because it will eventually crash when the market is saturated and mass adoption has taken place, prices will drop and demand will go down.

So if we can get 5-10 years of massive growth and improve our daily lives weather its lower energy cost or high speed rail/expanded light rail, I see this is a net positive.

You’re still going to have most of the jobs created by the Service Sector no matter what you do, more workers out there results in other services being used, creating jobs to meet demand.

The problem largely in our economy is that demand went down far enough to create job lost. Wall St’s mismanagement of credit services lead to big ticket items not being purchased, etc, etc.

You return this back to what is the normalcy with largely many of the bigger problems unfixed, people will largely shut up because Americans are a whole are SELFISH.

Most American’s won’t “Move Their Money”, won’t join a “Credit Card Revolt”, they are just waiting for the storm to be over (those with jobs) so they can go back to buying trinkets they largely don’t need (see IPad), most other Americans just want that as well.

Money And Message

By Kleinheider
Posted on February 4, 2010 at 7:57 am

Mike Morrow on the governor’s race:

So the race is beginning to be more about message than money, for those who have the luxury of making it so. Trying to campaign without resources is virtually impossible.

It’s a reminder that in politics, as in life, money can’t buy happiness, but it sure can buy peace of mind.

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Thanks for the great channel!

The proposed sight for the land fill is about 28 miles outside of Winnemucca on Jungo Road. Part of the Black Rock desert. The 4000 tons a day would actually come in via train and will include any where from 1 to 15% of human waste sludge, ASBESTOS, and tires EACH according to the Jungo Land and Investments Inc. (JLII, subsidiary of Recology) Report of Design, dated December 2008, on file at Nevada Department of Environmental Protection (NDEP).

The economic case for this is shaky at best. There is an active aquifer under the landfill site. USGS data documents this aquifer as connected to the Humboldt River, and in time, the domestic aquifer in and around the Winnemucca municipal area. Per the Recology design plan, the bottom of the landfill will be 19 ft from the aquifer. This fact should exclude this site. NRS statute requires a minimum of 100 ft separation from this water to the bottom of a landfill. Yet it appears the illustrious NDEP is or has given Recology an exception on this.

There have been no answers on air quality issues within the context of Winnemucca and our prevailing winds. Thirty year averages for wind direction shows a conservative trend of west to east wind direction 24% of the time. There has not been an environmental impact study with risk assessment and risk mitigation. Nothing has been studied regarding wildlife or plants. Collection of runoff slurry will be collected in ponds and ditches around the perimeter of the landfill. That water will attract numerous wildlife species. Plants rooted in and on the reclaimed garbage pile will ‘bio-accumulate’ many of the toxins from the pile. Those toxins will be carried throughout the food chain on the playa.

A local citizens petition to stop the land fill has 3,636 signatures on it to date. As I understand it, there are 5774 registered voters. 63% of the voters have said they do NOT want the land fill. Also, a random sample survey was recently completed with 198 voters responding. In that sample, 78% of the voters said no to the landfill, 14% favor it, and 8% are undecided.

A second landfill was not even legal when Recology’s Conditional Use Permit (CUP) was approved by the Regional Planning Commission on 4/12/07. At that time, only one landfill was allowed in Winnemucca. An ordinance allowing a second landfill (ordinance number 10-15-2007), was implemented with an effective date of 10/26/07 by the commissioners.

All of these fact-based items, and probably more than I can represent, have been raised to officials and not addressed. There are enough facts to recall ordinance 10-15-2007 AND the CUP issued to Recology. Yet, while accusing the citizens of not focusing on facts, our local officials are ready to set in motion a plan that will impact this community and those down the Humboldt River for the next 95 years and beyond; without identifying and addressing fact-based issues as they are known and questioned in 2009.

Just think what this lack of fact-based diligence will mean for those trying to deal with the fall out in the year 2104 if this landfill proceeds.

Nevadans Against Garbage
www.nevadansagainstgarbage.com
Show your support even if you are under 18 or not a Winnemucca/Humboldt County Resident by signing the e-statement at: www.ipetitions.com/petition/stoplandfill/
Join the N.A.G. Facebook Group at: http://groups.to/nagfbgroup/

Why Did CBS Accept Tim Tebow's Super Bowl Abortion Ad? Money.

“I'm just standing for something.” Throughout the entire Super Bowl anti-abortion advertising controversy, Tim Tebow has done a fantastic job falling on the sword for his cause. Too bad consumers, football fans, and activists are being played by CBS.

Tebow's initial comments framed the tone for much of the debate:

“Some people won't agree with it, you know, but I think they can at least respect that I stand up for what I believe,” Tebow said.

From a media standpoint, this was a shrewd move. Tebow effectively changed the conversation by making a play to reframe the criticism. Notice, he did not say “I believe abortion should be illegal” – he said, “I am just standing up for what I believe.” The subtle switch allowed people to focus less on what he was actually saying and more on the idea of the quarterback as an honorable man.

Sports Illustrated took the bait:

He will be the quarterback he is. Coaches will draft him, or they won't. He will believe what he believes. Fans will love him, or they won't.

Today's AdAge discusses the impact of Tebow's stance on future endorsements, and David Carter, executive director of the University of Southern California Sports Business Institute, lets fly with the idea that taking a stand is something to be lauded:

“Tebow should be all right because, unlike many athletes, he has been articulately outspoken and done so with a calm confidence about so many things, including his interests and beliefs,” he said. “Because of this track record, he won't be as polarizing as some athletes. In this era where many consumers believe athletes will say and do anything for a buck, he may just be different. This doesn't mean that he won't alienate a number of fans or consumers, simply that many will find his consistency refreshing.”

People in the public eye take stands for all sorts of things – Tebow is being promoted as some brave soul when what he is doing is actually quite ordinary. Many people use their celebrity as a way to promote a cause. Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger became famous for saving 155 lives by successfully landing a distressed plane in the Hudson River. Soon after, he appeared on television discussing the plight of pilots and has also advocated for other causes. Normal. Nothing special about it.

However, most of the outrage isn't about Tim Tebow as a person. (I'd venture to say most people who don't follow football don't give two shits about this kid.) The outrage stems from the growing anti-choice climate in this country, and CBS's hypocritical broadcasting decisions.

While media manipulating sensationalists like Sarah Palin are trying to shift the debate back to anti-choice doublespeak – “women should be reminded that they are strong enough and smart enough to make decisions that allow for career and educational opportunities while still giving their babies a chance at life,” she says in a new Facebook post – the real story here is why CBS chose to reverse its long standing policy against controversial messages. (Hint: $$$.)

The official statement from CBS is a bunch of bullshit.

“We have for some time moderated our approach to advocacy submissions after it became apparent that our stance did not reflect public sentiment or industry norms,” said CBS spokesman Dana McClintock, according to the AP. “In fact, most media outlets have accepted advocacy ads for some time.”

McClintock said CBS “will continue to consider responsibly produced ads from all groups for the few remaining spots in Super Bowl XLIV.”

This appears to be a very recent change in policy. So what gives? CBS keeps trying to pretend that these ads met some kind of responsibility criteria, but advertising publications are telling a different story. Major companies like FedEx and Pepsi are sitting out the Super Bowl, taking tens of millions of dollars with them, and as more and more advertisers start to believe the largest sporting event of the year isn't the best place to draw in eyeballs, networks are trying to come up with ways to stem the shortfall; if one of those ways just so happens to be taking a few million off the hands of a church with questionable practices, so be it. CBS has also makes a point to note that there are still spots available to advertise during the Super Bowl, if one of the aggrieved women's rights groups wants to cough up $3 million in reponse.

Unfortunately, CBS probably considers its decision a marketing success:

“People are talking about this commercial two weeks prior to the advertising — it's good for the person buying the ad, good for the networks. I don't believe there's a negative. And that's without having any opinion of the content,” said Bob Horowitz, president of Juma Entertainment and executive producer “Super Bowl's Greatest Commercials,” which will air on CBS on Feb. 3.

Tim Tebow Won't Hide From NFL Scouts — Or Hide His Beliefs [Sports Illustrated]
College Football Star's Beliefs Could Scare off Some Marketers, Experts Say [Advertising Age]
Sarah Palin Wishes NOW Was More Pro Woman [The Awl]
CBS justifies 30-Second Tim Tebow Anti-Abortion Ad, standing by its choice to air spot [NY Daily News]
Why FedEx Chose Orange Bowl Over Super Bowl
PepsiCo Not Advertising Beverages During Super Bowl XLIV
Super Bowl ad featuring quarterback Tebow, mother riles abortion rights groups [Washington Post]

Earlier: Super Bowl Showdown: College Quarterback To Star In Controversial Abortion Ad

Send an email to Latoya, the author of this post, at latoya@racialicious.com.

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Thanks for the great channel!

The proposed sight for the land fill is about 28 miles outside of Winnemucca on Jungo Road. Part of the Black Rock desert. The 4000 tons a day would actually come in via train and will include any where from 1 to 15% of human waste sludge, ASBESTOS, and tires EACH according to the Jungo Land and Investments Inc. (JLII, subsidiary of Recology) Report of Design, dated December 2008, on file at Nevada Department of Environmental Protection (NDEP).

The economic case for this is shaky at best. There is an active aquifer under the landfill site. USGS data documents this aquifer as connected to the Humboldt River, and in time, the domestic aquifer in and around the Winnemucca municipal area. Per the Recology design plan, the bottom of the landfill will be 19 ft from the aquifer. This fact should exclude this site. NRS statute requires a minimum of 100 ft separation from this water to the bottom of a landfill. Yet it appears the illustrious NDEP is or has given Recology an exception on this.

There have been no answers on air quality issues within the context of Winnemucca and our prevailing winds. Thirty year averages for wind direction shows a conservative trend of west to east wind direction 24% of the time. There has not been an environmental impact study with risk assessment and risk mitigation. Nothing has been studied regarding wildlife or plants. Collection of runoff slurry will be collected in ponds and ditches around the perimeter of the landfill. That water will attract numerous wildlife species. Plants rooted in and on the reclaimed garbage pile will ‘bio-accumulate’ many of the toxins from the pile. Those toxins will be carried throughout the food chain on the playa.

A local citizens petition to stop the land fill has 3,636 signatures on it to date. As I understand it, there are 5774 registered voters. 63% of the voters have said they do NOT want the land fill. Also, a random sample survey was recently completed with 198 voters responding. In that sample, 78% of the voters said no to the landfill, 14% favor it, and 8% are undecided.

A second landfill was not even legal when Recology’s Conditional Use Permit (CUP) was approved by the Regional Planning Commission on 4/12/07. At that time, only one landfill was allowed in Winnemucca. An ordinance allowing a second landfill (ordinance number 10-15-2007), was implemented with an effective date of 10/26/07 by the commissioners.

All of these fact-based items, and probably more than I can represent, have been raised to officials and not addressed. There are enough facts to recall ordinance 10-15-2007 AND the CUP issued to Recology. Yet, while accusing the citizens of not focusing on facts, our local officials are ready to set in motion a plan that will impact this community and those down the Humboldt River for the next 95 years and beyond; without identifying and addressing fact-based issues as they are known and questioned in 2009.

Just think what this lack of fact-based diligence will mean for those trying to deal with the fall out in the year 2104 if this landfill proceeds.

Nevadans Against Garbage
www.nevadansagainstgarbage.com
Show your support even if you are under 18 or not a Winnemucca/Humboldt County Resident by signing the e-statement at: www.ipetitions.com/petition/stoplandfill/
Join the N.A.G. Facebook Group at: http://groups.to/nagfbgroup/

Why Did CBS Accept Tim Tebow's Super Bowl Abortion Ad? Money.

“I'm just standing for something.” Throughout the entire Super Bowl anti-abortion advertising controversy, Tim Tebow has done a fantastic job falling on the sword for his cause. Too bad consumers, football fans, and activists are being played by CBS.

Tebow's initial comments framed the tone for much of the debate:

“Some people won't agree with it, you know, but I think they can at least respect that I stand up for what I believe,” Tebow said.

From a media standpoint, this was a shrewd move. Tebow effectively changed the conversation by making a play to reframe the criticism. Notice, he did not say “I believe abortion should be illegal” – he said, “I am just standing up for what I believe.” The subtle switch allowed people to focus less on what he was actually saying and more on the idea of the quarterback as an honorable man.

Sports Illustrated took the bait:

He will be the quarterback he is. Coaches will draft him, or they won't. He will believe what he believes. Fans will love him, or they won't.

Today's AdAge discusses the impact of Tebow's stance on future endorsements, and David Carter, executive director of the University of Southern California Sports Business Institute, lets fly with the idea that taking a stand is something to be lauded:

“Tebow should be all right because, unlike many athletes, he has been articulately outspoken and done so with a calm confidence about so many things, including his interests and beliefs,” he said. “Because of this track record, he won't be as polarizing as some athletes. In this era where many consumers believe athletes will say and do anything for a buck, he may just be different. This doesn't mean that he won't alienate a number of fans or consumers, simply that many will find his consistency refreshing.”

People in the public eye take stands for all sorts of things – Tebow is being promoted as some brave soul when what he is doing is actually quite ordinary. Many people use their celebrity as a way to promote a cause. Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger became famous for saving 155 lives by successfully landing a distressed plane in the Hudson River. Soon after, he appeared on television discussing the plight of pilots and has also advocated for other causes. Normal. Nothing special about it.

However, most of the outrage isn't about Tim Tebow as a person. (I'd venture to say most people who don't follow football don't give two shits about this kid.) The outrage stems from the growing anti-choice climate in this country, and CBS's hypocritical broadcasting decisions.

While media manipulating sensationalists like Sarah Palin are trying to shift the debate back to anti-choice doublespeak – “women should be reminded that they are strong enough and smart enough to make decisions that allow for career and educational opportunities while still giving their babies a chance at life,” she says in a new Facebook post – the real story here is why CBS chose to reverse its long standing policy against controversial messages. (Hint: $$$.)

The official statement from CBS is a bunch of bullshit.

“We have for some time moderated our approach to advocacy submissions after it became apparent that our stance did not reflect public sentiment or industry norms,” said CBS spokesman Dana McClintock, according to the AP. “In fact, most media outlets have accepted advocacy ads for some time.”

McClintock said CBS “will continue to consider responsibly produced ads from all groups for the few remaining spots in Super Bowl XLIV.”

This appears to be a very recent change in policy. So what gives? CBS keeps trying to pretend that these ads met some kind of responsibility criteria, but advertising publications are telling a different story. Major companies like FedEx and Pepsi are sitting out the Super Bowl, taking tens of millions of dollars with them, and as more and more advertisers start to believe the largest sporting event of the year isn't the best place to draw in eyeballs, networks are trying to come up with ways to stem the shortfall; if one of those ways just so happens to be taking a few million off the hands of a church with questionable practices, so be it. CBS has also makes a point to note that there are still spots available to advertise during the Super Bowl, if one of the aggrieved women's rights groups wants to cough up $3 million in reponse.

Unfortunately, CBS probably considers its decision a marketing success:

“People are talking about this commercial two weeks prior to the advertising — it's good for the person buying the ad, good for the networks. I don't believe there's a negative. And that's without having any opinion of the content,” said Bob Horowitz, president of Juma Entertainment and executive producer “Super Bowl's Greatest Commercials,” which will air on CBS on Feb. 3.

Tim Tebow Won't Hide From NFL Scouts — Or Hide His Beliefs [Sports Illustrated]
College Football Star's Beliefs Could Scare off Some Marketers, Experts Say [Advertising Age]
Sarah Palin Wishes NOW Was More Pro Woman [The Awl]
CBS justifies 30-Second Tim Tebow Anti-Abortion Ad, standing by its choice to air spot [NY Daily News]
Why FedEx Chose Orange Bowl Over Super Bowl
PepsiCo Not Advertising Beverages During Super Bowl XLIV
Super Bowl ad featuring quarterback Tebow, mother riles abortion rights groups [Washington Post]

Earlier: Super Bowl Showdown: College Quarterback To Star In Controversial Abortion Ad

Send an email to Latoya, the author of this post, at latoya@racialicious.com.

Suburban Guerrilla » Blog Archive » <b>News</b>

2 Responses to “<b>News</b>”. on 04 Feb 2010 at 9:47 am1 lambert strether. Obama's only been in office a year. Wait 'til he's had a chance to do something! on 04 Feb 2010 at 10:04 am2 dandy. Lambert, c'mon now, he's already done “something”. …

Teens prefer reading <b>news</b> online to Twitter | Media | guardian.co.uk

While most teenagers reject Twitter and blogging, 62% of them like to read their <b>news</b> online, US research reveals. By Mercedes Bunz.

Jon Stewart Talks Fox <b>News</b> On The O'Reilly Factor – Tuned In <b>…</b>

Last night we saw one of the best debates about media and politics in general, and Fox <b>News</b> in particular, that I've seen on TV in a while. That it was conducted by a professional talk-TV bloviator (Bill O'Reilly) and a late-night …

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