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Source: http://www.eenews.net/climatewire/rss/2013/01/30/2
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WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama will wade cautiously into the debate over U.S. immigration reform on Tuesday, seeking to build momentum for a new bipartisan plan to offer a pathway to citizenship for the country's 11 million illegal immigrants.
Reflecting the growing clout of Hispanic voters, Obama will travel to Nevada little more than a week after his second inauguration and make the case for swift action by Congress to overhaul immigration laws.
Immigration reform could give Obama a landmark second-term legislative achievement, but he is expected to tread carefully in a speech in Las Vegas, just a day after a group of influential Senate Democrats and Republicans laid out a broad plan of their own.
Obama's challenge is to help build public support for the senators' framework, which is in line with many of his main ideas for a sweeping immigration overhaul, while not alienating his fiercest Republican foes who might resist anything with the Democratic president's name on it.
While Obama is likely to use the bully pulpit of the presidency, backed up by a White House-organized grass-roots campaign, he will likely be more circumspect for now about how personally involved he becomes in congressional negotiations.
"The minute it becomes Obama's plan, the Republicans kick automatically into opposition," said Bill Schneider, a political scientist at George Mason University in Virginia. "The White House knows to back off for now."
Scheduled to speak at a Las Vegas high school at 11:15 a.m. PST, Obama does not intend to unveil legislation of his own. He will instead urge lawmakers to press ahead with their efforts even as he restates the "blueprint" for reform he rolled out in 2011, which called for an "earned" path to citizenship, administration officials said.
The flurry of activity marks the first substantive drive in years to forge an agreement on fixing America's flawed immigration system. Though the debate is likely to be contentious there is a growing consensus in Washington that the conditions are finally ripe for tackling the problem.
Obama and his fellow Democrats see their commitment to immigration reform as a way to solidify their hold on the growing Latino vote, which they won handily in the 2012 election. Nevada, for example, has a fast-growing Hispanic population that helped Obama carry the state in the November election.
Many Republicans, worried that their party has alienated Hispanics with anti-immigrant rhetoric, are suddenly open to cooperation on the issue as they seek to set a new tone.
DEVIL IN THE DETAILS?
The eight-member Senate group includes John McCain, a Republican from the border state of Arizona; Charles Schumer, a centrist Democrat from New York; and Republican Marco Rubio of Florida, a Cuban-American favorite of the Tea Party movement who has helped garner support from influential conservatives.
Translating the aspirations expressed by the group into an inevitably lengthy and complicated bill will itself be a major challenge in Congress. At the same time, the White House wants to see further details before Obama will fully embrace the senators' approach.
In an attempt to build support, the Senate proposal would couple immigration reform with enhanced border security efforts aimed at preventing illegal immigration and ensuring that those foreigners temporarily in the United States return home when their visas expire.
Under the proposal, undocumented immigrants would be allowed to register with the government, pay a fine, and then be given probationary legal status allowing them to work.
Ultimately, these immigrants would have to "go to the end of the line" and apply for permanent status. But while waiting to qualify for citizenship, they would no longer face the fear of deportation or harassment from law enforcers if they have steered clear of illegal activity.
Obama's aides consider it a breakthrough that Republican members of the bipartisan group of senators have agreed to a path to citizenship, a concept that many in their party have long opposed as tantamount to amnesty for law-breakers.
The White House remains wary, however. The president's aides have written up extensive legislative language for an immigration overhaul and will step in with their own formal proposals if the Senate effort falls apart, an administration official said.
Immigration reform, sidelined by economic issues and healthcare reform during Obama's first term, is part of an ambitious liberal agenda he laid out in his second inaugural address. That agenda also includes gun control, gay rights and fighting climate change.
Last summer, Obama took executive action so that the federal government stopped seeking to deport illegal immigrants who had arrived in the United States as children - a dramatic change that was celebrated in the Hispanic community.
After winning the bitterly fought election, Obama promised to tackle the issue comprehensively early in his new term.
(Editing by Alistair Bell and Christopher Wilson)
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/obama-tread-carefully-immigration-debate-061214111.html
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Former Arizona Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, who sustained a gunshot to the head in a January 2011 Tucson town hall shooting, is expected to speak at a Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on gun violence Wednesday, multiple sources reported.
Gifford's husband, astronaut Mark Kelly, had been scheduled to testify before the committee at the 10 a.m. hearing, but his wife was not on the list of witnesses. Reports indicate Giffords will deliver an opening statement.
Committee spokeswoman Jessica Brady could not confirm Giffords' plans to Yahoo News Wednesday morning.
Giffords and Kelly founded a non-profit, Americans for Responsible Solutions, to promote gun reform following the shooting that severely injured Giffords and 12 others, and killed six.
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Like any top salesperson, Joseph Duveen targeted the most promising prospects and then sought to cultivate a relationship with them. He prepared diligently before making his move.
Duveen, a prominent British art dealer in the early 20th century, wanted to win Andrew Mellon as a client. Rather than simply contact the American banker and invite him to buy art, Duveen preferred to proceed in carefully plotted steps.
First, he studied Mellon?s public statements and observed the famous financier?s business dealings. Then Duveen role-played with his butler (who pretended to be Mellon), rehearsing the kind of conversations that would help him build rapport.
The next step was to meet Mellon. The opportunity arose in 1921, when Duveen happened to be staying at the same London hotel as the 66-year-old Mellon.
Duveen?s valet alerted his boss that Mellon was about to leave the hotel, so Duveen raced down the hall and managed to squeeze into the same elevator. He introduced himself to the banker and said, ?I?m on my way to the National Gallery. My great refreshment is to look at pictures.? Mellon accompanied Duveen and, by day?s end, wanted to buy from Duveen?s collection.
While they did occasional business together in the 1920s, Duveen?s real coup occurred in 1936. He knew that Mellon was bequeathing his collection to the new National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., and he figured Mellon would be buying more art to supplement his contribution to the museum.
Duveen also knew that Mellon was living in an apartment near Dupont Circle in Washington. So he rented a unit one floor below and filled it with art that he wanted Mellon to buy.
He gave Mellon the key and invited him to view the collection anytime. Duveen did not live there, but hired a caretaker to assist when Mellon came down in his dressing gown and slippers to enjoy the paintings. Ultimately, Mellon bought all 42 pieces of art in the apartment for $21 million?the biggest art sale ever at the time.
? Adapted from The Art of the Sale, Philip Delves Broughton, The Penguin Press.
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I've said it before and I'll say it again, Europe has gone accelerator crazy. If putting burgeoning startups through a 13 week mentor-led boot camp and throwing a few euros their way is the key to economic growth, then the Euro crisis is all but solved. I jest, of course, and you arguably can't have too much idea-stage money and support. But, seriously, I can barely keep up with these things. To that end, two European accelerators opened to applications this month: Dotforge, a brand new accelerator based in Sheffield, UK, and Lithuania's StartupHighway, which runs for its second year.Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/Cb4KEPy0ObY/
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Although we should not take enjoyment in other people?s job losses, it is important to focus on what happens when higher education is taken over by a soulless corporation. As the founder of the university has become a billionaire and has just received a $5 million retirement package, the school is shedding many of its on-the-ground employees. Like many other for-profit schools, the U. of Phoenix receives most of its funding from public monies, and then uses these funds to enrich administrators and shareholders and hire an army of marketers and recruiters in order to turn mostly under-represented minority students into unemployed debt slaves, and they do this by hiring all of their faculty off of the tenure system. In many ways, this school represents the extreme logic of the online education movement: eliminate tenure for the faculty, develop questionable distance education, cater to private corporations, and make students suffer with high debt levels and bogus degrees (actually very few students ever get their degrees, and very few get their promised jobs).
While online course providers like Coursera and Udacity appear to represent a much more progressive version of this high-tech education promotion, let us look at some of the statements that are coming out of the mouths of these not-for-profit, profit-seeking marketers. Here is Sebastian Thrun, founder of Udacity, from the UCLA forum (these quotes come from the rush transcript on Remaking the University): ?Students rarely learn listening . . . or they never learn by listening. The challenge for us is to take this new medium and really bring it to a mode where students do something and learn by doing. And if you look at the broad spectrum of online technology with what happens. It doesn?t really take long time to point to video games. And most of us look down on video games. We?ve also played them. I know there are people in this room who play angry birds. Some people do. Some people don?t admit it. Angry birds is an wonderful learning environment because you get drawn in, you solve the physics problems but the big problem is that it stops at angry birds . . . if the angry birds was good enough to get into the masters students in physics. It would be an amazing experience and you could do this at scale.? The point I want to stress here is the claim that students never learn from listening. Following this logic, most of current education is simply useless, and we should just have students take out their smart phones and play Angry Birds all day.
During Thrun?s presentation at UCLA, this downgrading of traditional learning environments was connected to a downsizing of the faculty: ?As we know that higher education is moving at a slower pace compared to the industry moves. We have been funded by a whole bunch of corporations that make the classes with us and there?s a number of classes launching soon on topics to be not covered in academia. If you look at the way the technology turns over, it will be 5-10 years in computer science [and] if you look at the way colleges turn over, it?s much more difficult because [with] tenure they are gonna be with us for 30 years so the national turnover rate for colleges is about 30 years. Industries it?s like 5-10 years. So there?s a disconnect between how the world changes and how colleges are able to keep up. Therefore in computer science it would be hard to find courses that teach technologies that are useful today such as IOS and all the wonderful things that they do. So the industries jumped in and funded us to build these classes.? According to this logic, since tenure requires a thirty-year commitment to the faculty, and industry and technology change at a much faster rate, we need to get rid of the secure faculty and replace them with student mentors and the latest technology.
Thrun?s argument fails to recognize that faculty also develop and change, and most faculty, including his own wife, now teach without tenure. His point of view also pushes the idea that technological change is always for the better, and even if it is not good, there is no way to resist it. As I have previously argued, we need to compare online courses to our best courses and not our worst, and we have to defend and define quality education and push for more funds to be spent on small, interactive classes. However, Thrun and other MOOC celebrators appear to have a disdain for their own teaching: ?But in the existing classes, the level of services are often not that great. . . .I talked to numerous instructors and you divide the time the communal time and the personal time you give back to the students in terms of advising and grading . . . you can be lucky as a student for 3 credits class to get 3 hours of personal time. Many people laugh and many say I spend 10 min/student per class and the rest I give to my TAs. Charging $1,000-$4,000 for that to me is gonna be a question going forward.? Although I have often questioned what students are actually paying for in higher education, what Thrun is really questioning is the validity and value of large, impersonal lecture classes, and on this point, we are in agreement; still the question that remains is if large online courses can really provide the quality education they advertise.
At the last Regents meeting, many of these themes were continued as three computer science professors attempted to convince the UC system that online courses would make higher education ?better, faster, and cheaper.? In her presentation for Coursera, Daphne Koller insisted that since students now have a very short attention span, the classic lecture has to be broken up into a series of short videos followed by an interactive question and answer system. She argued that this method paradoxically makes mass education personalized as it pushes students to constantly learn and be tested on material before they advance.
Like the other online course providers, in order to differentiate her ?product? from the ?traditional? model of education, Koller had to constantly put down the current way we educate students. Thus, she derided the ?sage on the stage? and the inability of most students to ask questions in their large lecture classes. She also bemoaned the fact that no one wants to read students? tests with identical questions and answers, and so the whole grading process can be given to computers and fellow students. Once again, this argument not only degrades the value and expertise of faculty, but it also treats students as if they need to be reimagined as programmable machines and free laborers. Yes, let?s have the students? grade each other?s paper, and while they pay for their education, let us train them to work for free.
Another alarming aspect of the rhetoric of these providers is their constant reference to experimenting on students as they attempt to increase access to higher education. The idea presented at the Regents meeting is that since so many under-represented students cannot find places in the UC system, these students from underfunded high schools should be given an online alternative. Some have called this the Digital Jim Crow because wealthy students will still have access to traditional higher education, while the nonwealthy, under-represented minority students will be sent to an inferior online system. Of course this new form of educational segregation is being pushed under the progressive banner of expanding access.
Source: http://changinguniversities.blogspot.com/2013/01/a-university-without-faculty-demise-of.html
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It looks like the iPhone, iPad and iPod touch aren't the only Apple devices getting a software update today. The company has also rolled out an update to the Apple TV, which adds Bluetooth keyboard support, along with the ability to play music you've purchased from iTunes through iCloud. You'll also get a new "Up Next" feature that lets you choose what to play from the cued up music (or simply keep an eye on what's coming up).
Filed under: Home Entertainment, HD, Apple
Source: 9 to 5 Mac
Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/01/28/apple-tv-software-update-bring-bluetooth-keyboard-support-music/
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NEW YORK ? For most in the New York City area, life has returned to normal since Superstorm Sandy wrought devastation last fall. Now, the city and other communities must attempt to glean lessons from the storm, as well as other disasters, and use them to plan for the future.
These disastrous natural events are not isolated anomalies; there's reason to expect more in the future. Natural records, such as those contained in sedimentary cores from lakebeds and in tree rings, indicate massive floods and droughts occurred in the distant past, when little human infrastructure existed in North America. And human-caused climate change is expected to exacerbate some extreme weather, causing, for example, heavy precipitation and heat waves.
A panel of experts gathered at the New York Academy of Sciences on Thursday (Jan. 24) evening to discuss how cities and other communities can better prepare for these disasters. Here are 10 lessons from Sandy the experts said cities should heed in preparing for future disasters, particularly those linked with climate change.
1. Beware sea level rise: The sea level in the New York City area has risen about a foot (0.3 meters) over the last century, said Radley Horton, a climate scientist at Columbia University. Sandy brought a record storm surge to the southern tip of Manhattan, and that surge received a boost from the increase in sea levels, Horton said. Because of these rising sea levels, "even weaker storms in the future can cause more devastating flooding," he said. [On the Ground: Hurricane Sandy in Images]
2. Skepticism of storm barriers: The devastation caused by Sandy's storm surge prompted discussion of installing a barrier system in the waters surrounding New York. But a barrier system, which uses a gate to let ships, fish and water in and out, wouldn't address the real problem ? sea-level rise, said Klaus Jacob, a geophysicist at Columbia University who has studied the impact of climate change on coastal cities.
A short-term cost-benefit analysis does favor a storm barrier system, because the city could avoid improving its infrastructure. But a barrier would not provide a long-term solution and would allow the city to procrastinate in dealing with the inevitable, Jacob said.
3. Discuss retreat: People can adapt to the increasing threat of storms in different ways, Jacob said. They can seek protection through measures like storm barriers; they can accommodate the risk by, for example, elevating buildings to reduce flood risk; or they can move when risks become too high, a strategy called managed retreat, he said.
"I think that needs to be much more aired in the public, because it is obviously the hardest to do," Jacob said.
4. Consider ways to make retreat possible: Cities and communities in the United States need new tools to deal with situations in which it is unrealistic for people to stay in a particular place, said James Russell, architecture critic for Bloomberg News and author of "The Agile City: Building Well Being and Wealth in an Era of Climate Change" (Island Press, 2011).
For example, a legal tool called land re-adjustment has shown success in the Netherlands, where a portion of land lies below sea level. When a community is threatened, its land is re-allocated elsewhere and property lines redrawn, he said. [MD1]?Tools used by the Nature Conservancy to protect land could also be helpful, Russell said. For instance, conservation easementslimit how land can be used, particularly by prohibiting development.?
5. Re-envision the city: A version of New York City better adapted to the threat of hurricanes and storms would look different from today's city, Jacob said. The altered metropolis would have a "slightly smaller footprint, [and] we will have to change our density pattern accordingly," he said. "We will have more parks on the waterfront as buffers, and we will have to change our infrastructure radically." [Hurricanes from Above: See Nature's Biggest Storms]
Changes to infrastructure could include modifying the electrical grid, emptying out the lower basements of skyscrapers and using them for parking, and halting vulnerable development, such as housing, along the waterfront, Jacob said.????????
6. Think natural: As a result of development over the centuries, New York City and its surrounding area have lost wetlands and oyster reefs, natural features that once protected the coast from storms, said Nicole Maher, the senior coast scientist with The Nature Conservancy on Long Island. Restoring these features could help make the coast more resilient, by, for example, reducing wave velocity and erosion. Wetlands and oyster reefs also provide other benefits, such as the removal of contaminants from the water, Maher said.
7. Reconsider costs: On average, every $1 spent to make infrastructure more resilient against pounding storms saves $4 in costs later on, but human nature tends not to acknowledge this math, Jacob said.
8. Don't fight the last war: After a disaster like Sandy, the natural tendency is to discuss how to protect our shoreline, "but other things are going to matter," said Robert McDonald, senior scientist for sustainable land-use with The Nature Conservancy. McDonald pointed out that heat wavesand disease are also major threats associated with climate change.
9. Keep uncertainty in mind: By allowing greenhouse gas emissions to accumulate in the atmosphere, humans are conducting a giant experiment with the planet, McDonald said. "Yes, there are a lot of fancy models," that is, computer models used to project future climate. "But there will be huge surprises and things cities have to adapt to that we cannot predict."
10. Disasters bring equity issues: In response to audience questions, moderator Andrew Revkin, of The New York Times, pointed out that both poor and rich neighborhoods are exposed to risks associated with extreme events and climate change, because of where they are located. Sandy, for instance, inundated wealthy lower Manhattan as well as the Rockaways in Queens, the site of public housing projects.
As a result, it is important to avoid pitting these interests against one another in battles for resources needed to adapt, since poorer neighborhoods have less political clout, McDonald noted. He also pointed out that while cities in the developed world, such as New York, have the resources to make changes, others in the developing world, such as in Bangladesh, do not.
Follow LiveScience on Twitter @livescience. We're also on Facebook?& Google+.
Copyright 2013 LiveScience, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.Source: http://news.yahoo.com/future-disasters-10-lessons-superstorm-sandy-191039318.html
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Source: http://asokiano.blogspot.com/2013/01/education-reference-2020-best-american.html
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Jeremy Renner and Gemma Arterton arrive at the premiere of "Hansel & Gretel Witch Hunters" on Thursday Jan. 24, 2013, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Todd Williamson/Invision/AP)
Jeremy Renner and Gemma Arterton arrive at the premiere of "Hansel & Gretel Witch Hunters" on Thursday Jan. 24, 2013, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Todd Williamson/Invision/AP)
Famke Janssen, Jeremy Renner and Gemma Arterton arrive at the premiere of "Hansel & Gretel Witch Hunters" on Thursday Jan. 24, 2013, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Todd Williamson/Invision/AP)
Jeremy Renner arrives at the premiere of "Hansel & Gretel Witch Hunters" on Thursday Jan. 24, 2013, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Todd Williamson/Invision/AP)
Gemma Arterton arrives at the premiere of "Hansel & Gretel Witch Hunters" on Thursday Jan. 24, 2013, in Los Angeles. (Photo by Todd Williamson/Invision/AP)
LOS ANGELES (AP) ? "Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters" cooked up $19 million in its opening weekend.
Paramount's R-rated action film update on the classic fairytale topped the box office, according to studio estimates Sunday. "Hansel & Gretel" features Jeremy Renner and Gemma Arterton as grown-up renditions of the title characters battling witches with crossbows.
Don Harris, Paramount's president of distribution, blamed icy weather on the East Coast for the film's not-so-bewitching debut.
"We got dinged a little bit with the weather on Friday, but overall we're pleased," said Harris, who added that "Hansel & Gretel" performed solidly internationally, earning $25 million overseas.
Other films opening over the weekend in the U.S. and Canada didn't fare as well. The crime thriller "Parker," starring Jason Statham and Jennifer Lopez, debuted in fifth place with $7 million, while Relativity Media's raunchy ensemble comedy "Movie 43" opened in the seventh spot with $5 million.
Hollywood.com box-office analyst Paul Dergarabedian noted that it was the first time box-office grosses were down over last year after four up weekends.
Universal's supernatural horror film "Mama" starring Jessica Chastain dropped to second place with $12.8 million in its second weekend.
Several best-picture Academy Awards contenders continued to benefit from Oscar buzz, as well as the motion picture academy's decision to move up this year's nomination announcement, giving nominees more time in theaters between the Jan. 10 nominations unveiling and the Feb. 24 ceremony.
"Having an Oscar nomination is like holding a lottery ticket," said Dergarabedian. "It could pay off on Oscar night, but it's already paying big dividends now. All this time between the Oscar nominations and the telecast is prime time for these movies to capitalize on their higher profile."
"Silver Linings Playbook," which is up for eight Academy Awards, came in third place over the weekend with $10 million. The film starring Bradley Cooper and Jennifer Lawrence is in its 11th weekend of release and earned $3 million overseas.
"Zero Dark Thirty," the Osama bin Laden manhunt drama also starring Chastain, dropped to fourth place with $9.8 million. It's competing in five categories at the Academy Awards and nabbed $3.6 million internationally.
"Django Unchained," which is nominated for five Oscars, took in $5 million in sixth place, and the musical "Les Miserables," which is up for eight Academy Awards, earned $3.9 million in the 10th position. It was the fifth weekend for both films. "Django" topped the international chart with $47.9 million in 65 total territories.
___
Estimated ticket sales for Friday through Sunday at U.S. and Canadian theaters, according to Hollywood.com. Where available, latest international numbers are also included. Final domestic figures will be released Monday.
1. "Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters," $19 million ($25 million international).
2. "Mama," $12.8 million.
3. "Silver Linings Playbook," $10 million ($3 million international).
4. "Zero Dark Thirty," $9.8 million ($3.6 million international).
5. "Parker," $7 million.
6. "Django Unchained," $5 million ($42.9 million international).
7. "Movie 43," $5 million ($2.8 million international).
8. "Gangster Squad,"$4.2 million ($6.8 million international).
9. "Broken City," $4 million ($500,000 international).
10. "Les Miserables," $3.9 million ($14 million international).
___
Estimated weekend ticket sales at international theaters (excluding the U.S. and Canada) for films distributed overseas by Hollywood studios, according to Rentrak:
1. "Django Unchained," $42.9 million.
2. "Skyfall," $35.4 million.
3. "Hansel & Gretel: Witch Hunters," $25 million.
4. "Life of Pi," $17.5 million.
5. "Les Miserables," $14 million.
6. "Lincoln," $10.7 million.
7. "Miracle in Cell No. 7," $9.7 million.
8. "The Impossible," $7.2 million.
9. "Gangster Squad," $6.8 million.
10. "Wreck-It Ralph," $5.9 million.
___
Online:
http://www.hollywood.com
http://www.rentrak.com
___
Universal and Focus are owned by NBC Universal, a unit of Comcast Corp.; Sony, Columbia, Sony Screen Gems and Sony Pictures Classics are units of Sony Corp.; Paramount is owned by Viacom Inc.; Disney, Pixar and Marvel are owned by The Walt Disney Co.; Miramax is owned by Filmyard Holdings LLC; 20th Century Fox and Fox Searchlight are owned by News Corp.; Warner Bros. and New Line are units of Time Warner Inc.; MGM is owned by a group of former creditors including Highland Capital, Anchorage Advisors and Carl Icahn; Lionsgate is owned by Lions Gate Entertainment Corp.; IFC is owned by AMC Networks Inc.; Rogue is owned by Relativity Media LLC.
___
Follow Lang on Twitter at http://www.twitter.com/derrikjlang
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DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) ? The United Arab Emirates says 94 people face charges for allegedly trying to overthrow the state as part of widening crackdowns on Islamist groups with suspected links to the Muslim Brotherhood.
Sunday's statement by the official news agency WAM did not name the Emirati suspects, but authorities have been waging systematic arrests against perceived dissidents for months.
The crackdowns have brought complaints from rights groups and raised tensions with Egypt, which is led by Muslim Brotherhood member President Mohammed Morsi.
The statement quotes UAE Attorney General Salem Saeed Kubaish as alleging that the suspects built a secret network to plot the coup and raised money through real estate and other deals. It also claims the suspects had links to the Muslim Brotherhood and others for expertise and financial support.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/uae-charges-94-alleged-islamist-coup-plot-153849152.html
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Have you filed or are you thinking about filing a personal injury case? What are some of the things that will likely come your way over the course of your case? Although you cannot see into the future, it will nonetheless benefit you to examine things that are typical in personal injury cases so you will know what to expect.
If you are unhappy with your personal injury lawyer, know that you can terminate the contract. This must be done in writing, but it gives you an out and allows you to find someone else to represent you. Just keep in mind that if you choose to do this, you will still owe your attorney funds for the work he has completed prior to being let go.
Personal injury lawyers tend to specialize in a number of different fields. For example, one may solely take on medical malpractice cases, whereas another may be proficient in automotive accidents. Don?t assume that all personal injury lawyers are the same and be sure to make inquiries about any lawyer you have under consideration.
Make sure to have contact information for a backup in case your attorney cannot be reached. This might be another attorney in the office, a paralegal or some other assistant. Having someone to contact in an emergency is important, especially when you are considering a case that could make the difference in your health and financial future.
If you do not get medical attention as soon as you are injured, you may find that you get less in damages at a personal injury trial. You have to be able to ?mitigate losses? by getting yourself repaired as quickly as possible, allowing you to get out of bed and back to work.
At your first meeting with your personal injury lawyer, bring anything that you think is relevant to your case. For example, if the police were involved, bring a copy of their report. If you have spoken with your insurance company, bring any notes that detail what happened with them. All of this information will help your attorney start piecing together your case.
If you are paying your lawyer an hourly rate, remember that any communication is billed. To help keep costs down, gather all information that you want to discuss before visiting or calling the attorney. Remember, every time you call, the attorney must find your file and then talk with you which can result in you spending more money.
Be sure you get yourself an actual personal injury lawyer. Understand that lawyers specialize in many different areas. Not all of them specialize in personal injury. A personal injury lawyer is very knowledgeable on these matters; therefore, you will be more likely to win your case and receive a larger settlement than you thought possible.
As the start of this piece mentioned, the law may be furthest thing from your mind when you suffer a personal injury. You do need to focus on it though, seeing as it will be a major part of your life in the weeks, months, and perhaps years to come. Visit www.clearlawonline.co.uk for more information.
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Dear friends,
This morning, I checked my e-mail inbox to find that I had a new comment on an older post of mine called "The Incredible Shrinking Family". I could feel the pain of the writer so clearly in her words, and I wanted to reach out to her. Who of us have not been frustrated, tired, and just plain worn-out?Here's what she wrote:
Hi! I came across your blog today and loved reading this post. I agree with everything you have to say ... in principle. But in practice I find this very difficult. I want to love children and love being a mother, but I just don't!
I have two darling little girls who I love, but I don't love being a mother. Pregnancy was miserable, the sleep deprivation of newborns was horrendous and the tantrums and potty training of toddlers has been torture! Like you say, it takes sacrifice, but I sometimes feel like it is just too much for me. I long for a life outside of my children, for some part of me to be left-over at the end of the day for my husband, for something besides diapers and disciplining and dishes!
So yes, children are important and families are vital and I believe in the LDS doctrine of the family ... but I just can't have more children. I feel it would be disastrous for me, for my marriage and for the children we already have. So I guess what I'm saying is that I totally get why some women do not want to have children or do not want to have a lot of children. I understand what they are feeling!
I would have never guessed that I would be saying this. As a young LDS teen, I yearned for a large family. But now, when reality has set in, I am just not enjoying it at all! I feel like overall I have a good attitude around my children and love them, do all of the good stay-at-home-mom things, but deep-down, I am miserable. Any advice?
I know that often people may think that my posts are so idealistic that I must never have bad days or frustrations, or a bad attitude. I'm sorry if this is a disappoinment, ladies, but I have had those days when I want to throw in the towel. I have moments where I hold my head in my hands and think "What have I done?!"
:-)
But those days don't last forever (Thank goodness!) and with the Lord's help we can do the difficult and succeed-- and have joy! (I promise!!!)
Here was my response to her, and to all moms who have those times and seasons where they feel they can't take another step, change another diaper, or wash one more dish:
I am so sorry that you are so overwhelmed and discouraged. Boy, have I been there! But there really is hope and peace on the horizon...First of all, you are deep in the trenches of one of the hardest times of motherhood! I advise you take a deep breath and try to see into your future five, ten or fifteen years from now.
You will NOT always be sleep deprived and mired in the difficulties of trying to be and do everything on your own. Those little ones you have now WILL grow, they will learn to do more for themselves, and they will not always be so demanding.
The time you take now to patiently, lovingly train them will buy you more liberty and breathing room in your not-too-distant future. Is it hard? YES. But from experience, I can tell you, that when you work hard at training those first few little ones, then they become more helpful to you in your duties AND with any other little ones that may be in your future.
Toddler-hood really is the time that ALL moms want to throw in the towle and say "I'm not cut out for this!" You are FAR from being alone in those feelings, I promise!
It is okay to take a break and let your body and your heart heal for a time. But the secret to that and to surviving and moving forward in everything is to PRAY. HARD. Ask for a blessing from your husband, now and then. Pray for peace. For direction. For patience.?
Good grief, I even once had to start praying that I could LOVE my kids!!! LOL! The beauty and blessing was that MY PRAYERS WORKED.
Anything worth doing is difficult-- that's the test of this life. But you don't need to hold your breath as you try to make it through the difficult years. Come up to the surface and breathe deeply in the Father's love, mercy and help.
None of us can succeed at this alone. We need Christ, and He is willing and waiting to take those troubles and burdens from us if we will just give them to Him.
Please don't struggle alone when you don't have to! The Lord loves you and sees every sacrifice and tear and sleepless night.?
Don't worry about having another baby right now. Just work on your relationship with Christ. Then everything else will fall into place.
I know the writer and I would love to hear any other advice from my readers. Do you have more to add?
With love to all my sisters in the motherhood trenches,
Source: http://blog.oldfashionedmotherhood.com/2013/01/from-comments-frustration-in-motherhood.html
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DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) ? Algeria's foreign minister acknowledged that security forces made mistakes in a hostage crisis at a Saharan gas plant in which many foreign workers were killed by Algerian military strikes.
Mourad Medelci, in an Associated Press interview, also conceded that Algeria will need international help to better fight terrorism. Algeria's decision to refuse foreign offers of aid in handling the crisis, and to send the military to fire on vehicles full of hostages, drew widespread international criticism.
The Jan. 16 attack, which an al-Qaida-affiliated organization has claimed responsibility for, sent scores of foreign energy workers fleeing across the desert for their lives. A four-day siege by Algerian forces on the complex left at least 37 hostages and 29 militants dead. Some of the fatalities were badly burned, making it difficult to identify them.
"We are in the process of assessing our mistakes. In that assessment we are leaning more towards establishing that the operation was a success," Medelci told the AP at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland on Friday.
He said Algeria is likely to reinforce security measures at sites where multinationals operate in the oil- and gas-rich country. But he insisted that foreign workers in Algeria "will continue to work in Algeria and that is the best way to answer the terrorists."
He defended the government's decision to attack instead of negotiating. "Faced with such an attitude (of terrorism), it's not just words that solve the problem. It's action," he said.
But he admitted that Algeria, which faced years of internal extremist violence, "can't continue to face international terrorism alone. It absolutely needs support."
He argued that Algeria wasn't the target of the attack, but "they are targeting investors in Algeria and the foreigners who work there."
___
AP correspondent Angela Charlton contributed from Davos.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/ap-interview-algeria-admits-mistakes-standoff-090850588--finance.html
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United States Trade Representative, Ron Kirk, gestures as he speaks during an interview with The Associated Press at the World Economic Forum, WEF, in Davos, Switzerland, Saturday, Jan. 26, 2013. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
United States Trade Representative, Ron Kirk, gestures as he speaks during an interview with The Associated Press at the World Economic Forum, WEF, in Davos, Switzerland, Saturday, Jan. 26, 2013. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
United States Trade Representative, Ron Kirk, gestures as he speaks during an interview with The Associated Press at the World Economic Forum, WEF, in Davos, Switzerland, Saturday, Jan. 26, 2013. (AP Photo/Michel Euler)
Participants leave the Congress Center the last day of the 43rd Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum, WEF, in Davos, Switzerland, Saturday, Jan. 26, 2013. (AP Photo/Keystone/Laurent Gillieron)
DAVOS, Switzerland (AP) ? Indonesia may hold the key to a $1 trillion injection into the global economy.
That's how much the World Trade Organization believes is riding on talks later this year in Bali, when trade ministers hope to cut through some of the red tape that slows global commerce.
Indonesia's Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa told The Associated Press that failure is not an option and that a strong effort is being put in to ensure that the WTO meeting in Bali is "crowned with success."
"It's very critical now, especially with the difficulties in the global economy, especially in the eurozone," he said. "Trade facilitation becomes a key driver for economic recovery, so this is now even ever more important to what it was before."
Trade ministers from 24 nations met Saturday on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos. Afterward, Swiss Economic Minister Johann Schneider-Ammann said the group agreed they could reach a tentative agreement on some of the key elements of a global trade deal this summer, in preparation for the ministerial talks in December at Bali.
The current trade talks, known as the Doha Round, began in 2001, and after a decade of little progress, many had pronounced the negotiations to reduce global trade barriers as dead.
Schneider-Ammann said he sensed some "optimism" that efforts to streamline customs procedures and other rules to reduce the costs of trade "will be successful."
The Doha negotiations have been billed as a way of boosting economic development among the poorest countries, by reducing barriers on their exports to wealthier markets.
The WTO's director general, Pascal Lamy, has been telling the Davos gathering of political, business and academic elites that an international trade deal would provide a $1 trillion boost to the global economy.
Flanked by Schneider-Ammann, Lamy told reporters that he believes it is technically "do-able" to craft draft agreements on some of the key elements of a deal by next summer.
U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk said he had to "temper" his enthusiasm for a deal since it has eluded the world for a decade.
"But, at least of the 24 countries represented today, it felt like we had made more substantive progress," he said.
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BEIRUT (Reuters) - Eight members of Syria's military intelligence were killed by an Islamist militant car bomb on Thursday night near the southern frontier with the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights, opposition activists and a violence monitoring group said on Friday.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the bomb was planted by Al-Nusra Front, a rebel unit fighting to oust President Bashar al-Assad that the United States has labeled a terrorist group.
"We think the blast might have killed a colonel who has been leading the fight against rebels in the area," Rami Abdelrahman, head of the Britain-based Observatory said. The building targeted is in the town of Saasa, 14 miles from the frontier with the Golan Heights, he said.
He added that death toll was likely to rise as several security personnel were in a critical condition.
Syrian rebels have been battling Assad's army for months in towns inside and adjacent to the Area of Separation between Israel and Syria, along the disengagement line from the 1973 war.
State-run Israel Radio aired what it said was an interview with an unnamed man from Saasa saying the explosion was close to Israel. "I heard an explosion. I did not see it, I heard it. It was a very large explosion," he said.
(Reporting by Oliver Holmes and Reuters TV in Beirut and Dan Williams in Jerusalem; Editing by Alison Williams)
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/syrian-islamist-rebels-detonate-car-bomb-near-israel-110755169.html
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WASHINGTON (AP) ? From gun control to gay rights, President Barack Obama's second-term agenda is shaping up as an unabashedly liberal wish list.
In less than a week, he's vowed to tackle climate change and protect government entitlements. His administration has lifted a ban on women in combat and expanded opportunities for disabled students. Proposals for stricter gun laws have already been unveiled, and plans for comprehensive immigration reform, including a pathway to citizenship for millions of illegal immigrants, are coming next week.
Obama's full embrace of such an agenda suggests a president both freed for action by his re-election win and seeking to capitalize on it.
"There is a deep recognition that he has a short period of time to get a lot done," said Jennifer Psaki, Obama's 2012 campaign spokeswoman. "The American people are seeing a man who is determined to finish what he started in his first term, pushing through his agenda without the burden of running for re-election."
But following through and winning approval for his proposals will require cooperation from a Congress that is nearly as divided now as it was before the November elections.
"If the president pursues that kind of agenda, obviously it's not designed to bring us together," said Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, who calls the start of Obama's second term "a new era of liberalism."
And it's not just congressional Republicans who could stand in Obama's way as he seeks to make good on his pledges. Senate Democrats from conservative-leaning states ? who, unlike Obama, still face future elections ? may have reservations about backing a liberal agenda in the lead-up to the 2014 midterms.
Democratic resistance is already proving to be a problem for some of the toughest gun control measures that Obama proposed ahead of his inauguration in response to the elementary school shooting in Newtown, Conn. An assault weapons ban, in particular, appears to be in jeopardy, with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada among the Democrats yet to voice support.
Obama's tilt to the left follows a presidential campaign that left open questions about what policies he would pursue if he won a second term. His most specific campaign pledge was to let George W. Bush-era tax cuts expire for the wealthiest Americans, a step he was able to achieve during the "fiscal cliff" negotiations in late December.
That's why many of his strongest supporters were surprised ? some pleasantly ? by the issues he raised in his inaugural address, particularly his call for tackling the threat of climate change, a topic that garnered little attention during the campaign.
And after campaigning on a balanced approach to deficit reduction, including making tough choices on entitlement programs, Obama used his inauguration to extol the virtues of Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security. He made just one reference to the huge federal deficit.
Obama has previously said he's willing to put government entitlements on the table as Washington seeks to reduce the deficit, and aides say his inaugural address doesn't change that.
Obama also became the first president to use the word "gay" in an inaugural address, asserting that the nation's journey is not complete until "our gay brothers and sisters are treated like anyone else under the law."
Progressive groups welcomed the president's rhetoric, but made it clear that words alone would not be enough.
Adam Green, co-founder of the political action group Progressive Change Campaign Committee, said that if the president's inaugural address does become a template for his second-term governing strategy, "that will allow the president to win big victories and secure a legacy of bold progressive change that helped millions of Americans."
"We hope he goes that route, and we will proudly rally to his side if he does," Green said.
It remains to be seen how vigorously Obama pursues the agenda items he outlined in his inaugural address. White House officials have already struggled this week to back up his rhetoric with specific policy proposals
Still, people close to the president say he feels emboldened since winning re-election and wants to act quickly on progressive issues that eluded him during his first term. His supporters have also created a campaign spin-off organization to support his second-term agenda.
The outside group, Organizing for Action, will employ many of the same people who led Obama's two presidential bids and will have access to his campaign's voter and donor data. The new group is expected to focus on backing his positions in legislative battles, including gun control and immigration.
Some of what the president may pursue, particularly when it comes to climate change, may be through executive branch actions that don't need congressional approval.
The Pentagon this week acted on its own to lift a ban that kept female service members out of combat positions. And the Education Department unilaterally ordered schools to include students with disabilities in sports programs or provide equal alternative options.
White House officials are scouring rule books for other actions the West Wing and government agencies can take on their own.
___
Associated Press writers Josh Lederman contributed to this report.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/obama-presses-liberal-agenda-starts-2nd-term-194514883--politics.html
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A new study from the University of British Columbia Sauder School of Business shows that bosses should pick favourites if they want top performing teams.
"Conventional wisdom tells us that we should treat everyone the same to create a collegial and productive work atmosphere," says Sauder Professor Karl Aquino, who co-authored the forthcoming study for the Journal of Business Ethics. "But our research shows this can be a disincentive for workers who would otherwise go above and beyond on behalf of the team with a little bit of extra attention."
In a series of experiments, the researchers found people are more likely to experience heightened self-esteem, follow workplace norms, and perform tasks that benefit a group if a leader treats them relatively better than other people in their group.
"Bosses are in a tricky position," says Aquino. "There's a risk that treating some employees better than the rest can turn others off. The key is to find the right balance ? treat everyone reasonably well, but treat those whose work counts most or who have been most productive just a little bit better."
Aquino says that, in general, working culture in the United States leans toward showing preferential treatment to star employees, while Canadian, Northern European and most Asian cultures take a more egalitarian approach. Aquino suggests managers should consider a middle path to avoid creating envy while sustaining high levels of productivity among their star players.
In one of their experiments, the researchers looked at how preferential treatment from bosses affects a person's self-worth in their job and willingness to conform to workplace norms. A 357-person sample was surveyed online to assess their level of preferential treatment in the workplace. The workers were also asked to nominate a colleague to participate in a second online survey to report on whether the employee violated norms of efficient production and considerate conduct.
Respondents who reported receiving preferential treatment from their bosses reported feeling a greater sense of self-worth in their jobs. Their colleagues' assessment was that they behaved less antisocially and more productively at work.
Another study tested if preferentially treated group members were more likely to volunteer for a task that benefits the group. A sample of 41 students was divided into groups of three and asked to provide suggestions via email to a "team leader" for improving education at their university.
Participants received a group reply from the leader that included itemized responses to all the members' suggestions. In half of the groups, all recipients received the same email response which showed them preferential treatment over their peers. In the other half of the groups, the leader's responses showed positive but equal respect for all of the participant suggestions.
In a follow up survey, participants were asked to rate their willingness to take on a task to benefit a subsequent group discussion. Participants who received preferential treatment indicated that they were more willing to take on a group serving task than those who were treated well but equally.
###
University of British Columbia: http://www.ubc.ca
Thanks to University of British Columbia for this article.
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Source: http://www.labspaces.net/126402/Forget_about_fair___It_s_better_when_bosses_pick_favorites
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The current writing carriers for the Tennessee ARP are Liberty Mutual Insurance Company, Berkeley Risk Administrators, Hartford Insurance Company, Employers Insurance of Wausau, and Companion Property and Casualty Group.
Your E-Mod was high enough to be a concern, but not high enough to cause you to going into the ARP. ? ?Insurance carriers may consider certain types of employers as too risky to underwrite, even with a lower E-Mod. ?
The reason for the increased premium is that your company was assigned?to a participating carrier. ?Not all of the insurance carriers agree to underwrite companies in the ARP. ?The higher premium is due to the carrier having to write you an insurance policy without having any choice in the matter. ?
These sharp increases in premium can be very expensive. ?There are certain classification codes that differ by over 400% between the regular insurance market and the ARP. ??
The reason for your company being blocked is due to the fact that your pending premium dispute may not be documented properly or that you do not have a bona fide dispute with your previous or current carrier. ? What have you supplied to Assigned Risk Pool in reference to your dispute? ?Please make sure you have not let your policy lapse or your company may incur a very heavy fine.?
Many employers have found it difficult to remove themselves once they have been placed in the ARP. ?Alternatives to the ARP are:
Source: http://blogs.cutcompcosts.com/2013/01/assigned-risk-plans-blocked-by-premium.html
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As a general rule, Managua gets better looking the farther away you get. But a leading advisory firm for global outsourcing and investment says Nicaragua?s homely capital deserves a closer look.
Thanks to improved infrastructure, competitive costs, a skilled bilingual workforce and an attractive geographical location, Managua has moved its way onto Tholons? list of Top 100 Outsourcing Destinations in the world. According to the referential list, Managua ranks 95 in the world?one notch above Guatemala City, which also makes its first appearance on Tholons? 2013 index.
The BPO industry has employs nearly 5,000 Nicaraguans, according to ProNicaragua (photo/ ProNicaragua)
The only other Central American country represented on the list is Costa Rica, whose capital city ranks 15th in the world, up five spots from last year. Neither Honduras nor El Salvador?two of Nicaragua?s biggest competitors in the global outsourcing market?made Tholons? ranking.
India and the Philippines dominated the top 10 spots on the global outsourcing destination list, with Bangalore, India claiming the title as outsourcing capital of the world.
But Nicaragua is now on the map and getting its due as an up-and-comer in the industry.
??With major players such as Sitel, 24/7 Customer and Stream Global Services, Managua has nearly 4,000 FTEs (call center employees) delivering bilingual contact support services,? Tholons reports.
The challenge for the two Central American newcomers will be to keep their spots on Tholons? list by improving their perceptions abroad?something Nicaragua is already working on.
??These two new entrants (Guatemala and Nicaragua) in the Top 100 List have to be more cautious in maintaining a facilitative business environment,? Tholons warns. ?Nicaragua faces negative perceptions on its political stability, while Guatemala will need to work on improving its natural risk perceptions.?
Javier Chamorro, executive director of Nicaragua?s investment-promotion agency ProNicaragua, which is spearheading national efforts to improve the country?s image abroad, says Nicaragua is satisfied with its recognition as an emerging industry player. Nicaragua?s initial call-center growth spurt?25 companies have set up shop here and employed nearly 5,000 Nicaraguans over the past seven years?has been impressive and augurs well for the future of the business process outsourcing industry here.
?Being listed in the Top 100 Outsourcing Destinations implies that international experts in the industry recognize the country as a world-renowned destination for outsourcing, still above other countries in the region such as El Salvador and Guatemala, which started developing the sector years before Nicaragua,? Chamorro told The Nicaragua Dispatch. ??This means that the country is attracting the right attention and stands out as an emerging destination due to the excellent investment opportunities it offers to companies looking to expand their operations and increase their global competitiveness.?
ProNicaragua?s Javier Chamorro (photo/ Tim Rogers)
And when it comes to global competitiveness, Nicaragua has several advantages of its own, Chamorro says.
?Among the country?s main competitive advantages for the sector is its strategic location, close to the largest outsourcing market in the world, the U.S.,? Chamorro says.
Plus, he adds, Nicaragua has a young and vibrant workforce that ?not only speaks good quality English, but has a cultural affinity with the market due to the ?reverse brain drain? phenomenon, which refers to people who left the country in the past and have returned to Nicaragua with English skills and market knowledge.?
The country?s ?greatest advantages,? however, are its cheap labor costs and generous tax incentives for outsourcing.
?It is because of this that Nicaragua is able to compete with the global players in the industry, as it offers lower costs with a near shore location, allowing it to provide timely services to the United States without losing valuable working hours,? Chamorro says.
As Nicaragua continues to make a reputation for itself as an attractive destination for outsourcing, the country will be challenged to meet the growing demand for bilingual personnel to staff its call centers.
The government, in conjunction with the National Free Zone Commission (CNZF) and the Inter-American Development Bank, has established a special capacity-building program aimed at identifying and training a young bilingual workforce to staff the call center industry. The program, known as ?Opportunity Builder,? is scheduled to start its training program in the coming months with an initial incoming class of 600 young professionals.
ProNicaragua also continues to organized industry events to promote the country as a destination for outsourcing. Chamorro says ProNicaragua will be hosting an investment forum at the end of the year to showcase Nicaragua to leading BPO companies worldwide.
Next: Part II: Opportunity Builder recruits local talent from Nicaragua?s Pacific and Atlantic coasts to keep the call center industry growing.
Source: http://www.nicaraguadispatch.com/news/2013/01/managua-makes-top-100-outsourcing-destinations/6531
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