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Wednesday, February 29, 2012
Spotted: Fabolous, Lil Jon, Chingy, Daymond John during ?Xpensive Habits Party & Daymond John Bday Bash? All Star Weekend
The smartphone with an astonishing 41-megapixel camera: Is Nokia crazy? (The Week)
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Cautious confidence, and some exuberance, at Romney?s election night rally: Scenes from the Michigan and Arizona primaries (The Ticket)
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Isis mobile payment system to launch mid-2012, lists Chase, Capitol One, and Barclaycard as partners
Isis Mobile Wallet, the service backed by AT&T, T-Mobile US, and Verizon has announced new launch partners and it's long awaited trial launch date. New financial partners Chase, Capitol One, and Barclaycard join Visa, MasterCard, Discover and American Express for the trials in Austin, Texas and Salt Lake City, Utah which are expected to begin sometime in mid-2012. Isis isn't sharing much past that, as they say the nationwide rollout will follow the trial with no further details.
Isis partners will allow users to program both credit and debit cards into the mobile system, which gives it another leg up on Google Wallet. Add in the fact that Isis has carrier backing and pre-approval, and chances are that this will be the mobile NFC-based payment system we'll see on our devices when and if it catches on, at least in the US. That doesn't mean Google Wallet will disappear, but being available and being relevant are two different animals.
This doesn't mean that Isis is inherently bad, though. It may turn out to be an excellent product, and I'm excited to give it a try. We have to remember that Google Wallet isn't open and lovable, it is a for-profit venture from Google, much like Isis is a for-profit venture for its backers. When it comes to finances, few things are open and best for the consumer. The best product will be defined by the users and that's the one that will win out.
The full press release follows the break.
via BusinessWire
Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/fIuvn0L9M8Y/story01.htm
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Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Napolitano defends U.S. drug war in face of legalization debate (Reuters)
Reuters - Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano defended Washington's drug war strategy on Monday despite calls by some Latin American leaders to consider decriminalizing narcotics.
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Monday, February 27, 2012
IndianVideoGamer | Video Game News, Video Game Reviews ...
It won?t change your life, nor is it a waste of time. 38 Studios? debut effort manages to tightrope both extremes with aplomb and does a great job of keeping you entertained.
Game Info
- Developer: 38 Studios, Big Huge Games
- Publisher: EA
- Distributor: Milestone Interactive/Redington
- Genre: RPG
- Age Rating: 18+
Available On
All it takes to suck the creativity out of making video games is success.
Have one blockbuster hit and soon enough, everyone else is trying to do the same thing. We?ve seen it with Doom, GTA and Call of Duty. Before you know it, the market is filled with cookie cutter games, clones that have few buyers, followed by publishers and developers shutting shop and people moaning about how the industry is dying. At the first glance, Kingdoms of Amalur: Reckoning appears to be one such game.
The art direction is a dead ringer for World of Warcraft; the combat is slovenly inspired by God of War III; and the character design (and voiceovers) is reminiscent of Fable. This would perhaps be the most apt description of the game if you just had one look at it. Spend a little time and you?d realise how foolish you were to judge a book by its cover, or in this case, a game from its presentation. Open the box and you?re greeted by a code that lets you download the House of Valors questline, also known as a slap in the face for someone buying an offline-only game to discover that a part of the content is gated behind EA?s online servers. In a word, uncool.
Nevertheless, what makes Reckoning unique is its lore. You?re in a world where everyone believes in their fate, that their lives follow a linear path where everything is predestined, and that there is no deviation from it. So much so that an entire side-quest is devoted to the House of Ballads, a sect of Fae? an immortal race of elf-like creatures and their need to reenact key moments in their history over and over.
Unlike everyone else, you?re an anomaly in the system. You are not bound by fate as you?ve been resurrected from the dead by a device known as the Well of Souls. With it comes great power, such as being able to change the destiny of others, namely the Tuatha, a radical clan of Fae hellbent on dominating all the other races in the name of their yet to be born god, Tirnoch. How do you go about achieving this noble cause, you ask? Simple; by beating the crap out of every assassin, soldier or troll (non-Internet variety, sadly) that stands in your way.
And beat you shall. The combat mechanics of Reckoning are easy to grasp. It?s all in real-time, with no rules, time gauge, VATS or party members to worry about. You block with the left trigger, dodge by pressing B, mash on X or Y to attack opponents with your primary or secondary weapon respectively, and hold down the right trigger and Y to unleash magic spells. You can seamlessly switch between spewing fireballs and pummeling foes quicker than you can say, ?fus roh d?oh!?
Rain death on enough hostiles and you can enter Reckoning mode, which happens when a purple bar known as a fate meter becomes full. Hold down both trigger buttons and the screen is bathed in a violet-pinkish hue and enemies start taking a lot more damage than they usually would. Oh, and it?s all in slow-motion too. Stun an enemy in this mode and you can QTE your way to a very gory (and stylish) kill that?s a pleasure to watch.
As I mentioned earlier, it ends up being similar to God of War and that isn?t a bad thing. It is very visceral with no slowdown whatsoever even with an entire horde of enemies filling the screen. In a big fight, the camera is prone to losing direction every now and then, being a hindrance. Luckily, you can manually adjust it with a flick of an analog stick. This aside, combat is one of the game?s most enjoyable features.
Like most western RPGs, you choose your character class and skills. Unlike most western RPGs, you?re not stuck to one solitary class or set of abilities. Character stats and abilities are dependent on might, finesse and magic. You can very well have a balanced build that has a degree of proficiency in all three without any penalties in combat. For example, you can be a rogue, sporting lightweight mana regenerating armour that lets you pick up the pace in combat with a slew of spells where your heavy axe left off.
Such flexibility fits in well with the game?s mantra of letting you choose your own fate and is a welcome, if subtle, addition to the gameplay. On reaching a requisite number of points in might, finesse and magic, you can choose your fate card. This allows for additional perks such as bog standard ones like a lower cost of casting spells to more interesting choices such as replacing dodge with teleporting across the battlefield. If you?re not happy with your character progression, you can visit a fate weaver (the game?s version of a soothsayer) and reset your stats.
Also, there are skills such as lockpicking, persuasion and blacksmithing, and each time you level up, you get a point to spend on a skill, which has an impact on how you play. Investing in a skill like sagecrafting allows you to create gems that could be used to power your weapons or amour with additional bonuses such as fire damage or greater health; or you could max out your smithing skills, which allows you to create your own weapons. And on the topic of weapons, the game gives you access to a wealth of loot. From poison-tipped daggers or greatswords that deal elemental damage, there?s a generous amount to be picked from chests or the corpses of your enemies.
Along with this, there?s a rather large number of quests to undertake that should keep you playing this game long after the main quest ends, which in itself is around 18-20 hours. These range from the usual and mundane fetching of items, to some epic, memorable quest lines such as the aforementioned House of Ballads.
There?s a firm focus on freedom; so much so that you can accomplish these even when you?re done with the game?s core story and they?re available thick and fast. I had about 30-odd side-quests to keep me busy well after the main story did. It?s a meaty game with a lot to keep you interested. The story takes a while to pick up, but when it does, it becomes an involving tale with a cornucopia of characters to interact with and some nicely written dialogue to keep it going.
You?ll rendezvous with a hot dark elf who knows more about your past than she lets on, help a down and out fate weaver change his life around, and meet a Fae prince with a macabre sense of humour and a kingdom to reclaim. RPG veterans won?t find anything spanking new, but there?s more than enough to see you through the closing credits. It?s a pity that it ends on a slightly weak note, because for most of the part, it works.
Another thing that works is the welcome lack of bugs. My entire playthrough was a stable, crash-free affair. Given the number of issues people have had with other open-world RPGs such as Fallout and Skyrim, this was quite a pleasant experience. There?s a level of spit and polish that would put Bethesda to shame.
Conclusion
Reckoning isn?t the most creative of games, and it isn?t the most derivative either. It won?t change your life, nor is it a waste of time. 38 Studios? debut effort manages to tightrope both extremes with aplomb and more importantly, does a great job of keeping you entertained. After all, that?s what gaming is about, isn?t it?
- Great combat
- Versatility in character progression
- Interesting lore
- Plot takes awhile to pick up
- ...much like the camera in big battles
- Ending could've been better
- Online pass nonsense?
IVG Verdict
8
Buy
Playing it will give you a warm and fuzzy feeling.
Tags: 38 studios, ea, india, ivg, kingdoms of amalur, reckoning, review, rpg
Source: http://www.indianvideogamer.com/reviews/review-kingdoms-of-amalur-reckoning/
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The Best Food Blog | FREE PRESS RELEASE
Description:
Great home made food recipes, amazingly quick & tasty food, restaurant reviews and the odd delicious cake ? Jelly Good Food
About us:
Ellie has the bravado of a conquistador and will try anything at least twice (because some things are an acquired taste). A Food Blog about, well, food! We love food and drink, and we eat out a lot, and try to cook a lot at home. You?ll find reviews of restaurants from around the world (probably mostly London though, our home ground!). Although theres some interesting ones from places like Singapore or Malaysia.
Food Blog is a diverse country that lies almost centrally in the Food Blog region, between its more popular neigh bours Food Blog, we eat day in day out, probably more than the recommended 3 times a day. Food is always on our mind, with people talking about their next meal before the current meal is over.What makes special is that it has 3 different races living together in one country, each with very different cultures and styles of food. It?s because of this diversity that Food Blog has such a wide variety of foods and restaurants to choose from. In Food Blog is a very big part of the lifestyle and culture of the people.
And in the past few years, with the rise and popularity of the Internet, Food Blog are coming up in popularity, with people expressing their love for food and all things tasty with pictures, comments, videos and reviews on their personal blogs.
Perhaps the most popular Food Blog is the humble street food where the original stall/outlet was probably on wheels, by the side of the road somewhere selling to passer-bys. There tends to be a lot of history behind alot of these simple street food stalls and with generations upon generations of people going there, they?ll be around as long as someone takes over the stall again to sell to the next generation.Food Blog are also starting to feature more Western influenced foods, such as western cafes, steak houses, Italian restaurants and even fusion foods. In and around themselves, these blogs are starting to get more attention from businesses and the media, with food bloggers being invited to more and more events and food tasting sessions.
As the Internet continues to become the definitive place to get information, the popularity of individuals expressing their ideas via the Web as a media source, the amount of food blogs is just going to keep on increasing.
For More Information contact us:
Name : jellygoodfood
Website: http://www.jellygoodfood.com/
Source: http://www.communique-presse.mooteur.net/en/2012/02/27/the-best-food-blog/
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JerseyJetsFan: RT @Brocrastinator1: People still celebrating Whitney Houston while -20 year olds die of cancer and in Afghanistan? That's a joke..
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BP oil spill trial adjourned for a week (Reuters)
Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/environment/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120226/bs_nm/us_bp
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Sunday, February 26, 2012
Writing and Speaking Go Hand in Hand
Many will say they are really good speakers and yet, they feel they are very poor writers. Many extremely good writers exhibit very poor speaking skills. For instance, if you watch C-SPAN book review you will see some of the best writers you could ever imagine are not very good speakers all. And yet sometimes you see a very good storytellers on the book review channel, which has written a very good book.
Before I started doing a lot of writing, I was a very good speaker and having dabbled in politics I?ve given quite a few speeches in my life to audiences of all sizes up to about 1000 people. And I?ve done many TV interviews, one of which was seen by 60 million people. I always considered myself a very good speaker for some reason, perhaps all the practice I got in my own business, but never really considered myself a very good writer.
One day I realized that writing and speaking are very similar and if you write as if you are talking to a group of people or an audience you?re writing takes on a whole different shape and meaning.
And believe it or not it is even also better received. For some reason people like to be talked to or converse with the writer. If you write as if you?re having a conversation with them they are more apt to read what you?re writing.
This is why writing and speaking go hand-in-hand, even if you often observe people that are good at one or the other, but not both. A very good writer can become a very good speaker or a very good speaker can become a very good writer. This is because the skills involved are methods of communication and our language. I hope you will understand this and think about it on a philosophical basis because I guarantee you it will either improve your writing or your speaking, or both at the same time.
Lance Winslow ? Lance Winslow?s Bio. Lance Winslow is also Founder of the Car Wash Guys, a cool little Franchise Company; http://www.carwashguys.com/history/founder.html/.
Source: http://www.a1article.net/writing-speaking/writing-and-speaking-go-hand-in-hand-5157.html
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2 US troops shot in Kabul; NATO pulls workers
An Afghan medic carries a protestor wounded during an anti-U.S. demonstration in Mehterlam, Laghman province east of Kabul, Afghanistan, Saturday, Feb. 25, 2012. Protesters threw rocks at police, government buildings and a U.N. office in eastern Afghanistan on Saturday, kicking off a fifth day of riots sparked by the burning of Qurans at a U.S. base, officials said. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)
An Afghan medic carries a protestor wounded during an anti-U.S. demonstration in Mehterlam, Laghman province east of Kabul, Afghanistan, Saturday, Feb. 25, 2012. Protesters threw rocks at police, government buildings and a U.N. office in eastern Afghanistan on Saturday, kicking off a fifth day of riots sparked by the burning of Qurans at a U.S. base, officials said. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)
Afghan policemen march towards an anti-U.S. demonstration in Mehterlam, Laghman province east of Kabul, Afghanistan, Saturday, Feb. 25, 2012. Protesters threw rocks at police, government buildings and a U.N. office in eastern Afghanistan on Saturday, kicking off a fifth day of riots sparked by the burning of Qurans at a U.S. base, officials said. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)
Afghan policemen run towards an anti-U.S. demonstration in Mehterlam, Laghman province east of Kabul, Afghanistan, Saturday, Feb. 25, 2012. Protesters threw rocks at police, government buildings and a U.N. office in eastern Afghanistan on Saturday, kicking off a fifth day of riots sparked by the burning of Qurans at a U.S. base, officials said. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)
KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) ? A gunman killed two American military advisers with shots to the back of the head Saturday inside a heavily guarded ministry building, and NATO ordered military workers out of Afghan ministries as protests raged for a fifth day over the burning of copies of the Quran at a U.S. army base.
The Taliban claimed responsibility for the Interior Ministry attack, saying it was retaliation for the Quran burnings, after the U.S. servicemen ? a lieutenant colonel and a major ? were found dead on the floor of an office that only people who know a numerical combination can get into, Afghan and Western officials said.
The top commander of U.S. and NATO forces recalled all international military personnel from the ministries, an unprecedented action in the decade-long war that highlights the growing friction between Afghans and their foreign partners at a critical juncture in the war.
The U.S.-led coalition is trying to mentor and strengthen Afghan security forces so they can lead the fight against the Taliban and foreign troops can go home. That mission, however, requires a measure of trust at a time when anti-Western sentiment is at an all-time high.
Afghan Defense Minister Gen. Abdul Rahim Wardak called U.S. Defense Secretary Leon Panetta to apologize for the shooting and offer his condolences, Pentagon press secretary George Little said in a statement released in Washington.
"This act is unacceptable and the United States condemns it in the strongest possible terms," Little said.
Security is tight in the capital, which is covered in snow, and foreigners working at the U.S. Embassy and at international organizations have been banned from leaving their compounds.
U.S. officials said they were searching for the assailant, who has not been identified by name or nationality.
The two American service members were found by another foreigner who went into the room, according to the Afghan official, who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to disclose details about the shootings. They were shot in the back of the head, according to Western officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to disclose the information. Authorities were poring over security camera video for clues, the Afghan official said.
Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid identified the shooter as one of their sympathizers, Abdul Rahman. He said an accomplice inside the ministry helped Rahman get inside the compound to kill the Americans in retaliation for the Quran burnings.
"After the attack, Rahman informed us by telephone that he was able to kill four high-ranking American advisers," Mujahid said. The Taliban often inflate death tolls and sometimes claim responsibility for killings they did not conduct.
Little, the Pentagon press secretary, said Wardak indicated that President Hamid Karzai was assembling religious leaders and other senior Afghan officials to take urgent steps to protect coalition forces.
U.S. Gen. John Allen, the top commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan, met with Afghan Interior Minister Bismullah Khan Mohammadi, who offered both his condolences to the families of the victims and his apologies, Little said.
Afghanistan's interior and defense ministers are expected in Washington next week.
Allen said he recalled all NATO personnel from the ministries "for obvious force protection reasons" but also said the alliance remains committed to its partnership with the Afghan government. NATO forces have advisers embedded in many Afghan ministries. The advisers are helping to develop the ministries so that Afghans can take the lead by the end of 2014, when foreign combat forces are to transfer control of security to Afghan security forces.
At least 28 people have been killed and hundreds wounded since Tuesday, when it first emerged that Qurans and other religious materials had been thrown into a fire pit used to burn garbage at Bagram Air Field, a large U.S. base north of Kabul.
President Barack Obama and other U.S. officials have apologized for what they said was a mistake, but their regrets have not quelled the deadly protests.
An Afghan soldier turned his gun on foreign troops, killing two American soldiers, during one riot outside a U.S. base in Nangarhar province on Thursday. It was the latest in a rising number of incidents where Afghan soldiers or policemen, or gunmen wearing their uniforms, have killed NATO forces. Last month, France suspended its training program and threatened to withdraw its forces from Afghanistan a year ahead of schedule after an Afghan soldier shot and killed four French soldiers on a base in the east.
Karzai has said that the Afghan people have a right to protest the Quran burnings, but he urged them to demonstrate peacefully and refrain from destroying property. In a statement on Saturday, Karzai urged Afghan security forces to be patient with the protesters.
Hundreds of demonstrators staged peaceful protests in Afghanistan, but ones in Laghman, Kunduz and Logar provinces turned violent.
"The culprits of the burning of the holy Quran should be arrested and hanged to death in public," said Mohammad Karim, one of 1,000 protesters who burned tires and threw stones at Afghan police in Mohammad Agha district of Logar province, south of Kabul. "We don't accept it when they say 'We apologize. We apologize.' We don't want Americans here at all."
Laghman provincial police chief Abdul Rahman Sarjang said about 1,000 protesters threw stones at Afghan security forces, smashed windows of government buildings and tried to attack the nearby governor's house in the provincial capital of Mehterlam.
In Kunduz, the capital of Kunduz province in northeastern Afghanistan, more than 1,000 protesters threw rocks at government buildings and a U.N. office, said Sarwer Hussaini, a spokesman for the provincial police. He said the police fired into the air to try to disperse the crowd. Dr. Saad Mukhtar, health department director in Kunduz, said at least three protesters died and 50 others were injured in the melee.
In a statement, the U.N. mission in Afghanistan said the U.N. had deep respect for the Islamic faith and understood why Muslims were upset about the desecration of their holy book, but urged the demonstrators to exercise self-restraint and not let militants use the protests to foment violence.
___
Associated Press writers Patrick Quinn, Heidi Vogt and Amir Shah in Kabul, Robert Burns in Washington and Slobodan Lekic in Brussels contributed to this report.
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3 Good Weight Loss Fitness Exercise | Exercise for Health and Fitness
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Saturday, February 25, 2012
Berlusconi cleared by statute of limitations
Former Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi leaves his residence of Palazzo Grazioli in Rome, Saturday, Feb. 25, 2012. Defense lawyers for Silvio Berlusconi are making their final arguments in the former premier's corruption trial before the court begins deliberations. A verdict in the case is expected later Saturday but is unlikely to have any lasting legal force due to statute of limitations. Prosecutors have demanded a five-year sentence. Berlusconi is accused of having paid a British lawyer $600,000 to lie in two 1990s trials related to the billionaire media mogul's business dealings. David Mills was convicted in 2009 on bribery charges. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Former Italian Premier Silvio Berlusconi leaves his residence of Palazzo Grazioli in Rome, Saturday, Feb. 25, 2012. Defense lawyers for Silvio Berlusconi are making their final arguments in the former premier's corruption trial before the court begins deliberations. A verdict in the case is expected later Saturday but is unlikely to have any lasting legal force due to statute of limitations. Prosecutors have demanded a five-year sentence. Berlusconi is accused of having paid a British lawyer $600,000 to lie in two 1990s trials related to the billionaire media mogul's business dealings. David Mills was convicted in 2009 on bribery charges. (AP Photo/Gregorio Borgia)
Silvio Berlusconi lawyer Niccolo' Ghedini, right, shakes hands with Prosecutor Fabio De Pasquale after the reading of the verdict for the case where the former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi stands accused of bribing British lawyer David Mills in Milan, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 25, 2012. The court has ruled that the statute of limitations has run out in the corruption case against Silvio Berlusconi, handing Italy's former prime minister another victory in a long string of judicial woes he has faced. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
Silvio Berlusconi lawyer Niccolo' Ghedini, reacts after the verdict for the case where the former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi stands accused of bribing British lawyer David Mills in Milan, Italy, Saturday, Feb. 25, 2012. The court has ruled that the statute of limitations has run out in a corruption case against Silvio Berlusconi, handing Italy's former prime minister another victory in a long string of judicial woes he has faced. (AP Photo/Luca Bruno)
MILAN (AP) ? Silvio Berlusconi's corruption trial ended Saturday with a court ruling that the statute of limitations had run out, handing the former premier another victory in a long string of judicial challenges.
Berlusconi, who stepped down as premier in November as the sovereign debt crisis flared, was accused of paying a British lawyer, David Mills, $600,000 to lie during two 1990s trials to protect the politician and his Fininvest holding company from charges related to offshore companies Mills helped set up.
The billionaire media mogul wasn't in the Milan courtroom when the chief judge, Francesca Vitale, read out the verdict after 2 1/2 hours of deliberations. He told reporters at a football game in Milan later that it was "half justice."
Berlusconi's lawyer Niccolo Ghedini said the defense had hoped for a full acquittal, leaving open the possibility of an appeal. In Italy, both sides can appeal court decisions.
"We would have preferred that the judge had ruled that no crime had been committed," Ghedini told Sky TG 24. "This is the first result, and not an unimportant one."
Prosecutor Fabio De Pasquale told reporters "it's useless to comment."
The five-year-long trial was a race against the statute of limitations, which had spared Berlusconi verdicts in other trials related to his media business since the 1990s.
Prosecutors had changed the timing of the alleged crime from when Mills took the stand to when the money changed hands, adding two years to the clock. And defense lawyer Ghedini, a lawmaker, helped draft a law that gave the sitting premier immunity, drawing fire that he was using Parliament to shield himself. The law was watered down in court as unconstitutional.
The trial also was slowed by legal delays by the defense, and Berlusconi's duties as premier. The defense, for their part, complained that the court severely limited the number of witnesses as the statute of limitations grew imminent.
The verdict did little to change perceptions about Berlusconi among supporters or detractors, and unleashed a furor about Italy's statute of limitations law. In Italy, unlike other European countries, the clock continues ticking even after the trial begins, giving defendants another tool to beat a conviction.
Sky TG 24 reported that 140,000 trials were ended last year because of the statute of limitations, and that they mostly affect corruption cases, which often don't come to light for years after the fact.
"Once again, the statute of limitations has saved Berlusconi from his responsibility," opposition politician Antonio di Pietro said.
Berlusconi allies defended the former premier. "A guilty verdict against an innocent was avoided," Fabrizio Cicchitto, Berlusconi's party whip in the lower house, told Sky TG 24.
On the eve of the verdict, Berlusconi, 75, issued a statement railing against magistrates for the "many trials" against him and saying that he doesn't remember having met Mills.
"Mills was one of many lawyers abroad that occasionally worked for the Fininvest group. I don't recall ever having met him," Berlusconi said in that statement.
He added that Mills had received the $600,000 from an Italian arms dealer for some legal work and had made up the story that the money had been a gift from a Fininvest employee, who had since died, to avoid paying a 50 percent tax on earnings.
Mills conviction and 4 1/2 year sentence on corruption for accepting the bribe was thrown out on appeal because of the statute of limitations. The lawyer testified by satellite in Berlusconi's trial that he had fabricated the story to avoid British taxes.
By prosecutors' calculations, the statute of limitations on Berlusconi's case should have expired between May and July. The court didn't agree, but their reasoning won't be known for 90 days. Even the prosecutors' time frame would not have allowed for the two levels of appeal required to finalize any verdict.
Berlusconi's legal woes are not over. Three cases are pending in Milan, including a trial charges that he paid an underage Moroccan teenager to have sex with him, then used his influence to cover it up. Both he and the young woman have denied the charges.
The charge of using his influence to cover up a crime could bring an additional penalty that would bar Berlusconi from again seeking public office, but that would only occur if a guilty verdict is confirmed on the final appeal.
Berlusconi has faced dozens of trials in Milan, mostly for his business dealings. He has either been acquitted or seen the charges expire under the statute of limitations.
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Santorum benefits from mistaken religious identity
Republican presidential candidate, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum campaigns at the Knights of Columbus, Friday, Feb. 24, 2012, in Lincoln Park, Mich. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
Republican presidential candidate, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum campaigns at the Knights of Columbus, Friday, Feb. 24, 2012, in Lincoln Park, Mich. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
Republican presidential candidate, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum speaks during a campaign stop at the Knights of Columbus, Friday, Feb. 24, 2012, in Lincoln Park, Mich. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
Dominican Sisters of the Mary Mother of the Eucharist in Ann Arbor, Mich., listen to Republican presidential candidate, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum during a campaign stop at the Knights of Columbus, Friday, Feb. 24, 2012, in Lincoln Park, Mich. (AP Photo/Eric Gay)
Rick Santorum's political good fortune in the Republican presidential primaries has come about in large part because of his appeal to evangelicals. A Roman Catholic, he is a beneficiary of more than two decades of cooperation between conservative Protestants and Catholics who set aside theological differences for the common cause of the culture war.
Doctrine ? and anti-Catholic bias ? once split Protestants and Catholics so bitterly that many evangelical leaders worked to defeat John F. Kennedy because of his religion. When Kennedy sought to confront suspicion about his Catholicism, he made his now-famous faith speech to the Greater Houston Ministerial Association, a group of evangelical Protestants in Texas. Five decades later, when some prominent evangelical leaders gathered at a Texas ranch to discuss backing a 2012 GOP candidate, Santorum was their choice.
Now running about even with Mitt Romney, Santorum has nearly doubled his support from white evangelical Republicans, from 22 percent last month to 41 percent two weeks ago, according to surveys by the Pew Research Center's Forum on Religion and Public Life. An Associated Press-GfK survey conducted more recently, Feb.16-20, found Santorum leading Romney among white evangelicals, 44 percent to 21 percent. White Catholics also preferred Santorum, 38 percent to 29 percent, in the AP-GfK poll.
The high regard extends to Santorum's personal life. His seven children have been home-schooled, a practice much more common among conservative American Protestants than Catholics, who have a network of parochial schools built over centuries. His concerns ? opposing gay marriage and abortion, promoting traditional roles for women ? contribute to that appeal. The Christian Post, an evangelical media outlet, published an article this week called "Catholic Politicians You Thought Were Evangelical," with a short list of the most-often misidentified, led by Santorum.
The former Pennsylvania senator's pointed rhetoric questioning the authenticity of other Christians can make him sound more like a preacher than a politician, but it draws support among many conservative Christians. He said recently that President Barack Obama, also a Christian, holds a "phony theology," then insisted he wasn't attacking the president's faith but his environmental views. The Obama campaign condemned his remark.
Also drawing attention is a 2008 speech to Ave Maria University in Florida, a private Catholic school established by the Domino's Pizza founder. In it, Santorum warned that Satan has been waging a spiritual war against the United States and has infiltrated academia, liberal Protestant churches and politics.
"Satan has done so by attacking the great institutions of America, using those great vices of pride, vanity and sensuality as the root to attack all of these strong plants that have so deeply rooted in the American tradition," Santorum said, in a video posted by Right Wing Watch, a project of the liberal advocacy group People for the American Way. "We look at the shape of mainline Protestantism in this country and it is in shambles. It is gone from the world of Christianity as I see it."
Romney, Santorum's main rival for the nomination, struggles with conservatives not only because he once supported legalized abortion, which he now condemns, but also from distrust of Mormon teaching among some Christians. He rarely speaks directly about his faith or any other.
Bill Portier, a Catholic theologian and historian at the University of Dayton in Ohio, said many in the United States have come to identify conservative religion only with evangelicalism. A growing number are describing themselves as "spiritual, not religious" and aren't affiliating as closely with a particular denomination.
Portier said his students at the Catholic university are often shocked to learn about a Catholic teaching on a social or moral issue that differs from a conservative Protestant view.
"It's their default, what evangelicals say," he said. "It kind of comes to them from osmosis through our culture."
One of the best-known efforts to bring the two Christian traditions together came in the 1994 statement "Evangelicals and Catholics Together." The authors were Chuck Colson, the Watergate felon turned born-again Christian, and the Rev. Richard John Neuhaus, a Lutheran who converted to Catholicism and was also often mistaken for an evangelical. In 2009, Catholics, evangelicals and Orthodox Christians again pledged their unity on moral issues in a document called the "Manhattan Declaration," in which they promised civil disobedience if any laws are enacted that violate their conscience.
Some political veterans warn Santorum that what fires up the base can be a losing strategy in the general election.
Peter Wehner, a Republican who served three presidential administrations, most recently under George W. Bush, said in an article about Santorum that social conservatism must be discussed in positive terms, as promoting human dignity, "rather than declaring a series of forbidden acts that are leading us to Gomorrah." Wehner is a senior fellow at the Ethics and Public Policy Center, a conservative think tank where Santorum was a fellow after he lost his U.S. Senate seat.
"A wise observer told me years ago," Wehner wrote on Commentary magazine's website, "that for a politician to be seen as the aggressor in the culture wars is the quickest way to lose them."
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Find Out How To Turn Back The Reasons ... - New Health and Fitness
New Health And Fitness.Org - Health Information You Can Use
If you?re ever planning to efficiently turn back the reasons that generate diabetic issues then you?re bound to need to alter your mind concerning this disorder and prepare a major change in your daily life to enable you to get your health back on track. A lot of people recognize that the standard method that medicine attempts to handle diabetes is to essentially regulate it by managing your blood glucose.
That is never going to heal diabetes as it is invariably still around and you may always need to take the hormone insulin. Therefore you must eliminate causes of diabetes and you then will in reality be capable of getting beyond this condition.Diabetic Diet Food List
One of the leading causes of diabetes that you must modify to work through this illness is that you ought to begin taking better proper care of yourself and consuming better food stuff. There are several food items on the market which will restore the body thus making you feel healthy and strong once again. And then there are a great deal of refined foods in existence that will poison your entire body and work like harmful toxins and actually make it hard for one to perform on a day-to-day basis.
I do not necessarily mean glucose which many people associate with diabetic issues and there?s naturally a significant connection. But I?m talking more about the unhealthy foods that get pushed in front of us on a daily basis when consuming healthy ingredients will be the only real healthy and balanced selection accessible to you.
The only real approach which is going to ever be capable of making the change to reversing what may cause all forms of diabetes is when you start to care for yourself on a psychological level.
This is really important simply because you are going to need to alter the way you think and take care of your health if you?re ever in your life going to be capable to change your eating routine and stick with an organic eating plan. Diabetic Diet Food List Info
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Friday, February 24, 2012
Get expertise assistance for CMS Development Services
Content plays a very important role in judging the credibility of a website with its content. Quality content is the way towards success and recognition at a global level. Read on to know more about the services related to content management system development.
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Content is one of the most vital parts of a website which make it informative and creative. Therefore, all online websites require CMS development services to make the website look new with every glance. Content management system development caters to all the needs of online entities. To keep your website at the top, the content must be error free and should also match up with the industry set norms. Quality content always comprises of creativity, facts, relevant information and most importantly authentic customer information.
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The below paragraph will enhance your knowledge on efficient and effective content write ups.
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1. Power of words!!!
A leading web company must work with some of the top brains of the industry offering CMS development services. Every client expects content which is out of the box and fresh, this is where Content management system development companies come into picture. They have rich industry knowledge and experience that allows them to provide creative and eye-catching content. With an informative content you can present your business data in the most organised manner. The content must comprise of industry relevant words or keywords which will further help in the search engine optimization. It should match up with the industry set norms and highest quality standards. There are various online firms offering CMS development services to streamline your business. With fresh and informative content providing information to the customer you can reap profits with further long lasting business relations with the customer. Content management system development companies are backed by professional expertise coupled with vast industry experience that ultimately offers industry specific content. Words are very powerful and helps you stay connected with the customers.
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2. Professional writers well versed with industry requirements
There is a lot of competition in today?s market and in order to grow, you require professional assistance. Content of a website gives all the important information about the company like nature of business, key attributes, potential, services and many more. Therefore, in order to reach the customers, the content has to be industry specific and informative. At the same time it should be creative as well to bind the customers. The CMS development services are offered by various every online web based companies. A professional will majorly focus on writing about the company?s objective and services. The writer will portray your goals in such a manner that it communicates with the reader. The central idea of your company reaches well to the customers. The content is written in a very easy to understand manner persuading the customers. Online entities offering content management system development services write website specific content which is further market oriented. A well-structured content results with utmost quality and originality.
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Resource: Looking for customer centric CMS development services and content management system development services must visit: www.mindgenies.com. The website will meet all your requirements related to creative and informative website content with an assurance of originality.
Article Tags : CMS Development Services, Content management system development, search engine, website content
Source: http://www.workoninternet.com/business/marketing/192562-search-engine.html
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Nicole Alvarez: Free Conrad Murray!
Dr. Conrad Murray's girlfriend, Nicole Alvarez, is begging the court to let him out of jail pending his appeal, claiming he's a "good father" to their toddler.
Somehow we don't see it happening.
Nicole Alvarez, who testified during Murray's involuntary manslaughter trial last fall, filed a declaration of support for Murray Thursday, in which she says if Murray is released, he will live with her and their two-year-old son in Santa Monica, Calif.
It's not the most powerful or emotional letter. Alvarez says, "Dr. Murray is the father of my child," adding, he "has been our primary source of support."
Moving stuff right there.
It's unclear how much support Murray can provide now, considering his medical license has been revoked and he's likely spent a fortune on legal fees.
Murray's hearing for bail pending appeal of his conviction is scheduled for Friday in L.A. The D.A. opposes bail, saying Murray is a danger to society.
Should be open and shut: No bail.
Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2012/02/nicole-alvarez-free-conrad-murray/
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The Hunger Games Movie: Pencil Case: Canvas Mockingay ...
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Understanding Powerful Green Community Real-estate Retailing ...
You can think of Green Community Viral marketing as causing an incredible chain reaction among people talking about one thing with each other. The kind of effect we are talking about, though, is immense in scope. While anyone should give it a shot, you should take the time to prepare for it by discovering a couple of helpful points. Understanding aspects of human nature and behavior would be extremely helpful. Let?s take a closer look at several relevant topics about Green Community Viral marketing. To learn more about Dubai Green Community One Bedroom, Dubai Green Community One Bedroom or even Dubai Lakes Villas give us a call immediately.
Do not be shy about asking your readers and visitors to let others know about your content piece. Don?t be afraid to be direct, and let them know that you want them to talk about your product/service/video or anything that you seek to make Green Community Viral. The classic call to action is what this is very much like with your audience, but you cannot use this tact too often. As long as you?re focused on this one principle, you will see a better performance of your campaign. Another important factor that goes into Green Community Viral marketing is that you need to make sharing easy, and if sharing is not easy, then your idea won?t go Green Community Viral. You know the value of this from your online marketing, and it is something that should be in all you do. There are very many different scenarios to talk about, so you just have to work with what you have. Count the number of mouse clicks people will need to make, for your content, and then minimize it. The easier it all is, then that will help produce a better response.
Think about the written approach in which you write a short ebook and serve it up to your visitors. The reason for this is that people that visit your site should be able to download something and spread it across their own network. You really need to make people perceive and believe that they are getting real value. So just work on something that you believe may do the trick for you.
Just always keep in your mind that once you release the content, then it is totally up to the people. Well, it is true that you can only control so much with Green Community Viral marketing because you do not exactly how people will react. There are some who will tell you that you can succeed with this all the time, and that is definitely not the case. This article is taken from a lot of experience, and that is the best way to learn anyway. We urge you to not waste any time with putting your first campaign together.
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Thursday, February 23, 2012
The Unparalleled Services of an Ecommerce Web Designing ...
In the present era there is a lot of competition prevailing in the market and therefore it becomes very important for the companies to get an ecommerce website design in order to stay in the competition. To be on the top the need of the hour is to get an ecommerce website that has the ability of working wonders for the company and its business. An ecommerce website offers great many advantages to the customers and to the visitors of the company?s website by giving them the option of shopping online with convenience. But at the same time it is also very important to choose the best ecommerce website design in order to remain on the safer side of things. A good ecommerce company is able to provide the best marketing aspect of business to a company by giving its indispensable services. It is very important for any business to get a good ecommerce website design??company working for it in order to get the visitors and the customers for the online shopping aspect presented by the website owners. The most significant aspect of any online business website is whether the website is user friendly so that it is able to provide the required support to its visitors.
Ecommerce web design should be done in such a way that it is able to give the desired results to the users. It should be planned in such a way that it gives the ease to the website visitors to shop from any place in the world. This is one of the basic criteria that a company should look for while hiring an ecommerce website company and therefore it is very important that the company hires the perfect ecommerce website design company in order to get the best results over time. A good ecommerce website design company is one such company that always assists the company to get purchasers and buyers of their products and services and also get them the results in their online business. In short it can be said that every company or a business concern wants to get a processional website designed which will help them to sell their business online. The ecommerce website design plays a very vital role in the up gradation of any business through its website. A powerful and well resourced website is always very instrumental in fulfilling he business needs of any company by enduring the company?s online business.
It is always found that many businesses in the world are always in the look out of promoting their business products and services through the internet. Therefore there are many website design companies that have come into being and have been established in order to boost the online business of a company. Any business small or big depends upon the ecommerce solution?? for yielding the best results over time. In this era of competition it has become mandatory for every business concern to select the best web designers and the best web design company in order to get their business needs satisfied. With the advent technology of internet, business promotion and product promotion it is the ecommerce website design that has become one of the easiest ways to create a brand name to your business.
Source: http://www.pro-pr.org/unparalleled-services-ecommerce-web-designing-company/
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Local cops on front lines against product counterfeiting
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Contact: Jeremy Wilson
jwilson@msu.edu
517-353-9474
Michigan State University
EAST LANSING, Mich. Contrary to common perception, state and local police are often on the front lines against product counterfeiting, yet it's unclear how prepared they are to deal with the growing crime, according to a new report from two Michigan State University criminologists.
Justin Heinonen and Jeremy Wilson found that local and/or state police were involved in nearly half of the identified product counterfeiting cases related to Michigan, which range from jewelry to car windshields to cholesterol drugs.
"Product counterfeiting may have links to terrorism and international organized crime, so the assumption is that only the federal authorities are handling it," said Heinonen, assistant professor of criminal justice. "But we found that local authorities are often involved in investigating these incidents as well. They can play an important role."
In a project funded by the U.S. Department of Justice, MSU will develop counterfeiting awareness videos and hold training sessions for state and local police in Michigan this summer.
In addition, because counterfeiting cases often cross state and even national boundaries, the report recommends promoting coordination between Michigan and other states and countries to attack the problem.
For the study, Heinonen and Wilson examined federal reports, case studies, media accounts and other sources and identified 47 cases of product counterfeiting related to Michigan dating as far back as the 1970s. Local and/or state police played a role in 21 of the incidents. The study looks at the counterfeiting of virtually all products, but excludes currency and documents.
In one case involving a Michigan-based automaker, a facility was raided after officials discovered it was producing counterfeit windshields. The windshields were exported throughout the world but did not contain shatterproof safety elements.
In another case, an unidentified man was fined $3 million after U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers in Detroit seized more than 9,000 counterfeit purses that had been shipped from China to a local business through the Port of Detroit.
Wilson, associate professor of criminal justice, said while the number of cases identified in the report represents just a fraction of the counterfeiting cases out there, it offers a baseline of evidence for understanding the nature of the risk. Wilson directs MSU's Anti-Counterfeiting and Product Protection Program, or A-CAPPP, which was formed several years ago after industry officials turned to Michigan State for much needed research and potential solutions to the problem.
The global market for counterfeiting has risen from about $30 billion in the 1980s to as much as $600 billion today, according to estimates. A-CAPPP researchers are developing the first national database of counterfeiting incidents that will help in better understanding the nature of the problem.
In addition to harming companies' bottom lines and taking jobs from people, counterfeiting can be a safety concern when the products involve tainted food and medication and deficient auto parts.
Investigating counterfeiting can be a lengthy, complex process. According to the Michigan report, the average investigation lasted about 13 months and involved an average of three perpetrators. The average seizure value was almost $739,000 and included large seizures of counterfeit auto parts, Super Bowl XL apparel and purses.
Another issue raised in the report: Nearly 60 percent of suspects were not charged with an intellectual property offense. Why not? Was it due to unfamiliarity with IP laws among authorities, the inability of the law to fit the crime or perhaps challenges with building such cases? The researchers recommend further research on the issue.
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Michigan State University has been working to advance the common good in uncommon ways for more than 150 years. One of the top research universities in the world, MSU focuses its vast resources on creating solutions to some of the world's most pressing challenges, while providing life-changing opportunities to a diverse and inclusive academic community through more than 200 programs of study in 17 degree-granting colleges.
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
[ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Jeremy Wilson
jwilson@msu.edu
517-353-9474
Michigan State University
EAST LANSING, Mich. Contrary to common perception, state and local police are often on the front lines against product counterfeiting, yet it's unclear how prepared they are to deal with the growing crime, according to a new report from two Michigan State University criminologists.
Justin Heinonen and Jeremy Wilson found that local and/or state police were involved in nearly half of the identified product counterfeiting cases related to Michigan, which range from jewelry to car windshields to cholesterol drugs.
"Product counterfeiting may have links to terrorism and international organized crime, so the assumption is that only the federal authorities are handling it," said Heinonen, assistant professor of criminal justice. "But we found that local authorities are often involved in investigating these incidents as well. They can play an important role."
In a project funded by the U.S. Department of Justice, MSU will develop counterfeiting awareness videos and hold training sessions for state and local police in Michigan this summer.
In addition, because counterfeiting cases often cross state and even national boundaries, the report recommends promoting coordination between Michigan and other states and countries to attack the problem.
For the study, Heinonen and Wilson examined federal reports, case studies, media accounts and other sources and identified 47 cases of product counterfeiting related to Michigan dating as far back as the 1970s. Local and/or state police played a role in 21 of the incidents. The study looks at the counterfeiting of virtually all products, but excludes currency and documents.
In one case involving a Michigan-based automaker, a facility was raided after officials discovered it was producing counterfeit windshields. The windshields were exported throughout the world but did not contain shatterproof safety elements.
In another case, an unidentified man was fined $3 million after U.S. Customs and Border Protection officers in Detroit seized more than 9,000 counterfeit purses that had been shipped from China to a local business through the Port of Detroit.
Wilson, associate professor of criminal justice, said while the number of cases identified in the report represents just a fraction of the counterfeiting cases out there, it offers a baseline of evidence for understanding the nature of the risk. Wilson directs MSU's Anti-Counterfeiting and Product Protection Program, or A-CAPPP, which was formed several years ago after industry officials turned to Michigan State for much needed research and potential solutions to the problem.
The global market for counterfeiting has risen from about $30 billion in the 1980s to as much as $600 billion today, according to estimates. A-CAPPP researchers are developing the first national database of counterfeiting incidents that will help in better understanding the nature of the problem.
In addition to harming companies' bottom lines and taking jobs from people, counterfeiting can be a safety concern when the products involve tainted food and medication and deficient auto parts.
Investigating counterfeiting can be a lengthy, complex process. According to the Michigan report, the average investigation lasted about 13 months and involved an average of three perpetrators. The average seizure value was almost $739,000 and included large seizures of counterfeit auto parts, Super Bowl XL apparel and purses.
Another issue raised in the report: Nearly 60 percent of suspects were not charged with an intellectual property offense. Why not? Was it due to unfamiliarity with IP laws among authorities, the inability of the law to fit the crime or perhaps challenges with building such cases? The researchers recommend further research on the issue.
###
Michigan State University has been working to advance the common good in uncommon ways for more than 150 years. One of the top research universities in the world, MSU focuses its vast resources on creating solutions to some of the world's most pressing challenges, while providing life-changing opportunities to a diverse and inclusive academic community through more than 200 programs of study in 17 degree-granting colleges.
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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-02/msu-lco022212.php
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