Petroplus shuts 3 oil refineries as cash runs out

Petroplus is to close three of its five oil refineries over the coming weeks because it has run out of money for crude supplies since bankers froze its credit lines abruptly this week.

Talks with the bankers have been "open and constructive" and will continue in the coming days, the financially troubled company said in a statement about the closures on Friday.

"In the meantime, the company will start temporary economic shutdowns of the Petit Couronne (France), Antwerp (Belgium) and Cressier (Switzerland) refineries in January 2012 given limited credit availability and the economic climate in Europe."

A victim of oversupply in European refining and of an investment strategy under former boss Thomas O'Malley that fell foul of an industry downturn, Petroplus and European government officials have been locked in talks with the 13 banks that froze a $1 billion facility it needed to buy crude oil.

Friday's announcement follows days of talks among bankers, government officials and the company aimed at keeping fuel flowing from Europe's biggest independent refiner.

A source close to the situation said a "provisional financing agreement" had been found to keep the talks going after intensive talks involving banks, the company and local governments.

And a Swiss local government official said he was urging the banking consortium to reconsider, although he did not confirm any breakthrough.

"I called yesterday to both Swiss banks, UBS and Credit Suisse , to insist on the local and strategic importance of the Cressier plant," said Thierry Grosjean, Economy Minister at the Swiss canton of Neuchatel, home to Petroplus's Cressier refinery.

Traders and analysts expect a large customer, supplier or banker could step in to keep plants running at some point.

But despite efforts so far, workers at the company's French and Belgian refineries were already preparing shutdowns on Sunday and Monday, according to officials and trade unions.

"There is no more crude coming in so the plant cannot work any more so we need to start shutting down all the plant's units on Monday, but this is a technical shutdown," said a spokeswoman for Petroplus in France. "The shutdown will take about a week."

The Cressier plant has enough crude to last between 15 and 20 days, according to the head of economic services in the canton of Neuchatel, Patrick Cossettini. Traders said that of Petroplus's five plants, the UK plant in Coryton might be the last to stop given its superior tank holding capacity.

WHY FREEZE NOW?

It remained unclear why the banks cut funding so abruptly just two months after allowing the troubled company to breach debt covenants without penalty.

Analysts and traders believe a worsening outlook for the industry and pressure from governments on banks to boost bank capital might be among the reasons for the unusual move, but one loan industry player thought otherwise.

"For me, this is a clear signal that something must have happened - banks don't do that. Banks would only act in such a manner if something has occurred. This is very untypical - some information is clearly missing," said a head of loan syndicate who is not involved in Petroplus financing but still did not want to be named.

Apart from Friday's statement, Swiss-based Petroplus has not responded to phone calls and emails from Reuters and has declined to elaborate on a December 27 announcement on the frozen credit lines.

O'MALLEY CONNECTION

The ailing company's latest financing problems throw a spotlight on Thomas O'Malley, the veteran oil refining entrepreneur who took over at the head of the company in 2006, but who in 2011 stepped down as chairman and reduced his personal stake in the business below 3 percent.

He remains CEO and chairman at PBF Energy, a joint venture of private equity firms Blackstone and First Reserve. In November, PBF announced plans to raise funds through an initial public offering.

Petroplus' refineries are at Cressier in Switzerland, Petit Couronne in France, Coryton in the United Kingdom, Antwerp in Belgium, and Ingolstadt in Germany. Together, they account for about 4.4 percent of European Union capacity.

But given the amount of slack in the industry, the closures are not expected to create a major supply issue, but governments, particularly in France where elections are coming up next year, are anxious to avoid closure.

The European refining sector has been struggling for years due to poor margins and weak demand for fuel products. French major Total shut its Dunkirk refinery at the start of 2010 and Petroplus itself closed down its Reichstett plant in eastern France in May 2011.

Petroplus's 13 lenders, which include BNP Paribas , Societe Generale , Natixis Credit Suisse , Morgan Stanley and Deutsche Bank , continued to negotiate on Friday.

The company's stock price has halved since Tuesday's announcement of the freeze, but had gained 8.5 percent to 1.78 euros 1400 GMT on Friday amid hopes the provisional financing agreement might mean a positive solution may be found.

(Reporting By Marie Maitre; Additional reporting by Lionel Laurent in Paris, Emma Farge and Tessa Walsh in London, Pascal Schmuck in Neuchatel,; Editing by Andrew Callus)

Source: http://www.ibtimes.com/articles/20111230/petroplus-shutsoil-refineries-as-cash-runs-out.htm

chester mcglockton arsenic los angeles weather big ten acc challenge scott disick kourtney kardashian kourtney kardashian

After deaths in Detroit, Backpage.com advertising comes under scrutiny

Several women found dead in Detroit over the weekend had profiles on Backpage.com, a website offering escort services. The website has received attention before for a potential connection to illegal activity.

Four women in Detroit were found dead in two car trunks Sunday. Their connection to a website offering escort services is reviving an ongoing debate about the right of online media outlets to host advertising that many say enables criminal activity.

Skip to next paragraph

On Tuesday, Detroit police officials said they were pursuing warrants for Internet and cellphone records linked to the women. Three had profiles on Backpage.com, a controversial free classified service owned by Village Voice Media, which operates 13 weekly newspapers across the United States.

Steve Suskin, an attorney for Village Voice Media, confirmed in a statement that the police investigation involves advertising on Backpage.com. Village Voice Media is cooperating with police, Mr. Suskin also said.

However, this is not the first time that Backpage.com has been scrutinized for a connection to illegal activity ? in particular, the sex trafficking of minors.

In August, 46 state attorneys general in the US sent Village Voice Media a letter requesting that it remove adult-services advertising from the website. ?While Backpage.com professes to have undertaken efforts to limit advertisements for prostitution on its website, particularly those soliciting sex with children, such efforts have proven ineffective,? the letter read.

The attorneys general report that, over three years, they tracked more than 50 instances of charges filed that involved the trafficking minors on the website.

A month after the letter was sent, a coalition of clergy published a full-page ad in The New York Times requesting that Village Voice Media remove such advertising to prevent ?compromising the lives of our nation?s boys and girls.?

Village Voice Media insists it has cooperated fully with law enforcement to prevent sex trafficking and says it is one of many sites that host adult advertising. The core of its argument is free speech: ?Neither government officials nor God?s advocates can dictate such arbitrary control of business or speech,? it said in a statement.

Websites like Backpage.com are protected under Section 230 of the federal Communications Decency Act of 1996, says Joe Obenberger, an attorney in Chicago who specializes in adult entertainment law. That act protects online operators from criminal wrongdoing even if the advertising they host promotes prostitution or other illegal acts, such as advertising under which housing discrimination is present.

In several instances, federal courts have upheld the law despite police concerns about safety. One notable example: an October 2009 decision in Chicago that struck down an attempt by Cook County Sheriff Thomas Dart to hold Craigslist responsible for 156 prostitution arrests linked to postings on that website.

The Internet, Mr. Obenberger says, is no different from the phone company or other telecommunications services in that it is not responsible for how people use the technology.

?If people were liable for all the bad things the Internet was used for, criminally or civilly, it would be foolhardy for people to invest [in it], and the Internet would not grow,? he says.

What protects online sites like Backpage.com is that ?for there to be a crime involving speech, there must be a close proximity between the speech and the criminal activity,? Obenberger says. Advertising for prostitution does not qualify under this standard, he says.

Backpage.com represents 30 to 35 percent of Village Voice Media?s annual revenue, reports The New York Times. The company benefited when Craigslist voluntarily removed its adult-services advertising in September 2010, after pressure from law-enforcement authorities.

According to the Advanced Interactive Media Group, which tracks interactive media and classified revenue, Backpage.com generated $2.1 million in revenue in November, a 16.7 percent increase from the same month one year prior. The website received 2.9 million unique visitors in November, an 11 percent jump from the previous year.

The website accounts for two-thirds of all prostitution advertising on the Web, according to Advanced Interactive Media, which defines prostitution advertising as that for escorts and body rubs.

Human rights advocates say that Village Voice Media has a responsibility to protect minors and that that their free-speech argument is not enough.

?If I tried to sell crack online through Backpage, the Village Voice would not stand up and say this is about the First Amendment,? Malika Saada Saar of the Rebecca Project for Human Rights in Washington told The Daily Beast in October. ?It?s convenient and politically easy for them to frame this as a free-speech issue, and it?s not.?

Others point out that online advertising creates records of transactions that can help law enforcement. The removal of such advertising might cause the trade to go underground, which would make it harder to protect vulnerable workers from coercion.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/vzNMh5Jtwo4/After-deaths-in-Detroit-Backpage.com-advertising-comes-under-scrutiny

bcs standings douglas fir jim boeheim jim boeheim bill of rights toys r us toys r us

China Refined Oil Product Industry, 2011 Provides In-Depth Analysis and Detailed Insight Today

Part 1 Industry Overview

1 Industry definition and development overview

2 Industry macroscopic environment and its influence analysis

3 Industry international market analysis

4 Industry domestic market analysis Part 2 Basic indices

5 Analysis of the industry's scale and condition: 2006-2010

6 Status analysis of gross assets analysis: 2006-2010 Part 3 Economic operation

7 Analysis of gross industrial output: 2006-2010

8 Industry sales income analysis: 2006-2010

9 Industry gross profit analysis

10 Industry import/export analysis in 2010 Part 4 Competition landscape

11 Industry competition landscape analysis

12 Industry key enterprises' competitive power comparison (top 20) Part 5 Key enterprises

13 Comparative analysis of the economic indicators of the industry's key enterprises Part 6 Business strategy

14. Development bottlenecks and coping strategies in Industry

15 Enterprise development strategy analysis and recommendations in Industry Part 7 Market investment

16 Comparison and analysis of investment activity coefficient and rate of return on investment in Industry

17 Industry investment environment and risks analysis Part 8 Technology Part 9 Developments and trends

Source: Business Wire

To access over 2,500 of the latest oil projects from across the world visit Projects OGP for free trial today

Source: http://www.youroilandgasnews.com/china+refined+oil+product+industry,+2011+provides+in-depth+analysis+and+detailed+insight+today_72447.html

android tablet arthur christmas asus transformer nebraska football nebraska football online deals leap pad

Solyndra docs: Politics infused energy programs

(Washington Post)?

This story was written by Joe Stephens and Carol D. Leonnig.

Linda Sterio remembers the excitement when President Obama arrived at Solyndra last year and described how his administration's financial support for the plant was helping create hundreds of jobs. The company's prospects appeared unlimited as Solyndra executives described the backlog of orders for its solar panels.

Then came the August morning when Sterio heard a newscaster announce that more than a thousand Solyndra employees were out of work. Only recently did she learn that, within the Obama administration, the company's potential collapse had long been discussed.

"It's not about the people; it's politics," said Sterio, who remains jobless and at risk of losing her home. "We all feel betrayed."

Since the failure of the company, Obama's entire $80 billion clean-

technology program has begun to look like a political liability for an administration about to enter a bruising reelection campaign.

Meant to create jobs and cut reliance on foreign oil, Obama's green-technology program was infused with politics at every level, The Washington Post found in an analysis of thousands of memos, company records and internal e-mails. Political considerations were raised repeatedly by company investors, Energy Department bureaucrats and White House officials.

The records, some previously unreported, show that when warned that financial disaster might lie ahead, the administration remained steadfast in its support for Solyndra.

The documents reviewed by The Post, which began examining the clean-technology program a year ago, provide a detailed look inside the day-to-day workings of the upper levels of the Obama administration. They also give an unprecedented glimpse into high-level maneuvering by politically connected clean-technology investors.

They show that as Solyndra tottered, officials discussed the political fallout from its troubles, the "optics" in Washington and the impact that the company's failure could have on the president's prospects for a second term. Rarely, if ever, was there discussion of the impact that Solyndra's collapse would have on laid-off workers or on the development of clean-energy technology.

"What's so troubling is that politics seems to be the dominant factor," said Ryan Alexander, president of Taxpayers for Common Sense, a nonpartisan watchdog group. "They're not talking about what the taxpayers are losing; they're not talking about the failure of the technology, whether we bet on the wrong horse. What they are talking about is 'How are we going to manage this politically?' "

The administration, which excluded lobbyists from policymaking positions, gave easy access to venture capitalists with stakes in some of the companies backed by the administration, the records show. Many of those investors had given to Obama's 2008 campaign. Some took jobs in the administration and helped manage the clean-energy program.

Documents show that senior officials pushed career bureaucrats to rush their decision on the loan so Vice President Biden could announce it during a trip to California. The records do not establish that anyone pressured the Energy Department to approve the Solyndra loan to benefit political contributors, but they suggest that there was an unwavering focus on promoting Solyndra and clean energy. Officials with the company and the administration have said that nothing untoward occurred and that the loan was granted on its merits.

Most documents that have been made public in connection with a congressional investigation relate to the period after the loan was granted. The process began in the George W. Bush administration but resulted in the first loan in the program being granted under Obama. As a result, many factors that led to Solyndra winning a half-billion-dollar federal loan remain unknown.

White House officials said that all key records regarding Solyndra's loan approval have been released.

Officials acknowledged that some of the records provide an unvarnished view that they might have preferred to keep private -- such as a senior energy adviser's reference to a conference call about Solyndra as a "[expletive] show," or a company investor writing that when Solyndra was mentioned in a meeting, Biden's office "about had an orgasm."

Officials said those unflattering disclosures reinforce their position that they are not hiding their actions and that, despite the blemishes, nothing suggests political considerations affected the original decision to extend the loan to Solyndra. They stressed that the administration disregarded advice to avoid political problems by replacing senior Energy Department managers and moving to abort Obama's visit to Solyndra.

"Everything disclosed . . . affirms what we said on day one: This was a merit-based decision made by expert staffers at the Department of Energy," White House spokesman Eric Schultz said in a statement.

Officials said that concern for workers was reflected in the administration's decision to allow Solyndra employees to receive aid under a program for workers displaced by foreign competition.

"When Solyndra's liquidity crisis became clear, the Department of Energy underwent a robust effort to find a viable path forward for the company," the White House's prepared statement said. "This administration is one that will fiercely fight to protect jobs even when it's not the popular thing to do."

Star power in D.C.

Like most presidential appearances, Obama's May 2010 stop at Solyndra's headquarters was closely managed political theater.

Obama's handlers had lengthy e-mail discussions about how solar panels should be displayed (from a robotic arm, it was decided). They cautioned the company's chief executive against wearing a suit (he opted for an open-neck shirt and black slacks) and asked another executive to wear a hard hat and white smock. They instructed blue-collar employees to wear everyday work clothes, to preserve what they called "the construction-worker feel."

White House e-mails suggest that the original idea for "POTUS involvement" originated with then-Chief of Staff Rahm Emanuel. Emanuel, now mayor of Chicago, did not respond to a request for comment from The Post.

Well beyond the details of the factory photo op, raw political considerations surfaced repeatedly in conversations among many in the administration.

Just two days before the visit, Obama fundraiser Steve Westly warned senior presidential adviser Valerie Jarrett that an appearance could be problematic. Westly, an investment fund manager with stakes in green-energy companies, said he was speaking for a number of Obama supporters in asking the president to postpone the visit because Solyndra's financial prospects were dim and the company's failure could generate negative media attention.

"The president should be careful about unrealistic/optimistic forecasts that could haunt him in the next 18 months if Solyndra hits the wall," Westly wrote. Westly did not respond to a request for comment from The Post.

Similar concerns arose repeatedly among officials inside the White House. One staffer at the Office of Management and Budget suggested to a colleague that the visit could "prove embarrassing to the administration in the not too distant future." Even Ron Klain, Biden's chief of staff, acknowledged "risk" in the trip.

But administration officials ultimately waved off the jitters, after assurances from Energy Department officials that their policy was sound and that Solyndra's troubles would be fleeting. After Obama's trip, the administration hung a photo from his visit on a wall in the West Wing, to underscore good things to come.

Solyndra's financial picture did not improve, however, and by year's end the company was crumbling. Its investors pitched bailout plans, seeking help from what a Solyndra executive referred to as the "Bank of Washington" -- his apparent term for U.S. taxpayers. The Energy Department rebuffed the plans, at least initially.

In late 2010, Solyndra board member Steve Mitchell told his associates that Energy Department officials had conceded that additional financing was necessary yet said in private meetings that they lacked the political muscle to deliver it. "The DOE really thinks politically before it thinks economically," Mitchell concluded. A spokesman for Mitchell said he would have no comment for this article. An Energy Department spokesman said that all decisions regarding the loan were based on merit.

Solyndra eventually realized that it had to lay off workers to stay afloat -- no small step for a company that the president had backed to create jobs in a recession. But records indicate that the Energy Department urged company officials to delay the move until after the contentious November 2010 midterm elections, which imperiled Democratic control of Congress.

Source: http://feeds.cbsnews.com/~r/CBSNewsGamecore/~3/GamHaUrRLjo/

the muppet movie the muppet movie mars rover mars rover trent richardson apple cup jewelry stores

Santa rally may face test next week (Reuters)

NEW YORK (Reuters) ? Get ready. The last trading week of the year will be a test for stocks to prove whether they have the strength to carry a rally into next year.

The broad S&P 500 index broke through its 200-day moving average on Friday after turning positive for the year as a four-day rally lifted stocks following a spell of better-than-expected economic data. At Friday's close, the S&P 500 was up 0.6 percent for the year.

But despite the recent economic data that suggest the U.S. economy is on the right track to recovery, Europe's sovereign debt crisis is troubling investors and weighing on the market.

Many market participants are reluctant to believe in a "Santa Claus rally" this year, which refers to stocks' seasonal tendency to gain in the final five trading days of the year and first two trading days of the new year.

Warnings from major credit rating agencies on a potential downgrade of several European nations have kept investors on edge. After Standard & Poor's surprised financial markets back in August with a downgrade of the United States' triple-A credit rating on a Friday evening, investors worry a similar move could come at any time - even between Christmas and New Year's.

But the absence of European sovereign bond auctions for the next two weeks could lend support to stocks.

"The fact that there won't be a (European) bond auction until the second week of January, that takes away some spotlight from Europe, at least for a little while," TD Ameritrade chief derivatives strategist J.J. Kinahan said.

"Unless we get earth-shattering news, the S&P could go up to (the) 1,300 levels," he said.

The S&P 500 closed on Friday at 1,265.33.

The correlation between U.S. stocks and European sovereign bond yields has been high, especially the link with Spanish, Italian and German bonds. A poor bond auction in any one of these countries could trigger an instant selloff in the U.S. stock market.

SANTA CLAUS VS BEAR CLAWS

What happens next week is important as it sets a tone for the coming year.

"If Santa should fail to call, bears may come to Broad & Wall," so goes the Wall Street adage, according to the Stock Trader's Almanac.

Ari Wald, a technical strategist at Brown Brothers Harriman, said the key level on the S&P 500 to watch is 1,260, which is a resistance from the index's downward sloping 200-day moving average and the downtrend connecting its October and December peaks.

"A breakout above this supply would argue for continued seasonal strength through the first quarter of 2012," he said.

He also noted that 1,200 is support from the index's downward sloping 100-day moving average and the uptrend connecting its October & November lows.

"A breach of this demand could stir additional technical selling to 1,130-1,150 intermediate-term support," Wald said.

With many investors absent until the start of 2012, trading volume is expected to be light, creating more volatility.

Next week's data includes the S&P 500 Case-Shiller House Price Index and consumer confidence data on Tuesday.

The Chicago Purchasing Managers Index and pending home sales data are due on Thursday. After a strong gain in November, the Chicago index is seen giving back a modest amount in December.

(Reporting By Angela Moon; Editing by Jan Paschal)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/stocks/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111224/bs_nm/us_markets_stocks_weekahead

v tech the three stooges top model all stars americas next top model mark buehrle mark buehrle rick perry ad

Two Adults And Two Kids In A Deluxe Room Or Suite At Azul Fives Hotel In Mexico

The name ?Riviera Maya? is slightly deceptive: it derives from the modern connotation of the word ?riviera,? which can refer to almost any popular tourist coastline. The title has little to do with the Spanish translation of ?riviera,? as no freshwater rivers actually flow above ground through the area?s tropical jungles. Below sea level, however, lay thousands of cenotes?collapsed limestone caves that feature a network of freshwater rivers and underground lakes. The cenotes are a natural playground for scuba divers and snorkelers, as is the nearby Great Mayan Reef?one of the longest barrier reefs in the world. The luxurious Azul Fives Hotel resides between a natural cenote and the Caribbean Sea, as well as just 10 minutes from the bustling nightlife of Playa del Carmen.

Outdoor pools overlook the sea, and swim-up bars serve up tropical cocktails along the hotel?s palm-fringed grounds, a haven for relaxation. During a holistic couples massage at the 15,000-square-foot Vassa Spa, vacationers can soothe sore muscles after a day spent scuba diving or arm-wrestling octopi. Balmy breezes waft in from a private terrace or balcony within the posh guest rooms, where ivory-flecked d?cor nods to the picturesque seascape.

For a romantic dinner, guests can settle into gauzy beachside cabanas with a bottle of wine. The hotel also caters to families with its Azulitos Kid?s Club?a whimsical playroom and gym filled with Fisher-Price toys, a trampoline, and hands-on arts and crafts.

Playa del Carmen, Mexico: Popular White-Sand Beaches and Energetic Nightlife

Situated on Mexico?s southeastern tip just below Cancun are Playa del Carmen?s white-sand beaches, which stretch along the Caribbean Sea. Once part of a quiet fishing town, the beaches now welcome thousands of tourists year-round, with average temperatures hovering near 80 degrees. Crystal-clear waters make it easy for scuba divers and snorkelers of all levels to take the plunge into underground cenotes or the Great Mayan Reef, which is a hangout for turtles, lobsters, and whale sharks. Playa del Carmen?s downtown buzzes with restaurants that serve a variety of ethnic cuisines, and upscale retail stores stay open late along 5th Avenue. Street dancers move to the upbeat rhythm of live music and anyone nearby operating a jackhammer.

December 25, 2011, 12:47 pm

Source: http://www.bargainez.com/deal/two-adults-and-two-kids-in-a-deluxe-room-or-suite-at-azul-fives-hotel-in-mexico-103/

sarah vowell fire in reno kelly ripa reno wildfire reno wildfire osu osu

Earnest Glynn Morris, 85, Edgewood, New Mexico

Earnest was born on February 9, 1926 and passed away on Tuesday, December 20, 2011.

Earnest was a resident of Edgewood, New Mexico at the time of his passing.

Earnest was an Army WWII Veteran. He was a POW in Germany, earning the Purple Heart.

He is survived by his wife Naomi.

There will be visitation on Monday, December 26, 2011 from 4:00PM to 6:00PM at Harris-Hanlon Mortuary in Moriarty, NM. The Funeral Service will be on Tuesday, December 27, 2011 at 10:00AM at Harris-Hanlon Mortuary in Moriarty, NM with Pastor John Nash officiating. Burial will follow the service at Mountain View Cemetery in Moriarty, NM.

Source: http://krqe.tributes.com/show/Earnest-Glynn-Morris-92976699

apple cup jewelry stores the firm sleep no more cyber monday deals war eagle war eagle

12 million Motrin bottles pulled from shelves

Johnson & Johnson, the consumer products company which has been plagued by product recalls in the past two years, said it is voluntarily asking retailers to remove about 12 million bottles of Motrin pain relievers from store shelves.

1. Don't miss these Health stories

   1. Christmas wish: Little listeria victim is home

      Kendall Paciorek was born three months ago, but she didn't come home until this week, just days before Christmas. The premature girl was one of the tiniest victims of a deadly outbreak of listeria in contaminated cantaloupe.

   2. What's in an American kitchen? The fridge top 5
   3. Cocaine on 9 in 10 UK baby changing stations
   4. Do you want to know what your doc writes about you?
   5. Holiday surprise for two parents with cancer

The coated caplets may not dissolve as quickly as intended when they near their expiration dates, the company found when testing product samples, according to a statement posted Wednesday on a website of J&J's McNeil Consumer Healthcare Division.

"There is no safety concern if consumers continue taking the product in accordance with its label; however, it is possible there may be a delay in experiencing relief," the statement said.

Bonnie Jacobs, a J&J spokeswoman, told Reuters the company is not asking consumers to return the caplets. The bottles were distributed in the United States, Puerto Rico, Bahamas, Fiji, Belize, St. Lucia and Jamaica.

Three McNeil manufacturing plants have been under stepped-up U.S. government supervision since March following a rash of consumer product recalls.

Copyright 2011 Thomson Reuters. Click for restrictions.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45759450/ns/health-health_care/

sam shepard sam shepard san francisco 49ers san francisco 49ers ben roethlisberger 49ers pittsburgh steelers

Federal agency scales back Nevada mustang roundup (Reuters)

LAS VEGAS (Reuters) ? Federal land managers said on Wednesday they have decided to scale back a disputed roundup of wild horses in Nevada next month and to postpone the planned castration of stallions as part of the operation.

The decision comes a week after a group of wild-horse activists filed suit challenging plans by the Bureau of Land Management, a U.S. Interior Department agency, to geld 200 wild stallions over a six- to 10-year period in vast stretches of open range called the Pancake Complex, near Ely in eastern Nevada.

"We decided we're going to go ahead with the gather, but instead of doing the gelding portion, we are not going to be doing that right off the bat," said Heather Emmons, a spokeswoman for the BLM's wild horse and burro program.

The agency also has decided to reduce the number of wild horses inside a 150,000-acre area within the complex by half, rather than eliminating the herds there entirely as originally planned. "Zeroing out" of the Jakes Wash Herd Management Area was another aspect of the roundup plan challenged in court.

The plaintiffs accuse the BLM of violating the 1971 "Wild Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act" and other environmental laws under a plan to round up -- via helicopter stampede -- 800 to 1,000 wild horses from the Pancake Complex as a whole every two to three years. The first capture operation is set to run from January 12 through February 22.

Emmons said the BLM filed a joint stipulation in court spelling out which operations the agency will implement during the January 12 roundup.

In August, the BLM postponed a similar roundup planned for Wyoming, where the agency planned to remove 700 wild mustangs and return 177 castrated stallions to the land.

Wild-horse advocates have called for a moratorium on all government roundups of mustangs, saying such operations can irreparably harm America's wild-horse herds.

The BLM says that is untenable because mustang herds can double in size every four years, leading to overpopulation of the range that causes soil erosion, sedimentation of streams and damage to wildlife habitat.

(Editing by Steve Gorman and Jerry Norton)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/us/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111222/us_nm/us_mustangs_roundup_nevada

jessica chastain nook tablet eagles magic johnson involuntary manslaughter stevens johnson syndrome verdict in michael jackson trial

Solstice, Periapsis, and the Hades Orbit

The Sun rising above the Arctic plain (H. D. Nygren, NOAA Corps.)

As our spinning globe of rock and metal tracks its steady path around the Sun, we find ourselves crossing once again through the winter solstice, the point at which Earth?s northern pole is pointed as far from our fierce stellar parent as it can be (this year at a coordinated universal time of 5.30 am on December the 22nd, almost the same as 5.30 am Greenwich Mean Time). The chill that this brings to the northern hemisphere can make it seem a little confusing that a mere 12 days later, on January 3rd, the Earth also passes through its closest approach to the Sun (its periapsis point).

Why do we not get hot and bothered by this passage? The answer is that the Earth?s orbit is very close to circular, and so periapsis is only about 3% closer to the Sun than the furthest point in our great elliptical orbital loop. The resulting increase in solar radiation (a few percent) does toast the planet a little more, but locally it?s a small effect compared to that of our planetary tilt. Thus, for those of us in the north our closest passage to a star is still a bone-chilling affair.

Elsewhere in the universe this is definitely not always the case. So, while you?re sipping hot cocoa, or flinging innocent antipodean crustaceans on the barbeque, spare a thought for a planet less fortunate than your own.

HD 80606b: a serious case of repeat sunburn

Comparison of HD 80606b's orbit and the sedate architecture of our solar system (Credit: Greg Laughlin)

A mere 190 light years away, in the direction of the Big Dipper is a gas-giant world, some four times the mass of Jupiter. Every 55.5 days this planet switches between a moderate, temperate, distance from its ordinary, Sun-like, parent star to a ridiculously scorching place that receives more than 800 times as much stellar radiation. Welcome to HD 80606b, a planet with an orbital eccentricity of 0.93 and a closest approach to its star that is a mere 1/29th of its furthest distance ? a startlingly near pass of only seven times the radius of the star.

As a result, HD 80606b experiences a rise in its outer atmospheric temperature of over 700 degrees Celsius in the space of 6 hours as it rockets through its periapsis with the star. We know this because, in a stroke of statistical luck, HD 80606b both transits its stellar parent (passing directly between us and the stellar disk) and is later eclipsed by the star immediately after its closest approach. The latter event allowing astronomers to catch a glimpse of the infrared radiation pouring off the planet as it dips its toes into the realm of Hades.

Subjecting a planet to this kind of brutal heating likely results in some spectacular atmospheric changes, with great hotspots driving colossal winds. Hydrodynamical simulations give us some idea of what might be going on.

Visualization of HD 80606b before, during, and after periapsis (NASA/JPL-Caltech/G. Laughlin et al.)

This movie shows HD 80606b from our Earthbound point of view. At first the planet has not yet passed through its periapsis, the blue color is light from the star reflected towards us. Four seconds into the animation is the closest approach, and now the red glow is the infrared radiation emitted from the planet itself ? the equivalent of a peal of thermal thunder. As time passes, all we can see is the night side of the planet as it again climbs away from the star, but its atmosphere is still hot, roiling, and flowing from the massive radiation punch of its close encounter.

In this case nature has provided us with a wonderful experimental apparatus for understanding the effect of extreme variations of stellar radiation on a planetary atmosphere. Every 111 days (55.5 days out, 55.5 days back) HD 80606b goes through the same brutal experience, providing another opportunity for us to observe and refine our models.

While this is a truly extraordinary system, we expect that many of the ?Earth-like? worlds on the cusp of being discovered, will have orbits that are significantly more elliptical than that of our homeworld. Our tentative investigations of what this would imply for life on such planets (for example, work by Dressing, Spiegel, Menou, Raymond and myself) yield some surprising answers. Quite strongly elliptical orbits (although much less so than HD 80606b) need not render an Earth-like, rocky, wet, world uninhabitable. While certain locations on such planets might indeed become uncomfortably hot or cold during the course of a year, the so-called thermal-inertia (the reticence of land or ocean to give up or absorb heat quickly) may carry these worlds through the worst times ? smoothing out the extremes.

So, as we pass through our rather mild solstice and periapsis, there may well be another place, out there somewhere, bracing itself for its most appalling season, with only the comfort of the thought that better days are on the way.

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=297a498aea16360e1e5ab53c477f97ce

colts boise state x factor winner melanie amaro adam lambert arrested prometheus trailer posterior

Stacy Keibler?s Long Legs Head To Mexico

? 2011 Hollywood Tuna Hottie Poll
Canned Tuna ? December 21st, 2011

Here?s Stacy Keibler hanging out with that old dude from ER. I think his name is George Clooney, down in Mexico somewhere showing off her luscious long legs. I can?t believe this guy, not only does he get Stacy?s long legs wrapped around him whenever he wants, but he gets his own golf cart?!! WTF? Whenever I go to Mexico all I get is explosive diarrhea.

*Vote for Stacy Keibler in the 2011 Hollywood Tuna Hottie of the Year Poll

?	?	?

Stacy Keibler as Miss Hancock

Related Articles:
Stacy Keibler In Not So Short Shorts
Stacy Keibler?s Maxim Magazine Pictures
Stacy Keibler Strips -N- Shines!
Stacy Keibler?s Ass And Legs Are Covered Up Again!

Photos: Fame

Source: http://www.hollywoodtuna.com/?p=65762

gabby gabby marcel the shell with shoes on ecu john wooden mirror mirror tanuki

Facebook, Greenpeace in truce over data centers (AP)

NEW YORK ? Facebook and Greenpeace have called a truce over a clean energy feud that had the environmental group using the social network's own platform to campaign against it.

Greenpeace and Facebook said Thursday that they will work together to encourage the use of renewable energy instead of coal. Last year, Facebook opened a data center in Prineville, Ore., using the area's cool nights and dry air to save energy while keeping its systems from overheating. It also received generous tax breaks for adding jobs to the economically struggling region.

But Greenpeace wasn't happy that Facebook picked site for its data center that's served by a power company that generates most of its electricity from coal. It started a campaign to get the social network operator to use renewable energy. It attracted some 700,000 supporters on Facebook. Greenpeace said it was ending the campaign and declared victory on its "Unfriend Coal" Facebook page, which was still up Thursday morning.

The page has more than 180,000 followers.

Facebook says it will work with the group to promote clean, renewable energy and encourage other technology companies to do the same. The company said it will now state a "preference for access to clean and renewable energy" when choosing where to build its data centers. But it stopped short of saying it will only build on such sites.

Clean energy has also been big issue for Facebook's Silicon Valley Google Inc. The online search leader has been trying to prove that its business model is environmentally friendly and recently revealed exactly how much electricity it uses (2.3 kilowatt-hours of electricity last year, about the same as what 207,000 U.S. homes would use in a year). It has also invested nearly $1 billion in renewable energy projects such as wind farms and solar projects.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/environment/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111215/ap_on_hi_te/us_tec_facebook_greenpeace

wvu football meteor shower tonight district 9 district 9 pandaria pandaria artie lange

Christina Aguilera Turns 31 and Katie Holmes Turns 33: Their Hair Through the Years (omg!)

Fun celeb fact: In addition to being young moms, Christina Aguilera and Katie Holmes share the same birthday (Dec. 18). On Sunday the singer turns 31 and the actress/designer will be 33.

PHOTOS: SEE CHRISTINA AND KATIE'S HAIR OVER THE YEARS

And while their styles are dramatically different -- Aguilera is known for her super-sexy, over-the-top looks, Holmestypically goes for chic, high-fashion ensembles -- they've both changed up their hair several times in the last decade.

PHOTOS: Biggest celeb hair makeovers of 2011

Click through to see the stars' hair through the years and tell Us which look you like best on each one!

Get more Us! Follow us on Twitter, Friend us on Facebook, Subscribe to Us Weekly

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/entertainment/*http%3A//us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/external/omg_rss/rss_omg_en/news_christina_aguilera_turns31_katie_holmes_turns_33_190901787/43929973/*http%3A//omg.yahoo.com/news/christina-aguilera-turns-31-katie-holmes-turns-33-190901787.html

velasquez vs dos santos velasquez vs dos santos manny pacquiao vs. juan manuel marquez manny pacquiao vs. juan manuel marquez cain velasquez vs dos santos cain velasquez vs dos santos oregon stanford

A 'fantastic voyage' through the body -- with precision control

Public release date: 15-Dec-2011
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: George Hunka
ghunka@aftau.org
212-742-9070
American Friends of Tel Aviv University

Tel Aviv University researcher develops capsule endoscope controlled by MRI to investigate digestive system

Endoscopes small cameras or optic fibres that are usually attached to flexible tubing designed to investigate the interior of the body can be dangerously invasive. Procedures often require sedative medications and some recovery time. Now a researcher at Tel Aviv University is developing a "capsule endoscope" that can move through the digestive tract to detect problems independent of any attachments.

According to Dr. Gabor Kosa of TAU's School of Mechanical Engineering, the project is inspired by an endoscopic capsule designed for use in the small intestine. But unlike the existing capsule, which travels at random and snaps pictures every half second to give doctors an overall view of the intestines, the new "wireless" capsules will use the magnetic field of a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machine and electronic signals manipulated by those operating the capsule to forge a more precise and deliberate path.

It's a less invasive and more accurate way for doctors to get an important look at the digestive tract, where difficult-to-diagnose tumors or wounds may be hidden, or allow for treatments such as biopsies or local drug delivery. The technology, which was recently reported in Biomedical Microdevices, was developed in collaboration with Peter Jakab, an engineer from the Surgical Planning Laboratory at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, affiliated with Harvard Medical School.

Swimming with the current

What sets this endoscope apart is its ability to actively explore the digestive tract under the direction of a doctor. To do this, the device relies on the magnetic field of the MRI machine as a "driving force," says Dr. Kosa. "An MRI has a very large constant magnetic field," he explains. "The capsule needs to navigate according to this field, like a sailboat sailing with the wind."

In order to help the capsules "swim" with the magnetic current, the researchers have given them "tails," a combination of copper coils and flexible polymer. The magnetic field creates a vibration in the tail which allows for movement, and electronics and microsensors embedded in the capsule allow the capsule's operator to manipulate the magnetic field that guides the movement of the device. The use of copper, a non-ferro magnetic material, circumvents other diagnostic challenges posed by MRI, Dr. Kosa adds. While most magnets interfere with MRI by obscuring the picture, copper appears as only a minor blot on otherwise clear film.

The ability to drive the capsule, Dr. Kosa says, will not only lead to better diagnosis capabilities, but patients will experience a less invasive procedure in a fraction of the time.

Microrobotics of the future

In the lab at the Brigham and Women's Hospital, Dr. Kosa and his fellow researchers have tested the driving mechanism of the capsule in an aquarium inside the MRI. The results have shown that the capsule can successfully be manipulated using a magnetic field. Moving forward, the researchers are hoping to further develop the capsule's endoscopic and signalling functions.

According to Dr. Kosa, a new faculty recruit to TAU, this project is part of a bright future for the field of microrobotics. At the university, his new research lab, called RBM2S, focuses on microsystems and robotics for biomedical applications, and an educational robotics lab, ERL, will teach future robotics experts studying at TAU's School of Mechanical Engineering.

###

American Friends of Tel Aviv University (http://www.aftau.org) supports Israel's leading, most comprehensive and most sought-after center of higher learning. Independently ranked 94th among the world's top universities for the impact of its research, TAU's innovations and discoveries are cited more often by the global scientific community than all but 10 other universities.

Internationally recognized for the scope and groundbreaking nature of its research and scholarship, Tel Aviv University consistently produces work with profound implications for the future.

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

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.

Public release date: 15-Dec-2011
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: George Hunka
ghunka@aftau.org
212-742-9070
American Friends of Tel Aviv University

Tel Aviv University researcher develops capsule endoscope controlled by MRI to investigate digestive system

Endoscopes small cameras or optic fibres that are usually attached to flexible tubing designed to investigate the interior of the body can be dangerously invasive. Procedures often require sedative medications and some recovery time. Now a researcher at Tel Aviv University is developing a "capsule endoscope" that can move through the digestive tract to detect problems independent of any attachments.

According to Dr. Gabor Kosa of TAU's School of Mechanical Engineering, the project is inspired by an endoscopic capsule designed for use in the small intestine. But unlike the existing capsule, which travels at random and snaps pictures every half second to give doctors an overall view of the intestines, the new "wireless" capsules will use the magnetic field of a magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) machine and electronic signals manipulated by those operating the capsule to forge a more precise and deliberate path.

It's a less invasive and more accurate way for doctors to get an important look at the digestive tract, where difficult-to-diagnose tumors or wounds may be hidden, or allow for treatments such as biopsies or local drug delivery. The technology, which was recently reported in Biomedical Microdevices, was developed in collaboration with Peter Jakab, an engineer from the Surgical Planning Laboratory at Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, affiliated with Harvard Medical School.

Swimming with the current

What sets this endoscope apart is its ability to actively explore the digestive tract under the direction of a doctor. To do this, the device relies on the magnetic field of the MRI machine as a "driving force," says Dr. Kosa. "An MRI has a very large constant magnetic field," he explains. "The capsule needs to navigate according to this field, like a sailboat sailing with the wind."

In order to help the capsules "swim" with the magnetic current, the researchers have given them "tails," a combination of copper coils and flexible polymer. The magnetic field creates a vibration in the tail which allows for movement, and electronics and microsensors embedded in the capsule allow the capsule's operator to manipulate the magnetic field that guides the movement of the device. The use of copper, a non-ferro magnetic material, circumvents other diagnostic challenges posed by MRI, Dr. Kosa adds. While most magnets interfere with MRI by obscuring the picture, copper appears as only a minor blot on otherwise clear film.

The ability to drive the capsule, Dr. Kosa says, will not only lead to better diagnosis capabilities, but patients will experience a less invasive procedure in a fraction of the time.

Microrobotics of the future

In the lab at the Brigham and Women's Hospital, Dr. Kosa and his fellow researchers have tested the driving mechanism of the capsule in an aquarium inside the MRI. The results have shown that the capsule can successfully be manipulated using a magnetic field. Moving forward, the researchers are hoping to further develop the capsule's endoscopic and signalling functions.

According to Dr. Kosa, a new faculty recruit to TAU, this project is part of a bright future for the field of microrobotics. At the university, his new research lab, called RBM2S, focuses on microsystems and robotics for biomedical applications, and an educational robotics lab, ERL, will teach future robotics experts studying at TAU's School of Mechanical Engineering.

###

American Friends of Tel Aviv University (http://www.aftau.org) supports Israel's leading, most comprehensive and most sought-after center of higher learning. Independently ranked 94th among the world's top universities for the impact of its research, TAU's innovations and discoveries are cited more often by the global scientific community than all but 10 other universities.

Internationally recognized for the scope and groundbreaking nature of its research and scholarship, Tel Aviv University consistently produces work with profound implications for the future.

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

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/2011-12/afot-av121511.php

regis philbin last show ray lewis crystal cathedral sarah vowell fire in reno plane crash plane crash

More Kardashian Spinoffs Reportedly Coming To E!

Is the E! network turning into the Kardashian network? It looks like that just might be the case in the next year. For those of you hoping that the Kardashians would just go away you are not going to like this little bit of news. Bonnie Hammer, the new cable entertainment chair at NBC Universal which owns E! network, told The Hollywood Reporter that the Kardashian clan is going to be a big part of the networks makeover. Yep apparently they want to ditch the trash such as the Playboy inspired shows and make it all about the cash cow Kardashains. Word on the street is that there could be up to four more spinoffs of the original Keeping Up With The Kardashians show, including one or two focusing on Kendall and Kylie Jenner. As you may or may not know Kendall already has an E! special coming up that will focus on her 16th birthday. In case you are living in a bubble or you truly don?t give a crap currently there are three shows about the Kardashians on air. The original I stated above, Kourtney & Kim: Take New York and Khloe & Lamar. There was previously Kourtney [...]

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/RightCelebrity/~3/FghuD7vg0OE/

kendall jenner neville neville heavy d heavy d taser gun patriots vs jets

Cain super PAC mulls money (Politico)

[unable to retrieve full-text content]Politico - A flush committee weighs what to do with cash raised to support the former GOP hopeful.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/politics/*http%3A//us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/external/politico_rss/rss_politico_mostpop/http___www_politico_com_news_stories1211_69826_html/43815625/SIG=11moc2jd8/*http%3A//www.politico.com/news/stories/1211/69826.html

haunted houses favicon.ico favicon.ico footloose best iphone 4 case best iphone 4 case sonic youth

Legal Theory Blog: Legal Theory Bookworm

The Legal Theory Bookworm?recommends?The Collapse of American Criminal Justice by William J. Stuntz. Here is a description:

The rule of law has vanished in America?s criminal justice system. Prosecutors now decide whom to punish and how severely. Almost no one accused of a crime will ever face a jury. Inconsistent policing, rampant plea bargaining, overcrowded courtrooms, and ever more draconian sentencing have produced a gigantic prison population, with black citizens the primary defendants and victims of crime. In this passionately argued book, the leading criminal law scholar of his generation looks to history for the roots of these problems?and for their solutions.

The Collapse of American Criminal Justice takes us deep into the dramatic history of American crime?bar fights in nineteenth-century Chicago, New Orleans bordellos, Prohibition, and decades of murderous lynching. Digging into these crimes and the strategies that attempted to control them, Stuntz reveals the costs of abandoning local democratic control. The system has become more centralized, with state legislators and federal judges given increasing power. The liberal Warren Supreme Court?s emphasis on procedures, not equity, joined hands with conservative insistence on severe punishment to create a system that is both harsh and ineffective.

What would get us out of this Kafkaesque world? More trials with local juries; laws that accurately define what prosecutors seek to punish; and an equal protection guarantee like the one that died in the 1870s, to make prosecution and punishment less discriminatory. Above all, Stuntz eloquently argues, Americans need to remember again that criminal punishment is a necessary but terrible tool, to use effectively, and sparingly.

Source: http://lsolum.typepad.com/legaltheory/2011/12/l.html

enlightened stand and deliver when does ios 5 come out when does ios 5 come out christopher columbus trina the green mile

Iran says it shot down unmanned US spy plane (AP)

TEHRAN, Iran ? Iran's armed forces have shot down an unmanned U.S. spy plane that violated Iranian airspace along the country's eastern border, the official IRNA news agency reported Sunday.

An unidentified military official quoted in the report warned of a strong and crushing response to any violations of the country's airspace by American drone aircraft.

"An advanced RQ-170 unmanned American spy plane was shot down by Iran's armed forces. It suffered minor damage and is now in possession of Iran's armed forces," IRNA quoted the official as saying.

No further details were published.

The U.S.-led coalition in Afghanistan said in a statement the aircraft may be an American drone that its operators lost contact with last week while it was flying a mission over neighboring western Afghanistan.

Iran is locked in a dispute with the U.S. and its allies over Tehran's disputed nuclear program, which the West believes is aimed at developing nuclear weapons. Iran denies the accusations, saying its nuclear program is entirely peaceful and that it seeks to generate electricity and produce isotopes to treat medical patients.

The type of aircraft Iran says it downed, an RQ-170 Sentinel, is made by Lockheed Martin and was reportedly used to keep watch on Osama bin Laden's compound in Pakistan as the raid that killed him was taking place earlier this year.

The surveillance aircraft is equipped with stealth technology, but the U.S. Air Force has not made public any specifics about the drone.

Iran said in January that two pilotless spy planes it had shot down over its airspace were operated by the United States and offered to put them on public display. In July, Iranian military officials showed Russian experts several U.S. drones they said were shot down in recent years.

Also in July, Iranian lawmaker Ali Aghazadeh Dafsari said Iran's Revolutionary Guard shot down an unmanned U.S. spy plane that was trying to gather information on an underground uranium enrichment site.

Dafsari said the pilotless plane was flying over the Fordo facility near the holy city of Qom in central Iran but the Guard denied the report, saying its air defenses had only hit a test target.

Iran publicly confirmed for the first time in Feb. 2005 that the United States has been flying surveillance drones over its airspace to spy on its nuclear and military facilities.

The Islamic Republic holds frequent military drills, primarily to assert an ability to defend against a potential U.S. or Israeli attack on its nuclear facilities.

Tehran has focused part of its military strategy on producing drones for reconnaissance and attacking purposes.

Iran announced three years ago it had built an unmanned aircraft with a range of more than 600 miles (1,000 kilometers), far enough to reach Israel.

Ahmadinejad unveiled Iran's first domestically built unmanned bomber aircraft in August 2010, calling it an "ambassador of death" to Iran's enemies.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111204/ap_on_re_mi_ea/ml_iran_drone

pacquiao marquez pacquiao marquez penn state game radiohead tour cbsnews ufc on fox fight card florida marlins

Farmville Makers Now 3rd Gaming Firm ? CBS Minnesota

Nintendo showed everyone with the Wii hat casual games can make you money. Then Zynga showed that Facebook is just one big pool of casual gamers.

Now Zynga, the makers of Farmville, is the third largest gaming firm in the industry. That? nuts considering they only came onto the scene rather recently. Ahead of them are the industries two giants Electronic Arts, the publish of Battlefield and Madden, and Acivision Blizzard, the maker of two games that lay golden eggs: Modern Warfare and WoW (World of Warcraft).

What do you think? Are Facebook games only going to get bigger? Or is it going to die off after everyone?s grandma starts playing ? like with the Wii?

[The Guardian]

Source: http://minnesota.cbslocal.com/2011/12/03/farmville-makers-now-3rd-gaming-firm/

2011 bowl projections michigan state michigan state ndamukong suh ndamukong suh aptera aptera

PFT: Suh unhurt after crashing car into tree

AP

Nearly a third of all NFL head-coaching jobs could become vacant after the 2011 season.? In addition to the Jaguars, teams that could (emphasis ?could?) make a change presently include, in no particular order other than the order in which I scan through the league?s eight divisions, the Dolphins, Colts, Chiefs, Chargers, Giants, Eagles, Vikings, Buccaneers, and Rams.

So who will replace these coaches?? Beyond Bill Cowher, Jon Gruden, and Jeff Fisher, there aren?t many (any) obvious candidates.

Let?s consider the three categories from which head coaches typically emerge:? former NFL head coaches, current NFL assistant coaches, and college head coaches.

Former NFL head coaches:? In the hopes of not omitting anyone (a sentiment that applies to all three categories), the list of former NFL coaches who could return ? and who currently are coaching ? includes Cowher (whose ?plan? to not coach in 2012 could change dramatically if the Giants job opens up), Jon Gruden, Fisher, Tony Dungy (who consistently has said he?s not coming back), Brian Billick, Jim Fassel, Dennis Green, Marty Schottenheimer, Eric Mangini, Jim Mora, Steve Mariucci, Brad Childress, Jack Del Rio, and Herm Edwards.

Of those, Cowher, Jon Gruden, and Fisher seem to constitute the ?A? list.? Billick wants back in, but he recently said he thinks Jacksonville will look to go younger and cheaper, which means he won?t be cheap.? (Or young.)? Edwards could be a surprise choice in Miami, if Carl Peterson takes over the football operations.? Mangini also has been linked to the Dolphins, although reports that he has been consulting with owner Stephen Ross are erroneous.

There?s another group of former NFL head coaches to consider ? those who aren?t yet former NFL head coaches.? Though it?s unusual for a newly-fired coach to get an NFL job right away, John Fox did it last year when jumping from Carolina to Denver.? The fact that Fox has instantly made the Broncos into a contender could make other former head coaches instantly attractive.? That list could (emphasis ?could?) include Tony Sparano, Jim Caldwell, Todd Haley, Norv Turner, Tom Coughlin, Andy Reid, Leslie Frazier, Raheem Morris, and Steve Spagnuolo.

Of those, Reid would be the most likely to land somewhere else right away, if he?s fired in Philly (or if he decides it?s time to walk away).? Also, a return by Coughlin to Jacksonville could be intriguing.? Spagnuolo also could get consideration elsewhere in 2012 as a head coach, although if Reid stays in Philly it makes sense for Reid to lure the team?s former linebackers coach back to town to run the defense.

Current NFL assistant coaches:? For starters, plenty of former NFL head coaches currently are working for other NFL teams.? The list includes Ravens offensive coordinator Cam Cameron, Browns defensive coordinator Dick Jauron, Rams offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels, Texans defensive coordinator Wade Phillips, Chiefs quarterbacks coach Jim Zorn, Lions offensive coordinator Scott Linehan, Vikings linebackers coach Mike Singletary, Dolphins defensive coordinator Mike Nolan, Bears offensive line coach Mike Tice, Chiefs defensive coordinator Romeo Crennel, Packers defensive coordinator Dom Capers, Bears offensive coordinator Mike Martz, Saints defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, Falcons offensive coordinator Mike Mularkey, and Redskins defensive coordinator Jim Haslett.

Of that group, Phillips and Haslett are the most intriguing.? Phillips has been a head coach three prior times, but his immediate transformation of a historically bad Texans defense merits consideration for a fourth opportunity, as linebacker Connor Barwin told NBC SportsTalk on Friday.? In Washington, the performance of Haslett?s stout defense has been overshadowed by a continuously struggling offense.

McDaniels already has been linked to the Chiefs, but that will be a difficult sell, given McDaniels? performance in Denver and, more recently, St. Louis.

The universe of assistant NFL coaches who have never worked as NFL head coaches yields a smaller range of relatively obvious choices.? Cowboys defensive coordinator Rob Ryan, the fraternal twin of Jets coach Rex Ryan, badly wants to make the next step.? Unlike Rex, who successfully kept a sock in it until he became a head coach, Rob arguably is talking a bit too much for a guy who isn?t a head coach.? (Rob also needs to visit the barber.)

Beyond Rob Ryan, there aren?t many/any hot names, which typically come from the staffs of the hottest teams.? In Green Bay, there?s a perception that Mike McCarthy is primarily responsible for the success of the franchise, which undermines the contributions of offensive coordinator Joe Philbin and quarterbacks coach Tom Clements.? On defense, assistant head coach/inside linebackers coach Winston Moss could get some consideration, as could outside linebackers coach Kevin Greene (who also would benefit from a trip to the salon).

The 9-2 49ers also should generate some candidates, starting (and perhaps ending) with defensive coordinator Vic Fangio.? With head coach Jim Harbaugh getting nearly all of the credit for the team?s performance, Fangio is really the only name that currently stands out.

Ravens defensive coordinator Chuck Pagano may not get much buzz given that it?s his first year on the job, but that assignment has become a launching pad for head coaches.? If the Ravens play deep into the postseason, Pagano could get consideration.

Another first-year coordinator seems to be the perfect fit for the one vacancy that already exists.? In a Wednesday visit to PFT Live, Mike Dempsey of 1010XL suggested Bengals offensive coordinator Jay Gruden as the next coach of the Jaguars.? It makes sense, on every level.? Gruden fits Brian Billick?s ?young and cheap? demographic, but Gruden also brings name recognition of his older and more expensive brother.? The name carries the most weight in northern Florida, where Jon won a Super Bowl and where Jay was a mainstay in the Arena League.? Then there?s the fact that Jay Gruden has gotten the most out of rookie quarterback Andy Dalton, who was drafted one round behind Blaine Gabbert.

(As a reader has pointed out in the comments, Bengals defensive coordinator Mike Zimmer could end up being considered for one of the various vacancies.? Ditto for Giants defensive coordinator Perry Fewell, who served as the interim coach in Buffalo and who has gotten some consideration for prior vacancies.)

College head coaches:? The instant success of Jim Harbaugh after stints with Stanford and the University of San Diego (not to be confused with, as I have in the past, San Diego State University) could reverse the perception that college coaches can?t get it done in the NFL.? It shouldn?t.? Harbaugh is the exception to the rule that the most important skills possessed by college head coaches ? recruiting ? are largely wasted at the NFL level.

Iowa?s Kirk Ferentz periodically is mentioned as a candidate to coach at the NFL level, and he?ll again be linked to Kansas City if Haley is fired.? Beyond Ferentz, the list currently is short to nonexistent.

UPDATE 10:00 a.m. ET:? I deliberately omitted former Packers coach Mike Sherman from the list of former NFL head coaches who could return, since he hasn?t coached in the NFL since 2005 and he has generated little or no buzz since being fired by the Packers.? But Jason La Canfora of NFL Network reports that the Jaguars contacted Sherman even before firing Jack Del Rio.? If true, it means that Brian Billick?s ?younger and cheaper? description of the Jags? job requirements perhaps should be reduced to simply ?cheaper.?

Source: http://profootballtalk.nbcsports.com/2011/12/03/ndamukong-suh-escapes-unhurt-after-crashing-car-into-tree/related

john wayne gacy amr jack del rio fired jack del rio fired made in america made in america icam

ESA ends attempt to contact Russian probe (AP)

MOSCOW ? The European Space Agency says it has abandoned efforts to contact a rogue Russian space probe, increasing the likelihood it will plunge to Earth.

The unmanned Phobos-Ground probe was to head to the Mars moon of Phobos on a 2 1/2-year mission to take soil samples and fly them back to Earth.

But the probe became stuck in Earth orbit after its Nov. 9 launch and attempts to send commands that could propel it toward the Mars moon have been unsuccessful.

An ESA statement Friday said that although the agency has halted efforts to contact the probe, it will resume if any changes are reported by the Russian space agency.

Russian deputy space chief Vitaly Davydov said last month that the spacecraft could fall to Earth between late December and late February.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/russia/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111202/ap_on_re_eu/eu_russia_mars_mission

kryptos student loan forgiveness amy winehouse cause of death amy winehouse cause of death white witch white witch occupy san francisco

Occupy hangover for cities, protesters

Los Angeles police officers cleared out the Occupy LA encampment early Tuesday morning. KNBC-TV reports.

After a long night for police and protesters, Occupy encampments in Los Angeles and Philadelphia were empty Wednesday morning. The cities were dealing with the?aftermath of the two-month occupations ? legal battles and park clean-up. And though the mass roundup in Los Angeles remained largely nonviolent, it sparked debate over whether jail officials were being unnecessarily punitive.

The Los Angeles police worked throughout the night to process the 292 people arrested, all but two of whom who were booked for refusing to leave City Hall and nearby intersections after the city declared those to be unlawful assemblies. Bail for the misdemeanor charges?was set at $5,000 each.

Masked sanitation workers hauled away 25 tons of debris from the lawns around Los Angeles City Hall after police raided the protesters' camp in the middle of the night and arrested more than 300 people.

In Philadelphia, dozens of police patrolled a plaza outside City Hall after sweeping it of demonstrators and arresting 50.

Mass arrest
Because of the large number of arrests in Los Angeles, protesters were taken to three different jail facilities for booking, and spokesmen who were reached said they did not know how many remained in custody at 2 p.m. PST.

A bail bondsman in Los Angeles said that?he had received three calls from family members on behalf of protesters, but that he couldn?t help until they were completely processed. He said that could take up to 24 hours.

?We are not able to move forward on these bonds is because they are still processing people in,? said Greg Rynerson, an owner of Rynerson?s Bail Bonds. The procedures ? getting fingerprinted, photographed, run through background checks ? normally take one to six hours after arrest, he said.

?But when you have this kind of volume, I imagine the jail staff is completely overwhelmed,? he said.

By accounts from both sides, the police operation in Los Angeles remained largely peaceful. There was one arrest for interfering with a law enforcement officer and one for battery on a police officer, according to LAPD public information officer Andrew Smith.

?The people who were arrested pretty much were volunteers to be arrested ? as they have at other rallies,? Smith said.

At a news conference Wednesday morning, Los Angeles Police Chief Charlie Beck proclaimed his officers' operation a success.

Lucy Nicholson / Reuters

A Los Angeles police officer walks through the vacated site of Occupy LA outside City Hall on Wednesday. Demonstrators were camped here for two months to protest economic inequality and financial system excesses.

"The world was watching? and what the world saw was an elegant operational plan that was brilliantly executed by America's finest police force," Beck said.

NBC Los Angeles reported that the final holdouts at the encampment ? a dog and three people in a tree house ? were removed by officers using a Bomb Assault Tactical Control Assessment Tool ? basically a souped-up forklift.

The operation might help?Los Angeles police?shed their bad reputation for abuse.

?On Los Angeles ? it is no longer the most violent police force in America,? said attorney Michael Ratner, president of the Center for Constitutional Rights, a non-profit human rights litigation organization in New York.The National Lawyers Guild, which has been supporting the Occupy protesters, condemned the arrests, peaceful or not.

LA police: 'Brilliantly executed' raid on Occupy camp

?The Los Angeles Police Department is deliberately refusing to release anyone arrested in the Occupy raids with a notice to appear,? said Carol Sobel, NLG board member. ?The city is holding them in jail on $5,000 bail until they can be arraigned by a judge, which can take up to 48 hours. This punishes people for exercising their First Amendment rights.?

Protesters posting on the Occupy Los Angeles?website disagreed about whether the police action was peaceful. Participants were urging protesters to send in raw video footage they collected to document alleged abuses.

There have been no formal complaints about police treatment in the action, said Bruce Borihanh, an?LAPD spokesman.

Looking ahead, the city of Los Angeles was dusting off a landscaping plan for the park around city hall, timely grounds work that will effectively prevent people from using it, according to a senior city hall staffer who said was not authorized as a spokesperson.

What?s next for occupiers?
Protesters across the nation were pondering how to proceed with the movement's ?occupation? phase ending.

In the past few weeks, police broke up encampments in other cities as Portland, Ore., Oakland, Calif., and New York, where the sit-down protests against social inequality and corporate excesses began in mid-September, The Associated Press reported.

Demonstrators are still at it in places like Boston and Washington, which each had encampments of about 100 tents Wednesday. Dozens of protesters are fighting eviction from a community college campus in Seattle.

Police clear Los Angeles and Philadelphia encampments. NBC's Chris Clackum reports.

The camps may bloom again in the spring, organizers told the?AP, and next summer could bring huge demonstrations at the Republican and Democratic presidential nominating conventions, when the whole world is watching. But for now they are promoting dozens of smaller actions, such as picketing the president in New York and staging sit-ins at homes marked for foreclosure.

"We intend to use this for what it is ? basically six months to get our feet underneath us, to get strong," said Phil Striegel, a community activist in San Francisco.

Protesters elsewhere also refuse to concede defeat.

Meet Nashville's square-dancing Occupiers

In New York City on Wednesday evening, groups of marchers threaded their way through traffic to demonstrate at the Sheraton Hotel, where President Barack Obama was due to speak. They included a group of "peace grannies," people playing drums and other instruments, and others carrying American flags and Occupy signs.?

Protesters in Philadelphia planned a march from the city's well-to-do Rittenhouse Square to police headquarters Wednesday afternoon and also called for a "victory march" for Friday or Saturday, the AP reported.

"Occupy Philly is alive and well," said Katonya Mosley, a member of the group's legal collective. She said members have been communicating via list serves, text messages and email and planned to continue meeting in cafes and other spaces. Local groups have also offered to donate space for the protesters to continue meeting, Mosley said.

While one faction received a permit for a scaled-down protest across the street, she said, Occupy Philadelphia as a whole hasn't decided whether to go that route. The city has said any new permit would include a ban on camping.

In St. Louis, protesters whose camp was broken up by police on Nov. 12 planned to march to the Federal Reserve Bank office on Thursday. John Mills, a technical writer, called the dissolution of the camp a minor setback.

"It's dampened some spirits, but I think people are just as passionate, just as excited and just as ready for change as they were before," Mills said.

Click here to follow Kari Huus on Facebook.

Source: http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/11/30/9124091-occupy-hangover-for-cities-protesters

leap pad baltimore ravens san francisco 49ers san francisco 49ers lauren alaina lowes 49ers