Shia LaBeouf: Cruisin' To The Gym With His Newly Shaved Head (PHOTOS)

Just Jared:

Shia LaBeouf dons a ?Cruisin? t-shirt while walking to the gym on Tuesday (December 18) in Hollywood.

Last week, the 26-year-old actor debuted his newly shaved head while keeping up with his physical fitness regimen.

Read the whole story at Just Jared

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/12/19/shia-labeouf-cruisin-to-the-gym-shaved-head_n_2330130.html

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There shall never be a sensible one of us. #shopping #tonight #ukig #hkig #two #oriental #Asian #fashion #fun #fno #friends #fur #follow #menfashion #mansstyle #London

• chuekjai There shall never be a sensible one of us. #shopping #tonight #ukig #hkig #two #oriental #Asian #fashion #fun #fno #friends #fur #follow #menfashion #mansstyle #London ? 59min
• chuekjai @channy2903 ? 53min

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Video: 2013 Ford Mustang GT500 vs Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG

Driving Videos, Mercedes ? By Brad Anderson on December 17, 2012 at 11:59 pm ? No Comments

The United States of America has always been home to the muscle car. And with the latest generation of muscle cars recently being released by firms such as Ford and Chevrolet, this heritage is set to continue, but that doesn?t mean other countries can?t get into the action.

Germany also has quite a proud list of what some would call ?European muscle cars? in the form of the BMW M3, Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG and the Audi RS5, but can these compete with the pure straight line performance American muscle is known for?

Well in a recent EVO video published on YouTube, the latest Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG is quite the competitor for the 2013 Ford Mustang Shelby GT500 even though it?s significantly underpowered. In fact, the C63 AMG produces just 487hp while the Mustang pumps out 662hp, so one would think the Mustang should breeze to victory straight off the line.

We won?t ruin the result for you, but you may be surprised how close the first half of the race is!

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/GTspirit/~3/NOnKkYlGEhw/

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Terror group gives 'petulant' U.S. recruit a timeout

An al Qaeda-allied terrorist organization is so annoyed with the "childish petulance" of a high-profile American recruit that it has taken to publicly admonishing him and apologizing to its terrorist comrades everywhere for his antics.

A self-identified spokesperson for al-Shabaab, a Somalia-based terror group, released a statement via Twitter Monday that is relentlessly critical of Alabama-born rapping jihadi Omar Hammami, also known as Abu Mansur al-Amriki, and assures everyone he holds no position of power in their anti-Western ranks.

"For months the Mujahideen [holy warriors] have been offering advice to Abu Mansur in private, without publicly rebuking him, employing every possible avenue to veil his faults, overlook his shortcomings and conceal the egregious errors he'd committed from the eyes of the Muslim Ummah [leadership]? It is regrettable, however, that all such efforts have been fruitless despite numerous attempts," the statement says.

"We sincerely apologize to the Muslim Ummah in general and our Mujahideen brothers in all fields of Jihad in particular for having to witness such childish petulance," it adds.

The statement claims Hammami repeatedly attempted to draw attention to himself and to "alleged voices of dissent within the ranks of the Mujahideen" at critical times in al-Shabaab's losing fight against African troops in Somalia.

Hammami's clashes with the al-Shabaab leadership have played out publicly online and apparently got so bad back in March that he uploaded a video in which he said he believed his life was in danger. A self-appointed spokesperson for al-Shabaab dismissed that claim at the time and the recent statement accuses Hammami of seeking fame.

Hammami first came to prominence by producing a series of pro-jihadi a capella rap videos and eventually wrote a lengthy memoir about his path to jihad. He was rumored to have been killed several times, but each time came back with a new, poorly-produced rap video taunting the American government.

Hammami's father, Shafik, told ABC News today he was aware of the reported problems between his son and the al-Shabaab leadership and said he worries deeply for his son's safety. Shafik hasn't spoken to his son in years and Hammami's mother, Debra, told ABC News in May that was the worst part.

"The silence has been devastating," she said. "I don't agree with [his] ideology of any of that, but I do love my son and I do have that motherly love."

Last month the FBI officially added Hammami to its Most Wanted list. He was originally indicted in the U.S. in terrorism-related charges in 2007 and faces additional charges in a superseding 2009 indictment.

The FBI calls Hammami a "leader" of al-Shabaab and the State Department referred to him as " an important al-Shabaab voice on the internet" - two claims the al-Shabaab spokesperson was hoping to dispel.

"?Contrary to the portrait of the grand strategist, recruiter and fund-raiser portrayed by the Western media, Abu Mansur al-Amriki does not hold any position of authority within [al-Shabaab]," it says. "The Jihadi theatre nevertheless accommodates people of all sorts."

Also Read

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/terror-group-gives-petulant-us-recruit-timeout-171545539--abc-news-topstories.html

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Iowa lottery winners fund new football stadium

DES MOINES, Iowa ? An Iowa couple who won a $202 million Powerball jackpot in September is donating $3 million to their son's high school for a new football stadium ? but the gift comes with a catch.

The stadium visitor's locker room must be painted pink.

The Bondurant-Farrar school district accepted the $3 million donation from Brian and Mary Lohse on Monday, The Des Moines Register reported (http://dmreg.co/V4NrBG ). The couple from the Des Moines suburb of Bondurant requested only that the new stadium be completed before the fall 2014 football season ? their oldest son's senior year ? and that the visiting team's locker room be painted pink.

"I was sort of half joking and half not, I suppose, but they said they'd do it," Mary Lohse said of her scheme, inspired by the University of Iowa visitor's locker room at Kinnick Stadium, which is also painted pink.

"It's supposed to put them in a certain soft frame of mind," Mary Lohse said. "It will certainly give all the players something to talk about."

The Lohse family has requested the stadium not be named for them. The Lohses' hope the stadium will be a community project and that local residents and groups will make other contributions.

Planning for the stadium has already begun. Local architects SVPA are handling the design. The stadium will include an academic wing and a fine arts auditorium.

"It not only gives us the opportunity to accelerate the stadium project, but to advance other plans for projects within the district as well," school board President Kristin Swift said.

The $3 million for the stadium will be released in three, $1 million increments.

___

Information from: The Des Moines Register, http://www.desmoinesregister.com

Source: http://www.therepublic.com/view/story/535c2e9b72a84e629b365ab2171c5d97/US--Powerball-Football-Donation

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OWC Offers Parallels 8 for Over 50% Off

Parallels Desktop is our favorite way to run Windows on a Mac, but it's a little pricey. Fortunately, Other World Computer is offering the software for nearly 50% off, or even more with an additional purchase.

If you only buy Parallels 8, you'll only pay $50 (regularly $80). With the purchase of $65 or more, you'll receive an additional $11 discount. If you purchase any SSD, you'll receive a $15 discount. At $50 you're already getting the latest version of Parallels at a large discount, but if you're planning on getting a few other items (many of which are heavily discounted as well) like an SSD or RAM upgrade you can knock down that price even further.

Parallels 8 for Mac | Other World Computer

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/1DXlvs5DUV0/owc-offers-parallels-8-for-over-50-off

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Holiday family time impinging on home-based business time?

Enduring home-based business relationships with your partner, family, friends and associates requires everyone on your business team to recognize when you need assistance by establishing solid guidelines on how and when they can lend that assistance with minimal chaos.

So how do I keep my home-based business out of my family time over Xmas?

The demands of your customers will compete for the spare time that you might have available and every client or customer thinks that their needs should demand your immediate attention.

At the same time you have to remember the reason(s) that you are working from home in order to meet the needs of your family and your own desire to ?be the boss?.

?Tis the season to be? busy?, from Jane Shelton at Startup Smart -

Maintaining home-based relationships with your partner, family, friends and associates requires everyone on the team to know when you need assistance by setting out clear guidelines on how they can help out.

This means that you need to be clear and direct on the level and specific about what assistance is required when you are ?at work? and appreciate when customer demands may require special attention over the holiday season because the home-based business does not stop for holidays.

So let?s look at some of the ways in which you can retain the best of both worlds:

1. An open and closed sign for your home office

Have your kids make up a sign that says ?OPEN FOR BUSINESS?, another saying ?CLOSED FOR? FAMILY BUSINESS.?

This enables everyone to understand when you are available to maintain each type of business rather than trying to let these two demands compete for your sanity.

2. Can the kids help?

See if there are ways that your family can help you fill orders, take messages and understand the importance of customer service.

This encourages understanding of the way in which your home office is a work place rather than a home invasion.

3. Look into outsourcing

Consider which parts of your business life can be handed over to a professional manager, an accountant.

Or, if necessary, declare that the business will be back on line in the New Year.

As I write in my book No Workplace Like Home: ?Establishing a clear personal plan helps you live more of your life. It?s not just about the money.?

?It is also about living a healthy and wealthy lie to achieve your dreams and build a better future for yourself and your family?.

The more that you can get your household to share your dreams the better the chances of making sure that you keep a sense of balance.

Make family time the raison d?etre of your Christmas season (so that it becomes a valued part of their Christmas break but not the whole of your life).

Tagged as: Home Office, Outsourced Accounting, Outsourced Bookkeeping, Time

Source: http://www.catalysthouse.biz/2012/12/holiday-family-time-impinging-on-home-based-business-time/

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Radio host, former Major League Baseball pitcher Frank Pastore dead

Frank Pastore (Hand in Photo)

Christian radio show host and former Major League Baseball pitcher Frank Pastore died Monday from complications following a November motorcycle accident.

The death came nearly a month after the Nov. 19 crash on the Foothill (210) Freeway in Duarte. The accident occurred as Pastore was on his way home from his daily radio show at the studios of KKLA 99.5 FM in Glendale.

Officials at KKLA, which announced Pastore's passing on its website, could not be reached for comment late Monday.

A brief and prophetic audio clip from Pastore's final show accompanied the death notice.
?You guys know I ride a motorcycle, right? So at any moment ... I could be spread all over the 210,? Pastore said. ?But that's not me. That's my body parts.?

Pastore said that his faith in Christ left him with no doubts his soul would live on after physical death.
?I just lost my beautiful husband,? Pastore's wife Gina said. ?But it's comforting to know he's home with the Lord now.?

Gina didn't mourn alone Monday. KKLA was inundated with callers expressing their grief.

?People are calling in and crying and mourning with us,? she said. ?I want to thank so many people for their outpouring of love and support. ?That's really helped to sustain our family during this difficult time.?

Condolences and tributes also flooded the Internet in the hours after news

of Pastore's death broke.

Among those acknowledging the passing was national radio and television personality Hugh Hewitt.
?My friend and radio colleague Frank Pastore has died,? Hewitt posted in his Twitter account. ?He was a terrific man, a great broadcaster and a wonderful husband and dad, RIP.?

On his Facebook page, BIOLA University President Barry Correy remarked that, ?Frank Pastore had a heart for the Gospel and understood in the deepest ways the profound impact of a Christian worldview not only on our lives and on our educational institutions, but on our culture.?

?He was a voice of reason and of engagement, and he was able to articulate with clarity and listen with sensitivity. As a ?94 graduate of BIOLA's M.A. in philosophy program, we considered Frank part of our family. He will be profoundly missed, not only by BIOLA, but by countless others who depended on him day in and day out to help them think clearly and Christianly about the big issues of the day.?

Pastore had been in a coma since the accident and had been recently transferred to a hospital in Upland from Los Angeles County-USC Medical Center's intensive care unit, hospital spokeswoman Rosa Saca said.

A CHP investigation concluded that the crash was an accident, and nothing criminal such as impaired driving was suspected, CHP Officer William Bury said. The driver who hit Pastore was neither arrested nor cited.

On KKLA's website, the radio station asked listeners to ?Please continue to pray for Gina and the family.?

In addition to his wife, Pastore is survived by son Frank Jr. and daughter Christina.

The 55-year-old Upland resident, who played baseball at Damien High School in La Verne, graduated from BIOLA University in La Mirada in 1994 and from Claremont Graduate School in 2003.

Funeral services are pending.

?Frank was all about the Gospel,? Gina Pastore added. ?I just pray God will continue to use his legacy.?

brian.day@sgvn.com

626-544-0812

Source: http://www.pasadenastarnews.com/ci_22211350/radio-host-former-major-league-baseball-pitcher-frank?source=rss_viewed

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The Lives of Others: Civo Gives Strangers A Friendly Place For ?Visual Conversation?

Civo is a beautiful new social discovery app that seeks to break users out of their social or geographic networks without forcing them to leave their comfort zones. It went live last week and is available in the iOS App Store (an Android version is in the works).

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/6-OHtggNHhg/

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Yankees, Cashman pleased with offseason success

STAMFORD, Conn. (AP) ? Brian Cashman feels so good about the Yankees' offseason, he decided to rapel down a building.

After spending the previous few days retaining veteran starting pitchers Andy Pettitte and Hiroki Kuroda as well as closer Mariano Rivera, New York's general manager made some practice jumps down the side of Stamford's Landmark Building on Friday. The workout was in advance of a charity event Sunday.

But the talk afterward was on pitching, and Cashman is confident the Yankees are already offseason winners. Pettitte, Kuroda and Rivera were given one-year deals that will cost the Yankees $37 million..

"I think Pettitte is a big thing," Cashman said. "Kuroda was a big thing. I think we're having a successful early campaign to our winter because we've able to retain some high-end, high-caliber starting pitching and if you look at the marketplace, I'm not sure if anyone is doing better than us right now."

The Yankees won the AL East last season and defeated Baltimore in the division series, then were swept by Detroit in the AL championship series.

"I think that we're doing really well early in the process," he said. "I'm real happy about how our winter program is currently going."

Cashman is also formulating a plan for next week's winter meetings in Nashville, Tenn., and that trip will begin after he officially ropes down the 22-story building on Sunday night. This year, for the benefit, he will be joined by former Red Sox manager Bobby Valentine, a Stamford native.

Cashman is to fly to Nashville on Monday. Among his priorities there will be testing the waters for a new catcher after Russell Martin finalized a $17 million, two-year deal Friday with the Pittsburgh Pirates, as well as filling an expected vacancy in right field as Nick Swisher is likely to head elsewhere.

Martin was offered a $20 million, three-year deal by Cashman in spring training and did not accept it.

"I like Russell Martin," Cashman said. "I'm a big Russell Martin fan. But ultimately we have a lot of holes to fill and we have to be very careful how we spend our money. The market for Russell was aggressive as it should have been and again our focus has been our pitching.

"After that, I've got a lot of different holes to fill. We need to be careful how we allocate our remaining funds to make sure that we can fill all the holes."

The moves may not be splashy ? free-agent outfielder Josh Hamilton, for instance ? but Cashman believes that doesn't preclude the Yankees from making a significant move. Cashman said that the catching vacancy could be filled internally, though he might seek an offensive upgrade. He also indicated that finding a right fielder is more of a priority than signing or acquiring a catcher.

"We're capable of doing a lot of different things," Cashman said. "We are not out of the multiyear market. We are not out of thinking big, looking at something big. But despite everything that we have, if you look at our numbers, we can still make certain things work."

The Yankees haven't been major players in free agency since the 2008-09 offseason. They had the contracts of pitcher Mike Mussina, outfielder Bobby Abreu and first baseman Jason Giambi come off their payroll then, and that enabled them to commit millions to starters CC Sabathia, A.J. Burnett and first baseman Mark Teixeira.

"That was perfect timing for us to be aggressive and we can make a lot of things fit," Cashman said. "That scenario still exists despite the limitations, 189 if you want to call it limitations. Even if we did the $189 (million), we still have the highest payroll in baseball and so if you follow the math and look how things can unfold and come off the board and stuff like that, you can see how things can fit.

"We will be aggressive when we want to be, under the right circumstances. But it's in our best interests to stay as flexible as possible given a lot of reasons and that's obviously a big one."

Shortstop Derek Jeter will enter the final year of a three-year contract that was finalized before Cashman's first appearance at this event in December 2010. Jeter is recovering from a broken left ankle suffered in Game 1 of the ALCS, and Cashman said the healing process is going well.

Even still, Jeter cannot work out until January.

"He had a checkup a few weeks ago in North Carolina and everything is going really well," Cashman said. "He's going to be ready for us by opening day. He'll be a restricted player early in camp but all indications are very strong for a healthy recovery."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2012-11-30-Yankees-Cashman/id-f5656c65615941ff9e74ae2b4cfa0808

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Green Rating Alliance merges with Global Real Estate Sustainability ...

Green Rating Alliance (GRA) and Global Real Estate Sustainability Benchmark (GRESB) have signed a memorandum to join forces and improve the sustainability of commercial property portfolios, representatives have said.

The ?Memorandum of Understanding? outlines the companies? intention to share data and resources with the aim of improving their mutually beneficial schemes, paving the way for improvements in construction and refurbishment methods across Europe.

GRA and GRESB?s primary aim is to provide the tools for global real estate investors to reduce the emissions generated by their assets, whilst further targets involve relaying these methods to the wider property market.

Pieter Hendrikse, CEO of CBRE Global Investors EMEA and chairman of GRA, said: ?We are glad that we have found the perfect partner for the Green Rating Alliance with GRESB.? While GRA is focusing on property sustainability performance, GRESB is assessing property funds and companies.

?Both associations will benefit from each other by sharing their knowledge, joint activities and discussions between their members within the international real estate industry. We are looking forward to working together on a day-to-day basis and improving the sustainability performance in all our portfolios.?

Nils Kok, executive director of GRESB, expressed similar sentiments to his new-found partners, saying: ?GRESB and the GRA are both committed to independent evaluation of the sustainability performance of the real estate sector and complement each other.

?GRESB is investor-led, backed by 40 institutional investors and all leading industry bodies and real estate associations focused on the investment portfolio level.

?GRE is a manager-led initiative with the aim of optimising the sustainability performance of individual buildings. This partnership allows us to achieve our common goal of enhancing and protecting value by improving the sustainability performance of the built environment.?

Elsewhere, technology company GE has been extolling the virtues of its sustainability initiatives and commitment to help manage the Middle East?s carbon-footprint at the Arab Forum for Environment & Development in Beirut today.

Written by Ben Parkinson

Ben Parkinson is a copywriter and online content producer for Search Office Space. He is an avid writer and social media marketer, with a penchant for music and literature when he's not documenting the flexible office industry.

He began his interest in professional writing through his work with leading festival news site Virtual Festivals, before taking on a blogger role for online new music publication There Goes The Fear.

In his professional life he has produced online content and corporate literature for a number of colleges, including London Graduate School and Kensington College of Business, before joining the SOS team.

Tel: +44 (0)20 8909 5151
Email: benjamin@searchofficespace.com
Twitter: @parkinson_b

Source: http://www.searchofficespace.com/news/green-rating-alliance-merges-with-global-real-estate-sustainability-benchmark/

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KayCee Stroh: Pregnant!

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2012/11/kaycee-stroh-pregnant/

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Lack of a ?Foreclosure Wave? Determined By Banks | FDL News Desk

Here?s a pretty jerky victory lap clearly planted by the mortgage lending industry, with the boastful title ?Foreclosure Wave Averted as Doomsayers Defied.? Let?s hear this out for a second.

When banks pulled back on foreclosures two years ago following a government investigation into allegations of faulty practices, market researchers, academics and Wall Street analysts said that a surge of delinquent homes would deluge the U.S. market once lenders resolved the claims and worked through backlog, driving down prices for years to come. RealtyTrac Inc., a seller of property data, warned a year ago of a ?new set of incoming foreclosure waves.? Susan Wachter, professor at the University of Pennsylvania?s Wharton School, said in February that a logjam may be ?unleashed? and destabilize the market.

In fact, the flood failed to materialize, even after the five biggest U.S. mortgage servicers reached a $25 billion settlement with federal and state regulators in February. Instead, the number of properties for sale shrank to the fewest in a decade, prices appreciated at the fastest pace since 2005, and the gradual healing of the housing market helped boost consumer confidence and the economy.

?We don?t have enough homes now to meet the needs of the market,? Paul Jacobson, a Stockton native and real estate broker for 22 years, said as he cruised the city?s northern fringe, where suburbia meets farmland. ?People see a foreclosed home for sale in this area and they?re going to jump on it.?

Missing here is any understanding of who controls the timing of a so-called foreclosure wave. Banks do the foreclosing, after all, and it?s really up to them whether or not to put inventory on the market or to foreclose at all. And in both cases, they haven?t moved forward for very specific reasons. Professor Adam Levitin had a solid response to this article.

First of all, we aren?t seeing a ?foreclosure wave? because mortgage servicers still don?t have the capacity for mass foreclosures above and beyond their current pace. Aside from them not hiring enough specialists, many states responded to the crisis and the foreclosure fraud scandal by passing their own due process laws designed to stop illegal foreclosures. The industry calls these states dirty names, but they happen to be the REASON for the lack of a foreclosure wave.

In addition, as Levitin writes:

Moreover, the banks? plan for several years has been to slowly recognize losses against earnings. If all defaults had been foreclosed at once, the banking system would look a lot less solvent. The game plan has always been to run the clock. Hence all the ?kick the can down the road? mods. As a result, what we?re likely to see is not a foreclosure tsunami, but rather an extended foreclosure high-tide.

Assuming no major hiccups (e.g., interest rates rising), it will still take a few years before foreclosure levels return to historic averages. Unfortunately, that?s when a lot of 2009-2011 HAMP mods will start to have their interest rates rise. Probably not a crisis from that, but certainly not good.

A very good and overlooked point there. HAMP modifications are TEMPORARY. They expire in five years, which means we have the rate recast threat that we saw with adjustable-rate mortgages, not a main driver of the crisis but certainly something that made the crisis worse.

Not to mention the fact that the potential expiration of the Mortgage Forgiveness Debt Relief Act (thanks for catching up, Wall Street Journal!) will make principal reductions and short sales a thing of the past and generate a lot more foreclosures. One of the reasons we haven?t seen a foreclosure wave comes from banks using alternative options like short sales and, in select cases, principal reduction. Incidentally, the endgame in the short sale is that the homeowner loses the home, so while it?s better for the borrower, it?s hard to see the social benefit to saying ?Nyah nyah, there hasn?t been that foreclosure wave, just a lot of forced short sales!?

The point is that any slowing in the foreclosure process, as much as banks whine about it, helps their bottom line and should be seen as deliberate. It?s one of the things propping up the market; the slow absorption of home defaults. ?Foaming the runway,? if you will.

Foreclosure starts remain four times above traditional levels. If Bloomberg considers that extended high level a ?strategy? that is ?paying off? because prices have risen, well, congratulations.

UPDATE: Incidentally, if you don?t believe that banks are holding back inventory and goosing prices, this is from the article, referring to Stockton, California:

There were 6,650 properties with unresolved code violations as of Sept. 30, about two-thirds of which were vacant because the owners walked away and banks hadn?t foreclosed, Lemos said. His team stages night raids to oust squatters from abandoned properties. To give the appearance homes are occupied, they paint dry lawns green.

Source: http://news.firedoglake.com/2012/11/30/lack-of-a-foreclosure-wave-determined-by-banks/

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Lidia's Favorite Recipes Cookbook Giveaway!

I have always been a fan of Lidia Bastianich. Her recipes are easy to make Italian food that are good enough to serve to company. I have watched Lidia cook on her show and she really knows how to feed her family. I have been to some of her restaurants in New York City and all I can say is ?Wow?!

When I received her new book, Lidia?s Favorite Recipes, I didn?t know what to cook first. This wonderful collection of 100 recipes are Lidia?s ?go to recipes? adored by her family and friends. Some of Lidia?s favorite recipes have also become my favorite recipes.

Last week, I made? Straw and Hay, which is a colorful pasta dish with crispy peas, prosciutto and creamy sauce. As elegant as it sounds, it only took 30 minutes to make. It was the perfect weeknight meal and I will be making it again and again.

The holidays are coming and I can?t wait to try some of the appetizers. From Fried Mozzarella Skewers to Lobster Salad with Fresh Tomatoes, there is just one good recipe after another. These recipes are for the beginning cook to the most experienced home chef.

Besides all the great recipes in the cookbook, there is also a website where you can get cooking tips, recipes and videos. If you love Italian food, you will need to visit Lidia?s Italy.

Now for the great news. You can win this gorgeous cookbook.

All you have to do is leave a comment. For additional entries:

Leave a separate comment for each entry telling me you follow, pinned, etc. There are 6? possible entries per person!

Please leave your comments by Tuesday, December 4th at 11:59pm EST.? Make sure there is a link to a blog or you leave your email address. A winner will be randomly picked and announced on Wednesday, December 5th.? Sorry, but you can only enter if you have a US mailing address. Good luck everyone!

Straw and Hay

Author:?Lidia?s Favorite Recipes (Lidia Bastianich)

Recipe type:?pasta

Cuisine:?Italian

Prep time:? 10 mins

Cook time:? 20 mins

Total time:? 30 mins

Serves:?6

?

• Salt for the pasta pot
• 4 scallions
• 2 TBS extra virgin olive oil
• 1 cup shelled peas, blanched or frozen baby peas
• 6 to 8 slices imported prosciutto, cut crosswise into ? inch ribbons
• ? cup low sodium chicken broth or stock
• ? cup heavy cream
• 1 pound fresh fettuccine pasta or ? pound dry egg fettuccine and ? pound dry spinach fettuccine
• ? cup freshly grated Grana Padano or Parmigiano Reggiano cheese

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to boil.
2. Trim the roots of the scallions and cut them in half length-wise, then into 3 inch pieces in thin strips.
3. Heat the oil in a large skillet on medium heat. Add scallions and cook until wilted, 1 to 2 minutes. Add peas and cook for 3 minutes. Add prosciutto and cook 1 to 2 minutes or until it changes color. Pour in the chicken stock and bring mixture to a boil. Reduce sauce to a simmer and cook until liquid is reduced by half. Add the heavy cream and continue to simmer until lightly thickened.
4. Stir the pasta into the salted water and cook until al dente. Fish the pasta out of the boiling water with a skimmer and add directly to sauce. Cook on high heat until sauce is creamy.
5. Remove from the heat and toss with cheese. Serve in warm bowls.

3.1.09

?

*****For full disclosure, I was given a copy of this cookbook to review and one to give away to a reader. As usual, all opinions are my own.

.

Tagged as: cookbooks, pasta

Source: http://www.jerseygirlcooks.com/2012/11/lidias-favorite-recipes-cookbook-giveaway.html

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A human-caused climate change signal emerges from the noise

Public release date: 29-Nov-2012
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Contact: Anne Stark
stark8@llnl.gov
925-422-9799
DOE/Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

Livermore, Calif. -- By comparing simulations from 20 different computer models to satellite observations, Lawrence Livermore climate scientists and colleagues from 16 other organizations have found that tropospheric and stratospheric temperature changes are clearly related to human activities.

The team looked at geographical patterns of atmospheric temperature change over the period of satellite observations. The team's goal of the study was to determine whether previous findings of a "discernible human influence" on tropospheric and stratospheric temperature were sensitive to current uncertainties in climate models and satellite data.

The troposphere is the lowest portion of earth's atmosphere. The stratosphere sits just above the troposphere, between 6 and 30 miles above earth's surface.

The satellite temperature data sets were produced by three different research groups, and rely on measurements of the microwave emissions of oxygen molecules. Each group made different choices in processing these raw measurements, and in accounting for such complex effects as drifts in satellite orbits and in instrument calibrations.

The new climate model simulations analyzed by the team will form the scientific backbone of the upcoming 5th assessment of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which is due out in 2014.

In both satellite observations and the computer model simulations of historical climate change, the lower stratosphere cools markedly over the past 33 years. This cooling is primarily a response to the human-caused depletion of stratospheric ozone. The observations and model simulations also show a common pattern of large-scale warming of the lower troposphere, with largest warming over the Arctic, and muted warming (or even cooling) over Antarctica. Tropospheric warming is mainly driven by human-caused increases in well-mixed greenhouse gases.

"It's very unlikely that purely natural causes can explain these distinctive patterns of temperature change," said Laboratory atmospheric scientist Benjamin Santer, who is lead author of the paper appearing in the Nov. 29 online edition of the journal, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. "No known mode of natural climate variability can cause sustained, global-scale warming of the troposphere and cooling of the lower stratosphere."

The team analyzed results from climate model simulations with specified historical changes in human and natural external factors, and from simulations with projected 21st century changes in greenhouse gases and anthropogenic aerosols. They also looked at simulations with no changes in external influences on climate, which provide information on the year-to-year and decade-to-decade "noise" of internal climate variability, arising from such natural phenomena as the El Nio/Southern Oscillation and the Pacific Decadal Oscillation.

The team used a standard "climate fingerprint" method to search for the model signal pattern (in response to human influences, the sun and volcanoes) in the satellite observations. The method quantifies the strength of the signal in observations, relative to the strength of the signal in natural climate noise.

###

Other contributors include researchers from Remote Sensing Systems of Santa Rosa; the Centre for Australian Weather and Climate Research, Melbourne, Australia; the Canadian Centre for Climate Modeling and Analysis, Victoria, Canada; the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory, Princeton; the University of Colorado, Boulder; the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge; the U.K. Met. Office Hadley Centre, Exeter, U.K.; the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Toulouse, France; North Carolina State University; the National Climatic Data Center, Asheville; Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory; the National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder; the University of Adelaide, South Australia; the University of Reading, U.K.; and the Center for Satellite Applications and Research, Camp Springs. The paper is Santer's inaugural article as a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences.

Founded in 1952, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory provides solutions to our nation's most important national security challenges through innovative science, engineering and technology. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory is managed by Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC for the U.S. Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration.

---

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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.

Public release date: 29-Nov-2012
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Anne Stark
stark8@llnl.gov
925-422-9799
DOE/Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory

Livermore, Calif. -- By comparing simulations from 20 different computer models to satellite observations, Lawrence Livermore climate scientists and colleagues from 16 other organizations have found that tropospheric and stratospheric temperature changes are clearly related to human activities.

The team looked at geographical patterns of atmospheric temperature change over the period of satellite observations. The team's goal of the study was to determine whether previous findings of a "discernible human influence" on tropospheric and stratospheric temperature were sensitive to current uncertainties in climate models and satellite data.

The troposphere is the lowest portion of earth's atmosphere. The stratosphere sits just above the troposphere, between 6 and 30 miles above earth's surface.

The satellite temperature data sets were produced by three different research groups, and rely on measurements of the microwave emissions of oxygen molecules. Each group made different choices in processing these raw measurements, and in accounting for such complex effects as drifts in satellite orbits and in instrument calibrations.

The new climate model simulations analyzed by the team will form the scientific backbone of the upcoming 5th assessment of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, which is due out in 2014.

In both satellite observations and the computer model simulations of historical climate change, the lower stratosphere cools markedly over the past 33 years. This cooling is primarily a response to the human-caused depletion of stratospheric ozone. The observations and model simulations also show a common pattern of large-scale warming of the lower troposphere, with largest warming over the Arctic, and muted warming (or even cooling) over Antarctica. Tropospheric warming is mainly driven by human-caused increases in well-mixed greenhouse gases.

"It's very unlikely that purely natural causes can explain these distinctive patterns of temperature change," said Laboratory atmospheric scientist Benjamin Santer, who is lead author of the paper appearing in the Nov. 29 online edition of the journal, Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. "No known mode of natural climate variability can cause sustained, global-scale warming of the troposphere and cooling of the lower stratosphere."

The team analyzed results from climate model simulations with specified historical changes in human and natural external factors, and from simulations with projected 21st century changes in greenhouse gases and anthropogenic aerosols. They also looked at simulations with no changes in external influences on climate, which provide information on the year-to-year and decade-to-decade "noise" of internal climate variability, arising from such natural phenomena as the El Nio/Southern Oscillation and the Pacific Decadal Oscillation.

The team used a standard "climate fingerprint" method to search for the model signal pattern (in response to human influences, the sun and volcanoes) in the satellite observations. The method quantifies the strength of the signal in observations, relative to the strength of the signal in natural climate noise.

###

Other contributors include researchers from Remote Sensing Systems of Santa Rosa; the Centre for Australian Weather and Climate Research, Melbourne, Australia; the Canadian Centre for Climate Modeling and Analysis, Victoria, Canada; the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Geophysical Fluid Dynamics Laboratory, Princeton; the University of Colorado, Boulder; the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Cambridge; the U.K. Met. Office Hadley Centre, Exeter, U.K.; the Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, Toulouse, France; North Carolina State University; the National Climatic Data Center, Asheville; Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory; the National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder; the University of Adelaide, South Australia; the University of Reading, U.K.; and the Center for Satellite Applications and Research, Camp Springs. The paper is Santer's inaugural article as a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences.

Founded in 1952, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory provides solutions to our nation's most important national security challenges through innovative science, engineering and technology. Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory is managed by Lawrence Livermore National Security, LLC for the U.S. Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration.

---

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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/2012-11/dlnl-ahc112912.php

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Did you see that? How could you miss it?

Tuesday, November 27, 2012

You may have received CPR training some time ago, but would you remember the proper technique in an emergency? Would you know what to do in the event of an earthquake or a fire? A new UCLA psychology study shows that people often do not recall things they have seen ? or at least walked by ? hundreds of times.

For the study, 54 people who work in the same building were asked if they knew the location of the fire extinguisher nearest their office. While many of the participants had worked in their offices for years and had passed the bright red extinguishers several times a day, only 13 out of the 54 ? 24 percent ? knew the location.

When asked to find a fire extinguisher, however, everyone was able to do so within a few seconds; most were surprised they had never noticed them. The researchers found no significant differences between men and women, or between older and younger adults.

"Just because we've seen something many times doesn't mean we remember it or even notice it," said Alan Castel, an associate professor of psychology at UCLA and lead author of the study. "If I asked you to draw the front of a dime or the front of a dollar bill from memory, how well could you do that? You might get some elements right. Do you know who the president is? On the dime, is he facing left or right? Does it say 'In God We Trust' on the front of the dollar or the back? Do you know what else it says? You've seen it so many times, but you probably haven't paid much attention to it."

Castel said that not noticing things isn't necessarily bad, particularly when those things are not important in your daily life. "It might be a good thing not to burden your memory with information that is not relevant to you," he said.

But with safety information, such as knowing where fire extinguishers are or what to do in an emergency, being prepared can, of course, be very useful.

"When you're on an airplane, do you know where the life vest is and what to do in the event of an emergency?" Castel asked. "You've been told many times, but how would you respond under stressful conditions, when there could be smoke and people screaming?"

A few months after being asked the location of the nearest fire extinguisher, the study participants were asked again if they knew where the closest one was. All of them knew.

"We don't notice something if we're attending to something else," Castel said. "Fire extinguishers are bright red and very conspicuous, but we're almost blind to them until they become relevant."

What does this tell us about the importance of training, whether for emergencies or something as common as learning a new computer program?

Castel stresses that making errors during training is useful. As with the fire extinguisher exercise, errors ? or simple oversights ? can teach us that we don't know something well and need to pay more attention in order to remember it.

"It's good if errors happen during training and not during an event where you need the information," he said. "That's part of the learning process."

The study is published in the journal Attention, Perception, & Psychophysics.

###

University of California - Los Angeles: http://www.newsroom.ucla.edu

Thanks to University of California - Los Angeles for this article.

This press release was posted to serve as a topic for discussion. Please comment below. We try our best to only post press releases that are associated with peer reviewed scientific literature. Critical discussions of the research are appreciated. If you need help finding a link to the original article, please contact us on twitter or via e-mail.

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Source: http://www.labspaces.net/125499/Did_you_see_that__How_could_you_miss_it_

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Lady Gaga Gives Lindsay Lohan 'Beautiful' Review For 'Liz & Dick'

'They always try to knock the greats down a few pegs,' Gaga tweets amid negative reviews of Lohan's Lifetime biopic.
By Jocelyn Vena

Lindsay Lohan in "Liz & Dick"
Photo: Richard McLaren/ Lifetime

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1697959/lady-gaga-lindsay-lohan-liz-and-dick.jhtml

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Comic Katt Williams sued over aborted performance

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) ? Comic Katt Williams is being sued over his onstage meltdown and aborted performance in Oakland.

The San Francisco Chronicle (http://bit.ly/ThjNW6 ) reports it's the second Alameda County lawsuit filed over Williams' bizarre 10 minutes on stage earlier this month at Oakland's Oracle Arena.

The suit filed by 35-year-old Brian Herline, of Modesto, says he and hundreds of fans were disappointed when Williams took off his clothes and challenged people to fight.

Herline is seeking class-action certification in an effort to get ticket money back for all audience members.

A representative for Williams has refused to comment.

The Williams meltdown came two days after he was arrested on charges of attacking an aspiring rapper on his tour bus outside a downtown Oakland hotel. He was later released with no charges filed.

___

Information from: San Francisco Chronicle, http://www.sfgate.com

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/comic-katt-williams-sued-over-aborted-performance-133253859.html

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Rebels patrol in Congo city as deadline passes

GOMA, Congo (AP) ? Rebels widely believed to be backed by Rwanda and Uganda held their positions in this key eastern Congolese city that they seized last week, letting a midnight deadline for their withdrawal expire in the early hours of Tuesday.

Trucks loaded with fighters belonging to the eight-month-old M23 rebel group patrolled the empty streets of this regional capital, as the ultimatum issued by the regional bloc representing nations in the Great Lakes region of Central Africa came to an end. Earlier in the day, the rebels announced that they plan to move their headquarters to this city of 1 million later this week, another sign that they do not intend to respect the demands of mediators.

For the first time since the fall of Goma eight days ago, the Congolese government acknowledged that it had entered talks with the rebels who handed Congo's military its most humiliating defeat since Goma was last overrun by fighters nearly a decade ago. The two sides were meeting in Kampala, the capital of neighboring Uganda. On Monday, the head of the M23 rebels confirmed that he was en route to Uganda to join in the negotiations.

"We are still waiting to hear about the outcome of the meetings in Kampala. We should receive a document about it tomorrow. The president (of the M23) came back this evening. But given that we do not know what is asked of us we did not move out of our positions," said Bertrand Bisimwa, spokesman for M23's political branch.

As the deadline loomed, the Congolese military appeared to be regrouping in the town of Minova, 60 kilometers (36 miles) to the south, but they appeared disorganized and not in position to launch an immediate assault on Goma. It has left residents on tenterhooks, worrying that they will be caught in the crossfire between rebel and government forces.

Congolese Prime Minister Augustin Matata Ponyo confirmed that President Joseph Kabila had met in recent days with the rebels in Kampala. He said that the government is leaning toward "the avenue of dialogue and peace," suggesting that it is unlikely that the military will try to take Goma by force if the ultimatum is not respected.

"Any action to take back the city of Goma by force will without doubt result in enormous human loss," said Matata Ponyo in a telephone interview with The Associated Press on Monday. "President Kabila is giving priority to the road that will lead to the least loss," he said. But he added: "I think (the rebels) will abide by it (the ultimatum)."

The deadline was issued by the International Conference for the Great Lakes Region on Saturday and gave the M23 rebels two days to retreat to 20 kilometers (12 miles) outside of Goma. It expired at midnight on Monday night.

The regional group is attempting to negotiate an end to the fighting, but it did not threaten any consequences if the rebels don't depart. Uganda and Rwanda belong to the group and they are hardly neutral. Both countries back the rebels, according to a U.N. report released last week, and they would be unlikely to go to war with M23 over the seizure of Goma.

Residents fear that if the Congo army attempts to regain Goma, there will be bitter fighting.

"I am worried the fighting will come back to Goma soon if the army attacks again. Last week, we were so scared. I don't want to go through that again," said Amani Zaliwa, a Goma resident.

In the hours before the midnight ultimatum, armed M23 rebels could be seen driving slowly in a Land Cruiser past United Nations troops stationed at traffic circles in downtown Goma. Others carried out foot patrols on the main arteries. The U.N., which has hundreds of peacekeeping troops stationed in Goma, did little to halt the rebels' advance into the city a week ago, saying that the U.N. mandate did not allow them to engage the fighters.

Tens of thousands of Congolese have fled to refugee camps for safety. Aid organizations struggled to provide them with food and supplies. When a rainstorm hit the Munguna-3 camp, about 7 miles (11 kilometers) south of Goma, children held out their hands to catch the water and drink it. They were quickly imitated by adults.

M23 is made up of hundreds of soldiers who deserted the Congolese army in April. The rebels accuse Congo's government of failing to honor the terms of a 2009 peace deal that incorporated them into the national army.

Matata Ponyo said that the Congolese president agreed to meet with the rebels in order to hear their demands and in a good faith effort to avoid bloodshed. In the early months of the rebellion, the M23 said that the Congolese government had not paid them well, and had discriminated against people from the Tutsi ethnicity, which makes up the bulk of their ranks. A U.N. report released last week, however, said that the rebels were backed by Rwanda, and to a lesser extent Uganda, and most likely were fighting for a greater share of Congo's mineral riches.

Matata Ponyo said that things like greater pay are on the table, but Congo's territorial integrity is off limits.

"These are borders that were drawn in Berlin in 1885. More than 100 years have passed ? no. It's not negotiable," he said.

___

Callimachi reported from Dakar, Senegal. Associated Press writer Rodney Muhumuza in Kampala, Uganda and, Africa chief photographer Jerome Delay in Minova and Goma, Congo, contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/rebels-patrol-congo-city-deadline-passes-235751771.html

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Video: Mobile devices drive new Cyber Monday record

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3041440/vp/49976794#49976794

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New Mexican leader: Economic gains will cut crime (CNN)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories Stories, News Feeds and News via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/266765908?client_source=feed&format=rss

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Fiscal Cliff Notes: A study aid for the budget shell game

By Walter Shapiro

It was the political equivalent of discovering more Americans were secretly watching British snooker telecasts than pro football. According to a recent national survey by the Pew Research Center, more Americans claimed to be very closely following the budget negotiations to avert the fiscal cliff than were engrossed in the soap opera that forced CIA director David Petraeus to resign.

A few possible explanations for these anomalous poll results:

1) A sex scandal involving a revered four-star general is inherently boring. 2) Americans mistakenly assume that the fiscal cliff is part of an extreme skateboarding competition, not shorthand for the looming expiration of the Bush-era tax cuts and possible across-the-board spending cuts. 3) Voters have been panicked into believing that the president and Congress must solve the country?s financial problems by the Dec. 31 or we instantly become an international basket case.

In truth, the fiscal cliff is nothing more than an arbitrary deadline created by Congress to be replaced with a dramatic flourish and, yes, another arbitrary deadline set a bit further in the future. It?s a shell game created by political con men who have come to believe their own cons.

So, relax about the over-hyped New Year?s Eve countdown for budget negotiations. Results matter, not the timetable. But even without the Petraeus-related distractions, it?s hard to separate the real from the fake, the legitimate fiscal issues from the political posturing.

So here is my version of Fiscal Cliff Notes:

Fact: All comparisons to Greece, Spain, the Roman Empire or the Duchy of Grand Fenwick are ludicrously exaggerated.

?The Road to Greece? might have been the title of a Mitt Romney campaign biopic since the former GOP presidential hopeful used the imagery so often. And during an interview Sunday with ABC?s ?This Week,? South Carolina Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham used the same rhetorical excess about the American economy reduced to offering budget tours of the Acropolis.

In fact, the European fiscal crisis is far different from what the U.S. faces.

Debtor nations like Greece and Spain do not fully control their economies because they are lashed to German austerity policies through the common currency, the Euro. That means those countries do not have their own currencies to devalue, which would spur exports. Nor do they have a central bank like the U.S. Federal Reserve which would provide liquidity for their banking systems.

The United States does have long-term fiscal challenges and years of unsustainable trillion-dollar budget deficits. But our problems are largely due to the fact that we are still groping our way out of the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression. Slow but persistent economic growth (the White House projects that unemployment will not drop below 6 percent until 2017) will reduce many budgetary problems.

Global confidence in the American economy is reflected in the near record low interest rates available on 10-year and 30-year Treasury bonds. Investors around the world are willing to tie up their money for 30 years in Treasuries for the paltry interest rate of 2.8 percent.

Fact: Even if all the Bush tax cuts expire on Jan. 1, no one will instantly be paying higher income tax rates.

The Wall Street Journal ran a story the other day titled ?Most Households Face Fiscal Cliff,? suggesting almost every American family would pay more if the Bush tax cuts expired. As an example, the Journal pointed to a married couple making about $25,000 a year whose annual income tax bill would leap from zero to about $1,400.

While the tax calculations are accurate, the likelihood of this happening is about on par with an asteroid destroying the Capitol. No one in government wants the Bush tax cuts to expire for anyone earning less than $250,000 a year, so a hypothetical family scraping by on $25,000 a year would not pay a penny more in income taxes under anyone?s plan.

But what if Congress misses the Dec. 31 deadline to extend the Bush tax cuts?

This is the part of the shell game. The Treasury Department has wide discretion in the pace by which it instructs employers to adjust their income-tax withholding rates. Chances are Treasury would do nothing in January to change the rates for anyone earning less than $250,000, meaning a temporary tax increase for those wage earners would be a fiscal abstraction rather than a real-world wallet pinch. And when Congress and the president cut the inevitable tax deal, the new, lower rates would be retroactive to January 1.

Make no mistake: Some people will see their taxes increase. For the past two years, most Americans have benefited from a 2 percent reduction in their payroll taxes ? a cut designed to stimulate the economy in a period of high unemployment. But the payroll tax cut was always supposed to be temporary rather than a permanent rate adjustment. While nothing is certain, chances are payroll taxes will revert to their normal levels next year.

Then there is the so-called ?sequester? that is supposed to slash $100 billion from the budget if lawmakers do not reach an epic Grand Bargain on the deficit. For all the alarmist talk that this will reduce the U.S. Navy to bathtub levels and shred the social safety net, the sequester is another easily disarmed fiscal booby-trap.

In fact, Congress will (shocking revelation ahead) probably extend the deadline. And even if lawmakers temporize, don?t expect to see generals and admirals on the unemployment line. The automatic cuts are evenly divided between the Pentagon budget and domestic spending for a total of about $8 billion per month and every federal agency has been preparing for these potential cuts.

Across-the-board cuts, to be sure, are a foolish way to impose budgetary discipline since there is no rational case to reduce funding for embassy security after the Benghazi raid or slash FEMA spending in the wake of Superstorm Sandy. But it is hard to believe that even a delay of a month or two will ultimately matter except at the margins.

Fact: There is no $4 trillion magic number that the president and Congress must hit to prove their long-term deficit reduction plan is credible.

Somehow $4 trillion has become the gold standard to measure deficit hawk seriousness. That was the rough number in the 2010 Simpson-Bowles deficit reduction plan and it carried over into President Obama?s abortive 2011 negotiations with Republican House Speaker John Boehner.

Throughout the 2012 presidential campaign, Obama talked about his own $4 trillion ?balanced plan.? But that was partly sleight of hand: The Obama road map includes $1 trillion in savings from a 2011 congressional deal and another mythical $848 billion from the end of the Iraqi and Afghan wars. In short, his plan reflected previous agreements and military spending that had already been discontinued.

Fact: Everyone in Washington wants credit for tackling the deficit but no one wants to be blamed for causing pain.

As recounted by Bob Woodward in ?The Price of Politics,? a dramatic moment in the 2011 Obama-Boehner negotiations came when the two men battled over boosting the age to qualify for Medicare. Boehner wanted the age change to take effect in 2017 while Obama wanted to hold out until 2022.?

That is Washington in a nutshell ? both men wanted to postpone the pain until after they retired from office. They wanted to bask in the glory of reaching a Grand Bargain on the deficit with all the complications reserved for a future president and House speaker.

In a sense, it is budgetary arithmetic as seen through the prism of Lewis Carroll. In Through the Looking-Glass, the White Queen promised Alice jam every other day. ?The rule is,? the Queen explained, ?jam tomorrow and jam yesterday ? but never jam today.?

Just like budget cuts and tax increases ? always tomorrow and yesterday.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/fiscal-cliff-notes--a-study-aid-for-the-budget-shell-game-26083862-173528170.html

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Giants end slide, rout Packers 38-10

New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning (10) signals a touchdown during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 25, 2012 in East Rutherford, N.J. After further review Manning's pass to Hakeem Nicks was ruled a touchdown. (AP Photo/Bill Kostroun)

New York Giants quarterback Eli Manning (10) signals a touchdown during the second half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 25, 2012 in East Rutherford, N.J. After further review Manning's pass to Hakeem Nicks was ruled a touchdown. (AP Photo/Bill Kostroun)

New York Giants wide receiver Hakeem Nicks (88) signals for a touchdown during the second half of an NFL football game against the Green Bay Packers, Sunday, Nov. 25, 2012, in East Rutherford, N.J. After further review quarterback Eli Manning's pass to Nicks was ruled a touchdown. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

New York Giants running back Ahmad Bradshaw, right, celebrates with teammate Martellus Bennett, left, after scoring a touchdown during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 25, 2012, in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP Photo/Bill Kostroun)

New York Giants defensive end Osi Umenyiora (72) knocks the ball away from Green Bay Packers' Aaron Rodgers (12) during the first half of an NFL football game, Sunday, Nov. 25, 2012, in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP Photo/Julio Cortez)

Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers (12) reacts during the first half of an NFL football game against the New York Giants, Sunday, Nov. 25, 2012, in East Rutherford, N.J. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens)

EAST RUTHERFORD, N.J. (AP) ? Adam Merchant had a wish and a command for the New York Giants.

The 15-year-old fan from Barre, Vt., attended practice and then Sunday's game with the Packers thanks to the Make-A-Wish Foundation. He wanted the Giants to snap their two-game slide and get out of their offensive funk.

So he ordered the Giants to "play like world champions," and they delivered a 38-10 rout of the Green Bay Packers.

"That was the theme of our meetings," coach Tom Coughlin said.

Eli Manning came back from the bye week with a rested arm, and that offensive slump was tossed aside. The Giants (7-4) said they turned things around for themselves, and for Merchant, who has cancer.

"They have one wish," Manning said after throwing for three scores to set a team record with 200 TD passes for his career. "It is sad when you think about it ? they have one wish, what you want to do, and he wanted to come to Giants practice ... and to a game.

"He said, 'Go show everybody you are the world champions and why you are the world champions and play that way.' Everybody got fired up and played the way we know we can."

The Packers (7-4) certainly did not. The showcase game was decided early as the Giants outscored the Packers 31-10 in the opening half to end Green Bay's five-game winning streak. While New York took a two-game lead in the NFC East, Green Bay fell out of a tie with Chicago atop the NFC North.

The Packers were missing such key starters as linebacker Clay Matthews, defensive back Charles Woodson and receiver Greg Jennings, and it showed. After being manhandled in last season's playoffs by the Giants, who went on to win the Super Bowl, the Packers weren't much more competitive this time. Aaron Rodgers was sacked five times, including twice by Mathias Kiwanuka, who spent much of the game at defensive tackle rather than in his usual linebacker spot.

"When your quarterback is under pressure like that, it affected me tonight," coach Mike McCarthy said of his play-calling. "I probably didn't call the best game I've called. You have to protect your quarterback. It's your No. 1 responsibility. That's not what we're looking for."

New York's balanced attack was guided by Manning, who had his first strong game in a month with 249 yards passing.

"I never thought my arm was tired, never felt like it," Manning said. "After a week off, you come back to practice, it felt good, alive, balls coming out with a little pop on it.

"After 10 weeks, it definitely needed a little rest."

Coughlin knew Manning would return with some extra verve.

"There was no doubt he was going to come back and play well," Coughlin said. "I think the rest really helped him. ... Eli said he felt as if he was coming back for the start of the season. I was very confident he would come back and be Eli."

Ahmad Bradshaw gained a combined 119 yards and scored a touchdown. He had the first big play of the night to begin the offensive onslaught.

New York struck early with a brilliantly conceived screen pass to Bradshaw off a fake reverse to Victor Cruz. Bradshaw sped down the field before being caught at the Green Bay 2, a 59-yard pickup that led to Andre Brown's scoring run.

Brown later broke his leg; Coughlin did not say which leg after the game.

"It will be a tough loss, he is an important player," Manning said.

Green Bay didn't flinch, with Jordy Nelson getting behind Corey Webster in single coverage down the right sideline for a 61-yard TD reception from Rodgers.

The scoring flurry went back in the Giants' favor ? and pretty much stayed there ? when Manning hit Rueben Randle in the back of the end zone for a 16-yard TD. It was the first score for the rookie and Manning's first touchdown throw in four games, and he set it up with, of all things, a scramble in which he laid his shoulder into Packers cornerback Tramon Williams for a 13-yard gain.

"It sparked our sideline," Coughlin said. "It would not be the recommended way. To see him do that kind of sent the message to the rest of our team: Whatever you have to do to succeed, do it."

Webster's interception led to Lawrence Tynes' 43-yard field goal late in the first quarter for a 17-7 lead, and the Giants weren't nearly done. Manning's 9-yard connection with Cruz tied him for the club record with 199 TD passes, and after Osi Umenyiora's strip-sack of Rodgers was recovered by Jason Pierre-Paul at the Green Bay 23, Bradshaw scored from the 13.

The 31 points were the most New York scored in a half all season and nearly equaled the 33 it scored in its two losses before the bye.

And the Giants had more offense in them. Manning threw his 200th TD pass to move ahead of Phil Simms, a 13-yarder over the middle to Hakeem Nicks, who stretched the ball over the goal line as he was tackled.

"There was a different enthusiasm in practices," Manning said, "and I think that paid off in the game."

It paid off for the Giants, and for their young fan.

"It kind of hit home," Justin Tuck said. "You got this kid that don't know us from James and watches us on TV every Sunday and it's so profound."

NOTES; The Giants lost safety Kenny Phillips with a knee injury in the third quarter. He was making his first appearance since Week 4, when he was sidelined with a knee problem. ... Giants right tackle David Diehl sustained a stinger in the first half. ... Green Bay lost safety M.D. Jennings (rib), DE C.J. Wilson (knee), and RB Johnny White (concussion). ... Rodgers was 14 of 25 for 219 yards, one TD, one interception and one lost fumble.

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Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2012-11-26-Packers-Giants/id-71ab13792ef747ca870a7a5d9ffc7345

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