The Rev. Andrew Greeley's column, "Neck deep in the Big Muddy"[July 29], was excellent. He has warned us for a long time that theShiites would form their own theocracy. Why can't the majorproponents of this war -- evangelical Christians -- accept thiswisdom? These Christians have failed to understand the history ofIraq. Iraq helped us fight communism for three decades. But ascommunism was falling, we turned our back on Saddam Hussein, and soall …
PITTSBURGH - Democratic presidential candidate John Edwards on Tuesday called for measures to strengthen education for poor children and make schools more economically diverse in order to fight poverty.
"We don't just have racial segregation in our schools, we have huge economic segregation," Edwards said while on the Pittsburgh leg of an eight-state tour to highlight poverty issues. "We have two public school systems in America ... one for those who live in wealthy suburban areas and then one for everybody else."
Speaking to about 250 people in Pittsburgh's impoverished Hill district, Edwards criticized last month's Supreme Court decision rejecting school diversity plans …
Wall Street pointed lower Thursday as investors found little room for optimism in a drop in weekly unemployment claims.
Stock futures slumped as traders worried that the economy might not recover as quickly as had been hoped when the market began rocketing off of 12-year lows in early March. On Wednesday, stocks posted moderate losses after the Federal Reserve said that the nation's economy was likely to shrink by more than expected this year.
The number of newly laid-off workers seeking unemployment benefits fell last week but only after jumping a week earlier because of auto layoffs.
The Labor Department said initial claims for jobless benefits …
It's Roger Rabbit and Robo Cop, edging off the curb and headingstraight into the gym.
It's a fact, Jack. Hip-hop is making the aerobics scene. Butdon't get used to the names that identify the dance moves. Nameslike Roger Rabbit and Robo Cop.
"Heck, most of the steps with names are already so outdated, youlose your street credibility if you mention them," says ChristopherToledo, 32, the hippest of the gym jam masters.
Toledo, who goes to the streets for inspiration, teaches atVoight Fitness and Dancing in West Hollywood, Calif., where evencelebs must sign up early in the morning to reserve one of 60 spacesin his cardio-funk class.
He's also …
Olympia, Washington
Seattle Children's Hospital received the 2008 Governor's Award for Sustainable Practices, Washington State's top environmental award of this kind. The hospital was the first to compost food waste, and now diverts about 1,400 pounds/week. The 250-bed hospital also saves over 7 million gallons of water annually as a result of retrofitting and …
Michael Beasley is still grappling with a decision, but his coach expects the Kansas State star freshman to head into the NBA draft.
Frank Martin said in an interview with The Associated Press and the Manhattan Mercury on Tuesday he believes the 6-foot-10 power forward, even though he loves college life, will probably opt to turn pro.
"I think he's going to go, and I think it's the right thing to do, because he's going to be the top pick in the draft," Martin said.
Kevin Durant, who set freshman records last year with Texas and was the second overall player taken in the draft, is now worth about $100 million counting salary and endorsement …
If You dropped in by Aberdeen's Accident and Emergency departmentover a weekend, chances are you'd find some drunks.
People injured in brawls or from falls. Others who have passedout from too much booze.
Some are one-offs, a good night gone too far, others are regulars,known by name and face to the emergency services.
The Liberal Demorcats wants "patients" like this to pay foremergency treatment.
Health spokesman Norman Lamb wants the policy to cover anyone whois drunk or incapacitated by drugs and his plans will be discussed atthis week's party conference.
Mr Lamb said: "If you get drunk on a Friday night and get taken toA&E where you are foul …
Resume
Cette etude vise a comparer le temperament et le developpement de nourrissons prematures et nes a terme, ainsi qu'a evaluer la qualite et la quantite des stimulations physiques et sociales qu'ils experimentent a 2, 4 et 6 mois (age corrige pour les prematures). Cinquante-six dyades mere-enfant, incluant 28 nourrissons prematures et 28 nourrissons nes a terme, participent a l'etude. Les analyses montrent que les groupes ne different pas aux mesures de temperament et de developpement, ni aux mesures de l'environnement physique (densite, jouets et accessoires). Des differences significatives apparaissent toutefois sur le plan des stimulations sociales. A 2 mois, les meres de …
The Pakistani military says it has killed 23 militants in a restive northwestern valley.
Army spokesman Maj. Murad Khan said the insurgents died in three separate clashes on Thursday in the Swat valley, …
The price of parking at Bath Spa railway station has gone up byan inflation-busting 10 per cent.
The cost of a day's parking in the car park has risen frompounds7.70 to pounds8.50.
Commuter Philip Symonds, who lives at Freshford, and regularlyuses the car park, said the increase at a time of recession wasdisgraceful.
"There is no excuse for this. We are getting nothing more forour money and prices are going down …
PHILADELPHIA - Tiki Barber's final game with the New York Giants was a microcosm of the season: big expectations, a quick start, lots of chances and then a major disappointment in the end after being so tantalizingly close.
Barber headed into retirement by rushing for 137 yards and contributing to all four Giants scores. It meant little when David Akers kicked a 38-yard field goal as time expired to give the Philadelphia Eagles a 23-20 win in the NFC wild-card game Sunday.
The performance was typical of the season for the Giants (8-9) in what was definitely Barber's final game and possibly the last for coach Tom Coughlin.
It was a big tease all day.
Eli …
Marv Levy, the cerebral coach who led the Buffalo Bills to an unprecedented four straight Super Bowls but couldn't revive a struggling franchise, told the team Monday he would not return as the Bills' general manager.
Bills safety George Wilson told The Associated Press that the 82-year-old Levy opened the team's wrap-up meeting with a five-minute speech during which he said he won't return as GM.
"He's not stepping down," Wilson said. "He's stepping out and moving on in his career."
Wilson said Levy told players he was content with where the Bills are after his two-year tenure as GM.
The Bills finished the season …
Former Bath Rugby coach John Connolly believes his old club'scurrent woes would have been avoided had Steve Borthwick opted tostay at The Rec last summer.
Connolly, who was at Bath from 2003 to 2006 and led them to thetop of the Premiership table in his first season, worked withMichael Lipman, Alex Crockett and Andrew Higgins throughout histenure.
Borthwick left for Saracens after skippering Bath to theirEuropean Challenge Cup triumph a year ago and has since been madecaptain of his country.
Speaking from his home on Australia's Sunshine Coast, Connollysaid: "Letting Borthwick go was probably the greatest tragedy forBath ever - for what he stood for and his influence.
"He is a very bright individual who is very much his own man, andI was shocked when he left. Great captains have a certain air aboutthem - and he has that. The players there respected him and wouldhave done anything for him."
And Connolly says the club face an uphill battle if they are torebuild their battered image in the light of this week's events.
He said: "There is such great expectation on players now and tohave something that negatively affects Bath's image or theirperformance on the field is massively disappointing.
"I certainly think Bath have got some very big challenges aheadof them to put things right. Off-field issues are just as big as on-field issues in my opinion."
A blast apparently caused by explosives stored in a house in the southern Pakistani city of Karachi killed at least seven people Friday, some of whom may have been militants, police said.
The explosion occurred in Baldia, a mostly ethnic Pashtun neighborhood that is a suspected Taliban hide-out, police Chief Wasim Ahmad told The Associated Press. Its exact cause was unclear. TV footage showed police seizing guns, suicide vests and grenades from the site.
Federal Interior Minister Rehman Malik said some people from the Swat Valley, a region where the army has waged an offensive against the Taliban, were believed to have been staying at the house along with some guests, but he stressed the investigation was ongoing.
Local resident Noor Mohammed said he rushed to the scene just after the explosion and saw some of the dead men were wearing camouflage jackets. He said the men moved into the house about three months ago.
On Dec. 28, a bomb attack on a minority Shiite Muslim religious procession in the city killed 43 people and wounded dozens. Riots broke out after the attack, with people setting fire to the country's largest wholesale market. The blaze burned for more than two days and destroyed thousands of shops.
Karachi, Pakistan's largest city and commercial hub, has largely been spared the Taliban-linked violence that has struck much of the rest of the country, something analysts say may be because of the group's tendency to use it as a place to rest and raise money.
But the city has a long history of violence, much of it driven by ethnic hatred between Pashtuns and Urdu-speaking descendants of refugees from British-colonial India.
Malik said authorities plan to crack down on "illegal immigrants" in Karachi _ a possible reference to Afghans, many of them Pashtun, who reside in vast settlements on the city's outskirts. He said such illegal immigrants should leave the city in the next 15 days.
Also Friday, a group of U.S. lawmakers, including Sens. John McCain and Joseph Lieberman, met with top officials in Pakistan. During a news briefing, McCain and Lieberman stressed their support for U.S. missile strikes on Pakistani territory.
The strikes are controversial in Pakistan, where the government argues they are a violation of its sovereignty and kill too many innocent civilians. However, the U.S. says the attacks are a critical tool in killing top militant leaders.
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Associated Press writer Nahal Toosi in Islamabad contributed to this report.
CAPE CANAVERAL, Florida (AP) — Space shuttle Discovery has new seals and is no longer leaking.
NASA says now that the repairs are completed, everything is looking good for liftoff next Monday. Senior managers are meeting at Florida's spaceport to set the launch date.
This will be Discovery's final flight. NASA is retiring its shuttles next year. The White House wants the space agency to focus on developing spaceships that can take astronauts out of orbit and into deep space.
Over the weekend, technicians replaced a pair of seals in a fuel line aboard Discovery that had been leaking. NASA says the repairs seem to have solved the problem.
Discovery will deliver equipment to the International Space Station.
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Online:
NASA: http://www.nasa.gov
DENVER (AP) — A dog park at a Colorado Army post is being named in honor of an Oregon soldier and his military working dog who were killed together in Iraq.
Cpl. Kory Wiens and the Labrador retriever named Cooper will be remembered at a ceremony Friday at Fort Carson just outside Colorado Springs.
Wiens and Cooper were killed by an improvised bomb while on patrol in Iraq in 2007. Their ashes are buried together in Dallas, Oregon, Wiens' hometown.
Wiens was 20. He and Cooper were assigned to a mine dog detachment based at Fort Leonard Wood, Missouri. A Fort Carson spokesman says Wiens had no formal tie to the post but officials there wanted to honor his memory.
Pat McAlister, Wiens' grandmother, says the family is touched by the gesture.
Hace poco mas de dos decadas Espana yacia en el mismo pozo de arena del que ahora tratan de salir tantos paises de America Latina. Como el perro hundido de Goya, cuyo hocico asoma en las honduras de un vacio amarillo y ocre, Espana parecia condenada a un destino de fracaso. Cuanto mas se esforzaba en alcanzar la modernidad, tanto mas se hundia en el pasado.
Ahora, la efervescencia de la riqueza despierta en todos los rincones de la peninsula. Las amenazas a su crecimiento, sin embargo, no son despreciables - el terrorismo vasco insiste en seguir dando palos de ciego. Pero la pasion de sus politicos por abrirse un lugar en la historia y la de sus empresarios por mantenerse a la altura de sus vecinos y socios de la Union Europea ha convertido a Espana en uno de los paises de crecimiento mas visible. En todos lados se construye, se abren nuevos centros industriales, se invierte y se discute con pasion el futuro.
Como era inevitable, esa alza formidable en la calidad de vida es un iman para las masas empobrecidas del norte de Africa y de America Latina. Las calles de las grandes ciudades estan sembradas de tecnicos y obreros calificados, sin trabajo en sus paises -donde alguna vez conocieron un buen nivel de vida - e ilegales en cualquier parte. La economia neoliberal los ha transformado en parias dificiles de redimir.
Una de las historias mas desoladoras de ese exodo es la que vivio la argentina Angela Duhart, cuyo marido llego a Barcelona en junio con pasaporte aleman, dejandola en su casa de Banfeild, provincia de Buenos Aires, con cuatro hijos pequenos y un embarazo de tres meses. Angela habia logrado salvar tres mil dolares del descalabro financiero cuando se dispuso a viajar a fines de octubre.
Tres dias antes del viaje alguien que quiza tenia noticia de esos ahorros le desvalijo la casa. Le quitaron todo, salvo los pasajes para volar a Espana. Aun asi, Angela emprendio el viaje, invencible.
Al llegar a Barcelona, Angela supo que la empresa de construccion donde trabaja su marido lo habia enviado por tres meses a Lille, en Francia.
Desvalida, sin dinero para alimentar a los hijos, encontro refugio en una iglesia de Sarria. Alli la familia se alimenta de las sopas de caridad que sirven a los feligreses menesterosos y duermen en la sacristia, a cambio de limpiar las capillas y renovar las flores.
El parto puede sobrevenir de un momento a otro. En los pocos ratos que le quedan libres, averigua quien o quienes, entre la muchedumbre de argentinos aventados por la desdicha, querra hacerse cargo de los ninos mientras ella este en la maternidad de insolventes.
Durante algunos dias tuvo la esperanza de quelos patrones de Lille concedieran una licencia al marido. Casi de inmediato llego la decepcion: si el deja la obra en construccion, perdera el trabajo. Y en Espana, a pesar de a prosperidad, las cifras de desocupacion son demasiado altas para el promedio europeo. Los recien llegados, aun los legales, pagan el precio de esa crisis.
Desde el Rey hasta los alcaldes de los municipios menores, no hay espanol con responsabilidades de gobierno que no sea consciente de ese infortunio global y haga lo que pueda para remediarlo.
Entre los empresarios se advierten mas resistencias, y no falta quien hable de "las incomodidades que crean los menesterosos. Pero hay que tener el corazon de piedra para no sentir compasion ante los desastres que han ido dejando la aplicacion servil y ciegas de las recetas del Fondo Monetario Internacional y la estela de corrupcion que fermento al amparo de esas politicas.
Pude oir algunas reflexiones sobre el tema en el Parador Nacional de Turismo de la milenaria ciudad de Toledo, donde se reunieron, durante los primeros dias de noviembre, un conjunto de 50 empresarios, politicos e intelectuales en el tercer encuentro del Foro Iberoamerica.
Algunos de ellos representaban las mayores fortunas de este continente y de Espana; otros eran ex presidentes y primeros ministros, como el portugues Antonio Manuel de Oliveira Guterres, que fue jefe de Estado hasta diciembre ultimo.
Muchas de las ideas que se formularon hubieran sido vetadas como transgresoras hace cinco o seis anos. Por ejemplo, las constantes criticas a los acuerdos de Washington, que impusieron programas de ajuste y austeridad en vez de programas de desarrollo. O la certeza de que los factores mas imprevisibles de la politica despues de las agresiones del 11 de setiembre no estan solo en el terrorismo sino en las respuestas al terrorismo, basadas, segun dijo Guterres, en un fanatismo casi religioso.
Ciertos puntos encontraron en el Foro un inmediato consenso: el respeto a las minorias -raciales, religiosas, sexuales, politicas - el rechazo a la intolerancia xenofoba y la conversion de Iberoamerica en una zona de paz y de certidumbres, en la que haya seguridad para los inversores y para los destinos turisticos.
"El Fondo Monetario Internacional tambien ha perdido credibilidad", dijo uno de los mayores empresarios del continente, "y la noticia de que el Fondo Monetario concedera creditos a tal o cual pais ya no garantiza nuevos inversiones, como en el pasado.'
Estos son "tiempos de tormenta con vientos esquivos", como los definio el canciller brasilleno Celso Lafer, citando un verso de Camoens. Algunos paises pueden navegar con inteligencia y llegar a puertos placidos.
Otros entregan a sus habitantes a la fiereza de la tempestad, y los condenan a un pozo de arena donde, como el perro de Goya, el futuro se hunde mas cuanto mas se lucha para salir adelante. 2002 New York Times Special Features.
(Tomas Eloy Martinez es el autor de "La Novela de Peron, `de "Santa Evita `y de "El Vuelo de la Reina", que acaba de ganar en Espana el premio Alfaguara de Novela. Sus obras se han traducido a mas de 30 idiomas. Es director del programa de Estudios Latinoamericanos en la Universidad de Rutgers y realiza viajes frecuentes como escritor y periodista).
Already I've had calls from key industry players taking shots at James Cameron's sci-fi extravaganza ''Avatar,'' Paramount's huge budget to boost ''Up in the Air'' and the depiction of Jews in ''An Education'' and ''A Serious Man'' -- called ''horribly stereotypical," with several Jewish organizations said to be gearing up protests.
I even heard from one longtime studio executive sniping about the legendary Meryl Streep -- having the audacity to call the actress' amazing performance as Julia Child in ''Julie & Julia'' merely ''an impersonation.'' Crazy!
- Another example of the back-biting was the snarky complaint -- made to me, entertainment industry blogger Nikki Finke and others -- about the party Leonardo DiCaprio threw recently for Tobey Maguire, honoring his lifelong pal's performance in the wrenching drama ''Brothers,'' also starring Jake Gyllenhaal and Natalie Portman. The party guests included about a quarter of the members of the Hollywood Foreign Press Association, shortly before their voting deadline for the Golden Globes.
END OF THE LINE? Sounds like all the couples counseling hasn't convinced Elin Nordegren Woods to give sex scandalized hubby Tiger a ''mulligan'' on their marriage. A usually reliable Woods source tells me Elin believes her marriage to be ''irrevocably broken'' -- echoing reports by People magazine and ABC, citing their own sources confirming a Woods divorce as being very likely, once a settlement is set.
- Woods may be temporarily missing from the world of golf, but look for his good buddy Donald Trump to step up to the plate. ''Donald J. Trump's Fabulous World of Golf'' debuts on the Golf Channel in April -- a reality series featuring actors, pro athletes, musicians and famous business execs competing against each other, with winnings going to favorite charities.
BABY BEAT: Musician Thomas Mars, the frontman for the band Phoenix, let the cat out of the bag during an interview on WXRT-FM (93.1) -- confirming his significant other, Oscar-nominated director Sofia Coppola, is expecting the couple's second child. The duo already are the parents of a 3-year-old daughter, Romy.
STAR ALERT: Area fans of Christina Applegate should be on the lookout for the actress. She revealed on Jay Leno's show Tuesday night (also featuring Sun-Times colleague Richard Roeper) that she will be spending the Christmas holidays visiting family and friends in Naperville.
BARING MOST: Kellan Lutz, the hunky actor who plays Emmett Cullen in the ''Twilight'' flicks reportedly has been tapped to star in a big new Calvin Klein ad campaign for the designer's underwear line.
BARING ALL: While Tara Reid's wild party-girl reputation hasn't grabbed headlines of late, it's probably not surprising the actress has agreed to pose for the January/February issue of Playboy. The nude layout hits newsstands Friday. The good news: After a widely publicized rehab stint, the actress is said to be clean, sober and looking forward to promoting two recently completed films.
BAD IDEA: Friends and business associates of troubled Brit soul rocker Amy Winehouse are very worried the singer will remarry ex-husband Blake Fielder-Civil, himself plagued by serious drug problems -- and long seen as an enabler to his ex-wife's history of addiction to drugs and alcohol.
SPLITSVILLE SAGA: While an earlier People report of a Reese Witherspoon-Jake Gyllenhaal breakup was quickly denied by the stars' reps, there has been no such retort -- so far -- to a story in Us Weekly, out this week.
TASTY TREAT: Second City alum Bonnie Hunt was so tickled by the giant Eli's cheesecake made for last weekend's 50th anniversary of the improv mecca that she's showcasing a replica of the cake on her Friday show (2 p.m., WMAQ-Channel 5).
Photo: Noel Vasquez, Getty Images / Friends Leonardo DiCaprio (right) and Tobey Maguire at a basketball game in April. DiCaprio threw a party for Maguire that could have helped boost his chances for a Golden Globe. Photo: Sofia Coppola
MADISON, Wis. Commissioning new work is risky business, for eventhe largest and most established opera companies.
But American opera has been on a roll with recent commissions.The Metropolitan Opera's first commission in 25 years was JohnCorigliano's highly acclaimed "The Ghosts of Versailles." LyricOpera of Chicago scored a success with its "McTeague" last October.
Wednesday night it was Madison Opera's turn. The small companycommissioned composer Daron Aric Hagen and Irish poet Paul Muldoon towrite an opera about a tumultuous period in the life of famedarchitect Frank Lloyd Wright. Conducted by Roland Johnson, directedby Stephen Wadsworth and designed by David Birn, "Shining Brow"proved to be an absorbing, beautifully staged work.
Wright's life between 1903 and 1914 was certainly the stuff ofopera. There was his bitter break with mentor Louis Sullivan.Wright fell in love with Mamah Cheney, the wife of a wealthy client,and they ran off together. They settled in Wright's dream home,Taliesin, ("Shining Brow" in Welsh) near Spring Green, Wis., but ademented servant set it on fire. Cheney and her children died in theblaze.
Sullivan's design maxim, "Form follows function," was evokedthroughout the opera. But Hagen's spare, evocative scoredemonstrated the truth of another famous architect's rule, Mies vander Rohe's "Less is more."
At points of high tension, during Cheney's disillusionedsoliloquy in Act I, for example, the orchestra was silent for longperiods. A lonely horn call might sound or a swell of strings mightaccompany the restless melody lines. But the orchestral writing wasas austere and carefully placed as the beams in Wright's homes.
The opera dragged slightly in the first act whenever Wright(sung and acted with intense commitment by Michael Sokol) expoundedon his design theories. But Hagen and Muldoon managed to turn adebate about order in the universe into a riveting operatic scene.Stunned by the wreckage at Taliesin, Wright and Cheney's husband,Edwin (Bradley Garvin), tried to make sense of the tragedy. EdwinCheney, weary and bitter, countered Wright's assertions of an ordereduniverse in which even tragedy has its place. In Cheney's deep,brittle melodies we felt his anger at once again hearing the ideasthat enthralled his wife and destroyed his marriage.
Barry Busse's light, unaffect ed tenor turned the brooding Sullivan into a very human figure.Carolann Page as Mamah Cheney was equally expressive as a woman tornby great love.
The sets, including the floating outline of a prairie houseroof, were imaginative.
"Shining Brow" will be repeated at 8 tonight and 2:30 p.m.Sunday in the Madison Civic Center, 211 State St., two blocks west ofthe capital building.
Tickets are $15 to $45. Call (608) 266-9055.
Cigarette maker Lorillard Inc. said Monday that its third-quarter profit dipped 1 percent, pinched by higher expenses and consumers tightening their spending.
The maker of Newport menthol cigarettes earned $235 million, or $1.44 per share, for the three months ended Sept. 30. That's down from $237 million, or $1.38 per share, a year ago.
The per share discrepancy is a result of fewer shares outstanding in the current quarter.
Lorillard, whose other brands include Kent, True and Maverick, said revenue climbed 26 percent to $1.42 billion from $1.13 billion on higher prices, offset by selling fewer cigarettes and spending more on promotions. Excluding excise taxes, revenue grew 2 percent to $953 million from $936 million.
Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters, whose estimates normally exclude one-time items, forecast a profit of $1.52 per share on revenue of $1.32 billion.
Its shares fell $3.86, or about 4.8 percent, to $75.96 in morning trading Monday.
Lorillard's quarterly results were squeezed as selling, general and administrative expenses increased to $96 million from $88 million on legal expenses and pension costs.
The nation's third-largest cigarette maker, based in Greensboro, N.C., also faced declining volumes of full-price brands such as Max and Newport, while those for value brands like Old Gold and Maverick grew. Some smokers have traded down to cheaper cigarette brands during the recession in an effort to cut spending.
Lorillard said domestic cigarette volumes declined 6.1 percent during the period, compared with a total industry decline of 12.6 percent. The company saw a 9.8 percent decline in volumes for its Newport brand, but a 51.9 percent increase in its value-priced Maverick brand. Newport's domestic retail market share rose 0.28 points to 10.29 percent compared with a year earlier, Lorillard said.
Its largest competitors _ Altria Group Inc. and Reynolds American Inc. _ reported third-quarter profits last week.
Domestic cigarette volumes fell across the board, with industry estimates of the decline reaching more than 12 percent.
Shipments fell during the first half of the year before and after a 62-cent-per pack federal tax increase took effect April 1. Investors were closely watching the industry's third-quarter reports for the first clear sense of cigarette volumes following market disruptions from the increase.
Altria Group Inc. _ owner of the nation's biggest cigarette maker, Philip Morris USA, which makes Marlboro _ said cost-cutting and higher cigar sales helped its third-quarter profit rise, even though it sold fewer cigarettes. Altria said its overall cigarette volume fell 12 percent for the quarter, and it estimated a 10 percent drop industrywide.
Reynolds American Inc. _ the second-biggest cigarette seller in the U.S. and maker of Camel and Pall Mall _ recorded 72 percent higher profit than in last year's third quarter, when restructuring costs and the falling value of its trademarks dampened its earnings. It said its estimated 11 percent drop in volume was better than the industry's decline, which it pegged at 12.6 percent.
Lorillard, the oldest continuously operating U.S. tobacco company, was spun off from Loews Corp. in June 2008.
DETROIT (AP) — In a June 9 story about Audrina Patridge filming a web series in Detroit, The Associated Press, relying on information provided by the production, erroneously reported the surname of the character being portrayed by Patridge. The character's name is Tracy James, not Tracy Jacobs.
Cigarettes are out. Cigars are in.
That's at least according to Altria, which on Thursday agreed to spend $2.9 billion cash for John Middleton, maker of large, machine-made cigars.
With cigarette consumption steadily declining in the U.S., Altria has looked for products, such as cigars and smokeless tobacco, to replace those losses. Altria Group owns Philip Morris USA, maker of brands like Marlboro, Virginia Slims, Parliament and Basic, and started earlier this year to use its recognizable Marlboro brand to test market smokeless products in the Dallas/Fort Worth and Atlanta metropolitan areas.
"It fits squarely with our announced strategy to grow our U.S. tobacco business beyond cigarettes and complements our recent initiatives in the smokeless category," Philip Morris USA chief executive Michael Szymanczyk said in a statement. In the third quarter, domestic cigarette volume declined between 3 percent to 4 percent.
In the deal to buy John Middleton Inc., maker of Black & Mild cigars, Altria Group Inc. said the purchase price includes about $700 million in tax benefits. Excluding those benefits, the acquisition is valued at $2.2 billion.
The company said it will finance the deal with existing cash. Altria is buying John Middleton from privately held Bradford Holdings.
"The business provides a growing stream of operating income to Altria's very mature U.S. cigarette franchise, as well as a broader platform for future growth," Morgan Stanley analyst David Adelman told investors in a research note. He criticized Altria for paying what he said was "full price," however.
The acquisition comes as Altria prepares to spin off its Philip Morris International division. The board is expected to announce the exact timing of the spinoff on Jan. 30. The split, analysts say, would free the international unit to more aggressively pursue sales in emerging markets without the legal and regulatory constraints the U.S. unit faces.
John Middleton makes large machine-made cigars. The research group Information Resources Inc. estimates the company holds about 24 percent of the total retail cigar market in the U.S. Nearly all of its share, or 23 percent of the total market, comes from its Black & Mild brand.
Altria estimated the growth rate for large machine-made cigars was 4 percent annually from 2003 to 2007.
Altria said it expects John Middleton's revenue to reach $360 million in 2007 and operating income to hit about $183 million. Altria said it expects the deal to close by the end of the year. The acquisition should add to earnings next year.
John Middleton's headquarters are in King of Prussia, Pa.
Altria's break-up plans call for consolidating domestic cigarette production in Richmond, Va., and moving all international manufacturing to plants outside the U.S. Philip Morris International is based in Lausanne, Switzerland.
Besides the Philip Morris units, Altria owns a 29 percent stake in London-based SABMiller PLC, which brews Miller Lite beer.
The spin off of Philip Morris International is the next step in a restructuring that started with the spin-off of its majority stake in Kraft Foods Inc. in March.
Altria, the parent company now based in New York, will move its headquarters to Richmond, where Philip Morris USA is located, and cut 400 jobs. It has also opened a research center in Richmond to develop new products to replace cigarettes.
Altria shares fell 84 cents to $72.09 in afternoon trade Thursday.
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AP Business Writer Lauren Shepherd in New York contributed to this report.
(This version CORRECTS estimate of John Middleton's U.S. cigar market share; SUBSTITUTES independent estimates.)
The Bears were smiling Saturday night after the first three roundsof the draft and not just because of their top picks.
Still on the board was a pass-rushing threat they eyed all along,Florida's Alex Brown, a player who showed star quality at times infour seasons with the Gators. General manager Jerry Angelo took Brownon Sunday with the sixth pick in the fourth round, a selectionacquired the day before in a trade with the Dallas Cowboys.
Angelo capped his first draft running the organization by fillingneeds with versatile players who should improve team speed. But forthis draft to be considered great in several years, the 6-3, 260-pound Brown must validate defensive coordinator Greg Blache'sassertion that he could be the steal of the weekend as the 104thoverall pick.
"He's got a lot of talent and a lot of upside," Blache said.
The reason Brown was the 10th end picked was his knack fordisappearing for stretches of plays, a knock he didn't fight.
"Oh man, yes," Brown said. "I agree with the criticism. I think aplayer can be more consistent. I think any player can hustle a littlebit more. I have a lot of things inside of me that will cause me toreally get out there and give it every last breath I have. They got agreat player."
Brown will first meet his teammates in minicamp, which runs Fridaythrough Sunday at Halas Hall. Strong safety Bobby Gray of LouisianaTech and weak-side linebacker Bryan Knight of Pittsburgh were draftedin the fifth round and Georgia Southern running back Adrian Peterson,Delaware wide receiver Jamin Elliott and UCLA tight end BryanFletcher were taken in the sixth round.
It was a different situation for coach Dick Jauron, waiting untilthe end of most rounds to make a choice.
"I would say it was more anxiety," Jauron said. "Up near the topyou've got a real good idea of who you're going to get. At 29 and 30,we didn't know. A nice difference? I guess."
Brown hopes to fill the need for a pure edge rusher. A defensiveend has led the team in sacks just twice since 1995, and that wasdone once by aging veteran Clyde Simmons. Brown replaced Jevon Kearseat Florida and opened eyes as a sophomore in 1999 when he made fivesacks and intercepted a pass against Tennessee. He kept track of theends who were taken ahead of him, reacting with disappointment aseach was called.
"There were a couple names and I was thinking maybe what you didat the combine is what matters," said Brown, who did not work out inIndianapolis. "I feel I am better than every last one but I have toget out there and prove it."
Blache already had a talk with Brown.
"People make decisions in their life, what they can achieve,"Blache said. "He's got to live in that locker room, and there's a lotof pressure in that locker room."
Three picks, including Tuskegee cornerback Roosevelt Williamstaken in the third round Saturday, will have the pressure of provingthemselves coming from small programs. Peterson is an intriguingchange-of-pace back who will be in the mix behind Anthony Thomas andLeon Johnson. He is college football's all-time leading rusher with6,543 yards and has excellent balance, particularly after the pointof contact. Scouts have compared him to former Pittsburgh Steelersstandout Barry Foster and Oakland Raiders star Kenny King.
"I can't wait to see him again," Jauron said. "I just have a greatfeeling about this young man."
The Bears believe Gray can challenge for a spot quickly, but hespent most of his college career in the box and developing coverskills will be a priority.
Overall, the needs on the offensive line were addressed Saturdaywith first-round pick Marc Colombo, a left tackle, and right tackle/guard prospect Terrence Metcalf. Williams and Gray fill secondaryvoids created by the loss of Walt Harris and Tony Parrish. When Browndetermines if he slipped too far, the Bears will know what theyreally have. Angelo insists there are no fourth-round busts. Thereare fourth-round sensations.
"I don't know why I fell but I want to get rid of all of thosethoughts," Brown said.
NOTES: The Bears agreed to terms with Illinois center Luke Butkusand Illini punter Steve Fitts. Butkus, a third-team Associated PressAll-American, is the nephew of Bears legend Dick Butkus. Fitts, whowas second-team All-Big Ten last fall, is Illinois' career leader inpunts (247), punting yardage (10,307) and punting average (41.7).
More free-agent signings are expected to be announced today.
*A decision on Shane Matthews will be made this week. The startingquarterback at the start of 2001 is expected to be released after sixseasons.
Q: Is it ethical to use gender-laden terms, like "sharp-tongued" or "outspoken" when your opponent is a woman?
A: Using a gender stereotype to undermine a woman's credibility may be politically expedient, but it is not ethical. This applies to racial and other stereotypes as well. The use of speech that reinforces unjust structures of oppression is unethical. If the behavior of a candidate is negative, a description of the behavior (he hurled a stack of papers at her when he shouted her down, or she raised her voice to disagree) allows voters to draw their own conclusions.
Q: Should Congress pass a law to require campaign consultants to wait a year before becoming lobbyists? Or do you think it's appropriate for lobbyists to also serve as campaign consultants?
A: I consulted a friend who has extensive experience as a campaign consultant on this question. We agreed there should be a law and a firewall between the two. Having a campaign consultant simultaneously involved in lobbying compromises the public well-being that candidates for office are entrusted to protect. For example, if a drug company is dumping toxins in a river and employs a lobbyist who also works for a candidate who would have responsibility for regulating pharmaceutical compliance with environmental protection laws, the consultant would either face a major conflict of interest or be faced with a difficult choice about which to support, the company or the candidate.
Q: If an elected official owns stock in a company, should they be required to recuse themselves from any votes that could impact that company or industry? Or is it enough that they have to disclose all ties to the company in financial disclosure forms?
A: I would suspect that the more scrupulously ethical officials are, the more likely they would be to recuse themselves to avoid even the semblance of conflicts of interest.
Financial disclosure forms do not do enough to protect the public from the consequences of someone who votes out of pecuniary personal interest. "Throw the bums out" later is not as effective as keeping people from acting like bums in the first place. We should require elected officials to recuse themselves.
Q: If one candidate is invited to speak to a religious group, do their opponents have the right of getting equal time?
A: First, legally, yes. However, this question raises several issues related to religious freedom, IRS laws and the ethics of truth telling. Taxexempt status allows public monetary support of faith institutions, which serve their communities. A religious group is free to invite a candidate to speak, but must welcome his or her opponent as well. Alternately, a candidate can appear as an individual, but must avoid mentioning their candidacy.
If a nonprofit wants to refuse to allow the opposition candidate to speak, it should consider whether the greater good of the group and the society would be served by its forfeiture of its tax-exempt status. If it wants to retain this status, it must obey the law. Organizations that willfully violate non-profit rules and then deny doing so act unethically.
At a deeper level, beyond the IRS question, lies the question of free information for discerning truthclaims and making decisions. Are truth and the greater political good served by an organization that offers its members a narrow partisan view as the basis of a voting decision?
Sometimes, truth is better served when the devil is allowed to speak in public.
[Author Affiliation]
Dr. Rita Nakashima Brock is co-author of the critically acclaimed Proverbs of Ashes. She also co-authored Casting Stones: Prostitution and Liberation in Asia and the United States, which won the 1996 Catholic Press Award for gender studies. She directed the Radcliffe Institute Fellowship Program at Harvard University from 1997 to 2001, and is currently a visiting scholar at the Starr King School for the Ministry in Berkeley, Calif.
Venezuela's state news agency says three engineers have been charged with presumed involvement in a power outage across central and western Venezuela.
The state-run Bolivarian News Agency says a local court in Venezuela's southern city of Ciudad Guayana has charged the maintenance workers with the "culpable favoring of sabotage."
They were employed by state-owned electricity company Electrificacion del Caroni CA.
The blackout left Venezuela's capital and 10 states without power for some 45 minutes Sunday.
Gen. Hipolito Izquierdo of the National Electric Corp. called it "strange" that the failure occurred on a low-demand day.
British police say they were forced to break off their pursuit of the gunman who killed a dozen people across a rural area in northern England last week because he turned the weapon on unarmed officers.
Police said Monday that they weren't in a position to halt Derrick Bird's deadly rampage. One officer commandeered a cab to follow Bird but abandoned the chase to help two of his victims. A police van then took up the chase, but Bird shook them off by pointing his gun at them, forcing the officers to duck for cover.
Twelve people were killed and another 11 people were seriously wounded during Bird's rampage Wednesday across the northern county of Cumbria. Police have said Bird was being investigated by tax officials and may also have feuded with his family and colleagues.
SPRINGFIELD When it comes to changing the way the state cares forchildren at risk of neglect or abuse, there's no shortage of ideasfor and from the Legislature.
In the last few months, about a half-dozen reports havecriticized the state's child welfare system and recommended ways toimprove the Department of Children and Family Services and otherentities.
Most were prompted by the hanging of 3-year-old Joseph Wallacelast April and an ensuing series of high-profile failures by thestate to protect children, even when there were warning signs ofabuse and neglect.
The legislative response has been a mishmash of bills - somederiving from the reports and some from lawmakers' own ideas -attacking the problem on a broad front. The proposals range fromidentifying at-risk children at birth to investigating thecircumstances under which some die.
But getting the various individuals and groups in the childwelfare system to agree on a legislative solution possibly will beeven more difficult than getting Democrats and Republicans to agree.
"There's a general agreement there is a serious problem but noagreement on how best to solve it," said Rep. Barbara Flynn Currie(D-Chicago). "There are a variety of interests involved, all of themwilling to identify others as the problem."
There is also disagreement about the degree to which theLegislature should be involved. Gaylord Gieseke, projects directorfor Voices for Illinois Children, one of the leading child advocacygroups, said many bills simply sidetrack DCFS on its road to reform.
"I don't want to imply there isn't a role for legislators toplay, but we can't look to them to solve everything," she said."Less legislation is better than more . . . you don't always needlegislation to get change."
Republicans tend to agree, generally favoring letting the agencytry to address its problems without legislative action. That is alsothe view of DCFS Director Sterling "Mac" Ryder, who opposes many ofthe current bills.
He said his agency's reform agenda already is spelled out in aconsent decree designed to settle a federal lawsuit alleging thestate failed to provide a safe haven for mistreated children.
"We are doing a terrific job, under trying circumstances and ina short time . . . but we are still probably behind where I think weought to be," he told a House committee recently.
But Democrats see a bigger role for the Legislature in mandatingchange.
"To be quite frank, most of this could be done withoutlegislation, but left to their own devices, (DCFS officials) won't doit," said Rep. Thomas J. Dart (D-Chicago). Dart and Rep. Jay C.Hoffman (D-Collinsville), who co-chaired a House subcommittee onchild welfare formed in response to the Wallace case, unveiledpreliminary legislative proposals last week.
One of their key recommendations is to establish programs toidentify at-risk families and children at birth to prevent abuse andneglect before it begins. A similar proposal, sponsored by SenateMinority Leader Emil Jones (D-Chicago), is one of the fewchild-welfare proposals to emerge from the Republican-controlledSenate so far this year.
The subcommittee proposals also include beefing updrug-treatment programs, strengthening child abuse reporting laws,establishing a "bill of rights and responsibilities" for fosterparents, and creating a unified code of child welfare laws. DCFSofficials said the agency has implemented or started to implementmost of the subcommittee's proposals.
Cook County Chief Judge Harry Comerford, who hosted a childwelfare summit with Gov. Edgar and legislative leaders in January,also is expected to issue a legislative wish list soon.
The Legislature in January approved one idea from the summit,creating a pilot project to ease the burden on juvenile court judgesby turning over many duties to hearing officers.
Lawmakers also approved a few changes last year, such as aproposal making a child's "best interest" the main factor in decidingwhether they should be returned to abusive parents. .
Ryder acknowledges the Legislature has a role in reform. Inparticular, he needs them to agree to Edgar's proposal to increasethe DCFS budget to $1.05 billion, a $153 million increase. The moneyis needed to continue to implement the consent decree, Ryder said.He also supports a plan to make it easier for parental rights to beended and abused children to be adopted. The Senate passed that billlast week.
And DCFS wants to create three or four "transitional centers" inChicago public housing that would house 50 to 100 children for up tosix months at a time, a plan that is sure to come under fire fromlegislators who feel the CHA is an inappropriate location.
Other bills that are working their way through the legislativeprocess: Rep. John A. Ostenburg (D-Park Forest), who chairs a special Housetask force on children, wants to establish a coordinated program forproviding social services to children who come in contact with thechild welfare system. Hoffman is sponsoring two bills, now on the House floor, to createteams of child welfare professionals to quickly investigate deaths ofchildren and to review certain cases of abuse and neglect. Rep. Judy Biggert (R-Hinsdale), a member of the specialsubcommittee who criticized its report last week for excluding inputfrom Republicans, wants to create a Child Abuse Task Force to developguidelines to be used to identify and provide services to victims ofsexual abuse and help medical workers identify and treat abusevictims.
Personality, Negative Social Interactions, and Depressive Symptoms
Abstract
The present study examined the associations among the frequency of negative social interactions, personality traits, and depressive symptoms in university students. Subjects completed measures of negative social interactions, sociotropy, autonomy, perfectionism, and depressive symptoms. It was found in the total sample that higher depression symptoms scores were correlated significantly with the frequency of negative social interactions, sociotropy, autonomy, and socially prescribed perfectionism. Additional results indicated that the frequency of negative social interactions accounted for unique …
Afghan President Hamid Karzai met with Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday and discussed regional cooperation, the safety and security of Indians working on development projects and an upcoming peace conference in Afghanistan.
Over the past decade, India has spent millions of dollars to help rebuild Afghanistan's war-ravaged infrastructure by building roads, schools, hospitals and dams. India is also involved in training the country's police forces and its diplomatic corps.
However, New Delhi has been concerned about continuing assaults on Indian targets by Taliban and al-Qaida insurgents, including two major bomb attacks on the Indian Embassy in …
Ultrasonics International Corp., a manufacturer and distributor of ultrasonic cleaning systems, will be opening a satellite office at the Haskell Business Park in January.
The office will have just three or four employees and serve as the headquarters for the sales and marketing division, said Steven Fane, …
As a public power organization, you have all the needs of a large investor-owned utility, but a fraction of the resources. You build substations, collect payments, read meters, manage your finances, and contend with outages.
And, just like your larger cousins, you manage projects. Whether implementing an enterprise software solution, building a new substation, or equipping your meters with automatic meter reading devices, you address the challenges of realizing project goals on time and on budget. IOU, Inc. has the resources to retain a staff of project management professionals and provide an impressive, three-inch binder detailing their project methodology. You are fortunate to claim one or two individuals with "manage projects" on their resume.
What options does your organization have to build and sustain the environment where projects thrive? One possibility is the implementation of an enterprise project management solution (EPMS).
What is an EPMS and what can it do for me?
An EPMS provides the central location from which to manage your projects and increase their visibility throughout your organization. It supports resource management, creation, and …
Byline: Dan Lynch
There's a wonderful scene in `Dallas North Forty` in which an NFL receiver is being berated by other players for lacking sufficient team spirit. The other players criticize him because he's not sufficiently loyal to the team, and they are that team.
The player explains to his colleagues, ``You don't get it, do you? We're not the team. We're the equipment, like the helmets and the shoulder pads and the jockstraps.'' Then the receiver points to the door of the owner's office and shouts, ``They're the team, you morons.''
In a quite literal sense, that was never more true in pro sports than it is these days. Baseball is the most conspicuous example.
There was a time when …
German energy company E.On said Tuesday that its net profit rose 9 percent in 2008 on higher sales, but that 2009 earnings would likely fall 10 percent due to the higher cost of debt.
The Duesseldorf-based company said it plans to reduce investments over the next three years and sell off assets worth euro10 billion by the end of 2010.
Net profit for the electricity and gas supplier increased to euro5.6 billion ($7.1 billion) in the full year 2008, from euro5.1 billion in 2007.
Sales for the year rose 35 percent to euro86.8 billion, from euro64.1 billion, the company said, without providing fourth quarter figures.
"The outlook for …
Braves 5, phillies 3
John Thomson is more comfortable as a starting pitcher.
It sure showed in his first start of the season.
Thomson pitched five strong innings and also helped outoffensively with a two-run double, helping the Atlanta Braves wintheir home opener over the Philadelphia Phillies on Monday night.
Marcus Giles hit a tiebreaking homer in the seventh, and AndruwJones also homered for the Braves.
Thomson didn't even start the season in Atlanta's rotation. He wasthe odd man out of a six-way contest in the spring, but reclaimed hisfamiliar role after Horacio Ramirez went on the disabled list.
"I've been doing this my whole life," said …
The B.E. 100s are working every angle to gain the competitive upper hand and stave off the competition
THEY'VE BEEN REVAMPED, RESTRUCTURED AND REBORN. OVER the past decade, the chief executives of America's largest black-owned businesses have repositioned their companies for the 21st century through a deft combination of strategic planning, expansion and innovation. As a result, the concerns that comprise the BLACK ENTERPRISE INDUSTRIAL/SERVICE 100S have conquered new markets and targeted select niches.
Of course, these companies have been the beneficiaries of the eighth straight year of economic growth, but their success can be traced to more than macroeconomics. Learning from the past and anticipating the future, the CEOs focus on developing superior business models by identifying contemporary trends and applying capital, time and skills. The proof has been in the performance: in 1999, the total revenues for the BE INDUSTRIAL/SERVICE 100s were $8.77 billion, a 13.48% increase from $7.73 billion in 1998. But what was significant was the growth of the number of such enterprises that grossed $150 million or more. There are 16 such companies on the 2000 list, compared to 11 in 1999.
There was significant growth in the number of employees as well. Last year, 67,647 employees received paychecks from the BE INDUSTRIAL/SERVICE 100s, a 13.41% increase from 1998. Detroit-based Hawkins Food Group (No. 12 on the BE INDUSTRIAL/SERVICE 100 list with $176.2 million in gross sales) had the greatest number of personnel among the industrial/service employment leaders (see chart). The company employed 6,693 people last year (an employee-to-sales ratio of 1 to $26,000).
[Chart OMITTED]
Such growth will continue as the BE INDUSTRIAL/SERVICE 100s starts its next chapter. And a number of factors will impact its future: the ascent of tech firms; the application of digital solutions to old-line businesses; the use of capital markets to raise financing; and the identification of the next, big profitable thing. In fact, this year's growth leaders provide valuable dues to such future developments.
THE LEAP TO LEADERSHIP
Last year, several firms made huge leaps in revenues, providing solid platforms for advancement. But the ascension of World Wide Technology Inc. (WWT) was a watershed event. A pure product of the New Economy--an environment marked by surging consumer confidence, a bullish, yet volatile, stock market and dazzling technology--WWT, a St. Louis distributor of information technology products, made a list-rocking jump of 105.5%, from $201 million in 1998 to $413 million in 1999. As a result, the high-tech dynamo became the new leader of the BE INDUSTRIAL /SERVICE 100 list, beating out such Old Economy mainstays as Philadelphia Coca-Cola Bottling Co., (No. 2 on the BE INDUSTRIAL/SERVICE 100 list with $395 million in gross sales), and Johnson Publishing Co. (No. 3 on the BE INDUSTRIAL/SERVICE 100 list, with $386.8 million in gross sales). Not too shabby for the 1999 BE Company of the Year.
What factors accounted for such revenue growth? CEO David L. Steward pushed his company to astronomical heights using three different "e-marketplaces" launched in 1999: telcobuy.com to serve the telecommunications sector; fedbuy.com for federal government contract projects and ugsource.com to accommodate the commercial sector. These e-marketplaces generated 75% of WWT's revenues. "The utilization of the Web has allowed us to grow the business, bring value to customers and supplier relationships and drive down the cost of business," asserts Steward. "We can accommodate large customers without diminishing the level of service or driving up costs. [The e-marketplaces] have changed the way we do business with our partners and clients. The availability of information is much broader and deeper than ever before. Customers can go out and get what they need to do business with us."
Other prominent revenue generators could be found among those concerns involved in tech sectors, ranging from information technology to telecommunications. One such company wired for growth was Washington Cable Supply Inc. (WCS is No. 7 on the BE INDUSTRIAL/SERVICE 100 list), a Lanham, Maryland, electrical and telecommunications equipment distributor. Hailed as members of BE's New Power Generation, the husband-and-wife team of William and Beverly Parker increased sales 185.3%, from $74.3 million in 1998 to $212 million last year, by snaring lucrative contracts with AT&T totaling more than $100 million. The high-flying concern was tapped to handle material management for fiber optic network equipment. The linchpin of the deal was WCS becoming the first company to sign a joint marketing agreement with Lucent Technologies' Business Solution Provider Alliance. The AT&T spin-off chose WCS because it had the financing, technical and electronic commerce capabilities to become one of its value-added resellers. The deals, according to CEO William Parker, will position WCS to further upgrade technical skills and establish the funds to expand the business through mergers and acquisitions.
Other high-charging tech firms included Annapolis, Maryland-based Telecommunications Systems Inc. (No. 61 on the BE INDUSTRIAL/SERVICE 100 list), the wireless communications infrastructure developer that boosted sales 79.5%, from $25.4 million in 1998 to $45.6 million in 1999. Newcomer WireAmerica of Indiana's 97.2% gain pushed sales from $22.4 million to $44.1 million, earning the 64th slot on the list. And Mount Prospect, Illinois-based Sayers (No. 14 on the BE INDUSTRIAL/SERVICE 100 list), the computer sales and service firm run by former Chicago Bears' running back Gale Sayers scored big: total sales sprinted from $110 million in 1998 to $161 million in 1999, a 46.4% increase.
OLD ECONOMY FIRMS FIGHT BACK
A number of so-called Old Economy companies--firms in mature service and industrial sectors--saw significant dips in revenues. For example, restaurant and food contract services company Thompson Hospitality Corp. (No. 91 on the BE INDUSTRIAL/SERVICE 100 list) saw sales plummet from $43.5 million to $29 million. And automotive coatings and castings company, Wesley Industries Inc. (No. 39 on the BE INDUSTRIAL/SERVICE 100 list) realized a precipitous 26.3% drop, from $95 million in gross sales to $70 million.
Other old-line companies in the automotive sector have embraced the philosophy of strength in numbers. CEO William Pickard restructured Regal Plastics by folding the concern into a holding company with five other auto suppliers he owns. As a result, he turned a $63 million vendor into Global Automotive Alliance L.L.C. (No. 19 on the BE INDUSTRIAL/SERVICE 100 list) a $144 million juggernaut capable of pursuing multimillion-dollar auto parts contracts.
In Portland, Oregon, United Energy Inc. & Subsidiaries (No. 43 on the BE INDUSTRIAL/SERVICE 100 list), a petroleum distribution firm, saw its gross revenues climb 100% from $33 million in 1998 to $66 million in 1999. The reason for the spike: the rising price of oil. But CEO James Winters is not resting on his gusher. So customers can track usage, volume and orders, he is in the process of building a Web-based database. And with an eye toward diversification, he has begun to expand into food-services operations. "We acquired 11 Taco Bell restaurants in the Bay area last year," he says. "We're on track to do about $100 million [in business] this year."
THE CHANGE IN COMPOSITION
Typical of the BE INDUSTRIAL/SERVICE 100, the list had a number of companies coming and going. Fifteen companies left the list because of divestitures or bankruptcies, failure to meet eligibility, or they simply did not meet the revenue floor. The most noteworthy exclusion was TLC Beatrice International Holdings Inc., the global food manufacturer and distributor and the only BE 100s company to break the $2 …
Byline: Rotman School of Management
TORONTO, Oct. 14 (AScribe Newswire) -- A unique competition with a focus on corporate social responsibility at the University of Toronto's Rotman School of Management will bring MBA students from across North America to Toronto on November 22.
In the 3rd annual Rotman Net Impact CSR Case Competition, students will compete to solve a business challenge using social and environmental factors in addition to the bottom line.
"This is an exciting way of introducing CSR to students," says Daniel Ludwin, competition chair and Rotman MBA student. "With their involvement in the competition, hopefully, the participants will …
One bright light in this comparatively modest economic recovery has been capital spending by U.S. businesses. While the overall economy has managed to expand less than 3.0% on average over the past three years, capital equipment spending has grown at a double-digit rate.
The computer and communications industries have benefited disproportionately from this investment boom. Information processing equipment now accounts for more than a third of business equipment investment. The size and nature of the investment boom has therefore fueled much of the tremendous demand for semiconductors and other electronic components.
What will happen next? Information …
Byline: Washington Post
A District of Columbia Superior Court judge has ordered the spouse of a Washington Post reporter to testify in a civil lawsuit and warned journalists that they jeopardize the confidentiality of sources by talking about them with friends.
Judge Richard A. Levie said he could not accept the Post's contention that the First Amendment, which provides some protections to reporters and their confidential sources, should also extend to "a spouse or close companion, who shares an intimate or confidential relationship with a reporter."
In his ruling Tuesday, Levie asserted that "a reporter who compromises in any way the …
| Texas @ Toronto @ |
| ab r h bi @ ab r h bi |
| Andrus ss 4 0 0 0 FLewis rf 4 1 1 0 |
| MYong 3b 4 0 1 0 A.Hill 2b 4 0 1 0 |
| Hamltn cf 4 0 0 0 Lind lf 4 0 1 1 |
| Guerrr dh 4 0 1 0 McCoy lf 0 0 0 0 |
| N.Cruz rf 4 0 1 0 V.Wells cf 4 1 1 0 |
| DvMrp lf 3 0 1 0 Overay 1b … |
TOKYO (AP) — World No. 1 Rafael Nadal needed two tiebreaks and a last-gasp service break to beat unseeded Viktor Troicki on Saturday and claim his place in the Japan Open final against Gael Monfils of France.
Troicki served for the match in the third set, but Nadal broke and squeezed by in a tight tiebreak to win 7-6 (4), 4-6, 7-6 (7).
The Spaniard, who stayed out late to watch a football game after breezing through Friday night's quarterfinal, started off slowly against Troicki, ranked 54th in the world.
Both players held their service games, but Nadal turned up the power in the tiebreaker and sealed the first set with an ace.
Troicki took the first two games of …
Although the number of construction projects appears to be down so far this summer in Bellingham, there is a larger amount of bigger projects under way to keep both general contractors and subcontractors relatively busy this summer.
For the first five months of the year, there have been 387 building permits issued, compared to 401 permits issued for the same period last year, according to the City of Bellingham Building Services Division. However, the amount of money being spent on construction has skyrocketed to $66.4 million for this year, compared to $51.3 million for the first five months of 2001.
"With St. Joseph Hospital, Western Washington University, Bellingham Technical College and Lowe's working on huge projects this summer, that would explain the high valuation numbers," said Preston Burr, manager of the city's Building Services Division.
It's not just large, new buidings that are propping up the valuation numbers. The biggest jump has been in commercial alterations or remodels. So far this year, 103 commercial alteration permits have been issued, with construction costs at $23.2 million. For the same period last year, 98 permits were issued, but the valuations for those permits totaled a mere $7 million.
With other large projects expected to get …
A touch of Hollywood glitz will be putting some film-making fizz into Buxton this summer.
The University of Derby College, Buxton, is running a series of courses starting in May aimed at raising the quality of scriptwriting and film production in the UK.
Designed in collaboration with the UK Film Council, the courses are being run by the College's Media Production Lecturer Colin Dyter.
He has written and directed many short films with his company, FunnyboneUK, and has written comedy for television programme Spitting Image, and comedians such as Dave Allen and Les Dawson.
He said: "It is recognised that the British film industry is …
WASHINGTON -- The Securities and Exchange Commission Wednesday proposed giving companies that own risky derivatives a ``safe harbor'' from lawsuits if they make forecasts of investment risks that are accompanied by cautionary statements.
The SEC plan, which is open for public comment until May 20, seeks to incorporate a new law aimed at curbing …
Tito Scajano, FCIC, was recognized in late November as being at the forefront of research, the reason for his win of the 2002 Gerhard Herzberg Canada Gold Medal for Science and Engineering. The University of Ottawa chemist's meticulous, three-decades-long probing of the interactions of light and molecules have led to major advances in free radicals and antioxidants, photo-activated pharmaceuticals, and sunscreens. The prize guarantees that Scaiano -- who with more than 500 journal articles to his name is Canada's most widely cited chemist -- will receive $250,000 over the next five years to supplement his existing research funding of $1 million from the Natural Sciences and …
The WTO panel report has found the EU special tariff preferences for 12 developing countries under its "Drug Arrangements", as prescribed in EU's GSP regulation, to be a violation of trade rules because these discriminate against other developing countries. The panel was formed on the request of India (later joined by Paraguay), which claimed the EU arrangement to be inconsistent with the principal of non-discrimination under Article 1.1 of GATT 1944.
Pakistan has been one of the beneficiaries of this scheme since January 2002. The incentive includes suspension of customs tariffs (effectively making it zero percent duty) on imports from these countries for all products except those …
Byline: Haas School of Business, UC Berkeley
BERKELEY, Calif., Nov. 18 (AScribe Newswire) -- Privatizing the U.S. mortgage market and eliminating Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac are the best ways to work toward stabilizing the U.S. housing finance system, says UC Berkeley real estate professor and economist Dwight Jaffee. "Fannie and Freddie must have a graceful burial as the first step toward creating a private and efficient U.S. mortgage market."
Jaffee has studied mortgage trends for more than 40 years. He recently spoke before the Financial Crisis Inquiry Commission (FCIC) and the President's Economic Recovery Advisory Board (PERAB) - two blue-ribbon panels …
