Justin Bieber, Jonah Hill hosting "SNL?" (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES, Jan 31 (TheWrap.com) ? Justin Bieber is confirmed as a first-time host and return musical guest on "Saturday Night Live" -- at least that's what Alec Baldwin revealed during his "Here's the Thing" podcast on WNYC.

Baldwin traveled to 30 Rock -- specifically, the office of "SNL" creator Lorne Michaels -- to chat with Michaels about his career and the late-night series. While describing Michaels' office, Baldwin focused in on a bulletin board that holds the names of "SNL" hosts for the whole season.

"The biggest names in the business are coming here thirty-something years (after the show's 1975 debut) to host the show," Baldwin says. "You have Ben Stiller, Melissa McCarthy, (who) won the Emmy award, and Katy Perry's coming and Jimmy Fallon, who's obviously double-dipping on your payroll, Jonah Hill, and I don't want to ruin any other names . Bieber's confirmed, he's the music and the (host)" .

"Yeah," Michaels replies.

Baldwin himself is the record holder for most times hosting "SNL," marking his 16th time as host with his stint as the season 37 premiere host in September.

Meanwhile, Oscar nominee Jonah Hill will make his second appearance as "SNL" host -- for the March 10 episode -- EW.com reports.

NBC did not immediately respond to TheWrap's request for comment on upcoming "SNL" hosts.

(Editing By Zorianna Kit)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/celebrity/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120131/music_nm/us_justinbieber_snl

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US stock futures dragged down by euro worries (AP)

NEW YORK ? U.S. stock futures are falling as uncertainty about a tentative deal to resolve Greece's debt crisis weighs on investor sentiment ahead of a summit of European leaders.

Dow Jones industrial futures are down 65 points to 12,549. The broader S&P 500 futures are down 7 points to 1,305. The Nasdaq composite is 14 points lower at 2,443.

The leaders gathering in Brussels hope to focus on how to stimulate economic growth when huge government spending cuts threaten to push many countries back into recession.

The latest data showed Spain's economy shrank in the last three months of 2011.

European markets also declined. In Asia, most indexes fell as investors reacted to Friday's release of data showing the U.S. economy grew more slowly than expected in the fourth quarter.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/stocks/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120130/ap_on_bi_st_ma_re/us_wall_street

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Obama uses tax proposals for his political message (AP)

WASHINGTON ? Aiming tax increases at millionaires and companies that ship jobs abroad may help frame the fairness theme of President Barack Obama's re-election campaign, but it's a plan that stands virtually no chance of passing Congress.

Republicans have enough votes in the GOP-run House, and almost certainly in the Democratic-controlled Senate, to kill Obama's proposals. They say his ideas would discourage investment and job creation and further hurt an already ailing economy.

"He's got to know that none of those things he proposed really have much of a chance of going through both houses of Congress," said Sen. Orrin Hatch of Utah, top Republican on the Senate Finance Committee.

"I don't think he's intending on passing any laws this year," said House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wis. "He's in a campaign. That was his re-election speech."

The GOP's dismissiveness hardly matters to Obama and his Democratic allies.

After last year's hyper-partisanship bogged down routine business like financing the government and paying its debts, few expect much to move through Congress before November's election anyway ? especially not tax hikes that Republicans solidly reject.

"Even if there is little prospect of getting Republicans to agree with these proposals, they're important reference points for the public in identifying Obama as someone who's on their side," said Democratic pollster Geoffrey Garin.

Obama offered his plans, with scant detail, in Tuesday's State of the Union address. He used the word "fair" seven times to describe tax increases aimed at groups the Occupy movement has branded as the "one percent" of Americans who are doing extremely well while the rest of society struggles.

The president proposed ending tax breaks for U.S. companies moving jobs or profits to foreign countries and creating a minimum tax on their overseas profits. He also suggested new tax breaks for businesses that move jobs back to the U.S., for domestic manufacturing and for companies that invest in towns that have suffered major job losses.

Getting most attention was his plan to tax incomes above $1 million annually at a rate of at least 30 percent. That's a sharp and convenient contrast with the 15 percent tax rate enjoyed by former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, a leading contender for the Republican presidential nomination, who earned about $21 million each of the past two years.

The proposals quickly became fodder for the GOP presidential contenders. Romney said the next day on CNBC's "Kudlow Report" that Obama's plan was "designed to come at me if I'm the nominee," and former House Speaker Newt Gingrich said during last Thursday's presidential debate, "His proposal on taxes would make the economy worse."

Democrats immediately made clear that there will be Senate votes this year on the subject.

New York Sen. Charles Schumer, part of the Senate Democratic leadership, said he was relishing a push on "some kind of Romney rule, I mean Buffett rule." Obama has embraced a Buffett rule, named for billionaire Warren Buffett, who has cited the inequity of laws that let him pay a lower tax rate than his secretary.

Such proposals, along with any efforts to deny tax breaks to U.S. companies that outsource jobs and profits, would never get the 60 votes they would need to prevail in the Senate this year, let alone win approval from the GOP-run House.

"If the president has proposals that will help create jobs, we'll take a look," said Michael Steel, spokesman for House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio. "But tax hikes on small businesses will make it even harder for them to invest and grow."

Republicans say boosting taxes on millionaires would hurt many of the people who run small businesses and create jobs, a claim Democrats call exaggerated. The GOP and business groups also marshal their own fairness argument, calling it unjust and impractical to raise taxes on companies that set up operations overseas.

"They locate their facilities to be close to the customer," said Dorothy Coleman, vice president for tax policy for the National Association of Manufacturers. "That's a big concern for us, targeting multinational companies as if there is something wrong with doing business overseas."

Democrats challenge that argument as well, saying many pharmaceutical and high technology companies that set up shop abroad are drawn by lower labor costs and taxes and still sell the bulk of their products in the U.S.

Those disputes underscore a political climate so difficult that neither the House nor Senate seem likely to even try advancing pre-election legislation that each party calls their top tax priority: overhauling and simplifying the tax code.

Even so, Obama's tax proposals can also be read as an opening gambit in what looms as a titanic partisan struggle to be waged after the November elections, perhaps in a lame duck session of Congress in December.

Next January, broad tax cuts will expire that were enacted under President George W. Bush in 2001 and 2003 and were temporarily renewed by Obama and Congress in 2010. At the same time, $1.2 trillion in automatic spending cuts will kick in unless lawmakers vote otherwise.

Congress will also need to renew the government's authority to borrow money. And action will be needed on a package of expiring smaller tax cuts, mostly for businesses, and on preventing the alternative minimum tax, originally aimed at the wealthy, from trapping middle- and upper-middle-income families as well.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120130/ap_on_go_pr_wh/us_congress_taxes

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St. Louis hosting 1st big parade on Iraq War's end (AP)

ST. LOUIS ? Crowds are gathering in downtown St. Louis to honor Iraq War veterans during the nation's first big welcome home parade since the last troops left Iraq in December.

Organizers say that while the Saturday afternoon event marks the end of the Iraq War, any military personnel involved in post-Sept. 11 conflicts are welcome to participate.

Since the war ended, there has been little fanfare for returning veterans. There have been gatherings at airports and military bases, but no ticker-tape parades or large public celebrations.

Two friends from St. Louis decided to change that. They sought donations, launched a Facebook page, met with the mayor and mapped a route.

They raised about $35,000, with more than half coming from Anheuser-Busch and the Mayflower moving company, which both have St. Louis ties.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/iraq/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120128/ap_on_re_us/us_iraq_war_parade

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Grammy-winning composer Clare Fischer dead at 83 (AP)

LOS ANGELES ? Clare Fischer, a Grammy-winning composer who wrote scores for television and movies and worked with legendary musicians like Dizzy Gillespie, has died. He was 83.

Fischer died Thursday at Providence Saint Joseph Medical Center in Burbank after suffering a heart attack two weeks ago, family spokeswoman Claris Sayadian-Dodge said.

An uncommonly versatile musician, Fischer worked as a composer, arranger, conductor and pianist for more than 60 years.

He is best known for his arrangements for Prince, Michael Jackson, Paul McCartney, Branford Marsalis, Raphael Saadiq, Usher and Brandy.

Nominated for a Grammy 11 times in the Best Instrumental Arrangement category, Fischer won in 1986 for his album "Free Fall" and in 1981 for "Salsa Picante plus 2+2."

Born in Durand, Mich., Fischer got his start playing piano and writing jazz-inspired arrangements for the group The Hi-Lo's, an a capella quartet popular in the 1950s.

He worked as the arranger on Gillespie's "Jazz Portrait of Duke Ellington."

Fischer recorded 51 albums over his lifetime with his son Brent Fischer. The music ranges in style from jazz to salsa to symphonies.

"Clare Fischer was a major influence on my harmonic concept," Herbie Hancock is quoted as saying on Fischer's website.

"(Fischer) and Bill Evans, and Ravel and Gil Evans, finally. You know, that's where it really came from. Almost all of the harmony that I play can be traced to one of those four people and whoever their influences were," Hancock said.

Clare Fischer is survived by his wife, Donna; sons Lee and Brent; daughter Tahlia; and three grandchildren.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/obits/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120128/ap_en_tv/us_obit_fischer

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What If I Ate Only One Type of Food? (LiveScience.com)

A British teenager collapsed and was rushed to the hospital this week after eating primarily chicken nuggets for the past 15 years. Stacey Irvine, 17, has reportedly survived on her nugget-heavy diet, occasionally supplemented by a bag of chips or piece of toast, since she was a toddler. Doctors have urgerd her to change her ways, but Irvine's case got us wondering: what would actually happen if you ate only one type of food for your entire life?

Depends on the poison you pick, but poison it most likely would be. According to Jo Ann Hattner, a nutrition consultant at Stanford University School of Medicine and former national spokesperson for the American Dietetic Association, choosing to eat only one fruit, vegetable or grain would lead to organ failure. Consuming only meat would eventually force your body to start munching on?your own muscles. And if you stuck solely to almost any one food (besides fruit), you would develop a serious case of scurvy.

"I wouldn't recommend this experiment," said Hattner, who also wrote "Gut Insight" (Hattner Nutrition, 2009), a book about digestive health.

No single vegetable or legume has all nine essential amino acids humans need to build the proteins that make up our muscles, Hattner said. That's why most human cultures, without knowing anything about food chemistry, have developed diets centered on complementary veggies that, together, provide all nine. At first, without all the right amino acids, your hair starts to lighten in color and your fingernails get soft. Much worse, "your lean body mass suffers. That doesn't just mean your muscles, but also your heart and your organs." Eventually, your heart shrinks so much you die; this happens, on occasion, with extreme cases of?anorexia nervosa.

Eating only one type of carbohydrate ? just bread or pasta, for example ? also causes organ failure, due to amino acid deficiency. On top of that, you'd get scurvy, a horrific disease brought on by lack of vitamin C, an essential component of many of the body's chemical reactions. Thanks to?highly unethical experiments?carried out on prison inmates in Britain and the United States in the 1940s, we know that scurvy hits after one to eight months of vitamin C deprivation (depending on the quantity one's body has stored to begin with). At first, you feel lethargic and your bones ache. Later, strange spots pop up all over your body and develop into suppurating wounds. You get jaundice, fever, tooth loss and, eventually, you die. [Why Don't Fad Diets Work?]

Life as a "meat purist" would also be a dead-end.

In addition to lacking vitamin C, most meats contain very few carbs ? the easy-to-access packets of energy your body constantly requires to perform even the smallest tasks. "Without carbohydrates, you're going to start to break down some of your muscle mass to get the energy," Hattner said. Again, "muscle" doesn't just mean your biceps. You'll be eating your own heart, too.

However, there is one food that has it all: the one that keeps babies alive. "The only food that provides all the nutrients that humans need is human milk," Hattner said. "Mother's milk is a complete food. We may add some solid foods to an infant's diet in the first year of life to provide more iron and other nutrients, but there is a little bit of everything in human milk."

Technically, adults could survive on?human milk, too, she said; the sticking point would be finding a woman who is willing to provide it (and enough of it). Lacking that option, the second-best choice would be mammalian milk, especially if it is fermented. "Yogurt, which is fermented milk, has a lot of bacteria that is good for the digestive tract," Hattner said.

These hypothetical scenarios aren't just whimsical speculation. In many parts of the world, people have no choice but to eat mostly one food: often, rice. Scientists are developing genetically modified rice that contains more vitamins and nutrients, especially vitamin A, in order to fight malnutrition.

Figuring out how to pack everything we need into one food is also useful for space travel, Hattner said. "The impetus of a lot of nutritional science is, 'How do we feed?people in space?' Scientists are trying to increase the nutritional concentration of food so you don't have a lot of bulk."

Follow Natalie Wolchover on Twitter @nattyover. Follow Life's Little Mysteries on Twitter @llmysteries, then join us on?Facebook.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/parenting/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/livescience/20120128/sc_livescience/whatifiateonlyonetypeoffood

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Obama courts Latino vote on economic tour (AP)

BUCKLEY AIR FORCE BASE, Colo. ? President Barack Obama is courting Hispanics in politically important states, setting himself up as a champion of the crucial Latino voting bloc and as a foil to Republican candidates fighting for a share of support from the same groups.

With Latino voters voting overwhelmingly Democratic, Obama is not in danger of losing the support of a majority of Hispanics. But he does need their intensity, and a Gallup tracking poll shows that while a majority of Hispanics approve of Obama, that approval is not as high as it is among black voters.

Pitching his economic agenda during a three-day, five-state trip this week, Obama has not ignored the fact that three of the states ? Nevada, Arizona and Colorado ? all have Hispanic populations of 20 percent or more. A majority of them are Democratic, but they also could be a factor in upcoming nominating contests in those states. Nevada and Colorado hold caucuses within two weeks and Arizona has a primary Feb. 28.

In Arizona Wednesday, where he was drawing attention to his efforts to increase manufacturing, Obama playfully interacted with a supporter who shouted out: "Barack es mi hermano! (Barack is my brother!)"

"Mi hermano ? mucho gusto (My brother, a real pleasure)," Obama shouted back.

And it was no accident that he scheduled an interview with Univision, the Spanish language network that reaches a broad swath of the U.S. Latino population, while he was in Arizona and with local Telemundo affiliates Thursday in Las Vegas and in Denver. All that while former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and the rest of the Republican presidential field were battling in Florida, another state with a key Latino voting bloc.

"It's an important community in this country and he will continue to have those interactions," White House spokesman Jay Carney said of Obama's efforts to reach out to Spanish language media.

No issue reverberates more in the appeal to Latinos than immigration.

For Obama, it reared up suddenly for him Wednesday when Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer, a Republican who signed one of the toughest laws to curtail illegal immigration, greeted him at the airport tarmac in Mesa, Ariz., with a handwritten invitation for the president to join her in a visit to the Mexican border.

Obama replied coolly, noting that he did not appreciate the way she had depicted him in a book she published last year, "Scorpions for Breakfast." In the book, Brewer writes that Obama was condescending and lectured her during a meeting at the White House to discuss immigration. "He was a little disturbed about my book," Brewer told two reporters shortly after the encounter.

Obama continued to promote his economic plan Thursday in Nevada and Colorado, focusing on energy policy and his attempts to expand oil and gas exploration while also emphasizing clean energy.

"Doubling down on a clean energy industry will create lots of jobs in the process," the president said at Buckley Air Force Base in Colorado, where the Air Force has installed solar panels and tested jets that run on biofuels.

As such, he was indirectly pitching to Hispanics as well. A new Pew Research Center poll found that 54 percent of Latinos believe that the economic downturn has been harder on them than on other groups in the U.S.

"There is no question that Latinos were hard hit, especially by the bursting of the housing bubble and the resulting steep decline in construction work," Carney said Thursday. "Latinos are overrepresented in the construction industry. It's one of the reasons why, certainly, Latinos would greatly benefit from infrastructure investments that put construction workers back to work."

In 2008, Obama beat Republican John McCain by a 2-1 margin among Hispanics.

To win again, he will need that level of enthusiasm to make up for weaknesses elsewhere in his voter support. In a bright spot for Obama, the Pew poll found that even though Hispanics believe their economic condition is poor, two-thirds of those polled said they expect their financial situation to improve over the next year, whereas 58 percent of the overall population expect the same.

In his interview with Univision, Obama made a point of noting that both Romney and Gingrich have said they would veto legislation, known as the DREAM Act, that would give a pathway to citizenship to children who came to the United States illegally but who attend college or enlist in the military.

"They believe that we should not provide a pathway to citizenship for young people who were brought here when they were very young children and are basically American kids but right now are still in a shadow," Obama said. "They've said that they would veto the DREAM Act. Both of them."

At a debate Monday on NBC, however, both Gingrich and Romney said they would support modified legislation that only applied to young people who joined the military. "I would not support the part that simply says everybody who goes to college is automatically waived for having broken the law," Gingrich said.

Obama, in the interview, explicitly connected the Republican presidential field to congressional Republicans, who suffer from bottom-dwelling approval ratings right now. Asked why he had been unable to deliver on his promise for overhauling the immigration system, Obama replied:

"Well, it's very simple. We couldn't get any Republican votes. Zero. None," he said. "So this is the kind of barrier that we're meeting in Congress. We're just going to keep on pushing and pushing until hopefully we finally get a break."

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/obama/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120126/ap_on_bi_ge/us_obama

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Video: Fiorina: Pro-Growth Policies Needed for Recovery

I don't think we are going to get the kind of substantial and sustainable recovery we need unless we put in place the policies that are pro-growth, says Carly Fiorina, former Hewlett-Packard chairman/CEO.

Related Links:

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Source: http://video.msnbc.msn.com/cnbc/46147158/

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Yahoo News Casually Smears Conservatives (Powerlineblog)

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

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/192065194?client_source=feed&format=rss

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Analysis: Obama speech puts him in campaign arena (AP)

WASHINGTON ? President Barack Obama, having watched his Republican adversaries pound him for weeks, got his turn Tuesday, using his State of the Union speech to land the first major counterpunch of the still-forming 2012 election.

It came before a prime-time audience of millions that the GOP candidates can only envy, even if their fiery debates are turning heads.

Obama didn't mention Mitt Romney or Newt Gingrich in his third State of the Union address. But the GOP contenders were never far from mind. Obama demanded economic fairness for Americans on the same day that Romney revealed paying a relatively modest 14 percent in taxes on his $21 million in 2010 income.

"You can call this class warfare all you want," Obama said, chiding Republicans. "But asking a billionaire to pay at least as much as his secretary in taxes? Most Americans would call that common sense."

Obama could not use the State of the Union's formal setting for a purely political speech, of course. But he invited a symbolically telling guest to the crowded House chamber: the secretary who works for investor Warren Buffett, a billionaire who says the U.S. tax code unwisely lets him pay a lower tax rate than his clerical staff.

Obama called his new proposal for a minimum 30 percent tax on millionaires the "Buffett rule."

It would have doubled Romney's tax bill. It also dings Gingrich, who wants to eliminate the capital gains tax. As Romney noted in Monday's GOP debate in Tampa, Fla., he would pay essentially no income taxes under Gingrich's plan.

The tax quarrel is one of the philosophical differences splitting the two parties, which have grown so hostile in Congress that it's impossible for the president to pass anything but the blandest of initiatives. Last year's showdowns over spending bills and the debt ceiling brought the government to the brink of shutdowns and triggered a credit rating downgrade.

Yet a number of lawmakers, especially those elected with tea party help, answer to constituents who detest compromise and say a federal government meltdown might not be a bad idea.

Congress' GOP leaders declared Obama's ideas dead in dismissive statements early Tuesday, hours before his speech. Obama went the through the motions anyway, pitching ideas for job training, clean energy and other topics.

These issues will play a role in the general election, once the GOP picks its nominee. But the dominant issue will be Obama's handling of jobs and the economy.

That severely limits his ability to focus on his first three years in office, except for foreign achievements such as the killing of Osama bin Laden. And it forces him to argue that he still can accomplish good things despite a bitterly gridlocked legislative branch.

Until Tuesday, the Republicans' wildly unpredictable presidential race had dominated political news, leaving Obama largely on the sidelines. Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, and Gingrich, the former House speaker, express open disdain for the president, blaming him for nearly every lost job and foreclosed home.

Romney was particularly pointed Tuesday in Tampa, one day after a Republican debate widely seen as his best in a while.

"High unemployment and record home foreclosures," Romney said. "Debt that's too high and opportunities that are too few. This is the real state of our union. But you won't hear stories like these in President Obama's address tonight."

Obama "will make the opening argument in his campaign against a `do-nothing Congress,'" Romney said. "It's shameful for a president to use the State of the Union to divide our nation."

Actually, a "do-nothing Congress" is only one of Obama's planned campaign themes. His aides know the economy might undo him, but they also detect big vulnerabilities in the Republican candidates.

Gingrich has a long history of unorthodox ideas, combative relations with supposed allies and lucrative Washington consulting contracts, which Romney is highlighting this week.

Romney's record at the corporate-restructuring firm Bain Capital proved to be a ho-hum issue in the Republican primary. But it might trouble independent voters next fall, when Democrats would paint Romney as an uncaring plutocrat who pays low taxes and eliminates jobs with barely a thought.

The approaching campaign might emancipate Obama in a sense. The gridlocked and toxically divisive capital can be a dreary place. He may not relish another grueling year of campaigning across the country. But at least he can get away from Washington and utter a few ideas without having them immediately declared dead, foolish or worse.

Obama likes the phrase, "You campaign in poetry but govern in prose." Today's more apt rendering might be, "You campaign in Reeboks and govern in leg irons."

Running shoes surely aren't the preferred attire of any president. They'd rather use the office's power and prestige to pursue policy goals.

In Washington's poisonous atmosphere, however, running for re-election might give Obama his best chance to break free from the logjams for a while and try to recapture the enthusiasm and joy of 2008.

Romney, Gingrich or some other Republican will be waiting, eager to make him answer for a nation still trying to turn an economic corner.

___

EDITOR'S NOTE ? Charles Babington covers politics for The Associated Press.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/politicsopinion/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120125/ap_on_an/us_state_of_union_analysis

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Tim Cook: the tablet will be bigger than the PC one day

This probably shouldn't shock too many people but, Tim Cook believes the future isn't with the PC, but with the tablet. After shipping 15.4 million iPads in Q1 Cupertino is clearly comfortable with the idea that tablets are taking off and, as we begin to demand our devices become more mobile, it only makes sense that these finger-friendly slates will one day outsell less portable options like laptops and desktops. When might that day come? Well, Mr. Cook refused to speculate, but he was confident that the tablet market will be bigger, at least in terms of units sold, than traditional computers. Cook is already seeing a shift, with the iPad cannibalizing some Mac sales, but he does believe "there's more cannibalization of Windows PCs by the iPad," a trend he clearly loves. We hope, for their own sake, Dell and HP are ready for the coming revolution.

Tim Cook: the tablet will be bigger than the PC one day originally appeared on Engadget on Tue, 24 Jan 2012 17:44:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://www.engadget.com/2012/01/24/tim-cook-the-tablet-will-be-bigger-than-the-pc-one-day/

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Arizona Gov. Brewer gets book critique from Obama (AP)

MESA, Ariz. ? Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer came to greet President Barack Obama upon his arrival outside Phoenix Wednesday. What she got was a critique. Of her book.

The two leaders could be seen engaged in an intense conversation at the base of Air Force One's steps. Both could be seen smiling, but speaking at the same time.

Asked moments later what the conversation was about, Brewer, a Republican, said: "He was a little disturbed about my book."

Brewer recently published a book, "Scorpions for Breakfast," something of a memoir of her years growing up and defends her signing of Arizona's controversial law cracking down on illegal immigrants, which Obama opposes.

Obama was objecting to Brewer's description of a meeting he and Brewer had at the White House, where she described Obama as lecturing her. In an interview in November Brewer described two tense meetings. The first took place before his commencement address at Arizona State University. "He did blow me off at ASU," she said in the television interview in November.

She also described meeting the president at the White House in 2010 to talk about immigration. "I felt a little bit like I was being lectured to, and I was a little kid in a classroom, if you will, and he was this wise professor and I was this little kid, and this little kid knows what the problem is and I felt minimized to say the least."

On the tarmac Wednesday, Brewer handed Obama an envelope with a handwritten invitation to return to Arizona to meet her for lunch and to join her for a visit to the border.

"I said to him, you know, I have always respected the office of the president and that the book is what the book is," she told reporters Wednesday. She said Obama complained that she described him as not treating her cordially.

"I said that I was sorry that he felt that way. Anyway, we're glad he's here, and we'll regroup."

A White House official said Brewer handed Obama a letter and said she was inviting him to meet with her. The official said Obama told her he would be glad to meet with her again. The official said Obama did note that after their last meeting, which the official described as a cordial discussion in the Oval Office, the governor inaccurately described the meeting in her book. The official spoke on condition of anonymity to describe a private conversation between the president and the governor.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/topstories/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120126/ap_on_el_pr/us_obama_arizona_governor

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Basic Automotive Repair Diagnostics | Automotive Diagnosis

Posted on 23 January 2012. Tags: auto repair shops, bells and whistles, corrosions, rare commodity, search engine keyword

Modern vehicles that are released in the automotive industry are getting more sophisticated as they pack even more complex technology. In contrast, classic vehicles of long ago were typically easy to work on and maintain in the sense that you just had to know the basics. Today, with all the bells and whistles on the latest vehicles around it?s nearly impossible for your ordinary car owner to spot anything specific in the event that they experience any technical issues regarding their vehicle. Most often than not, they would just rather take their vehicles in and pay auto repair shops to do all the work for them. That may be the convenient option especially if you don?t know a thing or two about auto repairs but it is certainly a costly one. There?s also the problem regarding several technicians taking advantage of car owners who really have no clue how their vehicle?s work. Thus finding an honest automotive technician is quite a rare commodity and it would also help to arm yourselves by knowing a thing or two about automotive diagnostics so that you are less likely to be cheated out of your car repair cost.

Question is what you actually need to do in order to learn all these things. This can be quite a tricky question but the Internet is always a good place to start. It is after all a treasure chest filled with information. You can do a search engine keyword search for automotive repair or anything specific about a particular technical issue and you should pull up information or instructions in text or video format.

If the problem you are having with your vehicle is the fact that it won?t seem to start, the first thing that you need to do is check the battery connections. Make sure all the connections from the battery to the engine are secure and that they are not loose in anyway. Check for any corrosions because this may also affect the flow of power through the connections. It may also be possible that there is a problem with the battery itself and most of the time; it is the reason why a vehicle just won?t start.

What if the car does start and then dies out shortly? This scenario is actually pretty complicated because it suggests problems with complicated components such as ignition modules and crankshaft sensors. Handling this issue by yourself isn?t really recommended unless you have the right set of tools,chilton auto repair manual and utmost confidence that this is in fact something you can do proficiently. Keep in mind that a lot of vehicle owners who attempted to do their own repairs without the necessary knowledge or tools only end up damaging it even further. It would be best to seek out the proficiency of a qualified technician.

Lastly, what if your car does run but seems to lack power with the check engine light turned on? These types of problems can be isolated into three factors that allow your vehicle to run smoothly which includes compression, spark and fuel pressure. Work around the car?s components that has something to do with these essential factors. To make your job easier, you can make use of an OBD (on-board diagnostics) scanner which you can plug in to your vehicle?s OBD computer allowing you to pinpoint the problem rather easily. Your vehicle?s computer would also tell you if there is a circuit failure.

It would certainly be great if we can just work on our own vehicle in any technical issues. Sadly, some issues are more complicated than others which would require knowledge, Audi Repair manuals,equipment and proficiency to address appropriately. It would be best to seek the services of an automotive repair technician and do your homework on the issue so you can at least get a picture of what needs to be done.

Source: http://www.riredistricting.org/basic-automotive-repair-diagnostics.html

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Katherine Dean: Backyard Bliss: A DIY Guide To Getting Married At Home

This article originally appeared in Equally Wed Magazine. Equally Wed is the nation's premier online same-sex wedding and honeymoon magazine, providing articles, inspiration and ideas on everything from popping the question to saying "I do" to the glorious honeymoon, as well as the latest news headlines on the fight for marriage equality. The preeminent source for all things gay wedding, Equally Wed also offers the most comprehensive directory of gay-friendly wedding vendors in the United States, Canada, Mexico and the Caribbean.

With the cost of weddings skyrocketing, and with many same-sex couples footing the entire bill for their big day, an intimate affair in your own backyard might start to look more appealing than the three-day destination gala you'd originally planned. Opting to tie the knot in your private outdoor sanctuary saves you the hassle of touring venue after venue and allows you and your betrothed to focus your time, energy and hard-earned cash on the things that matter to you most, be it fabulous photography from your city's top artists or a killer open bar, complete with signature cocktails and the very best bubbly.

Still, just because you'll be using your backyard doesn't mean planning your wedding will be a walk in the park. The work that goes into an event so close to home can far exceed hiring people to handle everything for you. Luckily, when it comes to planning backyard weddings, you are limited only by your creativity. From including your favorite furry friends to renting a photo booth to hiring a slew of outrageous circus performers, your backyard wedding can and should be a reflection of your and your beloved's unique style and personality. Here's how you do it:

FIRST THINGS FIRST
Before you begin to plan your backyard soiree, you'll need to consider the basics: primarily, determining if your yard is suitable for a wedding. Will your space accommodate your guest list? Where will your attendees park? Will your event require any permits from the city? Does your homeowner's insurance cover third-party liability? What about noise ordinances? Once you've got all these bases covered, it's time to dive into the details.

BE A GOOD NEIGHBOR
We can think of nothing worse than having your neighbor crank his riding lawn mower just as you exchange vows, except perhaps walking down the aisle to the squeals of 20 delighted 8-year-olds enjoying a pool party just over the fence. To prevent a catastrophe, let your neighbors know of your nuptials and what you've got planned at least six weeks in advance. Better yet, invite them! If you're lucky, they might even volunteer their driveway for overflow parking.

GET BY WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM YOUR FRIENDS
No matter how meticulous a planner you are, it's next to impossible to host a backyard wedding without the help of family and close friends. Unless you've hired an assistant, every detail of your ceremony and reception rests on your shoulders. Your nearest and dearest are usually happy to help ensure your special day goes off without a hitch. Just make sure you don't rely on the same person for everything. It's poor form to request your maid-of-honor to arrange bouquets, transport your cake, set up the bar and usher guests all on top of her day-of duties. And please don't forget your manners. Whether you're asking Aunt Rita for the use of her punchbowl or soliciting able-bodied friends to string lights from tree to tree, thank everyone, and do it often.

SOMETHING BORROWED
Costs can quickly spiral out of control if you rent everything from the cutlery to the candleholders instead of inquiring as to what you can borrow from pals. Based on the vision you have for your wedding, figure out what you'll need to rent and what you have or can borrow. Plenty of companies offer glasses, plates and utensils for one night at a hefty price, but mismatched items collected from thrift stores, discount outlets and friends can lend charming sentimentality to your already special day.

When it comes to sound systems, tables, chairs and linens, get creative! Talk up your friends, co-workers and acquaintances. Local churches, businesses, recreation centers, even funeral homes often have these items on hand and may let you borrow or rent them at a reduced cost. It never hurts to ask, and it could save you a bundle of money.

WEATHER THE STORM
Neither rain, sleet nor threat of snow should keep you from taking your love's hand in marriage, but they can put a huge damper on the day. Likewise, gale force winds can wreck havoc on the delicate chiffon bridesmaids' dresses you've selected. When deciding on the date for your backyard wedding, consult the Farmer's Almanac for historic weather records for the weekend you've selected. Once you've picked that perfect day, with nary a cloud in sight, know that the weather still may not cooperate and that, in a pinch, it's best to have a backup plan. If you cannot accommodate your guests indoors, consider renting a tent for your reception that can double as your ceremony space if necessary. Tent rental companies will handle set-up and break-down of the tent before and after the event.

Don't forget to take the extra steps necessary to make your guests as comfortable, prepared and protected from the elements as possible. Ladies will likely forego the stilettos if you add a printed insert to your invitations advising them that your ceremony and reception will take place on soft terrain. Providing sunscreen, bottled water, bug spray and blankets are all nice touches depending on the season.

TIDY UP
It's best to get your yard in tip-top shape as soon as possible. Go ahead and fertilize that lawn, plant additional flowers or shrubs, fill any holes in the ground, and make all necessary repairs to patios and fixtures. Just before the big day, mow the lawn, trim any overgrowth and, of course, pick up behind your pooches.

LET YOUR LOVE FLOW
Since you'll have the benefit of unlimited access to your venue before you say "I do," you can spend ample time designing the layout and flow of traffic during your ceremony and reception. Take measurements of your space and create a scale drawing to determine where to place your tent, tables and chairs. Keep in mind; people gravitate toward food and beverage, so place these stations away from high-traffic entry and exit points.

SET THE STAGE
One of the biggest advantages to any outdoor wedding is the splendid backdrop that Mother Nature provides. Vibrant fall color and spring blossoms will eliminate the need for elaborate preparations. Potted plants, garden hooks with hanging baskets and strategically placed fabric, ribbon or tulle can fill in any gaps or cover imperfections. Use flowers and tree branches from your backyard to create centerpieces, and let your natural landscape do the rest!

LET THERE BE LIGHT
If your reception will extend into the nighttime hours, proper lighting is essential. Candles and paper lanterns lend an air of dramatic elegance, while tiki torches or strands of clear twinkle lights laced above your guests create a warm and simple, yet beautiful effect. Determine how many outlets you'll need for any lighting that requires a power source, and keep a fire extinguisher on hand if you plan to have any open flames.

CHANGE OF SCENERY
Unless your backyard is beyond spacious, your aisle may quickly need to become your dance floor. There are a few ways to handle the transition from ceremony to reception. If you plan on keeping your vows short and sweet, asking your guests to stand shouldn't be a problem (but please, by all means, set up a chair for your sweet 75-year-old nana). Skipping the seats during your ceremony allows you to set up the reception seating in advance.

If you prefer the formality of seating your guests during the ceremony, usher your guests to an unused location -- perhaps your front yard -- for a champagne toast or passed hors d'oeuvres while family or caterers convert your space.

MUSIC TO YOUR EARS
Got a talented friend? Recruit her to play guitar or violin for your stroll down the aisle. Get your guests dancing at the reception with a play list full of you and your love's favorite songs. A tech-savvy family member can easily cue up the tunes you've selected for your first dance and other special moments. Test your sound system the day before your wedding to ensure that your guests will be able to hear the music as well as carry on a conversation without shouting, and avoid placing seats directly in front of a speaker.

EAT, DRINK AND BE MERRY
What you serve at your backyard wedding can range from champagne and caviar to barbecue and beer and just about anything in between. If you plan to use caterers, find out what they will need from you and whether your kitchen will accommodate them. If you forego caterers, you'll likely need to rely on those trusty friends and family members (again) to help prepare and present the meal. If your Uncle Jimmy has offered to whip up low-country boil for all 75 of your guests, you might have it made. But if firing up the grill isn't part of your vision, buffet lines lend themselves particularly well to backyard affairs. Just make sure you skip mayonnaise-laden dishes that can take a turn for the worse if not cooled properly. Likewise, advise your cake baker that your wedding will take place outdoors so that he can avoid frostings that will melt in mild heat.

When it comes to libations, consider hiring a bartender. Many guests aren't accustomed to mixing their own cocktails, which can lead to a serious waste of expensive liquor or embarrassing over-consumption. If you prefer to keep things simple, mix up batches of a signature cocktail or stick with bottles of wine and beer chilled in galvanized steel tubs.

WHEN NATURE CALLS
Decide upfront whether or not your indoor facilities will be available to guests during the event. If so, make sure they are well stocked with toilet paper, soap and hand towels. If not, you'll have to rent port-a-potties (at least two per 100 guests and one per 50 guests after that). If images of smelly outhouses with sprinkled-on seats have you concerned, never fear. The portable loo has gone luxe. Many rental companies offer top-of-the-line restrooms complete with flushable toilets, functioning sinks, full length mirrors and lighting.

PARTING IS SUCH SWEET SORROW
Lastly, backyard weddings do not have the time constraints that most venues impose and, as a result, some of your guests may decide to linger. If an all-nighter is what you had in mind, by all means, keep the party going. But if you prefer to spend the wee morning hours in the arms of your new husband or wife, consider a staged exit. Nothing says "it's time to go" like having the guests of honor hit the road.

Photos of Dani and Kelly's backyard wedding by Tinywater Photography.

MORE SLIDESHOWS NEXT?> ??|?? <?PREV

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/katherine-dean/backyard-bliss-a-diy-guid_b_1211906.html

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Democrats get to break up GOP sand sculpture in SC (AP)

MYRTLE BEACH, S.C. ? In South Carolina, it's not just Republicans who have been bashing each other lately. Local Democrats picked up pink shovels and took a whack at a sand sculpture of six GOP hopefuls that had been erected at Myrtle Beach.

With the South Carolina primary over, a Democratic women's group used pink shovels Monday to begin dismantling the sand sculpture depicting the Republican contenders. The sculpture was a prominent feature of the GOP debate Jan. 16 and took more than 700,000 pounds of sand to make.

A bulldozer finished the demolition job Monday as the women in yellow hard hats cheered. The sand is to be recycled into future sculptures.

The women won the right to demolish the sculpture after making a donation to a local crime-fighting cause.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/politics/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120123/ap_on_el_pr/us_gop_sand_sculpture

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[OOC] We'll Meet Again, Some Sunny Day

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Please post all "Players Wanted" threads in the Roleplayers Wanted forum!

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Forum for completely Out of Character (OOC) discussion, based around whatever is happening In Character (IC). Discuss plans, storylines, and events; Recruit for your roleplaying game, or find a GM for your playergroup.

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"Vera! Vera! What has become of you?" :)

I may be interested in this roleplay. Can you tell me a little bit more about the plot?

Ita, ibi stabamus, et... Oh, ignosce mihi, was I speaking Latinam iterum? So sorry, ego really must work in ille. Anyway, back to fabulam meam, So, we were standing ibi, et...

FalloutRomanae

Member for 1 years

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Could I get a hold on female 3 please?

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion. It's just that yours is stupid.
?I know that you believe you understand what you think I said, but I'm not sure you realize that what you heard is not what I meant.?
?I guess I just prefer to see the dark side of things. The glass is always half empty. And cracked. And I just cut my lip on it. And chipped a tooth.?

Lux_Disraeli

Member for 1 years

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Very surprised at the response for this! Okay so since there's one place left then If you could send in your characters then I'll choose which one I like best but I may yet expand the character spots but first need to get some guy spots filled.

Calvazara

Member for 1 years

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I noticed you make historical role plays, which I absolutely love...maybe I will reserve one of the male characters

The most merciful thing in the world, I think, is the inability of the human mind to correlate all its contents. (H.P. Lovecraft "The Call of Cthulhu")

girlwt

Member for 3 years

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History is my passion! And it would be great if you could!

Calvazara

Member for 1 years

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My character is done I hope she's alright.

snipergirl24

Member for 1 years

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Gingrich Tells South Carolina Man He?d Talk to Al Sharpton (Michellemalkin)

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Vending machine based on the barter economy

Courtesy of Fast Company

By Andrew Price, Fast Company

There are about 7 million vending machines in America. And what do the vast majority of them sell? Sodas and sodium- or sugar-heavy snacks (which aren?t good for you), packaged in plastic or PET and shipped around the country (which isn?t good for the planet). We?ve all used vending machines. But despite their convenience, they certainly aren?t a solution to humanity?s problems.

Or are they? The Swap-o-Matic, created by the New York City-based designer Lina Fenequito, is a vending machine that lets you ?recycle things you no longer need and get things you want ? all for free.? You create a Swap-o-Matic account by entering an email address on the machine?s touch screen. You?re then issued three credits. You can earn more credits by donating items to the machine and spend them by getting items in the machine that someone else has donated.

Fenequito, who worked for Americorps before earning an MFA at Parsons School of Design, says the project is about promoting ?a shift in culture away from an emphasis on unconscious consumption towards a more sustainable way of life through reusing and trading.?

The Swap-o-Matic is currently migrating around New York City. You can look up its location on the project?s website and, if you?re in New York, drop by to donate or peruse what?s available. Soon you?ll be able to see what?s in the machine online as well.

With the recent rise of information technology ? and decline in disposable income ? several online-based swapping tools have already emerged, including Swap.com, Freecycle, and Netcycler. The Swap-o-Matic is admittedly more of an art project, but it?s in the same spirit. And while it may not ?save the Earth? (we?ll need cap-and-trade for that), it may get people thinking about their consumption habits in a helpful way.

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Source: http://gadgetbox.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/01/20/10202145-swap-o-matic-vending-machine-based-on-the-barter-economy

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Amnesty was set to recognize late Cuba dissident

Ramona Rivero, of the Cuban dissident group Ladies in White, places flowers in a vase near a condolence book for the late dissident Wilman Villar in Havana, Cuba, Friday Jan. 20, 2012. Villar, 31, an imprisoned dissident who went on a hunger strike to protest his four-year sentence, died Thursday night of pneumonia in the eastern city of Santiago, according to the head of the Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation, Elizardo Sanchez. Villar was arrested Nov. 12, 2011 and convicted of disrespecting authority and resisting arrest. (AP Photo/Franklin Reyes)

Ramona Rivero, of the Cuban dissident group Ladies in White, places flowers in a vase near a condolence book for the late dissident Wilman Villar in Havana, Cuba, Friday Jan. 20, 2012. Villar, 31, an imprisoned dissident who went on a hunger strike to protest his four-year sentence, died Thursday night of pneumonia in the eastern city of Santiago, according to the head of the Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation, Elizardo Sanchez. Villar was arrested Nov. 12, 2011 and convicted of disrespecting authority and resisting arrest. (AP Photo/Franklin Reyes)

Belkis Jorrin, of Cuban dissident group Ladies in White, signs a condolence book for late dissident Wilman Villar in Havana, Cuba, Friday, Jan. 20, 2012. Villar, 31, an imprisoned dissident who went on a hunger strike to protest his four-year sentence, died Thursday night of pneumonia in the eastern city of Santiago, according to the head of the Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation, Elizardo Sanchez. Villar was arrested on Nov. 12, 2011 and convicted of disrespecting authority and resisting arrest. At center is Ladies in White member Berta Soler. (AP Photo/Franklin Reyes)

A black ribbon hangs on the front door where Berta Soler, of the Cuban dissident group Ladies in White, speaks on the phone standing by a condolence book for the late dissident Vilma Villar in Havana, Cuba, Friday Jan. 20, 2012. Wilman Villar, 31, an imprisoned dissident who went on a hunger strike to protest his four-year sentence, died Thursday night of pneumonia in the eastern city of Santiago, according to head of the Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation, Elizardo Sanchez. Villar was arrested Nov. 12, 2011 and convicted of disrespecting authority and resisting arrest. (AP Photo/Franklin Reyes)

HAVANA (AP) ? Amnesty International said Friday that it was on the eve of designating a Cuban dissident as a prisoner of conscience when he died following a hunger strike.

It later named three other jailed Cubans as prisoners of conscience, in the first such recognition of inmates on the island since the last of 75 government opponents jailed in a 2003 crackdown were freed last spring.

The human rights watchdog had planned to send a worldwide call to action Friday morning demanding the immediate release of Wilman Villar, Amnesty Caribbean campaign officer James Burke told The Associated Press by phone from London. But Villar died Thursday night from complications of pneumonia after a 50-day hunger strike. He had been hospitalized since Jan. 14 and was in a coma.

"We were going to launch an urgent action on his case today ... but unfortunately we came to the office today with the tragic news that he had passed," Burke said.

The group has strict criteria for what constitutes a prisoner of conscience, including a history of nonviolence.

Cuba denies holding any political prisoners and characterizes dissidents as mercenaries bent on toppling the Communist Party government at the behest of Washington. There was no mention of Villar in state-run media so far, and authorities did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Until recently Villar, 31, was little known even among fellow dissidents, who said he apparently began taking part in anti-government actions only last fall. Authorities arrested him in November during a protest in the eastern city of Santiago and threatened to punish him for a prior domestic violence case if he did not stop making trouble, Amnesty International and island dissidents said.

Villar was convicted of assault, disrespecting authority and resisting arrest, and sentenced in November to four years in prison. He protested by refusing to wear a prisoner's uniform and turning down food.

Villar's health worsened until finally he was hospitalized, said Elizardo Sanchez, head of the independent Cuban Commission for Human Rights and National Reconciliation, which monitors detentions of dissidents in Cuba.

Villar's funeral was held Friday outside Santiago, where multiple phone calls to his widow rang unanswered. In Havana, dissidents gathered at the headquarters of the Ladies in White opposition group to sign a book of condolences dedicated to Villar.

"Unfortunately he trusted that this stance of confrontation ... would lead Cuban authorities to reevaluate his case," said Hector Maseda, a dissident and former inmate. "But we who have been political prisoners over these five decades know that nothing softens the hearts of tyrants."

Villar's death set off a flurry of news articles, blogs, tweets and recriminations from rights groups, dissidents and U.S. politicians, everyone from Cuban-American legislators and GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney to President Barack Obama.

"Villar's senseless death highlights the ongoing repression of the Cuban people and the plight faced by brave individuals standing up for the universal rights of all Cubans," Obama said in a statement.

The government of Spain also expressed concern and called for the Cuban government to release "all political prisoners."

Meanwhile, defenders of President Raul Castro's government scoffed at the lionization of a man they called a common criminal, saying his death was being used for political ends.

"The death of a human being is always painful, but it seems some suffer more than others ... The death of an individual convicted by a court for acts of violence is converted into a weapon to be hurled at the Cuban Revolution," Iroel Sanchez wrote on the pro-government blog La Pupila Insomne.

"This man who is presented today as a peaceful fighter for human rights on the island was nothing more than a violent citizen, a proven danger to society," read a tweet from another pro-government blogger, Yohandry Fontana.

Villar is the second jailed dissident to die on hunger strike in two years. In February 2010, Orlando Zapata Tamayo, also considered a prisoner of conscience by Amnesty International, died after refusing food for months.

Zapata had been pressing for the release of prisoners from the 2003 crackdown, and a few months after his death the government began freeing them under a deal brokered by the Roman Catholic Church. Many went into exile with their families.

After the last of them walked free in April 2011, Amnesty said it no longer recognized any prisoners of conscience in Cuban jails.

In the months since, rights watchers say, authorities changed tack and would hold dissidents for a few hours or a couple of days before releasing them without charge.

But on Friday, Amnesty expressed concern about the Nov. 30 detentions of Ivonne Malleza Galano and her husband, Ignacio Martinez Montejo, picked up while staging a peaceful anti-government protest in Havana, and of Isabel Haydee Alvarez, an onlooker who objected to their arrest. It said all three were told they were arrested for "public disorder" but have been held without charge.

"Amnesty International considers them to be prisoners of conscience, detained solely for exercising their right to freedom of expression and freedom of assembly," it said, "and is calling for their immediate and unconditional release."

___

Associated Press writers Andrea Rodriguez in Havana and Jorge Sainz in Madrid contributed to this report.

___

Peter Orsi on Twitter at www.twitter.com/Peter(underscore)Orsi

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2012-01-20-CB-Cuba-Dissident-Dies/id-1d34b51f92fe46b9bf77f92f69449e27

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How Can I Quickly Recover After a Tough Workout? [Ask Lifehacker]

Dear Lifehacker,
I went to the gym the other day and did a very difficult (brutal) workout and now my whole body is sore. It's hard to walk and my knees buckle when I go down the stairs. Is there any way to quickly recover from a tough workout? Things I should be eating, stretches to do, or anything else? Should I head back to the gym today (please say no) or not?

Thanks,
Overdid It

Dear OI,
We feel your pain. Seriously, anyone who's exercised intensely or tried a new workout after inactivity has probably gone through that post-exercise soreness you're describing, more formally known as delayed onset muscle soreness (from here on referred to as DOMS) or muscle fever. It's perfectly normal, but thankfully there are a variety of ways to ease that perfectly normal pain too, from eating the right foods to treating your body. Let's get you some help right away.

Work Out the Knots In Your Muscles

Light movement: If you feel up to it, try a little light exercise like walking or swimming. Keeping your muscles in motion may bring you some relief, according to WebMD. But take it easy?listen to your body and don't go back to heavy exercise until your damaged muscles are repaired (usually within 72 hours). Alternatively, try massage therapy to help soothe that muscle tightness.

Foam rolling: Two fitness experts I spoke with, Francesca Pucher, a wellness coach in NJ, and Todd Cambio, author and sports nutritionist, recommended a foam roller. Pucher calls it the best self massage you can give while Cambio calls it the "Poor Man's massage therapist." Running Times offers these directions for "the (almost) magical foam roller" which costs about $25:

Use the roller against the muscle knots with your own body weight to generate the direct pressure. Imagine using a rolling pin to roll out lumps in bread dough.
Key Points for Specific Foam Roller Exercises
1. Roll back and forth across the painful or stiff area for 60 seconds.
2. Spend extra time directly over the knot or trigger point itself.
3. Roll the injured area two to three time a day. For prevention of injuries, two to three times a week is recommended.
4. Avoid rolling over bony areas.
5. Always stretch the area following foam rolling.

Cambio's ebook, How to Reduce Everyday Pain and Inflammation, provides foam rolling routines for each area of the body and more guidelines.

What to Eat When Your Muscles Are Sore

Omega-3s: Food is another important factor when your muscles are sore, Pucher says, because it could be a sign of dehydration, lack of sodium, protein, electrolytes, or vitamins, and it's different for everyone. She suggests taking Fish oil omega-3 supplements or eating foods rich in those fatty acids such as salmon, avocados, and almonds. (Research studies, one published in the Journal of Sports Science and Medicine and another in the Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine seem to support this recommendation. Omega-3 fatty acids have been shown to reduce inflammation, and delayed onset muscle soreness is basically inflammation.)

Water: Don't forget to drink water ? Lots and lots of water to stay hydrated. Coconut water is very hydrating and a natural source of electrolytes (even works as well as sports drinks when enriched with sodium).

Other Strategies for Soothing Muscle Soreness

Contrast bath or ice and heat packs: Alternating cold and heat therapy is an old technique we've mentioned before. The contrast bath is, however, a somewhat miserable undertaking that involves submerging yourself in hot water for one minute then ice cold water for a minute and repeat for up to ten minutes in the shower. Celebrity fitness trainer Terri Walsh says cold is a natural analgesic that soothes the muscles and the warmth then relaxes them. You can use ice and heat packs instead of water to achieve the same results.

Sleep: Finally, but perhaps most importantly, get enough rest. Uncommon Body notes:

During sleep, your body releases growth hormone and repairs the damage that has been done to your muscles during intense workouts. Taking a twenty to sixty minute nap once a day is a great way to see faster results.

If you can, take naps. But at the very least, get at least the recommended eight hours of sleep at night, allowing your muscles to repair.

Postscript: Prevention and Some Misconceptions

Even bodybuilders and elite athletes can get muscle soreness, so don't let some aching muscles discourage you from trying the workout again. In fact, a little soreness shows that you actually worked those muscles.

The main thing to keep in mind: The "no pain no gain" mantra is a big misconception. You absolutely don't need to feel sore the next day to have had a good workout.

Next time you exercise, to reduce your chances of DOMS, warm up for at least five minutes with some light movement, e.g., on the treadmill or bike. (Static stretching doesn't seem to prevent injuries and may actually make your muscles tighter, before running at least.) Then make sure you get a good cool down period at the end of your workout.

And shortly after exercising, grab a snack or light meal with high-quality protein and complex carbs (e.g., egg on whole wheat bagel or tuna and pasta salad). And don't forget to hydrate!

Have a great recovery.

Love,
Lifehacker

P.S. Got other tips for speeding up the recovery process? We're all ears in the comments.

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Francesca Pucher (www.Francescapucher.com) is a Wellness Coach, Pilates instructor, and owner of NJ's Best Exercise Studio Fitness 1-2-1 in Roseland
Todd M. Cambio is the owner of Precision Fitness, LLC in Pawcatuck, CT. He is a Certified Strength and Conditioning Specialist through the National Strength and Conditioning Association.

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/lifehacker/full/~3/KAEYR5klZU8/how-can-i-quickly-recover-after-a-tough-workout

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