Saturday, July 14, 2012

The Advantages of Foster Child Adoption - Zanzistor's blog

There is a big difference between looking to be an adoptive family and being a foster family. The primary difference is that in adoption, the potential parent is looking specifically to adopt.In a foster care situation, the foster family is simply providing a temporary residence to nurture and care for a kid until they are either adopted or returned to their biological parents. But some foster families develop a strong bond with the kid and want to make him or her a permanent member of their family through foster child adoption.The typical adoptive family has to apply to adopt a child and then go through the lengthy process of home studies and background checks. Families already in the foster care system will have an advantage.The first advantage to foster child adoption is that the child is already present in the home and has developed bonds with the family members. The second is that foster families know how the system works and can help speed the process along.Most foster children are placed into foster care for several reasons. The first is because a court order was issued, demanding that the kid be removed from the care of the biological parents due to neglect or abuse. The second reason is that the parents were unable to care for the kid and subsequently turned over their parental rights to the foster care system.The third reason could be that the guardians or biological parents died and no one else was able to care for the child. Foster care adoptions occur after a child has been placed with a foster family, so the hope is that the kid eventually becomes a permanent member of that family unit.If the child was taken from the birth parent(s) and their rights were terminated, then the foster child adoption agency will ensure that no one else can come forward to claim the child. The last thing they want is for the kid to develop a bond with his or her new parents and then have to be taken away. The trauma of that removal could be devastating to the kid.If you are looking to be an adoptive family, consider being a foster parent first. Yes, you may develop a bond with a kid that has to be returned to the parents but at least you will be helping children who need someone to love them unconditionally. The positives far outweigh the negatives.

Source: http://zanzistor.typepad.com/blog/2012/07/the-advantages-of-foster-child-adoption-1.html

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Sports, coaches hold sway at many colleges

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) -- It was a throwaway line, intended to lighten the mood after an ominous revelation by one of the most decorated college football programs in the land.

Ohio State President E. Gordon Gee had just heard his head football coach, Jim Tressel, concede that he had reason to believe several star players were taking money and free tattoos from a suspected drug dealer and yet he had told no one. Tressel started most of those players throughout the 2010 season and a bowl game anyway, failing to alert anyone in authority - a clear violation of NCAA rules and his own contract.

Gee, an endowment rainmaker wearing his trademark bow tie, jumped in to defend Tressel and then, asked if he had considered firing his coach, uttered an off-hand crack.

"Let me just be very clear," Gee said with a grin, "I'm just hopeful the coach doesn't dismiss me."

The joke fell flat, but echoed around the country. It confirmed what many already believed about the balance of power in college sports today: some football teams run universities, not the other way around.

Now that has been underscored by the independent report former FBI Director Louis Freeh issued on Thursday. The report said Penn State officials, including widely admired coach Joe Paterno and the university president, protected their cash-cow football program instead of young boys who were assaulted by former Nittany Lions assistant coach Jerry Sandusky.

The report indicated a clear choice was made by those running the school.

"The most powerful men at Penn State failed to take any steps for 14 years to protect the children who Sandusky victimized," Freeh said.

Freeh's report said that Paterno and other officials hushed up allegations against Sandusky for fear of bad publicity and, by implication, all that bad publicity could bring - a loss of power, prestige, fame and money.

"People have attached a $50-million price tag on Penn State football," said Dan Lebowitz, executive director of Sport In Society at Northeastern University. "Obviously, people made an egregious decision to err on the side of the $50 million rather than on the side of the rights of children."

To those who may be shocked the situation in State College got so out of hand, people who study sports have a message: Don't be so surprised.

College coaches and their teams bring in truckloads of cash, feeding a beast that sometimes overwhelms many of the loftier goals of a university. Examples have been around since the first leather helmet, but seem to have multiplied in recent years.

"In these small towns, in these bubbles, the main thing is these sports teams and the coaches," said Murray Sperber, a professor at the University of California, Berkeley, and author of several books on the negative effects of big-time sports on higher education. "I can't believe people didn't know, but they didn't want to know. So there were huge amounts of deniability."

The Penn State debacle is just the latest example of problems that skeptics blame on the culture of major-college athletics.

Ohio State ultimately vacated all its wins from that 2010 season, including a Sugar Bowl victory over Arkansas. Tressel was forced out for his actions, though fans still held a pep rally supporting him at his house. He has now landed at the University of Akron, as a vice president outside of athletics.

Southern California was hammered by the NCAA for allowing an agent to pay Heisman Trophy winner Reggie Bush and his family. The Trojans lost their 2004 BCS national title, 30 scholarships and two years of bowl eligibility. And yet the penalties may ultimately amount to a speed bump for USC, which is expected to contend for a national championship this season as it returns to bowl eligibility.

Dozens of Miami Hurricanes took money from a shady booster now in prison for running a pyramid scheme. The payouts and gifts went on for years, and the NCAA is still investigating the case.

How does all this happen?

The answer can be found partly in packed stadiums on autumn Saturdays. Two weeks after Sandusky was charged last November, for instance, Penn State beat an Ohio State team still under the shadow of the "Tattoo U" scandal before a sellout crowd of more than 105,000 people in Columbus.

Neither scandal could stop the passion of fans, whose love for their schools brings in not millions but billions of dollars across the country, paying for other sports, building natatoriums and rec centers, and luring the coaches who win with salaries of as much as $6 million for 12 games each fall.

Those same coaches - including Paterno, who won a major-college record 409 games - have incredible power and must police themselves to do the right thing. Sometimes there are few other checks.

In the Freeh report, a janitor at Penn State told investigators why he did not report an incident in 2000 when a colleague saw Sandusky molesting a boy in a Penn State shower room.

"(It) would have been like going against the President of the United States in my eyes," he said. "I know Paterno has so much power, if he wanted to get rid of someone, I would have been gone."

The janitor, who was not identified, added that "football runs this University" and that the "the University would have closed ranks to protect the football program at all costs."

Many in the community did close ranks last year. When Paterno's job was in peril, students rallied at his home and then poured into the street after he was fired.

Somewhere along the way, Penn State's officials apparently lost their way, the Freeh report said. At some point, maintaining King Football and keeping the machine running overtook the most basic human emotions.

Bobby Bowden, the retired Florida State coach who is second to Paterno in all-time wins at the Division I level - and whose team was sanctioned for a major academic cheating scandal - said he thinks the Sandusky case will spark new vigilance, particularly around child abuse.

"I think it has awakened everybody in the country. I don't think there is a college professor, a college administrator or college coach that has seen what's happened who wouldn't say this must never happen again," he said. "You can't let things like this slide by."

The feeling was much the same in Columbus, where the Buckeyes will not be eligible for a bowl game this season.

"Creating an environment where everyone is empowered to communicate, share and report any incident, real or perceived, is important," Ohio State athletic director Gene Smith said.

Michigan athletic director Dave Brandon maintains it is possible to run big-time athletic programs - specifically football teams - and avoid letting it get too big, partly by using tight campus communities not to insulate but to keep close tabs on what's happening.

"These programs are not spread out over large expanses of geography, there are a limited number of people connected and they're typically a short walk from the administration office," Brandon said.

"There's no reason in the world that big-time college football programs can't have the appropriate controls. It doesn't mean there can't be problems from time to time, but there's no reason the model can't be properly supervised like any other organization."

Sperber, the professor at Cal, wasn't so sure.

"I feel sorry for Penn State. If you say `Penn State' to the average American, they're going to say `Sandusky' and `pedophilia,'" he said. "Eventually they'll go back to Penn State and Nittany Lions, and all of that. I would hope people would learn (from this), although I've lived long enough to see so many instances where nobody learned anything."

---

AP Sports Writers Brent Kallestad in Tallahassee, Fla., and Larry Lage in Ann Arbor, Mich., contributed to this report.

---

Follow Rusty Miller on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/rustymillerap

Source: http://hosted.ap.org/dynamic/stories/F/FBC_PENN_STATE_ABUSE_OF_POWER?SITE=KGO&SECTION=HOME&TEMPLATE=DEFAULT

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US insurer won't cover gas drill fracking exposure

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Source: http://news.yahoo.com/us-insurer-wont-cover-gas-drill-fracking-exposure-230434663.html

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Friday, July 13, 2012

indoor pest control Jacksonville fl,bed - Pest ... - IdeaMarketers.com











When it comes to dealing with those irritating small insects, we do understand how irritating it becomes. Whether, it is cockroach or bed bugs, to get rid of it immediately after they are found, the best steps are need to be taken, to slow down their growth, at your place. If you are looking for such effective services, then you should visit our site. Here, you will find in detail information about the different services that you are likely to enjoy after hiring them.

The company does realize how important it has become to take proper steps to kills those small insects that are either surviving on your blood or destroying the household items. The experts who will be working for your pest control services have good idea about the termite treatment Jacksonville. However, simply surviving on such type f services will not help you to get rid of it. You need to ensure that, you follow good hygienic conditions, at the same time, keep in mind that certain safety measures are followed.

When you plan to deal with pest problem, make sure that, you are clear with the fact on, how does pests occur, and why you need to deal with the, The answer to such question can be given in a better way by bug victors. For more information, visit their site, and get idea about it. Such company deal with termite protection in Jacksonville fl, and other indoor pest control in Jacksonville fl services that are needed to eliminate the problem of small insects.

Most of the small insects either survives on the human blood, such as bed bugs; while some of insects like cockroaches, survive in eating paper, cardboard and other household items. Such insects can make you face the problems such as skin allergy, asthma, irritation and lack of focus. To protect your house from such problem, the company will perform Jacksonville fl termite inspection and will offer the Services such as:

* Treat in the most environmentally responsible way, to get rid of the pest problem and protect any future recurrence

* Know the pest, as well as, the true cause of the problem

* Complete inspection of your home and property

There are many companies that can offer you the pest control in Jacksonville services. However, Our Company is known for providing these services, at cost friendly price. The people who are engaged in performing such services are in this field, from long time. They ensure that, your home stays protected from such unwanted insects for long time, while keeping the safety measures in mind. The medicines used in controlling such problems do not cause any kind of harm to your family. They ensure that environmental and health measures are given, the first preference. Now that you have got an idea about the pest control services, ensure that, you hire the company for worry free pest control measures.

If you are experiencing pest control issues, and are having trouble containing the situation, we are the best choice for your need. Our services are pest control service Jacksonville fl, termite protection Jacksonville fl. For more details about termite treatment Jacksonville fl and indoor pest control Jacksonville fl please visit us.

Keywords: indoor pest control Jacksonville fl,bed bugs Jacksonville fl,termite treatment Jacksonville fl,termite protection Jacksonville fl,termite inspection J

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Source: http://www.ideamarketers.com/?articleid=3390683

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Apple's green image continues to be dirtied

Link Information - Click to View

Apple's green image continues to be dirtied
Apple prides itself on being green. The gadget maker announced this year that it would power a data center in North Carolina "using entirely renewable sources." And it publishes environmental reports on each of its products, indicating whether they can be recycled and what steps the company is taking to reduce its impact on global climate change.

Source: CNN
Posted on: Friday, Jul 13, 2012, 8:56am
Views: 15

Source: http://www.labspaces.net/121726/Apple_s_green_image_continues_to_be_dirtied

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Thursday, July 12, 2012

Green Real Estate

If you need to sell your home but are having difficulty interesting buyers, there is an alternative available. The green real estate market has skyrocketed in the past five years, thanks to new interest in sustainable living and the passing of eco-friendly legislature. Here are some tips for transforming your home from dull listing clutter to green real estate commodity.

Invest in Making Green Real Estate

If you are truly committed turning your home into a green paradise, and thus make it more marketable, you may have to make a large investment. Map out the types of changes you want to accomplish, such as adding solar panels and water efficiency kits. Determine how much each project would cost, whether you can do it yourself or have to hire someone to do it for you, and how long the project will take.

With all of this in mind, research the kinds of houses that have made these adjustments and how much they have sold for. Contact a selling agent to ask questions. Get a home appraisal prior to these green projects, and also ask them their opinion on how much your home would be worth after the projects were completed.

Small Ways to Make Your Home Eco-Friendly

If you simply cannot afford the investment, or you don't think the investment will yield greater returns, there are small things you can do to make your home more marketable as green real estate.

Check your home's energy efficiency. Replace any insulation that may be allowing heat to escape. Check doors and windows for cracks in panes, sealant fails, or even holes. These small repairs will all save big on heating and air conditioning costs.

Replace your regular light bulbs with energy efficient CFL, or compact fluorescent lights. Also, install new showerheads and faucets, replacing them with low-flow technology. This will save water. Installing an insulating jacket around your water heater saves money and energy.

Plant a Tree

One of the simplest and best ways to make your home green is to actually surround it with green! Planting a tree outside will produce shade in the summer, and can reduce cooling costs by up to twenty-five percent. Trees and shrubs can also block strong winds from your home, which prevent them from coming in through compromised windows or leaks in your doors. This can save on your heating costs by up to twenty percent.

In the summer time, your home will be more attractive to potential green buyers if it is surrounded by plants and flowers. You can purchase cheap flowers ready for planting from a local greenhouse. Ask the greenhouse attendant for how to plant and care for the flowers if you are not sure.

It is also easy to make your home appear greener during the winter time. Keep plants and flowers indoors. Be sure to water them as needed, and consult online manuals for how to care for particularly tricky plants. As soon as a potential buyer walks in and sees that your house is a great place to have plants, the chances are that they will be more interested.

Promoting your house as a piece of green real estate can make it much more marketable. Decide whether you can make big investments like solar panels or replacing appliances with energy efficient ones. If not, there are many small things you can do to make your home more eco-friendly and attract those green buyers.

Beverly Manago is a freelance writer focused on the real estate industry. She is also a consultant for My Single Property Website, a web 2.0 marketing tool that lets real estate agents create stunning virtual tours and single property sites easily, with a free version available for listing presentations. She also contributes to the What Home Sellers Want there.

Source: http://oraibi.blogspot.com/2012/07/getting-in-on-green-real-estate.html

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TSX may open higher, FOMC minutes eyed

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Source: http://news.yahoo.com/tsx-may-open-higher-fomc-minutes-eyed-125358216--sector.html

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Wednesday, July 11, 2012

Nielsen: Internet Ads In Q1 Grew By 12.1% While Magazines Declined 1.4%

Nielsen-Global-AdView-Pulse-By-Media-Q1-2012When it comes to revenue generation, online advertising may still be one of the smaller of all ad mediums, but it remains the fastest-growing. , outpacing other non-print formats like TV, radio and cinema -- as well as printed advertising formats like newspapers and magazines. New numbers out today from Nielsen, covering Q1 of this year, indicate that advertisers are spending 12.1 percent more on internet ads than they were a year ago, with internet the only advertising medium that saw double-digit growth in the quarter. Of the seven categories covered in Nielsen's Global AdView Pulse?report?-- television, radio, outdoor, newspapers, magazines, internet and cinema -- magazines were the only medium that saw a contraction in ad spend over last year, going down by 1.4 percent. All of the rest were buoyed by a rise in consumer confidence and a redoubled effort from brands to connect with the masses.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/3jJddUc8xmw/

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CSN: Cubs' Castros cherishes meeting Jeter


KANSAS CITY ? In the postgame clubhouse late Tuesday night, Starlin Castro bobbed his head and danced to the rap music in front of his locker. He put on his earrings and designer jeans and did a television interview.

From the beginning, the Cubs appreciated how Castro acts like he belongs, and his swagger is hard to miss. Why would the All-Star Game be any different???

But you should have seen Castro?s face light up when he was asked about meeting Derek Jeter for the first time. The big smile reminded you that Castro can still seem like a little kid.

Jeter walked in from center field at Kauffman Stadium after the American League All-Star team took a team photo. Castro and his National League teammates were waiting to line up for their picture and take batting practice.

Castro recalled: ?He told me to keep working: ?You?re a very good player. You?re working hard.??

This wasn?t quite a changing of the guard moment at shortstop. But it?s worth remembering that ? at the age of 22 ? Castro is already in the class picture for best players in the world.

It happened outside Chicago, where every error can seem like a referendum on whether or not Castro can play shortstop. In trying to figure out the learning curve, remember that Jeter once committed 56 errors during his age-19 season at a Class-A affiliate in 1993.

Castro remembered that Jeter was on the disabled list when the New York Yankees came to Wrigley Field last summer. The captain also elected to skip last year?s All-Star Game and rest after reaching 3,000 hits.

The marketing department put Castro on billboards opposite Jeter to hype that series. Castro?s not nearly as calculating ? he comes across as more like ?Sure, why not? ? but he?s talked a lot about copying Jeter.

That means going to the All-Star Game every year, staying in one city your entire career, getting 3,000 hits and winning the World Series. (It also means protecting your image by avoiding off-the-field incidents, a lesson the Cubs believe Castro has learned.)

Jeter is the face of October baseball. If the Cubs get back there anytime soon, it will be with a maturing Castro, a building block for team president Theo Epstein and general manager Jed Hoyer.

?Maybe one, two years,? Castro said. ?Maybe quicker. I know that Theo and Hoyer ? these kind of guys at the top ? they know how to win. They know how to prepare teams for winning games. You?ve seen Theo in Boston. Everybody?s waiting for that one team to win games, (get to) the playoffs, the World Series. That?s what everybody wants.?

Last month Castro didn?t know about a USA TODAY report putting him on the trading block ? which was shot down by multiple levels of the organization ? until a reporter mentioned it to him.

Whether it?s that or Bobby Valentine blasting him on ESPN last season for turning his back to home plate, Castro doesn?t let it bother him. He immediately apologized to his teammates for forgetting how many outs there were last month in San Francisco.

The moments that get blown out of proportion can overshadow the internal drive Castro needed to separate himself from all the other kids in the Dominican Republic who wanted to play shortstop in the big leagues ? and the confidence you need to stay here.

?I know what I got,? Castro said.

After this season, Castro will be a ?Super Two? player eligible for arbitration. He said that he hadn?t talked much about the possibility of a long-term contract with his agent yet.

?We?ll see what happens,? Castro said. ?I don?t know what the team?s supposed to do with me. (But) I?m ready to play baseball. I don?t think about contract or money or nothing ? just play baseball and win games.

?I don?t want to put pressure in my mind to think about a contract or something like that. Just relax and play baseball.?

Castro plans to stay in Chicago a very long time, and can?t wait to find out what Wrigley Field will look and feel like if the Cubs become an elite team.?

?Oh my God, it?s gonna be awesome,? he said.

Source: http://www.csnchicago.com/baseball-chicago-cubs/cubs-talk/The-big-picture-Starlin-Castro-meets-Der?blockID=738432&feedID=10336

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Tuesday, July 10, 2012

Afraid of lightning, NJ teen jumps from chairlift

A teen girl suffered only minor injuries after she chose to leap 35 feet from a halted ride in Seaside Heights, N.J., fearing she would be struck by lightning as a storm approached. The incident was caught on camera and TODAY's Natalie Morales has the details.

By NBCNewYork.com

A New Jersey teenager said Monday she "freaked out" when her chairlift ride high above a beach stopped as a thunderstorm approached ? and that's why she jumped.

Melanie Rossomando of Springfield said she decided to jump rather than risk being hit by lightning as she celebrated her 17th birthday Saturday at the Casino Pier amusement park.

A video posted to YouTube shows the girl kicking off her shoes and jumping off the Sky Ride as dark clouds and heavy winds roll in. It doesn't, however, show her landing on the beach.


For more visit NBCNewYork.com.

"We got freaked out because the storm just came in so fast," said Rossomando. "It was pitch dark above us and the lightning was right there."

Rossomando said she and her friend were three chairs away from the ride exit when the electricity went out and the ride stopped.

"We freaked out," she said. "My friend looked at me and she was like, 'We have to jump.' And I'm like, 'Yeah, yeah. We're jumping. That's it, I'm not staying on here. It's a metal death trap.'"

"We threw all our stuff down, and I jumped but she didn't," said Rossomando.

The teen said she preferred getting hurt by jumping the 35 feet from the chair than risking getting electrocuted.

"Broken leg, broken arm, whatever, that completely beats getting struck by lightning," she said. "And I just knew the way to fall, I went straight and cradled myself to the side."

The girl's father said he received a call from an off-duty EMT soon after she jumped. The EMT had witnessed the leap, and ran to stay with her until an ambulance arrived.

When Pete Rossomando went to the boardwalk to locate his daughter and her friend -- who was able to disembark after emergency responders arrived and helped turn the power back on with a generator -- he noted just how high the lift was.

"I said, 'I'm glad I didn't see that,'" he said. "We were walking back to the car, and we started laughing: 'Wouldn't it be funny if it was on YouTube? Ha ha.' And it was."

He said he supported his daughter's "gut instinct," noting the death of a woman who was struck by lightning on the Jersey Shore the same day.

"It was self-preservation," he said.

A visit to the doctor confirmed the teen wasn't too badly hurt.

"The doctor said because she plays sports and had been working out and was getting ready for the upcoming soccer season, that's probably what saved her from getting hurt worse," said Rossomando. "And the fact that she had the presence of mind not to land on her legs, to land on her side."

The operators of the Casino Pier said the chair ride was in standby mode and no new passengers were being allowed on when the power went out. They said staff, following emergency procedures, evacuated the remaining riders and that they didn't know a passenger had jumped off until they saw the video Sunday.

Rossomando doesn't blame the ride operators for not being able to respond to the storm earlier.

"It was a beautiful day, and there was no sign of a storm coming," she said. "And the conductors aren't going to check 24/7 if there's a storm coming on."

The chairlift takes riders above the beach and boardwalk, offering cool ocean breezes and views of MTV's "Jersey Shore" house, among other things.

More content from msnbc.com and NBC News:

Follow US News on msnbc.com on Twitter and Facebook

Source: http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/07/10/12660218-afraid-of-lightning-strike-new-jersey-teen-jumps-from-chairlift?lite

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Viewsonic VA2231wm-LED


Green Tech

With the Viewsonic VA2231wm-LED ($140 street) you get bright colors, dark blacks, and a crisp high definition picture for under $150. The 21.5 inch TN+ panel can't display the brightest shades of gray, however, and it's missing one of the most widely used digital inputs. On the plus side, it won't put a strain on your electric bill.

Design and Features

The VA2231wm's ?1,902-by-1,080 TN+ panel is shrouded in a matte black cabinet with glossy black bezels that are 0.76 inches wide. At 2.5 inches the cabinet is fairly thick for an LED backlit monitor, especially when compared with the Acer S230HL ($189 list, 3 Stars), which is only one-inch deep at its thickest point. The bottom bezel curves downward on the center to accommodate five function buttons; a power switch, menu and input select keys, and two OSD navigation buttons. One of the buttons doubles as a hot key for adjusting contrast and one adjusts the speaker volume. The 2 watt speakers are typical monitor issue; they don't get very loud, and they lack bass, but they are adequate for low volume listening.

You don't get an HDMI port with the VA2231wm, which is unfortunate considering most game consoles and other entertainment devices use HDMI as their primary output. What you do get is one DVI and one VGA input and an audio-in jack, all of which are located on the rear of the cabinet. Other features such as USB ports, a webcam, and a height adjustable stand are not available on this model. The shiny black oval base does allow you to tilt the panel, however.

Picture settings are limited; in addition to Contrast, Brightness, and Dynamic Contrast Ratio controls there are five Color Temperature presets (sRGB, 9300k, 7500k, 6500k, 5000k) and a User setting that lets you create your own custom color setting by adjusting red, green, and blue values. There are also three ECO mode settings including Standard, Optimize, and Conserve. In Standard mode the VA2231wm used 17 watts of power during my testing, while Optimize used 15 watts and Conserve used 12 watts. Although screen brightness is diminished in Conserve mode the picture is still bright enough for most lighting environments. As such, the VA2231wm's low power characteristics earn it our Greentech stamp of approval.

Viewsonic covers the VA2231wm-LED with a three year warranty that includes parts, labor, and backlighting. The monitor comes with a CD containing drivers and a user manual, DVI and VGTA cables, and an audio cable.

Performance

The VA2231wm-LED provides bright, bold colors and dark blacks. Colors ramped smoothly from dark to light on the DisplayMate Color Scales test and skin tones were natural looking on my blu-ray test video, 2012. The panel did an adequate job of displaying each shade of dark gray on the 64-Step Grayscale test but light grays were clipped at the high end of the scale and appeared white. As a result, highlight detail on my test photos was washed out. Small text (5.3 points) was legible but not quite as clean as what I observed with the Acer S230HL .

The panel's five-millisecond (black-to-white) pixel response helped deliver smooth game play; the PC version of Duke Nukem Forever looked crisp and did not show any obvious motion artifacts such as ghosting or blurring. Off angle viewing was good for a TN+ panel; there was some color shifting when viewed from the far end of either side but the effect was not as severe as it was with the HP 2311gt ($299.99 list, 3 Stars).

The Viewsonic VA2231wm-LED will appeal to energy-conscious users on a budget. It delivers a bright, colorful picture with solid blacks and it does it without using a lot of power. Light grayscale performance is lacking, however, and features are scarce. An HDMI port would be a welcome addition here. The IPS-based Asus VS229H-P ($160 list, 4 Stars), on the other hand, is only $20 more and offers superior color, grayscale, and viewing angle performance, and it has HDMI, DVI, and VGA ports. That's why the Asus VS229H-P ?remains our Editors' Choice for budget monitors.

COMPARISON TABLE
Compare the Viewsonic VA2231wm-LED with several other monitors side by side.

More monitor reviews:
??? Lenovo D186 Wide
??? Viewsonic VA2231wm-LED
??? NEC AS221WM
??? Acer S230HL Abii
??? AOC e2351F
?? more

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ziffdavis/pcmag/~3/0nC7waXiWwI/0,2817,2406859,00.asp

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TechCrunch Giveaway: A New iPad And Free Ticket To Disrupt SF! #TCDisrupt

new-ipad-black-640x480-jpeg-1We hope you all had a wonderful 4th of July and an awesome weekend. You may have noticed that we didn't have a Disrupt SF ticket giveaway last Friday. That is because we wanted to wait since we have something extra special to give away this week. We noticed last Friday that we had a brand new iPad in the office (yes, the new one, the "new iPad") and we were feeling celebratory, so we decided to give it away. This week's giveaway winner will not only receive a ticket to one of our biggest technology conferences of the year, Disrupt SF, but also will receive this brand new iPad.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/nu2ZzhcvZ3g/

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Monday, July 9, 2012

Spain says to announce regional debt mechanism soon

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Source: http://news.yahoo.com/spain-says-announce-regional-debt-mechanism-soon-180553185--sector.html

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An essential health care change you may have missed

Lost in the hype over the Supreme Court?s health care decision was a Treasury Department move that could affect millions of people seeking health care in the emergency room.

Emergency_roomThe Treasury Department issued a proposed rule change on June 22 involving the Affordable Care Act, just six days before the Supreme Court health care decision.

The change restricts how debt collectors can approach patients within nonprofit hospitals ?before, during and after treatment?and how long they have to pay ER bills.

In some cases, hospitals would need to wait 240 days before trying to collect a debt from you.

But the proposed rules change could also drive up costs at hospitals, and they could be extended to all hospitals, if a well-known politician can get another health care act passed.

The battle in Minnesota

The proposed rules seem spurred by a battle in Minnesota between Lori Swanson, the state?s attorney general, and Accretive Health, a Chicago-based company that works with hospitals to process and collect payments.

In a complaint, Swanson claims Accretive Health used a ?high-pressure boiler-room-style sales atmosphere? to collect payments from patients at nonprofit hospitals in Minnesota.

The alleged tactics included approaching patients in the emergency room, at their bedsides and on exit from the hospital for bill payments.

Accretive Health was hired by Fairview Health Services and North Memorial Health Care, to help with administrative tasks. (Since Swanson?s filing, Fairview Health Services ended its contract with Accretive Health.)

Accretive Health has repeatedly denied any wrongdoing in its battle with Swanson, and it is offering to help set industry-wide standards for collecting medical payments.

Accretive Health also says it mostly works with patients and hospitals to make sure people are insured and aware of their financial help options, and that medical facilities get reimbursed from different sources.

?The state?s proposed amended complaint contains no new causes of action and no additional requested relief. The state has merely added selected allegations from its initial compliance review, which contain numerous mischaracterizations and distortions of documents and facts,? the company said in late June.

Accretive Health has filed with a federal court to have the complaint dismissed.

ER debt collection rules

The collection of debt payments could be a significant issue as President Barack Obama?s health reform program heads toward its full implementation in 2014.

The Treasury Department didn?t say directly if the proposed national rule changes were related to the Accretive Health case.

?In recent months, we have heard concerns about aggressive hospital debt collection activities, including allowing debt collectors to pursue collections in emergency rooms. These practices jeopardize patient care, and our proposed rules will help ensure they don?t happen in charitable hospitals. These rules also require charitable hospitals to establish and publicize financial assistance policies, and give hospitals the flexibility to establish programs that meet the needs of their communities,? said Acting Assistant Secretary for Tax Policy Emily McMahon.

The changes allow could drive down out-of-pocket costs for patients who need financial assistance to pay their hospital bills.

?A hospital may not charge individuals eligible for its financial assistance more for medically necessary care than the amounts generally billed to insured individuals,? says one proposed rule change.

The Treasury Department changes are now in a 90-day public review stage. They only apply to nonprofit hospitals, which would be barred from putting financial representatives in emergency departments and other wards to collect payments from patients.

If nonprofit hospitals don?t comply with the rules, they face losing their nonprofit tax status. About half of the hospitals in the U.S. would be affected by the decision.

Unpaid bills a drain on health care

Hospitals and other medical providers use a variety of methods to collect payments. By one estimate, about $40 billion a year is lost by health care providers in uncollected payments.

A report from Kaiser Health News from February 2012 detailed upfront bill collection efforts at for-profit hospitals, as operators tried to contain emergency room costs.

The Kaiser story also discussed how some nonprofit ERs were asking for upfront co-payments (for the insured) or cash payments (from the uninsured) for dealing with non-emergency treatments. The upfront cash payments for the uninsured were $350.

The Supreme Court?s decision to allow states to opt out of Medicaid expansion also complicates matters.

In 2010, health care providers agreed to accept lower government reimbursements, in the expectation that more people would have health insurance to pay for expenses like emergency room visits.

As many as 18 million additional people had been expected to join Medicaid if the ACA had passed in its original form. Now, states have the choice to decline Medicaid expansion.

And some states have already started restricting emergency room payments to hospitals under Medicaid.

ER visits and politics

U.S. Senator Al Franken from Minnesota wants to take the Treasury Department changes further, and apply debt collection and privacy restrictions to for-profit hospitals.

Franken says he will introduce the End Debt Collector Abuse Act of 2012. While Franken doesn?t name Accretive Health in his proposed law, he held a hearing in Minnesota in May during which an Accretive Health representative testified.

One of the public supporters of Accretive Health is Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel. In a letter in May, Emanuel asked Swanson to first try to settle the matter privately.

Swanson later claimed that Accretive Health ?has retained or contacted numerous heavyweights in the national Democratic Party.?

Both Emanuel and Swanson are Democrats.

Accretive Health then retained Leavitt Partners, a consulting firm run by Mike Leavitt, the former Utah governor, to set up a project to research national debt collection standards.

The project?s board includes former Clinton cabinet member Donna Shalala, and former Senators Tom Daschle and Bill Frist.

Leavitt also later selected by Mitt Romney in June to lead his presidential transition team, if Romney defeats President Barack Obama in November.

Recent Constitution Daily Stories

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Also Read

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/essential-health-care-change-didn-t-hear-100204598.html

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Seven-up Federer shatters Murray's Wimbledon dream

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Source: http://news.yahoo.com/murray-shoulders-british-hope-glory-034543858--ten.html

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Floodgates on U.S. derivative reforms set to open

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Source: http://news.yahoo.com/floodgates-u-derivative-reforms-set-open-110114514--sector.html

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Sunday, July 8, 2012

Libyans brave violence to grasp first free vote

TRIPOLI/BENGHAZI (Reuters) - Libyans defied violence and boycott calls to rush to the polls in their first free national election in 60 years on Saturday, parting with the legacy of Muammar Gaddafi's dictatorship.

While the mood was jubilant in the capital Tripoli, the east of the country was more troubled as anti-poll protesters seeking greater autonomy for a region that is home to the bulk of Libya's vast oil resources sought to disrupt the vote.

One man was shot dead by a security guard as he tried to steal a ballot box in the eastern town of Ajdabiya. Another was killed in gunfire in a clash between protesters and backers of the poll in Benghazi, cradle of last year's uprising.

But as voting closed around the country, authorities said 98 percent of poll centers had opened at some point during the day for the election for a 200-head assembly that will name a prime minister and pave the way for parliamentary elections in 2013.

Candidates with Islamist agendas dominate the field of more than 3,700 hopefuls, suggesting Libya will be the next Arab Spring country - after Egypt and Tunisia - to see religious parties secure a grip on power.

"I am a Libyan citizen in free Libya," said Mahmud Mohammed Al-Bizamti at a poll center in Tripoli. "I came today to be able to vote in a democratic way. Today is like a wedding r us."

Zainab Masri, 50, a teacher in the capital, said she felt overwhelmed after voting for the first time in her life.

"I can't describe the feeling. We paid the price, I have two martyrs in my family. I am certain the future will be good, Libya will be successful," she said, proudly showing off her inked finger that showed she had voted.

The election commission said after voting ended that 1.6 million of some 2.8 million registered voters had cast their ballot, a turnout of just under 60 percent.

In Benghazi, protesters stormed a polling station just after voting started and set fire to hundreds of ballot slips in a public square in a bid to undermine the election's credibility.

Witnesses said at least four polling stations had been hit in such attacks. One man was shot in the arm and taken to hospital with heavy bleeding after a clash between vote boycotters and those in favor of the election.

"There wasn't enough security at the station to stop the attackers," Nasser Zwela, 28, told Reuters, saying protesters armed with assault rifles had stormed one polling station and shouted at everyone to stop voting.

VOTING WITH TEARS

But Western supporters of the NATO-backed uprising that overthrew Gaddafi dismissed suggestions that the violence showed the election lacked legitimacy.

"Just one year ago, Libyans were still fighting against a brutal tyrant," said British Foreign Secretary William Hague, whose government was, alongside France, a main player in the conflict.

"Today marks a further milestone towards realizing Libyans' ambitions for a peaceful, stable, prosperous and democratic country," he said.

A spokesman for European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said Libyans had cast their votes and "decided their future in a dignified and orderly manner".

Some voters struggled with procedures for casting their ballot. In one central Tripoli district, two women disappeared into a voting booth together before an election worker hurriedly explained they must vote alone.

"Some of these women are crying as they vote. It is such an emotional day," said one poll official.

Polls started closing at 8 pm but partial results are not due until Sunday and a full preliminary count is not expected until Monday at the earliest.

Many easterners are angry that the east has been allotted only 60 seats in the assembly compared with 102 for the west.

On Friday, armed groups shut off half of Libya's oil exports to press demands for greater representation in the assembly. At least three major oil-exporting terminals were affected.

"The country will be in a state of paralysis because no one in the government is listening to us," Hamed al-Hassi, a former rebel who now heads the High Military Council of Cyrenaica, the name of the eastern region, told Reuters.

Port agents said the oil depot closures would last 48 hours but the government sent a team on Saturday to negotiate a full reopening of a sector that provides most of Libya's revenues.

Analysts say it is hard to predict the political make-up of the new assembly, but parties and candidates professing an attachment to Islamic values dominate and very few are running on an exclusively secular ticket.

The Justice and Construction offshoot of Libya's Muslim Brotherhood is tipped to do well, as is al-Watan, the party of former CIA detainee and Islamist insurgent Abdel Hakim Belhadj.

(Additional reporting by Marie-Louise Gumuchian in Tripoli and Taha Zargoun in Sirte; Writing by Mark John; Editing by Janet Lawrence and Ralph Gowling)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/libya-holds-landmark-vote-under-shadow-unrest-003430063.html

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Saturday, July 7, 2012

US Presbyterians reject Israel divestment

People listen to a session of the 220th General Assembly (2012) of the Presbyterian Church (USA) on Thursday, July 5, 2012, in Pittsburgh. A final vote is expected on a resolution which calls on the church to divest from three companies, Caterpillar, Hewlett-Packard, and Motorola Solutions, with operations in Israel. Divestment supporters say the targeted companies are profiting from Palestinian suffering. The American Jewish Committee, a public policy group, has said the proposal demonizes Israel and threatens Christian-Jewish relations. (AP Photo/Keith Srakocic)

People listen to a session of the 220th General Assembly (2012) of the Presbyterian Church (USA) on Thursday, July 5, 2012, in Pittsburgh. A final vote is expected on a resolution which calls on the church to divest from three companies, Caterpillar, Hewlett-Packard, and Motorola Solutions, with operations in Israel. Divestment supporters say the targeted companies are profiting from Palestinian suffering. The American Jewish Committee, a public policy group, has said the proposal demonizes Israel and threatens Christian-Jewish relations. (AP Photo/Keith Srakocic)

Rev. Neal Presa, at podium on right, serves as moderator during a session of the 220th General Assembly (2012) of the Presbyterian Church (USA) on Thursday, July 5, 2012, in Pittsburgh. A final vote is expected on a resolution which calls on the church to divest from three companies, Caterpillar, Hewlett-Packard, and Motorola Solutions, with operations in Israel. Divestment supporters say the targeted companies are profiting from Palestinian suffering. The American Jewish Committee, a public policy group, has said the proposal demonizes Israel and threatens Christian-Jewish relations. (AP Photo/Keith Srakocic)

People attending the 220th General Assembly (2012) of the Presbyterian Church (USA) at the David Lawrence Convention Center in Pittsburgh listen to a session on Thursday, July 5, 2012,. A final vote is expected on a resolution which calls on the church to divest from three companies, Caterpillar, Hewlett-Packard, and Motorola Solutions, with operations in Israel. Divestment supporters say the targeted companies are profiting from Palestinian suffering. The American Jewish Committee, a public policy group, has said the proposal demonizes Israel and threatens Christian-Jewish relations. (AP Photo/Keith Srakocic)

By a razor-thin margin, the largest Presbyterian group in the United States rejected a proposal Thursday to divest from three companies that do business with Israel. Pro-Palestinian advocates vowed to try again.

The Presbyterian General Assembly voted 333-331, with two abstentions, to reject the divestment plan. A second vote instead affirmed a policy of investment in support of peace in Israel and the Palestinian territories. That proposal passed by a much wider margin, 369-290 with eight abstentions.

The votes came after days of discussion and more than two hours of floor debate at the meeting of the Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) in Pittsburgh. The policymaking body will meet again on Friday, but there is little chance the divestment plan could be revived.

Divestment advocates said the targeted companies ? Caterpillar Inc., Hewlett-Packard Co. and Motorola ? profit from the occupation by providing bulldozers, surveillance technology and other products to the Israeli military.

Major Jewish groups from across the political spectrum had lobbied furiously against the measure, including the liberal-leaning pro-Israel groups Americans for Peace Now and J Street. The American Jewish Committee, a public policy group, said the proposal demonized Israel and threatened Christian-Jewish relations.

The Israel Palestine Mission Network, a pro-Palestinian Presbyterian group, said they were "disappointed," but said they will continue their efforts to "alleviate the suffering of Palestinians and to help bring peace and justice to Israelis and Palestinians alike."

The vote would have given pro-Palestinian advocates a notable victory at a time when the divestment movement appears to be gaining momentum. Pension funds in Norway and Sweden have divested themselves of holdings in some firms involved in building in settlements or helping to erect Israel's contentious West Bank separation barrier. European activists have stepped up pressure on companies by exposing their West Bank ties and picketing stores that sell goods produced in Israeli settlements.

Last week, the U.S. investment firm MSCI Inc. announced it had removed Caterpillar from three of its popular indexes that track socially responsible investments, citing concerns about the Israeli military's use of company bulldozers in the Palestinian territories. The MSCI decision led mutual fund giant TIAA-CREF to divest $72 million in Caterpillar stock.

Caterpillar has come under scrutiny because of the Israeli military's use of armored-plated Caterpillar bulldozers. Caterpillar says it does not equip bulldozers with armor or sell directly to the Israeli military. Instead, equipment is first sold to the U.S. government and then resold to Israel and outfitted for military use.

At the Presbyterian meeting, church members made emotional pleas both in favor and against the proposal.

Nicholas Nott, a delegate from the Presbytery of Great Rivers in Peoria, Ill., home of the Caterpillar headquarters, defended the company.

Nott had worked for Caterpillar for decades. He expressed concern about the plight of Palestinians and regret about any use of Caterpillar equipment that contributed to their suffering. But he also cited Caterpillar's humanitarian work in response to disasters such as the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, Hurricane Katrina and the earthquake in Haiti.

"You are being shown a very narrow side of Caterpillar machines," Nott said.

But Rick Ufford-Chase, who served as a General Assembly moderator, the church's highest elected office, when the divestment debate began in 2004, said he was heartbroken by the outcome Thursday.

"No investment will make any difference if we fail to dismantle the apparatus of the occupation," said Ufford-Chase, executive director of the Presbyterian Peace Fellowship. He told the delegates they should be "naming the occupation for what it is: a form of apartheid. We must stand with our Palestinian brothers and sisters."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2012-07-05-Presbyterians-Israel/id-41da0094633e4e30b4076093548ae601

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