2012年2月29日星期三

I was busy rushing home to cook

In May this year, the grandfathers and grandmothers decided to sojourn with us for some time, when I thought,burberry ties back home from work to take a breath. Authority office, every day extremely busy after work, her husband rushing to school to pick up his son, I was busy rushing home to cook, after a meal but also to urge his son homework, bathing, and some got a little older every day I bound to engage in clean upstairs, downstairs, often the child is asleep, and he is so tired. This is just great, grandfathers and grandmothers came, at least helped to share some of the housework. Elderly about the appointed time. I obviously slow down the rhythm of the first world class, home, full of thought has a table full of food waiting for us, who knows but it is a pot of cold cold stove. Upstairs and saw her mother lying on the sofa watching TV, the father in the room playing with the "four dragons". I have gas, can still, as usual quickly cook a meal, do a good job with the fastest speed and greeted everyone to eat. The night cleaning, I found two paper balls in the elderly living room corner, living room stood a trash can, and my heart can not help but get angry. Perhaps they had just arrived here, do not adapt, Ren Ren first, I said to myself. Before work the next day, I specifically explain her mother placed dishes in the refrigerator, if what is missing, to the nearby food market to buy. My son when she has to Bangdai over time, know that nearby there is a food market. Home from work the situation is still. Just put up a few days, sleep at night when I finally could not help her husband in front of chatter up, and finally twisted the ears of her husbands harsh to say: "No wonder you are so lazy, the original genetic." My husband grinning said: "His wife, I know you worked hard. Mom and Dad also have remembered your good, and often praised you in front of relatives and friends of our family, your good wife, already has gained a reputation." patted her husbands head: "to know good things flicker, so I am willing to work." My husband looked at me, suddenly stern up: "Now, burberry watches you seriously answer my two questions, first, the parents also have an obligation to help us Second, we have an obligation to serve their parents "Looking at her husband suddenly serious look, I thought, had an honest answer:" The first question, there is no second question, "My husband said:" this understanding very well. Since the parents have completed the raising of our glorious mission, is now enjoying their later years, while we shoulder the obligation to serve their parents, then we do not go to count parents to help us do this and that, as long as every day they live perfectly healthy to live happily, we came home from work every day to the door burberry sunglasses to call out Mom and Dad, is that we do the sons and daughters of the greatest happiness. " Then I thought, her husband may be right. Grandfathers and grandmothers came, we did not be more than the burden of what the usual to and from work, grocery shopping, cooking, cleaning. But because of their arrival, and add a lot of fun to the otherwise tranquil life. Fatherinlaw likes to say when eating these past things, often the son of music is much more to eat a halfbowl too, holidays her burberry scarves mother to go shopping with me, father let the son of a good move like a chess ... I think about all relieved The day of happiness in a day by day in the past. Wait until the day of grandfathers and grandmothers to go, I have been a very sad farewells. Many things, often switched between, there will be a different mood and results.Cheap burberry - designer bags, shoes, accessories, clothing outlet 2012. You may also interested in: Burberry Outlet,Burberry Outlet Online Store Burberry Outlet Burberry Outlet Online Burberry Sunglasses

2012年2月28日星期二

I dream lira out of the kitchen

Yesterday, Night a Buzuibugui, climb into bed to see if the phone is already 12:00, and hey, endless entertainment, psychological kind of burberry ties unspeakable fatigue. Pity the sound of falling snow accompanied by the window and his wife unknowingly gone to sleep ... Ringtones, I dream lira out of the kitchen, pingpong sound. I did not get up, lazy body and mind, love of the quilt with the warmth, really want to sleep all day, but one would like to have to accompany the meal a visitor, the wound up! Still, as usual, got up, walked into the living room, sat at the computer, open the QQ space, aimlessly browsing the At this time, the group Friends of the icon flashing quickly. Less than seven online chat ah! Who The original screen, the other end came six greetings: ": up Eat no! Last night, okay Windy outside, the snow it or Ill pick you up and I refused his offer, but the psychological warmth, but in my heart, this warm, except their family members, who will give you! Is one of my good buddies, and six when in contact, and really do not know him. Fat body, great face, small eyes, a look of class struggle. That serious expression, people looked at hair frightened! Due to the work, we have come up more gradually, to understand each other more. As he does not like people say is not easy to close. In my impression, he should belong to the appearance of indifference, fanatical heart, nasty and extremely stable, "the kind. Physiognomy: small eyes, face, bladder, eye, very small. Should be a sentence: Although six children are bigger, the mind is particularly fine. A way to work, I say, throat pain, behold, when we pass by Teva pharmacy, a walk smoke go, I thought what he bought it! An effort of will, over his holding versions drug delivery: you eat this, this drug burberry bags so that is a traditional Chinese medicine. I do not know what to say! Heart of this warming. I am a lazy person, home renovations, some smaller live their own would prefer not to know his work and meticulous, so we pulled him, help me to paste shoe, his body fat, squatting which will perspiring, I am a little too harsh, so he went to take a break, I went dry, but when I turned around, but found that he Juezhepigu wipe the paint of the TV cabinet below the angular lines are lying there. I am really sorry, a big mans careful strength I really admire! We work in a unit, often said: the same unit of difficult to hand in a true friend, but I was very happy that we became friend Xiangxi good friend. So his office became a place I frequented. Work, I helped by his help. Have a more dedicated units of matter, he always spare, even Sunday, but also to the unit around, people feel comfortable with his work, I very seldom say in this Brothers I really saved a lot of heart. I do not drive, and many times he quietly take my driver role, even if he is not a driver, as long as I know the sound of live, he always put down your hand to give support. We always have a lot of tacit understanding. Just the child once joked: He ah like my stomach worms, I thought what he knows! Circle, six at home is definitely a good man. Care of the family, with no microfrom the word point has not been. Daughters school, he always got up early to cook delicious meals for her daughter, rain or shine at night, must personally pick up the daughter of tuition back, if the child does not come back, they are absolutely not eat. Our two front and rear floor, relative to saw, due to close his house dumplings we did not eat, and even at home Father often murmuring his familys dumplings! Such a joke: "This is the first of five oclock, I cook, the other end is your sisterinlaw to cook, how have never seen you cook it" I said: take the wife Zuosa In fact, this couple for the child can pay out, we have the same feeling humbled. As time goes on, the friendship between burberry sunglasses us is also heating up, often, he just child I am one of the guys like my righthand man, when I was tired, tandem together, twist on the meal; my depressed mood, to accompany me to get on a ride; the number of times drunk, has been quietly protecting me, even if I drink again playing downtown, have no regrets doing the brothers should do things; I really do not know God to have mercy on why I am so! Let my life encountered so few good brothers! Buddha: Looking back at past five hundred times, only in exchange for life pass by! Friendship between us, I do not know to repair several world! World a lot of friends can really you and not to request, quietly watching you, is your most cherished friends and I, friend! At this point, my ears suddenly sounded Lui Fongs song: a rare few real friends in life, burberry shoes this situation please do not do not care! Yeah, for this situation, I really really care about!

2012年2月27日星期一

The story takes place in Hangzhou on July

Nights are quiet, the one people are watching TV.Burberry bags, burberry ties, burberry watches cheap on sale. Channel switching, all of a sudden, we see gold fly is speaking to a legend of "the most beautiful mother of 1.2 seconds, and suddenly be inside the story to attract and moved immediately to stop the change, and looked at it. The story takes place in Hangzhou on July 2 this year, a district, Wu Juping leave her mother and 7monthold son and her husband go out when I heard the screams of my mothers, her husband rapid rush home in the corridor, Wu Juping with behind and was about to burst into the go, think of just her mother holds her son to play on the balcony, glancing to go straight to the balcony, this look does not matter, saw the air a little girl is vacated flew down. This is the tenth floor of the neighbors twoyearold niu, careless climbed on the balcony, falling down, in this critical juncture, Wu Juping immediately take off the high heels, and stretched out his hands, decided to catch a small girls, when they both fall into a coma, was rushed to the hospital after emergency treatment, although the two major injury, but to save the life of a little girl! The 10th floor, 10th Floor, ah! Nearly six pounds of impact force of falling objects, the usual six times, smashed is can not Liangbai the club died, most peoples instinctive reaction is to get out of the way shunned, and the heros mother , the super power of super courage, instinct, and in just 1.2 seconds, and no time to think of the hand to catch the child, made the extraordinary move; compose the heroic deeds of one of the worlds most beautiful mother; to create a life a miracle! Into the story, the simulated scene animation repeat play several times, also stressed that brief moment of 1.2 seconds! A short period of 1.2 seconds, in the scene, will make how to move it The British "Daily Mail", New York, New York Post, "and so the media newspaper network have reported that the deeds of this hero, and spread this great spirit of maternal love, in this summer to bring a deep ground moving! Wu Juping humbly said: "I am not a hero, just happened to hit it!" Perhaps most people have heard this story, he is ignorant, only yesterday, see this story. I do not know the story is too realistic or too weak, easily moved, I watched the tears unconsciously flowed. What is the force so that the otherwise ordinary mom made this amazing feat Maternal love, a kind of broad selfless love child is better than all the motherly love! I kept thinking, no intention to recall my own childhood memories of the past is somewhat vague, but some ordinary but deeply rooted, but never forgot! My home is in a poorer mountain, hill surrounded by terraces staggered in the past the 1970s, or some low tileroofed house, the middle of a small village a big sun valley floor valley floor next to a pond, the pond next to Some orange trees. The orange tree is Lees grandmother. Grandma Li, about 70 years old, grow relatively tall and fat, a good strong, there is a natural dignity, stare at you one, daunting, and her husband, son, grandson, sometimes doing a good job, she would curse, but also readily take things hit when playmates, and we were afraid of her. About six or seven years old, an afternoon, and I have four playmates to play with the game, playing, playing tired, rest under the tree. Village quietly, looking at the appealing of golden orange, burberry bags greedy, we already want to pick some food, but the tree is too high, so short, out of reach to be afraid of Lees grandmother, has not actions. Le courage, he said: "Today, if Grandma Li was not at home, no sound outside the house, we pick some eat and Xiaohui, Xiaoqiang boys climb trees, Xiaoyun, Satsuki, you women picking up children in the tree, we looked at was to come yet, someone is coming, "called" good. "We hesitated for a while, agreed. Thus, the three little boys to climb up the orange trees, pick the oranges. Just picked, shaking branches, orange fall to the ground, issued a number of sound. At this time, the the Juventa Li grandmother came from the house sound loudly scold: "who steal in orange! Let me catch a good lesson you!" This soon does not matter, we scared frightened out of their wits! Satsuki again and again and I call "Hurry down, hurry down!" Three small boys hurried to the tree to climb. Xiaohui, Xiaoqiang at a lower level, first down, little music to climb at the top, not down, the panic, slipped and fell out, With a thump sound, fell on the small tree rank grass on Zashu, and half hanging about to fall into the pond, but the clothes tangled up in the branches, not fall, panic, saying: "hey, Im going down, I want to fall into the pond "Come on people, ah, a small music fell into the pond!" Satsuki and I screamed. Grandma Lee heard this came out, but her clumsy body, and some run. Then, suddenly saw a skinny mother whipped from the house pop out the three steps and two steps, stride swiftly ran, red in front of Grandma Li rushed next to a small music, seize Zashu branches slide down along the pond along the border rely on into the small music reached out a hand, called "music, quickly grabbed my hand into a small music panic seize the mothers hand, as to seize the the last straw, the panic is no longer called. Mother to seize the hand of a small music, carefully drag the edge of a cliff, and then grabbed the branches, climbing up, my mother dragged a small music, pushing, wore, first pulled him ashore, only to breathe a sigh of relief, then your own slowly climb up to. At this time, Grandma Lee came on the shore again and again shouted "Be careful, be careful!" Several of us in the next looked terrified! Since then, we are the "lessons" of the family did not dare to steal Grandma Lee also said, do not steal to eat, then say on the line with her. The mother is an ordinary rural women did not work, lowculture farm at home, grow vegetables, raise chickens, pigs, selling fish, selling vegetables and farm work, doing housework. As did family planning was not popularity of mountain, my mother gave birth to several children, leaving behind six brothers and sisters of us, my youngest. Family Tada much more than just dry farm chores are busy. Elementary and junior high school far from home, more than half an hour to go before 7 oclock to go to school. When the village does not have breakfast to buy, she must wake up very early every day for cooking and washing, every rainy day, dinner comes the reckoning for our meal delivery. Father in addition to farm work, fishing, and also go out to do odd jobs and chores. I remember once a rainy winter night, the sister with sudden onset of fluhigh fever, burned powerful, dry lips, facial flushing, shortness of breath, listening to people that burned much will burn will be the brain, and my father is not at home, how do Was no phone, no phone, no bike, go all the narrow mountain road, my mother borrowed flashlight, Mao Zhaoyu, the dark ran out of the village Qi Bali far doctors at home, pleading invited doctors to sister injections and medicine. The mother came back, said he does not accidentally stepped into a puddle, splashing a muddy water, wet, and even a cold! I started going to junior high school, my father suddenly got stomach cancer, the mother in addition to care for us, but also take care of the father in the bed, treatment with a lot of money, some manual work, heavy work, we can not dry, the family is suddenly thrown into a predicament, living more difficult and arduous. After the death of the father, the mothers burden heavier, suddenly become old, we also become more helpless! We often see the mother looking at the portrait of fathers tears saying: "Old man, why you go so early, leaving us how to do" Looking at the bitter tears of mothers, we all secretly said, to help mother to share the housework. Grief after a long time, my mother again playing the spirit of the usual work, we see looking at the portrait of father, mother saying: "Old man, you go was hard, but no matter how tough that they have raised ! " Mother never had a surprise move, the heros deeds, not everyone will be heroes, but the share of broad selfless love child is better than all the motherly love has been spread throughout the world, the spread in our hearts! At the moment, I thought, if the mother is also right there at the little girl falls from a height, she will certainly without thinking, instinctively, in a short period of 1.2 seconds of valuable resolutely held out www.fashiontoy.com his hand to catch small Girls! 1.2 seconds, 1.2 seconds, 1.2 seconds ah, precious 1.2 seconds, 1.2 seconds to move people, make people realize life!

2012年2月26日星期日

Two people fall in love with is not easy

Love the taste of a person, like the hands grasping a handful of sand, would like to grasp tightly, but caught a tight contrary, the rest is not a lot, and I miss the taste of a person, just like drinking a glass of water, a very long time and then turn it into a trickle of tears, forget a persons taste is a blend of blood and tears, perhaps after a period of wound healing slowly forgotten, perhaps never, but in my heart always there is such a scar or deep or shallow, can not erase.Burberry bags, burberry ties, burberry watches cheap on sale. Know how to cherish a man can love many times, and hurt too can no longer heal, then only one person can affect your mood, can make you smile so bright can hurt you so deep, inextricable , love, and perhaps was too ignorant of love is too impulsive to pay too much. May be experienced too much, hurt too much to understand naturally, but often when we truly understand, that is, when we have lost, never to know how much to know, and only such as lost The ... people wait until the loved only know how to cherish after the injury had truly lost, who is no exception, The fate of people is maybe something is doomed, the opportunity to perhaps only once, perhaps many times, to see the love is deep or not, see how we can to hold on and missed is a pity, but not to grasp, to strive to treasure, but feel www.fashiontoy.com regret, regret very sad ... a strong and brave to face course, everything is good, but try to be brave is silly, obviously I love, but fear of injury, did not dare to face, did not dare to love , choose to escape. That time will pass, and therefore missed ... cruel people choose to hurt others, good people choose to hurt themselves, but, after all, hurt hurt yourself. Others say that everything should look forward, but this did not mean to miss let him miss, but strive after no hope, and should not be too sad, because the other mind has already decided, only that you doomed no fate with. Can not let that mean the loss of losing him, so he will be more to look down on you, feel that leaving is the right choice. A lot of things can not always do the peoples feelings and wanted always to do so, all of yesterday is already history can not be changed, but todays efforts can change the trajectory of tomorrow! ~ So everything should be good to think about, do not blame their own, so they had better, doubly kind to yourself, proud to live, let everything go with the flow. Through thousands of years, can let go to Bo to love the day how long, maybe someday there is some accident, and the vast sea, they could meet the people who really love to have a few love the reason like, like the reason is a good impression, have a good impression of the reasons is to enjoy and appreciate the reasons for understanding, the understanding of the reasons is met, the two did not have a social person, destined only met each other together. Two people fall in love with is not easy, there will inevitably be some friction at first to appreciate the advantages of longer, followed by more drawback, because it has the heart to surrender, nothing is perfect, not because of some small small causes and error and break up break up, unless it is not love. If two people want a long time together on the need to get to know to run slowly, mutual tolerance, understanding, understanding, communication ... burberry sunglasses the need for patient management, nothing is not open to be resolved, and true love by starting the test, time can prove everything to prove in the end how much I love and can not withstand the test of time on pointless, really, also no longer need a lot of trouble, sometimes life in the end shall have no force, since it does not belong to you, why take too much notice, why insist too ...... love, was only smiling to drink the poisoned wine, the earth too much emotion and regret, always escape an "if". Not be together until the last who do not know the appropriate and inappropriate, need to be patient and operation, If you love to please let go bold love, missed, will not come back, if not love loud mean enough to tell each other, long pain as shortterm pain, there is no sure thing, Do not give the commitment, because some people will burberry sunglasses outlet always be bitter abandon the commitment, true love only once, hoping to avoid further loss, and cherish all the immediate hope the mood of the carnivals, happy ...

2012年2月23日星期四

It's a gut kick to clean athletes in baseball

Braun won an appeal of an October positive test for elevated levels of testosterone, enabling him to play the entire season for the Milwaukee Brewers without serving a 50-game suspension.Burberry bags, burberry ties, burberry watches cheap on sale. "They're going crazy in Milwaukee," said Omar Shaikh, Braun's close friend and business partner. "He's so happy this is over. I talked to him for an hour (Wednesday), and he told me, 'I know I'm innocent. I'm at peace at whatever decision. But I know I didn't do anything wrong.' "They made the right decision." Had Braun's appeal failed, he would have been ineligible to play until May 31 and forfeited $2.2 million of his $7.1 million salary. While Braun and Brewers fans were celebrating, MLB disagreed with the decision by arbitrator Shyam Das. Two persons familiar with Das' decision but not authorized to speak publicly said Braun won his appeal on a technicality despite testing positive in the first round of the National League playoffs for elevated levels of testosterone. There was improper protocol followed in the collection of Braun's urine, the people said, in that the sample was stored and refrigerated at the home of one of the drug administrators, but not sent immediately to the drug testing lab. "It has always been Major League Baseball's position that no matter who tests positive, we will exhaust all avenues in pursuit of the appropriate discipline," said Rob Manfred, MLB executive vice president of labor relations. "We have been true to that position in every www.fashiontoy.com instance, because baseball fans deserve nothing less. As a part of our drug testing program, the commissioner's office and the players' association agreed to a neutral third party review for instances that are under dispute. "While we have respected that , Major League Baseball vehemently disagrees with the decision rendered by arbitrator Shyam Das." Two people close to Braun and familiar with his appeal, but unauthorized to speak publicly about the process, acknowledge the sample collection was flawed. But they contend there were several factors in Braun's succesful grievance. There was no other proof that he took an illegal substance, and his 20/1 TE ratio [hormone testosterone to the hormone epitestosterone], they said, was impossibly elevated for an acceptable sample. A TE ratio of less than 4/1 is considered normal. Braun told USA TODAY in December that the result was "B.S." and never relented in his innocence. "We provided complete cooperation despite the highly unusual circumstances," Braun said in a prepared statement. "I have been an open book, willing to share details from every aspect of my life as part of this investigation, because I have nothing to hide. I have passed over 25 drug tests in my career, including at least three in the past year. … "We were able to get through this because … the truth is on our side." Braun is the first MLB player in 13 attempts to win his appeal against a positive drug test. While it is a clear victory for the MLB Players' Association, Gary Wadler, associate professor of medicine at the Hofstra Medical School and former official with the World Anti-Doping Association, said MLB's drug-testing program should not be condemned. "Just because one case is reversed," Wadler said, "doesn't mean that the whole system is broken by any means of the imagination. One swallow does not make a summer. "I think it would be a terrible tragedy if players throw out drug testing and say it doesn't work. In the legal world, there are cases that get overturned all of the time. Burberry sunglasses, burberry scarves, burberry shoes 2012 outlet.You don't throw out the whole legal system.There's one argument it can be a positive because players do have recourse." The result did not please Travis Tygart, head of the U.S. Anti-Doping Agency. "It's a gut kick to clean athletes in baseball," he said, "for a technicality like this to undermine their rights." Braun, who is expected to provide more detail when he reports Friday to the Brewers' spring-training camp, was represented by attorney David Cornwell, executive director of the NFL Coaches Association. Cornwell represented running back Ricky Williams when he negotiated terms to resume his career after a failed drug test; wide receiver Randy Moss after admitting marijuana use during a TV interview; quarterback Ben Roethlisberger when facing discipline from sexual assault charges; and linemen Dana Stubblefield, Chris Cooper and Barret Robbins, implicated in the BALCO scandal. "MLB has got to be crushed, but I was so happy for him," said Los Angeles Angels reliever LaTroy Hawkins, Braun's teammate the last two seasons. "This opens the door now for other guys filing an appeal. It's a solid victory for the players." Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, a burberry sunglasses friend of Braun's , tweeted: "MLB and cable sports tried to sully the reputation of an innocent man. Picked the wrong guy to mess with. Truth will set you free."

2012年2月22日星期三

Qnexa should not be viewed as a quick fix for a trivial problem

An advisory committee's hearty 20-to-2 vote to recommend approval of the obesity drug Qnexa on Wednesday means it's highly likely the FDA will allow the Burberry Bags medication to be marketed when the agency issues its final report later this year. If approved, Qnexa will be the first new prescription weight-loss medication in 13 years. But people looking for a quick way to lose five or 10 pounds may find Qnexa too troublesome to bother with. According to the manufacturer of the medication, Vivus Inc., and FDA officials, Qnexa should be carefully prescribed and patients should be closely monitored while on the drug. Qnexa, a combination of the anticonvulsant topiramate and the appetite suppressant phentermine, produces an average 10% loss in body weight after one year. Many people with hypertension also see improvement in blood pressure. But the drug increases the risk of cleft lip in babies whose mothers became pregnant while taking it. Studies also show Qnexa increases heart rate, which can result in cardiovascular problems. If approved, Qnexa users would likely have to order the drug through mail-order pharmacies, a strategy to limit easy access, such as by online purchasing. Women of childbearing age would likely be required to take a monthly pregnancy test. Moreover, the drug is expected to be labeled for people with a body mass index of 30 or above or a BMI of 27 or above for people who also have weight-related health problems, such as diabetes. A BMI of 25 to 29 indicates being overweight and 30 or greater is considered being obese. Dr. Elaine H. Morrato, assistant professor of health systems, management and policy at the University of Colorado, Denver, said she voted against approval of Qnexa burberry outlet online in 2010 but decided to recommend approval this time because of the safeguards that will be put in place to monitor appropriate use and prevent problems. "I believe the FDA and the sponsor are striving to find the right balance between access to effective anti-obesity medications and the corresponding risks," she said. People who don't lose weight after three months on the drug would be encouraged to discontinue use because of its potential risks, experts said Wednesday. It's likely that the first doctors to prescribe the medication would be those who specialize in obesity. Qnexa should not be viewed as a quick fix for a trivial problem, said Joe Nadglowski, president of Obesity Action Coalition, a patient advocacy group.Burberry Bags, Burberry Outlet Online at Huge Savings. "In the right hands, in the right patients, obesity drugs are an important part of the formula," he said.

The hope is for a sustained economic recovery

Michigan can take plenty of comfort from the remarkable stock gains we've seen so far in 2012 for its automakers and other home-grown companies.Burberry bags, burberry ties, burberry watches cheap on sale. But nobody really can ignore the sizzle of seeing the Dow cross 13,000 -- even if only briefly -- on Tuesday. Let's face it: it wasn't all that long ago when investors broke into a nervous, uncomfortable sweat when talking about stocks. The Dow Jones Industrial Average crossed the 13,000 mark on Tuesday for the first time in nearly four years. The average closed at 12,965.69 points -- up 15.82 points. The financial crisis in 2008-09 and ensuing recession whacked 401(k) plans hard -- thanks to the meltdown in stocks. The Dow fell as low as 6,547 points on March 9, 2009. And a Dow 13,000 would mean stocks have almost doubled in nearly three years. The last time the Dow closed above 13,000 was on May 19, 2008. So far, the first two months of 2012 have proven to be far more upbeat than most experts projected late last year. The Dow had been trading above 12,000 last year and closed at 12,217.56 on Dec. 30. The Dow's gain between the year-end close and closing at the 13,000 mark would be roughly 6.4%. It's the kind of gain some market watchers expected for burberry bags the entire year in 2012 -- not just a couple of months. So investors might want to avoid getting too giddy here. It's been quite a run-up in a short time. What's driving stocks higher? David Sowerby, portfolio manager for Loomis, Sayles in Bloomfield Hills, said we're seeing some modest news that the U.S. economy is gaining ground -- and we're benefiting from low interest rates and more availability of credit for consumers and business. Last year, the big drops for the Dow gave investors more reason to be skittish. We saw far more volatility with up and down days in 2011. But Sowerby noted that so far this year more than 70% of the trading days have posted gains -- giving more consistency to the market gains. Auto stocks and many Michigan-based stocks have done far better than the Standard & Poor's 500. Sowerby noted that his Michigan stock index is up 12% so far this year -- compared with a gain of 8% for the S&P 500 index through Friday. General Motors stock is up about 35% since year-end and closed at $27.06 a share Tuesday, down 28 cents. PulteGroup is up more than 36% since year-end and closed at $8.59 a share, down 32 cents. Sowerby noted that Pulte is up 143% since Oct. 3 stock market lows last year and it has been the No. 1 stock in the S&P 500 in that period through Tuesday.Burberry sunglasses, burberry scarves, burberry shoes 2012 outlet. Ford gained 16.9% since year-end and closed at $12.53 a share on Tuesday, down 22 cents. "You've seen a lot of last year's losers become this year's winners," Sowerby said. For local investors, that's good news for many retirement plans, which continue to invest in auto stocks. Christopher Ruth, chief market strategist for Comerica Asset Management Group in Birmingham, said a much-anticipated bailout deal for Greece, combined with Chinese monetary easing, gave stocks a boost Tuesday. He noted that the stock market had priced in a very negative view of Europe last summer and last fall. And there were growing concerns that the U.S. recovery was too fragile. As a result, stocks became very cheap and today's prices are in a more normal range from a historical valuation perspective, he said. The hope is for a sustained economic recovery in the U.S. and the avoidance of a financial crisis in Europe. Are we out of the woods? Hard to say. Many market watchers remain uncertain about the outlook in Europe. Others worry about the strength of the U.S. recovery. The threat of higher gasoline prices at the pump now -- and possibly later this year -- increases worries about the potential hit on pocketbooks and on the U.S. economy overall. "Dramatically higher oil prices could cause a www.buymyfavorite.com global economic slowdown," Ruth said. He noted that uncertainty relating to the presidential election could weigh on the markets as we get closer to November, too.

2012年2月20日星期一

The issue has taken new urgency

Federal health officials are considering whether anyone born between 1945 and 1965 should get a one-time blood test to check if their livers harbor this ticking time bomb. Burberry bags, burberry ties, burberry watches cheap on sale.The reason: Two-thirds of people with hepatitis C are in this age group, most unaware that a virus that takes a few decades to do its damage has festered since their younger days. The issue has taken new urgency since two drugs hit the market last summer that promise to cure many more people than ever was possible. Research published Monday says testing millions of the middle-aged to find those who need the pricey treatment would be worth the cost, saving thousands of lives. "One of every 33 Baby Boomers are living with hepatitis C infection," says Dr. John Ward, hepatitis chief at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. "Most people will be surprised, because it's a silent epidemic." Don't think you need to worry? Yes, sharing a needle while injecting illegal drugs is the biggest risk factor for becoming infected with this blood-borne virus. But before 1992, when widespread testing of the blood supply began, hepatitis C commonly was spread through blood transfusions. Plus, a one-time experiment with drugs way back in high school or college could have been enough. About 3.2 million Americans are estimated to have chronic hepatitis C, but at least half of them may not know it. The virus, which affects 170 million people burberry bags worldwide, can gradually scar the liver and lead to cirrhosis or liver cancer. It is a leading cause of liver transplants. A CDC study published Monday analyzed a decade of death records and found an increase in death rates from hepatitis C. In fact, in 2007 there were 15,000 deaths related to hepatitis C, higher than previous estimates - and surpassing the nearly 13,000 deaths caused by the better-known AIDS virus. Perhaps more surprising, three-fourths of the hepatitis deaths occurred in the middle-aged, people 45 to 64, researchers reported in Annals of Internal Medicine. "Mortality will continue to grow for the next 10 to 15 years at least unless we do something different" to find and treat the silent sufferers, Ward says. Fructose does not make you gain more weight than other types of carbohydrates, Canadian researchers reported in the Annals of Internal Medicine. They found that a little extra fructose added to foods did not trigger weight gain, as long as the participants reduced the equivalent total calories from other carbs. In other words, fructose calories are no more fattening than the same number of calories in other carbohydrate foods. The authors explained that fructose's contribution to excess bodyweight in Western societies is often mentioned, but no studies have clearly shown a connection. Burberry sunglasses, burberry scarves, burberry shoes 2012 outlet.John L. Sievenpiper, MD, PhD., and team set out to determine what effect fructose might have on people's weight in controlled eating trials. They gathered data on 41 controlled feeding trials which had lasted for at least seven days. 31 of them, involving 637 participants, compared the effect of free fructose and non-fructose carbohydrates in isocaloric trials. Isocaloric means with similar total calories. 10 studies, involving 119 participants were hypercaloric trials (high calories). They excluded trials that evaluated high-fructose corn syrup (42% to 55% free fructose). They found that in the isocaloric trials, fructose made no overall difference to body weight, when compared to non-fructose carbohydrates. However, high calorie fructose diets did lead to increases in body weight. Put simply: when people ate foods with fructose, and their meals had the same number of calories as people's with non-fructose carbohydrate, there was no significant different is body weight. However, high calorie fructose diets did make people put on weight. The authors stressed that several of the burberry sunglasses trials available were not of very good quality. They suggested that in the fructose hypercaloric trials, weight gain may have simply been due to too many calories, rather than fructose itself.

It was the 11th career pole for Edwards

Burberry sunglasses, burberry scarves, burberry shoes 2012 outlet. Teammate Greg Biffle (194.087) will start on the outside of the front row, giving the Roush organization a sweep of the top two positions. The top two spots are the only ones locked in for the 500 – the remainder of the 43-car field will be determined by Thursday’s Gatorade Duels, a pair of 150-mile qualifying races. Dale Earnhardt Jr. (Hendrick Motorsports) had the fastest Chevrolet, checking in third, while the Fords of Marcos Ambrose (Richard Petty Motorsports) and Casey Mears (Germain Racing) rounded out the top five. www.buymyfavorite.com “I didn’t really consider the pole was something that was a possibility coming down here,” Edwards said. “This is huge.” It was the 11th career pole for Edwards. Danica Patrick, making her Sprint Cup debut, was 30th fastest. Defending Daytona 500 champion Trevor Bayne, outside the top 35 in owner points with his Wood Brothers Racing team, guaranteed himself a berth after posting the ninth-fastest lap. Tony Raines and David Stremme, also outside the top 35 in owner points and thus needing solid qualifying runs, guaranteed themselves a spot in the 500 as well. Burberry bags, burberry ties, burberry watches cheap on sale. Those who will have to race their way in through Thursday’s Duels are Kenny Wallace, Dave Blaney, Joe Nemechek, Michael Waltrip, Bill Elliott, Mike Wallace, Robert Richardson Jr., Robby Gordon, and JJ Yeley. Terry Labonte, as the most recent former champion not locked in by virtue of owner points, is guaranteed one of the 43 starting spots. Should he earn one of the available transfer spots, however, Elliott would be eligible for the former champion’s provisional. www.fashiontoy.com

2012年2月16日星期四

And because arsenic can occur naturally in groundwater

No surprise here: arsenic is not good for you. In high doses, of course, it’s a deadly poison, but even at lower levels, exposure to arsenic can raise the burberry outlet risks of cancer and heart disease. It’s especially dangerous for young children in whom chronic arsenic exposure has been linked to lower IQ and poor intellectual function. And because arsenic can occur naturally in groundwater — where it can poison people via drinking water or through food grown in arsenic-contaminated soil — it can be difficult to avoid. That’s why a new study in the journal Environmental Health Perspectives indicating that organic brown-rice syrup a sweetener used in many organic and gluten-free foods, including baby formula — can be a source of arsenic is so worrying. Researchers from Dartmouth College and Dartmouth Medical School looked at foods that use organic brown-rice syrup and found evidence that some baby formulas, cereal bars and energy shots all contained levels of arsenic that were significantly higher than the 10 parts per billion (ppb) federal limit for drinking or bottled water. Worst of all, despite the results, there are currently no U.S. regulatory limits for arsenic in food — which means there’s little to prevent consumers, and especially children, from being dosed with potentially harmful levels of the chemical. “In the absence of regulations for levels of arsenic in food, I would certainly advise parents who are concerned about their children’s exposure to arsenic not to feed them formula where brown-rice syrup is the main ingredient,” Brian Jackson, the lead author of the study, told Consumer Reports. Some of the findings of the study include: Two of the 17 infant formulas tested listed brown-rice syrup as a main ingredient, and one had an arsenic concentration that was six times the federal limit on arsenic in water. Twenty-two of the 29 cereal bars or energy bars tested had at least one of four rice products — organic brown-rice syrup, rice flour, rice grain or rice burberry bags 2012 flakes — among the main ingredients. Those bars had arsenic levels ranging from 23 to 128 ppb, all well above the federal limit on water. Tests of high-energy products known as “energy shots” showed that one of the three blocks contained 84 ppb of total arsenic, and the other two contained 171 ppb. The reason brown-rice syrup was targeted for the research is that rice — which is grown in inundated soil — can be more easily contaminated by arsenic than other foods. (Indeed, this isn’t the first time arsenic has been found in rice products.) It also matters what kind of arsenic may be contaminating foods: organic or inorganic. Organic arsenic is usually seen as less harmful than inorganic arsenic, but it’s notable that most of the arsenic found in the bars and energy gels was inorganic, while the infant formula had mostly organic arsenic. It’s also notable that the infant formulas that used brown-rice syrup have a very low market share, so presumably few babies are being exposed to them. For their part, rice growers contested the notion that their crop posed a risk to consumers: U.S. rice and rice products are safe to consume,” says Stacy Fitzgerald-Redd, a spokesperson for the USA Rice Federation. “When discussing the content of arsenic in foods, it is essential to distinguish between organic and inorganic arsenic.” Most of the arsenic found in rice is organic arsenic, the benign kind, and the U.S. rice industry is working with U.S. regulatory officials as they look into this issue,” she says. But even researchers who weren’t involved in the study caution parents to avoid formulas made using brown rice. Very young children and infants are at greater risk for arsenic poisoning because their small bodies mean they get a bigger exposure of the chemical. The real lesson from the study is the need for some form of federal regulation of arsenic in food. That may be coming — the Food and Drug Administration burberry handbags 2012 is looking at the issue, and regulatory agencies in Britain and Europe are already on the way to setting limits. Legislation was introduced earlier this month in the House of Representatives to push the FDA. It’s long since time to act.

The GM profit was reflective of a string

In earning $7.6 billion last year, the automaker demonstrated how it has capitalized on its 2009 bankruptcy reorganization and federal bailout to shed brands, burberry scarves sale slash debt, rewrite union contracts and close surplus factories. The record annual earnings represented "a remarkable turnaround from what appeared to be a hopeless situation," said Jesse Toprak, an analyst with automotive information company TrueCar.com. GM now has about a $2,000-per-car manufacturing advantage over its Japanese and European rivals, a swing from a similar-sized disadvantage before the restructuring, said David Cole, chairman emeritus of the Center for Automotive Research. That's helped GM make huge profits at what are still relatively low levels of auto sales in the U.S. and made it competitive in the small-car business, where it now has competitive vehicles such as Chevrolet's new Cruze and Sonic sedans, Cole said. The automaker lost about $100 billion in the years before the 2009 rescue. GM is generating strong profits in North America and China. But it is losing money in South America and Europe, where it acknowledged significant problems that Chief Executive Dan Akerson said will require the type of wrenching restructuring the automaker underwent to right its North American operations several years ago. "We've got to look at every aspect of the business," Akerson said. The company is expected to reveal cost and production cuts in Europe within months. The annual profit for 2011 represented a 62% gain over the previous year. Revenue increased 11% to $150.3 billion. Fourth-quarter profit fell 7% to $472 million, while revenue increased 3% to $38 billion. Akerson said he wants GM's profit margin of 5.5% in 2011 to grow to match that of the best-performing auto companies, which is about 10%. That would put GM on track to earn annual profits of $10 billion. Last year's record earnings came at the same time the Detroit automaker recaptured its spot as the world's largest car seller. GM's global sales rose 7.6% to 9 million vehicles in 2011. It last held the top spot in 2007, before it was surpassed byToyota Motor Corp.the next year. But Thursday's results showed that GM still has work to do shoring up its overseas business. Most of the company's profit is coming from its North American operations, which produced $7.2 billion in operating income last year, up from $5.7 billion in 2010. GM accounts for about 1 out of every 5 vehicles sold in America. Based on those financial results, GM said it would pay profit-sharing of up to $7,000 to about 47,500 U.S. hourly employees. Europe remains the problem spot. GM lost $747 million there last year. Although that was just a third of the losses the previous year, the auto industry is expecting a difficult 2012 in Europe because of the sluggish economy there and the continuing debt crisis in Greece. The problem is that there are too many automakers Burberry belts cheap turning out too many cars in Europe right now, said Peter Nesvold, a Jefferies & Co. analyst. "Each country has its own home team or domestic manufacturer, and full production seems to be an employment plan in each of those countries, so the industry is overproducing vehicles," Nesvold said. GM will have to reduce its capacity but might not have the ability to do so until its European labor contracts come up for renegotiation in 2014, he said. Akerson said GM is talking to the region's labor unions and governments about ways to cut costs to make its operations profitable there. Late last year, GM reorganized the senior management of its European operation, placing Vice Chairman Steve Girsky as chairman of its Opel subsidiary's supervisory board. GM also lost $122 million in South America last year, after posting operating income of $818 million in the region in 2010. China continues to produce profits for the automaker. Its international operations, of which China is the main component, had operating profit of $1.9 billion last year, compared with $2.3 billion in 2010. U.S. taxpayers have a stake in GM's financial performance because the federal government owns about 27% of the automaker's stock, including unexercised options and warrants. GM has repaid $24.1 billion of the $49.5 billion in government aid it received. The repayments include the proceeds from the automaker's public stock offering. The government would have to get more than $50 a share for its remaining holdings to recoup what it put into the business. GM shares rose $2.24, or 9%, to $27.17 on Thursday. The GM profit was reflective of a string of good earnings from the auto industry this year. Last monthFord Motor Co.posted an annual pre-tax operating profit of $8.8 billion, almost 6% above the previous year and the best since 1999. It now has Burberry scarves cheap recorded 10 consecutive quarters of operating profits. Its annual net income reached $20.2 billion, but that was because of a special one-time, non-cash tax gain. This month Chrysler Group reported its first annual profit in years. It earned $183 million last year, compared with a loss of $652 million in 2010. Sales rose 31% to $55 billion.

We've seen this play before

"We're still a long ways from getting there," said Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-Calif.), one of the Democratic members of the committee working on the deal. Becerra stressed that progress had been made gucci outlet. "We hope that things will move forward." "We've seen this play before," Rep. John Larson (D-Conn.) told reporters. "As you all painfully know, things have had the ability to change around here rather rapidly when it appears a deal has been struck and then it appears that deal is no longer in place." Larson said he hoped that House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio) would be able to marshal Republican support for the deal. Boehner expressed optimism that the deal would come together by Wednesday night, but declined to tell reporters what reception it was getting from his members. "If the agreement comes together like I expect it will, the House should vote this week," Boehner said. "I think there's an agreement in principle, but there are a lot of details that are yet to be worked out, and I'm hopeful that that'll be wrapped up today gucci bags." Asked how his members could back a payroll deal that would add $100 billion to the deficit, Boehner emphasized that Congress cut $2.1 trillion in the debt-limit debate last year, saying his members were acting to stop Democrats from playing political games. Since Tuesday evening, Republican and Democratic staffers have put out different information about the terms of the deal. Democrats have variously said the maximum duration of unemployment insurance would fall from 99 weeks to 89 weeks, or to 75 weeks, or to 73 weeks. Republicans have said the maximum duration would fall to 63 weeks. The two sides have been unable to account for the discrepancy. The sides agreed that the $100 billion cost of keeping a 2 percentage point cut in the Social Security tax workers pay on every paycheck would be added to the deficit, and that the $50 billion cost of unemployment insurance and the so-called Medicare "doc fix" would be offset with budget cuts elsewhere gucci shoes. Without a deal, in March doctors will see their Medicare reimbursement rates drop 27 percent, jeopardizing health care for seniors. Several million long-term jobless will miss out on federal unemployment insurance, and every working American's take-home pay will be squeezed.

2012年2月15日星期三

Rovera accused the Tripoli-based national government

Amnesty International quoted detainees as saying "They had been suspended in contorted positions; beaten for hours with whips, cables, plastic hoses, metal chains burberry outlet and bars, and wooden sticks and given electric shocks with live wires and taser-like electroshock weapons." At least 12 detainees had died since September after torture, Amnesty said. "Their bodies were covered in bruises, wounds and cuts and some had had nails pulled off," the group said. The report is a fresh blow to Libya's new government, the National Transitional Council, which helped lead the anti-Gadhafi uprising that broke out one year ago this week and spiraled into a brutal, eight-month civil war. Since the war's end with the capture and killing of Gadhafi last October, the NTC has struggled to extend its control over the vast desert nation. It has largely failed to rein in the hundreds of brigades that fought in the war, many of which now run their own detention centers for those accused of links to Gadhafi's regime. Amnesty said it visited 11 detention camps in central and western Libya in January and February, and found evidence of torture and abuse at all but one. "Nobody is holding these militias responsible," Donatella Rovera, senior crisis response adviser at Amnesty International, told The Associated Press by telephone from Jordan on Wednesday, a day after she left Libya. The U.N.'s top human rights official, and Amnesty International, have urged Libya's government to take control of all makeshift prisons to prevent further atrocities against detainees. "There's torture, extrajudicial executions, rape of both men and women," U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay said on Jan. 27. Some 2,400 detainees remain held in centers controlled by the new Libyan government, but the militias are holding uncounted thousands more prisoners, Amnesty said. Most are in and around Tripoli and Misrata, the coastal city that saw some of the war's most brutal fighting, it said. The International Committee of the Red Cross reported that from March to December 2011 it had visited over 8,500 detainees in some 60 detention centers. Amnesty International's delegation witnessed detainees being beaten and threatened with death at a detention center in Misrata. In a Tripoli detention center, they found severely tortured detainees who interrogators tried to conceal, the group reported. It spoke to detainees held in and around Tripoli, Gharyan, Misrata, Sirte and Zawiya. The humanitarian group Doctors Without Borders suspended its work in prisons in Misrata in late January because it said torture was so rampant that some detainees burberry bags 2012 were brought for care only to make them fit for further interrogation and abuse. Rovera accused the Tripoli-based national government of "a lack of political will. They're not willing to recognize the scale of the problem. It is way, way beyond individual cases. It's an irresponsible attitude," she said. The militias were one of the keys to the rebellion that toppled Gadhafi's 42-year rule last year, but they are maintaining their independence from the National Transitional Council. Hundreds of Libyan militias commemorated the anniversary of the anti-Gadhafi uprising this week by allying into a new unified military council. Thousands of fighters from across western Libya held a mass parade in Tripoli on Tuesday, showing off heavy machine guns and rocket launchers and firing rifles in the air, an outburst that appeared intended as a warning to anyone who might stage attacks during the anniversary. Some of the militia reprisals are against dark-skinned Libyans and African contract workers who the Gadhafis had brought in for jobs ranging from construction to security and riot control, leading to attacks on so-called "mercenaries" during the uprising. "African migrants and refugees are also being targeted and revenge attacks are being carried out," Amnesty said. "Entire communities have been forcibly displaced and authorities have done nothing to investigate the abuses and hold those responsible to account." The violence took on an ethnic twist. "It's hunting down 'the other,'" Rovera told the AP. "They're wreaking havoc in the community." Amnesty said that militias from Misrata "drove out the entire population of Tawargha, some 30,000 people, and looted and burned down their homes in revenge for crimes some Tawargha are accused of having committed during the conflict." "Thousands of members of the Mashashya tribe were similarly forced out of their village by militias from Zintan, in the Nafusa Mountains. These and other communities remain displaced in makeshift camps around the country," Amnesty said. Amnesty called for Western pressure on the burberry handbags 2012 Libyan government and militias. Rovera said that from the United States to Europe, "There are a lot of countries and governments seeking contracts in Libya, so there's no shortage of contacts" that the West can use.

2012年2月14日星期二

Santorum is underfunded and outmanned

Curious Republicans now pack his rallies. Supporters have funneled nearly $4 million to his formerly empty campaign account over burberry kids skirts the past seven days. And his staff is plotting an aggressive strategy to challenge Mitt Romney in Romney's native Michigan and beyond. But things don't look so strong just beneath the surface. Santorum is underfunded and outmanned. He's still lacking in organization, a month and a half into the primary season. And, after he won three contests in a single day last week, his opponents -- on the right and the left -- have begun their own efforts to tear him down. An upbeat Santorum faced more than 1,000 people in a Boise high school auditorium Tuesday night and said his ideas would carry him through. He said he's someone "who can overcome the disadvantages of money and media attention and still be in a position to win. Ideas matter." But his challenges were on display the day before in Tacoma, Wash., where hundreds of supporters waited on cold, wet cement stairs in the dark to see the Republican presidential candidate with whom they're barely familiar. "I don't know a lot about him, except I know he's more conservative than some of the other candidates like Mitt Romney," said Tanya Franklin, a 54-year-old airline reservationist, who says she'll probably vote for Santorum in her state's March 3 caucuses. The former Pennsylvania senator has surged to a virtual tie with Romney in nationwide polling following his surprising sweep in Colorado, Minnesota and Missouri last week. But, as Franklin suggests, his popularity may have less to do with who he is than who he isn't. Santorum is not Romney. And with Newt Gingrich's recent decline, that's enough for some conservatives -- at least for now. Santorum had 30 percent support to 28 percent for Romney in a national poll released this week by the Pew Research Center. But the same poll said 31 percent of all adults had never heard of or couldn't rate him. That's a significantly higher number than for Romney, Gingrich or Ron Paul. Even among Republicans, one in five told Pew they didn't know enough about Santorum to rate him. Romney and others are now working to make sure that changes. The long-time front-runner for the nomination, Romney has deployed surrogates such as a former Santorum Senate colleague, Jim Talent of Missouri, to attack Santorum's support for earmarks in Congress. The conservative Club for Growth has been equally critical. And Romney has been aggressive on the campaign trail, suggesting in recent days that Santorum and Gingrich represent the kind of overspending Washington insiders the tea party abhors. At the same time, left-leaning groups such as burberry kids sweater the Center For American Progress and Emily's List are going after Santorum's comments on women. A staunch social conservative, Santorum has been critical of women serving in combat and sometimes in the workplace. "Sadly the propaganda campaign launched in the 1960s has taken root," reads a passage in Santorum's book. "The radical feminists succeeded in undermining the traditional family and convincing women that professional accomplishments are the key to happiness." "These things that Rick Santorum is attacking are broadly supported by women and American families," said Tara McGuinness of the Center for American Progress. "It isn't 1952. Most American families have two working parents." Santorum says he's not going to sit back and just take such shots. On Tuesday, he began running ads on Fox News Channel in Michigan. It was a signal to supporters -- and to donors -- that Santorum planned to contest the state where Romney grew up and his father served as governor. Indeed, Santorum told reporters Tuesday night he will "hopefully finish a good strong second" to Romney in Michigan. "We think we can plant our flag there and do well," he said. Look for Santorum to emphasize his message on manufacturing revival, especially in hard-hit Michigan. He plans a Thursday economic speech in Detroit, and his advisers see an opening to use Romney's words against him -- especially Romney's 2008 New York Times op-ed titled "Let Detroit Go Bankrupt." Sensing vulnerability, Romney tried to pre-empt that in an op-ed Tuesday in The Detroit News. He argued that the government should sell its share in automakers and return the profits to taxpayers. At the same time, Santorum's advisers are bracing for an onslaught from Romney. They were largely spared in the last trio of states -- Minnesota, Missouri and Colorado. "We fully expect his search-and-destroy methods to be put on display. That's his M.O.: instead of focusing on his own record, their first inclination is to tear down his opponent," said Hogan Gidley, Santorum's communications chief. But there are limits to what Santorum's little team can do. He refuses to hire a pollster and pledges to campaign from his gut. He has brought on veterans from Mike Huckabee's orbit, including the top spokeswoman for Huckabee's 2008 presidential bid and Michele Bachmann's 2012 race. Other aides, too, are coming aboard as Santorum's strategy meetings have grown from just one state to a handful of competitive races. Yet he lacks a headquarters to have those meetings. Often, Santorum's top aides confer over conference calls or Skype. "We're building," Santorum said. "We've got a great volunteer base. In some states we're going to have staff. Other states we aren't. We're going to use volunteers." The disorganization was on display in Boise discount burberry kids sweater online 2012 black and caused problems at the Tacoma event, which was held at an outdoor venue adjacent to a camp site of the local Occupy protesters. Lacking the staff to handle such logistics on his own, Santorum had left the planning to the state GOP. A confident Santorum took the stage as supporters chanted, "We pick Rick!" "You have very good taste. Thank you," Santorum responded. But in a matter of minutes, his supporters were overshadowed by shouting from liberal protesters who packed the event. Two were dragged away by police in the midst of his speech. On Tuesday, Santorum said the Tacoma incident has led him to explore Secret Service protection. He said it's unfortunate that some people "can get a little rowdy and sometimes a little violent." Currently, Romney is the only GOP contender with Secret Service protection. A week after his trio of victories, Santorum said he's raised nearly $4 million since then and expects to hit that mark soon. Romney, by contrast, averaged more than $2 million a week over the last three months of 2011. Santorum raised less than $1 million over the entire quarter. It's unclear how long Romney will wait to take an anti-Santorum message to the airwaves. His allies with the Restore Our Future super PAC already have bought time in several states and plan to go after Santorum aggressively. Romney aides point to three vulnerabilities beyond Santorum's support for some earmarks. They note that Santorum was one of a handful of Republicans who voted to confirm Sonia Sotomayor to the federal circuit court in 1998. Sotomayor was nominated by President Barack Obama, and confirmed by the Senate, to the U.S. Supreme Court in 2009. Santorum also faced criticism during the New Hampshire and South Carolina primary campaigns for opposing right-to-work legislation, an issue Romney aides expect to re-emerge. They also expect Santorum's endorsement of then-Pennsylvania Sen. Arlen Specter over Rep. Pat Toomey in the 2004 GOP Senate primary to become an issue. Santorum said in a video appeal for Specter, a social moderate, that the senior Republican senator was "with us on the votes that matter." In 2009, Specter changed his party affiliation to Democrat. Gingrich won't make things easier for burberry skirts cheap for kids sale 2012 red Santorum either. Despite falling in the polls, the former House speaker says he's the strongest Romney alternative.

The world is moving toward more monetary easing as shown

Asian stocks rose, while the euro weakened against most of its major peers as European leaders demanded stronger commitments from Greece to implement burberry bags 2012 budget cuts. Japanese shares rallied for a third day amid speculation the economy will recover as the central bank boosts stimulus. The MSCI Asia Pacific Index (MXAP) climbed 0.5 percent as of 10:01 a.m. in Tokyo. Standard & Poor’s 500 Index futures were little changed. The Nikkei 225 Stock Average increased 0.9 percent. Oil traded near a two-day low. The New Zealand dollar gained against most of its major counterparts after retail sales rose more than economists estimated. European finance ministers canceled a Brussels meeting slated for today and will hold a teleconference instead to prod Greece to do more to clinch a 130 billion euros ($170 billion) aid package. The leaders of Greece’s two biggest political parties will send written commitments tomorrow to the so-called troika -- the International Monetary Fund, European Commission and European Central Bank -- to stand by austerity measures, a government official said yesterday. “Expectations are mounting that another bailout for Greece will be executed soon,” said Hiroichi Nishi, an equities manager in Tokyo at SMBC Nikko Securities Inc. “The world is moving toward more monetary easing as shown by the BOJ, supporting equities.” The Bank of Japan yesterday unexpectedly added 10 trillion yen ($128 billion) to an asset-purchase program and set a 1 percent goal for inflation to boost the economy. Data later today may show Europe’s economy shrank in the fourth quarter for the first time in 2 1/2 years as the region’s debt crisis undermined confidence. Gross domestic product in the 17-nation euro area fell 0.4 percent from the previous three months, according to the median forecast of 42 economists in a Bloomberg News survey. Westfield Group (WDC) jumped 5.1 percent in Australia. The manager of shopping centers said it formed a $4.8 billion joint venture with the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and plans to buy back as much as 10 percent of its stock. The snag in the negotiations came on the same day that activist investor Daniel Loeb, of hedge fund ThirdPoint, launched a campaign to install his own slate of directors on Yahoo's board, further highlighting the turmoil engulfing the one-time Web pioneer. Loeb, who has adamantly opposed Yahoo's previous efforts to strike a minority investment deal with private equity firms, disclosed plans to nominate former NBC Universal Chief Executive Jeff Zucker, along with himself and two others, for Yahoo's board in a regulatory filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday. A collapse of the proposed Asian asset deal - referred to as a cash-rich split-off - would mark the latest setback for an erstwhile Internet leader struggling to turn its business around and appease unhappy shareholders. Yahoo, which reported a 21 percent decline in revenue last year, appointed former PayPal President Scott Thompson as chief executive in January, five months after CEO Carol Bartz was fired over the phone. One person briefed on the situation described the deal as effectively dead in the water following unreasonable terms sought by Yahoo during negotiations in Hong Kong. But Yahoo appeared to see things differently. The company had not been informed that the tax-free deal was officially off the table, and it remained committed to continuing negotiations, according to a second source familiar with the matter. Representatives from Yahoo and Alibaba Group declined to comment. The sources said Yahoo and its Asian partners could still strike another, taxable, deal, though that remained to be seen. Shares of Yahoo, which were down as much as 6 percent at midday on Tuesday, finished the regular session down 4.7 percent at $15.36. "I think the deal is either dead or it's going to take a lot longer to complete, which means we don't have a near term catalyst; hence the selloff," said Brett Harriss, an analyst with Gabelli & Co. The deal would have seen the return of Yahoo's cheap burberry scarves slices of Alibaba and Yahoo Japan back to those companies, in exchange for unspecified assets. Investors had hoped that Yahoo, after years of foot-dragging, would finally arrange for the sale of its Asian assets, considered among the most valuable parts of its portfolio. AllThingsDigital, which initially reported the snag in the negotiations on Tuesday, cited one source as saying discussions "completely halted" after negotiators from Yahoo - whose chairman, Roy Bostock, is due to step down and whose chief executive, Scott Thompson, is barely a month into the job - changed tack on what they wanted from the deal. The report gave no details. It was unclear what exactly had caused the sudden impasse in negotiations, roughly two months after the various parties had agreed to basic terms for a deal. A third source familiar with the talks said Yahoo's negotiators had a change of heart, though it was unclear why. "Over the last few days in Hong Kong, it became evident that they don't really have a desire to do this deal," that source said, dismissing speculation both sides might have split on valuation terms agreed upon in December. "A cash-rich split appears to be toast." Alibaba may now reach out to Thompson directly to see if Yahoo would explore a simpler - but taxable - direct buy-back of its stock. ALL A RUSE? The slightly different interpretations over the current state of the deal by people familiar with the matter raised the possibility that the public airing of the latest snag could be a negotiating tactic. "It could be a negotiating ploy by either side, or it really could be a breakdown in negotiations," said Gabelli's Harriss, noting that there was a fair amount of friction in the relationship between Yahoo and Alibaba. Alibaba founder Jack Ma has tried to buy back the 40 percent of his company that is owned by Yahoo several times in recent years, only to be rebuffed by Yahoo. The rocky relationship between the companies came to a head in May when it was revealed that Alibaba had abruptly handed Alipay - one of Alibaba's crown jewels - to a company controlled by Ma, apparently without Yahoo's knowledge. "I find it very hard to believe that Alibaba and Softbank will just walk away," said Ryan Jacob, chairman and chief investment officer of the Jacob Funds, noting that Alibaba in particular is very interested in regaining its shares from Yahoo. If the companies can't agree on terms of a deal, Jacob speculated that Alibaba might team up with private equity investors in the United States and seek to acquire Yahoo outright. Such a move would allow Alibaba to regain its shares from Yahoo, while the private equity firms would likely take control of Yahoo's U.S.-based Internet business, he said. "Having U.S. partners just makes the most logical sense, because they're going to need help on financing, and in the long term they really don't want the core Yahoo business anyway," said Jacob, whose firm owns shares in Yahoo. Analysts say Yahoo failed to take aggressive action in past years to reverse a decline in advertising revenue in the face of competition from Google Inc and Facebook, incensing shareholders who blamed the Yahoo board for waffling. This month, Bostock announced he and three other directors would step down, following co-founder Jerry Yang out the door. Yang was excoriated for turning down a rich Microsoft Corp acquisition bid in 2008. ThirdPoint's Loeb said the recently announced Burberry ties cheap changes to Yahoo's board, including Yahoo's announcement of two new board members, do not put the company on "the right track." Yahoo fired back with a statement on Tuesday that it was disappointing that Loeb "has chosen a potentially disruptive path, just as the company is moving forward under new leadership."

2012年2月13日星期一

The agency also has to help states

President Barack Obama’s budget plan would trim spending on federal health programs at the expense of drugmakers, hospitals and nursing homes while seeking nearly burberry watches $1 billion for carrying out the 2010 health-care law. The fiscal 2013 blueprint, released yesterday, contains a package of changes to Medicare, the U.S. health insurance program for the elderly and disabled, and Medicaid, the health plan for the poor that would help save $362 billion over a decade to slow medical spending. Drug companies led by Pfizer Inc. would have to provide $156 billion in discounts over the next decade for medicines sold to low-income senior citizens, on top of $80 billion in discounts and rebates the industry agreed to help fund the cost of the health-care overhaul. Because Medicare and Medicaid have different payment programs, Medicare is “receiving significantly lower rebates and paying higher prices than Medicaid” for drugs, the administration said in budget documents. Obama’s proposals are unlikely to become law unless they’re included in legislation to raise the government’s debt limit, said Joe Antos, a health economist at the American Enterprise Institute, a nonprofit research group in Washington. “Anything that has a policy significance is simply not going to go anywhere this year,” he said by phone. “All of these ideas and others will be on the table in early 2013 when the debt limit has to be raised again.” Job Losses Forecast The rebates proposed yesterday may cause hundreds of thousands of jobs to be lost, said John Castellani, president and CEO of the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, a Washington trade group that represents the industry. The budget would “weaken our ability to innovate and create jobs,” Castellani said in a statement. The spending plan “should not be considered,” he said. New York-based Pfizer, the world’s largest drug maker by market value, had no comment, said Peter O’Toole, a spokesman. Brand-name drug manufacturers already provide rebates burberry sunglasses 2012 worth at least 15 percent the price of their medicines to Medicaid. The administration is proposing to extend that policy to cover so-called “dual eligibles,” about 9 million senior citizens who qualify for both Medicare and Medicaid. A 2003 law written by congressional Republicans shifted drug coverage for dual eligibles from Medicaid to Medicare plans administered by private insurers. The drug industry successfully fought efforts by House Democrats under then-Speaker Nancy Pelosi of California to require rebates for dual eligibles in the 2010 health-care overhaul. Hospital Payment Cuts Under Obama’s budget, Medicare spending would increase by $45 billion in fiscal 2013, to $523 billion. The administration proposed raising premiums on wealthier senior citizens beginning in 2017 to save $28 billion through 2022. The budget also would cut payments to long-term care hospitals such as those run by Kindred Healthcare Inc. and to nursing homes, saving about $63 billion over a decade. Payments to the facilities “in excess of the costs of providing high quality and efficient care place a drain on Medicare,” the administration said in budget documents. Long-term care hospitals and nursing homes are trying to improve the quality of care and “remove costs out of the system” through such measures as reducing re-admissions, said Mark Parkinson, the president and chief executive officer of the American Health Care Association, a Washington trade group. Approach Criticized “We shouldn’t have an approach focused solely on burberry grey sunglasses cuts,” he said in a statement. Obama’s budget “reflects that singular direction,” he said, and “is tantamount to cutting Medicare benefits.” Susan Moss, a spokeswoman for Louisville, Kentucky-based Kindred, didn’t return a phone message. There’s probably “room for some efficiencies” in payments to long-term care providers, said Antos, who advises the Congressional Budget Office on health issues. Cuts that are too deep could hurt access to care, he said. “If they’re big enough and sustained long enough, they absolutely will have an impact that everyone’s mother will know,” he said. The budget requests about $1 billion more in 2013 for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, the agency that runs the two U.S. entitlement programs and also oversees most of the implementation of the 2010 health-care law. Building An Exchange About $864 million of the increase would go toward enacting the health law, said Marilyn Tavenner, acting administrator of the Medicare agency. Her agency must build a federal health insurance exchange, or marketplace, where people will be able to purchase coverage if it’s not provided through their jobs. The agency also has to help states that are choosing to build their own exchanges. The state-based markets would sell individual policies while the U.S. burberry shirts men yellow identifies people eligible for subsidies to help them buy coverage. Republicans who control the U.S. House have said they will not appropriate money to implement the health-care law. The administration intends to move forward regardless, using money provided by the law or diverted from other programs, officials said. “We will always meet the statutory directive to have exchanges available in states that don’t do it by 2014,” said Steve Larsen, director of the Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight, the office in Tavenner’s agency responsible for exchanges. The government “will work with existing, available funding sources” if Congress doesn’t appropriate additional money, he said in an interview.

John Goodman adopted his 42-year-old girlfriend

The polo magnate who adopted his girlfriend in an alleged attempt to protect his fortune from a lawsuit must now battle with his teenaged children who want the adoption thrown out gucci outlet. John Goodman adopted his 42-year-old girlfriend in the fall, giving her a share of the more than $300 million trust he established for his two biological children -- a move that critics said was a ploy to save millions for himself if he loses an upcoming wrongful death lawsuit stemming from a car accident that killed Scott Wilson in February 2010. The guardian of Goodman's children opened another legal front against the Polo Club Palm Beach founder by asking a judge to throw out the adoption of Heather Ann Hutchins, The Palm Beach Post reports. The paperwork filed last week in Miami and Palm Beach County on behalf of guardian Jeffrey Goddess alleges that Goodman, 48, defrauded the court, surprised the teenagers' mother and abused adoption rules by taking his main squeeze as his legal daughter, The Post says gucci bags. The attorney for Goddess claims that Goodman kept the Oct. adoption secret from his children's guardian and his ex-wife until after Christmas. He also blames Goodman for not telling the judge overseeing the adoption proceedings that Wilson's parents were suing him. Goodman's lawyer Dan Bachi had previously argued that adopting Hutchins was a way to ensure his children's future and was completely unrelated to the upcoming showdown with the Wilson family, according to Fox News. A judge in the wrongful death case previously ruled that the children's trust couldn't be touched if Goodman loses the suit. Now that Hutchins is legally his third daughter she's entitled to a portion of that money -- possibly worth $5 million per year. Because the trust was off-limits, its size was not known until Circuit Judge Glenn Kelley decided to reveal its worth this week, The Palm Beach Post said in a different report.Goodman allegedly killed Wilson when he ran a red light and plowed his Bentley into the 23-year-old's car, knocking it into a river and drowning the driver. The civil suit begins in March as does Goodman's criminal trial on DUI manslaughter charges, TV station WPBF reports gucci shoes.

2012年2月12日星期日

I’m not out there trying to demagogue the issues

But then along came Rep. Cliff Stearns and his twin probes into Solyndra and Planned Parenthood. Almost out of nowhere, the chairman of an burberry women coats Energy and Commerce subcommittee has found a voice and key role in the House GOP machine, making waves by supplying tasty morsels for Republicans as they battle the White House. “Every time I come off, I think people realize I’m credible and not trying to use this for political gain,” the 12-term Florida Republican said in an interview. “I’m not out there trying to grab headlines, and I’m not out there trying to demagogue the issues,” he added. But the press attention could be useful for Stearns as he shifts into a newly redrawn district for 2012. Stearns on Tuesday announced he would leave his current district that includes his hometown of Ocala rather than be forced into an August primary challenge against freshman GOP Rep. Richard Nugent. Instead, he’ll shift into the new 3rd District, which includes about 70 percent of his current constituents and all or parts of eight counties he’s represented before. Stearns’s own rise to chairman of the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee was something of an afterthought after Republicans swept into power in the 2010 midterms. He’d just been trounced by Michigan Rep. Fred Upton in a four-man race to be chairman of the full Energy and Commerce Committee. GOP officials privately said Stearns never had a chance, a fate sealed, thanks to his history of holding onto a large campaign war chest and not spreading the money around among his colleagues. But now more than a year into the job, Stearns seems fortuitous to have a gavel with expansive jurisdiction over everything from energy to Internet privacy and health care. “He has good insights and good staff around him, but I really think he’s in the right place at the right time and has a determined commitment to these issues,” said Matt Mackowiak, a Republican strategist and founder of the Potomac Strategy Group. Some aren’t buying Stearns’s newfound stardom. Democrats say the Solyndra and Planned Parenthood investigations have yet to produce evidence that matches up with the accusations the chairman has leveled during hearings and media interviews. And Stearns’s sometimes awkward and overly aggressive public statements only underscore his flimsy cases. Last October, Energy and Commerce ranking member Henry Waxman (D-Calif.) dubbed Stearns’s Solyndra inquiry a “kangaroo court.” Obama also has gotten in on the act. Last fall, after Stearns told NPR, “We can’t compete with China to make solar panels and wind turbines,” the White House pounced, with the president citing the congressman’s comments during a press conference to argue that he wouldn’t cede the entire industry to foreign competition. Other moments from Stearns’s highlight reel include a press release stating that Bill Daley left his job as White House chief of staff because of the Solyndra investigation and fumbling on the definition of a loan guarantee during a town hall event in his district. Stearns’s year-old probe into the now-bankrupt California solar company Solyndra provided the grist for two of the first campaign attack ads against President Barack Obama. And it was Stearns’s investigation into Planned Parenthood that gave Susan G. Komen for the Cure the basis to stop sending grant money to the woman’s health organization. The nonprofit quickly reversed itself amid public backlash, but it still led to the resignation on Tuesday of a top executive. Stearns, an aerospace engineer and restaurant owner, seems to be getting a good share of the media time compared with Issa. He’s doing more TV interviews than he’s ever done in his Capitol Hill career, including two appearances on Fox News and another on CNN during the same day earlier this month. The Gainesville Sun’s editorial page took issue with Stearns in an op-ed — headline: “Eating his words” — that questioned why he’d bash Obama for energy subsidies while also welcoming a $95.5 million Energy Department grant to help Saft America Inc. open a lithium-ion burberry coats for women battery plant in Jacksonville. “While playing to the tea party might help Rep. Stearns climb the ranks in the House, it’s been a waste of resources and tax dollars,” said Josh Freed, the vice president for clean energy at Third Way, a think tank that now employs Jonathan Silver, the former DOE loan guarantee office director whom Stearns called on to be fired. Even fellow Republicans have had to walk Stearns back. Upton and former Energy and Commerce Committee Chairman Joe Barton (R-Texas) refused to go down the same path as Stearns in calling for Energy Secretary Steven Chu and other Obama officials to be fired over Solyndra. Stearns also caught Republican colleagues by surprise last month when he told Fox Business Network about upcoming discussions for holding the White House in contempt of Congress for failing to comply with his subpoenas. “He’s way ahead of the rest of us,” Rep. Lee Terry (R-Neb.) told POLITICO. “I’m not sure we’re at the last resort and that would be the last resort. It’s an extraordinary step.” Last week, Upton, Stearns and the rest of the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee Republicans threatened the White House with a contempt vote if they don’t get all the materials they want by Feb. 21 or a formal claim of executive privilege. Planned Parenthood is collecting signatures for a petition to Stearns that accuses him of “grasping for something, anything, he can use to discredit, damage or destroy Planned Parenthood. This isn’t about fiscal responsibility. This is about harassment and intimidation of America’s leading provider and advocate of women’s health.” Continue Reading Stearns told POLITICO that his investigations are asking tough questions that hadn’t been asked before. “It’s nothing ideological,” he said of the Planned Parenthood probe. “I’m trying to keep it on the financial oversight.” After a year of work on Solyndra, Stearns also acknowledged he’s still looking for the smoking gun to show there’s been political pressure on the Energy Department. But he blames the White House for resisting so many of his document requests, including two subpoenas. “It’s been a lot of smoke, and when there’s smoke, there’s fire,” he said. Some Democrats have come to Stearns’s defense, saying his work follows a familiar path for the Energy and Commerce Committee. “I don’t think either side can go back and say we never used it for investigations that were political in nature. Both sides have,” said former Rep. Bart Stupak (D-Mich.), Stearns’s most immediate predecessor as chairman of the oversight panel. “I don’t think what he’s doing is outside the ordinary.” “Cliff isn’t a wild card,” Stupak added. “He’s got a good team. There’s a real wealth of expertise.” Back home, Stearns’s work on Solyndra and Planned Parenthood seem destined to play a role in his August primary challenge. He’s already got $2.4 million in the bank, which dwarfs the other potential Republican candidates, including veterinarian Ted Yoho, burberry new women windbreakers for sale black who’s written a $50,000 personal check to his campaign. Yoho said in a telephone interview that Stearns is partly responsible for the Solyndra debacle because he didn’t do more to stop the underlying program from being created. “We want it on the front side so the investments don’t even happen,” he said.

2012年2月11日星期六

Some parents applauded when the decision was announced

When students return to the school where two teachers were jailed last week for alleged lewdness, they'll have new teachers in their classrooms, a new principal in the front office and new workers serving lunch gucci outlet. In a move that experts said was unprecedented, the entire 120-member staff at Miramonte Elementary School will be replaced as of Thursday after a two-day school shutdown as part of Los Angeles Unified School District's investigation into the two veteran teachers arrested last week. "It's the most severe action I've seen taken by a school district," said Terri Miller, president of Stop Educator Sexual Abuse, Misconduct and Exploitation, an advocacy organization based in Las Vegas. The move by administrators Monday evening was a bold step by the district to restore parents' badly shaken confidence at the school, but it was met with mixed feelings. It came after about three dozen people protested in front of the main doors of the school earlier Monday, some carrying a banner that read, "We the parents demand our children be protected from lewd teacher acts." It also followed a march later in the day, in which 100 angry parents marched from the elementary school to the nearby administrators meeting. Some parents applauded when the decision was announced, while several dozen protested outside the school Tuesday morning and circulated a petition calling for the staff to be reinstated. Mother Maria Jimenez said some parents would at least like to have been notified that this was being considered as many feel it's drastic. "They did this without advising us or consulting us," she said http://www.ineedtop.com/. Parents handed Superintendent John Deasy Monday night a petition with 400 signatures calling for open doors and allowing parents to observe classrooms and act as hall monitors. But they did not want good teachers removed, said Martha Escutia, a lawyer and former state senator who is helping parents to organize a group named Mothers of Miramonte. "This is not being very well received," Escutia said. "Some kids have established close relationships with their teachers." Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa said he supported Superintendent John Deasy's decision to replace the staff. "I think we need to do everything we can to make sure these kids, these students and their families, get the help that they need and to get to the bottom of how this happened," he said. More than a quarter of students did not show up for class on Monday and a number of parents pulled children out of the school on Friday after news broke of a teacher arrested on a charge of fondling a second-grader, four days after a third-grade teacher was accused of 23 lewd acts including feeding children his semen in a bizarre "tasting game." The school board on Tuesday voted unanimously to fire the teacher arrested Friday, Martin Springer, 49. He has 30 days to file an appeal. The other teacher, Mark Berndt, 61, was fired in January 2011 after the district learned of a sheriff's department probe. He appealed and resigned six months later. Miramonte's old staff will continue being paid and will be housed at an undisclosed location at least until August while each person is thoroughly interviewed, Superintendent John Deasy said. Replacing teaching staffs at schools has been done in LAUSD and other schools, but in cases of chronically low academic performance. Teachers usually must reapply for their jobs, and the turnover does not also extend to support staff. It's unclear whether any staffers will return to Miramonte. On Tuesday, they were packing up their classroom belongings to head to a nearby newly constructed school that is unoccupied, district spokesman Tom Waldman said. "They thought making a clean break was the only way to get this under control," said John E.B. Myers, a professor at Pacific McGeorge School of Law in Sacramento who has studied abuse cases. The new principal will be a retired principal, while the rest of the new staffers, including some 90 teachers, are former district personnel who were laid off due to budget cuts in recent years, the district said gucci shoes 2012. Deasy said the new staff members are being vigorously screened for any previous complaints against them. Each of the approximately 90 teachers will be accompanied in class by a psychiatric social worker to address possible issues caused by the scandal and the midyear disruption. The cost of the plan has not yet been determined, but Deasy said he was sparing no expense to understand how the abuse occurred over some years and no one reported it. The district's investigation, which will be handled by an independent commission led by retired California Supreme Court Chief Justice Carlos Moreno, will include interviewing past students and staff at Miramonte. School sex abuse expert Mary Jo McGrath, an attorney who has conducted some 350 abuse investigations, said the investigation could uncover more cases. "It's not a witch hunt, it's just that someone is really looking," she said. "Cases start unpeeling like an onion. It's always the same pattern." Teachers need to receive extensive training in spotting the red flags that could indicate a colleague is engaging in inappropriate conduct with children, as well how to find the courage to speak up against a colleague, especially longtime veterans, McGrath said. Frequent meetings with children after school, locked doors, taking kids on trips can all be signs that something is going on. "There are definite indicators in other staff members being off," said McGrath, a Santa Barbara-based consultant. United Teachers Los Angeles said in a statement that union leaders have met with Miramonte teachers and support the investigation gucci bags 2012. "It's everyone's responsibility to ensure that any and all allegations are thoughtfully and carefully investigated," the union said. The alleged abuse came to light last Monday night when Berndt was arrested.