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Pengalaman memperpanjang Domain .us

2012-01-25T04:47:00.000-08:00

Memperpanjang domain merupakan suatu hal yang biasa, terutama ketika domain tersebut sudah memasuki masa exfired, maka secara otomatis domain tersebut akan meminta perpanjangan. Namun perpanjangan domain ini agak getir, lain daripada yang biasanya.

Domain ini saya beli untuk mencoba bermain bisnis online Google Adsense, dan sayapun tertarik untuk membeli domain tersebut karena ketika dilakukan pencarian domain pada Godady, domain tersebut dengan ektensi .com .net .org No available alias tidak tersedia,dan yang tersedia .mobi, .ca, .us dan yang lainnya, dan pilihan saya jatuhkan pada ektensi .us.

Memilih Ektensi domain untuk bisnis Online

Mungkin rekan-rekan bertanya kenapa saya memilih domain ini. Selain domain dengan ektensi .us tersebut tersedia, domain tersebut harga nya murah dijual oleh Pihak Godady. Memang ketika mencari domain untuk sebuah Blog atau sebuah situs maka domain yang TLD, biasanya sudah tidak tersedia lagi.

Namun sahabat rupanya harga yang murah ketika melakukan pembelian pertama kali yang hanya 3 dollar. Rupanya pada saat perpanjangan domain tersebut, biayanya yang dikeluarkan mencapai 15,90 dollar, dua kali lipat biaya perpanjangan daripada domain .com .org .net. Itupun menggunakan kupon kalau tidak menggunakan kupon biayanya mencapi 18 dollar.

Kalau sahabat mau membeli domain jangan tergiur dengan harga yang murah, lebih baik pilih saja domain dengan ektensi .com .org atau .net

Tileclick has helped shape and transform the UK tile industry

2012-01-17T00:11:00.000-08:00

Tileclick as a Tiles retailer's first purely web-based in the UK, to meet the changing demands of consumers and increasing the UK and to ensure our customers' needs are met

Moisture from the kitchen and Bathroom Tiles you will go to the wallpaper, It is for this reason that most designers would recommend interior wall tiles, practical, easy-to-clean alternative that will last the test of time and still allow for the appearance of equally attractive

From mosaic to brick, glass to stone, small to large, We have the kitchen wall tiles for your home. Whether you are creating a feature splashback or adding a simple border, there is something for everyone in our exciting collection of kitchen Wall Tiles

Société vend et installe des équipements de surveillance vidéo

2011-12-12T06:38:00.000-08:00

Lorsque vous avez une entreprise, et vous avez des actifs tels que des voitures, des bâtiments et des terrains, les actifs sont vulnérables au vol, il est impératif de penser à la protection des actifs. Et les actifs sont très précieux pour vous, pour garder votre actif est il vous faut un sentiment de sécurité qui vous donne la paix.

video surveillance pour sécuriser les biens que vous avez est adapté pour vous, la vidéo surveillance a adapté un système de sécurité sophistiqués pour répondre à vos besoins, y compris ceux dans le monde des affaires et du secteur privé et le secteur privé

Protéger vos actifs est importante car elle joue un grand rôle dans la détermination de la progression de votre entreprise. Fournir Asset Tracker est juste une des nombreuses choses dont vous avez besoin pour la sauvegarde des actifs de sorte que vous pouvez prendre une Pls action se passe quelque chose de mal.

Calon Peserta Sertifikasi Guru 2012

2011-12-07T22:32:00.000-08:00

Peserta Sertifikasi Guru 2012 telah diupdate data tersebut diberikan untuk memberikan informasi bagi calon peserta setifikasi guru 2012. Peserta Sertifikasi Guru 2012 memenuhi persyaratan sebagai calon peserta untuk tahun 2012

Daftar Peserta Sertifikasi Guru 2012

Untuk melihat Peserta Sertifikasi Guru 2012 dapat dilihat pada situs resmi yang memebrikan informasi resmi tentang Peserta Sertifikasi Guru 2012, jadi bagi sahabat yang telah mendaftar atau istri, teman, keluarga yang telah mendaftar bisa dicek disini, apakah sudah terdaftar atau belum.

Untuk melihat daftar peserta Sertifikasi Guru 2012, Kunjungi situs resmi http://sergur.pusbangprodik.org, Sesuaikan dimana Provinsi kita berada dan pilih Kabupaten atau Kota

Melihat Calon Peserta Sertifikasi Guru 2012

Kalau berhasil akan sampai kehalaman berikut ini, silahkan cari nama sahabat disini

More than 700 Wall Street protesters arrested on Brooklyn Bridge

2011-10-02T08:33:00.001-07:00

More than 700 protesters demonstrating against corporate greed, global warming and social inequality, among other grievances, were arrested Saturday after they went onto the Brooklyn Bridge and shut down a lane of traffic for several hours, leading to a tense confrontation with police.

The group Occupy Wall Street has been camped out in a plaza in Manhattan’s Financial District for nearly two weeks staging various marches, and had orchestrated an impromptu trek to Brooklyn on Saturday afternoon. They walked in thick rows on the sidewalk up to the bridge, where some demonstrators spilled onto the roadway after being told to stay on the pedestrian pathway, police said.

Some protesters sat on the roadway, chanting “Let us go,” while others chanted and yelled at police from the pedestrian walkaway above. Police used orange netting to stop the group from going farther down the bridge, which is under construction.

Some of the protesters said they were lured onto the roadway by police, or they didn’t hear the calls from authorities to head to the pedestrian walkway. Police said no one was tricked into being arrested, and those in the back of the group who couldn’t hear were allowed to leave.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/americas/more-than-700-wall-street-protesters-arrested-on-brooklyn-bridge/article2187731/

The Ford F-150 pickup truck stood out in two important categories

2011-09-14T20:48:00.001-07:00

The Ford F-150 pickup truck stood out in two important categories. First was its carrying capacity, which came in handy for moving our son back to university. We loaded the F-150 with three giant chairs, a set of shelves, a desk, several crates of books and dishes, a box of computer equipment - and there was room for more. So for load carrying, it rated a 10 out of 10.

But then came the next significant performance category – the gas tank fill-up. I inserted the hose, pulled the handle, and waited. The meter hit $50, then $75. The $100 mark blew by with no end in sight - the numbers kept whizzing upwards, as if the gas pump had turned into a demonic slot machine. Finally, with $150 looming, the pump clicked off. Now I knew why they called it the F-150.

The fill up hurt. But blaming the F-150 for its prodigious consumption is like blaming the Bengal tiger for liking the taste of livestock - sucking down fuel is just the nature of the beast. The F-150 is a large, heavy vehicle designed for the express purpose of carrying tools and supplies. It has a massive steel frame, crude but durable suspension, and a tailgate the size of an apartment balcony.

If you’re a cattle rancher or a building contractor (like the friend I borrowed the F-150 from) a pickup truck like this one makes all the sense in the world – you can throw in a few heifers, stacks of plywood, or a portable concrete mixer.

But as I cruised through Toronto and headed west in the F-150, I noticed that only a small percentage of the trucks like it appeared to be used by building contractors or cattle ranchers. Instead, the vast majority of the 150’s on the road appeared to be lifestyle props, giving their drivers the appearance of building contractors or cattle ranchers – in their F-150’s, you could imagine them heading off to brand a steer or knock down a wall. Or at least that’s the theory.

The urban pickup truck is a curious machine. It has bad weight distribution and low interior volume for its size. The body-on-frame construction make it twist and groan over bumps like a Spanish galleon in heavy seas. It’s essentially a four-wheeled, motorized wheelbarrow. Loaded with cinder blocks or bags of cement, it’s in its element.

But that doesn’t stop people from choosing them. I’m not surprised. Back in the age of chivalry, knights tended to go for tallest horse, so they’d cut a more imposing figure. An unladen F-150 is the modern equivalent. In the Ford’s lofty cab I felt like the king of the road, looking down on all others. And I might not be a cattle rancher, but in the F-150, I could pretend.

Executives of Sino-Forest engaged in fraudulent activity

2011-08-27T16:16:00.000-07:00

Senior executives of Sino-Forest Corp., (TRE-T) including chief executive officer Allen Chan, appear to be engaged in fraudulent activity, according to a stunning set of allegations levelled by the Ontario Securities Commission.

Canada’s top stock market regulator halted trading in Sino-Forest shares and said certain officers and directors of the forestry firm “appear to have misrepresented some of its revenue” and “exaggerated some of its timber holdings” by providing false or misleading information. The commission took the unprecedented step of ordering Mr. Chan and other officers to resign Friday -- only to rescind the demand hours later in a bizarre turn of events.

he company also appears to have engaged in “significant” related-party transactions, which may violate Ontario securities laws, the OSC said. If the allegations are true, Sino-Forest, a Hong-Kong-based company that operates in mainland China and was once the biggest publicly traded forestry company on the Toronto Stock Exchange, could turn out to be one of the largest corporate frauds in Canadian stock market history.

The fresh accusations are adding to pressure on Mr. Chan to step down temporarily as CEO, according to people familiar with the matter. An announcement could come as soon as this weekend, sources said.

Apple's latest chip technology won't appear in the next-generation iPad

2011-08-26T16:47:00.000-07:00

Apple's latest chip technology won't appear in the next-generation iPad until June 2012 at the earliest, according to a firm that tracks the mobile processor industry.

Getting new processor technology out the door (remember, Apple is also in the chip design business) is a Herculean task for even seasoned chip manufacturers like Intel. It will certainly be no different for Apple, whose next chip, dubbed the "A6," may not make an appearance in the iPad 3 until later in 2012, said The Linley Group, a chip consulting firm.

The rumored A6 is a major step-up in chip design. Not only does it contain four processor cores (the existing Apple A5 has two cores) but will use so-called 3D technology, Linley Group senior analyst Kevin Krewell said this week in a research note, citing a report in the Taiwan Economic News. Intel also announced 3D technology in May.

And on top of this, Apple will be switching to a new contract chip manufacturer, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co. (TSMC) and be using next-generation 28-nanometer technology. Currently, Samsung makes Apple's A5 processor.

All of this takes time. "A final version of the chip will enter production in 2Q12 'at the earliest'... We believe this timing makes sense," Krewell said. "This pace would make the A6 one of the first 28 [nanometer] mobile processors (along with Qualcomm's MSM8960) to enter production. This schedule, however, breaks Apple's annual processor-upgrade cycle and will delay any products using the A6 until at least June 2012."

And if Apple keeps to its schedule and launches an iPad 3 in the first quarter of 2012, the initial version of the iPad 3 "will have to use the same A5 processor as the current iPad 2, relying on the rumored new high-resolution 'Retina' display to drive the upgrade cycle," according to Krewell.

Krewell adds that he expects the quad-core A6 will be competitive with next year's best mobile processors, including an expected quad-core offering from Nvidia. That Nvidia chip is expected to power both Android and Windows 8 devices, including tablets and laptops. "Fabricating Apple's A6 in 28nm (instead of the 40nm process Nvidia is using for its quad-core part) will reduce both die cost and power, yielding a much better product," he said.

TSMC's 3D technology for Apple's A6 chip "could use 3D stacking to incorporate additional DRAM or flash memory, or to boost interconnect speed," according to Krewell.

Finally, he warns about the risks of switching chip manufacturers: "The foundry switch is not without risk...In the past, TSMC has had problems with new technology (for example, early 40nm yield problems and the Nvidia 'bump-crack' issue) that would be unacceptable to a demanding customer like Apple."

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13924_3-20097766-64/a6-chip-to-reach-ipad-3-later-in-2012-says-analyst/#ixzz1Y24llNQa

Apple's partners expect their relationships with the iPhone maker to strong

2011-08-26T09:22:00.000-07:00

Apple's manufacturing partners expect their relationships with the iPhone maker to remain strong, even though there's a new CEO at the company.

In a statement yesterday, Taiwan-based manufacturer, Hon Hai Precision Industry, said that it expects its relationship with Apple to become even closer under the new leadership. That sentiment was echoed by DigiTimes sources at Apple suppliers, who said that they don't anticipate any order changes to come about.

Foxconn, a key partner in Apple's development of the iPhone and iPad, told AllThingsD in a statement published today that it looks forward to working with Cook and Jobs in their new roles at Apple.

"Foxconn has had a long and very successful partnership with Steve Jobs, Tim Cook and the entire Apple team for many years and we look forward to working with Steve and Tim in their new positions within Apple," the company told AllThingsD. "We have every confidence in Apple's leadership and its ability to continue to innovate and to drive much of the global technology industry's growth. Steve has built a great company and a great management team and we wish him all the best as he transitions to chairman of the board of Apple."

The fact that Apple's manufacturing partners aren't concerned by the company's new CEO shouldn't come as a surprise. As chief operating officer, Cook was instrumental in establishing a supply chain that many would argue is the best in the business.

"We believe Tim Cook has been able to demonstrate his deep understanding and expertise in manufacturing and supply chain management," Jefferies analyst Peter Misek wrote shortly after the Jobs news broke. "Even with the unfortunate events in Japan around the time of the iPad 2 release, Tim Cook was able to double or sometimes triple source component suppliers. To date, no competitor has been able to gain meaningful share in the tablet market; and, in our view, Cook's leadership during the introduction was critical to this."

http://news.cnet.com/8301-13506_3-20097728-17/apple-supply-chain-sees-smooth-sailing-ahead/#ixzz1Y0HnIukH

Air 737 jet crashed nearResolute Bay in northern Nunavut

2011-08-21T00:54:00.000-07:00

Twelve people are dead after a First Air 737 jet crashed near the hamlet of Resolute Bay in northern Nunavut. Nearby military rushed to the scene, transforming a major training exercise into a real rescue operation.

Witnesses said the plane crashed into a small hill near the airport runway, less than two kilometres from town. Military helicopters, on hand for Operation Nanook, and local residents on all-terrain vehicles rushed to the site to see if they could help pull people from the flaming wreckage

Police say the plane was a chartered flight travelling from Yellowknife to Resolute Bay. RCMP said there were 15 people on board, including four crew. Twelve died and three were injured in the crash.

Resolute resident Doreen McDonald said she was listening to music when her husband heard a large explosion. They looked outside, but could see nothing. The whole of Resolute was blanketed in a thick fog.

Ms. McDonald said that two stewardesses and the seven-year-old granddaughter of a local innkeeper were the lone survivors. The girl's six-year-old sister was also aboard the plane.

Aziz Kheraj, the owner of the South Camp Inn in Resolute Bay, confirmed his granddaughters were on the plane and only one survived, but he did not want to discuss details of the crash site.

The three survivors were flown to Iqaluit for treatment, police say, and one of the adults was in critical condition.

Ms. McDonald said that a number of locals had been to the crash site and reported a scene of carnage. The plane was broken in three large pieces, she said, and body parts were strewn across the rough terrain.

“You can see them out there picking up things, parts, right now,” she said. “It is not a pretty scene. I feel for the families. That plane just went right into the side of the mountain.”

The military was quick to respond, having already planned for Resolute to be the staging ground for a mock plane crash as part of an operational exercise, said Ron Elliott, the local MLA. Mr. Elliott said when he first heard the mayday call come over the radio, he thought there must be confusion from someone who didn't know it was just an exercise.

“We're all in shock up here,” said Mr. Elliott, who was trying to fly to Resolute Saturday afternoon but was informed all flights in and out of the hamlet are grounded. “But we're thankful the military is there to assist. With tragedies like this in a community of this size, it will ultimately have deep impact.”

Major Gerald Favre at the northern search and rescue centre at CFB Trenton said aircraft brought in for the exercise are assisting with the rescue, and the crashed plane was not part of Operation Nanook.

Chris Krepski, spokesman for the Transportation Safety Board of Canada, said investigators were on the scene soon after the crash. They were already in Resolute, scheduled to participate next week in the military exercise.

Mr. Krepski said it was too soon to say what caused the crash. “At this point it’s very early stages,” he said, adding that they were just beginning their investigation.

Just two days ago, the head of First Air, Scott Bateman, issued a press release that the airline had passed a safety audit conducted by the Flight Safety Foundation.

The weather was rainy with a low cloud ceiling, typical for the region this time of year.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper is scheduled to travel to Resolute Bay on Monday for his annual trip to the Arctic while Governor-General David Johnston, who is currently touring the Arctic, was in Resolute ahead of the annual community day on Sunday. He later cancelled his planned events for the day.

RCMP said late Saturday that they had recovered two black boxes from the crash site, and that they were sending six forensic identification officers to Resolute. Four of those officers will identify the deceased, the release said, while the remaining two will be dedicated to the accident investigation.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/nunavut-town-reeling-after-plane-crash-kills-12/article2136238/

Get more from Social Security

2011-07-12T16:28:00.000-07:00

Most seniors file for benefits as soon as they become eligible at age 62, even though that results in a permanent haircut in their monthly benefits.

Many seniors have no choice: They've been laid off or downsized, and companies aren't exactly lining up to hire older workers (or young ones, either). Others have been forced to file as soon as they're eligible because of health problems. Some have physically demanding jobs that eventually take their toll on aging bodies.

In 2008, nearly 73% of retirees claimed Social Security benefits before 65, and only 14% took benefits the month they reached full retirement age, according to a recent report by the federal Government Accountability Office. By taking benefits on or before their 63rd birthday, nearly half gave up 25% to 33% in additional monthly inflation-adjusted benefits that would have been available if they had waited until full retirement age, the GAO said.

Getting the most out of Social Security benefits has taken on added importance, because most retirees can no longer rely on a traditional pension to provide a lifetime source of income. And numerous studies have shown that most workers haven't saved enough in their 401(k) plans to make up for the loss of a traditional pension.

If you're 62 and out of work and need to pay the electric bill, filing for Social Security may be your only option. But for many retirees, Setzfand says, the decision to file for benefits is an emotional choice — they hate their jobs, for example, or just don't feel like working anymore.

On Monday, the AARP launched a Social Security Benefits Calculator that's designed to take some of the emotion out of this important decision. The interactive tool allows you to estimate how much you'll receive in monthly and lifetime benefits, based on your salary and your age when you file

Jaguar C-X75 hybrid super-car concept.

2011-07-08T19:48:00.000-07:00

I may have zero chance of actually owning one, but I will follow this story closely. The car and the emerging JLR tale are fascinating in a David-and-Goliath way: JLR being David, with all the big German luxury brands – BMW, Audi, Mercedes-Benz – playing Goliath.

One of the pebbles JLR will use in its slingshot has been the brilliant marketing move of announcing the C-X75 production car. It is sure to become an instant collectible, a buzz-creating icon on four wheels. Fleshing out the tale over the next couple of years will be a marketer’s dream.

We know this: The C-X75 concept stunned crowds visiting the Paris Auto Show last fall and won a big best-in-show award. Going forward, the Williams Formula One racing team will assist Jag in bringing a production model to dealer showrooms. It will be rare, exclusive, fast, high-tech, stylish and no doubt all 250 will be sold before a single one rolls off a production line.

The smart money should bet that the launch of the C-X75 will coincide with a relatively massive wave of new Jaguars. The current lineup consisting of the XF (a mid-size sedan), the XJ (a large luxury saloon, including a long-wheelbase version and hot-shoe supercharged models) and the two-seat XK (coupe, convertible and high-zoot supercharged variants) is simply too limited and limiting if Jaguar ever hopes to survive, much less well and truly prosper in a big way.

This concept-becoming-reality car indicates something important: the Indian conglomerate Tata, which bought Jaguar Land Rover from Ford Motor in 2008 for $2.3-billion (U.S.), appears to be taking the long view with its British investment.

This explains why in May Tata Motors CEO Carl-Peter Forster announced a five-year Jaguar Land Rover spending program valued at a cool $7.8-billion. The money will be used to fund new models, perhaps build an engine factory in England, improve quality and production techniques, development new technologies and, with a little luck, build a new factory in China.

Ambitious? Unbelievably so. Almost shocking, in fact, especially if you’re one of the naysayers – like me – who doubted that Tata would stay the course and prop up JLR through the worst financial crisis (2008-2009) since the Great Depression.

Many expected Tata to let JLR crash and burn. Instead, Jaguar in May announced the production decision on the C-X75. Meanwhile, Land Rover is about to launch the Evoque compact SUV this fall. It will join the LR2/Freelander, the LR4/Discovery and Range Rover 4x4 lineup in the growing Land Rover stable.

HP plans to develop cloud-computing products

2011-06-29T08:56:00.000-07:00

Hewlett-Packard to develop cloud products in China

Hewlett-Packard Co. (HPQ-N35.470.381.08%), the world’s No.1 PC maker, is investing heavily in China and plans to develop cloud-computing products here to sell globally, Chief Executive Leo Apotheker said.

This week, HP opened a cloud computing centre in the port city of Tianjin, announced a server computer networking and development centre in Beijing and said its Personal Systems Group will establish a China headquarters in Shanghai to develop hardware and Internet products.

Cloud computing refers to users of computers, smartphones and other devices accessing programs and files kept on server computers rather than installed on individual PCs.

The concept is gaining attention as PC makers contemplate making PCs and other linked devices portals to information and content stored elsewhere.

Apotheker is leading a group of some 20 senior HP executives on a visit to China after a recent management reorganisation that put emphasis on developing market share in China and India.

Both countries are crucial to HP, as it duels with Dell Inc. (DELL-Q16.340.332.06%) in North America and Lenovo Group Ltd and Taiwan’s Acer Inc. in China.

HP and Oracle became intense rivals after Oracle’s purchase of Sun Microsystems pushed it firmly into the server hardware market, in which it previously co-operated with HP.

Oracle said it will end development of database software for Itanium systems, and HP filed a lawsuit to try to force Oracle to continue developing such products.

Both Intel and HP have insisted they are committed to customers who have invested in HP-Itanium systems, a position Apotheker repeated on Wednesday.

“They have a 10-year road map,” Apotheker said, referring to Intel’s commitment to Itanium. “And HP is committed to keep our promises to our customers.”

NO LAYOFFS With the management reshuffling in recent weeks, some senior HP executives left the company while others were reassigned or took on added responsibilities.

The reorganisation will not entail any layoffs, Apotheker said.

“The answer is no,” he told Reuters, “and you can quote me on it.”

Todd Bradley, head of HP’s Personal Systems Group which includes personal computers, was put in charge of developing HP’s China strategy.

Bradley told reporters that he wants to accelerate HP’s growth in both major Chinese cities and in rural areas.

“Many of our products, PCs, and printers etc will be focused on accessing content that’s on the clouds,” he said.

HP is set to introduce its tablet computer in the United States on Friday, and is developing a Chinese-language version for Chinese customers, Bradley said.

The tablet will run on the webOS operating system and will have multitasking capabilities and industrial-strength security that Bradley said would set it apart from rivals in the hotly contested market.

WebOS “is the only OS designed to always connect seamlessly and safely to the cloud. There is never a need for a white cable to get your information,” Bradley said, an apparent reference to Apple Inc’s iPods, iPads and computers, which use white cables to synchronise data with each other.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/technology/business-technology/hp-to-develop-cloud-products-in-china/article2080080/

Violent video game ban rejected by top U.S. court

2011-06-27T10:03:00.000-07:00

A California law banning the sale or rental of violent video games to children has been rejected by the U.S. Supreme Court.

The ruling upholds decisions by lower courts that determined the ban violates the U.S. First Amendment right to freedom of expression and is therefore unconstitutional.

Video games qualify for protection under the First Amendment just like books, plays and movies, the ruling said.

In order to override that protection, California would have had to show it was justified by a “compelling government interest” and designed to serve that interest.

The law, passed in 2005, affects children and teens under the age of 18. It was challenged by the Entertainment Merchants Association, a group representing DVD and video game retailers, distributors and suppliers.

The group alleged that California was asking for an exception to the First Amendment that could be extended to affect books and movies, and that there is no scientific evidence that children are affected more by violence in video games than other media.

The State of California argued that it is in the interest of the government to help parents protect the well-being of their children at times when the parents aren't present. It told the court that the interactive nature of video games, which allows a player to act out violence rather than just watching it, makes the violence "especially harmful to minors."

The state also argued that the rights of minors should not be the same as those of adults and the law should be flexible in that regard.

Commodities hold back TSX

2011-06-27T09:33:00.000-07:00

U.S. stock rose modestly at the start of trading

U.S. stock rose modestly at the start of trading on Monday, while Canadian stocks dipped, following upbeat news on the Greek debt crisis and rising U.S. incomes in May.

The Dow Jones industrial average rose 19 points or 0.2 per cent, to 11,953. The broader S&P 500 rose 4 points or 0.3 per cent, to 1272. In Canada, the S&P/TSX composite index fell 5 points, to 12,904.

Before the start of trading, the U.S. Commerce Department reported that consumer spending in May was flat, versus expectations among economists for a rise of about 0.1 per cent. However, personal incomes rose 0.3 per cent – a little shy of expectations but nonetheless providing enough fuel to drive hopes for rising consumer spending in the months ahead.

At the same time, there was good news on the ongoing drama in Europe after the French president Nicolas Sarkozy backed a plan put forth by French banks that would extend the maturity on Greek bonds, thereby delaying the need for the indebted country to raise cash.

U.S. banks jumped on the news, with Bank of America Corp. up 2.2 per cent, JPMorgan Chase & Co. up 1.2 per cent and Citigroup Inc. up 1.1 per cent. Among Canadian banks, Royal Bank of Canada and Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce rose 0.5 per cent each.

However, commodity producers were weak after the price of crude oil slipped to $90.61 (U.S.) a barrel, down 55 cents. Suncor Energy Inc. fell 0.5 per cent and Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. fell 0.2 per cent.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/markets/markets-blog/at-the-open-commodities-hold-back-tsx/article2076853/

Serena Williams knocked out of Wimbledon by Bartoli

2011-06-27T09:08:00.000-07:00

A fifth Wimbledon singles title proved beyond even the mighty powers of Serena Williams as the American was bundled out in the fourth round by Marion Bartoli on Manic Monday.

The 29-year-old, bidding to defy sporting logic by retaining her title after returning just before the tournament from 11 months out, lost 6-3 7-6 to Bartoli but Andy Murray crushed Richard Gasquet to keep alive hopes of a first British men’s singles champion for 75 years.

Australia’s Bernard Tomic became the youngest man to reach the quarter-finals since Boris Becker in 1986 as he followed up his thrashing of fifth seed Robin Soderling with an equally straightforward win over Belgium’s Xavier Malisse.

With all eight men’s and women’s last-16 matches slated on the schedule, unique in the grand slams, the All England Club was abuzz from the moments the gates swung open on a sweltering day in leafy south west London.

Those without Centre Court tickets dashed straight for a prime spot next to the giant screen on Henman Hill to cheer home favourite Murray to a comprehensive 7-6 6-3 6-2 defeat of unpredictable Frenchman Gasquet.

The recently married Prince William and the Duchess of Cambridge did have the best seats in the house and would have given their royal seal of approval to the world number four’s most impressive display this year.

Like the planes stacking up to land at nearby Heathrow Airport, seven grand slam champions were looking for clearance into the quarter-finals on day seven of the tournament.

Maria Sharapova was the first of that elite bunch to venture out as the mercury shot into the high 80s Fahrenheit on the cauldron-like Court Two.

After early problems against unorthodox Chinese 20th seed Pen Shari she prevailed 6-4 6-2 to reach the quarter-finals of the tournament that launched her career into orbit seven years ago for the first time since 2006.

Two players hoping to cash in on Serena’s defeat and claim a first grand slam title, Czech Petra Kvitova and Victoria Azarenka, also impressed.

Eighth seed Kvitova, a semi-finalist last year, thrashed Yanina Wickmayer of Belgium 6-0 6-2 and fourth seed Azarenka, whose wailing again drowned out the rumble of low flying jets, overwhelmed Russia’s Nadia Petrova 6-2 6-2 to seal a clash with Tamira Paszek.

Germany’s Sabine Lisicki is still on course to become the first wildcard to win the women’s singles after a 7-6 6-1 defeat of Petra Cetkovska and will next face Bartoli.

With her fidgety dad and coach Walter watching on Court One, after Bartoli banished him during her third-round win, the 2007 runner-up produced a high-energy performance to end Serena’s hopes of a third consecutive title.

There was enough nervous tension on court to string a racket though 26-year-old Bartoli continually carved out chances but failed to take them.

Williams, the 13-times grand slam champion, was moved around relentlessly but still saved five set points before ceding the opener.

Bartoli, bouncing around on the baseline and neurotically practising her swings between points, broke serve to lead 6-5 in the second set as the 29-year-old Williams made a clumsy attempt at a backhand smash.

An ace brought up two match points in the next game. Scrapping like an alley-cat Williams saved those and then a third after a sensational rally in which she pounded away at her French opponent.

With close friend and soul diva Beyonce watching on, it seemed Williams would turn the match around in the tiebreak but Bartoli was having none of it.

She earned another match point at 6-5 which Williams saved with and ace but when she had her fifth chance on her own serve she held her nerve to send down an unplayable delivery.

“Beating Serena is a dream come true, she is one of the greatest champions of the open era,” Bartoli said.

“It was not easy mentally but I did it and I am very happy. She is very imposing. If you look at her it is difficult to handle the pressure so I was just trying to focus on my own game.”

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/sports/more-sports/serena-williams-knocked-out-of-wimbledon-by-bartoli/article2076897/

Market telegraphing a double-dip recession

2011-06-25T01:00:00.000-07:00

The question is relevant now for two key reasons. The U.S. economy is suffering through a soft patch. And the stock market is a forward-looking financial-forecasting machine with a reputation for being able to predict economic events well in advance of them actually happening.

But it's important to point out the market's predictive ability, despite its penchant for discounting future events, is not perfect. The late Nobel Prize winning economist Paul Samuelson once quipped that the stock market had predicted nine of the last four recessions

In short, don't fret the small stuff. It is rare for mild stock market corrections of 10% or more to foreshadow recessions, according to a study by Bank of America Merrill Lynch chief investment strategist David Bianco. Since 1928, of the 81 pullbacks of 10% or more that occurred when the economy was still in growth mode, only 13, or 16%, led to recessions within six months. And the average gain for the Standard & Poor's 500-stock index after corrections that did not lead to recessions was 7.4%.

A more sinister warning signal from the stock market is when the price declines are steeper, Bianco found. Stock losses ranging from 16% to 21% "tend to predict recessions with a 1-in-2 chance," he says. More benign corrections of 11% to 15% are less predictive, with the odds widening to 1-in-5.

The S&P 500 has fallen as much as 7.2% since its 2011 peak on April 29. After Thursday's drop it was 5.9% below that peak.

"What's important is that from a price decline standpoint, the market is not sending a strong signal of recession," Bianco says.

The market has also sent "false signals" of recession in the past, adds Sam Stovall, chief investment strategist at S&P. It's "too soon to tell" if it is signaling a recession this time.

Stovall says that since 1945 there have been 54 stock drops of 5% to 10%. "If a minor decline was all we needed to signal an impending recession, we should have had 54 recessions since World War II, rather than the 12 we actually did have," he says. "The recessionary warning signals look a lot clearer after the fact."

And timing the market is still tough. In the past nine recessions since 1953 — but not including the Great Recession that ended in June 2009 — stocks were higher at the end of the recession than at the start, Vanguard says. "It is notoriously hard … to sell before a drop and buy back before a rise," the mutual fund giant said in a report. "A common mistake people make is to sell after a fall and then miss out on a subsequent recovery."

Ideas for energy-saving renovation

2011-06-24T23:50:00.000-07:00

Renovating our decades-old kitchen

My husband and I love to dream about renovating our decades-old kitchen. I'd say we're still years away from being able to afford the kitchen of our dreams, but we always manage to justify our wistful planning by pointing toward all the money we're going to save by making the space more energy-efficient.

It's actually quite easy to renovate with saving energy in mind these days. If you're buying Energy Star appliances or installing solar panels, TD Bank will even give you a discount on your line of credit. Royal Bank of Canada has a similar plan, as does Bank of Montreal. Scotiabank has some neat information on energy-saving ideas, such as incorporating used hot water that goes down the drain into your heating system.

What kind of energy-efficient renovation can you get government rebates for? That varies from province to province, but it's heartening to see that there's money to be had for small changes (such as installing a programmable thermostat or buying fluorescent light bulbs), as well as big (such as getting a new air-conditioner or furnace). You can take a look at a list here.

In addition, the federal government has set aside $400-million to homeowners for energy-efficient renovations. It's due to release the details of what qualifies, but has already promised homeowners up to $5,000 in grants.

The Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation has an energy-focused renovation tool that examines in some detail what kind of renovation you may benefit from, based on the age and style of your house.

And the Ministry of Natural Resources has a detailed list of energy-saving changes you could make around the house. For instance, did you know using an electric kettle to heat water is more efficient than the stove-top or the microwave?

It looks like we're not alone when it comes to our reno pipe dreams. Canadians are spending about as much on renovating houses as on building new homes from scratch - $45-billion, according to Scotia Economics economist Adrienne Warren. She says reno spending is the fastest-growing component of investment in housing over the past decade, increasing by 8 per cent annually.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/personal-finance/home-cents/bright-ideas-for-energy-saving-renovation/article2070930/

Small car safety is a big growth industry

2011-06-24T09:15:00.000-07:00

Small cars are safer than ever

Small cars are safer than ever. Not perfectly safe, nor ideally safe, mind you. If you want the most protection possible, drive the biggest ride one on the road.

Report from the Arlington, Va.-based Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS)

And that’s why in a recent report from the Arlington, Va.-based Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS), Anne McCartt notes that when it comes to on-the-road protection, SUVs (sport-utility vehicles) outperform cars as a general rule.

Okay, okay, but let’s not go overboard. Fuel-sipping econo-boxes like the Honda Civic and the Ford Focus don’t have the size, and heft and height of, say, a Volkswagen Touareg or a Buick Enclave. Nonetheless, the Institute says six of 13 small cars recently tested won its “Top Safety Pick” award – and none earned a “poor” rating in any of four tests. None. Not one. Impressive.

The latest Top Safety Picks: the 2012 Ford Focus and Honda Civic, and the 2011 Hyundai Elantra, Lexus CT 200h hybrid, Nissan Juke and Toyota Prius. Add to that list two other small electric vehicles, both of which will soon go on sale in Canada – the Chevrolet Volt and Nissan Leaf.

On top of all that, in previous IIHS testing Top Pick awards went to: the Chevrolet Cruze, Kia Forte sedan, Kia Soul, Mazda3 (built after December 2010), Mini Cooper Countryman, Mitsubishi Lancer sedan (except 4-wheel drive), Nissan Cube, Scion tC, Scion xB, Subaru Impreza (except WRX), Toyota Corolla, Volkswagen Golf and Golf GTI and Ford Fiesta (built after July 2010).

Like the mainstream six gas-powered runabouts just crash tested, the Volt, an electric car with an on-board gasoline generator, and the Leaf, a fully electric car, earned top ratings of “good” for front, side, rear and rollover protection in the crash tests administered by the Institute. That makes them all Top Picks, along with the fact that each have electronic stability control as standard equipment or available as an option.

The Institute says that a few years ago small cars struggled to earn top ratings. No more. Indeed, most small cars now are equipped with air bags and electronic stability control as standard equipment, and are designed to help protect people better in front, side, rollover and rear-impact crashes.

Take the 2011 Hyundai Elantra as an example of what auto makers are doing to make small cars safer. Now a Top Safety Pick, it once earned some of the lowest crash test scores of any passenger vehicles. The Institute also noted that newer small cars achieved substantially better gas mileage than their old models managed.

“The list of cars with the best fuel economy now includes those with the highest crash test ratings in their class, too,” David Zuby, the institute’s chief research officer, told Automotive News. “At a time of high gasoline prices, consumers have never had a bigger selection of small cars that earn Top Safety Pick.”

Let’s go all the way back to 2006 for some sense of just how much has changed in small car safety. Five years ago just three small cars earned the Top Pick award – the Honda Civic, Saab 9-2X and Subaru Impreza. Just three, even though it was easier in 2006 to get a Top Pick award. Today, a Top Pick vehicle must meet new, tougher requirements for roof strength and anti-rollover technology.

Now let’s revisit 1997, when the Institute first put 11 small cars through a 40 mph (64 km/h) frontal offset test. Not one little car earned the top rating of “good,” and three were “poor.” The first results for small cars in the Institute's side test in 2005 were no more encouraging: not one was “good,” and 14 of the 16 models evaluated earned the lowest “poor” rating.

Institute officials say auto makers constantly improve safety features and designs to meet tougher test standards. Indeed, it’s rare for any vehicle to earn less than a good rating in front, side, or rear tests. Auto makers are working on rollover protection and making progress there, too.

The Institute, in fact, is a firm believer in the efficacy of electronic stability control (ESC) as a feature capable of saving lives. A recent Institute report on driver death rates for passenger vehicles from 2005-2008 credits ESC for preventing rollover accidents leading to fatalities.

And because of the widespread introduction of ESC, tall vehicles such as SUVs are now safer than regular passenger cars thanks to the reduced rollover risk.

“The rollover risk in SUVs used to outweigh their size/weight advantage, but that’s no longer the case,” said McCartt in the report.

ESC across the board in small cars is not far off, as has become the norm for SUVs.

For the record, the seven small cars which did not earn top marks in the most recent IIHS testing were hardly disastrous. Five received an acceptable rating in one or more of the tests: the Honda CR-Z and Insight, the Nissan Versa and Sentra, and the Scion xD.

The Suzuki SX4 received marginal ratings for rollover and rear protection. The Dodge Caliber also was deemed marginal for side protection, but acceptable in the rollover test. None received a poor rating in any test.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-drive/new-cars/auto-news/small-car-safety-is-a-big-growth-industry/article2073585/

U.S. to launch Google antitrust probe

2011-06-24T09:06:00.000-07:00

A published report says U.S. regulators are preparing to issue subpoenas to Google Inc. (GOOG-Q) and other companies as authorities gather information for a broad antitrust probe into the Internet search leader's business practices.

The Wall Street Journal reported Thursday that the Federal Trade Commission will issue subpoenas “within days,” which would signal that it has opened a formal investigation.

Google abuses its dominance of Internet search to

The FTC is looking into whether Google abuses its dominance of Internet search to extend its influence into other lucrative online markets, such as mapping, comparison shopping and travel. Rivals complain that Google, which handles two out of every three Internet searches in the U.S., manipulates its results to steer users to its own sites and services and bury links to competitors.

The European Commission and the Texas attorney general have already opened investigations into whether Google uses its enormous clout as a major gateway to the Internet to stifle competition online. The EU launched its investigation after competitors — U.K.-based price comparison site Foundem, French legal search engine ejustice.fr and Microsoft-owned shopping site Ciao — complained that their services were being buried in Google search results.

The Senate Judiciary Committee's antitrust subcommittee, too, is examining whether Google gives its own services favourable treatment in search results and is seeking to have either Google chairman Eric Schmidt or chief executive Larry Page testify before the panel.

Google's rivals welcomed the news of an FTC probe, for which the agency has been laying the groundwork for months.

In a statement, FairSearch.org, a coalition of Internet travel companies including Expedia, Hotwire and Kayak, said, “Google's practices are deserving of full-scale investigations by U.S. antitrust authorities.”

“Google engages in anti-competitive behaviour across many vertical categories of search that harms consumers by restricting the ability of other companies to compete to put the best products and services in front of Internet users, who should be allowed to pick winners and losers online, not Google,” the group said.

Gary Reback, a Silicon Valley lawyer who represents companies competing with Google in other online markets, stressed that any antitrust probe needs take a broad look not only at Google's so-called “organic” search results — which are ranked based on relevance — but also at the so-called “sponsored” results that advertisers pay for. He noted that these, too, tend to place Google's own services on the top.

In addition, because Google powers search functionality on many other Web sites, antitrust officials need to look at organic and sponsored search results on those sites as well, Mr. Reback said.

Although the FTC investigation would be the broadest federal inquiry into Google so far, the company is already in the crosshairs of U.S. regulators. In April, the FTC announced a landmark agreement with Google to settle charges that it deceived users and violated its own privacy policy when it launched a social networking service called Buzz last year. The settlement requires Google to adopt a comprehensive privacy program and submit to independent audits of that program every other year for the next 20 years.

Also in April, Justice Department officials extracted significant concessions from Google —many backed by the FairSearch coalition — in exchange for government approval to purchase airfare tracker ITA Software.

ITA was the latest in a series of big acquisitions by the search giant. Other big purchases include the 2007 acquisition of Internet advertising network DoubleClick and last year's purchase of mobile ad service AdMob, both of which were approved by the FTC without any conditions.

Cheapest U.S. stocks with best growth potential

2011-06-23T15:56:00.000-07:00

Cheapest U.S. stocks. Buffett, the most well-known value investor of all time, is usually amazed when stock prices fall so low: “When hamburgers go down in price, we sing the ‘Hallelujah’ chorus in the Buffett household. When hamburgers go up, we weep. For most people, it’s the same way with everything in life they will be buying – except stocks.
In a recent story, I noted there could be opportunities, given the sour sentiment and drop in the stock market over the past several weeks. Although stocks have risen over the past few days, investors can still find cheap “hamburgers” if they look hard enough.
I also looked for companies that ranked in the top two quintiles (the lower, the better) of PEG ratio (price-to-earnings divided by expected earnings-per-share growth) within their sector. That would highlight companies that are undervalued relative to their peers

Cheapest U.S. stocks with best growth potential

1. Alliance Holding (AHGP-Q47.170.090.19%) is a diversified coal producer with mining operations in Kentucky, Indiana, Illinois, West Virginia and Maryland.

The stock has slumped 18 per cent in the past three months due to a secondary offering of 2.75 million shares, which was released in April for $52 a share. Shares are now trading $6 below the offering price.

Management has stepped up and put its own money to work with CEO Joe Craft buying $3-million worth of stock last week. The company pays a dividend of $2.22 (U.S.) a share, with a yield of 5 per cent. Alliance trades at a discount to other coal competitors at a P/E of 15. With expectations calling for 20 per cent growth, the shares look attractive. TheStreet Ratings has a $61 price target on Alliance.

2. Compass Minerals International (CMP-N84.06-1.03-1.21%) is a provider of highway de-icing salt and specialty fertilizer. The salt segment for Compass currently comprises about 80 per cent of the overall business and is stable, yet slow-growing. The specialty potash segment (20 per cent of sales) produces sulfate of potash (SOP), which is used primarily as a specialty fertilizer for vegetables, fruits, tea, tobacco and grass. The SOP business has much better upside and should fuel growth for the company.

With margins expected to improve in 2011 and management investing to take advantage of improved potash pricing, the stock looks like a solid investment. TheStreet Ratings has a $115 price target on Compass Minerals.

3. AeroVironment (AVAV-Q33.48-1.03-2.98%) sells unmanned, remote-control military aircraft and rapid-charging battery stations for electric vehicles.

The stock has fallen due to concerns over U.S. defense budget cuts. According to Benchmark Research, the company should do well because of growth in its electric-vehicle-charging business. “We will see major deployment of electric-vehicle-charging infrastructure in the coming year to support multiple electric-vehicle introductions and the White House’s target of 1 million EV by 2015.”

AeroVironment was recently named to a list of stocks by Goldman Sachs that have a 15 per cent probability, or better, of being acquired. Shares of AeroVironment rocketed 20 per cent Wednesday as quarterly earnings exceeded analysts’ estimates. While the shares are not quite as attractive compared with when I first ran the screen June 20, they still have upside potential, given TheStreet Ratings $38 price target.

4. Rent-A-Center (RCII-Q29.160.030.10%), the largest rent-to-own operator in the U.S., rents furniture and electronics to low- to middle-income customers.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/investment-ideas/10-cheapest-us-stocks-with-best-growth-potential/article2073164/

Unemployment claims rise

2011-06-23T09:16:00.000-07:00

New home sales fell

More Americans applied for unemployment benefits last week, and new home sales fell in May, adding to evidence that the economy is weakening.

Applications for unemployment benefits rose 9,000 to a seasonally adjusted 429,000 last week, the Labor Department said Thursday. It was the second increase in three weeks and the biggest jump in a month. Applications have been above 400,000 for 11 weeks.

In the second report, the Commerce Department said fewer people bought new homes last month, the latest sign that the struggling housing market won't rebound this year.

Commerce says new-home sales fell 2.1% in May to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 319,000 homes. That's far below the 700,000 homes per year economists say must be sold to sustain a healthy housing market.

The median sale price of new homes rose 2.6% from April to $222,600. That's more than 30% above the median price of older, deeply discount re-sale homes.

New homes have a big impact on the economy. Each new home creates an average of three jobs for a year and accounts for $90,000 in taxes, according to the National Association of Home Builders.
Weekly unemployment claims

Unemployment applications dipped below 400,000 in February and stayed there for seven of the following nine weeks. They fell as low as 375,000, a level that signals sustainable job growth. But they surged in April to an eight-month high 478,000 and have shown only modest improvement since that time.

Companies pulled back on hiring in the spring in the face of higher gas and food prices. That cut into consumer spending on other discretionary items, such as furniture and appliances, which help boost economic growth.

Employers added only 54,000 net new jobs in May, much slower than the average gain of 220,000 a month the previous three months. The unemployment rate rose to 9.1% from 9% in April.

The economy needs to generate at least 125,000 jobs each month just to keep up with population growth. And at least twice that many jobs are needed to bring down the unemployment rate.

The Federal Reserve acknowledged Wednesday that the economy has slowed. Fed officials also said in a statement summing up their two-day meeting that "recent labor market indicators have been weaker than anticipated."

As a result, the Fed reduced its forecast for employment and growth this year. It projects unemployment at the end of 2011 will be around 8.6% to 8.9%. That's more pessimistic than its forecast from two months ago, which put the unemployment rate at 8.4% to 8.7% by year end.

That pessimism is also seen in projections by private economists. According to an Associated Press Economy survey last week, the nation will add only about 1.9 million jobs this year, and the unemployment rate will fall to only 8.7% at the end of the year.

The Fed on Wednesday left a key interest rate unchanged at near zero and repeated a pledge to keep rates exceptionally low for "an extended period."

Fed officials said in their statement that they believe the main causes of the economy's slowdown, such as high gas prices and supply disruptions from Japan's disasters, are temporary. Once those problems subside, Fed officials say the economy should rebound.

James Whitey Bulger nabbed by FBI

2011-06-23T08:45:00.000-07:00

Boston mob boss James “Whitey” Bulger has been captured near Los Angeles

Boston mob boss James “Whitey” Bulger has been captured near Los Angeles after spending the last 16 years on the run during an epic manhunt that served as a major embarrassment to the FBI and made the fugitive a global sensation as he constantly found a way to elude authorities.

The FBI finally caught the 81-year-old Mr. Bulger

The FBI finally caught the 81-year-old Mr. Bulger Wednesday at a residence in Santa Monica, Calif., along with his longtime girlfriend Catherine Greig just days after the government launched a new publicity campaign to locate the fugitive mobster, said Steven Martinez, FBI's assistant director in charge in Los Angeles. The arrest was based on a tip from the campaign, he said.

The FBI had been conducting a surveillance operation in the area where the arrest was made, said police Sgt. Rudy Flores, who gave no details of the arrest.

FBI agents still swarmed around Mr. Bulger's building late Wednesday, hours after the arrests in a neighbourhood of two- and three-storey apartment buildings.

Mr. Bulger lived on the third floor of The Princess Eugenia, a three-storey, 28-unit building of one- and two-bedroom apartments three blocks from a bluff that overlooks the Pacific Ocean. Neighbours said the couple hadn't stood out as unusual.

Barbara Gluck lives on the same floor as Mr. Bulger and Ms. Greig. She said she didn't know their names but recognized them after she heard news of their arrest from photos on the Internet.

Ms. Gluck described Ms. Greig as “sweet and lovely” and said they would have “girl talk” when they ran into each other in the building. Mr. Bulger became angry whenever he saw the two of them talking, and would say, “Stop talking to her,” Ms. Gluck said.

“He was nasty,” she added.

“At one point, she (Greig) said he (Bulger) has a rage issue,” Ms. Gluck said.

Mr. Bulger and Ms. Grieg were scheduled to make an appearance in Los Angeles federal court Thursday. He faces a series of federal charges including murder, conspiracy to commit murder, narcotics distribution, extortion and money laundering, while the 60-year-old Ms. Greig is charged with harboring a fugitive. He was on the FBI's “Ten Most Wanted” list for his alleged role in 19 murders.

The arrest brings an end to a manhunt that received worldwide attention as the FBI received reported sightings of Mr. Bulger and Ms. Greig from all over the United States and parts of Europe. In many of those sightings, investigators could not confirm whether it was actually Mr. Bulger who was spotted or simply a look-alike. He has been the subject of several books and was an inspiration for the 2006 Martin Scorsese film The Departed.

The investigation also touched the highest level of Massachusetts politics. Mr. Bulger's younger brother, William, was one of the most powerful politicians in the state, leading the Massachusetts Senate for 17 years and later serving as president of the University of Massachusetts for seven years. William Bulger told a congressional committee that he spoke to his brother shortly after he went on the run in 1995 but had no idea about his whereabouts.

Mr. Bulger, nicknamed “Whitey” for his shock of bright platinum hair, grew up in a gritty South Boston housing project, and went on to become Boston's most notorious gangster.

Along with Stephen “The Rifleman” Flemmi, he led the violent Winter Hill Gang, a largely Irish mob that ran loan-sharking, gambling and drug rackets in the Boston area. U.S. Attorney Donald K. Stern said in 2000 that the two were “responsible for a reign of intimidation and murder that spanned 25 years.”

The government connected Mr. Bulger to a series of ruthless killings. One victim was shot between the eyes in a parking lot at his country club in Oklahoma. Another was gunned down in broad daylight on a South Boston street to prevent him from talking about the killing in Oklahoma. Others were taken out for running afoul of Mr. Bulger's gambling enterprises.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/americas/fugitive-us-mob-boss-james-whitey-bulger-nabbed-by-fbi/article2072070/

Wind Mobile up top ranks

2011-06-23T08:30:00.000-07:00

Globalive Wireless Management Corp.’s start up wireless carrier Wind Mobile is shaking up its top management as it moves into a period of aggressive growth.
Globalive’s high profile chairman Anthony Lacavera is moving into the CEO role at Wind, the telecom company’s start up wireless provider, to replace Ken Campbell, the chief executive who has headed Wind’s operations since its launch in late 2009.

Mr. Lacavera, a telecom entrepreneur who has battled foreign ownership hurdles related to Wind’s Egyptian funding, has long been the public face of both Globalive and Wind, and has long been involved in the minutiae of day-to-day management. But the move, announced today, sees him taking an even more direct role in the business, which he has nurtured and fought to defend from accusations that the company relied to heavily on funding from its Cairo-based financial backer Orascom Telecom Holding SAE, which has since merged with the giant Russian wireless carrier VimpelCom.

At the same time as Mr. Lacavera moves into the CEO’s chair, the company is welcoming a new chief operating officer, Gianluca Corti, who joins the company from Wind Telecomunicazioni, one of Orascom’s – now VimpelCom’s – telecom properties in Italy.

Mr. Campbell, a veteran global telecom executive who came to Wind from Vodafone’s operations in Eastern Europe, has officially resigned, though Mr. Lacavera notes that a leaked internal e-mail might have hinted otherwise.

“I am greatly appreciative of Ken’s contribution in getting Wind off the ground,” Mr. Lacavera said in an e-mail. “We faced some unprecedented legal and regulatory battles and Ken’s leadership was essential in getting us through those difficult periods.”

There was originally analyst speculation about whether VimpelCom – which essentially swallowed much of Orascom’s global operations – would continue to fund Wind in Canada after its huge merger.

But Mr. Lacavera says today’s move reaffirms VimpelCom’s funding commitments to the Wind, which plans to grow aggressively in the coming months as it seeks a foothold in the volatile and increasingly competitive telecommunications landscape in Canada. Wind is one of several wireless-only start-ups that bought wireless licences in a 2008 government auction in which fresh competitors were given a leg up to compete with the industry’s three giants, Rogers Communications Inc., BCE Inc. and Telus Corp.

In the most recent quarter, Wind Mobile captured 30 per cent of the new wireless subscriber additions in Canada, although analysts and incumbent wireless executives were quick to point out that these subscribers were mainly at the low end of the value chain, giving Wind an average revenue per user, or ARPU, of around $29 dollars – roughly half of what a customer is worth to Rogers or

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/wind-mobile-shakes-up-top-ranks/article2072299/

Sharp losses in Europe

2011-06-23T05:29:00.000-07:00

Investors in equities, oil and gold watched their screens turn red after the U.S. Federal Reserve cut its forecasts for economic growth.

London's FTSE 100 fell 0.9 per cent, while Paris's CAC 40 and Frankfurt's DAX slipped 1.2 per cent each. Tokyo's Nikkei ended 0.3 per cent lower, while Hong Kong's Hang Seng slid 0.5 per cent.

U.S. stock futures indicated a lower opening as well, with Dow futures down 0.3 per cent at 11,983 and S&P 500 futures down 0.4 per cent at 1,274.30.

Fed estimated the world's largest economy would grow 2.7

The Fed estimated the world's largest economy would grow 2.7 per cent to 2.9 per cent this year, down from a forecast range of 3.1 to 3.3 per cent made in April. It also said it sees 2012 growth in a range of 3.3 per cent to 3.7 per cent, lower than its previous forecast.

Investors are also concerned about the sovereign debt crisis in Greece. European leaders meeting on Thursday and Friday will discuss a plan to help Athens avoid a debt default and return to financial stability.

The U.S. dollar rose half a per cent against a basket of other major currencies, putting further pressure on oil and other commodities.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/markets/markets-blog/premarket-sharp-losses-in-europe/article2072136/

Average debt a meaningless statistic

2011-06-23T01:40:00.000-07:00

Rising debt levels in Canada

There’s been much talk about rising debt levels in Canada: according to the latest release of the national balance sheet, average debt stood at $45,000 per household.

But as Carleton University economist Nick Rowe has pointed out on several occasions on Worthwhile Canadian Initiative (for example, here, here and here), the notion of ‘average debt’ is worse than meaningless.

To a rough approximation, average debt is always zero: what is a debt to one person is an asset to another. If you add them up, the debts and the assets cancel out, so total net debt is zero. Dividing the total by the number of people will produce an average of zero.

(Adding government debt and the world outside Canada to the story changes this story only slightly.) If anything, any intuitively sensible measure for average debt should be negative, since average net worth is positive.

What matters is the distribution of debts and assets across households. A problem worrying policy makers is what will happen when interest rates and mortgage payments rise. Households who have relatively high incomes can generally absorb higher mortgage payments, and these higher debt payments may even be more than offset by higher returns on their assets. And households who face tighter budget constraints, but still have significant equity in their homes, have the option of selling their existing house and taking out a smaller mortgage elsewhere.

The real policy challenge is posed by people who cannot absorb higher payments, and who may not be able to sell their house at a price that will cover their mortgage. Average debt is at best an uninformative measure for the potential size of this problem; more disaggregated survey data are required. This is the approach taken in the Bank of Canada’s Financial System Review, which regularly reports the results of ‘stress tests’ that focus attention on those who are most vulnerable to financial shocks.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/economy/economy-lab/stephen-gordon/average-debt-a-meaningless-statistic/article2070505/

Apple stock will rise 50%

2011-06-23T00:55:00.000-07:00

Exclusive five-star stock list.

Morningstar, the safety-first investment-research firm, recently added technology darling Apple (AAPL-Q322.61-2.69-0.83%) to its exclusive five-star stock list.

Chicago-based Morningstar covers more than 1,700 stocks and only 45 receive five-star rankings. That number has increased, quite a bit, in the past few weeks as the equity market has slid. Morningstar says Apple – which earlier this week was trading below $315 (U.S.) from a 52-week high of $365 – is now at an attractive discount price.

During the second quarter, Apple roughly doubled its operating income and boosted sales 83 per cent. Such growth is remarkable, especially considering the company already has a market value of $290-billion. iPhone revenue surged 126 per cent, Mac revenue climbed 32 per cent, iTunes revenue increased 23 per cent, software sales stretched 17 per cent and peripherals sales advanced 23 per cent. iPod sales declined 14 per cent. The iPad, Apple’s latest disruptive-technology product, has no year-over-year comparison, but it delivered $2.3-billion of quarterly sales. Put simply, business is booming.

Commentators spouting off about the beleaguered American consumer should take a gander at Apple. Its recent move to sell the iPhone through Verizon is providing a nice tailwind as its iPad 2 cannibalizes PC sales from the likes of Hewlett-Packard. The one unit receiving little attention, despite outstanding growth, is the Mac business, which is stealing market share at a steady clip. Two other positives: Apple’s stock is extremely cheap, on a peer and historical basis, and it carries nearly $66-billion of net cash (cash minus debt). Morningstar’s thesis: Apple is a safe, cheap growth stock, likely to outperform.

Morningstar has a fair-value target of $475 on the stock, suggesting a return of close to 50 per cent. Unlike the sell-side, Morningstar doesn’t link its targets to a specific time frame. Piper Jaffray forecasts a 12-month advance to $554 and Credit Suisse predicts a rise to $500. Apple receives positive reviews, comprising “buy,” “outperform” and “overweight” rankings, from a disproportionate 91 per cent of researchers in coverage. That share renders the stock the fourth-highest-rated in the benchmark S&P 500 Index. With an operating margin, at 29 per cent, in the 99th industry percentile, it’s obvious why Apple is analysts’ favourite tech stock.

Morningstar says Apple has a “widening economic moat.” Economic moat, or sustainable competitive advantage, is the key to Morningstar’s rating system. The researcher favours companies that can keep competitors at bay. Still, Morningstar may be underestimating just how wide Apple’s moat is. Although, in theory, other hardware companies could build a better iPhone, so to speak, Apple’s customer base is, arguably, the most loyal in the world, and its record of manufacturing seamless, user-friendly and innovative products has garnered goodwill. Research In Motion (RIM-T27.61-0.13-0.47%), maker of business go-to BlackBerry, has learned how tough it is to square off with a consumer darling. Its stock is down 39 per cent in a month.

Once the uncontested business mobile device, BlackBerry is being pressured by iPhone. And RIM’s recently debuted tablet, the Playbook, hasn’t won many fans. However, a qualification for Morningstar’s view of Apple is the potential for departure of co-founder and CEO Steve Jobs. The 56-year-old has been on a medical leave of absence and battled cancer in the past.

Morningstar believes that “anything that tarnished the brand could quickly undo what it took the past decade to achieve ... investors are right to be concerned about the potential for Steve Jobs’ permanent departure.” Still, forecasting 75 million units of iPad sales by 2014, Morningstar sees major upside to Apple shares. It also believes that the launch of a Mac App Store will accelerate market share gains in the PC market and unlock value in Apple’s stock.

Canada prime real estate for massive data computers

2011-06-23T00:41:00.000-07:00

Oil, lumber and water are crucial resources, but some of Canada’s most coveted assets in coming years could be sprawling server farms that are cooled with the winter air and hidden away in non-descript buildings from coast-to-coast.

Those giant centres of computing power are large users of power, and can be attractive targets for terrorists and others looking to disrupt communication links. But Canada has a wealth of relatively cheap electricity, inexpensive cooling thanks to the weather, competitive corporate tax rates, and political stability – all of which place the country just behind the United States, and well ahead of other global hubs such as China and India.

The ranking comes from the Data Centre Risk Index

The ranking comes from the Data Centre Risk Index, developed by real estate brokerage Cushman & Wakefield with London-based engineering consultants Hurleypalmerflatt Ltd.. Now that fibre optic wires connect most of the planet and physical location matters less than before, the study tried to weigh other factors for companies to consider when deciding where to house servers.

“Second place is great but Canada should really be at the top of this industry because of all the geographic advantages it has over just about any other location in the world,” said Anton Self, chief executive officer of Bastionhost Ltd., a data centre company in Halifax.

The data centres are not just warehouses full of hard drives. They are often massive buildings that house the computers needed to run the day-to-day operations of governments and corporations. About 50 per cent of their energy consumption goes toward powering the computers, the other half toward cooling them.

Greenpeace recently released a report that said if the Internet were a country, it would be the fifth-largest consumer of energy, largely because of the massive data centres that run unseen in the background. The group estimated the centres will use 1.9 billion kilowatt hours of electricity by 2020 – more than the amount currently used by Canada, France, Germany and Brazil combined. (The average U.S. home uses 8,000 kilowatt hours a year.)

But Canadian companies have been able to whittle the cooling costs to near zero in some cases by tapping into water-based cooling systems and inventing systems that suck in cool air from the outside to keep the temperatures down inside.

“It takes a vast amount of mechanical and electrical infrastructure to power everything from Google to Facebook,” Mr. Self said.

While countries such as China, Russia and India are building data centres rapidly, they scored low in the survey because of government regulations, energy costs and the risk of natural disasters.

“Canada scored well in absolutely every category except the cost of labour,” said Pierre Bergevin, chief executive officer of Cushman & Wakefield’s Canadian operations. “But I certainly don’t take that as a negative thing – that just reflects our quality of life.”

Canada’s largest data centre is in downtown Toronto in a $192-million facility owned by Allied Properties Real Estate Investment Trust. It powers much of the city’s Internet and telecommunications activity and has 26 backup generators, dozens of security cameras and special hallways designed to trap intruders between locked doors if necessary.

Indeed, security is one of the most important factors for the companies and governments who choose to house their data and processing power outside of their own walls. International customers make up about 60 per cent of the customer base in Canada.

“There is certainly a reputation of safety in Canada,” said David Lod, a vice-president at Care Factor, a data centre company based in Calgary.

“Security is one of the main attractions – we don’t put signs on our buildings, and we don’t publish our address. This is pretty standard across the industry.”

NDP aims to translate federal breakthrough into provincial wins

2011-06-19T02:58:00.000-07:00

Federal NDP insiders, giddy over their new 103-member caucus, think they have a winning strategy to share – and many provincial and territorial New Democrats facing elections this year agree.

For that reason, the party’s weekend biennial convention in Vancouver is not just a celebration of the party’s 50th anniversary, but also a classroom for some New Democrats from across Canada.

Everybody is here to learn a bit and to adjust to fit their own province,” Moe Sihota, president of the B.C. New Democratic Party, said Saturday during a break in the proceedings.

At least seven elections are expected this year in such provinces as Ontario, Newfoundland and British Columbia, where federal New Democrats picked up an extra three seats in the province in the federal vote.

“You always take lessons from those who have recently been in the field, but you combine that with the lessons you have learned over the years and localize it to your own region,” said Mr. Sihota, a former NDP cabinet minister.

New Democrats have been out of power in B.C. since a decade of government ended in 2001 with the election of the B.C. Liberals under former premier Gordon Campbell.

Christy Clark, the current B.C. premier, is talking about an early election, and the conventional wisdom suggests a fall vote is a safe bet.

Adrian Dix, the B.C. NDP leader, has spoken admiringly of the positive message that Jack Layton employed in the federal election campaign that saw the party become the Official Opposition.

Successful provincial and territorial NDP parties are in the interest of the federal party, says Brad Lavigne, the party’s national director.

It’s also a more immediate issue for the party, which is four years away from a federal election that will test the party’s drive to become Canada’s next government.

In an election workshop for delegates, Mr. Lavigne ran over increases in the popular vote for federal New Democrats on a province-by-province basis.

“We have got to harness this, and make sure we translate the support we got on May 2 in the federal election into support for our provincial elections,” he said in an interview.

“One of the best ways we can cement the support that we gained is by ensuring that we get it for the provincial elections coming up.”

While he said there are distinctions between federal and provincial campaigning, there are common areas where ideas can be shared, he said.

That said, he conceded that not every NDP provincial party is in within sight of government, and the calculation varies across Canada.

“We measure the success based on where we start,” he said.

Darrel Dexter, the NDP premier of Nova Scotia, was talking up the winning ways that saw Nova Scotia New Democrats win power for the first time in 2009.

Indeed, the last biennial NDP party meeting was held in Halifax weeks after Mr. Dexter had become premier.

In a speech and news conference, he talked up the virtue of proactively and consistently advancing practical policies in balance to criticism.

“We reached out to new supporters through smart, achievable ideas,” he said.

While the advice was aimed at the federal party, Mr. Dexter said it was also germane to other provincial New Democrats.

“The advice is sound wherever you are,” he said. “Depending on where you are in the process, you’re looking at either broader or narrower slices of the electorate.

“How you approach them, and how you pull them in may be different from province to province. The issues fundamentally can be different, but you want to make sure you’re talking about and putting forward policies that people can grasp, that they can understand, and see the actual effect on them and their families in terms of what you’re trying to achieve.

Retirement has its risks

2011-06-18T08:02:00.000-07:00

Rushing into retirement has its risks

At 52, Fannie is tired. She has a good job as a sales manager earning $90,000 a year before taxes but she doesn’t think she can keep up her current pace of working 15-hour days.

“The work I do is great and I cannot imagine doing any other line of work at this time,” Fannie writes in an e-mail. But she needs a rest. Her $400,000 Vancouver co-op apartment is fully paid for and she has $350,000 in a registered retirement savings plan. Being frugal, Fannie dares to hope

Unfortunately, Fannie has no company pension plan and only $500 in the bank. Still, she says she lives on less than $22,000 a year after tax. She figures she’d need about $30,000 a year when she retires to cover future expenses that are not included in her monthly budget – things like car repair and replacement, and vet bills for her beloved cats – but she’d settle for less.

Her car is new and her housing costs are a modest $680 a month (heating, hydro, maintenance fees, property tax and home insurance); cable and phone bills add another $155 a month.

Fannie has not saved enough money to quit work entirely within two years, Ms. Franklin says. To meet her retirement income goal of $30,000 a year after tax, Fannie would have to save another $225,000, Ms. Franklin estimates. That would lift her total savings to $575,000. Frugal though she may be, it will still take Fannie a few years to save that much and she could do so more easily at a well-paying job.

If she worked for another eight years to age 60, Fannie’s $575,000 in savings – plus her Canada Pension Plan benefits and Old Age Security at age 65 – would be enough to last her until she was 90 years old. After that, if she needed extra money for health care or assisted living, for example, she would have to sell her apartment.

The planner’s calculations assume a 6 per cent average annual rate of return on investments and a 2 per cent inflation rate. Ms. Franklin notes that to make 6 per cent a year, Fannie would have to invest a portion of her savings in dividend-paying blue-chip stocks that increase in value over time.

If Fannie quits work at year-end, as she would like to do, she would run out of money in 10 or 15 years, Ms. Franklin estimates. How long Fannie’s money lasts would depend on her portfolio’s performance.

The alternative of selling the co-op some time soon to supplement her savings does not appear to be a realistic alternative because renting in the Vancouver area can be quite expensive, the planner points out. Fannie’s co-op expenses and property taxes are “very reasonable,” she says. “She is unlikely to find anything as cost-effective.”

To save the additional $225,000 by the time she is 60, Fannie would need to tuck away $25,000 to $27,000 a year (which would grow at the assumed 6 per cent a year), using some but not all of her current monthly budget surplus of $3,245 ($38,940 a year). At age 60, Fannie could begin collecting reduced CPP benefits of about $8,000 a year and draw the balance from her RRSP.

In the meantime, she needs to build an emergency fund to see her through dire situations, including illness or accidents. This money would come from her monthly surplus and would be over and above her retirement savings. “A short-term issue shouldn’t put your retirement savings at risk,” Ms. Franklin says.

Fannie asked the planner how soon she could retire if she continued to live on less than $22,000 a year after tax when she retires. In that case, she could probably quit in five years, Ms. Franklin calculates. But she advised against it mainly because Fannie would have to draw heavily on her savings in the years before she qualified for CPP at age 60.

In planning her retirement, Fannie must keep in mind that the cost of living is likely to rise over the years, including co-op maintenance fees, property taxes, medical, dental and veterinary costs. At some point, Fannie will need a new vehicle, another future expense that must be planned for.

Instead of quitting work for good, Fannie might want to consider changing jobs or even working part time, the planner suggests.

Finally, Fannie’s current discretionary expenses for things such as travel and dining out are “extremely low,” the planner says. “Can one assume that this will continue during retirement?” Given the absence of entertainment, gifts, vet bills, courses and hobbies in her budget, Fannie is very likely underestimating her expenses, Ms. Franklin says.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/personal-finance/financial-facelift/rushing-into-retirement-has-its-risks/article2065919/

Betty Fox mother of cancer hero has died.

2011-06-17T18:32:00.000-07:00

Betty Fox, cancer-advocacy champion and mother of Terry Fox dies . Ms. Fox, who was in her early 70s, Betty Fox had been suffering from complications from diabetes and arthritis. She is survived by her husband, Rolly, two sons, a daughter, and several grandchildren.

Ms. Fox was an ordinary woman who rose to a profound challenge when her middle son Terry was diagnosed with osteogenic sarcoma in March, 1977, and had his right leg amputated above the knee. He was 18. He was barely out of treatment – 16 months of chemotherapy and rehabilitation – when he revealed his goal of running across the country on his one good leg and a prosthesis to raise money for cancer research. Initially she was against the plan, but came around when she saw the intensity of his commitment.

Endorsing his dream meant suppressing her maternal instincts to keep him safe at home under her protective eye. In retrospect, she believed that her son’s life had a higher purpose, that contracting cancer was a pre-ordained affliction so that he could inspire others to support his cause: cancer research. “I strongly believe that we all have a guardian angel, and for me Terry is certainly it,” she told a journalist in 2000.

Back in the 1970s, cancer was shrouded in fear and ignorance. Many couldn’t even say the word, referring to the disease as the Big C – as though even to pronounce it aloud might incur bad luck. Terry died knowing that he had raised more than $24-million for cancer research, one dollar for every person living in Canada at the time.

In the 30 years since, Betty Fox ferociously protected her son’s memory, fought off the commercialization of his name and championed the Marathon of Hope to keep his legacy alive and to pursue his goal of finding a cure for cancer. Along with hockey legend Bobby Orr, singer Anne Murray, race-car driver Jacques Villeneuve, figure skater Barbara Ann Scott, Senator Roméo Dallaire, astronaut Julie Payette and actor Donald Sutherland, she donned a white suit to represent her son’s place in the hearts of Canadians and helped carry in the Canadian flag at the opening ceremonies of the Vancouver Olympics in February, 2010. Two weeks later, she and her husband walked across B.C. Place Stadium in Vancouver carrying the Paralympic torch to ignite the flame that officially opened those games.

“Carrying the flame in meant so much to both of us because we were carrying it for Terry, not for us or our family, but for our son,” she said. “I have to say that I know Terry’s watching and he would be so proud of all these athletes for the Paralympics.”

Stubborn, blunt of speech, hot tempered when riled, Ms. Fox was “very bright, very direct and shrewd and she passed these qualities along to her son,” says Toronto lawyer Herb Solway, a former adviser to the Fox family. Her compass was always set on her personal true north: What would Terry have wanted?

Over the years, and with help and support from Issy Sharp of the Four Season hotel chain, she’s kept the run pure: non-competitive, open to all, no product endorsements and managed by a family-centred grassroots organization that eschews fancy offices and big salaries.

Higher interest rates would cripple U.S. economy

2011-06-17T18:00:00.001-07:00

Sometimes the conventional wisdom is, in fact, wise. Generations of economists have been taught that in an economy suffering from insufficient demand and high unemployment, low interest rates are the right medicine. And if inflation is low enough and unemployment stubborn enough, as it is in the U.S. today, the appropriate policy rate is only a hair above zero.

Sometimes the conventional wisdom is, in fact, wise. Generations of economists have been taught that in an economy suffering from insufficient demand and high unemployment, low interest rates are the right medicine. And if inflation is low enough and unemployment stubborn enough, as it is in the U.S. today, the appropriate policy rate is only a hair above zero.

But there are major gaps in his line of reasoning. For one, he himself concludes that raising rates would be “neutral” for growth, hardly a stirring endorsement for a policy shift.

Moreover, his view that low rates aren’t helping out seems to be tied to observations on the weak state of demand for durable goods, capital spending and housing. True, these sectors have not shot up in the way they typically do in the face of interest rate cuts, but that reflects the hangover from a deep financial crisis.

What matters is that low interest rates have these sectors doing better than they would be if borrowing costs were higher. Since interest rates are simply a price in the economy, you would have to throw all of economics out the window to argue otherwise. Housing prices and construction would be falling even more sharply if mortgages were more expensive. Businesses would find fewer projects worth undertaking if their cost of debt capital was higher. Ask the car dealers if they could sell more vehicles at a higher leasing rate.

Mr. Rajan’s other argument is that low rates hurt the incomes of savers, leaving them less to spend. Again, this is another fallacy. Households are roughly evenly balanced between those paying interest, typically younger families who spend most of their income, and those receiving it, often higher income households that save a greater portion of their income. Shifting income from the former to the latter might actually reduce spending. Indeed, a lower interest rate is specifically aimed at encouraging those who have money to spend it now (while the economy needs it) rather than save it for later.

Mr. Rajan is concerned about the prospect that low interest rates encourage investments in risky assets. But improving flows into equity markets and corporate bonds will again help finance much needed capital spending. The run-up in commodity prices, which Mr. Rajan ties to low U.S. rates and sees as a hurdle for American growth, is instead more attributable to inappropriate monetary stimulus in emerging markets.

Dow climbs TSX sinks

2011-06-17T17:15:00.000-07:00

U.S. stocks pared their gains and Canadian stocks turned in another loss on Friday after a potential credit rating downgrade of Italy weighed against hopes for a new Greece rescue plan.

The Dow Jones industrial average closed at 12,004.36, up 42.84 points or 0.4 per cent. Earlier, the blue-chip index had been up as much as 110 points. The broader S&P 500 closed at 1271.50, up 3.86 points or 0.3 per cent. In Canada, the S&P/TSX composite index closed at 12,789.95, down 63.18 points or 0.5 per cent.

For the benchmark Canadian index

For the benchmark Canadian index, the decline brings the total downturn since April to 10.4 per cent, as the stock market correction intensifies. For the week, the index fell for four out of the five trading days, for a decline of 2.2 per cent.

For U.S. indexes, the week was mixed. The Dow broke a six-week losing streak, turning in a slim gain for the week of less than half a per cent. The S&P 500 ended with another weekly loss – its seventh in a row – although in percentage terms it was barely visible.

On Friday, the news was dominated by Research In Motion Ltd., which reported disappointing quarterly results on Thursday evening, including lower-than-expected revenues, a slashed full-year earnings forecast and impending layoffs. The shares fell 20.7 per cent in Toronto, taking them close to a five-year low.

Canadian commodity producers were also generally weak. Among energy stocks, Suncor Energy Inc. and Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. fell 0.9 per cent each after the price of crude oil fell to a four-month low of $93.01 (U.S.) a barrel, down $1.94. Meanwhile, Potash Corp. of Saskatchewan Inc. fell 2.8 per cent and Barrick Gold Corp. fell 0.1 per cent

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/markets/markets-blog/the-close-dow-climbs-tsx-sinks/article2065742/.

Consumer price index rises 0.2%

2011-06-15T22:17:00.001-07:00

Americans paid more for food, cars and clothing in May. But the overall Consumer Price Index rose by the smallest amount in six months, slowed by the first drop in energy costs in nearly a year.

Consumer Price Index rose 0.2% in May, the Labor Department said Wednesday. That's down from April's 0.4% increase. Food costs rose 0.4%. But energy costs fell 1%.

Consumer prices rose 3.6% from April 2010 through May 2011, the biggest one-year gain since October 2008. Excluding the volatile food and energy categories, which account for about 20% of the index, so-called "core" prices rose only 1.5% in that same period. That's below the Federal Reserve's informal inflation target of about 2%.

But higher food and gas prices have slowed growth this year. Consumers have had to spend more at the grocery stores and to fill their tanks, leaving less money for spending on other goods and services, like appliances, furniture and vacations, that drive the economy.
Consumer price index

There are signs that those prices are easing, and if they fall further, that could lift consumer spending and boost growth in the second half of the year.

Gas prices reached a national average of $3.98 per gallon May 6, driven higher by overseas demand and turmoil in the Middle East. Since then, the average price has fallen to just under $3.70. That's still $1 higher than a year ago.

Wholesale food prices, meanwhile, fell 1.4% in May, the steepest drop in nearly a year, the government said Tuesday. Much of that decline resulted from a sharp fall in vegetable and fruit prices. Most economists expect overall food prices to stabilize later this year.

Changes in grain and corn prices take longer to filter down to grocery stores than changes in oil prices do to gas stations. That's because grains and other commodities represent a smaller fraction of food costs in the U.S than in other countries. By contrast, oil prices are the biggest factor in the cost of gas.

Corn, wheat and other agricultural commodities have risen sharply in price since last summer. Bad weather in several countries and rising demand in fast-growing developing markets are to blame. But those increases have slowed in recent months.

Slower inflation would leave Americans with more money to spend to stimulate the economy, including keeping more of a cut in Social Security taxes that took effect in January. Economists expect the increased spending to raise overall economic growth to an annual rate of 3% in the second half of this year. In the first three months of this year, it was 1.8%.

A report late Monday by the U.S. Agriculture Department showed that the corn crop has weathered recent flooding along the Mississippi River better than many analysts expected. That sent corn prices down 27 cents to $7.56 a bushel on Tuesday, though that is still more than double what it was a year ago.

Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke has said that the rise in food and gas prices would likely be temporary. The central bank has also said it is watching closely for any signs of persistent inflation.

Another report showed that U.S. factories produced more goods in May, rebounding after supply disruptions stemming from the Japan crises and tornadoes in the South cut their output for the first time in 10 months.

The Federal Reserve said factory production increased 0.4% last month. The increase follows April's decline of 0.5%. A rise in business equipment and construction materials offset the second straight decline in auto production. A parts shortage out of Japan has hampered U.S. car manufacturers.
http://www.usatoday.com/money/economy/2011-06-15-energy-falls-cpi_n.htm

U.S. pickup sales hit bump in road this spring

2011-06-15T22:15:00.000-07:00

Sales of full-size pickups, an economic indicator and a profit driver for the Detroit Three, have stalled this spring.

After proportionately outgaining other market segments in January and February, sales of full-size pickups have been worse than the total U.S. auto market's performance for the last three months, compared with the same months in 2010.

In May, pickup sales were 12.7% lower, while the industry fell 3.7%, amid fears that the economic recovery is losing speed. Pickup sales usually correlate with needs of workers who require hauling and towing capacity. Last month's U.S. jobless rate rose from 9% to 9.1%, and the number of jobs created was the fewest in eight months. Another indicator — the Dow Jones industrial average — has lost 6.7% since the start of May. Home prices continue to slide.

Still, most analysts say they believe the pickup slowdown is a bump and expect sales — hurt by high gas prices that peaked in early May — to improve by late summer.

"We were seeing a reaction from people starting to say, 'I'm hearing some mixed signals in the economy, and I don't know if I can handle $4-a-gallon gas and a new truck payment,'" Ford analyst George Pipas said. "It's just temporary."

But even if the economy looks better and pickup sales improve late this summer and this fall, few industry observers expect pickups will reach their boom sales levels from the last decade, when gas was cheap and home sales were brisk.

Pipas says that means Detroit automakers need to shift to leaning more on car and crossover vehicle sales for profits. Ford is counting on pickup sales to recover to 12% to 13% of the U.S. market, still down from the 14% to 15% they represented several years ago. Pickups were 10% of sales in May.

"I have not seen any traffic with full-sized pickups," Grand Rapids, Mich., Chevy and GMC dealer Todd Wenzel said. "Nobody postponing (a purchase), nobody buying — just very, very soft." That sometimes happens in the spring, he said.

Finding the right fit in an employer

2011-06-13T01:18:00.001-07:00

The job-hunting client phoned Jim Beqaj expecting to be congratulated for having landed a lucrative new position. Instead, the veteran career adviser warned the man to reconsider.

The client was an executive had worked for 15 years with a company that gave him carte blanche, provided great support, let him make decisions on his own and hire as many people as he needed. By contrast, the new organization was very bureaucratic and didn’t absorb outsiders well, and he would have to go through a chain of approvals even to hire a secretary.

“I warned him, ‘You’ll be made ineffective and you will fail because you are not able in this new job to use the tools that made you successful in your last job,’” Mr. Beqaj said

It proved a prescient statement: The executive decided to throw in the towel and leave the new post a few months later.

“It’s truly remarkable how many people ... interview for jobs that are 100 per cent wrong for them. If they are hired, they struggle to make themselves fit into organizations at jobs they are unlikely to be satisfied doing,” Mr. Beqaj said.

Even in the most competitive job market, even if it would feel better to get on any payroll, he advises job seekers to hire on only at a company that matches their work style and personality. “Otherwise they risk being back on the market soon.”

While it may seem counterintuitive, Mr. Beqaj said the best strategy is to limit your options right from the start. “Conventional wisdom says that when you are looking for a new job, you should network widely and get your CV seen by as many eyes as possible. But that shotgun approach is often a complete waste of time.”

Ontario Conservatives pledge income-tax splitting for families

2011-05-29T03:30:00.000-07:00

Ontario Conservatives pledge income-tax splitting for families. Ontario Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak is wooing middle-class voters with a tax break pledge aimed at all families. The measure – borrowed from the federal Conservatives’ playbook – would allow families to split, or share, up to $50,000 of their household income for tax purposes. The Tories estimate this promise would provide over $400 in tax relief to a typical family.

”I ask the parents in this room: Do you have the time to enjoy your families?,” Mr. Hudak asked 1,700 delegates gathered at the cavernous Toronto Congress Centre. “Or do you find you are working harder and harder – under more and more stress – with nothing to show for it after you have paid your taxes?”

Mr. Hudak is also pledging to provide relief for middle-class families with a 5-per-cent tax cut on the first $75,000 of income.

The promises show that the Tories are tailoring their platform to appeal specifically to suburban voters in the 905 region. A similar strategy helped Mr. Harper sweep aside the Liberal Party in the suburban ridings around Toronto dominated by young families, reducing the once-dominant Big Red Machine to a single seat in the 905 area code.

The tax breaks are among a series of measures aimed at providing relief to Ontarians. On their home heating bills, Mr. Hudak has pledged to remove the provincial portion of the harmonized sales tax as well as the debt retirement charge. At the same time, he says he will increase spending on health care and education – two priority areas of Premier Dalton McGuinty – while erasing the province’s $16.3-billion deficit sooner than the governing Liberals’ target of fiscal 2017-18.

The Liberals were quick to attack Mr. Hudak as a “reckless rookie” whose spending increases and tax relief measures leave him with a $10-to-$12-billion hole to fill. “The numbers just don’t add up,” Liberal MPP Bob Chiarelli told reporters Saturday evening. “We think that he’s running a fictional campaign.”

On income splitting, Mr. Hudak is vowing to go one better than his federal counterparts. Mr. Harper has said income-splitting will not take effect until the federal deficit is eliminated – a date that could be four years in the future. The federal Tories are also aiming their tax measure just at parents with children under 18.

Their provincial cousins, by contrast, would make income splitting available to all couples, regardless of whether they have children, a party official told The Globe and Mail. As well, the official said, the policy would take effect immediately if the Tories win the Oct. 6 provincial election.

Income splitting allows the spouse in higher tax brackets to shift income to their partner with a lower level of earnings so that the overall rate of taxation is reduced. Mr. Hudak will call upon his federal counterparts to introduce their tax measure before the deficit is eliminated, the official said.

Mr. Hudak will reveal how much this and other promises will cost on Sunday.

According to Jason Kenney, the federal Immigration Minister who waged a successful campaign to convince immigrant voters to support the Conservatives, copying Mr. Harper is precisely what Mr. Hudak should be doing.

Mr. Hudak can cruise to victory if he follows the same path as Mr. Harper and Toronto mayor Rob Ford – ignore the elites and the media, Mr. Kenney told delegates in a luncheon speech on Saturday.

“You are reflecting the mainstream values of Ontarians,” Mr. Kenney said. “Do not allow yourself to be distracted by the voices of the elites.

IBM surpasses Microsoft

2011-05-23T21:15:00.000-07:00

IBM surpasses Microsoft . technology blue chip IBM surpassed its newer-technology rival in market capitalization, after lagging for 15 years.

IBM's market value

According to Reuters data, IBM's market value was $203.5-billion (U.S.) on Monday while Microsoft's was $201.1-billion. (Apple Inc.'s market cap is $308.3-billion.)

Move over, Microsoft: Old-technology blue chip IBM surpassed its newer-technology rival in market capitalization, after lagging for 15 years.

According to Reuters data, IBM's market value was $203.5-billion (U.S.) on Monday while Microsoft's was $201.1-billion. (Apple Inc.'s market cap is $308.3-billion.)

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/markets/markets-blog/ibm-surpasses-microsoft----after-15-years/article2031999/

Passenger plane crashed in Argentina

2011-05-18T21:44:00.001-07:00

Plane operated by regional airline crashed Argentina’s southern Patagonia region on.A plane operated by regional airline Sol crashed with 21 people on board in Argentina’s southern Patagonia region on Wednesday night, local television reported.

There were no official reports of deaths or injuries but local media said there may have been no survivors from the crash of the Saab 340 turboprop, which can hold 30 to 36 people.

Of the 21 on board, 18 were passengers and three were crew members, according to local TV. The plane went down at about 10 p.m. local time in the province of Rio Negro, near the town of Prahuaniyeu, after sending out a distress call, the reports said.

Ambulances and firefighting units were sent to the scene of the crash but aeronautic authorities had no immediate comment.

Big Mac eats record 25,000th burger

2011-05-18T08:23:00.000-07:00

Big Mac eats record 25,000th burger. Don Gorske has been eating two burgers a day for years. A retired prison guard in the US has eaten his 25,000th Big Mac.

It has been 39 years to the day since Don Gorske ate his first nine. At a ceremony in his honour at a McDonald's in his hometown of Fond du Lac, Wisconsin, he said he would continue to eat Big Macs "until I die".

Mr Gorske, 57, appeared in the 2004 documentary film Super Size Me, which looks at the impact of a daily diet of McDonald's food. He is thin and his cholesterol is said to be low.

"When I was 19 years old I had eaten my first 1,000 Big Macs and I was kind of like, I thought how long before I hit 10,000?" he said before eating the world record 25,000th burger on Tuesday.

"Then it was like boy, by the time I hit 25,000 I will be old and retired. Well wouldn't you know, I'm not super old, I am 50-something, but I am retired and stuff, but you don't dream of living so long as to reach a milestone like that."
Blender burger?

Mr Gorske says he eats a Big Mac in 16 bites and keeps track of his consumption on calendars.

Every week he buys six on Monday and eight on Thursday and keeps them in his fridge or freezer until he is ready to eat them, he says. He said his wife told him the end will come "when she has to put them in a blender".

Doctors have said they do not recommend Mr Gorske's diet.

Toronto city council agrees to privatize garbage collection

2011-05-18T01:22:00.000-07:00

Toronto city council agrees to privatize garbage collection. Toronto Mayor Rob Ford has notched another win for his bid to privatize city services, getting council’s backing for his contentious plan to contract out garbage collection in the city’s west end.

The move, which passed easily, 32 to 13, after the mayor and his supporters agreed to a number of concessions from undecided councillors, fulfills a key plank in the mayor’s election platform, although it will take more time then he hoped to get there.

Even before debate began, the councillor spearheading the plan drastically reframed the debate. Councillor Denzil Minnan-Wong said that Deputy Mayor Doug Holyday would be presenting an amendment to remove one of the plan’s most controversial provisions – to bypass council authority on the final contract.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/toronto/toronto-city-council-agrees-to-privatize-garbage-collection/article2025792/

Netflix movies now of the Internet pipes going into North American homes

2011-05-17T08:20:00.000-07:00

Netflix movies now of the Internet pipes going into North American homes. Move over, Web surfing. Netflix (NFLX-Q) movies now take up more of the Internet pipes going into North American homes.

A study published Tuesday by Sandvine Inc. shows that Netflix movies and TV shows account for nearly 30 per cent of traffic into homes during peak evening hours, compared with less than 17 per cent for Web browsing

Netflix movies now of the Internet pipes going into North American homes

Only about a quarter of homes with broadband subscribe to Netflix, but watching movies and TV shows online takes up a lot of bandwidth compared with Web surfing, email and practically every other Internet activity except file sharing and videoconferencing.

As late as last year, both Web surfing and peer-to-peer file sharing – mainly the illegal trading of copyrighted movies – were each larger than Netflix’s traffic.

Sandvine makes equipment that helps cable and phone-company manage their Internet delivery systems. It collected data from unidentified customers for the survey. It has previously been linked to Comcast Corp., the largest Internet service provider in the U.S. Sandvine says its data should be representative of overall home Internet use.

The number of Netflix customers is growing quickly, to 23.6 million subscribers in the U.S. and Canada as of the end of March. The growing use of the streaming service is good news for the company, which is trying to reduce what it spends to mail DVDs.

This year, the number of Netflix subscribers surpassed the number of video subscribers at Comcast. Netflix’s streaming service could put it in competition with cable and satellite companies, but for now, there are few signs of people cancelling their pay-TV subscriptions in favour of Netflix, which doesn’t provide live TV.

The growth in Netflix traffic doesn’t mean overall Internet traffic is growing faster than before. Rather, it means the type of traffic that’s driving growth has shifted, as it has several times before. A few years ago, YouTube traffic was driving the growth of overall Internet traffic. It now accounts for 11 per cent of traffic into the home at peak hours, according to Sandvine.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/technology/tech-news/netflix-streaming-overtakes-surfing-as-biggest-driver-of-web-traffic/article2024630/

Pulling the plug on pricey TV bills

2011-05-17T00:53:00.000-07:00

My satellite TV providers don’t know it yet, but this may be the year my husband and I stop sending them their monthly cheque. We’ve agreed that when our favourite shows wrap up this spring, we’re pulling the plug. And if we don’t miss it, we may never go back.

Going satellite-free should be painless for the first few months. The weather will be nice, our favourite shows will be in reruns, and come fall, most of the new shows will be available for free viewing on the major networks’ websites.

Also, we recently signed up for Netflix, which offers more than enough older shows and movies to keep us distracted. With two small children at home, I haven't seen many shows or movies in recent years, so it’s been nice to be able to catch up on what I’ve missed. And I like the fact that I can put on a commercial-free show for the kids once in a while. Netflix offers a free one-month trial to new users, as does Zip.ca, a movie rental service we've tried.

According to a recent report by Toronto-based Convergence Consulting Group, 1 per cent of Canadians will cancel their cable or satellite subscriptions by the end of 2012. The report says the threat of alternative viewing on such services as Netflix may be growing. I say, “Be afraid, cable companies.”

For the past few years, I’ve listened to my husband complain about the fact that the big telecom companies will offer discounts to the customers who jump through hoops to get them. You can threaten to take your business to a rival company and they will lower your bill. Or you can be a loyal customer and lose out on the deals they offer new subscribers.

Recently, fellow Home Cents blogger Shelley White wrote about her success in talking Rogers into lowering her cable bill. We, too, have managed to convince Bell to drop the $20 monthly charge for our PVR rental, but it makes you wonder, why do we even have to ask? Do telecom giants bank on the fact that some customers will pay more for a service, which will offset the discounts they offer to the squeaky wheels? It's enough to make you want to just walk away, isn't it?

The one thing I will miss about our TV subscription is watching the local news, but we have a solution for that as well. For years, my neighbour has picked up local stations for free on her old-fashioned antenna. We had one too until last year, when my husband, tired of chasing raccoons off our roof in the middle of the night, ripped ours down. (Somehow, the raccoon is still getting up on the roof.) I’ve made him promise to look into getting a smaller roof-mounted antenna so I can still catch the traffic and weather any time I want.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/personal-finance/home-cents/pulling-the-plug-on-pricey-tv-bills/article1974783/

Olympus DM-620 features recording quality professional gadgets

2011-05-13T17:19:00.000-07:00

As a journalist, audio recorders play a key role in my arsenal of professional gadgets. Unfortunately, I had the bad luck last fall of watching my old warhorse of a Sony MiniDisc recorder – which had served me reliably for eight years – die in the middle of an important interview with the head of Treyarch, the studio behind popular video game Call of Duty: Black Ops. I picked up a cheap replacement, but I’ve been on the lookout for something more permanent ever since.

That’s why I was eager to check out Olympus’ new DM-620, a digital recorder with four gigs of flash memory (that’s about 1,000 hours of recording time) and a microSD card slot. It’s not the Japanese company’s fanciest digital recorder, but it’s not far off. And while its $160 price tag may seem high for a device the basic functionality of which is duplicated by many modern smart phones, its advanced features and superior sound quality could make it worth the stretch for some professionals.

Its slim, silver metal and plastic body has a nice weight and feels solid. I didn’t test its capacity to endure scuffs and falls, but it looks and feels like a hardy device designed to weather years of frequent use, much like Olympus’ sturdy cameras.

Comfortably sized and positioned buttons used to control recording, playback, and menu navigation are scattered around the bottom half of the recorder’s front side. Button depressions are rewarded with satisfying clicks that are felt more than heard. I particularly liked the dedicated “list” and “erase” buttons, which make finding and deleting files quick and simple (I’ve been surprised in the past by how hard it can be to scrub specific data on some recorders).

An optional thumb-sized remote with a tiny infrared receiver that plugs into the side of the device is sold separately. I had little need for it, but those accustomed to dropping their recorders at the head of a conference table prior to retreating to their assigned seat might find it useful.

The recorder’s backlit black-and-white LCD screen accommodates up to eight lines of text. I experienced light claustrophobia while scrolling through lengthy file lists – a consequence of being spoiled by the spacious displays of touch-screen phones, I suppose. At any rate, I don’t see how the screen could be made much bigger without increasing the size of the device itself.

During my evaluation period I recorded telephone interviews, press conferences, and in-person conversations, all of which provided ample opportunity for me to play with the DM-620’s robust feature set.

The adjustable zoom mic proved quite handy when sitting at the end of a long board room table. It let me hone in on the speaker while cutting down noticeably on chatter coming from people lining the sides of the table. Unwanted noise is still present, but less distracting. The ability to alter mic sensitivity is useful, too, especially when confronted with unusually hushed or loud interviewees.

If you don’t want to monkey with settings like these yourself, just scroll through a selection of graphically depicted scenes – lecture, meeting, dictation, and conference – and choose the one that fits your circumstances. The recorder will make adjustments automatically.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/technology/gadgets-and-gear/gadgets/review-olympus-dm-620-features-recording-quality-make-it-worth-the-160/article2021134/

Consider Vancouver Äôs supervised injection site

2011-05-12T07:25:00.000-07:00

When the Supreme Court of Canada convenes Thursday to consider Vancouver‚Äôs supervised injection site, it will hear detailed arguments that hinge on the fine print of the Canadian Constitution.

But besides being a landmark showdown between federal and provincial powers, the hearing also sets the stage for a ruling expected to affect not only the daily lives of injection drug users on Vancouver‚Äôs Downtown Eastside but drug policy across the country and potentially farther afield.

In cities including Victoria and Montreal, groups that have lobbied for supervised injection sites along the lines of Vancouver‚Äôs Insite facility will be waiting to see whether their proposals could proceed without breaking the law.

Across the country, researchers and health-care workers are looking to the Supreme Court decision as a signal that could shape future health care policy, ranging from needle exchange programs in prisons to inhalation rooms for crack-cocaine smokers.

Internationally, health researchers will be monitoring the case as a bare-knuckle brawl between political ideology and evidence-based research, of which a small mountain has accumulated to back Insite and which supporters repeatedly cite in their long-running fight to keep the clinic open.

At home and abroad, policy makers are watching the case in the context of Prime Minister Stephen Harper‚Äôs newly-minted majority and tough-on-crime agenda.

A lightning rod for controversy, Insite attracts support and detractors along several main lines.

Canada's retail market

2011-05-11T08:07:00.000-07:00

Canada's retail market now equals the American market on a per capita basis, according to Colliers International, as a surging Canadian dollar and increased spending draws U.S. retailers north.

Canada’s retail market now matches U.S. per capita

With Target's $1.8-billion deal to take over about 200 Zellers locations well under way and Canadian Tire announcing this week it would take over Forzani Group to gain access to the Sportchek line of stores, the retail landscape is undergoing some of its most dramatic changes since Wal-Mart (WMT-N55.37-0.16-0.29%) took over Woolco in 1994.

Looking back on the progression of American retailers on Canadian soil, Drew Keddy, VP Canada, Colliers International, notes that, “The combination of exchange rate, higher sales per square foot and room for growth in retail square footage, all play a part in this recent wave of announcements,” Colliers vice-president Drew Keddy said.

Bell donates $10-million to Canada’s flagship hospital

2011-05-11T07:52:00.000-07:00

Bell Canada is making the biggest corporate donation to a mental-health cause in Canadian history – $10-million to help transform the country’s largest psychiatric hospital..

Bell donates $10-million to Canada’s flagship mental-health hospital

“For many hospitals, a $100-million campaign is nothing and a $10-million gift is routine, but in mental health this is a milestone, a breakthrough,” Darrell Gregersen, president and CEO of the CAMH Foundation, said in an interview.
CAMH is in the midst of a massive redevelopment that is transforming its archaic facilities on Queen St. in Toronto into a modern campus where clinicians, researchers and educators will work side-by-side with patients in a supportive environment.

The new facility will be the antithesis of the stereotypical hidden-away psychiatric hospital. It will have a storefront presence in downtown Toronto and feature gardens, a state-of-the-art gymnasium, a spiritual care centre and a patient-run Out of this World Café.

The new corporate gift will pay for the Bell Gateway Building that will serve as the “front door” to the new campus.

George Cope, president and CEO of Bell and BCE Inc., said he hopes the large and visible donation will encourage others to follow suit.

“Mental health is an area that has not been supported by corporate Canada – for a variety of reasons,” he said in an interview.

“We felt this was an area where we could use our brand to make a difference,” Mr. Cope said.

In September, the CEO announced that Bell would invest $50-million in mental-health causes over four years.

In February the company launched a campaign titled “Let’s Talk” to combat stigma surrounding mental health. It donated a nickel for every call and text on a given day to community mental health groups – $3.3-million in total.

The CAMH gift is another element of the company’s mental-health strategy. The next step, expected in the fall, will be to make large donations to mental-health research.

CAMH launched its Transforming Lives campaign in 2005 with a modest $10-million goal. But, as plans for the new campus evolved, so did ambitions, and a $100-million target was established. Transforming Lives is now billed as the world’s largest fundraising campaign for mental health and addictions.

“Beyond the money, this campaign is powerfully symbolic,” Ms Gregersen said. “It’s really powerful for patients to know that people believe there is hope.”

Once the first phase of redevelopment is complete, there will be more emphasis on raising money for brain research.

The federal government has also vowed to invest $100-million in brain research over the next few years, and the Ontario government recently announced a $270-million investment in children’s mental health.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/bell-donates-10-million-canadas-flagship-mental-health-hospital/article2018049/

Google braces to pay at least $500M in ad probe

2011-05-11T07:32:00.000-07:00

Google Inc.’s (GOOG-Q) lucrative online advertising system is facing a U.S. Justice Department investigation that is expected to cost the Internet search leader at least $500-million.

The disclosure made by Google on Tuesday in a quarterly report to the Securities and Exchange Commission serves as the latest reminder of the intensifying regulatory scrutiny facing the Internet's most powerful company.

European regulators have opened a wide-ranging probe into whether Google unfairly manipulates its search results to favour its own services and rigs its ad system to drive up prices. The Texas attorney general also has been looking into complaints about whether Google's search recommendations stifle competition.

The SEC documents filed Tuesday provided few details about the nature of the Justice Department's inquiry except that it involves how Google's automated system has been treating some unnamed advertisers. Google's ad network, which primarily delivers short text ads alongside search results and other Web content, is the main way the company makes money. In the first three months of this year alone, Google sold $8.3 billion in advertising

Dealing with the Justice Department's ad investigation apparently won't be cheap. In its SEC filing, Google said its management decided earlier this month to set aside $500 million to cover a possible settlement.

That move resulted in a charge that lowered the first-quarter earnings that Google announced in mid-April. With the change, Google's net income fell from the previously reported $2.3 billion, or $7.04 per share, to $1.8 billion, or $5.51 per share.

Even before the revision, Wall Street had panned Google's first-quarter results because of rapidly rising expenses that are outpacing the company's revenue growth. Google's stock price has fallen 6 percent since the original first-quarter earnings came out while the technology-driven Nasdaq composite index has gained 4 percent during the same stretch. Google shares closed Tuesday at $542.66.

Investors also have been worried whether all the regulatory scrutiny will make it more difficult for Google to counter emerging competitive threats from hard-charging rivals such as Facebook. The Internet's largest social networking site has built an audience of more than 500 million users that is attracting more advertisers and creating a trove of content in walled-off social circles that can't be indexed by Google's search engine.

The Justice Department has previously raised concerns about Google's market power in court filings. The agency objected to Google's attempt to win the digital rights to millions of out-of-print books, helping to persuade a federal judge to deny a settlement that would have granted the company's wishes.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/technology/tech-news/google-braces-to-pay-at-least-500m-in-ad-probe/article2018014/

The 40 Best Cities On Earth

2011-05-10T11:27:00.000-07:00

The 40 Best Cities On Earth. Knight Frank and Citi released their annual Wealth Report in which they compiled a list of the best cities on earth.

The 40 Best Cities On Earth

The ranking was based on quality of life, political power, economic activity, and knowledge and influence.

Losers in this year's ranking included Cairo, which dropped three, and Istanbul, which dropped two.

On the home front, Boston jumped three spots to number 29.

http://www.businessinsider.com/best-cities-on-earth-2011-5#ixzz1M2DOZJD4

High pump prices drive car sales

2011-05-10T11:04:00.000-07:00

People are starting to put their money where their mouth is when it comes to high gas prices, and moving to smaller, more fuel efficient vehicles, a new report suggests. Scotiabank economist Carlos Gomes issued a report Tuesday that suggested pump prices are having enough of an impact on consumers' bottom lines that they are basing their buying decisions on how much fuel they'll need.

"Canadian and American households have started to increasingly buy smaller, more fuel-efficient vehicles, a trend that emerged once oil prices surpassed $100 US per barrel in March," Gomes said in his Global Auto Report.

Gasoline prices movedmore than six cents higher on average across Ontario and Quebec on Monday night. But according to price-tracker GasBuddy.com, the increases were much more moderate elsewhere and even declined in many places.

Crude oil prices have dropped sharply all of this month, but pump prices have largely maintained their high levels.

The gasoline industry is notoriously secretive about what causes prices to move up or down. But speculation Tuesday suggested flooding fears on the Mississippi River, coupled with several pipeline disruptions, was having an impact on refining capacity.

Gomes found that sales of compact cars and small crossover utility vehicles jumped 23 per cent in Canada in April compared to a year earlier, a sharp reversal from previous months when pickups and minivans were leading the way.

Buyers in the U.S. are doing the same thing: "In the United States, sales of compact cars and small CUVs soared 40 per cent above a year earlier in both March and April, and now account for nearly one-quarter of overall volumes," Gomes said.

Google Music Beta to stream 20,000 songs for free

2011-05-10T10:55:00.000-07:00

Google will launch its Google Music service at its big I/O event later today. While the Wall Street Journal couldn't get a Google spokesman to admit it, Peter Kafka over at All Things D got Jamie Rosenberg, Director of Android Product Management, to spill the details a bit early. Google's service will essentially mimic the music locker functionality of Amazon's Cloud service, albeit without the ability to sell songs direct to consumers.

Google Music Beta to stream 20,000 songs for free

Ouch. Unfortunately, Google's plans to launch a more feature-complete service were derailed when discussions with the labels broke down. According to Rosenberg, "A couple of the major labels were less focused on the innovative vision that we put forward, and more interested in an unreasonable and unsustainable set of business terms." So, rather than putting the service on hold, Google will launch its music service with the ability to store up to 20,000 of your own uploaded songs for free which you can then stream over the web to your desktop or Android phone or tablet -- any device that supports Flash (don't worry iOS users, your time will come). Amazon's service, by comparison, offers just 5GB of free storage for about 1,200 songs stored at a mediocre bitrate. Google will also best Amazon with a feature that automatically creates playlists. Google expects to roll out the service to its US users within "weeks" with Music Beta invites going out later today to Verizon Xoom owners (others will be able to sign up at music.google.com). Keep it right here because we'll be bringing you the announcement live.

Update: And it's officially official, called "Music Beta by Google" at this point. There's a simple presentation with artists, albums, and easy playlist creation. You can manually create them, or there's a feature called "Instant Mix" that will make you a playlist based on any single song. It'll automagically pick 25 different tracks to build a "truly ingenious mix." You know, kind of like another, similarly intelligent service. All of this syncs to the cloud, which means no wires needed to download anything.

But, more importantly, songs can be cached locally. You can pick any song, album, or playlist to download onto storage, at an unknown quality. It's the same pinning idea that's in the new movies feature. That and more is demonstrated in the video below.

The service is launching in beta today, allowing 20,000 songs, and it'll be free -- "at least while it's in beta." Also, the updated music app is available now, which will work with any music on your phone and any phone running Android 2.2 or above. To get full-featured you can request a beta and get in line, but if you happen to be reading this from I/O you're in the beta. Congrats, you lucky bums

Energy policy of the McGuinty government in Ontario

2011-05-10T10:44:00.000-07:00

Ontario Progressive Conservative Leader Tim Hudak is pledging to reverse a key energy policy of the McGuinty government by ending generous, long-term contracts for wind, solar and other renewable-electricity projects.

Mr. Hudak would also rip up the $7-billion deal the McGuinty government signed in January, 2010, with a consortium led by South Korean industrial giant Samsung Group.
More related to this story

The Samsung deal, signed by former energy minister George Smitherman, gives the consortium preferential access to the province’s electricity grid and will cost every electricity consumer in the province an extra $1.60 a year on their bill for 25 years.

Mr. Hudak announced on Tuesday that he would honour existing renewable-energy contracts the government’s energy planning agency has inked with dozens of companies. But any future deals, he said, would be awarded through a competitive and transparent bidding process that would ultimately provide relief on hydro bills to Ontario families.

The Tories would end the McGuinty government’s “expensive and unsustainable” so-called Feed-In Tariff or FIT programs and its “sweetheart” Samsung deal if they win the election next October, Mr. Hudak pledged.

“I believe that competition, transparency and affordability are the best means of delivering value to families who pay the bills, and to the industry itself that deserves a predictable and open partner at Queen’s Park,” Mr. Hudak said.

Energy Minister Brad Duguid accused Mr. Hudak in Question Period of standing “steadfastly” against the creation of 16,000 new jobs in Ontario and of being against foreign companies and investment.

“For some reason,” Mr. Duguid said, “that party lives in fear of reaching out to the rest of the world.”

It is not at all clear how much leeway the Tories would have to cancel the Samsung deal or what penalties might be involved. Mr. Duguid told reporters he does not know how much in penalties the province would have to pay the consortium if it were to walk away from the deal.

The McGuinty government lured the company to the province with financial incentives over and above the generous guaranteed revenue stream his government pays green-energy companies. Samsung will receive $437-million in incentive payments over the 25-year life of the deal if it fulfills its obligation to create 16,000 jobs. This will be done by having Samsung woo renewable energy companies to the province. And this is the incentive that will add the $1.60 to consumers’ electricity bills.

Globalization and knocking down trade

2011-05-10T10:07:00.000-07:00

The Great Crisis of 2008 has forced many of us to re-examine our beliefs about markets and globalization. Do propositions about the gains from market integration survive the reality of market failures? Or might we be better off - as people are particularly prone to suggest in turbulent times - pulling back from rather than pushing forward with integration in order to deal with our problems on a smaller, more manageable scale?" writes Professor Pankaj Ghemawat, about his new book World 3.0: Global Prosperity and How to Achieve it. His book addresses these questions.

Barcelona-based economist Pankaj Ghemawat will be online for a live discussion on Tuesday at noon ET.

Prof. Ghemawat is the Anselmo Rubiralta Professor of Global Strategy at IESE Business School in Barcelona. He is the author of five books including the award-winning Redefining Global Strategy.

Defeat Lawrence Cannon bids adieu to Foreign Affairs

2011-05-09T17:13:00.000-07:00

Lawrence Cannon delivered his swan song as Canada’s foreign minister with good humour and few regrets Monday, arguing he would not have changed. Mr. Cannon, who entered the cabinet post with no international experience in 2008 to put a political veteran’s touch on the Foreign Affairs portfolio, leaves as the longest-serving foreign minister since Lloyd Axworthy in the 1990s.

His surprise election defeat at the hands of an NDP upstart in his Western Quebec riding of Pontiac now leaves Stephen Harper looking for a new foreign minister – and has led to speculation Mr. Cannon will eventually move on to a prominent overseas appointment.

The outgoing minister, in a speech to diplomats at his department’s Ottawa headquarters, underlined support for democracy and human rights around the world as the most important role for Canadian foreign policy. And he slipped in a joke at his own expense.

Mr. Cannon’s two-and-a-half-year tenure at Foreign Affairs seemed to mark a shift for the Canadian foreign minister to a role as chief spokesman for a foreign policy that is firmly under the direction of the Prime Minister.

There were few initiatives Mr. Cannon could claim as his own. But after Mr. Harper went through three short-lived foreign ministers in his first minority term, Mr. Cannon served to put a mellower face on international relations during the second Tory minority.

He jetted around the world to warm relations with China, served as a key player in Canada’s efforts to help stabilize post-earthquake Haiti, and when allies complained of Canada’s plans to quit Afghanistan, it was Mr. Cannon who quietly met U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Washington to discuss a new, sizable role for Canadian troops in training Afghan security forces.

Mr. Cannon leaves at a time when Canada is heavily involved in a military mission around Libya, and when several Canadians are being detained at the hands of foreign governments. The Taliban released video over the weekend of captured 26-year-old Colin Rutherford, and Canadian Al Jazeera journalist Dorothy Parvaz has been detained by Syrian authorities.

Mr. Cannon said junior foreign minister Diane Ablonczy, who is responsible for consular cases, is still in her post and in charge of those cases.

He cited as his greatest regret the fact he will not be in office to greet the last Canadian combat soldiers to serve in Afghanistan when they return home, but insisted he had no misgivings over a major failed campaign: the Canadian bid for a seat on the UN Security Council, which was defeated last fall by competition from Germany and Portugal.

That bid – the first time Canada has not won a Security Council election – has been ascribed by many to Mr. Harper’s pro-Israel stand, his government’s shift from aid priorities in Africa to trade priorities in Latin America and a lack of Canadian policy to reduce greenhouse-gas emissions. But it was also the result of the government’s reluctance to campaign early and aggressively for the seat, an odd lapse for an electoral veteran like Mr. Cannon.

Mr. Cannon, however, ascribed the loss to the government’s insistence on sticking to its policies, and said he would do it the same way again. “I would not change one iota of what we did,” he said. “We stood on principle.”

The departing foreign minister heard plaudits from his own senior civil servants, who credited him with listening respectfully to the views of his officials – something of a sore point at a department where seasoned diplomats had felt their role was restricted or dismissed by the Conservative government.

But he also poked some fun at the traditions of diplomacy, like the regular statements of concern for developments around the world, and at himself.

“I have learned much in my time here. For example, briefings are rarely brief. And secret intelligence is often neither. Also, my friends, I never imagined that I could be so often deeply troubled or deeply concerned,” he said. “I also know that objects in overhead bins can shift during flight, and I don’t need to be reminded ever again.”

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/ottawa-notebook/magnanimous-in-defeat-lawrence-cannon-bids-adieu-to-foreign-affairs/article2015298/

Ipad 2's Beijing launch turns to PR nightmare

2011-05-09T09:19:00.001-07:00

That was the scene that developed Saturday afternoon at the Apple’s flagship store in the upscale Sanlitun Village mall. Within hours of the Beijing launch of the both the iPad2 and the even trendier white iPhone4, there were few of either left on the shelves of the Apple Store, and the outdoor fountain at the centre of the mall was surrounded with scalpers offering the high-tech treasures at a 10 per cent mark-up on the store price.

The day descended even further into PR hell as store security moved to bar a man they believed to be a scalper after spotting him trying to dodge the long line and sneak into the store for the third time that day. After a scuffle between store security and the man, Apple staff decided to shut the store, leading several in line to shake the glass door until it shattered. Four people were reportedly injured in the melee.

“The store team acted to protect themselves and our customers by closing the doors and preventing the group from entering. The safety of our customers and employees is our top priority,” Apple spokeswoman Carolyn Wu said in an e-mail statement.

The store reopened Sunday, and the scalpers were right back at it, reselling the wares right outside the shop -- even offering receipts. On Monday, the Communist Party-run Global Times newspaper suggested that the chaotic situation at the Sanlitun Village may have suited Apple’s ends well.

“The scarcity of products is just a hunger marketing strategy,” commentator Jia Jinghua was quoted as saying. “They use this strategy to coerce agents to follow their policy as well getting customers involved in panic buying.”

Apple has overtaken Google as world’s most valuable brand

2011-05-09T08:48:00.000-07:00

Apple has overtaken Google (GOOG-Q534.45-0.85-0.16%) as the world’s most valuable brand, ending a four-year reign by the Internet search leader, according to a new study by global brands agency Millward Brown.

The iPhone and iPad maker’s brand is now worth $153-billion, almost half Apple’s (AAPL-Q347.450.790.23%) market capitalization. Apple’s portfolio of coveted consumer goods propelled it past Microsoft (MSFT-Q25.72-0.15-0.58%) to become the world’s most valuable technology company last year.

Peter Walshe, global brands director of Millward Brown, says Apple’s meticulous attention to detail, along with an increasing presence of its gadgets in corporate environments, have allow edit to behave differently from other consumer-electronics makers.

“Apple is breaking the rules in terms of its pricing model,” he told Reuters by telephone. “It’s doing what luxury brands do, where the higher price the brand is, the more it seems to underpin and reinforce the desire.”

Find a reasonably priced and central New York hotel

2011-05-09T00:08:00.000-07:00

First off, some tips on where to stash your suitcases before you set out to celebrate. The Hotel Metro (hotelmetronyc.com) in Midtown near the Theatre District is a well-kept “solid, traditional hotel with an art deco flavour,” says Lisa Ritchie, editor of the Time Out New York Guide (timeoutnewyork.com).

Find a reasonably priced and central New York hotel

She also suggests On the Ave Hotel (ontheave-nyc.com), a chic property situated on the Upper West Side.

Rates for both properties run from $210 to $365 at this time of year (check online for deals). They're not the cheapest accommodation – you may have to find a place outside

Manhattan or book The Pod Hotel (thepodhotel.com) for that – but do you celebrate 50 long years of marriage every holiday?

They should definitely take a stroll along the High Line (thehighline.org), NYC's newest public park, developed on an abandoned elevated rail line,” Ritchie says. “It's also near to the city's main contemporary art district in Chelsea, so they can check out some cutting-edge art.”
Poke through the restored apartments and recreated lives of newcomers at the Tenement Museum (tenement.org). “[It] offers fascinating insights into how immigrants to this country lived in the 19th and early 20th centuries.”
And if items such as Charles Dickens's manuscript of A Christmas Carol or a 500-year-old prayer book for a Queen of France sound like must-sees, Ritchie suggests a visit to the Morgan Library & Museum (themorgan.org).

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/travel/destinations/travel-united-states/newyork/can-i-find-a-reasonably-priced-and-central-new-york-hotel/article2012752/

Through Grosvenor London’s real estate market

2011-05-09T00:00:00.000-07:00

Through Grosvenor London’s real estate market, the family real estate company, he has perpetual and exclusive ownership of most of Mayfair and Belgravia, the ultra-posh London neighbourhoods where a BMW is considered a lowly grocery getter. Buying a house or apartment in either place is exceedingly difficult. That’s because the properties, which came into the family in 1677 and cover about 300 acres, are almost always occupied on leases that can range from a few years to a century.

Through Grosvenor London’s real estate market

And thanks to the extraordinary rebound of the London property market in the past year or so, the property values and lease prices attached to them are rising, pumping up Grosvenor’s profits. John D. Wood & Co., a London property agent and manager, tracks values and found that large houses (more than 3,500 square feet) in the prime parts of central London fell about 40 per cent between 2008 and mid-2009. Since then, they have recouped almost all their losses, marking one of the sharpest and quickest comebacks in recent decades.

By North American, even Manhattan, standards, the cost of accommodation in West London is outrageous. Example: The asking price on one three-bedroom, 3,000-square-foot apartment on Belgravia’s Eaton Square is £7-million ($11-million). For that, you get 16 years. The lease price works out to $58,000 a month.

No wonder the Duke of Westminster is ranked by The Sunday Times Rich List as the wealthiest Briton (if not resident), with an estimated 2010 worth of £6.75-billion. If the London market keeps rising, the next tally will no doubt pump up the figure. Last year. Grosvenor Ltd.’s pretax profit was £394.8-million, against a loss in 2009 of £235.8-million, and its net asset value rose 9 per cent to £2.78-billion.

Mark Preston, Grosvenor’s chief executive officer, says the bounce back in both the residential and commercial market, notably the latter, has been remarkably strong.

That’s quite a change since 2009, when there were endless predictions that all things real estate faced a long and brutal downturn as British unemployment soared, the national budget deficit exceeded Greek levels and the government resorted to nationalizations to save the banking system. On top of that, a few of the rare healthy banks, such as HSBC, threatened to skip town in retaliation against the threat of higher taxes and tougher financial services regulation.

Mr. Preston credits supply constraints as one of the prime drivers of both the residential and commercial property revival. During the recession, construction all but collapsed, “so there is very, very small supply now,” he said. With two- to three-year lag times between the start of a project and occupancy, he thinks values could keep going up.

He also thinks London achieved a greater degree of safe-haven status in the past year or so. Political turmoil, such as the Arab uprisings, convinced wealthy foreign investors – from billionaires to sovereign wealth funds – to diversify. “In times of crisis or uncertainty, investors flood to gold and London property,” he said. “One of the great attractions of the London market is liquidity. The market is transparent and investors can get their money out if they want to.”

Henry Overman, the director of the Spatial Economics Research Centre at the London School of Economics, thinks the bank bailouts contributed to London’s bounce back. The nationalizations and other support measures saved the weak banks from almost certain destruction and helped the stronger ones muddle through the downturn.

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/report-on-business/international-news/londons-real-estate-market-bounces-back/article2014530/

HS2 Charities urge high-speed rail rethink approach to a London-to-Birmingham

2011-04-07T00:40:00.000-07:00

HS2 Charities urge high-speed rail rethink approach to a London-to-Birmingham

HS2 Charities urge high-speed rail rethink approach to a London-to-Birmingham, Environmental charities have formed an alliance calling on the government to reconsider its approach to a London-to-Birmingham high-speed rail line. The new grouping, including the Campaign to Protect Rural England, RSPB and Greenpeace, says there has been too little consultation on the HS2 scheme.

Its charter sets out four principles "for doing High Speed Rail well".

The charities fear there will be increased flights or car journeys if the proposals fall through.

The charter is also backed by Campaign for Better Transport, Chiltern Society, Civic Voice, Environmental Law Foundation, Friends of the Earth, The Wildlife Trusts, and Woodland Trust.

It calls for a national transport strategy; better long-term planning of the effects of big transport proposals; and effective public participation.

The alliance says: "Many groups commenting publicly on High Speed Rail to date have represented either people living along the proposed route or businesses and cities that could profit from it.
Continue reading the main story
Analysis
Roger Harrabin Environment analyst

HS2 has been causing green groups a headache. Having supported it in principle in preference to expanding Heathrow, they are now being tugged by radicals who complain it encourages hypermobility for the rich - travelling further and faster each year, and increasing emissions.

A radical transport strategy, they say, would focus on walking and cycling to encourage neighbours to make friends in their street, rather than hundreds of miles away.

But green pragmatists fear that if they campaign too hard against HS2 it will drive the government into the arms of the transport lobby, who will press for more roads and airports. And that will be worse.

So Thursday's paper is a compromise - not calling for an end to HS2, but for better consultation and - crucially - for the government to produce a strategy showing how it will reduce the environmental effects of transport overall.

"Today's Charter draws together for the first time many well known national charities, covering environmental, heritage, countryside, legal and wildlife issues, in addition to other organisations. It seeks to achieve the best long-term outcome from high speed rail for the country, the climate, communities and the countryside."

They say HS2 has been foisted on the public with no prior consultation.

Ralph Smyth, of the Campaign to Protect Rural England (CPRE), said slower trains would help because it would make more routes available for consideration and provide more opportunities for engagement with local communities.

"If they keep to a 250mph design speed it has got to be a straight railway," he said.

HS2 is designed to shorten journey times between London and Birmingham, and connect later to Manchester and Leeds.

A public consultation on the proposed location of the new track in the Chilterns, Buckinghamshire and Warwickshire is running until July, but some residents have already voiced concerns about the impact.

If the plans go ahead, the government expects work on the line to the West Midlands to begin in 2015 and finish by 2026, with the links to Manchester and Leeds completed in 2032-33.

Earlier this month a group of 21 business figures and politicians called for the proposed link between London and Birmingham to be scrapped.

In the open letter signed by the likes of former Chancellor, Lord Lawson, and Lord Wolfson, the chief executive of Next, the plan was described as an "expensive white elephant", and a "vanity project".

But Transport Secretary Philip Hammond says the £17bn project will deliver major strategic benefits to the economy and other business leaders have backed it.

Great Way to Reduce the Weight

2011-04-02T22:12:00.000-07:00

The matter of over weight is always troublesome for the people who experience it. It is not only because the good appearance will be lessened but this matter also makes the people find it hard to move their body. If you feel that way, it is highly recommended for you to do some kind of diet system. One of the most trustable diet systems is the system which is based on HCG.

This HCG diet has been proven to be able to lose the weight efficiently. A lot of people have tried this method and they are satisfied with the result. They can lose some weights just in a matter of couple weeks. For addition, this method is very safe. There will be no side effect if you are using this method.

That is why you should not hesitate anymore. HCG diet is your best solution to reduce your weight and gain your good appearance again. Follow the diet system immediately and you will be amazed with the result.

2 Cara Tangani Masalah Ahmadiyah

2011-03-27T16:11:00.000-07:00

2 Cara Tangani Masalah Ahmadiyah disampaikan oleh Mahkamah Konstitusi (MK), hal tersebut untuk Menanggapi pro-kontra Peraturan Pemerintah Daerah dan penerbitan pelarangan Ahmadiyah

Berikut 2 Cara Tangani Masalah Ahmadiyah yang disampaikan oleh Mahkamah Konstitusi (MK)
Pertama, dalam waktu 60 hari sejak dikeluarkan, Presiden bisa batalkan Perda tersebut. Kalau sudah dikaji dan hasilnya tidak benar, atau Presiden menyatakan kalau Perda itu sah.

Kedua, diuji kepada Mahkamah Agung (MA) melalui uji materi. "Itu menurut hukum," kata Ketua Mahfud MD Mahkamah Konstitusi, Minggu 27/03 di Yogyakarta.

Dari perspektif Konstitusi, kata Mahfud, setiap warga Negara berhak memeluk agama, menjalankan Agama, dan keyakinannya. Itu, Mahfud menjelaskan, adalah hak asasi.

Di lain sisi, menurut Konstitusi dan Konvensi Internasional negara tidak hanya boleh mengatur, tetapi juga wajib mengatur kehidupan beragama. Hal itu, kata Mahfud, agar tidak terjadi gejolak antara satu kelompok dengan kelompok lain

Kronologis Kisruhnya Kongres PSSI 2011 di Riau

2011-03-27T16:07:00.000-07:00

Kronologis Kisruhnya Kongres PSSI 2011 di Riau, Kisruhnya Kongres PSSI 2011 di Riau sudah diprediksi oleh banyak pengamat,kecurangan sebelum diadakan kongres PSSI yang digelar di Riau, akhirnya dibatalkan karena ricuh. Sedianya Kongres PSSI untuk memilih anggota Komite Pemilihan dan Komite Banding di Hotel Premiere, Pekanbaru, Riau, ricuh saat akan dimulai pada Sabtu, 26 Maret 2011

Anggota Komite Asosiasi FIFA Frank van Hattum dan Sekjen AFC Sekjen Alex Soosay batal meninjau kongres dan langsung kembali terbang ke Jakarta.

Berikut Kronologis Kisruhnya Kongres PSSI 2011 di Riau :

09.00: Peserta Kongres mendaftarkan diri.

14.00: Ada anggota PSSI yang tidak tercantum namanya di daftar peserta. Sempat terjadi adu mulut di dalam ruang registrasi, namun akhirnya reda.

17.00: Proses registrasi ditutup.

19.30: Peserta Kongres mulai memasuki lantai 3 Hotel Premiere untuk bersantap malam sebelum Kongres dimulai.

19.45-20.00: Anggota KPPN yang tidak memiliki tanda peserta memaksa masuk ruang sidang. Sempat terjadi aksi saling dorong dengan polisi yang berjaga.

20.00-20.05: Pintu ruang sidang berhasil diterobos dan anggota KPPN duduk di kursi barisan depan. Peserta Kongres yang lain kebingungan dan berdiri di luar ruang sidang.

20.10: Wartawan yang ada di Hotel Premiere diminta menuju Hotel Arya Duta yang berjarak kurang lebih 1 km dari lokasi Kongres.

20.15: Ketua Umum, Sekjen PSSI, Ketua Pengurus PSSI Provinsi Riau, serta utusan FIFA dan AFC menggelar sidang darurat di Bandara Sutan Syarif Hasim II. Diputuskan, Kongres dibatalkan karena situasi yang dinilai tidak lagi memungkinkan. Ketua Umum PSSI serta utusan FIFA dan AFC langsung terbang kembali ke Jakarta.

21.30: Sekjen PSSI menuju Hotel Aryaduta untuk menggelar jumpa pers guna menyampaikan keputusan pembatalan Kongres PSSI.

22.00: Anggota KPPN tetap bersidang di Hotel Premiere.

22.31: Kongres versi KPPN memilih tujuh anggota Komite Pemilihan dan tiga Komite Banding. (bola.vivanews.com)

Read more: http://www.hilmifirdaus.com/2011/03/inilah-kronologis-kisruhnya-kongres.html#ixzz1Hu4a8BjT

Radiasi Ekstrim di Reaktor 2 di Jepang

2011-03-27T16:02:00.000-07:00

Radiasi Ekstrim di Reaktor 2 di Jepang dinyatakan oleh Tokyo Electric Power Co (Tepco), Tokyo Electric Power Co (Tepco) yang merupakan operator PLTN tersebut, mareka menyatakan ada radioaktif level sangat tinggi terdeteksi dalam air di reaktor unit 2. Radioaktif yang terlacak mencapai 10 juta kali lipat dari ambang normal operasional reaktor.

Tepco menjelaskan tingkat radiasi ini mencapai 2,9 miliar becquerels dalam satu kubik centimeter (cm) air di ruang bawah tanah bangunan turbin yang terpasang ke reaktor nomor 2, seperti dikutip dari laman NHK, Minggu 27 Maret 2011.

Tingkat kontaminasi ini sekitar 1000 kali dibandingkan kebocoran radiasi di ruang bawah tanah reaktor nomor 1 dan 3. Tepco menambahkan material radioaktif terdeteksi termasuk 2,9 miliar becquerels yodium 134, 13 juta becquerels yodium 131, dan 2,3 juta becquerels, masing-masing cesium 134 dan 137.

Material ini dipancarkan sepanjang proses fisi nuklir di inti reaktor. Perusahaan ini memperkirakan air terkontaminasi itu berasal dari inti reaktor rusak, dan mereka tengah mencari tahu bagaimana kebocoran bisa terjadi.

Lulusan University of Tokyo Naoto Sekimura mengatakan kebocoran ini mungkin muncul dari ruang penahan (suppression chamber) reaktor nomor 2. Ruang ini didesain untuk menampung radioaktif dari reaktor.

Sementara itu, Departemen Ilmu Pengetahuan Jepang menemukan tingkat tinggi terdeteksi di wilayah yang jaraknya lebih dari 30 kilometer dari pabrik Fukushima Daiichi. Ketinggian radiasi ini melewati ambang batas tahunan yang bisa dihadapi warga biasa

Finding the Best Embroider Service

2011-03-26T08:56:00.000-07:00

If you want to have good clothing, you can modify your clothes by adding embroider to it. You can design decorative ornaments for your clothes and then finding embroider service to put the design to your clothes. To make the embroider looks perfect in your clothes, you should find the best embroidery. You can find recommendation from your relatives or friends about the best place to get embroider service. To help you and to ease you to decorate your clothes, you can simply open Northdallasembroidery.com. This website is the best place that you can obtain from the internet.

If you need to embroider shirts, bags, and blankets with your name or with your own logo, you don’t need to go far, the above website can give you their best service. The embroider service from the website above is using the most sophisticated technology that can finish the embroidery very quickly and tidy. This Dallas Embroidery is having many professional workers that can work with high skills and precision. With their professional service, you couldn’t be happier. The website above provides many other embroider services such as nap mats embroider. You can put name on the corner of the nap mats to differentiate it with other people’s nap mats.

The website also provides kids backpack embroider service. The embroider service machine can sew name in the most difficult part of the kids backpack to name it. In general, the embroider company has the best machine that can embroider as large as 17” x 17”. The machine is also able to embroider almost all graphic designs to your shirts with the best quality. Moreover, the embroider company can give you very reasonable prices and if you order in larger amount, you will get huge discount that can save your money. Be sure to bookmark the website in case you need to embroider again in the future.

Misteri Bom Buku Ulil Absar

2011-03-25T17:19:00.000-07:00

Misteri Bom Buku Ulil Ulil Absar sampai dengan saat belum terpecahkan apa yang menjadi motivasi dan penyebab orang mengirimkan bom buku ke Ulil Absar, apakah hal tersebut terkait dengan Kiprah Ulil Absar yang selama ini sebagai orang nomor satu di JIL, atau terkait dengan Ulil Absar sebagai seorang politisi.

Dibawah ini analisis dari Eramsulim, yang mungkin bisa membuka mata kita

Sejumlah analisis soal ini pun mulai beredar di berbagai media tanah air. Mulai dari yang langsung menuduh kelompok Islam dengan sejumlah asumsi yang dipaksakan, hingga yang memperkirakan kalau ini cuma pengalihan isu.

Setidaknya, ada beberapa analisis soal siapa dan target yang diinginkan oleh si pelaku bom buku ini. Antara lain:

Pertama, mereka yang menuduh kalau motif ini didasari oleh pertarungan ideologis. Terutama, ideologi Islam. Hal ini karena target bisa dihubung-hubungkan dengan kelompok yang terkesan anti Islam. Misalnya, Ulil Absar yang merupakan tokoh Jaringan Islam Liberal, Yapto yang dikabarkan sebagai keturunan Yahudi, Goris Mere yang dianggap anti Islam, dan Ahmad Dani yang diduga masih keturunan Yahudi.

Polisi pun mengakui bahwa paket kiriman bom buku yang dikirim ke tokoh-tokoh diataslah yang memang benar-benar bom. Sementara yang lainnya hanya ‘mainan’.

Namun, analisis ini terbantahkan dengan sejumlah fakta sosial yang ada. Yaitu, semua tokoh yang dianggap anti Islam itu bukan tokoh baru. Tapi, sudah tahunan dan tidak ada pemicu baru yang membenarkan tindakan itu secara logika.

Selain itu, pelaku bom kelompok Islam yang dibesar-besar oleh sebagian media massa belum pernah terbukti hingga sekarang. Termasuk bom bali yang sangat kontroversi. Pengamat intelejen pun paham betul kalau pembuat bom di Indonesia terbilang sangat dan sangat sedikit. Dan itu tentu sangat mudah dideteksi.

Kedua, adanya dugaan kalau pelaku terkait dengan isu reshufle kabinet beberapa waktu lalu. Hal ini karena target pertama yaitu Ulil Absar merupakan pimpinan partai Demokrat yang tanpa tedeng aling menyebut menteri siapa saja yang bakal diganti, dan siapa yang akan menggantikan.

Dugaan ini seperti diakui oleh Ulil sendiri ketika memberikan respon meledaknya bom di kantor JIL. Menurut Ulil, bom itu tidak terkait dengan JIL, tapi dengan kiprahnya sebagai pimpinan Partai Demokrat. Ia menyebutnya sebagai isu politis. Ulil menyebut bahwa selama sepuluh tahun menjadi ketua JIL ia tidak pernah mendapat ancaman dari siapa pun.

Ketiga, analisis yang mengatakan bahwa misteri bom ini terkait dengan pengalihan isu penyalahgunaan kekuasaan oleh SBY yang dimuat Wikileaks melalui koran Australia beberapa waktu lalu. Setidaknya, itu disampaikan oleh salah seorang pimpinan Golkar yang juga anggota DPR, Bambang Soesetyo.

Hasil dan Klasemen Kualifikasi Piala Eropa 2012

2011-03-25T17:12:00.001-07:00

Kualifikasi Piala Eropa 2012 telah berlangsung, dan hasilnya telah bisa lihat bagaimana hasil dan Klasemen Kualifikasi Piala Eropa 2012,
Grup A Austria 0-2 Belgia
Gol: Axel Witsel 6, 50

Klasemen:
Jerman 4 4 0 0 13-1 12
Belgia 5 2 1 2 10-8 7
Austria 4 2 1 1 9-6 7
Turki 4 2 0 2 6-6 6
Azerbaijan 3 1 0 2 2-9 3
Kazakhstan 4 0 0 4 0-10 0

Grup C
Serbia 2-1 Irlandia Utara
Gol: Marko Pantelic 65, Zoran Tocis 74; Gareth McAuley 40

Slovenia 0-1 Italia
Gol: Thiago Motta 73

Klasemen
Italia 5 4 1 0 11-1 13
Slovenia 5 2 1 2 7- 4 7
Serbia 5 2 1 2 7-8 7
Estonia 4 2 0 2 6-5 6
Irlandia Utara 4 1 2 1 3-3 5
Kepulauan Faroe 5 0 1 4 3-16 1

Grup D Luksemburg 0-2 Perancis
Gol: Philippe Mexes 28, Yoann Gourcuff 72

Klasemen
Perancis 4 3 0 1 6-1 9
Belarusia 4 2 2 0 3-0 8
Albania 4 1 2 1 3-4 5
Bosnia-Herzegovina 3 1 1 1 4-3 4
Romania 3 0 2 1 1-3 2
Luksemburg 4 0 1 3 0-6 1

Grup E
Hongaria 0-4 Belanda
Gol: Rafael van der Vaart 8, Ibrahim Afellay 45, Dirk Kuyt 53, Robin van Persie 62

Klasemen
Belanda 5 5 0 0 16-2 15
Hongaria 5 3 0 2 12-8 9
Swedia 3 2 0 1 9-4 6
Moldova 4 2 0 2 5-3 6
Finlandia 4 1 0 3 10-6 3
San Marino 5 0 0 5 0-29 0

Grup I Spanyol 2-1 Ceko
Gol: David Villa 69, 73 (pen); Jaroslav Plasil 29

Klasemen
Spanyol 3 3 0 0 10-3 9
Ceko 3 2 0 1 3-1 6
Skotlandia 4 1 1 2 4-5 4
Lithuania 3 1 1 1 2-3 4
Liechtenstein 3 0 0 3 1-8 0

Pemilik Tanah Terluas di Dunia

2011-03-24T08:31:00.000-07:00

Pemilik Tanah Terluas di Dunia merupakan orang-orang yang memiliki 21 % dari luas lahan yang ada didunia sekarang ini, sekita 36,8 Ha luas lahan yang dimiliki sudah dihuni oleh manusia.

Siapa yang menjadi pemilik dari 21 % luas lahan yang ada tersebut, pemiliknya diantaranya Ratu Inggris, yang memiliki sejumlah lahan di Kanada dan Australia. Juga miliarder Amerika Serikat (AS) Ted Turner dan keluarga Irving asal Kanada

Daftar pemilik luas lahan dibawah ini akan memberikan informasi tentang siapa yang menjadi pemilik lahan tersebut

10. Ted Turner

Miliarder AS ini memiliki luas tanah mencapai dua juta hektare. Di Amerika, ia memiliki ribuan mil persegi lahan untuk berburu, tepatnya di Georgia dan Montana. Ia juga memiliki sekitar 11 ribu ha tanah di Patagonia, Argentina.

Turner adalah seorang pengusaha Amerika yang mendirikan Turner Broadcasting System yang meluncurkan stasiun televisi CNN dan lainnya sebelum dijual ke Time Warner.

9. Sheik Hamad bin Khalifa dari Qatar

Sheik Hamad Bin Khalifa of Qatar

Sebagai seorang raja yang memimpin sebuah negara, ia dianggap memiliki tanah yang sangat luas di Qatar. Sheik Hamad diketahui memiliki lahan seluas 4.415 mil.

Sheik Hamad Bin Khalifa merupakan tokoh modernisasi di Qatar dan menjadi pemimpin di Timur Tengah yang disukai negara Barat sejak ia mengambil tahta kekuasaan pada 1995.

8. James, Arthur, dan John Irving

Keluarga Irving ini memiliki tanah seluas 3,6 juta ha di Maine, New Brunswick, dan Nova Scotia (provinsi di Kanada). Kepemilikan lahan yang sangat luas ini membuat mereka menjadi pemilik lahan terluas di negara bagian dan provinsi di Kanada.

Sebagai ahli waris perusahaan JD Irving Group, tiga bersaudara Kanada ini juga mendapat warisan ribuan kilometer persegi lahan hutan yang hasilnya digunakan perusahaan sebagai bahan kertas dan bubur kertas yang merupakan bagian dari portofolio bisnis mereka yang sangat beragam.

7. Raja Swaziland Mswati

Raja di negara kecil Selatan Afrika ini memiliki lahan seluas 6.704 mil persegi di Swaziland.

Negara itu tercatat sebagai salah satu "Monarki Absolute" terakhir di dunia. Sebab, Raja Mswati secara harfiah memiliki apa pun dari bangsa Afrika Selatan itu. Jadi, tidak ada hak atas tanah menurut hukum nasional negara tersebut yang tidak berada di bawah penguasaannya sebagai seorang raja.

6. Emir Kuwait

Ia tercatat menguasai lahan seluas 4,4 juta ha, dari sekitar tujuh juta hektare yang ditempati bangsa Kuwait.

Emir adalah pewaris tahta Kerajaan Kuwait yang berhasil menjalankan roda negara dengan baik. Namun, tidak semua tanah di Kuwait di bawah kendalinya. Sebab, sebagian dari lahannya berfungsi sebagai pangkalan militer Amerika

Germans pull forces out of NATO as Libyan coalition falls apart

2011-03-23T16:21:00.000-07:00

Germans pull forces out of NATO as Libyan coalition falls apart, Deep divisions between allied forces currently bombing Libya worsened today as the German military announced it was pulling forces out of NATO over continued disagreement on who will lead the campaign.

A German military spokesman said it was recalling two frigates and AWACS surveillance plane crews from the Mediterranean, after fears they would be drawn into the conflict if NATO takes over control from the U.S.

The infighting comes as a heated meeting of NATO ambassadors yesterday failed to resolve whether the 28-nation alliance should run the operation to enforce a U.N.-mandated no-fly zone, diplomats said.

Yesterday a war of words erupted between the U.S. and Britain after the U.K. government claimed Muammar Gaddafi is a legitimate target for assassination.

U.K. government officials said killing the Libyan leader would be legal if it prevented civilian deaths as laid out in a U.N. resolution.

But U.S. defence secretary Robert Gates hit back at the suggestion, saying it would be 'unwise' to target the Libyan leader adding cryptically that the bombing campaign should stick to the 'U.N. mandate'.

President Barack Obama, seeking to avoid getting bogged down in a war in another Muslim country, said on Monday Washington would cede control of operations against Muammar Gaddafi's forces within days, handing the reins over to NATO.

But Germany and European allies remain unwilling to have NATO take on a military operation that theoretically has nothing to do with the defence of Europe.

Today the German defence ministry announced Berlin had pulled out of any military operations in the Mediterranean.

A ministry spokesman said two frigates and two other ships with a crew of 550 would be reverted to German command.

Some 60 to 70 German troops participating in NATO-operated AWACS surveillance operations in the Mediterranean would also be withdrawn, according to the ministry.

Berlin isn't participating in the operation to impose a no-fly zone in Libya and abstained on the U.N. resolution authorising it.
Who is providing what in the war effort

* US: B-2 stealth bombers; EA-18G Growler and AV-8B Harrier aircraft; destroyers USS Barry and USS Stout firing Tomahawk cruise missiles; amphibious assault ship USS Kearsage; command and control vessel USS Mount Whitney; submarines
* France: Rafale and Mirage aircraft; refuelling and surveillance aircraft; aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle and escort ships
* UK: Typhoon and Tornado aircraft; refuelling and surveillance aircraft; Trafalgar-class submarine firing Tomahawk cruise missiles; frigates HMS Westminster and HMS Cumberland
* Italy: Tornado aircraft; providing military bases
* Canada: F-18 aircraft; frigate HMCS Charlottetown
* Spain: F-18 aircraft; refuelling and surveillance aircraft; frigate and submarine; military bases
* Denmark: F-16 aircraft
* Belgium: F-16 aircraft

France, which launched the initial air strikes on Libya on Saturday, has argued against giving the U.S.-led NATO political control over an operation in an Arab country, while Turkey has called for limits to any alliance involvement.

In a bid to halt the embarrassing bickering, French Foreign Minister Alain Juppe today proposed a new war committee to oversee operations.

The new body, Mr Juppe said, would bring together foreign ministers of participating states - such as Britain, France and the U.S. - as well as the Arab League.

Meanwhile the head of the Italian Senate's defence affairs committee, Gianpiero Cantoni, said the original French anti-NATO stance was motivated by a desire to secure oil contracts with a future Libyan government.

Some allies are even questioning whether a no-fly zone is still necessary, given the damage already done by air strikes to Gaddafi's military capabilities.

Speaking about yesterday's hastily arranged meeting of NATO allies, one diplomat said: 'The meeting became a little bit emotional,' before adding that France had argued that the coalition led by Britain, the United States and France should retain political control of the mission, with NATO providing operational support, including command-and-control capabilities.

'Others are saying NATO should have command or no role at all and that it doesn't make sense for NATO to play a subsidiary role,' the diplomat added.

Turkish Foreign Minister Ahmet Davutoglu suggested that air strikes launched after a meeting in Paris hosted by France on Saturday had gone beyond what had been sanctioned by a U.N. Security Council resolution.

'There are U.N. decisions and these decisions clearly have a defined framework. A NATO operation which goes outside this framework cannot be legitimised,' he told news channel CNN Turk.

Adding pressure to the already fractured alliance, Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini has also reiterated a warning that Italy would take back control of airbases it has authorised for use by allies for operations over Libya unless a NATO coordination structure was agreed.

In a shock admission, U.K. ministers have admitted the intervention in Libya could last for up to '30 years'.

Asked for an estimate, British Armed Forces Minister Nick Harvey said: 'How long is a piece of string? We don't know how long this is going to go on.

'We don't know if this is going to result in a stalemate. We don't know if his capabilities are going to be degraded quickly. Ask me again in a week.'

In the U.S., Obama has made it clear he wants no part of any leadership role in Libya.

The President has already been criticised for continuing with a tour of Latin America as the military operation over Libya began. And yesterday he

insisted again that while Gaddafi must go, the U.S. is not prepared to remove him by force, but merely to enforce the no-fly zone.

Cara Melindungi Akun Facebook dari Hacker

2011-03-21T08:23:00.000-07:00

Cara Melindungi Akun Facebook dari Hacker sangat penting apalagi kalau yang punya akun adalah seorang wanita, maka melindungi akun Facebook sangat penting, namun setiap kita yang memiliki akun Facebook harus berhati-hati dalam menggunakan akun Facebook, sebab kalau tidak berhati-hati maka kita akan menjadi sasaran kejahatan didunia maya, berikut Cara Melindungi Akun Facebook dari Hacker

1. Aktifkan HTTPS
Meskipun bukan konfigurasi default, Anda dapat menyesuaikan pengaturan privasi yang diinginkan.Untuk mengubah pengaturan ini masuk ke Account>Account Settings. Dan cari bagian Account Security. Pastikan kotak Secure browsing dicentang.

2. Nonaktifkan Penelusuran Publik
Pengaturan ini menetapkan visibilitas Anda di search engine seperti Google. Kalau tidak ingin orang lain tahu tentang profil Anda, maka opsi ini harus dinonaktifkan. Untuk mengubah pengaturan ini masuk ke Account>Privacy Settings>APPS and Websites>Public Search>Edit Settings. Mencegah profil muncul di Google kepada siapa saja yang mencari nama Anda, â€˜untickedâ€™ kotak Enable Public Search.

3. Nonaktifkan Facebook Search
Caranya pergi ke Account>Privacy Settings>Connecting on Facebokk>View Settings. Kemudian ubah pengaturan Find me on Facebook menjadi Friends only, atau jika menginginkan memiliki visibilitas beberapa teman menjadi Friends of Friends.

4. Kontrol Aplikasi
Lakukan ke dalam Account>Privacy Settings>Apps and Websites>Edit Your Settings. Kemudian pastikan tombol OFF semua aplikasi ditekan, sehingga memblokir semua aplikasi yang menggunakan data pribadi.

5. Hapus Informasi Pribadi
Anda harus pergi ke Account>Privacy Settings>Sharing on Facebook. Ubah data di profil untuk memerangi pencurian identitas.(mediaindonesia.com)

Read more: http://www.hilmifirdaus.com/2011/03/5-cara-melindungi-akun-facebook-dari.html#ixzz1HJ6VOvkw

Bencana Nuklir Terburuk Di Dunia

2011-03-21T08:12:00.000-07:00

Bencana Nuklir Terburuk Sepanjang Masa yang pernah terjadi di dunia, bencana Nuklir membuat resah karena akibat yang sangat buruk, bagi kehidupan. Akibat bencana nuklir ini bukan saja menderita negara tempat reaktor nuklir itu berada namun akibatnya sampai ke negara-negara tetangga. Namun bencana-bencana nuklir telah banyak terjadi di dunia, namun ada beberapa-beberapa bencana nukir yang membuat situasi dunia memburuk.

Dibawah ini ada Beberapa Bencana Nuklir yang sangat Buruk

1. Chernobyl, Ukraina, 1986:
Meledaknya empat pembangkit setelah uji coba, yang menyebabkan kebakaran selama 9 hari dan melepaskan sedikitnya 100 kali lebih tinggi daripada radiasi saat bom Hiroshima dan Nagasaki. Lima orang tewas seketika, tapi menurut Badan Energi Atom Internasional (IAEA) kecelakaan itu menewaskan sekitar 4000 orang.

2. Kyshtym, Rusia, 1957:
Kesalahan dalam sistem pendingin di pembangkit Mayak menyebabkan ledakan non nuklir yang mengakibatkan lepasnya 80 ton material radioaktif. Sekitar 10.000 orang di evakuasi setelah ada laporan kulit orang-orang meleleh. Sedikitnya 200 orang tewas

3. Three Mile Island, Amerika Serikat, 1979:
Pendingin di pembangkit Pennsylvania tidak berfungsi hingga menyebabkan sebagian dalam satu pembangkit hancur dan mengakibatkan lepasnya radioaktif dalam jumlah kecil. Sekitar 140.000 orang dievakuasi, tapi tidak ada laporan tewas atau terluka

4. Windscale, Inggris, 1957:
Inti pembangkit nuklir pertama Inggris terbakar sehingga material radioaktif lepas. Peristiwa ini menyebabkan 240 kasus kanker

5. Tokaimura, Jepang , 1999:
Sejumlah uranium hasil pengayaan tingkat tinggi yang dipersiapkan oleh pekerja yang tak memenuhi syarat memicu reaksi nuklir. Dua pekerja tewas, 100 pekerja dan penduduk lokal terancam terpapar radioaktif

PSSI Hukum 110 Orang Terkait LPI

2011-03-20T07:44:00.000-07:00

PSSI kembali mengumumkan 57 daftar terhukum baru yang terlibat dalam Liga Primer Indonesia, sehingga junlah nya menjadi 110 orang, Hukuman tersebut dikeluarkan dengan SK Komdis tanggal 7 Maret 2011

Sebelumnya, pada 18 Februari lalu, Komdis telah lebih dulu merilis 53 daftar para terhukum yang terdiri dari perangkat pertandingan, wasit, pelatih, dan pemain asing. Total daftar terhukum tersebut saat ini menjadi 110.

"Komdis berusaha menegakkan kedaulatan sepak bola atas upaya pihak-pihak tertentu yang menyelenggarakan kompetisi sepak bola tanpa mematuhi aturan FIFA. Semua pihak yang terlibat dihukum karena melakukan tingkah-laku buruk terhadap PSSI dan FIFA," kata Ketua Komdis PSSI, Hinca Pandjaitan.

Sejumlah nama yang dilarang ikut serta dalam kegiatan PSSI di antaranya Arifin Panigoro (penggagas dan pendukung LPI), Sartono Anwar (pelatih), Timo Scheuneman (pelatih), Jose Basualdo (pelatih), Jorg Steinbruner (pelatih), dan Willy Scheepers (pelatih

Gempa Sukabumi 5,3 SR

2011-03-20T07:29:00.000-07:00

Gempa mengguncang Sukabumi dengan kekuatan 5,3 SR, gempa tersebut terletak di barat daya Sukabumi, dan gempa tersebut tidak berpotensi Tsunami, Gempa yang terjadi di Sukabumi terletak pada kedalaman 10 kilometer dengan lokasi pusat germpa berada di laut berjarak 113 kilometer barat daya Sukabumi, Jawa barat.

Gempa tersebut terjadi pada Pukul 08.20.13 WIB. Lokasi gempa tercatat berada di 7.93 derajat lintang selatan dan 106,79 derajat bujur timur.

Jabar mengatakan, BMKG sampai saat ini menerima laporan gempa yang melanda Sukabumi kali ini dapat dirasakan getarannya hingga Pangandaran, Ciamis, dan Bogor. "Sampai sekarang baru dua kota itu yang melaporkan," katanya.

FOTO Fenomena Supermoon di Banda Aceh

2011-03-19T16:28:00.000-07:00

FOTO Fenomena Supermoon bisa disaksikan di Banda Aceh, Supermoon bisa dilihat di Banda Aceh karena cahaya terang dari langit menyinari bumi Aceh sejak lepas maghrib. Tak seperti biasa, Bulan mengeluarkan cahaya yang terang.

Daerah Potensi Gempa Besar di Indonesia

2011-03-19T08:21:00.000-07:00

Daerah Potensi Gempa Besar di Indonesia bisa mencapai 8 SR, gempa tersebut mengancam kawasan Halmahera Hingga Samudera fasifik di Utara Irian Jaya, yang menyebabkan Gempa-gempa besar diatas 8 SR mengancam karena Indonesia berada didaerah Pertemuaan 3 lempeng, tiga lempeng tersebut adalah Hindia-Australia, Fasifik dan Eurasia, ketiga Lempeng tersebut bergerak secara terus menerus

Berdasarkan data yang terhimpun, diketahui bahwa gempa bumi berkekuatan lebih besar dari 6,5 Skala Richter di permukaan (Ms) berpeluang besar menyebabkan deformasi di daratan maupun di dasar laut.

Kenampakan deformasi yang terjadi dapat diamati secara langsung bila episenter gempabumi terjadi di daratan, sebagaimana teramati pada peristiwa gempa bumi Solor-Adonara (NTT) pada 25 Desember 1982 berkekuatan 6 Skala Richter yang menimbulkan patahan sepanjang ± 750 meter, serta adanya lajur retakan permukaan tanah sepanjang ± 1500 meter pada kejadian gempa bumi Liwa (Lampung) tahun 1994 dan ratusan meter patahan permukaan tanah akibat Gempabumi Kerinci (Jambi) tahun 1995.

Dari peta frekuensi kejadian gempa bumi berfokus dangkal dan bersifat merusak, tampak bahwa gempa bumi berkekuatan 6 Ms berpeluang besar terjadi di kawasan Pulau Sumatera bagian barat, wilayah selatan Pulau Jawa, Kepulauan Nusa Tenggara, Kepulauan Maluku, dan daratan Pulau Sulawesi.

Sedangkan gempa bumi berkekuatan 7 Ms dapat terjadi pada dasar lautan di lantai Samudera Indonesia dari mulai barat laut Pulau Sumatera menerus hingga ke sebelah barat Aceh, sekitar Pulau Nias, Kepulauan Mentawai, sekitar Pulau Enggano, Selat Sunda, sebelah selatan Jawa Timur, selatan dan utara Kepulauan Nusa Tenggara termasuk Laut Flores, Laut Sawu, Laut Banda, Laut Sulawesi dan perairan sebelah timur Pulau Sulawesi sampai ke bagian barat Pulau Halmahera.

Selanjutnya gempa bumi yang tergolong sangat besar berkekuatan 8 Ms dapat terjadi di kawasan Halmahera hingga Samudera Pasifik di utara Irian Jaya.

Peristiwa gempa tersebut selain dapat merusak fasilitas infrastruktur yang dimiliki penduduk, juga akan mengubah kondisi geologi/hidrogeologi secara cepat, misalnya penurunan debit mata air, berhentinya aliran mata air intrusi air laut ke dalam air tanah dan lain-lain. Hal tersebut disebabkan terbentuknya rekahan-rekahan pada batuan akibat gempa.

Peristiwa gempa selain disebabkan oleh pergerakan lempeng, juga dapat disebabkan oleh aktivitas vulkanisme, atau kita kenal sebagai Gempa Vulkanik. Namun besarnya getaran dan penyebarannya tidak sehebat Gempa Tektonik.

Puncak Supermoon 2011 terjadi Minggu Pukul 02.10 WIB

2011-03-19T08:12:00.000-07:00

Puncak Supermoon 2011 terjadi Minggu Pukul 02.10 WIB, dan malam inipun sebuah Fenomena bisa disaksikan dari Astronomi, sebuah Lunar Perigee atau Supermoon, supermoon bisa dilihat asal tidak ada awan yang menghalangi, jadi dengan mata telanjang bisa menyaksikan Supermoon, dan pada Sabtu tanggal 19 Maret 2011 bulan akan berada pada posisi yang sangat dekat hanya akan berjarak 221.567 mil atau 356.578 kilometer.

Dan Puncak Supermoon akan terjadi pada hari minggu dini hari Pada pukul 02.10 Waktu Indonesia Barat, hal tersebut disampaikan oleh Peneliti LAPAN Thomas Jamaludin.
, bulan akan terlihat lebih besar dan lebih terang dari biasanya. Sekitar 7 persen lebih besar. Namun, "dengan mata telanjang, susah untuk melihat perbandingannya. Tapi dengan teleskop akan terlihat pembandingnya, lebih besar," tambah dia.

Sebelumnya, Badan Antariksa Ameriksa Serikat (NASA) membantah dugaan supermoon terkait bencana. Ilmuwan Goddard Space Flight Center NASA, Jim Garvin menjelaskan, supermoon terjadi saat Bulan sedikit mendekat ke Bumi daripada rata-rata. Efek ini paling terlihat saat terjadi bulan purnama. "Bulan akan terlihat lebih besar, meski perbedaan jarak dari Bumi hanya beberapa persen di banding biasanya," kata dia seperti dimuat situs Space.com

Pemegang hak suara di kongres PSSI

2011-03-18T16:49:00.000-07:00

Pemegang hak suara di kongres PSSI yang akan dilakukan beberapa hari mendatang, Pemegang hak suara di kongres PSSI direlease oleh dua pengamat Sepak bola, Pemegang hak suara di kongres PSSI direlease untuk mencegah terjadinya kecurangan ketika akan dilakukan konggres nanti

Berikut Pemegang hak suara di kongres PSSI
DAFTAR PENGURUS PROVINSI (PENGPROV) PSSI:
1. ACEH: H. Zainuddin Hamid (Ketua), HT Hermansyah SE (Sekretaris)
2. SUMATERA UTARA: Dr HM Nur Rasyid Lubis (Ketua), Hery Riyanto SE (Sekretaris) 3. SUMATERA BARAT: H Harmin (Ketua), Sudirman (Sekretaris)
4. RIAU: Dr H Indra Mukhlis Adnan SE MH MM (Ketua), Kurniawan SE Ak (Sekretaris) 5. KEPULAUAN RIAU: Endy Maulidi SH (Ketua), Firsandy SE (Sekretaris) 6. JAMBI: Drs H Nalim SH MM (Ketua), Hadiyandra MPd (Sekretaris)
7. SUMATERA SELATAN: Dr HM Baryadi SE MM (Ketua), Augie Bunyamin (Sekretaris) 8. BENGKULU: Kurnia Utama S Sos MSi (Ketua), Asmawi Hamza BE S Sos (Sekretaris) 9. LAMPUNG: Hartarto Lojaya (Ketua), Fitri Susanda (Sekretaris) 10. BANGKA BELITUNG: Hidayat Arsani (Ketua), Abdul Ma’ruf (Sekretaris)
11. BANTEN (Drs H Satim Sofyan (Ketua), H Imik (Sekretaris) 12. DKI JAKARTA: (Hardi SE (Ketua), Zainul Arifin (Sekretaris) 13. JAWA BARAT: Drg H Tonny Aprilani M.Sc (Ketua), M Yeyet Hidayat (Sekretaris) 14. JAWA TENGAH: Sukawi J Soetarip (Ketua), Jauhar (Sekretaris) 15. DI YOGYAKARTA: Dr H Hadianto Ismangoen Sp.A (Ketua), Dwi Irianto SH (Sekretaris) 16. JAWA TIMUR: Abdul Mudjib (Ketua), Joko Tetuko (Sekretaris) 17. KALIMANTAN BARAT: Dr Jarot Winarno M.Med.Ph (Ketua), H Husni SH (Sekretaris) 18. KALIMANTAN TIMUR: Drs H Achmad Amins MM (Ketua), Slamet Bardianto (Sekretaris)
19. KALIMANTAN TENGAH: Suraria Nahan (Ketua), Hatir Sata Tarigan (Sekretaris) 20. KALIMANTAN SELATAN: H Hasnuryadi Sulaiman SE (Ketua), Drs Abdul Razak SH MAP (Sekretaris) 21. GORONTALO: Dr Ir Gusnar Ismail MM (Ketua), Abdullah Pala (Sekretaris) 22. SULAWESI UTARA: Drs Syahrial Damo Polii M.Si (Ketua), Hun Mokoagow (Sekretaris) 23. SULAWESI TENGAH: Erwin Sumampow (Ketua), Drs Kasmuddin Kasim (Sekretaris) 24. SULAWESI SELATAN: Drs HA Kadir Halid MRE (Ketua), Drs H Syamsudin Umar M.Si (Sekretaris)
25. SULAWESI TENGGARA: Drs Sabaruddin Labamba M.Si (Ketua), Ahmad Rivai Budiman SE (Sekretaris) 26. SULAWESI BARAT: Drs H Anwar Adnan Saleh (Ketua), Drs Isra M Yusuf (Sekretaris) 27. BALI: I Made Sumer (Ketua), Drs I Nyoman Sudjana A (Sekretaris) 28. NTB: HM Syamsul Luthfi SE M.Si (Ketua), H Suhaimi SH (Sekretaris) 29. NTT: Drs Frans Lebu Raya (Ketua), Drs Lambertus Ara Tukan MM (Sekretaris) 30. MALUKU: Dirk Soplanit SE M.Si (Ketua), Karol Patinasarani (Sekretaris) 31. MALUKU UTARA: Drs HM Iqbal Ruray M.Ba (Ketua), Maurice Tuguis (Sekretaris) 32. PAPUA: Barnabas Suebu SH (Ketua), M Usman Fakaubun (Sekretaris) 33. PAPUA BARAT: Drs Ishak L Hallatu M.Si (Ketua), John Tulus SH MH (Sekretaris)

DAFTAR PENGURUS KLUB PSSI YANG MEMILIKI HAK SUARA ISL:
1. PS SEMEN PADANG: Ir Erizal Anwar (Ketua), Fery Sarvino ST (Sekretaris)
2. PSPS: H Jeffri Nazir SE (Ketua), Drs EC H Heru Subagyo (Sekretaris)
3. SRIWIJAYA FC: H Hendri Zainudin (Dirut), Faisal Mursyid (Sekum) 4. PERSIJA: Toni Tobias Mahali ST (Ketua), Benny Erwin (Sekretaris) 5. PERSIB BANDUNG: H Umuh Muchtar (Ketua), Yudiana (Sekretaris) 6. PS PELITA JAYA: Gunawan Tamsir (Ketum), Aldy Wirawan (Sekretaris) 7. PERSIJAP JEPARA: Ahmad Marzuqi (Ketum), Arif Darmawan (Sekretaris) 8. PS AREMA: Dr H Muhamad Nur SH M.Si (Ketua), Siti Nurzanah SE MM (Sekretaris) 9. DELTRAS: Ayu Sartika Virianti (Manajer), H Moch Jamil (Sekretaris) 10. PERSELA: H Yuhronur Efendi SE MM (Ketua), A Farikh SH MM (Sekretaris) 11. BONTANG FC: H Udin Mulyono (Ketua), Kristin Manangkoda (Sekretaris) 12. PERSIBA BALIKPAPAN: H Syahril HM Taher (Ketua), Irfan Taufik (Sekretaris) 13. PERSISAM PUTRA: Drs H Achmad Amins MM (Ketua), Ahmad Subhan ST M.Si (Sekretaris) 14. PERSIPURA: MR Kambu (Ketua), Thamrin Sagala (Sekretaris) 15. PERSIWA: Jhon R Banua (Ketua), Agus Santoso (Sekretaris)

DAFTAR PENGURUS KLUB PSSI YANG MEMILIKI HAK SUARA DIVISI UTAMA:
1. PERSIRAJA: Ir Mawardi Nurdin M.Eng Sc (Ketua), Atqia Abubakar (Sekretaris) 2. PERSIS TEMBILAHAN: Drs H Mukhtar T MH (Ketua), Kurniawansyah Putra SH (Sekretaris) 3. PSAP SIGLI: Mohd Yasin MA (Ketua), Drs Mukhlis (Sekretaris)
4. PERSIKAB KAB. BANDUNG: Ir H Sofian Nataprawira MP (Ketua), Drs H Erick Juriara E M.Si (Sekretaris) 5. PERSITA TANGERANG: Eka Wibayu (Ketua), Budi Satya Kurniawan SH (Sekretaris) 6. PERSIPASI: Drs H Aan Suhanda SH M.Si MH (Ketua), Alexander Zulkarnaen (Sekretaris) 7. PSIM YOGYAKARTA: H Haryadi Suyudi (Ketua), Dessy Arfianto (Sekretaris) 8. PERSIK KEDIRI: Samsul Ashar (Ketua), Barnadi (Sekretaris) 9. GRESIK UNITED FC: HM Ali Mukhid SE (Ketua), Drs Syafiqi M Zain (Sekretaris) 10. PS MITRA KUKAR: Nur Ansar SE MM (Ketua), Trias Slamet (Sekretaris) 11. PERSEMAN MANOKWARI: Bons Rumbruren S.Sos (Ketua), Yan Warinusi (Sekretaris) 12. PERSIBA BANTUL: Drs H Briyanto MM (Ketua), Wikan Werdo Kusworo (Sekretaris) 13. PSBI BLITAR: H Herry Noegroho SE MH (Ketua), Drs Totok Subihandono M.Si (Sekretaris) 14. PERSEBAYA: Wishnu Wardana (Ketua), Wastomi Suheri (Sekretaris) 15. PERSIGO GORONTALO: H Adhan Dambea S.Sos MA (Ketua), Aven S Hinelo (Sekretaris)
16. PERSIDAFON DAFONSORO: Habol Melkias Suwae S.Sos MM (Ketua), Iwan Nasarudin BA (Sekretaris)

DAFTAR PENGURUS KLUB PSSI YANG MEMILIKI HAK SUARA DIVISI I:
1. PSBS BIAK: Melianus Yusuf Mariyen (Ketua), Simon Rumaropen (Sekretaris)
2. PERSBUL BUOL: Dr Ir H Gusnar Ismail MM (Ketua), Abdullah Pala SE (Sekretaris) 3. PERSEPAM PAMEKASAN: Hamzah Saleh (Ketua), Drs EC Jon Yulianto MM (Sekretaris) 4. PSBL LANGSA: Drs Zulkifli Zainon MM (Ketua), Hasan Basri (Sekretaris) 5. PERSSIN SINJAI: Andi Rudianto Asapa (Ketua)
6. MADIUN PUTRA FC: H Bambang Irianto SH MM (Ketua), Trubus Rekso Direjo ST M.Si (Sekretaris) 7. PERSEWANGI BANYUWANGI: Michael Edi Hariyanto SH (Ketua), Drs H Nanang Nur Ahmadi (Sekretaris) 8. PERSIP KOTA PEKALONGAN: Budi Setiawan (Ketua), Andi (Sekretaris) 9. PSBK BLITAR: M Samanhudi Anwar SH (Ketua), Drs Hakim Sisworo M.Si (Sekretaris) 10. PSGL GAYO LUES: Drs H Abubakar Djasbi (Ketua), Sukri (Sekretaris) 11. KSB SUMBAWA BARAT: Dr Zulkifli Muhadli SH MM (Ketua), Lukman S Bahtiar (Sekretaris) 12. PERSITEMA TEMANGGUNG: Bambang Sukarno (Ketua), Agus Suprianto (Sekretaris)
13. PERSID JEMBER: Drs H Sunardi MM (Ketua), Syaiful Bakhri (Sekretaris)
14. PERSEPAR PALANGKARAYA: Tuty Dau (Ketua), Rio Denamore Dau SH (Sekretaris)

DAFTAR PENGURUS KLUB PSSI YANG MEMILIKI HAK SUARA DIVISI II:
1. PS BUNGO: Sulaiman Ibrahim (Ketua), Riduwan A Ma.Pd (Sekretaris)
2. PERSIKS TELUK KUANTAN: Fidaus Oemar SH (Manajer), Al Firdaus (Sekretaris) 3. PS PIDIE JAYA: Drs HM Gade Salam (Ketua), Helmi Daud SE (Sekretaris) 4. PERSAL ACEH SELATAN: Ir H Azwar Asyek MM (Ketua), H Rustam Adifa SE (Sekretaris) 5. PERSAP PURBALINGGA: H Tasdi SH MM (Ketua), Drs Sidik Purwanto (Sekretaris) 6. PERSENGA NGANJUK: Sukarno Putro SH (Ketua), Purianto (Sekretaris) 7. PERSEBA BANGKALAN: H Imron Abdul Fattah (Ketua), Pinky Hidayati M Psi (Sekretaris) 8. PERSEKAP KOTA PASURUAN: H Ismail M Hasan SE (Ketua), Edy Hari Respati S (Sekretaris)
9. PERSEWAR WAROPEN: Drs Yesaya Buinei MM (Ketua), Tris Teo Yafet Waromi (Sekretaris) 10. PERSEKA KAIMANA: Fazlurachman Ombaier (Ketua), Yoyon Fahri Nisfu (Sekretaris) 11. PS PENAJAM PASER UTARA: Andi Irfan Harahap S.Sos (Ketua), Ir Saiful Rahman (Sekretaris) 12. PERSISUM SUMBAWA: Dr Ihsan Syafitri (Ketua), Aman Muslimin (Sekretaris)

DAFTAR PENGURUS KLUB PSSI YANG MEMILIKI HAK SUARA DIVISI III:
1. BINTANG JAYA ASAHAN: H Erwis Lubis (Ketua), Badia Raja Manurung (Sekretaris) 2. VILLA 2000: Asher Imaret Siregar (Ketua) 3. ISP PURWOREJO: Angko Setyarso Widodo (Ketua), Tomy Yonata (Sekretaris) 4. GRESIK PUTRA: Mujiyono SH M.Si (Ketua), Ludiono (Sekretaris) 5. MARTAPURA FC: M Hilman ST MT (Ketua), Abu Bakar (Sekretaris) 6. PERSEKAT KATINGAN: Ir Christantwo Tatel Ladju MM (Ketua), Alfrid S.Pd (Sekretaris) 7. PERSIBOLMUT: Hamdan D Soleng (Ketua), Asrifam Hani (Sekretaris) 8. MITRA BOLA UTAMA: Muchlisin (Ketua), Muftimul Rijal (Sekretaris) 9. PERSEDEN DENPASAR: IGN Jaya Negara (Ketua), Drs I Ketut Mardika (Sekretaris) 10. PERSIPUJA PUNCAK JAYA: Yustus Wonda S.Sos M.Si (Ketua), Eretius Gire A.Md.Tek (Sekretaris)

Bahaya radiasi nuklir reaktor Fukushima

2011-03-18T08:01:00.000-07:00

Bahaya radiasi nuklir reaktor Fukushima itulah yang dikhawatirkan oleh semua orang sekarang ini, khabar mulai mencuat ketika jepang meningkatkatkan bahaya radiasi tingkat bahaya radiasi nuklir lantaran rusaknya reaktor Fukushima Daiichi dari level empat ke lima pada skala standard kegawatan kecelakaan atom internasional, sehingga bahaya radiasi, perubahan ini menempatkan krisis di fasilitas nuklir Fukushima Daiichi dua tingkat di bawah bencana nuklir Chernobyl di Ukraina pada 1986.

Pimpinan badan pengawas tenaga nuklir PBB, IAEA, Yukiya Amano memperingatkan di Tokyo bahwa perjuangan untuk menstabilkan fasilitas nuklir di Fukushima Daiichi yang rusak akibat gempa adalah adu cepat dengan waktu.

Truk militer kembali menyemprotkan air ke dalam kompleks nuklir di Fukushima Daiichi. Ini hari kedua langkah ini dilakukan. Sementara itu tim teknisi berusaha menyambungkan kembali aliran listrik ke sistem pendingin yang macet pasca gempa pekan lalu. Namun, operator reaktor tenaga nuklir mengatakan mengubur reaktor itu di bawah lapisan beton dan pasir mungkin menjadi pilihan untuk mencegah petaka kebocoran radiasi.

A Great Option for laundry bag and Other Carriers

2011-03-18T07:41:00.000-07:00

When you want to bring something to the outside in big quantity, it is wise to carry your things in a reliable carrier. Posylane.com provides you such reliable carriers. But strength is not only the advantage that you will get when you buy a laundry bag from this seller. All of the carriers in the storage of this seller, numbered 14, are all easy to be personalized. Although the pre-existing designs of these carriers are beautiful, you can order for embroidery of your name in the flaps if you want to. The provider will fulfill your order gladly. Hence you can go outside carrying so many things without have to be worry about your overall outfit.

But when you are to going outside bringing your little child and you want your child to be safe as well stylish, the seller also provides you with reliable and beautiful backpack for toddlers. With a brand as big as stephen joseph, you should not to be worried about the reliability and durability. Going to kindergarten, day car, dance class, or pre-school will be a pleasant thing to do with one of these quilted backpacks. With an effective dimension of 11” tall x 13” wide by 4” deep, it is easy to be carried by your little one.

With such reliable carriers for your and your toddlers, it will be ease to go to any terrain, actually. By the way, if you live in the great capital of Texas, you can present a pleasant garden or green scenery in front of your house with the most effective way so that you and your family can be refreshed with such fresh scenery. For this, you can contact the best Dallas landscaping service provider through Dallas Sod and Landscaping. This company will present lush, healthy, and vibrant scenery which will add to the qualities of your life.

Jadwal pertandingan Sriwijaya FC di AFC Cup 2011

2011-03-17T09:02:00.000-07:00

Jadwal pertandingan Sriwijaya FC di AFC Cup 2011, mungkin lagi sahabat cari yah, apalagi Sriwijaya sudah memberikan harapan dengan mampu menjinakan Klub asal Hongkong, sebelumnya SFC sudah mampu untuk unggul terlebih dahulu, namun Tegasus mampu menyamakan, Namun di menit-menit akhir SFC mampu mengalahkan Tegasus:

01 Maret 2011 - 15:30
SRIWIJAYA FC (IDN) vs V.B. (MDV)
Jaka Baring Stadium

15 Maret 2011 - 20:00
TSW PEGASUS (HKG) vs SRIWIJAYA FC (IDN)
Tseung Kwan O Sports Ground

13 April 2011 - 15:30
SRIWIJAYA (IDN) vs SONG LAM NGHE AN (VIE)
Jaka Baring Stadium

26 April 2011 - 16:00
SONG LAM NGHE AN (VIE) vs SRIWIJAYA FC (IDN)
Vinh Stadium

04 Mei 2011 - 16:00
V.B. (MDV) vs SRIWIJAYA (IDN)
National Stadium, Male

Sketsa Kurir Bom Buku

2011-03-17T08:55:00.000-07:00

Sketsa Kurir Bom Buku Selama tiga hari pemeriksaan dan penyelidikan teror paket bom buku, pihak Mabes Polri mengakui sedang mengupayakan sketsa orang yang mengantarkan paket untuk Ulil Abshar Abdalla, Gories Mere dan Yapto S Soerjosoemarno. Sketsa dibuat berdasarkan keterangan dari saksi-saksi di TKP. Sketsa tersebut masih di dalami oleh internal penyidik di Polri, belum dapat disampaikan pada masyarakat saat ini.

Seperti yang diberitakan sebelumnya, resepsionis Kantor Berita 68H (KBR68H), Annisa Wulandari, menyatakan pria yang mengantarkan paket itu berciri-ciri kulit hitam, tinggi badan kira-kira 170 cm, mata agak celong, kumis grepesan, memakai topi dan jaket parasut. Polisi sendiri belum memastikan apakah kurir tersebut juga menjadi pelaku perakitan bom buku.

”Sketsa belum. Kalaupun ada, sedang diupayakan untuk internal dulu. Nanti kalau sudah siap, kami akan publikasikan kepada masyarakat agar dibantu pencariannya. Kami kan tidak bisa asal bikin sketsa,” kata Kepala Bagian Penerangan Umum Mabes Polri Komisaris Besar Boy Rafli Amar di Mabes Polri, Kamis (17/3/2011).

Boy menyatakan, siapa pun yang menjadi pelaku, masyarakat tetap harus waspada dengan mengedepankan kepekaan sosial, terutama pada orang-orang asing yang tiba-tiba hadir di antara masyarakat.

”Masyarakat juga harus mengaktifkan kepekaan sosial terhadap orang-orang yang kemungkinan hadir di tengah-tengah kita, tapi orang itu tidak kita kenal secara baik, laporkan ke RT/RW,” tutur Boy.

Sampai saat ini polisi sudah memeriksa 12 saksi terkait kejadian tiga paket bom buku tersebut. Saksi paling banyak berasal dari KBR 68H. Sementara itu, untuk paket bom yang ditujukan kepada Ahmad Dhani, polisi baru memeriksa lima orang yang ada di rumah Dhani, termasuk satpam dan penjaga rumahnya.

Jadwal Pertandingan Arema FC di LCA 2011

2011-03-17T08:53:00.000-07:00

Jadwal Pertandingan Arema FC di LCA 2011, Arema walaupun sudah kedodoran dengan dikalahkan oleh Jepang dan Klub asal Korea, dengan Skor yang sangat telak dari Klub Korea dengan Skor 4-0.

Berikut Jadwal Pertandingan Arema FC di LCA 2011b

* Match Day 1
Rabu, 02/03/2011, Cerezo Osaka (Jpn) Vs Arema FC
Osaka Nagai Stadium, Osaka

* Match Day 2
Rabu, 16/03/2011, Arema FC VS Joenbuk Hyundai Motors (Kor)
Kanjuruhan Stadium, Malang

* Match Day 3
Selasa, 05/04/2011, Arema FC VS Shandong Luneng (Chn)
Kanjuruhan Stadium, Malang

* Match Day4
Rabu, 20/04/2011, Shandong Luneng (Chn) Vs Arema FC
Shandong Sports Centre Stadium, Jinan

* Match Day 5
Selasa, 03/05/2011, Arema FC VS Cerezo Osaka (Jpn)
Kanjuruhan Stadium, Malang

* Match Day 6
Selasa, 10/05/2011, Joenbuk Hyundai Motors (Kor) Vs Arema FC
Jeonju World Cup Stadium, Jeonju

Pernyataan Resmi Presiden FIFA Soal PSSI

2011-03-15T16:19:00.000-07:00

Pernyataan Resmi Presiden FIFA Soal PSSI hal tersebut yang ditunggu-tunggu untuk kelangsungan PSSI, pernyataan resmi tersebut disampaikan oleh Presiden FIFA, Joseph 'Sepp' Blatter, pernyataan resmi tersebut diberikan sebelum memberikan pidato di Gedung Parlemen Timor Leste di Dili.

Inilah keterangan Blatter seperti dilansir dari Goal:
"Saya sangat senang bisa membuat klarifikasi di sini menyangkut situasi sepakbola di Indonesia yang telah menjadi perhatian. Berdasarkan surat resmi yang kami kirim ke Sekretaris Jenderal PSSI, Mr Besoes dan juga press release kami yang bisa dilihat di fifa.com, kami mempunyai dua masalah di PSSI. Yang pertama adalah masalah organisasi menyangkut Statuta PSSI dan yang kedua adalah mereka mempunyai breakaway league yang tidak compatible dengan statuta mereka sendiri dan dengan Statuta FIFA."

"Situasi ini telah dibahas dalam Football Association Committee FIFA dan dibahas juga dalam Executive Committee FIFA. Executive Committee telah mengambil keputusan bahwa PSSI harus menggelar General Asembly pada 26 Maret untuk memilih dan mengarahkan Komisi Pemilihan dan mengadopsi Electoral Code berdasarkan Standard Electoral Code FIFA."

"Komisi Pemilihan harus mengatur pemilihan sebelum 30 April dan juga jika PSSI tidak mampu menyelesaikan masalah breakway league, kasus akan dibawa lagi ke Komite Eksekutif FIFA untuk kemungkinan diberikan sanksi."

"Apa makna dari keputusan tersebut? Komite Eksekutif juga memahami bahwa Komite Banding telah menggugurkan aplikasi empat kandidat ketua. Sangat jelas, bahwa kami pun telah melakukan pertemuan di Zurich bersama dengan Secretary General dan Director Member Association and Development, Thierry Regenass, yang juga hadir di sini. Kami telah bertemu perwakilan PSSI, Duta Besar Indonesia untuk Swiss, dan Ibu Rita Subowo, sebagai kolega saya di IOC yang juga Ketua KONI."

"Kami menerangkan keputusan dari Komite Eksekutif dan kami juga menghargai keputusan yang telah diambil oleh Komite Banding Pemilihan Ketua PSSI. Kami tidak berbicara menyangkut siapa yang boleh dan siapa yang tidak boleh berada di sana. Meski statuta diperbaharui sekalipun, tidak akan menyebutkan siapa yang boleh dan siapa yang tidak boleh. Tetapi, yang kami harapkan jika statuta diubah di kongres pun harus menghargai keputusan yang telah diambil oleh Komite Banding. Ini adalah sikap kami dan tidak ada diskusi menyangkut hal itu karena bola sekarang dimainkan oleh PSSI sendiri."

"Hal lainnya mengenai breakaway league, tidak mungkin memiliki sebuah breakaway league di dalam sebuah organisasi yang terorganisasi dengan baik. Oleh karena itu sekaranglah saatnya bagi Komite Eksekutif FIFA untuk memastikan terjadi intervensi. Tapi, berdasarkan statuta mereka (PSSI) sendiri mereka harus menyelesaikannya. Karena kami tidak akan menghindari jika statuta ditulis ulang oleh asosiasi, tetapi mereka harus membawanya ke 'house in order'."

"Jika sampai akhir April atau 30 April, mereka (PSSI) tidak melaksanakannya maka kasus akan dibawa kembali ke Komite Eksekutif FIFA. Jika tidak ada penyelesaian maka Komite Eksekutif FIFA tidak memiliki alternatif selain menghukum federasi dan saya berharap kami tidak menjatuhkan sanksi, tetapi mereka harus melaksanakan tugas-tugasnya

Pernyataan Resmi Presiden FIFA Soal PSSI

2011-03-15T16:11:00.001-07:00

Nama ABK Indonesia yang Hilang di Jepang

2011-03-13T22:00:00.000-07:00

ABK Indonesia yang Hilang di Jepang empat buah anak kapal yang hilang ketika terjadinya gempa yang diikuti oleh Tsunam pada Jumat 11 Maret 2011 lalu, yang diawali dengan gempa dengan kukuatan 9,0 skala richter.
Empat ABK Indonesia yang Hilang di Jepang adalah:

Sunardi, Tonny Setiawan, Rudi Hartono, Arifin Siregar.

Mereka adalah pekerja di kapal Kuni Maru No. 3 (sebelumnya disebut Unimaru) yang kapalnya sedang bersandar di Pelabuhan Shiogama saat tsumani terjadi.

Hingga kini, Kementerian Luar Negeri masih berupaya untuk menghubungi empat keluarga anak buah kapal yang hilang itu.

Dalam keterangan pers di kantor Kementerian Luar Negeri, Jalan Taman Pejambon, Jakarta Pusat, Minggu 13 Maret 2011, Menlu Marty Natalegawa menjelaskan, kapal Kuni Maru No. 3 sudah ditemukan di darat, sekitar 2,5 kilometer dari pelabuhan

Foto Kerusakan Jepang dari Satelit NASA

2011-03-13T21:56:00.000-07:00

Foto Kerusakan Jepang dari Satelit NASA, kerusakan ini ditangkap oleh satelit Nasa, NASA, menangkap gambar kebakaran dan banjir terbaru akibat gempa dan tsunami di Jepang. Foto dari satelit pengawas bumi, Terra dan Aqua, melukiskan gambaran suram kerusakan di Jepang.

Dari tampilan satelit, terlihat Jepang bagian utara, khususnya daerah Sendai, terendam banjir dan mengalami kebakaran. Foto itu diambil pada Sabtu 12 Maret 2011, satu hari setelah bencana gempa dan tsunami. Pengambilan foto ini adalah bagian dari MODIS Rapid Response system, yaitu penggunaan satelit untuk mengambil gambar bumi secara "real time" setiap hari.

Sistem tersebut dapat mengambil foto kondisi negara Jepang dua kali dalam satu hari. Foto terbaru diambil satelit Aqua pada pukul 2.46 waktu Jepang. Terlihat kepulan asap hitam di kawasan Sendai. Tim peneliti menggunakan teknologi Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) untuk membuat gambar satelit terlihat seperti foto.

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"Awan seringkali menghambat MODIS untuk mengidentifikasi lokasi api di sebuah kota. Untuk tipe asap hitam seperti yang terlihat di foto biasanya muncul akibat minyak atau gas," tulis Holli Riebeek, dari Goddard Space Flight Center dalam pernyataannya, seperti dikutip dari Livescience.com.

Kebakaran kilang minyak memang terjadi di daerah Sendai setelah gempa. Menurut pejabat NASA, satelit Aqua juga menunjukkan awan sedimen biru dan hijau di sepanjang pantai Jepang, ini kemungkinan menggambarkan lumpur atau sampah akibat gelombang tsunami yang kuat.

Satelit Terra menangkap gambar lebih cepat yaitu pada pukul 10.30 waktu Jepang dan terlihat banjir besar di sepanjang pantai timur laut Jepang. Seperti satelit Aqua, instrumen MODIS pada Terra akan digunakan untuk mencatat kerusakan akibat tsunami. Banjir terlihat berupa bentangan biru tua atau hitam, baik daratan dan garis pantai. Hal ini jika dibandingkan dengan gambar lain yang diambil oleh satelit Terra 26 Februari sebelum gempa bumi terjadi.

"MODIS mendeteksi api di dekat pantai utara Sendai, yang juga dikelilingi oleh banjir," tulis Riebeek.
Menurut U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), gempa yang terjadi di Jepang pada 11 Maret lalu termasuk lima gempa terbesar yang terjadi sejak 1990. Pusat gempa terletak 373 kilometer arah timur laut Tokyo dan 130 km arah timur Sendai, pulau Honshu. (umi)

2011-02-05T16:02:00.000-08:00

Video UFO Melintas di Atas Baitul Maqdis mengggemparkan beredar luas di internet. Video tersebut memperlihatkan adanya benda yang dicurigai sebagai benda terbang UFO, benda tersebut melintas di atas Bait Al-Maqdis, Yerusalem, Jumat 28 Januari 2011 lalu.

Banyak yang menganggapnya hanya sekadar video rekayasa alias hoax. Sebab, salah satu rekaman terlihat goyang dan patah-patah. "Jika memang itu pesawat luar angkasa, pesawat itu sangat kecil,pengamatan terhadap ukuran dan jarak pesawat luar angkasa ke kubah menunjukkan bahwa ukuran pesawat tak lebih besar daripada sebuah mobil limousine, cahaya benda langit itu sepertinya tidak terefleksikan oleh kubah. Padahal, kubah tersebut berpelat emas, "Mestinya kubah itu sangat reflektif.

Video UFO Melintas di Atas Baitul Maqdis

Kekayaan Hosni Mubarak 70 Miliar Dollar

2011-02-05T15:44:00.000-08:00

Kekayaan Hosni Mubarak 70 Miliar Dollar, kekayaan husni mubarak tersebut tersebar dalam bentuk uang tunai di bank-bank di Inggris dan Swiss, serta dalam bentuk properti di Amerika dan Inggris, yang tersimpan di bank-bank di Swiss dan Inggris, demikian pula real estat di London, New York, Los Angeles, dan di kawasan mahal di Laut Merah.

Kekayaan Husni Mubarak berasal dari kekuasaan yang telah 30 tahun menjabat Presiden Mesir dan pejabat militer senior, Mubarak memiliki akses transaksi investasi yang telah menghasilan keuntungan bernilai ratusan juta poundsterling. Sebagian besar diperoleh dari lepas pantai dan deposito dalam rekening bank rahasia atau investasi di bidang perumahan dan hotel. Banyak negara-negara Teluk meminta orang asing memberi saham 51 persen kepada mitra bisnis lokal saat akan memulai usaha. Di Mesir, angka ini mencapai 20 persen, namun masih memberi politisi dan aliansi yang dekat dengan sumber militer keuntungan besar dengan risiko kecil.
Hotel dan tanah di sekitar resor turis Sharm el-Sheikh juga merupakan sumber kekayaan keluarga Mubarak.

Menurut sebuah laporan tahun lalu di suratkabar Arab "Al Khabar", Mubarak memiliki berbagai properti di Manhattan dan kawasan eksklusif Rodeo One di Beverly Hills, Amerika Serikat. Kedua putra Mubarak, Gamal dan Alaa, juga miliarder. Protes yang dilancarkan di depan rumah Gamal di Wilton Place di Belgravia di London pusat, menyoroti nafsu makan keluarga ini.

Amaney Jamal, profesor ilmu politik di Universitas Princeton mengatakan, kekayaan keluarga Mubarak antara 40 miliar dan 70 miliar dollar AS sebanding dengan kekayaan para pemimpin negara-negara Teluk.

"Kekayaan pribadi ini dikumpulkan ketika ia menjabat di militer dan sebagai presiden," kata Amaney kepada ABC News. "Terlalu banyak korupsi dalam rezim ini, menahan sumber daya masyarakat untuk kepentingan pribadi," katanya. "Ini merupakan pola diktator-diktator di Timur Tengah," jelasnya.

Al Khabar melaporkan, hal ini membuat kita paham bagaimana keluarga Mubarak menyimpan kekayaannya di bank UBS Swiss, Bank of Scotland, bagian dari Llyods Banking Group. Christopher Davidson, profesor politik Timur Tengah di Durham University menyebutkan, Mubarak, istrinya Suzanne, dan kedua putranya, mampu mengumpulkan kekayaan mereka melalui sejumlah kerjasama kemitraan dengan perusahaan dan investor asing.

Al Khabar menyebutkan sejumlah perusahaan asing barat yang bermitra dengan keluarga Mubarak, rata-rata memiliki keuntungan 15 juta dollar AS per tahun.

Bantuan Israel untuk Mubarak

2011-02-04T04:30:00.000-08:00

Bantuan Israel untuk Mubarak itulah yang dilakukan oleh Israel untuk membantu Mesir, hal tersebut dilakukan oleh Israek secara diam-diam, bantuan tersebut berupa kargo berton-ton yang berisi gas untuk membubarkan massa

Yang dilakukan oleh Israel tersebut diketahui dari salah satu koresponden Press TV. berton-ton gas tersebut dibawa oleh tiga pesawat asal Israel, pesawat tersebut mendarat di Bandara Mina International,

"Isi dari tiga pesawat itu adalah gas untuk membubarkan massa," demikian laporan Press TV, seperti dikutip dari Al Manar, Kamis. Koresponden menggambarkan, bagaimanaf petugas keamanan bandara Mina menerima dan membawa masuk kargo gas itu ke dalam bandara.

Israel memang berkepentingan dengan Mesir terkait situasi politik dan ekonomi di Timur Tengah. Selain Mesir dikenal memiliki 'hubungan baik' dengan Israel, Mesir juga penyedia 40 persen gas ke Israel untuk

Download Avira Antivirus versi 10 Terbaru

2011-01-30T07:18:00.000-08:00

Avira Antivirus versi 10 merupakan antivirus terbaru yang direlease oleh Avira, kehandalan avira dalam mengendalikan virus tidak diragukan lagi, perkembangan program yang jahat seperti virus, trojans, backdoor program, worm dan yang lainnya memerlukan penanganan, maka Avira Antivirus versi 10 diharapkan mampu untuk mengatasi serangan tersebut

Kalau sahabat ingin menggunakan antivirus ini, sahabat bisa menggunakannya karena tersedua secara gratis, namun walaupun gratis kemampunnya tidak perlu diragukan lagi.

ilahkan download Avira AntiVir gratis versi 10.0 dengan link di bawah ini
http://download1us.softpedia.com/dl/616f355dfbc810c07d04d88357c2bafb/4c944d20/100006527/software/antivirus/avira_antivir_personal_en.exe

Avira AntiVir Personal mudah untuk digunakan, sebagai anti virus gratis yang dirancang begitu komprehensif untuk pengguna pribadi (non bisnis) dapat diandalkan untuk melindungi komputer anda dari serangan virus.

Armayeh TKI di SIksa Arab Saudi

2011-01-29T15:31:00.000-08:00

Armayeh itulah TKI yang disiksa di Arab saudi, TKI yang bekerja di Kota Madinah, Arab Saudi. Armayeh hampir setiap hari mendapat penyiksaan dari majikannya. Benda-benda keras kerap mendarat di tubuh Armayeh.

Armayeh berangkat ke Arab Saudi pada April 2009 melalui PT Aji Ayah Bunda Sejati. Armayeh tinggal di Desa Luk Terang, Kecamatan Sungai Ambawa, Kabupaten Kubur Raya, Kalimantan Barat

Saat ini, kondisi Armeyah sangat menyedihkan. Ia mengalami luka di bagian kepala hingga mengeluarkan nanah, kupingnya pun terkelupas dan mengalami infeksi karena sering diinjak-injak oleh majikan. Armayeh juga pernah merasakan siraman air panas di tubuhnya.

Armayeh kini berada di King Fahad Hospital Kota Madinah. Ia nekat melarikan diri dari rumah majikannya karena tak tahan dengan siksaan yang didapatnya setiap hari.

Kesempatan itu diawali saat rumah majikannya dalam keadaan tidak terkunci. Armeyah pun kabur meningalkan rumah tersebut. Beruntung, Armayeh ditemukan dan dibantu oleh warga Arab Saudi. Ia langsung dilarikan ke Rumah Sakit Al Anshar.

Karena kondisi lukanya cukup serius, Armayeh dirujuk ke King Fahad Hospital. Ia berada di King Fahad Hospital sejak tanggal 22 Januari 2011, dan saat ini telah didampingi oleh pihak KJRI Jeddah.

Jumlah Penduduk Indonesia

2011-01-29T07:01:00.000-08:00

Jumlah Penduduk Indonesia itu yang menjadi pertanyaan berapa jumlah penduduk indonesia, pada tahun 2010 jumlah penduduk indonesia telah mencapai 235 juta jiwa, suatu jumlah yang sangat besar, Peningkatan jumlah penduduk Indonesia disebapkan meningkatnya usia harapan hidup akan terjadi perubahan struktur usia penduduk.

Dengan jumlah penduduk yang sangat besar seperti maka indonesia akan mengalami ledakan penduduk yang sangat besar, Pertambahan penduduk tiap tahunnya mencapai 6 juta jiwa pertahun, angka tersebut melebihi angka survey.

Masalah paling nyata, dari Jumlah Penduduk Indonesia adalah pertambahan penduduk tidak dibarengi peningkatan kualitas sumberdaya serta daya tampung pekerjaan. "Populasi dengan pendidikan rendah rata-rata SD, kelahiran banyak yang masuk tenaga kerja namun penyerapannya rendah.

Doa Alfred Riedl untuk LPI

2011-01-11T07:57:00.000-08:00

Walaupun pemain-pemain yang berlaga di LPI tidak ikut untuk calon tim nasional U-23 dalam ajang pra Olimpiade dan SEA Games, Namun bukan berarti Riedl membenci LPI. Sebaliknya Riedl mengapresiasi hadirnya liga besutan bos minyak, Arifin Panigoro ini
Pelatih Alfred Riedl mencoret dua pemain Persebaya 1927 untuk calon tim nasional U-23 dalam ajang pra Olimpiade dan SEA Games. Pencoretan dilakukan karena Persebaya 1927 bermain di Liga Primer Indonesia yang tidak berafiliasi dengan Badan Sepak Bola Dunia (FIFA)

Pelatih Alfred Riedl mencoret dua pemain Persebaya 1927 untuk calon tim nasional U-23 dalam ajang pra Olimpiade dan SEA Games. Pencoretan dilakukan karena Persebaya 1927 bermain di Liga Primer Indonesia yang tidak berafiliasi dengan Badan Sepak
Kontoversi munculnya LPI terus bergulir. PSSI menyatakan kalau keberadaan LPI sebagai organisasi yang ilegal dan bisa dikatakan ajang sepak bola tarkam (antar kampung). Sebaliknya LPI menilai ajang yang mereka bikin untuk perbaikan sepak bola tanah air karena lebih profesional.

Dukungan untuk Irfan Bachdim

2011-01-04T14:50:00.000-08:00

Dukungan untuk Irfan Bachdim untuk memperkuat timnas mengalir begitu deras, tidak tanggung-tanggung dukungan itu datang dari Menpora Andi Mallarangeng.

Menurut Menpora Andi Mallarangeng, setiap pemain terbaik berhak mewakili Merah Putih untuk pertandingan internasional.Tidak ada diskriminatif dalam menentukan wakil Indonesia di cabang olah raga, baik atas dasar suku, agama, ras, kelas sosial maupun partai politik yang diikutinya.

“Irfan layak mewakili Indonesia di ajang Sea Games,'' tutur Andi saat Pemaparan Program Prioritas Kesejahteraan Rakyat 2011 di Jakarta.

Keberlangsungan Irfan di skuad Merah Putih jadi tanda tanya menyusul ancaman PSSI untuk mencoret para pemain timnas yang berpartisipasi di Liga Primer Indonesia, sebuah liga tandingan Indonesia Super League (ISL) yang tak diakui PSSI.

Klub tempat Irfan bernaung, Persema Malang, telah mengundurkan diri dari ISL untuk terjun di LPI. Dengan demikian, bisa dipastikan Irfan akan tampil di LPI.

Seleksi tim nasional U-23

2011-01-04T07:45:00.003-08:00

Seleksi tim nasional U-23 di Jakarta, daftar yang dikeluarkan Badan Tim Nasional (BTN).Seleksi ini dilakukan untuk membentuk tim yang dipersiapkan menghadapi Pra-Olimpiade 2012 dan SEA Games 2011. daftar lengkap pemain yang dipanggil seleksi sebagaimana dikutip dari situs web www.pssi-football.com.
Seleksi I (6 Januari 2011):
1. Choirun Nasrin (Persela Lamongan)
2. Arditani Ardhiyasa (Persija Jakarta)
3. Seftia Hadi (PSPS Pekanbaru)
4. Andri Ibo (Persidafon)
5. Safri Umri (Persiraja Aceh)
6. Abdul Hamid Mony (Persiba Balikpapan)
7. Wirya Kusmandra (Persija Jakarta)
8. Hendro Siswanto (Persela Lamongan)
9. Johan Manadji (Persiba Bantul)
10. Lifki Suteja (Persija Jakarta)
11. Nasution Karubaba (Perseman Manokwari)
12. Ramdani Lestaluhu (Persija Jakarta)
13. Sigit Hermawan (Persija Jakarta)
14. Fred Ferdinando Mote (Persiwa Wamena)
15. Athur Itawan (Preston North End)
16. Fahrizal Dila (Persiraja Aceh)
17. Aris Alfiansyah (Persela Lamongan)
18. Harmoko (Persekam Metro)
19. Zisva Siswanto Marco (Perseman Manokwari)
20. Alan Athur Arrongear (Persiwa Wamena)
21. Lucky Wahyu P (Persebaya Surabaya)
22. Andik Firmansyah (Persebaya Surabaya)
23. Novan Setyo Songko (Persibo Bojonegoro)
24. Fandy Edy (PSM Makassar)
25. Dajusman Trisadi (PSM Makassar)
26. Rachmat (PSM Makassar)
27. Kim Kurniawan (Persema Malang)
28. Reza Mustofa Ardiansya (Persema Malang)
29. Joko Ribowo (Persema Malang)
30. Irfan Bachdim * (Persema Malang)
31. Kurnia Mega * (Arema Indonesia)
32. Yongky Aribowo * (Arema Indonesia)
33. Okto Maniani * (Sriwijaya FC)
Ket *: Pemain langsung mengikuti TC tanpa mengikuti seleksi

Seleksi II (10 Januari 2011):
1. Aji Saka (Arema Indonesia)
2. Johan Angga Kusuma (Persijap Jepara)
3. Mohamad Ridwan (Persita Tangerang)
4. Cecep Supandi (Saint Prima Bandung)
5. Gunawan Dwi Cahayo (Sriwijaya FC)
6. Rachmat Latif (Sriwijaya FC)
7. Barkah Crustianto (Persijap Jepara)
8. Marco M.Kabiay (Persipura)
9. Achmat Farisi (Arema Indonesia)
10. Rendi Saputra (Ex.Persib)
11. Burhanudin Nihe (Persigo Gorontalo)
12. Risman Maidulla (Pro Titan)
13. Jacky Arisani (Sriwijaya FC)
14. Munadi (Persib Bandung)
15. Engelberth Sani (Pelita Jaya)
16. Ferdi Mofu (Semen Padang)
17. Dendi Santoso (Arema Indonesia)
18. David Lali (Persipura)
19. Joko Sasongko (Pelita Jaya)
20. Egi Megiansyah (Pelita Jaya)
21. Yoga Eka Firmansyah (Bontang FC)
22. Johann Yoga (Persib Bandung)
23. Risky Novriansyah (Persijap Jepara)
24. Sunarto (Arema Indonesia)
25. Lukas Wellem Manowen (Persipura)
26. Titus Bonai (Persipura)
27 Rishadi Fauzi (Persita Tangerang)

Seleksi III (14 Januari 2011):
1. Ali Barkah (Pelita Jaya)
2. Dicky Jamalis (Semen Padang)
3. Rifki Deython Mokodompit (Persita Tangerang)
4. Abdul Rachman (Pelita Jaya)
5. Joko Sidik Fitra Yono (Bontang FC)
6. Marcelino A Mandagi (Bontang FC)
7. Irfan Raditya (Arema Indonesia)
8. AA Wahyu Trisayaya (Persija Jakarta)
9. Windu Hangoro Putra (PSPS Pekanbaru)
10. Herry Susilo (PSIS Semarang)
11. Rama Pratama (Pro Titan)
12. Zainal Abidin (Persela Lamongan)
13. Hasim Kipau (Persija Jakarta)
14. M Fauzan Djamal (Semen Padang)
15. Iman Suprapto (Sriwijaya FC)
16. Elvis Nelson Anes (Persija Jakarta)
17. Mahadirga Lasut (Sriwijaya FC)
18. Immanuel Wanggai (Persipura Jayapura)
19. Zulham Zumrud (Persela Lamongan)
20. Stevie Bonsapia (Persipura Jayapura)
21 Jajang Mulyana (Pelita Jaya)
22 Ferdinand Sinaga (Persiwa Wamena)
23 Gerry Setia Nugraha (Pelita Jaya)
24 Johann Juanshyah * (Persijap Jepara)

Jembatan terpanjang di dunia

2011-01-04T07:33:00.000-08:00

Jembatan terpanjang di dunia akhirnya telah selesai – menghabiskan waktu empat tahun. Jembatan ini menghubungkan kota Qingdao di Provinsi Shandong Cina timur dengan kabupaten Huangdao dan panjangnya 26,4 mil - 174 kali panjang London Tower Bridge diatas sungai Thames.

Struktur 5.5billion £ akhirnya selesai pada hari Senin saat para insinyur menggabungkan 2 bagian menjadi satu berakhir.

Jembatan ini menghubungkan tiga kota pesisir di provinsi Shandong.

Banjir lahar dingin Gunung Merapi di Sungai Putih

2011-01-03T08:08:00.000-08:00

Banjir lahar dingin Gunung Merapi di Sungai Putih di Desa Jumoyo, Kecamatan Salam, Kabupaten Magelang, Jawa Tengah, malam meluap. Akibatnya, jalur utama Magelang-Yogyakarta ditutup total untuk semua jenis kendaraan.

Kkendaraan dari arah Magelang dialihkan melalui Ngluwar, terutama untuk kendaraan roda dua dan kendaraan kecil, sedangkan truk besar terlihat antre di jalur itu dan beberapa di antaranya memilih balik arah. Lahar dingin terlihat meluap di pasar Desa Jumoyo dengan ketinggian lumpur lebih dari 50 sentimeter.

Badan jalan yang terendam lahar dingin sepanjang lebih kurang 300 meter, yakni dari Pasar Jumoyo hingga Sungai Cumprit di sebelah barat Sungai Putih.

Aliran lahar dingin selain membawa material berupa pasir dan batu juga menghanyutkan beberapa batang pohon. Bahkan, beberapa pohon kelapa terlihat terbawa arus air melintas di badan jalan raya.

Anggota SAR Magelang, Burhan, mengatakan, hujan di puncak Merapi mengakibatkan banjir lahar dingin di sejumlah sungai yang berhulu di Merapi, antara lain Sungai Lamat, Sungai Pabelan, Sungai Blongkeng, dan Sungai Putih.

Banjir lahar dingin di Sungai Putih terjadi mulai pukul 18.00. Jembatan Gempol di Desa Jumoyo ditutup untuk arus kendaraan mulai sekitar pukul 18.30 karena aliran lahar dingin mulai meluap.

Sekitar pukul 20.25 masyarakat yang berkerumun menyaksikan banjir lahar di sebelah barat Jembatan Gempol dibubarkan dan kendaraan yang akan melintas diminta balik arah oleh polisi karena banjir yang meluap ke jalan raya bertambah besar.

Kasat Lantas Polres Magelang Ajun Komisaris R Widiyanto mengatakan, jalur tersebut terpaksa ditutup untuk arus kendaraan karena cukup membahayakan.

Jika banjir berhenti, alat berat akan dikerahkan untuk menyingkirkan material yang menutup jalan agar jalur utama Magelang-Yogyakarta segera normal kembali.

Banjir lahar dingin Gunung Merapi

2011-01-03T08:04:00.000-08:00

Banjir lahar dingin Gunung Merapi mulai mengancam Kecamatan Cangkringan, Kabupaten Sleman, Daerah Istimewa Yogyakarta (DIY). Jembatan dibuat roboh, bangunan Polsek menjadi miring, dan batu besar teronggok di tengah jalan.

"Ini akibat banjir lahar dingin. Saat ini masih hujan deras dari jam tiga sore sampai saat ini," ujar dia. Hujan sempat berhenti sejenak sekitar pukul lima sore.

Hujan deras yang mengguyur sudah menggenangi daerah-daerah persawahan di lokasi itu. Selain itu, lokasi-lokasi ternak dan enam rumah sudah terendam banjir lahar dingin.

Tidak hanya itu, menurut dia, ada sebuah batu besar berada di tengah jalan. Batu berukuran manusia itu berada di dekat Markas Polsek Cangkringan

Tukaran Link

2011-01-01T08:14:00.000-08:00

Halaman ini sya buat untuk menempatkan link ke beberapa blog yang juga nge-link ke blog saya ini. Mari kita tukaran link. karena tukaran link merupakan salah satu cara untuk menjalin Silahturahim diantara kita.

Caranya, tempatkan link saya di blog anda, lalu beritahu saya, tuliskan komentar anda di bawah beserta nama blog anda.

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Wudhu Rahasia Gol Gonzales

2010-12-19T07:10:00.000-08:00

Kemenangan Indonesia atas Pilipina dalam pertandingan Semi Final tidak terlepas dari gol Christian 'El Loco' Gonzales. Tahukah sahabat apa yang menjadi Rahasia Gol Gonzales, rahasia gol Gonzales adalah Berwudhu Sebelum Bertanding dan berkah salat tahajud yang dilakukan sehari sebelum pertandingan krusial dengan Pilipina.

Sebelum pertandingan dilakukan Gonzales bersama keluarganya melakukan sholat tahajud, mareka berdoa semoga Gonzales bisa mencetak Gol, hal tersebut disampaikan Eva Siregar, dalam sebuah infoteinment di sebuah TV swasta.

Tidak banyak pendukung timnas Indonesia yang tahu apa kiat sukses Cristian ‘El-Loco’ Gonzales di turnamen AFF Suzuki Cup 2010 ini. Rahasiannya terbilang sederhana dan lumrah dilakukan seorang muslim pada umumnya, sebelum bertanding Gonzales selalu mengambil Air Wudhu. Tidak sekadar untuk mensucikan diri dengan air, Gonzales yang asli Uruguay tidak pernah lupa meminta dukungan dari guru spiritualnya Hj Nur Hasanah, pemangku Majelis Dzikir An Nur Gresik.

Pria 34 tahun pasangan Eduardo Alfaro dan Meriam Gonzales itu memeluk islam. Menurut cerita Nur Hasanah, pemangku Pondok Pesantren An Nur Gresik yang terletak di Jln Wahidin Sudiruhusodo no VIII/1, lima tahun yang lalu Gonzales resmi mengucapkan dua kalimat syahadat di Masjid Agung Al-Akbar Surabaya disaksikan oleh seorang Ustadz bernama Mustaf

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2010-12-17T08:24:00.003-08:00

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