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EdinburghFringeFest.com
The Sell-Out Fringe Award wining Blues Diva Dana Gillespie
returns with Joachim Palden, the fastest boogie-woogie player
in the West. A sell-out at the 2009 Edinburgh Fringe Fest
"What more can one say..
simply the authentic best
Blues duo in the world"
.USA Weekly News .
USA Weekly News 100 Star Award Winner |
Unsolved crimes of missing children we must not forget
Click here for USAWeeklyNews.com Home and Press Page History
http://yahooweeklynews.com/
Click here for more of your favourite history USAWeeklynews.com pages that have now been moved to
www.USAWeekendNews.com
Click here to http://www.usaweeklynews.com/USAWeeklyNewsOct09.php
and read the round up on Hilliary Clinton and Michelle Obama
and see these must see ABC Video Clips
Also watch INLNews.com
http://www.inlnews.com/End_Game_NewWorldOrder.html
to see video of Hillary Clinton attending the last Builderberg Group's Meeting
The INL News Group raises questions as to really is the more powerful person in the White House
. Predident Barrack Obama or Hillaru Clinto whoi appears to have been asked to part of the the trusted inner circle of the Builderberg Group. who make uo the richest and most powerful on planet earth and how combined are richer than any govcenments in the world, and appear to be the ones that all governments including the USA and the UK have borrowed trillions of dollars from.. the average person borrows money from a bank, the banks borrows money from the givernment to stay liquid, then the government has to borrow their money from someone and/or some organisation, who is richer than the governments... there does not seem to be anyone else in the world with enough combined wealth than the Builderberg Group to be able to fund governments like the USA, the UK and the European Union trillions of dollars, other than the Builderberg Group.
..The End Game-ALEX JONES -
Blueprint for world domination by the New World Order Alex Jones says the Builderberg Group plans
to enslave the world with the average person's own money......For the New World Order, a world government is just the beginning. Once in place they can engage their plan to exterminate 80% of the world's population, while enabling the "elites" to live forever with the aid of advanced technology. For the first time, crusading filmmaker ALEX JONES reveals their secret plan for humanity's extermination: Operation ENDGAME.
Jones chronicles the history of the global elite's bloody rise to power and reveals how they have funded dictators and financed the bloodiest wars—creating order out of chaos to pave the way for the first true world empire.
*Watch as Jones and his team track the elusive Bilderberg Group to Ottawa and Istanbul to document their secret summits, allowing *you to witness global kingpins setting the world's agenda and instigating World War III.
*Learn about the formation of the North America transportation control grid, which will end U.S. sovereignty forever.
*Discover how the practitioners of the pseudo-science eugenics have taken control of governments worldwide as a means to carry out depopulation.
*View the progress of the coming collapse of the United States and the formation of the North American Union
Clinton vows help to solve N. Ireland deadlock
AFP Lachlan Carmichael
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton pledged US investment and political support for Northern Ireland Monday, as its leaders battle to resolve a political standoff threatening the peace process.
In a major speech in Belfast, Clinton said Catholics and Protestants have come a long way since the 1998 Good Friday Agreement which her husband helped to broker but warned that they still have some way to travel.
"I pledge that the United States will be behind you all the way as you work for peace and stability that lasts," she said.
Clinton was meeting political and business leaders and made the speech to the Northern Ireland Assembly in a bid to defuse a row which has brought the fragile cross-community administration to a standstill.
The power-sharing executive took office in May 2007 after elections and a landmark accord between conservative pro-British Protestants and Catholic socialist republicans.
But two-and-a-half years later, Northern Ireland's main parties are at loggerheads over the transfer of police and justice powers from London to Belfast as part of the devolution process.
As well as the political tussle, the killings of two soldiers and a policeman earlier this year highlighted the threats posed by paramilitary groups which have not yet renounced violence, Clinton said.
"Now they are watching this assembly for signs of uncertainty or internal disagreement," the US secretary of state told lawmakers in the Stormont Castle seat of the British province's self-rule assembly.
"They want to derail your confidence. And though they are small in number, their thuggish tactics and destructive ambitions threaten the security of every family in Northern Ireland."
But she said: "Moving ahead together with the process will leave them stranded on the wrong side of history."
First Minister Peter Robinson's Protestant Democratic Unionist Party and his deputy Martin McGuinness's Catholic Sinn Fein agree in principle on the transfer of responsibility for policing, but disagree over the timing and details.
Responding to Clinton's speech, Robinson quipped to reporters: "Make any speech in the Northern Ireland Assembly and nobody walks out, it's a bit of a triumph. I think she's accomplished that."
McGuinness, a former Irish Republican Army (IRA) commander, added that the speech was "inspirational" and described Clinton as an "invaluable resource".
The Good Friday Agreement largely ended three decades of violence between Protestants who defend British rule and Republicans who want Northern Ireland to leave the United Kingdom and join the Republic of Ireland to the south. Key steps in the peace process.
At least 3,500 people were killed during the sectarian conflict fought by the IRA and Protestant paramilitary groups, known as the Troubles.
In a sign of progress Sunday, a republican group responsible for dozens of murders during the Troubles, the Irish National Liberation Army (INLA), announced it was laying down its arms.
Clinton was the highest-ranking foreign government official to address the devolved Northern Ireland parliament, according to officials organising the secretary's trip.
Her husband Bill was heavily involved in the Northern Ireland peace process during his 1993-2001 tenure as US president.
After chairing a meeting with Northern Irish and US executives of financial and high-technology firms, Clinton said that despite the global economic downturn, Northern Ireland has attracted one billion dollars of investment because of the political progress made so far.
Economic vitality in turn "sends a signal that there is a path toward peace," she added.
Clinton's whistle-stop tour continued as she moved on from Belfast to Moscow, where she will seek Russia's cooperation in the standoff over Iran's disputed nuclear programme.
     
Hillary Clinton: Taking Swipes at
Vulnerable Ally = Foreign Policy
http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://blog.seanrobins.com/images/hillary_clinton(wellesley).jpg&imgrefurl=http://blog.conservativewilderness.com/2007/12/hillary-clin
By cw on December 28, 2007
In the wake of the assassination of former Pakistan Prime Minister, Benazir Bhutto, formerly-presumptive Democrat Presidential nominee-to-be, Hillary Clinton, has taken one more opportunity to express her style of foreign policy, during this age of deadly international terrorism:
She's attacking one of our most important ally's in the war on terror, just when its at its most vulnerable.
Clinton demands international Bhutto probe
Dec 28 (AFP)
Hillary Clinton Friday called for an independent, international probe into Benazir Bhutto's murder, as turmoil wracking US anti-terror ally Pakistan reshaped debate in the White House race.
The Democratic front-runner weighed into the crisis just six days before first 2008 party nominating contests, as candidates brandished their national security credentials following the ex-Pakistani premier's death.
"I'm calling for a full, independent, international investigation," Clinton said in an interview with CNN.
"I think it's critically important that we get answers and really those are due first and foremost to the people of Pakistan," Clinton said.
Setting aside for the moment the question of just who appointed the likes of Hillary Clinton the arbeiter of what's best for the Pakistani people, her comments at this moment, like those coming from a variety of political opportunists on the left, are particularly dangerous.
"I don't think the Pakistani government at this time under President (Pervez) Musharraf has any credibility at all. They have disbanded an independent judiciary, they oppressed a free press."
Trying to follow Hillary's course of reasoning is an almost herculean task. She has been critical, as have other Dems, of President Bush's alleged (though false) "go-it-alone" policies in foreign policy. So she trashes our most-important ally in the war on terror.
Hillary has joined in the John Kerry-invented critique that the U.S. is not respected around the world because of such alleged policies. So Ms. Clinton puts at risk the very political and democratic existence of on of the few fledgling democracies in the Muslim world.
Is there any doubt about whether Hillary Clinton should be allowed anywhere within a hundred light years of U.S. foreign policy?
   
An Analysis of Essays by Senator Clinton and Senator McCain
http://images.google.co.uk/imgres?imgurl=http://thinkingpolitics.files.wordpress.com/2007/11/hillary-clinton-mccain.jpg&imgrefurl=http://thinkingpolitics.wordpress.com/tag/election-2008/&usg=__l3T79bgGJFJaCUw637CrohQXXlg=&h=380&w=560&sz=53&hl=en&start=37&sig2=iJHSTI0y9HfvYT3xudgzjA
I am currently reading a fascinating book calledThe Political Brain: The Role of Emotion in Deciding The Fate of The Nation by Drew Westen (Summary Available on Related Works Page). Very early in the book Westen writes,
“In politics, when reason and emotion collide, emotion invariably wins. Elections are decided in the marketplace of emotions, a marketplace filled with values, images, analogies, moral sentiments, and moving oratory, in which logic plays only a supporting role.”
Westen provides ample evidence to support his claim, including among others, examples of campaign advertisements and political speeches from past elections. He asserts that Republicans are better vendors in the marketplace of emotions than Democrats, and that is precisely why Republican candidates win most elections despite many polls showing that the average voter agrees with Democratic positions on most policy issues. Through his book, Weston wanted to help those many Democratic voters, and especially the Democratic leaders, in answering their pressing question: “Why the hell can’t we win?!”
Granted I haven’t read the whole book yet, but in my opinion, Westen answered their question very effectively. I (and I assume, he) would have thought that after so many failed elections and so much excellent analysis available, Democratic leaders will now know how to campaign better. But if Westen compared Senator Clinton’s and Senator McCain’s essays published in Foreign Affairs this month, I bet he was shaking his head in disappointment like I was!
Before I engage in any analysis of their essays, I would like to state clearly that I am no saint – I am biased like all other humans! I am a liberal, and in this particular election (although its too early to say) I really do support Hillary Clinton! I would also say here, I am not a fan of the current administration. There, now that that’s off my chest, we can move on…
Hillary Clinton has always struck me as a brilliant woman and a capable leader, who knows her politics – both domestic and foreign. Therefore, her essay inForeign Affairs was no surprise to me! Her essay proved that she is intellectually qualified to be a president, and if she was given a chance, she would think out-of-the-box and lead America in restoring its standing in the world.
Clinton’s goal as a president is beautiful summed up in her essay’s title :Security and Opportunity for the Twenty-First Century. Clinton’s grand narrative, if you will, rests on those two simple words – Security, Opportunity. The task of achieving these two things, she says, rests on diplomacy. Throughout the essay she provides tangible ideas to bring a change in American foreign politics.
On Iraq, She Says: “As president, I will convene the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Secretary of Defense, and the National Security Council and direct them to draw up a clear, viable plan to bring our troops home, starting within the first 60 days of my administration.” She will do this by reallocating the financial aid given to Iraq; engaging in intensive diplomatic initiative that may devise appropriate incentives for Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey to stay out of a civil war; working with UN High Commissioner for Refugees to address the Iraqi Refugee problem; and countering terrorism by using specialized units to engage in targeted operations against al Qaeda and other terrorist organizations. She also presents various incentives to help the returning “brave soldiers,” such as modernizing GI Bill of Rights.
On Afghanistan, She Says: “The forgotten frontline in the war on terror is Afghanistan, where our military effort must be reinforced. The Taliban cannot be allowed to regain power [...] We must seek to dry up recruiting opportunities for the Taliban by funding crop-substitution programs, a large scale road-building initiative, institutions that train and prepare Afghans for honest and effective governance, and programs to enable women to play a larger role in society.”
On Energy Issue, She Says: “We must create formal links between the International Energy Agency and China and India and create an “E-8? international forum modeled on the ‘G-8' “
On Diplomacy, She Says: “Leadership requires a blend of strategy, persuasion, inspiration and motivation. [...] Avoid false choices driven by ideology: force versus diplomacy, unilateralism versus multilateralism, hard power versus soft. There is a time for force and a time for diplomacy; when properly deployed, the two can reinforce each other. [...] Use our military not as the solution to every problem but as one element in a comprehensive strategy.[...] Make international institutions work, and work through them when possible.”
Whether you agree with Clinton’s ideas or not, there is no debate that her essay was content-driven, and actually presented her ideas in a intellectual fashion. If we lived in a “Marketplace of Ideas,” and Clinton and McCain were the only two vendors, Clinton would be the richer one hands down! Unfortunately for Clinton, and fortunately for McCain, we live in a “Marketplace of Emotions” and there, McCain knows better the art of selling!
McCain’s essay was a cluster of narratives very close to the American heart. Every opportunity he got, he evoked the web of emotions (or networks, as Westen calls them) related to American political culture.
He began his essay with “Since the dawn of our republic,” making it seem like the reader is a not reading a political essay by a presidential candidate rather an inspirational story about a great nation called America. He quickly follows it up with: “We are, as Alexander Hamilton said, “a people of great destinies.”" This isn’t the only time McCain evokes the memory of the fond leaders of the past. Through out his essay, he quotes – President Truman, President Roosevelt, President Kennedy, President Reagan, President George H.W.Bush, James Madison, Thomas Jefferson. This list of leaders is complemented by his inclusion of landmark documents such as the Declaration of Independence.
It could be argued that McCain is addressing these past leaders and doctrines with genuine affection and respect for them, and not, as cynics like Westen and I might argue, as political tools in selling his candidacy. By no means am I saying that McCain doesn’t genuinely believe in the historical ideals of America. But quoting the past presidents and our country’s founders doesn’t prove that he believes in them anymore than Hillary Clinton. Before you dispose my view as a cynic’s opinion, let me prove to you that McCain is very conscious of the emotions he is trying to elicit from his readers and the effect his selection of words will have on them…
One of the few tangible ideas that McCain presents is a creation of a League of Democracies: a common organization linking democratic nations in addressing various transnational issues. Now if Westen’s theory of networks of neurons (”nerve cells that work together to generate our experience of the world”) is assumed to be true, the name ‘League of Democracies’ will immediately tap into our memory of the ‘League of Nations,’ which will then most likely remind any person with the basic knowledge of American history of ‘failure’, ‘doomed effort’,'weakness’. Anything paralleled to League of Nations will activate our association to a “diplomatic mishap.” If McCain was ignorant of the power of associations, he would not be concerned with the similarities in the names of the two organizations. But McCain, very smartly, writes: “This would be unlike Woodrow Wilson’s doomed plan for the universal-membership League of Nations. Instead, it would be similar to what Theodore Roosevelt envisioned: like minded nations working together for peace and liberty.” McCain’s immediate move to disassociate his League of Democracies from the League of Nations, proves my point: he is not only aware of the power of associations, He is using it to his advantage!
Also to his advantage, McCain openly embraces Ideology. He write: “As president, I will employ every economic, diplomatic, political, legal, and ideological tool at our disposal [...].” As opposed to McCain’s stance, Clinton writes: “We must return to a pragmatic willingness to look at the facts on the ground and make decisions based on evidence rather than ideology. [...] Avoid false choices driven by ideology.” Clinton is appealing to the readers’ rational mind, and McCain to their emotional one.
And as Westen already declared: “In politics, when reason and emotion collide, (*DRUM ROLL*) emotion invariably wins!”
To those of you who read my earlier blog, I want to say, “I know what you are thinking!” According to the latest Gallup Poll, Hillary Clinton is leading with 32% of the registered voters saying they will definitely vote for her. John McCain lags behind with only 11% of the voters. You are wondering: If John McCain is really a better vendor in the marketplace of emotions, how then is Hillary Clinton leading by not 1%, not 2% but 21%?!
I do have a couple of answers.
First, Clinton’s essay is not totally devoid of narratives of American values and ideals, just like McCain’s essay is not totally devoid of content! It is true that McCain evokes emotional narratives more than Clinton, but whenever Clinton does tap into those emotional networks, she too wins brownie points!
Second, Hillary may also garner votes from those who see her as a return to the emotionally-dear Clinton Era. After all, Bush’s approval rating according to the October Gallup Poll is at its lowest at 32%. If you want to get farther away from Bush, where better to go than Hillary?! While it is possible that voters might make this decision based on policy analysis, it is more likely that its their “gut” feeling that’s leading them towards Hillary. Afterall, even the name “Clinton” carries with it a certain charisma and fond memories of times-gone-by, of an era before terrorism was such a blatant reality, of a period when the world seemed a little simpler!
Third, policies do matter! I don’t intend to say (and neither does Westen) that policies hold no importance. But how you sell them is equally important for it decides how many people you will win over! Many people believe that what went wrong in Iraq is inadequate planing. In contrast to the current administration, Hillary Clinton is offering tangible plans to map out the course her presidency would take! It must be a relief to many Americans that someone is thinking ahead – not just when it comes to Iraq, but various other issues.
So what does Hillary have to do to win? Keep doing what she is doing, but do it better! She is right on the money in terms of her policies and plans.Now she really has to sell them! Pour her heart out to the American People! Appeal to their emotions, their values, their moral sentiments! Dress reason in the pretty and colorful clothes of emotions!
Only then will she be the last woman standing in the combined Marketplace of Emotions and Ideas!
Categories: Election 2008
Tagged: America, American, Bush, Democrat, Drew Westen, Election 2008,Emotions, Energy, Foreign Affairs, Gallup, Hillary Clinton, Ideals, Ideas,Ideology, John McCain, Marketplace, Opportunity, Policies, Policy, Political Brain, President, Republican, Security, Senator, Voters
     
    
    
    
    
   
    
     
    
Hillary Clinton Won't Run for President Again
The Secretary of State minces no words: 'I'm looking forward to retirement'Source: People.com Tuesday, Oct 13, 2009
Usually, politicians with presidential ambitions choose their words more carefully, but Secretary of State Hillary
Clinton has left herself no wiggle room.
Asked on the US Today show whether she will ever run for president again, the former First Lady and US senator, who fiercely battled Barack Obama for the 2008 Democratic nomination, laughed heartily and replied: "No. No. No. I mean, this is a great job. It is a 24-7 job. And I'm looking forward to retirement at some point."
She also addressed pundits who say the Executive Branch's highest-ranking woman has been marginalized in the debate over two big national security threats: Afghanistan and Iran.
"I find it absurd," Clinton told NBC's Ann Curry in the interview from Zurich, Switzerland, adding that maybe it is a "woman thing."
"You know, I'm not one of these people who feels like I have to have my face in the front of the newspaper or on the TV every moment of the day," Clinton said. "I would be irresponsible and negligent were I to say, 'Oh no everything must come to me.' "
"Maybe that is a woman's thing," she continued. "My goal is to be a very positive force to implement the kind of changes that the president and I believe are in the best interests of our country. But that doesn't mean that it all has to be me, me, me all the time."
By Sandra Sobieraj Westfall
More than half of cot deaths happen when a baby is sleeping with a parent, a study has revealed. More
Half Of Cot Deaths When Baby With Parent
More than half of cot deaths happen when a baby is sleeping with a parent, a study has revealed. Researchers said this could be linked to the baby's parent having been drinking or taking drugs. Despite a dramatic drop in the rate of cot death in the UK since the early 1990s, experts are advising parents to avoid dangerous co-sleeping arrangements. The study was led by a team of researchers at Bristol and Warwick universities. They studied all unexpected infant deaths - aged from birth to two years old - in the south west of England from January 2003 to December 2006. The parents were interviewed shortly after the death and information was collected on alcohol and drug use. A detailed investigation of the scene and circumstances of death was also conducted by trained professionals. Of the 80 cot deaths analysed, more than half (54%) occurred while co-sleeping compared to one-fifth (20%) co-sleeping rate among both control groups. Much of this risk may be explained by the combination of parental alcohol or drug use prior to co-sleeping (31% compared with 3% random controls), and the high proportion of co-sleeping deaths on a sofa (17% compared with 1% random controls), say the authors. A fifth of cot death infants were found with a pillow and a quarter were swaddled, suggesting potentially new risk factors emerging.
Lead author Professor Peter Fleming, Professor of Infant Health and Development Physiology at Bristol University, said: "It is really important that parents should not fall asleep with their baby on a sofa as it is very, very dangerous."
Brighton bomber 'sorry' for killing
Press Association
Brighton bomber Patrick Magee remained defiant over his former IRA membership as he visited the House of Commons for the first time.
But the former terrorist told Jo Berry, the daughter of MP Sir Anthony Berry, who was killed in the bombing of the Grand Hotel in 1984, he was sorry for having killed her father.
Magee also said he regretted the loss of life and injuries caused by the Brighton bomb and declared recent sectarian violence in Northern Ireland was not justified because a political dialogue had been opened.
Magee was speaking at a meeting organised by the All Party Parliamentary Group on Conflict Issues and reconciliation scheme The Forgiveness Project. The meeting came a day after the 25th anniversary of the bombing of the Conservative Party conference.
Magee said he had no other choice than to join the IRA as a young man and saw it as defending the area in which he lived. The 58-year-old said: "If I could have put myself back all those years ago and there were other options available, I would have jumped at them because nobody wants to carry that burden."
He went on: "When you close off options for people to pursue their aims openly through politics or agitation, violence can come on to the agenda. I was not a violent person.... yet I am responsible for violence."
Magee was sentenced to eight life sentences in 1986 for the atrocity, but freed in 1999 under the Good Friday Agreement.
When challenged about whether he was repentant, he said: "I don't understand repentance. I think it has a religious meaning. But I can regret. Meeting Jo and becoming involved with the Forgiveness Project was never about wanting forgiveness, it was always about trying to explain, trying to understand the hurt you have caused."
Magee added: "I made a contribution, why would I ask forgiveness for that? And yet I can feel regret... that's the best I can do."
Ms Berry said she felt "the pain of war" when her father was killed but decided to focus on efforts for peace. Ms Berry, who has been meeting her father's killer for the past nine years, opened the meeting by saying: "Coming back here is very emotional. I feel I've come back home. This was where I came with my beloved Dad when I was little."
Magee defiant over Brighton bombing
Press Association
Brighton bomber Patrick Magee remained defiant as he visited the House of Commons for the first time.
The former IRA terrorist spoke alongside Jo Berry, the daughter of MP Sir Anthony Berry, who was killed in the bombing of the Grand Hotel in 1984.
He said of becoming a terrorist: "On my conscience I look back to those days and I don't think I would have made another choice."
Magee was speaking at a meeting organised by the All Party Parliamentary Group on Conflict Issues and reconciliation scheme The Forgiveness Project. The meeting came a day after the 25th anniversary of the bombing of the Conservative Party conference.
Magee said he had no other choice than to join the IRA as a young man and saw it as defending the area in which he lived. The 58-year-old said: "If I could have put myself back all those years ago and there were other options available, I would have jumped at them because nobody wants to carry that burden."
He went on: "When you close off options for people to pursue their aims openly through politics or agitation, violence can come on to the agenda. I was not a violent person.... yet I am responsible for violence."
Magee was sentenced to eight life sentences in 1986 for the atrocity, but freed in 1999 under the Good Friday Agreement.
When challenged about whether he was repentant, he said: "I don't understand repentance. I think it has a religious meaning. But I can regret. Meeting Jo and becoming involved with the Forgiveness Project was never about wanting forgiveness, it was always about trying to explain, trying to understand the hurt you have caused."
Magee added: "I made a contribution, why would I ask forgiveness for that? And yet I can feel regret... that's the best I can do."
Ms Berry said she felt "the pain of war" when her father was killed but decided to focus on efforts for peace. Ms Berry, who has been meeting her father's killer for the past nine years, opened the meeting by saying: "Coming back here is very emotional. I feel I've come back home. This was where I came with my beloved Dad when I was little."
Actor Orlando Bloom attends a meeting with city officials in Sarajevo August 12, 2008. Bloom said on Tuesday he was stepping aside from the big productions that made him a star to work in a film about life in the Bosnian capital Sarajevo during the 1992-95 siege.
Actor Orlando Bloom attends a meeting with city officials in Sarajevo
Orlando Bloom named goodwill ambassador for kids: Reuters
Actor Orlando Bloom, star of the "Pirates of the Caribbean" and "Lord of the Rings" movies, was named a goodwill ambassador for the United Nations children's organisation UNICEF on Monday.
The 32-year-old actor has supported the work of UNICEF since 2007, visiting projects in Nepal, Russia and Sarajevo that bring clean water, education and shelters to children.
He also took part in a local school radio production put on by children in one of the poorest regions of Nepal. Bloom, regarded as one of the hottest male celebrities in the world, will follow in the footsteps of Audrey Hepburn, soccer playerDavid Beckham, Colombian singer Shakira and actress Mia Farrow. He said he wanted to be an active ambassador for UNICEF, which works to help children in more than 150 countries. "I look forward to working with UNICEF as they continue to make the world a better place for children," Bloom said in a statement. UNICEF executive director, Ann M. Veneman said that the work of goodwill ambassadors "helps build momentum to improve the lives of children around the world."
"We are proud to have Orlando Bloom as one of the strong voices for vulnerable children," Veneman said. Bloom's first job will be to record a public service announcement for UNICEF on the importance of access to clean drinking water. His latest movie, the romantic anthology "New York, I Love You" opens in the United States on Friday.
(Reporting by Jill Serjeant, editing by Dan Whitcomb
12th October 2009
Tube workers to hold strike ballot over pay: Reuters
London Underground workers are to vote on whether to strike in a long-running dispute over pay, their union said on Monday.
Bob Crow, head of the Rail, Maritime andTransport (RMT) Union, said his members deserved a bigger pay rise to reflect "the real costs of living and working in an expensive city like London." The union has rejected the current offer of a pay rise of 1.5 percent this year followed by an inflation plus 0.5 percent increase from next April. "We have no option but to put the issue back out to our members and to begin the process of balloting for further action across London Underground," Crow said in a statement. No timetable for the vote and possible action has been announced. The demand for a pay rise goes against Prime Minister Gordon Brown's repeated calls for restraint in public sector wage deals to help rebalance the public finances. The public deficit is forecast to reach 175 billion pounds this year, more than 12 percent of gross domestic product. Conservative Shadow Chancellor George Osborne said last week he would seek a one-year public sector pay freeze from 2011 if the Tories win the next election. London Underground (LU) said its pay offer was a "very fair and final" one in tough economic times. "Londoners will find another RMT leadership strike threat hard to take, especially when we are offering a two-year above inflation pay offer," said LU's Managing Director Richard Parry. "Another strike will achieve nothing except lose staff more pay and cause unnecessary frustration and disruption to Londoners." A two-day strike by RMT members in June caused widespread disruption on the Tube network, which carries more than 3 million passengers each day.
(Reporting by Peter Griffiths; Editing by Steve Addison)
12th October 2009
Brown to repay £12,400 in expenses
Prime Minister Gordon Brown has agreed to repay more than £12,000 in expenses after an inquiry found he made excessive claims for cleaning, gardening and decoration at his second home.Skip related content
Mr Brown wrote to all Government ministers urging them to follow his lead and repay in full any sums demanded by former Whitehall mandarin Sir Thomas Legg, who is carrying out an audit of all MPs' claims over the past five years. Liberal Democrat leader Nick Clegg paid back £910 in gardening expenses, while Tory leader David Cameron is to supply Sir Thomas with documentation relating to a £218 overclaim for mortgage payments which he has already returned. It has emerged that Sir Thomas - who wrote to all MPs and ex-MPs with his provisional findings - is treating any claim over £2,000 a year for cleaning and £1,000 for gardening as excessive and demanding any sums above that level should be returned. This is likely to spark anger among MPs, many of whom argue that there was no such limit in place at the time their claims were submitted and approved. Meanwhile, former Home Secretary Jacqui Smith was forced to apologise to the House of Commons after a separate inquiry found that she wrongly claimed second home allowances on her family house in her Redditch constituency.And a new inquiry was launched by the House of Lords into allegations that Labour peer Lord Paul claimed £38,000 in overnight subsistence allowances after designating a flat he had never slept in as his main home. The probe was requested by Lord Paul after media reports at the weekend and he will step down from his duties as a deputy speaker in the Lords pending the investigation. In a statement released by his office this afternoon, Mr Brown confirmed he would be repaying the full sum of £12,415.10 demanded by Sir Thomas. This figure comprised £10,716.60 in relation to cleaning and £302.50 for gardening in the period 2004/05 to 2008/09, as well as a £1,396 bill for painting and decorating that was inadvertently submitted twice in 2006. The double payment of the decoration bill had not been revealed until it was uncovered by Sir Thomas's probe. Mr Brown's adviser on ministerial interests, Sir Philip Mawer, confirmed that the concerns raised by Sir Thomas did not amount to a breach of the ministerial code. MPs have three weeks to respond to issues raised by Sir Thomas. In a letter to all ministers, Mr Brown urged them "to respond promptly and in full to any requests for further information and when the process is completed to make appropriate repayments".
When managers go mental
Eurosport - Mon, 12 Oct 15:58:00 2009
Following Diego Maradona's iconic slide across the turf after Argentina's late winner against Peru, we take a look back at some other eccentric celebrations from managers.
1. 1996 Graeme Souness
As a veteran of many an Old Firm and Merseyside derby, you'd think Souness would appreciate the rather delicate nature of a major city derby. Especially when it is the Istanbul derby. And it is also a cup final. But so it was that, after his Galatasaray side had won their home leg 1-0, Dean Saunders's equaliser earned them a 1-1 draw at Fenerbahce's Sukru Saracoglu stadium and cup victory. Souey in his infinite wisdom decided that rather than sheepishly raising the trophy and getting the hell out of dodge, the best way to celebrate would be to march out on to the pitch and place a huge Galatasaray flag in the centre circle. However, despite the folk hero status he instantly earned for possibly the bravest act in football, a fourth-place league finish saw Souness's Turkish tenure end after just one season.
2. 2006 Alan Pardew
When Marlon Harewood fired past Jens Lehmann in the 89th minute to grab a shock 1-0 win over the Gunners, you could forgive Alan Pardew for getting rather excited. The West Ham boss was jumping around manically and fist-pumping more than most of the Upton Park crowd, out of sheer relief that his team were on the verge of only their third win all season. Arsene Wenger made his displeasure at such an excessive celebration plain, and when Pardew came across to respond a few shoves and some unkind words ensued before they were separated by the fourth official. Wenger was so incensed that he refused to shake hands at the final whistle. However, the result didn't arrest the Hammers' woes, and a month later Pardew was out of a job.
3. 2004 Jose Mourinho
After scoring a vital away goal at Porto, Manchester United looked to be going through to the Champions League quarter-finals on away goals courtesy of Paul Scholes's first-half strike at Old Trafford. That was until Costinha scored in the 90th minute to send Porto through. Porto boss Jose Mourinho (pictured) made himself known to the wider world by sprinting down the touchline to celebrate with his players at the corner flag, and ended up running all the way to Stamford Bridge that summer.
4. 2008 Slaven Bilic
The Croatia manager's joy at reaching Euro 2008 at the expense of England may have been more painful. However, his unrestrained delight when Ivan Klasnic scored against Turkey in the dying moments of extra time in the quarter-finals of the tournament itself was even wilder. Klasnic's goal on 118 minutes sent Bilic haring towards the huddled mass of his team before he repeatedly tried to leap on top of them all, Rio Ferdinand-style. His expression was not quite so delirious when Turkey equalised in stoppage time and won the subsequent penalty shootout though.
5. 1983 David Pleat
He's become the pundit people love to hate, but fans of a certain age will never forget the sight of a beige-suited Pleat running across the turf at Maine Road. Luton Town needed a win on the final day of the 1982-83 season to stay in the First Division, and they got it thanks to a late strike from Radomir Antic that ensured their survival and sent City down. At the final whistle Pleat skipped and leapt across the pitch, hands held up to the heavens like an evangelical priest as he ran to congratulate his players, and sparked a joyous pitch invasion from the visiting fans.
Eurosport
Lung transplant was cancerous Press Association 12th October 2009
A British soldier died after he was given a pair of cancerous lungs in a transplantCpl Matthew Millington, 31, had the transplant after he fell seriously ill.
But less than a year later the soldier, from Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, died after it transpired he had been given cancerous lungs from a donor who had smoked. An inquest last week heard he died of complications of transplant surgery and immuno-suppressive drug treatment, it has been reported. Cpl Millington, who served in the Queen's Royal Lancers, was serving in Iraq in 2005 when he was diagnosed with an incurable condition and told he would die unless he had a transplant. He received a double lung transplant in April 2007 at the Papworth Hospital - the UK's largest specialist cardiothoracic hospital. But doctors discovered a tumour in the new lungs and despite radiotherapy, Cpl Millington died in February last year, just 10 months after the supposedly life-saving operation. A spokeswoman for Papworth Hospital said it was an extremely rare case. She said: "Papworth Hospital has a very strong track record of high quality outcomes and this is an extremely rare case. Patients who are accepted on to the transplant waiting list have no other option open to them however we must stress that all donor organs are screened rigorously prior to transplantation. "Using lungs from donors who have smoked in the past is not unusual. During 2008/09 146 lung transplants were carried out in the UK. During the same period 84 people died on the waiting list. If we had a policy that said we did not use the lungs of those who had smoked, then the number of lung transplants carried out would have been significantly lower." Mr Millington's family told the Stoke Sentinel they had nothing against the hospital. Father Lester told the paper: "We have absolutely nothing against them at all. It is a brilliant place and they are so friendly."
Lung transplant was cancerous Press Association 12th October 2009
A British soldier died after he was given a pair of cancerous lungs in a transplant
Cpl Matthew Millington, 31, had the transplant after he fell seriously ill.
But less than a year later the soldier, from Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, died after it transpired he had been given cancerous lungs from a donor who had smoked. An inquest last week heard he died of complications of transplant surgery and immuno-suppressive drug treatment, it has been reported. Cpl Millington, who served in the Queen's Royal Lancers, was serving in Iraq in 2005 when he was diagnosed with an incurable condition and told he would die unless he had a transplant. He received a double lung transplant in April 2007 at the Papworth Hospital - the UK's largest specialist cardiothoracic hospital. But doctors discovered a tumour in the new lungs and despite radiotherapy, Cpl Millington died in February last year, just 10 months after the supposedly life-saving operation. A spokeswoman for Papworth Hospital said it was an extremely rare case. She said: "Papworth Hospital has a very strong track record of high quality outcomes and this is an extremely rare case. Patients who are accepted on to the transplant waiting list have no other option open to them however we must stress that all donor organs are screened rigorously prior to transplantation. "Using lungs from donors who have smoked in the past is not unusual. During 2008/09 146 lung transplants were carried out in the UK. During the same period 84 people died on the waiting list. If we had a policy that said we did not use the lungs of those who had smoked, then the number of lung transplants carried out would have been significantly lower." Mr Millington's family told the Stoke Sentinel they had nothing against the hospital. Father Lester told the paper: "We have absolutely nothing against them at all. It is a brilliant place and they are so friendly."
Train drags German mooner half naked along tracks
Reuters
A German man mooning at railway staff in a departing train got his trousers caught in a carriage door and ended up being dragged half naked along the platform, out of the station and onto the tracks.Skip related content
The 22-year-old journalism student shoved his backside against the window of a low-slung double-decker train when staff forced him off in Lauenbrueck for travelling without a ticket, a spokesman for police in the northern city of Bremen said.
"It's a miracle he wasn't badly hurt," the spokesman said on Monday. "This sort of thing can end up killing you." Instead, dangling by his trousers, the man got pulled along for about 200 metres, all the while managing to keep his legs away from the wheels of the train. The ordeal ended when a passenger pulled the emergency brake. Rescues services were called in, causing rail services between Bremen and Hamburg to be suspended for over an hour, delaying 23 trains. The man -- unharmed except for cuts and bruises -- now faces charges of dangerous interference in rail transport, insulting the train staff, and may face sizeable a compensation claim for the delays he caused, police said. "He was full of remorse when I talked to him," the spokesman said. "And he advised others not to try the same thing."
(Reporting by Dave Graham; Editing by Louise Ireland)
Pupil lost fingers in art accident Press Association
A school has been ordered to pay £19,000 after a 16-year-old girl lost most of her fingers when she put her hands in a bucket of plaster of Paris during a school art lesson
The teenager was attempting to make a sculpture of her own hands during a lesson in January 2007 when the horrific accident happened, Boston Magistrates' Court in Lincolnshire was told.
The plaster set around her hands and neither staff nor paramedics could get it off during the lesson at Giles School, in Boston.
The court was told that temperatures up to 60C can be generated in large quantities of plaster and the girl, who was referred to in court only as student X, suffered terrible burns.
Plastic surgeons did what they could to help her but after a series of 12 operations she was left with no fingers on one hand and just two on the other.
The foundation school's governing body admitted breaching health and safety regulations and also failing to report the incident to the Health and Safety Executive (HSE).
The court was told the HSE was never informed by the school about what happened. It only found out six weeks after the incident from the girl's plastic surgeon.
The school was fined a total of £16,500 and ordered to pay £2,500 in costs.
http://uk.news.yahoo.com/5/20091012/tuk-payout-after-pupil-has-fingers-burne-45dbed5.html
Skip related content
Payout After Pupil Has Fingers Burned Off
SkyNews
A school has been ordered to pay £19,000 after a pupil had most of her fingers burned off in an horrific classroom incident.
Payout After Pupil Has Fingers Burned Off
SkyNews
A school has been ordered to pay £19,000 after a pupil had most of her fingers burned off in an horrific classroom incident.
The 16-year-old girl lost all but two fingers after her hands became fixed in a bucket of plaster of Paris during an art lesson in January 2007.
She had not received proper warning while attempting to make a sculpture of her own hands during the lesson at Giles School in Boston.
Neither classmates, staff, nor paramedics could remove her hands as they began to cook from inside the mould at temperatures of up to 60C.
The unnamed girl's solicitor, Stephen Hill, told Boston Magistrates' Court in Lincolnshire it was as if his client's fingers were in a microwave oven.
She was eventually freed after medics at Nottingham City Hospital used power tools to break through the plaster.
Plastic surgeons did what they could to help her but after a series of 12 operations she was left with no fingers on one hand and just two on the other.
Jo Anderson, prosecuting for the Health and Safety Executive, said: "I do not believe this was a terrible accident.
"It could and should have been avoided if the governing body had monitored health and safety."
The foundation school's governing body admitted breaching health and safety regulations and also failing to report the incident to the HSE.
The court heard it took six weeks for the officials to learn of the shocking incident via the girl's plastic surgeon.
Mr Hill described his client, who hopes to go to university after gaining three A-levels upon her return to the school, as a "remarkable young woman".
The solicitor said: "She is doing remarkably well considering the devastating injuries she did suffer. But she is a very stoical.
"She is a very determined, self sufficient character but she is now only left with one forefinger and an index finger."
The school was fined a total of £16,500 and ordered to pay £2,500 in costs.
The governors of Giles School have 14 days to pay
Airport X-ray 'undresses' passengers ITN
A human X-ray machine which produces "naked" images of passengers has been introduced at Manchester airport.
It enables staff to instantly spot any hidden weapons or explosives. The full body scanner which is being trialled will also show up any breast enlargements, false limbs, piercings, and a clear outline of passengers' private parts. Bosses admit some travellers might not want to be scanned because of the graphic nature of the images. They can refuse to undergo the virtual strip search at Terminal 2, opting for the traditional "pat down" search instead. The black and white image will only be seen by one officer in a remote location before it is deleted. The scanner, made by the firm RapiScan Systems, makes the check-in process much quicker for passengers, who will not have to remove their coats, shoes or belts.
Postal union offers deal to avert strike: Reuters
Union leaders representing workers at Royal Mail offered management a last-ditch deal to avert a national strike that would cripple deliveries across the country, they said on Tuesday.Skip related content
The Communication Workers Union (CWU) said it had written to Royal Mail Managing Director Mark Higson asking him to meet a number of key conditions or it would press ahead with strikes.
In the letter, union bosses presented Higson with demands that included revealing his business plan for the whole of the planned transformation process, rewarding workers for the firm's future success, a commitment to openly discuss staffing levels and pay and an agreement to initiate an inquiry into bullying and harassment of workers.
Royal Mail said the strike threat was "a blatant and deplorable attack on customers and on the future of the UK postal service."
"Today the CWU has written to us with a "peace offer' which is in reality a series of fresh demands against Royal Mail," Higson said in a statement.
Workers voted overwhelmingly last week for a nationwide strike, escalating a dispute which has already caused widespread disruption to postal services.
A national strike could cost the British economy 1.5 billion pounds and deal a blow to online retailers, according to analysis commissioned by shopping comparison website Kelkoo.
A CWU spokeswoman said if the latest negotiation failed, national strike dates will be announced on Thursday October 15.
The government said the planned nationwide strike "defies logic" and would not resolve differences.
"It would be a suicidal act -- turning more hard pressed consumers and businesses away from using mail," said Business Secretary Peter Mandelson.
David Frost, director general of the British Chambers of Commerce, said the threat of a strike was a serious knock to business confidence.
"The run-up to Christmas is a vital trading period for firms and if this strike goes ahead orders will be lost and the fragile recovery will be undermined," he said.
(Additional reporting by Michael Holden; Editing by David Cowell)
 Lily Allen Wins Libel Damages Over "Rant" That Never Was
Tuesday 13th October, 2009 POPSUGARUK
Lily Allen has won "substantial" damages over an article that was printed in The Sun headed "Ranting Lily", that alleged she made offensive remarks about Cheryl Cole and David and Victoria Beckham.
Lily wasn't present at London's High Court for the settlement, but her solicitor said that the article suggested she had made offensive remarks about her fellow celebs in an interview which she supposedly gave to So Foot — a French football magazine — but he said the newspaper has accepted that Lily was never interviewed for the magazine and did not say any of the things that were attributed to her.
The newspaper's solicitor, Mike Patrick,offered apologies on behalf of the paper for the upset and embarrassment caused.
Lily Wins Payout Over Newspaper False Claim : Sky News
Singer Lily Allen has accepted substantial undisclosed libel damages over a claim she made offensive remarks about David and Victoria Beckham, and Ashley and Cheryl Cole.
The 24-year-old singer was not at London's High Court for the settlement of her action over a May 2009 article in The Sun, headed "Ranting Lily". Her solicitor told the court the article suggested she had made various offensive remarks about the two couples in an interview she had supposedly given to a French football magazine called So Foot. But Allen had never been interviewed by or on behalf of So Foot and "she did not make these statements attributed to her by So Foot magazine". News Group Newspapers have agreed to withdraw the allegations, apologise, and pay Allen damages and legal costs. The newspaper's solicitor, Mike Patrick, offered "sincere apologies" for the upset and embarrassment caused.
Track slammed for hosting 'Midget Cup'
Eurosport - Tue, 13 Oct, 2009
Australian horse racing officials have been slammed for holding a dwarf racing competition called the 'Midget Cup' at a meeting in Melbourne to promote Victoria state's annual carnival.
The race at the Cranbourne Cup on Sunday involved three men charging down a 50-metres course with dwarfs dressed in jockey silks riding piggyback, and has been denounced by government officials and advocacy groups.
"Well look, there's often a fine line between a bit of fun and a silly stunt and I think this falls into the latter category," Victorian racing minister Rob Hulls told state radio.
"I mean the Midget's Cup for goodness sake. It's certainly no way of promoting this great Spring Carnival right around the world, right around Australia and right throughout Victoria."
The controversy comes days after an Australian talent show came under fire for airing a comedy troupe skit involving dancers wearing afro wigs and black-painted faces to impersonate late pop star Michael Jackson and the Jackson 5.
Stuart Laing, a marketing manager at Racing Victoria, said the dwarf race was intended to be "harmless fun", but apologised and said it would not be repeated.
"We understand that you can't please everyone and if anyone's offended by the events of Sunday then we apologise to them," he said.
Reuters
Drawings help detect lies - study: Press Association
Lies told by criminals could be detected by asking them to draw a picture of what they saw in a new technique being developed by scientists, researchers have said
Forensic psychologists at the University of Portsmouth have found that lying is more obvious in a drawing than in a spoken description. Lead researcher Professor Aldert Vrij said: "A drawing creates several unique problems for liars, not least because a request to sketch a drawing comes as a surprise. This means the liar is unprepared and must do it without planning, and research indicates that people lie better when they have had time to plan their deception." The researchers developed a test to establish how capable people are at lying when drawing. They sent 31 volunteers on a pretend cloak-and-dagger mission in which they had to collect a laptop from a "secret agent" and deliver it to a second agent. They were then asked to visualise how and where they had received the laptop, describe the scenario and to make a detailed drawing of the location. Half of the volunteers were instructed to lie about where the exchange took place and half were told to tell the truth. Results showed that only 13% of the liars included in their drawing a sketch of the person from whom they received the package, compared with 80% of those telling the truth. Prof Vrij said: "Staying close to the truth is often considered to be a good strategy for liars and almost all the liars in our experiment chose to describe and sketch a location they knew. However, because it was not the location where they met the agent, when they pictured the location in their mind the agent would be absent from this visualisation.
"The truth-tellers, however, were more likely to picture the agent in their mind when they visualised the location and include him in the picture."
Co-researcher Dr Samantha Mann said: "We need to undertake further research but the experiment demonstrates that there is definite potential for taking drawing seriously as a useful lie detection tool." She explained that drawings were unlikely to replace verbal statements but could be used as an additional aid and suggested that the technique could be used with subjects who were not fluent in the language of the interviewer.
http://uk.movies.yahoo.com/blog/article/7446/summer-of-film-flops.html
Movies Blog
Summer of film flops
Tue Oct 13 2009 by Movies Editor
Studio heads have carried the can after a series of flops from some of their biggest talents – with several personnel changes being made higher up in studios like Universal and Disney. Some of the bigger studio flops include:
ave a family comedy starring Eddie Murphy and costing over £31.6 million to produce you'd expect it make more than £11 million worldwide right?
' Surrogates'
Disney's sci-fi action thriller starring Bruce Willis and his wig was a costly flop for Disney, taking only £25 million of its £50.6 million cost.
' Year One'
It may have melded an established comic actor ( Jack Black) with a rising one ( Michael Cera) and was overseen by the hands of veteran funnyman Harold Ramis, but fell short of earning back its £38 million production costs.
Coupled with other films like Jennifer Aniston's ' Love Happens' and John Travolta and Denzel Washington's ' The Taking of Pelham 1,2,3' that made their money back but far less than expected with the talent involved, means that most studios have had a headache inducing summer.
Films a few years back could have a enjoyed a second lease of life through the DVD market, but with sales down nearly 14% this year, with the previous year suffering a nine per cent drop itself, it doesn't look as though the studios will make up the lost revenue any time soon.
The good news comes in the shape of films like ' The Hangover' and ' Zombieland'. Both are chart smashes, yet cost significantly less to make without huge Hollywood names in the cast.
Recent articles
The future in movies seem to be interesting low budget films with unknown actors and actresses that are good for their story line, content and acting, not just for the multi million special effects such as the Fringe Shows Have Talent Films the the INLNews.com, USAWeeklyNews.com, USaWeekendNews.com and EdinburghFringefest.com have been sponsoring for the last five years filming live Fringe Theatre, Music, Comedy Dance etc at the Fringe Festivals around the world such as the Edinburgh Fringe Fest, The Dublin Fringe Fest and the MALI Womens Performing Arts Fest held in in Austin Texas, USA
Boyzone Star Gately Died Of Natural Causes
A post-mortem into the death of Boyzone star Stephen Gately has found the singer died of natural causes.
A court official on the island of Majorca said the singer suffered a pulmonary oedema, an accumulation of fluid on the lungs. The underlying cause was not revealed. There has been speculation that he choked on his own vomit. The official could not say whether the star had been taking any drugs or alcohol and declined to say whether he had vomited before his death. The 33-year-old was found dead on the sofa of his apartment in Port Andratx on Saturday following a night out with his partner Andrew Cowles. At a brief court hearing in the island's capital Palma, a judge ruled that Gately's family could fly the body home. A sample of pulmonary fluid taken during the post-mortem will be sent to a forensic laboratory in Barcelona for further tests to confirm the result, the court official said. The official added that the investigation into the death will continue as a formality with Mr Cowles and one other person declared as official witnesses. The second witness is thought to be Bulgarian Georgi Dochev, 25, who went back to the apartment with Gately and Mr Cowles after their night out and has described finding the singer's lifeless body the next day. Lawyer Gerald Kean, a spokesman for Gately's family in Ireland, said papers have been signed to allow the release of his body. But he said it may be two days before it is returned to Ireland. "The family's only wish is to get their son and brother home as soon as possible," Mr Kean said. The lawyer said a number of formalities remained to be completed before Gately is repatriated.
Man charged over damaged hamburgers
A man has been charged with causing criminal damage to two hamburgers worth £5 after an alleged doorstep dispute with a fast food firm. Stephen Morgan, 31, of South Wales, underwent a police grilling after he was arrested and taken from his home in handcuffs at the weekend.
He is due appear at Swansea Magistrates' Court, in south Wales, next Monday. Morgan was at home in Culfor Road, Loughor, near Swansea, with partner Michelle Owen on Saturday evening. The couple, who have two children, planned to stay in and watch ITV1's The X Factor with other family members. A dispute is alleged to have started after an order of food with a local pizza parlour arrived minus two hamburgers. Mr Morgan claims it was agreed the group should wait for the rest of the order, he told the South Wales Evening Post. A dispute is alleged to have started with a delivery man who came to the house later, and £15 compensation was eventually paid out, he claims. Police visited the address later that evening and arrested Mr Morgan on suspicion of robbery. He was taken to Swansea Central police station where he was questioned about the incident and held overnight. A South Wales Police spokesman confirmed that a 31-year-old man was arrested on Saturday evening and has since been charged with causing criminal damage to food valued at £5.
Dyson launches bladeless fan:
Press Association
Inventor James Dyson has launched a bladeless fan which he hopes will be a healthy and environmentally-friendly alternative to air conditioning. The 62-year-old designer, who gave his name to the bagless vacuum cleaner, said the bladeless fan stops the unpleasant "turbulent buffeting" of traditional desk fans, creating a smooth, constant air flow "like a breeze". Mr Dyson said the fan, which costs from £199, could replace unhealthy and uneconomical air conditioning systems.
"If only we could open a window and use a fan then we would be saving a huge amount of electricity, and stopping the emission of HFCs and also having a much healthier environment," he said. "I hope that it will start to replace air conditioning, which is unhealthy and very bad for the environment, because this uses one-50th of the electricity of air conditioning." He added that the fan delivers a "much smoother air flow" than traditional models, was so safe you could put your hand through it while it was switched on, and was also easy to clean. "A fan with blades chops up the air and sends sort of slices of cake, blocks of air, at you so you feel a buffeting, a turbulent buffeting, when it hits you and it's not really very pleasant," he said. "But because there are no blades you're getting very smooth air, like a breeze, so it's constant and smooth so it's very comfortable to be in front of it. "There's just as much air flow, and just as much speed, but it's comfortable to be in front of it. "And people actually say that, because it's a constant stream, it's much more cooling - I don't know whether technically it's more cooling but it feels like it, apparently."
14 October, 2009
Fiat's newly revamped Punto is a direct challenge to its Ford and Volkswagen counterparts. Is it any good?
Fiat Punto Evo
Expert Rating: 
What is it?
The Punto Evo isn't the result of a tryst between Fiat and Mitsubishi, makers of the famous series of rally-bred saloons nicknamed 'Evo'. That would have been great though, so sorry if we've disappointed you. No, the Punto Evo is a very thorough revision of the current Grande Punto, offering a new set of petrol and diesel engines, an entirely new cabin layout and some sporty styling for the outside; it's Fiat's attempt to drag the older Punto into a fair old scrap with the new Ford Fiesta and the very new Volkswagen Polo.
Is it any good?
It is, but the base car wasn't too bad to start with. In a slightly unorthodox move, Fiat will actually keep selling the Grande Punto alongside the Evo for the foreseeable future, making the older car a 'base' model (possibly reducing the price) and slotting this in as a more premium car above it.
And the changes are just about enough to justify that marketing strategy. The shape of the newcomer is instantly familiar, but the front gets a deep dual air intake separated by plastic (which we think looks like The Joker's mouth, as portrayed by Jack Nicholson), as well as a Fiat 500 style chrome strip. The rear gets new light graphics and mid-mounted 'Punto Evo' badging. Some will like the added aggression, but for us the addenda has detracted from what was a fundamentally attractive shape.
The internal changes are better, serving to elevate the cabin from being quite sparse and too plastic in feel to something closer to the tactility of the Fiesta's - if not quite there. There's still a lot of hard plastic, but the central air vent and stereo controls are encased in trendy gloss black, and there's now an integrated cradle for an optional TomTom satnav, which links to Fiat's Blue&Me Bluetooth system. It means that the cost of navigation is dramatically reduced (as per SEAT's system on the Ibiza), but it also links with the car directly to allow, for example, drivers to see how economical they're being via the TomTom's touch screen. The data can be collected and compared with other drivers over the Internet.
Should I call the bank manager?
Fiat has invested an eye watering £220m into this facelift; although that gives you an indication about how seriously it takes its claim that it is almost a new car (thus selling it alongside the Grande Punto). As well as the obvious visual tweaks, that investment has gone into improving the chassis and adding some new engines - and the results are positive. Right-hand drive versions won't appear until late January 2010 (Fiat won't release it until the scrap scheme ends, although that's not the only reason for the delay), so the prices, full engine line-up and spec aren't set in stone yet, but the car will come powered by new MultiJet 2 diesels and MultiAir petrol engines. We drove the 135bhp 1.4-litre turbocharged MultiAir petrol and very briefly got behind the wheel of a diesel model. Of the latter we can say it's impressively quiet, vibration free and rev-happy, but our limited time with it means we'll reserve final judgement until another drive in the future.
The MultiAir unit combines plenty of punch with impressive frugality and is another example of petrol engines becoming more justifiable in terms of their running costs compared to diesel. The engine doesn't really come alive until the middle of the rev range, but when it does it fizzes to the rev limiter quickly and smoothly: despite a mere 8.5-second 0-62mph sprint, it will return 50.4mpg and emit 129g/km of CO2.
The newcomer's strength is its ride comfort - despite steering and suspension tweaks to improve handling dynamics. The suspension is set up on the soft side and the steering maintains that over-light wooliness of the Grande Punto, but the Evo maintains the turn-in sharpness of the pre-facelift car and does a fine job of staying level on uneven surfaces. Only when it encounters really broken roads does it get annoyingly wavy in the cabin.
Summary
While we're not convinced by the Evo's new face or its OTT name, the interior and mechanical updates have made the Punto a far more convincing car. It has neither the style nor quality of the class-leading Fiesta, but it's comfortable, spacious and, with this new MultiAir petrol unit, is both punchy and frugal. The second-generation MultiJet diesels are impressive too. As long as it's priced keenly when it arrives in January (there's no reason to think why not), the Punto should once again give the established supermini pack something to think about.
Mark Nichol
na Gillespie the Legend
Dana Gillespie, Sal Bashir who performs his Elvis Tribute at 2008 ClubWest-Invasian Fest, World Famous Austrian wizard boogie-woogie player, Joachim Paklen who supports Danna Gillespie
Venue Club West at the Edinburgh Hilton does it again
at the 2009 Edinburgh Fringe Fest with all Club West Shows receiving USA Weekly News 100 Star Awards
The Picture of Dorian Gray August 15th to August 22nd 6.00 pm nightly ..Club West Venue, Hilton Hotel, Grosvenor Street, Edinburgh..Wild's tale pf a handsome man's descent into vice..whilst retaining his beauty has been adapted many times but this accclaimed performance uses Wilde's own magnificent words to shock, amuse and surprise. Oscar worthy and unmissable...USA Weekly News 100 Star Awards Winner
Phil Cool - Who's He?August 15th to August 22nd 7.30 pm nightly ..Club West Venue, Hilton Hotel, Grosvenor Street, Edinburgh
the world's only 'Stand-up Chameleon' can be shocking, funny or shockingly funny. Dexterous impressions and surreal comic sketches take us into a world where anything seems possible and the adsurd seems credible. Phil Cool is the ultimate in Cool..."definately the coolest Kat in Town and well deserved his USA Weekly News 100 Star Award Winner"...USA Weekly News . . USA Weekly News 100 Star Award Winner
Dana Gillespie and Joachim Paklen
August 15th to August 22nd 8.40 pm nightly ..Club West Venue, Hilton Hotel, Grosvenor Street, Edinburgh
The Sell-Out Fringe Award wining Blues Diva returns with Joachim Palden, the fastest boogie-woogie player in the West. They'll have you shimmying, shaking, clapping your hands and stamping your feet. Sexy, sassy and wonderfully musical. Sure to be a sell-out at the 2009 Edinburgh Fringe Fest
"What more can one say..simply the authentic best Blues duo in the world"... USA Weekly News . . USA Weekly News 100 Star Award Winner
The Jive Aces
August 15th to August 22nd 9.45 pm nightly ..Club West Venue, Hilton Hotel, Grosvenor Street, Edinburgh
the Sell-Out fringe Award-weinning top UK Swing and Jive Band will make you dance the nigth way. The Jive Aces move as crazily as they play, and they will blow you away with their sheer energy. With guest Toni-Elizabeth Prima. Booky early for this one..." A High Energy World Class Jive Swing Band" USA Weekly News . . USA Weekly News 100 Star Award Winner
Above: The Jive Aces rocking at August 15th to August 22nd 9.45 pm nightly ..Club West Venue, Hilton Hotel, Grosvenor Street, Edinburgh
Sophie Gatacre who plays Samanta in Samatha's Hotline, caugh dancing her little heart heart at August 15th to August 22nd 9.45 pm nightly ..Club West Venue, Hilton Hotel, Grosvenor Street, Edinburgh see www.samanthashotline.com
USA Weekly News 100 Star Award winner Samatha's Hotline (Sophie Gatacre), with her show planned to be showing at Club West in 2010 Edinburgh Fringe Fest, caught jiving her little heart out to the Jive Aces at Club West Venue at the Hilton Hotel, Grovenor Street, Edinburgh....world famous Sell-Out Fringe Award-winning UK Swing and Jive Band Jive Aces are appearing from the 17th till the 22nd August, 2009 a Club West Venue, Hilton Hotel, Grovenor Street, Edinburgh. The Jive Aces will make you dance the night away. The Jive Aces move a crazy as they play, and they blow you way with their crazy energy. The Jive Aces are appearing with guest star, the famous Toni-Elizebeth Prima.
Book early to make sure you obtain a ticket for one of the most sought after shows at the 2009 Einburgh Fringe Festival
Click here for more photos of the above shows http://www.usaweekendnews.com/EdinburghFringeFest2009.html
Death of a Samurai
is the winner of a USA Weekly News 100 Star Award at the 2009 Edinburgh Fringe Fest
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Death of a Samurai is a on at the Vault Venue (29) 11 Merchant Street, Edinburgh at 8.30 pm
Click here to see more great photos a nd stories on the Spirit of the Edinburgh Fringe Fest
Click here to see more great photos of the Spirit of the Edinburgh Fringe Fest
Local Edinburgh Boy - Edinburgh Royal Mile Street Blues singer-Muscian Ronnie Rootsie a USA Weekly News 100 Star Award Winner
Ronnie Tootsie performs every night during the 2009 Edinburgh Fringe Fest in the Royal mile between about 7pm till 10 pm
Crowds leaving the Military Tatoo to see their favourite blues singer-musician Ronnie Rootsie of the Rootsie Tootsie Blues Band performing his award winning blues music in the Royal Mile.
BataFada Crimlin, Ireland performing in the Royal Mile at the 2009 Edinburgh Fringe Fest
Nick Coppin a USA Weekly News Award Winner at the 2009 Edinburgh Fringe Fest for his show Loguacious performed at 7.20pm at the Espionage venue 185, 4 India Buildings, Victoria St
Click here to see more great photos and stories on the Spirit of the Edinburgh Fringe Fest
Above: The many charactersa and faces of the famous Lynn Ruth Miller winner of a USA Weekly News 100 Star Award,.
1. Street Pole Theater on the Royal Mile at the 2009 Edinburgh Fringe Fest 2. Strange Music on the Royal Mile at the 2009 Edinburgh Fringe Fest
3. Death by Samuri on the Royal Mile at the 2009 Edinburgh Fringe Fest 4. Hey Sister The Musical on the Royal Mile at the 2009 Edinburgh Fringe Fest
4. The BiteSize'd 'Breakfast In Bedlam 10 minutes plays form the world's most talented writers
Click here for more of the above exciting photos of the Royal Mile at the 2009 Edinburgh Fringe Fest
The many charactersa and faces of the famous Lynn Ruth Miller winner of a USA Weekly News 100 Star Award,.
bove: The many charactersa and faces of the famous Lynn Ruth Miller winner of a USA Weekly News 100 Star Award,.
Lynn Ruth Miller is a multi talented actress, comedian and even does a great strip tease show
as seen above with the lucky young man have this young star-let, Lynn Ruth Miller, ending on his lap after her strip tease shows as part of one of the three Lynn Ruth Miller's fringe shows Caberet Gone Wild
Lynn Ruth Miller's three shows at the 2009 Edinburgh Fringe Fest are: All About me: 3.45pm to 4.45pm Counting House, Caberet Gone Wild 9.10pm to 10.10 pm Counting House, Aging Is Amazing 11pm till Midnight -The Counting House.
Who is the lucky young man with star-let Lynn Ruth Miller on his lap....we asked the investigation team at www.EdFringeNews.com and they came up with
Ben Lerman,
who also happens to have a show at the 2009 Edinburgh Fringe Fest called: Ben Lerman's Size Matters. who is a gay guy from New York (looking at the photo with star-let Lynn Rth Miller on his lap and the big smaile on his face....maybe Ben has just realised he is by, not just gay.... Ben is a ukelele player who writes and performs smart, funny twisted songs about love. American idols, pirates and more..."Sick and brilliant"
..(NY Time Out); "Tiny Instrument..Big Balls..so Dam Funny"(Time Out -Chicargo) |
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