Chiquita moving HQ to Charlotte after NC OKs deal (AP)

RALEIGH, N.C. ? Banana giant Chiquita Brands International confirmed Tuesday it will move its global headquarters from Cincinnati to Charlotte after a North Carolina economic development panel approved an incentives deal worth more than $22 million.

The state Economic Investment Committee voted Tuesday in favor of the deal, which includes more than $20 million in state incentives and more than $2 million from local government to bring at least 375 high-paying jobs to North Carolina by 2014.

"We had to compete and compete hard for this company," Gov. Beverly Perdue said at a news conference in Charlotte announcing the move.

Committee members said moving Chiquita's headquarters, along with research and development laboratories, will eventually bring a total of about 417 jobs to the area as part of an overall investment of around $14 million. The jobs are supposed to pay an average of about $107,000.

Committee members said the incentives were needed to give Charlotte an edge over Ohio, Florida and Louisiana. Another key factor in the company's decision was the greater access to foreign flights in and out of Charlotte Douglas International Airport and the assortment of those flights, according to CEO Fernando Aguirre, who spoke at the news conference.

"Charlotte provided the most compelling economic opportunity for Chiquita by far," he said.

Aguirre praised Cincinnati and Ohio for providing a home for the company since 1987, but said the move to Charlotte will, among other things, save Chiquita more than $4 million a year in operating costs.

"Times change, and the fact is, we needed to make decisions that would help our business not just for the short term, but also for the long term," he said.

The move should be complete by the end of 2012, Aguirre said, although he expected most employees would be in Charlotte by next summer.

With operations across the globe, Chiquita has more than 21,000 employees worldwide. The company this month reported a $29 million third-quarter loss due to higher expenses and lower revenue. Profits were $61 million in 2010, down from $91 million the previous year.

The company is in a cost-cutting drive. Ohio officials said they were unwilling to go as far to keep Chiquita in Cincinnati, where it employs about 400 workers, as North Carolina was to lure it away.

"The company has issues beyond what incentives can address," said Rob Nichols, a spokesman for Ohio Gov. John Kasich. "When it's a priority to make sure incentive packages begin returning an investment for taxpayers as quickly as possible, we're not going to be irresponsible and give away the store to try and keep a company that fundamentally doesn't want to be here or which has already made up its mind to leave"

The main markets for the produce company's bananas, bagged salads and snacks are North America and Europe. Its main banana producers are in Latin America. Chiquita has management operations on all three continents.

"The improved air accessibility to primary destinations in Latin America and Europe and access to an experienced international labor force that supports Chiquita's long-term goals" were key elements to the company looking at a move to Charlotte, said Susan Rather, who coordinates North Carolina's key incentives grant program.

Chiquita also considered staying in Cincinnati or moving to Louisiana or South Florida, which prompted North Carolina to offer its combination of grants, tax breaks and worker training, Rather said.

A Florida site offered great airline connections to Latin America and Europe and a concentration of Spanish-speaking businesses that offer a pool to recruit bilingual talent with international business experience, Rather said. Louisiana offered to reimburse the company for its employee relocation and recruiting expenses, and to subsidize the cost for air transport to Europe and Latin America, Rather said.

Chiquita spent $19 million in 2008 and 2009 to move its European headquarters from Belgium to Switzerland, where it enjoys tax advantages.

Charlotte's competitors "have demonstrated significant aggressiveness in providing upfront cash to help offset the tremendous cost burden in relocating Chiquita's international headquarters, which surpass North Carolina's offer," Rather said.

If the company meets its hiring and investment goals over 11 years, it could collect $20.2 million from North Carolina and about $2.5 million more from the city of Charlotte and Mecklenburg County.

Chiquita has been based in Cincinnati since 1987, when it moved from New York. In 2005, the company considered moving its headquarters, but decided then to remain in Ohio.

Earlier this year, Charlotte was publicly discussed by Chiquita as a possible new home for its headquarters. The company has a lease extension running through 2012 on its namesake headquarters building in downtown Cincinnati.

Cincinnati's regional airport has lost international flights as airlines shifted routes away from Midwestern hubs, creating a concern for the business community, said Ellen van der Horst, president and CEO of the Cincinnati USA Regional Chamber.

"It's always disappointing to have a business leave the region, especially one as well-known as Chiquita. But it's part of business," van der Horst said.

___

Dan Sewell in Cincinnati contributed to this report.

___

Emery Dalesio can be reached at http://twitter.com/emerydalesio .

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/economy/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111129/ap_on_bi_ge/us_chiquita_brands

world series game 1 exotic animals exotic animals scott hall lra lra collegeboard

Syracuse coach Boeheim silent day after Fine fired (AP)

SYRACUSE, N.Y. ? Syracuse men's basketball coach Jim Boeheim ran a closed practice Monday as sex abuse victims' advocates questioned whether he should still coach following the firing of longtime assistant Bernie Fine, who has been accused of molestation by three men.

As criticism swirled about Boeheim's initial support of Fine and his verbal attacks on the accusers, the coach kept a low profile, seeking refuge in his office on the second floor of the Carmelo K. Anthony Basketball Center.

Boeheim, who had been sharply critical of the accusers, has softened his stance 10 days after an impassioned defense of Fine, who spent 35 seasons on the bench next to Boeheim and was fired Sunday.

The Rev. Robert Hoatson, president of Road to Recovery, a group that supports victims of sexual abuse, said the dismissal of Bernie Fine was appropriate but didn't go far enough.

"I think Jim Boeheim should be fired or resign as well," Hoatson said Monday. "These boys were members of the basketball program. Jim Boeheim's responsibility is to oversee that program, and the children were not safe on his watch."

Two former Syracuse ball boys were the first to accuse Fine, who has called the allegations "patently false." And a third man came forward last week, accusing Fine of molesting him nine years ago.

Bobby Davis, now 39, told ESPN that Fine molested him beginning in 1984 and that the sexual contact continued until he was around 27. A ball boy for six years, Davis told ESPN that the abuse occurred at Fine's home, at Syracuse basketball facilities and on team road trips, including the 1987 Final Four. His stepbrother, Mike Lang, 45, who also was a ball boy, told ESPN that Fine began molesting him while he was in fifth or sixth grade.

Zach Tomaselli, 23, of Lewiston, Maine, said Sunday he told police that Fine molested him in 2002 in a Pittsburgh hotel room. Tomaselli, who faces sexual assault charges in Maine involving a 14-year-old boy, said Fine touched him "multiple" times in that one incident. During a telephone interview with The Associated Press, he said he signed an affidavit accusing Fine following a meeting with Syracuse police last week in Albany.

As supporters of victims of sex abuse called for Boeheim to be fired, university trustees were largely silent.

"I don't have anything to say about this," said trustee H. Douglas Barclay, who earned his law degree from Syracuse in 1961 and was a New York state senator for 20 years.

Reached in Naples, Fla., trustee Marvin Lender, class of 1963, referred all calls to Chancellor Nancy Cantor.

"It's a policy, and I want to adhere to it," he said.

Calls to several other trustees seeking comment were not returned.

The allegations against Fine surfaced a week after Penn State school trustees fired Joe Paterno in the aftermath of child sex abuse charges against former defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky, who is accused in a grand jury indictment of sexually abusing eight boys over a 15-year period.

Amid that child sex-abuse scandal, Penn State's trustees ousted Paterno and university President Graham Spanier. The trustees said Spanier and Paterno, who is not the target of any criminal investigation, failed to act after a graduate assistant claimed he saw Sandusky sexually abusing a young boy in a campus shower in 2002. And two school administrators were charged with not properly alerting authorities to suspected abuse and with perjury. They maintain their innocence.

The NCAA is monitoring developments.

"NCAA President Mark Emmert spoke today with Chancellor Nancy Cantor to let her know the NCAA is carefully monitoring the developments at Syracuse University, and Chancellor Cantor pledged her full cooperation in determining the facts," the NCAA said in a statement Monday. "The accusations of child sexual abuse reported in the media involving a former assistant men's basketball coach are deeply troubling. Furthermore, to have similar allegations involving coaches at two of the nation's major universities saddens every member of the Association.

"As facts emerge, we will determine what actions may be necessary regarding NCAA bylaws. As always, criminal justice proceedings, if any, take precedence over any NCAA actions."

When the allegations against Fine first became public Nov. 17, Boeheim adamantly defended his longtime assistant and attacked the accusers, saying he suspected they were trying get money.

"It is a bunch of a thousand lies that he has told," Boeheim told ESPN, referring to Bobby Davis. "You don't think it is a little funny that his cousin (relative) is coming forward?"

Those comments prompted a swift backlash from victims' advocates, who were outraged by Boeheim's attitude.

Ten days later, his stance had changed considerably.

In a statement released Sunday night after Fine's firing, Boeheim expressed regret for his initial statements that might have been "insensitive to victims of abuse."

"What is most important is that this matter be fully investigated and that anyone with information be supported to come forward so that the truth can be found," Boeheim said in a statement released by the school. "I deeply regret any statements I made that might have inhibited that from occurring or been insensitive to victims of abuse."

That apology did not appease all his critics.

Richard Tollner, a member of the New York Coalition to Protect Children, said even if the investigation finds Boeheim didn't know anything before, during or after any abuses occurred, he should at least offer to quit. Tollner and other victims' advocates have been sharply critical of comments Boeheim made when the scandal broke in which he said the accusers were lying to get money.

"We think he should offer his resignation to the Syracuse University Board and the let the board decide with a vote of confidence whether he should continue on or not," said Tollner.

"Mr. Boeheim has a responsibility," Tollner said. "He's a leader. Kids follow what Jim Boeheim says these days. In that light, he should have been more responsible in his remarks."

New York state Assemblywoman Margaret Markey, a Queens Democrat who has passed legislation increasing the age from 23 to 28 to bring a claim of sexual abuse, said if an investigation shows Boeheim was aware of the allegations against Fine and did nothing, he should be removed.

"But if he wasn't aware of it, and there was no way of him knowing about it, that's a different set of circumstances," Markey said.

On Sunday, ESPN also played an audiotape, obtained and recorded by Davis, of an October 2002 telephone conversation between him and Fine's wife, Laurie.

Davis told ESPN he made the recording, which also has been given to Syracuse police, without her knowledge because he knew he needed proof for the police to believe his accusations. ESPN said it hired a voice recognition expert to verify the voice on the tape and the network said it was determined to be that of Laurie Fine.

During the call to the woman, Davis repeatedly asks her what she knew about the alleged molestation.

"Do you think I'm the only one that he's ever done that to?" Davis asked.

"No ... I think there might have been others but it was geared to ... there was something about you," the woman on the tape said.

On the tape, she also says she knew "everything that went on."

"Bernie has issues, maybe that he's not aware of, but he has issues. ... And you trusted somebody you shouldn't have trusted ... "

Federal authorities investigating Fine are not hampered by a statute of limitations should they turn up evidence Fine molested Tomaselli in Pittsburgh.

Under federal law passed in 2002, prosecutions for the sexual or physical abuse or kidnapping of a child under 18 can continue until the victim turned 25. Subsequent amendments changed that to the life of the child or 10 years after the offense, whichever is longer.

On Sunday, Tomaselli's father said he was lying.

In a phone interview with the AP, Fred Tomaselli said: "I'm 100 percent sure that Bernie Fine was never in contact with Zach. He never went to Pittsburgh to a game, never been to that arena."

Zach Tomaselli's friend, Rose Ryan of Lewiston, Maine, defended him Monday against his father's claim that he made up the story about being molested by Fine.

"He's not lying," said Ryan, who said Tomaselli provided detailed descriptions to police of the Pittsburgh hotel and of the interior of Fine's home.

Ryan, who's 31, said Tomaselli worked as a camp counselor and a baseball umpire but is currently unemployed and having difficulty finding work because of sex charges pending against him in Maine.

Tomaselli was arrested in April on 11 warrants charging gross sexual assault, tampering with a victim, two counts of unlawful sexual contact, five counts of visual sexual aggression against a child and unlawful sexual touching and unlawful sexual contact, Lewiston police said. They did not say what led to the charges. He has pleaded not guilty.

John Duncan, executive assistant U.S. attorney in Syracuse, said a search warrant was executed Friday by the U.S. Secret Service at Fine's residence. He declined to say Monday what was sought or found, saying it remains under seal. "His home was searched," he said.

U.S. Secret Service agent Tim Kirk in Syracuse declined to comment and referred questions to Duncan.

Lee Kindlon, a criminal defense attorney who practices in state and federal courts in upstate New York, said while the statute of limitations won't bar federal prosecutors at this point, they have other issues including the credibility of the accuser and lack of physical proof.

"But these allegations are serious and I think the feds are doing the right thing and looking for proof to back up the accusations," he said.

Also Monday, the Syracuse Police Department said it will provide details of its investigation to the Onondaga County District Attorney's Office on Tuesday, heading off a court appearance that was scheduled for Tuesday morning. DA William Fitzpatrick had complained that the police were not sharing details and accused the police chief and others of leaking information to the media, a claim the police denied.

A two-paragraph statement from the city police noted that the case had entered a "new phase" with the U.S. Attorney and Secret Service taking the lead.

___

AP Writers Mike Virtanen, Mary Esch and Rik Stevens in Albany, Ben Dobbin in Rochester and David Sharp in Portland, Maine contributed to this report.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/sports/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111129/ap_on_sp_ot/us_syracuse_fine_investigation

lindsay lohan condoleezza rice road house who do you think you are frank mccourt ricin in god we trust

Rogers shows us what happens when you fire a Motorola RAZR out of an air cannon


YouTube link for mobile viewing

While we could argue that the Verizon Droid RAZR commercials are kind of over the top and really have nothing to do with the phone, Rogers at least stuck to the whole 'RAZR's are sharp' idea. Poor cake -- I could have eaten that.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/androidcentral/~3/S-nUhZFChIA/story01.htm

sand dollar just dance 3 just dance 3 cliff lee cliff lee the raven the raven

Long lines at polls as Egypt holds landmark vote

ADDS NAME OF CANDIDATE ON POSTER - An Egyptian woman rests in front of campaign posters for Waleed Abou Heissa from the Egyptian Citizen Party outside a polling station on the first day of parliamentary elections in Alexandria, Egypt, Monday, Nov. 28, 2011. Shaking off years of political apathy, Egyptians on Monday began voting in their nation's first parliamentary elections since Hosni Mubarak's ouster, a giant step toward what many in the country hope will be a democratic Egypt after decades of dictatorship.(AP Photo/Tarek Fawzy)

ADDS NAME OF CANDIDATE ON POSTER - An Egyptian woman rests in front of campaign posters for Waleed Abou Heissa from the Egyptian Citizen Party outside a polling station on the first day of parliamentary elections in Alexandria, Egypt, Monday, Nov. 28, 2011. Shaking off years of political apathy, Egyptians on Monday began voting in their nation's first parliamentary elections since Hosni Mubarak's ouster, a giant step toward what many in the country hope will be a democratic Egypt after decades of dictatorship.(AP Photo/Tarek Fawzy)

Egyptian women wait at a polling station to vote in the country's parliamentary election in the Zamalek neighbourhood of Cairo, Egypt, Monday, Nov. 28, 2011. Shaking off years of political apathy, Egyptians on Monday began voting in their nation's first parliamentary elections since Hosni Mubarak's ouster, a giant step toward what many in the country hope will be a democratic Egypt after decades of dictatorship.(AP Photo/Maya Alleruzzo)

An Egyptian army soldier stands guard next to posters of parliamentary candidates on a wall outside a polling center in Assuit, Egypt, Monday, Nov. 28, 2011. Voting began on Monday in Egypt's first parliamentary elections since longtime authoritarian leader Hosni Mubarak was ousted in a popular uprising nine months ago. The vote is a milestone many Egyptians hope will usher in a democratic age after decades of dictatorship. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

Egyptian voters line up outside a polling center in Assuit, Egypt, Monday, Nov. 28, 2011. Voting began on Monday in Egypt's first parliamentary elections since longtime authoritarian leader Hosni Mubarak was ousted in a popular uprising nine months ago. The vote is a milestone many Egyptians hope will usher in a democratic age after decades of dictatorship. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

An Egyptian Army soldier stands guard as voters wait outside a polling center in Assuit, 320 kilometers (200 miles) south of Cairo, Egypt, Monday, Nov. 28, 2011. Voting began on Monday in Egypt's first parliamentary elections since longtime authoritarian leader Hosni Mubarak was ousted in a popular uprising nine months ago. The vote is a milestone many Egyptians hope will usher in a democratic age after decades of dictatorship. (AP Photo/Khalil Hamra)

(AP) ? Shaking off years of political apathy, Egyptians turned out in long lines at voting stations Monday in the first parliamentary elections since Hosni Mubarak's ouster, a giant step toward what they hope will be a democracy after decades of dictatorship.

Some voters brought their children along, saying they wanted them to learn how to exercise their rights in a democracy as they cast ballots in what promises to be the fairest and cleanest election in Egypt in living memory. With fears of violence largely unrealized, the biggest complaint was the hours of standing in long, slow-moving lines.

"If you have waited for 30 years, can't you wait now for another hour?" an army officer yelled at hundreds of restless women at one polling center in Cairo.

After the dramatic, 18-day uprising that ended Mubarak's three decades of authoritarian rule, many had looked forward to this day in expectation of a celebration of freedom. But Mubarak's fall on Feb. 11 was followed by nearly 10 months of military rule, divisions and violence and when election day finally arrived, the mood was markedly different. People were eager to at last cast a free vote, but daunted by all the uncertainty over what happens next.

"I never voted because I was never sure it was for real," said Shahira Ahmed, 45, waiting with her husband and daughter with around 500 other people at a Cairo polling station. "This time, I hope it is, but I am not positive."

Even as they vote, Egyptians are sharply polarized and confused over the nation's direction.

On one level, the election will be a strong indicator of whether Egypt is heading toward Islamism or secularism. The Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt's largest and best organized group, along with other Islamists are expected to dominate in the vote. Many liberals, leftists, Christians and pious Muslims who oppose mixing religion and politics went expressly to the polls to try to stop them or at least reduce their victory.

The U.S. and its close ally Israel, which has a long-standing peace treaty with Egypt, worry that stronger Brotherhood influence could end Egypt's role as a major moderating influence in Middle East politics.

Also weighing heavily on voters' mind was whether this election can really set Egypt on a path of democracy while it is still under military rule. Only 10 days before the elections, major protests erupted around the country demanding the ruling generals accused of bungling the transition step aside and hand power immediately to a civilian authority.

Another concern is that the parliament that emerges may have little relevance because the military is sharply limiting its powers, and it may only serve for several months.

The Egyptian election is the fruit of the Arab Spring revolts that have swept the region over the past year, toppling several authoritarian regimes. In Tunisia and Morocco, Islamic parties have come out winners in elections the past month, but if the much larger Egypt does the same, it could have an even greater impact.

Even before voting began at 8 a.m., people stood in lines stretching several hundred yards outside many polling stations in Cairo, suggesting a respectable turnout. Under heavy security from police and soldiers, segregated lines of men and women grew, snaking around blocks and prompting authorities to extend voting by two hours.

Many said they were voting for the first time. For decades, few Egyptians bothered to cast ballots because nearly every election was rigged, whether by bribery, ballot box stuffing or intimidation by police at the polls. Turnout was often in the single digits.

"I am voting for freedom. We lived in slavery. Now we want justice in freedom," said 50-year-old Iris Nawar at a polling station in Maadi, a Cairo suburb.

"We are afraid of the Muslim Brotherhood. But we lived for 30 years under Mubarak, we will live with them, too," said Nawar, a first-time voter.

Waiting for hours, people joked, squabbled, and bought sandwiches from delivery men taking advantage of an eager, captive market.

Under a heavy rain in the Mediterranean coastal city of Alexandria, a women's line displayed Egypt's religious spectrum ? Christians and Muslims with their hair loose, others in conservative headscarves, still others blanketed in the most radical garb, the black robes that cover a woman's entire body, leaving only the eyes exposed. At a nearby station, one soldier shouted through a megaphone, "Choose freely, choose whomever you want to vote for."

The Brotherhood entered the campaign armed with a powerful network of activists around the country and years of experience in political activity. Even though it was banned under Mubarak's regime, its politicians sat in parliament as independents. Also running is the even more conservative Salafi movement, which advocates a hard-line Saudi Arabian-style interpretation of Islam. While the Brotherhood shows at times a willingness to play politics and compromise in its ideology, many Salafis make no bones about saying democracy must take a back seat to Islamic law.

In contrast, the secular and liberal youth groups that ousted Mubarak failed to capitalize on their astonishing triumph to effectively contest the election. They largely had to create all-new parties from scratch, most of which are not widely known among the public and were plagued by divisions through the past months.

"The Muslim Brotherhood are the people who have stood by us when times were difficult," said Ragya el-Said, a 47-year-old lawyer in Alexandria, a stronghold for the Brotherhood. "We have a lot of confidence in them."

But the Brotherhood faces still opposition. Even some who favor more religion in public life are suspicious of their motives, and the large Christian minority ? about 10 percent of the population of around 85 million ? deeply fear rising Islamism.

"I'm a Muslim but won't vote for any Islamist party because their views are too narrow," said Eman el-Khoury, 53, as she looked disapprovingly at Brotherhood activists handing out campaign leaflets near an Alexandria polling station, a violation of election rules. "How can we change this country when at an opportunity for change, we make the same dirty mistakes."

For many of those who did not want to vote for the Brotherhood or other Islamists, the alternative was not clear.

"I don't know any of the parties or who I'm voting for," Teresa Sobhi, a Christian voter in the southern city of Assiut, said. "I'll vote for the first names I see I guess."

The election is a long and unwieldy process. It will be held in stages divided up by provinces. Voting for 498-seat People's Assembly, parliament's lower chamber, will last until January, then elections for the 390-member upper house will drag on until March.

Each round lasts two days. Some voters said they feared vote rigging or ballot stuffing because the ballot boxes would be left at polling stations overnight.

Monday and Tuesday's vote will take place in nine provinces whose residents account for 24 million of Egypt's estimated 85 million people.

The ballots are a confusing mix of party lists that will gain seats according to proportions of votes and individual candidates ? who will have to enter run-off votes after each round if no one gets 50 percent of the first-round vote. Mixed in are candidates labeled as "farmer" or "worker" who must gain a certain number of seats, a holdover for socialist days that Mubarak's regime manipulated to get in cronies.

Moreover, there are significant questions over how relevant the new parliament will even be. The ruling military council of generals, led by Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, insists it will maintain considerable powers after the election. It will put together the government and is trying to keep extensive control over the creation of an assembly to write a new constitution, a task that originally was seen as mainly in the parliament's hands.

The protesters who took to Cairo's Tahrir Square and other cities since Nov. 19 in rallies recalling the uprising that ousted Mubarak on Feb. 11 demand the generals surrender power immediately to a civilian government.

Some hoped their vote would help eventually push the generals out.

"We are fed up with the military," said Salah Radwan, waiting outside a polling center in Cairo's middle-class Abdeen neighborhood. "They should go to protect our borders and leave us to rule ourselves. Even if we don't get it right this time, we will get it right next time."

On Monday morning in Tahrir, a relatively small crowd of a few thousand kept the round-the-clock protests going. Clashes during the protests left more than 40 dead and had heightened fears of violence at polling stations.

Turnout among the estimated 50 million voters will play a key role. A higher turnout could water down the showing of the Brotherhood, because its core of supporters are the most likely to vote.

If there are heavy numbers of voters, that could also give legitimacy to a vote that the military insisted go ahead despite the recent turmoil.

A referendum on constitutional amendments in March had a turnout of 40 percent ? anything lower than that could be a sign that skepticism over the process is high.

The Brotherhood, which used to run its candidates as independents because of the official ban on the group, made its strongest showing in elections in 2005, when it won 20 percent of parliament's seats. Its leaders have predicted that in this vote it could win up to 40 or 50 percent.

___

AP correspondents Maggie Michael in Cairo, Hadeel al-Shalchi in Alexandria, Egypt, and Aya Batrawy in Assiut, Egypt contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2011-11-28-ML-Egypt/id-790aa361694143f4ad2defd0f5a8ca53

lady liberty the rum diary addams family in time cj wilson

Oil prices rise on holiday sales, Europe hopes (AP)

NEW YORK ? Oil prices climbed Monday after shoppers pumped up holiday retail sales in the U.S., and investors bet that Europe would find a last-minute solution to its financial crisis.

The U.S. crude benchmark rose $1.60 to $98.37 per barrel in New York. Brent crude, which is used to price foreign oil varieties including many imported by U.S. refineries, rose $1.82 to $107.58 a barrel in London.

Benchmark oil has recovered much of the ground it lost since Nov. 16, when it hit $102.59 a barrel. Prices rebounded Monday following strong holiday sales in the U.S, where shoppers spent nearly $1 billion more on Black Friday than they did a year ago.

"The U.S. is probably doing better than we gave it credit for," PFGBest analyst Phil Flynn said. "Consumers are buying more, and that's going to get manufacturers to produce more products, and it'll take more energy to make and distribute those goods."

Meanwhile European leaders are considering new solutions to their credit problems, with little time to left to preserve the euro currency. Among the ideas is a plan for eurozone countries with the best credit to pool their resources to assist the most indebted members of the 17-nation currency block. The International Monetary Fund also denied rumors that it's planning a bailout fund for Italy, which is among the countries with big debt woes.

Some analysts say the euro could collapse in days, unless action is taken.

At the gas pump, prices fell less than a penny to a national average of $3.295 a gallon in the U.S., according to AAA, Wright Express and Oil Price Information Service. A gallon of regular is about 15 cents cheaper than it was a month ago, but it's still more than 43 cents higher than a year ago.

In other energy trading, heating oil rose 4 cents to $2.9802 per gallon, and gasoline futures rose 6 cents to $2.5128 per gallon. Natural gas fell 9 cents to $3.45 per 1,000 cubic feet.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/europe/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111128/ap_on_bi_ge/oil_prices

gold rush gold rush chili recipe chili recipe grimm jello shots tashard choice

Chevy Volt under 'formal safety investigation' by NHTSA due to post-crash fire concerns

The Chevy Volt's lithium-ion battery may be great for a lot of things -- like low gasoline-dependency, for instance -- but when it comes to government regulated crash tests, it's proving to be a fiery problem. As the story goes, back in May, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration put a Volt through standard side-impact crash testing, and in doing so, "the vehicle's battery was damaged and the coolant line was ruptured." The big issue? The car went up in flames multiple weeks later, seemingly as direct result. That event prompted the NHTSA to further study the safety of the batts in the period after a crash, which culminated in more tests performed just over a week ago to find out if they would prove volatile again -- simply put, they did. The group recently explained that it's "concerned that damage to the Volt's batteries as part of three tests that are explicitly designed to replicate real-world crash scenarios have resulted in fire."

Because of this development, the NHTSA (with assistance from the Department of Defense, Department of Energy and General Motors itself) has officially launched a formal investigation into the Volt to ensure that its current battery implementation isn't a safety defect. Despite the announcement, the agency notes that of all the Volts currently zipping along the streets, there has yet to be a to be a similar incident out on the open road. The NHTSA further clarified that there's not yet any reason for current owners to worry, so long as they haven't been in an accident with their vehicle. Overall, GM describes the whole investigation as "procedural" at this point, stating that both GM has been working with the NHTSA for over six months on a "broader program designed to induce battery failure after extreme situations." Seems a bit late at this point, but in any event, you'll find full details in the press releases from both parties just past the break.

Continue reading Chevy Volt under 'formal safety investigation' by NHTSA due to post-crash fire concerns

Chevy Volt under 'formal safety investigation' by NHTSA due to post-crash fire concerns originally appeared on Engadget on Sun, 27 Nov 2011 13:41:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink AP / NPR  |  sourceNHTSA, General Motors  | Email this | Comments


Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/wEL6ZZPP5b0/

fred shuttlesworth rule 34 steve jobs bill gates frances bean cobain bill gates michael lewis palin

Christian Bale hanging up his Batman cape: report (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES (Reuters) ? "The Dark Knight Rises" may be Christian Bale's final performance as crime-fighting superhero Batman, the actor told the Philippine Daily Inquirer.

Set for release in July, the movie is Bale's third stint as Gotham's Caped Crusader for director Christopher Nolan, after "Batman Begins" (2005) and "The Dark Knight" (2008).

"I wrapped a few days ago, so that will be the last time I'm taking that cowl off," Bale told the newspaper during an interview in Beverly Hills. "I believe that the whole production wrapped yesterday, so it's all done. Everything's finished. It's me and Chris -- that will be the end of that Batman era.

The 37-year-old actor's comments, published late last week, weren't his first indication that he might have reached the end of the Batmobile ride. Bale told E! News in November one year ago that "unless Chris says different, this will be the last time I'm playing Batman."

Bale, who received an Oscar last year for his supporting performance in "The Fighter," next appears on the big screen in Zhang Yimou's China-set period drama "The Flowers of War." He'll also star in two films from "Tree of Life" director Terrence Malick.

Joining Bale in "The Dark Knight Rises" are Tom Hardy, Joseph Gordon-Levitt and Anne Hathaway, as Catwoman.

Film actors who have preceded Bale in the dual role of Batman and his alter ego, Bruce Wayne, include Michael Keaton, Val Kilmer and George Clooney.

(Editing by Bob Tourtellotte)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/celebrity/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111128/people_nm/us_batman_christianbale

banana republic apple store academy barnes and noble nook bcs rankings 12 days of christmas a christmas carol

Putin formally nominated to reclaim presidency

Prime Minister Vladimir Putin agestures as he speaks during a United Russia party congress in Moscow, Russia, Sunday, Nov. 27, 2011. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has been formally nominated by the ruling United Russia party to run for president in next March's election. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)

Prime Minister Vladimir Putin agestures as he speaks during a United Russia party congress in Moscow, Russia, Sunday, Nov. 27, 2011. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has been formally nominated by the ruling United Russia party to run for president in next March's election. (AP Photo/Alexander Zemlianichenko)

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev, right, and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin, left, seen as arrive at the United Russia party congress in Moscow on Sunday, Nov. 27, 2011. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has received a formal nomination from the ruling United Russia party to run for president in next March's election. Putin, who stepped down in 2008 after two presidential terms but has remained Russia's No. 1 leader, announced his intention to reclaim the top job in September. Sunday's nomination marks the official start of his election bid. (AP Photo/RIA-Novosti, Alexei Druzhinin, Presidential Press Service)

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev gestures during his speech at the United Russia party congress in Moscow on Sunday, Nov. 27, 2011. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has received a formal nomination from the ruling United Russia party to run for president in next March's election. Putin, who stepped down in 2008 after two presidential terms but has remained Russia's No. 1 leader, announced his intention to reclaim the top job in September. Sunday's nomination marks the official start of his election bid. (AP Photo/RIA-Novosti, Yekaterina Shtukina, Presidential Press Service)

Russian President Dmitry Medvedev speeches at the United Russia party congress in Moscow on Sunday, Nov. 27, 2011. Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has received a formal nomination from the ruling United Russia party to run for president in next March's election. Putin, who stepped down in 2008 after two presidential terms but has remained Russia's No. 1 leader, announced his intention to reclaim the top job in September. Sunday's nomination marks the official start of his election bid. (AP Photo/RIA-Novosti, Yekaterina Shtukina, Presidential Press Service)

(AP) ? Prime Minister Vladimir Putin on Sunday sternly warned the West against interfering in Russia's elections in a speech before thousands of cheering supporters as he formally launched his presidential bid.

Putin, who stepped down in 2008 after two presidential terms but kept his hold on power, announced in September that he intended to reclaim the top job next year and on Sunday was formally nominated by his United Russia party.

The boisterous televised congress also was aimed at boosting support for Putin's party ahead of parliamentary elections one week away.

A veteran steel worker, a businessman, a farmer, a decorated military veteran and a film director stood up during the event to praise Putin as the only man capable of leading the country. The 11,000 delegates filling a Moscow sports arena chanted "the people trust Putin!"

"Our task is to build a strong, rich and prosperous Russia, a Russia of the 21st century," Putin told the congress.

He promised to strengthen the economy, improve living standards and social services and bolster the military. Putin also said he would pursue his project of forming a Eurasian Union that would boost integration among Russia and its ex-Soviet neighbors.

He used the occasion to lash out at the opposition, accusing his critics of playing a role in the Soviet collapse and robbing the country during the economic meltdown of the 1990s.

He said that Russia wants to develop cooperation with the West, but strongly warned it against paying too much attention to the Kremlin's critics and offering them financial support.

"We know that ... representatives of some countries meet with those whom they pay money, the so-called grant receivers, give them instructions and guidance for what 'work' they need to do to influence the election campaign in our country," Putin said.

"That's a wasted effort, like throwing money to the winds," he said.

Putin said those like the United States and European Union who provide grants to Russian non-governmental organizations "would do better using this money to pay back their domestic debt and stop conducting such a costly and inefficient foreign policy."

Putin has promised to make President Dmitry Medvedev his prime minister after the presidential vote in March. The planned job swap has angered many in Russia, who warn it will strengthen authoritarian tendencies and set the stage for Putin to serve as president for 12 more years and become the longest-serving leader since Communist times.

Recent polls have shown that United Russia's public approval ratings have plummeted, reflecting people's fatigue with what many perceive as the party of corrupt bureaucracy. Surveys predict that United Russia will maintain a majority in the lower house, but lose the current two-thirds majority allowing it to change the constitution.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2011-11-27-EU-Russia-Elections/id-af29f3b359bb45f8b66e465f8f448406

merce cunningham saints tim hightower tim hightower waldorf school waldorf school new orleans saints