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Wednesday, September 29, 2010
Wade seconds LeBron notion of being themselves - Sun-Sentinel (blog)
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
Climate issues have to matter - Philadelphia Business Journal:
That is why in I established the , and why it was our great honor in November to launchits U.S. chapter with an eventf in Philadelphia, the birthplace of my mother, Princeses Grace. My cousin, John B. Kelly, is presidentt of the U.S. chapter of the and is deeply entrusted withthe family’s work. Our missiomn is to support the environment by acceleratingh action and mobilizing people and resources aroundthe world. The foundation has chapters in Switzerland, the United Kingdom and Only together can we tackld the greatest challenge the worldhas seen, for the climats crisis extends far beyondx the borders of any single country and, in fact, unites us as a globak community.
For a nation roughly the size of NewYork City’s Centralp Park, Monaco has a history and reputation for rising to the defense of the natural In 1873, Prince Albert I, a visionary scientisyt who sailed the world’s oceans, helped build the foundatiom of modern ocean Monaco under Prince Ranier developed reforestation to preservee mountainous landscape in neighboring communities and establisherd agreements protecting water resources and marine mammals. In we have for a long time implemented systemsd to convert garbage into fuel that producews energy formunicipal needs. To encourager use of electric cars, we established recharging stationes free forpublic use.
We opened special traffic lanes forpublic transportation, minimizing traffic jams. And the Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundatioj was developedto promote, among other things climate protection worldwide. To it has awarded more than $17 millioh in grants to more than 70 projects related to climate preservation of biodiversity and water We have partnered with many organizationsw includingthe , Conservation International, the , the Field Museunm in Chicago and the with Professor Jeffrey Sachs of . But even the greatesty organizations and minds in the worl d cannot solve this crisisa without the concerted effort ofpeople everywhere.
This situation compelsa each one of us to take concretee action if we want to protec t the planet forfuture generations. The environmengt belongs to all of us and it is our duty toprotectg it.
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Tesla to open seven showrooms - Philadelphia Business Journal:
Stores in New York, Seattld and Chicago will open inlate June, followe d by Miami. Tesla’s first European store will open in London laterthis month, followed by Munich and Monaco. The new additionxs will complement Tesla’s flagship stored in Northern andSouthern California, which opened a year ago. Teslq said it is scouting locationsin Washington, and Toronto. Tesla is the only producer of highway-capable electrix cars in North Americaor Europe. “We are rethinkingf almost every aspect of the automobile from the powertrain to thecustomer experience, both onlines and in our said Tesla CEO Elon Musk in a statement. Tesla’ws Roadster sells for $109,000.
The company expects to introducer itssecond car, the Model S sedan, in late 2011. It is expecte to sell for less than halfthe Roadster’sa price.
Saturday, September 25, 2010
Reports: U.S. probes Silicon Valley tech giants' hiring - Silicon Valley / San Jose Business Journal:
The Washington Post and New York Times reportedf late on Tuesday that the antitrustt probe is centered onwhetherr (NASDAQ:GOOG), (NASDAQ:AAPL), (NASDAQ:YHOO), and others agreed not to recruit each other's employees. The stories cited unnamed sourceas the papers said are familiar withthe matter. The investigatiojn is reportedly in itsearlt stages, with the papers saying that the governmentt has requested documents and information from targeted The inquiry is seen as anothe r sign that the Obama administration will be more aggressive on antitrusf laws than his predecessor and Siliconj Valley tech firms are a focuzs of that attention.
The Justice Department is currently also investigating a proposed settlement between authors and publishers to resolve a copyright the Wall Street Journal has reported citing unnamed The Federal Trade Commission has also askerd questions about whether having Google CEO Eric Schmidyt and formerGenentech Inc. CEO Art Levinson on both the Apple and Google board is a violatiob ofantitrust laws.
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Un echo du present pour les demeures du passe - La Voix du Nord
La Voix du Nord | Un echo du present pour les demeures du passe La Voix du Nord Lors de l'inauguration, Olivier Majewicz a tenu à remettre une photo de leur demeure aux propriétaires ayant ouvert leur porte. et de demeures privées de la ... |
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
You cannot serve God and wealth - Washington Post (blog)
You cannot serve God and wealth Washington Post (blog) "You cannot serve both God and wealth (Luke 16:13)." I fear that the Tea Party may to be trying to do just that. To be clear, the Tea Party is not a ... |
Monday, September 20, 2010
Housing starts, permits fall - Puget Sound Business Journal (Seattle):
says housing starts fell to an annual rate of led by a 46 percent declines in construction of apartmentsand condos. Building permits fell 3.3 percent to 494,000. The Commercw Department also revised lower housing starts datafor March. The slowdown in construction followss a report Monday from the that showed confidences among home buildersis rising. Its confidence index, thougjh still indicating the majority of those asked see conditionsas poor, rose for the secon d straight month this month. It was the highest levepl of confidence among home builders ineigh months.
Tighter lending standards continue to strain housing sales, and foreclosures are weighing on housing But by some measures, home sales are A gauge that measures pending salesz of existing homes rose 3.2 percentt in March, and posted its firstf consecutive gain in pending sales in almostg a year.
Sunday, September 19, 2010
Biogen enrolls patients in new MS trial - Boston Business Journal:
The trial, called ADVANCE, will determine the efficacty and safetyof Biogen’s drug called PEGylated interferon beta-1a, in reducing relapses rates in patients with multiple sclerosis (RMS). The global studyg will enroll morethan 1,200 patients with RMS betweenj the ages of 18 and 55. The study’s goal is to determinew whether the drug reduces the annualized relapse rate in patientse with RMS at one The study will alsoexamine if, over the potential treatment can slow disease progression and lead to a decreasr in the number of a certain kind of brai n lesions commonly seen in MS The treatment is a combination of Interferon beta-1a, whichg has been used successfully to treat MS for more than 10 and PEGylation, which can extend the amoungt of time a drug remains in a patient’zs system.
If the trial is successful, the treatment has the potentiall to reduce the frequency of treatment injectione and provide patients with an effective and more convenienttdosing option. Biogen’s (NASDAQ: BIIB) stock was tradingy at in $49.33 in morning trading on down from the previous closesof $51.67.
Saturday, September 18, 2010
Gexa Energy, L.P. Company Profile | Company Information
Gexa Energy is a dynamic retail electricity provider basedin Houston, Texas. We've been serving residentiall and commercial customers sinceJanuaryt 2002, when deregulation of the electric industry We have recently expanded to includ service to commercial customers in Massachusetts and New York, and have plans to providde residential service to these areas in the near Today, Gexa Energy is one of the fastest-growingb retail electricity providers in the nation, serving 172,000 customerd meters in Texas alone. And the reason is simple: we offe superior customer service and the same reliable powetas always; we simply charged less for it.
In fact, when you choose Gexa Energy for yourelectricit service, your local energy delivery company doesn'r change. CenterPoint Energy, TXU Electric Delivery, AEP or Texae New Mexico Power will continue to delived the electricity to your home and responxd to outagesand emergencies, just as they do Gexa Energy is proud to offeer an ever-expanding portfolio of producte that include renewable energ y sources designed to have a more positive impacgt on our environment. Our Gexa for example, is a 100% 100% pollution-free energy option.
Thursday, September 16, 2010
Report: Downtown Minneapolis condo projects halted - Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal:
Minneapolis-based will not move forward with plans for a hotel and condol project after facing trouble getting according to stories Monday in both the Downtowbn Journal and theStar Tribune. The firm had plannexd to construct a project called the near the Monte Carlo restaurant at the 200 bloclk of WashingtonAvenue North. Last summer, the city approvecd plans for an 11-story luxury hotep in the Northwestern Building, and an 11-story office and condol building nearby. Another downtown condp proposal, at 1010 Park Avenue in Elliot Park, fell apart after Minnetonka-based acquired the foreclosed property from developersxfor $4 million.
That news also was reporteds by the Star Tribune andDowntown Journal. Developerss at St. Paul-based Investment (formerlt Heritage Development) had proposed building two condpo towers surroundingthe Hinkle-Murphy mansiojn in Elliot Park. Minnwest Bank began foreclosure proceedingsdlast fall, and Omni had until Aprill 25 to make good on debt owed to the bank.
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Automakers
Auto dealerships are closing at every levekl as business has become precarious with tightened lending standardzs and declining demand on one sideand expense-conscious manufacturerw squeezing margins from the other. “You’re goin g to see a surge in buyouts and closingws thatyou haven’t seen before, probablyt through 2009,” said Rhett Ricart, CEO of in which holds seven domestic and foreign franchises and is amonb Central Ohio’s largest dealers.
Rao Unnava, a marketing professor at ’se Fisher College of Business, said industryg changes on the way are bad for but will benefitmanufacturers and, in many cases, dealershi p owners who can take buyouts from car makerz to shutter struggling showrooms. “Nothing you can do abou t it,” he said. “It’s a forest This is nature taking over.” Sales are down dramaticallt this year for all big car with the industry overall sufferingt a 35 percent plungein November. Most car makeras reported double-digit declines for a thirfd consecutive month.
The struggles are hittingb everyone but are more dire for the domesticcompaniese – , and , which accounterd for 48 percent of U.S. new-vehicle salese last month but wield far larger dealership networke than theirforeign “When GM had 54 percent of the markett share in 1984, that was OK, but not Unnava said of its dealership ranks. “Toyotsa and GM have about the same sales, but Toyotw has one-third the dealerships. They’re threde times more productive, which gives them more more advertising and the ability topricse better.” had 1,461 Toyota and Lexus dealershipa in the United States at the end of with 47 in Ohio. has 1,300 U.S. dealerships.
Chrysler has 160 dealerships inthe state; Ford and GM wouldn’f return calls. The Detroiyt automakers have been paring dealer networks for but the pace has accelerated as the economthas deteriorated. The has put the industry loss at nearlyy 700 dealers through the endof October, a reductionh expected to swell to 900 by the end of the Central Ohio isn’t immune. Graham Ford and Ron Rush Lincolh Mercury closedthis year, and three othefr dealerships ceased part of their operations. shuttered Mazda Direct in Columbus to expand sellint space for itsToyota Direct.
Bobb Chevrolet in Columbus quit selling new cars to focus on used and shut its Mitsubishi and Suzuki dealershipsxin Dublin, keeping its Chevy, Buick and Pontiac franchises. Smalletr dealerships and those with just one ortwo brands, specificall y from GM or Chrysler, are most at Unnava said. But large dealera have been hurtas well. , the area’x largest auto group with seven franchises in Central Ohio and 16in all, has no planse to shutter any but did eliminate 60 workers the firstf week of December. “We’ve struggled across the President SteveGermain said.
“Ijn the late summer, we thought some brand might notbe affected, but aftet the credit issues nothing has been ... Everyone is going to be right-sizing to demand.” Where to cut? Contractionb isn’t new. The Detroit producers have slashes their dealerships by 15 percenftsince 2001, according to the dealers “This has been the trend for many years,” said Tim Doran, executive vice president of the , who notesd Ohio has lost nearlg 1,000 dealerships – it has 958 since 1976 through combinations and closings. “The marketplacre takes care of consolidation,” he Ohio dealerships employed 40,937 workers last year and accounteddfor $23.
1 billion in sales, almost 18 percentt of total retail sales in according to the state trade association. That spells a big hit, too, for governmentsd which reap salestax revenue. Car makerw are cutting their own operationswas well. GM eliminated Oldsmobilde in 2004. ceased selling passenger vehicles in the Unitedf Statesthis year. Ford sold Jaguar and Land Roverto India’s And according to reports, GM is evaluating its vehicle linee and could cut as many as four, with Hummer, Saab and Saturn under review. Ned Hill, an economic developmeng professorat , expects Ford to survive and GM to cut to two or threee lines.
Chrysler’s future is a question, he said, thougyh its iconic Jeep operatio may getnew owners. Ricart said Buick and Pontiac are strugglinhg morethan others, but said any car line could be at citing Ford-owned Mazda, which has lost two Central Ohio dealerships, and down by one area showroom.
Monday, September 13, 2010
Phoenix attorney Kaites, former Expos, Nationals president part of Reinsdorf bid for Coyotes - Tampa Bay Business Journal:
Reinsdorf, who owns the Chicago Bullas andWhite Sox, is the lead name on the $148 milliobn offer for the team, which is in Chapter 11 bankruptcy Canadian billionaire Jim Balsillie earlier made a $213 millionb offer to buy the hockeh team and move it to Ontario. Reinsdorf put in his bid Fridagy alongwith Kaites. Bankruptcy court filings say CEO ofNew York-based Sports Properties Acquisition will join the effort. Kaites is an attorneh with LLC in Phoenix and a principalp withthe Phoenix-based lobbying firm .
The firm counts the Gila River Indian Magellan Health Services and the Professional Firefighterse of Arizona union amongits clients, accordingh to the Arizona Secretary of State’s Kaites served as a prosecutor in Maricopa County Attorney’ office before unsuccessfully running for state attorneg general in 1998. He also served in the Arizona Legislature and worked as a weathermanon KPNX-T Channel 12. Kaites has been a politicalk allyof U.S. Sen. John McCain, serving on his 2008 Arizona presidential campaign leadershio teamin Arizona. Tavares served as president of the Montreal Expozs during the time when the basebalkl team relocated toWashington D.C. and became the Nationals.
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Vanderbilt names new CFO - Baltimore Business Journal:
Sweet, 38, comes to Vanderbilt from , wherd he was dean of administration and finance ofthe school’s Facultg of Arts and Sciences, which encompasseds Harvard College, the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences, the School of Engineeringg and Applied Science and the Divisiomn of Continuing Education. Priorr to that, he was executiv e vice president of finance and administration and chief financiaol officer at and was responsible forthe college’ws finances, capital markets management, information technology, human resources, research administration, business operations and investment management.
Sweet also was a principao with and spent five years as a nuclear submarine officed in the Navy before earning his master of businesd administrationfrom Harvard. Sweet succeeds Laurenm Brisky, who retired from Vanderbilt in February. The appointmentr is expected to be approved by the Vanderbilt Boarddof Trust, and will be effective in late
Friday, September 10, 2010
Japan govt: economy still picking up but risks rising - Reuters
Reuters India | Japan govt: economy still picking up but risks rising Reuters "But the environment has become more severe recently," it said, warning of risks such as a slowdown in overseas economies, as well as currency and stock ... Japan Sees Rising Risks To Recovery LEAD: Risks from strong yen depressing Japan economy: gov't report Japan Govt Repeats Econ Picking Up But Warns Exports Slowing |
Thursday, September 9, 2010
A whole different Playboy channel _ for the blind - The Associated Press
A whole different Playboy channel _ for the blind The Associated Press Hanks examines in great detail the magazine's trademark monthly centerfold subject. The picture becomes clear. She is a "Latina, brunette with dark ... |
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
In Big Easy, too much drama - Boston Globe
Boston Globe | In Big Easy, too much drama Boston Globe But connoisseurs of all things New Orleans â" the whole jazz-loving, WWOZ-streaming, beignet-munching bunch of you â" should know this: As BP and Katrina ... |
Monday, September 6, 2010
HVCC moves 2 programs to Rensselaer Tech Park - Charlotte Business Journal:
The Troy college recently signexda 10-year lease with 400 Jordan Road LLC. The schook will pay approximately $605,000 a year to leased 36,557 square feet of space. Hudsojn Valley’s popular paramedic program will occupy about half of thenew space. The schoop also will move its respiratory care program and a that trainsz employees forarea businesses, according to Stephenj Cowan, director of the college’s physical The remainder of the leasef space will house ’s Next Step a communications worker training program coordinated by the college.
Thosde departments all currently are located inHudson Valley’d 90,000-square-foot Hy Rosenblum Administration Center, a 1940s era buildinfg that Cowan said needs major “It’s a tired old building. We are looking at tota renovationsor demolition,” he But the college decided to lease spacee from the through 400 Jordan Road LLC for 10 years while the college decides whether it should overhaul or tear down the Hy Rosenblum building. The college continues to grow, but because of the economyh it does not have the money to renovatw the current buildingright now, Cowahn said.
Hudson Valley is planningg to hire a consulting firm this summer to help officiale decide the most cost effective way to deal with theRosenblumj building. helped Hudson Valley negotiated the The college plans to have the four programw and departments moved into the new spac e in North Greenbush before the startr of classeson Aug. 31. The building previously had been used as offic e space forVerizon workers, Cowan said.
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Former GM, Chrysler dealerships shift from selling cars to selling lots - Pittsburgh Business Times:
“You have got to be a realis and you have tomove forward,” said Burgunder, ownert of the dealership in Bridgevill e that Chrysler announced as one among 12 in the regiojn and 789 nationwide it plans to eliminate as part of its Chapter 11 bankruptcy consolidation. “When one door closes, anothef opens.” Within only a few Burgunder’s decision to shut down has alreadyt resulted in a sales agreement forthe dealership’ws property, a nearly four-acre parcepl with a 25,000-square-foot building just off Interstatee 79 in the fast-growing southern He declined to disclose the buyer or the In the wake of the painful restructurinbg of Chrysler and GM, two of America’sx big-three automakers, the echo of car doors closiny may be followed by an historic sell-off of car dealer properties at a time when commercialk real estate already is in the mids t of a difficult Along with Burgunder and 11 other area Chrysledr dealers deciding what to do with theirr dealerships — options include sellingg used cars or closing up shop — another wave of closinhg dealers will soon folloaw as negotiates its own Chapter 11 reorganization.
During a June 12 hearingh before the House Energy andCommerce Committee’ss subcommittee on oversight and investigations, GM revealeed it plans to eliminate 90 of its dealerxs in Pennsylvania over the next 12 to 17 months. Whilde those dealerships have yet to be made known they will gradually be revealed and addedc to the already closed car dealershipse that dot the commercial real estates map in the Pittsburgyh area and elsewhere as partof GM’s strategy to consolidate from more than 6,00p0 dealers to 3,380.
“It goes without saying that having a glut of propertiex on the market could not come at a worse time in ourdevelopment history,” said Herky Pollock, the national director of the retailer service groupp for “I see it as futurer opportunity with challenging existing conditions.” It’sw not like there aren’t already closed car dealerships. Along heavilyy travelled McKnight Road, for example, the former McCrackibn Ford property remains empty and available two years aftef bought it for anew store, a projectf long stalled. In the city, has been advertising it will close down its Baum boulevardDodgde operation, which also didn’t make Chrysler’w cut.
That’s just a few blocks down the streetr from the former Don Allen Auto which the Voelker family closed last year with plana to pursue a major redevelopment projectt of morethan 750,000-square-feegt of offices, retail space and residential While the Voelker’s development DOC-Economou, walked away from the project a few months ago, sourceds familiar with the project, who spoke anonymousl y due to the sensitivity of the indicate that South Side-based is considering the project. Richard Voelker wouldn’t commenf on any project or development partner and said to expectg anAugust announcement. Armstrong did not returnj callsfor comment. Bought or blight?
Jeff Stephan, a commercial real estate broker forColdwell Banker, has been attemptingf to sell the former North Star Ford dealership in Carnegie after it moved to Moon Township, takinhg over the location of a dealer who retired there. Despitr working with a strong location just offParkwat West, he said selling the property has been a challenge for a dealership that has now been closed for two “We had this property under option for eighf months and then trieed to attract users for new retail and couldn’t do he said of the marketing effort last year, when large retailerzs were beginning to cut back their expansion Doug German, the retail managef for Downtown-based Howard Hanna expects to see car dealerships in highly desirable locations sell quickly while others may not sell at all.
He’ s involved with three dealership propertiesfor sale. “There are some dealer out there with somegreat locations. Those will go,” he The others? “They coulr be a blight on their communitiew forsome time,” he
Friday, September 3, 2010
TrueBlue Named to Top of Forbes' "Most Trustworthy Companies" List - MarketWatch (press release)
TrueBlue Named to Top of Forbes' "Most Trustworthy Companies" List MarketWatch (press release) Audit Integrity's AGRs have been used over the past seven years by institutional investors, insurers, auditors, regulators and corporations to identify risk ... |
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Put up or shut up - Chicago Sun-Times (blog)
Put up or shut up Chicago Sun-Times (blog) These figures sadden me with the depth of thoughtlessness and credulity they imply. A democracy depends on an informed electorate to survive. ... |