Tropical storm expected to form near the Lesser Antilles

MIAMI (Reuters) - A tropical depression formed in the Atlantic Ocean on Tuesday, prompting tropical storm warnings across several Caribbean islands, and forecasters predicted it will strengthen into a hurricane later this week.

The swirling mass of thunderstorms was located about 580 miles east of Guadeloupe and moving at 20 miles per hour toward the Lesser Antilles, the U.S. National Hurricane Center said.

The depression had top winds of 35 mph. It is forecast to become Tropical Storm Isaac later on Tuesday, the ninth named storm of the Atlantic-Caribbean hurricane season that runs from June 1 to November 30.

Tropical storm warnings were issued for the eastern Caribbean islands of Martinique, Dominica, Guadeloupe, Antigua and parts of Curacao.

A tropical storm watch was in effect for the British Virgin Islands, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Computer forecast models show the storm, called Tropical Depression Nine, reaching hurricane strength on Thursday as it approaches Puerto Rico, with the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica and a large swath of Cuba also in its projected path.

The depression is expected to move west across the Caribbean this week and then veer northwest, potentially putting South Florida in the storm's path.

Hurricane expert Jeff Masters of private forecaster Weather Underground said heavy rains were expected to begin in Jamaica and eastern Cuba on Friday night.

"But our vision of where the storm might be headed after Friday gets blurry," he wrote on his blog.

The storm will likely be followed closely by many in Florida, where the Republican National Convention will be held August 27-30 in Tampa.

Masters said the chances of a hurricane disrupting the convention were in the "1 percent to 3 percent range."

"It would take 'perfect storm' sort of conditions to all fall in place to bring Tropical Depression Nine to the doorstep of Tampa as a hurricane during the convention, but that is one of the possibilities the models have been suggesting could happen."

(Reporting by Kevin Gray; Editing by Stacey Joyce)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/tropical-storm-expected-form-near-lesser-antilles-171458698.html

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Video: More on August 21: An inconvenient truth

The world's wackiest restaurants

Do you dare to dine underwater? Suspended 150 feet up in the air? The Daily Meal's list of the world's quirkiest restaurants explores the weirdest restaurants across the globe designed to indulge guests' wackiest whims.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036697/vp/48744158#48744158

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Do You Buy Your Movies and TV Shows from iTunes or Amazon? [Chatroom]

I don't know how I've lasted this long on the Internet without deciding to sell my credit card's soul to either Amazon or iTunes for movie watching and tv show buying purposes but I think it's come to the point where I should pick one and move on with it. So which should I choose? More »


Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/O-5cUihF8LM/do-you-buy-your-movies-and-tv-shows-from-itunes-or-amazon

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After wife's conviction, what next for Bo Xilai?

Jason Lee / Reuters

Chongqing Municipality Communist Party Secretary Bo Xilai waves as he attends the opening ceremony of the Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference at the Great Hall of the People in Beijing in March 2012.

By Eric Baculinao, NBC News

BEIJING -- Monday's murder conviction for the wife of Bo Xilai, once one of China's most powerful men, may have brought to an end the investigation into the death of British businessman Neil Heywood but it left in question the fate of her husband, who is being pursued for party "disciplinary violations."

Is Bo the next target of a deepening struggle? Or will he be spared from harsher punishments? Leading China analysts have varied responses but there is unanimity that Gu Kailai's conviction was also a nail in the coffin of her politician husband's career.

Wife of disgraced Chinese leader gets death sentence with reprieve


'Politically carbonized'
To counter Bo's "continuing popularity" among some segments of the population, China's Communist Party attempted to depict the case in terms of the most heinous of crimes -- murder,?said Joseph Fewsmith, a leading expert on Chinese politics at Boston University and author of several books on China.

The wife of a disgraced Chinese politician has been given a suspended death sentence for her role in the death of British businessman, Neil Heywood.? ITV's Angus Walker reports.

"It certainly is a case of murder, but in a sense, the killing of Heywood allows the party to sidestep all the other issues -- the way Bo conducted his 'strike black' campaign, the so-called Chongqing model and his political ambitions -- by focusing on the murder," Fewsmith said.

Strike black refers to Bo's anti-corruption and anti-crime campaign that implicated millionaires, local officials, police officers and gangsters. Under the?Chongqing model that Bo advocated, the state increased its role in society and led huge public projects.

"Despite the strong evidence of criminal activity (murder), it seems likely that many will continue to read this case as part of a political struggle," Fewsmith said.

And in this political struggle, China's leftist elite -- known as neo-cons -- are the likely losers, said Professor Jean-Pierre Cabestan, head of government and international studies at Hong Kong Baptist University and a prominent scholar on China.

Closed-door murder trial: Wife of ousted politician Bo Xilai faces China court

"Some neo-cons may have tried or be willing to save Bo Xilai, in order to serve their own interests. I am inclined to think they will fail, because both the outside world and the Chinese blogosphere know too much about this terrible couple, their family and their wealth,"?Cabestan told NBC News.

"In other words, Bo is a liability, he is worn out, he is politically carbonized," he added.

'Chongqing model' dead or alive?
"But we should not jump to the conclusion that the reformists will enjoy an upper hand in the coming months," Cabestan said, adding that the?Chongqing model that Bo championed was not sustainable.

Stringer / China / Reuters

China's former Chongqing Municipality Communist Party Secretary Bo Xilai (R) and his wife Gu Kailai (L), who was found guilty of murdering a British businessman.

"It's too expensive for the state, too hostile to private businesses and too distant from the rule of law," Cabestan said.

"But the pro-state, pro-state-owned enterprises leaders have not been totally defeated and there are so many vested interests around the perpetuation of a strong and entrepreneurial party-state," Cabestan said.

Professor Bo Zhiyue, expert on Chinese politics at the National University of Singapore, agreed that Bo was finished politically, but argued that his governing style was not necessarily dead.

"With Bo as a major competitor out of the way, the new leadership could be more stable," Bo Zhiyue told NBC News.

"However, they can't avoid using some of Bo's programs in its new policies because Bo's Chongqing model has really provided a lot of good experiments for China's future development, in particular with regards to income inequality, public housing, and new growth model."

Scandal sends China's netizens into feeding frenzy

China's leadership is acutely aware of the growing income inequality that the country's economic prosperity has produced, with newly wealthy political and business elites prompting resentment among the majority.

Indeed, official and online media have given coverage to a growing number of grassroots protests driven by the discontent felt by those left behind in the economic race, or those alienated by the corrupt collusion of wealth and power.

Corruption may be widespread in China, but one official crossed a line when he wiretapped President Hu Jin Tau. Now that official's wife is a murder suspect. NBC's Andrea Mitchell reports.

"There is consensus that the government needs to allocate more resources to address social injustice and income inequality," according to Li Mingjiang, China politics professor at the S. Rajaratnam School of International Studies in Singapore, noting the efforts of China's leadership in this regard.

"In that sense, the Chongqing model is not dead at all," he told NBC News.

Appeasing the poor
The government has been trying appease many people in undeveloped and poor regions of Western China, for example,?by increasing state investments in these regions. Nevertheless, the consensus among China watchers is that Bo went too far in his politics and governing style.?

More China coverage from NBCNews.com's Behind The Wall

"Bo Xilai (was) too extreme in his policy in Chongqing, particularly his Cultural Revolution style political campaign," Li said. "These extreme policies are dead, at least for the coming years."

However, China's ruling elite had to deal with the fact that technology made it impossible to keep the case under wraps. ?

"The amount of information and the intensity of discussion that were revealed in the social media exerted a lot of pressure on the party to release more information about the Bo Xilai case partly in order to forestall and clear rumors," Li added.

In what's being called the biggest Chinese political scandal in years, Bo Xilai, the Communist? Party secretary in Chongqing, was sacked Thursday. NBC's Ed Flanagan reports.

"The party has to be very careful not to unnecessarily antagonize Bo's supporters and sympathizers because these people are vocal and scrutinizing ... various forms of social media," he said.

To Cabestan, Bo's "political death or carbonization have been in part caused by the Internet and the speed with which outside information and rumors have circulated in China."

In sum, the experts with whom NBC News spoke agreed that while Bo may be neutralized through the case against his wife and the diciplinary measure he faces, the country's leadership will likely tread carefully given Bo's enduring popularity.

So the suspended death sentence handed down to Bo Xilai's wife signifies a "decision made by the highest leadership," said Professor Jerome Cohen, a veteran authority on Chinese law at New York University.

"The state leaders know that Bo Xilai is still very popular and has lot of support, and to that extent, the court's decision is the most popular option and the best compromise they could have come out with," he added.

More world stories from NBC News:

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Source: http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/08/20/13371562-with-wifes-conviction-what-is-next-for-chinas-bo-xilai?lite

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Global stocks slip, euro wavers on ECB comment

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Global shares and the euro closed almost flat on Monday after the European Central Bank sought to squash speculation about a form of market intervention to contain the euro zone debt crisis, damping recent investor enthusiasm for risk.

Oil and Treasury prices also hugged their break-even point as the U.S. stock market closed virtually unchanged and posted one of its lightest trading volumes of the year.

Apple Inc powered to an all-time high. The rise in its market capitalization to more than $623 billion made it the most valuable public company of all time. Shares closed at a new peak of $665.15, up 2.63 percent on the day.

German magazine Der Spiegel said over the weekend that the ECB was considering buying debt issued by member countries if their interest rates became too elevated, but a bank spokesman said it was misleading to report on yet-to-be decided matters.

Germany's central bank, the Bundesbank, also on Monday reiterated its opposition to bond purchases, and a spokesman for the German Finance Ministry said it was not aware of any plans for the ECB to target bond spreads.

A recent rally in global equities last week pushed the FTSEurofirst 300 index of top European shares to a 13-month peak and lifted the S&P 500 to nearly four-year highs on hopes the ECB would finally cap the two-year-old debt crisis.

On Monday, Facebook Inc plumbed a new low of $18.75, less than half its IPO value of $38 a share, before rebounding to close up 5.0 percent at $20.011.

The Dow Jones industrial average closed down 3.56 points, or 0.03 percent, at 13,271.64. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index fell 0.03 points, or 0.00 percent, at 1,418.13. The Nasdaq Composite Index slid 0.38 points, or 0.01 percent, at 3,076.21.

In Europe, the FTSEurofirst 300 closed down 0.5 percent at 1,104.86 points.

MSCI's all-country world stock index and its emerging market index both were off about 0.1 percent.

European shares initially rose on the Der Spiegel report that the ECB is considering setting interest rate thresholds for the purchase of euro zone sovereign debt, a move that would discourage speculation.

"We are fishing in the fog at the moment so we need to see some more of the meat regarding the ECB's plans," said Heinz-Gerd Sonnenschein, equities strategist at Germany's Postbank.

Spanish sovereign bonds rallied as traders focused on the prospect of the ECB's intervention in debt markets to help contain the borrowing costs of troubled sovereign debtors.

Investor optimism has improved in recent weeks, said Bruce Bittles, chief investment strategist at Baird, adding it "could be problematic given that sentiment is approaching extreme optimism at a time when the seasonal headwinds begin to surface."

The euro traded near break-even at $1.2344.

The U.S. Dollar Index was down 0.2 percent at 82.469.

The euro's slide is expected to be limited, with the chance of the ECB taking action once the summer holiday season ends leaving investors wary of aggressively selling the currency.

"There are back and forth comments regarding ECB actions keeping the euro under pressure," said Omer Esiner, chief market analyst at Commonwealth Foreign Exchange in Washington. "All of this is taking place against the subdued late summer trading backdrop so I wouldn't read too much into any of this."

U.S. Treasury prices also see-sawed near break-even as weakness in stocks bolstered the safe-haven appeal of U.S. government debt.

The benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury note was flat in price, yielding 1.8122 percent.

Oil prices also retreated, even though Brent pared losses to briefly rebound at one point, supported by curbs on North Sea output.

Brent for October delivery settled down 1 cent at $113.70 a barrel.

U.S. light sweet crude oil fell 4 cents to settle at $95.97 a barrel.

(Additional reporting by Nick Olivari, Chris Reese and Angela Moon; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama, Kenneth Barry and Leslie Adler)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/world-stocks-slip-euro-wavers-ecb-190643593--finance.html

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Oil Clean-Up to Resume on Mississippi Islands

BILOXI, Miss. (AP) - With nesting season ending on the barrier islands, the BP oil disaster cleanup will ramp up starting on Monday.

BP spokesman Ray Melick tells the Sun Herald (http://bit.ly/N3syQ9 ) the work hadn't been completely shut down, but was curtailed to permit sea birds to occupy the islands from April until about mid-August.

A Gulf Islands National Seashore official in April said BP crews had removed more than 3.5 million pounds of oil and tar from the islands, but much work remained to be done on Petit Bois and Horn islands.

___

Information from: The Sun Herald, http://www.sunherald.com

(Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

Click here to read this story on www.local15tv.com

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/48717354/ns/local_news-mobile_al/

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Placed A Stop To Hemorrhoid Pain By Using These Straightforward ...

Our ISP has notified us that we've broken their DB servers with over 75,000 SQL queries every... however long their checking period is.

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Source: http://www.twenty4seven365.com/2012/08/19/placed-a-stop-to-hemorrhoid-pain-by-using-these-straightforward-suggestions/

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That???s not the real me: How vanity sabotages Facebook advertising

keyboard share button

When the elaborate self-portrait known as a Facebook profile seldom resembles the real thing, can advertisers really reach the right people?

I?m not the real me on Facebook.

?Facebook Louie? records music, cofounded a record label, and is friends with notable musicians, producers, and visual artists. ?Facebook Louie? is kind of cool, and, when he heard from at all, confines his views to the least controversial of topics.

The person writing this column is not ?Facebook Louie,? it?s the Louie that has invested at least 150 hours into Diablo 3 (as nerdy as that might be), and adores?The Real World/Road Rules Challenge?(as embarrassing as that is). This ?Authentic Louie? is less cool, but more real.

None of us are our authentic, honest selves on Facebook. We censor things which are embarrassing and which disagree with the personas we have constructed there. Social science agrees with me (well, two theories do, at least). That could be bad news for Facebook.

You vs. you

The sheer amount of information we pour into social networks like Facebook might make them seem like ideal advertising platforms, but they?re actually at an odd disadvantage in some ways: Facebook?s public nature makes us behave more like characters and less like our authentic selves. In that regard, Facebook has less accurate information about us than competitors like Google. That means that Facebook ads are often less relevant to us, and, therefore, less valuable to advertisers ? a serious problem for a company that rakes in all of its revenue from targeted advertising.

All the world?s a stage

A theatrical metaphor developed by Canadian sociologist?Erving Goffman?is useful for understanding our behavior on Facebook. First put forth in his book The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life, Goffman offered the following description of his dramaturgical theory of communication in his later work, Frame Analysis.

I am suggesting that often what talkers undertake to do is not to provide information to a recipient, but to present dramas to an audience. Indeed, it seems that we spend most of our time not engaged in giving information, but in giving shows.

According to Goffman?s theory, when communicating we adopt a role suitable to our environment and capable of achieving our goals. We are actors on a stage. Shakespeare, as ever, proves prescient.

social network facebookThis model describes my activities on Facebook with uncanny accuracy. My goal on Facebook is to cultivate new and strengthen existing social connections. Many of those connections are within Portland?s music?scene?(a word particularly apt to the metaphor), so I portray myself in a way that fits that scene and my goals within it. This means leaving some things ? Diablo 3, for example ? out of that portrayal.

Because of Facebook?s interpersonal nature, the version of self I reveal there will never be as complete as my portrayal when using Google search. It is unlikely that my Google search habits will become publicly known, so I don?t give censorship a second thought. Google knows about my love-hate relationship with Diablo 3. Facebook does not, because this trait does not fit the role I portray there.

Absent self-censorship, the information I reveal indirectly via Google search paints a more complete picture of me than what I disclose directly via Facebook. This is one reason that Google Adwords can be a better product than Facebook?s ads. Google knows more about me, and can therefore offer better targeting data to its advertisers.

Sex, drugs, and reality TV

Role-based censorship is just one of the ways that we limit the depictions of ourselves on Facebook. We may censor ourselves just as much or more when it comes to topics we find private or embarrassing.

Drawing on research dating back to the mid-1950?s, Robert J. Fisher writes of this bias in the introduction to?Social Desirability Bias and the Validity of Indirect Questioning.

Unfortunately, the basic human tendency to present oneself in the best possible light can significantly distort the information gained from self-reports. ? The result is data that are systematically biased toward respondents? perceptions of what is ?correct? or socially acceptable.

Questions about sexual behavior or illicit drug use often return skewed results, as research subjects will seek to avoid disparaging or incriminating responses.

Facebook login page article main headerBecause Facebook is a public medium based largely on self reporting through status updates and other posts, it?s susceptible to the same bias. Therefore, it will see fewer posts relating to subjects traditionally biased against, like sex and drugs. Because we all want to be cool, there will be more posts about subjects not traditionally biased against.

For example, I am a recent devotee of?The Real World/Road Rules Challenge. I?m ashamed to admit it, but Johnny Bananas? epic season 16 performance hooked me.?The Challenge?might actually be my favorite show. However, you will see no mention of it on my Facebook profile. Why? Well, what would people think, if they knew? Suddenly I?m ?reality TV guy.? Who wants to be ?reality TV guy??

There are sites out there that know my secret. Google, because my general research about the show, and Amazon, from whom I can purchase full seasons of the show. Once again, Facebook?s competitors have more information about me due to my tendency to reveal more information indirectly than directly. Google and Amazon can target ads based on those details. Facebook cannot.

Facebook?s problem

Of course, Facebook has problems beyond these, not least of which the astronomical expectations for the service at the time of its IPO. Facebook?s ads must improve if it is to meet those expectations. There are two ways that it can do so. The first is to roll out new products from which it can yield new sources of targeting data. The service?s rumored ?Want? button may be the most significant step in this direction.

The second way Facebook can improve its targeting data is much more difficult, and challenges the two communications theories outlined above. Facebook needs us to share more honestly ? even when we find that sharing out-of-sync with who we pretend to be, or when that sharing reveals embarrassing things.

However, it remains to be seen if the information we give Facebook voluntarily will ever equal the value of the information we give its competitors involuntarily. Facebook certainly has the ambition to change our behavior. The future of the company may depend on whether it is successful.

Source: http://www.digitaltrends.com/social-media/thats-not-the-real-me-how-vanity-sabotages-facebook-advertising/

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Source: http://www.nwactc.net/the-measures-to-beginning-a-profitable-home-based-internet-business/

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