Sunday, September 30, 2012

Very low On Money? - Reference and Education

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Source: http://phrenesia.com/very-low-on-money-study-the-following-tips-about-pay-day-loans/

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Spain debt rises on aid to banks, regions, finance cost

MADRID (Reuters) - Spain's debt levels are set to rise next year, piling pressure on the government to apply for aid as it pours funds in to cash-strapped regions, an ailing banking system and rising refinancing costs, its budget showed on Saturday.

Spain's debt as a ratio of gross domestic product will reach 90.5 percent by end 2013, according to the document presented to parliament for approval, almost three times that registered before the property bubble burst in 2008.

The budget aims to make savings of around 13 billion euros ($16.7 billion) next year, largely by deepening already unpopular cuts in public sector wages, education, health and social services, fuelling anti-austerity protests.

"This is an austerity budget, but will serve to help us get over this long economic crisis and once again show that Spain is a trustworthy partner within Europe," Treasury Minister Cristobal Montoro told journalists after delivering the budget.

Spain is at the center of the euro zone debt crisis as nervous investors demand ever higher premiums to hold Spanish debt on concerns the government cannot control its finances in the midst of a deepening recession.

Calls by wealthy northeastern region Catalonia for independence and the rising number of demonstrations on the streets of major cities have stoked doubts Spain can fix its problems without help.

Thousands of protesters gathered on Saturday in Madrid's Neptune plaza, between the Prado Museum and Parliament, for a third time this week to vent anger at politicians they accuse of pillaging the welfare state to bail out badly-run banks.

"This has to change. We have to show them we are not an anti-system minority but represent Spain's discontent and we are many. You only have to see the unemployment rate to see that," said state school teacher, Montse, 44, who was at the march with her unemployed husband and 11-year-old daughter.

Unemployment in Spain is more than double the European Union average, with half of all working-age under-26s unable to find jobs and shattered businesses laying off employees they cannot afford to pay.

Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy has delayed any plea for aid, which would kick-start a European Central Bank plan to buy debt and ease financing costs, though this week has passed reforms and the budget plan in what many see is an effort to pre-empt the likely terms of a bailout.

Rajoy, who said he is considering the conditions behind any aid request, is widely expected to wait until after regional elections in Galicia and the Basque Country before taking any decision.

RISING BORROWING NEEDS

The budget details spending cuts of 3.1 percent in health, 14.4 percent in education and 6.3 percent in unemployment benefits, as the recession, which began in the first quarter, drags on.

Spain will also slash state funding to commerce, tourism and small, and medium-sized companies by 18.8 percent and infrastructure by 13.5 percent.

The government will increase its reliance on international markets for funding next year, with gross debt issuance requirements of 207.2 billion euros, after budgeting in 2012 for gross issuance of 186.1 billion euros.

The cost of financing its debt, as benchmark 10-year bond yields rise to near unsustainable levels of above 6 percent, is expected to increase to 38.6 billion euros, or 3.6 percent of GDP, in 2013, the budget showed.

The Treasury must pay debt redemptions of 159.2 billion euros in 2013, up slightly from 153.2 billion euros in 2012.

The increase in the debt-to-GDP ratio was due the economic crisis and the effect of state instruments on public accounts, the Treasury said in the document.

The instruments include the power deficit bond programme, FADE, the service provider fund for regional governments, Spain's part in aid granted to Ireland, Greece and Portugal and the recapitalization loan for the country's banks, it said.

Brussels on Thursday said the budget was a large step in the right direction. But many economists expressed doubt Spain's conservatives would be able to raise the cash the budget demanded as pension and debt-servicing costs rise.

"My general view is that this is an optimistic budget, in the sense that predictions for the contraction in 2013 are very optimistic," said Xavier Vives, economist at business school IESE, adding he expected the plans to be revised as with every other budget over the last four years.

The budget is based on the assumption GDP will shrink by 0.5 percent in 2013 year-on-year, though most economists expect a deeper slump.

DEFICIT JUMP

Spain will meet its 2012 public deficit target as dictated by European guidelines, Montoro said, but the shortfall will jump by more than one percentage point if aid to its struggling banks were taken in to account.

The Spanish deficit this year would be 6.3 percent of GDP, not including these payments to its banks, he said, but would rise to 9.4 percent of GDP last year and 7.4 percent of GDP this year if the aid was considered.

"Everything within the deficit derived from financial operations aren't included ... they're considered one-offs," Montoro said.

Spain has asked for up to 100 billion euros for its crisis-hit banks, though the debate among Spain's European partners rages over whether that money would go directly to its lenders or first via public coffers.

On Friday, an independent report showed Spanish banks will need up to 59.3 billion euros in extra capital to ride out the economic downturn.

The budget details on Saturday showed Spain's debt ratio included 30 billion euros of the planned 100-billion-euro aid request for the country's banks.

($1 = 0.7773 euros)

(Additional reporting Carlos Ruano, Nigel Davies and Paul Day; Writing by Paul Day; Editing by James Jukwey and Sophie Hares)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/spain-debt-rises-aid-banks-regions-finance-cost-042543295--business.html

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How I Create: Q&A With Career Coach Michelle Ward - Psych Central

How I Create: Q&A With Career Coach Michelle WardWhat do you want to be when you grow up? That?s the question Michelle Ward, the When I Grow Up Coach, helps her clients answer. Ward is certified by the International Coach Federation. She?s spent over 750 hours coaching hundreds of creative people to devise the career they think they can?t have ? or discover it in the first place.

She?s also a musical theater actress with her BFA from NYU/Tisch. And she?s one of the most creative and passionate people I?ve had the pleasure of meeting online. Ward infuses everything she does with creativity and her enthusiastic one-of-a-kind approach.

Below, in our monthly series, Ward shares the behind-the-scenes of her creative process, how she overcomes the comparison trap, her powerful advice for readers and much more.

Ward also has served as an expert source and contributor for publications such as?Newsweek and Forbes and websites such as Yahoo!?and?AOL Jobs. She?s spoken at?SXSW, The World Domination Summit?and?Etsy Success Symposium.

She?can be found coachin?, bloggin? & givin? away free stuff at whenigrowupcoach.com.

1. ?Do you incorporate creativity-boosting activities into your daily routine? If so, what activities do you do?

You might wanna slap me for saying this, but I feel like everything I do centers around doing it creatively. I?ve built my business on writing and making videos and speaking and playing my pink ukulele?so every time I decide to work on something, I think about what I want to express and how. I wrote/filmed/edited a music video for?my communty site.

When I put my career change exercises into?workbook?form, I decided to make the whole freakin? thing (yes, all 50+ pages) rhyme.

When I offered?An Effective Escape: Leaving Your Day Job Without Living in Your Parents? Basement?for the first time, it was as a virtual workshop. I?m usually doing something around speaking, singing, or writing? but not in a do-a-creative-exercise-every-day way.

2. ?What are your inspirations for your work?

It depends on what I?m working on, but the things that are popping into my head? Dr. Seuss,?Cee Lo Green,?Garfunkel & Oates, Cee Lo Green, stuff from my childhood (I so wanna write a Choose Your Own Adventure Book!), Jessica Swift, Color Me Katie, Danielle LaPorte, Alexandra Franzen, my clients, Broadway?.oh, I?ll stop there now.

3.?There are many culprits that can crush creativity, such as distractions, self-doubt and fear of failure. What tends to stand in the way of your creativity?

The Comparison Vampire! Oh, I call the voices we have in our heads that suck the good stuff outta us Vampires, and The Comparison Vampire tends to be the worst of all.

Look at how professional?her?videos are. Look at how perfect?his copy is. Blech. It makes you wanna just throw in the towel and never write another word or speak another sentence or pluck another tune ever again.

4.?How do you overcome these obstacles?

I think a big part of it is being confident and authentic in what you?re doing. Sure, his copy might be ?perfect? and her videos might be ?professional,? but mine are 100 percent Michelle at all times, and I?m proud of what I produce.

I?m all there, singing or speaking or writing my heart out, and I?m confident that what I put out into the world represents my uniquity, my perspective, and my knowledge. Let?s face it: They?re not better than you, They?re?different. Two separate things.

5. ?What are some of your favorite resources on creativity?

Anything that Keri Smith puts out is worth picking up and working through. It looks easy on the surface to follow her exercises (i.e. smear food on this page of the book, tie a string around the book and take it for a walk, etc.), but actually confronts our Vampires and can be a great (yet scary!) learning experience.

I also recommend the Right Brain Business Plan?to any and all creative entrepreneurs (I have one!), aspiring or otherwise. The Artist in the Office is also a must for those of us barely surviving our day jobs, and nothing beats The Artist?s Way for tapping into your inner creative.

6. ?What is your favorite way to get your creative juices flowing?

For writing, I keep tons of images with inspiring sayings on a Pinterest board, and that?ll be my first stop if I need something to write about. For my songs, I tend to have an idea as to what I wanna sing about (it?s recently been about my?boob cancer, oddly enough), and then rhymes come to me on the subway, when I?m about to fall asleep, or in the shower. I always have my iPhone handy to take notes.

7. ?What?s your advice for readers on cultivating creativity?

Don?t wait for lightening to strike or the perfect moment where inspiration knocks you over ? because it often doesn?t happen that way. Instead, show up to do the work and start wherever feels easiest.

Sometimes I start a blog post in the middle because the beginning just won?t come to me. Sometimes I write a song with the chorus leading the way because the verses are elusive. Do something every day for a small bite of time (yes, you can?get a lot accomplished in 15 minutes a day, thankyouverymuch) and you?ll be able to have a tangible product in no time.

Also, don?t be married to the format. Sometimes I know I need to write a blog post, but writing feels hard in that moment?so I make a video instead. Pay attention to what feels fun and easy at the time, and know if you move forward with that it?s not cheating.

8. ?Anything else you?d like readers to know about creativity?

Wanna know a secret? You?re creative. You might not believe me, but it?s true! We all have it in us?just start believing that I?m talking to you when I mention ?creative people,? start exploring in a fun and easy way, and you?ll be able to own that title more than you think!

Margarita TartakovskyMargarita Tartakovsky, M.S. is an Associate Editor at Psych Central and blogs regularly about eating and self-image issues on her own blog, Weightless.

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????Last reviewed: By John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on 29 Sep 2012
????Published on PsychCentral.com. All rights reserved.

APA Reference
Tartakovsky, M. (2012). How I Create: Q&A With Career Coach Michelle Ward. Psych Central. Retrieved on September 30, 2012, from http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2012/09/29/how-i-create-qa-with-career-coach-michelle-ward/

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Source: http://psychcentral.com/blog/archives/2012/09/29/how-i-create-qa-with-career-coach-michelle-ward/

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The most inspiring company in the US? It's Apple

Spencer Platt / Getty Images file

A recent survey has found that Apple is regarded as the most inspiring company in the United States.

By Jacquelyn Smith, Forbes.com

We?ve known for a while that consumers are infatuated with Apple and its products. That was confirmed Monday when the company announced that it sold more than 5 million units of its new iPhone 5 since the product launched three days earlier. And on Tuesday a Georgia-based brand consulting firm dubbed the technology giant America?s most inspiring company.

Performance Inspired, Inc., an Atlanta consulting and training firm that helps organizations elevate performance through the science of inspiration, surveyed 2,175 consumers to identify America?s 25 most inspiring companies.

Forbes.com: The top 25 companies for work-life balance

Conducted online, the survey asked respondents which five companies they find most inspirational, and why. It also asked them to describe their most recent encounter with each company.

The goal of the survey was to find a correlation between successful companies and those that inspire their consumers. ?According to our latest research, consumers are not only feeling inspired by certain businesses, but are acting inspired by spending more with these companies while evangelizing to others about their inspiring experience,? said Terry Barber, chief inspiration officer for Performance Inspired. ?We now see there is a validated set of drivers to inspiration and when these drivers are activated, it elevates employee engagement that shows up in the customer experience.?

In Pictures: America?s 25 Most Inspiring Companies

For the second consecutive year, Apple is at the top of the heap. ?Apple is the most inspiring again this year because it has become a part of the consumer?s personal identity,? Barber said. ?Consumers wrote comments such as: ?Apple makes me feel more creative,? and ?Apple makes me feel entrepreneurial.? People were also inspired by the company?s ability to continue to innovate even without Steve Jobs at the helm.?

Barber said Apple fans also said they felt like they were a part of a special community. ?Some wrote in about how ?they? felt victorious after the settlement between Apple and Samsung,? he added.

Forbes.com: America?s most surprising six-figure jobs

Other companies on the list, like Target (No. 3) and Johnson & Johnson (No. 22), earned their rankings through global or community improvement plans. For a decade, Target has donated 5 percent of its pretax profits to the cities where it operates. In 2005, Target formed a partnership with the Salvation Army, creating an online donation system to help needy families.

Some big companies, often seen as profit-hungry behemoths, ranked well in the survey, too. Wal-Mart, for instance, earned the No. 2 spot?because respondents believe company keeps its promises and is authentic. In the branding firm?s analysis, Performance Inspired speculates that customers especially like Wal-Mart?s competitive prices and its commitment to giving back to the community. ?For many respondents, Wal-Mart was also seen as a much welcome source of employment for seniors,? Barber added. ?There was also very much of a polarization on the perception of how Wal-Mart treats its employees. The vast majority of negative comments regarding the company were on this issue. Yet, some of the more affirming comments came from people who identified themselves as either present or past employees of Wal-Mart.?

Forbes.com: The 10 most innovative companies in America

Respondents also liked companies that stick to their values. Despite it being at the center of controversy this year, Chick-fil-A, a fast-food chain with more than 1,600 locations, earned the No. 7 spot.

?Over the last three years since we?ve been doing this research, Chick-fil-A has always shown up as being very inspiring, so it just makes sense that there is a lot of equity and trust built up here and no doubt, they are leveraging some of that good equity during these times,? Barber said.

The company, founded by devout Christian S. Truett Cathy, keeps stores closed on Sundays so employees can spend time with their families and go to church.

Forbes.com: 10 steps to happiness at work

Small companies with good stories to tell also did well in the rankings. Blake Mycoskie, the founder of Toms Shoes (for ?Tomorrow?s Shoes?), which launched in Venice, Calif., in 2006, donates a pair of shoes to needy people in places like Argentina and Haiti for every pair that it sells. Toms ranks No. 18 on the list.

Goodwill (No. 23) ? a newcomer to the list ? is another ?outlier among so many high-power business brands,? Barber said.??Consumers are really appreciative of the Goodwill retail stores and the perceived feel-good value they are bringing to local communities.?

Another newcomer: Whole Foods. ?I believe one of the greatest stories lies behind Whole Foods,? Barber said. ?The company?s chief executive, John Mackey, appears to be on a passionate campaign around what he calls ?Conscious Capitalism,? an emphasis on grounding business around a profound purpose.?

Forbes.com: The 10 best websites for your career

Though the survey didn?t ask directly about companies? relationships with employees, those with a reputation for treating employees well got high rankings. For example, Google which is known for having one of the best work environments in the country, providing free meals and entertainment and encouraging employees to spend 10 percent of their time on creative projects unrelated to their daily jobs, earned the No. 4 spot this year.

What do consumers do when they are inspired by a company? The survey found that 86 percent of respondents say they would recommend the company to friends and family. Eighty-two percent would be loyal to that company, and another 92 percent would share their experience with others. Almost three-quarters (71 percent) reported they would spend more on a company that inspires them.

?This survey highlights the fact that a company needs to spend some time uncovering and mining its own inspirational DNA and it needs to show up, not just in an ad, but in the interaction between associate and customer,? Barber concluded.

Top 10 Most Inspiring Companies:

1. Apple

2. Wal-Mart

3. Target

4. Google

5. Microsoft

6. Amazon

7. Chick-fil-A

8. Starbucks

9. McDonald?s

10.Coca-Cola

?

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Source: http://bottomline.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/09/28/14113665-the-most-inspiring-company-in-the-us-its-apple?lite

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Saturday, September 29, 2012

Kenya attacks last stronghold of Somali militants

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) ? Kenyan troops invaded al-Shabab's last stronghold in Somalia on Friday, coming ashore in a predawn beach landing at Kismayo that appeared likely to deprive the Islamist insurgents of their last big money-making enterprise.

African Union troops from Kenya, Uganda and Burundi have combined over the last 18 months to kick al-Shabab out of the capital Mogadishu and take a series of smaller towns that the insurgents fled to. By Friday afternoon, Kenyan Defense Forces said that its ground troops were also steadily approaching Kismayo from the west. Al-Shabab, which is allied with al-Qaida, had earned money by collecting taxes on goods arriving at the Indian Ocean port, so the loss of the stronghold would be a double blow to the armed fundamentalist group that began attacks in 2007 and ultimately controlled all but a few blocks of the capital.

The assault is likely to send al-Shabab fighters underground. Hardcore fighters may unleash suicide bombs and ambushes but less dedicated fighters could melt back into their communities, further reducing al-Shabab's strength. The African Union force said that some al-Shabab fighters have already contacted military officials in recent days, saying they wanted to defect from al-Shabab.

The assault rocks al-Shabab onto its heels and comes as the government is finally getting organized, having moved in recent weeks from a U.N.-backed transitional government to one in which parliament, which itself was recently elected by elders, chose a new president. Last month, Somali leaders endorsed a new provisional constitution that expands rights for Somalis.

Residents in Kismayo contacted by The Associated Press said Kenyan troops had taken control of the port but not the whole city. Mohamed Haji said helicopters were hitting targets during the early morning fighting. He said al-Shabab fighters moved to the front line to repel the assault.

Col. Cyrus Oguna, the Kenyan military's top spokesman, said the surprise attack met minimal resistance and that al-Shabab incurred "heavy losses." Al-Shabab denied that the city had fallen and said fighting was taking place. No casualties were reported for Kenyan troops.

Oguna said guns had been placed beforehand at a jetty and warehouse in Kismayo and that Somali national army troops participated in the assault.

An al-Shabab spokesman said on Twitter that the militants still control Kismayo.

"The enemy forces have launched a desperate attack on Kismayo this morning and the mujahedeen forces are resisting their attacks," Sheikh Abdiaziz Abu-Musab said over the militants' radio station in Kismayo.

Oguna said the assault is part of a four-prong attack involving Kenyan forces currently in villages outside Kismayo. The amphibious assault landed between 10:30 p.m. Thursday and 2 a.m. Friday, he said, with some of the troops equipped with night-vision goggles.

African Union troops pushed al-Shabab out of Mogadishu in August 2011, ending more than four years of control of the capital by the fighters. The Ugandan and Burundian troops that make up the bulk of the African Union force in Mogadishu have slowly been taking control of towns outside of Mogadishu.

Still, there are vestiges of the havoc that has reigned over Somalia since longtime dictator Siad Barre was ousted in 1991 by warlords who then turned on each other. One Somali journalist was killed by gunmen Friday and another was beheaded, officials and residents said, bringing the number of Somali journalists killed this year to 15. No group has yet claimed responsibility for the latest killings.

The expanding control by AU troops sent al-Shabab fighters fleeing south toward Kismayo, north to other regions of Somalia and across the Gulf of Aden to Yemen. Al-Shabab still holds sway across many small, poor villages of southern Somalia. Al-Shabab lost another major source of financing last year when it was pushed out of Bakara market in Mogadishu, where ? like at the Kismayo port ? it also charged taxes.

A U.S. military spokesman, Lt. Cdr. Dave Hecht, said the U.S. Africa Command, known as AFRICOM, is closely monitoring the situation but that "we are not participating in Kenya's military activities in the region." The U.S. has helped train and equip Ugandan and Burundian troops and helps pay and train members of Somalia's military.

The march toward Kismayo by the Kenyan forces has been nearly a year in the making, with the soldiers bogged down by rain and poor roads for months. Kenyan troops entered Somalia last October after a string of kidnappings inside neighboring Kenya.

With an attack imminent, more than 10,000 residents fled Kismayo in the last several weeks. Resident Faduma Abdulle said Friday that she is now leaving too. She said al-Shabab announced false propaganda on its radio station Friday to trick residents into moving toward the invading troops.

"They told residents through their radio to loot a Kenyan ship that washed up on the coast, but instead the residents who rushed there were attacked by helicopters," she said. "Some of them have died but I don't know how many. The situation is tense and many are fleeing. It's a dangerous situation."

The commander of the U.N-backed African Union troops, Lt. Gen. Andrew Gutti, said that more of the soldiers were headed to Kismayo to reinforce those that stormed ashore. He said the aim is to "liberate the people of Kismayo to enable them to lead their lives in peace, stability and security. Operations are ongoing to neutralize targets in Kismayo."

___

Odula reported from Nairobi, Kenya. Jason Straziuso contributed from Nairobi, Kenya.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/kenya-attacks-last-stronghold-somali-militants-064126172.html

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Vodafone welcomes back Sony

It has been quite a while since Vodafone stocked any Sony (or Sony Ericsson) devices, thankfully that has all changed and the UK network has now welcomed the Xperia T and Miro into their list, and both can be picked up direct at Vodafone from today. ?There is also a third handset been taken on in the Xperia J and this should be on sale shortly.

Heidi from the Vodafone Tech Team (you might know her better as ^HS on the @VodafoneUK twitter account) has visited the UK Sony HQ and managed to get some hands on time to show these great new devices off.

?For more information check out the Vodafone UK website where you can get a free Xperia T from ?37 a month or a free Miro from just ?13 a month.

Link: Vodafone Store (Sony)

About Dan

I have been reviewing and writing about phones for 6 years and working in mobile phone retail for the past 5 years. Since writing about phones i have attended most major international conferences and was the official ?blogger? for Sony Ericsson at the 2010 Mobile World Conference.

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Friday, September 28, 2012

Obama Has Small Edge in Swing States (WSJ)

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Tim Cook apologizes for Maps mess

Tim Cook apologizes for Maps mess

Well, it's hardly a secret that customers are unhappy with Apple's new mapping solution in iOS 6. And, while the company has admitted that, perhaps, it's not quite up to snuff yet, it has played down Maps' flaws and urged customers to be patient. Today, in an open letter to the Apple faithful, Tim Cook struck a far more candid and conciliatory tone, apologizing for failing to deliver a "world-class" product. Cook went so far as to suggest that unhappy customers could check out offerings from competitors like Bing, MapQuest, Google and Nokia -- at least until Cupertino sorts this mess out. You'll find the complete text of the letter after the break.

Update: As CNET reports, Apple has now also gone one step further and added a new list of featured mapping alternatives to the App Store, including apps from TeleNav, Garmin, Magellan and others.

You can read our editorial on Apple apologies since the launch of the iPhone here.

Continue reading Tim Cook apologizes for Maps mess

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Thursday, September 27, 2012

The Font on Your Car's Dash Might Increase Your Risk of Crashing [Video]

Drivers beware: new research from MIT's Age Lab suggests that a badly chosen typeface for your dashboard can worsen distraction and increase your chance of crashing. More »


Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/TmaHlPFGrjU/the-font-on-your-cars-dash-might-increase-your-risk-of-crashing

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The business of the honey-suckers in Bengaluru (India) | Global ...

By WASH

A new IRC paper explores some contributions being made by honey-sucker tanker operators ? that renders a small-scale sanitation service informally and within the private sector ? on waste (faecal) extraction and, in some cases, reuse. Operating outside the legal framework of waste management, this paper provides preliminary insight into the limitations and potentials of the ?honey-sucker business? as a sanitation service model, based on selected experiences in Bengaluru (India). Through semi-structured interviews and the?application of?Osterwalder and Pigneur?s (2010) business model building blocks tool, this paper reveals that: a two-sided business model is being employed by the business (benefiting both septic tank/ pit owners?and?farmers); positive outcomes of sludge reuse in farms seem to outweigh negative outcomes; and the honey-sucker business seems to be a financially viable sanitation service model (especially amongst middle-class households with no piped connections). As an exploratory study, the authors of the paper encourage further research into aspects that interlink with the honey-sucker business to achieve greater clarity on its positive contributions to society, and its prospects of scaling up and replication across different contexts. Kvarnstr?m, E.

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The business of the honey-suckers in Bengaluru (India)

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Posted by WASH on Sep 27 2012. Filed under WASH. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can leave a response or trackback to this entry

Source: http://www.globalhealthhub.org/2012/09/27/the-business-of-the-honey-suckers-in-bengaluru-india/

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Temporary funding for financial emergencies

Financial emergencies have a habit of cropping up just when you least expect them. This is why it is important to prepare for such times by putting some cash away each month in an account that you must keep off limits and even in emergencies withdraw from the funds after a lot of deliberation. We list here some ways you can take precautions and some ways you can get cash in case you are ill prepared or such emergencies.

Taking precautions ? Putting money in the bank

The best way to deal with financial emergencies is to prepare for them. Look at it as something that is bound to happen, except you don?t know when. This way you will be able to set aside a fixed amount of cash each month and will be able to fall back on it when difficult times come calling. Setting aside an amount that will go into a term deposit is the safest way you can get your hands on some cash when you need it most.

Investing in gold

Gold is a great investment. There is no limit to the quantity you can invest in and have ready liquidity whenever you need it. If an emergency comes calling you will not only be able to cash in on the money you used to buy the gold but the gold will have appreciated as well.

Get yourself a credit card or two

A credit card can be a very handy source for some emergency cash. You should get yourself a couple of cards. Use one for your daily shopping and other purchases and repay the debt each month, this will help you build a healthy credit history that will come handy when you need to apply for a loan, and you will also have the card handy for financial emergencies. Keep the other card, or cards, away just in case you need extra cash in an emergency.

Get a payday loan

If you are in dire straits and need some urgent cash, you could avail of a payday loan that takes a few hours, or at the most 24, to get money into your checking account. The problem here is the high processing cost and the fact that you have to repay it by the next payday or the fines and fees are exorbitant ? more than 25 percent.

Apply for a personal loan

If you have a few days to get the cash you need, you could apply for a personal fast loan from your bank or local creditor. They usually process it within a week and do not ask what you need it for. You can spend it on anything you want. However, a personal loan comes at a higher rate of interest.

Home Equity ? if you need a lot of cash

If you need a lot of money you could apply for a home equity loan. This is a loan against your part of the property you are repaying the mortgage for. The other part is owned by the mortgage company. The more of the mortgage you repay the greater your equity in the property. This equity can be evaluated and you can get as much as 90 percent of the value of your home equity.

However, nothing beats having money saved up in the bank. So, start saving now.

John Smith is a professional content writer for one of Australia?s fast growing finance lenders,?Fast Loan Today.

Source: http://financedegree.co/finance/temporary-funding-for-financial-emergencies

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Wednesday, September 26, 2012

400 jobs open at Pheasant Lane Mall holiday retail fair in Nashua on

[unable to retrieve full-text content]NASHUA ? Get your feet wet in retail or get hired working with Santa Claus.

Source: http://www.nashuatelegraph.com/business/976735-464/400-jobs-open-at-pheasant-lane-mall.html

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Bill Nye, former 'Science Guy,' warns creationism threatens US science (+video)

Bill?Nye, a mechanical engineer and star of the popular 1990s TV show 'Bill?Nye?The Science Guy,' has waded into the evolution debate with an online video that urges parents not to pass their religious-based doubts about evolution on to their children.

By Dylan Lovan,?Associated Press / September 24, 2012

In a 2010 photo, Bill Nye, host of television's 'Bill Nye the Science Guy,' arrives as President Barack Obama hosts a White House science fair in Washington. Nye recently waded into the evolution debate with an online video urging parents not to pass their religious-based doubts about evolution on to their children.

J. Scott Applewhite/AP

Enlarge

The man known to a generation of Americans as "The Science Guy" is condemning efforts by some Christian groups to cast doubts on evolution and lawmakers who want to bring the Bible into science classrooms.

Skip to next paragraph

' + google_ads[0].line2 + '
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'; } else if (google_ads.length > 1) { ad_unit += ''; } } document.getElementById("ad_unit").innerHTML += ad_unit; google_adnum += google_ads.length; return; } var google_adnum = 0; google_ad_client = "pub-6743622525202572"; google_ad_output = 'js'; google_max_num_ads = '1'; google_feedback = "on"; google_ad_type = "text"; google_adtest = "on"; google_image_size = '230x105'; google_skip = '0'; // --> "Bill Nye the Science Guy" has created a stir with a new online video in which he says adults who deny evolution and teach a literal biblical view are hurting America's future. He talks to Gayle King about the video, which has been viewed more than 1.2 million times in just five days.

Bill?Nye, a mechanical engineer and star of the popular 1990s TV show "Bill?Nye?The Science Guy," has waded into the evolution debate with an online video that urges parents not to pass their religious-based doubts about evolution on to their children.

Christians who view the stories of the Old Testament as historical fact have come to be known as creationists, and many argue that the world was created by God just a few thousand years ago.

"The Earth is not 6,000 or 10,000 years old,"?Nye?said in an interview with The Associated Press. "It's not. And if that conflicts with your beliefs, I strongly feel you should question your beliefs."

Millions of Americans do hold those beliefs, according to a June Gallup poll that found 46 percent of Americans believe God created humans in their present form about 10,000 years ago.

Nye, 56, also decried efforts in recent years by lawmakers and school boards in some states to present Bible stories as an alternative to evolution in public schools. Tennessee passed a law earlier this year that protects teachers who let students criticize evolution and other scientific theories. That echoes a Louisiana law passed in 2008 that allows teachers to introduce supplemental teaching materials in science classes.

"If we raise a generation of students who don't believe in the process of science, who think everything that we've come to know about nature and the universe can be dismissed by a few sentences translated into English from some ancient text, you're not going to continue to innovate,"?Nye?said in a wide-ranging telephone interview.

In the video he tells adults they can dismiss evolution, "but don't make your kids do it. Because we need them." Posted by Big Think, an online knowledge forum, the clip went viral and has 4.6 million views on YouTube. It has garnered 182,000 comments from critics and supporters.

It drew the ire of the creationism group Answers in Genesis, which built a biblically based Creation Museum in Kentucky that teaches the stories of the Old Testament and has attracted headlines for its assertion that dinosaurs roamed alongside Adam and Eve.

The group produced a response video featuring two scientists who say the Bible has the true account of Earth's origins, and that "children should be exposed to both ideas concerning our past."

Nye, who is prone to inject dry humor into scientific discussions, said Earth is about 4.5 billion years old.

"What I find troubling, when you listen to these people ... once in a while I get the impression that they're not kidding,"?Nye?said.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/science/~3/xnHj6VF6IiA/Bill-Nye-former-Science-Guy-warns-creationism-threatens-US-science-video

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How To Build an iPhone 5 Dock for $1.27 [Video]

Since the iPhone 5 Lightning adapter has a chip that prevents you from using third-party cables, you can forget about using an inexpensive off-brand dock. And since Apple hasn't yet released its own branded dock, you're basically stuck, for now, just plugging the phone into a loose cord. More »


Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/Ab0AsBO36pQ/how-to-build-an-iphone-5-dock-for-127

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Tuesday, September 25, 2012

Neil Patrick Harris Plans Memoir Set For 2014 Release

  • Jim Parsons, 2012

    <em>New York Times </em>scribe Patrick Healy confirmed "The Big Bang Theory" star's sexuality<a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2012/05/27/theater/jim-parsons-prepares-for-his-lead-role-in-harvey.html?_r=1" target="_hplink"> as part of a profile</a>. The revelation came late in the article, when Healy describes the 39-year-old actor's role in the 2011 revival of Larry Kramer's HIV/AIDS crisis drama, "The Normal Heart." Wrote Healy: '"The Normal Heart" resonated with him on a few levels: Mr. Parsons is gay and in a 10-year relationship, and working with an ensemble again onstage was like nourishment, he said." Though the <em>Times </em>didn't identify Parsons' partner, he has been romantically liked with art director Todd Spiewak (pictured).

  • Anne Burrell, 2012

    "Secrets of a Restaurant Chef" host Anne Burrell confirmed she's a lesbian and in a committed relationship with a woman, just days after just days after "Chopped" host Ted Allen made a reference to her sexuality in a radio interview. "Anne doesn't feel she was outed," Burrell's rep told Page Six. "She has made no secret of her relationship." The rep went on to note, "Her significant other is a very private woman. They have been together for a couple of years and spend a lot of time together."

  • Matt Bomer, 2012

    The 34-year-old "White Collar" hunk <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/02/13/matt-bomer-comes-out-gay-thanks-partner_n_1272997.html" target="_hplink">thanked his partner</a> Simon Halls and his three children during Saturday's Steve Chase Humanitarian Awards, where he received the New Generation Arts and Activism Award for his work in the fight against HIV/AIDS. "I'd really especially like to thank my beautiful family: Simon, Kit, Walker, Henry," he told the crowd. "Thank you for teaching me what unconditional love is. You will always be my proudest accomplishment."

  • Gillian Anderson, 2012

    The "X-Files" actress <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/03/13/gillian-anderson-lesbian-relationships-out-magazine_n_1342801.html" target="_hplink">revealed she's had numerous relationships</a> with women in a 2012 interview with <em>Out</em> magazine. The 43-year-old mother of three, who's long enjoyed a sizable lesbian fanbase, told <em>Out</em> that she first had a relationship with a woman while still in high school, after moving from her native England to suburban Michigan. "If I had thought I was 100 percent gay, would it have been a different experience for me?" Anderson, who was voted "Most Bizarre" and "Most Likely to Be Arrested" in high school, ponders. "Would it have been a bigger deal if shame had been attached to it and all those things that become huge life-altering issues for youngsters in that situation? It's possible that my attitude around it came, on some level, from knowing that I still liked boys."

  • Jonathan Knight, 2011

    The New Kids On The Block singer was out-ed by fellow '80s teen pop star Tiffany in January 2011 when she revealed she dated Knight before "he became gay later." In response, Knight posted a message on his website <a href="http://www.towleroad.com/2011/01/jonathan-knight.html#ixzz1azmexp8H" target="_hplink">stating in part</a>: <blockquote>"I have never been outed by anyone but myself! I did so almost twenty years ago. I never know that I would have to do it all over again publicly just because I reunited with NKOTB! I have lived my life very openly and have never hidden the fact that I am gay!"</blockquote>

  • Ellen DeGeneres, 1997

    DeGeneres came out in 1997, both in real life and on TV, on her sitcom "Ellen." "The Puppy Episode," which aired in April 1997, <a href="http://www.afterellen.com/column/2005/4/backintheday.html" target="_hplink">featured a who's who</a> of Hollywood, including Oprah Winfrey, Demi Moore, Billy Bob Thornton, and Laura Dern as Ellen's love interest. DeGeneres's character became the first openly gay prime time character on television.

  • Zachary Quinto, 2011

    Long rumored to be gay, the actor, most famous for his roles on "Heroes" and in the recent "Star Trek" film, came out in a October 2011 <em>New York</em> magazine profile, saying: <blockquote>"In light of Jamey's [Rodemeyer] death -- it became clear to me in an instant that living a gay life without publicly acknowledging it -- is simply not enough to make any significant contribution to the immense work that lies ahead on the road to complete equality. Our society needs to recognize the unstoppable momentum toward unequivocal civil equality for every gay lesbian bisexual and transgendered citizen of this country."</blockquote>

  • Elton John, 1976

    In <a href="http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/elton-john-lonely-at-the-top-rolling-stones-1976-cover-story-20110202" target="_hplink">an interview</a> with <em>Rolling Stone</em> in October 1976, the rock star came out by saying, "There's nothing wrong with going to bed with somebody of your own sex. I think everybody's bisexual to a certain degree. I don't think it's just me. It's not a bad thing to be. I think you're bisexual. I think everybody is."

  • Clay Aiken, 2008

    After becoming a father in August of 2008, the "American Idol" runner up <a href="http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20228488,00.html" target="_hplink">came out on the cover</a> of <em>People</em> magazine in September 2008 saying, "[Coming out] was the first decision I made as a father... I cannot raise a child to lie or to hide things. I wasn't raised that way, and I'm not going to raise a child to do that."

  • Wanda Sykes, 2008

    The comedian and actress came out in November 2008 <a href="http://thestrippodcast.blogspot.com/2008/11/wanda-sykes-lv-gay-rally-im-proud-to-be.html" target="_hplink">while speaking at an anti-Prop 8 rally</a> in Las Vegas. Sykes said in part: <blockquote>"I got married Oct. 25, I don't really talk about my sexual orientation, I felt like I was living my life, I wasn't in the closet, but I was just living my life. Everybody who knows me personally, they know I'm gay. And that's the way people should be able to live our lives, really. We shouldn't have to be standing out here demanding something we automatically should have as citizens of this country."</blockquote>

  • Ricky Martin, March 2010

    In March 2009 pop star Ricky Martin <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/03/29/ricky-martin-comes-out-im_n_517625.html" target="_hplink">posted a message on his website</a> telling the world, "I am a fortunate homosexual man."

  • Chely Wright, 2010

    Country singer Chely Wright <a href="http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20365936,00.html" target="_hplink">came out in May 2010</a>. She told <em>People</em> magazine, "There had never, ever been a country music artist who had acknowledged his or her homosexuality... I wasn't going to be the first." But she changed her mind and said of her decision, "Nothing in my life has been more magical than the moment I decided to come out."

  • George Michael, 1998

    After being caught performing a "lewd act" in a public restroom, Michael came out to CNN in April 1998. <a href="http://www.cnn.com/SHOWBIZ/9804/11/george.michael/" target="_hplink">Michael said</a>, "This is as good of a time as any... I want to say that I have no problem with people knowing that I'm in a relationship with a man right now. I have not been in a relationship with a woman for almost 10 years." Later that year Michael spoofed the incident in the music video for his single "Outside."

  • Don Lemon, 2011

    The CNN news anchor came out to the <em>New York Times</em> in May 2011. Lemon <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/2011/05/16/business/media/16anchor.html?_r=3" target="_hplink">told the paper</a>, "It's quite different for an African-American male... It's about the worst thing you can be in black culture. You're taught you have to be a man; you have to be masculine. In the black community they think you can pray the gay away."

  • Adam Lambert, 2009

    The singer's sexuality was always a topic of discussion for viewers when he was performing on "American Idol," but Lambert didn't come out until after the competition had wrapped. In a June 2009 <em>Rolling Stone</em> cover story, Lambert said, "Right after the finale [of "AI"], I almost started talking about it to the reporters, but I thought, 'I'm going to wait for <em>Rolling Stone</em>, that will be cooler,'.. I didn't want the Clay Aiken thing and the celebrity-magazine bullshit. I need to be able to explain myself in context."

  • Kelly McGillis, 2009

    When <a href="http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,20275794,00.html" target="_hplink">asked by an Internet talk show</a> who she was looking to date in April of 2009, "Top Gun" star Kelly McGillis answered "Definitely a woman," and added, "I'm done with the man thing. You need to move on in life."

  • Neil Patrick Harris, 2006

    The "Doogie Howser, MD" and "How I Met Your Mother Star" came out on the cover of <em>People</em> magazine in November of 2006. <a href="http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,1554852,00.html" target="_hplink">Harris told the magazine</a>: <blockquote>"The public eye has always been kind to me, and until recently I have been able to live a pretty normal life. Now it seems there is speculation and interest in my private life and relationships. So, rather than ignore those who choose to publish their opinions without actually talking to me, I am happy to dispel any rumors or misconceptions and am quite proud to say that I am a very content gay man living my life to the fullest and feel most fortunate to be working with wonderful people in the business I love." </blockquote>

  • Chaz Bono, 2009

    Chaz Bono revealed his plan to transition in May 2009. TMZ.com broke the story <a href="http://www.tmz.com/2009/06/11/chastity-bono-becoming-a-man/#.TptSZ2VPkqU" target="_hplink">via a prepared statement</a> from Bono's publicist that read, in part: <blockquote>"Yes, it's true -- Chaz, after many years of consideration, has made the courageous decision to honor his true identity... He is proud of his decision and grateful for the support and respect that has already been shown by his loved ones. It is Chaz's hope that his choice to transition will open the hearts and minds of the public regarding this issue, just as his 'coming out' did nearly 20 years ago."</blockquote>

  • Chris Colfer, 2009

    The "Glee" actor came out on the "Chelsea Lately Show" in December 2009: Chelsea Handler: "Your character on the show's gay. We know that you're gay. That's good for you. Congratulations. Don't be shy about that. Seriously. You shouldn't be shy about that because every time...an actor like you is helping a zillion other people that are scared to talk about their sexuality so good for you." Chris Colfer: "Thank you. You know what my answer to that question was prior to coming out -- was that I was straight as every other actor in Hollywood."

  • Meredith Baxter, 2009

    In December 2009 Baxter, most famous for playing Elyse Keaton on '80s sitcom "Family Ties," went on the "Today Show" and told Matt Lauer that she was a lesbian. Baxter said, "Some people would say, well, you're living a lie and, you know, the truth is -- not at all. This has only been for the past seven years."

  • Lance Bass, 2006

    The 'N Sync pop star came out on the cover of <em>People</em> magazine in July 2006. When asked why he decided to come out then, <a href="http://www.people.com/people/article/0,,1219142,00.html" target="_hplink">Bass said</a>, "The main reason I wanted to speak my mind was that (the rumors) really were starting to affect my daily life. Now it feels like it's on my terms. I'm at peace with my family, my friends, myself and God so there's really nothing else that I worry about."

  • Heather Matarazzo, 2004

    The actress, perhaps best known for her role as tormented teen Dawn Wiener in the film "Welcome To The Dollhouse," <a href="http://www.afterellen.com/archive/ellen/People/82004/heathermatarazzo.html" target="_hplink">came out in August 2004</a> by telling the <em>NY Daily News</em> about falling in love with Caroline Murphy: <blockquote>"I met the person I'm so madly crazy in love with...She's not famous yet. She will be. She wants to do musical theater and stage, which is not as demoralizing as the movie business is."</blockquote>

  • Melissa Etheridge, 1993

    The rock star came out in January 1993 during the Triangle ball, the first ever ball thrown for the LGBT community during a president's inauguration, in this case Clinton's. <a href="http://www.afterellen.com/archive/ellen/column/2005/2/backintheday.html" target="_hplink">Etheridge recalls</a>: <blockquote>"I didn't even think, Oh, I'm going to come out here...It was, 'Gee, I'm really excited to be here, and I'm really proud to have been a lesbian all my life.' And a big cheer went up through the whole hall, and k.d. [lang] came out and hugged me. I remember walking back, and my friend said, 'I think you came out!'"</blockquote>

  • Darren Hayes, 2006

    The former Savage Garden front man came out by marrying Richard Cullen in June 2006. He announced the civil union on his website <a href="http://chartrigger.blogspot.com/2006/07/darren-hayes-comes-out.html" target="_hplink">saying in part</a>: "As so many of you have given me your heart and soul over the past 10 years I thought it only fitting that I too return the respect and inform you of the most significant event in my life... On June 19th 2006 I married my boyfriend of two years, Richard, in a Civil Partnership ceremony in London."

  • Lady Sovereign, 2010

    In May 2010 the British rapper came out in <em>Diva</em> magazine. <a href="http://perezhilton.com/2010-05-12-lady-sov-comes-out#.Tpt-2WVPkqU" target="_hplink">Sovereign said</a>: <blockquote>"Magazines would always ask about it but [questions about my sexuality] would get stopped by my publicists. It was my choice, too, because I was a bit worried about it but now I don't really give a shit. You can't hide away forever. It's just stupid and now I've come out I feel a lot more comfortable with myself. But it was a bit scary back then because some people do have horrible opinions."</blockquote>

  • Rosie O'Donnell, 2002

    The comedian and talk show host <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/life/television/2002/2002-02-27-rosie.htm" target="_hplink">came out by revealing</a> "I'm a dyke!" during her stand up act at the Ovarian Cancer Research benefit at Carolines Comedy Club in February 2002.

  • Portia de Rossi, 2005

    The actress had been out to friends for quite some time, but she told the entire world in the fall of 2005 in interviews with <em>Details</em> magazine and <em>The Advocate</em>. "I've had my years of being not open, many years of it... It's an honor for me to do this; it's just nice to be asked," de Rossi said in her September 2005 <em>Advocate</em> <a href="http://crispie764.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=Urgent&action=display&thread=35" target="_hplink">cover story</a>, her first with the gay press.

  • Sean Hayes, 2010

    Long dogged by rumors about his sexuality, the "Will and Grace" actor <a href="http://www.advocate.com/Arts_and_Entertainment/People/Sean_Hayes_I_Am_Who_I_Am/" target="_hplink">finally came out</a> in <em>The Advocate</em> in April 2010: "I am who I am. I was never in, as they say. Never," he said.

  • Cynthia Nixon, 2004

    The "Sex And The City" star was out-ed in 2004 when the <em>NY Daily News</em> and the <em>New York Post</em> <a href="http://www.afterellen.com/People/92004/cynthianixon.html" target="_hplink">reported she was living</a> with another woman in September 2004. Nixon half-heartedly confirmed the rumors when she told the <em>Daily News</em>, "My private life is private... But at the same time, I have nothing to hide. So what I will say is that I am very happy."

  • Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/09/25/neil-patrick-harris-memoir-book-_n_1913895.html

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    Risk Parity Investing: A New Allocation Model Is Here | Breakout ...

    For the past 25 years, the asset allocation pie chart has been the most prominent and widely used tool in financial planning. Type in your age, some basic income and risk tolerance information and out comes a recommended formula for how much money you should have in stocks, bonds and cash.

    In this installment of Investing 101, we take this methodology to the next level, with a look at Risk Parity Investing. Although it has existed for over 50 years, practitioners like Lee Partridge, the CIO of Salient Partners, says by attempting to smooth out returns, it is gaining converts by the day.

    "At its core, risk parity does two things; it targets a specific level of risk, then it divides that risk equally across four component parts of the portfolio to achieve true diversification," Partridge says in the attached video. Compared to a plain vanilla stocks and bonds portfolio where he says a 60% allocation of stocks drives about 95% of the returns and volatility, a risk parity investor's holdings will look totally different.

    "In order to achieve 25% risk from equities, you only need about 20% of your portfolio in stocks," Partridge says, "far less than what individual investors are accustomed to."

    By targeting risk and specifically diversifying for different economic scenarios, the objective of this alternative method of investing is different from the outset. Partridge says the goal is to receive the same level of return with less risk and volatility OR to achieve higher returns with the same level of risk and volatility.

    "The main reason there's such strong demand for risk parity investing is because investors have been disappointed in their other attempts to diversify their portfolios," he says. Whether it's alternative investments, market timing or active managers, most investors "have fallen short and their returns have been disappointing."

    To be sure, risk parity is more complicated, thus harder to explain to customers than the the good old pie chart, but Partridge says by focusing on four core holdings --equities, credit (or even credit default swaps), interest rates and commodities-- investors become far "less susceptibility to negative market events," which is not a hard sell at all.

    "Equities generally do well during times of positive growth and benign inflation," he explains, while "commodities do well in periods of rising inflation." Since the same type of variance also holds true for bonds and interest rates, he says you always have something in your portfolio that does well in a variety of growth, inflation and even sentiment scenarios.

    Investors can purchase mutual funds that offer this strategy, including one from partridges own firm Salient (SRPFX) as well as several other reputable fund managers like AQR and Invesco (IVZ). In fact, Partridge says, individuals can capture most of the benefits of risk parity investing by simple putting 25% of their funds into four different ETFs that match its key asset classes, such as the S&P 500 SPDR (SPY), the iShares Corporate Bond ETF (LQD), a Treasury ETF (TLT) and a Commodity ETF (DCB).

    By doing so, he says investors of all ages and levels on the risk scale can be in a ''perfectly diversified portfolio that's optimal" for all investors.

    Source: http://finance.yahoo.com/blogs/breakout/risk-parity-investing-allocation-model-112532060.html

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    Are casinos good for the economy? Hard to say | Ottawa Citizen

    If you want a definitive answer as to whether a casino is an economic generator*, you?re out of luck. There are loads of studies on both sides. Here?s one highly readable summary, though, that popped up near the top of my Google results as I trolled around to get a feel for the expert debate Monday afternoon, now that Mayor Jim Watson is backing the idea. It?s from California and it?s from 1997, and yet a lot of the theoretical questions it lays out seem like they?d be pertinent no matter what.

    One significant caveat is that it talks a lot about how well things seemed to be working in Nevada ? a state that?s renowned for its gambling-based entertainment industries, and that otherwise would probably be indistinguishable from Arizona or Idaho. Lovely places with a lot to recommend them, but not, you know,?Nevada. Glamour, parties, Cristal bottles with sparklers in them, Sinatra, Dion, etc.

    Things have gone to hell in Nevada lately. It takes a fair bit of disposable income to travel for the purpose of gambling, and since Americans have had less disposable income the last five or six years, they haven?t been going to Nevada to gamble. Unemployment there is over 11 per cent, way above the national average that it used to track pretty closely. That?s for a whole state economy that?s founded on gambling, but even so, it?s worth remembering that gambling isn?t exactly a stable industry.

    Anyway, what the Roger Dunstan paper I linked to above says is that whether gambling is really an economic boon is highly contingent on circumstances. You won?t get a clear yes or no: the answer is always ?it depends.? Ontario?s gambling industry is almost entirely government-run and closely government-controlled and the underlying purpose is to make money for the government. By international standards ? certainly by North American standards ? that?s unusual and makes comparisons difficult. For one thing, when we look at the social costs of gambling, we have to weigh them against the benefits provided by the proceeds, which mostly don?t go into private hands but into the public treasury. It?s not that private companies make nearly all the money and we socialize nearly all the costs, which is the model in many places.

    On a macro level, though, the question is in two parts:

    1) Does a casino bring in money from other jurisdictions that otherwise would not come here?

    Ottawans who go and lose at cards instead of spending money at the movies are probably not making any net difference to the economy. In that circumstance, a casino employs dealers and bouncers and managers, but at the cost of jobs in the movie-theatre business. A classic political problem with this is that the jobs that are created are highly visible, whereas jobs that disappear in other industries are nebulous and hard to define. You can have a photo-op at a casino, but not at the movie theatre that would have opened but didn?t.

    The point is, you need to have people come from New York and Quebec to spend money in Ontario who would otherwise stay home or go somewhere else. Otherwise you?re moving money around but not creating any benefit in the end.

    2) Does a casino keep money here that would otherwise go to other jurisdictions?

    In other words, will Ottawans stay here and gamble instead of going elsewhere to do other things? Well, probably, yes. Ottawans obviously do go to the Lac-Leamy casino and spend money there instead of spending it here. I don?t know how many of them or how much they spend. They probably don?t often stay in hotels and make a week of it just a few kilometres from home, so it probably doesn?t attract a lot of Ottawans? spending beyond what happens in the casino itself, but the money is not zero.

    This is the part of the argument Mayor Jim Watson relies on fairly heavily:

    ?Every Ottawa dollar spent at the Gatineau casino is a dollar lost for Ottawa taxpayers ? it is time that we repatriate that money and use it to create jobs here in Ottawa,? said Mayor Watson. ?With infrastructure challenges and federal job cuts in Ottawa, we cannot miss out on a tremendous opportunity like this.?

    He includes some lines from a couple of business leaders that aren?t as obviously supported by demonstrable facts:

    ?An Ottawa gaming facility could bring tremendous economic benefits to existing Ottawa businesses,? said David Donaldson, Chair of the Ottawa Chamber of Commerce. ?Proceeding in this process will make potential investors confident that the City of Ottawa is willing to consider a proposal.?

    ?We know that a gaming facility can be a popular tourism attraction and demand generator,? said Noel Buckley, President and CEO of Ottawa Tourism. ?A gaming facility has the potential to allow the City and residents the opportunity to realize additional economic benefits while also providing new entertainment options for both leisure and convention visitors.?

    Could be. Or, maybe not. I suspect we?ll find out.

    ??

    * This is just about the hard numbers, not any of the moral questions about whether we, through our government, ought to be in the vice business.

    ?

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    Source: http://blogs.ottawacitizen.com/2012/09/24/are-casinos-good-for-the-economy-hard-to-say/

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