captious purgative: October 2012

Tuesday, October 30, 2012

Texting while driving? The ticket costs more than you think.

It's illegal to text and drive in most states, and law enforcement agencies are developing more sophisticated ways to spot offenders. What's more, that ticket may end up costing you hundreds.?

By Richard Read,?Guest blogger / October 28, 2012

In this 2011 file photo, a phone is held in a car in Brunswick, Maine. The Department of Transportation recently announced pilot programs in Connecticut and Massachusetts "to develop and train police officers on better methods for spotting drivers who are texting.

Pat Wellenbach/AP/File

Enlarge

In most of America, it's illegal to text and drive. Today, 39 states and the District of Columbia now have laws on the books forbidding the practice. Chances are, you live in one of them.

Skip to next paragraph The Car Connection

High Gear Media?s flagship website offers news, reviews, and the latest shopping tools for the cars that matter to US consumers. For more expert insights from Car Connection editors and opinions from around the Web,?click here.

Sunday, October 28, 2012

African animation goes global | Arts and Culture | Film | Mail ...

Ubuntu filmmaking: Adventures in Zambezia producer Stuart Forrest hopes the animated movie will prove that South Africans are capable of telling child-friendly stories with international appeal.

The South African animated movie Adventures in Zambezia was the highlight of the second Kunjanimation festival, held in Cape Town last week. Made by South African company Triggerfish, this story of a young falcon with an ubuntu message (tagline: ?No bird is an island?) has been picked up by Sony and is getting a worldwide release.

Featuring the voices of international stars Jeff Goldblum, ?Leonard Nimoy, Richard E Grant, Samuel L Jackson and Abigail Breslin, the film has already been seen in Russia, for instance, where it was a hit with 800?000 tickets sold and a gross of about $2.7?million. It opens in South Africa on December 26.

?The best reviews have come from Germany, but the best box-office results have come from Russia and Israel,? says producer and Triggerfish chief executive Stuart Forrest. He expects ?good things? of the local release: ?I think that South African audiences will be surprised by the quality and entertainment value of the film.?

A joint initiative of Animation South Africa and the local branch of the French Institute, Kunjanimation 2012 had the support of Wesgro, the Western Cape destination marketing, investment and trade promotion agency and the National Film and Video Foundation.

This year, the festival?s main aim was to showcase South Africa?s emerging animation talent and make connections with the global industry. Screenings included compendiums of South African animated shorts, the 1973 French science fiction classic Fantastic Planet and the 2007 local claymation film Tengers.

Festival director Daniel Snaddon says that, based on the success of the 2011 festival, held in Johannesburg as a forum for industry professionals, ?this year we decided we would cast our net much wider, with film viewings for the general public and learning opportunities for students and professionals at every level ? The public support was great and shows that animation is, indeed, a much-loved art form.?

Globally competitive
Kunjanimation also focused on education and skills development. There was an impressive array of workshops and presentations by leading South African animation companies such as Black Ginger, Triggerfish, Imaginari and Strika Entertainment. Master classes were offered by local experts such as writer Daniel Dercksen and international animators such as DreamWorks Animation?s Alexandre Heboyan, who recently produced his first independent feature.

Snaddon was pleased to host a preview of the much-awaited Adventures in Zambezia at the festival. Its success overseas, he says, ?has ?created an attitude among animators in the local industry that we can be globally competitive and make films that the world wants to see?.???? ?

?One thing I have come across around the world,? says Forrest, ?is how genuinely surprised audiences are that this film was made in Africa. It does not compute with their vision of a ?dark continent? with no technical skills, yet to date more than one million people have bought tickets to see the film. For those people, South Africa has been slightly reframed in their minds. We are a nation that is capable of producing upbeat, funny, heart-warming, child-friendly adventure stories.?

Triggerfish will release its second animated feature, Khumba, in December next year. ?Like Pixar, we are aiming at developing a ?studio brand. I think it?s vital that the industry has more festivals like ?Kunjanimation to get all the stakeholders together to discuss where we are heading as an industry,? says Forrest.? ?

Snaddon agrees. ?The animation industry can benefit the country economically and create employment opportunities. If the festival takes off, it can become a central point for animators from Africa, who will have the opportunity to network with animators and companies from around the world.?

Source: http://mg.co.za/article/2012-10-26-african-animation-goes-global

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Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Official Announcement of FamilySearch Family Tree on the way

Today, 22 October 2012, FamilySearch.org has been down most of the day and unavailable. However, it is likely that this downtime in in preparation for the "Official" introduction of the program during the week of 29 October to 2 November, 2012. The Mesa FamilySearch Library received an email announcement to that effect and has been sharing the information with all the Library volunteers.

I am not really certain what will happen to the program in conjunction with the Official Announcement, since it has been operational for some time and available to anyone who wanted to register and obtain the freely available invitation. What is likely is that Family Tree may now appear on the FamilySearch.org menu, with or without signing in. I doubt that the connection between New.FamilySearch.org and Family Tree will be severed until the users of both programs have gotten used to the idea of the newer program, but that is a possibility. More likely is that the name Family Tree will appear on the menu, but the two programs will remain connected for the time being.

Source: http://genealogysstar.blogspot.com/2012/10/official-announcement-of-familysearch.html

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Sunday, October 21, 2012

Unions shift political might to state, local races

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Unions are shifting more of their political resources to state and local races this year as they try to head off passage of laws that could undermine bargaining rights, make it harder to organize or reduce their political muscle.

Labor leaders say their top goal remains re-electing President Barack Obama, but several unions are redirecting their focus from the presidential and congressional campaigns to state and local races in dozens of states where they feel threatened.

In New Hampshire, unions want to keep the governor's seat in Democratic hands to prevent a right-to-work measure. In Maine and Minnesota, labor leaders hope to overturn Republican majorities in state legislatures. And in Michigan, unions are trying to enshrine collective bargaining rights in the state constitution.

The shift comes as organized labor is still reeling from battles in Wisconsin, Ohio, Indiana and other states where governors have sought to limit union rights for public workers or otherwise restrict union power.

"This year we've invested in these races more than ever before," said Brian Weeks, political director of the country's largest public workers union, the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees.

Weeks' union has pledged to spend $100 million this election cycle to help re-elect Obama and other union-friendly candidates ? most of them are Democrats ? in federal, state and local races. A larger chunk of that is flowing to state and local candidates than in the past, though Weeks said the union is only spending "marginally less" on presidential and congressional races than four years ago.

Unions have been on the defensive since 2010, when Republicans seeking to weaken union muscle took control in 26 state legislatures, up from 14 two years earlier. Unions failed to recall Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker, a Republican, after he signed a law limiting collective bargaining rights for most public workers. They also saw Indiana become the 23rd state to pass a right-to-work law that limits unions' ability to collect fees from nonunion workers.

"The severity and the viciousness of the attacks in 2010 caught us a little off-guard," Weeks said. "Now we're planning for that to prevent it from happening again."

In 2008, the nation's largest firefighters union spent nearly 100 percent of its money on federal races. This year, for the first time, about 25 percent of the national union's $14 million political budget is going to state and local campaigns.

"We have really pivoted and turned a lot of our work and resources into those state races," said Harold Schaitberger, president of the International Association of Firefighters.

That includes Iowa, where Democrats hold a one-vote majority in the Senate. Unions hope to keep that advantage to prevent passage of a measure that would ban public employee unions from collecting dues through automatic paycheck deductions.

Unions can play a pivotal role in turning out voters in some states. The AFL-CIO says its volunteers will knock on 5.5 million doors, make 5.2 million phone calls and hand out 2 million leaflets at worksites in the final four days before the election. Voters in 25 states will receive about 12 million pieces of mail urging them to vote for union-endorsed candidates.

Larry Kruse, a Republican running for a state Senate seat in Iowa's 42nd District, said some of his supporters have shown him the fliers that unions are mailing out.

"Most of them are on the negative side, so a lot of people are upset with them," Kruse said. "They may be spending a lot of money, but I question how effective it is."

In Minnesota, unions hope to overturn Republican rule of both legislative chambers so Democratic Gov. Mark Dayton can push through income tax increases on the highest earners and more spending on schools. Republicans want to cut state spending, which could jeopardize public employees.

In New Hampshire, the GOP-led Legislature passed right-to-work legislation last year but failed to override a veto by Democratic Gov. John Lynch. Lynch is not seeking another term, so unions are pinning their hopes on electing Democrat Maggie Hassan over GOP rival Ovide Lamontagne, who has pledged to sign a right-to-work measure.

This week, AFSCME and the Service Employees International Union launched a $1.3 million television ad campaign in New Hampshire against Lamontagne.

The heavy union investment in New Hampshire's gubernatorial race doesn't sit well with Fred Kfoury, president and CEO of Central Paper Products Co., a 55-employee business in Manchester. Kfoury said a right-to-work law would help the state attract more new businesses.

"Unions have outlived their usefulness and have been an impediment to business growth and dynamics," Kfoury said.

Brandon Davis, SEIU's political director, downplayed the notion that his union is not spending as much money on the presidential and congressional races. He said the union is being more strategic about how it spends money, focusing on state legislative districts that overlap with key congressional districts and urging voters not to forget about state and local races.

"We simply cannot stop at the top," Davis said.

Unions are being forced to play defense even in the usually labor-friendly confines of California, where they are fighting a ballot proposition that would prohibit unions from using payroll deductions to collect funds for political purposes. That would starve unions of the tens of millions of dollars they use to finance campaigns and political organizing. Californians rejected similar measures in 2005 and 1998.

In Michigan, unions are going on offense with a ballot measure that would include collective bargaining rights in the state constitution. The measure would prevent future Wisconsin-style measures restricting bargaining rights, but opponents say it would hinder state and local lawmakers who want to control their budgets.

A union-backed group has spent about $6.5 million on TV ads supporting the measure, according to a nonprofit called the Michigan Campaign Finance Network. Two opposition groups with business support have spent roughly the same amount.

___

Follow Sam Hananel's labor coverage at http://twitter.com/SamHananelAP

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/unions-shift-political-might-state-local-races-153412762--election.html

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Wednesday, October 17, 2012

Safeguarding the Internet: Working to Secure the Web From Attacks ...

Telling Stories With Data

I sat astride my banana seat bike in a parking lot and stared down a thirty foot strip of pavement. It was six inches wide and lined with rubber balls. I was nine years old and participating in a bicycle rodeo. The objective was to ride the entire length without hitting a single ball. The slightest bump would send them rolling.

Nearly a hundred kids had entered, and so far no one had done this event perfectly. Each contestant got three tries. The best hit only five balls, most hit dozens. I didn?t see the difficulty. It looked easy, and as it turned out, for me, it was. I did it on my first attempt. No one else was able to do it ? even with three tries. I was able to do it for the simple reason that I believed I could.

Decades later, riding my mountain bike, I attempted to ride a 20 foot length of six-inch board that was elevated 12 inches off the ground. I was lucky if I could complete the length one try in twenty. That measly 12 inches of doubt shattered my belief system. As Henry Ford said, ?If you think you can or you think you can?t, you?re right.?

We?ve seen sports stars whose belief system took them to the top of their game: Michael Jordan swooshing the net for a lifetime average of 30 points per game; Tiger Woods routinely sinking impossibly long putts of 50 feet or more; and Babe Ruth pointing to the outfield fence where he would hit a home run. What is their secret? Other than the thousands of hours of practice, which many lesser players also have, each of these men visualized what they wanted to achieve then allowed themselves to do it. Their belief put them ?in the zone.? When our belief is strong enough, we will succeed. Or as Buddha put it, ?We are what we think. All that we are arises with our thoughts. With our thoughts, we make the world.?

Is there something you believe you can do, but you?ve never tried? Many years ago I was president of my neighborhood association. Each month I had to give a brief speech that amounted to little more than giving announcements. Nevertheless, it made me extremely nervous and I clung to the lectern in a white-knuckle grip as I read my notes out loud.

During that time, I participated as a counselor to a group of teenagers attending a Hugh O?Brian Youth Foundation leadership seminar. The Saturday night dinner keynote speaker was entertaining and informative; she was also relaxed and clearly having fun. I remember thinking to myself, ?I can do that. I want to do that!? In those two succinct sentences I made a belief statement and a desire statement, both of which are necessary for success.

I genuinely believed that I could speak professionally because I had told many a good story across a dinner table, but at the same time I remembered how I felt speaking to the neighborhood association with a stomach full of butterflies. To combat those feelings I joined a Toastmasters club and learned what I didn?t know about public speaking.

It took me a year before I could break free of the lectern and my notes. Two years after that I started speaking professionally. I gave presentations on advertising which is the industry I?ve worked in most of my life, but more than anything I wanted to speak on innovation and creativity.

During my first year or two of speaking, I met a nationally known professional speaker. He asked me what topic I spoke on and I replied, ?Creativity.? He scoffed at that and said, ?There?s hundreds of guys speaking on that ? you need to find your own niche.? On that advice I developed some additional topics, but soon found that the presentation which led to the most recommendations was the one on creativity. What was the difference? It is a subject that I am passionate about. Creative thinking has improved my life time and time again, and it is my belief that it will help others. When I speak on it, I am in the zone.

Is there a business you believe you would be successful in? You would not be dreaming about it ? seeing yourself doing it ? if you didn?t believe you could! Michael Jordan didn?t become a basketball star without developing the skills he needed first. He took as many as 2000 practice shots a day to imprint those skills into his mental and physical circuitry. Perhaps all you need is practice.

If there is something you want to do, but haven?t tried, then break it down. What parts of the business do you believe you can do? What parts do you believe you can?t do? Do the parts you can do outweigh the ones you can?t? If yes, then you?re off to a good start, and the odds are in your favor. But if the opposite is true, don?t let that stop you. Belief must be supported by desire. If your desire is strong enough, you will gain the skills and subsequently the self-belief you need to succeed.

Once you?ve identified the parts you can?t do, ask yourself, ?Can I learn to do them?? If not, hire someone else who can. Perhaps you don?t even know which parts you don?t know. That?s OK; hire a consultant, or talk with someone who has already succeeded at this or a similar business. Delegating what you can?t do, frees up your belief system and enables you to focus on what you can.

When you believe you can do something ? you don?t really think about it ? you just do it. It?s the thinking about it that sometimes holds you back. According to David Eagleman, in his book Incognito: The Secret Lives of the Brain, if you?re getting trounced in tennis, ask your opponent how they are able to serve so well. He says that will cause them to start thinking about how it is done to the point that they won?t be able to do it anymore. Are you over-thinking your desire?

In my research of creative thinkers and innovators, the one trait I found that was nearly universal among them was the belief that they will succeed. They believe they will be able to create whatever it is they have set out to create. They believe they will be able to solve the problem they are facing. Thomas Edison may have expressed it best, ?I have not failed 700 times. I have not failed once. I have succeeded in proving that those 700 ways will not work. When I have eliminated the ways that will not work, I will find the way that will work.?

What are you waiting for ? if you believe you?ll succeed ? you will. Go for it!

Robert Evans Wilson, Jr. is an author, humorist and innovation consultant. He works with companies that want to be more competitive and with people who want to think like innovators. Robert is also the author of the humorous children?s book: The Annoying Ghost Kid. For more information on Robert, please visit http://www.jumpstartyourmeeting.com.

Source: http://northdallasgazette.com/2012/10/13/if-you-believe-dont-hold-back/

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Obama trumpets rebound of US auto industry

President Barack Obama, center, meets with winners of a campaign fundraising contest, at Smith Commons Dining Room and Public House in Washington, on Friday, Oct. 12, 2012. At left are Deidra Orosa, and her husband Mario Orosa, of North Canton, Ohio, and to the right of the President are Kimberley Cathey, and her husband Ron Cathey, of Greensboro, N.C. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? President Barack Obama is hailing the rebound of the U.S. auto industry, pointing to progress since his administration rescued General Motors and Chrysler.

Obama says in his weekly radio and Internet address that auto sales are the highest they've been in more than four years and the industry has created nearly a quarter of a million new jobs.

Obama frequently cites GM and Chrysler as a success story for his campaign. Automakers are large employers in Ohio, one of the key battleground states being contested by Obama and Republican Mitt Romney.

Markwayne Mullin, an Oklahoma Republican running for Congress, says in the GOP address that the Obama administration has pushed regulations that make it difficult for businesses.

He says the economy "doesn't need more meddling ? it needs more certainty."

___

Online:

Obama address: www.whitehouse.gov

GOP address: http://tinyurl.com/9zhygh7

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2012-10-13-Obama/id-bbac4e7f53a341ab9975e9dbbf5402db

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Cyrus trespasser sentenced to 18 months in jail

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Source: http://news.yahoo.com/cyrus-trespasser-sentenced-18-months-jail-213925612.htmlone life to live jeff fisher van der sloot heather locklear mlk memorial mlk memorial heather locklear hospitalized

Wednesday, October 3, 2012

As governments look to growth, some jobs worth more: World Bank

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Creating jobs can help governments improve the lot of their citizens, but some jobs have more impact than others when it comes to helping societies move ahead, the World Bank said in a report on Monday.

As countries around the world struggle with high unemployment, especially among youth, the World Bank cautioned that economic growth alone cannot create jobs that improve people's lives and reduce conflict, contrary to conventional wisdom.

"It is not just the number of jobs, it is also what people do," said Martin Rama, the director of the World Bank's annual World Development Report. This year, the report focused on how employment impacts overall well-being for societies, looking at examples culled from more than 800 surveys and censuses.

As an example, Rama pointed to Mozambique, where a commodities boom has fueled one of the highest growth rates in sub-Saharan Africa. But more than 80 percent of the country's citizens work in agriculture, where poverty rates remain stubbornly high.

Governments should focus on boosting employment in areas that would have the most positive spillover effects on society as a whole. For example, more jobs for women has been tied to greater investment in education and health, while reducing employment barriers for young men could improve social cohesion.

"Jobs themselves are a driver of development," said Kaushik Basu, who on Monday began his job as World Bank chief economist.

In Tunisia, a high growth rate did not translate into more jobs for young people, as bureaucratic red tape and unequal treatment limited the creation of new businesses. The country erupted into turmoil in 2010, which later sparked revolts across North Africa and the Middle East.

The World Bank said a prescription for job growth depended on the particular issues facing each country, and labor policies were not always the best way to help -- particularly because 90 percent of all jobs in the developing world come from the private sector.

Agrarian societies like Mozambique would do well to focus on boosting agricultural productivity, which has kick-started poverty reduction in nearly every country in the world for the past 300 years.

And high youth unemployment in places like Tunisia is often more about limited business competition rather than young people's lack of skills. To foster the creation of more jobs, such countries should reduce the importance of political connections for business success.

Unemployment is a huge issue around the world, with 200 million people jobless and trying to find work. The World Bank estimates that another 621 million young people are unemployed and not looking for work.

Just to keep the same proportion of the population employed, the world will have to create 600 million jobs in the next 15 years, as populations balloon in Asia and Africa.

The pool of labor has also become more global, and macroeconomic, labor or migration policies in one country can spill over to its neighbors, the World Bank said. Governments should work together in setting policies and labor standards.

"The scope for a global cooperation is there in virtually every economic field," said Basu, the chief economist. "The need is there. The world is a very, very open place."

(Editing by Leslie Adler)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/governments-look-growth-jobs-worth-more-world-bank-230235007--business.html

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Israeli budget rifts could lead to early polls

JERUSALEM (AP) ? Israel's prime minister held the prospect of early elections over the heads of his coalition partners Tuesday, opening a drive to get his budget approved, a campaign that could have foreign policy implications.

Benjamin Netanyahu's 2013 budget is expected to include deep cuts in some of the social programs favored by some coalition parties.

If he is unable to persuade his partners to back the budget, Netanyahu could be forced to call elections early next year instead of at the formal end of his term next October.

Threatening to call elections is an almost yearly ritual around the time the budget comes up for approval. An election campaign could sideline other key matters, including the already frozen Israeli-Palestinian peace talks and Israel's drive against Iran's suspect nuclear program.

Israeli media reported that Netanyahu would announce his decision when parliament returns from its summer recess in two weeks.

Opinion polls forecast an easy election win for Netanyahu and his mostly hard-line partners, but it's unclear where Netanyahu stands. If he opts for his government serving its full term ? that would make this government the longest-lasting in Israel's history.

Political scientist Avraham Diskin said Netanyahu could be eager to stretch his term, to be able to claim the title of Israel's longest-serving government.

"He's not very interested in elections," Diskin said, "but he isn't afraid of elections."

Israeli governments rarely serve their full four-year terms, as disagreements among coalition partners usually force early elections. Netanyahu took power in March 2009 after such an early election, potentially giving him a term of four years and seven months.

Netanyahu suggested in interviews to Israeli media over the weekend that he was eager to pass a budget but would head to the polls if his coalition partners reject it. If the parliament rejects a budget, that amounts to a vote of no confidence under Israeli law, requiring the prime minister and his Cabinet to resign.

"I hope we will be able to pass a responsible budget. It depends not only on me but also on the coalition partners," Netanyahu told Israeli TV Channel 2 in an interview recorded Friday and broadcast Saturday.

Few of Netanyahu's coalition members ? a mix of mostly hard-line religious and secular parties ? seem interested in rushing to the polls. According to opinion polls, none would make strong gains.

According to a survey in the Haaretz newspaper last week, if elections were held now, Netanyahu's Likud Party would win 27 seats in the 120-member parliament, putting him far ahead of any other party.

Netanyahu would still need to cobble together a majority coalition.

According to the poll, he could form another government with the Jewish religious and nationalist parties currently in his coalition. The poll indicated that dovish and Arab parties now in the opposition would likely remain a minority. The poll surveyed 507 people and had a margin of error of 4.2 percentage points.

Even so, events could deter Netanyahu from rushing into an election campaign. The main effect could be to hobble his campaign against Iran.

Israel believes Iran is developing nuclear weapons. Netanyahu has repeatedly indicated Israel could attack Iran if it concludes that international sanctions and diplomatic pressure have failed.

Netanyahu last week estimated that the world has until next summer to stop Iran before it can build a nuclear bomb. Iran says its nuclear program is for peaceful purposes.

In the TV interview, Netanyahu brushed off suggestions that he might time a strike ahead of elections to give himself an electoral boost.

Similar accusations were leveled in 1981 at Prime Minister Menachem Begin, who launched a successful strike on an Iraqi nuclear reactor weeks before elections, which he went on to win.

Opinion polls have shown most Israelis would oppose a unilateral attack on Iran, favoring coordination with the U.S. instead.

An Israeli official said Netanyahu began meetings with coalition partners on Tuesday. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss ongoing coalition deliberations with reporters.

Netanyahu met with Eli Yishai, head of the ultra-Orthodox Shas Party, which has a largely low-income constituency and is expected to oppose cuts in social spending.

"If you ask me, elections will likely be in February," Yishai told Israel Radio after his meeting.

Ofir Akunis of Netanyahu's Likud Party told Army Radio that Netanyahu has a month to decide.

"If by the end of the month we don't get a draft formula that allows the passing of a responsible budget for the year 2013, there will be no choice but to bring forward the elections," he said.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/israeli-budget-rifts-could-lead-early-polls-112012781.html

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NYC club where young Springsteen played is closing

NEW YORK (AP) ? A historic New York City music club that nurtured Bruce Springsteen's early career is closing.

Willie Nile and the Smithereens are the headliners Monday night at the Kenny's Castaways farewell show.

Nile tells The New York Times (www.nyti.ms/P5828j ) that he recognized a young man with a scruffy beard sitting at the bar one night in the early 1970s. It was Springsteen, who had just released his first record, "Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J."

Nile was signed to Arista Records in 1980 after impressing record executive Clive Davis with a set there.

The Fugees, Patti Smith and Yoko Ono have also performed at the club.

Co-owner Maria Kenny says the club's rent in Greenwich Village more than doubled in the last five years.

___

Information from: The New York Times, http://www.nytimes.com

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2012-10-01-Famous%20NYC%20Club%20Closing/id-826070892e344aaeaba5e33a5577191b

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