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John Lewis Christmas advert 2012: The Journey

Nancy Clayson
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John Lewis Christmas advert 2012: The Journey

John Lewis department store unveils its new Christmas ad, banking on a lovestruck snowman to leave viewers misty-eyed.

Last year’s John Lewis Christmas commercial it was a little boy with a big heart.

2012 Christmas advert, called The Journey, shows the extraordinary lengths some will go to in their search of the perfect gift for the person they love.

The 90-second commercial opens with children happily making a snowman and snowwoman in their snow-covered garden. But before they have time to wrap up the snowwoman with scarf and gloves, they are called inside by their mother.

Perhaps inspired by the Christmas classic tale The Snowman by Raymond Briggs, the snowman mysteriously disappears the next morning. We then see him undertake an epic journey, akin to Frodo in the Lord of the Rings, as he travels across fields, forests, rivers and sweeping mountains.

And just like in the hit film, these scenes for the advert where also filmed in New Zealand.

The snowman then braves the High Street and hides behinds some bins to avoid some youngsters having a snowball fight but his face lights up when he reaches his destination.

John Lewis department store unveils its new Christmas ad, banking on a lovestruck snowman to leave viewers misty-eyed
John Lewis department store unveils its new Christmas ad, banking on a lovestruck snowman to leave viewers misty-eyed

The motive for the snowman’s secret journey isn’t revealed until the last scene, when he returns on Christmas morning with gifts of a scarf and gloves for his wife. The slogan “give a little more love this Christmas” is then shown.

Gabrielle Aplin, a relatively unknown 20-year-old singer-songwriter from Bath, sings The Power Of Love, the 1984 hit from Frankie Goes To Hollywood, as the soundtrack (which will also be released today as a single).

The British department store will hope they have another hit on their hands, following the chart success of previous songs featured in their adverts.

This includes Ellie Goulding’s cover of Elton John’s Your Song which shot to number one after it featured in their 2010 Christmas offering. She went on to perform the song at the wedding reception of the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge as the couple had their first dance as man and wife.

Also in 2010, Fyfe Dangerfield climbed into the top ten with his cover of Billy Joel’s classic Always A Woman To Me after it was used in the High Street brand’s touching advert which showed a woman on the path of life from childhood to becoming a wife, mother and grandmother.

John Lewis has a hard act of follow with their latest advert as their 2011 Christmas broadcast touched the heart of the nation. The advert featured a little boy desperately waiting for Christmas because he was so excited about giving a gift to his parents.

The advert featured a moving cover of The Smiths Please, please, please let me get what I want, by the then unknown Amelia Warner, AKA Slow Moving Millie. Her version reached number 31 while The Smiths also re-entered the charts as people rushed to download the original.

John Lewis’ Marketing Director, Craig Inglis, said the message this year remains the same – that people want to show their nearest and dearest just how much they care at Christmas.

He said: “We know that our customers put real effort into finding the perfect gift for their loved ones at Christmas. This year’s ad brings that to life, with a creative twist.”

Craig Inglis added that he hopes people will take the snowman into their hearts just like they did with the little boy, played by Lewis McGowan, last year.

“When you watch it again and again you grow to love the snowman and start to look him as a human, and you look him in the same way you did the kid last year. The snowman becomes a metaphor for that child. The fact is we have to keep it interesting,” he said.

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Robert Pattinson plays Water Wars with Jimmy Fallon

Lisa.Felice
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Robert Pattinson plays Water Wars with Jimmy Fallon

Robert Pattinson donned his nicest suit while promoting the upcoming and final installment of Twilight franchise on the Late Night with Jimmy Fallon show.

Robert Pattinson and Jimmy Fallon played a silly game called Water Wars which involved them basically taking it in turns to chuck glasses of water into each other’s faces.

Mischievous host Jimmy Fallon got so wet his white shirt was completely soaked through.

Robert Pattinson, who is dating co-star Kristen Stewart, 22, seemed to come out of the water fight marginally better off though his suit was still sodden.

His face and hair were also left given a thorough dousing and by the end the British star was left looking resigned to his fate and a little sheepish.

Robert Pattinson and Jimmy Fallon played a silly game called Water Wars which involved them basically taking it in turns to chuck glasses of water into each other's faces
Robert Pattinson and Jimmy Fallon played a silly game called Water Wars which involved them basically taking it in turns to chuck glasses of water into each other’s faces

This isn’t the first time recently Robert Pattinson’s behavior has been somewhat bizarre while promoting Breaking Dawn-Part 2.

While on the Jimmy Kimmel Live! show on Tuesday he appeared to be drunk and admitted to the chat show host that he had “had a little vodka backstage”.

Robert Pattinson, who plays vampire Edward Cullen in the smash hit films, also slurred his words and jumped about excitedly trying to hide his too-big “clown” shoes.

Despite being a bit tipsy though his interview was still engaging and Robert Pattinson admitted that even though he gets to travel the world, he is so busy promoting his movies that he doesn’t get to see many of the wonders of the places he visits.

He told the Kimmel: “I’m a freak, I want to stay in my hotel room all the time.”

Breaking Dawn-Part 2 is set to premiere at the Nokia Plaza Theatre in Downtown Los Angeles on Monday.

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Most racist states of America: map reveals hateful tweets following Barack Obama’s re-election

Diane A. Wade
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Most racist states of America: map reveals hateful tweets following Barack Obama’s re-election

Many of Americans were upset when Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney lost the election and most of them used social media to post shockingly racist tweets against President Barack Obama.

A map collected by Floating Sheep, a collective of geography academics, shows the shocking demographic of racist “hate tweets”, many of them collected from states that were won by Mitt Romney.

The majority of the tweets, as Jezebel noted, were often from young white residents in southern states.

One male user wrote on Election Day following Romney’s loss: “Ok we pick a worthless n***** over a full blooded American what the h*** has our world come its (sic) called the white house for a reason.”

Another wrote: “F*** you, Obama. Your (sic) a stupid n***** and you don’t do anything good for our country.”

Using geodata called DOLLY (Data On Local Life and You), Floating Sheep mapped out tweets beginning November 1. They then calculated the percentage of each state’s so-called hate tweets in relation to the gross number of tweets coming out of that state.

Their results showed that states like Arkansas and Mississippi were relatively inundated with racist tweets. However, they measured only the quantity of tweets, noting that a lone Twitter user could be sending out dozens of vitriolic tweets all on their own, thus adding to the location-inspired measure, or LQ.

A map collected by Floating Sheep, a collective of geography academics, shows the shocking demographic of racist hate tweets after Barack Obama re-election
A map collected by Floating Sheep, a collective of geography academics, shows the shocking demographic of racist hate tweets after Barack Obama re-election

The map also reveals other southern states like Tennessee, Georgia, and the Carolinas had their fair share of people tweeting bigoted things. Floating Sheep noted that both the East and West coast had a lower number of such tweets.

The site noted, too, that the phenomenon wasn’t only in the south – a series of racist tweets trickled up the Eastern Seaboard, and could also be found in Utah and Missouri.

While it was not openly addressed by the candidates on the campaign trail, political pundits have insisted that demographics and race played a huge role in helping Barack Obama keep the White House.

On Election Day, a riot broke out at The University of Mississippi – known as Ole Miss – as more than 400 students yelled out racial slurs and burned Obama-Biden campaign posters after the Democratic incumbent was crowned the victor.

Emotions ran high among the angered college conservatives in Oxford, Mississippi, with university police being called in shortly after midnight to diffuse the crowd.

The incident began as a small gathering of frustrated voters, meeting to share their misery at Barack Obama getting another four years in office, shortly after midnight.

But word soon spread over social media and the crowd began to swell to hundreds of students, yelling out racial slurs, chanting anti-Obama rhetoric and some reportedly throwing rocks at cars.

Police were called and told the crowd to go home but their presence only attracted more attention and the mass began to multiply.

Two students were arrested in the fracas, one for public intoxication and one for failure to comply with police orders, the university confirmed.

“Disperse or go to jail,” University Police Department officers told the crowd, according to the student newspaper, The Daily Mississippian.

But Ole Miss student Nicholas Carr tweeted that the whole thing was being overblown, saying that more people were taking pictures of the so-called riot than actually joining in on the chanting.

“I was there the whole time. No rocks were thrown. There was 1 sign lit on fire. For about 45 seconds,” Nicholas Carr wrote.

“Mostly, it was 100s of college kids who heard the word riot and ran to take pictures and see what it was about. Again, no rocks or missiles thrown.”

But the school’s administration confronted students on Wednesday and blasted Tuesday’s behavior as “a very immature and uncivil approach to expressing their views about the election”, University of Mississippi Chancellor Dan Jones said in statement.

“The gathering seems to have been fueled by social media, and the conversation should have stayed there.”

 

General Nikolai Makarov, Russian armed forces chief, dismissed by Vladimir Putin

Diane A. Wade
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General Nikolai Makarov, Russian armed forces chief, dismissed by Vladimir Putin

President Vladimir Putin has dismissed Russian armed forces chief, General Nikolai Makarov, just three days after the defence minister was sacked over a corruption scandal.

General Valery Gerasimov replaces General Nikolai Makarov as the new armed forces chief of general staff.

Gen. Valery Gerasimov commanded Russian forces during the conflict in Chechnya.

Russian authorities are investigating the sale of defence ministry assets at prices below market value.

On Tuesday President Vladimir Putin dismissed defence minister Anatoly Serdyukov, replacing him with a former emergencies minister and loyal ally, Sergei Shoigu.

General Nikolai Makarov, Russian armed forces chief, dismissed by Vladimir Putin
General Nikolai Makarov, Russian armed forces chief, dismissed by Vladimir Putin

 

Iberia airlines to cut 4,500 jobs as part of IAG restructuring plan

Clyde K. Valle
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Iberia airlines to cut 4,500 jobs as part of IAG restructuring plan

British Airways-owner IAG has announced 4,500 job cuts at Iberia as part of a widely anticipated restructuring of the Spanish carrier.

Iberia is cutting its 156-strong fleet by 25 aircraft, and reducing 15% of its network capacity, with the airline focusing on the most profitable routes.

The plan aims to stem Iberia’s cash losses by mid-2013, and raise profits by at least 600 million euros ($766 million).

IAG also revealed a 30% drop in pre-tax quarterly profits to 221 million euros.

The drop was due to the poor performance at Iberia and at the recently-purchased UK regional airline BMI, as well as rising fuel, operating and engineering costs.

“The group performance is coming back to the levels seen in 2011 and this is particularly true if you strip out the BMI losses of 31 million euros in the quarter,” said IAG chief executive Willie Walsh.

“However, there remains a strong difference between the performances of British Airways and Iberia.”

IAG has announced 4,500 job cuts at Iberia as part of a widely anticipated restructuring of the Spanish carrier
IAG has announced 4,500 job cuts at Iberia as part of a widely anticipated restructuring of the Spanish carrier

The parent company said it now expected to make an overall operating loss of 120 million euros for the year – excluding any costs associated with the Iberia restructuring – with further losses likely in the remaining three months due to the impact of storm Sandy in the US.

Its pre-tax losses for the first nine months of the year have now reached 169 million euros, compared with a 355 million-euro profit in the same period last year.

Iberia has been suffering record losses, and IAG flagged up three months ago that job cuts were likely to come.

“Iberia is in a fight for survival,” said the Spanish subsidiary’s chief executive, Rafael Sanchez-Lozano.

“It is unprofitable in all its markets.

“Unless we take radical action to introduce permanent structural change, the future for the airline is bleak.”

The 4,500 job losses are not as steep as the 7,000 figure that reportedly had been expected by the airline’s unions.

IAG said the restructuring would safeguard 15,500 posts at the airline.

However, the restructuring plan also includes “permanent salary adjustments to achieve a competitive and flexible cost base”.

The airline has set a deadline of 31 January next year to reach agreement with unions over the cuts.

“Time is not on our side,” said Rafael Sanchez-Lozano.

“The company is burning 1.7 million euros every day,” he added.

“If we do not reach consensus, we will have to take more radical action, which will lead to greater reductions in capacity and jobs.”

The restructuring plan comes a day after IAG announced that it would pay 113 million euros to buy up the remaining 54% stake in Spanish budget airline Vueling that it did not already own.

Willie Walsh had said that the acquisition of Vueling would be “good for Spain” and “create new Spanish jobs”.

On Wednesday, IAG released its latest passenger figures for October, which showed that traffic rose by 6.2% at British Airways from a year earlier, while at Iberia traffic was down 3.7%.

The airline’s woes in part stem from the weakness of the eurozone economy, including a sharp downturn in its Spanish home market. However, according to Rafael Sanchez-Lozano, the airline’s problems are also “systemic and pre-date the country’s problems”.

 

SEAL Team Six disciplined for revealing secrets as consultants on Medal of Honor: Warfighter video game

Nancy Clayson
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SEAL Team Six disciplined for revealing secrets as consultants on Medal of Honor: Warfighter video game

Seven US Navy SEAL’s have been disciplined for revealing secrets during work as paid consultants on a video game, officials say.

They received reprimand letters and had half of their pay docked for two months for work on Medal of Honor: Warfighter.

The active-duty troops reportedly include one member of the team that killed Osama Bin Laden in 2011.

The game, published by Electronic Arts, does not recreate the Bin Laden mission but purports to show realistic raids.

Those punished were two Senior Chief Special Operators and five Chief Special Operators.

They were charged with violation of orders, misuse of command gear, dereliction of duty and disclosure of classified material.

Seven Navy Seals received reprimand letters and had half of their pay docked for two months for work on Medal of Honor Warfighter
Seven Navy Seals received reprimand letters and had half of their pay docked for two months for work on Medal of Honor Warfighter

The seven troops worked for two days during the spring and summer on the recently released video game, according to CBS News.

The game’s maker has boasted that real commandos, both on active duty and retired, were involved with the process of designing the game to make it as realistic as possible.

It is not clear what classified secrets were divulged by the troops while they were consulting for Electronic Arts. But they reportedly used material from the US Navy.

“We do not tolerate deviations from the policies that govern who we are and what we do as sailors in the United States Navy,” Deputy Commander of Naval Special Warfare Command, Rear Admiral Garry Bonelli told the Associated Press.

He added that the disciplinary action would “send a clear message throughout our force that we are and will be held to a high standard of accountability”.

Four other Navy SEAL’s are also under investigation, US reports said. They are said to have left Team Six but are still said to be on active duty.

The Navy SEAL’s usually respect an unwritten code of staying out of the public eye.

SEAL Team Six is now a household name, celebrated on T-shirts and immortalized in film.

The unit was the subject of a recent TV movie about the Bin Laden raid in Pakistan and will feature in another film, about the rescue of a ship’s captain kidnapped by Somali pirates.

Meanwhile, another member of the team on the Bin Laden raid wrote a book, No Easy Day, giving his account of that operation.

Some details of Osama Bin Laden’s death offered in the book differed from the official version of events.

The content of the book was not reviewed first by the Pentagon, and officials warned that criminal charges could have resulted from the improper disclosure of secret information.

 

Buenos Aires mass protests against Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner government

Diane A. Wade
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Buenos Aires mass protests against Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner government

Thousands of Argentineans have taken to the streets of Buenos Aires in protest at the government of Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner.

Opposition activists used social networks to mobilize the march, which they said was one of the biggest anti-government protests in a decade.

Those gathered said they were angry at rising inflation, high levels of crime and high-profile corruption cases.

President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner was re-elected by a landslide to a second term in 2011.

Her approval ratings have since dropped and protests against some of her policies have mounted.

Official figures say inflation is at 12%, but analysts say it is probably much higher.

Thousands of Argentineans have taken to the streets of Buenos Aires in protest at the government of Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner
Thousands of Argentineans have taken to the streets of Buenos Aires in protest at the government of Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner

The International Monetary Fund warned Argentina in September that unless it produced reliable growth and inflation data by December, it could face sanctions.

Protesters also voiced their objections to restrictions introduced last year, and further sharpened this year, on the purchase of dollars, which have made it harder for Argentines worried about inflation to trade in their currency.

The government says the slowdown of the Argentine economy is the fault of the global financial crisis rather than its policies.

Supporters of President Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner say the protests are driven by people from the middle and upper class worried about losing their privileges.

They point to policies supporting the poor, such as cash payments to the unemployed, as the real achievements of her government.

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Malala Yousafzai thanks people around the world for supporting her

Diane A. Wade
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Malala Yousafzai thanks people around the world for supporting her

Malala Yousafzai, a 15-year-old education campaigner shot in the head by a Taliban gunman in Pakistan, has thanked people around the world for supporting her.

Malala Yousafzai was flown to Queen Elizabeth Hospital, Birmingham, after being shot on a school bus in October.

Her father Zianuddin Yousafzai said she wanted to thank well-wishers for helping her “survive and stay strong”.

Meanwhile, more than 60,000 people have signed a petition calling for Malala Yousafzai to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

Doctors in Birmingham, where Malala Yousafzai has been receiving specialist treatment, have said she stands every chance of making a good recovery.

She had campaigned for the rights of girls to have an education and had written a diary for the BBC Urdu service when the Pakistan Taliban controlled her home area of Swat.

Since the attack, the teenager has received thousands of goodwill messages from around the world.

Malala Yousafzai wanted to thank well-wishers for helping her survive and stay strong
Malala Yousafzai wanted to thank well-wishers for helping her survive and stay strong

Zianuddin Yousafzai said in a statement issued by the hospital trust: “She wants me to tell everyone how grateful she is and is amazed that men, women and children from across the world are interested in her well-being.

“We deeply feel the heart-touching good wishes of the people across the world of all caste, color and creed.”

In the UK, Shahida Choudhary has begun a campaign calling for Malala Yousafzai to be awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.

She said: “Malala doesn’t just represent one young woman, she speaks out for all those who are denied an education purely on the basis of their gender. There are girls like Malala in the UK and across the world. I was one of them.

“I started this petition because a Nobel Peace Prize for Malala will send a clear message that the world is watching and will support those who stand up for the right of girls to get an education.”

Events are expected to take place around the world on Saturday to mark one month since Yousafzai Malala was shot.

 

Bananas trade dispute ends after 20 years

Clyde K. Valle
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Bananas trade dispute ends after 20 years

An international trade dispute over bananas between Europe and Latin America, dating back two decades, has finally been settled.

The European Union and 10 Latin American countries signed an agreement to formally end eight separate World Trade Organization (WTO) cases.

The head of the WTO, Pascal Lamy, called it a truly historic moment.

The formal agreement followed the EU agreeing in December 2009 to gradually reduce the tariffs on Latin American bananas.

Latin American banana exporters had long protested against EU tariffs designed to protect small growers in former European colonies in Africa and the Caribbean.

“After so many twists and turns, these complicated and politically contentious disputes can finally be put to bed,” Pascal Lamy said.

“It has taken so long that quite a few people who worked on the cases, both in the secretariat and in member governments have retired long ago.”

The December 2009 agreement involved the EU reducing its tariffs on imported bananas from 176 euros ($224) per ton to 114 euros per ton within eight years.

 

New York fuel rationing based on number plate begins on Friday

Diane A. Wade
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New York fuel rationing based on number plate begins on Friday

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has ordered number plate-based petrol rationing, 10 days after Hurricane Sandy battered the city.

Fuel shortages since the superstorm hit have led to hours-long waiting times at pumps, and traffic chaos for commuters struggling to get to work.

Similar measures were introduced in New Jersey on Saturday and will also be enforced in New York’s Long Island.

Only 25% of New York’s petrol stations are operating, Michael Bloomberg said.

Under the rationing system, cars with licence plates ending in odd numbers will be allowed to buy fuel only on odd-numbered days of the month; cars with even numbers at the end of their licence plates will be allowed to buy petrol on even-numbered days.

“We have to do something, and this is something that is practical and enforceable and understandable, and doing something is a lot better than doing nothing,” Michael Bloomberg said.

But the owner of one petrol station was more cautious.

“It’s more pressure on us,” Ash Gaied said.

“They yell. They curse. You wouldn’t believe it.”

The rule will come into effect at 06:00 EDT on Friday, the mayor announced.

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has ordered number plate-based petrol rationing, 10 days after Hurricane Sandy battered the city
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has ordered number plate-based petrol rationing, 10 days after Hurricane Sandy battered the city

New York City’s yellow taxis and emergency vehicles are exempt from the rationing rules.

Sandy – which started as a hurricane but was dubbed “Superstorm Sandy” as it moved inland – struck the US East Coast on Monday last week.

It devastated parts of New Jersey and New York, causing record flooding and widespread power cuts.

More than 100 people were killed as the storm barreled inland across Pennsylvania, and estimates suggest Sandy may have caused between $30 billion and $50 billion in property damage and lost business.

A unseasonably early snowstorm that hit New York on Wednesday has compounded the misery for some residents in the area, who have yet to regain electricity since being were cut off last week.

Parts of neighboring Connecticut saw more than 1ft (30cm) of snow on Wednesday, and wind speeds of as much as 50 mph (80 km/h) – and resulted in power cuts for about 300,000 customers.

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David Graham’s four-storey underground house

Nancy Clayson
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David Graham’s four-storey underground house

David Graham, a Canadian multi-millionaire, plans to triple the size of his London mansion by digging down 50 ft to create a four-storey basement complete with swimming pool, spa, ballroom and no fewer than 20 toilets.

Unluckily for David Graham – a former cable TV mogul – building under your home is no less controversial than extending it on the surface. His plans have caused fury among the well-heeled residents of Knightsbridge, including a novelist and a duchess.

Architects’ drawings show how the vast house, originally built as a school in the 19th century, will be created by excavating deeper than the height of neighboring homes.

As well as the spa area, it will have servants’ quarters consisting of five staff bedrooms. There will also be wine cellars, an art storage room, parking for three vehicles and a car lift.

In total the house will have 15 bedrooms, seven bathrooms and 20 toilets. Rooms upstairs will include a library, bar, and laundry.

Estate agents estimate the property could be worth up to £90 million ($138 million) with the work completed.

Neighbors say the massive excavation, which will involve 1,375 skipfuls of earth being removed, will bring years of “utter misery”. But David Graham says the extension is necessary to provide his “family’s needs as required by today’s contemporary living”.

Millionaire David Graham plans to triple the size of his mansion by digging down 50 ft to create a 4-storey basement
Millionaire David Graham plans to triple the size of his mansion by digging down 50 ft to create a 4-storey basement

The 75-year-old, who was once married to Barbara Amiel, wife of disgraced media mogul Conrad Black, bought the property in 2000 and converted it into a house.

He was granted permission to build a pool and one basement level, but now wants to add three additional storeys extending under the house and garden.

According to the application submitted to the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, David Graham “has been looking for a larger house in the locality which has proved unsuccessful”.

He therefore wishes to extend his home to provide further accommodation for his family and servants’.

The firm that filed the application on his behalf said the conversion would take up to four years.

Neighbors who have objected to the plans include novelist Edna O’Brien and the Duchess of St Albans Gillian Beauclerk.

The duchess said: “These plans are absolutely monstrous and unnecessary. It’s just absolute greed.

“No one needs that much space.”

A spokesman for the nearby Milner Street Area Residents Association said: “Why should we all suffer just so one man can indulge his fantasy?”

 

Kirstie Alley reveals she was tempted to have an affair with Woody Harrelson in her new book The Art of Men

Lisa.Felice
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Kirstie Alley reveals she was tempted to have an affair with Woody Harrelson in her new book The Art of Men

Kirstie Alley admits she developed strong feelings Woody Harrelson while filming sitcom Cheers.

The actress, now 61, had to remind herself she was married to stop the temptation to embark on a passionate affair with Woody Harrelson.

Writing in her memoir, The Art of Men, Kirstie Alley revealed: “He would incessantly insist we sleep together, half joking and half serious.

“We’re not sleeping together, I would say, half wishing I wasn’t married so we could.”

When Kirstie Alley played bar manager Rebecca Howe in Cheers she was married to her second husband, actor Parker Stevenson.

The couple – who have two adopted children together, William True and Lillie Price – eventually divorced in 1997.

Woody Harrelson was not married when he portrayed naive barman Woody Boyd in the bar based comedy series from 1985 to 1993.

Last week, Kirstie Alley admitted John Travolta had been the love of her life.

The actress fell for the actor on the set of their film Look Who’s Talking, which was shot almost 25 years ago, but she couldn’t act on her feelings because she was married to Parker Stevenson at the time.

Kirstie Alley admits she developed strong feelings Woody Harrelson while filming sitcom Cheers
Kirstie Alley admits she developed strong feelings Woody Harrelson while filming sitcom Cheers

Kirstie Alley said: “Believe me, it took everything that I had, inside, outside, whatever, to not run off and marry John. And be with John for the rest of my life. [He was the] greatest love of my life.”

This week Kirstie Alley has also claimed she and the late Patrick Swayze, her North and South co-star, were once “in love”.

She told Entertainment Tonight on Monday: “Both of us were married. We did not have an affair. But again, I think what I did was worse. Because I think when you fall in love with someone when you’re married you jeopardize your own marriage and their marriage. It’s doubly bad.”

Kristie Alley insisted she is good friends with Patrick Swayze’s wife of 34 years Lisa Niemi Swayze and was even asked to speak at his funeral after he died of pancreatic cancer in 2009.

Kirstie Alley’s book The Art of Men lifts the lid on the behavior of all the guys she has dated and the famous men she has worked with.

 

Kardashian Kollection: Kim and Kourtney Kardashian launch their own clothing collection with Dorothy Perkins

Lisa.Felice
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Kardashian Kollection: Kim and Kourtney Kardashian launch their own clothing collection with Dorothy Perkins

Kim and Kourtney Kardashian have landed in London in their typical glamorous style as they launch their own clothing collection with high street retailer Dorothy Perkins.

Celebrating their English fashion partnership, the two famous brunettes took over Aqua club in Soho for a lavish star studded bash.

The two sisters both looked the part in their matching little black dresses from their new collection as they entered the party, which was also attended by X Factor’s Ella Henderson, Rylan Clarke and James Arthur.

Kim Kardashian decided to show off her legs in a sequin little number, leaving her long brown locks down and sporting a surprisingly more natural make-up look.

Meanwhile Kourtney Kardashian followed the British ladies’ love for tights as she covered up her legs in a pair with black dots, which matched her high-neck chiffon dress.

The oldest Kardashian sister kept her look stylish as she teamed up the dress with a fashionable high bun hairstyle.

Kim and Kourtney Kardashian have landed in London to launch their own clothing collection Kardashian Kollection with Dorothy Perkins
Kim and Kourtney Kardashian have landed in London to launch their own clothing collection Kardashian Kollection with Dorothy Perkins

Of course, the whole event was intended to showcase their new fashion venture, called the Kardashian Kollection, which features over a hundred pieces of clothing and accessories.

Therefore, a range of models sporting the traditional Kardashian look of long brown locks and fierce smoky eye-make-up paraded around in the clothes designed by the reality stars.

And the two sisters made sure to spend some time with their devoted fans, with both of them defying the British cold to hang out outside the venue, signing autographs and taking pictures.

Noticeably missing at the party was third sister Khloe, who also lend a hand with designing the range.

Khloe Kardashian is set to join her sisters in London tomorrow, after first completing a hosting gig on the US version of X Factor.

 

Snow Storm batters New York and New Jersey leaving FEMA offices closed due to bad weather

Diane A. Wade
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Snow Storm batters New York and New Jersey leaving FEMA offices closed due to bad weather

A strong winter storm last night dumped heavy snow on New York and New Jersey, also pummeled by Hurricane Sandy last week – even forcing FEMA to shut its doors to families in need.

FEMA shuttered its recovery centers, which were set up to offer assistance to those most affected by the monster storm, and the Staten Island office closed “due to bad weather”.

The Nor’easter rattled the East Coast with high winds and piles of wet, slushy snow on Wednesday – leaving thousands of Sandy victims without power just after it had been restored.

Adding to the mess, the three major airports in the tri-state area closed, commuter trains slowed service, and mass transit lurched to a halt, inflicting another round of misery on the city’s residents.

The storm dropped nearly four inches of snow in Central Park, which areas of southern New Jersey suffered more than 9 inches, the National Weather Service said.

Residents from Connecticut to Rhode Island were also slammed with up to six inches of snow, while areas of Massachusetts had a whopping eight inches.

Carrying gusts of 60 mph, the storm brought down tree limbs and electrical wires damaged by Sandy. Utilities across the two states in New York and New Jersey reported that nearly 60,000 customers who lost power in the superstorm lost it again.

“It’s Mother Nature’s one-two punch,” Mayor Cory Booker of Newark, New Jersey, told CNN.

“It’s testing the resolve and the grit of my state and my city and, obviously, this region.”

Airlines cancelled at least 1,300 U.S. flights in and out of the New York metropolitan area on Wednesday, causing a new round of disruptions that rippled across the country. And on the roads, icy conditions brought traffic to a crawl.

Despite this newly-inflicted chaos and slushy sidewalks across the tri-state area, schools across New York City opened on Thursday, including 43 schools still without power or damaged by Sandy.

Transit systems have also spluttered back to a start, with the Long Island Rail Road running all lines by 5:00 a.m. except for the Long Beach line.

The Nor'easter rattled the East Coast with high winds and piles of wet, slushy snow on Wednesday leaving thousands of Sandy victims without power just after it had been restored
The Nor’easter rattled the East Coast with high winds and piles of wet, slushy snow on Wednesday leaving thousands of Sandy victims without power just after it had been restored

Commuter traffic also reopened in the Holland Tunnel, where around 90,000 vehicles pass under the Hudson River between Manhattan and Jersey City, New Jersey.

Airlines at the city’s airports were also scheduled to resume flights on Thursday, but officials warned travelers to check with their carriers ahead of the storm.

The states’ utilities reported scattered outages on Thursday, with some customers complaining that they had just gotten their electricity back in the past two day or two, only to lose it again.

The Long Island Power Authority said 200,000 customers were without power, with around 50,000 losing it in the new storm.

Con Edison reported the storm knocked out electricity to about 60,000 customers in New York City and Westchester County. On Thursday, these customers included 21,000 in Queens, 7,000 in Brooklyn, 4,000 in the Bronx, 3,900 in Staten Island and 140 in Manhattan.

Public Service Electric & Gas reported 160,000 outages, including 40,000 caused by the new storm.

Jersey Central Power & Light has about 238,000 customers without power, while Atlantic City Electric reported more than 5,000 customers without power.

The Nor’easter also cut a feed to a substation briefly on Wednesday night, knocking out power to 8,000 customers around East Brunswick, New Jersey.

Ahead of the storm, authorities had warned communities they could be pummeled by this latest bout of bad weather and in New York, police went to low-lying areas with loudspeakers, urging residents to leave.

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg didn’t issue mandatory evacuations, and many people stayed behind, some because they feared looting, others because they figured whatever happens couldn’t be any worse than what they have gone through already.

The city manager in Long Beach, New York, urged the roughly 21,000 people who ignored previous mandatory evacuation orders in the badly damaged barrier-island city to get out.

More than 600 residents were moved from three nursing homes and an adult care facility in the Rockaway area in Queens amid fears that the weather would knock out electricity.

Public works crews in New Jersey built up dunes to protect the stripped and battered coast.

All construction in New York City was halted – a precaution that needed no explanation after a crane collapsed last week in Sandy’s high winds and dangled menacingly over the streets of Manhattan.

Parks were closed because of the danger of falling trees. Drivers were advised to stay off the road after 5:00 p.m.

Forecasters had said the nor’easter would bring moderate coastal flooding, with storm surges of about three feet possible Wednesday into Thursday – far less than the 8 to 14 feet Sandy hurled at the region.

“I am waiting for the locusts and pestilence next,” New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie had said.

“We may take a setback in the next 24 hours.”

Hurricane Sandy killed more than 100 people in 10 states, with most of the victims in New York and New Jersey.

On Tuesday, the death toll inched higher when a 78-year-old man died of a head injury, suffered when he fell down a wet, sandy stairwell in the dark, authorities said.

Long lines persisted at gas stations but were shorter than they were days ago.

At the peak of the outages from Sandy, more than 8.5 million customers lost power. Before the nor’easter hit, that number was down to 675,000, nearly all of them in New Jersey and New York.

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Gabrielle Giffords faces Tucson shooter Jared Lee Loughner in court

Diane A. Wade
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Gabrielle Giffords faces Tucson shooter Jared Lee Loughner in court

Gabrielle Giffords has attended court to see Jared Lee Loughner, the gunman who shot her in Arizona last year, sentenced to life in prison.

Jared Lee Loughner shot congresswoman Gabrielle Giffords in the head and killed six others.

Gabrielle Giffords attended the hearing with her husband, Mark Kelly, who spoke to Jared Lee Loughner directly and told him that the shooting had changed his wife’s life but had not dented her spirit.

Jared Lee Loughner pleaded guilty to 19 counts in a deal to spare him the death penalty.

He is expected to spend the rest of his life in prison without the possibility of parole.

It was the first time Jared Lee Loughner, who did not speak at Thursday’s hearing, had faced his victims in court.

Mark Kelly said: “You may have put a bullet through her head, but you haven’t put a dent in her spirit and commitment to make the world a better place.

“Although you were mentally ill, you were responsible. You have decades upon decades to contemplate what you did, but from this moment, Gabby and I are done thinking about you.”

In addition to the six fatalities, a total of 13 people were wounded in the January 2011 shooting at an outdoor political meeting in Tucson.

Earlier, court-appointed experts said Jared Lee Loughner suffered from schizophrenia and delusions.

Gabrielle Giffords has attended court to see Jared Lee Loughner, the gunman who shot her in Arizona last year, sentenced to life in prison
Gabrielle Giffords has attended court to see Jared Lee Loughner, the gunman who shot her in Arizona last year, sentenced to life in prison

In May 2011, his case was put on hold as he was deemed unfit to stand trial.

But that ruling was reversed after Jared Lee Loughner went through more than a year of treatment in prison.

Among those due to address the Tucson hearing are Suzi Hileman, who was shot three times while trying to save her nine-year-old neighbor.

“He has to pay the consequences for what he did, and justice will be served,” Suzi Hileman told the Associated Press news agency.

Mavy Stoddard, whose husband died shielding her from bullets, was also scheduled to speak.

Gabrielle Giffords resigned from Congress in January 2012 to focus on her recovery.

Her former aide, Ron Barber, also wounded in the attack, served out the rest of her term after winning a special election. He is also due to address Thursday’s hearing.

On Tuesday, Ron Barber ran in the election for a newly-created congressional district in Arizona.

The full result has yet to be announced.

 

Twitter resets hacked passwords

Nancy Clayson
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Twitter resets hacked passwords

Thousands of Twitter users around the world have received emails warning their account has been compromised by a third party.

Some accounts had been compromised, but other users had received the emails after Twitter had unintentionally reset unaffected passwords, the company said.

The mass email coincided with incidents involving several high-profile accounts.

Other media organizations, such as the TechCrunch blog, reported being warned.

Twitter gave no indication of the cause or source of the compromise, and would not share details of the size of the issue.

Thousands of Twitter users around the world have received emails warning their account has been compromised by a third party
Thousands of Twitter users around the world have received emails warning their account has been compromised by a third party

In a statement, Twitter said: “When we believe an account may have been compromised, we reset the password and send an email letting the account owner know this has happened along with information about creating a new password. This is a routine part of our processes to protect our users.

“In this case, we unintentionally reset passwords of a larger number of accounts, beyond those that we believed to have been compromised.

“We apologize for any inconvenience or confusion this may have caused.”

Some users who received the email noticed that some of their tweets had been deleted, while others said spam links had been posted without their knowledge – a typical characteristic of a compromised account.

British comedian David Mitchell tweeted that he had received the email, and that a tweet he had written publicizing his column in the Observer newspaper had been removed.

Some users criticized Twitter’s email, suggesting it looked like a “phishing scam” – a message that impersonates an official email in an attempt to trick users into giving up personal details.

 

The Hobbit producers sue The Asylum for trademark infringement over its new film Age of Hobbits

Sonia Pantiss
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0
The Hobbit producers sue The Asylum for trademark infringement over its new film Age of Hobbits

The Hobbit movies producers are suing low-budget company The Asylum for trademark infringement, over its new film Age of the Hobbits.

Warner Bros, New Line Cinema, MGM and The Hobbit producer Saul Zaentz want to stop them using the word Hobbit in the title of the “knockoff film”.

They claim The Asylum is “free-riding” on the worldwide promotional campaign for Peter Jackson’s forthcoming films.

The company is behind a string of “mockbusters” inspired by hit movies.

Producers of The Hobbit called it an “intentional and willful attempt to trade on the popularity and goodwill” of both The Lord of the Rings and Hobbit films, and the JRR Tolkien novels they are based on.

Court papers obtained by The Hollywood Reporter have called Age of the Hobbits a “confusingly similar and misleading title”.

Producers want all infringing ad materials and packaging for The Asylum’s film to be destroyed, adding that it could “divert customers and potential customers away from the Hobbit films”.

The Asylum had already been threatened with legal action by the Hobbit studios and The Zaentz Co which controls trademark rights to the Tolkien book.

The protected phrase has been associated with Bilbo Baggins and his fellow Middle Earth creatures since the book was first published in 1937.

The Hobbit movies producers are suing low-budget company The Asylum for trademark infringement, over its new film Age of the Hobbits
The Hobbit movies producers are suing low-budget company The Asylum for trademark infringement, over its new film Age of the Hobbits

Age of the Hobbits is due for DVD and online release on 11 December, three days before the US opening of the official Hobbit film.

The Asylum claims its movie is legally sound because its hobbits are not based on the Tolkien creations.

Before legal papers were officially filed the company said in a statement: “Age of the Hobbits is about the real-life human subspecies, Homo Floresiensis, discovered in 2003 in Indonesia, which have been uniformly referred to as <<Hobbits>> in the scientific community.”

It added that the term is therefore “protected under the legal doctrines of nominal and traditional fair use”.

The Asylum also suggests that a Google search of hobbits and archaeology would return dozens of articles containing the term.

Some of their previous “mockbusters” include Transmorphers, based on Michael Bay’s big budget movie Transformers, and The Da Vinci Treasure, which took its name from The Da Vinci Code, directed by Ron Howard and starring Tom Hanks.

Based on the story of a big blockbuster they are made at a fraction of the cost and are usually released straight-to-DVD.

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How Barack Obama won 2012 election

Diane A. Wade
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How Barack Obama won 2012 election

President Barack Obama won re-election with a similar coalition that carried him to the presidency in 2008: women, young voters, African Americans and Latinos.

But the popular vote was not as strongly in Barack Obama’s favor this time, owing to declines in some key but shrinking parts of the electorate.

1. The female vote

Men and women split between the candidates: overall, 55% of women voted for Barack Obama, 44% for Mitt Romney. For men, 52% voted for Mitt Romney and 45% for Barack Obama.

In 2008, Barack Obama gained a higher percentage of the male vote (49%) and a similar percentage of the female vote (56%).

However, there was a division between married and unmarried women: 53% of married women voted for the Republican candidate, while Barack Obama won unmarried women two-to-one: 67% to 31%.

Overall, women make up more of the electorate – 53% – slightly more than their share of the US population.

2. The ethnic vote

Barack Obama overwhelmingly won the black vote with 93%, a sliver lower than four years ago. Latinos also voted strongly for the Democrat – 71% in total and probably made electoral differences in Colorado and Nevada. Latinos or Hispanics made up 10% of total voters in the US, up one percentage point from 2008.

President Obama lost some of the white voters that propelled him to a strong win in 2008, with 39% voting for a second Barack Obama term in comparison to 43% in 2008. The white electorate, while still a majority, dropped to 72% of the country as a whole, down from 74% four years ago, and 77% eight years ago.

3. The youth vote

Young voters were a key part of Barack Obama’s victory for a second time.

Sixty per cent of voters aged 18 to 29 years voted for Barack Obama, slightly down from his percentage four years ago of 66%.

But the percentage of voters in this age range increased slightly, to 19% of the electorate.

Voters aged 30 to 44 were fairly split, with a slight inclination to Barack Obama, 52% to 45%.

The largest percentage of the electorate in terms of age, 45 to 64, went to Mitt Romney with 51%.

President Barack Obama won re-election with a similar coalition that carried him to the presidency in 2008: women, young voters, African Americans and Latinos
President Barack Obama won re-election with a similar coalition that carried him to the presidency in 2008: women, young voters, African Americans and Latinos

4. Lower-income Americans

Lower-income voters went decisively for Barack Obama.

Of those making under $50,000, 60% voted for Barack Obama.

The president did not do badly with middle-income and richer voters either, gaining 46% and 44%, respectively in each category.

The three income categories are fairly split among the electorate, with the lower-income group representing 41% of the total vote.

5. The religious vote

Mitt Romney gained 62% of the Protestant vote.

Catholics and other Christians were split among the two major candidates.

Those of no religion as well as Jewish voters gave Barack Obama a vote of confidence at 70%.

Mitt Romney, who would have become the first Mormon president if he had won, also gained the large majority of Mormon voters: 78%.

Those who went to religious services at least once a week were more likely to vote for Mitt Romney (59%).

However, 55% of those who said they attended such services “a few times a month” voted for Barack Obama.

6. The economy

Throughout the campaign, both candidates said it was all about the economy, and voters’ decisions largely came down to who they thought was best on the issue.

Fifty-nine per cent of those polled said the economy was their foremost concern. Among those, a slight majority (51%) went for Mitt Romney. So how does this match with an Obama win? Fifty-four per cent of voters who named unemployment as their top economic concern voted for Barack Obama.

The president also received many more votes from those concerned about healthcare and foreign policy, while deficit-minded voters strongly chose Mitt Romney.

7. Mitt Romney’s empathy gap

What matters most in Americans’ minds when they vote? About three in 10 wanted a “vision for the future” and another three in 10 wanted a president who shared their values.

Those who wanted a vision for the future voted more for Mitt Romney (54% to 45% for Barack Obama).

However, another two in 10 voters wanted a president who “cares about people like me”.

They overwhelmingly voted for Barack Obama – 81% in total – a sign that Mitt Romney suffered an empathy gap among some voters.

All numbers based on exit polling conducted by Edison Research across the United States on 6 November.

Anti-aging ingredients which actually work: peptides, alpha-hydroxy acids and retinol

Lisa.Felice
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0
Anti-aging ingredients which actually work: peptides, alpha-hydroxy acids and retinol

According to the American Academy of Dermatology, there isn’t sufficient evidence to show any of creams and lotions that promise to banish wrinkles or slow down the aging process actually work.

However, there are in fact four commonly listed active ingredients to look out for in their role in decreasing signs of aging – including peptides, alpha-hydroxy acids, retinol, and some antioxidants.

Dr. Elizabeth Hale, a dermatologist at New York University Medical Center, told ABC News: “It can be overwhelming for patients and doctors – it’s hard to know which works, and which doesn’t. There’s definitely an overabundance of products and ingredients that promise to deliver.”

As we age, our skin produces less collagen and elastin, becoming thinner; causing it to sag and develop fine lines.

Peptides are a protein that can stimulate new cells to grow and help skin cells to heal, and are found in dozens of products currently on the market.

Dr. Ivona Percec, a plastic surgeon at the University of Pennsylvania, said: “The jury is still out on how beneficial they are.

“If they work, they do so by stimulating the replacement of collagen, elastin, and other components that suffer during aging.

“The concern is that peptides are large molecules, and depending on their formulation and the skin surface, they may not be able to penetrate deeply enough to achieve their effect.”

There are four commonly listed active ingredients to look out for in their role in decreasing signs of aging, including peptides, alpha-hydroxy acids, retinol, and some antioxidants
There are four commonly listed active ingredients to look out for in their role in decreasing signs of aging, including peptides, alpha-hydroxy acids, retinol, and some antioxidants

Instead, Dr. Elizabeth Hale likes to think of peptides as good hydrating skin when they are found in moisturizers, which, in turn, “can make lines less noticeable”.

Alpha-hydroxy acids, on the other hand, are natural ingredients that come from fruits and milk sugars commonly used as exfoliants.

Dr. Elizabeth Hale said: “They are commonly used [for] getting rid of dead skin cells, allowing new cells to grow.

“It allows the deeper layer of the skin to come to surface faster — which speeds up the cycle of skin turnover.”

There are three acids – lactic acids, glycolic acids and citric acids – with each having different effects on the skin.

Lactic acid, which comes from sour milk, helps remove dead skin cells, subsequently adding a certain brightness to the skin.

Glycolic acid, from sugar cane, can slightly help to reduce fine lines and wrinkles, which ultimately makes the skin appear smoother and tighter.

Meanwhile retinol, a natural form of vitamin A found in a number of over-the-counter skin creams, boosts the thickness and elasticity of the skin and is seen as reliable method for decreasing signs of aging.

Dr. Elizabeth Hale said: “There is ample evidence that shows retinol improves the appearance of fine lines and wrinkles.”

However, pregnant women should avoid using retinol, or any form of vitamin A, because it may increase the risk of birth defects.

Antioxidants, widely known to fight internal cell damage from free radicals that can injure cells, increase inflammation, and the risk of cancer, have been found to have anti-aging benefits – but only in the right formulation.

Substances with antioxidant properties include beta-carotene, lycopene, selenium, and vitamins A, C and E, according to the National Institutes of Health.

These and other antioxidants are found in many foods, including fruits, vegetables, nuts, and some meats, with many supplements also available.

Dr. Ivona Percec said: “There are antioxidants that are effective, however, it’s the formulation of the antioxidants that is critical. But Vitamins C and E are the most commonly used, and the most time-tested.”

Although some vitamin skin care formulations may claim to be “natural” anti-aging products, Dr. Ivona Percec said that they may not be effective.

 

Claude Monet’s water lilies painting Nympheas fetches $43.7 million at New York auction

Sonia Pantiss
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Claude Monet’s water lilies painting Nympheas fetches $43.7 million at New York auction

One of Claude Monet’s famous water lilies paintings has sold for $43.7 million at a New York auction.

A painting by Wassily Kandinsky also sold for $23 million at the Christie’s auction of impressionist and modern art, setting a record for the artist.

Works by Pablo Picasso and Joan Miro also went under the hammer in the first of two weeks of major auctions in New York.

However, about 30% of the 69 paintings up for auction failed to find buyers, Reuters reported.

Claude Monet’s oil-on-canvas Nympheas – painting in 1905 during the artist’s years at Giverny – reached the high end of its $30 million-$50 million pre-sale estimate.

 

Claude Monet's water lilies painting Nympheas fetches $43.7 million at New York auction
Claude Monet’s water lilies painting Nympheas fetches $43.7 million at New York auction

 

Wassily Kandinsky’s vibrant work Studie fur Improvisation 8 had been estimated to fetch between $20 million -$30 million and was sold by Switzerland’s Volkart Foundation.

The price broke the Russian artist’s previous record of $20.9 million for Fugue set in 1990.

The bronze La Jambe by Alberto Giacometti sold for $11.3 million and the painting Peinture (Femme, journal, chien) by Spanish artist Joan Miro, sold for $13.7 million.

Pablo Picasso’s Buste de femme fetched $13 million.

Among the works that failed to sell were the Picasso sculpture, Coq, estimated at $10 million -$15 million, and works by Chagall and Degas.

Some experts have warned the disparity between art values and the broader economy cannot continue and that while the most coveted works are rising in value, other sectors of the art market are less buoyant.

Nevertheless, Brooke Lampley, head of Impressionist and modern art at Christie’s, said it was a “very, very strong sale, with great results”.

Later on Thursday Sotheby’s will belatedly stage its own Impressionist auction. The sale has been delayed for three days because of Hurricane Sandy.

Among the 68 lots there is much interest in Pablo Picasso’s Still Life with Tulips, painted in 1932 in under three hours.

Next week the two auction houses stage their contemporary sales, where works include Jean-Michel Basquiat’s Untitled 1981. Its sale could set a new record for the painter.

Michel Basquiat rose from being an obscure graffiti artist in New York to become one of the city’s most lionized artists before his death of a heroin overdose in 1988.

 

Winter storm hits New York and New Jersey

Diane A. Wade
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Winter storm hits New York and New Jersey

Tens of thousands of residents in New York and New Jersey have again lost power as a winter storm hit areas still recovering from Hurricane Sandy’s devastating impact.

Some people were again forced to leave their homes and public transport was affected.

Winds gusted at up to 60 mph (100 km/h) bringing down trees and power lines.

New Jersey state governor Chris Christie said: “I am waiting for the locusts and pestilence next.”

Power companies in the two states report more than 100,000 customers suffered power outages. Some 650,000 buildings were already without power one week after storm Sandy struck, killing more than 100 people.

But the damage from the latest storm, a northeaster, was less than had been feared.

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said low-lying areas had not been flooded at high tide on Wednesday afternoon.

But Michael Bloomberg said he was still concerned about the security of those areas where flood defences had not yet been repaired.

Tens of thousands of residents in New York and New Jersey have again lost power as a winter storm hit areas still recovering from Hurricane Sandy's devastating impact
Tens of thousands of residents in New York and New Jersey have again lost power as a winter storm hit areas still recovering from Hurricane Sandy’s devastating impact

He had closed parks and beaches and temporarily halted outdoor construction.

But he said there was no need for mandatory evacuations because the storm was not expected to be as strong as hurricane Sandy.

Long Island resident Rudi Schlachter, who was forced to move her family to the upper floors of their home due to severe flooding last week, said she was evacuating the area altogether now.

“All you need is a gale of wind driving a piece of wood into somebody’s window,” she said.

“We’re leaving; I don’t want my kids to see the water again.”

President Barack Obama spoke to the governor of New York and New Jersey on Wednesday, with the discussions focused on the continuing fuel shortages in the region.

Major airlines cancelled flights in and out of New York and New Jersey ahead of the storm.

So far 95,000 people have registered for emergency housing assistance in New York and New Jersey after Hurricane Sandy, according to the US Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). It added that it was ready to deploy additional resources if needed.

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Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, Innocence of Muslims filmmaker, in jail for probation violations

Roy Siemens
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Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, Innocence of Muslims filmmaker, in jail for probation violations

Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, the US man behind anti-Islam film Innocence of Muslims that led to mass protests in the Middle East has been sentenced to a year in jail for probation violations.

Nakoula Basseley Nakoula was sentenced by a judge in California after admitting four violations which stem from a 2010 conviction for fraud.

None of the charges was connected with the content of the controversial film, Innocence of Muslims.

Dozens of people died in the Middle East in protests over the film.

US District Judge Christina Snyder said Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, 55, must spend 12 months in prison followed by four years of supervised release.

Prosecutors had been seeking a two-year sentence.

After the 2010 conviction, Nakoula Basseley Nakoula had served most of a 21-month jail sentence for using more than a dozen aliases and opening about 60 bank accounts to conduct a cheque fraud scheme, prosecutors said.

Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, Innocence of Muslims filmmaker, in jail for probation violations
Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, Innocence of Muslims filmmaker, in jail for probation violations

The Los Angeles Times said that it was while he was in prison that he read the Koran, looking for ways to criticize Islam.

On his release he was barred from using computers or the internet for five years without approval from his probation officer.

Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, who was arrested in September, also goes by the name of Sam Bacile, Nicola Bacily and Mark Basseley Yousseff and is believed to be an Egyptian-American Coptic Christian.

US authorities have said they believe Nakoula Basseley Nakoula was the person behind the controversial film, but have not said whether he was the person who posted it on the internet.

Muslims around the world took to the streets in protest, outraged by the film’s portrayal of the Prophet Muhammad.

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China’s Communist Party starts leadership transfer at its 18th congress

Diane A. Wade
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China’s Communist Party starts leadership transfer at its 18th congress

China’s President Hu Jintao has opened a Communist Party congress that begins a once-in-a-decade power transfer with a stark warning on corruption.

Addressing more than 2,000 delegates, Hu Jintao said that a failure to tackle the issue “could prove fatal to the party”.

China faced unprecedented opportunities and challenges, he said, and the nation should “aim higher and work harder”.

His speech kicks off a week-long meeting that will see a new set of leaders unveiled.

Security is very tight across Beijing, with many dissidents detained or under house arrest, rights groups say.

Hu Jintao told delegates at the Great Hall of the People that China had to adapt to a changing domestic and global environment.

“We must aim higher and work harder and continue to pursue development in a scientific way, promote social harmony and improve the people’s lives,” he said.

China’s development should be made more balanced and sustainable, he said, and the “serious challenge” of corruption should be addressed.

“If we fail to handle this issue well, it could prove fatal to the party, and even cause the collapse of the party and the fall of the state,” he said.

Anyone who broke the law would be brought to justice, “whoever they are and whatever power or official positions they have”, he said.

The months leading up to the congress have seen China’s political leadership rocked by a scandal involving Bo Xilai, the former Chongqing party leader once seen as a candidate for top office.

His wife, Gu Kailai, has been jailed for murdering a British businessman and he is expected to face trial on corruption-related charges.

Across China, meanwhile, recent cases of official corruption have stoked public anger and there have been a series of high-profile mass protests focusing on land grabs and environmental issues.

On the internet, thousands of people have left comments appealing for better measures to fight corruption on official websites launched for the congress by the three major party mouthpieces – Xinhua news agency, People’s Daily and China Central Television (CCTV).

Economic growth has also slowed in recent months and the wealth gap is an issue of great concern, as is China’s ageing population.

Hu HJintao said a new model for economic growth was needed to respond to domestic and global changes.

“On the basis of making China’s development much more balanced, coordinated and sustainable, we should double its 2010 GDP and per capita income for both urban and rural residents [by 2020],” he said.

China’s President Hu Jintao has opened a Communist Party congress that begins a once-in-a-decade power transfer with a stark warning on corruption
China’s President Hu Jintao has opened a Communist Party congress that begins a once-in-a-decade power transfer with a stark warning on corruption

Amid rumbling regional tensions over territorial rows in the East China and South China Sea, Hu Jintao said the nation should “resolutely safeguard” maritime rights and become a maritime power.

“Active and prudent efforts” should be made to reform the political structure, he said, without giving details.

The congress – for which no formal schedule has been revealed – will last a week and will be keenly observed for any indications of the leadership’s future plans.

During the congress a new central committee is selected. It then chooses the country’s highest decision-making body, the Standing Committee of the Politburo.

The process takes place behind closed doors, with the make-up of the top bodies in reality decided ahead of time.

The current Standing Committee has nine members, of whom seven including Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao are expected to step down.

The other two members, Xi Jinping and Li Keqiang, are expected to become party leader and deputy respectively. Xi Jinping is also expected to take over from Hu Jintao as China’s president in March 2013.

Ahead of the congress there has been speculation that the number of seats on the committee will be reduced from nine to seven.

Analysts say there has also been division at the very top of the leadership, with two rival factions jostling for position and influence.

Vice-Premier Wang Qishan, propaganda chief Liu Yunshan, party organization chief Li Yuanchao and Vice-Premier Zhang Dejiang are thought to be the front-runners.

But the exact composition of the committee will not be clear until it is formally announced next week, likely on 15 November at a plenum expected to follow the congress.

In Beijing, more than 1.4 million volunteers have been brought in to help out with security for the congress.

Transport restrictions are in place, street vendors have been told to close and even the flying of kites has reportedly been banned.

Rights group Amnesty International says more than 130 political dissidents were unlawfully detained or placed under house arrest ahead of the meeting.

Chinese Communist Party in numbers:

• Ruled China since 1949

• 83 million members in 2011

• 77% of members are men

• Farmers make up one third of membership

• 6.8 million members work for the Party and state agencies

• Funded by government grant and membership dues

• Private businessmen allowed to join since 2001

• Seven of country’s richest men attending congress

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Barack Obama returns to White House for four more years of challenges

Diane A. Wade
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Barack Obama returns to White House for four more years of challenges

Barack Obama wasted little time on Wednesday as he headed back to Washington hours after celebrating his election victory in Chicago and securing a second term in the White House.

Fresh challenges lie ahead for the president as the stock market tumbled in response to his triumph at the polls over Mitt Romney and sabre-rattling from Republicans who demanded that he make good on his promise to work with both sides of the political aisle in the next four years.

Barack Obama was joined by First Lady Michelle Obama and their children Malia and Sasha as they departed the Windy City on Air Force One. They arrived in Washington at about 6:30 p.m. and returned to White House which has been their home for the last four years – and where they will remain for the next four.

Tuesday night, Barack Obama called for unity and set out an optimistic vision of America’s future this morning in a rousing acceptance speech.

He promised “the best is yet to come” and said the fierce battle with Mitt Romney had made him a better president, vowing: “I will return to the White House more determined and inspired than ever.”

In a speech that saw a return to the soaring rhetoric he has become known for since his election in 2008, Barack Obama said he had “listened and learned’ from the American people during his campaign.

With his voice going hoarse at times, he said that “progress comes in fits and starts” and the road is littered with “difficult compromises”. But he said he enters the next four years with an “economy recovering, a decade of war ending and a long campaign is over”.

Barack Obama wasted little time on Wednesday as he headed back to Washington hours after celebrating his election victory in Chicago and securing a second term in the White House
Barack Obama wasted little time on Wednesday as he headed back to Washington hours after celebrating his election victory in Chicago and securing a second term in the White House

Barack Obama paid tribute to his opponent and hopes they can “work together in the coming weeks”.

The GOP has indicated that they will hold him to it.

Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell was frosty in his post-election remarks.

“The voters have not endorsed the failures or excesses of the president’s first term,” Mitch McConnell said.

“Now it’s time for the president to propose solutions that actually have a chance of passing the Republican-controlled House, and deliver in a way that he did not in his first four years in office.”

Republican House Speaker John Boehner added speaking to reporters on Wednesday morning: “Mr. President, this is your moment. We want you to lead… Let’s find the common ground that has eluded us.”

A package of huge tax hikes and spending cuts – known as the “fiscal cliff” – is scheduled to take effect in the new year if the parties cannot come to a compromise.

So far, Republicans have adamantly refused to raise taxes, even on America’s richest people, as part of a deficit-reduction package. Barack Obama and other Democrats maintain that such tax hikes must be part of the deal.

The president’s administration is optimistic about an agreement.

Vice President Joe Biden told reporters on Wednesday that he and Barack Obama are anxious to move forward on a bipartisan solution to the “fiscal cliff”, but a compromise will hinge on Republicans.

“What is the takeaway going to be on the part of our Republican colleagues? What judgment are they going to make?” Joe Biden told reporters on Air Force Two, as he flew from Chicago, where he watched election returns Tuesday night, to his home in Delaware.

“I know it takes a little time to kind of digest what’s going on. But I think people know we’ve got to get down to work and I think they’re ready to move,” Joe Biden said.

Joe Biden said he believes there are at least six Republican senators who are prepared to compromise on fiscal issues, adding that Democrats “are going to have to compromise too. It’s not like we’re going to go in and say: <<This is our deal. Take it or leave it>>.”

Another challenge for Barack Obama lies in the stock market, as the Dow Jones industrial average plummeted 200 points within minutes after the opening bell and it continued falling, down 354 points two hours later.

In late afternoon trading, it was down 323 points, or 2.5%, while index futures also plunged after the European Union slashed its growth forecast for next year.

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Mitt Romney Team accidentally releases victory website after he officially lost

Nancy Clayson
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Mitt Romney Team accidentally releases victory website after he officially lost

Wednesday after Election Day, Roll Call’s Political Wire posted screen grabs of some of the pages from the website that Mitt Romney and Paul Ryan would have released had they won the election.

The homepage of the site has a seal of “The Office of the President Elect” and had a quote on the top signed by President-Elect Mitt Romney.

“I’m excited about our prospects as a nation. My priority is putting people back to work in America,” the large quote says.

It shows links to information about the would-be inauguration (taking place in Washington, DC on January 21, 2013) and his vision of a “smaller, simpler, smarter” America.

Romney victory site has a seal of The Office of the President Elect and had a quote on the top signed by President-Elect Mitt Romney
Romney victory site has a seal of The Office of the President Elect and had a quote on the top signed by President-Elect Mitt Romney

There are three other pages, titled “Join the Administration”, “The President-Elect” which goes into further detail about the inauguration, and “The Nominees” which briefly describes the process of electing a cabinet.

Unfortunately for political junkies, the nominees page cuts off before any actual nominees are identified, so the page does not give any true insight into the way that the Romney-Ryan team would have proceeded with their transition.

Political Wire does not explain how they found the site or how long it was live, only saying that it was taken down quickly.

Romney victory site has a seal of The Office of the President Elect and had a quote on the top signed by President-Elect Mitt Romney
Romney victory site has a seal of The Office of the President Elect and had a quote on the top signed by President-Elect Mitt Romney

 

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