Rural South Dakotan Walks Away From First Encounter With Jewish Man, Shaken But Unharmed

November 11, 2010 | ISSUE 46•45

SELBY, SD—According to local resident Hank Tyson's firsthand account, the 51-year-old service-shop owner was left rattled but unharmed Wednesday after engaging in small talk with a man who turned out to be Jewish. "It seemed like any other conversation at first, but once I realized he was Jewish, I could feel my blood pressure go up and everything started moving in slow motion," said Tyson, claiming the sequence of events that followed "felt like some kind of awful dream," from the man's subtle gesturing to his repeated questions about how to get to I-94. "You never think anything like this will happen to you until it does." Following the encounter, Tyson drove home, kissed his wife, and told his children he loved them.

Report: Global Warming Issue From 2 Or 3 Years Ago May Still Be Problem

WASHINGTON—According to a report released this week by the Center for Global Development, climate change, the popular mid-2000s issue that raised awareness of the fact that the earth's continuous rise in temperature will have catastrophic ecological effects, has apparently not been resolved, and may still be a problem.

This 2007 chart predicting rising temperatures worldwide could still possibly be worth looking at today.

While several years have passed since global warming was considered the most pressing issue facing mankind, recent studies from the Center for Atmospheric Research, the National Academy of Sciences, NASA, the Pew Center on Global Climate Change, and basically any scientific report available on the issue confirmed that it is not only still happening, but might also be worth stopping.

"Global warming, if you remember correctly, was the single greatest problem of our lifetime back in 2007 and the early part of 2008," CGD president Nancy Birdsall said. "But then the debates over Social Security reform and the World Trade Center mosque came up, and the government had to shift its focus away from the dramatic rise in sea levels, the rapid spread of deadly infectious diseases, and the imminent destruction of our entire planet."

The new report claims we may see a return to the ominous days of 2007, when terrible flooding and storms of unprecedented scale and intensity were something mankind was concerned about.

Continued Birdsall, "Because the problem of global warming and massive environmental devastation appears to be lingering, however, the time may be right for the federal government to consider dealing with it again in some way."

According to the 300-page document, though global warming—and the worldwide homelessness and drought associated with it—was a desperate problem immediately following the release of the Academy Award–winning documentary An Inconvenient Truth, China's undervalued currency, the midterm elections, and gay marriage have since monopolized lawmakers' time. It concludes that the likelihood of any of these matters flooding the entire Eastern Seaboard and leaving the state of Florida completely submerged is "very slim."

The report further suggests global warming might be worth reversing, especially if mankind wants to avoid the unprecedented food shortage that an overwhelming majority of scientists and agricultural experts predict will happen within 85 years if global warming is not reversed.

"The impending disaster we talked so much about stopping back in 2007 may actually still occur,’ Nancy Birdsall, President, Center for Global Development

"I was a bit surprised by our findings, because I, along with the rest of my colleagues, thought that the process of fixing climate change ended soon after [2007 rock concert] Live Earth," CGD assistant director George Oliver told reporters. "But it turns out that the things needed to stop it, like substantive energy legislation, worldwide cooperation to reduce carbon emissions, and a massive cultural shift toward sustainable living actually didn't happen at all."

"We kind of just assumed that the threat of total annihilation spurred everyone into action back in '07 and that everything got better," Oliver added.

Oliver said his group is making several recommendations to elected officials, some of which include fully comprehending the fact that human beings—actual human beings just like themselves—will be living on the planet when climate change begins to destroy it. The document also suggests that taking steps to prevent the earth from becoming completely unlivable should, for the moment, take precedence over tasks that do not do that.

Moreover, the report states that the 192 countries that participated in the U.N.'s 2009 conference in Copenhagen to fix climate change should have used the 12-day symposium to fix climate change.

"Last year's federal budget included more than $200 million in funding for the Office of Personnel Management," Birdsall said. "Since nobody really knows what that is, we suggest that money perhaps be spent making sure the oceans don't turn into acid."

Thus far, the study has gained unanimous favor in the scientific community, which was admittedly surprised in 2008 and 2009 at how quickly a defining issue that will undoubtedly affect everyone on the planet became so heavily politicized and took a backseat to health care reform, the housing bubble, and replacing Jay Leno on The Tonight Show.

"Climate change is real, and we are killing our planet more every day," said climatologist Helen Marcus, who has made similar statements in interviews in 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, and 2010. "We need to make a serious effort to stop it, or, you know, we'll all die. There really isn't much else to say."

Point/Counterpoint: When I'm Gone, They'll All Be Sorry vs. Didn't He Kill Himself Last Year? (by Joseph Palmer)

November 11, 2010 | ISSUE 46•45

By Tom Northrop

I'll show them. I'll show everybody. They may not appreciate me now, but mark my words, when I'm dead and buried they'll be sorry. Oh, the deep, deep sorrow they will all feel, wishing they could bring me back, regretting all those things they said to me.

Imagine the tearful faces of the hundreds of people at my funeral, all wishing they had tried to comfort me, that they'd done something, anything to prevent my tragic and untimely death. I can see it now: all those stuck-up jerks, once so high and mighty, now reduced to pathetic moans of anguish as they watch my coffin being lowered into the grave forever and are powerless to do anything but wallow in their own regret and shame at the indifference they showed me all those years.

Well, they should have thought of that when they had the chance!

They'll hate themselves for not paying attention when I'd complain about never being able to find a girlfriend, and for not taking my constant pleas for sympathy on Facebook to heart. They'll finally realize I was a human being with feelings and needs who was suffering in ways nobody had ever suffered before. But the time for mercy will be over. All they'll be able to do is curse themselves for being so uncaring, for not patiently listening to me talk about all my problems all the time. My memory will haunt their every waking moment forever, the question "Why didn't I reach out to him?" constantly echoing through their tortured minds.

But there will be no answer, for Thomas Carlisle Northrop will be gone forever, moldering 6 feet below the earth, an eternal testament, never to be forgotten, to the savage and immutable cruelty of his fellow man.

I bet Jenny MacIntosh from high school will even write a poem about me. Yes, how ironic that I'll finally be good enough for her then, when it's too late!

How sorry they will be. Oh so sorry. All of them. Forever.

By Joseph Palmer

Tom? Tom Northrop? Not really ringing any bells. Wait, I think I remember that guy now—really, he's still alive? I figured he killed himself last year sometime.

He's still going on and on about it, huh? Wow. Man, that's strange. For some reason, I thought I remembered getting some sort of an e-mail about that guy a while back. I guess I just assumed he must've offed himself by now, what with all his moping around and that loud, dramatic sighing. I'm thinking of the right Tom, right? Self-asborbed, depressive type? Always trying to get attention by acting sad and dramatic? Yeah, that's gotta be the same guy.

Well, what do you know?

Wait, is he definitely still alive? Wasn't that the funeral I couldn't go to? It was in, like, late 2009 or something, I think? No? God, I must be thinking of someone else. I guess I don't really have a very clear memory of Tom in my head. I mean, I have sort of a vague image of him walking around with that same morose expression on his face all the time, but like I said, I'm probably thinking of someone else.

To tell the truth, I haven't thought about Tom in ages. It's weird, because on the rare occasions when he does come up, I always refer to him in the past tense. Nobody ever corrected me.

Oh no! I know who I'm thinking of that died! Rob! Rob Morgan. He was the one who died. He had, like, gall bladder cancer or something, if I remember correctly. God, what a great guy he was. Just a super-nice dude. Everyone loved him. Talk about somebody who had so much to offer the world, and now he's gone. Real shame he had to go. Real shame.

Wow, look at me, I'm tearing up. I—I'm sorry, it's just, Rob was such a special human being and, I don't know, I wish I'd spent more time with him while he was still with us. It just sucks so much that he's gone, you know? Life is so precious.

Poor Rob.

Wait, who was I talking about before? Dave? Hank? Oh well, it doesn't really matter at all.

Statshot: How Are We Preparing For Retirement?

November 10, 2010 | ISSUE 46•45

Sorry, I could not read the content fromt this page.

Infographic: MGM Files For Bankruptcy

Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer Inc., the company that owns the Rocky and James Bond franchises, the American International Pictures and United Artists libraries, and the MGM Casino, filed for bankruptcy in a New York court last week. Here are some of the reasons the entertainment giant went so far into debt:

1924–1936: Metro, too much cocaine; Goldwyn, too many pills; Mayer, too many commemorative plates1968: While filming 2001: A Space Odyssey, Stanley Kubrick demands the monolith be repainted 28 times before he finds the right color1976: MGM Grand actually has the loosest slots in town for six months1978: Huge fucking shitstorm and the bastard lawyers take 20 percent1984: Start buying a new lion for the logo every year instead of every other year1987: Majority of Spaceballs is actually filmed in deep space1993: Fans of Benny & Joon's use of porkpie hats stumble upon Buster Keaton, begin watching Columbia Pictures films instead2000: Everyone's already seen Wizard Of Oz

American Voices: Do Toning Shoes Really Work?

November 11, 2010 | ISSUE 46•45

A study by the University of Wisconsin–La Crosse suggests that toning shoes—special exercise shoes with rounded bottoms—provide no benefit over regular shoes. What do you think?

Bruce Johnston Substance Abuse Counselor "Yeah, if you really want a workout you need the shoes with the concave bottoms that stick to the floor like suction cups with every step."

Paul White Investor "As an early investor, I'd beg to differ."

Carmella Edwards Night Manager "Oh, I didn't even realize they promised health benefits. I just love the way those rounded bottoms look on my heels."

11.10.10 | ISSUE 46•45

The city of San Francisco banned the McDonald's Happy Meal because it was not living up to the city's basic nutritional standards.

11.09.10 | ISSUE 46•45

The British medical journal The Lancet placed alcohol at the top of its list of socially harmful drugs, above even crack and heroin.

11.08.10 | ISSUE 46•45

Speaking to a group of industry insiders, James Cameron said that postproduction 3-D should only be applied to classic films like Jaws or Close Encounters Of The Third Kind.

11.05.10 | ISSUE 46•44

Citing manufacturing difficulties, Apple announced that its long-awaited all-white iPhone would not be available until the spring.

11.04.10 | ISSUE 46•44

As of Nov. 1, investors can place money on the chances that it will rain. What do you think?

In Focus: World War II Veteran Allowed To Kill One Last German

EMPORIA, KS—WWII fighter pilot Herman Porter, 87, has been appealing to the federal government since 1948 for the right to kill one last German without legal repercussions. On Monday, the decorated soldier was granted his wish by the Senate Subcommittee on Defense Relations.

Above: World War II veteran Herman Porter, 87, who will soon get one more chance to kill a German. Inset: Porter during his days with the Air Force's legendary 53rd Tiger Squadron.

"This is the happiest day of my life," Porter said. "This is one Jerry who isn't getting away."

The killing will take place on September 20 in Porter's hometown of Emporia, as he is wheelchair-bound with Multiple Sclerosis and has been advised by his physician not to travel or over-exert himself.

Porter, who served from 1942-45 in the Air Force's legendary 53rd Tiger Squadron in the European theater, registered 11 kills during the war, but missed out on the fall of Berlin and the subsequent German surrender. Porter's plane was shot down over Frankfurt, and, though he was able to kill numerous German soldiers in hand-to-hand combat, he was injured during his flight to Allied lines. For more than 50 years, Porter has longed for the opportunity to kill another German, putting an exclamation point on what he considers to be the greatest war in U.S. history.

"It won't take much," Porter said. "Just one thrust of my bayonet."

According to subcommittee chair U.S. Sen. Dennis Rehberg (R-MT), the German selected for killing was initially supposed to be an actual German citizen, but fear of harming relations between the two countries "made such an option impossible." It was then decided that a randomly selected American citizen of German descent would serve as a replacement.

Jonathan Schmidt, a 32-year-old machine-tool operator from Milwaukee, was chosen to serve as the kill. While not a full-blooded German, Schmidt is the grandson of immigrants from Germany and retains the 25 percent German blood minimum to quality him for killing under federal law.

Schmidt, who attempted to flee the U.S. upon discovering his fate, was unavailable for comment, though he issued a release stating that his German ancestors were leaders in the resistance movement and helped shelter 250 Jewish families during the war's darkest hours.

But Schmidt's pleas were for naught: Captured by federal agents, Schmidt was taken to Emporia Tuesday for a practice run for the September 20 killing. After being given an authentic early-1940s-issue bayonet and WWII helmet courtesy of the U.S. Army, Porter was wheeled up to face Schmidt.

In front of a hushed audience of friends, relatives and neighbors, Porter said, "Die, you damned Jerry scum!" and feebly moved his bayonet toward Schmidt. The German-American struggled with the agents, who held him in place and tried to force him onto the weapon. Schmidt was not killed, but he did sustain a minor abrasion on his left knee.

Porter, overcome by heat exhaustion, was rushed to an area hospital. He will face Schmidt again upon his expected recovery.

Poll Finds Majority Of Male Voters Would Have Elected Naked Woman

WASHINGTON—A CNN/Gallup Poll released Monday revealed that a vast majority of registered male voters would have strongly supported a naked woman in the 2010 midterm elections.

Respondents also requested a longer, hard-copy version of the poll be sent to their home addresses.

The online survey found that regardless of political philosophy or party affiliation, 85 percent of American men in every ethnic, age, and socioeconomic group consistently chose a completely nude woman over a Democratic, Republican, or independent candidate.

"Male voters from 18 to 85 were shown pictures of the candidates running in the midterms elections and then a picture of a naked lady," head pollster Gerald Walton said. "Across the board, they favored the naked lady."

"Even in highly contested Senate races in Colorado, Nevada, and Pennsylvania, it would have been a naked-lady sweep," Walton added. "And a naked woman would have easily been elected governor in all 37 states where the office was up for grabs."

According to the survey, 52 percent of respondents who preferred the naked woman said that nipple visibility was more important than job creation; 26 percent would accept higher taxes in exchange for a close-up view of her pubic region; and 18 percent stipulated that none of the good parts should be obscured by her hands if she wanted to earn their vote.

Nearly 90 percent of respondents asked for additional polls featuring a naked lady.

"In this political climate, there is absolutely no way 84-year-old, 29-term Rep. John Dingell (D-MI) could have withstood a challenge from a naked woman," Walton said. "Especially one with lips that pert and skin that milky. Those breasts are also quite something. Really impressive."

The poll results confirmed that including a naked woman on the ballot would have dramatically improved voter turnout among Caucasian, Latino, African-American, Asian, white-collar, blue-collar, wealthy, middle-class, poor, young, elderly, and middle-aged males. Among those questioned, the most frequently cited reasons for supporting the nude woman included her wearing no bra or panties, standing up straight with a puffed-out chest, and being naked.

In addition, exit polls indicated a 94 percent approval rating for the naked lady among male voters, with a majority saying they liked the direction she would probably take the country in. While 8 percent of men were not totally confident that the naked woman would do a better job running the nation than other candidates, this minority was quickly rebuffed by the 90 percent who said that nobody talks about her that way and "don't even think about touching her."

"I would have voted for the naked lady," Carson City, NV resident David Stefano told reporters. "Definitely."

According to Beltway insiders, though the picture of the naked lady is extremely popular at the moment, in order for her to be a viable candidate, voters would need to know her position on several key issues, such as whether she plans on gaining weight, her stance on kissing one or more naked women at the same time, and cap and trade.

However, the political future for unclothed women appears promising.

"Right now the path for a naked lady to take control of the White House in 2012 is wide open, because every state would be in play," NBC News political director Chuck Todd said Friday, adding that even a woman wearing a sheer fabric draped over her bare body could ascend to the presidency as long as the garment was see-through. "I have never seen the male electorate more electrified. And we also shouldn't underestimate how a naked woman could potentially take advantage of the young-confused-female- college-student vote."

A follow-up CNN.com poll later indicated that 92 percent of suburban male voters preferred a naked woman to the United Nations while 78 percent would choose "a totally nude lady who is well-groomed" over peace in the Middle East.

[video] Oprah Invites Hundreds Of Lucky Fans To Be Buried With Her In Massive Tomb

Oprah's biggest fans will be entombed alongside her in The Oprahmidion where they will bask in her wisdom for eternity.

View the original article here

Top cos evaded Rs 27,000cr in taxes

NEW DELHI: In one of the biggest tax recoveries to be made from blue-chip companies, the finance ministry has asked Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) to reopen income-tax returns of entities found to have allegedly evaded taxes estimated at over Rs 27,000 crore by wrongly claiming derivative losses.

Sources said the huge tax liability has been estimated just for the two years of financial meltdown during 2008 and 2009. Derivative losses claimed by these entities were to the tune of Rs 50,000 crore. Derivative trading is hedging of foreign exchange against any future risk.

ICICI Bank, Reliance Communications, HCL Technologies, Wipro and Ranbaxy are some of the companies against which highest tax liabilities have been estimated , ranging between Rs 125 crore to Rs 600 crore. During the financial meltdown, these companies had hedged their foreign exchange losses fearing major devaluation of currencies due to volatility in the money market, particularly in dollars.

Reassessment of tax returns of these companies has already begun and all wrongful claims for 2007-08 assessment year would be completed by December. Returns for 2008-09 will be reassessed by next year. These companies will be asked to deposit the remaining taxes with immediate effect , sources said. CBDT had asked the Directorate General of Income Tax Intelligence to investigate these companies as to how much they had projected derivative losses and claimed benefits even against normal business profits.

According to existing rules, any speculative loss, such as those accrued from derivative trading, can be adjusted against profits within four years as against eight years in normal business profits. The speculative loss can only be adjusted against speculative profits and not against normal business profits.

Indian companies started reporting derivative losses after the Institute of Chartered Accountants of India (ICAI) issued instructions in 2008 to report all derivative losses. This forced companies to declare derivative losses in their profit and loss accounts at the end of the financial year. Till the ICAI instructions , companies declared their losses only when actual realization happened.

The ICAI advisory had sought that company auditors must make such declarations in their P&L account and also in the report made for shareholders. As part of the new accounting norms AS 30, all companies must mark-to-market all derivative outstandings at the close of the financial year.

US stock surge follows global rally after central bank moves

New York - US stocks surged Thursday, following the lead of global markets as investors digested a series of central bank moves to boost sagging economies. The US and European monetary authorities took opposite approaches to their economies in the last two days, with the Federal Reserve opting for a 600-billion-dollar buy-up of long-term government debt, while the European Central Bank ruling out any monetary intervention. Yet stocks in the US, Europe and Asia rose sharply Thursday, with Wall Street investors also reacting to Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke's defence of the US approach in a Washington Post editorial. Bernanke said the US "could hardly be satisfied" with the pace of recovery in the world's largest economy and said concerns that the Treasury purchases could drive up inflation were "overstated." The blue-chip Dow Jones Industrial Average jumped 219.71 points, or 1.96 per cent, to 11434.84. The broader Standard and Poor's 500 index surged 23.1 points, or 1.93 per cent 1,221.06. The technology- heavy Nasdaq Composite Index climbed 37.07 points, or 1.46 per cent, to 2,577.34. The Fed's action drove the dollar down against nearly all major global currencies. The US currency fell against the euro to 70.42 euro cents from 70.76 euro cents on Tuesday. The dollar dropped against the Japanese currency to 80.76 yen from 81.16 yen. Investors were awaiting Friday's release of monthly unemployment figures in the United States, where the jobless rate is currently 9.6 per cent. Weekly claims for jobless benefits rose slightly, according to government data released Thursday.
Author : Bill Scott

Silver sizzles in a year of stocks, gold

The stock markets ended Samvat 2066 close to their all-time peaks but it is silver that has come on top beating popular investment avenues such as equities and gold handsomely during the year.

While sensex and gold have delivered 20.6% and 24.2% returns, respectively, in Samvat 2066, silver emerged as the clear winner giving 35.6% gains for investors in the year. "Silver has been historically used as a monetary metal along with gold. Silver has now played catch-up with the gold rally and people have woken up to the fact that it is a precious metal," says Praveen Singh, an analyst with Sharekhan.

After being a laggard initially silver has rallied sharply in the past three months, edging out all other widely available investment options. Unlike gold, the white metal has industrial applications and the consumption of silver for industrial uses has been going up, says Singh, who tracks precious metals. "It (silver) is much cheaper to own compared with gold." While the previous silver rally was on a low base effect, the current one has been driven by strong investor demand, say observers.

"Most precious metals have done well because of the commodities boom and the dollar depreciation," says Dhruva Raj Chatterji, senior research analyst, Morningstar India, an independent investment research firm. When precious metals do well the less fancied ones such as silver and palladium usually outperform others, say observers.

The dollar has had a close correlation with precious metals, especially gold. Dollar-denominated gold price rose by 11.7% between June 6 and October this year while the dollar index fell 12.6%. Gold-prices denominated in euro fell 4.2%. The euro gained against the greenback during the same period.

The yellow metal continues to lure retail investors. The number of retail investor folios, which accounted for about 71% of total gold exchange traded fund (ETF) folios in March 2009, has increased to 96% at the end of September 2010. Retail gold ETF assets have risen by a phenomenal 400% over the same period.

The total investment demand for gold has risen by 118% year-on-year (y-o-y ) in the second quarter of 2010 with the demand for gold ETFs rising by a whopping 414% y-o-y. Assets of gold ETFs have surged 182% in the past one year (ended September 2010).

However, market observers say that investors should tread with caution given the huge jump in the prices in these two metals in the past two years. "It makes sense to have them in a small proportion (say 10% of the portfolio ). One should not go overboard and get carried away by the returns," says an investment consultant. If central banks continue to inject liquidity into the system, big bubbles would build up in precious metals, they caution.

View the original article here

Australia Water Cuts Threaten Parched Farms, Gillard Coalition

November 04, 2010, 8:15 PM EDT By Gemma Daley

Nov. 5 (Bloomberg) -- Rains that flooded eastern Australia came too late for farmer Peter Flanagan, whose 900-hectare property is up for sale after nine years of drought.

Lack of water has slashed Flanagan’s rice crops and cut his sheep flock in Benerembah, New South Wales, leaving him A$1 million ($997,000) in debt. A plan to cut irrigation to farmers in his region, home to almost half the nation’s crops and ranches, spurred his decision to call it quits after 40 years.

“We haven’t had the rain or water to grow crops, and with this hanging over our head we can’t continue,” Flanagan said as he drove his truck through a barley field looking for locusts. “Our bank is worried because of the water cuts.”

A government agency has told Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s administration to supply as much 37 percent less water to the nation’s food bowl to boost river flows and protect the environment in the world’s driest inhabited continent. That would slash cotton, dairy and rice production and may raise global cotton prices: Australia is the world’s fourth-largest exporter of the commodity.

The proposal also may threaten the political stability of Gillard’s minority government. Her coalition depends on the Greens Party, which seeks bigger water reductions to protect the river system and its endangered plants and animals, and on independent lawmakers backed by farmers, who want fewer curbs.

“Water management could bring down this government if they don’t get the balance right between farmers and environmental interests,” said Daniel Connell, a water policy analyst at the Australian National University in Canberra. “The government is determined to divert water from farmers, it’s just a matter of how much.”

Eight Harbors

The Murray Darling Basin Authority was set up in 2008 to create a plan to manage water in a district where some river beds have run dry. Last month the agency recommended cutting water allocations to farmers by 3 trillion to 4 trillion liters -- the equivalent of eight Sydney Harbors -- in a district 1 1/2 times the size of Texas.

The MDBA report said the proposed water curbs would reduce irrigated cotton crops from the area by 25 percent. Cotton futures have surged 84 percent this year to a record on concern that global demand led by China will outstrip supplies.

“Production will fall with less water available,” said Peter Corish, executive chairman of PrimeAg Australia Ltd., which has 40,000 hectares (98,842 acres) of farms in the basin, by phone from Goondiwindi. “It is logical that global food prices will rise as a result.”

Poor Condition

Almost 40 percent of the nation’s food comes from the Murray-Darling Basin, which accounts for A$9 billion of crop and livestock exports. Reducing water to farmers is critical because of imminent “environmental failure” in the river system, endangering plant and animal life, the draft report said.

The recommendations, which will be officially given to the government after community consultation, have sparked protests in farming areas. Residents of Griffith, New South Wales, set fire to copies of the plan on Oct. 14. The Griffith region produces 99 percent of the Australia’s rice and a quarter of its wine grapes.

“This will be the mark of Gillard as leader, to do what is right rather than doing what is convenient,” said John Casella, managing director of Griffith-based Casella Wines Ltd., a producer of the top-selling Australian wine in the U.S., Yellow Tail. “These cuts will suck the lifeblood out of towns like Griffith, which are the food basket of the nation.”

More Rain

The controversy comes as recent rain has eased immediate water concerns. New South Wales, Australia’s most populous state, last month declared an end to its nine-year drought. Winter crop production may almost double to a record, the government’s commodity forecaster said in September.

The rains don’t alter the long-term water situation and won’t change the government’s reduction goals, Water Minister Tony Burke said.

Gillard’s Labor Party lost its outright majority in August and needs the support of four other legislators, independents or from the Greens Party, to give it a majority of 76 seats in the 150-member lower house of parliament.

The demonstrations prompted Regional Development Minister Simon Crean to establish a parliamentary inquiry on the issue, chaired by independent lawmaker Tony Windsor. Windsor, whose support for Gillard enabled her to form a government, comes from a region that is in the river basin and produces oats, maize, vegetables and dairy products.

Balancing Act

“It’s about getting the balance right so that we’ve got health in the river, we are supporting food production, we can see viable regional communities,” Gillard, 49, said on Oct. 19 to the Australian Broadcasting Corp. “It’s a difficult issue but we’ve got to work through it.”

Greens Senator Sarah Hanson-Young on Oct. 15 said Gillard needs to commit to implement the report’s water-reduction recommendations because they are “the bare minimum required” to save the river.

The MDBA will release its final set of recommended water cuts early next year for more consultations. The changes are to take effect starting in 2012.

“Water will make or break this government,” said Malcolm Jackman, chief executive officer at Adelaide-based Elders Ltd., Australia’s largest agricultural provider and the world’s biggest wool broker, whose shares have fallen 59 percent this year. “This plan will be disastrous for the basin and its communities.”

--With reporting by Marion Rae in Canberra and Wendy Pugh in Melbourne. Editors: John Brinsley, Anne Swardson

Asian Buyers Battle for $25 Million Vase as Chinese Prices Rise

November 04, 2010, 8:15 PM EDT By Scott Reyburn

Nov. 5 (Bloomberg) -- An 18th-century vase priced at $25 million is among the works offered by dealers and auction houses at this week’s Asian Art in London event as Chinese collectors pay more for trophy objects from their heritage.

The Qing dynasty porcelain, painted with a dragon in purple enamels, dates from the reign of the Emperor Yongzheng. It is the sole known survivor of a group made in the imperial palace, Beijing, from 1723 to 1735, the Mayfair-based dealer Eskenazi Ltd. said in its 50th anniversary catalog.

This palace rarity is offered less than a month after another 18th-century imperial vase was bought by Chinese collector Alice Cheng for a record HK$252.7 million ($32.6 million) at Sotheby’s, Hong Kong. Asian art raised 245.5 million pounds ($399 million) of auction sales at Christie’s International in the first half, a 121 percent increase on the same period last year.

“Western collectors are getting priced out of the market,” Giuseppe Eskenazi, 71, the gallery’s director, said in an interview. “I’ve got five people interested in the vase and in negotiations. They’re all Asian.”

Eskenazi is showing a dozen museum-quality Chinese pieces spanning three millennia at Asian Art in London, whose 13th annual edition opened yesterday.

“Fifty years ago it was passion that drove collectors,” Eskenazi said. “Now there is more financial reasoning. The explanation that the Chinese are buying so much because they want to repatriate their art is questionable. They are conscious of the investment side.”

House Clearance

Market-savvy buyers have also spotted the potential of an elaborately decorated Qianlong-dynasty porcelain vase found during a house clearance in west London and being offered by Bainbridges, a local auction house in Ruislip. The 16-inch-high piece is described as being made in the imperial kilns in the 1740s and with a pierced double-wall body with roundels of goldfish.

The vase, owned by an English family since the 1930s, is estimated at 800,000 pounds to 1.2 million pounds, director Peter Bainbridge said in an e-mail. It will be offered on the afternoon of Nov. 11.

“If everyone believes in it, this might fetch more than the $30-million vase in Hong Kong,” James Hennessy, director of the London- and New York-based dealership Littleton & Hennessy, said in an interview. “This discovery could be the piece of the season.”

‘Art of Scent’

Hennessy is one of 37 dealers mounting exhibitions during the nine days of Asian Art in London. His “Art of Scent” show presents 30 incense-burning objects from the Han to Qinq dynasties. A 7th-century hand-held gilded-bronze censer is priced at $600,000.

“The market is moving so quickly,” Hennessy said. “Most of our initial enquiries and sales have come from China. We expect to see the biggest turnout yet from the mainland Chinese this year.”

There will be plenty of Far Eastern collectors and dealers at the sales held by London’s three main auction houses.

Bonhams estimates that a Qianlong-period white jade imperial seal will fetch as much as 3 million pounds at its Nov. 11 auction. The seal, carved with a dragon among cloud scrolls, was used to make impressions in the corners of the Emperor’s artworks and has been in a European private collection since the 1960s, according to the catalog.

A 13th-century crackle-glazed “Guan” vase is expected to fetch as much as 800,000 pounds at Christie’s on Nov. 9. Sotheby’s estimates a 14th-century Yuan dynasty “peony” jar will sell for as much as 600,000 pounds on Nov. 10.

The vase is being sold by the Hong Kong-based U.S. collector Ronald Longsdorf. An almost identical example is on display in London’s Victoria & Albert Museum, Rosemary Scott, Christie’s international academic director of Asian art, said.

“It’s also possible that it could go to an Asian collector,” Scott said. “Our number of mainland Chinese clients has increased by 90 percent in the space of a year.”

Asian Art in London 2010 runs though Nov. 13. Information: www.asianartinlondon.com/

(Scott Reyburn writes for Muse, the arts and culture section of Bloomberg News. Opinions expressed are his own.)

--Editors: Mark Beech, Farah Nayeri.

To contact the writer on the story: Scott Reyburn in London at sreyburn@hotmail.com.

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Mark Beech at mbeech@bloomberg.net.

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Japanese Stocks Rise on Commodities, U.S. Outlook; Nissan Jumps

November 05, 2010, 12:05 AM EDT By Akiko Ikeda

Nov. 5 (Bloomberg) -- Japanese stocks rose, sending the Topix index to its biggest gain in 11 months, as commodity prices increased and on speculation the U.S. Federal Reserve will succeed in stoking growth in the world’s biggest economy.

Mitsubishi Corp., Japan’s largest commodities trader, climbed 3.1 percent. JX Holdings Inc., Japan’s biggest oil refiner and copper producer, gained 2.3 percent. Nissan Motor Co., Japan’s No. 3 carmaker, surged 6.7 percent after boosting its profit forecast. Sumitomo Heavy Industries Ltd., a maker of heavy electric machinery, increased 4.6 percent on a higher profit outlook.

“The Fed sent a very clear message about overcoming deflation, and it did not disappoint the market, so that’s supporting stocks,” said Kenji Sekiguchi, general manager of strategic research and investment at Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co., which oversees about $75 billion in Tokyo. “Gains in commodity prices on the back of the weakening dollar will continue for a while.”

The Topix gained 2.5 percent to 836.38, its biggest advance since Dec. 3. The Nikkei 225 Stock Average rose 2.9 percent to 9,632.58 as of 1:01 p.m. in Tokyo, the most among Asia-Pacific indexes. All 33 industry groups in the Topix advanced. For the week, the Nikkei has risen 4.4 percent while the Topix is up 3 percent.

Futures on the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index slid 0.2 percent today. The index jumped 1.9 percent yesterday, the most in a month, as investors speculated the Federal Reserve will succeed in stoking growth and that banks will raise dividends.

Bank of Japan

“With speculation of continuing excess liquidity, money is flowing into risk assets,” including stocks and commodities, said Hiroichi Nishi, an equities manager in Tokyo at Nikko Cordial Securities Inc. “Uncertainties about the global economic outlook are clearing.”

The Bank of Japan today kept its interest rate and the size of an asset-purchase fund unchanged and said it will buy Japanese real estate investment trusts with credit ratings of AA or higher and exchange-traded funds that track the Nikkei 225 Stock Average and the Topix index.

The Nikkei 225 has slumped 8.9 percent this year, the most among the world’s 15 largest equity markets. Today’s advance boosted the average price of stocks in the gauge to 17 times estimated earnings, the highest level in a month.

Metals, Oil Rise

Mitsubishi gained 3.1 percent to 2,088 yen. Mitsui & Co., which counts commodities as its largest source of profit, jumped 4.7 percent to 1,322 yen. JX Holdings advanced 2.3 percent to 494 yen. Inpex Corp., Japan’s largest oil explorer, increased 2.6 percent to 441,500 yen. Sumitomo Metal Mining Co., Japan’s largest gold producer, surged 5.2 percent to 1,368 yen.

Prices of oil and metals advanced as the Federal Reserve’s plans to buy more U.S. debt drove the dollar lower, boosting demand for commodities as alternative investments.

Crude oil for December delivery rose 2.1 percent in New York yesterday to $86.49 a barrel, the highest settlement price since April 6. Copper futures advanced 3.3 percent to a 28-month high. Gold futures surged to a record of $1,393.40. The London Metal Exchange Index of prices for six industrial metals including copper and aluminum jumped 3.1 percent yesterday, the most since May.

Nissan leapt 6.7 percent to 769 yen, the second-largest increase in the Nikkei 225. The company boosted its forecast for full-year net income by 80 percent to 270 billion yen ($3.3 billion), more than the median estimate of 252 billion yen by 22 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. Nomura Holdings Inc., Japan’s biggest brokerage, increased its share-price estimate on the carmaker to 1,100 yen from 990 yen.

Carmakers Lead Gains

Toyota Motor Corp., the world’s largest carmaker, advanced 1.9 percent to 2,966 yen and Honda Motor Co., Japan’s No. 2 carmaker, climbed 4.7 percent to 2,895 yen.

About four Japanese companies have exceeded profit estimates for every three that have fallen short, based on Bloomberg data compiled from about 770 companies in the Topix that have reported quarterly results since Oct. 7. About 360 companies of the index’s more than 1,650 are scheduled to announce earnings this week, according to Bloomberg data.

Sumitomo Heavy Industries jumped 4.6 percent to 501 yen, set for the highest close since July 30. The company raised its full-year net income outlook 21 percent to 20 billion yen, citing higher sales of construction machinery and cost cuts. It also increased its planned yearend dividend to 6 yen a share from 5 yen.

Mitsumi Electric Co., an electronic-component maker, soared 6.4 percent to 1,429 yen, the most since July 2009. The company narrowed its net loss forecast for the year ending in March to 1.5 billion yen from 3.7 billion yen.

Resona Holdings Inc., Japan’s fourth-largest bank by market value, plummeted by its daily limit of 100 yen, or 16 percent, to 512 yen, the biggest drop and lowest level since May 2003. The bank is preparing a public share offer of several hundred billion yen to hasten the repayment of government funds, according to two people with knowledge of the matter.

--With assistance from Kotaro Tsunetomi in Tokyo. Editors: Sam Waite, John McCluskey.

New Research Shines Light On Quebec Industry

Posted on: Thursday, 4 November 2010, 17:46 CDT

McGill scientists develop technique to evaluate meat cuts by the light waves they emit

Which are the best pieces of pork, what their texture is, how moist they are – the secrets pigs keep from even the most skilled butchers – are about to be revealed, thanks to a sophisticated new technique that has been developed by McGill University researchers in conjunction with Agriculture Canada and the pork industry. "This is about giving industry workers better tools to do their job," explained Dr. Michael Ngadi of McGill's Department of Bioresource Engineering. "Computer-aided analysis of meat will result in higher-quality jobs, optimal production, and exports that fit more closely with the target markets."

The technology involves spectroscopy, a technique based on the analysis of the wavelengths of visible and invisible light produced by matter. By measuring the wavelengths of reflected light that pork cuts release, the researchers discovered they could easily determine the colour, texture and exudation (water release) of the meat. The technique is revolutionary, as previous laboratory techniques had involved destroying the testing sample. "The technique enables production workers to conduct objective and scientific analysis of the meat very quickly on the production line," Dr. Ngadi said. It means the meat can be more accurately sorted according to the quality demanded by different export markets.

The research is not far from leaving the laboratory and entering factories, according to Dr. Ngadi. "We are currently looking for partners who will work with us to build a ready-to-use device for a commercial production line," he said. The researchers are also looking to extend the technique for the evaluation of other aspects of meat quality, such as marbling and fat content.

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China Cord Blood Corporation Announces Proposed Public Offering of Ordinary Shares

Posted on: Thursday, 4 November 2010, 15:28 CDT

HONG KONG, Nov. 4, 2010 /PRNewswire-Asia-FirstCall/ -- China Cord Blood Corporation (NYSE: CO) ("CCBC" or "the Company"), the first and largest cord blood bank operator in China, today announced that it intends to offer and sell its ordinary shares in an underwritten offering. Jefferies & Company, Inc. is the sole bookrunner for the offering. The offering is subject to market conditions, and there can be no assurance as to whether or when the offering may be completed, or as to the actual size or terms of the offering.

The Company is conducting the offering pursuant to an effective shelf registration statement previously filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the "SEC"). A preliminary prospectus supplement related to the offering is being filed with the SEC and is available on the SEC's website at http://www.sec.gov. Copies of the preliminary prospectus supplement relating to these securities may be obtained from Equity Syndicate Prospectus Department, Jefferies & Company, Inc., 520 Madison Avenue, 12th Floor, New York, NY, 10022, at 877-547-6340, and at Prospectus_Department@Jefferies.com.

This press release shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy, nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or other jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities laws of any such state or jurisdiction. The offering may only be made by means of a prospectus supplement and related base prospectus.

About China Cord Blood Corporation

China Cord Blood Corporation is the first and largest cord blood banking operator in China in terms of geographic coverage and is the only cord blood bank operator in China with multiple licenses. Under the current PRC government regulations, only one licensed cord blood bank operator is permitted to operate in each licensed region and only seven licenses have been authorized as of today. China Cord Blood Corporation provides cord blood collection, laboratory testing, hematopoietic stem cell processing, and stem cell storage services.

Forward-Looking Statements

This press release contains forward-looking statements as defined by the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. Forward-looking statements include statements concerning plans, objectives, goals, strategies, future events, performance and results of operations, and underlying assumptions and other statements that are other than statements of historical facts. These statements are subject to uncertainties and risks including, but not limited to, product and service demand and acceptance, changes in technology, economic conditions, the impact of competition and pricing, government regulation, and other risks contained in statements filed from time to time with the Securities and Exchange Commission. All such forward-looking statements, whether written or oral, and whether made by or on behalf of the Company, are expressly qualified by the cautionary statements and any other cautionary statements which may accompany the forward-looking statements. In addition, the Company disclaims any obligation to update any forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date hereof. Completion of the proposed offering is subject to market conditions and other factors.

For more information, please contact: China Cord Blood Corporation Ms. Joeling Law Tel: (+852) 3605-8180 Email: ir@chinacordbloodcorp.com ICR, LLC In New York: Ashley M. Ammon or Christine Duan: 1-646-277-1227 In Beijing: Wen Lei Zheng: +86-10-6599-7968

SOURCE China Cord Blood Corporation

Source: PR Newswire

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Global reserve currencies come with responsibilities

The U.S. Federal Reserve announced Wednesday it would buy 600 billion dollars of Treasury bonds, effectively printing money to jumpstart the flagging American economy.

The move is a boost to the U.S. economy but risks creating new capital bubbles for other countries.

The U.S. dollar is the most widely held reserve currency in the world today. The devaluation of the U.S. dollar plus an overly loose currency policy that leads to a sharp increase in capital flow will drive large amounts of hot money to newly emerging economies in search of profits.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has recently warned that Asia and other emerging markets are facing the double risks of a huge influx of foreign capital and an accumulation of inflation pressure.

Chinese Commerce Minister Chen Deming has also pointed out that "out-of-control" U.S. currency issuance and big international commodity price hikes would probably saddle China with imported inflation.

Ironically, one of the factors driving big international commodity prices up is the depreciation of the U.S. dollar, the main global reserve currency.

In the past few months, a vicious cycle of currency flow became obvious. The Fed launched a round of quantitative easing, causing an overflow of capital (hot money pooled in other countries). This led to imported inflation jeopardizing the economies of other countries, which were then forced to intervene in the foreign exchange market.

From the U.S. perspective, the purpose of increasing liquidity is to inject life into its faltering economy. But the direct consequences of the move might be disastrous to other countries. It might even drag others into financial turbulence.

Some economists did not rule out the possibility the U.S. government was deliberately waging a currency war by quantitative easing, depreciating the dollar, shifting the economic risks to others and pursuing the bonus that comes from having a reserve currency.

According to a report from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) on Wednesday, continued loose monetary policy in many advanced economies will prompt capital to flow to emerging ones where it risks creating asset bubbles while putting upward pressure on their exchange rates.

OECD Secretary General Jose Angel Gurria said bubbles were generated in the emerging economies, which "still have a high level of inflation or ...(face) pressure of inflation," when advanced economies took advantage of their weaker and more restrictive monetary policies.

Nobel laureate Joseph Stiglitz said that, when trying to reignite the U.S. economy by printing money, the flood of money was almost surely contributing to global financial instability and prompted countries worldwide to intervene. And the result was a "more fragmented global financial market."

Last month, G20 finance ministers and central bankers promised in a joint statement to "pursue the full range of policies conducive to reducing excessive imbalances and maintaining current account imbalances at sustainable levels."

During the China-U.S. strategic and economic dialogue in May, the U.S. also vowed to adopt a proactive currency policy and pay attention to the impact of its currency policy on the international economy.

The reason why the outside world follow the attitudes of advanced countries so closely is that they are the source of the rivers of hot money.

Whether the world economy can achieve a sustainable recovery largely depends on whether the main global reserve currency countries can put into practice their promises to keep exchange rates comparatively stable and reduce the negative spill-over effect of their currency policies.

At the time when the world economic recovery is still unstable, it is an unshirkable task for the main global reserve currency countries to adopt responsible currency policies for the benefit of all.

Source: Xinhua

U.S. announces settlement in global bribery scandal

A Swiss-based freight firm and five international oil service companies agreed Thursday to pay $156 million in criminal fines and give up $80 million in profits, interest and penalties for their roles in a global bribery scandal, the Justice Department said.

Panalpina World Transport Ltd. of Basel, Switzerland, and its U.S. subsidiary, Panalpina Inc., admitted in court documents to paying bribes to foreign officials on behalf of its customers in the oil and gas industry to circumvent local rules and regulations on the import of goods to foreign jurisdictions.

Panalpina admitted that between 2002 and 2007, it paid $27 million in bribes to foreign officials in Angola, Azerbaijan, Brazil, Kazakhstan, Nigeria, Russia and Turkmenistan. Its customers, including Shell Nigeria Exploration and Production Co. Ltd., Transocean Inc. and Tidewater Marine International Inc., admitted approving or condoning the bribes and recording them as legitimate business expenses.

The agreement came in response to an investigation by the Justice Department and the Securities and Exchange Commission into violations of the Federal Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA).

"The settlement of these claims marks the closing of an extremely burdensome chapter in Panalpinas history and the end of a very demanding three-year effort to address and eliminate serious concerns," said Monika Ribar, Panalpinas chief executive officer, in a statement.

Ms. Ribar said the company's compliance systems had undergone "significant enhancements."

Alexandra Wragge, president of the nonprofit TRACE, which works with multinational companies on anti-bribery compliance, said the short-term consequence of the settlement could be a cost increase passed along to consumers "because compliance is expensive."

"Ultimately, the cost should taper off because bribery is also expensive," she said. "When they do figure out a way to do business without bribery, then costs do go down."

Justice said Panalpina violated U.S. anti-bribery laws, agreeing to resolve the charges by entering into a deferred prosecution deal - meaning if the company abides for three years by terms of a criminal information filed in the case, the government will drop the prosecution.

"The Department of Justices commitment to rooting out foreign bribery is unwavering," said Assistant Attorney General Lanny A. Breuer, who heads the departments criminal division. "Wherever possible, the department seeks to find and hold accountable all the players in corrupt deals — from customers who know that bribes are being paid on their behalf to those actually making the payments."

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World markets surge in wake of Fed's infusion of cash

Stocks soared from New York to Tokyo on Thursday on investor elation over the Federal Reserve's massive cash infusion for the economy and markets, sending U.S. stock indexes to their highest levels since the 2008 financial crisis.

After pausing on Wednesday afternoon immediately after the Fed's announcement, investors shook off any qualms over the unusual and controversial move by the central bank and waxed optimistic on the brighter outlook for the world economy.

The Dow Jones industrial average surged 220 points, or 2 percent, to 11,435, its highest point for the year, while the Standard & Poor's 500 index of blue-chip stocks rallied by nearly 2 percent to break through technical barriers and end at 1,221.

The euphoria on Wall Street followed similar dramatic gains in Asian and European indexes overnight as global investors saw the Fed's move as a boon for business and markets worldwide.

Traders work Thursday on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange in New York. Stocks indexes are setting new highs for the year, a day after the Federal Reserve announced a $600 billion plan to boost the economy. (Associated Press)

After announcing that it would buy $900 billion in U.S. Treasury bonds in the next six months, Fed Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said in an opinion article that the move was aimed in part at spurring a stock rally so as to increase the wealth of businesses and stock owners.

The stock gains, the Fed chairman reasoned, would spur confidence among businesses and consumers, helping to generate economic activity and growth.

"Go for growth" is the message, said John Silvia, chief economist at Wells Fargo Securities, and that means investing in stocks and commodities like oil, gold, copper and nickel that rise with growth and inflation.

Stock and commodity investors clearly got the message Thursday. Stock indexes in London, Paris, Frankfurt, Tokyo and Shanghai gained around 2 percent, while oil prices jumped 2 percent to $86.49 a barrel. Gold surged by $45.40, or 3.4 percent, to a record $1,383.10 an ounce.

But doubts continued to linger in some circles about long-term problems that could result from the Fed's loose money policies, particularly a rise in inflation as the dollar falls in value on world markets.

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Attachment Runs Thicker Than Money

Posted on: Thursday, 4 November 2010, 18:01 CDT

USC Marshall study finds the way to consumers' wallets is through their hearts

Can you forge an emotional bond with a brand so strong that, if forced to buy a competitor's product, you suffer separation anxiety? According to a new study from the USC Marshall School of Business, the answer is yes. In fact, that bond can be strong enough that consumers are willing to sacrifice time, money, energy and reputation to maintain their attachment to that brand.

"Brand Attachment and Brand Attitude Strength: Conceptual and Empirical Differentiation of Two Critical Brand Equity Drivers," a study published in the November issue of the Journal of Marketing, is co-authored by USC Marshall's C. Whan Park, Joseph A. DeBell Professor of Marketing; Deborah J. MacInnis, Vice Dean of Research and Charles L. and Ramona I. Hilliard Professor of Business Administration; and Joseph Priester, Associate Professor of Marketing; along with Andreas B. Eisingerich, Assistant Professor of Marketing, Imperial College (London) Business School; and Dawn Iacobucci, E. Bronson Ingram Professor in Marketing, Owen Graduate School of Management, Vanderbilt University, indicates that brand attachment has much stronger impact on consumers than previously believed. In fact, the study suggests, brand attachment can even be strong enough to induce separation anxiety when favorite brands are replaced.

The study advances existing brand research in consumer psychology and goes beyond the existing paradigm, indicating that traditional measurements such as brand attitude strength do not adequately explain consumers' intense loyalties to the brands they love—that they fail to explain how brands capture "consumers' hearts and minds." Brand attachment, the authors claim, does exist, is predicated on a brand/self-relationship and can better explain what drives consumer behavior and their loyalty and commitment to the brands.

It is brand attachment that explains consumers' devotion to the iPod, fans' intense reaction at celebrity deaths and the torment of teenagers who are denied their favorite brand of jeans. Through brand attachment, the USC Marshall study suggests, consumers see the brands as an extension of themselves.

ABOUT THE RESEARCH

The authors first developed a two-factor brand attachment scale that examines brand-self connection and brand prominence, groundbreaking distinctions made by the study. The authors then tested the scale by surveying consumers of several prominent brands: Quaker Oats oatmeal, iPod, and a university. Using the results to fine-tune the scale, the authors tested their hypotheses through a series of four studies: the impact of brand attachment on consumers' purchase behavior, their likelihood to engage in "difficult-to-enact" behavior, brand purchase share (or the real estate the brand has within the consumer's heart and mind compared to competitive brands), and brand need share (the use of the brand compared to brands in other product categories that could be substituted).

FINDINGS

Overall, the research suggests, the greater the attachment, the greater sacrifices a consumer will make to connect with or remain connected to the brand.

The study's key findings include:

    * The more strongly a consumer's attachment to a brand, the more willing they are to forsake personal resources to maintain an ongoing relationship with the brand. They are willing to engage in difficult behaviors — "those that require investments of time, money and energy, so as to maintain or deepen a brand relationship."
* Highly attached consumers are more motivated to devote their own resources in the process of self-expansion, including paying more, defending the brand, derogating alternatives, and devoting more time to the brand through brand communities and brand promotion through social media.
* Attachment represented by both brand-self-connection and prominence is a significantly better predictor than brand attitude strength of actual behaviors.

IMPLICATIONS FOR MARKETERS

Based on their research, the authors suggest that managers have much to gain through efforts aimed at building stronger brand attachment. In addition, managers should incorporate brand attachment in brand-evaluation matrices, which would provide a more detailed picture of how current brand-management efforts relate to future sales.

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Chinese companies head to Singapore Exchange

Singapore Exchange Ltd, the Asia-Pacific region's integrated securities and derivatives exchange, announced 11 Chinese companies had listed in Singapore by the end of October, about 33 percent of the total newly-listed companies on the exchange this year.

The companies are mainly in the real estate and manufacturing industries. Among them, Global Logistic Properties on Oct 18 raised $6.69 billion in its IPO, the highest in Singapore since 1993, while Double Estate Co raised $367.87 million in April.

"China is a significant target for future mergers, and the Singapore Exchange focuses on development in the Asian market," said the executive vice-president of the exchange, Lawrence Wong, on Thursday.

The listed Chinese companies performed well in the last three months, Wong said. According to data from UBS, from August to October, the index performance of S shares (Chinese companies' shares issued by the Singapore Exchange) was 18 percent, 7 percentage points higher than the 11 percent seen by the Straits Times Index which tracks 30 representative companies listed on the Singapore Exchange.

One of the advantages for Chinese companies is that the successful launch of 19 American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) by the exchange will provide investors with an array of innovative products and trading opportunities, Wong said. Another advantage is that the Singapore Exchange has launched a collaboration with Nasdaq OMX Group, which offers a cross-listing opportunity to currently listed Chinese companies on both of the exchanges in addition to dual-listing business for new IPOs, said the vice-president.

Additionally, a recently proposed deal with the Australian Securities Exchange is expected to enable global customers to capitalize on the expanded platforms of listing, trading, clearing and settlement. "If the deal is approved in the future, it will allow the Singapore Exchange to provide better services to our existing and potential customers," Wong said.

At end of October, the predicted market value of the combined group was about $12.3 billion. There are now 157 Chinese companies listed in Singapore, among which 27 are from Fujian province, 26 from Guangdong province and 20 from Jiangsu province. "In the next step, the Singapore Exchange will expand business with companies in central and west China," Wong said.

The exchange signed a Listing Memorandums of Understanding with the State-owned Assets Supervision and Administration Commission of the State Council and Financial Affairs Office of the Jiangsu provincial government in May, in order to persuade Chinese companies to list in Singapore. Earlier, it signed Memorandums of Understanding with Fujian, Liaoning, Shandong and Zhejiang provinces, as well as the Agricultural Bank of China.

In 2010, the Singapore Exchange raised $98.1 billion in total. The IPOs have reached $3.5 billion, increasing by 45.83 percent year-on-year. Meanwhile, the market value of Chinese companies listed in the exchange was $43 billion, by the end of October.

Source:China Daily

Investments in rich economies fall, world trade slows: studies+

studies+ (AP) - GENEVA, Nov. 4 (Kyodo)—(EDS: FIXING TYPO IN HEADLINE)

Global foreign direct investment flows to the world's 20 richest economies registered its first quarterly drop in over a year, while world trade appeared to slow down during the summer, a series of reports released on Thursday by international organizations showed.

According to joint study by the U.N. Conference on Trade and Development and the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, FDI flows to G-20 countries plummeted 36 percent in the second quarter of this year compared to the first quarter of the year.

FDI flows are expected to total $1.2 trillion by the end of the year, but still to be 25 percent lower than the average of the last three pre-crisis years through 2007, the report said, adding that a new FDI boom remained a "distant prospect."

In another study, the World Trade Organization said world trade "appeared" to slow down during the summer, but it maintained its forecast of a 13.5 percent growth in 2010 from 2009 levels.

It added that world trade in July was "roughly" equal to the levels of July 2008, "very close" to the pre-crisis peak in April of that year.

The reports were released at the behest of the G-20, which will hold a summit in Seoul on Nov. 11 and 12 to discuss world economic issues.

In a joint statement, all three organizations praised governments for avoiding protectionist measures, but urged them to remain "vigilant" in the coming months to a number of potential dangers.

"In the aggregate there has been a slight decline in the number of (trade restricting or distorting) measures and in their trade coverage relative to the levels registered earlier this year," it said.

But there are "signs of intensifying protectionist pressures...that are being driven by persistent high levels of unemployment in many G- 20 countries, macroeconomic imbalances between them, and tensions over foreign exchange rates."

"Economic problems whose origins lie outside the field of trade and investment policymaking cannot be resolved by restricting flows of international trade or investment," the statement said.

The organization also warned of a "steady accumulation over time of measures that restrict or distort trade and investment" and the risks associated with improperly managing "the trade and investment impacts of restrictive measures taken in response to the crisis," such as winding down public support for corporations and financial firms.

The G-20 comprises Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Britain, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey, the United States and the European Union.

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Amount In BOJ Asset Purchase Fund "Small"

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SAP Executive Tells Court Of Concerns About Takeover Target's Business

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Companies miss deadline for telecom sale

By JON GAMBRELL Associated Press Published: Thursday, November 4, 2010 at 6:16 p.m.
Last Modified: Thursday, November 4, 2010 at 6:16 p.m.

A group of private companies missed a deadline Thursday to provide a $750 million down payment to purchase Nigeria's ailing state-run telephone company, the latest setback in efforts to privatize the firm.

The New Generation Telecommunications Consortium requested another 30 days to put up the deposit on its $2.5 billion bid for Nigerian Telecommunications Ltd., known locally as Nitel, said Usman Gumi, managing director of local company and consortium member GiCell.

A spokesman for Nigeria's Bureau of Public Enterprises, the presidential task force set up to privatize state industries, could not be reached for comment Thursday night.

The proposed sale to the consortium, which Nigerian federal officials say includes China's Unicom Ltd., Dubai's Minerva and local company GiCell, has faced scrutiny. The $2.5 billion bid by the consortium appears grossly overpriced compared to the next highest bid of about $956 million by Omen International.

Federal authorities examined the deal for about eight months before allowing it to move forward. However, it put stringent terms on the deal, requiring the down payment in 10 days and the remaining $1.75 billion within 60 days after that.

Usman said the group still could come up with the money to buy Nitel.

"No investors will tie down his money for eight good months," Usman said. "If you give us 10 calendar days to pull that money back together, you've not been fair to us."

Nitel, in principle, provides landline telephone service in Nigeria, Africa's most populous nation with 150 million residents. However, the state company's telephones now rarely work, pushing most consumers into the oil-rich nation's rapidly expanding mobile phone market, where private companies hold the edge.

Nigeria has an estimated 1.3 million landline telephones, compared to 62.9 million mobile phones.

Privatizing Nitel could prove profitable, as the company does have lines strewn throughout Nigeria's cities.

There are other questions analysts have about New Generation. State-owned Unicom, one of China's three major phone carriers, said in February that it had expressed interest in a technical role in privatizing Nitel. However, Unicom denied that it was part of the consortium biding for the carrier.

Attempts to privatize Nitel have failed in the past over questionable deals between the government and private investors. Nigeria also has plans to privatize its state-run power company.

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Keeping Food Safe from Farm to Table

ScienceDaily (Nov. 4, 2010) — Food safety problems can arise at any of multiple stages of food production, and illnesses that result from them are frequently not detected or reported, according to a new report from the American Academy of Microbiology.

The report, "Global Food Safety: Keeping Food Safe from Farm to Table," is based on a colloquium convened by the Academy in 2009. Colloquium participants with expertise in microbiology, public health, food science, and economics reviewed the current state of affairs in microbiological food safety around the world.

The path from food production to consumption is increasingly complicated. Each plate of food may contain ingredients from many countries -- each of which may have passed through different processing facilities, and may have been handled by wholesalers, retailers, and multiple transportation companies before finally reaching the consumer's shelf or refrigerator. No single agency regulates all of the steps in this process.

Each link in the food safety chain would benefit from further research and new technologies -- specific examples of which are detailed in this report. Regulations that promote good agricultural and manufacturing practices would not only help decrease lapses in food safety, but would make it easier to trace problems back to their inception.

Consumer education is also an important component of food safety. Consumers are often unaware of safe food handling practices, especially as new food products are introduced. Because consumer-caused foodborne illnesses are often not recognized as such, much less systematically reported, an important barrier to reducing their incidence is inadequate knowledge of which foods, agents, and practices pose the greatest risk.

It is very difficult to know how many people are made sick by food, which foods are at fault, which pathogens are most widespread or dangerous, and where those pathogens entered the food production system. In such a situation, where should research, prevention and education efforts be directed? In this report, each step in our complicated food production and supply system is described, highlighting key points of vulnerability and making it clear that providing safe food is a shared responsibility.

Food safety is complex, and a perfectly safe food supply is an unrealistic goal. However, as this report explains, there are opportunities for improving food safety at each step of the production and consumption process and many areas where further research could help identify and quantify risks and generate solutions. The report also identifies food safety vulnerabilities that might be addressed through investments in new technologies or more effective education.

Report: http://academy.asm.org/images/stories/documents/Global_Food_Safety.pdf

Editor's Note: This article is not intended to provide medical advice, diagnosis or treatment.

Story Source:

The above story is reprinted (with editorial adaptations by ScienceDaily staff) from materials provided by American Society for Microbiology, via EurekAlert!, a service of AAAS.

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

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Arab world faces worsening water crisis - report

BEIRUT - The Arab world, one of the driest regions on the planet, will tip into severe water scarcity as early as 2015, a report issued on Thursday predicts.

By then, Arabs will have to survive on less than 500 cubic metres of water a year each, or below a tenth of the world average of more than 6,000 cubic metres per capita, said the report by the Arab Forum for Environment and Development (AFED).

"The Arab world is already living a water crisis that will only get worse with inaction," the report says, adding per capita supply has plunged to only a quarter of its 1960 level.

Rapid population growth will further stress water resources. According to UN projections, the Arabs, who now number almost 360 million, will multiply to nearly 600 million by 2050.

Climate change will aggravate matters. By the end of this century, Arab countries may experience a 25 per cent drop in precipitation and a 25 per cent increase in evaporation rates, according to climate change models cited in the report.

"As a result, rain-fed agriculture will be threatened, with average yields estimated to decline by 20 per cent," it says.

Thirteen Arab countries are among the world's 19 most water-scarce nations. People in eight Arab countries already have to make do with less than 200 cubic metres a year each.

"Without fundamental changes in policies and practices, the situation will get worse, with drastic social, political and economic ramifications," the AFED report says.

Conditions vary across the region, but within five years only Iraq and Sudan will pass the water scarcity test, defined as over 1,000 cubic metres a year per capita, assuming supplies from Turkey and Ethiopia still flow at current levels.

Agriculture consumes 85 per cent of Arab water use, compared with a world average of 70 per cent. Irrigation efficiency is only 30 per cent, against a world average of 45 per cent.

Groundwater is over-exploited, leading to significant declines in water tables, pollution of aquifers and seawater intrusion in coastal areas, AFED says. More than 43 per cent of wastewater is discharged raw, while only 20 per cent is reused.

The Arab world has 5 per cent of the world's population but only 1 per cent of its renewable fresh water, so several Gulf Arab countries rely heavily on desalinated sea water -- accounting for more than half the world's desalination capacity.

Golf courses in the desert

Some of the expensive desalinated water is used to irrigate low-value crops or even golf courses, the AFED report says.

Discharge from the desalination plants, which use imported, polluting technologies, makes sea water warmer and more saline.

Despite its scarcity, water is often squandered in the Arab world thanks to low prices and subsidies that disguise its cost.

"Free water is wasted water," the report says, noting average prices charged in the region cover 35 per cent of water production costs and only 10 per cent for desalinated water.

Governments, which often focus on seeking new supplies of water, should instead concentrate on improving water management, rationalising consumption, encouraging reuse and protecting water supplies from overuse and pollution, AFED urges.

Better water management presents huge challenges in Arab countries where most public organisations serving irrigation and urban water needs "do not function properly".

Water pricing schemes are needed to attract new investment in the sector, but that will not be enough, the report says.

"No technological or engineering solutions will be effective without the necessary policy, institutional and legal reforms."

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Unilever lifts earnings 3.6%

UK: Unilever lifts earnings 3.6%  
November 5, 2010
Consumer goods giant Unilever surprised investors with a rise in third-quarter profit margins yesterday, and said it could raise prices and cut costs to counter higher commodity costs.

The Anglo-Dutch company said it would raise prices in the fourth quarter even as it was aiming for its goal of profitable sales volume growth for 2010.

Despite tough trading and heightened competition, Unilever matched forecasts with a 3.6 percent rise in third-quarter underlying sales. - Reuters

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Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee: As CEO of WWE, Linda McMahon "was caught tipping off a ringside physician" about a federal investigation into illegally distributing steroids to wrestlers.

Robert Dold: Dan Seals has been running for office "since before there were, like, iPods."

It's not every day that a campaign ad lands in our inbox and makes us laugh out loud -- especially in the midst of a campaign cycle with commercials featuring Viagra-fueled sex offenders, puppy mass-murderers and roving psychopaths. But the ad aired by Republican Robert Dold targeting Democrat Dan Seals had us at "broheim."

It features a charming if foul-mouthed sea lion hired to film an "endorsement" for Dan Seals. Seals (not the sea lion) is running for the Chicago-area seat being vacated by Rep. Mark Kirk, the Republican nominee for Senate. With a slight Democratic edge and a moderate, suburban vibe, the 10th District is one of the rare GOP-held seats that's actually in play for the Democrats this year. In fact, political handicapper Charlie Cook rates it Lean Democratic, meaning that Dold, even though he's a Republican running in a Republican year, is airing the ad as a slight underdog.

Perhaps that's why the Dold campaign went for an ad with potential for buzz. In any case, the script is so priceless that we'll reprint it in its entirety here:

Narrator: "And now, a very special political endorsement."

Sea lion: "Dan Seals is a proud resident of the 10th District."

Director (voice off-screen): "Actually, he's not."

Sea lion: "What, he's not?"

Director: "Cut!"

Sea lion: "Dan Seals is a tax fighter."

Director: "No, he's all about raising your taxes and increasing government spending."

Sea lion: "Aaargh! For real, broheim?"

Sea lion: "Dan Seals is a fresh new candidate."

Director: "Nah, he's run like two times already and lost. I think he was running since before there were, like, iPods."

Sea lion: "What the -- ?" (Bleep)

Sea lion: "Look, if you want common-sense leadership in Congress, lower taxes and more jobs, just vote for Robert Dold."

Sea lion (to director): "All righty, arf-arf. Where's my fish treat?"

Closing jingle: "It's Dold with a 'd,' not an 'e.'"

We like the ad so much that we feel a bit guilty subjecting it to the Truth-O-Meter. But subject it we must.

We could have looked at the question of whether Seals lives in the district or not. (A local media outlet in the district reported that Seals lives "a block and a half outside the district boundary." Meanwhile, the same article notes questions about Dold's own history of residing in the district. The Constitution only requires that a candidate live in the state where the election is being held.)

But we didn't. Instead, we're looking at the burning question of whether the spokesmammal was correct when he said that Dan Seals was running for office "before there were, like, iPods."

We first looked at Seals' biography. He has indeed run (and lost) for Congress twice before -- in 2006 and 2008. Prior to that, he worked in a variety of corporate and policy jobs, including a position in the U.S. Commerce Department and as an economics fellow in the U.S. Senate. Seals was clearly a policy-wonk in training, but none of these positions involved electoral politics, so we won't count them as positions in which he was "running." Even assuming that Seals started campaigning actively a year or more before the 2006 election, that would only peg the beginning of his career as a candidate to 2005.

What about the iPod? Well, we located a Newsweek cover featuring Apple co-founder Steve Jobs holding the music player that's dated July 26, 2004. (Doesn't it look bulky?) So the iPod clearly existed well before Seals began to run for office. We found the original news release for Apple's initial unveiling of the iPod on Oct. 23, 2001. And units were on sale beginning on Nov. 10, 2001, according to the Consumer Electronics Association. So, versions of the iPod were on sale for three to four years before Seals began running for office.

When we ran our findings by the Dold campaign, spokesman John McGovern replied, "This ad is intended to be light-hearted and a tongue-in-cheek response to the relentlessly negative tone of the Seals campaign. All cultural references are intended to be humorous and casual."

Having waded through so much muck while reviewing this year's campaign commercials, we're all for light-hearted and tongue-in-cheek. And as you have probably picked up, we love this ad. But sometimes the Truth-O-Meter has to exercise tough love. So, as much as we love the pinniped, the ad got it wrong about the iPod, so we rate it, like,  False.

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National Republican Congressional Committee: Blames Mike McIntyre and Nancy Pelosi for the second straight year of no cost-of-living increases for Social Security beneficiaries.

Scaring voters about what could happen to Social Security if your opponent wins the election is a time-honored tradition in political ads, especially when Democrats are making the accusation. But in something of a twist, the National Republican Congressional Committee -- the campaign arm of House Republicans -- is using Social Security as a cudgel against a Democrat, seven-term Rep. Mike McIntyre of North Carolina.

Here's the transcript of the ad:

Narrator: "Mike McIntyre and Nancy Pelosi are not being honest with North Carolina seniors."

McIntyre: "I'll never risk your Social Security."

Narrator. "But McIntyre and Pelosi's big spending is robbing our Social Security trust fund. Social Security is billions in debt, and this year will be operating in the red. And now for the second year in a row, there's no cost-of-living increase for North Carolina seniors. Mike McIntyre and Nancy Pelosi: Their spending is putting our Social Security at risk."

We've written at some length about the question of whether Social Security is "billions in debt" and "operating in the red." So this time, we thought we'd tackle the notion that McIntyre and House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif. -- the ad's boogeyman and boogeywoman -- are responsible for the fact that "for the second year in a row, there's no cost-of-living increase for North Carolina seniors."

We'll begin by pointing out that North Carolina seniors aren't alone in this fate. Social Security cost-of-living adjustments, or COLAs, are calculated on a national basis, not by individual state.

But how are they calculated? Here's the long answer.

Until 1975, it took an act of Congress to adjust Social Security payments for inflation. But a law enacted in 1972 and signed by President Richard Nixon created a formula to automatically calculate the increase every year. The Social Security cost-of-living adjustment was tied to the Consumer Price Index for Urban Wage Earners and Clerical Workers (CPI-W).

The government compares that index in the third quarter (July, August and September) of the current year to the third quarter of the previous year. Until recently, every year since the formula was put into effect, that calculation led to a cost-of-living increase. In fact, high oil prices in the summer of 2008 helped produce a sizable COLA increase in January 2009 of 5.8 percent -- the highest increase in more than a quarter century.

But lower energy prices and the effects of the recession combined to reduce the CPI-W during the period used to calculate the 2010 Social Security increase. So in a break with tradition, there was no upward adjustment for Social Security recipients for this year. When we last looked at this question in January 2010, we reported that for someone with a $3,054 monthly benefit -- a comparatively generous amount, based on what a steady earner at the maximum level would get every month if he or she had retired in 2009 at age 70 -- the amount forgone this year was $1,099 over the course of the year compared to what would have been added with a 3 percent cost-of-living adjustment. Most recipients would take a much smaller hit, according to Social Security Administration tables.

And earlier this month, the Social Security Administration announced that there will be no increase for Social Security recipients in 2011, either.

So the ad is correct that Social Security beneficiaries will go without an inflation bump for the second straight year. But that's not the whole story.

First, there may not be an increase in benefits for next year, but it's because on the whole, seniors' cost of living isn't increasing. (That's the idea anyway; individual circumstances can and do vary.) And beneficiaries had already received a big bump for 2009. If current patterns hold, seniors should finally be due for a new bump in benefits for 2012.

Second, some people contributing to Social Security will actually benefit from not having a Social Security increase. When benefits don't go up, neither does the $106,800 limit on earnings subject to the Social Security payroll tax.

Third -- and most important for analyzing the ad -- McIntyre and Pelosi had nothing at all to do with eliminating the COLA for 2010 and 2011. As we indicated, whether or not Social Security hands out an increase is determined by a mathematical calculation -- not by Congressional prerogative. Short of changing the decades-old law, there's nothing McIntyre or Pelosi could have done to provide beneficiaries with an increase in either of the two years.

However, there's one more factor worth noting. Pelosi and other Democrats have proposed giving seniors a one-time $250 payment in lieu of a cost-of-living adjustment, as was done after the first non-COLA announcement. But nothing g can be done until after the election. It is this proposal that the NRCC uses to back up the claim.

In an interview, an NRCC spokesman argued that the proposed COLA "fixes" may not win passage because of recklessly large spending by Congressional Democrats.

The NRCC has a point, but Pelosi's office says that a vote is planned for November, and in any case, it strikes us as a bit of a convoluted explanation for the ad's claim. The simpler explanation -- and the one that we think most viewers would take away from the ad -- is that McIntyre and Pelosi had something directly to do with eliminating a cost-of-living increase for two consecutive years in the first place. Even though the ad carefully avoids an explicit accusation that McIntyre and Pelosi voted to eliminate the COLA, we think the ad implies otherwise. So we rate this part of the ad Barely True.

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Sharron Angle: Sen. Harry Reid voted "against declaring English our national language, twice."

The Sharron Angle campaign calls its ad"The Wave."

But you may know it as the ad that prompted Joy Behar of ABC's The View to say: "I'd like to see her do this ad in the south Bronx. Come here, b----. Come to New York and do it."

Condemned in some Democratic and Hispanic circles as"racist,"the ad portrays Angle's opponent in the Nevada Senate race, Harry Reid, as a friend to illegal immigrants.

Here's the text of the ad: "Waves of illegal aliens streaming across our border joining violent gangs, forcing families to live in fear. And what is Harry Reid doing about it? Voting to give illegal aliens Social Security benefits, tax breaks and college tuition, voting against declaring English our national language twice and even siding with Obama and the president of Mexico to block Arizona's tough new immigration law. Harry Reid....it's clear whose side he's on, and it's not yours."

In a fact-check of a previouscampaign ad, we dealt with Angle's claims that Reid voted to give illegal immigrants Social Security benefits (Barely True) and special tax breaks (False).

Here, we're checking the claim that Reid voted against "declaring English our national language, twice."

During a big push for a comprehensive immigration reform bill in 2006, Sen. James Inhofe, R-Okla., proposed an amendment (S.AMDT.4064) "to declare English as the national language of the United States and to promote the patriotic integration of prospective U.S. citizens."

The amendment would have required all official government functions, including steps toward citizenship, to be conducted in English. It also sought to establish that there is no entitlement to receive federal documents or services in languages other than English, unless required by law. Arguing for the amendment, Inhofe said providing multilingual assistance costs the government more than $1 billion per year. Under the Inhofe's proposal, immigrants seeking to become permanent legal residents would have had to prove they had learned English.

Reid made an impassioned speech from the Senate floor on May 18, 2006, denouncing the bill as "racist" and "divisive." Here's a sampling of some of his comments to give you a flavor of Reid's position:

-- "While the intent may not be there, I really believe this amendment is racist. I think it is directed basically to people who speak Spanish."

-- "I think we should make sure that people who are 911 operators can immediately switch to somebody who can speak Spanish."

-- "Today, as I speak, the language of America is English. We want people to integrate, to learn English, but they need tools to do this no matter what their native language. This amendment takes some of those tools away, and we need all of those tools."

-- "The fastest growing component of adult education in America today is English as a second language. This will slow that down. This amendment impacts English speakers, reporting of crimes, reporting of diseases, involvement in commerce. Next, is it going to impact upon the right to vote?"

-- "This amendment is divisive. We should be here to unify our country, not divide it by ethnicity or language differences. I rise in strong opposition to this amendment. Everyone who speaks with an accent knows that they need to learn English as fast as they can. Success in America means the ability to speak English. That is the way it is now. We don’t need this amendment. Speaking English is critical to the functioning of anyone in our country. It is the language of our government, of our nation, and as I have indicated before, air traffic controllers and diplomacy. This amendment, I believe, is unconstitutional. It raises serious concerns that American citizens could lose some of their rights."

-- "This amendment directly conflicts with several provisions of federal law, I believe, that guarantee the right of non-English-speaking students to learn English in our public schools."

-- "This amendment conflicts with provisions of federal law that require language materials or assistance to be provided to voters in some areas of non-English languages, where there is evidence of educational discrimination resulting in high illiteracy and low registration turnout."

-- "There has been substantial evidence of harassment, intimidation, even violence against language minority voters. This provision makes a blatant violation of the 14th and 15th amendments and criminal provisions of the Voting Rights Act more likely to occur."

-- "By the very terms of this amendment, persons accused of crimes would be denied the ability, I believe, to receive information material in their native language to assist in their own defense. This clearly violates the due process clause of the fifth amendment of our Constitution."

-- "I have talked about public health. This amendment will stand in the way of efforts made to facilitate the transmission of vital information necessary for the receipt of health care and public safety, including informed consent by non-English-speaking patients."

-- "I hope we reject this amendment. It is bad policy. It is un-American. It turns back the clock on the substantial gains that language minority citizens have made. I hope that there will be a resounding vote against this. I have no problem going home today and telling the people of the State of Nevada: English is the language of America. We are not going to change that with this amendment. This is divisive, it is mean spirited. I think it is the wrong way to go."

So tell us how you really feel about the amendment, Senator.

Needless to say, Reid voted against it, but with the help of 11 Democrats, the amendment passed 62-35.

Interestingly, the Senate also passed a subsequent amendment (S.AMDT.4073) proposed by then Sen. Ken Salazar, D-Colo., "to declare that English is the common and unifying language of the United States, and to preserve and enhance the role of the English language." Reid voted for that amendment, which passed by a vote of 58 to 39.

The immigration reform bill did not pass that year, however, and when a second stab at comprehensive immigration reform was undertaken in 2007, Inhofe again proposed an amendment (S.AMDT.1151) "to declare English as the national language of the government of the United States, and for other purposes." Reid again voted against it, though the measure passed 64-33. But that immigration reform bill never came to pass either. To this day, no "official language" exists at the federal level.

The bottom line here is that Reid twice voted against amendments to "declare English as the national language of the Government of the United States," even as he voted for an amendment "to declare that English is the common and unifying language of the United States." The ad says Reid twice voted against declaring English our national language. Reid not only voted against the bills, he was quite vocal in his opposition. We rate the ad's claim True.

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