THE THREAD

With less than 48 hours to go before the start of his one-year prison sentence, TI treated his hometown fans to one last concert Sunday night (May 24).

The show, billed as TI’s Farewell Concert, was hosted by Grand Hustle comedian Lil’ Duval and lifestyle specialist Kenny Burns.

The concert featured performances by the entire Grand Hustle family and a few additional guests as well. Bobby Ray aka B.o.B, Big Kuntry King, Eightball & MJG, Maino, and local acts J Money and NBA all performed before Tip emerged for his own set.

On stage, the multi-platinum rapper was greeted by encouraging signs from several fans, bearing messages like “T.I. We Will Miss U!”

He addressed his supporters saying that he would stay optimistic and that he hopes his fans would learn from his mistakes.


“I’m going to stand up tall, head up high,” he told those in attendance, including celebs like Andre 3000 and Soulja Boy. “What I need y’all to do is pray for me while I’m gone. I’ll see y’all in 366 days.”

During a set that included hits from all six of his albums, from “Dope Boyz” to “Live Your Life,” TI gave his all to the crowd of about 16,000, even bringing out his four sons on stage at one point.


Prior to the concert, TI spent his last Sunday in Atlanta working.

The Grand Hustle camp took advantage of his presence to shoot no less than four music videos, including a clip fro Big Kuntry’s “I Do.”

He followed the performance with a Farewell Party at the Velvet Room. TI, born Clifford Harris, is set to report to the Forrest City Correctional Facility in Arkansas by no later than noon on Tuesday (May 26).

He will serve at least 10 months of a 366-day sentence for attempting to buy unregistered machine guns and silencers from an undercover federal agent in October 2008.

In March of last year, the Grammy Award-winning rapper and actor pleaded guilty to two counts of illegally possessing machine guns and silencers and one count of being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm.



As part of the plea agreement, T.I. was sentenced to serve 1500 hours of community service, a 1000 of which he was to serve between before his March 2009 sentencing.



TI was also fined $100,000 in addition to his prison sentence, 365 days of home confinement, and the community service, which he mostly used to reach out to at-risk youths.





Find more videos like this on AllAZHipHop.com


DMX HOME FROM JAIL....AND LOOKING MUCH BETTER"GET AT EM DOG"



The slowing economy has made such large-scale layoffs common. According to a new report from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, there were 3,489 mass layoffs in the first quarter of the year, eliminating 559,000 jobs. These big payroll cuts accounted for more than a fourth of the 2.1 million jobs lost during the period. Some areas of America are feeling the pain of mass firings more than others.

To see who's been hit hardest, we ranked metropolitan statistical areas by the number of jobs lost through layoffs involving more than 50 employees during the first quarter of 2009. Separation had to be for more than 31 days, so as to exclude temporary furloughs.

Where's it worst? Detroit, where 57 mass layoffs snuffed out 14,781 jobs in the first quarter of 2009. Much of the pain came from the Big Three carmakers: General Motors, Chrysler and Ford Motor. The area has the highest unemployment rate in the country at 14%.

Chicago runs a close second with 13,647 jobs erased in mass firings. Construction-heavy Los Angeles, also hurt by the Golden State’s financial crisis, wiped out 10,594. Finance-focused New York lost 8,688 during the first quarter of 2009. Houston also made the list with 7,184 job losses; Dallas had 4,784.

Larger cities were bound to get singled out: They attract big corporations with big payrolls that require big cuts to make meaningful differences to their bottom lines. At the state level, California had the most mass layoffs with 115,014 workers let go, followed by Michigan with 46,817, Illinois with 41,887 and Texas with a more modest 33,005.

Mass layoffs put even more strain on a city’s economy than gradual job cuts. Local governments have to quickly find a way to help newly unemployed workers. "You really don’t want to get hit with mass layoffs because you now have a large number of people who need resources and it really tends to overwhelm the public sector," said Joel Naroff, an economist at Naroff Advisers.

In April, the national unemployment rate hit 8.9%, and many analysts expect it to peak at 10% before it gets better. The unemployed face a job market where employers can cherry-pick the best prospects without having to tempt them with attractive salaries. "There is no bargaining power for workers right now with unemployment so high," said Naroff.

Hill knows all about it. With a wife and two small children to support, he's started his own Web design shop. Looking for the bright side to his layoff, he says, "I would never have started this otherwise."







On Tuesday, May 05, Atlanta rapper Alfamega’s career took a public nose dive.
In a climate where authenticity in Hip-Hop is valued now more than ever, the self-proclaimed “Grand Hustle Muscle” provided evidence against an Atlanta heroin dealer during his trial. As a result, Alfamega saw his nearly 10-year prison sentence, for his attempt to sell guns to an undercover officer, reduced to 92 months (over 7 years).
The rapper was immediately vilified by the majority of the Hip-Hop community, who accused him of being everything from a fraud to a snitch. Two days later, multi-platinum rapper TI, facing his own weapons-related prison sentence, distanced himself from his former protege and would-be enforcer, announcing publicly that Alfamega had been expelled from his Grand Hustle Crew
To many, Alfa’s career is grounded, just as it was about to lift off the runway. But things aren’t always as simple as they seem. Four days before he was crucified in the court of public opinion, Alfamega, born Cedric Zellers, had already entered his own personal hell.
Here in an exclusive interview with AllHipHop.com, Alfa’s manager Decks shares the previously unreleased details of his embattled client’s latest arrest, for felony obstruction and possession of a firearm by a convicted felon, his current physical state, and his future.
THREAD.com: As most people can probably guess, we’re here to talk about Alfamega. There’s been a lot of speculations and rumors, but people don’t really know how grave the situation is with him. So go ahead and shed some light on that.
Decks: I just feel like people should have more compassion for what Alfa is going through as a human being first and foremost. At this point, Alfa has been a victim of police brutality and social injustice. People should really try to put themselves in his shoes right now. There’s certain things that we shouldn’t allow in our community, and police brutality is one of them.
THREAD.com: So before the documents even surfaced on TheSmokingGun.com, Alfamega was already in the hospital?

Decks: Correct.
THREAD: So how did that come about?
Decks: Alfa was hospitalized on Thursday. He underwent surgery. Alfa had some injuries to both of his legs as a result of a tussle with the police. Alfa was on his cell phone, sitting in his vehicle in a downtown location in Atlanta. Police came up. Right off the top, they was pickin’ at him, asking him, ‘Oh, you just gonna stay on the phone?’ He was like, ‘Yea, I’m talking to somebody.’ From there, the police proceeded with an illegal search and seizure. Alfa knows his rights, so of course he’s gonna fight. Not in a physical way, but he’s gonna put up resistance because he knows his rights. From there, a foot chase ensued, Alfa was chased through a building. At approximately 25-30 feet up, while they were tussling, Alfa was pushed by the police department.

THREAD: So this whole rumor that he jumped off a parking deck, that’s not factual?
Decks: It’s false. That’s not the truth.
THREAD: After that, was he immediately taken into custody or taken to the hospital?
Decks: Both.
THREAD: Is he still in the hospital now?
Decks: Nah, he was released. Alfa’s cool. He’s in the process of trying to heal up. And I’d like to extend my prayers and my sympathy.
THREAD: So at this point, how is his mental state?
Decks: His mind is on getting better, of course. This is a very important time in his life. He’s a victim of police brutality. So, of course, there’s a great deal of anger just from that alone. [pauses] People should… On the outside looking in, it looks like, “Well, okay. People are having this kind of response, so I should choose this side, just because everybody else is saying this.” Or you have the option of being someone who has compassion for other people and be on the inside looking out. It’s tough. It’s disheartening because nobody has any idea what he’s going through. He’s in a lot of pain
THREAD: And how is he physically?
Decks: Physically, I’ll say unfortunately, he can’t walk. Some people know that, some people don’t. Some people choose to ignore it. And it’s easy to do that when it’s not you. I think people kinda overlook what he’s going through right now. It’s tough. You try to put yourself in what he’s going through right now, and it’s overwhelming. You’re in shock by some people’s responses. And you expect to have more support than what you have right now. And you don’t. So, I don’t know, it’s like a dark cloud that came over. The most you would want is the people that’s around you. I think that’s the most important. And he has my support.


I’ve had some times in my life with Alfa that can’t be replaced. No matter what. Alfa has a little brother that’s doing life in the penitentiary. And I have a little brother who’s doing 20 years. On Saturday (May 16), he and I [were] on the phone with his brother; and almost immediately after that, we [were] on the phone with my little brother. And those are things you can’t replace about someone. The times that he spends speaking to the kids, taking time out. During one of the most important promo runs for his album, he dedicated time to the Mommas for Obama campaign. People just tend to overlook that, and what a big hearted guy he is. And he is a loyal guy. And when you’re loyal, the worst thing that could ever happen to you is that the people you were loyal to kinda don’t have the compassion that you wish they would have for you. I know it hurts.
THREAD: So have you had a chance to talk to him about that, or talk to him about the next step in his career? Of course there are things that are more important than that. But like you said before, he has a family to support, and that is his livelihood.
Decks: No, all that’s not real. All the things he’s going through right now is real. Music is an expression of life and I think that he’ll get his just due as far expelling the feelings that he’s having right now through music. But right now, it’s something that he has to endure, unfortunately. And it’s involving a lot of pain. So you can imagine being in excruciating pain on a day to day basis: the last thing on your mind, or anybody else’s, would be music.
THREAD: So before all of this went down, what were you guys working on. Because, the album’s been pushed back a couple of times, but as far as the music’s been concerned, it’s been delivered, it was well received . So what were you looking like before this?
Decks: He was working! Diligently. Alfa’s a studio rat, he stays in the studio constantly. And anybody around him could tell you that.
THREAD: What about the situation with Grand Hustle, is that something that you guys have discussed?
Decks: No. And I really don’t wanna speak on it. You talk about the company, a lot of people over there are friends of mine. And just find ourselves in a difficult time right now. Because they have their way they feel about it, and I have my way I feel about it. But that still doesn’t mean there is a side to choose. I just wish they felt like I did. But that doesn’t mean I have any disrespect towards them whatsoever. ‘Cause, like I said, a lot of those people over there, they’re family.

THREAD: Where you notified ahead of time, or did you find out like everybody else?
Decks: I found out just like everybody else. I wasn’t the guy who talked to the label every day. I pretty much just focused on the what was going on with Alfa, what he needs to be doing. So I basically didn’t believe what I was hearing at first.


THREAD: Any message you want to impart to the fans? Any message for Alfa?
Decks: It’s real simple. Just pray for him. Sometimes in court, they win. I think Alfa, at the end of the day when all the facts come out, he’s gonna be on his feet. Alfa’s a fighter. That I know about him.


RAPPER DOLLA SHOT AND KILLED

The defense lawyer for the man that shot and killed rapper Dolla has revealed that a mall surveillance tape will show the Atlanta emcee threatening his client before the fatal shooting.
According to Los Angeles attorney Howard Price, his client Aubrey Berry killed Dolla in self-defense despite the rapper being unarmed.
“He believed [Dolla] was armed,” Price told the Atlanta Journal Constitution. “He [Berry] believed he was in danger.”
The two men had crossed paths two weeks ago, when Dolla and his entourage allegedly attacked Berry at an Atlanta gentleman’s club named Platinum 21.
Regarding the accusations that Berry followed Dolla to Los Angeles to execute him in revenge, Price argued their chance second encounter in the restaurant stall was simply fate.
Berry, a self-styled music promoter, is said to have been at the eatery conducting a business meeting.
“He [Berry] was there [at P.F. Chang’s] first,” Price explained. “[During the strip club incident], Mr. Berry inadvertently bumped into a woman he didn’t know. It was a stupid, silly incident that should’ve never escalated to this point.”



According to Price, his client decided to flee the restaurant after the bathroom stall encounter, as friends warned him that Dolla had Crip affiliations.

While waiting for his vehicle in the Beverly Center parking lot, he was allegedly approached by Dolla, his friend, Sidiq Abawi, and the rapper's cousin, Wilbert Robinson.
Around this time, Berry discharged four to five shots from his 9MM handgun.
Dolla was hit several times in the back, and died from a wound that pierced his heart.
Police have charged Aubrey Berry with two counts of assault with a deadly firearm and one count of murder.
He faces a maximum sentence of life in prison.
Dolla's stepfather George Viera explained his stepson’s true personality was league’s a part from the rap persona fans knew.
"It was a character he played. To us he was just Roddy,” Viera revealed in a statement. “When he was home, you couldn't pry him away. [He] loved to play with his nieces and nephews, loved to play on the Wii. He wanted to go to theology school. He was very interested in religion. People think rapper, they think hard, but he wasn't that way."
At press time, Aubrey Berry’s bail has been set at $5 million.
This is coming from inside the Chris Brown camp – no names. But, I am hearing there is a Rihanna sex tape…kinda. It is my understanding that there was a video taken by why of a mobile phone, possibly an iPhone. From what I understand, Chris is not in there, but a there is a naked Rihanna talking very naughty on the footage. I was told that the quality is poor, but you can identify it as Rihanna and she is nude or semi-nude. I will say that this sourced didn’t indicate of there was any intention of releasing such a video…only that they saw some of it. I will get a copy, so they say, if it does come out. We’ll see! Glad there’s not Brownie in that piece. Don’t need that in my life.


JEEZ – SOME BAD NEWS


Last night, Young Dro was schedule to perform in Pensacola, Fl and he cancelled the show because his sister died, I am hearing. Nobody is able to tell me how how she died yet. From what I understand, Fantasia confirmed this bad news when she performed in Dothan, AL last night. She dedicated the song “Purple Rain” to Young Dro and cried while she sang the song. She didn’t say Young Dro, but she just said “I want to sing this song for a young man I know that lost his sister today...” R.I.P To Sister Dro.


BEEF WITH DJ KHALED AND TERROR SQUAD?



Terror Squad is one serious crew. Here is what Fat Joe’s homey Pistol Pete is saying about DJ Khaled.


“He’s another one that don’t do s**t for us. Khaled’s another one that’s supposed to be on blast. He gonna give up that Terror Squad chain when I see him. He don’t do a mutha f**kin’ thing for the squad. He thinks its about him ‘He’s the beeeessssss.’ He’s moved on. He don’t even where the TS chain no more. He don’t represent TS like I do.”


One Word: Trouble.


WHEN ONE PLUS ONE = ZERO



I know that you learned a lot in school, but the math on this Charles Hamilton stuff makes perfect sense. For him…


1 + 1 = ZERO


Do you remember that I posted his Facebook status and he said something about the two blue lines and I had NO CLUE? Well, I don’t have kids, but it means that a girl getting a positive on the pregnancy test. Wellllll…fast forward a few weeks and here we are, seeing Charlie Hammy getting hammered by a right jab to the left cheek. If you listen to the girl’s rap/song poem, she’s saying we used to have sex, but I am finished with you. Then, CH suggests super strongly that she he hit it and there’s an abortion line. At that point, she chin checks dude and he gets whoozy.


On April 29th, CH said, "Two humble blue lines may have changed my life. Forever. Stay tuned (sh1t is wack/dope... lol)"


Clearly, the girl in the vid is the girl of note in the Facebook status. I mean, nothing is official but…it makes sense. 1 + 1 = ZERO. Wow…abortion is a crazy thing indeed.


Here is what CH said on his blog:


So I'ma do it like this... my chain didn't get snatched, I'm not a cop, and I never talked about pimpin bitches. In fact, I'm a "loser".


How far off is the video from who I really am? A rappin "big mouth" who crosses the line and respects women at all costs. Fail?


CHARLES HAMILTON’S BULLY SPEAKS!


Charles’ assistant Briana aka Female Deebo has apologized to C. Hammy for clocking him in the jaw. This is what she had to say. She did say she’d clock him again if it happened all over…does that mean the sorry counts? I guess she’d just be saying sorry again.


We seriously have a sick, dysfunctional, high school relationship. But... It is what it is. Like I said earlier: I DID NOT MEAN TO DECK HIM. I was holding it back but the more I thought about what he said the more I wanted to hit him. Sorry Grandma. I felt justified, but the more I think about it now, it is an unfair situation for him: I'm a female so he can't hit me back with out a bunch of ppl talkn crap, and he still gets talked about if he doesn't hit me. We ALL know that if a woman feels she's man enough to hit a man, she's probably man enough to take a punch. I'm not sayin thats right eithe-


Matter of fact, let's say this:


Even tho it was a "rap battle" and that's the only reason he was going so hard...


I would do it again in a heart beat. Somebody's gotta shut the kid up sometime!!! But I got love for him tho.





Brooklyn duo M.O.P. will be releasing their new studio album, Foundation, on E1 Music (formerly known as Koch Records)/Blaze this June.

The disc will feature collaborations with Beanie Sigel, Redman Styles P, and Busta Rhymes, who will appear on the first single “Blow The Horns.” The video for the song is set to debut soon, with a video, shot in New York, soon to follow.

E1 Music General Manager Alan Grunblatt is excited about Billy Danze and Lil Fame’s latest effort. “M.O.P. is one of the greatest hip-hop groups of all time,” he said in a statement. “I was fortunate to sign them when I was running Relativity and am thrilled to be working with Billy, Fame and Laze again.”

“Thanks to Alan for believing in us and allowing us to do our thing,” Danze added. “This is a big thing for us and a big thing for hip-hop. Right now, hip-hop needs M.O.P. It needs the foundation.”

Adding to a growing list of releases on E1, rapper/producer The Alchemist and super group Slaughterhouse will also be dropping albums on the label on July 7.

Foundation hits shelves on June 30. M.O.P. will also be rocking the Rock the Bells tour and are currently prepping their new website MOPUniverse.com in the coming weeks.


THIS IS AIR FORCE ONE FOR REAL....... UP CLOSE




TALIBAN CALLS U.S. LUNATIC'S ON RECONCILIATION OFFER



KABUL (Reuters) – Taliban insurgents reject a U.S. offer of "honorable reconciliation," a top spokesman said on Wednesday, calling it a "lunatic idea" and saying the only way to end the war was to withdraw foreign troops.
With the Afghan conflict now in its eighth year, NATO-led forces and the Taliban are locked in a bloody stalemate with violence set to rise further this year as more U.S. troops arrive and seek to contain the insurgency ahead of August elections.
President Barack Obama is redoubling U.S. efforts with more troops, more diplomatic effort and more economic assistance, but he has also already spoken of the need for an "exit strategy."
If the U.S. plan fails to show results, analysts say, time is on the Taliban side.
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton told an international conference on Afghanistan on Tuesday that those members of the Taliban who abandoned extremism must be granted an "honorable form of reconciliation."
"This matter was also raised in the past," said Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid, referring to comments last month by Obama, who spoke of reaching out to moderate Taliban.
"They have to go and find the moderate Taliban, their leader and speak to them. This is a lunatic idea," Mujahid said by telephone from an unknown location.
Mujahid is one of two spokesman authorized to speak for the Taliban leadership council, headed by Mullah Mohammad Omar.
The 21,000 extra U.S. troops ordered by Obama to join the 70,000 foreign soldiers now fighting insurgents in Afghanistan showed the United States wanted the war to continue, Mujahid said, and the Taliban would keep fighting till they left.
"There is no other way. We want our freedom and respect for our independence," Mujahid said.
Swiftly ousted by U.S.-led forces in 2001 for harboring al Qaeda after the September 11 attacks, the Taliban regrouped and have steadily spread their attacks from their traditional support base in the south and east to areas closer to the capital.
STALEMATE
NATO commanders admit that mainly British, Canadian and Dutch troops are locked in a stalemate in the south, unable to stop insurgent roadside and suicide bomb attacks without the active support of the population, while Taliban militants are incapable of overcoming Western troops in head-on battle.
Most of the new U.S. troops will be deployed in the south in an effort to break that stalemate, but while U.S. commanders say their forces, mainly in the east, are making progress against the insurgency, violence has risen steadily there too.
As Obama unveiled his new strategy he focused on the fight against al Qaeda and not allowing Afghanistan to again become a base for Osama bin Laden's group to attack the United States.
By doing so, Obama effectively changed the measure of success in Afghanistan from the Bush administration's goal of also defeating the Taliban and installing Western-style democracy.
Despite the Taliban's harsh rhetoric against foreign troops, the Islamist movement says it does not need al Qaeda support and has also toned down its criticism of the Afghan government.
The shifting stances offer a glimpse of what a possible peace deal may entail: Taliban repudiation of al Qaeda in return for a pledge to withdraw foreign troops.
But while moderate former Taliban officials have been involved in Saudi-sponsored talks to explore ways of opening dialogue with the insurgents, the Taliban are unlikely to engage in negotiations as long as they feel they are winning the war.
Strong indigenous security forces are a key to success in counter-insurgency, U.S. military doctrine states, and Obama said his new strategy would increase efforts to train Afghan forces and bring the Afghan army and police up to strength by 2011.
That date also coincides with the time by which, diplomats say, the Obama administration is likely to want to see results in Afghanistan -- a year before the next U.S. presidential election.
The Taliban meanwhile, do not have to win the war, analysts say. All they have to do is survive and wait for their opponents to lose the will to keep fighting.

AIRLINE SECURITY IS UP ON TRAVELERS... WHAT ABOUT BAGGAGE HANDLERS?



" LIL WAYNE ASSED OUT" LET THE HYPE FOOL YOU..... BUT THIS DUDE IS GOING DOWN.....

CAN YOU SAY " STUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUPID "

HERES THE RUN DOWN.......LIL WAYNE IS PISSED WITH HIS DJ. IT WAS STATED THAT HE WAS ANGRY BECAUSE THE DJ WOULD NOT TAKE THE CHARGES FOR THE DRUGS AND GUN THAT WERE FOUND ON THE BUS IN ARIZONA.SO NOW HE SUPPOSEDLY JUST FLEW IN FROM ARIZONA ON BOND AND THIS IS WHAT HAPPENED...


THE FINALE OF THE BULLSHIT........






3 POLICE OFFICERS KILLED IN OAKLAND SUSPECT KILLED

So David (Nate Robinson) slew Goliath (Dwight Howard) in this years dunk contest. [ahem, Howard would have won that ish if he had actually saved his best dunks for last, no shots Nate]. But anyway, the wild, ectoplasm looking Foamposite Lites. So of course, the “KryptoNates” (peep the "K" logo on the side of the shoe above) are set to be launched. Word is Nate will be on hand at the House of Hoops store on Harlem’s 125th St. from 4pm – 5:30pm to debut the shoe. Good luck.




A man that works for Akon’s producer said that he was the victim of a home invasion by men representing for Suge Knight.

Christopher Walker, an employee of Akon producer Detail, told news/gossip site tmz.com that five men broke into his Van Nuys, CA home at about 3 am and stole about $170,000 in jewelry.

Walker said that the men were there to collect a debt that Detail owes Suge Knight.



Walker also stated that Detail was in the house at the time of the invasion, but the men let him sleep. Instead, they opted to take the jewelry.

Walker reportedly stated that the men threatened to kill everybody in the house if they weren’t given the key to a save that contained the jewelry. They weren’t given the key, so they took the entire safe.

The men also took stereo equipment, a key to a Mercedes Benz and goods that equated to about $300,000, a police source said.

Walker said this home invasion was the direct result of an altercation where a pair of men that work for Akon beat Suge Knight during the NBA All-Star Weekend in Arizona. The altercation was also allegedly over the debt as well.

Walker said the men put a gun to his head.

There were four people in the house at the time of the alleged home invasion.

Suge Knight has yet to comment or issue a statement on the allegations.



THIS HAS TO BE THE MOST IGNORANT FOOL EVER............



THIS IS THE REASON WHY PUBLIC ACCESS IS WHERE IT IS.ANYONE CAN GET A SHOW ...

BANGKOK (AFP) – A Thai fireman turned superhero when he dressed up as comic-book character Spider-Man to coax a frightened eight-year-old from a balcony, police said Tuesday.
Teachers at a special needs school in Bangkok alerted authorities on Monday when an autistic pupil, scared of attending his first day at school, sat out on the third-floor ledge and refused to come inside, a police sergeant told AFP.
Despite teachers' efforts to beckon the boy inside, he refused to budge until his mother mentioned her son's love of superheroes, prompting fireman Sonchai Yoosabai to take a novel approach to the problem.
The rescuer dashed back to his fire station and made a quick change into a Spider-Man costume before returning to the boy, he said.
"I told him Spider-Man is here to rescue you, no monsters are going to attack you and I told him to walk slowly towards me as running could be dangerous," Somchai told local television.
The young boy immediately stood up and walked into his rescuer's arms, police said.
Somchai said he keeps the Spider-Man costume and an outfit of Japanese television character Ultraman at the station in order to liven up school fire drills.


This recession is going to reshape America for generations, including the way we live and work. What will the future look like? Who will be the winners and losers?
Obviously you could make a lot of money if you guess right.

It's only six months into the crash, but the stock market is already starting to make some early calls. The market isn't a perfect seer of the future, but it has a pretty good track record. And a few of the calls it's making now are challenging the conventional wisdom.
IPhone nation lives. Shares in cellular companies tanked when the crisis first hit. Sprint crashed 85%. Apple fell by more than half. The conventional wisdom: Cellular contracts and fancy handhelds are very expensive. Even a $60 a month habit is costing you $720 a year. Desperate consumers would drop these plans, or scale back sharply, as they were forced to slash their household budgets.
So far? The market's having a dramatic rethink. Shares in cellular companies have jumped about 40%, on average, from their November lows. During that time the rest of the market has gone nowhere. Sprint's doubled from its distressed levels. Apple, Black Berry's Research In Motion, even Palm have risen a long way.
The reason: Maybe post-crash America won't junk its fancy handhelds after all. "We've learned this recession that wireless has become more of a necessity," says analyst Tim Horan at Oppenheimer. "We haven't seen a lot of people dropping their cellphone service."
The daily latte may not be toast. Starbucks stock was another early victim of the crash. The shares collapsed. Everyone beat them up last fall, because an expensive latte habit is one of the easiest budget cuts a hard-pressed consumer can make.
The market's rethinking this one, too. Starbucks stock has now jumped 55% from the lows. Sure, sales and profits are well down. But management is fighting back with cost savings and new initiatives. More than 750,000 people have signed up for Starbucks loyalty cards, triple what the company expected. (And that's a wireless play too: They give you some free WiFi with your beverage.) The coffee shop has become an important part of many people's day. Shares in rival coffee chain Peet's are up about 10% too.
Dotcoms strike back! Shares in most regular retailers have slumped over the past six months, for obvious reasons. Expect more bricks and mortar stores to close as overstretched consumers retrench. But when it comes to online retailers, the story changes. Amazon stock, which tanked initially, has doubled since November. Hype over the Kindle electronic book reader has helped. Online jeweler Blue Nile has also bounced. And look at Netflix – its stock just hit a record high, surging over $40 for the first time. The Internet-based movie rental company is one of the big winners of the recession so far, as consumers stay home and order in movies. And it makes sense: A Netflix subscription, typically about $14 a month, is much cheaper than cable.
Historians note that many of the stocks which did best during the Great Depression were actually so-called "growth" companies, because they were the ones conquering the future. When a hurricane sweeps through a forest it knocks down a lot of the older, weaker trees. The younger ones survive and prosper. And so it may be in the economy.


WASHINGTON – The Federal Reserve's chairman and the secretary of the treasury are making a rare joint appearance at a congressional hearing, ostensibly to take a scolding over the handling of bonuses at AIG, the giant insurance company that has become the symbol of reckless risk-taking on Wall Street.
But after venting their spleen yet again at a House hearing Tuesday, lawmakers also were expected to press Fed boss Ben Bernanke and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner on the new risks to taxpayers from their latest effort to save tottering banks and the U.S. economy: a plan to take over up to $1 trillion in dodgy mortgage securities with the help of private investors.
At the same time, Bernanke and Geithner are likely to once again call on Congress to enact legislation that would allow the government to safely dismantle a big financial institution, like American International Group Inc., to minimize any damage to the U.S financial system and the broader economy.
Obama last week said his administration soon will propose new financial industry oversight that includes a "resolution authority" with powers similar to those of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., which can seize control of banks, take over their bad assets and sell the good ones to competitors.
The proposal would give the treasury secretary the unprecedented power, after consulting with officials at the Fed, to take control of a major financial institution and run it. The treasury chief is an official of the administration, unlike the FDIC, which is an independent regulatory agency.
At Tuesday's hearing Geithner "will focus on the need for the government to address companies and markets that pose systemic risks to our financial system, ensuring that we close the gaps in the regulatory framework and that we never have to face situations like AIG again," treasury spokesman Andrew Williams said.
The toxic assets plan is a crucial part of the Obama administration's strategy to prop up banks and stabilize the financial system. If the bad assets are taken off banks' books, they'll be in a better position to lend more freely to customers.
Under details released Monday, the plan will take $75 billion to $100 billion from the government's existing $700 billion financial-bailout pot. The government will pair this with private investments and loans from the FDIC and the Fed to generate $500 billion in purchasing power. Geithner says purchases eventually could grow to $1 trillion — roughly half of the estimated $2 trillion of toxic assets on bank books now.
The fleshed-out plan is designed to help place a value on damaged mortgage loans and other toxic securities.
If the value of the securities goes up, the private investors and taxpayers would share in the gains. If the values go down, the government and private investors would incur losses.
AIG's decision to pay millions in bonuses has created a public relations headache for President Barack Obama at a time when he is trying to gin up public and political support for his economic policies, bank-rescue plan and overhaul of the nation's regulatory structure.
AIG is a globally interconnected colossus, with 74 million customers worldwide and operations in more than 130 countries. The government decided it was simply too big to let fail.
As a result, the government has bailed out AIG four times to the tune of more than $180 billion. The company recently paid at least $165 million in bonuses to employees who worked in a division that has been blamed for the insurance company's near-collapse last year. The bonuses came even as AIG reported a stunning $62 billion loss, the biggest in U.S. corporate history.
New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo said Monday that 15 employees who received some of the largest bonuses from AIG have agreed to return them in full, totaling more than $30 million.
Over the past 18 months, AIG was the case that angered him the most, Bernanke says. He says he "slammed the phone more than a few times on discussing AIG."
Government bailouts of AIG, Citigroup Inc., Bank of America Corp. and others have put billions of taxpayers' dollars at risk over the past year and angered the American public.
"These actions have involved extremely unpleasant and difficult choices," Bernanke said last week. However, a failure of a huge, globally interconnected company would have had potentially devastating effects on the financial system and the broader economy. "I do not think we have had a realistic alternative to preventing such failures," he added.

FARGO, N.D. – The threat of flooding from the rising Red River has city officials considering everything to protect the city — even a portable wall system that shielded troops in Iraq and Afghanistan from bullets.
"I think it's going to be a lifesaver," Al Weigel, Fargo's director of operations, said Monday as volunteers tried to prepare for what's predicted to be record flooding.
The latest projection from the National Weather Service has the Red cresting in Fargo at 40 feet early Friday. An emergency dike to protect downtown was being raised to 42 feet, but the crest threatens several neighborhoods and hundreds of homes in lower areas.
Flood stage is 18 feet. The river was at 25 feet Monday and rising.
The north-flowing Red's high water was expected to reach Breckenridge and Wahpeton, N.D., which lies across the river, by Tuesday morning. Both cities were hit hard by flooding in 1997, but city officials said they were holding their own.
High school and college students were let out of class Monday to help with sandbagging. City officials planned to fill more than 1 million sandbags, but with more rain forecast they increased the need to nearly 2 million sandbags — about 500,000 each day by the end of the week.
North Dakota State University canceled classes and told students that transportation would be provided to and from volunteer sites. Busloads of students from Fargo high schools also were excused from classes to help with sandbagging.
The portable wall system is made up of 3- and 4-foot-high interlocking containers with heavy steel frames covered by high-tech material. It took workers just half an hour Monday to set up about 1,000 feet of the containers.
"They are unbelievably quick," Weigel said. "Any doubts you may have about it are gone when you see the amount of sand that it holds. It's a nice system."
The system was designed for erosion control, but quickly became a popular product for the military, said Stephanie Victory, a spokeswoman for the company, Hesco Bastion. Its first meaningful test for flood protection came last summer in Iowa, she said.
"It's collapsible and easy to move," Fargo City Administrator Pat Zavoral said. "That's the beauty of this stuff."
One of the hotspots is Oakport Township north of Moorhead, Minn., where residents were evacuated by boat during the Red River flood of 1997. Homeowner Barb Groth was helping volunteers fill sandbags near her home in Oakport on Monday morning.
"We're considered the dry side of the township, but we flooded anyway in 1997. This flood is supposed to be worse," Groth said. "We're nervous. We're thinking we need to do something."
Luke Gable, a junior at nearby Dilworth-Glyndon-Felton High School, was given the option of studying or sandbagging in Oakport Township. He said school can wait.
"Everyone needs help right now," Gable said. "We've got fresh legs and fresh arms."
In Fargo, the city was operating three large machines capable of producing 15,000 sandbags an hour. Sand was also being piled on the floor of the Fargodome for people to shovel into bags the old-fashioned way.
"We're confident that we can get the bags delivered," said Bruce Grubb, a city public works official coordinating the sandbag-making. "Getting them made is a more daunting challenge."
The Minnesota National Guard was sending more than 300 soldiers to the Red River Valley to help with the flood fight, and the North Dakota Guard said about 500 members were ready.


BUTTE, Mont. – A small plane — possibly carrying children on a ski trip — crashed Sunday as it approached the Butte airport, killing 17 people, including several children, a federal official said. Witnesses said the single engine turboprop nosedived into a cemetery 500 feet from its destination.
The aircraft crashed and burned while attempting to land, said Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Mike Fergus. The Montana Standard reported in an online story that it crashed in Holy Cross Cemetery.
The aircraft had departed from Oroville, Calif., and the pilot had filed a flight plan showing a destination of Bozeman, about 85 miles southeast of Butte. But the pilot canceled his flight plan at some point and headed for Butte, Fergus said.
Preliminary reports indicate the dead include numerous children, he said. There were no known fatalities on the ground, he added.
"We think that it was probably a ski trip for the kids," Fergus said.
Martha and Steve Guidoni, who were at a gas station across from the cemetery, told the Standard that the plane "just nose-dived into the ground."
"My husband went over there to see if he could do anything," Martha Guidoni said.
Fergus said the Pilatus PC-12 aircraft was manufactured in 2001.
The plane was registered to Eagle Cap Leasing Inc. in Enterprise, Ore., Fergus said. He didn't know who was operating the plane.
I. Felkamp is listed in Oregon corporate records as Eagle Cap's president. Attempts to reach him by phone were unsuccessful.
In California, Tom Hagler said he saw a group of about a dozen children and four adults Sunday morning at the Oroville Municipal Airport, about 70 miles north of Sacramento.
Hagler, owner of Table Mountain Aviation, described the children as ranging from about 6- to 10 year olds. He let the children into his building to use the restroom.
"There were a lot of kids in the group," he said. "A lot of really cute kids."
Hagler said he showed the pilot where he could fuel his plane, and the pilot said he expected his flight to take two-and-a-half hours. The pilot didn't file a flight plan at the Oroville airport.
National Transportation Safety Board spokesman Keith Holloway said its investigators were expected to arrive in Butte late Sunday or early Monday.
The crash is the fourth major plane accident in slightly more than three months.
On Dec. 20, Continental Airlines plane veered off a runway and slid into a snowy field at Denver International Airport, injuring 37 people. No one was killed. In January, a US Airways jetliner landed in New York's Hudson River after a flock of geese disabled both its engines. All 155 people onboard survived. Last month, commuter plane fell on a house in a suburb of Buffalo, N.Y., killing all 49 passengers and a man in the home.
Before the Buffalo crash there hadn't been an accident involving a commercial airliner in the U.S. in which there were fatalities in more than two years.

OAKLAND, Calif. – Relatives of the man suspected of fatally shooting three Oakland police officers said Sunday the 26-year-old parolee was frustrated about not finding work and feared returning to jail.
The suspect Lovelle Mixon was slain in a gunfight with police during which two officers were killed Saturday, authorities said. Another officer was fatally shot earlier in the day and a fourth gravely wounded after the two of them pulled Mixon over for a routine traffic stop, police said.
Mixon's family gathered Sunday at his grandmother's East Oakland home, where he had stayed on and off since being released from a nine-month sentence for a parole violation, family members said.
He had previously served six years in state prison for assault with a firearm during an armed robbery in San Francisco, the family said. While he was in Corcoran state prison, he married his childhood girlfriend, they said.
Mixon's uncle, 38-year-old Curtis Mixon of Fremont, said his nephew had become depressed because he could not find work as a convicted felon. His nephew expected authorities to issue an arrest warrant for missing parole meetings, even though the he felt he was not to blame, he said.
"I think his frustration was building up, but he was trying to better himself," Curtis Mixon said.
Mixon was wanted on a no-bail warrant for violating his parole when Sgt. Mark Dunakin, 40, and Officer John Hege, 41, both on motorcycles, stopped a 1995 Buick sedan in east Oakland just after 1 p.m., police said.
The driver opened fire, killing Dunakin and gravely wounding Hege, Oakland police spokesman Jeff Thomason said.
Police initially issued a statement Sunday saying Hege had died but later backtracked, saying the officer had been declared brain dead but remained on life support while a decision was made about donating his organs.
Reached by telephone, Dr. John S. Hege said his son was attached to a ventilator and "looks fine" except for a black eye behind which the bullet was lodged.
"He does not have vital brain function to sustain life and will not regain that," Hege said, adding that the family would soon make a decision about continuing life support.
After shooting Hege and Dunakin, the gunman fled on foot, police said, leading to an intense manhunt.
Two hours later, officers found the gunman inside a nearby apartment building. When a SWAT team entered, the gunman opened fire, police said. Sgt. Ervin Romans, 43, and Sgt. Daniel Sakai, 35 were killed and a third officer was grazed by a bullet, police said.
Officers returned fire, killing Mixon, police said.
Mixon's sister, Reynete Mixon, 16, said she was sleeping when police kicked in the door and threw flash grenades, one of which struck her and caused minor burns on her leg. She said she did not know her brother was in the apartment when she fled as shots rang out.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger ordered flags at the state capitol flown at half-staff Sunday. Schwarzenegger returned from Washington, D.C., to meet briefly with Oakland Mayor Ron Dellums and members of the police department Sunday afternoon.
Police said never in the department's history had so many officers been killed in the line of duty in a single day.
Relatives and co-workers of the four officers requested privacy as they absorbed the enormity of the deaths. Oakland had never lost even two officers on the same day.
Yet some details about their lives and motivations for joining law enforcement emerged Sunday.
Friends who knew Sakai from his days at the University of California, Berkeley and his continued involvement in his college fraternity said he was married to a campus police officer and was a father. He and his family lived in Castro Valley.
Oren Levy, a fraternity brother of Sakai, said his friend grew up in Big Bear and was an accomplished mountain biker and outdoorsman who majored in forestry and graduated in 1995.
As an undergraduate at Berkeley, Sakai worked for the campus police department as a student volunteer. After graduation, Sakai spent a year in Japan teaching English.
"His honor was extremely important to him. Whenever there was a situation where someone could take the path that was less honorable, he always advocated doing the right thing," Levy said. "Being a police officer was really perfect for him."
Hege's father said his son, who lived in Concord, loved being a policeman. He worked well with people and was an Eagle Scout. He played high school football and wrestled. He umpired and coached even as a youth, and joined the Oakland Police Department reserves.
After graduating from St. Mary's College in Moraga, he taught high school physical education for a few years in nearby Hayward before joining the police department a decade ago.
He recently became a motorcycle traffic patrol officer, Hege said, adding, "He liked excitement."
As for the slain shooting suspect, Hege said, "The man was evidently terribly desperate. It is a sad story."
LaTasha Mixon, 28, of Sacramento said Sunday her cousin was "not a monster."
She said her family's prayers were with the slain officers' relatives.
"We're devastated. Everybody took a major loss. We're crushed," she said.

WASHINGTON – The Obama administration's latest attempt to tackle the banking crisis and get loans flowing to families and businesses will create a new government entity, the Public-Private Investment Program, to help purchase as much as $1 trillion in toxic assets on banks' books.
The new effort, to be unveiled Monday, will be followed the next day with release of the administration's broad framework for overhauling the financial system to ensure that the current crisis — the worst in seven decades — is not repeated.
A key part of that regulatory framework will give the government new resolution authority to take over troubled institutions that would pose a threat to the entire financial system if they failed.
Administration officials believe this new power will save taxpayers money and avoid the type of controversy that erupted last week when insurance giant American International Group paid employees of its troubled financial products unit $165 million in bonuses even though the company had received more than $170 billion in support from the federal government.
Under the new powers being sought by the administration, the treasury secretary could only seize a firm with the agreement of the president and the Federal Reserve.
Once in the equivalent of a conservatorship, the treasury secretary would have the power to limit payments to creditors and to break contracts governing executive compensation, a power that was lacking in the AIG case.
The plan on toxic assets will use the resources of the $700 billion bank bailout fund, the Federal Reserve and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.
The initiative will seek to entice private investors, including big hedge funds, to participate by offering billions of dollars in low-interest loans to finance the purchases. The government will share the risks if the assets fall further in price.
When Geithner released the initial outlines of the administration's overhaul of the bank rescue program on Feb. 10, the markets took a nosedive. The Dow Jones industrial average plunged by 380 points as investors expressed disappointment about a lack of details.
Christina Romer, head of the Council of Economic Advisers, said Sunday that it's important for investors to know that the administration is bringing a full array of programs to confront the problem.
"I don't think Wall Street is expecting the silver bullet," she said on CNN's "State of the Union." "This is one more piece. It's a crucial piece to get these toxic assets off, but it is just part of it and there will be more to come."
But private economists said investors may still have doubts about whether the government has adequate resources to properly fund the plan and whether private investors will be attracted to participate, especially after last week's uproar concerning the AIG bonuses, which has added to the anti-Wall Street feelings in the country.
Romer said the new toxic asset program would utilize around $100 billion from the $700 billion bailout fund, leaving the fund close to being tapped out.
Mark Zandi, an economist at Moody's Economy.com, estimated that the government will need an additional $400 billion to adequately deal with the toxic asset problem, seen by many analysts as key to finally resolving the banking crisis.
Zandi said the administration has no choice but to rely heavily on government resources because of the urgency of getting soured real estate loans and troubled asset-backed securities off the books of banks so that they can resume more normal lending to consumers and businesses.
"This is a start and we will see how far it goes, but I believe they will have to go back to Congress for more money," he said.
The Public-Private Investment Program that will be created was viewed as performing the same functions — selling bonds to finance purchases of bad assets — as a similar organization did for the Resolution Trust Corp., which was created to dispose of bad real estate assets in the savings and loan crisis of the 1980s.
According to administration and industry officials, the toxic asset program will have three major parts:
_A public-private partnership to back private investors' purchases of bad assets, with government support coming from the $700 billion bailout fund. The government would match private investors dollar for dollar and share any profits equally.
_Expansion of a recently launched Fed program that provides loans for investors to buy securities backed by consumer debt as a way to increase the availability of auto loans, student loans and credit card debt. Under Geithner's plan for the toxic assets, that $1 trillion program would be expanded to support purchases of toxic assets.
_Use of the FDIC, which insures bank deposits, to support purchases of toxic assets, tapping into this agency's expertise in closing down failed banks and disposing of bad assets.
Some industry officials said hedge funds and other big investors are likely to be more leery of accepting the government's enticements to purchase these assets, fearing tighter government restraints in such areas as executive compensation.
Administration officials, however, insisted Sunday that a distinction needed to be made between companies getting heavy support from the bailout programs and investors who are being asked to help dispose of troubled assets.
Romer said the partnership with the private sector will help ensure that the government doesn't overpay for the toxic assets that it will be purchasing.
"This isn't just another handout to banks," she said on CNN. "We very much have the taxpayers' interest in mind."
The administration's revamped program for toxic assets is the latest in a string of banking initiatives which have also included efforts to deal with mortgage foreclosures, boost lending to small businesses and unfreeze the market for many types of consumer loans.
In addition, the nation's 19 biggest banks are undergoing intensive examinations by regulators that are due to be completed by the end of April to determine whether they have sufficient capital reserves to withstand an even more severe recession. Those that do not will be able to get more support from the government.
The overhaul of financial regulation will be revealed by Geithner in testimony he is scheduled to give Tuesday and Thursday before the House Financial Services Committee.
In addition to the expanded authority to seize big institutions that pose a risk to the entire system, the administration is also expected to offer more general proposals on limiting excesses seen in executive compensation in recent years, where the rewards prodded extreme risk-taking.
The regulatory plan is also expected to include a major change that gives the Federal Reserve more powers to oversee systemic risks to the entire financial system.
The administration is working to unveil its proposed regulatory changes in advance of a meeting of the Group of 20 economic leaders, which Obama will attend on April 2 in London. European nations have complained that lax financial regulations in the United States set the stage for the current financial crisis.

BAGHDAD – The British Embassy said Sunday it had received a new video showing one of five Britons taken hostage nearly two years ago allegedly by Shiite extremists that the U.S. believes are backed by Iran.
Also Sunday, CNN reported that Turkey's prime minister said he would be receptive to allowing U.S. troops to leave Iraq through Turkish territory if President Barack Obama's administration asks permission.
British Embassy spokesman Sean McColm refused to identify the hostage or say how and when the video was received. He said the video was "clearly a significant development" and that the British government was working for the safe release of all the captives.
The five Britons — information technology consultant Peter Moore and four of his security guards — were seized by heavily armed men in police uniforms in May 2007 from the Finance Ministry compound in central Baghdad.
A British newspaper reported last year that the militia claimed one of the hostages had committed suicide, but that was never confirmed.
The BBC reported Sunday that the hostage in the video is Moore and that he says the five are being treated well. Moore appeared in another video shown on Feb. 26, 2008.
The new video was filmed eight days ago, according to its date stamp, an official said. He spoke on condition that he not be identified by name or nationality because he was not supposed to release the information to media.
At the time of the kidnapping, Iraqi officials blamed Shiite militiamen loyal to anti-U.S. cleric Muqtada al-Sadr. The abductions were believed to be a retaliatory strike for the killing by British forces of the militia's commander in the southern city of Basra.
However, al-Sadr's followers have disavowed the kidnapping.
The official said members of the U.S.-led coalition now believe the abduction was carried out by Asaib Ahl al-Haq, or League of the Righteous, a Sadrist splinter group that the U.S. believes is backed by Iran.
The kidnappers have demanded the release of the group's founder, Qais al-Khazali, a Shiite cleric who has been in U.S. custody since March 2007, and negotiations are under way in Iraq and Lebanon to resolve the issue, the official said.
Al-Khazali is among thousands of Iraqis due to be transferred to Iraqi custody by the end of the year, and the British have asked Iraq not to release him as long as the hostages remain held, the official said.
U.S. officials believe al-Khazali, a former aide to al-Sadr's late father, organized the splinter groups that were responsible for a January 2007 raid on the Karbala provincial headquarters that killed five U.S. soldiers.
Asaib Ahl al-Haq is believed to be trying to reorganize in southern Iraq and Baghdad after Shiite militants were routed in fighting last year in Basra and Baghdad.
Moore worked for BearingPoint, a U.S.-based management consulting firm. His guards worked for the Montreal-based firm GardaWorld.
Moore appeared in a video that was aired on the pan-Arab station Al-Arabiya in February last year in which he called on Britain to accept the kidnappers' demand for a trade for Iraqi prisoners. "It's as simple as that," he could be heard saying. "It's a simple exchange of people."
Al-Arabiya said it received the video from a group calling itself the Islamic Shiite Resistance in Iraq that offered the five Britons in exchange for nine of their men being held by British forces for the previous year.
In December 2007, another video called on Britain to pull out all of its forces from Iraq within the next 10 days.
About 4,000 British soldiers remain in Iraq and are due to leave by September, along with some 12,000 U.S. troops, according to the withdrawal schedule recently announced by Obama. All U.S. troops are to leave Iraq by the end of 2011 under an agreement negotiated by President George W. Bush's administration.
U.S. officials have said they may need to ask permission from Turkey and Jordan to use their territory to move out the force, currently at about 140,000.
CNN quoted Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyib Erdogan as saying "we are positive on that issue" but had received no formal request from the United States.
"If weapons and ammunition are going to come out, it has to be clear where they are going to be heading," CNN quoted Erdogan as saying in an interview Saturday. "If we are informed about where this military equipment would be going precisely, then we can make a proper evaluation."
Turkey, a NATO partner, refused to allow the U.S. to cross the Turkish border into Iraq during the March 2003 invasion, forcing the U.S. to rely on a single route of attack from Kuwait to the south.
Also Sunday, the U.S. Army said it filed criminal complaint earlier this month in an Iraqi court against 12 people believed responsible for the May 12, 2007 ambush south of Baghdad in which seven U.S. soldiers were killed.
An al-Qaida front group claimed responsibility for the attack in Youssifiyah. All 12 Iraqis are in custody, but Iraqi law requires a formal complaint be filed before charges can be brought.
Elsewhere in Iraq, a booby-trapped house exploded early Sunday during a raid against suspected bombmakers in the Sadiya area north of Baghdad, although there were conflicting casualty tolls. Police said one Iraqi army officer was killed and three were wounded, while provincial security official Amir Rifaat said two officers were killed and five wounded.

LANSING, Michigan – Deep in the last stronghold of the struggling U.S. auto industry, Rosario Criscuolo says he owes the survival of his business to Toyota Motor Corp (7203.T).
"If it weren't for Toyota, I'd be gone," said the owner of Spartan Auto Group, which runs three auto dealerships selling Toyota, Lexus, Infiniti, Volkswagen (VOWG.DE) and Mazda brand cars. "Without them I'd be selling papers on the corner."
To fund the $25 million worth of gleaming new cars at his showrooms, including here in Michigan's capital, Criscuolo needs floorplan financing, or inventory loans.
Floorplan financing is the lifeblood of U.S. auto dealers because it allows them to pay for vehicles when they take delivery and carry them until they find a buyers.
But many auto dealers say the credit crunch has left them unable to bring in new cars or keep those they already have, choking off production by the U.S. automakers.
"If we don't fix this wholesale credit issue, this whole thing collapses," said John McEleney, National Auto Dealers Association chairman, who owns two dealerships that between them sell Toyota, General Motors (GM.N) and Hyundai branded cars. "Every week there are more dealers that are being impacted and going out of business."
In Criscuolo's case, his bank lenders stopped providing floorplan financing. Had Toyota's finance arm not taken over funding for all his brands, he would have been in trouble.
"They have tightened credit lines a little, but I'm very fortunate to have them," he said.
His sales have improved in March, he said, but over the winter, monthly sales at his Lansing dealership fell by about half. So Criscuolo cut advertising spending and turned the heat down a few degrees to save money.
"Cash is king right now," he said.
To help dealers in worse shape than Criscuolo, the NADA and two other dealer associations have called on U.S. President Barack Obama to have the Federal Reserve's Term Asset-backed Loan Facility -- set up to provide $200 billion to finance new debt backed by auto, credit card, student and small business loans -- to boost floorplan financing.
Rating agency downgrades for auto finance companies like GMAC LLC (GKM.N) have cut off access to TALF funds.
SPIKE IN CLOSURES
U.S. auto sales fell nearly 40 percent in the first two months of the year to their lowest level in 27 years.
As a result, the NADA expects 1,200 dealerships will go under in 2009, up from 900 in 2008. Job losses at U.S. dealerships over the past 12 to 14 months exceeded 50,000.
"This is a huge problem spread out across little and large communities across the country," said Russ Darrow, chairman of the American International Auto Dealers Association, who owns 15 dealerships in Wisconsin, selling U.S. and foreign brands.
Bob and Mary Cockerham run a dealership in Santa Fe, New Mexico, selling Kia brand cars. Their sales are down about 50 percent, forcing them to cut staff to 17 from 80.
With most of their financing cut off, they say they are fighting for survival.
"There are thousands of Marys and Bobs out there who will go out of business unless something happens," Bob Cockerham said. "But it doesn't have to be this way."
GOVERNMENT GUARANTEES
The lack of floorplan financing stems from the collapse in the asset-backed security market, analysts say.
Mirko Mikelic, a portfolio manager at Fifth Third Bank said the sale of asset-backed securities guaranteed under the TALF by Nissan Motor Co Ltd (7201.T) and Ford Motor Co (F.N) was a positive sign, but the government "needs to do more to address this issue and bring confidence back to the market."
In the meantime, dealers like Jeff Williams, who sells VW, Subaru and Audi cars near Lansing are doing everything they can to save cash.
Williams said he is working closely with VW and Audi's finance arms and cut his inventory. "I haven't even tried to get floorplan financing from anyone else because I know wouldn't get it," he said. "Some people I know have been cut off by banks overnight."
Some dealers like Chris Mayes, however, said many of the retailers in trouble have themselves to blame.
Mayes, who co-owns a dealership in Norman, Oklahoma, selling Kia and Suzuki models, said: "The writing was all over the wall from last summer that this was coming."
Mayes' sales are down significantly but he "cleaned up" his inventory and is still making a profit, he said.
"The dealers who didn't do what I have are the ones who are going out of business," he said. "They've been flippant with their money over the years so why should we bail them out?"



GUNMAN KILLS 3 OFFICERS WOUNDS 4TH IN OAKLAND
OAKLAND, Calif. – A police officer was battling for his life and three more were dead after a parolee with an "extensive criminal history" opened fire at a routine traffic stop and hours later gunned down members of a SWAT team searching for him.
The gunman was also killed Saturday, capping a day of violence that the Oakland Police Department said was the worst in its history. Never before had three police officers died in the line of duty on the same day.
"It's in these moments that words are extraordinarily inadequate," said Mayor Ron Dellums at a somber news conference Saturday night.
The mayhem began that afternoon, when two motorcycle patrol officers stopped a 1995 Buick sedan in east Oakland, Oakland police spokesman Jeff Thomason said. The driver opened fire, killing Sgt. Mark Dunakin, 40, and gravely wounding Officer John Hege, 41.
The gunman then fled on foot, police said, leading to an intense manhunt by dozens of Oakland police, California Highway Patrol officers and Alameda County sheriff deputies. Streets were roped off and an entire area of east Oakland closed to traffic.
About two hours later, officers got an anonymous tip that the gunman was inside a nearby apartment building.
A SWAT team had entered an apartment to clear and search it when the gunman shot them with an assault rifle, police said.
Sgt. Ervin Romans, 43, and Sgt. Daniel Sakai, 35, were killed and a third officer was grazed by a bullet, police said.
SWAT team members returned fire, killing 26-year-old Lovelle Mixon of Oakland, Acting Oakland police Chief Howard Jordan said.
Officer Hege suffered brain damage and may not survive, his father, Dr. John S. Hege, said late Saturday.
"It is a stunning thing to face," he said.
Grieving officers at the police station hugged and consoled each other. People left four bouquets of white roses under a granite memorial wall inside the building lobby that lists 47 officers killed in the line of duty. The wall shows the last officer killed in Oakland was in January of 1999.
Police said Mixon wielded two different weapons. One gun was used at the first scene and an assault rifle was used at the apartment building where he was hiding.
Jordan said Mixon had an "extensive criminal history" and was wanted on a no-bail warrant.
"(Mixon) was on parole and he had a warrant out for his arrest for violating that parole. And he was on parole for assault with a deadly weapon," said Oakland police Deputy Chief Jeffery Israel.
Police said they did not know exactly why the officers initially stopped the suspect, but said it apparently was a routine traffic stop.
People lingered at the scene of the first shooting. About 20 bystanders taunted police.
Tension between police and the community has risen steadily since the fatal shooting of unarmed 22-year-old Oscar Grant by a transit police officer at an Oakland train station on Jan. 1.
That former Bay Area Rapid Transit officer, Johannes Mehserle, has pleaded not guilty to a murder charge. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for Monday. Violent protests erupted on the streets of Oakland in the weeks after Grant's death, further inflaming tensions.
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger planned to fly to Oakland on Sunday from Washington, D.C., to meet with police and Mayor Dellums, the govenor's office said.

OBAMA DEFENDS GEITNER
WASHINGTON – Amid the continuing backlash over AIG bonuses, President Barack Obama is defending his embattled treasury secretary and touting his ambitious $3.6 trillion budget proposal as a boon for ordinary Americans.
And, as early as Monday, the administration is expected to roll out a plan to rid banks of their toxic assets and speed the flow of loans. Some industry officials familiar with the details said they expected the approach would try to remove as much as $1 trillion from banks' books.
Obama used his weekly radio and Internet address to turn the focus back to his budget proposal, calling it "a firm foundation of investments in energy, education and health care that will lead to a real and lasting prosperity." He plans a network television interview airing Sunday and a prime-time news conference Tuesday to continue bolstering his case.
The disclosure that American International Group Inc. paid out $165 million in bonuses to employees, including to traders in the financial unit that nearly collapsed the insurer, has dominated the news this week. It has left the Obama administration on the defensive and seeking to refocus attention.
In the interview with CBS' "60 Minutes," Obama made clear he was standing behind beleaguered Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, who was roundly criticized over the bonus flap and steps to revive the economy.
Obama said that if Geithner offered his resignation, the answer would be, "Sorry buddy, you've still got the job." CBS released excerpts Saturday.
Obama noted that corporate executives would better understand the public's outrage over bonuses if they ventured out of New York and spent time in Iowa or Arkansas. There, he said, people are thrilled to be making $75,000 a year with no bonuses.
Still, Obama said ordinary Americans are more concerned about having a paycheck and being able to pay college or medical bills than they are about "the news of the day in Washington."
Those are the concerns, he said, that he addresses in his budget, which he calls an economic blueprint for the future. It is "a vision of America where growth is not based on real estate bubbles or over-leveraged banks, but on a firm foundation of investments in energy, education and health care that will lead to a real and lasting prosperity," Obama said Saturday.
Being heard above the din may prove difficult. Lawmakers are wrangling over taxing people who got big bonuses and worrying the president's budget could generate $9.3 trillion in red ink over the next decade

Pope decries African wars at Mass for 1 million
LUANDA, Angola – Pope Benedict XVI celebrated Mass Sunday with an estimated 1 million Angolans and decried the "clouds of evil" over Africa that have spawned war, tribalism and ethnic rivalry that reduce poor people to slavery.
The biggest crowd of Benedict's first pilgrimage to Africa turned up in sweltering heat for the open-air service on the outskirts of Angola's seaside capital, Luanda, the last major event of his seven-day trip, which ends Monday.
"How true it is that war can destroy everything of value", said Benedict, wearing a pink cape and mopping his sweaty brow with a white handkerchief.
Evils in Africa have "reduced the poor to slavery and deprived future generations of the resources needed to create a more solid and just society," he said during the Mass under a tented pink altar in a huge vacant lot near a cement factory.
Angolans have been enslaved, subjugated and at war almost nonstop since Portuguese colonizers brought the first Catholic missionaries in 1491. Many of the slaves taken to Brazil, for example, came from Angola.
The Catholic Church was an ally of the colonizers who discriminated against the people until independence from Portugal in 1975, when civil war erupted, in part fueled by the country's oil and diamond wealth.
Some 15,000 died, including missionaries, before the war ended in 2002 but its scars still are evident among the many people who lost limbs in one of the most heavily mined countries in the world.
A Marxist revolution also has left scars, though the country's president for 30 years, Eduardo dos Santos, abandoned communism and improved relations with the church from the late 1980s.
Critics say last year's massive election victory was marred by fraud and corruption and that the pope must beware of allowing his visit, sponsored by the state, to be seen as legitimizing an authoritarian regime. The bishops in Angola twice have denounced the government for leaving its people mired in poverty while leaders enrich themselves off oil and diamonds.
Since he arrived on Friday from Cameroon, the pope has met with dos Santos and spoken out against corruption in Africa, the continent with the fastest-growing Catholic population in the world.
Before he said Mass on Sunday, Benedict clasped his hands, as if in prayer, and offered his condolences to the families of two 20-year-old women trampled to death in a stampede at a Luanda stadium before a youth event he addressed on Saturday.
He also wished a speedy recovery to some 40 people injured in the crush. Dozens of others collapsed and were treated at the site for heat exhaustion. The Vatican's No. 2 official, Cardinal Tarcisio Pertone, will visit the injured in hospital, said Vatican spokesman the Rev. Federico Lombardi.
State radio appealed to people to take water and food to Sunday's Mass. People also carried parasols and stools amid the hooting cars and motorbikes making their way to see the pope. Some men hoisted children onto their shoulders and mothers strapped babies to their backs.
Even before he landed in Africa, the pope provoked protests after he told reporters on his chartered Alitalia jet that condoms were not the answer to Africa's severe AIDS epidemic, suggesting that sexual behavior was the issue.
He condemned sexual violence against women, but also chided the 45 African countries including Angola that have approved abortion in cases of rape or incest or when a mother's life is in danger.

Reality TV star Jade Goody dies after cancer fight
LONDON – Jade Goody, a dental assistant turned reality-TV star whose whirlwind journey from poverty to celebrity to tragedy became a national soap opera and morality tale in Britain, has died. The 27-year-old had cancer and died in her sleep early Sunday at her home in Essex, southeast England, her publicist Max Clifford said.
Goody gained fame at 21 in 2002, when she joined the reality television show "Big Brother," in which contestants live together for weeks and are constantly filmed. Loud and brash, she became a highly divisive star — initially mocked as an ignorant slob, then celebrated as a forthright everywoman by a hungry tabloid press.
It was a pattern of praise and condemnation that followed her for the rest of her life. Goody became a national touchstone who sparked debate about race, class and celebrity in Britain.
For some, Goody was a survivor who had overcome a tough childhood on a London housing estate. Her father was absent and often in jail, and her mother struggled with drug addiction.
But she also was reviled in the press during her stint on "Big Brother" for her weight, her big mouth and her apparent lack of general knowledge — she branded the English region of East Anglia "East Angular," and asked whether it was abroad.
She didn't win the show, but she did become a celebrity, earning millions through television and magazine appearances, an autobiography, a perfume and a series of exercise videos.
It was during a follow-up stint on a celebrity version of "Big Brother" in 2007 that Goody was labeled a racist bully for her treatment of another contestant, Bollywood actress Shilpa Shetty. Goody bad-mouthed Shetty's cooking of Indian food, mocked her accent and referred to her as "Shilpa Poppadom." While complaints against the show skyrocketed, so did ratings.
Goody's treatment of Shetty sparked anger in India and Britain — even becoming the topic of debate during a House of Commons question-and-answer session with then Prime Minister Tony Blair. A major sponsor suspended its advertising deal with "Celebrity Big Brother," and a chain of perfume shops pulled a Goody-endorsed fragrance, ironically named "Shh..."
After television viewers voted to evict Goody from the show, Goody — herself of mixed race — insisted she wasn't a racist. "I argue like that with everybody. It wasn't just because of the color of her skin that I was that aggressive," she said during an interview on Britain's GMTV.
After the eviction, the Indian Tourism Office invited Goody to travel to the country. She did, visiting charity projects and later agreeing to appear on an Indian version of the show.
"The people of India have only seen a small part of me and I'd like to show them that there is more to me," Goody said. "I'm a mother of two, a businesswoman. I can't be all that bad."
It was during filming of the show in the summer of 2008 that Goody received a diagnosis of cervical cancer by telephone from a doctor in Britain. The camera captured the deeply personal moment, which was shown repeatedly on TV in Britain, though not in India.
The progress of her illness was chronicled in detail in the tabloid press and weekly magazines, to the unease of many.
"Goody isn't rich or famous because she won the lottery: she's rich and famous because we bought all those papers and magazines and ghosted books with her on the cover, because we watched her television series, because we cheered when she was good and booed when she was bad, because we sat around discussing her over lunch," wrote columnist India Knight in The Sunday Times. "Now she's dying, she's making us all feel bad so we want her to go away, like a broken toy that's stopped being fun."
In February, a bald and frail Goody, married fiancee Jack Tweed in an elaborate event staged at an elegant countryside hotel outside London. She reportedly sold the photos for more than $1 million.
Goody defended being paid for interviews and photo shoots.
"People will say I'm doing this for money," she said. "And they're right, I am. But not to buy flash cars or big houses — it's for my sons' future if I'm not here. I don't want my kids to have the same miserable, drug-blighted, poverty-stricken childhood I did."
Before her rise to fame, Goody worked for a period as a dental nurse. She had an unhappy childhood in a poor south London neighborhood. Her father was a heroin addict who served jail time for robbery and died in 2005, her mother a former crack addict who lost the use of an arm in a motorcycle accident.
While many empathized with Goody as she underwent surgery and chemotherapy in the public eye — filming part of the experience for another television series — she still inspired vitriol in others. A Web site was even set up, devoted to predicting when she would die.
In February 2009 Goody's publicist said the cancer had spread to her liver, bowel and groin.
Goody is survived by Tweed and her two sons Bobby and Freddie, with an ex-boyfriend, television presenter Jeff Brazier. She also is survived by her mother, Jackiey Budden.



COLUMBUS, Ohio – A judge declared a mistrial Thursday in the case of a man accused of fatally shooting his identical twin brother after a juror suffered a death in the family.
Judge Guy Reece of Franklin County Common Pleas Court dismissed the jury at the request of attorneys for defendant Derris Lewis. Prosecutors did not object.

Lewis, 19, has pleaded not guilty to aggravated murder, aggravated robbery and kidnapping in the 2008 death of his brother Dennis in a robbery at their mother's house.
If convicted, he could have faced up to life in prison. Derris remained in jail Thursday.
The mistrial was another twist in a case that has shocked the community since Dennis Lewis was killed at home early on the morning of Jan. 18, 2008.
His mother told police three to five masked men entered the home, held her at gunpoint, then beat and shot Dennis when he tried to fight back.
Prosecutors allege that Dennis Lewis died in a fight with his brother, possibly over money Dennis was saving for a car. Police have said they believe Derris acted alone but haven't provided a motive.
Both brothers, high school seniors at the time, were active in sports, band and theater. Friends, family and teachers described them as best friends, like peas in a pod. Derris gave interviews shortly after his brother's death saying he forgave Dennis' killer.
Derris was arrested a few weeks after the killing.
Prosecutors said fingerprints and a bloody palm print belonging to Derris linked him to the crime. They also implied he returned to the home days later and pretended to find $283 in cash in an envelope in his brother's bedroom.
Police have said they thoroughly searched the home the day of the shooting and never saw such an envelope.
The defense says Derris Lewis was asleep at his apartment miles from the slaying, and three witnesses testified he was home at the time.
The defense also identified an alternate suspect and said police had not ruled out the suspect's gun as the murder weapon.



Was Jim Jones targeted by a group of Detroit gangsters looking to shake down rap artists? MediaTakeout-dot-com reports that this weekend’s shoot out at Club Esko, which allegedly left Detroit rapper Trick Trick wounded, was connected to Jones’ failure to pay the “hood taxes” Motown thugs demand from rappers performing in the city. A source explains that “the taxes could be anything from doing a track with a local [Detroit] artist or doing a free concert for a promoter or show love to the streets by dropping off a couple of [thousand dollar] stacks.” The source adds that it’s dangerous to turn the thugs down, warning, “Just like the I-R-S, the penalty is severe



Despite widespread reports that rapper Trick Trick was shot during a Jim Jones concert in Detroit, the rapper has taken to the airwaves to deny the accounts.

During an interview with the “Mojo in the Morning” show on Detroit radio station, 95.5 FM this a.m., Trick claimed that the news is completely false. “I’m at home,” he said. “I ain’t left the house since Saturday.”

Authorities say that two men were injured during a fight at Detroit’s Esko Lounge early Monday morning (March 16) and many news outlets reported that Trick was one of the victims.

The rapper said his mother was the first to get in touch with him to see if the news was true. “My mother called me this morning and when she found I was OK she ended up calling Channel 4 like, ’stop saying that cause my son’s at home,’” he said. The rapper also told listeners that his brother was not involved in the shooting.

According to local news network WDIV, the shooting occurred after ten men rushed the club. One man was taken to the hospital where he is currently listed in serious condition. No arrests have been made as of yet.

Update: Mayoral spokesman Daniel Cherrin told police that the man that was shot was indeed Trick Trick. According to the Associated Press he was hit in the leg. The other man, Barry Washington, was shot in the right arm and groin area. – Elan Mancini



A rapper associated with Harlem, New York rap group The Diplomats shot and killed himself during a dramatic stand-off with police in upstate New York yesterday (March 17).

Hackensack, New Jersey police had been searching for 23-year-old Darnell “King Tut” Brittingham, for allegedly stabbing and assaulting a female companion, just 48 hours after he was released from jail on drug charges.

According to Hackensack‘s Courier Post, detectives from the Hackensack police department traced Brittingham to a La Quinta Inn in White Plains.

When a S.W.A.T. Team witnessed Brittingham emerge from the hotel with a female friend and enter a cab, police surrounded the vehicle and ordered the occupants out.

As police approached the car, they saw Brittingham duck behind the driver’s seat and shoot himself.

Brittingham was first arrested on February 11, when he was stopped during a routine traffic stop.

He was arrested after police found 14 grams of cocaine stuffed inside of a teddy bear.

Shortly after he made bail on the drug charges, police accused Brittingham of stabbing a female companion seven times before fleeing.

“I guess he just decided he wasn't going to go to jail," Police Chief John Kapica told the Courier Post. "We had him, so he couldn't get away, which is probably why he did what he did."

King Tut was a member of the 730 Dipset.



DALLAS – The top municipal judge in Dallas faces calls for his resignation over a racially charged column he wrote in a weekly newspaper.
Administrative Judge C. Victor Lander apologized Tuesday for writing in the Dallas Weekly that "black folks have been cleaning up white folks' messes for hundreds of years."
Lander, who is black, said he wrote the column earlier this month to praise reform efforts of the city's first black prosecutor, Craig Watkins.
A member of the Dallas City Council isn't buying the explanation — calling for Lander's resignation. The council appoints municipal judges in Dallas.
Lander has been a municipal judge for 12 years.



LOS ANGELES (Reuters) – Rap star Kanye West was charged on Wednesday with battery, theft and vandalism in connection with a September 11, 2008 scuffle with paparazzi at Los Angeles International Airport.
The L.A. District Attorney's Office has accused West, 31, of smashing camera equipment in the encounter. He faces up to two and a half years in prison if convicted on all the misdemeanor charges.
West, who won the Grammy in 2005 for best rap album of the year for his release "The College Dropout," was arrested after the scuffle and released on bail the same day. He is expected to appear in court on April 14.
A representative for West was not available to comment on the indictment. The District Attorney declined to press more serious felony charges and passed the case on to the L.A. City Attorney to consider lesser misdemeanor offenses.
Frank Mateljan, a spokesman for the L.A. City Attorney's Office, said the charges stemmed from the scuffle in which West allegedly wrestled away a camera light and then smashed it into the ground.
Authorities on Wednesday also charged West's manager, Don Crawley, 33, with two counts each of vandalism, grand theft and battery for his alleged involvement in the incident. He faces up to five years behind bars if convicted.
Cable channel MTV last year named West the hottest rap "MC" in the hip-hop world.


NEW YORK - While most TV stations that still broadcast in analog are sticking to the June 12 shutdown date, 158 stations intend to turn those signals off before then, according to regulators.

Most of the 158 stations, about 15 percent of those still broadcasting in analog, are in smaller markets and don't broadcast any of the four major commercial networks. Exceptions include the NBC and ABC affiliates in Denver, which are shutting analog on April 16.

The list was released by the Federal Communications Commission late Tuesday.

More than 600 stations have already killed analog, with many of them shutting down around Feb. 17, the original deadline. That means just under half of the country's 1,759 TV stations will have ended analog transmissions before June 12.

PBS stations, many of which are financially strapped and don't want to bear the cost of keeping analog broadcasts, account for 58 of the stations that are set to shut down early, leaving 125 broadcasting in analog until June 12.

The Trinity Broadcasting Network, with religious programming, is shutting down analog early at 26 stations, leaving eight.

The FCC could prohibit a station from shutting down early to make sure that people can get at least one station broadcasting in analog in their area.

The vast majority of full-power stations are already broadcasting digital signals, which can be received by newer digital TV sets or through converter boxes.

Nielsen Co. said that as of March 1, 4.5 million households that receive only over-the-air broadcasts haven't prepared for the analog shutdown. The figure includes households that have bought a converter box but haven't connected it.

The converter boxes are subsidized through a government coupon program that ran out of money in January, which was the main reason the nationwide mandate for the analog shutdown was postponed beyond the originally scheduled date of Feb. 17. The coupon program has received new funding through the national economic stimulus bill, and the government is working through its wait list.

(Corrects that 158 stations intend to shut down early, not necessarily cleared by FCC. )







WASHINGTON – The Army this summer will start cutting back on use of the unpopular practice of holding troops beyond their enlistment dates and hopes to almost completely eliminate it in two years.
Defense Secretary Robert Gates said, though, that it may never be possible to completely get rid of the policy called "stop-loss," under which some 13,000 soldiers whose time is already up are still being forced to continue serving.
"I believe that when somebody's end date of service comes, to hold them against their will, if you will, is just not the right thing to do," he said, noting that officials will still retain the legal power to involuntarily extend soldiers' service if needed.
"I felt, particularly in these numbers, that it was breaking faith," Gates told a Pentagon news conference.
He said that he hoped any future use after 2011 would only be in "scores, not thousands."
Critics have called "stop-loss" a backdoor draft because it keeps troops in the military beyond the end of their enlistment or retirement dates. But the military has said it's a necessary tool to keep unit cohesion in times of war and to keep soldiers with certain skills needed in those units.
Soldiers and their families strongly dislike stop-loss and it was the title of a 2008 Hollywood movie in which a soldier who served in Iraq goes AWOL rather than following orders to stay longer in the service and return to combat.
Rep. John Murtha said earlier Wednesday that 185,000 troops had been forced to stay in the military since the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks under the policy. He said the military had agreed to begin $500 monthly payments to troops serving under stop-loss.
The payments are planned to soften the effects of the practice, which makes it impossible for troops to make lasting work and family plans.
"This is a victory for soldiers and their families," said Sen. Frank R. Lautenberg, D-N.J. "After months and often years of risking their lives, our troops deserve to know when they will return home. The military made a deal with our men and women in uniform and will now live up to that commitment."
To be fair, the Army is also planning to pay a still-undisclosed amount of extra money to those who extend their services voluntarily.
The policy can keep a soldier in service if his or her unit deploys within 90 days of the end of the soldier's commitment. The time soldiers have been held in service has averaged five to eight months, officials said.
The Army has said 1 percent of the Army is affected by the forced extensions. As of January, the roughly 13,000 soldiers on stop-loss included 7,300 active-duty Army, about 4,450 in the Guard and 1,450 reservists.
Under the Army plan approved by Gates, the Army Reserve in August will begin mobilizing units that don't include stop-loss soldiers and the Guard in September will do the same.
The active duty Army is to deploy its first unit without stop-loss in January, he said. The goal is to reduce it by 50 percent by June 2010 and end its regular use by march 2011.
Though the practice has been virtually ended in all other service branches, the Army has said it still needed to use it as remained under severe strain fighting the two ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan.
"We would be off stop-loss tomorrow were it not for the demand for Army forces worldwide — not just in Iraq and Afghanistan — worldwide," Lt. Gen. Michael Rochelle, head of Army personnel said in a separate Army press conference later. He said President Barack Obama's decision to draw down troops in Iraq has taken off some of the pressure.
Officials say it is possible to gradually reduce the number of stop-loss soldiers now also because the Army has grown, retention is good, and officials are changing the way new units rotate — something that gives units scheduled for combat more time to get the people with the skills they need as opposed to holding in service soldiers who have that skill. The most needed skills are in infantry.
Officials acknowledged that there is a risk without stop-loss the Army would not have enough troops if another emergency arose — such as deterioration of the situations in Iraq and Afghanistan.
Effective this month, troops will get $500-per-month payments for extending their service and it will be made retroactive for those who were on the stop-loss roles as of last Oct. 1. Payments before were not possible, officials said, because Congress did not appropriate funds for that. The costs for the payments for the budget year that began Oct. 1, 2008, are about $72 million.



Natasha Richardson, a member of a British acting dynasty whose career highlights included the film "Patty Hearst" and a Tony-winning performance in a stage revival of "Cabaret," died Wednesday from head injuries suffered while she was skiing. She was 45.

Alan Nierob, the publicist for Richardson's husband, Liam Neeson, confirmed her death in a written statement.

"Liam Neeson, his sons (Micheal and Daniel), and the entire family are shocked and devastated by the tragic death of their beloved Natasha," the statement said. "They are profoundly grateful for the support, love and prayers of everyone, and ask for privacy during this very difficult time."

The tragedy made international headlines and prompted expressions of shock and grief. She fell on a beginners slope near Montreal during a ski lesson Monday and initially appeared coherent, but an hour later she complained of a headache. As her condition worsened dramatically, she was flown to a hospital near her home in New York City, where her family gathered.

She was the daughter of Academy Award-winning actress and human rights activist Vanessa Redgrave and the Oscar-winning director and producer Tony Richardson. Her maternal grandparents were the actors Michael Redgrave and Rachel Kempson. Her aunt is actress Lynn Redgrave, with whom Natasha Richardson and her mother appeared in the 2005 Merchant-Ivory production "The White Countess."

Ms. Richardson may have been overshadowed by the public profile of her family, particularly her mother, but she was widely respected for the high quality and versatility of her performances.

She won a Tony Award for a 1998 revival of the musical "Cabaret," in which she played the bohemian showgirl Sally Bowles, and starred in a variety of film, television and stage productions, ranging from Blanche Du Bois in Tennessee Williams' "A Streetcar Named Desire" (2005) on Broadway to a Disney remake of "The Parent Trap" (1998) in Hollywood.

As a young woman, Ms. Richardson was considered one of the most promising actresses of her generation and earned a reputation as a specialist in formidable dramatic parts. She received a Tony nomination and outstanding notices for her lead role as a woman with a dark past in a 1993 revival of the Eugene O'Neill waterfront story "Anna Christie."

She was a statuesque blonde with a smoky voice, and director Paul Schrader, who cast her in several movies, once noted how she "had an essential quality of mystery about her. You can watch her for the better part of two hours, and still think that she'll show you something new."

In addition to Schrader's "Patty Hearst" (1988), in which she played the title heiress-turned-terrorist, and the psychological thriller "The Comfort of Strangers" (1990), Ms. Richardson starred in a string of films on screen and on television in the late 1980s and 1990s.

More recently, she was a guest judge in an episode of Bravo TV's reality show "Top Chef."

Film scholar David Kipen said of Ms. Richardson: "As an heir to the Redgrave theatrical and film dynasty, she was the British Drew Barrymore - if Barrymore had better taste in roles and men. Richardson radiated intelligence in everything she did. She won raves for Shakespeare, Chekhov, O'Neill, Williams and Ibsen, and she could sing besides. If the movies never knew quite what to do with her, that strikes me more as the medium's fault than hers."

Natasha Jane Richardson was born in London on May 11, 1963. She made her acting debut at 4, directed by her father and playing her mother's bridesmaid in the movie "The Charge of the Light Brigade."

At 17, Ms. Richardson passed her audition at London's Central School of Speech and Drama without revealing her true name. She debuted in London's West End theater district as Nina in a 1985 revival of Anton Chekhov's "The Seagull" that starred her mother.

During the show's run, she began a relationship with "Seagull" producer Robert Fox, and they later married. She left him to marry Neeson.

Survivors include Neeson, and their two sons; her mother; and a sister, actress Joely Richardson.

Filmography

Some of the feature and television films starring Natasha Richardson:

-- Wild Child (2008)

-- The Masterson of Manhattan (2007)

-- Asylum (2005)

-- The White Countess (2005)

-- Maid in Manhattan (2002)

-- Chelsea Walls (2001)

-- The Man Who Came To Dinner (2000)

-- The Parent Trap (1998)

-- Nell (1994)

-- Widow's Peak (1994)

-- Suddenly, Last Summer (1993)

-- The Comfort of Strangers (1990)

-- The Handmaid's Tale (1990)

-- Fat Man and Little Boy (1989)

-- Patty Hearst (1988)

-- A Month in the Country (1987)

-- Gothic (1986)

-- Ellis Island (1984 TV mini-series)

-- Every Picture Tells a Story (1983)

-- The Charge of the Light Brigade (1968)






THIS IS FOR ALL TO SEE BUT IF ONLY MY FAM READS IT THAT WILL BE FINE WITH ME AS WELL...

Anyway I need all the world to know that there is money available out there but since the sources are drying up many of us fail to diligently search and out all areas and resources but dont forget to seek every uncovered stone and stop and think take time to listen to what the world is telling you seek monetary but never forget the standard.This sometimes proves correct when we seek shortcuts and self inflicted setbacks while all the while continuing to do carnival tricks like "throw a ring around a bottle top and hope to win a prize".

BOTTOM LINE :Seek Grants,Food Stamps,Medicaid,Shelter and anything that would prevent you from falling from existence while we all suffer from this terrible recession,Sisters keep your pants zipped brothers leave them hammers home .There is help and look at it this way.This world we live in called The United States Of America is an Institution no matter what we want to believe so therefore we must play the role and the role defines the person the person defines the role there are no two ways they just define themselves as they are Bottom LiNE. Killers Die or go to jail,Administrative Assistants live long lives and build experiences into careers."Take care of yourself and your families.

WASHINGTON – The Obama administration announced Monday that the 21 largest banks receiving government money must report monthly on how much lending they do to small businesses.
All other banks getting taxpayer help are being asked to report quarterly on small business loans. Even banks that are not taking government funds are being told by the administration to "make an extra effort" to increase small business lending.
The announcement was part of a broad package aimed at boosting the credit available to struggling small business owners that President Barack Obama and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner were unveiling in an East Room ceremony. The White House figures that making billions in federal loans available to small businesses was one way to address misgivings over the widely unpopular bailout program, which has sent hundreds of billions to large financial institutions like Bank of America Corp., Citigroup Inc. and JPMorgan Chase & Co. with few strings attached.
The rescue program has appeared to do little so far to loosen credit, the lifeblood of the American economy.
In brief comments Monday morning with Geithner before the official announcement, Obama called small businesses "one of the biggest drivers of employment that we have." He said he had pressed his economic team to specifically help owners of small businesses and get credit flowing to them again, and he called the newest initiatives only a first step.
The measures includes $730 million from the stimulus plan to immediately reduce small-business lending fees and to increase the government guarantee on some Small Business Administration loans to 90 percent. The government also is taking aggressive steps to boost bank liquidity with up to $15 billion aimed at unfreezing the secondary credit market.
Often primary bank lenders will seek to sell the SBA loans in the secondary market, allowing them to use the proceeds of the sale to make new loans to other small business owners, but skittish investors have been staying away. Under the administration's initiative, the government will step in to buy these loans to help unlock the frozen credit market, using money from the recently passed bailout package in the range of $10 billion to $20 billion, one official briefed on the plan said.
While the SBA typically guarantees $20 billion in loans annually, new lending this year is on track to fall below $10 billion, according to the administration.
The reporting requirements for financial institutions receiving government bailout funds are the first, the White House said.
The plan comes amid Republican efforts to cast doubt about Obama's ambitious budget, in particular the proposal to raise taxes, starting in 2011, on individuals earning more than $200,000 and on households earning more than $250,000. Those provisions also hit small businesses.
Geithner also ordered the Internal Revenue Service to issue a series of new rules for temporary but significant tax breaks, meaning that small businesses:
_That earn up to $15 million will be allowed to claim losses for the past five years in the current tax year;
_May write off up to $250,000 in investments this year.
_Can reduce estimated tax payments to 90 percent of the previous year's filing.
_Are allowed to take larger depreciation deductions within the first year of property purchases.
_And will see 75 percent of capital gains excluded for those who invest in small businesses.



Fresh off teasing fans with a trailer for an upcoming porn video featuring the mother or Rick Ross’ daughter, 50 Cent has officially released the X-rated clip for the public to view.

Throughout the close to 13 and a half minute video, which debuted last night (March 13) on boobootv.com, the G-Unit frontman portrays his alter ego, Pimpin’ Curly as he provides commentary on sex acts engaged by the woman, who is identified as Brooke.

According to the video’s description, the encounter takes place with an unidentified man while Ross is on tour.

To build anticipation for the video, 50 aired a 30 second trailer counting down to the video's premiere on Friday.

“Now look man. I’m gonna show you some s*** man. ..Yo, check this shit out man. I’ma show you my b**** man. Here go your baby mama Ricky. Oh man, you ain’t gonna believe this s*** man,” said Curly, who takes pleasure in seeing Brooke be unfaithful to his rival as she flashed a tattoo of Ross’ initials that appears on her chest. “Double R? Does that stand for Rick Ross in the middle of her muthaf***in chest man. Oh this is cold blooded man,” he added. “I told niggas I was the beast from the east man. They thought I was b***s*****n. I ain’t b***s*****n no mo man. 1 minute and 30 seconds nigga. You see the tape. It only been on for 1 minute and 30 seconds.

“I want you to watch this on your tour bus Ricky. I want you to watch this on your m*****f****n tour bus Ricky,” continued Curly. “…Now how the f**k you gonna say you a boss and you run a m****f****n crew and can’t even control your b*****s. Is this nigga lickin on the Rick Ross tattoo? The n***a lickin on the Ricky tattoo. Oooh shit. Oooh man. Somebody need to make an announcement.” The new video is the latest in the ongoing dispute between Ross and 50 Cent. Ross has dismissed 50’s insults and the Miami rapper is enjoying the success of his “Magnificent.”

The tune, which features R&B crooner John Legend, is the lead single on Ross’ forthcoming album Deeper Than Rap.

50 is also riding his own wave of success via “I Get It In,” the first single off his upcoming album Before I Self Destruct.

Despite their individual achievements, both men are determined to get the better of each other with their current beef.

“You stuck with this b***h nigga. You stuck with this bitch for the rest of your life man,” continued Curly, who didn’t mince words regarding Brooke. “Now every time you look at your little girl, her little pretty face man… There go her mama.”

In addition to the porn video, Pimpin Curly also shows up in a new cartoon , titled In Too Deep.

The recently released clip, which continues to deride Ross for his past employment as a corrections officer, features Lil Wayne as well as Mase, DMX, Suge Knight, Bobby Brown, Remy Ma, Coolio and T.I.

Rick Ross’ Deeper Than Rap is slated to arrive in stores on April 21, while 50 Cent’s Before I Self Destruct will be released sometime this year.


MGM Mirage (MGM.N), which has warned it could breach its credit agreements this year if the economy doesn't rebound, may break itself up to lure potential buyers as it races to raise the more than $1.5 billion it owes in bond payments and interest this year, the Wall Street Journal reported on Saturday.

Citing unnamed people "familiar with the matter," the paper said buyers had been "sizing up" several of the casino operator's separate properties, including the Bellagio and the MGM Grand Detroit.
"Basically everything is for sale," the paper quoted one anonymous sources as saying.
MGM has said it is in talks with its bank lenders for a waiver on its loans or to amend the debts' covenants, but said there was no assurance that lenders will agree.

If the company is unable to amend terms or receive a waiver its bank lenders could accelerate repayment of the loans and, under certain circumstances, defaults on its other debt may be triggered, MGM has said.



WASHINGTON – The government on Saturday permanently banned the slaughter of cows too sick or weak to stand on their own, seeking to further minimize the chance that mad cow disease could enter the food supply.
The Agriculture Department proposed the ban last year after the biggest beef recall in U.S. history. The recall involved a Chino, Calif., slaughterhouse and "downer" cows. The Obama administration finalized the ban on Saturday.
"As part of our commitment to public health, our Agriculture Department is closing a loophole in the system to ensure that diseased cows don't find their way into the food supply," President Barack Obama said in his weekly radio and video address.
Those kind of cows pose a higher risk of having mad cow disease. They also susceptible to infections from bacteria that cause food poisoning, such as E. coli, because the animals wallow in feces.

The recall also raised concerns about the treatment of cattle and came after an investigator for the Humane Society of the United States videotaped workers abusing downer cows to force them to slaughter.
Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack said the ban was "a step forward for both food safety and the standards for humane treatment of animals."

The Humane Society's president and chief executive, Wayne Pacelle, said he was pleased that the government "is putting a stop to the inhumane and reckless practice of dragging and otherwise abusing downer cows in order to slaughter them for human consumption."

A partial ban on downer cows was in place; it resulted from the nation's first case of mad cow disease, in 2003.
But there was a loophole. If a cow collapsed after passing inspection, government inspectors allowed the animal into the food supply if it had an acute injury, such as a broken leg, but showed no signs of central nervous disorder that might indicate the presence of mad cow disease.

Obama called the country's food inspection system "a hazard to public health," citing outbreaks of deadly food poisoning in peanuts this year, peppers and possibly tomatoes last year and spinach in 2006.
He named his candidates for the top jobs at the Food and Drug Administration, which together with the Agriculture Department is responsible for much of the government's food inspection.

Mad cow disease is the common name for bovine spongiform encephalopathy, or BSE. In people, eating meat contaminated with BSE is linked to variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease, a rare and deadly nerve disease. A massive outbreak of mad cow disease in the United Kingdom that peaked in 1993 was blamed for the deaths of 180,000 cattle and more than 150 people.
There have been three confirmed cases of BSE in the United states, in a Canadian-born cow in 2003 in Washington state, in 2005 in Texas and in 2006 in Alabama. The Bush administration in 2006 dramatically scaled back testing for mad cow disease.
No illnesses have been linked to those cows in the United States. There have been three cases of variant Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease confirmed in people living in the United States, but those were linked to meat products in the United Kingdom and Saudi Arabia, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.


WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama on Saturday downplayed divisions between the U.S. and Europe over how to tackle the world's financial crisis and said China should have "absolute confidence" that its sizable investments in the United States are safe.

In a conversation focused heavily on the economy, Obama met in the Oval Office with Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva. It was the latest in a series of talks the president has had with his counterparts around the world before a pair of international meetings where the economic crisis will dominate.
Both leaders will attend the Group of 20 countries summit in London on April 2, and the Summit of the Americas in Trinidad in mid-April.

Obama said the notion that the U.S. and Europe are already taking sides, with America pushing for more stimulus spending and European nations favoring tighter regulation of the financial industry, is a "phony debate."
"I can't be clearer in saying that there are no sides," Obama told reporters after the meeting. He said a full range of approaches, including stimulus spending such as his own recently enacted $787 billion package, and financial regulation, are needed to help revive the global economy.

Financial regulation "is front and center" among the issues he wants to deal with, he said.
"In my mind, at least, there is no conflict or contradiction between the positions of the G-20 countries and how we're going to be moving forward," Obama said, adding that differences in details were being worked out. "I expect to have a productive meeting."

Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, who had pushed for Europe to match Washington's $787 billion package of spending and tax cuts, said Saturday that there was "broad consensus globally on the need to act aggressively to restore growth to the global economy. Geithner spoke in London at a prepratory meeting of finance officials from the rich and developing G-20 countries.
At home, Obama also sought to assure China that its investments in the U.S. are safe.

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao had said Friday he was concerned about the safety of the estimated $1 trillion his country has invested in U.S. government debt. China is Washington's biggest foreign creditor, and Obama's administration is counting on the Chinese to help pay for the $787 billion economic stimulus package by buying U.S. bonds.
"Of course we are concerned about the safety of our assets. To be honest, I'm a little bit worried," Wen said. "I would like to call on the United States to honor its words, stay a credible nation and ensure the safety of Chinese assets."
Wen — and other investors — needn't worry, Obama said.

"There's a reason why even in the midst of this economic crisis you've seen actual increases in investment flows here into the United States," Obama said. "I think it's a recognition that the stability not only of our economic system, but also our political system, is extraordinary."I think that not just the Chinese government, but every investor, can have absolute confidence in the soundness of investments in the United States," he added.

Vice President Joe Biden on Saturday said he believed there were signs that the public's confidence is growing in the administration's ability to tackle the financial crisis. He credited the "Obama factor."

"There is no doubt in our minds and there is no doubt in the president's mind that in fact we will overcome this. We will climb out of this hole," Biden told The Associated Press in a phone interview. "It just takes some real perseverence and you've got to have a guy as gutsy as the president who's willing to make some really tough decisions."
Biden, who was in Little Rock on Saturday night to help Sen. Blanche Lincoln kick off her re-election bid, said he believed the economy was showing some signs of hope.

"Consumer confidence is slightly up. The market is slightly up," Biden said. "It'll go down again, but the people are beginning to figure out that the president's got a plan and he believes we can work our way through this."
During his appearance at the White House, Silva said the crisis gives world leaders an "extraordinary opportunity" to demonstrate to their people that they are capable of handling major issues. He said it was critically important to create jobs, create incomes and boost consumption.

"We are in a large ship and water is leaking," Silva said, speaking through a translator. "Now is the time to fix the leaking and make the economy go back to the tracks."

Obama discussed the global economic crisis on Friday during telephone calls to his counterparts in Argentina, Indonesia, the Philippines and Saudi Arabia. He also has discussed the issue during recent Oval Office meetings with Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso, British Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi.



HORSHAM, England – Finance officials from rich and developing countries pledged Saturday to do "whatever is necessary" to fix the global economy, including supervision of freewheeling hedge funds and restoring bank lending by dealing with the shaky securities burdening their finances.

But officials remained cool to a U.S. push for more coordinated government spending to stimulate economies.
They called instead on the International Monetary Fund to assess the individual government actions already taken and what more might be required, rather than laying out definite plans to ramp up spending.
Finance ministers and central bankers from the Group of 20, which accounts for more than 80 percent of the world economy, agreed there was an "urgent need" for a big boost to the lending resources of the International Monetary Fund to help struggling governments in the developing world.

They left the specific amount and who would contribute open, to be taken up at the much-anticipated summit of the group's national leaders in London on April 2. The job of Saturday's meeting was to shape the agenda for that gathering, which will be closelyl watched for whether leaders can find common steps to take.
"We're prepared to take whatever action is necessary to ensure growth is restored and we're committed to do that for however long it takes to do that," said British Treasury chief Alistair Darling.
As host of the gathering at a hotel south of London, Britain worked hard to bridge divisions between the United States and Europe on the stimulus issue, and all the key players were keen to present a united front on Saturday.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner, who had pushed for Europe to match Washington's $787 billion package of spending and tax cuts, said there was "broad consensus globally on the need to act aggressively to restore growth to the global economy."

Geithner said he was pleased with progress made at the talks on Friday and Saturday, but noted that the world economic and financial crisis was still playing out. "This is a very challenging period and this is still evolving," he told reporters.
Darling said that it was for "individual countries to decide what's right for them."
"They've got to reach a judgement as to how much they do, what effect is it having, which areas of the economy they need to support, whatever's right for them," he said.
Germany, which has been the most outspoken critic of the U.S. push for more spending, said that fixing the financial system has to come first.
"It makes no sense to pump more and more money in our economy when we haven't restored the confidence on the financial market," said German Finance Minister Peer Steinbrueck.
Officials instead put the focus on restoring frozen bank lending through cash infusions and dealing with the shaky assets souring bank's balance sheets. The U.S. is working on a plan to do that with public and private money, but details have not yet been announced.

The G-20 statement also agreed to some oversight on hedge funds, largely unregulated investment funds whose financial clout has grown enormously over the past decade. "We agreed that stronger regulation ... was necessary to prevent the build-up of systemic risk," he said.

The finance ministers said the agreed to make sure that "all systematically important financial institutions, markets and instruments are subject to an appropriate degree of regulation and oversight and that hedge funds or their managers are registered and disclose appropriate information to assess the risks they pose."
They also agreed to oversight and registration of credit rating agencies, clearer accounting rules for problem assets, and more standards for credit derivatives, another lightly regulated area that has raised fears of large losses.
Steinbrueck said it was now crucial to turn these promises into concrete action so that "every financial market ... should be supervised, regulated or overseen and that includes pools of capital like hedge funds or private equity funds."
The group also committed to fighting protectionism and pledged to help emerging and developing economies to cope with the loss of international capital flows, an issue that they have raised repeatedly.

The four major emerging economies at the meeting — Brazil, Russia, India and China — had earlier released their own joint communique, calling for a bigger role in the International Monetary Fund. The final summit statement agreed that IMF governance needs to reflect the changed global economy and the growing role of developing countries.



LOS ANGELES – Alan W. Livingston, the music executive who created Bozo the Clown and signed the Beatles during his tenure as president of Capitol Records, has died. He was 91.
Livingston died Friday of age-related causes in his Beverly Hills home, said his stepdaughter, Jennifer Lerner.
Livingston began his multifaceted career in show business as a writer and producer of children's read-along record albums for Capitol Records. He came up with the Bozo the Clown character for the 1946 album "Bozo at the Circus," which became a hit and spawned a cottage industry of merchandise and the television series featuring the wing-haired clown.
When he moved into executive positions at Capitol Records in the early 1950s, Livingston signed Frank Sinatra, then at a low point in his career, and introduced him to arranger Nelson Riddle. Together, the pair produced "I've Got the World on a String" and "Young At Heart," which led to Sinatra's comeback.

Livingston left the record label in the late 1950s to work in television, where he produced the western series "Bonanza." He returned to Capitol Records as president in the 1960s, when he signed the Beach Boys and Steve Miller and the Band.
When Livingston heard the Beatles song "I Want to Hold Your Hand," he agreed to release the single and brought the Fab Four to the United States in 1964 to promote it. Capitol, which was partly owned by the Beatles' record company EMI in the United Kingdom, earlier had rejected the group's initial hit singles as unsuitable for the American market.
"He had great taste and judgment, as far as musical talent, and as an executive, he was always very mentoring, very supportive," said Neil Portnow, the president and CEO of the National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, who worked with Livingston in the 1970s.

In addition to Lerner, Livingston is survived by his wife Nancy Olson, one son, one daughter, and another stepdaughter.
His late brother Jay Livingston, who died in 2001, was a composer who teamed with songwriter Ray Evans to produce such standards as "Mona Lisa," "Silver Bells" and "Que Sera, Sera (Whatever Will Be, Will Be)" and the theme music for "Bonanza."



CIUDAD JUAREZ, Mexico – Police acting on a tip found seven bodies partially buried in the desert on the outskirts of the Mexican border city of Ciudad Juarez, an official said Saturday.
Investigators are searching the desert site south of the city to see whether there are any more bodies.
An official with the state prosecutor's office who declined to be named in line with department policy says a police officer's badge was found at the site. Authorities were working to identify the bodies.
Ciudad Juarez, a city of 1.3 million people across the border from El Paso, Texas, has been hit by a wave of drug-fueled violence, prompting federal authorities to dispatch thousands of soldiers.
State security official Enrique Torres Valadez said that 1,500 more troops are expected to arrive Saturday, in addition to 2,150 who arrived Friday.
Farther east, in the border city of Reynosa, federal police announced Saturday that they had arrested a man who allegedly led operations there for the feared Zetas, a group of hit men for the Gulf drug cartel.
Sergio Pena Mendoza, 39, is also suspected of participating in an unsuccessful plot to free an imprisoned Zetas leader from jail in neighboring Guatemala, authorities told a news conference in Mexico City.
Pena Mendoza was arrested after he tried to flee a police patrol in a stolen pickup truck with Texas plates. Police found an assault rifle in the truck and said Pena Mendoza is suspected of killing a police official and a businessman in southern Mexico.
Interim Federal Police Commissioner Rodrigo Esparza said Pena Mendoza achieved the same rank in the Zetas — and was a possible replacement for — Jaime Gonzalez Duran, also known as "The Hummer," a founding member of the gang who was arrested in Reynosa in November.
Questioned by reporters as he was led through police installations in Mexico City, Pena Mendoza denied the accusations.
Also Saturday, a male suspect threw a hand grenade at police officers in the western city of Guadalajara, according to a statement from the Jalisco state prosecutor's office. The statement said the officers were not seriously injured, but gave no further details, including how many were hurt.
Police detained the suspect and later found 14 more grenades and 10 assault rifles in his home.




MIAMI (AP)—Cleveland Browns wide receiver Donte Stallworth hit and killed a pedestrian with his Bentley on Saturday morning on a busy causeway linking Miami and Miami Beach, police said.

Stallworth was headed toward the beach when he hit Mario Reyes, 59, around 7 a.m., said Miami Beach police spokesman Juan Sanchez. Reyes was taken to a nearby trauma center, where he was pronounced dead about an hour later. He was near a crosswalk but it’s not clear if he was crossing legally.

Stallworth, 28, was cooperating and no charges have been filed, Sanchez said. Officers drew blood to test for drugs or alcohol, which is routine. Sanchez said results from the test could take anywhere from three days to three weeks.

Police would not say where Stallworth was coming from or where he was headed, and Sanchez didn’t have anymore information about Reyes.

Miami-Dade County property records show Stallworth owns two condos in a building on Biscayne Boulevard in Miami not far from the causeway and another condo in a different building in Miami.

A message seeking comment was left on the voicemail of his agent, Drew Rosenhaus.

The Browns said in a statement they were aware of what happened.

“We understand the seriousness of this situation, but will not have any further comment at this time as this is an ongoing investigation,” the team said.

Stallworth signed a seven-year, $35 million contract with the Browns as a free agent before last season but hardly played because he was hurt. He was due a $4.75 million signing bonus Friday.

Stallworth, who previously played for New England, Philadelphia and New Orleans, finished last season with just 17 catches for 170 yards. He was slowed all season by a nagging hamstring injury and made just seven starts for the Browns.

Stallworth had his best season with the Saints in 2005, when he made a career-high 70 receptions for 945 yards and seven touchdowns. He was drafted in the first round (No. 13 overall) by the Saints in 2002. Stallworth played his college ball at Tennessee.



When will this wretched economy bottom out? The recession is already in its 15th month, making it longer than all but two downturns since World War II. For now, everything seems to be getting worse: The Dow is in free fall, jobs are vanishing every day, and one in eight American homeowners is in foreclosure or behind on payments.
But the economy always recovers. It runs in cycles, and economists are watching an array of statistics, some of them buried deep beneath the headlines, to spot the turning point. The Associated Press examined three markets — housing, jobs and stocks — and asked experts where things stand and how to know when they've hit bottom.
None of them expects it to come anytime soon.
___
JOBS
HOW BAD IS IT?: The U.S. unemployment rate hit 8.1 percent in February, a 25-year peak. The nation has lost 4.4 million jobs since the recession began in late 2007.
The job cuts began early last year, as the housing and construction industries slowed down. The collapse of the financial industry in the fall battered white-collar workers. Soon, layoffs spread across industries and income levels.
HOW MUCH WORSE COULD IT GET? The darkest days for the job market are almost certainly still ahead. With spending weak and credit markets stalled, experts think the economy will probably shed a total of 2.4 million jobs this year. That would mean an unemployment rate above 9 percent.
That would easily surpass the 2001 and 1990-91 recessions but trail the 10.8 percent rate of December 1982. Those expectations could be optimistic: The government's "stress tests" to check the strength of banks' balance sheets assume a 10.3 percent rate.
The job market will probably be weak for years, even if the economy starts to turn around next year. The unemployment rate may not fall back to its pre-recession level of 5 percent until 2013, according to Moody's Economy.com.
WHERE'S THE BOTTOM?: Economist Sophia Koropeckyj, a managing director at Moody's Economy.com, is keeping an eye out for two signs — an inching up in companies hiring temporary workers and a rise in the number of hours worked by those who have managed to keep their part-time and full-time jobs.
When business conditions improve, employers hire temporary workers first, she said, and a pickup in permanent hiring wouldn't be far behind. Koropeckyj estimated that could come in mid-2010.
HOUSING
HOW BAD IS IT?: The median price of a home sold in the United States fell to $170,300 in January, down 26 percent from a year and a half earlier, according to the National Association of Realtors.
But that figure masks the complexity of the market. Price drops have been far steeper around Phoenix and Las Vegas, where new homes sprouted everywhere during the housing boom, than, say, in Detroit, where economic problems predate the recession.
And even within a single metro area, price declines vary sharply. Faraway suburbs, where many buyers stretched to qualify for mortgages, have been hit harder than city centers.
This housing crash has spread pain more widely than any before it. Home prices fell about 30 percent during the Great Depression, according to calculations by Yale University economist Robert Shiller. But the nation was less concentrated in urban centers then. And a much smaller proportion of adults owned homes.
Other housing downturns in recent decades have been regional. This one is truly national. Prices in the fourth quarter of 2008 fell in nearly 90 percent of the top 150 metro areas, according to the Realtors group. And 5.4 million homeowners, about 12 percent, were in foreclosure or behind on mortgage payments at the end of last year.
HOW MUCH WORSE COULD IT GET?: The Federal Reserve estimates home prices could fall 18 to 29 percent more by the end of 2010. Declines will probably be less severe in cities with healthier economies that don't have a glut of unsold homes, like Tulsa, Okla., and Wichita, Kan.
The nation's overall economic health is vital to the health of housing. "History tells us that as long as we're losing jobs, that's not good news for the housing market," said Nicolas Retsinas, director of Harvard University's Joint Center for Housing Studies.
WHERE'S THE BOTTOM?: Susan Wachter, a professor of real estate at the University of Pennsylvania, is watching the backlog of unsold homes. At January's sales pace, it would take about 9 1/2 months to rid the market of all those properties. A more normal pace would be six months.
Once foreclosures level off and the backlog is cleared, Wachter says, the housing market can begin to recover. But even with the Obama administration directing $75 billion in bailout money to stave off foreclosures, most economists don't expect home prices to bottom out before the first quarter of 2010. And don't expect an explosive rebound: Price increases will probably be modest when they come.
STOCKS
HOW BAD IS IT?: The Dow Jones industrial average and the Standard & Poor's 500 index have lost more than half their value since the stock market peaked in October 2007. It's the worst bear market since the aftermath of the crash of 1929, when the Dow plunged 89 percent and the S&P 500 index tumbled 86 percent.

HOW MUCH WORSE COULD IT GET? Analysts generally think Wall Street has endured the worst of the bear market. But many of those same analysts never thought the market would fall this far.
Jack Ablin, chief investment officer at Harris Private Bank in Chicago, said the Dow could fall to 6,000 if the economy slows much further and unemployment rises well past the current 8.1 percent. He pegs the likelihood of that at about 30 percent. Others are more pessimistic. Bill Strazzullo, chief market strategist for Bell Curve Trading, contends the Dow might fall to 5,000 and the S&P to 500.
WHEN WILL THE BOTTOM COME?: In downturns over the past 60 years, the S&P 500 has hit bottom an average of four months before a recession ended and about nine months before unemployment hit its peak.
Investors will be looking for turnarounds in housing, lending and employment, plus signs that consumer spending has picked up. Then market players would be more likely to move their money from safe havens, such as gold, back into stocks.
Other investors may look to obscure indicators such as the Baltic Dry Index, which tracks the cost of shipping iron ore, grain and other materials. Rising rates can indicate demand for raw materials is increasing, which suggests a strengthening economy.
But most of all, traders are waiting for a sudden spasm of selling known as capitulation. That wrings fearful investors out of the market, and as they rush out, bargain-hunters rush in. Capitulation would trigger a huge plunge in prices and frenzied trading volume.
Many market experts say the bottom of the stock market could come in the second or third quarter of this year. And the recovery, whenever it comes, could be as breathtaking as the fall: Since 1932, the S&P 500 has gained an average of 46 percent in the year after stocks have hit a bottom



Two police officers have been stripped of their guns and badges as investigators look into claims at least one of them raped an intoxicated woman after they escorted her into her Manhattan apartment, police said Monday.

The two officers, who have not been identified, were placed on modified duty while the NYPD's internal affairs bureau and the Manhattan district attorney's office investigates, said Paul Browne, deputy commissioner for public information with the New York Police Department. The woman reported the allegations to the district attorney's office.

The officers apparently were responding to a 911 call on Dec. 7 from a taxi driver who said she got sick in his car and didn't have cab fare. The owner of a bar near the woman's East Village apartment told the New York Times that surveillance footage shows the woman, visibly drunk, being helped inside by the two officers around 1 a.m. The video allegedly then shows them returning to the building two more times, once with a key. The bar owner gave the video to investigators.

The district attorney's office declined comment on Monday.

One of the officers was also being investigated for drug possession because heroin was found in his locker during a search after the complaint, but it's possible the heroin was from a police investigation and had not yet been turned in, police said.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg on Sunday called the allegation very serious.

"I don't want to prejudice anything, but you can rest assured that the Internal Affairs Bureau is working very hard and doing an investigation," he told the Times.

Stephen Worth, an attorney representing one of the officers, told Newsday the district attorney's investigation has gone on a while, "which would seem to indicate that there are questions about the complainer's original version of the facts."



SPARKILL, N.Y. (AP) - Three men have been accused of shouting racial epithets while punching and kicking a black student at St. Thomas Aquinas College in suburban New York.

The trio of 19-year-olds from White Plains have been arrested on felony hate-crime charges and released on cash bail. Police say the black student from Wyandanch suffered a concussion and bruises to the left side of his head.

A white student who was also attacked underwent plastic surgery for a cut to his eye. Orangetown Detective Lt. James Brown says the three suspects were arrested last week after an investigation into the attack on the students outside their dorm on Dec. 4, 2008.

He says the three suspects were visiting friends at the college campus in Sparkill when the fight broke out.


NEW YORK (AP) - Two former detectives convicted of moonlighting as contract killers for the mob were sentenced on Friday to life in prison after defiantly telling a judge they were railroaded in perhaps the most notorious police corruption case in New York history.

"I was a hard-working cop," Louis Eppolito said in federal court in Brooklyn. "I never hurt anybody. I never kidnapped anybody. ... I never did any of this." Stephen Caracappa, unshaven and looking gaunt, told U.S. District Judge Jack Weinstein, "You'll never take away my will to prove how innocent I am."

The judge gave Eppolito a life term for his conspiracy conviction plus 100 years for various other offenses including money laundering, and fined him $4.7 million. Caracappa received life plus 80 years, and a $4.2 million fine.

The case had been marked by several legal twists: After a dramatic trial in 2006, Weinstein threw out the conviction, finding that the statute of limitations had expired on the slayings. But an appeals court reversed the decision last year, clearing the way for
the sentencing.

In a statement, U.S. Attorney Benton Campbell said he hoped the sentences in the so-called "Mafia cops" case would "bring some closure for the families of the victims of these defendants' unspeakable crimes and for the citizens of the city whose trust they betrayed."

Eppolito, 61, and Caracappa, 67, who had worked as partners and logged a combined 44 years on the job, were found guilty of secretly being on the payroll of Luchese underboss Anthony "Gaspipe" Casso starting in the mid 1980s. Jurors heard that in two slayings, the pair used their police credentials to make traffic stops that ended with the driver killed.

In another instance, they kidnapped a man suspected in an attempted mob hit against Casso and turned him over to the underboss, a remorseless mobster responsible for 36 slayings. The most shocking murder involved bad information provided by the detectives about another suspect in the Casso case.

The tip led to the mistaken-identity murder of an innocent man killed as his mother washed the dishes following a Christmas Day family dinner. Caracappa left the New York Police Department in 1992 after establishing a special unit for mob murder investigations. Eppolito, whose father was a member of the Gambino crime family, was a decorated officer who went on to play a bit part in
"GoodFellas" and launch an unsuccessful career as a screenwriter.

The pair were arrested a 2005 drug sting in Las Vegas, where they had retired. The sentencing came after families of the victims angrily spoke out against the defendants.

Yael Pearlman, daughter of victim Israel Greenwald, read a letter she wrote to her dead father describing his family's unending anguish over his death when she was small child. "Daddy, when they killed you, part of your baby girl died too," she said. Family member Vincent Lino -- son of victim Edward Lino -- said his farewell to the defendants in a thick Brooklyn accent: "May youse have a long life in prison."



NEW YORK (AP) - City officials have halted construction work at a Harlem building after a concrete wall partially collapsed into a pizza parlor next door, hurting 11 people.

The Fire Department says five construction workers and six other people were taken to a hospital with minor injuries after the wall fell around 3 p.m. Friday.

It's unclear what caused the collapse. Buildings Department spokeswoman Kate Lindquist says engineers are inspecting the 12-story building where construction work was under way. Possible phone numbers for the owners rang unanswered Friday evening.

The Buildings Department also is examining the five-story building next door on West 123rd Street.
Lindquist says the stop-work order will remain in effect until it's safe for construction to continue.


QUEENS -- Police are looking for the gunman who shot and killed a man sitting inside a minivan.

The victim was in the front seat of a gold Honda Odyssey in Brooklyn when he was shot by a man, who fled the scene.

Two other men inside the car say they tried to find a hospital, but ended up flagging down an officer on the Queens side of the Midtown Tunnel.

EMS crews pronounced the victim dead at the scene



ANKARA, Turkey – Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton said Saturday that talks were underway between two U.S. representatives and Syrian officials in Damascus.
The Obama administration's decision to send Jeffrey Feltman, the top State Department envoy on the Mideast, and Daniel Shapiro from the White House to Syria was the most significant sign yet that it is ready to improve relations with the Syrian government after years of tension.
The two American officials held talks with Syrian Foreign Minister Walid al-Moallem shortly after arriving in the Syrian capital Saturday. But it was not clear whether they would meet with President Bashar Assad during the visit, which was ignored by state-run newspapers in an indication of Damascus' cautious approach.
Clinton also said President Barack Obama will visit Turkey in the "next month or so."

At a news conference with Turkish Foreign Minister Ali Babacan, she said Obama had asked her to deliver the message that he would visit soon and said the two allies will consult on the safest, most effective way to withdraw U.S. forces from Iraq.
Turkey is an ally seen as key to resolving several U.S. foreign policy problems, including moving the U.S. military out of Iraq, blocking Iran's nuclear ambitions and turning around the war in Afghanistan.
Turkey has said it is ready to serve as an exit route for U.S. troops pulling out of Iraq. The southern Incirlik air base has been used for transfer of U.S. troops and equipment to Iraq and to Afghanistan.
The U.S. withdrew its ambassador to Syria in 2005 following the assassination of former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik Hariri in Beirut. The killing was widely blamed on Syria — a charge Damascus denies.
Anti-Syrian protests in Lebanon and international pressure eventually forced Damascus to withdraw its army from neighboring Lebanon after nearly three decades of Syrian domination. But the U.S. has accused Syria of supporting terrorism and has not reinstated its ambassador.
On the Syrian side, Assad has welcomed improved ties, something he has long sought but was hampered by the Bush administration's attempts to isolate his country. Assad has said he is impressed by Obama's friendly gestures but was still waiting to see results.
Clinton talked with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan for nearly two hours at his residence before visiting the mausoleum of Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, Turkey's national founder. There, she recalled being in Ankara during her husband's presidency and said she had returned to help Obama promote "the work the U.S. and Turkey must do to forge peace, prosperity and progress."
Erdogan's office said in a statement that the two discussed bilateral relations, the Middle East, Iraq, Afghanistan and combatting terrorism.



KALAMAZOO -- Entering the words ``Kalamazoo'' and ``bus driver'' into the search engine Google will turn up more than 23,000 hits from news sites all over the country.

The story and video of the Kalamazoo teenager who beat a substitute school-bus driver Tuesday morning quickly hit the Associated Press newswire, spreading news of the event to media outlets from Florida to Arizona.

That was followed by attention from CNN and Fox News. Political commentator Bill O'Reilly showed video of the assault and weighed in on the subject on his TV show ``The O'Reilly Factor.'' And bloggers from as far away as Anchorage, Alaska, are making reference to the assault and speculating on how it reflects the atmosphere in Kalamazoo.

Kalamazoo Township Police Chief Tim Bourgeois has been fielding calls from the national media for days, although attempts to reach him Friday were not successful.

The incident comes a month after several young men beat a man on a bicycle in north Kalamazoo. That incident made national headlines as well, although that may be due in part to initial reports that 40 to 50 people were involved.

An essential difference is the video footage of the attack. Last month's bicyclist attack lacked visceral video evidence, while video from Tuesday clearly shows a teenager hitting the 37-year-old female bus driver.

Similar video footage hit the Web last June after a Kalamazoo Public Safety officer pushed a teenager into a wall, knocking out three of his teeth. That video went ``viral,'' meaning that copies were spread, posted and linked to hundreds of Web sites across the Internet.



WASHINGTON – As the dreadful economic news piles up, President Barack Obama challenged the nation Saturday to not just hang in there but rather to see the hard times as a chance to "discover great opportunity in the midst of great crisis."
"That is what we can do and must do today. And I am absolutely confident that is what we will do," Obama said in his weekly radio and video address, taped a day earlier at the White House.
The work week ended on another dour note, with the report of 651,000 more American jobs slashed and an unemployment rate climbing to 8.1 percent. That is the highest rate of people out of work in more than 25 years, as the recession continued to put enormous pressures on families and industries.
Obama recapped the work of another hectic week in his young presidency. His goal was to reassure the country that he and his team are taking specific steps to create jobs in the short term and begin to address huge issues, like health care, that affect virtually everyone.
His rundown of the past week: the launch of a more detailed plan to help struggling homeowners avoid foreclosure; a new credit plan to spur lending for people and businesses; an overhaul of the way the government hands out private contracts to reduce waste; and a summit on how to fix the nation's health care crisis.
On the last point, Obama has set a goal of signing a bill this year that would fix the U.S. health care system, which is the costliest in the world and leaves an estimated 48 million people uninsured, plus many others lacking adequate coverage.
"Our ideas and opinions about how to achieve this reform will vary, but our goal must be the same: quality, affordable health care for every American that no longer overwhelms the budgets of families, businesses and our government," Obama said.
Obama says he is not wedded to a plan on how to fix the problem. But one proposal he has endorsed, giving Americans the option of buying medical coverage through a government plan, is drawing opposition from Republicans.
Rep. Roy Blunt, R-Mo., emphasized that point in the Republican weekly radio address.
"I'm concerned that if the government steps in it will eventually push out the private health care plans millions of Americans enjoy today," Blunt said. "This could cause your employer to simply stop offering coverage, hoping the government will pick up the slack."
As the White House takes on so many huge issues at once, Obama is encouraging people to take a longer view, and not get caught up in the fits and starts. The president said in his address that the nation will continue to face difficult days in the months ahead. Still, he ended with hope.
"Yes, this is a moment of challenge for our country," Obama said. "But we've experienced great trials before. And with every test, each generation has found the capacity to not only endure, but to prosper — to discover great opportunity in the midst of great crisis."


(MICHAEL VICK ASSED OUT)


DULUTH, Ga. – For sale: the remains of an American success story gone horribly wrong.
On a peaceful cul-de-sac in Atlanta's prosperous northern suburbs, a behemoth of a home sits empty and lifeless at 2927 Darlington Run. Four towering columns greet those who enter through a double set of thick, wooden doors. Out back, an idyllic lake laps at the edge of the yard. Within the walls, all the telltale signs of wealth and luxury — a pool room, a movie theater, an indoor golf range, assorted-sized statues of black panthers throughout.
This was Michael Vick's abode, a stucco-and-gated-community testament to his amazing rise from the rough streets of Virginia to NFL superstar.
But Vick's spectacular career was sacked by a dogfighting scandal. While he sits behind bars, serving out the remainder of a nearly two-year sentence, his three-storied former house — now eerily quiet — is about to go on the auction block.
The proceeds from Tuesday's sale, which requires a minimum bid of $3.2 million, will help pay down the quarterback's gargantuan debts. That's the cold, hard business of bankruptcy.
But before the title to eight bedrooms, 11 bathrooms and a four-car garage passes off to a new owner, it's worth taking one last look at a most tangible monument left by this former star, a once-in-a-generation athlete who had it all before hubris brought him down.
Come on, let's show you around.
___
The first impression is stunning. Two curved staircases bend gently along the walls on each side of the enormous foyer. A glistening chandelier — which, real estate agent Lance Hempen points out, can be lowered on a winch for cleaning — hangs from beneath a domed ceiling.
It looks like something out of "Gone With The Wind," with a dash of Versailles thrown in for good measure.
"One thing you'll notice is the detail of the trim work and tray ceilings throughout the whole house," said Hempen, who works for Funari Realty. "They really did some great work in here."
The foyer empties into an even larger living room, which has a flat-screen television mounted above the fireplace and three rows of windows, stacked one on top of the other, providing a view of the lake where Vick and his buddies once fished, or used as the target for striking golf balls.
Step to the left into another living room (c'mon, no self-respecting millionaire would have only ONE formal living room), which empties into a large kitchen with all the expected conveniences. Top-of-the-line appliances such as Thermador, Bosch and Sub-Zero. Those little extras, too, including a warming drawer and vegetable steamer. Not that cooking was Vick's thing.
"The kitchen is not the biggest and best gourmet kitchen," said Hempen, almost sounding apologetic. "It's got everything you need, but it's not a cooker's kitchen, per se."
But the "board room" — a two-storied, dark-wooded enclave — looks as though it's ready to host a Fortune 500 meeting. There's a large conference table in the middle, and two full floors of intricate bookcases. This is where Vick kept his sporting prizes.
Now, the shelves are barren.
"I remember coming in here for the first time," Hempen said. "We met with his associates here at this table. It was quite an experience. At that time, all of this room was decorated with his sports memorabilia. ... It was kind of neat seeing all that stuff. He had balls signed by a lot of different sports stars.
The master bedroom is also on the main floor, featuring a huge sunken tub, a shower that doubles as a steam room, a small closet devoted strictly to Vick's shoes, and a massive two-room closet where he kept the rest of his attire.
"His girlfriend had a small corner over here," said Hempen, stepping inside. "But everything else was his."
The triple-tray ceiling is adorned with recess lighting that creates a mesmerizing effect after dark. There's also a double-sided fireplace facing both the canopied bed and a small sitting room that apparently was very popular with Vick and his buddies. This is where they hung out, playing video games and watching TV with the lake at their back.
"He had a piece of furniture in here that was one of the ugliest things I've ever seen," Hempen said. "It was a giant elephant table."
That particular piece has been shuffled off to a closet downstairs, so as not to scare off potential buyers, but the thin-legged chairs that used to surround it left behind permanent pocks in the carpet, thin grooves that look as though — could it be? — they were made by scratching dogs.
"Yep, I've gotten that question," Hempen said. "But that's not it."
___
Upstairs, there are four large bedrooms, each accompanied by its own bathroom. One is decorated for a child, a Minnie Mouse doll still resting on the small bed. This is where Vick's young daughter slept, a sobering reminder that even those who had nothing to do with that grisly dogfighting operation up in Virginia were affected by the case.
And the rest of those rooms? Hotel Vick apparently had few vacancies.
"There was a crew, an entourage," Hempen said. "These were their rooms."
Getting tired? There's no stopping now. The bottom floor is a must-see, and you can save some energy by hopping on the elevator that stops at all three floors.
"You've got to have an elevator in a house this size," Hempen pointed out. "It only costs about $30,000 to put one in. If you're buying a million-dollar-plus home, $30,000 is not going to hurt you."
The bottom floor is known as a terrace — "We don't call them basements anymore," the agent said — and it's the place where Vick apparently spent most of his time and left behind a sense of his decorating touch. Only one room had been completed when he bought the place for $3.2 million, so he added another half-million dollars to the loan to finish off the rest in style.
The carpet of one room has a giant "7" right in the middle — Vick's number. Another room is completely swallowed up by a simulated golf game, in which the quarterback could strike balls into a padded video screen that showed what looked to be an actual course. Hundreds of sensors hooked to a computer accurately gauged the strength and accuracy of his swing.
There's also a weight room, where Vick worked out, and a mini-theatre where movies and games could be watched in plush, reclining chairs. The sound system is top of the line — in fact, Hempen said, the entire house is wired with an elaborate electronics package worth hundreds of thousands of dollars. Vick also converted a bathroom into his own personal barber shop, complete with a chair and hair-washing station.
A custom-made bar has four lion heads carved in the wood, looking out on an ornate pool table, an old-school Pac-Man video game (hmmm, wonder if "Pacman" Jones ever stopped by?) and yet another area devoted mainly to watching a massive flat-screen TV. Unfortunately, there's only a bracket on the wall — one of Vick's cohorts snatched the television on his way out, claiming it belonged to him.
Still, it gives a sense of how Vick lived away from the field.
"You can imagine having a Super Bowl party in here," Hempen said. "You've got a group over here watching TV, another group over there at the bar, another group playing pool, another group playing golf."
As an added bonus, the Sugarloaf Country Club neighborhood includes a championship golf course that once hosted Atlanta's PGA Tour event. Vick's home isn't far from the 18th hole.
___
Vick was only in this house about two years. He moved in during 2005, about the same time he landed what was then the richest contract in NFL history. By October 2007, when Hempen's company got the listing, he had already moved back to Virginia. Shortly after that, the fallen star was sentenced to prison.
Now, the home that once epitomized Vick's good life will be handed off to another owner, assuming someone steps forward in a brutal economy to at least meet the minimum price.
Out in the garage, where Vick once parked his luxury cars, some of his more personal items are boxed up and largely hidden from view. A picture of Bob Marley smoking a joint. Another photo that shows Muhammad Ali standing over a fallen Sonny Liston. Several radio-controlled toy cars. A child's car seat. A gumball machine.
Hempen's company, which has been trying for a year and a half to sell this house, tried to make sure it wasn't too obvious who once lived here.
"We didn't want this house to scream Vick at somebody," he said. "I'm not saying we would ever lie or hide the fact. It's public knowledge. But we're not going to advertise it, either. We want the home to sell itself."



NEW YORK – Bernard Madoff could soon find himself in a courtroom with some of the same devastated investors who he is accused of ripping off in one of the biggest financial frauds in history.
A person close to the case said Friday that Madoff is expected to plead guilty at a hearing next week to charges that he carried out the massive swindle. A federal judge issued an order inviting potential victims who wish to be heard at Thursday's hearing to notify the court a day earlier.
Madoff, 70, is waiving his right to have a grand jury hear the government's case against him, agreeing instead to be charged directly by prosecutors, a step defendants take when they are preparing to plead guilty in a case.
Madoff could enter a guilty or not guilty plea, depending on whether he has reached a plea deal with the government.
But a person close to the case, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the plea has not yet occurred, said Madoff was expected to plead guilty.
Late Friday, U.S. District Judge Denny Chin invited victims to address the court after prosecutors submitted papers noting that crime victims have the right to be "reasonably heard at any public proceeding in the district court involving release, plea, sentencing, or any parole proceeding."
A potential plea deal could mark an important step toward answering the vexing questions about how Madoff carried out the sweeping scheme he is accused of orchestrating and who else may have been involved. Prosecutors say he masterminded a fraud that wiped out investors' life savings around the world.
The U.S. attorney's office first suggested Friday that a plea was imminent when it filed a brief court document indicating Madoff was ready to waive an indictment. One of Madoff's lawyers said he had already done so. A waiver of indictment is a necessary procedural step before a defendant enters a guilty plea.
Prosecutors have a deadline of March 13 to bring an indictment against Madoff under the speedy-trials law.
Madoff has been confined to his Manhattan penthouse since his arrest after authorities said he told his family that he had engaged in a $50 billion fraud. Authorities have since said money lost by investors is far less than $50 billion.
Madoff has never contested the allegations and recently surrendered millions of dollars in major assets, actions that typically precede plea deals.
The legal developments came as a financial organization in charge of reimbursing Madoff investors said it sent out the first checks to victims Friday, Stephen Harbeck of the Securities Investor Protection Corp. told The Associated Press.
SIPC is an industry-funded organization that steps in when a brokerage firm fails. It has been helping process hundreds of claims by investors hoping to recoup losses.
Investors are eligible for up to $500,000 from the organization and have until July to file claims. Harbeck would not disclose how much money was sent to the first investors to get checks, but he said they deposited cash and never made a withdrawal, making the forensic accounting very simple.
Harbeck said he did not expect any plea deal to affect its work.
"We will go about our business regardless of what happens on the criminal side," he said.
Daniel J. Horwitz, a Madoff defense lawyer, would say only, "We've waived the right to indictment, and the case will proceed by information."
Typically, a defendant is brought before a judge, waives indictment and enters a guilty plea the same day to a charging document known as an "information." It resembles an indictment but is brought by prosecutors rather than a grand jury.
Prosecutors' spokeswoman Rebekah Carmichael declined to comment.
Matthew Fishbein, a former chief of the criminal division in the federal prosecutor's office in Manhattan who is now in private practice, said a waiver of indictment is often followed quickly by a guilty plea, but it does not have to occur immediately.
Madoff has already begun relinquishing his assets, something he might not do if he planned to fight the charges.
He already has surrendered rights to his business and any of the assets held by the business. A trustee overseeing his assets said he has identified nearly $1 billion in assets that are available to reimburse investors who have lost money over the last five decades.
Shortly after his arrest, Madoff offered to relinquish many of his and his wife's assets, including properties in Palm Beach, Fla., and France, as well as his boats and cars.
The lawyers have indicated in court documents that Madoff's $7 million Manhattan penthouse and an additional $62 million in assets should not be taken from the family because they are in his wife's name and did not result from any alleged fraud.





THREADBLOG has learned Charles Barkley will only have to serve three days in an Arizona jail -- not the five he was expected to serve.

The Scottsdale City court tells TMZ the City Prosecutor recommended the reduction in punishment for his December 31st DUI bust, but it's unclear why the change was made.

Barkley was originally sentenced to 10 days in jail -- but he had the option of only doing five days if he completed an alcohol education program.

He will begin his sentence at Tent City Jail -- where they make the inmates wear pink -- on March 21.



Grammy-winning actor/rapper Coolio (born Artis Leon Ivey Jr.) was reportedly arrested at Los Angeles International Airport on Friday afternoon and booked for possession of narcotics, according to Reuters.

The rapper and reality TV star, best known for his 1995 hit "Gangsta's Paradise," was going through airport security to get to his Southwest Airlines flight when a screener found crack cocaine on his body, TMZ reported.

Citing unnamed sources, TMZ reported that when confronted, Coolio allegedly got "physical" with the screener and was then booked for suspicion of cocaine possession.

The LAX Police Department released this statement on the incident: "At approximately 10:38 a.m., rap star 'Coolio,' real name Artis Leon Ivey, Jr., 45, was taken into custody for possession of illegal substance in Terminal 1. He is en route to the Pacific Division station for booking."

A spokesperson for the LAPD said they had no further information at press time on what substance the rapper was allegedly in possession of or if the potential charge is a felony or misdemeanor count.

Coolio has not had a chart hit in nearly a decade, but he has made a second career as an actor, appearing on "Charmed" and "Futurama," as well as a number of reality shows, including "Celebrity Fear Factor," "Celebrity Bootcamp" and the recent online cooking show, "Cookin' With Coolio." Last year, he and his family starred in the Oxygen network reality show "Coolio's Rules," and he was seen in the British "Celebrity Big Brother" program in January, alongside such C-list celebrities as LaToya Jackson, buxom English pinup Lucy Pinder and Verne Troyer.

Coolio was in the news several weeks ago, when he was robbed of his shoes and some jewels by members of the crowd after stage diving during his performance at Staffordshire University in England, according to the British tabloid the Daily Star.



He allegedly bruised and battered her, yet she took him back. And now, could she get him off the hook?

Legal experts say whether Rihanna will testify against Chris Brown could be a key factor in his felony case.

"The DAs are facing an uphill battle now if Rihanna isn't cooperating," says Steve Sitkoff, a Los Angeles defense lawyer and former prosecutor. "At this point, her cooperation can make or break the case. But the DAs may not need her if Brown is willing to strike a plea deal."

Brown was formally charged Thursday with two felonies – assault and making criminal threats. If convicted, he faces anywhere from probation to a maximum four years and eight months in state prison, prosecutors say.

Asked if Rihanna is cooperating with the DAs, her lawyer Donald Etra told PEOPLE: "She'll do everything that the law requires her to do."

Experts say prosecutors will almost certainly subpoena Rihanna as a witness, but while she may be forced to appear she cannot be threatened with jail time – as is possible in a non-domestic violence case – if she refuses to take the stand.

At most, she could be punished with fines or other sanctions, but a judge may be reluctant to do so.

"If she refuses to testify, that could potentially jeopardize the DA's case," says Loyola Law School professor Stan Goldman. "Her statements to police about Brown having beaten her can only be used against him if she agrees to testify."

Experts agree it's just too soon to tell.

"Rihanna and Brown obviously have a volatile relationship," says L.A. defense attorney and former prosecutor Jeffery Rubenstein. "Who knows if they'll be together tomorrow. She may want him to take responsibility for his actions and take the stand. This case has only just begun."



LAPD cops interviewed Rihanna after the attack and she told them Brown had been violent toward her in the past and that the attacks were getting "more violent" as time went on. The interview is potent evidence if the L.A. County D.A. charges Brown with felony domestic battery, and that could happen as early as today.

And there's something else. The photo that TMZ obtained showing Rihanna battered, bloody and bruised is mild compared to other photos. We've learned additional pics were taken on February 9, the day after the attack, and they are far more gruesome -- the bruises and swelling far more pronounced. We're told these photos show injuries that could be devastating in a case against Brown.

Roast of Larry the Cable GuySunday March 15, 10p/9c

Preview - Lampanelli on Git-R-Done

Joke of the Day
Stand-Up Comedy

Free Online Games
More Funny Videos

The Most Tasteless, Hilarious Joke Ever
Posted Mar 7th 2009 2:30AM by THREADBLOG
It's wrong in every possible way, shape and form, but when Lisa Lampanelli decided it was time to exploit Rihanna's horrible, tragic situation at the Comedy Central Roast of Larry the Cable Guy -- people couldn't help but crack up.


A solemn and nervous-looking Chris Brown stood before a Los Angeles Superior Court commissioner Thursday after being charged with felonies in the alleged beating of girlfriend Rihanna.

Brown, 19, did not enter a plea, and his arraignment was delayed until April 6. But the commissioner issued a protective order against the singer, saying, "Mr. Brown, you are not to annoy, harass, molest, threaten or use force or violence against anyone."

Brown, wearing a gray suit with a white handkerchief, stood next to his attorney Mark Geragos and answered only, "Yes" and "Yes, ma'am," to Commissioner Kristi Lousteau's procedural questions.

Rihanna, 21, did not attend the five-minute session, but her lawyer, Donald Etra, was in court. He did not request a more restrictive order that Brown stay away from her. The couple have reconciled since her alleged beating.

Asked on the way out of the courtroom how Rihanna was holding up, Etra said, "She's doing great. She is making sure her rights are being protected at every stage of the proceedings." As for why Rihanna didn't want a stay-away order, he said, "She did not feel a stay-away order was necessary."

The L.A. District Attorney's Office announced earlier Thursday that Brown was being charged with two felonies – assault and making criminal threats – in the alleged beating Rihanna last month.

If convicted, Brown faces anywhere from probation to a maximum four years and eight months in state prison, DA spokeswoman Sandi Gibbons said.

The formal charges come almost a month after the couple argued early in the morning of Feb. 8, just hours before Rihanna and Brown were both scheduled to perform at the Grammys.




What do you think ?Should Kris have a few bucks left from the Multi Platinum sales of "Jump"and Should Jermaine Dupree Help him out?This is the perfect example of boys and young men thinking that Rap Music will make you rich and never have to work again?





The head of the nation's oldest civil rights group is urging a boycott of the New York Post - for publishing a cartoon he says is an invitation to assassinate the President.NAACP President Benjamin Jealous blasted the fact-challenged tabloid for its attempt to apologize for the racially charged cartoon - and said Post editor in chief Col Allan and cartoonist Sean Delonas should get the boot.Jealous hammered the Post Saturday as NAACP leaders gathered in New York for an annual meeting of the century-old organization, which is still seeking reparations for slavery.

The Post's decision to publish the cartoon "picks off the scabs of all the racial wounds," Jealous said, and is "an invitation to assassination."His comments came on the heels of a protest outside the newspaper's Manhattan office Friday during which filmmaker Spike Lee called on celebrities to support the boycott.

The cartoon shows the bullet-riddled body of a chimpanzee with two cops standing nearby. One says, "They'll have to find someone else to write the next stimulus bill."Following Thursday's initial protests, the paper issued a lame apology on its Web site and claimed the cartoon was intended to criticize an "ineptly written" federal economic stimulus bill.But Jealous rejected the Post's mea culpa as "half of an apology - without elaboration."He and other NAACP leaders said the paper must respond with "serious disciplinary action." If not, they vowed to urge organizations across the country to join in the boycott.NAACP Chairman Julian Bond rejected the Post's charge that the cartoon was not a racist statement."Anyone who is not offended by it does not have any sensitivity," Bond said.With News Wire Services.



The Fox 5 story about a baker in Greenwich Village who made what he called "Drunken Negro Face" cookies really left a bad taste in the mouths of people across the country. Arnold Diaz broke the story; now he reports on the public's response to the baker and what he has been going through since then: Protests, angry phone calls, response videos on YouTube, sensitivity training, and even a visit from the Secret Service

President Barack Obama signed the mammoth stimulus package into law Tuesday and readied a new $50 billion foreclosure rescue for legions of Americans who are in danger of losing their homes.
There was no recovery yet for beleaguered automakers, who were back in Washington for more bailout billions. General Motors Corp. said it was closing plants, Chrysler LLC said it was cutting vehicle models and both said they were getting rid of thousands more jobs as they made their restructuring cases for $5 billion more for Chrysler and as much as $16.6 billion more for GM. The United Auto Workers union said it had agreed to tentative concessions that could help Detroit's struggling Big Three.



The Game may be ordered to pay over $1 million in damages stemming from an alleged basketball –fueled assault in February 2007.

Shannon Rodrick, a basketball coach, claims that the Compton star, real name Jayceon Taylor, punched and threatened him almost 2 years ago during a Los Angles City Hoop game.

According to Rodrick's March 2008 suit, he was coaching his Blazers team to a double digit blowout of the Litem-up, whom the Game was playing for.

During a timeout, the filing states the Game accosted Rodrick verbally before the alleged physical assault.

"Your team is garbage," the lawsuit reports Game as stating. "You guys are nothing but a bunch of busters."

After subsequently punching Rodrick in the face, the coach claims Game vowed to shoot him after he followed the Hip-Hop star outside the Rita Walters Learning Complex.

To prevent this, Rodrick details that he hid inside the venue until the rapper left.

Since the incident's fallout, Game has already pleaded no contest to firearm possession in a school zone, served 8 days in jail, received three years probation, and is in the process of completing 150 hours of community service.

However, the popular emcee never responded to civil court allegations resulting from the altercation.

Rodrick's attorney, Rosely George, is pushing for a default outcome at the next court session, which would force the defendant to pay $1.5 million dollars to Rodrick as compensation for the attack.

To avoid the hefty payout, the Compton emcee will need to attend and make a case at the next scheduled court session on April 22.

Since releasing his gold certified third project LAX last summer, Game has so far maintained his vow to "retire" from making any further studio albums.

At press time, the Game could not be reached for comment.



Arkansas police revealed today (February 20) that they seized nearly 500 pounds of marijuana from a tour bus this week and the two Georgia men in the vehicle implicated Fabolous.

According to KHBS, police claim that they initially stopped the bus for driving on the shoulder of a highway on Tuesday night (February 17) and when they searched the bus they found 496 pounds of marijuana in a duffle bag.

Police also revealed that they found $6,452 in cash on the men.

The two men, who were identified as 52-year-old Edward Thimas and 44-year-old Robert Morris, told the police that they were returning from the NBA All-Star Weekend in Phoenix and they had been escorting Fabolous who was not on the bus during their arrest.

The men claimed that Fabolous and another rapper who was not identified loaded the marijuana on the bus and told them to contact them when they got to Boston.

It is unclear whether Fabolous has been questioned. Police said they are keeping the two men in custody because the stories they gave during interrogation were conflicting.



LOS ANGELES, Feb. 18 (UPI) -- Mickey Rourke's publicist has confirmed the Hollywood actor's beloved 18-year-old Chihuahua, Loki, died this week.
Rourke, who has been enjoying a career comeback and Oscar nomination thanks to his lead role in "The Wrestler," famously thanked his dogs for standing by him in darker days in his Golden Globe acceptance speech last month.

"I'd like to thank all my dogs, the ones who are here and the ones who aren't here anymore," Rourke said. "Sometimes, when a man is alone, that's all you got is your dog. And they've meant the world to me."

Rourke's representative confirmed to E! News Tuesday that Loki died Monday night.

The tough-guy actor was photographed walking the red carpet with Loki at the Venice Film Festival in September. He described the little pooch then as the "love of my life."

Rourke again mentioned his dogs in an interview for Barbara Walters' upcoming Oscars special.

"I sort of self-destructed and everything came out about 14 years ago or so ... the wife had left, the career was over, the money was not an ounce," he said. "The dogs were there when no one else was there."



News Release
Los Angeles Police Department
Los Angeles, California


February 19, 2009

Unauthorized Release of Photograph

Los Angeles: The unauthorized release of a domestic violence photograph immediately
generated an internal investigation.

At about 7 p.m. on February 19, 2009, the Los Angeles Police Department Media Relations
Section began receiving numerous inquiries about the release of a photograph associated with a
domestic violence incident that occurred on February 8, 2009, involving entertainer Chris
Brown. The photograph appeared on an entertainment website. The photograph has the
appearance of one taken during an official Domestic Violence investigation.

The Los Angeles Police Department takes seriously its duty to maintain the confidentiality of
victims of domestic violence.The Department launched an immediate internal investigation and subsequently
filed a personnel complaint.A violation of this type is considered serious misconduct, with penalties up to and
including termination.

Anyone with information concerning the unauthorized release of the photograph is asked to call,
during regular business hours, (213) 485-4152. After-hours or on weekends, calls may be
directed to our 24-hour, toll-free number at 1-877-LAPD-24-7 (527-3247). Callers may also text
“CRIMES” with a cell phone or log on to www.lapdonline.org and click on Web Tips. When
using a cell phone, all messages should begin with “LAPD.” Tipsters may remain anonymous.




One girl is dead and another in the hospital after medics responded to a 911 call at a barracks in Fort Lewis Sunday morning.
Fort Lewis Emergency Response personnel got a call at about 3:30am Sunday morning.
When medics arrived, they found one of the females dead at the scene. Another female was transported to Madigan Army Medical Center with undisclosed injuries. She is currently in stable condition.
It is still unknown what the circumstances were when medics found the girls. The Fort Lewis Criminal Investigation Division is investigating the cause of death.
Identities have not been released due to the age of the victims.
In a press release sent to media Monday afternoon, it says, "Fort Lewis extends its heartfelt condolences to the family members of the deceased. Our thoughts and prayers are also with the family of the young lady who is receiving medical care."




COLUMBIA, S.C. (AP) - A South Carolina sheriff is not going to charge swimmer Michael Phelps after a photo of the 14-time gold medalist showed him smoking from a marijuana pipe.
Richland County Sheriff Leon Lott made the decision Monday. The photo showed Phelps smoking from a marijuana pipe at a University of South Carolina party in November when he visited the school.

Phelps has called his judgment bad and said he would learn from his mistake.
He was suspended by USA Swimming for three months in the wake of the photo, and Kellogg Co. said it would not renew its endorsement deal with one of the world's most acclaimed athletes.



What looked like a fireball streaked across the Texas sky on Sunday morning, leading many people to call authorities to report seeing falling debris.

"We don't know what it was," said Federal Aviation Administration spokesman Roland Herwig.

The Williamson County Sheriff's Office used a helicopter to search after callers said they thought they saw a plane crashing, a spokesman said.

"We don't doubt what people saw" but authorities found nothing, said spokesman John Foster.

The U.S. Strategic Command said there was no connection to the sightings over Texas and Tuesday's collision of satellites from the U.S. and Russia.

"There is no correlation between the debris from that collision and those reports of re-entry," said Maj. Regina Winchester, with STRATCOM.

The FAA notified pilots on Saturday to be aware of possible space debris after a collision Tuesday between U.S. and Russian communication satellites.

The chief of Russia's Mission Control says clouds of debris from the collision will circle Earth for thousands of years and threaten numerous satellites.



Throughout 2008 T.I. found himself alternating between personal and professional challenges in the form of promoting a new album, legal woes, and a persistent Bankhead rival.

On March 27, T.I., real name Clifford Harris, was sentenced to 1 year in prison for two counts of illegally possessing machine guns and silencers, and one count of being a convicted felon in possession of a firearm.

Pending fulfillment of all requirements under his plea agreement, T.I.’s sentence will commence on March 27, 2009.

In addition to being fined $100,000, the Atlanta star was required to complete 1000 hours of community service, which included speaking to at-risk youth and public service announcements.

During this time, Bankhead rapper Shawty Lo repeatedly baited T.I. with video taunts and accusations that the Grammy-winning emcee was lying about his past.

The feud simmered over the summer, most notably at radio station Hot 107.9’s Birthday Bash. There, Shawty Lo boldly proclaimed over the big screen that “A New King Is Born,” and featured a video of an inept FBI agent resembling his rival. T.I. responded in kind during his set by mocking Lo’s trademark dance.

Although the beef was allegedly squashed various times after sit-downs between the men, T.I.’s blockbuster album Paper Trail showcased numerous veiled and blatant jabs at Shawty Lo.

The tension spilled over into violence at Radio One’s 4th annual Dirty Awards (November 24).

During a Shawty Lo performance of “Don’t I,” a direct diss record to T.I.’s camp, Grand Hustle member Alfamega reportedly hurled a chair onto the stage.

As other Grand Hustle members attempted to confront Lo’s camp, police moved in to break up the potential melee.

Later, T.I. and Lo again met backstage and supposedly agreed to stop any further derogatory comments against each other. T.I. then publicly on stage reiterated the feud should end and denounced the violence that had taken place.

The truce proved short-lived, as T.I. drew the ire of Lo’s entourage while performing his verse from “Ain’t I.” According to Shawty Lo’s camp, T.I. allegedly changed lyrics to take some verbal jabs at his rival.

The police weren’t quick enough this time, as Alfamega allegedly assaulted Shawty Lo’s brother before being pepper sprayed and jailed along with Grand Hustle member Big Kuntry.

In the fallout from the incident, both sides chose to blame the other for another Hip-Hop awards show being ruined by unnecessary violence.

“I didn't go and start nothing. If they rewind the cameras, they'll see how it started,” Shawty Lo explained. “I'm a man. I respect every man as a man. If a man disrespects me, what am I supposed to do?” T.I. needs to contain his people. We're not standing down. I performed my music. I didn't come to start no beef with him.”

Alfamega countered by speculating that the months of feuding stems from Shawty Lo being jealous of T.I.’s success.

“I think [Lo] feels like he ain't getting his just due,” Alfamega stated. “I can understand, but God will give you blessings, and your blessings might not as be as big as the next man. Be thankful for what you got… I'm embarrassed by the whole situation.”

Since the incident Shawty Lo has made several videos speaking on the matter, and it appears this feud will continue well into 2009.




Rapper Kid Cudi has been involved in an altercation that has resulted in the Cleveland native being tasered and apprehended by authorities, according to multiple sources.

Detail are sketchy, but the rapper apparently was involved in a fight or altercation while at the Reebok party in Phoenix, Arizona. Much of the music industry is in the city celebrating the NBA's popular All-Star weekend.

Eyewitnesses stated that Kid Cudi physically and verbally confronted a pair of Reebok employees. The artist was booked by the apparel company to perform at the venue.

Sources said that Cudi wanted to wear Jordan sneakers on stage, a move that did not agree with the people of Reebok.

Authorities intervened after the confrontation escalated and Cudi was tasered, a move to control his behavior.

The rapper was presumed arrested by police, but actual charges have not been revealed.

A representative for Kid Cudi was not available at press time.

Allen Iverson, a Reebok endorsed athlete, attended the party.




Michael Jackson’s Legal Debacles tour continues to roll on as he secures a certified opening act with Rihanna. According to E! News, the hitmakers are at the center of a new lawsuit filed by 75-year-old Camaroonian music star Manu Dibango.

In the suit, which was filed Tuesday (Feb. 3), Dibango claims that Jackson previously admitted to using a part of Dibango's 1972 song “Soul Makossa” as the riff on “Wanna Be Startin’ Something,” a hit single off Jackson's classic 1983 opus, Thriller.

The riff in question is the famous line “Mama se, mama so, ma makossa.”

Although Dibango and Jackson eventually reached a settlement over the unauthorized sample, Rihanna is in the hot seat for licensing the same hook from Jackson for her 2007 hit “Don’t Stop the Music.” The only thing is no one received permission from Dibango to use the sample.

A Parisian court will decide on Feb. 17 whether the case will move forward. Dibango is seeking $650,000 in damages. Until the case is resolved, Dibango’s attorneys are asking the court to block Sony BMG, EMI and Warner from profiting off the contested songs.

So why did Dibango waited so long to sue? Sounds a bit suspect. Maybe Michael and Rihanna should unite and address the situation on an updated version of Beat It. What have they got to lose?




LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - Chewing gum makers Wrigley on Monday suspended a commercial featuring Chris Brown after the popular R&B singer was arrested on suspicion of attacking a woman widely reported to be his singer girlfriend Rihanna.

The clean-cut Brown, 19, one of the fastest-rising stars of the last two years, was free on $50,000 bail, a day after the couple hurriedly canceled separate performances at the Grammy Awards in Los Angeles.

Both the Brown and Rihanna camps were silent on Monday. Police sources told the Los Angeles Times and celebrity Web site TMZ.com that the woman who reported she had been attacked by Brown in the early hours of Sunday was 20-year-old Rihanna, singer of hits "Umbrella" and "Disturbia."

Wrigley said in a statement it was "concerned by the serious allegations" made against Brown, who was booked by police on suspicion of making a felony criminal threat.

The company said that while Brown should be afforded due legal process "we have made the decision to suspend the current advertising featuring Brown...until the matter is resolved."

Brown, who was competing against Rihanna in a Grammy category, was a spokesman for Doublemint gum and his hit song "Forever" was part of that advertising campaign.

Brown is also a pitchman for the long-running Got Milk? campaign, in which celebrities are photographed with a milk mustache. The Milk Processor Education Program said his participation was scheduled to end this week, as planned.

"The Milk Mustache campaign is taking the allegations against Chris Brown very seriously," the Washington, D.C.-based trade group said in a statement. "We are very proud and protective of the image of the Milk Mustache campaign and the responsible message it sends to teens."

The incident appeared to be out of character for Brown, who has been dating Barbados-born Rihanna for about a year and helped produce her album.

She was variously reported to have been left bruised, bleeding and even bitten in the attack, which took place shortly after she and Brown left a pre-Grammy party in Beverly Hills on Saturday night.

Police said the woman "suffered visible injuries" in the incident, which started in a car and continued as both parties got out. Los Angeles prosecutors are considering whether to formally charge Brown, who could face up to three years in prison if convicted, legal sources said.

Celebrity Web site Radaronline quoted an unidentified eyewitness who said she had seen Rihanna being treated at the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center on Saturday.

"Rihanna was clearly very upset by what happened and I could hear her screaming. Rihanna was trying to get her point across about something. She sounded like she was crying," the eyewitness told Radaronline.com.

Rihanna's publicist issued a brief statement on Sunday saying: "Rihanna is well. Thank you for concern and support."

Fans of both Rihanna and Brown, who made his name at age 16 with the single "Run It", were shocked by the incident.

People magazine pondered what had gone wrong, calling it a "Fairy-tale romance gone awry". One of hundreds of postings on the Us Weekly Web site said; "I just don't understand. it's so out of character of him. i really want to know the real story. i just can't believe he beat some girl. doesn't seem like him what so ever."





Grammy day was supposed to be a glittery affair for R&B's reigning It couple, Chris Brown and Rihanna. But things went horribly amiss.
About the time Brown was scheduled to be singing "Forever" onstage at Los Angeles' Staples Center, he was instead detained by police, being questioned for allegedly roughing up Rihanna.






Law enforcement sources tell us even though the police report in the Chris Brown arrest refers to assault with a deadly weapon, there was no weapon involved in the alleged attack.

The police report cites Penal Code Section 245 -- Assault with a Deadly Weapon. However, we're told there was no weapon involved.

We had been hearing there was an umbrella in the car -- which would have been the most ironic thing ever -- but again... no weapon is alleged. By the way, a persons foot or other body part can be considered a deadly weapon depending on the circumstances.

One law enforcement source who has been dead-on so far claims Rihanna suffered contusions and bite marks.

Brown, 19, turned himself in at the LAPD's Wilshire station around 6:30 p.m. and was booked on suspicion of making criminal threats, a charge that carries a maximum penalty of four years. The case will now be sent to the district attorney's office and further charges could be filed. He was released from jail after posting $50,000 bail.
"He was very professional and didn't appear to have injuries," said Sgt. Bridget Pickett, adding, "He's a good looking young man."
While Brown appeared unscathed, sources tell E! News that the alleged victim was Rihanna, 20, and that she suffered visible bruises on her face during an early morning confrontation. Both in turn nixed scheduled Grammy appearances.
A spokeswoman for Brown's label declined comment and calls to his attorney, Mark Geragos, weren't immediately returned.
Despite sources saying that Rihanna had been hospitalized, her publicist, Amanda Silverman, said the "Disturbia" singer "is well. Thank you for concern and support."
Per department policy, police declined to identify the alleged victim in the incident, which occurred about 12:30 a.m. in the Hancock Park area, apparently as the two were heading home from Clive Davis' annual pre-Grammy bash, where they had been all smiles.



What the hell could have possibly went wrong from the morning before to the time when these two got back home.Whew ....
Report: Rihanna Tells Cops Brown's Hit Her Before Chris Brown, Rihanna Reportedly Had Violent Past If Chris Brown did indeed hit Rihanna early Sunday morning, it may not have been the first time.

According to TMZ.com, the pop star told cops that her R&B singer boyfriend had a history of abusing her before a weekend attack that reportedly left her bruised and bloodied, and the violence was getting progressively worse.Us Weekly magazine also quoted unnamed sources close to Rihanna who claim this isn't the first time Brown's beaten and bruised her.

While representatives for Brown and Rihanna refuse to release details about the alleged altercation that reportedly landed her in the hospital and earned him a felony domestic abuse charge, rumors are swirling about what could have precipitated the fight.

One of the latest: Brown,19, was flirting with British singer Leona Lewis, and Rihanna, 20, flew into a rage.

According to the British paper the Daily Mirror, Brown was speaking to Lewis at a pre-Grammy party in Los Angeles hours before the late-night attack. While the conversation was innocent, it "set Rihanna off," according to an anonymous source quoted by the paper.

Other reports claim Rihanna got upset over a text message.

"He got a booty call. He got a text," an unnamed source told the New York Daily News. "Rihanna saw it and she got upset. They started to argue. She got out of the car. He wanted her to get back in, so he grabbed her. She pulled away. That's when she's told people he hit her."

Meanwhile, despite the abuse allegations against him, Brown was up for a trophy at the NAACP's annual awards ceremony tonight, as was Rihanna.

In the end, however, neither Brown nor Rihanna attended the awards and neither won. Jamie Foxx beat Brown for outstanding male artist, an award Brown won last year, and Beyonce beat Rihanna in the outstanding female artist category.

The NAACP did not immediately reply to ABCNews.com's request for comment before the ceremony.

Advertisers and radio stations have already backed away from the R&B singer. His "Got Milk" ad campaign will end this week.

LOS ANGELES - Chris Brown's ad campaign with Wrigley was suspended Monday until his criminal case is resolved, and reports surfaced that pop superstar Rihanna, his longtime girlfriend and a fellow no-show at the Grammy Awards, was the woman who accused him of assault.
The Los Angeles Times, citing law enforcement officials familiar with the case and other sources it did not name, reported that Rihanna, whose full name is Robyn Rihanna Fenty, was the woman who told police that Brown had hurt her the night before the Grammy Awards.

A police statement released Sunday afternoon said Brown and an unidentified woman began arguing while riding in a car following a pre-Grammy party where they were spotted together Saturday night. The fight escalated when they got out of the car in the ritzy Hancock Park neighborhood, the report said, and Brown was gone by the time officers arrived.

The report indicated that the woman was injured, but Brown was booked only on suspicion of making a criminal threat, a felony, after walking into a police station Sunday night. Authorities said the district attorney could choose to expand the charges.



WASHINGTON – The Senate Democratic leader expressed optimism Friday about the prospects for a massive economic recovery package while President Barack Obama used the cudgel of his office — and the latest dire jobless numbers — to challenge lawmakers to act swiftly.
"These numbers demand action," said Obama, who plans to campaign for the bill in Indiana and Florida next week. "It is inexcusable and irresponsible for any of us to get bogged down in distraction, delay or politics as usual while millions of Americans are being put out of work."
As Obama sharpened his rhetoric in challenging the GOP to back the measure, centrists from both parties scrambled to slim down the $900-billion-plus price tag of the package to something more palatable to Senate Republicans.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid of Nevada reflected the fierce sense of urgency among Democrats amid the party's fear that Republicans were turning public opinion against the costly bill.
"The world is waiting to see what we're going to do in the next 24 hours," Reid said on the Senate floor, citing the bleaker economic picture.
A group of nearly 20 moderates from both parties — more Democrats than Republicans — have been negotiating in hopes of cutting as much as $100 billion from Obama's plan, which has ballooned to $937 billion on the Senate floor, with further add-ons possible during a long day of votes Friday.
Their efforts came as new government figures showed recession-battered employers eliminated 598,000 jobs in January, the most since the end of 1974. The unemployment rate rose to 7.6 percent.
Obama said he hoped Congress members would react to "the single worst month of job loss in 35 years."
"I hope they share my sense of urgency and draw the same unmistakable conclusion: The situation could not be more serious," Obama said Friday. He acknowledged the $900-billion-plus plan was not perfect and pledged to work with lawmakers to refine the measure, which he called "absolutely necessary."
"But broadly speaking, the package is the right size," Obama said.
Earlier, Reid commended the work of the centrist lawmakers and said progress has been made since Thursday night. He said a vote on the Senate bill by Friday evening was possible.
Sen. Susan Collins, R-Maine, Friday morning circulated a roster proposing $88 billion worth of net cuts from the measure. She proposed eliminating money in the bill for K-12 education while boosting funding for Pentagon operations, facilities and procurement by $13 billion.
Collins is one of just three to five Republican targets Democrats hope to attract to breach the critical 60-vote barrier, though some in the group, such a Mel Martinez, R-Fla., were said to be balking.
Collins has been working with Ben Nelson, D-Neb. Both met separately with Reid Friday morning.
Republican leader Mitch McConnell of Kentucky said the GOP is ready to support a bill, "but we will not support an aimless spending spree that masquerades as a stimulus."
He added: "Putting another $1 trillion on the nation's credit card isn't something we should do lightly. We need to get a stimulus. But more importantly, we need to get it right."
Obama pleaded with House Democrats on Thursday night to reject delaying tactics and political gamesmanship and work with the Senate to get a bill. In the campaign-like speech, the president also ridiculed Republican criticism of the legislation.
"We can't embrace the losing formula that says only tax cuts will work for every problem we face; that ignores critical challenges like our addiction to foreign oil, or the soaring cost of health care, or falling schools and crumbling bridges and roads and levees," Obama said at the retreat in Williamsburg, Va.
"I don't care whether you're driving a hybrid or an SUV — if you're headed for a cliff, you've got to change direction," he said.
He dismissed at least one GOP complaint about the bill.
"So then you get the argument, well, 'this is not a stimulus bill, this is a spending bill.' What do you think a stimulus is? That's the whole point," he said to laughter from House Democrats.
If a compromise on trimming the bill can't be reached — or if it won't fly with Democratic loyalists — the alternative for Reid is to try to ram the measure through with just a few GOP supporters, such as Olympia Snowe of Maine. He expressed confidence he has the 60 votes needed to press it through if need be.
The massive measure is a key early test for Obama, who has made it the centerpiece of his fledgling presidency.

Los Angeles (E! Online) – The "Hollaback Girl" is about to have to hand it back.
Several hooded sweatshirts from Gwen Stefani's Harajuku Lovers children's clothing line have been recalled by the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission and not because they are killer fashion in the good way.
The commission charges that "the jackets have a drawstring through the hood which can pose a strangulation hazard to children," although no such incidents have been reported.
The voluntary recall suggests purchasers of the RSL Hoodie and Lovers Leopard styles trim off the ties or return them for a full, $75 refund. The jackets were sold in Macy's, Nordstrom's and other retailers from August 2008 to January 2009.
No doubt the singer is relieved son Kingston Rossdale, 2, is more of a tee and tank top kind of guy.



In the gloom of the down economy, the price of gold has been an unusual bright spot.How bright? Enough that Cash4Gold, which buys old jewelry by mail, could afford a prime Super Bowl ad starring Ed McMahon and M.C. Hammer.Across the country – and across North Texas – people are responding to TV spots, billboards and newspaper ads that promise to turn rings and trinkets into cash.

Most discover that the metal is worth a fraction of the purchase price – a ring that sold for $150 a decade ago might be worth $50. But many sell the items anyway, figuring that a bit of cash in the hand is better than an old ring stuck in a drawer.

Compared with other used items, this may be a particularly good time to sell gold, experts say. Collectibles and other commodities are flooding the market, driving prices down. But gold was priced this week at better than $900 an ounce, which is near a record high.

Gold has historically been a haven for investors in tough times because many people have confidence that the precious metal will hold value when other commodities are tanking. That faith persists in the current meltdown.

Combine high prices with a growing number of people nervous about their cash flow and you generate the kind of revenue that pays for the Cash4Gold Super Bowl ad. In the post-game buzz, some commentators said it was sad to see McMahon and Hammer reduced to hawking a mail-in gold resale company.

But Cash4Gold founder Jeff Aronson said it reflects what's happening with the economy. "I feel more sad when I see people being laid off from the largest companies in America," he said.

Laid-off workers are some of his customers, and they're among those bringing gold to jewelers in North Texas.

William Oyster, president of Dallas Gold & Silver Exchange in northwest Dallas, said he's buying four times more gold now than last year.

"It started picking up about the middle of last year and since then we are spending almost $10 million buying gold. We were spending half of that, about $5 million, before the price of gold went up," Oyster said.

Fuller's Jewelry Store in Addison is another of the many places in North Texas where people can take gold for resale. Fuller's didn't buy scrap gold until customers who saw the Cash4Gold ads asked about it, said Ken George, who handles much of the gold purchasing and marketing for Fuller's.

George was tactful about the urgency some people are feeling about getting money for their gold.

"We have been very pleased with the number of responses we are getting from the advertising we're doing," he said.

Like many other places that buy gold, Fuller's says it's willing to help newbie sellers learn the process. And getting smart about gold is a good idea, said Chris Burgess, vice president and chief compliance officer for the Dallas office of the Better Business Bureau.

He warns potential gold sellers to be prudent about their transactions. Better Business Bureau offices across the country have been fielding complaints about gold resale, he said.

Some of the complaints are about potential scams, but others are from people who don't understand that a gold transaction isn't as simple as buying peas at the grocery store: A low initial offer should be the start of a negotiation that the seller can walk away from.

"There is a certain amount of dickering that has to be done in this transaction, and there is not a lot of experience in the American public with doing that," he said.

Consumers can check with the Better Business Bureau for ratings and complaints about individual companies.

Cash4Gold, for instance gets a C+, which the Better Business Bureau considers a "good rating." A relatively few customers from last year's 500,000 transactions complained about not getting their jewelry back fast enough if they wanted a return, or not getting what they thought was a fair offer.

Other places will pay more for gold, but they don't provide the same level of convenience and service, Aronson said.

"I'm never going to be the highest payer on the street, nor do I ever want to be," he said.

Fuller's has an A rating with the Better Business Bureau.

People seeking to resell their jewelry need to realize that it doesn't matter how pretty it is or how much they liked it, George said. For scrap sale purposes, it might as well be a hunk of ore.

"I'm just looking at it as raw materials," he said.

Al Día staff writer Lorena Flores contributed to this report.

MARKET TEST
Wondering what your unwanted gold jewelry might be worth? We tested the resale market with some trinkets – three 14-karat gold rings and three shiny charms that turned out to be gold-plated and essentially worthless.

Calculated worth:

We had 14.2 grams of 14-karat gold, which is 8.2 grams of actual gold. The price for gold on the day we got our bids was about $29 per gram. So on the spot market, we had about $238 worth of gold.

The offers:

• $150 for the rings from Fuller's Jewelry Store in Addison

• $110 for the rings, plus $3 for the golden flakes on the J-shaped trinket, from the traveling GemCo appraisers who set up for the week in a Richardson hotel

• $105 for the rings from Central Diamond Center in Richardson

What we learned:

• The offers will be much less than you originally paid.

• Don't be afraid to bargain; this is a negotiation.

• Go to several places.

• The more gold you have to sell, the better price you can get per ounce.

• "Golden" doesn't mean it's gold. Gold-plated jewelry has no gold resale value.

Jeffrey Weiss

WHAT'S IT WORTH?
Calculate what your gold is worth on the spot market:

• Find out what your gold weighs. Unless you own a jeweler's scale, you'll probably need to go to a jewelry store.

• Find today's spot price for gold for whatever units of weight you have – troy ounces, grams, pennyweights.

• Find out what karat your gold is. If you don't know, a jeweler should be able to tell you.

• Calculate what percent of your jewelry is actual gold.

24-karate gold is 100 percent gold

18-karat gold is 75 percent gold

14-karat gold is 58.33 percent gold

10-karat gold is 41.67 percent gold

• For example, a 5-gram ring made of 14 karat gold contains 2.91 grams of pure gold. If pure gold is selling for $29 a gram on the open market, 2.91 grams of pure gold would be worth $84.58.

• The offer you get will be some fraction of the open market value, minus the cost of handling and processing – usually the material is sent to a smelting company – and the profit taken by the buyer.

A primer on units:

• Karats are a measure of the purity of the gold. Pure gold is 24 karats. Most jewelry is 14-karat gold, which means that the other 10 karats are copper, nickel or zinc. (Carats are different, used with gemstones.)
• Troy ounces are a little bit larger than the 16 avoirdupois ounces that make up a pound.

• A pennyweight is 1/20th of a troy ounce.




In a day and time where things like B.E.T.(Black Entertainment Television), MTV and Television ,Videos Movies and Websites are being utilized for " Making it Big " and gaining recognition,Businesses and artists are finding themselves involved with all sorts of ventures and Business opportunities. Some of these deals are made and thought up by the artists and several are created for these individuals by their managers and even their record labels.Therefore with this understanding in mind one must also realize that These individuals Rap,Act ,Sing,Produce Music and ultimately run Entertainment Businesses.How could we expect them to design ,sew,understand what a swatch is or a Tech Pack?Their Entertainers so how in the world would it be possible for them to do this.Im not saying it like they cant because there are a small few like Master P Percey Miller who has always been a great Entrepreneur but even Master P himself wont be sewing up any sweat suits or doing specs and working with Illustrator and building bodies.So here we are with the final truth of the matter which is Licensing,The Granddaddy of all labels and branding because had it not been for Licensing there would be none of the lables and brands which you find yourself purchasing and supporting throughout your wardrobe as well as Life.



These manufacturers who most reign from overseas and abroad have the capabilities to create products and brands in a heartbeat again because it is what they do.Most labels can have samples ready in less that three weeks depending on the budgets allowed.What they wait for is an artist or a brand to take off and get recognition lets take G-Unit now fifty cents jumped od the scene in 2002 but really didnt make a mark until he signed with Eminem and once he did that he started a brand called G-Unit where he endorsed and said the label name so much that the taco bell dog got jealous."But this to Fifty a branding tactic as well as a way of talking shit which ultimately worked to his benefit as the brand was fresh young and hot and at the time he was rising on the charts and smashing the scene in ways where hip hop embraced him so much that he sold tremendous amounts of mixtapes and albums.Once the albums reached astrononical numbers individuals and fifty himself wanted to get involved in "making stuff" so they answered the calls from labels and took a deal with ECKO Unlimited a label that was already Established and making tons of money in the urban market.Ecko Unlimited had the Distribution and Manufacturing capabilities.



This venture went well until the brand known as G-UNIT started to dwindle as members c.d. sales and careers started to slack and fade out.When this happens the entire brand suffers and as a result.This has been the case in many brands failures because as the sales of Hip Hop and the artist albums dwindle so does the brand or products which are endorsed by one group,person and or entity .With that being said here are a few of the brands which are owned "snicker snicker" by Rappers and Artists.



BRAND NAME /WHO U THINK /REALLY RUNNING THINGS

AKADEMIKS / Donwan/ Emmett Harrell /OVED APPAREL / DR JAYS
CROWN HOLDER /Damon / Peerless Clothing
DEREOIN Beyonce Knowles /Kellwood
ENYCE Tony Shellman /Liz Claiborne
FILA USA APARTEID SUPPORTERS Yoon-Soo Yoon
FUBU Damon /AQUARIUS LTD
G-UNIT Fifty Cents /Ecko / Kids Headquarters
GINO GREEN GLOBAL /Brothers / Check Group
KARL KANI /Karl Kani /Sigfried &Parzifal
LADY ENYCE /Kenny Burns / Liz Claiborne
LIVE MECHANICS ? /Check Group
L-R-G CLOTHING /Black/Jamaican Folk /Kellwood
NOSTIC / Jim Jones /Phil Depetro &Phil Lavotey
PARIS /Paris Hilton /Dollhouse
PASTRY /Angela and Vanessa Simmons /Vida Group
PELLE PELLE /Marc Buchanan ?
PEPE JEANS LONDON /? SOME HOOD DUDE /Carlos Ortega
PHAT FARM /Russell Simmons /Kellwood /Longstreet/Aquarius
ROCAWEAR /Jay - Z /Kellwood /Kids Headquarters
SCARFACE /Scarface /Changes
SHADY LTD /Eminem /Kellwood
SEAN JOHN /SEAN P DIDDY COMBS /Concept One/Estee Lauder
SNOOP DOG /Snoop Dog /Trinity Products/The Merchandise Group
STACY ADAMS /Some Black Dude /Dorfman ,Ltd/Aquarius Ltd
STEVE HARVEY /Steve Harvey /David Eden
SOUTH POLE /South Pole /Wicker Fashions/Concept One Accessories




ITS A SECRET SOCIETY ALL WE ASK IS TRUST

In an age where Homosexuals and Lesbians are lets say tolerated to the effect as “ Hey Long as You don’t try and come on to me “Your cool. It’s sort of an unspoken understanding, But now due to the wide spread of influential actors Government Officials and athletes “ Hell even football players whom all have been coming out of the closet. They look at it like hey everyone else is coming out and its a free country “ So Fuck It “. Yes and there is nothing that deters or dispels the same sex Public Displays of affection and actual power tripping individuals who utilize heir positions to “acquire their desires” . The Secret Society .Yes these are individuals who utilize their positions of power to manipulate innocent “ hungry “ and at most times overwhelmed aspiring artists and actresses but are widely used throughout several areas of the corporate Machine. These individuals are ultimately forced to do unspeakable sex acts in order to “ Make it “. Therefore combined with the fact that these individuals are in a position which could change their lives. Sexual Harassment does not just apply to women. Since people are human this applies to all types of individuals races colors and creeds and since we all have the same feelings and emotions weather you’re a sergeant in the Marines or Priest in a monastery. A construction worker or a “ Rapper “ your still human and have feelings and most likely somewhere through the course of your life your going to act these feelings out it has been prove time and time again…. Did they say rapper? Yes Rapper, Homo Things, Sometimer’s, 68ers Back catcher’s and short time jail bidders and Top popper’s, what ever you call them these individuals live their lives similar to Bat Man and Robin “To the Bat Cave Robin” so lets say that you’re a God looking rapper and you’ve been trying to get your music out to the public but for some reason things just aren’t working out to your benefit .You go to sit down with a lawyer, label, accountant manager or anyone that has the strings which you need pulled to get you put in a situation where you can get placed in a situation which your life could change immediately. But there seems to be something funny about the way that he or she looks at you or is talking to you. These slight advances could ultimately be ignored by seasoned individuals but Some Green or should we say novice individuals may crumble and wind up catching a case .It is at that point come where the individual has to make a decision between The Stoop or The Stage, The Unemployment line or the red carpet, The Bottom or the Top The Big Time or the minors, what would you do? Yes the ones before you because you can best believe that certain individuals who make it had to Make It? And at some point had to take it. The next question is who are they? What did they do? Will they try it with you on your next interview or sit down? If so……………..what wills your response be?

THESE ARE ATTEMPTS AT CLOTHING LINES WHICH FAILED TERRIBLY.


FETISH - EVE -FAULTY STAFF /LACK OF CONFIDENCE IN BRAND /EVE NOT BIG ENOUGH FOR HER OWN LINE?
WUWEAR-WU TANG -TERRIBLE DESIGNS AND LOGOS
BUSHI - BUSTA RHYMES-NO ONE LIKED IT?
OUTKAST-OUTKAST - MARKET SLUMPS /LACK OF DESIGN
NOSTIC-JIM JONES -NO SALES AND NO REAL DESIGNERS / BACKING
GILYARD- SHIFTY BACKING
DEF JAM UNIVERSITY- LACK OF BACKING AND COMMITMENT
KARL KANI -SOLD HIS NAME
FUBU- LACK OF DESIGN SAD NON ABILTY TO FORECAST .

COUNTERFEITING


According to an article entitled Huge Haul of Counterfeits Seized in Warehouse (New York Times, 6/24/2005), so much counterfeit merchandise was seized during the week of June 20th that two, continuously-running, tractor-trailers were needed to haul the stash from a Manhattan warehouse to Smithtown, Long Island, where an incinerator is located.

This was one of the largest busts ever made in New York City of this type. The stash was housed in an old, multi-floored warehouse located at 1141 Broadway at 26th Street. Signs on that building indicate that counterfeit goods were stored by the Epoch USA Trading Corporation, although as of yet, the confirmed names of the crooks have not been published.

Police found the cache while investigating a report of gunmen in the building. During their floor-by-floor search, they discovered "mountains of counterfeit caps, sweatshirts and other clothing bearing designer and sports-related logos on seven of the building's nine floors."

On Thursday (June 23, 2005), the police enlisted 30 Relocation Logistics moving company workers, who, together with ten officers, worked over 24 hours packing illegal goods bearing such brand names as Nike and Lacoste into black plastic garbage bags.

Ironically, the bags used to drag these counterfeits to the incinerator were the same type often used by illegal vendors who sell knock-off handbags and sports accessories in parks and on crowded sidewalks.

So, where are fake bags sold when not on sidewalks or in parks? According to the article, Cops: Shop Clothes Are Status Faux (New York Post, 6/30/2005), one such shop was an unmarked store in a third-floor loft at 1 E. 28th Street. Empire Management, owned by Albert Hoffman of Ridgewood, raked in hundreds of thousands of dollars selling counterfeit Louis Vuitton and Coach Bags as well as counterfeit clothing by Sean Jean, Nike, and Rocawear.

Raided by officers in the 13th Precinct, over 5,000 counterfeit items were seized. According to the article, Albert Hoffman screamed at the police "I am going to shoot and kill you" as they carted away his goods. Three counterfeiting charges were brought against Hoffman, with at least one of those charges associated with 15 years in the slam. Needless to say, he was also charged with menacing, putting an additional 90 days on the final count.

Then there's the PRNewswire (Lacoste, 6/2/2005) which reported that over $1-million worth of counterfeit Lacoste products were picked up in multiple raids during the week of May 30. Caught were illegal wholesale and retail warehouses in Midtown Manhattan, netting almost 13,000 items. Congratulations to the New York City Police Department's 13th Precinct and the Mayor's Midtown Task Force in conjunction with Lacoste's private investigators for their great work.

But fake bags and clothing aren't the only types of counterfeit items being sold. On May 10, 2005, Federal agents from the Department of Homeland Security announced that they confiscated more than 1,300 counterfeit police badges representing over 35 agencies, including fake air marshal badges. The seizure was made in the Bronx apartment of Sergio Khorosh, a man whose online advertising as the owner of Pro Police Products lead police to his door.




How Long Have You Been Out Of Work?
Have you found yourself going without meals and necessary nourishment in order to save a buck"Well I know that I may sound like some late night infomercial but the truth is everybody is "Broke"and if your not broke the cost of living and food has become even your main function.Rent and Utilities have doubled as a result of gas prices and the current issues with the economy.

I myself live in the bronx where I see people everyday hanging around and just thinking of ways to try and make money.Welfare and Unemplyment are the longest that tey have ever been in years.People are graduating from colleges with Degrees to find that they have no chance of finding work.Individuals who were working at major corporate companies such as Bare Sterns and Microsoft have been out of work for months and still have not found any steady work and soon will be on their second cycle of unemplyment which President Obama injected upon becoming Nominated for president.

The current state of the economy has eclipsed and dwindled to almost nothing. In the last seven years, the yield has declined. As of January 23, 2009, the 10-year Treasury Note yield was 2.65%, down 47% since March 4, 2002 when the yield was 5.02%. This means that the demand for dollar-denominated Treasury notes is still strong. (Source: U.S. Treasury, Daily Treasury Yield Curve Rates)

This is because the world is in a recession, and investors want a safe haven. If investors were very concerned about a dollar collapse, they would not be buying U.S. Treasuries. in 2002, the world was coming out of a global recession, and investors were more interested in buying stocks than Treasuries. Now, investors want Treasuries more than stocks or other investments,because they are safe. However, as the U.S. spending increases, the Treasury may auction more notes than there is demand. This could force yields to rise. with no end in sight to the country's economic downturn, some psychological experts say that cases like these may become more common.

" Stress is a huge factor in suicide, and looming very large is stress related to the economy," said Dr. Charles Nemeroff, chairman of psychiatry at Emory University in Atlanta, Ga., and president of the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention.

" Suicide is certainly a response to hard economic times," noted Dr. Harold Koenig, professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences at Duke University Medical Center in Durham, N.C. "Consider what happened when the stock market fell in 1929. There was a rash of suicides."

Financial Concerns Hit Close to Home
According to the RealtyTrac Monthly U.S. Foreclosure Market Report released Friday morning, the number of U.S. homes receiving a foreclosure notice between April and June of this year shot up 121 percent compared with the same period last year. That means that 739,000 households received a foreclosure notice during this three-month period -- which translates into one out of every 171 households in the country.

WASHINGTON – It's already been a lousy year for workers less than a month into 2009 and there's no relief in sight. Tens of thousands of fresh layoffs were announced Monday and more companies are expected to cut payrolls in the months ahead.
A new survey by the National Association for Business Economics depicts the worst business conditions in the U.S. since the report's inception in 1982.

Thirty-nine percent of NABE's forecasters predicted job reductions through attrition or "significant" layoffs over the next six months, up from 32 percent in the previous survey in October. Around 45 percent in the current survey anticipated no change in hiring plans, while roughly 17 percent thought hiring would increase.
The recession, which started in December 2007, and is expected to stretch into this year, has been a job killer. The economy lost 2.6 million jobs last year, the most since 1945. The unemployment rate jumped to 7.2 percent in December, the highest in 16 years, and is expected to keep climbing."Job losses accelerated in the fourth quarter, and the employment outlook for the next six months has weakened further," said Sara Johnson, NABE's lead analyst on the survey and an economist at IHS Global Insight.

Thousands more jobs cuts were announced Monday. Pharmaceutical giant Pfizer Inc., which is buying rival drugmaker Wyeth in a $68 billion deal, and Sprint Nextel Corp., the country's third-largest wireless provider, said they each will slash 8,000 jobs. Home Depot Inc., the biggest home improvement retailer in the U.S., will get rid of 7,000 jobs, and General Motors Corp. said it will cut 2,000 jobs at plants in Michigan and Ohio due to slow sales.Caterpillar Inc., the world's largest maker of mining and construction equipment, announced 5,000 new layoffs on top of several earlier actions. The latest cuts of support and management employees will be made globally by the end of March. An additional 2,500 workers already have accepted buyout offers, and ties have been severed with about 8,000 contract workers worldwide. In addition, about 4,000 full-time factory workers already have been let go.Just last week, Microsoft Corp. said it will slash up to 5,000 jobs over the next 18 months. Intel Corp. said it will cut up to 6,000 manufacturing jobs and United Airlines parent UAL Corp. said it would get rid of 1,000 jobs, on top of 1,500 axed late last year.

The NABE survey of 105 forecasters was taken Dec. 17 through Jan. 8.
Also in the survey, 52 percent said they expected gross domestic product to fall by more than 1 percent this year. GDP measures the value of all goods and services produced within the U.S. and is the best barometer of the country's economic fitness. The last time GDP fell for a full year was in 1991, a tiny 0.2 percent dip. The economy shrank by 1.9 percent in 1982, when the country was suffering through a severe recession.

Forecasters have grown more pessimistic about the outlook. In the October survey, no forecaster thought GDP would fall by more than 1 percent.In terms of business conditions, more reported customer demand dropping, capital spending reductions and shrinking profit margins.

Peoria, Ill.-based Caterpillar also reported Monday that its fourth-quarter profit plunged 32 percent. The company expects sharply lower results this year as global economic problems cut into its business.Altogether the NABE report "depicts the worst business conditions since the survey began in 1982, confirming that the U.S. recession deepened in the fourth quarter of 2008," Johnson said.

Many analysts predict the economy will have contracted at a pace of 5.4 percent in the fourth quarter when the government releases that report on Friday. If they are correct, that would mark the worst performance since a 6.4 percent drop in the first quarter of 1982. The economy is still contracting now — at a pace of around 4 percent, according to some projections.



There are lots of jobs for burger flippers not because there are lots of uneducated people who can't do other jobs. People don't flip burgers for a living because we have compassion on them and give them spatulas. There are lots of jobs for burger flippers because there's a high demand for burgers and because running a chain of restaurants that serve burgers is very profitable. (McDonald's stock recently hit an all-time high.)

In a world where everyone had a college degree, there would still be burger flippers -- they would just have college degrees too. The issue is not whether there will be burger flippers -- there will be as long as there is demand for burgers -- the issue is what burger flippers will get paid. And here we have a political question more than an economic question.

Burger flipping is a job that falls towards the bottom of the wage scale everywhere. The actual wage is determined largely by the minimum wage and whether or not burger flippers are able to effectively organize. The post-war U.S. economy was based on the principle that, with unions, working-class jobs could pay middle-class wages. And judging from McDonald's profit margins, that's still true. But to make that the reality in the U.S., we'd have to raise the minimum wage and reform our ineffectual labor laws.

In the U.K., the minimum wage is roughly twice ours -- about USD $10 an hour -- so their burger flippers get paid about twice what they do here (to say nothing of the fact that every British burger flipper and her children has health insurance). In many other European countries the minimum wage is even higher. And yet, those countries are still filled with burger flippers and McDonald's restaurants. And contrary to the Times' insinuation, their prices are not dramatically higher than our own. The American translation of Sweden's "8 Kronor Menu" would be the "$1.13 Menu" according to the latest exchange rate.

So let's have an honest debate. If you think burger flippers ought live in poverty, just say it. Be a proud conservative, a Social Darwinist, a libertarian. But don't pretend to care deeply about giving the working poor more education while being unwilling to give them a raise because, God forbid, it would tack 13 cents onto the Dollar Menu at McDonald's.

NEW CRISIS COULD IT BE EVEN BIGGER THAN MORTGAGE CRISIS?


First came trouble with mortgages, then home equity loans and commercial real estate. Now, banks are starting to worry about credit cards.

As the economy slows and unemployment rises, consumers are defaulting on credit-card payments more often. And though that trend is unlikely to create a crisis in line with the mortgage fallout, it's still a headache for banks that are already hurting.

U.S. banks charged off 5.47 percent of all credit card loans in the second quarter, according to the Federal Reserve, representing some $50 billion that they'll likely never collect. That's up from 3.85 percent the year before, and that is a movement that's on the radar of Ken Lewis, chief executive of Charlotte's Bank of America Corp.

Asked in a recent TV interview if credit-card debt would be “the next shoe to drop” for the banking industry, Lewis replied: "It, in some ways, already is," adding that such losses have risen "pretty substantially."

Laura Nishikawa, an analyst at the Innovest ratings agency, predicts that banks such as Bank of America and New York's Citigroup Inc. could be hit especially hard by credit-card defaults. That's because those banks, which offer both consumer and investment services, have been depending more heavily on money made on consumer services such as credit cards as the returns in investment banking grow increasingly unpredictable.

To be sure, credit cards don't represent a huge portion of assets for most banks. For example, they comprise about 14 percent of all consumer loans and leases at Bank of America, the country's largest credit-card issuer. The main problem, Nishikawa said, is that "everyone is so weak after what happened with mortgages that another blow to a consumer product would be hard to handle."

Consumer groups have long complained that credit-card issuers push cards onto people who don't need them or can't afford them. They say that rising credit-card defaults – just like mortgage defaults – are largely the fault of banks who lent to risky borrowers.

Innovest estimates that about 30 percent of Bank of America's credit card loans are to subprime borrowers – second only to the failed Washington Mutual Inc., which had almost half of its credit-card loans held by subprime borrowers.

Innovest also estimates that more than half of Bank of America's credit cards are high-limit cards – second only to American Express Co. (Innovest classifies high-limit cards as those with lines of more than $10,000.) Nishikawa says that combination could prove toxic for Bank of America, which may have "lent more than (borrowers) can be expected to pay back."

Bank of America's charge-offs, or loans it doesn't expect to collect on, increased to 6.14 percent of all credit-card loans, or $1.24 billion, in the third quarter. That's up from 4.61 percent the year before.

Executives of Wells Fargo & Co., which is buying Charlotte's Wachovia Corp., also noted credit-card troubles in their recent earnings call. The San Francisco bank, which is the country's eighth-largest credit-card issuer according to The Nilson Report, saw credit-card charge-offs increase to 7.2 percent, or $361 million, from 4.3 percent a year ago. Chief financial officer Howard Atkins blamed "higher bankruptcy rates, seasoning of the portfolio, and continuing economic pressure on consumers," though he said the losses were in line with the bank's expectations.

Innovest predicts that credit-card charge-offs across the industry will continue to rise, peaking around 10 percent by the first quarter of 2009. Some banks are also reporting that consumers are spending less with their credit cards, which hurts the banks because they collect fees from merchants every time a consumer uses a card.

Even so, credit card defaults probably won't wreak as much havoc as mortgage defaults already have, because they're on a much smaller scale.

"This won't be anything like the mortgage crisis," said James Early, an analyst at The Motley Fool. "Simply put, the average person owes a lot more on her house than on her credit cards."

U.S. consumers have less than $1 trillion in outstanding credit-card loans, but more than $10 trillion in outstanding mortgage loans. And the delinquency rate for mortgages is higher than that for credit-cards: 6.41 percent in the second quarter, up from 5.12 percent the year before, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association.

Indeed, no one is predicting that banks will abandon credit cards &mash; only that they'll get stingier with lending and perhaps lose money for a few quarters. Banks usually expect higher default rates on credit cards anyway, since those loans are not secured by a house, car or other type of collateral. That's one reason why banks charge such high interest rates on credit-card loans.

Guy Cecala, publisher of Inside Mortgage Finance, says that the most notable characteristic of the current cycle isn't the rising percentage of credit-card defaults, but the fact that people started defaulting on mortgages before credit cards. This time is different – the mortgage defaults are driven less by the slowing economy, Cecala said, and more by unwise lending and the declines in home prices. "The people going into default actually have jobs," he said.

As banks get squeezed on credit cards, they're sure to pass the pain along. That means they're lowering — sometimes even closing — customers' credit lines, increasing interest rates and declining more applications, which will especially hurt poor or unemployed consumers who use credit cards for basic living expenses. Early, the analyst, said it's hard to feel sorry for credit-card issuers even if they do encounter serious losses: "I don't think these guys will get much sympathy," he said.



While news of more layoffs, cutbacks and bankruptcies mark the turbulence of a troubled economy, a fringe market found in Larimer County and in cities and towns from coast to coast is seeing stable prices and steady business. It’s the market that sells Bubblegum, but not the pink kind you chewed as a child; Diesel, but not the type that fills big rigs; and Swag, but not the freebie give-away kind.

Call it what you will, but the marijuana market is certainly alive and well.

And although it may not be fully recession-proof, it isn’t shaken much by what happens on Wall Street. The marijuana market exists in a no-mans-land where lines are easily blurred.

“There’s the white market where you can by tomatoes, the black market where you find cocaine and other illicit drugs, and then there is the gray market where marijuana exists,” said Brian Vicente, a criminal defense attorney in Denver who specializes in marijuana laws, including those that govern its medical use.

This smoky shade of gray is painted by state laws such as Colorado’s Amendment 20, which legalizes the growth, distribution and possession of marijuana for medical purposes. Meanwhile, anything to do with marijuana—medical or otherwise—is illegal on the federal level, which leaves law enforcement wary on how to proceed.

A few weeks ago, Larimer County Sheriff’s Office investigators seized 1,307 marijuana plants and 47 pounds of pot with an estimated street value of $1.15 million—the largest bust in one location in county history. So far two arrests have been made, but the investigation is ongoing and additional felony charges are pending.

Despite such highly publicized raids, users and law enforcement officials say major busts haven’t impacted the market, particularly because marijuana is so readily available. In fact, the downturn of the financial market may actually boost the marijuana market in some places.

David Bienenstock, senior editor of High Times and author of The Official High Times Pot Smoker’s Handbook, said some smokers may cut down on how much marijuana they purchase or how much they spend, but it will not likely be the first item people cut out of their budgets. He said smoking marijuana is a relatively inexpensive entertainment option, so people may choose to stay at home, smoke a bowl and watch a movie over going out to dinner or the bars. He added that the tough times may actually draw more people to the underground business.

“For a lot of people who have lost a job, the idea of growing their own job is extremely attractive,” Bienenstock said. “In a time of high unemployment rates, it’s much harder to find a job and this is something they can get into with low overhead. ... Depending on where they live there are various risks, but when people are forced out of the main economy, they will enter the gray economy.”

It’s a matter of supply and demand. And apparently as long as there is a demand, there will be an ample supply, whether the product is bought on the white market or the gray market. In comparison to other illegal substances like cocaine, which usually comes from outside the country through very specific and narrow channels, marijuana can come from everywhere.

“It’s so decentralized, so there is no cartel to break up,” Bienenstock said. “There are big growers and people who get rich, but there are no kingpins of pot.”

Essentially, pockets of pot culture can be found just about anywhere, but college towns tend to have a higher rates of use. Because marijuana is fairly easy to grow, it is difficult to typecast the dealers, which makes law enforcement more problematic.
The number of marijuana busts within a community is directly dependent on the number of resources the department is willing to devote, which often varies greatly among departments. The FBI estimates a total 872,720 marijuana arrests were made in the United States last year—which accounted for about 47 percent of all drug arrests. Of those, about 97,583 were for marijuana trafficking or sales and 775,137 were for marijuana possession.

Some say Larimer County has a reputation for being more aggressive than other departments when it comes to marijuana crackdowns. Vicente, who is also the executive director of Sensible Colorado, a nonprofit group that focuses on drug policy, said he has received tons of calls from medical marijuana patients and caregivers who say they are living in fear in Fort Collins.

But Sgt. Joe Shellhammer, supervisor of the Sheriff’s Office’s criminal impact unit, said marijuana busts are only a small part of what his unit does. With a team of six, the unit is also in charge of gang suppression and violence, sex offender monitoring, street level narcotics and felony warrants. He said it’s a constant balancing act that requires a lot of prioritizing. It’s common for marijuana cases to take the back seat to other cases that involve higher risks. Last year, his unit shut down about 16 growing operations that had 200 marijuana plants or more.

“We haven’t had as many this year, not because they aren’t out there but because all these other cases kept popping up, and we had to move the bigger ones to the forefront,” he said.

Shellhammer and Sheriff Jim Alderden say marijuana is a cause for concern because it does have its effects on the community. They added that with many of the larger busts, other crimes have also been committed such as theft or distribution of other illegal substances.

“It’s a problem from a society perspective because there is such a high demand,” Alderden said. “It speaks to the degradation of our culture because so many people depend on illicit substances either for survival or recreation.”

Alderden vehemently opposes marijuana—both the medical and recreational uses— and claims it clouds the job of law enforcement. In a recent posting in his blog, The Bull’s-eye, he expressed his distaste and disagreement with Amendment 20 saying, “We have to enforce a law that has more questions than answers, and it’s almost impossible to fix since it’s a Constitutional Amendment and not statute.”

If a plant is destroyed during a search, and it is later determined that the person had properly followed the medical marijuana protocol, the law enforcement agency can be liable for destruction of property. For this reason some administrators would rather turn a blind eye to growing operations, but Alderden encourages his team to go after pot producers when they are identified.

“We aren’t picking on the person with six plants who has glaucoma,” Shellhammer said. “We are absolutely not doing that. That is the least of our worries. We are concentrated on the drug dealer hiding under the umbrella.”

The issue of legalizing marijuana has long been a controversial issue. Vicente, along with other marijuana advocates say the drug should be allowed in the regulated market where communities could see a tax benefit. He said prohibition drives up the cost which only increases the profit margin of drug dealers.

Like wine, certain varieties of marijuana come at a higher price than others. Part of that has to do with scarcity of a particular strand. Bienenstock said demand often breaks down by region. Fort Collins is reportedly known to have high quality marijuana that is not moldy and has few twigs and sticks. Swag is frowned upon, but popular types include hydroponic, dank or chronic.

Several users in Fort Collins contacted for this story said the going rate in Fort Collins is about $50 for an eighth of an ounce. When buying in bulk, marijuana is usually sold at a discounted rate. Although the price may fluctuate, it’s not usually more than by $20.

Bienenstock said he has never been commercially involved in marijuana cultivation, but over the years has met numerous people who have been.

“With some exceptions, they are good people,” he said. “We need to allow them to make a living and welcome them as contributing members of society, and shouldn’t spend our resources hassling people. When we get down to making tough decisions and prioritizing as a country, we need to rethink this one.”



This is what Guatemalan anti-narcotics police found when they seized 1.2 tons of the cocaine on its way to Mexico on April 13th. Now, this really should not come as a surprise to anyone. Cocaine and Hello Kitty display an awful lot of the same properties when it comes to addiction so combining them together probably seemed like the perfect move for Sanrio. If you have ever had to deal with a Hello Kitty fanatic in your life, you already have wondered if they were high on something whenever Hello Kitty is mentioned.

Actually, upon further reflection, this is probably the worst thing that could ever happen. Seriously, can you think of anything more Hello Kitty Hellish that a Hello Kitty fanatic on cocaine…?

First sent in by Jamie (along with many others after that), who all deserve unthinkable torture for thinking that showing me this combination (and thus showing that there are new depths to Hello Kitty Hell) could ever be a good idea…






Overall music sales saw a double-digit increase for the third straight year in 2008, setting a record at 1.5 billion units sold, even as total album sales plunged by 14 percent.

The numbers, part of a year-end report by the Nielsen Company, are the latest evidence that consumers are migrating to music in digital form, but not fast enough, or in enough volume, to make up for the decline in sales of physical albums such as CDs. Overall album sales (defined as albums, singles, music videos and digital tracks) jumped 10.5 percent,

Indeed, digital album sales rose 32 percent in 2008 to 65.8 million units, while digital track sales climbed to more than one billion. Both are Nielsen SoundScan records. Here's another record: Consumers purchased 1.88 million new vinyl LPs in 2008, an 89 percent increase over 2007 and the highest sales volume recorded in the 17-year history of Nielsen SoundScan. Further, in good news for some physical retailers, two out of three vinyls LPs were purchased at independent record stores.

Radiohead's "In Rainbows" was the top-selling vinyl LP in 2008, with sales of 25,000 copies, followed by the Beatles' "Abbey Road" at 16,500. Guns N' Roses' "Chinese Democracy" (13,600 copies), the B-52s' "Funplex" (12,800) and Portishead's "Third" (12,300) also had strong showings to round out the top 5. Less expected was defunct indie-rock band Neutral Milk Hotel taking the No. 6 spot, selling 10,200 copies of its 1998 underground classic "In the Aeroplane Over the Sea," and coming in at No. 10 in total vinyl sales, with 13,200.

Some other facts from the report, after the jump:
Lil Wayne scored the top-selling album of 2008, moving more than 2.8 million units of "Tha Carter III." He was followed by Coldplay ("Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends," 2.14 million), Taylor Swift ("Fearless," 2.12 million), Kid Rock ("Rock N Roll Jesus," 2 million) and AC/DC ("Black Ice," 1.9 million).
Of them all, Swift had the best sales year: Her self-titled 2006 debut is still selling well enough to land at No. 6, with sales of 1.5 million, for a total of more than 4 million units sold in 2008. AC/DC was next, with 3.4 million, followed by Lil Wayne (3.3 million), Coldplay (2.6 million) and Metallica (2.4 million, including 1.5 million for the 2008 album "Death Magnetic").
Barbadian singer and one-time Stamford resident Rihanna was the top-selling digital artist, with sales of 9.9 million digital tracks. She was also top for radio airplay, with 889,000 "detections" by Nielsen's BDS service. Leona Lewis had the most-played song, with "Bleeding Love" receiving 468,000 detections. The song was also the best-selling digital track with 3.3 million units sold.
Every genre experienced sales declines this year, and Classical took the biggest hit with a drop-off of 26 percent, or 5,000 albums. Country (24 percent) Latin (21 percent), R&B (19.4 percent) and Rap (19.8 percent) were also off significantly. Rap seems to have stanched some of the bleeding from 2007, when sales were off by 30 percent, but R&B has hemorrhaged market share by at least 18 percent a year for the past several years.
And in a shocking development, the theme from "Super Mario Bros." lost its stranglehold on the No. 1 ranking in polyphonic ringtones. This year, Grupo Montez de Durango takes the top spot with "Adios Amor Te Vas," which sold 85,000 copies.

BARACK OBAMA NEW ECONOMIC PLANS



WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama on Saturday promised to lower mortgage costs, offer job-creating loans for small businesses, get credit flowing and rein in free-spending executives as he readies a new road map for spending billions from the second installment of the financial rescue plan.
The White House is deciding how to structure the remaining half of the $700 billion that Congress approved last year to save financial institutions and lenders. An announcement was possible as early as this coming week on an approach that would use a range of tools to unfreeze credit, helping families and businesses.
At the end of a week that saw hundreds of thousands of people lose their jobs, Obama also used his Saturday radio and Internet address to tell that nation that "no one bill, no matter how comprehensive, can cure what ails our economy."
During the final three months of 2008, the economy recorded its worst downhill slide in a quarter-century, stumbling backward at a 3.8 percent pace, the government reported Friday. It could get worse.
Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner is trying to finish a plan to overhaul the bailout program begun in the Bush administration. Geithner has said the administration is considering using a government-run "bad bank" to buy up financial institutions' bad assets. But some officials now say that option is gone because of potential costs.




Chalk it up as one last big win for Vice President Dick Cheney and his secretive -- OK, that's redundent when talking about a Cheney guy -- chief of staff, David Addington.

Remember when the U.S. Supreme Court last June rejected President Bush's policy of holding foreign prisoners at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and said the men had a right to seek their freedom before a federal judge?

Remember when the president said in August 2007, "it should be a goal of the nation to shut down Guantanamo?" (Of course, he added, closing it is easier said than done.)

Never mind -- at least for now or anytime in the near future.

The State Department reportedly prepared memos on transferring the prisoners; so did the Pentagon. Bush considered none of them.



That's according to a report in today's New York Times, which said that after the Supreme Court ruling, Bush "adopted the view of his most hawkish advisors that closing Guantanamo would involve too many legal and political risks to be acceptable, now or any time soon."

Steven Lee Myers, writing in The Times, says that despite the president's stated desire to close Gitmo, and the pressure that Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates and Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice have applied to accomplishing that, they have "acquiesced to the arguments of more hawkish advisors, including Vice President Dick Cheney."

White House Press Secretary Dana Perino said of the Guantanamo decision: "It's very complex. It's complicated. It's difficult."

She said the admininistration was working to reduce the population at the prison -- and had brought it down from about 600 to 270.

"It's not as easy as snapping your fingers" and closing the prison, she said, adding, "unless you don't care."

That was a reference to the 7% of released detainees who, she said, have returned to the battlefield.

"It's slow work," Perino said at the daily White House news briefing this morning. "The president has made a decision to close Guantanamo Bay. That has not changed."

As for Cheney, his spokeswoman, Megan Mitchell, said by e-mail seconds after Perino spoke: "You heard from Dana in the briefing. I don't have anything to add beyond that."

BARACK OBAMA UPDATE ON GUANTANAMO

Barack Obama is to issue an executive order declaring the closure of the Guantánamo Bay prison camp on his first day in office next week, aides to the President-elect said today.

The directive will be an immediate and high-profile declaration by Mr Obama that he intends to make a clean break from President Bush on the most controversial aspects of the way his predecessor has prosecuted the War on Terror.

Mr Obama is also expected to issue another order explicitly banning the use of torture on terror suspects and other controversial security policies, as he seeks to persuade the rest of the world that, under him, America is entering a new era where the Geneva Conventions are respected.

The order to close Guantánamo Bay is more symbolic than an immediate reality. Mr Obama conceded on Sunday that closing the prison camp would take time and was a complex issue with no easy solutions. Yet he is also expected to suspend all further military commissions and hearings at the camp until it is disbanded.



Retail sales fell 0.1 percent for all of 2008 compared with the prior year, the first decrease in the Commerce Department’s records. Comparable data only go back to 1992 because government economists reformulated their retail-sales figures earlier this decade, and didn’t revise historical records beyond that year.

November’s decline was revised to 2.1 percent from a previously estimated fall of 1.8 percent.

Today’s report showed declines in 11 of the 13 major categories tracked by the government, led by a 16 percent plunge at gasoline service stations that partly reflected the slump in fuel costs. The drop at grocery stores was the biggest since April 2002 and the decrease at restaurants was the largest since the terrorist attacks in September 2001.

Only health and beauty stores and a miscellaneous category saw increases last month.

Auto Slump

Purchases of expensive goods are falling as banks restrict access to credit. Auto sales fell 36 percent in December from the same month last year, capping the industry’s worst year since 1992.

Same-store sales dropped 2.2 percent in the last two months of 2008, making it the worst holiday shopping season in almost four decades of record keeping, the International Council of Shopping Centers said last week.

The first half of this year will also be “extraordinarily challenging,” Wal-Mart Chief Executive Officer H. Lee Scott told a retailers’ convention this week in New York City. “Some people are giving up eating out; some people are giving up movies; some people are giving up other things like shopping,” Scott said. “Those are fundamental changes that will continue.”

Knoxville, Tennessee-based Goody’s LLC, operator of a 282- store U.S. clothing chain, and Fresno, California-based Gottschalks Inc., owner of department stores in six western states, sought bankruptcy protection after sales slumped.

‘No Other Recourse’

“Persistent challenges in the economy and recent unexpected reductions to our borrowing capacity as a result of tightening credit markets have left us with no other recourse,” Jim Famalette, Gottschalks’ chairman and chief executive officer, said in a statement.

Americans are scrimping as unemployment last month rose to 7.2 percent, the highest level in almost 16 years. Job losses are likely to continue for most of this year, economists said.

The plunge at filling stations in part reflected a 43 cent- per-gallon drop in the average cost of gasoline last month. Excluding gas, retail sales fell 1.4 percent.

The U.S. economy shrank at a 0.5 percent annual pace from July through September as Americans reduced purchases at a 3.8 percent annual rate, the first decline in consumer spending since 1991 and the biggest in 28 years, the government said last month.

The economic slump probably worsened in the fourth quarter as declines in business investment and construction intensified and consumers continued to pull back.

Excluding autos, gasoline and building materials, the retail group the government uses to calculate gross domestic product figures for consumer spending, sales dropped 1.4 percent, after a 0.1 percent increase in the prior month. The government uses data from other sources to calculate the contribution from the three categories excluded.

Photo From Getty Images

The slump in US clothing sales since the summer has led to a precipitous drop in the number of overseas factories shipping to the US, import documents show.

Panjiva, a firm that analyses information drawn from shipping manifests filed with US Customs, said the number of global suppliers actively serving the US market fell from 22,099 in July to just 6,262 in October, a decline of more than 70 per cent.

The firm, which has provided data to customers including Kellwood, a leading branded clothing company, and Hudson’s Bay Company, the Canadian retailer, lists as “active” any supplier that has made a shipment into the US over the previous three months.

Josh Green, chief executive of Panjiva, said the numbers “paint a frightening picture of the state of the world’s suppliers”.
Mr Green said the decline contrasted with the picture last year, when he said there was a slight increase in the number of active suppliers over the same three-month period.

Panjiva also said 40 per cent of the suppliers still listed as active had seen year-on-year drops of 75 per cent or more in the volumes they were shipping to the US.

The percentage of active suppliers based in China and Hong Kong has remained steady at about 60 per cent – suggesting that the effects of the slowdown are being felt equally across the global clothing supply chain.
Eric Autor, international trade counsel at the National Retail Federation noted that China had already been seeing some consolidation in the number of its export factories due to rising domestic costs, even before the US economic crisis worsened.

In China, government statistics estimate that at least 67,000 factories across all sectors closed during the first half of the year.
He also argued that the credit crisis could be pushing some big apparel buyers to direct their orders to suppliers that they know well, to reduce risks of problems with fulfilment.

“It may be that the retailers are focusing on those suppliers with whom they’ve had a longer and closer relationship,” he said.
Panjiva’s data reinforce a picture of declining imports at the largest US retail container ports, where volumes are estimated to have fallen 8.5 per cent in November against last year.

The monthly Port Tracker report produced for the NRF by IHS Global Insight said the decline marked the 16th straight month in which incoming container volume at leading US cargo ports had fallen.



COATESVILLE, Pa. - After watching the 14th arson of 2009 savagely gut a block of rowhouses early yesterday morning, Coatesville officials declared a state of emergency to help protect residents in this small community of about 11,000.

The four-alarm blaze began about 11:30 Saturday night at the back of a house in the middle of the 300 block of Fleetwood Street. It spread quickly to 15 houses, causing damage of well over $1 million and leaving dozens homeless, said Kristin Geiger, a city spokeswoman. All residents were evacuated safely, she said.

Officials called the fire, which required assistance from 25 departments in Chester, Montgomery and Lancaster Counties, "suspicious in nature and consistent with" the 13 unsolved arsons that have plagued the city since the start of the year, Geiger said.

Sources close to the investigation said the fire was definitely arson.

Last year, Coatesville, which typically has one or two arsons a year, recorded 15. In December, three people, all still in custody, were charged with arson - one of the fires killed an 83-year-old woman.

John Wenger, 40, who lives on the block, said he heard noises and looked out the window to see "smoke billowing out" from rooftops several doors away. He said he grabbed his cellphone, wallet and laptop and ran outside, joining neighbors in banging on doors.

"These are really good people on this block," he said, adding that many were renters without insurance. "They don't deserve this - they lost everything."

Brandy Hickman, who lived with her two children, mother and brother on the block, said her mother had just celebrated her final mortgage payment about a month ago.

"Thank goodness she has fire insurance," Hickman said, weeping as she watched officials begin boarding up doors and windows.

Hickman said she hoped to stay with a nearby relative so that her children, ages 5 and 9, could go to school today, assuming she could find clothes for them.

The Associated Press reported that the home of City Councilwoman Robin Scott was among the ones destroyed.

“To see it all happen the way that it did was devastating and I wouldn’t wish that on anyone,” a tearful Scott said last night to a meeting of citizens and city officials.

She and her family safely escaped after police began knocking on doors.
Denise Venuti Free, a spokeswoman for the Southeastern Pennsylvania chapter of the Red Cross, said the agency had provided financial assistance for food and clothing and hotel accomodations to 14 families, including 32 adults and 18 children.

She urged anyone else who has been affected to call the Red Cross at 215-299-4000.

Many residents of the block returned yesterday to see whether any of their belongings were salvageable. They estimated that between 50 and 60 people were displaced by the fire, including Robin Scott, a member of Coatesville City Council.

Some of the more fortunate victims waited for insurance adjusters as a steady stream of onlookers passed, shaking their heads in disbelief at the devastation.

One of them, Chester County District Attorney Joseph W. Carroll, said that whoever was responsible for the crimes faced more than a life sentence because the maximum penalty for a single arson conviction is 20 years.

"I think life in prison is an appropriate punishment, given the extent of the property damage and terror to an entire city," he said.

Carroll, who has been critical of city officials' crime-fighting efforts, has been soliciting volunteers for a block watch and hosting a twice-weekly open house at a property he is rehabbing on Eighth Avenue.

Calvin Grove, a member of Coatesville Men United, which has applauded Carroll's initiative, said more community involvement was critical.

"There aren't enough cops. Until people get off their tails and get out here, it won't stop," he said, surveying the wreckage.

Because most of the fires have been traced to outside trash cans and furniture, residents have been urged to clear their porches. Geiger said the state of emergency would enable city workers to remove whatever they deem dangerous and allow officials to immediately buy safety equipment.

City Manager Harry Walker said federal, state, county and city officials were working nonstop to solve the crimes, which he called "as brazen as it gets."

Walker said the city, which has been distributing smoke detectors and batteries, would buy motion-detector lights in bulk and make them available to residents at a reduced rate. He said he would also start recommending that people get dogs.
"We may even pass an ordinance requiring porch lights," he said. "If we have to light up the whole city, we'll do that."

Hickman, who described her block as extraordinarily congenial, said it was hard to understand how deranged someone must be to commit these crimes.

"I just hope they catch them," she said tearfully. "We have babies here; someone could have been hurt or killed."

Residents can report suspicious activity during late-night and early-morning hours to a roving police patrol supervisor at 610-636-0514.

Rewards for information leading to a conviction have been posted by the Citizens Crime Commission (offering up to $5,000) at 215-546-TIPS or www.crimecommission.org/; and by Crime Stoppers (up to $2,000) at 1-800-4PA-TIPS or www.pacrimestoppers.org/.





Lil Kim is Pissed at the movie NOTORIOUS says the movie is only viewed from the perspective of Ms Wallace although we love and respect Ms Wallace one must understand that she only knows what Big Let her see.and I am sure that she was not privy to what was being done behind the scenes,in the studio,during shows,in Hotels and bedrooms where rappers and entourages are .With that being said I did not go and see the movie as I feel that I grew up in the era and know as much if not more of what Big and Bad Boy were about.



Watch Cardan Roast Lil Cease