FDA: tobacco companies must report chemicals

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Tobacco companies will be required to report the levels of dangerous chemicals found in cigarettes, chew and other products under the latest rules designed to tighten regulation of the tobacco industry.

The preliminary guidance issued Friday by the Food and Drug Administration marks the first time tobacco makers will be required to report quantities of 20 chemicals associated with cancer, lung disease and other health problems. The FDA will require companies to display the information in a consumer-friendly format by next April.

Constituents or byproducts of tobacco products that are subject to the new rule include ammonia, carbon monoxide and formaldehyde.

Regulators have identified more than 93 harmful or potentially harmful chemicals in tobacco products, though the agency is only focusing on 20 for the coming year. The agency will take comments on the guidance until June 4, before finalizing them.

A law enacted in 2009 gave the FDA authority to regulate a number of aspects of tobacco marketing and manufacturing, though the agency cannot ban nicotine. The same law lets the agency approve ones that could be marketed as safer than what's currently for sale.

In separate guidance issued Friday, the FDA laid out the scientific studies it will require before any company can market a so-called modified-risk tobacco product. Companies must submit extensive testing data on health risks, user behavior and consumer understanding of marketing materials for new products.

"The law sets a high standard to make sure that tobacco products marketed to reduce risk actually reduce risk," Dr. Lawrence Deyton, director of FDA's tobacco center, told reporters on a conference call.

The FDA's handling of modified-risk products has been highly anticipated by both the public health community and bigger tobacco companies, which are looking for new products to sell as they face declining cigarette demand due to tax increases, health concerns, smoking bans and social stigma.

Some tobacco companies have alternatives like snus ? small pouches like tea bags that users stick between the cheek and gum ? and dissolving tobacco ? finely milled tobacco shaped into orbs, sticks and strips. But they are not explicitly marketed as less risky than cigarettes.

Industry experts expect it will take the FDA a year or more to review applications for modified risk products.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/bbd825583c8542898e6fa7d440b9febc/Article_2012-03-30-US-Tobacco-FDA-Action/id-0e464bd05ec34d29bd508c822c1111c2

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Building Your Credit Score: Are Credit Cards Your Best Option?

This post is by staff writer Tim Sullivan.

I recently had dinner with my friend and fellow 20-something, Gwynn. When the check came, I put down plastic; she put down cash. The following conversation followed:

Gwynn: Would it be easier to just take the cash and put it all on your card?
Me: No, I?ll just have him split it. I tend to do this awesome thing where I take the cash, thinking I?ll get the miles, and then spend the cash on whatever. When the bill comes a month later, I?m wondering why I spent $50 on dinner for myself.
Gwynn: I just don?t trust those things.
Me: Credit cards?
Gwynn: Yeah, never had one, never will.

Gwynn and I kept talking and not only has she never had a credit card, but?

• The only school loan she took out for school was directly from her father.
• She?s never had a car payment.
• She?s never had a mortgage.

Gwynn has never taken out any loan whatsoever.

Do you know your score?
Gwynn has worked at the same non-profit since graduating college and saves with every paycheck. When a big purchase comes up, whether it be a plane ticket or a vacation, she saves and pays out-of-pocket. For her lifestyle, it works great. That said, after our conversation, I got curious about her credit score, and Gwynn said had no idea what it was or really what a credit score is at all. According to the 2011 Financial Literacy Survey by National Foundation for Credit Counseling, two in three adults haven?t checked their credit score in the past 12 months, and one in three have no clue what their score is.

I?ve had a credit card for years now and find it helpful in pursuing my longer term goals. By that I mean, I?m young, but I still want to own a house one day. Although length of credit history is only 15% of my credit score, or FICO score (as it was created by the Fair Isaac Corporation), I still consider my credit card to be my number one way of building a solid credit line, and perhaps more importantly, establishing good credit habits for the future.

Quick overview of credit scores and home mortgages
Let?s review the anatomy of a credit score. There are a few categories that determine your final number. All you Gwynns out there, lend a quick ear?

A FICO score serves as a quick reference guide for lenders to determine the risk level for them to give money. It?s a number between 300-850, the higher the better.

Lenders take your credit score and a few other pieces of information into consideration, such as age and salary, and make a decision about how your loan will play out. In short, a high score will be less risk, therefore a lower APR and less overall cost to the borrower.

Here?s a chart comparing APRs and total cost for a 30-year fixed mortgage on a $500,000 house:

Credit Score	APR	Including interest, your house will cost?
760-850 (best)	4.014%	$860,760
700-759	4.236%	$884,160
680-699	4.413%	$902,880
660-679	4.627%	$925,560
640-659	5.057%	$974,880
620-639 (worst)	5.603%	$1,003,560

Source: myfico.com

What I get from this is that by keeping a good solid line of credit from now until the purchase date of my home (whenever that may be), I will lower my monthly mortgage payment almost $500 a month and end up saving myself near $150,000 in the long run.

What are Gwynn?s options?
Building a solid credit score with my card is working for me. I know my habits, like how I shouldn?t take cash from friends at a restaurant to get the miles on my card.

But if Gwynn wants to start paying more attention to her FICO score, what are her alternatives to credit cards? I called Gwynn and asked her if she had looked up her score with myFICO since we talked. She had, and found that she had no credit record at all, making her one of the 22 million Americans who doesn?t, according to Craig Watts, public relations director at FICO (he adds that another 30 million have very thin files.).

Gwynn says her cardless system is working for her now, but she still wants to build her credit. What are her options?

• According to the FICO website, she can take out a small personal loan from her bank. She already has established a good relationship over the years and should be able to get a small personal loan. When she pays it off quickly, her credit record will start to thicken. Yes, it will affect her score and doesn?t involve a credit card, but this seems like debt for debt?s sake. This isn?t what I would chose to build my score from the ground up.
• Again, according to FICO, a very low-risk solution is to start a secured credit card. A secured credit card involves putting down a given amount of money as collateral ($200 on the low end), and your line of credit is equal to the initial money down. There?s a great article on it here that includes suggestions on specific cards with low annual fees.

A third option? Get a credit card and use it only for automated expenses. Yes, this option involves opening a credit card, but she could only use it to automate a few payments. In about an hour, Gwynn could set up her card to automatically pay off her utilities, cable, and Netflix (or whatever else), and then automate a payment from her checking account to pay off her credit card in full. She?ll get e-mails before transactions go through telling her everything is working like clockwork.

She can put her card in an ice cream carton filled with water and stick it in the freezer if she wants. She can give it to her father and say, ?never ever give this to me ever.? She won?t have access to the numbers, but will still be building credit.

An alternative to the credit card alternatives?
There is a philosophy growing in popularity that having no FICO score is just fine, that everything should be paid without using credit, including a house. There are alternatives to a traditional mortgage loan, such as a bank doing manual underwriting. There are a few forums that discuss pros and cons, such as this one here.

I can understand the philosophy that all purchases, including very large ones like houses and cars, should be made with cash. As with all things personal finance, you have to do what works for you, just as Gwynn does what works for her. I, on the other hand, like how credit cards are improving my credit-worthiness. Cash-only is one option, but I?m not ready to close any doors yet.

There have been some great articles on Get Rich Slowly representing a lot of different credit card viewpoints. Here are a few of my favorites:

What are ways you recommend taking a credit score from zero to hero? Do you think of your credit score as a friend, a necessary evil, or something you can live without?

This article is about Credit Cards??

Source: http://www.getrichslowly.org/blog/2012/03/29/bulking-up-your-credit-score-are-credit-cards-your-best-option/

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African leaders scrap Mali trip after runway invasion

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Source: http://news.yahoo.com/africa-leaders-scrap-mali-visit-mid-flight-violence-131136355.html

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New children and family centre for Swan region - Media Statements ...

• Centre to be built at Middle Swan and Clayton View primary schools

• Parenting skills, child health services, cultural and language programs offered

Families of young children in the Swan region will be able to access child care and health services, early learning programs and parenting support across two primary schools after Education Minister Liz Constable announced the location of the new Swan Children and Family Centre.

?

The centre is one of five Children and Family Centres being developed in Western Australia, and will be built across two sites - Middle Swan Primary School in Stratton and Clayton View Primary School in Koongamia.

?

The Swan Children and Family Centre will complement the 10 Child and Parent Centres, announced last week by the State Government, to offer services to parents in disadvantaged areas.

?

Dr Constable said the centre would provide families with a range of programs and services for all their early learning, health and family support needs.

?

?From talking with the communities, it is clear there is a need in the Swan region for family education such as parenting support, maternal and child health services, and cultural and language programs,? she said.

?

?Primary schools are the best placed sites to give families with young children easy access to these services.?

?

Facilities at the Middle Swan site will include a family centre, creche and health consulting rooms, while child care will be among the services located at the Clayton View site.

?

The Minister said the State Government, as part of the Closing the Gap Indigenous Early Childhood Development National Partnership, aimed to improve health outcomes and halve the gap in reading, writing and numeracy achievements between Aboriginal and non-Aboriginal children in the years to come.

?

?There are a high number of disadvantaged families in the Middle Swan and Koongamia areas and the two schools chosen have a significant percentage of Aboriginal students enrolled,? she said.

?

?This centre will help to ensure that, rather than children playing catch-up when they start school, they are well prepared to go into pre-primary and prosper, which is even more important as pre-primary education becomes compulsory in 2013.

?

?Learning begins at birth and we know the early years are the most vital to a child?s development, so nutrition, good parenting and health care all play vital roles in helping prepare children to do well at school.?

?

Through the national partnership, the Federal Government has provided the State Government with $42.35million to establish five centres, with the other four located at Halls Creek, Fitzroy Crossing, Kununurra and Roebourne.

?

The Swan centre is expected to be completed next year, and open in January 2014.

?

Dr Constable said this was just one of many initiatives to improve the education and development of young children including:

• State Government?s recently announced 10 Child and Parent Centres

• Salary incentives to outstanding principals to attract them to most disadvantaged schools

• Federal Government?s allocation of $5.8million to build three Early Learning and Care Centres

• Assessment of all children in public schools at the start of pre-primary to help teachers tailor learning programs to the specific needs of individual students

• Introduction of compulsory pre-primary education for all children from 2013

• Access to 15 hours of kindergarten a week, increased from 11, for all children by 2013.

??????Fact File

• Tender process will be conducted during 2013 to determine which organisation will run the centre

• Operator will work closely with the Dept of Education to ensure all programs and services consistent with State Govt?s aims

Minister?s office - 6552 5700

Source: http://www.mediastatements.wa.gov.au/Pages/default.aspx?ItemId=149299

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Dialog Semiconductor Extends Green VoIP IC Family to Address ...

KIRCHHEIM/TECK, Germany?(BUSINESS WIRE)?Dialog Semiconductor plc (FWB:DLG), a provider of highly integrated innovative power management, audio and short range wireless technologies, today announced a high performance VoIP phone chipset, the SC14453. The single chip processor enters Dialog?s VoIP portfolio as its flagship product and integrates hardware blocks for best-in-class audio, security and graphics functionality.

?Business user demands have meant that higher performance audio and higher resolution colour touch screens will be an integral part of next generation VoIP phones. The SC14453, with its best-in-class audio and exceptional graphics capabilities, is perfectly positioned to give our customers a competitive edge.?

The SC14453 has been created for mid and high end desktop phones and extends Dialog?s portfolio ? alongside Dialog?s SC14452 and SC14461 ? of award winning Green VoIP ICs, which now contains devices to support entry level through to high end designs.

?VoIP is fast becoming the de facto standard for business and enterprise communications,? said Dr. Asmund Tielens, Vice President and General Manager at Dialog. ?Business user demands have meant that higher performance audio and higher resolution colour touch screens will be an integral part of next generation VoIP phones. The SC14453, with its best-in-class audio and exceptional graphics capabilities, is perfectly positioned to give our customers a competitive edge.?

The on-board multicore VoIP processor delivers 590MIPS of computational power with industry-leading power consumption figures, and integrates stereo analogue codecs and a stereo Class D amplifier with 48kHz support, which along with Dialog?s acoustic echo cancellation and active noise reduction, combine to give best-in-class audio quality for crystal clear voice conversation.

The SC14453?s advanced audio DSPs and its symmetric / asymmetric cryptography accelerator can manage 8 simultaneous SRTP-secured IP calls, and its powerful graphic engine and LCD controller enable the output of fluid graphic user interfaces onto SVGA (800?600) touchscreen LCD displays. Dialog?s unique SafeKey feature based on Intrinsic-ID?s security IP block ensures bank-level security authentication of files and software. The SC14453 Green VoIP platform provides a high level of flexibility for wireless and wired extensions to DECT, CAT-iq, Bluetooth, WiFi, LTE, USB and Gigabit Ethernet.

The SC14453 is based on the highly efficient and ultra low power 32-bit MIPS? M14Kc? processor, has two user-programmable Gen3DSPs, an OpenVG1.1 graphic processing unit and comes in a 15x15mm, 228-pin LLGA package with standard and secure variants.

To reduce time to market Dialog offers a complete SC14453 VoIP development kit and the certified Rhea VoIP software platform, based on the popular open source operating system, Linux. The Dialog SC14453 Green VoIP processor is available now.

Note to editors:

Dialog Semiconductor creates highly integrated, mixed-signal integrated circuits (ICs) optimised for personal portable, low energy short-range wireless, lighting, display and automotive applications. The company provides flexible and dynamic support, world-class innovation and the assurance of dealing with an established business partner.

With its focus and expertise in energy efficient system power management, and now with the recent addition of low energy short range wireless and VoIP technology to the portfolio, Dialog brings decades of experience to the rapid development of ICs?for personal portable applications including smartphones, tablet PCs, digital cordless phones and gaming applications.

Dialog?s power management processor companion chips are essential for enhancing both the performance in terms of extended battery lifetime and the consumers? multimedia experience. With world-class manufacturing partners, Dialog operates a fabless business model.

Dialog Semiconductor plc is headquartered near Stuttgart with a global sales, R&D and marketing organisation. In 2011, it had approximately $527 million in revenue and was one of the fastest growing European public semiconductor companies. It currently has approximately 650 employees. The company is listed on the Frankfurt (FWB: DLG) stock exchange and is a member of the German TecDax index.

View article:
Dialog Semiconductor Extends Green VoIP IC Family to Address High End Phones

Rev :54

Related posts:

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2. Dialog Semiconductor Plc.: Dialog Semiconductor Extends Panasonic Relationship to Power Management and Digital Cordless Technology
3. Dialog Semiconductor VoIP Technology Adopted by VTech for S-Series Desktop Phones
4. Dialog Semiconductor Plc.: Dialog Semiconductor Power Management and Audio ICS Adopted by Samsung for Android Based Smartphones
5. Dialog Semiconductor Plc.: Dialog Semiconductor Schedules Q3 2011 Earnings Call For Tuesday 25 October 2011

Tags: business, delicious, family, feeds, green, industry, news, stumbleupon

Category: VoIP

Source: http://www.enterprisecommunicate.com/dialog-semiconductor-extends-green-voip-ic-family-to-address-high-end-phones/

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US trade upgrade may worsen relations with Russia

U.S. President Barack Obama, left, and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev stand together at the end of a bilateral meeting at the Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, March 26, 2012. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

U.S. President Barack Obama, left, and Russian President Dmitry Medvedev stand together at the end of a bilateral meeting at the Nuclear Security Summit in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, March 26, 2012. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? The Obama administration wants Congress to remove Soviet-era trade restrictions that have been a sore point in U.S.-Russia relations for decades. But the conditions lawmakers are demanding to make the change may only worsen America's increasingly shaky relations with Moscow.

Republicans and Democrats are trying to tie the easing of the so-called Jackson-Vanik restrictions to a measure imposing sanctions against Russian officials linked to human rights abuses. That would infuriate Russia and would be the latest hitch in what administration officials consider a major foreign policy success: improved relations with Russia after a sharp downturn during the Bush administration. They call it the "reset."

Obama administration officials are trying to keep the rights and trade measures apart. They are concerned about retaliation and do not want to aggravate relations further. Tensions have been growing over issues like missile defense and the international response to uprisings in Libya and Syria. But the U.S. still hopes for a degree of cooperation with Russia on other matters, such as stopping Iran's nuclear program.

"We want to deal with trade issues in one sphere and democracy issues and human rights in another sphere," said Michael McFaul, the U.S. ambassador to Russia.

The administration first wants to deal with trade. It has powerful allies in the U.S. business community supporting the repeal of Jackson-Vanik, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, which calls the repeal its top trade priority this year. Russia soon will get more opportunities for international trade when it joins the World Trade Organization. If the U.S. doesn't repeal Jackson-Vanik, American companies could be at a competitive disadvantage.

But it's a delicate matter in an election year. Republicans are reluctant to offer Obama any perceived victory by unconditionally repealing the restrictions. And President Barack Obama doesn't want to appear too critical of the rights measure, which has support from both parties. His likely Republican opponent, Mitt Romney, has attacked Obama for signing a major nuclear arms treaty with Russia.

Obama's handling of relations with Russia became a bigger political issue Monday after he told outgoing Russian President Dmitry Medvedev that he would have more flexibility to deal with the contentious issue of missile defense after the November election. Obama apparently did not realize he was being recorded.

Republicans seized on the remarks, demanding an explanation. And on Tuesday, Obama denied having a hidden agenda. "I want to reduce our nuclear stockpiles. And one of the barriers to doing that is building trust and cooperation around missile defense issues," he said.

Jackson-Vanik has long been a thorn in US-Russian relations. It was introduced in 1974 to pressure the Soviet Union to allow Jews to emigrate. Named after its congressional sponsors, Jackson-Vanik denies normal trading relations with communist countries that restrict emigration or punish those trying to leave the country.

Russia calls it anachronistic, even though the legislation has had little practical effect since 1994, when the United States began waiving its application. Still, previous calls to repeal it have found little traction among lawmakers critical of Russia's human rights record.

Those rights concerns prompted two Democrats, Rep. James McGovern of Massachusetts and Sen. Ben Cardin of Maryland, to propose the Magnitsky bill, which would make it difficult for Russians suspected of abuses from doing business, including using credit cards, outside their country. It also calls for publicly identifying Russians tied to abuses, a significant escalation that the administration worries could rile relations. The measure also is backed by prominent Republicans, including Sen. John McCain.

The bill was named for lawyer Sergey Magnitsky, who died in a Russian jail in 2009, when the pancreatitis he developed was left untreated. Proponents of the bill say the death and allegations of torture highlight corruption in Russia's judicial system.

Prospects were uncertain for getting the measure passed as a stand-alone bill. But with the administration and business groups pushing hard to get Jackson-Vanik repealed, senators saw an opportunity to boost its prospects by tying together the two measures, underscoring the link between trade with Russia and human rights.

The administration tried to defuse the issue last year by issuing travel bans on 60 unnamed Russian officials believed to be responsible for Magnitsky's imprisonment, torture and death. Russia later responded by saying it had banned unnamed U.S. officials it claims were involved in abuses related to U.S. counterterror policies.

If Congress insists on linking the two bills, the administration wants to drop the provision calling for the naming of rights abusers. They argue that such disclosure would be inconsistent with State Department practice and counterproductive, because it would remove the uncertainty that human rights violators already face about whether they are on a U.S. blacklist.

Human rights advocates, though, fear the administration may go too far to avoid upsetting Moscow.

"If the Russian leadership is going to throw U.S.-Russian relations over the side because we are going after Russian officials who engage in gross human rights abuses, then the reset isn't very solid to begin with," says David Kramer, president of the human rights advocacy group Freedom House.

___

Follow Desmond Butler at http://twitter.com/desmondbutler

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2012-03-27-US-Russia-Trade/id-c2fd722db3b04cb8b300b56f1823ef45

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Showing Patients Images of Their Clogged Arteries a Powerful Wake-Up Call

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Source: http://news.yahoo.com/showing-patients-images-clogged-arteries-powerful-wake-call-180404642.html

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Eldercare Services? Blog Archive ? My Mom Has Memory Loss ...

Eileen Zagelow, BA, CMC | Professional Geriatric Care Manager/Director of Care Management Services

There are many aspects to consider when we think about moving a parent or other loved one from their current home to an assisted facility. The family is often immersed in an entirely new world filled with new terms, financial contracts and ?levels of care?. As advocates, we do our best to find the best fit at the right price. We worry about moving day, what to move and how to orchestrate the day.

The next dilemma, that often arises, is that Mom is unhappy and asking to go home. How long will it take for her to adjust? It has already been 2 weeks!

When we are supporting someone with memory issues, we learn that time takes on a new meaning. It becomes a vague expandable context for change. One thing I always suggest to families is that they practice patience and think about how they feel when they are contemplating a move for themselves. There is the anticipation, planning, anxiety ? what if there are obstacles to running smoothly?? What if the kids don?t like the new house ? lots of what ifs! Then there is the actuality of the move ? OK, so here I am ? where is the grocery store, the book store, the pharmacy ? all of the things I need? I don?t know anyone. All of these feelings bubble up, even though you chose this move, planned this move and executed this move!

A person with memory loss often should not be intimately involved in the planning and execution. Mom may not be involved in the move and may or may not remember if she was. It often feels as though Mom has been transplanted to a very attractive place where the people seem nice, but thinks, heavens ? why am I here? Who are these people in the hall? ? I don?t know anyone. Where is my favorite coffee cup, my toaster ? my dog? I don?t like this and I don?t think I will.

The solution takes time, reassurance and lots of support to integrate Mom into her new life. As a Care Manager, I usually recommend that a caregiver come a few days a week for just a few hours and help the person find her way into her new world. For a while, your loved one will be straddling a divide between old and new. Whereas we ?well? people feel more comfortable negotiating our way through new routines and new friendships, they often need help in getting to that phase. In addition, because there is a memory or cognitive problem, the progress is often much slower, occurring in that vague context of time.

It can take a person with memory issues 3 to 6 months to adjust to a move. In the meanwhile we build a safe container around our loved one to soften the adjustments and reframe them as we go. Geriatric Care Managers are very skilled at supporting loved ones and family members in this very delicate journey.

Tags: aging adult, aging parent, assisted living, cognitive impairment, dementia, elder, elder care, elderly, elders, memory loss, older adult, retirement home, senior, senior care, seniors

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Source: http://eldercareanswers.com/2012/03/my-mom-has-memory-loss-how-long-will-it-take-her-to-adjust-to-a-move/

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Financial Advice UK: Debt Management and Mouths to Feed

Just when people?s debt management problems seemed to coming to a crescendo, leading experts warn that food prices across the UK are rising at their fastest rate since 1996 and far exceed many of our European counterparts. To find out more visit http://www.debtmanagementblog.co.uk/

According to a report on This is Money, at a time when consumers didn?t think their wallets could be stretched any further or their debt management plans placed in further jeopardy comes the shock revelation that food prices up and down the country are not increasing at a rate not seen since the dark recession days of the 1990?s and many will seek to get their finances back on track through debt consolidation loans and expertly advised debt consolidation proposals.

Debt Management - Food Furore

The economy in the UK is only now entering its most tumultuous period according to many leading experts and this prediction is born out by the rapid increase in food prices on the supermarket shelves across the country. This is likely to cause profound debt management problems for those consumers whose finances are already considerably stretched and it may well prove to be the straw that broke the camel?s back. According to the report on This is Money, a report released by the EU showed that the average increase in supermarket prices was 7.2% during April and this is only expected to increase in the coming months which is sure to cause many a furrowed brow and millions of consumers seeking expert debt management advice.

Debt Management - Tackling the Issue

Speaking to This is Money, charity ActionAid states, ?The current food crisis amounts to a gross violation of human rights and could fuel a global catastrophe.? This is likely to be largely felt in terms of a debt management crisis and the resulting financial implications of finding oneself in untenable financial arrears. Many in such a position are likely to endeavour to tackle their debt management problems head on and utilise schemes such as a debt consolidation loan or expert advice from financial specialists.

Source: http://www-financial-advice-uk.blogspot.com/2012/03/debt-management-and-mouths-to-feed.html

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Gross! January Jones Eats Her Own Placenta

Gross! January Jones Eats Her Own Placenta

“Mad Men” actress January Jones welcomed her son Xander in September 2011, but has always remained hush-hush about the identity of the child’s father. But, [...]

Gross! January Jones Eats Her Own Placenta Stupid Celebrities Gossip Stupid Celebrities Gossip News

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/stupidcelebrities/~3/OVXdaXitObU/

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Blogger Reviews, Giveaways, and a $250 Gift Card! ? Author ...

Okay, I?m sort of recovered from the crazy that was release day for A TEMPTATION OF ANGELS. If I owe you an email or a tweet or a Facebook comment or ANYTHING, I promise you, I?m working on it.

First things first; Like many people, I buy a lot of stuff online. I live in a very rural area where the nearest bookstore is almost an hour away, the nearest Thai restaurant is 40 minutes away, and the only restaurant in town that delivers is a pizza place ? four of them, to be exact.

As a single mother to four teenagers, sometimes I just can?t get in my car and make the haul somewhere to buy something (not to mention how expensive gas is ? eeek!). Enter online shopping.

That said, I would HATE to come to a place where we don?t have any more brick and mortar stores, because sometimes, there?s nothing like going to a bookstore or a music store or a natural foods store and just? wandering. So I?m going to do something to encourage brick and mortar buying.

I?m offering up entries for a $250 bookstore gift card (you can choose ? Indiebound, Books-a-Million, B&N, Book Depository, Amazon, etc.) to anyone who purchases A TEMPTATION OF ANGELS in ANY brick-and-mortar store.

Yes. $250!

All you have to do is send a picture of your receipt (please make sure it?s legible) to prophecypress@aol.com.

And I?ll give you one entry for EVERY copy of TEMPTATION you purchase at a brick and mortar store.

This giveaway is open to residents of the US and Canada (the release date for Temptation is different in other countries) and runs from the release day of TEMPTATION (March 20th)? through Midnight EST on Tuesday April 3rd. So if you purchased the book at a brick and mortar store prior to now, you are still eligible to win. If you?ve already supplied a brick and mortar receipt for a bookplate, just shoot as en email and we?ll enter you automatically. Plus, I?ll still send you a signed bookplate for your book and a bookmark.

That?s it! No tweeting, no Facebook status, no blog posts. Just a receipt for your copy or copies of TEMPTATION from a brick and mortar store.

Now, I need to give a little blog review and giveaway love!

Seventeen Magazine said A TEMPTATION OF ANGELS, ??will leave you craving more until the very end.?

The Story Siren is hosting a TEMPTATION swag giveaway and said about the book; ?An absolutely beautiful story! I only hope there is more to come! There is more, right??

Alice Marvels said A TEMPTATION OF ANGELS is, ?? always a delicious, captivating ride.?

Dark Faerie Tales said, ?Zink builds a convincing and mysterious world around historical London that will keep you turning the pages!?

Esther?s Ever After called TEMPTATION, ?? an addictive, fascinating, page-turner that?s remarkably refreshing for its genre.?

Christine Fonseca, author of another angel book called LACRIMOSA, says TEMPTATION is, ?? a beautifully crafted historical tale that tackles themes I can really relate to ? love, betrayal, temptation.?

The Book Faery said Temptation was, ?? most definitely a One-Sit-Read for me, my highest honor!?

Nina Reads said, ?Michelle Zink has once again created something completely original? If this is not on your to-read list already, add it now!?

Starting the Next Chapter said, ?Michelle Zink has created a wonderfully imaginative take on the battle between angels and demons that will set your imagination alight.

Thanks for all the kind words, you guys!

And there are some blogger giveaways still in play, too!

Novel Thoughts has two awesome TEMPTATION prize packs up for grabs!

There is ONE MORE DAY to enter WhatchYAReading?s giveaway, including swag and book store gift cards!

The Story Siren?s TEMPTATION giveaway also includes swag and a book store gift card!

You have two more weeks to enter I Am a Reader Not a Writer?s giveaway for a signed copy of A TEMPTATION OF ANGELS plus swag.

Aaaaand! Don?t forget that you still have 9 days to enter the massive Ipad giveaway right here! There are tons of amazing prizes, and all you have to do is help me spread the word that Temptation is out in the world. Easy!

And lastly, a big shout out and thank you to Kelsey at Reading or Breathing for rallying the troops to help me with a little distribution problem.

Source: http://michellezink.com/blogger-reviews-giveaways-and-a-250-gift-card

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2 Florida officials step aside in teen death probe

Sanford Police Chief Bill Lee speaks to the the media during a news conference Thursday, March 22, 2012 as city manager Norton Bonaparte Jr. listens at left, in Sanford Fla. Lee, who has been bitterly criticized for not arresting a neighborhood watch volunteer in the shooting death of an unarmed black teenager, announced that he is temporarily stepping down to let passions cool. (AP Photo/Julie Fletcher)

Sanford Police Chief Bill Lee speaks to the the media during a news conference Thursday, March 22, 2012 as city manager Norton Bonaparte Jr. listens at left, in Sanford Fla. Lee, who has been bitterly criticized for not arresting a neighborhood watch volunteer in the shooting death of an unarmed black teenager, announced that he is temporarily stepping down to let passions cool. (AP Photo/Julie Fletcher)

George Zimmerman is seen in police mug shot provided by the Orange County, Fla., Jail, via The Mimai Herald, from a 2005 arrest. Zimmerman is the neighborhood watch captain who shot unarmed teenager Trayvon Martin, 17, in a gated community in Sanford, Fla. in February 2012. (AP Photo/Orange County Jail via Miami Herald)

In this undated photo provided by the Martin family, Trayvon Martin holds an unidentified baby. Martin, 17 of Miami Springs, Fla., was killed by a neighborhood watchman following an altercation in Sanford, Fla. as he walked from a convenience store in February, 2012. (AP Photo/Martin Family, File)

People participate in a rally for Trayvon Martin, the teen shot by George Michael Zimmerman while on Neighborhood Watch patrol, in Sanford, Fla., Thursday, March 22, 2012. Zimmerman's claim of shooting the teen in self defense has been questioned by community leaders. (AP Photo/Roberto Gonzalez)

Tracy Martin, father of Trayvon Martin speaks to thousands gathered before a rally at Fort Mellon Park in Sanford, Fla. Thursday, March 22, 2012. (AP Photo/Julie Fletcher)

SANFORD, Fla. (AP) ? The police chief who's been bitterly criticized for not arresting a neighborhood watch volunteer in the shooting death of an unarmed black teenager and the county prosecutor both left the case Thursday, with the chief saying that he is temporarily stepping down to let passions cool.

Sanford Police Chief Bill Lee's decision came less than a day after city commissioners gave him a "no confidence" vote, and after a couple of weeks of protests and uproar on social media websites. Lee has said evidence in the case supported George Zimmerman's assertion that the Feb. 26 shooting of 17-year-old Trayvon Martin was in self-defense.

"I do this in the hopes of restoring some semblance of calm to a city which has been in turmoil for several weeks," Lee said.

About three hours later, Gov. Rick Scott announced that the local state attorney, Norman Wolfinger, had recused himself from the case. In a letter to Scott, Wolfinger said that while he thought he could fairly oversee any prosecution that develops in the case, his recusal was aimed at "toning down the rhetoric and preserving the integrity of the investigation." Scott appointed Angela B. Corey, the state attorney for the Jacksonville area, to take over the case.

Scott also appointed a task force led by Lt. Gov. Jennifer Carroll to conduct hearings on the case and to make recommendations for any changes to state law or procedures. Carroll is African-American.

Martin was returning from a trip to a convenience store when Zimmerman started following him, telling police dispatchers he looked suspicious. At some point, the two got into a fight and Zimmerman pulled out his gun.

Zimmerman told police Martin attacked him after he had given up on chasing the teenager and was returning to his sport utility vehicle. Police say the 28-year-old Zimmerman is white; his family says he's Hispanic.

The shooting ignited resentment toward the police department in this Orlando suburb for not making an arrest. Civil rights groups have held rallies in Florida and New York, saying the shooting was unjustified.

Thousands at a rally led by civil rights leader Al Sharpton at a downtown Sanford park on Thursday night demanded more be done.

"We cannot allow a precedent when a man can just kill one of us ... and then walk out with the murder weapon," said Sharpton, flanked by Martin's parents and a stage full of supporters. "We don't want good enough. We want George Zimmerman in court with handcuffs behind his back."

The police chief stood behind his agency's investigation.

"As a former homicide investigator, a career law enforcement officer and a father, I am keenly aware of the emotions associated with this tragic death of a child. I'm also aware that my role as a leader of this agency has become a distraction from the investigation," Lee said in announcing he was stepping down for now.

It wasn't immediately how long the police chief would step aside. Martin's parents said that wasn't enough, and that Zimmerman should be taken into custody.

"We want an arrest, we want a conviction and we want him sentenced for the murder of my son," Martin's father, Tracy, said to the fiery crowd of rally goers.

Some people said the police chief should step down for good.

"If they wanted to defuse a potential powder keg, he needed to resign," said pastor Eugene Walton, 58, who was born and raised in Sanford. "His inaction speaks loudly to the black community."

News of the police chief's decision to step aside spread quickly among the protesters, many of whom showed up more than two hours before the start of the rally. They chanted "The chief is gone. Zimmerman is next."

Some carried signs that said: "100 years of lynching, justifiable homicide. Same thing." Others sold T-shirts that read: "Arrest Zimmerman."

"It's the norm around here, where anything involving black culture, they want to wipe their hands of it," said Shella Moore, who is black and grew up in Sanford.

The Justice Department and FBI have opened a civil rights investigation, and the prosecutor before he quit the case convened a grand jury April 10 to determine whether to charge Zimmerman.

Before the rally, Martin's parents met with the local U.S. attorney, the deputy assistant attorney general for civil rights in Washington and the head of the FBI's Tampa office to discuss the investigation.

"We listened carefully to the concerns of the family and their representatives," Special Agent Dave Couvertier, an FBI spokesman, said in a statement. "We continue to extend our deepest condolences to Trayvon's family for their loss."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2012-03-22-Neighborhood%20Watch-Death/id-c1ff8047c4a6497d85c389a125eaa542

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