Sunday, October 14, 2012
Friday, October 12, 2012
Giant 'mystery eyeball' discovered on South Florida beach:
Carli Segelson, spokeswoman for the agency, said the eyeball is slightly larger than a baseball and presumably belonged to some kind of marine animal.
"We're hoping to determine what kind, but at this point we just don't know," Segelson said.
The eyeball is being preserved and will be delivered to the agency's research lab in St. Petersburg, where it's hoped an official identification can be made.
Meanwhile, people are making all sorts of guesses.
Perhaps the best comes from George Burgess of the Florida Museum of Natural History. Burgess has suggested that the eye may have belonged to a bigeye thresher shark. The species is found off Florida in moderately deep water, and the sharks are aptly named.
Other guesses have appeared on the FWC's Facebook page.
"I'm going for a whale eye ...," reads one comment.
"Giant squid?" reads another.
Then there was this more adventurous theory: "A giant squid ripped out a whale's eye."
Segelson said it might be several days before a precise identification is made.
Monday, October 8, 2012
High school students suspended for possession of energy mints:
A group of high school students in Pekin, Ill., were suspended last week after school officials suspected the mints they were eating were actually illegal drugs. Jason McMichael, the father of one of the students, told the Journal Star that his 17-year-old son Eric was suspended for two days from Pekin Community High School and not allowed to attend the school's homecoming festivities after staffers found four students eating energy mint tablets that are marketed like caffeine energy drinks. McMichael said he received a phone call from the dean's office informing him of his son's suspension and that the teen was being monitored by the school nurse for an elevated heart rate—though McMichael doesn't believe it was due to the energy mints. "He's never been in trouble," McMichael said. "He was probably just nervous." Eric McMichael said he and three others were eating Revive tablets—touted as "nature's energy mints"—in the school cafeteria when they were disciplined. "People bring energy drinks to school every day," the teen told Central Illinois' WMBD-TV. "I see this every day and we get in trouble for energy mints?" According to EnergyFiend.com, each mint contains 101 milligrams of caffeine along with guarana, green tea, ginseng, acai, mangosteen and goji. The Revive brand is endorsed by several MMA fighters and fitness pageant contestants. McMichael's father said school officials later admitted they did not know if the chewable, unmarked mints were, in fact, illegal drugs but upheld the suspensions anyway, saying the teens displayed "gross misconduct for taking an unknown product." "Now they know nothing illegal happened," McMichael said on Friday, "but they're still pursuing the suspension." Superintendent Paula Davis told the paper that while she was not able to discuss the incident, school officials would have been within their rights to discipline the students if they were seen "ingesting things that look like unmarked pills."
Thursday, October 4, 2012
American Airlines Resumes Talks With Pilots After Scares and Delays
Delays and plane maintenance issues have finally led American Airlines management and the pilots' union back to the bargaining table for the first time in weeks.
After a tumultuous week of seats' becoming loose, flipping over in mid-flight in one case, American Airlines announced it was resuming stalled contract negotiations with its pilots' union.
Today, another safety issue put American Airlines under the microscope because of a mid-flight maintenance scare when a plane's landing-gear warning light jammed after take-off.
Flight 1862 from Dallas to St. Louis had to return for an emergency landing 10 minutes into the flight Tuesday. The passengers were told to brace for a crash landing at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport.
Jim Faulkner, an American Airlines spokesman, said the flight turned back to the airport without incident around 8:40 a.m. local time. Passengers were put on another plane to St. Louis.
"When they said assume the position, it was scary," passenger Elaine Krieger said.
Some passengers were left to wonder whether the landing-gear concern was real, well aware of the airline's recent trouble with labor.
"Some people are cheering as we landed, and the rest of us are thinking, 'Is this a scenario they created, or was it real?'" passenger Jeff Estes said. "Are they really heroes, or are they guys just creating a job action?"
Former American Airlines pilot Ron Carr said pilots would not go that far, but it's clear he said that despite union denials, pilots are using their ultimate power in the cockpit to delay flights by forcing even small maintenance issues, like a broken coffee pot, to be fixed before takeoff.
"I think there's a lot of things that could be written up on an aircraft," Carr said. "You have a, a very complex machine that's being operated and there's always going to be something that's not quite right that could be written up."
Carr, who is currently an assistant professor of aeronautical science at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, added that he did not think any pilot would resort to "sabotage" as that would be a safety issue.
"That would be very stupid on their part to pull a stunt like that… they would not do anything is that nature to jeopardize, or purposefully, to cause a problem to cause a delay. That's not going to happen, in my opinion," he said.
If pilots are using their authority to delay flights, it is a tactic that seems to be working for pilots who have put pressure on American by doubling delays and inconveniencing customers.
Thomas Horton, CEO of American parent AMR Corp., said Tuesday in a statement that he was pleased that "intensive bargaining" was scheduled to begin this week.
"It has been a very challenging couple of weeks for our company. As you know, our operations have experienced significant disruption, affecting our customers, our people and our owners," Horton said.
Wednesday, October 3, 2012
Critics take aim at underwhelming Resident Evil 6
It might have morphed into a lucrative film franchise, but the game that put survival horror on the map is returning to its roots.
Releasing Tuesday, Resident Evil 6 lets gamers fight off undead beasts as multiple characters from the franchise's 15-year history. It's the largest Resident Evil game yet -- and it's gotten a significant push from both publisher Capcom and partners like Microsoft, who put it center stage during its E3 press conference earlier this year. In a holiday season filled with huge names like Halo and Call of Duty, it still manages to stand out.
But something is rotten in the state of Resident Evil, and it's not the corpses. Critics are ripping into the new game like a hungry zombie, calling it poorly paced and poorly executed.
"This is a wannabe action film that resents your interference, and punishes you by forcing one horrible quick-time event after another upon you," writes GameSpot, which gives the game a mere 4.5 out of 10. "There's a place for contextual prompts and cinematic storytelling in video games, but Resident Evil 6 is a mishmash of elements put together without any sense of care or direction. Series faithful might stumble through for the sake of story, and perhaps to appreciate those few moments that recall when Resident Evil was at its peak glory. But this long, poor sequel is the ultimate test of patience for even the most dedicated."
Joystiq is equally unimpressed.
"If every idea had come together without friction, and with the aid of Capcom's top-notch presentation, Resident Evil 6 would have been a tremendous action game," they write in a 2.5/5 review. "Instead, it's a fully-featured, sloppy, frequently frustrating attempt to do well by everyone."
That sentiment is echoed by Polygon in a brutal 4/10 review that calls the games "an oversized behemoth" and "a franchise-diminishing disappointment."
"In the end, Resident Evil 6 resembles one of its grotesque mutations — bloated, out of control, and recklessly trying to consume everything around it," gripe reviewer Philip Kollar.
While dialogue has never been a particularly strong suit in the Resident Evil games, critics say it's especially cringe-worthy this time out. And the pacing is being particularly lambasted.
"I constantly found myself wondering: Is this game in some kind of hurry?" notes 1Up's Jose Otero. "You'd think as much from the intrusive waypoint marker system. … These on-screen markers constantly rob RE6 of tension. … The unfortunate truth is that Capcom hasn't figured out a new way to terrify gamers in the eight years since RE4." They award it a C+.
G4, meanwhile, rips into Capcom's development decisions, giving it a 2.5/5 while saying this installment "completely changes the core gameplay that made the series so great, and instead goes for something that resembles their idea of Uncharted or an over the top action experience. Unfortunately, this means that the rest of the game suffered, leaving a broken shell of a game."
So is it just an unmitigated train wreck? Not if you ask Game Informer, who dole out a whopping 88/100 while calling it "an unhinged, flaming rollercoaster ride" and praising the game's co-op feature. And though IGN's 7.9/10 is tempered by loads of complaints, the site applauds Resident's Evil 6's production values and cleverly integrated storylines.
The game also enjoyed a number of well-attended midnight launch events at retail stores across the country, so perhaps the critical take won't sway consumer interest. But with a current Metacritic average of only 68, it's a rough start to the holiday season for Capcom. That's not quite a death knell, but it's clear this undead franchise isn't what it used to be.
How to become a barbie tutorial :D
Still deciding on this year's Halloween costume? Check out this flower fairy makeup tutorial by Anastasiya Shpagina (a.k.a Fukkacumi), from Ukraine. The 19-year-old hair stylist uses extreme makeup techniques and costumes to transform herself into a real-life anime character. "I'm not a like a doll, a doll is like me," she writes on her vk.com (a European version of Facebook) page.
It takes Shpagina about an hour to achieve her doe-eyed look—don't worry, the video is only six minutes long. Photographs on her Facebook fan page show a dangerously waifish young woman with deep crimson hair. She says she would like to one day have surgery to reshape her eyes and nip in her waist even more drastically. Shpagina is reported to weigh only about 90 pounds. Her VK page is posted with images that inspire her such as dragonflies, flowers, butterflies, tiny deer, and other woodland creatures, but her true muse is Valerie Lukyanova, the 21-year-old who sparked controversy in the spring by using plastic surgery and photo retouching to become a real-life Barbie.
My life without you don't have a meaning!!!
You're so beautifulSo breathtakingly perfectly beautiful
At times I literally cannot take my eyes off of you
And you catch me staring and blush and say "What? What's wrong?"
When it's only too perfectly right.
Even your annoying little faults are all the more endearing
Coz they're all so completely your own
And it's part of what makes you you.
And I love you.
Head over heels for you
So bitterly and tragically fallen more deeply than ever before.
You can say no.
You have more than enough cause to.
But if you do, it'll break my heart more assuredly than I've ever known.
All other girls I've been able to get over.
Not you.
You are not like them.
You are unlike them all.
Every time we touch you send fire through my veins
Every time I feel your skin my heart races exponentially.
I miss you so much when we're apart
So much I can scarcely even breathe.
I used to laugh at the lovers who used to say such things with annoying languid sighs
But now I know how true it really is.
I don't deserve you. Don't see what you see in me.
You can say no.
But if you don't
You'll make me the happiest man in the world.
And I'm not just saying that.
You mean more to me than life itself.
You ARE my life.
Tuesday, October 2, 2012
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North Korea: Spark could set off nuclear war:
A Nuclear War Thats Just What We Need Now!! With The Crisis All Around The World And Now A F¤¤¤¤ War????
UNITED NATIONS (AP) — A North Korean minister lashed out at the United States on Monday, warning that its "hostile" policy has left the Korean peninsula a spark away from a nuclear war.Addressing the final session of the U.N. General Assembly's annual high-level meeting, Vice Foreign Minister Pak Kil Yon said the Koreas have become "the world's most dangerous hotspot" and pledged to use the North's "mighty" military deterrent against any "reckless provocations."
"The only way to prevent war and ensure lasting peace on the Korean peninsula is to put an end to the U.S. hostile policy towards the DPRK," he said, using the initials of the country's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.
The U.S. State Department had no comment on the speech.
Pak addressed the 193-member world body for the first time since the death in December of North Korea's longtime leader Kim Jong Il and the transfer of power to his son, Kim Jong Un. His speech gave some clues about the foreign policy approach of the new leader, whom Pak addressed as "our dear respected marshal."
Pak said Kim is leading efforts to advance his father's economic development program with his own "insight into the world," and is implementing an "independent foreign policy" and opening a new chapter in developing relations with friendly countries "not bound by the past."
Much of his speech focused on North Korea's continuing state of war with the United States more than 60 years after the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice but no peace treaty. Pak said Pyongyang's view that from the day the country was founded Washington's intention has been "to destroy the ideas and system chosen by our people and to occupy the whole of the Korean peninsula and to use it as a stepping-stone for realizing its strategy of dominating the whole of Asia."
"Today, due to the continued U.S. hostile policy towards the DPRK," Pak said, "the vicious cycle of confrontation and aggravation of tension is an ongoing phenomenon on the Korean peninsula, which has become the world's most dangerous hotspot where a spark of fire could set off a thermonuclear war."
Since 2003, the U.S., Russia, China, Japan and South Korea have been trying to negotiate a disarmament deal with North Korea that would halt its nuclear program. But the North moved ahead, conducting a nuclear test in 2006 which led to U.N. sanctions. The North walked away from the talks in 2009 and later that year exploded its second nuclear device. So far, efforts to re-start the six-party talks have failed.
Pak said the United States has finalized scenarios for a new Korean War and "is waiting for a chance to implement them" and impose military rule after an invasion.
The latest military drill in August involving more than 80,000 troops from the U.S., South Korea and seven countries that fought with them in the Korean War "drove the situation on the Korean peninsula to the brink of war," Pak said.
,In an apparent reference to North Korea's nuclear arsenal and massive military, Pak said his nation's "patience and self-defensive war deterrent," have prevented U.S. military provocations "from turning into an all-out war on the Korean peninsula."
"However, the DPRK's patience does not mean it is unlimited," he warned.
While the government aims to build "a prosperous and powerful state," Pak said, the North was right to build a strong military and "war deterrent" as a "mighty weapon" to respond immediately to provocations and confront any aggression "with a just war of reunifying the country."
Ties between the divided Koreas are at a low point following a failed North Korean rocket launch in April that Washington, Seoul and others have called a cover for a test of long-range missile technology. North Korea says the rocket, which broke apart shortly after liftoff, was meant to launch an observational satellite. Many South Koreans also remain jittery from two 2010 attacks blamed on Pyongyang that killed 50 South Koreans.
Pak lamented that the atmosphere of reconciliation and agreements spawned by historic North-South summit meetings in 2000 and 2007 were negated when South Korean President Lee Myung-bak took office in 2008 and drove relations between the Koreas "to the worst state." Lee will step down after presidential elections in South Korea in December, which Pak didn't mention.
South Korea's Unification Ministry said Tuesday that the North's provocations have made it difficult for relations to improve, denying Pak's claim that Seoul is to blame for the deterioration in ties.
The North Korean minister did say his government "will join hands with anyone who truly wants the reunification of the country and reconciliation" without interference from outside forces.
NYC 'Master Key' Sold On eBay for $150:
Must Watch!!!
NYC 'Master Key' Sold On eBay for $150
A New York Post reporter bought a NYFD "fireman's key ring" from a retired locksmith on eBay for $150. Turns out the keys are still good and can control elevators, circuit breakers, subway entrances, and traffic lights. This can't be legal, can it? Nope. Turns out it might not be. Both the NYPD and NYFD are investigating the seller. In our second story, what does the smallest apartment in London look like? You know, besides looking really, really small.
Romney: Debates won’t be about ‘winning or losing’:
DENVER—Two days before his first face-off with President Barack Obama, Mitt Romney said on Monday that the presidential debate won't be about "winning or losing" but instead it will be a chance for the candidates to describe the "pathway" on which they'd like to take the country.
"People want to know who's going to win, who's going to score the punches, and who's going to make the biggest difference in the arguments they make," Romney told supporters at a rally inside a local air and space museum here. "There's going to be all the scoring of winning and losing and, you know, in my view, it's not so much winning and losing or even the people themselves, the president and myself, it's about something bigger than that."
"These debates are an opportunity for each of us to describe the pathway forward for America that we would choose and the American people are going to have to make their choice as to what kind of America they'd want," Romney continued.
In his final public rally before Wednesday's debate, the Republican presidential nominee said he was "delighted" to have the chance to meet his opponent on a debate stage—especially in Colorado, a state he said could very likely determine the outcome of the presidential election.
"I believe the people of Colorado will choose a better way forward for our country," Romney said.
Unresolved fiscal cliff could raise taxes for 90 percent of U.S. families:
If Congress and President Obama don't reach budget deal by Dec. 31, taxes could go up an average of $3,500 per household
(CBS News) Monday marks the first day of the federal government's new fiscal year, but there is not much to celebrate because we are headed toward what's being called a fiscal cliff.
There were dire new warnings Monday about what will happen to American families unless Congress and the president reach a budget deal by December 31. That is the day that several tax cuts will expire, and big cuts in federal spending will take hold.
As fiscal cliff looms, Americans face hefty tax hike
4 tax moves to gird for the "fiscal cliff"
What is the "fiscal cliff"? A Q&A
Tax experts said 90 percent of American families are facing what they will call "unprecedented tax increases."
According to the non-partisan Tax Policy Center, the U.S. is on the threshold of one of the largest tax increases in history, a tax hike that could average $3,500 for every American household.
Without actions from Congress, the report says taxes will go up next year by 20 percent, or $536 billion overall. It will hit Americans at every income level including those living below the poverty line. For a middle income family making $40,000 per year, the tax increase is $2,000.
The increases are so large because the nation's biggest tax cuts all expire three months from now on New Year's Day. They include the Bush-era federal income tax cuts, the payroll tax cut that lowered Social Security and Medicare taxes, and several remaining stimulus tax cuts. They all go away January 1 unless Congress and the president reach a deal on the budget.
Many economists are concerned that a tax increase of that size will shock the economy and trigger a recession by reducing the cash taxpayers have to spend. But now, Congress and the president have a firm price tag on what it costs if they don't reach a budget deal after the election.
America could be ‘taken over,’ warns Ross Perot:
Former presidential contender and billionaire Ross Perot is worried that America is a sitting duck for an unnamed foreign invader. In an interview for his new autobiography, Perot said the nation's weak economy has left us open for a hostile takeover—and neither presidential candidate is the man to save the country.
Citing an impending fiscal cliff, Perot warned of disaster. "If we are that weak, just think of who wants to come here first and take us over," the former CEO of info-tech company Perot Systems told USA Today on Monday.
"The last thing I ever want to see is our country taken over because we're so financially weak, we can't do anything," Perot says.
When asked for his take on the presidential race, Perot added, "Nobody that's running really talks about it, about what we have to do and why we have to do it. They would prefer not to have it discussed."
However cryptic he may be, this is the first political reckoning by Perot in years, ever since he withdrew from the political landscape after the fall of his Reform Party in the 2000 election. The man who ran the most successful third-party campaigns in contemporary American politics also expressed optimism about the current tea party activism and its efforts to "wake up" both Washington and the electorate.
Still, he thinks that even the fresh voices in the populist, small-government tea party movement aren't focusing on the real doomsday issue: the deficit. Comparing the Washington establishment to a bunch of fiscal drunks, Perot is still waiting for America to undergo an intervention, before it finds itself owned by a new global power. "It's like the guy who's drinking—sooner or later, he's got to put a cork on the bottle, right?"
IKEA Regrets Women Erased From Saudi Catalog:
Compare the annual IKEA catalogs disbursed around the world and they are nearly identical, save for a slight difference.
The difference is not in the Swedish translations of the furniture or the mock layouts of the numerous living rooms in the catalog. The discrepancy lies in the people who are portrayed in the company's catalog enjoying themselves in and around the IKEA furniture.
Saudi Arabia's IKEA catalog does not include women in the scenes.
In Saudi Arabia, women cannot drive cars but can vote as of last year.
One of the most obvious examples is a page in the IKEA catalog, published in Sweden and disbursed around the world, where there is a women standing beside a young boy in a bathroom.
However, in the Saudi Arabian version of the catalog, the young woman has disappeared and the boy is standing alone.
"We should have reacted and realized that excluding women from the Saudi Arabian version of the catalog is in conflict with the IKEA Group values," the company said in a statement this morning.
On IKEA's Saudi Arabian website, the catalog is available to be downloaded in Arabic. The catalog solely showcases men and young children. Women are completely excluded from the photos.
In the IKEA catalog downloaded on the United States website, families (including mothers, fathers and children) are depicted inside the living room and kitchen scenes.
"IKEA Saudi Arabia is run by a franchisee outside the IKEA Group," the company said in their statement, but the catalogs themselves are produced by the IKEA Group for all their IKEA markets.
Ulrika Englesson Sandman, spokesman for Inter IKEA Systems B.V., explained that "the mistake happened during the work process occurring before presenting the draft catalogue for IKEA Saudi Arabia. We take full responsibility for the mistakes made."
"As a producer of the catalog, we regret the current situation," IKEA added.
Additionally, IKEA removed the image of a female designer, featured in their other catalogs, who assisted in designing a line of their home furnishings.
"It's impossible to retouch women out of reality," Swedish Minister of Trade Ewa Björling told Metro newspaper. "These images are yet another regrettable example that shows we have a long road ahead when it comes to gender equality in Saudi Arabia."
IKEA's catalog is distributed in 41 countries.
IKEA did not immediately respond to a question asking if other catalogs beside Saudi Arabia's had been altered.
Monday, October 1, 2012
IPad mini already in production in Brazil, says report:
According to a new report, Apple's next iPad -- or at least the smaller version of it -- is already being produced in Brazil.
According to a new report, Apple's next iPad -- or at least the smaller version of it -- is already being produced in Brazil.
A smaller version of Apple's iPad is already in production according to a new report.
Citing an anonymous source, Japanese Apple blog Macotakara today says that production of the product is underway in a "Brazilian factory."No other details on parts of physical form factor or offered, short of that the same source says the unit is missing a microphone on its backside, a rumored design cue currently found in Apple's iPhone 5.
As debate looms, Romney calls Obama weak on foreign policy
(Reuters) - Republican challenger Mitt Romney launched a fresh attempt on Monday to paint President Barack Obama as weak on foreign policy, saying he has let U.S. leadership atrophy, while the two candidates prepared for Wednesday's critical first debate.
Romney's aides said the weak U.S. economy remains his chief priority heading into the November 6 election, but the Democratic president's handling of national security is also fair game.
This line of attack could be tricky for Romney, who drew heavy criticism for a hasty initial reaction to upheaval in Egypt and Libya last month in which the U.S. ambassador to Libya was killed in an attack along with three other Americans.
Romney is under enormous pressure for a good performance at Wednesday night's debate in Denver. His campaign has looked shaky since a leaked video emerged two weeks ago in Romney says 47 percent of Americans are "victims" who depend on government, do not pay federal income taxes and are unlikely to support him.
Seeking to take some of the shine off Obama's national security credentials, which include the 2011 killing of al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, the Romney team is aiming to portray Obama as overseeing a period of American decline in the world.
In a Wall Street Journal opinion article, Romney accused Obama of being too timid in responding to the Syrian civil war, the election of an Islamist president in Egypt, the attack on the U.S. mission in Libya, and the threat of Iran developing a nuclear weapon it could use against U.S. ally Israel.
"These developments are not, as President Obama says, mere 'bumps in the road.' They are major issues that put our security at risk," Romney wrote.
"Yet amid this upheaval, our country seems to be at the mercy of events rather than shaping them. ... And that's dangerous. If the Middle East descends into chaos, if Iran moves toward nuclear breakout, or if Israel's security is compromised, America could be pulled into the maelstrom," Romney wrote.
Taking aim at Obama on national security may be an uphill battle for Romney. Reuters/Ipsos poll findings show Americans believe Obama has a better plan to deal with the threat of terrorism by 43 percent to about 30 percent for Romney.
Romney continues to trail Obama in opinion polls five weeks before the election. Obama maintained a lead of 5 percentage points - 46 percent to 41 percent - in a Reuters/Ipsos daily tracking poll released on Monday. Last Thursday, the same poll showed Obama with an advantage of 7 percentage points.
"I think even our opponents will agree right now that this is a closing race," Romney senior adviser Kevin Madden said.
A Washington Post/ABC News poll released on Monday showed Obama leading by 11 percentage points among likely voters in nine battleground states where the election likely will be decided, even as the race is essentially tied nationally.
In his Wall Street Journal piece, Romney told Obama to take a harder line with Iran and to back Israel.
"When we say an Iranian nuclear weapons capability - and the regional instability that comes with it - is unacceptable, the ayatollahs must be made to believe us," Romney wrote.
The White House argues that Western sanctions are having a crippling effect on Iran's economy as reflected by its currency losing a quarter of its value against the dollar in only a week.
As part of the Republican attempt to chip away at Obama's foreign policy record, the pro-Romney group American Crossroads released a video that questioned his reaction to the attack last month on the U.S. mission in Benghazi, Libya, in which the U.S. ambassador was killed.
"What did President Obama do on the same day as a terrorist attack on American citizens? He campaigned in Las Vegas. ... President Obama needs to learn: Being president isn't just about being on TV and protecting your job. It's about leadership. It's time for a president who gets it," the video said.
Romney added that Obama "has allowed our leadership to atrophy," has no strategy to encourage a positive outcome from the Arab Spring revolutions, and has alienated Israel.
"By failing to maintain the elements of our influence and by stepping away from our allies, President Obama has heightened the prospect of conflict and instability," he wrote.
Aides said Romney plans to deliver a foreign policy address in the days following the first debate, probably next week.
Wednesday's debate will mark the first time the two candidates will stand on the same stage together in the campaign. Both sides have been working to lower expectations, each calling the other a better debater.
Romney engaged in a session of debate preparation at a Burlington, Massachusetts hotel before flying to Denver for an evening rally. Obama was in the Las Vegas suburb of Henderson working on his own preparations for the debate.
"Governor Romney, he's a good debater," Obama told a rally in Las Vegas on Sunday night. "I'm just okay."
Given Obama's tendency to meander, aides said they have been trying to get the president to give snappier answers to questions and limit the professorial nature of his responses.
Romney's aides have been working to make sure he does not come off as scolding and to encourage him not to quibble about the rules as he did in some debates during the Republican presidential primary battle.
(Additional reporting by Jeff Mason; Writing by Steve Holland; Editing by Alistair Bell)
Original post: http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/10/01/us-usa-campaign-idUSBRE88N13D20121001
Arnold Schwarzenegger's marriage to Maria Shriver was full of secrets:
Arnold Schwarzenegger can keep a secret – and he kept many from his wife of 25 years, Maria Shriver.[Related: Arnold Schwarzenegger on Affair: 'Worst Thing I've Ever Done']
Appearing on “60 Minutes” Sunday to promote his new book, Total Recall: My Unbelievably True Life Story, Schwarzenegger – who referred to himself as “an expert in living in denial” – said he hid many things from his wife during their marriage. Of course one of those was his affair with the family housekeeper Mildred Baena, which produced a child and ultimately ended his marriage. During the interview, the 65-year-old actually 'fessed up to cheating on Shriver on multiple occasions and keeping other potentially life-changing secrets from her, including having open heart surgery and deciding to run for governor of California.
“That's the way I handle things,” Schwarzenegger said of keeping secrets. “And it always has worked. But, I mean it does not – it's not the best thing for people around me because I sometimes – some information I just keep to myself.”
Opening up about having heart surgery in 1997, Schwarzenegger recounted telling his doctor that he would be keeping the operation a secret from his then-pregnant wife. “I said, ‘Now here's the plan. … I'm going to have the heart surgery. You do it quietly. No one knows about it,” the “Expendables 2” star said. “We’ll do it at six in the morning, and then four days later I'm outta here and I go down to Mexico. And I'll tell Maria, I'll say, ‘Look I'm down here. Little busy. And I'm on vacation.’ And when I come back I will be tanned. No one will know. He said, ‘Arnold, are you outta your mind? … You're going to have a big scar here on the chest. What do you mean your wife is not going to see the scar?"
[Related: Arnold Schwarzenegger talks about his affair with housekeeper in '60 Minutes' interview]
Schwarzenegger took a similar approach when it came to running for governor. He said he waited to tell Shriver until just a few days before he made the announcement and she was shaken by the news. “I was thinking that she would say, ‘Wow, that is amazing, welcome to the club. We finally convinced you to be a public servant, just like my entire family,’” said Schwarzenegger. “None of that. So all of a sudden it came to a grinding halt and I had to now deal with the drama.” It was his mother-in-law, Eunice Shriver, who convinced her daughter to support her husband during his run.
Shriver later gave up her career as a TV news journalist, and started campaigning for her husband. She also publicly defended him when he was accused of groping more than a dozen women earlier in his career. When asked if he regretted having her vouch for him – at that point, Schwarzenegger had already secretly impregnated their housekeeper Mildred Baena – the actor said no. “No, she vouched – she says, ‘Look. I know Arnold. He doesn't do those things that you have read. And I am his wife, I know him better than that.’ You know, end of story.”
Schwarzenegger spoke more about Baena, most notably the fact that he and the woman never had a conversation about the obvious fact that Joseph was the actor’s son. He said seven or eight years after their affair, he noticed the boy resembled him and he just started sending Baena money to support the child. “It just appeared to me there was something off, that he started looking like me,” Schwarzenegger said. “So that's when I kind of got it. It was never discussed. … I gave [money] to her and she knew what it was about.”
[Related: Arnold Schwarzenegger talks about his affair with housekeeper in '60 Minutes' interview]
Schwarzenegger took a similar approach when it came to running for governor. He said he waited to tell Shriver until just a few days before he made the announcement and she was shaken by the news. “I was thinking that she would say, ‘Wow, that is amazing, welcome to the club. We finally convinced you to be a public servant, just like my entire family,’” said Schwarzenegger. “None of that. So all of a sudden it came to a grinding halt and I had to now deal with the drama.” It was his mother-in-law, Eunice Shriver, who convinced her daughter to support her husband during his run.
Shriver later gave up her career as a TV news journalist, and started campaigning for her husband. She also publicly defended him when he was accused of groping more than a dozen women earlier in his career. When asked if he regretted having her vouch for him – at that point, Schwarzenegger had already secretly impregnated their housekeeper Mildred Baena – the actor said no. “No, she vouched – she says, ‘Look. I know Arnold. He doesn't do those things that you have read. And I am his wife, I know him better than that.’ You know, end of story.”
Schwarzenegger spoke more about Baena, most notably the fact that he and the woman never had a conversation about the obvious fact that Joseph was the actor’s son. He said seven or eight years after their affair, he noticed the boy resembled him and he just started sending Baena money to support the child. “It just appeared to me there was something off, that he started looking like me,” Schwarzenegger said. “So that's when I kind of got it. It was never discussed. … I gave [money] to her and she knew what it was about.”
As we previously reported, during the interview Schwarzenegger also talked about the moment Shriver confronted him about Joseph. The day after he left office in 2011, Shriver asked to meet him with their marriage counselor. “That particular visit that you're talking about was the visit where she then said, ‘Hey, I think that Joseph is your kid. And, am I off here on this or – or not?’” he recalled. “I said, ‘You're absolutely right, and I am sorry.’ It was very painful for her. She was very disappointed.”
That wasn’t her only disappointment. Asked if it was his only affair, Schwarzenegger – who also spoke about a “hot affair” with Brigitte Nielsen – said, “No. I had others. But I mean, ah, but you know, it’s something that’s obviously between Maria and me.”
[Related: Arnold Schwarzenegger confirms 'hot affair' with Brigitte Nielsen]
Although he knows he hurt his wife, Schwarzenegger said he’s not hung up on the failure of his marriage – or anything else. “Dwelling on it, like some people do, you know, years later, say, ‘Oh, yeah, I lost this, and I will never forget that. I'm still suffering.’ No, that's not me,” he said. “I don't suffer over anything that I've lost.”
Original post : http://tv.yahoo.com/news/arnold-schwarzenegger%E2%80%99s-marriage-to-maria-shriver-was-full-of-secrets.html
That wasn’t her only disappointment. Asked if it was his only affair, Schwarzenegger – who also spoke about a “hot affair” with Brigitte Nielsen – said, “No. I had others. But I mean, ah, but you know, it’s something that’s obviously between Maria and me.”
[Related: Arnold Schwarzenegger confirms 'hot affair' with Brigitte Nielsen]
Although he knows he hurt his wife, Schwarzenegger said he’s not hung up on the failure of his marriage – or anything else. “Dwelling on it, like some people do, you know, years later, say, ‘Oh, yeah, I lost this, and I will never forget that. I'm still suffering.’ No, that's not me,” he said. “I don't suffer over anything that I've lost.”
Original post : http://tv.yahoo.com/news/arnold-schwarzenegger%E2%80%99s-marriage-to-maria-shriver-was-full-of-secrets.html
Max Payne 3
Publisher: Rockstar
Release: Autumn
Circumstances once again conspire to see Max Payne thrust sideways in slow-motion through the windows of life. Everyone’s favourite action-detective runs, guns and shaves his way through Sao Paulo in a Rockstar developed sequel to Remedy’s shoooter. The team responsible are making a big deal of the way Max moves naturally through the city.
Metal Gear Solid: Rising
Publisher: Konami
Release: 2012
As big-haired, sharp-cheekboned cyber ninja Raiden, you’re hunting baddies in the near-ish future. The emphasis is on quick, offensive swordplay, using the dev’s terrifying attention to how bodies are sliced and diced. The series is perhaps best known for its fourth-wall-shattering plot devices and inventive game mechanics: we’re always happy to see more of that on the PC.
Grand Theft Auto V
Publisher: Rockstar
Release: TBA 2012
Being a numbered GTA title is a big deal. We know GTA V is set in Los Santos, Rockstar’s take on Los Angeles, and that it may have multiple protagonists. What we don’t know is whether it’s a continuation of GTA IV or a return to the pop culture of Vice City and San Andreas. The golden hues and gloss of the trailer suggests the latter, but, hey: that could just be California.
Where GTA V does seem to offer something new is in the promise of expansive outdoor environments. With the series traditionally tied to urban areas, the possibility of a little more freedom is intriguing, as is the suggestion that the main character’s hobbies include hiking. That said, Rockstar would do well to focus on fundamentals: bringing GTA’s combat up to scratch, allowing us to interact with the environment more meaningful ways, and moving from the one-employer-at-a-time structure.
Release: TBA 2012
Being a numbered GTA title is a big deal. We know GTA V is set in Los Santos, Rockstar’s take on Los Angeles, and that it may have multiple protagonists. What we don’t know is whether it’s a continuation of GTA IV or a return to the pop culture of Vice City and San Andreas. The golden hues and gloss of the trailer suggests the latter, but, hey: that could just be California.
Where GTA V does seem to offer something new is in the promise of expansive outdoor environments. With the series traditionally tied to urban areas, the possibility of a little more freedom is intriguing, as is the suggestion that the main character’s hobbies include hiking. That said, Rockstar would do well to focus on fundamentals: bringing GTA’s combat up to scratch, allowing us to interact with the environment more meaningful ways, and moving from the one-employer-at-a-time structure.
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