kolynychprof9: 2012

четверг, 15 марта 2012 г.

Penguins beat Red Wings, square Stanley Cup

The Pittsburgh Penguins scored three goals in six minutes to rally for a 4-2 win over the Detroit Red Wings on Thursday, leveling the Stanley Cup finals at 2-2.

A series that appeared over when defending champs Detroit won the opening two games is now back in the balance. Game 5 is Saturday in Detroit, with Game 6 in Pittsburgh on Tuesday. Game 7 would be in Detroit.

"It's a race to four (wins) now," Pittsburgh's Pascal Dupuis said.

Evgeni Malkin, enjoying the best postseason scoring run since Wayne Gretzky's in 1993, and Sidney Crosby had a goal and an assist each to help the Penguins win _ a year to the day since Detroit raised the …

Demographics Don't Set One's Views on Abortion

Afew final facts on what we, the people, think about abortion -as opposed to what the pro-choice high priests and the ill-informedmedia tell us we think. A favorite pro-choice line is the suggestion that opposing anunlimited right to an abortion is some kind of a "guy thing," andthat efforts to moderate this country's abortion-on-demand policyspring from a male scheme to control women's bodies. If this wereso, then opinion polls would show that men want far more restrictionsplaced on the right to choose.

But a 1991 poll by the Gallup organization shows the opposite:Men are slightly more willing than women to accept abortion duringthe first three months of pregnancy for …

Friends: Pilot in Reno crash was skilled airman

RENO, Nevada (AP) — Friends of an air racer and movie stunt pilot whose plane crashed into the edge of the grandstand at a show said the 74-year-old was a skilled airman and member of a tight-knit flying community.

Pilot Jimmy Leeward of Ocala, Florida, died in the crash Friday after apparently losing control of the P-51 Mustang, which spiraled into a box seat area at the National Championship Air Races at about 4:30 p.m. Friday. Leeward and at least eight others were killed; dozens were injured.

Family members were at the air show and saw the crash, said Reno Air Races President and CEO Mike Houghton.

"They obviously are devastated," he said. "I talked to Jimmy's son …

среда, 14 марта 2012 г.

Latin American cultural event slated for US

Latin American artists will display works including such eclectic pieces as a mural chiseled out of vinyl and a large-scale reproduction of the first ever particle accelerator during a monthlong event that Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper said will highlight the Western Hemisphere's common heritage.

The event featuring artists from 35 countries will be a "world's fair" of ideas, Hickenlooper said, with current and former world leaders also participating in forums around the city beginning July 1.

The festival will be called the "Biennial of the Americas."

The goal is to have Colorado's capital city host the event every …

Scare tactics credited for drop in New Year's fireworks injuries

MANILA, Philippines - Firecracker and other New Year's-relatedinjuries dropped to their lowest level in eight years after agovernment scare campaign advertised the long surgical saw andpliers used in amputations on victims, the Philippine healthsecretary said today.

The number of Filipinos injured by firecrackers and celebratorygunfire in end-of-year celebrations dropped by nearly half to 446compared to 2006, Health Secretary Francisco Duque III said. One mandied after ingesting a firecracker, officials said.

"Filipinos chose to be safer this year," Duque told a newsconference, which he traditionally holds on Jan. 1 to announce gorydetails of the injuries and …

Project Manager's Portable Handbook

Reviewed by LTC Kenneth H. Rose (USA, Ret.), Tidewater-Richmond Area Manager for WPI in Hampton, VA, and a former member of the Army Acquisition Corps.

Anyone who recently purchased a project management handbook probably needed a shopping cart to convey it to the checkout line. What the world needs now is the literary equivalent of a laptop computer-a handbook that is small, durable, powerful, and complete. David I. Cleland and Lewis R. Ireland have delivered just such an item with their new Project Manager-'s Portable Handbook.

Published by McGraw-Hill as part of their portable handbook series, the book is designed for use, not reverence. Its 5.5by 8.5-inch format makes …

Pearl Flip is first BlackBerry that folds up

Research in Motion Ltd., the maker of BlackBerry phones, is set to reveal Wednesday a phone that folds in half, a departure from the slab-like design that has defined its products.

The long-rumored phone will be called the BlackBerry Pearl Flip, and will be available from T-Mobile USA and with overseas carriers later this year, at an undisclosed price.

The "flip" or "clamshell" design, where the display and keyboard are separated by a hinge, is a popular one for conventional cell phones, particularly in the U.S. Jim Balsillie, co-chief executive of RIM, said 70 percent of handsets in the country have this …

Your borrowing options ; With personal loans all but drying up, here are a few ways to overcome your income-expense mismatch.

When Navin Daniel set out to take a personal loan of Rs 25 lakhabout seven weeks ago, the private sector bank where he usuallybanked his salary seemed eager to take up his business. Soon afterDaniel filed the application, his bankers assured him they wouldrelease his loan "within a few days . But about two weeks into thedeal, his bankers called up and said they could provide only Rs 8lakh, which would again take a few days more.

After two more weeks, his bankers brought down the amount to Rs 4lakh. Three more weeks later, Daniel is still awaiting his personalloan. When Daniel contacted his bank lately, they turned around andrefused a loan. Now, the marketing professional …

Soybeans, Grains Increase

CHICAGO - Soybean and grain futures climbed higher in early activity Thursday on the Chicago Board of Trade.

Wheat for December delivery rose 4 1/2 cents to $4.95 a bushel; December corn rose 5 1/4 cents to $3.75 1/2 a bushel; December oats rose 4 cents to $2.54 a bushel; January soybeans rose 3 3/4 cents to $6.86 a bushel.

Beef …

Report: Greek terror group claims Citibank attacks

A far-left Greek militant group claimed responsibility for recent attacks against Citibank offices in Athens, saying they were carried out because of the international financial crisis, a newspaper reported Thursday.

The weekly Pontiki newspaper published a statement from the Revolutionary Struggle group, which claimed responsibility for a failed car bomb attack on Citibank offices in Athens on Feb. 18 as well as a bomb attack Monday on a suburban Citibank branch that caused damage but no injuries.

Authorities did not immediately comment on the statement or its authenticity, but the newspaper has been used by the militant group in the past to publish …

Jean Marsh joins that Cosby kid in `Arthur's Court'

WASHINGTON When she was offered the role of King Arthur's evilsister Morgana in "A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's Court,"English actress Jean Marsh was intrigued. She had read Mark Twain'shumorous story about an American transported to medieval England.

The NBC movie will air in Chicago from 7 to 9 tonight onWMAQ-Channel 5.

Keshia Knight Pulliam plays the lead.

A girl of the '80s, little Pulliam, from "The Cosby Show," triesto teach aerobic dancing and martial arts to Queen Guenevere (EmmaSamms) and her ladies-in-waiting, who know nothing of the benefits ofexercise.

Pulliam accompanies a somewhat wimpy King Arthur (Michael Gross,formerly …

Indiana first lady tests waters with rare speech

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) — The wife of Indiana Gov. Mitch Daniels offered few clues about her husband's presidential ambitions Thursday night during a rare albeit largely apolitical address to state Republicans, but the high-profile and closely followed appearance generated speculation anyway.

"In the past the keynote speaker has always given a politically inspired speech," Cheri Daniels told the crowd of more than 1,000 people. "If you came here expecting that, I'm sorry."

Daniels, whose aversion to the spotlight was as much a topic of the night as her love of the state fair and all things farming, has held something of a veto over Mitch Daniels' decision of whether he will run for …

Putting energy in to ideas

Eco-entrepreneurs are turning an area near Bath in to a hub ofpioneering green technology. One renewable energy firm in Corsham ishelping turn human waste in to fuel, while one of the best-knownfamily businesses in Bradford on Avon has opened a large solar farm. The panels at Kingston Farm produce sufficient power to supportabout 900 houses and are already powering the Anthony Best Dynamicsbusiness close to the site.

The solar farm is one part of a proposed wide-ranging developmentof the farm by Shaun Moulton, whose family has owned the area sincethe mid 19th century.

Mr Moulton, who is general manager of the Moulton BicycleCompany, wants to make the wider farm area into a mixed-usedevelopment to "enhance Bradford's self-containment and vitality".

He is part of a consortium which wants to bring both businessesand homes to the site, with a planning application expected inFebruary. Mr Moulton said he was delighted the solar farm had openedafter 10 months' work. "I am so pleased that the first part of ourefforts to build a sustainable mixed-use extension to Bradford onAvon has been achieved," he said.

Just down the road, Steve Retford is leading a similarlyenvironmentally enterprise.

The managing director of Torishima (Europe) Projects runs anengineering business which, put simply, turns poo in to power.

Biogas is generated when bacteria degrade biological material inthe absence of oxygen, in a process known as anaerobic digestion.Since biogas is a mixture of methane and carbon dioxide it can beused as a fuel.

While the process is not new, Mr Retford believes Torishima'sboiler technology will make it the greenest renewable energyproducer on the planet.

"We're currently working on a design for a boiler where thetechnology will make it the most efficient in the world," he said.

"Where there is a sewage plant, we can put our kit in. We areplanning on taking this technology worldwide. We want to export ourkit into Europe, the Middle East and are looking in to Africa."

The company, which has Japanese backing, currently employs fivepeople at its base in Hartham Park, but that figure could soon rise.

"We are looking to expand quite quickly because at the moment weare contracting quite a lot of the work out," explained Mr Retford.1,252

вторник, 13 марта 2012 г.

Leonhardt Manufacturing focuses on people, processes to produce success

Bob Jacobs knows a lot about the power of focus in manufacturing - focusing on the right things for the long term.

Jacobs is president and chief executive officer of Leonhardt Manufacturing in Hanover, a tube-bending tool and die company that has grown from one person in 1970 (Hans Leonhardt, the founder) to around 90 today. It completed its best fiscal year ever in July. Leonhardt makes chrome-plated and specialty painted tubular parts for the motorcycle, recreational vehicle, construction and home and garden industries.

In April, aiming to ensure its future as a locally owned, Hanover-based business, Leonhardt's three owners (Peter and Hans Jr., the founder's two sons, and Jacobs) sold 70 percent of the company to its employees under an employee stock ownership plan (ESOP). Training and continued support by the management team will be needed to ensure that the business model they have been building so successfully will continue.

Yet much has been accomplished in a turnaround that began when Jacobs arrived at Leonhardt in 2000. He brought extensive experience at plants that supplied both U.S. and Japanese automakers. He prefers the collaborative Japanese approach to manufacturing and introduced it at Leonhardt.

Factors including outsourcing overseas, rising costs of materials and shortages of skilled workers make this a turbulent time for manufacturing. "You need to be excellent in this day and age," Jacobs says in explaining Leonhardt's core purpose - "to enhance the lives of our employee owners through excellence in manufacturing."

Jacobs' approach (a variant of lean manufacturing) is to focus on people and processes. When he was hired at Leonhardt, he told Hans Leonhardt's two sons, "If you're looking for someone to squeeze the last 1 percent of profit out of the company, you I you've got the wrong guy." Success, he feels, includes a good quality of life for a company's workers, which ultimately adds to its net worth. So Leonhardt has a wellness program for its employees, among other benefits.

On the process side, Jacobs advises that an efficient factory starts with a clean, well-ordered workplace, then adopts - and keeps improving - standard methods of production. Jacobs describes Leonhardt as a "visual factory' with everything, including where the staplers go, clearly labeled and colorcoded. (Blue for raw materials, green for work in process, red for rejects.) The workers are trained in visual-control methods, like Kanban, a production system using cards to signal the need for an item.

Leonhardt also works relentlessly at controlling its inventory of parts and materials, at turning inventory over faster relative to sales.

Where you focus matters a lot, Jacobs says. U.S. auto companies focused on finance and marketing while the Japanese stayed focused on building cars. And the Japanese understood that a product's quality is determined at each stage of production within a well-conceived overall system.

In dealing with their suppliers, the Japanese auto companies considered the selling price a given and selling price minus costs equals profit. "But they would actually work with you on getting costs down, on designing to take costs out of things."

"The first Japanese words I ever learned," Jacobs says, smiling, "were 'costa reduction."'

By contrast, relations between the U.S. car makers and their suppliers were tense. Too often, "You're wrong, we're right" was how it would go, Jacobs says.

Jacobs discussed the challenges he sees in manufacturing today. Training to ensure the capacities of a plant's work force is a big concern at Leonhardt. Faced with a chronic shortage of welders, the company has an apprenticeship program to help increase its supply. But Jacobs is dismayed by an apparent lack of interest in manufacturing careers in today's high-school students. When students visit the plant, it's hard to catch and hold their attention, he's found.

Leonhardt seeks to make working at the plant as engaging as possible, especially since the workers are now its majority owners. (An ESOP operates in much the same way as a pension plan. Workers don't become fully vested until they have been on the job five years and can't cash in until they leave.)

The idea is to have people aligned for a common purpose. Leonhardt doesn't use elaborate merit pay or pay-forperformance plans. "We would rather have an open and free environment for ideas, and it breeds discontent when one group is rewarded over another."

Instead, the company relies on wage surveys of market rates in various classifications and adds "a little above that," based on supervisors' evaluations. "I've never yet found a perfect wage structure," Jacobs says.

He'd rather take a group to lunch or bring pizza in. When the company had record sales in August, Jacobs gave everybody a $50 bill. He can't do that too often, though, with the employees as owners, as they begin to realize their stake in the company's earnings in firsthand terms.

At a company party held in April to announce the switch to employee ownership, Jacobs found himself saying to the happy attendees, "I hope you're enjoying this because you're paying for it."

Helping employees understand the implications of owning the company is a challenge at Leonhardt. Training is coming up on that, too. "What are sales?" Jacobs asks. "People think sales are profits, and we have to explain the difference."

"It's not enough for an employee to know, 'I own the company.' He naturally wants to know, 'What's in it for me?' and we have to explain how that works."

Leonhardt is an example of a company that espouses the need to pay attention to people and processes and actually has a consistent approach to both. It meets the needs of its people and manage processes to make them efficient. How do you pay attention to your people and processes?

German officials say Demjanjuk fit for prison

John Demjanjuk is fit enough to remain in custody at Germany's Stadelheim prison, officials said Wednesday, but it still could take up to two weeks for Munich prosecutors to determine whether the 89-year-old is healthy enough to stand trial.

Demjanjuk is being held on suspicion of acting as an accessory to the murder of 29,000 people as a Nazi guard at the Sobibor death camp.

If doctors at Stadelheim found Demjanjuk to be unwell, the retired Ohio autoworker could have been transferred to a hospital.

Demjanjuk's son has said his father is dying of leukemic bone marrow disease and claimed he would not survive a trans-Atlantic flight.

Dramatic photos last month showed Demjanjuk (pronounced dem-YAHN'-yuk) wincing in apparent pain as he was removed by immigration agents from his home in Seven Hills, Ohio, during an earlier attempt to deport him to Germany. However, images taken only days earlier and released by the U.S. government showed him entering his car unaided.

Anton Winkler, a spokesman for Munich prosecutors, said Demjanjuk "did fine" during his first night in prison and was doing well under the circumstances.

"There were no problems whatsoever," Winkler said. "He is still fit enough to remain in custody."

Demjanjuk's lawyer, Guenther Maull, told The Associated Press that a Munich court had rejected his challenge to the arrest.

Asked if he was contemplating a new attempt to quash the warrant, Maull said they would have to consider it.

"At the moment we have nothing," he said.

Demjanjuk arrived in Munich on a private jet Tuesday after being deported from the United States. A medical expert is going to observe him and make a recommendation on the trial, a process that could take up to two weeks.

"We are nowhere near that," Winkler said.

Demjanjuk, a native of Ukraine, says he was a Red Army soldier who spent World War II as a Nazi POW and never hurt anyone.

But Nazi-era documents obtained by U.S. justice authorities and shared with German prosecutors include a photo ID identifying Demjanjuk as a guard at the Sobibor death camp and saying he was trained at an SS facility for Nazi guards at Trawniki. Both sites were in Nazi-occupied Poland.

He first gained U.S. citizenship in 1958.

The U.S. Justice Department first moved to revoke Demjanjuk's U.S. citizenship in 1977, alleging he hid his past as a Nazi death camp guard. It was revoked in 1981.

Demjanjuk was tried in Israel and found guilty in 1988 of war crimes and crimes against humanity but the conviction was overturned by the Israeli Supreme Court.

That decision came after Israel won access to Soviet archives, which had depositions given after the war by 37 Treblinka guards and forced laborers who said "Ivan" was a different Ukrainian named Ivan Marchenko.

His U.S. citizenship was restored in 1998. However, a U.S. judge revoked Demjanjuk's citizenship again in 2002 based on fresh Justice Department evidence showing he concealed his service at Sobibor and other Nazi-run death and forced-labor camps from immigration officials.

A U.S. immigration judge ruled in 2005 he could be deported to Germany, Poland or Ukraine. Munich prosecutors issued an arrest warrant for him in March.

___

Associated Press Writer Roland Losch contributed to this report from Munich.

Freescoring Dortmund plays Hamburg in Bundesliga

FRANKFURT, Germany (AP) — This Bundesliga season has averaged the most goals per game in 16 years and there seems unlikely to be any letup when leader Borussia Dortmund meets Hamburger SV on Friday.

The last time the two clubs shared a 0-0 draw was in 1999, and Dortmund is the league's top-scoring team with 27 goals.

Many coaches attribute the flood of goals (3.20 per game) to the new, less predictable ball used across the Bundesliga. The ball, appropriately, is called Torfabrik, meaning goal factory.

But Dortmund's coach Juergen Klopp has another explanation for his team's efficiency: striker Lucas Barrios.

"Even when he's scored a pair of goals, he is driven by the thought that he maybe score another one," Klopp said ahead of Friday's game. "He stands out by this ambition to be there in the decisive moments."

Barrios, who played for Paraguay at the World Cup but is Argentine by birth, is in his second season with Dortmund. He has 11 goals and six assists this season, with six goals in the Bundesliga. He had 19 goals in his debut season for Dortmund.

Dortmund's director of sports Michael Zorc has compared Barrios with some of the best strikers who have played for Dortmund, including former Brazil forward Marcio Amoroso and Germany's Karl-Heinz Riedle.

"They all had their own styles but Lucas is equally strong in his qualities," said Zorc, who played with some of them.

Barrios came to Dortmund in the wake of a 37-goal season for Colo-Colo in Chile and needed a couple of months to adjust to the Bundesliga before starting to score regularly.

"This calmed him down and we are profiting from it now," Klopp said.

Barrios will be looking to raise his total at home against Hamburg. The matchups between the two teams have produced a league record 305 goals, and with Mladen Petric returning to Hamburg's lineup, it looks certain to raise.

Petric has four goals in his last three starts. But the former Dortmund striker has not been happy with his season.

Hamburg's coach Armin Veh has preferred Ruud van Nistelrooy as his starting striker. But the Dutchman is injured and Petric is back.

"The situation on the bench did not make me happy, after I'd been playing regularly for two seasons," Petric said.

Although Petric has 45 goals in 92 games for Hamburg, there has been speculation that he might leave the club.

"I've read the newspaper reports," was the Croat's only comment.

Veh seems to want to retain the striker.

"Mladen has special qualities. If he keeps on like this, there is no doubt that he'll play," Veh said.

As well as Van Nistelrooy, Hamburg will be missing forward Jonathan Pitroipa (groin), besides several long-term injured, including Marcell Jansen, Dennis Aogo, goalkeeper Frank Rost and Eljero Elia.

Dortmund, a six-time German champion and 1997 Champions League winner that nearly went bankrupt a few years later, goes into the 12th round with 28 points, four more than Mainz, which has lost the last two to fall behind. Mainz hosts Hannover on Saturday.

Third-place Bayer Leverkusen (21 points) travels to St. Pauli, while Eintracht Frankfurt (19) visits slumping Werder Bremen. Bremen has lost its last three in the league and is coming off a 6-0 thrashing at Stuttgart. Frankfurt is unbeaten in its last six, five of them wins, and can rely on the league's leading scorer Fanis Gekas, who has 11 goals.

Bremen will have to do without striker Claudio Pizarro, who will be out for three weeks with a hamstring injury.

Defending champion Bayern Munich, already 12 points behind Dortmund, could benefit from the return of Franck Ribery and Mark van Bommel when it hosts Bavarian rival Nuremberg on Sunday.

On Saturday, Wolfsburg hosts Schalke, Cologne plays Borussia Moenchengladbach and Stuttgart visits Kaiserslautern.

On Sunday, Hoffenheim hosts Freiburg.

Middle-age acne: Dermatologists treating more older patients

Acne -- the most common skin condition among teenagers -- isstriking adults through their 50s in growing numbers.

The numbers might reflect in part career and family stresses thatexacerbate breakouts, experts say, as well as an increasingwillingness to seek treatment.

Scarring is a bigger issue when aging makes skin less elastic. Andthe effect of blemishes can have on your confidence can leave youfeeling like an insecure adolescent.

Dermatologist Bill Halmi treats adults who have acne every day.They make up about 40 percent of his acne patients. Though geneticsis a big factor in adult acne, it's not inevitable that everyone in afamily will be cursed, Halmi said. Almost all of those who areaffected can control the condition with new and also tried-and-truetreatments, plus good skin care.

There's no cure for acne, which occurs when bacteria grow inplugged pores, leading to the lesions commonly known as pimples.

In women, dermatologist Kristine Romine said, "Acne is very muchrelated to hormones. You tend to hear a lot about women breaking outaround their period or midcycle."

She treats some patients with hormonal therapy, including birth-control pills to suppress androgen production by the ovaries orantiandrogen drugs to block oil receptors. Androgens, thetestosterone and other male sex hormones produced in women and men,make skin oily.

Topical retinoids (vitamin A derivatives applied to the skin) andoral antibiotics continue to be effective, Romine said. After theacne is controlled, patients usually can take the antibiotic pillsfor just one week a month when premenstrual flare-ups typicallyoccur.

With warnings that certain powerful acne medicines such asAccutane can cause birth defects, Romine also is excited aboutresults from alternatives, including lasers that prevent and treatscars, and blue-light treatment.

In Halmi's arsenal of acne remedies, topical antibiotics such asMetroGel are standard treatment. Antibiotic creams reduceinflammatory lesions and the redness associated with rosacea acne, hesaid. They also can prevent new lesions if used consistently."Sometimes, patients stop using them when their skin clears up,"Halmi said. "Then, the acne comes back, and they think the creams area failure. They need to stay with the topical medications day in andday out, whether they have a blemish or not."

Over-the-counter remedies, from Clearasil to dermatologist-created Proactiv, can manage mild acne, especially when patientsavoid scrubbing and blemish triggers.

Caffeine, alcoholic beverages and heat aggravate acne in somepeople, but often-blamed foods such as chocolate and potato chipshaven't been proved to be culprits.

TAX-DEDUCTIBLE CONTRIBUTIONS TO SUPPORT REAL ESTATE EFFORT

The AIChE Foundation's 2003 Annual Campaign is raising funds for the specific purpose of supporting an effort to sublease 75 percent of the Institute's New York office space. Subleasing the space is a direct result of member input.

When AIChE President Dianne Dorland asked members for their suggestions for working through the Institute's financial challenges this year, she received over 5,000 responses from AIChE members. While the responses varied, many people suggested moving to another office space or relocating from New York.

After considerable negotiations, the Institute has received an offer to sublet three-guarters of its space. Because of the soft real estate market, any successful transaction of this nature would require significant up-front.

So important is this effort, that a number of AIChE's corporate partners have stepped forward with financial gifts and interest-free loans to facilitate this sublease. While this support is critical, it is not enough to close the deal. That is why the AIChE Foundation Board of Trustees is asking that every member make a contribution of $100 or more to this effort. By helping to make this real estate transaction possible, AIChE members will play an important role in shaping the Institute's future.

All contributions to the AIChE Foundation are tax-deductible. Please send your contribution to: AIChE Foundation, 3 Park Avenue, NY, NY 10016-5991.

MICHAEL'S GREATEST HITS // THE GAMES

The Game: The Bulls win 101-100 on Jordan's flying buzzer-beaterto eliminate the heavily favored Cavaliers in the fifth game of theirfirst-round series in the Richfield Coliseum May 7, 1989.

The Postgame: "During the regular season, they swept us 6-0,"Jordan said, "and so many people predicted they'd do the same thingin the playoffs. I think the Cavaliers may have taken us so lightly,too. Some of their guys sat out to rest injuries.

"But winning that series turned things around for us in a big way.It boosted our confidence as a team and gave us the momentum toadvance to the conference finals."

There, the Bulls lost to the Pistons.

But the Cavaliers still have not recovered from that loss. Theylost their next 12 games to the Bulls before ending the slump thisseason with a 113-112 squeaker in the Stadium.

The 1989 victory, however, taught the Bulls never to take anyteam for granted.

"Or to think that just because we dominated a team during theregular season, we'd do the same thing in the playoffs," Jordan said.

"The playoffs are a whole new season."

Romanian official gets 8 years for taking bribe

BUCHAREST, Romania (AP) — A court has convicted a Romanian consumer protection official of taking a bribe and sentenced him to eight years in prison.

The Bucharest Appeals Court sentenced Ionel Spataru to eight years in prison Wednesday on charges that he demanded a bribe of €70,000 ($95,000) in exchange for issuing a permit for a private company to reopen a market. The sentence can be appealed.

Spataru told the court the money was for the local branch of the governing Democratic Liberal Party, which is facing parliamentary elections next year. Party officials have dismissed the accusations.

Spataru's lawyer Lorrette Luca said the three-week trial was suspiciously speedy for Romania and meant that her client had not received a fair trial. Trials often last for years in Romania.

Letters

Crete mayor should apologize for his antics

Dear Editor:

The recent conduct of Crete Mayor Michael Einhorn marks a new low for a south suburban elected official. I was offended that he sent an email using the pseudonym "Jamalli," posing as a Black man to apparently elicit information from third airport supporters. Since he was found out, he has refused to answer questions and denied wrongdoing.

Is Einhorn's behavior an acceptable model for others? What kind of example does Einhorn set for our children, advancing his agenda under false guise?

I'm tired of public officials who apparently want us to do as they say, not as they do. We should expect honesty and integrity from our public officials. The games and tricks that Mayor Einhorn has been playing are an embarrassment to our communities. I hope he's learned an important lesson and that he will apologize for what he's done.

Howard Brent

Matteson

Find another way to fund Illinois schools

Dear Editor:

I was most delighted to read the (Letter or Editor) by Doug [Dobmeyer] (May 29-30, 2006 edition). I have talked to many ministers since I read about the deal that state Sen. James Meeks (I-15th) cut with the governor of Illinois to use gambling as a way to finance our public schools. To my surprise, most of the people I talked with agreed with Meeks. I am against gambling to pay for anything. I also believe God is against it. I would be against him making such a deal if he was not a preacher. I am more against it by him being a preacher. I don't believe Meeks realizes - and those who agree with him - how much they are turning people against the church and hurting God's program.

To all the people who agreed [with Meeks], have you thought of where most of this money is coming from? It is coming from the poor and most of them will be Black.

I feel mis plan is sure to fail and I hope it will. I am 100 percent for better education. But I don't believe it should be financed by getting people to loose their money gambling. I am sure there is a better way.

Webb Evans

United American Progress Association

Chicago

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понедельник, 12 марта 2012 г.

Major weekend for outdoor soccer

The Metropolitan Soccer League's Major Division opens its outdoorseason Sunday.

The defending champion and U.S. Amateur Cup champion Eagles havebolstered their roster with four players who have recently arrivedfrom Poland in an effort to win the U.S. Amateur and U.S. Open Cupsthis season.

Sparta will be the Eagles' first opponent in MetropolitanLeague play, in Wheaton. The Eagles finished second in the circuit'sindoor season and dropped two games in Karl-Heinz Granitza'stournament last weekend at the Odeum.

In the other key opening day game, Pegasus faces Green-White atMajewski Park in Elmhurst.

The Metropolitan will have two new teams - Croatans and Addison- in its First Division. The Croatans had been a member of theNational Soccer League; Addison is a newly-formed team.

In other soccer this weekend, the Chicago Blaze - which plans tojoin the professional American Soccer League in 1991 - will play itsfirst game, an exhibition against Northern Illinois University inDeKalb.

Blaze coach Aleks Mihailovic will use it as a tryout. The heartof his roster will be Ruben Stivan, George Espinosa, Russ Prince,George Wedel, Jack Toma, Bora Petric, Jon Hall and Sammy Doudakh.

HANDBALL: The Irving Park YMCA reasserted its dominance in areahandball by sweeping to the championships of both metropolitanleagues this season.

Irving won three of four matches to nail down the elite RedDivision of the Chicago Metropolitan Handball League, and two ofthree matches to rule the Greater Chicago Handball League.

Bob Adrowski, Tim Sterrett and captain Pat Keefe posted singlesvictories to spark a triumph over West Suburban YMCA in the MetroLeague. Dave Dohman and captain Bud Clarke won the doubles match forRich Port's only victory.

In the Greater Chicago League, Adrowski teamed with Rich Hoffand Sterrett with Bill Auxier as Irving again beat West Suburban.Clarke won in singles for West Suburban.

In the Metro League's Blue Division, Waukegan took three of fourmatches to defeat Logan Square II, while Logan Square I won three offour over Evergreen Bath and Tennis to earn the Green Division title.

In the Greater Chicago League's consolation finals, CircleCampus swept Bloomingdale Sports Complex.

TENNIS: Billie Jean King is honorary chairperson of the fourthannual Racquet Classic Benefit tomorrow at 7 p.m. at Mid-Town TennisClub. The tennis mixer should attract approximately 350 participantswhile raising funds for the Leukemia Research Foundation and theMultiple Sclerosis Society.

Local tennis pros will run clinics at the benefit. Tickets are$40 per individual, $75 per couple. For information, call KimberlyBurmester (427-1161), Tami Olsen (951-4017) or Anne McCarthy(558-8727).

Contributing: Len Ziehm and Tom Carkeek.

Ross Stores 4Q profit rises on sales gain

Ross Stores Inc. said Thursday that its fourth-quarter profit rose nearly 47 percent on a gain in sales of staples like shoes and home items as shoppers kept looking for bargains in the recession.

The discount retail chain said it earned $142.9 million, or $1.16 per share, for the period ended Jan. 30. That's up from $97.4 million, or 76 cents per share, a year earlier.

The results met the expectations of analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters, who predicted earnings per share of $1.16 on revenue of $1.96 billion. Their estimates generally exclude one-time items.

Revenue rose 14 percent to $1.98 billion from $1.73 billion last year.

Sales at stores open at least a year _ a key figure in retailing _ rose 10 percent in the quarter compared to the prior year.

For the fiscal year, the company earned $442.8 million, or $3.54 a share. That's up 45 percent from $305.4 million, or $2.33 a share, in the prior year.

Revenue rose more than 10 percent to $7.18 billion from $6.49 billion.

Sales at stores open at least a year rose 6 percent in fiscal 2009. That's a key figure in retailing because it measures growth at existing stores, rather than new ones.

CEO Michael Balmuth said the company's best performing categories in the quarter and year were shoes, home and dresses and all regions saw strong gains in the period.

Shares of Ross Stores fell $1.11 or 2 percent to $52.85 in morning trading Thursday.

Think like a toddler to childproof home

With the glee over a child's first halting steps comes theterrifying realization that your home holds untold hazards for thisincredible sweet pea.

With that newfound mobility, your child will be into every closet,cupboard and dark recess of your home that he can reach.

Yes, he'll do a full face-plant into your stone hearth. Yes,she'll get her fingers pinched in the bifold closet doors.

"You want your child to explore," said Erika Kravic, a nurse witha Louisville, Ky., children's hospital who coordinates a Safe Kidsprogram. "But the safer the environment you create for the child, themore you can allow the child to explore."

Safe Kids (www.safekids.org) is an international campaign toprevent child injuries.

In some cities, parents can call a business that evaluates ahome's risks, sells childproofing products and installs them at acost of $200 to $1,000 (or more), according to the InternationalAssociation for Child Safety, a trade group for such businesses.

Kravic said any parent can do it, and childproofing doesn't haveto be expensive. Just crawl on all fours through every room and seewhat you see. If you have a toddler, walk on your knees, or at yourwaist height.

You're looking for potential poisons, falls, burns, chokinghazards, and drowning and suffocation risks.

Lower cabinets, at a child's eye level, are "full of nasty stuff,"said Henry Spiller, director of a Louisville poison center. But up onthe high shelves, we store food.

"It really should be the opposite," he said.

Cords hanging off a counter "are like waving a red cape in frontof a bull," Kravic said. "Kids are going to pull on them. And whatare they pulling onto themselves? A Crock-Pot? You've got to getthose cords up on the counter and those appliances away from theedge."

Cigarette lighters that aren't childproof are still sold, sheadded, and children can start fires by rubbing them on the carpet.

Kravic said kitchens and bathrooms pose enormous hazards to youngchildren. If you can't afford baby-proofing equipment, a solutionmight be a simple I-hook out of the child's reach on the bathroomdoor, allowing you to keep the door locked from the outside.

No devices, however, will replace vigilant supervision ofchildren, Kravic said.

"Nothing is childproof," she said. "The most you can hope for isthat it will slow them down."

You have to get everyone who cares for the child involved.

Having toilet locks to prevent drowning serves no purpose unlessevery member of the family locks them back after use.

Going to the grandparents' house often poses a big risk tochildren, Spiller said. They're more likely to have medicine out onthe counter or lying around in purses.

And the holiday season brings many parties where adults servealcohol. When parents serve brightly colored, sweetened alcoholicdrinks, the child might think it's juice.

It's especially dangerous if parents don't clean up leftover cupsafter a party, Spiller said.

"For a small child, it doesn't take a lot" to cause an overdose,he said.

He and Kravic both express concern about the risk of carbonmonoxide poisoning as parents try to offset the rising cost of homeheating by using alternative heat sources such as wood stoves andkerosene heaters.

Homes should have a carbon monoxide detector, they stressed.

"When you've made your home safe for a child, you've made it safefor everyone," Kravic said.

Chavez: Uribe advisors want 'war,' not hostage release

President Hugo Chavez on Saturday accused the Colombian government of scuttling his efforts to negotiate a prisoner swap with leftist rebels, saying officials prefer "war" to talks on the possible release of 45 hostages, including three Americans.

Colombian President Alvaro Uribe ended Chavez's high-profile attempt to mediate between Colombia's government and FARC rebels last Wednesday, after Chavez disobeyed the conditions of his involvement by speaking directly to Colombia's top army chief.

Chavez accepted Uribe's decision but on Saturday called his conversation with army Gen. Mario Montoya a "stupid excuse" to pull him from negotiations.

"There are people very close to Uribe, people with lots of power, who don't want there to be an agreement," Chavez said in an pre-dawn appearance on Venezuelan state television. "I wouldn't venture to say that (Uribe) doesn't want it, but I'm sure there are people very close to him who just want war" with the rebels.

A spokeswoman in Uribe's press office declined to respond to Chavez's specific comments, but an 18-point statement released by the office Saturday recapped its complaints.

"It's in the greatest interest of the terrorist FARC group to create fissures and antagonism between Colombian and Venezuela. We must not fall into the traps of terrorism," the statement said.

Chavez in August joined Colombian lawmakers in a new push to free hostages held by the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia, better known as FARC. Prisoners include three U.S. military contractors and Ingrid Betancourt, a French-Colombian seized in 2002 while campaigning for Colombia's presidency.

The Venezuelan leader's came to an end Wednesday, when, according to a statement released by the Colombian presidency, leftist Colombian lawmaker Piedad Cordoba called Gen. Montoya and passed the phone to Chavez, violating Uribe's order that the Venezuelan leader not speak directly with Colombian armed forces.

Chavez insisted he'd only asked the general an "innocent question" about the number of Colombian military personnel held by the FARC.

But citing unnamed Colombian government sources, the Bogota daily El Tiempo reported Friday that Chavez had tried to convince Montoya to support a bid to create a demilitarized zone for talks between the rebels and government _ a long-standing FARC demand that Uribe has expressly ruled out.

The spat fuels an ideological gulf between Colombia and Venezuela, two relatively prosperous South American neighbors with deep trade ties who remain polar opposites politically.

Since taking office in 2002, the conservative Uribe has fought to crush Colombia's peasant-based rebel army with US$4 billion (euro2.7 billion) in U.S. military aid.

The socialist Chavez has meanwhile railed against U.S. involvement in the region and called for Uribe to negotiate peace with Colombian guerrillas.

Bolivian President Evo Morales, a Chavez ally, has also weighed in, calling for the FARC to lay down its arms and release its hostages. While he sympthatizes with their leftist leanings, he chided the rebels Saturday for taking out their grievances on their prisoners.

"It's not the hostages' fault," Morales said. "It's capitalism's fault."

Betancourt and the three American contractors, captured while carrying out a mission in 2003, are valuable assets to the FARC, which has been fighting Colombia's government for more than four decades. In exchange for their release, the rebel group has demanded that hundreds of imprisoned guerrillas be freed.

Uribe had declined rebel requests to create a safe zone for negotiations, preferring to rescue hostages militarily.

But when Chavez offered to mediate earlier this year, he agreed.

Those efforts stumbled when Chavez hosted a senior FARC commander in Caracas Nov. 8, and when rebels failed to provide proof that the hostages are alive, as the Colombian, French and U.S. governments have requested.

Colombian police on Saturday said a newly surfaced videotape that claimed to show recent footage of at least some of the hostages was in fact a month old.

Betancourt's lengthy detention has become a cause celebre in France, where President Nicolas Sarkozy met Chavez this week and asked Uribe to reconsider his decision to end the Venezuelan's role as go-between.

Lions Gate, Televisa launch Hispanic film venture

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Lions Gate and Televisa are teaming up to make movies for the fast-growing Hispanic population in the U.S., who account for a quarter of the country's frequent moviegoers.

The boutique movie studio Lions Gate Entertainment Corp. and Mexican media giant Grupo Televisa SA are calling the joint venture they announced Tuesday Pantelion Films.

It kicks off with January's release of the comedy "From Prada To Nada."

Pantelion aims to make four to five films a year and acquire and distribute four to five more.

Televisa CEO Emilio Azcarraga said Lions Gate has a "proven track record of supplying hit movies to large niche audiences."

About 26 million of the nation's roughly 100 moviegoers are Hispanic, Lions Gate said.

Lions Gate, which is based in Vancouver, British Columbia, but operates out of Santa Monica, California, is in an ongoing ownership battle with investor Carl Icahn. It is currently riding the success of "The Expendables," the Sylvester Stallone-led action flick that has taken in nearly $100 million at the domestic box office.

Federer loses to Djokovic in Swiss Indoors final

Top-ranked Roger Federer lost his hometown tournament on Sunday, falling 6-4, 4-6, 6-2 to Novak Djokovic in the Swiss Indoors final.

Djokovic earned his fourth tournament win of the season with a victory that ended Federer's run of three straight titles at the event.

"It's disappointing to lose at home in the finals, no doubt," Federer said. "I thought I missed plenty of opportunities. I'm not looking for excuses. He played tough and he played well when he had to, and saved a ton of break points that were crucial."

Djokovic improved to 3-2 this year against Federer, and said the top-ranked Swiss pushed him to his limits.

"I have to produce something special to win," Djokovic said at sold-out St. Jakobshalle

The second-seeded Serb clinched the first set by saving five break points in a game that lasted 24 minutes.

"It was maybe the turning point in the whole match," Djokovic said. "I was fortunate to keep my nerves."

Federer fought back from a break down to win the second set and rouse his partisan fans.

Djokovic raced to a 4-0 lead in the decider, and closed out the victory after Federer wasted three break points in the sixth game.

It was a tour-leading 71st win this year for Djokovic, who improved to 4-5 in finals in 2009. His other title wins were at Dubai, his home event at Belgrade, and Beijing last month.

Federer is now 59-9 this year after losing only his third match since May.

The first set went with serve, until Federer was broken for the first time in the tournament to trail 5-4. Then came that tense, error-strewn game that featured 11 deuces before Djokovic took his seventh set-point chance.

Federer dropped serve again to open the second set, sending another forehand into the net. But he won his next service game, and then broke his opponent for the first time when a drop shot grazed the net cord before falling in play.

He broke Djokovic's serve again to win the set when the 22-year-old Serb sent a forehand into the net. Djokovic rallied immediately in the decider, Federer dropping two straight service games for the second time in the match.

Trailing 4-1, Federer held three break points at 0-40 but was let down again by his groundstrokes as Djokovic reeled off five straight points.

Djokovic needed just one match point to clinch, as Federer mistimed a backhand from the baseline.

среда, 7 марта 2012 г.

A GRAB BAG OF READERS' CHOICES FOR THE BEACH

No offense to author J. K. Rowling and her wizard empire, but"Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince" (out July 16) won't behogging space in all the beach bags this summer.

Slimmer stuff, with an exotic, international flavor, is what LisaGozashti is craving. So "Snow," by Orhan Pamuk, due out in paperbacklater this summer, tops Gozashti's picks.

The tale of disparate yearnings for love, art, power, and God set in a remote Turkish town also will be among a broad mix of newand older paperbacks featured at Brookline Booksmith, where Gozashti,an assistant manager, is finalizing the store's "Summer Reads"section.

"I love to be transported to another world," she said.

But Gozashti, 40, admits she doesn't get the chance to do that asmuch as she used to. Being the mom of an active 3-year-old son hasn'tleft her much time for curling up with a good book.

Apparently she's not alone.

Despite a sea of new summer titles, many time-crunched readers saythey hope to finally crack books still piling up on their nightstandsbefore wading into this season's latest offerings.

Tucker Dammin, 22, a religion major and college senior back homein Boston for the summer, said he wants to hit the beach with"Shakey," the biography of enigmatic musician Neil Young by JimmyMcDonough released last summer in paperback.

"I have to read a bunch of hard stuff for school, so I just wantto read something that doesn't hurt my head," he said, while browsingnew releases recently at Borders Books & Music at Downtown Crossing.

Not that there's a shortage of lighter choices among booksellers'hot picks this summer, including: "Fourth of July," the latestthriller by James Patterson; "Zorro," a swashbuckling adventureretold by Isabel Allende; and the mystical second novel by Sue MonkKidd, "The Mermaid Chair."

"Some of this is like weather forecasting," said David MarcGoldstein, an inventory supervisor at the Borders Downtown Crossingstore. Sometimes, he said, booksellers' predictions for sizzlingsummer reads end up at the bottom of the sand pile.

His beach-reading list includes new nonfiction selections,including "Ponzi's Scheme," by Mitchell Zuckoff, about thecharismatic rogue who launched the most famous scam in Americanhistory right from his downtown Boston office. "When I was a kid Ialways heard about Ponzi schemes," said Goldstein, 40. "Now I canlook out the store window and see right where it happened acrossSchool Street."

A few book racks away, Ronen Shapiro, 29, a New York City-basedInternet developer, said his summer choices may also include storieshe heard about and was supposed to read when he was younger. Storieslike "Crime and Punishment," by Fyodor Dostoyevsky, which is amongBorders' "classic" paperback suggestions for this summer.

"I read the [Cliffs] Notes for a paper in 10th grade," Shapiroconfessed.

Heading north of the city, and a lot closer to the sounds of thesurf, a rich array of summer selections featuring vivid ocean scenesgreets customers at the Book Shop of Beverly Farms, a cozy store onthe North Shore. Among the eye-catching new nautical offerings is"The Beach House Cookbook," by Barbara Scott-Goodman, which boastsdelicious, quick dishes that leave time for fun in the sun.

There's nothing like salt air to tickle a foodie's appetite.

"The recipes look like something I could cook," said co-ownerJanet Weedon, 56.

She predicts readers are also likely to eat up "Garlic andSapphires," the new memoir by former New York Times food critic RuthReichl, who often dined incognito. The book is running strong amongbook clubs in the area, Weedon said.

But Paula Cook, 69, a loyal Manchester-by-the-Sea customer and amember of three area book clubs, said she prefers "darkerliterature." The retired special education teacher picked "The Devilin the White City," by Erik Larson, for her first summer read.Released last year in paperback, "Devil" is the true tale of two men,the brilliant architect of the 1893 Chicago World's Fair and thecunning serial killer who used the fair to lure women to their death.

Another loyal Book Shop customer, Dolores Clayton, is thinkingabout tackling something that requires more heavy lifting for herfirst, and perhaps only, summer read: "Ulysses" by James Joyce.

"I've read it, but never finished it," said the 72-year-old,retired high school English teacher.

"It's come to the point where it's on my mind," she added. "Andtime is running out."

Kay Lazar is a freelance writer who lives on the North Shore.