President Obama's Weekly Address: Working together in a New Year 12-31-2011

Top 50 Adult R/B Songs or 2011

1 CHARLIE WILSON You Are Jive/RCA

2 JILL SCOTT f/ANTHONY HAMILTON So In Love Warner Bros.

3 KIRK FRANKLIN I Smile Gospo Centric/JLG

4 MARSHA AMBROSIUS Far Away J/RCA

5 KEM Share My Life Republic

6 R. KELLY Love Letter Jive/RCA

7 TREY SONGZ Can’t Be Friends Songbook/Atlantic

8 MARY MARY Walking My Block/Columbia

9 ANTHONY DAVID f/ALGEBRA 4evermore Purpose Music/eOne

10 EL DEBARGE f/FAITH EVANS Lay With You Geffen/Interscope

11 KEM If It’s Love Republic

12 LEDISI Pieces Of Me Verve Forecast/VMG

13 FANTASIA I’m Doin’ Me J/RCA

14 KELLY PRICE f/STOKLEY Not My Daddy My Block/Malaco

15 CHARLIE WILSON Life Of The Party Jive/RCA

16 R. KELLY When A Woman Loves Jive/RCA

17 JENNIFER HUDSON Where You At J/RCA

18 ERIC BENET Sometimes I Cry Reprise

19 KEM Why Would You Stay Republic

20 MUSIQ SOULCHILD Yes Atlantic

21 CEE LO GREEN f/MELANIE FIONA Fool For You Elektra/RRP

22 R. KELLY Radio Message Jive/RCA

23 TANK Emergency Atlantic

24 JOHNNY GILL In The Mood J Skillz/Notifi/Fontana

25 MIGUEL Sure Thing By Storm/RCA

26 NE-YO Champagne Life Def Jam/IDJMG

27 JENNIFER HUDSON No One Gonna Love You J/RCA

28 MONICA Love All Over Me J/RCA

29 KELLY ROWLAND f/LIL WAYNE Motivation Republic

30 ERIC BENET Never Want To Live Without You Warner Bros.

31 TYRESE Stay EMI/Capitol

32 DONELL JONES Love Like This Candyman/eOne

33 FAITH EVANS Gone Already Prolific/eOne

34 FANTASIA Collard Greens & Cornbread J/RCA

35 NE-YO One In A Million Def Jam/IDJMG

36 MELANIE FIONA Gone And Never Coming Back SRC/Republic

37 JAZMINE SULLIVAN 10 Seconds J/RCA

38 MUSIQ SOULCHILD f/SWIZZ BEATZ Anything Atlantic

39 MINT CONDITION Caught My Eye Shanachie

40 JAMIE FOXX f/DRAKE Fall For Your Type J/RCA

41 NOEL GOURDIN Beautiful Mass Appeal/eOne

42 MARY MARY Survive Columbia

43 MARSHA AMBROSIUS Late Nights & Early Mornings J/RCA

44 VASHAWN MITCHELL Nobody Greater EMI Gospel

45 LEDISI f/JAHEIM Stay Together Verve Forecast/VMG

46 JOE Closer Dexterity Sounds/UMCG

47 SADE Still In Love With You Epic

48 CHRIS BROWN She Ain’t You Jive/RCA

49 JILL SCOTT So Gone (What My Mind Says) Warner Bros.

50 BRIAN MCKNIGHT Fall 5.0 Hard Work/eOne
 
Complete charts link: http://ftp.media.radcity.net/ZMST/InsideRadio/YearEnd11.pdf

Top 50 RB/Hip Hop Songs

1 KELLY ROWLAND f/LIL WAYNE Motivation Republic

2 MIGUEL Sure Thing By Storm/RCA

3 CHRIS BROWN Look At Me Now Jive/RCA

4 NICKI MINAJ f/DRAKE Moment 4 Life Young Money/Cash Money/Republic

5 DJ KHALED f/DRAKE & RICK ROSS I’m On One WTB/Cash Money/Republic

6 LIL WAYNE f/CORY GUNZ 6 Foot 7 Foot Cash Money/Republic

7 BIG SEAN f/CHRIS BROWN My Last G.O.O.D./Def Jam/IDJMG

8 CHRIS BROWN She Ain’t You Jive/RCA

9 WAKA FLOCKA FLAME f/ROSCOE DASH & WALE No Hands Asylum/Warner Bros.

10 RICK ROSS f/DRAKE Aston Martin Music Def Jam/IDJMG

11 TREY SONGZ Love Faces Atlantic

12 KANYE WEST All Of The Lights Def Jam/IDJMG

13 LIL WAYNE How To Love Cash Money/Republic

14 CHRIS BROWN No BS Jive/RCA

15 JAMIE FOXX f/DRAKE Fall For Your Type J/RCA

16 KERI HILSON Pretty Girl Rock Interscope

17 RIHANNA f/DRAKE What’s My Name? Def Jam/IDJMG

18 LLOYD Lay It Down Interscope

19 NICKI MINAJ Did It On’em Young Money/Cash Money/Republic

20 MARSHA AMBROSIUS Far Away J/RCA

21 JEREMIH f/50 CENT Down On Me Def Jam/IDJMG

22 YC f/FUTURE Racks 3022/Big Play/Republic

23 TREY SONGZ Can’t Be Friends Songbook/Atlantic

24 BIG SEAN Marvin & Chardonnay G.O.O.D./Def Jam/IDJMG

25 MIGUEL Quickie By Storm/RCA

26 ACE HOOD Hustle Hard We The Best/Def Jam/IDJMG

27 TWISTA f/CHRIS BROWN Make A Movie GMG/EMI/Capitol

28 BEYONCE Best Thing I Never Had Columbia

29 WIZ KHALIFA Black & Yellow Rostrum/Atlantic/RRP

30 TREY SONGZ f/DRAKE Unusual Songbook/Atlantic

31 WALE f/JEREMIH & RICK ROSS That Way MMG/Warner Bros.

32 WIZ KHALIFA Roll Up Rostrum/Atlantic/RRP

33 FABOLOUS You Be Killin Em Def Jam/IDJMG

34 DRAKE Headlines Young Money/Cash Money/Republic

35 JAY Z & KANYE WEST f/OTIS REDDING Otis Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam/IDJMG

36 LIL WAYNE f/DRAKE She Will Young Money/Cash Money/Republic

37 LUPE FIASCO f/TREY SONGZ Out Of My Head Atlantic

38 NICKI MINAJ Super Bass Young Money/Cash Money/Republic

39 NICKI MINAJ Right Thru Me Young Money/Cash Money/Republic

40 CHRIS BROWN Wet The Bed Jive/RCA

41 WAKA FLOCKA FLAME f/KEBO GOTTI Grove St. Party 1017 Brick Squad/Warner Bros.

42 LLOYD Cupid Interscope

43 RIHANNA Man Down Def Jam/IDJMG

44 TRAVIS PORTER Bring It Back Porter House/RCA

45 TRAVIS PORTER Make It Rain Porter House/RCA

46 CHRIS BROWN f/TYGA & KEVIN MCCALL Deuces Jive/RCA

47 JAY Z & KANYE WEST N***** In Paris Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam/IDJMG

48 MINDLESS BEHAVIOR f/DIGGY SIMMONS Mrs. Right Streamline/Interscope

49 DRAKE Marvins Room Young Money/Cash Money/Republic

50 BOBBY V Words Blue Kolla Dreams/Capitol

Complete Charts link: http://ftp.media.radcity.net/ZMST/InsideRadio/YearEnd11.pdf

Top 50 Songs of 2011

1 PITBULL f/NE-YO Give Me Everything Mr. 305/Polo Grounds/J/RCA

2 KATY PERRY E.T. Capitol

3 BRUNO MARS Grenade Elektra/Atlantic

4 LMFAO Party Rock Anthem Will.I.AM/Cherrytree/Interscope

5 BLACK EYED PEAS Just Can’t Get Enough Interscope

6 ENRIQUE IGLESIAS f/LUDACRIS Tonight Republic

7 KATY PERRY Firework Capitol

8 ADELE Rolling In The Deep XL/Columbia

9 KATY PERRY Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.) Capitol

10 KE$HA We R Who We R Kemosabe/RCA

11 CEE LO GREEN F**k You (Forget You) Elektra/RRP

12 RIHANNA S&M Def Jam/IDJMG

13 PINK Raise Your Glass LaFace/RCA

14 PINK F**kin’ Perfect (Perfect) LaFace/RCA

15 NICKI MINAJ Super Bass Young Money/Cash Money/Republic

16 BRITNEY SPEARS Till The World Ends Jive/RCA

17 KE$HA Blow Kemosabe/RCA

18 MAROON 5 f/CHRISTINA AGUILERA Moves Like Jagger A&M/Octone/Interscope

19 HOT CHELLE RAE Tonight Tonight Jive/RCA

20 ONEREPUBLIC Good Life Mosley/Interscope

21 RIHANNA Only Girl (In The World) Def Jam/IDJMG

22 BRUNO MARS Lazy Song Elektra/Atlantic

23 BRITNEY SPEARS I Wanna Go Jive/RCA

24 NELLY Just A Dream Derrty/Republic

25 JENNIFER LOPEZ f/PITBULL On The Floor Island/IDJMG

26 PITBULL f/T-PAIN Hey Baby (Drop It To The Floor) Mr. 305/Polo Grounds/J/RCA

27 CHRIS BROWN Yeah 3x Jive/RCA

28 LADY GAGA The Edge Of Glory Streamline/Konlive/Interscope

29 GYM CLASS HEROES f/ADAM LEVINE Stereo Hearts Fueled By Ramen/RRP

30 USHER More LaFace/RCA

31 LADY GAGA Born This Way Streamline/Konlive/Interscope

32 RIHANNA f/DRAKE What’s My Name? Def Jam/IDJMG

33 BRUNO MARS Just The Way You Are Elektra/Atlantic

34 COBRA STARSHIP f/SABI You Make Me Feel… Fueled By Ramen/Atlantic

35 BAD MEETS EVIL f/BRUNO MARS Lighters Interscope

36 TAIO CRUZ Dynamite Mercury/IDJMG

37 FOSTER THE PEOPLE Pumped Up Kicks Star Time/Columbia

38 DIDDY-DIRTY MONEY Coming Home Bad Boy/Interscope

39 LUPE FIASCO The Show Goes On First & Fifteenth/Atlantic

40 USHER f/PITBULL DJ Got Us Fallin’ In Love LaFace/RCA

41 TINIE TEMPAH Written In The Stars Parlophone/Capitol

42 ADELE Someone Like You XL/Columbia

43 FAR EAST MOVEMENT f/RYAN TEDDER Rocketeer Cherrytree/Interscope

44 EDWARD MAYA Stereo Love Ultra

45 BRITNEY SPEARS Hold It Against Me Jive/RCA

46 THE SCRIPT For The First Time Epic

47 FAR EAST MOVEMENT f/CATARACS & DEV Like A G6 Cherrytree/Interscope

48 JEREMIH f/50 CENT Down On Me Def Jam/IDJMG

49 MIKE POSNER Please Don’t Go J/RCA

50 NEON TREES Animal Mercury/IDJMG

Complete Charts link: http://ftp.media.radcity.net/ZMST/InsideRadio/YearEnd11.pdf

2011 Music Honor Roll

Story by Lawrence Tanter, Program Director at KKJZ Long Beach California

"As the year comes to a conclusion – we pause and say A final “So Long” to these Music Innovators and Contributors who passed away in 2011.

With Deep Respect & Gratitude – their legacy is acknowledged and never forgotten. They all shared the ‘Gift of Music’."

_________________________________________________________________

George Shearing…Phoebe Snow…Ray Bryant

Gil Scott-Heron…Vesta Williams…Eddie Marshall

Dobie Gray…Art Hillary…Billy Bang…Walter Norris

Nick Ashford…Ralph MacDonald…Cornell Dupree

Fonce Mizell…Pinetop Perkins…Gene McDaniels

Gerry Rafferty…Bob Brookmeyer…Paul Motion

Sylvia Robinson…Joe Morello…Dave Honeyboy Edwards

Melvin Sparks…Joe Lee Wilson…Jessy Dixon

Clarence Clemons…Cesaria Evora…Snooky Young

Frank Foster…J. Blackfoot…Pinetop Perkins

Charles Fambrough…Coco Robicheaux…Tom Garvin

_________________________________________________________________

"These Artists were creative people, who dedicated their lives to making our journey…Enjoyable!"

Arizona schools' Ethnic Studies program ruled ILLEGAL!!

Story by Associated Press 
Written by Jacques Billeaud
PHOENIX - An administrative law judge ruled Tuesday that a Tucson school district's Ethnic Studies Program violates State law, agreeing with the findings of Arizona's public schools chief.

Judge Lewis Kowal's ruling marked a defeat for the Tucson Unified School District, which appealed the findings issued in June by Superintendent of Public Instruction John Huppenthal.

Kowal's ruling, first reported by The Arizona Daily Star, said the district's Mexican-American Studies program violated state law by having one or more classes designed primarily for one ethnic group, promoting racial resentment and advocating ethnic solidarity instead of treating students as individuals.

The judge, who found grounds to withhold 10 percent of the district's monthly state aid until it comes into compliance, said the law permits the objective instruction about the oppression of people that may result in racial resentment or ethnic solidarity.

"However, teaching oppression objectively is quite different than actively presenting material in a biased, political and emotionally charged manner, which is what occurred in (Mexican-American Studies) classes," Kowal wrote.

The judge said such teaching promotes activism against white people, promotes racial resentment and advocates ethnic solidarity.

Huppenthal has 30 days to accept, reject or modify the ruling. If he accepts the judge's decision, the district has about 30 days to appeal the ruling in Superior Court.

"In the end, I made a decision based on the totality of the information and facts gathered during my investigation — a decision that I felt was best for all students in the Tucson Unified School District." Huppenthal said in a written statement.

Messages left for a district spokeswoman Tuesday night weren't immediately returned. In the past, district officials have said they can't afford to the financial hit that Huppenthal's decision would bring.

The battle over the ethnic studies program escalated shortly after Arizona's heavily scrutinized immigration enforcement law was passed in April 2010.

The program's supporters have call challenges to the courses an attack on the state's Hispanic population, while critics say the program demonizes white people as oppressors of Hispanics.

Huppenthal ordered a review of the program when he took office in January after his predecessor, Tom Horne, said the Mexican-American Studies program violated state law and that Huppenthal would have to decide whether to withhold funding.

Huppenthal, a Republican, had voted in favor of the ethnic studies law as a state senator before becoming the state's schools chief.

The Nguzo Saba and Kwanzaa in a Time of Crisis

Article by Dr. Ron Daniels

One of the greatest triumphs of the Black Power, Black Nationalist and Black Consciousness movements of the 60's and 70's was the widespread embrace of the Nguzo Saba, The Seven Principles of the Black Value System, and Kwanzaa, the African American holiday created by Dr. Maulana Karenga. As an authentic genius and master teacher, a fundamental tenet of Dr. Karenga's thought is that "the key crisis in Black life is the cultural crisis." He has consistently argued that an appreciation of one's own history and culture is vital to developing a healthy self-concept and positive view of the racial/ethnic group to which you belong. Hence, Dr. Karenga "returned to the source," Africa to construct a value system for the sons and daughters of formerly enslaved Africans in America. He systematically researched/examined the worldview and traditional way of life which has sustained African people for thousands of years. After exhaustive study, Dr. Karenga developed Kawaida, "the doctrine of tradition and reason," as a theoretical framework and practical guide for the liberation and restoration of an oppressed people.

The Nguzo Saba contains the core concepts and values of Kawaida and the foundation for Kwanzaa. In a recent article, First Call for State of the Black World Conference III, I suggested that a spiritual and cultural revival is essential to combat and overcome the devastating State of Emergency afflicting the "dark ghettos" in Black America. As we begin the celebration of Kwanzaa, it might be useful to restate the Nguzo Saba and discuss its relevance to healing our families and communities in a time of crisis. So, I offer these reflections.

The first Principle in the Nguzo Saba is Umoja/Unity. That Africans in America should be unified or act in concert to confront the State of Emergency should be self evident. However, achieving Black unity can be challenging and illusive. In the name of pursuing the interests of Black people, what we have in the Black community is a myriad of leaders and organizations that all too often compete rather than cooperate with each other. Moreover, various leaders and organizations have different ideologies and strategies for achieving full freedom/liberation. There is also a "class divide" between the more affluent sisters and brothers who have benefited from the "movement" and moved up in the world and the dispossessed left behind in abandoned and devastated "dark ghettos," the "hood." Overcoming disunity requires a conscious effort to create "united front" structures which bring people together despite their differences in philosophy and approach. Dr. Karenga has advocated "operational unity" as a concept to enable leaders and organizations with differing philosophies and approaches to work together. Operational unity means focusing on issues and areas where there is agreement among organizations and leaders rather than disagreement. Dr. Karenga calls this "unity without uniformity." With so many problems/issues affecting the Black community, the goal of operational unity is to have leaders and organizations collaborate/act collectively around specific issues, projects and initiatives they agree on.

Unity in the Black community also requires bridging the class divide. Brothers and sisters who have seized on a pathway to the middle and upper class paved by the blood and sacrifice of heroes and sheroes of the Black freedom struggle have an obligation to spiritually and/or physically return to "Tobacco Road," the urban inner-city neighborhoods of this country, to give back, to reinvest their time, talent and resources to reconstruct/revive the "dark ghettos" from which they escaped.

The second Principle is Kujichagulia/Self-Determination. There has been much talk about a "post-racial society" in the aftermath of the election of Barack Obama as America's first African American president. And, there have always been some within the race who wanted to escape the "burden" of their Blackness. The State of Emergency in Black America clearly suggests that "race still matters" as a determinant of one's life chances in this country. Dr. Karenga has said that to chart a course toward full freedom, a theory/ideology of liberation must provide an "identity, purpose and direction." I believe that if we are to permanently rise about the crises plaguing our families and communities, we must name and claim our identity, proudly embrace ourselves and be resolutely committed to being "of the race and for the race." As descendants from the African motherland, "we are an African people." And, part of our mission in life should be to unapologetically work for the advancement of people of African descent in the U.S. and the Pan African world. This does not mean disrespecting, disregarding or disdaining other racial/ethnic groups; it simply means "charity begins at home and spreads abroad," and "love thy neighbor as thyself." We cannot, must not abandon the race, especially our sisters and brothers in the "hood," in an ill conceived effort to become absorbed in a "colorblind" or "post racial society." We have a right to define who we are and determine our own destiny as people!

The third Principle is Ujima/Collective Work and Responsibility. As noted earlier, the Doctrine of Kawaida as conceived by Dr. Karenga is grounded in the traditional worldview and way of life of African people. As such, it emphasizes "we, us and our" in terms of the values that are important to building and sustaining wholesome families and communities. This is diametrically opposed to the "me, myself and I" values of "individualism" and "competition" stressed as central to the "cherished" American/western way of life. The concept of the "collective" is frowned upon in America as "socialist" or communist." And yet, the idea of extended families working together for a common purpose within communities with a sense of mutual obligation and responsibility is deeply ingrained in African societies - and our own experience as Africans in America, particularly in the South. We certainly will not permit class or status to divide us if we see ourselves as one people committed to promoting the common good of the race. This is a clear example of the need to retain the values/principles of our forebears as opposed to adopting a value orientation which has proven to be destructive to Black families and communities.

The fourth Principle is Ujamaa/Cooperative Economics. This principle is closely linked to Ujima in that it encourages people of African descent to share resources and engage in joint efforts to build and sustain an economic foundation for our families and communities. Cooperatives, credit unions, investment clubs and community development corporations are examples of economic structures based on pooling and sharing resources for the common good. Ujamaa does not preclude for-profit corporations or individual entrepreneurship. But, the value/principle of Ujamaa dictates that entrepreneurs and businesses explore ways of collaborating/cooperating, exchanging ideas and pooling resources where appropriate to enhance the collective economic empowerment of the Black community. This is what Dr. Claud Anderson has promoted through the concept of Powernomics and George Fraser through Power Networking. In the spirit of Booker T. Washington, Marcus Garvey, W.E.B. Du Bois and the Honorable Elijah Muhammad, it is imperative that people of African descent persistently work to build an economic infrastructure to undergird our social and political institutions.

The fifth Principle is Nia/Purpose. When we survey the incredible fratricide/carnage occurring in Black communities, largely committed by young Black males, one has the feeling that it may be because many of our young people lack a sense of purpose and meaning in their lives. And, this may be related to a lack of collective purpose in the Black community as a whole. Gone are the days of the civil rights/human rights and Black Power movements when there was a pervasive spirit of purpose in the air. There was a dynamic movement and a feeling that Black people were on the move! In the face of a daunting State of Emergency, we urgently need to restore a sense of purpose in Black America. And, that purpose should be a commitment to reclaim and rebuild our communities, a fervent determination that America's desolate dark ghettos will become new communities that are bright beacons of hope and possibility. The collective conviction/purpose and the struggle required to rebuild our communities will be contagious; it will capture the hearts and minds of our youth/young people by restoring a sense of mission to their lives as part of a people fighting to liberate themselves from an oppressive value system and society.

The Sixth Principle is Kuumba/Creativity. People of African descent gave the world its first multi-genius in the person of Imhotep, the Egyptian physician, architect and engineer who mastered the science of building in stone that led to the erection of the pyramids as one of the greatest wonders of the world! One might say that creativity is in our DNA. Africans from the Caribbean took old barrels and transformed them into "steel drums" that produce amazing music. Those of us who came up on the "rough side of the mountain" in America (most of us) bear witness to the fact that our mothers and fathers were masters of "making something out of nothing." They had to in order to survive. Overcoming the State of Emergency to rebuild our families and communities is a formidable undertaking. It will not be easy, but we should act with the absolute confidence that we possess the creativity, the knowledge, skill and will to meet the challenge.

The Seventh and final Principle is Imani/Faith. Given the obstacles our forebears faced, they had to have an abiding faith that survival was possible, that beyond the brutality, hardships, suffering and sacrifice of the moment, "joy would come in the morning," that someday, a generation that sprang from their loins - sons, daughters, grandchildren, great grandchildren, great, great grandchildren ... would be able to proclaim "free at last." For millions it was the belief that "we've come this far by faith, leaning on the Lord." For others it was a spiritual force deep down inside that could be tapped to carry forth for another day and another day ... the faith that a better day was coming for the sons and daughters of Africa in America. In this current crisis, we too must have faith, a belief that enables us to scale heights, not normally possible, because we believe and act on our beliefs. Similar to the Principle of Kuumba/Creativity, we must have faith that there are no odds too great for a people to overcome if we act with Umoja/Unity, Kujichagulia/Self-Determination, Ujima/Collective Work and Responsibility, Ujamaa/Cooperative Economics, Nia/Purpose, Kuumba/Creativity, and Imani/Faith. "Deep in my heart, I do believe, we shall overcome some day!"

______________________________________________________________________

Dr. Ron Daniels is President of the Institute of the Black World 21st Century and Distinguished Lecturer at York College City University of New York. His articles and essays also appear on the IBW website www.ibw21.org and www.northstarnews.com . To send a message, arrange media interviews or speaking engagements, Dr. Daniels can be reached via email at info@ibw21.org.

Weekly Address: The President and First Lady Thank our Troops and you as we Celebrate the Holiday Season - 12/24/11

Seven Things Highly Productive People Do

Story and Photo by Inc Magazine
Written by Llya Pozin
List by Project Manager Tom Wong (Wong's Clients include: Toyota, Disney, and Honda)

Here are his tips for staying productive:

1. Work backwards from goals to milestones to tasks. Writing “launch company website” at the top of your to-do list is a sure way to make sure you never get it done. Break down the work into smaller and smaller chunks until you have specific tasks that can be accomplished in a few hours or less: Sketch a wireframe, outline an introduction for the homepage video, etc. That’s how you set goals and actually succeed in crossing them off your list.
2. Stop Multi-Tasking. No, seriously—stop. Switching from task to task quickly does not work. In fact, changing tasks more than 10 times in a day makes you dumber than being stoned. When you’re stoned, your IQ drops by five points. When you multitask, it drops by an average of 10 points, 15 for men, five for women (yes, men are three times as bad at multitasking than women). 
3. Be militant about eliminating distractions. Lock your door, put a sign up, turn off your phone, texts, email, and instant messaging. In fact, if you know you may sneak a peek at your email, set it to offline mode, or even turn off your Internet connection. Go to a quiet area and focus on completing one task.
4. Schedule your email. Pick two or three times during the day when you’re going to use your email. Checking your email constantly throughout the day creates a ton of noise and kills your productivity.
5. Use the phone. Email isn’t meant for conversations. Don’t reply more than twice to an email. Pick up the phone instead. 
6. Work on your own agenda. Don’t let something else set your day. Most people go right to their emails and start freaking out. You will end up at inbox-zero, but accomplish nothing. After you wake up, drink water so you rehydrate, eat a good breakfast to replenish your glucose, then set prioritized goals for the rest of your day. 
7. Work in 60 to 90 minute intervals. Your brain uses up more glucose than any other bodily activity. Typically you will have spent most of it after 60-90 minutes. (That’s why you feel so burned out after super long meetings.) So take a break: Get up, go for a walk, have a snack, do something completely different to recharge. And yes, that means you need an extra hour for breaks, not including lunch, so if you’re required to get eight hours of work done each day, plan to be there for 9.5-10 hours.

Sports Legends that passed on in 2011

Link to the Sports Legends: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/42899847/ns/sports-golf/displaymode/1247/beginSlide/1/  

Sears to close 100 to 120 Sears and Kmart stores

Story by AP

NEW YORK — Sears Holdings Corp. plans to close between 100 and 120 Sears and Kmart stores after poor sales during the holidays, the most crucial time of year for retailers.

The closings are the latest and most visible in a long series of moves to try to fix a retailer that has struggled with falling sales and shabby stores.

In an internal memo Tuesday to employees, CEO and President Lou D'Ambrosio said that the retailer had not "generated the results we were seeking during the holiday."

Sears Holdings Corp. said it has yet to determine which stores will close but said it will post on http://www.searsmedia.com when a final list is compiled. Sears would not discuss how many, if any, jobs would be cut.

The company has more than 4,000 stores in the U.S. and Canada. Its stock fell $7.88, or 17 percent, to $37.97 in premarket trading.

The company's revenue at stores open at least a year fell 5.2 percent to date for the quarter at both Sears and Kmart, the company said Tuesday. That includes the critical holiday shopping period.

Sears Holdings said the declining sales, ongoing pressure on profit margins and rising expenses pulled its adjusted earnings lower. The company predicts fourth-quarter adjusted earnings will be less than half the $933 million it reporter for the same quarter last year.

Sears Holdings also anticipates a non-cash charge of $1.6 billion to $1.8 billion in the quarter to write off the value of carried-over tax deductions it now doesn't expect to be profitable enough to use.

Sears said it will no longer prop up "marginally performing" stores in hopes of improving their performance and will now concentrate on cash-generating stores.

"These actions will better enable us to focus our investments on serving our customers," D'Ambrosio said.

The weaker-than-expected performance reflect what analysts say is a deteriorating outlook for the retailer.

The results point to "deepening problems at this struggling chain and renewed worries about Sears survivability," said Gary Balter, an analyst at Credit Suisse. "The extent of the weakness may be larger than expected but the reasons behind it are not. It begins and some would argue ends with Sears' reluctance to invest in stores and service."

The company has seen rival department stores like Macy's Inc. and discounters like Target Corp. continue to steal customers. It's also contending with a stronger Wal-Mart Stores Inc., the world's largest retailer, which has hammered hard its low-price message and brought back services like layaway, which allows financially stressed shoppers to finance their holiday purchases by paying a little at a time.

The tough economy hasn't helped, either. Middle-income shoppers, the company's core customers, have seen their wages fail to keep up with higher costs for household basics like food.

But the big problem, analysts say, is Sears hasn't invested in remodeling, leaving its stores uninviting.

"There's no reason to go to Sears," said New York-based independent retail analyst Brian Sozzi, "It offers a depressing shopping experience and uncompetitive prices."

Sears Holdings Corp., based in Hoffman Estates, Ill., said that the store closings will generate $140 to $170 million in cash from inventory sales. The retailer expects the sale or sublease of real estate holdings to add more cash.

Sears Holdings appeared to stumble early in the holiday season, as it opened its Sears, Roebuck and Co. stores at 4 a.m. on Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving. Rivals including Best Buy Co., Wal-Mart Stores Inc. and Toys R Us opened as early as Thanksgiving night. Sears stores had opened on Thanksgiving Day in 2010. Kmart has been opening on Thanksgiving for years.

A hint that trouble might be brewing came in mid-December when Sears Holdings unexpectedly announced that 260 of its Sears, Roebuck and Co. locations would stay open until midnight through Dec. 23.

Kmart's 4.4 percent decline in revenue at stores open at least a year was blamed on diminished layaways and a drop in clothing and consumer electronics sales. Part of Kmart's layaway softness likely stemmed from competitive pressure. Wal-Mart had said that its holiday layaway business had been popular. Toys R Us expanded its layaway services to include more items. Kmart's grocery sales climbed during the period.

Sears cited lackluster consumer electronics and home appliance sales for its 6 percent dropoff. Sears' clothing sales were flat. Sales of Lands' End products at Sears stores rose in the mid-single digits.

Sears Holdings said it also plans to lower its fixed costs by $100 million to $200 million and trim its 2012 peak domestic inventory by $300 million from 2011's $10.2 billion at the third quarter's end.

D'Ambrosio acknowledged in his internal memo that criticism over Sears Holdings' performance was likely to come, but that the company was prepared for the days ahead.

"We will bounce back and become stronger than ever," he said.

Five Christian Churches bombed in Nigeria

The devastating scene outside St Theresa Catholic Church near the Nigerian capital Abuja on Sunday.

Story by CNN
Written by Jos Levs

Jos, Nigeria -- A string of bombs struck churches in five Nigerian cities Sunday, leaving dozens dead and wounded on the holiday, authorities and witnesses said.

The blasts mark the second holiday season that bombs have hit Christian houses of worship in the west African nation. In a statement issued late Sunday, Nigerian President Goodluck Jonathan called the bombings "a dastardly act that must attract the rebuke of all peace-loving Nigerians."

"These acts of violence against innocent citizens are an unwarranted affront on our collective safety and freedom," Jonathan said. "Nigerians must stand as one to condemn them."

Bombs targeted churches across the country, hitting the cities of Madalla, Jos, Kano, and Damaturu and Gadaka, said journalist Hassan John, who witnessed the carnage in Jos. The death toll in Madalla alone was 18, including two people reported dead overnight at a nearby hospital, Nigeria's National Emergency Management Agency spokesman Yushau Shuaib told CNN.

John said witnesses in Madalla reported a higher death toll, with more than 30 killed. Some victims died after being taken to a hospital, he said.

In Damaturu, a northern town in Yobe state, a police station and a state security building were also bombed, an aid worker said. The worker asked not to be named for security reasons.

Nwakpa Okorie, a spokesman for the Nigerian Red Cross, said the some of the wounded were taken to the capital Abuja for treatment.

"The situation is under control now. The security agents have secured the streets close to the bombed areas ... in Madalla, Jos and Dematuru," he said.

Jonathan said his government "will not relent in its determination to bring to justice all the perpetrators of today's acts of violence and all others before now." And in Washington, the White House said U.S. officials would help Nigeria pursue those behind "what initially appear to be terrorist acts."

"We condemn this senseless violence and tragic loss of life on Christmas Day," White House spokesman Jay Carney said in a written statement. "We offer our sincere condolences to the Nigerian people and especially those who lost family and loved ones."

The first explosion Sunday struck near a Roman Catholic church in Madalla, west of Abuja, Nigeria's capital, the National Emergency Management Agency said. Church officials were trying to get a picture of what happened in the city.

"Lives have been lost but we do not have the details," said the Rev. Michael Ekpenyong. "The area has been cordoned off. I tried to call the priest, but I couldn't get through."

Ekpenyong, the secretary general of the country's Catholic Secretariat, said the church that was bombed was "not a big church, but lots of people attend." Photos from the scene showed burned-out cars and at least three bodies on the ground, one covered with a blanket, at the rural church.

Usman Abdallah Baba, who witnessed the bombing, said there were at least 15 or 16 casualties and that authorities were still counting the toll.

Baba said local people were already blaming the violent extremist Muslim Boko Haram sect, which has targeted Christians as well as Muslims its members consider insufficiently Islamic.

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon condemned the acts "in the strongest terms," his office said in a statement Sunday.

He expressed his condolences to the Nigerian people and reiterated a call "for an end to all acts of sectarian violence in the country."

In 2010, five churches in Jos were attacked while residents were celebrating Christmas Eve. The blasts killed dozens in Jos, which lies on a faith-based fault line between the Muslim-dominated north and the mainly Christian south.

On Sunday, two blasts targeted the Mountain of Fire Ministries church in Jos, northeast of the capital, said John. No one was killed in that bombing, which John called a "miracle" -- but a police officer who got into a gun battle with the attackers died of his wounds later, John said, citing officials.

The second church, in Jos, was hit by two explosions when young men threw bombs, John said. Police responded quickly and exchanged gunfire with the attackers, who wounded at least one of the police officers, he said.

The injured officer was rushed to the Jos University teaching hospital for medical attention, but died of his wounds, John said. The attackers fled into the crowd and disappeared after the attack, John said.

Police arrested four people and recovered four unexploded devices, Nigerian state television reported.
Nigeria is Africa's most populous nation and has the world's sixth-largest Christian population -- about 80.5 million people as of 2010, according to a report published this month by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life in Washington. That makes the country just over 50% Christian, according to the Pew figures.

Dozens killed in fighting in Nigeria

The latest attacks follow two days of clashes between militants and security forces in northern Nigeria. Lt. Gen. Azubuike Ihejirika, the Nigerian army chief of staff, said the clashes left three soldiers dead and several more wounded.

The fighting began Thursday between Boko Haram militants and the military in the Yobe state town of Damaturu, Ihejirika said.

"There was a major encounter with the Boko Haram in Damaturu," Ihejirika said Friday. "We lost three of our soldiers, seven were wounded. But we killed over 50 of their members."

Boko Haram translates from the local Hausa as "Western education is outlawed." The group has morphed into an insurgency responsible for dozens of attacks in Nigeria in the last two years.

Boko Haram's targets include police outposts and churches as well as places associated with "Western influence."

I finally saw Santa Claus

To say that Santa has perfect timing is no joke. In all my years I have never seen someone so precise totally in touch with our nodding heads. However for the first time, I finally saw Santa come down the chimney.

The fire in the fireplace had descended to a flicker as Santa slide down the chimney miraculously avoiding the whispering flame. My dated Christmas greeting to Mr. Claus: "Santa Claus What's Happenin'?! " Santa was surprised to see me but not startled: "Hey Kirk I can't fool you anymore...Ho Ho Ho!"

With another chilly night in Washington DC, I offered Santa a glass of California Pinot Noir. Santa said: "No No No, that will slow my roll. Gotta go and bring good.good cheer to one and and to all."

I persisted in my giving mood, "How about some cookies to keep that stomach of yours up to speed. You're the only one that lives healthy and spirited with a big gut. The commoners get hearth attacks, diabetes, high blood pressure, and strokes if we do not watch our weight."

Cheerfully Santa says: "Ho Ho Ho, pass-the-cookies. Oh Oh Oh, I almost forgot? Here are the gifts you requested sitting on the lap of one of my helpers last week. To which I replied, "Thanks Santa."

"Santa, do you need to take a leak, a dump, or something before you bring on good cheer to one and all?"

Santa said: "No No No. I'm fine. Stay good like you been this past year, as you know Santa knows."

"Will do Santa", I replied. "Tell that to my loud neighbors."

"Oh Santa knows whose been naughty or nice. Ho Ho Ho, Merrrrrry Christmas," Santa stated as he magically left. Santa seemingly flew up the chimney.

Looking out the window, I saw the reindeer Rudolph blinking his nose leaving a streaking red trail across the moonlight skies leading the raindeer pack - and Santa - through the night to honor all of you good souls that make our world more tolerable.

Christmas at the White House - December 2011

House approves payroll tax bill, sends to Obama for signature

story by The Hill
written by Pete Kasperowicz and Russell Berman

The House on Friday morning approved a bill extending the payroll tax holiday and unemployment insurance for two months, and also prevents a planned cut to reimbursements for Medicare physicians.

Rep. Jo Ann Emerson (R-Mo.) asked for unanimous consent, which was declared approved by House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio). The bill is H.R. 3765.

House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer (D-Md.), who tried unsuccessfully to force a vote on the Senate bill earlier in the week, spoke briefly before the bill was accepted to thank Republicans for finally agreeing to the extension.

"I know that the American people are pleased that we have come together to agree on this extension to give certainty and peace of mind to 160 million Americans who are concerned about losing their tax cut, the 48 million seniors who are concerned about their Medicare, and the 2.3 million people who are unemployed and seeking work who are fearful of losing their benefits," Hoyer said.

"I thank the Speaker, and I thank the gentlelady from Missouri," he said.

The quick House passage capped a disastrous public relations week for House Republican leaders, who initially signaled support for the two-month extension agreed to in the Senate, then changed their minds after rank-and-file members said they opposed what could be a complicated patch for employers.

But by Thursday, signs were emerging that Democrats were winning the PR battle, in part because Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell (R-Ky.) broke with Boehner and called on the House to accept the Senate compromise.

With their political victory clear to all, Democrats were restrained on Tuesday, showing little interest in spiking the football on an agreement that extended a tax cut for just two months.

“This is a small win, but it’s a big win,” said Rep. John Dingell (D-Mich.), the longest serving member of the House.

In a dig at the GOP, Dingell said he was hopeful the victory “was a sign of things to come” and offered some unsolicited advice to the House Republican rank-and-file.

“I’m hoping they’ll also learn to follow their leader, Mr. Boehner,” Dingell said.

Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-Calif.) credited President Obama, along with Americans who engaged on the issue in recent days to pressure Republicans to come to an agreement.

“A big cheer for a guy named Barack Obama, the president of the United States,” Becerra said.

The praise for Obama was notable for House Democrats, who have been among the most vocal Democratic critics of the president’s negotiating style during his three years in office.

McConnell on Thursday outlined the rough compromise that was struck between the House and Senate. Senate Democrats agreed to name conferees to meet with the House to work out a year-long extension of the payroll tax holiday, and in return, the House would accept the two-month extension in the meantime.

Despite the heartburn the payroll fight caused Republican leaders, the bill in many ways represents a policy victory for Republicans, as it does not pay for the payroll tax extension through higher taxes, as Democrats had first proposed. It also includes language that requires the Obama administration to make a decision on the Keystone oil sands pipeline extension within 60 days, something President Obama initially said he would veto.

The bill also gives a nod to Republican concerns that a two-month payroll tax extension would create a new accounting burden for companies. Republicans said they were worried that a two-month extension would complicate the effort of employers to implement the tax holiday with their employees.

Under the new bill, employers would not have to manage the transition from a two-month tax holiday to a full year tax holiday at the end of February, under the assumption that a full year extension will soon be negotiated.

Earlier Friday morning, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (D-Nev.) said that when the Senate receives a message from the House requesting a conference, the Senate would agree to the conference. Reid also made a unanimous consent request that once the House approves the two-month extension, the Senate would consider it as approved.

Before adjourning, Boehner announced the Democratic conferees to the payroll tax bill: House Ways & Means Committee Ranking Member Sandy Levin (R-Mich.), Democratic Caucus Vice Chairman Xavier Becerra (D-Calif.), House Budget Committee Ranking Member Chris Van Hollen, Budget Committee Member Allyson Schwartz (D-Pa.), and House Energy & Commerce Committee Ranking Member Henry Waxman (D-Calif.).

Reid also announced Senate Democratic conferees: Senate Finance Committee Chairman Max Baucus (D-Mont.), and Sens. Jack Reed (D-RI), Ben Cardin (D-Md.), and Bob Casey (D-Pa.).The House on Tuesday rejected the Senate's two-month extension, and spent the rest of the week calling for Senate Democrats to return to Washington and find a way to approve a year-long extension.

Remarks by the President on the Payroll Tax Cut

South Court Auditorium
1:00 P.M. EST
mp3 audio: http://www.whitehouse.gov/videos/2011/December/122211_Statement.mp3

THE PRESIDENT: Thank you, everybody. (Applause.) Please have a seat. Good afternoon to all of you. Merry Christmas. Happy holidays.

We've been doing everything we can over the last few weeks to make sure that 160 million working Americans aren’t hit with a holiday tax increase on January 1st. We’ve also been doing everything we can to make sure that millions of people who are out there looking for work in a very tough environment don’t start losing their unemployment insurance on January 1st.

Now, on Saturday, we reached a bipartisan compromise that would do just that -- make sure that people aren’t seeing a tax cut the first of the year; make sure that they still have unemployment insurance the first of the year. Nearly every Democrat in the Senate voted for that compromise. Nearly every Republican in the Senate voted for that compromise. Democrats and even some Republicans in the House voted for that compromise. I am ready to sign that compromise into law the second it lands on my desk.

So far, the only reason it hasn’t landed on my desk -- the only reason -- is because a faction of House Republicans have refused to support this compromise.

Now, if you’re a family making about $50,000 a year, this is a tax cut that amounts to about $1,000 a year. That’s about 40 bucks out of every paycheck. It may be that there's some folks in the House who refuse to vote for this compromise because they don’t think that 40 bucks is a lot of money. But anyone who knows what it’s like to stretch a budget knows that at the end of the week, or the end of the month, $40 can make all the difference in the world.

And that’s why we thought we’d bring your voices into this debate. So many of these debates in Washington end up being portrayed as which party is winning, which party is losing. But what we have to remind ourselves of is this is about people. This is about the American people and whether they win. It's not about a contest between politicians.

So on Tuesday, we asked folks to tell us what would it be like to lose $40 out of your paycheck every week. And I have to tell you that the response has been overwhelming. We haven't seen anything like this before. Over 30,000 people have written in so far -- as many as 2,000 every hour. We’re still hearing from folks -- and I want to encourage everybody who's been paying attention to this to keep sending your stories to WhiteHouse.gov and share them on Twitter and share them on Facebook.

The responses we’ve gotten so far have come from Americans of all ages and Americans of all backgrounds, from every corner of the country. Some of the folks who responded are on stage with me here today, and they should remind every single member of Congress what’s at stake in this debate. Let me just give you a few samples.

Joseph from New Jersey talked about how he would have to sacrifice the occasional pizza night with his daughters. He said -- and I'm quoting -- “My 16-year-old twins will be out of the house soon. I'll miss this.”

Richard from Rhode Island wrote to tell us that having an extra $40 in his check buys enough heating oil to keep his family warm for three nights. In his words -- I'm quoting -- “If someone doesn't think that 12 gallons of heating oil is important, I invite them to spend three nights in an unheated home. Or you can believe me when I say that it makes a difference.”

Pete from Wisconsin told us about driving more than 200 miles each week to keep his father-in-law company in a nursing home -- $40 out of his paycheck would mean he'd only be able to make three trips instead of four.

We heard from a teacher named Claire from here in D.C. who goes to the thrift store every week and uses her own money to buy pencils and books for her fourth grade class. Once in a while she splurges on science or art supplies. Losing $40, she says, would mean she couldn’t do that anymore.

For others, $40 means dinner out with a child who's home for Christmas, a new pair of shoes, a tank of gas, a charitable donation. These are the things at stake for millions of Americans. They matter to people. A lot.

And keep in mind that those are just the individual stories. That doesn’t account for the overall impact that a failure to extend the payroll tax cut and a failure to extend unemployment insurance would have on the economy as a whole. We've seen the economy do better over the last couple of months, but there's still a lot of sources of uncertainty out there -- what's going on in Europe, what's going on around the world. And so this is insurance to make sure that our recovery continues.

So it's time for the House to listen to the voices who are up here, the voices all across the country, and reconsider. What’s happening right now is exactly why people just get so frustrated with Washington. This is it; this is exactly why people get so frustrated with Washington. This isn’t a typical Democratic-versus-Republican issue. This is an issue where an overwhelming number of people in both parties agree. How can we not get that done? I mean, has this place become so dysfunctional that even when people agree to things we can't do it? (Applause.) It doesn’t make any sense.

So, enough is enough. The people standing with me today can’t afford any more games. They can’t afford to lose $1,000 because of some ridiculous Washington standoff. The House needs to pass a short-term version of this compromise, and then we should negotiate an agreement as quickly as possible to extend the payroll tax cut and unemployment insurance for the rest of 2012. It's the right thing to do for the economy, and it's, most importantly, the right thing to do for American families all across the country.

This is not just my view. Just a few hours ago, this is exactly what the Republican Leader of the Senate said we should do. Democrats agree with the Republican Leader of the Senate. We should go ahead and get this done. This should not be hard. We all agree it should happen. I believe it's going to happen sooner or later. Why not make it sooner, rather than later? Let’s give the American people -- the people who sent us here -- the kind of leadership they deserve.

Thank you, everybody

Coach John Thompson Ends Regular Talk Show at WTEM, Washington DC

Story by WTEM

The iconic former Georgetown University basketball coach and talk host in the DC market since 1999 will step away from his regular show on Red Zebra’s WTEM in February to pursue other interests.

Red Zebra director of programming Chuck Sapienza says, “While a sad day for the station, we fully support Coach Thompson’s decision to move on to other projects. As Coach and I discussed at the time of his decision, this is not a retirement."

His fans will still hear Coach Thompson on ESPN980 from time to time.

Thompson’s program airs from 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm daily with co-host Doc Walker. Sapienza doesn’t state what the station’s plans are after Thompson steps down.

Dial Global Co-CEOs New Employment Contracts Revealed.

Story by Talkers Magazine

The three co-CEOs of Dial Global have signed four-year employment contracts with the now publicly traded company that pay each a base salary of $600,000 per year. Spencer Brown, David Landau and Kenneth Williams will each get a bonus of $250,000 for this year with future discretionary bonuses based on half their annual salaries. In addition, each is entitled to two years salary if he leaves the company. There are other components such as $15,000 each for an annual country club allowance and a $1,250 per month parking allowance.

People we lost in 2011

People we lost in 2011: http://www.legacy.com/memorial-sites/2011/profile-search.aspx?beginswith=All

Legendary Vocalist Chaka Khan speaks about the late Singer/Song-WriterNick Ashford below:

Nick obviously had an incredible connection with Valerie Simpson, his wife and songwriting partner. Their songs were powerful, and Nick and Valerie had an insight into my character and what I liked to sing.

One of my biggest hits, "I'm Every Woman," came from them. I will probably be singing that song until the day I die. Until my voice stops. It's an anthem, and the lyrics are brilliant. In concert, both men and women in the audience sing "I'm Every Woman" with me. The men joining in surprised me for a hot minute, and then I thought, No, this is right. This is correct.

I think Nick embraced his femininity as much as he embraced his masculinity. I admire that in a person. It's a beautiful thing.

His presence and what he had to offer to the music world will be missed. I would love to see what he'd be writing with Valerie right now.

Chaka Khan is a Grammy-winning singer, songwriter, and performer. Began with the group Rufus.

President Obama To Rep. Boehner: "Pass The Senate Payroll Tax Cut Now!"

Story by Huffington Post
Written by Jennifer Bendery
Photo by AP

WASHINGTON -- President Barack Obama made a surprise appearance at Tuesday's White House briefing to send a message directly to House Speaker John Boehner (R-Ohio): Quit the politicking and vote on the Senate-passed payroll tax cut. Now.

"I'm calling on the Speaker and the House Republican leadership to bring up the Senate bill for a vote," Obama said during brief remarks. "This is not poker, this is not a game," he continued. "We have more important things to worry about than saving face, or figuring out internal caucus politics."

The president's comments came just after House Republicans rejected a Senate package that would have extended a soon-to-expire payroll tax cut for another two months, with GOP leaders calling for a year-long extension or no extension at all. Other provisions in the Senate package -- an extension of unemployment insurance benefits and a stopgap measure to prevent automatic cuts to doctors' Medicare payments -- are also on track to expire on Jan. 1 without congressional action.

The White House and Senate Democrats have summarily rejected calls by House Republican leaders to go into conference and make changes to the Senate-passed bill. Instead, their strategy appears to be to put pressure on House GOP leaders to cave, bring up the Senate-passed bill for a straight up-or-down vote, and watch it pass. Tuesday's House vote wasn't a straight up-or-down vote on the Senate bill; instead, it was on a "motion to reject" the bill. A straight vote on the bill could expedite it directly to the president, and Democrats contend it would pass if House Republican leaders would let it come up.

President Obama dismissed the House GOP argument that a two-month extension isn't long enough, since Democrats and the White House have said that they, too, agree on the need for a year-long extension. The problem, however, is that the parties can't agree on how to pay for it. The two-month extension is fully paid for and costs $33 billion; a year-long extension would come in at about $200 billion.

The President called the two-month extension an "insurance policy" so the tax cut doesn't lapse as lawmakers take more time to sort out how to pay for the bigger package. What House Republicans are "really trying to do" by demanding changes to the Senate-passed package is "wring concessions from Democrats on issues that have nothing to do with the payroll tax cut -- issues where the parties fundamentally disagree," he said.

"Let's not play brinksmanship. The American people are weary of it; they're tired of it. They expect better," said the president, who abruptly left without taking questions.

Heritage Inner City Broadcasting headed for auction block

Story by Inside Radio

Four months after a group of lenders dragged Inner City Broadcasting into bankruptcy court, it now appears as if some - if not all - of the company’s radio stations will be sold at auction. Efforts to reach a restructuring agreement or other strategic alternatives didn't get far because of an estimated $75-million dollar tax penalty. An auction was seen as the best alternative.

In a court filling, Rothschild senior managing director Neil Augustine writes, "A sale of all, or substantially all, of the debtors' assets...is critical to preserving and maximizing the value of these estates and the only vialble alternative to a chapter 7 liquidation." He works for debtholders Yucaipa, Fortress Capital and Drawbridge Capital.

If U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Shelley Chapman agrees, the lenders who are owed a combined $254-million dollars will create a limited liability company that will act as a "stalking horse" to buy the stations in New York NY; San Francisco CA; Jackson, MS and Columbia, SC.

Augustine tells the court using that method will "attract higher and better bids in order to maximize creditor recoveries." The value of the stalking horse company's credit bid and cash payment hasn't been settled, but they've told the court that a number will be submitted by January 6th.

To win Inner City Broadcasting, a bidder will have to beat that bid when the auction is held in mid-February.

AirTran grounds Sirius XM

Story by Inside Radio

Holiday fliers will still be able to hear satellite radio on AirTran but by February 28 the airline plans to stop offering the in-flight feature. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution says the airline wants to offer a “consistent product” with sister carrier Southwest. The company says removing the satellite radio receivers will lower the plane’s weight and thereby cut fuel costs.

Arbitron warns against web-to-radio ratings comparisons

Story by Inside Radio

In a memo to clients, Arbitron CEO Bill Kerr and EVP/COO Sean Creamer urge clients and advertisers to avoid comparing self-reported audience estimates from internet music services to Arbitron radio audience estimates. While it doesn’t single out recent ratings released by Pandora, Arbitron says the clarification is important “in light of recently released audience estimates for internet music services.”

President Obama Weekly Address -- Honoring Those Who Served in Iraq - 12/17/2011

North Korean leader Kim Jong-il dead

 Funeral set for Dec. 28; Jong-un hailed a heir; Lee talks with President Obama

Story by the Korean Herald
Written by By Song Sang-ho (sshluck@heraldm.com)  
Photo by Yonhap News 

North Korea’s iron-fisted ruler Kim Jong-il, who had long drawn international attention for his unceasing nuclear ambitions, died of a heart attack on a train ride on Saturday, the communist state’s state media reported on Monday. He was 69.

The demise of the enigmatic leader sent shock-waves across South Korea, putting the government in emergency mode. Kim, who was tapped as heir in 1974, took the helm of the communist state upon the death of his father and national founder Kim Il-sung in 1994.

His death came as the North was accelerating efforts to transfer power to his third son Jong-un. The succession process was accelerated after Kim apparently suffered a stroke in the summer of 2008.

“Kim Jong-il passed away at 8:30 a.m. on Dec. 17 from a great mental and physical strain caused by his uninterrupted field guidance tour for the building of a thriving nation,” said the official Korean Central News Agency in a statement.

KCNA explained that he died of a heart attack.

The statement was issued at noon under the names of the key state and political organs including the ruling Workers’ Party’s Central Committee and the National Defense Committee. A female announcer donned in a black funeral suit read it in a tearful voice on a state television.

It also hailed Jong-un as “great leader and successor” in an apparent hint that the succession process is proceeding successfully.

“At the vanguard of our revolution, there stands Kim Jong-un, the successor of the Juche (self-reliance) revolution and excellent leader for the party, military and citizens,” it said.

“Under his leadership, we will turn our sorrow into power and courage to overcome difficult situations and rigorously work to achieve a victory of the Juche revolution.”

The North formed a 232-member funeral committee, which includes Jong-un at the top of the list. Jong-un currently serves as the vice chairman of the party’s CMC.

KCNA said that Kim will be laid to rest in the Kumsusan Memorial Palace where the embalmed body of his father lies in state, and that the funeral ceremony was to be held in the capital of Pyongyang on Dec. 28.

The North set a mourning period from last Saturday to Dec. 29. But it said that it would not accept foreign delegations at the funeral ceremony, according to the state media.

President Lee Myung-bak stressed stability and peace at the time of the economic difficulties and close cooperation with the international community over Kim’s death.

“For the future of South Korea, peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula is more important than anything else. Peace and stability should not be undermined due to (his death,” Lee was quoted by his spokesperson as saying during the emergency Cabinet meeting.

“We should make thorough preparations and keep a close cooperative system with the international community.”

Lee also emphasized that public opinion should not be divided, calling on citizens to carry out their normal economic activities without being agitated by the news.

The meeting was attended by Prime Minister Kim Hwang-sik, Unification Minister Yu Woo-ik, Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin, National Intelligence Service chief Won Sei-hoon and other chiefs of related ministries.

After the shocking announcement, Lee talked with U.S. President Barack Obama, Japan’s Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and Russia’s President Dmitry Medvedev over the telephone and agreed to closely cooperate to cope with the aftermath of Kim’s death.

The South Korean military put its armed forces on alert and beefed up its vigilance against possible contingencies that could flare up amid growing uncertainties on the peninsula.

In tandem with the U.S. military, it also strengthened its intelligence gathering capabilities to keep close tabs on movements of the North Korean military in tense border areas.

Seoul’s Foreign Ministry set up a 24-hour task-force to handle responses from the international community and North Korea and draw up measures to deal with them. It is headed by Lim Sung-nam, the ministry’s representative for Korean Peninsula Peace and Security Affairs.

The Ministry of Strategy and Finance and the Financial Services Commission also set up emergency teams to respond quickly to potential developments that could fuel public and market concerns.

Korea’s Finance Ministry and financial watchdog shifted into emergency mode in a bid to minimize the effect of Kim’s death on local markets.

Business organizations urged the government to beef up efforts to prevent the North Korean leader’s abrupt death from having a negative impact on the local economy.

Political parties, engrossed in their efforts to turn the political tide ahead of the general elections next year, also held talks to discuss measures to prevent any negative fallout from Kim’s death and ways to stem the spread of anxiety among citizens.

Some observers expressed concerns over Seoul’s intelligence-gathering capabilities, as it appears to have been unaware of his death until after the North made the official announcement at noon.

Israel to release another 550 Palestinian prisoners

Story by CNN
Written by Guy Azriel and Enas Muthaffar

Jerusalem  -- As many as 550 Palestinian inmates are scheduled to be released from Israeli prisons Sunday in the second phase of the deal that won the freedom of captured Israeli soldier Gilad Shalit, a spokeswoman for the Israeli prisons authority told CNN.

The deal, signed between Israel and Hamas in October, won Shalit's release from Hamas in exchange for allowing more than 1,000 Palestinians to leave Israeli jails.

A total of 477 prisoners were freed in October under the first stage of the swap.

The release of the remaining 550 inmates is to take part at 10 p.m., according to Sivan Weizmann of the Israeli Prisoners Authority.

The majority of the prisoners to be released Sunday -- 505, including four women -- will be sent to the West Bank through the Beitunia crossing. Forty-one others will be transferred into Gaza through the Kerem Shalom crossing. Two prisoners will be sent to Jordan via the Allenby crossing and two others -- a man and a woman -- will be sent to their homes in east Jerusalem via the Atarot base.

Ahead of the expected release, Israeli security forces and hundreds of Palestinians clashed at a West Bank crossing near the internment facility where the prisoners were being held.

At least 20 Palestinians and one Israeli soldier were injured in the Sunday evening skirmishes at the Beitunia crossing, according to Palestinian and Israeli officials.

Samer Abu Ali, spokesman for the Palestinian medical relief services in Ramallah, told CNN that many of the Palestinians suffered injuries from inhaling tear gas and from rubber bullets fired by the Israeli security forces at the families and friends of the soon-to-be-released prisoners.

Palestinian independent lawmaker and political activist Mustafa Barghouti, who was at the scene of the clashes, told CNN that he had been sprayed with foul-smelling water used to disperse crowds and had been overcome by tear gas.

An Israeli military spokesman said some 400 Palestinians were engaged in an "illegal riot" at the crossing point and were throwing rocks and burning tires. The spokesman said soldiers were using riot control methods to disperse the crowds.

While the first stage of the Shalit deal provoked significant discontent among some Israelis, with the families of terror victims claiming the price paid for one single soldier was too costly, Sunday's release prompted very little attention in Israeli media.

"The first group of prisoners released in October is immeasurably different from the one to be released today," Amy Palmor, head of the paroles department at the Israeli Justice Ministry, told CNN.

"All 550 freed today were not directly involved in the injuring or killing of Israeli citizens and most of them are members of Fatah," Palmor said. Fatah, the ruling Palestinian party, is considered in Israel as the most moderate of all Palestinian political fractions.

"The list in the first part of the deal was largely dictated by Hamas and was composed mainly of prisoners with blood on their hands serving life imprisonments. Most of them were members of Hamas and other extremist organizations," she added.

Many of the inmates scheduled for release Sunday would have finished serving their sentences before the end of 2012, Palmor said.

But some criticized the terms of the swap agreement.

"This deal is a formality that doesn't meet our expectations. The second stage of this deal didn't include old, ill or handicapped prisoners. It also didn't include the remaining five female prisoners inside Israeli jails. This deal was solely controlled by the Israeli side," Issa Qaraqe, the Palestinian Authority minister of Detainees and Ex-detainees Affairs, told CNN.

"We will welcome and celebrate the prisoners in the Mukataa upon their release. The fact that the release will take place during the night will not affect our celebrations. Israel decided to release them at night with the wrong assumption that this will affect the intensity of the celebrations. The celebrations will start tonight and will continue for several days in different districts and towns, each prisoner will be celebrated in his own hometown," Qaraqe said.

The minister said Israel had launched a large arrest campaign after the initial prisoner release in October.
"As long as the occupation continues, arrests will continue," he said, adding that approximately 3,500 Palestinian prisoners remain behind bars in Israeli prisons.

Shalit was captured in June, 2006, and spent more than five years in captivity.

Soldiers finally leave Iraq

Friend --

Early this morning, the last of our troops left Iraq.

As we honor and reflect on the sacrifices that millions of men and women made for this war, I wanted to make sure you heard the news.

Bringing this war to a responsible end was a cause that sparked many Americans to get involved in the political process for the first time. Today's outcome is a reminder that we all have a stake in our country's future, and a say in the direction we choose.

Thank you.



Barack

Testimony: Paterno ‘knew inappropriate action was taken by Jerry Sandusky with a youngster’ in 2002

Story by Yahoo Sports
Written by Matt Hinton

What did Joe Paterno (photo above) know, and when did he know it?

Today, we have some answers to the crucial question from the coach's mouth after Paterno's testimony from earlier this year — in which the now-former Penn State icon told a grand jury that he had been informed about an incident of "a sexual nature" between ex-defensive coordinator Jerry Sandusky and a young boy in 2002 — was read for the first time in open court Friday.

In the testimony, Paterno said he "knew inappropriate action was taken by Jerry Sandusky with a youngster" after a meeting with then-graduate assistant Mike McQueary, who allegedly saw Sandusky sexually abusing a boy in a locker room shower the previous night, but did not inform police and waited several days to meet with his boss, athletic director Tim Curley, because he "didn't want to interfere with their weekends."

Sandusky, who played and coached under Paterno for more than 30 years prior to his retirement in 1999, remained a regular on Penn State's campus until his arrest on a multitude of sexual abuse charges last month.

Paterno's testimony was read as part of a preliminary hearing for Curley and another Penn State administrator, Gary Schultz, who are both charged with perjury and failure to report for not turning Sandusky in following a meeting with McQueary in 2002. (Paterno wasn't present at the hearing, which came less than a week after the soon-to-be 85-year-old was reportedly hospitalized with a fractured pelvis after falling in his home. He's also been undergoing treatment for lung cancer.) A judge ruled at the end of the proceedings that the state has enough evidence to send the cast against Curley and Shultz to trial.

McQueary — a State College native and former starting quarterback who remained on Paterno's staff until Paterno was fired as a result of the scandal last month — took the stand Friday morning, testifying that he personally saw Sandusky with his arms wrapped around a boy's waist in a shower, and believed (although he was not 100 percent certain) that the boy was being sodomized. He immediately called his father, and they decided he should go to Paterno the next day. In that meeting and the subsequent meeting with Curley and Schultz, McQueary said he was clear that he was describing an "extremely sexual" act (emphasis added):

• He said he did not give Paterno explicit details of what he believed he'd seen, saying he wouldn't have used terms like sodomy or anal intercourse out of respect for the longtime coach. 

• He said Paterno told him he'd "done the right thing" by reporting what he saw. The head coach appeared shocked and saddened and slumped back in his chair, McQueary said. Paterno told McQueary he would talk to others about what he'd reported. 

• Nine or 10 days later, McQueary said he met with Curley and Shultz and told them he'd seen Sandusky and a boy, both naked, in the shower after hearing skin on skin slapping sounds.

"I told them that I saw Jerry in the showers with a young boy and that what I had seen was extremely sexual and over the lines and it was wrong," McQueary said. "I would have described that it was extremely sexual and I thought that some kind of intercourse was going on."

That testimony is substantially the same as the one McQueary reportedly gave to the grand jury earlier this year. Friday, McQueary said he thought Curley and Schultz took his report seriously, and that he considered Schultz law enforcement because his position included oversight of campus police. "I thought I was talking to the head of the police, to be frank with you," McQueary said. "In my mind it was like speaking to a (district attorney). It was someone who police reported to and would know what to do with it."

What they did with it, according to the Pennsylvania Attorney General, is essentially nothing: In its summary of the initial charges against Sandusky on Nov. 5, the AG's office wrote that "there is no indication that anyone from the university ever attempted to learn the identity of the child who was sexually assaulted on their campus or made any follow-up effort to obtain more information," and "there was no effective change in Sandusky's status with the school and no limits on his access to the campus."

In his testimony Friday afternoon, Curley disputed that conclusion, arguing that McQueary "did not indicate there was something of a sexual nature" between Sandusky and the boy during their meeting, and that he understood the incident as "horsing around." He responded by telling Sandusky he was banned from coming into the building with children from his charity, The Second Mile, but otherwise did not restrict access. (University president Graham Spanier signed off on the ban, according to the attorney general, "without any further inquiry.")

Curley didn't report the incident to the police, he testified Friday, because "I didn't think it was a crime at the time." In Curley's defense, attorney Roberto argued that McQueary failed to convey the seriousness of what he'd seen to Paterno, that the allegations subsequently came across as "not that serious" to Curley, and that it seemed to amount to a case of "he said, she said."

Schultz did not testify Friday, but in a grand jury testimony read at the hearing, he said he was under the impression (from his meeting with McQueary) that Sandusky and the boy were wrestling and Sandusky grabbed the boy's genitals in a "horsing around" type of way. This was consistent with Sandusky's general demeanor, Schultz said, because "he would grab you on the arm, hit you on the back, grab you and put you in a headlock."

Sandusky had been implicated as a possible sex offender as early as 1998, when university police were involved in an investigation following "allegations of sexually inappropriate behavior involving Sandusky and young boys in the football showers." At least two detectives in that case reportedly heard Sandusky admit to showering with a boy on two different occasions, once to the boy's mother and once in an interview with the state's child welfare agency, but the case was closed after the county district attorney (now deceased) declined to prosecute. Schultz told the grand jury he was aware of the investigation that Penn State police had produced a ninety-five page report.

Sandusky retired from Paterno's staff a year later at the age of 55, but maintained an office in the Lasch Football Building and had "unlimited access to all football facilities," including the locker room. He also kept a parking pass, a university Internet account and a listing in the faculty directory.

In 2008, according to USA Today, Sandusky ended his involvement with the charitable program, The Second Mile, amid accusations by another adolescent male. As recently as 2009, he was still running an overnight football camp for children as young as nine on Penn State's campus. He was still working out on campus as recently as October — after university officials had been called to testify in the investigation that ultimately led to Sandusky's arrest. Sandusky told the New York Times earlier this month that he still has his keys.

At that point, Sandusky faced more than 25 felony counts of deviate sexual intercourse, aggravated indecent assault, unlawful contact with a minor, endangering the welfare of a child and indecent assault against at least eight victims over more than a decade. He was subsequently re-arrested last week on twelve additional counts involving two additional victims.

Paterno, Curley, Schultz and Spanier have all "resigned" or been fired from their jobs in the wake of the charges. McQueary has been put on administrative leave and reportedly told players on a conference call last month, "I wanted to let you guys know I'm not your coach anymore. I'm done." Legally, prosecutors have determined that McQueary, Paterno and Spanier fulfilled their obligations under state law.

The Penn State Board of Trustees has appointed a special committee to investigate the university's response, as has the U.S. Department of Education and the NCAA. This is the system at work