Senate Democrats Respond To House Republicans' Offer

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One week before a possible government
shut-down, Senate Democrats respond
to an offer from House Republicans
that would keep the government
running for two more weeks while
cutting $4 billion.

"The plan the Republicans are
floating today sounds like a
modified version of what
Democrats were talking about,"
that was proposed to Republicans
Thursday, Jon Summers- spokesman
for Senate Majority Leader
Harry Reid of Nevada.

The proposal Thursday was
different in that it related to
a longer term spending bill that
would last until October 1, the
beginning of the new fiscal year.

In the short term bill, House
Majority Leader Eric Cantor,
Republican-Virginia, explained to
reporters Friday the $4 billion in
spending cuts would come from
terminating eight programs that
President Obama included in his
proposed 2012 budget and the
elimination of earmarks, the
same two areas Senate Democrats
said Thursday they were considering.

The cuts offered are intended to
find common ground with Democrats,
per Republicans.

These are things that people have
agreed to already," House GOP Whip
Kevin McCarthy.

The Republican plan aims at
slicing-away $650 million in highway
funds, $200 million in housing funds
and $250 million for a reading program
at the Department of Education plus it
eliminates a literacy program at that
department which the administration
labeled "ineffective."

Democrats accused Republicans of
wanting indiscriminate budget cuts.

Gossip Is A Bully's Tool

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Bullies Are Powerless Without Gossip

Gossip, lies, speculation and rumor
are ego boosting tools for bullies.
Lies, speculation and rumor fall
under gossip. Gossip is anyone
repeating idle talk about the
private business of others.

A mention of someone/someone's
business arouses the bully.
He/she immediately takes charge,
and begins to plot ways of
spreading gossip but not before
recruiting others.

A bully takes pleasure in smearing
a person's name through gossip.
The bully's ego is hurt when the
bullied speaks the truth.

The truth is a victim's best weapon
against bullies. The truth spoken
in different words rolls-out to
true. Gossip, on the other hand,
falls apart when looked at closely.

Let's look at how a bully operates.

"Who? Let's teach him/her a lesson."

Or

"Help me play a joke." One bully said.

"I'm not sure, don't know him/her."
The bully's friend.

"You know me, and you are."

Or

"I don' like him/her." The bully.

"Why?" The bullied friend.

"Don't like way he/she talks."

"But..."

"I heard..."

Or

He/she needs to be taken down a
level or two."

A bully's friend, most likely, is
bullied too. Bullies don't allow
their friends to think for
themselves, because they will
uncover the truth.

Take away a bully's tool by not
gossiping.

Source: http://hubpages.com/hub/Gossip-Is-A-Bullys-Tool

"I Hate This Damn Job"- Sarah Palin as Alaska's Governor

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One of Sarah Palin's closest aides
from her time as governor leaked
a manuscript that mentions Palin
broke state election law in her
2006 gubernatorial campaign, and
was destroyed by petty grievances
up until she resigned.

The unpublished book by Frank
Bailey was leaked to the media
and widely circulated on Friday.

The manuscript opens with an
account of Palin sending Bailey
a message: "I hate this damn job,"
shortly before she resigned as
Alaska's governor in July 2009,
less than three years into her
four-year term. The manuscript
continues for almost 500 pages,
with analysis, gossip and
allegation stirred-in. Copies of
the manuscript were passed around
Alaska political circles on Friday.
The Daily News received copies
from various sources.

The first from author Joe McGinniss,
who is working on his own Palin book.
McGinniss had no response to a message
asking where he obtained the manuscript
and the reason he circulated it.

Bailey, a political insider, joined
Palin's 2006 campaign for governor,
became part of her inner circle, and
has never before told his version of
the Palin story.

Bailey has consistently refused requests
for interviews and did so again Friday.
The book was co-written with California
author Ken Morris and Jeanne Devon of
Anchorage, who publishes the popular
anti-Palin web site Mudflats.

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20110224050935writ.nb/topstory.html

How To Write For Business

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Better Business Writing

Better business writing is
providing reader friendly
writing. The writing must
tap into a reader's
interest. Supply readers
with what they want, need,
using fresh ideas. Stir-in
facts, quotes, figures or
color.

The actual writing is clear,
without confusion. No one
wants to waste time looking-up
words every other minute.

Better business writing mixes-in
everything that's needed. The
reader can do without lengthy,
useless words and phrases.

Better business writing requires
that it's correct ethically,
legally and factually.

First, organize. An e-book,
shorter article, research,
market projections or any
presentation must be
organized before the
meeting.

The order of display is
determined. What point is
shown first, second and so
on.

Next, the actual writing is
done. Write-out everything.
Share anything pertaining
to the presentation.

The editing process is last.
The procedure is a line by
line review. Keep editing
until your presentation is
perfect.

Source: http://hubpages.com/hub/How-To-Write-For-Business

Pennsylvania Governor Fires Abortion Clinic Employees

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It was a state over-sight of an
abortion clinic, in west
Philadelphia, PA, where at least
one mother and seven viable babies
died "despicable," Pennsylvania
Governor Tom Corbett.

Corbett fired a half-dozen employees
and announced changes Tuesday in two
departments.

"This doesn't even rise to the level
of government run amok. It was
government not running at all. To call
this unacceptable doesn't say enough,"
Pennsylvania Governor Tom Corbett.

The Department of Health and the
Department of State have the major
responsibility for such clinics.

Seven employees from the Department
of Health, Bureau of Professional
and Occupational Affairs, branch
of the Department of State are no
longer employed by the state, either
resigned or was terminated since the
situation came to light, per Corbett's
statement.

Four other former employees named in
the grand jury investigation had
already resigned.

Dr. Kermit Gosnell, 69, from the
west Philadelphia abortion clinic,
is being held without bail on eight
murder counts and other charges.
Arraignment is set for March 2.

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20110216075957writ.nb/topstory.html

'The German Fritzl' Goes on Trial for Charges of Incest

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Detlef S, 48, a.k.a. "the German
Fritzl" goes on trial Tuesday
accused of raping his stepdaughter
and fathering eight of her children.

Charges of incest with related
offences were committed between
1987 and 2010. Also, the repeated
rape of his step-daughter, known
by the pseudonym Natalie and now
is 28. He, too, is charged with
abusing his biological son and
daughter.

DNA tests revealed that the man
was the father of at least 7 of
Natalie's children. An eighth
child, whom he may have fathered,
is believed to have died according
to a spokesman for the court in
Koblenz.

Charges point to friends paying to
have sex with his two daughters per
the indictment. He denies all the
charges.

Prior to his arrest, Detlef S lived
with his 52-year-old wife; in a
village in western Germany, and up to
15 children. Four of the children
reportedly came from his wife's first
marriage, four belonged to them both
and seven were the result of incest.

The village priest, Joachim Triebel-Kulpe,
denied that Fluterschen turned a blind eye.
"There was speculation, of course, and
whispers in the village. I never would
have imagined that something like this
would happen in our community," he
explained.

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20110215075020writ.nb/topstory.html

Obsession Turns to Murder

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Maksim Gelman, 23, killed 4 people
during a day of stabbings,
car-jackings and hit-and-runs.

Gelman's obsession turned to
murder Friday when he stabbed
20-year-old Yelena Bulchenko
to death outside her Sheepshead
Bay home.

"That was all in his head,"
explained Yelena Bulchenko's
friend, Andrey Andriak. "They
were never a couple, barely
friends. He wanted to take it
to the next level and she
didn't."

Gelman had already fatally
stabbed his stepfather,
Bulchenko's mother and a
pedestrian in a 28 hour
killing spree- wounded 5
others.

People who knew Gelman said
he harassed Bulchenko for
months after she spurned
his advances.

"He became obsessed with her.
He would call and text her all
the time, but she would never
answer back," college friend,
Lauren Vasquez. "He didn't get
it. It was all in his head that
they were together or would be
together."

Neighbors described Gelman as a
low-life who was often on angel
dust. He had a string of arrests
for drug possession and other
charges, according to police.

"They had to die," Maksim Gelman
confessed after being forced down
by two transit cops and an off-duty
detective about 9 a.m. Sunday, per
sources.

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20110214063824writ.nb/topstory.html

How To Use Flashbacks In Fiction

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Tips On Using Flashbacks
Flashbacks will keep fiction
interesting, but it must be
mixed well. A flashback that's
too long bores the reader, and
he/she moves to the next
author/writer. It's the primary
concern when working with flashbacks.

Begin your fiction in a dramatic
scene. If the reader needs to know
how a character ended-up in the
situation, show them with a
flashback. The flashback takes the
reader back and uncovers relevant
information that leads to where
the story opened.

Sometimes, a sentence is all that's
needed. At other times, a paragraph
is required to handle a flashback.
In other words, flashbacks must
not slow-down the pace of a story.

Music, loud noise, a fall, gentle
shake or ringing telephone can set
a flashback into motion.

The following is the tell me method
to a flashback. It's necessary to
the excerpt. One paragraph explains
the background of grandmother and
gives insight into Tay's ancestry.

"Mother, tell me about how
grandmother migrated to find a better
life," Tay pleaded.

I explained how my mother worked as
a maid, saved her money until she was
able to move north. She, after many
years of hard work, became a business
owner.

A flashback is smooth, must have a
reason to be included.

Flashbacks are used in life too.
Newspaper headlines are excellent
examples. Newspaper headlines splash
the eye-catching part of a story, and
then explain what led up to the headline.
It's a flashback technique. Read over
the examples.

1. Egyptian Defense Ministry: ‘It Is
Time To Go Back To Normal Life’

http://newsblaze.com/story/20110202080440writ.nb/topstory.html

2.Google to Launch Google Offers

http://newsblaze.com/story/20110125105107writ.nb/topstory.html

In closing, a flashback covers only what is needed.

Factory Worker Discovers Ming Vase

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A 79-year-old British retired worker
wanted the press to not publish his
name, but walked into an auction
house with an almost perfect Ming
vase in a card-board box.

The Dorchester auction house, Duke's,
were amazed by the "spectacular find."

"When my colleague initially showed me
what had arrived in a cardboard box I
could not believe my eyes," Guy
Schwinge of Duke's told the Guardian.
"The vase is in perfect condition,
and it is amazing to think that it
has survived unscathed for almost
six hundred years."

The BBC reported that the vase, which
stands 11.5 inches tall, is the largest
ever found of a rare group of early Ming
"moonflasks" whose production dates
somewhere between the years 1403 and
1424. It was manufactured during the
reign of an emperor named Yongle, and
its distinctive features such as the
small loop handles appear to be
influenced by Islamic design.

The auction is scheduled for May,
and the item is expected to bring
at least a million pounds, or
somewhere in the neighborhood of
$1.6 million United States dollars.

It's not sure how the man came into
possession of the vase.

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20110208074635writ.nb/topstory.html

A Priest's Confession of a Mistake

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There was much debate, online and
off, about why Father Thomas
Euteneuer left the position
president of Human Life
International, 2010, in August.

The sudden exit led to official
apologies, explanations and
defenses of both Euteneuer's
past behavior as not only the
superstar of the international
pro-life movement, but an exorcist
for the Catholic Church.

A January 27th medical emergency
at HLI's Front Royal, Virginia
headquarters described by
emergency medical responders as a
"medical seizure," and some
witnesses depicted "demonic
possession" of a past female
associate of Euteneuer's.

There were speculations and
accusations against the priest,
attacks on both the priest's
critics and alleged victims.

Euteneuer sliced into the five
months of official silence with
an admission of one instance of
moral failing during his performance
of an exorcism.

"The circumstances that led to my
departure from HLI were related
exclusively to my own decisions
and conduct within the ministry
of exorcism that I carried out
independently from my responsibilities
at HLI," Euteneuer in a February 1st
post on the web site LifeSiteNews.
The "vast majority of my decisions
and conduct, both personally and in
this ministry, were morally sound and
consistent with all standards of
pastoral care of persons," Euteneuer
explained. "I must acknowledge, however,
that one particularly complex situation
clouded my judgment and led me to
imprudent decisions with harmful
consequences, the worst of which was
violating the boundaries of chastity
with an adult female who was under
my spiritual care."

Euteneuer accepted "full responsibility"
for his "weakness and sinful conduct," but
added a denial of some specific online
accusations, such as the presence in a
rental room in his parent's home of a
woman alleged to have been the subject
of repeated exorcisms by the priest.

"The good and safety of others, respect
for privacy, and the common good are
sufficient reasons for being silent
about what ought not be known or for
making use of a discreet language. The
duty to avoid scandal often commands
strict discretion. No one is bound to
reveal the truth to someone who does
not have the right to know it." (Catechism
of the Catholic Church, 2489. Emphasis in
the original.)," the HLI statement.

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20110207071627writ.nb/topstory.html

Egyptian Defense Ministry: 'It Is Time To Go Back To Normal Life'

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The Egyptian defense ministry asked
the youth to return home, saying,
"It is time to go back to normal
life," as protesters assembled for
a ninth day to push the departure
of President Hosni Mubarak forward.

The crowd had families with young
children in Cairo's Tahrir Square
on Wednesday. Some camped out at
Tahrir which means "freedom" or
"liberation" in Arabic for one week.

Mubarak, on Tuesday, said he wouldn't
run for office again in the elections
scheduled for September, but is firm
on remaining in the country to finish
his term.

"My first responsibility now is to
restore the stability and security of
the homeland, to achieve a peaceful
transition of power in an environment
that will protect Egypt and Egyptians
and which will allow for the responsibility
to be given to whoever the people elect in
the forth-coming elections," Mubarakin in a
televised address Tuesday night.

Thousands of protesters exploded in chants
of "Down with Mubarak!" and "The people want
the president to be judged!" following his
announcement.

Some waved shoes in the air, a deep insult
in the Arab world. They vowed to continue
their demonstrations until Mubarak quits now,
not when his term is over.

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20110202080440writ.nb/topstory.html

Cairo Crowds Prepare For A March

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Cairo crowds prepare for a march
aimed at bringing down the 30-year
regime of President Hosni Mubarak.
Organizers requested that a million
people flood the streets.

Egyptian authorities shut down the
Internet and cell-phone service
ahead of the protest to stop people
from showing-up.

The ruling National Democratic Party
announced a counter demonstration in
support of Mubarak.

Tuesday's new arrivals gave new energy
to protesters who spent another chilly
night in the plaza, and the crowd broke
into a full-bodied roar of "Down, Mubarak,
down!"

Protesters are demanding an end to what
they feel is a repressive, incompetent
and corrupt regime that didn't improve
the lives of ordinary people, but
restricted civil liberties and violated
human rights.

They don't have a leader, but have united
around Mohammed ElBaradei, a Nobel Peace
Prize winner and former secretary general
of the International Atomic Energy Agency.

The crowd in the square came from all walks
of life: secular middle-class professionals
and pious Muslims of modest means.

The religious element has become more
visible, and dawn brought a long audio
burst of Koranic verses. After being
caught off guard by the protests, the
Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt's largest
opposition group and one of the cornerstones
of political Islam in the Middle East, has
thrown its support behind the movement and
endorsed ElBaradei as a transitional figure.

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20110201091445writ.nb/topstory.html

China Censors Egypt News

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The unrest in Egypt continues,
but China blocked the country's
name from micro-blogs and wiped
away any comments from the web
in regard to the protests.

The Chinese Communist Party keeps
an eye on the Internet and blocks
any content that could represent a
threat. Negative talk of a one
party rule is a "no-no," censored.

Censors nip special events like the
2008 Beijing Olympics, or after a
political crisis- the 2009 riots in
Xinjiang.

The Chinese on protests. On January
30, Global Times, a state-run newspaper,
published an editorial warning,
essentially, that democracy would fail in
Tunisia and Egypt. An excerpt:

"In general, democracy has a strong appeal
because of the successful models in the
West. But whether the system is applicable
in other countries is in question, as more
and more unsuccessful examples arise.

In the West, democracy is not only a
political system, but a way of life. Yet
some emerging democracies in Asia and Africa
are taking hit after hit from street-level
clamor

Democracy is still far away for Tunisia
and Egypt. The success of a democracy
takes concrete foundations in economy,
education and social issues."

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20110131060937writ.nb/topstory.html

How To Use Transitions

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Using transitional words/phrases
allow you to work smooth changes
into your writing. They show how
two ideas are connected to each
other.

Second, for example, they let
readers know it happened after
the first incident, and whatever
happened first caused the second
event to happen.

Take a look at my example.

People who become writers are
genetically destined, they either
have to write or they learn to write.
The point that writers are genetically
destined opens the door for all kinds
of arguments, include inheritance defines
a writer. Secondly, writers, simply, learn
to write. Some would reason writing can't
be taught. However, the debate can spin
into a lively one.

Transitional words keep paragraphs from
exploding into disconnected statements.

Transitional words are: plus, first, second,
third, now, beside, in the same way, but,
in fact, for example, in conclusion and in
other words.

In conclusion, poor use of transitional
words will take the reader on a jerky ride,
with here is a sentence and there's another
disjointed idea. In other words, transitional
words bring paragraphs together with consistency.

Source: http://hubpages.com/hub/How-To-Use-Transitions

Google to Launch Google Offers

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

Google is to launch Google Offers,
the search giant's Groupon competitor,
Mashable learned.

They have the documents to prove it.
One of their sources sent a confidential
fact sheet straight from Googleplex about
the company's new group buying service.

"Google Offers is a new product to help
potential customers find deals in their
area through a daily email," the fact
sheet.

Google Offers works like Groupon or
LivingSocial. How does it work?

People receive an e-mail with a local deal
for the day. They have the opportunity to
buy that deal within a specific time period.
When enough people have made the purchase,
the Google Offer is activated and users get
$10 toward a $20 deal for that certain
restaurant you've wanted to try.

Google is reaching out to businesses in order
to get them on board with Offers.

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20110125105107writ.nb/topstory.html

A Hacker Is Illegally Accessing Web Sites

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A hacker says he is accessing web
sites like: military web sites,
government web sites and those
belonging to universities per Noa
Bar-Yosef, Imperva senior security
strategist.

The price range from $33 to $499,
depending on how important or widely
used the web site is.

"You can actually buy the capability
of being the administrator of the web
site," Bar-Yosef explained.

The hacker is also selling databases of
personal information he's stolen from the
web sites for $20 per thousand records.
This information could be used by spammers,
or by fraudsters to break into online accounts.

Bar-Yosef saw evidences that administrative
privileges for 16 web sites were for sale.

Imperva assembled the names of the victims
from its blog post, but security blogger Brian
Krebs posted more details of the incident,
including the names of the hacked web sites.

Some of the hacked web sites are the United
States, states of Utah and Michigan, the
government of Italy and the Department of
Defense Pharmacoeconomic Center, which
analyzes the military's use of drugs and
helps the Department of Veterans Affairs
procure drug contracts.

Whoever is selling the data probably broke
into these web sites using a common Web attack
called SQL injection, Bar-Yosef.

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20110124065551writ.nb/topstory.html

New Year- Goals And Resolutions

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

How To Work On Goals/Resolutions

A new year, 2011, brings new hopes,
dreams and to-do-lists. Don't just
mouth/think goals, resolutions, but
schedule them into your life. Make
time to realize a goal, resolution.

Keep in mind that goals, resolutions,
take time and determination.

Work on a goal to lose weight daily.
Keep track of what you eat, exercise
and cut-back on foods your body can
do without, shouldn't have.

Get a job resolution requires actively
seeking a job. Don't let filled positions
stop you. Apply for the next job, and
look for other available positions.

Your plan is to start a new relationship?
Stop one?

Think about how you'll move on. Some
relationships will not end friendly. Do you
have a place to live after? Is it time to
leave the relationship? A month from now?
Six months?

Some break-ups have to involve law
enforcement. Have everything been arranged
for once you remove yourself from the
relationship?

In my opinion, you need time to yourself,
alone, before starting a new relationship.
You'll need to decide which direction is
best for you. Is there something you've
wanted to do for a long time. Place you
want to see? Pull-out your to-do-lists.

In the new year, 2011, work toward a goal,
resolution, without pressure. Move forward
slowly. No one is timing you. The pace you
use in reaching a goal, resolution, depends
on you, your life-style. Never compare
yourself to a friend or relative. Simply,
keep moving until your goal/resolution is
reached.

Source: http://hubpages.com/hub/New-Year-New-Hopes-And-Dreams

Suspected Strangler Arrested

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Police arrested suspected serial
strangler Antonio Rodriguez, in
Philadelphia, PA- Kensington section
of the city, on Monday after DNA
testing connected him to the sexual
assault and murder of at least three
women.

The announcement came just minutes
after a press conference in which
Philadelphia Police Captain James
J. Clark announced a "major break"
in the case, with forensic evidence
putting Rodriguez at the scene of
the three homicides.

Rodriguez is a homeless man considered
"extremely dangerous," per Clark.

Rodriguez, 21, is suspected of killing:
Casey Mahoney- 27, Elaine Goldberg- 21
and Nicole Piacentini- 35, Clark continued.

Rodriguez recently was released from
prison, Clark explained, but he declined
to tell the reason for incarceration or
give insight into his criminal history.

State police contacted Philadelphia police
about the match in their offender database.

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20110118074510writ.nb/topstory.html

Brain-Storming A Writing Idea

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How To Brain-Storm A Writing Idea

Brain-storming a writing idea involves
offering solutions to problems in a
new, different, way.

It's possible that the problem you're
addressing has already been answered.
Still, supply an answer.

Your life experiences, way of looking
at problems and voice are unique to you.
So, you bring a new, different, look to
an old problem.

Brain-storming steps into asking people
familiar with the subject questions about
it, people who have lived through it- how?
Poking around information that's available
on the subject falls under brain-storming.

Information you know about the subject is
compared to what you found. Stir-up the
facts/ideas to see what pops-out.

Brain-storming will take sugggestions into
consideration. Listen. Learn. Write.

It's you, the writer, whom decides how a
problem will be answered, and in what new,
different way.

Source: http://hubpages.com/hub/Brain-Storming-A-Writing-Idea

Loss of 500 Jobs At Myspace

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Rupert Murdoch, the head of media
giant News Corp., and his firm's
Myspace, a social networking web
site, gave notice of a restructuring
Tuesday that will result in the loss
of 500 jobs world-wide.

Advertising revenue and monthly visitors
to Myspace has been down.

The new organizational structure will
enable us to move more nimbly, develop
products more quickly and attain more
flexibility on the financial side,"
Myspace Chief Executive Mike Jones
explained in a statement.

Myspace never really figured out which
one it wanted to be," Dave McClure,
founding partner of 500 Start-ups.
"For the life of me I don't know why
they weren't able to pull it off."

The social network struggled to innovate.
The first signs of Myspace's troubles
starred in 2008, when News Corp. reported
that it was falling short of its $1-billion
revenue projections for the web site.

People familiar with the situation said News
Corp. is looking-over potential buyers.

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20110112070856writ.nb/topstory.html

Suspect In Congress-Woman's Shooting Faces The Judge Today

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A man accused of shooting at a
congress-woman Saturday faces a
federal court judge this afternoon.
A high-powered defense attorney who
represented the Unabomber, the Atlanta
Olympics bomber, and Susan Smith, the
South Carolina woman who drowned her
two children by driving her car into a
lake will be at his side.

Jared Loughner, 22, of Tucson, Arizona,
has been charged with five federal
felonies- the attempted murders of Rep.
Gabrielle Giffords, D-Arizona, two of
her staffers, the murders of U.S.
District Judge John Roll and Giffords
aide Gabriel Zimmerman in Tucson.

Judy Clarke will appear with him at his
initial court appearance and ask to be
appointed as Loughner's attorney.

It's possible Loughner could face the
death penalty, but that decision has not
been decided.

Prosecutors have 30 days to bring the case
before a grand jury to obtain an indictment.

Loughner faces state charges, too, in the
fatal shooting of four other people and the
wounding of 11 more.

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20110110073044writ.nb/topstory.html

Hook The Reader

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

How To Hook The Reader
Writers must hook readers, and hold
their attention until the last word
has been appreciated.

An inviting title is necessary. The
title stops a potential reader by
promising to reveal some truth,
provide a shock, entertains,
encourages an action, angers or
saddens.

Present the topic as if you're
talking to a friend. A mixture of
long and short sentences work best.

Technical information is thinned-out
with everyday language, lay-person
words.

Street jargon isn't used unless
universally known. Street jargon in
one area of the country, world, may
not be known in another.

Stick with words that readers don't
have to look-up every two or three
minutes.

It's safe to work with words that an
eight grade student could understand.

Mix-up the mood, direction, of paragraphs
to hook readers.

Take a look at my examples.

Sample One

Mary had a fight with Rose, ran-out
and the window in the door broke.

Or

Mary battled Rose, stormed-out as the
door pane shattered.

Sample Two

Mr. Brown has all kinds of diseases, and
not expected to live.

Or

Mr. Brown is stuffed full of diseases, and
people are baffled that he's still living.

The above tips will help you hook readers
from paragraph one to the last word.

Source: http://hubpages.com/hub/Hook-The-Reader

Death Will Knock

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

Death Comes For Us All
Death knocks at every door, sooner
or later. It doesn't matter if you're
a CEO, leader, baker or candle-stick
maker. Sometimes in human opinion,
death knocks too early.

It can be reasoned that death is
merciful, even relieves suffering.
Perhaps, death is better for the
terminally ill.

Death has no patience for survivors
or mourners. Death claims and departs.
Death turns a deaf ear to pleas for
more time.


Where there is a thread of life, talk
and tell people how you feel. Often,
death surprises.

Cry for a love one, let it out. It's
all right. Don't be afraid to bring
that emotion to the surface. You'll
feel better.

I speak from experience. I lost my
mother, and my husband nine months
later.

Source: http://hubpages.com/hub/Death-Will-Knock

WikiLeaks Founder's $1.3 Million Book Deal

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange has
a $1.3 million book deal to cover legal
costs relating to his arrest and lawsuits
directed at his whistle blowing web site.

"I don't want to write this book, but I
have to," he told the Sunday Times. "I
have already spent £200,000 for legal
fees and I need to defend myself and to
keep WikiLeaks afloat."

The book will be published in the U.S. by
the Alfred A. Knopf publishing house, part
of the Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group at
Random House, and British publisher Canongate.

Assange told the British newspaper that he
will receive $800,000 from Knopf and about
$502,000 from Canongate.

WikiLeaks came under financial strain when
Paypal, MasterCard and Visa cut off all
processing of donations to the web site.
According to Assange, the web site has
lost approximately $650,000 since the
funding was stopped. The web site was
receiving approximately $130,000 in
daily donations.

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20101227071913writ.nb/topstory.html

The New York Times Link To WikiLeaks

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David E. Sanger, a New York Times
reporter looked through the latest
WikiLeaks information and wrote
stories based on the leaked
material, said in an interview on NPR.

It "was never an easy decision to
publish national security information,"
but "at the end of this process, what
we did was responsible, it was legal
and it was important for a democratic
society."

The Times was the only American news
organization to receive government
documents that were released by WikiLeaks,
the Internet organization that specializes
in exposing government secrets through
leaked information.

WikiLeaks released about 90,000 documents
prepared by U.S. military sources on the
wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, this summer.

WikiLeaks cut its link with The Times,
offered the State Department cables to
two other American news outlets, CNN and
the Wall Street Journal. Both refused,
decided that its terms - including a demand
for financial compensation under certain
circumstances were unacceptable.

WikiLeaks decided not to work with The
Times on the latest leaks.

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20101221113709writ.nb/topstory.html

How To Thread Information Into Poems

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

Turn Any Information Into Poems

One topic can be the inspiration
for several poems. Let's look at
history, for example.

I was curious as to the name of
the person responsible for writing
"taxation without representation..."

Research confirmed that James Otis
was given credit for writing the
phrase.

Otis wrote and spoke-out to encourage
the American colonists to become
independent of England.

Here's a free verse poem off the
top of my head.

Stand Tall

James Otis

Massachusetts

Gent

Spoke-out

Seize colonists

Independence

From

Mother England

A second phrase grabbed my attention,
and it was: "If they want to have a
war..."

The words was spoken by captain John
Parker, April 19, 1775.

Parker battled, with a few men, three
companies of British soldiers.

Take a look at my Pantown poem.

We Came

Chilling April night melts into dawn

Men ravaged by time,

Boys not yet at full term

Stood for the battle.

Men ravaged by time

Sprinkled on a Boston road,

Stood for the battle

Strong of heart.

Sprinkled on a Boston road

Boys not yet at full term,

Strong of heart,

Chilling April night melts into dawn.

Select a topic of your choice and
create poems.

Believe In Self

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

Believe In You

You must, first, believe in
yourself to succeed at life,
writing. People will, often,
fail to see your vision, goal.
They'll suggest a different
path for you.

If you have no belief in self,
anyone can persuade, turn, you
against what's right or your
goal. You'll believe, trust,
anyone or everyone.

Before long, confusion sets in.
From listening to others, stress
builds-up and sickness over-takes
you.

There's nothing wrong in considering
other opinions, but believe in self.
Do what's best for self. Live your
vision, dream.

Learn to say no, speak-up for self. If
you don't believe in self, who will?

Source: http://hubpages.com/hub/Believe-In-You

Publish Your Own E-Book

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

How To Create An E-Book
People are always on the look-out for
how to do, make, sell or profit. Life's
experiences are stuffed-full of writing
ideas.

Ideas are bought to life through the e-book
process.

E-book is an abbreviation for electronic book,
digital book. A reader is required before an
e-book can be read on your computer.

Benefits to the e-book process are many.

People will pay for informative products. The
low over-head costs, easy distribution through
a download/web site and publishers can't squeeze
in their vision appeals to most.

There's no need to search high and low for a
publisher when you can do the e-book process.

Decide on a subject to explore or write about.
Pick more than one writing idea. Select five.
Sometimes, there's nothing else to say about
a writing idea, or you get bored with it. If
one writing idea isn't working, go to the next
one.

A writing idea should excite your imagination,
and have mass appeal.

The title catches the reader's attention. Snap
his/her eyes back. Titles make statements,
question today's norm or give readers a new look
at a topic.

Some outline. The idea of graphics is kicked around
the mind. Graphics end-up as the e-book's cover.

The cover, graphics, should reflect the contents.
It, too, must please the eyes. A title is inviting.

Consider a Table of Contents, and an Appendix.

How will you spread the word about it? Viral
Marketing is used. Viral Marketing is free.
It saves time and money.

It means that social networks are used to
promote your e-book. Word of mouth spread
via the Internet works well too. Get creative.

Perhaps, a video on YouTube would stir-up the
buzz about your e-book. Start a chat on Facebook
about your e-book. Leave no social network
un-turned.

Tell people too. Let friends and relatives know.
Drop a word, start a conversation, about your
e-book when out.

E-book publishing is made with an Adobe PDF file,
which can be done using a full version of Adobe
Acrobat. Most computers are sold with a free version
of Adobe Reader.

Begin making your e-book by opening a blank document,
or Microsoft Word File. The font size is Roman 12
point, and single spacing is used. Or, you may
prefer Verdana, 11 point.

Sizes for e-books are 5 1/2 by 8 1/2, or 6 X 9 by
8 1/2. Adjust Microsoft Word File to your choice.

Name and book titles are in the header. Page numbers
are centered at the bottom of each page. Major points
are displayed in bold type.

The e-book process can become a business.

Retailers Open Doors On Thanksgiving Day

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

Some retailers have different policies
and are opening their doors on Thanksgiving
Day.

Kmart, Sears and Toys'R'Us are a few stores
opening their doors to people looking to start
their Christmas shopping on Thanksgiving Day.

Walmart will price match circulars from
competitors, and will be open on Thanksgiving
Day too.

Here's a list of store openings, but check
your local listings too.

Giant Food: 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Wegmans: 6 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Sears: 7 a.m. to noon

Safeway: 6 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Kmart: 6 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Walgreens: 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.

The Gap: 9 a. m. to 9 p.m.

Banana Republic: 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.

Michael's: 5 p.m. to 9 p.m.

Toys 'R' Us: Opens Nation-wide to 10 p.m.

Walmart Supercenter stores will be open 24
hours on Thanksgiving, and most regular
Walmart stores opening 'til midnight
Thanksgiving night.

Ugly Betty Actor Hacks Mother To Death

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An actor wielding an ornate Freemason
sword hacked his mother to death early
yesterday in their Brooklyn apartment
while screaming out Bible passages/Masonic
references, police and witnesses stated.

"Repent! Repent! Repent!" Michael Brea,
shouted at his 55-year-old mother, Yannick,
during his explosion and the killing at their
Prospect Heights apartment, neighbors explained.

The Masonic sword was 3-feet long and was
for ceremonial use, per police sources.

Brea, 31, had roles in "Ugly Betty" and the
movie "Step Up 3D," was heard yelling about
the "architect of the universe," a term used
by Freemasons to refer to a supreme being.

"He kept chanting, 'Repent!'" Greg Clare, who
lives below the Breas. "He kept asking her if
she believed in Jesus Christ, if she believed
in God. She was yelling, 'Help me! Help me!'"

He was taken to Bellevue Hospital for psychiatric
evaluation, but said, "When I looked at my mother,
I saw the devil."

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20101124135937writ.nb/topstory.html

Cure For Writer’s Block

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

You're excited about writing, talked
with friends and family. The writing
itch will, finally, be relieved. You,
even, carved-out some space for writing.

The time has come for you to enter your
writing place. You ease down in front
of the computer.

Thirty minutes later, you haven't written
a word and can't think of anything to
write. Writer's block has crippled your
creative process.

Take a deep breath. Let it out slowly.

Glance out of the window, or around the
room you're in.

What do you see? The back of someone's
head? Perhaps, your eyes landed on a tree,
flower or bird.

A couch, chair, book or clock grabbed your
eyes?

The person, thing, that jumped into view is
what you'll write about.

Let's go through how the cure for writer's
block works.

Give some thought to what you want to write
about. Should your topic be fiction, non-
fiction or poems?

My eyes noticed a how-to writing book. I can
write an article, short story on a missing
page in the book or an essay about writing.

I decided to write a short story on a missing
page from the book.

The chirping bird outside my window could be
written about, a specific species.

The cure for writer's block works when you've
been assigned a project too. Simply, select a
phrase, word or theme from the project to write
about.

The cure for writer's block works, and it's
fun.

Test the cure for writer's block. Let me know
about your results.

The Game To Ignite Writing

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

A Writing Game
Select any word from a corner of your
mind, out of the room you're in, some
word heard during the day or a word
that plucks at your attention.

Take some time to twirl it around your
creative process. Here is where you
determine how the word rolls into a
writing project.

My word from the game to ignite writing
is wine.

You'll need a total of five words. Mix-in
four more words related to the original
word.

My original word is wine. Soothing, wet,
cold and relaxing float to my mind that's
related to wine. Or, they are four words
that work well with wine.

The words can be shuffled in any direction:
fiction, non-fiction or poems.

The following demonstrates how my words can
be used in the game to ignite writing.

"Fannie stopped by last night in the cold rain,
bottle of wine in hand." Fran sat in her
L-shaped kitchen across the table from her
sister, Freda.

"You know how I feel 'bout her," Freda said.

"She and the bag were really wet, limp even."

"How could she be limp?"

"I mean Fannie couldn't relax, kept peeking
through the living room's curtain." Fran sighed.
"Nothing I said soothed her.

"I think she's..."

The above story can ride-out in a short story
or novel.

Take a look at the poem centering around my
words.

In a wet twenty below

Sunny Minnie-

Wobbles down the street

Trying to get back,

Clutching her bottle of cold wine

To sooth her memories of life,

While each pain relaxes numb.

The game to ignite writing will help you
produce fiction, non-fiction or poems.
Put your own spin on it. Let me know how
the game to ignite writing helped you. Or,
it offered no help?

Deficit Panel Proposes Cuts

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

A White House commission proposes
to cut the federal budget deficit
by hundreds of billions a year.
Social Security benefits, middle
class tax breaks and defense spending
are of interest.

The initial plan is to stop various
breaks the middle class are getting
like the deduction for home mortgage
interest.

On Social Security, the plan would
slowly raise the retirement age to 68
around 2050, 69 by 2075. It would combine
various cuts to benefits with an increase
in taxes on wealthier people's incomes.
Also, it's looking to curb federal spending
on health care except what's needed for the
recently passed health care plan. This would
be achieved by introducing further changes,
including reform of medical/malpractice law,
and by slowing the growth of the Medicare p
rogram.

A version of the plan would dramatically lower
individual rates to 9%, 15% and 24%.

"Tough choices" are going to be necessary to
tame a deficit that has soared to more than
$1 trillion a year, President Barack Obama
shared with leaders of his own Democratic
Party.

"Before anybody starts shooting down proposals,
we need to listen, gather up all the facts, and
be straight with the American people," Mr. Obama
stated at a press conference Thursday in Seoul,
where he attended a Group of 20 nation's summit.

The commission staff's goal is to curtail growth
of the federal debt by roughly $3.8 trillion by
2020.

"In the end, the president is going to have to
decide whether to incorporate some of this into
the 2012 budget," David Walker, a former U.S.
comptroller general and an advocate for deficit
reduction. "He's going to have to lead, because
if the president doesn't lead on this, it goes
nowhere fast."

Closer Look At Humana's Medicare Plan Partnered With Walmart

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

A person enrolled in Medicare Part-D
of the Humana Walmart Preferred Rx
Plan, PDP, may save an estimated
average of more than $450 in 2011
on monthly plan premiums, prescription
medication co-payments and cost shares-
according to correspondence from Walmart's
spokes-woman Carol McCormick.

A nation-wide monthly plan premium of
less than $15 a month is the lowest plan
premium in 2011 for a stand-alone Medicare
Part D prescription drug plan offered in
all 50 states, and Washington, D.C., per
McCormick.

No matter where a person lives, the monthly
plan premium is still $14.80 a month.

There's an in-store co-pay on generic
prescriptions that start as low as $2
when plan members use preferred pharmacies
like Walmart, Neighborhood Markets or Sam's
Club pharmacies. Co-pays increase when
prescriptions are filled at non-preferred
pharmacies.

"One of the primary goals of health care
reform is to make health coverage more
affordable - and that's what we're doing
with the introduction of this Medicare Part
D plan," explained William Fleming, PharmD,
vice president of Humana Pharmacy Solutions.
"People are more likely to take the medications
prescribed for them when they can afford those
medications. And adhering to prescription-drug
regimens can enable people to be healthier and
prevent future illness. At Humana, we believe
that this prevention helps people live
healthier lives and achieve lifelong well-
being."

"We know every dollar counts, especially when
you live on a fixed income. We believe no one
should have to choose between buying their
groceries or their medications," shared John
Agwunobi, M.D., president of Walmart's Health
and Wellness division. "Financial health is a
fundamental part of a person's well-being. At
Walmart, the customer is always front and center,
and that is why we are committed to doing
everything we can to ensure seniors have access
to the medications they need at a price they can
afford."

Monday, November 15, people eligible for Medicare
will be able to sign-up for Humana's new Medicare
Part D plan, partnered with Walmart.

Determination: Key Writing Ingredient

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

Determination

Determination is the key to any
writing project. It involves
organizing, allotting necessary
writing time and topic knowledge.

It's determination that will
stir-up your creative process
to start a writing project. It
encourages you to organize.

Organize

Organize what you'll need to get
prepared for the writing project.
Pick a writing time, day or night.
Three hours before you begin the day?
Set your alarm clock two hours earlier?
Use the time just for writing. Perhaps,
midnight works better for you? Dusk?

Bring everything you'll need to ignite
your creative process. Don't give yourself
an excuse to leave your writing project.
Need coffee, bring it. Orange juice?

Writing Time

Effective writing requires, at least,
two hours. This means your full attention
must be devoted to writing for no less
than two hours.

If for some reason, your mind drifts- stop.
Stand. Take a deep breath. Let it out slowly
through the mouth. Better? If no, try another
deep breath. Go back to your writing project
when ready.

Topic Knowledge

Topic knowledge demands understanding of the
subject. Topic knowledge, often, means research.
Ask experts.

Do you know someone who have experience with a
topic, lived through it?

A degree or certificate isn't necessary to
qualify one as an expert. A person who works
with a product, used it for years, can qualify
as an expert.

Determination is the key factor to inspire a
look, dig and find in producing writing master-
pieces.

Facebook New Places App: Deals

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

The social media giant made the
mobile "check-in" application
available to major merchants and
thousands of small/mid-size
businesses in the United States.

Facebook Deals purpose is to connect
users of Facebook Places to deals/specials
from: 24 Hour Fitness, Gap and Palms Casino
Resort- to name a few. Deals are only
available through Facebook's iPhone app
or touch.facebook.com. Android users can
now check into Places but not Deals.

The service is an extension of Places,
which lets smart-phone owners with
Facebook accounts share their exact
location and find where friends are.
Now, people will be notified of
discounts/deals at selected merchants
near them.

When a user logs into Facebook, he/she
can look for a list of "nearby places,"
some may or may not have a yellow price
tag or sticky to the right of them- that's
a deal. Open it by clicking. There are four
kinds of deals: individual deals, loyalty
deals, friend deals and charity deals.
There's even a UI that shows "punches"
on a virtual card for loyalty deals, Facebook
states, with discounts for those users who
bring new friends and customers.

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20101104061455writ.nb/topstory.html

Black-Out in a Can: Four Loko

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

Nine people became sick after
consuming Four Loko, or black-out
in a can, and other alcohol. Several
states asked the FDA to decide whether
caffeinated alcoholic beverages are
safe.

Police were called to a supermarket
parking lot. They found a girl passed
out in the back seat of a car, boy next
to her had a bloody nose. At the private
house the two had just left, three girls
laid on a bed, a barely conscious young
man was being dragged out of the back-yard,
another girl was face-down on the bathroom
floor and three more young people were
spread-out inside a car outside.

The site of the "party people," most of
them students at Central Washington
University in nearby Ellensburg looked
like they had been victims to a date
rape drug.

Police and medical investigators have for
the most part held the heavy consumption
of Four Loko responsible, known as black-out
in a can.

It is "upset...when our products are abused
or consumed illegally by under aged drinkers,"
Phusion Projects LLC of Chicago, which
manufactures Four Loko, said in a statement.

"The real problem is the drinker thinks
they're more alert and less impaired than
they actually are," said David Schardt, senior
nutritionist at the consumer advocacy group.
"They keep drinking to the point of being in
danger of alcohol poisoning. And that can lead
to death."

This week Central Washington University officials
banned brews temporarily on campus.

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20101027065002writ.nb/topstory.html

An Important Lesson In Life

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

Bullies Live On Every Street But
Special Stands Apart

A lesson to learn in life is that
bullies live in almost every house-hold,
but special stands apart. A special
person stands apart as bullies pack
together.

An error will come face-to-face with
bullies. Yet, they will insist on going
down the same path. They use anyone,
say anything, to shift blame. Or, they
give the impression that their actions
are right.

"I didn't know." Bullies are quick to
claim. "Whatever." The bullies' slogan.

They smile/joke about bullism.

The special person takes responsibility,
atones.

Bullies terrorize without care for who
gets hurts, and have no problem going to
the next level if resistance is shown.

The special person declines to partake,
gives comfort, aid.

Bullies have no regard for right and wrong.
The primary concern for bullies: their egos.

I, too, am a victim of bullism. I managed to
stand-up, apart, with help. Bullies don't
discriminate. They will pick on anyone,
anywhere.

If you are attacked by bullies, let others
know. Bullies feed-off fear. They take
pleasure in isolating.

The important lesson: Keep bullies at a
distance, and stand-up, apart, from them
for a quality life. Make plenty of noise
to bring attention to a bully's behavior.


Source: http://hubpages.com/hub/An-Important-Lesson-In-Life

Justice's Wife Wants An Apology

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

Nearly 20 years after sexual harassment
allegations that almost stopped Clarence
Thomas's Supreme Court nomination, the
justice's wife, Virginia Thomas, telephoned
Anita Hill, his principal accuser, to ask
for an apology.

"I certainly thought the call was inappropriate,"
Ms. Hill explained through a spokesman. "I have
no intention of apologizing because I testified
truthfully about my experience and I stand by
that testimony."

Ms. Hill said she originally assumed the call,
which a spokesman said came 7:30 a.m. on a Saturday,
was a prank. She notified campus security, Brandeis
spokesman Charles Radin, which in a routine procedure
alerted the Federal Bureau of Investigation.

"Good morning, Anita Hill, it's Ginni Thomas," the
message began. "I just wanted to reach across the
air-waves and the years and ask you to consider
something. I would love you to consider an apology
sometime and some full explanation of why you did
what you did with my husband. So give it some thought
and certainly pray about this and come to understand
why you did what you did. Okay have a good day."

Justice Thomas, nominated by President George H.W. Bush,
denied Ms. Hill's allegations and called the hearing
"a high-tech lynching." He accused committee staffers
of digging up "dirt" to block a black conservative
from succeeding the liberal Justice Thurgood Marshall,
the court's first African-American member.

The transcript was first published by ABC News.

How To Title Fiction

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

Perfect Title

Titles are the first to be seen/read
by agents, publishers and your fans.
They should grab the reader's eyes and
attention. Titles should pluck at the
imagination.

Let's look at ways of picking the perfect
title.

1. The title sums-up your work. Read through
it. What group of words best describes your
fiction? Words that best plant an image, lasting
impression, in the minds of readers equals the
perfect title. The title should be exciting,
pose a thinking question, funny or mysterious.
It's never boring.

2. What are the key words? List them. Select the
words that best depict your work, and key words
search engines feed on.

3. Take a break from your work. Come-back in a day
or two. Did you come-up with a perfect title? Time
away, often, will help stir-up new titles.

4. You're refreshed. Read your fiction. What words
are shouting, pick me? Those are the words that will
title your story.

5. What gave you inspiration for the piece? Draw a
title from it.

6. The moral of your fiction is the best title?

7. Put it aside one more time. Come back to edit.
The editing process is over when you feel it's ready,
and the perfect title emerges.

Source: http://hubpages.com/hub/How-To-Title-Fiction

Easy Steps To Writing A Sonnet

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

Sonnets originated in the thirteenth
century. It's a formal poem that started
in Italy. Sonnets have fourteen lines with
a certain rhyme and metrical scheme.

A Sonnet starts with a problem, and the end
replies with an answer.

Let's go through the steps to creating Sonnets.

1. Decide on what subject you want to address.
There was a time when Sonnets spoke of philosophy,
but todays's Sonnets reach into any topic.

2. State the issue, problem, in three stanzas of
four lines each.

3. The stanzas use a rhyme scheme with each letter
that stands for a Sonnet line.

4. Last words of all lines show-case the same letter
rhyme with each other.

5. The last section is displayed as a two rhyming
lines of poetry.

Read Sonnets to get a feel for writing them. It's
important to have fun with them.

How To Create A Poem

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

Our senses gather tons of information
from the Internet, books, news headlines,
the work-place and moving along any day.
They provide excellent sources to write
poems from.

Let's look at the process.

1. Information runs to us from different
mediums like: books, the Internet and news
headlines. Sift through information to
shape images into poems.

2 A co-worker mentioned his/her daughter's
attraction to collecting critters. The next
step is to write poems.

3. Poems shake-wake-up readers when clear
images are sprinkled throughout them.

--The images must inspire happiness, sadness
or some emotion after reading your poems.

4. Decide on an idea for a poem. If more than
one idea pops-up, make note of them. Select
the idea that ignites your imagination.

--Go back later to work on ideas for poems
not picked.

5. Think of what captured your attention when
you read poems. Tap into it. Form word pictures
into images relating to your theme.

6. Title your work. The main idea is, sometimes,
used as a title. A title is pulled from the first
line, middle or end line.

7. Set your finished work aside. In a day or two,
edit it.

8. The editing is over when you feel a poem is
ready.

Souirce: http://hubpages.com/hub/How-To-Create-A-Poem

"Gun! Gun! Gun!"- Campus Lock-Down

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

Colton Joshua Tooley, 19, on Tuesday
morning dressed in a white shirt, a
dark suit coat, a ski mask and an
AK-47.

Tooley's next step was to terrorize
the University of Texas campus for more
than 30 minutes by firing four shots in
air before going into the Perry Castañeda
Library. He stormed up a stairwell,
screamed, and took his own life with his
rifle on the sixth floor.

The campus went on lock-down, classes were
stopped. A search for another shooter started.
Police cleared the way for students to leave
campus.

Pedro Duran, 26-student, was on campus to meet
his sister as shots rang out. People shouted,
"Gun! Gun! Gun!" Duran explained. He shielded
himself behind a tree as shots were fired and
saw people run from the library.

Dan Culpepper, sophomore, in ROTC who is studying
sociology, shared he heard gunshots and headed
toward the sound.

Students were sent a UT Alert text message at 8:17
a.m., told them to stay where they were and to wait
for more information.

Police received multiple descriptions of the second
suspect, but the only armed man was Tooley, a
university spokesman said.

Tooley, sophomore, majored in math with no known
history of trouble. The son of a local veterinarian,
he graduated seventh in a class of 318 at Austin's
Crockett High School in 2009. Tooley's family said
they didn't suspect anything like this could happen.

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20100929064604writ.nb/topstory.html

Titanic Truth Hidden

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

Louise Patten, writer/granddaughter
of Titanic second officer Charles
Lightoller, announced that the truth
about what happened almost 100 years
ago was hidden.

The fear was of soiling the reputation
of her grandfather, who later became a
war hero.

The Titanic hit an iceberg in 1912 because
of a steering error, and sank as fast as
it did when an official persuaded the
captain to continue sailing, per
Wednesday's report.

The RMS Titanic was the world's biggest
passenger liner as it left Southampton,
England, for New York on its maiden voyage
in 1912- April 10. Lightoller, the most senior
officer survived, covered up the error in
two inquiries on both sides of the Atlantic.
He worried it would bankrupt the liner's owners,
and his colleagues would be jobless.

"Instead of steering Titanic safely round to
the left of the iceberg, once it had been
spotted dead ahead, the steersman, Robert
Hitchins, panicked and turned it the wrong
way," Patten shared with the Daily Telegraph.

"If Titanic had stood still, she would have
survived at least until the rescue ship came
and no one need have died," Patten continued.

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20100923085215writ.nb/topstory.html

How To Be A Successful Writer

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

It's a must to, first, believe in
yourself, your talent. The belief
inspires passion, determination.

"I wish I could write like that."
A few have mumbled after looking at
an author's work.

It's a waste of time/energy to
complain/sigh about not being at a
certain writing level.

A successful writer will pluck-out
time to write, and uncover weak areas
to strengthen. Pour passion into your
work, and push doubt to the curb.

Actual writing time should be, at least,
two hours per day. The routine will
expose areas you need to work on.

Your writing lack vivid images, for
example. It means you have to stir-in
strong verbs.

Read authors you admire. Take note of
how they use strong verbs, and develop
clear word pictures.

Use your passion to re-write others'
work. Look at it from a different view-
point. If the first re-write isn't enough,
re-edit. Let your creative flow run free.

Dig from within. Determination will carry
you through.

People/friends will urge you to stop thinking
about writing. They'll point you in the
direction of Burger King for employment.

You must, first, believe in yourself, your
talent.

Source: http://hubpages.com/hub/How-To-Be-A-Success-At-Writing

How To Relax And Write

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

Prepare a cup of coffee for yourself.
Take a few minutes to drink it.
Relax before going to your writing
place. Happy thoughts of writing ideas
should be flowing around your mind.
Relax and use the following writing
ideas, or technique.

1. Sing a tune that has played over
in your mind. Is there a note,
sentence, that can be used for an
interesting writing idea?

2. Who is your favorite pet, past or
present? What adventure can you write
about him/her?

3. Think of an incident in your life
to write a mystery about.

4. Go to your favorite beach, resort,
and write about it.

5. Grab a news headline to stir-up fiction
or non-fiction with.

6. Take a shower. Is there anything about
steam, water, to write about?

7. Put together an article on fashion.
What's hot? What's not?

8. Did a strange person pass you? What
gave the impression he/she was strange?

9. A name you always wanted to research,
curious about? Let others know how the
research process is done.

10. Go outside. Stand in the same spot
for 10 minutes without saying a word.
What ideas came to mind? What did your
senses experience?

Move to where you'll begin a writing
project, and create master-pieces.

How Best To Write Fiction

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

Before deciding on a writing idea,
look at it from every possible view
and then pick how best to write
fiction.

Fiction is thought-of, imagined or
created stories. Characters are
sprinkled in a setting to solve a
problem. Before deciding on a writing
idea, look at it from every possible
view and then pick how best to write
fiction.

Ask yourself questions. Is there a
specific problem to address? How will it
be aprroached?

Look around the problems, situations,
in your life. Is there a mystery at work
to explore in writing? A haunted house
everyone talks about? Interesting headline?

Every work of fiction starts, has a middle
and ends.

Characters are stirred-in. Let the characters
show and tell the story through their actions,
dialogue.

Long fiction has a major problem and a minor
one. Short fiction handles one problem. Work
with as many problems as you're comfortable
with in long fiction.

Suspense is sifted in. Stack-up suspense,
and let a situation blow-up. A scene is two
paragraphs or pages long.

Any problem introduced must be given a fair,
satisfactory, conclusion.

Source: http://hubpages.com/hub/How-Best-To-Write-Fiction

How To Edit

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

Editing is a necessary part of
writing. It's how the editor's
eye is developed, and your
writing becomes publishing ready.

Get comfortable. Bring everything
you'll need to finish a session of
editing. Place your coffee/tea in
its spot. A piece of toast, apple,
chewing gum and any other snack is
positioned in your writing place.
Keep what you'll want near-by, and
have no excuse to stop your editing
session early.

1. Read your article, chapter, poem
or project.

2. Put it down to have a snack.

3. Read it again, out-loud.

4. Check for typos, syntax errors,
grammatical mistakes and incorrect
writing.

5. Make sure strong verbs dominate.

6. Adjectives are used if there's no
other choice.

7. The editing process is complete
when every word has been turned upside
down. Or, when you feel it's time to
show-case it.

Source: http://hubpages.com/hub/How-To-Edit

"The Man Told Everyone To Just Stay Still"- Discovery Channel Building

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

James Jay Lee, of San Diego,
California, is known for protesting
the Discovery Channel's environmental
programming. He stormed the network's
Maryland headquarters carrying a hand-
gun on Wednesday, held three people
hostage for hours.

"These guys have been very sneaky and
deceptive as to their contribution to
the planetary problems. Just look at
their 'new' show about saving the planet,
'Planet Green,' to me, it's just another
show about more PRODUCTS to make MONEY,
not about actual solutions. We can't let
them get away with doing it anymore," The
words are from a web site registered to Lee.
It's believed Lee distributed a manifesto
outside the Discovery building several weeks
ago that called on the network to "broadcast
to the world their commitment to save the
planet." "All programs on Discovery Health
TLC must stop encouraging the birth of any
more parasitic human infants and the false
heroics behind those actions," the list read.

"The man told everyone to just stay still,"
A Manager explained.

Police reports indicate how he paid homeless
people to join his protest and carry signs
outside the building.

A crowd of more than 100 people gathered around
Lee, who referred to money as "just trash" and
began throwing it in the air.

Discovery Communications LLC operates cable and
satellite networks in the U.S. including The
Discovery Channel, TLC and Animal Planet.

Discovery Communications employees and a security
guard were not harmed. The police saw Lee point a
hand-gun at a hostage via security cameras.

He was shot and killed by police, according to
authorities.

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20100902101610writ.nb/topstory.html

Morality Laced In Facts

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

The facts play a major role in the
side I'm on, and morality influences
it. Facts can't be pushed aside, because
they make the case. Facts speak for
themselves. The question is: Do you have
enough moral fiber to do what's right?

"Who cares?" Friends said." "What's moral
for him/her isn't for us."

A moral value system is how human beings
treat one another. Moral human beings treat
one another as he/she wish to be treated.
It's easy to go-along with the crowd-friends.
It takes inner strength and morals to stand
for somethng, to rise above the crowd.

It's the difference between losing freedom
and living a good quality life. Freedom is
lost when a person ends up behind bars or in
the legal system. A life of quality is picking
to live, work, in a certain place.

When facts are ignored, morals pushed aside, a
human being is lost. It's very hard to find the
way back. Most times, it's impossible.

Never push-aside morality laced in facts because
a friend or relative disagrees.

Source: http://hubpages.com/hub/Morality-Laced-In-Facts

How To Be The Best Writer

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

The secret to being the best writer
is practice, and often. Writing the
article, post, paragraph, when you
get a chance never happens. A problem,
situation, usually pops-up to stand in
the way.

Get in the rhythm of writing by reaching
your goal in steps. Write one or two pages,
instead of five, for example.

Select a time during the day or evening
just for writing. Surround your writing
place with writing related items. It
should include a computer, typewriter,
books that inspire your creative flow,
pens and any other writing producing
tools required.

Avoid non-writing interruptions such as
exercise equipment or computer games.

Turn-off your cell phone, click-off the
radio/television and begin writing. Writing
time should be when others aren't around
to disturb you. This time is for you to
write, be the best writer possible.

"I've done the above steps, but still don't
have any writing ideas." A few people said.
"Drawing blanks."

Think about the day before, two days earlier
or a month ago. Was there an experience you
witnessed that circles your mind? A news
headline caught your attention?

Let's look at an example.

You were waiting for a train. A middle aged man
rushed passed you. Seconds later, man two sped
through the gathering crowd. The first man
glanced back, saw the second man and moved
faster.

The incident is material for a spy story,
mystery. There's no limit to what path the tale
takes.

The news headline: "Dr. N. Busted" is enough to
spin-off an essay. What would you write about
the headline?

Write down the points you want to say, make, about
the headline. You're on your way to writing, being
the best writer.

Facebook's Location Tool: Places

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

On Wednesday, Facebook started a
location service. Mobile device users,
owners, with Facebook accounts can give
friends their exact location. The service
is free.

The service works with iPhone, iPod, Touch,
Black-Berry, iPad, Torch and Android devices.
The logo is a purple icon situated above a
map image.

Click on "Here Now" to find which friends
are where.

'Places' is a hit with consumers and advertisers.
It's divided with small businesses, Greg Sterling,
independent social networking analyst explained.

"What we see with Facebook is a massive learning
curve. Every time they make a change, consumers
scramble to figure out the privacy settings,"
Rainey Reitman pointed out-spokeswoman for
Privacy Rights Clearinghouse in the US. "Location
data is tied to people's safety, if people know
where you are, they know where you're not. Your
location data is some of the most sensitive data
we have. I expect we'll see from the get go people
who don't understand how to control the privacy
settings," she continued.

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20100819072034writ.nb/topstory.html

Lindsay Lohan: Could Be Out of Rehab Early

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

Lohan's doctors at UCLA Neuro-
Psychiatric Hospital could free
her of rehab as early as this
week per TMZ's sources.

Doctors are leaning toward the
belief that her psychiatric problems
aren't as bad as first thought, and
she isn't bi-polar according to the
same sources.

Doctors, too, have doubts about the
drug dependency issues. It was reported
that Lohan had problems with Adderall,
which needs more inpatient care.

Doctors think she's a candidate for
out-patient care.

A judge has to approve the early release.

The doctors have to write their final report,
and Lohan's lawyer has to return to court
with it. The lawyer has to request that
Lohan be set-free.

It's believed that if doctors feel it's in
Lohan's best interest than the judge will
agree.

"Eat Pray Love"- Review

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

"Eat Pray Love" is based on Elizabeth
Gilbert's best-selling memoir about a
freelance writer residing in New York
whose marriage is decaying and a quest
for happiness.

Julia Roberts stars as Elizabeth Gilbert.

Elizabeth Gilbert leaves her husband, gets
into a relationship with a younger man and
spends a year praying across India, eating
through Italy and falling in love with Bali.

Gilbert goes to India to pray. She wants to
become independent, free of men.

In Bali she falls in love with a Brazilian man,
Felipe (Javier Bardem).

Gilbert makes a few decisions that are hard to
understand. Perhaps, she doesn't understand them
either.

The men in her life fail to understand the reasons
for Gilbert's unhappiness, and they were unclear to
me as well. She feels bad over the pain caused to
ex-men in her life. It will be an on-going struggle
to find peace for her.

Julia Roberts and cast members give a good performance.

Writing Ideas: Exist In Letters

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

The Letter Writer

Have you written letters, but, for
one reason or another, never mailed
them? Pull the letters out.They have
a wealth of ideas for writing. The
time has come to stop hiding-away
your writing.

Letters are an expression of the
inner self, intended goals, times in
history and ways lives are groomed.

Stories pleading to be told sit buried
in written letters. Non-fiction for the
picking awaits, and poetry is dancing
to be re-written.

Ask friends and relatives if they own
letters of yours.

Select funny situations or not, places
visited and carve new projects, tales.

Expand on one point as you write about
visiting wacky, crazy, cousin Steve. He
really dances when there's no music playing.
A character based on his oddities would
make a good comedy?

He allowed the closed room to be explored.
You were getting comfortable in the old house
until a dead body showed-up. All kinds of
writing ideas flood in as letters are read.

What interesting writing ideas exist in your
letters?

Source:
http://hubpages.com/hub/Writing-Ideas-Exist-In-Letters

American Idol Winner Fantasia: Attempted Suicide

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

The attempt follows news of the 26-year-
old being named in a divorce petition,
because of an 11-month relationship with
a married man. She used sleeping aids and
aspirin.

Paula Cook said that Fantasia's
relationship with her husband, Antwaun,
ended their marriage. She claimed to have
intimate video footage of the two together.

Fantasia denied parts of Cook's allegations,
and said she was not responsible for ending
the marriage.

Photos emerged of Fantasia with Cook.

Fantasia's "heart was broken and is sorry for
any pain she may have caused," Brian Dickens-
spokesman.

The police is treating the incident as an
attempted suicide.

She was found collapsed in her closet, at home,
in North Carolina.

"She was overwhelmed with the lawsuit and the
media attention. Fantasia is stable now. She
will be released from the hospital soon," her
spokes-person assured.

Fantasia was American Idol's third season winner.

Fantasia was a single mother when fame stormed
her on American Idol. She has a daughter, Zion.

TMZ reported that she's in stable condition.

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20100811062246writ.nb/topstory.html

Re-Fit Writing

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

It's time to edit your non-fiction,
fiction, poetry, but there are other
things you need, want, to do. You,
too, regret the task of plucking-out
titles, lines or paragraphs. Stop. There's
no need to throw them away. Simply, re-use
your writing.

Re-use sliced away editior-grabbing titles,
prancing lines or page turning paragraphs into
new projects.

Jot them down on three by five index cards,
a computer file or note-book. One line can
spell-over into many different projects.

I wrote a scene about characters in a power
struggle. It was fast paced, and to say one of
the character's knees buckled didn't fit into
the scene. I realized it after going back to
edit.

I made notes on a computer file.

Months later, I was scanning through the file,
and peeled away the start of a new project.

The new project was about human-like beings in
a corporate setting. It wasn't the only idea.

In conclusion, there is always a world, setting,
waiting for reuseable words.

Source: http://www.hubpages.com/hub/Re-Use-Your-Writiing

Facebook Users Listed On Bit Torrent

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

The data of 100 million Facebook
users was emptied on the file
sharing service Bit Torrent.

Ron Bowes, Canadian security researcher,
wanted to help with the testing of login
attacks.

Bowes wanted to help other researchers, and
he put the information on Bit Torrent. It
was downloaded several hundred times, and
made its way to Pirate Bay.

Bowes pulled account names, URLs and contact
details. The names of those users' friends,
even if they were not listed in search engine
results.

"As I thought more about it, and talked to other
people, I realized that this is a scary privacy
issue," per Bowes blog post. "I can find the name
of pretty much every person on Facebook." Facebook
helpfully informs you that "anyone can opt out of
appearing here by changing their Search privacy
settings," but that doesn't help much anymore
considering I already have them all and you will
too, when you download the torrent. Suckers!" His
post continued.

"People who use Facebook own their information and
have the right to share only what they want, with
whom they want, and when they want," Facebook's
statement. "In this case, information that people
have agreed to make public was collected by a single
researcher and already exists in Google, Bing, other
search engines, as well as on Facebook. Similar to
the white pages of the phone book, this is the
information available to enable people to find each
other, which is the reason people join Facebook."

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20100729071824writ.nb/topstory.html

President Obama: Racial Labels Don't Matter

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

President Obama isn't concerned if
people see him as Black or Multi-
Racial, he explained on ABC's
"The View" today.

Barbara Walters wanted to know why
he didn't see himself as Bi-Racial.

Mr. Obama told of after going through
an identity crisis as a teen, it dawned
"if the world saw me as African American,
then that was something I needn't run
away from, that's something that I could
go ahead and embrace."

"I'm less interested in how we label
ourselves, I'm more interested in how we
treat each other. And if we're treating
each other right, then I can be African
American, I can be Multi-Racial, I can be
you name it, what matter is, am I showing
people respect, am I caring for other
people," he explained.

The Shirley Sherrod incident was mentioned.

"There are still inequalities out there.
There's still discrimination out there,"
he said. "But we've made progress."

There was concern, hopelessness, in the
country after his election. His administration
took steps in response to the economic decline,
such as bailing out the auto industry, became
controversial, he admitted.

"We live at a time when a lot of people are
thinking about the next election instead of
the next generation," he went on.

President Obama had criticism for being on the
show.

Lindsay Lohan's Life In Jail

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

"Lindsay was crying when she came in,"
Tiffany Hawes, was set-free as Lohan
entered jail. We started saying, 'God
bless you Lindsay.'

Lohan was allowed to take prescription
drugs, like attention deficit disorder
drug Adderall per TMZ.com.

Lohan's sentence began Tuesday at the
century Regional Detention Center-
Lynwood, California.

Her sentence was 90 days, and 90 days at
a rehab for probation violation. Her actual
stay could be less for good behavior.

New inmates are called fish. Each is given
a fish kit. It has a tube of toothpaste,
tooth brush, 3 packets of cream deodorant,
shampoo, bar of soap and a sandwich.

"Nothing is name brand. They're all generic
and cheap quality," said Michelle, former
inmate who decided not to give her last
name.

Lohan will be housed in her cell alone, and
was placed in the special needs unit. It is
for high-profile inmates such as celebrities,
police officers and public officials who
could be targets for attack by other inmates,
said Steve Whitmore- sheriff's spokesman.

Get High Drugs Online

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

Children across the country are
getting high on Internet drugs.
Teens are getting high online,
because of MP3s that send them
into a state of ecstasy.

According to Kansas News 9, it's
called "i-dosing," and an online
dealer supply the digital drugs
through head-phones.

I-dosing is droning noise and
listening to music. The web sites
promise to get you high.

"Kids are going to flock to these
sites just to see what it is about
and it can lead them to other places,"
Mark Woodward- Oklahoma Bureau of
Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs spokesman.

Teens are getting a high off of tracks to
"Gates of Hades," and it's on YouTube,
free. The first hit is free.

It's reported that those who want a constant
high can buy tracks to bring the same effects
as marijuana, cocaine, opium and peyote.

A 40 page guide explains how to get high
on MP3s.

Officials are looking closely at it.

Kansas' Mustang Public School district sent
letters to parents about it. They've banned
iPods at school, News 9 reported.

AT&T Faults iPhone

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with me? Leave me your opinion.

AT&T faults iPhone for slow upload
speeds on 3G wireless gear from
supplier Alcatel Lucent.

AT&T in a statement, Wednesday, said
the software problem in Alcatel Lucent
is restricting data upload speeds from
smartphones.

"AT&T and Alcatel Lucent jointly identified
a software defect- triggered under certain
conditions- that impacted uplink performance
for Laptop Connect and smartphone customers
using 3G HSUPA capable wireless devices in
markets with Alcatel Lucent equipment,"
explained Jenny Bridges, spokes-woman.

"This happens to less than 2 percent of our
wireless customer base," Bridges continued.
"White Alcatel developed the software fix- we
are providing normal 3G uplink and consistent
performance for affected customers with HSUPA
capable devices."

AT&T isn't using Alcatel Lucent gear in all
of its network. The glitch is in certain regions
of the country like: New York, Philadelphia,
Washington D. C., Salt Lake City and Seattle.

Source: http://newsblaze.com/story/20100708060647writ.nb/topstory.html