anuradasharma1: June 2013

Sunday, June 30, 2013

Three ex-Patria executives charged over Croatia bribes: prosecutors

HELSINKI (Reuters) - Prosecutors in Finland said on Friday they would charge three former executives of defense group Patria with bribing government officials in Croatia.

The case is part of an international investigation into allegations that former executives of the Finnish company bribed foreign government officials in countries such as Croatia, Slovenia and Egypt to secure sales of its arms.

The prosecutor general's office said the three defendants, who were not named, paid 1.5 million euros ($1.95 million) in bribes in exchange for an armored vehicle deal in Croatia in 2007 worth over 50 million euros. It said the suspects had also promised and partly paid out bribes worth 5 percent of the deal.

The suspects have denied all charges, the prosecutor general's office said in a statement.

A court in Slovenia earlier this month sentenced former Prime Minister Janez Jansa to jail on a conviction of taking bribes from Patria. Related investigations continue in Croatia and Austria.

The Finnish government owns around 73 percent of Patria and European Aeronautic Defence and Space Company (EADS) the rest. ($1 = 0.7691 euros)

(Reporting by Terhi Kinnunen; editing by Mark Heinrich)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/three-ex-patria-executives-charged-over-croatia-bribes-120616652.html

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Friday, June 28, 2013

Debenhams' sales growth slows

LONDON (Reuters) - Debenhams , Britain's No. 2 department store group, posted slower sales growth for its latest trading period as unhelpful weather and a tough consumer environment took their toll.

But the 200-year-old firm, which trails John Lewis by annual sales, did say on Thursday it was comfortable with the market's current expectations for pretax profit in 2013-14, reflecting a strong focus on stocks, margins and costs.

Analysts' consensus is a pretax profit of around 153 million pounds ($235 million).

Debenhams said sales at stores open over a year were flat in the 16 weeks to June 22 - a period which includes its fiscal third quarter.

That outcome compares with a first half like-for-like sales rise of 3.1 percent and was below analyst forecasts of growth of about 2 percent.

"We consider this to be a robust performance in a market which has been impacted by the weak consumer environment as well as poor spring weather which dampened demand for new season ranges," the firm said.

It highlighted market share gains in clothing, beauty and home and a 40 percent rise in online sales.

In line with previous guidance Debenhams said gross margin was expected to be flat for the full 2013-14 year.

European fashion retailers have suffered so far this year as a squeeze on disposable incomes has been exacerbated by an unusually cold spring and early summer.

Earlier this month global leader Spain's Inditex , which owns the Zara chain, posted its weakest quarterly growth in net profit in four years, while No. 2 Sweden's H&M missed forecasts for second quarter net sales.

However, there are still winners in Britain despite the tough trading conditions. John Lewis's total sales were up 7.9 percent in the 20 weeks to June 15, while online fashion retailer ASOS recently reported a 45 percent jump in third quarter sales.

Debenhams had issued a profit warning in March, blaming snow in January for a drop in sales that it failed to recover fully in February despite additional promotions and discounts.

Shares in the firm closed Wednesday at 88.5 pence, valuing the business at 1.1 billion pounds. ($1 = 0.6520 British pounds)

(Reporting by James Davey; editing by Neil Maidment and Jane Merriman)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/debenhams-sales-growth-slows-062438795.html

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Macy's fined over treatment of immigrant workers

Retail

Reuters

3 hours ago

FRANK FRANKLIN II / AP

Pedestrians pass Macy's department store Friday Jan. 14, 2005 in New York.

Macy's Inc has agreed to pay a $175,000 civil fine and improve its practices to resolve a U.S. government probe that found the retailer had discriminated against immigrant employees when verifying their eligibility to continue to work.

The U.S. Department of Justice on Thursday said Macy's had engaged in "unfair documentary practices" against some immigrant employees who had previously been authorized to work.

It said this resulted in some affected workers being suspended, terminated, or losing seniority. Macy's agreed to set up a $100,000 fund to compensate these workers.

The settlement covers Macy's Retail Holdings Inc, as well as divisions that contain department store locations in western and southwestern U.S. states, Florida and Puerto Rico.

It also requires Macy's to improve training and employment reverification policies, including the use of the government's "E-Verify" platform that lets employers check workers' legal status, and subjects the retailer to two years of monitoring by the Justice Department.

"Employers must ensure that they follow correct procedures during the reverification of employment authorization of non-U.S. citizens," Gregory Friel, deputy assistant attorney general for the Justice Department's civil rights division, said in a statement.

The department said its probe began in April 2012, based on several calls to a worker hotline regarding Macy's practices. It did not immediately provide details about the specific violations.

Macy's spokesman Jim Sluzewski declined to comment.

According to the settlement agreement, Macy's denied committing immigration-related discrimination or engaging in unfair documentary practices in violation of the federal Immigration and Nationality Act.

That law bars employers from demanding more or different documents, or changing documentation rules, based on people's immigration status or national origin.

Macy's had about 175,700 full- and part-time employees as of Feb. 2, according to its annual report, and operated roughly 840 stores under the Macy's and Bloomingdale's names. The company has offices in Cincinnati and New York.

Source: http://feeds.nbcnews.com/c/35002/f/663286/s/2de37701/l/0L0Snbcnews0N0Cbusiness0Cmacys0Efined0Eover0Etreatment0Eimmigrant0Eworkers0E6C10A467561/story01.htm

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Thursday, June 27, 2013

Compulsory insurance products and you - Vanguard News

By ROSEMARY ONUOHA

The National Insurance Commission, NAICOM, in 2010 came up with the Market Development and Restructuring Initiative, MDRI, as part of efforts to boost insurance penetration in the country. Part of the objectives of the MDRI is to enforce the compulsory insurance under the Insurance Act of 2003. But so far, greater number of the general public is yet to buy into the initiative.

The reason is not farfetched.? The Nigerian public to a very large extent has a negative perception about insurance. Although the sector is changing for the better, it has not been easy to convince Nigerians.

Unfortunately though, this poor perception is negatively affecting the growth of the sector, it is high time Nigerians began to see insurance in a new light.

*Pensioners queuing for verification

Oftentimes, Nigerians say that there is no value attached to insurance, but the truth is that insurance offers a lot of value.

Take for instance, people think that putting on the seat belt in a car is to prevent law enforcement agents from arresting them, whereas the purpose is to save lives.

There is no gainsaying the obvious that the loss of confidence from the general public in the insurance sector is as a result of indiscipline.

Insurance operators on their part, know that indiscipline and unprofessionalism have impacted negatively on their businesses over the years, as such, are employing all positive means to? win back the confidence of the general public.

An insurance practitioner once said ?We insurance practitioners are not disciplined professionals and as long as we remain indisciplined, some of those practices that we come out and criticise openly and go back to? privately will continue.?

The compulsory insurances
Compulsory insurances are those classes of insurance made compulsory by law, with the objective of providing protection to third parties and the general public.? The following types of insurance are compulsory in Nigeria:

. Builders Liability ? under the Insurance Act 2003/under the Lagos State Building Control Law 2010
. Construction All Risks
. Occupiers Liability ? under the Insurance Act 2003 and Lagos State Law
. Employers Liability ? (Group Life) ? under the Pension Reform Act 2004
. Healthcare Professional Indemnity ? under the NHIS Act 1999
. Motor Third Party Liability ? under the Insurance Act 2003

Builders Liability Insurance
This type of insurance requires that all owners or contractors of buildings under construction (more than 2 floors), must purchase to provide compensation in event of bodily injury, death and property damage to workers at construction sites and affected members of the public in the event of collapse of the building and other construction risks. The penalty for non-compliance is N250, 000 plus three years imprisonment. Record of conviction, sealing-off and demolition of the building are the penalties provided under the federal and Lagos State laws.

Occupiers Liability Insurance
This type of insurance requires that all owners or occupiers of public buildings, whether private or public, to provide under the National Insurance Act 2003 and the Lagos State Building Control Law 2010. A ?public building? is any building that is not 100 per cent used by the owner for residential purposes. Public buildings include tenement houses, hostels, residential buildings occupied by tenants, lodgers or licensees, and any other building to which members of the public enter and exit for the purpose of educational, recreational or medical services (e.g. schools, cinemas, hospitals, malls, petrol stations, etc).

Occupiers Liability Insurance provides compensation in events of bodily injury, death and property damage to the business users and members of the public in the event of building collapse, fire, earthquakes, storm or flood. The penalty for non-compliance is N100, 000 plus one year imprisonment, and sealing-off or demolition of the building under the federal and the Lagos State laws.

Employer?s Liability (Group Life) Insurance
This type of insurance requires that all employers of labour with more than four employees are required to have under the Pension Reform Act 2004. The law requires the employers have insurance that will provide for compensation in the event of death, disappearance, disability, or critical illness suffered by staff while in service and to subsidize pension provision in the event of mental or physical disability.

This law applies to both public and private sector employees. This means that employees (and their families) have the right to demand compensation and payment from their employers in the event of injury or death. The penalty for non-compliance with this law is N250,000, record of conviction, and in addition the place of business may be sealed up.

Healthcare Professional Indemnity Insurance
This type of insurance requires that all licensed health care providers and medical practitioners (such as doctors, nurses, pharmacists, etc) are required to have under the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS) 1999. The law? have insurance that will protect their patients in case of accidents or fatalities (death) resulting from professional negligence.

This type of insurance provides compensation to patients and their relatives in the event of involuntary murder, disability, shock and injury suffered by patients as a result of the negligence of Health Care Providers. The penalty for non-compliance with this law is a possible revocation of licence by the National Health Insurance Council, a record of conviction, and sealing-off of the premises.

Third Party Motor Liability Insurance
This is the minimum insurance that all owners and drivers of motor vehicles, motorcycles and special type vehicles plying the Nigerian roads are required to have under the National Insurance Act 2003. The third party motor liability insures the motor vehicle against liability as to death, bodily injury or damage to property of a third parties arising from the use of the vehicle. The penalty for non-compliance is a fine of up to N250,000 plus one year imprisonment.

Source: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/06/compulsory-insurance-products-and-you/

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Wednesday, June 26, 2013

Pakistani Folk Art and US Drones Collide in These Ornate Paintings

Pakistani-American artist Mahwish Chishty was originally trained in painting miniatures in her native Lahore. But these days, Chishty is also emerging as a notable conceptual artist abroad, treading the potent line between Pakistani and American culture. Yesterday, in an interview with Mother Jones, Chishty discussed her paintings of American drones?which she covers in traditional Pakistani ornamentation.

Carnival replaces CEO as cruise bookings fall

Carnival Cruise Lines has replaced its CEO, as advance bookings fall behind last year's levels. Despite the drop, Carnival eked out a $41 million profit in its fiscal second quarter.?

By Scott Mayerowitz,?AP Business writer / June 26, 2013

A view of the Carnival Dream cruise ship moored at the A.C. Wathey Cruise Facilities in Philipsburg, Sint Maarten in March. Cruise operator Carnival Corp's CEO, Micky Arison, will relinquish the helm next month to be replaced by a long-time board member.

John Halley/Reuters/File

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?Passengers remain hesitant to book?cruises, despite deep discounts. But that didn't stop?Carnival?Corp. from eking out a $41 million second-quarter profit thanks to lower fuel costs and the timing of some administrative expenses.

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The Miami-based company also announced Tuesday that Micky Arison, who has been CEO since 1979 and is the son of?Carnival?co-founder Ted Arison, is being replaced by Arnold W. Donald, who has served on the company's board for the past 12 years. Arison will continue to serve as chairman of the board.

The profit was nearly triple the $14 million the world's largest?cruise?company earned during same period last year, a quarter which it suffered from steep losses on fuel prices bets known as derivatives.

Earnings totaled of 5 cents per share this quarter, up from 2 cents a share last year at this time. Revenue fell 1.7 percent to $3.48 billion.

Excluding one-time items,?Carnival's?earnings were 9 cents per share. Analysts polled by FactSet had expected earnings of 6 cents per share on revenue of $3.56 billion.

Shares of?Carnival?rose $1.67, or 5 percent, to close at $34.89 Tuesday.

Arison led the company through an aggressive expansion that included the acquisition of several brands, including Holland America, Costa?Cruises, Cunard and Seabourn. In 2003, he oversaw a merger between?Carnival?Corp. and P&O Princess?Cruises. Today,?Carnivalruns?cruises?under 10 brands.

However, Arison came under fire during?Carnival's?bad publicity earlier in the year when a string of its?cruise?ships suffered through mechanical problems and fires. The most dramatic of them was the?Carnival?Triumph where passengers were stranded at sea for five days as toilets backed up and air conditioners failed. There were media reports of raw sewage seeping through walls and carpets.

Arison, who also owns the Miami Heat basketball team, took some heat of his own for attending a game while the crisis was ongoing.

Donald founded and led Merisant, a company whose products include sweetener brands Equal and Canderel. He also held multiple senior management roles at Monsanto over the course of 20-plus years, including president of the company's consumer and nutrition sector and president of its agricultural sector.

The Triumph nightmare was followed up with problems on three other?Carnival?ships: The Elation, Dream and Legend ? all which made big headlines.

None of that helped restore confidence in vacationers who are still wary after the January 2012 sinking of the Costa Concordia, also owned by?Carnival.

In its earnings release Tuesday,?Carnival?said that advance bookings for the rest of 2013 are running behind last year's levels, even at lower prices. Bookings on its namesake?Carnival?line are particularly weak.

Arison said in a statement that?Carnival?is working to market the "truly exceptional vacation values" that?cruises?offer through travel agents and other industry partners.

"We believe these initiatives, combined with slower supply growth, will lead to increased yields," he said. "In addition, we remain focused on reducing our fuel dependence. By year end, we will achieve a 23 percent cumulative reduction in fuel consumption since 2005 and expect our research and development efforts in fuel saving technologies to continue to bear fruit."

Those fuel-savings efforts seem to be paying off. In the quarter that ended May 31, the company saw a 14-percent drop in its fuel bill. The company spent $555 million on fuel, down from $645 million during the same quarter last year.?Cruise?companies, airlines and other large consumers of fuel typically make bets, called derivatives, on the price of oil to hedge again any sudden spikes. Last year,?Carnivallost $145 million in the second quarter on such bets. This year, that loss was narrowed to $31 million.

During the second quarter, the company took delivery of Princess?Cruises' 3,560-passenger Royal Princess, the first of a new class of ships for Princess. Additionally,?Carnival?Sunshine entered service in May following a $155 million modernization.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/MQMxkz3uGYk/Carnival-replaces-CEO-as-cruise-bookings-fall

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Paula Deen's 'Today' appearance ends in tears

NEW YORK (AP) ? Paula Deen dissolved into tears during a "Today" show interview Wednesday about her admission that she used a racial slur in the past, saying anyone in the audience who's never said anything they've regretted to pick up a rock and throw it at her head.

The celebrity chef, who had backed out of a "Today" interview last Friday, said she was not a racist and was heartbroken by the controversy that began with her own deposition in a lawsuit. Deen has been dropped by the Food Network and as a celebrity endorser by Smithfield Foods.

"I've had to hold friends in my arms while they've sobbed because they know what's been said about me is not true and I'm having to comfort them," she said.

Deen told Lauer she could only recall using the "n-word" once. She had earlier said that she remembered using it when retelling a story about when she was held at gunpoint by a robber who was black while working as a bank teller in the 1980s in Georgia. In a deposition for the lawsuit involving an employee in a restaurant owned by Deen and her brother, she had said she may also have used the slur when recalling conversations between black employees at her restaurants.

Looking distressed and her voice breaking, Deen said if there was someone in the audience who had never said something they wished they could take back, "please pick up that stone and throw it as hard at my head so it kills me. I want to meet you. I want to meet you.

"I is what I is and I'm not changing," she said. "There's someone evil out there that saw what I worked for and wanted it."

An uncomfortable Lauer tried to end the interview, but Deen repeated that anyone who hasn't sinned should attack her.

Deen said she appreciated fans who have expressed anger at the Food Network for dropping her, but said she didn't support a boycott of the network.

"These people who have met me and know me and love me, they're as angry as the people who are reading these stories that are lies," she said.

___

Online:

http://www.today.com/

___

Follow Dave Bauder on Twitter at http://twitter.com/dbauder

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/paula-deens-today-appearance-ends-tears-120225940.html

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Asian tiger mosquitoes: What you need to know

Asian tiger mosquitoes are spreading in the continental US. Scientists warn that Asian tiger mosquitoes?bite throughout the day, carry disease, and lay eggs that can survive winter.

By Marc Lallanilla,?Assistant Editor, LiveScience.com / June 25, 2013

Michelle Dann holds a t-shirt outside her home in May 2013. A new species of mosquito was introduced to Texas in the 1980s and has now spread to 26 states.

Sally Finneran/The Grand Rapids Press/AP/File

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There's a new pest invading many American towns: the Asian tiger mosquito.

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Named for the black-and-white stripes on its body, the Asian tiger mosquito (Aedes albopictus) was first brought to Texas in a shipment of tires (which are notorious for holding the standing water that mosquitoes require for breeding), the?Wall Street Journal?reports.

The bug is worrisome for several reasons: Unlike other mosquitoes, the aggressive Asian tiger bites all day long, from morning until night. It's partial to humans, but also attacks dogs, cats, birds and other animals.

"Part of the reason it is called 'tiger' is also because it is very aggressive," Dina Fonseca, associate professor of entomology at Rutgers University, told the Journal. "You can try and swat it all you want, but once it's on you, it doesn't let go."

The Asian tiger mosquito joins other insects now threatening U.S. residents.?Gallinippers?(Psorophora ciliata), for example, are a type of shaggy-haired mosquito with an unusually painful bite; they're currently found throughout much of Florida.

But few insects are as effective at spreading illness as the Asian tiger mosquito, say scientists. The pest can transmit more than 20 diseases, according to the?Cornell Chronicle, including West Nile fever, dengue fever, yellow fever, and two types of encephalitis.

Since its introduction to the United States in the 1980s, the Asian tiger mosquito has spread to 26 states, primarily in the eastern United States, the CDC reports. The bug is also established in South and Central America, southern Europe, and several Pacific islands.

Part of its success at spreading throughout the world is due to a warming climate, but the Asian tiger mosquito has one other pesky adaptation: Its eggs are tough enough to survive a cold winter, according to?Science News.

If there's a silver lining to this story, it might be this: The Asian tiger mosquito is displacing another disease-carrying mosquito species,?Aedes aegypti.?Every time a male Asian tiger mosquito mates with a female?A. aegypti,?chemicals in his semen make her sterile, Science News reports.

But this also means Asian tiger mosquitoes are expanding their territory. Experts recommend removing all sources of standing water, wearing insect repellent and covering up with long sleeves and pants to avoid the bloodthirsty mosquitoes.

Follow Marc Lallanilla on?Twitter?and?Google+. Follow us?@livescience,?Facebook?&?Google+. Original article on?LiveScience.com.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/science/~3/OV6zMzEXbsE/Asian-tiger-mosquitoes-What-you-need-to-know

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Sex & Relationships - How Sex Works for Women - Article by Dr. ...

How Sex Works for Women 0 5

Auremar/PhotoSpin

The science of human sexuality is young. For most of the last century, we assumed that men and women approach sex in roughly the same way.

I know: Crazy. But as I said, the science is young.

Older models (Masters & Johnson, Kaplan) theorized that sex for people happens in a few neat, linear stages, beginning with desire, proceeding next to arousal, then orgasm, and finally satisfaction.

But it doesn?t always work that way, particularly for women, and especially for women over 40.

More recent researchers who focus on women?s sexuality, confirm that really, women do not experience sex in this simple, linear way. We sometimes skip phases. Our reasons to have sex are many and often complex.

We can be perfectly satisfied with sex that does not include orgasm, and we can reach orgasm without desire. We are flexible that way.

Enter Rosemary Basson, MB, FRCP, of the University of British Columbia. Basson formalized a new model of female sexuality that is now widely accepted.

She offers two key insights. First: Female sexual desire is generally more responsive than spontaneous. That is, we are more likely to respond to sexual stimuli?thoughts, sights, smells, and sounds?than we are to spark an interest in sex out of thin air (Men, on the other hand, specialize in this).

Another key insight: Emotional intimacy matters to women. I know, that doesn?t sound like a news flash, but in the realm of the biological sciences, it?s news, trust me.

So Basson drew a new model?not a linear series of steps, but a circle that includes both sexual stimuli?the thoughts that trigger a woman to take an interest in sex, and emotional intimacy?the emotional payoffs of the experience that lead her to want to come back for more.

I love Basson?s model and use it every day in my practice to help my patients understand how sex really works for us.

We need to understand that it?s okay and it?s normal that we don?t always start with desire. And as we enter menopause, and our hormone levels drop, spontaneous thoughts about sex, and responsiveness to opportunities for sex diminish for most of us. That?s natural and normal too.

Source: http://www.empowher.com/sex-amp-relationships/content/how-sex-works-women

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Tuesday, June 18, 2013

Teen cyclist killed near Seattle on B.C. Cancer Foundation bike ride ...

CTVNews.ca Staff
Published Sunday, June 16, 2013 3:15PM EDT
Last Updated Sunday, June 16, 2013 5:10PM EDT

A 16-year-old cyclist from Victoria, B.C. has been killed while at cycling for Ride to Conquer Cancer, Sunday morning.

The young man lost balance near Marysville, Washington, about 50 km north of Seattle, and fell into oncoming traffic. He was riding with his mother and uncle.

This was the fifth annual Ride to Conquer Cancer, a two-day journey that sees thousands of cyclists riding from Vancouver to Seattle.

?All who are associated with The Ride to Conquer Cancer have been deeply saddened by this news and our thoughts and prayers are with family and friends of the rider,? said Doug Nelson, president and CEO of the BC Cancer Foundation.

A spokesperson says the rider?s name will not be released until family members are notified.

The Ride to Conquer Cancer announced that 2,642 riders helped raise $10.4 million for the BC Cancer Foundation in this year.

Source: http://www.ctvnews.ca/canada/teen-cyclist-killed-near-seattle-on-b-c-cancer-foundation-bike-ride-1.1327851

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Monday, June 17, 2013

Turkish PM rails at 'plot' behind Istanbul protest

SINCAN, Turkey (AP) ? Turkey's prime minister is lashing out at protesters behind a two-week sit-in at an Istanbul park in a boisterous speech to tens of thousands of his supporters.

Recep Tayyip Erdogan tells supporters from his Justice and Development party that they represented the "silent masses" ? while inveighing against those behind a "plot" against his government.

Erdogan has previously said that Saturday's rally and another planned Sunday in Istanbul were not designed as "an alternative" to the demonstrations at Istanbul's Gezi Park, but part of early campaigning for local elections next March.

Earlier Saturday, park protesters vowed to press on with their sit-in, defying government appeals and a warning from Erdogan for an end to the standoff.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/turkish-pm-rails-plot-behind-istanbul-protest-154436054.html

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