A's top M's with homer in 10th, gain on Rangers

By ANTONIO GONZALEZ

AP Sports Writer

Associated Press Sports

updated 7:54 p.m. ET Sept. 29, 2012

OAKLAND, Calif. (AP) - Brandon Moss still had remnants of a whipped-cream pie splashed across both sides of his beard in the clubhouse. When someone pointed out the smears, Moss plucked the rest from his face and licked his fingers clean.

"Last time, I didn't eat any," he said. "But this time, I ate a lot of it. I left my mouth open."

Winning sure taste better in a late September playoff race.

Moss hit a three-run homer in the 10th inning after Josh Donaldson's tying two-run shot in the ninth, and the Oakland Athletics gained ground on the first-place Texas Rangers with a stunning 7-4 win over the Seattle Mariners on Saturday.

"Epic," A's manager Bob Melvin said. "It's a pretty dramatic win, maybe as dramatic as all."

For a low-budget ballclub that has had its share of you-have-to-be-kidding-me moments this season, that's quite a statement from the manager.

After what Melvin had just witnessed, perhaps it's hard to blame him.

Coco Crisp singled off Oliver Perez (1-3) leading off the final inning for his fourth hit. Stephen Pryor entered with one out and walked Yoenis Cespedes on four pitches.

Moss hammered the first pitch against Pryor well over the wall in right for his 21st home run, sending Oakland (90-68) streaming out of the dugout to celebrate its major-league leading 14th walk-off win.

The A's are 2 1/2 games back of Texas in the division and 2 1/2 ahead of the Los Angeles Angels for the final wild card. The Angels-Rangers game Saturday in Texas was postponed by inclement weather, and the teams will play a doubleheader Sunday. Tampa Bay also is three games behind Oakland.

Oakland hosts Texas in the final three games of the season starting Monday. If the Angels lose the doubleheader and Tampa Bay falls in its finale at the Chicago White Sox, the A's could clinch at least the wild card with a win Sunday.

"Our mind is still focused on trying to go after the division," Donaldson said. "Every game out there is the biggest game of the year for us. That's the way it's been for the last month."

Considering the way the A's have played since the All-Star break, no goal seems silly anymore.

Donaldson's drive off Tom Wilhelmsen in the ninth landed just over the wall in center field for his ninth home run to start Oakland's latest rally. Grant Balfour (3-2) pitched a perfect inning to earn the win.

With each game becoming bigger than the last, the A's have shown no signs of a young team overwhelmed by the pressure.

Players tossed a football around during batting practice. Right fielder Josh Reddick even wore a camouflage shirt and punted the ball in flip-flops.

The laid-back approach carried over again - just not right away.

Dan Straily allowed four runs, four walks and three hits in 4 1-3 innings while striking out three, though he ended up jumping over the couch in the clubhouse watching Donaldson's homer, admitting he was so excited "I have no idea how I got there." His bullpen backed him up, though, with five relievers tossing scoreless ball.

John Jaso walked leading off the second inning and took advantage of a pair of errors for Seattle's first run.

Justin Smoak grounded out to Moss, who stepped on first base and threw the ball into left field. Cespedes tried to throw out Jaso at third and instead sailed the ball into Oakland's dugout, allowing Jaso to score and give the Mariners a 1-0 lead.

"It almost hit our Purell container in the dugout. That would have bothered me," Melvin could joke later. "I use that quite often in the dugout. It just hit the water cooler. That would have been really devastating if it knocked over the Purell container. We can take a run there, we just don't want to lose that."

Kyle Seager hit a solo shot over the wall in center and Michael Saunders lined a two-run homer to right to put Seattle ahead 4-0 in the fourth. It was the 19th home run for each this season.

Cespedes singled and scored from first on Moss' single in the bottom of the inning. Cespedes was stealing second on the play, and his hesitation around third base fooled right fielder Casper Wells just enough to slide in safely and slice Seattle's lead to 4-1.

Once again, Jason Vargas quieted the A's.

He struck out seven and walked none in seven innings. The lefty is 2-1 and has allowed only 10 runs in six starts against Oakland this season.

Moss also doubled in the eighth against Wilhelmsen to score Crisp and Stephen Drew was waived home from first by third base Mike Gallego. Second baseman Dustin Ackley's relay throw from Wells in right easily got Drew out at home to end the inning and leave the possible tying run stranded at second.

Moss made a diving grab to rob pinch-hitter Jesus Montero for the final out of Seattle's ninth to save at least a run and set the stage for another thriller he would finish.

"Those guys are feeling it over there," Mariners manager Eric Wedge said. "The fans are feeling it. Obviously the players are feeling it. You can sense the excitement in the air."

NOTES: A's LHP Brett Anderson (4-2, 2.57 ERA), who strained his right oblique Sept. 19 after a strong return from last year's Tommy John surgery, played toss from 120 feet before the game. He will pitch a bullpen session as soon as Monday, and could be back if the A's make the playoffs. ... Oakland slugger Jonny Gomes received the 2012 Dave Stewart Community Service Award from the former A's pitcher during a pregame ceremony. ... Lefty Tommy Milone (13-10, 3.74 ERA) starts for Oakland opposite Mariners RHP Erasmo Ramirez (1-3, 3.42 ERA) in Sunday's series finale.

---

Antonio Gonzalez can be reached at: www.twitter.com/agonzalezAP

? 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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Source: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/49226274/ns/sports-baseball/

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California Scales Back Pension Benefits

A new law signed by California Governor Jerry Brown on Wednesday (September 12) will scale back retirement benefits for public employees in an effort to rein in the?costs of the state?s woefully underfunded pension systems.

The law, which Brown touted as ?the biggest rollback to public pension benefits in the history of California,? is expected to save billions of taxpayer dollars, though its supporters acknowledge it falls far short of addressing the bulk of the problem.

"Yes, it's not everything. It's not perfection," Brown said, according to the Associated Press. "But in politics we don't deal in perfection."

The state estimates it has underfunded its two largest pension systems, the California Public Employees Retirement System and the California State Teachers' Retirement System, by about $165 billion.

The new law is projected to lower the tab by about $78 billion over the next 30 years. It caps benefits, increases the retirement age by two years or more and ensures that workers will contribute at least 50 percent of their benefits.

"It was a meager reform that falls far short of solving California's brutal pension math problem," Dan Pellissier, president of the group California Pension Reform, told the Los Angeles Times.

Meanwhile, labor groups have likened the changes to an attack on public employees and on collective bargaining rights.

?This plan will make it harder to keep quality teachers in our classrooms and public safety officers on our streets,? said Dean Vogel, president of the California Teachers Association, following the law?s passage last month in the legislature.

California is just one of many states struggling to curb rising pension costs, a key problem fueling state budget crises. Legislatures nationwide are trying to address it.

On Wednesday, as Bloomberg reports, Ohio lawmakers passed a package of bills that would increase worker contributions to pension plans, increase the retirement age and adjust cost-of-living requirements.

In 2010, the state paid just two-thirds of the recommended contribution to its pension system, leaving it with a $58 billion funding gap, according to a review by the Pew Center on the States, Stateline?s parent organization. Meanwhile, it paid just 36 percent of the recommended contribution for employee health benefits.

In Illinois, where lawmakers have failed to address one of the nation?s worst pension problems, Governor Pat Quinn has launched a website aimed at generating grassroots support for change to the state?s pensions and Medicaid systems.?

?We need major reforms to fix Illinois? broken pension systems. Delaying, deferring, or denying this challenge is not an option,? the site says in bold. ?This isn?t about politics ? no matter where you stand, Illinois must address this problem.?

Source: http://www.pewstates.org/projects/stateline/headlines/california-scales-back-pension-benefits-85899417091

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Prostate Cancer Post-Treatment Tips | BlackDoctor

According to the CDC, African American men have the highest incidence of prostate cancer of any race in the U.S. and are more than two times more likely to die from the disease. In fact, prostate cancer is the fourth leading cause of death in African American men.

Unfortunately, this means that receiving a prostate cancer diagnosis is something many Black men will encounter in their lifetime. How a man responds to this news can be a matter of life and death.

Like what you?re reading? Then LIKE us on Facebook!

After you?re diagnosed with prostate cancer, it?s very important to make the necessary lifestyle changes that will improve the quality of your life.

According to Dr. Thomas Farrington, prostate cancer survivor and president and founder of the Prostate Health Education Network (PHEN), here are some of the top things a man with prostate cancer needs to stay healthy.

1. Knowledge

?Knowledge is the best tool to help you survive,? Dr. Farrington says. ?Black men need to ask ?should I be treated or go into active surveillance?? ?What is my stage of cancer?? ?Surgery or radiation?? Men don?t understand that you must continue to be diligent in post-prostate cancer treatment.?

There are many resources available to learn about prostate cancer facts and treatments, such as PHEN and the National Comprehensive Cancer Network.

Dr. Farrington also stressed an underlying reason for men to educate themselves about recommended lifestyle habits and possible treatments, in addition to maintaining a higher quality of post-cancer life ? prostate cancer recurrence.

?Just because you?ve received treatment doesn?t mean the cancer can?t come back, so men to know about available treatments, particularly new treatments that are on the horizon. An example of this is an exiting new treatment that addresses prostate cancer recurrences called Provenge, which uses the body?s own immune system to fight cancer. Many insurance companies cover this, and it?s important for men to be aware of this new option.?

2. The Right Diet

It can be very difficult to adhere to a balanced cancer diet, particularly during treatment, while your body is working overtime to fight the cancer and repair healthy cells that may have been damaged as a side effect of treatments like chemotherapy and radiation. At the same time, many cancer treatments, such as radiation, can leave you weak and without an appetite ? this makes it both challenging, yet crucial, to get in those essential nutrients, vitamins, and minerals your body needs in order to fight and regain strength.

?You really do need to be concerned with your diet,? says Dr. Farrington. ?One key aspect of a prostate cancer diet is being lower in fat.?

Experts also recommend reducing animal fat in your diet. Studies show that excess fat, primarily red meat and high-fat dairy, stimulates prostate cancer growth. In addition, avoid trans fatty acids (found in margarines, fried and baked goods) and high-calcium diets, which are also both known to promote cancer growth.

Foods known to help aid in maintaining prostate health include:

1 2Next page ?

Source: http://blackdoctor.org/12916/prostate-cancer-post-treatment-tips/

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Tori Spelling home after emergency surgery

By Brandi Fowler, E! Online

Slaven Vlasic / Getty Images

It's back to home sweet Hollywood for Tori Spelling.?The "Tori and Dean" ?star has been released from the hospital after undergoing emergency surgery due to complications from her C section.

More from E: Tori Spelling "resting comfortably" after emergency surgery

Spelling was rushed to the hospital in mid September, just a couple of weeks after giving birth to her fourth child, Finn Davey McDermott.

"Hi everyone - I wanted to let you know that I am home from the hospital, on the road to recovery, and overjoyed to be back with my family," the former "Beverly Hills, 90210" star wrote on her blog Thursday. "I am so thankful for all of your love and support these past couple of weeks. It has meant so much to me. I will be back to blogging tomorrow, so stay tuned!"

More from E: Ouch! injured celebs?

--Reporting by Holly Passalaqua?

Related content:

More in TODAY Entertainment:

Source: http://todayentertainment.today.com/_news/2012/09/27/14128827-tori-spelling-released-from-hospital-after-emergency-surgery?lite

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Actor Johnny Lewis found dead in Los Angeles, suspected in killing

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Kenya attacks last stronghold of Somali militants

FILE - In this Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2012 file photo, Kenyan army soldier Nicholas Munyanya, wearing a helmet on which is written in Kiswahili "Tea in Kismayo", referring to a key strategic Somali town then under the control of al-Shabab, checks his ammunition belt near the town of Dhobley, in Somalia. Kenya's military said Friday, Sept. 28, 2012 that its troops attacked Kismayo, the last remaining port city held by al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab insurgents in Somalia, during an overnight attack involving a beach landing. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis, File)

FILE - In this Tuesday, Feb. 21, 2012 file photo, Kenyan army soldier Nicholas Munyanya, wearing a helmet on which is written in Kiswahili "Tea in Kismayo", referring to a key strategic Somali town then under the control of al-Shabab, checks his ammunition belt near the town of Dhobley, in Somalia. Kenya's military said Friday, Sept. 28, 2012 that its troops attacked Kismayo, the last remaining port city held by al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab insurgents in Somalia, during an overnight attack involving a beach landing. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis, File)

This undated photo provided by Kenya's Ministry for Defence on Friday, Sept. 28, 2012, is said by them to show Kenya Defence Forces troops at an undisclosed location in Kenya, engaged in recent preparations for an assault on the Somali port city of Kismayo. Kenyan troops invaded al-Shabab's last stronghold in Somalia on Friday, coming ashore in a predawn beach landing at Kismayo that appeared likely to deprive the Islamist insurgents of their last big money-making enterprise. (AP Photo/Kenya Ministry for Defense)

FILE - In this Wednesday, Dec. 14, 2011 file photo, two Kenyan army soldiers shield themselves from the downdraft of a Kenyan air force helicopter as it flies away from their base near the seaside town of Bur Garbo, Somalia. Kenya's military said Friday, Sept. 28, 2012 that its troops attacked Kismayo, the last remaining port city held by al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab insurgents in Somalia, during an overnight attack involving a beach landing. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis, File)

FILE - In this Monday, Feb. 20, 2012 file photo, Kenyan army soldiers stand in a dugout position at their base in Tabda, inside Somalia. Kenya's military said Friday, Sept. 28, 2012 that its troops attacked Kismayo, the last remaining port city held by al-Qaida-linked al-Shabab insurgents in Somalia, during an overnight attack involving a beach landing. (AP Photo/Ben Curtis, File)

This undated photo provided by Kenya's Ministry for Defence on Friday, Sept. 28, 2012, is said by them to show Kenya Defence Forces troops at an undisclosed location in Kenya, engaged in recent preparations for an assault on the Somali port city of Kismayo. Kenyan troops invaded al-Shabab's last stronghold in Somalia on Friday, coming ashore in a predawn beach landing at Kismayo that appeared likely to deprive the Islamist insurgents of their last big money-making enterprise. (AP Photo/Kenya Ministry for Defense)

MOGADISHU, Somalia (AP) ? Kenyan troops invaded al-Shabab's last stronghold in Somalia on Friday, coming ashore in a predawn beach landing at Kismayo that appeared likely to deprive the Islamist insurgents of their last big money-making enterprise.

African Union troops from Kenya, Uganda and Burundi have combined over the last 18 months to kick al-Shabab out of the capital Mogadishu and take a series of smaller towns that the insurgents fled to. By Friday afternoon, Kenyan Defense Forces said that its ground troops were also steadily approaching Kismayo from the west. Al-Shabab, which is allied with al-Qaida, had earned money by collecting taxes on goods arriving at the Indian Ocean port, so the loss of the stronghold would be a double blow to the armed fundamentalist group that began attacks in 2007 and ultimately controlled all but a few blocks of the capital.

The assault is likely to send al-Shabab fighters underground. Hardcore fighters may unleash suicide bombs and ambushes but less dedicated fighters could melt back into their communities, further reducing al-Shabab's strength. The African Union force said that some al-Shabab fighters have already contacted military officials in recent days, saying they wanted to defect from al-Shabab.

The assault rocks al-Shabab onto its heels and comes as the government is finally getting organized, having moved in recent weeks from a U.N.-backed transitional government to one in which parliament, which itself was recently elected by elders, chose a new president. Last month, Somali leaders endorsed a new provisional constitution that expands rights for Somalis.

Residents in Kismayo contacted by The Associated Press said Kenyan troops had taken control of the port but not the whole city. Mohamed Haji said helicopters were hitting targets during the early morning fighting. He said al-Shabab fighters moved to the front line to repel the assault.

Col. Cyrus Oguna, the Kenyan military's top spokesman, said the surprise attack met minimal resistance and that al-Shabab incurred "heavy losses." Al-Shabab denied that the city had fallen and said fighting was taking place. No casualties were reported for Kenyan troops.

Oguna said guns had been placed beforehand at a jetty and warehouse in Kismayo and that Somali national army troops participated in the assault.

An al-Shabab spokesman said on Twitter that the militants still control Kismayo.

"The enemy forces have launched a desperate attack on Kismayo this morning and the mujahedeen forces are resisting their attacks," Sheikh Abdiaziz Abu-Musab said over the militants' radio station in Kismayo.

Oguna said the assault is part of a four-prong attack involving Kenyan forces currently in villages outside Kismayo. The amphibious assault landed between 10:30 p.m. Thursday and 2 a.m. Friday, he said, with some of the troops equipped with night-vision goggles.

African Union troops pushed al-Shabab out of Mogadishu in August 2011, ending more than four years of control of the capital by the fighters. The Ugandan and Burundian troops that make up the bulk of the African Union force in Mogadishu have slowly been taking control of towns outside of Mogadishu.

Still, there are vestiges of the havoc that has reigned over Somalia since longtime dictator Siad Barre was ousted in 1991 by warlords who then turned on each other. One Somali journalist was killed by gunmen Friday and another was beheaded, officials and residents said, bringing the number of Somali journalists killed this year to 15. No group has yet claimed responsibility for the latest killings.

The expanding control by AU troops sent al-Shabab fighters fleeing south toward Kismayo, north to other regions of Somalia and across the Gulf of Aden to Yemen. Al-Shabab still holds sway across many small, poor villages of southern Somalia. Al-Shabab lost another major source of financing last year when it was pushed out of Bakara market in Mogadishu, where ? like at the Kismayo port ? it also charged taxes.

A U.S. military spokesman, Lt. Cdr. Dave Hecht, said the U.S. Africa Command, known as AFRICOM, is closely monitoring the situation but that "we are not participating in Kenya's military activities in the region." The U.S. has helped train and equip Ugandan and Burundian troops and helps pay and train members of Somalia's military.

The march toward Kismayo by the Kenyan forces has been nearly a year in the making, with the soldiers bogged down by rain and poor roads for months. Kenyan troops entered Somalia last October after a string of kidnappings inside neighboring Kenya.

With an attack imminent, more than 10,000 residents fled Kismayo in the last several weeks. Resident Faduma Abdulle said Friday that she is now leaving too. She said al-Shabab announced false propaganda on its radio station Friday to trick residents into moving toward the invading troops.

"They told residents through their radio to loot a Kenyan ship that washed up on the coast, but instead the residents who rushed there were attacked by helicopters," she said. "Some of them have died but I don't know how many. The situation is tense and many are fleeing. It's a dangerous situation."

The commander of the U.N-backed African Union troops, Lt. Gen. Andrew Gutti, said that more of the soldiers were headed to Kismayo to reinforce those that stormed ashore. He said the aim is to "liberate the people of Kismayo to enable them to lead their lives in peace, stability and security. Operations are ongoing to neutralize targets in Kismayo."

___

Odula reported from Nairobi, Kenya. Jason Straziuso contributed from Nairobi, Kenya.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2012-09-28-Somalia/id-6600f326634c4bd19e703dd69efc007c

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Important Tips With Regards To Commercial Real Estate | Eric Chua ...

There are a number of motivations that can drive you toward commercial real estate investment. At the same time, the choice to make this sort of investment must be your own, based on your own knowledge base. The more educated you are, the more earning potential you have. The hints and tips in the following article can get you started on learning the fundamentals of the commercial real estate market, or enhance the knowledge you already possess.

When dealing with commercial real estate, it is important to retain the services of a lawyer with a high level of expertise. You should have your lawyer review everything related to the properties you are involved in. If a complication arises relating to your real estate transaction, you should be represented by the best person in order to set everything straight.

Make sure that you know and understand what ?NOI? (Net Operating Income) is. In order to be successful and stay profitable, watch this number closely, and take steps to make certain it does not fall into the negatives.

TIP! Before negotiating a lease with a commercial tenant, work on narrowing down the list of things that would constitute default. This will lessen the possibility of a lease default by your tenant.

List your real estate at a realistic price. There are a lot of uncertainties which can have a huge impact on the price of your lot.

See to it that you?re dealing with companies that care about their customers before you engage them in a commercial purchase. If you don?t, you might wind up suffering over the long haul for an otherwise preventable error.

It?s a good idea to purchase properties larger than you actually need when buying commercial real estate. It?s not more work managing more units than less units, but each unit can cost less if you buy a property with more.

TIP! Make sure you never underestimate anyone when it comes to real estate, not your private lenders or your investors, know what everyone is capable of. Make sure you have a big network because there?s a lot of property that goes unnoticed and is sold, you want to increase your chances of making deals by always being informed.

Be mindful of the environment that your possible property is situated in. Since the responsibility lies at your feet, if there is any environmental waste that needs to be cleaned up, you will be the one who has to do it. Do you want to buy property in a area that is prone to flooding? reconsider your options before making a final decision. Talk to an environmental assessment agency to learn more about the area where the property is located.

People who invest in commercial real estate know the threat associated with fluctuating interest rates. Current conditions, with their unpredictable rises and falls, leave investors room to make a great profit or to suffer an incredible loss. Evaluate all long-term options, and take the interest rate hikes into consideration.

If your real estate deal includes inspections (and it always should), make sure to ask to see the credentials of all of the inspectors. This is true when working with pest or insect removal, since many people who are non-accredited work in these fields. Doing so, will help you avoid much larger problems after actually making the purchase.

TIP! Conduct tours of potential properties. Even better, have someone who knows commercial real estate tour the properties with you.

Before working within the market, you should first locate and secure adequate financing. Loan products and commercial lenders are very different than a home loan. A commercial loan may actually offer better terms. Because commercial property is usually more expensive than other property, the loan is going to be larger. This means the down payment you have to come up with needs to be larger. So it helps tremendously if you can locate the financing first in order to put together a down payment.

Don?t overwhelm yourself trying to work on several types of investments at once. Put all of your attention on one investment until it?s complete. Keep your focus on one certain type of property, whether it?s land, retail, apartments or offices. Each type of investment requires individual attention. You are better off becoming a master of one arena than mediocre with many.

Think about long-term economic conditions before investing in real estate. Be prepared for large-scale inflation during the next couple of years. Just a few years ago, most contracts protected you from inflation by locking you in at a certain interest rate. This practice is nearly extinct today, which can leave you susceptible to losses that are caused by inflation.

TIP! Find a trustworthy real estate firm by asking about how they make their profit. Legitimate brokers won?t mind answering this type of question openly and honestly.

If you want to rent your commercial property, well built solid buildings are your best bet. Tenants are more likely to move in when they know the property is well taken care of. Tenants will also have to deal with maintenance issues less often, which means they have more time go about their business.

There are a ton of good reasons to use commercial real estate as an investment, but you need to know a bit about it before you begin. Take the tips you learned here and apply them to your own commercial real estate endeavors. They will help you reach your goal of maximum

TIP! If you?re signing a lease for commercial real estate, then hesitance pays off when asked to put your signature on any standard leasing form. Large companies might insert extra requirements in the form, and they are often exceptionally lengthy.

Source: http://www.maynaseric.com/important-tips-with-regards-to-commercial-real-estate-4

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Q & A: Can You Get West Nile Virus More Than Once?

[unable to retrieve full-text content]Getting infected with West Nile virus, transmitted by mosquitoes, is believed to confer lifelong immunity, but the effect may dwindle over the years, researchers say.

Source: http://www.nytimes.com/2012/09/25/science/can-you-get-west-nile-virus-more-than-once.html?partner=rss&emc=rss

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Why the Health Care Tax Credit Eludes Many Small Businesses ...

The Agenda

How small-business issues are shaping politics and policy.

The Agenda has now profiled three small businesses that are struggling in different ways with providing health insurance to employees. The companies are very different ? they trade in very different parts of the economy, and couldn?t be located much further apart?geographically ? but they do have one thing in common: Though all three have fewer than 25 employees, not one has qualified for the tax credit in the Affordable Care Act that was intended to help small businesses pay for health insurance. Indeed, the credit is one element of the controversial health law that has already fallen short of expectations.

Estimates of the number of businesses eligible to take the tax credit have ranged from 1.4 million to 4 million companies, but in May, the Government Accountability Office reported that only 170,300 firms actually claimed the credit in 2010. Of these, only a small fraction, 17 percent, were able to claim the whole credit.

For eligible companies, the credit effectively refunds 35 percent of health insurance expenses between 2010 and 2013.* After 2014, the credit increases to 50 percent and is available for any two consecutive years. The credit is fully available to companies with 10 or fewer full-time employees and average wages below $25,000. It phases out as the number of employees rises to 25 and wages grow to $50,000. In 2009, there were about 4.6 million companies with fewer than 10 employees, according to the Census Bureau, and 5.7 million with fewer than 100.

The credit was aimed squarely at the smallest companies, which rarely offer health insurance to employees. However, as we reported two weeks ago, it appears not to have persuaded very many to start offering insurance. The most recent study of employer health insurance from the Kaiser Family Foundation found that just half of all companies with fewer than 10 employees offered insurance, a share that has not moved much since 2005.

So why has the credit fallen short of expectations? The G.A.O. concluded that the credit was too small to sway business owners. Moreover, it said, claiming the credit is a task so complicated as to discourage many companies from trying. Companies have to determine the number of hours each employee worked in the year, as well as compile information about their insurance premiums. ?Small-business owners generally do not want to spend the time or money to gather the necessary information to calculate the credit, given that the credit will likely be insubstantial,? the report said, citing conversations with tax preparers. ?Tax preparers told us it could take their clients from two to eight hours or possibly longer to gather the necessary information to calculate the credit and that the tax preparers spent, in general, three to five hours calculating the credit.?

The G.A.O. report hints at the complexity with this delicious example:

On its Web site, I.R.S. tried to reduce the burden on taxpayers by offering ?3 Simple Steps? as a screening tool to help taxpayers determine whether they might be eligible for the credit. However, to calculate the actual dollars that can be claimed, the three steps become 15 calculations, 11 of which are based on seven worksheets, some of which request multiple columns of information.

It may be tempting to hold the Internal Revenue Service responsible for whatever burden accompanies the tax credit, but in this case, the complexity is written directly into the law. It turns out that legislators wrote the provision in a way that makes it appear more generous than it really is. Many businesses with both fewer than 25 employees and average wages below $50,000 are in fact unable to claim the credit.

Under the law, once such a business has calculated its potential credit, it is required to reduce the credit first to account for any excess employees over 10 and then separately reduce the potential credit to account for any excess average wages paid over $25,000. For many companies, the two reductions exceed the potential credit itself ? meaning the business gets no credit.

That?s what happened to Carrie Van Dyck, who along with her husband owns the Herbfarm Restaurant outside of Seattle. Excluding its owners, the Herbfarm, which we profiled in June, employed the equivalent of about 21 or 22 full-time staff members, who were paid an average wage of about $35,000 ? a few thousand dollars over the credit?s threshold for 21 employees. The result surprised Ms. Van Dyck, she said recently by e-mail, because ?it would seem that we are a pretty typical small, mom-and-pop type business that this should apply to.?

Of course, by making the credit less generous, the senators who wrote the law made it less expensive to the United States Treasury. Now it is apparent that credit will be even cheaper than planned: initially it was expected to cost the Treasury $2 billion in 2010; instead it cost the government only a quarter of that.

The law also excludes owners and owners? families from counting toward the credit, which can cut both ways. On the one hand, owners don?t count as employees and their salaries are excluded from the annual wages, exclusions that could make some companies eligible for a bigger credit than they might otherwise have gotten. On the other hand, premiums paid for the owners? and their families? insurance aren?t eligible for the credit, which for some companies, as You?re The Boss commenter JAB recently noted, ?greatly reduces the incentive to provide coverage for employees.?

The White House has said that the number of businesses claiming the credit for 2011 has grown to at least 360,000, but that is still well below even the smallest estimate of eligible businesses. Some advocates for the law say that more businesses will take advantage of the credit in 2014, when it grows to 50 percent, especially if the new insurance exchanges make it easier and cheaper for small companies to offer insurance.

The Obama administration has proposed making more businesses eligible for the credit, in part by starting phase-outs at higher thresholds, and also by changing the way it is calculated so that every business within the limits, such as the Herbfarm Restaurant, can take some amount of credit.

But judging from the comments of Representative Sam Graves, chairman of the House Small Business Committee, the initiative is unlikely to pass a Republican-controlled House anytime soon. ?This tax credit has already largely failed to attract small-business owners, and expanding it will not make the president?s health care law affordable,? the Missouri Republican said in a statement. ?For small employers that do not offer health insurance, tax incentives are unlikely to cause many of them to choose a massive new expense they just cannot afford in the first place.? It was Mr. Graves who sought the G.A.O. report.

Of course, a business denied a credit has not been made worse off by the 2010 health law. But the law surely has raised and dashed a lot of hopes, and these are the early days ? the sweeping changes that are the law?s hallmark don?t come until 2014.

Source: http://boss.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/09/25/why-the-health-care-tax-credit-eludes-many-small-businesses/

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South Carolina voter ID gets judges' scrutiny

WASHINGTON (AP) ? South Carolina is in federal court arguing that its new law requiring people prove their identity at the polls won't make voting so tough that it reduces turnout of African-Americans, Hispanics and other minorities.

A federal panel is to determine whether South Carolina's voter identification law violates the Voting Rights Act by putting heavy burdens on minorities who don't have the identification. Last December, the Justice Department refused to allow South Carolina to require the photo IDs, saying doing so would reverse the voting gains of the states' minorities.

Closing arguments in the case ? which went to trial in August and included several state officials as witnesses ? were scheduled for Monday. South Carolina has said it would implement the law immediately if the three-judge panel upholds it, although a decision either way is likely to be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

Tougher state voter registration and identification laws could factor into this year's election as voters divide along racial lines behind President Barack Obama or GOP nominee Mitt Romney in the presidential contest. About 90 percent of African-Americans and some 64 percent of Hispanic registered voters support Obama, according to the most recent Gallup three-week tracking poll. (Aug 20-Sept. 9). Democrats worry the ID laws may rob Obama and Democratic candidates of votes.

The law allows voters to show a driver's license or other photo ID issued by the Department of Motor Vehicles, passport, military ID with photo or a voter registration card that includes a photo.

The law's route to passage ? after other versions failed in the 2009 and 2010 legislative sessions ? was marked by bitter partisan and intra-party fights. Attempts at compromise by including additional acceptable identification and early voting days imploded. The 2009 House bill triggered a walkout by all but one African-American in the South Carolina House and the 2010 bill died in a filibuster by Senate Democrats.

Republican Gov. Nikki Haley signed the law in May 2011.

In his opening statement at trial, attorney for South Carolina Christopher Bartolomucci said the law was not a direct response to the 2008 record minority turnout that helped put Obama win the White House.

State witnesses said they wanted to instill public confidence in the election system and curb fraud, although they were unable to turn up instances of impersonation fraud that photo ID laws are designed to thwart. But South Carolina lawmakers testified the law would also act as a deterrent to other types of fraud.

South Carolina's population is 64 percent white, 28 percent African-American and 5 percent Hispanic. State election data produced in the trial showed some 178,000 registered voters did not have DMV-issued identification. Of those, 30 percent were white and 36 percent were minority voters. The data did not show if they had the other accepted IDs.

The judges in the case honed in on part of the law allowing voters without the required identification to cast a provisional ballot. But they must sign a statement that says they had a "reasonable impediment" preventing them from obtaining one of the required IDs. The affidavit would have to be notarized.

Marci Andino, South Carolina's State Election Commission executive director, testified poll workers would be encouraged to err on the side of voters in deciding whether the potential voter truly had a "reasonable impediment." Notaries at the 2,100 polling locations would not charge fees, she said. If a notary was not available, affidavits would be accepted anyway, Andino said.

The U.S. Supreme Court has previously upheld Georgia and Indiana voter photo identification laws, which South Carolina officials said served as models and guidance for their law. But those state laws allow voters to show more forms of identification.

Attorneys for the Justice Department and opponents have argued the provision's definition of what qualifies as a reasonable impediment is vague and could be applied differently from county to county. Opponents raised enough questions that South Carolina Attorney General Glen Wilson was compelled to clarify before the trial ended how the law would work.

The judges on the panel hearing the South Carolina case are Colleen Kollar-Kotelly and John D. Bates of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia and Brett M. Kavanaugh of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit. Kollar-Kotelly was appointed by former President Bill Clinton. Bates and Kavanaugh were appointed by former President George W. Bush.

___

The case number is 2012-203

___

Follow Suzanne Gamboa at http://www.twitter.com/APsgamboa

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/south-carolina-voter-id-gets-judges-scrutiny-074918680--election.html

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Tips On How To Make Search Engine Optimization Work For You ...

Search engine optimization helps you get ahead of the competition. Doing so means knowing the techniques to bring up your rank. The following article will help you harness this power while telling you what to avoid when utilizing search engine optimization.

When selecting a domain name, choose one that is easily remembered and has a name that has something to do with what you are selling. These are great for your viewers that locate your content through YouTube.

Search engines can be a powerful tool when it comes to driving internet traffic to your site. Your website will be at the top of the search engine rankings, if you do your best to make it friendly to the spiders that the search engines use to determine site quality. Tag all images on your website, since spiders only read text. For all of your descriptions, make sure that you are embedding keywords whenever possible.

While proofreading is often overlooked, it?s vital to the quality and respectability of all websites. Make sure that all of the information on your site is clearly laid out for your visitors and for search engines. If your content is poorly written and is full of spelling and grammatical errors, your website will not rank well by search engines, if at all.

If you want to rank high in a search engine, do your part to help out web spiders. They are always looking through content based on keywords, but spiders also need to understand your site?s overall structure. You have to stress the important areas of your site by making a site map which lets a web spider get a hold of the hierarchy of your pages.

It is worth your time to see if you could add podcasts to your marketing mix. A podcast can include audio or video content that includes relevant, interesting material directed at your consumers. They are becoming more and more popular with consumers so make sure that you hop on the band wagon. Doing this will allow the description of your podcast to appear.

When you make your site better for the search engines, you make your site better for potential customers. Unfortunately, some online businesses still underestimate the importance of their search engine rankings.

Site maps help search engines catalog your pages more effectively. The site map, or navigation bar, lets the search engines access your pages from all other pages on the site. Adding a site map is an easy way to improve your rank with popular search engines.

SEO takes time, so be patient. It is normal for you to expect to see results right away for your work. It takes hard work and time to get a following online. You need to stay with it, even if you are not seeing any changes yet. As time goes on, you will see the results of your efforts, and your website will rise in the search engine rankings.

If you are contemplating hiring an outside company to do your site?s search engine optimization, research carefully before signing on. Many search engine optimizers that lack credibility will charge high prices for poor work. Research and read testimonials about what other people have to say about their services. You will be much happier with the results.

You can experience an increased number of search engine hits by inputting plural forms of keywords. Keyword stemming is a strategy that some search engines use. If you choose a keyword that has other possible endings, such as ?accountant,? the search engines might not include your site in results for the terms ?accounting? or ?accountants?. When you make the most of keyword stemming, you will choose the longest choice of the keyword offered. In this way, you will get the most return.

Search engine crawlers are always scouring the web for fresh material and updated content. Whenever you update your blog or content, you are making your site more visible to search engines. Additionally, if you put the effort into posting interesting, useful content, people will share them with others and help you get even more traffic. Interesting content will also draw return traffic, especially from people who have recommended the content to their friends.

You should think the way a customer thinks when you are trying to figure out what keywords will be the most effective. Determine the relevant terms visitors are using when they use search engines.

Putting your website in a prime place to be found is what search engine optimization is all about. The article you have just read gave you multiple tips on how to make this happen for you. Applying these simple tricks will get your website noticed in no time, so increase your traffic

Search Engine Optimization, SEO

_________________________________________
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Recomend best SEO tools? - Yahoo! Answers
Challenge: Coaches discuss best ways to raise dough - USATODAY ...
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What is SEO ? how it works ? - Yahoo! Answers India

Related posts:

1. Search Engine Optimization ? Does It Really Work?
2. Search Engine Optimization: How To Make Your Website More Visible
3. Making Search Engine Optimization Work For You
4. Search Engine Optimization Techniques That Really Work
5. Search Engine Optimization: The Easiest Way To Bring Traffic To Your Website

Source: http://www.websitehostdirect.com/tips-on-how-to-make-search-engine-optimization-work-for-you/

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Scientists shed light on riddle of sun's explosive events

ScienceDaily (Sep. 24, 2012) ? Four decades of active research and debate by the solar physics community have failed to bring consensus on what drives the sun's powerful coronal mass ejections (CMEs) that can have profound "space weather" effects on Earth-based power grids and satellites in near-Earth geospace.

In a paper just published in Nature Physics, an international team of space scientists, including a researcher from the University of New Hampshire's Space Science Center (SSC), explains the mysterious physical mechanisms underlying the origin of CMEs. Their findings, based on state-of-the-art computer simulations, show the intricate connection between motions in the sun's interior and these eruptions and could lead to better forecasting of hazardous space weather conditions.

CMEs are clouds of magnetic fields and plasma ?- a hot gas composed of charged particles. The fastest and most powerful of these events can explode from the sun at speeds of more than a million miles per hour and release more energy than the current worldwide stockpile of nuclear weapons.

"By studying CMEs we learn not only about the drivers of space weather but also about the structure of the atmosphere of the sun and other sun-like stars," says lead author Ilia Roussev of the Yunnan Astronomical Observatory, Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) and the Institute for Astronomy at the University of Hawaii at Manoa.

Geomagnetic storms caused by CMEs can disrupt power grids, satellites that operate global positioning systems and telecommunication networks, pose a threat to astronauts in outer space, lead to rerouting of flights over the polar regions, and cause spectacular auroras. The storms occur when a solar eruption hits Earth's protective magnetic bubble, or magnetosphere.

The Nature Physics paper provides an explanation of the origin of fast ejections of magnetized plasma from the sun's atmosphere and associated X-ray emissions. It thus demonstrates a fundamental connection between the magnetic processes inside the sun's interior and the formation of CMEs.

"Through this type of computer modeling we are able to understand how invisible bundles of magnetic field rise from under the surface of the sun into interplanetary space and propagate towards Earth with potentially damaging results," says SSC researcher No? Lugaz of the UNH Institute for the Study of Earth, Oceans, and Space. He adds, "These fundamental phenomena cannot be observed even with the most advanced instruments on board NASA satellites but they can be revealed by numerical simulations."

A long-standing goal of the solar physics community has been the forecasting of solar eruptions and predictions of their impact on Earth. In the paper, the authors note, "the model described here enables us not only to capture the magnetic evolution of the CME, but also to calculate the increased X-ray flux directly, which is a significant advantage over the existing models."

The work was supported by a CAS grant and two National Science Foundation grants in the U.S. -- one at the University of Hawaii and another at UNH. In addition to Roussev and Lugaz, the international team includes Klaus Galsgaard from the Niels Bohr Institute in Denmark, Cooper Downs from Predictive Science, Inc. in California, Igor Sokolov from the University of Michigan, Jun Lin from the Yunnan Astronomical Observatory, and Elena Moise from the Institute of Geodynamics of the Romanian Academy of Science.

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Story Source:

The above story is reprinted from materials provided by University of New Hampshire. The original article was written by David Sims.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.

---

Journal Reference:

1. Ilia I. Roussev, Klaus Galsgaard, Cooper Downs, No? Lugaz, Igor V. Sokolov, Elena Moise, Jun Lin. Explaining fast ejections of plasma and exotic X-ray emission from the solar corona. Nature Physics, 2012; DOI: 10.1038/nphys2427

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_science/~3/x10MZTfga8I/120924144056.htm

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President Obama's weekly address chides Congress for punching out early (VIDEO)

President Barack Obama told voters to remind Members of Congress that they left early on Friday with plenty of work still on the table.

During his weekly radio and internet address, the president chastised Congress (specifically Republicans) for not voting on job creation and tax bills, measures he said would stimulate the economy.

"Last week, without much fanfare, Members of the House of Representatives banged a gavel, turned out the lights, and rushed home, declaring their work finished for now," the president said.

"If that frustrates you, it should ? because their work isn?t finished."

Specifically, Obama talked about jobs for veterans, farm aid, mortgages and taxes.

More from GlobalPost: Obama hits back at Romney's '47 percent' video

He said Congress, which quit after just two weeks and won't return until after the November 6 election, needed to pass important bills to stimulate the economy.

"If Congress had done the right thing, we could be on our way to having a veterans? jobs corps that helps returning heroes find work as cops and firefighters in communities all across the country," Obama said.

The president also referred to the much debated Bush-era tax cuts.

Democrats want the cuts for America's wealthiest 2 percent dropped, while Republicans say the cuts should remain for all households.

"And now middle-class families and small business owners are left wondering what their tax bill will look like next year."

Obama then asked Americans for a favor.

He said it's important for Congress to return to work, so the average American can, also.

"Tell your Members of Congress you can?t afford to wait any longer. If you get an answering machine, leave a message. If you see them campaigning back home, tell them in person," Obama said.

Republicans also addressed the nation today, touching on many of the same issues and refuting Democrat arguments.

Sen. Jeff Sessions (R-Ala.) reminded Americans that the Democratic-run Senate hasn't passed a budget in three years.

"We believe in a better way forward. A way that brings us closer to ? not further from ? our heritage as a nation,? Sessions said, Politico reported. ?We believe in growing the economy, not the bureaucracy."

More from GlobalPost: The 6 steps to entering the middle class

http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/americas/united-states/120922/president-obamas-weekly-address-chides-congress-

Source: http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/americas/united-states/120922/president-obamas-weekly-address-chides-congress-

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The Basics Of Affiliate Marketing In A Nutshell

Create a strong website based on something you enjoy, and then make money using affiliate ads. This article will provide you with good advice to get you started in the field of affiliate marketing.

Be sure to write a newsletter that will encourage people to subscribe to your mailing list. In the late 1990s and early 2000s, people were more welcoming of email from people they didn?t know. These days people absolutely hate receiving any type of spam, so make your newsletter unique.

Anytime you are choosing a program for affiliate marketing, do some research to learn how the business keeps track of orders that are made off of their website. If you get people to make orders by mail or phone and your affiliate ID isn?t attached to them, you could lose a lot of commission.

Consider entering a niche market to increase your profits through affiliate marketing. You will also be able to start generating sales quicker with specialty niches, than markets with larger audiences. In larger markets, it takes more time to become established.

Eventually, most customers unsubscribe, forcing you to find new ones. You can gain new customers by using the emails that have performed best in the past.

Affiliate partners who have a good relationship should exchange information often, even daily if necessary. Revenues are enhanced by regular, free correspondence. Take big steps to build strong relationships with your best affiliates if you need to. They are extremely valuable to you.

Affiliate marketing will not take you very far if you do not have price in your products. Promote your thoughts on the effectiveness of the product by commenting on reviews and posts regarding it that are online. You may also find joining online discussions or forums to feature benefit the product a useful method. Of course, do not forget to include your affiliate link with every online statement or article to provide readers with quick and easy access to purchases.

In order to be successful with affiliate marketing you have to be familiar with your audience. Success is as simple as figuring out what your readers want and how you can give it to them. Knowing what brings people to your site is the first step in marketing success. What are your visitors reading on your site?

Make sure you are only linking to quality products. Placing affiliate links properly will take practice, but once you get it right, you will earn the profits.

Back-links are a great way to attract more visitors, but you should always make sure your back-links describe your content accordingly. Someone will be upset when they click a link for one thing and they are led to a page that is selling something totally different. This mismatch between the content of the advertising and the content of your site will turn off potential customers.

It is risky to register for a pay per each sale program for affiliate marketing. It can also generate a great income for you if done properly. It is always best to research affiliate programs you are considering. If you are certain it is a good program for your website, sign up.

Affiliate marketing has many rewards. Not only is there a chance to make serious profit, but you have the personal satisfaction of knowing your hard work has created a valuable asset for you and your family. To get started in the right direction, you will have to be willing to expend the time and effort needed to get your website noticed. You will be hugely successful if you take advantage of this

Eric Green

Skype ID: thedigitalgangster

P.S. If you are a Network Marketer or Affiliate Marketer, check out these 3 MLM Tips.

Stop Struggling in your business and learn exactly how you can be generating 100 Percent Commissions with one simple Blogging System.

Related posts:

1. Affiliate Marketing Simplified! Get The Basics Here!
2. Tips To Help You Understand The Basics Of Affiliate Marketing
3. Everything You Should Know About Affiliate Marketing
4. Fit These Affiliate Marketing Tips Into Your Plan
5. Use This Advice To Succeed At Affiliate Marketing.

Source: http://thedigitalgangster.com/the-basics-of-affiliate-marketing-in-a-nutshell/

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UFC 152 fights are official after weigh-ins

UFC 152 is ready to go after weigh-ins on Friday afternoon in Toronto. Both title fights are official. UFC light heavyweight champion Jon Jones came in under weight, as did his challenger, former middleweight contender Vitor Belfort. Joseph Benavidez also came in underweight, and Demetrious Johnson, who will fight Benavidez for the inaugural UFC flyweight belt, weighed in at exactly 125 lbs.

The weigh-ins were not without excitement. Jones was booed by the Toronto crowd as he was interviewed by UFC commentator Joe Rogan. Charles Oliveira did not make weight on his first try. Michael Bisping and Brian Stann's face-off forced UFC president Dana White to step in before their fight started a day early.

Here are complete results, thanks to MMA Junkie.

MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view)
??? ?Champ Jon Jones?(204.6)?vs. Vitor Belfort?(204.2)
??? ?Joseph Benavidez?(124.4)?vs. Demetrious Johnson?(125)
??? ?Michael Bisping?(185.6)?vs. Brian Stann?(185.4)
??? ?Matt Hamill?(205.6)?vs. Roger Hollett?(203.6)
??? ?Charles Oliveira?(146.4)* vs. Cub Swanson?(145.8)
PRELIMINARY CARD (FX)
??? ?Vinny Magalhaes?(204.8)?vs. Igor Pokrajac?(205)
??? ?Evan Dunham?(155)?vs. T.J. Grant?(154.6)
??? ?Lance Benoist?(170.4)?vs. Sean Pierson?(169.4)
??? ?Marcus Brimage?(145.4)?vs. Jim Hettes?(145.8)
PRELIMINARY CARD (Facebook)
??? ?Seth Baczynski?(171)?vs. Simeon Thoresen?(170.4)
??? ?Mitch Gagnon?(135)?vs. Walel Watson?(135.2)
??? ?Charlie Brenneman?(170.8)?vs. Kyle Noke (170.4)

* - Oliveira missed weight by four-tenths of a pound on the first try. He was able to cut down to 146.2. He will not be fined as Swanson agreed to fight.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/ufc-152-fights-official-weigh-ins-210856236--mma.html

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Builders aim for super-energy-efficient homes

Crowned with three gables and painted in hues of gray and white, the suburban home in Lake Forest doesn't look much like the domicile of the future.

But as summer heat radiates off the fresh asphalt outside, the home runs comfortably at full tilt indoors. Recessed lights shine, radios blare and air-conditioned splendor greets hot skin. Despite all systems going, the property is producing more electricity than it can consume on a warm summer day ? and that's the goal.

Unveiled late last year, the ZeroHouse model by Los Angeles builder KB Home embodies the industry's bid to move beyond the one-of-a-kind vanity project and make subdivision building a green practice. Net-zero homes such as the one KB Home has built are highly efficient properties paired with renewable energy technology such as solar panel systems, resulting in homes so green they produce at least as much juice as they consume.

California has had expansive policies mandating and incentivizing the development of greener new homes for years, but the implementation of those goals has been slowed by the weak housing market and the dearth of new construction.

With the market healing, and with builders trying to distinguish their products from homes they built as recently as six years ago, companies such as KB Home, Lennar Corp. and others are rolling out more options for consumers and increasingly making energy efficiency part of the basic package.

"For new homes, it is becoming more of a standard feature, and the reason is that builders need a compelling reason that somebody should buy a new home rather than a resale," said Patrick Duffy, principal for research firm MetroIntelligence Real Estate Advisors.

In coming years, California guidelines will call for ever more energy-efficient homes, with the goal of having all homes built in 2020 being net zero. For now, net zero remains more of an aspiration for the industry, though experts say builders are increasingly making standard some of the fundamental elements of green design, including more efficient appliances, lighting and solar panel systems.

In Southern California, KB Home has made solar systems standard. Lennar, Pulte Homes and Pardee Homes offer solar home projects. ABC Green Home of Newport Beach will be building a net-zero home to showcase green technology for consumers. Clarum Homes in Palo Alto is a custom builder that has gained praise for incorporating energy efficiency and passive solar features into homes with modernist flourishes.

Moving to Southern California from Maryland, Ray and Linda Frilot wanted to buy a new home because the resales needed too much work, from $20,000 to $50,000 worth of remodeling. They were attracted to the solar offerings at KB Home's Fox Hollow at the Crown Valley Village development in Murrieta, said Ray Frilot, a retired government worker and former military man.

Aside from a 2.25-kilowatt solar system, the home has a tankless hot water heater, some LED lighting and Energy Star appliances. Although the home wasn't advertised as a net-zero property when they bought it, he and his wife conserve so much energy from habits picked up while living in Germany that the electricity bill from Southern California Edison Co. is close to zero.

"The energy that I don't use Edison buys from me," he said. "It looks like I may not have an electric bill next year, because the electricity, all of it is going to keep on adding to that credit. I still have to pay delivery and handling charges, but that is just a couple of bucks a month."

Net-zero homes couldn't exist without this type of subsidization, called net metering. Net-zero homeowners rely on power from utilities at night but get credit for the energy they produce during the day that they don't consume.

Net metering allows homeowners to get credit for the power they produce at a retail rate rather than a wholesale rate. There is currently a cap on net metering programs for that reason. Although the cap won't be hit any time soon, experts said, the future of net metering is uncertain.

Environmentalists began pushing for California to mandate that new homes come with renewable energy systems in the early 2000s, as the technology became more scalable and available.

The effort to get builders to build green morphed into state law SB 1, which focused on incentives and created the Million Solar Roofs Initiative, calling for the creation of 3,000 megawatts of new, solar-generated electricity by 2016.

Gov. Jerry Brown has increased that goal to 12,000 megawatts, or roughly the equivalent of 12 nuclear power plants, according to the group Environment California. A thousand megawatts of solar energy could power about 250,000 homes.

Also created as part of the law was the California Solar Initiative, which uses rebates to promote renewable energy use in previously owned homes, as well as commercial, agricultural, government and nonprofit buildings. The similar New Solar Homes Partnership targets new houses.

"Unfortunately, as soon as the bill was passed, we had the housing market collapse, so everything stopped," said Bernadette Del Chiaro, director of clean energy and global warming programs at Environment California. "As the housing market ticks back up again, I would expect solar to pick back up again."

In 2008, California energy regulators adopted a long-term plan that called for having all new residential buildings achieve zero net energy use by 2020 and having all commercial buildings achieve zero net energy use by 2030.

Source: http://feeds.latimes.com/~r/latimes/classified/realestate/~3/Te9DEniEvBo/la-fi-energy-homes-20120923,0,6060475.story

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9: MPF Products Replacement XM-6900-0004-00 Battery for Pioneer

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• Posted September 21, 2012 at 11:05 am

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No God in football? Cheerleaders defend biblical banners

A Texas school district's ban of Christian "run-through" banners at football games angers students. KBMT's Augustin Garfias reports.

By Kari Huus, NBC News

A group of Texas high school cheerleaders is at the center of a spat over religious speech after the school district told them they had to stop using Christian-themed banners at school football games.

The large signs, carried onto the field at Kountze High School, included messages such as "I can do all things through Christ which strengthens me" and "But thanks be to God which gives us victory through our Lord Jesus Christ," according to a report by NBC Dallas-Fort Worth.

Kevin Weldon, superintendent of the Kountze school district, about 85 miles northeast of Houston,?informed the cheerleaders? parents Tuesday that the religious banners would not be allowed, the station reported.

Weldon's decision set off a tempest in the community of about 21,000, but he told the Houston Chronicle that it was based on 2001 Supreme Court decision that keeps religion out of public schools.

"The decision I made is not my personal opinion," Weldon told the Chronicle earlier this week. "I'm a Christian. This puts me between a rock and a hard place."

Weldon reportedly made the decision after receiving a letter of complaint from the Freedom From Religion Foundation, a national nonprofit organization that advocates separation of church and state, the Christian Post reported.

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Beaumont Enterprise via AP

Kountze High School cheerleaders and other children work on a large sign Wednesday in Kountze, Texas.

But the cheerleaders scored a partial victory on Thursday, when a judge granted a temporary restraining order on enforcement of the ban after parents of the cheerleaders filed a discrimination suit earlier in the week, the Houston Chronicle reported.

Under the injunction, the cheerleaders will be allowed to use the Biblical banners at games at least until an Oct. 4 hearing.

The nonprofit Liberty Institute, which is representing the cheerleaders'?parents, argues that it is unconstitutional to censor religious speech in this manner, the Post said.

The Texas Association of School Boards would not discuss its confidential conversations with Weldon, who had sought the organization's advice prior to banning the religious banners, but issued a statement on the case:

"The federal court guidance... draws a distinction between private student speech, including written messages, which enjoys free speech protection under the First Amendment, and school-sponsored speech, which must conform to the Establishment Clause by not endorsing, coercing, or favoring religion,? Joy Baskin,?the association's director of legal services, said in the statement.

"Whether the display of a religious message by cheerleaders on the field at a high school football game constituted private or school-sponsored speech depends on a number of factors which must be weighed by the district, its counsel, and in this instance, the judge considering the case," Baskin said.

Cheerleader Macy Matthews, 15, argued that no school money was used and the signs weren't made on school property, so they should be allowed. She said she didn't anticipate the ban.

"It was upsetting because it's what motivated the boys each week," Matthews told the Chronicle. "I was shocked, really. I didn't understand why it would be a problem."

A Facebook page?promoting the cheerleaders' cause had garnered more than 39,000?members by Friday.

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Source: http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/09/21/14014185-texas-cheerleaders-fight-for-biblical-banners-at-football-games?lite

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