A gay couple?s wedding in Haiti was attacked by a homophobic mob. Gay Web Source reports:
A British man and his partner have had their wedding attacked by an anti-gay mob in Haiti. The French news agency AFP is reporting that several people have been injured after a homophobic group hurled rocks and home-made bombs at the ceremony in Haiti?s capital Port-Au-Prince. The British man, who is identified as a Red Cross worker, is said to be unhurt. Speaking to TheGayUK a spokesperson for the BritishRedCross said they did have ?comprehensive security rules? to protect those people working and volunteering for the organisations.
Haiti?s one of the last places on earth where I?d want to get married.
Daniel Sedutto (seven Ks) pitched a complete game, Frank Sperato knocked in a run and Joseph Manfredi led the defense as the Cadets topped the Predators 3-0 in Cal Ripken 12s action on Friday.
Billy Minett (three-run HR), Jack O?Keefe (solo HR), Mike Velardi (two hits), Matt Marlin and James Speciale (combined four-hitter) led the New York Dynasty to a 9-3 victory over Brooklyn United in the Charles Langere Memorial Tournament 10s championship game at East Shore LL.
?TENNIS
Junior tourney
Brianna Shaw and Alexia Adragna advanced to the S.I. Tennis Association girls? 14s singles championship via round-robin wins.
Shaw and Adragna will meet in the final Sunday (1 p.m.) at Hillside Swim Club.
In the boys? 14s singles tourney, Tristan Ryder, Owais Mulla, Sekou and Eden Ksendzovsky each advanced to Saturday?s semifinals, which are at 5 p.m. at Hillside.
WASHINGTON (AP) ? The 162,000 jobs the economy added in July were a disappointment. The quality of the jobs was even worse.
A disproportionate number of the added jobs were part-time or low-paying ? or both.
Part-time work accounted for more than 65 percent of the positions employers added in July. Low-paying retailers, restaurants and bars supplied more than half July's job gain.
"You're getting jobs added, but they might not be the best-quality job," says John Canally, an economist with LPL Financial in Boston.
So far this year, low-paying industries have provided 61 percent of the nation's job growth, even though these industries represent just 39 percent of overall U.S. jobs, according to Labor Department numbers analyzed by Moody's Analytics. Mid-paying industries have contributed just 22 percent of this year's job gain.
"The jobs that are being created are not generating much income," Steven Ricchiuto, chief economist at Mizuho Securities USA, wrote in a note to clients.
That's one reason Americans' pay hasn't kept up with even historically low inflation since the Great Recession ended in June 2009. Average hourly pay fell 2 cents in July to $23.98 an hour.
Among those feeling the squeeze is Elizabeth Wilkinson, 28, of Houston. After losing a $39,000-a-year administrative job at Rice University in January, Wilkinson found work at an employment agency for $15 an hour. Yet she's had to supplement that job with part-time work as a waitress.
"This morning I put $1.35 worth of gas in my car because that is all the money that I had," Wilkinson said via email. "It's very difficult to survive on $30,000 (a year), and I am living paycheck to paycheck."
Part-time work has made up 77 percent of the job growth so far this year. The government defines part-time work as being less than 35 hours a week.
Analysts say some employers are offering part-time over full-time work to sidestep the new health care law's rule that they provide medical coverage for permanent workers. (The Obama administration has delayed that provision for a year.)
Weak economies overseas have also reduced demand for U.S. goods and, as a result, for better-paying U.S. jobs in manufacturing. Government spending cuts have taken a toll on some middle-class jobs, too.
Many employers have also discovered that they can use technology to do tasks more cheaply and efficiently than office workers used to do. And some have found that they can shift middle-class jobs to low-wage countries such as China.
By contrast, most lower-paying jobs ? from waiters and hotel maids to store clerks, bartenders and home health care aides ? can't be automated or shipped abroad.
"You're always going to have jobs in the retail sector," says Michael Evangelist, a policy analyst with the liberal National Employment Law Project, which advocates on behalf of low-wage workers.
Consider Mike Ulrich, 30, who earned a master's degree in public administration in May from the University of Colorado. Ulrich hasn't been able to find work that requires a college degree. Instead, he works at a hardware store in Spokane, Wash., earning the state's minimum wage: $9.19 an hour.
Not all July's new jobs were low-paying. Local schools hired more than 10,000 teachers and other employees. Financial firms added 15,000.
And Scott Anderson, chief economist at Bank of the West, thinks concerns about the surge in part-time work might be overblown. The government's figures on part-time jobs are highly volatile, Anderson notes. The big gain this year could quickly reverse, he says.
Yet for the most part, Daniel Alpert, managing partner of Westwood Capital, wrote in a report last month, "the only folks engaging in meaningful hiring are doing so because labor is cheap."
The low quality of the added jobs could help explain something that has puzzled economists: How has the U.S. economy managed to add an average of roughly 200,000 jobs a month this year even though it grew at a tepid annual rate below 2 percent in the first half of the year?
Some are proposing an answer: Perhaps a chronically slow-growth economy can't generate many good-paying jobs ? but can produce lots of part-time or lower-wage retail and restaurant work.
Diane Swonk, chief economist at Mesirow Financial, recalls that the robust economic growth of the late '90s generated millions of middle-class jobs. And it pushed unemployment so low that short-staffed companies were forced to convert part-time jobs into full-time ones.
"Faster growth would fix things," Swonk says. "That's the magic fairy dust."
DETROIT (Reuters) - The U.S. auto industry's weaker-than-expected overall sales results for July disappeared on Friday after the federal government released updated data used to compute the annual sales rate each month.
The U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis (BEA) on Friday released the recalculated seasonal factors used to compute the monthly sales pace, resulting in a rate for July of 15.8 million vehicles, according to research firm Autodata. That matched analysts' expectations, rather than falling short - as it looked on Thursday when the rate was 15.67 before the recalculation.
Analysts, who had warned the BEA recalculation could shift results by several tenths of a point, had said the July sales to individual consumers, also known as retail sales, remains strong.
The recalculation, which is done annually to adjust for variations like weather and holidays, affected all figures, resulting in changes for every month.
For instance, April had been the only month this year to fall below an annual sales rate of 15 million when it initially came in at 14.92 million. The rate for April now stands at 15.19, now making October 2012 the last month to fall below 15 million.
Industry executives have said they expect sales for the U.S. auto industry to finish the year between 15 million and 15.5 million vehicles, which would be up from 14.5 million last year.
July's updated sales rate follows June's recalculated 15.88 million rate. That gives the U.S. industry two consecutive months with a strong pace of sales as it heads toward the fall, when automakers typically release new models that lure buyers into showrooms.
Moms' high-fat, sugary diets may lead to offspring with a taste for alcohol, sensitivity to drugsPublic release date: 3-Aug-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Lisa Bowen lbowen@apa.org 202-336-5700 American Psychological Association
Presentation details how maternal diet affects fetal, newborn and adult rats
HONOLULU Vulnerability to alcohol and drug abuse may begin in the womb and be linked to how much fatty and sugary foods a mother eats during pregnancy, according to findings from animal lab experiments presented at APA's 121st Annual Convention.
"The majority of women in the U.S. at child-bearing age are overweight, and this is most likely due to overeating the tasty, high-fat, high-sugar foods you find everywhere in our society. The rise in prenatal and childhood obesity and the rise in number of youths abusing alcohol and drugs merits looking into all the possible roots of these growing problems," said Nicole Avena, PhD, a research neuroscientist with the University of Florida's McKnight Brain Institute.
Compared to pups of rats that ate regular rodent chow, the offspring of rats that ate high-fat or high-sugar diets while pregnant weighed more as adults and drank more alcohol, and those on high-sugar diets also had stronger responses to commonly abused drugs such as amphetamine, Avena said. Her presentation examined experiments from three studies, each lasting about three months and involving three to four adult female rats and 10 to 12 offspring in each dietary condition.
Researchers compared weight and drug-taking behavior between the offspring of rats fed diets rich in fats, sucrose or high-fructose corn syrup with the offspring of rats fed regular rodent chow during gestation or nursing. They tested both sucrose and high-fructose corn syrup because they are chemically different and could cause different outcomes, Avena said. Sucrose occurs naturally and is commonly processed from sugar cane or sugar beets into table sugar, whereas high-fructose corn syrup is synthesized from corn.
To determine effects of the mothers' diets during gestation, the offspring of rats fed the high-fat, high-sucrose or high- fructose corn syrup diets were nursed by mother rats that were eating regular chow. To determine the effects of the mothers' diets on the offspring during nursing, the pups with mothers that had eaten regular chow were nursed by mother rats that were eating either the high-fat, high-sucrose or high-fructose corn syrup diets.
The pregnant rats' high-fat diet contained 50 percent fat, 25 percent carbohydrate and 25 percent protein, whereas the control diet reflected a recommended human diet, with 25 percent fat, 50 percent carbohydrate and 25 percent protein, Avena said. The offspring of rats that had high-fat diets while pregnant drank significantly more alcohol in adulthood than the offspring of rats with the regular chow diet, while there were no differences in the average daily amount of water they drank or chow they ate. The offspring of rats on the high-fat diet while pregnant also had significantly higher levels of triglycerides, a type of fat found in the bloodstream that can increase the risk of heart disease. Pups whose mothers had the high-fructose corn syrup or high-sucrose diets did not exhibit any differences in triglycerides compared to the group that ate regular chow.
To test the effects of diets high in sucrose and high-fructose corn syrup, researchers gave one group of the pregnant rats a daily diet of regular chow plus a 10 percent sucrose solution or a 16 percent high-fructose corn syrup solution. Pups nursed by rats with either high-sucrose or the high-fructose corn syrup diets while pregnant drank more alcohol compared to offspring born to the group that did not have sugar. Further, pups exposed to either of the sugar-rich diets before birth or during nursing became hyperactive when given low doses of amphetamine, suggesting sensitivity to the drug. These animals also weighed significantly more at the end of the study than those born to the rats that ate regular chow.
Previous research with lab animals and people has shown that overeating foods that taste good alters brain reward systems, and diets with excessive fat and sugar can lead to increased appetite as well as some addiction-like behaviors, Avena said. "Our findings suggest that even while [rats are] still in the womb, exposure to high-fat and sugar-rich diets can, in addition to increasing body weight, lead to a predisposition to drink alcohol and a sensitivity to drugs," she said.
###
Presentation: "Fat and Sugar in Gestation, Pre-weaning and Adulthood: Behavioral Vulnerability to Drugs of Abuse,"Nicole Avena, PhD, symposium 4045, Saturday, Aug. 3, 8 - 9:50 a.m. HST, Hawai'i Convention Center, room 305B
Contact: Nicole Avena at navena@ufl.edu or (609) 647-1277
The American Psychological Association, in Washington, D.C., is the largest scientific and professional organization representing psychology in the United States. APA's membership includes more than 134,000 researchers, educators, clinicians, consultants and students. Through its divisions in 54 subfields of psychology and affiliations with 60 state, territorial and Canadian provincial associations, APA works to advance the creation, communication and application of psychological knowledge to benefit society and improve people's lives.
http://www.apa.org
If you do not want to receive APA news releases, please let us know at public.affairs@apa.org or 202-336-5700.
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Moms' high-fat, sugary diets may lead to offspring with a taste for alcohol, sensitivity to drugsPublic release date: 3-Aug-2013 [ | E-mail | Share ]
Contact: Lisa Bowen lbowen@apa.org 202-336-5700 American Psychological Association
Presentation details how maternal diet affects fetal, newborn and adult rats
HONOLULU Vulnerability to alcohol and drug abuse may begin in the womb and be linked to how much fatty and sugary foods a mother eats during pregnancy, according to findings from animal lab experiments presented at APA's 121st Annual Convention.
"The majority of women in the U.S. at child-bearing age are overweight, and this is most likely due to overeating the tasty, high-fat, high-sugar foods you find everywhere in our society. The rise in prenatal and childhood obesity and the rise in number of youths abusing alcohol and drugs merits looking into all the possible roots of these growing problems," said Nicole Avena, PhD, a research neuroscientist with the University of Florida's McKnight Brain Institute.
Compared to pups of rats that ate regular rodent chow, the offspring of rats that ate high-fat or high-sugar diets while pregnant weighed more as adults and drank more alcohol, and those on high-sugar diets also had stronger responses to commonly abused drugs such as amphetamine, Avena said. Her presentation examined experiments from three studies, each lasting about three months and involving three to four adult female rats and 10 to 12 offspring in each dietary condition.
Researchers compared weight and drug-taking behavior between the offspring of rats fed diets rich in fats, sucrose or high-fructose corn syrup with the offspring of rats fed regular rodent chow during gestation or nursing. They tested both sucrose and high-fructose corn syrup because they are chemically different and could cause different outcomes, Avena said. Sucrose occurs naturally and is commonly processed from sugar cane or sugar beets into table sugar, whereas high-fructose corn syrup is synthesized from corn.
To determine effects of the mothers' diets during gestation, the offspring of rats fed the high-fat, high-sucrose or high- fructose corn syrup diets were nursed by mother rats that were eating regular chow. To determine the effects of the mothers' diets on the offspring during nursing, the pups with mothers that had eaten regular chow were nursed by mother rats that were eating either the high-fat, high-sucrose or high-fructose corn syrup diets.
The pregnant rats' high-fat diet contained 50 percent fat, 25 percent carbohydrate and 25 percent protein, whereas the control diet reflected a recommended human diet, with 25 percent fat, 50 percent carbohydrate and 25 percent protein, Avena said. The offspring of rats that had high-fat diets while pregnant drank significantly more alcohol in adulthood than the offspring of rats with the regular chow diet, while there were no differences in the average daily amount of water they drank or chow they ate. The offspring of rats on the high-fat diet while pregnant also had significantly higher levels of triglycerides, a type of fat found in the bloodstream that can increase the risk of heart disease. Pups whose mothers had the high-fructose corn syrup or high-sucrose diets did not exhibit any differences in triglycerides compared to the group that ate regular chow.
To test the effects of diets high in sucrose and high-fructose corn syrup, researchers gave one group of the pregnant rats a daily diet of regular chow plus a 10 percent sucrose solution or a 16 percent high-fructose corn syrup solution. Pups nursed by rats with either high-sucrose or the high-fructose corn syrup diets while pregnant drank more alcohol compared to offspring born to the group that did not have sugar. Further, pups exposed to either of the sugar-rich diets before birth or during nursing became hyperactive when given low doses of amphetamine, suggesting sensitivity to the drug. These animals also weighed significantly more at the end of the study than those born to the rats that ate regular chow.
Previous research with lab animals and people has shown that overeating foods that taste good alters brain reward systems, and diets with excessive fat and sugar can lead to increased appetite as well as some addiction-like behaviors, Avena said. "Our findings suggest that even while [rats are] still in the womb, exposure to high-fat and sugar-rich diets can, in addition to increasing body weight, lead to a predisposition to drink alcohol and a sensitivity to drugs," she said.
###
Presentation: "Fat and Sugar in Gestation, Pre-weaning and Adulthood: Behavioral Vulnerability to Drugs of Abuse,"Nicole Avena, PhD, symposium 4045, Saturday, Aug. 3, 8 - 9:50 a.m. HST, Hawai'i Convention Center, room 305B
Contact: Nicole Avena at navena@ufl.edu or (609) 647-1277
The American Psychological Association, in Washington, D.C., is the largest scientific and professional organization representing psychology in the United States. APA's membership includes more than 134,000 researchers, educators, clinicians, consultants and students. Through its divisions in 54 subfields of psychology and affiliations with 60 state, territorial and Canadian provincial associations, APA works to advance the creation, communication and application of psychological knowledge to benefit society and improve people's lives.
http://www.apa.org
If you do not want to receive APA news releases, please let us know at public.affairs@apa.org or 202-336-5700.
[ | E-mail | Share ]
?
AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.
Well, you've gotta hand it to Motorola -- the company has managed to build an unprecedented amount of buzz surrounding what's turned out to be a relatively mundane mainstream smartphone launch. The Moto X is likely to be a big hit, don't get us wrong, but many of the device's banner features debuted last week, with Verizon's 2013 Droid lineup. The major differentiator here is that the X is uniquely customizable, and available through multiple carriers. At the core, there's Moto's new X8 Mobile Computing System. It's not simply a custom SoC; there's a Snapdragon S4 Pro under the hood, with a 1.7GHz dual-core Krait CPU and a quad-core Adreno 320 GPU, positioned alongside two unique Motorola processors, including one to handle language interpretation (Google Now without the associated battery drain) and a contextual computing core, which manages the smartphone's sensors.
From there, we're looking at a 4.7-inch 720p (316 ppi) AMOLED panel, 2GB of RAM, 16GB of base storage (there's a 32GB option with AT&T), a 2,200mAh battery offering up to 24 hours of "mixed" usage and your standard suite of 4G radios. On the imaging front, there's a 10-megapixel Clear Pixel rear camera and a 2-megapixel front-facing camera, both of which shoot 1080p video. As for connectivity, there's Bluetooth 4.0, USB 2.0, 802.11a/b/g/n/ac, GPS and GLONASS, a standard 3.5mm headphone jack, Miracast Wireless Display, NFC and a nano-SIM. Beginning at the end of August, the 16GB model will retail for $199 with a two-year contract on AT&T, Sprint, T-Mobile, US Cellular and Verizon, while the 32GB flavor (an AT&T exclusive) will ship for $249. Only AT&T customers will have access to additional color options -- those on other carriers can choose from black and white.
You'll be able to pick up a standard Moto X at carrier retail and Best Buy stores, or you can configure your own at the Moto Maker site, available exclusively for AT&T customers. There you can select from multiple case and accent colors, which you can pair with a black or white faceplate. There's also an option to add custom text to the rear, such as an email address in case you lose your device, and you can pre-select a wallpaper and power-on greeting as well. Finally, several wood backings are set to be available in the future, assuming you don't mind waiting until Q4 to configure your phone. Motorola hasn't detailed global availability, but the device is expected to launch in several other countries soon, albeit without customization options and Texas assembly. Check our our Moto X preview, spec comparison, Moto Maker walkthrough and unboxing video (after the break) for more.
'That scene was a nice way for both of us to lose our on-screen virginities,' actress said of her intimate moment with Miles Teller. By Amy Wilkinson, with reporting by Josh Horowitz
The nearly 40-member House Republican freshman class is pressing party leadership to finally allow action on a bill to repeal a 2.3-percent excise tax on medical devices that was enacted to help pay for President Obama's health reform.
That bill remains frozen in the House Ways and Means Committee, despite having 259 bipartisan cosponsors in the 435-seat chamber. Moreover, in March, the Senate, in a symbolic move of support for the legislation, voted 79-20 in a non-binding resolution to repeal the tax as part of the chamber's 2014 budget resolution.
"As a majority of freshmen in the 113th Congress, we believe this is exactly the kind of bill we were elected to pass," declares a letter to Speaker John Boehner and other GOP leaders signed by 35 of the 37 House Republican freshmen. They are led by class president Luke Messer of Indiana.
A 36th freshman, Rep. Roger Williams, R-Texas, had not yet signed the letter, but is a co-sponsor of the bill.
The GOP freshmen point out in their letter that the excise tax increases the total amount of federal taxes paid by the medical-device industry by 30 percent. And they say it already has caused medical device manufacturers "to cut jobs, halt hiring, and delay or eliminate facility expansion, all to subsidize President Obama's health care law."
There are more than 8,000 medical-device manufacturers in the United States, employing more than 20,000 Americans. The tax enacted in 2010, and which took effect in January 2013, "will raise nearly $30 billion from America's medical-device manufacturers, putting up to 43,000 high-paying U.S. jobs at risk," warns the letter.
The letter also notes that Ways and Means Chairman David Camp, R-Mich., has identified the medical-device tax repeal as something he wants to include in comprehensive tax reform.
So why isn't the bill already passed?
Its sponsor, Rep. Erik Paulsen, R-Minn., has said he's also been pressing House leaders to take action, but that they have expressed concern about sending a revenue bill to the Senate. Their strategy has been that the House will have to first secure a commitment from Senate Democrats that they would address the medical-device tax specifically, and not other priorities.
The Constitution requires revenue measures to originate in the House, but once the Senate receives those bills, they can be used as a vehicle for its own tax priorities. Some House Republicans point to the potential use of these bills by Senate Democrats to advance tax hikes and other measures that Republicans oppose
In an interview Thursday, GOP freshman class president Messer said he's had similar conversations with Republican leaders.
But he said House action should be taken on the bill, anyway--and that Republicans who control the chamber's majority can later determine how to deal with anything the Senate might try to alter.
"We should not have a fear of governing," said Messer.
BETHESDA, Md.? -- Billy Horschel loves that some of his fans and perhaps some of his foes might be wondering what he will wear next. The 2009 University of Florida graduate showed up for the final round of the U.S. Open sporting navy pants with white octopuses on them and became an instant Internet sensation. The outfit seemed fitting for the 26-year-old from Jacksonville Beach, Fla., who has such a lust for life that he told Golf Digest he doesn't need to drink coffee in the morning to get going. Horschel explained that the pants were a tribute to 1934 U.S. Open champion Olin Dutra, who won that championship at Merion wearing octopus socks. When the idea was raised by his sponsor, Ralph Lauren RLX, Horschel said he thought the pants were a new cut. "They sent me a picture and I realized there's actual (octopuses) on them. They asked if I'd still wear them and I said, 'Sure, no problem,'???" Horschel said last month before the AT&T National at Congressional Country Club. "I've caught a lot of grief from guys out here. All the fans have been unbelievably nice and love 'em. I got a lot of (Internet) hits and a lot of good stuff from it. Any press is good press, right?" The pants drew critiques from bloggers who might not normally venture into golf. They were a hit with Marty Hackel, Golf Digest's fashion editor. "There's no question that Billy Horschel not only has game, he's also willing to go bold with his clothes," Hackel wrote in his U.S. Open review on golfdigest.com. "I'm still getting emails about the octopi. Good for him! PS _ I'm starting to hear a lot of people say he probably won't be wearing those pants on Sunday ever again, but when was the last time an octopus made a 4-foot putt?" Making his first appearance this week at the $8.75 million World Golf Championships-Bridgestone Invitational, Horschel might not be wearing anything as flamboyant. For a practice round at Congressional, he was outfitted in plain navy slacks. Ralph Lauren RLX scripts all his outfits for the majors and leaves the rest to him. Before the British Open, he tweeted sketches of his fashion lineup @BillyHo _ Golf. "Those are probably just a one-time gig," Horschel said of the octopuses. "But we do have a couple things in the works, some pants that might spice things up on Sundays." When he's on his own and on the fence about his choice, Horschel said he relies on the input of his wife, Brittany. "I've tried to get some stuff by her, and she won't go for it sometimes," Horschel said. "She was cool with octopus pants." As for his golden rules, Horschel said, "You don't want to clash your colors. I'm always cautious of that." His outside-the-box fashion sense seems to fit the intense, aggressive style of Horschel, who fought his emotions on the course after turning pro in 2009. "I still beat myself up a lot," Horschel said at Congressional. "The less I can beat myself up, the better I play. It's still tough. I'm not a complacent guy. I don't want to say, 'I've got a win, let's go out there and free-wheel it' because then you start making mistakes and I start getting angry because I'm playing stupid. "But there is a fine line between me being free and playing with ease and me being uptight and worrying and too much into what I'm trying to do. I've got to find that boundary a little bit and I've been pretty good at that so far this year." He's got the results to prove it. After finishing 147th on the money list in 2012, Horschel had to return to qualifying school to regain his card. This year he recorded his first career victory at the Zurich Classic of New Orleans. He has earned more than $3 million, ranks fifth on the FedExCup points list and has seven top-10 finishes in 20 events. "I've always felt I was good enough to win out here. I just felt I had to check every box," Horschel said in New Orleans. ___ (c)2013 Akron Beacon Journal (Akron, Ohio) Distributed by MCT Information Services Visit the Akron Beacon Journal (Akron, Ohio) at www.ohio.com ?
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