Tyra Banks pays homage as Michelle Obama

From the runway to the Oval Office, EVERYTHING IS POSSIBLE for Tyra Banks. Bazaar casts her as First Lady while she reflects on being a model citizen and the politics of fashion.

Today, though, it's a rather more modern potential first lady who has Banks compelled. When it came to paying homage to Michelle Obama for this story, Banks found the process "surreal." "It's kind of embarrassing," she confesses, "but in my early 20s, I used to want to be a princess. But I didn't want to have to marry somebody in order to do it! Of course, I don't see the position of first lady as a princess, where it's something you have to marry into. With Barack Obama, his becoming president is them becoming president because Michelle was there from the beginning. Without Michelle, he wouldn't be there." Or, as she pronounces to her Tyra Banks Show camera after her Oval Office portrait, "Michelle Obama, you're one hot mama."

A number of presidential candidates have appeared on Banks's talk show (Barack Obama, Hillary Clinton, John Edwards), and she's after Michelle Obama to appear this fall. She has met her before, noting she was "so warm and so gracious. She's got that direct-eye-contact, truly-connecting thing. She's not a 'ha, ha, ha' type." She smiles and continues, "And I love that she's tall."

With Olympics over Mike Phelps chases Gold on Land

BEIJING -- If no one in Beijing was happier -- or busier -- than Michael Phelps this past week, his agent Peter Carlisle had to be a close second.

A new race is now on for Mr. Phelps: the rush to transform his Olympic feat into a marketing juggernaut, akin to Michael Jordan or Tiger Woods. But the window for marketing Olympians -- even those with the rising stature of Mr. Phelps -- can close fast. Many of the new legions of so-called Phelps Phans likely will not see his muscled torso in a pool again until 2012, an eternity for advertisers.

As Mr. Carlisle, the agent, shuttled between meetings Saturday on the eve of Mr. Phelps's historic eighth Olympic gold medal Sunday, proposals for business opportunities far and wide streamed into his BlackBerry. Some were appealing, others less so.

A man in Omaha, Neb., offered to sculpt a statue of the chiseled swimmer. As strange as that sounded, a similar offer came from China. Several book and movie deals were suddenly on the table. A dog-food idea was pitched, given Mr. Phelps's well-known love for his British bulldog, Herman.

And still more: bobblehead dolls, acrylic paintings, commemorative coins, car rims and tuxedos. Some just wanted to give him things, like all the pizza he could eat for a year, or free dental work. And certain female celebrities and athletes wanted an introduction from Mr. Carlisle.

The number of such messages started as a trickle on the first day of the Games, Mr. Carlisle said, but then grew with each successive gold. Five the first day, then 10, then 20, eventually around 50 a day over the weekend, he said. Mr. Phelps in recent days became the most searched name on Facebook, surpassing teen singer Miley Cyrus and other celebs, he said.

"I've been doing this for a while, and I didn't think I'd be super-surprised at what was going to happen here," said the 40-year-old Mr. Carlisle, a managing director with Octagon Inc. "But I am actually."

"I'm looking forward to just sitting, not moving," Mr. Phelps, 23, said Sunday shortly after his last race, another world record as a member of the men's 4x100-meter medley relay, when asked about his plans.

Actually, Mr. Phelps will spend the rest of this week in Beijing making a series of appearances for sponsors such as Omega Ltd., Hilton Hotels Corp and Visa: A stop at the Omega pavilion on the Olympic Green on Monday. A lap in the pool at the Beijing Hilton at a party to promote swimming lessons in the inner city. On Wednesday, back to Omega for a formal event. Satellite TV interviews with U.S. media to promote other Hilton initiatives.

"This is about how big a halo Michael has," says Jeff Diskin, senior vice president for brand management at Beverly Hills, Calif.-based Hilton. "What he has done here will enable us to get our message out with a much bigger reach."

As Stephen Urquhart, chief executive officer of Bienne, Switzerland-based Omega, says, "He's a world legend now."

Howard Bloom, who teaches sports management at the University of Ottawa and has worked with several Olympic athletes, says the key decision for Mr. Phelps will be whether to renew his contract with Speedo, the swimsuit maker that sponsors Mr. Phelps and offered him $1 million if he won seven gold medals.

"Michael Phelps would be worth $40 or $50 million to Nike," Mr. Bloom said. "He could literally allow them to launch a massive swimwear company, and I think you are going to see an incredible bidding war for him....He literally saved this Olympics. Before the games started all the talk was about politics and censorship and as soon as he won that first gold medal it became about him."

Nike Inc. declined to comment.

In the coming weeks, Warnaco Group Inc., which licenses the Speedo brand in North America from the Pentland Group in the U.K., will begin advertising its association with Speedo. "That connection will be tightened, which we think will serve shareholders well," says Craig Brommers, vice president of marketing for Speedo USA.

Even if all goes according to plan over the coming weeks and months, few expect Mr. Phelps to reach anywhere near the earnings of Mr. Woods. That's because the golfer, who is estimated to make around $100 million annually from both his winnings and endorsements, is competing year in, year out.

By comparison, Mr. Phelps made an estimated $3 million to $5 million a year through his endorsements before these Games, a huge sum for an athlete in a sport rarely televised outside the Olympics.

Now that figure could double or more, as a result of his performance here, according to Mr. Carlisle.

"What is the value of eight golds in Beijing before a prime-time audience in the U.S?" asked Mr. Carlisle, riding in the back of a Volkswagen minivan through the streets of Beijing on Saturday. "I'd say $100 million over the course of his lifetime."

Mr. Carlisle, who signed Mr. Phelps in 2002 after his first Olympics in Sydney, said that figure seemed more of a stretch a few days ago. While independent sports-marketing experts acknowledge that's a hefty sum, they said it's within reach.

"It's an aggressive number put out there by an aggressive agent," says Paul Swangard, managing director of the Warsaw Sports Marketing Center at the University of Oregon in Eugene. "But also eight gold medals was an aggressive number. Not a good idea to bet against the man right now."

Speedo says its Phelps jerseys had sold out in recent days -- tens of thousands at $24.99 a piece -- even though swimmers don't wear jerseys in their sport. That could suggest Mr. Phelps's growing appeal beyond swimming.

Even the white Speedo parka that Mr. Phelps wore to the starting block before his races prompted consumer demand. Speedo had no intention of selling that item to customers. Now it's begun ramping up production, says Mr. Brommers, the Speedo marketing vice president.

"People want a piece of history here," says Mr. Brommers. "We're trying to get this stuff out the door as fast as we can."

The Olympics typically lead to a 5% to 6% increase in people swimming in the months after the Games, he says. This year Speedo expects several times that as a result of Mr. Phelps. Speedo plans to have a number of different versions of the LZR Racer suit worn by Mr. Phelps, which retails for $550, in the stores by the holidays, says Mr. Brommers.

China Strategy

While no one could be certain that Mr. Phelps would make history in Beijing, Messrs. Carlisle and Phelps began planning their China strategy shortly after the Athens Games in 2004, where he won six gold medals in his first attempt to break U.S. swimmer Mark Spitz's record seven golds at one Olympics

Things got started on the wrong foot, though. Mr. Phelps pleaded guilty to driving while impaired by alcohol several months after the Athens Games. He was sentenced to 18 months probation, profusely apologized in a number of interviews, and then, on Mr. Carlisle's advice, dropped relatively out of sight.

They continued with a plan that would allow Mr. Phelps to exploit the 2008 Games' location in the world's most populous market. The first step Mr. Carlisle took was exposing Mr. Phelps to the Chinese consumers through an Asian company, rather than an American one. Mr. Carlisle struck a deal in the fall of 2004, just months after the Athens Games, with Matsunichi, a Hong Kong-based maker of MP3 players. That was followed up with three visits to China by Mr. Phelps, first in 2005, again in early 2007 and then a year before the Games in August 2007.

The idea over this period was to gradually build up the sponsorships, rather than sign a number quickly tied to the Beijing Games.

How long will Phelps mania last, particularly now that he won't be swimming on television this evening, or anytime soon?

Mr. Phelps's record-tying seventh gold was announced at the Yankees game in New York Friday night, prompting a standing ovation. His record-breaking race was shown in its entirety Saturday night to wild cheering at the end of an exhibition football game of his hometown Baltimore Ravens.

Still, such fans will return to their teams' games well before Mr. Phelps's next swimming competition. "They're going to have to figure out a way pretty quickly to make him relevant on land," says Mr. Swangard, the Oregon sports-marketing professor.

Georgia: "It's all a plot to block Obama"

By: Charles Bremner in Moscow

Russians were told over breakfast yesterday what really happened in Georgia: the conflict in South Ossetia was part of a plot by Dick Cheney, the Vice-President, to stop Barak Obama being elected president of the United States.

The line came on the main news of Vesti FM, a state radio station that — like the Government and much of Russia's media — has reverted to the old habits of Soviet years, in which a sinister American hand was held to lie behind every conflict, especially those embarrassing to Moscow. Modern Russia may be plugged into the internet and the global marketplace but in the battle for world opinion the Kremlin is replaying the old black-and-white movie.

The Obama angle is getting wide play. It was aired on Wednesday by Sergei Markov, a senior political scientist who is close to Vladimir Putin, the Prime Minister and power behind President Medvedev.

“George Bush's Administration is promoting interests of candidate John McCain,” said Dr Markov. “Defeated by Barak Obama on all fronts, McCain has one last card to play yet - the creation of a virtual Cold War with Russia . . . Bush himself did not want a war in South Ossetia but his Republican Party did not leave him any choice.” The Americans were now engineering an armed conflict between Ukraine and Russia, Dr Markov added.

The Establishment and its media supporters are dusting off favourites from the Cold War shelf. Sergei Lavrov, the Foreign Minister, accused Washington of playing dangerous games. The West was guilty of “adventurism”, supporting aggression against peace-loving Russian forces who are engaged on a humanitarian mission to protect human life. Yesterday's headline in Commersant, a generally admired newspaper, announced with old-style sarcasm the imminent American “Military Humanitarian Landing” in Georgia.

A classic of Soviet-speak also came from Vasili Lickhachev, a former Russian Ambassador to the EU. “The West has spent a lot of time, energy and money to teach Georgia the tricks of the trade . . . to make the country look like a democracy,” he said.

“We and many other nations see through this deceit. We understand that the seditious tactics of the so-called colour revolutions are a real threat to international law and the source of global legal nihilism.”

These grooves from the Cold War grave are shrugged off by many Russians but they strike a chord in a nation ready once again to see itself as the victim of outside conspiracy. Blogs everywhere attract conspiracy lovers but Russian blogs have been exceptionally rich this week in theories of Western skulduggery over Georgia.

The old thinking finds more fertile ground now because, in the view of disillusioned Russians, President Bush relaunched the ideological war through a compliant American media, especially at the time of the invasion of Iraq.

“In the old days under Soviet rule we didn't believe a word of our own propaganda but we thought that information was free in the West and we longed for it,” said Katya, a middle-aged Muscovite. “But we have learnt since that the West has its own propaganda and in some ways it is more powerful because people believe it.”

Moscow is using novel methods to spread a very unsubtle, Cold War version of the Caucasian conflict to the world. Chief among them is Russia Today, a state 24-hour news channel that is fronted much of the time by cheery British and other English-speaking television professionals.

The smiles and studio banter could come from BBC World or CNN but the story is unrelentingly the Kremlin version. Banners flash along at the bottom of the screen saying such things as “genocide” and “aggression” or “city turns into human hell, many people still trapped under rubble”. Recapping the conflict yesterday RT's presenter said that Georgia's “brutal assault” had killed 1,600 civilians in its breakaway province in a campaign that destroyed 70 per cent of the buildings in Tskhinvali, its capital. Russian forces had moved in only to bring peace as Georgian forces killed women and children who were trying to flee, it said. Throughout its rolling cover of alleged Georgian atrocities, there was no mention of the heavy Russian military offensive.

The coverage goes down well in developing countries that want an alternative to CNN and BBC World Service, a Russian official said. “We have learnt from Western TV how to simplify the narrative.”

The Soviet crackdown

— In January 1968 Alexander Dubcek became First Secretary of the Czechoslovak Communist Party, instituting the “Prague Spring” liberalising reforms

— In August the Soviet-led Warsaw Pact invaded, below, claiming that its assistance had been requested by Communist Party leaders. Dubcek was arrested

— Lyndon Johnson, the US President, declared the invasion in violation of the United Nations Charter, but America was in the middle of a presidential election campaign and a war in Vietnam. The West took no action

— In 1988 mass demonstrations marked the anniversary

— The Communists were finally ousted in 1989 and Václav Havel was elected President in what became known as the Velvet Revolution. Soviet forces withdrew in 1991

Strong Women Democrats to Headline First Two Nights of Convention

The Democratic National Convention Committee has released the two headliners for the first two nights of the Democratic Convention that begins August 25th. Potential First Lady Michelle Obama will be Monday's headliner (I am so excited about this), and former First Lady and former presidential candidate Senator Hillary Clinton will headline Tuesday night.

This most likely means Clinton is not the VP, given that the chosen VP will headline on the 27th. Also, the Obama campaign will be announcing the VP first to his supporters via text and/or e-mail before releasing to the media. You can sign up to be the first to know: here.

Make sure to set your DVR/Tivo to record what will be a historic convention!

ps. Have I mentioned how excited I am that Michelle is the opening night headliner?!!!????

U.S. deficit, Iraqi surplus...

"Iraq's oil-fueled surplus could hit $80 billion, report says"...i'm sorry, WHAT?!! the U.S. has a deficit of how many billion from funding this war and there's now an $80BILLION surplus in iraq?! this is ridiculous and just further proof that we need to get the hell out of there. i completely agree with senator levin that american taxpayers need to be reimbursed, since we are essentially funding a war that should and could be funding itself. something about this just seems fishy to me...if iraq's economy is strong enough to pay for reconstruction, why are we still footing the bill? either somebody's getting some checks under the table, or some other ulterior motives are at play. in any case, the article is pretty good. check it out.

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/08/05/iraq.oil/index.html

WASHINGTON (CNN) -- Iraq is raking in more money from oil exports than it is spending, amassing a projected four-year budget surplus of up to $80 billion, U.S. auditors reported Tuesday.


Sen. Carl Levin says the U.S. shouldn't "be paying for Iraqi projects while oil revenues continue to pile up."
2 of 2 Leading members of Congress, noting that Washington is paying for reconstruction in Iraq, expressed outrage at the assessment. One called the findings "inexcusable."

"We should not be paying for Iraqi projects while Iraqi oil revenues continue to pile up in the bank, including outrageous profits from $4-a-gallon gas prices in the U.S.," said Sen. Carl Levin, the chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee. "We should require that U.S. taxpayers be reimbursed for the cost of large projects."

Baghdad had a $29 billion budget surplus between 2005 to 2007. With the price of crude roughly doubling in the past year, Iraq's surplus for 2008 is expected to run between $38 billion and $50 billion, according to a report from the U.S. Government Accountability Office.

The United States has put about $48 billion toward reconstruction since the 2003 invasion of Iraq, auditors reported. About $23 billion of that was spent on the oil and electricity industries, water systems and security.

Iraq spent $3.9 billion on those sectors from 2005 through April 2008, according to the GAO, the investigative arm of Congress. The ongoing fighting there, a shortage of trained staff and weak controls have made it difficult for the Iraqi government to spend its surplus on needed projects, the agency's report concluded.

Levin, a Michigan Democrat, has been an outspoken critic of the slow progress of reconstruction and an advocate of a U.S. withdrawal from Iraq. His criticism Tuesday was echoed by Sen. John Warner, a Virginia Republican who is the former chairman and now a leading member of Levin's committee.

"Despite Iraq earning billions of dollars in oil revenue in the past five years, U.S. taxpayer money has been the overwhelming source of Iraq reconstruction funds," Warner said in a joint statement with Levin. "It is time for the sovereign government of Iraq, using its revenues, expenditures and surpluses, to fully assume the responsibility to provide essential services and improve the quality of life for the Iraqi people."

In its written response to the audit report, the Treasury Department said U.S. officials are working with Iraqis to address the issue, "and we believe progress is being made."

"The report shows Iraq's budget surplus is likely to grow significantly over the course of 2008, but it is equally important to realize that spending in Iraq is also increasing," Deputy Assistant Treasury Secretary Andy Baukol wrote to the GAO.

Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki's government submitted a $22 billion supplemental budget to the Iraqi parliament in July, including $8 billion in proposed capital expenditures, Baukol wrote.

The issue raised the hackles of several members of Congress earlier this year -- particularly because Bush administration officials said on the eve of the war that Iraqi oil money would pay for reconstruction.

In 2003, then-Deputy Secretary of Defense Paul Wolfowitz told the House Appropriations Committee: "We're dealing with a country that can really finance its own reconstruction, and relatively soon.''

Rep. Henry Waxman, D-California, said Tuesday's report "is going to make a lot of American families very angry."

"The record gas prices they are paying have turned into an economic windfall for Iraq, but the Iraqi government isn't spending the money on rebuilding," said Waxman, the chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.

Levin spokeswoman Tara Andringa said the senator hopes to tighten rules governing U.S. expenditures on Iraqi reconstruction efforts in the next Pentagon authorization bill.

The Iraqi surplus has piled up even though the country's oil production has only recently matched prewar levels, according to the Brookings Institution's latest Iraq Index.

The country spent about 80 percent of its $29 billion operating budget in 2007, including public services and salaries, but only 28 percent of its $12 billion investment budget, the GAO found.

The export of crude oil accounted for 94 percent of Iraq's revenues from 2005 to 2007, the GAO reported.

U.S. Agents Can Seize Travelers' Laptops: Report (More Evidence of a Police State)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - U.S. federal agents have been given new powers to seize travelers' laptops and other electronic devices at the border and hold them for unspecified periods the Washington Post reported on Friday.

Under recently disclosed Department of Homeland Security policies, such seizures may be carried out without suspicion of wrongdoing, the newspaper said, quoting policies issued on July 16 by two DHS agencies.

Agents are empowered to share the contents of seized computers with other agencies and private entities for data decryption and other reasons, the newspaper said.

DHS officials said the policies applied to anyone entering the country, including U.S. citizens, and were needed to prevent terrorism.

The measures have long been in place but were only disclosed in July, under pressure from civil liberties and business travel groups acting on reports that increasing numbers of international travelers had had their laptops, cellphones and other digital devices removed and examined.

The policies cover hard drives, flash drives, cell phones, iPods, pagers, beepers, and video and audio tapes -- as well as books, pamphlets and other written materials, the report said.

The policies require federal agents to take measures to protect business information and attorney-client privileged material. They stipulate that any copies of the data must be destroyed when a review is completed and no probable cause exists to keep the information.

House formally apologizes for slavery and Jim Crow

WASHINGTON (AP) - The House on Tuesday issued an unprecedented apology to black Americans for the wrongs committed against them and their ancestors who suffered under slavery and Jim Crow segregation laws.

"Today represents a milestone in our nation's efforts to remedy the ills of our past," said Rep. Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick, D-Mich., chairwoman of the Congressional Black Caucus.
The resolution, passed by voice vote, was the work of Tennessee Democrat Steve Cohen, the only white lawmaker to represent a majority black district. Cohen faces a formidable black challenger in a primary face-off next week.

Congress has issued apologies before - to Japanese-Americans for their internment during World War II and to native Hawaiians for the overthrow of the Hawaiian kingdom in 1893. In 2005, the Senate apologized for failing to pass anti-lynching laws.

Five states have issued apologies for slavery, but past proposals in Congress have stalled, partly over concerns that an apology would lead to demands for reparations - payment for damages.
The Cohen resolution does not mention reparations. It does commit the House to rectifying "the lingering consequences of the misdeeds committed against African-Americans under slavery and Jim Crow."

It says that Africans forced into slavery "were brutalized, humiliated, dehumanized and subjected to the indignity of being stripped of their names and heritage" and that black Americans today continue to suffer from the consequences of slavery and Jim Crow laws that fostered discrimination and segregation.

The House "apologizes to African-Americans on behalf of the people of the United States, for the wrongs committed against them and their ancestors who suffered under slavery and Jim Crow."
"Slavery and Jim Crow are stains upon what is the greatest nation on the face of the earth," Cohen said. Part of forming a more perfect union, he said, "is such a resolution as we have before us today where we face up to our mistakes and apologize as anyone should apologize for things that were done in the past that were wrong."

Cohen became the first white to represent the 60 percent black district in Memphis in more than three decades when he captured a 2006 primary where a dozen black candidates split the vote. He has sought to reach out to his black constituents, and early in his term showed interest in joining the Congressional Black Caucus until learning that was against caucus rules.
Another of his first acts as a freshman congressman in early 2007 was to introduce the slavery apology resolution. His office said that the House resolution was brought to the floor only after learning that the Senate would be unable to join in a joint resolution.

More than a dozen of the 42 Congressional Black Caucus members in the House were original co-sponsors of the measure. The caucus has not endorsed either Cohen or his chief rival, attorney Nikki Tinker, in the Memphis primary, although Cohen is backed by several senior members, including Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers, D-Mich., and Ways and Means Committee Chairman Charles Rangel, D-N.Y. Tinker is the former campaign manager of Harold Ford, Jr., who held Cohen's seat until he stepped down in an unsuccessful run for the Senate in 2006.
---

The bill is H. Res. 194
On the Net:
Congress: http://thomas.loc.gov/

Life of the "Jetson's" becoming reality...

The mothership which will launch the first space tourists into the atmosphere was unveiled by Sir Richard Branson in California today.

WhiteKnightTwo (WK2), the carrier aircraft which will be used to launch SpaceShipTwo into orbit, 'will allow thousands of people to realise their dreams' and 'act as a catalyst to transform human access to space', Sir Richard said.

Speaking at the launch ceremony in the spaceship's hangar at the Mojave Air and Spaceport in California, the British billionaire, who will be among the first space tourists with his family, said the venture would help the world 'wake up' to the fragility of the planet and the importance of protecting Earth. Space is 'the final frontier that is so essential to the future of civilisation on this planet', Sir Richard said.

'The first generation of space tourists, many of whom are with us today, will be paving the way as they marvel at the beauty of our planet and experience the freedom of weightlessness and the blackness of space,' he said.

'The rollout of WhiteKnightTwo takes the Virgin Galactic vision to the next level and continues to provide tangible evidence that this most ambitious of projects is not only for real but is making tremendous progress towards our goal of safe commercial operation.'

Sir Richard said that the first tourists could be launched into space in around 18 months' time, but there is no official launch date yet - SpaceShipTwo needs to be completed before a series of test flights and safety tests are carried out.

More than 250 customers have paid 200,000 dollars (£100,000), or put down a deposit, for the chance to be one of Virgin Galactic's first space tourists.

The 140ft WK2, which was renamed Eve in honour of Sir Richard's mother who performed the opening ceremony attended by astronaut Buzz Aldrin, is the largest all-carbon composite aircraft and is capable of reaching 50,000ft.

'If our new system could carry only people into space, that would be enough for me, because of the transforming effect it will have on the thousands who will travel with us,' Sir Richard said.
'It is quite clear from every astronaut that I've ever spoken to that seeing the planet from out there, surrounded by the incredibly thin protective layer of atmosphere, helps one to wake up to the fragility of the small portion of the planet's mass that we inhabit, and to the importance of protecting the Earth.'

But he said the spaceships would also be able to launch small payloads and satellites into orbit at a relatively low cost.

'This system offers tremendous potential to researchers who will be able to fly experiments much more often than before, helping to answer key questions about Earth's climate and the mysteries of the universe,' he said.

XM - Sirius Merge...Finally

In a somewhat unsurprising move, the FCC has approved the merger of Sirius and XM after protracted -- and incredibly boring -- multi-year negotiations. The Federal Communication Commission decided tonight to allow a deal that will bring the two satellite radio providers together, creating a combined subscriber base of roughly 18 million users. The deal isn't without catches, however, with the Commission stating that the companies must cap prices for three years following the merger, allow subscriber choice on content, and lower fees for channel packages. FCC head Kevin Martin seemed pleased with the final outcome, stating, "Consumers will get to enjoy the best of the programming on both services." You know who wasn't so excited? Clear Channel.

Anyone thinking of buying now that the platforms are consolidated...

Mr. President is everday "People"...

For years People rarely put black folks on its cover unless it was a tragedy, a la Whitney Houston’s troubles or Natalie Cole’s confession involving drugs, but the weekly magazine continues to make strides in that department. The Obamas grace the cover of the latest issue and Barack and wife Michelle talk about raising two girls under the public eye.
We don’t find out anything about the daughters’, Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7, entertainment preferences as far as singers they listen to and preferred television shows but we are told that the family checked out Wall-Eearlier this month. Barack said, “I find actually that children’s movies are the best movies these days.” And he gives Malia a weekly allowance of $1 a week.But wait, there’s more. Read on:PEOPLE: Someone told me today that you don’t do birthday presents.
Michelle: No, because we spend hundreds of dollars on a birthday party and movie tickets and pizza and popcorn …
Barack: That sleepover is enough. We want to teach some limits to them. And their friends bring over presents.
Michelle: They get so much stuff that it just becomes numbing. Malia believes there is still a Santa Claus even though she’s a little wary because some of her friends are non-believers. But Malia says, “Ma, I know there is a Santa because there’s no way you’d buy me all that stuff.” (Laughing)
People points out the first interview was done at the family’s three-story home in Chicago in June, then again on July 4 at a park in Butte, Mont., where the family campaigned and celebrated Malia’s birthday. The daughters weren’t interviewed this time. It was after Access Hollywood’s interview with his daughters (also conducted during Fourth of July weekend) aired that Barack put them on media lock down.

Who's Really Watching "Black In America"?

Who is watching “Black in America” on CNN? I ask the question because it was raging inside of me as I listened to pundits and experts, educators and pastors, business professionals and actors—all attempting to make sense and give shape to what it means to be black in America. I asked the very same question after Tavis Smiley produced the “The Covenant with Black America” a few years ago. That book sold millions of copies, and was the topic of quite a few talk shows. And this CNN “special” will probably be one the highest rated shows on the network ever. But I again I ask who is watching? Is Shaniqua living in a tenement in Brooklyn with five babies by five different “men” watching? Is James, who stands on a corner in Baltimore selling crack cocaine to his community watching? T-Bone, a Blood from South Central and his boys and rival Crips from cross-town, are they watching? Janice, who dropped out of Somerville High School in Massachusetts, will she be tuning in? I doubt it. And here in lies the problem with shows like “Black in America,” and books like “The Covenant with Black America” they don’t reach the people who need to hear and read it most. The people who need to change, probably won’t be tuning in—which is why years after the Million Man March and years after The Covenant with Black America and years after Black in America, nothing will change. These outlets just become masturbation. A bunch of talking and pontificating and not a whole lot of what next. If you noticed, I hadn’t added Bill Cosby’s “Come on People,” in the mix with the above. Bill Cosby with all of his fame and fortune doesn’t just pay lip service to his desire to change lives. I have seen him show up to schools in Newark, NJ, with no media or handlers and talk to the kids. I have seen him perform at a club for free to help a black man open a club. I have heard stories of Mr. Cosby giving his time when no one is looking because it’s important to him. So when he writes and says the things he’s saying, he’s also someone in the trenches providing solutions. Whether you agree with him or not, you have to applaud that. A lot of these “pundits” or “experts” who have been featured on “Black in America” make their living off of black poverty and downtroddeness. It gives them a platform to be able to travel the country and demand high speaking fees and folks who don’t need to hear the message because they are taking care of their kids and doing the right things pay to hear a message of gloom and doom. Black drop out rate is X, Black out-of-wedlock pregnancy rate is Y. Blacks die at a rate z times higher than whites. And on and on.

No. 1: Those statistics become a self-fulfilling prophecy. If we continue to focus on it, that’s exactly where your attentions will lead. Focusing on the negative has never been a formula for success.

No. 2: If CNN has the highest rating in its history and if Tavis Smiley was able to sell millions of books it says that the vast majority of black folks are NOT in the poor condition that they’re discussing. It says we must care about community more than the statistics are letting on.

No. 3: In the wake of the first black man running for president, a man who is not an anomaly and who has redefined what it means to be black isn’t our time better spent talking about what it means to be an American? I mean the gas prices are striking us all—black and non-black. The housing crisis is hitting us all—black and non-black. The bank crisis is affecting us all. As do the wars and rumors of war. Who’s watching “Black in America” and what are they going to do to make sure we have a better America for all of us?

- Karen Hunter is a columnist for AOL Black Voices, and the CEO of Karen Hunter Publishing.

Spelman College Alum "Barack's the Vote"!!!

Lorielle Broussard is a Spelman College Alum and designer of one of the hottest political apparel brands in the country. Its almost impossible not to have seen someone wearing one of the 20+ thousand shirts that her and her brother's (Brandon) company, Barackawear, Inc. has sold.

As CFO, Lorielle has helped guide the company from $700 dollars in start up money to over $400,000 in sales in less than a year.

Lorielle says, "It's pretty amazing to be 27 and running a company. Just a little over a year ago, I was an assistant and now I have one." Last year prior to launching Barackawear, Lori was touring the country as a stylist to pop star Ciara and prior to that was assistant to model and celebrity deejay, Sky Neller.

Lorielle's Dream: Too see Barack Obama elected president. We give back 25% of our net profit to his campaign as well as host fundraisers in his support. We would be devestated if he did not get elected.

And what about the dream for Barackawear: "Our goal is to sell over 100,000 shirits by election day and I think we'll reach it. I think if we reach a million in sales, we can attract investors to our next projects more easily."

So Whats Next: "We plan to launch our new 'Yo Town' t-shirit line as well as a line of Jeans. We are really excited about both and I think because of our experience with Barackawear, we know how to make and run a successful business. But for now we are focused on getting Barack Obama elected as thenext President of "These" United States.

For more information of to obtain your own shirt/hoodie/lapel pin please visit: www.BarackTheVote.com

DNC Prepare's to party in Denver

Denver is about to become Tinseltown - for a week.A-list Hollywood hotshots and music industry titans are set to descend on the Rocky Mountain city for next month's Democratic National Convention, where political rock star Barack Obama will officially claim the party's crown."We are expecting lots of people to be here, big names, small names and everyday American names," convention spokesman Damon Jones said.Event organizers have yet to release an official list of confirmed performers and talent, but the likely roster reads like a who's who of rap, rock and silver screen.Convention sources confirmed superstars Kanye West, N.E.R.D., Wyclef Jean and Usher are in serious talks to perform during the Aug. 25-28 party shindig.The Creative Coalition, a non-profit advocacy group that hosted parties for the Dems in 2004, has announced that the Black Eyed Peas are scheduled to perform at the DNC gala at the Fillmore Auditorium on Aug. 27. "The Black Eyed Peas represent a growing genre of music that emphasizes increased social awareness," said Robin Bronk, executive director of the Creative Coalition.Hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons is flying out to Denver for the Yoga Health Foundation's festival, which kicks off the night before the convention. He plans to stick around for the Democratic powwow."I'm going to the DNC to add my voice to the growing collective consciousness I believe is rising in this country," Simmons said. "I want to add my voice to this phenomenon that I believe is this country and the world's only salvation: the promotion of love over fear."Hard-core Democratic supporter Ben Affleck, who made a big showing for John Kerry during the 2004 convention in Boston, will swoop into the Mile High city. No word yet on whether he plans on cajoling his wife, actress Jennifer Garner, or other celebrity pals like Matt Damon into joining him in the Rockies.Actress Scarlett Johansson, a gushing Obama backer, is also expected to be hob-nobbing with the political elite. Her spokesman, though, said her schedule for August is "up in the air."The "Lost in Translation" star recently told The Associated Press, "My heart belongs to Barack, and that is who I am currently, finally, engaged to. Yes."Movie directors Quentin Tarantino, Barry Levinson and Spike Lee will be on hand to witness an African-American formally becoming the first major-party presidential nominee.Other boldface guests expected to fete Obama include Warren Beatty, Annette Bening, Susan Sarandon, Kerry Washington, Forrest Whitaker, Josh Lucas, Rashida Jones, Tim Daly, Matthew Modine, Dana Delany, Rachel Leigh Cook and actor and aspiring director Ed Norton, who is working on a documentary about the candidate.

BY JO PIAZZA DAILY NEWS STAFF WRITER

Say "Hello" to the future

Inspired by the famous Serbian Electrical Engineer Nikola Tesla, Mercedes Benz has dumped millions into its subsidiary compnay Tesla Motors banking that it will revolutionize the motor industry. I BELIEVE THEY WILL! The above pic are screen shots of their highly anticipated Tesla RoadsterRead these crazy Technical Specifications that is going to Change the way people think about Driving:

* 100% Electric (Not a Hybrid)

* 256 MPG EQUIVALENT!* 220 Miles Per Charge costing you only 2 cents per Mile! are you Serious

* 0-100 km/hr in 3.9 seconds

* 14,000 rpm redline* 200 km/hr top speed

* 365 km range

* 160,000 km battery lifecycle

* Four-wheel ventilated disc brakes with ABS and regenerative motor braking* Kerb weight 1,220 kg* Versatile travel charging options with onboard Mobile ConnectoCheck out the site at www.teslamotors.com for the detailed run down

Clearly these Cars are pre-ordered, and celebrity and car aficianados have already invested tens of thousands of dollars in down payment to receive the first batch of Teslas set to be released next year.

Below is the run down of the Reservation Infomation - Please log on to www.teslamotors.com.

* Reservations for the Tesla Roadster are open to all U.S. residents

* 2009MY Roadster base price: $109,000 (see 2009 spec sheet for more details)

* Availability approximately 12 months

* $5000 refundable reservation fee starts the process and locks in price

** Additional $55,000 to lock in a production slot and delivery timeframe.

* Exterior/interior choices, options and balance due 3 months prior to production of your Roadster* Submit your questions here, or call 650-413-6300.

"N" - you decide for yourself...

CNN) -- When Nas said he didn't name his album "Nigger" because there might be problems getting it into stores, it was no surprise. But when he said pressure from black leaders played a role, it seemed out of character.
The Queens-reared rapper has never been one to kowtow. Just last month, he referred to the Rev. Jesse Jackson as "the biggest player hater" and declared Jackson's time as a voice for black America over.
But in a recent CNN interview, Nasir Jones explained he didn't change the album's name to please the Rev. Al Sharpton and other black leaders. Rather, they were stealing his thunder.
"I don't think I liked the attention I was getting from some of the elders in my community," he said. "I saw it kind of leaning toward being about them ... only about them. I kind of wanted to just shake that off of me." Hear Nas discuss the controversy »

His remedy? To drop the title altogether -- literally. The album, out Wednesday, has no name. But don't think Nas is cowering from controversy -- the cover features the rapper shirtless with his iconic, gothic "N" digitally whipped into his back.

With a host of racial issues -- the Jena Six, Don Imus, nooses -- fresh on America's mind, naming an album "Nigger" seems ill-advised. Nas, however, said his goal wasn't to upset; it was to upend a society that focuses more on pejoratives than the racial plights that spawn them.
"There's still so much wrong in the whole world with people -- poor people, people of color -- I just felt like a nice watch couldn't take that away, make me forget about that. A nice day on a yacht with rich friends couldn't make me forget about reality, what's going on," he said. "That's why I named the album that -- not just that the word is horrible, but the history behind the word, and how it relates to me, how it's affected me, offended me."

Harvard law professor Randall Kennedy delves into the frustrating duality of the slur in his 2003 bestseller, "Nigger: The Strange Career of a Troublesome Word." Since colonist John Rolfe first coined "negar," referring in 1619 to a shipment of Africans to Virginia, the epithet has lived a largely opprobrious life, with one exception, Kennedy writes.
"Currently, some people insist upon distinguishing nigger -- which they see as exclusively an insult -- from nigga, which they view as a term capable of signaling friendly salutation," Kennedy writes.

Kennedy, who is black, concludes his book expressing satisfaction that the word's use causes anxiety. Politicians should avoid uttering it at all costs, he writes, and uses by nonblacks is most often a no-no.

But never underestimate the word's complexities, says Kennedy: "For bad and for good, nigger is thus destined to remain with us for many years to come -- a reminder of the ironies and the dilemmas, the tragedies and glories, of the American experience."
Kennedy declined to comment for this story, and Sharpton's press office did not respond to an e-mail and voice message requesting an interview.

Because Nas rescinded the title doesn't mean the multiplatinum rapper isn't prepared to engage in debate on the word's merit in today's lexicon.
"It's all about the intent and what you mean and how it's coming off and the reason why you're saying it. You know, if it's ill intent, if you're angry, being ignorant, being meanspirited, saying that word -- it means the worst," he explained. "If you're just a couple of black guys on the street corner, doesn't mean it's a great thing, but it's not that they're trying to harm each other when they say it."
As for a wholesale ban on the word -- something Jackson and Sharpton have suggested -- Nas scoffed.
"For some people, you should never be able to use it," he said. "For others, it's way too late. It's too late to try to stop using it. It's something that's just part of the language now."
That "elders" had anything to do with changing the album's name might be a sign the 34-year-old is continuing the personal growth so easily charted since he released his 1994 debut, "Illmatic," an album that would help earn him the No. 5 spot on MTV's list of the top MCs of all time.
Back then, Nas was a 20-year-old, street-hustling rhymesmith from the rough-and-tumble Queensbridge projects, on the brink of earning the admiration of some of hip-hop's biggest names.
He's been called "the king" (Producer Dallas Austin), "a genius" (Island Def Jam Chairman L.A. Reid) and "the greatest rapper of all time" (rapper Kanye West).
After "Illmatic," fans watched Nas -- and his ego -- grow through the years as he proclaimed himself "Nastradamus," "God's Son" and the "Street's Disciple."

His legions watched him become jaded with age when, in 2006, he declared, "Hip Hop is Dead," and lashed out at the rappers and DJs he felt had rendered the genre hackneyed.
Though Nas dabbled in advocacy before Wednesday, his lyrics dwelled more on his rhyming skills, hot sneakers, women and blunts. Violence was regularly invoked, especially in regard to any would-be dissers.

On the untitled album, there's still an air of militancy, with the threats of violence directed toward those who aim to oppress African-Americans.
He boasts likenesses to Black Panther founder Huey P. Newton and threatens to throw Molotov cocktails in the name of civil rights murder victim Emmett Till.
On "Testify," Nas warns that he's loading a magazine to "send these redneck bigots some death in a bag/choke him out with his Confederate flag/I know these devils are mad."
"I really like 'Testify' because it's like a man who's just frustrated and doesn't know how to fight. It's when you feel like there's no one to call. Who do you call when you're of the ethnic group that the police have been wiping out for years and the government doesn't do anything?" Nas asked.
Nas explains his growth on "Project Roach," crediting a Guyanese anthropologist and literary critic with helping him mature: "I used to worship a certain Queens police murderer/Till I read the words of Ivan Van Sertima/He inserted something in me than made me feel worthier/Now I spit revolution, I'm his hood interpreter."

Other messages on the album seem designed to inspire the black community, or to decry a separate-but-equal culture that purports to incubate fairness but rarely produces results.
On "America," he opines, "Too many rappers, athletes and actors/But not enough niggas in NASA/Who gives you the latest dances, trends and fashion?/But when it comes to residuals they look past us."

Nas acknowledged he's a different person today than when he dropped "Illmatic," and his music has grown along with him. Fans should recognize and enjoy the evolution rather than make comparisons, he said.

He tentatively agreed that his untitled album addresses the plight of black America with a more positive voice, but he almost bristled when asked if he was a "conscious rapper," guys like Common, Mos Def and Talib Kweli who largely refrain from talk of violence and misogyny.
Nas, he said, will remain an individual, an artist, a lyricist, whose style and message can't be placed in a tidy case like one of his albums.

"I just look at myself as a man who's trying to figure shit out in the world, and God is amazing because He's never going to let us figure it all out," Nas said. "So I don't really have a category. I'm just a man that's in search, that's always in search, that's always going to question things, you know?"

Michelle Obama to Become Honorary AKA

Michelle Obama has accepted an honorary membership in Alpha Kappa Alpha, the oldest African-American sorority in the country, the group's president, Barbara A. McKinzie, has announced.
The sorority is celebrating its centennial with a week of celebrations in the District. It was founded at Howard University in 1908, and counts Rosa Parks, Coretta Scott King, and former Washington mayor Sharon Pratt among its members. Eleanor Roosevelt was also an honorary member of the organization, whose membership now stands at more than 200,000.
Obama, with her work as an attorney, healthcare executive, and activist, fits right into the professional network of the sorority.
The induction of the wife of Barack Obama, the presumptive Democratic Party presidential nominee, will not take place during this week's convention, McKinzie said. Details have not yet been set.
Among those being inducted tomorrow are Rutgers University basketball coach C. Vivian Stringer and Wangari Muta Maathai, the Kenyan environmental and political activist who is the first African woman to receive the Nobel Peace Prize. Though the organization said she will not be at the ceremony.

http://blog.washingtonpost.com/dc/2008/07/to_melodyakaaolcom_from_melody.html

Rihanna and Gucci Unite For UNICEF

Gucci and Rihanna love children. In collaboration with the United Nation's Children's Fund, UNICEF, Gucci has enlisted music sensation Rihanna to spearhead the label's first ad campaign with the nonprofit organization."I felt a musician and a beautiful woman was the perfect icon for this campaign" said Gucci's creative director, Frida Giannini.Dubbed, "Tattoo Heart," the ads will feature Rihanna donning Gucci's special-edition products all incorporating a tattoo-style heart designed for UNICEF. "We've come a long way from Miss Bisou to Gucci," said the 20-year-old singer. "It's an honor to represent Gucci."Keep your eyes peeled for the first round of ads set to debut in December magazines. Twenty-five percent of sales will be donated to the UNICEF organization.

Note: Rihanna also talked about adding clothing design to her repertoire stating,"I love fashion, so it's only natural for me to want to create my own line." We'll keep you posted on that one.

Jesse Who, said What, and Why!?!?

HOW much player-hate can fester in one man's heart?
Apparently, quite a lot if you're the Windy City's World-Class Windbag.
Jesse Jackson has spent his entire life in love with the microphone. He knows them intimately.
He's such an aficionado of the mike that Detroit's beloved late mayor, Coleman Young, dismissed one of Jackson's failed vanity bids for the presidency by noting that "all he's ever run is his mouth."
Jackson's claim to have been caught unbeknownst by a "hot mike" slurring and threatening Barack Obama is complete hogwash.
Somewhere, deep down, he wanted the world - and Obama - to know how much he wants to "cut his nuts out."
Veterinarians and doctors talk about cutting nuts "off." Only a thug or a gangster cuts a man's nuts "out."
And Jackson knows better than most the vicious symbolism of castration and its blood-soaked link to lynchings in the Old South.
Nor is this the first time Jackson bared his anger. Last year, when Obama wasn't sufficiently politicizing the beating prosecution of six black teens in Louisiana known as the "Jena Six," Jackson said Obama was "acting white."
What accounts for Jackson's latest animosity toward the Democratic nominee? He said it's because Obama was "talking down to black folks."
In a Father's Day speech, Obama told black churchgoers that a father's responsibility "doesn't just end at conception."
"What makes you a man is not the ability to have a child - any fool can have a child," Obama said. "It's the courage to raise a child that makes you a father."
Maybe this struck a little too close to home for the Rev. Jackson, who just a few years ago finally owned up to fathering a child outside of his marriage even as he was busy counseling President Bill Clinton on his dalliances with a White House intern.
Perhaps the real reason for Jackson's hatred is that Obama has shown that unifying and uplifting campaigns succeed in American politics where the divisive failed campaigns waged by Jackson become history's footnotes.
And this is where Obama comes out ahead once all the dust settles.
By publicly accepting Jackson's apology, Obama floated above the whole sordid mess.
For everyone watching - especially those blue-collar white voters who were so elusive for him in the primary - this is a powerful reminder that Obama is not cut from the same cloth as the militant race-baiter Jesse Jackson and his ilk.

Charles Hurt is The Post's Washington Bureau chief. churt@nypost.com

Forget the new iPhone... Look out for the Mac Tablet...

This laptop doesn't need a keyboard and very practical for business professionals, artists, and techonology leaders.It features a 13.3 inch widescreen LCD that will enable one to inscribe on the screen with true pen and Handwriting recognition. This laptop will hit the market with all essential features such as internal CD/DVD combo drive, Bluetooth, Wi-Fi capabilities and Global Positioning System.

http://www.appleinsider.com/articles/07/01/11/unofficial_mac_tablet_draws_record_crowd_at_macworld_high_res_photos.html

This will be the envy of Christmas shopper everywhere!!!

No He Can't !?!?

Sen. Barack Obama is making it clear that an African-American U.S. senatorial candidate from Georgia has crossed the line by linking the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee to his campaign. In recent days, Vernon Jones, the DeKalb County CEO, released a campaign flier showing him and Obama smiling together; the caption reads: “Yes We Can.” But the Illinois senator is screaming, “No He Can’t!” Obama, speaking to The Atlanta Journal-Constitution Tuesday, said, “I do not endorse him; I have not endorsed him. He put my picture on his literature, without asking me. Now I will tell you in the southside of Chicago, and I’m assuming here in Georgia, those kinds of things aren’t uncommon. It’s a little less common to do when you’re a U.S. Senate candidate when presumably the scrutiny is a little higher.” Jones, who says he wasn’t trying to trick anybody, mailed thousands of the leaflets, the Journal-Constitution reports. The photo appears to be of himself standing next to Obama in front of a campaign crowd, the newspaper says, while the photo was really a digital compilation of two or more images. “I think he may have come to an event of ours a while back,” Obama said. “The reason I think I may have met him is I know somebody told me as I was shaking his hand that he had taken pride in voting for George Bush twice.” Still, Jones’ spokeswoman says that her candidate is a strong supporter of Obama. “Vernon Jones is a conservative Democrat who holds views consistent with mainstream Georgians, and like Vernon Jones, Sen. Barack Obama kicked off his Georgia campaign in Cobb County,” Jones said Tuesday. He has called the flier a campaign “keepsake piece,” noting that he has been asked to autograph it at campaign stops everywhere. Jones is battling fellow Democrats Dale Cardwell, a former WSB television reporter; Atlanta businessman Rand Knight; former state legislator Jim Martin; and retired businessman Josh Lanier of Statesboro in July 15 primary. They are vying to challenge incumbent Republican U.S. Sen. Saxby Chambliss and Libertarian Allen Buckley in the November general election. Jones says that “for Sen. Obama to win Georgia, he will need conservative Democrats like myself.” Do you agree with Jones?

TV One to cover Democratic convention -- but not Republican

TCA PRESS TOUR -- Given Barack Obama's historic run for the Oval Office, African American-themed cable network TV One plans to break from its usual entertainment programming to provide extensive coverage of the Democratic National Convention in August.
"This is a huge deal for TV One as it is for the African American community," said Johnathan Rodgers, president and CEO of TV One, a channel in about 40 million homes. "African Americans have fallen in love with Barack Obama’s family, his candidacy … we will be covering the democratic convention all the time."
But John McCain shouldn’t expect the same treatment. The network doesn’t plan any coverage of the Republican convention.
"We are not a news organization," said Rodgers, speaking at the opening session of the semi-annual Television Critics Association press tour in Beverly Hills. "We are a television network designed to celebrate African American achievement."
“My audience is 93% black,” Rogers added. “I serve my audience.”
TV One does have a Republican pundit as part of its convention coverage, comedian Sheryl Underwood. But she’s also voting for Obama.
When critics pressed a panel of TV One’s convention pundits about whether African American republicans will feel slighted, Underwood said, “I speak for all eight of us -- we are not slighted.”
As a cable network, TV One is likely exempt from any equal time access rules. Federal Communications Commission rules state that broadcast networks are required to give equal time to presidential candidates. In 2007, when “Law & Order” actor Fred Thompson entered the race for the Republican nomination, NBC pulled episodes that featured him, but cable network TNT did not pull “L&O” repeats.

-----> After reading I was left with the thought of what if networks with predominantly White demographics (CNN, Fox, etc) didnt cover Obama??? Just a thought..

Wanna Get Rich... Turn off the big city lights...

NEW YORK (Reuters Life!) - If you want to get rich leave New York City, Washington DC or Los Angeles and head to Plano, Texas, Aurora, Colorado or Omaha, Nebraska where wages are high and life is good, a new survey showed.A poll that ranked 69 U.S. cities with populations of more than 250,000 people showed the best places to build personal wealth and raise a family were in cities where some of the nation’s largest companies are headquartered.The No. 1 city, Plano, is the ninth largest metropolis in Texas and home to corporate headquarters including soft drink company Dr Pepper Snapple Group, PepsiCo’s snack foods company Frito-Lay and movie theater company Cinemark.“The city has a reputation as one of the best places in the country for employers to do business and for families to live and work. Plano has a nationally acclaimed public education system and well-educated, diverse residents,” Salary.com, a pay and performance web site that conducted the survey, said.Aurora, the third most populous city in Colorado, came in second, according to the survey which said its economy is booming and it is a business leader in key growth industries such as biotechnology, aerospace and high technology.Nebraska’s largest city Omaha, home to famed U.S. investor Warren Buffett, nabbed third place. Buffett, who is the richest man in the world according to Forbes magazine, is often called the “Sage of Omaha” for his successful investments.“With diversification in several industries including banking, insurance, telecommunications, architecture/construction, and transpiration, Omaha’s economy has grown dramatically since the 1990’s,” Salary.com explained.New York City came in last, behind Washington DC and Los Angeles.“These cities do have some of the highest average wages in the country, but when it comes time to stretching your dollar and accumulating a nest egg for the future, it is difficult to do in these cities,” Salary.com said.The survey measured the relative value of earnings, cost of living and unemployment rates, along with diversity of industry, education level of the cities’ population, proximity to post secondary institutions, percent of population below poverty level and median travel time to work.

The Seven Deadly Sins Of Social Media

Social media like Facebook, Flickr, and Delicious has been around for a couple of years now and companies are starting to dip a tentative toe into the water. While such courage should be applauded, serious missteps have occurred that embarrass the offending company.
And it is not the courageous steps that have been embarrassing, but the sheer level of assholery with which companies have partaken their social media experiments. Because social media is all about sharing, collaboration, and communication, it is little surprise that folks expressed outrage at the heavy-handed or downright immoral dealings of the companies outlined below.
In this post, I will list five of the deadly sins as outlined by Joseph Jaffe’s speech at the ANA’s Integrated Media Conference and then offer two additional sins of my own.
From Joseph Jaffe:
Faking (Sprint): The phone company released ads in which the CEO offered an email address, giving the opportunity for communication. Instead, a corporate shill auto-responder emails back.
Manipulating (Sony): The maker of the PSP created a fake blog and attempted to manipulate the conversation. They ended up garnering a deserved “golden poop” award.

Controlling (T-Mobile): The phone company sent cease and desist letters to a popular blog for using a color they claim to have trademarked. The blogosphere revolted and T-mobile missed a chance to meaningfully engage with its customers.

Dominating (Target): A blogger was ignored by the retail giant because they felt she didn’t have the clout of traditional media outlets. After the blogger gained more and more attention, Target claimed that their continued silence was based on a lack of adequate staff.

Avoiding (Starbucks): The coffee giant already felt a squeeze from its consumer base, but avoided a fan’s desire to visit every store was passed on. The only response to the fan was one of suspicion.
In these cases, the sin is not that the company was just stupid (though there’s no shortage of that). The sin is that they failed to engage at a pivotal moment with an active community that supported them with their checkbooks. They refused to join the conversation and felt the ramifications.

Here are my two nominations to round out the deadly sins of social media:
Greediness (AP): The Associated Press recently pushed for restrictions on the amount of their content bloggers could cite. In the era of Google juice, link love, and a wealth of online information, the AP chose the path of restriction, as though this greediness would result in keeping all of the information under their roof. It took only 24 hours for the back-peddling to begin and it now appears that they will wisely drop the call for restrictions. They had the opportunity to engage their readership, even empower the bloggers and other outlets who were distributing their content free of charge, but they trotted out the lawyers instead.

Cowardice (Dunkin’ Donuts and Heinz): Dunkin’ Donuts pulled a series of ads after political partisans attacked spokeswoman Rachael Ray’s scarf for looking like a terrorist’s (yes, you read that correctly - a terrorist scarf). Likewise, Heinz pulled an ad deemed by the small-minded to be “unsuitable for children” because the on-running joke throughout the ad ends with two men kissing (cripes, the explanation sounds racier than the actual spot). Instead of giving their customers some credit or engaging in a conversation about the merits of their arguments (or the absurdity of their opponent’s), both companies caved. A conversation was passed up in favor of tucking tail and running.
These examples did not emerge from the company’s social media outreach per se, but they do speak to elements in a new social media economy. When companies are scared to engage their customers, it is a bad sign. All of these examples - Jaffe’s and mine - are based around fear.

BET on Barack... (kinda like the saying "bet on Black"

LOS ANGELES (AP) - Barack Obama didn't attend the BET Awards, but that didn't stop attendees from talking about him.
"If we all register and vote, we will have the first black president in the history of America," Sean "Diddy" Combs told the crowd Tuesday at the Shrine Auditorium before chanting "Obama or Die" - a declarative remix of his neutral "Vote or Die" motto from the 2004 presidential election, when he attempted to boost the youth vote.
Obama, the presumptive Democratic presidential nominee, was just a few blocks away at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion for a fundraiser with a Hollywood guest list that included supermodels Heidi Klum and Cindy Crawford, boxing legend Sugar Ray Leonard and movie stars Samuel L. Jackson and John Malkovich. While Obama didn't make an appearance at the BET Awards - either live or on tape - his presence was felt.
As she picked up her award for best female R&B artist, Alicia Keys told the crowd that it's time for black people to erase the word "can't" from their vocabulary.

(AP) Alicia Keys accepts the award for best female R&B artist at the BET awards on Tuesday June 24, 2008..."Together we can do anything," she said, playing on the Democrat's "Yes We Can" mantra before shouting: "Obama y'all!"
The presumptive Republican presidential nominee, John McCain, failed to merit a shoutout by any of the BET presenters or performers.
"For the first time in history, we have the opportunity for somebody who's not in the good ol' boy network to get into office," rapper David Banner told reporters backstage. "People talk about his lack of experience, but there's people with much more experience who haven't done such a good job."
Stephen Hill, executive vice president of entertainment and music programming at BET, said there was talk of having Obama attend the BET Awards but it didn't work out.
"We would've loved it if he would've stopped by," said Hill.
During his monologue, host D.L. Hughley cracked jokes about Obama. Other attendees were more flattering. Backstage, Humanitarian Award winner Quincy Jones said he wanted Obama to be elected and create a Secretary of Culture position. Actress Nia Long beamed about possible first lady Michelle Obama.
"Michelle is graceful, beautiful and not afraid to be exactly who she is," Long said backstage. "It's wonderful to see their love in the midst of all the political madness. They have something we should all be proud of. She's smart. She's educated. And she's fearless. I'd love to have tea with her one day."
One attendee used fashion to show her support for Obama. Actress-comedian Kym Whitley, who revealed she'll be appearing in a small role in the upcoming "Transformers" sequel, donned a tight purple shirt that read 'Barack Obama 08' in glittery black letters
"I don't know him, and he doesn't know me," she said. "But we're gonna make eye contact one day."
Longtime Obama supporter John Legend affirmed the importance of voting in the upcoming election: "I'll be working to make sure people get out to vote this fall."

By DERRIK J. LANG

By the Numbers, Keeping them Honest..

"If a Nation expects to be ignorant and free in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be... if we are to guard against ignorance and remain free, it is the responsibility of every American to be informed." -- Thomas Jefferson

Just the Facts:
Putting it in Perspective:
Terrorism Against U.S.
The wealthiest 1%, in 2003, earned 14% of the income and paid 35% of all individual income taxes.
By comparison, the bottom 60% of all taxpayers earn 28% of all income and pay just 1% of all individual income taxes.
Solders killed in Iraq (5 yrs): 4,308 (3,501 in combat)
Soldiers killed in Vietnam War (64-73): 58,200
Soldiers killed in Persian Gulf War (90-91): 382
Americans killed on 9/11/01: 2,986
Americans murdered in U.S. (1 yr) (2005): 16,692
1993 World Trade Center bombing (1 mth into Clinton's first term)
1995 bombing in Saudi Arabia (Clinton)
1996 al-Khobar towers bombing (Clinton)
1998 bombing of US embassies in Africa (Clinton)
2000 bombing of the USS Cole (Clinton)
2001 attack on World Trade Center (8 mths into Bush's first term)

Barack Obama inspires Milan men's runway styles

MILAN, Italy - The latest "first" for Barack Obama comes off the Milan runway.

Calling the U.S. presidential hopeful "the man of the moment," Donatella Versace dedicated her Spring-Summer 2009 collection presented Saturday evening to Obama, creating a style she said was designed for "a relaxed man who doesn't need to flex muscles to show he has power."
Chatting with reporters in the cool of the garden of her private palazzo in downtown Milan at an after-show dinner party, the designer also had some fashion tips for the campaign trail. "I would get rid of the tie and jazz up the shirt," she said.
In fact, there were no ties in Donatella's latest show, and shirts under jackets were either super easy with rolled up sleeves or replaced by a silk T-shirt.
The new Versace suit has a structured jacket softened by a double lapel or no lapel at all and slim trousers with slick techno-fabric sheen. Crazy zigzags break up the monotony of pinstripes and checks, while the pastel palette gives the collection a warm summer feel.
Sitting in the front row, actor Rupert Everett applauded enthusiastically, showing that even if it was not dedicated to him, he found the collection right up his alley.
Overall, this round of "moda Milanese" menswear preview collections, which ends Wednesday, promises to be all about chilling out, a refreshing thought in a Milan in the grip of this summer's first heat wave.
The relaxed feel of the collections is epitomized by the return of the unlined jacket, which, when coupled with wide loose trousers, creates a casual yet elegant summer suit.
Right at home with this look was Tomas Maier, the creative director at Bottega Veneta, who presented his collection Sunday morning.
From the ultra soft pajama jacket to the classic blazer, to the white shantung silk dinner jacket, the idea is to keep a guy stylish and comfortable throughout the day. Novelty comes in the "double jacket" which appears to have separate layers, creating a two-jackets-in-one effect.
"If you think about the gap in menswear between a tailored suit and a T-shirt and jeans, it's filled by the jacket," Maier says in his show notes.
Ultra-soft trousers with well-defined cuff, cool khaki and pastel shades, loafers and saddle shoes, and the latest men's shopping bag in Bottega's exquisite leather complete the collection's casual chic.
Sunday afternoon, Giorgio Armani presented his second line Emporio collection aimed at a younger customer.
The first part of the show reflected the current return of the jacket and suit, with the added attraction of the vest, either as part of the suit or on its own. Here the designer was tops, but then suit tailoring comes naturally to the maestro who invented the unlined jacket back in the 1970's. An Armani suit is a must in the closets of the rich and famous.
The second half of the show, dedicated to sportswear, strayed from this tradition. Ruffled surfing shorts and rubberized — or were they patent leather? — Bermudas made one yearn for Armani the tailor.
Earlier Saturday, Domenico Dolce and Stefano Gabbana underlined the relaxed feel of these previews with a series of silk bathrobes and boxer shorts — the utmost in the luxury of indolence.
Models walked down the runway of the designers' theater in downtown Milan wearing pinstriped suits as loose and easy as silk pajamas. Their horn-rimmed eyeglasses and leather sandals told a tale of a contemporary business man who can combine beach and office with ease.
When home he might be lucky enough to find his better half in a Dolce&Gabbana robe number, just like the one Naomi Campbell flaunted for the show's finale.
Also showing Saturday, Christopher Bailey for Burberry embraced the easy life for next summer wrinkling everything from jacket to trench coat before it gets crumpled in a suitcase or soaked in the rain.
Typically British, the summer Burberry man can't part with his cardigan — this round so light it can hardly be called sensible — and his traditional hat, the latest version a cross between Paddington Bear and a scarecrow.
To complete the first day of showings, the minimalist Jil Sander label presented its take on the current casual look: Jackets cut close to the body in color blocks like a Mondrian print with zippers instead of buttons for an extra cool fit.

By DANIELA PETROFF, AP Fashion Writer

White Valedictorian a Matter of Pride or Validation?

Spike, Martin, Samuel, shoot, even Mukasa could be the face of dear old Morehouse.
It's been circulating that for the first time in Morehouse's 141-year history that she has a white valedictorian.
Joshua Packwood is a valedictorian that had a holistic college and social experience, one who excelled in the classroom both and abroad. Josh earned the right to be both valedictorian and wear the title "Morehouse Man."
However, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution titled their article on him with a preposterous question: Is he the face of Morehouse College?
That, coupled with the slant of certain quotes in the article, led me to believe that the article was not written to celebrate a college student who excelled in his undergraduate studies, but to validate the existence of an historically black college.
I can guarantee you that while Josh was studying for his Microeconomics class, he didn't sit back and say "I'm the face of Morehouse" or "I want to be valedictorian because I'd be the first white person at Morehouse to do so." It was, like many students, to excel in his studies.
From the AP story: Packwood raised "the bar for everyone," said Stanton Fears, a senior economic major.
Whether that is the case, this makes me cringe, thinking of how people can take the aforementioned quote.
He could have gone elsewhere, to a school like Columbia, Stanford or Yale, but his four-year journey through Morehouse has taught him a few things that they could not, and he makes it clear that he has no regrets.
Hundreds of men of Morehouse turn down Ivy League schools for the exact same reasons. Many denied their families' advice to go to these schools in fear that they may not have the same opportunities as they would at Morehouse.
Nobody can question whether Josh deserved his valedictory position, his 4.0 GPA, his growth as a man and student while at Morehouse. As I said before, those are things that he EARNED.
However, I don't like the media attention and slant to his success. There is at least one Rhodes Scholar finalist at Morehouse every year.
Other students have remarkable stories that national media has not published. Jerry Robinson ('04) was the salutatorian as an Accounting major despite having multiple sclerosis. Jerry carried his lunch on a tray with wheels every day for four years, but he carried the name of Morehouse on his back.
Harold Martin ('02) was the first Senior Class President to be named Valedictorian. Since graduation, he has furthered his studies at Yale Law School and is finishing his MBA from Harvard.
Justin Bayless ('07) was the first sophomore in Morehouse history to become a member of Phi Beta Kappa. Due to credit hours, he qualified for the third-year honor society. One year later, Christopher Hollins ('07) was selected to Phi Beta Kappa as a 19-year old junior, shortly after garnering a 171 (out of 180) on the LSAT.
Britt Gayle ('08) received a 38 (out of 45 on a sliding scale) on the MCAT, the highest in AUC history, as a junior Biology/International Studies double-major with two minors. Entering his last semester of his junior, he already had over 120 hours, a few based on AP classes he took while at high school in Switzerland.
Jerome Singleton ('10), a member of Phi Beta Kappa, is a four-year track letterman with a prosthetic foot. Despite having a triple-major of Physics, Mechanical Engineering, and Math, he has maintained a 3.86 GPA and is currently training for the Beijing Olympics in 2008.
There are countless names of friends, confidants, associates and fellow classmates who excelled in life and in the classroom. Where are their stories?
Bottom line, the coverage deals with race, which is unfair to both Morehouse and its new valedictorian.
Ironically, there are many people lauding America for being open-minded to its acceptance of Barack Obama as a viable presidential candidate, but don't have the same view when it comes to this situation.
In both cases, Obama and Packwood deserve it, regardless of the amount of melanin in their skin.
I wish people would see race as a sign of ancestry, not a definition of a person. However, once you bring up the face of my alma mater, it is obvious that she would adorn the face of the majority of her children.
I agree that it is very open-minded for a person to enter an institution where they are a stark minority in order to have a holistic college experience, but the same thing could be said for other races at predominantly white institutions.
Some believe he shouldn't have been admitted. That's not my call nor my place, but at 8 AM on Sunday, I will be proud to watch Josh Packwood address the class of 2008 with an eloquent speech -- not because he's white, because he is a Morehouse Man.
-- Kyle "Scoop" Yeldell