Cannes: Scott Thomas' glorious dip into darkness

CANNES, France (AP) ? To convince Kristin Scott Thomas to play the bloodthirsty matriarch of "Only God Forgives," director Nicolas Winding Refn appealed to Scott Thomas ? how else? ? with the flattery of his own mother.

"That's how he got me to do the film," Scott Thomas said in a beachside interview Wednesday. "He said, 'You're my mother's favorite actress.' So I had to. It was a good trick."

It was an appropriate start for a disturbing portrait of a woman with, to say the least, harsh motherly instincts. In the Bangkok noir, which premiered at the Cannes Film Festival on Wednesday, Scott Thomas plays a mother demanding her surviving son (Ryan Gosling) avenge the murder of her other, more favored son (Tom Burke).

It's a ferocious, gloriously evil performance as far away from "The English Patient" (and the other elegant British period dramas Scott Thomas is best known for) as cinematically possible. Upon learning her son was punished for killing a teenage prostitute, for example, she retorts: "I'm sure he had his reasons."

"A lot of the stuff that I had to do as Crystal was exciting and frightening at the same time," Scott Thomas said. "It made this whole project one of terror and at the same time totally thrilling."

"Only God Forgives" is Refn's second collaboration in a row with Gosling, following the more pop "Drive." It's a menacing descent into brutal darkness, punctuated by bloody spurts of stylish violence. There's even less dialogue than "Drive" (the script was a sparse 60 pages, Refn says), and the film unfolds as a perverse Greek tragedy transported to Thailand's grim underbelly.

Refn conceived of Scott Thomas' character as a combination of Lady Macbeth and Donatella Versace after the actress sent him photos of her with long blonde extensions.

"I was like, 'God, that's so sexy,'" the Danish director said sitting alongside Scott Thomas. "That whole Donatella oddness: frightening but very sexual."

Scott Thomas calls the thick makeup an "ultra-costume."

"It's a sort of armor, that look," she says. "It's very, very, very empowering and at the same time very frightening. It changes the way people look at you completely."

While critics at Cannes had mixed reactions to "Only God Forgives" (it drew boos from some), Scott Thomas' performance was hailed, along with predictions of an Oscar nomination. In a memorable dinner party scene, she cuttingly and vulgarly dresses down Gosling's character. She negatively compares the size of his genitalia with his brother's ? an explicitness that not even the Greeks dared.

"They had all these things that were implied," Scott Thomas says. "I said why don't we just say it? Just get it out there, so to speak. Say the words that everyone else is alluding to."

Refn gradually cut the lengthy scene more and more until it was basically a monologue. Gosling also added a suggestion ? a slur Crystal lobs at her son's female guest ? after Refn asked for one of the most offensive words to call a woman in America.

"I couldn't get it out," Scott Thomas says, laughing. "I couldn't get it right until about 10 takes."

It's the kind of harsh, hilariously cruel dialogue actors dream of. But Scott Thomas says that while it was an interesting acting challenge "to push the dialogue," ''it was such a nightmare."

"After a while, once you've been doing this for a long time ? weeks and nights ? you feel, 'Oh, god, I'd love to say something nice,'" says Scott Thomas. "This hatred and anger and destruction is actually quite difficult after a while. It gets to you once the novelty of the transition is over and you're just stuck in that darkness."

Much of the character and her archetypal qualities weren't refined until they were on set shooting. Refn works collaboratively with actors, guided by the boldness of his oft-repeated mantra: "The enemy of creativity is good taste." He was enamored by what "KST," as he calls her, did with the part.

"Most of the time, we'd just sit and stare and go, 'Oh my god! What have we unleashed?'" Refn says. "It was what the film needed, the film needed a character like that that would essentially be the antagonist of the protagonist. But she would be so dominating that you could never live up to her, you could never penetrate her."

The experience, while clearly enthralling for Scott Thomas, was also unnerving. As much as audiences at Cannes responded to her performance, she exhales: "I'm going to do a comedy next."

___

Follow AP Entertainment Writer Jake Coyle on Twitter at: http://twitter.com/jake_coyle

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/cannes-scott-thomas-glorious-dip-darkness-192913320.html

jimmie johnson juan pablo montoya crash chardon high school shooting mark martin cleveland news daytona race the cutting edge

IRS official Lerner: 'I did nothing wrong'

IRS official Lois Lerner is sworn in on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, May 22, 2013, before the House Oversight Committee hearing to investigate the extra scrutiny IRS gave to Tea Party and other conservative groups that applied for tax-exempt status. Lerner told the committee she did nothing wrong and then invoked her constitutional right to not answer lawmakers' questions. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

IRS official Lois Lerner is sworn in on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, May 22, 2013, before the House Oversight Committee hearing to investigate the extra scrutiny IRS gave to Tea Party and other conservative groups that applied for tax-exempt status. Lerner told the committee she did nothing wrong and then invoked her constitutional right to not answer lawmakers' questions. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

House Oversight Committee Chairman Rep. Darrell Issa, R-Calif. holds up a document as he speaks to IRS official Lois Lerner on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, May 22, 2013, during the committee's hearing to investigate the extra scrutiny IRS gave to Tea Party and other conservative groups that applied for tax-exempt status. Lerner told the committee she did nothing wrong and then invoked her constitutional right to not answer lawmakers' questions. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

From left, Treasury Inspector General for Tax Administration J. Russell George, former IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman, Lois Lerner, head of the IRS unit that decides whether to grant tax-exempt status to groups, and Deputy Treasury Secretary Neal Wolin, are sworn in on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, May 22, 2013, prior to testifying before the House Oversight Committee hearing to investigate the extra scrutiny the Internal Revenue Service gave Tea Party and other conservative groups that applied for tax-exempt status. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

IRS official Lois Lerner arrives on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, May 22, 2013, to testify before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing to investigate the extra scrutiny IRS gave to Tea Party and other conservative groups that applied for tax-exempt status. Lerner told the committee she did nothing wrong and then invoked her constitutional right to not answer lawmakers' questions. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

IRS official Lois Lerner arrives on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, May 22, 2013, to testify before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee hearing to investigate the extra scrutiny IRS gave to Tea Party and other conservative groups that applied for tax-exempt status. Lerner told the committee she did nothing wrong and then invoked her constitutional right to not answer lawmakers' questions. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? The Internal Revenue Service official at the center of the storm over the agency's targeting of conservative groups told Congress on Wednesday that she had done nothing wrong in the episode, and then invoked her constitutional right to refuse to answer lawmakers' questions.

In one of the most electric moments since the IRS controversy erupted nearly two weeks ago, Lois Lerner defended herself during a brief appearance before the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. The committee is investigating the agency's improper targeting of tea party and other conservative groups seeking tax-exempt status from 2010 to 2012, and Lerner oversees the IRS office that processes applications for that designation.

"I have done nothing wrong," said a stern-looking Lerner, sitting next to three other witnesses and reading from a written statement. "I have not broken any laws. I have not violated any IRS rules or regulations and I have not provided false information to this or any other committee."

Members of Congress have angrily complained that Lerner and other high-ranking IRS officials did not inform lawmakers that conservative groups were targeted, even though legislators asked the IRS multiple times about it after local tea party groups told lawmakers they were being treated unfairly.

Lerner then said she would invoke her Fifth Amendment right to avoid incriminating herself. After Oversight committee Chairman Darrell Issa, R-Calif., asked her to reconsider, Lerner said, "I will not answer any questions or testify about the subject matter of this committee's meeting."

Nine minutes after she began speaking, Issa excused Lerner and she left the hearing room through a rear door, escorted by her lawyer and several other men. The men quickly whisked Lerner into an elevator, where several of the men physically pushed back television camera operators who were trying to film them.

Lerner's refusal to answer questions was not a surprise. Her attorney, William W. Taylor III, wrote a letter to the committee this week saying she would do so.

Issa and other members of the committee were not pleased with Lerner's decision to not testify. Even before she spoke, Rep. Stephen Lynch, D-Mass., warned the witnesses that their refusal to cooperate would result in the eventual appointment of a special prosecutor to examine the case.

"There will be hell to pay if that's the route we choose to go down," Lynch said.

Lerner revealed the agency's targeting two weeks ago and apologized for the actions. Since then, Washington has been awash in questions about why the nonpartisan IRS focused on conservative groups, who instigated it and whether it was politically motivated ? which many Republicans suspect but participants have rejected.

J. Russell George, the Treasury Department inspector general who focuses on taxes, released a report last week that detailed the targeting and called it inappropriate. He has said there is no evidence that the screening was politically motivated or that IRS officials were influenced by others, and blamed poor management by IRS officials for allowing the screening system to be instituted.

Lerner, 62, is an attorney who joined the IRS in 2001. She has come under fire from members of both parties, including Maryland Rep. Elijah Cummings, top Democrat on the Oversight Committee, who has said she should lose her job and criticized top IRS officials for not being more forthcoming.

"We're talking about truth and trust," Cummings said.

At Wednesday's hearing ? Congress' third since the controversy began ? the No. 2 Treasury Department official said his agency played no role in the episode.

"There is no indication that Treasury was involved in the inexcusable behavior at the IRS," said Deputy Secretary Neal Wolin.

Wolin told the committee that it was "absolutely unacceptable and inexcusable" that the IRS subjected tea party and other conservative groups seeking non-profit status to extra scrutiny from 2010 to 2012.

He said George told him last year "that he had undertaken an audit of the IRS's review of tax-exempt applications."

"I told him that he should follow the facts wherever they lead. I told him that our job is to stay out of the way and let him do his work," Wolin said.

Issa and other members of the committee complained repeatedly Wednesday that IRS officials had ample opportunity to tell Congress earlier about the targeting but didn't do so. Issa said his committee has privately interviewed another IRS official, Holly Paz, who said the IRS conducted an internal investigation that reached similar conclusions to George's report, but a year earlier.

"Think about it. For more than a year, the IRS knew it had inappropriately targeted groups of Americans based on their political beliefs, without mentioning it" to Congress, Issa said.

While the targeting began in early 2010, Lerner learned of it in June 2011 and ordered that the criteria be changed, according to George's report.

In early May 2012, Steven Miller, who was deputy commissioner, was told by staff that conservative groups were being inappropriately targeted, George's report said. Miller later became acting commissioner but has been ousted by President Barack Obama in the wake of the disclosures.

Staff of the Oversight Committee questioned Lerner and other IRS officials last year after receiving complaints from Ohio tea party groups that they were being mistreated by the IRS. In responses to the committee, Lerner didn't mention that tea party groups had ever been targeted, according to documents. Her responses included 45-page letters in May 2012 to Issa and Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio.

Lerner also met twice in early 2012 with staff from the House Ways and Means oversight subcommittee to discuss the issue, according to a timeline constructed by committee staff. The timeline said she didn't mention at either meeting that conservative groups had been targeted.

A career civil servant who has run the division since late 2005, Lerner has not been disciplined for her role, IRS officials said.

Also coming under fire Wednesday for not telling Congress about the targeting was Douglas Shulman, who was IRS commissioner from 2008 until last November, while the screening was occurring. Shulman was appointed by President George W. Bush.

On Tuesday, Shulman told the Senate Finance Committee that he learned in the spring of 2012 about his agency's targeting of conservatives and George's probe. He said he didn't tell lawmakers or officials at Treasury ? of which the IRS is part ? because he only had sketchy information about the situation, was told it was being handled and believed it proper to let George's office conduct its investigation.

"When you learned that there was a list, you did nothing," said Lynch, the Massachusetts congressman.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/89ae8247abe8493fae24405546e9a1aa/Article_2013-05-22-IRS-Political%20Groups/id-164f71652b1542e58155aa3b9003b0e0

oh the places you ll go blunt amendment justin bieber birthday read across america vikings stadium breitbart dead db cooper

Inhofe Says Tornado Aid is Different Than Hurricane Aid (Taegan Goddard's Political Wire)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories Stories, RSS and RSS Feed via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/307280388?client_source=feed&format=rss

Kwame Kilpatrick New pope 2013 earthquake california earthquake california good morning america daylight savings time douglas adams

'Rules Of Engagement' 100th Episode Series Finale: Happy Endings And One Surprise (VIDEO)

"666 Park Avenue"

<strong>"666 Park Ave.," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Canceled <strong>Why</strong>: <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/16/666-park-avenue-canceled_n_2147290.html">ABC pulled the plug</a> on this supernatural drama earlier in the season.

"The Bachelor"

<strong>"The Bachelor," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Likely to be renewed <strong>Why</strong>: While ratings may have dropped, "The Bachelor" will likely see another season on ABC as tabloids and viewers still care about the comings and goings of contestants.

"Body of Proof"

<strong>"Body of Proof," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Canceled <strong>Why</strong>: ABC is keen on this Dana Delany drama, but the ratings for the show's third season couldn't save it.

"Castle"

<strong>"Castle," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: Strong ratings and a dedicated viewership keep "Castle" on the schedule.

"Dancing With the Stars"

<strong>"Dancing With the Stars," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Likely to be renewed <strong>Why</strong>: The series is hurting in the ratings ... by "DWTS" standards. It's still a strong player for ABC, but the new season hasn't premiered yet.

"Don't Trust The B---- In Apt. 23"

<strong>"Don't Trust The B---- In Apt. 23," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Canceled <strong>Why</strong>: <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/01/22/apartment-23-canceled-dont-trust-the-b_n_2528858.html">ABC pulled the low-rated comedy</a> from it schedule and the stars took to Twitter to announce the cancellation.

"Family Tools"

<strong>"Family Tools," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Canceled <strong>Why</strong>: This ABC comedy had a May 1 premiere date and that was the first of many bad signs.

"Grey's Anatomy"

<strong>"Grey's Anatomy," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: America still loves McDreamy and the goings on at <s>Seattle Grace</s> Grey Sloan Memorial.

"Happy Endings"

<strong>"Happy Endings," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Canceled <strong>Why</strong>: Always the bubble show, never the surefire renewal hit. "Happy Endings" has suffered from many ratings ailments, including bad scheduling (<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/14/happy-endings-friday-abc_n_2683091.html">it moved to Friday night</a>) and lack of promo. But this ahmahzing show has some serious fans that are determined to keep it around on another network (a la "Cougar Town.")

"How To Live With Your Parents (For The Rest Of Your Life)"

<strong>"How To Live With Your Parents (For The Rest Of Your Life)," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Canceled <strong>Why</strong>: The ABC comedy starring Sarah Chalke had a late midseason debut and though its ratings were decent, it still couldn't save the comedy.

"Last Man Standing"

<strong>"Last Man Standing," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: Viewers still love Tim Allen and the show has been performing well on Friday nights.

"Last Resort"

<strong>"Last Resort," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Canceled <strong>Why</strong>: <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/16/last-resort-canceled-abc_n_2147316.html">ABC killed the Shawn Ryan drama</a> in late 2012.

"Malibu Country"

<strong>"Malibu Country," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Canceled <strong>Why</strong>: "Malibu Country" had been performing well on Friday nights, but the ratings took a dip and there was also showrunner switches that are never a good.

"The Middle"

<strong>"The Middle," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: Now in its fourth season, "The Middle" is still pulling in more than 8 million viewers an episode as the anchor of ABC's Wednesday comedies.

"Mistresses"

<strong>"Mistresses," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Too soon to tell <strong>Why</strong>: The drama, which is based on the UK series of the same name, just got a Monday, May 27 premiere date. Though the scheduling struggle doesn't bode well, the ABC drama does have Alyssa Milano and "Lost" alum Yunjin Kim leading the foursome.

"Modern Family"

<strong>"Modern Family," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: A fan favorite and Emmy darling, "Modern Family" will be back and will make ABC lots of money in syndication.

"Nashville"

<strong>"Nashville," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: Critical acclaim doesn't always equate to rating success, but ABC still believes in this Connie Britton-fronted drama despite the numbers.

"The Neighbors"

<strong>"The Neighbors," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: One of the few "hits" of the season, "The Neighbors" has found an audience and kept it pretty steadily week after week (<a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/06/11/abc-shows-fall-tv-2012-2013_n_1581796.html">much to our dismay</a>).

"Once Upon a Time"

<strong>"Once Upon a Time," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: A ratings hit in its second season, "Once Upon a Time" will be back for a third season full of fairytale adventures.

"Private Practice"

<strong>"Private Practice," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Ended <strong>Why</strong>: The "Grey's Anatomy" spinoff said goodbye in January 2013.

"Red Widow"

<strong>"Red Widow," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Canceled <strong>Why</strong>: The show had a late February debut on ABC and the ratings were abysmal.

"Revenge"

<strong>"Revenge," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: "Revenge" has fallen out of critical favor and seen lower ratings in its new Sunday night home. Though it lost its creator Mike Kelley as the showrunner, it will return for a third season, considering the sad state of ABC's dramas.

"Rookie Blue"

<strong>"Rookie Blue," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: The Canadian co-production will return for a fourth season on ABC during the summer of 2013.

"Scandal"

<strong>"Scandal," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: Shonda Rhimes has another hit on her hands. Now in its second season, "Scandal" has benefited from word-of-mouth and has been rising in the ratings (even recently beating out its lead in "Grey's Anatomy"). A likable star -- Kerry Washington -- and continued buzz keep "Scandal" on the schedule.

"Suburgatory"

<strong>"Suburgatory," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: The series started Season 2 off strong in the ratings, but its audience has slowly eroded. Still, the show will be back for a third season.

"Zero Hour"

<strong>"Zero Hour," ABC</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Canceled <strong>Why</strong>: The Anthony Edwards vehicle debuted to 6.3 million viewers with a 1.3 rating in the key 18-49 demographic, making it <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/15/zero-hour-ratings_n_2695800.html">the least-watched premiere for a scripted series in ABC's history</a>. Things only got worse from there.

"2 Broke Girls"

<strong>"2 Broke Girls," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: CBS renewed "2 Broke Girls" in March of 2013.

"The Amazing Race"

<strong>"The Amazing Race," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: As an Emmy and fan favorite, "The Amazing Race" has been a strong player for CBS.

"The Big Bang Theory"

<strong>"The Big Bang Theory," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: Now in its sixth season, "Big Bang" is reaching series-high ratings. Even up against reality powerhouse "American Idol," "The Big Bang Theory" has been delivering with crazy high numbers in the 18-49 demographic, beating out what was once Fox's juggernaut.

"Blue Bloods"

<strong>"Blue Bloods," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: The Tom Selleck-fronted police drama is a strong ratings performer for CBS on Fridays.

"Criminal Minds"

<strong>"Criminal Minds," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: As one of CBS's strong procedural players, the series has been steady in the ratings and will likely be renewed to help anchor a night and launch a new drama.

"CSI"

<strong>"CSI," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: Of the two "CSI" shows on the air, "CSI" is the stronger player in the TV landscape. The show is nowhere near its earlier ratings, but Ted Danson signed on for more and the show will be back.

"CSI: NY"

<strong>"CSI: NY," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Canceled <strong>Why</strong>: The ratings from this "CSI" spinoff have faded over the years.

"Elementary"

<strong>"Elementary," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: One of the very few freshman series hits during the 2012-2013 TV season, CBS is very keen on this modern-day take on Sherlock Holmes. The audience has been steady and the network even gave it the post-Super Bowl timeslot.

"Golden Boy"

<strong>"Golden Boy," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Canceled <strong>Why</strong>: CBS certainly has a handsome star at the front of this cop drama, but its late season entry hinted toward CBS's confidence in the show.

"The Good Wife"

<strong>"The Good Wife," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: A former ratings champ, "The Good Wife" has slipped to series low ratings on Sunday nights. Blame football overrun, fan-detested storylines or too many guest stars, but "The Good Wife" has star power and critical praise, plus its nearing a good syndication sweet spot.

"Hawaii Five-0"

<strong>"Hawaii Five-0," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: In March, <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/03/27/the-good-wife-renewed-season-5_n_2965829.html" target="_hplink">CBS announced "Hawaii Five-0" received an early renewal along with several of its other popular programs</a>.

"How I Met Your Mother"

<strong>"How I Met Your Mother," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: CBS handed out a ninth and final season to this comedy with the entire cast returning. Expect to meet the mother, finally.

"Made In Jersey"

<strong>"Made In Jersey," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Canceled <strong>Why</strong>: CBS pulled the plug on this legal drama very early on in the season because of low ratings.

"The Mentalist"

<strong>"The Mentalist," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: "The Mentalist" has fallen to mediocre ratings -- by CBS standards -- but it was nonetheless renewed in March of 2013.

"Mike & Molly"

<strong>"Mike & Molly," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: The ratings are down a little bit from last year, but Melissa McCarthy's star continues to rise.

"NCIS"

<strong>"NCIS," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: CBS reached a deal with series star Mark Harmon in early 2013, keeping the No. 1 show in America around for a Season 11.

"NCIS: LA"

<strong>"NCIS: LA," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: Viewers love their "NCIS," in any form. The ratings have been strong and the network is producing a backdoor spinoff pilot for this spinoff show. A full night of "NCIS" could be in CBS's future.

"Partners"

<strong>"Partners," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Canceled <strong>Why</strong>: Low ratings and unfavorable reviews led to the <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/16/partners-canceled-cbs_n_2145832.html">early demise</a> of this CBS comedy.

"Person of Interest"

<strong>"Person of Interest," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: The series has developed a nice-sized audience, bigger than its first season.

"Rules of Engagement"

<strong>"Rules of Engagement," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Canceled <strong>Why</strong>: This comedy has been on the bubble since it premiered ... yet it made it to Season 7. It's finally time to say goodbye.

"Survivor"

<strong>"Survivor," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: A strong player for the last 13 years, "Survivor" will be back. But due to its <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/14/survivor-ratings-lowest-premiere-ever_n_2687591.html">most recent premiere ratings</a>, we might not see it during the fall season, though a midseason or summer return -- with some new gimmick -- is definitely in the cards for the reality series.

"Two and a Half Men"

<strong>"Two and a Half Men," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: CBS always wanted another season of this bawdy hit, it was just a matter of getting its stars to sign back on. Though Jon Cryer and Ashton Kutcher will be back for a Season 11, the "half" man Angus T. Jones remains up in the air.

"Undercover Boss"

<strong>"Undercover Boss," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Renewed <strong>Why</strong>: The show is enjoying life in syndication and its Season 4 numbers are better than most of its third season.

"Unforgettable"

<strong>"Unforgettable," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Uncanceled <strong>Why</strong>: CBS canceled the Poppy Montgomery drama last season ... and then revived it! Season 2 premieres Sunday, July 28.

"Vegas"

<strong>"Vegas," CBS</strong> <strong>Status</strong>: Canceled <strong>Why</strong>: Despite star power, the series wasn't a breakout hit in the ratings. CBS previously canceled "Unforgettable" (then uncanceled it) last season when it was doing about the same as "Vegas."

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/05/21/rules-of-engagement-100-series-finale-video_n_3310323.html

ronnie montrose melissa gilbert dancing with the stars dandelion wine cough matt groening brandon phillips summerfest

Search nearly complete after Oklahoma tornado

Justin Stehan salvages photographs from his tornado-ravaged home Tuesday, May 21, 2013, in Moore, Okla. A huge tornado roared through the Oklahoma City suburb Monday, flattening entire neighborhoods and destroying an elementary school with a direct blow as children and teachers huddled against winds. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

Justin Stehan salvages photographs from his tornado-ravaged home Tuesday, May 21, 2013, in Moore, Okla. A huge tornado roared through the Oklahoma City suburb Monday, flattening entire neighborhoods and destroying an elementary school with a direct blow as children and teachers huddled against winds. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

Jimmy Hodges helps Chad Heltcel and his wife Cassidi salvage the wreckage of Chad Heltcel's family home, which was destroyed Monday when a tornado moved through Moore, Okla., Tuesday, May 21, 2013. The huge tornado roared through the Oklahoma City suburb, flattening entire neighborhoods and destroying an elementary school with a direct blow as children and teachers huddled against winds.(AP Photo/Brennan Linsley)

Zac Woodcock salvages items from the rubble of a tornado-ravaged rental home which they own Tuesday, May 21, 2013, in Moore, Okla. A huge tornado roared through the Oklahoma City suburb Monday, flattening an entire neighborhoods and destroying an elementary school with a direct blow as children and teachers huddled against winds. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

AT&T employees sort through tangled phone lines as they clean up in a tornado-ravaged neighborhood Tuesday, May 21, 2013, in Moore, Okla. A huge tornado roared through the Oklahoma City suburb Monday, flattening entire neighborhoods and destroying an elementary school with a direct blow as children and teachers huddled against winds. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

An unidentified man watches a rain storm from inside the garage of his tornado-damaged home Tuesday, May 21, 2013, in Moore, Okla. A huge tornado roared through the Oklahoma City suburb Monday, flattening entire neighborhoods and destroying an elementary school with a direct blow as children and teachers huddled against winds. (AP Photo/Charlie Riedel)

MOORE, Okla. (AP) ? Helmeted rescue workers raced Tuesday to complete the search for survivors and the dead in the Oklahoma City suburb where a mammoth tornado destroyed countless homes, cleared lots down to bare red earth and claimed 24 lives.

Scientists concluded the storm was a rare and extraordinarily powerful type of twister known as an EF5, which is capable of lifting reinforced buildings off the ground, hurling cars like missiles and stripping trees completely free of bark.

Meanwhile, residents of Moore began returning to their homes a day after the tornado smashed some neighborhoods into jagged wood scraps and gnarled pieces of metal. In place of their houses, many families found only empty lots.

The fire chief said he was confident there are no more bodies or survivors in the rubble.

"I'm 98 percent sure we're good," Gary Bird said Tuesday at a news conference with the governor, who had just completed an aerial tour of the disaster zone.

Authorities were so focused on the search effort that they had yet to establish the full scope of damage along the storm's long, ruinous path.

The death toll was revised downward from 51 after the state medical examiner said some victims may have been counted twice in the confusion.

By Tuesday afternoon, every damaged home had been searched at least once, Bird said. His goal was to conduct three searches of each building just to be certain there were no more bodies or survivors.

The fire chief was hopeful that could be completed before nightfall but efforts were being hampered by heavy rain. Crews also continued a brick-by-brick search of the rubble of a school that was blown apart with many children inside.

No additional survivors or bodies have been found since Monday night, Bird said.

Survivors emerged with harrowing accounts of the storm's wrath, which many endured as they shielded loved ones.

Chelsie McCumber grabbed her 2-year-old son, Ethan, wrapped him in jackets and covered him with a mattress before they squeezed into a coat closet of their house. McCumber sang to her child when he complained it was getting hot inside the small space.

"I told him we're going to play tent in the closet," she said, beginning to cry.

"I just felt air so I knew the roof was gone," she said Tuesday, standing under the sky where her roof should have been. The home was littered with wet gray insulation and all of their belongings.

"Time just kind of stood still" in the closet, she recalled. "I was kind of holding my breath thinking this isn't the worst of it. I didn't think that was it. I kept waiting for it to get worse."

"When I got out, it was worse than I thought," she said.

Gov. Mary Fallin lamented the loss of life, especially of the nine children killed, but she celebrated the town's resilience.

"We will rebuild, and we will regain our strength," Fallin said.

In describing the bird's-eye view of the damage, the governor said many houses were "taken away," leaving "just sticks and bricks, basically. It's hard to tell if there was a structure there or not."

From the air, large stretches of town could been seen where every home had been cut to pieces. Some homes were sucked off their concrete slabs. A pond was filled with piles of wood and an overturned trailer.

Also visible were large patches of red earth where the tornado scoured the land down to the soil. Some tree trunks were still standing, but the winds ripped away their leaves, limbs and bark.

In revising its estimate of the storm's power, the National Weather Service said the tornado, which was on the ground for 40 minutes, was a top-of-the-scale EF5 twister with winds of at least 200 mph.

The agency upgraded the tornado from an EF4 on the enhanced Fujita scale based on reports from a damage-assessment team, said spokeswoman Keli Pirtle. Monday's twister was at least a half-mile wide, and it was the first EF5 tornado of 2013.

Other search-and-rescue teams focused their efforts at Plaza Towers Elementary, where the storm ripped off the roof, knocked down walls and destroyed the playground as students and teachers huddled in hallways and bathrooms.

Seven of the nine dead children were killed at the school, but several students were pulled alive from under a collapsed wall and other heaps of mangled debris. Rescue workers passed the survivors down a human chain of parents and neighborhood volunteers. Parents carried children in their arms to a triage center in the parking lot. Some students looked dazed, others terrified.

Plaza Towers and another school in Oklahoma City that was not as severely damaged did not have reinforced storm shelters, or safe rooms, said Albert Ashwood is director of the Oklahoma Department of Emergency Management.

More than 100 schools across the state do have safe rooms, he said, adding that it's up to each jurisdiction to set priorities for which schools get limited funding for safe rooms.

Ashwood said a shelter would not necessarily have saved more lives at Plaza Towers.

"When you talk about any kind of safety measures ... it's a mitigating measure, it's not an absolute," he told reporters. "There's not a guarantee that everyone will be totally safe."

Officials were still trying to account for a handful of children not found at the school who may have gone home early with their parents, Bird said Tuesday.

Evidence of the storm's fury stretched in every direction: Roofs were torn off houses, exposing metal rods left twisted like pretzels. Cars sat in heaps, crumpled and sprayed with caked-on mud. Insulation and siding was piled up against any walls still standing. Yards were littered with pieces of wood, nails and pieces of electric poles.

President Barack Obama pledged to provide federal help and mourned the death of young children who were killed while "trying to take shelter in the safest place they knew ? their school."

The town of Moore "needs to get everything it needs right away," he said Tuesday.

Moore has been one of the fastest-growing suburbs of Oklahoma City, attracting middle-income families and young couples looking for stable schools and affordable housing. The town's population has grown over the last decade as developers built subdivisions for people who wanted to avoid the urban problems and schools of Oklahoma City but couldn't afford pricier college-town Norman next door.

Many residents commute to jobs in Oklahoma City or to Tinker Air Force Base, which is about 20 minutes away.

___

Associated Press writers Tim Talley, Ramit Plushnick-Masti and Nomaan Merchant and Associated Press photographer Sue Ogrocki contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-05-21-US-Oklahoma-Tornado/id-54eccc71654f41f2b4d214519df2a188

Psy Gentleman Angel Cabrera Jay Z Open Letter glee glee masters live frozen four

North Korean leader sends 'special envoy' to China

PYONGYANG, North Korea (AP) ? A "special envoy" for North Korean leader Kim Jong Un left Pyongyang on Wednesday for China, the North's only major political and economic benefactor. State media released few details, but the trip comes at a rocky time in ties between the allies.

In a short dispatch, the North's official Korean Central News Agency said Kim's envoy was Choe Ryong Hae, the North Korean military's top political officer tasked with supervising the army. Choe was one of a handful of new vice marshals North Korea announced last year.

The trip comes as a new leadership in China has shown frustration with North Korea and a greater willingness to work with Washington to harry Pyongyang over its nuclear ambitions. China is Pyongyang's economic and diplomatic lifeline, providing nearly all of its fuel and most of its trade.

Still, Beijing's primary goal is stability, and it has sought to temper diplomatic pressure on the North's nuclear program so as not to create a crisis that could damage the Chinese economy or push refugees into China.

South Korean Unification Ministry spokeswoman Park Soo-jin said it's too early to provide an assessment on Choe's trip to China.

Kim Jong Un hasn't visited Beijing since he took power from his father, Kim Jong Il, who visited China in August 2011 just months before he died that December.

Strains have increasingly appeared in relations between Beijing and Pyongyang over North Korea's nuclear efforts, which included a February nuclear test, Pyongyang's third. That test was followed by U.N. sanctions and a weekslong period of high tensions, as North Korea threatened nuclear strikes on Washington and Seoul. Those tensions have eased some, and there have been tentative signs of an interest in diplomacy.

In another sign of Beijing's displeasure with its ally, China's state-run Bank of China Ltd. said earlier this month that it had notified the Foreign Trade Bank of North Korea that its accounts were closed and all financial transactions suspended. Washington welcomed the move.

On Tuesday, a Chinese fisherman said gunmen wearing North Korean military uniforms released his boat after holding its crew for two weeks, beating up the captain and stealing the vessel's fuel.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2013-05-21-AS-NKorea-China/id-82cb98e92fbf4796ad6e8ee307fec8a6

ncaa final game reba mcentire acm awards the killing global payments eli young band wrestlemania

Unearthed Reviews: Renegade Peacock. Two stars | The RiotACT

Life is like an Unearthed Review.

Someone who really isn?t qualified to make judgments on you ends up being a jerk to you.

That unqualified jerk is me, and the poor undeserving punter whom I will be mean to is Renegade Peacock.

Here?s what they have to say about themselves:

?

They didn?t fill their BIO in, but seeing as the user reviews appear to be written by the band?s girlfriends (or possibly the band while wearing wigs) let?s just use some of the quotes from there as a bio.

raddest song ever

Awesome. AIC if they were a new band now

Awesome driving song! Harmonies in the chorus take this track to a whole other level. Looking forward to seeing you guys live again soon!

This song blows my mind. Amazing!

Best!! BEST!! Love this song, love this band, LOOOOVE The Peacock!

So good!

Really love the chorus and the explosive ending

These guys are fantastic! Every song makes me move!

Here?s what I have to say about Renegade Peacock:

Yawn.

This is grungy rock created out of a manual and it is exactly as raw and edgy as that sentence makes it sound. There is nothing wrong with it, but there is nothing right either. The singer can sing, the instrumentalists can play, and the music is fine. The songs make sense, the lyrics do their job, and the world keeps turning. They?ve ticked all the boxes. They are a band, they are playing rock, the mic is plugged in. If that?s all you need, congratulations! You can stop reading this review here, I?ve found you another band to listen to.

But it sounds like a million bands that can come before.

It sounds like something very safe pretending it?s dangerous.

They?ve put three tracks up and each sounds more generic than the one that comes after it, and the one that comes before it. I know that doesn?t make sense but somehow it?s still true.

It?s amazing. It doesn?t matter what order you actually play the songs in either. No matter how you listen to it, you?ll swear that the song you?re currently listening to is the safest most generic rock song you?ve ever heard, only to swear that again when the next track plays.

?This can?t be right!? You?ll say, ?One of these songs must be the most generic!? and you?ll dive back into your research.

Eventually you?ll realise the trick. All three of the available songs are in fact the single same song and you?ve wasted far too much of your afternoon listening to it.

Two stars.

Source: http://the-riotact.com/unearthed-reviews-renegade-peacock-two-stars/104656

christina aguilera david beckham memorial day powerball winner powerball winner WWE Bay to Breakers

Bill Cosby, Vindicated . . . By the Obamas? (Powerlineblog)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories News, News Feeds and News via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/307027650?client_source=feed&format=rss

vikings stadium breitbart dead db cooper fafsa branson missouri davy jones dead monkees

Siri Competitor Maluuba Brings Sports Results And TV Schedules To Its Android And Windows Phone Apps

Maluuba, the Waterloo, Canada-based Siri competitor and TechCrunch Disrupt SF 2012 Battlefield finalist, today announced that it has added two new features to its voice-powered personal assistant app for Android and Windows Phone: sports and TV schedules. With this, Maluuba users in the U.S. and Canada can now ask it for near real-time sports results and query the service for TV listings in their area by name, genre or channel. One aspect of the service the Maluuba team has always been proud of is the fact that it has managed to add additional domains to the service quickly. The service started out with 18 domains, including restaurants, movies and general knowledge queries, but the team has continued to expand the range of topics it can handle since then. It has also rapidly expanded internationally since its launch and launched its Windows Phone 8 app earlier this year, too. With the new sports integration – and thanks to Maluuba’s expertise in natural language processing – users can ask Maluuba questions like “When is the next Blackhawks game?” or ?How many wins do the New York Yankees have?” and get answers almost immediately. To get this data, the company has partnered with Sports Direct. For TV shows, Maluuba now understands questions like “When’s The Big Bang Theory playing next?” or “What’s on Channel 5?” ?These features are a testament to our vision. Users want exact results, not just blue links that are merely?related,” Mohamed Musbah,?Maluuba’s product manager, said in a canned statement today.?”When you first use Sports or TV search on Maluuba, you?ll realize how easy and fast search can?be.” With its recently announced “conversational search” feature, Google is also adding more voice and NLP-powered search tools to its feature set. Maluuba, right now, still seems to be ahead of Google in many areas, The company tells me that it believes Google’s entry into this market validates Maluuba’s model and the team doesn’t seem to be afraid of Google for now.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Techcrunch/~3/f54MkBNIPQc/

bank of america Yunel Escobar Eye Black Cruel Summer Endeavor shaun white carolina panthers Revolution TV Show

Cheap Cleocin - Buying Cleocin in internet saturday shippin ...

Sorry, Readability was unable to parse this page for content.

Source: http://www.malikounda.com/discussions/economie-mali-business-f6/cheap-cleocin-buying-cleocin-internet-saturday-shippin-t119977.html

josh hamilton Susan Rice the Who jon bon jovi jon bon jovi Kliff Kingsbury Amish Mafia

Back Links Rules Have Changed in 2013 for Bike Shop in Indianapolis

The basic rules for writing online content in order to generated views and backlinks haven?t changed:

Rule #1 ? Write all of your content for the consumer of the content.
Rule #2 ? Rewrite to add the backlinks.

Both of these rules will please the Google Beast.? You must first feed it strong, healthy food, then you can add in the Extreme Moose Tracks.? For a while in 2010 ? 2012, this was not necessarily the case.? You could write, ?spell article by Bike Shop Indianapolis for bicycle riding around special gears,? and hyperlink Bike Shop Indianapolis to their home page.? Then you would merely place this sentence in an article, press release, forum,? and/or ?guest blog,? and Google thought it was just fine.

Now along comes algorithm changes Panda, Penguin, and Panda 2 and etc., and this same practice might actually cause the beast to eat you.? There are some new rules in 2013.

Rule #3 ? Don?t overuse the same exact keyword from the same source.?? We used to believe that you just needed to keep the total use of a keywords under 5% of the total on the page (or some other percent depending on which guru you were reading).? Now you can lose the value of keywords or even get negative attention if the keyword is overused even in the same website or blog.

Rule #4 ? Solve the overuse problem by using synonyms.? Google wants you to write naturally, and knows that good writers don?t use the same words over and over.? A good writer will say that, ?the bike shop in Indianapolis? was noted for providing great outreach to community groups.? The Indianapolis based bicycle retailer recently held a fund raiser to help the Tatum?s Bags of Fun charity.?

Rule #5 ? You will note in the above rule #4, that each link is to a different URL that the dealer hopes to help to rank.? In this case, one is to the website and the other is to the blog.? It would be easy to also point out that,T3 Bicycle and Triathlon offers many videos about road bikes in Indianapolis.? ? This link goes to their YouTube channel or could go to a specific video.? You can repeat this with individual blog posts, inside pages on the website, and so on.

Rule #6 ? Google also knows that good writers will commonly provide a ?natural? url instead of a hyperlink.? So they like to see variations in this theme as well.? ?Another way that T3 Bicycle and Triathlon reaches out is through their free bicycle tips section on their website at http://www.t3multisport.com/tips/cycling-tips-tp53/

Rule #7 ? I also changed the URL for this blog to have /Indianapolis-bike-shop appear first in the internal page portion of the URL.? Google looks at URL?s, and believes that what you put in the URL is what is most important to you.

Rule #8 ? I created a ?Excerpt? which is the equivalent in WordPress for the description tag.? This tag should be written as a teaser and have 140 characters or less.

The blog post above provided my client with 5 backlinks to 4 different URL?s with 3 different keywords.? And you?ll also note that one of the links was in the H1 headline.? The article sounds perfectly normal, not jammed with inappropriate or weird sentences designed to merely spam.

What would you add to this analysis?? Are there other techniques that you are currently using to provide great content, but that also benefit your sites with links?

Popularity: 1% [?]

Source: http://www.page1listings.com/blog/indianapolis-bike-shop-back-link-rules/

Fiscal cliff deal kathy griffin jadeveon clowney orange bowl Rose Parade 2013 rex ryan PNC Bank

10 Things to Know about the Preakness _ and beyond

Steam rises from Kentucky Derby winner Orb as a groom washes him after a workout at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Friday, May 17, 2013. The Preakness Stakes horse race is scheduled to take place May 18. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

Steam rises from Kentucky Derby winner Orb as a groom washes him after a workout at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Friday, May 17, 2013. The Preakness Stakes horse race is scheduled to take place May 18. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

Preakness Stakes entrant Goldencents with jockey Kevin Krigger aboard, walks the track at Pimlico Race Course Friday, May 17, 2013 in Baltimore. At right on the pony is assistant trainer Jack Sisterson. The Preakness Stakes horse race is scheduled for Saturday. (AP Photo/Garry Jones)

Arnold Velasquez walks Preakness Stakes favorite Orb in the shed row after a morning gallop at Pimlico Race Course Friday, May 17, 2013 in Baltimore. The Preakness Stakes horse race is scheduled for Saturday. (AP Photo/Garry Jones)

Kentucky Derby winner Orb stands as he is cooled down after a workout at Pimlico Race Course in Baltimore, Friday, May 17, 2013. The Preakness Stakes horse race is scheduled to take place May 18. (AP Photo/Patrick Semansky)

BALTIMORE (AP) ? There are only two outcomes when it comes to Saturday's Preakness Stakes ? either the Kentucky Derby winner Orb wins the race to set up a Triple Crown try in the Belmont Stakes in three weeks, or another horse pulls an upset and prevents a shot at history.

With that in mind, here are 10 things to know about the Preakness ? and beyond.

___

1. ELEVEN HAVE DONE IT. Starting in 1919 with Sir Barton, 11 horses have won the Triple Crown, sweeping the Kentucky Derby, Preakness and Belmont Stakes. Orb will be trying to become the 34th horse with a Triple Crown chance. Of the horses who failed, 19 didn't win the Belmont and three didn't make the race, including I'll Have Another in 2012. Last year's Derby and Preakness winner was scratched the day before the Belmont with a tendon injury and retired.

2. INSIDE SLOT. Orb leaves from the No. 1 post in the Preakness, not among the most popular places to start. Since 1961, only one horse ? Tabasco Cat in 1994 ? has won from the rail.

3. SECOND CHANCERS AND NEW SHOOTERS. Kentucky Derby winner Orb will be facing five familiar foes from the Derby and three new shooters. The Derby five are Mylute, Oxbow, Will Take Charge, Itsmyluckyday and Goldencents; the fresh faces are Departing, Govenor Charlie and Titletown Five.

4. SHORTER DISTANCE. The Preakness distance is 1 3-16 miles, a sixteenth of a mile shorter than the Kentucky Derby, and five sixteenths shorter than the 1?-mile Belmont Stakes, called the Test of the Champion. The longer distance is considered one of the major reasons why Triple tries are thwarted. In recent years, two horses who won the Preakness convincingly ? Funny Cide by 9? lengths in 2003 and Smarty Jones by a record 11? lengths in 2004 ? fell short in the Belmont. Funny Cide was a length off the lead with a quarter mile to go and finished third; Smarty Jones was passed in the final 70 yards by Birdstone.

5. A NICE REBOUND. Goldencents and Co. are looking for a little Preakness history. If the horse wins, he will top Louis Quatorze for the best rebound from the Derby. In 1996, Louis Quatorze finished 16th in the Derby and won the Preakness two weeks later. Goldencents was 17th in the Derby. A win would make Kevin Krigger the first black jockey to win the race since Willie Simms with Sly Fox in 1898, and it would make Doug O'Neill the first back-to-back Preakness winning trainer since Bob Baffert in 2001 and 2002.

6. THREE CHANCES. D. Wayne Lukas has one-third of the field in the nine-horse Preakness. The 77-year-old trainer is seeking his sixth Preakness win, which would break a second-place tie with Bob Baffert and Thomas J. Healey. The leader is Robert Wyndham Walden with seven, including five in a row starting in 1878. Lukas also is seeking a record 14th win in Triple Crown race win, which would put him one ahead of "Sunny Jim" Fitzsimmons. Lukas trains Oxbow, Will Take Charge and Titletown Five.

7. ROSIE'S RUN. Rosie Napravnik will be aboard 5-1 second choice Mylute. A win would make the rider who started her career in Maryland the first female to win the Preakness. She posted the best finish for a female rider in the Derby when Mylute ran fifth.

8. HOF LINEUP. There are a half-dozen Hall of Famers in the Preakness. The trainers are Shug McGaughey (Orb), D. Wayne Lukas (Oxbow, Will Take Charge and Titletown Five) and Bob Baffert (Govenor Charlie); the jockeys are Gary Stevens (Oxbow), Mike Smith (Will Take Charge) and John Velazquez (Itsmyluckyday).

9. THE GREATEST. The fastest Preakness was run by 1973 Triple Crown winner Secretariat. Big Red won in 1:53. By comparison, last year's winner I'll Have Another won in 1:55.94. For those looking ahead, Secretariat also has the record for the Belmont, covering the 1? miles in 2:24. The second-fastest time is 2:26 by Easy Goer in 1989 and A.P. Indy in 1992. Union Rags won last year in 2:30.42.

10. THE DISAPPOINTMENTS. If Orb wins the Preakness, he will become the ninth horse since Silver Charm in 1997 to have a chance at the Triple Crown. The others who missed after winning the Kentucky Derby and Preakness were (Real Quiet, 1998), Charismatic (1999), War Emblem (2002), Funny Cide (2003), Smarty Jones (2004), Big Brown (2008) and I'll Have Another (2012), who never made the race because of an injury.

___

Follow Richard Rosenblatt on Twitter at: http://www.twitter.com/rosenblattap

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-05-18-Preakness-10%20Things%20to%20Know/id-2b531cf5248848c2be83c81e99117409

bryce harper dodgers game of thrones Kevin Ware Google Nose success Cookies

Obama focusing on job creation in Baltimore visit

BALTIMORE (AP) ? President Barack Obama is leaving behind scandal-focused Washington to focus on the country's slowly improving jobs picture.

Obama is to fly by helicopter Friday about 40 miles north to Baltimore, which has had its share of tough times in the move from an industrial to service economy. But Maryland has experienced job growth this year as part of a nationwide economic recovery.

The White House said the trip is designed to focus on three areas of needed investment to grow the middle class ? jobs, skills and opportunity.

The president plans to highlight one of the manufacturing companies still thriving in the city by speaking at Ellicott Dredges. It makes equipment for excavation under water and on beachfronts around the world.

Obama also plans to visit a community center that provides job training to parents and an elementary school that provides early childhood education. Obama has proposed that public preschool be available for all 4-year-olds from low-income families.

The focus on Obama's economic agenda comes at the end of a week that has been consumed by a trio of political controversies. They include the targeting of conservative political groups by the Internal Revenue Service, the administration's response to last year's deadly attack on a U.S. diplomatic facility in Benghazi, Libya, and the seizure of Associated Press phone records by the Justice Department as part of a leak investigation.

Obama's turn to the economy comes in a state that added 31,200 jobs over a year to climb to a 6.5 percent unemployment rate in April, according to the most recent data by the U.S. Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics. April saw a downturn, with Maryland losing 6,200 jobs after four consecutive month of job growth.

"Last year, we had the best-rated job creation of any state in our region and we have very nearly recovered 100 percent of the jobs that we lost during the recession," Maryland Gov. Martin O'Malley said at a bill-signing ceremony on Thursday.

Rep. Andy Harris, Maryland's only Republican congressman, criticized Obama's trip as a photo opportunity, instead of staying in Washington to work on economic problems. For example, Harris said Obama has been dragging his feet on developing the Keystone XL pipeline that would carry oil from western Canada to the Texas Gulf Coast and create jobs. The administration has not yet taken a position on the project, which is opposed by environmentalists but supported by the president of Ellicott Dredges, Peter Bowe, in testimony before Congress Thursday.

"That would boost jobs at Ellicott Dredges, but other than that, it's just going to be another photo op on a campaign-style tour when the president should be in Washington tending to the nation's business and to address the huge scandals that are popping up on a daily basis in Washington," Harris said in a conference call with other Maryland Republicans.

Obama planned to tout another effort to create jobs in his visit to Ellicott Dredges. He signed a memorandum Friday to federal agencies directing them to update infrastructure permit processes with the goal of cutting their timelines in half. The White House said it's an important step in his goal of creating jobs by making urgent repairs to roads, bridges and railways.

"By cutting red tape and shaving months, and even years, off the time it takes to review and approve major infrastructure projects, we will be able to start construction sooner, create jobs earlier, and fix our nation's infrastructure faster," the White House said in a statement. It cited an example of the recently approved replacement of the aging Tappan Zee Bridge across the Hudson River in the suburbs just north of New York City, which saved two to three years on the timeline.

___

Associated Press writer Brian Witte in Baltimore contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/obama-focusing-job-creation-baltimore-visit-080858879.html

belize adele lyrics best new artist 2012 grammys foo fighters nikki minaj album of the year

Obama?s OFA refusing to help on Keystone Pipeline (Americablog)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories Stories, RSS Feeds and Widgets via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/306516644?client_source=feed&format=rss

kony kony 2012 jim irsay the new ipad apple announcement indianapolis colts joseph kony

Despite controversies, Obama agenda marches on

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Despite Democratic fears, predictions of the demise of President Barack Obama's agenda appear exaggerated after a week of cascading controversies, political triage by the administration and party leaders in Congress and lack of evidence to date of wrongdoing close to the Oval Office.

"Absolutely not," Steven Miller, the recently resigned acting head of the Internal Revenue Service, responded Friday when asked if he had any contact with the White House about targeting conservative groups seeking tax-exempt status for special treatment.

"The president's re-election campaign?" persisted Rep. Devin Nunes, R-Calif.

"No," said Miller.

The hearing took place at the end of a week in which Republicans repeatedly assailed Obama and were attacked by Democrats in turn ? yet sweeping immigration legislation advanced methodically toward bipartisan approval in the Senate Judiciary Committee. The measure "has strong support of its own in the Senate," said Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., a member of the panel.

Across the Capitol, a bipartisan House group reported agreement in principle toward a compromise on the issue, which looms as Obama's best chance for a signature second-term domestic achievement. "I continue to believe that the House needs to deal with this," said House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, who is not directly involved in the talks.

The president's nominee to become energy secretary, Ernest Moniz, won Senate confirmation, 97-0. And there were signs that Republicans might allow confirmation of Sri Srinivasan to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit, sometimes a stepping stone to the Supreme Court.

Separately, a House committee approved legislation to prevent a spike in interest rates on student loans on July 1. It moves in the direction of a White House-backed proposal for future rate changes to be based on private markets.

Even so, Rep. Fred Upton, R-Mich., chairman of the Energy and Commerce Committee, said, "It's been a bad week for the administration."

Several Democratic lawmakers and aides agreed and expressed concern about the impact on Obama's agenda ? even though much of it has been stymied by Republicans for months already.

At the same time, Rep. Dave Camp, R-Mich., voiced optimism that the IRS controversy would boost the push for an overhaul of the tax code, rather than derail it. "It may make a case for a simpler tax code, where the IRS has less discretion," he said.

Long-term budget issues, the main flash point of divided government since 2011, have receded as projected deficits fall in the wake of an improving economy and recently enacted spending cuts and tax increases.

Even before Obama began grappling with the IRS, the fallout from last year's deadly attack on the U.S. diplomatic mission in Benghazi, Libya, and from the Justice Department's secret seizure of Associated Press phone records, the two parties were at odds over steps to replace $85 billion in across-the-board spending cuts. In particular, Obama's call for higher taxes is a nonstarter with Republicans.

Other high-profile legislation and presidential appointees face difficulties that predate the current controversies.

Months ago, Obama scaled back requested gun safety legislation to center on expanded background checks for firearms purchasers. That was derailed in the Senate, has even less chance in the House and is unlikely to reach the president's desk.

Republicans oppose other recommendations from the president's State of the Union address, including automatic increases in the minimum wage, a pre-kindergarten program funded by higher cigarette taxes and more federal money for highways and bridge repair.

In a clash that long predates the IRS controversy, Senate Republicans seem intent on blocking Obama's nomination of Tom Perez as labor secretary. Gina McCarthy's nomination to head the Environmental Protection Agency is also on hold, at least temporarily, and Democrats expect Republican opposition awaits Penny Pritzker, Obama's choice for commerce secretary.

Rhetorically, the two parties fell into two camps when it came to the White House troubles. Democrats tended to describe them as controversies, Republicans often used less flattering terms.

Speaking on the Senate floor, Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., accused the administration of fostering a "culture of intimidation." He referred to the IRS, the handling of the Benghazi attack and Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius' "fundraising among the industry people she regulates on behalf of the president's health care law."

Two days later, Camp, a 23-year veteran lawmaker, opened the IRS hearing by calling the agency's actions part of a "culture of cover-ups and intimidation in this administration." He offered no other examples.

Rep. Trey Radel, a first-term Florida Republican, said in an interview, "What we're looking at now is a breach of trust" from the White House.

House Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi of California offered a scathing response when asked if the controversies would hamper Obama's ability to win legislation from the Republican-controlled House. "Well, the last two years there was nothing that went through this Congress, and it was no AP, IRS or any other (thing) that we were dealing with."

"They just want to do nothing. And their timetable is never," she said of GOP lawmakers.

Similarly, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid gave no ground on Benghazi, a dispute that increasingly centered on talking points written for administration officials to use on television after the attack last September in which U.S. Ambassador Chris Stevens and three other Americans were killed.

"It's obvious it's an attempt to embarrass President Obama and embarrass Hillary Clinton," he said of Republican criticism that first flared during last year's election campaign.

On a third front, Sen. Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., resurrected legislation that would requiring a judge to approve subpoenas for news media communications records when investigating news leaks said to threaten the national security. It was a response to the FBI's secret, successful pursuit of Associated Press phone records in a current probe.

While Democrats counterattacked on Benghazi and parried on leaks, they bashed the IRS' treatment of conservative groups as improper if not illegal ? and warned Republicans not to overplay their hand.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/despite-controversies-obama-agenda-marches-142525880.html

student loan forgiveness ufc 145 weigh ins record store day 2012 detroit red wings jose canseco zimmerman derek fisher