Biden: Days into job, news of $1 trillion deficit

FORT MYERS, Fla. (AP) ? Vice President Joe Biden says that he and President Barack Obama had been on the job less than a week when a top economic adviser told them the country was facing a trillion-dollar budget deficit.

Biden says that Obama replied, "But I haven't done anything yet."

Biden blames the deficit on the previous Bush administration, adding that it "put two wars on a credit card" and gave tax cuts to the wealthy after inheriting a balanced budget and revenue surplus from the Clinton administration.

Biden hammered GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney for comments on a leaked video in which Romney describes 47 percent of Americans as paying no federal income tax and believing "they are victims."

Biden made his remarks Saturday to more than 2,000 people in Fort Myers, Fla.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/biden-days-job-news-1-trillion-deficit-172845861--election.html

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Israel disappointed over Argeninean, Iran ministers? meeting

September 30, 2012

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina (JTA) -- Israel expressed ?disappointment? over the Argentinean decision to accept an Iranian invitation to bilateral talks.

?The Government of Israel received with great disappointment the news about the Argentine acceptance of a meeting with the Islamic Republic of Iran on a Foreign Ministers level. Iran does not come with clean hands to this dialogue about global terrorist acts,? the Israeli government said in a statement on Saturday.

Argentina?s Foreign Minister, H?ctor Timerman, who is Jewish, met Sept. 27 with his Iranian counterpart, Ali Akbar Salehi, at the United Nations headquarters in New York City to discuss the AMIA bombing case.

Eighty-five people were killed and hundreds injured in a July 18, 1994 bombing of the AMIA building, the Jewish community?s main complex in Buenos Ares, Argentina. Iran is accused of directing the bombing that the Lebanon-based terror group Hezbollah is accused of carrying out.
?
The United States government also came out against the talks. ?Iran has had a nearly twenty years to comply with the requests from Argentine justice on the issues of the bombing of the Israeli embassy and the AMIA building. I?m not necessarily optimistic that they will respond any more positively now then they have in the past,? Roberta S. Jacobson, U.S. Assistant Secretary of Western Hemisphere Affairs said during a news conference. ?Right now is the time for the international community to remain united in isolating Iran, ?she added.???

Local Jewish leaders of AMIA, relatives of the victims and the leadership of DAIA, the Jewish political umbrella, told JTA that next week after Sukkot they will meet to clarify the position of the Jewish community with regards to the negotiations between Argentina and Iran. A strong document against the bilateral approach is expected.

The Israeli embassy in Buenos Aires said in a statement: ?The report on the investigation by the task force of the Attorney General in Argentina determined accurately, and without a doubt, that the decision to bomb the AMIA building was taken by the leadership of the Iranian government. We hope that the delegation of Argentina keep this evidence during their meetings with the Iranians?.

Following their meeting, Timerman, and Salehi issued a joint statement announcing that they would continue negotiations through government officials in Geneva next month. ?This process will not be interrupted until they both find a mutually agreed solution to the all matters between both governments related to the AMIA case ? in order to explore a legal mechanism that is not at odds with the Argentine or Iranian legal systems,? the statement said

.
On July 18, 1994 a car bomb destroyed the AMIA building, killing 85 and injuring about 200. It was the second terrorist attack to occur in Argentina. On March 17, 1992, a car bomb destroyed Israel's embassy, killing 29 and injured 242. Iran is believed to be behind both bombings. No one has been convicted in the attacks.

Click here for complete coverage on the 2012 elections from JTA.

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Source: http://www.jta.org/news/article/2012/09/30/3108331/israel-disappointed-over-argeninean-iran-ministers-meeting

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Meditation for Relaxation & Stress Relief ! | Milpitas Sports - Patch

Sunday, September 30, 2012, 3:30 pm

2368 Walsh Ave, Santa Clara, CA | Get?Directions??
FREE

While most of us live in the middle of the hustle-bustle, and have a lot of responsibilities and demands to fulfill, we naturally have a greater need of rejuvenating physically, mentally and emotionally.

The experience of meditation can take us beyond the usual mental stress and emotional agitation to a calm centered place. We explore the delicate art of quietening the mind !?

Please note this session is open for people with any or no experience of meditation or breathing exercises.

Admission?: FREE (Please RSVP due to limited seating)
RSVP?: http://secure.artofliving.org/event_details.aspx?event_id=103882
When: Sunday | Sep 30th | 3:30 pm - 5:00pm
Where: Art of Living Yoga & Meditation Center,?
2368 Walsh Ave,Santa Clara, CA - 95051.?
Contact: 408-365-4265 or email santaclara@us.artofliving.org

What is Meditation ?
Settling the surface mind is meditation. Living in the present is meditation. Relaxing deeply is meditation.?

Instructor: An experienced meditation teacher from India who has been doing meditation for over 10 years and is experienced in guiding people to experience deep meditation with simple instructions. You are all welcome to join us.

Why should we meditate ?
1. Reduced stress & anxiety.
2. Improved Sleep & immune system.
3. Better clarity of mind
4. Improved focus & emotional stability.

Session Contents:
1. Simple yet powerful breathing techniques.
2. Guided Meditations.
3. Talk on benefits of Meditation.

37.369472

-121.96814

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Source: http://milpitas.patch.com/events/meditation-for-relaxation-stress-relief-879d4ef8

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92% Neil Young Journeys

All Critics (48) | Top Critics (20) | Fresh (44) | Rotten (4)

"Journeys" is simply a trip most need not take.

I'd say the movie does a fine job of completing the trilogy, but I wouldn't be surprised if Demme and Young have more in them yet.

Like Young, Demme often takes an iconoclastic route. This is in part a concert film, yes, but not a traditional one.

Forget Crosby, Stills and Nash and maybe even Crazy Horse. Jonathan Demme might be Neil Young's ultimate collaborator.

As a songwriter, Young can still deliver: one of the best tunes here is a lovely, piano-propelled number, "Leia," that he hasn't even released yet.

The wartsy antipode of Katy Perry: Part of Me, with an intimacy and intensity bordering on the overwhelming.

...just Young and his insinuating voice (which I'm inclined to credit more now than I was 40 years ago), various guitars, harmonica and piano, over which he displays a great and tender command.

Fans of folk rock legend Neil Young who are willing to accept that the guy is well past his prime will respond to the downbeat tone of Jonathan Demme's concert film.

The director is putting Young in the audience's lap, allowing the viewer to examine all the creases and crevices of his grizzled face as well as capturing the emotion the singer pours into his songs.

These two world-renowned and individualistic artists from the worlds of music and film clearly bask in each other's company. We, the audience, would be fools to respond otherwise.

Long may he run, sure, but 'Neil Young Journeys' has the feeling of a farewell.

"Journeys" is about looking back - not in sorrow or wistfulness, but in affection and, often, impassioned remembrance of times past and how they still resonate in the present.

A mesmerizing and intimate visit with a performer who is identified most closely with rock 'n' roll, but whose artistic curiosity has taken him in myriad directions musically throughout his 40-plus-year career.

Neil Young Journeys does for some of us what a rare film can do - it revives and renews our spirit. Neil Young and Jonathan Demme. Heart and soul. Wisdom and age. Fire and ashes. Lightning and thunder.

For fans, Journeys is like that box set of uneven rarities that they simply must own. For casual friends, it's 90 minutes in good company. For the rest - ho-hum.

An unusually fulsome tribute to the singer-songwriter from the director of The Silence of the Lambs.

On its own terms, "Neil Young Journeys" is an enjoyable concert film of a solo show in Toronto, interspersed with memories of his Canadian boyhood.

The concert camera work is sometimes a little tight for comfort (not really interested in Young's bridge work), though it adds to the intensity.

Movie fans probably don't need to hear him sing "Ohio" again, but "Neil Young Journeys" -- Jonathan Demme's second Young doc, if you're counting -- does have some new wrinkles.

In a sense, this film finishes a cycle that began with the homey and impressive "Neil Young: Heart of Gold" and continued with the raucous "Neil Young Trunk Show" of 2009.

"Look at Mother Nature on the run..."

More Critic Reviews

Source: http://www.rottentomatoes.com/m/neil_young_journeys/

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Fall calls bats to hibernate, scientists to study them

ScienceDaily (Sep. 28, 2012) ? Despite the vampire stories you may have read, bats are our friends. The little winged mammals eat more than their body weight in insects every night, making them extremely valuable to farmers, forest managers and anyone who doesn't like bugs. In fact, the dollar value of bats in pest control has been estimated at $508 million a year.

Bats are the only mammals that can fly. There are more than 1,000 species. In fact, 1 in 5 mammals is a bat.

And in the fall, bats often migrate hundreds of miles to abandoned mines and caves where they hibernate through the winter months. Deep in the caverns, they cuddle up in tight, furry clusters, while scientists study them, trying to figure out the hows and whys of a bat plague called White Nose Syndrome and what, if anything, can be done to prevent or stop it.

White Nose Syndrome has killed nearly 7 million bats since it first appeared in the US in New York State. The deadly fungal disease has spread to 19 states as far west as Missouri, as far south as Alabama and north into Canada.

Although White Nose Syndrome has not yet been seen in Michigan, where nine species of bats are heading for their winter homes -- mostly in 75 or 80 abandoned mines in the western Upper Peninsula. And there, a team of researchers led by Joseph Bump of Michigan Technological University and Alexis Sullivan, one of his graduate students, is using a novel chemical "fingerprinting" technique called stable hydrogen isotopes to determine where the hibernating bats originated.

Sullivan and Bump reported in the July 2012 issue of the journal Ecological Applications on their use of stable hydrogen isotopes to track the travels of the little brown bats that hibernate in three mines in the western UP.

Sullivan, who is first author on the paper, is now working on dual Master of Science degrees in Forest Molecular Genetics and Biotechnology at Michigan Tech and the Swedish University of Agricultural Science. She will receive degrees from both universities as part of the ATLANTIS Program, a transatlantic educational project jointly funded by the US Department of Education and the European Union.

Sullivan, Bump and colleagues Rolf Peterson and Laura Kruger studied the little brown bats that winter in the Quincy Mine in Hancock, Mich., the Caledonia Mine near Ontonagon, Mich., and the Norway Mine in Norway, Mich. They collected bat hair and tested it to identify the hydrogen fingerprint of the water where the bat grew the hair. Ecologists have developed maps of the distinctive hydrogen fingerprints of water from different locations, so the chemical fingerprints from the bat hair can be matched to the flying mammals' probable origins.

Up to now, stable hydrogen isotopes have been used mostly to track migratory birds. "Relatively little is known about bat-to-bat interactions or how far bats travel between seasonal habitats," Sullivan explains. Earlier attempts to use hydrogen isotopes with bats stalled because most hibernating bats don't make dramatic seasonal migrations, and they have unclear molt patterns, making it difficult to connect their hair to a given habitat, she adds.

In their latest study, Sullivan, Bump and colleagues were able to estimate with 95 percent certainty the summer origins of the tens of thousands of bats that hibernate in the Quincy Mine, the 23,000 bats in the Norway Mine and the estimated quarter of a million bats that call the Caledonia Mine their winter home. Using the hydrogen "fingerprints" from hair samples, they located the geographic areas from which the bats migrate -- some as far as 565 kilometers (351 miles) from their hibernation mine.

"This novel application of stable hydrogen isotopes can help predict which hibernation sites are likely to exchange bats," says Bump. Bat-to-bat contact is believed to be the way white-nose syndrome is spread, so understanding the bats' movements can help us know which hibernation sites are connected and how disease could potentially be transmitted among locations."

And why should anyone care what happens to these reclusive winged creatures that weigh less than half an ounce and average 3.4 inches long?

"First, they are amazing mammals. Second, we should care about little brown bats because they eat millions of things for which we care much less, like mosquitoes," says Bump.

Michigan Tech's bat research was funded by the National Park Service Great Lakes Network, the Ecosystems Science Center and the School of Forest Resources and Environmental Science at Michigan Tech.

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Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_environment/~3/WPUXJguYVXc/120928084946.htm

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Small Business Trends - Social Media - Traffic

Small business owners have a small ecosystem within their own communities and surrounding communities to attract visitors to their brick and motor store fronts and websites. Understanding your our own community and surrounding communities is paramount to your localized success in whatever business you?re in for long lasting foot traffic and web for their success. A recent study found that most "niche" small business sites get 11 times more traffic than there large competitors by focusing on their niche and customers.

The small business community has a great opportunity to build a long relationship with their customers by understanding where they live, what they need and how they shop. By utilizing social media to get your customers involved with your products is so much more important than in it was 20 years ago because people get text messages, offers and news directly to their phone. Most small businesses don't have the time to learn everything about social media and how to drive traffic in just a couple of days. One of the biggest things a small business owner can do is understand how people interact with them locally and how they found their business.

Here are some ways to help you understand your customer base and drive customers via web and to your store:

1. Ask them how did you find out about our store?
2.

Where do you live?
3. Can you share your e-mail?
4. Have small 4x6 flyers that offer your physical address, twitter address and Facebook address. Offer them a small coupon for a "like" on your Facebook page.
5. Once you understand where your customers are from create a "blog" on your website or through Blogger on Google.
6. Write articles about your industry, products or services and link the article to your Facebook and Twitter accounts. This will help create a local presence.
7. Each month sent out an email with a coupon to your customers. This will create more foot and web traffic. Within the email add a code they must bring with them or add in when they check out your site.
8. Once you understand which customers are engaged you then can offer them ways to spread the word through their Facebook and Twitter accounts and have them share those coupons with their friends of friends to have them stop by your site or store.

What you now have created is a wheel of local and regional business that can affect your business daily. Most successful small business owners will tell you by engaging your most active customers by offering them deals to share with their friends could have a 25% to 30% lift consistently in their business.

Being a small business owner is challenging every day but if you are on the right side of online and traditional marketing those days become easier because you are constantly engaged with your best customers who have the ability to share your business with their friends by incenting them to share your success.

Source: http://small-business.ezinemark.com/small-business-trends-social-media-traffic-7d37cde9ba46.html

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Hero teen saves neighbor, 8, from burning house

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By NBC News staff

An Oregon teen is being hailed a hero after he rescued an 8-year-old boy from a fire that broke out in his home Monday, KATU.com reported.

Marcos Ugarte, 14, used a ladder to climb to a second-floor window of the burning Troutdale, Ore., home where a family of five lived. Alex Ma had tried unsuccessfully to get upstairs to rescue his son, Cody, 8, but he couldn't reach him through the thick smoke, ABC News reported.

Cody's parents, his grandmother Yim and brother Nathan had made it out safely, but Cody had locked himself in the room, the report said.

"When I arrived at the door of our neighbor's house, he [Alex Ma] was stumbling down the stairs because he had been completely engulfed in flames," Marcos' father, Eduardo Ugarte, told KATU. "He had soot coming out of his nose and his mouth, he had just ingested so much of it."

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Marcos grabbed a ladder and climbed to the second floor, punching out the screen and grabbing the boy, according to KATU.

"I took the ladder, and I propped it up on the window, and I crawled up the window and punched the screen out ... and grabbed [the boy] and carried him down the ladder," the teenager told KATU soon after the rescue.

"I just told him to go feet first, and then he walked down the ladder, but I had my arm around him so he was secure," Marcos added. "He was scared at first and he didn't know if he should come out, and I was like, 'It's OK, come on, come on. I got you.' So he came out and he just walked down."

Investigators believe the fire was started by accident, KATU reported. It began inside Cody's room after 10 p.m. and spread to the rest of the house. According to KATU, Cody ran into another room and locked himself in, keeping the door shut and the smoke out.

"I may never forget their names because they're my heroes. They're my son's heroes forever," Alex Ma told KATU.

Marcos told KATU he received many congratulations at school, and the Gresham Fire Department also plans to honor him this year.

For more, visit KATU.com

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Source: http://usnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/09/26/14111750-oregon-teen-uses-ladder-to-rescue-boy-8-from-burning-house?lite

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Novel materials become multifunctional at ultimate quantum limit

ScienceDaily (Sep. 25, 2012) ? A University of Arkansas physicist and his colleagues have examined the lower limits of novel materials called complex oxides and discovered that unlike conventional semiconductors the materials not only conduct electricity, but also develop unusual magnetic properties.

Jak Chakhalian, Jian Liu, Derek Meyers and Benjamin Gray of the University of Arkansas and John W. Freeland and Phillip Ryan of the Advanced Photon Source at Argonne National Laboratory present their ideas in Physical Review Letters.

"Contrary to what we have today in modern microelectronics devices based on silicon, here in a single quantum well, which is just four nanometers thick, we now have several functionalities in one device layer," said Chakhalian, professor of physics and holder of the Charles and Clydene Scharlau Chair in the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences. "Engineers can use this class of material to devise new multifunctional devices based on the electrons' spin."

The microelectronic materials -- semiconductors -- used in today's computers, have almost reached the lower limitation for size and functionality. Computers run on several semiconducting devices layered together in the very smallest of spaces, known as quantum wells, where nanoscale layers of a semiconducting material are sandwiched between two nanoscale layers of a non-conducting material. However, the researchers found that by using complex oxides with correlated electrons confined to quantum well geometry, they added a new dimension to the mix.

The new structure is based on the concept of correlated charge carriers, like those found in rust, or iron oxide. In rust, if one electron does something, all of the other electrons "know" about it. This phenomenon, called correlated electrons, does not exist in silicon-based materials that run today's computers, televisions, complex medical equipment,power cell phones and keep the electricity on in homes.

"In normal materials used today, electrons don't care about the movement of one another," Chakhalian said. "We can predict their properties almost on the 'back of an envelope' with the help of powerful computers." However, with correlated materials, the calculations for the movement of one electron involve tracking the interactions with billions of electrons, and this is beyond modern theory capabilities.

Chakhalian and his colleagues went down to four atomic layers of a correlated complex oxide material based on nickel and sandwiched it in between two layers of non-conducting oxide material based on aluminum. Unlike the semiconducting materials, the complex oxide structure revealed the unexpected presence of both electronic and magnetic properties.

These multiple properties in a single material may allow the semiconductor industry to push the limits of current conventional computers and develop multiple functions for a single device, possibly allowing everyday electronics to become smaller and faster than they are today.

Chakhalian is a professor in the Institute for Nanoscience and Engineering.

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Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/computers_math/information_technology/~3/VKAwoWOV_ig/120925091346.htm

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UK court issues injunction in radical cleric case

FILE - This Friday, April 30, 2004 file photo shows Muslim cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri, as he arrives with a masked bodyguard, right, to conduct Friday prayers in the street outside the closed Finsbury Park Mosque in London. Britain is set to extradite its most recognizable extremist, Abu Hamza al-Masri, to the United States, sending a national hate figure to face charges of helping set up a terrorist training camp in rural Oregon. Britain's Home Office said Monday Sept. 24, 2012 that radical Muslim cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri has lost an appeal regarding his extradition to the United States. (AP Photo/Max Nash, File )

FILE - This Friday, April 30, 2004 file photo shows Muslim cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri, as he arrives with a masked bodyguard, right, to conduct Friday prayers in the street outside the closed Finsbury Park Mosque in London. Britain is set to extradite its most recognizable extremist, Abu Hamza al-Masri, to the United States, sending a national hate figure to face charges of helping set up a terrorist training camp in rural Oregon. Britain's Home Office said Monday Sept. 24, 2012 that radical Muslim cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri has lost an appeal regarding his extradition to the United States. (AP Photo/Max Nash, File )

FILE - In this Jan. 23, 2004 file photo, self-styled cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri leads his followers in prayer in a street outside Finsbury Park Mosque, on the first anniversary of its closure by anti-terrorism police, London. Britain is set to extradite its most recognizable extremist, Abu Hamza al-Masri, to the United States, sending a national hate figure to face charges of helping set up a terrorist training camp in rural Oregon. Britain's Home Office said Monday Sept. 24, 2012 that radical Muslim cleric Abu Hamza al-Masri has lost an appeal regarding his extradition to the United States.(AP Photo/John D McHugh, File)

LONDON (AP) ? A British court issued an interim injunction Wednesday blocking the extradition of a radical cleric to the United States on terror charges, granting a court hearing for an appeal.

Mustafa Kamal Mustafa ? who is better known as Abu Hamza al-Masri ? challenged his extradition on charges that include helping set up a terrorist training camp in rural Oregon. The appeal marked yet another legal twist in a case that has wound its way through the courts for eight years.

Judicial authorities said in a statement that a date for the hearing would be decided shortly.

Khaled Al-Fawwaz, a second terror suspect, has also mounted a legal challenge before Britain's High Court. No date has been set for the hearing.

Britain's Home Office immediately challenged the appeals. British authorities will seek a court hearing as soon as possible to clear the way for the extradition.

The grounds of the appeal were not immediately clear, but it's certain to stoke an ongoing debate in Britain about extradition laws. Critics have charged that the country's laws allow litigants to drag out their cases.

The appeals follow a European court decision Monday that was believed to have cleared the way for the cleric's extradition and that of four other suspects after an eight-year legal battle.

The Egyptian-born former nightclub bouncer, who claimed he lost his eye and hands fighting the Soviets in Afghanistan, used north London's Finsbury Park Mosque as a base to persuade young Muslims to take up the cause of holy war. The mosque was once attended by Sept. 11 conspirator Zacarias Moussaoui and "shoe bomber" Richard Reid.

After the Sept. 11 terror attacks, the cleric praised Osama bin Laden and declared "many people will be happy, jumping up and down at this moment."

He is serving a jail sentence in Britain for inciting hatred.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/cae69a7523db45408eeb2b3a98c0c9c5/Article_2012-09-26-Britain-Radical%20Cleric/id-15431f3b263746f08f7608aef6fa6081

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Apple sells 5 million iPhones on opening weekend, updates 100 million devices to iOS 6

Apple has just announced their sales figures for the iPhone 5 and once again they don't fail to impress -- 5 million in the 3 days since September 21. Apple also announced that 100 million iPhones, iPod touches, and iPads have updated to iOS 6 since it was released on September 19.

?Demand for iPhone 5 has been incredible and we are working hard to get an iPhone 5 into the hands of every customer who wants one as quickly as possible,? said Tim Cook, Apple?s CEO. ?While we have sold out of our initial supply, stores continue to receive iPhone 5 shipments regularly and customers can continue to order online and receive an estimated delivery date. We appreciate everyone?s patience and are working hard to build enough iPhone 5s for everyone.?

Last weekend's numbers include sales in the US, Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Hong Kong, Japan, Singapore and the UK. This coming weekend, Apple will launch the iPhone 5 in Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Liechtenstein, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland as well.

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Kean/Singer Student Loan Literacy Legislation Clears Committee ...

Legislation sponsored by Senators Tom Kean, Jr. (R-Union) and Robert W. Singer (R- Ocean) designed to help high school students better understand the financial obligations they are incurring when taking out student loans to finance their post-secondary education has been approved by the Senate Higher Education Committee.

The bill, S- 2150, requires the Higher Education Student Assistance Authority (HESAA) to develop a document containing student loan repayment information on state, federal and private student loans, and mandates that document be disseminated by school districts and nonpublic high schools to students.

Kean said that student loan debt presents challenges to new graduates that they may or may not have foreseen when choosing what institution to attend or degree to pursue.

?Americans citizens are now in greater debt for student loans than they are their cars or credit cards,? said Kean. ?It is straining our economy and severely crippling the financial stability of graduates just starting out in life during an economic downturn. Just as important for young people as having access to education financing is having access to information that spells out explicitly what the loans mean for their personal finances after graduation. Young people and their parents need to make smart choices about their education based in part on how the debt they will incur helps their job prospects and earning potential after graduation.?

Singer said that for most high school graduates, student loans are the first major financial transaction they will make in their lives.

?Student loans are being taken out by young people who likely have never incurred a major financial obligation in their lives and have limited financial literacy,? said Singer, who sits on the board of Georgian Court University in Lakewood. ?They need to have a grasp of what loan repayment will mean for them prior to deciding where they go to school, what they will study, and how much money they will borrow. We cannot just expect that a teenager is going to grasp what it means to finance an education costing tens or even hundreds of thousands of dollars without illustrating it for them.?

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Source: http://www.senatenj.com/index.php/tomkean/keansinger-student-loan-literacy-legislation-clears-committee/12498

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Cafe Physique offers the best services and excellent quality

Fitness training at home lets people get the exercise they need without the hassle of going to the gym. Nutrition and fitness help lead a healthy lifestyle and stay in shape.

Many people are looking for a personal trainer in Atlanta, GA. At Caf? Physique we help people find an Atlanta personal trainer and reach their fitness goals. We have a wide range of services including Atlanta personal training, nutrition services, corporate wellness, and more. Some people do not enjoy going to the gym or working out in front of other people. People often do not have the time to get to the gym to exercise as well. Fitness training at home gives people the opportunity to set their own schedule and keep to it. We help people reach their personal fitness goals with proper nutrition, dieting, and exercise. Our Fitness training at home programs are customized to your goals and needs. Group sessions are available for two people to take together and greater convenience for busy people. A typical personal training session lasts for 50 minutes with up to 10 minutes reserved for warming up and cooling down. We work with you on cardiovascular conditioning and total body strength. Yoga and Pilates sessions are available to improve strength and flexibility. Prenatal and postnatal exercise is important to women that want to keep in shape during and after a pregnancy. Exercise is very important for weight and fitness goals but proper nutrition can be equally important. Dietary counseling is one way that we help people live healthier lives. We take the time to look at what you eat and when you eat. Nutrients that are in excess or deficient are identified to highlight dietary issues. Wellness coaching is another part of overall fitness. Wellness is concerned with how people live including diet, work, relationships and free time. We try to get clients to find balance in their routines to live a comfortable and healthy lifestyle. Online nutrition gives people the chance to analyze their diet from home efficiently. More information about fitness training at home is available at http://www.cafephysique.com.

About Company

Caf? Physique ? is an Atlanta-based fitness and nutrition company specializing in private in-home and on-site personal training, yoga and Pilates. Supporting individuals of all fitness levels working towards creating healthier lifestyles, Caf? Physique also offers customized nutrition services and wellness coaching conducted by registered dietitians. Amber O?Neal is Caf? Physique?s founder. With over 9 years of professional fitness experience and a passion for healthy living, Amber is a well-respected expert who hosts seminars and conducts workshops for audiences across the nation. A certified group fitness instructor and personal trainer through American Council on Exercise (ACE), and a member of IDEA Health & Fitness Association, Amber is also a freelance fitness and nutrition writer who has been featured in newspapers, websites, national television and national magazines such as Marie Claire and Heart & Soul. Caf? Physique PO Box 7549 Atlanta, GA 30357 info@cafephysique.com (404) 444-2857

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Clarke?s slash was turning point for Canada

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Pete Mahovlich, number 20, Bill White, 17, goalie Ken Dryden, Phil Esposito, 7 and Gary Bergman 2 of Canada celebrate after winning Game 6 of the 1972 Summit Series on Sept. 24, 1972, at the Luzhniki Ice Palace in Moscow, Russia.

Photograph by: Melchior DiGiacomo , Getty Images

Clarke?s Game 6 slash on Kharlamov was turning point for Team Canada

Team Canada?s 5-4 loss in Game 5 still resonated on Sept. 24 when the Canadians and Soviets waited for the puck to drop.

The biggest question heading into Game 6: how would the professionals react after blowing 3-0 and 4-1 leads after the Soviets scored five goals in the third period, including four in a row in the final 10-plus minutes of the game? A win on this night, and the Soviets would lock up this eight-game series.

How devastating was the Game 5 loss? This was Phil Esposito?s post-game view of the debacle: ?Do I think losing this game will hurt us psychologically in the next game? It?s nothing psychological. We know now who?s the better team!?

There was no scoring in the first period, but 1:12 into the second Yuri Liapkin scored in a game that was to see Canada assessed 31 minutes in penalties, while the Soviets only received four. Astonishingly, however, only minutes after the Liapkin goal, Team Canada got goals from Dennis Hull, Yvan Cournoyer and Paul Henderson in 1:23 before Alexander Yakushev lifted his colleagues to within one with fewer than three minutes remaining in the period.

As it developed, that was to be the game?s final goal despite the rash of penalties Team Canada received from German referees Josef Kompalla and Franz Baader, including a double minor for charging in the first period and a high-sticking major in the second to Esposito.

This ?must-win? game for Team Canada could have been over early because of the penalties that had them playing short-handed for 17 minutes.

The Yakushev goal came only nine seconds after Hull was caught with a slashing penalty and only 25 seconds after the teams were at full strength, Team Canada was left short-handed two men for a full two minutes when Esposito was called for a high-sticking major and the team with a bench minor.

What turned Team Canada around? Ken Dryden, who had allowed 12 goals in his two previous starting assignments, was the difference. So were penalty-killers Peter Mahovlich, Ron Ellis and Red Berenson. The defence corps, led by Serge Savard, who had missed Games 4 and 5 after suffering an ankle injury in Game 3, brought their ?A? game to the Ice Palace.

This game was notable, as well, for a slashing minor and a misconduct to Bobby Clarke midway through the second period that is remembered even to this day. Nobody knew it at the time, but it was a major turning point in the series.

What happened was that Clarke chased down Valeri Kharlamov and struck him with a two-hander that left the Soviets? best player with a broken ankle. Kharlamov finished the game, missed Game 7, but was ineffective in the series finale.

Years later, assistant coach John Ferguson admitted: ?I called Clarke over to the bench, looked over at Kharlamov and said: ?I think he needs a tap on the ankle.? I didn?t think twice about it. It was Us vs. Them. And Kharlamov was killing us. I mean, somebody had to do it, and I sure wasn?t going to ask Henderson.?

On his part, Clarke always has insisted he doesn?t recall Ferguson telling him this, but added: ?If I hadn?t learned to lay on a two-hander once in a while, I?d never have left Flin Flon.?

On the 30th anniversary of this once-in-a-lifetime series, Henderson was to describe Clarke?s slash on Kharlamov as ?the low point of the series.?

?If Clarke hits him with a bodycheck and knocks him out, that?s fair and square,? Henderson said. ?To go out and deliberately try to take somebody out, there?s no sportsmanship in that. To me, it?s the same as shooting a guy in the hallway. Clarke was probably the only guy on the whole team that would have done it.

?We had a lot of tough guys on that team, but there weren?t many guys who played hockey that way,? Henderson added. ?We had guys who would stand up and look you right in the eye, punch you in the nose if you had a fight, but I don?t think they would bushwhack.

?It?s not something I would subscribe to. That?s not sportsmanship. Hockey is meant to be a tough game, and it?s a physical game, but to go out and deliberately try to take a guy out, I don?t think there?s any place in hockey for that.?

Needless to say, Clarke had a quick response to Henderson?s criticism.

?Why is he saying those things now? Clarke asked reporters. ?All I can say is it?s improper to criticize someone 30 years later.?

Henderson, you should know, promptly retracted his criticism of his Summit Series teammate and linemate.

Red Fisher?s eight-part feature series on the 40th anniversary of the Summit Series will continue on Wednesday, when he focuses on Game 7. You can follow the series online by going to montrealgazette.com/summitseries. To download The Gazette?s free 40th anniversary Summit Series e-book ? featuring game stories from Montreal hockey legends Fisher and Ted Blackman, plus classic illustrations from The Gazette?s award-winning cartoonist, Aislin ? go to hockeyinsideout.com/summit-ebook

SUMMIT SERIES GAME 6

Sept. 24, 1972 At Soviet Union
CANADA 3, USSR 2
First Period
No Scoring.
Penalties: Bergman (tripping), 10:21; P. Esposito (double-minor, charging), 13:11.
Second Period
1.? USSR - Liapkin (Yakushev, Shadrin) 1:12.
2.? Canada - Hull (Gilbert) 5:13.
3.? Canada - Cournoyer (Berenson) 6:21.
4.? Canada- Henderson (unassisted) (GWG) 6:36.
5.? USSR - Yakushev (Shadrin, Liapkin) (PPG) 17:11.
Penalties: Ragulin (interference), 2:09; Lapointe (roughing), 8:29; Vasiliev (roughing), 8:29; Clarke (slashing, misconduct), 10:12; Hull (slashing), 17:02; P. Esposito (highsticking major), 17:46; Team Canada bench minor, 17:46.
Third Period
No Scoring.
Penalties: Ellis (holding), 17:39.
Shots on Goal
Canada: 9-7-9?25
USSR: 6-13-12?31

? Copyright (c) The Montreal Gazette

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Source: http://feeds.canada.com/~r/canwest/F299/~3/1ouB_s3joCs/story.html

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Fighting in Turkey kills soldier, three Kurdish militants

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U.S. to Remove MEK from Terrorist List ~ Washington Post

The State Department is preparing to remove the Iranian opposition group Mujahedin-e Khalq from the U.S. government?s terrorist list, siding with advocates who say the controversial organization should be rewarded for renouncing violence and providing intelligence on Iran?s nuclear program, senior Obama administration officials said Friday.

The decision to begin the process of formally lifting the terrorist label is expected to be conveyed to Congress in documents as early as Friday, according to two senior officials briefed on the matter. The move comes two weeks before a court-ordered deadline and just six days after the dissident group vacated its?former enclave in eastern Iraq, averting a?feared confrontation?with Iraqis who want the exiles out of the country.

Leaders of the group, commonly known by its acronym MEK, have been pressing U.S. officials for nearly a decade to rescind the terrorist designation, which they say has hampered their efforts to find new homes outside of Iraq. About 3,000 members of the group have existed in a kind of perpetual limbo in Iraq since the U.S.-led invasion in 2003, unwanted by their host country and fearing imprisonment or worse if forced to return to Iran. FULL ARTICLE @ WASHINGTON POST

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Source: http://stopmakingsense.org/2012/09/22/u-s-to-remove-mek-from-terrorist-list-washington-post

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Video: Salman Rushdie talks new book, furor over anti-Muslim film (cbsnews)

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The nation's weather

This NOAA satellite image taken Friday, Sept. 21, 2012 at 1:45 a.m. EDT shows a cold front moving across the Great Lakes and Ohio Valley with showers and a few thunderstorms. An upper level trough is affecting the Upper Mississippi Valley and the Dakotas with areas of showers/light rain. A stationary front is across central Florida with showers and thunderstorms.(AP PHOTO/WEATHER UNDERGROUND)

This NOAA satellite image taken Friday, Sept. 21, 2012 at 1:45 a.m. EDT shows a cold front moving across the Great Lakes and Ohio Valley with showers and a few thunderstorms. An upper level trough is affecting the Upper Mississippi Valley and the Dakotas with areas of showers/light rain. A stationary front is across central Florida with showers and thunderstorms.(AP PHOTO/WEATHER UNDERGROUND)

A low pressure system spinning over eastern Canada creates a cold front that bring showers to the Great Lakes and moves into the Northeast Saturday Sept. 22, 2012. Meanwhile, high pressure builds over the Western states and Plains, maintaining dry and mild conditions. (AP Photo/Weather Underground)

More showers are expected Friday across the Midwest and Great Lakes as a low pressure system continues spinning just north of the Great Lakes. The system is moving northward through eastern Canada, allowing for cold air to continue pouring into the Upper Midwest.

The system will push another cold front into the upper Mississippi River valley, producing widespread scattered showers. Heavier rain showers will persist along the downwind shores as flow from the northwest picks up moisture from the Great Lakes and creates bouts of heavier rain. This system will head south into the Ohio River valley and Midwest through Friday afternoon and evening.

In the South, the tail end of a cold front will weaken over Florida, amid diminishing thunderstorm activity in the state. A few showers may persist, but heavy rains and strong storms are not likely.

Out West, high pressure over the Western states will bring another warm and dry day with dangerous fire weather conditions. Areas of smoke and poor visibility will continue for the Pacific Northwest and \intermountain West as active wildfires create poor air quality for the region.

The Northern Rockies will see highs in the 70s again on Friday, about 10 degrees above seasonable for the region. Temperatures in the lower 48 states ranged Thursday from a morning low of 24 degrees at West Yellowstone, Montana, to a high of 104 degrees at El Centro, Calif.

___

Online:

Weather Underground: http://www.wunderground.com

National Weather Service: http://iwin.nws.noaa.gov

Intellicast: http://www.intellicast.com

Associated Press

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Bureau of health professions - HEALTH, BEAUTY & FITNESS

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Did a 'forgotten' meteor have a deadly, icy double-punch?

ScienceDaily (Sep. 19, 2012) ? When a huge meteor collided with Earth about 2.5 million years ago and fell into the southern Pacific Ocean it not only could have generated a massive tsunami but also may have plunged the world into the Ice Ages, a new study suggests.

A team of Australian researchers says that because the Eltanin meteor -- which was up to two kilometres across -- crashed into deep water, most scientists have not adequately considered either its potential for immediate catastrophic impacts on coastlines around the Pacific rim or its capacity to destabilise the entire planet's climate system.

"This is the only known deep-ocean impact event on the planet and it's largely been forgotten because there's no obvious giant crater to investigate, as there would have been if it had hit a landmass," says Professor James Goff, lead author of a forthcoming paper in the Journal of Quaternary Science. Goff is co-director of UNSW's Australia-Pacific Tsunami Research Centre and Natural Hazards Research Laboratory.

"But consider that we're talking about something the size of a small mountain crashing at very high speed into very deep ocean, between Chile and Antarctica. Unlike a land impact, where the energy of the collision is largely absorbed locally, this would have generated an incredible splash with waves literally hundreds of metres high near the impact site.

"Some modelling suggests that the ensuing mega-tsunami could have been unimaginably large -- sweeping across vast areas of the Pacific and engulfing coastlines far inland. But it also would have ejected massive amounts of water vapour, sulphur and dust up into the stratosphere.

"The tsunami alone would have been devastating enough in the short term, but all that material shot so high into the atmosphere could have been enough to dim the sun and dramatically reduce surface temperatures. Earth was already in a gradual cooling phase, so this might have been enough to rapidly accelerate and accentuate the process and kick start the Ice Ages."

In the paper, Goff and colleagues from UNSW and the Australian Nuclear Science and Technology Organisation, note that geologists and climatologists have interpreted geological deposits in Chile, Antarctica, Australia, and elsewhere as evidence of climatic change, marking the start of the Quaternary period. An alternative interpretation is that some or all of these deposits may be the result of mega-tsunami inundation, the study suggests.

"There's no doubt the world was already cooling through the mid and late Pliocene," says co-author Professor Mike Archer. "What we're suggesting is that the Eltanin impact may have rammed this slow-moving change forward in an instant -- hurtling the world into the cycle of glaciations that characterized the next 2.5 million years and triggered our own evolution as a species.

"As a 'cene' changer -- that is, from the Pliocene to Pleistocene -- Eltanin may have been overall as significant as the meteor that took out the non-flying dinosaurs 65 million years ago. We're urging our colleagues to carefully reconsider conventional interpretations of the sediments we're flagging and consider whether these could be instead the result of a mega-tsunami triggered by a meteor."

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by University of New South Wales. The original article was written by Bob Beale.

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

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Journal Reference:

1. James Goff, Catherine Chagu?-Goff, Michael Archer, Dale Dominey-Howes, Chris Turney. The Eltanin asteroid impact: possible South Pacific palaeomegatsunami footprint and potential implications for the Pliocene-Pleistocene transition. Journal of Quaternary Science, 2012; DOI: 10.1002/jqs.2571

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

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

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_environment/~3/W-AEZjbS5oc/120919103612.htm

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Rate on 30-year mortgage falls to record 3.49 pct.

WASHINGTON (AP) ? The average U.S. rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage touched its record low this week and the rate on 15-year mortgage hit a new record.

The declines followed the Federal Reserve announcement last week that it would buy bonds to try to push mortgage rates lower and stimulate the housing market.

Mortgage buyer Freddie Mac said Thursday that the average rate on the 30-year loan declined to 3.49 percent from 3.55 percent last week. That matched the lowest rate since long-term mortgages began in the 1950s.

The average on the 15-year fixed mortgage, a popular refinancing option, plunged to 2.77 percent, a new record. That's down from 2.85 percent last week and the previous record low of 2.80 percent.

Cheap mortgages have helped drive a modest housing recovery this year. And the Fed wants to keep those rates low for the foreseeable future as a way to stimulate the economy.

Last week the Fed said it plans to spend $40 billion a month to buy mortgage bonds for as long as it thinks necessary to make home buying more affordable.

Mark Vitner, senior economist at Wells Fargo, said the stimulus likely helped lower mortgage rates this week. And the Fed's bond purchases will probably push rates down even further over the next six to nine months, Vitner suggested.

"Mortgage rates are going to be lower than they would otherwise," he said. "Housing looks like it's going to provide a significant lift to the economy over the next year."

The market is already benefiting from the lowest rates on record.

Sales of both previously occupied and newly built homes are up from last year. Home prices are rising more consistently. And builders are more confident in the market and are starting to build more homes.

The broader economy is also likely to benefit from a revival in the housing market. When home prices rise, Americans typically feel wealthier and spend more ? a point made by Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke when he addressed the new stimulus measures last week.

Still, the housing market has a long way back. Sales and construction rates remain below healthy levels.

And some economists question whether lower rates will make much of a difference. The average rate on the 30-year fixed mortgage has been below 4 percent since early December. So most people who can qualify have likely already taken advantage of the lower rates.

Many people who would like to refinance or buy a home can't because they fail to meet stricter lending requirements or don't have enough money to make a down payment.

To calculate average rates, Freddie Mac surveys lenders across the country on Monday through Wednesday of each week.

The average does not include extra fees, known as points, which most borrowers must pay to get the lowest rates. One point equals 1 percent of the loan amount.

The average fee for 30-year loans was 0.6 point, unchanged from last week. The fee for 15-year loans also held steady at 0.6 point.

The average rate on one-year adjustable-rate mortgages was unchanged at 2.61 percent. The fee for one-year adjustable rate loans was steady at 0.4 point.

The average rate on five-year adjustable-rate mortgages rose to 2.76 percent from 2.72 percent. The fee was unchanged at 0.6 point.

Associated Press

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Iran election buzz flirts with Rafsanjani return

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) ? The political obituary of former Iranian President Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani has been written a number of times: when he lost a comeback presidential bid, when he was dumped from leading Friday prayers at Tehran University, when he was pushed out as head of a panel that will pick Iran's next supreme leader.

Yet there he was last month walking alongside Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and greeting dignitaries at a global gathering of so-called nonaligned nations in Tehran. Rafsanjani was then seated next to the main VIP guest, U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon.

It was another renaissance moment for Iran's great political survivor. But this time it carried added intrigue as a possible sign the 78-year-old eminence grise, who favors a moderate approach toward the West, could have at least one major power play left.

With elections in nine months to select the successor for Mahmoud Ahmadinejad ? who is making his last presidential visit to the U.N.'s General Assembly next week ? speculation is rising on who will be the ruling system's choice and, therefore, the instant front-runner.

Until recently, Rafsanjani had not been mentioned among the top possible contenders to replace Ahmadinejad, who must step aside because of term limits. Rafsanjani, as always, keeps his intentions very closely guarded. He hasn't spoken publicly about aspirations to return to the presidency 16 years after leaving office, or becoming the powerful patron for a candidate.

That hasn't stopped his name from increasingly creeping into the mix ? particularly after his high-profile role during the late August summit of the Nonaligned Movement, a Cold War-era group that Iran seeks to transform into an alternative voice to Western power as Tehran battles pressures over its nuclear program.

"He appeared as the second most powerful figure of the ruling establishment for international guests," wrote Sadegh Zibakalam, a professor of politics at Tehran University, in a post on his website. "This was a very heavy and bitter blow to hardliners. His participation in the next presidential elections is the main concern of hardliners."

The thinking goes that Iranian leadership will do whatever it takes to avoid the chaos and violence that greeted Ahmadinejad's disputed 2009 re-election. That means likely blocking any pro-reform candidates and possibly seeking a more centrist figure than those mentioned as apparent hopefuls, including Tehran Mayor Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf and former Revolutionary Guard commander Mohsen Rezaei.

This could open room for a Rafsanjani redux as one of the few establishment leaders capable of reaching out to Iran's simmering opposition while also trying to calm the West, where Rafsanjani built a reputation as a pragmatic leader during his years as president from 1989-97.

A potential run by Rafsanjani ? or a prot?g? he backs ? would likely be received favorably in Washington and among Western allies. Although part of the ruling system for decades, he is also widely viewed as more flexible and possibly more in tune with the West than most of the other old guard.

"We need d?tente and delicacy in our relations with the world," said a message on his personal website last month.

His family has extensive international ties through university studies in Britain and a vast business network that includes construction companies, an auto assembly plant, real estate holdings and a private airline. In 2003, he was listed among Iran's "millionaire mullahs" by Forbes magazine.

His image, however, also has darker undertones. He was named by prosecutors in Argentina among Iranian officials suspected of links to a 1994 bombing of a Jewish center in Buenos Aires that killed 85 people. Some Iranian reformers accused him of a role in the slaying of liberals and dissidents during his presidency.

In many ways, the presidency is less powerful than his oligarch status. The president has a limited say in critical policy decisions such as the nuclear program or military affairs, which are overseen directly by the ruling system and its protectors. Yet the president is seen as the country's main international envoy and is often used to set the tone for dealings with the West.

"The discourse of the Iranian leadership would differ" under Rafsanjani, said Hamid Reza Shokoohi, editor of the pro-reform Mardomsalari newspaper. "Both sides will be able to enter nuclear talks with more goodwill."

Rafsanjani has not taken a front-line role in Iran's showdowns over its nuclear program, which the West and allies fear could lead to nuclear weapons. Iran insists it seeks reactors for energy and medical use only.

Majid Deljou, a political columnist at Tehran's Hamshahri daily, said the main purpose of Rafsanjani's presence at the Nonaligned summit was to show unity among Iranian leaders. This holds especially true for Rafsanjani and Ahmadinejad, who have been in open feud since Rafsanjani lost the presidential race in 2005.

Rafsanjani's daughter, Faezeh, spent a few hours in detention and his younger son, Mahdi, went into self-exile in 2009 over allegations of links to protests after Ahmadinejad's re-election. Rafsanjani's older son, Mohsen, was fired from his post as chief of Tehran's subway last year.

It's left Rafsanjani a bitter critic of Ahmadinejad and his bombastic style. Rafsanjani, meanwhile, has been quietly promoting his version of political healing: trying to redress claims by reformists that the ruling theocracy has hijacked Iran's elections.

"Free, transparent and lawful elections could solve a big portion of the country's problems," Rafsanjani told university students last week. "It increases trust among people and supporters of the system while disarming foreign enemies."

Rafsanjani's backers also have been encouraged by a ruling last month by the Guardian Council, a group that vets candidates, that there are no age limits on running for president.

Some predict, however, that Rafsanjani is more interested in trying to shape the outcome of the election than in reclaiming the presidency.

"He will be a kingmaker," said Ali Reza Khamesian, political editor of the independent Magreb newspaper. "Rafsanjani has the capacity to open deadlocks and remove problems inside and out."

A senior official in the Guardian Council said: "We need someone in the post with Rafsanjani's policies but hardworking like Ahmadinejad." The official spoke on condition of anonymity since he was not authorized to comment publicly.

But Rafsanjani also has his own political baggage.

He angered the ruling clerics with his open support for Ahmadinejad's reformist challenger in 2009, Mir Hossein Mousavi, who is now under house arrest along with another opposition figure, Mahdi Karroubi.

That cost Rafsanjani a coveted place among the Friday prayer leaders at Tehran University. He then came under heavy pressure from all sides, including accusations of financial corruption that were never substantiated.

Last year, Rafsanjani lost his position as the head of the Assembly of Experts, a powerful clerical body charged with choosing or dismissing Iran's supreme leader. He is still a member of the council ? and commands a significant political following.

Some of his appeal is built around nostalgia for the 1990s, when the economy was not crippled by sanctions.

But there also are groups that will oppose any moves by Rafsanjani because of his association with reformers.

"By turning to Rafsanjani," hardline political analyst Mohammad Hossein Asadagha told the semiofficial Fars news agency, "reformists are trying to gradually return to the political scene."

___

Murphy reported from Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/iran-election-buzz-flirts-rafsanjani-return-170803563.html

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