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The Personal Touch In Iraq

For its part, al Qaeda boasted of carrying out 131 attacks during Ramadan (July 21 through August 18). Islamic radicals consider it particularly pious to kill enemies of Islam during the holy month of Ramada. In this case the terrorists were careful to point out that most of the 131 attacks were directed at the security forces and members of pro-government militias. Iraq is now a democracy and al Qaeda considers democracy anti-Islamic.

The recent sharp decline is the result of several other factors. First, the Sunni terrorist groups could not sustain the level of violence they began in January (when 225 victims died). Second, pressure from the government (in reaction to public anger) produced more tips from citizens, more neighborhood self-defense groups and more effective performance by the police. Third, some Sunni Islamic terrorists (mainly foreigners) have gone to fight in Syria, where the Sunni majority is rebelling against the Shia minority dictatorship. The feeling is that, at the very least, Sunni terror groups will have sanctuary in Syria once the Shia government is overthrown. That would enable to the Sunni terrorists to use Syria as a base for continued attacks on the majority Shia government of Iraq.

Finally, the Sunni terrorists have cut back on their bombing attacks and switched to more assassination operations against police and military commanders. This is an effort to get the security forces to back off on their efforts to wipe out Sunni terror groups. This sort of thing requires less manpower and can often be contracted out to professional assassins (of which there were always a lot of in Iraq). The Sunni terrorists are aware that their attacks on Shia civilians are unpopular with many Sunnis, because in the past this kind of violence led to a major campaign by Shia terrorist groups (who have been quiet lately) against Sunni civilians.

The assassination campaign is one of the main reasons the police leadership is so poor and corrupt. When you are spending most of your time just trying to stay alive, job performance suffers. And it's not just Islamic terrorists coming after you, there are also gangsters looking for some cooperation, or trying to get you to switch loyalty from another gangster. This is why curbing corruption is so important, as it is the source of most problems in the country.

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The Personal Touch In Iraq

Gallery: Neighborhood watch groups' success linked to being good neighbors

One leader is a 79-year-old Panamanian immigrant and stroke survivor.

The other is 63 years old and blind - the victim of a gunshot wound to the head 40 years ago on the streets of Los Angeles.

Despite the personal challenges they have faced, Mearily Clark and Ruben Hernandez have both taken on additional tough circumstances in crime-ridden areas to become the linchpins for two of the most successful neighborhood watch programs in the San Gabriel Valley.

"When I moved here in 1985, it was horrible," said Clark, a resident of Kings Villages apartments in Northwest Pasadena. "There was `No Neck' and those guys. You couldn't walk here at night, sweetheart. Now, it's cleaned up."

When Ruben Hernandez moved to the North Whittier area 25 years ago to be closer to his wife's family, he said to himself, "This is a nice neighborhood, but it belongs to the criminals."

So, after handing out lots of fliers and overcoming people's doubts about following a blind man, he formed a neighborhood watch group.

It started with meetings of just three or four people. "Then it grew and grew," he said.

Now, the area is 95 percent graffiti free, gang free and crime is low,

More than 30 San Gabriel Valley communities last month celebrated National Night Out, an annual block party and community building event celebrated by neighborhood watch groups intended to send "a message to criminals letting them know that neighborhoods are organized and fighting back," according to the National Night Out organizing group.

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Neighborhood watch groups' success linked to being good neighbors

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Jennifer Han.

Jennifer Han travels the way of the gentle warrior -- loving daughter and sister, mother hen to everyone she meets, a magnetic, pied-piper-of-a smiling personality.

But her passion bubbles constantly to the surface. Han, a six-time national amateur champion, is now 8-1-1 as a professional boxer. She loves the sport. She lives the sport.

Her smile, her infectious enthusiasm pulls you in ... whether she is talking about her recent trip to Russia as an assistant coach for the U.S. Junior Olympic boys team or her last fight, the one in Fort Worth where she had to gain 10 pounds in four days just so she could have a fight.

"I was so honored to be chosen as a coach for the boys team," said the 29-year-old Han, a graduate of

Han helped coach the 15-16 year-old boys through two-and-a-half weeks in Russia, fighting two teams from Russia, one from Germany and one from Ireland.

"It was a great experience," Han said. "Of course, I've already been through the whole, 'Why is a girl coaching boys' thing.' I've done that most of my life (at her father's martial arts studio). I've been through all that. And the boys were great."

One older assistant coach had a problem with a young woman coaching boys

Chuckling, Han said, "I think about half the boys had a crush on me. But they were nice and polite and they really responded to me as a coach."

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El Pasoan Jennifer Han's passion for boxing leads to wins, coaching

A QUEENSLAND obesity researcher has said adolescent girls need to improve their fitness and diet if they are to avoid health issues when they decide to start a family.

Griffith Health Institute's Professor Andrew Hills is exploring the relationship between excess fat in teenage girls and the health outcomes of mothers and babies during and after pregnancy.

In the most recent Queensland Child Health Report (2011), it was found that nearly 20% of teenage girls were overweight or obese.

"There has been a significant gap in research when it comes to obesity, with the teenage years being a crucial area," Professor Hills said.

"If young women are overweight or obese they could have significant issues when they wish to start a family in early adulthood."

Professor Hills believes there needs to be a concerted effort to change how we develop healthy children into healthy women.

"The goal needs to be to have healthy teenage girls. Unhealthy practices and patterns tend to cluster and compound on each other as we develop and obesity can be very harmful to developing babies in utero.

"What is worse is that obesity in the mother may pre-program poor health into the metabolism of the baby and then the problem snowballs," he said.

Part of the answer, Professor Hills believes, is in a return to more physical activity in daily life including comprehensive physical education and nutrition programs in high schools to help prevent the obesity problem.

"We have engineered physical activity out of daily life. Fundamental changes need to occur in a number of settings, including school at all levels."

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A need for teen girls to get physical

Posted on September 10, 2012, Monday

BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN: LANEIGE Brunei Darussalam yesterday embarked on its corporate and social responsibility initiative highlighting health concerns with its slogan Beauty through Healthy Lifestyle at The Mall, Gadong, Borneo Bulletin reported.

The Health Campaign was supported by the Health Promotion Centre (HPC), the Ministry of Health, Embassy of the Republic of Korea in Brunei Darussalam, JPMC Fitness Centre and Susans Fitness Studio.

The aim of organising the Health Campaign was to deliver the message that a balanced daily diet and regular exercise, together with a proper daily skincare regimen are the key to staying smart, beautiful and confident.

At the same time it also aimed to achieve a complete form of what is considered to be a healthy lifestyle, as there is never a one night miracle to stay young and beautiful without putting on the effort from inside out.

According to the Marketing Executive Pat Li, LANEIGE Brunei Darussalam realised that the importance of staying healthy is fundamental for every nation and every generation in the country, in order to have the energy to accomplish their future goals.

LANEIGE emphasised the concept of understanding how the body functions in order to deal with skin issues as skin is the largest organ in our body and it is a barometer of our overall level of health.

One of the highlights of the event was a Healthy Snack Making Contest with a Korean Fusion Food theme that was strongly supported by the Korean Embassy in Brunei Darussalam.

Talking about the contest, Pat Li said there were 34 submissions of recipes, and seven finalists have been chosen based on their recipes on overall healthiness and Korean influence.

At the same time, the Korean Embassy contributed an exquisite set of Korean traditional costume called Hanbok for the grand prize winner Susan Fong Sia Sun, for her dish rendang roast beef with kim chi, mushroom and sesame rice cake.

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LANEIGE Embarks On Health And Beauty Campaign

The oldest Baby Boomers began turning 66 this year the full-retirement age for collecting Social Security benefits but many are claiming their benefits early because of the troubled economy, poor job market and fears about potential changes to the retirement system.

Unfortunately for some retirees, the decision to claim their benefits early could cost them tens of thousands of dollars down the road.

Three out of four eligible area residents start taking Social Security retirement benefits early, even though for some people the decision will permanently reduce their lifetime payments and could cost retirees or their spouses some important income later in life, according to a Middletown Journal/Hamilton JournalNews analysis.

Social Security is the primary source of income for many older Ohioans and delaying benefits until the full retirement age or beyond increases the size of the monthly payments.

Ohioans who are in good health, intend to keep working, expect to live a long time and have spouses may want to delay claiming benefits because oftentimes it turns out to be a better financial decision in the long run, experts said.

For some people its worth taking early, like if you are unhealthy, you become unemployed or your investment returns are low or you really, really need income, said John Bowblis, assistant professor of economics and research fellow with Scripps Gerontology at Miami University. But for the typical person, waiting until 66 is probably going to be a better solution.

Social Security retirement benefits are provided to people who have worked for at least a decade, and the payment amounts are based on workers 35 highest earning years.

People can begin collecting Social Security benefits when they turn 62, but the full retirement age is 65 for people born in 1937 or earlier, and 67 for people born after 1960. Taking benefits before reaching the full retirement age reduces the size of the payments. People who retire at 62 will on average receive a monthly payment about 25 to 30 percent less than if they waited until their full retirement age.

Delayed benefits yield larger payout

Every case is different, but people who start receiving benefits earlier get smaller amounts because they are expected to receive more payments, and people who delay collections receive larger payments because they will receive fewer of them.

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More people taking retirement benefits early

The oldest Baby Boomers began turning 66 this year the full-retirement age for collecting Social Security benefits but many are claiming their benefits early because of the troubled economy, poor job market and fears about potential changes to the retirement system.

Unfortunately for some retirees, the decision to claim their benefits early could cost them tens of thousands of dollars down the road.

Three out of four eligible Miami Valley area residents start taking Social Security retirement benefits early, even though for some people the decision will permanently reduce their lifetime payments and could cost retirees or their spouses some important income later in life, according to a Dayton Daily News analysis.

Social Security is the primary source of income for many older Ohioans and delaying benefits until the full retirement age or beyond increases the size of the monthly payments.

Ohioans who are in good health, intend to keep working, expect to live a long time and have spouses may want to delay claiming benefits because oftentimes it turns out to be a better financial decision in the long run, experts said.

For some people its worth taking early, like if you are unhealthy, you become unemployed or your investment returns are low or you really, really need income, said John Bowblis, assistant professor of economics and research fellow with Scripps Gerontology at Miami University. But for the typical person, waiting until 66 is probably going to be a better solution.

Social Security retirement benefits are provided to people who have worked for at least a decade, and the payment amounts are based on workers 35 highest earning years.

People can begin collecting Social Security benefits when they turn 62, but the full retirement age is 65 for people born in 1937 or earlier, and 67 for people born after 1960. Taking benefits before reaching the full retirement age reduces the size of the payments. People who retire at 62 will on average receive a monthly payment about 25 to 30 percent less than if they waited until their full retirement age.

Delayed benefits yield larger payout

Every case is different, but people who start receiving benefits earlier get smaller amounts because they are expected to receive more payments, and people who delay collections receive larger payments because they will receive fewer of them.

Continued here:
Ohioans are taking retirement benefits early

10 September 2012

Survey shows Maori unhappy with economy, iwi - point to policy priorities

Horizon Research has released its Maori Viewpoint 2012 report, tracking the views of Maori nationwide on issues ranging from their personal household financial position to their iwis' performance.

Maori are sending clear signals to their iwi and other policy makers on what they think are the most important issues for Maori over the next three years.

The report is based on a Horizon Research Maori Panel survey of 433 adult Maori in August 2012. Some results are also compared with those of a May, 2011, Horizon Research Maori Panel survey of 534 respondents.

Results are weighted by age, gender, personal income, region and employment status to ensure a representative sample of the Maori population aged 18+at the 2006 census. At a 95% confidence level the maximum margin of error is +/- 4.7% (4.2% in the 2011 survey).

Key findings of the 2012 survey include:

Wrong track: An increasing number of Maori feel the country is headed in the wrong direction (71.8% compared with 63.1% in May 2011). This view is held reasonably consistently across all age groups, but rises to nearly 80% among 18-24 and 25-34 year-olds.

Economic management poorly rated: Maori are increasingly dissatisfied with the Governments handling of the economy and more are reporting their household financial positions are worse than a year ago, and more expect them to worsen in the next year. Overall 34.5% of Maori expect their household financial position to worsen.

Iwi involvement and contact: Five per cent more are involved in iwi affairs than in 2011, though a third are still not active in iwi affairs. 51% have little or no contact with their iwi and 24.6% only rate contact with them by their iwi as adequate or better.

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Maori unhappy with economy, iwi - point to policy priorities

HONG KONG, Sept. 10, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- China Oriental Culture Group Limited (the "Company" or "China Oriental Culture", stock code:2371), is pleased to announce that the Purchaser, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Company, entered into an acquisition agreement with Headwind Holdings Limited (the "Vendor") and Mr. Lu Xing (the "Guarantor") to conditionally agree to acquire Housden Holdings Limited (the "Target", together with its subsidiaries, the "Target Group") on 7 September 2012 (the "Acquisition Agreement").

According to the Acquisition Agreement, the initial consideration for the acquisition of HK$199.5 million will be satisfied by the Company issuing 950,000,000 preferred shares of the Company (the "Initial Preferred Shares") at the issue price of HK$0.21 per preferred share and if the consolidated net profit after taxation of during a profit warranty period stipulated under the Acquisition Agreement reaches RMB40,000,000 and there are 1 million or more registered users of the education platform of the Target Group during such profit warranty period, the consideration for the acquisition will be adjusted upward by HK$199.5 million and 950,000,000 additional preferred shares of the Company (the "Additional Preferred Shares") at the issue price of HK$0.21 per preferred share will be issued to the Vendor in satisfaction of the increment in the consideration for the acquisition. After the Initial Preferred shares and the Additional Preferred Shares were issued in full, the total consideration so paid will be HK$399 million.

The Target Group set a strategic goal of "one-stop comprehensive online learning service", directed the major business focus to the provision of online training and education services, and exerted effort to build a management platform for online learning and services, which integrates online learning public services, intelligent management of online education, and educational resources trading, and will be capable of handling a large number of online users simultaneously. By employing software that supports online sharing mode, the platform is able to provide various training institutes and individual learners with online training management services. With the support of the platform, individual learners are able to conduct self-training and management through the database of course material of the platform. Besides, the platform can also be functioned to provide knowledge trading services for online education training, optimising and integrating course material resources and forming a market for trading those resources.

The Target Group mainly provides training services like preparation for national professional qualifications and professional qualification certificates, online language learning and cross-cultural training, online extracurricular tutoring for primary and secondary students as well as continuing education training for civil servants and professional technicians. The Target Group also offers online training and tailor-made training services to large national enterprises and social organisations. The Target Group has ranked as one of the major comprehensive online education service operators in China.

Commenting on the agreement, Mr. Li Qing, Executive Director of the Company, said: "We are very pleased to have signed the agreement and diversify our business into the online education service market. With the society progressing and continuous advancing of information technology, we have confidence in the prospect of the said business in China. The acquisition is a milestone of the Companys development and will further expand our business. Looking forward, we will look into more potential acquisition projects and further increase our income sources."

About China Oriental Culture Group Limited

The Group is principally engaged in (i) the provision of advertising and consultancy services in respect of placing advertisements on the outdoor billboards and LED screens of the Group to advertisers and advertising agencies.

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China Oriental Culture Diversified into Online Education Service to Expand Income Sources

Whos ever had a tequila shooter? You know what you do first throw that salt over your shoulder, shouts Maureen Hagan, the incredibly charismatic vice-president of operations for GoodLife Fitness, as she energetically marches on a stage in a windowless, non-descript workout studio in Torontos east end.

Im midway through a 30-minute Flexi-Shape class, an aerobics routine involving two trademarked gadgets Ive never heard of before: a set of one-kilogram weighted cylinders (the Xco Trainers) and a five-foot-long, flexible metal rod with foam balls on each end (the Flexi-Bar). As a disco track encouraging me to feel the groove plays in the background, I frantically shake my Xcos, which are filled with a highly specialized granular substance and bear a striking resemblance to the much-spoofed Shake Weight. (Totally different science, Ms. Hagan tells me later.)

Im having fun and feeling a slight burn in my arms, yet I cant entirely, well, shake the feeling that Im on the set of a 1980s infomercial.

This 10-minute shaker routine is but an intermission from the classs main act, performing a series of arm movements with the Flexi-Bar which we hold at its midpoint and exert subtle pressure on so that it will vibrate as we squat, lunge and march.

Like David Hasselhoff, the Flexi-Bar is apparently big in Germany. Its a household name there, says Ms. Hagan. Every Olympic athlete uses it. A physiotherapist in addition to a Good Life exec and instructor, she discovered the bar at a German fitness convention and was so impressed by its effectiveness as both a rehabilitation tool (its original use) and core toner (ideal for runners and hunched-over office workers) that she implemented Flexi-Bar classes at 70 of GoodLifes 280 Canadian locations.

Based on the concept of vibration training, which sounds vaguely of the occult, the tool purportedly contracts ones muscles at a frequency thats ideal for toning. The greater the amplitude requires more muscle firing, which creates greater muscle tone, explains Ms. Hagan. And while it may seem as though your arms are doing most of the work, that actually isnt the case: To get that bar to swing, you have to brace from your core, she says. The muscles that primarily fire are those surrounding your spine.

Back in the studio with my feet firmly planted, my back straight, my shoulders back and my arms raised and slightly bent it takes a few minutes to master the movement. Its not about overgripping the bar, its about relaxing it, Ms. Hagan instructs the class, primarily women in their 30s as well as a handful of guys none of whom seem embarrassed at the prospect of looking like a slightly deranged baton twirler.

At first, Im guilty of overgripping, thrusting the bar so vigorously that Im worried Ill take flight thanks to the exuberant flapping of my batwings. (Ms. Hagan, its worth noting, has zero tricep flab.) Then, in an instant, it clicks: All thats required to keep the Flexi-Bar moving is a slight pressure, which does, ever-so-slightly, seem to originate from my core.

For the next 15 minutes, we vibrate the bar first using two hands, then alternating between left and right. Then its shaker-time, as we thrust the Xcos (the delayed movement of the granular substance is supposedly less stressful on the joints) over and back, in front and side to side.

Finally, we cool down even though Ive barely broken a sweat stretching with the Flexi-Bar to a torch singers take on Billie Jean. After a round of applause, Ms. Hagan steps off the stage and makes her way through the small crowd, high-fiving as she goes. Do you still feel your muscles vibrating? she asks. Unfortunately no, even though I really want to. (Shes that convincing.) But while I felt self-conscious and more than a little silly, being constantly prompted to keep my shoulders back improved my posture for days, which, even if my core was barely activated, had a definite slimming effect.

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Flexi-Shape: Vibrating your way to fitness