seujorgexy: January 2012

Wednesday, January 11, 2012

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US condemns Iranian death sentence for American

FILE -- A Dec. 27, 2011 file photo of a video frame grab image made from the Iranian broadcaster IRIB TV, shows U.S. citizen Amir Mirzaei Hekmati, accused by Iran of spying for the CIA, in Tehran's revolutionary court, in Iran. An Iranian court has convicted an American man of working for the CIA and sentenced him to death, state radio reported Monday Jan. 8, 2012. (AP Photo/IRIB/File) NO ACCESS IRAN; BBC PERSIAN TV OUT; VOA PERSIAN TV OUT

WASHINGTON (AP) ? The Obama administration Monday rejected Iran's charge that a young Iranian-American man used a family trip to Iran as cover for espionage, after the Tehran government issued the first death penalty against a U.S. citizen since the Islamic Revolution 33 years ago. The U.S. suggested the decision was a political ploy.

In a case that surely will heighten tensions with Tehran, Iran charged Amir Mirzaei Hekmati with receiving special training and serving at U.S. military bases in Iraq and Afghanistan before traveling to Iran on an intelligence mission. A court convicted him of belonging to the CIA and trying to incriminate Iran for involvement in terrorism, according to a state radio report Monday.

The United States denied the accusations. The State Department called them a "complete fabrication" and White House spokesman Tommy Vietor added that "allegations that Mr. Hekmati either worked for or was sent to Iran by the CIA are false."

"The Iranian regime has a history of falsely accusing people of being spies, of eliciting forced confessions and of holding innocent Americans for political reasons," Vietor said in a statement.

The case sheds light on the legal but risky travel of U.S. citizens to Iran, common among many first-generation and second-generation Iranian-Americans but a practice largely hidden to the larger American populace. Thousands are believed to make the trip each year, though the State Department doesn't have firm figures because people must travel through third countries and most dual nationals enter the Islamic republic using Iranian passports.

But the State Department has warned that U.S.-Iranian citizens aren't necessarily any safer than others from the threat of arbitrary arrest. Spokeswoman Victoria Nuland said the U.S. has issued a series of travel warnings for Americans, with specific references to those holding both U.S. and Iranian citizenship.

"We urge Iranian-Americans to take particular care," Nuland told reporters. Because Iranian authorities don't recognize dual citizenship, they treat any such people arrested as they would other Iranians. The latest U.S. travel warning says Iranian-Americans face "the risk of being targeted" by Tehran and notes that "Iranian authorities have detained and harassed U.S. citizens of Iranian origin."

Hekmati, 28, is a former military translator who was born in Arizona and graduated from high school in Michigan. His family is of Iranian origin, and Hekmati claims dual citizenship. His father, Ali, a professor at a community college in Flint, Mich., has said his son was visiting his grandmothers in Iran.

The Marine Corps said Amir Nema Hekmati served between 2001 and 2005, including a deployment to Iraq in 2004 and a stint at the military language institute in Monterey, Calif. The Marine records do not indicate any deployment to Afghanistan. It was not clear why the middle name was listed differently.

Behnaz Hekmati, Amir's mother, said in an email to The Associated Press that she and her husband are "shocked and terrified" that their son has been sentenced to death. The verdict is "the result of a process that was neither transparent nor fair," she said.

Her son did not engage in spying, she said. "Amir is not a criminal. His very life is being exploited for political gain."

In an alleged confession broadcast on Iranian state TV last month, Hekmati said he entered the Army after finishing high school in 2001 and received military and intelligence training including serving as an intelligence analyst in Iraq. He said his key responsibility was to identify Iraqi politicians sympathetic to Americans.

He said he had also worked for the military's Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency and for Kuma Games, which he described to state TV as "a computer games company which received money from CIA to design and make special films and computer games to change the public opinion's mindset in the Middle East and distribute them among Middle East residents free of charge. The goal of Kuma Games was to convince the people of the world and Iraq that what the U.S. does in Iraq and other countries is good and acceptable."

The company's website describes it as a specialist in episodic games, in which the story line of ongoing games develops like television episodes. Several of its products are war-themed.

He also said he worked for BAE Systems, where he learned how to "use secret systems and methods for gathering information from difference places and individuals. During this period, CIA was trying to find a suitable cover-up for my important mission," according to the English-language website of Iran's state TV.

From March to August 2010, Hekmati worked for BAE Systems, said company spokesman Brian Roehrkasse. He said Hekmati left the company to take a civilian position with the U.S. government, but he had no details.

The espionage charges against Hekmati are similar to previous prosecutions against Americans who were sentenced to jail time and later freed, including an Iranian-American journalist in 2009 and three U.S. citizens detained along the Iraq border. Iranian prosecutors, however, had stressed Hekmati's links to the U.S. military in calling for capital punishment.

State Department officials said they were unaware of any previous death penalty sentence on an American in Iran.

Iran and the United States currently are locked in a period of intense hostility ? a situation that augurs poorly for a quick release for Hekmati.

The Obama administration has approved new sanctions against Iran over its disputed nuclear enrichment program, specifically targeting the regime's central bank and its ability to sell petroleum abroad, though they've yet to come into force. Iran has responded with warnings to American vessels against entering the Strait of Hormuz, the strategic waterway that carries to market much of the oil pumped in the Middle East.

Having imposed the worst possible sentence immediately, Iran now could seek to drag out the case. In past cases Iran has held out the possibility of releasing American prisoners on humanitarian grounds, presumably in the hopes of gaining a counter-concession from Washington. September's release of a pair of American hikers held captive by Iran for two years is the most recent example.

President Barack Obama approved the new U.S. sanctions against Iran on Dec. 31, despite his administration's fears they could spike global oil prices or cause economic hardship on American allies in Europe and Asia that import petroleum from Iran.

The measures affect foreign financial institutions doing business with Iran's central bank by barring them from doing business in the United States. The measures would apply to foreign central banks as well for transactions related to petroleum.

But the sanctions won't take effect for six months. The president also can waive them for national security reasons or if the country in question significantly reduces its purchases of Iranian oil. The State Department says it is trying to implement the law in a way that maximizes pressure on Tehran while causing minimal disruption to the U.S. and its allies.

___

Associated Press writers Lolita C. Baldor, Anne Gearan and Julie Pace contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2012-01-09-US-US-Iran/id-b111edc13e594d0382129ff59b3adad8

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Tuesday, January 10, 2012

Nationwide strike begins in Nigeria over gas costs (AP)

LAGOS, Nigeria ? A national strike paralyzed much of Nigeria on Monday, with more than 10,000 demonstrators swarming its commercial capital to protest soaring fuel prices and decades of government corruption in the oil-rich country.

Some protesters pulled metal barriers into the street, while others took gasoline from motorbikes to set tires ablaze. Others waved placards bearing an effigy of President Goodluck Jonathan with devil horns and fanged teeth, and showing him pumping fuel at a gas station.

"Our leaders are not concerned about Nigerians. They are concerned about themselves," said protester Joseph Adekolu, a 42-year-old accountant.

Police carrying Kalashnikov rifles and gas masks largely stood by as the demonstrators marched on the first day of an indefinite strike called by labor unions. Protesters also took to the streets in Nigeria's capital of Abuja.

Gas prices have risen from $1.70 per gallon (45 cents per liter) to at least $3.50 per gallon (94 cents per liter) since a government fuel subsidy ended on Jan. 1 at the orders of Jonathan's administration. That spurred a spike in prices for food and transportation across a nation of more than 160 million people, most of whom live on less than $2 a day.

While lawmakers on Sunday rebuked the president's decision, the unions said they would continue their strike.

Bola Adejobi, 53, said she's protesting against more than just fuel costs. For her and many others in Africa's most populous country, the strike represents anger that much of the nation remains without electricity and clean drinking water after more than 50 years of oil production.

"It is high time to take Nigeria into our hands," Adejobi said. "It happened in Egypt. It happened in Libya."

Nigeria's finance minister said the country has been using borrowed funds to maintain the subsidy.

"Greece got where it is now because for years, they didn't do the right thing. They kept borrowing and borrowing to finance development," Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala told local television station Channels TV on Monday. "We can't keep borrowing to finance our development."

Two major unions have said they will maintain the strike despite a court restraining order. A similar situation occurred in 2003, when strikers over eight days attacked shops that remained open, took over air traffic control towers and caused a drop in oil production in a country vital to U.S. energy supplies.

Organizers have called for peaceful protests, but gang members already began stoning vehicles and harassing motorists in Lagos. Some riot police stood on hand at the demonstration site Monday. They quickly became outnumbered by protesters.

The strikes comes as activists have begun a loose-knit group of protests called "Occupy Nigeria," inspired by those near Wall Street in New York. Their anger extends to the government's weak response to ongoing violence in Nigeria by a radical Muslim sect that, according to an Associated Press count, killed at least 510 people last year.

Famous Nigerian authors, including Chinua Achebe, issued a statement Monday saying they support the strike, and warning that if left unattended the violence by the extremist group could sweep the country.

"The country's leadership should not view the incessant attacks as mere temporary misfortune with which the citizenry must learn to live; they are precursors to events that could destabilize the entire country," their statement read.

The government has so fair failed to calm public anger over the spiraling gasoline costs. The government has promised that the $8 billion in estimated savings a year from the end of the fuel subsidies would go toward badly needed road and public projects.

One protester in Lagos held his protest sign upside down.

"Our life is already turned upside down," he told a reporter. "It is not how it's supposed to be."

Demonstrators burned a patrol car and a private car parked next to it in the northern city of Kano, filling the sky with billows of smoke as thousands protested below. Some in Nigeria's second-largest city are asking for the government to restore the subsidy. Others want Jonathan to resign. "He cannot rule this country," a placard read.

Some protesters also brought down a fence to the seat of the state of government in Kano where security officers used tear gas and fired at the crowd to keep them from entering the premises.

Eighteen people were wounded in the shootings and stampede that followed, said Dr. Kabiru Abdulsalam, spokesman for the Nigerian Medical Association of Kano.

___

Associated Press writers Ibrahim Garba in Kano, Lekan Oyekanmi in Abuja and Yinka Ibukun in Lagos, Nigeria contributed to this report.

___

Jon Gambrell can be reached at http://www.twitter.com/jongambrellAP.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/world/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120109/ap_on_bi_ge/af_nigeria_fuel_subsidy

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HC price request to Coal India

Calcutta, Jan. 6: Calcutta High Court today ?requested? Coal India Ltd (CIL) to put on hold till January 15 its move to increase prices.

?Mind you, this is not an order. We are requesting CIL that if possible, they should not give effect to its December 30 notification in which the company increased coal prices, till January 15,? Justice Pinaki Ghosh said.

Moloy Bose, the lawyer appearing for Coal India, told the court that he would have to speak to CIL authorities and prayed for time to file an affidavit stating the company?s pricing policy.

The division bench accepted the plea and fixed January 15 as the next hearing date.

The high court is hearing a PIL filed by green activist Subhash Dutta alleging that CIL was hiking prices ?whimsically?.

Senior Coal India officials could not be contacted this evening. Text messages to the cellphones of company chairman N.C. Jha, director (finance) A.K. Sinha and general manager (legal) S. Majumdar went unanswered.

A Coal India official said: ?A decision on the high court?s request will be taken after our chairman comes back (from Delhi) tomorrow.?

Source: http://www.telegraphindia.com/1120107/jsp/bengal/story_14974688.jsp

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Monday, January 9, 2012

Hot air balloon crash kills 11 in New Zealand (Reuters)

CARTERTON, New Zealand (Reuters) ? A hot air balloon burst into flames and crashed in New Zealand on Saturday, killing all 11 people on board in the country's worst air accident in more than three decades.

Police said the balloon appeared to have clipped powerlines and caught fire before crashing into farmland near Carterton, about 80 km (50 miles) northeast of Wellington on New Zealand's North Island.

"Sadly the pilot and 10 passengers on board have not survived," Wellington District Commander Superintendent Mike Rusbatch said.

The accident occurred just before 7.30 am (1830 GMT) in calm, clear weather in a region well known for hot air ballooning.

"I couldn't believe what I was seeing. There were flames licking up the side of the basket, right up the guy-ropes," David McKinlay told state-run Television New Zealand.

When the flames reached the canopy, the balloon plunged to the ground, said McKinlay.

"There was a big, long pencil-like flame maybe 20 meters (65 feet) long, heading towards the ground at a terrible speed," he said.

Other witnesses reported hearing screams and seeing smoke and flames trailing from the balloon before it hit the ground.

Rusbatch said five couples from across the wider Wellington region as well as the pilot were on board. Two victims had either jumped or fallen from the burning balloon shortly before it crashed, he said.

Police, who have cordoned off the crash site, are not releasing the names of the victims until next-of-kin have been informed.

Local resident Sean Barnes said the pilot, named in media as Lance Hopping, was well known.

"Everybody knew him, he brought a lot of people to the community to go up in the balloon," Barnes told Reuters.

The accident was New Zealand's worst air disaster since an Antarctic tourist flight crashed into Mt Erebus in 1979, killing all 257 people on board.

"It's a very sad time for all balloonists," said Martyn Stacey, president of the Balloon Aviation Association of New Zealand.

"On the whole, aviation-wise, ballooning is one of the safest forms of flying."

Transport Minister Gerry Brownlee said rules for commercial hot air ballooning in New Zealand had recently been reviewed.

"Experts will be looking to learn any lessons from the investigations ... which can help improve safety for others in the future," Brownlee said in a statement.

(Writing by Lincoln Feast in Wellington; Additional reporting by Mantik Kusjanto; Editing by Andrew Heavens)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/world/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120107/wl_nm/us_newzealand_balloon

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Sunday, January 8, 2012

Japan sushi chain takes loss on tuna for patriotism

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Source: http://business-times.asiaone.com/mnt/html/btpre/registration/redirect.jsp?dlink=/sub/news/story/0,4574,472571,00.html?

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Pub Crawl: Shenanygans Sports Bar & Lounge

Address: 6422 Babcock Road

Phone: 210-690-1156

Web: www.shenanygans.com Hours: 4 p.m.-2 a.m. Monday-Saturday, noon-2 a.m. Sunday

Noise/Cost: Medium/medium

Snapshot: Shenanygans (yes, that's how it's spelled) is a neighborhood sports bar that offers a little more than most neighborhood sports bars, including designer martinis and disco balls. The main room is packed with TVs tuned to sports (including NFL Network) and tall tables and booths; an adjacent game room features more TVs, pool tables, dartboards and a Golden Tee Live golf game. There's poker on Tuesday nights and beer pong on Thursday nights. If the karaoke gets annoying, escape to the outdoor patio, which has a real working fireplace and outdoor bar.

Who goes there: Neighborhood sports fans. At night, UTSA students pack the place.

Behind the bar: Sixteen beers on tap, daily drink specials, happy hour from 4-7 p.m. ($2.50 wells, $2 domestic pints, $3 imported pints) and several fancy martinis, including Pumpkin Spice Chai, Sugar Cookie and Raspberry Chocolate Truffle.

Soundtrack: Internet Jukebox; DJs Thursdays, Fridays and Saturday nights; karaoke on Wednesdays and Sundays. Dennis Dietz plays an acoustic gig on Monday nights.

Munchies: The kitchen serves up wings, burgers, Frito pie, chicken strips, sandwiches and breaded appetizers 5-10 p.m. Monday-Wednesday, 5-11 p.m. Thursday-Saturday and noon-10 p.m. Sunday.

The skinny: A casual spot with something happening every night.

? Jessica Belasco

Source: http://www.mysanantonio.com/entertainment/article/Pub-Crawl-Shenanygans-Sports-Bar-Lounge-2440942.php

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Saturday, January 7, 2012

2012 Ford Edge - Sarasota Ford - Sarasota, FL

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Kanye West Tells All in Heartfelt Twitter Rant (Blog) (@kanyewest)

Kanye West has shunned the media for a while now, as a result of a heated interview on the Today show with Matt Lauer.

However, it seems that Kanye is letting his fans still know he cares by reaching out via Twitter. Like a flashdrive dumping all of its info on a computer Kanye dumped every minute detail hidden in his brain on the popular social networking site.

In a near 4 hour rant Kanye cleared up some confusion on his fashion line, which is named "Kanye West," not "DW," and added that he doesn't have an agency currently representing him. He also added that he's starting a new company named "DONDA" in honor of his late mother, Donda West.

Kanye's rant was eye opening, in the fact that it's very rare that he gives outsiders a glimpse into his personal life. So, take a look into the mind of Mr. West via Twitter:

Source: Twitter

Source: http://www.vladtv.com/blog/80165/kanye-west-tells-all-in-heartfelt-twitter-rant/

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Friday, January 6, 2012

Trigger for breast cancer spread identified

Trigger for breast cancer spread identified Washington, Jan 4 : A vital change in body's cellular defense system, which is usually involved in fighting bacterial and viral infection, triggers breast cancer spread to other parts of the body, a new study led by Indian origin author has revealed.

For cancer cells shape matters. All cells contain a protein cytoskeleton that acts as a scaffold determining overall shape and function, the position of the cell within an organ or tissue, and the ability of the cell to communicate with its neighbours to prevent the uncontrolled growth typical of cancer cells.

However, cell transformations that result in cancer disrupt the genetic programs of the cell and alter the cytoskeleton, leading to changes in shape, function, and cell communication that produce uncontrolled growth and metastatic spreading of the tumour.

Understanding these changes to the normal genetic program of a cell and the consequences that ultimately lead to cancer have been major challenges to cancer biologists.

This research by Shyamal Desai, PhD, Assistant Professor of Biochemistry and Molecular Biology at LSU Health Sciences Center New Orleans found that a cellular defense system called the ISG15 pathway, which is normally involved in fighting bacterial and viral infection, is triggered in breast cancer to disrupt normal cytoskeletal function and increase the possibility that the cancer cells will metastasize, or spread.

"Our findings, for the first time, causally link an alteration in the ISG15 pathway during transformation with metastatic potential," Dr. Desai, said.

"thus providing a novel therapeutic target for future drug discovery."

Cells contain a protein quality control pathway termed the Proteasome that breaks down damaged and unneeded proteins to their component amino acids for recycling.

Such proteins are marked for degradation by flagging them with a small protein called Ubiquitin, which is then recognized by the Proteasome.

Alterations in the genetic program that controls the Ubiquitin/Proteasome system have been known for some time to cause cell transformation and cancer. More recently, Dr. Desai and her colleagues have demonstrated that, unlike normal cells, transformed cancer cells produce increased amounts of a related control system that marks proteins with another small protein called ISG15.

Previous research reports that the amount of ISG15 is increased in high-grade compared with low-grade cancers. The ISG15 system is normally activated by interferon and is part of an ancient cellular immune response designed to counter bacterial and viral infection.

By a still unidentified mechanism, cancer cell transformation activates the ISG15 pathway. Dr. Desai and colleagues have previously reported that activation of the ISG15 system interferes with function of the Ubiquitin/Proteasome pathway.

In their latest work, Dr. Desai and colleagues show that several key proteins that regulate cell movement, invasion, and metastasis are blocked from Proteasome degradation by the ISG15 system and that genetic manipulation to inhibit this pathway reverses cancer cell transformation, suggesting an approach to blocking cancer progression.

The results have been published in Experimental Biology and Medicine. (ANI)

Source: http://www.topnews.in/health/trigger-breast-cancer-spread-identified-214360

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Thursday, January 5, 2012

Badgers' Ball will soon reveal NFL draft decision

Wisconsin Badgers star running back Montee Ball has reportedly made his decision on whether to declare for the NFL draft, according to USA Today. Ball will let his decision be known public within the next few days.

?Basically, I looked myself in the mirror and told myself what I needed to do for me, what I needed to do for my family and for my teammates,? Ball told USA Today. ?And that?s what it came down to.?

Ball ran for 164 yards and scored two touchdowns in the Badgers? Rose Bowl loss to the Oregon Ducks Monday evening. The 21-year-old back led the nation in rushing with 1,923 yards on the ground while also tallying 39 total touchdowns this season.

Source: http://tracking.si.com/2012/01/03/wisconsin-rb-montee-ball-has-made-decision-on-nfl-draft/?xid=si_ncaaf

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Tuesday, January 3, 2012

Who Did Lady Gaga Kiss on New Year's Eve?

Someone locked lips with Lady Gaga on New Year's Eve.

If you guessed that person was her boyfriend Taylor Kinney, you would be ... incorrect! But you're still up on your Gaga gossip and we commend you for that.

No, this would've been a bit harder to see coming. After Lady Gaga's New Year's Eve performance rocked Times Square, she puckered up at midnight with ...

The Mayor of New York City, Michael Bloomberg! Look:

If ever there were a picture worth a thousand words ...

Embracing as the ball dropped, the Grammy winner wore a sequined mask and hizzoner donned a sweater embroidered with the American flag. U-S-A! U-S-A!

Bloomberg officially chose Gaga as his "ball drop partner" a few days prior to the event. For the star, the whole experience of NYC on NYE was very emotional.

"I can't even quite describe what tonight felt like," Gaga, who grew up on the city's Upper West Side, Tweeted. "Sort of poetic madness. A dream come true."

We're guessing she meant the night overall, not just kissing Bloomy. Although you never know, the charming 69-year-old does look handsome in that sweater.

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2012/01/who-did-lady-gaga-kiss-on-new-years-eve/

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Futures jump after Chinese, German data (Reuters)

NEW YORK (Reuters) ? Stock index futures rose sharply on Tuesday as upbeat Chinese and German data boosted optimism about the global economy after the S&P 500 index ended flat in 2011.

Global markets rallied, including in Asia where data showed improvement in Chinese manufacturing, while European shares also rose, led by mining stocks after the Chinese data lifted hopes that demand would be strong for metals.

The world's largest consumer of metals, avoided contraction in December, albeit slightly.

Also boosting sentiment, German unemployment fell more than forecast.

Investors could get more signals about a U.S. economic recovery, with data from the Institute for Supply Management (ISM) Index of National Factory Activity for December as well as November construction spending, both due at 10 a.m. EST (1500 GMT).

November construction spending is expected to show a gain of 0.5 percent, versus 0.8 percent, according to a Reuters survey of economists. The ISM manufacturing index is forecast rising to 53.2 percent in December from 52.7 percent in the previous month.

The Federal Open Market Committee will release minutes from its December 13 meeting is due at 2 p.m. ET (1900 GMT).

"A combination of beginning of the year giddiness and better than expected economic data in Asia and in Europe has the S&P futures well bid," said Peter Boockvar, equity strategist at Miller Tabak & Co in New York.

But concerns about the euro zone debt crisis continued on the first trading day of the new year.

S&P 500 futures rose 18.4 points and were above fair value, a formula that evaluates pricing by taking into account interest rates, dividends and time to expiration on the contract. Dow Jones industrial average futures jumped 180 points, and Nasdaq 100 futures advanced 38.5 points.

The broad S&P 500 ended flat for 2011. It lost a mere 0.003 percent, the closest to unchanged since 1947, according to Standard & Poor's.

Barclays Capital has downgraded five semiconductor stocks including Intel Corp (INTC.O), saying the sector is in for a "volatile" 2012 as an inventory correction extends into the first quarter, with a recovery due only in the second half.

Intel shares were up 1.4 percent at $24.58 in premarket trade.

Starbucks Corp (SBUX.O) shares will be in view after the coffee shop chain said it was raising prices in the U.S. Northeast and Sunbelt by an average of about 1 percent.

Jefferies & Co upgraded American Eagle Outfitters Inc (AEO.N) and Ann Inc (ANN.N) to "buy," saying U.S. specialty retailers could see better margins this year due to a slow but ongoing consumer recovery, combined with normalized cotton costs. Shares of American Eagle Outfitters rose 3.1 percent in premarket trade at $15.77.

The Thomson Reuters/PayNet small business lending index showed borrowing by small U.S. businesses hit its highest level in nearly four years in November and suggested an economy recovery was gathering momentum.

(Reporting By Angela Moon; editing by Jeffrey Benkoe)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/business/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120103/bs_nm/us_markets_stocks

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Colts fire Polians as cleansing begins

Indianapolis Colts head coach Jim Caldwell talks about the season during a news conference at the NFL team's football practice facility in Indianapolis, Monday, Jan. 2, 2012. The Colts finished the season with a 2-14 record. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Indianapolis Colts quarterback Jarrett Brown cleans out his locker at the NFL team's football practice facility in Indianapolis, Monday, Jan. 2, 2012. The Colts finished the season with a 2-14 record. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Indianapolis Colts cornerback Jacob Lacey, left, and free safety Antoine Bethea clear out their lockers at the NFL team's football practice facility in Indianapolis, Monday, Jan. 2, 2012. The Colts finished the season with a 2-14 record. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

Indianapolis Colts center Jeff Saturday talks about the season in the locker room at the NFL team's football practice facility in Indianapolis, Monday, Jan. 2, 2012. The Colts finished the season with a 2-14 record. (AP Photo/Michael Conroy)

INDIANAPOLIS (AP) ? Cleaning out the Colts front office may be only the start of the changes in Indianapolis.

Team owner Jim Irsay fired team vice chairman Bill Polian and his son, Chris, the Colts' general manager on Monday. He said there was a good chance coach Jim Caldwell will be back next season, but his evaluation was not over.

He also must still decide whether a healthy Peyton Manning and a new quarterback can co-exist in the same locker room, and which veteran free agents come back next year, if any.

"I don't think there's ever been a year in the NFL where a team went 2-14 and there's not been changes," defensive captain Gary Brackett said Monday, less than 24 hours after a season-ending loss at Jacksonville.

Outsiders had expected the first order of business to be the firing of Caldwell, who won 14 straight games and advanced to the Super Bowl in his first season as Colts coach. Caldwell said he simply went about his business Monday, speaking with Irsay following the 19-13 loss at Jacksonville and with both Polians on Monday, part of his usual routine.

"You lose as many games as we lost in a year, there's a problem, there's an issue," Caldwell said. "But when we were 14-2, the way you guys put it, my job was in limbo then, right?"

The elder Polian had constructed Super Bowl teams in Buffalo and Indy, and an NFC title contender at Carolina.

But troubling signs emerged this season as the Colts lost time and time again -- 13 straight at one point -- with Manning sidelined to recover from Sept. 8 neck surgery. And it was Manning who suggested he and Bill Polian were not on the same page.

Polian said on one of his weekly radio shows that he and the four-time league MVP had discussed the possibility of establishing a transition plan at quarterback and that Manning was OK with it. Manning later said the two had never discussed the 2012 draft plans, which include the No. 1 pick amid speculation that the Colts will take Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck to groom as Manning's successor.

Then, just before Christmas, Polian told local reporters that Manning would fail his exit physical, a move that would actually help the Colts because it would allow him to continue working out at the team complex during the offseason.

"That was kind of news to me," Manning told reporters Sunday, then said he probably could pass the physical.

Fans have been clamoring for the ouster of Caldwell and both Polians. Irsay, a frequent poster on Twitter, has been listening.

"I want 2 thank all ColtsFans..here,throughout the country n abroad,4ur tremendous,loyal support all year long. Ur feedback is heard n noted," he tweeted Monday morning.

For their part, players offered support for Caldwell, who just wrapped his third year as head coach in Indy.

"One thing about Jim is that he's a stand-up guy, and guys respect that," cornerback Jerraud Powers said. "He's a great coach, a good guy, and it was unfortunate situation this year. But he never lost the locker room."

The longer and, perhaps, more critical debate is how to rebuild this team and what to do at quarterback.

Manning never played after undergoing his third neck surgery in 19 months, a fusion of two vertebrae.

He did, however, start throwing to teammates in mid-December and received good reviews from both Bill Polian, who was watching, and running back Joseph Addai, who was catching balls. Doctors familiar with the procedure who did not treat Manning say he should return to a high level of play now that the fusion has healed.

If he is healthy, Irsay has promised to bring back Manning regardless of the $28 million bonus he is owed in March.

But after posting the NFL's worst record without Manning, the Colts also have won the Luck sweepstakes, potentially putting two franchise quarterbacks on the same roster.

"I think I can co-exist with any player I've ever played with," Manning said Sunday. "I think I've always been a good teammate in that way."

If Manning returns, Irsay might be more likely to bring back former Pro Bowlers Robert Mathis, Jeff Saturday and Reggie Wayne, all of whom are now in their 30s, and keep other key high-priced cogs in the Colts' success such as Brackett and safety Melvin Bullitt.

"I think when you're playing, you're so entrenched with the people you go to work with every day," Saturday said. "It's different for us to go out and think like an owner. But whatever decisions, we've got to take it as a community and move on."

He'd clearly had enough of the Polians, though.

Bill Polian drew the wrath of fans in 2009 when he pulled the starters in the third quarter against the New York Jets, costing the Colts a chance at a perfect season after going 14-0. At the time, Polian told listeners that the team's goal was to win the Super Bowl, not go undefeated. Indy wound up losing the Super Bowl, too.

When Manning went down this season, Polian came under fire for not having a capable backup in place, signing Kerry Collins out of retirement and fueling speculation that the team was interested in Brett Favre. He told radio listeners that he accepted the blame.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2012-01-02-Colts%20Wrapup/id-a7ee840c436c42b78b0a18bdd58dcc72

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