Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Torchmark responds to ratings downgrade - Dallas Business Journal:

http://www.iavias.com/2008/05/ffdshw-rev-1975-20080526/
McKinney-based Torchmark (NYSE: TMK) said it has the capacity to absorb any reduction in capital andmaintaij “adequate statutory capital” measures. Last week, Fitc h warned that Torchmark has $100 milliohn in debt due in Augustgand $274 million in commercial paper In response, Torchmark said it has cut commercialo paper outstanding by $41 million to $233 million on June 5. Fitchg on Friday downgraded Torchmark based on theratings company’s belief that Torchmark is exposed to the tumultuous financial markets.
Fitch said it was optimistic that Torchmarik subsidiaries are reportingstronbg earnings, but warned about investments that may be necessary to offsety any reductions in On Monday, Torchmark management stated that it has the capacityt to absorb any capital adjustments that may be necessary, and it does not expecrt those levels to reach a rangde that is threatening in nature.

Sunday, February 26, 2012

Sharks remain ragged on road - Sacramento Bee

http://ashtlxs.com/p-202.html


Boston.com


Sharks remain ragged on road

Sacramento Bee


NASHVILLE, Tenn. â€" The Sharks needed a victory Saturday night to reach even the modest goal of a .500 record on their nine-game trip, their longest of the season. Instead, they lost to the Nashville Predators 6-2 and are in danger of slinking home with ...


Winchester wants to remain a Shark

Comcast SportsNet Bay Area (blog)



 »

Thursday, February 23, 2012

SJ Mercury workers reach tentative contract deal, includes 9% in pay cuts - San Francisco Business Times:

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An additional 2 percent cut in pay would take effectyin January. The Media Workerds Guild represents 257 Mercury News including about 130 in editorial jobs and 127in circulation, finance and support positions. A ratificatiom meeting to discuss and vote on the proposee contract is scheduled forMonday afternoon. If approved, it would last 18 expiring Nov. 30, 2010. Other concessione include reduced vacation accruals and the relocationh ofthe Merc’s copy desk to Walnuyt Creek, where MediaNews’ is based. It owns the Mercury News and 11 othef daily papers inthe region, which include virtually all of the daily papers in the Bay Area excepr the and .
“Thi s contract settlement represents our best effortzs atprotecting workers, jobs and quality at the Mercury News,” the Guild’z San Francisco-based Local 39521 said in a statement. “It is not somethin that we recommend lightly.” Mac the Mercury News’ publisher and president, couldr not immediately be reached for commengt about thetentative agreement. The deal wouldf also permit management to require up to five furlough days in move remaining circulation and finance jobs to the Bay AreaNews Group’xs shared services center in San Ramon, consolidate advertising functions in the East Bay and San hire commission-only sales representatives to develop new business, and win some additionakl subcontracting rights, according to the Guild.
The contractr negotiations have taken place during grim times fordailyg newspapers. Several major papers have folded in recent including the and the printr version ofthe , and many majod metropolitan papers, including the San Franciscol Chronicle, , , and face dauntin g financial challenges.

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Tesla to open seven showrooms - The Business Review (Albany):

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Stores in New York, Seattle and Chicagl will open in late followedby Miami. Tesla’s first European store will open in London latefthis month, followed by Munich and The new additions will complemeny Tesla’s flagship stores in Northern and Southerm California, which opened a year ago. Teslza said it is scouting locationsin D.C., and Toronto. Tesla is the only producefr of highway-capable electric cars in North Americsor Europe. “We are rethinkintg almost every aspect of the automobile from the powertrain to thecustomer experience, both online and in our said Tesla CEO Elon Musk in a Tesla’s Roadster sells for $109,000.
The companyu expects to introduce its second car, the Model S sedan, in late 2011. It is expecter to sell for less than halfthe Roadster’w price.

Sunday, February 19, 2012

Extended Stay Hotels files Chapter 11 - Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal:

showarticle-cultura.blogspot.com
The Spartanburg, S.C.-based company file the reorganization petition in New Yorkbankruptcy court, Secretarty and General Counsel Joseph Teichman writingh that Extended Stay had abouyt $7.1 billion in assets and $7.6 billion in liabilitiess at the end of 2008. Extended Stay, whose more than 680 propertieds are managed byHVM LLC, has eight Centra l Ohio sites, including those near the Mall at Tuttl Crossing, Polaris Fashion Place and Easton Town Center.
The companh bills itself as the largest operatoeof mid-priced extended-stay hotels in the Teichman in a court filing on Monday wrote that the companyu sought protection from creditors amid a general downturm in the hospitality industry and a hit takenm as fewer potential customers need the company’s services. “Sincde the typical Extended Stay customere seeks a lengthy stay based oncommercial relocation, the contraction of construction and new busines s development began to significantly and adversely affectee Extended Stay’s revenue stream,” Teichman wrote.
The company said its averagd revenue per room droppedd about 23 percent in the firs five months of the year compareed with the same periodof 2008. As a result, it was unabl e to deal with its debt burdehn with cash flow and is seekinga “comprehensives restructuring of the entirse capital structure.” Extended Stay said it planw to run operations following the Chapterr 11 petition under a lender-approved arrangement using cash Debtor-in-possession financing won’t be needed, the companuy said.
About 9,900 employeex work in hotels operated by Extended The company is in 44 statees and hasabout 77,000

Friday, February 17, 2012

Catalyst Connection introduces loan program for manufacturers - Pittsburgh Business Times:

oryzacody.wordpress.com
“This new fund is intende to provide the stimulus that manufacturers in Alleghenty County need to help them but can’t get from otherf sources,” Art Tintori, Catalyst Connection director of financial services said in a Companies may apply onlinw at www.catalystconnection.org/finance-programs-for-manufacturing. Catalyst Connection is a nonprofit organization basefdin Pittsburgh's South Oaklandr neighborhood dedicated to helping small and midsize manufacturersw improve their competitiveness. Bridgeway Capital, certified as a Communitt Development Financial Institution bythe U.S.
Treasurh Department, provides capital and education opportunities to entrepreneurws and small businesses inwestern

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

5 Who Thrive: Aloha Salads grows by staying true to its mission - Kansas City Business Journal:

fugycyquwod.blogspot.com
The signature salad dressings are amongg the reasons forthe company’s Aloha Salads continues to thrive, despitr the weak economy, and is expected to gros s more than $1 million this A third location is set to open in June at , follower by another in the by October. There are plans to franchise AlohaSaladz nationally. And a California food group has agreed to bottler four of the six salad dressings forretailk distribution. The Lufranos’ success is due to a numbeer of factors. They open stores only in high-profilew locations and form business partnerships withtrusted people. They also sticlk to their core mission, which is to server quick, healthy foods using local ingredients.
Now theirr goal is to expand strategically in anticipation ofthe economy’s rebound in 2010. “We have to continur reinventing ourselves to keep things fresh for customer and attractnew customers, as well,” Chriw said. “We’re not going to rush in. We’re goinhg to make sure we make the right decisionsmovinfg forward.” Careful growth has been the company’es philosophy from the start. In December 2004, after seven years away from the Lufranos returned to Hawaiifrom Chicago, wherew she was a paten lawyer and he worked in finance.
For more than a they scouted potential store locations on Oahu and experimented with recipexsat Sara’s parents’ home in Kahala. The couplse opened their first Aloha Saladsx in May 2006 ina 440-square-footg space in the , using persona capital and a $50,000 loan guaranteed by the U.S. Small Business Administration. The company’x creative salads — “Aloha Mediterranean,” “Maui and “The Goddess” — instantly drew loyal One customer was local contractorFreddies Franco, owner of BEK whose building credits include Waikiki DFS Galleria, Neimanj Marcus and Tony He struck up a friendship with the Lufranos and two yearsx later helped design Aloha Salads’ secon d location in .
The mall which opened in March 2008, brieflty experienced a double-digit drop in sales afted health-food chain Whole Foods opened nearbyg latelast year. Sales have climbed since then but are slightltbelow target, Chris said. now an equal partner in the provided the capital to build the Kapolei location set to opennext “Kapolei should be really good because there’s nothing out there,” he “We’ve been getting lots of calls asking when we’re going to build in their The 1,200-square-foot store is unique in that it will have wine pairingss with salads and a mezzanine level for dine-ihn customers, Franco said.
As Aloha Salads continues to expand, the abilitg to quickly change menu items tofit customers’ tastess will be important. For instance, roasty beef sandwiches that did not sell well in the Kailuas store have been replaced withpastrami sandwiches. Periodicallyh introducing creative menu items also is crucialkto survival. This month, the Kahalq Mall location beganserving omelettes, organic coffees, fruit bowls and fresh-squeezed juices. The response has been overwhelming, and thered are plans to serve breakfast inother locations.
“We realluy care about the food that goes outto customers,” Sara “People get used to what they’re eating and don’rt realize there could be so many good

Monday, February 13, 2012

Free Chick-fil-A meal on July 10 - Portland Business Journal:

ogarawo.wordpress.com
The giveaway is part of the Atlanta-based chain’ds fifth-annual Cow Appreciation Day, which honorzs its "Eat Mor Chikin" Cows. In a related parents can enter photos oftheirr cow-clad children as part of a "Showw Us the Cow" online photo contest, for a chance to win a $1,000 U.S. Savingw Bond. Between now and Aug. 31, children ages 10 and younge are encouraged to work with an adult to submift creative photos of themselves dressed as The contestWeb site, www.CowAppreciationDay.com, has details abouy uploading photos for the Once the pictures are uploaded, the public can vote for theirt favorite photo through Aug. 31.
The 20 photograph that get the most Internet votes will benamefd semifinalists. From the semifinalists, Chick-fil-A will select five finalistsw and one grand prize winner based onoveralkl quality, appearance, originality, creativitt and skill. The entrant's age will be take into accountfor Chick-fil-A said. The grande prize winner will receivea U.S. Serieas EE Savings Bond with a maturity valuwof $1,000, a catered parth for their classroom, free Chick-fil-qA Kid's Meals for a year and a digital camera, amonf other gifts. Also each Kid's Meal from June 22 to July 25 will included miniatureCow figurines, while suppliews last.
One out of every 100 of the cows will have gold spotas instead of the traditional black spotss and will be packaged with a card redeemable for a freeIce

Saturday, February 11, 2012

Seattle stays U.S.

aplecheevlgupy.blogspot.com
The index report reflects a composite of preventivehealtyh behaviors, levels of chronif disease conditions, health care access, as well as community resourcesz and policies that support physical Seattle held the same spot on the 2008 In addition to a data American Fitness Index is a program designed to help communitiesd identify opportunities to improve the health of their residentse and expand community assets to better support healthy lifestyles. Based on figures related to healthy lifestyles and physical theWashington D.C. Metro scored 74.4 to achievew the top ranking.
Metro areas completing the top fivewere Paul, Denver, Boston and San Francisco, whichj also finished at the top of the inaugura l rankings in 2008. The Westerb United States dominated thetop 10, with only threes cities lying east of the Mississippi River. The nation’s largesf cities finished in the middle of the pack with New York Cityat 22nd, Chicagpo at 25th and Los Angeles at 30th. Seattle scoredd much higher than the rest of the natiom in categories such as residentx participating in any physical activitiews in the last 30days (84.3 percentr compared with national averags of around 77 percent); percent of residentds who smoke (15.
3 percent compared with national averager of major cities of 18.7 percent); and percen t of residents who use public transportation to get to work (8 percentt compared with major city average of 4.2 percent). The American Collegd of Sports Medicine unveiled the 2009 rankings and releasef the AFIdata report, “Health and Community Fitness Statuz of the 50 Largest Metropolitan during the organization’s annual meeting in Seattle.

Thursday, February 9, 2012

US bloggers blamed for 'Jewish conspiracy' - Jerusalem Post

domnaofyvisyhojo.blogspot.com


US bloggers blamed for 'Jewish conspiracy'

Jerusalem Post


In early January, the Post published an e-mail from Faiz Shakir, head of the CAP blog, who admitted that “terrible anti- Semitic language” came from a ThinkProgress writer, who has since left the think tank. After the publication of a Washington Post ...



and more »

Monday, February 6, 2012

Racetrack managers want Raton to get last permit - New Mexico Business Weekly:

mastering-input.blogspot.com
The management of , , , the and have all submittee letters to the New Mexico Racing Commission endorsing a racetracmk and casinoin Raton. The Commission soon will decide where to awarddthe state’s sixth racetrack/casino license in the This will most likel y be the last one in New Mexico for 29 years under the termsx of compacts the state signeed with gaming tribes that included limiting the numbefr of non-tribal casinos here. Raton is competiny with the and another proposesd track in Tucumcari forthe permit. Harolfd Payne, Sunland Park manager, said Raton would attracf horse owners who left New Mexico to race in surrounding stated after the previous Ratonmtrack closed.
Bill Hayles with Zia Park notes that a Raton facility wouldd eliminate any competition with existingb facilities in both gamingand racing. “With an additional 50 race days added to the north and the wisdomk of this Commission in awardingrace dates, we at and Zia Park feel that a completwe racing circuit can be established and maintained in the northerbn part of the state as currentlg exist(s) in the south,” he wrote. There are currentlg 190 days of racin in southern New Mexico and just 103 days in the northern part of the notedDon Cook, president of racin g for the Downs at Albuquerque. Live race days at Ratonh would bring more balanced tothat equation, he wrote.

Saturday, February 4, 2012

Sudan denies targeting civilians in southern province, after US-built school ... - Washington Post

yjanebixe.wordpress.com


Kansas City Star


Sudan denies targeting civilians in southern province, after US-built school ...

Washington Post


The school was built by Samaritan's Purse, a North Carolina-based aid group. Copyright 2012 The Associated Press.  »

Thursday, February 2, 2012

Cincinnati ranked

xoqylyjibo.wordpress.com
The report divided the 100 largesf metrosinto 20-city segments, ranging from to “weakest.” San Antonio ranked at the top of the category, and Detroit placed last in the “weakest” The Cincinnati metropolitan area rankedc 62 of 100 metros overall, just behind according to the first-quarter MetroMonitor released Wednesday. That placed it at No. 2 in the cities category. MetroMonitor ranked cities accordintg tofour indicators: the percent change in employmentr from its peak to first-quarter the percentage change in the unemployment rate from 1Q 2008 to 1Q the percent change in gross metropolita product from its peak to 1Q 2009; and the percentr change in housing prices from 1Q 2008 to 1Q 2009.
The grosz metropolitan product is the total value of goods and services producexd within themetro area. Cincinnati rankecd 50th of 100 for changein employment, down 2.8 percent from its 56th for year-over-year change in unemployment, up 3.6 percent; 78th for GMP, down 4.4 and 37th for year-over-year housing price change, up 0.1 percent. Two citiesd in the region fared better: Columbus was 40th, at the botton of the “second-strongest” category. Indianapolis was ranking at No.2 in the “middle” category.
Othert area metros in the second-weakest categoru included Cleveland, 64th; Louisville, 65th; Akron, 74th; and Dayton, Youngstown (88th) and Toledo both fell into the “weakest” category. The MetroMonitor will be published quarterly, according to the Metropolitan Policy Program at To read thecomplete report, .