Home prices gain for fifth month in June: S&P

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. single-family home prices gained for the fifth month in a row in June, a fresh sign of improvement in the housing market, a closely watched survey showed on Tuesday.

The S&P/Case Shiller composite index of 20 metropolitan areas gained 0.9 percent on a seasonally adjusted basis, topping economists' forecasts for 0.5 percent, according to a Reuters poll.

On a non-seasonally adjusted basis, prices were even stronger, up 2.3 percent.

"We seem to be witnessing exactly what we needed for a sustained recovery; monthly increases coupled with improving annual rates of change," David Blitzer, chairman of the index committee at Standard & Poor's, said in a statement.

"The market may have finally turned around."

Prices in the 20 cities rose 0.5 percent compared to the year before.

For the second quarter, seasonally adjusted national prices jumped 2.2 percent compared to the 1.4 percent gain that was seen in the first quarter.

(Reporting by Leah Schnurr; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/home-prices-gain-fifth-month-june-p-130053393--business.html

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A subdued start for GOP convention as Isaac surges

TAMPA, Fla. (AP) ? Republicans staged a remarkably subdued opening to Mitt Romney's national convention Monday in the midst of a turbulent election year, wary of uncorking a glittery political celebration as Tropical Storm Isaac surged menacingly toward New Orleans and the northern Gulf Coast.

There was speculation that the Republican man of the hour would make an unannounced visit to the convention hall Tuesday night when his wife, Ann, was on the speaking program. The campaign would confirm only that he was flying to town in time to do so.

Virtually every party leader spoke somberly of the storm's potential damage during the day, including the candidate. "Our thoughts are with the people that are in the storm's path and hope that they're spared any major destruction," said Romney, the man seeking to defeat Democratic President Barack Obama.

Though Republicans are intent on turning the campaign's focus back to the nation's sluggish economic growth and high unemployment, a comment Romney made on abortion reintroduced a topic that had taken over campaign discussion last week. In a CBS interview, he said he opposes abortions except "in the case of rape and incest, and the health and life of the mother."

That underscored his difference of opinion on the subject with his running mate, Rep. Paul Ryan of Wisconsin, as well as with his own convention platform, which opposes all abortions.

Any exceptions made solely on the basis of a woman's health have drawn particularly fierce criticism from abortion foes for years, and Romney's aides said he wasn't advocating an exemption on that basis alone.

"Governor Romney's position is clear: He opposes abortion except for cases of rape, incest and where the life of the mother is threatened," said Andrea Saul, a spokeswoman.

The convention's first session lasted scarcely a minute, just long enough for the party's chairman, Reince Priebus, to rap a gavel and declare the gathering open for business. As he did, high above the floor, numbers began flashing across an electronic tally board labeled "Debt from Convention Start," meant to show the government steadily borrowing under Obama's leadership throughout the convention.

The week was turning out to be about both meteorology and politics. Romney's top aides and convention planners were juggling their desire for a robust rouse-the-Republicans convention with concern about appearing uncaring as New Orleans faced a threat from Isaac precisely seven years after the city was devastated by Hurricane Katrina.

Forecasters predicted Isaac would intensify into a Category 1 hurricane by Tuesday with top sustained winds between 74 and 95 mph, and said its projected path went through New Orleans.

Opinion polls made the presidential race nearly even as Republicans launched their convention, although it appeared Obama had a slim advantage in battleground states where the election is most likely to be decided. It was anything but certain what the impact would be on the campaign of back-to-back convention weeks, first Romney's and then the president's in Charlotte, N.C.

The economy is the number one issue by far in the polls, and Romney's surrogates sought to make sure the campaign focus stays fixed on it.

A blunt view came from Gary Hawkins, a delegate from Brandon, Miss. "We have to nominate a candidate for president. Our mission is to save America from becoming a socialistic state," he said.

In the convention hall, Priebus looked out at thousands of empty seats and a smattering of delegates in his brief turn on stage. Officials decided earlier in the week to scrap nearly all of the opening day's program when it appeared that Isaac might make a direct hit on the convention city.

That put Romney's formal nomination off by a day until Tuesday. Weather permitting, he delivers his acceptance speech on Thursday night, then embarks on a fall campaign that he hopes will propel him to the White House.

Romney's wife, Ann, is on the speaking program for Tuesday evening, and it wasn't known if he intended to be in the hall for her address.

"This week is about convincing the 10 percent of undecided voters that Romney has always been called to come out and fix broken organizations," said Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., interviewed on the convention floor.

"We've got to make the case that he is uniquely qualified in this hour" he said, adding that the "country is in bankruptcy."

Sen. Rob Portman, R-Ohio, carried a similar message to his state's delegates at a morning meeting.

"It's time to stop blaming others and take responsibility," he said in a reference to the president. "There are families all over Ohio that are suffering as a result. He hasn't measured up to his own standards. "

What passed for vocal dissent within the party came from supporters of Rep. Ron Paul, a Texas Republican who ran for the presidential nomination but failed to win a primary or caucus.

Delegates loyal to him threatened a floor fight later in the week over party rules. And they staged a brief but noisy demonstration at the rear of the convention hall after Priebus completed his brief turn at the podium, holding up placards bearing their man's name. They stood in front of a permanent sign that said "We Can Do Better," appropriating Romney's pledge to fix the economy to express a preference for their man.

More than dissent, there was concern from within the party, though couched in supportive terms, that despite the political opportunity that the weak economy presents, Romney needs to broaden GOP appeal.

"This is Romney's threshold moment. He must demonstrate that he would follow the example of other Republican presidents in addressing issues important to women," Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, wrote in The Washington Post, one of several party leaders to express the view.

Not that Obama and his surrogates were letting up on that subject.

In a tweet on Monday night, Obama circulated a quotation from Women's Health Magazine suggesting that Republicans would take away women's right to contraception. "Crazy as it sounds, the fight to limit or even ban birth control is a key issue in the upcoming presidential election," it said.

That was in addition to a controversy that combined rape and abortion that was triggered when the Republican candidate for a Missouri Senate seat said a woman's body has a way of preventing pregnancy in cases of "legitimate rape." Rep. Todd Akin, who opposes abortions without exception, quickly apologized for his claim, which is unsupported by medical evidence, but refused to get out of the race as Romney and other leading Republicans requested.

Polls testified to the political stakes.

An AP-GfK poll of registered voters conducted from Aug. 16-20 showed Obama leading Romney by 50-44 among women. That represented a narrow closing of the gap by the Republican from a survey in May, when the president led 54-39 among female voters.

Romney trailed badly among another key group. A Gallup poll taken between July 30 and Aug 1 showed Obama winning 60 percent support among Hispanic voters, and the Republican at 27 percent, little different from 64-29 earlier in the year.

Among seniors, the group most affected by a Medicare debate that looms as central to the campaign, Romney led Obama by a margin of 52-42 in the recent AP-GfK poll. That was compared with 53-40 in May.

In Tampa, despite weather worries, Tom Del Beccaro, a California delegate and chair of the state GOP, predicted the one-day delay in full convention events would supercharge the rest of the week's meeting.

"I think there's going to be a lot of bottled up energy, and I think that's going to show," he said.

But Sally Bradshaw, a Florida Republican and longtime senior aide to former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, was more cautious. "It's a mess all around and it's fraught with risk," she said. "It's not good for anybody ? particularly the people impacted by the storm."

Vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan, speaking in his hometown of Janesville, Wis., before heading for the convention on Tuesday, said the stakes were as high as could be.

"We're not just picking the next president for a few years," he said. "We are picking the pathway for America for a generation."

In the streets surrounding the convention hall, police vastly outnumbered protesters.

There was one arrest, a man who refused to remove his bandana after a march through downtown.

___

Associated Press writers Brian Bakst, Thomas Beaumont, Tamara Lush, Brendan Farrington and Julie Mazziotta in Florida, Steve Peoples in New Hampshire, Philip Elliott in Wisconsin and Steven Ohlemacher and Alicia A. Caldwell in Washington contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/subdued-start-gop-convention-isaac-surges-211328686.html

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Internet Marketing Rules Blog: Why It's Important To Ignore The ...

If you?re a beginner to online marketing, you probably don?t understand how things work and how fast you can expect to make money in your online business. Making money online is said to be easy, but these methods of making money online may not align with your objectives as to how you want to run your business.

You may think that it?s not worth it to start your own website and to start an online business. But if you?re reading this webpage, you probably are doing it for a reason. I?m going to take another shot at it and say that you probably hate working a job, and that you?re looking for a way to earn money online in the shortest amount of time possible.

If this describes you, then I know how you feel. It?s exactly the way I felt when I quit my job and was using relying on the internet to bring me the sales and profits that I was looking for. So if you?re looking to earn money, there is definitely money to be made online.

However unfortunately, there will always be those people on the internet who will lie or make up outrageous claims about how you can make thousands online in only 7 days. These people should be ignored with great intensity and vigor. Never believe the lies of alot of these people.

You will get people who say that they earn 6 figures online with their 1 website, and then when you go and check their traffic stats, they don?t even break the ?1,000,000? mark on this website called ?Alexa? traffic rating. And there are many people out there like that. Most of these people are just looking to make a quick buck online, and then the rest of their business goes into oblivion.

Trust me, if earning thousands of dollars on the internet within the next 7 days was true, everybody would be doing it. And also, the online business fact that we have all heard of wouldn?t be true either. What am I talking about here? Well, I want to share with you what it on my mind.

It?s been said that 95% of all online business owners will fail this year, and that only 5% of online business owners would have success. So if it was incredibly easy to make money online, this stat would probably be turned on its head. So instead of only 5% succeeding? 95% would be succeeding, and only 5% would fail. With numbers like these, everybody would be trying to launch a business online? but not everybody does.

And it?s interesting to notice that the numbers don?t change each year. Every year the stats remain the same. This tells me that online marketing and having an internet business is much harder than what it seems to be. So if you want to make money online, you will have to be diligent, faithful in your business, and will have to market your business incredibly hard each and everyday.

Don?t believe the hype online. Just follow the proven methods of earning money online, and you will be good to go.

Good luck with earning money in your internet business starting today.

For more internet marketing secrets, simply visit the website below:
http://www.internetmarketing-rules.com/internetmarketing.html

Source: http://blog.internetmarketing-rules.com/2012/08/why-its-important-to-ignore-hype-in.html

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2 Chinese ships hit by typhoon; 5 dead, 10 missing

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) ? A powerful typhoon pounded South Korea with strong winds and heavy rain Tuesday as it churned up rough seas that smashed two fishing ships into rocks, killing at least five fishermen and forcing the coast guard to perform a daring rescue for the survivors.

Rescuers saved 12 fishermen and were still searching for 10 missing from the Chinese ships that hit rocks off South Korea's southern Jeju island.

Separately, at least three other people died as Typhoon Bolaven knocked out power to hundreds of thousands of South Koreans, canceled flights and temporarily halted joint war games by U.S. and South Korean military forces.

North Korea, which is still struggling to rebuild from massive floods and a devastating drought before that, was next in the typhoon's path. State media reported the country was being lashed by heavy rain and strong wind Tuesday.

Off Jeju island, dangerous waves kept rescue vessels from approaching the Chinese fishing ships. The coast guard used a special gun to shoot rope to one ship so officers could pull themselves over and bring the fishermen back to shore, coast guard spokesman Ko Chang-keon said.

Eighteen fishermen survived. Twelve were rescued by the coast guard and the others swam or were washed ashore.

South Korea issued a storm warning for the capital, Seoul, as Bolaven battered the country's south and west, knocking over street lights and church spires and ripping signs from stores. A large container box crushed an apartment janitor to death, a woman fell to her death from a rooftop where she kept dried red peppers and a third person died after bricks hit a house, according to disaster and fire officials.

Strong wind gusts left Seoul streets covered with leaves, garbage and branches. More than 15,000 schools cancelled classes, and businesses and homes taped windows or pasted the glass with wet newspapers to keep them from shattering.

More than 330,000 South Korean households lost power, the government said, and more than 70 were left homeless because of floods or storm damage. Nearly 200 flights were canceled.

In North Korea, Pyongyang's official Korean Central News Agency reported gale force winds and heavy rain in many parts of the country. Big rainstorms often mean catastrophe in the North because of poor drainage, deforestation and decrepit infrastructure.

North Korea is still trying to help people with food, shelter, health care and clean water after heavy flooding in July, according to a recent United Nations situation report. More than 170 died nationwide, and tens of thousands of homes were destroyed in the floods, according to official North Korean accounts.

Many flood victims still live in tents with limited access to water and other basic facilities, the U.N. report said, and there is worry about increased malnutrition in coming weeks. Seoul's Unification Ministry approved a trip Wednesday by two South Korean aid groups to visit the North Korean city of Kaesong for talks on flood aid.

Weather officials had warned that Bolaven would be the strongest typhoon to hit the region in several years, but its gusts weren't as powerful as predicted.

The typhoon hit the southern Japanese island of Okinawa on Monday, injuring four people but doing less damage than feared before moving off to sea. More than 75,000 households lost power.

Farther south, another typhoon, Tembin, doubled back and hit Taiwan three days after drenching the same region before blowing out to sea. Fierce winds and rain toppled coconut trees in the beach resort town of Hengchun.

In Manila, the Philippine weather agency reissued typhoon warnings to residents and fishermen for Tembin, which blew out of the archipelago over the weekend. Fishing boats in the north were urged not to venture out to sea while larger ships were warned of possible big waves and heavy rains.

___

Associated Press writers Hye Soo Nah, Foster Klug, Sam Kim and Jean H. Lee in Seoul, and Annie Huang in Taipei, Taiwan, contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/2-chinese-ships-hit-typhoon-5-dead-10-074431402.html

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In Canada, the Impact of America's New Patent Law Is Seen ...

In an article published in Monday?s New York Times and available now online, I wrote about a lawsuit that challenges the constitutionality of the nation?s new patent law, the America Invents Act.

Opponents of the law say it would hurt small inventors and American innovation. Supporters of the legislation, which passed by large majorities in both the House and the Senate, say the constitutional critique is misguided. They also assert that the fears of small inventors are greatly exaggerated, and that the new law will streamline the patent system and thus invigorate the nation?s innovation ecosystem as a whole.

Reasonable people ? and others ? can disagree. But a research paper scheduled for publication in the current volume of the Stanford Law Review takes a look at a similar law change in Canada in 1989 and analyzes the impact.

The research, by David S. Abrams, an economist at the University of Pennsylvania Law School, and R. Polk Wagner, a professor at the law school, concludes that patents awarded to individual inventors dropped by 15 percent after the legislative change in Canada.

?Our findings,? the authors write, ?do not augur well for small inventors in the United States.?

Under the new law, the United States, beginning in March of next year, would move from a first-to-invent system to first-to-file. Opponents of the law say the switch would favor large corporations, whose big legal staffs will likely win the paper chase to the patent office.

The American law is not a mirror image of the Canadian legislation. But the authors say they tried to factor those differences out, as well as economic cycles. In the years after 1989, through 1993, the share of Canadian patents granted to small inventors fell from 10.7 percent of all patents to 7.8 percent. In the United States, the comparable share slipped slightly from 17.4 percent to 16.5 percent.

America?s current patent system, according to Adam Mossoff, a professor at George Mason University School of Law, is intentionally biased toward small upstarts, the ?new innovators that disrupt and destroy existing companies and industries.?

There is debate among economists about the role of small inventors and companies in innovation and job growth. The drift of research is that a tiny percentage of fast-growing small companies that quickly become bigger companies ? sometimes called ?gazelles? ? account for most of the job generation and disruptive innovation.

The paper by the University of Pennsylvania professors has a provocative headline, ?Poisoning the Next Apple? How the America Invents Act Harms Inventors.? They write that the new law ?will surely simplify and streamline the patent system ? but at a cost.?

But the economic question is whether it will be a ?net? cost. Laws and regulations always have costs, but they can also bring benefits. The professors? research does not reach a conclusion on whether the new patent law will help or harm innovation in the economy over all.

?The bottom-line question is whether this will be good or bad for the nation,? Mr. Abrams said in an interview. ?I don?t think the answer is clear on that score.?

Source: http://bits.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/08/26/in-canada-the-impact-of-americas-new-patent-law-is-seen/

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Tea party tries to balance ideology, constituents

WASHINGTON (AP) ? Twenty months into a Congress they have tilted rightward, tea party loyalists are finding that ideological purity can be elusive for conservative lawmakers trying to balance their convictions against constituents' election-year needs.

Rep. Paul Ryan, who has won tea party praise as Mitt Romney's vice presidential pick, had a General Motors assembly plant that was about to be shuttered in his hometown of Janesville, Wis., when he voted for the $14 billion auto industry bailout in 2008. The seven-term House Republican also voted for the $700 billion financial industry rescue that same year.

He has since criticized both efforts by President George W. Bush to combat that year's near economic collapse. Yet his votes ? plus his support for Bush's 2003 debt-financed expansion of Medicare to provide prescription drug coverage ? rankle conservatives to this day and underscore the challenge of adhering to small-government principles when voters' bread-and-butter interests are at stake.

More recently, this campaign season has seen some of the House's most conservative members split over a sweeping farm bill, disaster aid to drought-battered farmers and legislation to finance transportation projects and keep student loan interest rates from ballooning. Such divisions have dampened the expectations of tea party leaders, with some now saying it will take several elections before they win the Washington clout they need.

"No one is going to agree with us 100 percent of the time," Jenny Beth Martin, a national coordinator for the Tea Party Patriots, said of members of Congress. "And we do understand they do have to look at what's best for their district and their constituents."

Martin said that most of all, tea party supporters want lawmakers to be firm in their convictions. Out of 240 House Republicans and 47 GOP senators, she said there are fewer than 30 House members and about five senators she can reliably count on for support, with too many others focused on bringing federal largesse back home.

"We just don't have very many visionary people stepping up in our political landscape right now at all," Martin said.

The struggles conservatives face were illustrated just before Congress recessed for August, when the House approved $383 million in agriculture disaster aid, mostly for livestock producers and tree farmers.

Conservatives ended up on both sides of the 223-197 vote. One of the "yes" votes came from Rep. Tim Huelskamp, R-Kan., who has one of the House's most conservative voting records and whose district has one of the nation's heaviest concentrations of farms.

Huelskamp said he has repeatedly told constituents that they will be affected by efforts to curb federal deficits, including reductions in farm support. A farmer himself, Huelskamp said he voted for the disaster aid because it was paid for by cutting conservation programs.

"I thought it was fiscally responsible," he said.

That wasn't the view of Rep. Jim Jordan, R-Ohio, a House conservative leader who opposed the bill. He said he wants less federal involvement in the private sector and complained that the savings to pay for the measure's one year of disaster aid was being culled from conservation programs for a decade into the future.

"The first principle is what's good for your country is good for your constituents," Jordan said. "And what's good for your country is not to spend money you don't have."

Divisions like that among conservatives have not been unusual.

The conservative Club for Growth, which advocates lower taxes and less regulation, scores lawmakers' voting records based on bills it considers key.

Of the 46 House Republicans the club considered the most conservative, 27 voted for the disaster aid bill, 17 voted against and two did not vote. On the bill approved in June on transportation and student loans, 28 voted against, 16 voted for and two were absent.

"The reality is most members of Congress look to see what gets them re-elected and that drives their ideology more than a detached view of policy," said Chris Chocola, the club's president and a former House member.

Conservatives showed their clout last month when they prevented House GOP leaders from bringing a massive bill renewing agriculture programs to a vote in the chamber, arguing that its farm subsidies and food stamps were too costly.

Yet even that bill highlighted internal divisions. Four of the most conservative members, as measured by the Club for Growth, had voted for the bill when it was approved by the House Agriculture Committee, while two voted against it.

Tea party-backed Rep. Marlin Stutzman, R-Ind., opposed the broad bill at the Agriculture Committee, calling it too expensive. He backed the disaster measure on the House floor, arguing that it merely provided money the government committed to in a farm bill four years ago.

"With a drought across the country, there are priorities. As conservatives we set our priorities what is important and what is not, and I felt that was part of an obligation," Stutzman said of the disaster aid.

As for Ryan's 2008 votes, he said then that the financial industry bailout would preserve the free enterprise system. On the auto industry rescue, he said his district's economic hardships had been "downright gut-wrenching." Now chairman of the House Budget Committee, Ryan has since criticized both measures, saying the Obama administration misused them.

Matt Kibbe, president of FreedomWorks, which often works with tea party groups, said the organization likes Ryan's willingness to propose conservative budgets but has not forgotten his votes on the bailouts and the Medicare prescription drug expansion.

"We've had our disappointments and arguments with Paul over the years," said Kibbe. "He's definitely not perfect. But in presidential politics, there's no such thing as perfect."

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/tea-party-tries-balance-ideology-constituents-081158885.html

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Mass burials in Damascus town amid massacre report

AMMAN (AP) ? Dozens of bloodied bodies were buried Sunday in mass graves in a Damascus suburb where activists claim more than 300 people have been killed over the past week in a major government offensive to take back control of rebel-held areas in and around the capital.

The British-based activist group Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said 32 more dead bodies were found in the streets of Daraya on Sunday and that they had been killed by "gunfire and summary executions." Among them were three women and two children, the group said. It put the toll for the past week as at least 320.

Another activist group, the Local Coordination Committees, claimed 300 bodies were discovered Saturday in Daraya and 633 people have been killed there since the government launched its assault last week.

President Bashar Assad, in comments carried by state media, reiterated his long-standing claim that a foreign plot was behind the uprising against his rule and said he would not allow it to succeed "whatever the price might be."

Britain's minister for Middle East affairs, Alistair Burt, meanwhile, said if confirmed, the massacre "would be an atrocity on a new scale requiring unequivocal condemnation from the entire international community." He added that it "highlights the urgent need for international action to bring an end to the violence, end this culture of impunity and hold to account those responsible for these terrible acts."

Burt said he had discussed the killings with U.N. and Arab League Joint Special Representative for Syria Lakhdar Brahimi.

It was impossible to independently verify the death tolls because of severe restrictions on media coverage of the conflict. However, activists and residents have reported excessive use of force by the regime in major battles, with indiscriminate shelling from the ground and the air.

The Local Coordination Committees said some of those killed by regime forces in Daraya were buried in mass graves on Sunday. Video footage posted by the group showed bloodied bodies wrapped in colorful blankets lying next to each other with branches of date palms strewn over them.

Another video posted on the Internet and dated Saturday showed dozens of bodies on the floor of a mosque in Daraya. Most of the bodies were bloodied and wrapped in blankets. The anonymous commentator said there were at least 150 bodies there and blamed a pro-government militia known as shabiha for the killings. The authenticity of the two videos could not be independently confirmed.

The Local Coordination Committees said an additional 1,755 people had been detained in Daraya, suggesting that hundreds more might turn up dead.

On Thursday, troops backed by tanks and helicopter gunships stormed Daraya after intense shelling and fighting that lasted days.

The battle for Daraya showed the regime to be struggling to control Damascus and its suburbs though the firepower available to it is far superior to anything the rebels might have. Government forces are stretched thin, with a major ongoing battle for control of the nation's largest city, Aleppo in the north, as well as smaller scale operations in the east and south.

On Sunday, regime forces also used helicopter gunships and tanks to pound rebel-held areas in the northern city of Aleppo and the restive southern town of Daraa along the Jordanian border. The Observatory said it had reports of fatalities, but did not have exact numbers yet.

Activists say more than 20,000 people have died in 17 months of fighting in Syria, as an uprising that started with peaceful protests against Assad's rule has morphed into a civil war.

On the Turkish-Syrian border, several thousand Syrians gathered at Bab al-Salameh border crossing, having fled airstrikes in their northern towns and villages. They squatted on the sidewalks of three large hangars once used for cargo inspections of trucks. Some said they had been there a week or more.

Mohammed Abdel-Hay, 41, said his family of seven fled the village of Marea after a regime warplane bombed it last week, destroying a house and killing two people.

"They shelled us and we didn't leave. They hit us with helicopters and we didn't leave. Then they brought warplanes than drop huge bombs that destroy entire houses and we left," he said.

Since then, the family has staked out a patch of sidewalk where they sit on a plastic mat with a few grain sacks full of clothes.

Mustafa Khatib, 40, a middle school principal from the same village, said he, his wife and their five children fled about the same time and have been staying in the hangar ever since.

The hangar has only one set of latrines, which the women and children use, so the men must use nearby fields. Water was short, and Khatib said he hadn't showered in a week. He said all he had eaten all day was a piece of bread and a hardboiled egg brought by a local Syrian aid group.

Like most of the families, Khatib said he hoped to get into a refugee camp in Turkey, but had been told there was no room.

"We'll stay here and wait and see," he said. "Every day, we ask and they tell us today or tomorrow, but they've been saying that for a week and we're still here."

In Damascus, Syrian Vice President Farouk al-Sharaa appeared in public for the first time in several weeks for a meeting with a senior Iranian official, ending rumors that he had defected. Reporters saw him get out of his car and walk to his office for a meeting with Alaeddin Boroujerdi, head of Iran's powerful parliamentary committee on national security and foreign policy.

There have been a series of high-level defections from the Assad regime in the past few months.

Al-Sharaa was last seen at the funeral of four top security officials killed in a blast in Damascus on July 18. Since then, there had been rumors that he defected to Jordan, though al-Sharaa's office and Jordan repeatedly denied he defected.

He was seen Sunday at the door of his office, shaking hands with Boroujerdi, according to an Associated Press reporter at the scene. Al-Sharaa looked serious and steered away from reporters covering the meeting. He did not make a statement.

Pan-Arab satellite channel Al Arabiya reported that air force intelligence chief Maj. Gen. Jamil Hassan had been assassinated, but a senior government official denied it. The official insisted on anonymity because he was not allowed to speak to the media. The Al Arabiya report said Hassan, a powerful member of Assad's inner circle and religious Alawite minority, was shot dead Saturday by one of his aides who defected to the opposition.

Addounia TV, a pro-Syrian government channel, also denied the report. It said Hassan is "fine and the news about his killing is absolutely untrue."

In neighboring Jordan, officials say the country is bracing for a mass exodus of Syrians in the wake of intensified fighting.

Jordan appealed for increased international assistance to 160,000 Syrian refugees it is hosting. Information Minister Sameeh Maaytah said the refugee influx has swelled even further, with more than 2,300 Syrians crossing into Jordan on Friday ? the largest arrival in a single day since the outbreak of the Syrian uprising in March 2011.

"The number of refugees is growing and our limited resources are thinning," Maaytah said. "The international community should come to the aid of the Syrian refugees."

The United Nations refugee agency said it has yet to secure half of the $190 million aid appeal launched earlier this year to support Jordan and other countries hosting some 200,000 registered Syrian refugees.

Jordanian police spokesman Col. Mohammed Khatib said a Syrian rocket fell in the northern border town of Ramtha late Saturday, but no injuries were reported. It was the seventh rocket to fall in Jordan in five days, underlining the intensity of the army assault on southern Syrian towns such as Daraa, the birthplace of the uprising against Assad.

A police statement said 200 Syrian refugees pelted stones on Jordanian security guarding their desert camp late Saturday, wounding several policemen. The refugees were protesting poor conditions at the camp.

____

Associated Press reporters Albert Aji in Damascus, Syria, and Ben Hubbard on the Turkish-Syrian border contributed to this report.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/mass-burials-damascus-town-amid-massacre-report-191359267.html

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James Holmes allegedly told classmate he wanted to kill people

James Holmes (Arapahoe County Sheriff's Office)
DENVER?James Holmes, the suspect in the Aurora, Colo., movie theater massacre, told a classmate in March that he wanted to kill people.

That's alleged in court records released Friday. Also contained in a motion by the prosecution is information that Holmes failed a graduate school oral examination at the University of Colorado in June?just weeks before the shooting rampage that killed 12 and left dozens injured at a screening of the latest Batman film.

The Arapahoe County district attorney's office is seeking Holmes' educational records and has indicated that his grades, emails, admission applications and other school-related activity are relevant to the July 20 shooting.

"What's going on in the defendant's [education] life is extremely relevant in this case," Karen Pearson, an attorney with the DA's office, said during Thursday's hearing.

The prosecution's records also indicate Holmes was denied access to the university, where he was studying neuroscience, on June 12, after he threatened a professor. He then, the DA's office said, began a "detailed and complex" plan to obtain firearms, ammunition, a tear-gas grenade, body armor, a gas mask and a ballistic helmet?all of which, the prosecution said, were used to in the crime.

Holmes' defense team says looking into the suspect's education records is a "fishing expedition," and that any motive is irrelevant. The defense has said Holmes is mentally ill.

The 24-year-old faces 142 accounts, including 24 counts of first-degree murder and more than 100 charges of attempted murder.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/james-holmes-told-classmate-wanted-kill-prosecution-alleges-202253868.html

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Poca runs over Nitro 48-34 - Sports - The Charleston Gazette - West ...

POCA - At times, home-standing Poca had its way with hard-luck rival Nitro on Friday night, rushing for a head-spinning 515 yards in the season opener.

POCA - At times, home-standing Poca had its way with hard-luck rival Nitro on Friday night, rushing for a head-spinning 515 yards in the season opener.

But that wasn't nearly the entire story of the Dots' 48-34 victory at O.O. White Stadium, a game in which they dodged all manner of Wildcats threats before scoring 21 unanswered points in the final 18-plus minutes.

The biggest came in the fourth quarter with the game tied at 34, a play that threw injury to the insult that is Nitro's 16-game losing streak.

Ethan Clark, who riddled the Dots with 156 receiving yards and 79 rushing yards and three touchdowns, was well on his way to a fourth. He took a punt at his own 39-yard line, lost a few defenders, cut back and nothing but green grass and his own teammates in front of him.

Then, at the 5-yard line, he fell suddenly. On this warm night, he cramped at the worst possible time. Even worse, his teammates couldn't bail him out. Not even Alexander White, whose attempt at his third field goal was smothered by Poca's Tyler Gibson.

One play later, after the Dots committed an illegal formation foul, T.T. Loudin reeled off a 74-yard run. That play didn't provide the go-ahead score, but it was the beginning of Nitro's end.

It was a tough way for Derek Midkiff to begin his Nitro coaching career.

"He's been hurt the last couple of weeks, really hasn't practiced," Midkiff said of Clark. "He was out there giving his all like the rest of us was. Nothing you can do about a muscle; when it wants to cramp, it will cramp."

For much of the game, the Dots pulverized the Wildcats on the ground, producing three runners well past 100 yards rushing. Loudin had 210 on 22 carries, quarterback Jake Payne had 134 on 18 attempts and Levi Clendenin added 143 on 11 tries. Payne and Loudin each scored three times.

Loudin, a junior, is the man who has to pick up the slack for 1,000-yard rusher Dalton Hedrick, who did not come out for football this fall.

"He's going to be a good running back," said Poca coach Bob Lemley. "He had a sports [hernia] or some kind of injury, he couldn't play last year. So he lost that experience as a sophomore.''

The Dots went for the kill early, as Clendenin picked off Christopher Moody's first pass and walked in from the 4 for the opening score. After White kicked a 31-yard field goal for Nitro, Loudin scored from the 8 to make it 12-3.

This article is available only to our premium digital content subscribers.

Poca runs over Nitro 48-34

Dots amass 515 rushing yards, pull away with late scores

POCA - At times, home-standing Poca had its way with hard-luck rival Nitro on Friday night, rushing for a head-spinning 515 yards in the season opener.

But that wasn't nearly the entire story of the Dots' 48-34 victory at O.O. White Stadium, a game in which they dodged all manner of Wildcats threats before scoring 21 unanswered points in the final 18-plus minutes.

The biggest came in the fourth quarter with the game tied at 34, a play that threw injury to the insult that is Nitro's 16-game losing streak.

Ethan Clark, who riddled the Dots with 156 receiving yards and 79 rushing yards and three touchdowns, was well on his way to a fourth. He took a punt at his own 39-yard line, lost a few defenders, cut back and nothing but green grass and his own teammates in front of him.

Then, at the 5-yard line, he fell suddenly. On this warm night, he cramped at the worst possible time. Even worse, his teammates couldn't bail him out. Not even Alexander White, whose attempt at his third field goal was smothered by Poca's Tyler Gibson.

One play later, after the Dots committed an illegal formation foul, T.T. Loudin reeled off a 74-yard run. That play didn't provide the go-ahead score, but it was the beginning of Nitro's end.

It was a tough way for Derek Midkiff to begin his Nitro coaching career.

"He's been hurt the last couple of weeks, really hasn't practiced," Midkiff said of Clark. "He was out there giving his all like the rest of us was. Nothing you can do about a muscle; when it wants to cramp, it will cramp."

For much of the game, the Dots pulverized the Wildcats on the ground, producing three runners well past 100 yards rushing. Loudin had 210 on 22 carries, quarterback Jake Payne had 134 on 18 attempts and Levi Clendenin added 143 on 11 tries. Payne and Loudin each scored three times.

Loudin, a junior, is the man who has to pick up the slack for 1,000-yard rusher Dalton Hedrick, who did not come out for football this fall.

"He's going to be a good running back," said Poca coach Bob Lemley. "He had a sports [hernia] or some kind of injury, he couldn't play last year. So he lost that experience as a sophomore.''

The Dots went for the kill early, as Clendenin picked off Christopher Moody's first pass and walked in from the 4 for the opening score. After White kicked a 31-yard field goal for Nitro, Loudin scored from the 8 to make it 12-3.

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POCA - At times, home-standing Poca had its way with hard-luck rival Nitro on Friday night, rushing for a head-spinning 515 yards in the season opener.

But that wasn't nearly the entire story of the Dots' 48-34 victory at O.O. White Stadium, a game in which they dodged all manner of Wildcats threats before scoring 21 unanswered points in the final 18-plus minutes.

The biggest came in the fourth quarter with the game tied at 34, a play that threw injury to the insult that is Nitro's 16-game losing streak.

Ethan Clark, who riddled the Dots with 156 receiving yards and 79 rushing yards and three touchdowns, was well on his way to a fourth. He took a punt at his own 39-yard line, lost a few defenders, cut back and nothing but green grass and his own teammates in front of him.

Then, at the 5-yard line, he fell suddenly. On this warm night, he cramped at the worst possible time. Even worse, his teammates couldn't bail him out. Not even Alexander White, whose attempt at his third field goal was smothered by Poca's Tyler Gibson.

One play later, after the Dots committed an illegal formation foul, T.T. Loudin reeled off a 74-yard run. That play didn't provide the go-ahead score, but it was the beginning of Nitro's end.

It was a tough way for Derek Midkiff to begin his Nitro coaching career.

"He's been hurt the last couple of weeks, really hasn't practiced," Midkiff said of Clark. "He was out there giving his all like the rest of us was. Nothing you can do about a muscle; when it wants to cramp, it will cramp."

For much of the game, the Dots pulverized the Wildcats on the ground, producing three runners well past 100 yards rushing. Loudin had 210 on 22 carries, quarterback Jake Payne had 134 on 18 attempts and Levi Clendenin added 143 on 11 tries. Payne and Loudin each scored three times.

Loudin, a junior, is the man who has to pick up the slack for 1,000-yard rusher Dalton Hedrick, who did not come out for football this fall.

"He's going to be a good running back," said Poca coach Bob Lemley. "He had a sports [hernia] or some kind of injury, he couldn't play last year. So he lost that experience as a sophomore.''

The Dots went for the kill early, as Clendenin picked off Christopher Moody's first pass and walked in from the 4 for the opening score. After White kicked a 31-yard field goal for Nitro, Loudin scored from the 8 to make it 12-3.

Clark and the Dots served quick notice that victory wasn't going to come so easily. The 5-foot-11, 175-pound senior hit the corner quickly on an end around, going untouched on a 66-yard TD run. The Wildcats had a great chance to take the lead after forcing the second of Poca's three lost fumbles.

The Wildcats drove from their 48 to the Poca 1, where Brayden Underwood scored an apparent touchdown on a hard-fought 1-yard run. But the officials flagged Nitro for illegally assisting Underwood on the score, a 5-yard penalty Midkiff disputed.

On fourth-and-goal from the 2, Underwood was stonewalled by Brandon Pryor, Hayden Bailey, Gibson and other Dots.

After that, the Dots drive 99 yards, all on the ground, to take a 19-10 lead. White's 32-yard field goal gave set the halftime score at 19-13.

To start the second half, Moody completed one of three touchdown passes, ducking a rush to throw a 36-yard shot to Steven Erlewine. That gave Nitro its first lead at 20-19, but the Dots answered with a 49-yard drive (assisted by an ill-advised late hit) to retake the lead at 27-20.

The Moody-to-Clark combination, which clicked 10 times, gave Nitro a 34-27 lead with scoring plays of 8 and 38 yards. Clark was particularly impressive on the former, bowling over a defender at the 5-yard line.

The Dots tied it with 1:10 left in the third on another run-only drive, with Payne scoring from the 1. Early in the fourth quarter, Poca's defense dodged another bullet on a bad shotgun snap from its 9. Bailey outfought two Wildcats for that fumble.

Then came the fateful punt and Clark's fateful return that wasn't. After that turn of events, Payne scored on an 8-yard run with 4:42 left, crushed Moody on an 11-yard sack and handed off to Loudin for a game-icing 6-yard run with 1:27 remaining.

Lemley has seen his team give up a few punt returns in his 23 years on the Poca sideline, but he hasn't seen such misfortune as that suffered by Clark.

"We'll just put that in our playbook," Lemley joked, sympathetically. "I don't want to do that too many times."

Reach Doug Smock at 304-348-5130, dougsm...@wvgazette.com or follow him at twitter.com/dougsmock.

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hemantsblog: When a Christian High School Football Coach Takes His Team to Church for Food and Sermons, Why Is Anyone Defending Him? http://t.co/mihr6zPc

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

Source: http://twitter.com/hemantsblog/statuses/238940047838171137

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A Question about Dads Driving the Babysitter Home (Theagitator)

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

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/243096127?client_source=feed&format=rss

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The Remarkable Body Effects Of A Proper Detox Plan | Online ...

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Health and fitness experts always stress the significance of detox; drink eight glasses of water each day, consume foods full of minerals and vitamins that help in digestion as well as elimination, exercise frequently and sweat away those toxins. In France, the women even suggest getting beet soup two to three times a week simply because beets are natural diuretics that also efficiently free the body of toxins and promote regular bowel movement. The passion for beets is even stated extensively in the book, ?French Women Don?t Get Fat.?

A detox program is often interpreted as just a way of restoring balance, however it also creates other remarkable body effects that most people don?t truly learn about. Do you know that a detox program can assist improve your energy? Many people find that right after purging themselves, their bodies get weak and also they actually feel lethargic. If the detoxification procedure is done properly on the advice of a medical expert, the results should really all be good. People after a proper detoxification plan should emerge with great skin, a brighter feeling and much more energy.

However how precisely are these body outcomes achieved by the program? With Leaner You Detox Program, you can improve your own body?s capacity to digest food and with good digestion, good circulation and eradication follow. When the body gets to carry out these routines the appropriate way, weight loss or maintenance will become easier, and also keeping skin clear.

Many people who very easily pack on the pounds and have problems with bad skin have clogged liver. Regarding to classic Chinese health professionals, you can quickly tell if a person has clogged liver simply because not just does he have bad skin but there?s also a yellowish undertone towards the skin as well as the eyes. To treat this problem a detoxifying tonic (which frequently tastes terrible) is concocted and given to be consumed for a particular time. It?s nearly the same principle with the Leaner You Detox Program, however, not only will it unclog the liver, it could also boost your own body?s immune system leading you to less prone to having colds and coughs. Plus, the proper combination of food items in the program is also known to enhance metabolism that is significantly useful in shedding weight.

Purging your own body of harmful toxins can optimize the performance of your organs, and, as you know, a properly working body is always capable to perform more. So if you?ve been sluggish lately and you want a lot more energy to enjoy your life, take into account the detoxification plan. You will really feel invigorated and you?ll possess the strength that you need to become more profitable.

Source: http://online-success-articles.com/the-remarkable-body-effects-of-a-proper-detox-plan/

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Will 'Expendables 2' Hold On To Box-Office Crown?

Action flick's #1 spot will likely not be threatened by the debuts of 'Premium Rush,' 'Hit & Run' or 'The Apparition.'
By Ryan J. Downey

Sylvester Stallone in "The Expendables 2"
Photo: Lionsgate

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1692489/expendables-2-premium-rush-box-office.jhtml

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Where Has This Glow-in-the-Dark Bike Been All My Life? [Design]

People have been coming up with all sorts of flashy, bright accessories for cyclists to wear after the sun goes down. But why on Earth has it taken so long for someone to come up with a bike that glows in the dark itself? More »

Source: http://feeds.gawker.com/~r/gizmodo/full/~3/yaDfPvDi7gU/where-has-this-glow+in+the+dark-bike-been-all-my-life

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Improvements That Increase Safety In Your Home | Contacts ...

Never neglect an electrical system upgrade when you are making home improvements preparatory to selling your house. Older houses are woefully unequipped for the demands of modern appliances and electronics. Even recently-built homes may lack the power systems that the latest gadgets require. Installing a fully up-to-date electrical service will make your home stand out to potential buyers.

To achieve the most even look when installing vinyl tiles, start applying them from the midpoint of the room. To do this, measure the room at its widest points, marking the halfway point of each line. Using a chalk line to mark the intersecting points, you can begin your tile installation at the perpendicular junction point, spreading outward toward the edges of the room.

If you are changing your interior lighting, make the switch to compact fluorescent lights. CFLs are energy efficient, meaning they save energy that translates into lower electric bills. In addition, this type of lighting lasts longer. Keep in mind these lights contain mercury as well, so when it is time to dispose of them, find out how to properly do so.

If space is at a premium in your home, consider remodeling the attic or basement. These often overlooked spaces can be a cost-effective way to gain more square footage in your home, without resorting to a costly extension. If the area is already partially finished, your project will progress quickly, and you?ll be enjoying your new space in no time.

When doing any major home improvement project do not forget the front door. The front door is the focal point of the house and the place where a guest will wait after ringing the bell. The front door and entry are what welcomes them, so spruce them up during your home improvement project.

When you are replacing your siding with veneer some positive things to keep in mind about that material are the functional advantages to other sidings. The veneers can protect your home quite well from damages, they are very easy to install, and require little to almost no maintenance which is very important.

Wrap your water heater in an insulation kit to improve energy usage and efficiency. Kits are available for any size or model water heater and the savings generated from increased efficiency quickly offsets the cost of the insulating kit. Water heater installation kits are also easy to install, making this a simple do it yourself home improvement project.

Is your kitchen sink stopped up again? Have you tried products like Draino to no avail? Well, before you call that plumber, or buy a plumber snake, try to use a plunger first! Yup, the same thing that can unclog your toilet works just as fine when you are trying to unclog your kitchen sink. Just add a little water in the sink to create a seal around the plunger and plunge away!

If you find yourself falling in love with a particular pattern of wallpaper but find that it?s either out of your price range or not quite durable enough for high-traffic areas, consider buying a roll of it anyway for decorative purposes. You can easily have it matted and framed, or can keep it around the house for smaller, more craft-type projects.

Avoid back strain when installing upper kitchen cabinets by attaching a board to the wall at the level where the base of the cabinets will finish. Allowing the base of the cabinet to rest on the board and support its weight while screwing the cabinet to the wall is better for your back.

Home improvement tips, like the ones in this article, are always going to come in handy when you approach the various situations you will come across in a variety of home-improvement projects. From simple repairs to the home to great and elaborate remodeling projects, learn all you can so you can do your best.

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Source: http://blog.1stfind.com/?p=379062&utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=improvements-that-increase-safety-in-your-home-2

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Stocks extend jobs report rally

Click chart for more markets data.

NEW YORK (CNNMoney) -- U.S. stocks moved higher Monday as investors continued to cheer an upbeat jobs report and welcomed lower borrowing costs in Spain and Italy.

The Dow Jones industrial average added 80 points, or 0.6%. The S&P 500 was also up 0.6%, while the Nasdaq gained 0.8%, extending Friday's rally that was sparked by a stronger-than-expected July jobs report.

With no other reports due on the economy Monday, investors will keep an eye on further news about Europe's debt crisis. Yields on Spanish and Italian bonds continued to decline Monday.

Paul Powers, head of U.S. equity trading at Raymond James, said it's a relief to see a quiet August Monday. Overall, he said, investors are much more optimistic than they have been in weeks.

Investors are also closely watching financial results out of Corporate America.

Chesapeake Energy (CHK, Fortune 500), which has been in the spotlight amid takeover chatter and a management shakeup, is on tap to report earnings after the closing bell.

Other earnings due later in the week include Disney (DIS, Fortune 500), News Corp (NWSA, Fortune 500) and J.C. Penney (JCP, Fortune 500).

Meanwhile, Wall Street will keep close tabs on Knight Capital Group. The firm said Monday that a group of investors have agreed to buy $400 million in convertible preferred stock of the company. The investors include TD Ameritrade (AMTD), Blackstone Group (BX), Getco, Stifel Financial (SF), Jefferies Group (JEF) and Stephens Inc.

The announcement came as Knight (KCG) faces a $440 million loss from a software glitch that triggered a series of bizarre moves in otherwise thinly traded stocks last Wednesday, affecting how shares for some 150 NYSE-listed stocks were routed.

Knight said the deal is expected to close later Monday, but investors still seem nervous. Shares of Knight plunged more than 20%.

U.S. stocks rallied Friday as a stronger-than-expected July jobs report helped lift markets for the week.

World markets: European stocks were higher in afternoon trading. Britain's FTSE 100 ticked up 0.6%, the DAX in Germany and France's CAC 40 added almost 1%. Spain's IBEX also rose following a trading glitch that halted trading on the exchange for five hours.

Asian markets rallied, as investors cheered the better-than-expected U.S. jobs report from last Friday. The Shanghai Composite rose 1%, the Hang Seng in Hong Kong climbed 1.7%, and Japan's Nikkei surged 2%.

Companies: Best Buy's (BBY, Fortune 500) stock surged almost 20% after the company's founder and major shareholder, Richard Schulze, offered to take the electronics retailer private at $24 to $26 a share, a 36% to 47% premium.

Shares of Tyson Foods (TSN, Fortune 500) fell after the seller of chicken, beef and other prepared foods posted earnings and revenue that fell short of Wall Street's expectations.

The company also highlighted the rising price of grain amid the ongoing drought. While Tyson said it ultimately expects to pass along the higher costs, it also cautioned that they will likely pressure earnings in 2013.

Late Friday, Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway (BRKB) reported a drop in earnings due to derivatives losses, but posted strong gains in its insurance business. Class A (BRKA, Fortune 500) and Class B (BRKB) shares of Berkshire were slightly higher.

Currencies and commodities: The dollar fell against the euro and the Japanese yen, but gained slightly versus the British pound.

Oil for September delivery slipped to 22 cents to $91.18 a barrel.

Gold futures for August delivery added $3.20 to $1,609.20 an ounce.

Bonds: The price on the benchmark 10-year U.S. Treasury rose, pushing the yield down to 1.55% from 1.58% late Friday.

Sunday marked the one-year anniversary of Standard and Poor's downgrade of the U.S. credit rating from AAA.

Despite S&P's blow, yields on U.S. government debt across all maturities have hit record lows in the post-AAA world as investors' enthusiasm for Treasuries intensified amid a tepid U.S. economic recovery, a growing European debt crisis, and slowing growth in emerging markets -- particularly China.

In recent weeks, the yield on the 10-year Treasury note has fallen to a record low around 1.4% from 2.6% a year ago. The 30-year yield has dropped to less than 2.5% from almost 4% last August. As investors buy Treasuries and drive up the price, yields continue to decline. ?

First Published: August 6, 2012: 9:42 AM ET

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/rss/money_topstories/~3/6h7mua6r8AI/index.htm

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