Monthly Archives: June 2012

Freedom House Blasts Hungary, Ukraine for Poor Democracy

Posted: June 7, 2012 at 4:15 am

Washington-based Freedom House think tank warned on Wednesday of rising antidemocratic tendencies in Hungary and Ukraine that have the potential to take root elsewhere in the region.

Negative developments in Hungary and Ukraine are at the forefront of an antidemocratic trend in Central and Eastern Europe that raises serious questions about the durability of the European Unions young democracies, Freedom House said in the Nations in Transit 2012 report.

According to the report, Ukraine, which saw a brief democratic opening after the Orange Revolution in 2004, has suffered significant decline in an alarmingly short period of time.

Under the Yanukovych government, Ukraines Nations in Transit ratings worsened in five categories year on year, with a steep decline in judicial framework and independence and an overall democracy score that is rapidly approaching its preOrange Revolution level, the report said.

Freedom House warned that the negative trend in Ukraine, along with a steep decline of the overall democracy score in a number of EU aspirants in the Balkans, may jeopardize the prospects for widening the circle of democratic states in Europe.

The details of the report will be released later on Wednesday at the Legatum Institute in London, and on June 7 in Brussels in cooperation with the German Marshall Fund.

Freedom House is an independent watchdog organization that supports democratic change, monitors the status of freedom around the world, and advocates for democracy and human rights.

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Virginia AAA baseball tournament: Freedom-South Riding falls to Kellam after unusual interference call

Posted: at 4:15 am

Freedom-South Ridings dizzying season of firsts might have been done in by an odd play at third Wednesday night in a 3-2 loss to Kellam in the Virginia AAA baseball quarterfinals at Old Dominion University in Norfolk.

The Eagles had the potential tying run on third with one out in the top of the sixth, and Coach Jason Treon was about to send senior pinch runner Nick Plesce home on a one-out sacrifice fly to left. But Treon touched Plesce, an interference call that resulted in an automatic out that ended the inning.

It would have been bang-bang at the plate, Treon said. Nick went back to tag right away. I got a little too close communication-wise and got tangled up.

Freedom, the first Loudoun County team to advance to the state tournament, went down in order in the seventh.

We have a group of seven seniors who should be proud of themselves for helping put our program on the map, said Treon, whose team won the Cedar Run District regular season and tournament championships in its first year of AAA competition.

The Eagles (18-8) won nine straight games before ending their season with consecutive losses, to Hylton in the Northwest Region final and then to Kellam, a team they out-hit, 7-3.

Freedom took a 1-0 lead on the Eastern Region champions in the top of the first on an RBI double by junior Colin Dean. The Eagles squandered a leadoff double by senior Matt Malacane in the top of the fourth when he was retired at third on a sacrifice bunt, but they got another double by Malacane with one out in the sixth. Junior Zach Newell then walked and junior Kevin Dean singled to make it 3-2.

Kellam (25-2) advanced to face James River (19-7) in a state semifinal at 7 p.m. Friday at Westfield. Lake Braddock (24-3) and Hylton (21-4) will meet in a semifinal at 3 p.m. Friday.

The championship is at 3 p.m. Saturday at Westfield.

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Liberty Property Trust Prices $400 Million Of 4.125% Senior Notes Due 2022

Posted: at 4:15 am

MALVERN, Pa., June 6, 2012 /PRNewswire/ --Liberty Property Trust (LRY), announced today that its limited partnership subsidiary, Liberty Property Limited Partnership, has priced $400 million aggregate principal amount of 4.125% senior unsecured notes due June 15, 2022. The 4.125% notes were priced to yield 4.149%. The offering is expected to close on June 11, 2012, subject to customary closing conditions.

The proceeds will be used to repay indebtedness outstanding under the Company's unsecured credit facility and for general corporate purposes.

This offering is being made pursuant to a prospectus supplement to the Company's base prospectus included in an automatic shelf registration statement initially filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on May 5, 2011.

The offering may be made only by means of a prospectus supplement and accompanying prospectus. A copy of the prospectus supplement and prospectus relating to these securities may be obtained, when available, by contacting Citigroup Global Markets Inc., Brooklyn Army Terminal, 140 58th Street, 8th Floor, Brooklyn, NY 11220, toll free at (800) 831-9146 or at batprospectusdept@citi.com; J.P. Morgan Securities LLC, 383 Madison Avenue, New York, New York 10179, Attention: High Grade Syndicate Desk, 3rd floor, telephone collect at (212) 834-4533, or UBS Securities LLC, Attn: Prospectus Specialist, 299 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10071 or by telephone at 877-827-6444, ext. 561 3884.

This press release is for informational purposes only and shall not constitute an offer to sell or the solicitation of an offer to buy any securities nor shall there be any sale of these securities in any state or other jurisdiction in which such offer, solicitation or sale would be unlawful prior to registration or qualification under the securities, blue sky or other laws of any such state or other jurisdiction.

Liberty Property Trust (LRY) is a leader in commercial real estate, serving customers in the United States and United Kingdom, through the development, acquisition, ownership and management of superior office and industrial properties. Liberty's 77 million square foot portfolio includes 650 properties providing office, distribution and light manufacturing facilities to 1,700 tenants.

The statements contained in this press release may include forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities law. Although Liberty believes that the expectations reflected in such forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, it can give no assurance that its expectations will be achieved. As forward-looking statements, these statements involve risks, uncertainties and other factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from the expected results. These factors include, without limitation, the uncertainties affecting real estate businesses generally (such as entry into new leases, renewals of leases and dependence on tenants' business operations), risks relating to our ability to maintain and increase property occupancy and rental rates, the financial condition of tenants, the uncertainties of real estate development and construction activity, the costs and availability of financing, the effects of local economic and market conditions, regulatory changes, potential liability relative to environmental matters and other risks and uncertainties detailed in the company's filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The company assumes no obligation to update or supplement forward-looking statements that become untrue because of subsequent events.

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Fun science at varsity camp

Posted: at 4:15 am

A summer camp conducted by the Jadavpur University science club has allowed students of several city schools to beat the heat by escaping into the world of physics, robotics and Vedic math.

Twenty-six students from schools like Loreto Convent, Don Bosco Park Circus, BD Memorial International School and Welland Gouldsmith School, Patuli, have joined the four-day summer camp, which ends on Thursday. Guardians are free to contribute whatever amount they want to the science club for letting their wards participate in the camp, where JU students from engineering streams like instrumentation, electronics, computer and mechanical tutored them on scientific concepts in innovative ways.

On Wednesday, the event convener, Amit Mishra of instrumentation technology, and his team of first, second and third-year students had the youngsters in thrall by demonstrating basic robotics.

We picked up robotics, as this area touches upon different spheres of engineering such as electronics, instrumentation and designing of power circuit chips. The kids took a keen interest in the robot race afterwards, said Mishra.

Now that I have learnt how to design robots, I will be able to build one myself, said Hriday Mullick, a Class VII student of BD Memorial International School.

We are awarding tasks to students, who have been divided into teams, under the guidance of a mentor,, said Bappa Mullick, president of Illuminati, the science club.

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WATCH: Russell Brand Goes Back To His Bad Boy Ways In New TV Show

Posted: at 4:15 am

Despite his fall from broadcasting grace in 2008 after Sachsgate, comedian Russell Brand has decided to mae a return to TV, with his new show, Brand X.

The show, which will air both in the US and the UK will see the British funnyman put his own spin on topics including current affairs, and celebrities. Speaking in a trailer for the show, which will be shown on FX in the US, Russell's new show will "tell the honest truth about what I feel about all sorts of thingscelebrity stuff, skulduggery, the Illuminati"

Joking about his accent, Russell, who presented the MTV Movie Awards over the weekend, added: "All of this in an accent you can barely understand."

The show, which will be shown on Sky Atlantic in the UK, will premiere on July 2.

Will you be tuning in?

Check out the promo clip!

Russell out and about in LA

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Can You Yell 'Run' in a Crowded Bank?

Posted: at 4:13 am

Many states have laws on the books prohibiting anyone from making disparaging comments about a particular banks financial condition. This talk is thought to be outside free speech because rumors can trigger a bank run, but a recent ruling has some banks worried.

Many states have laws on the books prohibiting anyone from making disparaging comments about a particular banks financial condition. This sort of talk is thought to be outside free speech because just the slightest rumor can trigger a bank run. Of course, not much of a line needs to develop at the teller window for bankers to get nervous, because they dont keep much cash around to satisfy withdrawals. Depositor money is lent out or invested, or in the case of J.P. Morgan, used for speculating in London.

This is the institutional blog of the Ludwig von Mises Institute and many of its affiliated writers and scholars commenting on economic affairs of the day.

In California, theres been an anti-bank run law on the books since 1917 prohibiting a person from spreading false information about a banks condition. In this age of deposit insurance and the FDIC, the law hasnt been tested much. But along comes Robert Rogers, who as an ex-employee of Summit Bank posted a rant and rave on Craigslist, saying, I would suggest that anyone that banks at Summit Bank leave before they close.

Rogers, who served as the banks chief credit administrator and vice president, also took the opportunity to post what American Banker describes as vulgar comments about the banks chief executive officer and her son.

The bank sued Mr. Rogers for libel, to which the ex credit administrator countered that his speech was protected by the First Amendment. So, the lawyers for Summit pulled out a copy of the 1917 law and claimed his statements should not be considered free speech.

But the appeals court in a 30-page opinion said, We find section 1327 cannot be reconciled with modern constitutional requirements. The court went on to say, When analyzed under modern constitutional jurisprudence, the broad provisions of Financial Code section 1327, on their face, impermissibly sweep within their proscriptions speech that cannot be criminally punished.

The justices said the law is too vague and has too broad a reach, and said the law lacks a requirement included in other statutory restrictions on speech that a speakers statement be proven to be malicious, reports AB.

It is a criminal libel statute without a malice requirement, which is designed to prohibit speech based on its content, the court said. It fails to give persons of ordinary intelligence fair notice of what is forbidden. It sets no discernible limits on what types of speech can be criminalized, and, allowing such free range, it lends itself to arbitrary enforcement.

Of course bankers and their attorneys are troubled by the decision.

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Freedom House: Serbia made significant progress

Posted: June 6, 2012 at 2:17 pm

Source: Tanjug

PRAGUE -- The latest Nations in Transit report by Freedom House notes that Serbia saw positive progress in democracy but its ranking remained unchanged from 2011.

"At the close of 2011, Serbias progress was also viewed positively by the EU, which linked the countrys candidacy status to cooperation in the pursuit of accused war criminals, particularly the last remaining fugitives sought by the international tribunal, Ratko Mladi and Goran Hadi, both of whom were arrested during the year," says the report.

However, neither Serbia nor Montenegro registered any score changes in Nations in Transit for 2011.

Most countries in the Balkans fall into the group of semi-consolidated democracies. Croatia leads the way with a 3.61 rating, followed by Serbia (3.64), Montenegro (3.82) and Macedonia (3.89). Bulgaria and Romania are also in this group.

Bosnia-Herzegovina is ranked among transitional governments or hybrid regimes with a 4.36 rating. Also in this group are Albania, Ukraine, Georgia and Moldova.

Kosovo is in the group of semi-consolidated authoritarian regimes, along with Armenia, Radio Free Europe reported.

The best rated countries, i.e. consolidated democracies, are Slovenia, Estonia, Latvia, Poland, the Czech Republic, Lithuania, Slovakia and Hungary.

The bottom of the list is populated by the consolidated authoritarian regimes of Kyrgyzstan, Tajikistan, Russia, Kazakhstan, Azerbaijan, Belarus, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan.

Freedom House is an independent organization which supports democratic change, monitors freedom, and advocates for democracy and human rights around the world.

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Liberty 79, Dream 74

Posted: at 2:16 pm

UpdatedJun 5, 2012 10:22 PM ET

After the New York Liberty lost their first five games of the season, All-Star guard Cappie Pondexter found herself in totally unfamiliar territory.

''Being 0-5, I never experienced that before anywhere in any part of my career,'' Pondexter said. ''It was awful. I knew we had to turn things around.''

Pondexter scored 26 points to lead the Liberty to their second straight win, a 79-74 victory over the Atlanta Dream on Tuesday night.

Pondexter took it upon herself to carry the Liberty to the victory, making clutch shots in the fourth quarter. Her driving goal with 8:29 left gave the Liberty the lead for good and her three-point play with 4:36 left pushed the lead to 70-66.

''We had to refocus the last couple of days after we lost five in a row,'' said Pondexter, who had nine points in the final period. ''It was just a case of me being aggressive. The important thing for us is to focus on what we need to do to win.''

Leilani Mitchell added 18 points in the victory.

''Of course, we knew we were a better team than 0-5,'' Mitchell said. ''But it's a long season and the league is so good. Any game could go either way. It was very frustrating to lose those five games, but we had to remain positive.''

Atlanta dropped to 2-4 after losing its second straight contest

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American Liberty (OTCBB: OREO) Issues Progress Report on Nevada Wells

Posted: at 2:16 pm

NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwire -06/06/12)- American Liberty Petroleum, Corp. (OREO) has recently announced a progress update to their Nevada based wells and has released that they have completed their second sale of crude to Foreland's Eagle Springs Refinery.

In its report on American Liberty Petroleum, Grass Roots Research noted that the U.S. demand for energy is forecast to grow 20% from 2009 to 2035. The main driving force for oil will be ever increasing demand for energy. Grass Roots believes that oil will remain a dominant fuel in the future as growing demand for energy is not likely to be fulfilled by alternative sources. Additionally, geopolitical tensions make oil imports from Middle East erratic. According to Grass Roots, this calls for substantial oil and gas investment domestically. OREO is one U.S. oil company that is looking to explore oil and gas domestically. Grass Roots also notes that OREO's two attractive oil prospects, which are situated in Western Nevada, are estimated to have a total reserve of approximately 4.6 billion barrels. (http://bit.ly/MeodIp)

Other active stocks are Isramco, Inc (ISRL), Hercules Offshore, Inc. (HERO) and Gulfport Energy (GPOR)

Information, opinions and analysis contained herein are based on sources believed to be reliable, but no representation, expressed or implied, is made as to its accuracy, completeness or correctness. The opinions contained herein reflect our current judgment and are subject to change without notice. We accept no liability for any losses arising from an investor's reliance on or use of this report. This report is for information purposes only, and is neither a solicitation to buy nor an offer to sell securities. A third party has hired and paid IO News Wire twelve hundred and ninety five dollars for the publication and circulation of this news release. Certain information included herein is forward-looking within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including, but not limited to, statements concerning manufacturing, marketing, growth, and expansion. Such forward-looking information involves important risks and uncertainties that could affect actual results and cause them to differ materially from expectations expressed herein. We have no ownership of equity, no representation; do no trading of any kind and send no faxes or emails.

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LOVE AAJ KAL magic back with an intoxicating COCKTAIL!

Posted: at 2:16 pm

By Abid, Glamsham Editorial

In fact when the film was announced there was a hot debate whether Saif-Raghvan should have gone in for Deepika Padukone as the Saif-Deepika 'jodi' was fresh and superhot from the super success of their last venture, LOVE AAJ KAL. A section of the media even went to the extent of blaming Kareena for putting pressure on Saif-Raghvan not to sign Deepika and instead choose her for the role.

However, we know that this is all rubbish as Deepika was never considered for the role and Kareena was the demand of the script and justifiably so! No one could have essayed the role of a Pakistani spy agent-cum-doctor as effectively as Kareena.

That is all history as all eyes are now focussed on Illuminati Film's next, COCKTAIL, directed by Homi Adajania (of BEING CYRUS fame). The first look and song promo of COCKTAIL has grabbed all attention. The "Tum Hi Ho Bandhu" song by Neeraj Sridhar looks like a sure fire chartbuster. The Saif-Deepika pair is looking very cool together and one can sense a vibrant chemistry between the two from the song promo itself.

One expects the youth to relate to this Imtiaz Ali written chilled out romantic fare! With Homi Adajania at the helm of affairs we can expect some out of the box thinking and an exciting film looks like in store for the audience when the film releases on 13th July all over.

More on bollywood at glamsham.com

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