Mumford & Sons Look Back, Head Forward On 'Live At Letterman'

Ahead of tonight's 'Saturday Night Live' performance (and new album Babel), band tapes 'Letterman' set.
By James Montgomery

Mumford and Sons
Photo: Kitra Cahana/ Getty Images

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1694283/mumford-and-sons-letterman-snl.jhtml

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White House Hosts Innovation Forum for Philanthropists ...

More than 150 leaders in philanthropy and finance gathered at the White House on Thursday for a private meeting on ?innovation in philanthropy? that featured Jean Case, chief executive of the Case Foundation, as a keynote speaker.

Ms. Case appeared with U.S. Treasurer Rosie Rios to discuss ?impact investing? and strategies for getting more donors to channel their money into for-profit businesses that are advancing social missions. Ms. Case said more people would participate in impact investing if foundations could unite to devise uniform standards for tracking and measuring success.

?People with unbelievable track records of investing are sitting on the sidelines of impact investments,? Ms. Case said in an interview.

She announced at the meeting that Sonal Shah, the first director of the White House Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation, was joining the Case Foundation as a senior fellow to spur an increase in impact investments.

Ms. Case said one of the most innovative approaches discussed at the forum was a ?crowd-funding? idea presented by Megan Kashner, founder of Benevolent. The Chicago nonprofit provides a platform for people to post their individual needs?school supplies for their children, for example?then verifies the request is legitimate and identifies a nonprofit that can help.

?That was really interesting,? said Vikki Spruill, chief executive of the Council on Foundations.

The Cleveland Foundation was also featured during the event for a job project called the Evergreen Cooperatives, which helps locally owned businesses get started in economically struggling neighborhoods. (See this profile of the Cleveland Foundation?s work from The Chronicle?s archive.)

Both Ms. Case and Ms. Spruill said the event comes at a time when philanthropic organizations need to escalate innovation efforts.

?A lot of conversation was about catalyzing innovation at this critical moment in time when needs so outweigh what any of us individually can solve,? Ms. Spruill said. ?How can government and philanthropy work together to take risks, to identify solutions, to catalyze change, to pilot innovative ideas??

Administration officials who attended the forum were Valerie B. Jarrett, senior adviser to President Obama, and Jonathan Greenblatt, director of the White House Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation.

Other philanthropic leaders at the event included Judith Rodin, president of the Rockefeller Foundation; Emmett Carson, chief executive of the Silicon Valley Community Foundation; and Paul Shoemaker, executive connector at Social Venture Partners Seattle.

Ms. Spruill and Ms. Case said they hope collaboration among organizations and with government will improve following the forum. It was unclear what the White House planned to do with the information gathered at the forum. The meeting was closed to the press, and the Office of Social Innovation did not provide a public statement on the forum.

?I think there was a real sense of collaboration that we can do this, to find innovative ways to move forward as a sector,? Ms. Case said.

This entry was posted in Uncategorized. Bookmark the permalink.

Source: http://philanthropy.com/blogs/government-and-politics/white-house-hosts-innovation-forum-for-philanthropists/30794

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Points to Consider Ensuring Your Workplace Is Safe and Secure ...

In this article we review the points that any employer needs to consider to ensure that their workplace is safe and secure. We live in a litigious world and any company that fails to protect their employees and clients interests is likely to find themselves fighting a lawsuit that could have been prevented by thinking ahead.

For any company ? be it in the private or public sector, a small, medium or large enterprise, it is absolutely vital to assess and manage ?risk?. The safety and security needs of staff, clients and property should always be paramount ? safety first. The value often cited as the most important asset to a company is ?trust?.

It is ?trust? that the reputation of a company stands or falls:

• Can this company be trusted to deliver on its promises?
• To maintain confidentiality?
• To protect information, its assets, its people?

Comprehensive and effective security measures need to be in place to reduce the risk of anything untoward happening to company assets, staff or customers.

The following is a quick guide that will help you ascertain if your organizations? security measures are adequate.

It may be worth your while asking yourself the following questions:

• What security systems and measures do we currently have in place to protect our assets ? both people and property?
• What procedures do we have in place in the event of a systems or security breach?
• Have we fully assessed levels of risk and established contingency plans in the event of such risk occurring?

Take a look at the layout and location of your workplace or property.

• Is it a safe place to work?
• Are there any potential hazards such as poor lighting, loose wires, uneven surfaces etc?

200 people lose their lives at work in the UK each year, therefore safety and security must first begin ? if not at home ? then certainly with your staff at the workplace.

• Are they trained in carrying out the work they are expected to do?
• Are their skills certificated and refreshed? In short, are your staff capable of doing their job safely?

Following on from this, in addition to your workplace being safe?

• Is it also a secure place to work?
• Are IT systems protected?
• Do you have adequate security systems installed ? alarms, CCTV, panic buttons and so on?
• Do you need security screens to protect your staff who work with customers in situations that may become overheated or emotionally charged?

The type of work that you undertake will determine the level and extent of security systems and measures that need to be in place. A bit of thought and planning goes a long way toward minimizing any potential risk, accident or damage. Even violence.

In this fast changing world, currency is everything. Not only in a fiscal sense, but in this instance, with regard to ensuring that everything within your working practice is up to date: training, legislation, resources, equipment. The key is to stay ahead of the game, have plans in place to demonstrate how you would respond if your systems or security were to be breached. Only that way can you ensure that the reputation of your company is watertight .

Steve Hulmes is a professional blogger who writes on a number of issues impacting on businesses for specialist security company Sec Tech.

Tags: Workplace Safety

Source: http://icezen.com/points-to-consider-ensuring-your-workplace-is-safe-and-secure/

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Louie, Season 3

Garry Marshall and Louis C.K in Louie

Photo by K.C. Bailey/FX.

Unlike you heartless, barren Seinfeld offspring, I?m a child-full child of Family Ties, with plenty of reasons to love hugging and learning. But though I cried at ?Dad Night Live,? I?m with Jonah here: Last night?s episode was too syrupy. And I?ll add, too square.

It wasn?t just the music. We all know how good C.K. is at juggling the threads of a half-hour show when they don?t all have to fit together, but there?s something a little rudimentary about the way he handles linear storytelling. 1) Make cleaning lady cry. 2) Take a beating at Gleason?s. 3) Struggle in front of the home camera, feel dejected. 4) Get pep talk from daughters, feel hopeful. 5) Jog down the middle of the street in New York with a teenage entourage and pour water over your head to show how hard you are driving yourself. 6) GO GET ?EM.

The whole needs to match the parts. If you?re going to, say, brilliantly cast David Lynch as a late-night guru, and then write his part insanely well, and then pull off that incredibly authentic Late Show test run, don?t make the structure holding all that stuff together so schematic. (As David mentioned, the secrets-and-lies segment fell into this trap as well: Oh, secrets are lies, you say? Well what terrific timing! Here comes someone telling a secret that?s a lie!)

Am I being way too harsh on a show that I actually love? Of course. Louie is still better than any other half-hour on TV. But all of the above really blocked me from emotionally connecting to an episode that I truly, deeply wanted to feel?and that C.K. desperately wanted me to be moved by.

It wasn?t all forced piano cues and horizontal storytelling. Neither of you svelte gentlemen noted the exchange between Louie and his daughters about weight, in which he explains that he needs to lose 40 pounds to have a chance at the Letterman gig, and Lilly responds: ?If they want a skinny person, why don?t they just get someone skinny?? It was a very brief chat, but an overweight dad, trying to better himself?to, as David said, push himself to be something more?mixed up with body issues and the pressure to look the part (a pressure C.K. must struggle with, and something that his daughters will surely feel in years to come, if they don?t already) got me in the gut.

You guys have already rightly praised my favorite moment in the episode?the office song-and-dance between Jack and Louie (and, on the sidelines, Louie?s agent)?so just a few more notes on that. When Louie and Jack first met in Part 2, Jack kept rubbing and pulling at his ear. Last night, he instead repeatedly played with his eyebrow. It?s a small thing, but I wonder if a choice like that was Lynch?s or C.K.?s? Lynch, by the way, was the perfect straight man to C.K.?s overly sentimental side, delivering every opaque line with that amazing mix of deadpan chill and grandfatherly wisdom. There were moments when he seemed equally likely to give Louie a Werther?s or slam the door in his face. Speaking of doors: ?This is either a door or a wall for me? is one of those lines that could have been a groaner, but C.K. played it so well?reminding me that, in addition to all of his other talents, he?s a good actor.

You know who else are good actors? Talk show guests. Susan Sarandon and Paul Rudd played themselves playing themselves, and nailed it. Also, the JEWS card: very funny. (A personal digression: When I was a little kid, our hometown newspaper?awesomely named The Vindicator?came to our house to photograph my family lighting the Hanukkah candles. When the article appeared in the paper a few days later, there we were in our party dresses, smiling, lighting the Shamash, all under the very straightforward headline: ?JEWS.? The subhead was a little more descriptive, but at that point unnecessary.)

So what about that ending? Other than the inside-baseball fuck you to Letterman, I DIDN?T LOVE IT. David, you called it ?impressive??but why? Because it circumvented the two options on the table: Louie getting the gig and finding happiness, Louie losing the gig and crumbling? Or because you really bought Louie?s reaction?you really believed that, in the end, successfully hosting one night and serving his purpose as the network?s leverage to get Letterman?s price down was win enough? I couldn?t swallow that.

But even if I did, I would still have been left wondering: Now what? Louie?s been a sad sack all season long. This ?Late Night? arc let him go from broken man to confident hero in three episodes (and underlined it all in that final on-the-nose boxing sequence). So, then, is this who he is now? Were all the Rocky parallels actually serving a purpose, to get us to know this man more than we have in three seasons, to get us to emotionally connect in a way we as yet have always been blocked from doing? Or is next week?s episode back to square one, and next season a slate wiped clean? That?s the thing about character development?you can?t just drop it. Being asked to invest in Louie?s awakening, to believe in his personal growth, feels to me like being swindled.

Let me tell you what kind of what you are,

Source: http://feeds.slate.com/click.phdo?i=e94cd3729831636008658a65332a1b9a

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Heidi Montag Bikini Photos: THG Hot Bodies Countdown #81!

THG is counting down the 100 Hottest Bikini Bodies of 2012!

From now until the end of the year, we'll be paying tribute to the hottest of the hot with bikini photos galore. The competition is guaranteed to be sweltering.

Heather Morris bikini pictures were honored yesterday as this smoldering countdown continued. Keeping the hotness rolling today at #81: Heidi Montag.

We know, we know. You're probably thinking:

"How is someone with hilariously fake boobs (and everything else), whose body is forever marred by bad plastic surgery, and who represents all that is wrong with fame, possibly ranked ahead of some legitimately beautiful women on this list?"

Good question. We honestly have no answer.

The closest we can come to one is to state that for a few years, there were few more prolific figures in the celebrity bikini photo world than The Hills star.

Day in and day out, there she was. Pretending to be spontaneous in obviously staged shoots with Pacific Coast News. It was part of her routine, and ours.

Girl worked hard to milk her 15 minutes, and while she's since just about every bit of her money and fame, her mark on THG still deserves to be honored.

Click to enlarge the Heidi Montag photos here (including some quite NSFW ones after the jump) and check back for THG's bikini babe #80 tomorrow ...

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2012/09/heidi-montag-bikini-photos-thg-hot-bodies-countdown-81/

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Javont Vault

What will happen to your data when you die? Even if you have a lawyer and a last will and testament that accounts for your material possessions, how likely is it that the information won't be up to date? What will happen to your savings accounts, miscellaneous retirement accounts, and the code to your safety deposit box? Desktop software Javont Vault ($39.99) pulls together all your material and virtual properties and saves them securely in a place that only a person with your Social Security number will be able to crack. We at PCMag have been debating whether using an SSN as a login is safe, as it definitely elicits a knee-jerk reaction. See the section on Security below for more.

Price and security make a winning combo for Javont Vault. First, in a world that's moving to the cloud, and thus monthly service storage fees, it's refreshing to come across software that charges you once and only once for a product. No upsells. No add-ons. You buy it, you own it, the end. Second and also related to Javont not being in the cloud, this program stores all your data locally on your computer, never even connecting to the Internet, which means you never have to worry about a leak or hack on Javont's side. And?bonus?Javont Vault includes a 1GB USB memory stick that can house an exported copy of your information. What better way to encourage users to back up than to just give them the components they need to do it?

How Javont Vault Works
The $40 Javont Vault ships on disc for Windows only (XP, Vista, Windows 7). One minor downside of avoiding the Internet for security is that your computer must have a DVD drive to install the application, which could be a problem if you rely on a disc drive-less ultrabook. Additionally, to make use of the included USB stick, you'll need a USB port, too.

Javont encourages users to hit the Internet just once for product registration, although the only thing you miss out on by skipping it is notification of software updates and 90 days of included product support. Unregistered copies of the software aren't entitled to product support. ?The choice is yours.

During set up, the software prompts you, as the primary user, to enter your social security number as your "security code." The idea here is that your next of kin will at least have your social security number and thus be able to unlock your information that's securely stored in Javont Vault. Once you enter your social security number, you cannot change it.

Of course, this poses a major challenge for anyone who doesn't have a U.S. social security number. U.S. bias shows up in other areas of the software, too, as I'll point out later in this review.

Security?
Locking Javont Vault with a SSN left me wondering if that was secure enough or if it might even be entirely unsecure, seeing as someone with a keystroke recording device could easily nab my SSN when I log into Javont Vault. For the purposes of testing, I simply made up a nine-digit number. There's no way for Javont Vault to know whether you use your actual SSN. Still, I was surprised to be able to log in with only my fake social security number, without two-factor authentication. Additionally, I would think that my next of kin should be required to enter something more than just my nine-digit number to unlock my Javont Vault, such as my birth date, full legal name, or a secret question?something my next of kin would surely know after I'm dead and in an urn.

According to the product information, data entered into Javont Vault is compressed and encrypted each time you close the application. Whenever you exit the app, it shows you on screen a little window indicating that it is compressing and locking up your data.

What You Can Put Into the Vault
As you first set up Javont Vault, you're prompted to enter first the people in your life, such as a spouse, children, and "other." Each person appears in a log with their name, birth date, social security number (which is required to save a user, and thus another instance of U.S. bias), and their relationship to you the primary user.

After that fateful day when you perish, whomever is in charge of unlocking your Javont Vault will need that clear identifying information about people who mattered to you for doling out your riches (or perhaps passing on your debts).

When you've finished entering important people, you can navigate through a row of tabs at the top of the simple and compact software for banking, investments, retirement, insurance, physical property, household bills, memberships, and file cabinet. Each tab offers additional options. For example, physical property includes real estate, valuables, safe deposit boxes, and post office boxes. The selections cover a comprehensive amount of stuff you might leave behind, more than I'll ever have, sadly.

Every time a new asset or account goes into Javont Vault, you're prompted to fill out several required fields to make sure that you're not leaving your next-in-line people guessing what was what?the location of the safety deposit box, the insurance policy number, even the username and password for the utility bills.

U.S. Bias
One problem I noticed? is that for certain entries, "state" is a required field, which prevented me from creating an appropriate entry for the villa in Catalu?a I pretended I owned. Javont Vault also had trouble with my phony Swiss bank account, and the safety deposit box that I hide at my fake Uncle Artie's sugar shack in Ontario. And as I mentioned earlier, if one of your family members (or you) don't have a Social Security number, you're out of the Javont loop. Anyone with assets and interests outside the U.S. will have a lot of trouble with these requirements.

The last tab in the list is called File Cabinet, a catchall place for your miscellaneous stuff, from passwords to personal documents. The File Cabinet could theoretically be a loophole for entering non-U.S. information?just file it in the File Cabinet instead of the section where it really belongs. I don't like workarounds, but I sure as hell will seek them out when necessary. What's missing from this section is an upload button. You can't actually upload scanned documents, an oversight for sure, seeing as you can upload images of your valuables in the Physical Properties tab.

Who Needs a Lawyer with Javont?
I have reviewed a few other general purpose digital filing cabinets, including as Neat Cloud and Doxo, and must say that I really like that Javont's design takes into consideration how your next of kin will unlock your virtual vault to actually access the information they'll need.

The only real sticking point for potential Javont Vault users is the U.S. centricity. If some of your family members, properties, or investments reside overseas, you might find the package doesn't meet all your needs. Otherwise, it's a solid solution to a tough problem, at an affordable price.

More Personal Software Reviews:
??? Javont Vault
??? PayPal (for iPhone)
??? GAIN Fitness (for iPhone)
??? NeatCloud
??? Todoist
?? more

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/ziffdavis/pcmag/~3/1sxjRhhFH7I/0,2817,2409981,00.asp

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Brown runs for 2 TDs as Giants rout Panthers 36-7

CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) ? Just walking by the parking lot outside the Carolina Panthers' stadium got Andre Brown's blood pumping.

The Panthers, like four other teams since 2009, waived Brown after he failed to make a lasting impression. He's determined that won't happen again and that this time he'll find a home in the NFL with the team that originally drafted him ? the New York Giants.

If he keeps playing like he did Thursday night, he just might.

Brown ran for 113 yards and two touchdowns in leading the Giants to a 37-6 win over the Panthers.

"I'm so happy to come out here," Brown said. "It really humbled me. It really shows that everything is not guaranteed. You know, I'm just going to ride this wave. Hopefully, it's a long wave."

The Giants didn't need a fourth-quarter comeback Thursday night.

Brown, quarterback Eli Manning and the rest of the defending Super Bowl champions finished off the Panthers way before that. Four days after rallying from 14 points down to beat Tampa Bay, New York dominated the first half, scoring on its first four possessions to build a 20-0 lead.

The Giants (2-1) were without three starters but it hardly mattered.

Like Brown, Ramses Barden is hoping to ride a wave of success. Barden caught nine passes for a career-high 138 yards in his first NFL start. He played in place of Hakeem Nicks.

Of course it helps that the guy throwing you the ball is a two-time Super Bowl MVP. Manning completed 27 of 35 passes for 288 yards with one touchdown and no interceptions.

On the other side, second-year quarterback Cam Newton struggled all night and was pressured into three interceptions. The Panthers (1-2) had five turnovers, including two by returner Joe Adams.

Newton had no luck running the read option against the Giants. He was held to 6 yards rushing a week after running for a career-high 71 yards against the Saints.

"We got some licks on him, when he kept the ball, and that's something that was lacking last week," Giants coach Tom Coughlin said. "You have to be disciplined. You have to have people in the right spots, or he'll take full advantage of it."

Panthers coach Ron Rivera likened the loss to a lesson you learn from your big brother.

"They came in and slapped us around and dragged us to the ground a little bit," Rivera said. "Hopefully, we learn from it a little bit. Hopefully, we learn from it and, hopefully, we don't like it and we come back focused."

Mixing run and pass, the Giants dominated the opening half, outgaining the Panthers 303-125.

Manning completed 19 of 25 passes for 208 yards in the first half, including a 14-yard touchdown pass to Martellus Bennett to cap the Giants' opening drive and set the tone. The eight-play, 80-yard drive marked the third straight game the Panthers have given up a touchdown on an opponent's first possession.

For Rivera and the Panthers the first half was a nightmare.

"When you put yourself in a hole like that it's tough trying to claw and scratch yourself back up," Rivera said. "And that's really what happened. That's the type of game they want you to be in. That's trouble. When you get behind they can cut those guys loose on the pass rush."

Brown repeatedly bounced off tacklers and Barden had little trouble getting open against a Carolina defense that failed to pressure Manning.

Brown ran 13 times for 71 yards and a touchdown last week against Tampa Bay and surpassed that total by the end of the first quarter with 77 yards on seven carries.

Barden had 123 yards on seven catches at halftime.

Before Thursday night, the fourth-year receiver had never managed more than nine catches for 94 yards receiving in a season.

"At this level, you never know when you're going to get an opportunity, you've got to be prepared for it," Manning said. "Andre Brown is a great example. He's a guy we drafted, he bounced around, and we brought him back. He was on the bubble to make the team, and here you go. Ahmad (Bradshaw) gets hurt, and he ran great, he pass-protected.

"He did get off to a bit of a shaky start. He went left when he was supposed to run right on the first play. We had a little talk and got him settled down, and after that, he did very, very well."

Any hopes that the Panthers would turn things around in the second half were slowed when rookie returner Adams fumbled trying to catch the opening kickoff, resulting in another field goal for Lawrence Tynes.

Tynes finished with five field goals.

The Panthers didn't get on the board until midway through the third quarter when Newton leaped over the pile from a yard out.

Newton said it wasn't what the Giants did but what the Panthers didn't do.

"Who wants to support something that puts on a performance of embarrassment out there, and that's what that was," Newton said. "If I was a fan of the Carolina Panthers I would be holding my head down in shame at the product that was out there."

NOTES: For the third straight week Carolina receiver Steve Smith sparred with an opposing cornerback during the game. This week's victim was Corey Webster. ... Panthers running back Jonathan Stewart missed his second game of the season because of a toe injury. The Panthers also were without tackle Byron Bell. ... The Panthers honored Olympic gold medal swimmers Cullen Jones and Ricky Berens.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/brown-runs-2-tds-giants-rout-panthers-36-080209530.html

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Parks Service defends refusal to use wolves

DENVER (AP) ? The National Park Service acted properly when it ruled out using wolves to control the elk population in Rocky Mountain National Park, government lawyers argued Thursday before a federal appeals court.

The Park Service and the wildlife advocacy group WildEarth Guardians made their cases at the University of Colorado Law School.

The wildlife advocacy group WildEarth Guardians sued the Park Service, saying it failed to give sufficient consideration to the use of wolves. The group also contends that allowing some specially trained volunteers to help Park Service employees in shooting and killing elk in the park to control the population numbers to hunting, which is prohibited in national parks.

The park sometimes has so many elk that they overgraze the trees, shrubs and grass, leaving other animals without enough food and habitat. Few natural predators are left there, and hunting is prohibited in all national parks, so little remains to keep the elk population in check.

The park uses National Park Service personnel and trained volunteers to periodically shoot and kill a specified number of elk. Officials rejected the idea of reintroducing wolves to prey on the elk and control their numbers, saying it was infeasible.

They cited a lack of support from other agencies, safety concerns of people who live nearby, expected conflicts between wolves and humans and the amount of attention that a wolf population would require of park officials.

WildEarth Guardians sued the Park Service in 2008, asking a Denver federal court judge to overturn the policy. The group said the Park Service didn't fully consider reintroducing wolves, and that using volunteers to kill elk amounts to hunting in the park, which would violate federal law.

The judge disagreed, upholding the policy in 2011, and WildEarth Guardians appealed to the 10th Circuit.

Rocky Mountain National Park launched a 20-year program in 2008 to thin the elk herd by shooting a number that varies from year to year, depending on the size of the park's overall herd. The program also includes fencing elk out of some areas to protect vegetation and redistributing some of the animals.

Park spokeswoman Kyle Patterson said 131 elk have been killed in the culling program during the winters of 2008, 2009 and 2010.

The current size of the elk herd in the park's lower elevations is 600 to 800, which is within the target range set by the program, so no elk were killed last year. The park website says weather, hunting outside the park and changes in elk movement patterns have helped keep the numbers low.

No decision has been made on whether or how many elk will be killed in the upcoming winter.

Wolves disappeared from many parts of the West after decades of hunting and government-backed extermination. They were re-introduced in Yellowstone National Park in Wyoming in 1995, and some advocates have argued for bringing them back elsewhere.

___

Follow Dan Elliott at http://twitter.com/DanElliottAP

___

Online:

Fact sheet: http://1.usa.gov/UllcuK

WildEarth Guardians: http://bit.ly/T94CDm

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/386c25518f464186bf7a2ac026580ce7/Article_2012-09-20-Wolves-Colorado/id-ef32f27543fe401d89fd82c858d821bd

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Students injured in school bus wreck in East Tenn.

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Why did Chick-fil-A cross the road, pull funds for gay marriage foes?

The restaurant chain said Wednesday it henceforth will 'leave the public-policy debate over same-sex marriage to ... the political arena.' Chick-fil-A has said no more, but key business factors probably played into its change of course.

By Patrik Jonsson,?Staff writer / September 19, 2012

In this Aug. photo, customers stand in line for a Chick-fil-a meal at the chain's restaurant in Wichita, Kan. The crowd was buying meals to show their support for the company that's currently embroiled in a controversy over same-sex marriage.

Travis Heying/The Wichita Eagle/AP

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After enduring a major public-relations tsunami this summer, Chick-fil-A, the Atlanta-based sandwich shop that?s closed on Sundays, says it will end its decade-long corporate support of culture-warrior groups that oppose gay marriage.

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"Going forward, our intent is to leave the policy debate over same-sex marriage to the government and political arena,? the company said in a statement Wednesday. Its charitable arm, WinShape Foundations, gave $2 million to gay-marriage opponents such as Focus on the Family in 2010 alone, according to ABC News.

The news emerged from Chicago, from the office of city Alderman Joe Moreno, who helped drive the controversy by vowing to block Chick-fil-A?s application for a building permit in Chicago?s hip Northwest Side ward over statements by CEO Dan Cathy this summer. Mr. Cathy told the Baptist Press in July that he was ?guilty as charged? for supporting ?the biblical definition of the family unit.?

The comments caused demonstrations and counterdemonstrations, including a Chick-fil-A Appreciation Day suggested by former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee (R). The Henson Group, of ?Muppets? fame, broke off relations with the company over the flap. Many gay acdtivists vowed to shun the restaurant, while conservatives alleged that Mr. Moreno and other politicians were engaging in ?thug? politics by punishing a private business for protected speech.

With 1,614 restaurants nationally and as sponsor of the Chick-fil-A college bowl ? not to mention those highway billboards with the cows ? the company is a corporate success story that made a name for itself with tastefully spiced and artfully fried chicken breast served on fluffy buns with a few pickles as the only condiment.

Despite considerable public support for the company's right to exercise its free-speech rights, Chick-fil-A evidently saw several reasons to switch course. (Chick-fil-A headquarters said Wednesday that, beside its written statement, it won?t make any more public announcements on the topic.)

Some marketing experts say the company, with revenues of about $4 billion, could see a slight dip in business because of the controversy, especially if it remained unresolved in the public?s eye.

More immediately, the company?s corporate plans to broaden its reach outside of the South may also be a factor in its policy change. The company's socially conservative management has made news before, but the firm's values seemed in sync with?many Southerners' views on church, God, and marriage. But Chick-fil-A's efforts to expand into places like Chicago and cities in California have put those values into the limelight, raising difficulties not only in obtaining construction permits but also vis a vis local and regional consumer attitudes.

?Chick-fil-A is part of the South. It?s part of the Southern culture, and they?ve done an outstanding job of expanding over the years,? Greg Sanders, publisher of Food News Media, told the Atlanta Journal-Constitution in July. ?But let?s be frank, if they?re new in California, not only are social attitudes possibly different in that part of the country, but there?s also not a bank of good will with that brand being built for up years [as it is] in the South.?

For Chick-fil-A, the change in corporate donations may be a small sacrifice. Though some will argue that the company gave in to political correctness, the memo Chick-fil-A vows to send to employees contains the same message that it made public last month ? that the company takes pride in treating ?every person with honor, dignity and respect ? regardless of their beliefs, race, creed, sexual orientation and gender.?

Yet the funding reversal also highlighted the risks companies and nonprofits take when they take public stances on divisive social issues.

After public outcry in January over its short-lived decision to end funding for Planned Parenthood, an abortion provider, the Susan G. Komen Foundation backtracked and shook up its corporate staff. Even so, Komen has seen participation in its annual breast cancer walks drop in some areas. In San Francisco, registration for this month?s walk was down 50 percent from last year.

Meanwhile, in Atlanta, some of those offended?by Chick-fil-A's charitable giving practices reacted positively to its?announced course change.

?This gay chicken will [now] cross the road for some waffle fries?regardless of what you think about me,? writes ?Wilbur? in a comment on the Journal-Constitution website.?

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/QCGo6jGanas/Why-did-Chick-fil-A-cross-the-road-pull-funds-for-gay-marriage-foes

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Ad Opportunity: Garage Organization at the Top of Homeowner Wish ...

?

The real estate market has been slow to recover from the recession. In the meantime, many homeowners have been improving their existing homes. One growth area for home improvement lately has been garage organization.

Homeowners, in general, are looking for better ways to organize what they own. A recent survey reveals:

• Women who are frustrated about their organization in the home: 42%
• Men who say they are so disorganized it takes longer to find what they?re looking for: 40%

The same survey shows that women want to organize bedroom closets (28%) and kitchen pantries (26%). For men, garages are at the top of the list for 34%.

One builder of new homes, Pulte, is clearly paying attention to consumer wish lists. In conjunction with Gladiator GarageWorks, Pulte is promoting upgrade packages for new home buyers. Prospective buyers can order a flexible garage storage system that includes workbenches, wall systems and cabinets designed to improve organization in that all-important space. Gladiator?s own research also indicates that 62% of homeowners want to clean up the storage space in their garages.

Now that consumers are moving indoors after a busy summer, they are likely taking stock of which home improvement projects they?ll tackle next.

Reps should contact retailers and installers of organizing systems to discuss the new interest in garage de-cluttering and suggest an ad campaign to help increase sales.

[Sources: Survey Says?Better Organization = Less Stress. California Closets. Web. 17 Sept. 2012; Pulte Homes Partners with Gladiator GarageWorks. Pulte Homes. 10 Sept. 2012. Web. 17 Sept. 2012]

Ad Opportunity, garage organization

Source: http://www.mediasalestoday.com/archives/9569

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A quantum leap toward computers of the future

2 hrs.

John Roach

Practical quantum computers that will allow us to crack encrypted messages in a jiffy and design a new class of life-saving drugs are a big step closer thanks to scientists who have created the first working quantum bit based on a single atom in silicon.

The scientists report in the journal?Nature today that they were able to read and write information using the spin of an electron bound to a single phosphorous atom embedded in a silicon chip.

The breakthrough is crucial to building quantum computers with silicon, which is important because silicon is already at the heart of the modern computing industry and is well understood scientifically. Industry could thus potentially work?more easily with it to build the computers of tomorrow.

Researchers from the University of New South Wales in Australia describe the breakthrough in the video below.?

?The crucial next step for silicon-based quantum information technology will be to develop devices that have multiple quibits coupled together,? write quantum computing experts Lee Bassett and David Awschalom from the University of California, Santa Barbara, in a related perspective article in Nature.

The Australian researchers say they are already at work on the next step. If successful, the computers of the future may not look all that different than the ones we?ve used for the past 50 years, note the University of California researchers.

John Roach is a contributing writer for NBC News Digital. To learn more about him, check out his website. For more of our Future of Technology series, watch the featured video below.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/technology/futureoftech/quantum-leap-toward-computers-future-1B5988130

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Space Shuttle Endeavour Departs Florida on Final Ferry Flight

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. ??For the last time in history, a space shuttle soared into the skies over Florida on Wednesday (Sept. 19). Rather than riding on rockets and heading into orbit however, the space shuttle Endeavour was mounted atop a jumbo jet and is destined for a California museum's display.

The retired orbiter, mated to the space agency's modified Boeing 747 Shuttle Carrier Aircraft (SCA) took off from the Kennedy Space Center's Shuttle Landing Facility, which was the same runway where Endeavour made its 25th and final return from space in June 2011. The 7:22 a.m. EDT (1122 GMT) liftoff marked the start of the final ferry flight for the 30-year space shuttle program.

After taking to the air, Endeavour, riding piggyback on the SCA, embarked on a series of flyovers of Florida's Space Coast. The air- and- spacecraft duo flew over Kennedy and its visitor complex, the Cape Canaveral Air Force Station and Patrick Air Force Base before returning to the landing facility for one last low pass. It then headed west to cross out of the Sunshine State.

Endeavour's final departure from Florida had been delayed twice by weather. The SCA with its last shuttle passenger aboard was originally scheduled to takeoff on Monday, but a low pressure front and associated thunderstorms along the planned flight path necessitated NASA postponing the takeoff to Wednesday.

[Related: How nerds named the first space shuttle]

In April 2011, NASA awarded Endeavour to the California Science Center (CSC) in Los Angeles for its permanent display. The ferry flight is scheduled to touch down at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) on Friday (Sept. 21) at about 11 a.m. PDT (2 p.m. EDT; 1800 GMT). Before then, it will make flyovers and stopovers at NASA facilities and centers, as well as take scenic tours over many California landmarks. [How NASA Flies Shuttles on 747 Jumbo Jets (Photos)]

The first leg on Endeavour's cross-country trip is taking it Houston, the home of the space shuttle program, Mission Control and NASA's astronaut corps.

Endeavour's Ellington return

After leaving Florida, the SCA with Endeavour is expected to follow the I-10 traffic corridor along the Gulf Coast, at times lowering to 1,500 feet (460 kilometers) to perform flyovers of the Stennis Space Center in Mississippi and the Michoud Assembly Facility in New Orleans. The two sites tested the shuttle engines and built the external fuel tanks, respectively.

The ferry flight is expected to enter the Texas Gulf Coast region between 9 a.m. and 10:30 a.m. CDT (10-11:30 a.m. EDT; 1400-1530 GMT) and fly near a variety of landmarks in the greater Houston area, including the George Bush Intercontinental and William P. Hobby airports as well as the downtown skyline and the San Jacinto Monument. The SCA with Endeavour will also navigate a low flyover of NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC).

At approximately 10:45 a.m. CDT (11:45 a.m. EDT; 1545 GMT), the SCA is expected to land at Ellington Field in Houston and taxi to NASA Hangar 990. Public viewing of the aircraft and Endeavour will begin a half hour after the vehicles are safely secured and continue until 9 p.m. (10 p.m. EDT, 0200 GMT).

Endeavour's Ellington arrival on this, its final flight, brings this particular shuttle's history full circle. On May 9, 1991, Endeavour arrived at the same air field during a refueling stop on its very first ferry flight. Endeavour was on its way from California to Florida to be readied for its first mission, STS-49, which launched a year later.

Ellington Field is the aircraft operations base for Johnson Space Center. In addition to the SCA, Ellington supports NASA's Super Guppy cargo plane, the now retired Shuttle Training Aircraft (STA) Gulfstream jets, and NASA's fleet of T-38 two-engine astronaut training jets.

Go west, young shuttle, go west

Before the weather delayed its Florida departure, the SCA and Endeavour were to scheduled to stay in Houston for two days. Instead, the shuttle, atop the jetliner, will leave Ellington at sunrise on Thursday (Sept. 20).

Ellington's runway is not quite long enough to support a fully-fueled, shuttle-carrying SCA for this flight, and so the jumbo jet will make an additional re-fueling stop at Biggs Army Air Field in El Paso, Texas, before continuing on its way to southern California.

On the way, the SCA will make low flyovers of the White Sands Test Facility near Las Cruces, N.M., and NASA's Dryden Flight Research Center at Edwards Air Force Base in California, prior to landing around mid-day at Dryden.? Both sites were former landing locations for the shuttles when they returned from space.

On the morning of Sept. 21, the SCA and Endeavour will take off for the last time and fly low passes over northern California, passing near NASA's Ames Research Center at Moffett Field and by various landmarks in multiple cities, including Sacramento and San Francisco. The aircraft with Endeavour will also fly over many Los Angeles landmarks before touching down at LAX.

Once on the ground and following a ceremony welcoming Endeavour to Los Angeles, the shuttle will be removed from the SCA and spend a few weeks at a United Airlines hangar undergoing preparations for transport and display. Endeavour will then travel through the streets of Inglewood and Los Angeles on a two-day, 12-mile (19-kilometer) road trip from the airport to the science center, arriving on the evening of Oct. 13.

Beginning Oct. 30, the shuttle will debut on display in the science center's Samuel Oschin Space Shuttle Endeavour Display Pavilion, beginning its new educational mission to commemorate past achievements in space and inspire the next generations of explorers.

Share your photos of the ferry flight with collectSPACE.com and SPACE.com! Send in your snapshots of Endeavour atop the Shuttle Carrier Aircraft to contact@collectSPACE.com and SPACE.com managing editor Tariq Malik at tmalik@space.com.

See shuttles.collectspace.com for continuing coverage of the delivery and display of NASA's retired space shuttles.

Follow collectSPACE on Facebook and Twitter @collectSPACE and editor Robert Pearlman @robertpearlman. Copyright 2012?collectSPACE.com. All rights reserved.

Copyright 2012 SPACE.com, a TechMediaNetwork company. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/space-shuttle-endeavour-departs-florida-final-ferry-flight-114207846.html

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Emma Watson And 'Perks' Cast Try Out New Accents: 'Ello Guvnah!'

Logan Lerman, Ezra Miller of 'Perks of Being a Wallflower' tackle tough accents ahead of Tuesday's 'MTV First,' airing at 7:56 p.m.
By Amy Wilkinson, with reporting by Josh Horowitz

Emma Watson
Photo: MTV News

Source: http://www.mtv.com/news/articles/1693931/emma-watson-perks-american-talk.jhtml

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Where the Presidential Candidates Stand on Medicare and Medicaid

The Obama administration has retained the structure of Medicare and made moves to keep it afloat, whereas a Romney-Ryan administration proposals an overhaul and a voucher system to purchase insurance in a new private marketplace

By Suevon Lee and ProPublica

A piggy bank and a stethoscope to depict medicare Image: flickr/401(K) 2012

Medicare and Medicaid, which provide medical coverage for seniors, the poor and the disabled, together make up nearly a quarter of all federal spending. With total Medicare spending projected to cost $7.7 trillion over the next 10 years, there is consensus that changes are in order. But what those changes should entail has, of course, been one of the hot-button issues of the campaign.

With the candidates slinging charges, we thought we'd lay out the facts. Here's a rundown of where the two candidates stand on Medicare and Medicaid:

THE CANDIDATES ON MEDICARE

Big Picture
Earlier this year, the Medicare Board of Trustees estimated that the Medicare hospital trust fund would remain fully funded only until 2024. Medicare would not go bankrupt or disappear, but it wouldn't have enough money to cover all hospital costs.

Under traditional government-run Medicare, seniors 65 and over and people with disabilities are given health insurance for a fixed set of benefits, in what's known as fee-for-service coverage. Medicare also offers a subset of private health plans known as Medicare Advantage, in which roughly one-quarter of Medicare beneficiaries are currently enrolled. Obama retains this structure.

The Obama administration has also made moves that it says would keep Medicare afloat. It says the Affordable Care Act would extend solvency by eight years, mainly by imposing tighter spending controls on Medicare payments to private insurers and hospitals.

In contrast, Rep. Paul Ryan, Mitt Romney's running mate, has proposed a more fundamental overhaul of Medicare, which he says is on an "unsustainable path." On his campaign website, Romney says that Ryan's proposals "almost precisely mirrors" his ideas on Medicare. But he's been fuzzy on other aspects of the plan.

A Romney-Ryan administration would replace a defined benefits system with a defined contribution system in which seniors are given federal vouchers to purchase health insurance in a newly created private marketplace known as Medicare Exchange. In this marketplace, private health plans, along with traditional Medicare, would compete for enrollees' business. These changes wouldn't start until 2023, meaning current beneficiaries aren't affected ? just those under 55.

Under the Romney-Ryan, the vouchers would be valued at the second-cheapest private plan or traditional Medicare, whichever costs less. Seniors who opt for a more expensive plan would pay the difference. If they choose a cheaper plan, they keep the savings.

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=9a8794258596a47de43bf01ae2cc37a1

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Popular Magicians and Avoid Performers | Synergy Gaming | Humor ...

While the art of secret and the conjuring arts has existed since pagan moments through priests, witches, etc., it?s the people who dare ? the magicians who defy death and present acts that we ourselves wouldn?t even dare consider ? that have acquired the most subsequent and become the most appreciated. Listed here are a few whom we consider position the best and most popular of time.Jean EugAne Robert-Houdin (1805-1871). Jean Robert-Houdin was the child of a clockmaker, whose interest in secret began when he received from a bookseller ? mistakenly ? a two-volume group of books on conjuring named Scientific Amusements as opposed to the books on clock making that he?d appropriated. He went on to examine magic and opened the first magic theatre in France. Houdin is considered the Father of Modern Magic and it is from him that Harry Houdini took his stage name. Among his hottest functions were Second Sight, a two-person head reading act where his blindfolded associate (performed by his son) explained whatever it was that Houdin was holding or doing at the other aspect of the room; and Ethereal Suspension, where he stopped his son in mid-air, healthy only by his right elbow.Alexander Herrmann (1844-1896). Born to a family that was referred to as ?the first family of magic,? Alexander Herrmann?s father was a physician who also conducted conjuring functions. His elder brother Carl was a student who became an expert magician. When Alexander was eight years of age, Carl kidnapped him from the family home after seeing his interest in magic and got him to Russia to teach the art to him. Both brothers executed together until 1885, once they decided to go their split ways. Dubbed ?Herrmann the Great? by Russian culture after his present preventing trip in Russia, Alexander eventually became an American citizen. He died in 1896 while on board a train on his solution to a performance. Among his most widely used acts are the Card Throwing work, where he would land a card on the panel of an at the back of the theatre by tossing it through the air. Still another could be the Bullet Catch, an extremely hazardous technique, where visitors would fire loaded pistols at him and he?d get the bullets and stay unhurt.Harry Houdini (1874-1926). Born in Hungary as Ehrich Weiss, Harry Houdini emigrated to America with his family when he was four yrs old. At age nine, he turned a trapeze artist. His name was changed by him to Harry Houdini when he became an expert magician. The very first name was plumped for in gratitude to Harry Keller and his last name to Jean EugAne Robert-Houdin, his art was heavily influenced by both magicians who. Houdini particular in escapism, of which his most famous work is called the Chinese Water Torture Cell, where he was hung upside-down with his shins locked in inventory, reduced into a glass container filled with water, and the vices locked to the top of the cell. In his later years Houdini set about exposing the frauds of self-proclaimed specialists and platforms. He died at age 52 of peritonitis from a ruptured appendix after crumbling onstage throughout a performance in Michigan.Harry Blackstone (1885-1965). Born as Harry Boughton, Harry Blackstone Sr. was one of many most well-known phase magicians throughout the early 1900s, regularly appearing in the vaudeville circuits. His stage career started using a comedy act he did together with his brother Peter Bouton. He was popular during World War II through shows he did for the soldiers and was called The Great Blackstone. A few of his functions, especially his ?Sawing a lady in half?, could possibly be really imaginatively gory, while he was considered an ?elegant? wizard together with his white tie and tails. This dream is completed utilizing a circular saw. Blackstone would show how it?d be used by cutting a bit of wood. Then an assistant could be positioned on the table and sawn in half, with the saw seen to be going through her human body. The woman?s body particles are scattered by the blade, she shrieks, the blade stops, and of course her body is unscathed. Still another well-known illusion could be the Vanishing Bird Cage where Blackstone encourages young ones onstage and requires them to the touch a cage with a canary inside. The cage is then lowered by blackstone, kicks it, and both cage and canary vanish in front of the youngsters. In his old age Blackstone conducted at The Magic Castle, a nightclub for magicians and magic lovers. He died in 1965. His son, Harry Blackstone, Jr., followed his methods and is himself now a popular magician.David Copperfield (1956-present). Described by Forbes Magazine since the most commercially successful magician in background, David Copperfield began exercising wonder at age ten, and at twelve was admitted to the Society of American Magicians. Copperfield wants to assist large-scale illusions and huge magical feats. Among his famous functions would be the laser illusion and flying illusion. In the laser illusion, Copperfield?s body is cut into two or more areas by his assistants employing a laser beam. While his chest muscles sits down on a chair, the low half continues walking. The flying dream is really a levitation key where he travels across the point, apparently unsupported by any cables. Copperfield then invites an associate of the market, frequently female, to participate him and they both travel around ala Superman. His claim was clinched by copperfield to fame when he made ? in individual situations ? the Statue of Liberty, and a complete size Learjet, vanish into nothing before the eyes of the public.David Blaine (1997-present). Of Puerto Rican and Russian Jewish ancestry, David Blaine White was four years old when his interest in secret started after observing a perform tricks in a subway. Recording their own act and giving the record to the ABC broadcast system led to his first tv special, as cameras shot live, where he executed techniques for strangers, close up. Blaine has since advanced to large-scale real tricks such as Buried Alive, where he was buried in a transparent plastic container for seven days, underneath a container filled with 3.5 tons of water. Blaine lasted on two to three tablespoons of water daily for the entire week, and his only means of communication with the outside world was using a hand buzzer. In 2000, Blaine did yet another energy check named Frozen In Time, where he was wrapped in a very huge block of ice for 62 hours with only air and water for sustenance. Couple of years later he defied vertigo by standing at the very top of a high, 22-inch extensive anchor for 35 hours, enduring the high winds and cold temperatures without any food. His tour de force could be the Self-levitation illusion, where he lifts himself up two feet above the floor. Blaine has been called another Harry Houdini.This list is certainly not extensive. There are many, many more magicians ? some from centuries before, others in modern times ? who have been popular and are probably some of the finest. Magic remains to attract interest ? in good times, in terrible times ? and has spawned a million dollar business of magic tricks, accessories, instruments, books, systems.

Go to our site for more details about France Theater

Source: http://www.synergygamehouse.com/popular-magicians-and-avoid-performers-2/

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AAA Michigan: Gas prices rise more than 4 cents

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Microsoft lets home users subscribe to Office: $100 a year

3 hrs.

Devin Coldewey

Microsoft has added some new ways of accessing its latest?Office suite of applications and services: you can now subscribe on a month-to-month basis rather than buying the product outright. For many, this may be a very practical and money-saving option.

There are two subscription tiers: Home Premium ($8.33 per month, or $100 per year) and Small Business Premium ($12.50 per month, or $150 per year).

Home Premium allows for up to five users to use an Office suite on any device or platform, and even through a Web browser. (The idea is that this would also?cover a current subscriber for yet-to-be-announced editions, such as a new iPad app.)?Each user would get his or her own personalized settings and storage, and the account would?include?some freebies on other Microsoft services: 20 extra gigabytes of space (total)?on SkyDrive and an hour of world calling on Skype.

Small?Business Premium allows for up to 10 people, with each user allowed to activate Office on multiple devices or PCs. There's 25GB of Outlook mailbox?space included, as well as some extra for miscellaneous file storage. And screen-sharing, videoconferencing and website hosting are also included.

Both include "on demand" access that lets you temporarily log into your Office account from any PC, and both will have 30-day free trials in case users want to test the water before diving in.

At $100 or $150 per year, it's potentially a great deal for companies that have historically had to purchase several licenses to the Office software every few years. Extending subscriptions to families with lots of members (and all kinds of?devices) is also good news, because a single license could theoretically?cover you on PC, Mac, tablets and phones.?However, users or families with fewer devices or a slower upgrade schedule may still find that buying once will still be the best option.

The "Premium"?nomenclature indicates that "Basic" or "Pro" options (like those for versions of?Windows itself) could be on their way, their specifics perhaps to be determined from the usage patterns and subscription rates of the existing ones.?A few more details can be found at the blog post describing the new?subscriptions, or at the new Office website itself.

Devin Coldewey is a contributing writer for NBC News Digital. His personal website is coldewey.cc.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/technology/technolog/microsoft-lets-home-users-subscribe-office-100-year-1B5947650

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