UK's Hague arrives in Myanmar to urge reforms (AP)

YANGON, Myanmar ? Britain's foreign secretary urged Myanmar to push its democratic reforms and release all political prisoners as he began a historic trip Thursday to a country that has recently emerged from a pariah status in the West.

William Hague is the first British foreign secretary to visit Myanmar since 1955, and follows in the footsteps of U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, who came in November.

Myanmar President Thein Sein greeted Hague in the capital, Naypyitaw, but neither talked to reporters before their meeting. Hague is scheduled to later meet with opposition leader and Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi in the main city of Yangon.

In a statement issued before leaving London, Hague said his trip was intended to encourage the "government to continue on its path of reform, and to gauge what more Britain can do to support that process."

Western nations have offered cautious support for reforms that have led to the military junta that had ruled since 1962 taking a back seat and allowing a nominally civilian government to take power in March after winning elections that were boycotted by Suu Kyi's party.

But since then, her National League for Democracy party has joined the political process and said it will take part in upcoming by-elections. Also, the government has released some political prisoners.

Britain believes there are between 591 and 1,700 political prisoners held by Myanmar authorities, though poor record keeping and disputes over the status of captives mean an accurate figure is difficult to gauge.

"We hope to see the release of all remaining political prisoners, free and fair by-elections, humanitarian access to people in conflict areas and credible steps towards national reconciliation," Hague said.

Though Hague's two-day visit signals a shift in relations, Britain won't promise any immediate change in European Union sanctions on arms sales, asset freezes and travel bans ? or change a policy that discourages U.K. businesses from trade with Myanmar.

Britain recently pledged 185 million pounds ($289 million) over three years to fund health and education projects ? becoming Myanmar's largest bilateral aid donor ? but the U.K. channels funds only through nongovernmental groups.

Hague will lay out a series of demands for Myanmar's leadership to meet before Britain considers offering funds direct to the government, or before the EU can lift any sanctions.

"Further steps are needed that will have a lasting impact on human rights and political freedom," Hague said.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/britain/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120105/ap_on_re_as/myanmar_britain

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Devastating Drought Seems Inevitable in American West

DRYING OUT IN THE U.S.: The falling water level of Lake Mead near Las Vegas has left behind a white ring of mineral deposits Image: Christopher J. Morris/Redux Pictures

Australia experienced the worst and most consistent dry period in its recorded history over much of the past decade. The Murray River failed to reach the sea for the first time ever in 2002. Fires swept much of the country, and dust storms blanketed major cities for days. Australia?s sheep population dropped by 50 percent, and rice and cotton production collapsed in some years. Tens of thousands of farm families gave up their livelihoods. The drought ended in 2010 with torrential rains and flooding.

Australia?s Millennium Drought is a wake-up call for residents of the drought-plagued southwestern U.S. and for all of us. What happened in Australia could happen in the U.S., with devastating consequences to the region and to the nation. We can avert the worst, however, if we pay attention to Australia?s experience and learn the right lessons.

The southwestern U.S. bears some resemblance to parts of Australia before the drought. Both include arid regions where thirsty cities and irrigated agriculture are straining water supplies and damaging ecosystems. The Colorado River no longer flows to the sea in most years. Water levels in major reservoirs have steadily declined over the past decade; some analysts project that the largest may never refill. The U.S. and Australia also share a changing global climate that is increasing the risk of drought.

Evidence is mounting that climate change is playing a role in Australia?s water woes. Since 1950 average rainfall has decreased 15 percent, and researchers found average temperatures over southeastern Australia from 1995 to 2006 were 0.3 to 0.6 degree Celsius higher than the long-term average. The combination of higher evaporation and lower precipitation depletes soil moisture and reduces runoff, making droughts more intense and more frequent. Australian scientists forecast a 35 to 50 percent decline in water availability in the Murray-Darling river basin and a drop in flows near the mouth of the Murray by up to 70 percent by 2030. ?

The Millennium Drought did have one benefit: it got people?s attention. Australians responded to these extremes with a wide range of technical, economic, regulatory and educational policies. Urban water managers in Australia have been forced to put in place aggressive strategies to curb water use and to expand sources of new and unconventional supplies. They have subsidized efficient appliances and fixtures such as dual-flush toilets, launched public educational campaigns to save water, and more. Between 2002 and 2008 per capita urban water use?already low compared with the western U.S.?declined by 37 percent.

Other efforts focus on tapping unconventional supplies, such as systems that reuse gray water, cisterns to harvest rooftop runoff, and sewage treatment and reuse. The country?s five largest cities are spending $13.2 billion to double the capacity of desalination, enough to meet 30 percent of current urban water needs.

Even in the midst of the drought, Australia moved forward with plans to restore water to severely degraded aquatic ecosystems. The government has continued with plans to restore rivers and wetlands by cutting withdrawals from the Murray-Darling river basin by 22 to 29 percent. It has committed $3 billion to purchase water from irrigators to restore ecosystems. Regulators introduced water markets in the hope of making farms more water-efficient and reducing waste. Despite efforts to phase out subsidies, the government announced more than $6 billion in aid to improve irrigation infrastructure and make it more productive.

The southwestern U.S. states would do well to push for these kinds of reforms before a similar disaster strikes. They need to tackle difficult policy issues, such as development of water markets and pricing, expansion of water efficiency and productivity programs, elimination of government subsidies that encourage inefficient or unproductive water use by cities and farms, and agricultural reform. As the climate continues to change, smart water planning may help ease the impacts of unexpected and severe shocks that now appear inevitable.

This article was originally published as "The Coming Mega Drought."

Source: http://rss.sciam.com/click.phdo?i=ede662a948d8ed518da907787bf2a5f6

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Exxon to sell Tonen stake in retreat from Japan: sources (Reuters)

TOKYO (Reuters) ? Exxon Mobil (XOM.N) is in talks to sell most of its 50 percent stake in TonenGeneral Sekiyu KK (5012.T) back to its Japanese refining partner and unload other assets in Japan in a deal that could be worth as much as $5 billion, four sources with knowledge of the matter said.

The deal would mark a retreat from the world's third-largest economy by the U.S. oil giant, which is focusing its resources globally on exploration and production and shifting away from so-called downstream assets like those held in Japan.

The move could also spark realignment among Japan's oil refiners, which have been cutting capacity to cope with declining demand caused by a weak economy and a shift to more efficient and environmentally-friendly forms of energy.

TonenGeneral, which imports and distributes Exxon oil in Japan, ranks as the country's No. 2 refiner behind JX Holdings (5020.T). Smaller rivals include Idemitsu Kosan Co (5019.T), Cosmo Oil (5007.T) and Showa Shell (5002.T).

"If this report is true, it could open the door for TonenGeneral to realign in alliance with another company. That may or may not include capital ties," said Hidetoshi Shioda, senior analyst at SMBC Nikko Securities.

CAPITAL RELATIONSHIP

Exxon, the world's largest publicly traded oil company, holds 50.02 percent of TonenGeneral, a stake worth 224 billion yen ($2.92 billion) at Wednesday's close. It also owns a sales network of around 4,000 gas stations across Japan.

Exxon is planning to keep a certain level of ownership in TonenGeneral, seen as key to maintaining the refining partnership, according to the sources, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the talks are still ongoing.

The cost of the deal could climb to as high as 400 billion yen ($5.2 billion), but may settle at a lower price depending on the size of the stake to be sold, negotiations over the other assets, and TonenGeneral's funding situation, the sources said.

An official announcement could come as early as this month, the sources said.

TonenGeneral said in a statement that ExxonMobil was considering a change to its capital relationship with TonenGeneral, but nothing had been decided. Exxon stressed it had no plans to withdraw from Japan.

"ExxonMobil has no plans to exit the Japan market. We have been doing business in Japan for over 118 years," the oil giant said in a statement to Reuters.

FUNDING BURDEN

Shares of TonenGeneral fell 5.8 percent to 792 yen, its lowest close in 14 months, reflecting investor worries over the burden the deal would place on its finances. Trading in the shares was the busiest in at least 24 years.

TonenGeneral plans to borrow money from several banks to finance the purchase, the sources said.

"It's hard to see the strategic direction of TonenGeneral after it buys the assets from Exxon. A deal in the order of 400 billion yen would also strain its cash situation and raise the risk of lower dividends," said Yoshihiro Okumura, head of research at Chibagin Asset Management.

Oil demand in Japan, the world's No.3 consumer, has been falling steadily for more than a decade, to about 3.4 million barrels per day (bpd) from a record 4.2 million bpd in 1999.

That slide has accelerated following a devastating earthquake and tsunami in March, which dented economic activity and prompted some manufacturers to shift factories abroad.

Industry sources had speculated Exxon may look to scale back in Japan after the country introduced new regulations in 2010, with a 2014 deadline for refiners to boost their ability to process heavy oil by building new cracking units or scrapping capacity.

The directive was seen as particularly burdensome for TonenGeneral due to its relatively low heavy oil processing capacity. The Exxon unit has been a vocal critic of the scheme, calling it unnecessary meddling by the government.

Despite the unfavorable operating environment in Japan, the relationship with TonenGeneral serves an important strategic purpose for Exxon, making it unlikely that it would look at a complete withdrawal, some analysts said.

"If ExxonMobil pulled out, they would lose a good outlet, and they could no longer ask TonenGeneral to import ExxonMobil's equity crudes," said independent oil economist Osamu Fujisawa.

($1 = 76.7500 Japanese yen)

(Additional reporting by Osamu Tsukimori and James Topham; Writing by Nathan Layne; Editing by Chris Gallagher, Michael Watson and Ian Geoghegan)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/japan/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120104/bs_nm/us_exxon_tonengeneral

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Joel Edgerton In Osama Bin Laden Movie From Kathryn Bigelow

Welcome to Seal Team Six, Joel Edgerton. Your mission: take out Osama Bin Laden.

The Australian actor, most recently seen in this fall's critically acclaimed MMA family drama "Warrior," has signed on to star in the film about the US military's pursuit of Osama Bin Laden being produced by "Hurt Locker" director Kathryn Bigelow. Variety reports that Edgerton has joined on after passing up the "300" prequel film.

The film, which was in development before the military killed Bin Laden and was rejiggered to reflect the development, will give Edgerton a second massive prestige picture set for a December 2012 release. He is co-starring as Tom Buchanan in Baz Luhrmann's 3D adaptation of "The Great Gatsby," featuring alongside Leonardo DiCaprio, Carey Mulligan and Tobey Maguire.

The news wasn't all good for Bigelow's film on Thursday. Government officials are looking into whether the filmmakers were given confidential information that could put the real Seal Team 6 in danger while researching for the film. The investigation comes at the behest of New York Rep. Peter King.

For more, click over to Variety.

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/01/05/joel-edgerton-in-osama-bin-laden_n_1187410.html

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New Biz Dev, Finance Hires At Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia ...

Industry Moves

Martha Stewart Living Omnimedia (NYSE: MSO) kicks off the new year with four new hires: Russell Brown as SVP, consumer products licensing; Charlie Tiersch as VP, business development; Colleen Nowers as associate VP, business development; and Claudio Goldbarg as SVP, publishing and digital media operations.

From the release:

Russell Brown, named SVP, Consumer Products Licensing, will be responsible for developing and negotiating new merchandising opportunities for all MSLO brands. He has previously worked for prominent brand licensing companies such as Marvel Entertainment (NYSE: DIS), Inc. and Iconix Brand Group, Inc. In addition, the company tapped Charlie Tiersch as VP, Business Development and Colleen Nowers as AVP, Business Development; both Mr. Tiersch and Ms. Nowers join MSLO from NBCUniversal (NSDQ: CMCSA). Mr. Tiersch is tasked with expanding MSLO?s presence in the digital space and seeking international growth opportunities, while Ms. Nowers will focus on forging new affiliations for the Company?s portfolio of media properties and brands.

The company also named Claudio Goldbarg SVP, Publishing and Digital Media Operations. In this position, he will oversee all financial operations for MSLO?s Publishing business, including budgets, forecasting and reporting, as well as identifying areas of incremental revenue potential and new business opportunities. Mr. Goldbarg has held financial positions at various media companies, including DreamWorks SKG.

Posted In: Industry Moves, Media & Publishing, Magazines, charlie tiersch, claudio goldbarg, colleen nowers, martha stewart living omnimedia, russell brown

Source: http://paidcontent.org/article/419-new-biz-dev-finance-hires-at-martha-stewart-living-omnimedia/

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Man City beats Liverpool 3-0 to open 3-point lead

/

By ROB HARRIS

updated 6:51 p.m. ET Jan. 3, 2012

Manchester City rediscovered its attacking flair to sweep aside Liverpool with a 3-0 victory Tuesday night that opened a three-point lead over Manchester United in the English Premier League.

Sergio Aguero scored on an early blunder by goalkeeper Pepe Reina, and Yaya Toure and James Milner added goals for Manchester City, which lost at Sunderland and tied at West Bromwich Albion durign the busy holiday period.

"We were incredibly efficient, and it's a great win," City captain Vincent Kompany said. "It is one of the top six teams out of the way, and now we know United and the other teams have to play each other."

On a night of heavy rain, Aguero put City ahead in the 10th minute with a shot that took a slight deflection and bounced past Reina, who dived but missed the ball entirely. Toure doubled the lead in the 33rd with a header and Milner converted a penalty kick in the 75th after Martin Skrtel fouled Toure.

City manager Roberto Mancini apologized later for brandishing an imaginary yellow card at Skrtel.

"In the moment maybe I did that because I was not happy with the referee, but I made a mistake," Mancini said.

City's Gareth Barry was ejected in the 73rd minute for his second yellow card, given for bumping Daniel Agger.

"If you want to be a successful team, and they are one, you have got to be clinical," Liverpool manager Kenny Dalglish said. "We've got to get that into our makeup. Tonight we never had that. It's a lesson learned for us."

Liverpool was without Luis Suarez, who started an eight-game suspension for racially abusing Manchester United's Patrice Evra.

City (15-2-3) has 48 points, three more than United (14-2-3), which is at Newcastle on Wednesday.

Tottenham (13-3-3) is next with 42 points after winning 1-0 over visiting West Bromwich Albion (6-11-4) on Jermain Defoe's 63rd-minute goal.

In the night's other game, Sunderland (6-8-6) won 4-1 at Wigan, its fourth victory since Martin O'Neill replaced Steve Bruce as manager. Craig Gardner, James McClean, Stephane Sessegnon and David Vaughan scored for the visitors, who moved into 10th place. Hugo Rodallega scored for 18th-place Wigan (3-11-6).

___

MADRID (AP) ? Defending champion Real Madrid overcame a two-goal halftime deficit, beating Magala 3-2 in the first leg of the fifth round of the Copa del Rey.

Sergio Sanchez and Martin Demichelis gave Malaga the lead with almost identical headers in the 10th and 29th minutes, but Sami Khedira scored in the 68th, Gonzalo Higuain tied it two minutes later and Karim Benzema got the go-ahead goal in the 78th.

Madrid could advance to a quarterfinal against Barcelona, which hosts Osasuna on Wednesday night.

In other games, third-tier Mirandes won 2-0 at home against Racing Santander, second-tier Alcorcon had a 2-1 home victory against Levante and third-tier Albacete tied 0-0 with Athletic Bilbao.

The second legs of the total-goals matchups are next week.

___

LIBSON, Portugal (AP) ? American defender Oguchi Onyewu tapped in a cross from 5 yards in the 88th minute, giving Sporting Lisbon a 1-1 tie against Rio Ave in the Portuguese League Cup.

Monday's goal was the third of the season for Onyewu, who scored in the league against Rio Ave in a 3-2 win on Sept. 19 and against Nacional in a 1-0 victory on Dec. 10.

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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More newsGonzalo Fuentes / Reuters

Klinsmann to fans: be patient

Juergen Klinsmann is determined to carry off a style revolution for the U.S. national team while urging patience from the country's fans.

Robert Cianflone / Getty Images

Beckham set to stay in LA

David Beckham is set to stay with the Galaxy after turning down a chance to join Paris Saint-Germain.

Source: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/45862202/ns/sports-soccer/

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Brock Lesnar?s last stand and more in UFC 141 photo gallery

UFC 141 marked the last event of 2011 and the last time Brock Lesnar took to the Octagon. Check out memorable images by Tracy Lee from his loss to Alistair Overeem, Nate Diaz and Donald Cerrone's grudge match, and the rest of the bouts.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Brock-Lesnar-s-last-stand-and-more-in-UFC-141-ph?urn=mma-wp11460

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MTV's "Punk'd" revamp debuts March 19 (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) ? Ashton Kutcher will be back as a producer, but not as the host when "Punk'd" returns to MTV on March 19.

Instead, new episodes of the reality series Kutcher co-created will be introduced each week by a different celebrity. Justin Bieber, Miley Cyrus, Kellan Lutz, Bam Margera and former "Punk'd" cast member Dax Shepard will be among the guest hosts when the show returns.

You can check out a sneak peek of the new episodes at the link below, as Khloe Kardashian gets "Punk'd" with a medical emergency reminiscent of "There's Something About Mary": http://www.thewrap.com/tv/column-post/mtvs-punkd-revamp-debuts-march-19-video-34028

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/tv/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120103/tv_nm/us_punkd

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News Corp. boss Rupert Murdoch joins Twitter

News Corp. boss Rupert Murdoch joins Twitter
Albuquerque Express
Monday 2nd January, 2012??
(ANI)

The 80-year-old CEO of News Corporation, Rupert Murdoch, has joined the microblogging platform Twitter.

Users were initially suspicious that an account opened by "Rupert Murdoch" on New Year's Eve could be fake.

But its authenticity was confirmed by Twitter founder Jack Dorsey who said: "With his own voice, in his own way, @RupertMurdoch is now on Twitter."

The media tycoon offered opinions on subjects including the US presidential election, the Oscars race and Steve Jobs, The Telegraph reports.

In his first tweet, Murdoch said, "Have just. Read The Rational Optimist. Great book."

He also tweeted that George Clooney deserved an Oscar for his performance in "The Descendants."

Murdoch also said that a biography of Steve Jobs and been "interesting but unfair" and revealed his opinion that Alexander Hamilton was the "best man never elected president".

Within 24 hours Murdoch amassed over 26,000 followers, the report said.

His appearance on Twitter, however, was not welcomed by all.

Lord Prescott, the former UK deputy prime minister, said, "Hey @rupertmurdoch. I'm surprised you're only following two people. The police said it was at least 800." (ANI)

Source: http://c.moreover.com/click/here.pl?r5688702516&f=378

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Apple gearing up for 'media-related announcement' later this month?

Leave it to Apple to completely avoid CES, yet be one of the largest stories surrounding its dates. Much like last year's invite to what would eventually be the introduction of Verizon's iPhone 4, All Things D has it on good authority that the folks in Cupertino are spending their first hours back on the job planning a "media-related announcement" for later this month. Contrary to earlier beliefs, we're told that this particular event won't be related to the next-gen iPad, and it's also "unlikely" to be connected to a "large-scale rethinking of its interactive television initiative."

So, knowing what it won't entail... what will be talked about? According to unnamed sources, Apple SVP of Internet Software and Services Eddy Cue is reportedly involved. For those unaware, Cue is responsible for a sizable chunk of Apple's media units, not the least of which include the App Store, iBookstore, iTunes Store and iCloud. Sadly, details outside of that are few and far betwixt, but you can bet we'll be keeping an ear to the ground for more -- even if it's smack-dab in the middle of a Sony CES keynote. Cough.

Apple gearing up for 'media-related announcement' later this month? originally appeared on Engadget on Mon, 02 Jan 2012 16:24:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/BYoot0yiLTc/

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'RHOBH' shows Armstrong marriage was over before suicide (Reuters)

LOS ANGELES (TheWrap.com) ? We already know the ending, but that hasn't made the reality TV journey getting there any less creepy.

Monday night's new episode of the "Real Housewives of Beverly Hills" began with a continuation of the previous week's installment, in which Taylor Armstrong and her husband Russell -- who committed suicide in August -- were asked to leave a party hosted by co-star Kyle Richards.

Russell Armstrong had sent an email threatening legal action against another "RHoBH" cast member -- Camille Grammer -- and none of the other "Housewives" or their husbands wanted to risk incurring Armstrong's legal wrath.

But Armstrong's wife said she wasn't aware of the email, and after a tense ride home with him and reading the missive to Grammer, she was seen visiting her therapist, who told her she needed to make a "tough decision" about her marriage.

Later in the episode, as her co-stars and their spouses were vacationing in Hawaii, Taylor Armstrong called Lisa Vanderpump to announce she had asked her husband to move out of their home and that her "marriage is over."

"We're done. He's moving out, he's going to be gone," Armstrong said. "We're just going to do it in a nice way, and hopefully move forward with our lives and try to be the best co-parents we can be to my daughter."

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/tv/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120103/tv_nm/us_realhousewives

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5 charts exploring the financial quicksand that real estate is stuck in for 2012 ? Public debt now larger than GDP, entitlement challenges, post-bubble lows for housing, two lost decades for income, baby boomer demographics not looking positive for real es

Source: http://nalert.blogspot.com/2012/01/5-charts-exploring-financial-quicksand.html

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