
Tank, who’s nominated for a Grammy this year with Chris Brown, talks about his latest CD ‘Now or Never.’ He also recalls the phone call his label got from the Recording Academy, who praised his cover of Bonnie Raitt’s ‘I Can’t Make You Love Me.’ (Feb. 10)
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Egypt braces itself amid numerous reports that President Hosni Mubarak will step down tonight after weeks of demonstrations
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Bailouts a thing of the past, huh? More presents for AIG! Via Yves at Naked Capitalism: First from Bloomberg, “ AIG Has $4.1 Billion Charge on Insufficient Reserves “: American International Group Inc. said higher-than-forecast claims costs cut fourth-quarter profit by $4.1 billion, and $2 billion previously designated to repay its bailout will be used to bolster the property-casualty unit. The insurer reached an agreement with the U.S. Treasury Department permitting the company to keep $2 billion of proceeds from the sale of Star Life Insurance Co. and Edison Life Insurance Co., New York-based AIG said today in a statement. Funds will be used by Chartis for losses tied to coverage including workers’ compensation and asbestos liability. The troubling part is “keep”. Unless the Treasury got some form of consideration back from AIG, this sure looks like a gift. We see similar ambiguous language at the Journal : American International Group Inc. said it will book a $4.1 billion charge when it reports results for the fourth quarter, as it adds to reserves at its Chartis property and casualty insurance unit…. AIG also said Wednesday that it signed a letter of agreement with the U.S. Treasury to retain $2 billion of the proceeds from the sale of AIG Star Life Insurance Co. and AIG Edison Life Insurance Co. to support Chartis’ capital. Now with AIG, a mere two billion must look like mere rounding error, but again, pray tell exactly how this reversal of the TARP payback is being accounted for? We’ve had so much sleight of hand with AIG that nothing would surprise me. And with the Congressional Oversight Panel about to go out of business, any pushback is almost certain to be limited .
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Speaking in Marquette, Michigan, President Barack Obama said America will continue to support orderly and genuine transition to democracy in Egypt. (Feb. 10)
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Image: cloud2013 , Flickr, CC Noam Chomsky has a big ol’ brain, and over the years, he’s devoted it to revolutionizing linguistics, pushing the boundaries of analytic philosophy, formulating trenchant political theory, and pissing off establishment figures. Whether or not you agree with his politics, there’s no denying that he’s a sharp fella. Which is why it’s well worth watching his take on why the United States has thus far failed to tackle climate change:… Read the full story on TreeHugger
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Verizon customers using Pantech’s UML290 LTE modem (or waiting to use it) got their official Mac drivers last month , and now — as promised — those opting for LG’s VL600 LTE dongle instead have finally gotten some Mac drivers of their own as well. Hit up the source link below to find those in convenient, easy to digest, downloadable form. [Thanks, Manuel] LG’s VL600 LTE modem for Verizon now officially Mac-compatible originally appeared on Engadget on Thu, 10 Feb 2011 14:56:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds . Permalink
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The Sons of Confederate Veterans have rustled up some controversy in Mississippi, by proposing a specialty license plate honoring Confederate Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest, one of the earliest Grand Wizards of the Ku Klux Klan. The group wants the state to issue a series of plates commemorating the 150th anniversary…
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Giving clot-busting drugs to people with mild strokes could prevent more than 2,000 of them from becoming disabled each year, researchers say.
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• Reports that Mubarak will stand down tonight • Egyptian president to give address on television • Obama says US will support transition to democracy • Thousands protest for 17th day in Tahrir Square ترجم هذه الصفحة إلى العربية 7.39pm GMT: The BBC’s Paul Adams in Tahrir Square: It’s a bit like a rock concert before the band comes on stage. 7.34pm GMT: For a taste of the atmosphere in Tahrir Square right now, have a look at this Guardian video that we have just posted , as the protesters await word from Mubarak. 7.31pm GMT: ABC’s veteran correspondent Christiane Amanpour tweets about a chance meeting with the man of the moment, Wael Ghonim: That’s a good sign. 7.27pm GMT: Reports are that now even state television, Nile TV, are screening live footage of the pro-democracy demonstrators in Tahrir Square and elsewhere – an abrupt change from the pro-regime footage it had been showing in recent days, including interviews with supposed “protesters” who made wild claims of US and Mossad involvement. 7.18pm GMT: Now William Hague has weighed in, speaking at a press conference in Bahrain: We have said from the start of this crisis in Egypt that there should be an orderly transition and that, in our view, has to include a broadly-based government in Egypt and giving the Egyptian people real and visible and comprehensive evidence of change. That will then allow the people of Egypt to work out their political differences together in a peaceful and democratic way. 7.10pm GMT: The Al Arabiya television channel is reporting that Hosni Mubarak will announce new constitutional procedures before handing over his powers to vice president Omar Sulieman, according to its correspondent. There were no further details. (Technical issues have been slowing this live blog done but those should now be resolved.) 6.56pm GMT: A statement released by Egyptian military about half an hour ago, although it doesn’t make things any clearer: Based on the responsibility of the Armed Forces, and its commitment to protect the people, and to oversee their interests and security, and with a view to the safety of the nation and the citizenry, and of the achievements and properties of the great people of Egypt, and in affirmation and support for the legitimate demands of the people, the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces convened today, 10 February 2011, to consider developments to date, and decided to remain in continuous session to consider what procedures and measures that may be taken to protect the nation, and the achievements and aspirations of the great people of Egypt. If that was the statement that the army promised “that will meet protesters’ demands” then this isn’t likely to do it. 6.50pm GMT: Barack Obama has just addressed events in Egypt before a speech he was giving just now, although he didn’t have much to say: We are following the events in Egypt very closely and we’ll have more to say as it plays out but what is absolutely clear is that we are witnessing history unfolding. It’s a moment of transformation that’s taking place because the people of Egypt are calling for change. They’ve turned out in extraordinary numbers and all ages and all walks of life. But it’s young people who have been at the forefront, a new generation, a young generation, who want their voices to be heard. And so going forward, we want those young people and we want all Egyptians to know America will continue to do everything we can to support an orderly and genuine transition to democracy in Egypt. 6.45pm: There are reports that the Egyptian president, Hosni Mubarak, is about to announce his resignation. Follow live updates here. If you want to catch up on earlier events then see our live blog of events earlier today . Egypt Hosni Mubarak Live video Richard Adams guardian.co.uk
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Egypt’s information minister has denied reports that Hosni Mubarak will step down today, issuing a statement on the country’s state-run TV, the AP reports. He repeated the same thing to foreign journalists. “The president is still in power and he is not stepping down,” Anas el-Fiqqi told Reuters . “The president…
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