Obama Allowed to Keep BlackBerry, Must Use Sectera Edge For Official Business



It looks like President Obama has outlasted the Secret Service and will be allowed to keep his beloved BlackBerry 8830 for "personal use" provided that he use the Sectera Edge for official business.

As mentioned last week, the Sectera Edge is a bulky WinMo 6.1 phone that features various security enhancements—a far cry from the sleek lines of the BlackBerry. Perhaps he should celebrate his victory by upgrading to the 8900 or the Bold. I'm sure the folks at RIM would be thrilled.

Source : http://i.gizmodo.com

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Rice Signs with William Morris


Former Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice has signed with the William Morris Agency to represent her in all areas.

The agency said that Rice will have a primary focus on books, lecture appearances, philanthropic activities, and "new business initiatives in the media, sports and communications sectors."

Rice will be represented by Jim Wiatt and Wayne Kabak, who say that other agencies were also in the mix to represent her.

Kabak said that Rice will be writing two books: One will focus on her diplomatic career, and the other will be about her parents, the Rev. John Wesley Rice Jr. and Angelena Ray, whom her daughter has referred to as "educational evangelists," for their influence on learning.

The diplomatic memoir will probably be written first, Kabak said, and "we will be meeting with publishers in very short order," he said, adding that there is "a lot of interest from publishers already."

There's expected to be a flood of activity among those connected to the Bush years to pen books and develop other projects --- but with it is some doubt of the marketability with so much of the public focused on President Obama's new administration.
President Bush says he is planning to write his memoirs, and Laura Bush recently landed a deal with a publisher for her tome.

While the former First Lady had little trouble selling her book, there was fascination among publishers because she has not revealed a substantial amount about her thoughts and opinions over the past eight years. Others may have more difficulty pursuing their projects in a time of Bush fatigue. When Donald Rumsfeld sold his memoirs to Sentinel, a conservative imprint of Penguin, he decided to forgo an advance and take only money for expenses. His book is due to come out in 2010.

Yet Kabak said that Rice's life experience "transcends politics," and cited a recent NBC News/Wall Street Journal poll that showed Rice was the most popular Republican in the country.

Kabak talked of Rice's next steps as part of the next "reinvention and evolution" of her career.

He said that in her post-administration career, Rice intends to focus on two areas, one of which is "the empowerment of women." "She believes that if women are empowered in underprivileged communities, the rest of the village will follow," he said. And Rice also wants to focus on "encouraging and creating a generation of young people who are global citizens" and helping their parents obtain resources to achieve that. Kabak talked of pursuing alliances in the football and sports worlds, as well as in TV and other areas the agency represents.

"What I do think is unique about Secretary Rice is she is a woman who has pursued many endeavors in many fields," he said. "We are not thinking about this as, 'We are signing a public official.' We are signing a scholar. We are signing a writer."

He added, "This is not about hiring a company to arrange a book deal or to book speeches," Kabak said. "We are talking about a woman with extraordinary accomplishments. Politics is only a part of it."
The agency currently represents House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, Sen. Byron Dorgan, Sen. Jim Webb and former Sen. Fred Thompson. In the past the agency has repped former President Gerald Ford and his wife Betty, Gov. Mitt Romney and Sen. John Edwards.

Source : http://www.wilshireandwashington.com

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Brother's book claims McGwire took steroids


Mark McGwire may still refuse to talk about the past, but his little brother is apparently more than happy to spill the family secrets about performance-enhancing drugs. Deadspin.com reported Wednesday that Jay McGwire has been shopping a book proposal to major publishing houses that claims he introduced the scandal-stained slugger to steroids and that he also used human growth hormone. In the proposal for "The McGwire Family Secret," Jay McGwire says he used a $150,000 insurance settlement from a BB gun accident that cost him an eye to purchase steroids. Jay McGwire writes that Mark started juicing after watching his brother build himself into a 6-3, 320-pound professional bodybuilder. According to Deadspin.com, Jay Mc-Gwire claims he introduced his brother to a steroid dealer shortly after he won a bodybuilding contest in May 1994. The supplier, who was also a trainer, explained how different drugs affected the body and answered his brother's questions.

Source : http://www.fannation.com

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2009 Oscar Nominations


The Oscar Gods have spoken and the nominations for 2009 Academy Awards have officially been announced. There are quite a few faces that we expected to see on the list as well as a few surprises.

Check the all out now below the jump…(brace yourselves TDK fans, you are only going to be reasonably happy)

BEST PICTURE

* “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), A Kennedy/Marshall Production, Kathleen Kennedy, Frank Marshall and Ceán Chaffin, Producers
* “Frost/Nixon” (Universal), A Universal Pictures, Imagine Entertainment and Working Title Production,Brian Grazer, Ron Howard and Eric Fellner, Producers
* “Milk” (Focus Features), A Groundswell and Jinks/Cohen Company Production, Dan Jinks and Bruce Cohen, Producers
* “The Reader” (The Weinstein Company), A Mirage Enterprises and Neunte Babelsberg Film GmbH Production, Nominees to be determined
* “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), A Celador Films Production,Christian Colson, Producer

BEST ACTOR

* Richard Jenkins in “The Visitor” (Overture Films)
* Frank Langella in “Frost/Nixon” (Universal)
* Sean Penn in “Milk” (Focus Features)
* Brad Pitt in “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.)
* Mickey Rourke in “The Wrestler” (Fox Searchlight)

BEST ACTRESS

* Anne Hathaway in “Rachel Getting Married” (Sony Pictures Classics)
* Angelina Jolie in “Changeling” (Universal)
* Melissa Leo in “Frozen River” (Sony Pictures Classics)
* Meryl Streep in “Doubt” (Miramax)
* Kate Winslet in “The Reader” (The Weinstein Company)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTOR

* Josh Brolin in “Milk” (Focus Features)
* Robert Downey Jr. in “Tropic Thunder” (DreamWorks, Distributed by DreamWorks/Paramount)
* Philip Seymour Hoffman in “Doubt” (Miramax)
* Heath Ledger in “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.)
* Michael Shannon in “Revolutionary Road” (DreamWorks, Distributed by Paramount Vantage)

BEST SUPPORTING ACTRESS

* Amy Adams in “Doubt” (Miramax)
* Penélope Cruz in “Vicky Cristina Barcelona” (The Weinstein Company)
* Viola Davis in “Doubt” (Miramax)
* Taraji P. Henson in “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.)
* Marisa Tomei in “The Wrestler” (Fox Searchlight)

BEST ANIMATED FILM

* “Bolt” (Walt Disney), Chris Williams and Byron Howard
* “Kung Fu Panda” (DreamWorks Animation, Distributed by Paramount), John Stevenson and Mark Osborne
* “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Andrew Stanton

BEST DIRECTOR

* “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), David Fincher
* “Frost/Nixon” (Universal), Ron Howard
* “Milk” (Focus Features), Gus Van Sant
* “The Reader” (The Weinstein Company), Stephen Daldry
* “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Danny Boyle

BEST ADAPTED SCREENPLAY

* “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Screenplay by Eric Roth, Screen story by Eric Roth and Robin Swicord
* “Doubt” (Miramax), Written by John Patrick Shanley
* “Frost/Nixon” (Universal), Screenplay by Peter Morgan
* “The Reader” (The Weinstein Company), Screenplay by David Hare
* “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Screenplay by Simon Beaufoy

BEST ORIGINAL SCREENPLAY

* “Frozen River” (Sony Pictures Classics), Written by Courtney Hunt
* “Happy-Go-Lucky” (Miramax), Written by Mike Leigh
* “In Bruges” (Focus Features), Written by Martin McDonagh
* “Milk” (Focus Features), Written by Dustin Lance Black
* “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Screenplay by Andrew Stanton, Jim Reardon, Original story by Andrew Stanton, Pete Docter

BEST ART DIRECTION

* “Changeling” (Universal), Art Direction: James J. Murakami, Set Decoration: Gary Fettis
* “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Art Direction: Donald Graham Burt, Set Decoration: Victor J. Zolfo
* “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Art Direction: Nathan Crowley, Set Decoration: Peter Lando
* “The Duchess” (Paramount Vantage, Pathé and BBC Films), Art Direction: Michael Carlin, Set Decoration: Rebecca Alleway
* “Revolutionary Road” (DreamWorks, Distributed by Paramount Vantage), Art Direction: Kristi Zea, Set Decoration: Debra Schutt

BEST CINEMATOGRAPHY

* “Changeling” (Universal), Tom Stern
* “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Claudio Miranda
* “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Wally Pfister
* “The Reader” (The Weinstein Company), Chris Menges and Roger Deakins
* “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Anthony Dod Mantle

BEST COSTUME DESIGN

* “Australia” (20th Century Fox), Catherine Martin
* “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Jacqueline West
* “The Duchess” (Paramount Vantage, Pathé and BBC Films), Michael O’Connor
* “Milk” (Focus Features), Danny Glicker
* “Revolutionary Road” (DreamWorks, Distributed by Paramount Vantage), Albert Wolsky

BEST DOCUMENTARY FEATURE

* “The Betrayal (Nerakhoon)” (Cinema Guild), A Pandinlao Films Production, Ellen Kuras and Thavisouk Phrasavath
* “Encounters at the End of the World” (THINKFilm and Image Entertainment), A Creative Differences Production, Werner Herzog and Henry Kaiser
* “The Garden” A Black Valley Films Production, Scott Hamilton Kennedy
* “Man on Wire” (Magnolia Pictures), A Wall to Wall Production, James Marsh and Simon Chinn
* “Trouble the Water” (Zeitgeist Films), An Elsewhere Films Production, Tia Lessin and Carl Deal

BEST DOCUMENTARY SHORT

* “The Conscience of Nhem En” A Farallon Films Production, Steven Okazaki
* “The Final Inch” A Vermilion Films Production, Irene Taylor Brodsky and Tom Grant
* “Smile Pinki” A Principe Production, Megan Mylan
* “The Witness - From the Balcony of Room 306” A Rock Paper Scissors Production, Adam Pertofsky and Margaret Hyde

BEST EDITING

* “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Kirk Baxter and Angus Wall
* “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Lee Smith
* “Frost/Nixon” (Universal), Mike Hill and Dan Hanley
* “Milk” (Focus Features), Elliot Graham
* “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Chris Dickens

BEST FOREIGN LANGUAGE FILM

* “The Baader Meinhof Complex” A Constantin Film Production, Germany
* “The Class” (Sony Pictures Classics), A Haut et Court Production, France
* “Departures” (Regent Releasing), A Departures Film Partners Production, Japan
* “Revanche” (Janus Films), A Prisma Film/Fernseh Production, Austria
* “Waltz with Bashir” (Sony Pictures Classics), A Bridgit Folman Film Gang Production, Israel

BEST MAKEUP

* “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Greg Cannom
* “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), John Caglione, Jr. and Conor O’Sullivan
* “Hellboy II: The Golden Army” (Universal), Mike Elizalde and Thom Floutz

BEST ORIGINAL SCORE

* “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.),Alexandre Desplat
* “Defiance” (Paramount Vantage), James Newton Howard
* “Milk” (Focus Features), Danny Elfman
* “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), A.R. Rahman
* “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Thomas Newman

BEST ORIGINAL SONG

* “Down to Earth” from “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Music by Peter Gabriel and Thomas Newman, Lyric by Peter Gabriel
* “Jai Ho” from “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Music by A.R. Rahman, Lyric by Gulzar
* “O Saya” from “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Music and Lyric by A.R. Rahman andMaya Arulpragasam

BEST ANIMATED SHORT

* “La Maison en Petits Cubes” A Robot Communications Production, Kunio Kato
* “Lavatory - Lovestory” A Melnitsa Animation Studio and CTB Film Company Production, Konstantin Bronzit
* “Oktapodi” (Talantis Films) A Gobelins, L’école de l’image Production, Emud Mokhberi and Thierry Marchand
* “Presto” (Walt Disney) A Pixar Animation Studios Production, Doug Sweetland
* “This Way Up”, A Nexus Production, Alan Smith and Adam Foulkes

BEST LIVE-ACTION SHORT

* “Auf der Strecke (On the Line)” (Hamburg Shortfilmagency), An Academy of Media Arts Cologne Production, Reto Caffi
* “Manon on the Asphalt” (La Luna Productions), A La Luna Production, Elizabeth Marre and Olivier Pont
* “New Boy” (Network Ireland Television), A Zanzibar Films Production, Steph Green and Tamara Anghie
* “The Pig” An M & M Production, Tivi Magnusson and Dorte Høgh
* “Spielzeugland (Toyland)” A Mephisto Film Production, Jochen Alexander Freydank

BEST SOUND EDITING

* “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Richard King
* “Iron Man” (Paramount and Marvel Entertainment), Frank Eulner and Christopher Boyes
* “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Tom Sayers
* “WALL-E” (Walt Disney), Ben Burtt and Matthew Wood
* “Wanted” (Universal),Wylie Stateman

BEST SOUND MIXING

* “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), David Parker, Michael Semanick, Ren Klyce and Mark Weingarten
* “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Lora Hirschberg, Gary Rizzo and Ed Novick
* “Slumdog Millionaire” (Fox Searchlight), Ian Tapp, Richard Pryke and Resul Pookutty
* “WALL-E” (Walt Disney),Tom Myers, Michael Semanick and Ben Burtt
* “Wanted” (Universal), Chris Jenkins, Frank A. Montaño and Petr Forejt

BEST VISUAL EFFECTS

* “The Curious Case of Benjamin Button” (Paramount and Warner Bros.), Eric Barba, Steve Preeg, Burt Dalton and Craig Barron
* “The Dark Knight” (Warner Bros.), Nick Davis, Chris Corbould, Tim Webber and Paul Franklin
* “Iron Man” (Paramount and Marvel Entertainment), John Nelson, Ben Snow, Dan Sudick and Shane Mahan

Nominations brought to you by Oscar.com

Source :http://screencrave.com

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First death sentence for melamine milk


Shijiazhuang (AsiaNews/Agencies) – The first death sentence and life imprisonment has been passed in the trial into the poisoned milk scandal that left 7 babies dead and 300 thousand others gravely ill with kidney stones and other ailments.

Early this afternoon (local time) Shijiazhuang court condemned to death Zhang Yujun for having produced and sold “protein powder” containing melamine. The people’s court also condemned to life imprison Zhang Yanzhang, who bought and sold on the formula.

The two men are the first of 21 awaiting sentencing, among them the president of Sanlu, on of the biggest producers and distributors of baby formula incriminated along with another 20 companies.

The prosecution said that Zhang Yujun, a native of Quzhou County, (Hebei) had raised cattle since July 2007 and concocted the so-called protein powder by mixing the chemical melamine and malt starch. The cattle farmer allegedly produced 775.6 tonnes of "protein powder" that contained melamine from October 2007 through August 2008 and sold more than 600 tonnes with a total value of 6.83 million Yuan (999,000 U.S. dollars). Zhang Yanzhang, a native from the same county, bought the protein powder from the latter and resold 230 tonnes

Later this afternoon the court is due to rule on Sanlu president, Tian Wenhua, 66 the highest profile personality involved in the scandal. Tian has pleaded guilty to charges of producing and selling fake or substandard products. Tian also admitted that she knew of problems with her company's products for months before informing authorities. The scandal was exposed in September 2008, but local authorities – and even Beijing – knew of the situation for some time before, perhaps as early as July 2008- But in order to save China’s image ahead of the Olympics, authorities sat on the scandal, allowing it to emerge only in the wake of the games.

Yesterday dozens of parents with affected children attempted to gain access to the trial but were stopped by police. In recent months many parents have attempted to open a case for damages against the accused companies, but so far no court has accepted their case.

The central government fears that parent malcontent could erupt into a social revolt.


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Nazi angel of death Josef Mengele 'created twin town in Brazil'


The steely hearted "Angel of Death", whose mission was to create a master race fit for the Third Reich, was the resident medic at Auschwitz from May 1943 until his flight in the face of the Red Army advance in January 1945.

His task was to carry out experiments to discover by what method of genetic quirk twins were produced – and then to artificially increase the Aryan birthrate for his master, Adolf Hitler.

Now, a historian claims, Mengele's notorious experiments may have borne fruit.

For years scientists have failed to discover why as many as one in five pregnancies in a small Brazilian town have resulted in twins – most of them blond haired and blue eyed.

But residents of Candido Godoi now claim that Mengele made repeated visits there in the early 1960s, posing at first as a vet but then offering medical treatment to the women of the town.

Shuttling between Argentina, Paraguay and Brazil, he managed to evade justice before his death in 1979, but his dreams of a Nazi master race appeared unfulfilled.

In a new book, Mengele: the Angel of Death in South America, the Argentine historian Jorge Camarasa, a specialist in the post-war Nazi flight to South America, has painstakingly pieced together the Nazi doctor's mysterious later years.

After speaking to the townspeople of Candido Godoi, he is convinced that Mengele continued his genetic experiments with twins – with startling results.

He reveals how, after working with cattle farmers in Argentina to increase their stock, Mengele fled the country after fellow Nazi, Adolf Eichmann, was kidnapped by Israeli agents.

He claims that Mengele found refuge in the German enclave of Colonias Unidas, Paraguay, and from there, in 1963, began to make regular trips to another predominantly German community just over the border in Brazil – the farming community of Candido Godoi.

And, Mr Camaras claims, it was here that soon after the birthrate of twins began to spiral.

"I think Candido Godoi may have been Mengele's laboratory, where he finally managed to fulfil his dreams of creating a master race of blond haired, blue eyed Aryans," he said.

"There is testimony that he attended women, followed their pregnancies, treated them with new types of drugs and preparations, that he talked of artificial insemination in human beings, and that he continued working with animals, proclaiming that he was capable of getting cows to produce male twins."

The urbane German who arrived in Candido Godoi was remembered with fondness by many of the townspeople.

"He told us he was a vet," said Aloisi Finkler, a local farmer interviewed by Mr Camarasa. "He asked about illnesses we had among our animals, and told us not to worry, he could cure them. He appeared a cultured and dignified man."

Another farmer, Leonardo Boufler, said: "He went from farm to farm checking the animals. He checked them for TB, and injected those that were infected. He said he could carry out artificial insemination of cows and humans, which we thought impossible as in those days it was unheard of."

But the Nazi eugenicist did not concentrate on animals alone.

A former mayor and town doctor, Anencia Flores da Silva, set out to try to solve the town's mystery. He interviewed hundreds of people, and discovered one character who crept on cropping up: an itinerant medic calling himself Rudolph Weiss.

Dr da Silva said: "In the testimonies we collected we came across women who were treated by him, he appeared to be some sort of rural medic who went from house to house. He attended women who had varicose veins and gave them a potion which he carried in a bottle, or tablets which he brought with him. Sometimes he carried out dental work, and everyone remembers he used to take blood."

The people of Candido Godoi now largely accept that a Nazi war criminal was an inadvertent guest of theirs for several years in the early 1960s. The town's official crest shows two identical profiles and a road sign welcomes visitors to a "Farming Community and Land of the Twins". There is also a museum, the House of the Twins.

While the twins birthrate varies widely in different countries, it is typically about one in 80 pregnancies – a statistic that has left Mr Camarasa certain in his claim that Mengele was successfully pursuing his dreams of creating a master race, a real-life Boys from Brazil.

"Nobody knows for sure exactly what date Mengele arrived in Candido Godoi, but the first twins were born in 1963, the year in which we first hear reports of his presence," he said.


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F.E.A.R. 2 Demo Now Available!



Size: 1.76GB

For all you survival horror fans out there in the big wide world, the demo for upcoming F.E.A.R. 2: Project Origin is now available to download from Xbox Live Marketplace and Playstation Network.

Take on the role of a new protagonist, Special Forces operator Michael Becket as you explore the city that was devestated by an explosion in the first game. Alma, who’s rage against those who wronged her is still at the heart of the storyline.

Download and enjoy. The full version is scheduled for release in NA and Europe on Feb 10th and 13th respectively, for Xbox 360, Playstation 3 and Games for Windows.

You can download here...

Source : http://www.platformnation.com


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Obama to KEEP his Blackberry


Yes, we can! Maybe all the hootin’ and hollerin’ about Barack’s quandary regarding the status of his BlackBerry actually ended up helping the President keep the addictive device. For personal use only, Mr. Obama’s BlackBerry will still be in commission, though we do hope he opts to upgrade to a Bold or 8900, at least (give us a call Mr. President, we’ll hook you up)! It will make it more worthwhile since he will be forced to use an awkward and clunky-looking Sectera Edge, which has been approved by the NSA for official use, as a business device. As if this news wasn’t the best free advertising anyone can get, the folks at RIM must be bursting with glee. While we’re all familiar with the device that has been like an appendage for Obama, you might be interested in taking a peek at the Sectera Edge, so hit the jump for an image and details!



Source : http://www.mobilecrunch.com/


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Thought Paper: Bible Quotes

I choose the following quotes from the Bible because for me they exemplify the complexities which we deal with when we discuss our spirituality. There are many ways in which we try to rationalize and give meaning to our life and those before us. I found it very interesting that in the early chapters of the Bible the use of light was to symbolize the idea of creation. Even then the early authors realized that there was a special connection between us and light, or energy. They understood that using light and dark they were able to express the ultimate duality of nature that exists, life and death. In most of the text, light symbolizes that which is alive and dark to represents death. The Old Testament focuses on the body or nature.
Later, in the New Testament, light is used to express the God qualities that one should try to realize and manifest. Luke 33 makes it clearest for me. Once a person has experienced the light they can no longer hide it but must share it with the world. It is to this meaning I most identify myself with the use of light as a metaphysical symbol. Luke expresses himself vividly with the metaphor of light and the presence or knowledge of God. It provides an eloquent teaching in a very simple, concise message.
Even thought light is used as a physical and spiritual metaphor, I believe it influences people more when they are trying to connect with God by using it in a spiritually enlightened context. Before this paper I had never really considered light as a tool for the body and the mind even though I meditate best with a candle lit room. So now I try to use the physical energy of the light as a connector, a reminder, of the spiritual connection I have with God, both physical and spiritual.

Quotations that I used

Genesis 1
1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
2 Now the earth was [a] formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering over the waters.
3 And God said, "Let there be light," and there was light.
4 God saw that the light was good, and He separated the light from the darkness.
5 God called the light "day," and the darkness he called "night." And there was evening, and there was morning—the first day.
15 and let them be lights in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth." And it was so.
16 God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars.
17 God set them in the expanse of the sky to give light on the earth,
18 to govern the day and the night, and to separate light from darkness. And God saw that it was good.
Luke 11
33 "No one lights a lamp and puts it in a place where it will be hidden, or under a bowl. Instead he puts it on its stand, so that those who come in may see the light.
34 Your eye is the lamp of your body. When your eyes are good, your whole body also is full of light. But when they are bad, your body also is full of darkness.
35 See to it, then, that the light within you is not darkness.
36 Therefore, if your whole body is full of light, and no part of it dark, it will be completely lighted, as when the light of a lamp shines on you."
Luke 11
8 "Or suppose a woman has ten silver coins[a] and loses one. Does she not light a lamp, sweep the house and search carefully until she finds it?
Proverbs 6:23
23 For these commands are a lamp, this teaching is a light, and the corrections of discipline are the way to life,
Proverbs 15:30
30 The light of the eyes rejoiceth the heart: and a good report maketh the bones fat.

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Va. Tech stabbing suspect charged with murder

Jan 22nd, 2009 | BLACKSBURG, Va. -- A graduate student from China has been charged with murder in the fatal stabbing of a female student on Virginia Tech's campus, the first killing there since a deadly mass shooting in 2007.

An electronic alert system revamped after the massacre warned students to stay in place while police investigated the incident around 7:45 p.m. Wednesday -- about half an hour after the suspect was taken into custody. They were cleared to resume normal activity about an hour later.

The woman, who was also a graduate student but was not identified, was stabbed to death at a cafe in the Graduate Life Center. Police believe she knew the man accused of attacking her, 25-year-old Haiyang Zhu, the school said in a news release. He was charged with first-degree murder and was being held without bond.

It was unclear early Thursday morning where he was being held or whether he had an attorney.

Campus police were called to the scene around 7:06 p.m., and Zhu was taken into custody minutes later, the school said. Responding officers found him and a knife they believe was used at the scene.

Students who live in the building were allowed to come and go, but others were asked to stay away from the area. The hall would re-open later Thursday morning, the school said.

Virginia Tech added text messages and other ways of warning students of possible danger to its system of e-mail alerts after Seung-Hui Cho killed 32 people before turning the gun on himself in April 2007.

The revamped alert system was first used last November when an exploded cartridge from a nail gun produced sounds similar to gunfire near a dormitory. During that scare, police searched a residence hall before determining the sounds came from the tool.

Source : http://www.salon.com

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Video Barack Obama Inauguration Speech January 20

Part 1



Part 2





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Middle East responds to Obama with hope, skepticism

Many across the Middle East heralded the inauguration of President-elect Barack Obama on Tuesday but expressed reservations about how much he will actually change US policy in a region where anti-American sentiment spiked during the Bush administration.

Those doubts have become more pronounced in recent weeks with the devastating Gaza offensive by U.S. ally Israel that killed over 1,250 Palestinians.

But Obama still retains a great deal of goodwill in the Middle East from people who feel his multicultural background allows him to relate to the region better than past U.S. presidents.


Source : http://fatihsyuhud.com/2009/01/20/middle-east-responds-to-obama-with-hope-skepticism/

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Text of President Barak Obama Inaugural Speech


Full transcript as prepared for delivery of President Barack Obama’s inaugural remarks on Jan. 20, 2009, at the United States Capitol in Washington, D.C.
My fellow citizens:
I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition.
Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because We the People have remained faithful to the ideals of our forbearers, and true to our founding documents.

So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.
That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.
These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable but no less profound is a sapping of confidence across our land - a nagging fear that America’s decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights.
Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many.
They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America - they will be met. On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.
On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.
We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.
In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of short-cuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted - for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things - some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.
For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life.
For us, they toiled in sweatshops and settled the West; endured the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth.
For us, they fought and died, in places like Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sahn. Time and again these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our individual ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.
This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions - that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.
For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act - not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology’s wonders to raise health care’s quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. And all this we will do.
Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions - who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage.
What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them - that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works - whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. And those of us who manage the public’s dollars will be held to account - to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day - because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.
Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched, but this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control - and that a nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our Gross Domestic Product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on our ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart - not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.
As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our Founding Fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience’s sake. And so to all other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman, and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and that we are ready to lead once more.
Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.
We are the keepers of this legacy. Guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort - even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people, and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the specter of a warming planet. We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you.
For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus - and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.
To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect.
To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society’s ills on the West - know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.
To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world’s resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.
As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us today, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages.
We honor them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment - a moment that will define a generation - it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all.
For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter’s courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent’s willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.
Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends - hard work and honesty, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism - these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility - a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.
This is the price and the promise of citizenship.
This is the source of our confidence - the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.
This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed - why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent mall, and why a man whose father less than sixty years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.
So let us mark this day with remembrance, of who we are and how far we have traveled. In the year of America’s birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At a moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words be read to the people:
“Let it be told to the future world…that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive…that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet [it].”
America. In the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children’s children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God’s grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.
Courtesy: huffingtonpost.com


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Obama Seeks Halt to Legal Proceedings at Guantanamo

In one of its first actions, the Obama administration instructed military prosecutors late Tuesday to seek a 120-day suspension of legal proceedings involving detainees at the naval base at Guantanamo Bay
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Source : http://fatihsyuhud.com/


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Obama the First US President with a Blog


A day Obama is anaugurated on January 20, the first post of his blog were born. Visit his blog at http://www.whitehouse.gov/blog/. The first post was written by apparently his Director of New Media (or should I call Director of Blogging?) named Macon Phillips. He writes
A short time ago, Barack Obama was sworn in as the 44th president of the United States and his new administration officially came to life. One of the first changes is the White House’s new website, which will serve as a place for the President and his administration to connect with the rest of the nation and the world.

Millions of Americans have powered President Obama’s journey to the White House, many taking advantage of the internet to play a role in shaping our country’s future. WhiteHouse.gov is just the beginning of the new administration’s efforts to expand and deepen this online engagement.

Just like your new government, WhiteHouse.gov and the rest of the Administration’s online programs will put citizens first. Our initial new media efforts will center around three priorities: Communication - Transparency - Participation -

A blog owned by President Obama is certainly the first in US or may be by any head of state in the world. Indonesian President SBY has a website, but it’s a website. Not a blog.
In the footer of the blog we can see many links directed to some informations concerning Obama’s future plan including his agenda on Iraq, Civil Rights, Defense, etc.
The latest post dated January 21, was the transcript of President Obama inaugural address and the video.
Unfortunately, it seems Obama will never write the blog himself. All posts so far were written by his staff. Had he written his blog by himself every now and then, he would have been the real Blogging President. Since a blog is originally defined as a personal diary which implies that it’s written by a blogger himself. Another flipside of Obama’s blog is the comment box is closed making its intention to open a dialog less credible. Although we see some blogs which closed the commenting facilities, it’d be better off if the comment box is open.

Source : http://fatihsyuhud.com/

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For TV’s Newest Crime Fighter, the Lips May Lie, but the Face Tells the Truth


During the past decade, Fox has rarely been the place to go looking for the lessons in collectivism manifest on series like “The Unit” and “Lost” and “Law & Order,” all of which pay tribute to collaborative problem-solving on networks not owned by Rupert Murdoch. Fox doesn’t smell like team spirit. It is a Randian territory of lone saviors (Jack Bauer, John Connor, Gregory House) bushwhacking through impending catastrophe with the weaponry of a singular genius.

The latest addition to the stable is the human polygraph Dr. Cal Lightman (Tim Roth). His gift is determining the criminality of white supremacists, wayward teenagers, Congressional ethics committee chairmen and any and all dubious-seeming Homo sapiens on the basis of shifting body language — “micro-expressions” — which has the effect of turning him into a one-man F.B.I.-municipal police force-Department of Homeland Security on the new series “Lie to Me” (beginning Wednesday).

In addition to his law enforcement efforts, Lightman appears to be a hot ticket on the lecture circuit, where he offers a delicious flashback pageant of public impropriety and heinous misconduct, producing PowerPoint images of Kato Kaelin, O. J. Simpson, Eliot Spitzer, Saddam Hussein, whose sneers and sniggers and pursed lips he has studied like a rabbinical student hunkering down with the Book of Job.

Lightman himself is a fruit basket of stereotype — cocky, infallible, petulant, divorced, burdened by his proficiencies — who has spent decades reading faces and pronouncing certainties: “If your suspect is surprised for more than one second, he is faking it.” The show further embeds the network’s individualist ideologies with a view that suggests private industry can always go the government suits one better. No line item for the Office of Management and Budget, Lightman operates under the auspices of his own consulting firm, the Washington-based Lightman Group, which the feds reluctantly seek out when they are tripped up, presumably by their own inexorable incompetence.

The government minions forced to deal with Lightman on the ground swallow the idea like children forced to take castor oil. “Personally, I think what you do is a joke,” one of them lets him know. But Lightman has his own minions, and thus his own devotees, the people who work for him in his all-white-and-steel, airy-truth-palace of an office. Chief among them is Gillian Foster (Kelli Williams), a behavioral analyst saddled with the task of speaking in earnest exposition and made not to drink Lightman’s Kool-Aid so much as gulp it from the tap.

“Lie to Me” is an invitation to follow her lead, and in some sense it isn’t all that easy to decline the offer. There is an appealing cheekiness to the show’s insistence on dressing up hunch work as the purview of serious science. And there is some legitimacy to the claim: the series is based on the research of Paul Ekman, a professor of psychology at the University of California, San Francisco, who is a specialist in nonverbal communication and what his publishers call deception strategies.

Nancy Drew was pretty good at breaking down deception strategies, too. So was Reese Witherspoon in “Legally Blonde.” Throughout the history of modern popular culture we’ve gone in and out of defining female intelligence in terms of intuitive displays. I’m not sure what it means that television’s reigning intuitionists are now male (Lightman joins the strike force of Adrian Monk and “The Mentalist’s” Patrick Jane). And I’m not sure whether the regendering is a democratizing net positive for feminism or whether we should take offense that women’s intuition translates somewhere along the spectrum of cute while its male counterpart is meant to suggest the power of a mind brilliantly deducing.

Against my better judgment, I suspect I’ll keep watching “Lie to Me” until I figure it out.

LIE TO ME

Fox, Wednesday nights at 9, Eastern and Pacific times; 8, Central time.

Created and written by Samuel Baum; directed by Robert Schwentke; Brian Grazer, David Nevins, Steven Maeda and Mr. Baum, executive producers; Dustin Thomason, co-executive producer; Tom Szentgyorgyi, consulting producer; Josh Singer, supervising producer. Produced by Imagine Television in association with 20th Century Fox Television.

WITH: Tim Roth (Dr. Cal Lightman), Kelli Williams (Dr. Gillian Foster), Monica Raymund (Ria Torres) and Brendan Hines (Eli Loker).



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Union Public Service Commission (UPSC), Indian Engineering Service Examination -2009

Last Date for Application
- On or before the 9th February, 2009.
- 16th February, 2008 for the candidates from far flung areas

Eligibility:
Age Limit - Minimum 21 years and Maximum 30 years as on 1st August, 2009.

The upper age is relaxable for SC/ST/OBC and certain other categories of candidates to the extent specified in the Notice.

Educational Qualification :
A Degree in Engineering or equivalent. The candidate applying for the posts of Indian Naval Armament Service (Electronics Engineering Posts) and Engineer Group A in Wireless Planning & Coordination Wing/Monitoring Organisation can possess M Sc Degree or its equivalent with Wireless Communication, Electronics, Radio Physics or Radio Engineering as a special subject.

Candidates who qualify in the written examination will be called for personality test.

Physical Standards:
Candidates must be physically fit according to the Regulations given in notice.

Application Form and Fee
The candidates must apply in the Common Application Form of the Commission for its examinations, and that can be purchased from the designated Head Post Offices/ Post offices throughout the country against cash payment of Rs. 20/- only.

Application Fee of Rs.100/- can be paid by way of Central Recruitment Fee Stamp only. SC/ST/PH candidates are exempted from payment (OBC candidates required to pay full fee).

Contract Address:
The Secretary,
Union Public Service Commission,
Dholpur House, Shahjahan Road,
New Delhi -110069
website: http://upsc.gov.in/
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Anna Kournikova: Is That a Baby Bump?


Sure to stir back up chatter of a baby-on-the-way, exclusive pictures of Anna Kournikova spotted showing what appeared to be a baby bump during a recent sighting in Miami have just hit the Web!
Usually clad in a bikini and shorts, Anna chose to wear a loose fitting top as she went sailing with her man Enrique Iglesias and a few friends last Monday (January 11).
As of late, Enrique denied the rumors when he called the daytime talk show El Gordo y La Flaca to be congratulated on his three Premio Lo Nuestro nominations.
The show's co-host, Raul de Molina, slyly asked about the rumor that Iglesias could be a father soon, with Iglesias replying, "Who told you that?"
When Molina inferred that Iglesias was the one who started the baby talk, the singer said: "I say many things...but this time, I've said absolutely nothing of the sort."


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108 'Lost' Characters You Need To Know


The season 5 premiere is finally here, our old friends at TheTailSection posted this tonight:

“But before you watch, make sure you’re 100 percent ready and up-to-date. Over at BuddyTV, I just wrote a massive slideshow with 108 Lost characters you need to know. It’s as complete a list as you’ll find about every major and minor character with some quick summaries to refresh your memory about what’s going on.


From Jack to Jacob, from Mr. Friendly to Frogurt, from Horace Goodspeed to Thomas Mittelwerk, remind yourself of all the players who have led us to here, some of whom just may pop up tonight.”

Check Out 108 Lost Characters You Need To Know>>



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9/11 Truth Rant Featured In Hit TV Show Rescue Me


Debunkers and hit piece-obsessed establishment media titans were hoping that 9/11 truth had faded into the background as we accelerate further away from the attacks which took place over 7 years ago.
However, a scene from the second episode of the fifth season of Rescue Me, the wildly popular TV drama about New York City firefighters, reminds us that 9/11 remains at the forefront of American public consciousness.
In the scene, the character played by Daniel Sunjata, who is a dedicated truther in real life, goes on a lengthy, detailed and vehement rant about how 9/11 was an inside job to an intrigued female character played by Karina Lombard.

The scene is part of a 9/11 conspiracy theme that runs throughout the fifth series, a fact revealed last month by Sunjata’s fellow Rescue Me star, Dennis Leary.
In part, Sunjata’s character Franco states,
“9/11? Inside job. Plain and simple. And all you gotta do is connect the dots. … I am talking about a massive neoconservative government effort, been in the works 20 years. Ever heard of PNAC? Project for a New American Century? According to them, the end goal of their effort is American global domination. Full spectrum dominance, they call it. Now, first question that pops into my mind is: How do you pull that off in this day and age?”
Watch the clip.

RELATED: “Rescue Me” character believes 9/11 was an inside job … and so does the actor playing him

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How Can I Tell If Someone Is Lying To Me?

Here is what most people don’t know about someone who is lying;The first method is the most exciting one and most difficult to beat because its a part of your natural brain processing. In NLP this is called “eye accessing cues”.So first you will learn how eye accessing cues work and then how you can apply them to liars. It does require some skill - both in observation and questioning.Since this topic is about 40 years old I will use extracts;have you ever noticed eye movements?

have you ever noticed that people’s eyes move to different directions when being asked a question? research results showed that there is a connection between the way someone is thinking and the direction that his eye moves to. the six possible directions that the eye could go to when someone thinks are upper right ,upper left, middle right , middle left , lower right and lower left .each direction represents something that is currently taking place inside the mind. for a right handed person whom is facing you the following is an illustration of what does the different eye movements means (Note the following directions are describing the eye positions of someone who is facing you): By the way, this method is used by top levels of law enforcement, you may remember a scene from the movie “The Negotiator” with Samuel Jackson where he uses the following method to show how a person was lying? Anyways…


Here is a full discussion on the above technique which is essential to build understanding of the process;(note: looking up to the right, for a right handed person, can also mean that they are day dreaming or doing a visualization….that is why context is important.

The following techniques to telling if someone is lying are often used by police, and security experts. This knowledge is also useful for managers, employers, and for anyone to use in everyday situations where telling the truth from a lie can help prevent you from being a victim of fraud/scams and other deceptions.
Warning: Sometimes Ignorance is bliss; after gaining this knowledge, you may be hurt when it is obvious that someone is lying to you.
Body Language of Lies:
• Physical expression will be limited and stiff, with few arm and hand movements. Hand, arm and leg movement are toward their own body the liar takes up less space.
• A person who is lying to you will avoid making eye contact.
• Hands touching their face, throat & mouth. Touching or scratching the nose or behind their ear. Not likely to touch his chest/heart with an open hand.
Emotional Gestures & Contradiction
• Timing and duration of emotional gestures and emotions are off a normal pace. The display of emotion is delayed, stays longer it would naturally, then stops suddenly.
• Timing is off between emotions gestures/expressions and words. Example: Someone says “I love it!” when receiving a gift, and then smile after making that statement, rather then at the same time the statement is made.
• Gestures/expressions don’t match the verbal statement, such as frowning when saying “I love you.”
• Expressions are limited to mouth movements when someone is faking emotions (like happy, surprised, sad, awe, )instead of the whole face. For example; when someone smiles naturally their whole face is involved: jaw/cheek movement, eyes and forehead push down, etc.
Interactions and Reactions
• A guilty person gets defensive. An innocent person will often go on the offensive.
• A liar is uncomfortable facing his questioner/accuser and may turn his head or body away.
• A liar might unconsciously place objects (book, coffee cup, etc.) between themselves and you.
Verbal Context and Content
• A liar will use your words to make answer a question. When asked, “Did you eat the last cookie?” The liar answers, “No, I did not eat the last cookie.”
•A statement with a contraction is more likely to be truthful: “ I didn’t do it” instead of “I did not do it”LiarCard.com
• Liars sometimes avoid “lying” by not making direct statements. They imply answers instead of denying something directly.
• The guilty person may speak more than natural, adding unnecessary details to convince you… they are not comfortable with silence or pauses in the conversation.
• A liar may leave out pronouns and speak in a monotonous tone. When a truthful statement is made the pronoun is emphasized as much or more than the rest of the words in a statement.
• Words may be garbled and spoken softly, and syntax and grammar may be off. In other
words, his sentences will likely be muddled rather than emphasized.
Related Books:
Other signs of a lie:
• If you believe someone is lying, then change subject of a conversation quickly, a liar follows along willingly and becomes more relaxed. The guilty wants the subject changed; an innocent person may be confused by the sudden change in topics and will want to back to the previous subject.
• Using humor or sarcasm to avoid a subject.
Final Notes:
Obviously, just because someone exhibits one or more of these signs does not make them a liar. The above behaviors should be compared to a persons base (normal) behavior whenever possible. Also in understanding eye accessing cues individuals will often use combination of eye movements. For example; You ask a question, the person repeats it to him/her self to get a better understanding (eyes move down and to the left), then up and to the left remembering the instance in question then up and to the right to visualize how they see it now - In other words, the series of questions asked is very important

Source : http://www.culturesocietyblog.com

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Lie To Me: Tim Roth Tells The Truth About His New Show



Tonight on FOX, Tim Roth makes a big move in his career. Known mostly for his film work, he enters the fray with a new TV show called "Lie To Me" and plays Dr. Cal Lightman, a gifted scientist who studies facial expressions and body language to discover not only if someone is lying, but why. The series premise is based on the real life scientific discoveries of Dr. Paul Ekman and promises to blow the lid off the little white lie.
I was fortunate enough to speak with Tim Roth on a conference call in which he explains what happens on the show, and especially the many changes playing the character have made in his own life.
Let's listen in:
Thanks for talking with us today Tim. Can you tell us about your character and what about the role appealed to you?

Well, it’s based on Paul Ekman who studied body language and the kind of expressions that goes through people’s faces and can betray what’s behind what they’re saying. So, it’s kind of an interesting concept. At the time, I was looking for something that would keep me home. I’ve been traveling so much with work, and I wanted to stay close to my family. So, this came along. I quite liked the idea of playing the character, or possibly playing a character, in a long form, like a play really. A long run in the West End. So, it’s a character that has legs, really. He can be in very different situations, and I like that. So, it might be kind of a fun experiment.
How much of this character would you say you take home with you? Of course, by that I mean, how good have you become at detecting lies?

I try to take absolutely none of it home with me. I make a very strong attempt not to get to know too much of the science and not to practice it at home or any of that stuff because the real guy, Paul, he can’t switch it off. He can’t unlearn it. He knows so much about this stuff that he can see, in everybody, what they’re maybe thinking. He watches their bodies betray them. I don’t really want to do that. I’d much rather just go about my life.

How has it been adjusting to the workload, the difference between doing a movie and doing a series?

It's really tough. It’s extraordinary what these guys do. I’ve met a couple of them briefly before. Actually, I remember joking to one guy who’s very well known in this business. I said, “What’s it like?” He took me through the exhaustion factor. How am I dealing with it? Fairly well. I think it’s more difficult at the beginning, to be honest with you, because you’re establishing a character. You spend – and re-working the script a lot more, but after things settle down, obviously I think the workload will be a bit lighter to be honest with you. It’s much tougher than being in the movies, that’s for sure.

With the other actors and even yourself, is there a sense of choreography that has to go into the role just because you have to watch all your facial expressions because it’s such a key part of the show?

Well, I don’t.

You’re lucky.

It’s actually quite extraordinary. When we do these things, and the actors who come in. I mean, the pilot, it’s very much a pilot, I suppose, but gradually, the audience will learn. They’ll see stuff if they stick around and have a look at it.

It’s very hard for the actors who are playing the subject because they become very self-conscious after a while because when you put the camera really closely on them, it’s quite disturbing. We have to take them through it. It’s quite odd. So, some of the stuff is a little bit too big. We go softer and softer as the series progresses. You’ll see. It’s quite interesting though, and it’s all real. Well, it’s not real. It’s all based on real. Kind of fun, really.

Is the show going to take on a story that carries throughout the episodes, or is it mainly a stand-alone episode-by-episode?

Well, I think each episode will deal with a different subject, but I think there’s going to be stuff that carries through, too. I think you’re going to get a bit of both.

Why do you think that someone who is interested in the show will enjoy it?

I think it’ll be fun to see this kind of stuff and see how it relates in reality, in real life. Part of the fun is going to be Paul’s Web site that he’s doing, his companion Web site, the guy it’s all based on. He’s a scientist that it’s based on. He’s going to do a companion Web site for each episode. So, you’ll actually see the stuff that we’re making up and the stuff that is real. You’ll see examples of how – you’ll be able to train yourself to spot stuff. I don’t want to know. No, I think an audience could really enjoy themselves with it. It’s kind of fun.
Was there any particular tidbit of information that you learned about facial expressions or body language that kind of surprised you?

I think what surprised me is – I’m watching one of my crew walk his dog right now – all of it kind of surprised me. For example, I think they did in the pilot – I mean, I haven’t seen it, but when they put expressions up against each other, like they freeze frame on people that we know in life, and you’ve seen the exact same expression, you see it, and it replicates it, and going across their faces in the same way it goes across the actor’s faces and so on, it’s really quite remarkable. I found it to be very educational as well as fun.

I wanted to ask you to talk about the appeal for the large number of British actors like yourself, Hugh Laurie, Rufus Sewell, and others working in American TV.

I’ve done TV. I did TV in Britain, but I’ve never done anything like this. I’ve done TV in America, worked on a couple of things for HBO and TNT and all that kind of stuff, but it seems to me – I mean, if it works – we don’t even know if this is going to work or not. It’s all an experiment, which is kind of fun. It seems to me that some of the better stuff is coming out in America now. I was recently back in Europe and watched what was going on our British television. I’ve got to say I think the standard is getting higher here and lower there a little bit. The audiences are more interested in things like The Wire and House and what’s coming out of the States, so a little bit more interested and intrigued by that, and 24, than they are in their own homegrown things at the moment. Hopefully, this will help it change.
During your research, do you find a way to continue lying and consciously manipulate your face so it appeared you were still telling the truth? Is there a way to do that?

Well, I don’t know. You know what? It’s weird. The only one who could tell me - essentially, all of the acting is lying, right? All of acting is lying. It’s all deception. So, for me, for my character, thankfully, he’s one of the few ones that doesn’t actually have to be on stage. It’s only the subjects or people talking to him or people that he is talking to who are on stage.

I do know that, for example, actors … quite often get a hold of Paul’s training DVD’s and his Web site training stuff and also his books and use them. So, I’m always lying. That’s what actors do, so you never stop lying. It’s just how good you are at it, I suppose.
Your character is separated. Your partner, Gillian Foster, seems to be a dishonest relationship with her husband that he –

Why would you think that?

Well, I’m going by the show’s logic that your partner seems to be very good at reading body language. Do we eventually find out what he’s hiding, and why Cal won’t tell her about it?

Actually, what’s interesting about all of that kind of stuff is – and that does come up, but probably not in the way that you’re thinking, or maybe it does. I don’t know. Anyway, what it is, is that people lie for very, very different reasons. People are not always …, so the fact that I, for example, will spot something or Torres will spot something because she’s a natural at it, what you have to learn is to learn to remember. As a character, they have to - is that you don’t know what people are thinking. You can tell that they put a deception out there, but you don’t know why. So, that relates with Foster’s character. I mean, that’s going to spice things up.
I just wanted to know what your idea is: can you have a meaningful social relationship with someone if you’re dating them, or really close friends, if you always know that they’re lying about something?

Well, that’s a big deal. That’s a big question. I, as a part of this series, don’t want to get into bedroom stuff and all of that for the character. I think he should have an ethical line that he won’t cross, but relationship is absolutely part of where we’ll be going. My feeling is, and what Paul’s – he is in a very long relationship now. I met his wife. He can read anything. I think he has a deal – Paul, being the guy it’s based on. I think his deal is that if he spots a deception in his wife, it’s for a very good reason and not to worry about it. So, I think what you have to do is have some kind of contract with your partner. My character hasn’t got there yet. He’s a single guy with a kid. So, he didn’t get there, but I think that’s the way that you would do it. The way that you would do it would be to make a contact with your partner. The line fine as long as it’s about, but it shouldn’t be about something that threatens the relationship.

Did you ever consider approaching the character with an American accent, sort of like Hugh Laurie or Damien Lewis?

No. That was part of my deal immediately from Day One. I said … I’m not doing that because I was aware, having spoken to other actors who do that, your work level is huge. Having done dialects and worked with dialect coaches and so on in the past, I am aware that work level is huge if you want to get it right. So, I figured if I put the two together, it would be overkill. So, that was a deal breaker with Fox. They were cool. They were worried about it, and then, they stopped worrying about it after a while. I think it’s kind of fun. It’s not something we even address particularly in the show although I do come out with some odd phrases now and again.
Why do you think that so many foreign actors opt to use an American accent? Do you think that U.S. audiences are more accepting, or will they accept you better?

I don’t know. Well, it’s a couple of things. I think generally, they have to do an American accent if they’re doing something on telly. So, that was a battle that if they wanted me, they got me with my own accent, so that was a homework battle …, but I think there’s a history, kind of a love affair between American and the English that goes back in cinema history. There’s always been that relationship. Our English actors have come over here and have been employed, quite consistently for a very long time, for as long as film has been around, so it’s really just an offshoot of that.
I didn’t know the guy in The Wire, for example, was English. He’s that good. I know Hugh Laurie’s doing an American accent because I guess they had to play an American character, but this guy doesn’t have to be an American, and the folks were good enough to let me get away with that.
How much time did you spend with your real-life counterpart? Did you shadow him at work? Did you just meet him for coffee? How did it work out?

Well, the first time I met him was when we were shooting the pilot. He came, in fact, to the location where I am at now, which is a juvenile prison that’s been shut down, which we use. Horrible place, in fact. That’s when I first met him. He hung around. Then, he came to the set a couple of times after that. I didn’t – what I did – I mean, I talked to him about it. I did some reading. I read a couple of his things. I looked at some Web sites. Then, I stayed away from it. That’s what I tend to do. Now, I deal with what’s specifically in each script. Apart from that, I stay away from it because it’s not really stuff that I want to take home with me. Paul lives and breathes it. So, I just stay away from it. I think there’s a fascination there. Definitely fascinating stuff. I’ll probably pick up a little bit more of it as I go through, but I generally don’t try to have it follow me home.
Can you explain what the other members of the deception team do? Do they have the same skill that you have?

Gillian Foster that Kelli plays, Kelli’s character, is a psychiatrist. She’s a psychologist/psychiatry. So, I talk about her as she’s in the feelings department. She’s all mumsie and stuff because why people are doing what they’re doing is not necessarily my – I can see that there’s some deception happening, but if we have to find out why, if part of our job is to find out why, there are only people who do different things around me in the feelings department. She’s a shrink.

Then, Torres is what would be known – Monica’s role is a natural. Some are actually called naturals in the real world, but she’s somebody who just has an innate ability, for whatever reason. There are reasons for that, they think, which comes up later in the series. So, she just can spot you. She doesn’t know why; she doesn’t know what. It’s just, “Yes, that’s not right.” She’s good at that. They’re a bit scary, so he keeps her close.

Loker, Brendan’s guy, is a science … He’s doing like a radical honesty experiment right now where he plays around with all of it. He’s more lab-based, I guess. Research guy. He can spot them, too. He’s pretty good at it.

So, there you go. That’s what the guys do. There’ll be more of them, too, I think, people joining up if they keep us around.

You said that you were doing this TV show so that you could stay close to home, but you’ve also said that you’d be willing to return to the Hulk franchise if Lou Leterrier wanted you back. Are you still willing to go out and go on location in-between shooting the show?

I’m planning it. Between the pilot and the series, I did a film. I am looking at two scripts that take me off to shoot when I go on hiatus. I guess around February/March sometime, we’ll get the idea of whether we’re going to be coming back or not. So, once they’ve figured that out, we’ll schedule them accordingly, but yes, I’m going to be filming in, I think we finish April. So yes, I’ll be filming two movies actually, back to back. Not much of a break, but there you go. Fun stuff, too. There you go.

Has your involvement in the show made you think twice about when you lie in civilian life, whether it’s a big one or a little one or whatever the case may be?

No, you do what you do, but the only thing’s that come up along those lines is I don’t discuss them with the press. So, there you go.

You’ve played a lot of very memorable villains throughout your career. Is it kind of nice to be taking on a role that’s the good guy, the hero …?

I suppose yes. I haven’t even thought about that, to be honest with you, with relation to the … I actually think this guy could be quite a bad guy, which is going to be fun. There will be times when he will be. He’ll be the wrong thing. He’s going to suffer the consequences, so it’ll be kind of a bit of a crossover role, but yes, it’s a nice change. I’m thinking that the whole thing is just an experiment and see what happens, really. I’m quite enjoying myself although I am exhausted. There you go.
Don't miss the premiere episode of Lie To Me tonight on FOX followingAmerican Idol.
We'll be watching on Fancast.
Source : http://thebiz.fancast.com/


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Bell, Book and Candle


If there ever was a movie that begged to be remade not because it needs to be remade, but simply to bring attention to the original…this is it!

What a wonderful cast, what a wonderful Christmas movie. Why doesn’t this romantic comedy get shown every year at Christmas? It must be being overlooked! James Stewart, Kim Novak, a wonderful Jack Lemmon, Elsa Lanchester.

Kim Novak is at her most sultry, playing a witch who wants to have a normal boyfriend and a normal Christmas. Of course she gets it and him in the end, but it’s a fun ride getting there. Also, I LOVE watching the background art – it’s so typical of the time, Eamesish, Cubist, primitive.

Oh my gosh, I just IMDB.com’d it, and it IS being remade!

And here’s a youtube trailer for it. Oddly, I can’t find any clips and I find it hard to believe no one’s parsed it yet, but maybe the film clips are just getting squeezed out by the videos of a band of the same name.



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