- Pages:
- 1
- 2
| Blog and Media Roundup - Wednesday, Jan 28, 2009; News Roundup | |
|---|---|
| Tweet Topic Started: Jan 28 2009, 05:26 AM (935 Views) | |
| abb | Jan 28 2009, 05:26 AM Post #1 |
|
http://heraldsun.southernheadlines.com/durham/4-1082079.cfm Councilman: No free lunch for city workers By Ray Gronberg : The Herald-Sun gronberg@heraldsun.com Jan 28, 2009 DURHAM -- A City Council member is pushing administrators to scale back his government's annual employee-recognition lunch to save money and send residents a message about Durham's budget situation. The councilman, Eugene Brown, wants City Manager Tom Bonfield to replace the lunch with something more modest, perhaps a presentation in City Hall's council chamber on a scheduled meeting night. "As we begin our budget deliberations during these challenging times, one principle should stand out: There should be no sacred cows grazing in the fields of city government," Brown said in a letter to Bonfield. "When it comes to budget cuts, everything should be on the table." Bonfield on Tuesday said he'd ask his staff for information about the lunch, although he suspected contractual obligations to its host facility, the downtown Marriott, would probably rule out a significant cost savings. Making big changes "a week away from the event is a challenge, symbolic or not," Bonfield said. Deputy City Manager Wanda Page said the city government has staged the lunch for about 20 years and uses it to recognize employees who are coming up on major service milestones. Past lunches have honored workers who've been on the staff for 10, 15, 20, 25, 30 and 35 years. Page said officials also use the lunch to honor workers who've retired in the last year, and those who died while still on the payroll and those who've died. Also invited are workers who've been nominated for awards recognizing exceptional on-the-job performance. Last year's lunch, also at the Marriott, cost the city about $16,000 in cash, Page said. The figure covers among other items gifts to retiring employees, recognition pins and the rental of the facility. Brown did his own back-of-the-envelope estimate of the cost, assuming that about 400 workers would show. He figured it would cost "over $45,000," with $8,000 of that going to pay for food. The balance represented his estimate of the lost productivity involved in having that many workers take time from their day, plus the value of whatever time administrators spent in organizing the event. "Admittedly, this is an estimate, but regardless, even during flush times it seems excessive for any public event paid for by taxpayers," he said. Brown indicated that he thinks the 11:30 a.m.-to-3 p.m. event is open to all city employees. But Page said it's essentially invitation-only for the workers honored. She added that scheduling it around lunchtime reduces the effect on productivity, as many workers would ordinarily take time away from the job at that point to eat. In addition to perhaps holding a special event at a council meeting, the city could give $100 checks to 10 or 12 honorees, Brown said in his letter, adding that workers would rather have "a check than a rubber-chicken lunch." Brown's suggestions didn't go over too well with at least one of his council colleagues. "Given that we're going to asking our employees to do a lot more with a lot less in the next couple of budgets, we need to find more ways to say, 'Thank you,'" Councilman Mike Woodard said. |
![]() |
|
| abb | Jan 28 2009, 05:33 AM Post #2 |
|
http://durhamwonderland.blogspot.com/ Another Group of 88'er Promoted Good stuff in the comments. |
![]() |
|
| abb | Jan 28 2009, 05:34 AM Post #3 |
|
http://www.johnincarolina.com/ McClatchy suspends quarterly dividend indefinitely The AP reports - - - McClatchy Co., the nation's third-largest newspaper publisher, said Tuesday it is suspending its quarterly dividend after paying out its dividend for the first quarter of 2009 so it can save up cash to repay its debts. The publisher of papers such as The Miami Herald and The Sacramento Bee said it declared a quarterly cash dividend of 9 cents payable on April 1 to shareholders of record on March 11. But the company said in a news release that after that, the dividend would be suspended "for the foreseeable future" so it could conserve its cash. McClatchy, like others in the newspaper industry, is seeing a decline in advertising revenue which is hurting profit. Advertisers have been pulling back amid the recession, and increasingly shifting their marketing dollars to the Web. McClatchy said its first-quarter dividend is worth half the per-share dividend paid in the same period last year. Shares of McClatchy rose 2 cents, or 2.4 percent, to close at 85 cents. _____________________________________________ My comments: Advertisers were shifting their dollars to the Web long before this recession started. They were following readers who were abandoning McClatchy newspapers. The market understood this even if McClatchy’s top execs have denied it for years. As recently as five years ago, McClatchy traded in the mid-70s. In March 2006 when the economy was still growing, McClatchy traded in the mid-40s. So what did McClatchy do? CEO Gary Pruitt, ignoring the clear warning his company’s 40%+ stock price decline signaled, went out and bought the Knight-Ridder chain. McClatchy's taking on more newspapers then was as smart as a captain of a sinking ship taking on more anchors. In less than five years McClatchy has dropped from the mid-70s to penny stock status with Pruitt and other top execs getting performance bonuses all along the way. Can you believe that? All I can say tonight is pity the small shareholders and the many honest, able people who work for McClatchy. Any wonder they are so angry? |
![]() |
|
| abb | Jan 28 2009, 05:36 AM Post #4 |
|
http://www.newsobserver.com/news/story/1384515.html Published: Jan 28, 2009 12:30 AM Modified: Jan 28, 2009 02:23 AM Funding applications accepted in Durham From Staff Reports Comment on this story DURHAM - Both of Durham's local governments are singing the budget blues, but the city and county are taking 2009-10 funding requests from nonpublic enterprises. Durham County requires a "prequalification" process for interested nonprofits, which must be filed before actually asking for money. Forms may be downloaded at www.durhamcountync.gov/departments/bdmg/Non-Profit_Funding/ NAFP.html and are due back by 5 p.m. Feb. 9. To find out more, call budget analysts Minora Sharpe at 560-0062 or Kevin Etheridge at 560-0018. The city's application forms for nonprofit "noncity agencies" are at www.durhamnc.gov/departments/bms/ grants.cfm. Deadline is 5 p.m. on March 13. To participate in an assistance session, contact Melinda L. Squires-Nelson, 560-4111, ext. 282, or via e-mail at Melinda.Squires-Nelson @durhamnc.gov. |
![]() |
|
| abb | Jan 28 2009, 05:45 AM Post #5 |
|
http://www.lewrockwell.com/blog/lewrw/archives/025019.html January 27, 2009 More State Worship from the "Newspaper of Record" Posted by Bill Anderson at January 27, 2009 05:59 PM The New York Times, which was unable to continue to prop up its favorite prosecutor, Michael B. Nifong, nonetheless is continuing what it does best: promote the authoritarian state. Today the "Newspaper of Record" is enraptured by a couple of orders from President Obama: the move to force higher mileage standards for automobiles and giving the FDA more regulatory power. The editors are swooning over Obama's attempt to give us better weather: In a companion move, Mr. Obama directed the Transportation Department to finalize the interim nationwide fuel-efficiency standards called for in the 2007 energy bill. These standards would eventually require fuel-efficiency increases in the American car and light-truck fleet to roughly 35 miles per gallon by 2020 from the current average of 27 m.p.g. The California standards would require automakers to reach the same 35 m.p.g. target four years ahead of the federal timetable. The California rules cannot by themselves stop the rise in greenhouse gases. In addition to regulatory controls, Mr. Obama must eventually embrace a broader strategy involving major federal investments in clean-energy technologies and, down the road, some effort to put a price on greenhouse-gas emissions in order to unlock private investment. But after eight years of inaction, this is a wonderful start. Indeed, the editors are saying that they are thrilled that the government wants to force auto makers to shell out billions of dollars in new capital expenditures -- for which the return on investment will be zero, or even negative. However, the hardcore state worshipers at the Times no doubt will call for the government to print more money to pay for this capitalization -- you know, the printing press creates wealth. They really believe this nonsense at the Newspaper of Paul Krugman. |
![]() |
|
| abb | Jan 28 2009, 05:48 AM Post #6 |
|
http://www.news-record.com/content/2009/01/27/article/sharpton_election_is_only_the_beginning snip A columnist for UNCG’s student newspaper, The Carolinian, criticized the school’s choice of Sharpton as keynote speaker, citing his attack on Duke lacrosse players accused of raping a black woman before the woman changed her story and charges were dropped.Sharpton said such criticism doesn’t bother him. snip |
![]() |
|
| abb | Jan 28 2009, 05:59 AM Post #7 |
|
http://media.www.dukechronicle.com/media/storage/paper884/news/2009/01/28/News/English.Prof.Named.Dean.Of.Humanities-3600935.shtml English prof named dean of humanities By: Toni Wei Posted: 1/28/09 Professor of English Srinivas Aravamudan will become the new dean of the humanities in Arts and Sciences July 1, George McLendon, dean of the faculty of Arts and Sciences and dean of Trinity College, announced Monday. Aravamudan will succeed Gregson Davis, Andrew W. Mellon distinguished professor of the humanities in classical studies, who served five years in the position. Aravamudan currently serves as the director of Duke's Franklin Humanities Institute, part of the John Hope Franklin Center-a post he plans to leave once he steps into his role as dean. "In a university with as much talent as Duke, there are always many excellent candidates," McLendon wrote in an e-mail. "[Aravamudan's] leadership of the Franklin Humanities Institute was a key accomplishment, alongside his breadth of vision for the humanities at Duke-including bringing a global perspective that will be especially important for our students." Aravamudan said he is aware of the possible effect of the current economic situation on his own goals and plans to lead the department with that in mind. "I suppose we'll hear more about what's going to happen in the next couple of weeks, but in this context I think it'll be a challenge to take on any job such as this one," he said. He added that he is unsure how the increasingly tight financial belt will affect faculty hirings and cuts within the department. He noted that humanities professors have already become aware of certain effects: a planned move of the John Hope Franklin Center to New Campus, for example, will likely be delayed. As a result, Aravamudan said he will try to focus on the most important priorities-like improving the department academically-and make sure those are not compromised by the financial climate. Aravamudan said he is optimistic about the program, saying he still thinks the humanities department is in very good shape. "Humanities at Duke are exceedingly stellar and have been so for at least 20 years," he said. "There will be lots of positive things we can do, creating collaboration and convergence among departments and faculties." Aravamudan, who earned his Ph. D. at Cornell University, taught at the University of Utah and the University of Washington before joining Duke's department of English in 2000. "[Aravamudan] follows a very successful dean in Gregson Davis, who has been a stalwart advocate for the arts, as well as for cultural understanding across both geography and time, and for the special place of the humanities in a liberal education," McLendon said. Davis, who will resume teaching, is hopeful that he and his successor share some of the same visions. "I think [Aravamudan] will bring an enthusiasm for two of the main goals of my term as dean. One of which is to promote what I call 'transcultural humanities,' which nudges the institutions of higher education to revise ideas about Western culture," Davis wrote in an e-mail. Davis also listed a focus on visual studies as another strategic goal that he championed as dean of humanities. "Of course you can't accomplish everything in five years, but I'm pleased that some of my ideas have taken root," he said. Shuchi Parikh contributed reporting. |
![]() |
|
| chatham | Jan 28 2009, 10:06 AM Post #8 |
|
BREAKING NEWS: DURHAM POLICE HAVE EVACUATED THE COURTHOUSE AFTER A BOMB THREAT WAS REPORTED. http://www.wral.com More information coming soon. Edited by chatham, Jan 28 2009, 10:06 AM.
|
![]() |
|
| Payback | Jan 28 2009, 10:49 AM Post #9 |
|
Bill Anderson commented: "If you look at academic developments at Duke since the case began, you will see that those faculty members who were at their worst are the ones that Brodhead has most rewarded. This is no accident." Bill, I hope you won't miss a chance to remind your readers of at least one student who was at his worst and was rewarded-- Chauncey Nartey. (I'm trying to spell his name right, from UPI and Yaeger-Pressler.) |
![]() |
|
| ~J~ is in Wonderland | Jan 28 2009, 11:20 AM Post #10 |
|
~J~ is in Wonderland
|
I was in the area when this happened. What a mess trying to get around all of the people standing outside. |
![]() |
|
| Kerri P. | Jan 28 2009, 11:52 AM Post #11 |
|
http://www.wral.com/news/news_briefs/story/4416305/ Durham courthouse reopens after reported bomb threat Posted: Today at 10:08 a.m. Updated: 22 minutes ago Durham, N.C. — Durham authorities evacuated the county's courthouse Wednesday morning after someone reported a bomb threat. Deputies cleared the scene about an hour later, around 10 a.m., and let everyone back in the courthouse. No other details were available. Edited by Kerri P., Jan 28 2009, 11:55 AM.
|
![]() |
|
| Kerri P. | Jan 28 2009, 11:54 AM Post #12 |
|
http://www.wral.com/news/news_briefs/story/4415627/ 40 people charged in Wayne County drug trafficking case Posted: Today at 9:00 a.m. Updated: Today at 9:38 a.m. Goldsboro, N.C. — The Goldsboro/Wayne County Drug Squad and the Aggressive Criminal Enforcement Team from the sheriff’s office charged 40 people on Monday with 106 offenses, mostly related to drug trafficking. Authorities caught and arrested 16 of the 40 people. Those arrested range from the street-level dealers to higher-level traffickers, according to officials. Authorities said they seized marijuana, cocaine, heroin, several prescription narcotics and several firearms. Of the 106 charges, 95 were felony drug offenses. Of the 95 felonies, 42 were high-level trafficking offenses and nine were firearm offenses. Those arrested were: Jose Guadelupe Aguilar-Huerta Donald Ray Armstrong Michael Collie Hattie Darden Robert (Robbie) Daughtry Jr. Tony Geigher Brodie Kornegay Ricky Kornegay Jr. Letarcha Mcghee Travis Antonio Murray Roberta Perry Keondra Richardson Joel Sicairos Rivera Decarlo Russell Jeffery Devon Williams Terry Hunter Authorities did not announce the defendants home towns. Edited by Kerri P., Jan 28 2009, 11:55 AM.
|
![]() |
|
| Kerri P. | Jan 28 2009, 11:57 AM Post #13 |
|
http://www.wral.com/news/news_briefs/story/4410519/ Police try to ID suspect in aborted bank robbery Posted: Jan. 27 2:17 p.m. Updated: Jan. 27 5:27 p.m. Durham, N.C. — Police were trying Tuesday to identify a woman who attempted to rob a SunTrust Bank branch last Friday afternoon. The woman entered the bank at 4235 University Drive at about 4:40 p.m. and handed a teller a note demanding money and threatening the use of a weapon, police said. The teller took the note to her supervisor, and when she returned to her station, the woman was gone, police said. The would-be robber was described as a black woman, 20 to 25 years old, 5 feet 2 inches to 5 feet 4 inches tall with a medium build and a short crew cut. She fled on a blue motorcycle. Anyone with information is asked to call Durham Police Department Investigator D.M. Anthony at 919-560-1020, extension 226, or Crime Stoppers at 919-683-1200. |
![]() |
|
| ~J~ is in Wonderland | Jan 28 2009, 02:11 PM Post #14 |
|
~J~ is in Wonderland
|
http://www.wral.com/news/state/story/4417803/ Wells Fargo swings to 4Q loss after Wachovia acquisition Wells Fargo & Co. said Wednesday that it swung to a $2.83 billion loss in the fourth quarter as it took significant charges to reduce its exposure to the risky assets of Charlotte, N.C.-based Wachovia Corp. and built up its reserves to cover future losses. Shares soared more than 22 percent in early trading, adding $3.58 to $19.77 - a sign that investors were pleased by the bank's aggressive moves to clean up its balance sheet. "We wanted to make sure that as much of the risk of the balance sheet as we could was reduced when we start on this new, wonderful organization," said Chief Financial Officer Howard Atkins in an interview with The Associated Press. While this hurt the bottom line in the fourth quarter, Atkins said, it will have the effect of strengthening the company going forward. During the quarter, Wells Fargo recorded a write-down of $37.2 billion related to high-risk loans in Wachovia's portfolio. This reduces the need for future loan loss provisions, Wells Fargo said. While analysts and investors generally saw Wells Fargo's acquisition of Wachovia as a good long-term move for the bank, there had been some concern that Wachovia's troubled loan portfolio would cause more problems than Wells had originally anticipated. Wells Fargo had previously estimated $60 billion of cumulative credit losses for the life of Wachovia's loan portfolio, and Atkins said Wednesday that estimate has not changed. Following the $37.2 billion of losses set aside in the fourth quarter on the portfolio, the bank has roughly $22.8 billion of write-downs remaining, which it expects to record over a period of three years. For the final three months of the year, Wells Fargo reported a net loss of $2.83 billion, or 79 cents per share, after paying preferred dividends. This compares with earnings of $1.36 billion, or 41 cents per share, a year earlier. The loss from Wachovia's operations totaled $11.17 billion for the quarter. This compares with a third-quarter loss of $23.89 billion. The results included a write-down of $473 million on Wells Fargo's securities portfolio and $413 million of write-downs on other loans. The bank also took $294 million, or 5 cents per share, of losses related to the Bernard Madoff fraud, and a $74 million charge related to merger and integration costs. During the quarter, Wells Fargo built up its credit reserves by $5.6 billion to cover future loan losses. This includes $3.9 billion to conform Wachovia's reserve build practices to its own. The provision for credit losses was $8.44 billion. This is more than three times the provision of $2.61 billion recorded in the prior-year quarter. Net interest income, or income generated from loans and deposits, grew 23 percent to $6.72 billion from $5.49 billion. Noninterest income from fees and other charges declined 34 percent to $3.1 billion from $4.71 billion. "The underlying results were certainly challenging, but Wells seems to be managing quite well," said Tom Kersting, a financial services analyst at Edward Jones. Wells Fargo said it is one of the few banks that has continued to lend during this difficult economic environment. "We're top of the pack, frankly, in terms of that," Atkins said. The bank extended $22 billion in new loans and originated $50 billion in new residential mortgages during the fourth quarter. And core deposits increased 31 percent over the third quarter. Wells also said both consumer and commercial depositors returned to Wachovia during the fourth quarter following the announcement of the acquisition. Though Wachovia had been struggling for some time, the rush to a deal was sparked by a run on deposits in late September following the failure of Seattle-based thrift Washington Mutual Inc. New York-based Citigroup Inc. agreed to step in and buy Wachovia's banking operations for $2.1 billion with the help of the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. But days later, Wells Fargo stepped in with a higher bid - one that didn't hinge on any government support. The government tried to mediate a deal in which Wells Fargo and Citigroup would split Wachovia's assets, but the parties failed to reach an agreement and Citigroup abandoned its bid. Originally, Wells Fargo's purchase of Wachovia was valued at $15.1 billion, but declined in value to $11.8 billion in late December as the price of Wells Fargo's shares dropped. The combination creates one of the largest U.S. banks, with more than $1.23 trillion in assets and nearly $800 million in deposits, and operations in 39 states and Washington, D.C. Wells Fargo's board has announced a dividend of 34 cents per share. Many other banks have had to slice or eliminate their dividends as they work to shore up capital. Analysts have speculated that Wells Fargo may need to reduce its dividend sometime this year. The bank also said it has no plans to request additional capital from the government under the Treasury Department's capital purchase program. Last fall, Wells Fargo received a $25 billion investment from the Treasury under the government's $700 billion financial bailout package. Under the plan, the government has pumped $250 billion into banks through preferred stock purchases in an effort to spur more-normal lending. But both Bank of America Corp. and Citigroup have required additional investments from the government as they struggle to offset rising loan losses. For the full year, Wells Fargo earned $2.84 billion, or 75 cents per share, compared with $8.06 billion, or $2.38 per share, in 2007. |
![]() |
|
| ~J~ is in Wonderland | Jan 28 2009, 02:17 PM Post #15 |
|
~J~ is in Wonderland
|
http://abclocal.go.com/wtvd/story?section=news/national_world&id=6629188 House defeats digital TV delay The House has defeated a bill to postpone the upcoming transition from analog to digital television broadcasting by four months to June 12. House Republicans succeeded in scuttling a bill to delay the transition, which is scheduled for Feb. 17, less than two days after the Senate unanimously passed the plan. The defeat is a setback for the Obama administration and Democrats on Capitol Hill, who fear too many Americans are not ready for the switchover. The Nielsen Co. estimates more than 6.5 million U.S. households that rely on analog television sets to pick up over-the-air broadcast signals could see their TV sets go dark next month if the transition is not postponed. |
![]() |
|
| 1 user reading this topic (1 Guest and 0 Anonymous) | |
|
|
| Go to Next Page | |
| « Previous Topic · DUKE LACROSSE - Liestoppers · Next Topic » |
- Pages:
- 1
- 2







7:40 PM Jul 10