Five Years

Britney Spears wants to walk down the aisle. The 27 year old pop star who is divorced from her second husband Kevin Federline, and had her 2005 marriage to Jason Alexander annulled after just 55 hours keenly awaits her next wedding.

In the spring of 2003 I started some serious thinking about project (management) controls. Greg Howell had done some writing about it indicating that the usual practices he observed created a pressurized situation for the project participants. Since the PMI has updated the PMBoK® 3 times and they still separate planning, execution and [...]

Bloomberg Corporate bonds in the U.S. and Europe rose the most since 2003 in November, luring investors with the highest yields on record relative to government debt. Investment-grade U.S. bonds returned 3.6 percent in November, after losing 7.4 percent last month, according to Merrill Lynch & Co. indexes. European notes returned 1.7 percent, the most since May 2003. Bonds were profitable fo

It was five years ago this month that I started this blog.  It was a blogger blog back then and not nearly as involved and intricate as it is now – several iterations later.  Five years is a pretty long time for a real estate blog. Almost no Realtors were blogging back in 2003. Very [...]

A former governor of Indonesia's central bank was sentenced to five years' jail and fined IDR250 million ($23,500) for corruption on Wednesday.Burhanuddin Abdullah was found guilty in the anti-corruption court of embezzling $10.3 million in bank funds to bribe lawmakers and hire lawyers to defend bank officials facing corruption allegations."The defendant has been proved legally and convincingly t

Seeking to put a stop to all speculations over her marriage with actor and boyfriend Saif Ali Khan anytime soon, actress Kareena Kapoor has said she will marry Saif after five years.

Yay! My memoir just hit Amazon in both paperback and hardcover editions! If you look closely you’ll see that I am offering a special deal through my own Amazon Seller account. If you order from me through Amazon you’ll get an autographed card or bookmark, shipped directly from me to you! The book will ship [...]

Google yesterday announced that its quotes service in Google News will now display quotes from previous five years. Earlier it was showing results from past 30 days only. So, now you can know what Sarah Palin said before she was nominated as Republican Party VP for US presidential election 2008.Google launched the quotes service for Google News in April 2008. This service lets users find quotation

Pensacola, Florida - In August, 2008 Thomas F. Kirwin, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Florida, announced that a female tax return preparer was sentenced before United States District Court Judge M. Casey Rodgers after pleading guilty in May of this year to 31 counts of preparing and filing false federal income [...]

That’s essentially what Jim Cramer is saying. “I thought about this all weekend,” Cramer told Curry. “I do not want to say these things on TV.” But “Whatever money you may need for the next five years, please take it out of the stock market right now, this week. I do not believe that [...]

…Yes, almost five years ago, my son was born, and once again my life was changed forever. Tomorrow is my little Kerry’s birthday. He was born at 10:31 p.m. on September 25th, 2003 (only 25 hours after my water broke!). He had a very rough beginning… ____________________________________ When Kerry was born, he was unresponsive, limp, [...]

Global Warming Apparently Is Not The Fault of Man-Made Greenhouse EmissionsWorldwide Emissions Increase As The World Cools...The first half of 2008 was the coolest for at least five years, the World Meteorological Organisation (WMO) said on Wednesday.The whole year will almost certainly be cooler than recent years, although temperatures remain above the historical average.Global temperatures vary

This is from Mo'Kelly's 8th grade graduation. My childhood friend Jeff (on the left) pulled this out of his stash...much to Mo'Kelly's chagrin.The honey in the middle is Christine Haywood (who knows what her married last name is now. Rumor has it she's in North Carolina.Great googly moogly Christine was fine! Make a 13-year old boy not wear shorts to math class out of fear of having to go to th

That’s right, this is the official video trailer for my book Five Years in Hawaii: A True Saga of International Adventure and the U.S. Naval Intelligence Community. The book is curently available as an $8 download, or as a very nice jacketed hardcover for quite a bit more. In roughly 8 weeks the book will be [...]

Frank Lampard has pledged to end his career with Chelsea after finally agreeing a five-year contract that will place him alongside John Terry as the highest-paid player in British football. His new deal, worth an average of almost £130,000 a week, will peak at around £140,000 during the third year before being scaled down as he approaches the age of 35 when the contract expires in 2013. Lam

Once considered the world's heaviest living man, Manuel Uribe finally got his first outing in five years. He was forklifted in his specially designed bed to a platform truck to a lake in Mexico. He now weighs 700 pounds after losing more than 500 pounds through dieting and bed exercise.Once considered the world's fattest man when his weight hit over half a ton, more than two years of steady dieti

Since we went to war to ensure an unimpeded flow of Mideastern oil to America, I wonder if there’s a chance the vast money surplus Iraq now has from oil profits will go to repairing the damage we inflicted and help its people and… Ha, who am I kidding!

Indonesia's anti-graft court handed down a five-year prison sentence Tuesday to a businesswoman charged with paying a 660,000-dollar bribe to a former top prosecutor to drop a major embezzlement case. A panel of judges at the anti-corruption court in Jakarta found Artalyta Suryani 'convincingly and legally guilty' of a criminal act of corruption for paying a bribe to a senior prosecutor at Indon

Former New England Mafia boss Francis "Cadillac Frank" Salemme was sentenced today in federal court to five years in prison on charges of lying and obstructing justice. With credit for time served,...

Five years ago I started blogging. I started out with this post talking about getting in trouble at Biola for having the nerve to say that the Bible may contain mythology. Heh. That was a crazy time. And I was a pretty crappy writer back then. The past five years have been interesting, both on my blog and in my life. My blog and life have seen numerous transitions. And I am now at a point

Every once in a while, and I’m sure you all can relate, there comes into my section an anomaly. See, they look like an adult, they dress like an adult, they drive a car like an adult…hell, they even wear dress shoes. But I’ll be damned if they act anything older than five years old. You know [...]

une 20 (Bloomberg) -- France's economy will expand by 1.6 percent this year, the slowest pace in five years, as rising prices damp consumer spending and the housing market slumps, the government statistics office said.Europe's third-biggest economy will grow 0.2 percent in the second quarter, the least in almost two years and a third of the pace in the first three months, Paris-based Insee said in

Seeing the World Through a Child's Eyes - What is it Like to Be Five Years Old? - Have you ever wondered what it is like to be five years old? By the age of five a child has learned a lot about the world but has still much to learn. What difference does their learning and maturity make to how they are able to make friends and respond to the expectations of their parents and teachers? More: con

  Elaine, If I could look into a crystal ball and see what your future looks like five years from now, this is what I envision. For the most part, things are going well for you: Congratulations, you’ve upgraded and are no longer living in the smallest house in NE Portland!!! Good news: You have a five-bedroom house [...]

Dear Graduate, By now you should have obtained a degree. While this shows you have no particular useful skills, except for a few notable professions, it will make you employable in the corporate world. You now have a choice to make. You can join the majority, have a career, and work for the next 30 years [...]

Smoking cigarettes can cut your life span by five years or more, according to a mortality risk chart in the U.S. Journal of the National Cancer Institute. According to the study, "The effect of smoking on the chance of dying is similar to the effect of adding five to 10 years of age." The figures were derived by compiling death and health risk statistics from various agencies, including the Americ

With the price of gas steadily climbing around the country, more and more drivers are looking forward to the next wave of cars that will look great, serve their needs, and save them money at the pump (or take them away from the pump). At auto shows around the country this past year, more and more auto makers were showing concept cars that were green, ones that used little to no gas. Here are a few

Sweden: A study of 500,000 golfers conducted by the Karolinska Institute has concluded that playing golf may extend life expectancy by five years. The effect is more pronounced for blue collar workers than for professionals. The study concluded that regardless of age, golfers are 47 percent less likely to die than someone their age who doesn't play. Players with lower handicaps also tend to have l

Approximately one in four (26%) drivers report involvement in a motor vehicle crash in the past five years.  One tenth of one percent (0.1%) of all drivers (0.5% of drivers who use a cell phone while driving) attribute a crash they?ve had to cell phone use.  This equates to an estimated 292,000 drivers who report involvement in a crash they attribute to cell phone use in the past five ye

Approximately one in four (26%) drivers report involvement in a motor vehicle crash in the past five years.  One tenth of one percent (0.1%) of all drivers (0.5% of drivers who use a cell phone while driving) attribute a crash they?ve had to cell phone use.  This equates to an estimated 292,000 drivers who report involvement in a crash they attribute to cell phone use in the past five ye

Special Broadcasting Service - 29 May, 2008 Original URL Indonesia hopes to return to oil exporting in five years, the vice president reportedly said after Jakarta announced it was quitting the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries. "Our target is that in five years we can be an exporter again given that our oil fields have been explored efficiently and we are saving energy domestical

WITH HIS FIRST STUDIO ALBUM IN FIVE YEARS, NOTORIOUS NEW ORLEANS RAPPER C-MURDER PREPS TO RELEASE THE HIGHLY-ANTICIPATED DISC SCREAMIN' 4 VENGEANCE ON TRU/ASYLUM RECORDS

Bruichladdich distillery’s Bottling Hall, the Harvey Room, in production at the Bruichladdich Open Day on Sunday 25th May 2003. Bruichladdich whisky can now be distilled, matured and bottled on Islay, making it currently unique amongst the Islay malts. The Islay Pillaged Malt (see last issue) will also make its way to the plant to be bottled to raise, hopefully, lots of money for local charities

Desperate Housewives Five Years Later - Desperate Housewives Five Years Later Video - Desperate Housewives Finale Episode Ending 5 Years Later Video Housewives Five Years Later - In case you missed the ending of the Desperate Housewives Season 4 finale, the Season 4 final episode had a twist at the end and Desperate Housewives was projected ahead five years in time.The Desperate Housewives Five Ye

Year after year, I answer this question - where do you see yourself in five years?  I ponder over it for a few minutes before writing in my appraisal documentation, the same old answer in a brand new way.  I am not one of those super ambitious employees.  I have aspirations for my role within the company, but I [...]

This photo by Kevin Carter won the “Pulitzer Prize” in 1994 and became a symbol of the Sudan famine at the time. The picture depicts stricken girl crawling towards an United Nations camp, located a kilometer away. The vulture is waiting for the child to die so that it can eat her.This picture shocked the whole world. No one -including the photographer- knows what happened to the child.Here is the story behind the picture: In 1993 Carter headed north of the border with [his colleague] Silva to photograph the rebel movement in famine-stricken Sudan. To make the trip, Carter had taken a leave from the Weekly Mail and borrowed money for the air fare. Immediately after their plane ) touched down in the village of Ayod, Carter began snapping photos of famine victims. Seeking relief from the

If Ward and June Cleaver were the idyllic picture of marriage in the 1950s, then Vishva Ramlall and Stephanie Linton could be the face of relationships in the 21st century.Mr. Ramlall was born in Guyana and came to Canada when he was 11. Ms. Linton was born in this country and grew up in several small towns across Ontario.The two met through friends in Ottawa, started dating and have been married for nearly three years.The couple represents a small but growing number of Canadians who are involved in interracial unions - a number that many experts predict will jump dramatically in the next few decades."The numbers are skyrocketing," said Minelle Mahtani, a geography and journalism professor at the University of Toronto who studies mixed-race identity.Nearly 300,000 Canadians were involved i

It's been reported that when 4,000 US soldiers had died, only two US newspapers put it on their front page.Surprise, coverage is biased. Which makes this debate with Iraqis Sinan Antoon and Ali Fadhil, hosted by Charlie Rose on PBS, of particular, rare, interest.Well worth 18' of your time.Hat-tip: Glenn Greenwald, who comments:In the American media's discussions of Iraq, when are the perspectives expressed here about our ongoing occupation -- views extremely common among Iraqis of all types and grounded in clear, indisputable facts -- ever heard by the average American news consumer? The answer is: "virtually never."You could say the same of the UK.

Do you remember what happened five years ago on Islay? What made the headlines in the Ileach Newspaper? Today the first of a series of posts that look back to the news on Islay five years ago as printed in the Ileach, volume 30, number 9, 8 March 2003. In this first episode an interesting article about the newly planned microbrewery in Islay House Square, which proved to be a very succesfull business we now all know as Islay Ales: An interesting new enterprise is brewing in Islay House Square – a microbrewery, Islay Ales, the brainchild of Paul and Ishbel Capper, Paul Hathaway and Walter Schobert. Planning permission has been granted, and building work is underway. The hope is that it will be up and running in time for the Islay Show in August. The ten square metre plant will create 90 g

Scott Wimmer won the fuel battle, and the race as the Richard Childress driver took home the checkers in the Nationwide series Pepsi 300 at the Nashville Superspeedway.

~Snooper~Today, March 19th, 2008, marks the 5-year anniversary of the rekindling of the war with Iraq we should have finished in 1991.Saddam Hussein, no kin to Barack Hussein Obama, ignored and or violated no less than 17 United Nations Resolutions. He didn't want to avoid war...he chose to continue the war by his very actions.We have certain members of the American Democrat Party and their fellow sociopaths within the Republican Party and a spattering of those which call themselves Independents to thank for the prolonged War In Iraq. No thanks to those individuals that preferred to promote their political gains at the expense of brave American Heroes which gave of themselves - some the ultimate sacrifice - the war we should have finished in 1991 is now in its 5th year.Thank you Nancy Pe

If Sen. Collins is planning to commemorate the anniversary in any particular way, I'm not aware of it. (The most recent post on her blog is a meditation on the Can-Am dog sled race.)Rep. Allen has reaction from Mainers here.

It is so tragic to realize that just about all the dire predictions I made in 2002 and early 2003 about the consequences of a US invasion of Iraq have...

Stock market appears to be heading for its worst fiscal in the past five years with a 951-point fall in the benchmark Sensex on Monday dragging its y1 Vote(s)

That's right folks, Five years since this War began.... Unreal. Looking Back at Five Years in Iraq (via New York Times) FIVE years on, it seems positively surreal. On the evening of March 19, 2003, a small group of Western journalists had grandstand seats for the big event in Baghdad, the start of the full-scale American bombing of strategic targets in the Iraqi capital. We had forced a way through a bolted door at the top of an emergency staircase leading to the 21st-story roof of the Palestine Hotel, with a panoramic view of Saddam Hussein’s command complex across the Tigris River. It has been five years it hardly seems conceivable. However, unfortunately, for the American people, it is a harsh reality of life. It has been five whole years, since the Bush Administrati

The Dow Jones Industrial Average soared Tuesday after the Federal Reserve announced plans to inject hundreds of billions of dollars into the economy. In all the average went up 416.66 the biggest one day gain in over five years.

There were about five years between the Dot-com bubble (which had officially "burst" by 2001) and the ubiquity of Web 2.0 (whose roots began earlier but really came into mainstream by 2006). During those five years, people realized true strength of the internet as they utilized standardized formats like XML and RSS, service-oriented web applications, user-controlled data, and, of course, the social aspect of the internet. We've seen the rise of social networks, the appearance of some pretty interactive web applications, and overall, the integration of the online world and your personal information flow. If you were freelancing during these five years, you probably had your share of work on blogs, social-based sites, Flash, or web applications. Furthermore, you could (and still can) make a

(HealthDay News) -- People with dementia survive an average of four and a half years following their diagnosis, new British research shows. However, age, sex and any existing disability can alter... [[ This is a content summary only. Visit my website for full links, other content, and more! ]]

Five years ago today, Grace and I took the trip down the aisle and said our "I dos" before an intimate gathering of family. Later that night, while laying in bed and recollecting about the day, she cried. No, not because she was upset or regretted what had just taken place, but because she was overwhelmed with happiness...so she says. And don't worry, it was only for a little bit.The half-decade as a married couple has been an a roller coaster as all marriages are. There were days of extreme joy and other days where we both could probably admit to wanting to rip each other's heads off for one reason or another. Fortunately, the good days have definitely out-numbered the bad ones.After five years we're still a strong and loving unit, and with the addition of Zane, we're both even more committed to making it last a lifetime. Of course, there are things that we both need to work on. I need to work on being more romantical and spontaneous. She's made that very clear to me. It's a pri

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New one-shot comic! Five Years is a comparison of Peter and Judas, two men with problems who dealt with them in completely different ways. What a difference five years can make in anyone's life. To read it, please click on the image. (note: it won't actually publish until after 1am central time.) This comic also appears on Webcomics Nation. While you're there, read some other comics by very talented people.

The Aston Martin DBS has sold out for the next five years, a report finds. Aston Martin has reportedly received 1500 orders for the new DBS. According to Aston Martin, the company plans to produce 300 DBS cars a year, which equates to a five year waiting list. Aston Martin CEO, Ulrich Bez, said that the auto manufacturer is researching new ways to increase production in order to keep customers

We plan on paying off our mortgage in no more then five years (possibly a little more if you include school loans). This is not something that is encouraged or supported in our debt-driven culture. Even with hundred’s of debt relief books and websites out there, I’ve rarely, if ever, heard encouragement to pay off your mortgage as quickly as possible. People always seem to speak of a house as an ‘investment’ and ‘equity,’ rather then acknowledging that it is also debt. We’ve decided to purchase a home and we’ve decided to be diligent in paying off our mortgage for that home as quickly as possible. Here are some of the reasons. We don’t want to have any debt. For many, taking a loan is a necessary evil to purchase a home (and go to college), but that doesn’t mean we should accept it as good. We plan on paying off our home quickly, because until we do we will be paying interest to the bank and we will have tied much of our inc

By Dave Gray, Founder and CEO of Online Business Alliance. Five years from now EVERYONE will be on the same wavelength! The crooks and scammers won’t be able to fool enough people to make any money… so they’ll just dry up and blow away. People will understand that the Internet really isn’t magic… that success requires effort and [...]

(News Abroad)Yesterday, Senator John Edwards continued his four-day Fighting for One America bus tour covering New Hampshire. He talked about a plan to offer universal health care for everyone as well as his commitment to add 100,000 nurses within five years.John Edwards said "Elizabeth and I are really enjoying our tour of New Hampshire. People have been asking excellent questions and we are having detailed discussions about how we are going to build one America together. One of the most important issues we hear about is health care," Edwards continued. "That is why I am proud that I was the first candidate to announce a health care plan and to have the only plan that is truly universal. But to ensure every person gets quality care, we also need to address our nursing crisis. Nurses are the backbone of our health care system, but we're facing a serious shortage with dire consequences for patients and for our health care system. I will fix this crisis so every American gets quality ca

England house prices are predicted to show a startling rise of 40 per cent within five years hitting a national average of more than £300,000. The prediction comes from the National Housing Federation,(NHF) which says the rise will come despite Government promises to massively step up house building.

Where was this idea five years ago?If this trigger-happy cowboy wants to blow things up, why did he have to do in Iraq. Why couldn't he do it in Pakistan, where the terrorists are.I understand they have nukes and a fragile government that could be overrun by Islamists...really, like India is ever going to let THAT happen.This is where they are...not Iraq.

According to available data, the European travel agencies have sent fewer tourists to Greece in the past five years. The number of European tourists who spend summer holidays in Greece declined in five-year span. Greek Chamber of Hoteliers said the hoteliers' losses hit 10 percent, adding that there is no compensation for the loss.

SYDNEY — A man who raped a Muslim woman because she showed an interest in Christianity has been jailed for at least five years by a Sydney court. As Abdul Reda Al-Shawany was sentenced today, the Downing Centre District Court heard a harrowing statement from the victim, revealing that her shame and fear had been compounded [...]

By John Denton, FLORIDA TODAY ORLANDO — Billy Donovan, who led the University of Florida to two consecutive national championships, agreed to a $27.5 million deal to coach the Orlando Magic. REPLACEMENT AT FLORIDA? VCU’s Grant is logical choice LOPRESTI: Mike Lopresti’s take on Donovan’s big move The five-year deal trumped any potential extension he was negotiating with Florida. Donovan was the third NBA coach to be named Thursday. The Indiana Pacers hired NBA veteran more…

AT&T hopes for iPhone to be synonymous with the company in five year exclusiveApple’s iPhone is arguably this year’s most hotly anticipated consumer devices. AT&T already accelerated its plans to rebrand the Cingular properties in preparation of the iPhone’s arrival – and apparently, its efforts may be well placed as the iPhone could be an AT&T-exclusive for five years, according to a USA Today story.Being an AT&T-exclusive means that the iPhone will remain a GSM phone, leaving it clearly out of reach for CDMA wireless users. Verizon Wireless and Sprint are both CDMA shops, and customers of those carriers who wish to get the iPhone will have no other choice but to make the move to AT&T.T-Mobile is another GSM carrier in the U.S., and its network would likely be able to support the iPhone’s calling features, but the AT&T will be the only company authorized to officially sell and market the iPhone. Furthermore, all iPhone’s sold through AT&T will be ‘locked’ t

The current hysteria is going to bring about many more of these… Global warming debunked By ANDREW SWALLOW - The Timaru Herald | Saturday, 19 May 2007 Climate change will be considered a joke in five years time, meteorologist Augie Auer told the annual meeting of Mid Canterbury Federated Farmers in Ashburton this week. Man’s contribution to the greenhouse [...]

Competing on "American Idol" may have been the start to Justin Guarini's fame, but it certainly wasn't the end. Here are Justin's top ten moments since "American Idol"...

Five years in the (grim) future...Random Moments, Notes, and Quotes:“Go talk to yourself.” “I scare me”“We’re going to Las Vegas”Nikki & Peter hook-upPeter has a nice slash across his faceHomeland Security – Parkman, the BrazilianMr. President (Nathan Petrelli)The Professor (Saresh)“It’s like it’s hard-coded into their DNA. They’re like a separate species”Reminiscent of X-men??“I’m hardly dangerous” - Nathan (You know they are when they say this)“You are like me. Special. Why do you want to hurt people like me?”HRG – assisting in hiding the heroesClaire is engaged. Is that the same diner Hiro was in?The Linderman ActWe get a peek into his agendaString Theory and the visual of cutting the black string in Isaac's paint studioSylar’s alive!!(Evil voice) "I've waited a long time for this""Not nearly as fun… without you" - Hiro“The world is saved” - Nathan/SylarGo Saresh!“Now the hard part…”Heroes Morgue Count: 4, during this episode; 3

Damn! The latest episode of Heroes was absolutely fantastic! The pace and energy was way up there and I was on the edge of my seat the whole way through. Lots of special effects balanced by a killer storyline and revelations aplenty. If only everything on TV could be this good.

Can we do something about Mohinder Suresh? The guy has great hair, and he means well, but he’s a menace. Mo, aren’t you getting a little tired of getting tricked by Sylar? What are we up to? Three times now? Get some street smarts, stop trusting people and become a cynic like the rest of us. I love that Samurai Hiro and Peter are so bad ass that they just walk through the front door of Homeland Security to get what they want. That whole scene was a bit Matrix-y, right down to Peter’s trench coat and the showdown between him and Sylar. And what was up with Nikki? Did she really think that Peter was going to pass up a chance to save the world in exchange for her sweet loving arms? And what happened to Jessica? Unless. . . Nikki didn’t seem to recognize Ando at the club. This is a guy who broke into her house (earlier this season); you’d think she’d remember that face. I’m thinking that, in 2012, Nikki isn’t really Nikki; it&r

Guess what today is? It’s only the anniversary of the most important day of my life! On April 12, 2002, I met PAUL! And these past five years have been so amazing! Buying this house, having twins, having twins AGAIN, getting married…I feel so blessed and so LUCKY. Not everyone is lucky enough to bump into their soulmate in a cheesy 80s bar, an hour before closing time, completely drunk on Mind Erasers and Bud Light. But then, I do tend to lead a charmed life, you know. I remember those early weeks and months so vividly - I was SO completely smitten with that guy! I remember getting so giddy when my cell phone would ring and I would see his name on the caller ID. My coworkers always teased me that I changed into my sexygirl voice when he called. Hehe! Looking back, we didn’t have a whole lot of one-on-one dates - we mostly hung out with his friends or my friends. But we always had so much fun together, whatever we were doing. We did a lot of family friendly stuff, t

While GM may have put its RWD ambitions on hold for the time being, rival Ford still has plans for a new rear-drive architecture. Ford North America president Mark Fields said the first vehicles would arrive within the next five years, according to the latest GoAutoNews newsletter."I'd say that we are looking at that very, very closely," Fields said. Like GM's Zeta platform, Ford's new RWD architecture will also come from Australia.It's not known if the next-generation Mustang will also share the platform, or if it will continue on its own architecture. The Mustang will receive a facelift for the 2009 model year, and a complete redesign — with a new platform — for 2012.Earlier this year, Ford revealed the Interceptor concept, which was built on a modified Mustang platform.[Source: LeftlaneNews]

From Chapter 1 - Secrets Of Millionaire Investors The first failure came about when I was the Executive Producer of Singapore’s second best production house. I was headhunted and made an offer that was flattering, to say the least. I was soon raking in the big bucks and living the high life. I upgraded my car, [...]

As the fifth anniversary of perhaps the most macabre sectarian conflagration in Gujarat's history approaches, there is something eerily familiar about emotions surrounding the decision not to show "Parzania", director Rahul Dholakia's celluloid reminder of those events.A bizarre cocktail of ideological conviction, commercial calculation, unstated fear and pure bigotry has upstaged the movie's release in the state. For most ordinary Gujaratis, the decision by cinema owners not run the movie has none of the lofty dimensions of a freedom of expression debate. For them it is just another movie whose screening or lack thereof makes no difference."Ema shun? Evun to chale (What's the big deal? It is okay)", is how a young woman at Wide Angle multiplex on the city's upscale S.G. Road reacted when asked what she thought of the decision.Her young male friend was even more dismissive, albeit distinctly happy with his painful attempt at punning when he said, "We have seen the real riots. Why

Like Pearl Harbor for the WWII generation and the day John F. Kennedy was assinated for my parents, September 11, 2001 will be a "this is where I was" day for my generation. I was living in South Korea at the time. Five years later during the evening and at about the same time I heard about the first plane hitting the World Trade Center, I'm still living in South Korea. The thing is 9/11

{mosgoogle right}TOKYO (AP) -- The Japanese government will double its aid to Africa over the next five years to try to boost development on the continent, Prime Minister Yasuo Fukuda said Tuesday.The announcement came ahead of a May 28-30 conference hosted by Japan and aimed at supporting Africa's development."Japan will double its ODA (official development assistance) to Africa by 2012," Fukuda