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US Trade Balance (MAR) (12:30 GMT; 08:30 EST)
Consensus: -$67.0B
Previous: -$65.7B
Outlook: The trade shortfall in the world’s largest economy is expected to broaden once again in March as the prices of imported raw materials rebounds from February easing and Chinese production resumes. The market consensus for a $67 billion deficit would make the imbalance the third largest on record and is particularly distressing for growth forecasts considering the prolonged deficit in the local government’s budget. Imports likely picked up pace in March, following February’s contraction, as Chinese firms crank up factory output after the lunar New Year celebration. According to a Chinese customs bureau, China’s surplus with the US rose 39% in March. Commodity prices, especially those of energy, are also going to be a factor in the growing imbalance. Energy prices, led by crude oil, rebounded heartily in March as geopolitical tension and supply concerns encouraged bidding. Also playing no little part in the return to growing deficit figures will be the demand at home. Consumer sentiment hit a four-year high in March, stoking spending habits, which will undoubtedly translate to greater purchases of foreign products. With the Fed growing increasingly neutral over its interest rate concerns, focus in the currency markets will begin to make the shift to the next most concerning economic data series the US has to offer - and that just happens to be the US Trade Balance.
Previous: February’s trade balance fell from the record $68.59 billion shortfall set the month before as the deficit with China improved and demand for foreign goods waned over concerns of higher costs. For the month, imports fell 2.3% while exports lost 1.3% of value to trim the overall deficit 4% to $65.7 billion. Despite the easing in both component figures, each stood at their second highest levels ever. US demand for imports was driven both by tastes and a corresponding decline in Chinese production activity. American consumers restrained their purchases of foreign goods in February as fears of recent energy prices left shoppers hesitant to part with their earnings. Imports of autos dropped 5.8% while those of aircraft dropped 24%. Watch was most noticeable to many however in amongst the trade data was the lowest deficit with China in nearly a year. The US shortfall with China fell to $13.8B, the slightest level since March of 2005 as the country’s factories closed for the New Year holiday. Overall, the market’s tone on February’s surprising rate of contraction is that it is just temporary. With indicators already supporting a rebound in the deficit, economists and analysts alike took the release with a grain of salt.
Florida woman gets four years for bilking two million dollars in psychic scam Wed May 10, 7:07 PM ET
MIAMI (AFP) - A Florida woman was sentenced to four years in prison and ordered to return two million dollars she bilked from elderly people by claiming she needed to exorcise the cash.
And in the same Miami court, a former police detective was sent behind bars for five years after he admitted using his position to keep the woman out of jail when he was meant to be investigating the fraud.
Linda Marks, 57, a self-proclaimed psychic and fortune teller admitted that she had bilked two million dollars from vulnerable people, most of them elderly, between 1994 and 2002.
She told her victims their cash was tainted by evil spirits, and convinced them to hand it over to her so she could cleanse it, but never returned the money.
US District Court Judge Donald Middlebrooks on Wednesday ordered her to restitute the two million dollars, while former police detective Jack Makler, 64, was ordered to restitute 235,700 dollars.
Makler had admitted to receiving money and property from Marks and to lying to state criminal courts in New Mexico and Florida to help Marks avoid severe criminal penalties.
Man Arrested After Taking Pot Plant Photos 2 hours, 43 minutes ago
STATESBORO, Ga. - An east Georgia man landed in jail after photographing his healthy plants and going to local drug store to have the pictures developed.
His bumper crop was marijuana, according to police, who arrested him as he went to pick the photos up.
Statesboro Police Capt. L. C. Williams said Byron Charles Mattheeussen, 21, was charged Tuesday with manufacturing marijuana, manufacturing marijuana within 1,000 feet of a housing project, and possession of drug related objects.
Williams said a photo lab technician called police after seeing the subject of the photos. Officers confirmed the plants in the pictures were marijuana, he said.
After getting a search warrant, he said, police found 42 suspected marijuana plants growing in and around the residence, along with tools, literature on growing marijuana and pot-smoking paraphernalia.
Mattheeussen was taken to the Bulloch County Jail and issued an $8,000 property bond.
Cop Accused of Taser Mishap at Roll Call 1 hour, 45 minutes ago
EAST WINDSOR, Conn. - A police officer was arrested Wednesday on allegations he accidentally fired his Taser gun and injured another officer at the police department this week.
Officer John Scavotto was charged with reckless endangerment and third-degree assault. He was released on $2,500 bond and is to be arraigned Thursday at Enfield Superior Court.
The injured officer, who was not named, was struck in the mouth and neck area by the Taser's two darts, which deliver electricial charges. He was treated and released from Hartford Hospital and is expected to return to work Monday, police said.
Chief Edward J. DeMarco Jr. said the accident happened during a roll call Monday afternoon. Police said Scavotto pointed the Taser at the other officer and it accidentally discharged.
Scavotto, an 18-year veteran of the force, has been placed on paid leave pending the criminal investigation and an internal affairs review, police said. The injured officer has been with the department for four years.
I hope they do well too. 1000 stores in 3 years it will be a fast growing restaurant. I'd like to go to one.
$10M Prize for Hydrogen Fuel Technology By JIM ABRAMS, Associated Press Writer
Wed May 10, 7:19 PM ET
General Motors HydroGen3 minivan
WASHINGTON - Scientists, inventors and entrepreneurs will be able to vie for a grand prize of $10 million, and smaller prizes reaching millions of dollars, under House-passed legislation to encourage research into hydrogen as an alternative fuel.
Legislation creating the "H-Prize," modeled after the privately funded Ansari X Prize that resulted last year in the first privately developed manned rocket to reach space twice, passed the House Wednesday on a 416-6 vote. A companion bill is to be introduced in the Senate this week.
"This is an opportunity for a triple play," said bill sponsor Rep. Bob Inglis, R-S.C., citing benefits to national security from reduced dependence on foreign oil, cleaner air from burning pollution-free hydrogen and new jobs. "If we can reinvent the car, imagine the jobs we can create."
"Perhaps the greatest role that the H-Prize may serve is in spurring the imagination of our most valuable resource, our youth," said co-sponsor Rep. Dan Lipinski, D-Ill.
The measure would award four prizes of up to $1 million every other year for technological advances in hydrogen production, storage, distribution and utilization. One prize of up to $4 million would be awarded every second year for the creation of a working hydrogen vehicle prototype.
The grand prize, to be awarded within the next 10 years, would go for breakthrough technology.
"Prizes can draw out new ideas from scientists and engineers who may not be willing or able to participate in traditional government research and development programs, while encouraging them, rather than the taxpayer, to assume the risk," said Science Committee Chairman Sherwood Boehlert, R-N.Y.
Inglis said the Department of Energy would put together a private foundation to set up guidelines and requirements for the prizes. Anyone can participate, as long as the research is performed in the United States and the person, if employed by the government or a national lab, does the research on his own time.
He said the prize would not take away funds from any federal hydrogen programs, including the $1.7 billion hydrogen research program that President Bush first detailed in 2003.
The Energy Department announced earlier this year that it would provide $119 million in funding for research into hydrogen fuel cells, including $100 million over the next four years to projects to improve components of fuel cell systems.
Several automakers have made advances in hydrogen fuel cell technology or dual gas-hydrogen engines, but such vehicles are still very expensive and there's no viable infrastructure of fueling stations.
sounds like my type of place
'Blondie' cartoonist to open sandwich chain By Robert Green
Thu May 11, 4:57 PM ET
CLEARWATER, Florida (Reuters) - The oversized sandwiches lovingly constructed by Dagwood Bumstead in the "Blondie" comic strip will soon be on real-life menus thanks to cartoonist Dean Young, the character's alter-ego.
Young said on Thursday the first of his Dagwood's Sandwich Shoppes should open this summer in Clearwater and then spread across the United States and internationally.
"This is a dream come true for me," Young, 66, said at a news conference. He said he has been collecting sandwich recipes for over 20 years.
Young's father, Chic Young, created "Blondie" in 1930 and he took over the strip when his father died in 1973. It has more than 250 million readers in 2,300 newspapers in 55 countries.
One of Dagwood's passions has been eating, especially the multi-layered sandwiches of cold-cuts and leftovers he often has before going to bed.
Those Dagwood sandwiches will be the featured item at the new restaurants. The 1-1/2-pound (0.68-kg) Dagwood includes ham, salami, pepperoni, mortadella, cappicola, cheese, onion, lettuce, tomato, red pepper and a secret Italian spread on three slices of bread topped with an olive skewer.
For those with smaller appetites, the menu includes roast beef, corned beef, pastrami, chicken curry and Cuban sandwiches, wraps, soups and salads, desserts, beer and wine.
The restaurants will be decorated with pictures of "Blondie" characters and a giant plasma screen will show comic strips.
Sandwiches are the fastest growing segment of the restaurant industry, according to Dagwood co-founder Lamar Berry.
"This is an opportunity to become the leader of this category," said Berry, who was an executive with Popeyes Fried Chicken.
Dagwood's will face strong competition from sandwich chains like Subway, Quiznos and Blimpie, local restaurants and the deli counters of grocery stores.
Berry said he hoped the chain could have 250 shops in operation after two years and 1,000 within three years.
The company plans to expand by selling 90 area franchises. The owners of those territories will then sell individual store franchises.
The headquarters will be in Clearwater, where Young lives and has his studio. He will continue producing "Blondie" with the help of his daughter Dana Coston, who he is grooming to take over the strip.
This is not the first time that the "Blondie" characters have been used commercially. A series of 28 "Blondie" movies were made starting in the 1930s and there also were Blondie radio and television shows and even a Blondie slot machine used in many casinos.
When Chic Young started the strip, Dagwood was a rich playboy and one of Blondie's boyfriends. To make the strip more relevant to readers who were affected by the Depression, Young had Dagwood's parents disown him after he married Blondie in 1933, forcing him to get a job.
Yup, you should get to play all you want the next few days.
It rained a lot over the last two weeks. It's time for some sunshine. I looked at weather.com and it looks like we will have good weather through next week.
It's really nice outside. Should stay this way for a while.
Former Boxer Floyd Patterson Dies at 71 13 minutes ago
NEW PALTZ, N.Y. - Floyd Patterson, who came back from an embarrassing loss to become the first boxer to regain the heavyweight title, died Thursday. He was 71.
Patterson died at his home, having suffered from Alzheimer's disease for about eight years, according to nephew Sherman Patterson. He also had prostate cancer
Hello ddf.
Me either. As my mom would say the people who buy that have more money than brains.
lol. It didn't say if he was still living at home. He probably doesn't have a job so I would guess he lives at home. But he's having fun.
Portuguese man caught driving without a licence for 35 years Wed May 10, 3:41 PM ET
LISBON (AFP) - Police in Portugal have reportedly fined a 55-year-old man 400 euros (510 US dollars) after he was caught after driving without a licence for 35 years.
Alberto Pereira told the daily newspaper Correio da Manha he had never stopped driving since he first took the wheel of a car in 1971 and even drove a mini-van for a company he worked for while living in Switzerland.
He credits his careful driving for never having had an accident "despite it sometimes being difficult to escape the dangerous moves done by those with a licence."
Pereira was stopped by police for the first time on Sunday in his hometown of Povoa de Lanhoso, some 400 kilometres (250 miles) northeast of Lisbon.
Dogs sniffing out movie piracy
Tue May 9, 11:22 PM ET
LOS ANGELES (AFP) - Sniffer dogs are the latest weapon Hollywood is using in its war against movie piracy, with British authorities deploying Labrador Retrievers to sniff out counterfeit DVDs, industry officials said.
Just days after a leaked report revealed the industry lost 6.1 billion dollars to piracy last year, Hollywood's main trade group said that the two black labs have been trained by British customs to track down hidden DVDs.
The Motion Picture Association of America (MPAA) said the dogs, named Lucky and Flo, had been put to work at courier service Federal Express's British hub at Stansted Airport, near London.
"This is the first time dogs have been used anywhere in the world to search for counterfeit DVDs and the results were amazing," said Raymond Leinster Director General of the Federation Against Copyright Theft, which has partnered with FedEx and British customs to fight movie piracy.
The dogs were trained over an eight-month period to identify DVDs that may be located in boxes, envelopes or other packaging, as well as discs concealed among other goods.
DVDs are often smuggled by criminal networks involved in large-scale piracy operations from around the world, the organisations said in a statement released by the MPAA in Los Angeles.
"With the cooperation and assistance of FedEx and Customs we were able to properly test the dogs in a real-life situation and prove that they can work in a busy airport environment," Leinster said.
The use of dogs comes at the height of a war Hollywood is waging on piracy across the globe.
A report commissioned by the MPAA two years ago revealed last week that piracy cost Hollywood's big studios more than six billion dollars last year, far more than the 3.5 billion dollars annually that the industry had previously conceded.
Warhol Soup Can Painting Sells for $11.7M Wed May 10, 3:02 PM ET
NEW YORK - An early iconoclastic work by Andy Warhol of a Campbell's soup can has sold for $11.7 million at auction.
The Christie's sale of postwar and contemporary art Tuesday night also saw spirited bidding for three other early Warhol works.
"Small Torn Campbell's Soup Can (Pepper Pot)," a hand-painted work from 1962 showing a large soup can with a torn label, was purchased by Manhattan dealer Larry Gagosian, Christie's said, reportedly for Los Angeles collector and financier Eli Broad.
It was consigned to the auction by Los Angeles art dealer Irving Blum, the auction house said, and had been estimated to sell for $10 million to $15 million.
Warhol's "S&H Green Stamps (64 S&H Green Stamps)," another work done in 1962, was sold to an unidentified telephone bidder for $5.1 million, after five people tried to buy it. It had been estimated to sell for $1.5 million.
The pop artist's silk screen portrait, "Brigitte Bardot," reportedly consigned by German industrialist Gunter Sachs who married the film sex siren in the 1960s, went for $3 million to another telephone bidder. And an unidentified Asian dealer fetched Warhol's 1964 "Flowers," a grouping of 16 silk screens, for $3.9 million, the auction house said.
All sale prices include a buyer's premium of 20 percent of the first $200,000 and 12 percent thereafter.
Perpetual Student Wants One More Year 2 hours, 17 minutes ago
WHITEWATER, Wis. - Despite his 12 years as an undergraduate student, Johnny Lechner realized something was missing from his academic record: he'd never studied abroad.
And so, the 29-year-old perpetual student who was expected to finally graduate from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater withdrew his application for graduation Monday, five days before commencement.
"I realized that if I went one more year, I could study abroad," Lechner said. "That's one thing I haven't done."
Lechner's extended academic career has made him a celebrity of sorts. His never-ending student life has been featured in newspapers and on network television shows, not to mention campus publications across the nation.
By this spring he had completed 234 college credits, or about 100 more than needed to graduate, and was taking seven more.
That qualified him for the so-called "slacker tax," instituted this school year by the UW Board of Regents to help cover the state subsidy for students who stay long past the usual four of five years to earn an undergraduate degree.
It calls for students who exceed 165 total credit hours or 30 more than their degree programs require — whichever is higher — to pay double tuition.
Lechner said he didn't start out to be a long-term student, but it just developed once he realized how much fun he was having at college.
Had he graduated, he would have earned a liberal studies degree in education, communications, theater, health and women's studies.
Michelle Eigenberger, an editor at The Royal Purple, said Lechner may have achieved celebrity status, but most students are tired of it.
"It's getting old," she said. "For the sanity of the rest of the campus, we want him to get out of here."
Jeff Suppan won his fourth straight start helping the Cardinals to a 7-4 win over the Colorado Rockies. Suppan (4-2) went 5 innings allowing 3 runs on 6 hits, he had 7 K's. 1B Albert Pujols went 2 for 4 with a home run (18) and 2 RBI's. SS David Eckstein went 3 for 5. 2B Aaron Miles went 3 for 4 with a RBI.
Tony La Russa on Albert Pujols, "He just keeps piling on the examples. That's what's so great about Albert, he does that and he just turns the page. That's Stan Musial stuff."
notes: The Cardinals are 14-5 at new Busch Stadium. Every game has been a sellout.....RF Juan Encarnacion had a couple of nice running catches, toppling into the seats after snaring Matt Holliday's fly ball in foul territory to end the fifth.
[16:59 USD/CAD: Strong CAD has Exporters Squealing] San Francisco, May 10. The gains in CAD are now seeing exporters squealing if the Canadian press is any indication of the pain the companies are feeling. Fiberex Glass Corp reports that the CAD gains have impacted them very negatively with travel agents reporting that customers are now paying for packages in USD which are priced competitively cheaper than the same packages in CAD. Albiti-Consolidated has called for the government to stabilize the currency which has battered the softwood industry.
USD/CAD is now seen as a bargain at these levels when extrapolating the likely negative impact on trade from such strong CAD levels. Yield spreads still remainat recent highs in favor of the USD as well making the cost of CAD carry more
expensive. USD/CAD continues to trade in a choppy range ahead of the FOMC, retreating to a band of 1.0995-20 after a wider range of 1.0975-1.1015 in Londondealings. The latest commodity price gains are having little impact with gains being fuelled by yesterday"s news from China that it would start building stock piles in resources. Rhonda.Staskow@Thomson.com /rd
I see what you mean. He's been around a long, long time. He must be what 52...53 now.
Jarrett's crew chief suspended for illegal part in Richmond
By JENNA FRYER, AP Motorsports Writer
May 9, 2006
CHARLOTTE, N.C. (AP) -- Crew chief Richard ``Slugger'' Labbe was suspended for four races and fined $25,000 on Tuesday for using an illegal part on Dale Jarrett's car at Richmond International Raceway.
NASCAR officials discovered the sway bar on Jarrett's car was illegally mounted when the No. 88 Ford passed through Saturday night's pre-race inspection in Richmond.
The sway bar, also called an ``antiroll bar,'' counteracts the rolling force of the car body through the turns. Any alterations made to it would likely be in an effort to help the car's agility through the corners.
Car owner Robert Yates said the violation was not intentional.
``The wording of various rules in the NASCAR rulebook leaves them open for interpretation, as many teams have contested for years,'' Yates said in a statement. ``Obviously, in this case, we interpreted the rules differently from NASCAR but because of the lack of a clear cut understanding, on our part, we believe we have grounds for appeal and have started that process.
``If the appeal's committee believes otherwise then we will accept those terms.''
The penalties included a loss of 25 driver points for Jarrett and 25 car owner points for Yates. The points deduction drops Jarrett from 11th to 12th in the standings, 380 points behind leader Jimmie Johnson.
The suspension means that Labbe, in his first season with Jarrett, will miss this weekend's race in Darlington, S.C., the All-Star race and Coca-Cola 600 at Lowe's Motor Speedway and the June 4 event in Dover, Del. But NASCAR could allow Labbe to continue to work with the team until his appeal is heard.
It's unclear what kind of punishment Labbe could face within his own company if NASCAR rules the violation was blatant.
Yates was one of the most critical car owners of crew chief Chad Knaus when he was caught cheating during preparations for the Daytona 500. Knaus made an illegal modification to Johnson's car and was also suspended for four races.
Yates argued that the penalty should have been stiffer.
``If there is language in the rule book about not doing that particular thing, then he ought to have to go race the Talladega short track the rest of his life,'' Yates said in February. ``If the language covers that area ... he should be gone forever. That's just stealing.''
Yates also said he would fire any employee caught intentionally cheating.
``If it was (an infraction) with a clear rule written against it, and he didn't tell me about, because I wouldn't approve that, I'd have fired him, yes,'' Yates said.
The games best player Albert Pujols hit a major league leading home run (17), a three run shot off Jose Mesa in the eighth inning giving the Cardinals a 4-2 victory over the Colorado Rockies. Adam Wainwright picked up his first major league win pitching a perfect eighth in relief of starter Chris Carpenter.
note: Pujols' 33 runs leads the NL. He led the majors in that category the last three years.
Illusionist Blaine ends underwater marathon without record Tue May 9, 7:22 AM ET
NEW YORK (AFP) - Illusionist David Blaine was quickly pulled out of a water-filled sphere after failing to hold his breath for nine minutes inside the bubble that had been his underwater home for seven days.
Two divers jumped into the tank as Blaine appeared to struggle while removing chains that had been placed on his hands and feet. His official time was seven minutes and eight seconds, short of the world record of eight minutes and 58 seconds.
The 33-year-old American was dramatically lifted up in front of a crowd in the plaza of New York's Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts after seven days in the bubble in which he had breathed and eaten through tubes.
After quickly being attended to by rescuers who gave him oxygen, an emotional Blaine, who spent a record 176 hours under water, addressed the cheering crowd.
"I'm humbled so much by the support of everybody from New York City and from all over the world," said a visibly weak Blaine as tears trickled down his wet face.
"This was a very difficult week, but you all made it fly by with your spirit and your energy," he said before stepping down a ladder and getting medical attention. "Thank you so much everybody, thank you and I love you all."
Blaine had spent the past week inside the 2.45 metre (eight feet) high glass sphere.
The water and pressure had taken a toll on Blaine's body, worrying doctors at the scene who expressed concern about his attempt to hold his breath for a record-breaking nine minutes.
Before holding his breath for the grand finale, Blaine's hands and feet were heavily chained. His trainers stood outside the bubble, encouraging him to relax and telling him he was doing well.
After more than four minutes of apnea, the illusionist began removing the handcuffs. But his mouth began to quiver and nearly seven minutes into the stunt the rescuers dove into the tank.
Doctors had warned that prolonged submersion poses a number of hazards, including nerve damage, blackouts, sleep deprivation and skin problems.
Still, Blaine decided to go ahead with the stunt even though his hands and feet were deeply wrinkled and his blood pressure was at a worrisome level. Doctors had worried that he might lose consciousness.
"His hands and feet are severely affected," his trainer Kirk Krack, a freediving expert, told AFP earlier in the day.
"He has a pins and needles pain sensation, the skin is starting to crack on his hands, he doesn't have full mobility of his hands, that's a big concern at this point."
This was the latest in a series of drama-filled stunts by the daring illusionist.
In one of his most controversial and memorable shows, he underwent a 44-day fast while suspended above London's River Thames in a glass box in 2003.
Other Blaine stunts have included being encased in ice for nearly 62 hours and spending 35 hours on a 100-foot-high (30-meter-high) pillar that was only 22 inches (56 centimeters) wide.
Teen Says Friend Asked to Be Hit With Car Tue May 9, 5:34 PM ET
CHESTERTON, Ind. - A 17-year-old boy who police said asked a friend to hit him with a car "for fun" was still hospitalized Tuesday with a broken leg.
Michael Morris, a junior at Chesterton High School, was in fair condition at Porter hospital, spokeswoman Robin Carlascio said.
His friend, Stephen D. Domonkos, 18, told police that Morris on Saturday night asked him to hit him with his car, something they had done before. He told police that Morris was "an adrenaline junkie."
Domonkos was driving about 25 mph when the car hit Morris, shattering the windshield, in the parking lot of a Chesterton restaurant where Domonkos works.
Domonkos was charged with felony criminal recklessness. If convicted, he could face six months to three years in jail.
"I won't do this no more," Morris of Chesterton told The Times of Munster.
Mom Charged Helping Bake Ex-Lax Cookies Tue May 9, 4:57 PM ET
SKOWHEGAN, Maine - A 43-year-old woman is charged with helping her daughter and two other teenage girls bake cookies laced with a laxative that were then given to a teacher.
Julie Hunt appeared in Skowhegan District Court on Monday and pleaded innocent to a charge of misdemeanor assault.
Hunt was arrested Friday after a police investigation into the attempted prank at Carrabec Community School in Anson that sickened four seventh- and eighth-grade children.
The cookies, which were baked with Ex-Lax, were left on the teacher's desk on April 10 with a note saying, "We made these cookies just for you, hope you enjoy them."
According to a police affidavit, Hunt told the girls how to crush the laxative pills and mix them in with the cookie batter. The girls, who are 13 and 14, used an entire box of pills, the affidavit says.
Mary Adley, the principal of the school, called police on April 24 after hearing two girls talking about the incident.
Maine State Police Lt. Dale Lancaster said that the girls were not facing criminal charges. The affidavit said all three girls were suspended by school officials.
But Hunt's involvement could not be overlooked, Lancaster said.
"If you assist children with perpetrating these kinds of crimes, you will be charged," he said.
Man buys fighter jet, wants refund Tue May 9, 9:21 AM ET
Croatian MiG-21
BEIJING (Reuters) - A Chinese businessman who bought a Russian fighter jet online wants his money back after finding it could not be shipped to China, state media reported on Tuesday.
Zhang Cheng, a Beijing businessman, bid $24,730 and paid a $2,000 deposit for the former Czech air force plane on Chinese-based eBay, Xinhua news agency said.
But legal experts informed Zhang that the MiG-21, located in Idaho in the United States, was "almost impossible to ship back," Xinhua said, quoting the Beijing Times.
Moreover, the seller had clearly confined the destination of the plane to the United States and Canada, Xinhua quoted a member of eBay's public relations staff as saying.
Chinese Web surfers have accused Zhang of trying to gain fame, but others suggest it merely shows the improved living standards of the Chinese, Xinhua said.
The buyer, however, said he was building a collection.
"I like to collect valuable items," he said. "I have the buying power and my company has an empty space where I can display the plane."
A dwarf spiral galaxy in an undated image released by the Sloan Digital Sky Survey. The blue knots indicate new star formation. Two dim dwarf galaxies are the Milky Way's newest-known galactic companions, scientists studying the survey said in a statement on Monday.
That's OK. Good luck to your team....until you play the Cardinals.
We don't have Alex Rodriquez. We do have John Rodriquez playing in the outfield. He's doing pretty good batting .429 with 4 RBI's and 8 Runs scored. Is that who your talking about?
Sutter thrilled to visit Hall -- as a Hall of Famer
By JOHN KEKIS, AP Sports Writer
May 9, 2006
COOPERSTOWN, N.Y. (AP) -- Thirty years to the day after he made his major league debut, Bruce Sutter walked into the Baseball Hall of Fame to take a closer look at his new digs.
And the man known for his unflappable demeanor on the mound was in awe as he stared at the gallery wall where his plaque will hang, just to the right of the first class in 1936 -- Babe Ruth, Ty Cobb, Christy Mathewson, Honus Wagner and Walter Johnson.
"When you're a player you go back a few years, but this takes you back to the very beginning. It's just special, to feel all this stuff," Sutter, his signature beard now mostly gray, said Tuesday as he toured the Hall. "You play the game and you hope you get remembered. This makes sure I'll always be remembered."
Sutter was passed over a dozen times before receiving 400 votes (76.9 percent) of the record 520 cast in January by members of the Baseball Writers' Association of America. He was the only candidate with the required 75 percent needed for election.
"This was my 13th time," he said. "When you don't get in, they don't call you. You just kind of watch ... and see who got in and say, 'Great,' and go on about your way.
"Most of the time I was on a hunting trip when it was coming out," he said. "Every year, I'd get more votes, but I didn't really get close until the 12th year."
A 17-person class was elected to the Hall of Fame in February by a special committee using new statistics from the Negro leagues and pre-Negro leagues. Those players and executives will be posthumously inducted with Sutter on July 30.
Sutter is just the fourth relief pitcher selected. He joins Rollie Fingers, Hoyt Wilhelm and Dennis Eckersley, and is the only player in the Hall who never appeared in a starting lineup.
He figures he won't be the last.
"Relief pitchers have changed the game," Sutter said. "Without a closer, you're not going to win. I don't think I'm setting the way for anybody. Relief pitchers are starting to get recognized. You've got to have them."
Sutter won the Cy Young Award in 1979 and led the National League in saves five times.
And those who saw him or batted against him likely will never forget his split-fingered fastball.
"It came to me easy," Sutter said. "I wouldn't be here without that pitch. My other stuff was A ball, AA at best. The split-finger made it equal."
In 1982, Sutter helped the St. Louis Cardinals win the World Series. In 1984, he came out of the bullpen to appear in a career-high 71 games and established an NL record with 45 saves. In one six-week stretch that season, he had more two-inning saves than current Yankee star reliever Mariano Rivera has in his career.
But that was more than two decades ago. On this day, Sutter just wanted to soak in the history. And he marveled at the artifacts he was shown -- among them a bat once used by former Negro leagues star Cool Papa Bell and Lou Gehrig's first baseman's mitt from his college days.
The tour ended in the Bullpen Theater with the showing of a video montage of Sutter's 12-year, 300-save career.
"It might change how people look at me, but I'm not going to change," said Sutter, who donated several artifacts to the Hall, including the only glove he ever used in stints with the Chicago Cubs, Cardinals, and Atlanta Braves. "I'm still the same person."
Cardinals place Ponson on DL with strained elbow
By R.B. FALLSTROM, AP Sports Writer
May 9, 2006
ST. LOUIS (AP) -- Sidney Ponson got the news he expected Tuesday when the St. Louis Cardinals placed him on the 15-day disabled list with a strained muscle in his right elbow.
Ponson, 3-0 with a 2.81 ERA, had to leave Sunday's 9-1 victory over Florida after throwing three innings. The Cardinals are calling the injury an acute flexor muscle strain, and for Ponson one day without a move held no suspense.
"They gave me a hunch, yes," Ponson said. "If they didn't do it, they'd be one guy short."
Off days Thursday and next Monday will allow the Cardinals to get by with a four-man rotation until a three-game series at Kansas City beginning on May 19, when they would have to call up a pitcher from the minors or have the bullpen combine on a game. Even without that break in the schedule, manager Tony La Russa said the team would be cautious.
The move was backdated to Monday and La Russa said Ponson would not throw for a week.
"This just ensures that we're not tempted to rush him," La Russa said. "We just want him to take the 15 days to be sure."
St. Louis recalled left-hander Tyler Johnson from Triple-A Memphis to take Ponson's spot, giving the Cardinals eight relievers.
Looks like the worst of it has gone through. The storm is heading towards Memphis now.
It's getting really dark here. I'm going to shut down till it goes through.
Strong thunderstorms in north Arkansas and south Missouri. Looks like they will come into my area Jonesboro, Ar. in the next hour or so.
http://www.weather.com/outlook/health/skin/local/72401?from=hp_hugme
Somethings wrong with him. lol. Hope he's OK when it's all over.
follow up to this story
http://www.investorshub.com/boards/read_msg.asp?message_id=10806831
Illusionist Blaine in poor condition as stunt comes to end
Mon May 8, 4:54 PM ET
NEW YORK (AFP) - Illusionist David Blaine neared the end of seven days spent submerged in a sphere of water, in bad condition and with his support team concerned that he might collapse when he comes out.
The 33-year-old American remained determined, however, to attempt to hold his breath underwater for nine minutes as a finale, later Monday.
Blaine has spent the past week inside a 2.45 metre (eight feet) high glass sphere -- in the plaza of the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts -- breathing and eating through tubes.
But the water and pressure has taken a toll on Blaine's body, his trainer Kirk Krack, a freediving expert, told AFP.
"His hands and feet are severely affected," said Krack.
"He has a pins and needles pain sensation, the skin is starting to crack on his hands, he doesn't have full mobility of his hands, that's a big concern at this point."
Blaine has rashes on his body, and his heart has now adapted to life under water which makes his return to the outside more complicated.
"From a cardio-pulmonary point of view, he's at 70 percent of his blood plasma volume, so he's adapted to the sphere but this raises big concerns for us," said Krack.
"When he comes out, he might not be able to maintain blood pressure, to maintain consciousness" straight away.
The plan had been that when he emerged, Blaine would be chained up and put back in the water so he could carry out a Houdini-style escape, aiming to hold his breath underwater for a world record nine minutes.
Asked whether the attempt would go ahead, Krack said there had been changes to the plan.
"I think he has an amazing will power. There's no doubt he's going to try," said the trainer, but that doctors were not sure if "physiologically" Blaine could carry out the stunt.
Because experts do not think that Blaine can be pulled out, a New York police scuba diver was to go into the water and put the chains on him.
Krack said that Blaine would only start to try to escape four minutes after the chains have been put on, "because Harry Houdini did all of his escapes in less than four minutes."
Blaine is to be tied in about 50 kilogrammes (110 pounds) of chains with nine padlocks and four sets of handcuffs.
Doctors had warned that prolonged submersion poses a number of hazards, including nerve damage, blackouts, sleep deprivation and skin problems.
The current world record for a human holding his breath is eight minutes and 58 seconds.
Previous Blaine stunts have included being encased in ice for nearly 62 hours, being suspended above London's River Thames for 44 days in a glass box and spending 35 hours on a 100-foot-high (30-meter-high) pillar that was only 22 inches (56 centimeters) wide.
Wow. That's a nice picture. The 298 people who live there have a great view.
N.J. Scraps 2nd Slogan in Less Than Year Sun May 7, 8:09 PM ET
TRENTON, N.J. - New Jersey: We're Not So Good With Slogans.
The state has jettisoned "Come See For Yourself," its second attempt at a tagline in less than a year. It was the product of a statewide contest set up by then-acting Gov. Richard J. Codey last fall, after he rejected a consultant's offering: "We'll Win You Over."
State tourism officials said legal issues led them to scrap the latest slogan, explaining that West Virginia and other states previously used "Come See For Yourself."
"We are proceeding without the slogan. We will revisit the next steps at the end of the year," Karen Wolfe, a spokeswoman for the state Commerce, Economic Growth and Tourism Commission, told The Press of Atlantic City for Saturday editions.
Codey, now state Senate president, dismissed "We'll Win You Over" because he said it reminded him too much of when he was single and asked girls out on a date.
"Come See For Yourself" was the top choice among more than 11,000 telephone and online votes cast by residents for five finalist entries in the contest. Codey unveiled the slogan with great fanfare in January, saying the Garden State's catch phrase "should hint at our true beauty."
But at an annual tourism conference in Cape May County last month, the slogan was absent from all state promotional materials. The slogan is also missing from this year's tourism television commercials, featuring a song by rocker Jon Bon Jovi.
Tourism officials said they won't pick from any of the four other finalists: "Love at First Sight," "The Real Deal," "The Best Kept Secret" or "Expect the Unexpected."