1 officer killed, 2 wounded near La. casino

This photo provided by the Louisiana State Police shows Wilbert Thibodeaux. Police on Saturday arrested Thibodeaux suspected of fatally shooting a police officer and critically wounding two sheriff's deputies after setting a deadly fire at a mobile home near a south Louisiana casino. (AP Photo/Louisiana State Police)

This photo provided by the Louisiana State Police shows Wilbert Thibodeaux. Police on Saturday arrested Thibodeaux suspected of fatally shooting a police officer and critically wounding two sheriff's deputies after setting a deadly fire at a mobile home near a south Louisiana casino. (AP Photo/Louisiana State Police)

A sheriff's deputy rides in a police vehicles as he leaves the scene of a shooting, Saturday, Jan. 26, 2013 in Charenton, La. Police on Saturday arrested a man suspected of fatally shooting a police officer and critically wounding two sheriff's deputies after setting a deadly fire at a mobile home near a south Louisiana casino. (AP Photo/The Daily Iberian, Lee Ball)

Louisiana State Trooper Stephen Hammons gives information about the shootings Saturday, Jan. 26, 2013 in Charenton, La. Police on Saturday arrested a man suspected of fatally shooting a police officer and critically wounding two sheriff's deputies after setting a deadly fire at a mobile home near a south Louisiana casino. (AP Photo/The Daily Iberian, Lee Ball)

A fire set by a man suspected of fatally shooting a police officer and critically wounding two sheriff's deputies is extinguished, Saturday, Jan. 26, 2013 in Charenton, La. (AP Photo/The Daily Iberian, Lee Ball)

An Iberia Parish Sheriff's Office command post is driven to the scene of a shooting Saturday, Jan. 26, 2013 in Charenton, La. Police on Saturday arrested a man suspected of fatally shooting a police officer and critically wounding two sheriff's deputies after setting a deadly fire at a mobile home near a south Louisiana casino. (AP Photo/The Daily Iberian, Lee Ball)

NEW ORLEANS (AP) ? Police on Saturday arrested a man suspected of fatally shooting a police officer and critically wounding two sheriff's deputies after allegedly setting fire to a mobile home in south Louisiana, where an elderly man's body was found.

A Chitimacha tribal officer was pronounced dead at the scene of the shootings in Charenton, while two St. Mary Parish sheriff's deputies were critically wounded and taken to local hospitals, said Louisiana State Police Trooper Stephen Hammons.

Hammons said the officers were responding to a report of an armed man walking down a road near the Cypress Bayou Casino when Wilbert Thibodeaux, 48, of Charenton allegedly shot them.

"Thibodeaux fired at the Chitimacha Officer, fatally wounding him," state police said in a news release. "As two St. Mary Deputies, who were in the same car, arrived at the scene Thibodeaux fired multiple shots hitting the deputies. During the encounter, Thibodeaux was shot."

Investigators found the burned remains of a man after extinguishing a fire at a mobile home that Thibodeaux is suspected of setting before the officers confronted him, Hammons said.

Police identified the deceased man in the mobile home as Eddie Lyons, 78, of Charenton. "Detectives suspect Lyons was shot by Thibodeaux before the fire," state police said in a news release.

Thibodeaux was treated at a hospital for a gunshot wound that wasn't considered life-threatening and released, according to Hammons, who said investigators were questioning him Saturday evening. Charges against him are pending.

The state Fire Marshal's office is investigating the fire.

"Today is a difficult day for our partners in St. Mary Parish," Col. Mike Edmonson, the State Police superintendent, said in a statement. "My thoughts and prayers are with the deputies and the officer's families tonight. I know the coming days and weeks will be difficult ones for the men and women of the Chitimacha Police Department and the St. Mary Parish Sheriff's Office. We will assist their agencies in any way we can during these trying times."

The casino is run by the Chitimacha Tribe of Louisiana and is less than a quarter-mile from the scene of the shootings. Hammons said the shootings occurred near but not on tribal land.

"Everybody is just in shock. It's small-town America," said Jacqueline Junca, the tribe's secretary and treasurer.

Police didn't immediately release the names of the officers. Authorities said they will do so at a Monday news conference.

Tribe councilman Toby Darden said the slain officer was married and had two grown children, but he declined to give his name.

"He's a real great guy. Extremely dedicated to his job. Very brave," Darden said.

He was one of seven full-time officers who patrol a 260-acre reservation that has roughly 150 homes, a grocery store, a small school and government offices.

"Everybody knows the officers personally," Darden said. "It's devastating."

Junca said the tribe has around 1,200 members, roughly half of whom live on the reservation.

Access to and from the casino was restricted for roughly 90 minutes as a precautionary measure while police responded to the shooting, said casino spokeswoman Nancy Herrington. Charenton is located about 45 miles southeast of Lafayette.

"We are very much in business and have been," Herrington said later Saturday. "We have events tonight. All of those are taking place."

A spokeswoman for the sheriff's office and a tribal police dispatcher referred questions about the shootings to the State Police.

"We've got a lot of unanswered questions," State Police Capt. Doug Cain said.

One of the injured deputies was taken to a hospital in New Orleans and the other was taken to a Lafayette hospital. Both were listed in critical but stable condition Saturday evening, Hammons said.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-01-27-Louisiana-Officers%20Shot/id-14271935cdc94e268db3e1dca3533a1f

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Making the rent a major headache | Stuff.co.nz

The problem of small retailers being able to make their rent each month is a ticking time bomb within the sector and must be addressed, says an industry specialist.

Chris Wilkinson, managing director of retail consultant, First Retail, says that while rent has traditionally accounted for about 10 per cent of a retailer's turnover, the proportion has increased over the past decade.

That's due to increased retail competition, falling pedestrian counts and restrained consumer spending.

With rent the major cost for most retailers and one which is generally inflexible, they are forced to find savings in other areas such as wages, utilities and refurbishment budgets.

"In truth, many businesses have already dealt to these variables with little left to achieve savings from," Wilkinson says.

"The issue is a ticking time-bomb as profitability is vital for sustainability and growth.

"Many retailers have had to resort to a sinking-lid policy around maintenance, training and multi-channel development. This could impact consumer's store experience and compromise long term, goodwill for traditional retail channels."

Wilkinson's views are backed by John Albertson, CEO of the NZ Retailers Association, who says rent now accounts for closer to 16 per cent of retail margins and the changing nature of retail, with the ever-expanding growth of e-commerce, means the figure is unlikely to reduce.

"It is definitely something we need to keep a close eye on," Albertson says, adding there needs to be new thinking and greater flexibility in the relationship between landlords and retail tenants.

"The risk for landlords is empty space which doesn't do them any good either."

But Wilkinson offers some hope that conversations between landlords and retailers over rent affordability are starting to happen.

"We have worked on a number of recent deals where the rent has related more towards performance," he says.

"This 'shared risk' model is ideal for helping fill sites that would otherwise be difficult to lease - or where the landlord is anxious to get their retail mix correct.

"Anecdotally we understand some larger landlords are assisting retailers through rebates, rent deferrals and other 'off balance sheet' strategies that maintain property values, but help retain tenants.

"We know this is happening frequently in provincial areas where options to replace tenants is more remote."

Albertson says there is some evidence that rents are pushing more retailers into an e-commerce-only business model, abandoning a bricks-and-mortar shop entirely.

But Wilkinson warns retailers considering such a move need to make sure they have good online shopping systems already in place.

"To achieve success in this channel they will have needed to already have a strong web presence - and seen strong performance," he says.

"Online success takes time, it's not simply a switch that can be turned on."

Meanwhile, the CEO of the NZ Property Council, Connal Townsend, says clever retailers can take advantage of the opportunities new technology brings to the sector.

"We're going to see a much closer more integrated relationship between retail and wholesale," he says.

Townsend says consumers often prefer "intelligence gathering" on an online consumer product before buying it and still like to have a physical connection with the product.

"They still want to see it and hold it," Townsend says.

That could lift the number of showroom-style retailers, and an increase in the number and locations of warehouses. Consumers can go and look at the product, pay for it with a tap of their smartphone, and have the product delivered from a local warehouse, he says.

"The face of retail is changing and it's providing some interesting challenges but also some great opportunities if you're smart."

- ? Fairfax NZ News

Source: http://www.stuff.co.nz/business/small-business/8222980/Making-the-rent-a-major-headache

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Love Notes Improv ? Ezines Along With Client Regard

OKAY, there, Ive said it. If you are an Internet manager you want visitors to arrive at your site to see what you?ve or even to fund the method at companies. You want to produce a comprehensive opt-in ezine that provides persuasive information that subsequently results in income from the best customer base if you are a web business. When an ezine founder pushes? The principal reason for an electric newspaper (ezine) is always to market a product or service. OKAY, there, Ive said it. You want visitors to come to your website to see what you have or even to account the method at advertisers if you are an Internet publisher. If you?re an online business you desire to produce a comprehensive opt-in ezine that gift suggestions convincing data that in turn results in revenue from an educated client base. When an ezine manager presses too hard or explores procedures that are significantly less than dependable the result is a standing of being fully a spammer. One of the first questions any web business should ask themselves is Why should I develop a business ezine? You may want to rethink your answer you want to provide it a whirl and if the answer is merely because its a tool. Building an ezine can be labor-intensive correlate with a distinct purpose. You need to know what the intent of the ezine is likely to be before you can definitely get things rolling. You?ll probably find it better acquired among your opt-in number if you can form a plan for your ezine. Business owners could mistakenly believe that they ought to create an ezine for marketing purposes and only send whatever data moves them at any given moment. You?ll likely find consumers that opt-in will opt-out in short order if that is your method. It is equally important to respect the value of the time your client-base might spend with your ezine since you comprehend the value of time. The more planning and point to the ezine the higher it?ll be obtained. Look at it in this manner, if you have 1,000 motivated customers on a list that has 5,000 and each individual spends 5 minutes reading the material you send, the accumulated time your customers spend with your ezine is simply over 83 hours or around 3 (24 hour) times. If you send a regular ezine your customers will be likely found by you spending almost half of the season reading your material. To put that in perspective your young ones won?t take school as long as it requires determined clients to collectively read your material. You can do at least ensure it is worth reading if your customers will spend that much time reading your ezine. Develop your own personal material, but dont hesitate to utilize material from other professionals. These details can be obtained through your suppliers and can also be obtained through the use of free-to-use articles available on multiple sites. advanced web ranking review

Source: http://lovenotesimprov.com/2013/01/24/ezines-along-with-client-regard/

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How to change Calendar view options on your iPhone and iPad

The default Calendar app on your iPhone and iPad gives you lots of options when it comes to viewing your data. While the default view may be month view, you can easily change between them based on the data you need to view. Each options has its own advantages and there are probably times when you'll prefer one over the other.

If you aren't sure how to change views within the Calendar app or want some advice on which view is suited to what, follow along and we'll help you along.

• How to switch Calendar views on your iPhone
• How to switch Calendar views on your iPad

How to switch Calendar views on your iPhone

Your iPhone gives you the choice of three different views within the default Calendar app - list, day, and view. The list option is good if you're quickly scrolling through events and looking for something specific. It's also a great place to search for items that you need to find quickly as there will always be a static search bar at the top. On top of searching, the list view also is a nice way to get a brief overview of your week.

Day view will show you a graph of what you have going on that day. This is a nice place to make sure none of your events and appointments overlap each other. You can also tilt your iPhone on its side and view each day for the week by scrolling up and down or side to side.

The last view that is available is the month view. This view allows you to tap on any day and view the events that you have planned for that day underneath the month calendar. Tapping on any of these events will expand upon the details of that entry.

To switch between these views, perform the following steps -

1. Launch the Calendar app from the Home screen of your iPhone.
2. Towards the bottom of the screen, you'll see a menu for List, Day, Month. You can tap on any one of these in order to toggle between views.
3. To switch back, just tap on the view you were at previously to return to it.

How to switch Calendar views on your iPad

The Calendar app on the iPad is set up a little differently than the iPhone, mainly due to the extra screen real estate you have to work with. While the iPhone only gives you list, day, and month views - you're iPad gives you those plus week and year. You'll also notice that the list, day, and month sections on the iPad look quite different as well.

The week view looks very simliar to the day view on the iPhone but you won't have to tilt your iPad in order to see more than 1 day at a time. You'll automatically see an entire week regardless of your orientation. The year view will give you a grid layout of each month and what days you have events on. The darker the color on the day, the more appointments and calendar entries you have for that day.

To change between views on your iPad, perform the following steps -

1. Launch the Calendar app from the Home screen of your iPad
2. Along the top you'll have a bar that has Day, Week, Month, Year, List. Tap on any of them to toggle between views.
3. To return to any given view, just toggle back to it. Your iPad will remember what view you last had opened and return you to it the next time you open the Calendar app on your iPad.

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheIphoneBlog/~3/bxDC4feyfwE/story01.htm

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Seau's family sues NFL over brain injuries

FILE - This Jan. 10, 2010, file photo shows New England Patriots linebacker Junior Seau before an NFL wild-card playoff football game in Foxborough, Mass. The family of Junior Seau has sued the NFL, claiming the former linebacker's suicide was the result of brain disease caused by violent hits he sustained while playing football. The wrongful death lawsuit, filed Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2013 in California Superior Court in San Diego, blames the NFL for its "acts or omissions" that hid the dangers of repetitive blows to the head. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File)

FILE - This Jan. 10, 2010, file photo shows New England Patriots linebacker Junior Seau before an NFL wild-card playoff football game in Foxborough, Mass. The family of Junior Seau has sued the NFL, claiming the former linebacker's suicide was the result of brain disease caused by violent hits he sustained while playing football. The wrongful death lawsuit, filed Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2013 in California Superior Court in San Diego, blames the NFL for its "acts or omissions" that hid the dangers of repetitive blows to the head. (AP Photo/Charles Krupa, File)

FILE - In this May 11, 2012 file photo, the children of Junior Seau, right, stand on stage alongside running back LaDainian Tomlinson, left, during a public memorial service for football player Junior Seau at Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego. The family of Junior Seau has sued the NFL, claiming the former linebacker's suicide was the result of brain disease caused by violent hits he sustained while playing football. The wrongful death lawsuit, filed Wednesday, Jan. 23, 2013 in California Superior Court in San Diego, blames the NFL for its "acts or omissions" that hid the dangers of repetitive blows to the head. The children are, from right, Tyler, Hunter, Jake and Sydney Seau. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull, File)

The family of Junior Seau has sued the NFL, claiming the former linebacker's suicide was the result of brain disease caused by violent hits he sustained while playing football.

The wrongful death lawsuit, filed Wednesday in California Superior Court in San Diego, blames the NFL for its "acts or omissions" that hid the dangers of repetitive blows to the head. It says Seau developed chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) from those hits, and accuses the NFL of deliberately ignoring and concealing evidence of the risks associated with traumatic brain injuries.

Seau died at age 43 of a self-inflicted gunshot in May. He was diagnosed with CTE, based on posthumous tests, earlier this month.

An Associated Press review in November found that more than 3,800 players have sued the NFL over head injuries in at least 175 cases as the concussion issue has gained attention in recent years. More than 100 of the concussion lawsuits have been brought together before U.S. District Judge Anita B. Brody in Philadelphia.

"Our attorneys will review it and respond to the claims appropriately through the court," the NFL said in a statement Wednesday.

Helmet manufacturer Riddell Inc., also is being sued by the Seaus, who say Riddell was "negligent in their design, testing, assembly, manufacture, marketing, and engineering of the helmets" used by NFL players. The suit says the helmets were unreasonably dangerous and unsafe.

Seau was one of the best linebackers during his 20 seasons in the NFL. He retired in 2009.

"We were saddened to learn that Junior, a loving father and teammate, suffered from CTE," the family said in a statement released to the AP. "While Junior always expected to have aches and pains from his playing days, none of us ever fathomed that he would suffer a debilitating brain disease that would cause him to leave us too soon.

"We know this lawsuit will not bring back Junior. But it will send a message that the NFL needs to care for its former players, acknowledge its decades of deception on the issue of head injuries and player safety, and make the game safer for future generations."

Plaintiffs are listed as Gina Seau, Junior's ex-wife; Junior's children Tyler, Sydney, Jake and Hunter, and Bette Hoffman, trustee of Seau's estate.

The lawsuit accuses the league of glorifying the violence in pro football, and creating the impression that delivering big hits "is a badge of courage which does not seriously threaten one's health."

It singles out NFL Films and some of its videos for promoting the brutality of the game.

"In 1993's 'NFL Rocks,' Junior Seau offered his opinion on the measure of a punishing hit: 'If I can feel some dizziness, I know that guy is feeling double (that)," the suit says.

The NFL consistently has denied allegations similar to those in the lawsuit.

"The NFL, both directly and in partnership with the NIH, Centers for Disease Control and other leading organizations, is committed to supporting a wide range of independent medical and scientific research that will both address CTE and promote the long-term health and safety of athletes at all levels," the league told the AP after it was revealed Seau had CTE.

The lawsuit claims money was behind the NFL's actions.

"The NFL knew or suspected that any rule changes that sought to recognize that link (to brain disease) and the health risk to NFL players would impose an economic cost that would significantly and adversely change the profit margins enjoyed by the NFL and its teams," the Seaus said in the suit.

The National Institutes of Health, based in Bethesda, Md., studied three unidentified brains, one of which was Seau's, and said the findings on Seau were similar to autopsies of people "with exposure to repetitive head injuries."

"It was important to us to get to the bottom of this, the truth," Gina Seau told the AP then. "And now that it has been conclusively determined from every expert that he had obviously had CTE, we just hope it is taken more seriously. You can't deny it exists, and it is hard to deny there is a link between head trauma and CTE. There's such strong evidence correlating head trauma and collisions and CTE."

In the final years of his life, Seau went through wild behavior swings, according to Gina and to 23-year-old son, Tyler. There also were signs of irrationality, forgetfulness, insomnia and depression.

"He emotionally detached himself and would kind of 'go away' for a little bit," Tyler Seau said. "And then the depression and things like that. It started to progressively get worse."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2013-01-23-Seau-Lawsuit/id-945891d381b041a5a8b926b62224eadb

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Japan tsunami stress may have brought on seizures: study

(Reuters) - The number of seizure patients in a northern Japanese fishing community devastated by the March 11, 2011 tsunami spiked in the weeks following the disaster, according to a Japanese study.

The study, published in the journal Epilepsia, looked at 440 patient records from Kesennuma City Hospital, in a city that was devastated by the massive tsunami touched off by the 9.0 magnitude earthquake.

Thirteen patients were admitted with seizures in the eight weeks after the disaster, but only one had been admitted in the two months before March 11.

Previous research has linked stressful life-threatening disasters with an increased risk of seizures, but most case reports lacked clinical data with multiple patients.

"We suggest that stress associated with life-threatening situations may enhance seizure generation," wrote lead author Ichiyo Shibahara, a staff neurosurgeon at Sendai Medical Center in northern Japan.

But he added that stress itself is not a universal risk factor for seizures.

"Most of the seizure patients had some sort of neurological disease before the earthquake," he said.

His team examined medical records from patients admitted to the neurosurgery ward in the eight weeks before and after the March 11 disaster and compared them to the same time period each year between 2008 and 2010.

In 2008, there were 11 seizure patients admitted between January 14 and May 15. In 2009, there were seven and in 2010, just four.

Of the 13 admitted after the disaster, 11 had preexisting brain disorders that included epilepsy, head injuries or stroke. All the patients lived independently, and eight took anti-convulsive medication.

Shibahara noted that of the five patients admitted just days after the tsunami, it was "not because of a lack of anticonvulsants, but because of the stress."

One later patient, though, was unable to refill his medication weeks after the devastation.

"This is interesting, but I'm not 100 percent convinced," said William Theodore, senior investigator of the clinical epilepsy section at the National Institute for Neurological Disorders and Stroke in Bethesda, Maryland.

Theodore, who was not involved in the study, told Reuters health that because the number of patients was so small, random variation could explain the surge in seizures. Upset patients may also have forgotten to take, or weren't able to find, anticonvulsant drugs.

There are also various ways that natural disasters might cause seizures, including head trauma, infections from polluted water or a lack of sleep, he added.

But the study did have a practical take home message, he said: "If you already have seizures and you're taking medication, always make sure you have a decent supply just in case some natural disaster occurs."

(Reporting from New York by Trevor Stokes at Reuters Health; editing by Elaine Lies)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/japan-tsunami-stress-may-brought-seizures-study-020404761.html

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Let's be clear on health risks from radiation

Gerry Thomas, contributor

(Image: Hamilton/REA)

Should Californians have had iodine after Fukushima? In Radiation Robert Peter Gale and Eric Lax clear up the confusion over radiation and health

CIGARETTE smokers have three times the amount of polonium-210 in their blood as non-smokers. Some medical uses of radiation expose us to a higher dose in one go than smokers get in a year, yet many are happy to accept these radiation risks.

Compare this with the global alarm following the Fukushima disaster in 2011. As Robert Peter Gale and Eric Lax tell us in Radiation, Californians reacted to the news by buying iodine tablets, which in the circumstances were "as useful as Californians buying raincoats to protect them from rain falling in Barcelona".

Humans are ill-equipped to deal with uncertainty, and we know too much about the uncertainties around data on health risks from radiation. Gale is a doctor specialising in treating patients exposed to high doses of radiation, and Lax is a scientific writer. Touring through various scenarios, from nuclear accidents to irradiated food, they show how our inability to put risk into context can have serious consequences.

They start with an account of an incident in Goiania, Brazil. In 1987, radiotherapy equipment was stolen and the thieves, tempted by the alluring blue glow inside, dismantled it carelessly. Because they didn't know how to handle and contain radiation many people were exposed to variable doses of caesium-137, some with fatal consequences.

Mishandling is not the only danger that flows from a dearth of proper knowledge about radiation. Confusion over the risks to health, both on the part of the public and politicians, can lead to societal stress and stagnation in energy policy.

The book navigates this troublesome territory without bias. The authors summarise health risks associated with various non-nuclear options, suggesting that energy policy should take into account all the possible health risks of a given strategy. Surprisingly, one conclusion is that the fly ash from coal power stations actually generates more radiation than is emitted by a nuclear power plant.

Gale and Lax aim to fill in the gaps in public understanding of all things nuclear, and they are adept at doing so. Throughout the book they present a host of interesting facts and figures in humorous and accessible prose, and their explanation of the biological effect of internal radiation is excellent.

These days we can measure radiation incredibly accurately, but are not good at putting health risks from radiation into perspective with all of the other risks that threaten our health. This book does a good job at explaining radiation and what it does, both good and bad. Radiation is integral to our planet and its use will shape our future here. In Radiation, Gale and Lax help us understand how and why.

Gerry Thomas is a molecular pathologist at Imperial College London

Book information:
Radiation: What it is, what you need to know by Robert Peter Gale and Eric Lax
Knopf
$26.95

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The Decline of the U.S Airline Industry, Defined | Business Travel Blog

As the so called ?decline? of the American airline industry continues the profit being reported from the airlines in 2012 was surprisingly good. Delta Airlines had a nice little rally on Wall Street and nearly all the major airlines reported some profit in 2012. However, the cries from the traveling public have not improved; in fact they are getting worse. This is most likely due to air fares going up in addition with the onset of new fees. It?s really a doubled edged sword. You see, the airlines need to make money and the traveling public?doesn?t?feel they should be paying an extra $25 to $50 for a round-trip ticket to grandma?s house. I won?t side with either; however, the airlines have a very valid argument. In fact, they really?shouldn?t?feel the need to justify their reasoning on hiking fares. Let?s remember, these are multi million dollar machines they are hurling through the air which requires expensive gas, maintenance and professional staffing. In order to keep these things safely air born, you need cash. Where do they get that cash? Not from selling a plane full of $200 round trip fares from JFK to LAX, I can guarantee you that. To fill up a Boeing 757 at the current cost of jet fuel, it would cost the airline $34,811. The airline would be lucky to make a $1000 profit on an LAX to JFK flight or to break even for that matter.

Historically speaking, the American airline industry has always had problems. We have seen countless airlines come and go, some big and some small. In general, if the world was suffering from a problem, the airlines would inherit some part of that problem, one way or another. That may not be the case in today?s world.

Pan Am was among the leaders during the glamorous days of commercial air travel, they launched the jet age in the late 1960s as well as becoming the first airline to fly the legendary Boeing 747, launching the era of the wide body jet. Pan Am set the bar for nearly every airline to follow. However, ultimately they eventually took on the burden of cash flow. As the world saw conflict, high oil prices, and a slowing economy, so did Pan Am. In 1991, after a series of financial setbacks and the 1988 bombing over Lockerbie, Scotland, the airline ceased operations. Experts say the bombing was the beginning of their fate as passengers began to see the airline as a terrorist target and moved on to Pan Am?s competitors. The Persian Gulf War added additional stress as oil prices skyrocketed. Pan Am was finished.

The story of Pan Am is just one example of how an iconic airline which seemed to have a never ending future can suffer a fatal blow in the blink of an eye. Contrary to popular belief, the airlines are far from the money grubbing, fortune 500 companies our popular culture might lead them on to be. They run a unique business like no other. Their survival relies on worldly components like current events, oil prices, the economy, regional conflicts, wars and numerous others problems. However, the passenger demand for a cheap ticket seems to be causing the most damage. Let?s imagine for a second that United Airlines, currently the world?s biggest airline, goes out of business because they couldn?t keep up with the public?s demand for a $200 round trip ticket. It sounds silly doesn?t it? Well, that is the reality of today?s airline industry.

Today, most passengers? loath flying, likely because they know they are getting nothing special for the inconveniences of navigating busy airports, standing in long security lines and dealing with cranky gate agents and flight attendants not to mention, delays. Back in the more glamorous days of flying, people loved the opportunity to fly. They looked forward to boarding an airplane. They knew they would get a hot meal, friendly service, leg room and an overall pleasant experience, and they even dressed up in their Sunday?s best. The lack of those perks has long since passed. As the airlines were forced to cut back on those amenities, they continued by cutting back on jobs, staff salaries and retirement pensions in order to maintain survival. Rightly so, those cuts increased animosity among airline staff and management which ultimately reflects back on you, the traveling public.

Below is a fresh, realistic perspective from an airline pilot we know from one of America?s largest legacy carriers regarding the current state of the airline industry in the U.S. We wanted to know his opinion on it and the ultimate effect it is currently having on his profession.

I think there is a reasonable assumption that the public?s thirst to fly cheap is helping destroy the industry. ?In the 1970s to fly from Visalia, CA to San Francisco a typical fare would have been $300. ?And that?s in the 1970?s. ?While the price of fuel has skyrocketed, although modern airplanes use less, now that same fare would be more than what it costs to fly from San Francisco to Boston. ?And the consumer feels their still getting screwed on the price.

So airlines cut cost and service to match revenue, which ?cheapens? what was once a great service experience. ?Now, since there isn?t much revenue to differentiate an airlines product, travel has become commoditized. ?Instead of selecting ?Airline A? because of their superior service, now travel is largely a seat, a coke and a bag of peanuts industry-wide so the passenger looks at a grid of airlines and chooses the least expensive without much consideration of service, amenities or often, how many stops it takes to get to their destination.

The profession is affected because less revenue means fewer perks and a lighter paycheck. ?Also, that lighter paycheck has dramatically reduced the number of people pursuing a career in professional aviation. ?So with fewer people entering the profession, many deciding to leave for greener career pastures, the depth of experience is whittling away.

Granted the old wives tale is that the plane can fly itself, which it cannot, but the issue is decision making. ?Less experienced pilots may manifest itself into bad decision making. ?Poor decision making in the cockpit is a massive safety hazard. ?I challenge the consumer to browse the archives at the NTSB and notice how many accidents and incidents result from pilot error. ?Most, and we certainly should do what we can to attract the best and brightest pilots, and that takes compensation well ?north? of what the industry expects to pay today?s aviation professional.

Management across the industry can address the issue by having an honest dialogue with the consumer. ?If you want to fly from Des Moines to New York, here is a fare that reflects the actual cost of doing business. ?Included in that fare is compensation for your cockpit and cabin crew, the support network of professional dispatchers, mechanics, flight controllers, ground personnel and the thousands of people behind the scene that form the team to have the jet at the gate, on time, fueled, lease-paid, cleaned and ready to take you to your destination.

The real cost of a cheap ticket is your safety.

Source: http://www.letsflycheaper.com/blog/the-decline-of-the-u-s-airline-industry-defined/

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Apple reportedly prepping 4.8-inch iPhone for June debut

iPad mini

Among the less believable Apple (AAPL) rumors that have emerged from the Far East in recent weeks is a report suggesting Apple is preparing to launch a ?phablet? this summer to compete with large-screened Android smartphones. China Times issued the claims on Monday, suggesting that a third new iPhone handset will launch in 2013 aside from the ?iPhone 5S? and Apple?s new cheaper iPhone. The publication called this upcoming device the ?iPhone Math,? and said it may launch in June with a 4.8-inch display. China Times added that the iPhone 5S will debut ahead of the holidays with a 12-megapixel camera, while the new less-expensive iPhone model and the new iPhone phablet will launch this summer.

[More from BGR: BlackBerry 10 browser smokes iOS 6 and Windows Phone 8 in comparison test [video]]

This article was originally published on BGR.com

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/apple-reportedly-prepping-4-8-inch-iphone-june-135018032.html

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Avoiding Complications with Home Healthcare for HIV/AIDS ...

Posted by admin on January 19th, 2013

Home healthcare for adults and children with Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) and Acquired Immune Deficiency Syndrome (AIDS) has been available in Australia since 1984.

HIV medication is easier to tolerate than in former times and after your specialist has provided a drug regimen that suits you, staying healthy is focussed on protecting your general health and avoiding complications.

Avoid risk factors

The HIV/AIDS infection damages the immune system and greater care must be taken to avoid the risk factors for developing:

? Cancer
? Eye disease
? Heart disease
? Kidney disease
? Liver disease
? Nerve damage
? Stroke
? Infections like pneumonia, flu or TB

In HIV/AIDS patients over the age of 50 there may also be a higher likelihood of developing medical conditions related to the ageing process, for example, osteoporosis and memory loss.

However, under the close eye of a home health care nurse, this condition can be expertly managed and some of these problems can be slowed down or averted by taking care of your health.

Range of services

Each HIV/AIDS homehealthcare nurse can provide a range of important services at home including:

? Health monitoring
? General nursing care and managing of symptoms
? Medication management
? Intravenous therapy and pain management
? Emotional support for clients and their carers
? Teaching family and carers how to provide appropriate care

With the home healthcare of a trained HIV/AIDS nurse, the specific needs of each client are comprehensively met and this can include arranging for a home help service to take charge of the household chores.

Comprehensive and confidential

HIV/AIDSnursesalways works in full partnership with clients, their family and other care-providers to give a holistic service that ensures all possible care is taken to promote good health and avoid complications.

All HIV/AIDS home care nurses work under the strictest confidentiality, wearing plain clothes and driving unmarked vehicles

Responses are currently closed, but you can trackback from your own site.

Source: http://www.healthylivingmassage.net/avoiding-complications-with-home-healthcare-for-hivaids/

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Gun control 101: Why is Obama pushing for new gun research?

A key part of President Obama's plan to rein in gun violence is his push to kick-start fresh gun-control-related research by federal agencies. Republicans have blocked such research in the past.

By Peter Grier,?Staff writer / January 19, 2013

President Barack Obama, accompanied by Vice President Joe Biden, talks at the White House in Washington Wednesday about proposals to reduce gun violence.

Carolyn Kaster/AP

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This week President Obama outlined a sweeping package of proposed changes to America?s gun laws, including a federal ban on the manufacture and sale of new assault weapons and an expansion of background checks on firearm purchasers. But proponents of gun control say one of the most important pieces of the plan may be a smaller, less-noticed move: Mr. Obama?s attempt to end a 15-year ban on federal research into guns and violence.

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For years, some members of Congress have effectively blocked the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and other federal agencies from conducting such research due to concerns about pro-gun control bias. On Wednesday, Obama said he?d use the powers of the presidency to change that situation.

?While year after year those who oppose even modest gun safety measures have threatened to defund scientific or medical research into the causes of gun violence, I will direct the Centers for Disease Control to go ahead and study the best ways to reduce it.... We don?t benefit from ignorance,? said Obama.

Here are some basic questions and answers about the research issue:

What's stopping the government from studying guns and violence?

In 1996 some conservative members of Congress mounted an effort to eliminate the CDC?s National Center for Injury Prevention and Control because they believed some researchers were cheerleaders for the anti-gun movement. In the end, they took the $2.6 million this center had spent on gun research the previous year, and earmarked it for brain-injury research. In addition, Congress added language to the CDC appropriation saying ?none of the funds made available for injury prevention and control at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention may be used to advocate or promote gun control.?

It?s unclear exactly what sorts of things this phrase prohibits. But no federal employee was willing to risk their career to find out, according to a December Journal of the American Medical Association article. Several years later, Congress made the language applicable to the Department of Health and Human Services, as well.

?Even today, 17 years after this legislative action, the CDC?s website lacks specific links to information about preventing firearm-related violence,? says the article by Arthur Kellermann and Frederick Rivara.

Generally speaking, gun-rights organizations oppose treating firearms as a public-health issue, as opposed to a constitutional right.

What don't we know?

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/EE0EIDk2kwA/Gun-control-101-Why-is-Obama-pushing-for-new-gun-research

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Internet Marketing In Australiaaustralian Seo Company | MustReads ...

internet marketing starts plus ends with your audience and just how you approach them. So, before that you can do anything, you ought to do certain analysis plus learn about the niche plus your audience.

As absolutely said, clients depend mostly about local shops inside occasions of urgent need. This makes customers become more loyal to these shops. According to ?localized search use study? conducted by Localeze, 61% of the neighborhood company searchers have mentioned which surrounding search results are relevant plus 58% of them have mentioned which they are trustworthy. Most of the area businesses generate the sensation of ?being specifically intended for the customers? ? this increases the brand recognition also as the loyalty of the company.

Online marketing inside Los Angeles California is composed of several kinds of advertising techniques which when combined may have profound results. Reaching the L.A. marketplace could be a daunting task, however, with all the right tools along with a strategic advertising program companies could dominate their niche.

You are able to use this info to determine whether the Internet marketing firm in India meets the individual online marketing requires plus needs or not. You might additionally ask the friends or business associates if they know of any wise online marketing firm in India. Visiting online forums is additionally helpful in finding reliable web marketing firms inside India.

An online business may never thrive except its owners do some marketing and the most popular method to do it happens to be by an efficient search engine marketing campaign. This method of Internet marketing assures the webmasters which its websites will have a region inside look engine ranking pages, an important prerequisite to a website?s achievement inside terms of the number of visitors that the website is getting and the percentage of actual lead conversions.

Registration with all the several look machines available is basic inside Internet marketing because latent and prospective consumers might usually find we by look engines. Remember, you need to equally register about search machines in different languages, in North America, it?s superior idea to register both in English & Spanish, in Europe, we should register in every different languages search engines you may be targeting.

It?s no surprise. As web technologies continues to boom, the idea of getting online levels furthermore continues to grow popular. Do you dream of having a profession inside advertising, and are we shopping for a means to receive a degree that is comparatively less stressful and ? inside many cases ? cheaper than getting a degree the conventional way? Do we result to have a job that cuts into the time plus would create if difficult, when not impossible, for we to attend classes in a real building? Next an online marketing degree can be for you! Not only are internet marketing degrees very easy to get, however they equally often hold the same fat as many real world advertising levels, plus are additionally capable to be achieved inside an advantageous means, right from the own home.

There is more information available about steakhouse in Plainfield Illinois check out Cuc G. Sydnor?s site there?s a lot of details not covered on this page, go to Author?s site to locate more.

Filed: Internet
tags: marketing scams, marketing scams exposed, marketing strategy, mlm marketing, online problem solving technique

Source: http://www.mustreads.info/internet-marketing-in-australiaaustralian-seo-company/

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'Twilight' star Ashley Greene debuts new foot tattoo on Twitter (Photos)

Hey! Look at that. Twilight Saga star Ashley Greene, who portrayed Alice Cullen, has gotten herself a little foot tattoo and decided to give everyone a glimpse on Twitter today.

Yep, Greene shared this shot of her tat on her Twitter page, writing "I'm sad to be leaving New Orleans ... But I'm taking this with me." The text of her tattoo, of course, reads "Life's a dance" which is cute and well-located.

It reminds of that great attached video of her and co-star Jackson Rathbone (Jasper Hale in the Saga) practicing up for their big dance moment in The Twilight Saga: Breaking Dawn - Part 1, no? She can shake a leg.

Greene was in New Orleans working on her latest project called Random (formerly Satanic and/or Kristy) with Lucas Till and Haley Bennett. That film's description is as follows: "When a college girl who is alone on campus over the Thanksgiving break is targeted by a group of outcasts, she must conquer her deepest fears to outwit them and fight back."

She seemingly spoke of the audition for it during a recent interview with GQ in which she explained, "I broke someone's wall the other day ... I was in an audition, and the director said, 'Do you remember the scene in the script where you have to fight for your boyfriend's life? I want you to work yourself up and charge across the room like you're running to save him and after I did it, I couldn't compose myself and I just started crying. And then they asked if I wanted to do it again, and I did, and I ended up putting a hole through the wall ... I was like, 'I'll totally pay for it! I'm so sorry.' ... Got the role, so..."

That story just goes to prove the accuracy of her little ink phrase. Chances are, it's based on the song which carries a similar message.

Thoughts on her new tattoo?

Twilight Examiner: Twitter - Facebook - Email

Source: https://www.examiner.com/article/twilight-star-ashley-greene-debuts-new-foot-tattoo-on-twitter?cid=rss

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Doomsday Clock Holds Steady at Five to Midnight

Source: http://www.thehollywoodgossip.com/2013/01/doomsday-clock-holds-steady-at-five-to-midnight/

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The Stingray returns: Chevy unveils C7 Corvette

13 hrs.

Paul A. Eisenstein, The Detroit Bureau

They were the darkest of days, all the more so in the design studios at General Motors where a small team had been assembled and given the less than humble task of building the world?s best sports car.

True, the Chevrolet Corvette has always been an icon of American design, but this time, Chief Engineer Tadge Juechter and design director Tom Peters had to take things the next step, producing a vehicle that could challenge and beat the best the Germans and Italians could throw at it.?

The Detroit Bureau:?How?Chevy's ?C7 Corvette?Plans to Take on Porsche, Ferrari

There was only a few?problems: the U.S. economy was in meltdown, the automotive market was?facing its worst downturn in more than half a century and General Motors was rapidly running out of cash and seemed all but certain to declare bankruptcy.? And when it did in June 1, 2009, the lights went out.? Even with the likelihood of a federal bailout, it was anything but certain the long-awaited C7 Corvette would ever make it to market.?

But on Sunday night, at a well-attended ceremony at an old warehouse in a run-down section of Detroit, Juechter and Peters will get the honor of pulling the wraps off a 2014 Chevy Corvette that is already being hailed as the best American sports car of the past half century, perhaps the best ever.

And as the car that has always served as a showcase of GM?s capabilities, the new ?Vette could put a much-needed halo around a company whose critics still tend to dismiss it as ?Government Motors.?

TheDetroitBureau.com has spent a significant amount of time in recent months talking to the various members of the Corvette development team ? and getting a rare look at what is known to aficionados as the C7, shorthand for only the seventh-generation model since the first fiberglass-bodied ?Vette rolled off the assembly line in 1953.

The original C1 was a project of the legendary Harley Earl, the man usually credited with creating the very concept of automotive design.? It debuted at GM?s private annual auto show, Motorama, in 1953 and the response was so intense 300 hand-built convertibles, all in polo white, were produced for the 1953 model-year.?

The original car was primitive, with a solid rear axle and a grossly underpowered V-6 engine.? But there was nothing like it in the U.S. market, certainly nothing coming from Detroit.??

Soon, the Corvette was to become a symbol of American prowess.? It was the real star of the TV series, Route 66.? The Mercury 7 astronauts each drove one, Corvettes often appearing in official NASA photos alongside mockups of the Lunar Excursion Module or Lunar Rover ? the latter also developed by GM.

But over the decades, even as each successive generation was given more power and better performance, the Corvette continued to slip further behind competitors like Ferrari, Porsche or Lamborghini.? By the time work began on the C7, there was no more room for excuses unless GM was ready to acknowledge it really couldn?t create a truly world-class sports car.

?There wasn?t going to be a Corvette if we couldn?t do better,? recalls Juechter.?

But, starting in late 2007, there didn?t look like there was going to be a Corvette anyway.? The project was halted for about six months that year because of GM?s financial problems.? ?Then we stopped again in (late) 2008 as we were going into bankruptcy.?

Even when the project got going again, following GM?s rescue, the maker had turned gunshy and it seemed to some that top management might back off on its promise to build the best sports car possible.

For styling chief Peters, the frustration was tangible when he was told to go with an evolutionary design not much different than the outgoing C6 that had been around since 2005.? It was the best Corvette ever in terms of pure performance and had roughly the same footprint as a Porsche 911. But it wasn?t going to really change the game, the design director complained.?

?Ed was willing to listen,? Peters says, referring to GM?s corporate design czar Ed Welburn.? ?He told me to go back, keep working on the design I wanted and prove I was right.?? Given the chance ? and actually benefiting from the project?s delay during the GM bankruptcy, Peters finally found the right formula and got the go-ahead for the design he desperately wanted.?

The Detroit Bureau:?Lexus Pumps "Passion" Into New IS Sedan

Those familiar with the current Corvette will recognize the new model, whether spotting it front or back. There?s the long nose, the steeply raked windshield that flows into a fast hatchback cabin.? Quad tail?lamps and exhaust pipes anchor the rear.?

But the distinctive new LED accent lights give the nose a more modern and refined look, with a mean-looking grille below the bumper split by a sleek chromed bar.? The louvers on the hood are now functional, as are the ports behind the bulging front wheel wells.? A crisp accent line darts rearward from the front wheels and leaves a spectator with the sense the car is constantly in motion.

There are new rear quarter windows, something the Corvette hasn?t featured in decades.? And the tail is crisp and precise with a higher belt line and deck that seems poised to pounce on the nearest Ferrari.

As striking as the body may be, team members agree that perhaps the most significant change comes inside.? GM global design director Ed Welburn tells TheDetroitBureau.com that it was his personal mission to transform the traditionally clumsy and unrefined Corvette interior into a modern showpiece.?

The new design features an 8-inch reconfigurable display that can rapidly be shifted to read out critical data in the mode a driver wants.? There?s a second large screen for operating infotainment and other vehicle functions ? though interior design team members point out they maintained a few buttons for commonly used features, such as tuning and volume control.

?For the first time,? says Juechter, ?we decided to spend the money to design two different seats,? so those who want to spend time on the track don?t have to compromise with those who?ll never drive much harder than they would when blasting off from a stoplight.

There?s one thing the new Corvette does reach into the past for.? A closer inspection will reveal the word, ?Stingray? on the fenders.? That designation has been reserved for only the most powerful and exclusive Corvettes ever produced.? And it?s back for the first time since 1967.

In some ways, team members will tell you, it may have worked out perfectly to have the C7 Corvette postponed until now.? While it will bear a 2014 designation it actually will reach market almost precisely 60 years after Harley Earl?s original debuted.

And, adds Juechter, ?There?s some truth that the longer you wait the better technology you have available.?? The C7 is the showpiece ?gearheads? long had to turn to foreign makers for.?

Ultra-light, super-strong carbon fiber accounts for a significant portion of the new model?s body panels, though there?s still plenty of fiberglass, as there has been since the original ?Vette debuted.

There had long been rumors that the new sports car would mimic its European rivals and migrate from the classic Corvette small-block V-8 to a turbo or super-charged V-6.? In the end, GM stuck with a large eight-banger, though the newly designated LT1 features all the latest technologies, such as Direct Injection, variable valve timing and displacement on demand.?

By shutting off half of its cylinders when demand for power is light, the engine essentially becomes a 3.1-liter V-4 and, asserts Juechter, ?We wind up getting better mileage than if we had gone for one of those smaller powerplants.?

At the same time, the 2014 C7 Corvette will deliver an estimated 450 horsepower and 450 pound-feet of torque, which will make it the most powerful ?base? model ever ? and the fastest, with 0 to 60 times expected to come in at or under 4.0 seconds.

And that?s just the beginning.? There are other versions of the ?Vette quietly under development, likely to include the step-up Z06 and the next-generation ZR1, which likely will reach well beyond 600 horsepower.?

The Detroit Bureau:?VW Reveals Passat Performance Sedan

Pricing won't be announced until close to launch, later this year but, hints Juechter, "Our business case was based on the idea if you can afford the current Corvette you can afford this one."??

Chevrolet officials have kept an unusually tight lid on the 2014 Corvette and it?s likely to be a while before they?re ready to give out the first rides for reviewers.? Production won?t begin until mid-year, though a largely hand-built model is reportedly going to be featured during the upcoming Super Bowl ? and then given to halftime superstar performer Beyonce.?

But if initial reactions are any indication, the C7 could be the vehicle Chevy and GM desperately have needed, a sports car that truly pushes the proverbial envelope and threatens to leave even the most vaunted European competitors worrying when they see one racing up in their rearview mirrors.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/business/stingray-returns-chevy-unveils-c7-corvette-1B7957730

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Insight: How SandRidge Energy's CEO adapted the Chesapeake playbook

(Reuters) - For 17 years, Tom Ward and Aubrey McClendon teamed up to build Chesapeake Energy Corp into the second-largest natural gas producer in the United States.

The two Oklahoma City energy men were a study in contrasts. CEO McClendon was brash and aggressive; company president Ward came across as steady and soft-spoken.

When Ward left in 2006 to start his own natural-gas company a few miles away, however, he borrowed from the Chesapeake playbook. At SandRidge Energy Inc, Ward adopted some of the same idiosyncratic business practices deployed by McClendon.

At Chesapeake, McClendon intertwined his personal financial deals with the company he runs.

Similarly, Ward has melded his own financial interests with those of publicly traded SandRidge more than many of the company's shareholders may know, an examination of court documents, Oklahoma state records and Securities and Exchange Commission filings shows.

Like McClendon, Ward has faced criticism from shareholders and others for running a public company like a private firm, drawing large paychecks and bonuses even during periods when his company struggled.

In 2008, Ward received personal loans from the chairman of Bank of Oklahoma - one of SandRidge's key lenders. He also took the unusual step of opening the company's books for the lender's review of that personal deal. The mixing of personal and corporate roles posed a potential conflict of interest for the CEO, analysts say.

Now, the question is whether Ward will be forced to change his ways as McClendon was earlier this year, when shareholders shook up Chesapeake's board and stripped him of his job as chairman following a series of Reuters reports. On Monday, Chesapeake said it was not awarding McClendon, who remains CEO, a bonus for 2012.

Two large SandRidge shareholders - hedge fund TPG-Axon Capital and investment firm Mount Kellett Capital - have been pressing to replace Ward and the board and to put the company up for sale.

"There is constant intermingling of the personal and the private" between the CEO and SandRidge's business, said Dinakar Singh, founder of TPG-Axon, which owns 6.7 percent of SandRidge.

Greg Dewey, a spokesman for SandRidge, declined to respond to questions from Reuters on Ward's transactions or on any similarities between SandRidge and Chesapeake. But he stressed that "in each case, we have followed our own internal guidelines and we know the (Securities and Exchange Commission) rules very well and have followed those."

In addition to borrowing $75 million from Bank of Oklahoma's chairman, Ward also collected $67 million from SandRidge by selling back his personal interests in a controversial corporate perk: stakes in the company's wells. McClendon, too, had a similar incentive at Chesapeake.

SandRidge has also paid nearly $28 million more to Ward or firms linked to him or his family, according to SEC filings. (SEE FACTBOX)

Those payments are in addition to the more than $116 million Ward has received in compensation as CEO since 2007. Between 2007 and 2011, Ward made more than $7 million more than the two men who served as CEO of Chevron, a company more than 60 times the size of SandRidge by market capitalization. (Compensation data for 2012 is not yet available for Chevron.) Ward's pay included $4.2 million for accounting services related to his personal and family finances.

In each case, SandRidge disclosed the benefits that Ward has drawn, and nothing is illegal about the compensation packages. But some analysts and shareholders question why Ward earns so much, given the company's size and stock price. As natural gas prices plummeted, SandRidge shares fell from a high of $69 in July 2008 to about $7 today.

Some corporate-governance experts don't see a problem. "As long as it's disclosed, I think it's fine," said David Larcker, an accounting professor at Stanford University's Graduate School of Business.

Others say Ward's transactions raise questions about how SandRidge is being run and create the risk he is putting his own interests ahead of the company's.

"The number of related-party transactions (SandRidge) reports is out of proportion to the size of the company," says Paul Hodgson, an independent corporate-governance consultant.

Ward's compensation has drawn the attention of California pension fund CalSTRs, which owns 880,000 SandRidge shares and is in talks with the company over executive pay.

"We believe that compensation at this point is too high relative to the stock performance," said CalSTRS spokesman Ricardo Duran. "Our standard throughout our portfolio is to, wherever possible, link executive compensation to performance. We feel that standard's not being met."

PARALLEL PATHS

Ward and McClendon, who began working together in their 20s, co-founded Chesapeake in 1989 with 10 employees and $50,000 in cash. The two Oklahoma natives were "land men," traveling back roads to lease promising acreage for drilling.

Ward, 53, grew up in the tiny town of Seiling, Oklahoma. He became Chesapeake's operational brain. McClendon, born into the state's wealthy Kerr family, became its financial wizard.

Chesapeake prospered by being first to snap up acreage in emerging oil and gas plays.

For years at Chesapeake, Ward and McClendon enjoyed an unusual corporate incentive. They received up to a 2.5 percent stake in the profits of every well the company drilled, as long as they paid 2.5 percent of the costs.

Chesapeake had disclosed the existence of this perk. But last year, Reuters reported significant facts that Chesapeake hadn't divulged: McClendon had arranged to borrow more than $1 billion to finance his acquisition of these well stakes, used the stakes themselves as collateral, and obtained most of the financing from a company that was also an investor in Chesapeake. In response to the resulting outcry, the company cut short the perk.

Ward left Chesapeake in early 2006 to begin his own firm, buying into a private energy company in Texas. He renamed that company SandRidge Energy and took it public the following year.

At SandRidge, Ward initiated a more-lucrative version of the perk, raising the maximum stake to 3 percent, as disclosed in SEC filings.

A Reuters review of SEC filings and court documents shows Ward's well perk at SandRidge provided a safety net when he faced a severe personal financial crunch.

By 2008, Ward had borrowed heavily from Wachovia and other lenders. He had pledged holdings of SandRidge stock as collateral for those loans. When the global financial crisis struck, those shares plunged in value. According to documents filed in 2010 shareholder lawsuit against SandRidge, Ward's lenders issued a so-called margin call, which typically requires a borrower to put up more cash or face the liquidation of his collateral.

In October 2008, Ward raised cash by selling his stakes in SandRidge wells back to the company for $67 million, according to SEC filings. A Reuters analysis of costs incurred by Ward between 2006 and 2008 for the well program show he made an estimated $19 million on the deal.

The payout to the CEO came at a time when SandRidge was itself in financial distress. By the end of 2008, the company had just $636,000 in cash on hand, according to the company's annual report.

KAISER TO THE RESCUE

Despite the big payout, Ward wasn't out of the woods. The same month, he did another deal that potentially mingled his personal and corporate interests, this time with George Kaiser, chairman and majority shareholder of BOK Financial, parent company of Bank of Oklahoma.

Kaiser's Bank of Oklahoma has been a lender to SandRidge and was recently among a group that entered into a $1.75 billion credit agreement with the energy company, according to an SEC filing.

Kaiser did not respond to several requests for comment for this story.

In a suit filed in federal court in Oklahoma in December 2010, a SandRidge shareholder alleged that Ward improperly profited from a series of transactions with Kaiser.

Those transactions, Ward's attorneys wrote in response to the suit, came at a time when the SandRidge chief "was facing unexpected economic difficulties." This crunch, they wrote, involved "an upcoming repayment obligation on a credit line with Wachovia Bank and other creditors that was secured, in part, by Mr. Ward's SandRidge stock."

At the time, Ward had pledged at least 25 million SandRidge shares as collateral for a personal credit line from Wachovia and others, according to an SEC filing. The filing did not say how large the loan was, or what it was needed for. But the SandRidge shares were worth about $45 apiece, or some $1.1 billion in total when he pledged them to the banks in August 2008. By late October, the shares had fallen to less than $10, or around $240 million in total.

As the shares plunged in value, the lenders called on Ward to post more collateral. That same October, he turned to Kaiser, borrowing $75 million from him and a charitable trust Kaiser controlled. The deal gave Kaiser warrants granting him the right to buy a substantial interest in SandRidge, using shares then owned by Ward, according to an SEC filing.

SandRidge stock continued to fall between October and December 2008. Ward realized he would need to renegotiate the terms of the $75 million loan from Kaiser, according to a court document filed by Ward's attorneys.

The revised deal, renegotiated on Christmas Eve in Tulsa, was complex. It included the payment to Kaiser of 8.9 million SandRidge shares, worth some $50 million at the time, and a warrant giving Kaiser the right to buy more shares in the future.

It also came with an unusual condition. Ward agreed to open SandRidge's financial records to Kaiser, to "facilitate (Kaiser's) due diligence investigation of the issuer for a limited period of time following the sale," according to the deal's agreement.

James Cox, a law professor at Duke University, said he has never come across another situation in which a public company's books and records were opened as part of a private deal.

"Access is being provided for no apparent corporate purpose," Cox said.

The shareholder and SandRidge agreed to dismiss the suit on November 9, 2012, court documents show. The company later disclosed that Ward agreed the same day to pay SandRidge $5 million to settle a lawsuit. It declined to say whether the payment was related to the Kaiser suit.

Lingering anger over SandRidge's big 2008 payout to Ward is one reason some shareholders say they have recently called for the CEO's ouster.

Ward and SandRidge are fighting back. On November 19, the company's board unanimously approved resolutions that make it more difficult for the company to be taken over.

Now, hedge fund TPG-Axon is soliciting support from other shareholders to replace the board. No deadline has been set for that solicitation. TPG-Axon hasn't said how much support it has garnered so far.

(Reporting by Michael Erman in New York, Anna Driver in Houston and Brian Grow in Atlanta; Editing by Patricia Kranz and Blake Morrison)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/insight-sandridge-energys-ceo-adapted-chesapeake-playbook-100332103--finance.html

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