How I Got Out of Credit Card Debt

I?m going to share the story of my twentysomething financial meltdown.

But understand there?s some risk for me. Wait until you see just how reckless Lou Carlozo, the intrepid personal finance journalist, once behaved.

What?s more, you might think this story is so over-the-top that I made it up. If only.

My woes started, as many a wild ride does, with Hollywood schemes, rock and roll dreams and a few bad money moves that brewed a fiscal perfect storm. I was a full-time rock musician at the time, and I?d just read an article that director Robert Townsend had financed his 1987 movie ?Hollywood Shuffle? entirely on credit cards.

So I applied for a few cards. I got one, then two. Then eight or ten. It amazed me how easy they were to get.

I started cash advancing left and right, pumping money into an album my band was recording at a big-time recording studio. When the bills mounted ? first to $5,000, then $10,000, then over $20,000 ? you?d think I?d have batted an eye. Nah. ?Twas free money, or so it seemed. How rock and roll!

During this time, a close family member noted my newfound cash pool, and assured me he could multiply it through an IPO investment. He asked me for a few thousand dollars: Why not? This guy was smart, charming and I had every reason to trust him. Besides, it wasn?t my money.

Then came the twister.

Expenses for the album spiraled, most of them billed to me. Then the family member, a problem gambler in his past, took my money to the racetrack. In a few days he squandered it all: More than $12,000. That?s when it hit me ? it wasn?t really my money. And I had to pay it back.

Like that, I found myself more than $30,000 in the hole. Trying to kill off that debt on a waiter?s salary proved impossible, especially when my band released the album and it tanked, selling fewer than 200 copies.

Despondent and depressed, I called my older brother Joe, who?s a CPA. He told me about a non-profit called the Consumer Credit Counseling Service. Today, that organization exits as Money Management International ? and if not for their help, I would?ve landed in bankruptcy, debtor?s prison, or worse.

As a non-profit credit-debt counseling and education agency, MMI can do a lot for you, as they did for me. First, they helped renegotiate better interest rates and payment terms with my creditors, who didn?t want to see me default. Once I had the debt tamed a bit, I found better-paying work and landed a debt consolidation loan. I made my payments like clockwork, even as I took care not to rack up any more bills.

But I still had to learn financial discipline. I didn?t like living at home as a 26 year old, but it helped me save on room and board. I sold much of the fancy music gear bought on the credit cards, recouping some lost funds.

And I repented my free-spending ways. The CCCS folks taught me to ?write it all down? ? that is, to use monthly budget charts to track daily spending. As any successful dieter knows, you do much better when you record every bit of your consumption.

If you have out-of-control spending or bad debt problems, I can sympathize. I felt ashamed and powerless. But making a phone call marked a crucial first step for me. At MMI, there?s no charge for the first counseling session, and once you get a debt management plan, the fees to set it up and maintain it are manageable.

As a non-profit community service organization, MMI has a long history behind it that dates to 1958. In that year, consumer credit card debt didn?t even exist ? hard to believe, eh? American Express issued its first charge card that year, and BankAmericard (now Visa) came along eight years later as the first card that allowed consumers to carry credit balances.

Fast forward to March 2012, when we average $14,517 in credit card debt, according to NerdWallet?s analysis of Federal Reserve statistics. And while that?s down from $16,383 in March 2010, it?s not nearly as low as it should be. I?m guessing that if you?ve read this far, your debt could be much higher.

If so, here?s what to do: Call MMI at 888-441-1744. They?ll answer 24 hours a day, seven days a week. (Don?t confuse the work they do with private ?credit repair? agencies, which often charge exorbitant fees and have dubious track records.)

Also, take heart. If you?re anything like I was, you didn?t get into the mess overnight and it will also take time to dig out. My excavation took two-plus years, and plenty of sacrifices. I ate out less. I limited spending to $40 a week. Amidst all the belt tightening, the band broke up. The rock and roll lifestyle had become too expensive.

Do I have any regrets? I?d rewrite huge parts of my story if I could. But as for telling it to you, I have no reservations whatsoever. If you?re in debt despair for whatever reason in this Great Recession, I want you to know that you?re not alone. Help is available. Redemption is possible.

I believe that with our finances, as in all areas of life, we shouldn?t strive for perfection, but course correction. When I made my mistakes, I was fortunate to learn from them. I?ll never repeat my nightmare again.

Perhaps you feel it?s too late to turn things around. If so, I understand. But there?s another way to look at it: If you start addressing your debt difficulties today, you?ll beat the New Year?s resolution rush by a good two months.

?

Source: http://www.moneyunder30.com/building-up-and-bailing-out-massive-credit-card-debt-my-story

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Sandy takes out 25 pct of cell towers

NEW YORK (AP) ? Superstorm Sandy knocked out a quarter of the cell towers in an area spreading across 10 states, and the situation could get worse, federal regulators said Tuesday.

Many cell towers that are still working are doing so with the help of generators and could run out of fuel before commercial power is restored, the Federal Communications Commission said.

The landline phone network has held up better in the affected area, which stretches from Virginia to Massachusetts, the FCC said, but about a quarter of cable customers are also without service.

The FCC did not have an estimate for the number of people in the affected area.

Call centers for 911 service have held up relatively well, with only a few failures, according to FCC chairman Julius Genachowski. Calls to those centers are being rerouted, but operators may not be getting the automatic location information that 911 centers normally receive.

Sandy left widespread destruction, but the water welling into southern Manhattan drenched one of the world's densest communications nodes, taking out popular websites and forcing telecom carriers to reroute international traffic.

As commercial power was cut to the southern tip of Manhattan on Monday, data centers and facilities of phone companies in the Wall Street area were forced to switch to diesel generators. Data centers that failed to keep running on backup power brought down news and gossip sites Gawker, Huffington Post and many popular New York-based blogs.

Gawker was still down Tuesday afternoon, but Huffington Post was back online. Their webhost, Datagram Inc., said power was out and flooding in their basement was preventing their backup generators from pumping fuel. Internet connectivity from three providers was also down.

Verizon Communications Inc., the biggest phone company in the region, had some of its facilities in downtown Manhattan flooded, shutting down phone and Internet service.

Further uptown, data centers hosted in a "telecom hotel" that spans a whole block and houses Google's New York headquarters were reporting outages as well, apparently because backup power failed when commercial power was cut Monday evening.

Renesys Corp., which monitors the pathways of the Internet, said the storm caused major outages in New Jersey and New York. The city is a major transit point for international telecommunications traffic, and the firm said carriers were scrambling to route traffic around it.

Cablevision Systems Corp., which serves parts of Long Island, New York City and New Jersey, said it's experiencing widespread outages due to the loss of power. The company said it doesn't yet know the extent of outages in New Jersey, which bore the brunt of the storm.

Time Warner Cable Inc., the other big New York-area cable company, said it had no reports of significant damage to its network, but customers without power had no cable service.

AT&T Inc. said there are "issues" in hard-hit areas, and it's in the early stages of checking for damage and restoring service.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/sandy-takes-25-pct-cell-towers-202416056--finance.html

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Mobile service still not fully restored for many

18 hrs.

Suzanne Choney , NBC News

Wireless carriers worked diligently?Tuesday to get their networks back up and running after Sandy struck, but despite that, outages continued for many mobile customers.

About 25 percent of cell towers were knocked out in states hit by the storm, according to the Federal Communications Commission. Putting those pieces back together has not been safe for wireless workers nor?easily doable in heavily flooded areas.

Verizon Wireless, the nation's largest carrier (by subscriber numbers), told NBC News that?in the Northeast, 94 percent of its cell sites are "up and running, and all our switching and data centers are functioning normally."

"The majority of the problems are 'out of service' sites resulting from multiple factors, including telco service disruption, power outages and flooding in low lying areas such as the tip of lower Manhattan," said Debra Lewis,?a Verizon Wireless spokeswoman.

AT&T, the second largest carrier in the U.S., is "experiencing some issues in areas heavily impacted by the storm," spokesman Mark Siegel told NBC News, but, like other carriers,?declined to say at what percent its wireless network is operating in states where Sandy struck.

AT&T?spent part of Tuesday doing an "on-the-ground assessment of our network for damage,?and crews will be working around the clock to restore service. We are deploying personnel and equipment as soon as it is safe to do so," the spokesman said.

Sprint said Tuesday it is "experiencing service impacts in the states affected by Hurricane Sandy and the concurrent winter weather conditions, particularly in the New York tri-state area, Pennsylvania, and parts of New England."

"These impacts are due to loss of commercial power, flooding, loss of cell site backhaul connections, site access and damaging debris," Sprint spokeswoman Crystal Davis said in a statement to NBC News.?

"Weather and safety conditions are still dire in some areas, but our technicians are assessing the damage and servicing sites as they become known to us and as the areas are deemed safe to enter," she said.

"Given the on-going weather conditions, we cannot provide a specific number of impacted customers, but we ask that they remain patient at this time and exercise caution in the aftermath of the recent events."

T-Mobile said late Tuesday that its network is "more than 80 percent operational" in New York City, and "more than 90 percent operational"?in Washington D.C.

"Mobile network engineers are working as quickly as possible to restore service to areas affected by Hurricane Sandy," T-Mobile said in a statement. "Restoration work continues in the harder hit areas of lower Manhattan, Staten Island, Long Island, coastal and Northern New Jersey, Connecticut and portions of Pennsylvania, including Philadelphia."

If you're in an area that was hit by?Sandy, and?getting service on your wireless phone now, the next several days and weeks may be tricky as carriers work on their networks. For some tips on how to preserve battery life and other suggestions, you may want to read this.

Check out Technolog, Gadgetbox, Digital Life and In-Game on?Facebook,?and on?Twitter, follow Suzanne Choney.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/technology/technolog/after-deluge-mobile-service-still-not-fully-restored-many-1C6766243

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Ray Sefo is not just the president of World Series of Fighting, he?s also a fighter

The World Series of Fighting makes its debut on Saturday night, with headliners Andrei Arlovski and Devin Cole in the main event. But while they prep for the weekend's bouts that will air on NBC Sports Network, they also are thinking ahead to the next fights.

Ray Sefo, a kickboxing legend and the president of WSOF, is considering putting himself on the card.

"Absolutely," he joked while in studio with MMAjunkie.com Radio "It's my promotion."

Sefo said it became much more likely after he fielded offers to fight in New Year's Eve in Japan, as well as in March in Australia. While Sefo's WSOF partners weren't initially keen on the idea, the outside offers changed their minds.

"I think they're realizing if I'm still very active, why not have it in their own league," he said. "We just talked about it [four] days ago, and they were like, 'We should talk about that.'"

Sefo is a true veteran of combat sports. Though he is known for his kickboxing, he has also tried boxing and MMA. He worked at Xtreme Couture for years, helping several fighters shore up their striking. It was Sefo who helped Randy Couture prepare for his bout with boxer James Toney.

And now, it might be Sefo who could be a fighter and promoter for the same show. Do you think this is a good idea? Tell us in the comments, on Facebook or Twitter.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/blogs/mma-cagewriter/ray-sefo-not-just-president-world-series-fighting-174708187--mma.html

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The Better Baker: Crockpot Chicken & Dumplings

I combined ideas from two recipes that I knew we would love...one from?BubbleCrumb.com?and the other from?Cooking with Libby. I just adapted the recipes to make them 'our own' and it was sooo yummy.?

And easy!

I love crockpot cooking - and simple recipes!?

This might remind you of that comforting dish - Chicken Pot Pie.?
One of our FAVS!!?

There are options in this recipe...what spices to add or what to use for the dumpling part. ?Libby's recipe used more seasoning...I will give you those measurements in the body of the recipe so you can make it your own too.?
She also used frozen dumplings. ?You can also make your own from scratch if you're inclined to do that, but I used canned biscuits for ease.?

For us, this was the best of both worlds.

CROCKPOT CHICKEN & DUMPLINGS

4-6 boneless skinless chicken breasts?

2 cans cream of chicken soup

enough water to rinse out soup cans

(about 1 c.)?

1 - 15 ozs. can chicken broth

1 tsp. (or more) dried parsley

1 tsp. worchestershire sauce?

4 grands flaky refrigerator biscuits

fresh ground pepper

paprika to taste

Place the chicken in the crockpot; add the butter, chicken soup, water, broth, onions, parsley & worchestershire.?

(Libby made a rub for the chicken with 1/2 Tb. of creole seasoning (which is not hot), 1/2 Tb. of greek seasoning?and 1/4 tsp. rosemary). ?

Cook on high for 4 - 6 hrs. or low for 6 - 8. When chicken is cooked through, shred chicken.(can use 2 forks and do it right inside the crockpot).?

Roll biscuits flat & cut into 9 pieces (or more). Be sure crockpot is on and chicken is hot then add pieces of biscuits to broth, one at a time. Cook for about 45 minutes more. This is a photo of how I cut the biscuits..using a pizza cutter simplifies the process.?

May serve on rice if desired. ?

? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ? ??

Source: http://thebetterbaker.blogspot.com/2012/10/crockpot-chicken-dumplings.html

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Customer service ain't what it used to be ? as a business strategy ...

Previous Post: ManagementSpeak, 10/22/2012 / Next Post: KJRSpeak, 10/29/2012

Wining through great customer service was a great theory. Sadly, it doesn?t seem to be working out that way. Business strategists, beware. IT strategists, take note.

By Bob Lewis | October 29, 2012
Topics: Industry Commentary, Organizational Effectiveness, Process Management and Improvement, Strategy and Tactics | No Comments ?

Entirely Irrelevant but I Just Can?t Stand It department: ?High-paying jobs are available for people who learn how to run a key software program used by retail companies, several executives told Gov. Mark Dayton on Friday. And they?d like to see the state establish a training program.? (?IT execs tout Oracle software, ask state to help train workers,? Adam Belz, StarTribune, 10/26/2012).

Want to bet that next week the same characters will be complaining about too-high tax rates and the need to shrink government? And here?s a surprise: One of the companies making the pitch provides exactly this sort of training.

Speaking of retailers ?

Not Entirely Irrelevant, but Close and I Can?t Stand It Either department: Just last summer Best Buy?s board of directors paid four of its top executives millions of dollars in ?retention bonuses? (?Do retention bribes make sense?? Keep the Joint Running, 7/2/2012).

Here we are, less than four months later, and Hubert Joly, Best Buy?s new CEO, has provided an exit-door instruction manual (?Don?t let it hit you in the glutes on your way out of it?) to three of the four executives bribed by the board to stay.

I don?t know whether Joly made the decision for the right reasons, the wrong reasons, or no reasons at all. It does seem likely the executives whose names are all over Best Buy?s current mess aren?t likely to be the right ones to guide it out of its current mess.

I?m skeptical, though, that Joly is the right person to guide it, either. He comes out of the hospitality industry, and is emphasizing improved hospitality (read ?customer service?) at Best Buy as its path to success. And like it or not, (I don?t), customer service seems to have fallen by the wayside as a business strategy.

Consider air travel. Do you choose the carrier that provides the best flying experience? Pay for the first-class upgrade? Or buy the cheapest ticket? Since industry deregulation began, ticket prices have fallen more than 40% according to the Air Transport Association, while the air travel experience has become 247% more unpleasant, according to everyone I know who travels a lot.

Want something more provably quantitative? Economy-class seats are 17? to 18? wide. The average male human is 21.7? wide. Do the math.

More math: Women are 15? wide on average, so the airlines are causing men to victimize women by overlapping into their seat space, whether we want to or not.

Next consider Pricegrabber.com. It?s quite successful; all it does is let you comparison shop so you can buy from the lowest-price provider that isn?t likely to swindle you.

But this is all business-to-consumer ? B2C for we acronym-besotted denizens of the 21^st century. How about B2B? My one-word answer: China.

Before the advent of the world wide web, business supply chain theory focused on forming stable, long-term, trust-based relationships with suppliers. Now it focuses on shopping for the low-cost provider.

Some high-service exceptions remain. The Apple Store, for example, is legendary for its superb customer support. Bose has a similar reputation; I experienced its reality personally some years back. Apple and Bose can afford great support through a simple expedient: They don?t have to discount, or at least, they don?t have to discount so much that their margins are squeezed.

Quite the opposite: Apple and Bose products are perceived to be unique. For plenty of consumers they have no direct competitors.

Where is this taking most companies? Into a world where price and convenience are what matter most. The customer experience, no matter how phenomenal, will be the tie-breaker, nothing more. It won?t support much in the way of higher prices or better margins.

Which loops us back to Best Buy and Hubert Joly. If price and convenience are what companies win on, shouldn?t Joly be focusing on making Best Buy the best buy again, like it used to be?

Here?s why this all matters to you as an IT leader: Like it or not, our primary job in most companies is going to continue to be what it? has been for decades ? helping to keep incremental costs as low as possible in every part of the business.

All that other stuff ? business intelligence, improved decision-making, participation in strategy and so on? That still matters. It still matters a lot.

But it?s the surround, not the core, or at least, that?s how it is and will be everywhere IT supports businesses that win on price and convenience.

Sadly, that appears to be a growing fraction of the total.

---

Source: http://www.weblog.keepthejointrunning.com/?p=4918

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Dustin Drake Sent Home for Outfit on Breast Cancer Awareness ...

Dustin Drake, left, poses in his ?Pink Day? outfit. (Photo: CBS11)

A Texas student was reportedly sent home from school for his boisterous outfit at an annual ?Pink Day? in honor of breast cancer on Friday.? Having lost his mother to the disease last year, 17-year-old Dustin Drake went head to toe in a bright pink wig, pink glasses, a pink shirt, pink tutu, pink knee-high socks, and pink shoes with the Susan B. Komen label.

?Everything was pink,? he summarized. ??[Breast cancer awareness] close to my heart, the way I feel about it.?

But school administrators objected to the outfit, and according to CBS11, pulled Drake out of class and called his father.

?My reaction was a little of disgust toward the school district that they would have a Pink Out and then send people home that were above their standard,? Ben Drake, the boy?s father commented.

Dustin Drakes speaks to CBS11 about the significance of his outfit. (Photo: CBS11)

The day is particularly special for the teen because ?Pink Day? fell just three days before his mother died last year, he said.? At the time, he wore the exact same wild outfit in an attempt to cheer her up.

?To me, it?s probably the last thing she saw,? Drake told CBS11 with emotion.? ?Battling cancer is all a mind game. You have to stay strong in your head to be strong in your body.?

School administrators from Red Oak High School, however, remained firm.

?Students and staff were given the option to elect to wear jeans and a pink t-shirt,? a statement read.? They added that they were aware of how the boy?s mother died, but that he wasn?t the only one punished for the garment violation, and that parents were allowed to bring approved clothing to school.

Watch CBS11?s report, below:

?

Related:

Source: http://www.theblaze.com/stories/fair-boy-whose-mother-died-of-breast-cancer-sent-home-for-going-overboard-on-awareness-costume/

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Sandy: East Coast braces for epic hurricane, ?life-threatening? storm surge

Waves crash into a pier in Nags Head, N.C., Oct. 27, 2012. (Gerry Broome/AP)

[UPDATED: 8:00 p.m. ET]

"Superstorm." "The Perfect Storm." "Frankenstorm."

Whatever you want to call it, the East Coast is bracing for Hurricane Sandy, a "rare hybrid storm" that is expected to bring a life-threatening storm surge to the mid-Atlantic coast, Long Island Sound and New York harbor, forecasters say, with winds expected to be at or near hurricane force when it makes landfall sometime on Monday.

According to the National Hurricane Center, the Category 1 hurricane was centered about 280 miles southeast of Cape Hatteras, N.C., and 485 miles south of New York City early Sunday, carrying maximum sustained winds of 75 mph and moving northeast at 15 mph.

[Slideshow: Latest photos from Hurricane Sandy]

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg ordered the immediate, mandatory evacuation for low-lying coastal areas, including Coney Island, the Rockaways, Brighton Beach, Red Hook and some parts of lower Manhattan along the East River.

"If you don't evacuate, you're not just putting your own life at risk," Mayor Bloomberg said at a news conference Sunday. "You're endangering first responders who may have to rescue you."

New Jersey Governor Chris Christie's message for residents was a bit more blunt. "Don't be stupid," Christie said Sunday afternoon, announcing the suspension of the state's transit system beginning at 12:01 a.m. Monday.

Earlier, New York Governor Andrew Cuomo announced the suspension of all MTA service--including subways, buses, Long Island Railroad and Metro North--beginning at 7 p.m. Sunday. New York City Public Schools will be closed on Monday, the mayor said. The New York Stock Exchange said its trading floor will be closed on Monday, too--the first such shutdown in 27 years, according to the Wall Street Journal.

[Related: Superstorm could impact 60 million]

Sandy is expected to continue on a parallel path along the mid-Atlantic coast later Sunday before making a sharp turn toward the northwest and southern New Jersey coastline on Monday--with the Jersey Shore and New York City in its projected path.

But the path is not necessarily the problem.

"Don't get fixated on a particular track," the Associated Press said. "Wherever it hits, the rare behemoth storm inexorably gathering in the eastern U.S. will afflict a third of the country with sheets of rain, high winds and heavy snow."

(FEMA)

A tropical storm warning has been issued between Cape Fear to Duck, N.C., while hurricane watches and high-wind warnings are in effect from the Virginia to Massachusetts. The hurricane-force winds extend 175 miles from the epicenter of the storm, while tropical storm-force winds extend 500 miles--or roughly 1,000 miles end to end, making Sandy one of the biggest storms to ever hit the East Coast.

"We're looking at impact of greater than 50 to 60 million people," Louis Uccellini, head of environmental prediction for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, told the Associated Press.

"The size of this alone, affecting a heavily populated area, is going to be history making," Jeff Masters wrote on the Weather Underground blog.

President Barack Obama received a briefing on the storm at Federal Emergency Management Agency headquarters in Washington on Sunday. "My main message to everybody involved is that we have to take this seriously," President Obama said. "[We will] respond big and respond fast."

[Also read: Big storm scrambles presidential race schedules]

"I can be as cynical as anyone," Christie said on Saturday, announcing a state of emergency. "But when the storm comes, if it's as bad as they're predicting, you're going to wish you weren't as cynical as you otherwise might have been."

Meanwhile, emergency evacuations were being mulled by state officials in Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire and even Maine.

In Virginia, Governor Bob McDonnell said 20,000 homes there had already reported power outages.

(Weather.com)

"This is not a coastal threat alone," said FEMA director Craig Fugate said during a media briefing early Sunday. "This is a very large area."

Forecasters also fear the combination of storm surge, high tide and heavy rain--between 3 and 12 inches in some areas--could be life-threatening for coastal residents.

According to the National Hurricane Center summary, coastal water levels could rise anywhere between 1 and 12 feet from North Carolina to Cape Cod, depending on the timing of the "peak surge." A surge of 6 to 11 feet is forecast for Long Island Sound and Raritan Bay, including New York Harbor.

The storm surge in New York Harbor during Hurricane Irene in September 2011, forecasters noted, was four feet.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/blogs/lookout/sandy-hurricane-east-coast-nyc-forecast-142549538.html

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PHOTO: Is Mila Kunis Pregnant?

It's not a real Hollywood relationship until the baby rumors start!

Source: http://www.ivillage.com/mila-kunis-pregnant/1-a-497564?dst=iv%3AiVillage%3Amila-kunis-pregnant-497564

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Shanghai banking regulator says steel trade loans under control

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Badminton: "Facebook me!" Chong Wei invites fans to wedding

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Writing cover letters and possibly editing resume | Academic Writing ...

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I have many transferable skills and looking for several positions in different fields. I need someone to write sound cover letters for me that will emphasize my skills and draw from my past experiences.
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In A Shift From 2008 Race, Obama's Hush On Climate

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In A Shift From 2008 Race, Obama's Hush On Climate
In sharp contrast to his 2008 campaign, President Obama hasn't mentioned climate change on the campaign trail this time around, instead choosing to focus on the economic side of clean energy rather than the climate change side.

Source: NPR
Posted on: Friday, Oct 26, 2012, 9:51am
Views: 5

Source: http://www.labspaces.net/124825/In_A_Shift_From______Race__Obama_s_Hush_On_Climate

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Efforts to mitigate climate change must target energy efficiency

Public release date: 26-Oct-2012
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Lisa Horton
l.horton@uea.ac.uk
44-016-035-92764
University of East Anglia

Much more must be done to develop energy efficient cars, buildings and domestic appliances to address climate change according to new research from the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research at the University of East Anglia

Much more must be done to develop energy efficient cars, buildings and domestic appliances to address climate change according to new research from the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research at the University of East Anglia.

A report published today in Nature Climate Change shows that twice as much effort is being spent on developing energy supply technologies - such as new power stations - than is spent on improving the efficiency with which energy is used.

The research shows that efficient end-use technologies have the potential to contribute large emission reductions and provide higher social returns on investment - so the imbalance in current innovation efforts must be redressed to mitigate climate change.

Dr Charlie Wilson, of the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research at UEA and an affiliated researcher with the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), led the study with an international team of scientists from Austria and the USA.

They found that innovation efforts directed by public institutions, policies, and resources allocated overwhelmingly favour energy supply technologies. But this is at the expense of efficiency in energy end-use where the potential gains are higher.

Dr Wilson said: "About two-thirds of all public innovation efforts are directed toward energy supply technologies. It is vital that innovations in renewable energy supply continue, but the imbalance in spending needs to be redressed urgently to mitigate climate change. Evidence strongly suggests that energy end-use and efficiency currently stand as the most effective ways to mitigate climate change."

The new study assesses energy technology innovation systematically and quantifies the relative emphasis placed on energy supply technologies versus the end-use of energy.

The researchers considered three desirable outcomes of energy innovation - the potential for greenhouse gas emission reductions, broader social, environmental and energy security benefits, and the potential for technological improvements.

They found that efficiency in energy end-use outperforms supply technologies in all three areas. They occupy a greater share of energy system investments and capacity, and engage higher levels of private sector activity, they offer higher potential cost reductions, and they provide higher social returns and higher emission reduction potentials.

But the study shows a disproportionately high focus of effort invested in innovation in energy supply technologies right across the energy research and development sector.

Study co-author Prof Arnulf Grubler, of the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) and Yale University, said: "Efficiency gets short shrift in both public energy research and development, and in private market investments alike.

"In contrast, improvements in technologies like domestic appliances and more energy-efficient transport are underrepresented given their potential for mitigating climate change."

According to the International Energy Agency, the total public sector research and development spend for all energy end-use and efficiency innovations from 1974 was around $38 billion.

"This is less than the $41 billion spent on nuclear fusion alone - a single, and highly uncertain energy supply option which is still to make any contribution to a low carbon future," added Prof Grubler.

Meanwhile subsidies for fossil fuels, estimated at around $500 billion, dwarf innovation investments of around $160billion into non-fossil fuel energy.

Dr Wilson said: "Directed innovation efforts are trying to push energy supply technologies to mitigate climate change into a market that's already heavily occupied by subsidised incumbents.

"The multitude of small-scale innovations that improve end-use efficiency often go unnoticed because they don't have the glamour of solar panels and wind turbines, and they don't benefit from the well-established institutions, powerful market interests, and political influence that support supply technologies such as fossil fuels, nuclear, and wind and solar power. Yet end-use efficiency innovations have more potential and provide higher social returns on investments."

###

'Marginalization of end-use technologies in energy innovation for climate protection' is published in Nature Climate Change on October 26, 2012.

The study was conducted by an international team of researchers including Charlie Wilson from the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research, at UEA (UK), Arnulf Grubler from IIASA (Austria) and the School of Forestry and Environmental Studies at Yale University, (USA) Kelly Sims Gallagher from the Fletcher School at Tufts University (USA), and Gregory Nemet from the La Follette School of Public Affairs at the University of Wisconsin (USA). It builds on a collaboration and research carried under the auspices of the Global Energy Assessment (GEA).

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Public release date: 26-Oct-2012
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Lisa Horton
l.horton@uea.ac.uk
44-016-035-92764
University of East Anglia

Much more must be done to develop energy efficient cars, buildings and domestic appliances to address climate change according to new research from the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research at the University of East Anglia

Much more must be done to develop energy efficient cars, buildings and domestic appliances to address climate change according to new research from the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research at the University of East Anglia.

A report published today in Nature Climate Change shows that twice as much effort is being spent on developing energy supply technologies - such as new power stations - than is spent on improving the efficiency with which energy is used.

The research shows that efficient end-use technologies have the potential to contribute large emission reductions and provide higher social returns on investment - so the imbalance in current innovation efforts must be redressed to mitigate climate change.

Dr Charlie Wilson, of the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research at UEA and an affiliated researcher with the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA), led the study with an international team of scientists from Austria and the USA.

They found that innovation efforts directed by public institutions, policies, and resources allocated overwhelmingly favour energy supply technologies. But this is at the expense of efficiency in energy end-use where the potential gains are higher.

Dr Wilson said: "About two-thirds of all public innovation efforts are directed toward energy supply technologies. It is vital that innovations in renewable energy supply continue, but the imbalance in spending needs to be redressed urgently to mitigate climate change. Evidence strongly suggests that energy end-use and efficiency currently stand as the most effective ways to mitigate climate change."

The new study assesses energy technology innovation systematically and quantifies the relative emphasis placed on energy supply technologies versus the end-use of energy.

The researchers considered three desirable outcomes of energy innovation - the potential for greenhouse gas emission reductions, broader social, environmental and energy security benefits, and the potential for technological improvements.

They found that efficiency in energy end-use outperforms supply technologies in all three areas. They occupy a greater share of energy system investments and capacity, and engage higher levels of private sector activity, they offer higher potential cost reductions, and they provide higher social returns and higher emission reduction potentials.

But the study shows a disproportionately high focus of effort invested in innovation in energy supply technologies right across the energy research and development sector.

Study co-author Prof Arnulf Grubler, of the International Institute for Applied Systems Analysis (IIASA) and Yale University, said: "Efficiency gets short shrift in both public energy research and development, and in private market investments alike.

"In contrast, improvements in technologies like domestic appliances and more energy-efficient transport are underrepresented given their potential for mitigating climate change."

According to the International Energy Agency, the total public sector research and development spend for all energy end-use and efficiency innovations from 1974 was around $38 billion.

"This is less than the $41 billion spent on nuclear fusion alone - a single, and highly uncertain energy supply option which is still to make any contribution to a low carbon future," added Prof Grubler.

Meanwhile subsidies for fossil fuels, estimated at around $500 billion, dwarf innovation investments of around $160billion into non-fossil fuel energy.

Dr Wilson said: "Directed innovation efforts are trying to push energy supply technologies to mitigate climate change into a market that's already heavily occupied by subsidised incumbents.

"The multitude of small-scale innovations that improve end-use efficiency often go unnoticed because they don't have the glamour of solar panels and wind turbines, and they don't benefit from the well-established institutions, powerful market interests, and political influence that support supply technologies such as fossil fuels, nuclear, and wind and solar power. Yet end-use efficiency innovations have more potential and provide higher social returns on investments."

###

'Marginalization of end-use technologies in energy innovation for climate protection' is published in Nature Climate Change on October 26, 2012.

The study was conducted by an international team of researchers including Charlie Wilson from the Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research, at UEA (UK), Arnulf Grubler from IIASA (Austria) and the School of Forestry and Environmental Studies at Yale University, (USA) Kelly Sims Gallagher from the Fletcher School at Tufts University (USA), and Gregory Nemet from the La Follette School of Public Affairs at the University of Wisconsin (USA). It builds on a collaboration and research carried under the auspices of the Global Energy Assessment (GEA).

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

?

AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Source: http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2012-10/uoea-etm102212.php

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Aspirin Use Can Prolong Lives of People Diagnosed With Colorectal ...

Aspirin can help extend lives of people who have colorectal cancer, but only of those who have a certain genetic mutation in their tumor, reports the?Harvard Gazette.

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Physicians have prescribed aspirin to people who have colorectal cancers for long, but not all patients got the same benefits of using the drug. The current research explains that the increased efficacy of the drug seen in some cancer survivors is due to a single genetic mutation in the tumor. Researchers say that people without the genetic mutation can be given aspirin, but the drug won't be as effective.

The study was conducted on 900 patients who were diagnosed with colorectal cancer. Use of aspirin was associated with longer survival period in people who had tumors with specific mutation in the gene PIK3CA. About 97 percent of these people lived five years or longer after using aspirin compared to some 74 percent of people who weren't using aspirin.

"Our results suggest that aspirin can be particularly effective in prolonging survival among patients whose colorectal cancer tests positive for a mutation in PIK3CA. For the first time, we have a genetic marker that can help doctors determine which colorectal cancers are likely to respond to a particular therapy," said the study's senior author, Shuji Ogino of Dana-Farber, Brigham and Women's Hospital, and the Harvard School of Public Health.

Ogino added that further research is needed to verify the study results.

Colorectal cancers - cancers that affect colon and rectum - are the fourth most common cancer in both men and women in the U.S. According to estimates by the National Cancer Institute, 103,170 new cancers of colon and 40,290 of rectum will be diagnosed in the year 2012.

A study published in the?Lancet?last year had said that people who have genetically susceptible to the cancer (where the cancer runs in the family) can reduce their risk of the cancer by using 600 mg of aspirin per day for 25 months. Another study published in?Gastroenterology?in 2008 said that men can lower the risk of colorectal cancer by using aspirin continuously for 6 years with about 14 tablets per week, a really high dose that may lead to other health problems.

Source: http://www.medicaldaily.com/articles/12875/20121025/aspirin-prolong-lives-people-diagnosed-colorectal-cancer.htm

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Officials: suicide bomber kills 36 in Afghanistan

Afghans carry the body of a suicide attack victim at the hospital in Maymana, Faryab province, north west of Kabul, Afghanistan, Friday, Oct. 26, 2012. A suicide bomber blew himself up outside a mosque in northern Afghanistan on Friday, killing dozens of people and wounding scores, government and hospital officials said. (AP Photo/Qawtbuddin Khan)

Afghans carry the body of a suicide attack victim at the hospital in Maymana, Faryab province, north west of Kabul, Afghanistan, Friday, Oct. 26, 2012. A suicide bomber blew himself up outside a mosque in northern Afghanistan on Friday, killing dozens of people and wounding scores, government and hospital officials said. (AP Photo/Qawtbuddin Khan)

Afghans offer Eid al-Adha prayers outside a mosque in the outskirt of Jalalabad east of Kabul, Afghanistan, Friday, Oct. 26, 2012. Eid al-Adha is a religious festival celebrated by Muslims worldwide to commemorate the willingness of Prophet Ibrahim to sacrifice his son as an act of obedience to God. (AP Photo/Rahmat Gul)

An Afghan boy, who lost his father in a suicide attack, walks around a hospital in a daze in Maymana, Faryab province north west of Kabul, Afghanistan, Friday, Oct. 26, 2012. A suicide bomber blew himself up outside a mosque in northern Afghanistan on Friday, killing dozens of people and wounding scores, government and hospital officials said. (AP Photo/Qawtbuddin Khan)

Bodies of suicide attack victims are covered in white cloth in the courtyard of a hospital in Maymana, Faryab province, northwest of Kabul, Afghanistan, Friday, Oct. 26, 2012. A suicide bomber blew himself up outside a mosque in northern Afghanistan on Friday, killing dozens of people and wounding scores, government and hospital officials said. (AP Photo/Qawtbuddin Khan)

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) ? A suicide bomber blew himself up outside a mosque in northern Afghanistan on Friday, killing 36 people and wounding 23, officials said.

The attack in the town of Maymana, capital of northern Faryab province, came as people were gathering at the mosque to celebrate the Eid al-Adha holiday.

Top provincial officials, including the governor and the police chief, were inside the building when the bomber set off his explosives outside, where a large crowd had gathered, officials said. The officials were not hurt, but most of the dead were police officers and soldiers.

"The targets of the bomber were all the officials inside the mosque," Deputy Governor Abdul Satar Barez said. He said the dead included 14 civilians.

"There was blood and dead bodies everywhere," said Khaled, a doctor who was in the mosque at the time of the blast. "It was a massacre," said Khaled, who like many Afghans uses only one name.

Video from the scene showed the motionless bodies of several soldiers and policemen lying next to their vehicles parked on a tree-lined avenue of the city, located about 500 kilometers (300 miles) northwest of Kabul. On the sidewalk, a number of civilians lay along the mosque's outer wall, some writhing and moaning in pain.

It appeared to be the deadliest suicide attack in recent months.

On Sept. 4, 25 civilians were killed and more than 35 wounded in Nanghar province, and on Sept. 1, 12 people were killed and 47 wounded in a suicide attack in Wardak province.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai strongly condemned the attack, saying that those who carried it out were "enemies of Islam and humanity."

He said in a statement that 36 people died in the blast and 23 were injured.

The attack came as Karzai was urging Taliban insurgents "to stop killing other Afghans."

In his Eid al-Adha message to the nation on Friday morning, Karzai called on the insurgents to "stop the destruction of our mosques, hospitals and schools."

The United Nations says that Taliban attacks account for the vast majority of civilian casualties in the 11-year war. The insurgents routinely deny that they are responsible for attacks on civilians, saying they target only foreign troops or members of the Afghan security forces.

On Wednesday, Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar urged his fighters to "pay full attention to the prevention of civilian casualties," saying the enemy was trying to blame them on the insurgents.

Also Friday, the Taliban claimed responsibility for killing two American service members in southern Uruzgan province, in what may have been the latest insider attack against Western troops.

In an emailed statement, Taliban spokesman Yusuf Ahmadi said a member of the Afghan security forces shot the two men the day before, then escaped to join the insurgents.

A spate of insider attacks has undermined trust between international troops and Afghan army and police, further weakened public support for the 11-year war in NATO countries and increased calls for earlier withdrawals.

Maj. Lori Hodge, spokeswoman for U.S. forces in Afghanistan, said on Thursday that authorities were trying to determine whether the latest attacker was a member of the Afghan security forces or an insurgent who donned a government uniform.

It was the second suspected insider attack in two days. On Wednesday, two British troops and an Afghan policeman were gunned down in Helmand province.

Before Thursday's assault, 53 foreigners attached to the U.S.-led coalition had been killed in attacks by Afghan soldiers or police this year.

___

Associated Press writer Slobodan Lekic in Kabul contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2012-10-26-AS-Afghanistan/id-393fa188d8ce4d0aba0c94c1b0985e7a

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Obama talks Trump, debates, baseball on 'Tonight'

President Barack Obama talks with Jay Leno, right, during a commercial break during the taping of his appearance on NBC?s The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Wednesday, Oct. 24, 2012, in Burbank, Calif. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

President Barack Obama talks with Jay Leno, right, during a commercial break during the taping of his appearance on NBC?s The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Wednesday, Oct. 24, 2012, in Burbank, Calif. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

In this photo provided by NBC, President Barack Obama appears on "The Tonight Show" with Jay Leno Wednesday, Oct. 24, 2012, in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/NBC, Paul Drinkwater)

President Barack Obama is seen with Jay Leno, right, during a commercial break during the taping of his appearance on NBC?s The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Wednesday, Oct. 24, 2012, in Burbank, Calif. (AP Photo/Pablo Martinez Monsivais)

BURBANK, Calif. (AP) ? What's real estate mogul Donald Trump got against President Barack Obama? The president says it's an old grudge that goes back ? way, way back ? to their childhood days in Kenya.

"We had constant run-ins on the soccer fields," Obama told "Tonight Show" host Jay Leno during a tongue-in-cheek knock on Trump Wednesday night. "He wasn't very good and resented it. When we finally moved to America, I thought it would be over."

Trump became a leading voice in the "birther" movement, the discredited but very much alive conspiracy theory that Obama was actually born outside of the U.S. and isn't constitutionally eligible to be president. Earlier Wednesday, Trump offered to donate $5 million to the president's charity of choice if he would release his college and passport records.

Wisecracks aside, Obama told Leno that he has never actually met Trump.

When Leno asked Obama if he was glad the presidential debates are over, the president responded, "You know, I was sort of getting the hang of it." Obama, whose performance in the first debate was widely panned, said he didn't do an effective job of energetically outlining the contrast of visions between him and Republican Mitt Romney.

Part of the problem with a debate, Obama said, is that it's not a natural way of communicating ? having an argument with someone as you sit next to him.

"Well," Leno said, "you're married."

Obama shot back: "But the difference is, with Michelle, I just concede every point."

Asked which team he was backing in the World Series, the Detroit Tigers or the San Francisco Giants, Obama managed to get in a dig at Romney: "I will say, I've spent a lot of time in Detroit lately, and I didn't want to let go Detroit go bankrupt. So in this particular World Series, I might be a little partial."

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/4e67281c3f754d0696fbfdee0f3f1469/Article_2012-10-25-US-Obama-Leno/id-3263da5b178947c992bcbc7af9abcaa6

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Sudan says Israeli jets bombed arms factory

EPA

A picture made available on Oct. 24, 2012 shows a fire following an explosion at Yarmouk military factory in Khartoum, Sudan. The fire has been contained, but it is still unclear what triggered the explosion.

By NBC News staff and wire services

Sudan on Wednesday blamed Israel for a huge explosion and fire at an arms factory in Khartoum that killed two people. Israel's defense minister declined to comment.

"Four military planes attacked the?Yarmouk?plant. ... We believe that Israel is behind it," Sudan Information Minister Ahmed?Belal?Osman told reporters, adding that the planes appeared to approach the site from the east.

Asked by Israel's Channel Two News about Sudan's accusations, Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak said: "There is nothing I can say about this subject."

Similarly, U.S. officials who spoke with NBC News on condition of anonymity, said, "We have no comment. We can?t help you on this.?

Some Pentagon officials suggested that the explosion could have been accidental and said there were ?conflicting reports? about its cause.

---

Sudan, which analysts say is used as an arms-smuggling route to the Hamas-controlled Gaza Strip via neighboring Egypt, has blamed Israel for similar blasts in the past, but Israel either has refused to comment or said it neither admitted or denied involvement.

The powerful explosion at the?Yarmouk Military Industrial Complex in southern Khartoum rocked Sudan's capital?before dawn Wednesday, sending detonating ammunition flying through the air and causing panic, Sudan's official news agency and local media reports said. Nearby buildings were damaged by the blast, their roofs blown off and their windows shattered, according to the reports.

New fighting in Sudan's Darfur region, several killed

"Sudan reserves the right to strike back at Israel," Osman said, saying two citizens had been killed and that the plant had been partially destroyed. Another person was seriously injured, he added.

Officials said earlier there were no reports of deaths, although some residents had suffered from smoke inhalation.

Around 300 people gathered in the evening at the courtyard of a government building where the Sudanese Cabinet was meeting in an emergency session, shouting "Death to Israel" and "Remove Israel from the map."

Conflict displaces 900,000 in Sudan border areas

"Israel is a country of injustice that needs to be deterred," Vice President Ali Osman Taha, standing next to President Omar Hassan al-Bashir, told the crowd. "This attack only strengthens our firmness."

The governor of Khartoum state initially had ruled out any "external" cause for the blast, but officials later showed journalists a video from the vast site showing a huge crater next to two destroyed buildings and what appeared to be a rocket lying on the ground.

Sudan forces burned, looted remote border village: activists

Osman said an analysis of rocket debris and other material had shown that the attack had been engineered by Israel, which Sudan views as an enemy.

Defense Minister Gen. Abdul Rahim Mohamed Hussein and senior officials visited the site of the explosion and held an emergency meeting with top army generals while security forces sealed off the area surrounding the complex and halted traffic.

Israel kills 3 Hamas militants after Qatari emir leaves Gaza

In 2009, a convoy carrying weapons in northeastern Sudan was targeted from the air, killing dozens. It was widely believed that Israel carried out the attack on weapons shipment headed for Palestinian militants in the Gaza Strip. Israel never confirmed or denied that. Sudanese parliamentarians denied that weapons were transported in the area.

In 1998, the United States used cruise missiles to knock out a Khartoum pharmaceutical factory suspected of links to al-Qaida in the aftermath of the terror group's bombings of U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania that killed 224 people.

Sudan has long been a major hub for al-Qaida militants and a transit for weapon smugglers and African migrant traffickers.

NBC News' Senior Investigative Producer Robert Windrem, the Associated Press and Reuters contributed to this report.

More world stories from NBC News:

Follow World News from NBCNews.com on Twitter and Facebook

Source: http://worldnews.nbcnews.com/_news/2012/10/24/14675496-sudan-says-israeli-jets-bombed-arms-factory?lite

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Fifth-grader scores big with idea for pink penalty flags | WTVR.com ...

(CNN) ? If your screen looks a little girly on Sunday during the Miami Dolphins-New York Jets game, do not adjust your television.

Referees will be using pink penalty flags at MetLife Stadium during the final weekend of Breast Cancer Awareness month.

Dante Cano, the fifth-grader from Marlboro, New Jersey, came up with the idea ? and he went straight to the top.

In a letter to NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell, Cano wrote, ?My name is Dante Cano. I am 11 years old and I am from Marlboro, New Jersey. I wanted to know if you could use my idea of pink penalty flags in October for breast cancer awareness.?

He signed it, ?Please write back.?

Goodell did better than write Dante back ? he implemented the 11-year old?s idea and invited Dante?s family to the game to present the pink penalty flags to the officials before the game.

Goodell said he is looking forward to meeting Dante.

?Sometimes the simplest ideas can be the best,? Goodell said in a statement. ?I applaud Dante for sending his recommendation.?

This is the fourth year the National Football League NFL has participated in a national breast cancer awareness campaign in association with the American Cancer Society.

Games have featured pink game apparel, on-field ribbon stencils, special game balls and a pink coin.

?

Source: http://wtvr.com/2012/10/24/fifth-grader-scores-big-with-idea-for-pink-penalty-flags/

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Tesla CEO Elon Musk Fires Back At Angry Auto Dealers

Under heavy criticism from car dealers, Tesla CEO Elon Musk fired back this week in a blog post published on his company's website.

Dealers filed suit against the electric carmaker last week for opening company-owned dealerships. Tesla?s stores, the dealers allege, violate state laws designed to prevent automakers from opening company dealerships that compete with independently-owned franchises.

In a blog post published Monday, Musk said his stores don't break any rules and the firm isn't seeking changes to state laws. The Silicon Valley entrepreneur also shed light on why he chose to pursue Tesla-owned stores, rather than the traditional franchise dealership model.

?Existing franchise dealers,? he wrote, ?have a fundamental conflict of interest between selling gasoline cars, which constitute the vast majority of their business, and selling the new technology of electric cars.?

?It is impossible for [existing franchise dealers] to explain the advantages of going electric without simultaneously undermining their traditional business,? Musk added. ?This would leave the electric car without a fair opportunity to make its case to an unfamiliar public.?

Tesla now operates 17 stores in 10 states, with another six scheduled to open this fall, according to Automotive News. The company has said its locations don?t allow consumers to buy vehicles on-site; they merely educate passersby on electric cars and give out Tesla?s website, where drivers can reserve one.

Bob O?Koniewski, executive vice president of the Massachusetts State Automobile Dealers Association, told Automotive News that Tesla?s current model, if successful, could encourage other electric car makers to create a separate system that bypasses dealers. ?It?s extremely problematic,? he said in an interview with the newspaper.

The National Automobile Dealers Associated said in a press conference Tuesday that it will not challenge Tesla's stores. "We support the theme of the franchise and would prefer that the manufacturer not sell direct, but it will be up to the states to pursue whatever franchise laws they have,? David Westcott, chairman of NADA, was quoted as saying in a Bloomberg report.

As the Wall Street Journal notes, Tesla isn?t the first auto company to bump up against franchise car dealers, who have ?built a legal and political fortress around their businesses strong enough to survive almost any attack this side of Armageddon.?

Scott Painter had to make major changes to his car-shopping site, Truecar.com, after the service started eroding profits at independent dealerships around the country and, in late 2011, drew the ire of powerful auto dealer trade groups, according to the WSJ.

Realizing what he?s up against, Musk?s lengthy defense of Tesla?s stores Monday ended on a somewhat lofty note.

?At Tesla, we will continue to focus on the future and the future of your children, grandchildren and their children,? he wrote. ?In order to accelerate the adoption of EVs, we must be able to create and execute a business model that allows us to advance the knowledge of EVs in a convenient, accessible, no pressure environment.?

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/23/tesla-ceo-elon-musk-to-auto-dealers_n_2006805.html

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