Gary Peterson: Lebron James Coming Home -- Someone Call Security

They're stacking sandbags in Cleveland. They're boarding windows. They're calling in the National Guard. Some residents swear they have seen the Bat Signal projected on clouds above the city.

Nothing like a visit from native son LeBron James to get the locals in a dither.

You know the story. Local resident makes good. Local resident carries local team as far as his back will allow. Local resident takes his talents to South Beach. Area fans express?

Nevermind. Now James and his new Miami Heat best friends are preparing to visit the Cleveland Cavaliers on Thursday. It's a professional call, his first since announcing his infamous a little more than 20 weeks ago.

Clevelanders are?

Nevermind. a member of the Cavaliers organization told ESPN the Magazine's Chris Broussard.

After literally minutes of exhaustive research sorry, we have trees to trim and lights to hang Sunday Playground historians have concluded there has never been anything quite like this in professional sports in this country. Not when you consider how closely James, an Akron native, aligned himself with the Cleveland region; how well he played for the Cavaliers; the galling manner in which he announced his intent to walk away from the team; and the riotous ill will he left in his wake.

The Cavaliers plan to have extra security at Thursday's game. Banners bearing inappropriate messages will be confiscated. So will offensive apparel; fans will be given a Cavs T-shirt to wear instead.

The San Francisco Giants recently reminded us of how synergy between a team and its fans can uplift the spirits of an entire region. Even casual fans got carried away during the team's postseason romp.

Now we are reminded that the blade can cut two ways. There are people in Brooklyn who still resent the late Walter O'Malley for moving the Dodgers to Los Angeles. It was an ugly scene the night when Jason Giambi returned to the Oakland Coliseum for the first time wearing Yankees pinstripes. Twenty years ago, it might not have been a great idea for Al Davis to walk through Jack London Square without an escort.

Just as area Raiders fans re-embraced Davis and his team, perhaps Northern Ohio someday will make amends with James. But there's work to be done between now and then.

Those sandbags, for starters. They don't fill themselves.

Contact Gary Peterson at gpeterson[@]bayareanewsgroup.com.

Pearl Harbor Day, 1941: A Bronx Family Dinner Interrupted By Attack

It was a Sunday afternoon in the Bronx 69 years ago. My mother and father and my kid brother, Paul, were seated at the dining room table having dinner. The phone rang

My beat friend, Stanley, was on the line. He exclaimed,

I turned on the old Bausch and Lomb radio in the large brown cabinet in the living room. On NBC, H.V. Kaltenborn, in his clipped, dramatic cadence, was summarizing the known facts at that hour, about 3:30 p.m. EST. There had been an attack. At first details were scarce.

That's what I remember. I was 17. My friend, Stan, was also 17. Little did we imagine that, a little more than two years later, we would both be going into battle. He would be in the Air Force, in England flying bombing missions over Europe. I would be a naval officer on a ship in the Pacific.

New York was as excited as we were. The following day, Monday, December 8, the recruiting office down on Church Street was overwhelmed with men trying to enlist. The FBI sent out guards to protect the reservoirs, Kensico and Croton, and the Brooklyn Navy Yard, where the battleships Iowa and Missouri were under construction. About 6,000 people signed up to be air raid wardens and in Times Square, crowds watched bulletins anxiously.

Fiorella LaGuardia, the flamboyant mayor of New York, said,

The memories come flooding back the almost feverish activity down at New York University, where I was a student. Before the attack, there had been angry debates between students who wanted to help Britain and the allies and those who wanted to stay neutral.

The leftist American Student Union was among those who wanted to stay neutral until Soviet Russia was attacked and they changed their tune. They campaigned to After Pearl Harbor, the tumultuous political landscape at NYU quieted down. We were all concentrated on winning the war and many of the upper classmen enlisted immediately.

Most vividly I remember Roosevelt's speech to a join session of Congress on December 8, 1941. The whole world was listening, including the Pressman family, the students at NYU and all the people of the Bronx.

"Yesterday, December 7, 1941 a day which will live in infamy the United States of America was suddenly and deliberately" attacked by naval and air forces of the Empire of Japan.

The words resonated throughout New York and all America. The country was united as never before in my lifetime. Millions of young men and women and the whole nation were ready to follow a president we revered. And, in a multitude of war songs, we expressed our patriotic devotion.

One song, which by today's standards sounds politically incorrect, began with the words, "

December 7, 1941. For those of us old enough to remember it was a day we never forget.

First Published: Dec 6, 2010 12:42 PM EST

Cartoon Pictures For Facebook Profile:change For Chidren

CARTOON PICTURES FOR FACEBOOK PROFILE:CHANGE FOR CHIDREN:FACEBOOK CARTOON CHARACTER PROFILE PICTURE fever is running all over the FACEBOOK SITE.FACEBOOK users are changing their Facebook profile picture in to a cartoon character to memorize their childhood.Placing of FACEBOOK CARTOON CHARACTER PROFILE PIC is a campaign by Facebook in order to avoid violence against children.

Social Networking sites like FACEBOOK and Twitter are popular all over the world.FACEBOOK AND TWITTER are the best ways to share the things instantly.From youngsters to old people every one are willing to change their profile picture in to cartoon pictures.

Changing of Facebook profile picture in to cartoon picture will be untill December,6th,Monday.This change is to see no human face on Facebook profile picture on December 6th and to memorize the childhood favorite cartoon character.so,what are you waiting for..change your FACEBOOK PROFILE PIC IN TO CARTOON PIC and join in this Facebook campaign

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Facebook Profile Pics: Recipe For Support Or Silliness?

The holiday season for many is a time when the world seems to come together. In front of every store, strangers wave hello's and drop pennies into bright red pots for the Salvation Army. Store clerks send everyone on their way with a cheery Happy Holidays, old friends are remembered, neighbors offered baked treats. There is good cheer and a general feeling of merriness that accompanies the season.

This spirit of togetherness has been felt keenly this weekend as Facebook users responded to a plea to change their profile pictures to those of their favorite characters (even lady Gaga has gotten in on the effort). This for violence against children.

If you ve hopped on this weekends hottest trend of memories and wondered whether your contribution matters, you re not alone. Many other news outlets and online authors have questioned the merits of the effort.

Several reporters have claimed the online campaign may be a hoax, goading children into becoming the friends of online pedophiles because their own profile pics are cartoons. Despite the windstorm of controversy, I happen to think that any issue that brings people together, any campaign that can inspire thousands to overnight take action (even an action as small as changing ones profile picture) is worth our time.

No matter how the Facebook Cartoon Campaign began, I am grateful for it. I m grateful so many people took note of it, showed compassion, took time to remember their own warm memories of childhood, to stand up and say violence against children will not be tolerated.

I m also grateful for the campaign, because it's inspired me this week to be more mindful of my own children. To kiss them a little longer, to squeeze them a little tighter. Because children are precious and they deserve to be safe, loved, and fought for. Especially as we ponder this season of peace.

PEACE ON EARTH COOKIE BUTTONS 1 cup butter, softened 1/3 cup powdered sugar 1/3 cup cornstarch 1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour In a medium bowl, beat all ingredients together. Turn dough onto a piece of parchment paper. Cover with a second piece of parchment and roll dough out until 1/4 inch thick, spray lightly with water if dough begins to dry out. Cut into desired shapes using a small cookie cutter. Bake at 375 degrees for 8-10 minutes, or until slightly browned. Transfer warm cookies to a cooling rack, frost immediately with icing (below).

ICING 1/2 c. melted butter 1/4 c. heavy whipping cream 1-1 1/2 lb. powdered sugar 1/4 tsp. cinnamon extract In a small bowl, combine all ingredients until a smooth, slightly runny icing is formed. Frost warm cookies with warm frosting. Cool. Indulge. COMMENTS: (0) TAGS: facebook cartoon, facebook cartoon characters, facebook cartoon profile pic, facebook cartoon profile pictures, facebook cartoon profile pictures news

'facebook Cartoon Profile Pic' For Child

A campaign stared on Facebook asking people to make Facebook cartoon profile pic, to fight against child abuse. This campaign which started as a game from Greece, on mid of November, took up a more serious turn on December 6th and was famous all across the globe. Mark Zuckerberg, also confirmed the introduction of the campaign make 'Facebook cartoon profile pic'. The campaign has got nearly 90,000 fans in just one day.

The big question is who started this campaign? No non-profit organisation has taken up the responsibility and thus, the good news is that no money is funneled into legitimate organisation. Some websites have claimed British charity NSPCC to be the one to introduce it but they however deny it. NSPCC has posted on Twitter, Although the NSPCC did not originate the childhood cartoon Facebook campaign, we welcome the attention it has brought to the work we do.

Another big question is how does make 'Facebook cartoon profile pic' help to fight against child abuse? Blogger Shayne House said: Facebook cartoon profile pic does not really support the NSPCC unless it inspires or encourages you or someone else to volunteer or donate, which hopefully it will. Did it inspire you? It inspired me to write about it and make a donation.

Insiders have revealed that this campaign seems to have a lot of influence from across the world and their sole aim of 'Facebook cartoon profile pic' was to urge every user of Facebook to remove their profile pic and replace it with a cartoon. How it will help the cause to fight against child abuse still needs to be seen.

Old Cartoon Character Pictures For Facebook From 80's And Manhattan App From ...

Old cartoon character pictures for Facebook from 80's and Manhattan app from iPhone. You will find hundreds of old cartoon character pictures on facebook as profile pictures of Facebook users. Many are bewildered to see so many images as being the profile pics of their friends and kins. But actually these are in response to a campaign to save children's rights.

Meanwhile thanks to growing pressure from same sex supporters Apple removed the Manhattan Declaration app from App Store. The tech giant ditched the anti-gay app from iPhone stores following a massive petition filed by Change.org. The controversial app had frustrated the gay community as well as the supporters across the world.

The app is based on the Manhattan Declaration which strongly condemned the same sex relations. It was initially approved and available in the App Store in October. Since its launch many gay advocates has been questioning Apple position supporting the Christian hostility towards the individual freedom for sex.

The Manhattan Declaration convened by Christian and Catholic leaders had declared both gay marriage and abortion rights as immoral acts. The critics raised the concern over the inclusion of this controversial app under Apple's 4+ rating which means,

Change.org has been campaigning against the app that invites people to join anti-gay and anti-choice campaigns. The Manhattan Declaration app had offered a with four questions, including and Those who responded against the Christian declaration would be scored zero.

The Change.org had forwarded the petition to Apple CEO Steve Jobs urging to remove the app using As the number of petitioners grown up to 7,700 Apple had to remove the app from App store.

"We removed the Manhattan Declaration app from the App Store because it violates our developer guidelines by being offensive to large groups of people," Apple made an official statement on the issue.

Firmaron Convenio Del Proyecto Circuito Aut Dromo Provincial - Regi N Empresa Period

Una importante cantidad de p blico asisti al acto de la firma del Convenio Proyecto Circuito Aut dromo Provincial , llevado a cabo el jueves 2 de diciembre en el Sal n de Acuerdos de la Casa de Gobierno.

Entre los presentes podemos mencionar a funcionarios como Laura Gallucio, presidente del Banco de La Pampa; Santiago Ams ©, subsecretario de Turismo; Alfredo Schanton y Luis Cervellini, diputados provinciales. Asistieron integrantes de las entidades relacionadas al sector tur stico como Jos © Izcue, presidente de la Asociaci n Empresaria Hotelera y Gastron mica de La Pampa; Cristina Nemesio, presidente de la C mara de Turismo; representantes de la C mara Inmobiliaria; C mara de Comercio; Federaci n Pampeana de Automovilismo Deportivo y otros empresarios, dirigentes y prestadores de servicios. Al momento de la firma del Convenio, lo hicieron, por el Gobierno de La Pampa, el Gobernador Oscar Mario Jorge y el Ministro de Obras P blicas Paulo Benvenuto; por la Municipalidad de Toay, el Intendente Ra l Ariel Rojas y concejales y por la Fundaci n Pro-Autodromo el presidente de la misma, Julio De Paz, representando a la Asociaci n Hotelera.

Al finalizar la r brica, el gobernador Jorge agradeci la importante presencia y apoyo de quienes est n acompa ando este emprendimiento y dijo que la firma de ©ste Convenio es para aunar esfuerzos. La Municipalidad de Toay tiene que aprobar el proyecto y la Fundaci n aportar la experiencia adquirida en la formulaci n del proyecto anterior.

Jorge dijo adem's que la entidad nacional Asociaci n Corredores de Turismo de Carretera, est dando todo el apoyo t ©cnico para tener el mejor proyecto posible y que el se or Avent n tiene prometida una visita a Santa Rosa para tal fin. El mandatario provincial dijo tambi ©n que habl con el gobernador de Santiago del Estero, para realizar una visita a el autodr mo de esa provincia, que calculaba que se har a en el transcurso de esta semana. Mencion adem's que este viernes 3 de diciembre queda firmada la escritura del campo comprado para el aut dromo sobre Ruta 14 en Toay. Para finalizar, Jorge expres que con la ayuda y el apoyo de todos los involucrados, esperaba lograr el mejor aut dromo del pa s. (Ver circuito>>)

Macquarie Group Hires Former Bear Stearns Banker Hassen For Oil, Gas Deals

Macquarie Group Ltd. hired Thomas Hassen, a former banker at Bear Stearns Cos. and Credit Suisse Group AG, to be chairman of oil and gas banking as Australia's biggest investment bank seeks growth in the U.S.

Hassen, 68, will be based in New York, Sydney-based Macquarie said today in a statement. Hassen most recently worked at Irving Place Capital Management LP, the private-equity firm that used to be affiliated with Bear Stearns.

Macquarie has been bulking up its North American investment bank as it seeks to reduce dependence on its infrastructure fund business. It bought Fox-Pitt Kelton Cochran Caronia Waller, a firm with 267 employees that focuses on financial services, and real estate specialist Presidio Partners LLC in the past year.

Energy is a big part of who Macquarie is, and we re looking to continue to build on that, said Tim Bishop, the head of Macquarie's U.S. operations, in an interview. Macquarie plans to hire more oil and gas bankers, he said, and is looking to expand in industrials, gaming, lodging and entertainment.

Most of Macquarie's oil and gas advisory business in North America comes from the acquisition of Tristone Capital Global Inc., a Calgary-based energy boutique with 170 employees, in 2009, and Toronto-based Orion Financial Inc. in 2007.

Hassen worked at Morgan Stanley for 20 years, rising to co- head of the energy investment-banking group. He left in 1998 for Credit Suisse and joined Bear Stearns in 2005. He moved to Irving Place after the sale of Bear Stearns to JPMorgan Chase & Co. in 2008.

Macquarie is the world's 22nd-biggest adviser on mergers and acquisitions this year, with $47.8 billion of transactions, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Morgan Stanley is ranked first with $407.3 billion.

To contact the reporter on this story: Zachary R. Mider in New York at zmider1[@]bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this story: Jennifer Sondag at jsondag[@]bloomberg.net.

Google: Evil Practices By Businesses Won't Be Rewarded

December 1, 2010 | 4:21 pm

Don't be evil, indeed: Google wants business owners to know that it won t reward bad behavior.

The company fixed a glitch in its search engine that made websites with complaints and negative reviews even more visible to searchers.

The new algorithmic solution has already discovered hundreds of merchants with abysmal ratings from users and will work to keep those sites from being ranked highly in search results.

The impetus was a story in the New York Times last week, detailing a tale of consumer horror in which a Brooklyn eyewear merchant bullied and tormented customers into leaving furious tirades about the company on a slew of review websites.

The more angry comments, the higher the company's site seemed to climb in the Google rankings, boosting its prominence and its sales, according to the owner.

Hearing about the case left Google horrified, wrote Google Fellow Amit Singhal in a post on the company blog.

"Being bad is, and hopefully will always be, bad for business in Google's search results," he wrote.

Google decided against blocking certain offenders; it would be too narrow a solution. The company also realized that using sentiment analysis to identify negative comments wouldn t work the sources of some of the most reputable links to the bad retail apples are stories from news organizations.

Details on the final algorithmic fix were left purposefully sparse out of the concern that releasing the underlying signals, data sources and combinations of the two would provoke more abuses of the system.

We can t say for sure that no one will ever find a loophole in our ranking algorithms in the future, Singhal wrote. We know that people will keep trying: attempts to game Google's ranking go on 24 hours a day, every single day.

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Google Is 'evil,' Amazon Drops Wikileaks, And Santa's Being Tracked: Evening Links

Amit Singhal, a Google fellow, took to Google's official blog to address concerns about a New York Times weekend story, The story followed an online company that uses negative customer responses to score higher Google ranks and a woman, Clarabelle Rodriguez, who was fighting back against the company.

"We were horrified to read about Ms. Rodriguez's dreadful experience, the blog read, before launching into an explanation about how Google had convened a team to look into the problem immediately.

Although the move falls in line with Google's philosophy to do good, Mozilla Firefox's director of community development took to his blog to allege that Google is involved in some very not-good action.

"Sneaking software onto my system that I didn't ask for is evil," Asa Dotzler writes. When certain programs are installed on a person's computer, Microsoft, Google, and Apple add plug-ins to the Firefox Web browser without alerting the user. Dotzler calls the practice a Trojan horse.
WikiLeaks servers at Amazon ousted. Free speech the land of the freefine our $ are now spent to employ people in Europe.less than a minute ago via webWIKILEAKS wikileaks

With the above tweet, WikiLeaks announced that Amazon.com had stopped hosting the site. Amazon would not comment on the decision to remove WikiLeaks, but the Guardian said the decision followed a call by Sen. Joe Lieberman (I-Conn.) for U.S. companies to boycott the site.
NASA announced a news conference for 2 p.m. Thursday with a scintillating line: Eager-for-aliens blogs took this as a sign that NASA would finally acknowledge there are living, breathing Martians out there.

The reality is probably slightly less sexy. NASA Watch reports it will probably be an announcement about:

arsenic-based biochemistry and the implications for the origin of life on Earth... and the implications for life arising elsewhere in the universe.

The wait for E.T. continues.
And to celebrate the long walk-up to Christmas, our first red-and-green tinged news: The NORAD Santa Claus Tracker will let children (and adults who still act like children) follow Santa's path around the world on Google Earth as he distributes gifts. NORAD is the joint U.S. and Canadian military center in charge of monitoring and defending North American air space, and it's been tracking Santa's flight for more than 50 years.

Jeffrey Weeks writes on Yahoo! that he and his children follow Santa every year but that the move to Google Earth has added a whole new level of coolness:

Now when the children and I go online to check out where Santa is, we can get amazingly detailed information on his current location, complete with Google Earth's vivid graphics. One of the things the kids like to do best is chart the distance from Santa's current location to our own.

Happy searching the digital skies for the sleigh!

Adam Levine's Girlfriend: Five Things About Anne Vyalitsyna. Will They Settle ...

Posted by ToniFitz76 on December 1st, 2010 at 6:16 am

Adam Levine's girlfriend, Anne Vyalitsyna, struts the runway

Wondering why the frontman of Maroon 5 was front and center for last night's Victoria's Secret Fashion Show 2010? Adam Levine's girlfriend, Anne Vyalitsyna, who strutted down the catwalk with fellow supermodels Adriana Lima, Alessandra Ambrosio and Chanel Iman.

It was the first time Levine had come to one of her runway shows, so does that mean they re getting serious? Might there be babies and marriage in the future? Here's five things about Vyalitsyna, including where you ve seen her before. (Besides Maroon 5's Misery video!)

1. She's best known for being in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit issue six years running, dating back to 2005.

2. She is from Russia.

3. Both her parents are doctors.

4. She's got a big heart: She ran the New York City Marathon last year in order to guide a disabled athlete.

5. She's the latest in a string of famous girlfriends for Levine, who has also dated Natalie Portman, Jessica Simpson and serial dater Cameron Diaz.

Source

Photo: CBS

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