Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/296691091?client_source=feed&format=rss
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Thursday, April 4, 2013
China's Michelle Obama? First Lady Peng Liyuan inspires fashion frenzy
As President Xi Jinping and his wife tour Africa, China?s fashion world is scrutinizing Peng Liyuan's wardrobe - and Chinese stock markets are keeping a close eye, too.
If you want to make a killing on the stock market, here?s an unusual tip: Identify the fashion house behind the clothes that Chinese first lady Peng Liyuan is wearing at her next public appearance and buy shares in that company, fast.
Skip to next paragraph Peter FordBeijing Bureau Chief
Peter Ford is The Christian Science Monitor?s Beijing Bureau Chief. He covers news and features throughout China and also makes reporting trips to Japan and the Korean peninsula.
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Ms. Peng, currently touring Africa with her husband, the new Chinese President Xi Jinping, is proving a smash hit back home and inspiring fashionistas to replicate her look.?
So when a news story on Tuesday identified the pearl earrings that Peng was wearing as coming from the city of Zhuji, the stock price of all the pearl producers in Zhuji rose on the news. One company?s stock rose so far so fast that market regulators capped its price rise on Wednesday.
Peng has captured the Chinese imagination as a stylish and modern face for her country, most of whose first ladies have ranged recently from dowdy to invisible. And the state-controlled press is playing the story for all it is worth, with front page photos and breathless coverage.
?Peng Liyuan Opens the Door for Chinese Fashion and Confidence? read the enthusiastic headline of an editorial in Wednesday?s edition of Global Times, a tabloid published by the ruling Communist Party.
In a world where China is more often seen as a threatening potential enemy than as a friend, according to a number of recent international opinion polls, Peng is a more useful weapon for Beijing?s image-makers than an aircraft carrier.
She was already massively popular before her husband became president earlier this month; indeed, as a nationally famous singer of patriotic and military songs, she was better known than Mr. Xi until he was tapped five years as next in line for the top job. And then she dropped out of sight.
Recently she has quietly begun doing first lady-like things, such as becoming a World Health Organization ambassador in the fight against HIV-Aids. She is ?widely viewed as a tremendous element of China?s soft power,? wrote leading foreign policy pundit Shen Dingli in an opinion piece for the ?Global Times? earlier this week. ?Now ? it is time to present such soft power on the world stage.?
Peng has not opened her mouth in public yet, but has used her fashion sense to project China?s soft power. Everything she wears is Chinese made and designed, and sometimes clearly designed in the oriental style. That is a marked contrast with the sense of style that prevails among most wealthy Chinese women, which tends towards well known Western brands.
Such brands are bad news in China at the moment, too closely identified with corrupt officials and their wives at a time when Xi has promised a crackdown on corruption.
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Wednesday, April 3, 2013
Afghanistan car bomb injures British troops, underscores transition hurdles (+video)
On the heels of Secretary of State Kerry's surprise visit to Afghanistan, two separate attacks injured at least 15 Afghans. The Taliban claimed responsibility for one.
An Afghan National Army soldier and US forces arrive to the scene after eight suicide bombers attacked a police headquarters in the eastern Afghan city of Jalalabad, Afghanistan, Tuesday, killing five police officers and wounding four others, a security official said.
Rahmat Gul/AP
EnlargeAs Secretary of State John Kerry met with President Hamid Karzai and oversaw the symbolic handoff of a major military prison on a surprise visit to Afghanistan this week, a suicide bombing killed five police officers in the eastern city of Jalalabad Tuesday.
Skip to next paragraph Ryan Lenora BrownCorrespondent
Ryan Brown edits the Africa Monitor blog and contributes to the national and international news desks of the Monitor. She is a former Fulbright fellow to South Africa and holds a degree in history from Duke University.?
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On Monday Afghanistan took full control of Bagram prison from the United States, healing one running sore in their testy relationship as US-led forces wind down more than a decade of war.The Taliban quickly?claimed responsibility for today?s attack, which also injured at least five Afghans at the police headquarters in the provincial capital, according to the Associated Press. ?In a separate incident today a car bomb blast injured at least 10 British troops?on a patrol base in Helmand Province, according to the Guardian.?
The timing of the violence highlights the major security challenges that remain as the United States attempts to wind down a decade of intensive military presence in the country and hand control to the Afghans.
The attacks came just hours after Secretary Kerry and President Karzai held a rosy news conference in Kabul on the state of US-Afghan relations, which have undergone particular strain in recent weeks after?Karzai accused the US?of working with the Taliban to deliberately keep the country weak.
(For more on the costs of the US war effort, read about the $610 million late fee Washington is currently paying on shipping containers it rented to ship home military equipment.)?
But during his trip, Kerry?was glowing in his appraisal of Karzai, declaring that he and the president were ?on the same page? when it came to Afghan security and reconciliation.
"I am confident the president [Karzai] does not believe the US has any interest except to see the Taliban come to the table to make peace and that we are completely cooperative with the government of Afghanistan with respect to the protection of their efforts and their people," Kerry told reporters.
Monday?s meeting was a pivot from the prickly interaction between Karzai and Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel on Mr. Hagel?s own trip to the country earlier this month. During that visit, Hagel and Karzai abruptly called off a joint press conference after tense closed-door negotiations failed to yield progress on key diplomatic questions, including the transfer of a key US-controlled prison to Afghan hands.
The American military formally ceded control of all but a ?small number? of prisoners in that facility, known as Bagram Prison, to the Afghans during Kerry?s visit Monday.
This marks the formal completion of a transfer of 4,000 Bagram prisoners that began a year ago, but hit several snags over perceived security threats. The US military, however, will continue to hold in its custody around 50 high-level foreign prisoners considered ?enduring security threats,? along with hundreds of Afghans arrested since the initial transfer deal was authorized last March,?reports Russia Today.
Despite its limitations, however, the transfer has potent symbolic value for Afghanistan,?writes The New York Times.
Bagram Prison was the most flagrant symbol of Mr. Karzai?s lack of control. Americans detained several thousand Afghans there, and Mr. Karzai had no power to release them. His effort to wrest the prison from the Americans began in earnest more than year ago, and?nearly succeeded?at least twice, most recently two weeks ago, a day before Mr. Hagel?s first visit.
Each time, American military commanders backed out because of worries that the Afghans might release Taliban prisoners, who would return to the battlefield and endanger American soldiers. This time, despite those concerns, the transfer went forward.
?It?s about a shift that?s going on in how the U.S. is looking at what?s important,? said one American official knowledgeable about detention issues. ?We have to look at the larger picture: What?s the U.S. strategic interest here???
Kerry rounded out his visit Tuesday by?meeting with democracy activists and female entrepreneurs?at the American Embassy in Kabul. There, he traded headers with the captain of the Afghan women?s national soccer team and lauded civic leaders preparing for the 2014 elections, according to the Associated Press.?
"You're engaged in a remarkable effort and the whole world is watching," Kerry said.?
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We're liveblogging Facebook's Android event tomorrow at 1PM ET!
The term "Facebook Phone" has been used in association with specific devices for over four years, and each time it's involved phones with tighter integration of the social media network rather than an Facebook-branded device. Tomorrow we'll be hearing about yet another one of these handsets, though rumor has it that the gadget in question -- which may or may not be called the HTC First -- will at least fit the description better than ever before, offering a home screen launcher and other Android services dedicated to the Facebook cause. We're just as curious as you as to what exactly will be shown off in Menlo Park 24 hours from now, and we'll be there to liveblog the event so you can discover the goods right along with us! Join us at 1PM ET.
April 4, 2013 1:00 PM EDT
Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile, HTC, Facebook
Source: http://www.engadget.com/2013/04/03/facebook-event-liveblog/
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UN adopts treaty to regulate global arms trade
FILE - In this Sept. 13, 2005 file photo, the flags of member nations fly outside the General Assembly building at the United Nations headquarters in New York. The U.N. General Assembly overwhelmingly approved the first U.N. treaty regulating the multibillion-dollar international arms trade Tuesday, April 2, 2013, a goal sought for over a decade to try to keep illicit weapons out of the hands of terrorists, insurgent fighters and organized crime. The resolution adopting the landmark treaty was approved by a vote of 154 to 3 with 23 abstentions. Iran, North Korea and Syria voted "no" on Tuesday's resolution. (AP Photo/Adam Rountree, File)
FILE - In this Sept. 13, 2005 file photo, the flags of member nations fly outside the General Assembly building at the United Nations headquarters in New York. The U.N. General Assembly overwhelmingly approved the first U.N. treaty regulating the multibillion-dollar international arms trade Tuesday, April 2, 2013, a goal sought for over a decade to try to keep illicit weapons out of the hands of terrorists, insurgent fighters and organized crime. The resolution adopting the landmark treaty was approved by a vote of 154 to 3 with 23 abstentions. Iran, North Korea and Syria voted "no" on Tuesday's resolution. (AP Photo/Adam Rountree, File)
UNITED NATIONS (AP) ? The U.N. General Assembly overwhelmingly approved the first U.N. treaty regulating the multibillion-dollar international arms trade, a goal sought for more than a decade to try to keep illicit weapons out of the hands of terrorists, insurgent fighters and organized crime.
The resolution adopting the landmark treaty was approved by a vote of 154 to 3 with 23 abstentions. As the numbers appeared on the electronic board, loud cheers filled the assembly chamber.
"This is an historic day and a major achievement for the United Nations," British Foreign Secretary William Hague said. "The world wanted this treaty and would not be thwarted by the few who sought to prevent the introduction of robust, effective and legally-binding controls on the international trade in weapons."
What impact the treaty will have in reining in the estimated $60 billion global arms trade, however, remains to be seen.
The treaty will take effect soon after 50 countries ratify it ? and a lot will depend on which countries ratify and which don't, and how stringently it is implemented.
Britain and a small group of treaty supporters sought a vote in the 193-member world body after Iran, North Korea and Syria blocked its adoption by consensus at a negotiating conference last Thursday. The three countries voted "no" on Tuesday's resolution while Russia and China, both major arms exporters, abstained.
Many countries, including the United States, which voted for the treaty, control arms exports. But there has never been an international treaty regulating the global arms trade.
Australian Ambassador Peter Woolcott, who chaired the negotiations, said the treaty will "make an important difference by reducing human suffering and saving lives."
"We owe it to those millions ? often the most vulnerable in society ? whose lives have been overshadowed by the irresponsible and illicit international trade in arms," he told the assembly just before the vote.
U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry welcomed the approval of "a strong, effective and implementable Arms Trade Treaty that can strengthen global security while protecting the sovereign right of states to conduct legitimate arms trade." He stressed that the treaty only applies to international trade "and reaffirms the sovereign right of any state to regulate arms within its territory."
But the three treaty opponents and many countries that abstained complained that the treaty has too many loopholes and can be easily "politicized." Their key arguments include that the treaty favors exporters like the United States over importers who need arms for self-defense and doesn't include a provision banning sales to armed groups.
The treaty will not control the domestic use of weapons in any country, but it will require countries that ratify it to establish national regulations to control the transfer of conventional arms, parts and components and to regulate arms brokers.
It covers battle tanks, armored combat vehicles, large-caliber artillery systems, combat aircraft, attack helicopters, warships, missiles and missile launchers, and small arms and light weapons. A phrase stating that this list was "at a minimum" was dropped, according to diplomats, at the insistence of the United States. Supporters complained that this limited the treaty's scope.
The treaty prohibits states that ratify it from transferring conventional weapons if they violate arms embargoes or if they promote acts of genocide, crimes against humanity or war crimes. It also prohibits the export of conventional arms if they could be used in attacks on civilians or civilian buildings such as schools and hospitals.
In considering whether to authorize the export of arms, the treaty says a country must evaluate whether the weapon would be used to violate international human rights or humanitarian laws or be used by terrorists or organized crime. They must also determine whether the weapons transfer would contribute to or undermine peace and security.
The treaty also requires parties to the treaty to take measures to prevent the diversion of conventional weapons to the illicit market.
Ammunition was been a key issue in negotiations, with some countries pressing for the same controls on ammunition sales as arms, but the U.S. and others opposed such tough restrictions.
The final text calls for each country that ratifies the treaty to establish regulations for the export of ammunition "fired, launched or delivered" by the weapons covered by the convention.
The United Nations by long tradition has required treaties and final documents for major conferences to be adopted by consensus, though there have been exceptions. The United States insisted on consensus approval for an Arms Trade Treaty.
Hopes of reaching agreement were dashed last July when the U.S. said it needed more time to consider the proposed accord ? a move quickly backed by Russia and China. In December, the General Assembly decided to hold a final conference and set last Thursday as the deadline for agreement.
This time, the United States supported the final text, but Iran, North Korea and Syria used the U.S. consensus requirement to block adoption of the treaty. There was a provision, however, that enabled U.N. members to go to the assembly for a vote if consensus wasn't reached.
The General Assembly resolution was circulated by Britain, Argentina, Australia, Costa Rica, Finland, Japan, Kenya, Mexico, New Zealand, Nigeria and Norway and had over 100 cosponsors by the time it was put to a vote Tuesday. It required only a majority vote in the 193-member world body so its adoption was assured.
"The world has been waiting a long time for this historic treaty," Brian Wood, Amnesty International's head of arms control and human rights, said after the vote.
"Despite Iran, North Korea and Syria's deeply cynical attempt to stymie it, the overwhelming majority of the world's nations have shown resounding support for this lifesaving treaty with human rights protection at its core," he said.
The treaty will open for signatures from member states on June 3 and its supporters said they will continue campaigning to get all countries to sign and then ratify it.
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Tuesday, April 2, 2013
?Something secret? in the works as Amazon hires former Windows Phone exec
RICHMOND, Virginia (Reuters) - Virginia police charged a woman with arson on Tuesday in one of more than 70 suspicious fires that have broken out on the state's Eastern Shore in recent months. Tonya S. Bundick, 40, was accused of setting fire to a vacant residence in the Accomack County community of Melfa late on Monday, Virginia State Police said in a statement. The blaze caused slight damage and was quickly extinguished. Bundick has been charged with one count of arson and one count of conspiracy to commit arson, police said. Bundick was being held without bail in the county jail. ...
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/something-secret-works-amazon-hires-former-windows-phone-123537871.html
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The Importance of Content Authorship on the Internet
02 Apr, 2013
Here?s why Google matters to publishing Web content
Back in November 2011, I wrote that the introduction of Google+ was an interesting attempt in bringing user-generated content through social media closer to the Google search engine. Now in 2013, given the Panda and Penguin updates on Google and the integration of Facebook with Bing, there is no doubt that Google is making sure you can link the content you publish on a specific domain to your Google+ profile. Here is why it is important to the future of your content on the Internet.
The Current Problem With Content
The Mountain View, Calif., giant is constantly looking for ways to improve the quality of searches. While arriving late to the social media party, Google is now showing signs of introducing user-generated into the search algorithms. However, the approach is different this time.
The current problem with content is that anonymous users generate it. SEO experts have been able to exploit the Web for their advantage. For example, if you are looking for an answer to a question about basketball, you are going to find lots of answers. But how do you tell apart the good ones from the bad ones? Taking a cue from Quora, Google is trying to leverage power users to provide more relevant answers. Consider this: If Michael Jordan gives an answer to a question about basketball, that means something really different from someone who has never played the game giving an answer.
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About the author
Damian Davila
Damian Davila is a professional marketer living in sunny Honolulu, Hawaii who works for Anthology Marketing Group, the largest digital marketing agency in the Hawaiian Islands. Since 2008 Damian has been writing articles on online marketing and reports on the latest SEO and startup news at his blog idaconcpts.com. Born in Ecuador, Damian has traveled extensively and held positions in Mexico, Germany, Italy and the United States. He has a MBA from the University of Hawaii and a Masters in Educational Technology from a joint program between the Tecnologico de Monterrey and the University of British of Columbia. Find Damian on Twitter at @idaconcpts.and Google Plus
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