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Saturday, December 31, 2011

How are you celebrating New Years Eve? Come out to the Bison Sports Arena and w...

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Source: http://www.facebook.com/NDBison/posts/10150563238674532

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IMF chief Lagarde: Woman of the year in 2012?

Unable to solve its euro crisis, Europe is turning to the International Monetary fund. Its new leader, Christine Lagarde, brings unusual skills to solve a debt crunch that could stall the world economy.

As a French woman who worked for years in America, Christine Lagarde brings a particular leadership style to solving the world?s economic woes. In 2012, her style ? which is inclusive, humble, and pragmatic ? could be the kind that leads Europe out of its financial crisis.

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Ms. Lagarde took over at the 187-nation International Monetary Fund last July and, ever since, Europe?s squabbling politicians have looked to her to do what they have so far failed to do for the 17-nation eurozone.

Up to now, she has not been highly visible, even though she?s steadily filling a power vacuum for Europe. Lagarde prefers to work in the background, listening to diverse views, probing thorny details, and finding common ground.

Perhaps she learned to shun the spotlight after being on a winning team in synchronized swimming when she was young. Later, as France?s finance minister, she designed many of the reforms that shed the country?s socialist past, although she didn?t take the glory.

Lagarde is the first female to lead the IMF, which serves as the world?s lender of last resort for troubled economies. As a long-time lawyer in Chicago, where she worked mainly with men, she honed her skills as a mediator. She creates solutions without trying to take credit for solutions.

With a soft-but-insistent style, she could become the unsung hero of 2012 who prevents Europe?s woes from crashing the world economy.

At times, Lagarde plays the Jeremiah, quietly warning of ?a dangerous situation? for the global economy because of Europe?s mismanagement. The IMF is already playing nursemaid to Greece, Ireland, and Portugal, with more than $100 billion committed to those countries. And the agency is advising Italy, whose debt is so large that a default on its loans would overwhelm the resources of the richer euro partners, including Germany and the current rescue kitty known as the European Financial Stability Fund.

Thus the need for the IMF to be prepared to act. It can collect money from other nations to loan to Europe and be the enforcer of discipline and reform, a role that German Chancellor Angela Merkel has played up to now.

True to style, Lagarde doesn?t boldly come down hard on the big issues that divide Europe, such as the extent of fiscal austerity, whether to share debt with a common eurobond, and how to stimulate economic growth. She can?t afford to be a lightening rod for raging disputes.

To line up money for the IMF to rescue Europe, she is artfully trying to persuade governments to contribute. Europe itself is so far putting up the bulk of the money. So far, Congress and President Obama aren?t interested. Lagarde has talked privately with leading lawmakers who oppose such aid, telling them that no country is ?immune? to Europe?s unfolding crisis.

?The IMF has a strong track record in getting back money on its loans and setting the right conditions for reform. With her integrity and the IMF?s credibility, Lagarde may be the best person to deal with what many say will be the world?s biggest problem in 2012.

Her strong suit is in bringing the players together, nudging them to act, and then letting them take the lead and the credit. ?I want to be desperately optimistic,? she told CBS. ?And I want to believe that countries will understand that they can actually change the course of things.?

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/kJE9UteHUQ0/IMF-chief-Lagarde-Woman-of-the-year-in-2012

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Friday, December 30, 2011

'Synthetic' marijuana is problem for US military (AP)

SAN DIEGO ? U.S. troops are increasingly using an easy-to-get herbal mix called "Spice," which mimics a marijuana high, is hard to detect and can bring on hallucinations that last for days.

The abuse of the substance has so alarmed military officials that they've launched an aggressive testing program that this year has led to the investigation of more than 1,100 suspected users.

So-called "synthetic" pot is readily available on the Internet and has become popular nationwide in recent years, but its use among troops and sailors has raised concerns among the Pentagon brass.

"You can just imagine the work that we do in a military environment," said Mark Ridley, deputy director of the Naval Criminal Investigative Service, adding, "you need to be in your right mind when you do a job. That's why the Navy has always taken a zero tolerance policy toward drugs."

Two years ago, only 29 Marines and sailors were investigated for Spice. This year, the number topped 700, the investigative service said. Those found guilty of using Spice are kicked out, although the Navy does not track the overall number of dismissals.

The Air Force has punished 497 airmen so far this year, compared to last year's 380, according to figures provided by the Pentagon. The Army does not track Spice investigations but says it has medically treated 119 soldiers for the synthetic drug in total.

Military officials emphasize those caught represent a tiny fraction of all service members and note none was in a leadership position or believed high while on duty.

Spice is made up of exotic plants from Asia like Blue Lotus and Bay Bean. Their leaves are coated with chemicals that mimic the effects of THC, the active ingredient in marijuana, but are five to 200 times more potent.

More than 40 states have banned some of its chemicals, prompting sellers to turn to the Internet, where it is marketed as incense or potpourri. In some states, Spice is sold at bars, smoke shops and convenience stores.

Sellers based in the United States and Europe advertising the incense on the Internet did not respond to emails or calls seeking comment.

The packets often say the ingredients are not for human consumption and are for aromatherapy. They are described as "mood enhancing" and "long lasting." Some of the sellers' Web sites say they do not sell herbal mixes containing any illegal chemicals and say they are offering a "legal high."

Service members preferred it because up until this year there was no way to detect it with urine tests. A test was developed after the Drug Enforcement Administration put a one-year emergency ban on five chemicals found in the drug.

Manufacturers are adapting to avoid detection, even on the new tests, and skirt new laws banning the main chemicals, officials say.

"It's a moving target," said Capt. J.A. "Cappy" Surette, spokesman for the Navy Bureau of Medicine and Surgery.

The military can calibrate its equipment to test for those five banned chemicals "but underground chemists can keep altering the properties and make up to more than 100 permutations," Surette said.

Complicating their efforts further, there are more than 200 other chemicals used in the concoctions. They remain legal and their effects on the mind and body remain largely unknown, Navy doctors say.

A Clemson University scientist created many of the chemicals for research purposes in 1990s. They were never tested on humans.

Civilian deaths have been reported and emergency crews have responded to calls of "hyper-excited" people doing things like tearing off their clothes and running down the street naked.

Navy investigators compare the substance to angel dust because no two batches are the same. Some who smoke it like a marijuana cigarette may just feel a euphoric buzz, but others have suffered delusions lasting up to a week.

While the problem has surfaced in all branches of the military, the Navy has been the most aggressive in drawing attention to the problem.

It produced a video based on cases to warn sailors of Spice's dangers and publicized busts of crew members on some of its most-storied ships, including the USS Carl Vinson, from which Osama bin Laden's was dropped into the sea.

Two of the largest busts this year involved sailors in the San Diego-based U.S. Third Fleet, which announced last month that it planned to dismiss 28 sailors assigned to the aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan.

A month earlier, 64 sailors, including 49 from the Vinson, were accused of being involved in a Spice ring.

Many of the cases were discovered after one person was caught with synthetic pot, prompting broader investigations.

Lt. Commander Donald Hurst, a fourth-year psychiatry resident at San Diego's Naval Medical Center, said the hospital is believed to have seen more cases than any other health facility in the country.

Doctors saw users experiencing bad reactions once a month, but now see them weekly. Users suffer everything from vomiting, elevated blood pressure and seizures to extreme agitation, anxiety and delusions.

Hurst said the behavior in many cases he witnessed at first seemed akin to schizophrenia. Usually within minutes, however, the person became completely lucid. Sometimes, the person goes in and out of such episodes for days.

He recalled one especially bizarre case of a sailor who came in with his sobbing wife.

"He stood their holding a sandwich in front of him with no clue as to what to do," he said. "He opened it up, looked at it, touched it. I took it and folded it over and then he took a bite out it. But then we had to tell him, `you have to chew.'"

An hour later when Hurst went back to evaluate him, he was completely normal and worried about being in trouble.

"That's something you don't see with acute schizophrenic patients," he said. "Then we found out based on the numbers of people coming in like this, that OK there's a new drug out there."

Hurst decided to study 10 cases. Some also had smoked marijuana or drank alcohol, while others only smoked Spice.

Of the 10, nine had lost a sense of reality. Seven babbled incoherently. The symptoms for seven of them lasted four to eight days. Three others are believed to now be schizophrenic. Hurst believed the drug may have triggered the symptoms in people with that genetic disposition. His findings were published in the American Journal of Psychiatry in October.

He said there are countless questions that still need answering, including the designer drug's effects on people with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder or traumatic brain injuries.

What the research has confirmed, he said, is: "These are not drugs to mess with."

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/usmilitary/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111230/ap_on_re_us/us_military_fake_marijuana

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London Markets: U.K. stocks climb, but bank shares decline

By Clare Hutchison, MarketWatch

LONDON (MarketWatch) ? British stocks moved mostly higher on Wednesday as trading resumed following an extended holiday break.

The FTSE 100 /quotes/zigman/3173262 UK:UKX +0.56% ?rose 0.6% to 5,543.57.

Sears to close up to 120 stores

Sears will close about 120 stores in a bid to revitalize its business. The shares fell 27% in reaction. Photo: Getty Images

The benchmark index climbed 1% in Friday?s session, claiming its first weekly gain in three weeks. London markets were closed Monday and Tuesday.

Retail giant Tesco PLC /quotes/zigman/156634 UK:TSCO +2.43% ?gained 2.6% on Wednesday. Competitors J Sainsbury PLC /quotes/zigman/350043 UK:SBRY +0.54% ?and Wm. Morrison Supermarkets PLC /quotes/zigman/155311 UK:MRW +0.50% ?were also up, adding 0.8% and 0.6% respectively.

Media reports suggest the retail sector has been boosted by post-Christmas shopping as bargain hunters rushed back to the U.K.?s high streets to snap up heavily discounted goods.

Tobacco higher, oil off

Gains for tobacco firms lifted the market. British American Tobacco PLC /quotes/zigman/218491 UK:BATS +2.22% ?was up 2.2%, while Imperial Tobacco Group PLC /quotes/zigman/167179 UK:IMT +1.88% ?advanced 1.8%.

Beverage makers opened strongly for the second day running, with Diageo PLC /quotes/zigman/208874 UK:DGE +1.59% ?adding 1.6% and SABMiller PLC /quotes/zigman/244740 UK:SAB +1.30% ?climbing 1.4%.

Television company ITV PLC /quotes/zigman/337392 UK:ITV +3.26% ?was the biggest climber, adding 3.3% on Wednesday.

Oil companies suffered in early trade as crude oil prices dipped. Nymex crude fell 63 cents to trade at $100.71 a barrel.

/quotes/zigman/7218774 EVR 378.50, -13.90, -3.54%

AMEC PLC /quotes/zigman/152048 UK:AMEC -0.61% ?and Petrofac Ltd. /quotes/zigman/391992 UK:PFC -1.24% ?declined 0.3% and 1.2% respectively.

Most of Britain?s major banks pulled back on Wednesday. Lloyds Banking Group PLC /quotes/zigman/126322 UK:LLOY -1.52% ? /quotes/zigman/255656/quotes/nls/lyg LYG -0.65% ?shed 1.2%, Royal Bank of Scotland Group PLC lost 1.5% /quotes/zigman/155978 UK:RBS -1.76% ? /quotes/zigman/530544/quotes/nls/rbs RBS -1.08% ?, and Barclays PLC /quotes/zigman/301787 UK:BARC -1.84% ? /quotes/zigman/152323/quotes/nls/bcs BCS -1.77% ?was down 1.4%.

HSBC Holdings PLC /quotes/zigman/13843 UK:HSBA +0.58% ?and Standard Chartered PLC /quotes/zigman/22532 UK:STAN +1.58% ?bucked the trend. Shares in HSBC increased by 0.8% and Standard Chartered rose 1.9%.

Shares in International Consolidated Airlines Group SA /quotes/zigman/3670411 UK:IAG -1.19% ?fell 1.3% a day ahead of a walkout by pilots from the company?s Iberia airline. Media reports estimate the strike action could see 36% of flights cancelled.

Mining firm Evraz PLC /quotes/zigman/7218774 UK:EVR -3.54% ?fell 3.8% after the company announced the closing of a credit facility for its U.S. and Canadian subsidiaries.

Other mining stocks lost ground after copper prices fell in London, as investors reacted to Japanese data that showed factory output has slowed in the country.

Xstrata PLC /quotes/zigman/300486 UK:XTA -1.06% ?dropped 0.9%, while Glencore International PLC /quotes/zigman/5131911 UK:GLEN -0.87% ?shares fell 0.8%.

Outside the benchmark, London Stock Exchange Group PLC /quotes/zigman/409946 UK:LSE +0.57% ?shares gained 0.8%. The exchange reported Wednesday that fiscal 2012 first-half pretax profit rose 79%.

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