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Filed under: Motorsports, Sedan, Europe, Volvo, Luxury, Racing

Volvo’s taking its new naughty sedan to the track, with the S60 set to make its racing debut in the Belgian Touring Car Championship on April 11. The racer was whipped up by the Chinese-owned Swedish automaker’s Belgian S60 racing team, and should campaign throughout this year’s season.

The liveried wonder you see above shares very little DNA with the car Volvo dealers will be hawking in the next few months. The Belgian Touring Car Championship is highly-regulated and as such, there’s very little deviation between each racer. Each car shares a tube chassis, aerodynamic work and front and rear suspension. The S60 racer gets its power from a standardized V6 that puts out 410 horsepower and is mated to a six-speed manual gearbox that sends all that muscle to the rear wheels.

The S60 will be competing in two 90-minute heats per race, with one 12-hour enduro thrown in for good measure. Stay tuned for results from the season opener this weekend.

[Source: Volvo]

Continue reading Volvo prepping new S60 for Belgian Touring Car series duty

Volvo prepping new S60 for Belgian Touring Car series duty originally appeared on Autoblog on Tue, 06 Apr 2010 10:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Last night I posted a link to investigative actions taken by the U.S. military command in Iraq in 2007 after U.S. forces in Baghdad fired upon individuals who do not appear to have been posing a threat, ultimately including two Reuters employees. I’ll be honest: We’re having formatting problems opening the documents that the military disclosed. So consider this post preliminary.

But I’ve been able to open one of the documents, and it’s an important one: the approval of ultimate recommendations to the chain of command after an investigation into the incident. It’s dated July 21, 2007 and signed by Brig. Gen. Vincent K. Brooks, then one of the deputy commanding generals of Multinational Division-Baghdad, the designation for the command responsible for security in Iraq’s capitol. It reads:

I ratify the appointment of the investigating officer, MAJ [illegible, but apparently a major was responsible for investigating the incident]

The recommendation that:

(10a) Members of the press be encouraged or required to wear identifying vests or distinctive body armor within the MND-B AOR [the Multinational Division-Baghdad’s Area of Responsibility] is passed to PAO [Public Affairs Office] for coordination through CPIC [the Coalition Press Information Center, then the locus of Baghdad press efforts]

(10b) Coalition Forces be notified when members of the press are operating in their AORs is passed to PAO for coordination with CPIC

(10c) Condolence payments be made to families of the two children wounded in this engagement is [approved and] passed to BCT [Brigade Combat Team, presumably whichever BCT was operating in the section of Baghdad where the incident occurred]

More as I’m (hopefully) able to open more of these documents. I do not yet know if, when and/or how these recommendations were acted upon. And without additional context from the other documents, I’m reluctant to analyze the presumptions or supporting evidence that led to the investigating officer’s judgments and Brooks’ approval.

-Lauren Graham — now star of the successful NBC series Parenthood — is most proud of her role on the now defunct mother-daughter hit Gilmore Girls….

-If you’re ever in the Big Apple, Complex.com has compiled list of the city’s Best Korean Restaurants that you might want to check out…..

-Kimora Lee Simmons gets a body makeover — courtesy of Photoshop — in the ad for her new fragrance, Dare Me…..

-Lindsay Lohan’s Indian child trafficking PSA has premiered…..

–Read an excerpt from the early life of Carrie Bradshaw in Candace Bushnell’s new young adult novel, The Carrie Diaries…..

-The Hollywood Hills mansion Brittany Murphy died in last December is no longer for sale because her mother felt uncomfortable showing the home to potential buyers with her daughter’s possessions still inside…..

-Is texting cheating? (My ex-boyfriend sure didn’t think so! Bastard…..)

-For those who care: Paris Hilton’s British Best Friend premieres on TV Guide Network tonight @ 10 PM ET/PT….

– FOX cancels Sons of Tucson and Til Death…..

-ABC is taking the network game show to new heights with a summer series that will be set on top of a skyscraper…..

-Rihanna, Jason Derulo and David Archuleta will perform on Wednesday’s American Idol…..

-Whoopi pulled a Tiger…

-Annie Leibovitz sued again!

-Jennifer Hudson made her debut as the newest Weight Watchers celebrity spokesmodel over the weekend…..

While we wait for the more robust apps that Palm’s PDK is sure to bring to the photo editing space when they finally begin to trickle into the App Catalog at some point in the future, there are a few applications in the Catalog that allow us to play around with our photos in the mean time.

THE WHITE HOUSE

Office of the Press Secretary
_________________________________________________________________________________________________
For Immediate Release April 6, 2010

REMARKS BY THE PRESIDENT
AT EASTER PRAYER BREAKFAST

East Room

9:50 A.M. EDT

THE PRESIDENT: Good morning, everybody. (Applause.) Thank you. Please have a seat. Have a seat. What a great honor and pleasure it is to have all of you here today. Before I begin, I want to just acknowledge two members of my Cabinet who I believe are here — Secretary Gary Locke — is that correct? Where’s Gary? There he is — our Commerce Secretary. (Applause.) And Secretary Janet Napolitano, who’s keeping us safe each and every day. (Applause.)

I also want to acknowledge the Mount Ennon Clinton Children’s Chorus for being here. They’re going to be giving us a medley later on. There they are up there, looking very serious. (Applause.)

Before I begin, I want to send my deepest condolences, our thoughts and prayers to the families and the friends of the workers who lost their lives after an explosion took place in a West Virginia mine yesterday. At this moment, there are still people missing. There are rescue teams that are searching tirelessly and courageously to find them.

I spoke with Governor Manchin of West Virginia last night and told him that the federal government stands ready to offer whatever assistance is needed in this rescue effort. So I would ask the faithful who’ve gathered here this morning to pray for the safe return of the missing, the men and women who put their lives on the line to save them, and the souls of those who have been lost in this tragic accident. May they rest in peace, and may their families find comfort in the hard days ahead.

One of my hopes upon taking this office was to make the White House a place where all people would feel welcome. To that end, we held a Seder here to mark the first Passover. We held an Iftar here with Muslim Americans to break the daily fast during Ramadan. And today, I’m particularly blessed to welcome you, my brothers and sisters in Christ, for this Easter breakfast.

With us are Christian leaders from all across America, men and women who lead small-town churches and big-city congregations, and major organizations in service of others; folks whose sermons are heard and whose examples are followed by millions all across the country. So I wanted to join you for a brief moment today to continue the Easter celebration of our risen Savior, and to reflect on the work to which His promise calls all of us.

I can’t tell any of you anything about Easter that you don’t already know. (Laughter.) I can’t shed light on centuries of scriptural interpretation or bring any new understandings to those of you who reflect on Easter’s meaning each and every year and each and every day. But what I can do is tell you what draws me to this holy day and what lesson I take from Christ’s sacrifice and what inspires me about the story of the resurrection.

For even after the passage of 2,000 years, we can still picture the moment in our mind’s eye. The young man from Nazareth marched through Jerusalem; object of scorn and derision and abuse and torture by an empire. The agony of crucifixion amid the cries of thieves. The discovery, just three days later, that would forever alter our world — that the Son of Man was not to be found in His tomb and that Jesus Christ had risen.

We are awed by the grace He showed even to those who would have killed Him. We are thankful for the sacrifice He gave for the sins of humanity. And we glory in the promise of redemption in the resurrection.

And such a promise is one of life’s great blessings, because, as I am continually learning, we are, each of us, imperfect. Each of us errs — by accident or by design. Each of us falls short of how we ought to live. And selfishness and pride are vices that afflict us all.

It’s not easy to purge these afflictions, to achieve redemption. But as Christians, we believe that redemption can be delivered — by faith in Jesus Christ. And the possibility of redemption can make straight the crookedness of a character; make whole the incompleteness of a soul. Redemption makes life, however fleeting here on Earth, resound with eternal hope.

Of all the stories passed down through the gospels, this one in particular speaks to me during this season. And I think of hanging — watching Christ hang from the cross, enduring the final seconds of His passion. He summoned what remained of His strength to utter a few last words before He breathed His last breath.

“Father,” He said, “into your hands I commit my spirit.” Father, into your hands I commit my spirit. These words were spoken by our Lord and Savior, but they can just as truly be spoken by every one of us here today. Their meaning can just as truly be lived out by all of God’s children.

So, on this day, let us commit our spirit to the pursuit of a life that is true, to act justly and to love mercy and walk humbly with the Lord. And when we falter, as we will, let redemption — through commitment and through perseverance and through faith — be our abiding hope and fervent prayer.

Many of you are living out that commitment every day. So we want to honor you through this brief program, celebrating both the meaning of Easter and the spirit of service that embodies so much of your work. And our first celebrant today is Reverend Dr. Cynthia Hale, who will deliver our opening prayer.

Thank you all for being here. (Applause.)

END 9:58 A.M. EDT

Um raro Ford Coupe Deluxe 1939, com projeto baseado nos Street Rods americanos dos anos 70, customização de carroceria, modificações mecânicas, e, acima de tudo, um visual clássico e harmônico. Este é o Black Tie, uma das atrações da quinta edição do Salão do Carro e Acessórios.

O Black Tie recebeu um motor Ford V8 302 cv, transmissão automática Ford C4, diferencial Ford de Ranger, freios a disco nas 4 rodas e suspensão independente na frente. Na parte externa, o capô e o porta-malas foram alisados e as fechaduras, retiradas. Os bancos receberam revestimento em couro bege. Rodas de ferro no mesmo tom dos bancos, com calotas e sobrearos completam o visual.

Outro Ford Coupe, de 1941, também se destacará no Salão. Este modelo foi equipado com moderna suspensão, freios a disco, direção hidráulica, abertura das portas por controle remoto e pintura importada com flakes holográficos, que variam de cor conforme a incidência da luz. Para completar o visual, o “fogo”, que dá ao veículo um ar de potência, velocidade e agressividade. O motor é um V-8 com 280 cv.

Um Hot Rod ainda mais antigo, o Ford Tudor vermelho 1930, irá atrair a atenção dos visitantes do evento. Com câmbio automático e motor de Corvette, que proporcionam ao modelo 250 cv de potência,este Hot Rod conta com suspensão four-bar, projetada especialmente para arrancadas, entre outros itens exclusivos de customização.

História dos Hot Rods

Após o fim da II Guerra Mundial, os carros nos Estados Unidos estavam muito caros, mas a procura era grande. Para resolver esta questão, alguns jovens passaram a “montar” carros a partir de carrocerias antigas adquiridas em depósitos de sucata. Com o tempo estes modelos se popularizaram e se tornaram carros de competição, principalmente pela motorização potente que recebiam. Assim surgiram os Hot Rods (“Biela Quente”).

No Brasil, os Hot Rods chegaram nos anos 60, mas foi na década de 90, com o real valendo a mesma coisa que o dólar, que o movimento tomou corpo e, ainda hoje, vem crescendo.

Outros destaques

Além dos Hot Rods, o Salão contará com espaço para test-drive, exposição de carros de alta performance, espaço para desfiles, concurso de som automotivo, Emerson Day, palestras e workshops, entre outras atrações.

Sobre o Salão

O Salão do Carro e Acessórios, maior evento do segmento na América Latina, acontece entre os dias 17 e 21 de abril, no Expo Center Norte, na capital paulista. Em sua quinta edição, o Salão (www.salaodeacessorios.com.br), organizado pelo bicampeão Emerson Fittipaldi, em parceria com a Megacycle, empresa que há 17 anos realiza eventos em diversas áreas, reunirá cerca de 70 expositores, entre montadoras, fabricantes de autopeças, distribuidores, prestadores de serviço, representantes e fornecedores ligados ao setor.

Fonte: Printerpress

We’re STILL reviewing as many iPad apps as possible LIVE and updating all day. If you have a specific app you want reviewed, let us know in the comments. So many apps that we had to start a third post! More »

If you have Jason Frasor(notes) in the first-closer-to-lose-his-job pool, then things are looking good.

The right-hander entered the season with minimal job security, as manager Cito Gaston only recently – and almost reluctantly – awarded him the ninth. Frasor then took the loss in Toronto’s opener, allowing four hits, two earned runs and an intentional walk to the Rangers. He retired just one batter and gave up a bases-loaded, no-doubt game-ending hit to Jarrod Saltalamacchia(notes). Video here.

Not an encouraging performance to say the least. Scott Downs(notes) worked a clean eighth inning before Frasor folded in the ninth. No one’s going to lose a job based on one-third of an inning on opening day against an excellent opposing lineup, but Frasor obviously did nothing to inspire confidence (or boost his trade value). He seems to have the right perspective on the loss, however. This from the Toronto Star:

With the Jays off until Wednesday night, Frasor faces a tedious wait for his next opportunity.

“Unfortunately, I have 48 hours to think about it,” said Frasor, who saved 11 games as the team’s part-time closer last year. “I’m six years older than I was when I first started blowing games, so it’s a little easier.”

In the closing grid below, you’ll find the usual suspects lurking behind Frasor in the Jays’ bullpen. If Kevin Gregg(notes) is Plan B, then Plan A had better [expletive] work.

(Important note: The "Interim/Threat" column has been simplified, because it was confusing several commenters – and it seemed to actually offend at least one Chris Perez(notes) owner. Broken players can now be found on the far right. The "Closer" column is reserved for anyone who would get a save chance today). 

• Brad Lidge’s(notes) fantasy trade value might be peaking right now, while he’s on the disabled list. As most of you know, he entered the spring with knee and elbow issues; somewhere along the line he picked up a second elbow problem. Last week, Lidge received a cortisone injection to treat this new concern. This from MLB.com:

Lidge had surgery on the inner half of his elbow in November. The Phils
said Lidge’s recent inflammation is on the outer half of the elbow, which they said is unrelated to the surgery. But cortisone injections are not routine, and Lidge’s health has been an issue for nearly a year.

Lidge’s velocity has been dreadful this spring, at least by his standards. He could return by mid to late-April, but you can’t reasonably expect the 2008 version of Lidge. For now, Ryan Madson(notes) has the ninth in Philly.

• Huston Street(notes) visited Dr. James Andrews in Alabama on Monday, but according to the Rockies, he received relatively good news. Rockies general manager Dan O’Dowd had this to say to the Denver Post:

"Everything looked great. I was told they didn’t see any issues at all, so we are going to keep doing the same thing with him," O’Dowd said after the Rockies’ 5-3 opening day win over Milwaukee. "[Street] wanted a second opinion and everything came back really good."

There’s no clear timetable here, but you shouldn’t expect Street to help anyone in April. Franklin Morales(notes) earned an opening day save, but it wasn’t exactly a work of art (1.0 IP, 1 H, 1 R, 1 WP, 0 K). Two of the outs recorded by Morales were ropes that happened to be caught by infielders. Video here. 

• Jonathan Broxton’s(notes) velocity has been a small concern, as the Dodgers’ closer was working in the 91-95 mph range late in spring training. He of course normally sits in the 97-101 range. But he had this to say to Ken Gurnick:

"You’ve got to build your arm strength," [Broxton] said. "The first month and a half, you build. I was talking to [Eric] Gagne about that this spring, getting by early with 90 percent. You can’t come out and be 100 percent in April, or by July and August you won’t have anything left in the tank. Peak too soon and you go down early. When the bats start speeding up, the arm gets quicker and the adrenaline kicks in." 

No immediate reason to worry here. "Nothing is hurting or sore," added Broxton.

If you’re a Dodgers fan, you should be more concerned about the fact that Vicente Padilla(notes), Ramon Ortiz(notes), Jeff Weaver(notes) and Russ Ortiz(notes) are somehow all members of your pitching staff, and it’s not 2002. 

• Houston middle reliever Sammy Gervacio(notes) had a dominant spring (13.0 IP, 5 H, 3 BB, 16 Ks), and he pitched another useful inning in the regular season opener. The righty struck out two of the three hitters he faced, throwing nine of 11 pitches for strikes. Even if he never sneaks into the closer discussion, he looks like a terrific RP option for roto owners in leagues with innings caps. In such formats, K/9 is the big concern; you can’t waste innings on pitchers with low K-rates.

• JJ Putz(notes) inspired some confidence on Monday, striking out two batters in an inning of work against Cleveland. But we should note that Mark Grudzielanek(notes) and Lou Marson(notes) provided the Ks, and Putz was still throwing with last year’s velocity (low-90s). 

—

Photo via Getty Images

According to recent statistics from AndroidLib.com, the Android Marketplace saw 9,331 new mobile applications added to its app store during the month of March, 2010. This number is even more phenomenal when you look at the Android Marketplace’s historical growth. In December of last year, for example, there were 3,807 new applications added to the Android app store. By January, 4,458 more were added. In February, 5,532 arrived. And now, 9,331. If this trend continues, we could possibly see a month this year where the number of new applications tops 5 digits. And with numbers like this, Android could soon give Apple a run for its money.

Sponsor

Since the launch of the Google Android Market in October 2008, the developer ecosystem surrounding the OS has seen rapid growth. One week after the Market’s launch, there were just 167 applications available for download. That may seem like a lot, but when you positioned it against Apple’s App Store – now with over 160,000 applications – it was clear that Android had a long climb ahead.

But climb it did. By September 2009, the Android Market passed 10,000 applications. By February of this year, Android Market share doubled again, positioning the Google Mobile OS to overtake Palm and the Market size grew again to include 19,897 applications. Today, the number of Android applications has reached 27,243 and there’s no sign of its growth slowing down.

Although Apple still has far more mobile applications available for download, relative to the number of apps housed, Android is actually one of the fastest-growing mobile application stores on the market today. According to mobile analytics company Distimo, Android hasn’t quite reached 30,000 yet, but in a statement last month from a Google representative, the company claimed there were “approximately 30,000 free and paid apps.” Maybe they were just rounding up?

Discuss

Are you tired of not being able to print pictures of cats from your BlackBerry? Boy oh boy — do I feel your pain. Enter BreezyPrint.

BreezyPrint is a new bit of software which allows you to print from your BlackBerry by way of what I can only assume is some sort of voodoo.

It won’t allow to you to print to any nearby printer, of course; that would require all sorts of printer drivers, and those things barely work on your PC, much less your BlackBerry. Instead, BreezyPrint comes with a companion app (currently Windows only) that you install on any computer with access to the printer in question. BreezyPrint tells the companion app what to print, and the companion apps passes word onto the printer.

Alas, the service doesn’t come cheap. You’re relying on their servers to do some of that aforementioned voodoo to ensure that things like corporate firewalls don’t get in the way, so they’re charging a yearly fee. After a 30-day trial, BreezyPrint will set you back $25 a year. Oh, and for people lookin’ to print on other platforms: the company isn’t fessing up dates, but iPhone and Android ports are said to be on the way.

What do you think? Useful? Too expensive? I’m the cheap type; if I need a computer to act as the middle man, I’d probably just hop on the computer itself to print and spend that $25 a year on my bad habits.

On March 26, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia issued a unanimous opinion in SpeechNow.org v. Federal Election Commission. The court decided that the Federal Election Commission (FEC) could not limit donations to independent political groups that will spend money to support or oppose candidates. This is the first major court ruling to apply the U.S. Supreme Court’s holding in Citizens United v. FEC.

<!–break–>

Organized under Section 527 of the tax code, SpeechNow.org can now receive unlimited contributions from individuals, but it must register as a political committee and disclose its financial information to the FEC. The appeals court found that because 527s operate independently of candidate campaigns, there is no chance for corruption. The opinion expands the impact of Citizens United by extending the rationale in that decision from campaign spending to campaign donations.

In November 2007, SpeechNow.org sought approval from the FEC for its plan to collect unlimited contributions from individuals to conduct "express advocacy." The group wants to air messages in support of federal candidates who favor free speech and oppose those who back legislation that restricts the rights to speech and association.

After the FEC informed the group that it would be deemed a political committee and could not accept unlimited contributions from individual donors, SpeechNow.org filed suit. The organization’s challenge charged that limits on annual contributions from individuals were an unconstitutional violation of free speech and association rights. Under the FEC rules, individual donations to 527s for express advocacy were limited to $5,000 a year.

The decision announced on March 26 concluded that the 527 can receive unlimited contributions from individuals but must register with the FEC as a political committee. The ruling follows the judgment of the Supreme Court’s January Citizens United decision, which found that corporations and unions can spend as much as they like in advocating for or against candidates as long as they disclose their activities and do not coordinate with candidates’ campaigns.

The ruling in SpeechNow.org, written by Chief Judge David Sentelle, said that since the Supreme Court ruled in Citizens United that political expenditures do not corrupt the political process, neither do contributions to groups that make such expenditures. According to the appeals court’s opinion, if there was no reason to limit independent spending, donations to groups that would be doing so should not be restricted. The appeals court said the government simply had no interest in limiting contributions to independent groups.

During oral argument, the FEC argued that large contributions to groups that broadcast such independent expenditures may "lead to preferential access for donors and undue influence over officeholders." The court responded that those arguments "plainly have no merit after Citizens United."

The FEC also maintained that the Citizens United case did not apply because that decision involved spending limits, not contribution limits. According to BNA Money and Politics (subscription required), during arguments, FEC attorney David Kolker noted that limits on contributions to political parties have not been changed. "Similar restrictions on non-party groups also should remain, the FEC lawyer said, because such groups can act as ‘shadow parties’ and be used to circumvent limits on contributions to candidates."

The appeals court did uphold disclosure requirements and decided that SpeechNow.org still has to organize as a political committee and fulfill financial reporting requirements. However, those restrictions were not heavily challenged; SpeechNow.org was primarily concerned with being able to collect unlimited donations for its political advocacy. The group also claimed that it had no objection to more limited reporting requirements the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) places on 527 organizations.

The court found that complying with reporting rules would only place a minimal burden on SpeechNow.org’s First Amendment rights. The opinion states that "the public has an interest in knowing who is speaking about a candidate and who is funding that speech, no matter whether the contributions were made towards administrative expenses or independent expenditures." Information on contributors, which candidate the expenditure supports or opposes, expenditures of $1,000 or more made in the 20 days before an election, and any expenditures of $10,000 or more made at any other time must be disclosed to the FEC.

SpeechNow.org, its president David Keating, and four potential contributors were represented by attorneys from the Center for Competitive Politics and the Institute for Justice. Supporters of the ruling consider this another boost to the free speech rights of Americans and those who join together to engage in advocacy. Steve Simpson, an attorney for the Institute for Justice, said, "This decision ensures that all Americans can band together to make their voices heard during elections."

SpeechNow.org emphasized the decision in EMILY’s List v. FEC as support for its challenge. In the EMILY’s List case, regulations were struck down that limited donations to nonprofit political action committees used for campaign activity. However, the D.C. Circuit Court questioned the constitutionality of limits on contributions to independent political committees, even though those issues were not directly challenged in the EMILY’s List lawsuit. After the EMILY’s List decision, many predicted that SpeechNow.org had a good chance of winning its appeal.

In another case, Republican National Committee v. FEC, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia upheld provisions of the Bipartisan Campaign Reform Act that limit "soft money" contributions to political parties. The law prohibits political parties from accepting unlimited contributions from individuals, companies, and unions. The court said it does not have the authority to overturn a Supreme Court ruling upholding the ban on soft money fundraising by national party committees. The Republican National Committee (RNC) wanted to raise soft money for state elections, congressional redistricting, and other activities outside of federal elections. On April 2, the RNC filed an appeal to the Supreme Court.

The result of this patchwork of rulings is that currently, political parties cannot seek unlimited contributions from donors, but independent groups can. This has created an environment that favors contributions toward largely unregulated "independent" political organizations, rather than to candidates or political parties. Some observers worry that this will have exactly the effect that the Supreme Court and the appeals court denied it would: an increase in corruption and a decrease in disclosure about the activities of these groups due to the lack of a 21st-century reporting infrastructure.

Photo in teaser by Wikimedia Commons user AgnosticPreachersKid, used under a Creative Commons license.

Proving that social media really is changing the way we
interact, advocate and raise awareness, the United Nations and the Anne Frank
Center USA are honoring Yom Ha’Shoah in a very new way – using Twitter.

Last week, the two organizations launched a Twitter campaign
for students in memory of Anne Frank, one of the Holocaust’s most recognized
victims, whose compelling World War II diary is still widely used as reading
and educational material.

The thrust of the campaign is this: Students are asked to “travel back in
time” and write to Anne through 140-character tweets, essentially
pretending to communicate with her from her family’s hiding spot in Amsterdam.
The project
website asks, “If Anne Frank had had a way to receive Tweets while in
hiding and could have been communicating in secret with other young people in
the world about the persecution and hatred that her family and friends were
experiencing, what messages of support would you have sent Anne? What would you
have told Anne that you have learned from her life and experience?”

Kimberly Mann, Manager of the Holocaust and the UN Outreach Programme in the
Department of Public Information’s Outreach Division, said of the project,
“This exercise is meant to help young people make a meaningful connection
to the Holocaust through the words of a courageous young girl.”

Tweets to Anne should be directed at @UnandHolocaust; the project
will last until Yom Ha’Shoah, Holocaust remembrance Day, on April 11. So what
would you tell Anne Frank? Let us know in the comments or include us in our
tweet (@theRAC).

Three women from Texas have filed Nuvaring blood clot lawsuits against Organon and Merck & Co., the drug makers, alleging that the popular birth control ring caused them to suffer from a deep vein thrombosis (DVT), pulmonary embolism and other injuries. 

The Nuvaring lawsuits were filed on March 26 in the Marshall division of the Eastern District of Texas by Stephanie Huckabee, Amber Dawn Morgan and Christina Renee Pritchard. The women allege that the manufacturers failed to warn consumers about the risk of blood clots from side effects of NuvaRing.

According to a report in the Southeast Texas Record, the women claim that the drug makers down played the risk of problems from NuvaRing, marketing the birth control ring’s side effects as minimal. As a result of the failure to provide adequate and accurate warnings, Morgan alleges that she was hospitalized with deep vein thrombosis (DVT) after using the vaginal insertion ring for only a year and a half, Pritchard alleges that she suffered multiple DVTs after less than a year of use and Huckabee alleges she suffered both DVT and a pulmonary embolism from NuvaRing.

There are currently hundreds of similar lawsuits over NuvaRing blood clots that have been filed in various state and federal courts throughout the United States. As additional cases are reviewed and filed by NuvaRing lawyers, many anticipate that there could be thousands of cases eventually filed.

All of the cases involve similar allegations that Organon Pharmaceuticals failed to adequately research their birth control ring or warn about the potential for NuvaRing blood clot problems, including an increased risk of stroke, heart attack, pulmonary embolism, deep vein thrombosis (DVT) and sudden death.

More than 300 federal cases have already been consolidated for pretrial proceedings in an MDL, which is centralized in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri before District Judge Rodney W. Sipple. Parties on both sides have selected 13 lawsuits for an initial pool of bellwether cases, from which the first NuvaRing trials will be selected to gauge how juries will interpret evidence and witness testimony.

Shaking off its vague Spring 2010 release window is Record of Agarest War. The strategy JRPG from Compiled Heart, RED Entertainment, and Idea Factory is now sporting a late April release date.

What better way to take a coffee or tea break than with this cute handmade kitty tea set from Etsy seller Designs by Tekemoto. Each cup and saucer is hand thrown and hand painted with original underglaze designs. Originally from Japan, the artist now lives and works in Virginia Beach.

Tea sets are $40 US and are available from the Designs by Takemoto Etsy shop.

It doesn’t seem to be taking Samsung and Sprint very long to follow up last fall’s Moment handset.  What you are looking at above is rumored to be the first picture of the SPH-M910 Moment 2, obviously headed for the Now Network. As the gossip tells us, this will be the first Android 2.1 phone launched with Sprint, only months after the first go ’round. Depending on your point of view, you might be happy to learn that this is loaded with the new TouchWiz 3.0 interface. If it’s anything like the Galaxy S experience, we’ll take it.

We’re waiting to hear what the specs are but we expect it’s not going to be a huge jump from the original device. We’d love to see SuperAMOLED in that screen, but we’re not expecting it.  The device has a few subtle changes to the design, juggling the keys around slightly and adding a search button to the display.  Check back for more information as we can gather it!

Might We Suggest…

• Sprint’s Android 2.1 Updates Due in “Coming Weeks”
  Samsung Moment and HTC Hero owners will be excited to learn that Sprint plans to roll Android 2.1 out to their customers in the “coming weeks”.  As the carrier gears up for the Nexus One and,  presuma…

During the darkest parts of 2009, it took some serious grit to step into the breach and buy high yield bonds. Early investors were contrarian and made substantial sums.

By January 1st, the cat was well out of the bag, and high yield had been back in style for awhile. Yet investors still made money by simply getting on board, especially for the worst rated bonds. Returns continued to rise in 2010. (Chart via Econompic)

This trade is getting crowded. Fund flows into high yield increased year over year in Q1 of 2010, and $972 million dollars just flowed into high yield during the week ending April 2nd, according to EPFR Global.

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