Saturday, July 30, 2011
BREAKING: President Obama's Statement on Debt Negotiations
This morning President Obama delivered a statement once again calling on Congress to compromise to avoid defaulting on the Nation’s debt and calling on the American people to make their voices heard in this debate.
Read the President’s statement:
Good morning, everybody. I want to speak about the ongoing and increasingly urgent efforts to avoid default and reduce our deficit.
Right now, the House of Representatives is still trying to pass a bill that a majority of Republicans and Democrats in the Senate have already said they won’t vote for. It’s a plan that would force us to re-live this crisis in just a few short months, holding our economy captive to Washington politics once again. In other words, it does not solve the problem, and it has no chance of becoming law.
What’s clear now is that any solution to avoid default must be bipartisan. It must have the support of both parties that were sent here to represent the American people -– not just one faction. It will have to have the support of both the House and the Senate. And there are multiple ways to resolve this problem. Senator Reid, a Democrat, has introduced a plan in the Senate that contains cuts agreed upon by both parties. Senator McConnell, a Republican, offered a solution that could get us through this. There are plenty of modifications we can make to either of these plans in order to get them passed through both the House and the Senate and would allow me to sign them into law. And today I urge Democrats and Republicans in the Senate to find common ground on a plan that can get support -- that can get support from both parties in the House –- a plan that I can sign by Tuesday.
Now, keep in mind, this is not a situation where the two parties are miles apart. We’re in rough agreement about how much spending can be cut responsibly as a first step toward reducing our deficit. We agree on a process where the next step is a debate in the coming months on tax reform and entitlement reform –- and I’m ready and willing to have that debate. And if we need to put in place some kind of enforcement mechanism to hold us all accountable for making these reforms, I’ll support that too if it’s done in a smart and balanced way.
So there are plenty of ways out of this mess. But we are almost out of time. We need to reach a compromise by Tuesday so that our country will have the ability to pay its bills on time, as we always have -- bills that include monthly Social Security checks, veterans’ benefits and the government contracts we’ve signed with thousands of businesses. Keep in mind, if we don’t do that, if we don’t come to an agreement, we could lose our country’s AAA credit rating, not because we didn’t have the capacity to pay our bills -- we do -- but because we didn’t have a AAA political system to match our AAA credit rating.
And make no mistake -– for those who say they oppose tax increases on anyone, a lower credit rating would result potentially in a tax increase on everyone in the form of higher interest rates on their mortgages, their car loans, their credit cards. And that’s inexcusable.
There are a lot of crises in the world that we can’t always predict or avoid -– hurricanes, earthquakes, tornadoes, terrorist attacks. This isn’t one of those crises. The power to solve this is in our hands. And on a day when we’ve been reminded how fragile the economy already is, this is one burden we can lift ourselves. We can end it with a simple vote –- a vote that Democrats and Republicans have been taking for decades, a vote that the leaders in Congress have taken for decades.
It’s not a vote that allows Congress to spend more money. Raising the debt ceiling simply gives our country the ability to pay the bills that Congress has already racked up. I want to emphasize that. The debt ceiling does not determine how much more money we can spend, it simply authorizes us to pay the bills we already have racked up. It gives the United States of America the ability to keep its word.
Now, on Monday night, I asked the American people to make their voice heard in this debate, and the response was overwhelming. So please, to all the American people, keep it up. If you want to see a bipartisan compromise -– a bill that can pass both houses of Congress and that I can sign -- let your members of Congress know. Make a phone call. Send an email. Tweet. Keep the pressure on Washington, and we can get past this.
And for my part, our administration will be continuing to work with Democrats and Republicans all weekend long until we find a solution. The time for putting party first is over. The time for compromise on behalf of the American people is now. And I am confident that we can solve this problem. I’m confident that we will solve this problem. For all the intrigue and all the drama that’s taking place on Capitol Hill right now, I’m confident that common sense and cooler heads will prevail.
But as I said earlier, we are now running out of time. It’s important for everybody to step up and show the leadership that the American people expect.
Thank you.
Charlton Heston’s Misinformation on Nigeria In The Arena
Without doubt, Charlton Heston is one of the greatest American actors of all time. He was a living legend until he passed on to eternal glory in April 2008. He was world famous for his heroic roles of Moses in The Ten Commandments, Ben Hur and The Planet of the Apes among many other classic films. He remains my favourite American actor and when I got a gift of his bestselling
The Estate of Charlton Heston and his publishers must address the terrible errors of misinformation on Nigeria is his autobiography
It is unfortunate that he is not alive to make the corrections and really baffling that his editors could not correct them before the book was published. The mistakes were his erroneous name of President "Aziwiki" of Nigeria instead of President Nnamdi Azikiwe and if that was not bad enough, he also misinformed readers by saying President "Aziwiki" was assassinated by rival tribesmen from the north. But it was not the fact. It was not President Azikiwe that was assassinated, but the Prime Minister Alhaji Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa, KBE (December 1912 – January 15, 1966) who was murdered in the infamous Major Patrick Chukwuma Kaduna Nzeogwu, (1937–1967) military coup and his commandos of primarily junior officers of Igbo extraction on January 15, 1966.
Please, the above terrible mistakes on page 356 of In The Arena must be corrected before further damages are done by the misinformation of historical facts on the political history of Nigeria and Africa.
Tuesday, July 26, 2011
House Speaker Boehner's New Budget Proposal
26 Jul 2011 01:05 Africa/Lagos
Statement of Robert Greenstein, President, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, on House Speaker Boehner's New Budget Proposal
PR Newswire
WASHINGTON, July 25, 2011
WASHINGTON, July 25, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- House Speaker John Boehner's new budget proposal would require deep cuts in the years immediately ahead in Social Security and Medicare benefits for current retirees, the repeal of health reform's coverage expansions, or wholesale evisceration of basic assistance programs for vulnerable Americans.
(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20100209/CBPPLOGO)
The plan is, thus, tantamount to a form of "class warfare." If enacted, it could well produce the greatest increase in poverty and hardship produced by any law in modern U.S. history.
This may sound hyperbolic, but it is not. The mathematics are inexorable.
* The Boehner plan calls for large cuts in discretionary programs of $1.2 trillion over the next ten years, and it then requires additional cuts that are large enough to produce another $1.8 trillion in savings to be enacted by the end of the year as a condition for raising the debt ceiling again at that time.
* The Boehner plan contains no tax increases. The entire $1.8 trillion would come from budget cuts.
* Because the first round of cuts will hit discretionary programs hard — through austere discretionary caps that Congress will struggle to meet — discretionary cuts will largely or entirely be off the table when it comes to achieving the further $1.8 trillion in budget reductions.
* As a result, virtually all of that $1.8 trillion would come from entitlement programs. They would have to be cut more than $1.5 trillion in order to produce sufficient interest savings to achieve $1.8 trillion in total savings.
* To secure $1.5 trillion in entitlement savings over the next ten years would require draconian policy changes. Policymakers would essentially have three choices: 1) cut Social Security and Medicare benefits heavily for current retirees, something that all budget plans from both parties (including House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan's plan) have ruled out; 2) repeal the Affordable Care Act's coverage expansions while retaining its measures that cut Medicare payments and raise tax revenues, even though Republicans seek to repeal many of those measures as well; or 3) eviscerate the safety net for low-income children, parents, senior citizens, and people with disabilities. There is no other plausible way to get $1.5 trillion in entitlement cuts in the next ten years.
* The evidence for this conclusion is abundant:
o The "Gang of Six" plan, with its very tough and controversial entitlement cuts, contains total entitlement reductions of $640 to $760 billion over the next ten years not counting Social Security, and $755 billion to $875 billion including Social Security. (That's before netting out $300 billion in entitlement costs that the plan includes for a permanent fix to the scheduled cuts in Medicare physician payments that Congress regularly cancels; with these costs netted out, the Gang of Six entitlement savings come to $455 to $575 billion.)
o The budget deal between President Obama and Speaker Boehner that fell apart last Friday, which included cuts in Social Security cost-of-living adjustments and Medicare benefits as well as an increase in the Medicare eligibility age, contained total entitlement cuts of $650 billion (under the last Obama offer) to $700 billion (under the last Boehner offer).
o The Ryan budget that the House passed in April contained no savings in Social Security over the next ten years and $279 billion in Medicare cuts.
To be sure, the House-passed Ryan budget included much larger overall entitlement cuts over the next 10 years. But that was largely because it eviscerated the safety net and repealed health reform's coverage expansions. The Ryan plan included cuts in Medicaid and health reform of a remarkable $2.2 trillion, from severely slashing Medicaid and killing health reform's coverage expansions. The Ryan plan also included stunning cuts of $127 billion in the SNAP program (formerly known as food stamps) and $126 billion in Pell Grants and other student financial assistance.
That House Republicans would likely seek to reach the Boehner budget's $1.8 trillion target in substantial part by cutting programs for the poorest and most vulnerable Americans is given strong credence by the "Cut, Cap, and Balance" bill that the House recently approved. That bill would establish global spending caps and enforce them with across-the-board budget cuts — exempting Medicare and Social Security from the across-the-board cuts while subjecting programs for the poor to the across-the-board axe. This would turn a quarter century of bipartisan budget legislation on its head; starting with the 1985 Gramm-Rudman-Hollings law, all federal laws of the last 26 years that have set budget targets enforced by across-the-board cuts have exempted the core assistance programs for the poor from those cuts while including Medicare among programs subject to the cuts. This component of the "Cut, Cap, and Balance" bill strongly suggests that, especially in the face of an approaching election, House Republicans looking for entitlement cuts would heavily target means-tested programs for people of lesser means (and less political power).
In short, the Boehner plan would force policymakers to choose among cutting the incomes and health benefits of ordinary retirees, repealing the guts of health reform and leaving an estimated 34 million more Americans uninsured, and savaging the safety net for the poor. It would do so even as it shielded all tax breaks, including the many lucrative tax breaks for the wealthiest and most powerful individuals and corporations.
President Obama has said that, while we must reduce looming deficits, we must take a balanced approach. The Boehner proposal badly fails this test of basic decency. The President should veto the bill if it reaches his desk. Congress should find a fairer, more decent way to avoid a default.
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization and policy institute that conducts research and analysis on a range of government policies and programs. It is supported primarily by foundation grants.
SOURCE Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
CONTACT: Shannon Spillane, +1-202-408-1080, spillane@cbpp.org
Web Site: http://www.cbpp.org
Statement of Robert Greenstein, President, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, on House Speaker Boehner's New Budget Proposal
PR Newswire
WASHINGTON, July 25, 2011
WASHINGTON, July 25, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- House Speaker John Boehner's new budget proposal would require deep cuts in the years immediately ahead in Social Security and Medicare benefits for current retirees, the repeal of health reform's coverage expansions, or wholesale evisceration of basic assistance programs for vulnerable Americans.
(Logo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20100209/CBPPLOGO)
The plan is, thus, tantamount to a form of "class warfare." If enacted, it could well produce the greatest increase in poverty and hardship produced by any law in modern U.S. history.
This may sound hyperbolic, but it is not. The mathematics are inexorable.
* The Boehner plan calls for large cuts in discretionary programs of $1.2 trillion over the next ten years, and it then requires additional cuts that are large enough to produce another $1.8 trillion in savings to be enacted by the end of the year as a condition for raising the debt ceiling again at that time.
* The Boehner plan contains no tax increases. The entire $1.8 trillion would come from budget cuts.
* Because the first round of cuts will hit discretionary programs hard — through austere discretionary caps that Congress will struggle to meet — discretionary cuts will largely or entirely be off the table when it comes to achieving the further $1.8 trillion in budget reductions.
* As a result, virtually all of that $1.8 trillion would come from entitlement programs. They would have to be cut more than $1.5 trillion in order to produce sufficient interest savings to achieve $1.8 trillion in total savings.
* To secure $1.5 trillion in entitlement savings over the next ten years would require draconian policy changes. Policymakers would essentially have three choices: 1) cut Social Security and Medicare benefits heavily for current retirees, something that all budget plans from both parties (including House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan's plan) have ruled out; 2) repeal the Affordable Care Act's coverage expansions while retaining its measures that cut Medicare payments and raise tax revenues, even though Republicans seek to repeal many of those measures as well; or 3) eviscerate the safety net for low-income children, parents, senior citizens, and people with disabilities. There is no other plausible way to get $1.5 trillion in entitlement cuts in the next ten years.
* The evidence for this conclusion is abundant:
o The "Gang of Six" plan, with its very tough and controversial entitlement cuts, contains total entitlement reductions of $640 to $760 billion over the next ten years not counting Social Security, and $755 billion to $875 billion including Social Security. (That's before netting out $300 billion in entitlement costs that the plan includes for a permanent fix to the scheduled cuts in Medicare physician payments that Congress regularly cancels; with these costs netted out, the Gang of Six entitlement savings come to $455 to $575 billion.)
o The budget deal between President Obama and Speaker Boehner that fell apart last Friday, which included cuts in Social Security cost-of-living adjustments and Medicare benefits as well as an increase in the Medicare eligibility age, contained total entitlement cuts of $650 billion (under the last Obama offer) to $700 billion (under the last Boehner offer).
o The Ryan budget that the House passed in April contained no savings in Social Security over the next ten years and $279 billion in Medicare cuts.
To be sure, the House-passed Ryan budget included much larger overall entitlement cuts over the next 10 years. But that was largely because it eviscerated the safety net and repealed health reform's coverage expansions. The Ryan plan included cuts in Medicaid and health reform of a remarkable $2.2 trillion, from severely slashing Medicaid and killing health reform's coverage expansions. The Ryan plan also included stunning cuts of $127 billion in the SNAP program (formerly known as food stamps) and $126 billion in Pell Grants and other student financial assistance.
That House Republicans would likely seek to reach the Boehner budget's $1.8 trillion target in substantial part by cutting programs for the poorest and most vulnerable Americans is given strong credence by the "Cut, Cap, and Balance" bill that the House recently approved. That bill would establish global spending caps and enforce them with across-the-board budget cuts — exempting Medicare and Social Security from the across-the-board cuts while subjecting programs for the poor to the across-the-board axe. This would turn a quarter century of bipartisan budget legislation on its head; starting with the 1985 Gramm-Rudman-Hollings law, all federal laws of the last 26 years that have set budget targets enforced by across-the-board cuts have exempted the core assistance programs for the poor from those cuts while including Medicare among programs subject to the cuts. This component of the "Cut, Cap, and Balance" bill strongly suggests that, especially in the face of an approaching election, House Republicans looking for entitlement cuts would heavily target means-tested programs for people of lesser means (and less political power).
In short, the Boehner plan would force policymakers to choose among cutting the incomes and health benefits of ordinary retirees, repealing the guts of health reform and leaving an estimated 34 million more Americans uninsured, and savaging the safety net for the poor. It would do so even as it shielded all tax breaks, including the many lucrative tax breaks for the wealthiest and most powerful individuals and corporations.
President Obama has said that, while we must reduce looming deficits, we must take a balanced approach. The Boehner proposal badly fails this test of basic decency. The President should veto the bill if it reaches his desk. Congress should find a fairer, more decent way to avoid a default.
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities is a nonprofit, nonpartisan research organization and policy institute that conducts research and analysis on a range of government policies and programs. It is supported primarily by foundation grants.
SOURCE Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
CONTACT: Shannon Spillane, +1-202-408-1080, spillane@cbpp.org
Web Site: http://www.cbpp.org
First Lady Michelle Obama in CHRIS BENZ
25 Jul 2011 19:56 Africa/Lagos
First Lady Michelle Obama in CHRIS BENZ
PR Newswire
NEW YORK, July 25, 2011
NEW YORK, July 25, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- First Lady Michelle Obama stays cool in the Summer heat while wearing CHRIS BENZ' Resort Nelda Dress for her appearance on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition in Fayetteville, North Carolina on Thursday, July 21st, 2011.
The episode, which is set to air in October, focuses on redesigning and expanding a North Carolina community resource center for homeless female veterans.
ABOUT CHRIS BENZ
The CHRIS BENZ collection is a reflection of Chris' Seattle upbringing and his ability to transform his influences to create a unique American style. His collection reflects the ease and carefree attitude one can expect from a true American Sportswear collection, which is made in the USA. In February 2007, Chris Benz presented his first ready-to-wear collection to high acclaim from fashion press and retailers during New York Fashion Week.
Chris grew up in Seattle, before arriving in New York City at the age of seventeen to study at Parsons School of Design. He graduated in 2004 winning the prestigious CFDA Emerging Designer Award. While at Parsons, Chris interned with Marc Jacobs where he reinforced his Parsons curriculum with the fundamentals of design. After graduation, Chris joined the dynamic J. Crew team as Designer of Dresses and Special Occasion.
Chris Benz is fascinated by innovation, proportions, refined tailoring and finishing details. The Seattle color palette prevails, with its deft blend of muted and neutral tones, shaken to life with an infusion of color. Classic silhouettes incorporate specialty details and elements of surprise. With an emphasis on layers, sheerness and directional color palette, the result is a beautifully crafted collection with a modern spirit. Chris Benz' vision is one of meticulous but effortless design: vintage and surplus elements, retooled in classic luxury fabrics that set the temperature of new American sportswear.
www.chris-benz.com
SOURCE CHRIS BENZ
CONTACT: PUBLICITY: Sidney Prawatyotin of Krupp Group, +1-212-462-4192, sidney@kruppgroup.com; or SALES: Eugene Migliaro of CHRIS BENZ, +1-212-244-2020, gene@chris-benz.com
Monday, July 25, 2011
Get Ahead of the Class with AT&T Campus Guide
Go back to school with the latest technology. AT&T Campus Guide connects, informs and engages college communities through an innovative mobile platform, complete with important contacts, maps, events calendars, news updates, social networking, course information and more. (PRNewsFoto/AT&T Inc.)
25 Jul 2011 14:00 Africa/Lagos
Get Ahead of the Class with AT&T Campus Guide
New Mobile Platform Connects, Informs and Engages Campus Communities
PR Newswire
DALLAS, July 25, 2011
DALLAS, July 25, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- It's time to ditch the bulky directories and printed flyers. With AT&T Campus Guide, on-the-go students, faculty, alumni and staff can access campus information right on their smartphones. Community members can check out upcoming events, catch up on university sports scores and read course materials – all without skipping a beat in their busy schedules.
(Photo: http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20110725/CG40358)
AT&T* is the first carrier to offer this type of mobile platform, an affordable, leading-edge technology for higher education institutions. The AT&T Campus Guide app, which users can download for free, works with any service provider and on most major mobile operating systems. AT&T is working with DubMeNow, a pioneer in mobilizing higher education, to bring AT&T Campus Guide to schools all over the country.
Colleges and universities using AT&T Campus Guide can customize the app, adding school colors and banners to make it their own. And with its quick and easy set-up, AT&T Campus Guide is ready to go in a matter of weeks rather than months.
AT&T Campus Guide offers nine different features:
* Courses: Students can connect with classmates and professors in real-time using AT&T Campus Guide, viewing grades, assignments, announcements and detailed class information.
* Events: Wondering when the next big game is? Not sure when exams start? The events calendar on AT&T Campus Guide provides important dates and times for campus happenings.
* Directory: Search and browse contact information and connect with other students and faculty, without paging through a campus phonebook.
* Maps: Freshmen, visiting students and alumni will particularly appreciate campus maps and turn-by-turn directions between buildings.
* Notifications: Timely notifications announce school cancellations and remind students about overdue library books, tuition payments and more.
* News: Find the latest campus news, sports scores and Tweets – all in one place.
* Friends: An always up-to-date and backed-up address book of all students' classmates, friends and campus contacts. Any time students lose or replace their phones, they can just reinstall the AT&T Campus Guide app to their new phones and all of their contacts are restored.
* My Card: Students can easily share their customizable contact information to keep in touch with their friends, classmates, potential employers, alumni and advisors..
* Info: Looking for more information? Click on Info for miscellaneous details about campus.
"Students gravitate toward schools that have the best resources, the best technology," said Chris Hill, Vice President, Advanced Mobility Solutions, AT&T Business Solutions. "They're mobile and they're looking for colleges and universities that are mobile too. AT&T Campus Guide supports community engagement and communication in a comprehensive and cost-effective manner."
"More than 600 schools currently license our platform to connect, inform and engage their students and campus communities," said Manoj Ramnani, CEO of DubMeNow. "With nearly 4,000 U.S. colleges and universities eager to catch up on mobile, the AT&T Campus Guide application gives campus leaders an effective way to draw students' interest. Our mobile platform, which powers AT&T Campus Guide, offers advanced integration, configuration, management and administration features in a complete solution."
AT&T will begin pre-selling AT&T Campus Guide on July 29th. Schools that participate in the pilot period (July 29th through September 29th) will receive the application free of charge until October 1st.
AT&T is dedicated to supporting education with products and services that help institutions improve productivity both in and out of the classroom. In addition, AT&T's University Advantage Program provides tailored contracts and discounts for colleges and universities.
For more information on AT&T Campus Guide, visit: http://go-att.us/CampusGuide.
*AT&T products and services are provided or offered by subsidiaries and affiliates of AT&T Inc. under the AT&T brand and not by AT&T Inc.
About Powered by DUB
Powered by DUB is the first comprehensive and intuitive open, mobile application platform for higher education, associations and events. The Powered by DUB platform allows organizations to connect, inform and engage with their community. For more information, visit http://www.poweredbydub.com or email sales@poweredbydub.com.
About AT&T
AT&T Inc. (NYSE: T) is a premier communications holding company. Its subsidiaries and affiliates – AT&T operating companies – are the providers of AT&T services in the United States and around the world. With a powerful array of network resources that includes the nation's fastest mobile broadband network, AT&T is a leading provider of wireless, Wi-Fi, high speed Internet, voice and cloud-based services. A leader in mobile broadband and emerging 4G capabilities, AT&T also offers the best wireless coverage worldwide of any U.S. carrier, offering the most wireless phones that work in the most countries. It also offers advanced TV services under the AT&T U-verse® and AT&T | DIRECTV brands. The company's suite of IP-based business communications services is one of the most advanced in the world. In domestic markets, AT&T Advertising Solutions and AT&T Interactive are known for their leadership in local search and advertising.
Additional information about AT&T Inc. and the products and services provided by AT&T subsidiaries and affiliates is available at http://www.att.com. This AT&T news release and other announcements are available at http://www.att.com/newsroom and as part of an RSS feed at www.att.com/rss. Or follow our news on Twitter at @ATT.
© 2011 AT&T Intellectual Property. All rights reserved. Mobile broadband not available in all areas. AT&T, the AT&T logo and all other marks contained herein are trademarks of AT&T Intellectual Property and/or AT&T affiliated companies. All other marks contained herein are the property of their respective owners.
SOURCE AT&T Inc.
CONTACT: Jessica Rich, +1-212-453-2327, jr105t@att.com, or Melissa (Mirabile) Salottolo, +1-212-453-2327, mmirabil@attnews.us, both of AT&T Corporate Communications
Web Site: http://www.att.com
Google is still the number one Online
RESTON, Va., July 22, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- comScore, Inc. (NASDAQ: SCOR), a leader in measuring the digital world, today released its monthly analysis of U.S. web activity at the top online properties for June 2011 based on data from the comScore Media Metrix service. Several Travel subcategories ranked among the top-gainers in June as summertime officially began. Sporting Goods and Toy sites also saw gains as parents looked for ways to keep their kids occupied during the summer recess.Google Sites ranked as the #1 property in June with 182.5 million visitors, followed by Yahoo! Sites with 178.4 million and Microsoft Sites with 173.6 million. Amazon Sites jumped 1 position to rank #6 with 95.8 million visitors, Disney Online jumped 8 positions to #32 (32.6 million visitors), and Twitter.com jumped 9 positions to #37 (30.6 million visitors). Expedia Inc appeared in the top 50 ranking at #39 (28.1 million visitors).
Top 50 Ad Focus Ranking
Google Ad Network led the June Ad Focus ranking with a reach of 92.8 percent of Americans online, followed by Yahoo! Network Plus (86.3 percent), AOL Advertising (85.9 percent), Yahoo! Sites (83.2 percent) and Google (82.2)
Click here for the complete detailed report.
Top Topics
Over Half of all Americans Favor National Recognition for Same-Sex Marriages
comScore Media Metrix Ranks Top 50 U.S. Web Properties for June 2011
New Cancer Treatment Device Goes Into Service Today
KCBS News: Dr. Percy Lee talks about the new Novalis Tx radiosurgery machine at UCLAs Jonsson Comprehensive Cancer Center.
25 Jul 2011 07:00 Africa/Lagos
New Cancer Treatment Device Goes Into Service Today
MANCHESTER, England, July 25, 2011/PRNewswire/ --
- Experts Welcome Latest Advance as Promising Development for UK Patients
A treatment system called the Novalis(R) Tx(TM) has gone into service today, which has the ability to destroy cancerous cells virtually anywhere in the body in a single, 20-minute session, without the need for a single cut of the scalpel.
The Novalis Tx, installed in The Christie at Salford Royal, a brand new radiotherapy centre in the North West, treats cancer using a specialised technique called radiosurgery which is especially beneficial for tumours of the brain and spine previously thought untreatable by surgeons.
Using powerful, highly accurate beams of radiation shaped to fit the precise shape of even the most complex tumours, the system is able to treat painlessly without the need for invasive[1] surgery and with fewer side effects. The short treatment times of the system benefit both doctor and patient; and mean more patients can be treated on the system in one day. Patients are often able to attend clinic just as an outpatient, returning to life the same day. Frameless radiosurgery provides a patient-friendly alternative to techniques that require immobilisation with an invasive head ring that is affixed to the skull[1].
Rachel Good, Christie radiotherapy manager for the new centre, says: "The Novalis Tx[TM] was the perfect choice for the centre because it will help The Christie treat more patients by switching between specialised radiosurgery for tumours in the brain to standard radiotherapy for other cancers of the body. In our first year we are looking to treat 720 patients with the Novalis Tx, 120 of which will be priority brain tumour patients where precise, non-invasive treatment is particularly effective."
News will be welcomed by the 300,000 people in the UK diagnosed with cancer each year[2]. Of these 50,000 people are estimated to develop either primary or secondary brain tumours[3], where traditional treatment is difficult to provide. Malignant primary brain tumours take more years off the average person's life than any other cancer and are the most significant cause of cancer death amongst men under 45 years and women under 35[1].
Ms Tina Karabatsou, Consultant Neurosurgeon at the Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust, says: "One of the fantastic advantages of the new Novalis Tx treatment is we will be able to treat brain conditions we were previously unable to treat; such as tumours really deep in the brain where open surgery is too dangerous. Equally important is the non-invasive nature of treatment, which means treatment sessions can be performed as an outpatient day-case and with significantly less side effects."
The launch of the high-quality treatment coincides with new guidelines released by the NHS National Cancer Action Team which state that radiosurgery should be made available to all suitable cancer patients in England. By the end of 2011 three sites will be treating with the Novalis Tx developed by Varian Medical Systems and Brainlab in England and Scotland, improving access to advanced cancer care to patients across the UK.
Helen Bulbeck, Director of patient charity Brainstrust, comments: "The launch of the Novalis Tx system is a huge stride towards modernising cancer care in the UK to levels seen in Europe and the US. This is a great achievement for brain tumour treatment and one that we hope to see the NHS continue to build on in the years to come."
Further information:
About Brainlab
Together we are making medical technology and knowledge more impactful and accessible to physicians and their patients.
Brainlab develops, manufactures and markets software-driven medical technology that supports targeted, less-invasive treatment. Core products are image-guided systems and software that provide real-time information used for surgical navigation and radiosurgical planning and delivery.
Brainlab technology drives collaboration between hospitals and clinicians from a wide variety of subspecialties-from neurosurgery and oncology to orthopedics, ENT, CMF and spine and trauma. This integration delivers better access to improved and more efficient treatment.
Founded in 1989, the privately held Brainlab group has more than 5,000 systems installed in over 80 countries. Based in Munich, Germany, Brainlab employs 970 people in 16 offices worldwide.
To learn more, visit http://www.brainlab.com.
About Varian Medical Systems
Varian Medical Systems, Inc., of Palo Alto, California, is the world's leading manufacturer of medical devices and software for treating cancer and other medical conditions with radiotherapy, radiosurgery, proton therapy, and brachytherapy. The company supplies informatics software for managing comprehensive cancer clinics, radiotherapy centres and medical oncology practices. Varian is a premier supplier of tubes and digital detectors for X-ray imaging in medical, scientific, and industrial applications and also supplies X-ray imaging products for cargo screening and industrial inspection. Varian Medical Systems employs approximately 5,100 people who are located at manufacturing sites in North America, China, and Europe and in its 79 sales and support offices around the world. For more information, visit http://www.varian.com.
About The Christie Foundation Trust
The Christie is one of the leading cancer centres in Europe treating about 40,000 patients every year and an international leader in research.
The new GBP18 million radiotherapy centre in Salford is part of a unique network of Christie radiotherapy centres to bring treatment closer to people's homes. As well as being equipped to deliver stereotactic radiosurgery, a highly specialised neurosurgical technique for brain conditions, the centre will be treating 60 patients a day from the local area for the most common cancers like breast, bowel and lung.
About Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust
Salford Royal NHS Foundation Trust is recognised as one of the best Trust's in the NHS and aims to provide safe, clean and personal care to all patients. Salford Royal is large teaching Trust providing a range of medical, surgical, maternity and emergency services to the people of Salford. The Trust also offers specialist care to people from all over the UK who require expert tertiary help with, for example, neuroscience and kidney conditions. On 1 April 2011, Salford Royal integrated with Salford Community Health; the Trust now provides a range of community and primary care services. Our core purpose is to provide clinical, academic and service excellence ensuring the patient experience is at the forefront of care.
http://www.srft.nhs.uk
1. Some doctors may opt for a minamally invasive head frame depending on the specific treatment and patient.
2. Cancer Research UK. Cancer incidence - UK statistics. 2007. http://info.cancerresearchuk.org/cancerstats/incidence/ (Last accessed 18 Jul 2011)
3. Brain Tumour Research, Brain Tumour UK, International Brain Tumour Alliance & Samantha Dickson Brain Tumour Trust. A manifesto for everyone affected by a brain tumour.
Source: Brainlab
Press enquiries: Rob Jones, Contact: rjones@pegasuspr.co.uk +44(0)1903-821550 / +44(0)7768-637786
Saturday, July 23, 2011
Volkswagen Touareg TDI® Clean Diesel SUV. Makes New World Record!
Volkswagen Touareg TDI® Clean Diesel SUV Powers Rainer Zietlow and Team to New Record on World's Longest Highway
TDI-Panamericana Endurance Challenge drivers Marius Biela, Rainer Zietlow and Carlos Fernandez celebrate their record-setting trip which covered 16,000 miles in 11 days 17 hours
TDI-Panamericana Endurance Challenge Team Conquers 16,000 Miles in Record Time Demonstrating the Power and Durability of Clean Diesel Technology
Deadhorse, Alaska/Herndon, Va. — July 20, 2011 /PRNewswire/ — On July 13, after 11 days, 17 hours and 22 minutes of non-stop driving, renowned adventurer and off-road driver Rainer Zietlow and his team set a new world record certified by Tüv Nord Mobility for driving the length of the Pan-American Highway as they crossed the road’s end in Deadhorse, Alaska. The TDI-Panamericana Endurance Challenge team covered 14 countries and nearly 16,000 miles in a 2011 Volkswagen Touareg TDI® Clean Diesel SUV. Their journey to commemorate the 75th Anniversary of the Pan-American Highway’s establishment breaks the previous record by more than three days.
“Our adrenaline is still pumping after setting the new world record on the Pan-American Highway,” said Rainer Zietlow, manager of the German car event agency, Challenge4 GmbH, after finishing the Challenge. “We were able to overcome every weather challenge along the way, and our fueling and transportation stops ran like clockwork. Thanks to our sponsors, we were outfitted with a vehicle that could handle the demanding driving schedule and challenging conditions, and had amazing technical and driver support along the way.”
Zietlow and his German teammates, Carlos Fernandez and Marius Biela, started their journey on July 2 at the southern-most tip of Argentina where the Pan-American Highway begins. They traveled through 14 countries – Argentina, Chile, Peru, Ecuador, Colombia, Panama, Costa Rica, Nicaragua, Honduras, El Salvador, Guatemala, Mexico, the United States and Canada – and through challenging conditions ranging from a blinding sandstorm in Chile to muddy roads in northern Alaska. The team drove day and night, taking five-hour driving shifts throughout the trip. The TDI-Panamericana Endurance Challenge website, www.tdi-panamericana.com, shared the team’s experiences through blog posts and videos and tracked their progress using a live map.
This world record journey was also one of goodwill. Zietlow will donate 10 Euro cents for each kilometer that was driven this trip to two villages in Latin America managed by Plan International, a charity organization that works in 48 developing countries to promote children’s rights and lift millions of children out of poverty.
Zietlow chose the Touareg TDI® Clean Diesel for its durability, high-performance and long-range fuel efficiency. Its turbocharged 3.0L V6 TDI® engine delivers 225 horsepower and 406 lb-ft of torque and is designed to perform on rugged terrain and mixed road surfaces at varying altitudes. The clean diesel Touareg consumes 30 percent less fuel and produces up to 25 percent lower CO2 emissions than comparable gasoline vehicles.
“Volkswagen congratulates the Challenge4 Team on their success,” said Rainer Michel, vice president of product marketing, Volkswagen of America. “We knew that the Volkswagen Touareg TDI® Clean Diesel SUV could be pushed to unimaginable limits. The completion of the TDI-Panamericana Endurance Challenge in record-setting time demonstrates the vehicle’s durability, reliability, comfort and fuel-efficiency. This is a great vehicle for adventurers, driving enthusiasts and families alike.”
From August 1 through August 30, Zietlow will drive the record-setting Touareg to Volkswagen dealerships across the nation where interested public can watch a movie about his journey and look inside the vehicle. To see the tour schedule, please visit www.tdi-panamericana.com.
In addition to Volkswagen, a number of other major sponsors supported the Challenge, including 3M, Allianz, Bosch, Castrol, Continental Tire, ESL, Exide Technologies, Federal Mogul, Getac, Inmarsat, Kruse, Kuehne + Nagel, PIAA, Sonax, Tag Heuer and Volkswagen Credit.
Volkswagen of America, Inc.
Founded in 1955, Volkswagen of America, Inc. is headquartered in Herndon, Va. It is a subsidiary of Volkswagen AG, headquartered in Wolfsburg, Germany. Volkswagen is one of the world’s largest producers of passenger cars and Europe’s largest automaker. Volkswagen sells the Eos, Golf, GTI, Jetta, Jetta SportWagen, CC, Tiguan, Touareg and Routan through approximately 600 independent U.S. dealers. All 2011 Volkswagen vehicles come standard-equipped with Electronic Stability Control (ESC). This is important because the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has called ESC the most effective new vehicle safety technology since the safety belt. Visit Volkswagen of America online at www.vw.com or www.media.vw.com to learn more.
# # #
Media Contact:
Corey Proffitt
703-364-7672
Corey.Proffitt@vw.com
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