Current Events in August 2012

As you may already know, the comedian and political satirist Stephen Colbert is quite the character.

In 2008 the late-night talk-show host alluded to a presidential bid.

In 2010 he addressed Congress about the rights of migrant workers with sarcastic and comedic undertones, and that same year along with Jon Stewart he ran a political rally on the Washington D.C. Mall hilariously titled the "Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear.

Now Colbert is bringing his popular brand of mock and satire to the realm of outdoor musical concerts.

On a recent episode of "The Colbert Report," the TV commentator announced that he would be hosting an outside concert on the deck of the Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum, in New York City on Friday August 10, 2012.

The concert will also be taped and rebroadcast for the television audience.

The hard to pronounce concert entitled "Pepsi Presents StePhest Colbchella '012: Rocktaugustfest" will include acts like The Flaming Lips, the New York based rock band Fun, Grizzly Bear, Santigold, and old-school Hip-Hop pioneer Grandmaster Flash.

Free tickets

Tickets for the concert are not yet available, but those interested can request them for free starting August 1, at colbertnation.com, but the venue will only accommodate 1,500 people. The live show and taping begin at 7:00 p.m.

But if you're not able to secure a ticket, Colbert will have both performance clips and backstage interviews of the artists that he'll air on his show during the week of August 13.

"Folks, I know all the latest hottest bands, like Bonnaroo and Lollapalooza ... those guys are great, Colbert said in a statement. “We’ll, now it's summer and that means it's time to remount my long-running, one-year tradition of throwing my own summer concert."

Ironically, Colbert isn't exactly new to delivering music through his contrived political commentator persona.

 In 2011 he similarly introduced what he called "Dr. Pepper Presents StePhest Colbchella '011: Rock You Like A Thirst-icane, " which also included a series of musical artists that played each day of the week during his show.

Whether his musical offerings are sponsored by Dr. Pepper or Pepsi, Colbert is not at all short on amusing event titles.

July has been a good month for fans of the TV personality, as his home channel of Comedy Central was recently able to be watched again, after it was removed with a number of other stations during a very public dispute between Viacom and DirecTV.

Re-upped

Also last month, Comedy Central announced that both Colbert and Jon Stewart were re-upped for another two years on their contracts, keeping Stewart on the network until the 2015 TV season and Colbert until 2014.

Colbert has been hosting his weekly cable show since 2005, and has garnered several Emmy awards and a cult like following of viewers between the ages of 18 to 49.

Both the Colbert and Stewart shows have beaten out all other late night talk-shows in ratings, among the younger portion of TV viewers.

Until Colbert's potential exit from Comedy Central in 2014, people are likely to see more peculiar functions created by the host, and his New York City concert is possibly just the beginning of these abruptly announced concerts.

"We are gonna rock the boat, which won't be easy because the Intrepid displaces 41,434 tons" said Colbert. "Does Bonnaroo have cruise missiles? I think not."

The Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum is located on Pier 86, 12th Ave. and 46 Street on the west side of Manhattan.

Sears, Roebuck and Co. and Kmart Corporation, of Hoffman Estates, IL, are recalling nearly 800,000 Kenmore dehumidifiers. 

The dehumidifiers, made BY LG Electronics, of Tianjin, China, can overheat, smoke, melt and catch on fire, posing fire and burn hazards to consumers. There have been 107 reports of incidents, with more than $7 million in property damage and three reports of smoke inhalation injuries. 

The recall involves 35-, 50- and 70-pint dehumidifiers with a Kenmore logo on the front top of the unit, manufactured between 2003 and 2005. The dehumidifiers are made of white plastic and are between 21 and 24 inches tall, about 15 inches wide and about 13.5 inches in depth. They have fan and humidity controls on their top front panels and some models include remote controls. They come with front-loading water buckets. The model number can be found on the right side of the interior of the unit once the bucket has been removed. Recalled units have the following model numbers:

The products were sold exclusively at Sears and Kmart stores nationwide and Sears.com and Kmart.com from 2003 to 2009 for between $140 and $220. 

Consumers should turn off and unplug the dehumidifiers immediately and contact the firm to receive a Sears gift card for $75, $80, $90 or $100, which may be used at any Sears or Kmart store or at Sears.com or Kmart.com. 

The gift card amount will depend on the capacity and year of the dehumidifier. In lieu of a gift card, consumers may request a check for the refund amount. All consumers with recalled units will also receive a $25 coupon that may be used at Sears Department Stores or Sears.com toward the purchase of a new Kenmore dehumidifier. 

For additional information, contact the Recall Fulfillment Center toll-free at (855) 400-4641 between 8 a.m. and 7 p.m. CT Monday through Friday and between 8 a.m. and 2 p.m. CT Saturday, or go here.

Much of the U.S. remains in the grip of a severe drought brought on by a series of heat waves. While much attention has been focused on the impact this is having on crops and livestock, a medical historian says these heat waves are extremely dangerous for people too.

A hurricane might claim 100 lives as it devastates a coastal area. A tornado may kill a dozen people as it wipes a small town off the map. But a heat wave, says Richard Keller, a University of Wisconsin-Madison professor of medical history and bioethics, can kill tens of thousands.

Keller is compiling a detailed account of the epic 2003 heat wave that broiled parts of Europe that summer and killed an estimated 70,000 people. Over a three-week period in August that year, a massive high-pressure system parked over Europe, producing the hottest summer weather in more than 500 years and leading to most of those fatalities.

Melted electrical cables

It was so hot electrical cables melted, nuclear reactors could not be cooled, water pumps failed and museum specimens liquefied, Keller says.

Hurricane Katrina was perhaps the worst hurricane in recent memory when it devastated New Orleans and the Gulf Coast in 2005. The death toll was 1,836.

The European heat wave of 2003, meanwhile, took a deadly toll in France, when temperatures surpassed 100 degrees Fahrenheit on seven days.

“Measured by mortality, it was the worst natural disaster in contemporary France," said Keller.

According to official estimates, 14,802 people died. Because it was August, Keller says many public officials were on vacation and were unaware of the scope of the catastrophe that was developing. The first to realize what was happening were French undertakers, who were being overwhelmed with bodies.

Social variables

Contributing to the death toll, says Keller, were a number of social variables such as age of the victims, social status, gender and where they lived. In Paris, many of the victims were elderly women who lived alone, usually on the top floors of cheap, poorly ventilated walk-ups.

"People who lived in these apartments died like flies," said Keller. "This was as much a social as a health and epidemiological disaster. There were social factors that made some people much more vulnerable."

As America sweats through a particularly grueling summer, there are lessons from that 2003 disaster that could save lives. First, age is a big risk factor.

Elderly at risk

The elderly often don't notice the effects of dehydration and so tend not to drink enough water. Sometimes the medications older people take can magnify the effects of extreme heat. But Keller says the single biggest factor for dying in a heat wave is if you live alone.

Both are points that should be considered when caring for elderly family members. If an elderly relative lives alone, August might be a good time to make a visit, or have them visit you. Meanwhile, Keller argues that more attention should be paid to the dangers of extreme heat.

"We have to recognize that heat kills far more people than the cold and that those most likely to die are people on the social margins of society," Keller said.

Philippine Airlines, Santa Barbara Airlines and ticket agent Pacific for Less are being slapped with fines for violating expanded airline passenger protection rules that took effect in January. 

Philippine Airlines and Pacific for Less violated the rule requiring all taxes and fees be included in advertised fares, according to the U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT). Philippine Airlines was assessed a civil penalty of $80,000 and Pacific for Less was assessed a civil penalty of $20,000. 

Santa Barbara Airlines, a carrier based in Venezuela, violated the rule requiring the disclosure of fees for baggage, and was assessed a civil penalty of $80,000. Each company was also ordered to cease and desist from further violations. 

“We adopted our airline consumer protection rules to make sure passengers know the full price they have to pay, including charges for checking baggage, when they buy an airline ticket,” said U.S. Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. “Carriers and ticket agents are required to comply with these rules.” 

All-inclusive fare info 

DOT requires all advertisements that include airfares to state the entire price to be paid by the consumer. Prior to a rule that took effect Jan. 26, advertised fares were not required to include certain government-imposed taxes as long as these additional charges were clearly disclosed in the ad. Under the new rule, all government taxes and fees must be incorporated into the fare. The rule applies to U.S. and foreign airlines as well as ticket agents. 

Airfare searches on Philippine Airlines’ Website made after Jan. 26 by the department’s Aviation Enforcement Office resulted in listings of base fares for outbound and inbound legs that did not include additional government taxes and fees. The total fare to be charged, including taxes and fees, was disclosed only on the following web page. 

A review of Pacific for Less’s Website after Jan. 2012 showed that the company advertised prices for tour packages with an air component that did not include the entire price to be paid by the consumer. The advertised prices of tour packages were followed by an asterisk that referred consumers to a statement at the bottom of the page that indicated that taxes and fees were additional. 

Airfare searches on Santa Barbara’s Website made by the department’s Aviation Enforcement Office after Jan. 24 found that the airline failed to disclose on the first screen in which it offered a fare quotation for a specific itinerary that additional airline fees for baggage may apply, and where consumers could see those fees. 

Expanded rules 

Under DOT’s new rule, which took effect Jan. 24, carriers must disclose to consumers booking a flight that they may have to pay baggage fees in addition to the basic ticket price. When consumers book a flight on-line, carriers must clearly and prominently disclose on the first screen that offers a specific itinerary that additional baggage fees may apply and tell the consumer where they can view the fees. The rule applies to all airlines selling air transportation in the United States, including foreign carriers.

With housing still in recession mode, it has been car sales that have provided much of the little momentum the economy possesses. Can it keep going? July car sales, which are beginning to be reported, may shed some light.

Nissan, one of the first carmakers to report, posted sales of 98,341 units last month -- up 16.2 percent from July 2011 and up 6.6 percent from June's robust sales pace. Sales of the Nissan Altima achieved a July record of 26,602, up 24.7 percent from a year ago. July marked the first full month of sales for the all-new, 2013 Altima sedan.

Infiniti reported sales of 11,619 units for July, an increase of 56.8 percent from 7,410 units a year earlier. The Infiniti G Sedan, with sales of 6,078, had an increase of 88.8 percent versus last year, making it the best July in the sport sedan's history.

Sporty luxury sells

Porsche Cars North America, Inc. (PCNA), which imports and distributes Porsche sports cars, Cayenne SUVs and the Panamera four-door sports sedan line-up in the U.S., sold 2,803 vehicles in July, slightly better that July 2011.

"Our all-new Boxster and 911 models continue to be in high-demand," said PCNA's President and CEO, Detlev von Platen. In fact, for the year, we've sold 46 percent more 911 sports cars this year than last year -- a tribute to the success of the new, seventh-generation 911."

At the other end of the price spectrum, Kia Motors America reported best-ever July sales of 48,074 units, a 5.6-percent increase over the same period last year. But July sales dipped 6.3 percent from June.

Meanwhile, GM sales were off six percent for the month while Ford sales declined 3.8 percent. Chrysler sales were up over 13 percent.

Sorento paces Kia

Kia's July sales were paced by strong sales of the U.S.-built Sorento SUV and Optima midsize sedan, as well as the popular Soul urban passenger vehicle.

When all the sales figures are in, automotive site Edmunds.com estimates July sales will total 1,166,665 new cars. That would be a 9.2 percent decrease from June 2012, but a 10.2 percent increase from July 2011, even with two fewer selling days, year over year.

An estimated 1,166,665 new cars will be sold in July for a Seasonally Adjusted Annual Rate (SAAR) of 14.0 million light vehicles, according to the latest auto sales forecast by Edmunds.com, the premier online resource for automotive information.

Chevy promotion fails to impress

Meanwhile, Edmunds found new car incentives remained relatively stable, with General Motors showing the most stability following the company's heavily publicized marketing program launched earlier last month. According to Edmunds, GM incentives fell 0.3 percent from June to July, despite launching Chevy Total Confidence, which promises "a great deal on your Chevy, with no need to negotiate." GM's spending on Chevrolet alone is down even more, from $3,328 in June to $3,176 in July, a decline of 4.6 percent.

"Savvy consumers don't see tremendous value in the Total Confidence program," said Edmunds.com Senior Analyst Jessica Caldwell. "The Total Confidence pricing is similar in many cases to our True Market Value pricing -- and for some vehicles, it was even higher. So, depending on the situation, a consumer could have gotten a better deal before the program started."

The biggest change in incentive spending came from Nissan, rising 18.4 percent month over month thanks mostly to a 22 percent increase in incentive spending on its luxury brand Infiniti.

Overall, Edmunds.com's TCISM data shows that the auto industry spent $2,236 per vehicle this month, up 0.6 percent from June, but down 6.2 percent from July 2011. TrueCar.com, meanwhile, estimates the average July new car transaction price was $30,369, up 1.6 percent from July 2011 but down slightly from June.

There's no letup in the drought gripping much of the nation.

Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack today signed disaster designations for an additional 218 counties in 12 states as primary natural disaster areas due to damage and losses caused by drought and excessive heat. 

Counties designated today are in Arkansas, Georgia, Iowa, Illinois, Indiana, Kansas, Mississippi, Nebraska, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Tennessee and Wyoming. More than half (50.3 percent) of all counties in the United States have been designated disaster areas by USDA in 2012, mainly due to drought. 

"The assistance announced today will help U.S. livestock producers dealing with climbing feed prices, critical shortages of hay and deteriorating pasturelands,” said Vilsack. “Responding to my request, crop insurance companies indicated that producers can forgo interest penalties to help our nation's farm families struggling with cash flow challenges." 

Emergency haying and grazing 

In response to the expanding drought, Vilsack also announced that livestock producers and other participants in the Conservation Reserve Program (CRP) will now be able to hay and graze acres that have been ineligible in the past. Many of these additional acres have wetland-related characteristics and are likely to contain better quality hay and forage than on other CRP acres. 

There are approximately 3.8 million acres that will now be eligible for emergency haying and grazing, subject to certain conditions. Haying and grazing may only occur under strict compliance rules to help minimize impacts on these sensitive specialty practices. In addition, USDA will conduct follow-up monitoring and evaluation of these opened CRP areas to study the effects of the drought and USDA's emergency haying and grazing actions. 

Producers should contact their local Farm Service Agency offices for additional information. 

Federal crop insurance

In addition, Vilsack has announced that crop insurance companies have agreed to provide a short grace period for farmers on insurance premiums in 2012. To help producers who may have cash flow problems due to natural disasters, Vilsack sent a letter to crop insurance companies asking them to voluntarily defer the accrual of any interest on unpaid spring crop premiums by producers until November 1, 2012. 

In turn, to assist the crop insurance companies, USDA will not require crop insurance companies to pay uncollected producer premiums until one month later. 

During the 2012 crop year, USDA has designated 1,584 unduplicated counties across 32 states as disaster areas -- 1,452 due to drought -- making all qualified farm operators in the areas eligible for low-interest emergency loans. 

Drought monitor 

The U.S. Drought Monitor indicates that 66 percent of the nation's hay acreage is in an area experiencing drought, while approximately 73 percent of the nation's cattle acreage is in an area experiencing drought. 

During the week ending July 29, USDA's National Agricultural Statistics Service (NASS) reported that U.S. soybeans rated 37 percent very poor to poor, matching the lowest conditions observed during the drought of 1988. 

NASS also reported that 48 percent of the U.S. corn crop was rated very poor to poor, while 57 percent of the nation's pastures and rangeland are rated very poor or poor condition. 

A list of primary counties and corresponding states designated as disaster thus far can be found here.

If you were refinancing your mortgage, would you take out some of your equity and roll it into your new loan?

It was a common practice a few years ago, when home values were rapidly rising. In hindsight it was a terribly risky practice, as many homeowners whose mortgages should be close to paid off find themselves instead owing more than their homes are worth.

The lesson hasn't been lost on today's homeowners who are refinancing their mortgages at lower rates. In its second quarter refinance analysis, Freddie Mac says the statistics show homeowners have continued to strengthen their fiscal house.

In the second quarter, 81 percent of homeowners who refinanced their first-lien home mortgage either kept the same loan amount or lowered their principal balance by paying-in additional money at the closing table.

23 percent reduced their loan amount

Of these borrowers, 59 percent maintained about the same loan amount, and 23 percent of refinancing homeowners reduced their principal balance. Freddie Mac found the share of borrowers that kept about the same loan amount was the highest in the 27-year history of the analysis.

By the same token, the net dollars of home equity taken as cash during a refinance, adjusted for inflation, hit its lowest level in 17 years. Refinancing homeowners took out $5 billion in equity in the second quarter. In the second quarter of 2006, at the height of the housing bubble, they took out $84 billion.

Then homeowners often refinanced mortgages for the express purpose of receiving cash, using their homes as ATMs. Now homeowners are almost totally motivated by lower interest rates. The median interest rate reduction for a 30-year fixed-rate mortgage was about 1.5 percentage points, or a savings of about 28 percent in interest -- the largest percent reduction recorded in the 27 years of analysis.

“On a $200,000 loan, that translates into saving about $2,900 in interest during the next 12 months,” said Frank Nothaft, Freddie Mac vice president and chief economist. “Fixed-rate mortgage rates hit new lows during June, with 30-year product averaging 3.68 percent and 15-year averaging 2.95 percent that month, according to our Primary Mortgage Market Survey.”

Huxtable's Kitchen of Vernon, CA, is recalling approximately 5,610 pounds of 14.5-oz trays of Trader Joe's BBQ Chicken Salad. The salads contain diced onions that are the subject of a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) recall due to possible Listeria monocytogenes contamination. 

The USDA’s Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) was alerted to the problem by Huxtable's Kitchen, which was informed by a supplier that diced onions used in the product are subject to an FDA recall. There are no reports of illnesses associated with consumption of this product. 

Consumers with questions about the recall should contact the company's Director of Quality Assurance, Juan Castro, at (323) 923-2885. News reporters with questions about the recall should contact the company's President, Jason Knight, at (323) 923-2905. 

Apple and Samsung's ongoing courtroom battle over patents may be overshadowing the contest between the two smartphone giants in the marketplace. But that confrontation is just as intense.

At the moment, Samsung appears to have the upper hand. In a report digital analyst comScore, Inc., says Samsung is the overall top handset manufacturer when it comes to U.S. sales, cornering 25.6 percent of the market in the second quarter of 2012.

Apple comes in third, with 15.4 percent of the market trailing LG, which claims an 18.8 percent market share in the comScore survey of 30,000 mobile subscribers.

Despite its high profile and popularity, perhaps Apple's position is not so unexpected. Apple basically makes one handset, the iPhone. True, consumers can buy older versions of the iPhone at a lower price, but that's hardly the same as producing a full line of phones that feature the latest technology.

Samsung, for example, offers six different 4G smartphone models for Verizon Wireless subscribers at prices starting at $49. Apple's latest iPhone, the 4S, still operates at 3G speeds.

On the move

Despite that, Apple continues to gain ground. Its operating system now makes up 32.4 percent of the market to Android's 51.6 percent share. Still, it's impressive when you consider that one manufacturer holds that 32.4 percent while Android's 51.6 percent is shared by Samsung and a number of other device manufacturers who make Android phones.

RIM, maker of the Blackberry, ranked third with a 10.7 percent share, followed by Microsoft at 3.8 percent and Symbian at 0.9 percent.

The comScore report also shows that for the three-month average period ending in June, 234 million Americans age 13 and older used mobile devices. The U.S. population is estimated to be a little over 313 million. More than 110 million people in the U.S. owned smartphones during the three months ending in June, up four percent from March.

People do a lot more than talk on their phones. In June, 75 percent of U.S. mobile subscribers used text messaging on their mobile device and 51.4 percent downloaded at least one app. About half of subscribers used their devices to access the Internet.

Deciding what to eat can be challenging enough if you're healthy. If you're not, it's even tougher. But now, help is available.

The U.S. Food Safety and Inspection Service (FSIS) and the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have partnered to create six booklets with food safety advice for populations that are most susceptible to foodborne illness. 

The booklets in this "at-risk series" are tailored to help older adults, transplant recipients, pregnant women, and people with cancer, diabetes or HIV/AIDS reduce their risk for foodborne illness. 

"These booklets are a much needed resource for consumers who are at increased risk of getting sick from food," said USDA Undersecretary for Food Safety Dr. Elisabeth Hagen. "The clear, understandable information in these booklets will help at-risk individuals feel confident about the safety of foods they prepare and eat. The booklets are also helpful to physicians and other health care providers for educating their at-risk patients about foodborne illnesses." 

Practical guidance 

Each of the booklets contains 24 pages of practical guidance on how to prevent foodborne illness. The information is presented in easy-to-read charts, illustrated how-tos, and straightforward descriptions of why each group is at higher risk for foodborne illness and symptoms that may mean trouble. 

The booklets contain three tear-out cards with quick-reference tips for grocery shopping, cooking to the right temperature, and eating at restaurants for times when taking along the entire booklet would be impractical. 

"Everyone from farmers to food manufacturers to food preparers in the home has a role in food safety," said FDA Deputy Commissioner for Foods Michael Taylor. "It is important that consumers, particularly those who are at higher risk of foodborne illness, have information they can use to do their part in preventing illness by properly selecting and preparing foods." 

While booklets on five of these topics were previously produced in 2006, the two agencies this year created a sixth booklet for pregnant women, who are at particular risk for the illness listeriosis. The six new booklets list food safety resources that have been made available since the earlier copies were printed. They also include revised safe cooking temperatures for meat and poultry: 145 °F for whole cuts of meat, followed by a three-minute rest time; 160 °F for ground meats; and 165 °F for all poultry and leftovers. 

Booklets available 

FSIS and FDA have mailed copies of the booklets to physicians around the country who treat patients in any of these six categories, and the booklets are available to the public free of charge. 

To order booklets for your home, office, or organization, call the toll-free USDA Meat and Poultry Hotline at 1-888-MPHotline (1-888-674-6854) weekdays between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m. ET, or email requests to fsis.outreach@usda.gov.

New cars are a gadget freak's dream; sophisticated navigation systems, Internet connectivity for mobile devices, systems to monitor your driving habits and a system that automatically summons help.

Consumers have never been happier, right? Not quite, according to a survey by Harris Interactive. It finds that 76 percent of car owners believe in-car connectivity technologies are too distracting and even dangerous to have. More than half -- 55 percent -- say that automakers have taken technology for road use too far.

In the past, one of the only technology distractions in the car was changing the station on the radio. Now, according to Harris' survey of adults 18 and older, 62 percent of drivers worry that all this technology and connectivity could pose serious privacy issues. They express the worry that someone could be keeping track of where and how they drive.

Is my insurance company watching?

For example, 41 percent of respondents said they think their insurance rates could increase because of what in-car technology reveals about their driving habits. This is more of a concern among younger drivers between 18 and 35, and men, the survey found.

The engineers who designed these systems obviously were operating under the assumption that consumers want to be connected and want different forms of sophisticated technology at their fingertips. But is it a valid assumption?

In the Harris survey, three in five consumers said they view their car as a haven from the outside world and don't always want to be connected while driving. On the other hand, more than half of car owners confessed that in-car connectivity makes driving more enjoyable and makes them feel safer while on the road.

Demographic differences

When it comes to automotive technology, there are important demographic differences. Men like it more than women do. Young people value it more than their parents.

In fact, it's the baby boom generation that finds staying connected while in their vehicle the least important. Only 39 percent of car owners 50-to-66 think in-car connectivity is important compared to 58 percent of those who are between 18 and 35.

Of course, not all technology is entertainment-related. Some can enhance safety. A previous Harris study found that safety technologies such as back-up cameras, blind spot warning systems and pedestrian sensors have seen the most interest in the past year, compared with entertainment and connectivity technologies.

"The data shows that consumers generally favor the safety and entertainment they find with in-car connectivity, but they don't want to give up their privacy by sharing detailed information about their driving habits with companies that may stand to benefit from the information," said Mike Chadsey, Vice President, Automotive Solutions Consultant, Harris Interactive.

And the fear of technology distraction seems to be a very real concern, often outweighing the other perceived benefits of having in-car connectivity options. Chadsey says car makers should take note -- too much of a good thing may just be too much.

In many countries, bribing reporters is an everyday practice. It helps the reporters pay the rent and enables politicians and companies to generate favorable stories about themselves.

But that would never happen here in the United States. Here you just give the money to the publisher and let it trickle down to the reporters.

Take, for example, the Ford Foundation, which is giving $500,000 to The Washington Post, not exactly a struggling start-up. The one-year grant is supposed to be used to "expand the paper's government-accountability reporting." 

In May, the Ford Foundation gave $1 million to the Los Angeles Times, saying it wanted to experiment with "new approaches to preserve and advance high-quality journalism."

The Times is supposed to use the money to report on the Vietnamese, Korean and other immigrant communities in Southern California.

"Underwriting"

This is basically the PBS model of journalism: "underwrite" the production of stories or documentaries that fit your worldview. It's not as crass as a company looking for a favorable story but it's not all that dissimilar either.

Look closely and there are plenty of examples of slightly creepy transactions in the world of underwritten content. To take an example drawn from personal experience, a professional association of architects underwrites a documentary about "green" building practices. You can bet the resulting program makes architects look good.

One could, and no doubt will, argue that if green buildings are good, then so are architects and so are programs about them. But would the show have been produced quite that way -- or at all -- had it not been for the architects' checkbook? 

None of this is new to the Ford Foundation, which for years has lavished money on "public" broadcasting, thus ensuring that what the Ford Foundation thinks is important gets airtime. Other topics? Well, too bad. Maybe somebody else will fund them.

In fairness to Ford, anyone can apply for a grant to support just about anything. "Our grant making focuses on reducing poverty and injustice; promoting democratic values; and advancing human knowledge, creativity and achievement," the foundation's Web site explains.

Ford says it makes about 1,400 grants a year. Last year, it distributed $422 million worldwide. 

Bang for the buck

The Columbia Journalism Review, which fashions itself as a watchdog of the watchdogs, recognizes that Ford is buying influence:

"The Ford Foundation has recognized that if what it wants is public-service journalism with a broad reach, a big daily still gives it the most bang for the buck," the editors of cjr.org wrote in an editorial.

There's nothing wrong with giving away money, of course. The question, in the case of newspapers owned by large, for-profit corporations is whether it's quite right to accept money to influence news coverage. 

After all, consumers buy the Washington Post and the Los Angeles Times because they trust their editors to select the most important news stories to cover each day and to ensure that those stories are covered fairly and accurately. They don't expect a third party's checkbook to be a factor in the editors' decisions.

Journalists used to, and perhaps still do, take great pride in turning down bottles of expensive wine, assorted bling and the occasional junket to nowhere. Taking money to cover a particular topic isn't all that much different, some would say, especially if it is not disclosed.

Will readers know which stories are being funded by the Ford Foundation? Newspeople hound everyone else about transparency but they're not always its greatest practitioners.

This may sound like nitpitcking but it's sort of a slippery slope the Post and Times are beginning to slide down. Today the Ford Foundation. Maybe tomorrow the Democratic Party? Or the AFL-CIO? Or the Heritage Foundation? 

Oddly, none of this seems to be a matter of even the slightest debate in journalism circles. Purists would say that journalists should cover stories without regard to whether those stories produce ratings, circulation or money. But maybe the purists have all taken jobs somewhere else. Probably teaching journalism.

Google says it is postponing the launch of the Nexus Q, a black orb that looks kind of like a solar eclipse or a really dirty snowball. The company didn't give a reason, other than to say it wanted to make it work "even better," which sort of indicates it doesn't work very well at all.

We're not quite clear on what the Nexus Q is supposed to do, frankly. Google says it's a music- and video-streaming device. It's being sold through the Google Play store for $299 and was supposed to ship in July.

Instead, eager consumers who had placed orders got an email saying that because of "initial feedback," the company had decided to "postpone" the launch, although it didn't provide a new shipping date and the device doesn't seem to appear on Google Play anymore.

So what is this Q thing anyhow?

It sounds like it's similar to the Roku, a fantastic little box that sells for as little as $49 and connects to just about every major entertainment source on the Web. Or maybe not.  

There's still a Nexus Q on Play but instead of a piece of hardware, it's an Android app that can be used, the site says, "to set up your Nexus Q at home."

"Each Nexus Q device is designed to control the equipment in one room: speakers, AV systems, TVs, and more. Each room with a Nexus Q appears in the Nexus Q app, where you can control what's playing and at what volume, or (for music only) stream to multiple rooms at the same time," the site explains.

Why would you want the app if Google hasn't shipped the Q?

"You don't need a Nexus Q device to use the Nexus Q app," Google explains. "You just need a friend who has at least one Nexus Q and will let you stream your own music, movies, and TV shows through it."

OK, that's settled, then.

Lukewarm reviews

Initial reviews of the device were lukewarm at best. Tim Stevens at engadget called it "a dimly glowing, ominous-looking and completely silent ball that can't do a damned thing."

Well, actually it can do a few things. It can stream YouTube video to your TV and music from Google Play to your speakers, all controlled from your Android phone. That's it. That's all.

You think $300 is a little steep for that? So did Stevens and most other reviewers who actually got their hands on the thing. 

Maybe Google read those reviews too and perhaps the big black ball will reappear with greater functionality. As it is now, it's sort of halfway to being an Apple device -- cute but not yet very functional.

Apple's iPad may still be the iconic tablet but Amazon's Kindle Fire is spreading like, well, wildfire, going from zero to 22% market share since its launch last fall, according to Frank N. Magid Associates, a research-based consulting firm in New York.

Meanwhile, continuing to round all the bases, Amazon has launched a video application for the iPad, its latest move to get its digital content on every imaginable gadget. 

In a recent survey of 4,734 cell phone and smartphone owners, Magid found that 50% of people with a tablet have an iPad. That doesn't sound so bad until you consider that previously that number had been more like 72%.

It's not hard to understand why. The iPad starts at $499 while the Kindle Fire starts at $199 and does essentially the same thing. 

Add in the Google Nexus 7, which sells for $199 and the Microsoft Surface which will go on sale in September and it's pretty apparent that Apple faces a continuing loss of market share. 

"We expect to see the iPad as the leader, but with the Surface, Kindle Fire, and Nexus as three solid competitors with significant market share," said Tom Godfrey, executive director of mobile strategy for Magid, in an interview with the Los Angeles Times.

Amazon Instant

The Amazon Instant Video app lets users stream or download movies and TV shows bought or rented from Amazon on their iPads. Amazon has more than 120,000 videos to rent or buy, it noted.

Members of Amazon Prime, a free shipping program which costs $79 a year, can also stream more than 20,000 videos for free and the new iPad app gives these customers access to this content too, the company said.

The adage that if you take care of your eyes, your eyes will take care of you appears to be true -- especially the older we get.

patients 65 years and older who underwent cataract surgery had a lower odds of hip fracture a year after the procedure when compared with patients with cataract who did not have cataract surgery, according to a study in the August 1 issue of JAMA, The Journal of the American Medical Association.

Visual impairment has been found to be strongly associated with an increased risk of fractures, a significant cause of illness and death in the elderly population. "Specifically, vision plays an important role in providing a reference frame for postural balance and stability, and cataract-induced changes in vision have been found to be associated with postural instability," according to the JAMA article. "Furthermore, cataracts have been found to be the most common cause of fracture-related visual impairment, with untreated cataract causing up to 49 percent of visual impairment in patients with femoral neck fractures related to decreased vision."

Despite the association of poor vision and cataracts with increased fall and fracture risk, only a limited number of studies have examined the influence of cataract surgery on fall incidence in visually impaired adults.

Medicare patients studied

Victoria L. Tseng, M.D., of the Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University, Providence, RI., and colleagues examined the association between cataract surgery and fracture incidence at one-year. The study included a five percent random sample of Medicare Part B beneficiaries with cataract who received and did not receive cataract surgery from 2002 through 2009. Analyses were adjusted for various factors.

There were 1,113,640 Medicare beneficiaries 65 years and older with a diagnosis of cataract between 2002 and 2009 in the five percent random sample. Of these patients, the majority were women (60 percent) and white (88 percent). Of patients with cataract, 36.9 percent underwent cataract surgery during the study period. During this period, the overall one-year fracture incidence was 1.3 percent for hip fractures.

Analysis of the data indicated that cataract surgery was associated with a 16 percent decrease in the adjusted odds of hip fracture a year after the procedure. "In patients with severe cataract, the association between cataract surgery and lower odds of hip fracture was even stronger, with a 23 percent reduction in the adjusted odds of hip fracture in the cataract surgery group compared with the cataract diagnosis group," the authors write.

Osteoporosis was the most common fracture-related co-existing illness -- 12.1 percent. The most common ocular co-existing illness was glaucoma -- 19.1 percent.

"Cataract surgery may be associated with lower odds of subsequent fracture in patients aged 65 years and older in the U.S. Medicare population. Future prospective studies using standardized registries of patients with cataracts will help further elucidate the association between cataract surgery and fracture risk,” the authors write.

They note that cataract surgery has already been demonstrated to be a cost-effective intervention for visual improvement, with an estimated cost per quality-adjusted life-year gained for cataract surgery in the first eye of $2,023 in the United States and $2,727 in the second eye.

“The results in this study,” they conclude, “suggest the need for further investigation of the additional potential benefit of cataract surgery as a cost-effective intervention to decrease the incidence of fractures in the elderly."

For years, veterans living in rural areas have had few options when it came to being buried in a national cemetery, state veterans cemetery or tribal Veterans cemetery. 

That’s all about to change. 

Under the Rural Initiative plan, The Department of Veterans Affairs (VA)  will build small National Veterans Burial Grounds within existing public or private cemeteries in rural areas where the unserved veteran population is 25,000 or less within a 75-mile radius. 

Eight National Veterans Burial Grounds that will serve veterans will open in the areas of Fargo, ND; Rhinelander, WI; Cheyenne, WY; Laurel, MT; Idaho Falls, ID; Cedar City, UT; Calais, ME; and Elko, NV. 

“VA is committed to improving service to veterans in rural areas,” said Secretary of Veterans Affairs Eric K. Shinseki. “Through an innovative partnership with existing cemeteries, we will be able to ensure burial for Veterans in more locations that meet the high standards of national shrines.” 

More to come 

VA officials will announce further details about the eight new burial grounds as information becomes available.  This new initiative will make VA burial options available to more than 136,000 Veterans and their eligible dependents. 

A National Veterans Burial Ground will be a small, VA-managed section of three to five acres within an existing public or private cemetery.  VA will provide a full range of burial options and control the operation and maintenance of these lots.  These sections will be held to the same “national shrine” standards as VA-run national cemeteries. 

VA is still evaluating suitable sites for its Rural Initiative.  In Laurel, MT, VA is exploring with local officials the feasibility of acquiring a portion of the Yellowstone County Veterans Cemetery to establish as a National Veterans Burial Ground. 

Long tradition 

VA operates 131 national cemeteries in 39 states and Puerto Rico and 33 soldiers' lots and monument sites.  Nearly four million Americans, including veterans of every war and conflict -- from the Revolutionary War to the current conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan -- are buried in VA’s national cemeteries on more than 19,000 acres. 

Veterans with a discharge issued under conditions other than dishonorable, their spouses and eligible dependent children can be buried in a VA national cemetery.  Other burial benefits available for all eligible Veterans, regardless of whether they are buried in a national cemetery or a private cemetery, include a burial flag, a Presidential Memorial Certificate and a government headstone, grave marker or medallion.

Back-to-school is a time for extra spending, not just on books and backpacks but shoes and clothing as well. Many parents will reach for a credit card, but which one?

CardHub, a financial site that analyzes credit card products, reports some credit cards are more helpful to parents than others when it comes to back-to-school purchases. It found that signing up for some cards can help shoppers save as much as $400 with initial bonuses. Some provide as much as six percent off on an ongoing basis.

For the best initial bonus, CardHub suggests the Chase Sapphire Preferred Card. It provides 40,000 bonus points, redeemable for $400 in cash or $500 in travel, for spending $3,000 during the first three months and does not charge an annual fee during the first year. After that, however, it's $95 a year.

Signing bonus

“If you simply want to get a few hundred extra dollars with which to buy school supplies or replenish your financial reserves following this extremely busy shopping season, then a card offering a lucrative initial bonus is the best choice,” said Card Hub CEO Odysseas Papadimitriou. “Keep in mind that you’ll need excellent credit in order to get true value, and you might not want to keep this card open past the first year given that a $95 annual fee kicks in on your first-year anniversary.”

The Target Store Card, meanwhile, offers five percent cash back at Target stores and at Target.com. There's no annual fee and, as an added bonus, Target donates one percent of all your purchases to the K-12 school of your choice. The drawback is the card can only be used at Target.

What's the best all-around card? CardHub bestows the honor on the Blue Cash Preferred Card from American Express. It provides six percent cash back at supermarkets, three percent at department stores and gas stations and one percent everywhere else. If you spend $1000 in the first three months, it provides a bonus of $150.

You'll need good credit

“Extremely lucrative rewards are typically only available to people with above-average credit, and the best all-around credit cards for back-to-school shopping aren’t outliers,” Papadimitriou said. “Assuming that you meet this requirement, the Blue Cash Preferred Card from American Express and the PenFed Platinum Rewards Card are both great options because they offer attractive initial bonuses in addition to excellent ongoing rewards for purchases made at supermarkets and gas stations. Not only are gas and groceries most folks’ biggest everyday expenses, but you can also get most school supplies at major supermarkets these days.”

Meanwhile, many states are ready to help make back-to-school shopping a little less painful for consumers. States will declare a sales tax “holiday” on school supplies for much of the month of August. Some holidays will begin as early as this weekend.

A video featuring research on how yoga works, the safety of yoga and whether it can help treat certain health problems is now available from the National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). 

For example, there is a growing body of evidence that yoga may be beneficial for low-back pain. However, yoga has not been found helpful for treating asthma, and studies investigating yoga for arthritis have had mixed results. 

Is it for you? 

The video also spotlights a set of consumer tips to help viewers make decisions if they are interested in practicing yoga. For example: 

• Yoga is generally considered to be safe in healthy people when practiced appropriately under the guidance of a well-trained instructor. However, people with high blood pressure, glaucoma, or sciatica, and women who are pregnant should modify or avoid some yoga poses.
• Everyone's body is different, and yoga postures should be modified based on individual abilities. Inform your instructor about any medical issues you have, and ask about the physical demands of yoga.
• If you're thinking about practicing yoga, be sure to talk to your health care providers. Give them a full picture of what you do to manage your health. 

Growing popularity 

A 2007 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention survey reported that 13 million American adults (6 percent) used yoga in the previous year, and the number is on the rise as mind and body therapies are becoming increasingly integrated into the health care system. 

Due to a growing body of evidence-based research, the American College of Physicians and the American Pain Society now include a number of mind and body approaches, including yoga, in their 2007 clinical practice guidelines for managing chronic low-back pain, a common and difficult-to-treat problem. 

"This video provides important information on the safety and usefulness of yoga and also insights into how scientists study this commonly used health practice," said Josephine P. Briggs, M.D., director of NCCAM. "What we're seeing from our researchers -- through the application of rigorous scientific methods -- is evidence suggesting that yoga may help people manage certain symptoms while it may not help with others. We're also learning more about the safety of yoga, particularly when it is used in populations who are at increased risk for injury." 

The video highlights the work of two respected researchers in the field of yoga. George Salem, Ph.D., at the University of Southern California, uses innovative technology to examine how older adults use their muscles and joints in certain yoga postures. Karen Sherman, Ph.D., M.P.H, at Group Health Research Institute in Seattle, focuses on how yoga may be a beneficial complementary health practice for people with chronic low-back pain.

There's a new report suggesting Samsung is planning a new tablet that will be larger than most of those currently on the market, including Apple's iPad. The report surfaced, of all places, in court documents in Samsung and Apple's bitter patent dispute.

A number of tech sites reported the findings after pouring through documents both sides released in the U.S. trial where Apple claims Samsung stole its design and technology in development of its competing smartphones and tablets. Apple sued Samsung in a number of other countries as well but the long-awaited and crucial U.S. trial got underway this week.

Among the documents that surfaced are plans for a new 11.8-inch screen tablet with very high-resolution. The documents refer to the tablet as the P10 and show a pixel density of 256 pixels per inch (PPI)and 2,560 x 1,600 screen resolution.

Building speculation

The documents have the tech world buzzing, especially since tablets lately have been getting smaller, not larger. There are a number of seven-inch tablets competing around a $200 price point and speculation is building that Apple is about to join in with a smaller, cheaper iPad next month.

In court Apple engineers claimed Samsung began copying Apple technology in 2007, when the first iPhone was introduced. Samsung's lawyer disputed that, saying there were a number of large screen phones that were in use by consumers before the iPhone ever hit the market.

Apple is asking the court for a permanent injunction on the sale of Samsung devices in the U.S. Currently there are temporary injunctions on the U.S. sales of Samsung's 10 inch tablet and the smartphone it developed with Google.

In July Samsung won a temporary victory in Britain when a judge there ruled Samsung didn't copy Apple in its design of the Galaxy Tab, noting “it is not as cool” as an iPad.