While I was out ill for six weeks in December and January, the world changed. Before that, the White House had badly misjudged the political climate. When I went to Ohio with Vice President Biden in October, he did his best to ignore the evidence of economic pain, giving a pep talk to skeptical f…
Continued here:
Obama missed an opportunity on tax reform
In the waning days of the lame duck session, the Senate had the opportunity to pass the Domestic Minor Sex Trafficking Deterrence and Victims Support Act . read more
Read more:
Why Is Jeff Sessions Blocking A Child Sex Trafficking Bill?
Take our culture quiz and compete to win a trip to Puerto Rico to experience the art of rum-making first-hand Advertorial content: It’s one thing to master making a cocktail, and yet another to actually craft a spirit. Here at CH, we’ve experienced first-hand the skill and art that goes into creating a variety of our favorite drinks. The balance between rigorous dedication to tradition and having an eye on innovation is a principle that resonates just as much in the art and design world as it does in a distillery, which is why we’re excited to be a part of the Master of All Skills project. DonQ Rum, founded 78 years ago in Puerto Rico, offered us and a small group of other great sites the opportunity to work with them on crafting our very own rum. However, before anyone gets to celebrate the creation of our specially produced spirit, DonQ has an even more exciting opportunity for Cool Hunting’s readers. DonQ tapped Cool Hunting to create a quiz that tests your knowledge of all things cultural, with the opportunity to win an exclusive party for you and 25 of your friends and a trip to Puerto Rico to experience the art of rum-making firsthand. For more information on prizes see the Master of All Skills site, and if you’re ready to take the challenge on, our quiz is waiting after the jump .
Originally posted here:
DonQ Master of All Skills
After the New York Times ‘ DealBook reported last night that Goldman Sachs had invested $450 million in Facebook with an additional $50 million coming from a Russian firm that, taken together, meant the social network was being valued at $50 billion, news outlets ran with the story. Thirteen hours later, though, Andrew Ross Sorkin and Susanne Craig updated the post with new information that reveals the special pitch Goldman made to its A-list investors. On Sunday night, a number of anonymous Goldman clients received email messages from their brokers that didn’t mention Facebook by name but, from actions that have taken place since, we now know to be Facebook, DealBook reported. The messages offered “them the opportunity to invest in an unnamed ‘private company that is considering a transaction to raise additional capital,’” according to DealBook. “Another person briefed on the deal said that Goldman clients would have to pony up a minimum of $2 million to invest and would be prohibited from selling their shares until 2013.” Even at that price tag, Goldman will have to wrangle 750 investors to reach the $1.5 billion it is expected to raise for Facebook, putting it well above the SEC’s 500-person threshold that would force the company to hold an initial public offering unless Goldman is able to successfully argue that a special investment vehicle set up specifically for its investors for this project only counts as one person of record. In addition to the $2 million minimum and inability to sell shares until 2013, the email that Goldman’s brokers sent out on Sunday night detailed another rule that, if violated, would interest the SEC’s top cops: “[R]ecipients who trade in secondary markets where private firms like Facebook trade may want to steer clear of participating because if they opt in they may receive material non-public information on the unnamed company that will restrict future trading,” DealBook reported. A Goldman Sachs spokesperson wouldn’t comment for the story.
Read the original here:
The Special Facebook Pitch Goldman Sachs Made to Wealthy Investors
Old West legend Billy the Kid remains lawless: After anticipation that New Mexico’s lame-duck governor would pardon the famous outlaw, Bill Richardson announced on Good Morning America on Friday morning that he had declined the opportunity. The case…
Continue reading here:
No Pardon for Billy the Kid
We expect news to be kinda slow this week as we transition to 2011, so we thought it might be fun to talk about all the cool gifts you received this holiday season. Naturally we want to know about your movie-related gifts, like cool new DVDs and Blu-rays, or maybe something a tad more funky, like Star Wars-related pancake cut-outs. We’ll keep this one short in order to let you chime in. Coolest movie-related gift that I received would have to be How to Train Your Dragon on Blu-ray, which was one of my favorite films of 2010. What made the gift even better was that it came with the opportunity to watch it with my young daughter, who absolutely loved every minute of it.
Someday, in my “spare time,” I will get around to tech items like these: 1) The satisfactions of finally attaining, through the combined and complementary efforts of SugarSync , DropBox , Gmail, and a few others, the long-rumored completely machine-independent computing life. I have three computers I use interchangeably — desktop and two laptops – and (with a few minor exceptions that I’ll note) I no longer have to worry about which laptop I should take to a downtown office or on a trip, or which machine has the “current” version of a file. Conceptually this sounds banal and so-last-year. In reality I’ve found it surprisingly stress-reducing never to have to think about where my info “is,” since it’s wherever I want it to be. And I think I’ve learned the right way to combine SugarSync and DropBox. 2) Talk about your sublime software/hardware combos: InstaPaper and the iPad. I’ve made allusions to it before (and so have Alexis Madrigal and Andrew Sullivan); tips, tricks, and analysis some day soon. 3) The two programs currently occupying the space in my brain devoted to “interesting software I’m tinkering with because, really, it will let me organize my life better.” These are (multi-platform) Personal Brain and (Mac-only) OmniFocus . These two have very different strengths and purposes and “visions” for how you should work and think, but for me they overlap in a few interesting ways. I’ll explain why I keep being drawn back to the implausible-seeming but elegant and extremely flexible Personal Brain — and why I also keep using the also extremely flexible (Windows-only) Zoot , which is nearing the release of a whole new years-in-the-making version. And, how (multi-platform) MindManager fits in the mix. 4) The evolution of the MacBook Air: what I’ve learned by using the original, early-2008-era MacBook Air in China , versus its latest incarnation in the US. Bonus: the evolution of the Android Nexus phone, from the (orphaned) Nexus One , which I liked and like, to the new Nexus S. 5) The evolution of Chrome, including the many ways I rely on it and three huge grievances I have against it. OK, I’ll name one of them: Google’s odd decision not to support (its own) Google Gears system for (its own) Chrome browser under SnowLeopard, so you cannot use (its own) Gmail while offline. I have two more. That’s the to-do list. Maybe I’ll ask Santa just to write these items for me. And while I’m at it, I am glad to hear that a few DC-area visitors took the opportunity of the slack tourist season to watch the Senate in session this afternoon.
See the rest here:
Placeholder Tech Leads, Plus Wish List for Chrome
Congressional Republicans are apparently intent on a big showdown with Elizabeth Warren, who is currently building up the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB). This is very good news for the White House, if they use this opportunity wisely. read more
Obama ought to forget the Republicans and write a narrative of his own.
Continue reading here:
Obama’s opportunity to be the decider
The Washington region, with the most affluent and one of the most highly educated Hispanic communities in the nation, has lots of people like Charles Vela.
View original post here:
For Hispanics, the capital of opportunity
You can’t text your vote this time, kids. Ryan Seacrest interviewed President Obama, and Obama used the opportunity to call on young people to vote in the midterm elections. “You can’t shape your future if you don’t participate,” he said. Democrats are…
Read more here:
Obama Makes His Final Pitch
China can oppose democracy, or it can take this opportunity to stand on the side of justice.
See the article here:
If China frees Nobel winner, it will show its strength
Everton manager David Moyes says the club would be ‘very interested’ if the opportunity to share a stadium with rivals Liverpool came about.
Read more:
Moyes interested in groundshare
A director of Lloyds banking group suggests taxpayers should be grateful for the opportunity to invest in stricken banks.
Read more:
Bank bail-out ‘a good investment’
Apparently raising kids and co-hosting a hit talk show wasn’t keeping her busy enough. Elisabeth Hasselbeck will become a contributor on Good Morning America, ABC News reports. “I am thankful for this opportunity to raise awareness and explore the most…
The rest is here:
Hasselbeck Joins Good Morning America
The Special Facebook Pitch Goldman Sachs Made to Wealthy Investors
Tuesday, January 4th, 2011
