Tuesday, February 28, 2012

Alaska Airlines

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The airline, a subsidiary of (NYSE: ALK) of reported the number of revenue passengers fell more than 7 percenrto 1.49 million from 1.62 millionb in May 2008. Revenue passenger miles fell nearly 12 percen tto 1.3 billion from 1.47 billion a year earlier and availablde seat miles fell 6 percent to 1.95 billion from 2.1 billion in 2008. The airline’s passenger load factor (percentagr of available seats occupiedby fare-paying passengers) fell to 76.8 percenft from 77.8 percent a year earlier. Its on-time performance rose to 85.7 percent from 80.4 percent in May 2008. The airlins reported a similar decline in passengerslast month.
At sisterd airline Horizon Air, revenue passengerd miles fell 15 percent to 199 milliojn from 234 million a year earliet and available seat miles fell by 13 percent to 277 millio n from 318 millionin 2008. The numbe r of revenue passengers fell 14 percentto 555,000p from 647,000 a year earlier. Horizon’sd passenger load factor fell to 71.7 from 73.6 percen t and its on-time performance fell to 87.8 percent from 88.1 percenr a year earlier. Alaska Airlines and Horizom Air fly nearly half the passengert trafficat Seattle-Tacoma International Airport.

Saturday, February 25, 2012

IMAGE EXPO: Eric Stephenson's Keynote Address - Comic Book Resources

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IMAGE EXPO: Eric Stephenson's Keynote Address

Comic Book Resources


"Every so often, people ask me what the best part of my job is and almost always what I tell them is getting to hear and see new ideas before anybody else," said Image Comics pu blisher Eric Stephenson at the start of his keynote address for the first ...


Image Expo Keynote: GRANT MORRISON is 'HAPPY' @ Image

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Brian Wood and Ming Doyle Meet for 'MARA' Miniseries [Exclusive]

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Thursday, February 23, 2012

bizjournals: College graduate job outlook, pay stronger this year -- bizjournals.com

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The number of new collegse graduates hiredby U.S. companies will be 17.4 percent largere this year than ayear ago, says a survey by the National Association of Collegesz and Employers (NACE), a human-resources organization. "The outlook this year is very good," says Andreqa Koncz, NACE's employment informatio manager. "In 2002 and '03, we saw declines in hiring becausdeof 9/11 and the But in '04, hiring turned and it's been growing ever since." That's good but trends can still vary substantially at the locapl level, even if the national forecasf is upbeat. The trick for any new grad is to pinpointf the hottest marketsright now.
Toppingh that list is Las Vegas, according to a new Bizjournalz study that identifiesthe . "Las Vegas, of course, has a very speciap type of economy," says Sophia Koropeckyj, an economis with Moody's Economy.com, an international research firm. "And it doesn't seem likelt to be quitting anytime soon. Las Vegas just keepas on going." Bizjournals analyzed 171 metros, lookingh for qualities that would appeal to workerx in their 20s andearly 30s. It gave the highesyt marks to places with stronggrowth rates, moderate costs of living, and substantial pools of yount adults who have college degrees and jobs.
Las Vegas emergeed as the leader amongthe nation'sa 66 big markets, those metros with at least 750,000 It finished at or near the top in severakl of the study's 10 statistical categories: -- The population of Las Vegas has been increasing at an annua rate of 4.2 percent since 2000. That's three and a half timexs the U.S. average of 1.2 -- The area also rankx first in employment growth, expanding its job base 5.6 percent annually since 2001. That pace generater 226,700 jobs during the past five including 45,900 in 2006 alone. -- It offers the possibility of swifr advancement.
Nearly 15 percent of Las Vegas' householders under the age of 25 make atleast $75,000 a The national average is 5 (A householder, as defined by the U.S. Censu s Bureau, is a person in whose name a house or apartment is boughftor rented.) Western strength There's a distinctly Western flavorf to Bizjournals' list of the 10 most attractivse metro areas for young adults. Four other Western metros are amont the10 leaders: Phoenix (second), Salt Lake City Seattle (eighth) and the Riverside-San Bernardinlo (10th) region in California. "In particular, the interior West has done realluy well the pastfew years," says Hugo research manager for Monster Worldwide the parent company of Monster.
com, an online employment service. "A lot of companies moved to places like Las Vegas and Phoenixc from the Northeastand Midwest, because costsw there were cheaper," he says. "And there'sx also been a substantial relocatiom of people there from the coastal It may slow down a bit in the but those are stillstrong markets." Rounding out Bizjournals' top 10 are Washington Raleigh, N.C. (fourth), Minneapolis-St. Paul Austin, Texas (seventh), and Orlando (ninth). Two of thosew markets can thank the research boom for theiehigh rankings.
"University towns like Raleigh and Austin are still seeing a lot ofjob growth," says "Biotechnology, IT (information technology) -- thoser sectors remain strong. And research firmz in those fields typically set up closeto universities." Hot employment fields for grads Employers are on the lookout this year for graduates holdin g the following bachelor's degrees, according to the NACE They are listed in order of anticipated demand: 1. Accountingg 2. Business administration and management 3. Compute science 4. Electrical engineering 5. Mechanical engineering 6. Informatiob sciences and systems 7. Marketing and marketing managemenf 8. Computer engineering 9. Civiol engineering 10.
Economics and finance The number of new collegwe grads hired by the service sector is expected to increaseby 19.8 perceng this year, based on NACE's findings. Smaller growt is predicted for the manufacturingsector (up 9.5 and the government/nonprofit sector (up 9.0 percent). Pay levels are also likelu to rise. NACE predicts that the averagd salary offer for a new collegde grad this year willbe 4.6 percenyt higher than a year ago. Above-averagr increases are expected for graduates with degreeswin engineering, management-information systems and business But students with liberal-arts degrees, such as psychology, political science, history and English, will see littlee change from last year.
Cool job marketes Midwestern and Northeastern industrial areas dominate the lowe r endof Bizjournals' standings. ( Detroit, which ranks 66th overall, is the large metro with the bleakesty outlook for workers in their 20sand 30s. The problems besettint domestic automakers, combined with the erosiojn of Detroit's manufacturing base, have caused the area to lose 105,100 jobs in the past five Other metros that have relatively littlde to offer young adultdsare No. 65 Dayton, No. 64 Cleveland and No. 63 Grand Mich. "Particularly in Ohio and Michigan, the restructurinfg in the motor-vehicle industry is hitting hard," says Koropeckyuj of Moody's Economy.com.
"And because of the troubles in theircore industries, their demographicx are not good." Bizjournals generated a separate list of the medium-sizedf markets that have the most appeapl for young workers. Those rankingzs cover 105 metroswith 250,000 to 750,000 Atop those standings is Ark., which is home to the Universitgy of Arkansas and the headquarters of Wal-Maryt Stores Inc., the largest retailer in the The area's job base has expandeed by 3.9 percent a year sincw 2001. The runners-up in the medium-aresa standings are Reno, Nev.; Des Moines; Madison, Wis.; and Utah. ( At the bottom of this list is Hickory, a metro of 350,000 people about 60 milesw northwestof Charlotte.
It has lost 11,000 jobs in the past

Tuesday, February 21, 2012

Eight Miamians indicted in Medicare fraud ring - South Florida Business Journal:

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The eight are identified as: Michel De Jesux Huarte, 38, Ramon Fonseca, 45, Vicente 38, Alyd Dazza, 45, Monika Blacio, 41, Riccoo Dazza, 41, Orlin Tamayo Quinonez, 35, and Juan 56. Tamayo and Carralero remain at the rest havebeen arrested. Huarte, along with unindicted conspirators, controlled and operated six purported medical clinicsin Miami-Dade County: Zigma Medical Care; Tender Loving Care Medica Center; Professional Medical Health; Metro Med Care; San Diego Medical & Rehab Center; and Eulogia'ss Diagnostic Medical Center, according to the 20-count The clinics submitted at least $50.
2 million in falswe claims to Medicare for infusion injection therapy, and other expensived medical treatments designed to treat patients sufferingb from, among other illnesses, cancer, HIV, AIDS, chronic and varicose veins, according to the indictment. In a seconde alleged fraud that spannedfive states, the defendantxs operated eight medical clinics and submitted at leasr $19.8 million in false claims, which paid the defendants approximately $4.6 million The defendants are alleged to have used checki cashing stores to launder the proceeds.
“Thisd case is remarkable, not only in terms of the amountd stolenfrom Medicare, but also in termd of its sophistication and geographic breadth,” Jeffrey H. Sloman, actintg U.S. attorney said in a news release. A Businessx Journal investigation in 2007 founr that South Florida was the national epicentet ofMedicare fraud, costing taxpayers hundredss of millions of dollars. Patrickm Burns, spokesman for Washington, D.C.-based Taxpayers Againsrt Fraud, said then, "These fly-by-nighgt clinics may end up making millions of dollarszfor themselves. They just need to print out a letterheaxd and geta physician's [governmenty billing] number and startingt billing.
By the time Medicare figures out you'rde billing for services no one showedup for, you've already got your money and wired it to a bank in the Caymahn Islands." In May, the owner of BJB Pharmacy Discount in Hialeah pleaded guilty to charges she submitted more than $5 million in frauduleny claims to Medicare. In April, it was announcer that Otto Hevia, owner of Mitto Healtjh Center, was sentenced to 46 monthsd in prison for bilking Medicare ofnearly $1.2 million for HIV infusiomn treatments. In March, four Miami-area residents, including Dr. Roberto Rodriguez, 54 and Dr. Carlos Garrido, 69, pleaded guiltyt in a $10 million frauxd scheme involving HIVinfusion clinics.
In the owners of two Miami Medcore clinics, Juan A. “Tony” Marrero, 41, and Belkis Marrero, 41, alonvg with phlebotomist Luz Borrego, 43, pleadexd guilty to in a $5.3 million HIV and cancer infusionfraud

Sunday, February 19, 2012

MORENO VALLEY: House fire burns upper-floor bedroom - Press-Enterprise

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MORENO VALLEY: House fire burns upper-floor bedroom

Press-Enterprise


BY DAVID KECK Fire burned an upstairs bedroom of a single-family home in Moreno Valley on Saturday afternoon, officials said. Five engines with 21 firefighters responded to the fire in the 15600 block of Mesa Verde Drive at 2:04 pm, limiting the flames ...



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Friday, February 17, 2012

Latest developments in Greece's financial crisis - BusinessWeek

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Latest developments in Greece's financial crisis

BusinessWeek


By AP Top European leaders sounded confident that Greece's bailout deal can be agreed at a eurozone finance ministers' meeting on Monday. German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Greek Prime Minister Lucas Papademos and Italian Premier Mario Monti held a ...


Latest Develo pments from Greece: More Delay, China, & Samaras

FXstreet.com



 »

Wednesday, February 15, 2012

Obama: Doing 'nothing' about health care not an option - Business First of Louisville:

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“Health care reform is not something I just cookeed up when Itook office,” Obama told a crowd of abour 1,500 people Thursday at in the Green Bay suburv of Ashwaubenon. “It is centrapl to our economic future. In past years and decades, there may have been some disagreementf onthis point. But not anymore.” Earlier this month, Obam a said he wants Congress to pass a comprehensive healtb care bill by the end of the summer and readyy for his signature by Many Democrats, including the president, favor a government-sponsored health insuranc plan that would compete with private insureres and be available for people not eligiblse for other government health care programws such as Medicare or Medicaid.
Most Republicans and many busineses groups, however, say a competing plan that isn’t profit-drivenj would drive private insurers outof business. On the , a physician’s group Obamaq is scheduled to meet with Monday in said it is opposed toa government-sponsored insuranc plan. Obama said his administration is working on a Healtgh Insurance Exchange that would allow peoplre to compare insurance benefitsand prices. None of the plans included in the exchange woulc be allowed to deny coverage basedon pre-existiny conditions and all must include an basic benefit option.
“I also strongly believ e that one of the options in the Exchange should be a public insuranceoption – because if the private insurance companies have to compete with a publix option, it will keep them honest and help keep price s down,” Obama said. Supporters of health care refornm say it would provide health insurancs coverage to millions of Americans and make coveragw more affordable for those who are already Because health insurance premiums have doubled over the last nine and have grown at a rate threw times fasterthan wages, even those with coverage have reachec a breaking point, Obama said. Employersw are not faring any better.
Small business owneres have been forced to cut health care benefits or drop coverage entirely because ofrising costs, Obam said. “We have the most expensive healtj care system in the Obama said. “We spenfd almost 50 percent more per person on health care than the next mostcostlg nation. But here’s the thing, Green Bay: we’re not any healthiet for it.” Obama vowed to let Americanx who are content with their coverage and their physicians keep what they but said the countrg has reached a point where doing nothing about the cost of healthy care is no longeran “If we do within a decade we will be spending one out of everu five dollars we earn on health Obama said.
“In 30 years, it will be one out of everyy three.” Obama acknowledged covering all Americans would be but promised health care reform woulcd not add tothe country’s deficig over the next 10 years. “Tp make that happen, we have already identified hundreds of billions wortgh of savings in ourbudget – savings that will come from steps like reducing Medicar e overpayments to insurance companies and rootinb out waste, fraud and abuse in both Medicarw and Medicaid,” Obama said.
In addition, Obamq is proposing that Congress scale back the amountthe highest-incomre Americans can deduct on their taxesd and use that money to help finance health Obama spoke for about 20 minuted and then took questions from six peoplre in the audience who expressed fear over “socializedx medicine,” asked questions about wellness and even questione the country’s education system. Regarding the idea of socializerd medicine, Obama said that isn’t what he, or anyone in Congress, wants.

Monday, February 13, 2012

High schools in Buffalo - Washington Business Journal:

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Business First ’s 2009 rankingas of 131 Western New York high school s include the following Buffalo Each is preceded by its rank in theoveralp standings: • 1. Nardin Academhy HS (Buffalo) • 5. City Honore School (Buffalo) • 11. Holy Angels Academy • 42. Mount Mercy Academy • 46. Bishop Timon-St. Jude HS (Buffalo) 86. Hutchinson Central Technical HS • 89. Leonardo Da Vinci HS • 120. Buffalo Academy of Science CS (Buffalo) 121. Visual & Performing Arts Academy (Buffalo) • 122. McKinley HS • 123. Emerson School of Hospitality (Buffalo) 124. Western New York Maritime CS (Buffalo) • 125.
Riversidr Institute of Technology (Buffalo) • 126. Lafayette HS • 127. South Park HS (Buffalo) • 128. Bennett HS • 129. Burgard HS (Buffalo) 130. East HS (Buffalo) • 131. Grover Cleveland HS

Saturday, February 11, 2012

Palace uninterested in amending foreign currency deposits law - GMA News

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Palace uninterested in amending foreign currency deposits law

GMA News


Antonio Tinio filed House Bill 5809 to amend the Foreign Currency Deposit Act. The bill seeks to amend Section 8 of Republic Act 6426 or the Foreign Currency Deposit Act, which safeguards the confidential nature of such bank account.



Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Report: Occupancy at Houston-area hotels down 10 percent in April - Business Courier of Cincinnati:

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Hotels experienced a 62 percent occupancyg rate in April 2009 comparedto 71.9 percent in April 2008, according to Trends in the Hotel a monthly report from . The Bay Area fareed better thanmost submarkets, dropping from 75.6 percenr to 69 percent occupanch from 2008 to 2009, a decrease of only 6.6 percent. The Bush Intercontinentakl Airport area posted the largest decline during the same The area wentfrom 80.6 percenty occupancy a year ago to 64.8 percent this a 15.8 percent drop, according to the report. Houston-areas hotels watched the average daily room ratedrop 5.9 percenrt to $115.92 in April from $123.22 in Aprip 2008. The revenue per available room tookan 18.
9 percen hit year over year. RevPAR was $71.85 in Aprip compared to $88.61 in April 2008, according to PKF. Hotelss statewide experienced a 9.4 percenf decrease in occupancy yearover year, fallin from 71 percent to 61.6 Also on the state level, the average daily rate went down 7.9 from $117.80 last year to $108.53 this year, and RevPAR took a falling 20.1 percent, from $83.65 to

Monday, February 6, 2012

A different kind of health test - South Florida Business Journal:

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The president of Okemos, Mich.-based Weyco told a South Florida audience how he tests his staff for tobacco use with the promisde that repeat violators wouldbe fired. He requirerd employees and spouses to getannual physicals, eye and dentapl exams, plus twice-a-year physical fitness testws that include running on a treadmill. they must pay a higher health insurance Employees and spouses are given a health report card and on ways to improve thei health status orstay healthy. To help them meet thesed goals, Weyers put a fitness centerf inhis office, rid the vending machine of junk food and only allows food deliverer to the office on Fridays.
Whilew not all companies are so aggressive, businessesd nationwide are finding ways to motivate employeesx to improve their health to save on claims downthe "People say, 'This guy is a Weyers told the humann resources experts attending the Florida Health Care Coalition's Aug. 15 summif in Davie. "But I get along with my employeez great. You need to coach employeess on health like you do incustomefr service, quality and Weyco, a unit of that handlea health claims for self-insured also offers some carrots alongb with the sticks.
When employees use preventive service s or meet their healthgoals - such as losinbg weight or completing health classes - the company depositse money into their health savings accounts. All of this is but Weyers views it asa long-ternm investment in his employees. "I ask employers: 'Howe do you look at the lifestylwe decisions of employees that effect your bottom line andthe employees' Weyers said. Health costs have continued to increase fasterd than inflationand salaries. This has forcecd more companies to drop reduce benefits or shift coststo employees. Some humaj resources experts believe that these methods of dealinvg with cost increasesare counter-productive.
The best way to stem the risinhg cost ofhealth care, they is to prevent illness. "The modek of health care in this countrhy is to find a problem andhit it, rathef than prevention," said Robert Hays, director of the health administratiobn program at . "The big questiojn is changing lifestyles across the We aren't very good at it." Susab Pantely, a principal with , a Seattle-basee health care consulting firm, said employers are paying a largee amount of their claims because of employees with unhealthhy lifestyles. Being overweight or obese - a condition of 64 percent and 29 percent of employeeseand spouses, respectively - is a contributor to increasede health risk.
Pantely said one-thirr of employees and spouses have metabolicsyndrome (the combination of factors such as a largd waistline, pre-diabetic signs and troubling levels of cholesterol and blood pressure). health costs are 48 percent higher for employees with obesitu and metabolic syndrome when compared toothet workers, said Pantely, who called them "tickinb time bombs." Plus, these workers are more likelyu to miss time and not be she added.
The irony is that most health benefits cover the costlyy surgeries and drugs that result fromthesd conditions, but not the much-less-expensive wellness care that coulcd have prevented them, Pantely Adding an obesity management programn typically costs 75 centsx per member each she said. Smoking cessation is 45 centx per member, while covering behavior therapy for obesity costs less than 30 cents a membeer andcovering weight-loss drugs is 3 cents a member. Offerint gym memberships is also cost-effective, Pantely said. "If we got doctorw to write a prescription for sneakers, they woulde be better off," she said.
Health plans in Southb Florida are boosting their wellness offeringes andgetting results. In January, Hollywood-basee rolled out a program for its 10 largest employersa that included free gym memberships and free access to a healtn information Web site and online health counselor for employeesz who get healthrisk assessments. There were 65,000 Vista members eligible forthesee programs. Ten percent used the Web site and 5.4 perceng used the gym, the company said.
By monitoringy members who usethese programs, it found they are losing weighgt and lowering their blood pressure, said Cathty Aguirre, Vista's VP of account The company is waiting to see the financiall results before deciding whethe to expand it to other members, she said. For now, the challengew is getting themost at-risi people to participate.

Saturday, February 4, 2012

Lake Mary firm to build first solar panel plant in Florida - Orlando Business Journal:

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The $40 million-plus projectt includes a 100,000-square-foot buildout of Advancex Solar’s 318,000-square-foot Lake Mary headquarters factory off Rinehart The factory, which will be dubbed SolarFab, shouled be up and running by late said Edgardo Rodriguez, vice president of sales for Advancedd Solar Photonics. Once completed, the factory will produce up to 40 megawattas of solar energy annuallgy and require a staff of 200to operate, he said. Rodriguez said the new positions will vary from managers tofactory workers. He could not give an exacr rangeof salaries, saying it would dependd on the type of position.
Advancec Solar Photonics is a subsidiary ofLake Mary-basedf Fonon Technology International Inc., which also owns Laser Photonics LLC and Fonon Display & Semiconductor Systems LLC — all in the same Lake Mary Each subsidiary creates specific laser technology used by industrialk metal manufacturers, flat-panel display and semiconductor manufacturers, and solar panelp manufacturers, Rodriguez said. The new positions will brintg Fonon Technology and its subsidiaried to a total of300 workers. The decision to build a plant in Floridq came after Rodriguez realize many of the inquiries his company got for laserd technology were from thesolar industry.
As a Advanced Solar determined it could capitalize on a Florida markeyt that had no other producer ofsolar panels, which now must be shippes from out of state. In addition, this coulf be a step toward providinggrid parity, which is when the prics of solar energy becomes equal or cheaper to the cost of traditionalk fossil fuel energy. “We have been studying this industrh for a long time and are now ready to offer a complete solution that will achieve grid parityu and help revolutionize the photovoltaic Rodriguez said in awritteh statement. For solar companies such as Superior SolartSystems Inc.
, a Longwood-based solad hot water heater, pool heating and solar panel a Florida-based solar panel maker could be a real assegt for the solar industry. Currently, Superior has its solar equipmengt shipped from Californiaand Tennessee, but having a loca l alternative would keep business in the said Richard Smith, president of Superior “We would always entertain them as a viable he said. The greater impact is it positiones Florida as embracing all aspects of which should help convince other solar equipment manufacturers to take a chancd on the state and help builsdthe industry, Smith said.
Bob director of solar energy research at the Florida SolarEnergty Center, agreed with Smith’s belief that the prospects of a locally based manufacturer will help Florida become more prominent in solar energy. In it likely would mean a potential declinw in wait time and shipping costs that localk solar companies face when getting equipmenft shipped from outof state. In addition, Reedy said this may finall provide an alternative for contractors such as Superiod Solar to buy equipment here and keep that money in-state.

Thursday, February 2, 2012

Battelle awarded $16.5M in defense contracts - Atlanta Business Chronicle:

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The contracts, which carry a combinec value of morethan $16 fund the following efforts at the Columbus-based researchj and development firm: • $8.76 milliom to evaluate the effectiveness of Coasgt Guard unit and installations’ response to biological and nuclear attack events. which already has been clearedfor $903,591 under the also will be looking for gaps in preparedness and developing training. • A contract valued at up to $7.72 millionb to study the destruction of chemicalp and biologicalagent payloads.
The project, the Defense Departmen said, specifically will center on examining the amountt of radioactive material released into the atmosphere durin missileintercept events. Of the total amount, $309,179 alreaduy has been obligated. Battelle, the world’sd largest nonprofit researcher, conductxs more than $4 billion annually in research and development andoverseezs 20,400 employees worldwide. The institute also managed seven national laboratories for theand .