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U.S. stocks rose as Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said he saw scope for further action, increasing speculation the central bank will act to boost economic growth.

Nine out of 10 groups in the S&P 500 rose, as consumer discretionary, industrial and technology stocks erased earlier losses. Parsippany-based Watson Pharmaceuticals. climbed 6 percent for the biggest gain in the benchmark gauge for U.S. stocks as its generic painkiller Lidoderm got approval from the Food and Drug Administration. QEP Resources jumped 6 percent after agreeing to buy North Dakota oil assets.

The S&P 500 added 0.7 percent to 1,411.13. The gauge fell 0.5 percent for the week. The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 100.51 points, or 0.8 percent, to 13,157.97 today. Volume for exchange-listed stocks was 4.7 billion shares, 24 percent below the three-month average and the third-lowest level of the year.

It was confirmation of Bernankes commitment to potentially do something more if the economy appears it needs it, John Carey, who helps oversee about $220 billion at Pioneer Investments in Boston, said in a telephone interview. That was reassuring to people who might have thought he was stepping back from that. He said, Its summer trading and volume is light so it doesnt take much to move the market. A little whiff of positive news was enough.

The S&P 500 had advanced for the past six straight weeks amid optimism that global central banks will take actions to stimulate growth. At the same time, trading volume and volatility have dropped this month as vacationing traders await policy clues from the Feds annual summit in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, and a European Central Bank meeting in September.

There is scope for further action by the Federal Reserve to ease financial conditions and strengthen the recovery, Bernanke said in an Aug. 22 letter to California Republican Darrell Issa, the chairman of the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee.

Minutes from the Federal Open Market Committees July 31- Aug. 1 meeting showed many members judged that more stimulus would likely be warranted fairly soon unless the pace of the recovery picks up. Bernanke will have an opportunity to clarify his views in a speech Friday at Jackson Hole, Wyo., where he signaled a second round of bond buying in 2010.

A report today showed demand for U.S. capital goods such as machinery and communications gear dropped in July by the most in eight months, indicating companies are pulling back on investment. Bookings for non-military capital equipment excluding planes slumped 3.4 percent, the Commerce Department report showed.

Global stocks fell earlier as two central bank officials said ECB President Mario Draghi may wait until Germanys Constitutional Court rules on the legality of Europes permanent bailout fund before unveiling full details of his plan to buy government bonds. With the court set to rule on Sept. 12, investors looking for Draghi to announce a definitive program at his Sept. 6 press conference might be disappointed, according to the officials.

German Chancellor Angela Merkel said at a joint press conference with Greek Prime Minister Antonis Samaras that Germany is ready to help the Greek government as it takes the necessary steps to resolve his countrys economic woes. Samaras will go to Paris for a meeting with French President Francois Hollande tomorrow after concluding his visit to Berlin today.

Excerpt from:
Markets inch upward, await word from Bernanke

Now that primary Election Day has passed, it may no longer matter who Carlos Sierra is, or the Opportunity for All PAC that funded a recent campaign mailer in support of U.S Congressman Raul Grijalva's opponent Amanda Aguirre.

Why not toast the super-PAC and take one last look at Opportunity for All? Perhaps we'll see them again for the general election, but since we haven't heard back from Sierra, we can't be sure.

On Saturday, Aug. 25, Grijalva held a press conference from his campaign headquarters about the mailing, that a former McCain staff was involved (Sierra), the PAC address was an empty El Paso lot, and the mailing could be in violation of Federal Election Commission rules and regs.

The next day, Grijalva's campaign sent out another press release saying further investigation linked Sierra to Aguirre through Tequila Party "foundress" DeeDee Blase - remember Somos Republicans? Blase had volunteered for the McCain campaign, and when she started the Tequila Party she cast away her Republican Party affiliation and became an independent.

The press release included three photos two with Blase and Sierra, and the third with Blase and Aguirre. That's it, which honestly, just really isn't enough.

From the Grijalva press release:

Carlos Sierra, the man who leads the group responsible for the mailer a PAC called the Opportunity for All Committee is a former staffer for GOP Senator John McCain. Aguirre's online media is being handled by DeeDee Garcia Blase, the founder of the Hispanic Republican group Somos Republicans. Although Sierra has denied knowing Aguirre or any of her staff, two of the attached photos freely available at the Somos Republicans Web site show Sierra and Blase working together, in one case at a McCain office. (In the group photo, Sierra is third from left and Blase is fourth.) Another attached photo shows Aguirre and Blase together at a Latina Trailblazers event in March of this year.

The headquarters address Sierra filed with the Federal Election Commission is an empty dirt lot in El Paso, Texas. When asked directly by KVOA, the NBC affiliate in Tucson, where the money came from for the attack mailer, he refused to answer. You can watch the KVOA segment here. A video of Rep. Grijalva's Aug. 25 press conference denouncing the mailer and asking Aguirre to explain her involvement is viewable at http://bit.ly/RdNGEA.

Aguirre hasnt denounced the attack piece. In fact, she told KVOA that Sierra is welcome to support me because I need all the help I can get. Her press release responding to questions about the mailer called Grijalva's press conference "a direct example of his underhanded bullying tactics." Her campaign consultant, George Braun, is a member of the Republican National Lawyers Association.

We finally caught up with Blase, who took her Tequila Party deal to the protest outside of the GOP convention in Florida. Blase said she's not part of Opportunity for All, but that she knows Sierra and volunteered with the McCain campaign.

Follow this link:
Last Word on Opportunity for All PAC?

28-08-2012 02:48 Strong winds are kicking up waves on the New Orleans-Lake Ponchartrain shoreline early Tuesday. Tropical Storm Isaac is closing in on the city, and expected to hit Tuesday night or Wednesday. (Aug. 28)

Excerpt from:
Raw Video: New Orleans Wind and Waves - Video

Facebook contributed to Tuesdays meeting of the Durango School District 9-R board, as members spent the evening discussing ways social-networking websites might benefit and be safely incorporated into public education.

Currently, social-networking sites Facebook, Myspace, Instagram, Twitter, Flickr and Tumblr cannot be accessed by 9-R wireless Internet and are not incorporated in the curriculum.

James Torres, executive director of educational technology, said, But the sites of tomorrow will be different.

Board member Kristy Rodri said, In the classroom, you have control over the students and the curriculum, whereas with Facebook, you dont have that kind of control.

Board member Stephanie Moran said, So many people use Facebook like theyre talking in their living room.

Or at a bar, Rodri said.

Torres cited Edmodo, an educationally bent social networking site, as a safe and easy way teachers could communicate with students, before reminding the board that, as always with the Internet, The question is: Is this too restrictive or not restrictive enough?

Board members agreed social-networking sites should be used in classrooms as a way to prepare students for 21st-century technology, but the Internet remains a double-edged sword to educators, and working out the details of proper Internet use will be taken up at future meetings.

Read more:
OMG Social networking awkward for school board

NEW YORK, NY--(Marketwire -08/29/12)- Blurt, the app that lets you record and share 10-second audio updates with the world, launched today in beta on iOS and Android mobile devices. With the touch of a button, users can now record, review and share voice messages called "Blurts" privately with friends and family, or publicly with the entire Blurt community.

Unlike text updates on other social networks, Blurts allow users to express themselves with the authenticity and emotional richness of their own voice. They can quickly and easily bring experiences, such as vacations, birthday celebrations and holidays -- or just everyday happenings -- to life for followers near and far.

"The appeal of Blurt lies in its simplicity and utility," said Blurt co-founder Bob Bayne. "We've purposely limited blurts to 10 seconds in order to keep them clear and concise. Blurt users may choose to tell a funny one-liner, invite friends to a great party, spread news efficiently to a group of people or simply voice their opinions. We're looking forward to hearing all the ways our users share and communicate with each other."

"Blurt is about giving social media users the power of voice and allowing it to enhance their social networking experience," added Blurt co-founder Clark Burgard.

Blurt's features include:

Blurt also provides a platform to help build and promote both commercial and personal brands. For instance, public figures can engage with their fans, and fans know that Blurts are coming straight from the mouths of their favorite personalities, not their social media assistants.

Blurt is now available to iPhone, iPad, iPod Touch or Android users, free of cost, in the Apple App Store or in Google Play. For more information about Blurt, please visit http://www.BLURTcast.com.

About BlurtBlurt is the app that lets you record and share 10-second audio updates -- called Blurts -- with the world. Blurt provides authenticity for users and allows them to express emotion to their followers, while brands can also benefit from the app by engaging their audiences and promoting customer loyalty. Developed by the InterNetwork Broadcasting team, which boasts more than 50 years of combined broadcast and social media expertise, Blurt is committed to providing users with the best, easiest-to-use platform to share personal audio updates. Please visit http://www.BLURTcast.com and http://www.InterNetwork.com.

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Blurt App Brings the Authenticity of Audio to Social Networking