Giants’ Beckham fined $12,154 for ‘dog pee’ TD celebration

NEW YORK — New York Giants wide receiver Odell Beckham Jr. has been fined $12,154 by the NFL for his dog-like touchdown celebration last Sunday.

Beckham got down on all fours and pretended to urinate like a dog after catching a fourth-quarter touchdown pass in a loss to the Philadelphia Eagles. He was penalized for unsportsmanlike conduct for the celebration, and met a few days later with co-owner John Mara, who was unhappy with Beckham’s behavior.

Also in that game, Eagles running back LeGarrette Blount was fined $9,115 for taunting. Jets rookie safety Jamal Adams and Minnesota cornerback Xavier Rhodes were docked the same amount for taunting.

Jets linebacker Darron Lee drew an $18,231 fine for a late hit on Miami quarterback Jay Cutler.

Seattle cornerback Richard Sherman was fined $12,154 for unnecessary roughness, while Denver’s Will Parks was docked $9,115, also for unnecessary roughness.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Fil-Am-hosted YouTube series tackles pop culture, fashion, sexuality

LOS ANGELES – “Your Time With Thomas,” hosted by social media influencer Thomas Orlina, is an eight-part docu-series on topics ranging from pop culture to fashion, relationships to sexuality, overcoming fears and finding next level fun.

Based in Hollywood, the series takes viewers on a tour of Los Angeles, hitting some of the hottest hangouts and showcasing the reality of what it’s truly like to live, work and play in the entertainment capital of the world.

Orlina is best known for being an on-air host and red carpet correspondent for as well as working for a major Hollywood studio. Over the years, he has attracted a sizable 50K+ following on social media who look to him for daily celebrity commentary and pop culture news.

“I wanted to show you [the viewers] who I am, and I want you to be able to connect with me on a higher level,” says Orlina in Episode 1.

This first episode of “Your Time With Thomas” introduces Thomas in his everyday life and allows subscribers to discover a deeper side to what he does, and what this docu-series is all about.

A highlight of Episode 1 is when Thomas gets a call from De Juan VaLentine, creator and senior executive producer of online talk show C.SQUARED. Thomas is presented with the exciting news that he has been selected as a producer of pop culture segments on Season 2 of C.SQUARED.

Viewers will also get a sneak peek into Episode 2, where Orlina discusses a topic that is very close to him: coming out. The rest of the series will tackle a wide range of subject matters and focus on giving his followers a firsthand experience of living in Los Angeles. 

source: usa.inquirer.net

Selling and Buying a New Home? Here are Your Options

For many homeowners, the purchase of a new home is dependant on the sale of their old one. While it would be ideal for the selling of your old home and purchase of your new home to happen at exactly the same time, the dates rarely line up like that. You may have sold your current home but are still searching for a new one. Or, you may have found the perfect property but are lacking a buyer for your current home. Selling and buying a new home can be daunting; fortunately, you do have options, and it can be done!

Sell First

There are some benefits to selling your home before buying a new one, the biggest one being that you will know exactly how much you can afford on the new home. If you don’t sell first, you may be overly optimistic about the value of your home and buy something you can’t actually afford. Or, you may lowball your new home and be disappointed when you find out what you could have had! Selling first will give you certainty about what you can afford, which is a great position to be in when buying.

Selling first means you’ll only have one mortgage payment—on the new home—rather than have to juggle two mortgages. However, some homeowners don’t like the uncertainty of selling their home without having somewhere else lined up. Selling first means you would have to find accommodation, whether with relatives, friends, or with a rental. You would also possibly have to put your belongings into storage, which can be a big hassle.

Buying First

Buying a home before selling your old home gives you lots of time to plan your move. However, buying first means you could end up paying two mortgage payments at once if your current home isn’t paid off. Whether or not you can afford this depends on your financial situation. If you can afford it, buying first is a good way to ease the selling process by taking the pressure off finding a new place.

Rent Your Old Home

If you feel you aren’t able to afford two mortgage payments but have found a new home you don’t want to miss out on, you could move into the new home and rent out your old property. While this requires the added pressure and stress of finding tenants, and being a landlord, it can be really helpful for paying off your mortgage and alleviating the financial stress of owning two properties.

These are just a few of the options available when it comes to selling and buying a new home. If you are considering selling and buying, speak to a mortgage professional to see what kind of potential expenses you can expect. Contact our experts today to set up a consultation!

source:  northwoodmortgage.com

Aerosmith’s Steven Tyler experiencing medical problem, band cancels shows

LOS ANGELES — Aerosmith lead singer Steven Tyler is dealing with an "unexpected medical issue" that has forced the band to cancel four shows in South America, the group said in a statement on Tuesday.

Tyler is expected to make a full recovery, the band said.

The band has canceled the following dates on their Latin American tour: Curitiba, Brazil, on Wednesday; Santiago, Chile, on Saturday; Rosario, Argentina, on Oct. 3; and Monterrey, Mexico on Oct. 7.

"Unfortunately, due to unexpected medical issues, lead singer Steven Tyler is seeking immediate care and has been advised by his doctors that he cannot travel or perform at this time," the band said in a statement.

The statement did not say what medical issues have affected Tyler. A spokeswoman for the singer did not immediately return a phone call or email.

"I am not in a life threatening condition, but I need to deal with this right away, and get some rest and medical care immediately in order to sustain and maintain my future performances," Tyler said in a statement accompanying the band's message about the cancellations.

Aerosmith earlier this month played shows in Rio and São Paulo, Brazil.

Tyler in 2006 underwent vocal chord surgery. — Reuters

Wall Street ends flat after Yellen; tech shares bounce

NEW YORK - The S&P 500 ended flat on Tuesday and the Nasdaq posted modest gains as technology shares bounced from sharp losses in the prior session and comments from Fed Chair Janet Yellen boosted expectations of a December rate hike.

Yellen said the Fed needs to continue gradual rate hikes and it would be imprudent to leave rates on hold until inflation reached the Fed's 2-percent target.

Earlier in the session, Atlanta Fed Chief Raphael Bostic, a non-voting member this year, said he would want "clear evidence" that prices were firming before committing to another rate increase, but did not rule out another hike in 2017.

Chances of a rate hike in December rose to 78 percent from about 40 percent a month ago, according to CME Group's FedWatch tool.

"Investors should be looking out for a December hike given we don’t know what happens to the Fed chair position next year. (Yellen), probably wants to be able to, knowing anyone new in that role might not feel comfortable tightening the first month," said Jack Ablin, chief investment officer at BMO Private Bank in Chicago.

Economic data showed U.S consumer confidence fell in September while home sales dropped to an eight-month low in August due to the impact of Hurricanes Harvey and Irma.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 10.05 points, or 0.05 percent, to 22,286.04, the S&P 500 gained 0.23 points, or 0.01 percent, to 2,496.89 and the Nasdaq Composite added 9.57 points, or 0.15 percent, to 6,380.16.

Technology, up 0.4 percent, was the best performing major sector, recovering somewhat from losses in the prior session. Tech shares suffered their worst one-day drop in five weeks on Monday as concerns over tensions with North Korea prompted investors to book profits in what has been the best performing sector this year.

Apple rose 1.72 percent after four straight sessions of losses to help prop up the three major indexes, after Raymond James boosted its price target on the iPhone maker to $180 from $170.

"It is a little bit of a relief knowing perhaps investors still believe in buying the dips even after the Fed’s announcement of reduced balance sheet purchases," said Ablin.

President Donald Trump warned North Korea any U.S. military option would be "devastating" for Pyongyang, but said the use of force was not Washington's first option to deal with the North's ballistic and nuclear weapons program.

Darden Restaurants slumped 6.53 percent after the Olive Garden parent said it expected the negative effects on sales and earnings from Hurricane Irma to be about double that from Hurricane Harvey.

Red Hat rose climbed 4.09 percent after the Linux distributor's quarterly profit came in above estimates and the company raised its full-year forecast.

Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a 1.31-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.35-to-1 ratio favored advancers.

About 5.81 billion shares changed hands in U.S. exchanges, compared with the 5.96 billion daily average over the last 20 sessions. — Reuters

LeBron James hopes Dwyane Wade will join Cavs

LeBron James is hopeful Dwyane Wade will join the Cleveland Cavaliers after he secured his buyout from the Chicago Bulls.

The 35-year-old guard bought out his contract with the Bulls on Sunday, and is now poised to listen to offers from a string of potential suitors.

Wade passed up around $8 million in salary to obtain the buyout, according to ESPN.

Wade is a former teammate of James from their time at the Miami Heat -- and the Cleveland star is enthusiastic about a possible reunion.

"I would love to have D-Wade a part of this team," James told reporters on Monday.

"I think he brings another championship DNA, championship pedigree. He brings another playmaker to the team who can get guys involved, and make plays, and also just has a great basketball mind.

"I think it would be great to have him here... I hope that we can bring him here. I would love to have him."

As well as the Cavs, Wade is also being courted by the San Antonio Spurs, Miami Heat and Oklahoma City Thunder, according to reports. Wade is also a close friend of Carmelo Anthony, who wrapped up his move to Oklahoma City on Monday. — Agence France-Presse

source: gmanetwork.com

Asian shares droop, yen gains as Korean tensions rise

TOKYO - Asian shares slumped on Tuesday while the dollar remained off recent highs against the yen against the backdrop of rising tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

North Korea's foreign minister said on Monday that a weekend tweet by President Donald Trump counted as a declaration of war on North Korea and that Pyongyang reserved the right to take countermeasures, including shooting down US bombers even if they are not in its air space.

MSCI's broadest index of Asia-Pacific shares outside Japan was down 0.2 percent in early trade, following losses on Wall Street.

Australian shares were up 0.1 percent, while South Korean shares were 0.3 percent down.

Japan's Nikkei stock index sagged 0.2 percent, pressured by a stronger yen.

"In addition to North Korea, the stronger yen is affecting shares today, and there's also Apple's poor performance, after the report that it told suppliers to reduce parts shipments," said Norihiro Fujito, senior investment strategist at Mitsubishi UFJ Morgan Stanley Securities.

Apple Inc shed 0.9 percent on Monday after it was reported the company had told suppliers to scale back shipments of parts for its upcoming iPhone X.

The dollar was slightly down against the yen at 111.70 and well shy of last week's two-month high of 112.725.

The yen tends to benefit during times of risk aversion due to Japan's net creditor status and the expectation that Japanese investors would repatriate assets when facing a crisis.

The euro edged up after tumbling on Monday following a severely diminished election victory for German Chancellor Angela Merkel that was accompanied by a surge in support for the far right.

Support for Merkel's conservatives unexpectedly slumped to its lowest since 1949 and the Social Democrats, partners in the outgoing coalition, said they would go into opposition.

The single currency was 0.1 percent higher at $1.1856 , while the dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major rivals, was down 0.1 percent at 92.601.

Later on Tuesday, Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen is scheduled to speak on "Prospects for Growth: Reassessing the Fundamentals" at 1645 GMT.

On Monday, New York Fed President William Dudley said the US central bank is on track to gradually raise rates given factors depressing inflation are "fading" and the US economy's fundamentals are sound.

But Chicago Fed President Charles Evans said the Fed should wait until there are clear signs of faster wage and price growth before hiking rates again.

Crude oil prices gave back some of their gains after soaring more than 3 percent on Monday, with Brent hitting its highest in more than two years. Major producers said the global market was on its way to rebalancing, while Turkey threatened to cut oil flows from Iraq's Kurdistan region to its ports.

US crude eased 0.2 percent to $52.12 a barrel, after touching its highest levels since April on Monday. Brent crude edged up 0.1 percent to $59.10, after scaling its highest peak overnight since July, 2015. —Reuters

200 NFL players protest in defiance of Trump

WASHINGTON — US President Donald Trump’s criticism of players who kneel during the national anthem sparked angry protests around the National Football League (NFL) on Sunday, as about 200 players sat, knelt or raised their fists in defiance. A week ago, just six players protested.

Most NFL players on Sunday locked arms with their teammates — some standing, others kneeling — in a show of solidarity. A handful of teams stayed off the field until after “The Star-Spangled Banner” to avoid the issue altogether.

As he prepared to board Air Force One to return to Washington from New Jersey, Trump said the players protesting the anthem were “very disrespectful to our country” and called again on NFL owners to stop what he considered unpatriotic displays in America’s most popular sport.

“This has nothing to do with race,” Trump said. “This has to do with respect for our country.”

The president’s attack on athletes turned the anthems—usually sung during commercials—into must-watch television shown live by the networks and Yahoo!, which streamed the game in London.

In NFL stadiums, spectators either applauded or booed at the protesting players.

‘Deep disappointment’

The NFL owners and its players, often at odds, used Sunday’s anthems to show unity. One of Trump’s biggest supporters in the NFL, Patriots owner Robert Kraft, joined the chorus when he expressed “deep disappointment” with Trump.

The dissent started more than a year ago when former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick refused to stand during the anthem to denounce police violence against minorities. This season, no team has signed Kaepernick, and some believe NFL owners are avoiding him because of the controversy.

A handful of white players joined the vast majority of black players who actively protested on Sunday.

Defensive star Von Miller was among the large group of Denver Broncos who took a knee in Buffalo, where Bills running back LeSean McCoy stretched during the anthem.

“We felt like President Trump’s speech was an assault on our most cherished right, freedom of speech,” said Miller, who normally steers clear of politics and social issues.

Dozens of more players protested before the Raiders-Redskins game in Landover, Maryland. All but a handful of Raiders sat on their bench, and seven Redskins took a knee while their teammates stood arm-in-arm along with the owner.

In Chicago, the Pittsburgh Steelers stayed in the tunnel except for one player, Army veteran Alejandro Villanueva, who stood outside with a hand over his heart.

In Nashville, both the Seahawks and Titans stayed inside until after the national anthem was over.

Protests surge

A handful of NFL players had been continuing Kaepernick’s protest this season, but that ballooned on Sunday following Trump’s two-day weekend rant.

It began on Friday when he called for NFL protesters to be fired and continued on Saturday when he rescinded a White House invitation for the NBA champion Golden State Warriors over criticism from two-time MVP Stephen Curry.

The president’s delving into the NFL protests further angered many players who took one insult as a personal attack on their mothers.

“Wouldn’t you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, you’d say, ‘Get that son of a bitch off the field right now. Out! He’s fired,’” Trump said to loud applause on Friday night at a rally in Huntsville, Alabama.

Locked arms in solidarity

“I’m a son of a queen,” retorted Falcons defensive lineman Grady Jarrett.

Super Bowl MVP Tom Brady was among the New England Patriots who locked arms in solidarity in Foxborough, Massachusetts. Aaron Rodgers did the same with his teammates in Green Bay.

“Standing with locked arms is good, kneeling is not acceptable. Bad ratings!” Trump tweeted on Sunday.

In Detroit, anthem singer Rico Lavelle took a knee at the word “brave,” lowering his head and raising his right fist. In Nashville, anthem singer Meghan Linsey took a knee as she finished singing.

Jets chair/CEO Christopher Johnson, one of Trump’s most ardent supporters, called it “an honor and a privilege to stand arm-in-arm unified with our players during today’s national anthem” in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Johnson’s brother, Woody, is the ambassador to England.

The mass action reverberated across the Atlantic, where about two dozen players took a knee during the playing of the US anthem at Wembley Stadium.

“We stand with our brothers,” Ravens linebacker Terrell Suggs said. “They have the right and we knelt with them today. To protest, nonviolent protest, is as American as it gets, so we knelt with them today to let them know that we’re a unified front.”

Jaguars owner Shad Khan and players on both teams who were not kneeling remained locked arm-in-arm throughout the playing of the anthem and “God Save The Queen.” No player knelt during the British anthem.

“Me taking a knee doesn’t change the fact that I support our military, I’m a patriot and I love my country,” Bills linebacker Lorenzo Alexander said.

“But I also recognize there are some social injustices in this country and today I wanted to take a knee in support of my brothers who have been doing it,” he added.

Alexander said he would go back to standing for the anthem next week.

“I just wanted to show them that I was with them today, especially in the backdrop of our president making the comments about our players, about their mothers,” he said. “And then you put that in conjunction with how he tried to gray-area Nazism and KKK members as being fine people, I had to take a knee.”

Invitation accepted

The National Hockey League’s reigning champion Pittsburgh Penguins announced on Sunday that they had accepted a White House invitation from Trump.

The Penguins said they respected the Office of the President and “the long tradition of championship team visiting the White House.”

Before Game 1 of the WNBA Finals in Minneapolis on Sunday, the Los Angeles Sparks left the floor while the Minnesota Lynx stood arm-in-arm. The Sparks returned to a chorus of boos when the song was finished.

Kahn, who was among the NFL owners who chipped in $1 million to the Trump inauguration committee, said he met with his team captains before kickoff in London “to express my support for them, all NFL players and the league following the divisive and contentious remarks made by President Trump.”

source: newsinfo.inquirer.net

Merkel wins fourth term as far-right enters German parliament

BERLIN - Chancellor Angela Merkel's conservatives beat their rivals on Sunday to win her a fourth term in an election that will also bring a far-right party into Germany's parliament for the first time in more than half a century, exit polls showed.

After shock election results last year, from Britain's vote to leave the European Union to the election of US President Donald Trump, many look to Merkel to rally a bruised liberal Western order, tasking her with leading a post-Brexit Europe.

She must now form a coalition government - an arduous process that could take months as all potential partners are unsure whether they really want to share power with her.

Merkel's conservative bloc won 32.5 percent of the vote, making them the largest parliamentary group, an exit poll for broadcaster ARD indicated. However, that was down from 41.5 percent in the last election, in 2013.

Support for their closest rivals, the center-left Social Democrats (SPD) which are currently junior partners in a so-called "grand coalition" with Merkel, slumped to 20.0 percent - a new post-war low. The SPD ruled out a re-run of that tie-up.

The far-right Alternative for Germany (AfD) stunned the establishment by finishing third and entering parliament for the first time with 13.5 percent of the vote.

Merkel, Europe's longest serving leader, joins the late Helmut Kohl, her mentor who reunified Germany, and Konrad Adenauer, who led Germany's rebirth after World War Two, as the only post-war chancellors to win four national elections.

SPD deputy leader Manuela Schwesig said her party would now go into opposition. That would rule out a re-run of Merkel's existing alliance with the SPD.

An alternative coalition for Merkel would be a three-way tie-up with the liberal Free Democrats (FDP) and the ecologist Greens. That is a combination as yet untested at national level and known as the "Jamaica" option because the three parties' colors are those of the black-gold-green Jamaica national flag.

Both the FDP and the environmentalist Greens have played down the prospect of a Jamaica coalition, but as they have been out of government for four and 12 years respectively, they may be lured into an alliance by the prospect of power.

New era

Whatever the make-up of her coalition, Merkel, 63, faces four years of government in a fragmented parliament after the return of the FDP - unrepresented at national level for the last four years - and the arrival of the AfD.

Founded in 2013 by an anti-euro group of academics, the AfD has morphed into an anti-immigration party that has profited from Merkel's 2015 decision to leave German borders open to over 1 million migrants, most of them fleeing war in the Middle East.

The party's entry into the national parliament heralds the beginning of a new era in German politics that will see more robust debate and a departure from the steady, consensus-based approach that has marked the post-war period.

The other parties elected to the Bundestag all refuse to work with the AfD, which says it will press for Merkel to be "severely punished" for opening the door to refugees and migrants.

After the AfD hurt her conservatives in regional elections last year, Merkel, a pastor's daughter who grew up in Communist East Germany, wondered if she should run for re-election.

But with the migrant issue under control this year, she threw herself into a punishing campaign schedule, presenting herself as an anchor of stability in an uncertain world. — Reuters

NBA, NFL hit back after Trump tirade

LOS ANGELES, United States - President Donald Trump triggered a backlash from the US professional sports world on Saturday, withdrawing a White House invitation to the NBA champion Golden State Warriors after condemning NFL players protesting the national anthem.

A day after Trump had decried activist National Football League stars as "sons of bitches" who should be fired for kneeling or sitting during renditions of The Stars and Stripes, the US leader turned his ire to basketball's reigning champions and star player Stephen Curry.

Curry said on Friday he would not attend a White House reception if his team was invited, a tradition that stretches back several decades.

Trump responded with an early morning Twitter salvo on Saturday.

"Going to the White House is considered a great honor for a championship team. Stephen Curry is hesitating, therefore invitation is withdrawn!" he wrote.

Trump's outburst drew a stinging response from across the NBA, with Cleveland Cavaliers superstar LeBron James among the first to weigh in.

"U bum @StephenCurry already said he ain't going!" James wrote on Twitter. "So therefore ain't no invite. Going to White House was a great honor until you showed up."

The NBA Players Association also rallied swiftly behind Curry.

"Steph: consider this withdrawal a badge of honor!" NBAPA executive director Michele Roberts wrote on Twitter.

Making a ‘statement’

Curry said the Warriors could make a "statement" by declining to attend the White House reception.

"We have an opportunity to send a statement that hopefully encourages unity, encourages us to appreciate what it means to be American, and stand for something," Curry told ESPN on Friday.

Speaking at the Warriors media day later Friday, Curry said simply: "I don't wanna go."

Leading figures across the NBA have been among some of Trump's most searing critics in the US professional sports world.

Curry's Warriors teammate Kevin Durant, the reigning NBA Finals MVP, said last month he would boycott any trip to the White House, accusing Trump of escalating racial tensions.

"I don't respect who's in office right now... I don't agree with what he agrees with," Durant said.

Trump's spat with Curry and the Warriors came less than 24 hours after the president raged against NFL players who have protested the national anthem.

The NFL has seen a surge in activism by players since former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick last year refused to stand for The Stars and Stripes in a protest against the treatment of minorities by law enforcement.

‘Divisive comments’

However in a tirade in Alabama on Friday, Trump said players who protested the anthem should be dismissed.

"Wouldn't you love to see one of these NFL owners, when somebody disrespects our flag, to say, 'Get that son of a bitch off the field right now, out, he's fired. He's fired!'" Trump told a rally.

"You know, some owner is going to do that. He's going to say, 'That guy that disrespects our flag, he's fired.' And that owner, they don't know it (but) they'll be the most popular person in this country."

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell reacted with dismay to Trump's comments in a statement on Saturday.

"Divisive comments like these demonstrate an unfortunate lack of respect for the NFL, our great game and all of our players, and a failure to understand the overwhelming force for good our clubs and players represent in our communities," Goodell wrote.

Others meanwhile condemned Trump's choice of words to describe the anthem protesters.

Kaepernick's mother, Teresa Kaepernick, responded on Twitter: "Guess that makes me a proud bitch!"

Several NFL players also lined up to condemn Trump's latest rant.

"It's a shame and disgrace when you have the President of the US calling citizens of the country sons of a bitches," Minnesota Vikings running back Bishop Sankey wrote on Twitter.

"Might as well call the creators of the Constitution SOBs too," he added.

Denver Broncos guard Max Garcia meanwhile contrasted Trump's speech in Alabama to his much-criticized response to deadly violence by white supremacists in Charlottesville last month.

"What an emphatic response, where was this passion in response to Charlottesville...," Garcia wrote. — Agence France-Presse

source: gmanetwork.com

22-year-old Filipina Alisah Bonaobra wows judges of 'X Factor UK' in auditions round

On week 4 of the auditions round of X Factor UK, 22-year-old Filipina Alisah Bonaobra wowed all four judges with her rendition of Beyonce’s “Listen.”

 “I’m here to represent all the Filipino communities here in the UK,” Alisah says when asked to introduce herself. She tells the judges of her gig as a wedding singer, how she gives her extra money to support her family, whose income comes from selling packed food on the sidewalk.

“This is not the best version of this song I’ve heard but there’s something about you that I really really like. Great, great energy,” Simon Cowell said after Alisah sang.

The three other judges agreed with Simon. “I think you’re adorable. You are a great singer, you’re a great person it was a great audition. There’s something about you we really like,” Louie Walsh said, while Sharon Osbourne simply said “It’s a yes for me”.

Alisah got half-Filipino judge Nicole Scherzinger shedding a few tears: “I am crying because I come from very humble beginnings as well. You’re just gorgeous. You have an unbelieveable gift blowing everybody away. I connect with you and everybody. It’s a yes for you.” — LA, GMA News

source: gmanetwork.com

Trump says protesting players in NFL should be fired

HUNTSVILLE, Alabama — President Donald Trump has a suggestion for National Football League owners whose players decide to take a knee during the national anthem: fire them.

And the president has a similar suggestion for fans of the sport: walk out of the stadium in protest.

Quarterback Colin Kaepernick started the trend last year when he played for the San Francisco 49ers. He hasn’t been signed by an NFL team this season.

Trump’s hard-nosed reaction to protests by several athletes over treatment of blacks by police came Friday night during a freewheeling rally in Alabama. He says such players are disrespecting the flag and deserve to lose their jobs.

Trump also bemoaned that football has become less violent. That view comes amid growing concerns over repeated head blows and a brain disease.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Wall Street edges up, shaking off healthcare, North Korea worries

NEW YORK - The S&P 500 closed slightly higher on Friday even though Apple was a drag, as worries about Washington's latest healthcare legislation proposal eased and investors shrugged off concerns about North Korea.

Investors in the broader market were also encouraged by a jump in the Russell 2000 small-cap index, which ended with a record high close.

After a volatile day the S&P's healthcare sector ended 0.1 percent higher as insurance stocks regained ground after Republican Senator John McCain said he opposed his Republican peers' latest effort to replace President Barack Obama's healthcare law.

The S&P technology sector managed to eke out a small gain as investors had more appetite for risk even with a decline of 1 percent in Apple shares on muted reactions to the iPhone maker's latest product launch.

"The removal of the healthcare overhang, the fact the North Korea market impact is dwindling and the move in the Russell 2000 has all the smart investors thinking that the grind higher continues," said Michael Antonelli, managing director, institutional sales trading at Robert W. Baird in Milwaukee.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 9.64 points, or 0.04 percent, to 22,349.59, the S&P 500 gained 1.62 points, or 0.06 percent, to 2,502.22 and the Nasdaq Composite added 4.23 points, or 0.07 percent, to 6,426.92.

Some investors moved to safe-haven assets such as gold, after North Korea said it might test a hydrogen bomb over the Pacific Ocean in response to U.S. President Donald Trump's threat to destroy the reclusive country.

But others felt that the market would cope with the ongoing stand-off between the countries, which has been ratcheting up in recent months. "If you cry wolf enough it loses its impact in the end," Antonelli said.

Five of the 11 major S&P sectors ended the day lower and utilities led the decliners with a 0.7 percent loss. After falling as much as 0.5 percent, the healthcare sector ended 0.08 percent higher.

Earlier in the day concern about the Graham-Cassidy healthcare bill had wreaked havoc with insurers' stocks. UnitedHealth closed down 1.1 percent after falling as much as 3.6 percent earlier in the day.

The small telecom services index, with only four stocks, was the biggest percentage gainer with a 1.4 percent rise on consolidation speculation while the energy index rose 0.5 percent as oil futures settled higher.

T-Mobile gained 1 percent after Reuters reported that the cellphone network operator was close to agreeing tentative terms on a deal to merge with Sprint, whose shares jumped 6.1 percent.

The report also pushed up bigger rivals Verizon Communications and AT&T Inc, which could benefit from having one less competitor.

Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a 1.82-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.91-to-1 ratio favored advancers.

About 5.26 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges compared with the 6.03 billion average for the last 20 sessions. — Reuters

Billionaire L’Oreal heiress Bettencourt dies aged 94

PARIS - French businesswoman and billionaire Liliane Bettencourt, whose family founded L'Oreal and still owns the largest stake in the cosmetics giant, has died aged 94, her daughter said on Thursday.

Bettencourt, listed by Forbes as the world's richest woman, was the heiress to the beauty and cosmetics company her father founded just over a century ago as a maker of hair dye.

Her death opens a new phase for L'Oreal, France's fourth-largest listed company, altering the relationship it has with key shareholder Nestle, the Swiss food company.

Bettencourt and her family owned 33 percent of the company. Her daughter Françoise Bettencourt-Meyers, who sits on L'Oreal's board along with her own son, said in a statement the family remained committed to the company and its management team.

"My mother left peacefully," Bettencourt-Meyers said, adding that she had died during Wednesday night at her home in Paris.

"I would like to reiterate, on behalf of our family, our entire commitment and loyalty to L'Oreal and to renew my confidence in its President Jean-Paul Agon and his teams worldwide."

In 2011 Agon was appointed chairman and chief executive of L'Oreal, owner of the Lancome and Maybelline beauty and make-up brands and of Garnier shampoos.

Nestle, which owns just over 23 percent of L'Oreal, had agreed with the founding family that the two parties could not increase their stakes during Liliane Bettencourt's lifetime and for at least six months after her death.

The Swiss company has been a major investor since 1974, when Bettencourt entrusted nearly half of her own stake in the firm to Nestle in exchange for a three percent holding in the Swiss company. She made the move out of fear that L'Oreal might be nationalised if the Socialists came to power in France.

Activist hedge fund Third Point recently urged Nestle — which brought in a new chief executive, Mark Schneider, earlier this year — to sell down its stake as part of efforts to improve its performance.

A Nestle spokeswoman on Thursday did not comment on the company's stake, only saying: "It's time to send our sincere condolences to Madame Bettencourt's family."

Legal battles

Fascination with Bettencourt's wealth, complex family relations and scandal-tinged life often propelled her into society pages and headlines, though she remained private and rarely gave interviews.

Her net worth was estimated at $39.5 billion earlier this year by Forbes, making her the world's richest woman and among the 20 wealthiest people in the world.

In a testament to the influence L'Oreal came to have in France, Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire on Thursday praised the stability Bettencourt had brought to the company through her ownership and said in a statement he hoped that the firm would maintain its close ties with its home market.

The marriage of the heiress to French politician Andre Bettencourt drew scrutiny when it emerged he had written anti-Semitic tracts at the start of World War Two. And Bettencourt was caught up in high-profile legal feuds almost until the last.

She had been under the guardianship of family members since a court fight, known as the "Bettencourt affair", ended with a ruling in 2011 that she was incapable of looking after her fortune because she suffered from dementia and had been exploited.

The case — brought By her daughter Françoise And which soured relations between the two — centered on Francois-Marie Banier, a celebrity photographer who befriended Bettencourt in the 1980s and received lavish gifts from her, including life insurance policies worth $400 million.

Another strand of the sprawling affair later led to allegations of illegal payments by Bettencourt to members of the French government associated with former president Nicolas Sarkozy in 2010. Sarkozy was eventually cleared in the case.

Paris-born Bettencourt joined her father Eugene Schueller's firm as an apprentice at the age of 15, mixing cosmetics and labelling bottles of shampoo.

She inherited the family fortune when her father Eugene Schueller, a chemist, died in 1957, though she delegated the day-to-day management of the firm. A widow since 2007, Bettencourt ceased to sit on L'Oreal's board in 2012. —Reuters

Hope fading for survivors as Mexico search enters third day

Mexico City, Mexico —Mexico waited anxiously on Thursday for signs of life in the rubble of collapsed buildings as a desperate search for survivors of a devastating earthquake entered a third day.

Authorities put the death toll following Tuesday’s 7.1 magnitude quake at more than 250 people, with the number expected to rise.

Rescue workers scrabbled to remove tons of rubble at dozens of flattened buildings in the capital and across several central states.

But time is running out. Experts say the average survival time in such conditions and depending on injuries is 72 hours.

Authorities put the overall death toll at 272 — 137 in Mexico City, 73 in Morelos state, 43 in Puebla, 13 in Mexico state, five in Guerrero and one in Oaxaca.

However, the situation on the ground was chaotic, and the figures were rising — and sometimes falling.

Phantom schoolgirl

Highlighting the confusion that still reigned two days after the quake, one story that gripped the world’s attention turned out to be false: that of a girl supposedly trapped alive beneath the rubble of a school that collapsed in Mexico City.

Authorities denied Thursday that the girl existed.

“We have carried out a full count with the directors of the school and we are sure that all the children are either safe at home, in the hospital or unfortunately died,” Angel Enrique Sarmiento, a top officer in the Mexican marines, told journalists at the ruins of the Enrique Rebsamen school on the capital’s south side.

“There are indications there may be an (adult) still alive in the rubble. There are traces of blood, photographs, as if the person had dragged him or herself and may still be alive,” he added.

Rescue workers had told journalists they were certain a girl was alive beneath the rubble, but the different versions of the story varied widely.

The story had made headlines around the world after the quake, injecting a ray of hope into a tragedy that killed 19 children and six adults at the school.

‘I need volunteers here’

But real stories of hope continued to emerge from ruined buildings across the city, where more than 10,000 people lost their lives in a devastating earthquake in 1985.

In the north of the city, a man who had been trapped for 26 hours and a 90-year-old woman were pulled alive from the rubble.

Residents of San Gregorio in the tourist-magnet Xochimilco neighborhood in Mexico City’s far south were angry at the lack of material aid and volunteers.

“I need volunteers! Yesterday everything arrived and now there is nobody. They come, they do some disaster tourism, and they leave,” one volunteer who gave his name as Morales told AFP.

San Gregorio was badly hit by the quake with many collapsed buildings and others in a state of near-collapse.

Rescue teams were helped by thousands of ordinary civilians who dug through the rubble alongside them. Other Mexicans took to the streets with food and water for victims and emergency workers.

International solidarity

President Enrique Pena Nieto toured the hardest-hit areas and declared three days of national mourning.

“The priority remains saving lives,” he said Wednesday night in a broadcast to a grieving nation, insisting there was still hope of finding survivors.

More than 50 people have been rescued from collapsed buildings in the capital, he said.

US President Donald Trump called Pena Nieto and offered assistance and search-and-rescue teams which were quickly being deployed, the White House said.

Rescue teams have flown in from Israel, El Salvador and Panama and more were expected from Ecuador, Honduras, Colombia and Spain.

Rescuers said the Israeli teams came with equipment enabling them to detect cell phone signals within the rubble.

The earthquake hit on the anniversary of a huge quake in 1985 that killed more than 10,000 people, the disaster-prone country’s deadliest ever.

Tuesday’s temblor struck just two hours after Mexico held a national earthquake drill, as it does every September 19 to remember the 1985 disaster.

A system of quake sensors was set up in 1993 along the Pacific coast, where tremors are more common.

People in Mexico City were not warned by it on Tuesday because the epicenter was only 120 kilometers (75 miles) outside the capital and thus outside the main area of sensor coverage, said Carlos Valdes of the National Center for Disaster Prevention.

Adding to the national sense of vulnerability, the earthquake struck just 12 days after another quake that killed nearly 100 people in southern Mexico.

source: newsinfo.inquirer.net

Atom Araullo officially back at GMA, to do documentaries

Atom Araullo is now back with GMA.

The announcement was officially made by the network’s flagship newscast “24 Oras” on Thursday. GMA was also where Araullo’s career as a broadcast journalist started when he hosted the show’s sports segment “Atomic Sports.”

“I keep telling my friends na ang dami kasing puwede pang matutunan. Marami rin akong hinahangaan dito sa GMA, kaya nang nagkaroon ng oportunidad na [makatrabaho sila] at nakita ko na ito talaga ‘yong direksyon na tinatahak ng aking career, talagang pinag-isipan ko nang mabuti at nandito na ako ngayon,” Araullo said via a GMA News report.

“Ang bottomline is that I’m up for new challenges,” he added.

GMA Network Chairman and CEO Atty. Felipe L. Gozon personally welcomed back the acclaimed broadcast journalist.

Araullo notes GMA’s strength in producing quality documentaries, and he is excited to hone his skills in this field.

Now that he’s back to being a Kapuso, his first assignment will be to explore the vast seas of the Philippine archipelago.

“Marami sa mga kababayan natin ang nabubuhay at namamatay sa karagatan, kailangan i-explore natin ‘yung mga kinahaharap nilang mga issues, ano ‘yung estado ng mga karagatan natin at ano ‘yung mga hinaharap nitong mga challenges,” he said in his official launch as a Kapuso documentarist in “24-Oras.”

Aside from the aforementioned documentary, he will be the fifth host of the award-winning documentary program, “I-Witness.”

Araullo had an emotional farewell at his former morning news program in ABS-CBN, “Umagang Kay Ganda.” /ra

source: entertainment.inquirer.net

Hair trends at London Fashion Week: Bringing back the center part

Center parts were one of the key hair trends at London, with designers opting overwhelmingly for the middle ground.

Here are three ways to wear the look, straight off the catwalks.

Sleek and straight
Julien Macdonald, Roksanda and Jasper Conran were just three of the fashion greats to declare loose, poker-straight tresses the go-to hair trend of Spring 2018. The Julien Macdonald show offered up a masterclass in sleek, shiny blow dries with just the right amount of volume, while the models at Roksanda wore their styles flatter and tucked behind the ears. Things were a little more tousled and laid-back at Jasper Conran.

Pinned back
A center parting is an easy way to elevate simple updos, as both Emilia Wickstead and Burberry proved with their on-trend low ponytails. While the models at Emilia Wickstead sported slightly tousled styles, the Burberry look, with its faintly crooked parting and loose baby hairs, gave the overall effect a back-to-school edge.

Textured
Christopher Kane and Paula Knorr added texture to the look, by keeping things damp and frizzy. Kane’s models had their hair pulled tightly back into a ponytail, while some of the models at Paula Knorr sported slicked-down roots with drier ends. JB

source: lifestyle.inquirer.net

Magnitude 6.4 quake strikes Vanuatu in Pacific — USGS

A strong earthquake of magnitude 6.4 struck Vanuatu's Erromango island in the Pacific Ocean on Thursday, but caused no damage, the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) and local authorities said.

The USGS said the quake struck the center of the island, Vanuatu's fourth largest, at 7:09 a.m. (2009 GMT on Wednesday) and was fairly deep at 124.4 miles (200 km), which would have dampened its effect.

Erromango has a population of just under 2,000 people.

The Vanuatu Meteorological Services & Geohazard Department said the earthquake caused no damage to the Pacific island nation.

The Pacific Tsunami Warning Center said the quake did not pose a tsunami threat.

The Vanuatu volcanic archipelago, east of Australia in the Pacific Ocean, is in the so-called Ring of Fire and prone to earthquakes.

The Philippine Institute of Volcanology and Seismology (Phivolcs) posted a Tsunami Bulletin, stating that there is no tsunami threat in the country. — Reuters With BAP, GMA News

NBA: Ex-teammate Kanter on Durant’s Twitter comments: ‘It’s just really sad’

Reigning NBA Finals MVP Kevin Durant recently owned up to his recent comments regarding his former team, the Oklahoma City Thunder, admitting it was “childish and idiotic.”

The Golden State Warriors forward was caught red-handed using an alternate Twitter account to answer a negative comment made by a netizen about him, but failed miserably as he accidentally replied using his own verified handle.

Despite the public apology, his former teammate Enes Kanter couldn’t help but chastise the NBA superstar.

“Well, I’m not angry. It’s just really sad,” the 25-year-old Turkish center said of Durant’s comments.

“I remember when he was here – I played with him one-and-a-half years – and when he was here, this organization and these fans, this whole state, gave him everything he asked for, everything he wanted,” he explained to CBS Sports Radio’s Andrew Bogusch, as relayed by The Score.

“The cooks, the chefs, the massage therapists, the coaches, players – everything – just (to make) sure he is okay and getting what he wanted to get.”

Durant also claimed that with the exemption of Russell Westbrook, his former OKC squad mates  were not talented enough to win an NBA title.

Despite the stinging words, Kanter took more offense on Durant’s critical comments on coach Billy Donovan.

“What he said about Billy Donovan, I don’t know if anyone made the conference finals in his first year in the NBA,” Kanter said. “Billy Donovan, of course he’s pretty new in the NBA, but I feel like he’s done an amazing job. There’s coaches in the NBA that have not made the playoffs yet, and they’ve been in the league for 10, 15 years, but he made the playoffs in his first two years, and I think he’s done a good job.”

Although Kanter does not deny Durant’s supreme talent, he claims that a player of his stature shouldn’t try to please everybody and pay attention to critics.

“You just won a championship. You were the Finals MVP,” he said of KD. “I understand interacting with fans, but having a fake account and just answering back and trying to have a conversation with them and stuff, come on, man. If you’re Kevin Durant, you don’t do that. He is one of the top five players in the league. Come on, man. Just go do your thing.”

The outspoken Kanter added: “Play basketball and try to be the best. When he’s doing all these little things to all those people who sit on their laptop and just writing comments – they got no life. Come on, man. You don’t do that.”  Khristian Ibarrola /ra

source: sports.inquirer.net

Wall Street edges higher; US Fed meeting in focus

The three major U.S. stock indexes edged higher on Tuesday, logging closing records, with financial stocks providing the biggest boost a day ahead of the Federal Reserve's concluding statement from its two-day policy meeting.

The U.S. central bank is expected to announce when it will begin paring its bond holdings, and while a September interest rate increase is not expected, investors will closely study Fed Chair Janet Yellen's views on inflation for clues whether the Fed will raise rates in December.

"It seems the market is holding its breath and waiting for what the Fed has to say regarding the economy and any future interest rate hikes," said Ryan Detrick, senior market strategist for LPL Financial.

"The market could throw a little bit of a fit if they push (balance sheet reduction) back. It could hurt financials and the overall market might not like the uncertainty," he added.

Six of the 11 major S&P sectors closed higher, with the financial sector's 0.8 percent gain providing the biggest boost. The sector has risen in seven of the last eight sessions, clocking a 6 percent rise in that time.

If the Fed reduces its balance sheet, investors are betting that would lift yields for longer-term treasuries, which could boost bank profits, Detrick said.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 39.45 points, or 0.18 percent, to 22,370.8, clocking its sixth straight record close. The S&P 500 gained 2.78 points, or 0.11 percent, to 2,506.65, hitting its fifth record closing high in the last six sessions.

The Nasdaq Composite added 6.68 points, or 0.1 percent, to 6,461.32, also squeaking out a record closing high, slightly above its Sept. 13 close.

The biggest percentage gain was the telecom services sector's 2.3 percent jump on merger and acquisition speculation.

The biggest U.S. telephone operators, Verizon and AT&T, rose more than 2 percent, providing the second- and third-biggest individual stock boosts for the S&P. Shares of smaller wireless carrier T-Mobile rose 5.9 percent and Sprint jumped 6.8 percent, following a report they were in active merger talks.

The healthcare index was one of the biggest laggards, with declines in insurers such as United Health , which fell 1.8 percent due to the latest efforts in Washington to overhaul Obamacare.

Best Buy fell 8 percent after the No. 1 U.S. electronics retailer forecast fiscal 2021 adjusted earnings well below Wall Street estimates. The stock was one of the biggest drags on the consumer discretionary index.

Tesla fell 2.6 percent after Jefferies started coverage of the electric car maker's stock with an "underperform" rating.

Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a 1.09-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.04-to-1 ratio favored advancers.

About 5.8 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges. That compares with the 5.9 billion daily average for the past 20 trading days, according to Thomson Reuters data. — Reuters

3 killed, 16 hurt as charter bus barrels into NYC bus

NEW YORK — A charter bus owned by a company with safety problems record barreled through an intersection, slammed into a city bus and then plowed across a sidewalk into a building, killing three people on Monday.

The wreck, which was captured by a security camera, ripped away the facade of a fried chicken restaurant and started a small fire. The footage also showed the bus racing through the intersection without applying its brakes.

“The tour bus was flying,” Mike Ramos, a witness to the crash, told the Daily News. “There were people pinned under the front of the city bus. A lady was crying and screaming, ‘Get me out! Get me out!’”

One of the people killed was a pedestrian on the sidewalk, identified by police as Henry Wdowiak, 68, of Queens. The other dead were the charter bus driver, Raymond Mong, 49, and a passenger on the Metropolitan Transportation Authority (MTA) bus, Gregory Liljefors, 55.

Sixteen other people were hurt in the crash, which happened at 6:15 am in the Flushing neighborhood of Queens, city officials said at a briefing. The charter bus was empty of passengers at the time of the crash.

Mayor Bill de Blasio said he was shocked by the “sheer destruction.”

A building that houses a number of retail stores, including the restaurant, received substantial impact from the crash, and experts were working to make sure it was secure, the mayor said.

MTA chairman Joe Lhota said that although the investigation has just begun, the evidence indicates there was “an enormous amount of speed.”

“We want to make sure we understand what happened and prevent this from ever happening again,” he said.

Signage on the charter bus showed it was from the Dahlia Group Inc., which has its depot a few blocks from where the wreck happened.

A person answering the phone there declined to comment; there was no immediate response to an email seeking comment.

An MTA spokesman said Mong was fired from the transit authority in 2015 before he went to work for the charter company. The spokesman did not provide a reason for his dismissal.

Federal Motor Carrier Safety Administration records show that a Dahlia bus was also involved in a fatal crash in Connecticut in February 2016.

One of the company’s buses was driving through a snowstorm to reach the Mohegan Sun casino when it overturned on Interstate 95 in Madison, east of New Haven. One person died, and 36 people were injured.

The company’s drivers have been cited several times over the past 12 months for safety violations, including failing to obey a traffic control device, speeding and unlawful parking in the roadway.

Federal regulators have flagged the company on a public website of having more infractions than similarly sized companies.

A Yelp page for the company is filled with complaints from motorists complaining about Dahlia buses speeding or driving dangerously.

Liljefors’ widow, Audris Liljefors, told the New York Post her husband was a security guard on his way home from a night job.

“He was a good man. He was a good husband for 27 years. He was a good father to his two step-sons,” she said.

/kga

source: newsinfo.inquirer.net

Wall Street clings to records, helped by banks; tech falters

The S&P 500 ended slightly higher on Monday as financial stocks rose ahead of a Federal Reserve meeting, but the Nasdaq pared gains sharply as technology stocks lost ground late in the session.

Five of the 11 major S&P sectors ended lower. Rising U.S. Treasury yields boosted financial stocks, as higher interest rates tend to lift bank profits, but rate-sensitive sectors such as utilities were the weakest.

The Fed meeting, which starts Tuesday, is expected to yield details on how the central bank will unwind its $4.2 trillion portfolio of Treasuries and mortgage-backed securities, nearly a decade after the global financial crisis.

After pushing the S&P above its 2,500-point milestone last week, investors were holding their fire as they awaited more clues on the timing of the next rate hike from Fed Chair Janet Yellen.

"You just had that little momentum spurt after it went through 2,500 but it is kind of running out of steam and is going to bide its time until Wednesday, when they listen to Janet" said Ken Polcari, director of the NYSE floor division at O’Neil Securities in New York.

However, the Dow still clocked a closing record for the fifth day in a row while the S&P had a closing record for the second consecutive session.

"There's momentum in the market. There's lots of cash. Even though the Fed's about to reduce their balance sheet, you continue to have incredibly aggressive monetary policy. That continues to lead to money flowing into the market almost in an indiscriminate fashion," said Stephen Massocca, senior vice president at Wedbush Securities in San Francisco.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 63.01 points, or 0.28 percent, to 22,331.35, the S&P 500 gained 3.64 points, or 0.15 percent, to 2,503.87 and the Nasdaq Composite added 6.17 points, or 0.1 percent, to 6,454.64.

Big technology stocks such as Microsoft and Google parent Alphabet came under pressure late in the session after Amazon said it would move to charging businesses in one-second increments for use of its servers.

"That competes with Google and Microsoft, and it's going to weigh on the entire tech space" because of price competition, said Michael O'Rourke, chief market strategist at JonesTrading in Greenwich, Connecticut.

Microsoft shares ended down 0.2 percent while Alphabet was off 0.6 percent, with both stocks seeing a pickup in volume late in the day.

Advancing issues outnumbered declining ones on the NYSE by a 1.36-to-1 ratio; on Nasdaq, a 1.55-to-1 ratio favored advancers.

About 5.97 billion shares changed hands on U.S. exchanges on Monday, compared with the 5.91 billion average for the last 20 sessions. — Reuters

Formula One plays the blame game after Vettel smash

LONDON - Sebastian Vettel's temperament is under the spotlight again after the Ferrari driver's hopes of seizing back the Formula One lead disappeared in a few seconds of mayhem at the Singapore Grand Prix on Sunday.

The German, his fast-starting team mate Kimi Raikkonen and Red Bull's Max Verstappen crashed out as they raced to the first corner.

Stewards summoned all three drivers after the race but decided none was wholly or predominantly to blame.

The view was not shared by others who either pointed the finger at Verstappen, in his last race as a teenager, or accused Vettel of needless aggression at a key point in the championship.

Long before Hamilton had stretched his lead to 28 points with six races remaining, Ferrari's official Twitter feed stated that "VER (Verstappen) took #Kimi7 out and then he went to #Seb5."

"What we tweeted was a factual description of events. No need to speculate on this," it added later as reaction on social media flared.

Television footage and in-car cameras showed Raikkonen making a storming getaway from fourth on the grid and around Verstappen on the outside.

Vettel, on pole, was slower off the line and steered left to squeeze Verstappen, who kept his car straight and was pincered by the Ferraris.

The Dutch teenager and Raikkonen tangled wheels, with the Finn's car slewing sideways and into Vettel's before again careering into the Red Bull and also collecting Fernando Alonso's McLaren.

"I think initially Sebastian saw I was a little bit better off the line than him so he wanted to close me. So he drove to the left," said Verstappen.

"Maybe he didn't see Kimi on the left but what do you expect, I cannot just move out of the way... I think it was just not very clever."

Damon Hill, the 1996 world champion, was disappointed to see Vettel "pretty much blow his and Ferrari's championships into smithereens."

"Nice one Seb. You're better than that. Need to watch that short fuse," said the Briton in a blog post.

Vettel made a public apology in July after he banged into Hamilton's Mercedes in a moment of 'road rage' at the Azerbaijan Grand Prix while both were following the safety car.

Former Williams, McLaren and Red Bull racer David Coulthard told Britain's Channel 4 viewers that the crash was "instigated by Seb."

Retired Australian driver turned pundit Mark Webber, who had a few clashes with Vettel as Red Bull team mates, defended Verstappen.

"If you were pushed for someone to blame then it looks like Seb because he's the one doing the biggest movement," he said in the Times newspaper.

"But in the end he wasn't the one who crashed into Max. It was Kimi who crashed into Max. Max was innocent in this."

Retired triple world champion Niki Lauda, now the Mercedes team's non-executive chairman, said it was an incident Vettel could have avoided.

"If he (Vettel) would not have moved (across) he could have won the race, there's no question about it. They were unlucky really, in a big way," said the Austrian. — Reuters

Rolling Stone, iconic music magazine, looks for buyer

Rolling Stone, the iconic 50-year-old magazine of music and counterculture, is putting itself up for sale amid an increasingly uncertain outlook, its founder said.


Jann Wenner — who started Rolling Stone in 1967 as a hippie student in Berkeley, California and now runs it with his son Gus — told The New York Times that the future looked tough for a family-run publisher.

“There’s a level of ambition that we can’t achieve alone,” Gus Wenner told the newspaper in an interview published late Sunday.

“So we are being proactive and want to get ahead of the curve,” he said.

One of the most influential magazines covering rock music, Rolling Stone has also been a home for experimental writers such as the gonzo journalist Hunter S. Thompson.

But the magazine’s reputation — and finances — were badly damaged when it retracted a 2014 story about an alleged gang rape at the University of Virginia, with a review finding that Rolling Stone did not undertake basic journalistic procedures to verify the facts.

Rolling Stone last year sold a 49 percent stake to a Singaporean music and technology start-up, BandLab Technologies, which is headed by Kuok Meng Ru, the scion of one of Asia’s richest families.

It was not immediately known if Kuok would want to take a controling stake in Rolling Stone.

The Wenner family earlier this year sold its other two titles — celebrity magazine US Weekly and lifestyle monthly Men’s Journal — to American Media, Inc., a publisher of supermarket tabloids including The National Enquirer.

If American Media, Inc., were interested in Rolling Stone, it would mark a sharp change in owners’ ideologies.

The tabloid empire is led by David Pecker, an ardent ally of President Donald Trump, while Rolling Stone tilts strongly to the left and has featured lengthy interviews with Democratic presidents Barack Obama and Bill Clinton.

Jann Wenner, 71, who is also a key force behind the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, said that he hoped to keep an editorial role at Rolling Stone but that the decision would be up to its new owner.

source: entertainment.inquirer.net

Facebook hires AI expert, launches lab in Canada's Montreal

TORONTO - Facebook Inc has hired artificial intelligence academic Joelle Pineau to head its new research lab in Montreal, the Silicon Valley social media company said on Friday.

Once the exclusive domain of academic researchers, artificial intelligence has grabbed the attention of the corporate world as businesses from healthcare to financial services look to use algorithms to sort through reams of data in search of patterns to solve problems.

The lab will be Facebook's fourth, after sites in Palo Alto, New York, and Paris, and joins similar AI research efforts in the city from Microsoft Corp and Alphabet's Google.

The company will also invest $7 million to support AI research at academic institutions in Montreal, the Canadian Institute for Advanced Research said in a statement.

Pineau is a co-director of McGill University's Reasoning and Learning Lab whose work focuses on developing and applying models and algorithms applying robotics to healthcare, transportation and language processing.

One project she has been working on at McGill, where she will maintain her academic position, is a robotic wheelchair.

Pineau will be joined by fellow researchers Pascal Vincent, Michael Rabbat and Nicolas Ballat, and Facebook expects the team to grow to around 30 researchers.

Facebook already uses AI for image recognition, language analysis and targeted advertising. It also uses AI to identify and remove what the company deems "inappropriate content."

The Facebook project will be connected to McGill University's Centre for Intelligent Machines and to the Montreal Institute for Learning Algorithms, started by University of Montreal professor and machine learning pioneer Yoshua Bengio, two sources with knowledge of the plans said.

Combined, University of Montreal and McGill have more than 200 researchers, including students, working on AI research projects, Bengio said. That is up from around 150 cited by Google last year, which it called the greatest academic concentration of AI research in the world.

The mostly French-speaking province of Quebec boasts around 90 start-up companies focused on artificial intelligence.

The Canadian federal government has pledged C$125 million to build AI expertise in Montreal, the Toronto-Waterloo corridor, and Edmonton, while the provincial Quebec government has also promised some C$100 million ($82 million) specifically for AI research. — Reuters

One Direction's Horan brings soft touch with new album

NEW YORK, United States - One Direction's Niall Horan on Friday released a soft breakup ballad with echoes of the heartthrob boy band as he announced his debut solo album.

Horan announced on social media that his album  "Flicker" will come out on October 20 followed by a tour in 2018 of the United States and Canada.

The 24-year-old Irish singer marked the announcement by releasing a track off the album entitled "Too Much to Ask," a piano-led ballad in which Horan, his voice turning soulful, mourns the end of a relationship.

The song is produced by Greg Kurstin, the increasingly in-demand musician best known for co-writing Adele's smash hit "Hello."

Kurstin also worked with Horan on the first track off "Flicker," the acoustic guitar ballad "This Town."

Horan's soft touch is more consistent with One Direction than the solo music of his two most successful bandmates.

Zayn Malik cast away One Direction's squeaky-clean image to go for a sensual, urban vibe, while Harry Styles surprised critics with an album that sounded influenced by 1970s David Bowie.

One Direction, formed when the five young men auditioned for the British reality show "The X Factor," turned into one of the best-selling bands of the decade, packing arenas worldwide with screaming teenage girls.

The band went on an indefinite hiatus after an album at the end of 2015 while stopping short of calling it quits. — Agence France-Presse

source: gmanetwork.com

Fighting is family affair for Golovkin

Gennady Golovkin has travelled the globe winning boxing matches in 22 cities and seven different countries to earn his Las Vegas debut on Saturday.

The 35-year-old Golovkin has waited years for the arrival of this career-defining superfight against Mexico’s biggest star Canelo Alvarez.

It is also the three-belt champion’s first fight in Las Vegas and it fittingly comes against the toughest opponent he has ever faced in a career which has been defined by a steady jab and explosive knockout power.

“The biggest day is coming,” Golovkin said. “This is my game. My fight, I am the boss. I am the champion.”

That was a mouthful from Golovkin. All week long during the build up to Saturday’s fight at the T-Mobile Arena for middleweight supremacy, the reserved Golovkin has said he prefers doing his talking in the ring.

When reporters asked him on Wednesday about the birth of his second child, which happened last Friday, he said, “Please don’t ask me about my family. I am just focused on boxing.”

His boxing career started in his native Kazakhstan. Growing up in a family of four boys, if he wasn’t scrapping with his brothers at home he was fighting much older and bigger kids in the streets.

He had his first professional fight in 2006 at age 24 after a superb amateur career which included a silver medal at the 2004 Athens Olympics. His fought in Germany and Denmark before joining forces with trainer Abel Sanchez who taught him how to maximize his strengths.

Sanchez and Golovkin teamed up for fights in Panama, Kazakhstan, Germany and Ukraine before Golovkin made his US debut in 2012.

Golovkin’s twin brother, Max, said Gennady is a very private person.

“Nobody knows about it because camp is always closed,” Max Golovkin said. “No one knows how dedicated and focused and concentrated he is.”

Max knows Gennady better than anyone. They had an older brother, Vadim, who helped introduce them to the sport and another brother, Sergey, who took time to work with them as well.

Two brothers died

Tragically both brothers were killed in separate incidents during Russian government service.

The funeral for Vadim, who died first, was held with an empty casket. The family is still trying to find out the details of what happened.

Gennady named his first child, a boy, Vadim.

Max is also on Gennady’s mind when he fights. The family didn’t have much money so when Gennady turned 18 he was the one they picked to pursue a boxing career.

“They chose Gennady should continue his career,” Max said.

When you consider Gennady’s difficult journey to the pinnacle of his profession it is easy to see why he insists on taking nothing for granted.

They say styles make fights and this one has the ingredients to be the start of a special rivalry.

Alvarez insisted on a rematch clause for the fight which some are hoping is the beginning of boxing’s newest trilogy series like Manny Pacquiao-Juan Manuel Marquez, Erik Morales and Marco Antonio Barrera and Micky Ward and Arturo Gatti.

Golovkin says he’s willing to take on all comers and can’t wait to get into the ring with Canelo, comparing the excitement to being with a new lover.

“It is like you are going with your new girlfriend. Oh yeah,” he said.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Fergie and Josh Duhamel separate after 8 years of marriage

NEW YORK— The eight-year marriage of Fergie and Josh Duhamel is over.

The singer and actor confirmed Thursday that they had decided to split up earlier this year, but kept the news quiet to give their family “the best opportunity to adjust.”

Fergie and Duhamel have a son, Axl, who was born in 2013. They said in a statement that they would always be united in their support of each other and their family.

Fergie is a member of the Black Eyed Peas. She released her solo debut, “The Dutchess,” in 2006, and is releasing “Double Dutchess” later this month.

Duhamel has appeared on TV shows including ABC’s “All My Children” and in films such as “Transformers.”

The breakup news was first reported by People magazine.

source: entertainment.inquirer.net

iPhone X speculations mostly got it right

Apple finally lifted the veil from their new devices on September 12, namely the iPhone X, iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus.

In the months leading up to this announcement, numerous speculations were reported and it appears that a lot of these were spot on.

What previous reports got right

Earlier reports stated that there were three devices to expect, but the naming convention was still up in the air until much recently. More recent reports prior to Apple’s announcement suggested that the flagship device would be called iPhone X as a reference to the iPhone’s tenth anniversary, while the successors to the iPhone 7 line would be called the iPhone 8.

Speculations regarding the iPhone X’s full face display design turned out to be correct. Previous reports cited information leaks from Foxconn insiders, appropriated CAD designs, and even data mined from a non-release version of the iOS 11.



Gone is the home button, replaced by iOS 11 gestures to let the 5.8-inch retina display have all of the front face. The glass back, which was earlier reported for the then assumed iPhone 7s, turns out to be a shared feature between the iPhone X and the iPhone 8.

Wireless charging for the iPhone X was also speculated and it turns out to be right on the money.

A facial recognition security system was discovered in the unreleased version of iOS 11 which turned out to be true, in the form of a new artificial intelligence-powered Face ID feature.

A new AI-dedicated chip in the iPhone X allows machine learning tasks to be done on the device and this also helps in recognizing the owner’s facial features. Being AI-powered adds protection from spoofing the biometric system with photos or masks.

Speaking of chips, information dug up from the iOS 11 Golden Master (GM) build, leaked a day before Apple’s big event suggested a 6-core A11 processor. Two of the cores were said to be high-powered while the remaining four were for efficiency. This turned out to be accurate. The A11 Bionic central processing unit of the iPhone X has all six cores, and then some.

Integrated within the A11 is a dual-core chip called the A11 Bionic neural engine which powers all AI-related tasks. Other than Face ID, it’s also used in part by the new camera system, the Animoji feature, augmented reality and gaming.

As for gaming, it gets a three-core chip of its own which is also integrated into the A11 Bionic. It’s said to be 30 percent more powerful than previous graphics chips by Apple.

In total, the A11 Bionic processor has eleven cores inside, each designed to handle a different task that should allow for a smooth user experience.

With a starting price tag of $999 (roughly P50,800), fluid performance can be expected from this new high-end iPhone. The 64 gigabyte and 256 gigabyte models will be available on the market.

Cameras

The Face ID facial recognition feature relies on the front facing 7-megapixel TrueDepth front camera. This front cam comes with wide color capture, auto image stabilization and precise exposure control.

When using Face ID, 30,000 invisible IR dots are projected to form a pattern which will be initially captured then sent to a neural network to create a mathematical model of the user’s face. This information is sent to a secure database and then back to the device so that future verifications can be done by the onboard AI. Allowing the computations to be done locally also helps protect the user’s privacy.

In the back is a dual 12-megapixel camera system which has a wide-angle and a telephoto lens to create HDR photos. This is then coupled with a quad LED True Tone Flash to provide illumination. The Slow Sync feature in this flash allows users to get more even lighting in their photos.

Furthermore, the Face ID system learns about the user’s face and adjusts accordingly. Even when wearing heavy makeup, the system should recognize the user’s basic facial structure.

Not included and new feature

There were some speculations regarding a rear fingerprint sensor, but it appears Apple has done away with it.

Little social feature was added in the form of Animoji. Using the A11 processor and TrueDepth front camera, users can create animated emojis that mirror their own facial expressions.

The iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus

While the iPhone X stands as Apple’s new flagship device, the iPhone 8 and iPhone 8 Plus can be seen as the true successors to the iPhone 7 series. They retain a similar design philosophy to the iPhone 7 while sporting some of the internal features found on the iPhone X such as the A11 Bionic processor, cameras, wireless charging and retina display.

The iPhone 8 will start with a price tag of $699 (over P35,000) with 64 gigabyte and 256 gigabyte variants. JB

source: technology.inquirer.net

Samsung Electronics Galaxy Note 8 pre-orders highest among Note series

SEOUL — Pre-orders for Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd.’s latest premium smartphone Galaxy Note 8 are the highest among the Note series, the tech giant’s mobile chief said on Tuesday.

Samsung is betting on the Note 8 to keep its market dominance as it competes with rival Apple Inc.’s latest iPhones due to be unveiled later on Tuesday.

The Galaxy Note 8 goes on sale on Friday in the United States, South Korea and other countries.

Samsung, the world’s largest smartphone maker by market share, has received positive feedback on the Note 8 following pre-orders from about 40 countries, said DJ Koh, President of Samsung Electronics’ Mobile Communications Business.

“Since the August 23 New York unpack, many buyers and partners said the initial response is very encouraging,” Koh said at a media event.

Priced at $930 to $960 by US network carriers, including a dialing and data plan, the Note 8 will kick off a new era of premium-priced handsets, which analysts expect to be joined by $1,000-plus iPhones next month.

Apple will hold a “10th anniversary” event later on Tuesday, when it is expected to unveil a special edition iPhone with an edge-to-edge screen and augmented reality that will battle with the Note 8 for pre-holiday sales. — Reuters

Dollar clings to most of its gains as risk sentiment improves

TOKYO — The dollar held on to most of its gains on Tuesday, following a sharp rebound on improving investor risk sentiment as worries over North Korea and Hurricane Irma receded.

The dollar index, which tracks the greenback against a basket of six major rivals, was steady at 91.874, after it skidded to a 2-1/2-year low of 91.011 on Friday.

The euro was little changed at $1.1955 after shedding 0.7 percent overnight. The common currency reached $1.2092 on Friday, its highest since January 2015, as the dollar suffered a broad retreat.

Higher US Treasury yields also bolstered the dollar, as the benchmark US 10-year note yield rose to 2.135 percent from its close of 2.125 percent on Monday, and 2.061 percent on Friday.

"Some people said the dollar's fall and recovery was not strange, since US yields got so low," said Masashi Murata, currency strategist for Brown Brothers Harriman in Tokyo.

"But the market is still sensitive to risk-off news, maybe from North Korea, or from disappointing US economic data," he said. "So that's why the dollar is still struggling to find its way."

The dollar was steady at ¥109.39 after rallying 1.4 percent on Monday, its biggest one-day surge since mid-January.

It had slumped to a 10-month low of ¥107.320 on Friday, when Hurricane Irma threatened Florida and as financial markets braced for the possibility of another missile or nuclear test to mark North Korea's founding day on Sept. 9. The yen tends to benefit during times of economic and political uncertainty due to Japan's net creditor nation status.

But Pyongyang's anniversary passed without further tests, and Irma lost strength and was downgraded to a tropical storm after battering Florida over the weekend.

"Receding fear over Hurricane Irma and North Korea was a key factor behind the dollar's bounce. Market focus is likely to return to fundamentals, although there aren't many major events scheduled this week that could decide the direction for currencies," said Shin Kadota, senior strategist at Barclays in Tokyo.

Major US allies in Asia welcomed on Tuesday the UN Security Council's unanimous vote to step up sanctions on North Korea, with its profitable textile exports now banned and fuel supplies to the reclusive North capped after its sixth nuclear test.

The Swiss franc, often sought in times of global risk aversion along with the yen, was flat at 0.9560 per dollar. The franc had rallied to a two-year high of 0.9421 on Friday.

The pound edged up 0.1 percent to $1.3175 after losing 0.25 percent on Monday.

Sterling fared better against the euro, brushing a fresh one-month high of 90.83 pence, aided by speculation that the Bank of England may sound more hawkish on interest rates in defense of the currency at its policy meeting on Thursday.

The Australian dollar was 0.2 percent lower at $0.8015, extending its retreat from a two-year peak of $0.8125 scaled on Friday.

The Chinese yuan pulled further away from Friday's 21-month high against the dollar of 6.5432, after China's central bank on Monday lifted measures put in place to support the yuan when it came under selling pressure. — Reuters