A Chicago patrol officer fatally shot a 39-year-old manyesterday after he allegedly lunged at him with a 9-inch knife in aNear Northwest Side restaurant.
Jozef Golas, a Polish immigrant whose address was unknown, diedin Cook County Hospital two hours after the shooting.
Police said Golas accosted Officers …
BOSTON - Mike Lowell drove in five runs to lead Boston's revived hitting attack and the Red Sox cut their magic number to clinch the AL East title to two with an 11-6 win over the Oakland Athletics on Wednesday.
Lowell had three of Boston's 17 hits and took over the team lead with a career-high 116 RBIs, two more than David Ortiz. He also set a club record for most RBIs by a third baseman, passing Butch Hobson's total of 112 in 1977, and raised his batting average to a career-best .326.
The Red Sox increased their lead to 3 1/2 games over the New York Yankees, who played later Wednesday at Tampa Bay. Boston, seeking its first division title since 1995, won for the fourth …
Zurich Financial Services Group said Thursday it completed a $1.9 billion takeover of two car insurance units that belonged to American International Group Inc.
Zurich said it immediately sold most of the units _ 21st Century Insurance and Agency Auto _ to U.S.-based …
The agent industry is dominated by white agents, even though 70percent of NFL players are black. But black agents have been makinginroads, according to Mark Levin, assistant director of research forthe NFLPA.
Levin points to the successes of agents Lamont Smith, EugeneParker, David Ware, Brig Owens and Harold "Doc" Daniels as signs ofchange.
Some black agents who have come to prominence started out as"runners" or recruiters for white agents.
Some white agents feel black agents use their race to theiradvantage when recruiting players.
"Black agents are putting tremendous pressure on black kids notto go with white agents," one white agent …
MUMBAI, India (AP) — The "Little Master" missed making cricket history by one swing of the bat.
Sachin Tendulkar, one of the greatest cricket batsmen of all time, fell just short of becoming the first player to score 100 centuries — amassing at least 100 runs on 100 different occasions.
Needing only six more runs to reach the milestone, the Indian great tipped the ball back to an opposing player and was "caught out" Friday, leaving him with 94 runs in the five-day test match against the West Indies.
A 6, which is akin to a home run in baseball but is worth six runs, would have given Tendulkar his historic total. But instead of celebrating, the home crowd was reduced to a …
The only real fireworks between Texas and Seattle this time were the pyrotechnic displays after back-to-back home runs by Josh Hamilton and Milton Bradley, and then the 10th-inning game-winning shot by Ramon Vazquez as the Rangers rallied for a 13-12 victory Monday night.
Only four nights after Mariners first baseman Richie Sexson charged the mound and flung his helmet at Texas pitcher Kason Gabbard to ignite a bench-clearing brawl, the AL West rivals met again. Sexson was with his team, but not playing while serving the third game of his five-game suspension for his actions. He'll miss the entire Texas series.
Vazquez's homer came on a 1-0 pitch with one out …
Karen Stupples began the final round of the Women's British Openin Sunningdale, England, with an eagle and a double eagle. It was thekind of start Annika Sorenstam needed.
Stupples won her first major title with a record-tying score of 19-under-par 269, while defending champion Sorenstam's bid to become thesecond woman to win all four majors back-to-back ended in a tie for13th.
This time, the victory went to a homegrown talent who has beenplaying on the LPGA Tour for six years and won her first title in theopening tournament of the season. Now she has a major to go with it.
"It's quite mind-blowing," Stupples said after finishing fivestrokes ahead of Rachel …
GREAT FOR YOUR HEART-AND YOUR WAISTLINE
easy and healthful recipes
Dietary fiber is well-known for its effects on heart health. A diet rich in fiber helps reduce blood levels of low-density lipoprotein (LDL), or "bad" cholesterol, without reducing levels of high-density lipoprotein (HDL), or "good" cholesterol.
Soluble fiber may also help regulate blood sugar in people with diabetes; and it aids in weight loss, both because it is filling and because it helps reduce the number of calories that your body absorbs after a meal.
In fact, the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) has found that women who raise their fiber intake from 12 grams per day to 24 …
In a state known for bustling, exciting tourist destinations such as Waikiki and the Kilauea volcano, Kalaupapa is sacred ground with a history of disease, suffering and isolation.
Some 8,000 people have died on this remote peninsula since the Hawaiian Kingdom started exiling leprosy patients here in 1866. Many were torn from their families and left to scrounge for shelter, clothes and food. The vast majority were buried in unmarked graves.
Today, visitor interest in Kalaupapa, on the northern edge of Molokai island, is growing. And it will likely increase when the Vatican proclaims Father Damien _ the 19th century priest who cared for the leprosy patients …
ESSEX: Text messages warning commuters of delayed Essex trainshave been sidelined.
The move has annoyed Essex Rail Commuters Federation chief MarkLeslie, who used the free National Express service which has nowbeen replaced by e-mail alerts.
National Express said this week that cost was not the main reasonfor stopping the service.
SpokesmanPeter Meades said: "Text is much more restricted than e-mail and the two systems were not compatible, so we decided one overthe …
CHICAGO - When it comes to Abraham Lincoln, apparently there's no such thing as enough. After countless books about his boyhood, his presidency, the hunt for his killer and yes, even his feet, maybe it was time for a new book devoted to what happened to Lincoln's body after he was done using it.
As its title implies, "Stealing Lincoln's Body" by Thomas J. Craughwell (The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press) is devoted to Lincoln after, as Craughwell writes in the first sentence, "the last tremor of life" left his body.
Craughwell details a little-known plot to steal the 16th president's remains from his tomb in Springfield, Ill., in 1876 - 11 years after he was …
| W L OT Pts GF GA |
| y-New Jersey 50 27 4 104 241 207 |
| x-Philadelphia 43 26 11 97 258 232 |
| x-Pittsburgh 44 28 9 97 261 238 |
| x-N.Y. Rangers 42 30 9 93 206 215 |
| N.Y. Islanders 26 45 9 61 197 270 |
| Northeast Division |
| W L OT Pts GF GA |
| z-Boston 52 18 10 114 267 188 |
| x-Montreal 41 29 11 93 248 244 |
| Buffalo 40 32 9 … |
ROCHESTER, N.H. (AP) — Presidential candidate Mitt Romney on Sunday defended his time in private business and insisted he understands the country's tough economic times because he once feared losing his job.
"I know what it's like to worry about whether you're going to get fired," the former Massachusetts governor told a crowd gathered at the historic Rochester Opera House. "There were a couple of times when I was worried I was going to get pink-slipped."
Romney did not provide any details or concrete examples of when he feared he would be laid off or fired. His aides refused repeated requests for additional information.
Romney, who grew up in Michigan while his father served as the state's governor, became a multimillionaire when he was CEO of Bain Capital, a venture capital firm.
A spokeswoman said Romney feared losing his job "as a young person just out of college."
Before running Bain Capital, Romney attended Brigham Young University and Harvard, where he studied for law and business degrees. After graduating with honors, Romney was hired as a consultant by Boston Consulting Group. He then went to work at Bain & Co., the consulting firm that eventually spun off Bain Capital.
Former House Speaker Newt Gingrich attacked Romney this weekend for making those millions while laying off workers.
Gingrich referred to Romney's job at Bain as "a Wall Street model where you can flip companies, you can go in and have leveraged buyouts, you can basically take out all the money, leaving behind the workers."
Democrats have also repeatedly attacked Romney's tenure at Bain.
At the rally Sunday, Romney told the crowd that Bain created more jobs in the long run.
He said he once stocked shelves at Staples, the successful office supply company.
"I'm not perfect, but I do get it, and I will use what I know to get America working," Romney said.
Former President Bill Clinton's taste in "takeout" food sure hasimproved since the 1990s, when he was practically the poster boy forBig Macs! En route out of town Tuesday, our former commander-in-chief had the Secret Service run by the super-pricey Il Mulino NewYork restaurant and pick up quite the feast for the flight home.
The ex-prez (and some lucky traveling companions) dined on classicBranzino, spaghettini Bolognese, papardelle with sausage andClinton's favorite -- Il Mulino's cheesecake.
YUMMY PROFITS: While on the subject of food, we should note thelocal restaurants making the most dough last year. According toindustry "bible," Restaurants and Institutions magazine, the city'stop five included Gibsons at No. 8 nationwide, grossing more than $19million in 2005, followed by Joe's Stone Crab (No. 30, $13.8million), Hugo's Frog Bar (No. 34, $13.5 million), Shaw's Crab House(No. 46, $12.3 million) and Harry Caray's (No. 61, $11.3 million).
The highest-ranking restaurant in Illinois was Bob Chinn's inWheeling, coming in at No. 7 and a whopping $19.7 million.
BRITNEY TV? I pray this isn't true, but Us Weekly reports BritneySpears' recent gig on "Will & Grace" led to a meeting between theparenting-challenged pop tart and Sean Hayes -- supposedly to discussideas for a proposed ensemble sitcom about teachers, possibly called"Detention."
No comment from spokesfolks for either Hayes or Spears.
NEVER TOO LATE: Nice to know 65-years-young Martin Sheen is goingfrom being president to becoming a college student -- for the firsttime. The departing President Bartlet on "The West Wing" plans tostudy literature, philosophy and possibly oceanography at theNational University of Ireland in Galway.
HOTEL HAPPENINGS: The Chicago Hilton & Towers has long been afavorite Chicago filming site. Recently cameras have rolled at theHilton for the "Prison Break" series and the ABC pilot "Enemies." Thenext movie likely to capture the Hilton on film will be John Cusack's"Grace Is Gone" feature, also starring Dianne Wiest and Casey Affleckand directed by James Strouse, who wrote the screenplay for "LonesomeJim," Affleck's current film.
"Grace Is Gone" is about a father (Cusack) with two youngdaughters who receives the devastating news his wife was killed inIraq. Before bringing himself to tell his children, he takes them ontheir dream vacation -- a cross-country trip to the fictitious DisneyWorld-esque "Enchanted Gardens" theme park in Florida.
- To toast the upcoming Empire Room tribute to Stanley Paul, thePalmer House Hilton has dedicated a big window display near itsMonroe Street entrance to Chicago's popular orchestra leader. Paul isthe recipient of the upcoming Essee and Irv Kupcinet Award, beingpresented May 4 by the Chicago Academy for the Arts.
FLYBY BIT: At the New York premiere party for "Three Penny Opera,"Cyndi Lauper clarified a widely reported tale to my Big Applecorrespondent Baird Jones.
A bird flying overhead at a Lauper concert last year supposedlymade an unwelcome "deposit" in the singer's mouth -- just as shethrew back her head to belt out a tune.
According to Lauper, the birdie did hit her lower lip, "but Icould not taste it. I just wiped it off and went on with myperformance. I actually considered it a good-luck sign." Whatever yousay, Cyndi!
e-mail: bzwecker@suntimes.com
World stock markets rallied strongly Friday on the first trading day of 2009 as New Year's optimism more than offset grim economic news from around the globe.
The FTSE 100 index of leading British shares closed up 127.62 points, or 2.9 percent, at 4,561.79, while Germany's DAX was 162.87, or 3.4 percent, higher at 4,973.07. France's CAC-40 rose 131.72 points, or 4.1 percent, to 3,349.69.
The perky New Year's tone followed through into the U.S. where the Dow Jones industrial average was up 145.76 points, or 1.7 percent, at 8,922.15 while the broader Standard & Poor's 500 index rose 14.40 points, or 1.6 percent, to 917.65.
"It is customary to greet the New Year with a surge of optimism. Past cares are buried as eyes are raised to more distant horizons," said Stephen Lewis, an analyst at Monument Securities.
Trading across the world was light though as many investors will not return to the markets until Monday. Modest trading volumes can exaggerate moves up or down.
Investors will be looking to Monday's session, when volumes are expected to be nearer normal, as a better barometer of market sentiment.
Friday's gains on Wall Street came despite further dismal U.S. manufacturing data. The Institute for Supply Management, a trade group of purchasing executives, said its manufacturing index fell to a 28-year low of 32.4 in December from 36.2 in November. Any reading below 50 indicates contraction and the bigger the difference from 50 the greater the contraction.
As well as the grim ISM reading, investors had other bad economic news to digest.
In Asia, Singapore said Friday its economy shrank by an annualized rate of 12.5 percent in the fourth quarter of 2008, while China's manufacturing sector, which accounts for 43 percent of the economy, contracted for a fifth straight month in December.
And in Europe, manufacturing activity contracted for the seventh month running in December for the countries using the euro, falling at its sharpest rate for at least 11 years, according to the monthly purchasing managers index for the euro-zone.
In Britain, house prices fell in 2008 at their fastest rate for at least 25 years, the country's biggest mortgage lender HBOS said. Elsewhere, the Chartered Institute of Purchasing and Supply reported that Britain's manufacturing sector, which accounts for around 15 percent of the total economy, suffered its second worst month since 1992 in December.
"It is unfortunate that today's headlines serve as a depressing reminder of the synchronous downturn under way in the global economy," said Neil Mellor, an analyst at Bank of New York Mellon.
After one of the worst years ever for global equities, many expect volatility to remain the name of the game for some time to come, especially as the first part of the new year will likely be dominated by mounting economic gloom and massive job losses.
Stock markets have historically started to recover around 6 months to 9 months before the economic activity data turns for the better. Many stock market observers think the markets should be pushing higher, rather than falling or trading largely flat, possibly by the middle of the year.
Earlier, Hong Kong's Hang Seng Index led the Asian markets that were open higher, vaulting 655.33 points, or 4.6 percent, to 15,042.81. More than half of Asian's markets, including Japan's Nikkei, remained closed.
Elsewhere in Asia, South Korea's Kospi added 2.9 percent to 1,157.40, Singapore's benchmark rose 3.9 percent, and Mumbai's Sensex traded 0.6 percent higher. Australia was modestly lower.
Oil prices rose further Friday, in conjunction with stock markets, with light, sweet crude for February delivery up $1.40 at $46. The contract rocketed on New Year's Eve to settle $5.57 higher at $44.60.
The dollar strengthened 0.2 percent to 90.95 yen while the euro was 0.4 percent lower at $1.3931.
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AP Business Writer Jeremiah Marquez in Hong Kong contributed to this report.
Documentary footage taken in the square shows them arm in arm,happy, surrounded by cheering students. Knowing their time togethermight be short, they enter a tent that is erected on the spot. "Ihad never been with a woman," Li Lu remembers. "We had just begunto undress, but never got a chance to perform our duty." They wereinterrupted by growing tension in the square. Before long the troopsbegan to move, and the lovers were separated. "I never saw heragain," Li Lu says.
Now a graduate with three degrees from Columbia University, hetells this story during an interview in New York with Michael Apted,director of "Moving the Mountain." Li Lu is one of several leaderswho tell their stories in the film; some are in New York, some arescattered overseas (Paris, Hong Kong) and one is still in hiding inBeijing.
The larger story of Tiananmen Square has been told many times,symbolized by a remarkable live shot of a single student facing downthe approach of a tank. What this film documents are some of thesmaller stories that went into it. Apted talks to several of the keyleaders, who still express disbelief that the People's Army wouldfire on Chinese citizens, and who blame themselves (sometimes withtears) for not being "adequate" to protect the lives of theirfollowers.
No one knows for sure how many people were killed in theTiananmen massacre. "When they said (on government broadcasts) thetroops had not fired, that is how we knew they had fired," says oneof the leaders of the movement for Chinese democracy. "When theysaid no one had been killed, that is how we knew many people had beenkilled - not one or two, but many, because otherwise they would nothave mentioned it."
Apted is a remarkable figure among directors for his lifelongpractice of moving between fiction films and documentaries. Hisfeatures include "Coal Miner's Daughter," "Gorillas in the Mist,""Blink" and the recent "Nell." At the same time, he has continuedthe "7-Up" films, a series tracking the lives of the same group ofpeople every seven years. His other documentaries are on subjectssuch as a shooting at the Oglala Indian reservation, the RollingStones and Sting.
In "Moving the Mountain," where original video source materialis thin, he augments the narration of Li Lu and the others withfictional flashbacks to their memories. In the case of Li Lu, whathe shows is a life typical of those who grew up during theneo-puritanical time of the Cultural Revolution.
Li Lu was taken from his parents while still a baby because hisfather, a Russian-trained engineer, and his mother, the daughter oflandowners, were deemed in need of ideological correction at workcamps. He was reared by a series of foster parents, none of whomwanted him, and then in an orphanage where he was mocked because ofhis class.
He remembers clearly the turning point: While standing in acorner for punishment, he looks down to see a lizard creeping acrosshis bare foot. He believes that when this happens, the foot willsoon fall off. When he still has his foot the next morning, hebelieves he can survive anything, and indeed he does survive, growingup to read everything he can get his hands on, and finally travelingby train to Beijing to take part in the demonstrations and hungerstrikes that led to the showdown at Tiananmen.
"Moving the Mountain" is not as gripping as it perhaps couldhave been, because Apted does not have access to footage from thesquare he no doubt would have liked to include (such footage probablyhas not survived). What he does have is extraordinary, however, andat a time when China's human rights policies are again in the air,and the annexation of Hong Kong grows closer, "Moving the Mountain"is an extraordinary glimpse behind the scenes of a country lurchingwith difficulty toward democracy.
Guest lineup for the Sunday TV news shows:
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ABC's "This Week" — Sen.-elect Rand Paul, R-Ky.; Rep. Mike Pence, R-Ind.
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CBS' "Face the Nation" — Sen. Mitch McConnell, R-Ky.; Rep. James Clyburn, D-S.C.
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NBC's "Meet the Press" — Sen. Jim DeMint, R-S.C., and Gov. Chris Christie, R-N.J.
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CNN's "State of the Union" — Gov. Rick Perry, R-Texas; Gov. Tim Pawlenty, R-Minn.; Sen.-elect Pat Toomey, R-Pa.; Rep. Chris Van Hollen, D-Md.
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"Fox News Sunday" — GOP Reps. Eric Cantor of Virginia, Paul Ryan of Wisconsin and Darrell Issa of California.
A subsidiary of Warren Buffett's company said Monday that it's buying a liquor distributor that serves Georgia and North Carolina.
Terms of the McLane Co.'s acquisition of Kahn Ventures Inc. and Empire Distributors weren't disclosed in the statement announcing the deal.
Buffett, who is chairman and CEO of McLane's Omaha-based parent company Berkshire Hathaway Inc., says he's excited about the Empire deal because of the opportunities Berkshire, McLane and Empire envision in the beverage industry.
"We expect that the Empire acquisition will provide us with a solid platform for potentially acquiring other similar high quality wholesale distributors," Buffett said in a statement.
Neither Buffett nor a McLane spokesman responded immediately to messages left Monday.
In keeping with Berkshire's practice, no changes are planned at Empire. The news release said the Atlanta-based distributor will continue operating just as it has for 70 years.
Empire has eight facilities equipped with high-tech equipment, including bottle scanning and GPS routing, to help them operate efficiently.
Berkshire said with the acquisition Empire will gain access to more resources and operational best practices.
McLane is one of Berkshire's roughly 80 subsidiaries. It is based in Temple, Texas, and distributes groceries, tobacco and other items to convenience stores, drug stores, wholesale clubs and other retailers. Berkshire bought McLane from Wal-Mart in 2003.
Berkshire owns clothing, furniture, jewelry and corporate jet firms, but its insurance and utility businesses accounted for more than one-third of the company's revenue last year. It also has major investments in such companies as Coca-Cola Co. and Wells Fargo & Co.
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On the Net:
Berkshire Hathaway Inc.: http://www.berkshirehathaway.com
Empire Distributors: http://www.empiredist.com
Venezuelan consumer prices rose 1.7 percent in April, surging ahead despite government efforts to tame inflation in the oil-rich country.
Consumer prices increased by 8.9 percent in the first four months of 2008, Central Bank figures released Tuesday show. If that pace continues, Venezuela would end the year with 26 percent annual inflation, well exceeding the government's 20 percent target.
Annual inflation reached 29.1 percent in metropolitan Caracas in March, according to the Central Bank _ the highest rate in Latin America. The bank, which adopted a new method for measuring inflation in cities across the country this year, has not yet released annual inflation figures for April.
President Hugo Chavez, a socialist, is pumping the country's oil income into massive public spending programs that last year helped to fuel 8.4 percent growth. He last week signed a decree to raise the minimum wage by 30 percent to US$372 (euro240) a month.
Planning Minister Haiman El Troudi said the nation is on the tail-end of a late-2007 inflationary spike and he predicted the rate would slow.
Chavez's government has imposed price controls on many basic foods since 2003, and on April 28 issued US$4 billion (euro2.6 billion) in bonds in a bid to soak up excess cash, strengthen the currency and stem inflation.
WASHINGTON (AP) — Former Federal Communications Commission Chairman Michael Powell will take the helm of the cable industry's top trade group.
The National Cable & Telecommunications Association said Tuesday that Powell will become its new president and chief executive, effective April 25.
Powell was nominated as a member of the FCC by President Bill Clinton and sworn in in November 1997. He was named chairman by President George W. Bush in January 2001 and served in that role until April 2005.
Powell is currently a senior adviser with investment firm Providence Equity Partners and honorary co-chair of Broadband for America, an industry group that lobbies on telecom issues and counts cable giant Comcast Corp. as a member.
He replaces outgoing NCTA president Kyle McSlarrow, who is joining Comcast/NBC Universal as head of the company's Washington operations.
President Barack Obama says there's no "simple formula" for deciding when sensitive information should be disclosed. But he's vowing both to safeguard the information that's necessary to protect the American people, and to assure "accountability and oversight" of government actions.
In his security speech Thursday, Obama said past presidents may have overused the privilege allowing them to keep secret sensitive national security information.
He's vowing to apply a "stricter legal test" to determine what material can be protected. And he says he'll let Congress have oversight over his administration's use of the privilege.
Obama says he won't withhold information simply because it embarrasses the government. He says, "I will never hide the truth because it is uncomfortable."
The twisty track at Infineon Raceway in Sonoma, Calif., has beenthe high point of a challenging season for Robby Gordon as hestruggles to develop a team, woo sponsors and work out the quirks inan engine new to NASCAR.
This weekend, Gordon -- one of a handful of Nextel Cup regularswho's as comfortable turning right as left -- heads to Upstate NewYork and Watkins Glen International, the only other road course onthe tour. He'll warm up in the Busch race Saturday.
"We could very easily win both races this weekend," he said."We've got some good cars, and we're definitely getting competitive.The driver definitely shows up more on road courses. The driver cancome into play and make the difference."
Watkins Glen is where he took his last checkered flag two yearsago, two months after a victory at Infineon.
But that was when he was driving for Richard Childress Racing.
Hovering around 40th in the standings with his own team, Gordonhas not been able to break into the top 35 in car-owner points,which would guarantee making the lineup at each race. Instead, hehas had to make every race on speed or go home and has failed toqualify for four events.
Problems with his new Menard engines -- one failed inspection andthe replacement lacked enough punch to qualify -- kept him out ofthe Daytona 500.
That was followed by three engine failures at California, LasVegas and Atlanta, then he failed to qualify at Bristol, Talladegaand Darlington.
So Gordon shook things up by bringing in a new crew chief andteam manager. He has finished every race since, including his 24th-place finish last weekend in Indianapolis in an ill-handling car. Itwas his best finish since he was 16th at Infineon in June.
"The team's a building process. The engine's a building process,the driver and crew chief and car chief -- we're all workingtogether," he said. "We're getting better every week."
An emerging IT company is offering to help suppliers get smarter about their purchasing process. Salion, based in Austin, Texas, will soon be rolling out its "revenue acquisition" process. Its goals are (1) Have its customers up and running in 60 days; (2) deliver a solution that pays for itself within the first 90 days of use; and (3) work with its customers to deliver at least $1 million in benefits within the first year. An excerpt of Al's interview with Salion CEO Richard Hahn follows: (For a complete transcript, go to www.ai-online.com.)
Q: What does your technology do?
A: Our software helps suppliers be more strategic in selecting the business opportunities they pursue. We give them a tool that helps their buyers make smart decisions as quickly as possible.
Q: How does the technology work?
A: It works as a "triage." When a RFQ comes in, the system is able to analyze historical trends and separate quote opportunities into three categories: (1) no brainer, go for it (2) no brainer, don't go for it, or (3) needs more study. The system can study the RFQ and tell the purchasing team very quickly that it wins that business 85 percent of the time, and that it's some of the company's higher gross margin. It may also tell the team that they're 0-for-12 in quoting on that business, and that the last 11 times have just been a market test And if it's somewhere in the middle, maybe it goes to someone else for more analysis. If you could do just those three things very quickly, that would be very cool.
Q: Your relationship with Covisint - they could be a competitor, they could be an alliance partner. Where do you see your place?
A: Well, as soon as they're able to figure out what they are, we'll be able to have a position on that. From our standpoint, Covisint has a very real mission and objective: It's a buyer application. I think it would serve everyone well if they would just admit it and go about their business - I think having that kind of buyer-centric set of applications is a good thing. Just don't say you're everyone's friend when you're not. If that (admission) were to occur, then it would allow the supplier community to then, with one or a few voices, say, "OK, here's how we're going to deal with that effectively." What we're all about is helping the supplier-side of the equation deal with the environment as it is.
Ingrid Betancourt, freed from captivity and humiliation in the jungles of Colombia, returns to her beloved France and a hero's welcome Friday in the gilded halls of the presidential palace.
President Nicolas Sarkozy plans to personally greet Betancourt at the air base in Villacoublay, outside Paris. Then Betancourt, her family and supporters who lobbied for her release will head together to the Elysee palace, Sarkozy's office said.
Betancourt, a dual French-Colombian citizen, was freed Wednesday in a daring Colombian operation involving military spies who tricked FARC rebels into handing over Betancourt and 14 other hostages without firing a shot.
Betancourt was campaigning for Colombia's presidency when she was captured in 2002. She became a cause celebre in France during her six years as a hostage, with her portrait hung on town halls and constant street rallies by supporters.
Betancourt spent much of her childhood here and attended university at Paris' Institut d'Etudes Politiques. Her own children _ Melanie, 22, and Lorenzo, 19 _ have grown up in Paris during her captivity.
Betancourt was reunited with her children in Colombia on Thursday. Interviewed by Europe-1 radio before her arrival in France, said she was proud of how her children had forged "extraordinary characters" in her absence.
She recalled humiliating treatment by the FARC, saying she had to wear chains 24 hours a day for three years.
"When you have a chain around your neck, you have to keep your head down and try to accept your fate without succumbing entirely to humiliation, without forgetting who you are," she said.
"I reached a moment where I understood that death was a possibility," she said in another interview with France-2 television. "I had seen my companions die, I knew that death arrives very, very quickly in the jungle."
Betancourt described her illnesses as "a series of problems that piled on top of each other, I couldn't nourish myself, I visibly lost weight, I lost the capacity to move, I was prostrated in my hammock, I had trouble drinking."
She said she reached "a truly critical situation" but was helped by a male nurse who helped get her medicine.
Sarkozy made freeing Betancourt a priority the night he was elected France's president in May 2007. The previous government of Jacques Chirac also worked for her release, and then-Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin is a longtime friend of Betancourt's.
Betancourt's release was a big image boost for Sarkozy, with even his rivals acknowledging that his diplomatic efforts kept up the pressure on Colombia to find ways to get her released.
But Sarkozy had been pushing for negotiations with the FARC, not a military operation. Once it emerged that France had no role in the operation to free her, one of Sarkozy's main political rivals _ former Socialist presidential candidate Segolene Royal _ expressed impatience with his tactics.
"Everyone knows it, it's a Colombian operation that was well-executed, that worked well, that proves that the negotiations with the FARC were useless," she told LCI television. "Nicolas Sarkozy had absolutely nothing to do with this liberation."
Royal lost to Sarkozy in the 2007 election.
Sarkozy's closest aide, Elysee chief of staff Claude Gueant, admitted Thursday that France learned of Betancourt's release just 15 minutes before Colombian media broke the news.
The wax people talk of easier shines. The tool hawkers promisefix-ups can be easier. Starts are easier with special spark plugs.
But for the truly lazy motorist, Rich Hillard has the "easieritem" that beats them all: car washing mitts for kids.
"We've shaped them like animals so the kids love 'em," saidHillard, one of thousands of auto parts and accessories salesmengathered at McCormick Place this week.
"One of these Wash'n Critters (with the Super Scrubbin' Nose)and the kids will actually wanna wash your car for you."
Modern motoring - it's a science, now, developed with psychologyin mind as well as chemistry and physics. And at the AutomotiveParts and Accessories Show - through Thursday at McCormick Place -some 30,000 people are expected to pick over the newest in automobileknow-how of this $97 billion a year industry.
Though it's not open to the public, the public is always inmind. For instance, Dave Gass, owner of Chicago's GemManaufacturing, just knows that some people like to "thumb their noseat the world."
"That's why I keep selling these here," said Gass, pointing atthe hood ornament of a bald little man with his thumb up his nose.
And while Gass isn't quite sure - but knows it nonetheless - thegold 1941 Cadillac-style goddess is going to outsell the chrome onethis year. And the goddess of any color will outsell the rabbit, thefighting fish and the novelty donkey.
In 1970, the world didn't need a better mousetrap - it needed anupholstery color-coordinated litter bag. And Lorneva "Granny"Johnson of National City, Calif. came up with one.
"I've sold about 20 million since then," said Johnson, whosesweet, smiling face adorns every one of the Granny Brand AutomotiveInterior Accessories products, including the door pockets, the fuzzytissue dispensers and the Cool Wheel steering wheel covers.
There is also the Sav-a-Life Deer Alert, a thumb-size,rocket-shaped device that emits an ultra sonic warning signal toalert animals of your trip through the countryside. And there are 1million-candle-power headlights, license frames that look likechains, and horns that play Dixie and scream blasts of "Extra LoudDuel Diesel."
"If everyone had these in California, there wouldn't be anyshootings," said Roger Ray of Alpex Mfg., Omaha, Neb. "They'd justblow each other away with sound."
WISCONSIN DELLS, Wis. Walleye fishing is alive and well on theWisconsin River below the Dells dam, despite cold weather and highwinds.
Daryl Christensen, Scott Hill and I met at the Rivers EdgeResort and headed downriver in search of post-spawn walleye. Thetemperature was in the low 40s with winds of 22 m.p.h.
Christensen and Hill, top fishing guides and tournamentcompetitors, suggested working the eddies behind sandbars andshoreline drop-offs in 10 feet of water. We used 1/8th-ounceyellow/chartreuse jigs dressed with fathead minnows.
We began working a shallow flat rimmed by sandbars with asix-foot drop-off. Christensen caught the first fish, a two-poundwalleye that hit the jig hard. Hill followed with another fish aswe moved along the bar.
I added a sauger as we swung past a rocky shoreline. Boatcontrol was difficult as winds gusted to 30 m.p.h. We had startedfishing at 1 p.m. and added three more walleye to the livewell bymid-afternoon.
We made a pit stop at the resort to warm up and moved up to thedam area at 5 p.m. Christensen put us at the rock pile where the damcurrents form fast and slow eddies, a perfect area for hungry walleyewaiting for dinner.
My first cast produced a fat sauger. Hill made it a double as awalleye took his jig. We worked the jigs from the fast water intothe slack water. Most of the fish were taken in four to six feet of water as the sun started to dip belowthe high bluffs.
We pounded these walleye and sauger for two hours, putting alimit of 15 fish in the livewell, releasing 10 more and losinganother 12 on short hits.
Friday morning was bitter cold. It was 28 degrees with sharpwinds, but we worked the pillars (three fish) and the dam again forfive fish. One walleye we didn't get has my line. The walleyedrag-tested and finally head-shook the jig back to me.
Post-spawn walleye fishing is usually a game of hide and seek asthe fish move downstream to their summer quarters. But it'schallenging and can offer excellent fishing once you learn thetechnique.
Christensen and Hill are tournament fishing partners. They haveperformed well in all tournaments they entered. They are in thirdplace in the Manufacturers Walleye Contest. The two guide on theFox River, the Wisconsin and numerous bass lakes in centralWisconsin. Trips are for 10 hours and they supply everything exceptlunch and tackle.
Fishing with these men is a learning experience for veteranand beginner alike. Information from: Rivers Edge Resort (608) 254-7707,Christensen (608) 296-3068, and Hill (608) 356-7338 for guideservice.
Rivers Edge supplies bait, tackle, food, accommodations,launch ramp and beverages.
Rubble generated by Dan Ryan Expy. reconstruction is expected tohelp the Chicago Park District rebuild two washed-out beaches justsouth of Fullerton Avenue.
Traylor Bros. Inc., of Evansville, Ind., contractor for some ofthe Ryan work, has offered to give the Park District 18,000 cubicyards of concrete that will be replaced during the project.
Park commissioners appear to be ready to accept the offer, whichwould save an estimated $200,000.
Edward Uhlir, director of the Park District engineeringdepartment, said district officials hope to dump the concrete in twoareas just south of the Theater on the Lake, at Fullerton.
Later, the two former beaches, which were destroyed by wavesover the last few years, would be covered with large amounts of sand.
Uhlir said the concrete rubble would help diminish wave damageto the seawall and would protect Lake Shore Drive from potentialflooding, which has occurred as a result of high waves.
Deliveries are expected to begin next week after the Park Boardformally approves the deal.
Uhlir said the district would transfer mounds of sand that haveaccumulated under water at North Avenue Beach, eight blocks south ofFullerton, to the Fullerton site.
No other company has made a similar offer, but Park BoardPresident William Bartholomay has asked the district's staff to seekother offers.
If the global economy were a 100-yard (90-meter) dash, the U.S. would start 23 yards (21 meters) behind its closest international competitors because of health care that costs too much and delivers too little, a U.S. business group says in a report to be released Thursday.
The report from the Business Roundtable, which represents chief executives of major companies, says America's health care system has become a liability in a global economy.
Concern about high U.S. costs has existed for years, and business executives _ whose companies provide health coverage for workers _ have long called for getting costs under control. Now President Barack Obama says the costs have become unsustainable and the system must be overhauled.
Americans spend $2.4 trillion a year on health care. The Business Roundtable report says Americans in 2006 spent $1,928 per capita on health care, at least two-and-a-half times more per person than any other advanced country.
In a different twist, the report took those costs and factored benefits into the equation.
It compares statistics on life expectancy, death rates and even cholesterol readings and blood pressures. The health measures are factored together with costs into a 100-point "value" scale. That has not been done before, the authors said.
The results are not encouraging.
The United States is 23 points behind five leading economic competitors: Canada, Japan, Germany, the United Kingdom and France. The five nations cover all their citizens, and though their systems differ, in each country the government plays a much larger role than in the U.S.
The cost-benefit disparity is even wider _ 46 points _ when the U.S. is compared with emerging competitors: China, Brazil and India.
"What's important is that we measure and compare actual value _ not just how much we spend on health care, but the performance we get back in return," said H. Edward Hanway, chief executive of the insurance company Cigna. "That's what this study does, and the results are quite eye-opening."
Higher U.S. spending funnels away resources that could be invested elsewhere in the economy but fails to deliver a healthier work force, the report said.
"Spending more would not be a problem if our health scores were proportionately higher," Dr. Arnold Milstein, one of the authors of the study, said in an interview. "But what this study shows is that the U.S. is not getting higher levels of health and quality of care."
Other countries spend less on health care and their workers are relatively healthier, the report said.
Medical costs have long been a problem for U.S. auto companies. General Motors spends more per car on health care than it does on steel. But as more American companies face global competition, the "value gap" is being felt by more CEOs _ and their hard pressed workers.
One thing the report does not do is endorse the same solution that countries like Canada have adopted: a government-run health care system.
The chief executives of the Business Roundtable believe health care for U.S. workers and their families should stay in private hands, with a government-funded safety net for low-income people.
___
On the Net:
Business Roundtable: http://www.businessroundtable.org
RIYADH, Saudi Arabia - U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon tried to persuade Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir to accept U.N. peacekeepers in Darfur on Wednesday, hours after al-Bashir flatly rejected the deployment.
Ban met with the Sudanese president for more than three hours in late-night talks joined by Saudi King Abdullah and Arab League chief Amr Moussa on the sidelines of an Arab summit in Riyadh, the Saudi state news agency said.
Ban is seeking Arab help in winning al-Bashir's acceptance of a U.N. force to assist African Union peacekeepers who have been unable to halt the violence in the war-torn region.
In a small sign of cooperation, Sudan and the United Nations signed an agreement in the Sudanese capital Khartoum to ease humanitarian access to Darfur's refugees.
But in a speech earlier in the day at the Arab summit, al-Bashir underlined his objections to a 20,000-strong combined U.N.-AU peacekeeping force, saying the United Nations should only provide financial and technical help to African peacekeepers already on the ground.
Al-Bashir slammed U.N. resolutions calling for U.N. troop deployment in Darfur as "a violation for Sudan's sovereignty" and said they "provoke the conflict in Darfur, instead of finding a solution for it."
But some 7,000 African Union peacekeepers have been unable to put an end to the violence in Darfur, where government forces and ethnic African rebels have been battling for nearly four years.
Al-Bashir's government is accused of backing Arab janjaweed militiamen blamed for widespread atrocities against ethnic African civilians. More than 200,000 people have been killed and more than 2.5 million driven from their homes.
"The people of Darfur have waited too long and suffered too much," Ban said in an address to the Arab summit, adding that Arab leaders could play a "positive role" in helping end Darfur's plight.
Al-Bashir's statements in Riyadh eclipsed the incremental improvement in Khartoum - an agreement that ensures unrestricted travel by international aid workers throughout Sudan, including Darfur, upon notifying the central government of plans.
"I am cautiously pleased that this agreement has been signed and publicized," U.N. humanitarian chief John Holmes told The Associated Press while touring Darfur refugee camps in neighboring Chad. The "important thing is whether they will actually implement what they say."
Last week, Holmes warned that obstruction from Sudan's government and insecurity had created a fragile environment in Darfur that could push aid workers to pull out.
Holmes said the most important aspect of the new deal was a monitoring committee to be jointly chaired by the Sudanese minister of humanitarian affairs and the U.N. humanitarian coordinator in Sudan.
The committee will fast-track visa procedures for Darfur-bound aid workers and process applications for work permits within 15 days and visas within two days. Applications are backlogged until January 2008. The committee will have representatives from international and national aid groups, the Arab League and foreign donors.
---
AP correspondent Alfred de Montesquiou in Abeche, Chad contributed to this report.
Staff Writer
Brown marmorated stink bugs entered the United States about 12years ago - around Allentown - but they weren't expected to become anuisance.
Wrong.
A year ago, when the shield-shaped, erratically buzzing bugsbegan swarming Lancaster County homes, it was predicted they wouldremain a nuisance for freaked-out homeowners, but wouldn't damagecrops.
Wrong again.
As thousands of local homeowners can attest in recent weeks, theinvasion of the foreign pest is even worse than last year.
One Maryland researcher predicted stink bugs would "go biblicalthis year."
"Last Thursday, that really hot day, we had 30 calls an hour.It's pretty bad," said Ed Saunders of Tele-Pest Inc., a Lancaster-based pest-control company with six offices in the county.
And now, local fruit growers, farmers and backyard gardeners needto worry as well.
Greg Krawczyk, a Penn State Cooperative Extension fruitentomologist, has been at Cherry Hill Orchards in Pequea Townshipalmost weekly this summer, helping the well-known fruit growercombat swarms of the bugs.
Orchard owner Tom Haas estimated Wednesday that about 20 percentof this year's peach crop was damaged to the point it could not beoffered for sale. Some had to be sold for processing into juice,which brings a reduced price, while some was simply thrown out.
Damage by stink bugs feeding on the fruit took the form of smallindentations and dark spots inside.
"We still have plenty of good fruit," he said, but added, "It'sgoing to be challenging."
He's not suffering alone. He said he talked to a vegetable growerdown the street whose produce was damaged as well. And he says he'sheard of extensive damage to field corn in Maryland. Others saysweet corn was hit hard this summer.
Maryland's Department of Agriculture warned last week that theinsect is fast becoming a destructive pest for orchard owners andpossibly for soybean growers.
Dairy farmers fret that cows eating field corn or feed with deadstink bugs might make milk smelling like stink bugs - which is tosay, foul.
To meet the fast-arriving threat, for the first time in 10 yearsthe Penn State extension has advised Haas and suffering fruitgrowers to use lethal broad-spectrum pesticides to protect theircrops.
Normally, biological controls - often other predatory bugs - areused to combat individual pests.
But because there are no known natural controls for the foreigninvaders in the U.S. yet, more nondiscriminating chemical killersmay have to be used in the short term, unfortunately killingbeneficial bugs as well.
"The entire southern edge of the state is experiencing injury onfruit, corn and vegetables," Krawczyk reported Wednesday from thePenn State Fruit Research Center in Biglerville, Adams County.
"The fruit is perfectly edible and healthy, but, at the sametime, they're not able to sell at fresh markets. Much of it goes tothe juicer, which brings less money.
"It's a huge economical loss for the growers," Krawczyk said.
Various working groups, headed by the U.S. Department ofAgriculture, are scrambling to research the stink bugs' life cyclein hopes of finding an effective control to turn back the hordes.
This species of stink bug is native to Japan, Korea and eastChina. There are bugs that prey on the stink bugs there and keepthem in check.
But the natural enemies can't be released here until researchersdetermine they don't have unsavory consequences on the environmenthere.
"This will take a lot of time. In the meantime, we have to dowhat we can to help growers and farmers survive," said Krawczyk, amember of the Multi-State Brown Marmorated Stink Bug Working Group.
Last week, 15 members of Congress sent a letter to USDA SecretaryTom Vilsack and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency AdministratorLisa Jackson, calling on them to take immediate action to limit thedamage.
The quest for an antidote has already begun.
At a USDA lab in Newark, Del., researchers are studying parasiticwasps from the stink bugs' home range. But it will likely take twomore years before they can discover if the insects would harm otherspecies here.
A private company is working on an indoors trap for stink bugsthat uses a pheromone chemical as a lure. It might be ready by nextspring.
For farmers and orchardists, work has begun on traps that useattract-and-kill technology that can be sprayed onto crops.
Fast-reproducing stink bugs have been found in 15 states, withsmaller numbers in another 14.
Meanwhile, homeowners are seeing unprecedented waves of stinkbugs trying to get inside this fall.
The bugs, which can constrict themselves to the thickness of asheet of paper, are looking for any way into homes to ride out thewinter.
Some people flush the bugs down toilets or vacuum them up. Butthey smell when you handle them.
Local pest-control companies are doing a booming businessspraying low-level pesticides on the outsides and insides of homes.
But that has limited effectiveness, said Saunders of Tele-Pest.
"We really can't do much for people. There's no guarantee."
Warns Krawczyk, "They can feed on almost anything. There'snothing to stop them."
acrable@lnpnews.com
Stinky Swarm Wreaks Havoc ; Stink Bug Invasion Is Annoying Homeowners, Damaging CropsStaff Writer
Brown marmorated stink bugs entered the United States about 12years ago - around Allentown - but they weren't expected to become anuisance.
Wrong.
A year ago, when the shield-shaped, erratically buzzing bugsbegan swarming Lancaster County homes, it was predicted they wouldremain a nuisance for freaked-out homeowners, but wouldn't damagecrops.
Wrong again.
As thousands of local homeowners can attest in recent weeks, theinvasion of the foreign pest is even worse than last year.
One Maryland researcher predicted stink bugs would "go biblicalthis year."
"Last Thursday, that really hot day, we had 30 calls an hour.It's pretty bad," said Ed Saunders of Tele-Pest Inc., a Lancaster-based pest-control company with six offices in the county.
And now, local fruit growers, farmers and backyard gardeners needto worry as well.
Greg Krawczyk, a Penn State Cooperative Extension fruitentomologist, has been at Cherry Hill Orchards in Pequea Townshipalmost weekly this summer, helping the well-known fruit growercombat swarms of the bugs.
Orchard owner Tom Haas estimated Wednesday that about 20 percentof this year's peach crop was damaged to the point it could not beoffered for sale. Some had to be sold for processing into juice,which brings a reduced price, while some was simply thrown out.
Damage by stink bugs feeding on the fruit took the form of smallindentations and dark spots inside.
"We still have plenty of good fruit," he said, but added, "It'sgoing to be challenging."
He's not suffering alone. He said he talked to a vegetable growerdown the street whose produce was damaged as well. And he says he'sheard of extensive damage to field corn in Maryland. Others saysweet corn was hit hard this summer.
Maryland's Department of Agriculture warned last week that theinsect is fast becoming a destructive pest for orchard owners andpossibly for soybean growers.
Dairy farmers fret that cows eating field corn or feed with deadstink bugs might make milk smelling like stink bugs - which is tosay, foul.
To meet the fast-arriving threat, for the first time in 10 yearsthe Penn State extension has advised Haas and suffering fruitgrowers to use lethal broad-spectrum pesticides to protect theircrops.
Normally, biological controls - often other predatory bugs - areused to combat individual pests.
But because there are no known natural controls for the foreigninvaders in the U.S. yet, more nondiscriminating chemical killersmay have to be used in the short term, unfortunately killingbeneficial bugs as well.
"The entire southern edge of the state is experiencing injury onfruit, corn and vegetables," Krawczyk reported Wednesday from thePenn State Fruit Research Center in Biglerville, Adams County.
"The fruit is perfectly edible and healthy, but, at the sametime, they're not able to sell at fresh markets. Much of it goes tothe juicer, which brings less money.
"It's a huge economical loss for the growers," Krawczyk said.
Various working groups, headed by the U.S. Department ofAgriculture, are scrambling to research the stink bugs' life cyclein hopes of finding an effective control to turn back the hordes.
This species of stink bug is native to Japan, Korea and eastChina. There are bugs that prey on the stink bugs there and keepthem in check.
But the natural enemies can't be released here until researchersdetermine they don't have unsavory consequences on the environmenthere.
"This will take a lot of time. In the meantime, we have to dowhat we can to help growers and farmers survive," said Krawczyk, amember of the Multi-State Brown Marmorated Stink Bug Working Group.
Last week, 15 members of Congress sent a letter to USDA SecretaryTom Vilsack and U.S. Environmental Protection Agency AdministratorLisa Jackson, calling on them to take immediate action to limit thedamage.
The quest for an antidote has already begun.
At a USDA lab in Newark, Del., researchers are studying parasiticwasps from the stink bugs' home range. But it will likely take twomore years before they can discover if the insects would harm otherspecies here.
A private company is working on an indoors trap for stink bugsthat uses a pheromone chemical as a lure. It might be ready by nextspring.
For farmers and orchardists, work has begun on traps that useattract-and-kill technology that can be sprayed onto crops.
Fast-reproducing stink bugs have been found in 15 states, withsmaller numbers in another 14.
Meanwhile, homeowners are seeing unprecedented waves of stinkbugs trying to get inside this fall.
The bugs, which can constrict themselves to the thickness of asheet of paper, are looking for any way into homes to ride out thewinter.
Some people flush the bugs down toilets or vacuum them up. Butthey smell when you handle them.
Local pest-control companies are doing a booming businessspraying low-level pesticides on the outsides and insides of homes.
But that has limited effectiveness, said Saunders of Tele-Pest.
"We really can't do much for people. There's no guarantee."
Warns Krawczyk, "They can feed on almost anything. There'snothing to stop them."
acrable@lnpnews.com
The 273-156 by which the House failed to override President Bush's veto of a bill expanding a government health care program to cover 10 million children. The vote was 13 votes short of the two-thirds majority required. That means the veto stands, killing the measure.
A "yes" vote is a vote to override the veto.
Voting yes were 229 Democrats and 44 Republicans.
Voting no were 2 Democrats and 154 Republicans.
X denotes those not voting.
There are 2 vacancies in the 435-member House.
ALABAMA
Democrats - Cramer, Y; Davis, Y.
Republicans - Aderholt, N; Bachus, N; Bonner, N; Everett, N; Rogers, N.
ALASKA
Republicans - Young, Y.
ARIZONA
Democrats - Giffords, Y; Grijalva, Y; Mitchell, Y; Pastor, Y.
Republicans - Flake, N; Franks, N; Renzi, Y; Shadegg, N.
ARKANSAS
Democrats - Berry, Y; Ross, Y; Snyder, Y.
Republicans - Boozman, N.
CALIFORNIA
Democrats - Baca, Y; Becerra, Y; Berman, Y; Capps, Y; Cardoza, Y; Costa, Y; Davis, Y; Eshoo, Y; Farr, Y; Filner, Y; Harman, Y; Honda, Y; Lantos, Y; Lee, Y; Lofgren, Zoe, Y; Matsui, Y; McNerney, Y; Miller, George, Y; Napolitano, Y; Pelosi, Y; Richardson, Y; Roybal-Allard, Y; Sanchez, Linda T., Y; Sanchez, Loretta, Y; Schiff, Y; Sherman, Y; Solis, Y; Stark, Y; Tauscher, Y; Thompson, Y; Waters, Y; Watson, Y; Waxman, Y; Woolsey, Y.
Republicans - Bilbray, N; Bono, Y; Calvert, N; Campbell, N; Doolittle, N; Dreier, N; Gallegly, N; Herger, N; Hunter, N; Issa, N; Lewis, N; Lungren, Daniel E., N; McCarthy, N; McKeon, N; Miller, Gary, N; Nunes, N; Radanovich, N; Rohrabacher, N; Royce, N.
COLORADO
Democrats - DeGette, Y; Perlmutter, Y; Salazar, Y; Udall, Y.
Republicans - Lamborn, N; Musgrave, N; Tancredo, N.
CONNECTICUT
Democrats - Courtney, Y; DeLauro, Y; Larson, Y; Murphy, Y.
Republicans - Shays, Y.
DELAWARE
Republicans - Castle, Y.
FLORIDA
Democrats - Boyd, Y; Brown, Corrine, Y; Castor, Y; Hastings, Y; Klein, Y; Mahoney, Y; Meek, Y; Wasserman Schultz, Y; Wexler, Y.
Republicans - Bilirakis, N; Brown-Waite, Ginny, N; Buchanan, Y; Crenshaw, N; Diaz-Balart, L., N; Diaz-Balart, M., N; Feeney, N; Keller, N; Mack, N; Mica, N; Miller, N; Putnam, N; Ros-Lehtinen, N; Stearns, N; Weldon, N; Young, Y.
GEORGIA
Democrats - Barrow, Y; Bishop, Y; Johnson, Y; Lewis, Y; Marshall, N; Scott, Y.
Republicans - Broun, N; Deal, N; Gingrey, N; Kingston, N; Linder, N; Price, N; Westmoreland, N.
HAWAII
Democrats - Abercrombie, Y; Hirono, Y.
IDAHO
Republicans - Sali, N; Simpson, Y.
ILLINOIS
Democrats - Bean, Y; Costello, Y; Davis, Y; Emanuel, Y; Gutierrez, Y; Hare, Y; Jackson, Y; Lipinski, Y; Rush, Y; Schakowsky, Y.
Republicans - Biggert, N; Hastert, N; Johnson, N; Kirk, Y; LaHood, Y; Manzullo, N; Roskam, N; Shimkus, N; Weller, N.
INDIANA
Democrats - Carson, X; Donnelly, Y; Ellsworth, Y; Hill, Y; Visclosky, Y.
Republicans - Burton, N; Buyer, N; Pence, N; Souder, N.
IOWA
Democrats - Boswell, Y; Braley, Y; Loebsack, Y.
Republicans - King, N; Latham, Y.
KANSAS
Democrats - Boyda, Y; Moore, Y.
Republicans - Moran, Y; Tiahrt, N.
KENTUCKY
Democrats - Chandler, Y; Yarmuth, Y.
Republicans - Davis, N; Lewis, N; Rogers, N; Whitfield, N.
LOUISIANA
Democrats - Jefferson, Y; Melancon, Y.
Republicans - Alexander, N; Baker, N; Boustany, N; Jindal, X; McCrery, N.
MAINE
Democrats - Allen, Y; Michaud, Y.
MARYLAND
Democrats - Cummings, Y; Hoyer, Y; Ruppersberger, Y; Sarbanes, Y; Van Hollen, Y; Wynn, Y.
Republicans - Bartlett, N; Gilchrest, Y.
MASSACHUSETTS
Democrats - Capuano, Y; Delahunt, Y; Frank, Y; Lynch, Y; Markey, Y; McGovern, Y; Neal, Y; Olver, Y; Tierney, Y; Tsongas, Y.
MICHIGAN
Democrats - Conyers, Y; Dingell, Y; Kildee, Y; Kilpatrick, Y; Levin, Y; Stupak, Y.
Republicans - Camp, N; Ehlers, Y; Hoekstra, N; Knollenberg, N; McCotter, N; Miller, Y; Rogers, N; Upton, Y; Walberg, N.
MINNESOTA
Democrats - Ellison, Y; McCollum, Y; Oberstar, Y; Peterson, Y; Walz, Y.
Republicans - Bachmann, N; Kline, N; Ramstad, Y.
MISSISSIPPI
Democrats - Taylor, N; Thompson, Y.
Republicans - Pickering, N; Wicker, N.
MISSOURI
Democrats - Carnahan, Y; Clay, Y; Cleaver, Y; Skelton, Y.
Republicans - Akin, N; Blunt, N; Emerson, Y; Graves, N; Hulshof, N.
MONTANA
Republicans - Rehberg, Y.
NEBRASKA
Republicans - Fortenberry, N; Smith, N; Terry, N.
NEVADA
Democrats - Berkley, Y.
Republicans - Heller, N; Porter, Y.
NEW HAMPSHIRE
Democrats - Hodes, Y; Shea-Porter, Y.
NEW JERSEY
Democrats - Andrews, Y; Holt, Y; Pallone, Y; Pascrell, Y; Payne, Y; Rothman, Y; Sires, Y.
Republicans - Ferguson, Y; Frelinghuysen, N; Garrett, N; LoBiondo, Y; Saxton, N; Smith, Y.
NEW MEXICO
Democrats - Udall, Y.
Republicans - Pearce, N; Wilson, Y.
NEW YORK
Democrats - Ackerman, Y; Arcuri, Y; Bishop, Y; Clarke, Y; Crowley, Y; Engel, Y; Gillibrand, Y; Hall, Y; Higgins, Y; Hinchey, Y; Israel, Y; Lowey, Y; Maloney, Y; McCarthy, Y; McNulty, Y; Meeks, Y; Nadler, Y; Rangel, Y; Serrano, Y; Slaughter, Y; Towns, Y; Velazquez, Y; Weiner, Y.
Republicans - Fossella, Y; King, X; Kuhl, N; McHugh, Y; Reynolds, N; Walsh, Y.
NORTH CAROLINA
Democrats - Butterfield, Y; Etheridge, Y; McIntyre, Y; Miller, Y; Price, Y; Shuler, Y; Watt, Y.
Republicans - Coble, N; Foxx, N; Hayes, N; Jones, N; McHenry, N; Myrick, N.
NORTH DAKOTA
Democrats - Pomeroy, Y.
OHIO
Democrats - Jones, Y; Kaptur, Y; Kucinich, Y; Ryan, Y; Space, Y; Sutton, Y; Wilson, Y.
Republicans - Boehner, N; Chabot, N; Hobson, Y; Jordan, N; LaTourette, Y; Pryce, Y; Regula, Y; Schmidt, N; Tiberi, Y; Turner, Y.
OKLAHOMA
Democrats - Boren, Y.
Republicans - Cole, N; Fallin, N; Lucas, N; Sullivan, N.
OREGON
Democrats - Blumenauer, Y; DeFazio, Y; Hooley, Y; Wu, Y.
Republicans - Walden, N.
PENNSYLVANIA
Democrats - Altmire, Y; Brady, Y; Carney, Y; Doyle, Y; Fattah, Y; Holden, Y; Kanjorski, Y; Murphy, Patrick, Y; Murtha, Y; Schwartz, Y; Sestak, Y.
Republicans - Dent, Y; English, Y; Gerlach, Y; Murphy, Tim, Y; Peterson, N; Pitts, N; Platts, Y; Shuster, N.
RHODE ISLAND
Democrats - Kennedy, Y; Langevin, Y.
SOUTH CAROLINA
Democrats - Clyburn, Y; Spratt, Y.
Republicans - Barrett, N; Brown, N; Inglis, N; Wilson, N.
SOUTH DAKOTA
Democrats - Herseth Sandlin, Y.
TENNESSEE
Democrats - Cohen, Y; Cooper, Y; Davis, Lincoln, Y; Gordon, Y; Tanner, Y.
Republicans - Blackburn, N; Davis, David, N; Duncan, N; Wamp, N.
TEXAS
Democrats - Cuellar, Y; Doggett, Y; Edwards, Y; Gonzalez, Y; Green, Al, Y; Green, Gene, Y; Hinojosa, Y; Jackson-Lee, Y; Johnson, E. B., X; Lampson, Y; Ortiz, Y; Reyes, Y; Rodriguez, Y.
Republicans - Barton, N; Brady, N; Burgess, N; Carter, N; Conaway, N; Culberson, N; Gohmert, N; Granger, N; Hall, N; Hensarling, N; Johnson, Sam, N; Marchant, N; McCaul, N; Neugebauer, N; Paul, N; Poe, N; Sessions, N; Smith, N; Thornberry, N.
UTAH
Democrats - Matheson, Y.
Republicans - Bishop, N; Cannon, N.
VERMONT
Democrats - Welch, Y.
VIRGINIA
Democrats - Boucher, Y; Moran, Y; Scott, Y.
Republicans - Cantor, N; Davis, Tom, Y; Drake, N; Forbes, N; Goode, N; Goodlatte, N; Wolf, Y.
WASHINGTON
Democrats - Baird, Y; Dicks, Y; Inslee, Y; Larsen, Y; McDermott, Y; Smith, Y.
Republicans - Hastings, N; McMorris Rodgers, Y; Reichert, Y.
WEST VIRGINIA
Democrats - Mollohan, Y; Rahall, Y.
Republicans - Capito, Y.
WISCONSIN
Democrats - Baldwin, Y; Kagen, Y; Kind, Y; Moore, Y; Obey, Y.
Republicans - Petri, Y; Ryan, N; Sensenbrenner, N.
WYOMING
Republicans - Cubin, N.
Slow growth, low margins and new regulations add to the burdens that directors bear.
It's not easy being a bank director these days. Bank Director magazine's annual compensation survey co-sponsored with Blanchard Consulting Group bears that out.
Board members at smaller banks are, in some cases, working longer hours than last year. Fewer banks are compensating bank directors for attending meetings or offering benefits. And fewer directors think their organization is doing a good job handling compensation issues than last year.
The survey, conducted in July and August, came in the midst of an economic slump and fears of a double dip recession. Boards at many banks are contending with slow growth, low margins and still struggling loan portfolios. Plus, they have a host of new federal government regulations that must be addressed at the board level, including a new rule that boards must review incentive compensation policies for all staff.
The compensation survey was sent to 8,675 U.S. bank CEOs and directors via e-mail on July 21, Aug. 4 and Aug. 18. Surveys were returned by 617 people, for a response rate of 7.1 percent. Because of rounding, not all responses in the survey add up to 100 percent.
Longer hours on the job
The median number of hours board members spend on the job for all asset sizes is the same as last year, 15 hours per month, according to the survey.
However, for some smaller banks, those under $100 million in assets, the median number of hours on the job went from 10 hours per month last year to 15 hours. Banks between $251 million and $500 million in assets are spending 16 hours on the job, three more than last year.
However, larger banks, from $500 million in assets or more, do not report an increase in hours on the job.
Matt Brei, senior vice president and partner at Blanchard Consulting Group, says he sees compensation committees are having much more comprehensive conversations than they used to have, in part because of increased regulatory requirements resulting from the Troubled Asset Relief Program and the Dodd-Frank Act, to name a few.
"(Compensation committees) don't have to be experts on compensation in all levels of the bank, but they certainly need to know what's going on and be comfortable with the risk that is being taken," Brei says.
Fewer board members are getting paid
The difficult financial condition of some banks also may contribute to fewer bank directors getting paid for board meetings. The most common form of compensation for outside directors is board meeting fees, with 51 percent of all banks paying them. That was down from 62 percent of respondents who said their bank paid meeting fees last year.
Twenty-eight percent also get a cash retainer, down from 32 percent last year. However, for the banks that continue to pay fees and retainers, the median amounts stayed the same as last year, $600 for a full board meeting and $10,000 for an annual retainer.
Fifteen percent of respondents to the survey say they get some sort of equity compensation, compared to 16 percent last year.
The bigger the bank, the more likely it will pay equity compensation or retainers. Not surprisingly, few privately owned banks compensate directors with equity, only 6 percent. Twenty-three percent of public banks, on the other hand, pay equity compensation.
Benefits also appear to have eroded. Thirty-nine percent of banks offer no benefits at all to board members, up from 28 percent last year, with the percentage of private banks offering no benefits higher than public, 44 percent to 35 percent.
Nineteen percent of bank boards pay directors' travel expenses, compared to 20 percent last year. Fifteen percent offered a deferred compensation plan, compared to 13 percent last year. Six percent offer life insurance, compared to nine percent last year.
"Benefits are the first to go," says Mike Blanchard, CEO of Blanchard Consulting Group. "If net income is down and the company is not performing well, and executives are being asked to be more frugal, to not travel as much and reduce expenses, then boards are going to say, 'We should do so as well."'
Brei says this trend of flat or lower compensation for directors has been consistent during the last three or four years.
"What the challenge is, with the increased scrutiny (of board decisions) and the expertise that's needed, how do you get the right people to serve on the board?" he says. "A community banker can still find a business owner or someone with a strong presence in the community to serve on the board, but now you need someone who has risk expertise and compensation expertise, and that can get more difficult."
Blanchard worries t�iat some banks may have trouble attracting good directors when they don't pay anything.
"There is a perception of risk out there, that it is risky to be in the banking industry," he says. "I believe it's going to be difficult to attract directors if you're not competitive with other organizations out there."
Banks by and large don't plan to increase director pay next year, either. Nearly three-quarters, or 71 percent, plan to keep director pay the same next year. Twenty-eight percent plan to increase it.
Job satisfaction falls
Satisfaction with the board's job of handling compensation issues also has gone down. This year, 63 percent of respondents give their board high marks for managing the executive compensation program. That compares to 74 percent last year who said their bank was managing executive compensation well or very well. This year, 56 percent think the board is managing director compensation well or very well, compared to 68 percent last year.
Blanchard says this decline in satisfaction might have to do with the host of new regulations on the table, including compensation regulations coming out of the passage of the Dodd-Frank Act last year.
"With all the scrutiny and the new guidelines, it may be (directors) are unsure if their changes are appropriate with the guidelines," he says.
Only 34 percent made any changes to their compensation this year. Twenty-nine percent say tfiey have implemented a dawback provision on executive pay. Of those who do have a clawback provision, 65 percent have one for the management team, and 60 percent have one for the CEO.
The lack of changes surprises Blanchard.
He says part of the new regulations require bank boards to review all incentive pay policies, including those for mortgage officers at the bank. New rules strictly prohibit certain kinds of incentive pay for mortgage officers and brokers, which was thought to encourage risk-taking during the financial crisis.
Top problems for compensation committees
Despite all the frustrations about new regulations, the two top challenges for compensation committees are the same as they were last year. Pay-for-performance metrics and the gathering/understanding of peer comparison data were both rated by 26 percent of the respondents as die most challenging issue.
Blanchard and Brei say having a good strategic plan will help align pay with performance.
"You really need to look at what the strategy is," says Brei. "What's your long-term strategy and how are you going to get there? I really don't think setting performance metrics is a one-size-fits-all. You need to make it make sense for your bank, not what the bank is doing across the street. It may be reducing your non-performing (assets). It may be something that's more discretionary without a hard number on it. Maybe it's creating a certain culture at die bank."
Half of all respondents in the survey this year say they link CEO pay to the strategic plan. Sixty-eight percent say they link CEO pay to performance metrics. Of those who link CEO pay to performance, 66 percent use asset quality, 59 percent use return on assets and 62 percent use return on equity. Only 35 percent tie CEO pay to total shareholder return and 37 percent tie it to earnings per share growth.
The industry has shifted over time toward using other kinds of performance metrics rather than just profitability, says Blanchard.
"Three years ago, all these plans were driven by profitability, return on equity, shareholder return, net income, return on assets," he says. "I see that asset quality has moved up to number one. It's a good thing for them to say they are focused on asset quality. You need to incorporate more strategic goals. You also have to have good asset quality."
Brei says he advises clients to look at more than just profit metrics.
"If you're purely pushing profits, you might be encouraging people just to get loans, but not necessarily good loans," he says.
Compensation committee practices
Sixty-six percent of respondents say their bank reviewed director compensation within the last six months or a year. Twelve percent say they had done reviews more than a year ago and 19 percent say it has been more than two years since they reviewed compensation practices.
Fifty-two percent say they do not use a compensation consultant. Twelve percent say they used consultants on an ongoing basis and 36 percent used them on a project basis.
Forty-two percent say the compensation committee is responsible for setting director compensation, the same as last year. Nine percent say the CEO sets director pay, about the same as last year. Thirty-eight percent this year say the full board sets director pay.
For most banks, 82 percent, the compensation committee meets quarterly. The median number of compensation committee meetings per year is four, with smaller banks meeting less often than large banks. The median number of full board meetings is 12, which was consistent across all asset sizes.
Elements of director pay
Board meeting fees are the most popular way to compensate directors. The fees vary widely based on the size of the bank and whether it is public or private. For those who say they are paid, banks with less than $100 million in assets paid a median of $375 per meeting, as of fiscal year 2010, according to the survey. Banks with $1 billion to $5 billion in assets who did pay compensated at a median of $700 per meeting.
Publicly traded banks paid a median of $650 per meeting, compared to $500 for private banks.
The median cash retainer was $10,000 as of the last fiscal year. Only 28 percent of respondents say their bank pays a cash retainer.
As far as committees go, 70 percent of banks say they paid fees for serving on a committee. The chairmen of holding bank committees were paid more than the lead bank chairmen. The chairmen of publicly traded bank committees were paid more than for private banks.
The highest paid bank holding committee chairman is the chairman of the audit committee, who was paid a median of $5,000 per year.
Sixteen percent of banks also paid a cash retainer for committee work.
Equity compensation
Sixteen percent of respondents say their bank gave equity compensation for serving on the board.
The median holding company stock option/restricted stock grant for those who were paid in fiscal year 2010 was $11,135. The median lead bank fully equity grant value was $11,500 in fiscal year 2010.
Forty-one percent of respondents say their banks had stock ownership guidelines for directors.
"That's a good thing," says Blanchard, "to say: 'If we give you stock, we want you to hold on to it a certain amount and not sell it, so you can participate in the future success of the company."
Public banks are more likely to have stock ownership guidelines, at 53 percent, compared to only 31 percent of private banks who have guidelines. Smaller banks are less likely to have ownership guidelines.
Of those that have guidelines, 52 percent require directors to own a minimum or fixed number of shares, down from 67 percent last year. Thirty-one percent have a minimum share value and 13 percent have a multiple of the annual retainer requirement.
Not all banks compensate directors with stock, retainers or even fees. For those that do, there is a wide difference in compensation for small banks compared to larger banks. Not counting committee work, the median total compensation during die most recent fiscal year to serve on a bank and holding company board with less than $100 million in assets was $10,500. For banks with more than $1 billion in assets, it was $43,800. The median for all banks was $35,335.
Factors to serve on bank boards
To attract board members, banks ought to consider what directors most want to see in the form of compensation. According to the survey, the most important forms of compensation when considering a board seat are cash fees/retainers and whether the bank pays for board-related expenses, such as travel.
These were the most important considerations for board seats last year as well. However, there was a slight decline in importance in these factors compared to last year. Last year, 67 percent said they rated cash fees/ retainers as important or very important considerations. This year, 64 percent do. Last year, 64 percent rated paid expenses as important or very important. This year, 60 percent do. The percentage of respondents that rated bonus or performance pay as important or very important is higher this year, at 40 percent, compared to 31 percent last year. This year, 31 percent rate insurance as an important or very important factor; and 27 percent rate a retirement plan as important.
About the survey respondents
Of the respondents, 55 percent said they were from private companies and the rest were from publicly traded institutions. Eighty-eight percent were from banks older than five years. The majority of respondents, 61 percent, said they were from banks with $500 million in assets or below. Most of the respondents were bank directors. Fortysix percent were outside directors, 22 percent were inside directors, 21 percent were board chairman and 37 percent were CEOs.
[Sidebar]
The Board Compensation Survey was co-sponsored by Blanchard Consulting Group.
Matt Brei is a senior vice president and partner with the national compensation consulting company Blanchard Consulting Group. His office is in Minneapolis. He has more than 10 years of experience in compensation consulting, with clients ranging from Fortune 500 companies to community banks throughout the country. Since 2002, Matt has focused exclusively on the banking industry.
Michael Blanchard is the CEO of the national compensation consulting company Blanchard Consulting Group and he works in Atlanta. He has extensive experience in the human resources field and has conducted or supported over 500 compensation planning, market research and organizational development projects during the past 15 years, with more than twelve years specific to the banking industry.
[Author Affiliation]
Naomi Snyder is Senior Editor for Bank Director
