Struggling Perry looks to Texas Invasion in Iowa

By Mary Wisniewski

DES MOINES, Iowa | Thu Dec 29, 2011 9:30pm EST

DES MOINES, Iowa (Reuters) - Texas Governor Rick Perry, down in the polls and failing to find a winning campaign strategy, is relying on folks from back home to help lift his struggling presidential election bid in Iowa.

More than a dozen Texans stuffed boxes with Perry signs and T-shirts at a hotel conference room in West Des Moines, Iowa, chatting about their hometowns and sampling Texas-size muffins from a buffet table.

They were part of the first wave of what the Perry campaign hopes will be hundreds of Texans and supporters from other states who are volunteering to come to Iowa to boost Perry ahead of Tuesday's Republican caucus vote.

Perry could use the help. His campaign has flagged since he jumped into the race in August in the top tier of candidates, promoting his job creation record in Texas where he is the longest-serving governor.

But after poor debate performances, Perry lost ground. A CNN/Time Iowa poll this week showed him in fifth place with 11 percent, below Mitt Romney, Ron Paul, Rick Santorum, and Newt Gingrich.

The poor poll numbers come despite Perry trying to promote his social conservative credentials in a series of ads, including one in which he attacked gays in the military. He also has taken a harder line on abortion in a play to Iowa's large evangelical Christian constituency.

More pro-Perry Texans will be arriving to work phone banks, cheer at rallies and talk to voters, according to campaign representatives and volunteers. They will include several Republican state legislators, as well as the statewide officeholders.

"I felt that he needs to get some traction here," said Joe Hyde, 47, of San Angelo, Texas, who arrived in Des Moines Tuesday with his 18-year-old daughter Shelby.

A political science major on Christmas break, Shelby was inserting metal posts into Perry yard signs. Like other volunteers, she and her father spent their own money to get to Iowa.

Several Perry backers expressed concern that the debates did not show who Perry really is.

"The debates have become a reality TV show that have overshadowed executive experience," Hyde said.

SIGN OF WEAKNESS?

Dennis Goldford, a Drake University politics professor, said the Texas volunteer army looks like a sign of weakness. Perry's huge spending on Iowa television and radio ads - which the campaign confirmed at about $2.86 million for December - does not seem to be helping.

"They're well-done ads," Goldford said. "But how many times do you get a second chance to make a first impression?"

Goldford said Iowa conservatives are looking for someone who can "go slug it out toe to toe with President Obama," and that's why Perry's poor performance in the debates hurt him.

Goldford said it is hard to say how much the Texas volunteers will help.

"In terms of Iowans, you're going to respond more to somebody from your neighborhood," Goldford said. "Remember it's a local precinct caucus. You're going to respond to somebody local rather than to somebody from outside the state."

There are Texas-Iowa connections. Some volunteers have worked on previous Iowa campaigns, according to campaign spokesman Ray Sullivan, and some said they had family in Iowa. Some Iowans retire or spend winters in Texas.

Perry has in recent weeks pushed his campaign farther to the right on social issues. John Strong, 70, of West Des Moines, said Perry pushed it too much.

"He's a little too far to the right," said Strong, who supports Ron Paul. Strong said even though he himself does not like gay marriage, Perry seems "a little hateful" about it. "He went really far right, obviously far right, maybe falsely far right," Strong said. "I think people see through that."

Not every Texas Republican is on board with Perry. One Republican state lawmaker, when asked if he was planning to volunteer in Iowa, responded tartly, "Hell, no! Why would I waste my time and money on that BS?"

(Additional reporting by Karen Brooks in Austin, Texas; Editing by Alistair Bell and Bill Trott)

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Reuters/PoliticsNews/~3/XmqVljC7IgM/us-usa-campaign-perry-idUSTRE7BT03J20111230

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Study: Indoor Tanning Linked With Early Onset of Skin Cancer (Time.com)

Given that indoor tanning beds were officially classified as a human carcinogen in 2009 -- up there with cigarettes and asbestos -- it should be fairly obvious that frequent tanning-booth exposure would increase your risk of skin cancer.

Indeed, the evidence linking indoor tanning with melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer, and squamous cell carcinoma, one of the more common forms of the disease, is "convincing," according to the World Health Organization's International Agency for Research on Cancer. But the research concerning tanning beds and basal cell carcinoma, the third and most frequent major type of skin cancer -- which accounts for some 80% of all skin cancer cases in the U.S. -- has thus far been inconsistent. (See pictures of a photographer's intimate account of her mother's cancer ordeal.)

Basal cell carcinoma, a slow-growing cancer, has traditionally been a disease of middle age. But it's been appearing with increasing frequency in people under 40, especially in women -- a demographic that also happens to like indoor tanning -- suggesting a link. So researchers at the Yale School of Public Health sought to study the association.

The study included 376 people under 40, who had been diagnosed with basal cell carcinoma between 2006 and 2010. They were matched with a control group of 390 dermatology patients who were diagnosed with minor skin conditions like cysts and warts. All participants had skin biopsies, and all were drawn from a Yale University database.

The researchers interviewed each participant about their UV exposure -- both in tanning beds and outdoors. They also asked about their history of sunburns, sunscreen use, family history of melanoma and non-melanoma skin cancers, and their self-reported eye, skin and hair color.

The conclusion: people who had ever used a tanning booth were 69% more likely to develop early-onset basal cell carcinoma than never tanners. Those who used tanning booths more regularly -- for at least six years -- were more than twice a likely to develop basal cell carcinoma, compared with never tanners.

The study found that women were far more devoted than men to indoor tanning, which might help explain why 70% of all early onset basal cell carcinomas occur in females. The authors concluded that about 27% of cases of early onset disease -- including 43% of cases in women -- could be prevented if people simply stopped using tanning booths.

That's a tall order, considering that some 30 million Americans use indoor tanning beds each year. Policy changes, such as the recent California ban on teen tanning, may help, the authors suggest. So would behavioral interventions aimed at women -- at least one study in 2010 found that the best way to get young women to tan less was to warn them about the skin-wrinkling effects of tanning-bed exposure, not the risk of skin cancer.

"Importantly, indoor tanning is a behavior that individuals can change. In conjunction with the findings on melanoma, our results for [basal cell carcinoma] indicate that reducing indoor tanning could translate to a meaningful reduction in the incidence of these two types of skin cancer," said Leah M. Ferrucci, first author of the paper and a postdoctoral fellow at the Yale School of Public Health, in a statement.

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Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/health/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/time/20111228/hl_time/httphealthlandtimecom20111213studyindoortanninglinkedwithearlyonsetofskincancerixzz1gq9mdteqxidrssfullhealthsciyahoo

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Soszynski?s retirement on hold until doc says he can?t go on

Krzysztof Soszynski appeared to have retired following his fight at UFC 140 (4:00 mark). Now we're finding out there's more to the story.

Just minutes after losing to Igor Pokrajac, Soszynski made his statement made in front of a doctor during a postfight exam. Soszynski recently admitted he didn't even remember discussing the topic that night, but that doesn't mean retirement is out of the question for the 34-year-old veteran of 39 fights.

Aside from dealing with the negative effects of multiple slugfests, Soszynski says his knees are the real problem.

"I've been having knee problems since UFC 110 - the first fight with Stephan Bonnar. Ever since then, my knees just haven't been the same. We basically beat the crap out of each other, and ever since then I haven't been the same," Soszynski told The Province. "I've basically been fighting maybe 50-60-percent capacity. I've been fighting with these obstacles now for close to two years. I've had five knee surgeries in that time - three in the last seven months or so.

Soszynski sounds like he still has some fight left in him, but it'll be up to his doctor to decide if it's worth the risk.

"I possibly have to go under the knife again - I'll go see my doctor next week - so we'll see; depends on what the doctor says. If the doctor says I can get back to fighting, I would love to have at least one more fight, and go out the proper way, not the way I did against Igor. But if the doctor says that's about it, I'm going to respect that," Soszynski said.

Soszynski's been good for the sport. He represented it well by being one of the more mature characters on Season 8 of "The Ultimate Fighter."

Chances are, whether he's fighting or not, he'll contribute as a coach or nutritional expert in the future.

Source: http://sports.yahoo.com/mma/blog/cagewriter/post/Soszynski-s-retirement-on-hold-until-doc-says-he?urn=mma-wp11212

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Wall St back at Square One, with S&P flat in 2011 (Reuters)

NEW YORK (Reuters) ? For the U.S. stock market, 2011 was a long wild ride to nowhere.

The broad S&P 500 endured huge daily swings but a year of drama left the index almost where it started. It lost a mere 0.003 percent, closest to unchanged since 1947, according to Standard & Poor's.

Global markets have been battered this year by the euro-zone debt crisis, upheaval in the Middle East, and U.S. political gridlock. Similar events probably await investors in 2012.

"The earnings and fundamentals were there for companies, but the political crisis and paralysis in Washington and Europe were too much," said Martin Sass, who founded and runs the $7.5 billion M.D. Sass hedge fund.

"They overwhelmed the fundamentals. I didn't think the euro- zone crisis would have been so protracted as it has become."

The Dow industrials gained 5.5 percent for the year as investors sought safety in large-cap, dividend-paying stocks. The Nasdaq lost 1.8 percent.

Investors took out their ire on the financials (.GSPF), which were the weakest group this year, falling more than 18 percent. Concerns about exposure to Europe and the threat of a renewed financial crisis hurt those shares.

Bank of America Corp (BAC.N) was the Dow's worst performer, tumbling 58.3 percent this year, and it was also one of the S&P 500's biggest losers. JPMorgan Chase & Co (JPM.N) slumped 21.6 percent in 2011.

Cabot Oil & Gas Corp (COG.N) was the only S&P component to double its stock price in 2011 - rising 100.5 percent - followed by another energy name, El Paso Corp (EP.N), which rose 93.1 percent. The S&P 500 's weakest stock was First Solar (FSLR.O), as shares of that company were hit by falling solar panel prices. For the year, the stock was off 74.1 percent.

Defensive sectors like utilities outperformed growth sectors, underscoring the view that investors were concerned about the economic outlook.

McDonald's Corp (MCD.N) advanced 31 percent this year, making it the Dow's biggest gainer.

Reflecting the wild market swings, the CBOE Volatility Index, or VIX (.VIX), rose about 32 percent for the year, the first increase since 2008. The S&P 500 climbed 9 percent at its peak, and dropped 14.5 percent to its bottom.

One potential silver lining headed into 2012 is that after relatively flat years, the market tends to bounce.

"The other times (the S&P 500) didn't change much during the year, it performed quite well during the next year," said Jason Goepfert, president of SentimenTrader.com in a report.

"Overall, the years after these small-change years did well, especially during the past 50 years."

Of those, the next year returned a median gain of 17.8 percent, according to Goepfert's data. The maximum loss averaged

a decline of only 1.6 percent versus a maximum gain that averaged 20.9 percent. He also noted the final session of the year has not had a great run lately, being positive only 34 percent of the time during the past 30 years.

A DOWNBEAT FRIDAY

On Friday, the Dow Jones industrial average (.DJI) fell 69.48 points, or 0.57 percent, to 12,217.56 at the close. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index (.SPX) slipped 5.42 points, or 0.43 percent, to 1,257.60. The Nasdaq Composite Index (.IXIC) dropped 8.59 points, or 0.33 percent, to 2,605.15.

Daily volume this week has been running about half of the average, with many traders away for the Christmas and New Year's holidays. The anemic action amplified moves in both directions.

European shares closed up on Friday, but recorded their biggest annual drop in three years as debt tensions in the euro zone strained the financial sector and threatened to derail a fragile economic recovery. (.EU)

Some believe investors may have become too panic-stricken about Europe, an issue that will dominate headlines in coming months.

"Most of the Italian debt gets rolled over in the first quarter ... Once that debt's rolled, if it's rolled successfully, then there isn't any more to talk about this subject we've beaten to death for over a year now," said Ken Fisher, chief executive of Fisher Investments.

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For a graphic on 2011 market performance, see:

http://r.reuters.com/xut75s

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Composite volume was 4.07 billion shares on the New York Stock Exchange, the Nasdaq and Amex, well below this year's daily average of about 7.84 billion shares.

Decliners led advancers on the New York Stock Exchange by about 4 to 3, while on the Nasdaq, about three stocks fell for every two that rose.

(Reporting By Angela Moon; Additional reporting by Daniel Bases in New York and Doris Frankel in Chicago; Editing by Jan Paschal)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/stocks/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111230/bs_nm/us_markets_stocks

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Pay off holiday debt

You know that feeling of dread that sinks in during January?

It's that moment when you wince a bit while opening the mailbox because you just know the credit-card bills are going to look and feel heavier than usual. We're all broke in January, and it stinks.

The worst part about having no cash during this time is the fact that all those fabulous, impossible-to-find gifts that our kids just had to have already are broken, discarded or lost. So unfair.

This is usually when we all start swearing that we will never again wait outside Best Buy or the local mall at 2 a.m. on Black Friday.

We promise ourselves that our kids will not get an over-the-top Christmas ever again and that going forward we will make all our own gifts by hand. Period.

What can we do now that Mr. Credit Card Bill is almost due, and we know we've overspent, and we know we're going to be feeling this punishment for some time? Here's are some suggestions:

1. Face it and move on. We splurged, and now the bill is due. The best thing we can do is pay off that credit-card debt as fast as possible. If that means canceling cable for six months, do it.

There's interest in those credit card bills, and that can add up to quite a significant amount more than what you initially paid for the items. Face the debt, find the money and pay it off fast.

2. Consider having a January garage sale and selling off some items to raise some quick cash. If the thought of opening the garage door in January makes your shiver, use eBay to sell things.

3. Offer your services to family, friends and the neighborhood for some spare dough. You could sell your computer set-up skills, help clueless folks navigate the world of Facebook, tutor students in math, teach piano lessons or use whatever other talents you possess. Every bit helps, and every bit should be sent directly to the credit card company.

The goal is to get to February with a paid-off credit card balance and a goal to not go so crazy next year. Good luck!

Paula Sirois is a Florida-based writer who specializes in family life and frugal living for www.RetailMeNot.com.

Source: http://www.postandcourier.com/news/2011/dec/30/pay-off-holiday-debt/

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The American Cancer Society Has a Message for American Women ...

(3BL?Media / theCSRfeed) Atlanta, GA ? December 29, 2011 ? Can putting yourself first be considered an unselfish decision? When it comes to your health, the answer is yes. By putting your health first, you?re not only staying well for you, but also for your loved ones.

One in three women will develop cancer in her lifetime, but about 50 percent of cancer deaths could be prevented if women maintained a healthy weight through diet and regular exercise, avoided tobacco products and got recommended cancer screenings, according to the American Cancer Society. Yet, women are often so busy taking care of others that they struggle to make their own health a priority. In fact, a recent survey by the American Cancer Society showed that while 95 percent of women feel the need to improve their health, approximately three out of five admit they put others? health before their own.

In the constant struggle between family, work and self, how can you put yourself first? Whether sticking to your New Year?s resolution, preparing for swimsuit season or simply wanting to live a healthier lifestyle, here are six tips to help reach your wellness goals:

• Eat right. Healthy eating is difficult in today?s busy world. To help you meet your goals, take time to record your intake in a food journal. A diet that is low in fat, high in fiber, with lots of fruits and vegetables, has been shown to help reduce the risk of developing cancer.

• Get active. Exercise often gets neglected, but just 150 minutes of moderate physical activity each week can reduce your risk of cancer, heart disease, even diabetes. If possible, exercise before work or during lunch, so you can spend time with your family or indulge in ?me-time? once you get home.

• Get recommended health screenings. Prevention and early detection are two of the most powerful tools you have for your health. Make visiting a doctor for preventative care a regular part of your health regimen, and set reminders to schedule important appointments and screenings.

• Quit smoking. Smoking causes one in five deaths in the United States, and a myriad of health problems. There are many tools and resources available online that can help distract you from your cravings and show you just how much those packs of cigarettes cost you over time.

• ?Protect your skin. A majority of skin cancer cases diagnosed in the U.S. are considered to be sun-related. When in the sun, wear protective clothing, sunscreen with an SPF rating of 15 or higher and sunglasses that block UV rays.

Choose You. Commit to making healthy living and early detection a priority by making a Choose You Commitment, a movement developed by the American Cancer Society to help women put their health first to help reduce cancer risk. This online program provides tools and support to enable women to commit to, and achieve their personal health and wellness goals.

ACS19875

Source: http://3blmedia.com/theCSRfeed/American-Cancer-Society-Has-Message-American-Women-%E2%80%9CChoose-You%E2%80%9D

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Second rice shipment to Japan leaves central Taiwan

A shipment of Taiwanese rice bound for Tokyo departed central Taiwan yesterday, the second in a series of three deliveries of the biggest rice order received from Japan in eight years.

A ceremony was held in Changhua County?s Pitou Township (??), where the rice supplier, Union Rice Co, is based, to mark the shipment and the success of Changhua rice in entering Japan?s market.

The rice is being delivered to major Japanese rice importer Kitoku Shinryo Co, which ordered 360 tonnes earlier this year, the largest purchase of rice since exports to Japan were resumed in October 2004.

The rice will be distributed directly to Japanese retailers, the first time Taiwanese rice will be sold to Japanese consumers. In the past, it was mostly sold to wholesalers supplying restaurants or food processors.

Agriculture and Food Agency Director Li Tsang-lang (???) said rice exports have long been constrained by high costs of production, which make Taiwanese rice more expensive than that grown in the US, Thailand and Australia.

Kitoku Shinryo decided to place an order due to the high quality of Taiwan?s rice, he said.

?After the rice passed all tests, they placed an order with us. The success represents positive recognition of the quality of Taiwanese rice and the technology used to process it,? Li said.

The Council of Agriculture said rice exported to Japan must pass 591 pesticide residue tests before being given the green light.

Makoto Hirayama, president of Kitoku Shinryo Co, visited Taiwan last month to inspect paddy fields, barns and processing plants and tasted the rice himself before placing the order.

The order has been partly motivated by the food shortages faced in Japan recently. Radiation contamination of farms from the damaged Fukushima Dai-ichi nuclear power plant and flooding in Niigata, a famous rice production district, have combined to limit Japan?s food output, the council said.

The council was confident that Japanese importers would continue to order rice from Taiwan even after the shortages pass because of the high quality of Taiwanese rice.

Yesterday?s shipment, like the first one, weighed 108 tonnes, with the rice packed in 30kg bags. Upon arrival in Tokyo it was to be repacked before being distributed.

Source: http://libertytimes.feedsportal.com/c/33098/f/535599/s/1b4ec0b0/l/0L0Staipeitimes0N0CNews0Ctaiwan0Carchives0C20A110C120C280C20A0A3521825/story01.htm

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