CBO: Obama budget produces 2013 deficit of $977B

WASHINGTON (AP) ? A new analysis of President Barack Obama's budget for next year says the deficit scenario isn't as rosy as the White House painted it.

Friday's Congressional Budget Office report said Obama's budget would produce a $977 billion deficit next year ? $75 billion more than predicted by the White House.

The nonpartisan CBO said Obama's budget office consistently overestimates tax revenues over the coming decade. CBO predicts revenues on average that are about $120 billion less each year than predicted by the White House.

Still, CBO said Obama's budget would generate somewhat lower deficits over the coming decade than the White House predicts. Much of that is due to lower interest costs and less generous cost-of-living adjustments in Social Security benefits.

The forecasting differences aren't unusual and generally are caused by CBO's less optimistic view of the economy over the next couple of years. The White House forecasts higher income and corporate profits. Over the coming decade, CBO says Obama's policies would result in deficits totaling $6.4 trillion.

For the current budget year, CBO says Obama's policies, if enacted, would generate a $1.25 trillion deficit. That's $74 billion better than the White House forecast but still represents the fourth consecutive year of trillion dollar-plus deficits.

The report is a precursor to the annual budget debate in Congress. House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wis., plans to unveil his budget plan next week, which will call for sharply lower spending on federal health care programs, lower taxes than called for by Obama and less money for the day-to-day budgets of federal agencies than called for in last year's budget and debt pact.

The House GOP measure won't get anywhere with Obama or Democrats controlling the Senate, however. Expectations are low for any election-year progress on the deficit as Obama and his GOP rivals continue to differ on raising taxes and curbing the explosive growth of popular benefit programs like Medicare.

Senate Democrats plan on spending "caps" set by last year's budget pact for an upcoming round of spending bills and don't anticipate scheduling a debate on a broader budget blueprint.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/cbo-obama-budget-produces-2013-deficit-977b-150600585.html

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FusionX: Persistent Cyber Risk Management for the Enterprise ...

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FusionX is a firm made up of long term friends and trusted associates who I have served with for over a decade (including close friends Matt Devost and Tom Parker). I know them well and consider them to be among the most trusted actors in cyber security. Their methods and models help enterprises discover and mitigate risk and enhance overall security posture.

Here is a bit more on what they ?do:

• Cyber Risk Management: ?FusionX has years of proven past performance, something that is hard to come by and too frequently missing from other firms that would like to be in this space. Their background of very high quality work includes helping customers identify risk management strategies focused on mitigating current and emerging threats while protecting intellectual property and maintaining efficient business operations.

• Incident Response: When the bad guys succeed in tricking one of your employees into doing something bad, or when malicious code finds it way into a seam into your network, or when a zero day exploit results in a loss, you need professional incident response. FusionX has developed methods after years of hands-on experience that will enable you to rapidly respond to any incident, and them implement long term strategies to prevent future compromise.

• Vulnerability Assessments and Penetration Testing: ?Building on a 20 year legacy in providing vulnerability assessments, FusionX has comprehensive methods that will give you the information you need to reduce your vulnerabilities and attack surface. These methods include tools but more importantly include the most savvy security engineers.

• Incident Discovery and Security Management: Most enterprises today lack the ability to determine if a sophisticated adversary has compromised their network or IT resources. The FusionX team has helped confirm adversary action and works to mitigate incidents after discovery.

FusionX is the team to reach out to when you need world-class-best talent. I would recommend establishing a relationship with FusionX now, instead of waiting till you are in a crisis. When things go bad you want FusionX on your team.

For more information see http://fusionx.com

?

---

Tags Business, Computer security, Consultants, Cyber Security, FusionX, Matt Devost, Penetration test, Risk management, Security, Tom Parker, Vulnerability assessment

Source: http://ctolist.com/2012/03/fusionx-persistent-cyber-risk-management-for-the-enterprise/

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Inside Advice For Those Interested In Commercial Real Estate ...

Know what your goals are when you are purchasing commercial property. Decide if you are going to use the property for your business or lease it. Have clear and specific goals before looking for commercial property. It will save a lot of time and effort with your narrowed-down results.

Take photos with a digital camera. Include all the defects in the photo, such as carpet stains, or holes in the walls.

The Net Operating Income, or NOI, is one metric you need to master for success in commercial real estate. Staying in the positive is what you need to do to succeed.

Try to make sure you have a good attorney when you go through with financing your real estate properties. If something suddenly comes up and causes problems you will need to have someone on your side who can clear you of any wrong-doing.

An honest broker should be willing to answer questions about how they earn their money. This should be a topic that can be openly discussed and should allow you to learn if there are shared interests between you and them. Understand that there is still a profitable business to be ran behind the curtains, but a good firm will find an agreeable median between their financial needs and your real estate demands.

Find out how any firm you have under consideration defines success. Learn how they determine how much space is needed, the property selection criteria, the negotiation methods, and other details that can affect you. Knowing these things prior to signing on with them will be beneficial.

When you are negotiating to rent a commercial property, try to have the lease modified so there are few events that are considered to be defaulting on the lease. This will greatly lessen the likelihood that the tenant might default. You do not want this to happen to you.

Put a high priority on emergency maintenance needs. Speak with your landlord, and ask who is in charge of emergency repair work at your home or office. Have their phone number handy and know how long it will take them to arrive in an emergency. Create an emergency plan using your landlord?s information so that you can protect customer service and your reputation in case of a disruption to your usual business.

Now, you will now be more prepared when you are dealing with commercial real estate. You may have thought you were already well prepared, but look at how much you?ve just learned! Armed with this new information, hopefully you are ready to go out and start a successful journey in the commercial real estate market.

Sim Sadler is a real estate expert and has been buying and selling commercial real estate for over 25 years, through every market you can imagine.

Source: http://www.simsadler.net/inside-advice-for-those-interested-in-commercial-real-estate/

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Is the LHC throwing away too much data?

IT'S the sort of thing that keeps particle hunters up at night. What if the Large Hadron Collider only turns up the Higgs boson and nothing else? That nightmare would leave the hunt for new physics at a dead end - a fate that could perhaps be avoided if the LHC hung onto more of its data.

Physicists celebrate even tentative signs of the Higgs (see "Still on the run"). Thought to give all other particles mass, the Higgs is the last undiscovered particle in the standard model, our most successful theory for how particles and forces interact.

The trouble is the standard model is incomplete, since it has nothing to say about gravity or dark matter. Unfortunately, no new particles have been found that might point the way to a more powerful theory (see "11 particles for 11 physics puzzles"). "It could be the situation a year from now that nothing will be found at the LHC other than the Higgs," says Tomer Volansky of Tel Aviv University in Israel. "In that situation, we won't really know what to do next."

See graphic: "Where the Higgs could still lie"

At a meeting in La Thuile, Italy, last week, Volansky proposed a solution: the LHC, which is at CERN, near Geneva in Switzerland, should save more of its data. The accelerator's computers only record data when prompted by certain triggers, which are set for expected outcomes, like the particles produced when the simplest version of the Higgs decays. Volansky says we should look for signs of more exotic - and unlikely - physics, such as a new force beyond the four we already know. "We should drop our prejudice and look for anything that is possible," he says. "If we won't check, we won't know."

Others say it is not possible to save more data without extra funding or processing time. The LHC's CMS detector, for example, takes the equivalent of 40 million pictures, each with a resolution of 1 billion pixels, every second. "Storing all the LHC data is impractical," says Sridhara Dasu of the University of Wisconsin in Madison, who helped develop the detector's trigger system.

Steven Lowette, another CMS team member at the University of California, Santa Barbara, agrees. Taking more data for one search means taking less for another. "The total will always need to fit in the same bandwidth," he says.

He adds that the hunt for the Higgs will take priority this year, but that when the LHC fires up again in 2015 after a two-year upgrade, it could start to look for more exotic physics. "Searching further in overlooked corners can always come later," Lowette says. "Bandwidth can always be reshuffled in case a new signature gains a high enough priority."

Still, saving even a little more data would give a "taste of exotic events that may encode important information", Volansky says. "No one has told us the answer [to what lies beyond the standard model], so sometimes we have to search in the dark."

Still On the run...

The most wanted particle in physics is still on the loose.

In December, each of the Large Hadron Collider's main detectors, CMS and ATLAS, reported seeing a hint of the Higgs at a mass of about 125 gigaelectronvolts, around 133 times the mass of a proton.

Now one of those groups seems to have lost the scent. At a conference last week in La Thuile, Italy, the ATLAS team reported that the statistical significance of its December signal had weakened on closer inspection.

That signal was based on only two of the Higgs's five possible decay routes, or channels - one that decays into four particles called leptons, and the other into two gamma-ray photons. The new ATLAS result involves the remaining three channels - when the Higgs decays into two W particles, two tau particles, or a bottom quark and a bottom antiquark.

Those three channels so far show no sign of the Higgs, says Sandra Kortner of the Max Planck Institute for Physics in Munich, Germany. But Matthew Strassler of Rutgers University in Piscataway, New Jersey, points out that these three channels create some particles that ATLAS cannot detect. That means the channels carry less information about the Higgs than the two from December, which are "the ones that will be really convincing over time", he says.

Indeed, combining all five channels still leaves room for the Higgs, says Kortner. "We still need more data to really tell." If the LHC operates as planned, the Higgs will be pinned down by the end of 2012.

If you would like to reuse any content from New Scientist, either in print or online, please contact the syndication department first for permission. New Scientist does not own rights to photos, but there are a variety of licensing options available for use of articles and graphics we own the copyright to.

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NH city's new military muscle raises some hackles

A photograph of the Bearcat anti-terrorism vehicle, which will be acquired by the police force in Keene, N.H. under a $286,000 federal grant for high-terror threat areas.

By Kari Huus, msnbc.com

The city of Keene, N.H., population 23,000, nestled in a valley in the state's southwest corner,?may not be the first place that comes to mind as a terrorism target, but this summer it will take delivery on a $286,000 armored vehicle, compliments of the Department of Homeland Security.

The Lenco "BearCat,"?fitted with thermal imaging, radiation and explosive gas detection systems, gun mounts and rotating hatch is but one example of the kind of quasi-military equipment that has been acquired by local and state law enforcement agencies through billions of dollars worth of federal grant money in the last decade.

"The specialized-mission CBRNE/WMD rescue vehicle will help to guard against a terrorist or (chemical, biological, nuclear, and enhanced conventional weapons/weapons of mass destruction) incident," said the successful federal grant application filed by the city.

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The application noted that?Keene hosts several events that draw large crowds each year --?such as the annual Pumpkin Festival and Clarence DeMar Marathon --?lies on major corridor used by trucks carrying hazardous materials and?is a designated evacuation area if there is a nuclear accident at Vermont Yankee Nuclear Power Plant in Vernon, Vt.? It also?pointed out that the city?is situated on two flood prone rivers, and Bearcats have proven useful for rescues?and patrols during?natural disasters.

The Keene City Council voted on Dec. 15?to accept the Homeland Security grant for the equipment as requested by the police. Approval was unsurprising, said?City Manager John MacLean.

"The council saw it like I did," said MacLean, "as a legitimate request ... to make safe our department and our community by the use of a too. ? It didn?t occur to everybody how big an issue it would be for other reasons."

MacLean was referring to?swift and furious opposition that surfaced soon after the vote,?from the liberal wing of the college town, from Libertarian and Tea Party members and?from activists from as far away as New Mexico, according to local politicians. ?

"Almost the next day, the calls started to come into the radio station, the newspaper was inundated with letters to the editor for the next several weeks, extraordinary because the deal was supposed to be done," said Terry Clark, a councilman who had voted against using the grant. "There was so much about this issue not to like."

Clark opposed the use of the grant because he thought it wrong to for the U.S. government to lavish money on military grade equipment at the same time it is making deep cuts in funding for education and other mandated programs ? costs that he says are now falling on local property taxpayers.

"I thought it was just unconscionable," he said. "The city of Keene doesn?t have to enable these people. We can tell them 'no, we don?t think this is a good way to spend money."

Clark lobbied for the City Council to hold public discussion and then take a new vote.? It did so this month, then?again voted to approve the Bearcat purchase, though?by fewer votes this time.

Across the country ? in major cities, but also in relatively rural settings ? police have added armored vehicles, hazmat protection, body armor, riot gear, drones and other military grade gear to their toolboxes in the decade since the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

According to a recent report by the Center for Investigative Reporting, the federal government has doled out some $34 billion in grants like the one approved for the?Keene police force.

When some of that gear was visibly employed for crowd control during the recent Occupy protests, it fueled controversy about how the equipment was to be used.

But some law enforcers say the equipment provides a sense of security.

In Bossier Parish, La., the sheriff?s department acquired a Ballistic Armored Tactical Transport -- a heavily armored vehicle that has gun ports and a turret -- in 2009 with federal grant money. The vehicle was?a tool for the SWAT team to use in the event of a high-threat situation, according to public information officer Bill Davis.

"If you?ve got an active shooter and he has some heavy weaponry we need to be one step ahead," said Davis.

The BATT has been used only for training so far, he said, comparing it?tp the handguns officers carry.

"People want to know if the cavalry needs to be called out, we?re coming. ... We are no longer Mayberry," he added, referring to the northwest Louisiana parish. "This is the fastest growing parish in Louisiana and with that growth is the potential of more crime in the area, and we want to be prepared."

In Keene, MacLean, the city manager, said the debate over the BearCat purchase opened some eyes on both sides of the debate.

"I think we have two sets of conversations going, both of which are legitimate," he said.?"The (police) chief said it could save lives? If this has potential to save lives, and the lives of the people they work with, why wouldn?t they (acquire it)? But it?s been brought into a separate conversation about militarization of the police."

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Source: http://usnews.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2012/03/14/10689730-nh-citys-new-military-muscle-raises-some-hackles

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Video: Looking ahead to Louisiana

Big brands may be tied to dogs' jerky illnesses

Complaints, product samples and medical records collected from pet owners and veterinarians suggest that at least three popular brands of jerky treats may be associated with the illnesses, according to internal Food and Drug Administration documents obtained by msnbc.com.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036697/vp/46726107#46726107

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How to Be Great at Public Speaking (even when you are a nervous ...

Why?

We fear ridicule.

We think that everyone will point and laugh.

We think we will forget what we are going to say.

We think we will look down and realize that we forgot to get dressed.

?

A few points to remember that WILL make you better at public speaking:

1) Prepare your information.

Over prepare. Outline, use notecards, Speaker?s Notes in Power Point, I write what I want to say in long hand.
Why? This helps me remember.
The goal is to know the material and ?speak? to your audience.

This is NOT the same thing as reading your notes to your audience.

?

2) Remember: The audience wants you to succeed.

Honestly. They aren?t waiting around for you to fail. Your audience wants you to be comfortable, be informed, and give them the information you came to deliver.

Most of them are just sitting there being thankful that they aren?t having to do what you are doing! (And, some are thinking about what they need to get at the grocery store on the way home?)

?

3) Find one or two relaxation techniques and USE THEM.

Deep breaths.?Visual images of giving a great speech. Positive sayings. Prayers. Listening to ?your? music immediately before giving the speech.

When I first started public speaking, I would be so nervous that I would have to run cold water over my wrists and splash some on my face. It calmed me down enough to do it, and the more that I did public speaking, the more confident I became.

4) Remember past successes

Gave a presentation in front of a class, that counts. Presented training at work, that counts. Gave a Power Point presentation for the PTA, that counts. (**Seth Godin has excellent FREE resources for avoiding really bad Powerpoint.**)

Think?back on any times that you?ve spoke in front of a group of any size (more than one or two people), and use that to build your confidence.

5) Keep at it

The BEST way to become great at public speaking is ??keep putting yourself in that situation.

The good news is there are almost always groups that would love for someone to volunteer to come and give a presentation. And, when you get your momentum going, people will start asking you. Good public speakers are in short supply!

?

?

If you have tricks you use to help you overcome a fear of public speaking, I?d love for you to share in the comments!

?

?

Quick Reminder: Goodreads Giveaway for signed copy of Josephine: Red Dirt & Whiskey ends March 31. Enter!

?

?

?  photo credit: Thomas Hawk via photopin cc

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About melindamcguirewrites

The young man or woman writing today has forgotten the problems of the human heart in conflict with itself which alone can make good writing because only that is worth writing about, worth the agony and the sweat. ------ William Faulkner, Nobel Prize Speech, Stockholm, 1950

Source: http://melindamcguirewrites.wordpress.com/2012/03/09/how-to-be-great-at-public-speaking-even-when-you-are-a-nervous-wreck/

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Why Should You Appoint Painting Contractors for Your Home ...

Interior and exterior painting isn?t an easy but a demanding task. At one point of time, every homeowner gets tempted to handle his home improvement job independently. But doing it all by yourself isn?t as simple as it seems to be. Quite often the first timers are keen on tackling the painting projects but gradually confides in the ability of professional painting contractors.

For homeowners desiring self home improvement painting task, interior painting is an easy-to-do option. But to draw closer to sufficing professional effect, hiring a paint sprayer is a good idea. The painters hold qualifying knowledge about the choice of paints suited for the type of wall, the adverse effect of various paints, mixing of colors and the painting techniques. Instead of doing it yourself, estimate the expenses and judge the ability of different contractors to make a sensible choice.

If the homeowners put hands on exterior painting, they tend to find the task far more challenging than interior painting.

Beginners never exposed to choosing paints end up making a mistaken selection of painting material. Here, hiring a professional painter is more justifiable as he understands the pros and cons of painting. They are well versed with the leading paint brands in the market and know from where to buy. The painting technique, spraying tools, specialty brushes and other equipments carried by expert painters are a must for effective and faster painting project.

Painting calls for lot of hard work and the tediousness involved in the task forces the homeowners to rush to the service of professional painters.

But just hiring one for your home improvement isn?t enough. Select the best painting expert who is specialized in the task and make sure that specialty service is delivered efficiently. Any wrong decision on your behalf can lead to disappointment and spoil the overall look of your home.

Discuss your needs and requirements with the company you are hiring. Tell them about the sort of painting you prefer and the expenses you can bear. Quite often you jump into conclusions and select a wrong painting company. Remember, a good painting expert polishes your idea and brings to you your dream house. You can?t afford to compromise on the quality of contractor you choose who paints your house with rejuvenating colors. An efficient painting expert puts a lot more effort in researching and answering to your queries, rather than just doing his assigned work.

By selecting a reputed painting company, you can be assured that the job gets done rightly. You are unlikely to run a loss when you select a painting expert who knows the technicality of the job. So, appoint painting contractors for good execution of the job and feel elated watching your home painted with fresh and soothing colors.

Interior and exterior painting isn?t an easy but a demanding task. At one point of time, every homeowner gets tempted to handle his home improvement job independently. But doing it all by yourself isn?t as simple as it seems to be. Quite often the first timers are keen on tackling the painting projects but gradually confides in the ability of professional painting contractors.

For homeowners desiring self home improvement painting task, interior painting is an easy-to-do option. But to draw closer to sufficing professional effect, hiring a paint sprayer is a good idea. The painters hold qualifying knowledge about the choice of paints suited for the type of wall, the adverse effect of various paints, mixing of colors and the painting techniques. Instead of doing it yourself, estimate the expenses and judge the ability of different contractors to make a sensible choice.

If the homeowners put hands on exterior painting, they tend to find the task far more challenging than interior painting. Beginners never exposed to choosing paints end up making a mistaken selection of painting material. Here, hiring a professional painter is more justifiable as he understands the pros and cons of painting. They are well versed with the leading paint brands in the market and know from where to buy. The painting technique, spraying tools, specialty brushes and other equipments carried by expert painters are a must for effective and faster painting project.

Painting calls for lot of hard work and the tediousness involved in the task forces the homeowners to rush to the service of professional painters. But just hiring one for your home improvement isn?t enough. Select the best painting expert who is specialized in the task and make sure that specialty service is delivered efficiently. Any wrong decision on your behalf can lead to disappointment and spoil the overall look of your home.

Discuss your needs and requirements with the company you are hiring. Tell them about the sort of painting you prefer and the expenses you can bear. Quite often you jump into conclusions and select a wrong painting company. Remember, a good painting expert polishes your idea and brings to you your dream house. You can?t afford to compromise on the quality of contractor you choose who paints your house with rejuvenating colors. An efficient painting expert puts a lot more effort in researching and answering to your queries, rather than just doing his assigned work.

By selecting a reputed painting company, you can be assured that the job gets done rightly. You are unlikely to run a loss when you select a painting expert who knows the technicality of the job. So, appoint painting contractors for good execution of the job and feel elated watching your home painted with fresh and soothing colors.

We are renowned painting contractors and expertise in innovative interior and exterior designing. Whenever you are thinking about designing your home interiors or exterior walls or decorate your living room, please don?t hesitate to contact us. You can rely on our services without any second thought.

Source: http://www.1directory.net/home-improvement/why-should-you-appoint-painting-contractors-for-your-home-improvement-18542.html

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Video: Palin, Maher side with Limbaugh

When the Internet and school violence fears collide

"He'd be the type to bring a gun to school." These words ? or something close ? were allegedly uttered by a female student in a high school last Friday in Girard, Pa., about one hour's drive from Chardon, Ohio, where a shooting killed three students.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/3036697/vp/46660124#46660124

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