Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/181042551?client_source=feed&format=rss
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Friday, December 30, 2011
Thursday, December 29, 2011
Over 65 million years, North American mammal evolution has tracked with climate change
ScienceDaily (Dec. 27, 2011) ? Climate changes profoundly influenced the rise and fall of six distinct, successive waves of mammal species diversity in North America over the last 65 million years, shows a novel statistical analysis led by Brown University evolutionary biologists. Warming and cooling periods, in two cases confounded by species migrations, marked the transition from one dominant grouping to the next.
History often seems to happen in waves -- fashion and musical tastes turn over every decade and empires give way to new ones over centuries. A similar pattern characterizes the last 65 million years of natural history in North America, where a novel quantitative analysis has identified six distinct, consecutive waves of mammal species diversity or "evolutionary faunas." What force of history determined the destiny of these groupings? The numbers say it was typically climate change.
"Although we've always known in a general way that mammals respond to climatic change over time, there has been controversy as to whether this can be demonstrated in a quantitative fashion," said Christine Janis, professor of evolutionary biology at Brown University. "We show that the rise and fall of these faunas is indeed correlated with climatic change -- the rise or fall of global paleotemperatures -- and also influenced by other more local perturbations such as immigration events."
Specifically, of the six waves of species diversity that Janis and her Spanish collaborators recently describe online in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, four show statistically significant correlations with major changes in temperature. The two transitions that show a weaker but still apparent correlation with the pattern correspond to periods when mammals from other continents happened to invade in large numbers, said Janis, who is the paper's senior and second author.
Previous studies of the potential connection between climate change and mammal species evolution have counted total species diversity in the fossil record over similar time periods. But in this analysis, led by postdoctoral scholar Borja Figueirido, the scientists asked whether there were any patterns within the species diversity that might be significant. They were guided by a similar methodology pioneered in a study of "evolutionary faunas" in marine invertebrates by Janis' late husband Jack Sepkoski, who was a paleontologist at the University of Chicago.
What the authors found is six distinct and consecutive groupings of mammal species that shared a common rise, peak, and decline in their numbers. For example, the "Paleocene fauna" had largely given way to the "early-middle Eocene fauna" by about 50 million years ago. Moreover, the authors found that these transfers of dominance correlated with temperature shifts, as reflected in data on past levels of atmospheric oxygen (determined from the isotopes in the fossilized remains of deep sea microorganisms).
By the numbers, the research showed correlations between species diversity and temperature change, but qualitatively, it also provided a narrative of how the traits of typical species within each wave made sense given the changes in vegetation that followed changes in climate. For example, after a warming episode about 20 million years in the early Miocene epoch, the dominant vegetation transitioned from woodland to a savannah-like grassland. It is no surprise, therefore, that many of the herbivores that comprised the accompanying "Miocene fauna" had high-crowned teeth that allowed them to eat the foods from those savannah sources.
To the extent that the study helps clarify scientists' understanding of evolution amid climate changes, it does not do so to the extent that they can make specific predictions about the future, Janis said. But it seems all the clearer that climate change has repeatedly had meaningful effect over millions of years.
"Such perturbations, related to anthropogenic climatic change, are currently challenging the fauna of the world today, emphasizing the importance of the fossil record for our understanding of how past events affected the history of faunal diversification and extinction, and hence how future climactic changes may continue to influence life on earth," the authors wrote in the paper.
In addition to Janis and Figueirido at Brown, the other authors are Juan Perez-Claros and Paul Palmqvist at the University of Malaga and Miguel De Renzi at the University of Valencia in Spain. Figueirido is also affiliated with Malaga.
Grants from the Fulbright program, the Bushnell Foundation (to Brown) and the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation funded the research.
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Journal Reference:
- Borja Figueirido, Christine M. Janis, Juan A. P?rez-Claros, Miquel De Renzi, and Paul Palmqvist. Cenozoic climate change influences mammalian evolutionary dynamics. PNAS, December 27, 2011 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.1110246108
Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.
Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.
Source: http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/12/111227093055.htm
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India tycoon's got tons of cash, nowhere to invest
In this Monday, Dec. 19, 2011 photo, billionaire Indian tycoon Ajay Piramal speaks during an interview with the Associated Press at his office in Mumbai, India. In May last year, Piramal's healthcare business sold its generic drug operations to U.S. pharmaceutical giant Abbott Laboratories for $3.8 billion. Piramal was eager to set that cash pile to work and wanted to expand one of his chemical plants, but was told it would take five years. With the country mired in corruption, bureaucratic red tape and unclear and changing government policies, many of the men who made their billions here are saying maybe it's time to quit India. It's got to be easier to do business elsewhere. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)
In this Monday, Dec. 19, 2011 photo, billionaire Indian tycoon Ajay Piramal speaks during an interview with the Associated Press at his office in Mumbai, India. In May last year, Piramal's healthcare business sold its generic drug operations to U.S. pharmaceutical giant Abbott Laboratories for $3.8 billion. Piramal was eager to set that cash pile to work and wanted to expand one of his chemical plants, but was told it would take five years. With the country mired in corruption, bureaucratic red tape and unclear and changing government policies, many of the men who made their billions here are saying maybe it's time to quit India. It's got to be easier to do business elsewhere. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)
In this Monday, Dec. 19, 2011 photo, billionaire Indian tycoon Ajay Piramal speaks during an interview with the Associated Press at his office in Mumbai, India. In May last year, Piramal's healthcare business sold its generic drug operations to U.S. pharmaceutical giant Abbott Laboratories for $3.8 billion. Piramal was eager to set that cash pile to work and wanted to expand one of his chemical plants, but was told it would take five years. With the country mired in corruption, bureaucratic red tape and unclear and changing government policies, many of the men who made their billions here are saying maybe it's time to quit India. It's got to be easier to do business elsewhere. (AP Photo/Rafiq Maqbool)
MUMBAI, India (AP) ? Ajay Piramal is sitting on a mountain of cash. Yet the billionaire Indian tycoon, working in one of the world's fastest growing economies, is struggling to figure out what to do with the money.
The problem isn't opportunity, he said. It's India.
"Every large investment, there was no transparency," Piramal said.
His dilemma is a worrying sign for India. With the country mired in corruption, bureaucratic red tape and unclear and changing government policies, many of the men who made their billions here are saying maybe it's time to quit India. It's got to be easier to do business elsewhere.
In May last year, Piramal's healthcare business sold its generic drug operations to U.S. pharmaceutical giant Abbott Laboratories for $3.8 billion. Piramal, a tall big man in a country that still measures prosperity by girth, was eager to set that cash pile to work. He wanted to expand one of his chemical plants, but was told it would take five years.
"The same plant could be set up in China in two years," he said. "I love India, but my customer is not going to wait."
India, still a beacon of relatively fast growth despite a troubled world economy, should be a magnet for capital. Instead, since the beginning of 2010, the amount that Indians have invested in businesses overseas has exceeded the amount foreigners are investing in India, according to central bank figures.
In part this reflects the confidence and aptitude of India's maturing companies and the current malaise in the global economy and financial markets. But it also reflects deep problems at home. India's big coporations may be cash rich but the failure to invest that money domestically is bad news for a developing country that needs capital to build the roads, power plants and food warehouses that could help lift hundreds of millions out of dire poverty.
The frustration of India's business elite with corruption, political paralysis, log-jammed approvals, regulatory flip-flops, lack of access to natural resources and land acquisition battles ? to pick a few of the top complaints ? has reached a pitch perhaps not heard since India began liberalizing its economy in the early 1990s.
"If you are an honest businessman in India, it's very difficult to start up anything," said Jamshyd Godrej, chairman of manufacturing giant Godrej & Boyce. "Companies are going to operate where they see the best opportunities and efficiency for their capital."
Increasingly, that's outside India.
In 2008, foreigners poured roughly twice as much direct investment into India ? $33 billion ? as Indians plowed into businesses overseas. By 2010, that had reversed: Indians invested $40 billion abroad ? twice as much as foreigners invested in India ? a trend that's continued this year.
There is another, unspoken element to all the complaints. To the extent that business in India ran on corruption, some of the old, dirty ways of doing things are being disrupted, freezing India's already glacial bureaucracy, business leaders say.
Scandals in the staging of the Commonwealth Games, the pilfering of homes meant for war widows and the irregular auction of cellphone spectrum that cost the country billions has sent parliamentarians and even a Cabinet minister to prison.
With Indians tiring of the incessant graft, tens of thousands of middle-class protesters poured into the streets and pushed an anti-corruption bill onto the floor of Parliament.
Steelmakers can't get enough iron ore because a massive mining scandal in the southern state of Karnataka prompted a court to order the closure of illicit mines that account for a fifth of iron ore production in the country.
The bureaucrats ? even the honest ones ? are reportedly so scared of being punished they are refusing to make the decisions needed to make the country run.
Piramal is not unpatriotic. Each room in his executive suite is named after an Indian epic hero: Arjuna, the most pure; Dhananjay, acquirer and master of wealth. There's a quote from the Upanishads scriptures on the wall.
His office sits in a one million square foot office park in Mumbai his family built. The buildings around him ? white with blue glass that flashes back the unforgiving sun ? bear his own name in large black letters: Piramal Towers.
Piramal had the will and the means to build power plants and roads.
Instead, his Piramal Group's largest investment to date has been in one of the office park's tenants: the Indian subsidiary of the British telecom giant Vodafone Plc.
Last September, when he got the first payout, of $2.2 billion, from Abbott, the phone started ringing.
"Because people knew we had money, we had so many people approaching us for projects in the infrastructure sector," he said. "These people had no experience and no knowledge and no track record of having built a business in any area. And yet they were coming to us saying we have licenses and approvals. That just didn't sound right or smell right."
Each day, they paraded through his office: The investment banker who decided to build a 500 megawatt power plant, the coal trader assured of a government coal allocation, small-time miners with pretty presentations promising land, licenses and financing.
"They'd name politicians from the center and the state who had it all tied up for them," he said. "It didn't sound right. Obviously there were things going on in the system."
Road and port projects weren't much better, he said.
Piramal also looked at investing in engineering and infrastructure services companies, but couldn't make sense of their books.
"We couldn't find anything," he said. "People get greedy. In their desire to get good valuations they resort to, if I can say, creative accounting."
Today, India's infrastructure companies are known as great wealth destroyers.
"Infrastructure investment has become untouchable, a sure way of losing money," said Jagannadham Thunuguntla, head of research at SMC Global Securities. He calculates that four of India's top infrastructure companies ? GMR Infrastructure, GVK Power and Infrastructure, Lanco Infratech and Punj Lloyd ? have lost over 80 percent of their value since 2007. A fifth, Larson & Toubro is down 50 percent.
Piramal may have dodged a bullet, but shareholders in Piramal Healthcare aren't happy. Despite a $600 million special dividend and share buyback, the share price has sagged since the Abbott deal was announced on May 21 last year. They'd like to see the Abbott cash productively deployed. Instead, much of it is sitting in fixed deposit accounts.
Piramal said he really does want to run a pharmaceutical company and be the first Indian company to discover a world-class drug ? despite his dabbling in telecom, financial services and real estate financing. It's just that pharma can't absorb all his cash. He plans to sell the 5.5 percent stake he picked up in Vodafone Essar for $640 million in a few years, when Vodafone Essar issues shares in an initial public offering, he said.
He has also launched Piramal Capital, to make real estate and infrastructure loans, and spent about $50 million to acquire IndiaReit, a real estate investment company.
Meanwhile, his thoughts have turned to Boston, where he set up IndUS Growth Partners with a professor from Harvard Business School to look for buying opportunities in the U.S., in security, financial services and biotechnology. And he said he's still planning to spend over a billion dollars on biotechnology acquisitions in North America and Europe.
"India was going more towards capitalism than socialism," Piramal said. "I think we're going back. Capitalism went to too much excess. Corruption levels went to the extreme."
He said he'll announce his first overseas acquisition by March.
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Wednesday, December 28, 2011
DOS entradas ROGER WATERS 7/3 Vip Front, Sector B, fila 10
42177965
Vendo DOS entradas para campo VIP FRONT, SECTOR B, FILA 10 para el primer recital de ROGER WATERS de su gira THE WALL en Buenos Aires, es decir el recital del mi?rcoles 7/3.****El precio es por las dos entradas.****
NO es reventa. Las vendo al mismo precio que las pagu?. Voy a ir a otra funci?n y por eso estoy vendiendo este par.
El comprador se hace cargo del costo de env?o.
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Tuesday, December 27, 2011
Ethiopia jails two Swedish journalists for aiding (Reuters)
ADDIS ABABA (Reuters) ? An Ethiopian court sentenced two Swedish journalists on Tuesday to 11 years in prison for helping and promoting the outlawed Ogaden National Liberation Front (ONLF) rebel group and entering the country illegally, a judge said.
Reporter Martin Schibbye and photographer Johan Persson were arrested in July after they entered Ethiopia's Ogaden province from Somalia's semi-autonomous Puntland region with a team of ONLF fighters.
"The court has sentenced both defendants to 11 years. We have heard both cases ... and we believe this is an appropriate sentence," Judge Shemsu Sirgaga told the court.
Both journalists looked at the judge without expression as the sentence was being read out and then translated by their defense lawyer, a witness said. No family members were present.
The sentencing is likely to cause outcry in Sweden, where last week's guilty verdicts provoked anger in Swedish media amid accusations the case had taken on a political dimension.
The journalists' lawyer said his clients were weighing the option of an appeal, but that for now there was no talk of pleading for clemency.
"We are only talking about the possibility of appealing for the time being, which follows judicial procedure," defense lawyer Sileshi Ketsela told Reuters.
(Writing by Richard Lough; Editing by Yara Bayoumy)
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Egypt Military Ruler Suspends Military Court Sentences Against Ninety Civilians
Hussein Tantawi uses his authority as head of Egypt's military council to suspend sentences made against Ninety civilians tried in front of military courts.
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Field Marshal Hussein Tantawi, head of the Supreme Council of the Armed Forces (SCAF) issued a decree on Monday suspending the implementation of sentences handed down against 90 civilians.?
Activists have been campaigning against the trying of civilians in military courts ever since the SCAF took over power after the ouster of Mubarak. Some 12,000 Egyptians are estimated to be currently detained by order of the military prosecution.
[Developed in partnership with Ahram Online.]
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Source: http://www.jadaliyya.com/pages/index/3775/egypt-military-ruler-suspends-military-court-sente
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Monday, December 26, 2011
Microsoft Corporation Xbox 360 250 GB Kinect Holiday Bundle (S9G-00005)
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Gingrich Will Attempt to Mount Write-in Campaign for Virginia GOP Primary
Bill Clark/CQ Roll Call File Photo
Updated: 1:15 p.m.
The presidential campaign of former Speaker Newt Gingrich today blamed "a failed system" for the Georgian's inability to qualify for the Virginia Republican primary next year, vowing to pursue a write-in campaign to secure its candidate's place on the ballot.
Gingrich and Texas Gov. Rick Perry failed to submit the required 10,000 valid signatures to qualify for the ballot, the Republican Party of Virginia announced late Friday.
"Voters deserve the right to vote for any top contender, especially leading candidates. We will work with the Republican Party of Virginia to pursue an aggressive write-in campaign to make sure that all the voters of Virginia are able to vote for the candidates of their choice," Gingrich Campaign Director Michael Krull said in a release. However, the commonwealth does not allow write-ins in its primary elections."
Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney and Rep. Ron Paul (Texas) qualified for the ballot, having turned in the required number of valid signatures.
The Virginia Democratic Party announced Friday that President Barack Obama also submitted the required number of signatures. Furthermore, the party said that because Obama is the only Democratic candidate for president, the State Board of Elections is expected to cancel its primary and allow the Commonwealth's Democrats to forward all their delegates to the national convention to cast their vote for him.
Sunday, December 25, 2011
Alistair Overeem Anticipating a Title Bout Against Junior Dos Santos
If there is one cardinal rule in mixed martial arts, it's to never look past an opponent.?
Alistair Overeem is prepared to meet Brock Lesnar at UFC 141 next weekend, where the winner will likely slot themselves in for an opportunity to challenge UFC heavyweight champion Junior dos Santos.?
Apparently, Overeem already sees himself standing opposite to the champion in his next bout.?
"Style-wise, dos Santos is going to be an excellent fight for me -- striker against striker,? Overeem told ESPN.com.
A reigning champion in multiple organizations, Overeem is confident in his skills and abilities to dethrone the Brazilian and believes his experience gives him a distinct advantage over dos Santos as well.?
The Dutch striker envisions himself defeating Lesnar in quick and dominant fashion, en route to a future matchup with the champion, where he attributes a lot of dos Santos' success to his superior boxing.
"I?must say that he is very dangerous with his hands. He?s got a lot [of power] in both punches; he?s clever and he?s fast," he said.
The idea of witnessing the two strikers competing against each other provides for an intriguing bout in the future, but that would require Overeem to walk away with the victory next weekend. Although he hopes to dispose of Lesnar, the win won't necessarily come convincingly for the 255-pound Overeem.?
However, the Demolition Man intends on making a statement in his UFC debut, while making his claim for a UFC title shot.
"I don?t see it going past the first or second round, second round maximum," he said.
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Saturday, December 24, 2011
DBS Finds Few Winners In Chinese Insurance Market
By Chris Aylott
Macroeconomic headwinds have chilled DBS Group?s forecast for the Chinese insurance market, but underdog Ping An (PNGAY.PK) may be a good buy for adventurous investors.
Analyst Ping Cheng has assigned a ?neutral? rating to the sector, citing China?s high benchmark interest rate and an underwhelming equity market. Cheng projects low double-digit growth for insurance in 2012, which would be good news anywhere but China.
Cheng says life insurance lost its growth engine when regulatory changes affected insurers? use of Chinese banks as a distribution platform. ?Bancassurance? contributed 80% of China Life (LFC) and China Pacific?s new business in 2010.
Insurers are building an agency-based sales channel, but so far this only offsets some of the volume loss from banks. Recruiting agents is difficult in China?s busy job market, and insurers are still mastering the operational systems needed for high agent productivity.
Cheng identifies Ping An Insurance as ?ahead of the competition? in transitioning to agency distribution and integrated systems. Ping An is Cheng?s top pick, with a projected 23% upside.
Ping An is mostly traded in Hong Kong ? PNGAY is not always going to be extremely liquid.
But since it is not a major component of Global X?s China Financials ETF (CHIX), U.S. investors looking for a toehold in the Chinese insurance market may want to look at these over-the-counter shares after all.
Source: http://seekingalpha.com/article/315620-dbs-finds-few-winners-in-chinese-insurance-market?source=feed
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Trump drops Republican Party registration in NY (omg!)
NEW YORK (AP) ? Billionaire businessman Donald Trump has changed his voter registration in New York state from Republican to unaffiliated.
A spokesman for Trump says the businessman and television host changed his affiliation to preserve his option to seek the presidency in 2012.
Special Counsel Michael Cohen said Friday that Trump could enter the race if Republicans fail to nominate a candidate who can defeat President Barack Obama.
He said Trump probably would use his substantial wealth to even the playing field with Obama's re-election campaign.
Cohen said Trump's commitment to hosting TV's "The Apprentice" will keep him from doing anything until May, when the show's season wraps up.
He said Trump filed his voter registration paperwork Thursday.
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Friday, December 23, 2011
Schwartz named Canada's captain
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Jaden Schwartz?s leadership skills were obvious before he even arrived at Team Canada?s training camp.
He was the obvious choice as captain and had the C stitched onto his Team Canada jersey Thursday.
Coaches love guys who have character and experience, guys who have battled.
Schwartz has fought through an emotional battle most teenagers, luckily, don?t have to deal with.
The Colorado College winger did everything he could to help his sister, who played hockey at Yale, during a two-and-a-half year fight with acute myeloid leukemia.
His 23-year-old sister, Mandi, died last April.
?It just puts everything in perspective,? Schwartz said of the hard lessons he?s learned over the past few years.
?To go through adversity like that, it was one of the hardest things ever to deal with.
?If you can get through that, you can get through anything.?
When Schwartz was drafted ? 14th overall by the St. Louis Blues at the 2010 NHL Entry Draft ? he used his moment in the sun to direct traffic to a website (Become Mandi?s Hero) that helped during a worldwide search for a bone marrow match.
That search didn?t produce the match the Schwartz family was hoping for, but with everyone from the New York Times to ESPN picking up the story, more than 10,000 people signed up as donors.
Other lives have been saved.
?I learned a lot from that and I learned a lot from Mandi,? Schwartz said.
?I?m just trying to lead by example and be a good guy off the ice.?
Schwartz said his family was excited to hear he had been named Team Canada captain.
?It?s a tremendous honour and a huge privilege,? he said. ?It feels pretty special, but I?m not going to change who I am or the way I play.
?I?m just going to be myself.?
Brett Connolly, Devante Smith-Pelly, Quinton Howden and Brandon Gormley will rotate as alternate captains.
Schwartz is one of four returning players, but he broke his ankle in the second game of last year?s tourney.
Showing the character of a future captain, he came back on the ice and even scored a goal.
But once team doctors saw the fracture, his tournament was over.
He?s not taking this second kick at the can for granted.
?It?s a second chance and something you dream of,? he said. ?Last year, it was a tough way to go out.
?I?ve been waiting for this since last year?s tournament ended.?
Head coach Don Hay said handing the C to Schwartz wasn?t a difficult decision.
?With Jaden, he?s a real mature young man,? Hay said. ?He seemed to be a logical choice.
?The players gravitate towards him and he?s a personable young man, and he?s got experience.?
Hay said he expects his new captain will lead through action rather than words.
?He seems very mature in his approach to the game and his approach to life,? Hay said. ?He?s prepared and he works hard.
?Those are important things, to have someone who?s prepared to practice and then in the games, he quietly goes about his job.
?He?s not going to be a big vocal guy, but when he talks, the players will listen.?
Hay was intent on giving his most experienced players the remaining letters.
?I think it?s a strong leadership group,? he said. ?The guys have world junior experience, Memorial Cup experience, NHL experience.
?So we?re comfortable with the group of guys we?ve chosen as leaders.?
Source: http://www.torontosun.com/2011/12/22/schwartz-named-canadas-captain
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Thursday, December 22, 2011
Fuel prices drag on Carnival's fourth quarter (AP)
MIAMI ? Carnival's net income dropped 13 percent in the fourth quarter and the cruise ship operator, stung by rising fuel costs, cut its outlook for the first quarter of next year.
The company met profit expectations to end the year Tuesday, but adjusted net income expectations going forward left investors disappointed and shares slid 2 percent in early trading.
Chairman and CEO Micky Arison said that net yields, the amount a cruise company makes from its passengers after removing expenses, should continue on a slow recovery next year though economic conditions remain challenging.
In addition to the poor global economy, the cruise ship sector has wrestled each year with soaring fuel costs, with many altering routes or traveling slower between ports to offset those costs. Carnival Corp., Norwegian Cruise Line and others have said high fuel costs are a factor in new routes.
Carnival, which operates Holland America Line, Princess Cruises and Carnival Cruise Lines, reported earnings of $217 million, or 28 cents per share, in the quarter compared with $248 million, or 31 cents per share, a year earlier.
Fuel prices rose 39 percent to $680 per metric ton in the quarter. The company said it recently started a fuel derivatives program to help offset some of the risk tied to potentially sharp spikes in fuel prices.
A barrel of crude has crisscrossed the triple-digit price line a number of times recently.
Revenue for the three months ended Nov. 30 climbed 6 percent to $3.7 billion from $3.5 billion. That fell just short of the $3.78 billion that analysts surveyed by FactSet predicted.
Net revenue yields, which measure the amount a cruise company makes from its passengers after removing expenses, rose 1.5 percent. Carnival had predicted the figure would increase 1 percent to 2 percent.
Full-year earnings slipped 4 percent to $1.91 billion, or $2.42 per share, from $1.98 billion, or $2.47 per share, in the previous year.
Fuel prices climbed 32 percent for the year, which lowered full-year earnings by 68 cents per share.
Annual revenue increased 9 percent to $15.79 billion from $14.47 billion.
Looking ahead to 2012, Carnival says that cumulative advance bookings are at slightly higher prices but with slightly lower occupancies when compared with a year earlier.
The company anticipates 2012 adjusted earnings of $2.55 to $2.85 per share, compared to the forecast of $2.77 per share by analysts polled by FactSet.
The cruise company foresees net revenue yields climbing 1 percent to 2 percent, on a constant dollar basis.
For the first quarter, Carnival predicts adjusted earnings of 6 to 10 cents per share. Analysts expect earnings of 13 cents per share. Net revenue yields are predicted to climb 1.5 percent to 2.5 percent on a constant dollar basis compared with the year-ago period.
Fuel costs are anticipated to rise $93 million from the prior-year period, which the company said will cost it an additional 12 cents per share.
Shares fell 74 cents to $32.06.
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Monday, December 19, 2011
Mexico telecom regulator signs contracts to friends (Reuters)
MEXICO CITY (Reuters) ? The president of Mexico's phone and television regulator approved two contracts worth roughly $200,000 for businesses run by two friends, including one who works as a lobbyist for telecom companies.
The contracts were for public relations and legal work for Mexico's telecom regulator Cofetel and were signed by the agency's head, Mony de Swaan.
There is no evidence that de Swaan received a financial benefit from the contracts and he denies any wrongdoing.
But they are raising questions about his judgment as he tries to enforce fair play and more competition in industries dominated by the world's richest man, Carlos Slim, and companies representing a quarter of Mexico's stock exchange.
Mexico's public servants' law says officials should recuse themselves from matters in which they might have a personal interest, but it is vague on what constitutes a "personal interest".
"In light of these contracts, any decision by the regulator could be questioned," said Shannon O'Neil, a scholar at the Council on Foreign Relations in New York and an expert on Latin America who has previously written about Slim and the telecommunications industry.
De Swaan is adamant that he has always acted within the rules. "Mine is an irreproachable track record over 14 years as a public servant," he told Reuters.
In Mexico, any carelessness by regulators can have heavy consequences. Earlier this year, de Swaan's peer at Mexico's competition watchdog made offhand comments that raised charges of bias against Slim and he has since been blocked from voting on an appeal against a record $1 billion fine levied against one of Slim's companies.
De Swaan, appointed 18 months ago, has had success in cutting back phone fees but his decisions have been challenged in court by companies including Slim's fixed-line phone giant Telmex, while media mogul Ricardo Salinas' cellphone company Iusacell has also complained.
"Behind every legal attack, there's an interest that I've hurt," he said. "In every instance I will and I have defended myself ... Have no doubt of that."
He said he has never accepted gifts and once returned a bicycle given to him by an executive from Mexico's biggest television network, Televisa. A Televisa spokesman said there was no record of any gift to de Swaan.
De Swaan was appointed by President Felipe Calderon, who has repeatedly called for more competition in key industries, including telecommunications. The government declined to comment on Cofetel's decision to give the contracts to de Swaan's friends.
CLOSE FRIENDS
At issue are two contracts, which have been reviewed by Reuters, that de Swaan, a London School of Economics-trained technocrat, signed in August for work from a lobbying and public relations firm as well as legal counsel. An outline of the contracts is also available on Cofetel's website.
One went to outside counsel Pablo Hector Ojeda, who received roughly $90,000 for four weeks of work, and the other to Total Strategy, a PR firm founded by attorney Peter Bauer, which was paid about $120,000 for about four months' work.
Bauer and Ojeda are partners in a separate law firm and de Swaan calls them both close friends.
De Swaan has been using Bauer's weekend retreat at upmarket Valle de Bravo outside of Mexico City since mid-September, a few weeks after Total Strategy got its Cofetel contract, both men said.
De Swaan said he pays one-third of his monthly income to Bauer for the house. According to a declaration of income and assets dated May 2011, he earns 2.1 million pesos ($152,000) a year.
Both men declined to provide payment documents but Bauer said the arrangement is proper and defended their ties.
"(Ours is a) friendship based on mutual respect, trust and particularly on our common belief in honesty and ethical standards in our work and towards our country," Bauer said.
Ojeda declined to comment for the story.
Bauer also advises TV Azteca. As a lawyer, Bauer lobbied for the telephone industry early this year and tried to pitch for more work in the sector while Total Strategy had its Cofetel contract, according to Bauer and a memo reviewed by Reuters.
Three individuals in the industry said that de Swaan has in the last twelve months pushed them to hire Bauer. De Swaan denied that, saying he only responded to a request from business-to-business phone company Alestra, which was looking for an adviser in Supreme Court matters.
"There are times when regulated companies come to me and ask 'Do you know someone who could be good for this work?'" he said.
Bauer and de Swaan said they believe Cofetel's relationship with Total Strategy and that company's clients was proper since their interests were aligned. De Swaan says there have been no conflicts of interest because neither Bauer nor Ojeda have brought any official business to Cofetel's full board.
($1 = 13.80 pesos)
(Reporting by Patrick Rucker and Elinor Comlay; Editing by Krista Hughes, Kieran Murray and Alix Freedman)
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Sunday, December 18, 2011
Obama welcomes home troops from Iraq
President Barack Obama delivers remarks at the 71st General Assembly of the Union for Reform Judaism, Friday, Dec. 16, 2011, in National Harbor, Md. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)
President Barack Obama delivers remarks at the 71st General Assembly of the Union for Reform Judaism, Friday, Dec. 16, 2011, in National Harbor, Md. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)
President Barack Obama delivers remarks at the 71st General Assembly of the Union for Reform Judaism, Friday, Dec. 16, 2011, in National Harbor, Md. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)
President Barack Obama delivers remarks at the 71st General Assembly of the Union for Reform Judaism, Friday, Dec. 16, 2011, in National Harbor, Md. (AP Photo/Haraz N. Ghanbari)
WASHINGTON (AP) ? President Barack Obama is welcoming home troops who served in Iraq, saying that their service offers a lesson about the nation's character.
"There's a reason our military is the most respected institution in America," Obama said Saturday in his weekly radio and Internet address. "They don't see themselves or each other as Democrats first or Republicans first. They see themselves as Americans first.
"For all our differences and disagreements, they remind us that we are all a part of something bigger, that we are one nation and one people."
Obama marked the end of the Iraq war earlier in the week, meeting with Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki in advance of the last American troops leaving Iraq by Dec. 31. The withdrawal caps a war in which nearly 4,500 Americans were killed, about 32,000 were wounded and hundreds of billions of dollars were spent.
"Our troops are now preparing to make their final march across the border and out of the country," Obama said. "Iraq's future will be in the hands of its own people."
The president met with troops at Fort Bragg, N.C., on Wednesday to discuss the end of the war and to honor the military's sacrifice. Obama opposed the war as a state lawmaker and then made ending the war in Iraq a key part of his 2008 presidential campaign.
Obama said the nation needs to enlist soldiers returning home in the rebuilding of the nation's economy, noting that his grandfather's generation returned home from World War II "to form the backbone of the largest middle class in history."
"This is a moment for us to build a country that lives up to the ideals that so many of our bravest Americans have fought and even died for," Obama said. "That is our highest obligation as citizens. That is the welcome home that our troops deserve."
Republicans said in their weekly address that soldiers returning home are most concerned about finding a good job and cited the 1,700-mile Keystone XL oil pipeline as an example of a project that could put people back to work.
Republicans have pushed for a swift decision on the pipeline proposed from Canada to Texas. Obama recently announced he was postponing a decision on the pipeline until after the 2012 elections to allow for more time to study the environmental ramifications of the proposal. An agreement reached by Senate leaders Friday night on a two-month extension of a Social Security payroll tax cut and jobless benefits would require Obama to decide within 60 days whether to grant a permit for the pipeline.
The pipeline would carry oil from western Canada to Texas Gulf Coast refineries, passing through Montana, South Dakota, Nebraska, Kansas and Oklahoma. The project is expected to create up to 20,000 jobs.
Sen. John Barrasso, R-Wyo., said the project would transport 700,000 barrels of oil a day from Canada and the "steady source of energy from our friend and ally here would make us less dependent on energy from the volatile Middle East ? and that is good for America."
Environmentalists have opposed the project but some unions have supported the plan, complicating Obama's decision.
___
Online:
Obama address: http://www.whitehouse.gov
GOP address: http://www.youtube.com/gopweeklyaddress
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Saturday, December 17, 2011
L-3 Communications: Big Funds Supporting Shares in Third Quarter ...
Scottrade: $7 Online Trades. Real-Time Stock Quotes 
Insiders are generally long-term investors due to restriction in making short-term profits. In contrast, wealth management institutions always have short-term investment. Wall St. Watchdog reveals information regarding the insiders and institutions which recently increased stock shares of L-3 Communications Holdings Inc. (NYSE:LLL).
SEC data indicate that these institutions significantly increased their stock shares of L-3 Communications Holdings Inc. in Q3 2011:
- CAPITAL ONE: On 06/30/2011, held 0 shares. On 09/30/2011, held 0 shares, worth $0.
- RELATIONAL INVESTORS LLC: On 06/30/2011, held 0 shares. On 09/30/2011, held 6,347,694 shares, worth $547,869,469.
- ARTISAN PARTNERS HOLDINGS LP: On 06/30/2011, held 0 shares. On 09/30/2011, held 2,718,860 shares, worth $234,664,807.
- CITADEL ADVISORS LLC: On 06/30/2011, held 0 shares. On 09/30/2011, held 584,576 shares, worth $50,454,755.
- GOODMAN & COMPANY, INVESTMENT COUNSEL LTD.: On 06/30/2011, held 0 shares. On 09/30/2011, held 279,290 shares, worth $24,105,520.
About the company: L-3 Communications Holdings, Inc. is a prime system contractor in aircraft modernization and maintenance, Command, Control, Communications, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance (C3ISR) systems, and government services. The Company?s customers include the DoD, aerospace prime contractors, and commercial telecommunications customers.
Competitors to Watch: Northrop Grumman Corp. (NYSE:NOC), FLIR Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ:FLIR), Cubic Corporation (NYSE:CUB), The Boeing Company (NYSE:BA), Rockwell Collins, Inc. (NYSE:COL), ITT Corporation (NYSE:ITT), Herley Industries, Inc. (NASDAQ:HRLY), Innovative Solutions & Support Inc (NASDAQ:ISSC) and Irvine Sensors Corporation (IRSN).
(Note: Data regarding L-3 Communications Holdings Inc.?s stock holdings are sourced from whalewisdom.com. All data are assumed to be accurate.)
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Friday, December 16, 2011
As D.C. Deliberates Europe's Impact, Goldman ... - Yahoo! Finance
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The crisis in Europe continues to dominate market headlines and now, at long last, is getting a hearing in Congress.
Beginning today, the House Committee on Government Reform and Oversight is holding a 2-day hearing entitled "What the Euro Crisis Means for Taxpayers and the U.S. Economy."
Judging by the published agenda and the committee's mandate, the thrust of the hearings will be on the issues of the Fed's role in aiding European banks and America's support for the IMF, which is likely to play a bigger role in future European bailouts.
These are important topics and political hot-buttons for many Americans. But the far more critical issue -- especially given the acute crisis in Europe -- is the economic impact of what's happening in Europe.
According to Goldman Sachs, further upheaval in the eurozone could cut as much as 1% from U.S. GDP in 2012. Considering the U.S. economy is already running at a subpar rate, that could mean the difference between an economy growing puttering along (but growing) vs. one that's at stall speed, greatly increasing the risk of another recession.
"A reduction in the lending of foreign banks to U.S. counterparties could have a meaningful impact on U.S. growth," Goldman's chief economist Jan Hatzius writes.
Specifically, Hatzius is worried that if European banks curtail their lending to U.S. banks, that, in turn, would put further strain on the availability of credit here, making it harder for businesses to expand and consumers to get loans.
A separate but related factor: Goldman estimates U.S. banks are exposed to $1.8 trillion of counterparty risk from European banks, which is equal to 3.3% of all U.S. debt outstanding.
In a related but separate development: The OECD this week warned of a potential "funding crisis" in 2012 for developed countries, where borrowing is expected to exceed $10.5 trillion next year. Much of that borrowing is to refinance or rollover outstanding debt, a normally smooth process that could very much become difficult if the European banking system goes into cardiac arrest.
As we saw in 2008 with subprime and this year with Greece, the idea that a crisis in Europe could be "contained" is very much wishful -- and foolish- - thinking.
Aaron Task is the host of The Daily Ticker. You can follow him on Twitter at @aarontask or email him at altask@yahoo.com
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Video: Everyone is equal
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Source: http://nbcsports.msnbc.com/id/21134540/vp/45661782#45661782
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Wednesday, December 7, 2011
AP Interview: Haiti leader says Venezuela aid key
Haiti's President Michel Martelly gestures during at bilateral meeting with Chile's President Sebastian Pinera in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday Dec. 3, 2011. Martelly is in Caracas to attend a summit by the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, CELAC. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
Haiti's President Michel Martelly gestures during at bilateral meeting with Chile's President Sebastian Pinera in Caracas, Venezuela, Saturday Dec. 3, 2011. Martelly is in Caracas to attend a summit by the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States, CELAC. (AP Photo/Ariana Cubillos)
CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) ? Haitian President Michel Martelly says aid and fuel shipments from Venezuela are having a big impact in the Caribbean country as it attempts to recover from the devastation of its 2010 earthquake.
President Hugo Chavez's government is providing nearly all the fuel that Haiti consumes under preferential terms, including long-term loans and direct shipping that cuts costs. Martelly said power plants installed by Venezuela after the earthquake supply roughly one-fifth of Haiti's electricity and that Venezuela is also providing key financial support for rice farming and other programs.
"The cooperation with Venezuela is the most important in Haiti right now in terms of impact, direct impact," Martelly told The Associated Press in an interview Saturday night after a summit of Latin American and Caribbean leaders.
"We are grateful to President Chavez for helping us from the bottom of his heart," Martelly said.
Chavez has made helping Haiti a priority since the magnitude-7 earthquake in January 2010 that reduced much of Port-au-Prince to rubble. His government sent thousands of tons of food aid in the aftermath of the quake, and also set up several camps to temporarily house thousands of displaced Haitians.
Well before the quake, Haiti had already been a major beneficiary of Venezuela's Petrocaribe program, which supplies fuel to Caribbean and Central American countries and allows them to pay part of the bill in goods such as rice and beans rather than cash.
Venezuelan Oil Minister Rafael Ramirez said last week that the program now covers 43 percent of the fuel needs of member nations in Petrocaribe, shipping an average of 95,000 barrels of fuel a day at substantial savings to 16 countries.
The deal has helped Chavez cement relationships with a growing group of allies across in the Caribbean.
In Haiti's case, Petrocaribe also provides money to support social programs, including government projects that are building housing and providing food to poor families, Martelly said during a speech at the summit on Saturday.
Martelly told the AP that a 30-megawatt power plant and two other 15-megawatt plants installed by Venezuela now "represent a good 20 percent of our total consumption."
"With such rich support, we can ? he can ? bring some very important change to Haiti," Martelly said.
Venezuela pledged $1.3 billion in recovery aid following the earthquake, the largest amount among 58 donors, according to the U.N. Office of the Special Envoy for Haiti. It says Venezuela has disbursed $118 million so far. The U.S. pledged slightly less than Venezuela, $1.2 billion, but has so far spent more ? $172 million.
Chavez's government also said last year that it was forgiving $395 million in debt through Petrocaribe.
Venezuela provides aid without many of the conditions imposed by the U.S. and other donors, Martelly said.
He said he can't complain about Washington's aid, which is also important for Haiti, but that U.S. assistance often takes more time to come through due to required procedures and controls.
"Sometimes for a simple project, it might take too long for the project to happen," he said. "If you're asking me which one flows better, which one is easier, I'll tell you Venezuela."
The former singer, who took office in May, said the previous Haitian government had neglected and mismanaged portions of the Petrocaribe program, and had apparently decreased the aid flow by failing to form a joint committee with Venezuelan officials to oversee spending. Martelly said he plans to change that.
He said that in addition to rebuilding infrastructure destroyed by the quake, his top priorities also include attracting investment and jobs, and he said that Venezuela is playing a role by helping increase rice farming in Haiti's Artibonite Valley.
"In that program there is a deal where you repay the amount owed with the rice, so this is good for us. Because the main thing for us is to create jobs," Martelly said. "This is one aspect of what Petrocaribe brings to Haitians."
Martelly said he also received promises of help from other leaders at the two-day summit, where they launched a new 33-nation bloc including every nation in the hemisphere except the U.S. and Canada.
Chavez said a "troika" including Chile, Venezuela and Cuba will help coordinate the initial efforts of the new Community of Latin American and Caribbean States. Martelly, who also met with Cuban President Raul Castro, said it remains to be seen what role the new group could play in Haiti's reconstruction efforts.
On another issue, Martelly said he is also seeking money needed to rebuild Haiti's army, which was dismantled in 1995 because of its history of abuses. He did not specify where he is looking for those funds.
Martelly said the new army would probably cost about $25 million to $30 million a year, much less than the thousands of U.N. peacekeepers currently in Haiti. The U.S. and Canada have said the country should instead focus on strengthening its police force and that they would not help pay for a new army.
"Now, if nobody wants to help, then we have to think about a way of getting that money" to re-establish the army, Martelly said. He said he sees education and health care programs as higher priorities.
"But at the same time, why do we need a foreign army to help us? A foreign army that's costing much more money?," he said. "Why not hire young Haitians? Why not regain our sovereignty?"
During the meeting, Chavez pledged to strengthen the Petrocaribe program and denied opponents' accusations that it represents a costly giveaway for his government, saying it makes sense for Venezuela to offer low-interest, flexible loans to its Caribbean neighbors.
"For us, it's a responsibility," Chavez said.
Martelly, who met Chavez for the first time, said he felt a personal connection to the Venezuelan leader and thanked him for his support. During his speech, he gushed to Chavez: "The people of Haiti love you with all their hearts."
___
Associated Press writer Trenton Daniel in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, contributed to this report.
___
Ian James on Twitter: http://twitter.com/ianjamesap
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Tuesday, December 6, 2011
Tiger Woods ends 2-year victory drought
Tiger Woods reacts after winning the Chevron World Challenge golf tournament at Sherwood Country Club, Sunday, Dec. 4, 2011, in Thousand Oaks, Calif. Woods closed with clutch birdie putts, including holing a 6-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole for a 3-under 69, to win by one shot over former Masters champion Zach Johnson. (AP Photo/Danny Moloshok)
Tiger Woods reacts after winning the Chevron World Challenge golf tournament at Sherwood Country Club, Sunday, Dec. 4, 2011, in Thousand Oaks, Calif. Woods closed with clutch birdie putts, including holing a 6-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole for a 3-under 69, to win by one shot over former Masters champion Zach Johnson. (AP Photo/Danny Moloshok)
Tiger Woods waves to fans after winning the Chevron World Challenge golf tournament at Sherwood Country Club, Sunday, Dec. 4, 2011, in Thousand Oaks, Calif. Woods closed with clutch birdie putts, including holing a 6-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole for a 3-under 69, to win by one shot over former Masters champion Zach Johnson. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Tiger Woods reacts after winning the Chevron World Challenge golf tournament at Sherwood Country Club, Sunday, Dec. 4, 2011, in Thousand Oaks, Calif. Woods closed with clutch birdie putts, including holing a 6-foot birdie putt on the 18th hole for a 3-under 69, to win by one shot over former Masters champion Zach Johnson. (AP Photo/Mark J. Terrill)
Tiger Woods reacts after winning the Chevron World Challenge golf tournament at Sherwood Country Club, Sunday, Dec. 4, 2011, in Thousand Oaks, Calif. (AP Photo/Danny Moloshok)
Tiger Woods reacts after missing a birdie putt on the ninth hole during the final round of the Chevron World Challenge golf tournament at Sherwood Country Club, Sunday, Dec. 4, 2011, in Thousand Oaks, Calif. (AP Photo/Danny Moloshok)
THOUSAND OAKS, Calif. (AP) ? After going more than two years and 26 tournaments without a win, and after so much turmoil in his personal life and with his golf game, Tiger Woods stood over a 6-foot birdie putt Sunday to win the Chevron World Challenge and felt as though nothing had changed.
Finally, the outcome was familiar, too.
Woods poured in the putt to cap off a birdie-birdie finish at Sherwood, close with a 3-under 69 and beat former Masters champion Zach Johnson by one shot. The win ended a drought that lasted 749 days, and might have signaled a change that Woods is on his way back.
He swept his arm across the air, yelled through the din of the gallery and slammed his fist in a celebration that was a long time coming.
Relief? Satisfaction? Vindication?
Woods wasn't sure, and he didn't much care.
"It just feels awesome whatever it is," he said.
Trailing by one shot with two holes to play, Woods came up with two clutch putts. He holed a 15-footer for birdie on the par-3 17th to pull into a tie with Johnson, then hit a 9-iron from 158 yards that landed on the ridge behind the hole and rolled down to 6 feet.
"I've been in contention twice this year, which is not very often," Woods said. "So that's my third time with a chance to win it. I pulled it off this time."
It was his 83rd win worldwide in tournaments that award ranking points, but his first since he won the Australian Masters on Nov. 15, 2009, back when he looked as though he would rule golf for as long as he played.
But he crashed his car into a fire hydrant outside his Florida home on Thanksgiving night, and shocking revelations of extramarital affairs began to emerge, which shattered his image, led to a divorce and cost him four major sponsors. Since then, he has changed swing coaches, caddies and endured more injuries, causing him to miss two majors and fail to make the cut in another.
Now, however, it looks clear that Woods is on an upward path.
"If the man is healthy, that's paramount," Johnson said. "I mean, he's the most experienced and the best player I've ever played with. In every situation, he knows how to execute and win."
Even though those situations have been rare, Woods looked as though he had not forgotten how to win. The only other times he has been in contention this year were the Masters and the Australian Open.
"I felt normal, felt very comfortable," Woods said. "I've been here so many times that, you know, I just feel very comfortable being here in this position. Was I nervous? Absolutely. Always nervous in that position. But it's a comfortable feeling, and I enjoy being in that position. For some reason, it's kind of a comfort to be in there with a chance to win."
Woods won the Chevron World Challenge, which he hosts for his foundation, for the fifth time. He finished at 10-under 278 and donated the $1.2 million to his foundation.
The win moved him from No. 52 to No. 21 in the world ranking, and likely will send expectations soaring for 2012. Woods will not play again until starting his year in Abu Dhabi at the end of January.
If this win felt differently than the last one, Woods wasn't saying.
"They all feel good," he said. "They're not easy. People don't realize how hard it is to win golf tournaments. I've gone on streaks where I've won golf tournaments in a row, but still ... I don't think I've taken it for granted. And I know because of how hard it is."
He had a worthy adversary in Johnson, who had a one-shot lead going into the final round and trailed for only three holes. Johnson tied Woods with a birdie on the par-5 13th, made an unlikely par on the 14th by chipping from the bottom of the green, and appeared to seize control by holing a 12-foot birdie putt on the 16th hole.
Johnson thought his birdie putt on the 17th was good all the way until it burned the edge of the cup. Woods, running out of time, drained his birdie putt to force a tie and send the tournament to the 18th. Johnson missed a 15-foot birdie try, leaving the stage to Woods.
Johnson closed with a 71 and still took home $650,000 for the holidays. Paul Casey, who opened with a 79, had his third straight round in the 60s to finish alone in third at 5 under.
"Tiger can have a long career," Casey said when he finished. "We might look back in another 10 years and actually forget about the last couple of years."
Woods had a four-shot lead over Graeme McDowell a year ago, a margin that evaporated quickly when Woods showed early signs of a struggle, particularly with a pair of three-putts. There was no such evidence this time.
After nearly driving into trouble to the right of the par-5 second, Woods escaped and hit wedge to 3? feet for birdie. His lone bogey on the front nine came at the par-3 eighth, with a back right pin that requires a fade. Woods tugged it well left of the green, and his pitch at a 45-degree angle was too strong and rolled into the fringe about 15 feet away.
Johnson's chip on the third was too strong, he three-putted from about 35 feet for bogey on the fifth and he played a poor chip from below the eighth green for another bogey.
They were tied at the turn when Woods began to pull away. From the right rough, Woods hit a soft sand wedge that landed in the first cut short of the green and fed down the slope to about 4 feet. He two-putted from long range for birdie on the par-5 11th to stretch his lead to two shots when Johnson caught a buried lie in the bunker.
Woods bogeyed the 12th from a bunker, though, and Johnson's birdie on the 13th set up a final hour that was up for grabs until Woods came through in the clutch on the last two holes.
Woods' tournament, which has an 18-man field, has been a good omen for others over the years. The most recent example was Jim Furyk, who won in 2009 and then had his first three-win season the next year and captured the FedEx Cup.
No one ever imagined Woods needing a boost, but that might be the case.
"I don't think we're going to see another 2011, if that makes sense," Furyk said, alluding to Woods failing to reach the FedEx Cup playoffs this year. "If he steadily progresses, keeps getting confidence and moving forward, he's going to return and be one of the best players in the game again."
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