WASHINGTON — Speaking slowly but with discernible passion, former Representative Gabrielle Giffords, who was critically injured in a mass shooting in Arizona in 2011, addressed the Senate Judiciary Committee on Wednesday in its first hearing since the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary in Newtown, Conn., last month.
The development comes one month after the YouTube pages of Sony and Universal lost 2 billion YouTube views, largely because YouTube decided that videos migrated to the company's VEVO pages were "dead videos". While a small portion of the views stripped from Sony and Universal were due to what YouTube calls "de-spamming the data," the vast majority were taken away as a result of Sony, Universal and EMI's decision to bet on VEVO. As NME notes, VEVO is owned by Sony and Universal Music Group. Other artists affected by YouTube's housekeeping include Beyonce, Michael Jackson and Chris Brown. At the time of the original clean-up, singer Leona Lewis lost 24 million views. In July 2011, Lady Gaga's YouTube account was suspended and promptly restored. Though Google (which owns YouTube) declined to comment, a notice on her channel read that it was guilty of "multiple or severe violations of YouTube's copyright policy."
Four step-grandchildren of Nazi propaganda minister Joseph Goebbels are worth $1.2 billion each, according to an investigation by Bloomberg. That's largely thanks to an inheritance from their biological grandfather, Guenther Quandt. Harald Quandt, Goebbels' step-son, and his half-brother Herbert inherited and rebuilt their father's industrial conglomerate, which produced guns and missiles for Nazi Germany's war effort, Bloomberg reports. One of the most lucrative parts of the conglomerate turned into a stake in BMW, and Herbert's widow and two children now own nearly half of the company. You can read Bloomberg's full report here. Goebbels played a key role in implementing Nazi dictator Adolf Hitler's agenda. Goebbels authorized violence against Jews, banned Jews from making cultural contributions, regulated the news media and led the creation of Nazi propaganda films. Goebbels killed himself, his wife, and his six biological children the day after Hitler committed suicide in 1945. The profits that companies made in Nazi Germany remain controversial. Some descendants of Holocaust victims have sued European banks for allegedly hoarding their relatives' money during and after the Holocaust. And Deutsche Bank allegedly bought gold stolen from Jewish Holocaust victims and helped finance the construction of the Auschwitz concentration camp, according to research cited by the New York Times. Check out the Goebbels family photo below:
Bill Lucey: Super Bowl 47: Feats, Facts and Historic Firsts
The opening kickoff of the Super Bowl is so near, I can almost hear ESPN's Chris Berman ("The Swami'') in my ear, saying: `"Tick... tick... tick tick tick... '' On Sunday, February 3, the Baltimore Ravens and the San Francisco 49ers, this year's home team, take to the field in Super Bowl XLVII at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans. Not that this annual clash needs any added buildup, but Super Bowl 47 will feature a historic family feud in that it marks the first time in Super Bowl history that brothers (Baltimore's John and San Francisco's Jim Harbaugh ) lock horns as opposing head coaches. CBS officially kicks off its coverage at 6:30 p.m., EST live on the CBS Television Network. Super Bowl XLVII, will be the network's 18th Super Bowl broadcast overall. Jim Nantz and Phil Simms will call the action, and will be joined by analysts Steve Tasker and Solomon Wilcots, serving as sideline reporters. Both NFL.com and SuperBowl.com will link to Super Bowl on CBSSports.com, CBS Sports' live stream of Super Bowl XLVII, which will include a host of unique and interactive online and social features. Of particular note is that during the 4th quarter of Super Bowl XLVII, fans will be able to vote for the Super Bowl XLVII MVP on NFL.com, either online or on web-enabled mobile devices. The fan vote counts as 20 percent of the overall vote, with the remaining 80 percent determined by the media. In addition to the Super Bowl coverage and analysis on CBS and at NFL.com, ESPN [See complete Super Bowl coverage ] will offer more than 120 hours of TV and radio programming throughout Super Bowl with more than 35 ESPN commentators (hosts, analysts, reporters and contributors) in New Orleans -- as well as a star-studded analyst team of former players and coaches with a combined 18 Super Bowl rings in 28 appearances, including Hall of Famer Steve Young, SB XXIX) and Ravens (Trent Dilfer, SB XXXV) as well as Hall of Famer and former Chicago Bears head coach Mike Ditka, winner of Super Bowl XX in New Orleans and a former coach of the 49ers' Jim Harbaugh. So before the Ravens and 49ers exchange blows on Sunday evening before millions of energized and anxious fans worldwide, this might be the perfect time to review some feats, facts and historic firsts about Super Bowl Sunday. • To date, 3,581,385 have attended Super Bowl games. The largest crowd was 103,985, at Super Bowl XIV (Jan. 1980), which was played at the Rose Bowl in Pasadena, California. • Player shares in 2013 include: $88,000 to each member of the winning team; $44,000 to each member of the losing team. • The Vince Lombardi trophy stands 20.75 inches tall, weighs 107.3 ounces, and is valued in excess of $25,000. The words Vince Lombardi and Super Bowl XLVII are engraved on the base along with the NFL shield. • For this year's Super Bowl, American singer, songwriter, dancer and actress Beyoncé will perform at halftime. In Super Bowl I, the halftime entertainment consisted of the Universities of Arizona and Michigan Bands. • The Bridgestone Super Bowl XLVI halftime show last year featuring Madonna was watched by an average of 112.6 million viewers, making it the most-watched Super Bowl halftime ever, surpassing Michael Jackson's halftime performance in 1993. • Head coach Don Shula has won 6 Super Bowls, an NFL record: 1 with Baltimore and 5 with Miami. • Tom Brady's 127 pass completions over five Super Bowl games is an NFL record. • Joe Montana threw the most touchdown passes (4 games) in Super Bowl history with 11 perfect strikes. • Pittsburgh's Franco Harris rushed for a league record 354 yards over 4 Super Bowl games. • Minnesota, Denver, Buffalo and New England have all lost 4 Super Bowls. • San Francisco scored 8 touchdowns in Super Bowl XXIV (Jan. 1990) over Denver, the most by any team in Super Bowl history. • Buffalo turned the ball over 9 times in Super Bowl XXVII (Jan. 1993) against Dallas, the most in Super Bowl history. • 23 NFL head coaches have won Super Bowls with more than one team. • 18 individuals have won Super Bowls both as a player and as a coach. • 14 fathers and sons have reached the Super Bowl. • 22 sets of brothers have reached the Super Bowl. • 6 NFL head coaches led their team to the Super Bowl in their first season, the last being Jim Caldwell of the Indianapolis Colts in 2009. • Based on Nielsen record figures, Super Bowl XLV (Feb. 2011) was watched by 162,900,000 viewers on FOX, the most in Super Bowl history. • The oldest winning coach in Super Bowl history was Tom Coughlin, 65, in Super Bowl XLVI (Feb, 2012); while the youngest was Mike Tomlin, 36, in Super Bowl XLIII (Feb. 2009) • The ticket prices for Super Bowl I (Jan. 1967) in Los Angeles were $6, $10 and $12. • The ticket prices for XLVI (Feb. 2012) in Indianapolis were $600, $800, $900 and $1,200. • On average, 10,000 tweets were sent per second during the final three minutes of the New York Giants' 21-17 defeat of the New England Patriots last year in Super Bowl XLVI, according to a Twitter spokesperson. • More than 2.1 million people turned on the live Internet stream of Super Bowl XLVI on Sunday, February 5, 2012, according to an NBC spokesperson. • Super Bowl XLVII will be the 10th Super Bowl held in New Orleans since 1970, putting the city into a tie with South Florida for the most by any single location. • There were 338 credentials issued to media at Super Bowl I in Los Angeles; last year in Super Bowl XLVI, there were 5,156 accredited members of the media, the most in the history of the game. • The use of Roman numerals to designate Super Bowls began with game V (Jan. 1971), won by the Baltimore Colts over the Dallas Cowboys, 16-13. • The price of a 30-second commercial for Super Bowl I in 1967 was $42,000. This year, by comparison, for Super Bowl XVII, a 30-second commercial will run $3,800,000. • According to a new survey by the Retail Advertising and Marketing Association, a division of the National Retail Federation, conducted by BIGinsight, more than 179.1 million people will watch the game Sunday, February 3, the most in the survey's nine-year history and up from an estimated 172.5 million last year. • The NRF survey additionally found nearly three-quarters (74.0 percent) of those watching the game will buy wings, pizza, chips, soda. Additionally, 3.9 million households will buy new furniture items, such as entertainment centers, chairs and couches, while 7.5 million will buy decorations. • Americans will consume 1.23 billion chicken wings during the Super Bowl this year, a 1 percent decline from last year, according to the National Chicken Council. • Mexico will be the largest supplier of avocados for the Super Bowl, according to the Henry Avocado Corp. • According to the Nevada Gaming Control Board, $93.90 million was wagered on the Super Bowl last year in the state of Nevada. • There are approximately 22,000 hotel rooms in downtown New Orleans and another 37,000 in the metropolitan area; and all are but officially sold out, according to the NFL. • According to the New Orleans Convention and Visitor's Bureau, approximately 150,000 tourists will have stormed New Orleans for Super Bowl 47 this year. • According to an economic study conducted by the University of New Orleans, Super Bowl 47 will have a $432 million impact on the city. Source: NFL
The Saints may not be playing in the Super Bowl, but their dance team – the Saintsations – will definitely be on the field at halftime. They’re getting ready to strut their stuff for football fans around the world, and WGNO’s Vanessa Bolano reports, all of New Orleans will be cheering them on. Meet the 2012-2013 Saintsations. While the season may be over for the boys in black & gold, that’s not the case for these ladies. The Saintsations will play host as all eyes are on new orleans for Super Bowl XLVII. These women, 32 in all, hail from Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Texas. They practice twice a week, learning 30 dances a season. And for the super bowl they’re learning additional 10, but don’t worry! Most of these girls started dancing before they could walk! “I’ve danced my whole life since I was two,” says Chastity Sorrels. “I’ve been dancing for a very long time since i was like three,” Baton Rouge native Heidi Walker tells us. As we inch closer to the big game these girls are going to be busy going from one event to the next. And then for the big game, Super Bowl Sunday, they’ll be performing around the ‘Dome, and they’ll be at the halftime show with Beyonce! “I can’t imagine how it could get much louder in there,” says Walker. “I think the Saints have the loudest fans, so I’m wondering if they can top it when we have different fans in there.” Being a Saintsation is basically a full time job that takes courage, determination and major skills. “I knew that I always wanted to do that and after I graduated from college I was looking for a job and trying to figure out what I was going to do with my life and I figured that that was the perfect time to make my dreams come true,” Sorrels says. Rookie Nicole Wall says, “Going on the field in the Superdome the first time was just an eye-opening experience to see how big and how great the whole ‘dome was. Just everything about it is great.” Another rookie, Kolbie Lawrence tells us, “It was a really good year, my first year. I was featured in the calendar. I thought that was pretty cool, but meeting all these new girls, they’re like sisters.” “I have had a pretty good ride as a Saintsation,” says veteran Danielle Daray. “My first year being the Super Bowl, and the next year I was able to travel to Iraq to visit some of the troops, and then last year I was picked as the Pro Bowl cheerleader, and now Super Bowl in New Orleans. I don’t think that anybody could have had a better 4 years as a Saintsation.” For many of these women, being a Saintsation is the opportunity of a lifetime: week after week cheering on the Saints, and now hosting the Super Bowl on their home turf.
Beatrix (Beatrix Wilhelmina Armgard, Dutch pronunciation: [ˈbeːjaˌtrɪks ˌʋɪlɦɛlˈmina ˈɑrmɣɑrt] (
Beatrix was born in Baarn, Netherlands. She is the eldest daughter of Queen Juliana and Prince Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld. In 1948, she becameheiress presumptive to the throne of the Netherlands. When her mother Juliana abdicated on 30 April 1980, Beatrix succeeded her as queen of the Netherlands.
She attended public primary and secondary schools in Canada, during World War II, and in the Netherlands. In 1961, she received her law degree fromLeiden University. In 1966, Beatrix married Claus von Amsberg, with whom she had three children: Prince Willem-Alexander (1967), Prince Friso(1968) and Prince Constantijn (1969). Prince Claus died in 2002. Queen Beatrix is the longest-lived reigning monarch of the Netherlands.[1]
On 28 January 2013, Beatrix announced that she would abdicate on 30 April 2013, on Koninginnedag (Queen's Day),[2] in favour of her eldest son
Using a smartphone to file your taxes may sound tedious, but it's not, thanks to the SnapTax app from TurboTax. Instead of entering your information using your phone’s virtual keyboard, all you have to do is use the app to snap a photo of your W-2 and the app automatically fills in your data for you. Answer a few additional questions, and your state and federal returns are ready to be filed, directly from SnapTax -- no computer necessary. The app is designed for 1040-EZ or 1040A filers with relatively simple tax situations.
Read more: 6 Awesome Apps to Help You Do Your Taxes | eHow.com http://www.ehow.com/slideshow_12251224_awesome-apps-taxes.html#ixzz2JRMuhhCX
