Hack My Trip - Site Updates and New RSS Feed - USA Today
Obviously I haven’t been posting much lately. I’m trying to get back into the swing of things as I am in the final stages of writing my dissertation. In the meantime, I am making a few changes here and there with the site. I would like at some point to select a new theme that is a bit cleaner and perhaps makes it easier to read. If anyone has extensive knowledge of WordPress and custom CSS, I might even call on you for some advice/employment on one or two design changes that are beyond my ability. But these are things I probably won’t get around to right away.
In the immediate future, I want to alert those of you who already access my blog by RSS or email subscriptions that I’ve signed up with FeedBurner to replace the standard WordPress distribution mechanisms. This has advantages for both you and me. All the normal RSS features still work, although I strongly recommend you sign up for the new FeedBurner feed. I won’t be actively monitoring the old RSS feed to see if it’s working, although I don’t see any reason why it would stop. Even so, sign up again to make sure you keep getting the RSS updates. One nice thing is that I now have a way to tell how many people have subscribed, and I always like more numbers.
You can also tell FeedBurner when you click on this link if you’d rather have new posts delivered by email. A couple hundred of you already do through a direct subscription to my blog through WordPress. Those emails are sent out immediately, which some of you might like but others don’t. Perhaps I’m spamming you. I’ve set up FeedBurner so that it only delivers one email per day. I also set it to deliver between 5 and 7 PM Pacific Time. I expect to get back into Rewarding Recap series on Monday, and since I like to do those around the late afternoon I hope this means you will still receive them in your inbox the same day.
Thanks for your attention. Now back to the dissertation…
© Hack My Trip, a BoardingArea Blog
Injured Model in Chris Brown/Drake Bar Brawl Speaks Out Via Attorney - Entertainment Online
There's a whole new meaning to poppin' bottles now.
Sal Strazzullo, attorney for Ingrid Gutierrez, the 21-year-old model who was at Chris Brown's table the night of the brawl with Drake's entourage at the W.I.P. club in Manhattan revealed to E! News his client's take on the incident that occured early Thursday morning.
MORE: Chris Brown Bar Brawl Update: Singer Denies Sending Champagne to Drake, Club Manager Arrested
Sal explained his client's involvement: "[Ingrid] was with Chris Brown and his entourage just having a good time...she was at his table...right next to him when this occurred. She was just having a good time, a 21-year-old out, a young lady at a nightclub in Manhattan and all of a sudden a bottle came from [the direction of] the Drake table."
As for how the story played out before the bottle was reportedly sent over from Drake's table, Sal shares: "From what I've heard from my client…there was a note. A note passed by Drake to Chris Brown in regards to something with Rihanna."
However, what the note read, Sal was unable to share, explaining: "The contents of those notes at this time I'm not going to be able to reveal because I don't know their authenticity."
MORE: Chris Brown Bar Brawl Aftermath—Did Singer Go to Police?
Sal continued: "Then…Chris Brown was about to get up and leave with his entourage and that's when a bottle came from [the direction of] Drake's table to Chris Brown's table."
Strazzullo believes the club's surveilance video will be able to help identify who instigated the brawl: "The cameras aren't going to lie," adding that, "people that paid with their credit cards are going to be disposed."
Sal also shared how Brown responded amongst the chaos: " [Ingrid] said he was so polite throughout the whole night, that they were just having a good time…he was very calm and what he did, I believe, was he tried to even defend my client Ingrid."
MORE: Chris Brown Bar Brawl a "Brutal Attack," Says Singer's Rep; Drake Denies Involvement!
The model, who reportedly suffered a bottle blow to the head, is "out of the hospital [and] resting home in bed."
He earlier told E! that his client suffered bruises, stitches and trauma to her face, and suggested that "plastic surgery is probably likely."
"Basically like any model…your looks are everything and with today's technology, with HD, a small scar, even though this one is not small, is going to be magnified to look really severe."
Pakistan stunned by Perera hat-trick against Sri Lanka - ESPN.co.uk
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
Pakistan have been abysmal chasers in recent years in ODI cricket. Three hours of accumulation offered hope that Saturday would not end in another failed pursuit. And then, as if all the accumulation had stretched their patience too taut, the dam broke. From 166 for 2 chasing 244, Pakistan disintegrated to 179 for 9. In less than four overs. Thisara Perera followed up his 6 for 44 in the second ODI with a hat-trick. Pakistan registered six ducks, and their 15th defeat in 18 chases of 240-plus in the last three years.
In the end, the match was decided in the two batting Powerplays, with Sri Lanka surging in both. A cramping Azhar Ali, who became the first player to carry his bat in ODIs in more than a decade, and Misbah-ul-Haq had put on 113 for the third wicket, leaving Pakistan with 78 to get from 76 deliveries. In the 37th over, the second of the batting Powerplays, Misbah refused a tight single with Ali having run more than half way up the pitch. The effort required to get back worsened Ali's cramp, making it harder for him to accelerate, like Kumar Sangakkara had earlier after a similar slow fifty.
Three balls later, Misbah departed for an efficient 57, with Nuwan Kulasekara taking a sharp low catch at mid-off off Lasith Malinga's bowling. Umar Gul had put down a much easier chance at long-on off Sangakkara, who went on to add 62 off 48. Malinga stepped it up after Misbah's departure, pegging Umar Akmal back with three successive sharp bouncers. Akmal drove at and edged his fourth, off Kulasekara, to the wicketkeeper.
The fight had gone out of Pakistan. Younis Khan, held back till No. 6, edged a rising Perera delivery to the keeper. Shahid Afridi either explodes or implodes. He did the latter, punching his first ball to extra cover. Sarfraz Ahmed obliged Perera with the hat-trick, guiding him to slip. The persevering Ali was reduced to a spectator, all his hard work undone in minutes of chaos.
Like Sri Lanka, Pakistan hadn't found run-scoring easy in the first half of their chase, but Ali and Misbah kept the visitors going, taking their team to 100 four overs earlier than Sri Lanka had.
Pakistan's top order continued its wobbly ways when Mohammad Hafeez collected his fifth duck in his last 12 international innings, pulling his fifth delivery from Malinga to long leg. Kulasekara kept Ali and Asad Shafiq under pressure with a probing opening spell of five overs for just 16 runs.
Still, like Sangakkara and Tillakaratne Dilshan had for Sri Lanka, Ali and Shafiq ensured Pakistan weren't bogged down completely. It was the left-arm spinner Sajeewa Weerakoon, bowling for the first time in international cricket in his second ODI, who got the breakthrough with his 10th delivery, trapping Shafiq in front on 25 with a slider. The combination of Ali and Misbah was never going to blaze away, but it made sure the asking-rate stayed below six, and under control, finding the boundary just when required. Little did they know of the pandemonium that was to ensue.
Not remotely on the same scale, but Pakistan had fallen apart in the field too after being disciplined for more than three-fifths of Sri Lanka's innings. Gul dropped Sangakkara off Afridi, when on 35 off 82 deliveries. Then came the batting Powerplay. Sangakkara carted 62 off his last 48 deliveries, and Sri Lanka reached the kind of total Pakistan have struggled to chase in recent years.
Till Sangakkara was put down in the 31st over, Sri Lanka had been tied down, first by Pakistan's fast bowlers, and then by their spinners. Sangakkara and Dilshan did add 55 for the second wicket, but they were hard-earned runs, and Dilshan's departure immediately after the first drinks break meant Sri Lanka had to continue with their cautious approach. The absence of scoring opportunities consumed Dinesh Chandimal as well, after which the expected rain came down to force a 70-minute break.
Pakistan's spinners continued with the run-squeeze after the rain interruption. The next few overs were quiet, but Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene took complete charge in the batting Powerplay, which went for 49. Gul, who was feeling some pain in his right index finger, was to suffer the most. He had given just 16 off his first five overs; he disappeared for 26 in two overs in the batting Powerplay. Sangakkara stepped out to launch the first ball of Gul's second spell for a straight six. When Gul overdid the bouncer in the next over, Sangakkara pulled him for six more over fine leg.
Sangakkara dominated the 110-run fourth-wicket partnership with Jayawardene, who played some innovative strokes. He was quick to lap-sweep and sweep the spinners, and even reverse-pulled Saeed Ajmal for four over point. Pakistan managed to dismiss the duo in the 44th and 45th overs to limit the damage, but most of it had already been inflicted. Pakistan's self-destruction later sealed the issue.
Abhishek Purohit is an editorial assistant at ESPNcricinfo
© ESPN EMEA Ltd
Central banks prepare for turmoil after Greek vote - Reuters
FRANKFURT/LONDON |
FRANKFURT/LONDON (Reuters) - Central banks from Tokyo to London checked their ammunition on Friday in preparation for any turmoil from Greece's election, with the European Central Bank hinting at an interest rate cut and Britain set to open its coffers.
Tensions were high about how to manage the euro zone's debt crisis - epitomized by Greece's bankruptcy and need for international aid - and a rare fight broke out between Germany and France, normally the glue that keeps the bloc together.
German Chancellor Angela Merkel criticized France's economic performance, effectively taking a swipe at Socialist President Francois Hollande who has called for more emphasis on economic growth and less on budget austerity.
The feeling of crisis was real. "We must do everything possible to prevent the euro zone from falling apart," Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte said on television.
ECB President Mario Draghi, one of many policymakers gearing up for trouble after Sunday's vote in Greece, said his bank was ready to step in and fund any viable euro zone bank that gets in trouble.
He painted a picture of a deteriorating euro zone economy with no inflation danger - conditions for monetary easing.
"There are serious downside risks here," Draghi told the annual ECB Watchers conference in Frankfurt, two days before the vote that could set Athens on a path out of the euro zone and stoke turmoil in financial markets.
"This risk has to do mostly with the heightened uncertainty."
Japan's top financial diplomat Takehiko Nakao warned that authorities in Tokyo would respond to unwelcome currency moves as appropriate, a clear threat of intervention if investors seeking safety push the yen too high.
It was an echo of strong pledges from the Swiss National Bank on Thursday that it would do what it takes to protect the franc from soaring.
The Bank of England followed up on Thursday's joint announcement with the government of a 100 billion pound ($155 billion) offer of loans to banks by saying it will start next week with a charge of just 0.75 percent.
In the United States, Treasury Under Secretary for International Affairs Lael Brainard offered assurance that Washington has a "tool kit" and stood ready to preserve market confidence.
"Everyone is well prepared, too, in the wake of the elections on Greece, to work together to make sure there is a path forward that is sustainable for Greece and bolsters confidence more broadly," she said.
GETTING READY
Officials from the G20 nations, whose leaders are meeting in Mexico next week, say numerous central banks are preparing to take steps to stabilize financial markets - if needed - by providing liquidity and prevent any credit squeeze.
European Council President Herman Van Rompuy convened a conference call on Friday afternoon with the leaders of Germany, France, Italy and Britain, officially to discuss preparations for the G20 summit, expected to be dominated by the euro zone debt crisis.
Depending on the depth of any turmoil, an emergency meeting of ministers from the Group of Seven developed nations could be held on Monday or Tuesday during the summit in Los Cabos, Mexico, sources said.
The focal point for all is Sunday's repeat general election in Greece, a knife-edge race that could be won by parties vowing to tear up the harsh economic terms that the European Union and International Monetary Fund imposed as conditions of a bailout for the near-bankrupt state.
Such an outcome could drive Greece into default and possibly out of the euro zone, a prospect that could undermine faith in the currency bloc and add to pressure on the finances of bigger economies such as Italy and Spain.
Madrid's borrowing costs rose above 7 percent on Thursday, a level that is widely considered unsustainable. They fell slightly on Friday and European shares gained on expectations of global central bank response. The euro was lower, however.
"At best, we are going to have a situation that is extremely serious on Monday," Swedish Finance Minister Anders Borg told journalists. "In all likelihood, whatever the outcome, we are going to have a government which is going to find it hard to live up to the agreements they (the Greeks) have signed up to."
WORSENING OUTLOOK
In a sign of growing strain between Europe's central powers, Merkel hit out at France in response to Hollande's proposals for joint euro zone bonds and a joint bank deposit guarantee scheme.
"Europe must discuss the growing differences in economic strength between France and Germany," Merkel said.
Responding to Hollande's call for more euro zone solidarity, she said Germany had wanted to give the European Court of Justice the power to reject national budgets that breach EU rules but others had objected. She meant France.
Draghi said the ECB was ready to provide money to solvent banks if they needed it, a clear plan to avoid the kind of credit crunch that occurred during the Lehman Brother crisis in 2008.
"The ECB has the crucial role of providing liquidity to sound bank counterparties in return for adequate collateral. This is what we have done throughout the crisis, faithful to our mandate of maintaining price stability over the medium term - and this is what we will continue to do," he said.
Draghi also said that no euro zone country faces an inflation risk, which is the bank's main concern. That gelled with comments from ECB policymakers a day earlier that the central bank might be open to cutting interest rates.
Britain did not wait for the Greek vote to announce action. Bank of England Governor Mervyn King said on Thursday the country would launch a scheme to provide cheap long-term funding to banks to encourage them to lend to businesses and consumers.
The central bank would also activate an emergency liquidity supply, King said.
King said the euro zone's problems were causing a crisis of confidence in Britain that was leading to a self-reinforcing weaker picture of growth.
"The black cloud has dampened animal spirits so that businesses and households are battening down the hatches to prepare for the storms ahead," he said.
On Friday, the bank said it will hold a first emergency liquidity operation for banks next week with at least 5 billion pounds on offer. Loans would be at a minimum of the Bank Rate, 0.5 percent, plus an additional 25 basis points.
STAND-OFF IN ATHENS
In Athens, the election was seen as too close to call. Alexis Tsipras, leader of the main anti-bailout leftist party SYRIZA, said on Thursday the deal with Greece's international lenders, which has helped push the economy into a depression, would not last beyond the weekend.
"The memorandum of bankruptcy will belong to the past on Monday," Tsipras, who has rapidly emerged from fringe politics to challenge the mainstream for power, told his last campaign rally in Athens.
European leaders, however, have warned that Greece will get no help if it reneges. Officials have also hinted that Athens might be granted more time to achieve its fiscal targets if a new government sticks to the core reforms in the program.
French President Francois Hollande warned Greek voters about seeking what Tsipras has promised - a future in the euro while ditching the 130-billion-euro ($160 billion) bailout deal sealed earlier this year and its demands for punishing austerity policies.
Hollande said on Greek TV that he wanted the country to stay in the euro, rather than reviving its drachma currency.
"But I have to warn them, because I am a friend of Greece, that if the impression is given that Greece wants to distance itself from its commitments and abandon all prospect of recovery, there will be countries in the euro zone which will prefer to finish with the presence of Greece in the euro zone."
SYRIZA is running neck-and-neck with the mainstream conservatives for Sunday's parliamentary vote, a re-run of an election last month that produced a stalemate in which neither the pro- nor anti-bailout camps was able to form a coalition.
(Writing by Jeremy Gaunt, additional reporting by Fiona Shaikh, Paul Carrel, Leika Kihara, Rie Ishiguro and Johan Sennero; Editing by Giles Elgood and Chizu Nomiyama)
McDowell & Furyk share lead as Woods flounders - ESPN.co.uk
Graeme McDowell, Jim Furyk and Tiger Woods are three of the five former champions in with a great chance of winning the US Open again on Sunday - with Lee Westwood also well placed to end his major duck at Olympic Club.
McDowell shares the third round lead at one-under after an impressive round of 68 that was capped off with a birdie at the 18th, with 2003 champion Jim Furyk joining him as the only two men in the field under par after a resilient round of golf.
Swede Fredrik Jacobsen, one over, is also in close attendance - with another 23 players within six shots of the two leaders and thus in with a feasible shot at the victory on Sunday.
Woods, meanwhile, had an uncharacteristically torrid day - never really recovering as he bogeyed four of his opening eight holes without managing to pick up a red number.
He eventually carded a round of 75 - following two bogeys in his last three holes - to sit four-over for the tournament - still in contention but with a number of other players between him and the leaders.
Woods has never gone on to win a major if he has not held or shared the 54-hole lead.
Westwood, for example, is two-over four the tournament and level with two-time US Open champion Ernie Els, who eagled the 17th after a sublime chip-in from the side of the green to thrust himself into contention to become the first person since Jack Nicklaus to go 18 years between their first and last major victories.
Blake Adams is also two-over, after he finished with three birdies in his final five holes - while Retief Goosen, another multiple former winner in this event, is four-over.
The day belonged to McDowell, however, who thrived in conditions similar to those at Pebble Beach, where he won his maiden major title in 2010.
The Northern Irishman looked in control of his game all day and holed a number of crucial putts at vital junctures - with three birdies on his back nine, including a sumptuous approach and five-footer at the last, opening up a bit of breathing room between him and the chasing pack before Furyk reeled him back in.
The distinctive American had made the running for much of Saturday's action, despite a slow start that saw him two-over through five on the day. He picked up a couple of shots around the turn before the monstrous par-five 16th penalised him another a shot - but a clutch putt at the follow-up 17th ensured he slipped back under par for the tournament and matched McDowell's score heading into the final round.
The two men will go out as the final pairing for Sunday's concluding round.
With the second round leaders struggling at the start of their third rounds on Saturday, Westwood breezed around the course in 67 to get into the clubhouse at two-over and leave himself just a shot from the front at the time he finished on the 18th.
The world No. 3 made a steady start of four consecutive pars over the treacherous opening stretch at Olympic Club, before bursting into life during the mid-part of his round. Four birdies and two bogeys in a seven-hole stretch saw him bound up the leaderboard as those around him kept leaking shots before a long range birdie at the last sealed a three-under par round.
The Englishman is two-under par for the 48 holes he has played since making a torrid start to the tournament on Thursday, making him a prime contender for victory on Sunday as the late starters all dropped shots early.
He was later pipped by Jacobsen, while Webb Simpson, who nearly won the PGA Tour money list last season, is three-over after 54 holes - as are John Senden and Kevin Chappell, who is looking for another strong finish after ending up in a tie for third last year at Congressional.
Jason Dufner is also three-over after wasting a number of close-range birdie chances over the closing stages - meaning he finished tied with 17-year-old amateur Beau Hossler, who completed arguably the round of the day after a 70 that still leaves him with a chance at an improbable victory.
Goosen is within striking distance at four-over, along with Martin Kaymer and Matt Kuchar.
American Casey Wittenberg shared the low round of the day with Westwood, firing an impressive round of 67 to climb to five-over for the tournament and draw level with Woods after barely making the cut. A number of higher profile names are also at that score - including Padraig Harrington, Justin Rose and Sergio Garcia.
Of those other players who just managed to make the weekend's action, Phil Mickelson carded a round of 71 to remain out of contention at eight-over, alongside Matteo Manassero and Ian Poulter but a shot ahead of Rickie Fowler.
© ESPN EMEA Ltd
Golf-Woods bogeys first hole in U.S. Open third round - Reuters UK
SAN FRANCISCO, June 16 |
SAN FRANCISCO, June 16 (Reuters) - Tiger Woods made a shaky start to the third round of the U.S. Open on Saturday, bogeying the tricky opening hole at the Olympic Club.
The former world number one, bidding to end a four-year title drought in major championships, started the day tied for the lead at one under par with fellow Americans Jim Furyk and David Toms.
But the pacesetting trio all bogeyed the 509-yard first hole to drop back to even.
That left them one stroke clear of a group of four players - Americans Michael Thompson and John Peterson, 2010 champion Graeme McDowell of Northern Ireland and Belgian Nicolas Colsaerts.
McDowell, Peterson and Colsaerts all safely parred the first two holes while Thompson, who led after the first round, made a birdie at the first to join the leaders but handed the shot back when he bogeyed the par-three third.
Conditions on the notoriously difficult course were slightly easier in the morning, allowing a handful of early starters to break par, but were expected to get harder in the afternoon once the winds picked up and the greens began to quicken.
American Casey Wittenberg, who teed off five hours before Woods, made an eagle at the seventh hole, then birdied the last two to sign for a three-under 67 to move to five over.
"By the time Tiger and those guys tee off, I think it's going to be a brick," Wittenberg told reporters of the firm and fast-running layout at the Olympic Club.
"There are a lot of front pin placements out there and it's hard to get to those front pin placements when it gets a little crusty in the afternoon.
"I'm sure with the sun being out and everybody walking on those greens it's going to be a challenge." (Editing by Mark Lamport-Stokes)
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