House to take up anti-piracy bill in February (Reuters)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) ? The House of Representatives will resume work next month on a controversial bill aimed at stopping online piracy of movies, music and other content, a leading lawmaker said on Tuesday.

The anti-piracy legislation has been a top priority for entertainment companies, publishers, pharmaceutical firms and others, who say it is critical to curbing online piracy.

Internet companies vigorously oppose the bills, arguing they would undermine innovation and free speech rights and compromise the functioning of the Internet.

The debate escalated over the weekend when White House officials raised concerns that the legislation could make businesses on the Internet vulnerable to litigation and harm legal activity and free speech.

Representative Lamar Smith, chairman of the House Judiciary Committee, said the proposed Stop Online Piracy Act (SOPA) was needed to protect American businesses from intellectual property theft, and that legislation would move forward.

"Due to the Republican and Democratic retreats taking place over the next two weeks, markup of the Stop Online Piracy Act is expected to resume in February," added Smith, a Texas Republican. "I am committed to continuing to work with my colleagues in the House and Senate to send a bipartisan bill to the White House."

The Senate is expected to begin voting on January 24 on how to proceed in considering its own version of the bill.

Both Smith and Democratic Senator Patrick Leahy have said that they plan to jettison a controversial portion of their bills which would block access for Internet users who seek stolen movies or music.

White House officials, including cyber-security czar Howard Schmidt, said in a blog posting on Saturday that they opposed the bills as currently written. But they said the Obama administration would work with lawmakers on a narrower, more targeted approach to online piracy to ensure that legitimate businesses - including start-up firms - would not be harmed.

Wikipedia, the popular community-edited online encyclopedia, will black out its English-language site for 24 hours Wednesday to oppose the legislation. Other smaller sites leading the campaign include Reddit.com.

(Reporting By Diane Bartz; Editing by Sandra Maler)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/digitalmusic/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120117/film_nm/us_usa_internet_piracy_house

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Santorum Opens Fire on Romney (Taegan Goddard's Political Wire)

Share With Friends: | | Politics - Top Stories Stories, RSS Feeds and Widgets via Feedzilla.

Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/187405280?client_source=feed&format=rss

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Chinese New Year E-card Favs

A new moon, a new animal, a new color, a new year: spectacular fireworks and red envelopes and festive celebrations welcome them, and so do personal greetings maybe sent across the world electronically. Here are some favorite Chinese New Year e-card sites.

4. Yahoo! - Chinese New Year E-Cards

Yahoo! and americangreetings.com make it easy to send happiness, wealth and longevity in a stylish manner to all your friends and family members this festival of lanterns.

5. Care2 - Chinese New Year E-Cards

The Chinese New Year cards at Care2 are mostly simple, but they make up for the simplicity ? if this ever needs to be made up for ? with charm and nicety many times. The selection is big!

6. Hallmark - Chinese New Year E-Cards

Hallmark lets the lion dance in style to drum in the new year, and you can send all your best wishes as well, of course. Zodiac- and animal-themed cards are a given.

9. USA Greetings - Chinese New Year E-Cards

They may not always have the right year on their cards (it is only every dozen years that one is dedicated to the snake after all), but don't let that take away from USA Greetings New Year's cards' innocent charm.

Source: http://email.about.com/od/chinesenewyearcards/tp/Chinese-New-Year-E-card-Favs.htm

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No. 5 Missouri beats Texas A&M 70-51 (AP)

COLUMBIA, Mo. ? Reserve Michael Dixon scored 18 points and helped spark a 17-0 first-half run as No. 5 Missouri beat Texas A&M 70-51 on Monday, snapping an eight-game losing streak to the Aggies.

The Tigers (17-1, 4-1 Big 12) started the game by making only five of their first 14 shots from the field against the conference's best scoring defense. But Dixon's 3-pointer with 7:22 remaining in the first half started the 17-0 run that gave Missouri a 31-17 lead.

Elston Turner hit a free throw to end the Aggies' 6:32 scoreless drought.

Turner and Khris Middleton both had 13 points for Texas A&M (10-7, 1-4), which scored the first seven points of in the second half to get within 42-30. The Aggies got within 10 points three times, but could get no closer.

Marcus Denmon's steal and ensuing three-point play with 8:40 left started a 10-1 run for Missouri, which led 64-44 with 3:57 left in the game.

Missouri's last win over Texas A&M had been in the 2004 Big 12 tournament.

Missouri is ranked in the top five for the first time since 2003-04, and has won 62 of its last 65 home games, falling only to Kansas twice and Texas A&M. The Tigers' have won each home game this season by an average of 27.6 points.

The Aggies came in allowing 57.5 points per game, holding opponents to 36.9 percent shooting. Missouri couldn't do much better, shooting 40 percent, but the Tigers held Texas A&M to 35 percent, its second-lowest shooting percentage of the season.

Denmon added 16 points and nine rebounds for Missouri, which leads the Big 12 in scoring offense (83.9) and field goal percentage (51.2).

Middleton is leading the Aggies in scoring since he returned nine games ago after surgery to repair a partially torn meniscus in his right knee.

Ray Turner added 11 points and nine rebounds for Texas A&M, which has lost six of eight.

Ricardo Ratliffe wasn't called for his first foul until the second half for the second consecutive game, helping Missouri avoid having to go deeper than its seven-man rotation. The Tigers outrebounded Texas A&M 38-26 and were 27 of 31 from the free throw line.

Texas A&M coach Billy Kennedy served as an assistant under Missouri coach Frank Haith while both were at Miami in 2005-06. Haith defeated his mentor and former head coach, Rick Barnes, in a 84-73 victory on Friday over Texas.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/sports/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120117/ap_on_sp_co_ga_su/bkc_t25_texas_a_m_missouri

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Germany positive on outcome of Greek debt swap: foreign minister (Reuters)

ATHENS (Reuters) ? Negotiations between Greece and creditor banks on a deal aimed at cutting the country's towering debt pile are tough but will yield positive results, Germany's foreign minister said during a visit to Athens on Sunday.

"Discussions (on the bond swap) are difficult but with good faith they will reach a good result," said Guido Westerwelle, who was speaking through an interpreter.

Westerwelle's visit came two days after talks on the so-called private sector involvement (PSI) broke down, pushing Athens closer to default.

Germany has repeatedly urged Greece to meet the fiscal conditions set out for it by its lenders to continue receiving aid.

(Reporting by George Georgiopoulos)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/europe/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20120115/bs_nm/us_greece_germany

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President Obama Makes Case for Shrinking Government (ContributorNetwork)

President Barack Obama announced Friday that he will ask Congress permission to consolidate six government agencies into one. He will introduce the Consolidation Authority Act, which will aid businesses as they seek ways to better navigate through government offices and agencies. The president will also create a new website called BusinessUSA.

Here's a look at what Obama wants to do and why.

Six Agencies

Obama wants to try to make small businesses more competitive. He also claims the last time a president consolidated government agencies was in 1984. The six in question are the Department of Commerce, the Small Business Administration, Office of U.S. Trade Representative, Export-Import Bank, the Overseas Private Investment Corporation and the U.S. Trade and Development Agency.

All of these agencies are responsible for dealing with small-business regulations on the federal level. Obama wants to make it easier for small businesses to navigate through federal laws in order to help make doing business easier.

The Small Business Administration oversees loans and regulations for small businesses in America. The department also represents the interests of small businesses in the federal government. The Department of Commerce regulates international commerce and is designed to open up trade with U.S. companies.

The Overseas Private Investment Corporation aids U.S businesses by helping open up foreign markets for American interests. The U.S. Trade and Development Agency gives grants to companies that invest in projects in foreign countries.

The Plan

The Washington Post reports the new structure of the Cabinet-level position would elevate the Small Business Administration to a higher position. The new position would be confirmed by the Senate like any other member of Obama's executive departments.

The move would also cut back government jobs in all affected agencies. As many as 2,000 jobs would be lost, according to Business Week. The government would save $3 billion over 10 years under the plan. An entirely new department will be created as yet unnamed. The goal is also to increase U.S. exports abroad.

The original idea of consolidating these departments was proposed in the State of the Union address in January 2011. This is the first time Obama has made some concrete steps to ask Congress to make the proposal a reality. The White House claims this move will help spur job creation by making it easier for businesses to wade through government regulations when they are consolidated into one agency.

William Browning is a research librarian specializing in U.S. politics. Born in St. Louis, Browning is active in local politics and served as a campaign volunteer for President Barack Obama and Missouri Sen. Claire McCaskill.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/obama/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ac/20120114/pl_ac/10833619_president_obama_makes_case_for_shrinking_government

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TV One network focuses on missing blacks (AP)

PASADENA, Calif. ? After 16 years playing a police lieutenant on "Law & Order," actress S. Epatha Merkerson is turning to some real-life crime stories.

Merkerson is the narrator for "Find Our Missing," a series that debuts Jan. 18 on the TV One network. It tells stories about black Americans who are missing, hoping to turn up clues that can solve some of the cases.

The series was born out of a pervasive feeling among many blacks that their missing-person cases don't get as much attention as missing-person cases involving whites, particularly attractive young white women.

"The local and regional press does a good job," Wonya Lucas, president and CEO of the cable network aimed at black viewers, said Saturday. "The national press doesn't really cover these stories to the extent that they should, and that's a void that TV One will now fill."

Each hour focuses on two separate cases. Besides Merkerson's narration, producers fill time by re-enacting some scenes with professional actors.

Two people missing since 2009 are featured in the first episode: Pamela Butler, an employee of the Environmental Protection Agency who disappeared from her Washington, D.C., home; and Hasanni Campbell, a 5-year-old boy with cerebral palsy from Oakland, Calif.

"We are painfully aware that these are not just stories," said Donna Wilson, executive producer of the series. "These are people's lives."

Blacks account for 12 percent of the population yet are involved in about a third of the country's missing-persons cases, said Toni Judkins, programming chief at TV One. The network is available in some 56 million homes, or about half the ones that have TV.

Producers are working with the Black and Missing Foundation in helping to bring the cases to light.

The show will encourage tips to law enforcement, hoping to break down some of the attitude that makes people feel like snitches, foundation president Derrica Wilson said. She and the series producer are not related.

Merkerson said she became involved because she realized many of these cases needed the attention.

"It's important for me to give back to the community that has given so much to me," she said.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/tv/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20120114/ap_en_tv/us_tv_missing_persons

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