Egypt stocks tumble on Cairo unrest (AP)

CAIRO ? Egypt's benchmark stock index tumbled more than 2 percent on Sunday as clashes between protesters and security forces entered their second day and rattled investor confidence in the country's already stumbling economy.

The Egyptian Exchange's EGX30 index was down 2.45 percent, or at 4,023 points, by 12:15 p.m. on the first day of the work week in the country. The slide built on a week of declines that have helped push the index's year-to-date losses to almost 44 percent. The index had tumbled almost 3 percent earlier in the day, but recouped some of the losses.

Brokers attributed the drop to the clashes between rock-throwing protesters and security forces in Cairo's iconic Tahrir Square, the epicenter of the uprising that ousted former President Hosni Mubarak in February.

The fighting had entered its second day, with the protesters demanding the country's military rulers quickly announce a date when they plan to hand over power to a civilian government. The unrest comes days before the Nov. 28 parliamentary elections ? the first national vote in roughly 30 years that doesn't include candidates from the former ruling National Democratic Party.

"These are bad times," said Khaled Naga, a senior broker with Mega Investments, adding that even after a thousands-strong demonstration on Friday went relatively peacefully, there were expectations that the market would decline.

"All things considered, this is a reasonable decline," said Naga. "We were expecting worse ? maybe 5 percent."

Shares of Commercial International Bank were down almost 2.2 percent to 23.22 Egyptian pounds while Orascom Construction Industries' shares were off 3.24 percent to 220.2 Egyptian pounds.

The Jan. 25 revolution that toppled Mubarak and ended nearly three decades of authoritarian rule has battered the country's economy.

Foreign investment and tourism, which are two of the country's economic pillars, are reeling from the unrest, while frequent labor strikes and other mass protests have disrupted daily life and forced the government to adopt populist policies that have widened the deficit and added to expenses.

Already, Egypt has run through almost 40 percent of its net international reserves since December.

Brokers said continued unrest in the capital would likely only add to the drop and expected that the market's support point ? where it could bounce back ? could be around 3,800 points. But hitting that level would involve a number of days of heavy losses and so far the Egyptian market has shown a surprising ability to bounce back despite the continuing unrest and tension in the nation.

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/economy/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111120/ap_on_bi_ge/ml_egypt_economy

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Her Business Card Simply Said: Dorli Rainey - Activist | War Is A ...

I Knew Right Away She Was The Real Deal ??????

By Kathleen Kirwin, Esq.

In the late afternoon of October 6th, 2011, I flew into Washington DC and headed straight for Freedom Plaza at the corner of 14th and Pennsylvania. ?Months before that date, and as so many others already had, I ?pledged? to be there to participate in an occupation of Washington entitled ?October 2011: STOP THE MACHINE?CREATE A NEW WORLD.? On its website, and in solidarity with those who had already signed, I too pledged as follows:

"I pledge that if any U.S. troops, contractors, or mercenaries remain in Afghanistan on Thursday, October 6, 2011, as that occupation goes into its 11th year, I will commit to being in Freedom Plaza in Washington, D.C., with others on that day with the intention of making it our Tahrir Square, Cairo, our Madison, Wisconsin, where we will NONVIOLENTLY resist the corporate machine to demand that our resources are invested in human needs and environmental protection instead of war and exploitation. We can do this together. We will be the beginning."

It now comes as no surprise that Dorli Rainey had also signed the pledge to be at Freedom Plaza on October 6th, and she was. ?The honor and privilege of sitting beside her that first night was utterly mine, while speakers, musicians, and the wise beyond their years voices of the Afghan Youth Peace Volunteers broadcasting live from Afghanistan over the Plaza?s sound system filled downtown Washington with something not indigenous to this nation?s capital: inspiration, enthusiasm, determination, solidarity, creativity, and a gravity of purpose, all for the good of the many, rather than the few. I can attest without hyperbole that as Ms. Rainey watched and listened to the events unfold that first night at Freedom Plaza, her 84 year old face reflected a joy and an unmitigated hope reserved for those whose dreams had come at last. As we took in the occupation?s opening events under the stars, Ms. Rainey put her Nana-like hand on my arm and said: ?I have been waiting for this for a hundred years. I didn?t think I would live to see it.? And as Emma?s Revolution took the stage reminding us of the power of songs of protest, Ms. Rainey jumped from her seat and danced along with the crowd, clapping all the while. I took a (blurry) picture of her while I wrote her words down on the back of her hand made business card. ?I wanted them remembered.

Not only has Ms. Rainey ?lived to see it?, she has lived to embody it. She has lived to personify it. She has lived to teach it and advocate for it by a lifetime vigilant example. As such, it was not the least bit ironic to see that Ms. Rainey had joined the large march from Freedom Plaza to the Martin Luther King Memorial the following day to retrospectively commemorate the enormity and greatness of all that Dr. King stood and stands for, and to prospectively bring his morally and righteously based activism into the present fight for global sanity on all fronts. ?Notwithstanding her years, the distance, and the heat that day, Ms. Rainey did what few people can claim: she literally and figuratively walked the walk of Dr. King. She was holding her government to account and she was doing so for the numerous younger generations with whom and for whom she marched that day, and their posterity. It?s a rare person who can evoke the visceral term posterity and endow it with the meaning it deserves, but this 84 year old ?activist? does just that.

Ms. Rainey spent five days in Washington before returning home to Seattle. On November 16th, and as the world now knows, Seattle police engaged in acts of brutality against participants of Occupy Seattle. Ms. Rainey had gotten off her bus that day to join them in non-violent solidarity after witnessing a swarm of police helicopters flying overhead. The price she paid for doing so was to be on the receiving end of a volley of chemical weapons discharged by police officers. Peace officers, as it were. Notwithstanding that such a disproportionate and violent response by law enforcement constitutes fundamental excessive force, Ms. Rainey remains ideologically undaunted. Her exchange with Amy Goodman on Democracy Now! on November 17th is indicative:

AMYGOODMAN: I wanted to ask you, Dorli, what did it feel like to be pepper-sprayed in the face? This dramatic photograph of you being helped by two people right afterwards.

DORLIRAINEY: Well, first of all, it?s very painful. And when they say there are no after effects, I still have a pain in my lungs, and my voice is kind of raspy. I don?t know how long that will last. But the thing really is not about me getting pepper-sprayed. It is a much bigger issue than that, and I would like everybody to keep that in mind, that while we?re getting pepper-sprayed, other issues are not being heard. And that?s my problem. I feel issues become a major focus to the detriment of the real issues that cause this whole problem.

Notwithstanding Ms. Rainey?s drive to keep her eye on the ball, the issue of police brutality being committed on the streets of America against non-violent, unarmed citizen protestors, and the command responsibility of police and/or city brass giving police officers either the leeway or the orders to commit such brutality, is no longer a matter collateral to the ?real issues?, as Ms. Rainey called them. Hence, if those trying to impose a literal police state want that fight, they will get it. But the fight will be on our terms: powerful and peaceful. And I can only hope Dorli Rainey will be leading it.

Source: http://warisacrime.org/content/her-business-card-simply-said-dorli-rainey-activist

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Her Business Card Simply Said: Dorli Rainey - Activist | War Is A ...

I Knew Right Away She Was The Real Deal ??????

By Kathleen Kirwin, Esq.

In the late afternoon of October 6th, 2011, I flew into Washington DC and headed straight for Freedom Plaza at the corner of 14th and Pennsylvania. ?Months before that date, and as so many others already had, I ?pledged? to be there to participate in an occupation of Washington entitled ?October 2011: STOP THE MACHINE?CREATE A NEW WORLD.? On its website, and in solidarity with those who had already signed, I too pledged as follows:

"I pledge that if any U.S. troops, contractors, or mercenaries remain in Afghanistan on Thursday, October 6, 2011, as that occupation goes into its 11th year, I will commit to being in Freedom Plaza in Washington, D.C., with others on that day with the intention of making it our Tahrir Square, Cairo, our Madison, Wisconsin, where we will NONVIOLENTLY resist the corporate machine to demand that our resources are invested in human needs and environmental protection instead of war and exploitation. We can do this together. We will be the beginning."

It now comes as no surprise that Dorli Rainey had also signed the pledge to be at Freedom Plaza on October 6th, and she was. ?The honor and privilege of sitting beside her that first night was utterly mine, while speakers, musicians, and the wise beyond their years voices of the Afghan Youth Peace Volunteers broadcasting live from Afghanistan over the Plaza?s sound system filled downtown Washington with something not indigenous to this nation?s capital: inspiration, enthusiasm, determination, solidarity, creativity, and a gravity of purpose, all for the good of the many, rather than the few. I can attest without hyperbole that as Ms. Rainey watched and listened to the events unfold that first night at Freedom Plaza, her 84 year old face reflected a joy and an unmitigated hope reserved for those whose dreams had come at last. As we took in the occupation?s opening events under the stars, Ms. Rainey put her Nana-like hand on my arm and said: ?I have been waiting for this for a hundred years. I didn?t think I would live to see it.? And as Emma?s Revolution took the stage reminding us of the power of songs of protest, Ms. Rainey jumped from her seat and danced along with the crowd, clapping all the while. I took a (blurry) picture of her while I wrote her words down on the back of her hand made business card. ?I wanted them remembered.

Not only has Ms. Rainey ?lived to see it?, she has lived to embody it. She has lived to personify it. She has lived to teach it and advocate for it by a lifetime vigilant example. As such, it was not the least bit ironic to see that Ms. Rainey had joined the large march from Freedom Plaza to the Martin Luther King Memorial the following day to retrospectively commemorate the enormity and greatness of all that Dr. King stood and stands for, and to prospectively bring his morally and righteously based activism into the present fight for global sanity on all fronts. ?Notwithstanding her years, the distance, and the heat that day, Ms. Rainey did what few people can claim: she literally and figuratively walked the walk of Dr. King. She was holding her government to account and she was doing so for the numerous younger generations with whom and for whom she marched that day, and their posterity. It?s a rare person who can evoke the visceral term posterity and endow it with the meaning it deserves, but this 84 year old ?activist? does just that.

Ms. Rainey spent five days in Washington before returning home to Seattle. On November 16th, and as the world now knows, Seattle police engaged in acts of brutality against participants of Occupy Seattle. Ms. Rainey had gotten off her bus that day to join them in non-violent solidarity after witnessing a swarm of police helicopters flying overhead. The price she paid for doing so was to be on the receiving end of a volley of chemical weapons discharged by police officers. Peace officers, as it were. Notwithstanding that such a disproportionate and violent response by law enforcement constitutes fundamental excessive force, Ms. Rainey remains ideologically undaunted. Her exchange with Amy Goodman on Democracy Now! on November 17th is indicative:

AMYGOODMAN: I wanted to ask you, Dorli, what did it feel like to be pepper-sprayed in the face? This dramatic photograph of you being helped by two people right afterwards.

DORLIRAINEY: Well, first of all, it?s very painful. And when they say there are no after effects, I still have a pain in my lungs, and my voice is kind of raspy. I don?t know how long that will last. But the thing really is not about me getting pepper-sprayed. It is a much bigger issue than that, and I would like everybody to keep that in mind, that while we?re getting pepper-sprayed, other issues are not being heard. And that?s my problem. I feel issues become a major focus to the detriment of the real issues that cause this whole problem.

Notwithstanding Ms. Rainey?s drive to keep her eye on the ball, the issue of police brutality being committed on the streets of America against non-violent, unarmed citizen protestors, and the command responsibility of police and/or city brass giving police officers either the leeway or the orders to commit such brutality, is no longer a matter collateral to the ?real issues?, as Ms. Rainey called them. Hence, if those trying to impose a literal police state want that fight, they will get it. But the fight will be on our terms: powerful and peaceful. And I can only hope Dorli Rainey will be leading it.

Source: http://warisacrime.org/content/her-business-card-simply-said-dorli-rainey-activist

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Emboldened by Obama, Myanmar maps out reforms (Reuters)

NUSA DUA, Indonesia (Reuters) ? Myanmar vowed on Saturday to address concerns raised by President Barack Obama, outlining far-reaching plans to make peace with ethnic rebels, gradually release all political prisoners and relax controls on freedom of expression.

But its government, fearing an Arab Spring-style revolution if it moves too quickly, stressed reforms must be gradual after nearly a half century of isolation and authoritarian rule that ended when the army handed power in March to a civilian parliament stacked with former generals.

No longer Southeast Asia's pariah state, Myanmar won a powerful endorsement on Friday when Obama announced Secretary of State Hillary Clinton would visit the resource-rich country neighboring China, the highest-ranking American to do so since a 1962 military coup. Obama cited "flickers of progress."

That came a day after Southeast Asian leaders approved of Myanmar, also known as Burma, as chairman of its regional ASEAN bloc in 2014, paving the way for a more influential role.

"We are trying our best to make an effective transition to democracy," Ko Ko Hlaing, chief political adviser to President Thein Sein, told Reuters in a wide-ranging, hour-long interview on the sidelines of the East Asia Summit in Bali, Indonesia.

The fact he spoke at all is significant. Myanmar delegations studiously avoid the media at regional forums, quietly entering and leaving through auditorium backdoors. This year, officials stopped in hallways to take questions, sometimes with the flash of a smile, appearing to relish their moment.

For many Burmese such as Ko Ko Hlaing, it feels overdue.

The 55-year-old former military officer once managed a team of government researchers. They studied international affairs, and watched as the world changed, first with the Internet and then as democracy took root in the Philippines and Indonesia, itself an authoritarian state until the late 1990s.

Later, he became a radio and television personality before taking up his current post as the top advisor to the president., describing himself now as a "conscious reformer" who wants "dynamic but systematic and stable changes."

Some conservatives, however, want Myanmar to go slower and a very small minority want no change at all, he said. "It is very difficult to change a mindset," he said. "But almost all of the people accept that changes are needed. The train is leaving."

Coming changes, he said, will directly address Obama's concerns, including improving treatment of ethnic minorities and releasing remaining political prisoners.

Diplomats say those conditions must be met for the United States and the European Union to end punitive sanctions that have isolated Myanmar and pushed it closer to China. They were imposed in response to rights abuses, including the killing of thousands of pro-democracy supporters.

"REAL ELECTIONS"

Clinton told FOX News she wants to see "a real political process and real elections."

The Myanmar official said that will happen. More political prisoners, he said, would be released once the government determines the 230 activists freed in an October 12 amnesty had smoothly returned to society and politics.

"If it is OK, there will be a more immediate release of the next batch," he said.

The test may come soon when the National League for Democracy, the party of Nobel Peace Prize laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, contests by-elections expected in late December. The party ended a boycott of Myanmar's political system on Friday by announcing it would register for the elections.

Her party, whose landslide electoral victory in 1990 was voided by the military, will give the elections a degree of credibility and possibly pave the way for more prisoners to be released if the vote goes smoothly.

Suu Kyi, herself released in 2010 from years of house arrest, has said about 400 activists remain behind bars.

"There is no concrete reason to delay the release of the political prisoners," said Ko Ko Hlaing.

But he said Arab pro-democracy uprisings made Myanmar cautious in moving too fast.

"As you can see in the Arab states and also in Syria, there is some turmoil. Even in Egypt. There were mobs. So what our leaders would like to see is a stable and smooth transition to democracy," he said. "Some prisoners committed terrorist acts. We are worried about this, that they may shake the boat."

Diplomats say the government may fear former military officers arrested in 2004 when former military intelligence chief and prime minister Khin Nyunt was accused of corruption and purged, but Ko Ko Hlaing dismissed this concern.

"He will be equally treated as other prisoners," he said.

MINORITY PEACE PROCESS

Another U.S. priority, Clinton said, is ending Myanmar's "terrible conflicts with ethnic minorities."

That, too, is in the works, Ko Ko Hlaing said.

The government, he said, is in talks with minority groups, including ethnic Kachin separatists who fought the army this year after the collapse of negotiations aimed at ending a conflict that dates to the 1960s along the Chinese border.

"The peace process with the Kachin group is very slow currently. But we are trying to break the stalemate and we are trying to find other ways to make advances in the peace process," he said, adding the government was reaching out to ethnic Kachin elders but did not want international mediation.

A ceasefire agreed in 1994 fell through last year when the government tried to force all ethnic minority forces to merge with its military-run Border Guard Force.

Guerrillas of the Kachin Independence Army say they fear a merger would erode their autonomy. Their force numbers at least 10,000 well-armed and experienced fighters.

The government is also at odds with the Karen National Union (KNU) and its armed wing, the Karen National Liberation Army, which has fought the government for more autonomy since 1949.

Racked by defections and dissension, the KNU, once the largest of the armed ethnic groups, is a shadow of its former self. It suffered a major setback in late 1994 when a Buddhist faction calling itself the Democratic Karen Buddhist Army (DKBA) staged a mutiny against the Christian-dominated group, breaking away and defecting to the government.

A faction of DKBA fighters have resisted being forced into the Border Guard Force.

Ko Ko Hlaing said the government aimed to pacify Karens and other ethnic groups with economic incentives, not violence.

"Without peace and security, we cannot make any development projects in those areas. And unless those areas are developed, the insurgency is prolonged for a long time. It is a chicken-and-egg scenario and we have to break eggs," he said.

The government, he said, had made progress with other minority groups. "We are now negotiating with the Wa group in the southern Shan states and some associated groups, and these negotiations are under progress."

A new media law is also in the works, he said, after decades in which every song, book, cartoon and planned piece of art required approval by censors rooting out political messages.

"Our new media law will reflect guaranteed freedom of expression, so no censorship. But there will be some monitoring systems," he said. "The censorship will only be cultural and religious. Other than that they can express opinions freely."

In September, Myanmar lifted bans on prominent news websites, including some run by government critics that were blocked at the peak of an army crackdown on monk-led protests in 2007. In August, state-run newspapers dropped back-page banners attacking the West.

"We have to change the mindsets and attitude of all of society," he said.

(Editing by Neil Fullick)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/obama/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111120/wl_nm/us_myanmar_reforms

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Mass protests against university fee hikes in Quebec

backgroundblue line Saturday 19th November, 2011

Mass protests against university fee hikes in Quebec ??



?????Saturday 19th November, 2011??Source: World Socialist ??
More than 25,000 CEGEP (college) and university students from across Quebec marched through the streets of Montreal last week to protest against the plans of the provincial Liberal government of Jean Charest to raise university tuition fees by 75 percent.
The demonstration was characterized by everyone from the police to the press as one of the lar...

Breaking News
Saturday 19th November, 2011


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Source: http://feeds.bignewsnetwork.com/?rid=201174746&cat=71df8d33cd2a30df

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Jay Leno's Chevy Volt still has original tank of gas, 11,000 miles later

What daily driver do you pick when you're rockin' a warehouse with over a hundred enviable whips? Well, if you happen to be a famous comedian named Jay Leno, apparently it's the Chevy Volt. Since procuring the plug-in chariot last year, the late night star has "yet to put gas in it," despite accumulating over 11,000 miles driving to and from what we'll assume is The Tonight Show. Not all of that has been gasoline-free automotive bliss, as Leno's exceeded the car's electric 40-ish mile range more than a few times, burning through around half of the vehicle's original tank. At that rate, the Volt will need refueling by this time next year -- or not, barring any further timeslot kerfuffles.

Jay Leno's Chevy Volt still has original tank of gas, 11,000 miles later originally appeared on Engadget on Sat, 19 Nov 2011 04:18:00 EDT. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

Permalink Autoblog Green  |  sourceThe New York Times  | Email this | Comments


Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/kXIX1pawU64/

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Mintz, Levin Hires Lobbyist from Health Insurance Advocacy Group ...

Updated 2:07 p.m.

Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo picked up a lobbyist from America's Health Insurance Plans Inc., the firm announced Thursday.

Gary Bacher, who was senior vice president at the almost 1,300-member advocacy group, is of counsel to Mintz in its health law practice and senior vice president for the firm's consulting affiliate, ML Strategies.

"The choice reflected my view that being able to offer clients both legal and public policy services through Mintz Levin and ML Strategies respectively offered tremendous value and a solutions oriented approach to meeting client needs," Bacher wrote in an e-mail.

At America?s Health Insurance Plans, he spearheaded the organization?s policy development effort related to healthcare reform and regulatory implementation. The association spent $6.9 million on lobbying during the first three quarters of this year, according to congressional records.

Bacher also spent a stint as public affairs vice president at health insurance company UnitedHealth Group Inc., after serving as assistant to the Army general counsel.

?Gary?s experience working in the public and private sectors on a number of complex regulatory and policy issues, including a variety of health care reform matters, adds an important dimension to the services that we can provide to our clients,? Karen Lovitch, Mintz?s health law practice head, said in a statement.

Source: http://legaltimes.typepad.com/blt/2011/11/mintz-levin-hires-lobbyist-from-health-insurance-advocacy-group.html

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Millionaires on Capitol Hill: Please tax me more!

House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer of Md., right, answers questions after a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2011. Huddling behind him, from left are, Rep. Tim Walz, D-Minn., Sen. Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D, and Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer of Md., right, answers questions after a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2011. Huddling behind him, from left are, Rep. Tim Walz, D-Minn., Sen. Sen. Kent Conrad, D-N.D, and Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

From left, Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., Sen. Roger Wicker, R-Miss., and Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., talk in the hall before a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2011. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Sen. Mark Warner, D-Va., second from right, accompanied by House Minority Whip Steny Hoyer of Md., right, and others, gestures during a news conference on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2011. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster)

Supercommittee co-chair Sen. Patty Murray, D-Wash., talks to reporters on Capitol Hill in Washington, Wednesday, Nov. 16, 2011, as she emerged from a closed-door meeting of the panel. (AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite)

(AP) ? Lobbyists for a day, a band of millionaires stormed Capitol Hill on Wednesday to urge Congress to tax them more.

They had a little trouble getting in. It turns out there are procedures, even for the really rich.

But once inside, their message was embraced by liberals and tolerated by some conservatives ? including the ideological leader of anti-tax lawmakers, who had some advice for them, too.

"If you think the federal government can spend your money better than you can, then by all means" pay more in taxes than you owe, said Grover Norquist, of Americans for Tax Reform, a group that has gotten almost all congressional Republicans to pledge to vote against tax hikes. The IRS should have a little line on the form where people can donate money to the government, he suggested, "just like the tip line on a restaurant receipt."

One of the millionaires suggested that if Norquist wanted low taxes and less government, "Renounce your American citizenship and move to Somalia where they don't collect any tax."

In the silence left by the private efforts of the "supercommittee" to find $1.2 trillion or more in deficit cuts by Thanksgiving, free advice flowed in public.

And not just any advice: pie-in-the-sky suggestions from those not connected to the talks, mostly to reopen debates that have led nowhere. The millionaires want the panel to raise taxes on people who earn more than $1 million, even though most Republicans are committed against the idea. And 150 House member and senators urged a much bigger debt-and-deficit deal, even as a small-scope agreement is proving elusive.

While they were at it, the lawmakers insisted that bipartisanship was not, in fact, dead.

This group of House members and senators shared a stage and some jokes and signed a letter urging the supercommittee of Republicans and Democrats to find the required $1.2 trillion in cuts ? plus about $2.8 trillion more. They all want the panel to avoid triggering automatic cuts as a penalty for failing.

So this uneasy alliance of 150 Republicans and Democrats will vote for whatever deal the supercommittee strikes?

"No," said House Democratic Whip Steny Hoyer. "Nobody's going to commit to the deal until they see the deal."

What deal? There is no evidence that one is near, so the millionaires tried to meet with anyone who would meet with them.

The progressive caucus did, eagerly and on-camera. The rest wasn't so easy.

At a basement entrance to the Capitol, a police officer pointed to the name badges that identified each wearer as "Patriotic Millionaire."

"That is not a visitor's badge," the officer said. "Go to the visitors desk and get a visitor's badge."

Off they trudged, a group mostly of men in business-casual clothing toting laptops and umbrellas, to a desk visited by tourists and lobbyists. Badges secured, they headed in.

Lawrence Benenson, vice president of Benenson Capitol Co., ran into freshman Rep. Kristi Noem, R-S.D., in an elevator.

"I'm with the Patriotic Millionaires and we want to pay more in taxes," he told her.

Noem grinned.

"How much more?" she asked.

Then it was off to meet, not with senators but their staffs ? and not in the Capitol but in offices across the street.

Progress was not made, by all accounts.

A meeting with an aide to Sen. Jon Kyl, R-Ariz., opened with his aide announcing that the senator believes the wealthy pay more taxes than their fair share, according to one of the millionaires, Matthew Palevsky, a consultant and founder of the Council on Crime Prevention.

"We defined it as not paying our fair share," Palevsky said of the 20-minute chat. "It was clear we were coming from different points of view."

In a meeting with Rep. Ralph Hall, R-Texas, the congressman faux-proposed ? apparently ? to an aide to the millionaires. She declined.

Then it was off, on a bus not a limo, across town to see Norquist.

Why were they bothering with him?

"That's what I asked this morning," said one of the millionaires, Frank Jernigan, a former senior software engineer for Google.

"It's a media hook," offered another, Guy Saperstein, a retired lawyer and former president of the Sierra Club Foundation.

Such candor is not the norm in these parts.

For his part, Norquist said he was ready for the group with a tongue-in-cheek Torah lesson: Maimonides and his "eight degrees of charity." That's what Norquist says the millionaires are essentially proposing with their tax-me-more pitch. Perhaps there should be a ninth, Norquist suggested.

"Nobody's holding them back" from donating money to the federal government, he said as he prepared for the group's arrival. "They're saying, 'Gee, I'd sure like to write a big check to the federal government, if someone would just stop stopping me.'"

___

Associated Press writer Larry Margasak contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2011-11-16-Debt%20Supercommittee-Millionaire%20Lobbyists/id-3a149470b9c44e9e9f8a9e35ff99c14f

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The oldest old: Reaching 90 more likely than ever (AP)

WASHINGTON ? The rolls of America's oldest old are surging: Nearly 2 million now are 90 or over, nearly triple their numbers of just three decades ago.

It's not all good news. They're more likely than the merely elderly to live in poverty and to have disabilities, creating a new challenge to already strained retiree income and health care programs.

First-ever census data on the 90-plus population highlight America's ever-increasing life spans, which are redefining what it means to be old.

Joined by graying baby boomers, the oldest old are projected to increase from 1.9 million to 8.7 million by midcentury ? making up 2 percent of the total U.S. population and one in 10 older Americans. That's a big change from over a century ago, when fewer than 100,000 people reached 90.

Demographers attribute the increases mostly to better nutrition and advances in medical care. Still, the longer life spans present additional risks for disabilities and chronic conditions such as arthritis, diabetes and Alzheimer's disease.

"If I get stuck with something I can't handle, I yell for the kids," says Betty Mae Gutoski, 85, of Muskegon, Mich., who says she expects to live past 90. After all, her father lived to 98. The colon cancer survivor lives alone and says she is "comfortable," getting occasional help with yard work from her son and grandson, who live next door.

Gutoski said in a telephone interview that she maintains her health by leading a busy life ? driving, grocery shopping once a week, sewing, visiting the senior center, volunteering and meeting her friends for lunch ? but she acknowledges having some fears. "My big worry is becoming a burden on my family," she said.

Richard Suzman, director of behavioral and social research at the National Institute on Aging, which commissioned the report, said cases like Gutoski's are increasingly common. Personal savings for retirement can sometimes be a problem, he said, if people don't anticipate a longer life or one with some form of disability.

An Associated Press-LifeGoesStrong.com poll in June found that more than one in four adults expect to live to at least 90, including nearly half of those currently 65 or older. A majority of adults also said they expected people in their generation to live longer than those in their parents' generation, with about 46 percent saying they expected a better quality of life in later years as well.

"A key issue for this population will be whether disability rates can be reduced," Suzman said. "We've seen to some extent that disabilities can be reduced with lifestyle improvements, diet and exercise. But it becomes more important to find ways to delay, prevent or treat conditions such as Alzheimer's disease."

According to the report, the share of people 90-94 who report having some kind of impairment such as inability to do errands, visit a doctor's office, climb stairs or bathe is 13 percentage points higher than those 85-89 ? 82 percent versus 69 percent.

Among those 95 and older, the disability rate climbs to 91 percent.

Census figures show that smaller states had the highest shares of their older Americans who were at least 90. North Dakota led the list, with about 7 percent of its 65-plus population over 90. It was followed by Connecticut, Iowa and South Dakota. In absolute numbers, California, Florida and Texas led the nation in the 90-plus population, each with more than 130,000.

Traditionally, the Census Bureau has followed established norms in breaking down age groups, such as under-18 to signify children or 65-plus to indicate seniors. Since the mid-1980s, the bureau often has released data on the 85-plus population, describing them as the "oldest old" ? a term coined by Suzman.

But some of those norms, at least culturally, may be shifting. Young people 18-29 more than ever are delaying their transition to work in the poor job market by pursuing advanced degrees or moving in with Mom and Dad. Older Americans, who are living longer and staying healthier than prior generations, are now more likely to work past 65.

On Thursday, the Census Bureau said it was putting out its study of the 90-plus age group at NIA's request in recognition of longer life expectancies, which are just over 78 for babies now being born.

By the time a person reaches 65, Americans are generally expected to live close to 20 years longer, up from 12 years in 1930. At age 90, their expectancy is another five years.

"Given its rapid growth, the 90-and-older population merits a closer look," said Wan He, a Census Bureau demographer who wrote the report. "The older people get, the more resources they consume because of health care, and disability rates significantly increase. This creates demands for daily care, and for families the care burden increases dramatically."

The findings come as a special congressional committee struggles to meet a Nov. 23 deadline to cut more than $1 trillion from the federal deficit over 10 years. Major sticking points are proposals to increase tax revenue as well as trim Social Security and Medicare spending, such as by increasing the Medicare eligibility age.

Other findings in the census report:

_Among the 90-plus population, women outnumber men by a ratio of nearly 3 to 1.

_Broken down by race and ethnicity, non-Hispanic whites made up the vast majority of the 90-plus population, at 88.1 percent. That's compared to 7.6 percent who were black, 4 percent Hispanic and 2.2 percent Asian.

_Most people who were 90 or older lived in households alone, about 37.3 percent. Some 37.1 percent lived in households with family or others, while about 23 percent stayed in nursing homes. About 3 percent lived in assisted living or other informal care facilities.

_Those who were 90 or older had median income of $14,760, about half of it from Social Security. About 14.5 percent of the age group lived in poverty, compared to 9.6 percent for Americans who are 65-89.

"As we look at these numbers, we see just how critically important programs like Medicare, Medicaid and Social Security are, especially for the very old in America," said David Certner, legislative policy director at AARP. "These are the people ? mostly single elderly women ? who can least afford a cut to their Social Security cost-of-living adjustment."

"Many more also will come to rely on Medicaid as the largest payer of long-term services and supports in our country," he said.

At the Misler Adult Day Center, a division of the Jewish Council on the Aging of Greater Washington in Rockville, Md., where seniors receive care and everyday assistance, more than a third are over 90. Physical, cognitive or emotional impairments are typical among the group but vary widely, with a 90-year-old functioning better than a 73-year-old suffering from Parkinson's disease.

Carol Neustadt, a social worker at the center, said in many of the cases adult children are taking responsibility for the care of their elderly parents, and the financial and day-to-day demands can be stressful. "Being a caregiver for a person that is needing you 24 hours a day is very difficult and demanding," she said.

___

Associated Press writers Stacy A. Anderson, Lauran Neergaard and Deputy Polling Director Jennifer Agiesta contributed to this report.

___

Online:

National Institute on Aging: http://www.nia.nih.gov/

Census Bureau: http://www.census.gov/

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/us/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20111117/ap_on_go_ot/us_census_oldest_old

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