- Savannah is normally a tourist magnet and not a
reasonable facsimile of the smog-riddled pulmonary hellhole that is Beijing,
but on Saturday the Georgian town became a health hazard for its residents and
visitors. A
huge plume of black smoke hovered above the city for much of the day on
Saturday, prompting officials to urge people to stay inside to avoid the fumes.
The fire started around 11:30 a.m. inside a warehouse located in the Georgia
Port Authority's Ocean Terminal, just west off of the city's historic
riverfront. The source appeared to be pallets of solid rubber that were
burning, according to Savannah Fire Department spokesman Mark Keller. Crews
responded quickly to the scene and were able to contain the blaze within half
the building, but they elected to let some of the fire burn itself out rather
than continue battling it. Because of the timing of the fire, there were no
reported injuries or evacuations. That was of little comfort to locals who were
trapped inside their homes thanks to the column of thick, black smoke and
resulting breathing issues that being outdoors could cause. "If you don't
have to go out, we advise to stay inside," Keller said. The National
Weather Service issued a dense smoke advisory through the end of the day for he
Savannah metropolitan area -- including the communities of Pembroke, Fort
McAllister and Tybee Island. "Everyone is encouraged to stay indoors as
the air quality will be hazardous. Avoid strenuous activities if you must work
outdoors," the advisory warned. "Motorists should be alert for sudden
changes in visibilities." The Savannah College of Art and Design tweeted
an advisory to avoid the River Street area, a popular spot for tourists filled
with restaurants and stores. Those who did venture out stopped along the
Talmadge Memorial Bridge to photograph the fire and noted that the smoke mostly
wafted straight up into the air. Winds out of the north-northeast eventually
pushed the smoke out to sea, returning the city to its usual photogenic self……….
- The fence is going back up in the nation known for its
neutrality. Switzerland may not take sides and fight in wars, but it is
anything but middling when it comes to immigration. The staunchly independent nation
is not a member of the European Union and maintains its own currency despite
being EU-locked by every nation is borders, yet Swiss voters went to the polls
this weekend to vote on whether to
bring back strict immigration quotas. About 50.5 percent of voters cast their
ballots in favor of measures that would end the Swiss-EU free movement
of people agreement. EU officials warned the Swiss that they cannot just choose
the aspects of its policy they want to follow, but the referendum moved forward
and early returns show that it will likely reach the simple majority necessary
to pass. As expected, the vote has broken down along traditional cultural
lines, with French-speaking areas against the quotas, German-speaking regions
divided and the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino firmly in favor. If the
results hold up, they are expected to exacerbate tensions between Switzerland
and the EU. The debate throughout Europe about migration and the impact of free
movement of people has heated up in recent months and with one of the few
economies that is booming at the
moment, Switzerland is a solid option for border crashers seeking a fresh
start. Approximately one-fourth of the country’s 8 million citizens are foreign
and 80,000 new immigrants arrived last year. Since 2007, the 500 million residents of the EU’s 27 member
nations s have been on an equal footing with locals in the Swiss job market. A
2000 referendum on immigration laid the groundwork for that arrangement, but a
coalition led by the right-wing Swiss People's Party is having referendum
regret. Sounding decidedly jingoistic, they believe free movement has adversely
affected housing, health, education and transport and claim that foreign
workers drive salaries down. The Swiss government disagrees, but it appears the
people have spoken……….
- Rich people buy expensive sh*t they don’t need so a) they
can say they have it and b) so their other rich friends can't have it. The New
York Yankees are Major League Baseball’s preeminent rich, arrogant pricks who
spend more than anyone else and pay exorbitant sticker prices for players that
other teams can't afford. They – and possibly the Los Angeles Dodgers and
Angels – are the only ones capable of paying a $20 million posting fee to
negotiate with a prized Japanese free agent, signing said free agent to a
seven-year, $155 million contract and then admitting he’s not even a
front-end-of-the-rotation starter. Handing a player the fifth-largest deal ever
for a pitcher and saying he’ll slot nicely into the middle or back end of your
rotation sounds absurd on the surface, but it’s business as usual for the
Yankees. After inking Japanese ace Masahiro Tanaka last month, that’s how the
team seems to view their newest import. "We view him to be a really solid,
consistent No. 3 starter," New York Yankees general manager Brian Cashman
said. "If we get more than that, all the better. He's got a great deal of
ability. Certainly, we look forward to adding him into the mix with the
rest of our rotation. That's what we look at him as: A solid, potential No. 3 starter in the big
leagues." Even though Cashman is clearly attempting to rein in expectations
for Tanaka, who signed the largest contract ever given to an international
player, suggesting that you agreed to pay nine figures to a mid-rotation arm is
laughable nonetheless. "That's asking too much," Cashman said.
"Clearly, he is going to have to transition from Japan to the States.”
Language and culture issues aside,
the Yankees missed the playoffs last season and spent nearly half a
billion dollars on free agents this winter, so any suggestion that Tanaka will
be a nice, complementary piece for the most storied franchise in MLB history is
wishful thinking at best…….
- Yahoo! Needs help and for that help, it has turned to Yelp. It makes
perfect sense, as the mash-up of Yahoo! and help is Yelp, and the two tech
companies will reportedly form a partnership to bolster search results and draw
users, according to multiple sources. Yelp, best known for snotty online
reviews that get reviewers sued by bars and restaurants they malign, should
benefit from teaming with Yahoo! to expand the reach of its ratings of local
merchants. No official timeline for the project has been decided upon, but the
service is expected to debut within a few weeks. Yahoo! chief executive officer
Marissa Mayer came in with much fanfare, but hasn’t exactly turned the company
into a powerhouse as it battles with Microsoft and Google for market share. In
fact, California-based company’s share of the search market has dropped by
about a half since 2008 to less than 11 percent in December last year. Google
commands 67 percent of the market, while Microsoft is a distant second at 18
percent. Both Yahoo! and Yelp spokespeople declined comment on the reported
partnership. Yahoo! already has a deal with Microsoft for its main search
technology, but tailors the framework with its own features and interface. Yelp’s
content is consumer-generated and available throughout the United States,
Europe and Asia. Meanwhile, Yahoo! is struggling, with its first-quarter sales
projected to be around $1.1 billion. That would be less than 1 percent growth
over its earnings from the same quarter last year. Yelp is forecasting
full-year net revenue growth of 53 percent, so the new friendship could
be exactly what both sides need right now………
- New movies dominated and one animated flick in particular
blocked out the competition at the weekend box office. The projected favorite
took care of business as “The Lego Movie” banked $69.1 million in its debut to
claim first and beat out fellow newcomer “The Monuments Men.” The two movies
catered to decidedly different demographics, with the family film winning the
battle. “Monuments Men” earned $22.7 million to place second in its first
weekend of release. The reigning earnings king, the wildly overrated “Ride
Along,” fell to third and raked in $9.4 million for a four-week domestic total
of $105.1 million. “Frozen” fell two spots to fourth with its $7 million
weekend, giving the animated effort $368.7 million in 12 profitable weeks of
release. “That
Awkward Moment” disappointed for the second time in as many weekends, managing
a scant $5.5 million for fifth place and a two-week bankroll of just $16.8
million. “Lone Survivor” battled its way to sixth place with $5.2 million and
despite spending much of its seven weeks in limited release, the war film has
amassed an impressive $112.6 million in domestic money. The third newcomer in
the top 10 was “Vampire Academy,” which lacked the sizzle and promotional
muscle of its fellow new films and consequently lacked their earning power as
well. Its $4.1 million opening didn’t overwhelm, but it did just enough to
claim seven place and hold off “The Nut Job,” which settled for eighth place with
$3.8 million to boost its four-week domestic earnings to $55 million. “Jack
Ryan: Shadow Recruit” tumbled three spots to ninth, bringing in $3.6 million to
up its domestic earnings to $44.5 million. The last spot in the top 10 went to “Labor
Day,” which managed just $3.2 million and has accumulated a smallish total of
$10.1 million through two weeks. “American Hustle” (No. 11), “The Wolf of Wall
Street” (No. 12) and “I, Frankenstein” (No. 15) all lost their spots in the top
10 from last weekend……….
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