（美國‧華盛頓）打高爾夫球時，老虎渥斯用的是右手，但性愛方面，根據至少一名自稱渥斯情婦者表示，伍茲可是左右開弓，男女通吃。
著名網站“雷達線上”（RadarOnline.com）報導，意大利模特兒費瑞歐羅宣稱，她曾目睹渥斯涉身多次男男性愛。費瑞歐羅自稱與渥斯幽會多次，目前打算出書，把箇中內容和盤托出。
費瑞歐羅表示，渥斯“性愛胃口極佳”，召妓、三人行、鄰家女孩、女女性愛，他都“性致”勃勃；凡此種種，她打算在新書中細細描述，同時回答有關渥斯性趣的一應傳言。
費瑞歐羅的經紀人證實，她正與好幾家出版公司洽淡合約，把她所知道的渥斯色情內容完全披露。
上一次費瑞歐羅把版權叫價100萬美元（約馬幣338萬令吉），結果無人問津，據說她希望這次標售結局能有所改善。
北京市民出手有多闊綽？在元旦小長假，北京市民3天就豪擲21.03億元人民幣（約10.5億馬幣）用於購物、餐飲等各類消費，比去年同期增長了25.8%。
北京商業委員會的數據顯示，北京市民在新年期間主要以購物消費為樂。
報告指出，北京市127家企業、3000多間商店在元旦前夕的銷售額高達7億4000萬元（人民幣，約3億6870萬令吉），比2008年同時期增長42%。
據報，百貨商場和電器專賣店的銷售數字高居榜首。
一些著名的百貨公司，包括雙安、崇光和菜百在佳節期間的收入是平時的兩倍。坐落於北京西單商業街的中友百貨公司，據稱在元旦當天的銷售額，是每小時100萬元（人民幣，下同）。
同一時間大量購衣
當地媒體報導，許多顧客在同一時間大量購入衣服，是因為許多知名品牌如颯拉（Zara）和H&M都進行大減價，一些零售商甚至降價高達70%。
蘇寧電器店的銷售員楊娜說：“我們舉行大型促銷活動，提供大減價和隨購物送禮品等優惠。”
“平常我們每天只有1萬元的銷售額。在新年假日期間，我們一天內可以賣出四五萬元的貨品。”楊娜的同事張率則表示，顧客至少增加了30%。
零售業者表示，今年異常優厚的大減價是北京掀起購物熱的主要原因。（亞洲新聞網‧中國《中國日報》）
（新加坡）華裔女郎愛上黑人，不料情海翻波，女郎慘遭活活打死，當場被剝光衣服，棄屍荒野。死者黑人男友今日（週六，1月9日）早上被控謀殺罪。
武吉班讓公園女屍的身份終於查明，原來死者並非失蹤多日的中國女歌星韓岩飛，而是25歲的華族女郎劉淑慧。
死者生前就住在武吉班讓萬吉路第270座組屋，在住家附近第256座組屋的1間超市工作。
據瞭解，死者跟26歲的黑人男友熱戀，可是兩人在去年8月份手後，前男友卻繼續糾纏她。
12月22日，前男友約她到公園見面，兩人發生激烈爭吵，她過後慘遭殺害，屍體在29日被發現時，已經高度腐爛，身上只穿著底褲。
警方是在1月5日通過DNA檢驗，證實女屍的身份後，立即展開追查，週四（1月7日）晚上在文禮組屋逮捕死者的前男友。
據悉，死者的前男友來自非洲尼日利亞，他是在2007年底持“S”準證來新，在2008年2月準證到期後，一直逾期逗留新加坡至今。
控謀殺被告神情鎮定
黑人男友週六早上面控，神情鎮定。
蓄著一頭粗卷短發的尼日利亞籍被告阿曼楚酋‧楚酋瑪（26歲，Amanchukwu Chukwuma），週六早上穿著謀殺案重犯穿的紅色上衣和深色短褲，於9時左右被庭警押上初級法庭。
被告身高約1.7米，身材頗壯碩。他在等待面控時，神情鎮定，直視前方，沒有東張西望。
控狀指出，被告在去年12月22日到29日之間，在靠近柏提路第201座組屋的武吉班讓N2公園叢林內，導致25歲的劉淑慧死亡，觸犯了刑事法典的謀殺罪，一旦罪名成立，被告將被判處死刑。
據悉，被告是在現任30逾歲馬來籍女友的住家被捕。
女死者犯失信罪曾坐牢
女死者劉淑慧曾經坐過牢。
據瞭解，劉淑慧是在2003年10月份，犯下失信罪而被警方逮捕。她在2005年8月被法庭判處坐牢9個月。
據悉，女死者與黑人男友分手，曾經離家出走鬧失蹤1個月。女死者和黑人男友是在去年8月份手，她在9月時突然離家出走。家人在她失蹤後，在10月報警，不過她過後主動回家。
由於死者曾經離家出走長達1個月，因此當她12月底遇害後沒有回家，家人也沒有起疑，直到警方查獲公園女屍的身份，家人才驚悉她遇害了。
With the re-opening of a 40-bed shelter under a downtown bridge in downtown Vancouver, a site closed last summer after complaints of drug abuse, fighting and noise, the West Coast city is planning to add an additional 160 beds in all.
The move is part of Vancouver's "Winter Response Plan" that will see the four "Homeless Emergency Action Team" shelters, supplementing three existing HEAT shelters that have been open since December 2008.
The additional beds, which will raise the total number available to 1,250 when all seven shelters are operational, will be opened through a 500,000 Canadian dollar contribution from the city and 1.2 million dollars from the province of British Columbia.
While the shelters will only remain open through April, Mayor Gregor Robertson told the media that "we have a national homeless crisis."
With Vancouver's reasonably temperate winter climate compared to other parts of Canada, Robertson said the city suffered "from a steady flow of people from colder climates."
Even with the addition, the number was still short of the beds required. According to the city, in the last official count taken in March 2008, at least 1,600 people slept outside or stayed in shelters on any given night.
The real number of homeless, however, was likely higher according to different groups. At an extreme high, an October 2007report released by health professors at three Canadian universities estimated there could be more than 15,000 homeless adults in British Columbia suffering from either severe addictions or mental illness.
In Vancouver's Downtown Eastside, the poorest area in Canada, a conservative estimate would be between 3,000 and 4,000 homeless. Other areas of the city, such as Mount Pleasant and the Downtown Peninsula, West End, were also popular haunts of the homeless.
To its credit, the city has set a goal of eradicating homelessness by 2015. With the province as its partner, Vancouver has identified 14 sites within the city to create permanent housing for the homeless. Under the plan the city would provide the land, while the province would provide capital and operating funds. A non-profit service provider would operate the housing.
Currently, 600 units are under construction at six sites, while800 units at eight other sites were waiting for funding. Last year,480 units at permanent housing projects were opened in the city.
Robertson said the city would not seek to extend the life of the "emergency" shelters, adding that "our focus beyond April will be on creating interim housing."
Gan Yisheng, vice secretary of the CCDI, said about 80 percent of them received punishments handed down by the CPC, accounting for 0.11 percent of all Party members, and the rest were penalized by the government.
They included Party members, government workers or leaders, and leaders of state-owned enterprises.
About 2.6 percent of those punished by the CPC were expelled from the Party and referred for prosecution for embezzlement or bribery, Gan said.
Of the almost 14,000 commercial corruption cases investigated and handled by disciplinary and supervisory organs, about 21 percent involved civil servants.
A total of 3,743 leaders at county level or above had been punished and about 20 percent were referred for prosecution.
Investigations into a series of accidents involving serious consequences led to the identification of 298 corrupt officials.
Gan said discipline inspection bodies received almost 1.32 million petitions and tip-offs in the 11 months, about 11 percent of which had been tentatively verified and 8.75 percent placed on file for investigation and prosecution.
Authorities put priority on cases concerning violations during the implementation of the CPC Central Committee's major decisions, such as the economic stimulus package, protection of cultivated land and conservation of resources, Gan said.
Focuses were also put on violations in key areas such as construction, real estate, land and mineral resource exploitation, state-owned assets and finance.
Party or government bodies and public institutions were also closely checked if they set up or used "private coffers."
A protracted cold spell eased somewhat Wednesday, but wide areas of the US—from the Northern Plains to the East Coast and stretching to the South—were bracing for more winter weather and freezing temperatures this weekend. The cold snap has spelled misery for many, especially in areas unaccustomed and ill-prepared for the frigid conditions.
The freezing weather has placed in sharp relief the devastating social impact of mass unemployment, growing poverty and the refusal of the Obama administration to provide any serious relief for the victims of the economic crisis.
The arctic blast began last weekend and has been blamed for a least seven confirmed deaths. The number is likely far higher, and confirmed deaths can be expected to climb as packed shelters turn away people seeking refuge and communities struggle to provide a warm place for the growing ranks of the homeless.
Other households may have a roof over their heads, but have had their utilities shut off due to non-payment. The use of space heaters, fires, candles and other unsafe sources of heating and electricity leaves families vulnerable to house fires.
Three people died early Tuesday morning in Detroit when their home caught fire. It is believed the house—without gas or electrical service in below-zero temperatures—was being heated by a space heater. (See “Cut off from heat in freezing temperatures—Three die in Detroit house fire”)
A National Fire Protection Association report showed 73 percent of home heating fire deaths can be attributed to space heaters. These conditions can only be expected to worsen under conditions of bitter cold and increasing utility shutoffs. Over the past week in Georgia, six families have lost their homes to fires, all of them trying to heat their houses with space heaters. The families narrowly escaped death.
The Red Cross reports a 200 percent surge in house fires. The Red Cross’s Ryan Logan attributes this to a combination of the cold weather and the economic situation, commenting, “Some of the most critical cases, I mean, people are actually heating their homes with their stoves and so things like that is really kind of what we’re seeing and I really believe it’s just a result of the economy at this point.”
Logan also says that because many families have consolidated to save money and are now living under one roof, these fires are affecting more people as well.
A broad swath of the nation’s midsection was under winter storm warnings Wednesday as parts of Missouri, Nebraska, Iowa, Minnesota and Illinois braced for more snow and frigid temperatures. South Dakota was under a blizzard warning until Thursday morning.
In the South, a region unaccustomed to such brutal winter weather, parts of Arkansas, Mississippi and Louisiana were under a hard freeze warning Wednesday morning. In Florida, Governor Charlie Crist ordered a state of emergency Tuesday as the state’s $9 billion citrus crop was threatened by freezing temperatures overnight.
At least four cold-related deaths were reported in Tennessee. Three people were found dead in Memphis within a 24-hour period. Leroy Jones, 68, was found frozen to death in his home in South Memphis on Sunday. Although his utility bill had been paid, for some reason he hadn’t turned on his heat.
Jones, who lived alone, was paralyzed on one side and had other health conditions. Shelby County Medical Examiner Dr. Karen Chancellor commented to the local media that hypothermia can affect the brain and an individual’s decision-making. “Your sensations may be altered,” she said, “and you may not realize that you’re becoming too cold. Those most at risk include the elderly, chronically ill, people with heart disease and those who abuse drugs and alcohol.”
Two homeless men also succumbed to the cold in the Memphis area. The body of 51-year-old Daniel Foust, from Ohio, was found next to the railroad tracks in Bartlett. Another man, 55, whose identity has yet to be released by authorities, was discovered frozen to death at Memorial Park Cemetery in East Memphis.
In Nashville, Tennessee, John Anderson, was found dead outside his home Monday morning. Anderson, 81, who was in the advanced stages of Alzheimer’s Disease, wandered outside in his bathrobe overnight, when area temperatures fell to a low of 12 Fahrenheit (-11 Centigrade). His case exposes the plight of millions of elderly Americans across the US living alone with serious medical conditions and with little or no social assistance.
Since the cold snap took hold, several Nashville area shelters have reported turning away up to 75 people a night. USA Today reports that the Nashville Rescue Mission, which has 747 beds, is filled to overcapacity.
State and local authorities wash their hands of the homeless crisis, leaving it mainly to charities and churches to deal with the growing numbers of individuals and families thrown onto the streets by the deepening economic crisis. The Nashville Rescue Mission sends out a “cold patrol” when the temperatures drop below 36 Fahrenheit (2 Centigrade).
In Broward County, Florida, the body of a homeless man was found Monday near Hollywood’s Young Circle, a victim of the unusually cold weather for this region. Investigators were working to identify the 6-foot, 128 pound man who reportedly went by the name “Oklahoma.”
Medical Examiner Dr. Joshua Perper said that the freezing temperatures are likely a contributing factor in other deaths in Broward County, particularly among elderly people who have other underlying conditions. Staying outside in the cold exposes the homeless to hypothermia, pneumonia, bronchitis and frostbite.
With temperatures dipping near the freezing mark, the Broward County Outreach Center in Hollywood, which normally takes in 15 to 20 people, has been averaging 40 people this week and is prepared to serve 70.
In Kansas City, Missouri, police found the frozen body of a homeless person in an underpass. It is likely the man had been there for days. The Salvation Army and other shelters and charities in the area report a desperate need for donations of hats, gloves and socks for the homeless.
In Cook County, Illinois, six people have died from exposure so far this year. The most recent victim was Raymond Baylock, 58, whose body was found partially clothed early morning December 31 in Jackie Robinson Park. The medical examiner’s office determined he died of cold exposure in an accident.
More than four years after Hurricane Katrina, thousands of displaced people are still living in abandoned houses in New Orleans, Louisiana. With overnight temperatures expected to fall into the mid-20s this week, many people living in these homes without heat are at risk.
Martha Kegel of UNITY of Greater New Orleans, a network of agencies aiding the homeless, told USA Today that while a team is out looking for people who need shelter, “There is no way to get to all of them.” She added, “I have a sickening feeling we’re going to lose people to exposure.”
In Minneapolis, Minnesota, a city where frigid temperatures in winter are not unexpected, the local Salvation Army Harbor Lights shelter has been packed. Workers from the shelter have been combing the downtown area looking for people who need a place to stay. Harbor Lights is funded by contributions from individuals, churches and businesses, and donations are down this year.
While no cold-related deaths have yet been reported in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma this year, homeless shelters report increasing numbers seeking refuge. Grace Rescue Mission, which serves up to 120 men, has been full since mid-summer. Scott Allen, the shelter’s director, points to the poor economy and increasing unemployment as contributing factors.
Even before the current extreme weather conditions, Maryland’s state medical commissioner determined that hypothermia was a contributing factor in four deaths in November and December. As a warning of what is to come, last winter as a whole hypothermia contributed to 54 deaths across the state.
As the cold wave ravages the US, snow and winter weather continue to bring dangerous conditions to many areas of Europe. In Britain on Tuesday, up to 8 inches of snow fell in parts of Scotland and Northern England, disrupting travel for millions of people. London’s Gatwick airport was closed Wednesday morning, while Heathrow, Birmingham, Luton and Southampton airports were operating with delays and cancellations.
The severe winter weather is expected to last at least another week. In Sussex, about 5,000 homes are without electricity. Thousands of schools have been closed and about half the UK workforce has reportedly stayed home as authorities have warned people to use their vehicles only in an emergency.
Temperatures plunging to as low as -22 Centigrade (-8 Fahrenheit) have claimed the lives of 122 in Poland this year, mostly the homeless. The main river, the Vistula, has frozen over, raising fears of major flooding.
Recently, retired military have received e-mail messages notifying them of a withholding tax increase. The email states:
NO ANNUAL COST OF LIVING ADJUSTMENT (COLA) WILL BE ADDED TO MILITARY RETIRED PAY IN 2010.
DUE TO RECENT LEGISLATION YOUR FEDERAL WITHHOLDING TAX HAS CHANGED.
After much investigating and several discussions with the IRS, it appears the Democrats have played a “cash-flow trick” on working Americans and are taking more out of American’s paychecks across the board–all the while touting the Making Work Pay tax credit.
The trick, when looking at the new withholding tax tables for 2010 as compared to post-stimulus 2009, buries an increase in federal withholding taxes–for all income categories–basically giving the government an interest-free loan until current year taxes are filed next year. Some would blame the increase in withholding on the Making Work Pay tax credit being spread out over 12 months as compared to 2009, which was only over 9 months, but this would be impossible as some middle class wage categories carry an increase in the withholding tax of over $200 per pay period.
Unlike the middle class wage earners, who are going to see huge amounts taken out of their paychecks, unless they increase their exemptions on their W4 form, it’s an increase that most wouldn’t even notice–$10 or $20 in some cases. Here are some of the “highlights” of the new 2010 withholding tables:
1.) Congress has lowered the threshold to capture more wages that qualify to owe taxes–across the board. For example, in 2009 the withholding tax threshold began at weekly single wage levels of $138. In 2010, that same wage is lowered to $116. In short, instead of the taxable wage starting at $138, it is now down to $116–which changes the income threshold and taxes even poorer Americans.
For married couples, the change in the weekly base taxable wage changes from $303 in 2009 down to $264 in 2010. These lower wage thresholds can be seen throughout the new withholding charts for weekly, biweekly, semi-monthly, monthly, quarterly, semiannual, and annual, as well as daily and miscellaneous pay periods.
This across-the-board reduction in the initial wage threshold increases the number of wage earners who would have to pay taxes.
2.) Instead of seven (7) wage categories, there are now nine (9) wage categories. The new structure allows for direct taxation on the middle class with these wages broken out into smaller categories. The direct hit on the middle class withholding taxes can be seen on all of the new tables. Additionally, the IRS could not explain these changes.
Let’s look at the actual numbers for one category and compare them from 2009 to 2010:
2009 Biweekly, Single, Payroll Period, after subtracting withholding allowances
Not over $276: $0 in taxes
Over $276 – $400: 10% payroll tax
Over $400 – $1,392: $12.40 plus 15% of excess over $400
Over $1,392 – $2,559: $161.20 plus 25% of excess over $1,392
Over $2,559 – $6,677: $452.95 plus 28% of excess over $2,559 (Notice the large salary range)
Over $6,677 – $14,423: $1,605.99 plus 33% of excess over $6,677
$14,423: pays $4,162.17 plus 35% of excess over $14,423
Let’s look at the new numbers for 2010 Biweekly, Single, Payroll Period, after subtracting withholding allowances
Not over $233: $0 in taxes
Over $233 – $401: 10% payroll tax
Over $401 – $1,387: $16.80 plus 15% of excess over $401
Over $1,387 – $2,604: $164.70 plus 25% of excess over $1,387
Over $2,604 – $3,248: $468.95 plus 27% of excess over $2,604 (Notice the large salary range is gone)
Over $3,248 – $3,373: $642.83 plus 30% of excess over $3,248 (Notice the substantial increase and 30% tax rate on these wages)
Over $3,373 – $6,688: $680.33 plus 28% of excess over $3,373
$14,450: pays $4,169.99 plus 35% of excess over $14,450
These patterns of additional withholding can be seen throughout the new charts for the 2010 tax year for single and married persons. It appears that everyone earning a paycheck is affected, not just retired military; social security payments will remain the same.
Why would the Democrats tinker with the withholding taxes and, ultimately, cause more stress on Americans and businesses? Why would the Democrats create more wage categories and deliberately target the middle class with a huge withholding increase and 30% tax rate? Are the Democrats trying to backfill the deficits they created in 2009? Because taxpayers will have overpaid the federal government payroll taxes, will they be eligible to get back this additional withholding money in a tax refund when filing in 2011? Do taxpayers in the hardest-hit wage categories even realize that their paychecks are going to be significantly lower, unless they make the necessary changes?
Maybe there is a good explanation for the increase in the withholding taxes from 2009 through 2010, but I remain skeptical, because inherently, Democrats do not have the capacity to reduce taxes and typically make up the revenue somehow.
Get your calculators out and you do the math. Go here for 2009; start on page 4. Go here for 2010; start on page 39.
And you should remember this and the fact that House and Senate Republicans united against the stimulus bill, which may have been the trigger to all of this. And Obama and Congress should remember this from December 21, 2009:
After years of irresponsibility, we are once again taking responsibility for every dollar we spend the same way families do. It’s true that what I’ve described today will not be enough to get us out of our fiscal mess by itself. We face a deficit that will take some tough decisions in the next year’s budget and in years to come to get under control. But these changes will save the American people billions of dollars. And they’ll help to put in place a government that’s more efficient and effective, that wastes less money on no-bid contracts, that’s cutting bureaucracy and harnessing technology, that’s more fiscally responsible and that better serve the American taxpayer.” ~President Obama
Responsibility. Really?
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