By Tim Reid and Aruna Viswanatha Feb 9 (Reuters) – California Attorney General Kamala Harris, a veteran prosecutor with acute political instincts and a reputation for thick skin, gambled big in the settlement negotiations with banks over illegal foreclosures. It’s a gamble that appears to have paid off spectacularly. Harris, whose state has been one of the hardest hit by the U.S. foreclosure crisis, pulled out of talks with the banks last September, saying what they were offering was grossly insufficient. At the time, her office said on Thursday, California was being offered between $2 billion and $4 billion. The gambit carried significant risks. California is a non-judicial foreclosure state, meaning foreclosures can happen outside the court system. Thus there are no court files filled with the notorious “robo-signed” documents, leaving Harris with less leverage than other states in negotiating with the banks. Yet on Thursday, Harris held a press conference in Los Angeles to herald a deal that looks exceptionally favorable to California. Out of the $40 billion in total benefits that are expected to flow from the $25 billion settlement that the banks agreed to pay, California is set to emerge with some $18 billion. Harris wrung a commitment from the banks to reduce loans to distressed homeowners by $9 billion, and to provide $3 billion to assist short sales. Another $6 billion will fund restitution and anti-blight programs, among other things. There are also enforcement and penalty provisions unique to California that Harris said will make sure the banks comply with the terms of the settlement. Harris’ hardball tactics reflect a woman who has prospered in the rough and tumble politics of the Golden State. Born in Oakland, California, she is the daughter of a Tamil mother, a breast cancer specialist who emigrated to the United States in 1960, and a Jamaican American father, a Stanford University economic professor. Her parents divorced when she was a toddler and her mother raised Harris and her sister to be proud African Americans during the tumult of the Civil Rights era. By virtue of her gender and her parentage, Harris is the first female, the first African American and the first Asian American attorney general in California, and the first Tamil American attorney general in the United States. A career prosecutor, she was elected district attorney of San Francisco in 2003 after defeating two-term incumbent Terence Hall. She was re-elected unopposed in 2007. Convictions in San Francisco increased sharply during her tenure. But her unshakeable opposition to the death penalty led to a bitter stand-off with the city’s police department when, just four months into the job, a police officer was gunned down and killed by a gang member and Harris declined to seek the death penalty. She also came under fire when a scandal engulfed the San Francisco crime lab, resulting in the mass dismissal of drug cases. Yet she remained a highly appealing political figure, dubbed “the female Barack Obama” by some wags. In 2010, she prevailed over a weak field to win the Democratic nomination for attorney general, and then barely edged her Republican rival, Los Angeles district attorney Steve Cooley, in the general election. Harris is widely considered to be a likely future candidate for higher office; if the mortgage settlement proceeds as planned, it could ultimately help more than just the troubled homeowners. (Reporting By Tim Reid and Aruna Viswanatha; Editing by Jonathan Weber and Richard Chang) More: The Woman Some Are Dubbing ‘The Female Barack Obama’
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Herman Cain Endorses Newt Gingrich
Herman Cain has endorsed Newt Gingrich for president, urging Republicans to vote for the former Speaker of the House as he fights for the 2012 GOP nomination. “I hereby officially and enthusiastically endorse Newt Gingrich,” Herman Cain announced in Florida. “There are several reasons as to why I have reached this public decision. One of the biggest reasons is the fact that I know Speaker Gingrich is a patriot,” Cain added. Of all endorsements by former 2012 presidential candidates, Herman Cain’s endorsement carries the most weight so far, say many Republicans. Cain’s support for Gingrich’s campaign was widely anticipated. “We are going to do something and we are going to elect Newt Gingrich as the next president of the United States!” Herman Cain declared to a cheering crowd in the following video. CAIN ENDORSES GINGRICH Continue reading here: Herman Cain Endorses Newt Gingrich
Highest Grossing Movies of 2011
Hollywood’s top-grossing movies of 2011 earned billions of dollars in the United States, but what were the biggest films of the year? The entertainment industry released some fantastic productions over the last year, with several successful movie sequels in the mix. Here are the top-ten blockbuster movies of 2011, including the film stars, directors and dollar amount grossed at the box office: Highest Grossing Movies of 2011 #1
Hispanics Top Target of Hate Crimes
The FBI reports a spike in the amount of hate crime targeting Hispanics. Photo Credit: Feed Loader More: Hispanics Top Target of Hate Crimes
WATCH: The Science of Sex Education
What is the most effective way to educate young people about sex? What can we do to minimize unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections (STIs)? Does abstinence-only education work? Some people think so. “I’m going to tell you from my own personal life, abstinence works.” First and foremost, anecdotal evidence does not scientific data make. Data is plural for datum. A single datum is not enough to establish a pattern or to induce a cause-and-effect relationship. This is why scientists perform repeatable experiments when they are ethically feasible. When it is impossible to perform an experimental investigation, correlational research is done in the most rigorous way possible. Second, the data clearly show that abstinence-only education does NOT work. Obviously abstinence works. One cannot get pregnant or contract an STI if one is not engaging in sex. But teenagers are engaging in sex, almost half of them , regardless of how they are being taught. United States teens are equally as likely to have sex as teens in other industrialized nations, but they are twice as likely to become pregnant. And if that’s not shocking enough, 25% of teen girls in the US have an STI. Let me repeat that. One out of four teenage girls has a sexually transmitted infection. What is so different about the United States? Federally funded abstinence education programs. They have been around since 1982. Beginning in 1998, between $59 and $179 million has been funneled to the states each year for abstinence education in schools. And although very new legislation provides funding for scientifically rigorous strategies of teaching sex education, Title V (abstinence-only) funding has been extended to the states for another five years. Incredibly, only 13 states currently require that information presented in sex education classes be medically accurate and factual. There exists no scientific evidence that abstinence-only education delays the initiation of sexual intercourse in teenagers. It also does nothing to reduce teen pregnancies nor STIs. In fact, abstinence-only education is positively correlated with teen pregnancy and birth rates. Who would have thought that the less kids know about their bodies, birth control, and safe sex practices, the more likely they are to accidentally make babies?! Community-based programs don’t seem to help either. In a randomized study published earlier this year, inner-city youth in Syracuse, NY were taught about abstinence outside of the classroom. Regarding premarital sex, there was no statistically significant difference in young people who were involved in the program than those who were not. Abstinence-only programs also do nothing to meet the needs of individuals who are at an increased risk of contracting HIV, such as youth who are homeless or have run away, youth who were sexually abused, or LGBT youth. In fact, LGBT youth are often negatively impacted by these programs, since they are completely left out of a conversation centered on waiting until heterosexual marriage until one “should” have sex. So what does work? We know that the earlier children have positive school-related experiences , the less likely they are to engage in risky sexual behavior as teens, especially when these children live in impoverished conditions. We also know that when scientifically accurate information about pharmacological contraceptives, condoms, abstinence, and STI prevention is provided to young people in a discussion-based environment, and when those young people are engaged in a conversation that is culturally sensitive, respectful, and non-judgmental, teens are more likely to engage in healthy and safe sex practices, if they engage in them at all. See all Talk Nerdy to Me posts: www.huffingtonpost.com/news/talk-nerdy-to-me Like Cara Santa Maria on Facebook: www.facebook.com/pages/Cara-Santa-Maria Follow Cara Santa Maria on Twitter: www.twitter.com/CaraSantaMaria Read more from the original source: WATCH: The Science of Sex Education
Daylight Saving Ends Sunday, Time to Fall Back
First thing’s first—it’s saving, not savings. Sunday morning marks the end of daylight saving time, when we set our clocks back one hour to revert to Pacific Standard Time. While the official time to fall back is 2 a.m., many people won’t have to do anything—their computers and cell phones will adjust automatically. Having to physically change clocks and watches may eventually become a thing of the past, like picking up the morning paper. Having an extra hour of evening sunlight in the summer seems to be a popular concept, except in Arizona and Hawaii, where daylight saving time is not observed. We keep tinkering with how we set our clocks. In 2007 the United States adopted the current schedule, with daylight saving time beginning the second Sunday in March and ending the first Sunday in November, lengthening it by four weeks. Saving energy during World War I was the goal when the United States first tried daylight saving time. It was repealed once the war was over, then brought back on an all-year basis during World War II only to be dropped again when peace broke out. Daylight saving time was finally standardized by Congress in 1966 and has changed several times since, with a winter version experimented with during the 1970s oil embargo. The rolling blackouts that hit California in 2001 brought up the idea of expanding daylight saving time, prompting the California Energy Commission to release a 37-page report. The proposal was to scrap standard time altogether, with the winter months observing daylight saving time and the summer months saddled with something called “double daylight saving time.” Thankfully, the commission concluded that the plan would only save marginal amounts of energy and it was never enacted. Turns out the blackouts had more to do with Enron than not enough electricity. Be sure to follow Beverly Hills Patch on Twitter and “Like” us on Facebook . Read more here: Daylight Saving Ends Sunday, Time to Fall Back
EaterWire: Martha in LA, Sweet Rose Creamery Expands, MORE!
BH/COSTA MESA— Home-making queen Martha Stewart appears at Williams-Sonoma in BH (339 North Beverly Drive) on November 3 at 10:30AM to sign copies of Martha’s Entertaining: A Year of Celebrations . On the same day at 6PM she will both perform a cooking demo and sign copies of the aforementioned at Macy’s South Coast Plaza. [EaterWire] WLA/HOLLYWOOD— Word on the street is that seasonal small batch ice cream boutique Sweet Rose Creamery , located in the Brentwood Country Mart, will open new locations in West LA and Hollywood. No word on timeline. [EaterWire] VEGAS— Starting tomorrow David Spero ’s Tableau , the haute breakfast and lunch spot inside Wynn’s Tower Suites, will undergo a temporary shutter. As part of a larger master renovation plan, the Tower Suites’ lobby will also be refreshed and VIP guests will find check-in and concierges relocated to the former Alex space while the renovations are completed through Christmas. — DM VENICE— That chef-powered “12 Chefs, 12 Months, 12 Charities” pop-up at Joe’s in Venice kicks off November 10 with Walter Manzke of the coming R
WeHo Halloween Good for Business
Thousands descended upon West Hollywood Monday night to enjoy what some say is largest Halloween street party in the United States. While the party can bring in some big bucks to local businesses, the event… Photo Credit: Julie Brayton Read more here: WeHo Halloween Good for Business
Seeking Information on Motorcycle Death
Police are investigating the cause of a motorcycle accident that killed a biker on Friday. The motorcycle collided with a big rig truck on the San Diego (405) freeway in Westwood. Photo Credit: Frank Heinz See the article here: Seeking Information on Motorcycle Death
