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Source: http://googleblog.blogspot.com/2013/01/make-some-new-years-resolutions-for.html
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Former NBA star Latrell Sprewell was arrested in Milwaukee on New Year's Eve for blasting music too loudly.
According to the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, Sprewell was arrested on Monday for disorderly conduct after police "received repeated complaints about loud music" coming from what is believed to be the basketball player's home.
Authorities told the paper that they had received "several" noise complaints in the months preceding Monday's arrest.
TMZ reports that the 42-year-old former NBA All-Star was not released from jail until after midnight on Jan. 1.
This is not Sprewell's first brush with the law. According to Fox News, the 6'5'' shooting guard owed the state of Wisconsin "unpaid income taxes in 2011 to the tune of $3.5 million." His house was also reportedly foreclosed in 2008.
Sprewell, whose NBA career spanned 13 years, made headlines in 2005 after he turned down a three-year, $21 million contract extension from the Minnesota Timberwolves. He reportedly demanded more money, saying that the amount offered would not be enough to support his family.
Though a number of teams were interested in signing Sprewell, the 2004-5 NBA season ended up being his last. Post-NBA, Sprewell has been plagued with both personal and financial troubles.
Earlier on HuffPost:
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In a recent piece, I described the evolution of investment opportunities in the US: real estate, savings accounts, stocks/bonds/mutual funds, pensions, insurance, and on to ETFs, hedge and private equity funds. What will happen is China? Will investment opportunities follow the same pattern or in some other? And are there going to be special vehicles developed in China?
I put these questions to Gregory Wang. Gregory has worked as an investment banker in both the US and China. After going to college in the US, he took assignments in both The Philippines and China. He then got an MBA from Columbia and returned to China as an investment banker. He is now the CEO of Newstar Investment, a family office representing Chinese investors that make investments in China and the U.S.
My questions/comments will be identified by EM and Gregory?s by GW.
EM: You have seen my characterization of how financial markets evolved in the West. Does it square with your sense of how they have evolved? And do you see the same pattern occurring in China, i.e., real estate, savings accounts, stocks/bonds/ mutual funds, pensions, insurance, ETFs??
GW: Yes, I think financial markets globally will follow the US pattern, and China is no different in that sense. Stock markets are relatively new in China. Short sales are being contemplated and may soon be permitted, while new investment vehicles, like ETFs, are likely to follow. In real estate, the government is working to implement a property tax similar to what is done in the US. All of these new products/policies will be introduced in a manner tailored to China?s domestic market conditions and all will take time to implement.
EM: The Chinese household savings rate is very high, but my sense is that most people in China hold on to cash put some in banks and speculate primarily in real estate. To date, there has been very little penetration by stock brokers and other salesmen for stocks, bonds, mutual funds, etc. Am I right, and how do you see things developing over the next few years?
GW:? The savings rate is very high and people do hold onto cash in the form of bank deposits. There are many reasons for this culturally. But also, what other choice do they have? The US financial markets have a plethora of products for investors. You can buy any sector, any risk profile, any liquidity, any hedge and spend $1 or $1 million. The options are endless. This is not the case in China. You can buy stocks or you can buy real estate. If you are a larger investor, you can buy fixed income products from a trust company or maybe invest in private equity. That?s about it. This will change slowly as China liberalizes the financial sector as more product and institutions evolve and more choices are offered as regulations allow.? Another aspect to take note of is the evolution of the Chinese investor. As China continues to grow, this investor now has more capital and a greater ability to understand financial investments (risk/reward).
EM: Do Chinese banks do much securitizing and selling off of their loans?
GW: Yes, but not so much to the public markets or to market investors. My understanding is that most of this business is done amongst banks and state companies. Banks are also state companies so I think you get the picture.
EM: As you know, US banks almost collapsed when the market for mortgage-backed real estate collapsed. European banks ran into the same problem when the market for Greek and other sovereign debt weakened. Certainly the Chinese banks have bad loans. Could something as severe as what happened in the US and Europe happen to Chinese banks or would the government keep it from happening?
GW: I don?t think Chinese banks are in any imminent danger of collapsing. Chinese banks are state companies so China will not allow any of them to become insolvent. The government is already the back-stop on insolvency. ??
EM: Real estate: I was in Shanghai about 10 years back when the real estate market was going straight up. How have things evolved since then? I can imagine that while growth has cooled in Shanghai, there, there are a number of other large Chinese cities where real estate is booming. Am I right? And if so, where is the growth most striking. One other question: Real estate cycles have been occurring for centuries and globally they are at or near the bottom. That, coupled with a growing global population should mean real estate should be?a good investment for the next decade. Do you agree?
GW: ?Elliott, I can write a 10 pager on this one. Since my firm?s principal business is residential real estate, we are very close to this market. For the last 20 years, residential real estate has been booming. More than two years ago, the government implemented some very restrictive policies to cap real estate growth and price appreciation (i.e. limits on real estate purchases, down payment increases, loan restrictions, etc.). This impacted the market significantly and we saw frequent articles in the press about a real estate bubble burst. While this impact was felt across the country, real estate is a local market business and second and third tier markets were not as impacted as significantly as tier one cities like Shanghai, Beijing and especially Shenzhen. (This is also due to the fact that tier two markets were not as over-built as tier one.)? Fast forward to today, those restrictive policies are still in place. However, the market has stabilized in terms of pricing and sales. What we are seeing is that the industry is restructuring itself ? that is, the smaller, speculative developers are being forced out of the business while larger developers are investing for the future through land acquisitions. Design and location (residential) are becoming even more important as people buy property to live in rather than as speculative investments.
This is an exciting time to be in the real estate business and we believe it remains one of the best investments in China. It is what I call a ?backbone industry? in China supported by two key trends which no policies can contain. The first is a real natural demand for housing as China?s industrialization and urbanization continue (It is worthy to note that none of those restrictive policies implemented by the government target first time home buyers).? The second is a significant reliance on real estate to generate revenues for local governments through land sales. We don?t see this economic structure changing any time soon despite the currently contemplated real estate tax. If you consider these two simple social and economic factors alone, you can see that real estate in China will continue to be supported by the government and grow in the foreseeable future.
EM: Two questions:
GW: We are trying to do both. It is harder for us to develop vehicles for Western investors to invest in Chinese real estate due to Chinese regulations. The real estate restrictions mentioned above now make it very difficult for foreigners to invest in residential or commercial real estate without approval from the government and these approvals are difficult to obtain. Furthermore, foreign exchange and remittance of capital is another hurdle that must be cleared. Any conversion of RMB into a foreign currency must be approved by the State Administration of Foreign Exchange (SAFE). Many foreign private equity real estate funds are now considering forming RMB funds for Chinese real estate investments. Some are targeting industrial real estate such as logistics. Probably the best way for individual investors to get into Chinese real estate companies is via public real estate companies listed on the Hong Kong exchange.
For Chinese clients to invest in US real estate, the primary obstacle is currency conversion, also regulated in China (i.e. no more than $50,000 per individual per year). However, for clients who already have funds outside of China, my family office provides investment opportunities in the US market. For example, we are currently investing in a boutique condo development in Boston which will generate some strong yields for our clients.
EM: I recently did a piece looking at US and China futures. So I want to ask you a few questions about how your view of China 10 years from now. Here is what I see:?China is a resource poor country. Its rapid growth in the last 30 years was generated by exporting goods (with significant import content) to the West. Looking ahead, I see an emerging middle class that wants the goods that Western middle classes already have. And this includes autos. At the same time, China, unlike Russia and the US, is running out of coal. Putting this all together, I see China going from a huge trade surplus to a deficit.
GW: I am not an economist. But from what I have experienced on the ground, I don?t believe China will trend into a trade deficit scenario. Furthermore, I do not believe there will be a doomsday scenario of sharply lower growth followed by major implosions within China. I do think that China?s growth will slow over the next decade to less than 7%. And China does indeed have many structural problems. There are significant deficiencies in the financial system and a huge underground economy that is difficult to control. I also see a serious future problem caused by the country?s unsustainable pension and health care programs. However, I am confident the Chinese government will be able to manage the micro and macro challenges it will face in the future.
I believe that over the next ten years, China will be able to live with lower growth as it seeks greater stability.? Policies will be fine tuned to achieve this balance all with the intent of buying enough time to work out structural reforms and introduce market mechanisms.
Investment Implications
EM: Gregory believes there are great real estate investment opportunities in the second/third tier cities of China, and I see a meaningful recovery finally occurring in the US. What should a Western investor do?
China: Gregory suggests investing in publicly traded Honk Kong real estate companies. Another alternative is to invest in Guggenheim China Real Estate (TAO). 80+% of this ETF ?indexes? on Hong Kong real estate companies. And at least some of their investments will be in second and third tier Chinese cities.?
US: John Reese in his excellent book on gurus said that when Peter Lynch was running the Magellan Fund at Fidelity, he would buy ?an industry?. Individual investors must be more selective. I favor high-yield US real estate investments (the dysfunctional US government could still imperil the US recovery so I at least want a good yield). ETFs worth considering include: KBW Premium Yield Equity REIT Portfolio (KBWY), Market Vector Mortgage REIT Income ETF (MORT), FTSE NAREIT Mortgage REITs Index Fund (REM), and IQ US Real Estate Small Cap ETF (ROOF).
For some time, I have been holding Fidelity Real Estate Income (FRIFX) and Brookfield Asset Management (BAM) as real estate plays.
?I am not an investment adviser and nothing I say should be taken as a recommendation to buy or sell an asset.?
Source: http://www.morssglobalfinance.com/new-investment-vehicles-in-china-real-estate-in-2013/
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NEW DELHI (AP) ? India's top court said Wednesday it will decide whether to suspend lawmakers facing sexual assault charges as thousands of women gathered at the memorial to independence leader Mohandas K. Gandhi to demand stronger protection for their safety.
The march came as police prepared to formally charge six suspects in the gang-rape and killing of a student in the capital two weeks ago.
The Dec. 16 rape triggered outrage across the country and sparked demands for stronger laws, tougher police action against those accused of sexual assault and a sustained campaign to change society's views on women.
As part of that campaign, Chief Justice Altamas Kabir agreed to hear a petition on Thursday from retired government administrator Promilla Shanker asking the Supreme Court to suspend all lawmakers from the national and state legislatures who are facing prosecution for crimes against women.
She also asked the court to force the national government to fast-track thousands of rape cases that have languished in India's notoriously sluggish court system for years.
Six state lawmakers are facing rape prosecutions and two national parliamentarians are facing charges of crimes against women that fall short of rape, said Jagdeep S. Chhokar, an official with the Association for Democratic Reforms, which tracks political candidate's criminal records.
In the past five years, political parties across India nominated 260 candidates awaiting trial on charges of crimes against women, he said. Parties ran six candidates for the national parliamentary elections facing such charges, Chokkar said.
"We need to decriminalize politics and surely a serious effort has to be made to stop people who have serious charges of sexual assault against them from contesting elections," said Zoya Hasan, a political analyst.
On Wednesday morning, several thousand women held a silent march to Gandhi's memorial in the capital in memory of the victim, holding placards demanding "Respect" and "Justice." Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit joined the women for a prayer session for the victim. The Gandhi memorial is a common protest site.
On Tuesday, the government set up a task force to monitor women's safety in New Delhi and to review whether police were properly protecting women. The government had set up two earlier bodies to look into the handling of the rape case and to suggest changes in the nation's rape laws.
The rape of the 23-year-old university student on a bus has horrified many in the country and brought unprecedented attention to the daily suffering of women here, who face everything from catcalls and groping to rapes.
Six men arrested in the case were to be formally charged Thursday with kidnapping, rape and murder, said Rajan Bhagat, the New Delhi police spokesman. Police have said they would push for the death penalty in the case.
Police were awaiting findings on a bone test conducted on one of the suspects to confirm whether he is a juvenile or an adult, which could affect the charges against him.
Media reports say 30 witnesses have been gathered, and the charges have been detailed in a document running more than 1,000 pages. Police also have detained the owner of the bus used in the crime on accusation he used false documents to obtain permits to run the private bus service.
The family of the victim ? who died Saturday at a hospital in Singapore ? is struggling to come to grips with the tragedy.
"She was a very, very, very cheerful little girl and she was peace loving and she was never embroiled in any controversies like this. I don't know why this happened to her," her uncle, Suresh Singh, told The Associated Press on Wednesday.
The family of the victim, whose name was not revealed, called for stronger rape laws to prevent such attacks from happening again and demanded swift ? and harsh ? justice for woman's assailants, Singh said.
"If the government can't punish them, give the rapists to the people. The people will settle the scores with them," he said.
___
Associated Press reporter Biswajeet Banerjee contributed to this report from Lucknow.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/indian-court-may-suspend-lawmakers-facing-crimes-100544963.html
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KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) ? A top Afghan negotiator said Tuesday he hopes eight Taliban members freed by Pakistan will serve as peace mediators, describing Islamabad's move as a major step forward for Kabul's effort to enlist its neighbor's help in negotiating an end to its 11-year war.
The eight released Monday include the Taliban's justice minister when the militants ruled Afghanistan before their 2001 overthrow, as well as a onetime guard of Taliban leader Mullah Omar. It was the second group of prisoners released by Pakistan.
Although both sides describe the deal as a step toward peace, much about the release remains unclear. Kabul has lobbied hard for Pakistan to release some Taliban prisoners as a step toward talks, but simultaneously presses Islamabad to crack down on militants using its territory. It has not said what, if anything, this particular group might bring to the table.
Islamabad for its part has never said why it arrested the eight in the first place. Neither side has said where this batch of freed prisoners and a previous group of 18 released in November have gone, nor what they will be doing. Another 100 prisoners are believed to remain in Pakistani custody.
In Kabul, the spokesman for President Hamid Karzai said the Afghan leader would discuss the peace negotiations with U.S. President Barack Obama. Karzai departs for Washington early next week.
Karzai will also bring up the ongoing handover of security from NATO to Afghan forces, training and equipment the forces and the shape of a U.S.-Afghan agreement after Washington withdraws most of its troops, spokesman Aimal Faizi told a news conference. NATO plans to hand security responsibility over to Afghan forces by the end of 2014.
The spokesman welcomed the prisoner release, but gave no details.
Ismail Qasemyar, a senior member of the Afghan High Peace Council, called their freeing a positive step in the peace process and hoped more releases would follow. It was not known whether the eight actually favored negotiations, but Qasemyar said it was hoped they would act as intermediaries between the Taliban leadership and the Kabul government.
"This is a big victory from our trip to Pakistan for peace negotiations. This is a good, practical step toward peace from Pakistan," said Qasemyar, the council's international affairs adviser and a key member of a delegation that travelled to Pakistan in November.
Pakistan is seen as key in ending the conflict. Kabul hopes the Taliban can be brought to the negotiating table before the 2014 foreign troop withdrawal.
But Pakistan's role is mixed. While Pakistan has arrested Afghan Taliban members, usually under pressure from Washington, its powerful military intelligence service has also afforded sanctuary and support for the militants.
Recently, Pakistan appears to have an interest in promoting a negotiated solution to the war across the border, as a post-2014 upheaval could bring harsh consequences, including another surge of refugees into the country.
Pakistan has longstanding ties to the Taliban, in part for geopolitical reasons. It fears that not having some control of who is or might one day be in power in Afghanistan could leave a vacuum which its arch-enemy, India, could fill.
Pakistan's Foreign Ministry said the eight detainees were released to aid the peace process and included ex-Justice Minister Nooruddin Turabi and guard Mohammad Azeem. It was not known what role they might play in bringing the Taliban leaders to the negotiating table, what links they have to the group's current leadership or their stance on negotiations.
During Taliban rule, the one-legged, one-eyed Turabi was considered among the hard-liners in the regime, charged with dispensing harsh justice for even minor offenses against the group's draconian policies.
Today, Taliban leaders are believed to be split on the question of talks, with some favoring negotiations and others opting for continuing the war.
Waheed Mazhda, a political analyst and former Taliban member, said that Pakistan is playing a double game with Kabul, pretending to support negotiations but releasing the Taliban prisoners to please the Pakistan's branch of the Taliban. not Kabul. The Pakistan government, he says, does not want its homegrown militants to disrupt upcoming elections.
"Where are they? What are they doing right now?" he said, referring to the 18 already released. He said that he did not believe those released favored negotiations.
The Afghan peace process has made little headway since it began several years ago, riddled by mistrust among the major players, including the United States.
___
Associated Press writers Kathy Gannon, Rebecca Santana and Zarar Khan in Islamabad and Rahim Faiez in Kabul contributed.
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/afghan-negotiator-welcomes-prisoner-release-075025035.html
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5 hrs.
WASHINGTON - Make resolutions if you must: When you vow to track every dollar and never waste money again, you feel all clean and shiny for at least a few hours into the new year.?
But that doesn't usually last. Resolutions get broken because they are too lofty and too ill-defined. It is better to break your resolutions down into a specific to do list: here are the money moves to make now and in the coming weeks that will insure you're in a better financial place before 2013 ends.?
Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/business/some-simple-financial-resolutions-2013-1C7782786
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JUBA (Reuters) - South Sudan is willing to withdraw its army from the disputed border with Sudan, President Salva Kiir said, signaling a possible compromise at a summit with his Sudanese counterpart.
Kiir and Sudan's Omar Hassan al-Bashir agreed in September to withdraw troops from the disputed border as a precondition to resume oil exports from landlocked South Sudan through Sudan. Oil revenues are vital to both economies.
But both countries still have troops 10 km (6 miles) from each other's border, and both accuse each other of supporting rebels on the other's territory.
Kiir and Bashir are scheduled to meet this month at a summit brokered by the African Union to discuss how set up the border zone which will be monitored by soldiers from both sides and U.N. peacekeepers.
"To be able to establish the border monitoring mission, we are temporarily withdrawing our forces from the immediate border areas," Kiir said in a speech on New Year's Eve.
"This will allow for a demilitarized border zone to be operational," he said, without giving a date for the pullout.
South Sudan's Information Minister Barnaba Marial Benjamin told Reuters the withdrawal would have to be coordinated between the two countries. He did not elaborate.
South Sudan seceded from Sudan under a 2005 peace deal which ended decades of civil war. But both countries have yet to demarcate the border, which straddles oil production facilities.
The two rivals are also at odds over Abyei, an area between Sudan and South Sudan prized for its fertile grazing land.
(Writing by Ulf Laessing; Editing by Louise Ireland)
Source: http://news.yahoo.com/south-sudan-willing-withdraw-army-sudan-border-president-075421281.html
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