We think risks are rising to fiscal performance and flexibility

"I join common sense conservatives in endorsing Richard Mourdock to be the next senator from Indiana," former Alaska governor and vice presidential candidate Palin louis vuitton sunglasses said in a statement released by Tea Party favorite Mourdock's campaign. Veteran Arizona Senator John McCain, who chose Palin as his running mate in a failed run for the presidency in 2008, came out in support of his colleague, Lugar, who began his first term in 1977. McCain recorded a radio ad rebutting Mourdock's accusation that Lugar supports Democratic President Barack Obama too much. "There are some in Indiana claiming Dick Lugar is Obama's friend - that's ridiculous," McCain says in the ad. Palin countered that, "Indiana deserves a conservative in the Senate who will fight for the Hoosier State, uphold our Constitution, and not just go along to get along with the vested interests of the permanent political class in (Washington) D.C." Palin said Lugar's years in office were "appreciated" but it was "time for the torch to pass to conservative leadership in Washington that promises to rein in government spending now." Lugar, 80, was ahead of Indiana state Treasurer Mourdock, 60, by single digits in a recent poll. The winner of the May 8 primary faces Democratic U.S. Representative Joe Donnelly in November. Since the 2008 election, former McCain campaign aides have said that Palin sometimes differed with the Republican nominee for president, even though she had agreed before she was picked to support his positions. Spain’s unemployment rate spiked to nearly 25 percent in the first months of the year, the government reported Friday, highlighting the risks facing Europe’s fifth largest economy as officials struggle to avoid the need for a massive international bailout. Spanish unemployment jumped more than 1.5 percentage points with the economy hemorrhaging jobs across the board. Nearly 366,000 positions were lost in services, construction, manufacturing and agriculture. Officials in Madrid warned of a potential economic calamity. Though Spain has had similar bouts of high unemployment in its recent history, analysts said they foresee no louis vuitton belts quick turnaround this time, and national statistics indicated that the number of families with no one employed jumped 10 percent. “The figures are terrible for everyone and terrible for the government,” Foreign Minister Jose Manuel Garcia-Margallo said in Madrid, according to Associated Press reports. “Spain is in a crisis of enormous magnitude.” Spain has recently moved to the center of the financial crisis that has rocked Europe in the past two years. The deepening of Spain’s economic problems raises new doubts about whether the government can keep its deficit in check and persuade global investors to continue lending it money vital for avoiding a national default. A bailout of Spain would stretch the capacity of the International Monetary Fund and European emergency programs, and perhaps irreparably shake confidence in the euro region’s ability to survive. Spain’s worsening problems come as Europe faces a potential political fracture that could jeopardize efforts to contain the region’s debt crisis. Collaboration between the leaders of Germany and France has been critical to the progress the euro region has made in addressing its economic problems, but that could change if upcoming French elections put socialist challenger Francois Hollande in office. The unemployment figures were the second piece of bad news for Spain. The Standard and Poor’s rating firm late Thursday downgraded the Spanish government’s credit standing by two levels, potentially making it more expensive for the country to borrow money on its own. Spain needs to borrow about $800 billion over the next three years to finance budget deficits and maturing loans. Successive downgrades and rising interest rates have previously pushed Greece, Ireland and Portugal to seek loans from the IMF. S&P warned that it saw problems ahead as the Spanish government copes with a recession and a banking sector that may need more taxpayer help. Although Spain has minded its public debts better than many European countries, the possible need for a public bank rescue could reverse that situation quickly. In Ireland, money borrowed to rescue banks overwhelmed the government budget and forced the country into the arms of the IMF. “We think risks are rising to fiscal performance and flexibility and to the sovereign debt burden,” S&P analysts wrote in cutting Spain’s credit rating. While crediting the government of Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy with taking steps to trim deficits and revive growth, the agency forecast at least two more years of recession and said it did not think recent reforms would generate jobs “in the near term.” In an interview in Spain with Bloomberg News, Economy Minister Luis De Guindos said he was confident changes in economic policy would pay off, and that the government would keep its deficit-cutting plan on track. Spain’s government has been adamant it will not need international help, and has pointed to its rising exports and recent labor market reforms as signs of strength. The country does not need “any sort of fiscal boost or stimulus,” De Guindos said. But the dynamic at work in Spain — Classic lv sunglasses outlet 2012 new sale online discount and throughout much of the euro zone — is troubling. Government austerity programs are pulling tens of billions of dollars from the economy at the same time as banks tighten credit standards to strengthen their own health. Meanwhile, households are struggling with stagnant incomes, rising unemployment and — in Spain — the collapse of a real estate bubble. Home prices are still dropping in the country and the number of bad mortgage loans is an increasing burden on local banks.

Hancock said a major step was taken this week

College football is on the cusp of a major shift, but for now, the changing language of the game’s power brokers offers hope to those clamoring for a better louis vuitton sunglasses sale way to decide a national champion. For the first time, the game’s decision makers were comfortable using the word playoff as three days of meetings about the sport’s postseason concluded in South Florida. Many details must be worked out, but on Thursday, conference commissioners and Notre Dame Athletic Director Jack Swarbrick decided the game needed a four-team playoff to crown a champion. “Yes, we’ve agreed to use the P-word,” Pacific-12 Commissioner Larry Scott said. If approved, the playoff — which would include two semifinals and a title game — will begin in 2014, once a four-year TV contract with ABC/ESPN expires. In the process, one of the longest-standing controversies in sports would subside. “They are listening to the fans,” Bill Hancock, executive director of the Bowl Championship Series, said of the 11 commissioners and Swarbrick. “They get it. People would like to do something different.” The issue of a college football playoff has long divided conference commissioners and university presidents, even as the bowl system has consistently failed to deliver B.C.S. bowl matchups and a national championship game that everyone could agree on. Many fans, coaches and players believed there louis vuitton ring was a better, more fair way to determine who played in college football’s showcase games. Hancock said a major step was taken this week, though many more steps remain. Beyond the four-team format, major questions remain, including how the teams will be selected, the time and location of the games, and whether any bowls would be part of the format. “If this happens, this will be a seismic change in college football,” Hancock said. Entering the week, changes in college football’s postseason had moved at a glacial pace. Now, though, decision-makers will be on an accelerated schedule. During the next six weeks, commissioners will present several four-team models during individual conference meetings and seek approval of a plan by the next time the commissioners meet, June 20 in Chicago. A week later, university presidents would be asked to sign off. Hancock said they would like to have a format agreed upon by July 4. Scott, who joined the Pac-12 in 2009, said he could not believe it had taken so long to reach this point. “It’s frankly a little slower than I hoped it would be,” he said. “We’ve had five or six meetings like this. I would have liked to have seen us more further, faster. But it’s complicated and there are a lot of different points of view.” Before agreeing on a four-game playoff, there was much discussion about an 8- or 16-team format, as well as the so-called plus-one format — which would involve the selection of two teams after the bowls to play in a title game. “We’ve met a lot of hours,” Mike Slive, the Southeastern Conference commissioner, said. “There isn’t any element of this that hasn’t been thoroughly vetted.” Scott said once one of the four-team formats was Bestseller louis vuitton shoes for men discount on sale 2012 blue approved, the other pieces should fall into place. In the end, the biggest sticking point will be how to decide which teams play in the big games. “It’s clear there’s no consensus on how to chose the four,” Scott said.

The AT&T Spotlight Performance focused on the triumphant story

We said goodbye to Motown Week, as well as to a Motown louis vuitton online legend on Tuesday night, as Gladys Knight was sent home after the sixth week of the “Dancing With the Stars” Season 14 competition. Parting with the Empress of Soul was such sweet sorrow. Professional dancer/cutie Tristan MacManus offered sweet words for his fallen star. “I’ll probably miss Gladys as much as I miss Ireland while I’m here,” the lucky charm said in the video compilation. “And I really miss Ireland.” Aw! How grand. OK, so Gladys may not have been the best dancer in this season’s program (darn those Pips for never letting her bust a move!). Whatever. She was such a great, effortlessly cool, life-affirming presence on the show. Yes, Gladys wore sequins and rhinestones, as is befitting this ballroom universe, but her smile and inner sparkle shone just as bright. In the words of host Tom Bergeron, Gladys showed us during these six weeks that she really “out-Pipped them all.” And how fitting that her departing song was her own “Midnight Train to Georgia.” Here’s hoping she’ll come back and sing it herself before the season is through. Snap, clap, move and groove! Gladys and Tristan were beat out by fellow bottom-two dwellers Roshon Fegan and Chelsie Hightower after a dance duel jive for their lives. But the verdict was not unanimous: Carrie Ann chose to save Gladys (which I’m betting was more of a sentimental vote), while Len and Bruno opted to keep Roshon. The concluding hour of Motown Week started with an louis vuitton jewelry upbeat Motor City medley courtesy of the Harold Wheeler band that featured the dance talents of Val Chmerkovskiy, Peta Murgatroyd, the “DWTS” Troupe and choreographed by Louis Van Amstel. There was a segment that interviewed the stars on the mental and physical toll that being in this competition exerts. Injury-plagued Maria Menounos feels like an old lady, William Levy’s determined he's not going to let ankle pain take him out of the competition. Gladys wakes up in the wee hours of the morning to run the routines in her head. Katherine Jenkins can’t let her nerves get to her, or else she can’t perform well. Melissa Gilbert knows that she’s going to have to tap into something that she’s never Louis vuitton shoes discount for women sale outlet had to before. The AT&T Spotlight Performance focused on the triumphant story of Michaela DePrince, a 17-year-old who was adopted as a child by a supportive American family from an orphanage in war-torn Sierra Leone, found dance, and has since started studying at the American Ballet Theater school to become one of the most promising ballerinas in the country. And her dance performance, to Natasha Bedingfield’s pared down rendition of “Wild Horses” and accompanied by Adé Chiké Torbert of “So You Think You Can Dance” fame, was made all the more meaningful by the story that inspired it. “SYTYCD” was also represented in force during this week’s Macy’s Stars of Dance performance -- a celestial contemporary piece by the Shaping Sound company choreographed by Travis Wall, Nick Lazzarini and Teddy Forance. The whole thing was like a classical painting come to life, flowing and lovely and lighter than air. The string rendition of David Guetta and Usher’s “Without You” by ensemble Aston also helped to usher in next week’s Classical Week. Motownphilly’s back again -- Boyz II Men returned to the ballroom stage to perform their new single “One More Dance,” accompanied on the dance floor by castaways Dmitry Chaplin, in all his bare-chested glory, and ginger Anna Trebunskaya, her skirt in tatters, dancing like they were the last couple on Earth. What did you think, ballroom fans? Were you as sad burberry ties as I was to see Gladys go? Should the judges be unanimous in their Dance Duel decisions? Is raunchy the same thing as too sexy? Who is the bigger drama queen: Katherine, or Mark?

Van Laningham also pointed out that Young had his own affair

A former aide to then-presidential candidate John louis vuitton shoes Edwards testified Tuesday he helped cover up Edwards' affair with a campaign videographer. The scheme, according to Andrew Young, included him claiming he was the father of Rielle Hunter's child to protect Edwards. Young is the star government witness against Edwards, who is accused of using hundreds of thousands of dollars from 101-year-old heiress Rachel "Bunny" Mellon and another donor to conceal his affair with Hunter. The candidate asked him to allow Hunter to move in with his family in North Carolina after newspapers began looking into a possible affair in the campaign, Young testified. The woman lived with the family three months and expected others to dote on her, Young said. "She could go shopping at Neiman Marcus, but she couldn't go to grocery store," said Young. More serious was Young's description of how money was allegedly funneled beginning in late 2007. Young, the first witness in the trial, said Mellon was an enthusiastic supporter who apologized for not being able to give the campaign more than $1 million. Mellon made personal checks out to her interior decorator, who would write checks that would end up in the account of Young and his wife, the witness told jurors. Hunter eventually moved to a gated community and the money was used to pay $2,700 monthly rent and purchases of furniture, television and a BMW, Young said. Hunter also was given a credit card bearing a different name. Prosecutors say Edwards broke federal law by accepting about $725,000 from Mellon and more than $200,000 from Fred Baron, a now-deceased Texas lawyer who was his finance chairman. The money was used to pay for Hunter's living and medical expenses, travel and accommodations to keep her out of sight while he made his second White House run in 2008, prosecutors say. Edwards is accused of concealing the money from the public and the Federal Election Commission, which polices political contributions, by filing false and misleading campaign disclosure reports. Young is testifying for the prosecution under a cooperation agreement with the hope that he won't be prosecuted. Young, who has not undergone cross-examination, also testified that Edwards made a disparaging comment about his mistress after she called to say she was pregnant. "She was crying, she was distraught, and she needed to speak with Mr. Edwards immediately," Andrew Young told jurors about his conversation in 2007 with Hunter. "I said, 'Somebody better be pregnant or dying. She said, 'nobody's dying,' " Young recounted. He said he told Edwards about Hunter's pregnancy. Young quoted Edwards as replying that, " 'She's a crazy slut' and there's a 1-in-3 chance it was his child." Reporters located a pregnant Hunter at a Cary, North Carolina, grocery story in December 2007 and two men came to his house, Young said. "They knew about affair between Ms. Hunter and Mr. Edwards and they wanted to ask me about it," said Young. The cover-up, according to Young, began the next day when he got a call from Edwards. Edwards proposed that the campaign's account of an affair would be between two staffers -- Hunter and Young, the latter testified. Eventually, all parties agreed to the plan, with Edwards thanking his aide. "We had been lying a great deal, but also what he was saying rang true, we believed in the causes," Young said. "I wanted my friend to be president. Being friends with the most powerful person on Earth, there's benefits for you, your family." Edwards admitted his affair with Hunter louis vuitton sunglasses in 2008, after his presidential ambitions foundered. In 2010, he admitted that he was the father of Hunter's daughter. "This affair was a gamble with exceedingly high stakes," prosecutor David Harbach told jurors during Monday's opening statements. "If the affair went public, it would have destroyed any chance to become president, and he knew it. Two of his most enthusiastic supporters happened to be wealthy, and he knew that, too. He made a choice to accept hundreds of thousands of dollars. He made a choice to break the law." Young also testified Tuesday that Hunter was upset because Edwards wouldn't return her calls. "If I don't talk to him immediately, this is over. I'm tired of living a lie. I'm going to go public," Hunter said, according to Young. Edwards indicated that Hunter needed to be kept on an allowance, said Young. "$5,000 a month was the typical amount, but there were a couple of times where we gave $12,000 a month," said Young. According to Young, Edwards tried to distance himself from the Mellon money of which he was aware while he was interested in becoming U.S. attorney general in a new Democratic administration. "He said he couldn't know about any of this in case he had to be sworn in for attorney general," Young said. Young is the author of "The Politician: An Insider's Account of John Edwards's Pursuit of the Presidency and the Scandal That Brought Him Down," in which he accuses Edwards of using money from his benefactors to maintain his relationship with Hunter. The defense argues that the money Edwards received from Mellon and Baron was for personal reasons: to protect Edwards' wife, Elizabeth, who was dying of cancer, and his family from public humiliation. Edwards has said his actions were wrong but insisted that they were not illegal. "This was a fall from grace," defense attorney Allison Van Laningham told jurors. "It was that humiliation he was trying to avoid all along." Edwards could face up to 30 years in prison if convicted of all six felony and misdemeanor counts against him. Seven of the 16 jurors, four of whom are alternates, are women. Edwards' lawyers wasted no time attacking Young's credibility, starting with their opening statements Monday. Van Laningham alleged that Young consulted with three other witnesses about testimony after the witness list was released three weeks ago and portrayed him as a greedy staffer who has said Edwards is his ticket to the top. Van Laningham also pointed out that Young had his own affair, a one-night stand with a campaign employee. Experts say the government faces an uphill battle to convict Edwards in a legal field riddled with loopholes. The former senator refused a plea bargain to misdemeanor charges that would have given him a few months in prison but would have allowed him to keep his law license. His wife, Elizabeth, died of cancer in December 2010. The pair had separated after Edwards acknowledged the paternity of Hunter's child, but Edwards was at her bedside when she died. Jurors also heard voice mails of calls between Edwards and Young. In one excerpt, the candidate tells Young he Louis Vuitton shoes, cheap louis vuitton sunglasses sale, 60% off should tell his wife about the situation. And a January 2008 call by Edwards made a reference to Hunter, according to Young: "Just wanted for all of you, including her, to know that I'm thinking about you."

The bottom end of the Ivy Bridge lineup is the Pavilion HPE h8t

The Colts made it official Tuesday that they will monster beats solo take Stanford quarterback Andrew Luck with the first overall pick in the NFL draft on Thursday. "I didn't see the point in prolonging what the world already knew," Colts general manager Ryan Grigson said. Luck will become the fourth Stanford player and the fifth from a Bay Area school to be the first overall pick. Stanford's previous top picks also were quarterbacks: Bobby Garrett (1954, Cleveland), Jim Plunkett (1971, New England) and John Elway (1983, Baltimore). Cal's lone top pick Monster Beats Studio NFL Dallas Cowboys was quarterback Steve Bartkowski (1975, Atlanta). Luck had been considered the likely top pick for a couple of years, although there were late rumblings that the Colts might be tempted to pick Baylor's Robert Griffin III instead. Luck will take part in the Colts' rookie minicamp next week, but because of NFL rules on underclassmen and graduation, he won't be able to participate in other phases of their offseason program until he completes the spring quarter at Stanford. He is expected to finish his classwork on June 7, Colts head coach Chuck Pagano said. After attending the mandatory minicamp June 12-14, Luck will louis vuitton shoes take part in graduation ceremonies June 17. Jack Osbourne and Lisa Stelly had been together only a few months when the couple hit a whirlwind of news announcements. In late September they announced a sudden engagement prompting various rumors. There seemed to be no doubt the couple was devoted to one another, but, why the need for urgency? In October, we found out the answer. Stelly and Osbourne were pregnant and it looked like baby plans would be in the works before those wedding plans could get off their feet. After months of waiting and even a couple of extra days – the child was initially due on April 19 – People has confirmed the new baby has finally made its way into the world. It’s a girl! Stelly and Osbourne wasted no time in naming the burberry sunglasses little tyke, who weighed eight pounds and six ounces at birth. They ultimately opted on the name Pearl, which is just the right level outside the norm to be a special without going into the super strange realm. Sounds about right for the maturing couple and especially Osbourne, who has distanced himself from the rigors of stardom (and its bizarre baby naming ritual). Although Osbourne has gone on the record in the past discussing his nerves about the new baby, a first child is always nerve-wracking, and the new parents are bound to do just fine. With one obstacle down and a wedding to still plan, Pop Blend wishes the couple the very burberry outlet best in the coming months. The last two days have seen a positive rain of new systems using Intel’s third generation of Core processors, including an update to HP’s well-received Omni 27. They just announced another five models getting the Ivy Bridge update: the 21-inch Omni 220qd and Touchsmart 520xt all-in-ones, the Pavilion HPE h8t and h8xt desktops and the top-of-the-line HPE H9t Phoenix. The Phoenix will be hitting online and brick-and-mortar retailers on April 29th, but the rest of the models including burberry bags the new Omni 27qd will have to wait until June 24th for retail. They’ll be offered on HP’s website the same day as the Phoenix. The bottom end of the Ivy Bridge lineup is the Pavilion HPE h8t, a mid-range desktop that starts at $699. The h8xt bumps up the specifications and upgrade options a bit and starts at $799. For the all-in-ones, the lowest-priced option is the Omni 220qd, which lacks a louis vuitton handbags touchscreen but goes for $999.99. The TouchSmart 520xt is the same price, but features some lower-end components in exchange for a full touchscreen. The Omni 27qd and its gorgeous 27-inch display will start at $1199. And the high-powered HPE Phoenix h9t will start at $1149 and go up as you add expensive gaming components. There’s a lot of options for Ivy Bridge out there, but HP is adding oakley sunglasses the impressive technology to existing units. Presumably all the desktops except for the Phoenix will also get Intel’s HD 4000 series integrated graphics, which will add an extra oomph. You’ll be able to customize the traditional desktops with AMD or NVIDIA graphics cards, of course. Perhaps the most exciting thing about this news is that the new processors won’t significantly affect the prices of these computers - they haven’t risen Discount louis vuitton bracelets for women classic best outlet silvery from their pre-Ivy Bridge list prices.

Some analysts have speculated Hastings will try to sell the DVD business

News today that Facebook is spending $550 million to buy 650 patents held by Microsoft came just weeks after it made what seemed to be an even bigger purchase from IBM in which it spent an undisclosed sum to acquire 750 patents. Monster beats by dr dre headphones 2012 new arrivals sale, including beats by dre studio, monster beats pro, beats by dre solo and so on. All 50% off promotion now, free shipping for orders exceeding $500. It looks like those IBM patents are not nearly as valuable to Facebook as the ones once held by AOL that the social network bought from Microsoft today. In Facebook's amended S-1, which it filed today with the Security and Exchange Commission, Facebook said that in the first quarter it spent $83 million acquiring patents. The updated S-1 talks about today's Microsoft deal but doesn't mention the IBM transaction, which happened on March 22. A patent's value varies, of course, but patent experts had reasoned that the price tag would be higher than $83 million, which comes out to about $111,000 per patent. The patents Facebook bought from IBM are said to cover a broad range of "software and networking" technology. Facebook declined to comment. The social network, which ended 2011 with just 56 patents, has been bulking up its intellectual property portfolio in advance of its initial public offering. It started its purchasing spree after Yahoo filed a suit in March claiming that Facebook was infringing on 10 Yahoo patents. There was speculation that Facebook would quickly countersue and then settle, or perhaps even buy a chunk of Yahoo's patent Monster Beats Studio MLB Milwaukee Brewers portfolio outright to make the problem go away. Facebook did countersue, claiming Yahoo is infringing on 10 of Facebook's patents, but a speedy settlement looks less and less likely. Instead, it has been buying up patents from other companies, largely to help it with its battle with Yahoo and to protect itself against others that might be looking to file a Yahoo-like suit, especially once Facebook's pockets (presumably) become even deeper after its IPO. All told, based on information in its S-1 and today's deal with Microsoft, Facebook now has 1,424 patents and almost 550 filed patent applications. The number of Facebook accounts is almost equal to the entire population of Africa. In fact, it’s about the same as one-seventh of the entire global louis vuitton sunglasses population. Of course, not all of those people actually log on to the social networking site on a regular basis, but around 60% of them are in fact checking in to Facebook each and every day. That’s a retention rate that sites with 1/100 that volume of users pray for. In other words, believe it or not, there is still room for the site to grow. Facebook has not reached that point of diminishing returns yet. Eventually, the number of people signing up for an account will have to taper off because, well, there won’t be that many people left. When you factor in that only users over the age of 13 are able to join Facebook, the penetration rate around the world is even higher. These updated numbers come from new documents that the site has filed gucci sunglasses with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) for its initial public offering. In the filing, Facebook said, “We believe that we are at the forefront of enabling faster, easier, and richer communication between people and that Facebook has become an integral part of many of our users’ daily lives. We have experienced rapid growth in the number of users and their engagement.” Facebook said that a whopping 488 million users are logging in on a daily basis from a mobile device. It has pioneered social communication in the mobile world. Can one billion users be far behind? While Netflix reported a first-quarter loss that was not as steep as Wall Street projected, it warned that domestic second-quarter streaming additions would fall below the level during the same period in 2010. The stock plunged 17 percent to $84.85 in after-hours trading, down from a close at $101.84 on Nasdaq. Despite predicting total U.S. streaming-subscriber additions in 2012 would reach about 7 million, "about the same as in 2010," the nearer-term guidance rattled burberry ties investors, said Wedbush Securities analyst Michael Pachter. Adding customers to the instant-streaming business is crucial to the company's future as it moves away from mailing DVDs in its signature red envelopes. And sustaining strong growth in users will help offset rising costs as Netflix writes bigger checks for new movies and TV shows. "They are giving a signal to the Street their growth story is over," said Pachter, who rates Netflix a "sell." Netflix said seasonal variations would affect second-quarter customer growth. In a letter to shareholders, CEO Reed Hastings and CFO David Wells said they saw "nothing new or particularly concerning" about customer viewing, acquisition and retention. "All are healthy," they said. "Our gross additions are strong. Our retention burberry handbags is strong. We are feeling good about the year," Hastings said in an interview with Reuters. Netflix never fully recovered credibility with investors after a tumultuous 2011, when a price-hike and plan to hive off its DVD business -- quickly abandoned -- sparked cancellations by angry customers. It lost more than 800,000 U.S. subscribers in the third quarter, louis vuitton handbags though it rebounded by gaining back 610,000 in the last three months of the year. Once one of Wall Street's highest-flying stocks, its shares dropped from $304.79 in July to $62.37 in November. "The brand recovery is partway complete" and will take about three years with most of it happening the first year, Hastings said during a conference call with analysts. For the first quarter, Netflix posted revenue of $870 million, up 21 percent from a year earlier. The company had a net loss of $4.6 million or 8 cents per share in the quarter, versus a net profit of $60.2 million a year earlier. Analysts had expected a loss of 27 cents oakley sunglasses per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S. The company added 1.7 million U.S. streaming customers in the quarter for a total of 23.4 million. DVD subscribers fell by about 1.1 million to 10.1 million. Some analysts have speculated Hastings will try to sell the DVD business. On the conference call, he said he was not considering the idea. While it transitions to streaming and expands around the world, Netflix faces growing competition from rivals such as Amazon.com Inc and Comcast Corp's Streampix. The company attributed its quarterly loss to start-up costs abroad. Netflix added 1.2 million customers in international markets during the second quarter, for a total of 3.1 million. The company said it expected to return to profitability in the second quarter and launch in another European market in the fourth quarter of this year. The move into another market may have added to 2012 marc jacobs fashion sunglasses bestseller on sale DUPO5787 concerns among investors, said Gabelli & Co analyst Brett Harriss. "It's very aggressive. I think investors are gun-shy from their last aggressive move" into foreign markets, said Harriss, who has a "hold" rating on Netflix.

The academic findings might seem to defy common sense

The improving economy is swinging the pendulum louis vuitton shoes in President Barack Obama's favor in the 14 states where the presidential election will likely be decided. Recent polls have shown Obama gaining an edge over his likely Republican challenger, Mitt Romney, in several so-called swing states — those that are considered up for grabs. What's made the difference is that unemployment has dropped more sharply in several swing states than in the nation as a whole. A resurgence in manufacturing is helping the economy — and Obama's chances — in the industrial Midwestern states of Ohio and Michigan. And Arizona, Nevada and Florida, where unemployment remains high, are getting some relief from an uptick in tourism. "The biggest reason for the president's improving prospects probably is the economy," says Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. The Great Recession of 2007-2009 hit several swing states particularly hard. Unemployment peaked at 14.2 percent in Michigan, where the auto industry faced ruin. It also hit double digits in Arizona, Nevada and Florida, which were at the center of the housing bust, and in North Carolina, burberry sunglasses which lost jobs in textile and furniture plants. In 2010, the economic misery helped Republicans retake control of the House and gain seats in the Senate. But the GOP can't count on a repeat when voters return to the polls — with much more at stake — on Nov. 6. After an agonizingly slow recovery, several swing-state economies are finally accelerating: — The job market is improving in Michigan and Ohio. In Michigan, unemployment fell to 8.5 percent in March from 10.5 percent in March 2011. And in Ohio, it dropped burberry outlet to 7.5 percent from 8.8 percent over the same period, putting it well below the national average of 8.2 percent. A Fox News poll released Friday showed Obama leading Romney 45 percent to 39 percent among registered voters in Ohio. Many blue-collar workers in Ohio and Michigan credit the federal bailout of General Motors and Chrysler for saving tens of thousands of auto industry jobs, says Paul Allen Beck, a political science professor at Ohio State University. The bailout began under President George W. Bush, but Obama expanded it. "There's a feeling the administration went out of its way to protect jobs that are very important," Beck said. — In Florida, unemployment tumbled to 9 percent in March from 10.7 percent a year earlier. That was more than twice the nationwide drop of 0.7 percentage point (from 8.9 percent to 8.2 percent) over the same period. A rise in tourism is helping. "People who put off vacations or a trip to Disney World for two or three years got to the point where they feel safe in terms of financial security to finally burberry bags take those trips," says Sean Snaith, director of the University of Central Florida's Institute for Economic Competitiveness. — Even Nevada, a focal point of the real estate collapse, has seen some improvement: Unemployment dropped to 12 percent in March from 13.6 percent a year earlier. — Unemployment is down over the past year in the 10 other states the Associated Press identifies as swing states: Arizona, Colorado, Iowa, Minnesota, New Hampshire, New Mexico, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Wisconsin. Still, political analysts caution that voter sentiment — not to mention economic momentum — can turn fast. A month before the most recent polling, for instance, Obama was running behind or neck-and-neck with Romney in battleground states. "The election is not today; it louis vuitton handbags is seven months away," Quinnipiac's Brown says. A jobs recovery fizzled in mid-2011, so there's no guarantee the unemployment rate will continue to fall this year. Indeed, Romney was quick to pounce after the government said job creation plunged in March after three strong months of growth. Romney called the numbers "weak and very troubling.... Millions of Americans are paying a high price for President Obama's economic policies." Higher gasoline prices, up 60 cents this year to a oakley sunglasses national average $3.88 a gallon, could also turn voters against Obama. Still, prices have dropped over the past two weeks, and analysts say they could fall further. Political analysts also wonder whether voters will end up holding Obama responsible for the poor state of the housing market, even if the job market has improved. Jonathan Ketcham, a marketing professor at Arizona State University who has analyzed voting behavior, says academic studies haven't investigated how housing trends affect voters' decisions. Housing hasn't been a major issue in a presidential campaign before. But since 2006, Rayban fashion sunglasses online cheap sale DJYKIU60 a drop in home prices has wiped out $7 trillion in home equity, the biggest source of wealth for most families. In Nevada, more than six in 10 homes are "underwater" — they're worth less than the mortgages on them. In February, foreclosures surged more in Florida's two biggest cities — Miami and Tampa — from February 2011 than anywhere else, according to RealtyTrac. Foreclosures are up partly because they were delayed last year by a legal fight over lenders that processed foreclosures without verifying documents. Now, foreclosures are rising again in places like Florida where the housing bust did the most damage. That is worrisome for Obama, whose housing policies haven't made much of a dent in the crisis, says Susan MacManus, a government professor at the University of South Florida. Then again, state economic trends might not even make much difference. Political scientists who study voter behavior say most Americans tend to base their views about the economy — and their votes — more on what's happening nationwide than on what's happening closer to home. The academic findings might seem to defy common sense. But reports on the ups and downs of unemployment, gross domestic product and other nationwide economic indicators appear constantly on television news, in newspapers and on the Internet. Monster beats by dr dre headphones 2012 new arrivals sale, including beats by dre studio, monster beats pro, beats by dre solo and so on. All 50% off promotion now, free shipping for orders exceeding $500. So in some ways, ordinary Americans hear more about the national economy than they hear about economic conditions in their own communities, says Arizona State's Ketcham. Ketcham also says it "could be that people simply understand that local conditions are beyond the reach of national politicians." The national economic trend favors Obama, too. Unemployment Monster beats studio spider-man with diamond headphones red is down significantly from its 10 percent peak in October 2009. No incumbent president dating to 1956 has lost when unemployment fell over the two years leading up to his re-election contest. And none has won when the rate rose.

Federal Election Commission reports show

Republican presidential candidate Ron Paul got a spirited reception Friday from a capacity crowd of about 2,300 people at the University of Pittsburgh. Monster beats by dr dre headphones 2012 new arrivals sale, including beats by dre studio, monster beats pro, beats by dre solo and so on. All 50% off promotion now, free shipping for orders exceeding $500. Known as a Texan with libertarian views, Paul was born and raised in Pittsburgh and his mostly young crowd broke into cheers several times during his speech. When Paul spoke about the cost of foreign wars and the toll on servicemen and women, the crowd broke into a chant of "Bring them home. Bring them home." "I really like his foreign policy," said Dave Ohmer, 29, of Titusville. Ohmer made the two-hour drive from his home about 100 miles north of Pittsburgh to hear Paul for the first time. He said many of his relatives serve in the military and he would like to see them come home. The candidate also tried to appeal to both liberals and conservatives by suggesting the U.S. Federal Reserve banking system and drug laws be eliminated. He didn't mention his local roots. Some area residents remember him as high school student council president and track star in the early 1950s. His family has joked that Paul was kicked out of school once for bringing firecrackers to class. The Paul campaign says it has raised more than $10 million in the first quarter this year and has zero debt. But Paul is far behind the expected nominee Mitt Romney Monster beats studio spider-man with diamond headphones red in number of delegates. Still, some of his followers aren't ready to concede defeat. Nathan Gish, 22, said he voted for Paul in 2008 and plans to vote for him again this year. Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush, who has actively pushed the Republican Party to court Latino voters, said Friday that if offered the vice presidency he might accept. The brother of George W. Bush and son of George H.W. Bush, said he doesn’t think he’d be asked but would consider it if he did. Bush, who is popular in Florida, told the conservative website Newsmax that Florida Sen. Marco Rubio is "probably the best" choice to share the ticket with Mitt Romney, the presumptive GOP presidential nominee. Bush said he hopes the freshman senator is offered the No. 2 slot louis vuitton shoes and accepts it. Rubio has said repeatedly that he isn't interested in leaving the Senate. “Well I’d consider it, but I doubt I’ll get a call, and I don’t know if it’s the right thing for me to do,” he told Newsmax. “I didn’t run for president for a similar kind of reason, so I’m all in to try to help him get elected.” If chosen, Bush, who's wife is of Mexican origin, could help Romney in a critical swing state. He’s also popular with Conservative Latinos. He has often has stressed the importance of more moderation in the rhetoric in the GOP primary race, particularly as it pertains to immigration and how Latino voters perceive attitudes towards Latinos. Romney, whom he endorsed last month, has called for a hard line on immigration. Several in the Republican Party have said Bush would be an ideal presidential nominee himself, one who would be able to appeal to middle class and Latino voters looking for an alternative to President Barack Obama. “I have the perfect candidate — Jeb Bush. But he’s not running,” Andy Card, former George W. Bush Chief of Staff, said in an interview earlier this year. “What Democrat would not worry about a popular burberry sunglasses leader from a critical state who sounds pretty moderate and can rescue the GOP from its anti-Latino death grip?" Associates of Bush have said he is concerned about Romney’s immigration stance, but endorsed him because he believed he is the strongest candidate to beat President Barack Obama in November. Bush has actively encouraged the Republican Party to court Latino votes. In an opinion piece in the Washington Post, he said Latino voters "will represent the margin of victory" in key states in this year's elections. "For the Republican Party, the stakes could not be greater," Bush said in the Post. "Just eight years after the party's successful effort to woo Hispanic voters in 2004, this community - the fastest-growing group in the United States, according to census data - has drifted away." Even as Newt Gingrich’s campaign teetered on the burberry outlet edge of collapse in March, the wife of a casino mogul gave a pro-Gingrich super PAC another $5 million. The contribution brought the Adelson family’s pro-Gingrich tally to $20 million — a figure Sheldon Adelson himself was floating in December, POLITICO reported. The Adelsons almost single-handedly funded Winning Our Future’s operations since its inception in December, but in recent days, Adelson has signaled he will put his wealth behind establishment Republican candidates. The super PAC, Winning Our Future, ended last month with $5.76 million in its account, having raised $5.05 million while spending $1.55 million, federal records indicate. But Gingrich’s campaign, in contrast, began to burberry bags financially implode. Its debt rose dramatically to $4.3 million in March as the campaign struggled to raise money and paired back its operations after failing to consolidate support among voters. Federal Election Commission reports show that the campaign spent $2 million in March but only raised about $1.7 million, a drop from the $2.6 million it raised in February. Gingrich had $1.2 million cash on hand at the end of the month. At the end of March, Gingrich restructured his campaign, cutting staff and limiting his schedule to refocusing on a non-electoral strategy aimed at the Republican National Convention in Tampa. However, that move came only after the campaign had spent $37,000 on ballot louis vuitton handbags access, $500,000 on telemarketing, and $333,000 in media buys online and at the state level. The Gingrich campaign’s financial woes have been aided by high expenses. In March, Gingrich dropped $265,000 on travel, including $29,000 to Moby Dick Airways for chartered flights. In total, Gingrich’s campaign owes the charter flight company more than $1 million — the largest debt owed by the campaign to a single vendor. Gingrich’s debts are numerous and various: About 50 creditors are owed five- or six-figure amounts. The candidate himself is owed $271,775, according to the report. Ballot access and legal fees, telemarketing and direct mail services and several flavors of consulting – “grassroots,” “strategic,” “administrative,” “fundraising,” “finance,” “Hispanic” – are among the many debts the Gingrich campaign reported. Others include photography, video sound services, travel reimbursements and rent. The campaign did dispute a few line items, including oakley sunglasses more than $215,000 in software licenses, according to its report. And lately, it’s been renting its donor list in a bid to generate cash flow. Former presidential candidate Herman Cain’s political action committee was reimbursed $536 for travel at the end of March. And Gingrich’s daughters Kathy Lubbers and Jackie Cushman were reimbursed $5,400 and $4,900 respectively for travel. The campaign has also refunded Rayban fashion sunglasses online cheap sale DJYKIU60 more than $15,000 in contributions in March.

I feel so lucky to have been in a group

Dick Clark may be gone, but he's certainly not louis vuitton sunglasses forgotten -- especially by Ryan Seacrest.

"American Idol" host Ryan Seacrest - who took over hosting duties on "New Year's Rockin' Eve" from Clark after the latter's 2004 stroke - revealed via Twitter on Thursday that "Idol" will honor Clark on tonight's episode.

"We're putting together a tribute for Dick Clark on @AmericanIdol tonight...just talked to @dizzyfeet," Seacrest tweeted, referring to the Twitter handle of "Idol" executive producer Nigel Lythgoe.

Clark, the famed host of "American Bandstand," died Wednesday morning after suffering a heart attack. He was 82.

Following Clark's death, Seacrest tweeted, "I am deeply saddened by the loss of my dear friend Dick Clark. He has truly been one of the greatest influences in my life."

During Wednesday night's "Idol," Seacrest paid further tribute to Clark, starting the episode by noting, "Without Dick, a show like this would not exist. He will be missed greatly and our thoughts and our prayers go out to his family... I know that he's in a better place, gucci sunglasses saying, ‘Hey, let's get on with the show, OK?' You got it, boss."

Levon Helm is most widely known for the songs he sang that found their way onto the pop charts during his long tenure as drummer and singer for the Band: "Up On Cripple Creek," "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down" and "Don't Do It," earthy and infectious conglomerations of gospel, country, blues, folk and rock music.

But the one that might crystallize his approach to music throughout his life was "The W.S. Walcott Medicine Show," an ode to the kind of freewheeling gatherings in which the musician, who died of cancer Thursday at 71 in New York, thoroughly reveled.

That song appeared in 1970 on "Stage Fright," the third album by the rock group that miraculously emerged out of the shadow of serving for several years as Bob Dylan's backing band to achieve a reputation in its own right as one of the most esteemed groups in pop musichistory.

Helm's wife, Sandy, and daughter, Amy, posted a note on his website on Tuesday alerting fans and friends that he was in the final stages of cancer.

"Thank you fans and music lovers who have made his life so filled with joy and celebration," the note said. "He has loved nothing more than to play, to fill the room up with music, lay down the back beat, and make the people dance! He did it every time he took the stage."

The Band's former guitarist and songwriter Robbie Robertson, in a statement issued Wednesday, said,

"Levon is one of the most extraordinary talented people I've ever known and very much like an older brother to me. I am so grateful I got to see him one last time and will miss him and love him forever."

Helm had been diagnosed in 1998 with throat cancer, which threatened to end his singing career. He declined to undergo a recommended laryngectomy, which he believed was certain to terminate his ability to sing, opting for radiation treatment instead, which left him nearly unable to speak, much less to sing.

Even before he regained the use of his voice, Helm started holding regular jam sessions he called Midnight Rambles at his home studio in Woodstock, N.Y., an outlet he said was crucial to keeping his outlook positive while rehabilitating his voice.

That effort was slow and arduous — it was more than two years before he could speak above a whisper. The medical bills also nearly caused him to lose his home. But thanks to the success of the Midnight Rambles series, eventually he clawed his way out of physical and financial debilitation to enjoy a latter-day career resurgence that yielded three Grammy Awards for his post-illness recordings "Dirt Farmer," "Electric Dirt" and "Ramble at the Ryman."

Mark Lavon Helm was born May 26, 1940, in Elaine, Ark., burberry handbags according to his official website, although some sources have listed the year of his birth as 1942 or 1943.

He was the second of four children of Nell and Diamond Helm. His father was a cotton farmer who also enjoyed playing music. At 6, he experienced his first live music event, a performance by bluegrass music patriarch Bill Monroe and his Blue Grass Boys. "This really tattooed my brain," he recalled. "I've never forgotten it."

Helm talked to The Times in 2008 of other early ways he was exposed to music: "I would go right into Chapel Silas' grocery story and Mr. Silas had one of the best jukeboxes in Phillips County, and I would sit there and feed that jukebox and he would feed me, you know, bologna and cheese."

A 1955 show by Elvis Presley, before he became a national sensation, impressed Helm with the contributions the drums added to his sound, in that he'd seen Presley the previous year before drummer D.J. Fontana was accompanying him. He was further enamored of the drums when he saw Jerry Lee Lewis' band with drummer Jimmy Van Eaton.

Still a teenager, he joined the backup band for fellow Arkansas singer Ronnie Hawkins.

"It was five people that were put in that sink-or-swim place," he said in 2002. "Thank God, we swam."

Helm was the only American in the Hawks, which included four Canadians: songwriter and guitarist Robertson, guitarist-keyboardist Richard Manuel, bassist Rick Danko and multi-instrumentalist Garth Hudson. For a time after they broke with Hawkins they continued as Levon and the Hawks, acknowledging his role as the primary singer.

Bob Dylan heard and recruited the Hawks to be his band in 1965, a pivotal time in his explosive career as he broadened his sound from the traditional folk-rooted acoustic-guitar-and-harmonica sound of his earliest recordings to incorporate the visceral power of electric instrumentation that was at the heart of rock.

Dylan and the Hawks were booed by audiences in the U.S. and England when Dylan toured in the mid-1960s, folk purists arguing that he had betrayed his roots in burberry ties the music of Woody Guthrie, the Weavers, Pete Seeger and other folk artists.

But Dylan ultimately triumphed in electrifying his sound. After a near-fatal motorcycle accident in 1966, he went into seclusion at an upstate New York house dubbed "Big Pink," working with the members of the Hawks, recording dozens of songs in sessions that were widely bootlegged and only released years later as "The Basement Tapes."

Some of those songs surfaced when that group launched its own career, for which the members adopted the name the Band in a nod to its star-free ethos.

At a time when rock was splintering in disparate directions — psychedelia, early heavy metal, folk-rock and pure pop — the Band took listeners back to the root strains that originally gave birth to rock. The timeless sound that resulted, beginning with the 1968 debut album "Music From Big Pink," influenced hundreds of musicians who followed in its wake, and the Band almost single-handedly established the template for a genre that has come to be known as Americana music.

Rather than a lead singer surrounded by accompanists, the Band was an egalitarian collective in which each member's contributions were indispensable. All five were multitalented musicians who shifted roles for different songs, and often within the same song, creating a fluid and louis vuitton handbags democratic approach to music making that was the Band's signature.

A perfect example is "The Weight," one of the cornerstones of the Band's repertoire. After an arcing opening solo acoustic guitar riff, Helm struck three chest-rattling drumbeats before establishing the rock-steady loping rhythm, then delivered the evocative first verse evoking the weariness of a generation battle-scarred both by the Vietnam War and the broad social and political unrest of the 1960s:

I pulled into Nazareth, was feeling 'bout half-past dead

I just need a place where I can lay my head

'Hey mister, can you tell me, where a man might find a bed?'

He just grinned and shook his head, 'No,' was all he said.

Helm handed the fourth verse off to Danko, and in the chorus with Danko and Manuel created a multilayered tapestry of voices.

Helm's was the dominant voice on that song and other signature works including "The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down," "Rag Mama Rag," "Ophelia," "Don't Do It" and "Daniel and the Sacred Harp."

"The Band was an ensemble — it wasn't a group of soloists — and they worked together so great," said Lauren Onkey, vice president of education and public programs at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, which inducted the group in 1994. "But when I hear Levon's voice, I hear it crying out over everybody else's. He had the roots of all elements of American music. I don't think any of them could oakley sunglasses have handled 'The Night They Drove Old Dixie Down' the way Levon did."

Grammy Museum executive director Robert Santelli, co-author with E Street Band drummer Max Weinberg of the 1991 book "The Big Beat: Conversations with Rock's Great Drummers," said, "Something I didn't realize until I wrote the book with Max is the respect — not just as a singer, but as a drummer — that Levon Helm had in the music world. Max considers Levon Helm one of the greatest drummers in popular music history, as high as you would rank [Led Zeppelin's] John Bonham or [Cream and Blind Faith's] Ginger Baker, obviously for different reasons.

"My sense is that Levon Helm was the greatest white blues drummer of all time," Santelli said. "He had an innate ability to create something that not only had great authenticity, but also was strikingly original in the way he played it."

When Dylan emerged from his hiatus in 1974 with a new album, "Planet Waves," and a tour, once again he called on the Band. Among the highlights of their tour together were his thunderous recasting of his 1966 song "Most Likely You Go Your Way (And I'll Go Mine)" and the massive, newly muscular arrangement of "All Along the Watchtower," both propelled by Helm's explosive drumming.

But after having toured incessantly for 20 years, the Band called it quits in 1976 with perhaps the most famous sendoff concert ever, an all-star affair that director Martin Scorsesedocumented in the concert film "The Last Waltz." Dylan, Neil Young, Van Morrison, Muddy Waters, Joni Mitchell, Eric Clapton, Neil Diamond and numerous others played at the concert in San Francisco that brought the Band's 2012 marc jacobs fashion sunglasses bestseller on sale DUPO5787 career to a close.

For Helm, "The Last Waltz" was the last straw. He pursued a solo career with a string of albums for which he again employed the communal approach. Gathering associates for a group he branded "The RCO All-Stars," he worked with soul, R&B and blues musicians Paul Butterfield, Dr. John, and Booker T. Jones and two members of his group the MG's, Steve Cropper and Donald "Duck" Dunn. In the late-1980s, he was invited by fellow drummer Ringo Starr to join the ex-Beatle's first "All-Starr Band" tour featuring numerous players with stellar pedigrees.

He established a second profession as an actor, starting with his role as country singer Loretta Lynn's father in the 1980 Oscar-winning biopic "Coal Miner's Daughter," and put his Arkansas drawl to work as narrator of the 1983 film adaptation of Tom Wolfe's book about the U.S. space program, "The Right Stuff."

Minus Robertson, the remaining members of the Band reconvened in 1983 and began touring, but three years into their career revival, Manuel hanged himself after a club performance. Helm, Danko and Hudson continued and recorded three new studio albums — "Jericho," in 1993, "High on the Hog" in 1995 and "Jubilation" in 1998. In 1999, Danko died of a drug-related heart attack.

And there were other problems along the way. In his 1993 autobiography "This Wheel's on Fire," Helm charged that Robertson unfairly claimed sole songwriting credits, and therefore publishing revenues, on songs he said were often the result of collaboration among several or all of the Band's members.

"Those songs weren't written," he told an interviewer in 2002. "They were planted, cultivated and grown over a period of time."

He also bristled in the book at how he felt that Scorsese's film painted Robertson as the star and put the others in subordinate roles. Consequently, Helm refused to attend when the Band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

In an interview last year with The Times, Robertson expressed his admiration for his former Band mates.

"I feel so lucky to have been in a group where it was a real band," he said. "This wasn't a singer and guitar player and some other guys. ... Everybody in that group played such a pivotal part in it. ... It made me feel excited about coming up with ideas and ways to structure cheap beats by dr dre songs, and that we could do this almost like a theater group: 'You sing those lines, and then you come in after that thing, and you come in on the chorus there.' It was a position I could take in this thing and not feel like, 'No, no, I need to be singing that part.' I could really stand back and look at it through more of a director's lens, or some position other than trying to be the center of everything all the time."

They are doing a fantastic job for long-term shareholders

EBay Inc said quarterly sales and profit grew louis vuitton shoes more than expected and raised its 2012 forecasts, citing growth in the e-commerce company's Marketplaces and PayPal businesses.

Ebay's stock rose 6.9 percent to $38.35 in extended trading, after hitting $38.83 - the highest level since late 2007.

The stock has gained more than 15 percent so far this year, more than double the gain of rival Amazon.com, on optimism that growth has resumed at eBay's online Marketplaces business and an expansion of PayPal from its online roots into physical stores.

During the first quarter, eBay's online marketplaces added a lot more active users, while transactions through mobile devices jumped and sales of fashion, auto parts and accessories were strong, the company said.

PayPal grew strongly as more merchants added the payment burberry sunglasses option to their websites, particularly their mobile sites, eBay said on Wednesday.

"Both PayPal and the Marketplaces were very healthy in the quarter," said Colin Sebastian, an analyst at Robert W. Baird & Co. "It's not every quarter that you see both doing well."

That suggests management's strategy of turning around its online Marketplaces while expanding PayPal is working.

"Marketplaces is improving and PayPal continues to burberry outlet gain market share and that's without any contribution from the offline initiatives," Sebastian said.

'TURNED THE CORNER'

EBay's online marketplaces, the largest in the world, have lagged the growth of e-commerce and Amazon.com for several years.

Under Chief Executive John Donahoe, eBay has invested a lot to improve the buying experience on the sites, partly by prodding sellers to provide more services such burberry bags as free shipping and easier returns.

Donahoe said these changes have paid off, declaring on a conference call with analysts on Wednesday that the Marketplaces business "has turned the corner."

EBay said first-quarter gross merchandise volume on its U.S. Marketplace business was $6.37 billion, excluding vehicle sales. That was up 13 percent from a year earlier. Doug Anmuth, an analyst at J.P. Morgan, had expected $6.13 billion.

EBay's online marketplace added 2 million louis vuitton handbags active users during the first quarter, the most in three years, Donahoe noted.

PAYPAL

PayPal's Total Payment Volume was $34 billion in the first quarter, up 24 percent from a year earlier. J.P. Morgan's Anmuth had forecast $33.28 billion.

PayPal's transaction margin - a measure of the payment service's oakley sunglasses profitability - was 65.6 percent in the first quarter, up from 64.8 percent in the previous quarter.

Chief Financial Officer Bob Swan said this was the highest margin level in five years.

EARNINGS, FORECASTS

EBay said first-quarter profit was $725 million, or 55 cents per share, compared with $619 million, or 47 cents per share, a year earlier. Revenue was $3.3 billion, up 29 percent from the same period in 2011.

EBay was expected to report earnings of 52 cents per share in the first quarter on revenue of $3.15 billion, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

EBay forecast second-quarter Discount louis vuitton bracelets for women classic best outlet silvery profit of 53 to 55 cents per share on revenue of $3.25 billion to $3.35 billion. For full-year 2012, the company expects earnings of $2.30 to $2.35 per share on revenue of $13.8 billion to $14.1 billion.

Wall Street was looking for earnings per share of 55 cents for the second quarter and $2.30 for the full year. Revenue was expected to be $3.36 billion in the second quarter and $13.85 billion for the full year.

Earlier this year, eBay forecast first-quarter earnings of 50 to 51 cents a share and revenue of $3.05 billion to $3.15 billion. For the whole of 2012, had eBay previously forecast profit of $2.25 to $2.30 per share on revenue of $13.7 billion to $14 billion.

"They are doing a fantastic job for long-term shareholders," said beats by dre solo Bill Smead of Smead Capital Management, which owns eBay stock. "They consistently under-promise and over-deliver."

EBay likely kept its full-year estimates restrained because the outlook for the economy is still uncertain, Sebastian noted.

The House will consider a handful of amendments

Usually, the term “faux outrage” loosely translates from the French into “someone else’s outrage, which I am not acknowledging as in any way valid on account of louis vuitton shoes I don’t want to.”

But in a political system in which attacks are so reliably monetized, Ann Romney couldn’t help woohooing about how profitably she’d been disrespected by Democratic consultant Hilary Rosen, who commented on cable news that Romney had “actually never worked a day in her life.”

Ca-ching, the candidate’s wife exulted.

At a fundraiser in Palm Beach, Fla., over the weekend, Romney not only showed no hint of outrage, faux or otherwise, but was really kind of giddy. “It was my early birthday present for someone to be critical of me as a mother,” reporters overheard her telling supporters. “And that was really a defining moment, and I loved it.’’

Now, when I wrote last week that the Romneys owed Rosen a thank-you note, I didn’t expect them to agree while wearing a microphone. But as a spouse unfairly maligned, a mom denied her due, what was not to love? And no one can say her delight was inauthentic.

The woman whose job Ann Romney is burberry outlet running for has been attacked, too, of course, for everything from the size of her “posterior” to her aggressive agenda of veggie-pushing.

Yet, mostly, Michelle Obama has passed on the perquisites of victimhood. Perhaps because, as she told Gayle King the one time I do remember her giving voice to some umbrage: “I guess it’s more interesting to imagine this conflicted situation here and a strong woman. But that’s been an image that people have tried to paint of me since the day Barack announced. That I’m some angry black woman.”

She hasn’t made that mistake again. And Ann Romney wasn’t so foolish as to pretend to have been wounded by Rosen’s remarks, either; that’s why God made surrogates, which the campaign sent out to do so in her stead, on behalf of mothers everywhere.

It doesn’t seem to have hurt her any to have been caught celebrating Rosen’s remarks in semi-private. It probably won’t, either, because after President Obama and half of his burberry sunglasses campaign team rushed to say spouses should be off limits, they’re not about to double back and make a big deal of it.

But milking it any further is not a good plan for the Romneys, either — and I hope they won’t try to spin comedian (and self-funded Green Party presidential candidate) Roseanne Barr’s rude and baseless speculation about how much help Ann Romney had while raising her five sons as anything other than a bid for attention.

(“Mrs. Mitt Romney claims to have worked her toned a-- off, raising five Romney males all on her own, as privileged wives often do,” Barr wrote in the Daily Beast. “But, no, Ann, I call bull---- on your Big Mama story, girlfriend.” Okay, and I call what she said on that column, though it’s not worth getting excited over.)

The “real housewives” of the campaign trail do have a hard and often thankless job and a schedule that involves plenty of actual work. Yet politics is also enough like reality TV that it is infinitely better to be the aggrieved party — the housewife havingburberry bags wine tossed in her face for the umpteenth time — than the one who’s doing the tossing.

Then you pat it dry, without looking either too offended or too pleased and get right back to selling the candidate.

Melinda Henneberger is a Washington Post political writer and anchors the paper’s She the People blog.

The White House on Tuesday renewed its threat to veto legislation to fund U.S. transportation projects responsible for millions of jobs if it includes the politically charged Canada-to-Texas Keystone XL oil pipeline.

Republicans in the House of Representatives have included the pipeline in a bill that proposes a 90-day extension of funding for highway, bridge, and transit construction. The louis vuitton handbags House is expected to vote on the legislation on Wednesday.

In a statement on the proposal, presidential advisers said the legislation would circumvent "longstanding and proven process" for determining whether pipelines are in the national interest.

It said mandating the pipeline before a new route was "submitted and assessed" would prompt a recommendation that President Barack Obama veto the long-delayed transportation legislation, said to be crucial for the economy.

Obama earlier this year put a hold on TransCanada's $7 billion project, designed to bring crude oil from Canada and North Dakota to Texas refineries, oakley sunglasses because he said it needed further environmental review in Nebraska.

Obama does, however, support development of the southern leg of the pipeline that would run from the Cushing, Oklahoma, storage hub to Texas.

House Speaker John Boehner, a Republican, has made Keystone a cornerstone of his election-year jobs agenda. But the measure was part of a larger transportation plan that crumbled in the House this year due to a lack of Republican support.

House Republicans, in their new, scaled-back transportation plan, backed away from controversial provisions in the ill-fated bill to expand oil and gas drilling and use related revenues for road and transit construction. They also dropped an unpopular plan to decouple transit spending from its dedicated funding source.

The House will consider a handful of amendments to the latest proposal on Wednesday. Current highway spending expires in June.

Obama's initial veto threat of the House transportation bill in February covered the energy and transit measures favored by Republican leaders.

Republicans continue to sharply criticize Obama's decision on Keystone XL and again are pushing for the full project, saying it would create jobs and bring more oil to the Rayban fashion sunglasses online cheap sale DJYKIU60 United States at a time of surging gasoline prices.

In a vote that included some Democratic support, Republicans in the Senate narrowly failed in March to attach the Keystone provision to a two-year, $109 billion transportation bill that was later approved by the chamber.

After years of confusing consumers with multiple

With Boston Bruins goalie Tim Thomas back louis vuitton sunglasses in the nation’s capital, Washington Capitals fans weren’t going to let him forget his skipped trip to the White House.

At Game 3 of the Bruins-Capitals playoff series Monday night, several spectators showed up with pictures of President Barack Obama and signs taunting Thomas. In January, he didn’t show up when the rest of the Bruins were invited to the Stanley Cup champions’ traditional visit to the president’s office.

Thomas, born in Michigan, gucci sunglasses said at the time he believes the federal government “has grown out of control.”

Most of the Obama signs were displayed by fans sitting near the glass behind the net Thomas defended in the first and third periods of Monday’s game.

Copyright 2012 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

HBO's new Lena Dunham comedy series Girls starring Dunham, Allison Williams and Jemima Kirke, premiered Sunday evening to mediocre ratings for the burberry handbags cable network. Game of Thrones continued to show strength in its third episode of the new season with no signs of letting up.

Girls, from producer Judd Apatow and considered by many to be a younger version of Sex and the City, attracted 1.1 million viewers for its big opening night from two airings. Those numbers topped the canceled Bored to Death ratings, but are substantially lower than the 1.6 million lead-in Eastbound & Down put up.

Whether Girls picks up steam in its second episode could be affected by HBO offering the pilot for free to non-subscribers. If word-of-mouth is positive, more viewers could tune in to see where the young urban girls go next.

If Girls ratings tail off, fingers should not be pointed toward a lack of publicity. HBO has been heavily promoting the series premiere burberry ties over the past several weeks, and media outlets have been running hard with stories.

Game of Thrones continues to be a powerhouse for HBO, scoring a total of 4.5 million viewers across its two showings. That's right in line with the previous episode, great news for HBO after they renewed the series for Season 3 roughly a week ago. Since the Season 2 premiere, Game of Thrones has only shed a couple percentage points worth of viewers.

We'll have our latest Game of Thrones episode louis vuitton handbags review up shortly, as well as AMC's Mad Men.

Finally! After years of confusing consumers with multiple, slightly different versions of the same operating system, Microsoft announced today that Windows 8 will come in only four versions: One for home use, one for business, one oakley sunglasses for devices running ARM chips, and one for large enterprises who buy in bulk.

For most people buying an operating system for a traditional desktop or laptop, the choice will be between just two versions. The version called simply "Windows 8" is designed for home users. "Windows 8 Pro" is for business users and includes features for 2012 marc jacobs fashion sunglasses bestseller on sale DUPO5787 encrypting a file system, virtualization, and domain management.

"Windows RT" is the new name for what had been called Windows on ARM. You won't be able to purchase it on its own; It'll come preinstalled on PCs and tablets that run ARM processors. Windows RT won't be able to run traditional X86/64 desktop software. Instead, it'll run touch-oriented apps based on Windows Runtime (or WinRT), Microsoft's programming model for mobile apps. Apps for the touch-oriented Metro interface are built using Windows Runtime.

Windows RT will come with special louis vuitton evidence sunglasses touch-oriented versions of Microsoft Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and OneNote.

Weber smashed Henrik Zetterberg’s head into the glass

All the elements that have so far fashioned louis vuitton sunglasses the Flyers-Penguins matchup as the most compelling of the N.H.L. playoffs were present Sunday at Wells Fargo Center, but so was perhaps the one component it had lacked.

Along with the shaky goalie play, paucity of defense and don’t-leave-your-seat suspense that defined the first two games in Pittsburgh came a healthy dose of nastiness in Game 3 — brawls, punches, ejections — and the confirmation that these teams really, truly do not care for each other.

Sticks and helmets littered the ice as often as pucks filled the nets. The Philadelphia Flyers’ 8-4 victory, which put them on the verge of reaching the Eastern Conference semifinals with a three-games-to-none lead, was bookended by chaos.

A first period that featured 18 penalties and 3 ejections devolved into third-period mayhem. James Neal’s blindside hit on the Flyers rookie Sean Couturier sparked a series of scuffles at the 15-minute-18-second mark that produced 55 penalty minutes gucci sunglasses and ended with Scott Hartnell and Craig Adams dueling at center ice.

During the stoppage, Flyers fans chanted: “You can’t beat us.”

Flyers defenseman Kimmo Timonen, ejected in the first period with Pittsburgh defenseman Kris Letang because they fought after an altercation elsewhere on the ice, said that it was disappointing that the game deteriorated into fight-filled burberry handbags madness, but that he had seen the same thing happen in other series.

Of the Penguins, who outnumbered Philadelphia in game misconducts (4-2) and penalty minutes (89-69), Timonen said: “If they think they’re going to win that way, it’s not working for them. Hopefully, they do it one more time.”

That the series, which until Sunday was dominated by two remarkable Philadelphia comebacks, turned from guile to bile should come as little surprise. A late-game brawl on April 1 prompted Flyers Coach Peter Laviolette to call Dan Bylsma, his Penguins counterpart, burberry ties gutless. The Flyers assistant Craig Berube called Sidney Crosby and Evgeni Malkin dirty players.

Crosby, the target of boos and obscene chants for much of the game, initiated a mad skirmish Sunday by trying to whack the puck out of Ilya Bryzgalov’s glove after play had been stopped, then pushing away the glove of Jakub Voracek, who was trying to grab the puck off the ice.

“I don’t like him,” Crosby said. “I don’t like any guy on their team.”

The feeling in the Flyers’ dressing room is likewise, although they demonstrated a greater sense of discipline. Neal defended his hit on Couturier by saying he did not see him.

There will be no such protection for the Penguins’ Arron Asham, who is probably facing a suspension for cross-checking Brayden Schenn louis vuitton handbags in the face, then punching him as Schenn lay face-down on the ice. Asham received a match penalty.

On the ensuing power play, Matt Read scored the first of his two goals. The Flyers’ special teams were again a key, producing four goals — three on the power play and one short-handed.

Over three games, the Flyers have scored 20 goals — 17 against Marc-Andre Fleury. So wobbly was Fleury that Brent Johnson replaced him at the start of the third period, with the Penguins trailing, 6-4.

The first shot Johnson saw — if he saw it at all oakley sunglasses — beat him high to the stick side, a one-timer by Claude Giroux off a pass from Jaromir Jagr.

The Flyers, viewed as underdogs entering the series, are now one victory from sweeping their intrastate rivals. PREDATORS 3, RED WINGS 2 Defenseman Shea Weber scored early in the first period and Nashville held on at Detroit. The Predators lead the best-of-seven series, two games to one.

Weber smashed Henrik Zetterberg’s head into the glass at the end of Game 1, and the crowd at Joe Louis Arena booed him whenever he touched the puck. Weber was fined $2,500 by the N.H.L. for the hit.

Zetterberg scored with 54 seconds left to pull the Red Wings to a goal behind, but they could not force overtime. (AP)

BLUES GOALIE SIDELINED St. Louis goalie Jaroslav Halak will miss Game 3 of the series against the San Jose Sharks on Monday because of a lower-body injury. Coach Ken Hitchcock ruled Halak out of the road game after the goalie took a hard hit from 2012 marc jacobs fashion sunglasses bestseller on sale DUPO5787 his careening teammate Barret Jackman in a 3-0 Blues win on Saturday night. The series is tied at a game apiece.

Brian Elliott stopped all 17 shots he faced to complete the shutout for St. Louis. He will start Game 3.

Santorum is the second winner this week

Rick Santorum’s decision to suspend burberry handbags his campaign was met by an outpouring of good will and kind words from his opponents. Mitt Romney was conciliatory. Ron Paul’s online supporters, who last week hardly considered Santorum a true American, are now enthusiastic in their praise of him as the other principled candidate whose supporters should now support Paul.

Only Newt Gingrich seemed sour, thoughts of what might have been had Santorum dropped out when he told him to adding to his sense of aggrievement.

After firing a third of his staff a couple of weeks ago, Gingrich hopes that Santorum’s departure will resuscitate his campaign. He’s now the “only true conservative” left in the race, as he sees it, and his supporters (aside from Callista, who’s the other?) want him to stay in it. At last he has his chance to face Romney one-on-one.

But of course he does not. Ron Paul is still in the race, and the Gingrich campaign is dead. Before Santorum dropped out, Gingrich declared that he and Romney could heal the rift between them and that he could “enthusiastically” support Romney. That ray ban sunglasses is despite the fact that he thinks Romney is a dishonest, “Etch A Sketch,” not-really-conservative candidate.

Ron Paul’s supporters are convinced that their man will reap the benefits of going one-on-one against Romney, along with much of Santorum’s support and some delegates. Like most of the media, they have started acting as if Gingrich doesn’t exist, and for practical purposes he does not. But Santorum, who was on icy terms with Paul while he was in the campaign, is probably contemplating a 2016 run, and endorsing Paul would kill that in the crib.

Because he is only suspending his campaign, Santorum’s delegates remain pledged to him. Delegates have minds of their own and can’t be bought and bargained for like beads at a bazaar. However, Santorum will have some influence with them, so his endorsement matters. He can’t endorse Paul, and Gingrich, deep in a financial hole and oakley sunglasses desperate for money, can do nothing for him. Only Romney can help him retire his debt and put him on good footing to face 2016. If he plays this intelligently (or cynically, if you prefer), he can only endorse Romney. He will do it once Romney gives him what he needs - a promise of financial assistance, and probably a prime speaking slot at the convention.

If he waits too long, Romney won’t need him for the nomination, though Santorum’s support will still be important for November. Romney already has more than half the delegates he needs for the nomination, and unless Paul does something astonishing, he’ll get them.

Paul gains nothing from Santorum’s departure; he Ed Hardy sunglasses new arrivals discount sale CQEWQ145 only loses. The Paul strategy was to work the state conventions, acquire more delegates than his official count (his supporters claim he has over 200, not the 51 he’s won in the primaries and caucuses), make sure that delegates pledged to other candidates are his supporters, deny Romney the delegates to win in the first vote at the convention, then, after the pledged delegates vote for whom they must in the first round, win in the next round of voting.

With Santorum’s departure, that won’t happen. Some of Romney’s delegates may be Paul supporters, but if they have to vote for Romney in the first round, they’ll never get a chance to vote for Paul in a second round. Without Santorum to bleed away delegates, Paul can’t force a second vote at the convention.

Santorum’s departure destroys Paul’s Burberry sneaker shoes for women blue beige outlet classic convention strategy, and it can’t bring the dead Gingrich campaign back to life. It’s a pure win for Romney. But what about for Santorum?

Santorum is the second winner this week. He had no chance of winning the nomination, and only a slightly better chance of blocking Romney. If he’d waited much longer to leave, he’d have earned Party enmity for prolonging the campaign beyond reason. If he’d lost in Pennsylvania for a second time, his credibility as a candidate would have been demolished.

Santorum pointedly did not praise Romney when he announced his departure from the race. He didn’t mention Romney at all. That could be viewed burberry bags as petty disrespect, but it also telegraphed his intentions: Romney has to buy his support. If Romney expects to have a chance in November, he’ll need it.

State Fair executive director Cindy Hoye spoke

Two consulting firms hired by the state burberry ties of Indiana to investigate why the stage collapsed moments before country duo Sugarland was to perform at the Indiana State Fair last summer cited "ambiguity of authority" over who was in charge and unsuitable stage construction as contributing to the tragedy that killed seven people.

The two firms, Thornton Tomasetti, an international engineering company, and Witt Associates, an emergency preparedness consulting firm, announced more than 80 recommendations for changes in the State Fair's "inadequate" emergency safety plan and burberry outlet stage construction today at the Fair Commission meeting in Indianapolis.

Just as Sugarland's Jennifer Nettles and Kristian Bush were about to take the stage at the State Fair on Aug. 13, a powerful storm blew through the area and a huge gust of wind ripped down the stage scaffolding. Aside from the seven people that were killed, burberry shoes for men dozens were injured.

Witt Associates went over a timeline of events leading up to the stage collapse. State Fair officials, they reported, had expressed concern about the weather throughout the day of Aug. 13, and approached Sugarland tour manager Helen Rollins about delaying or canceling the show because of the threat of severe weather. Witt Associates said that Rollins' response around 8 p.m. the night of the show was, "It is only rain, we can play."

At 8:30 p.m., Witt Associates Ray ban sunglasses said, Indiana State Police Captain Brad Weaver, who was off-duty that night, approached Fair officials and said they needed to start "shutting it down." Around 8:45 p.m., Weaver approached the officials again and said, "We're calling this off," but the stage collapsed before they could make an announcement to delay the show.

Both Thornton Tomasetti and Witt Associates officials said they encountered problems in getting information from Sugarland's camp and the companies Oakley sunglasses involved with building the stage, including Mid-Atlantic Sound Corp., which was issued a fine as a result of previous investigation into the stage collapse by the Indiana Occupational Safety and Health Administration.

Scott Nacheman, a vice president with Thornton Tomasetti, said that the stage structure became "overstressed and overloaded" in the severe weather and it was not built or inspected properly.

A maximum wind gust of burberry outlet sale 59 mph hit the stage the night it collapsed, Nacheman said. The stage was "capable" of withstanding 25 to 43 mph wind speed gusts, he said, but as wind speeds increased, the concrete jersey barriers used as anchors for the stage began to slide from "a matter of inches" to "upwards of 10 feet" until the structure finally gave way.

"Gravity has taken over, and there was no way for the structure to support itself," Nacheman said. "The structure was in a free fall position."

Sugarland's additional sound and lighting equipment added extra weight to the structure, Nacheman said. Without them, the stage "could have sustained a maximum of 53 mph" wind gusts.Roberto Cavalli sunglasses 2012, cheap roberto cavalli sunglasses sale.

State Fair executive director Cindy Hoye spoke only at the beginning of the meeting, saying the report findings "are extremely important for us to use as a road map to move forward... hindsight is an incredible teacher and that's all we have right now."

Numerous victims of the stage collapse filed louis vuitton brooch a massive civil lawsuit on Nov. 22, 2011, claiming Sugarland and the companies involved with the construction of the stage were negligent and contributed to the accident.

Nettles and Bush are participating in a deposition Thursday and Friday in Charleston, W.Va., to answer lawyers' questions about their involvement in the decision making to go on with the show.

We are sorry Axl will not be able to accept his Induction in person

Helm suffered a cut on his right arm in the burberry ties first period of Wednesday's 3-2 loss to Nashville at Bridgestone Arena, sending him to hospital for surgery.

"He had his forearm cut," coach Mike Babcock said. "We don't know, that's why he's at the hospital — we don't know to what extent, or how severe, if any tendons or anything like that are cut. I don't know that. But it was pretty severe. I mean, as soon as it happened, he skated straight to the bench and we were on a penalty kill. He'd never do that. And then they took him from the game right away.

"It's a tough blow, but that's just the way things go."

Helm was cut by the skate of Alexander Radulov.

Losing Helm for the burberry outlet series — and almost certainly for the duration of the playoffs — is a blow to the Wings' third line, by domino effect, their fourth line, and to the penalty kill. The Wings were also counting on Helm to be a big hitter especially against Shea Weber and Ryan Suter, helping to wear them down during the series.

Helm had come back to play in Game 1 after being out since March 17, when he suffered a sprained knee.

No decisions had been made right after the game, but the Wings likely will look at Gustav Nyquist to fill the void. Nyquist played 18 games after being called burberry shoes for men up from the minors, where he was making a fantastic rookie debut after three years at Maine. Nyquist is a smart player, and good skater, not as fast or as relentless a checker as Helm, but few are.

The problem for the Wings is, they feel their entire bottom six flesh out better when Helm mans the third-line center spot. Without him, usually Justin Abdelkader plays there, and Cory Emmerton moves in to play center on the fourth line.

Other options are 6-2 Riley Sheahan, though he's only played one NHL game in his career, and Chris Conner, whose gritty Ray ban sunglasses and hard-nosed but also undersized.

The last Wing to suffer a cut to his forearm was Mike Modano. He was cut by the skate of R.J. Umberger in a game the day after Thanksgiving in November 2010, had surgery the next day, and ended up missing half the season.

uns N' Roses will be inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame this weekend, despite Axl Rose's bombshell decision on Wednesday to boycott the event due to various grievances, large and small. A spokesperson confirms with Billboard that Green Day is still scheduled to introduce the gritty rock band into the Hall's ranks.

Also on Thursday, Hall officials announced a few new additions to the star-studded gala event, taking place Saturday, April 14 in Cleveland, including a full-fledged reunion of Faces, featuring Rod Stewart, Ron Wood, Kenney Jones and Ian McLagan. Despite several near-reunions over the years, the four surviving members have not played as Faces since 1993, four years before bassist Ronnie Lane died from multiple sclerosis. Steve Marriott, who fronted the earlier mod group Small Faces, died in 1991.

Stewart missed his own Rock Hall induction in 1994 due to an earthquake in Los Angeles two days prior.

The Red Hot Chili Peppers will also perform, though key former member John Frusciante has indicated he will not attend. The band launched a tour in late March to Oakley sunglasses promote their 10th studio album, "I'm With You." The tour was delayed in January to allow singer Anthony Kiedis to recover from a foot injury.

Other additions to the April 14 festivities include John Mellencamp, who has been confirmed to sing with and induct folk-rock singer Donovan; LL Cool J is a new addition to help Chuck D induct the Beastie Boys; Billy Gibbons and Dusty Hill of ZZ Top will perform for and induct Freddie King, and Darlene Love will sing for Don Kirshner.

Previously announced burberry shoes for men presenters include Steven Van Zandt for the Small Faces/Faces, Chris Rock for the Red Hot Chili Peppers and Bette Midler for Laura Nyro. Carole King for Don Kirshner, Robbie Robertson for producers Tom Dowd, Glyn Johns and Cosimo Matassa, and Smokey Robinson for his Motown group the Miracles along with Gene Vincent's Blue Caps, Bill Haley's Comets, Buddy Holly's Crickets, James Brown's Famous Flames and Hank Ballard's Midnighters.

Green Day will induct Guns N' Roses, but no performers to fete the band have been announced. Rose wrote in an open letter on Wednesday that after listening to fans and reading "various public comments and jabs from former members" of the band, as well as assorted press coverage, he has decided to "let sleeping dogs lie" and not attend the ceremony. He asked that he "not be inducted in absentia" as a member of the band he still fronts. Armani sunglasses for women, cheap armani glasses for men sale.

"We are sorry Axl will not be able to accept his Induction in person," the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Foundation said on Wednesday night.

In addition to the induction ceremony, the Rock Hall is hosting a week of special events, including the grand opening of its library and archives, louis vuitton men hoodies concerts -- including a gospel tribute -- and educational programs.

The Rock Hall induction ceremony will be broadcast by HBO, debuting at 9 p.m. EST/PST on May 5.