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Thriller novelist claims to have been recruited into DHS Red Cell

Read more stories from The Daily Caller

Novelist Brad Meltzerin The New York Daily News Tuesday that he participated in Department of Homeland Security ‘Red Cell’ operations tasked with identifying national security loopholes.

Time frames or missions were not discussed in the article, but inwith NPR, Meltzer says that it was “a few years ago.”

Meltzer writes that, in theory, “we’d destroy major cities like my hometown, New York. In minutes. And when I went home at night, I felt horrified, because I saw how easy it was to kill us.”

Meltzer says that he was recruited to the secretive program in an effort by Homeland Security to benefit from “outside of the box” thinking.Other participants, he writes, included psychologists and philosophers.

“As a novelist who writes thrillers with scenes that take place in the underground tunnel below theWhite House, I was somehow identified as one of those [outside of the box] thinkers,” says Meltzer.

The curious, non-descript claim of participation by Meltzer comes as he is promoting a new book, “The Inner Circle,” a thriller involving a plot about a secret uncovered in the National Archives.

FIRST CUTS: CNN to host first N.H. primary debate; Behind the Gawker hack

Here's our list of headlines that should be on your morning media menu:

o Piers Morgan: "Ratings are what matters to me." ()

o A look back at the Gawker hack. ()

o "We need new ways of judging the success of websites," like maybe "unique visitors per month divided by employees," says Awl co-editor Choire Sicha. ()

o ABC and NBC affiliates got footage of the gunman firing on a school board in Florida. ()

o CNN scores the first GOP presidential primary debate in New Hampshire. ()

o Watch the new CBS "Early Show" team on Craig Ferguson. ()

H.Kong bourse relaxes mainland firms' listing rules

HONG KONG (AFP) – Hong Kong's stock exchange has defended a decision to let Chinese companies listing on the exchange use mainland accounting standards and auditors, saying it will increase efficiency and reduce costs.

However the move came in for criticism Monday that it might lead standards to slip.

In a statement Friday the bourse said the amendments to listing rules, which limit the Hong Kong regulator's ability to tackle fraud, would take effect Wednesday this week.

The changes force the city's Securities and Futures Commission (SFC) to rely on mainland authorities to act against mainland auditors suspected of wrongdoing. Previously, the SFC could hold the Hong Kong-based auditor of a mainland company listed in Hong Kong accountable.

At present, mainland companies must prepare one set of financial statements based on local standards and another based on Hong Kong standards, but the amendments allow them the option of preparing just one set.

"This is expected to increase market efficiency and reduce compliance costs of mainland incorporated companies listed in Hong Kong," Mark Dickens, Hong Kong Exchanges and Clearing's head of listing, said in a statement.

However Jamie Allen, secretary general of the Asian Corporate Governance Association, told AFP the changes would add to uncertainty for investors.

"This is an issue for Hong Kong.... It is a concern because you have a regulator here that has no real regulatory power," Allen said.

"It will force investors to think harder before making investments -- what are the accounting policies that these companies follow? Investors should be asking these questions... as the quality of audit does vary quite a bit."

The SFC could not immediately be reached for comment on the concerns.

The regulator had previously delayed the amendment, Allen added, which the Hong Kong exchange had planned to introduce in January, because it was concerned such changes would make the city reliant on mainland authorities to sanction auditors suspected of wrongdoing.

These concerns have not been fully addressed, he said.

Exxon no comment on report of North Sea disposal plan

LONDON (Reuters) – Exxon Mobil Corp (XOM.N) confirmed it was considering the sale of its 100 petrol stations in Scotland but declined comment on a report it plans to sell its North Sea oil fields, worth some $2 billion.

Its comments came after the Sunday Times said the North Sea disposal was on the cards. An Exxon spokeswoman would not comment on the report but said the company intended to keep investing in the region.

"In terms of North Sea assets, Exxon Mobil is a long-term investor in the UK and plans to remain a major investor. We do not comment on speculation on commercial matters regarding our assets," a spokeswoman said.

Exxon and other oil companies including BP (BP.L) and Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L) have been selling assets in the area in recent years, to focus more on other locations such as Angola and the Gulf of Mexico.

In September Exxon and Shell said they planned to sell their interest in the Corvette field platform in the North Sea.

On the Scottish retail operations, the Exxon spokeswoman said the group was "testing a new business model" which would involve the group selling Esso-owned retail sites to wholesalers but keeping the Esso brand and continuing to supply fuel.

"Conversion to the branded wholesaler model would include the sale of Esso-owned retail sites to the wholesaler, along with an agreement for the wholesaler to supply the sites with Esso brand fuel," Exxon said in a statement.

"We are currently in the bidding process with a number of interested buyers," the company added.

In 2008 Exxon exited its retail gas business in the United States and in May this year it sold 295 of its service stations on Australia's east coast to convenience store chain 7-Eleven Australia Pty Ltd.

(Reporting by Golnar Motevalli; Editing by David Holmes)

Omnipress Expands Abstract Collection and Management System with Highly Configurable Capabilities

Meeting organizers have long struggled to find efficient and affordable solutions to collect abstracts, presentations and technical papers. Collection Central™ by Omnipress, now provides meeting professionals with complete flexibility and functionality to meet almost any organization’s needs and budget.

Madison, WI (PRWEB) November 21, 2010

Meeting organizers have long struggled to find efficient and affordable solutions to , presentations and technical papers for educational events. With the introduction of Collection Central™, Omnipress, a company that specializes in the collection and distribution educational meeting content, has created an online system that provides the flexibility and functionality to meet almost any organization’s needs and budget.

"Over the years, we’ve collected tens of thousands of educational documents for conferences, seminars and other events. We’ve seen meeting organizers juggle Excel spreadsheets, multiple vendors and unending email strings while trying to track down abstracts from their speakers," said Sean Lawler, Omnipress director of Online Services. "Collection Central™ is a single system that manages the entire process, from abstract collection to submission reviews to final draft collection for publication."

According to Omnipress CEO David McKnight, Collection Central™ was designed to address the main challenges that create hassles for meeting professionals (see the ). He said many organizations try to manage the process with multiple vendors, causing wasted time and mistakes when the systems do not work together. In addition, many systems are designed without the flexibility and reporting capabilities an organization needs to fit the system to their own processes.

"Collection Central™ solves those problems – period," McKnight said. "Organizers can log into one system with all the flexibility they need: custom reporting and forms, multiple options for different due dates and collection types, plus complete flexibility during the review process. And the interface is intuitive for the meeting professionals and the submitters and reviewers."

Lawler said organizations can use Collection Central™ to communicate more effectively before, during and after the collection process. "We’ve integrated the system to email and social media capabilities to help organizations promote their Call for Abstracts and Presentations, put out a Call for Reviewers, track correspondence and send follow-up emails. The system dashboards and reporting features make it easy to see what's been done and what's missing at every step of the process."

Collection Central™ also flows downstream into other Omnipress services, such as handout printing, abstract CDs, online programs and more. "Instead of having to go to one vendor to collect abstracts, then another system to collect bios and A/V needs, and yet another to produce content in print and digital formats for the live event, one company can pull it all together and simplify the meeting planners' task lists," McKnight said.

Omnipress offering no-obligation consultations and Collection Central™ demos to assess an organization’s collection system. Meeting organizers can also download the Omnipress white paper “.”

About Omnipress

Omnipress provides a suite of services to the meetings and training industry including:     Online collection of abstract and presentation files     On-site event recording and live streaming     Meeting materials in print and on CDs and flash drives     Online knowledge centers and and e-commerce-based archives     Conference web sites and online event communities     Fulfillment and inventory solutions

More than 800 associations and meeting professionals trust Omnipress to provide sensible solutions and apply best practices to their unique conference needs each year. Omnipress is known for getting the job done right and on-time while making customers’ jobs easier and their organizations look good.

For more information, visit .

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Christopher UschanOmnipress608-246-2600Email Information