Regan Kaczon blog

The Huffington Post's bizarre attack on former President George W. Bush

The Huffington Post’s Ryan Grim isformer President George W. Bush of “lifting” anecdotes and quotes in his recently released memoir, “.”

It’s a strange charge. Nowhere does Grim say the former president plagiarized, per se, but that is exactly the thrust of Grim’s article. The book is “a mash-up of worn-out anecdotes from previously published memoirs written by his subordinates, from which Bush lifts quotes word for word, passing them off as his own recollections,” he writes.

As evidence, Grim cites how closely some of the quotes in the book match up with quotes in other books written about the Bush presidency.

In most of those cases, Bush was physically present for the scene he describes. In that sense, charging him for recollecting the events the same way others did is rather weird, indeed.

According to Mike Allen’s Politico Playbook, legendary Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward said about Grim’s report, “There are many, many similarities because I, others and Bush were writing about the same events. I read his book this week and I think it is unfair to say he lifted material.”

Perhaps the strongest case Grim makes regards quotes in Bush’s memoir from events he was not present for.

“In many cases, he was relying on the written record (NSC notes, as I did in some cases) or the recollections of those involved, including himself,” Woodward told Politico.

A source close to the former president notes that in some cases, Bush was actually the source of the “lifted” quotes to the journalists who wrote about them.

While alleging a serious charge on shaky evidence, Grim does not pretend he is coming at the issue objectively. Instead, his deep disdain for Bush leaps out from the page.

For instance, Grim jokes the book is evidence “Bush [does] know how to read,” as if that were in question.

Perhaps colored by his obvious disdain of Bush, Grim made a serious charge that, in view of the evidence, is seriously bizarre. The best he could have done is that “Decision Points” would make boring reading for White House memoir addicts.

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4-H Programs Worldwide Mobilize to Fight World Hunger

CHEVY CHASE, Md., Nov. 12, 2010 – Global 4-H Network Begins with Pilot in Africa

CHEVY CHASE, Md., Nov. 12, 2010 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In an effort to address major global issues such as poverty, food security and youth unemployment in emerging economies, 4-H programs around the world are uniting in a Global 4-H Network. љWith help from five founding partners - the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, Cargill, DuPont, Motorola, and the Nike Foundation - National 4-H Council has begun an initiative to bring existing 4-H programs around the world together to create sustainable livelihoods and economic security for the next generation of farmers.

"By 2025, the global youth population will top 1.5 billion, weighing even more heavily on nations that are already facing extreme hunger, poverty and unemployment," said Donald T. Floyd, Jr., president and CEO of National 4-H Council. љ"With more than 100 years of proven success in the U.S., 4-H is now a tremendous worldwide asset capable of transforming these challenges into opportunities. By linking existing 4-H programs, youth around the world will be engaged in a global movement to improve their own lives and the economy of their country."

The Global 4-H Network has launched a pilot partnership with Tanzania 4-H, a program that reaches 34,000 children, adolescents and young adults every year. љIn addition to the pilot project in Tanzania, the Global 4-H Network is expanding to connect African and Asian 4-H programs, and 4-H-type programs around the world. љ

"The farmer who will feed the world in 2025 is today's 13-year old boy or girl," said JamesљC. Borel, executive vice president, DuPont and chair of the National 4-H Council Board of Trustees. љ"DuPont believes this global partnership will help prepare tomorrow's farmers to sustainably improve their livelihoods, in turn enhancing the quality of life for their families and supporting their country's economy for generations to come."

To bring the Global 4-H Network to life, National 4-H Council is mobilizing public and private partners for this important work. Faculties from several U.S. land-grant universities are providing guidance and expertise to build the Network's capabilities, including Dr. Mary Crave from The University of Wisconsin-Extension, and Dr. Robert Horton from The Ohio State University.

Additionally, to aid in the further development and management of the Global 4-H Network, a new subcommittee has been created within National 4-H Council's Board of Trustees. The Trustee Global Advisory Committee will serve as advisors to Council's Board and CEO regarding global efforts with Dan Glickman, former U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, serving as chair.љ

Since its beginning in the United States more than 100 years ago, 4-H has proven to be a successful model for teaching agricultural innovation, building civic engagement, and improving incomes for rural youth. Researchers in the U.S. and around the world report that 4-H is effective in promoting science literacy, civic engagement, and educational attainment. The Global 4-H Network will use the 4-H model to:

Provide research-based information and technical assistance to help improve a country's agricultural productivity, generate income, and improve education;Establish a virtual 4-H Knowledge Center offering culturally-relevant and research-based resources, tools and expertise that can be used at the local level;Link and expand 4-H programs around the world for greater impact and scale through innovative partnerships.Work on the Global 4-H Network has already begun. African 4-H leaders from ten countries are collaborating with National 4-H Council to develop a virtual 4-H Knowledge Center with resources that can be used worldwide. љIn the coming months, Tanzania 4-H club advisors will learn how to use mobile phones and other emerging technologies to receive training and share best practices for working with young people. љ

Susan Naburi, CEO of Tanzania 4-H, said, "Our mission is to build a world in which youth can learn, grow and work together to become economically independent and responsible adults. љWe are excited and look forward to the positive impact of the Global 4-H Network." љ

To learn more about the Global 4-H Network, contact Dr. Jo Turner at .

About 4-H:

4-H is a community of six million young people across America learning leadership, citizenship, and life skills. National 4-H Council is the private sector, non-profit partner of 4-H National Headquarters located at the National Institute for Food and Agriculture (NIFA) within USDA. љ4-H programs are implemented by the 109 land grant colleges and universities and the Cooperative Extension System through their local Extension offices. љ4-H programs are further supported by 514,000 dedicated adult volunteers around the nation who help to put 4-H youth on a path towards successful careers. љ Learn more about 4-H at .

SOURCENational 4-H Council

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Gwyneth Paltrow Covers Cee-Lo's "F**K You" on "Glee"... Stop It, Hollywood [VIDEO]

Cee-Lo's "F**ck You" started off as the , and now it's become the choice karaoke hit for decidedly tame Hollywood stars. Yup, firstthe catchy jam, and now Gwyneth Paltrow gives us her own interpretation -- on Glee, no less.

On next week's Glee -- a wildly popular I-don't-know-if-I'm-a-parody-or-not musical dramedy -- Paltrow will appear as substitute teacher "Holly Holliday," according to . And it is in this role that the Academy Award-winning actress will regale us with her very own twirly, edited version of the jam -- complete with the robot. The robot!

I think it's safe to say -- aside from obvious temporal cues -- that summer is over.

MUFG to buy RBS project book; raises forecast

TOKYO (Reuters) – Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (8306.T) said it will acquire project finance loans and assets from Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS.L) worth 3.8 billion pounds ($6.1 billion), expanding its overseas reach as loan demand remains tepid in Japan.

Japan's biggest bank by assets also raised its full-year profit outlook by 25 percent after bond trading gains and falls in credit costs helped second-quarter net profit nearly triple.

MUFG and smaller rivals Mizuho Financial Group (8411.T) and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group (8316.T) have seen strong profit growth this financial year, but their core lending operations remain weak as companies remain reluctant to spend due to a murky economic outlook.

MUFG has been the most active among Japan's top banks in expanding overseas, taking a one-fifth stake in U.S. investment bank Morgan Stanley (MS.N) at the height of the financial crisis. It also bought assets from two U.S. banks this year.

Sources said earlier this month that MUFG was in talks to buy the project finance book from RBS.

MUFG lifted its forecast to 500 billion yen ($6.1 billion) in net profit for the year ending March. That compared with 400 billion yen previously and was above an average estimate of 469.8 billion yen in a poll of 15 analysts by Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

MUFG's July-September net profit was 190.4 billion yen, up from 65.0 billion yen a year earlier.

Credit Suisse had forecast a net profit of 126.7 billion yen for MUFG in the second quarter, while Citigroup Global Markets Japan had estimated a 131.9 billion yen net profit.

Reuters calculated MUFG's quarterly figures and the brokerage forecasts by subtracting first-quarter results from six-month figures.

Shares of MUFG have lost about 14 percent so far this year, underperforming a 7 percent drop in the benchmark Nikkei average (.N225).

Before the results, the stock ended down 0.3 percent, against the Nikkei's 1.1 percent rise.

(Writing by Chris Gallagher; Editing by Muralikumar Anantharaman and Edwina Gibbs)

Metal band Disturbed takes nothing for granted

NEW YORK (Billboard) – Dave Draiman should be relaxed.

After all, he's calling from sunny San Francisco, where he's enjoying a beautiful summer day with his girlfriend before he embarks on a yearlong tour with his band, Disturbed.

The group's last three albums have all debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200, and unless Susan Boyle releases a surprise last-minute record August 31, its fifth album, "Asylum" (Reprise), will probably do the same.

Disturbed has sold 9 million albums domestically in the past 10 years, and almost half that number can be attributed to its breakthrough record, 2000's "The Sickness," which has sold 4.2 million copies, according to Nielsen SoundScan. But the band has been remarkably consistent, even as sales have trended downward: 2002's "Believe" sold 1.8 million, 2005's "Ten Thousand Fists" sold 1.9 million, and 2008's "Indestructible" sold 1.1 million.

The act has built a solid tour following, and has a fan base renowned for its loyalty and longevity. Disturbed fans are known for not only sticking with the band, but for passing fandom along, as evidenced by the crowd-surfing elementary schoolers who attend shows with their parents and appear in the forthcoming DVD, "Decade of Disturbed."

But despite all of this, Draiman is not mellow. "I'm always worried," he says. "About everything."

While he's funny and friendly on the phone, a quick read of Draiman's lyrics reveals that his band's name is appropriate. Topics tackled on the new record include "being trapped in the prison of your own mind," losing a lover, religion as a catalyst for war, and the Holocaust. The album's lightest track, "The Animal," is about becoming a werewolf, but don't expect it to show up in any "Twilight" fan videos anytime soon.

Worrywart nature aside, though, Draiman has a right to be concerned. While metal is considered one of the last genres not beset by fair-weather fans and an over-before-it-begins blog hype cycle, that doesn't mean it's not without its fair share of problems. For an astute businessman and long-timer like Draiman, the challenges are very real.

FLYOVER ZONES

Disturbed manager Jeff Battaglia still believes in the power of the transistor. "Radio is still the single most important driver for a band like this," he says. "And the changes at alternative radio have impacted us in a real way."

According to Mike Rittberg, senior vice president of promotion at Reprise, "In the early part of the decade, the alternative format played more rock, but recently we've seen a shift, and there is less crossover between the active rock format and alternative." For a band like Disturbed, "this has resulted in lost exposure and less audience reach."

The band is still a monster presence on active rock radio. It has lodged seven No. 1s, the same as Metallica, and only Linkin Park and Creed have topped the chart more times (nine and eight, respectively). Disturbed has also had 15 tracks in the top 10, tying with the Foo Fighters and Nickelback, and trailing only Godsmack (which has 18).

But the shift in programing at alternative has hurt the band, according to Battaglia. "When we started, there were more opportunities at radio," he says. "There were more opportunities in general -- MTV still played videos by hard rock bands, there were more magazines that would cover a band like Disturbed. It still takes radio support to get people to come out in many markets."

"There is too much traffic right now," Battaglia says. "More bands are depending on touring and merch to make all their money, and this summer has been tough for a lot of people."

Because the band still has relatively strong album sales, Battaglia says its revenue tends to be split fairly equally among record sales, touring and merchandise.

'NO FILLER'

Disturbed knows what its fans like, and it isn't about to mess with the formula. "There are many ways the new record isn't really different from the previous ones," Draiman says. "It's more complex in terms of composition, and I think the storytelling aspect of the lyrics is better. But while we always want to grow, we never want to deviate from what we fundamentally do. We make rhythmic, aggressive rock. All killer, no filler."

Battaglia says many of the band's early fans have stuck with it, and as other metal acts from the scene have broken up or fallen by the wayside, some of their fans have joined Team Disturbed. But Reprise senior vice president of marketing Rob Gordon says there are still plenty of potential converts out there.

"We want to reach out to teens, because we feel like that's the demo we're not getting as much as we'd like," Gordon says. "The base is 18- to 35-year-olds."

Gordon says the band plans to do more with gaming for "Asylum," including an online game, "Escape From the Asylum."

"They've done tons of synchs (song placements) in video games," Gordon says,"and we are releasing a three-pack for 'Rock Band' on August 24, and working on something with 'Guitar Hero,' too." He says Disturbed songs often were used in World Wrestling Entertainment events or ultimate fighting shows, but those outlets recently have decided they want music that's "more PG."

Disturbed will co-headline the Uproar tour with Avenged Sevenfold before heading overseas. Draiman says the band has a strong base in Australia, New Zealand, Germany and Scandinavia.

The new tour will feature some of the most elaborate staging of the band's career, although they're quick to point out that fans expecting a Muse-style laser show will be disappointed.

As a special incentive for fans, the band is including the DVD "Decade of Disturbed," a 60-plus-minute documentary chronicling the group's first 10 years, with every album purchase. The disc features concert footage, as well as a section called "Disturbed Dissected," where guitarist Dan Donegan and bassist John Moyer teach fans how to play their songs.

Hot Topic is working with the band to turn select outlets into "Asylum stores," and Gordon says he is working on partnerships with Best Buy, Target and Walmart. Rockstar Energy Drink, one of the sponsors of the Uproar tour, is hosting a "rock star for a day" contest with Disturbed that will feature posters in Rockstar outlets.

"This is a band with an incredible work ethic," Gordon says. "We can fly them out to do meet-and-greets and they'll talk to people for ages. These guys are not complacent."