Abiodun blog

Gorbachev celebrates 80th with sparkling London party

A host of stars from the world of politics, music and film gathered to celebrate former Soviet leader Mikhail Gorbachev's 80th birthday at a charity gala event in London on Wednesday.

Statesmen and Russian oligarchs were to converge at the Royal Albert Hall for the party to celebrate his achievements, hosted by Hollywood stars Kevin Spacey and Sharon Stone.

Ticket prices range from 195 to 100,000 for an exclusive box.

The event is aimed at raising millions of dollars for cancer charities, including The Raisa Foundation, named in honour of the 1990 Nobel Peace Prize winner's late wife.

Israeli President Shimon Peres, Hollywood action hero and former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, former British prime minister John Major and Earl Charles Spencer, brother of Diana, princess of Wales, are all to attend.

The eclectic guest list also includes actresses Goldie Hawn and Milla Jovovich and England football manager Fabio Capello.

"This gala has been organised to honour Mikhail Gorbachev, a man who truly changed the world for the better through his actions and example," said Leonid Shlachover, the event's general producer.

"This event will celebrate his achievements by bringing together major artists from East and West in a night of celebration."

Organisers told The Times the event would cost between 2 million and 3 million to stage.

Russian tycoon and press baron Alexander Lebedev, who is holding a fundraiser of his own for Gorbachev's charities in June, told The Times newspaper he had refused to underwrite the gala due to concerns over its costs.

"They said they wanted to raise 9 million and out of that 4 million will go to cover the costs and then they stopped. I said I'm not participating."

German rockers The Scorpions were to play their global hit "Wind of Change", which captured the spirit of the times as the communist bloc fell apart.

Performers from Britain were to include singer Shirley Bassey, Roxy Music frontman Bryan Ferry, Spice Girl Melanie C, opera singer Katherine Jenkins and the London Symphony Orchestra.

Canadian-American singer Paul Anka, who wrote the lyrics to Frank Sinatra's hit "My Way", was to give a performance.

A host of Russian musicians were to appear, among them opera baritone Dmitry Hvorostovsky, long-standing rock band Mashina Vremeny and pianist Andrei Gavrilov.

Gorbachev's perestroika and glasnost reforms altered the course of history by burying the Soviet Union and liberating eastern Europe.

He turned 80 on March 2, marking the occasion by advising Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin against running for a third term as president and warning about the dangers of Arab-style social revolt.

Plant Delights Nursery Announces the Introduction of a New Toad Lily Species, Tricyrtis Ravenii from Taiwan

tall and is topped with purple-spotted flowers from midsummer through fall, making it the longest flowering of all toad lily species. It is estimated that it should be winter hardy from Zone 5-8, at least.(Image available upon request)

Plant Delights Nursery was recently named one of the Top 7 mail order nurseries in the country by Garden Design Magazine in their December 2010 issue.

Plant Delights was also named by Martha Stewart Living in their 2006 list of the best gardening sources.

About Plant Delights NurseryPlant Delights Nursery is a mail-order and internet-based plant nursery that has been in business since 1988. They hold four open houses per year: winter, spring, summer, and fall. Plant Delights Nursery sells rare and unusual perennials from around the world. Many of their plants were discovered by co-owner, Tony Avent, during his more than 66 plant hunting expeditions to exotic places such as Argentina, China, Crete, and South Africa. In addition to being a plant explorer and businessman, Tony Avent is a renowned plantsman, a successful author and a popular public speaker who tours nationally. Plant Delights Nursery is known for its print catalog () which features humorous and topical cover art as well as irreverent, witty and sometimes edgy prose. Plant Delights Nursery and Tony Avent are frequently profiled on television (including The Martha Stewart Show and Almanac Gardener), in magazines (including Southern Living, Horticulture, and Fine Gardening) and in newspapers (including the New York Times, Houston Chronicle, Chicago Tribune, and News & Observer). Proceeds from Plant Delights Nursery support the Juniper Level Botanic Gardens, a six acre garden with extensive research programs that grows over 18,000 different plants.

Contact:Krista Morgan, Administrative Horticulturist(919) 772-4794For more information, visit

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Krista MorganPlant Delights Nursery, Inc.919-772-4794Email Information

Los Angeles Personal Injury Attorney Carl A. McMahan Receives Martindale-Hubbell(R) AV(R) Preeminent(TM) Peer Review Rating(SM)

Los Angeles injury attorney Carl A. McMahan receives the prestigious AV(R) Preeminent(TM) Peer Review Rating(SM) from Martindale-Hubbell(R).

Los Angeles, CA (Vocus/PRWEB) February 16, 2011

Los Angeles attorney Carl A. McMahan has received the prestigious AV(R) Preeminent(TM) Peer Review Rating(SM) from Martindale-Hubbell(R).The AV(R) Preeminent(TM) rating is the highest such peer review rating available to any individual lawyer.

has 28 years of experience and was admitted to practice in California in 1983.Mr. McMahan represents clients who have been severely injured in product liability, medical malpractice, elder abuse, catastrophic injury and serious auto accident cases. Mr. McMahan has decades of experience, and his legal successes are numerous, consisting of many multi-million dollarin cases brought against a wide scope of defendants.

Carl A. McMahan practices in the following areas of law: Civil Trial; Product Liability Law; Medical Malpractice Law; Elder Abuse; Catastrophic Injury; ; Public Entity Liability (Cities, States, and Federal Government).

An AV(R) Preeminent(TM) rating is a significant accomplishment and a testament to the fact that a lawyer’s peers rank him or her at the highest level of professional excellence.

Martindale-Hubbell is the facilitator of the peer review rating process.The ratings reflect the anonymous opinions of members of the Bar and the Judiciary.Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Ratings fall into two categories: Legal Ability and General Ethical Standards.

The Legal Ability Rating indicates professional ability in a specific area of practice and is based on five key areas: legal knowledge, analytical capabilities, judgment, communication ability, and legal experience.

The General Ethical Standards Rating denotes adherence to professional standards of conduct and ethics, reliability, diligence, and other criteria relevant to the discharge of professional responsibilities.

AV(R) Preeminent(TM) and BV(R) Distinguished(TM) are certification marks of Reed Elsevier Properties Inc., used in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedures, standards, and policies.

About the FirmThe Law Offices of Carl A. McMahan is based in Los Angeles and represents clients throughout California and in the U.S. in seriouscases. Their representation covers a wide scope of practice areas and injuries including:     Personal Injury     Wrongful Death     Elder Abuse     Medical Malpractice     Brachial Plexus     Birth Injury     Products Liability     Governmental Tort Liability     Serious General Liability

The lawyers take a team approach to handling cases, utilizing all available resources, devising effective strategies and doing everything legally possible to obtain favorable outcomes. They put up an aggressive fight in the legal arena against corporate giants, whether automobile manufacturers, large retail companies or well known medical facilities. Their extensive attention to detail along with their honed expertise in the personal injury area has resulted in numerous multi-million dollar settlements and verdicts.

For more information about the firm please go toor call 310-479-8827.

11355 W Olympic Blvd # 100, Los Angeles, CA 90064-1631(310) 479-8827 – (310) 479-7226 (Fax)

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Carl A. McMahanThe Law Offices of Carl A. McMahan(310) 479-8827Email Information

Banksy graffiti ripped down, ahead of Oscars

LOS ANGELES (AFP) – A graffiti-enhanced poster attributed to secretive British artist Banksy was ripped down in Hollywood, amid sightings of other pieces in a reported pre-Oscars publicity campaign in LA.

Banksy is nominated for best documentary for "Exit Through the Gift Shop" at the Oscars, due to be announced on February 27 at the climax of Tinseltown's annual awards season.

And the elusive artist, whose identity is not publicly known, is suspected of being behind a number of Banksy-style graffiti pieces that have cropped up over the past few days.

One was on an advertising board overlooking Sunset Strip, opposite the headquarters of the Directors Guild of America, depicting an inebriated Mickey Mouse with his hand indelicately placed on a model's body.

But the TMZ celebrity website posted a video of the poster -- which if a genuine Banksy could be worth a lot of money -- being taken down Wednesday -- followed by an altercation involving those who removed it and another man.

At the same time, other examples of the provocative British artist's work have been spotted around town, including a Charlie Brown figure starting a fire on the side of a burned-out building on Sunset Boulevard.

Representatives of the artist could not be immediately reached for comment on the reports, which came 10 days before the Oscars ceremony when the movie world will descend on Hollywood for the 53rd Academy Awards show.

Banksy, whose work has surfaced in the West Bank and post-Katrina New Orleans and now sells for tens of thousands of dollars at auction, calls the picture "a film about a man who tried to make a film about me."

"Exit Through the Gift Shop" -- dubbed "the world's first street art disaster movie" -- focuses on French videographer Thierry Guetta and his insider look at underground artists at work.

US, Canada defend F-35 fighter jet

OTTAWA (AFP) – US and Canadian defense chiefs on Thursday vigorously defended the F-35 fighter jet program, despite criticism over costs and technical delays.

Amid a partisan feud in Canada over the government's plans to buy the stealth warplanes, US Defense Secretary Robert Gates said the continued support of Ottawa and seven other international partners for the project was "very important."

"My hope is that for all of our sakes that all of the partners cooperate to move forward with us on this program," Gates told a joint press conference with his Canadian counterpart, Defense Minister Peter MacKay.

The Pentagon sees foreign partners as crucial to keeping costs under control for the radar-evading fighter, which has been dogged by rising costs and technical glitches.

Gates cited steps taken last year to rectify problems with the F-35 and said he was now satisfied with the program's progress, saying there were no cost increases for the program this year.

MacKay accused critics of the plane of playing a political "game" and warned that scrapping the purchase of 65 F-35 fighter jets could mean grounding Canada's air force in 2020.

The F-35 fighter, billed as the backbone of the future US combat air fleet, has become the most expensive weapons program ever and is now expected to cost the United States $382 billion, for 2,443 aircraft.

The two defense chiefs also discussed the war in Afghanistan, where Canada plans to withdraw combat forces from the south in July.

MacKay said Canada was scouting locations near Kabul to host 950 military trainers, as it continues talks with Washington and NATO about what sort of training is required.

Canada plans to send the military trainers to a base in Kabul until 2014 in a non-combat role to advise Afghan soldiers.

Canadian troops have spent nearly nine years fighting insurgents as part of NATO's International Security Assistance Force, a mission that has claimed the lives of more than 150 Canadian soldiers.

The two also said they discussed expanding Canada-US military cooperation in the Arctic and offering joint maritime security assistance to Caribbean allies.

Gates was due to meet both his Canadian and Mexican counterparts but Mexico's secretary of national defense, General Guillermo Galvan Galvan, could not attend due to illness.

An earlier attempt at a three-way meeting of the defense chiefs in July had to be called off because of violence in Mexico.

MacKay provoked laughter during the press conference when he made a reference to the US states of Oregon and Washington, recalling a recent flub he made during a chat with former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger.

MacKay had observed that Canada and California "share a border." In fact, they are separated by Washington and Oregon states.