NBey6's Blog

"If you want to live a happy life, tie it to a goal, not to people or things."

- Albert Einstein -

Dubai names tallest building after bailout patron

• By Adam Schreck, Associated Press Writer
• 53 mins ago

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates – Dubai opened the world's tallest skyscraper Monday, and in a surprise move renamed the gleaming glass-and-metal tower Burj Khalifa in a nod to the leader of neighboring Abu Dhabi — the oil-rich sheikdom which came to its rescue during the financial meltdown.

A lavish presentation witnessed by Dubai's ruler and thousands of onlookers at the base of the tower said the building was 828 meters, or 2717 feet, tall.

Dubai is opening the tower in the midst of a deep financial crisis. Its oil rich neighbor Abu Dhabi has pumped billions of dollars in bailout funds into the emirate as it struggles to pay its debts.

Sheik Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan is the ruler of Abu Dhabi and serves as the president of the United Arab Emirates, the federation of seven small emirates, including Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

Analysts have questioned what Dubai might need to offer in exchange for the financial support it has received from Abu Dhabi, which controls nearly all of the UAE's oil wealth. Abu Dhabi provided direct and indirect injections totaling $25 billion last year as Dubai's debt problems deepened.

Dubai's hereditary ruler, Sheik Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, in recent months has increasingly underscored the close relationship between the two emirates. Sheik Mohammed serves as vice president and prime minister of the UAE federation.

The developer of the newly opened tower said it cost about $1.5 billion to build the tapering metal-and-glass spire billed as a "vertical city" of luxury apartments and offices. It boasts four swimming pools, a private library and a hotel designed by Giorgio Armani.

The Burj's developers say they are confident in the safety of the tower, which is more than twice the height of New York's Empire State Building's roof.

Greg Sang, Emaar's director of projects, said the Burj has "refuge floors" at 25 to 30 story intervals that are more fire resistant and have separate air supplies in case of emergency. And its reinforced concrete structure, he said, makes it stronger than steel-frame skyscrapers.

"It's a lot more robust," he said. "A plane won't be able to slice through the Burj like it did through the steel columns of the World Trade Center."

Dubai was little more than a sleepy fishing village a generation ago but it boomed into the Middle East's commercial hub over the past two decades on the back of business-friendly trading policies, relative security, and vast amounts of overseas investment.

Then property prices in parts of sheikdom collapsed by nearly half over the past year. Now Dubai is mired in debt and many buildings sit largely empty — the result of overbuilding during a property bubble that has since burst.

Despite the past year of hardships, the tower's developer and other officials were in a festive mood, trying to bring the world's focus on Dubai's future potential rather than past mistakes.

"Crises come and go. And cities move on," Mohammed Alabbar, chairman of the tower's developer Emaar Properties, told reporters before the inauguration. "You have to move on. Because if you stop taking decisions, you stop growing."

Dubai, which has little oil of its own, relied on cheap loans to pump up its international clout during the frenzied boom years.

But like many overextended homeowners, the emirate and its state-backed companies borrowed too heavily and then struggled to keep up with payments as the financial crisis intensified and credit markets froze up.

Meanwhile, speculators who had fueled Dubai's property bubble disappeared along with the easy money, revealing a glut of brand-new but empty homes and crippling many of the emirate's property developers

The sheikdom shocked global markets late last year when it unexpectedly announced plans to reorganize its main state-run conglomerate Dubai World and sought new terms in repaying some $26 billion in debt.

It got some succor from a $10 billion bailout provided by its richer neighbor and UAE capital Abu Dhabi last month. That was on top of $15 billion in emergency funds provided by Abu Dhabi-based financiers earlier in the year.

Burj developer Emaar is itself partly owned by the Dubai government, but is not part of struggling Dubai World, which has investments ranging from Dubai's manmade islands and seaports to luxury retailer Barneys New York and the oceanliner Queen Elizabeth 2.

Emaar's Alabbar said the landmark Burj is 90 percent sold in a mix of residential units, offices and other space, offering a counterpoint to Dubai's financial woes.

The developer has only said the spire stands more than 2625 feet (800 meters) tall. Alabbar said Dubai's ruler will announce the height at the inauguration ceremony.

At a reported height of 2,684 feet (818 meters), the Burj Dubai long ago vanquished its nearest rival, the Taipei 101 in Taiwan.

But the tower's record-seeking developers didn't stop there.

The building boasts the most stories and highest occupied floor of any building in the world, and ranks as the world's tallest structure, beating out a television mast in North Dakota.

"We weren't sure how high we could go," said Bill Baker, the building's structural engineer, who is in Dubai for the inauguration. "It was kind of an exploration ... A learning experience"

Baker, of Chicago-based architecture and engineering firm Skidmore, Owings & Merrill, said early designs for the Burj had it edging out the world's previous record-holder, the Taipei 101, by about 33 feet (10 meters). The Taiwan tower rises 1,667 feet (508 meters).

Work on Burj Dubai began in 2004 and moved ahead rapidly. At times, new floors were being added almost every three days, reflecting Dubai's raging push to reshape itself into a cosmopolitan urban giant packed with skyscrapers.

During the busiest construction periods, some 12,000 workers labored at the tower each day, according to Emaar. Low-wage migrant workers from the Indian subcontinent provided much of the muscle for the Burj and many of Dubai's other building projects.

The tower is more than 50 stories higher than Chicago's Willis Tower, the tallest building in the U.S. formerly known as the Sears Tower.

At their peak, some apartments in the Burj were selling for more than $1,900 per square foot, though they now can go for less than half that, said Heather Wipperman Amiji, chief executive of Dubai real estate consultancy Investment Boutique.

She said some buyers may struggle to find tenants at going rates once the tower's expected high service charges are factored in.

"The investment community is quite divided," she said. "They're not sure how it's going to play out."

The Burj is the centerpiece of a 500-acre development that officials hope will become a new central residential and commercial district in this sprawling and often disconnected city. It is flanked by dozens of smaller but brand-new skyscrapers and the Middle East's largest shopping mall.

That layout — as the core of a lower-rise skyline — lets the Burj stand out prominently against the horizon. It is visible across dozens of miles of rolling sand dunes outside Dubai. From the air, the spire appears as an almost solitary, slender needle reaching high into the sky.

An observation deck on the 124th floor opens to the public Tuesday, with adult tickets starting at 100 dirhams, or just over $27 apiece. The ride to the top took just over a minute during a visit for journalists early Monday morning.

Dubai landmarks like the sail-shaped Burj al-Arab hotel and the manmade Palm Jumeirah island were visible through the haze.

The Burj itself cast a sundial-like shadow over low-rise houses and empty sand-covered lots stretching toward the azure Persian Gulf waters. And yes, Dubai is still open for business: there are gift shops at the base and the top.

IRS to start regulating paid tax preparers

• By STEPHEN OHLEMACHER, Associated Press Writer
• 12 mins ago

WASHINGTON – The Internal Revenue Service plans to start regulating paid tax preparers, requiring them to register with the government, pass competency tests and adhere to ethical standards.

The new regulations, announced Monday, will not be in effect for the current filing season — individual tax returns are due April 15. But IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman said tax preparers will be held to higher standards in future years as the IRS steps up its oversight.

"As tax season begins, most Americans will turn to tax return preparers to help with one of their biggest financial transactions of the year," Shulman said. The new regulations "will help ensure taxpayers receive competent, ethical service from qualified professionals and strengthen the integrity of the nation's tax system."

Existing preparers will be given three years to meet competency requirements.

More than 80 percent of taxpayers use a paid tax preparer or tax software to complete their yearly returns. However, paid tax preparers are unregulated in many states, unless they are also lawyers, certified public accountants or enrolled agents who represent taxpayers before the IRS. Lawyers, certified public accountants and enrolled agents will not be affected by the new regulations.

The IRS announced in June that it wanted to start regulating paid tax preparers. The agency then held a series of public hearings to gather information, leading up to Monday's announcement.

Federal officer, gunman die in shootout

Another officer wounded in lobby of federal building

• BREAKING NEWS
• NBC, msnbc.com and news services
• updated 1:22 p.m. ET, Mon., Jan. 4, 2010

LAS VEGAS - A gunman opened fire in the lobby of a federal building on Monday, wounding two federal agents, one of whom later died, a hospital spokesman said. The FBI said the gunman was shot and killed.

 

Police and federal agents swarmed the multistory building, and paramedics wheeled at least two people out and down a ramp to ambulances. There was no immediate word on the identity of the shooter.

 

Las Vegas police spokeswoman Barbara Morgan said the gunman had been shot in the head.

 

"It looks like he went in there and just started unloading," Morgan said.

 

The building houses federal courts and offices for federal officials including U.S. Sens. Harry Reid and John Ensign.

Saturday 1-2-10

606, 616, 101, 551, 694, 596, 526, 794, 194, 319, 055

668, 130, 073, 170, 529, 176, 813, 000, 444, 555, 666

1606, 1107, 3016, 6636, 6613, 0611, 6317, 8101, 1100

"If you want to be happy, be."

- Leo Tolstoy -

"Be always at war with your vices, at peace with your neighbors, and let each new year find you a better man."

- Benjamin Franklin -

Midday 1-1-10 Evening

** until 1-4-10 **

012  016  017  019  025  026  028  029  034  035  037  038  039  046  047  048  056  057  079  089  124  125  127  128  129  134  136  137  138  145  146  147  156  169  178  179  235  236  237  245  246  259  268  269  278  289  349  358  359  368  379  389  458  469  478  479  489  568  569  578  579  678  001  002  003  007  008  011  115  116  118  119  223  224  226  227  228  133  233  044  244  448  449  055  155  255  559  066  668  669  277  088  188  388  488  588  889  199  299  399  799  899 

I don't know about you, but I am ready to party and win some $$$!!!!!!!!

Midday & Evening

** until 1-2-10 **

012  013  016  017  025  026  034  035  039  048  049  057  058  067  079  089  124  125  129  134  138  139  147  148  156  157  169  178  179  237  238  246  247  256  259  268  269  278  345  346  349  358  359  367  368  457  458  467  489  579  589  678  679  003  004  007  008  112  115  116  022  223  224  228  229  133  233  336  337  044  445  448  449  255  355  556  557  066  166  466  566  669  277  377  778  088  188  588  688  889  399  499  799  899  111  444  777 

Midday & Evening

** until 1-2-10 **

012  013  016  017  025  026  034  035  039  048  049  057  058  067  079  089  124  125  129  134  138  139  147  148  156  157  169  178  179  237  238  246  247  256  259  268  269  278  345  346  349  358  359  367  368  457  458  467  489  579  589  678  679  003  004  007  008  112  115  116  022  223  224  228  229  133  233  336  337  044  445  448  449  255  355  556  557  066  166  466  566  669  277  377  778  088  188  588  688  889  399  499  799  899  111  444  777 

Midday & Evening

** until 1-1-10 **

016  017  025  026  029  034  035  038  047  056  079  089  124  125  128  134  137  146  169  178  179  236  245  259  268  269  278  349  358  359  368  389  458  479  569  578  002  007  008  011  115  116  119  223  224  227  133  233  044  448  449  155  668  277  088  188  488  889  299  799  899 

"If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem."

- Unknown -

Bill would allow driver's licenses of 3-time DUI offenders to be permanently revoked

Condemning a legal system that allowed two Peninsula residents to rack up nine DUIs each, a Bay Area legislator today will announce a bill that would give California judges the power to permanently revoke licenses of drunken drivers after three convictions.

 

The bill, to be unveiled at a news conference in South San Francisco and introduced Monday by Assemblyman Jerry Hill, D-San Mateo, is designed to make it harder for repeat drunken drivers to get back behind the wheel legally. Critics of the bill say it will lead to more unlicensed accidents.

 

The legislation would set two new standards: a three-strikes rule that judges could use to take drunken drivers off the road forever, and DMV authority to take into consideration a defendant's entire history of drunken driving when deciding to suspend or revoke a license.

 

Currently, the DMV can only take into account DUI convictions from the past 10 years and can only revoke a driver's license if the motorist injures or kills someone while intoxicated.

 

"Why should we wait for an accident to happen?" Hill asked. "I don't want to see a loved one of mine — or anyone else, for that matter — harmed or injured by a drunken driver."

 

Hill said he was compelled to introduce the legislation after reading a series of Bay Area News Group stories. The stories highlighted how a Belmont man who was able to get his license back after his eighth DUI conviction, only to pick up his ninth, was far from alone in getting back behind the wheel after multiple drunken-driving arrests.

 

The articles, which ran October through December, included comments from local prosecutors and legislators who argued that the current California DUI law makes it too easy for repeat offenders to get back behind the wheel.

 

The stories included DMV statistics showing that a whopping 34,145 California drivers had managed to chalk up three or more DUI convictions as of 2006, the most recent data available, while another 6,504 motorists had four or more convictions. A staggering 154,337 additional drivers had two DUIs. DMV records also show the more DUIs a person has, the more likely they are to be arrested again.

 

The reports were written after William Simon, 42, was sentenced by a San Mateo County court in October for his ninth DUI, apparently the most in California. In his ninth offense, his blood alcohol content was 0.22 — nearly triple the legal limit of 0.08. He was able to get his license back continually because he never injured anyone and his arrests occurred over a 24-year period.

 

"It's outrageous to think that someone with eight DUIs is still driving," said Hill, who called the county the "poster child" for the DUI issue in California. "The person certainly needs help and has a problem and the solution to the problem isn't a driver's license."

 

Yet the case of 46-year-old Redwood City resident Juan Rueda, who was arrested for DUI in August while his driving privileges were suspended, illustrates that some chronic offenders cannot be stopped simply be shredding their licenses. He will stand trial on felony charges in San Mateo County next month for what would be his ninth DUI conviction.

 

"(The bill) is a waste of effort," said Joshua Dale, executive director of the California DUI Lawyers Association. "All it is going to do is increase the amount of unlicensed, uninsured accidents. It's not logical, it's not scientific — it's just reaction."

 

Still, there is no denying the dangers intoxicated motorists pose to themselves and others and the fact that many do not learn their lesson after the first time.

 

About 2,500 people were killed by drunken drivers while roughly 59,000 more were injured in California from 2007 to 2008, state figures show. Federal highway officials say one-third of the nation's 1.5 million annual DUI arrests are repeat offenders.

 

The San Mateo County District Attorney's Office supports the bill, arguing that it would not lead to jail overcrowding but would protect motorists.

 

"The people who benefit — the public, you and me as we're riding on our streets — deserve that protection," chief deputy district attorney Steve Wagstaffe said.

 

DMV officials say it is not easy to get a license back after multiple arrests. The cost of hiring special insurance required for those convicted of DUIs and court-ordered classes on the dangers of drunken driving serve as a deterrent for repeat offenders, many of whom never get their licenses back.

 

Not so for motorists with one to three drunken driving charges. They must pay a fine of as much as $1,000, take a class on the dangers of driving under the influence and possibly serve jail time. First-time offenders lose their licenses for four months, and a third-time offender cannot drive for three years.

 

The state does have a history of stiffening its DUI laws with time. Dale said the state used to only take into account DUI offenders' previous convictions from the prior five years when sentencing them, and raised the window to seven years in the 1980s and then 10 years recently.

 

State Sen. Leland Yee, D-San Francisco, had also called for similar laws in Bay Area News Group stories, saying "It's incredible that in the state of California that we have not set an upper limit where enough is enough." However, he said a three-strikes law would be difficult to pass.

 

Hill said he is optimistic that the bill will pass, noting that it would not cost any money. Its first tests would likely be in the Assembly committees on public safety and judiciary and, if approved by the Legislature and signed by the governor, it would take effect January 2011.

Somali arrested at airport with chemicals, syringe

• By MOHAMED OLAD HASSAN, KATHARINE HOURELD and JASON STRAZIUSO, Associated Press Writers
• Mohamed Olad Hassan, Katharine Houreld And Jason Straziuso, Associated Press Writers
•  1 hr 32 mins ago

MOGADISHU, Somalia – A man tried to board a commercial airliner in Mogadishu last month carrying powdered chemicals, liquid and a syringe that could have caused an explosion in a case bearing chilling similarities to the terrorist plot to blow up a Detroit-bound airliner, officials told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

The Somali man — whose name has not yet been released — was arrested by African Union peacekeeping troops before the Nov. 13 Daallo Airlines flight took off. It had been scheduled to travel from Mogadishu to the northern Somali city of Hargeisa, then to Djibouti and Dubai. A Somali police spokesman, Abdulahi Hassan Barise, said the suspect is in Somali custody.

"We don't know whether he's linked with al-Qaida or other foreign organizations, but his actions were the acts of a terrorist. We caught him red-handed," said Barise.

A Nairobi-based diplomat said the incident in Somalia is similar to the attempted attack on the Detroit-bound airliner on Christmas Day in that the Somali man had a syringe, a bag of powdered chemicals and liquid — tools similar to those used in the Detroit attack. The diplomat spoke on condition he not be identified because he isn't authorized to release the information.

Barigye Bahoku, the spokesman for the African Union military force in Mogadishu, said the chemicals from the Somali suspect could have caused an explosion that would have caused air decompression inside the plane. However, Bahoku said he doesn't believe an explosion would have brought the plane down.

A second international official familiar with the incident, also speaking on condition of anonymity because he isn't authorized to discuss the case, confirmed that the substances carried by the Somali passenger could have been used as an explosive device.

In the Detroit case, alleged attacker Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab hid explosive PETN in a condom or condom-like bag just below his torso when he traveled from Amsterdam to Detroit. Like the captured Somali, Abdulmutallab also had a syringe filled with liquid. The substances seized from the Somali passenger are being tested.

The November incident garnered little attention before the Dec. 25 attack aboard a flight on final approach to Detroit. U.S. officials have now learned of the Somali case and are hastening to investigate any possible links between it and the Detroit attack, though no officials would speak on the record about the probe.

U.S. investigators said Abdulmutallab told them he received training and instructions from al-Qaida operatives in Yemen — which lies across the Gulf of Aden from Somalia. Similarly, large swaths of Somalia are controlled by an insurgent group, al-Shabab, which has ties to al-Qaida.

Western officials say many of the hundreds of foreign jihadi fighters in Somalia come in small boats across the Gulf of Aden from Yemen. The officials also say that examination of equipment used in some Somali suicide attacks leads them to believe it was originally assembled in Yemen.

Law enforcement officials believe the suspect in the Detroit incident tried to ignite a two-part concoction of the high explosive PETN and possibly a glycol-based liquid explosive, setting off popping, smoke and some fire but no deadly detonation. Abdulmutallab, a Nigerian national, is charged with trying to destroy an aircraft.

A Somali security official involved in the capture of the suspect in Mogadishu said he had a 1-kilogram (2.2-pound) package of chemical powder and a container of liquid chemicals. The security official said the suspect was the last passenger to try to board.

Once security officials detected the powder chemicals and syringe, the suspect tried to bribe the security team that detained him, the Somali security official said. The security official said the suspect had a white shampoo bottle with a black acid-like substance in it. He also had a clear plastic bag with a light green chalky substance and a syringe containing a green liquid. The security official spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to release the information.

The powdered material had the strong scent of ammonia, Bahoku said, and samples have been sent to London for testing.

The Somali security officials said the Daallo Airlines flight was scheduled to go from Mogadishu to Hargeisa, to Djibouti and then to Dubai.

A spokeswoman for Daallo Airlines said that company officials weren't aware of the incident and would have to seek more information before commenting. Daallo Airlines is based in Dubai and has offices in Djibouti and France.