“BioShock Infinite” is set in 1912 at the height of American exceptionalism. Booker Dewitt is sent to the city in the sky, Columbia, with the mission of retrieving a woman named Elizabeth from captivity amidst a civil war between two factions: the Vox Populi and the Founders.

Developer Irrational Games (the original team behind the first BioShock released in 2007) has been slowly, painstakingly slowly, building BioShock Infinite since 2010. Three years of “content in progress” videos, concept art, gameplay videos and most recently released the actual first five minutes of the game. Ken Levine, co-founder of Irrational Games, has been resolute in Irrational’s development of Infinite even as some employees left Irrational in the middle of Infinite’s development.

Despite setbacks, fans were still excited, that is until Levine discussed the target audience for BioShock Infinite. Apparently, Levine and his team intended the game to appeal to gamers who are fans of games like the “Call of Duty” franchise. Levine has interviewed these fans in an effort to understand what makes them play certain games over others. It is understandable that Irrational Games would want a demographic that is as lucrative as the young male demographic since they buy the same types of games over and over again. However, this means some things about the game will be tailored to that demographic; such as the protagonist, Booker Dewitt, being the only featured character on the box art. This is questionable because there are two main characters: Booker and Elizabeth. Irrational made an attempt to remedy this by having fans vote on a reversible cover.

In classic “BioShock” style, the player is aided by supernatural powers. These powers are gained by ingesting “Vigors” and grant the player control over elements such as electricity or even crows. Dewitt’s partner, Elizabeth, comes with her own power which only she has control over: the ability to summon objects through space and time to assist the player in combat situations. She brings objects called “Tears,” which can be determined from their gray, fragmented appearance over objects nearby. For example the player may come under heavy fire and may want Elizabeth to bring a cover into the space from another reality. She can do so only if a “Tear” allows her to. In addition, Elizabeth’s abilities cannot be overused as they require a cool down period, causing the player to think about every “Tear” they use.

Moreover, the actual gameplay is akin to a free for all, all out chaos with enemies shooting, tears being ripped open by Elizabeth, Dewitt being hurled from skyline to skyline while using his “Vigors” and guns to aid him. Such a dynamic combat system is overwhelming to watch and take in. However, when one has the controller in their hands they could become lost in the combat and feel more immersed in Dewitt’s role as the one who needs to protect Elizabeth and escape the madness that Columbia has become. The tag team dynamic that Elizabeth and Dewitt share can only give the player more choices on how to handle a particular fight, which in the end is a positive and intriguing aspect of the gameplay.

Another interesting aspect of “BioShock Infinite” is the “1999 mode” which is much more than a hardest difficulty setting. The player will need to plan out every single choice they make in order to survive. Ken Levine states on the BioShock Infinite website that “1999 Mode will demand that players pick specializations, and focus on them.” This mode promises to frustrate gamers, but in a good way. Levine advises to save often in result.

In the meantime, players who pre-ordered any version of “BioShock Infinite” can play the online flash puzzle game “Industrial Revolution.” In the game you are a worker in a factory and it is your choice whether you want to support the Vox Populi or the Founders. In line with BioShock heritage, the choice the player makes effects the story. The player is also able to unlock money and powers that they can use in “Infinite” when it is released.

Irrational has also jumped on the special edition bandwagon in which players have a choice of two editions: “Premium Edition”($79.99 USD) or the “Ultimate Songbird Edition”($149.99 USD). Both editions come with unlockables, an artbook, keychain, handyman figurine, avatars and themes for the Xbox 360 or PS3. The only major difference is the “Ultimate Songbird Edition” comes with a statue of the Songbird, the monster that holds Elizabeth captive. The player has a choice to make here as well:  is a statue worth the price of $149.99? According to Ken Levine, it is. Moreover, in addition to all of these goodies, on January 22, 2013, Irrational announced an e-book, “BioShock Infinite: Mind in Revolt,” will be free for gamers that pre-ordered with Amazon.com. The prequel covers the lead up to the events in “Infinite” and delves deeper into the conflict between the Vox Populi and the Founders.

“BioShock Infinite” will finally be released on March 26, 2013. As one of the most highly anticipated games in the New Year, one can only hope Levine has not let fans down. As Levine said in an interview with Adam Sessler, “Columbia is the memory of America that people think existed that never really quite existed.” Just from viewing trailers from the game, Levine and Irrational have definitely brought to life a highly concentrated version of American idealism from long ago.

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Shallotte, U.S.A. —  Author Daniel Saynuk has released ‘Guide Doggie: Learn How Guide Dogs Help The Blind In This Coloring Book‘. Saynuk’s children’s coloring book is unique in that, in addition to serving as a coloring book, it also employs interactive games, puzzles and word jumbles to reinforce the lessons it presents.

“I want the general public to know,” stated Saynuk, “that even though they see a dog out in public it’s not ok to pet him because he’s working to keep the person he or she is guiding safe. I know its tempting to want to pet a guide dog, but touching him or asking the handler his name just makes it harder for the dog to do his job because then he hears his name called by another person other than his handler. I actually have a sign on my dog’s harness that says “Do Not Pet Me I’m Working”. I hope by putting this book out there will come a day when such a sign will not be needed by anyone who uses a dog to help gain independence.”

‘Guide Doggie‘ recently received a very positive review from Readers Favorite. In this five-star review the reviewer states, “This book not only offers a very well written story, it is also a coloring book and fill-in-the-blank book. At the end of the book is a crossword puzzle, a word search and a word jumble puzzle. This would be a very entertaining book for any child to work through and will provide valuable information concerning the duties of a guide dog and their benefit to someone who is blind.”

Children will learn how guide dogs help the blind live more independently. Narration is provided in the voice of a guide dog. Children can color pages as they follow along with the story. Fill in the blank pages allow children to get actively involved in telling the story. More than a coloring book, the book is designed as an interactive learning experience.

Learn How Guide Dogs Help The Blind In This Coloring Book‘ is available at Amazon.

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The release of Rihanna’s ‘Unapologetic’ CD has reached #1 in the U.S. charts this week. This is her seventh album yet the first to debut at #1 on the Billboard 200 and according to Nielson SoundScan she sold a total of 238,000 copies in her first week.

After the end of a strenuous 777 promo Tour and the seemingly failed chartered jet exploit filled with disgruntled journalists having no stories to report, this is the light at the end of a “strategically placed marketing” tunnel.

She created a lot of anticipation for this album by using a different strategy. She released a “Diamonds Deluxe Edition” box for $79 and a “Diamond Executive Platinum Edition” box for $250, which contain a plethora of paraphernalia:

Among the gifts in the Diamonds Deluxe Edition box are , A t-shirt featuring a Michael Muller photo of Rihanna taken during her ‘Unapologetic’ album photo shoots, a limited-edition genuine diamond bracelet,  7 Laptop stickers featuring artwork by Mario Hugo, ‘Unapologetic’ album and “Diamonds” single artwork, the Unapologetic Deluxe CD version with a 28-page photo and art booklet featuring Michael Muller and Melissa T. Forde photography, a 20-minute DVD featuring unreleased footage and a Fan Mosaic poster featuring members of Rihanna’s Navy.

The Diamond Executive Platinum box includes the afore mentioned items above along with a special edition collectible colored “Diamonds” remixes vinyl, A Rihanna Unapologetic 2GB Credit Card style USB Flash Memory Drive, 7 Art print 12 x15 lithographs featuring Michael Muller photography, a Magnus Voll Mathiassen illustration and exclusive unreleased  Rihanna ‘Unapologetic’ images, 3 Device Adhesives featuring Rihanna’s ‘Unapologetic’ cover, logo and image, 11×17 Rihanna handwritten personal note to her Navy, A Rihanna 3D experience View-Master, A 40-page custom Rihanna notebook with handwritten notes and lyrics.

While some may consider it too expensive, it is an ingenious idea that was created for those who are affluent shoppers during this holiday season and to help her brand reach sales goals overall.

The affluent shoppers are expected to spend over 20 percent more this year and luxury retailers can expect a splurge in holiday spending according to the 2012 Q4 Annual Survey of Affluence & Wealth in America. Affluent shoppers don’t have to worry about where their money goes so they can afford the Rihanna “experience” and enjoy the commodities.

On a marketing level, people aren’t necessarily buying the music but the promotional excitement that surrounds it. The pitch for the luxury items are something for the affluent consumer and those that love Rihanna the brand want everything it entails.

Her brand is being looked at as a business and according to Ann C. Logue on entrepreneur.com “businesses prefer a larger margin in order to increase profits, so there is a natural desire to find ways to limit competition. In a healthy market, this happens by introducing better products and services, not by cutting prices.” By adding incentives and gifts to increase the value and price point more consumers are drawn in to purchase and she earns her more money.

Logue also said that, “If a product has network effects–if it becomes more valuable the more people use it–then a low price can get it into the hands of more people and help your business set the standard. On the other hand, a high price can enhance the positioning of a product as a unique or luxury item.” So those that can’t afford the luxury can just get the album for $9.99 at iTunes and Amazon while the high prices of the boxes makes her brand a luxury.

Both the “Diamonds Deluxe Edition” box and the “Diamonds Executive Platinum Edition” box will be released in limited quantities and will be available December 11 on the rihanna.fanfare.com official site.

Image Courtesy : Rihanna

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Los Angeles, U.S.A. —  Anderson Merchandisers, one of the nation’s distributors of prerecorded music, movies and books, is now a significant player in the digital world with the creation of Anderson Digital.

Anderson Digital, was launched with the acquisitions of SoPeachi Entertainment and Vanguard Cinema, two firms already well established in the digital content distribution and aggregation space. The LA-based Anderson Digital starts with a library of more than 5,000 TV shows and 1,000 feature films.  With these acquisitions, Anderson Digital launches with distribution capabilities in all segments of the digital marketplace, both domestically and internationally.

Anderson Digital will provide its content partners extensive reach and direct access to the leading digital, cable, and satellite, hotel, and mobile platforms. Current customers include not only the world’s largest digital music provider, but also companies including Amazon, CinemaNow, Hulu, Netflix, Sony Entertainment Network, Toys”R”Us Movies, VUDU and Xbox Video.

“With the industry increasingly moving into the digital world, it is important to us to have a digital presence that can both complement and enhance our capabilities,” said Anderson CEO Charlie Anderson.

Anderson Digital will be run by its Managing Partners, Freyr Thor and Steve Lyons. The company provides a full suite of digital content aggregation and distribution services including not only delivery and artwork, but also digital restoration, artwork, ingestion and transcoding.

Thor has more than 20 years experience in entertainment distribution. As the founder of Vanguard Cinema and a co-founder of SoPeachi Entertainment, he is recognized as an expert in emerging digital platforms. Thor holds degrees in both literature and creative media as well as an MBA. He grew Vanguard to an independent cinema leader with more than 1,000 distributed indie titles. He is also the founder of the Indie Talent Awards.

Lyons has more than 17 years of experience, much of it focused on distribution, business development and new venture launches. In addition to his role as co-founder of SoPeachi he was also the founder of GoGoPop, which provided development of an online and mobile video platform focusing on children. Lyons has served as a Senior Vice President at both Sony Picture’s Home Entertainment and Ascent Media.  He holds a MBA degree from the University of Southern California.

“We are excited to extend Anderson Merchandisers’ distribution and service capabilities to now include digital distribution to all the premium digital platforms, and to be working with Steve Lyons and Freyr Thor in continuing their great leadership in expanding our customer offerings,” said Bill Lardie, President,Anderson Merchandisers.

“This is great news for current and potential customers,” said Steve Lyons, Managing Partner of Anderson Digital. “This enhances our ability to provide unprecedented access to both digital and physical distribution allowing our content partners to get their shows to market through an ever growing number of platforms.”

Anderson Digital Managing Partner Freyr Thor adds, “Bringing these three quality companies together under one umbrella makes us all stronger and better able to offer our clients service and value. We are all excited about the possibilities.”

The new company also starts with excellent content partners including ARC Entertainment, Big Idea Entertainment, Classic Media, Mendelson/ Paws Productions (Garfield and Friends), XLrator Media and 343 Industries/Microsoft Studios.

Image Courtesy : TF28 ❘ tfaltings.de

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It is no secret that we live in an age where it gets easier and easier to share our opinions with the world. It’s not just a matter of using Twitter to tell the world what you had for breakfast, or uploading duckface pictures of yourself to Facebook. Now, thanks to sites like Amazon and Goodreads, anyone can be a literary critic from the privacy of his or her bedroom.

Naturally, not everyone is thrilled by the brave new literary world we inhabit. The chairman of the Man Booker Prize judging panel, Sir Peter Stothard, recently made headlines when he launched an outspoken attack on amateur reviewers, claiming that readers would be better off listening to professional critics.

Sir Peter, who is also the editor of The Times Literary Supplement, was quoted in Britain’s Daily Telegraph saying that “[t]here is a general trend- and it’s certainly very prevalent online- for replacing argued literary criticism that allows you to compare books, to put them in context, to analyse how they work. That kind of traditional criticism is very easily replaced by unargued opinion.”

“Storytelling is fine but it doesn’t require Man Booker judges to decide what people are going to enjoy taking on holiday and reading on the beach,” he continued. “Books that are not immediately easy to read- the books that in the end will last, that reward you most- do increasingly require the Man Booker Prize judges to identify them so that people will find the pleasure and reward of reading them.”

It is not just established literary critics who have expressed concerns about the new frontier of social media-driven criticism. Some authors have sought to highlight the negative aspects of online reviews, claiming that they are being subject to campaigns of cyberbullying by disgruntled fans. Earlier this summer, there was a kerfuffle in the literary world over a website called StopTheGoodreadsBullies.com.

Writing in a guest post over at the Huffington Post’s blog, the people behind the site claimed that they were trying to fight back against people who used Goodreads to “destroy [an] author’s reputation and career for either their own personal amusement or for vengeance.”

“We want the toxic, bullying atmosphere at [Goodreads] to stop. And we want these people to be held accountable by public opinion,” they continued.

StopTheGoodreadsBullies itself has proved to be controversial. Because it often attempts to unmask individuals who are accused of engaging in bullying behavior, some critics have accused it of waging its own bullying campaign. As author Foz Meadows pointed out on her blog, “any public figure, regardless of whether they’re an author, actor, sportsperson or journalist, must resign themselves to a certain amount of public criticism. Not everyone will like you, your work or even necessarily your profession, and nor will they be under any obligation to protect your sensibilities by being coy about it.”

“Simply disliking a book, no matter how publicly or how snarkily, is not the same as bullying. To say that getting a handful of mean reviews is even in the same ballpark as dealing with an ongoing campaign of personal abuse is insulting to everyone involved,” Meadows continued.

But over at Smart Bitches, Trashy Books, SB Sarah summed it up best when she pointed out that negative reviews are just part and parcel of being an author.

“We may have the most meanest critique partner in the world, but she is nothing to the reader who paid $9 for a book and was disappointed,” she said.

“This is what happens when readers read books: we get irate sometimes and giddy other times. Now we interact more about the giddy and the irate, and that interaction, positive or negative, is valuable. More importantly, it’s normal.”

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San Francisco, U.S.A.– Back-to-school time is just about here. The rush is on to get those last-minute school supplies, pack up the car, and shove off to each student’s college or university. College textbooks may be an afterthought until students arrive on campus and start unpacking their belongings and preparing for classes to start. According to the research, conducted by the 20 Million Minds Foundation, textbooks have increased in cost by four times the national rate of inflation over the past four years, with the average annual cost of textbooks coming in at $1,260 per student.

With this exorbitant cost in mind, the deals and money-saving website Coupon Snapshot is proud to offer numerous deals and discounts on college textbooks and alternatives for students this year. Thankfully, students are not forced into making their textbook purchases at the university bookstore.

“College textbooks seem to be one of the most costly expenses of going to school these days,” says Coupon Snapshot’s marketing director. “It is hard to believe how the costs keep climbing for school books each year, but they still do. We are glad to do anything we can to help students and parents defray the cost of textbooks by providing a variety of coupon codes and special sales for textbooks, e-textbooks, and related services.”

Coupon Snapshot’s dedicated deal-finding team gathered up as many textbook deals as they could find in order to help students and parents escape some of the high costs of going to college. Some of the top companies offering deals on school books include Textbooks.com, AbeBooks, Amazon, Chegg, and CourseSmart, to name a few.

The following are some of the top deals on textbooks, e-textbooks, and related services:

• AbeBooks – 50– 90% off list price
• Buy.com – Back to School Store: Up to 86% off
• Chegg – Up to 80% off textbooks
• CourseSmart –Free Trial on e-textbooks, up to 60% off one e-textbook reading, and more
• Textbooks.com — 10% bonus buyback, Free shipping on orders over $25, and Save up to 90% every day on the biggest selection of used and new textbooks

Many students buy used textbooks from the school bookstore or even on Amazon.com. Saving money by purchasing textbooks online can truly help the overall cost of each college semester while also making those funds available for other things such as participation in school athletics, activities, and maybe even a few tanks of gas so that students can come home to visit once in a while.

In addition to textbook deals at Coupon Snapshot, parents and students should also check out the website’s Back-to-School Deals page. Deals are available on back-to-school clothing, shoes, accessories, school supplies, and so much more.

“The start of a new school year is an exciting time for parents and students alike,” says Coupon Snapshot’s CEO. “We know college isn’t cheap, and it is a big lifestyle change – and sometimes a big move – for many young men and women. It is our great pleasure to bring together these wonderful deals and discounts on college textbooks, e-textbooks, and all kinds of back-to-school items to help alleviate the financial burden many families feel when sending kids off to college.”

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Los Angeles, U.S.A – ‘Sarcophagus’ by Jean-Pierre Chevalier is now available in Kindle Edition at Amazon.com. This underground classic is a compelling literary phenomenon, read by patient advocates and would-be whistle-blowers.

In this stunning work of contemporary fiction, Chevalier has succeeded in illuminating one of the unspeakable tragedies of our age: the exploitation of illness. Rendering the depravity and misfeasance of our modern-day temples of medicine with scholarly aplomb, the gripping narrative in ‘Sarcophagus’ chronicles the journey of an inspired physician and an intrepid biophysicist as they strive together against all odds to develop the world’s first effectively targeted, injectable gene delivery system—the coveted holy grail of genetic medicine.

It is a time in history when terminal cancer patients languish on the chain of failed expectations while medical institutions, academic research centers, and giant pharmaceutical companies struggle in unison against the emerging tide of genetic medicine in a misguided effort to maintain the authority and applications of their loathsome poisonous treatments.

Written with the passion of a patient advocate and the omniscience of an astute insider, and set against the bleak and timely backdrop of true clinical pathos, ‘Sarcophagus’ is a compelling journey of discovery and a descent into the netherworld of modern medicine as it stands poised at the threshold of history.

About the Author

Jean-Pierre Chevalier, a leading authority on genetic medicine, is the consummate “insider,” capable of rendering the tragedies of modern medicine with scholarly aplomb. An accomplished scientist, whose pioneering work on cellular growth control led to the discovery of important cancer genes, effective modes of gene delivery, and new designer medicines, Jean-Pierre Chevalier stands alone as a transpicuous voice crying out in the wilderness, a stalwart social critic, and a patient advocate par excellence. As his life’s work ushers in the medicines of the future, his stories gleam as a treasure for the ages.

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Waban, U.S.A. - Temkin Group announces the release of its 2012 Temkin Web Experience Ratings that examines how U.S. consumers rate the online experiences of 159 large companies across 18 industries. This is the second year that Temkin Group has published these ratings.

Consumers gave the highest marks for web experience to Amazon, credit unions, USAA, PNC, Southwest Airlines, eBay, Sam’s Club, ShopRite, JCPenney, and ING Direct. At the other end of the spectrum, consumers gave the lowest marks for web experience to Charter Communications, Humana, Qwest, Cigna, Time Warner Cable, Anthem, Road Runner, Medicare, Blue Shield of CA, and TracFone.

The 2012 Temkin Web Experience Ratings is based on a survey of 10,000 U.S. consumers in January 2012 that covers the following 18 industries: Airlines, appliance makers, auto dealers, banks, car rental agencies, computer makers, credit card issuers, fast food chains, grocery chains, health plans, hotel chains, insurance carriers, Internet service providers, investment firms, parcel delivery services, retailers, TV service providers, and wireless carriers.

“The online channel is increasingly becoming the front door to brands, but many companies still provide underwhelming web experiences,” states Bruce Temkin, author of the research and Managing Partner of Temkin Group. Temkin goes on to say: “The changes between 2011 and 2012, however, are encouraging since we found that most companies are improving.”

Temkin Group examined industry averages and found that banks and investment firms have earned the highest Temkin Web Experience Ratings followed by hotel chains and retailers. But consumers gave very low ratings to Internet service providers, health plans, and TV service providers.

The research also examines how individual companies are rated relative to their industry peers. The following 11 firms outscored their industry average Temkin Web Experience Ratings by 10 percentage points or more: Kaiser Permanente, Amazon, ShopRite, Southwest Airlines, USAA, Starbucks, H.E.B., Publix, credit unions, Marriott, and Apple.

The following 15 companies fell 10 percentage points or more below their industry averages: Wells Fargo Advisors, AAA, Charter Communications, Delta Airlines, Citibank, Bank of America, Humana, TracFone, Qwest, Old Navy, U.S. Airways, Rite Aid, Kohl’s, Kmart, and Charter Communications.

Temkin Group also analyzed changes in Temkin Web Experience Ratings between 2011 and 2012. Led by TV service providers and insurance carriers, 11 of the 12 industries that were in both the 2011 and 2012 ratings improved since last year.

Seventy-two percent of companies that were in the 2011 and 2012 Temkin Web Experience Ratings showed improvement. Led by Comcast (Internet and TV service), Allstate, AOL, Charter Communications, Toshiba, and Sam’s Club, 20 companies improved by 10 percentage points or more between 2011 and 2012. Only three companies – Kohl’s, TracFone, and Rite Aid – declined by 10 percentage points or more during that timeframe.

Analysis of these results can be accessed from the blog, Customer Experience Matters. The data can be accessed from the Temkin Ratings website.

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The International Journal of Media and Information Policy (MIPJ) (http://www.mipj.org) has announced that its Executive Editor, K.J. Wetherholt, will release The Illumination: A Novel of the Great War (2012) exclusively via Amazon Prime / Kindle until Memorial Day2012 to benefit the MIPJ’s war and veteran-related projects. Release will take place on February 24, 2012.

The MIPJ and its new publishing arm, MIPJ Publishing, acts as the nexus among media, information, and international and humanitarian affairs, focusing on international crisis, conflict, and disaster. The MIPJ has international distribution via its partnership with Ingram.

The Illumination: A Novel of the Great War focuses on war correspondents on the Western Front during and following the last days of WWI in 1918.

“My great-grandfather was a veteran of WWI, and since I can remember, I have regarded that time period with both reverence and fascination,” said Wetherholt. “It is one of those wars which has seemed to fade from memory, despite having been one of the most brutal wars ever fought, and the first truly modern war of the industrial age.

I wrote The Illumination in honor of those on the myriad fronts, focusing on both ‘total war’ and its personal impact on the men and women who lived through it. WWI was supposed to have been ‘the war to end all wars.’ The world from that point on would never be the same, and that was also true of those who fought in it.

“No matter what one has lived through, whether as a soldier or those who cover war on the front lines, he or she will always carry that experience, and is forced to deal with its aftermath,” Wetherholt continues. “The only thing one can do is to try to find a sense of peace any way he or she can. As Executive Editor of the MIPJ, it felt necessary to also mark the experience and aftermath of current wars in which the world is currently embroiled. If this book can help support such explorations, then I will feel as though some good has been done.”

Current MIPJ partners at launch include VII, MediaStorm, FotoEvidence, and Newsmotion, with Advisory Board members including Michael Ware (formerly of CNN, currently of Penance Films), Marcus Bleasdale(VII), Brian Storm (MediaStorm), and Christopher Mikkelsen and David Mikkelsen Troensegaard (Refugees United).

Special Editor of content for VII in the inaugural print / digital edition (June 1, 2012) is Gary Knight, VII Photographer, Founder, 2010 Nieman Fellow and Founder/Director of the Program for Narrative and Documentary Practice at Tufts University.

Further information may be found at the MIPJ website: http://www.mipj.org and the Humanitas Media website: http://www.humanitasmedia.com.

Amazon.com Kindle / Amazon Prime: The Illumination: A Novel of the Great War (Humanitas Media – 2012) (ISBN: 978-0-615-60591-3)

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From a near hanging at the hands of a bully as a child in the ’60s to a lightning strike in the ’80s to catastrophic illness and a near-death trip into the “Bright Light” in 1990, and other calamities in between and since, award-winning motivational speaker, executive coach and author Kelly Standing is clearly a survivor.

But, in her new book, I’m Still Standing: How One Woman’s Brushes with Death Taught Her How To Live, Standing emerges not only “still standing,” but living more fully – a message she conveys through life lessons that prompt laughter, tears, occasional anger and lingering reflection.  The author provides a philosophical road map that helps readers laugh, persevere and even thrive through and beyond life’s landmines.

Standing writes, “While you hear my memories in my voice with my inflection, I have no doubt your own memories will bubble to the surface in your voice, if you let them … and you might just see them in a new way. You might find peace where you once felt panic. You might see possibilities where you once saw only pain.”

Standing invites readers to discover how it looks, feels, sounds and even how it smells and tastes:

• To be struck by lightning …
• To be hit by a car …
• To stand on the outskirts of a mass murder …
• To come so close to dying you go into the “Bright Light” and live to tell …
• To have a major organ removed, and, contrary to medical precedent, to have that organ grow back!
• To lose 110 pounds in a conventional way but with an unconventional attitude that kept those pounds off for good.

“More than anything, I wrote this book hoping to help people. If readers already have a great life, my stories can make them feel even better and help them consider what’s left on their Bucket Lists,” notes Standing. “If, on the other hand, readers face adversity, they know I can relate. They’re not alone. Everything is wired for good. Find the good. Look for the good. And … If you don’t get what you want, find a way to love what you get anyway.”

For more information about Kelly Standing and the book, including a Reading Guide for Book Clubs, visitwww.imstillstandingbook.com.

Image Courtesy of   http://www.flickr.com/photos/adamatwork/

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Members of the appellate panel in Ecuador that affirmed the $18 billion judgment against Chevron for contaminating the Amazon rainforest were clearly outraged at the oil giant’s abuse of the judicial process even as it denied a request by the rainforest communities to increase the amount of damages, a reading of an unofficial translation of the decision reveals.

The judges also found ample scientific basis to uphold the damages award — including devastating evidence provided the court by Chevron’s own team of technical experts that proved levels of pollution hundreds of times higher than permitted by law. But citing a lack of evidence, the panel also rejected efforts by the indigenous communities to seek additional damages for the loss of their ancestral lands and for the spreading of oil on the dirt roads of the region.

Chevron has a right to appeal to Ecuador’s National Court of Justice (NCJ) in Quito, but might first be required to post a bond, said Pablo Fajardo, the lead lawyer for the plaintiffs. The right to appeal to the NCJ — the nation’s highest judicial authority — will not kick in until the appellate panel has a chance to respond to requests by the parties for clarification, which must be submitted by the end of this week.

The case was heard in Ecuador at the request of Chevron, which fought for almost a decade to shift the venue away from the U.S. federal court where it was originally filed in 1993.

“This decision confirms what we have been saying for years,” said Pablo Fajardo, the lead Ecuadorian lawyer. ”Chevron is guilty of extraordinary greed and criminal misconduct that has created a humanitarian crisis in Ecuador that puts thousands of people at risk.

“Whether people live or die depends largely on whether Chevron meets its responsibility to remediate a problem it created,” Fajardo added. ”Chevron broke the rainforest. It now must fix it.”

In a 16-page single-spaced decision, the three Ecuador judges noted that Chevron had “staged incidents that encumbered the process of the trial” and that it dumped 20,000 pages of largely redundant evidence on the appellate court to delay consideration of the case. The plaintiffs have long accused Chevron of trying to undermine the trial by filing frivolous motions and trying to intimidate judges.

Among the key findings by the panel, which reviewed the voluminous trial record of 220,000 pages for 11 months:

In response to Chevron’s complaints that it was “denied justice” in Ecuador, the appellate court noted on the second page of its decision that the only filings from the oil giant that were denied were those that were “abusive” and “clearly designed to obstruct the administration of justice.” For example, Chevron once filed 18 similar motions in the trial court in a 30-minute period, and tried to have the judge removed when he did not rule on them fast enough.

The court found that Chevron’s requests for proof that it needed to defend itself — including the tedious task of conducting 36 judicial inspections of the company’s former well sites — were “processed without exception.” It found that “hundreds of thousands of documents submitted by Chevron bloated the trial record with everything it considered relevant.”

Referencing Article 283 of Ecuador’s civil code, and citing a long list of examples of Chevron’s malfeasance during the trial, the appellate panel upheld a decision that Chevron should pay the costs of the plaintiffs due to the “flagrant bad faith it exhibited in the case.”

The panel wrote:  “Chevron was condemned to pay trial costs for manifest bad faith… so much so that now suffice it to say that the procedural conduct of the defendant, few times seen in the annals of the administration of justice in Ecuador, were abusive to the point that… the Court will not even dedicate any more writings to this portion of the decision.”

The panel also criticized Chevron for continuing to challenge the jurisdiction of Ecuador’s courts, even though the oil giant voluntarily agreed to litigate the case in Ecuador to induce a U.S. federal judge to shift the venue to the South American country.

“From the [initial hearing] up to the present appeal, it can be said that … Chevron has failed to recognize the authority, jurisdiction, and competence of Ecuadorian courts,” the panel wrote on page 15 of its decision.

The court also noted on page 11 of its decision that laboratory results confirmed that pollution existed at former Chevron well sites hundreds of times higher than permissible norms in Ecuador, which themselves are considered relatively lax by international standards.

The panel also noted many of the scientific results that proved the case against Chevron were submitted to the court by Chevron’s own technical experts.

Pierre-Jean Durieu / Shutterstock.com

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Chevron has lost yet another legal round over its increasingly furious effort to evade paying an $18 billion judgment in Ecuador for causing environmental damage in the Amazon rainforest, according to a decision released by a U.S. federal judge.

Just days after an appellate panel in Ecuador, U.S. federal judge, Lewis A. Kaplan, denied the company’s motion to attach the assets of the Ecuadorian plaintiffs.

The decision also comes just weeks after Chevron was exposed for trying to bribe Ecuador’s government to quash the case by making a “donation” to an environmental project, and reports surfaced that the company tried to corrupt the court process in Ecuador by using a secret lab.

Kaplan also denied a request by Chevron for a restraining order preventing the Ecuadorians and their lawyers from selling any portion of the claims, so they could finance the litigation. The Ecuadorians had argued that Chevron’s motion was nothing more than an attempt to dry up support for their 18-year case, thereby denying them legal counsel and the ability to enforce the Ecuador judgment.

“This decision is another rebuke for Chevron, and it comes on the heels of a devastating defeat in the appellate court of Ecuador,” said Karen Hinton, the U.S. spokesperson for the 30,000 Ecuadorians who have accused the oil giant of dumping billions of gallons of toxic waste into their ancestral lands.

Chevron had argued to Kaplan that the Ecuador judgment was based on “fraud” and, therefore, was not entitled to be enforced, even in countries outside the U.S.  Chevron stripped its assets from Ecuador and has said it will not comply with the judgment.

Lawyers for the rainforest communities had argued that Chevron’s motion had no legal basis and that the judgment in Ecuador is based on a wide body of scientific evidence. The company caused one of the worst environmental disasters in history, decimating five indigenous groups and causing an outbreak of cancer.

The communities also argued that Chevron had the ability to block any enforcement actions by the Ecuadorians by simply posting a bond while it appeals to Ecuador’s highest court. Chevron reported profits of roughly $30 billion in 2011 and total assets of more than $204 billion.

“The relief Chevron seeks is improper and unprecedented,” argued Craig Smyser, a U.S. lawyer for the Ecuadorians, in a letter to Judge Kaplan. Smyser noted that the remedy sought by Chevron had never been granted in U.S. history under similar facts.

“Chevron’s latest histrionics and hysteria justify neither a temporary restraining order, nor an order of attachment,” Smyser said in his letter, which was submitted before Kaplan issued his decision.

Chevron faces another problem — its lead outside law firm in the Ecuador matter, Gibson Dunn & Crutcher, has come under increasing attack for orchestrating a string of legal setbacks that imperil the interests of company shareholders, according to a recent blog in the Huffington Post.

The blog noted that since Gibson Dunn entered the matter two years ago, Chevron has been hit with an $18 billion judgment at the trial court in Ecuador, lost the appellate decision in Ecuador, and was reversed by a U.S. federal appeals court last September in its unprecedented effort to seek a worldwide injunction to block enforcement of the Ecuador judgment.

Gibson Dunn also faces mounting ethical questions about its sharp-edged litigation practices in the Ecuador matter, which recently led a federal court to sanction and fine Chevron after finding that a Gibson Dunn lawyer harassed a witness in the Ecuador matter.

In Ecuador, the trial court imposed a punitive damages award to the plaintiffs after finding Chevron’s lawyers tried to delay and undermine the proceedings by threatening a judge with jail time if he did not rule in the company’s favor.

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LOVEFiLM, an Amazon company, and Sony Pictures Television have signed a major multi-year content deal giving LOVEFiLM members exclusive streaming access to new and forthcoming Sony Pictures titles during the second subscription pay TV window, as well as catalogue titles and TV series, from June 2012.

The milestone agreement with Sony Pictures Television is the latest in a line of exclusive content deals announced by Amazon’s LOVEFiLM in the UK in recent months, including deals with Warner Bros., Entertainment One, STUDIOCANAL, Disney, Momentum and Lionsgate.

LOVEFiLM members will be able to exclusively stream Sony Pictures titles including the Academy Award winning ‘The Social Network,’ action-thriller ‘Salt,’ starring Angelina Jolie, and sci-fi action blockbuster ‘2012’ via LOVEFiLM Instant at no extra cost and as part of their existing subscription.

The deal will also further bolster LOVEFiLM’s extensive range of kids TV-titles with modern cult, animation favourites like ‘Transformers,’ ‘Spectacular Spider-Man’ and ‘The Karate Kid’ – adding a raft of series to existing LOVEFiLM catalogue titles such as ‘Pingu,’ ‘Wallace & Gromit’ and ‘Fireman Sam.’

In addition, LOVEFiLM members will have exclusive streaming access during this pay window to a host of future releases from Sony Pictures including the No.1 box office hit ‘Arthur Christmas.’

The deal will see Sony Pictures’ recent and forthcoming releases, catalogue titles and TV series added to the LOVEFiLM Instant service – available on the PC or via Sony Playstation 3, Microsoft Xbox 360, Apple iPad and a growing number of Internet-connected TV sets and Blu-ray players.

Amazon’s LOVEFiLM will continue to rent Sony Pictures titles on DVD and Blu-ray via its LOVEFiLM By Post service.

Simon Calver, Chief Executive of Amazon’s LOVEFiLM, said:

“Our latest major content agreement means we’ll be able to exclusively offer our members world-class content from Sony Pictures. The number of recent high-profile deals we have secured means we are able to keep expanding the service, offering our members high quality films and TV and the ability to watch as much as they want for one low, monthly price.”

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A new document reveals that Chevron officials ordered the destruction of key documents as part of a broad scheme to hide the extent of the company’s pollution in Ecuador’s Amazon, says Amazon Defense Coalition.

A company memorandum from Ecuador dated July 1972 ordered that all reports related to oil spills “are to be removed from the Field and Division offices and destroyed.” From 1964 to 1990, Chevron operated a large concession in Ecuador’s Amazon region that included an extensive network of pipelines, wells and separation stations.

Chevron operated in Ecuador under the Texaco brand.  In February, an Ecuador court found Chevron liable for dumping billions of gallons of toxic waste into the Amazon, decimating indigenous groups and causing a spike in cancer rates.

Damages in the case, which is under appeal in Ecuador, were set at $18 billion.  The extent and environmental impact of the disaster dwarfs the size of the BP spill in the Gulf of Mexico, according to experts.

The memo ordering the destruction of documents was written by R.C. Shields, at the time the director of production in Latin America for Texaco and Chairman of the company’s Ecuador subsidiary.  The memo directs Chevron personnel to report only oil spills that are “major events” which are defined as those that “attract the attention of press and/or regulatory authorities.”

The directive also orders that no reports are to be kept on a “routine basis.”

The Shields memo emerged via discovery in U.S. federal court.

Texaco reportedly caused hundreds of oil spills in Ecuador, many of which were “remediated” by setting them on fire, according to the book Amazon Crude, which was published in 1989 and which documented Texaco’s substandard operational practices. The company also has admitted to pouring sludge from the waste pits along dirt roads.

The Shields memo ordering the destruction of documents infuriated members of the legal team representing 30,000 Amazon residents who are suing the oil giant.

“This memo is a vivid illustration of the culture of deceit that characterizes Chevron’s destruction ofEcuador’s Amazon over a period of decades,” said Pablo Fajardo, the lead Ecuadorian lawyer.  “Deception remains the operating principle for Chevron in Ecuador even today as the company continues to flout its legal obligations to remediate toxic pollution that threatens thousands of innocent lives.”

Karen Hinton, the U.S. spokesperson for the Ecuadorians, said the memo was part of a “pattern of corrupt activities” by the company that include a fraudulent remediation in the 1990s, the fabrication of scientific evidence,  attempted entrapment of a trial judge and threats to put judges in jail if they didn’t rule in the company’s favor.

“Chevron acted like the Mafia in Ecuador,” she added.  “This repugnant memo is just a small piece of the company’s scheme to defraud Ecuador’s government and its people.”
Image Courtesy of  Clara / Shutterstock.com

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Though it will appear in libraries under the nonfiction section, the United States Special Operations Command is claiming the book, SEAL Target Geronimo, is false. In former Navy SEAL Chuck Pfarrer’s novel, Osama Bin Laden died a much more controversial death. He claims that, contrary to the official story released by U.S. officials, the SEAL team broke into the compound and killed bin Laden within 90 seconds.

“It’s just not true,” U.S. Special Operations Command spokesman Col. Tim Nye said to the Associated Press. “It’s not how it happened.” In the official account of the operation, SEAL troops stormed the Pakistan compound on May 1, in the midst of a firefight. From there, troops found where Bin Laden was hiding, killing him.

In a conference held on May 3, White House Press Secretary Jay Carney announced details of the event. “The team methodically cleared the compound, moving from room to room, in an operation lasting nearly forty minutes,” he read. “They were engaged in a firefight throughout the operation…”

Pfarrer’s book has been on Amazon’s Top 20 Books sales list, as reported by the Associated Press. According to the report, he has also been featured on many media programs, including Fox News and CNN. In an interview with Good Day LA on Nov. 10, Pfarrer defended his book and the stance he took in it.

“Getting Osama Bin Laden off the street is a laudable and good goal, but the men and women who supported this operation and the valiant SEALS who carried it out deserve better than to have this shabby story of the ground-up assault and a murder in a bedroom,” he said. “History deserves the truth. The American public deserves the truth and the SEALS who carried this out deserve it.”

Pfarrer is also the author of Warrior Sould: The Memoir of a Navy SEAL. He is also contributed to many works in Hollywood. He is a writer and producer for Navy Seals, Darkman, Hard Target, The Jackal, Virus, and Red Planet. Since the official narrative was launched, the White House has had to modify the statements. The Defense Department released the following statement, as reported by Politico.

“In the room with Bin Laden, a woman – Bin Laden’s wife – rushed the U.S. assaulter and was shot in the leg but not killed,” the brief statement said. “Bin Laden was then shot and killed. He was not armed.” Originally, the narrative read that Bin Laden was armed and his wife was killed.

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Rumors regarding the creation of Amazon’s new tablet have been confirmed by invitations to members of the press. On Wednesday September 28, Amazon will unveil a new product to the market, and after much speculation, it has now been confirmed that it is the new Amazon Kindle that was under investigation for quite some time.

‘Amazon Kindle’ is the name of the new tablet by Amazon, a name that consumers will already be familiar with. What distinguishes this product from the e-reader is the new features installed. The new tablet has a 7-inch touch screen that displays its content in full color, and also runs the Android operating system.

What’s interesting about this tablet is that the interface was designed specifically for the Amazon tablet. The key colors displayed in the tablet are dark blue, black and orange, which are also the colors used to represent the notifications from apps at the top of the screen next to your Kindle’s name. The main screen resembles the cover flow in iTunes that users can easily recognize.

The tablet will have its own Amazon Android Appstore, and will include Google as the default search engine browser. The web browser looks like the typical web browser for other Android devices and includes tabs for different pages. It will also include the Kindle book reader app so customers can still have access to their Amazon eBook purchases.

The tablet only has 6 GB of memory, mainly reserved for apps and book storing. The reason for this may be that Amazon wants to focus on clouding, as it offers Amazon cloud player for music. The company also plans to give out a free subscription to Amazon Prime, which normally goes for $79 a year, and allows unlimited access to Amazon Instant video and their free 2-day shipping for Amazon purchases as well as no minimum for delivery.

This new device sells for half the iPad price, and the same price as the Barnes and Nobles Nook at $250. It is expected to be released in November before the holidays, which will make for a great holiday gift. Rumors also say that a 10-inch tablet is expected to debut early next year.

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There is no doubt in denying that Lady Gaga knows what hooks her fans in, so when it came time for her to promote her newest album, she pulled out all the stops.

As a reward for her shameless self-promotion, her newest album, Born This Way, had the highest ranking first week album sales in the past six years: 1.11 million copies of her new album were sold in its first week of distribution.

“Whenever an album sells so much in one week, people ask if it’s an indication of something broader,” said Keith Caulfield, Billboard‘s associate director of charts/retail. “She is a true pop superstar, ostensibly the biggest in the past three years. Every single is a hit. Every video is a water-cooler moment. All eyes are on Gaga.”

Lady Gaga is the first person to reach the million mark since Taylor Swift, who sold a million copies of her newest album Speak Now in its first week of distribution in November 2010. She is the only person to have actually sold over a million copies since 2005, when 50 Cent’s The Massacre sold 1.14 million.

Whether it was arriving to an awards show in an egg, dancing around in a latex outfit, having a threesome with Justin Timberlake and Andy Samburg in a Saturday Night Live short or going on morning and late-night talk shows, she was able to gain an astounding amount of publicity. Google Chrome even featured an ad that was all about the Mother Monster.

It probably didn’t hurt that she sold the whole album on Amazon for 99 cents, either. Amazon frequently offers deals on new and hit albums by selling them for $2.99. An average album costs between eight and 12 dollars on the website. There was such a response to the sale that the Amazon servers slowed.

“We saw extraordinary response — far above what we expected,” says Amazon spokeswoman Cat Griffin. “We’ve never seen this much interest in one album in such a short period.”

Ean Mering of Pomegranate, a digital media network agency, said a low-price strategy could have future benefits.

“This pricing approach will prove to be a great case study,” said Mering. “This is good move that could open up Gaga to audiences who would not previously have purchased a $7.99 record.”

“Amazon’s promotion was a great way to catch people who might have turned to other means (like cloud systems or illegal downloads) to listen to the new album,” said Alicia Dennis, music editor for interactive pop-culture magazine Zimbio.com.

Dennis, however, thinks this is just “an anomaly” and could not be easily reproduced by other artists in the music industry.

“This kind of promotion could definitely boost sales for other artists, but they’d have to have Lady Gaga’s hype working for them as well, and no one does hype like Lady Gaga.”

ChinellatoPhoto / Shutterstock.com

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