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Wednesday, August 22, 2012




Today's Equipment Leasing Headlines

Archives August 22, 2005
 Dash with NCW2, IBU 41
  Classified Ads---Asset Management
   Jeff Taylor's Leasing Predictions, Spring, 2006
    Classified Ads---Help Wanted
Brief Background on CMC
 by Christopher Menkin
  CMC Attorney Back in the News
  by Tom McCurnin, Esq.
      Can't Beat HP Computer Prices & Quality, Too
New CLP, John Harders, Arvest Equipment Finance
 Banks' deposit conundrum
  By Nathan Stovall and Aarti Kanjani, SNL Financial
Guilty to $1 Million Investment Fraud Scheme
 Scheme Used the Names of Prominent Politicians to Lure Investors
      Border Collie Mix
      Tempe, Arizona Adopt-a-Dog
        Classified ads— Finance/Human Resources
News Briefs---
 Dell Shares Dive as Revenues Soften
  Exchange Bank starts paying dividends
   50 buildings destroyed in Northern Calif. fire
    Small Business Bankruptcies Shrink For Fourth Straight Quarter

Broker/Funder/Industry Lists | Features (collection)
Top Ten Stories Chosen by Readers | Top Stories last six months

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######## surrounding the article denotes it is a “press release” and was not written by Leasing News nor information verified, but from the source noted. When an article is signed by the writer, it is considered a “by line.” It reflects the opinion and research of the writer. It is considered “bias” as it is the writer’s viewpoint.



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Archives August 22, 2005
Dash with NCW2, IBU 41

“Dad, tell your friend (Dwight Galloway) Quantico was the first Marine Corp Base I trained at... When in North Carolina I was training with the guys from Lejune at a place called BlackWater. I am sure he knows all about it. My home base is now Portsmouth, Virginia.

"I'm with NCW2, IBU 41."


Here he is shipping out. Four tours in waters of Iraq (two on a destroyer guarding oil platforms, in small craft then, too, inspecting ships in the area; two in Riverene on land and sea. When I first wrote this he was on fifth mission, this time as a "dirt navy soldier," but he didn't want me to go into it, nor speak publically about his assignments. Kit Menkin)

 



 

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Classified Ads---Asset Management



(These ads are “free” to those seeking employment or looking
to improve their position)




Orange County, CA
20+ years with record of success. Hands on manager that can show how its done to get great results in Asset Management michaellosey@gmail.com
http://www.linkedin.com/pub/michael-losey/12/229/824

San Francisco, CA
Ten years experience setting residuals, negotiating leases and remarketing equipment across a broad spectrum of large ticket asset types including marine, intermodal, mining, energy, manufacturing.
geoffwalshe@yahoo.com


Free Posting for those seeking employment in Leasing:
http://www.leasingnews.org/Classified/Jwanted/Jwanted-post.htm

All “free” categories “job wanted” ads:http://www.leasingnews.org/Classified/Jwanted/Jwanted.htm

Gary DiLillo, President 440.871.0555 or gary@avptc.com

To learn more about the benefits of
outsourcing personal property tax, please click here.



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Jeff Taylor's Leasing Predictions, Spring, 2006


Jeff Taylor, CLP, CPA, author, lecturer, well-known in the leasing industry, passed away on Father's Day, June 19, 2011, from cancer. The industry has seen its share with this dreaded disease.

Leasing News published a preview of his second book, "The Future of Equipment Leasing," which was released in September, 2006. It is almost scary his ability to see 2012 and what was occurring and has occurred in the leasing industry:

Sales Make it Happen

by Jeffrey Taylor

"Excerpts from his new book"

Taken from various chapters:

For fifty years, no one paid attention to the huge profits earned by the largest leasing companies and banks. Enron would bring to light the underlying problems of the convoluted accounting and tax rules that allowed leasing companies to earn ROIs in excess of 18% per year on a consistent basis.

On September 8, 2005 the Equipment Leasing Association met with the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC) to educate them on the positive aspects of equipment leasing throughout the world.

They stated that the global equipment leasing market is approximately $600 - $700 billion annually with the U.S. accounting for one-third of the global market (est. $220 billion in 2004).

They pointed out that Corporate America leases for the following reasons:

•Access to capital
•Lower cost of capital
•100% financing
•Convenience
•Asset risk management
•Tax planning and minimization
•Off-balance sheet financing
•Regulatory capital and asset constraints

They also said that 77% of their member's volume was in the form of direct finance leases and conditional sales, which most experts acknowledge as alternative forms of loans. Only 9% were classified as true operating leases.

So the questions, logically, that I have to ask are:

If only 9% of the world's major companies volume is in the form of loan financing and not true operating leases, does that mean that equipment leasing companies:

•Are afraid of offering true leases?
•Cannot afford to offer true leases?
•Will no longer take residual risk?
•No longer exist and no one notices?

My predictions for public leasing companies are as follows:

Small Ticket - will abandon true leases and all residual risk and support direct finance leases and loans to consumers. Captive companies including IBM, HP, John Deere, J & J will dominate. All transactions will be credit scored and audited for compliance.

Middle Market - will lean towards direct finance leases and loans, yet create true operating leases in which they feel they can make money in re-leasing used equipment. They will abandon consumers and focus on business markets. They will use brokers to acquire business and jettison full-time sales people.

Large Ticket - They will continue to leave the U.S. and find a home in Europe and Asia where the tax laws are more equitable and capital is abundant.

Equipment leasing volume in the U.S. has been steadily declining since 1999 when the dot com boom hit the market. Ironically, volume in Europe, emerging Europe and Asia continue to rise.

Given the overbearing rules and regulations governing fair market value, disclosures and present value computations promoted by FASB and the increasing reduction in tax benefits to those who take tax risk, it is no wonder to see this phenomenon occurring here in the U.S., while our International competitors grab an ever increasing lion's share of the marketplace.

While FASB/SEC focuses on taking down large public leasing companies, the true leasing marketplace has started to migrate back to the small local lessor who existed before he sold out to large corporations with deep pockets.

If the FASB gets their way, they will require that all public leasing companies and public users of leases report all material long-term leases on the balance sheet using a rights and obligations approach based on fair value estimates derived principally from analytical models.


 


Mr. Terry Winders available as a consultant regarding assisting attorneys in resolving disputes or explaining procedures or reviewing documents as utilized in the finance and leasing industry.

He is the author of several books, including DVD's, as well as weekly columnist to Leasing News. He also performs audits of leasing companies as an expert on documentation, and has acted as an expert witness on leasing for litigation in legal and tax disputes, including before the IRS. He also has taught the senior bank examiners, how to review a bank leasing department, for the Federal Reserve in Washington D.C. and has trained the examiners for the FDIC on how to prepare a lease portfolio for sale.

502.649.0448/Leaseconsulting@msn.com

(This ad is a “trade” for the writing of this column. Opinions
contained in the column are those of Mr. Terry Winders, CLP)

 

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Help Wanted Classified Ads

Cost
$595 four HTML lines
(note, a space is counted as a line)
$40 for each additional line or space

The classified ad will appear for 21 days.

The idea is to attract an applicant to learn more, either to click to a full description on your web site or to a full job description attachment (free, no charge).

All Help Wanted ads appear chronologically above the headlines, as well as appear in the news edition "classified ads" and the web site, "classified ads."

Contact kitmenkin@leasingnews.org for more
information or to help word a classified ad.

Leasing News reserves the right to refuse advertising, particularly to a company that has appeared in the complaint bulletin board

 

 

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Brief Background on CMC
by Christopher Menkin


(Reported to be Ron Fisher's Florida gulf front home and yacht.

Commercial Money Center (CMC), a company founded in 1997 in Las Vegas, Nevada, to originate commercial equipment leases, consumer auto leases, and even leases of cattle and horses, was one of the first large leasing Ponzi schemes to be discovered. There have been others, such as OPM, “Other People’s Money,” which also double and tripled leases as well as phantom equipment, primarily computers.

CMC worked primarily with leasing brokers on subprime credits and equipment others companies would not consider. The company generated hundreds of millions of dollars by pooling the leases and selling the income stream to investors, typically banks and other financial institutions, some stories state. To lure those investors, CMC purchased insurance policies or surety bonds so that in the event lessees didn't make payments, the investors would still be paid. Reportedly 15 financial institutions invested in the CMC lease portfolios. Other large investors include Atlanta-based NetBank, which calls itself the world's largest Internet bank, owed $84 million, which helped put them out of business, and General Electric Capital Corp. The insurance companies included Illinois Union, bonds upward of $100 million, Royal Indemnity, $106 million; Safeco, $100 million; RLI Insurance, $54 million; and American Motorists, $44 million.

When unable to meet its monthly cash shortfall, not able to continue paying the deficit out of its own coffers, CMC filed claims with its insurance companies. The insurance companies refused to pay, even though over $25 million in premiums were paid to the insurers.

CMC then filed a lawsuit against each of the five insurers. RLI Insurance, which issued surety bonds totaling $54 million, countered that through its own investigation it discovered many of the leases were fraudulent or fictitious.

RLI sued CMC in federal court in Southern California, where CMC had operations. The investor banks were later added to the suit in an attempt to have the bonds declared void, which would get the insurer off the hook.

In court Thursday, Russell S. Bogue III, the Atlanta lawyer representing RLI, claimed CMC filed bankruptcy in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, to avoid the rulings of the federal court in California. Shraiberg said CMC filed in South Florida because to be close to the party that had defaulted on the $30 million lease.

Robert A. Angueira, assistant U.S. Trustee, urged the bankruptcy judge to send the case back to California. ``They're using the system . . . to avoid what is going on in California.''

Angueira didn't think too highly of CMC, saying its principals ''appear to be thieves'' who probably have stolen hundreds of millions of dollars in a scam.''

The US Attorneys Office in San Diego issued an indictment charging Sterling Wayne Pirtle, Ronald Allen Fisher, Mark Edward Fisher and Kelly Michelle Fisher-Buh, officers of Commercial Money Center (CMC) with income tax evasion, arising from their receipt of unreported and untaxed income from the sale of over $300 million in funded sub-prime leases to financial institutions. They were all convicted and sent to jail.


• Contract Negotiations • Fraud Investigations 
• Credit Investigations • Skip-tracing 
• Third-party Commercial Collections
John Kenny 
Receivables Management

For flat fee or commissions basis 

john@jkrmdirect.com | ph 315-866-1167| www.jkrmdirect.com

(Leasing News provides this ad as a trade for investigations
and background information provided by John Kenny)

 

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CMC Attorney Back in the News
by Tom McCurnin, Esq.
Barton, Klugman & Oetting
Los Angeles, California


Sometimes Its Better to Quit While You’re Behind. Ninth Circuit Doubles Down On Former CMC Lawyer For Committing Ethical Violations and Opens Door for Punitive Damages Against Airline Which Cheated Civilian Pilots Flying Military Missions for DOD

William Shakespeare said in Henry IV that discretion is the better part of valor. The twentieth Century version is Kenny Rogers who beseeched listeners to know when to hold them and know when to fold them. It’s a shame that the principals of one airline weren’t fans of either Shakespeare or Kenny Rogers because the airline’s wallet is now $7 million lighter, and their lawyer, a former Commercial Money Center lawyer, may be facing sanctions or disbarment.

Harold Gewerter, the former lawyer of the Commercial Money Center principals, Ronald Fisher and Wayne Pirtle, is back in the news again. This time, he got into trouble with the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, who recommended that he be sanctioned and/or disbarred.

By way of background, Commercial Money Center was a leasing company which securitized millions of dollars of Class B leases to various banks while it was unlicensed in the State of California. Many of the leases turned out to be fraudulent, and the principals, Ron Fisher and Wayne Pirtle were snared by the criminal courts for income tax evasion, bank fraud and conspiracy. The criminal prosecution resulted in convictions and prison terms for Fisher (61 mos.), Pirtle (57 mos.), Fisher’s son, Mark Fisher (41 mos.), Fisher’s daughter, Kelly (12 mos.) and his wife Nancy Fisher (4 mos.). Lenders and their Sureties lost millions in the wake of CMC’s fraud.

Attorney Harold Gewerter represented Fisher and Pirtle and CMC for many years and even had his own office at CMC and received a percentage of the fundings.

In about 2002, when the CMC Ponzi scheme crashed, Gewerter met with the CMC principals, and had what was coined a “mea culpa” meeting in which the destruction of CMC’s computer evidence was discussed. In 2008, in the criminal case against Fisher and Pirtle, the court made the unusual, if not shocking, order that Mr. Gewerter produce for inspection all his communications, including attorney client communications and work product, with the two CMC principals. This story was detailed in Leasing News on February 3, 2003.(1)

Mr. Gewerter is back in the news, this time representing an airline that allegedly received, and failed to pay, “hazard pay” for airline pilots flying in and out of Baghdad during the Iraq war. The case is Hester v Vision Airlines, 2012 WL 2914108 (9th Cir. 2012). By way of background, in 2004, the Department of Defense contracted with various civil airlines to fly supplies into Iraq. Because of the nature of the work, the contract included $5,000 of “hazard pay” for each pilot, and the DOD’s contract included a pass through provision that obligated each airline to pass these sums through directly to the pilots. Vision Airlines provided such services to and from Baghdad and Kabul and received hazard pay for their pilots.

Of course, you can guess what happened next—the airline did not pay the pilots their hazard pay. One of the pilots, Gerald Hester filed a class action to recover those sums. Vision’s defense was that its bid did not include hazard pay, in other words, it was a lump sum invoice and Vision got to keep all the money, including the hazard pay. This was fairly straight forward case, and either the invoice was lump sum, or had pass through hazard pay reflected in the document.

Class counsel made a request to Vision for the invoices to see if the invoices were in fact a lump sum bid. Vision resisted producing the documents on the grounds of “national security, but a Magistrate ordered that Vision produce them. Vision eventually turned over the invoices to the Class, but before doing so, Vision used a black marker to obscure large portions of those documents, redacting what appeared to be text, numbers, and invoice entries. Given the heavy redactions, it was not clear whether the bid included hazard pay or was a lump sum bid. Vision again renewed its request to Vision to produce the un-redacted invoices and brought the matter to the attention of the trial court.

After some fascinating colloquy (the reader is invited to read the actual opinion), the Court ordered that the invoices be produced in an un-redacted format. What got the lawyer in trouble was the fact that represented to the Court two things: (1) The lawyer had produced everything Vision had in its possession; and (2) The lawyer had in his possession an un-redacted version of the invoice and would produce it to Class Counsel that same day. So far, so good.

However, the invoices were not produced, and Class Counsel subpoenaed the actual un-redacted invoice (and other documents) from a third party vendor. The invoice contained a line item for hazard pay, which Vision received, but which did not get paid to the pilots. It also appeared that other documents which Vision clearly had in its possession were not produced. Busted.

Accordingly, when this was brought to the attention of the trial court, the conclusion seemed to be that Vision had the invoice, redacted it to remove incriminating evidence, and that the lawyer was not being accurate with the trial court. Completely fed up with the discovery games of Vision, the District Court took the unusual step to strike the Answer of Vision and then accused Mr. Gewerter of misleading the trial court by stating:

“In the Court's view, Vision will act to delay this litigation and prevent discovery by any means necessary. The Court has no reason to believe that given an extension Vision would now begin to . . . comply with the Court's orders. . . . It has also become evident that Vision is willing to mislead the Court time after time in order to keep from producing relevant, possibly critical, discovery material.”

The Court ultimately struck Vision’s Answer, certified a class action, and entered a judgment against Vision for over $5 million. This might have been a good opportunity for Vision to listen to the wisdom of Kenny Rogers.

But hey, this is Las Vegas and Vision doubled-down and appealed to the Ninth Circuit. In a terse, if not accusatory brief, Vision claimed that the discovery sanctions were too strong and that Vision’s Answer should not have been stricken. What was surprising is that Vision’s brief offered no excuse, contrition or explanation for what appeared to the trial court to be a deliberate spoliation of evidence and misstatements by Vision’s counsel as to the existence of this damning invoice.

On appeal, the Ninth Circuit, briskly dispensed with those arguments, and instead took the unusual step of quoting verbatim statements made by Mr. Gewerter as to the fact that he had the un-redacted invoice and would produce it that day and that Vision had no other documents to produce. The truth of both of those statements was called into question by the Ninth Circuit.

The Ninth Circuit affirmed the striking of the Answer, the certification of a class action and a Judgment against the airline in excess of $5 million. A win for the brave pilots that risked their lives flying into a war zone for hazard pay they never received. Adding insult to injury, the Ninth Circuit suggested to the trial court that the trial court award punitive damages to the pilots in addition to the $5 million dollars. Finally, after this stinging rebuke, the Ninth Circuit issued the unusual edict to the District Court to consider sanctioning or disbarring the lawyer:

“As a final note, based on the record before us, Harold Gewerter appears to have committed numerous ethical violations. We recommend that the district court, in the exercise of its discretion, report Mr. Gewerter to the state bar to determine whether disbarment or some other sanction is merited.”

I don’t think there is a lawyer out there that hasn’t represented a “guilty” client.

But it’s not the company the lawyer keeps, but how the lawyer presents the legal arguments and statements to the Court. In representing guilty clients, it may be better to keep a stern, brave face and aggressive demeanor, try to get out of the case on some legal technicalities while cooperating fully in the discovery process. At the same time, counsel should work the back channels with opposing counsel to try to resolve the case. In other words, throw some money at the problem and make it go away.

Here, Vision clearly had the un-redacted invoice. Was Vision really basing its whole defense on the assumption that Class Counsel was so stupid that it would not be able to obtain the un-redacted invoice?

Given the facts and the sympathetic client, this might have been a good case to try to resolve through a settlement. Certainly, this was not a good case to appeal, because the Ninth Circuit doubled-down on the Vision with punitive damages and doubled down on Vision’s lawyer. Kenny Rogers is having the last laugh on this one.

Tom McCurnin
Barton, Klugman & Oetting
Los Angeles, California
email: tmccurnin@bkolaw.com
Voice: (213) 621-4000
Fax (213) 625-1832

Visit our Web Site at www.bkolaw.com

(1) Commercial Money Center Stories
http://www.leasingnews.org/Conscious-Top%20Stories/CMC_stories.htm

Court Case:
http://leasingnews.org/PDF/CMCVisionAirlines.pdf

Previous Tom McCurnin Articles:
http://www.leasingnews.org/Conscious-Top%20Stories/leasing_cases.html

 

 

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Can't Beat HP Computer Prices & Quality, Too


While Dell and others have marked down the "Back to School" prices, HP seems to have the best price offers on line: Up to 25% discount on many desktop and laptops, many above 10%, plus free up-grades in designing the computer. 33% and higher on printer discounts.

And they make it easy. http://www.shopping.hp.com/

Recently De Lage Landen announced it has partnered with Hewlett Packard to offer a new extended finance program to all qualified U.S. resellers when they purchase eligible HP products. The program provides up to 60 days of interest-free credit by extending indirect financing through authorized distributors.

HP has its own finance decision, and strong sales from its printer division.

According to Telecomtiger.com, HP remains the number 1 hardcopy peripheral vendor with 39.6% market share in terms of worldwide shipments (10.5 million units). It is expected the wireless segment will continue to grow.

Canon continued as the number 2 ranked vendor in 2Q12 with worldwide market share of 21.4% and 0.5% year-over-year growth.

Epson maintained its position as the number 3 vendor worldwide with 13.2% share, up 1 point from a year ago.

Brother climbed one spot up to become the top 4 ranked vendor in the total hardcopy market.

Samsung ranked 5th in the overall hardcopy market. The vendor suffered a decline of 22.0% year over year in total shipments and dropped one spot in the latest worldwide ranking.

Meanwhile, Dell, once a leader in the small computer field, has been having its problem competing with tablet computers and digital devices. Reportedly Arik Hesseldahl in "All Thingsd.com" says “Dell is talking to Marius Haas, the former head of Hewlett-Packard’s networking business (and currently an industry adviser at investment firm KKR), about a job running its servers, storage and networking business. Haas declined to comment on the matter when reached by phone this morning. It’s unclear how far talks between Haas and Dell have progressed, or what his precise title would be. (See an update on this at the bottom of the post.)

He says Brad Anderson, Dell’s current president of Enterprise Solutions, an HP veteran who ran its industry standard server business until 2005, will be leaving the company: "They tell me that Dell will announce this move tomorrow, and that Haas’ title will be senior vice president.

(For the record, do not own any HP or Dell stock, but do use a six year old Dell XPS laptop that was up-graded to 4mb ram for Windows 7, and when I travel with the 17' laptop, it still works great with 16' portable second monitor. Editor)

 



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New CLP, John Harders, Arvest Equipment Finance


John Harders, Asset Management at Arvest Equipment Finance,
Fort Smith, Arkansas, was named a Certified Leasing Professional.
He is the fifth at Arvest Equipment Finance
to become a CLP.

Please go to www.clpfoundation.org for detailed information about the CLP Foundation and the CLP Program.

 

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Banks' deposit conundrum
By Nathan Stovall and Aarti Kanjani
SNL Financial


Banks have followed regulatory requests to increase "core" deposits, and many still see value in building deposit franchises even though the excess liquidity hurts their margins.


Regulators began telling banks, particularly smaller institutions in overheated markets, to get deposit rich several years ago after scrutinizing the funding structures of many failed banks. Banks responded in kind and now are flush with deposits and struggling to put the funds to work as loan growth remains weak and yields in the securities market remain low. Regulators still want to see strong deposit franchises, but banks are faced with deciding whether to build for the future and hurt margins in the present or try to lower funding costs as much as possible, remove excess liquidity from their balance sheets and improve margins.


The calls for more deposits came after regulators noticed that many small banks that failed had poor funding in common, relying on brokered deposits and "hot" money to support their growth. Walt Moeling, a partner at Bryan Cave LLP, said many failed franchises effectively purchased all their business rather than creating a franchise that originated loans and gathered deposits organically. He said many so-called core deposits in the system before the crisis proved to be an aberration.

For instance, Silverton Bank, which failed in May 2009, seemed to have a great core deposit base but ultimately those funds could disappear overnight because they came from correspondent banks. Georgian Bank, which failed in September 2009, also looked like it had great core deposits, but a substantial portion of those funds came from one source that had trust and brokerage accounts. When it became clear that Georgian Bank was in trouble, the fiduciary controlling the accounts pulled them from the institution.

By the early part of 2009, regulators had begun focusing intensely on deposits and it had become clear that the more liquidity a bank had in the form of real deposits, the happier regulators would be, Moeling said.

"Today, it's not so much to get liquidity because there's plenty of liquidity in the system but they're still very interested in the core business franchise because even banks that got into trouble with too much [acquisition, development and construction] lending where they had a core deposit, core customer franchises, there are a lot of them still hanging on," Moeling told SNL.

Regulators officially changed the definition of a "core" deposit March 31, 2011, to adjust for expanded deposit insurance coverage, which rose to cover accounts up to $250,000 from $100,000 previously. The agency affirmed that it still had concerns about brokered deposits though and did not consider them core, noting in a study published later that year that "in general, as brokered deposit levels increase, the probability that a bank will fail also increases."

The revised definitions of deposits came about 18 months after the FDIC expanded its supervisory period for de novos to seven years from three years because many de novos failed and relied on volatile funding such as brokered deposits. That lengthened supervisory period served as a preventative measure, since it comes with higher capital requirements and more frequent examinations.


Smaller banks have heard the call for more deposits from regulators and now are flush with "core" funding. "Core" deposits, under the revised definition, at banks with $500 million to $10 billion in assets have increased steadily in the last few years, rising on average to roughly 90.7% of total deposits at the end of the second quarter from 70.1% in 2008. Brokered deposits meanwhile have dissipated, falling to 4.1% at the end of the second quarter from 10.5% in 2008, according to SNL data. (SNL tried to measure the funding level of truly traditional banks and limited the scope to institutions with loans-to-deposit ratios between 50% and 200% and excluded industrial banks, cooperative banks and nondepository trusts.)

Banks are so flush with deposits that many are struggling to put their excess liquidity to work as loan growth remains weak. A bank might be hesitant to put those funds to work, too, since the current level of deposits in the system might be somewhat inflated by widespread risk aversion. RBC Capital Markets analyst Gerard Cassidy said the current level of deposits in the banking system is far above historical levels when comparing the amount of deposits to gross domestic product over the last 30 years.

"Either the economic activity has to accelerate or deposits are going to have to shrink," Cassidy said. "As much as the banks might think some of their success in deposit gathering comes from their acute sense of how to market to their customers, I think it's just more market conditions. Twenty percent of deposits wouldn't normally be here if there were alternatives to put them elsewhere."

Since deposits are currently easy to come by, some have questioned whether they are worth holding onto or at have least suggested that banks could lower their funding costs further even after steady decreases in recent quarters. In the first quarter, banks with more than $1 billion in assets reported a cost of funds of 56 basis points, while banks with less than $1 billion in assets reported a cost of funds of 84 basis points, according to the FDIC quarterly banking profile.

Cassidy said that as long as money market mutual funds are only paying 1 or 2 basis points for funding, banks will not have a hard time gathering deposits even if they cut costs from current levels.

"I don't know why deposit costs can't drop to below less than 5 basis points and they still are in many cases over 20 [basis points]," Cassidy said.

PNC Financial Services Group Inc. Chairman and CEO James Rohr seemed to agree that banks should not pay up much for deposits in the current environment. When responding to a question about PNC Financial's interest in bank M&A, Rohr said on the company's second-quarter earnings conference call that deposits simply are not worth very much in today's markets.

However, not all bankers agree. Others see benefits to building a large stable funding base over the longer term and believe it is prudent to take advantage of the current market when they can add deposits cheaply and reap the benefits of their value down the road. BankUnited Inc. Chairman, President and CEO John Kanas said on the company's first-quarter earnings conference call in late April that building deposits today "is not exactly rocket science" since banks are not placing any value on deposits. However, Kanas believes that outlook is shortsighted and that deposits will again become a strong component of the true franchise value.

"So we're using these opportunities to be aggressive and trying to garner as much deposit growth in Florida, particularly, chief deposit growth, non-interest-bearing demand deposits as we can and we're going to push that as hard as we can. Even if we push deposit growth to a point, where it outpaces loan growth, I still think that that's a very valuable component to our balance sheet and we'll continue," Kanas said on the call.

Opus Bank Chairman, President and CEO Stephen Gordon holds a similar opinion. Gordon recently told SNL that interest rates will eventually rise and at that point, the real value of low cost deposits gathered today will be recognized.

"So buying really good core deposits today while rates are low and while they really don't cost you anything to buy just makes a lot of sense. Because at some point when rates are higher, and the economy is stronger, and everybody is lending and everyone needs deposits to fund loans, they may end up having to open up locations or buy deposits, or they may end up having to pay up for deposits, and I'd rather be doing that now while it costs you nothing," Gordon said.

Banks that continue to gather deposits are struggling to find earning assets to put them to work. As the excess liquidity sits on their balance sheets, Moeling said it hurts bank margins but the institutions are ultimately making more money than they would otherwise even holding those deposits in Fed Funds.

"It's a value proposition which is a little different than next quarter's income," Moeling said. "If you don't ramp up a little extra now, when people start putting their deposits work, if you're cutting it down to your minimum now, you might come up short later."




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#### Press Release #############################

Guilty to $1 Million Investment Fraud Scheme
Scheme Used the Names of Prominent Politicians to Lure Investors


SANTA ANA - The second of two defendants has pled guilty in federal district court, admitting that he defrauded several victims by falsely claiming that invested funds would be used to sponsor political visits to China by prominent politicians.

Defendant Jack Hu, 27, of Irvine, pleaded guilty before the Honorable David O. Carter, United States District Judge, to one count charging him with subscribing to a false income tax return and one count of wire fraud.

According to the plea agreement, Hu and co-defendant Kuei Fuang Tsuei Hu, 63, told victims that their funds would be invested in Jack Hu’s company, London International Group, and that the money would be used to sponsor visits to China by former Presidents Bill Clinton and George W. Bush to make speeches. The defendant told at least one victim that he would use the money from tickets sold to the Presidents’ speeches to pay monthly interest of 10%.

Hu failed to disclose to investors that a significant portion of the invested funds was being diverted for the defendant’s personal use, including funding significant amounts of gambling activity at major Las Vegas casinos, according to the plea agreement.

With respect to the tax fraud violation, Hu failed to report income he received of $1,050,000 on his 2007 income tax return which represented investor funds he received and used to fund gambling activities.

With respect to the wire fraud violation, a victim wire transferred $200,000 to a London International Group bank account controlled by Hu which was mostly used to fund gambling activities.

Both defendants, Jack Hu and Kuei Fuang Tsuei Hu, have been held without bond since their arrests in October of 2011.

When Hu is sentenced by Judge Carter on January 7, 2013 the statutory maximum sentence he will receive for the two offenses to which he is pleading guilty is 23 years imprisonment, and a fine of at least $500,000. In addition, the Court may order restitution to the victims for any losses suffered of at least $1,000,000.

Co-defendant Tsuei pleaded guilty on July 11, 2012 to one count of wire fraud and will be sentenced on September 17, 2012.

The investigation was conducted by special agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the Internal Revenue Service-Criminal Investigation, in conjunction with the United States Attorney’s Office in Santa Ana.

##### Press Release ############################

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Border Collie Mix
Tempe, Arizona Adopt-a-Dog

Magee
Sex: Male
Breed: Border Collie mix
Age Range: Puppy
Est. DOB: 3/11/2012
Size: Growing Puppy (under 20 lbs)

An All-Around gold medal winning puppy looking for his gold medal family. Magee is in wonderful puppy youth. Go go go, then pass out. He's a great puppy with a lot of potential. He loves his humans and is eager to please. He also loves other dogs. He's just a happy go lucky pup - what's next and how can I please you? He loves to play tug and fetch or can happily play on his own with the toys. He defers to the other dogs in the household and is just eager to please them. He loves new environements and people - everything is a wonderful adventure.

I'm sure Magee will take to training or be happy as a house dog as long as he has his people to love. He completely ignores our cat (who is used to dogs). Not sure how he'd react to a scared cat who runs. He is using the doggie door and is not trust worthy quite yet, but is getting there fast. He is also still working on his leash manners but learning. Magee is just a happy puppy, excited about everything and loves his people and other dogs.”

Sociability with Other Dogs: Does great with other dogs, could live with another dog or as the only dog
Sociability with Cats: Undetermined
Personality: very friendly with people
My Ideal Home: Would do well with any family

How the AZBCR Found Me
Magee was an unclaimed stray puppy at Pinal County Animal Care and Control.

Application:
http://azbordercollierescue.com/adoptapp.asp?rescueid=1556

Contact Border Collie Rescue at the email addresses below or by submitting an online application for adopting, fostering, volunteering or relinquishing your dog. Applications and/or questions can also be printed and mailed to Arizona Border Collie Rescue, P.O. Box 10717, Tempe, AZ 85284-0012

kelly.quinn@azbordercollierescue.com
gail.chadwick@azbordercollierescue.com

Dogs come into Arizona Border Collie Rescue at all times of the year. There are times when we have many adult dogs looking for homes and we also occasionally have puppies available. Not all our Border Collies would make good working dogs or agility dogs. Some of these fine dogs are just looking for a loving home or a companion that would spend time with them for walks to the park or around the neighborhood. Please let us know about yourself and the type of dog you are seeking. Some of our dogs are obviously very high-drive and need working or agility homes while others may be low-key and would be just a great and loyal friend to have around


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Experienced in big ticket origination, syndication, valuation and workout.
Twenty five years, MBA, CPA,
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Transaction Summary The Lechner Group 
Website: www.tlgattorneycpa.com   
    
Finance: Naperville, IL
Your guide to the right questions and answers in finance. Expert in capital raising, GAAP, acquisitions, lease economics. CPA. MBA. 
E-mail: m.willow@ameritech.net
Finance: Charlotte, NC
15 Years of Equipment Leasing Experience and Recruiting with Business Aviation niche. Visit us at www.turningpointgrp.com 
E-mail: info@turningpointgrp.com
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Employee Relations, Recruiting, Benefits, employee customer surveys, plus payroll administration "ON-LINE" services-- AND IN PERSON at your location Please visit:www.adviceonhr.com
Information System: North Detroit, MI 
INFOLEASE EXPERT - 18 years experience.  Since being downsized in 2002, working as a consultant for several leasing companies. 
Seeking consulting projects nationwide. 
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Finance: New York, NY
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News Briefs----

 

Dell Shares Dive as Revenues Soften
http://business-news.thestreet.com/mercury-news/story/dell-shares-dive-as-revenues-soften/11670974

Exchange Bank starts paying dividends
http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20120821/BUSINESS/120829903/1350?Title=Exchange-Bank-restores-Doyle-scholarships

50 buildings destroyed in Northern Calif. fire
http://www.sfgate.com/news/article/50-buildings-destroyed-in-Northern-Calif-fire-3800810.php

Small Business Bankruptcies Shrink For Fourth Straight Quarter
http://www.heraldonline.com/2012/08/21/4204316/small-business-bankruptcies-shrink.html

 


[headlines]

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You May Have Missed---

Ex-Citi Banker Sandy Weill, age 79, Sonoma, California changes key
http://www.sfgate.com/default/article/Sandy-Weill-retired-banker-changes-key-3798791.php




[headlines]

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SparkPeople--Live Healthier and Longer


SparkPeople--Live Healthier and Longer


Exercise Does Not Have to be Painful
http://www.sparkpeople.com/resource/fitness_articles.asp?id=262



[headlines]

--------------------------------------------------------------

 


Sports Briefs----


Tempers flare in Chargers, Cowboys scuffle
http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2012/aug/21/tempers-flare-chargers-cowboys-scuffle/

Pete Carroll's high-stakes move could define his legacy as Seahawks coach
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/seahawks/2018964008_seahawks22.html

MLB umpire Jim Joyce saves Arizona Diamondbacks employee's life
http://www.azcentral.com/sports/articles/2012/08/21/20120821mlb-umpire-jim-joyce-saves-arizona-diamondbacks-employees-life.html

 

 

[headlines]
--------------------------------------------------------------

 

Baseball Poem

The Batter

 

From the book

That Sweet Diamond

by Paul B. Janeczko, Carole Katchen (Illustrator)

He approaches the plate,
ponderous,
swinging smoothly
in slow motion
knowing his choice is simple:
swing or not.

As he paws
the back line of the batter's box,
matching concentration and stare
with the pitcher,
he knows
indecision
or
hesitation
makes failure likely.

Pitcher rocks.

Batter waits.

Then, in the time it takes
a happy heart to beat,
decides.

 

[headlines]
--------------------------------------------------------------

 


California Nuts Briefs---

Steve Jobs burglary suspect does not enter plea, hearing continued
http://business-news.thestreet.com/mercury-news/story/steve-jobs-burglary-suspect-does-not-enter-plea-hearing-continued-1/1

Taxpayer group takes on Santa Clara County, water district
http://www.mercurynews.com/elections/ci_21358536/taxpayer-group-takes-county-water-district



[headlines]
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“Gimme that Wine”

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EJnQoi8DSE8

Sampling the West Valley's wine bars and tasting rooms
http://www.mercurynews.com/saratoga/ci_21358622/good-last-drop

Korbel & Bros. sells Valley of the Moon Winery, Lake Sonoma Winery
http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20120821/BUSINESS/120829927/1350?Title=Korbel-unloads-2-Sonoma-Valley-wineries

NZ wine exports up
http://tvnz.co.nz/business-news/nz-wine-exports-up-5036591

The World’s Most Unusual Wine Regions
http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2012/08/19/the-world-s-most-unusual-wine-regions.html

Smartphones revolutionizing wine sales for ‘Millennials’
http://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com/59696/smartphones-revolutionizing-wine-sales-for-millennials/





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Leasing News Wine & Spirits Page
http://two.leasingnews.org/Recommendations/wnensprts.htm

[headlines]
----------------------------------------------------------------

This Day in History

    1654-The first Jews to arrive in America were Marra­nos, Spanish Jews who had converted to Chris­tianity in order to escape torture and death un­der the Inquisition. Marranos were part of Co­lumbus’s voyage of discovery in 1492 and of Spanish explorations and settlements in the 16th century. A handful of Jews came to the English colonies in Virginia and Massachusetts in the first half of the 17th century, but most historians consider the first permanent Jewish settler in America to have been Jacob Barsimson of Holland, who landed at the Dutch colony of New Amsterdam (the future New York City.) A month later, a group of 23 Jews from Recife, Brazil, arrived in New Amsterdam seeking refuge from Portu­guese persecution. Against the wishes of the colony’s governor, Peter Stuyvesant, the Dutch West India Company allowed them to stay, provided “the poor among them should not be­come a burden to the Company or the commu­nity, but be supported by their own nation.” They had left their homeland to escape religious prosecution. While some of the prejudice was brought to the New World, as different immigrants arrived, they learned to accept each other and work together.
    1670- In Massachusetts, English-born colonial missionary John Eliot, 66, founded an Indian church at Martha's Vineyard, with educated Indians Hiacoomes and Tackanash appointed pastor and teacher, respectively.
    1771-The talk of the colonies was a dwarf exhibited as a theatrical attraction. His name is not known, but he was a man, 53 years of age and 22 inches high, shown at the house of Widow Bignall, next door to King’s Head Tavern, a little above Mr. Hancock’s wharf in Boston, MA. Admission was one shilling. His appearance was advertised in the Massachusetts Spy this date.
    1775- King George III proclaims colonies to be in open rebellion, vows to send more troops.
    1791 -- Haiti: Encouraged by the French & American revolutions, 100,000 slaves revolt. They wage war first on French, then Spanish & English troops to achieve freedom for slaves in 1793. In 1804, Haiti becomes first free black country in the world. Bowing to pressure from Southern slaveholders, the US refuses recognition of Haiti until 1865.
    1816- Damaging frosts in low places from New England to North Carolina in the "Year-without-a-Summer"
    1834-Birthday of Samuel Pierpoint Langley, American astronomer, physicist and aviation pioneer for whom Langley air Force Base, VA, is named. Born at Roxbury, MA. Langley died at Aiken, SC, Feb. 27,1906. 1846-Without a shot fired, the US annexes New Mexico.
http://rip.physics.unk.edu/Kearney/SWK.html
http://www.newmexico.org/culture/history.html
http://www.state.nm.us/category/aboutnm/fastfacts.html
http://www.southernnewmexico.com/snm/history.html
http://www.nmcn.org/features/articles/timeline.html
    1846 -- General Kearney announces annexation of New Mexico by U.S.
http://www.kumeyaay.com/history/article_detail.html?id=6
http://bchs.kearney.net/BTales_197901.htm
    1847-What would later become the world famous Mormon Tabernacle Choir gave its first public performance at Salt Lake City, Utah, for an outdoor meeting of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Widely known for its concert tours, recordings and weekly radio and television broadcast from Temple Square, the choir’s radio program “ Music and the Spoken Word” is the longest continuously running radio program in network history, dating back to 1929.
    1851- The first yacht to win in the international yacht race was America, owned by a syndicate headed by Commodore John Cox Stevens of the New York Yacht Club. They won what was known as the “hundred Guinea Cup.” The trophy, latter turned over to the New York Yacht Club, where you may view it today, became known as the America’s Cup.***
    1851-Sam Brannan of the San Francisco Committee of Vigilance called the resignation of the governor during a visit to Sacramento City because of his pardon of a criminal named Robinson, who was hanged today by Sacramento Vigilantes.
    1865- William Sheppard of New York City patented liquid soap.
    1901-Henry LeLand founded The Cadillac Company, named after eighteenth century French explorer Antoine de la Mothe Cadillac, founder of the city of Detroit. The Cadallac reached its height of popularity during the 1950s. The Cadillac Debutante, which debuted at the Waldorf Astoria, was based on the play The Solid Gold Cadillac. Cadillac sales decreased during the 1970s as the American car market experienced an influx of smaller imports, but luxury car sales, Cadillac included, have rebounded in recent years, particularly its SUV Escalade, said to be stolen four more times than any other car today; the most frequently stolen vehicle on the road, according to insurance claim statistics.
http://www.geocities.com/motorcity/track/2582/cadillac/cadindex.html
http://www.ajc.com/business/content/business/0803/21stolen.html
    1906- The Victor Talking Machine Company of Camden, New Jersey began to manufacture the Victrola (record player). The hand-cranked unit, with horn cabinet, retailed for $200. Records were purchased separately, usually in the appliance stores that sold the machines, at a cost of between $1 and $7. Famed conductor John Philip Sousa predicted "a marked deterioration in American music" and said that generations of amateur musicians would give way to "canned music."
    1916-Birthday of pianist Sonny Thompson
http://music.lycos.com/artist/bio.asp?QT=A&QW=Sonny+Thompson&AN=Sonny+
Thompson&MID=28067&MH=

http://www.bluesbeforesunrise.com/bbssetlist011198.html
http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/B000000PTY/fast-musicasin-20/
103-5362656-4423850#product-details

    1917 - John Lee Hooker, American blues guitarist and singer, born in Clarksdale, Miss. He began his career in Detroit in 1948 with the release of Boogie Chillun, the biggest of his several hit records and a staple of both the blues and rock repertoires. He toured continually, and among "deep blues" artists, enjoyed an unusually successful career, appearing in concerts and on recordings with many of the leading figures in rock. He was inducted into the Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame in 1991. Died June 21,2001 at his home in the San Francisco Bay Area.
http://www.johnleehooker.com/biography.htm
http://www.vh1.com/artists/az/hooker_john_lee/bio.jhtml
http://www.blueflamecafe.com/index.html
    1920 – Birthday of Ray Bradbury (writer: Fahrenheit 451, The Toynbee Convector, Martian Chronicles).
http://www.raybradbury.com/about.html
    1926-Birthday of Bob Flanagan, lead singer of the '50s pop group the Four Freshmen. 
http://business.baylor.edu/Phil_VanAuken/graphics/Jazz/group3.htm
http://www.amdest.com/stars/freshmen.html
http://www.fourfreshmen.com/wwwboard/wwwboard.shtml
http://wwwp.musicmatch.com/artist/artist.cgi?ARTISTID=341444&TMPL=LONG#bio
http://www.fourfreshmen.com/fan.htm
http://www.fourfreshmen.com/index.htm
    1932- Philippa Duke Schuyler birthday, black-American pianist and writer started composing music at age three and at 12 her award- winning symphonic work was played by the Detroit Symphony. She has appeared as guest soloist, performing her own works with major symphony orchestras in the U.S. She died May 9,1967 in a helicopter accident in Da Nang, Vietnam, where she had gone in her new career as a reporter.
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-srv/style/longterm/books/reviews/composit.htm
http://stream.realimpact.net/rihurl.ram?file=realimpact/wnyc/studio360/studio091402c.
ra&start=%2200:00.0%22&end=%2214:52.1%22

http://www.africanpubs.com/Apps/bios/1149SchuylerPhilippa.asp?pic=none
http://www.philippaschuyler.org/tn5_Philippa_Duke_Schuyler.asp
http://www.oup.co.uk/isbn/0-19-511393-4
    1933--Birthday of American composer James Ciernia,born St. Paul, MN.
    1936-Birthday of drummer Lex Humphries, New York City
http://www.vervemusicgroup.com/verve/artist.asp?aid=3702
    1938-Birthday of rockabilly singer Dale Hawkins, born in Goldmine, Louisiana. His brief moment in the national spotlight came in 1957 when” Suzie Q" made it to number 27 on the Billboard pop chart. It's still a favorite oldie, and was revived with great success in 1968 by Creedence Clearwater Revival.
http://www.rockabilly.nl/artists/dhawkins.htm
http://www.tsimon.com/dhawkins.htm
    1938- Count Basie records for Decca records, “Jumpin’ at the Woodside.”
    1938-- America's most famous dancing partners, Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers, appear together on the cover of Life magazine.
    1939- Julian Seth Kahn of New York City received a patent for a “spray can.” It was equipped with an inexpensive disposable valve mechanism. Under controlled pressure, it dispensed such items as whipped cream, paints, pharmaceuticals, and insecticides.
    1944- Cootie Williams cuts the first record of “Round Midnight.”
    1945-Many do not realize that the Vietnam Conflict actually began this day in 1945, less than a week after the Japanese surrender ended World War II, a team of Free French parachuted into southern Indochina in response to a successful coup by a Communist guerrilla named Ho Chi Minh in the French Colony.
    1949----Top Hits
Some Enchanted Evening - Perry Como
Room Full of Roses - The Sammy Kaye Orchestra (vocal: Don Cornell)
You’re Breaking My Heart - Vic Damone
I’m Throwing Rice (At the Girl that I Love) - Eddy Arnold
    1950- Althea Gibson becomes 1st black competitor in national tennis competition at Forrest Hills.
http://www.tennisfame.org/enshrinees/althea_gibson.html
http://www.altheagibson.com/gallery.html
    1956---Three days after signing with Colonel Tom Park, Elvis Presley begins shooting his first movie, "Love Me Tender" a Civil War drama that has been renamed from The Reno Brothers in order to capitalize on his ingle double sided hit, "Don't Be Cruel" / "Hound Dog", reaches number one in the US. Elvis is billed third, but his role, originally offered to Robert Wagner and Jeffrey Hunter, is beefed up to match his new popularity. The title of the movie also becomes a smash record and one that brings him even more fans
    1956- President Dwight Eisenhower and Vice-President Richard Nixon denominated by Republican convention in San Francisco.
http://gi.grolier.com/presidents/ea/bios/34peise.html
    1957----Top Hits
Love Letters in the Sand - Pat Boone
Tammy - Debbie Reynolds
Whispering Bells - The Dell-Vikings
(Let Me Be Your) Teddy Bear - Elvis Presley
    1960--- The Five Satins' "In The Still Of The Nite" enters the charts
    1961- Roger Maris, in his record-setting season, becomes the first player to hit his 50th home run in the month of August. The 26-year old all-star outfielder connects off Ken McBride as the Yankees lose to the Angels, 4-3.
    1962-An early form of karaoke is introduced at the Radio Show at Earl's Court in London, England. A new machine allows the integration of voice to guitars, tapes and even radio, making it possible to sing and play along with records. The device retails for £28.35 ($79).
    1964-Martha & The Vandellas' "Dancing In The Streets" is released.
    1964-Liberty Records reports the album, "The Chipmunks Sing the Beatles" is selling 25,000 copies a day.
    1964-- The Supremes' "Where Did Our Love Go?" hits #1
    1965----Top Hits
I Got You Babe - Sonny & Cher
Save Your Heart for Me - Gary Lewis & The Playboys
Help! - The Beatles
Yes, Mr. Peters - Roy Drusky & Priscilla Mitchell
    1965 -Juan Marichal thinks Johnny Roseboro throws too close to his head returning the ball to Sandy Koufax and attacks Dodger catcher with his bat. The Los Angeles backstop suffers cuts on the head during the 14-minute brawl.
    1966- the United Farm Workers Organizing Committee (UFWOC), later to be renamed the United Farm Workers of America (UFW), was formed.
http://memory.loc.gov/ammem/today/aug22.html
    1967---Birthday of American composer Louis Kobra,born Citrus Heights, CA.
    1968--- The Beatles record "Back In The USSR" 
    1969-Three-day Wild West Festival at the San Francisco Kezar Stadium with Janis Joplin, Turk Murphy, Jefferson Airplane, the Dead, Country Joe, Santana, Sly and the Family Stone and the Youngbloods.
    1970-Creedence Clearwater Revival's "Cosmo's Factory" LP hits #1, a position it would hold for 9 weeks.
    1970- Bread's "Make It With You" hits #1 
    1972 - The Republican party re-nominated Richard M. Nixon (President of U.S.) and Spiro T. Agnew (Vice President) in Miami, FL.
    1973----Top Hits
Touch Me in the Morning - Diana Ross
Live and Let Die - Wings
Brother Louie - Stories
Louisiana Woman, Mississippi Man - Conway Twitty & Loretta Lynn
    1981----Top Hits
Endless Love - Diana Ross & Lionel Richie
Theme from "Greatest American Hero" (Believe It or Not) - Joey Scarbury
Slow Hand - Pointer Sisters
I Don’t Need You - Kenny Rogers
    1982- Ernie Banks becomes the first Cub to have his uniform number (14) retired.
    1984 - The last Volkswagen Rabbit rolled off the assembly line in Westmoreland, PA. Over 11 million of the economical cars had been produced. 
    1985-- Rick Nelson and Fats Domino begin filming the PBS-TV special Rockin' with Rick and Fats, which will turn out to be Nelson's last television appearance before his untimely death in a plane crash.
    1987 - Madonna’s single "Who’s that Girl" hit #1 in the U.S for a short and sweet one-week stay at the top.
    1987-Suzanne Vega's "Luka" peaks at #3 on the pop chart
    1988-- The TV documentary Aretha Franklin: Queen of Soul airs on PBS.
    1989----Top Hits
Right Here Waiting - Richard Marx
On Our Own - Bobby Brown
Cold Hearted - Paula Abdul
Sunday in the South – Shenandoah
    1989-Nolan Ryan of the Texas Rangers became the first pitcher to strike out 5,000 batters when he fanned Rickey Henderson of the Oakland A’s in the fifth inning of a 2-0 Oakland win. Henderson went down on a 3-2 count, winging at a fastball. Ryan ended his career with 5,714 strikeouts.
    1990- President George Bush I calls up military reserves. By November some 230,000 American troops are in Saudi Arabia and President Bush announces that 150,000 more would be sent. By the end of 1990, 580,000 Iraqi troops were believed to be in Kuwait or southern Iraq. Facing them were 485,000 troops of 17 allied countries.
    1990--thunderstorms dropped heavy rains in Virginia with Nassawadox recording 12 inches in just 2 hours. Numerous road washouts occurred including several on U.S. 13, a major route to the Tidewater area.
    1992 - Hurricane Andrew makes landfall in Southern Florida as a Category 5 storm with wind guests estimated in excess of 175 m.p.h. Estimated damages exceeded $20 billion, more than 60 people were killed and approximately 2 million people were evacuated from their homes.
    1993---Top Hits
Can t Help Falling In Love (From "Sliver")- UB40 
Whoomp! (There It Is)- Tag Team
Dreamlover- Mariah Carey
Lately- Jodeci
    1998 -With his 52nd home run, Mark McGwire breaks Babe Ruth's record for round-trippers in three consecutive seasons. 'Big Red' has 162 homers in three seasons (1996-52, 1997-58) compared to the Bambino's 161 dingers hit in 1926-28.
    1998---Top Hits
The Boy Is Mine- Brandy 
My Way- Usher 
The First Night- Monica
Crush- Jennifer Pai
    1988 - The TV documentary Aretha Franklin: Queen of Soul airs on PBS.
    1998 - During his show at the Arrowhead Pond (now Honda Center) in Anaheim, CA, Elton John is joined onstage by fan Jim Carrey, who duets with him on a perfectly serious version of "Rocket Man." Carrey then sits at the piano and plays it by bashing his head onto the keys.
    2000- Hitting a solo blast and a three-run round tripper during a nine-run sixth inning of a 14-6 victory over the Expos, Dodger first baseman Eric Karros becomes the first player in the 111- year franchise history to hit two homers in an inning.
    2002---Top Hits
Dilemma, Nelly Featuring Kelly Rowland
Hot In Herre- Nelly
Complicated- Avril Lavigne
Just A Friend 2002- Mario
    2003-- For the fourth consecutive season, Garret Anderson reaches 100 RBIs mark to become the first player in team history to do so. The Angels' outfielder was also the first to have three straight 100-RBI seasons.
    2008 - Joining Lou Gehrig (2,721) and Babe Ruth (2,518), Derek Jeter becomes the third player to collect 2,500 hits in a Yankee uniform. The milestone safety is a first-inning bloop single off Radhames Liz in New York's 9-4 comeback victory over the Orioles in Baltimore.
    2011 - With two outs in the eighth inning, Matt Holliday is forced to leave the field during the game when a moth gets stuck deeply into his right ear. The Cardinal outfielder is treated in the trainer's room where a utensil is used to extract the embedded insect, and the month still comes out alive.

***
In 1848, Queen Victoria authorized the creation of a "One Hundred Guinea Cup" of solid silver (134oz), 27" tall for a yacht race "open to all nations."

In 1851 one American boat challenged 16 English ships. The Royal Yacht "Squadron" of Cowes, England was the host. The New York Yacht Club entry was the schooner "America." W.H. Brown, the designer, was so confident of his design that he refused payment if "America" did not win. The oft-quoted remark by the Queen was sparked by a great lead and victory around the Isle of Wight over the 16 other yachts. 
She asked, "Who is first?" 
"America" has won, she was told.
"Who was second," asked the Queen?
The reply still echoes -our Majesty, there is no second."

In 30 defenses since then, the interplay of national pride, giant egos, wide-ranging brilliant designs, and now modern technology, have kept the cup very much alive. The 132 years of successful defense by the New York Yacht Club remains the longest record in sports history. Sir Thomas Lipton tried for 31 years to win The Cup, commencing in 1899. From schooners, to J-boats, to 12 meters to the current IOAC designs, men's brains, wits, skills and money have been locked in sea-swept combat.

[headlines]

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SuDoku

The object is to insert the numbers in the boxes to satisfy only one condition: each row, column and 3x3 box must contain the digits 1 through 9 exactly once. What could be simpler?

http://leasingnews.org/Soduku/soduko-main.htm

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Daily Puzzle

How to play:
http://www.setgame.com/set/puzzle_frame.htm

Refresh for current date:
http://www.setgame.com/set/puzzle_frame.htm

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http://www.gasbuddy.com/
http://www.gasbuddy.com/GB_Map_Gas_Prices.aspx
http://www.gasbuddy.com/GB_Mobile_Instructions.aspx

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Weather

See USA map, click to specific area, no commercials

http://www.weather.gov/

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Traffic Live---

Real Time Traffic Information

You can save up to 20 different routes and check them out with one click,
or type in a new route to learn the traffic live

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Independent, unbiased and fair news about the Leasing Industry.