President Obama's Foreign Policy

PRESIDENT OBAMA'S FOREIGN POLICY
Source: http://www.whitehouse.gov/

President Obama and Vice President Biden will renew America’s security and standing in the world through a new era of American leadership. The Obama-Biden foreign policy will end the war in Iraq responsibly, finish the fight against the Taliban and al Qaeda in Afghanistan, secure nuclear weapons and loose nuclear materials from terrorists, and renew American diplomacy to support strong alliances and to seek a lasting peace in the Israeli-Palestinian conflict.

Afghanistan and Pakistan

Afghanistan: Obama and Biden will refocus American resources on the greatest threat to our security -- the resurgence of al Qaeda and the Taliban in Afghanistan and Pakistan. They will increase our troop levels in Afghanistan, press our allies in NATO to do the same, and dedicate more resources to revitalize Afghanistan’s economic development. Obama and Biden will demand the Afghan government do more, including cracking down on corruption and the illicit opium trade.

Pakistan: Obama and Biden will increase nonmilitary aid to Pakistan and hold them accountable for security in the border region with Afghanistan.

Nuclear Weapons
A Record of Results: The gravest danger to the American people is the threat of a terrorist attack with a nuclear weapon and the spread of nuclear weapons to dangerous regimes. Obama has taken bipartisan action to secure nuclear weapons and materials:

He joined Senator Dick Lugar (R-In) in passing a law to help the United States and our allies detect and stop the smuggling of weapons of mass destruction throughout the world.
He joined Senator Chuck Hagel (R-Ne) to introduce a bill that seeks to prevent nuclear terrorism, reduce global nuclear arsenals, and stop the spread of nuclear weapons.

Secure Loose Nuclear Materials from Terrorists: Obama and Biden will secure all loose nuclear materials in the world within four years. While working to secure existing stockpiles of nuclear material, Obama and Biden will negotiate a verifiable global ban on the production of new nuclear weapons material. This will deny terrorists the ability to steal or buy loose nuclear materials.

Strengthen the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty: Obama and Biden will crack down on nuclear proliferation by strengthening the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty so that countries like North Korea and Iran that break the rules will automatically face strong international sanctions.
Move Toward a Nuclear Free World: Obama and Biden will set a goal of a world without nuclear weapons, and pursue it. Obama and Biden will always maintain a strong deterrent as long as nuclear weapons exist. But they will take several steps down the long road toward eliminating nuclear weapons. They will stop the development of new nuclear weapons; work with Russia to take U.S. and Russian ballistic missiles off hair trigger alert; seek dramatic reductions in U.S. and Russian stockpiles of nuclear weapons and material; and set a goal to expand the U.S.-Russian ban on intermediate-range missiles so that the agreement is global.

Iran
Diplomacy: Barack Obama supports tough and direct diplomacy with Iran without preconditions. Now is the time to use the power of American diplomacy to pressure Iran to stop their illicit nuclear program, support for terrorism, and threats toward Israel. Obama and Biden will offer the Iranian regime a choice. If Iran abandons its nuclear program and support for terrorism, we will offer incentives like membership in the World Trade Organization, economic investments, and a move toward normal diplomatic relations. If Iran continues its troubling behavior, we will step up our economic pressure and political isolation. In carrying out this diplomacy, we will coordinate closely with our allies and proceed with careful preparation. Seeking this kind of comprehensive settlement with Iran is our best way to make progress.

Energy Security
Achieving Energy Security: Obama will put America on a path to energy independence by investing $150 billion in renewable and alternative energy over the next ten years -- an investment that will create millions of jobs along the way. He’ll also make the U.S. a leader in the global effort to combat climate change by leading a new international global warming partnership.

Renewing American Diplomacy
Renew our Alliances: Obama and Biden will rebuild our alliances to meet the common challenges of the 21st century. America is strongest when we act alongside strong partners. Now is the time for a new era of international cooperation that strengthens old partnerships and builds new ones to confront the common challenges of the 21st century -- terrorism and nuclear weapons; climate change and poverty; genocide and disease.

Talk to our Foes and Friends: Obama and Biden will pursue tough, direct diplomacy without preconditions with all nations, friend and foe. They will do the careful preparation necessary, but will signal that America is ready to come to the table and is willing to lead. And if America is willing to come to the table, the world will be more willing to rally behind American leadership to deal with challenges like confronting terrorism and Iran and North Korea's nuclear programs.
Israeli-Palestinian Conflict: Obama and Biden will make progress on the Israeli-Palestinian conflict a key diplomatic priority from day one. They will make a sustained push -- working with Israelis and Palestinians -- to achieve the goal of two states, a Jewish state in Israel and a Palestinian state, living side by side in peace and security.

Expand our Diplomatic Presence: To make diplomacy a priority, Obama and Biden will stop shuttering consulates and start opening them in difficult corners of the world -- particularly in Africa. They will expand our foreign service, and develop our civilian capacity to work alongside the military.

Fight Global Poverty: Obama and Biden will embrace the Millennium Development Goal of cutting extreme poverty and hunger around the world in half by 2015, and they will double our foreign assistance to achieve that goal. This will help the world's weakest states build healthy and educated communities, reduce poverty, develop markets, and generate wealth.
Seek New Partnerships in Asia: Obama and Biden will forge a more effective framework in Asia that goes beyond bilateral agreements, occasional summits, and ad hoc arrangements, such as the six-party talks on North Korea. They will maintain strong ties with allies like Japan, South Korea and Australia; work to build an infrastructure with countries in East Asia that can promote stability and prosperity; and work to ensure that China plays by international rules.

Israel
Ensure a Strong U.S.-Israel Partnership: Barack Obama and Joe Biden strongly support the U.S.-Israel relationship, and believe that our first and incontrovertible commitment in the Middle East must be to the security of Israel, America's strongest ally in the region. They support this closeness, and have stated that the United States will never distance itself from Israel.

Support Israel's Right to Self Defense: During the July 2006 Lebanon war, Barack Obama stood up strongly for Israel's right to defend itself from Hezbollah raids and rocket attacks, cosponsoring a Senate resolution against Iran and Syria's involvement in the war, and insisting that Israel should not be pressured into a ceasefire that did not deal with the threat of Hezbollah missiles. He and Joe Biden believe strongly in Israel's right to protect its citizens.

Support Foreign Assistance to Israel: Barack Obama and Joe Biden have consistently supported foreign assistance to Israel. They defend and support the annual foreign aid package that involves both military and economic assistance to Israel and have advocated increased foreign aid budgets to ensure that these funding priorities are met. They have called for continuing U.S. cooperation with Israel in the development of missile defense systems.

Bipartisanship and Openness
A Record of Bringing People Together: In the Senate, Obama has worked with Republicans and Democrats to advance important policy initiatives on securing weapons of mass destruction and conventional weapons, increasing funding for nonproliferation, and countering instability in Congo.

Consultative Group: Obama and Biden will convene a bipartisan Consultative Group of leading members of Congress to foster better executive-legislative relations and bipartisan unity on foreign policy. This group will be comprised of the congressional leadership of both political parties, and the chair and ranking members of the Armed Services, Foreign Relations, Intelligence, and Appropriations Committees. This group will meet with the president once a month to review foreign policy priorities, and will be consulted in advance of military action.
Getting Politics out of Intelligence: Obama will insulate the Director of National Intelligence from political pressure by giving the DNI a fixed term, like the Chairman of the Federal Reserve. Obama and Biden will seek consistency and integrity at the top of our intelligence community -- not just a political ally.

Change the Culture of Secrecy: Obama will institute a National Declassification Center to make declassification secure but routine, efficient, and cost-effective.
Engaging the American People on Foreign Policy: Obama and Biden will bring foreign policy decisions directly to the people by requiring their national security officials to have periodic national broadband town hall meetings to discuss foreign policy. Obama will personally deliver Your Weekly Address via webcast.

President Obama's Economic Agenda

PRESIDENT OBAMA'S RECOVERY AND REINVESTMENT PLAN
Source: http://www.whitehouse.gov

With each passing day, families across America are watching their bills pile up and their savings disappear.

President Obama believes that if we do not act quickly, this recession could linger for years – and America could lose the competitive edge that has served as the foundation for our strength and standing in the world.

That's why the President has put forth an American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan that will jumpstart job creation and long-term growth by:

• Doubling the production of alternative energy in the next three years.
• Modernizing more than 75% of federal buildings and improve the energy efficiency of two million American homes, saving consumers and taxpayers billions on our energy bills.
  Making the immediate investments necessary to ensure that within five years, all of America’s medical records are computerized.
• Equipping tens of thousands of schools, community colleges, and public universities with 21st century classrooms, labs, and libraries.
• Expanding broadband across America, so that a small business in a rural town can connect and compete with their counterparts anywhere in the world.
• Investing in the science, research, and technology that will lead to new medical breakthroughs, new discoveries, and entire new industries.

On January 8th, 2009 -- less than two weeks before taking office -- President Obama spoke on the need for urgent action on his American Recovery and Reinvestment Plan to save or create over 3 million jobs while investing in priorities like health care, energy, and education that will jumpstart economic growth. The plan represents not just a new policy, but a new approach to meeting our most urgent challenges.

Obama's policies: Executive Orders and Presidential Memoranda

OBAMA'S EXECUTIVE ORDERS

January 22, 2009
Review and Disposition of Individuals Detained at the Guantanamo Bay Naval Base and Closure of Detention Facilities
Review of Detention Policy Options
Ensuring Lawful Interrogations

January 21, 2009
Presidential Records
Ethics Commitments by Executive Branch Personnel
Previous Executive Orders

OBAMA'S PRESIDENTIAL MEMORANDA

January 26, 2009
The Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007
State of California Request for Waiver Under 42 U.S.C. 7543(b), the Clean Air Act

January 23, 2009
Mexico City Policy and Assistance for Voluntary Population Planning

January 22, 2009
Review of the Detention of Ali Saleh Kahlah al-Marri

January 21, 2009
Freedom of Information Act
Pay Freeze
Transparency and Open Government

Obama's first full day highlights

• President Barack Obama summoned economic advisers and top military officials to the White House on Wednesday in quick steps toward delivering the change he promised as a candidate. The meeting with economic advisers was called at a time when 11 million Americans are out of work and millions more feel the loss of savings and face the prospect of foreclosures on their homes.
• Defense Secretary Robert Gates and the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Adm. Mike Mullen, were among those called in for the meeting as the new president assumed the role of commander in chief.
• A prayer breakfast and open house at the presidential mansion were also on the schedule of the 44th president,
• Obama's first White House meetings as president meshed with quickened efforts in Congress to add top Cabinet officials to the roster of those confirmed on Tuesday and to advance the economic stimulus measure that is a top priority of his administration.
• Treasury Secretary-designate Tim Geithner was called before the Senate Finance Committee for a confirmation hearing certain to touch on his disclosure that he had only belatedly paid personal taxes owed earlier in the decade.
• Separately, Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton, D-N.Y., awaited confirmation as secretary of state. Republicans had refused to permit her confirmation on Tuesday when several other Cabinet officials were approved.
• Within hours of Obama' taking the oath of office on Tuesday, White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel ordered all federal agencies to put the brakes on any pending regulations that the Bush administration sought to push through in its final days.

US President Obama's Inaugural Speech

My fellow citizens,

I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition.

Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because We the People have remained faithful to the ideals of our forbearers, and true to our founding documents.
So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.

That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.
These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable but no less profound is a sapping of confidence across our land — a nagging fear that America's decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights.

Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America — they will be met.
On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.

On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.

Continue to: We remain a young nation

US President Obama's Inaugural Speech

We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.

In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of short-cuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted — for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things — some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.

For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life.

For us, they toiled in sweatshops and settled the West; endured the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth.

For us, they fought and died, in places like Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sahn.
Time and again these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our individual ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.

This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions — that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.

Continue to: There is work to be done…

US President Obama's Inaugural Speech

For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act — not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth.

We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightful place, and wield technology's wonders to raise health care's quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. All this we will do.

Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions — who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage.

What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them— that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works — whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. And those of us who manage the public's dollars will be held to account — to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day — because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.

Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched, but this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control — and that a nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our Gross Domestic Product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on the ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart — not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.

As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our Founding Fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience's sake. And so to all other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman, and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and we are ready to lead once more.

Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.

Continue to: Keepers of this legacy…

US President Obama's Inaugural Speech

We are the keepers of this legacy. Guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort — even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people, and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the specter of a warming planet. We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you.

For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus — and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.

To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society's ills on the West — know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.

To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world's resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.

As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages. We honor them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment — a moment that will define a generation — it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all.

For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter's courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent's willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.

Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends — honesty and hard work, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism — these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility — a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.

Continue to: Price of citizenship

US President Obama's Inaugural Speech

This is the price and the promise of citizenship.

This is the source of our confidence— the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.

This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed — why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent mall, and why a man whose father less than sixty years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.

So let us mark this day with remembrance, of who we are and how far we have traveled. In the year of America's birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At a moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words be read to the people:
"Let it be told to the future world...that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive ... that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet [it]."

America. In the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children's children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God's grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.

Thank you. God bless you. And God bless the United States of America.

Bangkok: Travel Guide to the City of Angels

Bangkok or Krung Thep means the City of Angels! This buzzling city in Asia was constructed in 1782 or 225 years ago. At present, Bangkok has approximately 10 million population and it is considered one of the biggest city in the world.

I fell in love with this exotic and eccentric city which boasts of its rich cultural heritage. The Grand Palace and Temple of the Emerald Buddha, Temple of the Dawn, Chao Phraya River and Canals (once Venice of the East) are among the many must see places in Bangkok. It is also a noteable shopping paradise in Asia and restaurants all over the city serve excellent seafood and traditional Thai dishes. The promoninent Thai Boxing continues to attract sports-loving visitors while Thai classical dances, golfing, and a long list of other entertainments await the ever inquisitive tourists.

I went for full day tour (floating market, elephant show and snake show) and I was particularly delighted by the floating market. The market was full of sellers, selling everything from fruit, noodles, everyday necessities, to souvenirs, handicrafts, and spices. I roamed the market for about an hour, had fun testing my bargaining skills and bought fried bananas, coconuts, some spices, durians (not to be missed), and mangoes. The market was full of tourists. It was indeed a good experience, definitely one of the high points of my visit to Thailand. Must say that I enjoyed the elephant show as well.

Just around 91 miles southeast of Bankok lies Pattaya, a famous destination for its beautiful beaches, first class and all kinds of hotels, guest houses, superb sea food restuarants and water sports. Souvenir shops and museums reflecting the rich Thai cultural heritage also abound in this magnificient destination.

For the hot-blooded gents, there are a lot of open-air bars, beer bars, discotheques, cabaret shows and other night spots entertainment that keeps you upbeat, or even romantic, at all night! Infact, Pattaya has over 3000 bars catering to all tastes!

Walking Street is the main hub of the nightlife scene in Pattaya and is probably the most exciting street in the world to have fun. Here you will find all kinds of entertainment, from beer bars to cool indoor air-con bars like V2o, discos, Agogo-bars, cabaret shows, street entertainers, market stalls and much more.

Worth checking also is Baby Dolls located in Soi 15 between Walking Street and 2nd Road opposite Whats Up Agogo, where one could found pretty girls dancing or serving beer.

More Islandreefjob offers needed to confront the economic crisis

The Islandreefjob is truly a genius marketing strategy! And imbibes a very positive attitude amidst this global economic crisis. This bold marketing strategy by the Queensland State Government to save the Great Barrier Reef's 18 million dollar tourism industry from the harsh impact of the worsening economic crisis deserves good credits and should inspire both public and private sector stakeholders around the world to follow suit.

News about the Queensland State Government hiring for the "best job in the world" has really captured global interest. This Australian state is offering globally the Islandreefjob, which will be earning a top six figure salary for just "lazing around a beautiful tropical island for six months".

According to the Queensland State Government, the lucky applicant will be hired as the "island caretaker" at the Great Barrier Reef. His work includes strolling its white sand, snorkeling the reef and taking care of a few other minor tasks. The salary? A whooping 150,000 Australian dollars (105,000 US dollars) for this short-term employment.

While this sounds unbelievable, there is wisdom in this marketing strategy and a positive attitude worthy to be praised in this difficult times. I am sure the Queensland State Government will be successful in sustaining tourism revenues and jobs at the Great Barrier Reef by simply hiring the most expensive island caretaker while the whole world is watching!

Are you ready for the best job in the world?

The Queensland State Government is hiring! And they are offering the best job in the world!

This Australian state is offering internationally what it calls "the best job in the world", or the Islandreef Job, which will be earning a top six figure salary for just "lazing around a beautiful tropical island for six months".

According to the Queensland State Government, the lucky applicant will be hired as the "island caretaker" at the Great Barrier Reef. His work includes strolling its white sand, snorkeling the reef and taking care of a few other minor tasks. The salary? A whooping 150,000 Australian dollars (105,000 US dollars) for this short-term employment.

The perks also include free airfares from the winner's home country to Hamilton Island on the Great Barrier Reef. The list of qualifications states that the successful applicant, who will stay rent-free in a three-bedroom beach home complete with plunge pool and golf buggy, must be a good swimmer, excellent communicator and be able to speak and write English.

The fact that they will be paid to explore the islands of the Great Barrier Reef, swim, snorkel and generally live the Queensland lifestyle makes this offer undoubtedly the best job in the world. Oh, how I love to be hired!

But the reason behind this seemingly unbelievable offer is that the Queensland State Government is campaigning to protect the state's 18 billion dollar a year tourism industry from the harsh impact of the economic crisis. This is a daring innovation from traditional tourism advertising. The hiring process will be televised all over the world and the applicants will report to the global audience via weekly blogs, photo diaries and video updates.

Yes, this is a serious offer! A really genius marketing strategy! Applications are open until February 22. There will be eleven shortlisted candidates who will be flown to Hamilton Island in early May for the final selection process and the six month contract will commence on July 1.So interested? You may apply at: Islandreefjob.com

Shopping in Beijing

There are plenty of shopping places in Beijing now—ranging from souvenirs, rip-off designer wares, pirate dvds, fake Chinese antiques, reasonably priced electronics and more. One must be cautioned of the lack of standards and the no return policy in almost 98% of stores. Since the 2008 Olympics, Credit cards are now widely accepted.

Here are the main shopping areas...

Wangfujing Street. Lots of different stores mostly selling souvenirs. Prices not too bad. If you dig around some things can be found cheaper.

Xidan Area. Many large department stores selling good brand fixed price goods including electronic equipment like DVD players. Credit cards widely accepted for electronics and expensive items. Other malls selling cheap clothing with bargaining.

Xiu Shui Jie Shopping Mall/Siu Shui Market. Market-style shopping mall for tourists selling all kinds of clothing, bags, replica designer labels etc. All prices are negotiable so good bargaining skills are essential.

Hong Qiao Market. Located in the south central area of Beijing, this indoor market is popular with foreign students. It is a good source of extremely cheap no-name or fake brand electronics, sunglasses, batteries, watches etc. Bargaining also required.

Things to do and see in Beijing: Night Life in Beijing

Beijing Nightlife Review

Sanlitun Entartainment District used to be the place to be if you wanted to go to a bar. Many many bars, most open till 4am or later and are oozing with certain Beijing feel. Frequented by many foreign customers so you will not feel too out of place. Hou Hai Bar Area, however, has recently taking over the popularity of Sanlintun as the major bar hopping place in Beijing. It is situated around a man-made lake at the north of Beihai Park. Boating is available on the lake till 11pm or 12am in the summer.

I recommend Club Banana for a full Beijing Disco experience. Cute girls, bad girls, shady guys, sound loud enough to make you deaf. It’s a place to be seen, the best and most popular venue in Beijing. If you're looking for a beautifully decked out typical Asian disco experience with a tremendous, fun, atmosphere, look no further. Especially great on Friday and Saturday nights.
Visit Party World for a Beijing Karaoke experience. It hosts a massive chain. Looks more like a 5-Star Hotel than a Karaoke. This place has FREE FOOD!! a lot of the time, and is open 24 hours ! Used to be called Cash Box.

Beijing is one of the few remaining places to still have good variety shows many are included with the price of admission, or even completely free as long as you're drinking/eating something. Check out Success, a very Chinese place near Sanlitun Bar Street. It offers floor shows from 10pm to 12am most days.

Dancing girls, singing guys and girls. Cool place. Not many foreign visitors. The House is also an interesting place in the Wangfujing area used to be a girly bar, but now has a pricy entry fee and includes an all-evening floor show. Dancers, singers, models, comedy, sometimes magic! Male audience targeted.

Beijing Travel Review

Grand Hyatt Beijing

Beijing has for a long time been associated with the famous portrait of Mao Zedong, as though he's guarding communist austerity and discipline. But the Beijing he used to be watching is now hardly the city he left behind.

Change looms everywhere—in the clothes; in the increasingly paralyzing traffic (more and more foreign- and Chinese-made automobiles jam the streets); in the electronics (mobile phones, mobile phones, mobile phones); and in the construction (high-rises, high-rises, high-rises). If you scrub off the Gobi Desert dust, which is glued to everything with diesel exhaust, you'll find Beijing's true patina—a mixture of old and new. It may surprise you that you can still catch the glimmer of an ancient, lacquered temple or a traditional jadeite bracelet contrasted with the machine-made gleam of chrome and glass.

No doubt it's a calculated gleam. The Chinese government wants Beijing to be recognized as a modern world capital—modern enough for foreign investment, modern enough to host the 2008 Summer Olympics. Beijing is a huge, burgeoning metropolis, with bulldozers carving the way to its future.

Israel's attacks on Gaza continue

Israel continues to pound Hamas despite UN's call for a ceasfire. Israeli aircrafts struck more than 30 targets before dawn today rasing the toll of casualties to more than 800 people, including hundreds of civilians, according to Palestinian medics. When is this madness going to end?

Stock Tips: Investing Momentum

A method of picking stocks that is closely related to technical analysis is momentum investing. Anyone who's ever parked a car on a hill but forgot to set the brake knows how quickly a moving automobile can pick up speed. That's momentum in action!

Momentum investors look for stocks that are moving at high speeds, on the theory that you can just ride out a stock as long as it continues to rise in price -- as long as you bail out before the stock crashes and burns.

Investors gauge momentum in one of two basic ways, by looking at the performance of a company's earnings, or a company's price. Momentum investors believe that those companies with the biggest price changes over the most recent few months are poised to continue making big gains. And companies that have earnings that are growing very quickly, say 30 percent a year or more, are also game for momentum investing. Some investors look for stocks whose earnings estimates are continually revised upward by analysts, or whose earnings continually surprise Wall Street by being higher than expected.

The risk in momentum investing is that these stocks are usually very popular with investors. That means that their prices and P/E ratios are probably already very high. The first time one of these stocks posts disappointing earnings, it will be quickly punished, and the price will drop just as quickly.

Investorama

Defensive Investing Strategy

These three classic defensive strategies are crucial if you want to maximize your gains while limiting your risk.

Diversification
The single best way to protect yourself from a meltdown in one stock or industry is to spread your risk across several different investments. The more diversified your portfolio is, the less any one stock can hurt you by blowing up.

If you've got the time and energy, you can create your own diversified portfolio. But it will mean keeping track of at least 20 different stocks or bonds at once -- a daunting task, to say the least. A much easier solution is to buy a range of mutual funds and leave the diversification worries up to professional management. As we discuss in depth in our Mutual Fund section, by purchasing a fund that invests in large, blue-chip companies, another that looks for smaller growth companies and yet another that invests overseas, you can easily spread your money across hundreds of separate stocks. You'll pay a little in fees, but the savings in time and aggravation are probably worth it.

Cost Averaging
Cost averaging is another form of diversification -- only instead of spreading your money over a bunch of different stocks or bonds, it diversifies your investments over time. The natural human tendency is to buy lots of stock when prices are rising and to stop buying them altogether when prices are on the downswing. Cost averaging forces you to do the opposite -- you end up buying the most stock when prices are low.

A lot of people also use dollar-cost averaging when they want to move a big chunk of money into the market -- an inheritance, say, or a year-end bonus. The idea here is to protect yourself from putting all your money in at once and having the market crash days or weeks later. It's true that if the market moves sharply higher, you've missed an opportunity. But in volatile times, that risk is worth it.

Asset Allocation
Asset allocation is yet another way to diversify. It takes advantage of the fact that when it comes to risk and reward, financial categories like stocks, bonds and money-market accounts all behave quite differently.

Stocks, for instance, offer the highest returns among those three "asset classes," but they also carry the highest risk of losses. Bonds aren't so lucrative, but they offer a lot more stability than stocks. Money-market returns are puny, but you'll never lose your initial investment. An asset-allocation strategy looks at your particular goals and circumstances and determines what asset mix gives you the optimal blend of risk and reward.

Somali pirates drown with $3 million ransom

Five of the Somali pirates who released a hijacked oil-laden Saudi supertanker drowned with their share of a reported $3 million ransom after their small boat capsized, a pirate and a relative of one of the dead men said Saturday.

Pirate Daud Nure said the boat with eight people on board overturned in a storm after dozens of pirates left the Sirius Star following a two-month standoff in the Gulf of Aden that ended Friday.

He said five people died and three people reached shore after swimming for several hours. Daud Nure was not part of the pirate operation but knew those involved.

Abukar Haji, the uncle of one of the dead men, said the deaths were an accident.

"The boat the pirates were traveling in capsized because it was running at high speed because the pirates were afraid of an attack from the warships patrolling around," he said.

"There has been human and monetary loss but what makes us feel sad is that we don't still have the dead bodies of our relatives. Four are still missing and one washed up on the shore."

MOHAMED OLAD HASSAN, Associated Press Writer

Israel warns Gaza war could escalate!

Israeli forces pounded rocket-launching sites and smuggling tunnels in Gaza Saturday and planes dropped leaflets warning of an escalation in attacks, as Palestinian militants fired at least 10 more rockets at Israel.

Flames and smoke rose over Gaza City amid the heavy fighting. The Israeli threat to launch a "new phase" in its two-week-old offensive that has already killed more than 800 Palestinians came in defiance of international calls for a cease-fire.

"The IDF (Israeli Defense Forces) will escalate the operation in the Gaza Strip," the leaflets said in Arabic. "The IDF is not working against the people of Gaza but against Hamas and the terrorists only. Stay safe by following our orders."

The leaflets urged Gaza residents not to help Hamas, the Islamic militant group that rules Gaza, and to stay away from its members.

Israel launched the offensive on Dec. 27 to halt years of Palestinian rocket attacks on southern Israel. A week later, ground troops moved in.

The dropping of the leaflets appeared to be partly a psychological tactic. Israeli defense officials say they are prepared for a third stage of the offensive, in which ground troops would push much further into Gaza, but are still waiting for approval from the government.

The officials, speaking on condition of anonymity because they were discussing classified information, said the army also has a fourth stage planned that calls for a full reoccupation of Gaza and toppling of Hamas.

The Israeli military said more than 15 militants were killed in overnight fighting. It said aircraft attacked more than 40 targets including 10 rocket-launching sites, weapons-storage facilities, smuggling tunnels, an anti-aircraft missile launcher and gunmen.

In the day's bloodiest incident, an Israeli tank shell killed nine people in a garden outside a home in the northern Gaza town of Jebaliya. Separately, a woman was killed by tank fire in the nearby town of Beit Lahiya.

IBRAHIM BARZAK and JOSEF FEDERMAN, Associated Press

Obama details analysis of economic recovery plan

In response to growing criticism of his economic recovery plan, President-elect Barack Obama detailed Saturday an internal analysis by his economic advisers that estimates the $775 billion plan of tax cuts and new spending would create 3.5 million jobs over the next two years.

However, the president-elect's advisers conceded in the 14-page report Obama posted on the Internet that their estimates are "subject to significant margins of error," because of the assumptions that went into their economic models and that no knows the final outlines of the package that will emerge from Congress.

"These numbers are a stark reminder that we simply cannot continue on our current path," Obama said Saturday in his weekly radio and YouTube broadcast address.

"If nothing is done, economists from across the spectrum tell us that this recession could linger for years and the unemployment rate could reach double digits -- and they warn that our nation could lose the competitive edge that has served as a foundation for our strength and standing in the world," he said.

Obama, who previously has provided few details of the massive spending and tax cut plan, released the report one day after the unemployment rate jumped to 7.2 percent, the highest in 16 years. The nation lost 524,000 jobs in December, bringing the total job loss for last year to 2.6 million, the largest since World War II.

If Congress fails to enact a big economic stimulus plan, Obama's advisers estimated that another 3 million to 4 million jobs will disappear before the recession ends.

As lawmaker criticisms of parts of his plan grew during the week, Obama agreed Friday to modest changes in his proposed tax cuts. Democratic congressional officials said his aides came under pressure in closed-door talks to jettison or significantly alter a proposed tax credit for creating jobs, and to include relief for upper middle-class families hit by the alternative minimum tax.

Read more for about Obama's recovery plan here: http://change.gov/

Vote for the 7 Wonders of the World

Organizers for the competition to pick the New Seven Wonders of Nature are leaving the final selection up to you.

Visitors to the New 7 Wonders Website can choose from 261 nominees from 222 countries competing to make it to the top 77.

Some of the most famous natural sites, like Niagara Falls and the Great Barrier Reef, are included in the competition.

More than a billion people are expected to take part in Internet voting to name the 77 semifinalists.

Nominees include For a full list of nominees, visit www.new7wonders.com or go straight to the voting page to cast your ballot.