Spain has now topped that figure, one of the highest in the developed world, as unemployment in the European county reached 26.02% in the fourth quarter of 2012. There are 5.9 million people out of work in the country.

Spain shed 363,000 jobs in the fourth quarter as the government implemented austerity measures to satisfy bond holders. Investors are more confident in Spain’s economy now, but that hasn’t meant much for those out of work. Young people have been especially affected, with 100,000 fewer people age 20-24 employed, according to statistics released by Spain’s National Office of Statistics.

Spain’s unemployment rate is double that of the rest of the Eurozone nations. The country’s weak economy has caused an exodus of both Spaniards and foreigners moving to other European countries and the United States in search of a more stable economy. About 70% more people left Spain in 2011 than in 2010, statistics show.

The nation has lost 850,000 jobs over the last year. Unemployment is especially rampant in the south part of the county, which had flourished from a housing boom beginning a decade ago.

The Spanish government has started developing strategies to entice people to buy up those surplus homes. Last year, it said it was considering offering residency to foreigners who bought property worth $200,000 or more. That could be an easy sell for people with cash on hand: A three-bedroom in Alicante, on the Mediterranean, costs just $130,000.

There are an estimated 700,000 vacant homes in Spain.

Source – Los Angeles Times

While 100 rockets have been fired into Israel on Monday, there have been no reports of any casualties.

An Egyptian ceasefire proposal is under consideration by an Israeli cabinet. While the content of the plan is not known, it is understood that both Israel and Hamas have presented conditions to any potential ceasefire.

While Hamas is demanding and end to the blockade of Gaza and an ending to what it has termed as “Israel’s assassinations”, Israel is demanding no hostile fire of any kind from Gaza as well as international efforts to prevent Hamas from being able to rearm.

An Egyptian official has stated that he was hopeful of being able to make an announcement by Tuesday, now that both senior Israeli and Hamas officials were in Cairo for talks.

The Voynich Manuscript

This sort of fish-out-of-water comedy could have been a flimsy excuse for broad slapstick and absurd high jinks; instead, in the confident hands of director Miguel Arteta (The Good Girl, Chuck & Buck), Cedar Rapids becomes something more humane and, in a quiet way, more ambitious.

Helms manages to make Tim genuine, a man-child but not a cartoon; the movie’s situations skirt wackiness, yet always remain in the realm of something emotionally real. (The movie also reflects the influence of producers Alexander Payne and Jim Taylor, who created the similarly character-rich movies Sideways, Almost Schmidt, and Election.)

The whole cast hits the right notes, from such familiar faces as John C. Reilly (Magnolia, Talladega Nights), Anne Heche, and Sigourney Weaver to such stealthy character actors as Stephen Root (NewsRadio), Rob Corddry (Hot Tub Time Machine), Isiah Whitlock Jr. (The Wire), and Alia Shawkat (Arrested Development).

Cedar Rapids is sweet without being cloying, funny without being manic, and even a little sad at times, without ever turning up the violins on the soundtrack. It’s an honest movie, and there are all too few of them out there.

Mubarak will not be Stepping Down

Mubarak said during the speech “According to the constitution, I will shoulder my responsibilities until the country witnesses the stable and peaceful transfer of power in September. I’ll transfer power to the vice president according to the constitution. Mistakes are possible in any regime, however, it is vital to admit and hold those who make mistakes accountable.”

Mubarak’s speech to the nation has come as a result of the rioting and mass demonstrations that have been taking place across Egypt over the last two weeks. Protestors who had been calling for his resignation, were unsatisfied with his decision. Chants of “he must leave” could be heard at Tahrir Square, i Cairo.

There is already talk amongst some protestors that they will be storming the presidential palace on Friday. Whether or not such an event will take place remains to be seen, although we can be sure that the vast majority of protestors have not been satisfied with what the President had to say in his speech today.

Gas Pipeline Explosion

State television has said that the “situation is very dangerous and explosions were continuing from one spot to another” along the pipeline.

Just a few days ago, Hussein Salem, the main shareholder in the pipeline company fled Cairo, along with other wealthy Egyptians to Dubai, as a result of the uprising that has engulfed Cairo and Alexandria.

Chen Ben Lulu, spokesman of Israel’s Infrastructure Ministry said “At this stage, the gas supply to Israel was stopped according to procedure in emergency scenarios. We are not sure what caused the explosion.”

The blaze was shooting vertically in the air and could be seen from rooftop’s of homes next to the Gaza-Egypt border, about 44 miles away. The fire was brought under control early this morning.

Orgain Food Sales Increase

People often enter the organic food market during pregnancy or after they have given birth, when purchasing baby foods.

It should go without saying that parents want nothing but the best for their children and there is nothing they wouldn’t do especially if it is to their children’s advantage. This holds true not only for the firstborn kid in the family but for all the children in the brood-including the newborns. And when it comes to rearing children the best way, the first thing that comes to mind is giving them the best when it comes to nutrition.

Everybody knows that kids are more vulnerable to the intake of toxins in their food. They are more exposed to the harmful effects of the chemical content of pesticides used in growing traditional vegetables and fruits. Although the cost of organic baby food is a little more expensive than the regular food in jars that are non-organic, parents are always willing to pay the extra dollar if it means more nutritious foods for their babies.

The natural state of this organic food entails another level of safety and protection for babies. This is why pediatricians generally advise parents to slowly introduce organic food to their babies’ diets as soon as they are able to chew solid foods. It should be noted, however, that parents should also keep a watchful eye for any allergens even with organic food.

War on drugs in Mexico

Nuevo Laredo lies just across the border from Texas and has been subject to ongoing battles between rival drug gangs, attempting to control the drug routes into the U.S.

Manuel Farfan, who was a former military officer, was being escorted home, when he was ambushed by gunmen, resulting in his death and at least two of the bodyguards that were accompanying him at the time. Farfan had been in the job in Tamaulipas state for only 33 days.

Tamaulipas has been subject to numerous drug related shootings over the last year, with an estimated 1,200 plus killed. In the last 4 year across Mexico there have been over 34,000 drug related deaths.

Anderson Cooper Attacked in Egypt

In upsetting video footage released by CNN, above, Cooper can be heard declaring he was hit “like 10 times in the mouth” as he attempted to usher various members of his crew, one of them female, through the mob.

“Calm down,” he can be heard saying to the assailants.

Afterward, Cooper sent out an update via Twitter. “Thanks for tweets of concern,” he said. “I’m sore and head hurts but fine. Neil and Mary Anne are bruised but ok too. Thanks”

The silver fox is no stranger to violence overseas — a little more than a year ago in Haiti after the devastating earthquake, Cooper was captured on video carrying to safety a child who was left bloody by looters who’d started throwing rocks and chunks of concrete.

“To me, the story today is not me being attacked, it’s the melee that continues,” Cooper told Show Tracker. “This is a stunning development, and it’s not clear what kind of impact it’s going to have.

Breaking just now is the fact that ABC’s Christiane Amanpour was also attacked by mobs in the city. Here is what she had to say in a report per TMZ on the matter:

“An angry mob surrounded us and chased us into the car shouting that they hate America. They kicked in the car doors and broke our windshield as we drove away.”

Meanwhile, the website also claims that CBS anchor Katie Couric was “roughed up” in the city as well by some of the heated supporters in the city, which has become rather similar to a war zone this week.

Chinese Astrology for 2011 - The Year of The Metal Rabbit

Chinese Astrology for 2011 This information-packed annual guide to the Astrology for 2011 goes beyond the conventional ‘animal book’. In addition to the annual outlook for all 12 animal signs and the 12-month outlook for the year 2011 for each animal sign, the forecast also includes a personalized outlook for 2011 based on the individual’s BaZi Day Pillar (Jia Zi), and a 12-month mini-analysis for each of the 60-Day Pillars (Jia Zi). Find out what 2011 holds in store for you from the 4 key aspects of Health, Wealth, Career and Relationship with Joey Yap’s Astrology for 2011.

Joey Yap is the founder of the Mastery Academy of Chinese Metaphysics, a global organization devoted to the teaching of Feng Shui, BaZi, Mian Xiang and other Chinese Metaphysics subjects. He is also the Chief Consultant Yap Global Consulting, an international consulting firm specializing in Feng Shui and Chinese Astrology services and audits.
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Every year Joey Yap conducts his Feng Shui and Astrology seminar to a crowd of more than 3500 people at the Kuala Lumpur Convention Center. He also takes this annual seminar on a world tour to Frankfurt, San Francisco, New York, Toronto, London, Sydney, Singapore and beyond.

In addition to being a regular guest on various radio and TV shows, Joey Yap has also written columns for The New Straits Times, The Star and The Edge – Malaysia s leading newspapers. He has also been featured in many popular global publications and networks like Time International, Forbes International, the International Herald Tribune and Bloomberg.

He has also hosted his own TV series, Discover Feng Shui with Joey Yap , on 8TV, a local Malaysian network in 2005; and Walking The Dragons with Joey Yap on Astro Wah Lai Toi, Malaysia s cable network in 2008.

Rioting in Tahrir Square Cairo - 3 Killed 1500 Injured

The clashes taking place in Tahrir Square are between pro and anti President Mubarak protestors. Armed with sticks, rocks, petrol bombs and metal bars there have been numerous reports of lynchings taking place on both sides.

There have been reports of tear gas being fired at anti-Mubarak protesters, as well as concrete blocks being thrown on them. For the best part, there seems to be little or no action from the army, other than a few warning shots being fired.

Protestors have been ordered to evacuate the square in a broadcast by the Egyptian state television. There have been calls for the army to intervene, but so far nothing has happened.

Many protestors have warned journalists to watch out for particular groups who have been rumored to be targeting foreigners. There have been some reports of journalists being attacked, including an Al Jazeera cameraman being stabbed and a CNN reporter being beaten.

Supporters of President Mubarak have been accusing the press of being either biased against the president or guilty of one sided reporting.

Right now, it looks like Egypt is slowly descending into civil war. Without some kind of intervention soon, it looks inevitable. Of course whether or not intervention from an outside party is correct or not, that is another matter altogether.