| At 40, ASEAN still struggles for credibility, clout
Standard Chartered economist Alvin Liew said that despite progress in reducing tariffs, profound differences between the region's economies remained a fundamental stumbling block. "The state of a lot of the countries -- the financial sectors and the speed of development -- is still fairly different, and when you talk about financial integration a lot more has to be in place," Liew said. While it may be a talking shop, analysts say, these neighboring nations -- with their history of wars, animosities and confrontation even up until recent times -- are at least still talking. "ASEAN seems to fulfill a particular need and identity for the members of this region," said Ramasamy. "And as long as this need is there, it will continue." .
Senate Scrutiny for Endowments
In the world of tax legislation, hedge funds are the hot topic. The same could be said for the world of university endowment portfolios. Both were scrutinized in a hearing on Wednesday as the Senate Committee on Finance set its sights on the insurance and reinsurance industries, offshore tax havens and, of course, the high-yield but potentially volatile financial products. .
A Shaky Season for Student Loans
Shortly after New Year's Day, Pat Watkins, financial aid director at Eckerd College in St. Petersburg, Fla., placed a worried call to National Education, a student loan company she has been working with for nearly two decades. She had heard rumors that the company was no longer funding federal Stafford and PLUS (Parent Loans for Undergraduate Students) education loans, but had received no official word from the company. She found out that the phone of National Education's local rep had been disconnected. Later she learned that Chicago-based National Education was not planning to accept applications for new loans for the spring semester after Jan. 15, though they planned to fund disbursements for students who received loans for the fall. Federal Loans Lose Funders That was the first surprise.
BUSH'S LEGACY OF SHAME
But as Bush basks in the glow of his own fantasy, the suffering in Gaza, one of the world's worst humanitarian disasters, along with the savage occupation of Iraq, continues to fuel widespread anger and rage. Bush has spent his time in office bolstering the Middle East's most despotic regimes, including that of Gen. Hosni Mubarak in Egypt. He approved a $20-billion arms package for these states. He has backed efforts to crush mainstream Islamic groups that have electoral legitimacy and popular support. He has stood by as these regimes have stifled democratic dissent, and he has, with Israeli encouragement, isolated governments, even friendly governments, in the Middle East that raised feeble protests. But his day is past. There is open revolt. Opinion polls show that two-thirds of Palestinians, and three-fourths of Israelis, do not believe Bush can affect events in the Palestinian territories.
UVa Aid Policy Gets a Facelift
A year ago, the University of Virginia joined the growing list of selective institutions altering their financial aid policies to make them friendlier to students from low-income families. Now it has decided that it needs to do even more, and do it sooner, than originally planned. .
R. Carriere from Maritimes, Canada writes:
Yvonne Wackernagel from Woodville, Canada writes: Let us concentrate on Canada. Remember that CMHC which insured all those "5% down" mortgages.....
Afternoon Yvonne. You bring up an interesting point. Whatever happened to the days of 25% cash down? And why lower the CMHC thingy from 10% to 5%.
House ownership is a great thing-but also dangerous in the wrong circumstances.
Canadian banks are now offereing similar products to their US counterparts-one being paying interest only on a mortgage!
What was even more surprising was the amount of money banks are willing to loan to younger folks based on their earnings. They all have "mortgage calculators" on their web sites and believing in their selfish pursuit of profit only, they are allowing strangling credit to young homeowners.
Sverdlovsk Region
Nearly 2000 public organizations are registered at the regional legal department; most of them operate in Ekaterinburg. The city celebrated its 275th anniversary in 1998.
Today, Ekaterinburg is one of Russia's most dynamic cities in the economic and political sense. Churches are being rebuilt, and the city is developing rapidly. New prospects are combined with respect for former city traditions.
HISTORY
Ekaterinburg was founded in 1723, when Lieutenant-General Georg Wilhelm (Villim Ivanovich) de Gennin commissioned a factory fortress built on the Iset River and named it Ekaterinburg.
Lieutenant Commander Vasily Nikitich Tatishchev chose the construction site for the new factory in early 1721. It was a secure, resource-rich location, with good land and abundant forests.
School has a Means to lead
Means' daily charges are more than 2,100 students in 10th through 12th grades who attend classes at the district's central campus. The sheer number of youths under his supervision makes establishing personal relationships, or even having face-to-face interaction, diffi cult.
Part of it is just being present, Means said.
"It's a challenge. I try to be out in the hallway" when students are changing classes, he said.
He also does lunch duty at least two or three times a week.
"And it's going to various activities, whether that's the school musical or athletic events," he said.
Often, parents tell Means that they hope their children have never been in his office. But the truth is, it probably is a good thing if they have.
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