December 10, 2012


Obamas WILL attend Gangnam Style singer's concert despite furor over pop star PSY's rap about murdering U.S. troops and their children 'slowly and painfully'

  • TNT confirmed Psy will still close the annual 'Christmas in Washington' show

  • President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle will attend the concert as per tradition
  • South Korean rapper whose song has nearly 1 billion views appeared at anti-US protests in 2002

  • Violent language suggested killing American military and their families
  • Petition was started urging event organisers to uninvite the rapper

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'Gangnam Style' rapper PSY will perform as planned at a Christmas concert in Washington and President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama will be there to watch him.
The President was being urged to boycott the 'Christmas in Washington' show and critics were demanding the 34-year-old South Korean pop star be uninvited after it was revealed he once sang about slowly killing American troops and their families.
But TNT - the TV station airing the annual spectacle on December 21 - told NBC News that, despite the furor, PSY will still close the annual event and the Obama's will attend the concert, as per tradition.  
Anti-American? Psy (center) appears with comedian Kathy Griffin (left) and singer Miley Cyrus (right) at the 2012 iHeartRadio Music Festival
Anti-American? Psy (center) appears with comedian Kathy Griffin (left) and singer Miley Cyrus (right) at the 2012 iHeartRadio Music Festival
Psy, with his face painted gold, posed with a model of an camouflaged tank during the 2002 anti-war demonstrations in Seoul
Psy, with his face painted gold, posed with a model of an camouflaged tank during the 2002 anti-war demonstrations in Seoul
The 'American' tank didn't last long
The 'American' tank didn't last long
Psy violently smashed the model up on stage
Psy violently smashed the model up on stage
The rap sensation's graphic 2004 anti-American song sparked an angry petition on the White House website urging organizers of the event, which will be pre-recorded this Sunday, to scratch him from the line up.
The petition rapidly made the rounds on social media websites as thousands took to Twitter, Facebook and online message boards to react to the vitriolic lyrics that PSY once sang about murdering American soldiers 'slowly and painfully'. 
 
The hashtag 'GangnamStyleHatesAmerica' was trending as people unloaded on the artist, even after the pop sensation offered a heartfelt apology for the lyrics, which he sang during a massive protest. 
'Reject PSY's apology, you just don't get away with wishing torture & murder on children' wrote @Onision.
@Lizzy3698 wrote: 'Having my father and two brothers in the military I was deeply hurt by this. PSY is literally f**king psycho.'
Another user, @StacyOnTheRight wrote, commented: 'Perhaps Psy would like to address his ridiculous raps to me directly. I'm a Veteran.'
A user commenting on a Daily Mail story wrote: 'As a U.S. Army National Guard MP, I wish he would think about the sacrifice of U.S. soldiers in the Korean conflict.'
President Obama is still planning to attend the 'Christmas in Washington' show despite the revelations about PSY, a spokesman for the president confirmed and the petition to have the artist uninvited from the show was shut down by the White House within hours of going live.
It was replaced by a message from administrators that said: 'The petition... has been removed from the site under our Moderation Policy because it is in violation of our Terms of Participation,' the message read. It was unclear what policies the petition had violated.
Psy performs the Gangnam Style dance with U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (left). The U.N. leader has described the song as a 'force for good'
Psy performs the Gangnam Style dance with U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon (left). The U.N. leader has described the song as a 'force for good'

Tragic deaths: Posters show the faces of Shim Mi-seon and Shin Hyo-sun, the teenage girls crushed by a U.S. army vehicle, during an anti-American rally in 2002
Tragic deaths: Posters show the faces of Shim Mi-seon and Shin Hyo-sun, the teenage girls crushed by a U.S. army vehicle, during an anti-American rally in 2002
The event will be taped this weekend for broadcast on TNT the Friday before Christmas. The Obamas and other Washington notables are scheduled to attend the show, hosted by Conan O'Brien. 
As well as Phy's 'special performance' to close the charity concert, Diana Ross, Demi Lovato and Scotty McCreery are also scheduled to sing.
PSY is under fire for his actions during an anti-American protest in Seoul in 200, in which he smashed a model American tank live on stage. He first held the tank above his head, before throwing it to the floor and violently breaking it up with a microphone stand. 
The demonstration happened during strong anti-American sentiment in the country after a 50-tonne U.S. armored vehicle killed two 14-year-old South Korean girls, Shim Mi-seon and Shin Hyo-sun, on their way to a birthday party. 
Sergeants Mark Walker and Fernando Nino were in charge of the vehicle at the time of the accident and were charged with negligent homicide. 
American military officials refused requests for the soldiers to be tried in South Korean courts.
When the two men were found not guilty by a U.S. military court in February 2002, it ignited massive anti-American protests. The memory of the two girls is commemorated annually in South Korea.
Then, two years later, a protest concert was held in Seoul after the killing of Kim Sun-il, a South Korean missionary and translator. He was beheaded by militants in Iraq after his country sent 3,000 troops to the region.
At this 2004 anti-war event, a group of musicians, including Psy, performed Dear American, a protest song written by Korean rock band N.E.X.T. 
When it came to Psy's turn he rapped about 'killing those f***ing Yankees who have been torturing Iraqi captives.
'Kill their daughters, mothers, daughters-in-law and fathers.
'Kill them all slowly and painfully.'
Psy has been teaching his unique dance on talk shows, included Extra at The Grove
Psy has been teaching his unique dance on talk shows, included Extra at The Grove
Anger is growing in America, a country that has taken Psy to heart this year, making Gangnam Style the music sensation of 2012. 
Psy on Friday apologized, saying:  'As a proud South Korean who was educated in the United States and lived there for a very significant part of my life, I understand the sacrifices American servicemen and women have made to protect freedom and democracy in my country and around the world. 
'The song I was featured in - from eight years ago - was part of a deeply emotional reaction to the war in Iraq and the killing of two innocent Korean civilians that was part of the overall antiwar sentiment shared by others around the world at that time,' Psy's statement read. 
'While I'm grateful for the freedom to express one's self I've learned there are limits to what language is appropriate and I'm deeply sorry for how these lyrics could be interpreted. 
'I will forever be sorry for any pain I have caused anyone by those words.'
'While it's important we express our opinions, I deeply regret the inflammatory and inappropriate language I used to do so. 
'In my music I try to give people a release, a reason to smile. 
'I have learned that though music, our universal language we can all come together as a culture of humanity and I hope that you will accept my apology.'
Psy's unique 'sexy horse' dance has been performed by celebrities and politicians, including everyone from Madonna to UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon. 
The UN leader described the song as 'force for world peace.'
Psy performed Gangnam Style at the 2012 MTV Video Music Awards in September. 
Since then he has appeared on the Ellen DeGeneres Show (twice), the Today show, Saturday Night Live at the iHeartRadio Music Festival, the Formula One Korean Grand Prix, the 2012 MTV Europe Music Awards and the Tonight show with Jay Leno. 

PSY'S ANTI-AMERICAN RAP

'Kill those f*****g Yankees who have been torturing Iraqi captives
Kill those f*****g Yankees who ordered them to torture
Kill their daughters, mothers, daughters-in-law and fathers
Kill them all slowly and painfully'

Watch video: Psy's Gangnam Style, the most popular video of all time on YouTube


Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2244800/Psy-Obamas-WILL-attend-Gangnam-Style-singers-concert-despite-furor-pop-star-Psys-rap.html#ixzz2Eerr5yxS
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December 9, 2012

THIS IS A BIG REASON WHY PHILADELPHIA IS GOING BANKRUPT. YOU CANNOT JUSTIFY TO ME ANY OF THESE PEOPLE ACTUALLY EARN THEIR PAYCHECKS.

LOWER LEVEL CITY WORKERS SCAM THE TAXPAYERS ALL THE TIME.



The 100 Highest-Paid City of Philadelphia Employees

Chances are, these people make more than you do.

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Ah, tax season. It’s that time of year when you’re reminded of how much (or how little) you make and how much of it you give away to the government. Well, with the per capita income in Philadelphia at just over $20,000 and the median household income at a paltry $36,000, I thought it would be a good time to see just how much money our local government officials and workers earn for the work that they do (or don’t do, in rare cases.)
Here, the 100 highest-paid employees in the City of Philadelphia, who collectively account for $14,790,649 of your tax dollars each year, assuming that you’re not one of those Philadelphians who cheat on their taxes. (Consider that if the city collected what people owe in Business Privilege Taxes alone, it would pay all of these people for 26 years.) No,District Attorney Seth Williams’s $75,000 party planner Monique Wescott didn’t make the cut, but guess whose department is the single biggest salary sucker on this list? Yep, the District Attorney’s. DA Williams has more people (and cash) on here than any other branch of Philadelphia government by far.
  1. Charles Ramsey, Police Commissioner, $255,000
  2. Sam Gulino, Medical Examiner, $239,200
  3. Michael Nutter, Mayor, $202,433
  4. Mark Gale, CEO of Aviation, $200,000
  5. Siobhan Reardon, Library President, $192,500
  6. Everett Gillison, Managing Dir.’s Chief Of Staff, $178,650
  7. Gary Collins, Dep. Medical Examiner, $176,341
  8. Shelley Smith, City Solicitor, $174,464
  9. Richard Negrin, Dep. Mayor/Managing Dir., $171,000
  10. Adel Ebeid, Chief Innovation Officer, $170,000
  11. Seth Williams, District Attorney, $168,541
  12. Robert Dubow, Finance Dir., $165,741
  13. Edward McCann, Dep. DA, $163,602
  14. Nola Joyce, Dep. Managing Dir., $160,680
  15. Alan Greenberger, Dep. Mayor Econ. Dev., $160,000
  16. Francis Bielli, Pensions Dir., $160,000
  17. Rina Cutler, Dep. Mayor Transportation, $160,000
  18. George Mosee, Dep. DA, $157,960
  19. Ann Ponterio, Asst. DA, $157,960
  20. John Delaney, Dep. DA, $157,960
  21. Ronald Eisenberg, Dep. DA, $157,960
  22. Curtis Douglas, Dep. DA, $157,960
  23. Jodi Lobel, Dep. DA, $157,960
  24. Sarah Hart, Asst. DA, $156,960
  25. Gary Steuer, Chief Cultural Officer, $156,750
  26. Richard Ross, Dep. Police Commissioner, $156,604
  27. Patricia Giorgio-Fox, Dep. Police Commissioner, $156,604
  28. Cameron Snider, Asst. Medical Examiner, $155,717
  29. Michael Garvey, Dep. Managing Dir., $155,000
  30. Teresa Gillen, Mayor’s Senior Advisor Econ. Dev., $155,000
  31. Donna Mouzayck, First Dep. City Solicitor, $153,645
  32. David Wilson, Dep. Managing Dir., $152,000
  33. Donald Schwarz, Health Commissioner, $152,000
  34. Michael Di Berardinis, Special Adv. Parks & Rec,$152,000
  35. Suzanne Biemiller, Mayor’s First Dep. Chief Of Staff, $152,000
  36. Darrell Clarke, President Of City Council, $150,904
  37. Kevin Bethel, Dep. Police Commissioner, $150,582
  38. John Gaittens, Dep. Police Commissioner, $150,582
  39. Charlotte Council, Dep. Police Commissioner, $150,582
  40. Thomas Wright, Dep. Police Commissioner, $150,582
  41. William Blackburn, Dep. Police Commissioner, $150,582
  42. Sumit Handa, Pensions Chief Investment Officer, $150,000
  43. Rochelle Cameron, Dep. Dir. Of Aviation, $150,000
  44. Rebecca Rhynhart, Dep. Dir. Of Finance, $150,000
  45. Catherine Paster, First Dep. Dir. Of Finance, $150,000
  46. Anne Marie Ambrose, DHS Commissioner, $150,000
  47. Arthur Evans, Dir Of Ofce Of Beh Hlth/Mental Retard Svs, $150,000
  48. Joan Markman , Chief Integrity Officer, $150,000
  49. Lloyd Ayers, Fire Commissioner, $149,968
  50. George Hayes, Medical Services Dir., $148,732
  51. Edwin Lieberman, Pathologist, $148,532
  52. Stephen Johnson, Dep. Police Commissioner , $144,790
  53. Clarena Tolson, Streets Commissioner, $144,612
  54. Richie McKeithen, Chief Assessment Officer , $143,850
  55. Amy Kurland, Inspector General, $142,500
  56. Judith Cassel, Dep. Dir. Of Finance, $142,500
  57. Desiree Peterkin Bell, Mayor’s Dir. Of Communications, $142,500
  58. Lori Shorr, Mayor’s Chief Education Advisor, $142,500
  59. Hugh Burns, Dep. DA, $142,000
  60. Howard Neukrug, Water Commissioner, $141,398
  61. Nancy Winkler, Dep. Dir. Of Finance, $140,000
  62. Folasade Olanipekun-Lewis, City Council CFO, $140,000
  63. Angela Dowd Burton, Exec. Dir. Office Econ. Opportunity, $135,000
  64. Giridhar Mallya, Health Dir. Of Policy & Planning, $135,000
  65. Barry Scott, Dep. Dir. Of Finance-Risk Mgmt., $133,900
  66. Laurie Malone, Dep. DA, $132,000
  67. Hal Fichandler, City Council Senior Legislative Advisor, $131,206
  68. Alvin Powell, Medical Dir./Lab. Services, $131,117
  69. Michael Covone, Behav. Health Mental Health Admin, $131,000
  70. Vanessa Harley, DHS Dep. Commissioner, $130,510
  71. Edward Cameron, Asst. DA, $130,400
  72. Joan Schlotterbeck, Commissioner Of Public Property, $130,000
  73. Patrick Blessington, Asst. DA., $130,000
  74. Jeremiah Connors, Dep. Dir. Of Finance, $130,000
  75. Deborah McColloch, Office of Housing Dir., $130,000
  76. Lewis Rosman, Mayor’s Dir. Of Legislative Affairs, $130,000
  77. Karen Brancheau Jordan, Asst. DA, $129,649
  78. Rita Eburuoh, DoH Medical Care Clinical Dir., $129,375
  79. Albert D. Attilio, Dir. Of Human Resources, $129,232
  80. Stephanie Singer, City Commissioner, $128,821
  81. Curtis Jones, City Council Member, $128,821
  82. Daniel Hertzler, Chair, Corporate Group (Law), $128,544
  83. Elizabeth Mattioni, Chair, Litigation Group (Law), $128,544
  84. Duane Bumb, Dep. Dir. Of Commerce, $128,544
  85. Louis Giorla, Acting Prisons Commissioner, $128,544
  86. Mark Gilson, Asst. DA, $128,000
  87. Daniel Heitzer, Dep. Chief Information Officer, $128,000
  88. William Carter, City Council Gen. Counsel, $127,500
  89. Gary Jastrzab, City Planning Executive Dir., $126,406
  90. Brian O’Neill, City Council Member, $126,366
  91. Blondell Reynolds Brown, City Council Member, $126,366
  92. Anne Kelly, City Council Chief Of Staff, $125,795
  93. Joseph Whitehead, Asst. DA, $125,660
  94. Barbara Ash, DHS Chief Dep-City Solicitor-Litigation, $125,510
  95. Frances Burns, L&I Commissioner, $125,000
  96. Lawrence Saltzman, Information Technology Officer, $125,000
  97. Keith Brune, Dep. Dir. Of Aviation, $124,997
  98. Calvin Davenger, Dep. Dir. Of Aviation, $124,997
  99. James Tyrrell, Dep. Dir. Of Aviation, $124,997
  100. Shane Creamer, Exec. Dir. Board of Ethics, $124,800

November 28, 2012



Secretary of State Candidate Has a Major Financial Stake in Canadian Tar Sands






Susan Rice, the candidate believed to be favored by President Obama to become the next Secretary of State, holds significant investments in more than a dozen Canadian oil companies and banks that would stand to benefit from expansion of the North American tar sands industry and construction of the proposed $7 billion Keystone XL pipeline. If confirmed by the Senate, one of Rice’s first duties likely would be consideration, and potentially approval, of the controversial mega-project.
Rice's financial holdings could raise questions about her status as a neutral decision maker. The current U.S. ambassador to the United Nations, Rice owns stock valued between $300,000 and $600,000 in TransCanada, the company seeking a federal permit to transport tar sands crude 1,700 miles to refineries on the Texas Gulf Coast, crossing fragile Midwest ecosystems and the largest freshwater aquifer in North America.
Beyond that, according to financial disclosure reports, about a third of Rice’s personal net worth is tied up in oil producers, pipeline operators, and related energy industries north of the 49th parallel -- including companies with poor environmental and safety records on both U.S. and Canadian soil. Rice and her husband own at least $1.25 million worth of stock in four of Canada’s eight leading oil producers, as ranked by Forbes magazine. That includes Enbridge, which spilled more than a million gallons of toxic bitumen into Michigan’s Kalamazoo River in 2010 -- the largest inland oil spill in U.S. history.
Rice also has smaller stakes in several other big Canadian energy firms, as well as the country’s transportation companies and coal-fired utilities. Another 20 percent or so of her personal wealth is derived from investments in five Canadian banks. These are some of the institutions that provide loans and financial backing to TransCanada and its competitors for tar sands extraction and major infrastructure projects, such as Keystone XL and Enbridge’s proposed Northern Gateway pipeline, which would stretch 700 miles from Alberta to the Canadian coast.
In 2010, for instance, when Rice and her husband held at least $1.5 million in Royal Bank of Canada, the institution was labeled Canada's most environmentally irresponsible company by the Rainforest Action Network for its support of tar sands development. Public pressure from environmentalists and Canada’s First Nations tribes convinced the bank to stop funding tar sands projects earlier this year.
“It’s really amazing that they’re considering someone for Secretary of State who has millions invested in these companies,” said Bill McKibben, a writer and founder of the activist groups 350.org and Tar Sands Action, which have organized protests against the Keystone XL project. “The State Department has been rife with collusion with the Canadian pipeline builders, and it’s really distressing to have any sense that that might continue to go on.” Emails obtained by an environmental group last year show what critics call a “cozy and complicitous relationship” between State Department officials and a lobbyist for TransCanada, who was also a former deputy campaign director for current Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's failed 2008 presidential bid. The agency also assigned an environmental impact review of the Keystone project to a company with financial ties to TransCanada.
As ambassador to the United Nations, Rice has not been directly involved in the State Department’s Keystone XL review, which came to a head at the end of 2011. After initially indicating it would likely approve TransCanada’s application, the State Department ordered a review of alternate routes to avoid putting critical water sources in Nebraska at risk. The move, which officials said would likely push the approval process back to the first three months of 2013, was an attempt to spare the Obama administration a politically risky decision just before an election year.
Greenlighting the pipeline would have hurt the president with environmental advocates -- more than 1,200 people were arrested in anti-Keystone protests led by McKibben at the White House in Summer 2011. But denying it outright would have given Republicans an election year attack line, saying Obama had cost the nation much-needed jobs (although independent studies have shown that TransCanada’s job creation claims for the pipeline are greatly exaggerated). As it was, the president still received significant heat, and Mitt Romney pledged to approve the pipeline on Day 1 if he had won the election.
Were she to become Secretary of State, Rice would be in charge of the new environmental review process and would be in a position to decide whether to issue TransCanada a permit for sections of Keystone XL stretching from Oklahoma to the Canadian border. (The pipeline’s southernmost leg has already been approved and is under construction in Texas -- with protesters perching in trees and chaining themselves to construction equipment in an attempt to stop it.)
Rice is reportedly Obama’s favorite to take the helm at the State Department next year. Clinton has said repeatedly that she plans to step down shortly after Obama’s second inauguration in January. In addition to Rice, reportedly the president's lead candidate for the job, U.S. Senator John Kerry had also reportedly made it onto the president’s short list. Kerry, whose net worth of at least $232 million makes him far wealthier than Rice, does not own shares of TransCanada or Enbridge, the major tar sands pipeline companies, although he does have stock in some other Canadian energy interests.
According to the Center for Responsive Politics, Rice’s net worth sat somewhere between $23.5 million and $43.5 million in 2009, the latest year for which the center has done a full analysis of her finances. That makes her either the wealthiest person currently serving in the executive branch or a close second to Clinton. (The uncertainty surrounding these figures is due to the way officials are required to disclose their investments; instead of declaring the specific amount of stock they own, they are required by law only to declare a range.)
Other public officials have been criticized for pushing for the Keystone XL project while standing to benefit financially. The nonprofit Sunlight Foundation watchdog group reported in December 2011 that four members of Congress who own shares in TransCanada had pressed for the pipeline’s approval -- either by supporting bills that would have forced the State Department to issue a permit or by writing to Clinton or Obama, urging them to give the go-ahead. Rice’s ownership of TransCanada stock was noted by the Sunlight Foundation but not considered a conflict of interest at the time, because she had no direct role in the approval process.
Neither Rice’s office nor the White House returned OnEarth’s calls for comment about her financial holdings.
It’s unclear when Rice began investing in Canadian energy and banks, but the Stanford University graduate and Rhodes Scholar worked for the prestigious McKinsey & Company consulting firm’s Toronto office from 1990 to 1993, marrying Canadian-born TV producer Ian Cameron in 1992. She then joined the National Security Council under President Bill Clinton. (Financial disclosure forms aren’t available for Rice’s security council tenure; by law, they’re destroyed after six years.) Rice later became President Clinton’s assistant secretary of state for African affairs, then joined the nonprofit Brookings Institution think tank during the George W. Bush administration. She advised both the Kerry and Obama presidential campaigns on foreign policy.
According to the reports she filed in May 2012, Rice and her husband have a wide-ranging portfolio that includes more than 100 securities, such as IBM, Monsanto, Apple, BP, and McDonald’s. Dan Auble, a researcher at the Center for Responsive Politics who studies the personal finances of public officials, said it’s not unusual to see energy investments play a significant role in their financial portfolios, as they do with Rice and her husband. (Auble said the holdings of a public official’s spouse are included in financial disclosure reports because they have the same potential to create a conflict of interest.) In their case, however, nine of the 14 holdings they claimed that top $500,000 are Canadian energy interests or banks.
If Rice does get the Secretary of State job, federal ethics officials could recommend that she sell her stock in TransCanada and related companies before deciding on Keystone XL, Auble said. But that’s not a sure thing.
Leading Keystone opponents say they wouldn’t necessarily oppose Rice’s nomination -- but they would want someone else in charge of deciding the pipeline’s fate. “It would be one of the first decisions she would make, and she’s not qualified to make an unbiased decision,” said Jane Kleeb, the executive director of Bold Nebraska, a group that has fought to block the Keystone XL pipeline.
“It’s one more clear sign that the State Department should not be handling this,” added McKibben (who is also an OnEarth contributing editor). Both advocates believe the Environmental Protection Agency or the White House Council on Environmental Quality would be more qualified to assess the environmental impacts of Keystone XL. But an executive order issued by President George W. Bush in April 2004 makes the Secretary of State responsible for approving pipelines that cross the U.S. border. Kleeb suggested that Obama could change that order to shift the decision-making responsibility elsewhere.
Environmental advocates (including the Natural Resources Defense Council, which publishes OnEarth) have sought to block the Keystone XL pipeline and further development of the Alberta tar sands fields due to their climate impact and potential for pollution and dangerous oil spills. Extracting bitumen -- a heavy, viscous black oil -- requires intensive open-pit mining in the heart of Canada’s boreal forest. More dirty and corrosive than conventional crude, bitumen requires extensive refining to become useable fuel. The entire process uses vast amounts of energy and water and creates three times the global warming pollution of conventional fuel, while shipping the bitumen through pipelines means an additional risk of corrosion and leaks.
Despite the environmental risks, tar sands development has become a major focus of the Canadian government and pillar of the country’s economy, championed by Prime Minister Stephen Harper, whose administration has denounced environmental advocates and First Nations tribes opposed to pipeline construction as extremists. Alberta's tar sands contain the world's third largest proven oil reserve, but they’re landlocked and remote -- hence the desire for more pipelines to provide Canadian energy companies with access to ports and refineries.
According to her most recent financial disclosure reports, along with her TransCanada investments, Rice and her husband own at least $1.5 million worth of stock in Enbridge (Canada’s No. 3 oil producer, according to Forbes), Cenovus (No. 7), and Encana (No. 8), as well as at least $1.25 million in Imperial (No. 2), $50,000 to $100,000 in Suncor (No. 1), and $15,000 to $50,000 in Canadian Natural (No. 6). (TransCanada is ranked at No. 5 by Forbes.) The couple has at least $1.25 million invested in Transalta, Alberta's largest coal-fired electricity power producer, and at least $1.5 million in Canadian Pacific Railway, which transports coal, oil, and gas and has been a major financial beneficiary of the North American energy boom.
On the banking side, Rice has investments totaling at least $5 million and up to $11.25 million in Bank of Montreal, Bank of Nova Scotia, Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce, Royal Bank of Canada, and Toronto Dominion. A report by the Dutch consulting firm Profundo Economic Research says several of these same banks are largely responsible for underwriting the expansion of Canada’s tar sands industry. “Investment in tar sands infrastructure now surpasses that of manufacturing across all of Canada,” according to the report.
Which means that regardless of Keystone XL’s fate, Canadian companies will continue to seek ways to pump bitumen from northern Canada to coastal refineries and ports, where it can be shipped to Europe, China, and other overseas markets. NRDC and other environmental groups have presented evidence that Enbridge is making plans to reverse a pipeline that currently carries regular crude from the New England coast to Montreal, and use it to ship tar sands oil in the other direction instead.
Since it crosses the U.S.-Canadian border, that plan would also require State Department approval.
OnEarth editor-at-large Ted Genoways contributed to this report.
FLUKE IS NOT A SCREEN WRITER, ACTOR, HOST OR ANYTHING TO DO WITH HOLLYWOOD SO WHY DOES THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER EVEN KNOW WHO SHE?!?


THE HOLLYWOOD REPORTER PICKS SANDRA FLUKE FOR WOMEN IN ENTERTAINMENT BREAKFAST

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 28 Nov 2012, 4:05 PM PDT 9POST A COMMENT

Sandra Fluke's 15 minutes of fame aren't over quite yet.

The nation's foremost expert on free birth control will be part of The Hollywood Reporter's Women in Entertainment Breakfast to be held Dec. 5. Fluke, who became one of President Barack Obama's War on Women surrogates, will address a crowd to include fellow honored guests Mindy Kaling and Kerry Washington.
The breakfast, which will take place Dec. 5 at the Beverly Hills Hotel, will coincide with the launch of THR's annual list of the Top 100 Most Powerful Women in Entertainment, which hits stands the same day. Diane Keaton will also be on hand at the event to receive this year's Sherry Lansing Leadership Award, which recognizes a woman in the entertainment industry who is a pioneer, mentor and philanthropist.