'SNL': Michael Bublé Duets With Bieber, Sting, Thom Yorke & More (VIDEO)

There's nothing quite like a duets Christmas album to bring a little holiday cheer into your home. And who better to release one than Michael Bubl?? After all, the celebrated singer already has the number one Christmas album in America.

Unfortunately, it looks like the dream team of singers Bubl? assembled for his follow-up isn't quite working out. Some, like Sting, just aren't getting the mood, others like Russell Brand don't seem to know what a "song" is, and M.I.A. is just dangerous.

We guess he should have gone with safer bets like Sarah McLachlan and The Pointer Sisters.

Also on HuffPost:

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/12/18/snl-michael-buble-duets_n_1156513.html

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Comet survives fiery plunge through sun

A newfound comet defied long odds Thursday, surviving a suicidal dive through the sun's hellishly hot atmosphere, according to NASA scientists.

Comet Lovejoy plunged through the sun's corona at about 7 p.m. ET, coming within 87,000 miles of our star's surface. Temperatures in the corona can reach 2 million degrees Fahrenheit, so most researchers expected the icy wanderer to be completely destroyed.

But Lovejoy proved to be made of tough stuff. A video taken by NASA's Solar Dynamics Observatory spacecraft, or SDO, showed the icy object emerging from behind the sun and zipping back off into space.

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"Breaking News! Lovejoy lives! The comet Lovejoy has survived its journey around the sun to reemerge on the other side," SDO researchers tweeted.

SDO is one of many instruments that scientists ? eager to record and study the comet's presumed demise ? trained on Lovejoy as it streaked toward the sun.

"We have here an exceptionally rare opportunity to observe the complete vaporization of a relatively large comet, and we have approximately 18 instruments on five different satellites that are trying to do just that," Karl Battams, a scientist at the Naval Research Laboratory in Washington, wrote on the Sungrazing Comets website before Lovejoy's closest solar approach.

Battams runs the website, which is devoted to comets discovered by two different spacecraft: NASA's Solar Terrestrial Relations Observatory (STEREO) and the Solar and Heliospheric Observatory (SOHO), which is operated jointly by NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA). [Death of a Comet: Photos of Sungrazing Comet Lovejoy]

Preparing for the end
Lovejoy has a core about 660 feet wide. It belongs to a class of comets known as Kreutz sungrazers, whose orbits bring them very close to the sun.

All Kreutz sungrazers are thought to be the remnants of a single giant comet that broke apart several centuries ago. They're named after the 19th-century German astronomer Heinrich Kreutz, who first showed that such comets are related.

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Comets plunge into the sun on a regular basis, but they rarely give much advance notice of their suicidal intentions. That's why scientists were so excited about Lovejoy. Australian amateur astronomer Terry Lovejoy discovered the icy wanderer on Nov. 27, giving researchers plenty of time to map out their observation campaign.

And that campaign has been intense, involving five different spacecraft. In addition to SDO, SOHO and STEREO, scientists planned to use Japan's Hinode satellite and ESA's Proba spacecraft to track Lovejoy's movements, Battams wrote.

NASA also created a website providing updates about the comet's pass through the corona, as well as images of the event beamed down by SDO. It can be found here: http://sdo.gsfc.nasa.gov/data/lovejoy.php

For his part, Terry Lovejoy said he was happy to have made a contribution, and he marveled a bit at all the attention the comet has been getting.

"It's been tremendous," Lovejoy told Space.com. "Apparently it's all over Facebook, and I don't use Facebook. But there's a lot of interest. I think a lot of people like the name ? the Lovejoy name seems to strike a chord with people."

A dramatic escape
Lovejoy is quite large for a sungrazing comet, and experts expected it to die an impressive death. The website Spaceweather.com, for example, predicted Lovejoy would blaze as brightly as Jupiter or Venus in the sky as it neared the sun.

Battams also expected a good show, saying the comet might even be visible from the ground around sunset today in the Northern Hemisphere.?

"I do think that it will put on a spectacular show for us and will be the brightest Kreutz-group comet that SOHO has ever observed," Battams wrote last week.

Though the early returns are just starting to come in, those forecasts appear to be on the money. Observations from various spacecraft do indeed show Lovejoy flaring up significantly as it neared our star.

Researchers will keep analyzing the images to better understand the comet's daring solar approach. And now skywatchers apparently have another shot to catch a glimpse of the resilient Lovejoy on Friday morning.

For observers in North America, the comet will rise approximately 5 to 10 minutes before dawn and will be situated to the upper right of the sun. If Lovejoy is still shining at least as brightly as Venus, it may be visible, experts say.?

You could also try to spot Lovejoy after the sun comes up, if you're exceedingly careful. Block the rising sun behind a distant building and focus on the part of the sky 3 to 4 degrees above and to the right of the sun (your clenched fist held at arm's length is equal to roughly 10 degrees).

CAUTION: Never point binoculars or a telescope at or near the sun, and never look directly at the sun with the naked eye. Serious eye damage can result.

And don't get your hopes up, either. The comet may well be too faint to see, experts say.

Note: If you take any good pictures of Comet Lovejoy and would like them to be considered for a future story or image gallery, contact Space.com managing editor Tariq Malik at tmalik@space.com.

Space.com assistant managing editor Clara Moskowitz (@ ClaraMoskowitz ) contributed to this story. You can follow Space.com senior writer Mike Wall on Twitter:@michaeldwall. Follow Space.com for the latest in space science and exploration news on Twitter @Spacedotcom??and on Facebook.

? 2011 Space.com. All rights reserved. More from Space.com.

Source: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/45691807/ns/technology_and_science-space/

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Legal Tender Gold: Face Value or Intrinsic Value? by Kevin Brekke

by Kevin Brekke
International Man

Recently by Kevin Brekke: Buying Silver at 10% Off

A popular topic on forums sympathetic to personal ownership of gold bullion is the debate surrounding how to value certain gold coins. After all, in 1985 congress passed the Gold Bullion Coin Act that required the US government to mint and place in circulation gold coins. The coins were to be struck from 91.67% pure gold (22 karat) and minted in denominations of $5, $10, $25 and $50. The act was passed pursuant to Article I, Section 8, Clause 5 of the United States Constitution giving Congress the exclusive power to coin money and set its value.

The act allowed American's to escape a currency system then monopolized by Federal Reserve notes. The act also spurred much conjecture about how, exactly, should the value of legal tender US gold coins be determined when the coins are used as a means of exchange.

More specifically, if wages are paid in legal tender US gold coins, how should the employer calculate and report the wages paid: using the face value of the gold coins, or, the intrinsic value of the gold coins?

That question was settled several years ago in a high-profile court case. Let's briefly review the sequence of events that handed the IRS one of its most coveted legal victories.

In May 2003, the offices of Robert Kahre were raided by armed government agents. Robert Kahre and two dozen of his employees were handcuffed and charged, among other alleged offenses, with tax fraud.

A Nevada businessman, Robert Kahre had been paying his employees with legal tender US gold coins and reporting employee wages to the IRS based on the face value of the coins. Kahre had been doing this for seven years at the time of his arrest, and had assisted 35 other contracting companies to do the same.

No surprise, then, that the IRS did not look sympathetically on this practice, and even less so on it being adopted by a spreading core of converts. In April 2005, the Department of Justice (DOJ) indicated its intent to prosecute the case by issuing formal indictments.

The trial began in May 2007 with Kahre facing 109 counts of criminal tax-related charges and conspiracy. In total, nine defendants stood trial on 161 charges.

On September 17, 2007, and to the disbelief of the IRS and DOJ, the case ended with zero convictions. In post-trial statements from jurors, many said that the government had failed to prove that the defendants had acted to intentionally violate tax laws.

But the champagne fizz and euphoria did not last long. In May 2009, Kahre once again stood before a jury of his peers in a second trial. Three months later, on August 14, 2009, Kahre and three other defendants were found guilty of several felony tax crimes, including conspiracy to defraud the IRS and tax evasion.

The details of this case are informative and deserve a more thorough review than can be presented in this space. If interested, Google "Robert Kahre" and you will get sufficient hits to fill your weekend reading list.

It's worth mentioning that Kahre and his defense team cited all the usual case history and constitutional evidence upon which their arguments where based, and much of it will no doubt be familiar to many readers. In spite of the case's outcome and the precedent it sets, there remains ongoing debate in the blogosphere about valuing a legal tender US gold coin in certain instances.

Recently, a blogger running a pro-gold oriented site posted an article that suggested using the face value of a legal tender US gold coin to skirt the reporting requirements of FinCEN Form 105.

Very, very bad advice.

Anyone who has traveled internationally will likely be familiar with the requirements of this form. Filed with the US Treasury, Form 105, Report of International Transportation of Currency or Monetary Instruments, must be filed by persons who:

1. physically transports, mails, or ships, or causes to be physically transported, mailed, or shipped currency or other monetary instruments in an aggregate amount exceeding $10,000 at one time from the United States to any place outside the United States or into the United States from any place outside the United States, and
2. receives in the United States currency or other monetary instruments in an aggregate amount exceeding $10,000 at one time which have been transported, mailed, or shipped to the person from any place outside the United States.

A question asking a passenger if they are bringing over $10,000 in monetary instruments into the US appears on the customs and immigration form required for entry. FinCen Form 105 must be submitted when leaving the country and transporting over $10,000.

An attempt to transport legal tender US gold coins into or out of the US with a market value that exceeds the $10,000 limit, without submitting Form 105 and then subsequently being discovered will have seriously unpleasant consequences, the first being that the gold will be confiscated with zero chance of recovery. Fines are likely. Denied entry into the country has happened. And criminal prosecution is always a possibility.

A "face-value" defense is sure to give everyone a good laugh as you wave bye-bye to your bullion.

Don't end up like Robert Kahre. No matter how offensive or intrusive they may be, always follow IRS and Treasury reporting requirements. And when in doubt about the requirements, file. The only way to win in this war on financial privacy is to keep what you have and survive to fight the good fight.

---

Of course, if you do decide to make the wise decision of moving a portion of your precious metal holdings overseas, you need to find the right storage facility. Arguably, the premier place in the world to do so is at Das Safe, in Vienna, Austria. In one of our recent reports, we paid a personal visit to the facility and collected the facts you need to determine if it's right for you. Download the free report here.

Reprinted from International Man with permission.

December 16, 2011

Kevin Brekke is contributing editor for BIG GOLD in Casey's Daily Dispatch and writes for International Man.

Copyright ? 2011 International Man

Source: http://www.lewrockwell.com/orig12/brekke2.1.1.html

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Obama wants payroll tax extended for entire year

President Barack Obama delivers a statement in the Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington, Saturday, Dec. 17, 2011, following the Senate vote to approve legislation extending a Social Security payroll tax cut and long-term jobless benefits for two months. Obama says it would be "inexcusable" for Congress not to extend a payroll tax cut for the rest of 2012 when lawmakers return from their holiday break. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

President Barack Obama delivers a statement in the Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington, Saturday, Dec. 17, 2011, following the Senate vote to approve legislation extending a Social Security payroll tax cut and long-term jobless benefits for two months. Obama says it would be "inexcusable" for Congress not to extend a payroll tax cut for the rest of 2012 when lawmakers return from their holiday break. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

President Barack Obama delivers a statement in the Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington, Saturday, Dec. 17, 2011 following the Senate vote to approve legislation extending a Social Security payroll tax cut and long-term jobless benefits for two months. Obama says it would be "inexcusable" for Congress not to extend a payroll tax cut for the rest of 2012 when lawmakers return from their holiday break. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

President Barack Obama makes a statement at the White House in Washington, Saturday, Dec. 17, 2011. Obama says it would be "inexcusable" for Congress not to extend a payroll tax cut for the rest of 2012 when lawmakers return from their holiday break. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

President Barack Obama delivers a statement in the Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington, Saturday, Dec. 17, 2011 following the Senate vote to approve legislation extending a Social Security payroll tax cut and long-term jobless benefits for two months. Obama says it would be "inexcusable" for Congress not to extend a payroll tax cut for the rest of 2012 when lawmakers return from their holiday break. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

President Barack Obama delivers a statement in the Brady Press Briefing Room at the White House in Washington, Saturday, Dec. 17, 2011 following the Senate vote to approve legislation extending a Social Security payroll tax cut and long-term jobless benefits for two months. Obama says it would be "inexcusable" for Congress not to extend a payroll tax cut for the rest of 2012 when lawmakers return from their holiday break. (AP Photo/Manuel Balce Ceneta)

WASHINGTON (AP) ? President Barack Obama, rebuffed by Congress on a yearlong extension of a Social Security payroll tax cut, said Saturday that it would be "inexcusable" for lawmakers not to lengthen the short-term deal when they return from their holiday break.

The measure, passed by the Senate shortly before the president spoke briefly at the White House, would extend the tax cut and long-term jobless benefits for just two months ? a partial victory for Obama that also sets the stage for another fight in February.

While pleased by the Senate vote, Obama said "it would be inexcusable for Congress not to further extend this middle class tax cut for the rest of the year. It should be a formality, and hopefully it's done with as little drama as possible when they get back in January."

He added, "This really isn't hard. There are plenty of ways to pay for these proposals."

The renewal of the 2-percentage-point cut in the Social Security payroll tax for 160 million workers and unemployment benefits averaging about $300 a week for the additional millions of people who have been out of work for six months or more is a modest step forward for Obama's year-end jobs agenda.

As a condition for GOP support of the payroll tax measure, Obama has to accept a provision that forces him to decide within 60 days whether to approve or reject a proposed a Canada-to-Texas oil pipeline that promises thousands of jobs.

Obama made no reference to the pipeline in his remarks.

The bill awaits House action next week.

"I'm looking forward to the House moving forward and getting this done when they get back on Monday," Obama said.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/f70471f764144b2fab526d39972d37b3/Article_2011-12-17-US-Obama-Tax-Cut/id-e09bac52be6541768747a68ace612edf

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Mitt's Challenge (TIME)

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Source: http://news.feedzilla.com/en_us/stories/politics/top-stories/174419743?client_source=feed&format=rss

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Senate Democratic bid on payroll bill blocked (Reuters)

WASHINGTON (Reuters) ? Republicans in the Senate blocked a Democratic bid on Wednesday to quickly reject a bill passed by the House of Representatives that would renew a payroll tax cut and speed up a decision on an oil pipeline that the White House has delayed.

Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid said he wanted to dispose of the bill, approved on a mostly party-line vote by the Republican-led House on Tuesday, to clear the way for talks on a compromise deal.

But Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell blocked the move to immediately bring up the bill, saying he wanted to turn first to a funding bill that would avert a government shutdown by the weekend.

In an exchange on the Senate floor, Reid objected to McConnell's move, insisting the payroll tax bill first be considered.

Democrats are worried that once the spending bill is finalized, Republicans will leave town for the holidays, eliminating any pressure on them to compromise on the payroll measure, which would also extend expiring jobless benefits.

Republicans have accused Democrats of manufacturing a crisis by refusing to sign off on the $1 trillion spending bill they had already broadly agreed to.

The next steps were not immediately clear.

(Reporting By Thomas Ferraro; Editing by John O'Callaghan)

Source: http://us.rd.yahoo.com/dailynews/rss/uscongress/*http%3A//news.yahoo.com/s/nm/20111214/ts_nm/us_usa_taxes

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Debbie Robins: CEO's, Consciousness and Culture -- It's a Full-Time Job!

While our political systems stagnate, corporations are being given an opportunity to step forward to rebuild a foundation for world peace and prosperity. Much of our future well-being lies in their hands.

The organizations boldly meeting this clarion call are adopting consciousness and culture as their star batters. Their RBIs (revenue and growth) are off the charts.

Did you know that the global 100 Most Sustainable Corporations achieved a total return of 54.95 percent, outperforming their competitors by 16 percent?

Here's why.

#1 Success Key: Consciousness

The new super-charged business model goes by a few names: conscious capatlism, enlightened capatilism, purposeful capitalism, sutaniable capatalism and ethical capatalism. It embraces capatilism! Anyone who tells you otherwise is not telling you the truth.

In all regards, this business model runs on the triple bottom line approach:

? People
? Profits
? Planet

Conscious companies believe that this trilateral investment drives innovation and creates depth and enhanced value to customer and stakeholder relationships. It also leaves the world a better place.

Could be worse, right?

Here's how consciousness in business is further trending:

79 percent of consumers consider corporate citizenship before buying a product or service.

Consumers are insisting on a broader definition of value.

95 percent of all Americans say they are spiritual. They are driving an economy with a new set of requirements.

Consumers believe morals and money can live side by side.

35 percent of Americans and Western Europeans are "cultural creatives." Their top three principles are authenticity, social responsibility and doing global good. The term cultural creative was coined by sociologist Paul H. Ray to describe this new group and its identity.

Companies with a sense of purpose and a way of generating profits that honor all parts of the human spirit will hit the ball perpetually out of the park.

Examples: Whole Foods, Wegmans, Starbucks, Trader Joes, Seventh Generation, Southwest Airlines, Toms Shoes, Virgin Airlines, Patagonia, Timberland, ANZ Bank, Zappos, Stonyfield, Harley Davidson, Container Story, Nordstrom, IKEA, Ben and Jerry's, The Body Shop, Unilever's Dove Division, Federal Express and many more.

#2 Success Key: Culture

Conscious companies understand the value of culture as a driver for their success. It is the most important chess piece on their playing board. A conscious culture utilizes and respects the psychology of the human spirit which hasn't, by the by, changed over time.

Want peak performance from your team? Here's how to get it.

Human beings soar (successfully problem-solve, create, innovate) when three basic needs are met:

? They receive love - I feel cared for
? They give love - I can care for others
? They feel safe- I'm not going to get hurt

Sounds identical to great parenting, doesn't it?

An esteemed parent:

? Is loving
? Gives constant support, even during the challenging times
? Creates a safe home where the child's needs are met

Take away: The infrastructure of a successful 21st century company connects everything through love.

The perception of love as a "soft skill," only used in business by touchy-feely leaders who have had too much therapy, is an old CEO tale. Love is, as Tim Sanders of Yahoo! said so many years ago, "the Killer App"!

If you're not using the power of consciousness capitalism in your business model, I encourage you to do so.

If you're not a love leader yet, I urge you to grow yourself and become one.

If you do not have a Chief Consciousness and Culture Officer at your company, whose full time job is building and growing your organizational infrastructure in a way that it respects your people, respects your customers and respects our world, I lovingly challenge you to make that investment.

You will not only generate wealth for your stakeholders, you will create greater good and equanimity for the human race.

Debbie Robins: Trained CCCO. Change catalyst. Named one of the top leadership and executive coaches in the country (2009). Best-selling author. Huff Post blogger -- http://www.debbierobins.com

?

Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/debbie-robins/ceos-consciousness-and-cu_b_1148752.html

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