Why Gerard Depardieu became a Russisan citizen

Gerard Depardieu, the French actor, is opposed to paying 75 percent of his earnings above $1.33 million to the French government. Depardieu may avoid the proposed French tax hike if he is a Russian citizen.

By Jim Heintz and Lori Hinnant,?Associated Press / January 3, 2013

French actor Gerard Depardieu at the inauguration of fashion designer Ralph Lauren's new shop in Paris in 2010. Gerard Depardieu has been granted Russian citizenship by President Vladimir Putin on Jan. 3, 2013.

(AP Photo/Jacques Brinon, File)

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Gerard Depardieu, the French actor who has waged a battle against a proposed super-tax on millionaires in his native country, has been granted Russian citizenship.

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A brief announcement on the Kremlin website revealed that President Vladimir Putin signed the citizenship grant on Thursday.

The former Oscar nominee and star of the movie "Green Card" has been vocal in his opposition to French President Francois Hollande's plans to raise the tax on earned income above ?1 million ($1.33 million) to 75 percent from the current high of 41 percent.

"I have never killed anyone, I don't think I've been unworthy, I've paid ?145 million in taxes over 45 years," Depardieu wrote in an open letter in mid-December to Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault, who had called the actor "pathetic."

"I will neither complain nor brag, but I refuse to be called 'pathetic," Depardieu wrote in his response.

A representative for the former Oscar nominee declined to say whether he had accepted the Russian offer and refused all comment. Thursday was a holiday in Russia and officials from the Federal Tax Service and Federal Migration Service could not be reached for comment on whether the decision would require Depardieu to have a residence in Russia.

Depardieu said in his letter to Ayrault that he would surrender his passport and French social security card. In October, the mayor of a small Belgian border town announced that Depardieu had bought a house and set up legal residence there, a move that was slammed by the newly-elected Socialist government.

Though the two-year tax was struck down by France's highest court Dec. 29, the government has promised to resubmit the law in a slightly different form soon. On Wednesday it estimated that the court decision to overturn the tax would cost it ?210 million in 2013.

France's debt burden is around 90 percent of national income ? not far off levels that have caused problems elsewhere in the 17-country eurozone. In contrast to the proposed top French rate, Russia has a flat 13 percent tax on income.

Depardieu has made more than 150 films, among them the 1991 comedy "Green Card" about a man who enters into a marriage of convenience in order to get U.S. residency. Most famously, Depardieu was nominated for an Academy Award for his role as Cyrano de Bergerac in the 1990 film by the same name.

The Kremlin statement gave no information on why Putin made the citizenship grant, but the Russian president expressed sympathy with the actor in December, days after Depardieu reportedly said he was considering Russian citizenship.

"As we say, artists are easily offended and therefore I understand the feelings of Mr. Depardieu," Putin said.

Although France and Russia disagree sharply about how to resolve the civil war in Syria, the two countries have strong commercial relations. In 2011, Russia signed a contract worth more than ?1 billion ($1.33 billion) Friday to buy two French warships ? the largest military deal between a NATO country and Moscow.

Depardieu is well known in Russia, where he appears in an ad for Sovietsky Bank's credit card and is prominently featured on the bank's home page.

Depardieu is not the only high-profile Frenchman to object to the super-tax. Bernard Arnault ? chief of the luxury goods and fashion giant LVMH and worth an estimated $41 billion ? has also said he would leave for Belgium.

France's Civil Code says one must have another nationality in order to give up French citizenship because it is forbidden to be stateless. Thursday's decision by the Kremlin appears to fulfill that requirement.

____

Hinnant contributed from Paris.

Copyright 2013 The Associated Press.

Source: http://rss.csmonitor.com/~r/feeds/csm/~3/q_NBmgQlAhk/Why-Gerard-Depardieu-became-a-Russisan-citizen

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Full Steam Ahead - World Leasing News

Full Steam Ahead ? By The Way, Where Are We Going?

By Robert J. Rinaldi, Senior Vice President CSI Leasing

Bob Rinaldi?s Look at 2013 for World Leasing News

When Sudhir Amembal asked me to pen some of my thoughts about my views for 2013, he also asked me to list one ?hot topic?.? In past years, that was usually not a challenge, even during the worst of 2008 and 2009. Things generally sucked (that?s a technical term) but the direction for next 8-12 months ahead was fairly clear. Additionally, if there was a hot topic it was clearly identifiable and singular rather than plural.? But this time? Well this time is different.? Very different indeed; at least in my mind it is. The outlook for 2013 is murky at best and dire at worst.? As for the hot topic?? Um ? maybe it?s ? Then again ? OMG!? LOL!? Like the proverbial kid in a candy store!

Any discussion about the prospects for the equipment leasing and finance industry has to begin with Net Business Fixed Investment (CapX) regardless what country we are talking about.? Net business fixed investment is generally considered the amount commercial entities spend on capital equipment.? Over the past decade, one must also add software to this definition of net business investment since an increasing percentage of the total annual commercial business spend is made up of software (in the traditional sense or via the Cloud). Barring any exogenous events or shocks and unusual regulatory regimes, net business fixed investment trends would correlate closely with the new business leasing/finance volume. ?After all, we cannot finance equipment if our customers don?t commit to the incremental investment expense (regardless via Capx or OpX).

The other day, I had Bloomberg TV in a minimized window on my Mac desktop while wading through the morning?s email. ?I noticed a chart on CapX in the window.? I quickly enlarged it and watched as the commentator walked through the other macroeconomic metrics that correlated closely with net business investment. The chart analyzed the correlations, starting in1999. The guest went on to show how close the correlation was between both the annual GDP growth rate and payrolls with net annual growth rate of net business fixed investment.? It obviously makes sense and we all probably would have guessed the same if asked about it but seeing the correlation over more than a decade just really hit home, especially since his latest data showed a marked downturn in CapX while GDP and payrolls hadn?t started to downturn yet ? a less than desirable sign. So why is this important?? Well, as I said earlier, you can?t project new business equipment leasing/finance volume without first projecting net business fixed investment. Based upon the above correlations, you can, by extension, restate my correlation between net business fixed investment and volume as, ?you can?t project new business equipment leasing/finance volume without first projecting the coming year?s GDP growth rate or Payroll trend.?

Okay, that being said, what factors determine GDP growth and unemployment rate?? This is where things get really confusing and, to be frank, downright dicey for us. Never before in my 30 years or so in business has the federal government, banking regimes and accounting bureaus played such a pivotal role in influencing the direction of GDP growth and the ?real? unemployment rate ? all at the same time. ?The distinction of the term ?real? has to do with both the reported unemployment rate and the job participation rate. ?We in the American business world have had to fight dragons before, but usually one at a time ? a fair fight. This isn?t a fair fight anymore. ?If anyone has ever watched the theatrics of big time wrestling at least once, you will recall the tag team match when the bad guys knock out one of the good guys and the referee to boot. ?The bad guys then proceed to pummel the lone good guy! That is how American business owners feel right about now. ?Forgive me for devolving into Big Time wrestling but hey, I am from Pittsburgh and it is real!

Okay, so why the segue into the part about ?how business owners feel?? ?You see, that is the crux of the issue here ? feelings, or if you prefer, ?confidence.?? GDP has a great deal to do with confidence. ?Consumer and business owner confidence is the harbinger of their future actions and effects in the market. As reported on Dec. 11, 2012 in Bloomberg.com by Carlos Torres, ?The?National Federation of Independent Business?s?optimism index?decreased 5.6 points to 87.5, the lowest reading since March 2010, from 93.1 in October. ?It was the biggest drop in monthly records, going back to 1986 as 8 of the measure?s 10 components fell. ?To put this into perspective, last month?s drop exceeded the 5.4-point decrease seen in October 2008, in the aftermath of the collapse of Lehman Brothers Holdings Inc., and the 5.2-point fall in September 2001 following the terrorist attacks in the U.S. ?The NFIB report was based on a survey of 733 small-business owners through Nov. 30. ?Small companies represent more than 99 percent of all U.S. employers, according to the U.S. Small Business Administration. ?A small business is defined as ?an independent enterprise with no more than 500 employees?.

Now, to be fair, some would say the NFIB is biased to the conservative side of the political and economic spectrum. ?To that I say, ?Duh! ?Of course they are, since business owners are playing with their own money and not someone else?s.?

This isn?t a Monopoly game to them. ?The less business owners have left after tax, the less they have to invest in their business (CapX and people).? The outcome of this past Presidential election portends that they will have less after tax income due to rising rates, fees, regulatory expenses, and the new taxes and fees within Obamacare that will start to bite Jan.1, 2013. ?Hey most people who know me know that I am an optimist. ?I am sorry to be so bleak but in short, my answer to the industry?s 2013 prospects is less than optimistic. ?We will continue at the trend in the second half of 2012. ?Businesses will replace equipment due to attrition but will not likely expand or take big risks on new prospective projects. ?As further corroboration, I would direct you to the Equipment Leasing and Finance Foundation?s quarterly Economic Outlook produced for the Foundation by Keybridge Research. This is a valuable tool to all industry players and is free of charge from the Foundation Website.? http://www.leasefoundation.org/IndRsrcs/EO/. The Economic Outlook forecasts net business fixed investments in most of the major asset classes that we finance and has become the most downloaded Foundation publication every quarter. In addition, Keybridge produces the annual forecast and 2013 is due out soon.

As for the hot topic, well I think I addressed that somewhat with ?dragons and tag team wrestling?.? I cannot pick one but if I were to rank a few I would have to say, Basel III and the Dodd Frank implementation, vilification of the millionaire business people (defined by Al Gore as a person who makes $250,000 a year for 4 years), and Lease Accounting changes, in that order.

Enough, I need a drink!

?

Source: http://www.worldleasingnews.com/the-year-ahead/full-steam-ahead-by-the-way-where-are-we-going/

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House GOP kills Hurricane Sandy Relief Bill. GOP to Sandy victims: Drop Dead. (Americablog)

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Ten tips for children to do their homework | Early Childhood ...

Following a series of guidelines prevents when homework becomes a real battle everyday

It is normal for children to resist doing homework at home. And this often leads to fights orangerthat harm family life and the educational process. To avoid this, it should be noted some recommendations, such ascreating certain routines and enabling environments, support and encourage children as they perform tasks and review with them when they have finished. Following these assumptions generates motivation and incentives that are critical for small. This article explains why it is important for children to do homework and collect ten tips to achieve it.

Why homework is important:

Every so often resurfaces in the educational debate about whether the duties that teachers send children to make at home are beneficial or not, and in any case, how much homework is appropriate to entrust. Beyond the various opinions in this discussion,? the fact is that today the duties are an essential part of the educational process of children.
The existence of homework has several positive aspects: helping to create habits of responsibility and discipline in small, strengthens their concentration, can reinforce what is learned in class during the day and also serves to strengthen the relationship between parents and children.
The problem is that children are often reluctant to spend time at home for homework. And the direct consequence of this fact are often fights, anger, stress and bad times that hurt children and adults in everyday life and in the educational process in general.Therefore, it should be noted the tips and techniques listed in the following ten to encourage children to do their homework without problems and getthe best results.

Ten Tips for children to do their homework

1.Establish an appropriate place to do homework.
Does not have to be at a desk or in your room, but it should be respected that is always the same,? that is well lit and there the child has access to everything you need to make your tasks. Also, it is a place without distractions, which can concentrate and, over time, reach associate with the study. It is critical that, while engaged in their duties, little or no access to phone or television.

2.Set a time of day.
As with the place, there are also free to choose what the time devoted to homework. But once elected, they must comply. This helps to create study habits and discipline, and also helps to avoid arguments, when the time comes,? touches homework. It is best to be early, after a moment of distraction after returning from school. The later is made, the child will be more tired and have less desire, will cost more and the results will be worse.

3.If you set rules and schedules, be stead fast in its performance.
This point is closely related to the previous two. It does not mean you have to be inflexible in a radical way, but you notice that, when not met with a schedule, it is an exception.

4.Accompanying children while doing homework.
Accompany means to be near them, but not over, far from "them" homework. Let children make their activities as independent as possible is a way torecognize their independence, intelligence and ability to do things for themselves, but do not go perfect. This attitude helps a lot in learning to manage their responsibilities and strengthens their self-esteem.

5.Lead by example.
This is very positive: the adult,? whenever possible, make your own "homework" in view of the child, while it makes his: calculations related to home economics, review of bills or other paper , read a book, etc. It will be an extra motivation for two reasons: first, because children always try to look like their elders, and secondly, because it is a great way to show them that what they learn now will serve them for life in the future.

6.Be alert to help, especially if the child gets stuck with the task.
's Way, of course, is not doing the activity for him, but give some clue to bring it to the correct solution.Alternatively, if the child is stressed because of the difficulty of the duties is to give a break: you take a break to clear your mind and try again.

7.Rather than teach, tools for thinking. Often older may clarify the doubts of the students, but may not always do so. In such cases, do not get overwhelmed: the role of parents is to accompany the children and provide ideas, tools for thinking and look for alternatives. It is convenient not to have solved nagging doubts in class but encourage them to not forget to do the following.

8.Check the homework done.
This means not only the first instance of correction, but also a demonstration of interest by the adult to small activities, which is essential for the child that represents the motivation. The review should always start by highlighting the positive: the things the child has done well, developments and improvements to be detected, and so on. This will be taken by the student as a recognition for their work and encourage him to keep going. The nit will be time to mention another errors or mistakes made, without drama or exaggeration. However serious, are faults that can be corrected and are part of the learning process.

9.Avoid the "rewards" for homework.
One thing is motivation and a promise of a reward in exchange for the child to do their homework. With an offer like this, you run the risk that the situation is denatured and the alleged prize becomes a "bribe". It is best that the motivations and incentives are of another kind.

10.Discuss homework with positive terms.
The connotation of words is crucial here: if parents refer to expressions homework with him as a punishment, something bad or boring, sure the children will live in that manner. So whenever it is appropriate that, when we talk about the work, done with words? "good", highlighting how much the child will learn, what will serve in the future, it may be interesting to know, etc..

Source: http://earlychildhoodeducationwebsites.blogspot.com/2013/01/ten-tips-for-children-to-do-their.html

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Video: Snyderman: Clinton?s blood clot was ?atypical?

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No surprise: YouTube, Angry Birds, Instagram and Facebook among 2012?s top apps

During an oddly jokey statement at the White House as the fiscal deadline bore down Monday afternoon, President Obama said, "I'm going to be president for the next four years. I?hope." He was warning Republicans that, yes, they'd have to deal with him for a while. But it was, to be sure, a strange moment. Could he actually have been joking about assassination? About impeachment? The?apocalypse? Or has everyone just had enough of these negotiations??

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/no-surprise-youtube-angry-birds-instagram-facebook-among-150554865.html

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Kanye West, Kim Kardashian expecting 1st child

FILE - Kim Kardashian, right, and Kanye West, left, are shown before an NBA basketball game between the Miami Heat and the New York Knicks in this Dec, 6, 2012 file photo taken in Miami. The rapper Kanye West announced at a concert Sunday night Dec. 30, 2012 that his girlfriend is pregnant. He told the crowd of more than 5,000 at the Ovation Hall at the Revel Resort in song form: "Now you having my baby." ( AP Photo/Alan Diaz, File)

FILE - Kim Kardashian, right, and Kanye West, left, are shown before an NBA basketball game between the Miami Heat and the New York Knicks in this Dec, 6, 2012 file photo taken in Miami. The rapper Kanye West announced at a concert Sunday night Dec. 30, 2012 that his girlfriend is pregnant. He told the crowd of more than 5,000 at the Ovation Hall at the Revel Resort in song form: "Now you having my baby." ( AP Photo/Alan Diaz, File)

FILE - In this Oct. 4, 2012 file photo, television personality Kim Kardashian poses for photographers at the red carpet during the 40th anniversary of Cosmopolitan magazine in Spanish in Mexico City. Kanye West announced at a concert in Atlantic City Sunday night, Dec. 30, 2012 that his girlfriend Kardashian is pregnant. (AP Photo/Marco Ugarte, File)

FILE - In a Monday, May 7, 2012 file photo, Kanye West arrives at the Metropolitan Museum of Art Costume Institute gala benefit, in New York. West announced that his girlfriend Kim Kardashian is pregnant at a concert in Atlantic City Sunday night, Dec. 30, 2012. (AP Photo/Charles Sykes, File)

ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. (AP) ? A kid for Kimye: Kanye West and Kim Kardashian are expecting their first child.

The rapper announced at a concert Sunday night that his girlfriend is pregnant. Kardashian was in the crowd at Revel Resort's Ovation Hall with her mother, Kris Jenner, and West's mentor and best friend, Jay-Z. West told the crowd of more than 5,000 in song form: "Now you having my baby."

The crowd roared. And so did people on the Internet.

The news instantly went viral on Twitter and Facebook, with thousands posting and commenting on the expecting couple.

Most of the Kardashian clan also tweeted about the news, including Kim's sisters. Kourtney Kardashian wrote: "Another angel to welcome to our family. Overwhelmed with excitement!"

West, 35, also told concertgoers to congratulate his "baby mom" and that this was the "most amazing thing."

Representatives for West and Kardashian, 32, didn't immediately respond to emails about the pregnancy.

The rapper and reality TV star went public in March.

Kardashian married NBA player Kris Humphries in August 2011 and their divorce is not finalized.

West's Sunday-night show was his third consecutive performance at Revel. He took the stage for nearly two hours, performing hits like "Good Life," ''Jesus Walks" and "Clique" in an all-white ensemble with two bandmates.

___

AP Writer Bianca Roach contributed to this report.

___

Follow Mesfin Fekadu on Twitter at http://twitter.com/MusicMesfin . Follow Bianca Roach at http://twitter.com/B__Roach

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/3d281c11a96b4ad082fe88aa0db04305/Article_2012-12-31-Kanye%20West-Kim%20Kardashian/id-bc94f865943e4272bf4ff57ae358f6ed

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