| Kenneth Atchity Making Film Waves
As the first of several infrastructure projects planned for Louisiana, Louisiana-born Dr. Ken Atchity, chairman of Atchity Entertainment International, Inc. ( www.aeionline.com), announced with co-manager Fred Griffin of Houston's Griffin Partners, Inc. ( www.griffinpartners.com), the formation of Louisiana Wave Studio, LLC to own and operate the only motion picture-dedicated facility with built-in automatically-generating waves in the United States at Sealy-Slack Industrial Park six miles from downtown Shreveport.
Atchity produced 'The Madams Family' for CBS and Orly Adelson Productions in Louisiana. AEI is also producing 'Meg' (New Line, Jan de Bont directing) and 'Believe-It-Or-Not!' (Paramount, Jim Carrey starring). He was looking for a way to shoot a film about Katrina's impact on Charity Hospital when he came across the Shreveport tank and realized it was slated for removal.
Stock & fund quotes
Average national petrol prices, meanwhile, have risen from around $1.10 in January 2007 to around $1.40 this week, according to the Australian Institute of Petroleum. Some consumers reported prices in excess of $1.50 over the holiday period. And despite the recent stock market turmoil and emergency rate cuts in the US, the Reserve Bank of Australia looks set to raise rates at its first meeting of the year next week. There is a 72 percent chance of a 25 basis point rate rise next week, according to a Credit Suisse index based on interest rate swaps trading. The Credit Suisse index is predicting 18 basis points, or 1.8 percent, of rate rises over the coming 12 months. If the RBA does hike rates, it will come on the back of a round of interest rate rises from the commercial banks.
Open Thread
She was a senoir in high school which would have helped with all the bucks that parents must shell out for a free edeucation especially when they are senoirs. "May God have mercy upon my enemies, because I won't." General George S. Patton. .
Buyers outnumber sellers in religious real-estate market
Heaven knows that selling religious properties can be difficult. Marketing churches, synagogues, mosques and other religious properties is so tricky and sensitive that few real-estate agents handle these types of transactions. It's not always easy for a church to get a loan. Lenders end up in the awkward position of having to assess the financial viability of a congregation to make sure they won't have to foreclose. .
Poor economy sends many to class
The economy stinks.Annual pay raises barely match the inflation rate.You're just happy a pink slip hasn't arrived in your mailbox - yet.Rather than tread water at a dead-end job, more adults are returning to college during the economic downturn. All five colleges based in Southwest Florida have reached record enrollment levels, and the State University System of Florida reports 13.4 percent more people applied to graduate school in 2007 than the prior year."This is the largest increase in graduate school applications, in both number and percentage, as far back as our records go," said state Chancellor Mark Rosenberg."Our universities are helping people in the Florida workforce prepare for career changes and new opportunities."By giving them richer knowledge and training, we are also helping our students insulate themselves against uncertainty in the job market."That's exactly why 38-year-old DeAnna Helton returned to college."I lost my job in October through corporate downsizing because of the economy," said Helton, formerly a title insurance underwriter.
Pearl Brewery's Brew House easier to see
The Pearl Brewery's main attraction, the five-story Brew House, is now easier for spectators to see. Silver Ventures, the company redeveloping the site, has removed the scaffolding from the 114-year-old building. The scaffolding was being used to stabilize the 13,863-square-foot building, which was built in 1894, as it underwent renovations to help return the old factory to its original state. "It blew me away," Bill Shown, managing director of real estate with Silver Ventures, said when he saw the renewed project up close. Renovations included stabilizing the roof, exterior and masonry. The Brew House also had years of paint that had been added to the building and that had to be stripped off before the original colors could be repainted.
Outdoorsman Scott casts his lot with Huckabee
A Montgomery resident known nationwide as the founder of the world's largest sport fishing organization is casting his endorsement in the upcoming presidential political waters. Ray Scott, founder of the Bass Anglers Sportsman Society (BASS) announced Tuesday he is endorsing former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee for president. Scott founded BASS in 1968 out of the carport of his Montgomery home on Bell Road, which grew into the world's largest fishing organization with over 500,000 members worldwide. The company was bought in 2001 by ESPN. Scott, 72, said he's never been a one-issue voter, but was drawn to Huckabee because of his interest in conservation, the outdoors, fishing and hunting. "I am really pumped about Huckabee's candidacy," Scott said.
Lynn Davidson's blog
Reuters injected bias into this December 24 article about 40 missing Cuban “migrants" who never arrived in America after being smuggled out of Cuba. The article minimized Castro's oppression and faulted the US for the Cubans' flight. The wire service began by deliberately mischaracterizing the Cubans as “migrants" instead of calling them “refugees" or even “passengers." Labeling them “migrants" ignores Cuba's political and economic straitjacket, and more importantly links Cuban refugees to the issue of illegal immigration. The media are beginning to call everyone who comes to America with the intent to stay, “migrants," whether here legally or not, which erases any distinctions. People who are anti-illegal immigration often support Cuban refugees remaining in the US, and linking the two issues can reduce opposition to illegal immigration.
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