Single Payer and Me... Rather, Not for Me...

All eyes will be on Drew Barrymore who is offering her directorial debut Whip It!, a feel-good sports movie about a young girl, played by Juno's Ellen Page, who secretly swaps boring beauty pageants for the excitement of roller skating. Barrymore also stars in the movie. Whip It! was written by Shauna Cross, a former roller derby skater with the Los Angeles Derby Dolls. Many of the teams, skaters, names and plot lines were inspired by Cross' time with the Dolls. http://www.tradertrade.com
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The U.S. military is turning to guns-for-hire to guard one of its outposts in Afghanistan. But Blackwaters of the world, take note: simply hiring former G.I.s or American cops or even Nepalese Gurkhas won’t do the trick this time. At least half of the 50-man force has to come “from within a 50 kilometer radius” of the base, according to a contract solicitation issued by the U.S. Air Force.
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Over the summer, the American military signaled its interest in hiring an army of contractors to help handle security at as many as 50 outposts in Afghanistan. It’s one of several efforts efforts designed to free up uniformed troops for combat and counterinsurgency work. Now, U.S. forces appear to be taking the first step towards building that country-wide private security force, by soliciting bids for a team that watch over Forward Operating Base Lightening, in Paktya province.www.lookedhardy.com
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WASHINGTON (AFP) - News photos of President Barack Obama bowing to Japan's emperor have incensed critics here, who said the US leader should stand tall when representing America overseas.
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Obama on Monday was in China, having wrapped up the Japan leg of his Asia trip two days earlier. But Washington's punditocracy was still weighing whether or not the US president had disgraced his country two days earlier by having taken a deep bow at the waist while meeting Japan's Emperor Akihito.www.lookedhardy.com

Political talk shows have played and replayed the moment from the second day of Obama's week-long Asia tour, which set the blogosphere on fire and chat show tongues wagging.www.lookedhardy.com
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By Cassandra Szklarski, The Canadian Press
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TORONTO - Two-time Stanley Cup winner Craig Simpson has a new title to add to his name - figure skating champ of "Battle of the Blades."
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The former NHL'er and his partner, Olympic gold medallist Jamie Sale, emerged victorious in the inaugural season of the CBC-TV hit Monday after earning the most viewer votes in the elimination-style reality series.
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"I don't think we ever thought we'd be standing here right now, we all wanted to be (in the winner's position) but it's definitely hard to believe right now," Sale said backstage after winning cheers from an enthusiastic audience, which included movie star Rachel McAdams.
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The CPM may still deny it but its ministers have read the writing on the wall. The controversial party minister Abdur Rezak Mollah, holding the Land and Land Reforms portfolio, said on Monday: "The CPM has now become stale. Even the government is stale. I have said this in the party also. Nobody can stop Mamata (Banerjee) from coming to power in 2011."
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Mollah is not the only minister admitting that there is very little likelihood of the Left Front returning to power in the state.
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At a function of the Housing Infrastructure Development Corporation (HIDCO) at Rajarhat recently, with Finance Minister Asim Dasgupta and IT Minister Debesh Das present, Minister for Housing and Public Health Engineering Gautam Dev said: "In 2011, Mamata Banerjee will be the chief minister. So she should act more responsibly on the question of developing the state." He was talking about the demonstration by some Trinamool workers in the area against land acquisition.www.lookedhardy.com
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