Prevalence of chronic hepatitis B may exceed 2 million, higher in US than previously reported

Public release date: 31-May-2012
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Contact: Dawn Peters
healthnews@wiley.com
781-388-8408
Wiley-Blackwell

Foreign-born persons contribute more than 1 million additional HBV cases

The prevalence of chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection in the U.S. may be as high as 2.2 million cases according to a new study now available in Hepatology, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases. Findings suggest the higher prevalence of chronic HBV can be attributed to foreign-born persons who were infected in their country of origin prior to arrival in the U.S. Emigrants from Asia and Africa, where infection with hepatitis B is highly endemic, represent close to 70% of the 1.32 million foreign-born persons living with chronic HBV in the U.S. in 2009.

Chronic HBV is a major health burden that experts say affects up to 400 million individuals worldwide, with up to 25% at risk of premature mortality due to primary liver cancer and end-stage liver disease if the infection is left untreated. In the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimate that in 2006 there were 800,000 to 1.4 million persons living with chronic HBV. However, previous reports may underestimate the true burden of chronic hepatitis B as individuals in the U.S. who are institutionalized, homeless, and foreign-born "at risk" populations are underrepresented on national health surveys.

"There is a wide discrepancy in the current estimates of the chronic HBV burden in the U.S.," explains lead author Dr. Kris Kowdley, Director of the Liver Center of Excellence at Virginia Mason Medical Center in Seattle, Washington. "Understanding the ethnic and cultural populations affected by chronic hepatitis B will provide more accurate estimates and help to develop programs for prevention, earlier diagnosis, and access to care for those at greatest risk."

For the present study researchers systematically reviewed the world's medical literature for HBV seroprevalence rates from 1980 to 2010. The team identified 256 disease prevalence surveys for emigrants from 52 countries and 1,797 surveys for the general populations of 98 countries for use in the meta-analysis. Individuals with lower or higher risk of chronic HBV than the general population and groups not likely to emigrate were excluded. These surveys provided data for populations from the 102 countries of origin for migrants to the U.S. as determined in the U.S. Census 2009 American Community Survey.

Analysis determined between 1.04 million and 1.61 million (1.32 million estimate) foreign-born persons were living with chronic hepatitis B in the U.S. in 2009. Chronically infected emigrants were mainly from Asia, Africa, and Central America, accounting for 58%, 11% and 7% of the foreign burden of disease in the U.S., respectively. "Our analysis suggests the total prevalence of chronic HBV is significantly higher, exceeding two million cases or twice the number previously reported," said Dr. Kowdley.

Senior author, Dr. Carol Brosgart, a member of the faculty at the Division of Global Health, UCSF and Senior Advisor on Science and Policy to the Viral Hepatitis Action Coalition at the CDC Foundation added, "This study highlights an important health concern for the U.S. and the need for broader hepatitis B screening of foreign-born individuals. Given our ability to treat chronic HBV and to monitor for emergence of liver cancer when it is treatable, physicians should screen the foreign-born, their children and close contacts. If these individuals do not have chronic infection and are not immune, then they are good candidates for HBV immunization. Hepatitis B is a serious infection with the risk of long-term consequences of cirrhosis, end-stage liver disease, liver cancer and premature death. Today this is a disease that we can prevent and we can treat."

In a related editorial also published in Hepatology, Drs. John Ward, the Director of the Division of Viral Hepatitis (DVH) at the CDC and Kathy Byrd, a medical epidemiologist in the DVH, note, "The study by Kowdley and colleagues provides evidence that numerous and diverse foreign-born populations in the U.S. are at risk for chronic hepatitis B. Nearly 3.5% of all foreign-born persons in the U.S. are living with this diseasea rate more than 10-fold higher than the prevalence of the general U.S. population." The editorial authors further emphasize the need for culturally specific services along with expanded HBV testing and linkage to care and treatment to prevent new infections, liver disease and cancer.

Hepatitis sickens millions around the world and kills one million people each year according to the World Hepatitis Alliance. The World Hepatitis Alliance in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) have designated July 28, 2012 as World Hepatitis Day to raise awareness of viral hepatitis.

###

This study and editorial are published in Hepatology. Media wishing to receive a PDF of the articles may contact healthnews@wiley.com.

Full Citations: "Prevalence of Chronic Hepatitis B among Foreign-Born Persons Living in the United States by Country of Origin." Kris V. Kowdley, Chia C. Wang, Sue Welch, Henry Roberts, and Carol L. Brosgart. Hepatology; Published Online: February 16, 2012 (DOI: 10.1002/hep.24804); Print Issue: July 2012. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/hep.24804/abstract.

Editorial: "Hepatitis B in the United States: A Major Health Disparity for Foreign-Born Minorities." John W. Ward and Kathy K. Byrd. Hepatology; Published Online: April 24, 2012 (DOI: 10.1002/hep.25799); Print Issue: July 2012. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/hep.25799/abstract.

Author Contacts: arrange an interview with Dr. Brosgart, please contact 650-245-1266. For interviews with Dr. Kowdley, contact John Gillespie with Virginia Mason Media Relations at John.gillespie@vmmc.org or 206-341-1509. Media wishing to speak with Dr. Ward may contact the National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention News Media Line at 404-639-8895 or NCHHSTPMediaTeam@cdc.gov.

About the Journal

Hepatology is the premier publication in the field of liver disease, publishing original, peer-reviewed articles concerning all aspects of liver structure, function and disease. Hepatology's current impact factor is 10.885.Each month, the distinguished Editorial Board monitors and selects only the best articles on subjects such as immunology, chronic hepatitis, viral hepatitis, cirrhosis, genetic and metabolic liver diseases and their complications, liver cancer, and drug metabolism. Hepatology is published on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD). For more information, please visit http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/(ISSN)1527-3350.

About Wiley-Blackwell

Wiley-Blackwell is the international scientific, technical, medical, and scholarly publishing business of John Wiley & Sons, with strengths in every major academic and professional field and partnerships with many of the world's leading societies. Wiley-Blackwell publishes nearly 1,500 peer-reviewed journals and 1,500+ new books annually in print and online, as well as databases, major reference works and laboratory protocols. For more information, please visit www.wileyblackwell.com or our new online platform, Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com), one of the world's most extensive multidisciplinary collections of online resources, covering life, health, social and physical sciences, and humanities.

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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

Public release date: 31-May-2012
[ | E-mail | Share ]

Contact: Dawn Peters
healthnews@wiley.com
781-388-8408
Wiley-Blackwell

Foreign-born persons contribute more than 1 million additional HBV cases

The prevalence of chronic hepatitis B virus (HBV) infection in the U.S. may be as high as 2.2 million cases according to a new study now available in Hepatology, a journal published by Wiley-Blackwell on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases. Findings suggest the higher prevalence of chronic HBV can be attributed to foreign-born persons who were infected in their country of origin prior to arrival in the U.S. Emigrants from Asia and Africa, where infection with hepatitis B is highly endemic, represent close to 70% of the 1.32 million foreign-born persons living with chronic HBV in the U.S. in 2009.

Chronic HBV is a major health burden that experts say affects up to 400 million individuals worldwide, with up to 25% at risk of premature mortality due to primary liver cancer and end-stage liver disease if the infection is left untreated. In the U.S., the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) estimate that in 2006 there were 800,000 to 1.4 million persons living with chronic HBV. However, previous reports may underestimate the true burden of chronic hepatitis B as individuals in the U.S. who are institutionalized, homeless, and foreign-born "at risk" populations are underrepresented on national health surveys.

"There is a wide discrepancy in the current estimates of the chronic HBV burden in the U.S.," explains lead author Dr. Kris Kowdley, Director of the Liver Center of Excellence at Virginia Mason Medical Center in Seattle, Washington. "Understanding the ethnic and cultural populations affected by chronic hepatitis B will provide more accurate estimates and help to develop programs for prevention, earlier diagnosis, and access to care for those at greatest risk."

For the present study researchers systematically reviewed the world's medical literature for HBV seroprevalence rates from 1980 to 2010. The team identified 256 disease prevalence surveys for emigrants from 52 countries and 1,797 surveys for the general populations of 98 countries for use in the meta-analysis. Individuals with lower or higher risk of chronic HBV than the general population and groups not likely to emigrate were excluded. These surveys provided data for populations from the 102 countries of origin for migrants to the U.S. as determined in the U.S. Census 2009 American Community Survey.

Analysis determined between 1.04 million and 1.61 million (1.32 million estimate) foreign-born persons were living with chronic hepatitis B in the U.S. in 2009. Chronically infected emigrants were mainly from Asia, Africa, and Central America, accounting for 58%, 11% and 7% of the foreign burden of disease in the U.S., respectively. "Our analysis suggests the total prevalence of chronic HBV is significantly higher, exceeding two million cases or twice the number previously reported," said Dr. Kowdley.

Senior author, Dr. Carol Brosgart, a member of the faculty at the Division of Global Health, UCSF and Senior Advisor on Science and Policy to the Viral Hepatitis Action Coalition at the CDC Foundation added, "This study highlights an important health concern for the U.S. and the need for broader hepatitis B screening of foreign-born individuals. Given our ability to treat chronic HBV and to monitor for emergence of liver cancer when it is treatable, physicians should screen the foreign-born, their children and close contacts. If these individuals do not have chronic infection and are not immune, then they are good candidates for HBV immunization. Hepatitis B is a serious infection with the risk of long-term consequences of cirrhosis, end-stage liver disease, liver cancer and premature death. Today this is a disease that we can prevent and we can treat."

In a related editorial also published in Hepatology, Drs. John Ward, the Director of the Division of Viral Hepatitis (DVH) at the CDC and Kathy Byrd, a medical epidemiologist in the DVH, note, "The study by Kowdley and colleagues provides evidence that numerous and diverse foreign-born populations in the U.S. are at risk for chronic hepatitis B. Nearly 3.5% of all foreign-born persons in the U.S. are living with this diseasea rate more than 10-fold higher than the prevalence of the general U.S. population." The editorial authors further emphasize the need for culturally specific services along with expanded HBV testing and linkage to care and treatment to prevent new infections, liver disease and cancer.

Hepatitis sickens millions around the world and kills one million people each year according to the World Hepatitis Alliance. The World Hepatitis Alliance in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO) have designated July 28, 2012 as World Hepatitis Day to raise awareness of viral hepatitis.

###

This study and editorial are published in Hepatology. Media wishing to receive a PDF of the articles may contact healthnews@wiley.com.

Full Citations: "Prevalence of Chronic Hepatitis B among Foreign-Born Persons Living in the United States by Country of Origin." Kris V. Kowdley, Chia C. Wang, Sue Welch, Henry Roberts, and Carol L. Brosgart. Hepatology; Published Online: February 16, 2012 (DOI: 10.1002/hep.24804); Print Issue: July 2012. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/hep.24804/abstract.

Editorial: "Hepatitis B in the United States: A Major Health Disparity for Foreign-Born Minorities." John W. Ward and Kathy K. Byrd. Hepatology; Published Online: April 24, 2012 (DOI: 10.1002/hep.25799); Print Issue: July 2012. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/hep.25799/abstract.

Author Contacts: arrange an interview with Dr. Brosgart, please contact 650-245-1266. For interviews with Dr. Kowdley, contact John Gillespie with Virginia Mason Media Relations at John.gillespie@vmmc.org or 206-341-1509. Media wishing to speak with Dr. Ward may contact the National Center for HIV/AIDS, Viral Hepatitis, STD, and TB Prevention News Media Line at 404-639-8895 or NCHHSTPMediaTeam@cdc.gov.

About the Journal

Hepatology is the premier publication in the field of liver disease, publishing original, peer-reviewed articles concerning all aspects of liver structure, function and disease. Hepatology's current impact factor is 10.885.Each month, the distinguished Editorial Board monitors and selects only the best articles on subjects such as immunology, chronic hepatitis, viral hepatitis, cirrhosis, genetic and metabolic liver diseases and their complications, liver cancer, and drug metabolism. Hepatology is published on behalf of the American Association for the Study of Liver Diseases (AASLD). For more information, please visit http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/journal/10.1002/(ISSN)1527-3350.

About Wiley-Blackwell

Wiley-Blackwell is the international scientific, technical, medical, and scholarly publishing business of John Wiley & Sons, with strengths in every major academic and professional field and partnerships with many of the world's leading societies. Wiley-Blackwell publishes nearly 1,500 peer-reviewed journals and 1,500+ new books annually in print and online, as well as databases, major reference works and laboratory protocols. For more information, please visit www.wileyblackwell.com or our new online platform, Wiley Online Library (wileyonlinelibrary.com), one of the world's most extensive multidisciplinary collections of online resources, covering life, health, social and physical sciences, and humanities.

---

[ | E-mail | Share ]

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AAAS and EurekAlert! are not responsible for the accuracy of news releases posted to EurekAlert! by contributing institutions or for the use of any information through the EurekAlert! system.

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Bob on Business Continuity: National Safety Month

National Safety Month, sponsored by the National Safety Council, is an annual observance to educate and influence behaviors around the leading causes of preventable injuries and deaths. Remember that your employees' safety is ultimately your responsibility and that failure to guard that safety can result in problems and/or lawsuits that can damage both your reputation and your bottom line. This week we look at some types of incidents that could be prevented with proper awareness and planning.

Employee safety is a critical part of any business. (Item #1) Are you too complacent about workplace safety? (Item #2) Even if you don't realize, an office can be a dangerous place. (Item #3)

Workplace violence is a huge threat to everyone's safety. (Item #4) Electrical safety should be every organization's concern. (Item #5) Use this checklist to see if your safety measures are up to par. (Item #6)

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How to Get a Job: Take the Initiative | The Art of Manliness

This month, nearly 2 million students left colleges and universities around the country with a bachelor?s degree in hand. Some will be headed to graduate school, while others will be entering the job market, many hoping to land their first ?real? job. At the same time, 3 million high school graduates have started looking for a summer gig?perhaps their first job ever. Joining them in the job hunt are the millions of Americans who have been laid off, are unemployed, and have been looking to get hired for weeks, months, even years.

What all these folks have in common is that they?re searching for a job in a tough economy. While experts debate whether things are looking up or whether we?re headed for even worse times, the reality for job seekers out there is that competition is tight. The plumb jobs will go to the bright, to those who are well-connected and know how to network, and, most of all?to those who know how to hustle.

Too many men see the job search as a passive process. They spend each day at home on the computer, trolling Monster.com and other job sites, submitting their resumes, and then waiting to get a call requesting an interview. And waiting. And waiting.

The job you want is very unlikely to land in your lap this way. Instead, the job will go to the man hitting the pavement?the man who takes the initiative. Here are some tips on how to grab the bull by the horns when you?re looking for a job.

Note: Obviously, one of the best ways to take the initiative in finding work is to start your own biz. But the focus of this article will be landing a job with someone else.

Hand in Your Resume in Person

The surest way to remain unemployed is to be like the guy mentioned above?submitting your resumes online and then sitting on your hands waiting for a call. HR departments are like employment Bermuda Triangles?your resume gets sent to who knows where to be read by who knows who, if at all. And even if your resume does get read, what will differentiate it from the hundreds of others in the stack?

Instead, if it?s possible, print out your resume/cover letter/application, and go in person to hand it to whomever is responsible for hiring (the hiring manager, your potential supervisor, the head of the department, etc.) for the job you want. Figuring out who is responsible for hiring can be difficult at large, faceless corporations, but often can be done by looking online and making some calls.

This is how I have gotten most of the jobs I?ve had in my life. In each instance, the person was pleased with my initiative, interviewed me right on the spot, and, in some cases, offered me the job right then and there.

Obviously, handing in your resume in person works better for lower-level jobs than more professional ones, but it can be effective in a variety of situations. Awhile back, AoM Community member Ben D. posted an awesome little article on the Community blog about how he landed a job as a respiratory therapist by using this method:

?When my wife and I moved to Chicago, we had no connections here. No jobs, no family, and minimal money. The assumption was that I would be able to find a job in short order. Before we moved, I updated my resume, applied online to many jobs, and then sat back and waited.

When the move was over and we had settled in, I still did not have a job. I had a couple of leads, but they were at companies that are considered resume stains in my profession. Still, a crappy job beats no job, so I bit the bullet, called the hiring manager, and got hired at the Resume Stain.

After one shift I had had enough. While the people were nice, the job and the company were crap. I began formulating plans for my escape. I applied to more jobs online and then waited. That is how one applies for a job, right?

Wrong. I was listening to public radio and a story came on about how people seeking work would fill out online applications, post their resume to Monster, and then just wait for a job to fall into their laps. Listening to this it struck me how absurd and un-manly that was. Unless you can poop golden eggs, you are just one faceless resume in a sea of thousands. I decided to get my job the manly way: with hard work, initiative, and elbow grease.

I printed my resume, wrote a custom cover letter for the company I was applying to, and signed it in pen. I folded these items up into an envelope and addressed it to the hiring manager, put on my good suit and tie, and drove down to the company.

It struck me that what I was about to do?to cold-call a hiring manager?was risky. He could be in a bad mood or out of the office. Any number of bad things could happen. But I wanted this job, and I had nothing to lose.

I choked down my nerves, straightened my tie, put on a big confident smile, and strode through the doors. A little sniffing around brought me to the manager?s office.?I knocked on the door, introduced myself with a big smile and a handshake, and before he knew it he had my resume and cover letter in his hands. I explained myself. ?Just didn?t want to be another face in the crowd, thought I?d take a little initiative and stop by in person.? He sat me down for an interview, and an hour later I left with a promise from him that he?d be in touch.

A few days later I got a phone call and a job offer. Soon, I will be employed at a company that I respect and that has a great reputation. I got the job I actually wanted, not just one I was randomly hired for from the internet. I got a good job at a good company, and I got to make that critical first impression a good one, all by eschewing the trappings of the internet job hunt for the old-fashioned manly way of getting a job. Another victory for manliness!?

Another victory for manliness, indeed, Ben. And to the victor go the spoils.

Follow Up!

Whether you submit your resume online or hand it over in person, your job is not yet done. Now you must follow up! Hiring managers have a lot on their plate, as do department heads and supervisors for whom hiring is just one small part of what they do. So show your sincere interest in the job by following up with an email or phone call.

If a job posting gave a deadline for the application window, then follow up a couple of days after the deadline passes?following up before then will make you seem impatient. When you follow up, say something like, ?Because the deadline for x job closed on June 11, I assume that applications have begun to be reviewed. I just wanted to express my sincere interest in the position. My [couple of key qualities] would make me a great fit for the job.? If you can find out something about the company?s culture or the kind of people the hiring manager likes to hire, then mention your connection to those things.

If the job posting didn?t have a deadline, then wait a week to ten days after you submit your application to follow up. Then give the hiring manager a call, and say something like, ?My name is Bob Smith and I submitted my resume on June 11 for X job, and I was wondering if the position had been filled yet. No? Well, [express interest in job + a couple of things that make you well qualified for it].

If you?ve done an interview with the company, but haven?t heard back from them within the time frame they gave you (and make sure to ask for a timeline at the end of the interview if they don?t tell you), then the day after the original time frame expires, follow up with a phone call or email reaffirming your interest in the job, saying politely that you realize the hiring process can take awhile, and inquiring if they could give you an updated timeline on when they will be making a decision.

If the company didn?t give you a timeline to begin with, then wait a week and a half after your interview before following up.

Whether you?re following up on a submitted application or on an interview, keep it to two attempts. If you don?t get an answer on the first follow-up, send an email a week later. Still no answer? Move on.

?Apply? for Unadvertised Jobs and Jobs That Don?t Yet Exist

Many of the very best jobs out there will never show up in the classifieds. The company doesn?t advertise the positions publicly and instead hires friends, internal employees, or folks they have worked with or heard about in other capacities. So you?ll never get these gigs by waiting around for a job posting to show up. Instead, you have to take the initiative!

If there?s some place you want to work, and some position you?re hoping to get, send an email with your resume to the person you think would be in charge of hiring for that position. Tell them that if the job opens up, you?d love to be considered and why you?re qualified for the position.

You should put yourself out there even if a position or job you want doesn?t yet exist, or if you?re a freelancer hoping to pick up a new client who doesn?t even know he needs your services yet. Get a feel for what the company does currently, and where they could use help or could potentially expand, and then contact them and offer your services, giving them a specific idea of something you could do for them. Tell them you?re a big fan of what they do (hopefully this is actually true) and that you would be willing to do a project for them free of charge or at a discount to give back; doing something new is a risky proposition for the potential client, so they?ll be much more willing to give you a go if it won?t cost them much. Now they might not be able to use you at that moment, but down the road a need for your services may arise, and when it does, they?ll think of you first.

Let me give you some examples from running the Art of Manliness. Back in 2009, Ted Slampyak contacted me saying how much he liked AoM, and volunteering to take part in our SWYMJ series. Three years passed (three years!), but this year, the site was finally generating enough revenue to do something I had wanted to do since starting AoM: hire an illustrator to do illustrations for some of our posts. When we were thinking about how to find someone who could do illustrations with an AoM feel, Kate said, ?Hey, how about that guy who did the SYWMJ interview? He does really cool stuff.? And so now Ted is our go-to guy for all our illustration needs.

Second case in point:

When I originally started AoM in January 2008, I did all the design work myself. For a law student with no web or graphic design experience, I did okay, but I knew the site could look a whole lot better if a professional applied their talents to it. Enter Eric Granata. Eric has been reading AoM since the beginning and was an active participant in our first version of the AoM forums. In early 2008, Eric reached out in an email introducing himself as a fellow Okie, AoM fan, and web designer. He volunteered his services for any graphic and web design needs that we might have. I had a small project that I needed done, and Eric did it completely gratis as a way to say thanks for the content on AoM.

We were so impressed with Eric?s work, we kept going back to him for other projects, but this time as a paying customer. In 2009, we hired Eric to do a complete redesign of AoM. The site you?re looking at today is Eric?s handiwork. We?ve become a regular paying client of Eric?s, and it all started with him taking the?initiative and volunteering his services.

I could go on with more examples, but I think you get the idea. Start offering your services to people, and planting as many seeds as you can. They may not sprout immediately, but could very well bear fruit down the road.

And, it should go without saying, but even if you do that first thing for a potential client for free or at a discount, knock it out of the park! It?s basically your interview for a job. Wow the client with what you can do, and he?ll wonder what he ever did without you and eagerly start throwing more fully paid work your way. Half-ass it and your window of opportunity will close.

Take the Initiative!

So why do these initiative-taking methods work so well? Well, believe or not, companies have just as hard a time finding good people, as good people do finding good jobs. Put yourself in the shoes of the person doing the hiring?they?ve got stacks of applications to look through and it?s hard to distinguish on paper who might be worth calling in for an interview. It takes a lot of work to make that decision. By showing some initiative, you help do some of the work for them, as it shows you have moxie and ambition and that you really want this job: qualities that represent a big percentage of what they?re looking for in an employee.

Now taking the initiative in your job search doesn?t mean you?ll land your dream job tomorrow. But it is guaranteed to get you hired faster than waiting around for your next job to land in your lap.

What?s been your experience in taking the initiative when looking for a job? Share your advice with us in the comments!

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Christian Bale: Drew Barrymore Dumped Me After One Date!

Christian Bale and Drew Barrymore don't appear to have much in common -- he's The Dark Knight, she's Never Been Kissed -- but back in the day, they were almost a couple. In a new interview with GQ Australia, Bale revealed that he and Barrymore (who is one year his junior) briefly dated as teenagers. Unfortunately for Christian, Drew wasn't terribly interested!

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HP Wireless Audio

Wireless and networked audio is becoming increasingly ubiquitous. Bluetooth and AirPlay allow you to play music on their smartphones, tablets, and computers through their speaker systems, and DLNA lets you play music that's stored on their computers through their Blu-ray players and HDTVs over their home network. There aren't many simple, out-of-the-box kits to enable wireless audio on both ends, though. The HP Wireless Audio kit changes that, by offering an all-in-one solution to stream music from your computer to your speakers. It's easy to set up, but at $99.99 (direct), it's expensive for a device that lets you do things you probably can already do via other methods.

The HP Wireless Audio kit ?has two parts: a transmitter and a receiver box. The transmitter is a basic USB device shaped like a large, wide flash drive. It's slightly wider than would be convenient, as it can block other ports close to the USB port it's plugged into. The receiver box is a 1.2- by 4.5- by 2.9-inch (HWD) rectangular device with a port for the power cable, RCA stereo outputs, a standard-size 3.5mm output, and an S/PDIF digital output. It also has a small pairing button and two lights to show it's plugged in and paired with the transmitter.

To sync the transmitter with the receiver, you need to install the HP Wireless Audio Manager software on your PC and plug in the transmitter. Once you install it, you can pair your computer (with the transmitter attached) to the receiver by pressing the pairing button on the receiver and running the software. The default audio driver will switch to the USB transmitter. From that point, anything you play on the computer will output through the receiver to whatever speakers or home theater system you hook up.

Despite the claims of the HP Wireless Audio product page on HP's web site, the audio driver only supports stereo sound, so you can't take full advantage of a surround sound system. In other words, it only sends two channels of audio to your speakers or receiver, meaning you can't use it to link your PC to your 5.1-channel system to make games like Bioshock more atmospheric.

HP claims the wireless audio device has a range of 100 feet, but I didn't see that in my tests. While it streamed audio flawlessly to a receiver placed 15 feet away, it couldn't keep a reliable connection to an HDTV across the Lab. Mixmaster Mike sounded clean through our test surround system near my desk, but the rest of the Beastie Boys popped and crackled and occasionally cut out through the screen 80 feet away. In fairness, the PCMag.com Labs have more wireless interference than most homes, but you should still be wary if you want to use the HP Wireless Audio across your house. Despite the reception issue, there didn't seem to be any noticeable latency between the computer and the receiver. If the signal stays strong, you won't have to wait between clicking play and hearing the music on your speakers.

HP Wireless Audio easily lets you connect your PC to your speaker system, but there are easier and better ways to do it. For example, if you have a big home theater system, it may already support AirPlay for Apple product users, and it almost certainly supports DLNA for accessing music shared on a network. If you have a recent Blu-ray player or HDTV, you can access your music through your home network. If you don't, you can get a good Blu-ray player for less than $150 like the Editors' Choice LG BP620 ($129.99, 4 stars) and add DLNA support and many other entertainment features to your sound system. If you don't have a full sound system but still want wireless music, the Editors' Choice Logitech Mini Boombox ($99.99, 4 stars) offers a self-contained Bluetooth speaker and speakerphone that will work with your computer and mobile devices for the same price as the HP Wireless Audio kit.

More Media Hub and Receiver Reviews:
??? HP Wireless Audio
??? Griffin Beacon for iOS
??? Warpia ConnectHD Wireless Webcam SWP400VC
??? Dish Network Hopper
??? Dish Network Joey
?? more

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On the internet Internet marketing Business For Newbies

At this time, numerous people today from all over the world are now thinking about starting an online business. Regardless of whether you might be a large school graduate or even an experienced, everyone can start various sorts of corporations on the net.

Most on line businesses are not profitable but with some also do be successful and turn out to be lucrative. This is as a result of online marketing.

Internet marketing is one in the most common strategies utilised by on-line businesses to optimize their web site. This can be by promoting their websites to ensure that it is going to obtain rank from significant online search engine, where many world-wide-web users use to locate web-sites that supply the items and repair they have to have.

Internet marketing may possibly sound easy. It could be difficult if you are a newbie. Consequently, right here are some suggestions for creating your online marketing technique a good results.

Writing Articles or blog posts

Creating and submitting content articles is one of the productive types of marketing your on the internet small business in the online. What you do is create about your on the internet business enterprise and advertise your solutions at the ending of your write-up. After finishing your post, existing your completed report to web-sites that publishes posts.

Be part of Discussion boards

Joining forums is also one with the most effective approaches to industry your on-line organization within the internet. Be part of teams who are talking about subjects related for your on the web business enterprise. There?s an opportunity that lots of people have concerns about a specific product and answering them may perhaps not just cause you to look fantastic but people today who will take a look at the dialogue may get involved and possibly go to your web site. Just do not overlook to put your name and web site right after every single publish.

Advertise on Other Web sites

Promoting your online enterprise on other sites is also an incredibly productive online marketing approach. The draw back is most internet websites that presents marketing in their web-site costs an advertising charge. So be sure you come across a great web page to advertise on. An excellent website need to have numerous visitors to make sure you that many individuals will basically see your marketing. Also, come across internet websites related to your on the web company. Marketing on an internet site is ordinarily in the kind of banners and text back links.
E mail List

This type of online marketing technique can be a very good approach to attain out personally to many internet users. The sole downside to this method is the fact that most of the common email support suppliers which include Yahoo! Mail, Google, Gmail and MSN e-mails have functions that may mark your email message as spam. Most users delete the contents of their spam folder even ahead of they look within.

There are on the net businesses that provide internet-marketing services. For varying charges, they will care for the web advertising for your on the web enterprise. All you have to do is provide them with some particulars about your on-line business and specify what sort of internet marketing method you choose.

These are just many of the ways to market place your online organization in the web. There are many kinds of distinct online marketing techniques.

With an increasing number of people today beginning their own online enterprise daily, it is best to very carefully select what type of online marketing that may be suitable for the business, and inside the approach, performing them properly.

Naturally, there is going to be some disappointments within the early stages of your on line business but with a small persistence and work; you?ll be able to be in your way on making money.

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Direct mail fail ? Rantings of a sub-editor

Facts and fingers. Mostly fingers.

When you espresso-drinking types decide to grace our inboxes with a spot of direct marketing, your main goals are to pick up new clients and stimulate repeat business. Even if you don?t achieve that, hopefully you?ll still increase awareness of your brand. If your message is binned without being read, that?s disappointing. If your recipient opts out, that?s the worst?case scenario. Right?

Or how about when the targeted customer, upon reading your carefully crafted prose, froths violently at the mouth and forwards your email to, um, me, with the following comment:

?Why you would trust anyone to work with you on direct mail when their own attempt at email direct marketing is so shabby is beyond me. It?s the mix of fonts, colours, bold; the length, lack of salutation or sign off, not to mention poor sentence construction and punctuation, that make me go grrrr.?

That?s how this little treat fell into my hands. And, would you believe it, the point of the direct-marketing email in question was to market? direct mail. Ouch. A double whammy of self defeat. To see the email in all its glory, click here.?I?ve removed the company?s name and links, because I?m not a total bitch, honest.

In the interests of positivity (which is definitely a word, because the Spice Girls said so) here are five points that could have made it better:

1. Length and structure
This email is well over 1,000 words long ? that?s at least three times as long as it should be. Try to limit yourself to a maximum of 300 words, and use a three?point structure so that you don?t overwhelm your reader?s tiny mind. For example:

• Outline the client?s possible desire or difficulty
• Describe your company?s solution
• Provide the next step, whether it?s a link, phone number or email address.

2. Style and layout
Make sure the email contains clear branding ? your logo, your font, your colours. This one was so generic?looking that at first we thought it might be a scam, and had to confirm with the company that it was genuine.

When it comes to the text, don?t mix colour, underline and bold (unless you want it look like a GCSE computer skills project from the 1990s). Choose between either colour or bold, and use it sparingly ? and if you choose colour, make sure it fits with your branding and that it matches, or complements, the colour of any hyperlinks. Underline is so last century, baby; don?t do it. Also, do you really need to use block capitals? I THINK NOT.

3. Spelling and grammar
Where to start? The mistakes in this piece smack you in the face like a sack full of hammers. But here are a few of the less idiotic ones.

• Don?t refer to your company as a female, for flip?s sake. Most style guides suggest the singular (?Relfco and its partners?), but some companies prefer the plural (?Relfco and their partners?) because they think it sounds more human. Either is fine, just make sure you?re consistent.
• Remember that spellcheck is a little bastard. Only a human would know that you meant ?whereas? in the sentence: ?ROI for Direct Mail has steadily increased over the last 3 years, were as digitals has declined.?
• Read it out loud. That way you?ll spot the awkwardness of sentences such as: ?We will do all of the or part of, the work for you? ? and either annihilate them on sight (recommended), or at least improve the punctuation.
• Consider employing a professional proofreader, or at least running the document past the most pedantic person you have to hand. Not everyone will spot a misplaced modifier, but if you?re sending the email to several thousand people, some definitely will. Here?s one, where the ?its? and the ?we? disagree: ?In its simplest form, we work in partnership with local marketing experts.? Not the end of the world, but some people judge you on this stuff. Some people, eh. No-one I know, obviously.

4. Wild claims

Stay focused on what you can actually deliver, and the benefits of that to the client. You won?t win business by promising the world. Unless you can actually deliver it, of course ? in which case, I want one. For example:

• ?Mail is engaging. Consumers spend on average 10 minutes reading mailshots.? Per item? (This sounds unlikely.) In a lifetime? (Not very impressive.)
• ?It lets you have a one to one communication which delivers more emotional intensity than any other medium.? Is anyone really going to believe that receiving marketing mail is an emotionally intense experience? Delete.
• ?[Mail] affects all five senses: sight, sound, smell, touch and taste. Mail is the only medium to provide the creative possibilities to engage the customers on all levels.? Yes, I often sniff, lick and listen to my letters before opening them. But enough about me.

5. Beginnings and endings

How you start and finish matters. If you?re contacting an existing client, you want them to feel valued and remembered. If you?re contacting a potential new client, remember that you?re nothing to them, as yet. And in both cases, bear in mind that unsolicited mail is rarely welcome ? so you need to be as polite, professional and to-the-frickin?-point as possible.

Use a program that allows you to address each recipient by name, and check that their name displays correctly. Most people are more likely to read on if they see ?Dear Cathy? than if they see ?Dear Ms C Relf?. Though it really is time you stopped reading my mail.

Also, make sure you sign off properly. You?re reaching out to new business ? so to whom should it reach back? And how? Be friendly, write like a real person, and give options for how to get in touch.Finally, think carefully about your final statement. Do you really want it to be ?In the mean time for more ideas, fact & fingers click on Direct Mail??

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Dental SEO: Making Patients Grin

There is an reliable option for dental surgeons to reach patients in need of treatment options. It might increase the company's income and build a strong online presence. This option is hiring an industry specific search engine optimization (SEO) business presenting dental marketing solutions.

If you are a dentist reluctant on getting a dental SEO business, here is a short guideline to help you understand what this company features.

Exactly what are dental marketing solutions?

If you're familiar with how a typical SEO business operates, knowing dental marketing solutions should not be any problem. This works similar to a typical SEO marketing solution. They make use of the same white hat techniques to ensure the dentist's website ranks well in the search engine results positioning. The sole difference is in its focus.

While SEO marketing is assorted and covers numerous aspects about a particular business, dental SEO focuses on many kinds of dental services and practices.

Your website can have more patients needing oral remedies if exposed properly. Look for specialists who understand what your target audience wants.

Your selected business must understand your prospective clients are people searching for efficient dental treatments for their problems. These SEO specialists can optimize your website to market the services you provide like veneers, whitening or implants. It can also get you more customers. Should your site ranks well, more patients will look for your company more than others when they've dental problems.

The dental SEO business you will be working with must be experienced on different dental marketing solutions. In this way, you can promote dental services such as tooth extraction, mini implants, dental veneers, laser dentistry, and dental crowns successfully. They have to know just how to manage countless kinds of media so that you will rank well.

Your dental SEO business ought to have imaginative and progressive web site design. They should hire creative designers who have many years of expertise conceptualizing and making sites interactive. This includes knowing just how work particular software that could make the site more appealing. Web design and social networking services have to be carried out effectively.

Information about Web Design

A good web design will attract more patients. They will want to know what type of dental services you offer. While your design is trendy, it should also be simple enough to become direct and self-explanatory.

Your SEO professional should know a user-centered design is vital to make visitors into paying customers. The best way they could do this is simply by putting usable features and getting rid of distracting ones that you don't require. Make sure your website gives what your website visitors are looking for and make it fast. Many individuals do not like reading long content with deep words. In reality, most visitors don't even read- they read over. Ask your professional to focus on important information or text in a website to stress a certain message.

As your focus depends on dental services, you must keep the design of your site simple, professional and clean. This will make highlighted key messages and content stick out better. Use colors that do not clash with the theme.
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ooVoo updates its iOS and Android app, launches Facebook video-chat application

Posted by admin on Sunday May 27, 2012 Under iPad

Multi-party video chat service ooVoo updated all of its apps, including those for desktop and mobile platforms. We don?t care about the former, but we definitely want to look at the latter. Here?s what you should know:

- Both iOS and Android apps have been updated, featuring a new user interface and simplified registration using Facebook.
- The new iPad app allows users to host a 12-way video chat with the ability to view four simultaneous video streams at once.
- ooVoo is making free the option to record and upload video chats to YouTube, Facebook and Twitter.
- You can now connect to friends whether or not they have the ooVoo application by simply emailing, posting or texting an ooVoo Call Link.

In addition, ooVoo also launched a new 12-way video Facebook application using which you can ?connect to friends in and outside of Facebook on any device.?

Want it? Why not ? it?s free after all. Hit the appropriate link below and take it from there?

ooVoo Video Call (FREE) [iTunes link] [Google Play] [Facebook App]

About The Author

Dusan Belic

Dusan has been using smartphones since their introduction and is now following the latest trends in the industry. The ?convergence? is what he?s most excited about, and writing about it is the next logical thing to do. He thinks that using a smartphone is what everyone who cares about their time should do.

In addition to his interests in mobile phones, Dusan also loves to experiment with the latest web and mobile 2.0 services. The idea of accessing and managing your information from any device no matter where you are simply amazes him. Whether it?s an online to-do list, note taking service or a video sharing social network, he?s there to try it out. He admits though, he?s still searching for the ultimate web-based organizational tool, which ?sings? perfectly with the mobile PIM application.

Dusan used to run SymbianWatch.com which later became part of IntoMobile. He lives in

Article source: Read More

Related posts:

1. ooVoo video chat app launched for iPhone 4
2. Multi-party video chat service ooVoo surpasses 38 million users
3. Facebook announces Skype-powered video chat
4. Avon UK launches SuperStyler app for iPhone, Android and Facebook
5. TiVo updates its iPad app with operators? video-on-demand catalog

Tags: Apple, devices, gadgets, iPhone

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2012 Gone-Fishing Portfolio (Free Money Finance)

The following is a guest post from Marotta Wealth Management.

A gone-fishing portfolio has a limited number of investments with a balanced asset allocation that should do well with dampened volatility. Its primary appeal is simplicity. As a secondary virtue, it avoids the worst mistakes of the financial services industry. This year I limited myself to 12 investment vehicles.

Asset allocation begins by selecting the top six asset categories. A good starting point is an age-appropriate allocation. We use as our example a couple both born in 1972 and turning 40 this year. The most popular names of that era were Michael and Jennifer. Their age-appropriate allocation will be 3% short money, 5.8% U.S. bonds, 5.8% foreign bonds, 32.2% U.S. stocks, 36.2% foreign stocks and 17.0% hard asset stocks. (Click to enlarge chart.)

Short money matures in less than two years. Often simply kept in the money market, it can be tapped for emergencies during the accumulation phase or used as a pool for spending during the distribution phase. Michael and Jennifer will put 3% in short money.

Last year I chose a single exchange-traded fund (ETF) representing the entire bond market. This year I suggest two holdings as the best prospects for U.S. bonds and foreign bonds, respectively. PIMCO Total Return (PTTDX/PTTRX) looks for yield wherever it may be on the yield curve. PIMCO Emerging Markets Bond (PEMDX/PEBIX) has a 4.72% yield. Michael and Jennifer will invest 5.8% in each.

In the next few columns, I will explain why these two bond funds are appropriate choices for each category and why I chose mutual funds this year instead of ETFs.

U.S. debt and deficit is enormous. We sit squarely in what investment author Bill Gross calls the ring of fire. We are also burdening businesses with needless regulation and steep tax increases that will continue to stunt economic growth. On the brighter side, the United States is still mostly free according to the Heritage Foundation's Index of Economic Freedom. For these reasons, we recommend investing more in foreign stocks in countries with less debt and deficit than the United States but still investing here.

We normally suggest tilting small and value to boost returns. But this year the projected price-to-earning ratios favor a large blend. Therefore we advise mostly investing according to the S&P 500. We recommend splitting your U.S. stock allocation 80% in the Vanguard S&P 500 ETF (VOO) and 20% in the Vanguard Information Technology ETF (VGT). For Michael and Jennifer that would mean 25.8% in VOO and 6.4% in VGT.

The United States shines when it comes to technology, less burdened under government regulation than financials, energy or now health care. Although it has high volatility, technology also has historically high returns. About 20% of the S&P 500 is already in information technology, so our allocation will put 36.2% of your U.S. stock holdings there. For Michael and Jennifer, 2.3% of their total portfolio will be in Apple stock, the highest concentration in their portfolio.

I would use half of the 12 investment options in foreign stocks. Tilting foreign and toward very specific countries may be the best investment advice for 2012. Avoiding countries low in economic freedom and high in debt and deficit may be critical to experience good investment returns.

Last year I included options for ETFs that represented the MSCI EAFE Index of developed countries before recommending specific countries. The EAFE index stands for Europe, Australia and the Far East. Australia is positive, but the Far East is mostly Japan, a country with the highest ratio of debt to gross domestic product. Most of Europe is also firmly in the ring of fire with high debts and deficits. For every dollar invested in the EAFE index, 61 cents is allocated in these countries. Therefore I recommend investing only in specific developed countries.

First I would put 15% of your foreign stocks in these countries high in economic freedom and low in debt and deficit: Hong Kong (EWH), Singapore (EWS), Australia (EWA) and Switzerland (EWL). I would allocate another 10% in Canada (EWC), lower than the others because of its rising debt. These are all ETFs by fund company iShares.

These five countries have the top rankings in the 2012 Heritage Foundation's Index of economic freedom. They all have low debt and deficit. All five countries have better financial investments than the United States. Australia and Canada have better investments for materials. Canada has better energy investments. Switzerland has better consumer staples and health care investments. These countries are the best places where your investments will be free to grow unhindered by the drag of big government.

Finally, I would allocate the last 30% of our couple's foreign stock allocation to Vanguard emerging markets (VWO). Unlike America and Great Britain's century of invention and innovation, emerging countries today can develop quickly.

All Brazil has to do is to send their children to one of our schools for four years. After returning home, they can buy parts for a factory on the global market and be ready to compete with us in a matter of months. All they need is the capital to get started. That's exactly what your investment provides.

Michael and Jennifer would invest 5.4% in EWH, EWS, EWA and EWL. They would invest 3.6% in EWC and 11.0% in VWO, emerging markets that can be extremely volatile but also very profitable.

The last asset class, hard asset stocks, includes companies that own and produce an underlying natural resource. Examples include oil, natural gas, precious metals (particularly gold and silver); base metals such as copper and nickel; real estate investment trusts (REITs); and other resources such as diamonds, coal and lumber.

Do not equate investing in hard asset stocks with investing directly in commodities. Buying gold bullion or a gold futures contract is a direct investment in raw commodities or their volatility. Buying a gold mining company, in contrast, is a hard asset stock investment.

For 60% of your hard asset allocation, we recommend the iShares S&P North American Natural Resources Index ETF (IGE). This index tracks hard asset stocks in North America. It consists of 62% energy and 15% metals and mining. The largest holding in this fund is Exxon Mobil (XOM), the second largest holding in the S&P 500. Given these two ETFs, Michael and Jennifer will have 1.6% of their investments in XOM.

For the other 40% of your hard asset allocation, we recommend the Vanguard Real Estate Investment Trust ETF (VNQ). This fund invests in all aspects of the U.S. real estate market from commercial to residential. REITs are a very small percentage of IGE or the S&P 500. A specific allocation to this sector provides an additional diversified hedge against inflation.

Michael and Jennifer will put 10.2% in IGE and 6.8% in VNQ. These two investments provide an additional allocation to U.S. stocks, tilting the entire portfolio back toward domestic investments. The total tilt will end up 55% U.S. stocks and 45% foreign stocks. Michael and Jennifer's average gross expense ratio would be only 0.31%. (Click to enlarge chart.)

A gone-fishing portfolio is appropriate for limited amounts of money, especially during the accumulation phase. When investors have significant holdings or approach retirement, I recommend seeking professional comprehensive financial planning from a fee-only fiduciary.

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Treasure Coast Real Estate | Surfside Unit 02 Homes For Sale May ...

by starfish on May 26, 2012

Find Surfside Unit 02 Homes For Sale and Surfside Unit 02 Home Values. We also have information on mortgages, insurance, movers and other Treasure Coast Real Estate Services for anyone looking to sell or buy a home in beautiful St Lucie COUNTY Florida.

Paul Kitchen and Starfish Team provide clients, family and close friends with professional, honest and dependable service. A resident of Treasure Coast, Paul is extremely familiar with the local neighborhoods including Surfside Unit 02, school districts and the Treasure Coast Real Estate market in this beautiful Florida town.

Paul Kitchen
Broker-Owner
Starfish Real Estate
8985 SE Bridge Road Hobe Sound, Florida 33455
(772) 539-8380
(800) 793-7304 toll free
Treasure Coast Real Estate
Treasure Coast Real Estate Blog

Tagged as: Surfside Unit 02, Treasure Coast Real Estate

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Insurance rates with respect to car types | Auto insurance tips

A large number of drivers usually get surprised when they learn about different insurance rates for different car types. They think that it doesn?t matter whether it?s a small car or a hot rod as long as they have a good driving record and don?t get in trouble in traffic. With all that, insurance companies have a different perspective on things and they will charge you with different premiums depending on the type of car you?re trying to insure. That?s why you should always bear in mind the following characteristics of each car type and make your decisions correctly if you want your auto insurance budget to be limited:

Small vehicles
Small sized vehicles are usually very affordable and rather comfortable in the conditions of a big city with heavy traffic. They typically have low engine volumes, top speed, get stolen quite rarely and are inexpensive to handle at repair. Even so, auto insurance can be a bit expensive for small cars because they tend to get damaged very bad during accidents. Basic physics aren?t on small cars? side during collisions because the smaller object tends to get the most damage regardless of the safety features the manufacturer has included. That?s why costly claims tend to arise more often with such vehicles, and the insurers respond with respective pricing.

Mid-sized cars
Mid-class vehicles are often considered to be the safest and the cheapest to insure. Naturally, it depends on the particular make and model, but the in general these cars are quite safe, have low repair costs and theft rates, and tend to get damaged much less than smaller vehicles during an accident. That is why you will usually get the best auto insurance rates for this car type.

SUVs
Large cars, trucks and SUVs that fall into the same size category are certainly very comfortable and give you a whole different perspective in traffic. But the size can be a problem with these vehicles. Due to their increased mass as compared to other vehicle types SUVs tend to produce more damage during accidents, especially involving other cars. Third party liability claims with SUVs are likely to be higher because the other car tends to get damaged quite bad and there are likely to be injuries as well. Added to the higher repair costs for such vehicles SUVs are usually more expensive to insure.

Sports vehicles
Fast sports cars often look like a great option for car buyers since they are both cool and cheap. However, when it comes to insuring a typical sports car, you will actually have a hard time getting cheap auto insurance because insurers tend to classify such cars as high risk. High top speed, engine volume, elevated theft and accident rates as well as the likelihood to produce a very serious car crash all contribute to expensive auto insurance rates for sports vehicles.

Expensive cars
It may look natural for expensive cars to be costly in terms of insurance. But it has nothing to do with their initial price as there are other reasons to charge higher rates for such vehicles. First of all, they are usually very costly to repair, often requiring exclusive and overpriced repair parts that are hard to find in an ordinary repair shop. Besides, such vehicles are often targeted by car thieves and burglars due to their value and exclusivity. That?s why getting cheap auto insurance for any luxury car is problematic.

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FACT CHECK: Obama off on thrifty spending claim

WASHINGTON (AP) ? The White House is aggressively pushing the idea that, contrary to widespread belief, President Barack Obama is tightfisted with taxpayer dollars. To back it up, the administration cites a media report that claims federal spending is rising at the slowest pace since the Eisenhower years.

"Federal spending since I took office has risen at the slowest pace of any president in almost 60 years," Obama said at a campaign rally Thursday in Des Moines, Iowa.

The problem with that rosy claim is that the Wall Street bailout is part of the calculation. The bailout ballooned the 2009 budget just before Obama took office, making Obama's 2010 results look smaller in comparison. And as almost $150 billion of the bailout was paid back during Obama's watch, the analysis counted them as government spending cuts.

It also assumes Obama had less of a role setting the budget for 2009 than he really did.

Obama rests his claim on an analysis by MarketWatch, a financial information and news service owned by Dow Jones & Co. The analysis simply looks at the year-to-year topline spending number for the government but doesn't account for distortions baked into the figures by the Wall Street bailout and government takeover of the mortgage lending giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.

The MarketWatch study claims that spending is grown only 1.4 percent over 2010-2013, or annual increases averaging 0.4 percent over that period. Those are stunningly low figures considering that Obama rammed through Congress an $831 billion stimulus measure in early 2009 and presided over significant increases in annual spending by domestic agencies at the same time the cost of benefit programs like Social Security, Medicare and the Medicaid were ticking steadily higher.

A fairer calculation would give Obama much of the responsibility for an almost 10 percent budget boost in 2009, then a 13 percent increase over 2010-2013, or average annual growth of spending of just more than 3 percent over that period.

So, how does the administration arrive at its rosy claim?

First, there's the Troubled Assets Relief Program, the official name for the Wall Street bailout. First, companies got a net $151 billion from TARP in 2009, making 2010 spending look smaller. Then, because banks and Wall Street firms repaid a net $110 billion in TARP funds in 2010, Obama is claiming credit for cutting spending by that much.

The combination of TARP lending in one year and much of that money being paid back in the next makes Obama's spending record for 2010 look $261 billion thriftier than it really was. Only by that measure does Obama "cut" spending by 1.8 percent in 2010 as the analysis claims.

The federal takeover of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac also makes Obama's record on spending look better than it was. The government spent $96 billion on the Fannie-Freddie takeovers in 2009 but only $40 billion on them in 2010. By the administration's reckoning, the $56 billion difference was a spending cut by Obama.

Taken together, TARP and the takeover of Fannie and Freddie combine to give Obama an undeserved $317 billion swing in the 2010 figures and the resulting 1.8 percent cut from 2009. A fairer reading is an almost 8 percent increase.

Those two bailouts account for $72 billion more in cuts in 2011. Obama supported the bailouts.

There's also the question of how to treat the 2009 fiscal year, which actually began Oct. 1, 2008, almost four months before Obama took office. Typically, the remaining eight months get counted as part of the prior president's spending since the incoming president usually doesn't change it much until the following October. The MarketWatch analysis assigned 2009 to former President George W. Bush, though it gave Obama responsibility that year for a $140 million chunk of the 2009 stimulus bill.

But Obama's role in 2009 spending was much bigger than that. For starters, he signed nine spending bills funding every Cabinet agency except Defense, Veterans Affairs and Homeland Security. While the numbers don't jibe exactly, Obama bears the chief responsibility for an 11 percent, $59 billion increase in non-defense spending in 2009. Then there's a 9 percent, $109 billion increase in combined defense and non-defense appropriated outlays in 2010, a year for which Obama is wholly responsible.

As other critics have noted, including former Congressional Budget Office Director Douglas Holtz-Eakin, the MarketWatch analysis also incorporates CBO's annual baseline as its estimate for fiscal years 2012 and 2013. That gives Obama credit for three events unlikely to occur:

?$65 billion in 2013 from automatic, across-the-board spending cuts slated to take effect next January.

?Cuts in Medicare payments to physicians.

?The expiration of refundable tax cuts that are "scored" as spending in federal ledgers.

Lawmakers are unlikely to allow the automatic cuts to take full effect, but it's at best a guessing game as to what will really happen in 2013. A better measure is Obama's request for 2013.

"You can only make him look good by ignoring the early years and adopting the hope and not the reality of the years in his budget," said Holtz-Eakin, a GOP economist and president of the American Action Forum, a free market think tank.

So how does Obama measure up?

If one assumes that TARP and the takeover of Fannie and Freddie by the government as one-time budgetary anomalies and remove them from calculations ? an approach taken by Holtz-Eakin ? you get the following picture:

?A 9.7 percent increase in 2009, much of which is attributable to Obama.

?A 7.8 percent increase in 2010, followed by slower spending growth over 2011-13. Much of the slower growth reflects the influence of Republicans retaking control of the House and their budget and debt deal last summer with Obama. All told, government spending now appears to be growing at an annual rate of roughly 3 percent over the 2010-2013 period, rather than the 0.4 percent claimed by Obama and the MarketWatch analysis.

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