| Local Gas Station Charging Over $4 Per Gallon Near OIA
ORLANDO, Fla. -- There was a break for the holidays, but gas prices are ready to rise again. One local gas station, though, is already charging customers much more than others. RAW INTERVIEW: Manager Defends $4.49 Per Gallon Customers at the independent gas station near the Orlando International Airport are paying $4.49 a gallon. Some of the customers don't know the price they're paying until it's too late. There are no large signs showing the prices at the station. Most customers are tourists returning rental cars before catching flights at Orlando International Airport. Not all believe it's an honorable way to conduct business. "It's not fair. It's definitely price gouging during the holiday season," said tourist Les Lazarus. Even at $4.49 a gallon for regular, most of the pumps were busy at Suncoast Energys on Friday morning.
German advertisers fish for customers with 'retrospeak'
Most German children these days would hardly use the term "klaro," a rather outdated slang expression that was very popular in the 1970s and '80s. Other buzzwords from that era were "cool" and "geil" (randy is its first definition, but it took on a secondary meaning of great, fantastic, terrific). Sometimes German advertisers resurrect words like this, employing "retrospeak" to attract attention, remarked Peter Schlobinski, a professor of Germanic linguistics at the University of Hanover. The "klaro" commercial has two target groups. "The small child using the expression addresses children and youths, and the expression itself is directed at parents and grandparents," said Franco Rota, a professor of marketing communications at Stuttgart Media University. People over 50 years of age "were young in the '70s and used this lingo themselves," he explained.
Oilsands Producers Get Failing Grade on Environment
A new report card has given a failing grade to nine of 10 Alberta oilsands producers on their environmental performance. The study by the Pembina Institute and the World Wildlife Fund ranked 10 operating and proposed oilsands mines on 20 different environmental indicators, including environmental management, land impacts, air pollution, water use and management of greenhouse gases. The report said seven of the 10 producers participated in the study and only one was given a passing grade. While Albian's Muskeg mine ranked highest with a 56 per cent grade, Syncrude and Syneco ranked last, with only 18 per cent. The average score among all oilsands projects surveyed was only 33 per cent. "We found that oilsands companies are making weak efforts to manage their environmental impacts," Dan Woynillowicz of the Pembina Institute said in a statement.
Key Democratic States See Early Voting
The campaigns are also really well-organized and are paying a lot of attention to them," said Scott Haywood, a spokesman for the Texas Secretary of State's office. Officials are collecting data on early voting each day from the state's biggest counties, offering a snapshot of turnout as it happens. They've begun seeing some distinct patterns. The state's two largest counties -- Dallas and Harris, where Houston is located -- are home to educated, affluent Democrats and blacks, groups that typically favor Obama. Officials estimate that early voting turnout in those places is as much as eight to 10 times higher than it was in 2004. "We're pleased to see a strong turnout in those counties," Obama Texas spokesman Josh Earnest said. "Our supporters are very enthusiastic and eager to get out and vote for him." But Clinton's campaign officials warn not to make too many assumptions, noting that the majority of voters in both counties were women, many over the age of 50.
Victoria Gotti says ex a deadbeat dad
Victoria Gotti says her ex-husband is a deadbeat dad. The daughter of the late Gambino crime boss John Gotti says she hasn't gotten a penny in rental income from commercial properties owned by her former husband, Carmine Agnello. That money is supposed to pay the $25,000-a-month in alimony and child support she was awarded in 2003. "I didn't get anything from that man," Gotti said in an exclusive interview with the Daily News. "I got a house riddled with debt. His obligation to the kids? Nothing." With income from media jobs and book deals, she's picked up the tab for the upkeep on her mansion in Old Westbury, L.I., health insurance and sizable tuition bills for the private schools their three sons attend. "Everything I own, I earned, I bought," she said.
Mazatlan mixes history with glitz
Just after dawn joggers hit the malecon, a 17-mile stretch of ocean-side boardwalk connecting historic Mazatlan with its encroaching hip side.
As the day heats up, families with beach towels and young men lugging surfboards replace the morning exercise shift. By evening, as the sun dips into the Pacific, painting the darkening sky coral, couples stroll hand-in-hand along the walkway that serves as the pulse of this Mexican city.
What do you want from your trip to Mexico? Banana boat rides leaving from a golden beach and dance floors bathed in pulsating lights or tours of a historic Italian-style opera house and a stroll through an open-air market with fresh meat hanging from hooks and hand-tooled huaraches stacked nearby? Quick detours from either side of this boardwalk give you both in this schizophrenic port.
Jail bird: Ferocious goose terrorizes north Chico street
Unknown to her at the time, neighbor Nancy Kelly had already called Chico police for help. Tambe said the bird would alternately lunge at the screen door, and chase any neighbors who came near her home. When a neighbor distracted the bird, and was then chased by it, Tambe said she was able to get the garage door closed. She said police showed up and initially tried to corner the goose in her yard, herding it with a broom. "The goose didn't quite go in the direction we wanted," she said. Eventually, Sgt. Linda McKinnon grabbed the bird .
Hot Topic: Lenovo
Lenovo is moving away from its business origins with the launch of a new consumer oriented PC line, dubbed the "Idea" range, later this month. Lenovo's next chief looks to the future Stephen Ward, general manager of IBM's Personal Systems Group, will lead the way as the new Lenovo sets its sights outside China. Lenovo keeps IBM PC unit at arm's length To ensure minimal disruption to its customer base, Lenovo's new IBM-branded business will initially operate virtually as a separate entity. Can I still buy a laptop with Windows XP? Not ready for a Vista laptop? Simply want to stick to good old XP? Here are your options on the market. Who's afraid of the $200 Linux PC? Cheap PCs with a Linux operating system seem to have hit the users' sweet spots, with taking the plunge into the alternate OS not nearly as hard as users had thought.
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