China Unicom Boycott of Google May Signal Fallout Is Spreading

China Unicom boycott of Google Inc.’s search engine signals the fallout from the U.S. company’s disobedience of government censorship is spreading.If you were partnering with Google in China, your business plans have just fallen apart,” Bertram Lai, head of explore at CIMB-GK Securities in Hong Kong, said by phone. “You need to move quickly and find new partners.”

Google’s decision to stop censoring its Chinese service has spur speculation that advertisers may switch to rival search engines such as that of Baidu Inc. In the U.S., Go Daddy Group Inc., the world’s largest registrar of domain names, said yesterday it’s refusing to offer new site identities in China, citing increased Internet spying by the government on its citizens.

Chinese partners for Google’s search operations need to appraise their business ties as the U.S. company’s Internet service license in China needs to be renewed soon, said Fang Meiqin, research director at BDA China Ltd., a Beijing-based telecommunications industry consultant.
Sale Postponed

“Unicom has dropped Google from its handset plans because Google no longer operates within China,” Lai, who rates Unicom shares “underperform,” said. “It makes sense for them to make the decision immediately” to avoid the costs of reprogramming handsets to remove Google later, he said.

Google’s redirection of its search queries is effectively a pullout from China, reducing the appeal for advertisers, Steven Chang, the Shanghai-based chief executive officer for China at Zenith Optimedia, which buys ads from Google and Baidu on behalf of clients, said in an interview this week.

Toyota Driver Spins Out Of Control At 94mph

Toyota's safety record has taken another beating after police were occupied a dramatic high-speed chase of a driver whose car accelerator got stuck at 94mph.Eight million Toyota vehicles have been recall because of safety fears.Despite urgent hard on the brake pedal, the car kept accelerating.

Mr Sikes said that"I pushed the gas pedal to pass a car and it did something kind of funny... it jump and it just stuck there. Mr Sikes hurtled along the motorway, he called 911 and a highway patrol officer was dispatched.


A Toyota spokeswoman said the car had been taken to a company dealership in California where investigators were trying to find out the cause of the incident.The incident has raised new questions about the Japanese carmaker's damaging string of recent recalls and whether Toyota has done enough to address consumer complaints about unintended acceleration that have damaged its reputation and sales.Toyota has recalled more than 8 million vehicles worldwide because of accelerator and braking problems in several of its models.

EADS takes hit for A400M in fourth quarter

Airbus parent company EADS NV says it lost over euro1 billion in the fourth quarter after necessities for the A400M military transport plane and its A380 superjumbo passenger airliner weighed on pay

Paris-based European Aeronautic Defence & Space Co. said Tuesday that it had a net loss of euro1.05 billion the three months to December compare to a euro490 million net income a year earlier.

That led to a full year net loss of euro763 million compared to a net profit of euro1.57 billion in 2008.Revenue fell 1 percent in 2009 to euro42.82 billion and EADS said it expects approximately stable revenues in 2010.EADS reach an agreement with customer nations on who pays for the cost overruns of the A400M on Friday.

2010 Saab 9-5 to be reborn in the US as a Buick

As Saab struggles to cling to survival, a Swedish newspaper, Dagens Industri, has report that GM is ’seriously considering’ using the near-ready 9-5 model as its next Buick.

The 9-5 share much of its development with the Opel Insignia, itself already used to underpin at least one Buick model, but in order to avoid overlap, the report suggests the 9-5 may present a more radical option for Buick buyers, and could perhaps feature as the next LaCrosse, Regal or Excelle sedan.

With GM already treating Buick as a kind of testing ground for new designs, one of the most modern Saabs yet shaped could easily feel at home in the US if sold under the more familiar Buick nameplate. The move would also see the 9-5 finally attain volume sales.

Iguazu falls in brazil tour

The name of the falls comes from the Guaraní word for "great water". The first Spanish explorer to see the falls was Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca in 1541 but the vast power of the falls was not fully utilized until the construction of the huge Itaipu hydroelectric power plant built jointly by Paraguay and Brazil. Completed in 1991 the dam is open to tours and provides 12,600,000 KW of power satisfying almost 40% of Brazil and Argentine power needs. The dam one of the largest in the world is touted by both countries as a masterpiece of technology.

Taller than Niagara Falls, twice as wide with 275 cascade spread in a horsehoe shape over nearly two miles of the Iguazu River, Iguazú Falls are the result of a volcanic outbreak which left yet another large crack in the earth. During the rainy season of November - March, the rate of flow of water going over the falls may reach 450,000 cubic feet per second.

It is possible to see the falls and surrounding area in a lightning trip but it is better to plan at least two days. The view from the Brazilian side is the most panoramic and there are helicopter rides out over the falls from Foz do Iguaçu. You may also take boat rides out to the falls. The light is best in the morning for photographs.

50-car pileup shuts down Route 110

A massive pileup on Route 110 in the area of Indian Wells Road caused the road to be closed down for an investigation and clean-up, according to WTNH.com. About 50 cars were involved in the Sunday afternoon accident.

WTNH reported that 46 people suffered minor injuries in the accident and six were transported to area hospitals with non-life threatening injuries, citing police officers.

Shelton EMS set up a temporary shelter for the involved in the crash, the report said.

The road was reopened at around 6 p.m.

source: http://www.necn.com/Boston/New-England/2009/12/13/50car-pileup-shuts-down-Rt/1260746355.html

300 stuck temporarily on Disney World monorail

LAKE BUENA VISTA, Fla. (AP) - A power failure stranded about 300 passengers for a couple hours aboard three monorail trains at Walt Disney World. Bo Jones of the Reedy Creek Fire Department says no one was injured when the monorail system lost power around 1 a.m. Sunday.

Jones says firefighters used ladders to assist some visitors aboard one train "more out of customer service than as an emergency situation." Other passengers disembarked later when the trains were towed to nearby stations.

The 15-mile monorail service was restored by the time the parks opened later Sunday morning.

An electrical short disrupted the monorail service in September.

source:http://i50.photobucket.com/albums/f305/OakwoodAcres/WeddingStuff/disneyworld.jpg
http://www.kvoa.com/news/300-stuck-temporarily-on-disney-world-monorail/