President Obama Again Criticizes Trips to Las Vegas

President Obama is catching heat from Nevada lawmakers and business leaders regarding his comments Tuesday criticizing trips to Las Vegas.
During the president's town hall meeting in Nashua, New Hampshire, he discussed the need to curb spending during tough economic times.  "When times are tough, you tighten your belts," the president said. "You don't go buying a boat when you can barely pay your mortgage. You don't blow a bunch of cash on Vegas when you're trying to save for college."
The president's comments come nearly a year after he criticized companies that received federal money for taking corporate junkets to Las Vegas. "You can't go take that trip to Las Vegas or go down to the Super Bowl on taxpayers' dime," he said at the time. Local business leaders say Nevada tourism suffered last year in part because companies canceled trips to Las Vegas in the wake of the president's comments.
His statement Tuesday drew sharp criticism from Nevada lawmakers. "The President needs to lay off Las Vegas and stop making it the poster child for where people shouldn't be spending their money," said Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, a Democrat. "Las Vegas is suffering through one of the highest unemployment rates in the country, and we cannot afford for the President to bring us down any further," added Republican Senator John Ensign. "Nevada has one of the most distressed economies in the country, and the President has done little to focus on job creation over the past year.  Discouraging people from coming to our state to make a political point adds insult to injury," said Republican Congressman Dean Heller.
"Tourism is the number one economic stimulus for Southern Nevada and for many cities and states across the country.  While we appreciate Las Vegas is top of mind for the President, we would ask that he offer words of encouragement instead of criticism," Las Vegas Convention and Visitors Authority President and CEO Rossi Ralenkotter said.
President Obama is scheduled to visit Las Vegas this month.

Tom Hanks & Julia Roberts In Holiday Flop: 'Transformers 3' Tops But Trailing '2' In U.S. And Tracking $385M Global Thru July 4th

SATURDAY AM, 12TH UPDATE: There look to be fireworks for some Hollywood action and family movies this Fourth Of July long weekend but not for Hollywood stars Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts whose new movie bombed. Right now total U.S. and Canadian moviegoing for the holiday looks like $230M, which is trailing last year's $250M but still the 2nd biggest Fourth Of July long weekend ever.
The pairing of veteran Hollywood stars Tom Hanks and Julia Roberts could open Larry Crowne which also was produced and directed and co-written by Hanks. (Did he tell himself to dye his grey hair with the equivalent of black shoe-polish? Looked weird...) Even though the two stars did any and all publicity for it, the romantic comedy made only $4M Friday to finish a dismal #4 for just a $12.7M three-day weekend and $15.4M four-day holiday from a wide release into 2,972 theaters. That's a very disappointing start for two stars who individually should be able to open a new pic to at least $20M of North American grosses and presumably more when paired. (Their last film together, Charlie Wilson's War, also bombed.) Their latest pic received a 'B' Cinemascore, but just 'C+' from audience members under age 35. Good thing Universal was only distributing, not financing, and good thing the film's negative cost was only $30M. This is the third movie with major stars to disappoint at the box office this summer following Ryan Reynolds in Green Lantern and Jim Carrey in Mr. Popper's Penguins.
Meanwhile, Paramount's latest Transformers: Dark Of The Moon is the giant #1 movie after opening with some 3D-only nighttime sneaks on Tuesday ($5.5M), followed by a full release into 4,013 theaters on Wednesday ($37.7M) and Thursday ($21.4M). Now Friday brings in a big $33.5M. But that's still -15% behind 2009's Transformers 2 (which did $36.7M on its Friday) despite TF3's higher 3D ticket prices. That means Michael Bay's robot actioner should reach $100M domestic this three-day weekend, and $185M through the Fourth of July. The movie has been doing better overseas where 3D is more popular. International numbers are up 35% for those markets among the 110 countries that opened Wednesday and Thursday. Projections are for foreign to close in on $200M through Monday for a $385 global cume in its first 7 days since sequels do better overseas than they do domestic. "We expected to start behind the last one," a Paramount exec tells me. "This one has an 'A' CinemaScore and better reviews, so it should play to a better multiple."
Fox's counterprogramming film aimed at tween/teen girls, Monte Carlo, is performing about as expected with an 'A' CinemaScore: $3M Friday from 2,472 theaters, for $10M for the four-day weekend.
Here's the Top 10 (domestic with estimates)
1. Transformers 3 (Paramount) NEW (opened Tues) [4,013 Theaters]
Tuesday $5.5M (9 PM), Wednesday $37.7M, Thursday $21.4M
Friday $33.5M, Saturday, Sunday, Monday
Three-Day Weekend $100M, Four-Day Holiday $120M
First Five Days $160M, First Seven Days $185M
2. Cars 2 (Disney) Week 2 [4,115 Theaters]
Friday $7.7m (-70%), Saturday, Sunday, Monday
Three-Day Weekend $23M, Four-Day Holiday $28M, Cume $119M
3. Bad Teacher (Sony) Week 2 [3,049 Theaters]
Friday $4.3M (-63%), Saturday, Sunday, Monday
Three-Day Weekend $15M, Four-Day Holiday $17.5M, Cume $63M
4. Larry Crowne (Universal) NEW [2,972 Theaters]
Friday $4M, Saturday, Sunday, Monday
Three-Day Weekend $12.7M, Four-Day Holiday $15.4M
5. Monte Carlo (Fox) NEW [2,472 Theaters]
Friday $3M, Saturday, Sunday, Monday
Three-Day Weekend $9M, Four-Day Holiday $10M
6. Green Lantern (Warner Bros) Week 3 [3,280 Theaters]
Friday $2.2M, Saturday, Sunday, Monday
Three-Day Weekend $7.5M, Four-Day Holiday $9M, Cume $105M
7. Super 8 (Paramount) Week 4 [3,088 Theaters]
Friday $1.8M, Saturday, Sunday, Monday
Three-Day Weekend $5.5M, Four Day Holiday $6.5M, Cume $107M
8. Mr Popper's Penguins (Fox) Week 3 [2,861 Theaters]
Friday $1.5M, Saturday, Sunday, Monday
Three-Day Weekend $4.3M, Four-Day Holiday $5.5M, Cume $50.5M
9. Bridesmaids (Universal) Week 8 [1,389 Theaters]
Friday $1M, Saturday, Sunday, Monday
Three-day Weekend $3.3M, Four-Day Holiday $4M, Cume $153.4M
10. Midnight In Paris (Sony Classics) Week 7 [951 Theaters]
Friday $875K, Saturday, Sunday, Monday
Three-Day Weekend $3.2M, Four-Day Holiday $4M, Cume $34.2M

THURSDAY PM/FRIDAY AM, 8TH UPDATE: Paramount says Thursday's gross was $21.4M for Transformers: Dark Of The Moon. The North American cume is now $64.6M, and 60% of that comes from higher priced 3D tickets. Right now the studio is projecting that Michael Bay's actioner should make $165M domestic through the Fourth Of July.
WEDNESDAY PM/THURSDAY AM, 6TH UPDATE: The Fourth Of July fireworks are already beginning at the box office. Paramount's Transformers 3 lit up 2011's biggest North American opening day, even though it's Wednesday, beating fellow 3D film Pirates Of The Caribbean 4 which had the year's highest gross on a Friday. The Michael Bay 3D actioner hit $37.7M Wednesday, which included the $8M from midnight screenings. Adding in Tuesday's pre-midnight 3D sneaks of $5.5M, the cume is now $43.2M. Paramount itself had put the range possible between $35M-$40M. IMAX accounted for $3.3M on 146 domestic sites and $1.7M internationally on 89 sites for a total $5.1M (including Tuesday and Wednesday cumes). Pirates 4 set the 2011 record by opening to $34.8M including midnight shows.
Surprisingly considering the mixed reviews, audiences gave the pic an 'A' CinemaScore. Exit polling showed that 62% Males gave it an 'A-' and 38% Females an 'A', while 55% under age 25 gave it an 'A' and 45% over 25 an 'A-'.
Wednesday's domestic numbers are bigger than Transformers 1 but don't better Transformers 2. However, international for Transformers: Dark Of The Moon is expected to come in higher than previous installments and set a record for the franchise's global cume as it rolls out in 110 countries over Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday. Paramount today estimated an opening day foreign take of $32.5M, which is 38% ahead of Transformers 2 for the markets that have opened. The overseas cume with previews is estimated at $36.6M for a global take so far of $80M.Transformers 2 did 10% more grosses outside the U.S., and this threequel should be a notch better -- $165+M. That means the global cume for Dark Of The Moon should range from a low of $315M to more likely $365M for its first seven days in theaters.
Notable includes Asia where Korea which opened to a massive $5.03M from 1,291 theaters, which is 217% up on Pirates 4 and 114% up on Transformers 2 for the biggest opening day of all time in Korea for any film. (The studio says 53% of business was from 3D.) Hong Kong and Singapore scored the biggest non-holiday opening day of all time and the 3rd biggest opening day of all time. Malaysia had the biggest opening day ever, and the biggest single day ever, and biggest 3D gross ever. No records were set in Australia ($2.8M from 392 theaters, 32% ahead of Transformers 2 with 71% of business in 3D), New Zealand ($335K from 87 theaters, which was 3% behind Transformers 2).
In Europe, the UK opened to $3.5M from 494 locations, and previews take the total to $4.17M. The opening was 10% up on Pirates 4 (also a Wednesday opening) but 25% below Transformers 2 which opened on a Friday. (And 70% of business was from 3D.) Germany was 1/3 bigger than Transformers 2. France opened to $3M, including previews, from 700 theaters for the biggest opening day of 2011. Russia following the World Premiere with a huge $3.1M from its opening day, rising to $4.2M with previews. The opening was 76% up on Transformers 2 but 35% down on Pirates 4.
In Latin America, most markets open today or tomorrow in the region but the early numbers are very strong: Peru is the biggest opening day of all time and the biggest day of all time for any movie. It is 153% ahead of Pirates 4 and 273% ahead of Transformers 2.
WEDNESDAY 9 AM UPDATE: The only 2011 movie to do more was The Hangover Part II which opened to $10.4M midnights. By contrast, Pirates Of The Caribbean 4 did $4.7M midnights. Now the comps: Transformers 1 in 2007 opened wide at 8 PM on July 3rd, which was a Monday night, and did $8.8M for all shows. Transformers 2 opened wide at midnight two years ago and did $16 million. If tracking is any indication, this threequel should do box office between the two prior films but closer to Transformers 1. So Paramount expected around $10M total for Tuesday's pre-midnight 3D-only screenings and Wednesday's midnight and later shows. The exact tally turned out to be a bigger $13.5M -- $5.5M for 3D-only pre-midnight Tuesday screenings, and $8M for Wednesday mightnights. Remember, only 2,700 3D screens opened Tuesday pre-midnight. Then another 300 to 500 2D screens opened at midnight Wednesday. By the time the movie releases wide today, it'll play in 4,011 locations.
Paramount is expecting this latest installment in the franchise to open less than the last one in the U.S. but play to better multiples. Grosses over the seven days from Tuesday night through the Fourth Of July should hit $200M, though the studio keeps lobbing lowball estimates of $150M-$165M despite the higher 3D ticket prices. ('Transformers 3' $150M For First 6 Days?)
Internationally, almost every territory opens this week, except Japan and China, which should account for 15% of the pic's business. ('Transformers 3' Premiere In Red Square)
TUESDAY PM: Bring sunglasses and earplugs to Transformers 3 or you'll walk out of the theater like one Paramount exec who told me he was not just blinded by the 3D but also deafened by the battles. I hope he was just kidding, because you don't want to miss those cheap shots at Megan Fox (like the robots who complained that the other girl was mean). Actually, Michael Bay wasn't kidding when he said certain shots took a year to get right. This is just some of the reaction as Transformers: Dark Of The Moon opened in 3D starting at 9 PM tonight. I'll keep writing about this phenom for the next seven days in what's shaping up to be a very loooong Fourth Of July holiday week.
A few seconds after I posted this, the film's 14-time Academy Award nominee re-recording mixer Greg P. Russell emailed that, "I had my technician go over to the Paramount theater to make sure it was perfect. Just looking out for Michael. If you're sitting close in that room, you're screwed. Because I know it sounds awesome. Best sound mix of any Bay film yet. The irony is that the Visual FX and Sound will more than likely be nominated for Oscars by their peers who know the difference."
Russell, who spent six months doing what he calls the best work of his 30-year career, says many movie theaters are presenting the pic in the brand-new 7.1 sound. Bay has said, "This is the most complex intricate soundtrack that me and my Academy Award-winning sound team have done. They really outdid themselves to make this a big picture experience."
How much is riding on this film? A lot, judging by Paramount's pull-out-all-the-stops tude. (Paramount Making Too Many 3D Demands?) Bay already has called the chief executives of major theater chains imploring them to show Transformers: Dark Of The Moon in a way that makes 3D look brighter and sharper. Since the darkness of 3D has started to impact movie satisfaction. (Michael Bay Writes To Theater Projectionists)
Reviews are mixed to bad but better than the really rotten ones for Transformers: Revenge Of The Fallen (which we all agree was horrid).

Obama takes a break at Camp David

WASHINGTON—President Barack Obama will be taking a break for the Independence Day holiday weekend.

He'll travel to Camp David in western Maryland Friday afternoon, following some morning meetings.

Daughter Malia has a holiday birthday. She'll turn 13 on Monday.

How to Bench with Proper Form

Let me start by saying that I believe in lowering the weight to my chest. I prefer to touch-and-go with most exercises, and I’ve never experienced any negative repercussions using that protocol. Using touch-and-go is the only way to be sure you are lowering the weight to the same spot each time.

When you use proper form, there is no reason for you to feel discomfort in your shoulders.
If benching is causing you shoulder issues it is likely due to at least one of the following possible reasons:
* You have weak rotator cuff muscles. To fix this, read about how to avoid rotator cuff injury.
* You are benching too wide. Extreme wide grip bench pressing is not advised if you want to save your shoulders.
To find the right grip for proper bench pressing form, follow these tips for for proper arm placement:
1. Lay down on a bench (or stand up if you want).
2. Put your arms in the bench press position with elbows bent at a 90 degree angle between forearms and biceps, and another 90 degree angle at the arm pits, between the upper arms and the back. This is how NOT to bench press.
3. Now decrease the arm pit angle to only 45 degrees. This will increase the tension on the triceps and decrease the tension on the shoulders. Over time your shoulders will experience less strain and your triceps will get much stronger.
4. Grasp the bar with your hands directly over your elbows, with thumbs 2-3 inches outside of the shoulders.
5. Elbows should stay under the hands through the descent and should flare out when pressing the bar through lockout.
Although you will keep your elbows in at a 45 degree angle, this is not a close grip bench by any means.
* The path from the top of the press to your chest is too long. You want the shortest path possible from the bottom to the top of the rep in order to save energy.
As you lay on the bench to begin your set, be sure to use these tips for proper bench posture:
1. Puff your chest out by elevating your rib cage like you are about to strut your stuff in front of the super-sexy girl next door.
2. Retract your shoulder blades by pulling your shoulders and elbows back.
3. Push your traps and upper back into the bench while keep those shoulder blades back and in.
4. Only your head, upper back, and buttocks should actually be touching the bench, but you should NOT have an exaggerated curve in your lower spine (the lumbar curve).
5. Finally, attempt to flare or flex the lats. This will give you a wider surface area on the bench and will help when pushing the weight out of the hole. That is why elite powerlifters will tell you that you need a big back to have a big bench.
* You set up too far away from the bar. When you unrack the bar, it should be nearly in pressing position. Lay down so that your shoulders are only an inch or two forward of the unracked bar. Pull the bar forward off the rack rather than lifting it up and over.
* You are not using your feet properly. For maximum strength and stability, you want your feet to stay planted on the floor directly underneath your legs at all times. Your feet should not jump around during the set, and in fact you should drive through your heels to generate additional force when pressing.
This does NOT mean that your butt should leave the bench at any time during your lift, or that you should exaggerate that lumbar curve we were talking about earlier.
* You are not using your triceps properly. Once the bar passes the half-way point in a rep, you want to try to break the bar in half, which activates the triceps to assist in locking the bar out at the top.

Natural Tinnitus Remedies You Can Use For Fast Relief of Tinnitus Symptoms

The diet of a Ringing in the ear patient should consist of zinc and vitamins A, B, and E and stress causing things such as cigarettes, alcohol, and coffee should be avoided. These things are stimulants and contribute to the complexity of the problem. Following a balanced dietary and exercise program make things easy for the patient and the disease does not aggravate further. Since these are natural treatments for tinnitus, they take some time to show an improvement. So, a good deal of patience is required from the suffering person.

There are other treatments for ringing in the ear as well. These include acupuncture, aromatherapy, herbs, homeopathy, sound therapy, and relaxation therapy. All these therapies, except for homeopathy, can be followed along with allopathic medications. Acupuncture is one of the oldest treatments for tinnitus and is prevalent in China since four thousand years. However, it is fast gaining popularity in the western countries also. In this therapy, the balance between ying and yang is restored which helps in healing the disease.

Aromatherapy, another effective treatment for tinnitus, uses four kind oils extracted from rose, lemon, cypress, rosemary to stimulate blood circulation, which in turn, helps in faster healing of Ringing in the ear. For more effective results, best available oils should be used. Herbal treatment is one of the most common treatments for ringing in the ear. Under this therapy, three kinds of herbal leaf extracts are utilized for treating Ringing in the ear. These are Hawthorn, Black Cohosh, and Ginkgo. Apart from these three herbs, another non-herbal supplement Melatonin is given to the patients to induce sleep, which is very necessary for such patients.

Some homoeopathic remedies including kali carbonicum, graphites, cimicifuga, cinchona officinalis, carbo vegetabilis, and calcarea carbonica are known to provide relief from Ringing in the ear. Since there is a direct co-relation between Ringing in the ear and stress, relaxation therapies such biofeedback, cranial sacral work, rub, yoga, and meditation are found to be useful as they help in reducing tension and stress.

If you suffer from a Tinnitus, then you know that finding an effective Tinnitus treatment would be tantamount to finding a pot of gold. The condition can bring you to the point where seemingly all you want out of life itself is a few shining moments of blissful, peaceful silence.

The one problem? It seems most Tinnitus treatments are pretty hit and miss. Of course, every person's body is different, so all treatments are going to have a certain element of "your mileage may vary" built into them. However, each of the top ten treatments do have their group of supporters who say that it was this method that was able to finally give them that blessed silence.

Let's take a look at what the top ten treatments for Tinnitus are:

1) White Noise - In some peoples' experience, white noise can block out the ringing effects of tinnitus, effectively canceling it out, so to speak. The problem with this approach is that, even if it works as promised, it's a logistical impossibility to feed white noise into your consciousness 24 hours a day.

2) Homeopathic Remedies - There are a variety of organic, or homeopathic, powders and mixtures which can be purchased at vegetarian markets and independent health stores. The reported success rates are mixed at best, but if you do go down this road, make sure that what you purchase and ingest is safe.

Israeli security chiefs differ on Gaza flotilla's potential danger

JERUSALEM, June 30 (Xinhua) -- Israel's security establishment is at odds over the scope of threat posed by an aid flotilla that had planned to set sail to the Gaza Strip in coming days, and over predictions that violence will ensue if Israel tries to block it.
Israeli Defense Minister Ehud Barak has played down military assessments in recent days that pro-Palestinian activists are gearing up for violent clashes with Israeli navy troops to be dispatched to intercept the 10-vessel flotilla.
In an interview with local Channel 2 television news Wednesday night, Barak said there is "high probability" that the upcoming flotilla will be "calmer" than the previous one last May, when nine members were killed in a confrontation with the Israeli naval commandos.
In contradiction to Barak's attempt to lower the flames, however, Israel's Strategic Affairs Minister Moshe Ya'alon said he is convinced that the flotilla activists are planning to assault the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) troops with "lethal force."
"We received information in the last few days that the elements will be violent," Ya'alon told Israel Radio Wednesday night, adding that he has no doubt regarding the credibility of the intelligence.
The minister dismissed the flotilla organizers' claim that their intentions are peaceful, saying that they had "presented themselves as pensioners and innocents in the previous flotilla, but our forces encountered fundamentalist Muslim extremists."
Hundreds of activists from a host of nations are on standby in European ports for the flotilla to embark on its voyage. However, a series of technical and bureaucratic obstacles have delayed the departure, which was originally scheduled for Tuesday.
One vessel anchored in Greece and another in a Turkish port are being repaired after their propellers were damaged earlier this week. A Canadian vessel underwent several inspections for seaworthiness, and an American ship has not yet been cleared to sail. The flotilla's organizers said Israel was responsible for the delays.
On Monday night, Israeli army spokesmen briefed foreign media outlets on the intelligence information received by the military, which showed that activists participating in the flotilla have stockpiled sacks of flammable chemicals, including sulfur, to counter Israeli troops in case a raid is ordered.
The briefing came shortly after Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu opined that the flotilla poses a minimal risk, strengthening Barak's contention.
"I assume that there is substantial information that one of the ships is carrying chemical pesticides," the defense minister said Wednesday, "but there is a certain distance between that and concrete preparations to harm Israel Defense Forces troops with these materials."
"No one knows or can foresee that there will not be a small group on one of the ships that will try to violently resist the troops," according to Barak, who added that the navy is prepared to counter a host of scenarios, from passive resistance to live gunfire.
The defense minister reiterated the government's decision to stop the flotilla with force if it disregards the navy's instructions to have its cargo inspected. The activists said they are only carrying letters of support for Gazans.
Earlier this week, Israel said the flotilla has the option of docking either at the Egyptian port of El-Arish or at the country' s southern port Ashdod, where the letters, and any humanitarian relief, would be inspected and then transferred overland to Gaza.

Japanese gov't, DPJ agrees on doubling consumption tax by mid-2010s

TOKYO, June 30 (Xinhua) -- The Japanese government and the ruling Democratic Party of Japan (DPJ) agreed Thursday on social security and tax reform plans that would lead to consumption tax hikes in mid-2010s, local media reported.
The agreement came after the government made some concessions to the DPJ related to wording concerning the timing of tax increases. The compromise plan said Japan will double the sales tax rate in stages to 10 percent by the mid-2010s, Kyodo News said.
Kan told a government meeting that this is "a historic decision " and based on the plans he wanted opposition parties to take part in national debate on Japan's future social security and tax systems.
The news agency quoted economy and fiscal policy minister Kaoru Yosano as saying that the sensitive consumption tax hike to 10 percent from the current 5 percent will be realized between 2014 and 2016.
Concessions made by Yosano paved the way for the last-minute agreement. Yosano earlier refused to accept changing the wording on when to raise the consumption tax, saying any shift in the " essential part" of the plans could hurt the credibility of the reform package itself.
The doubling of the consumption tax will help secure funds to cover swelling welfare costs amid the country's aging population.
Some DPJ members had also been opposed to specifying when to raise the sales tax, apparently taking into account a negative impact on voters.
The situation has also been complicated by Kan's recent announcement of his readiness to resign under certain conditions. Some DPJ lawmakers said that the party should discuss the tax hike plan from scratch under a new leader.