Ontario government reaches deal with some public workers

TORONTO (Reuters) - Ontario's government said on Wednesday it reached a deal with public employees to freeze wages for two years as part of a broader and contentious push to rein in the budget deficit. The tentative deal with the Ontario Public Service Employees Union covers more than 35,000 workers, including government staff, a relatively small group of workers compared to some of Ontario's larger...

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Canadian housing starts slow in December

10, 2010. REUTERS/Shaun BestTORONTO (Reuters) - Canadian housing starts slowed in December but more gradually than expected as an increase in single-family starts in urban areas softened the sting of a slowdown in multiple-unit and rural ground-breakings, a report on Wednesday said.Figures published by Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp provided further evidence that Canada's long housing boom had...

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Canadian hopes to make fantasy sports TV channel a reality

TORONTO (Reuters) - Canada's fantasy sports geeks may soon have a cable channel to call their own, thanks to Leonard Asper, former head of a newspaper dynasty that fell victim to the rise of online media."The League - Fantasy Sports TV" will not feature real sporting events. Instead Asper's proposed channel will air call-in programs and talk shows that cater to the millions of North American sports...

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Golson hopes Notre Dame's season ends on good note

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Everett Golson's first love is basketball. Music would seem to be second on the Notre Dame quarterback's list.He's not too bad at football, either.A season that started in Ireland and had plenty of tests along the way ends in Miami on Monday night, when Golson and the top-ranked Fighting Irish take on No. 2 Alabama in the BCS title game.He's made 10 starts this season...

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Golson hopes Notre Dame's season ends on BCS note

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — When Everett Golson sees a piano, he usually sits down and starts entertaining. He plays several instruments, keeps a keyboard in his room and loves to sing.Music is a huge part of his life, perhaps only topped by basketball.And in Golson's spare time, he plays quarterback for Notre Dame."He's pretty good at his hobby," Notre Dame offensive coordinator Chuck Martin said....

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Will coming playoff finally take down the SEC?

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Roy Kramer remembers all the fretting when the Southeastern Conference launched its own championship game two decades ago."Especially from the coaches," the former SEC commissioner said Friday, chuckling a bit at those long-ago discussions. "They were convinced that would be the end of everything and we would never win another national championship."It sure didn't work...

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BCS Championship: Tale of the tape

Everything about the BCS championship between No. 1 Notre Dame and No. 2 Alabama seems larger than life.Not only do these schools stand among the best ever in college football, they also lead the pack in celebrating that success and in investing for the future.If ever college football presented a heavyweight event it's the Fighting Irish against the Crimson Tide.So here, then, is a tale of the tape...

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Conn. lawmaker apologizes over Facebook post

HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) — A Connecticut lawmaker has apologized after saying in a Facebook post that shooting victim and former Arizona U.S. Rep. Gabrielle Giffords should "stay out of my towns."Giffords last week visited Newtown, Conn., where a gunman killed 20 young children and six adults at an elementary school last month. The Democrat, who met with families of the victims, was critically wounded...

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Why Ford's New Car Apps Include China's Twitter

LAS VEGAS — New car apps will allow Ford owners to call up their favorite music playlist or search for last-minute date suggestions by using voice alone. But the voice-activated car apps announced at CES 2013 included one "hidden dragon" surprise aimed at Chinese drivers rather than Americans.Many Americans won't recognize the name of Sina Weibo, China's version of Twitter, among the latest car app...

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Tide QB's beauty queen girlfriend in spotlight after title game; her Twitter account swells

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. - A day after ESPN cameras lingered on her, announcers piled on compliments and at least one pro athlete made an online pass at her, Twitter was still abuzz Tuesday about former Miss Alabama Katherine Webb, who is dating Crimson Tide championship quarterback AJ McCarron.Webb gained tens of thousands of Twitter followers during and after Alabama's 42-14 win over Notre Dame on Monday...

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AP Sources: 'Fiscal cliff' deal emerging

WASHINGTON (AP) — Working with Congress against a midnight deadline, President Barack Obama said Monday that a deal to avert the "fiscal cliff" was in sight but not yet finalized. The emerging deal would raise tax rates on family income over $450,000 and individual income over $400,000 a year, increase the estate tax rate and extend unemployment benefits for one year."There are still issues left...

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Despite deal, taxes to rise for most Americans

WASHINGTON (AP) -- While the tax package that Congress passed New Year's Day will protect 99 percent of Americans from an income tax increase, most of them will still end up paying more federal taxes in 2013.That's because the legislation did nothing to prevent a temporary reduction in the Social Security payroll tax from expiring. In 2012, that 2-percentage-point cut in the payroll tax was worth...

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Taxes rising for most people despite fiscal deal

WASHINGTON (AP) — While the tax package that Congress passed New Year's Day will protect 99 percent of Americans from an income tax increase, most of them will still end up paying more federal taxes in 2013.That's because the legislation did nothing to prevent a temporary reduction in the Social Security payroll tax from expiring. In 2012, that 2-percentage-point cut in the payroll tax was worth...

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Riddick, Wood interchanging for Notre Dame

MIAMI (AP) — Notre Dame tailbacks Theo Riddick and Cierre Wood showed how interchangeable they are in the final two games of the regular season for the Fighting Irish.Game 11 against Wake Forest, Wood ran for 150 yards, while Riddick had 20.Game 12 against USC, it was Riddick running for 146 yards, and Wood for 20.And so has been the theme for the Irish this season: Two running backs — and sometimes...

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Alabama AD made a brief stop at Notre Dame

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. (AP) — Mal Moore's career was adrift.A quarter century of winning games and titles as an Alabama player and assistant to Bear Bryant had ended, and Moore was passed over to succeed the famed coach.He was thinking about getting out of the profession altogether before Notre Dame's Gerry Faust called one Sunday morning to gauge his interest in a job."At the time, I kind of felt...

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RBs Riddick, Wood give Notre Dame 1-2 punch

MIAMI (AP) — Notre Dame tailbacks Theo Riddick and Cierre Wood showed how interchangeable they are in the final two games of the regular season for the Fighting Irish.Game 11 against Wake Forest, Wood ran for 150 yards, while Riddick had 20.Game 12 against USC, it was Riddick running for 146 yards, and Wood for 20.And so has been the theme for the Irish this season: Two running backs — and sometimes...

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Career Confidential Announces Job Interview eBook Giveaway

Job search and interview website Career Confidential has released a new eBook, How to Answer Interview Questions, and is offering it at no cost for a limited time, January 8 – January 12 only.Gunter, TX (PRWEB) January 08, 2013The How to Answer Interview Questions eBook is a compilation of 101 job interview questions and answers. Each question includes a comprehensive, in-depth explanation of how...

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Rise in Identity Theft Prompts Company Expansion to Protect Local Businesses

Shred Instead Partners with Kim and Manly Boyd of Bassett Office Supply to Provide On-site Shredding Services to Southern Virginia and North CarolinaCOLUMBIA, Maryland (PRWEB) January 08, 2013The rise in identity theft and fraud has led to a company expansion in an effort to protect local businesses.Shred Instead, a secure document destruction and paper shredding company based in Columbia, Maryland,...

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Piedmont Real Estate Agent Bruce Wagg of Highland Partners Gives Back to the Community

Bruce Wagg, a real estate agent serving Piedmont, Alameda and Oakland, often participates in local charity projects to help the community.Oakland, CA (PRWEB) January 08, 2013As a resident and an experienced real estate agent of Oakland, Bruce Wagg of Highland Partners knows his community well. But his awareness is not only confined to the properties in his listings; he also involves himself in many...

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Sunnybrook lifts ban, allows daughter to see aging veteran father

TORONTO - Canada's largest veterans facility has lifted its ban on a woman who complained about bedbugs and a threat to a resident's safety.Following a weekend meeting, Sunnybrook said Jackie Storrison could see her aging dad at its veterans centre, from which police escorted her more than a week ago.The facility did insist security was on hand when Storrison went to see her father on Saturday."To...

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Golf-Strong winds force suspension at Kapalua

Jan 4 (Reuters) - The 2013 PGA Tour got off to a false start on Friday when first-round play at the season-opening Hyundai Tournament of Champions in Hawaii was abandoned because of strong winds.Following an earlier suspension in play due to adverse conditions at the Kapalua Resort, the players were summoned off the course as winds gusted up to 42mph (67.6 kph) and balls oscillated on the exposed...

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UPDATE 1-Golf-Strong winds wipe out first day at Kapalua

* Opening round to start fresh on Saturday* Kapalua winds gust up to 45 mph (72.4 kph (Adds further quotes, detail)Jan 4 (Reuters) - The 2013 PGA Tour got off to a false start on Friday when first-round play at the season-opening Hyundai Tournament of Champions in Hawaii was abandoned because of strong winds.Following an earlier suspension in play due to adverse conditions at the Kapalua Resort, the...

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Golf-Fowler flies blind on yardage at windy Kapalua

Jan 4 (Reuters) - Yardage numbers were often meaningless for Rickie Fowler on a brutal Friday at the Hyundai Tournament of Champions in Hawaii where the first round was eventually abandoned because of severe gusting winds.With golf umbrellas bending sharply in intermittent driving rain and balls being blown off line on the more exposed greens, Fowler realised he simply had to choose his shot and then...

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Hacker Fears Are Seriously Messing with the Oscars' Online Voting

So what happens if the Academy is too scared to cast Oscar ballots this year? It's not an entirely outlandish scenario, with the nominations less than two weeks away and reports screaming out of Hollywood that the awards' attempt at going digital may already be backfiring. Both the Hollywood Reporter and Deadline have semi-detailed accounts today of the surprising flaws within the Academy's new online...

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McAfee’s 2013 predictions: Mobile malware threats will grow, Anonymous will fade

Security firm McAfee Labs released its annual Threat Predictions report this week, highlighting the potential malware, viruses and other security concerns we may see in 2013. The firm says that with the rise of more advanced mobile devices, smartphones and tablets will become an even larger focus for cybercriminals. This past year we saw a number of high-profile attacks from the hacktivist group Anonymous...

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Exclusive: Huawei partner offered embargoed HP gear to Iran

 A major Iranian partner of Huawei Technologies offered to sell at least 1.3 million euros worth of embargoed Hewlett-Packard computer equipment to Iran's largest mobile-phone operator in late 2010, documents show.China's Huawei, the world's second largest telecommunications equipment maker, says neither it nor its partner, a private company registered in Hong Kong, ultimately provided the HP...

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Analysis: Six months on, Monti's labor reform has changed little

ROME (Reuters) - Overhauling Italy's rigid labor rules was supposed to be Mario Monti's flagship reform.It required drawn out, often heated bargaining with unions, employers and political parties. Yet six months after their approval the measures seem to be having little effect on hiring, firing or the labor market in general.The technocrat premier's aim was to encourage hiring of permanent rather...

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