U.S. Moves Toward International Accounting Rules

Abstract: The Securities and Exchange Commission moved Wednesday to allow some large American companies to begin using international accounting standards as early as next year, and to require all American companies to do so by 2016. The commission voted unanimously to propose for comment a “road map” for conversion, with eventual adoption depending in part on revised provisions for financing the group that writes the international standards. The adoption of international accounting standards by the United States would move the world toward one set of standards, which should make it easier for investors to compare companies operating in differing regions, and make it easier for firms to raise capital in whatever market seems most attractive. “The proposed road map is cautious and careful,” said the chairman of the S.E.C., Christopher Cox . Under the proposal, a small group of large companies, which the S.E.C. estimated at about 110 firms, would be allowed to use the international rules in financial statements issued after Dec. 15, 2009. This means companies on a calendar-year basis could use the international rules for their 2009 annual reports. To be allowed to do that, the company would have to be among the 20 largest companies in its industry around the world, and a large number of its competitors would have to already be using the international standards. The commission said it would consider requiring large American companies to move to the international standards for their 2014 financial statements, with smaller ones required to make the move in 2015 and the smallest — but largest number — allowed to delay until 2016. Under the plan, a final decision on those companies would be made in 2011. That decision would be made by an S.E.C. whose chairman would have been appointed by a new president. But by allowing some American companies to stop using American rules before that, the current commission would make it difficult for a new chairman to reverse course. While there is widespread agreement that one set of standards would have advantages for investors, there are concerns about the transition and about how uniform the accounts will be. American companies and auditors will have to learn new accounting rules. The European Union has asserted the right to approve or modify each standard issued by the International Accounting Standards Board, and did allow banks to ignore part of one standard. In an effort to deal with that issue, the S.E.C. has said it would accept filings using international standards only if they complied fully with the standards as issued by the board. That decision, however, could raise its own problems if, in the future, the international board were to issue a standard that the S.E.C. believed was wrong. Now, if the United States rule maker, the Financial Accounting Standards Board , considers such a rule, the S.E.C. can block it, or effectively overrule it. The international authorities are considering establishing a new monitoring body that would include regulators from many countries, which might have the power to approve or reject appointments to the board. If that group also had power to reject standards, it would raise fears that political considerations could damage the independence of the rule makers. Mr. Cox said he thought that body could help to protect the board from politics and special interests, but some Europeans have praised the idea in the hope it would make the standard setters accountable to government officials. There would also be the question of uniform application of the rules. Early this year, the French regulator evidently approved a decision by a French bank, Société Générale, which moved losses from a scandal from 2008, when they occurred, to the previous year. That move outraged some members of the international accounting board, and some regulators, but nothing was done about it. If the road map is eventually adopted, the result will be a wholesale change in American accounting rules. While the international board and the American board are working to bring convergence of the rules, there remain differences, as well as entire areas on which the international rules are silent. While it is often said that the international rules are based on standards, and the American ones on rules, the differences are more in degree than nature. Still, in many cases the international rules will require more professional judgment from auditors. Some auditors have liked rules, because they enable them simply to tell a company that a proposed accounting treatment violates a rule. Also, rules ostensibly provide a defense if the accounts are later challenged in a lawsuit. In a world with more professional judgment, the auditors would be expected to tell companies that a given accounting treatment violates a standard because it produces a misleading result. Whether they would be willing to do that, and whether all would be equally willing, could become an issue. The major accounting firms have broadly endorsed the move. The international standards provide “the best opportunity to achieve the goal of a single set of high quality standards” around the world, said David Kaplan, a partner at PricewaterhouseCoopers. “The commission took a significant step today toward that objective.” The S.E.C. previously decided that, beginning this year, companies that follow international accounting rules and have securities registered to trade in the United States, will no longer have to reconcile their books to American standards. The S.E.C. said it would seek comments from the public on how much information will need to be provided by American companies making the shift. It could be as little as reconciling the numbers for only the first year that the new rules are used. Another issue is the financing of the International Accounting Standards Board, which now comes from contributions from companies and accounting firms. The Financial Accounting Standards Board used to be financed in the same way, but the Sarbanes-Oxley law passed in 2002 changed that, instead giving it the right to levy charges on public companies. That was viewed as necessary to assure its independence. Conrad Hewitt, the chief accountant of the S.E.C., said he was confident that within five years the international board would have secured a stable financing mechanism. In another action, the S.E.C. approved a rule requiring that foreign companies registered with it file their annual reports within 120 days of the end of their fiscal year, rather than the current requirement of 180 days.


Dallas Cowboys at Philadelphia Eagles Matchup

Abstract: Cowboys (9-4) at Eagles (9-4) 8:30 p.m. Sunday, Line: Eagles by 3 ½ DeMarco Murray has rushed for 100 yards or more in 11 of 13 games for Dallas, but even this season, Philadelphia has proved to be his Kryptonite. In four games against the Eagles in his career, Murray has never gained 100 yards, and on Thanksgiving they held him to a season-low 73. He bounced back quickly, rumbling for a season-high 179 yards in a Dec. 4 win over Chicago. The big game gave Murray a 375-yard lead over Pittsburgh’s Le’Veon Bell in his pursuit of his first rushing title, and leaves him on pace for 1,977 yards for the season. But if Murray has any hopes of breaking 2,000, he will need a big game against Philadelphia. The key to that will be the lackluster Dallas defense, which must do a better job of limiting the scoring so the Cowboys do not deviate from the run-heavy attack that has enabled Murray to thrive. Counting on the Eagles, coached by the offensive mastermind Chip Kelly, to struggle to put up points for a second consecutive game would be unwise. Pick : Eagles

Football
Dallas Cowboys
Philadelphia Eagles


Events in New Jersey for March 9-15, 2014

Abstract: A guide to cultural and recreational events in New Jersey. Items for the calendar should be sent at least three weeks in advance to njtowns@nytimes.com. For Children MADISON Museum of Early Trades and Crafts Lucky Leprechaun Day. Participants will participate in crafts and other hands-on activities while they learn about the history of the Irish and St. Patrick. March 14, 4 to 5 p.m. $3. Museum of Early Trades and Crafts, 9 Main Street. (973) 377-2982; metc.org. MORRIS TOWNSHIP Bickford Theater “Stone Soup and Other Stories,” with original music and lyrics by Carole Wechter, presented by the Pushcart Players. March 15 at 1:30 p.m. $10 and $12. Bickford Theater, 6 Normandy Heights Road. (973) 971-3706; morrismuseum.org. MORRISTOWN Haggerty Education Center, Frelinghuysen Arboretum “Garden Sprouts,” preschool nature program. Mondays at 11 a.m. Through March 31. $5 and $7. Haggerty Education Center, Frelinghuysen Arboretum, 353 East Hanover Avenue. (973) 326-7600; arboretumfriends.org/events. NEW BRUNSWICK State Theater Milk and Cookies Series: Julie Pasqual: Animal Tales, storytelling. March 15 at 10 a.m. and noon. Free. State Theater, 15 Livingston Avenue. (732) 246-7469; statetheatrenj.org. NEWARK Prudential Center Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Presents: Legends. March 13 through 16. $30 to $75. Prudential Center, 165 Mulberry Street. (973) 757-6000; prucenter.com. RAHWAY Union County Performing Arts Center “Sleeping Beauty,” sensory-friendly theater featuring the New Jersey Ballet. March 16 at 2 p.m. $8. Union County Performing Arts Center, 1601 Irving Street. (732) 499-8226; ucpac.org. SOUTH ORANGE South Orange Performing Arts Center “Diary of a Worm, a Spider and a Fly,” musical. Ages 5 and up. March 16 at 2 p.m. $18 and $25. South Orange Performing Arts Center, 1 Sopac Way. (973) 313-2787; sopacnow.org. SUMMIT Dreamcatcher Repertory Theater The Stages Festival: “Cuentos Del Arbol (Tree Tales),” presented by the Pushcart Players. March 16 at 2 p.m. Free; reservations are required. Dreamcatcher Repertory Theater at Oakes Center, 120 Morris Avenue. (908) 514-9654; dreamcatcherrep.org. Music and Dance ENGLEWOOD Bergen Performing Arts Center Travis Tritt, country music, with Lyndsey Highlander. March 9 at 7 p.m. $35 to $75. Celtic Night, music and dance. March 13 at 8 p.m. $39 to $99. Cassandra Wilson and the Harriet Tubman band, “Black Sun,” jazz, pop and rock. March 14 at 8 p.m. $35 to $65. Bergen Performing Arts Center, 30 North Van Brunt Street. (201) 227-1030; bergenpac.org. MONROE Monroe Twp. Public Library Princeton Symphony Orchestra’s Chamber Series: Roomful of Teeth, vocal octet. March 10 at 1 p.m. Free. Monroe Township Public Library, 4 Municipal Plaza. (732) 521-5000; monroetwplibrary.org. MORRIS TOWNSHIP College of St. Elizabeth U.S. Army Jazz Band Concert. The Jazz Ambassadors, the official touring big band of the United States Army, will perform big band, swing, Latin, contemporary jazz and patriotic selections. March 15, 7 to 9 p.m. Free. College of St. Elizabeth, 2 Convent Road. cse.edu; (973) 290-4000. MORRISTOWN Mayo Performing Arts Center Hanover Wind Symphony, with special guest Stanley Drucker, clarinetist. March 9 at 3 p.m. $20 to $25. The Irish Rovers, Irish music. March 13 at 8 p.m. $29 to $59. New Jersey Ballet with Jazz House Kids — Jazz, Jazz, Jazz. March 15 at 8 p.m. $29 to $59. “The Firebird,” presented by the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, performing with Hilary Hahn, violinist, and led by Yan Pascal Tortelier. March 16 at 3 p.m. $20 to $90. For tickets: (973) 624-3713; njsymphony.org. Mayo Performing Arts Center, 100 South Street. (973) 539-8008; mayoarts.org. NEW BRUNSWICK State Theater Trisha Yearwood, singer, author and actress. March 12 at 8 p.m. $35 to $85. The Oak Ridge Boys, gospel, rock, blues and country. March 13 at 8 p.m. $35 to $65. Rutgers Latin Knights, Rutgers Symphony Band and Boston Brass, conducted by Darryl Bott. March 14 at 8 p.m. $15 to $25. State Theater, 15 Livingston Avenue. statetheatrenj.org; (732) 246-7469. NEWARK Prudential Hall, New Jersey Performing Arts Center “The Firebird,” presented by the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, performing with Hilary Hahn, violinist, and led by Yan Pascal Tortelier. March 13 at 1:30 p.m.; March 15 at 8 p.m. $20 to $85. For tickets: (973) 624-3713; njsymphony.org. Prudential Hall, New Jersey Performing Arts Center, 1 Center Street. (888) 466-5722; njpac.org. NEWARK Victoria Theater, New Jersey Performing Arts Center Lou Gramm: The Voice of Foreigner, rock, with special guest Marty Balin of Jefferson Airplane/Starship. March 14 at 8 p.m. $95. Victoria Theater, New Jersey Performing Arts Center, 1 Center Street. (888) 466-5722; njpac.org. PATERSON Ivanhoe Wheelhouse Diane Moser, avant-jazz pianist, solo at musiXplore. March 16 at 1 p.m. $5 suggested donation. Ivanhoe Wheelhouse, 4 Spruce Street. musixplore.org; (201) 666-1881. PRINCETON McCarter Theater Center “The Producers,” Mel Brooks and Thomas Meehan’s adaptation of Brooks’ classic 1968 film. Through March 12. $15. McCarter Theater Center, 91 University Place. (609) 258-2787; mccarter.org. PRINCETON Richardson Auditorium Princeton University Concerts, C. K. Williams, poet, and Richard Goode, pianist. March 9, 3 to 5 p.m. $5 to $45. “The Firebird,” presented by the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra, performing with Hilary Hahn, violinist, and led by Yan Pascal Tortelier. March 14 at 8 p.m. $20 to $90. For tickets: (973) 624-3713; njsymphony.org. Princeton University Concerts presents Meet the Music: “Leave It to Ludwig,” an exploration of Beethoven’s chamber music. Hosted by Bruce Adolphe, director of family programs at the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center. March 15, 1 to 2 p.m. $5 and $10. Richardson Auditorium, in Alexander Hall on the Princeton University Campus. (258) 258-2800; princetonuniversityconcerts.org. RAHWAY Hamilton Stage Ravi Coltrane, post-bop jazz saxophonist, and Luis Perdomo, jazz pianist and composer. March 14 at 8 p.m. $10 and $25. Hamilton Stage, 360 Hamilton Street. (732) 499-8226; ucpac.org. RED BANK Count Basie Theater Monmouth Civic Chorus, “American Songbook,” a concert led by Ryan Brandau. March 9 at 4 p.m. $20 to $30. Lonestar, country music quartet. March 13 at 8 p.m. $25 to $45. Glen Burtnik’s Summer of Love Concert, a tribute to the music of the Woodstock generation. March 15 at 8 p.m. $20 to $99. The Golden Dragon Acrobats present “Cirque Ziva.” March 16 at 7 p.m. $15 to $35. Count Basie Theater, 99 Monmouth Street. countbasietheatre.org; (732) 842-9000. SOUTH ORANGE South Orange Performing Arts Center Jazz in the Loft: The Vince Ector Quartet. March 14 at 7 p.m. $15. Richard Thompson, songwriter and guitarist. March 16 at 7:30 p.m. $38 to $50. South Orange Performing Arts Center, 1 Sopac Way. (973) 313-2787; sopacnow.org. UNION Wilkins Theater, Kean University The Moscow Festival Ballet, “Swan Lake.” March 15 at 7:30 p.m. $20 and $30. Wilkins Theater, Kean University, 1000 Morris Avenue. keanstage.com; (908) 737-7469. Image UNION Members of the Moscow Festival Ballet, which presents “Swan Lake” at the Wilkins Theater, Kean University, 1000 Morris Avenue, on March 15 at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $20 and $30. keanstage.com ; (908) 737-7469. Credit Courtesy of the Moscow Festival Ballet WEST ORANGE Luna Stage Dyad Plays Puccini, with Eric Olsen, pianist, and Lou Caimano, alto saxophonist. March 9 at 7 p.m. $18. Luna Stage, 555 Valley Road. (973) 395-5551; lunastage.org. Spoken Word MONTCLAIR Montclair Historical Society “Montclair’s Suburban Architecture: A Magical History Bus Tour,” Susan Nowicki, an architect and Montclair resident, highlights the architecture of the town in the late 19th and early 20th century. March 16, 1 to 3 p.m. $25 to $30. Montclair Historical Society, 205 Claremont Avenue. (201) 509-4955. RED BANK Count Basie Theater Cesar Millan, the Dog Whisperer, in a live show. March 12 at 8 p.m. $29.50 to $115. Count Basie Theater, 99 Monmouth Street. countbasietheatre.org; (732) 842-9000. Theater CAMDEN South Camden Theater Company, Waterfront South Theater “Gemini,” dramatic comedy by Albert Innaurato, presented by the South Camden Theater Company. Through March 16. $20. Waterfront South Theater, 400 Jasper Street. southcamdentheatre.org; (866) 811-4111. CHATHAM Chatham Playhouse “Sherlock Holmes: The Final Adventure,” mystery by Stephen Dietz. Through March 22. $18 and $20. Chatham Playhouse, 23 North Passaic Avenue. (973) 635-7363; chathamplayers.org. HACKETTSTOWN Centenary Stage Company, Lackland Center “The Liar,” by Pierre Corneille, adapted by David Ives. Through March 9. $25 to $27.50. Centenary Stage Company, Lackland Center, 715 Grand Avenue. (908) 979-0900; centenarystageco.org. HAMMONTON Eagle Theater “Next to Normal,” a rock musical with book and lyrics by Brian Yorkey and music by Tom Kitt. Through March 29. $30 and $40. Eagle Theater, 208 Vine Street. (609) 704-5012; theeagletheatre.com. HAMPTON Hunterdon Hills Playhouse “Busybody,” comedy-mystery by Jack Popplewell. Through May 22. $50.50 and $63.50; includes a choice of served entrees and unlimited homemade desserts. Hunterdon Hills Playhouse, 88 Route 173 West. hhplayhouse.com; (800) 447-7313. LONG BRANCH New Jersey Repertory Company, Lumia Theater “Date of a Lifetime,” musical comedy. Through April 6. $25 to $42. New Jersey Repertory Company, Lumia Theater, 179 Broadway. (732) 229-3166; njrep.org. MILLBURN Paper Mill Playhouse “The Other Josh Cohen,” musical by David Rossmer and Steve Rosen. Through March 16. $35 to $90. Paper Mill Playhouse, 22 Brookside Drive. papermill.org; (973) 376-4343. MONTCLAIR Studio Playhouse “The Importance of Being Earnest,” comedy by Oscar Wilde. March 14 through 29. $17 and $20. Studio Playhouse, 14 Alvin Place. (973) 744-9752; studioplayhouse.org. NEW BRUNSWICK George Street Playhouse “I Loved, I Lost, I Made Spaghetti,” adapted by Jacques Lamarre from the memoir by Giulia Melucci. March 11 through April 6. $20 to $102. George Street Playhouse, 9 Livingston Avenue. (732) 246-7717; gsponline.org. PARSIPPANY Parsippany Community Center “Working,” musical by Stephen Schwartz and Nina Faso. Through March 23. $20 and $25. Parsippany Community Center, 1130 Knoll Road. (973) 263-7352. RED BANK Two River Theater “Pinkolandia,” drama by Andrea Thome. Through March 23. $20 to $45. “The Music Man,” a musical by Meredith Willson, featuring an all-African-American cast. March 13 through 16. $20 to $50. Two River Theater, 21 Bridge Avenue. (732) 345-1400; trtc.org. UNION Premiere Stages at Kean University 10th Annual Spring Reading Series, featuring free readings of the four finalists for the 2014 Premiere Stages Play Festival. March 13 through 16. Free. Premiere Stages at Kean University, 1000 Morris Avenue. kean.edu/premierestages; (908) 737-4092. WEST CAPE MAY East Lynne Theater Company “Sherlock Holmes Adventure of the Copper Beeches” and “Nick Carter and the Strange Dr. Devolo,” performed as radio-style broadcasts, with live sound effects and commercials. March 14 and 15 at 8 p.m. $15 and $25. East Lynne Theater Company, 121 Fourth Avenue. eastlynnetheater.org; (609) 884-5898. Museums and Galleries BOUND BROOK Hamilton Street Gallery “The New Scroll,” examining the traditional format of the scroll in light of 21st-century technologies. Through April 10. Thursdays, noon to 5 p.m.; Fridays, 5 to 8 p.m.; Saturdays, 1 to 5 p.m.; and by appointment. Hamilton Street Gallery, 6 Hamilton Street. hamiltonstreetgallery.com; (732) 748-2092. CAMDEN Fine Arts Complex, Rutgers — Camden campus “Compulsive Narratives: Stories That Must Be Told, the Graphic Novel as Confession and Inspiration.” Through April 26. Mondays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. Rutgers-Camden campus, Fine Arts Complex, on Third Street between Cooper Street and the Benjamin Franklin Bridge. (856) 225-6245; rcca.camden.rutgers.edu. CHATHAM TOWNSHIP Lundt-Glover Gallery “Bold Impressions,” monoprints and paintings on paper by Andrea Epstein. Through March 11. Lundt-Glover Gallery, 58 Meyersville Road; (201) 532-5637; andreaepstein.com. CLINTON Hunterdon Art Museum “Glass! From the Wheaton Arts Museum of American Glass.” Through May 11. “Sondra Sherman: Found Objects.” Through March 9. “Mia Brownell: Delightful, Delicious, Disgusting,” oil paintings. Through March 9. $5 suggested donation. Tuesdays through Sundays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. Hunterdon Art Museum, 7 Lower Center Street. (908) 735-8415; hunterdonartmuseum.org. ENGLEWOOD One River Gallery “Mesh Point,” new paintings by Jay Gaskill. Through March 22. Mondays through Thursdays, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m.; Fridays and Saturdays, 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. One River Gallery, 49 North Dean Street. (201) 266-5244; onerivergallery.com. FREEHOLD Monmouth County Historical Association Museum and Library “Properly Dressed: Art and Reality in 18th- and Early-19th-Century Dress in Monmouth.” Through Aug. 2. $5 regular admission, $2.50 seniors and students. Tuesdays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monmouth County Historical Association Museum and Library, 70 Court Street. (732) 462-1466; monmouthhistory.org. GLASSBORO Rowan University Art Gallery “Joyce Kozloff: Cradles to Conquests, Mapping American Military History.” Through March 15. Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Wednesdays, 10 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Saturdays, noon to 5 p.m. Rowan University Art Gallery, 201 Mullica Hill Road. (856) 256-4521; rowan.edu/artgallery. HALEDON American Labor Museum/Botto House National Landmark “Outsourced!” Mixed-technique-on-paper images by Robin Holder. Through April 26. $3 to $5 suggested donation; members and children under 12, free. Wednesdays through Saturdays, 1 to 4 p.m., or by appointment. American Labor Museum/Botto House National Landmark, 83 Norwood Street. (973) 595-7953; labormuseum.org. HOPEWELL Gallery 14 Photographs of the human form by Larry Parsons and Martin Schwartz. Through March 9. Saturdays and Sundays, noon to 5 p.m. Gallery 14, 14 Mercer Street. (609) 333-8511; photogallery14.com. Image NEWARK Trapeze performers in “Legends,” presented by the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus, at the Prudential Center, 165 Mulberry Street, March 13 through 16. Tickets are $30 to $75. (973) 757-6000; prucenter.com . Credit Feld Entertainment HOBOKEN Monroe Art Center “Luminescent,” an exhibition of experimental works of ebony, monolith graphite pencil and ink drawings on Mylar by Starr Tucker-Ortega. Through March 30. Monroe Art Center, 720 Monroe Street. (201) 795-5000; monroecenter.com. JERSEY CITY Mana Contemporary “Carole Feuerman: The Golden Mean,” hyperrealist sculpture. Through March 29. Mondays through Fridays, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Mana Contemporary, 888 Newark Avenue. manafinearts.com; (201) 484-1495, Ext. 672. MADISON Museum of Early Trades and Crafts “The American Revolution in New Jersey: Where the Battlefront Meets the Homefront.” Through Feb. 13, 2015. $3 to $13; free for members. Tuesdays through Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Sundays, noon to 5 p.m. Museum of Early Trades and Crafts, 9 Main Street. (973) 377-2982; metc.org. MAHWAH Mahwah Museum “Neighborhoods of Mahwah.” Through June 29. $3 to $5; members and children under 5, free. Wednesdays, Saturdays and Sundays, 1 to 5 p.m. Mahwah Museum, 201 Franklin Turnpike. (201) 512-0099; mahwahmuseum.org. MONTCLAIR Montclair Art Museum “Robert Smithson’s New Jersey,” sculptures, works on paper, photographs and other conceptual art by the artist (1938-1973). Through June 22. “100 Works for 100 Years,” centennial exhibition. Through July 31. $12 adults, $10 seniors and students; members and children under 12, free. “Spencer Finch: Yellow,” site-specific installation for the museum’s facade. Through July 31. $12 adults, $10 seniors and students; members and children under 12, free. Wednesdays through Sundays, noon to 5 p.m. Montclair Art Museum, 3 South Mountain Avenue. (973) 746-5555; montclairartmuseum.org. MONTCLAIR Yogi Berra Museum & Learning Center “Hometown Teams,” Smithsonian Institution exhibition about sports. Through March 16. $4 and $6. Wednesdays through Fridays, noon to 5 p.m. Yogi Berra Museum and Learning Center, 8 Yogi Berra Drive. yogiberramuseum.org; (973) 655-2378. MORRIS TOWNSHIP Morris Museum “The Brick Art of Nathan Sawaya.” Through March 9. $7 to $10. “Beards: The Long and Short of It,” exploring men’s facial hair trends in America. Through March 30. $7 to $10. “Egg-Zibit: The Art, Science and Culture of Eggs.” Through April 20. $7 to $10. Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Thursdays, 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.; Sundays, 1 to 5 p.m. Morris Museum, 6 Normandy Heights Road. (973) 971-3700; morrismuseum.org. MORRIS TOWNSHIP Therese A. Maloney Art Gallery, College of Saint Elizabeth “A Moveable Feast: Art, Food and Migration.” Thirty-two contemporary artists explore the impact of travel and migration on food, cooking and dining. Through May 4. Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays, 2 to 6 p.m. Therese A. Maloney Art Gallery, College of Saint Elizabeth, 2 Convent Road. (973) 290-4315; maloneyartgallery.org. MORRISTOWN Atrium Gallery African-American Art Show and Sale. Through March 14. Mondays through Fridays, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. Atrium Gallery, Court Street. (973) 540-0615; artintheatrium.org. MORRISTOWN Macculloch Hall Historical Museum “Thomas Nast Brings Down Boss Tweed,” political cartoons. Through Aug. 3. $6 to $8; children 6 to 12, $4; children under 5, free. Wednesdays, Thursdays and Sundays, 1 to 4 p.m. Macculloch Hall Historical Museum, 45 Macculloch Avenue. maccullochhall.org; (973) 538-2404. NEW BRUNSWICK Jane Voorhees Zimmerli Art Museum “Maples in the Mist: Chinese Poems for Children, Illustrated by Jean and Mou-sien Tseng.” Through June 22. Fridays, 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; Saturdays and Sundays, noon to 5 p.m. “Striking Resemblance: The Changing Art of Portraiture.” Through July 13. General hours: Tuesdays through Fridays, 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; Saturdays and Sundays, noon to 5 p.m. Jane Voorhees Zimmerli Art Museum, 71 Hamilton Street. (848) 932-7237; zimmerlimuseum.rutgers.edu. NEW BRUNSWICK Museum of the American Hungarian Foundation “Eva Zeisel: Life, Design and Beauty,” modern industrial design. Through June 29. Donation: $5. Tuesdays through Saturdays, 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.; Sundays, 1 to 4 p.m. Museum of the American Hungarian Foundation, 300 Somerset Street. (732) 846-5777; hstrial-pfazekaz.homestead.com. NEWARK The Newark Museum “Papyraceous: Recent Acquisitions, Contemporary Works on Paper,” printmaking, collaging, drawing and painting. Through June 29. “City of Silver and Gold From Tiffany to Cartier,” including the original Vince Lombardi Trophy, as well as more than 100 objects documenting the rise of the city’s gold and silver industry. Trophy on view through March 30; the balance of the exhibition through 2015. $7 and $12; members, free. “American Chronicles: The Art of Norman Rockwell.” Through May 26. $7 and $12; members free. Wednesdays through Sundays, noon to 5 p.m. The Newark Museum, 49 Washington Street. (973) 596-6550; newarkmuseum.org. PRINCETON Morven Museum and Garden “The Age of Sail: A New Jersey Collection,” the history of American shipbuilding, sailmaking, naval warfare, shipwrecks and rescue, with more than 100 objects. Through March 23. $5 and $6. Tuesdays through Fridays, 11 a.m. to 3 p.m.; Saturdays and Sundays, noon to 4 p.m. Morven Museum and Garden, 55 Stockton Street. (609) 924-8144; morven.org. PRINCETON Princeton University Art Museum “Installation of Outdoor Sculpture by Alexander Calder.” Through June 15. “500 Years of Italian Master Drawings from the Princeton University Art Museum,” including more than 90 works. Through May 11. “Edvard Munch: Symbolism in Print,” 26 compositions in an array of printmaking techniques. Through June 8. Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Thursdays, 10 a.m. to 10 p.m.; Sundays, 1 to 5 p.m. Princeton University Art Museum, Princeton University Campus. artmuseum.princeton.edu; (609) 258-3788. PRINCETON Princeton University Library “From a Thankful Nation: The Robert L. Ross Collection of Latin American Orders and Medals.” Through Aug. 3. Mondays through Fridays, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Saturdays and Sundays, noon to 5 p.m. Princeton University Library, 1 Washington Road. princeton.edu/rbsc/; (609) 258-3184. PRINCETON JUNCTION West Windsor Arts Center “What the Fiber!” An exhibition of fiber arts. Through May 2. Reception, March 9, 4 to 6 p.m. West Windsor Arts Center, 952 Alexander Road. (609) 716-1931; westwindsorartscenter.org. SHREWSBURY Guild of Creative Art “Eyesights 2014,” juried photography show. Through April 2. Tuesdays through Fridays, 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.; Thursdays, 8 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Saturdays, 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Guild of Creative Art, 620 Broad Street. guildofcreativeart.org; (732) 741-1441. STONE HARBOR William Ris Gallery “Flora, Fauna and Far East,” paintings by Jane Hartley. Through April 30. Sundays through Thursdays, 9 a.m. to 7 p.m.; Fridays and Saturdays, 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. William Ris Gallery, 9400 Second Avenue. williamris.com; (609) 368-6361. SUMMIT Visual Arts Center of New Jersey “Women Choose Women Again,” group show. Through April 13. Visual Arts Center of New Jersey, 68 Elm Street. artcenternj.org; (908) 273-9121. TRENTON Artworks Trenton First Annual Juried Print Exhibition, group show. Through March 29. Artworks Trenton, 19 Everett Alley. artworkstrenton.org; (609) 394-9436. TRENTON New Jersey State Museum “Artists of Roosevelt,” exploring the community of visual artists in Roosevelt, N.J. Through May 25. Suggested admission, $5. Tuesdays through Sundays, 9 a.m. to 4:45 p.m. New Jersey State Museum, 205 West State Street. (609) 292-6464; statemuseum.nj.gov. WEST ORANGE Luna Stage “Goddess on Earth: Women of Essex County,” multimedia installations by Lisa Levart, a photographer. Through May 11. Reception, March 8, 4 to 6 p.m. Free. Luna Stage, 555 Valley Road. (973) 395-5551. lunastage.org. Comedy RAHWAY Union County Performing Arts Center Rob Schneider. March 14 at 8 p.m. $21 to $51.50. Union County Performing Arts Center, 1601 Irving Street. (732) 499-8226; ucpac.org. Film MAHWAH Sharp Theater “The Black Maria Film and Video Festival,” a screening of 13 short animations. March 11 at 6 p.m. Free. Sharp Theater, 505 Ramapo Valley Road. (201) 684-7844; ramapo.edu/berriecenter.


Savings and Loan Crisis May Be Guide for Bank Bailout

Abstract: Getting Congress to agree on a $700 billion financial bailout package might have seemed difficult, but the really hard work is only about to start. The federal government will now have to oversee and manage a bailout of enormous magnitude involving complex mortgage-backed securities so byzantine in their structure that even Wall Street experts cannot appraise their value. But former officials of an agency that dealt with an earlier financial mess stemming from a real-estate debacle, the Resolution Trust Corporation , said those managing the new bailout would also have to face nuts-and-bolts matters like policing fraud, overseeing an army of contractors and serving as political scapegoats. The tentative deal reached by Congress over the weekend contains only broad outlines to guide officials managing the bailout, like a provision intended to deal with conflicts of interest. But while the R.T.C., which was created in 1989 to help sort out the savings-and-loan debacle, operated under similar guidelines, it soon found itself dealing with people trying to game the system to their financial advantage in a variety of ways, like steering favorable deals to associates. Also, like any government program, some consultants hired by the R.T.C. presented huge bills, some far in excess of the value of the services they had provided. And while evicting homeowners sounds like anathema in today’s political environment, R.T.C. officials said that is what they did to reach the same goal that the current proposal is supposed to achieve — getting bailout money back to taxpayers as quickly as possible. “What you are looking at is the creation of a giant property management system,” said L. William Seidman, who served as the R.T.C.’s chairman. The central mission of the R.T.C., which closed its doors in 1995, was to sell office buildings, homes, loans and other assets held by failed savings-and-loan institutions. Congressional leaders have indicated that they do not foresee the need to create a new agency like the R.T.C. because the government is now buying mortgage-backed securities rather than taking over real estate. But just getting such a process off the ground will still require a large bureaucratic infrastructure. Joseph E. Robert Jr., whose property management firm was among the first contractors hired by the R.T.C., said the agency’s offices did not even have telephones when he first visited. “They had one fax machine, a lot of empty offices and maybe three or four people,” Mr. Robert recalled. Once the new regulatory structure is in place, those managing the bailout are likely to find themselves dealing with problems like trying to identify those taking undue advantage of the system. For example, individuals or companies who had caused the government to lose money during the savings-and-loan crisis were barred from buying assets from the R.T.C. But the unscrupulous found ways around that provision by using front companies or “straw purchasers” to mask their identity, recalled Kenneth M. Donohue, who served as the assistant director of the agency’s office of investigation. “I think you have to have a strong oversight and enforcement program” for the new bailout, said Mr. Donohue, who is currently inspector general of the Department of Housing and Urban Development. “That has to be done proactively, and it has to be done from day one.” Also, while the bailout legislation contains a conflict-of-interest provision, putting it into practice could also prove tricky. Given the interconnected nature of mortgage-backed securities, some of the financial firms hired by the government as contractors might have had a direct or indirect hand in issuing or evaluating those securities of dubious value. Peter H. Monroe, who served for three years as president of the oversight board that set policy for the R.T.C., said that transparency about such tangled relationships would be vital. “One day, Goldman would buy the assets and the fairness opinion would be issued by Morgan Stanley,” he said. “And the next day, Morgan Stanley would buy something and the fairness opinion would be issued by Goldman.” Along with such big-picture issues, those running the new bailout will have to oversee its day-to-day activities. In its first years of operation, the R.T.C. hired 10,000 employees as well as hundreds of outside contractors. And with that came waste. For example, one 1991 government report found that the R.T.C. and an affiliated agency, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, had wasted hundreds of millions of dollars hiring a small army of outside lawyers. Also, other federal investigations found significant cases of overcharging by contractors. There is also the possibility that the new bailout could lead to criminal prosecutions or lawsuits. During the time of the R.T.C., several high-profile executives or directors of failed savings-and-loan institutions, like the businessman Charles Keating, faced fraud charges in connection with their collapse. There were also more mundane scandals: an allegation, for example, that R.T.C. contractors, including the son of then-Treasury Secretary Lloyd Bentsen, had failed to disclose dealings that might have barred them from the program. Without admitting or denying any wrongdoing, Mr. Bentsen’s son, Lan Bentsen, settled the case by agreeing not to do business with the R.T.C. Those managing the current bailout can also expect plenty of second-guessing from Congress. For example, while politicians at the time of the R.T.C. claimed, just as they do today, that taxpayers would quickly recoup the cost of the bailout, it took the agency a year to make its first deal. Over time, Congress had to plow billions more into the agency. Today, the R.T.C., even with all its problems, is remembered as a success. By the time it closed its doors, a year ahead of schedule, it had sold off $459 billion in assets, recouping much of the money that the government had pumped into failed banks. The eventual cost to taxpayers was $120 billion to $140 billion, well below the estimates of $500 billion. Those who served at the agency or worked with it, however, do not expect things to go so easily this time. Executives at J. E. Robert, the real estate management firm headed by Mr. Robert, said it took about 90 days to analyze and evaluate a package of properties held by the R.T.C. But they said that performing a similar analysis on just one of the complex securities that the government planned to buy would be infinitely more complex because each represented a pool containing hundreds of mortgages of dubious value on different kinds of properties. “At the end, it looks like a restaurant kitchen,” Mr. Robert said. “You don’t want to eat there if you don’t have to.” Given the uncharted waters ahead, Mr. Seidman, the former R.T.C. chairman, also predicted a rough ride. “They are going to have to learn by the seat of their pants,” he said. “If this doesn’t work out without some tremendous snafu down the line, it will be a miracle.”

Troubled Asset Relief Program (2008)
Resolution Trust Corp
Subprime Mortgage Crisis
Banks and Banking
Mortgages
Politics and Government
Law and Legislation


Yankees’ Bats Heat Up, but Pitching Falls Short in Loss at Fenway

Abstract: BOSTON — For more than three weeks, the Yankees had been searching for a breakout offensive performance, the kind with hits and runs stacked up so high that the pitchers would not have to fret over their work, and victory was virtually ensured. During that time, dating back to April 9, the Yankees never scored more than six runs, and they reached that plateau only once. Most of the time, they had to settle for two or three runs, and their record reflected that pitiful production. Sunday was different. On Sunday night, through a steady rain and chilly winds, the Yankees’ offense finally materialized, thanks mostly to Alex Rodriguez. They scored seven runs, a total greater than the sum of their runs in their four previous games, and a confidence-building win seemed within their grasp. But on a night when the Yankees finally hit and scored in volume, the pitching squandered it all. Nathan Eovaldi, the starter, gave up two leads and six runs, and Dellin Betances gave up a two-run home run to Christian Vazquez in the seventh as Boston won, 8-7 , to complete a three-game sweep. Manager Joe Girardi said this loss was harder to accept than previous losses because of how the offense had finally clicked into motion. More pressing, the loss dropped the Yankees to 8-15 as they consolidated their position in last place in the American League East, while the streaking Red Sox vaulted into first in the first game of May. While most in the Yankees clubhouse continue to stress how early it is in the season, some are starting to acknowledge a mounting urgency. The Red Sox moved to five games over .500 for the first time since 2013, when the won they World Series, and the Yankees are seven games under .500 for the first time in Mark Teixeira’s eight-year tenure with them. “It’s small sample size right now, but it’s getting bigger,” said Teixeira, who had a single and a run batted in. “We don’t want to keep blaming it on bad luck or ‘it’s just one month.’ We need to start winning games.” Rodriguez spent time before the game discussing his theory that the Yankees’ offense should strive to score five runs a game, a tactical outlook he notes has served the team well over the years. For example, in 2009, the Yankees averaged 5.64 runs per game in the regular season, and they won the World Series. “I feel like our responsibility is to go out and try to score five runs,” he said. “Anything over that is a bonus; anything under it is just not good enough.” About an hour later, Rodriguez was in the batter’s box trying to prove his theorem single-handedly. He hit a two-run homer and a two-run double, both off Red Sox starter David Price, and scored a run on Teixeira’s single in the Yankees’ three-run fifth. That gave the Yankees a 6-4 lead, but in the bottom of the fifth, Eovaldi surrendered a two-run homer to Travis Shaw, and the score was even again. Eovaldi also gave up a 3-1 lead in the third. “The most frustrating part for me is that we kept scoring tonight and I wasn’t able to hold the lead,” Eovaldi said. The score remained even until the seventh, when Betances grooved a 97-mile-per-hour fastball straight down the middle to catcher Vazquez with a runner on base. Vazquez put a perfect swing on the ball and sent it screaming clear over the Green Monster and onto Lansdowne Street, giving Boston an 8-6 lead. The Yankees scored a run in the top of the eighth when Starlin Castro doubled off Koji Uehara, took third on a groundout and came home on a wild pitch. But Uehara struck out Carlos Beltran to end the eighth, and Craig Kimbrel locked down the ninth for his eighth save. Vazquez’s blast was the second significant home run that Betances gave up in this series. On Friday, David Ortiz’s two-run homer off Betances in the eighth inning decided the opening game of the series. That one came on a breaking ball that hung up in the strike zone, but the homer by Vazquez was a fastball on a platter. Betances has now given up home runs in his last three outings. “I pretty much lost two of these games,” Betances said. “I’ll take responsibility on myself. I know there’s better days ahead.” Price, who signed a seven-year, $217 million contract with the Red Sox in the off-season, did not have a particularly good outing in his 31st start against the Yankees. Like Eovaldi, he surrendered six runs. But he was the pitcher of record when Vazquez homered, so he improved to 4-0, with an unsightly 6.14 E.R.A. The Yankees had been six games under .500 for the first time since Girardi took over in 2008. The last times they were that far under .500 were in 2005 and 2007, under Manager Joe Torre. They were eight games under .500 in 2007 (21-29), and as in 2005, they still made the playoffs under Torre, then in his last season with them. “One of the things that Joe Torre always advocated in our clubhouse — and I think about this often — is, think small and big things will happen,” Rodriguez said. “That’s, I think, where we are today.” Where they really are is last place.

Baseball
Nathan Eovaldi
Alex Rodriguez
Yankees
Red Sox


Former Virginia Governor Sorry for Accepting Gifts, but Defends Loan Deals

Abstract: RICHMOND, Va. — Five days of grueling, often contentious testimony by Bob McDonnell, the former Virginia governor accused of corruption, ended Tuesday with an apology from Mr. McDonnell for accepting so many gifts and so much money, but an emphatic denial that he had conspired with his wife to sell his office. The federal trial, already 22 days long, could go to the jury as early as Wednesday. Lawyers for the former Virginia first lady, Maureen McDonnell, must present her defense, but her lead lawyer promised that it might take only three hours. After Mr. McDonnell’s testimony in his defense, the jurors were left with a puzzle. The gifts are not in doubt, $177,000 in cash, loans, vacations, Ferrari rides, equipment and rounds of golf, a Rolex watch and even an electric generator, so much that Mr. McDonnell, once considered a contender for the Republican presidential nomination, had to concede that he regretted his actions. What the donor, Jonnie R. Williams Sr., the chief executive of nutritional supplement maker Star Scientific, wanted in return is also little in doubt. Mr. Williams repeatedly made clear in emails, texts, phone calls and conversations aboard his private jet that he hoped the governor would help start clinical trials of his anti-inflammatory product Anatabloc at a prestigious Virginia university. But what Mr. Williams actually received may decide whether Mr. McDonnell goes to prison or walks free from a federal district courthouse a few hundred yards from the Governor’s Mansion he once called home. Virginia’s first couple did organize two events in the mansion that gave Mr. Williams entree to government and university officials. Mr. McDonnell was even photographed with a bottle of Anatabloc, a photo used on Star Scientific’s website. But no clinical trials were started, no state grants were offered and ultimately Anatabloc was pulled from the market by federal regulators. An assistant United States attorney, Michael S. Dry, who questioned Mr. McDonnell for 10 hours over two days, concluded his interrogation by quoting the same Scripture the defendant had uttered at his inauguration as governor in 2010: “ ‘To whom much is given, much will be required,’ ” Mr. Dry said. “Mr. Williams gave you $177,000 in loans and gifts.” He then turned to Judge James R. Spencer and said, “No further questions.” Twenty-six days in February 2012 could decide Mr. McDonnell’s fate. Mr. Dry bore down on a stretch of time when Mr. McDonnell was negotiating a favorable loan for his ailing real estate business with Mr. Williams and preparing to hold a “health care leaders” meeting featuring him. Mr. McDonnell, himself a former prosecutor and former Virginia attorney general, jousted with Mr. Dry over different interpretations of the events. “No sir, we do not make decisions based on money,” Mr. McDonnell snapped at one point. The loan in question — a stock transfer that would have ensured that the governor paid back far less than he actually borrowed — never came through, in large part because Mr. Williams could not pull it off. Mr. McDonnell said that that fact rendered the whole line of questioning irrelevant. But prosecutors used the negotiations to show how earnestly Mr. McDonnell was pursuing financial help at the same time he appeared to be giving his benefactor access to top Virginia public officials. Mr. Dry, who has led the federal investigation for 16 months, began the timeline with Mr. McDonnell’s own notes on a legal pad from Feb. 3, 2012, when he was negotiating a loan from Mr. Williams of Star Scientific. That initial deal was for 50,000 shares of Star Scientific stock, at $3.15 a share, worth more than $150,000, to be paid back with the repurchase of 50,000 shares at $1.90 a share. In other words, Mr. McDonnell would have had to repay a $150,000 loan with $90,000, after he was out of office, according to his own notes. Image Bob McDonnell, center, entering Federal District Court in Richmond, Va., on Tuesday for the last of five days of testimony in his corruption trial. Credit Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images Five days later, an aide to Mr. McDonnell sent an email saying Ms. McDonnell and the governor “were going over the list last night for the health care industry event.” The email indicated that both wanted Mr. Williams and his company at the event, where they could mix with university researchers in Virginia. On Feb. 9, Ms. McDonnell emailed her husband about potential clinical trials at the University of Virginia and Virginia Commonwealth University. “Here’s the info from Jonnie. He has calls into VCU, UVA and no one will return his calls,” she wrote. On Feb. 10, Ms. McDonnell emailed Jasen Eige, the governor’s senior policy adviser and lawyer, saying, “Gov wants to know why nothing has developed with studies.” Mr. McDonnell said he wanted no such thing. At 12:02 a.m., Feb. 17, Mr. McDonnell emailed Mr. Eige: “please see me about Anatabloc issues at VCU and UVA.” Four minutes later, the lawyer responded, “will do,” and added, “We need to be careful with this issue.” On Feb. 18, Mr. McDonnell personally emailed Mr. Williams to resume loan negotiations. Then on Feb. 29, Mr. McDonnell and Mr. Williams held a private meeting ostensibly on the health care leaders’ meeting that night. But the subject was the loan, which was growing more favorable. Mr. Williams offered 52,000 shares of Star Scientific, valued that day at $3.75 — a $187,000 offer, to be repaid with 50,000 shares repurchased at $2.20 a share, or $110,000. That night, less than five hours later, Mr. Williams was back at the Governor’s Mansion for the health care leaders’ meeting. Mr. McDonnell said the terms of the loan were of no consequence, since ultimately the stock loan fell through and he took $50,000 in cash for his real estate company, known as MoBo. “Mr. Dry, if you are suggesting I got a $50,000 loan for MoBo in order to get Mr. Williams’ calls returned, you’re completely off base,” a prickly Mr. McDonnell snapped at one point. But the events of that month seemed to sharpen the connections between the governor and Mr. Williams, whom aides called the Tic Tac man after the shape of his pills. Just days after Mr. Williams wrote the $50,000 check, he flew the McDonnells back to Virginia from a vacation in Florida on his corporate jet. Days later, at a meeting on a long-awaited “consumer-driven health care” plan that was meant to reshape health care delivery in Virginia, the governor conceded he brought up Anatabloc, saying that he was using the product and that it was working well for him. On May 18, 2012, Mr. McDonnell texted Mr. Williams, casually suggesting, “per voice mail, would like to see if you could extend another 20k loan.” Twelve minutes later came the reply: “Done.” That July, Mr. Williams texted back: “Johns Hopkins human clinical trials report on Aug. 8. If you need cash let me know. Let’s go golfing and sailing.” Mr. Dry, his head shaking, his faced puckered in a pained smirk, said to Mr. McDonnell, “Didn’t you know Mr. Williams was lending that money because of you?” A rattled former governor responded defensively, “I’m telling the truth about my view of the loans from Mr. Williams.”

Virginia
Robert F McDonnell
Jonnie R Williams Sr
Bribery and Kickbacks
Maureen Patricia Gardner McDonnell
Gifts to Public Officials
Governors


Fed Transferred $79.6 Billion in Earnings to the Treasury Last Year

Abstract: WASHINGTON — The Federal Reserve paid $79.6 billion to the Treasury Department in 2013 as the Fed’s enormous investment campaign to stimulate economic growth continued to generate windfall profits for taxpayers. Since 2008, the Fed has expanded its holdings of Treasury and mortgage-backed securities from less than $1 trillion to more than $4 trillion in an effort to suppress interest rates and encourage risk-taking. Its earnings from those holdings have increased apace. The Fed, required by law to put most of its profit in the government’s coffers, has contributed almost $323 billion in the last four years . The Fed invests exclusively in federal government bonds. In returning the money, it is effectively reducing the government’s borrowing costs. Some Republican politicians argue that the Fed, by reducing the short-term cost of borrowing, is enabling the growth of the federal debt. Fed officials respond that Congress itself is responsible for making those decisions — and that abandoning the policy would be counterproductive, in all likelihood. “I don’t think it would be helpful, either in terms of achieving the objectives that Congress has assigned to us or in terms of Congress’s deficit-reduction efforts, for us to purposely raise interest rates in order to weaken the economy,” the Fed’s chairwoman, Janet L. Yellen, testified before Congress in February. “The likely impact of that in a weaker economy would be larger deficits.” Ms. Yellen also expressed confidence that the investments would not impede the Fed’s ability to control inflation as the economy strengthens. The Fed buys bonds from banks by crediting accounts that are kept at the Fed. To keep that money from circulating, the Fed paid the banks $5.2 billion in interest last year. That could become a political liability as the economy grows, because the Fed would have to pay substantially higher rates to persuade the banks to leave the money on deposit. In effect, the Fed would be sending tens of billions of dollars to a handful of large banks rather than to the Treasury. Still, Fed officials insist that this is exactly what they will do. With lawmakers from the liberal wing of the Democratic Party as well as the Tea Party ranks of the Republican Party pressing the Fed on a variety of issues, the resulting image problem could be compounded by a decline in the profits from the Fed’s investments. The central bank has transferred something to the Treasury every year since 1934. But some analysts, and the Fed itself, see a risk that transfers might have to be suspended later this decade as interest rates rise, reducing the value of low-rate bonds like those held by the Fed. The Fed spent about $5.6 billion on its own operations last year. It also provided $563 million in funding for the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, which assumed some of the Fed’s regulatory responsibilities after the financial crisis.

Banking and Finance
Debt
Federal Reserve
Treasury Department
US Economy


Unemployment of Adults Falls in Germany, but Not the Rest of Europe

Abstract: THE euro zone can be separated into two groups, at least in terms of unemployment: Germany and the rest. In August, 1.9 million German adults — defined as people at least 25 years old — were counted as unemployed, meaning they were looking for work but had not found it. That figure is the lowest number since 1991, not long after the country was unified. In the rest of the euro zone, there were 13.9 million unemployed adults. That is the highest number since the euro was created in 1999. Eurostat, the European Union’s statistical agency, reported this week that the overall number of unemployed workers in the euro zone countries declined in August for the third consecutive month. That decline was caused by a reduction in the high level of joblessness among younger workers, those under 25. But unemployment among older workers continued to increase. The accompanying charts show the change in the number of workers classified as unemployed among both age groups, in Germany and in the rest of the euro zone, since December 2007. They also show what has happened in the United States and Britain over that period and the current unemployment rates in each area. While the rates of unemployment among younger workers have skyrocketed, the increase in the number of young unemployed workers since the downturn began has been much less than the increase among older workers — the ones most likely to have the responsibility to support a family. Among the countries in the European Union, whether or not members of the euro zone, all but Germany now have more adult unemployed workers than at the end of 2007, when the United States went into recession and set off the credit crisis that brought on the Great Recession. The only European Union countries where the current level of unemployment is less than a third higher than the 2007 level are Austria, Belgium, Finland, Hungary, Malta and Romania. In Germany, the number is down 35 percent. Last month, Eurostat reported that the gross domestic product of the euro zone, excluding Germany, rose at an annual rate of 0.5 percent in the second quarter. That was the first such increase since the second quarter of 2011, and helped to increase investor confidence. But the jobless figures show that, at least so far, there is little sign of recovery in the job market. In the United States, the number of unemployed adults peaked in 2009 and has since declined, although it remains 57 percent higher than it was at the end of 2007. In Britain, the peak of unemployment came in 2011 and the decline has been slower, but the picture is still better than in most euro zone countries. Germany’s extraordinary job performance can be traced to several factors. Government programs encouraged companies to cut hours rather than fire people during the crisis, preventing the surge in unemployment seen almost everywhere else. Germany has since benefited from the euro zone crisis — despite the fact that resolving it seems likely to be costly for the country. Poor economic performance in much of the Continent has held down the value of the common currency, and thus helped German exports. There is little doubt that the deutschemark, if it still existed, would be a much stronger currency than the euro.

Jobs
Euro Crisis
Unemployment
EU
Germany
Eurostat


Nabucco Pipeline Faces Major Challenges

Abstract: BERLIN — The development of the Nabucco natural gas pipeline, intended to reduce the European Union ’s dependence on Russian energy supplies, faces major challenges that threaten its future, according to analysts and members of the consortium backing the ambitious project. The estimated cost of the 3,300-kilometer-long, or 2,050-mile-long, pipeline has ballooned, and the consortium is still struggling to line up suppliers for Nabucco, which is designed to carry 31 billion cubic meters, or 1.1 trillion cubic feet, of natural gas a year from the Middle East and the Caspian region to markets in Europe. E.U. officials say 2011 is the make-or-break year for the project. “Either it is this year or it is not feasible,” said Marlene Holzner, a spokeswoman for the E.U. energy commissioner. Nabucco was originally budgeted at €7.9 billion, or $11.1 billion. But according to an internal study by the British oil company BP, it may cost €14 billion to finish the pipeline. That threatens to make the venture unprofitable. Nabucco would carry gas from the Caspian region and the Middle East, through Bulgaria, Romania and Hungary, to a hub just outside Vienna. From there, the gas would be distributed to customers throughout the European Union. The consortium of energy companies behind the project has two options, according to E.U. officials and analysts. One option is to abandon Nabucco after nearly a decade of planning and development. Were that to happen, it would mean not only a missed opportunity to diversify’s E.U. energy supplies, but a major loss of influence and prestige for the European Union in the increasingly important Caspian region. The other choice is for Nabucco to be merged with another pipeline to make it more attractive to investors, gas suppliers and consumers. “The attention is now on the economics of Nabucco, not the political aspects of using Nabucco to weaken Europe’s dependence on Russian gas,” said Borut Grgic, a senior fellow at the Atlantic Council. Europe relies on four major suppliers for its natural gas: Russia , which provides 41 percent; Norway, which provides 27 percent; Algeria, 17 percent; and Nigeria, 5 percent. Russia is the European Union’s single most important energy supplier over all, accounting for more than 25 percent of the bloc’s consumption of oil and gas, according to the European Commission, the Union’s executive arm. That dependence was underscored when price disputes led Russia to briefly cut natural gas supplies to Ukraine in 2006 and to Belarus in 2009. That led to serious shortages in parts of Eastern Europe, and spurred the European Union to step up its efforts to secure alternative supplies of energy. The consortium behind Nabucco comprises many of Europe’s largest energy companies: RWE, of Germany; OMV, of Austria; MOL, of Hungary; Botas, of Turkey; Bulgaria Energy Holding, of Bulgaria; and Transgaz, of Romania. With Bulgaria and Romania still grappling with the impact of the global economic crisis, it is far from certain if their state-run energy companies could afford a bigger investment in Nabucco. “I do not know how the Nabucco consortium arrived at the €7.9 billion figure in the first place. I could never see it costing less than €12 billion,” said Jonathan Stern, director of gas research at the Oxford Institute for Energy Studies. “And consider the price of iron ore, which is used for steel pipelines. It has risen by 50 percent over the past year.” In Vienna, where Nabucco is based, a spokesman played down BP’s €14 billion cost estimate. He also discounted the possibility that the start of construction would be delayed. “The current figure of €7.9 billion is based on the Nabucco feasibility study which was completed in 2005,” said Christian Dolezal, the Nabucco spokesman. “These figures are currently under review. Any other figures released in the meantime are speculations and not accurate. We do not have an investment issue, therefore no delay.” Johannes Vetter, a spokesman for MOL, said there were “no final numbers on the table,” adding, “We will know in a few weeks if there will be delays.” Even if the pipeline is completed, there is the issue of finding natural gas to fill it. The consortium has been banking on Azerbaijan , which has vast reserves of gas. But those fields have not yet been developed. BP is the project operator of the Shah Deniz II field in Azerbaijan, and holds a 25 percent stake in it. For months, Nabucco has been negotiating to obtain gas from the Shah Deniz II field. But the Azeri government has yet to decide whether it will sell gas to Nabucco or to some other pipeline operator. Elshad Nasirov, vice president of Socar, Azerbaijan’s state-owned oil and natural gas company, said recently that Shah Deniz II could only guarantee 10 billion cubic meters of gas for export, less than one-third of Nabucco’s capacity. “We do not promise additional gas,” he said. “Everything depends on the price.” RWE has been looking elsewhere for supplies. Last year it signed a cooperation agreement with Iraqi Kurdistan, which has large reserves of gas. The long-term goal of the semiautonomous region is to supply Nabucco with 20 billion cubic meters of gas a year, according to Kurdistan’s natural resources minister, Ashti Hawrami. To accomplish that, however, Nabucco would have to build another pipeline, 550 kilometers long, to bring the gas across Turkey to the main pipeline. That would drive up costs. “The fact is that there will not be 30 billion cubic meters of gas for Nabucco until well into the next decade,” said Mr. Stern from the Oxford Institute. Moreover, as Socar has made clear, Nabucco is not alone in trying to obtain gas from the Shah Deniz II fields. Two other European energy projects are also in talks with the Azeri government: competing: the Trans Adriatic Pipeline, or TAP, and the Interconnector Turkey-Greece-Italy, or I.T.G.I. TAP is backed by Statoil, of Norway; E.ON, of Germany; and EGL, of Switzerland. The 520-kilometer pipeline is to run from Greece to Italy via Albania and cost €1.6 billion. “There is as yet no agreement with Azerbaijan,” said Kjetil Tungland, TAP’s managing director. “Everybody is waiting for Azerbaijan’s decision.” The I.T.G.I pipeline is to run from Turkey, across Greece to Italy, have an annual capacity of 12 billion cubic meters and is estimated to cost €2.5 billion. The shareholders are Edison, of Italy; Depa, of Greece; and Botas, the Turkish company that is also a partner in Nabucco. With all three pipelines chasing after Azeri gas, and with rising costs for Nabucco, the European Union is now lobbying for Nabucco to merge with one of the other projects. Joschka Fischer, the former German foreign minister and now consultant for RWE, proposed during a meeting of energy experts in Vienna last month that the Southern European pipeline projects should be integrated. “It would make sense,” Mr. Fischer said. “Business interests would be brought together, but above all it would allow Europe to diversify.” Together, the three pipelines would be able to supply Europe with about 53 billion cubic meters of gas a year. Nabucco confirmed that talks were taking place. “We understand that there is a discussion on a political level,” said Mr. Dolezal, the Nabucco spokesman. But, he added, “Nabucco can be realized and stand alone.” The European Union has made clear it is not counting on that. “Our main goal is to have access to the Southern Basin,” said Ms. Holzner, the energy commissioner’s spokeswoman. “That is why we do not back one project but also TAP and I.T.G.I.” If Nabucco falters but I.T.G.I. succeeds, she added, “then we will have achieved the same goal: access to the Caspian.”

Natural Gas
Pipelines
European Union
Azerbaijan
Russia


In Chicago, Security Shares Spotlight at High School Basketball Game

Abstract: CHICAGO — The cars were screened in the parking lots of the stadium on Chicago State University’s South Side campus. The fans walked through metal detectors; their bags were scanned, too. Police lined the arena’s entrance. The teams of teenage boys wore T-shirts during the pregame warm-ups bearing a simple, yet stark message: Shoot Hoops, Not Guns. Such was the backdrop for a highly anticipated high school basketball game in Chicago on Saturday between Simeon Career Academy and Whitney M. Young Magnet High School , where a pall cast by violence threatened to overshadow an athletic showcase. On Jan. 16, after a game involving Simeon at Chicago State, a skirmish between players and coaches broke out on the court. A shooting outside the arena later left a 17-year-old boy dead — another homicide in a city where 506 were reported in 2012. The game pitted two of the country’s top programs and players, with both teams in USA Today’s top 10 national rankings. According to Rivals.com, Whitney Young boasts the top junior in the nation in Jahlil Okafor, a powerful but lithe center with soft hands and quick feet. Simeon has Jabari Parker, the third-ranked senior. Parker is a 6-foot-8 do-it-all swingman who committed to Duke last month and has been featured on the cover of Sports Illustrated. “You could make a case these are the two best high school players in the country,” said Joe Henricksen , a longtime Chicago high school basketball observer and the publisher of a local recruiting newsletter. The hype surrounding the clash, which was televised nationally on ESPNU, was matched by the questions of safety and security. Fans erupted during the game after acrobatic dunks, while the Chicago police superintendent, Garry F. McCarthy , sat with his arms folded, wearing a tight-lipped expression. McCarthy described the security as threefold, a perimeter enforced by the Chicago police, the campus patrolled by state officers and the university police, and Chicago Public Schools security monitoring the gym. He stressed that the Jan. 16 shooting was not related to basketball. “The fact is it had nothing to do with what happened at the game,” McCarthy said. “That was about a gang member seeing another gang member, relaying the information, and somebody showed up and wanted to shoot somebody.” Still, Chicago Public Schools suspended Simeon Coach Robert Smith for four games because of his role in the pushing and shoving after the game, and the security presence inside and outside the arena Saturday was noticeably increased and tightened. One fan said police officers with flashlights peered through his car window and asked him to open his glove compartment when he entered the parking lot. Image Fans attending the game walked through metal detectors and their bags were scanned. Credit Nathan Weber for The New York Times “I’m always concerned about our kids’ safety,” said the Chicago schools chief executive, Barbara Byrd-Bennett , who was also at Saturday’s game. She added: “I think they know we’ve put together a plan to keep them safe.” In Chicago, high school basketball is a way of life. The term March Madness was used to describe the high school basketball postseason tournament in Illinois in 1939, long before the N.C.A.A. adopted it, and Illinois was also among the first states to televise its tournament. More recently, Chicago produced the N.B.A.’s first overall draft picks when Derrick Rose, a Simeon graduate, was selected by the Bulls in 2008, and last year when the New Orleans Hornets chose Anthony Davis. Many in the city hope its latest prodigies follow suit. “Basketball is just what we do in Chicago,” Whitney Young Coach Tyrone Slaughter said. The remarkable run of talent here has brought comparisons to the late 1970s, when Isiah Thomas and Doc Rivers headlined high school tournaments in the area. But as rich as the basketball culture is locally, the sport has also been affected by the reverberations from violent crime. Outside their gym each day they go to practice, Parker and his teammates see Rose’s jersey hanging next to that of Ben Wilson , who was ranked among the top high school basketball stars in the country when he was killed in a shooting outside Simeon in 1984. A report by The Chicago Sun-Times last week highlighted several violent episodes involving public school athletics in the city over the past 10 years, including fights, shootings and an attack on a team bus. “That’s never on my mind, any of the violence,” the Whitney Young center Okafor said. “I feel safe.” The game, as it turned out, matched the hype, despite ordinary efforts from Parker (7 points) and Okafor (8 points). Simeon sprinted to a lead before holding off Whitney Young, 44-41, in an action-packed finish. Afterward, Parker said just playing the game was an important message. “We could have played it somewhere else outside the city, but we didn’t,” he said. “Those T-shirts we wore were good for kids to see.” Fans filing out of the arena were instructed to exit through the side of the building, directly into the parking lot. Police cars sat at the entrance to the arena and in the surrounding lots, their blue lights flashing in the night. No problems were reported.

Basketball
School Sports
Chicago
Murders


Consumer Confidence Hits a 9-Month High

Abstract: Consumer confidence rose to a nine-month high in June but failed again to surpass its level of September 2008, when the failure of Lehman Brothers sent the world economy into a tailspin, a survey showed on Friday. The Reuters/University of Michigan Surveys of Consumers said its preliminary index of confidence for June rose to 69.0 from May’s 68.7. That was slightly below economists’ expectations of 69.5, according to a Reuters poll. The report’s gauges of inflation expectations rose to their highest in months, creating concern for the Federal Reserve, which has pumped money into the financial system to spur a recovery. For the third month, the overall consumer sentiment reading was at its highest since the Lehman debacle last September, which caused severe strains in financial markets, while not breaking through that month’s level of 70.3. Indeed, the economic damage done by that episode is still being felt and may linger for a long time, consumers worry, overshadowing perceptions of economic recovery. “Job and income uncertainty, however, remained high and constitute a significant barrier for completing planned purchases,” the Surveys of Consumers said in its report. “The economic recovery was thought to be weaker than originally anticipated, leading consumers to expect a longer period of time before the recovery gets under way.” Reflecting continuing worries, consumers’ assessment of the 12-month economic outlook fell, with that gauge declining to 61 in June from 75 in May. Their one-year inflation expectations rose to 3.1 percent in June — the highest since October 2008 — from May’s 2.8 percent. The five-year inflation outlook rose to 3.1 percent in June, from May’s 2.9 percent. That was the highest in the long-term inflation expectations since February this year. In an earlier report, import prices in the United States rose 1.3 percent in May, the Labor Department said on Friday , but the gain was led by petroleum prices and underlying import price pressures were more muted. Analysts had forecast import prices would rise 1.3 percent after a revised 1.1 percent rise in April, previously reported as a 1.6 percent increase. May’s gain was the largest since a 1.4 percent advance in July 2008. Recent declines in the dollar might press import prices higher and contribute to inflation, but year-over-year, import prices declined by 17.6 percent, indicating little threat of this at the moment. Nonpetroleum import prices rose 0.2 percent in May, the first increase since July 2008, and were down a record 5.8 percent over the year. Export prices rose 0.6 percent in May compared with forecasts for a 0.4 percent gain. They rose 0.4 percent in April and are down 6.5 percent over the year. Imported petroleum prices were up 8.3 percent in May, the fourth consecutive gain after bottoming in January, but are 51.4 percent lower over the year.

International Trade and World Market
Oil (Petroleum) and Gasoline


U.S. Manufacturing Gauge Falls to June 2009 Level

Abstract: WASHINGTON — A measure of United States manufacturing fell in May to its lowest level since June 2009 as slumping overseas economies and a pullback in business spending reduced new orders and production. The Institute for Supply Management said on Monday that its index of manufacturing activity fell to 49 last month, from 50.7 in April. That is the lowest level in nearly four years and the first time the index has dipped below 50 since November. A reading under 50 indicates contraction. A gauge of new orders fell to 48.8, its lowest level in nearly a year. Production and employment also declined. Manufacturing has struggled this year as weak economies abroad have slowed exports from the United States. Businesses have also reduced their pace of investment in areas like equipment and computer software. Image Credit The New York Times At the same time, consumers are holding back on spending more for factory-made goods, possibly a reflection of higher Social Security taxes that have reduced paychecks this year. A separate report Monday said a measure of Chinese manufacturing dropped last month to 49.2, from 50.4 in April. As with the institute’s index, a reading below 50 indicates contraction. The figure added to signs that a resurgence of China’s economy, the world’s second-largest after the United States, might be losing momentum. Europe remains mired in recession and is buying fewer American goods. In the first three months of the year, American exports to Europe fell 8 percent compared with the same period a year ago. After a steep fall in March, companies in April stepped up their orders for United States machinery, electronic products and other equipment that reflect their investment plans. Overall orders for so-called durable goods jumped 3.3 percent in April from March. Much of the April gain reflected more orders for commercial aircraft. But excluding the volatile transportation sector, which includes aircraft and autos, orders rose 1.3 percent in April, a big turnaround after a decline in March.

Manufacturing
US Economy
International trade
Institute for Supply Management


Look! There! It’s a ‘Hot Bird’

Abstract: IT’S hard to miss the sprinkling of “Hot Bird” signs visible from Atlantic Avenue in Brooklyn. Aside from what could be considered the jarring juxtaposition of the words “hot” and “bird,” a few of the signs are painted a radiant yellow and are bigger than highway billboards. For more than a decade, the signs have made vegetarians wince and poultry lovers pause. Some people even consider the signs to be landmarks of sorts. Hot Bird is the name of two long-defunct Brooklyn barbecue chicken places. And although the businesses closed in the ’90s, the signs live on. Four of them have been painted on the sides of apartment buildings in Clinton Hill, Prospect Heights and Cobble Hill. Over the years, the long-orphaned images have prompted many to wonder, “Where is Hot Bird?” “Hot Bird has gone the way of the dodo,” said Robert Perris, the district manager of Community Board 2, which covers a large part of brownstone Brooklyn. As for the signs, he said, “They’ve been here so long, they’ve just become part of the landscape.” One Hot Bird was at 665 Vanderbilt Avenue, near Grand Army Plaza, in a building now occupied by an Italian restaurant called Aliseo Osteria del Borgo. Albano Ballerini, the restaurant’s owner and chef, said Hot Bird had gone out of business by the time he bought the space in 1998. In a tip of the hat to his culinary predecessor, he said he briefly considered calling his restaurant Not Bird before better judgment prevailed. Another sign, which occupies nearly the width of a wall of an apartment house at 540 Vanderbilt Avenue — the Hot Bird Building, as some call it — sits in the path of the Atlantic Yards project, a planned 22-acre development that will include housing, office space and a basketball arena. A photograph of the building, with demolition equipment in the foreground, titled “Hot Bird’s Last Stand,” was featured this summer at the Brooklyn Museum in “Click! A Crowd-Curated Exhibition.” The signs tend to inspire a tongue-in-cheek admiration for Hot Bird’s glory days. “Not a day goes by that I don’t regret missing the era of Hot Bird in Brooklyn,” one contributor to a Prospect Heights Web site confessed. On another Web site, another wrote, “I really wish I had a Hot Bird T-shirt.” The “Not for Tourists” guide designated one of the signs a landmark, based on its “mysterious inscription” and “tantalizing visual.” But not everyone is tantalized. A few of the signs provide a delivery telephone number that now belongs to an unfortunate woman who lives near Jamaica, Queens. “People are still calling me for the restaurant,” the woman, who declined to give her name, said the other day. “All hours of the night, they’re asking me for chicken.” In an effort to solve the Hot Bird mystery, she conducted her own investigation. “I’ve seen the big, yellow sign out there called Hot Bird,” she said, adding that she searched for the establishment, following the directions on the sign. “Well,” she said with a hint of exasperation, “I didn’t see no restaurant.”

Brooklyn (NYC)
Chicken
Atlantic Yards (Brooklyn)
Clinton Hill (NYC)
Cobble Hill (NYC)
Prospect Heights (NYC)


West Virginia’s Huggins Is Focused on a Title, Not Redemption

Abstract: INDIANAPOLIS — West Virginia Coach Bob Huggins has carried a mottled reputation for having players with off-the-court problems, having had zero percent graduation rates and using profane language. But by virtue of having taken his alma mater to its first Final Four since 1959, against top-seeded Duke on Saturday, the coach known as Huggy Bear has gone from one of college basketball’s most divisive figures to one of its most beloved. Seemingly forgotten are Huggins’s tumultuous 16 seasons at Cincinnati, which included his arrest in 2004 for driving under the influence of alcohol — which resulted in a video showing him staggering and with vomit on the driver’s side door — N.C.A.A. sanctions and a resignation in 2005 to avoid being fired. Instead, the focus has become how he survived a heart attack that nearly killed him in 2002 and how he is two wins short of following through on returning home to West Virginia to win a national championship. “I wish Coach Huggins and my father’s home state of West Virginia the best,” Nancy L. Zimpher, the former Cincinnati president and current SUNY chancellor who forced Huggins’s resignation, said in a statement. But talk of the past is lost on the 56-year-old Huggins, who is making his second Final Four appearance (his first came with Cincinnati in 1992). “You guys keep wanting to do this redemption thing and I don’t buy into it,” Huggins said. “I don’t look backwards.” Huggins has remained true to himself during his team’s impressive run this season, winning the Big East tournament title and advancing to the Final Four dressed in his warm-up suit as he berates referees and players alike. His players have been wearing the team motto “Do What We Do” on their T-shirts this week. The West Virginia junior forward John Flowers said he and his teammates knew when Huggins was entering the locker room at halftime because Huggins would throw a water bottle ahead of his entrance, which Flowers estimated had happened in half of the season’s games. Despite saying he did not think he should comment on some of the incidents, Flowers became emotional when talking about how he much he cared about Huggins. “He’s a real cool guy,” Flowers said. “He’s real down-to-earth. He understands life and second chances. He’s not quick to turn his back on someone when they’re in trouble.” The West Virginia junior guard Casey Mitchell also spoke fondly of Huggins, who he said kicked a chair so hard that one of its legs broke at halftime of a game earlier this season. “It’s kind of motivation profanity,” Mitchell said of Huggins’s language when coaching. “It’s not like just downing you all the time. It kind of makes you eager to just attack.” Louisville Coach Rick Pitino insists that Huggins’s abrasive reputation was unwarranted. “Huggs could be one of the most misunderstood coaches of our time,” Pitino said by telephone. “He’s extremely well liked by the members of the coaching profession. He really cares a lot about the kids both athletically as well as academically.” Kansas State Coach Frank Martin, a former assistant for Huggins who was promoted to succeed him, also defended him. He praised Huggins for his loyalty, honesty and work ethic and said it was unfair to criticize him for his past. “There’s not too many people that are quite the human being that he is in life,” Martin said, “let alone in basketball.” And if Huggins wins a national championship, he just might have a new reputation.

Basketball
Huggins Bob
College Athletics
West Virginia University
NCAA Basketball Tournament (Men)
Coaches and Managers


For Clippers, Transition in Decision Making Begins

Abstract: LOS ANGELES — Soon after N.B.A. Commissioner Adam Silver handed down a lifetime ban to Donald Sterling on Tuesday, the Clippers’ website, the one still owned but no longer operated under the direction of Sterling, went black. There were no rosters, statistics, news, features, biographical information, promotions, schedules, community event listings or anything else, except a stark message in white letters against the black background: We Are One, with an interlocking L.A.C. logo. The symbolism was equally plain: It was there in black and white, unequivocal. The metaphor of choice, one used by the Los Angeles mayor, Eric Garcetti, among many others, was a heavy hammer that Silver had brought down on Sterling for racist remarks. Image The Clippers taped up advertisements in the Staples Center prior to Game 5 against the Warriors. Credit Kelvin Kuo/USA Today Sports, via Reuters But this blow immediately felt more transformative. Less than an hour after Silver stepped to the lectern in New York, the Clippers released a statement declaring: “We wholeheartedly support and embrace the decision by the N.B.A. and Commissioner Adam Silver today. Now the healing process begins.” But just who released the statement? “Doc and I approved that,” said Andy Roeser, the team president, referring to Doc Rivers, the Clippers’ coach and vice president of basketball operations. Roeser declined to answer further questions outside Staples Center. For years, he has run the business operation for Sterling, most prominently negotiating contracts. In a statement issued by the team Saturday, Roeser questioned the legitimacy of the recording and the motives of the woman Sterling directed not to publicly associate with black men. Video The league commissioner, Adam Silver, called remarks by the Los Angeles Clippers owner, Donald Sterling, “deeply offensive and harmful.” Credit Credit Damon Winter/The New York Times Rivers has little attachment to Sterling, arriving from Boston last summer and immediately distancing himself from Sterling on Saturday and refusing to meet with him Monday. Rivers, as he sat down for a news conference nearly two hours before Tuesday’s game against Golden State at Staples Center, exhaled deeply. He said he believed the decision had allowed his players, who were considering a boycott, to do the same. As for what it meant to the organization to operate without an owner in power, Rivers was uncertain. Image Zach Randolph of the Memphis Grizzlies, left, and his teammates warmed up with their shirts inside-out in apparent support of the Clippers before their game Tuesday. Credit /Associated Press “A lifetime ban is a lifetime ban,” Rivers said. “And yes, I do think that’s the right decision. The next question is, where do we go? You think about coaching a team, and actually, I don’t know who to call if I need something, so the quicker that this is done, the better for everyone. Having said that, it’s going to take time, and we all have to be patient.” An example of how the Clippers operate came Monday, when they had meetings to address Sterling’s comments and answer questions about the league’s investigation. Rivers directed a meeting at the team’s facility in Playa Vista, Calif., while Roeser and the executives Carl Lahr and Christian Howard met in the team’s business offices at Staples Center. Though the team has improved in recent years, reaching the playoffs the past three seasons, the front office has not often functioned smoothly. The previous three general managers did not leave on good terms. Elgin Baylor and Mike Dunleavy sued Sterling — one for discrimination, the other for pay that he was owed — and Neil Olshey worked without a contract for nine months before leaving for a considerable raise in Portland. Image Demonstrators against Donald Sterling outside the Staples Center prior to Game 5 against the Warriors. Credit Annie Tritt for The New York Times Just as Olshey had been promoted to replace Dunleavy, Gary Sacks — who worked under Olshey — was promoted to take Olshey’s place. Last season, personnel decisions were shared by Roeser, Sacks and Coach Vinny Del Negro, who was not rehired when his contract ran out despite leading the team to a franchise-record 56 victories. Working under Sacks is Sterling’s son-in-law, the director of basketball administration Eric Miller. Silver, at his news conference, said Sterling’s ban did not apply to anyone else in his family. For now, Sterling’s absence will have little effect. If few owners are as involved as the Dallas Mavericks’ Mark Cuban, who sits behind his team’s bench, hugged Vince Carter after his winning shot Saturday and often works out in the team’s weight room, then Sterling has been particularly distant in recent years. Image Los Angeles Clippers Coach Doc Rivers speaking to the media before Game 5 of their opening-round playoff series. Credit Associated Press Sterling had an office at the team’s $50 million headquarters, which opened in 2009, but it was left vacant — used occasionally to conduct interviews until other employees were moved into it several years ago. He also did not have an office at Staples Center. For the most part, Sterling’s only involvement was to sign off on new contracts and trades. The league has told Clippers officials that it is working out how the team can manage ownership-level decisions that arise in the near future. At Staples Center, advertising banners were covered throughout the arena after more than a dozen sponsors cut ties with the team. As for how he will carry on, Rivers was succinct. “I’m going to do my job,” he said.

Basketball
Clippers
Donald Sterling
Doc Rivers
Discrimination
Adam Silver
Andy Roeser


Johnson Focuses on the Road in Nascar, and Soon a Baby on Board

Abstract: DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. — After an unprecedented fourth consecutive championship in Nascar ’s top series, and all of the prestige and accolades that came with it, Jimmie Johnson finds himself in search of new vistas in 2010. Johnson, a part-time New Yorker, recently sold his Chelsea loft to move to an $8.3 million condominium in Manhattan’s West Village. “I was very happy with where we were,” he said. “But the chance for the West Village and cobblestone roads and trees and a view over the river. ...” The view atop Nascar is not too shabby, either. Johnson is finally receiving recognition befitting his accomplishments, even as a preternatural corporate correctness, an innate humility and an aversion to flamboyance prevents him from achieving the superstardom of a Dale Earnhardt Jr. or a Danica Patrick. Johnson was named the Associated Press male athlete of the year in 2009 and is the focus of an HBO series that chronicles his preparations for Sunday’s season-opening Daytona 500. Yet far from satisfied with his success, Johnson’s intense regimen has left him 10 pounds lighter and as driven as ever going into 2010. Johnson and his equally unrelenting crew chief, Chad Knaus, remain the immovable force at the front of the field. Johnson is the odds-on favorite to win the Cup series title again. And these days, mention of Johnson alongside Richard Petty and Dale Earnhardt no longer seems outlandish. He is three championships away from matching the seven titles won by those two stock-car racing icons. But suddenly, a daunting roadblock stands in the way of that potential destiny: fatherhood. Johnson’s wife, Chandra, is due to give birth to their first child in July. That was why Johnson spent much of the off-season not in New York but burrowed for weeks in his Charlotte, N.C., home, busily cleaning out his closet, baby-proofing the cabinets and racing to the supermarket, sometimes twice a day, to buy food for his wife. “I think it was a function of nesting,” Johnson said. Impending fatherhood could bring joy to the rest of the Cup garage, which is desperate for any distraction that could loosen Johnson’s grip on the championship. “I think the guys look at Jimmie and them and say now, ‘Hey, there’s no way,’ ” said Dale Jarrett, the 1999 season champion who is currently a broadcaster. “He’s got a lot of things happening. He’s won four straight. You start to get burned out a little bit when somebody works as hard as Chad does all the time. Jimmie’s got a change in his life coming with their first child. “So I think everybody looks at that and says, ‘This is the time to pounce on these guys.’ You look at people like Kyle Busch, Denny Hamlin, even Jeff Gordon, they realize this is probably their chance to jump in there and grab this away.” Johnson insists that will not be the case and sent that message Thursday when he won one of the two qualifying races in advance of the 500. Johnson said he will miss a race if necessary to be at home for the birth, but plans to have fatherhood managed by the start of the 10-race playoffs, the Chase for the Sprint Cup, in September. “I know it’s going to impact my life and change my life and my life will be completely different,” he said. “I’m anticipating it will make me more focused on things that are important to me. “The one thing I’m happy about, we should have a little bit of time to get our feet up underneath us before the Chase starts.” The meticulous Knaus already has three or four sets of contingencies for Johnson. But if Knaus is obsessing, he is also celebrating. “I’m really excited about it,” he said in January. He added that the challenges of fatherhood lay ahead for Johnson. “It’s going to be whatever stress,” he said. “It’s going to be when the kid gets his first runny nose, when it falls off the couch and busts its head open, all that stuff’s going to happen. That’s part of being a parent. “From our standpoint, all we can do is be as prepared, as receptive as we possibly can. Cover all of our bases, give him the best racecar that we can and support him.” If parenthood does not derail Johnson, Knaus’s contract could. His deal is up at the end of the year. Knaus insisted that would not be an issue this season, although it could hang over the team until a contract is completed. Ultimately, their run at titles could last as long as Johnson and Knaus remain together. But a breakup is coming. Knaus said in January he has perhaps four to six years left as a crew chief before moving on in his career. With Johnson’s success so inextricably connected to Knaus’s cutting-edge, sometimes over-the-edge approach to racing, the dynasty is not likely to survive a parting. But no matter how high Johnson’s perch is atop Nascar, he refuses to look that far into the distance. “I guess I should start thinking about that at some point,” he said. “I think crew chiefs live in dog years, and it’s much easier for Chad to say, ‘My tank’s running low.’ For me, I haven’t hit that fatigue stage or that burnout stage. I always hammer him with the fact I don’t want to drive anyone else’s racecars. ‘There’s no way you’re retiring before I do.’ So I will keep banging that drum and try to keep him around as long as I can if he runs out of steam.”

Johnson Jimmie
Automobile Racing
Parenting
Athletics and Sports
Daytona 500 (Auto Race)
National Assn of Stock Car Auto Racing


Junior Seau’s Family to Donate Brain for Study of Head Trauma

Abstract: The family of the former N.F.L. linebacker Junior Seau will allow his brain to be examined by researchers who study head trauma, according to a chaplain for the San Diego Chargers . Seau, 43, was found dead in his Oceanside, Calif., home Wednesday morning of a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest. He did not leave a note. Shawn Mitchell, the Chargers’ chaplain and a pastor with New Venture Christian Fellowship, said that he had been in touch with the Seau family and that they decided to allow researchers to examine Seau’s brain for signs of trauma. “Junior was philanthropic,” Mitchell said. “And he got that from his mom and dad. Their hope is that it can serve athletes down the road.” He added: “There’s been an incredible amount of emotion. And it’s been a very difficult time for the parents. You don’t expect to outlive your kids and you don’t expect them to take their own lives.” In February 2011, the former Chicago Bears player Dave Duerson shot himself in the chest, saying in a note that he wanted his brain donated to the study of football head injuries . Doctors determined that Duerson had chronic traumatic encephalopathy, a degenerative, progressive brain disease. Duerson’s son, Tregg, is suing the N.F.L., claiming the league did not meaningfully warn players about the potential risks of concussions. Seau was the second former N.F.L. player to commit suicide in the past two weeks. Ray Easterling, a safety for the Atlanta Falcons in the 1970s and a plaintiff in a high-profile lawsuit against the league over its handling of concussion-related injuries, died April 19 of a self-inflicted gunshot wound. Eighteen of 19 former N.F.L. players whose brains were studied at Boston University’s Center for the Study of Traumatic Encephalopathy were found to have had C.T.E. It was not clear where Seau’s brain would be studied. “It is our policy to not discuss any completed, ongoing or potential research cases unless at the specific request of family members,” the center said in a statement. “Our primary goal is to learn more about the long-term effects of repetitive brain trauma by conducting meaningful scientific research. At this time our thoughts and prayers are with Mr. Seau’s family, his many friends and former teammates.” Over his 20-year N.F.L. career, Seau played for three teams, most prominently the Chargers, and made 12 Pro Bowls. He played in two Super Bowls and was named to the 1990s All-Decade Team by the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Larry Coben, a lawyer who is leading a group of nearly 2,000 former N.F.L. players and their wives who say that the league and the helmet maker Riddell deliberately concealed information about the neurological effects of repeated hits to the head, said the suicide of a player as prominent as Seau could spur more former players to join the lawsuit. “Typically it happens because they’re worried about their families,” Coben said of players joining the case. “These guys are educated, they have business interests. They see the writing on the wall and they’re realizing that organizing to address the issue is the best way to get it done.”

Seau Junior
Football
Brain
San Diego Chargers
Concussions
Chronic Traumatic Encephalopathy