The cloud hanging over the future operation of three Almond Resort hotels in Barbados as a result of Neal & Massy’s decision to sell its interest in them is causing anxiety in the British travel market.

According to Barbados Hotel & Tourism Association (BHTA) executive vice-president Sue Springer, British tour operators and airlines “are scared” about the future of the three hotels which collectively account for 650 of the island’s hotel room stock.

Almond Beach Village in St Peter, Almond Beach Casuarina in St Lawrence Gap, Christ Church, and Almond Beach Club and Spa in St James are the affected properties.

Springer said she had just returned from the travel trade show Marketplace and, “without exception, every single UK tour operator, including the airlines, was asking what is happening with Almond because they are scared that they have got bookings going forward  and it could be a large number of bookings”.

Read the full story in today’s DAILY NATION.

Article Sources: What is your view on Government’s expenditure for the visit of Prince Edward and his wife? Is it justified, or excessive?

— — the lack of concern among what seems like a majority of the American people about the critical state of the national debt and spending deficits exceeding a trillion dollars a year is nothing short of stunning. this large group includes the federal officials we elected, expecting that they would run the government sensibly and according to the Constitution. over several decades our elected officials have created a level of debt that now threatens America’s future, with little or no worry about what they were doing. it probably isn’t time to call 911 yet, but that moment is not far away and closing in on us. But, in the face of impending doom, the president and the Congress continue along the same destructive path, spending too much and spending irresponsibly, believing the Tooth Fairy’s promise that everything will be just fine if we raise taxes on the wealthiest Americans. Economist Dr. Thomas Sowell commented recently that “most of us might be a little skittish about spending money if we were teetering on the brink of bankruptcy. But the beauty of politics is that it is all other people’s money, including among those other people generations yet unborn.” former British Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher informed us that the problem with liberalism is that before long you run out of other people’s money. Thus, when you put liberals in charge of Washington politics, you have the worst of both worlds. the Greek cynic Diogenes spent his life searching for “an honest man.” nearly as rare, apparently, are elected leaders who truly grasp the seriousness of our economic situation and have the courage to do something about it. all one needs to do to predict our own future is to look to Diogenes’ homeland, where decades of living the socialist good-life created a populace that doesn’t understand that its government is about to collapse. although collapse will leave them in far worse shape than if they just willingly give up some of their goodies, they will fight to the death to keep the joyride going. Greece is home to 11 million people and a government that gives them many perks in return for high income tax rates of 18 to 45 percent for everyone making more than about $16,000. Employers pay 28 percent of salary and employees pay 16 percent of salary for Social Security, and there’s a Value Added Tax of 23 percent. and, the high income-related taxes have produced wide-spread tax evasion, affecting revenue. one of every 11 Greeks works for the government in a cushy, non-demanding and often patronage-acquired job featuring bonuses for such things as showing up for work on time, using a computer, or for working out of doors. They get half a month’s extra salary at Easter and another half during the summer. Greeks also receive generous pensions that often kick in at age 45. the socialist government spent too much money; they took all they could get from the Greek people and then they started borrowing, and now that has run out, as well. the Ministry of Employment is trying to find effective ways to fight unemployment, which is expected to reach record levels this year, and 220,000 companies are predicted to go bankrupt. the government is trying to implement austere methods like slashing public spending, freezing or cutting public sector pay, raising taxes and raising the retirement age. But all the protesting citizens care about is having the free ride continue. the “Occupy Whatever” movement now making the rounds of American cities resembles the protesting Greeks in attitude and behavior, another sign that we are headed down that same road. the Heritage Foundation’s Patrick Tyrrell presents data showing that one in five Americans now relies on the federal government for housing, health care, food stamps, college tuition and retirement assistance; more than 67.3 million Americans receive subsidies from Washington. the average individual who relies on Washington receives benefits valued at approximately $32,748, slightly more than the national average disposable personal income of $32,446. Individual assistance programs eat up 70 percent of the federal government’s budget, a huge outlay that is supported by only half the population, the ones who pay taxes. our public servants should take notice of the similarities to this Greek tragedy and ask themselves if a gargantuan, paternalistic government is such a great idea, why is Greece falling apart? But instead of seeing the error of their ways and making the tough decisions we elected them to make, and which are necessary to save the country from their malfeasance, they instead asked the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) to help identify a way forward that will allow them to continue in their efforts to buy the votes of the dependent class by doling out taxpayer dollars to them. the CBO determined that by raising taxes on everyone, things will be just fine: Raise the lowest income tax bracket of 10 percent to 25 percent, the middle tax bracket of 25 percent to 66 percent and the 35 percent tax bracket to 92 percent, and, voila, problem solved. this is why Barack Obama and a large number of senators must be driven from office in November. James H. “Smokey” Shott, a resident of Bluefield, Va., is a Daily Telegraph columnist.

Article Sources: Watching America collapse: Grecian style, is no way to govern our country » Columns » Bluefield Daily Telegraph, Bluefield, WV

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Article Sources: admin – Facts about Bird Cage Available for sale (2/15/2012)

WASHINGTON —Sen. Daniel Patrick Moynihan told any Democrat who would listen that it is a lot easier to dismantle a federal program than to create one. An untiring and vocal defender of Social Security, Moynihan, who left us eight years ago, would have called out President Obama for the harm he is doing to the old age pension program.

Eight years of President George

W. Bush and three of Obama seem

to have left Social Security old age insurance — as originally conceived — politically vulnerable. it began as social insurance, an earned benefit. it still is.

In general, workers get back what they and their employers put in. in normal times, employees put in 6.2 percent of what they earn — underline “earn” — and the boss contributes 6.2 percent. It’s insurance.

It is entirely different from

Medicaid, which pays for health care for the poor, and different from Temporary Assistance for Needy Families and food stamps. Those programs depend entirely on tax money.

It wasn’t until Pete Peterson, a billionaire investment banker, and other plutocrats began crusading against big government that the term “entitlement” snuck into the national conversation.

Originally, entitlement meant welfare, and food stamps and Medicaid — programs for the needy that provide benefits they do not and, well, probably cannot earn.

But Bush began mashing Social Security and welfare programs into one gooey ball, calling them all entitlements, needful of containment. this pleased his wealthy friends who pined to defame and unravel the whole Roosevelt new Deal that midwifed Social Security.

Obama, for reasons never explained, gamely picked up the lingo of the right, calling Social Security, not the earned benefit that it is, but an entitlement that needs fixing. Obama began talking that way in one of his centrist phases.

Then Obama went further, and trumpeted employee and company contributions as a “tax,” as in his “tax holiday” mantra. yes, it comes out of a payroll tax, but it is still a contribution, and Social Security’s friends should call it that. The holiday cuts 2 percentage points from the employee’s contribution. The “tax holiday,” as Obama and the Democrats call it, looks like it will be in effect through the end of this year.

It will cost the government $10 billion a month in lost employee contributions toward their old age insurance.

The House Democratic minority under Rep. Nancy Pelosi is crowing that it won’t have to make up for the loss of revenue with other budget cuts.

So in the twisted rhetoric of Obama and congressional Democrats, Social Security ironically meets all of the odious standards of a giveaway as set in stone by the right: Democrats liken it to welfare funded by “taxes,” and their holiday is driving the republic further into debt.

Note: Social Security under the current system will be in the black through 2036.

Now for a reversal of rhetoric. Leading Republicans are resisting the “tax holiday.” Presidential candidate Rick Santorum said it will undermine the fiscal soundness of Social Security. Ditto House Budget Chairman Paul Ryan, R-Wis., They’re right.

As Obama and Congress were pondering the “tax holiday,” the head of the National Committee to Preserve Social Security and Medicare, Max Richtman, wrote to them: “The payroll tax cut undercuts the concept that Social Security benefits are an earned right that stems from contributions that workers make to the program.”

Richtman’s pleas fell on deaf ears. The short-run politics of a “tax holiday” are too enticing. “The real test will be when they are supposed to put the 2 percent back,” Richtman told me.

Article Sources: ‘Entitlement’ label puts Social Security at risk

Charlson said she estimates that there are 100,000 residents who would qualify to use the library’s free services and materials such as large print, Braille, and digital audio books and magazines, but aren’t aware of its existence.

“Events like this help get the word out’’ that the library “is here and we can help,’’ she added. “So many borrowers say they don’t know what they’d do without access to books and reading. It makes such a difference to their quality of life.’’

Canton resident Dave Lynn, the Blinded Veterans Association representative to the Braille & Talking Book Library, will be accompanied Tuesday by his 6-year-old guide dog, Blazer, a red Doberman pinscher.

Lynn, whose degenerative retinitis pigmentosa forced him to medically retire from his 14-year Air Force career in 2003, will share the steps involved in being matched in need and personality with a service animal, and how Blazer has improved his life. while he previously used a white cane to navigate public transportation, Lynn said, Blazer helps him find doors, escalators, and elevators more quickly.

At times, however, Blazer has become too smart for his own good, Lynn said. He emphasizes the importance of dog handling and directional skills, particularly when long-practiced routes suddenly change – such as when he gets a new class schedule at the University of Massachusetts Boston, where he is majoring in history.

“Blazer gives me the ability to navigate the world much more efficiently,’’ said Lynn, who describes the 94-pound canine as a “terrific’’ guide dog, but also “the biggest goof on the planet’’ who resumes his fun-loving, attention-seeking ways the second that his harness is removed.

In addition to posting a sign on the harness alerting strangers that Blazer is working, Lynn said, he looks for opportunities to educate the public that guide dogs are service animals, not pets. As such, he is serious about his responsibility of properly controlling his dog in public places. In return, he wishes people would ask before petting Blazer – a distraction that can be compared to pulling on a driver’s steering wheel.

“I understand people like dogs, but it’s so nice when I walk into a place and they don’t acknowledge the dog is there,’’ he said. “they treat me like everybody else, which is what should happen.’’

Brighton resident Carl Richardson, president of Guide Dog Users of Massachusetts, will speak about “these amazing dogs who dedicate their entire lives to us,’’ and the assistance they provide for a wide range of disabilities: safely navigating around obstacles, retrieving items, helping with balance, alerting people to everything from a ringing doorbell to an oncoming seizure.

Richardson, who is visually impaired and hard of hearing, emphasizes that the use of a service dog versus a white cane is strictly a personal choice. and while he agrees that people should ask permission before approaching guide dogs, he credits his first guide dog, Kiva, with helping to court his wife, Megan Sullivan, a Boston University associate professor.

Richardson credits his current guide dog, Kinley, a 7 1/2-year-old black Lab, with reducing his reliance on his wife, and providing an extra set of eyes and ears throughout his daily commute on the bus and subway.

“she doesn’t have to worry about me because that’s Kinley’s job,’’ said Richardson, who is the Americans with Disabilities Act coordinator at the State House.

Richardson said he is fortunate to still have Kiva, a 14-year-old yellow Lab whom he retired as his service dog due to her arthritis at age 9. Because 70 percent of the blind community are unemployed, he said, many guide-dog owners can’t afford to care for multiple animals.

“I’m so glad the US Postal Service is honoring these magnificent dogs, because I can’t imagine my life without one,’’ he added. “I also hope the stamps bring more recognition and awareness so when we bring our dogs into public places, people know it’s not a big deal.’’

© Copyright 2012 Globe Newspaper Company.

Article Sources: At Perkins, applause for stamps honoring service dogs

KEARNEY — the battle over a new farm bill has begun, and theoutcome will change agriculture forever.

Related People

• Bruce Knight

What makes Nebraska Special?

Former USDA official and Washington, D.C., policy consultantBruce Knight says Nebraska has qualities to meet growing world fooddemand and those qualities influence how Nebraska ag producers seefarm policy, including:

- a productivity advantage. “You have some of the best, richest,deepest soils in North America.”

- Irrigation, which provides production stability.

- a grain-livestock mix that has become “surprisingly unique” inother states in the past 50 years.

- Large food processing, merchandising and handlingindustries.

- Investments made in renewable energy, including ethanol andwind.

- a huge transportation infrastructure, particularly railroadsand roads. 

“We’re in that old mindset. Remember the 1980s. it was so tough,and our viability came from what was in the mailbox from UncleSam,” Bruce Knight, Strategic Conservation Solutions founder andformer U.S. Department of Agriculture official, said Thursday atthe Governor’s Ag Conference in Kearney.

Those payments created income reliability in years when marketprices didn’t provide such certainty.

One of the few farm bill topics of agreement for legislators andmost farm groups, Knight said, is that the days of direct paymentprograms are over. he said estimates of farm program cuts rangefrom  $23 billion — a number from last fall’s negotiations byleaders of House and Senate committees — to $40 billion in otherproposed legislation.

President Barack Obama’s budget proposal released Monday has $32billion in farm program cuts.

Knight, a South Dakota native and third-generationfarmer-rancher, is skeptical that a new farm bill can be writtenbefore the November general election. he advised Ag Conferenceparticipants to gauge whether progress is being made by watchingwhat happens before Congress goes into a recess.

Knight said the odds are high that action will be taken beforethe end of year, perhaps in a lame-duck session after the election,and it’s more likely that a new farm bill, rather than an extensionof the current one, will be passed.

Meanwhile, different proposals are being floated by ag groups:shallow-loss or deep-loss protection, increases in crop targetprices, production controls and variations on crop insurance.

Every federal program is in a battle for dollars in Washington,Knight said, as Congress wrestles with the deficit. How that’s donewill affect every part of a new farm program.

He describes the federal focus on ag research over the past 10to 20 years as resembling an old joke about the weather. “Everyonetalks about it, but nobody does anything about it,” Knightsaid.

Other key topics left out of the farm bill debate so far arespecialty crops, energy, rural development, livestock and tradeissues.

The bill is being written at a time of growing food demandworldwide and of environmental concerns for land use, water qualityand quantity, carbon emissions, and wildlife habitat.

Knight said Americans pay 6 to 7 cents of each dollar on food.Meanwhile, 1.4 billion people live on less than $1.25 per day, andtoday’s world population of 7 billion is projected to grow to 9billion by 2050.

He quoted former U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Dan Glickman assaying U.S. farmers and ranchers will have to produce more food inthe next 40 years than they did in the last 8,000 years to meetthat demand.

“It’s the middle class appetite that really drives U.S.agriculture,” Knight said. Today and into the future, the growingmiddle class is in China, India, South America and Africa.

Nebraska, with its leadership in beef production, irrigatedcrops and use of technologies to produce more food on the sameacres, is well-positioned help meet that demand, he said.

But farmers will have to do it with less federal help.

Knight said the 1985 Farm bill was crisis-driven, the next onereflected a continuing recovery, and recent versions were writtenin times of strong budgets that supported an explosion of spendingfor new farm programs.

Today’s ag producers say they want a strong risk-managementelement and stability in a new farm bill.

“We know these (high market) prices aren’t forever, so we needrisk management and stability in markets,” Knight said, and heexpects the farm bill debate to focus on those two areas. however,he believes greater attention is needed on trade, society’sinvestment in agriculture and research.

The inevitable farm program cuts come at a time when agproducers can afford less assistance. “This is going to be a meagerfarm bill compared to what you’re used to,” Knight said.

He reminded his audience that 75 percent of farm bill spendingis for food stamps and other nutrition programs. “In this economicdownturn, that’s not going to change … there is no will inCongress to make significant changes in that,” Knight said, so thecuts will come from non-nutrition areas.

Much of the farm bill debate in Congress has been behind closeddoors, but that’s changing. Knight said the first of four Senate AgCommittee public hearings was on Wednesday. 

“This needs sunshine. this needs the light of day,” he added.however, there are only 100 days of “floor time” currently on the2012 Senate calendar.

“Getting floor time in the House will be even more difficultbecause of the rough-and-tumble nature of the House,” Knightsaid.

He said keys to the farm bill debate include tea party members,especially in the House, whose only agenda is budget cutting; farmgroup proposals that vary based on geography and commodity; andtoday’s information overload of computer models, reports andopinions.

The financial situation is the biggest driving force, Knightsaid, and the question in the end will be: Do we have a farm policythat is forward-leaning enough to meet the world’s food needs by2050?

Article Sources: Knight: Next farm bill changes ag forever – KearneyHub.com – Kearney, NE

Speaking at a press conference for journalists at the Caribbean Travel Marketplace in Nassau, Bahamas, Tourism and Aviation Minister Vincent Vanderpool Wallace said the 350,000-resident country saw more than five million visitors in 2011, according to unaudited figures.

Nassau air arrivals have increased 7.1 percent over last year, but much growth has also come from the sea, he said.

“Our cruise passenger business has exploded,” mr. Vanderpool Wallace said. “The low-cost, high-quality option to the Bahamas is really by way of cruise ship.”

But attracting higher-spending overnight guests requires air travel subsidies, he added.

“Unfortunately we don’t have very much middle product, so we’re on the upper end of the cost of a vacation,” he said. “So we discovered that the best way for us to stimulate our business is to give people deals on coming to the Bahamas.”

For example, the Bahamian government and a group of private sector providers developed a “Companion Fly Free” programme, which has been successful so far, mr. Vanderpool Wallace said.

See the Jan. 26, 2012 edition for full coverage.

Article Sources: Bahamas prepares for tourism growth

The question arose several years ago with her record-breaking 13th Oscar nomination and gets more insistent with every awards season.

Is Meryl Streep, now 17 nominations in and vying for best actress again at the Feb. 26 Academy Awards, the greatest Hollywood actress of all time?

Ask any gathering of film fans, and a round of “absolutelys” will be followed by qualifications: “living,” “of the modern era,” and then objections, that Streep is no Bette Davis, no Katharine Hepburn, or that she is too mannered, too spookily able to assume accents, too dingo and the baby.

like all the best debates, this one is rooted in emotion rather than reason, and tries to quantify something unquantifiable.

“I don’t see how anybody would say anything like that,” Jeanine Basinger, film studies chairwoman at Connecticut’s Wesleyan University, said of the notion that Streep is the best Hollywood actress.

“Have you seen every film with every actress? Is it because she has more nominations? That means you think all nominations are correct, and sometimes they are, and sometimes they are not.”

Calling Streep the greatest actress, Basinger said, is antithetical to Streep’s approach, which is to disappear into roles rather than promote an on-screen persona. Streep doesn’t ask to be loved.

“Meryl Streep is a great actress, and an actress with a lot of versatility,” Basinger said. “She is so great that she doesn’t need to be called the greatest actress … it trivializes what she does.”

Plus, there’s the sticky matter of taste. some fans prefer stars who work from an established persona, such as Hepburn, Cary Grant or George Clooney, to technique-based performers such as Streep.

“There are just too many measuring sticks,” Basinger said.

Yet Streep’s legacy is a hard issue to let drop. The instinct is to anoint her – because she keeps topping herself and because she hasn’t actually won an Oscar since 1983.

Streep is jaw-droppingly great as former Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher in “The Iron Lady” – a performance that drew a lead-actress Oscar nomination this year. She finds humanity in a figure many British people never found particularly human and does it despite a flawed script and busy direction.

The performance is singularly great and cumulatively wondrous, as yet another example of Streep’s ability to disappear into character.

It prompts a Streep fan to want to break out those measuring sticks.

“There are so many roles that Meryl Streep does that you can’t imagine anybody else doing,” film critic Richard Roeper said.

Yet Streep can do most anything, he said. Except for “the obvious things where race or age play a factor,” Streep could fill many roles played by fellow Oscar nominees, he said.

“The classic example is ‘The Blind Side.’ Meryl Streep could have played that role and won the Oscar, but Sandra Bullock could not have played Julia Child.” (Bullock won the Oscar over Streep.)

Another measure is the imprimatur of quality Streep brings to a project.

“I think it is clear she has become a ‘brand’ that stamps a seal of approval on every film she makes,” Dean Simonton, a UC Davis psychology professor who has written extensively about film, wrote via email.

“She has never banked on her looks, which are not outstanding by Hollywood standards, but always invested in great acting – as epitomized by her preparation and hard work. … As a consumer, you have some assurance that you’re going to experience a quality performance.”

Hepburn could offer the same assurances at Streep’s age, but Davis, already playing monsters in over-the-top horror films in her 50s, could not. neither legendary actress was topping bills of big studio productions in their 50s and 60s, as Streep did with the hits “The Devil Wears Prada” and “Mamma Mia!”

Streep’s ability to “open” a film “makes her unique among female actors,” Roeper said. “We have seen that with the Jack Nicholsons of the world, where they have a 30- or 40-year career. but the harsh reality of Hollywood is that by the time you hit 45 as an actress, you are usually playing the mom.”

Streep’s legacy will be defined partially by the period in which she emerged: the post-studio-system 1970s, a rarefied era of independent-minded filmmaking.

Streep recently told NPR’s Terry Gross that she hit the same wall most actresses do at 40: “I was offered, within one year, three different witch roles.”

But Streep also matured as a performer without the bonds of a studio system that truly discriminated against aging actresses.

Davis took the witch roles. Streep did not have to.

“They were working in a system where it really was more related to their looks,” Basinger, author of “The Star Machine,” a 2007 book about studio system, said of Hepburn’s heyday. “Now there are more roles for actresses.”

But the studio system also paired female stars with the biggest male stars in top-tier films good enough to cut through the hundreds of films released each year – and be remembered 70 years later.

Some of Streep’s finest work, by contrast, occurred in smaller films such as “Sophie’s Choice” and “Silkwood,” opposite leading men of their time (Kevin Kline, Kurt Russell) but perhaps not for the ages.

“Davis and Hepburn appeared in some of the iconic films in cinema history,” Simonton said. “Opportunities like that do not arise as often (now), particularly given the altered nature of the industry. Now, films are made like pickup orchestras. more great actors must fend for themselves.”

Perhaps that is why Streep’s career seems to lack the heft of Davis’ or Hepburn’s. but Simonton said Streep is probably the best actress of the sound era.

“I am being cautious, because of my scientific bent,” he said. “It’s difficult to judge the great stars of the silent era – who only had faces. And it’s impossible to evaluate the many great foreign talents who never managed or even desired to make the transition to the Hollywood world.”

Simonton also said he was hesitant to offend his British wife, who prefers Judi Dench.

“Within these qualifications, I believe the range of roles that Streep has successfully taken on, and her ability to merge with those roles, is truly unprecedented. As much as I love Hepburn … you see Katharine in every role.”

Basinger appreciated the stars of her youth such as Davis and Barbara Stanwyck, but said she no longer goes to movies for stars.

Yet she still can be knocked out by a performance like Streep’s in “The Iron Lady.”

“I don’t want to spend two hours with Margaret Thatcher, but she made me care about Thatcher,” said Basinger.

The vital matter of Streep’s place in the Hollywood pantheon must be settled soon, since there are a few generations of actresses behind her who already are somebody’s favorite.

Brittni Barger, a 26-year-old Sacramento stage and film actress, puts Streep in her top 10, but prefers Natalie Portman, Audrey Tautou and Susan Sarandon.

“I think what compels people to watch movies is more about sexuality. … While I think (Streep) is a fantastic actress, and she clearly has a lot of great training, there are actresses I am more compelled to watch.”

Basinger said her Wesleyan film students aren’t big Streep fans: “They don’t feel the authenticity. they feel what they call ‘gimmick.’ a kinder thing to say might be ‘technique.’ “

(A meaner thing might be what Hepburn said of Streep’s acting – that you could hear the gears moving: “Click, click, click.”)

Barger, a formally trained actress just wrapping up a run in B Street Theatre’s “The Giver,” said she too sees technique in Streep’s film work.

“But I don’t think that’s a bad thing. It’s not something that takes me out of a movie. it is something I admire.”

For example, Barger said Streep’s performance in “Julie & Julia” suggested Streep spent hours watching video to perfect Child’s gestures and distinctive voice.

But technique is just the start, Barger said.

“What she has that makes her so famous is not something you can teach. it is because she has star quality. her greatest asset is her warmth.”

The warmth of which she speaks might apply specifically to Barger’s generation of fans. There was a remove to Streep’s earlier acting that her public image – she shied away from the spotlight, raising a family with a non-celebrity husband – did not counteract.

But all those trips to awards podiums showcased Streep’s self-effacing wit and signature graciousness, evident this year in her praise for another great actress, Viola Davis, star of “The Help” who might best Streep at the Oscars.

When she later let us catch her winking, in “Prada” and “Mamma Mia!” she became a movie star as well as a highly acclaimed actress.

Streep’s iconic status resulted from training, experiences in front of the camera and the public – and from 30 years of being Meryl Streep and drawing the best scripts.

“With her talent, training, technique and experience, she should be having the career she is having,” Barger said.

Streep’s range, longevity and continued box office viability add up to a unique Hollywood career. Is she the best Hollywood actress of all time?

Yes. If you like that kind of thing.

© Copyright The Sacramento Bee. all rights reserved.

Call The Bee’s Carla Meyer, (916) 321-1118.

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Kirloskar Oil Engines Limited -Public Announcement – Buyback of Shares

Enam Securities Pvt. ltd has informed the Exchange that this Public Announcement is made pursuant to the provisions of Regulation 15 (d) read with Regulation 15 (c) and is in compliance with the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Buyback of Securities) Regulations, 1998 as amended thereto (“Buyback Regulations”) and contains the disclosures as specified in Schedule II to the Buyback Regulations. The Buyback: (1) The Board of Directors of Kirloskar Oil Engines Limited (the “Company”) at its meeting held on January 25, 2012 (the “Board Meeting”) approved the proposal for buyback of its own fully paid up equity shares of Rs.2 each (hereinafter referred to as “the Buyback”) in accordance with the provisions contained in the Article 5A of the Articles of Association of the Company, Section 77A, 77AA, and 77B and other applicable provisions of the Companies Act, 1956 (the “Act”) and the provisions contained in the Buyback Regulations subject to other applicable laws, approval/s as may be necessary, from time to time from statutory authorities including but not limited to Securities and Exchange Board of India, stock exchanges, Reserve Bank of India etc. as may be required and further subject to such conditions as may be prescribed while granting such approval/s which may be agreed to by the Board of Directors (which term shall include Committee of Directors and Board or Committee is hereinafter referred to as “the Board”). (2) The Buyback is being proposed in keeping with the Company”s desire to enhance overall shareholders” value. this is proposed to be achieved by returning surplus cash back to the willing shareholders and to create long term value for continuing shareholders. The Buyback would lead to reduction in outstanding shares, possible improvement in earnings per share and enhanced return on Net worth. (3) The Board has proposed a maximum limit of up to Rs.73.625 Crores excluding brokerage costs, SEBI turnover charges, taxes such as securities transaction tax, service tax and relevant stamp duty (collectively referred to as “Transaction Costs”) for the Buyback (“Maximum Buyback Size”). The Maximum Buyback Size represents 10% of the aggregate of the Company”s called up and paid up equity share capital and free reserves as at March 31, 2011 (the date of the latest audited accounts as on the date of the Board Meeting). The amount required by the Company for the Buyback will be met out of the cash/bank balances and/or investments made by the Company in debt mutual funds and/or internal accruals. Though the Company does not propose raising debt for effecting the Buyback, it may continue to borrow funds in the ordinary course of its business. (4) The Board has proposed Buyback of Equity Shares at a maximum price not exceeding Rs.170 per equity share excluding Transaction Costs (“Maximum Buyback Price”).The Maximum Buyback Price has been arrived at after considering certain parameters including but not limited to the book value, earning per share, the market value as well as stock price performance on the Stock Exchanges. The Maximum Buyback Price of Rs.170 is at a premium of 20.52% and 20.14% over the closing prices on the BSE (i.e. Rs. 141.05) and NSE (i.e.Rs.141.50) respectively prevailing on the date of the Board meeting approving the Buyback i.e. January 25, 2012 (the “Board Meeting”). Date of Opening of Buyback – March 01, 2012. Last Date for the Buyback – January 24, 2013.

Article Sources: Kirloskar Oil Engines Limited-Public Announcement – Buyback of Shares

As they used to say on Laugh-In, “Verrrry interesting.”

West Vancouver’s newly elected mayor, Michael Smith, speaks out against the waste of money with respect to Metro Vancouver meetings and your editorial jumps all over him for shorting value to his constituents.

When Goldsmith-Jones was first elected mayor she appointed me to the GVRD finance committee. I attended a couple meetings and was surprised to receive a cheque for about $500.

I met with our mayor and expressed my concern with the fact that we were being compensated for work that I assumed was part of a councillor’s duties. I requested she raise the question, as the taxpayer was being unfairly charged, and also that the entire GVRD structure was unbalanced and should be reviewed.

Nothing was done as these meetings are viewed as a cashcow by councillors. the cost of parking was contentious. the meetings were typically under an hour, run by staff and a token to process. Staff reports were presented and the rubber stamps would fly. Opportunities for pontification were seized by those councillors who clearly enjoyed the sound of their own voice. Stipend for attendance was about $235 and has grown to more than $300. Times attendees, the cost per meeting is $2,000 – don’t even think about staff costs – times the number of meetings a year. . . .

So don’t beat up on Smith, he’s on track. As far as the choice of the tree he should be, I’m stumped.

John Clark West Vancouver

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