Tuesday, January 29, 2013

Man Utd become first $3bn club

Man Utd become first $3bn club

Jan 2013 09:58

Manchester United have become the first sports team in the world to be valued at more than US$3 billion (£1.9bn).

• City climb in Money League

According to American business magazine Forbes, United are comfortably ahead of the world's second-most-valuable sports team, the NFL's Dallas Cowboys, worth US$2.1bn (£1.4bn).

The magazine states: "Despite a drop in first quarter earnings because of a reduction in television revenue, the appetite for shares of the 19-time English champion has increased due to better earnings, new sponsorship deals with Japan's Kansai, and China Construction Bank, and the potential of much more lucrative English Premier League (Manchester United currently is in first place) and Champions League payouts this year."

Indeed, a surge in the club's shares - standing now at $17 each - has seen the overall value of United rise and a huge increase in the overall wealth of the Glazer family, who have a controlling interest in United, and billionaire investor George Soros - the 22nd richest person in the world - who bought a 7.5% stake in the club.

United sold 10% of shares in the club in an Initial Public Offering (IPO) in August when the Glazers - their owners - hoped to achieve a price of $20 each, which could have valued the club at $3.3 billion (£2.06 billion).

But after underwriters initially propped the share price up, it fell as low as $12, which valued the club at just under $2 billion (£1.3bn).

However, United's commercial growth appears to be driving the share price up, with the club announcing several new sponsorship deals since August, qualifying for the Champions League knockout stages, and with the prospect of the new bumper Premier League television deals that are coming on stream from August.

Information from the Press Association was used in this report

Sunday, January 27, 2013

A Stephen King (worth $400 million) primer for those who think him capable of mature, respectable discourse...

At the risk of repeating myself, here’s what rich folks do when they get richer: they invest. A lot of those investments are overseas, thanks to the anti-American business policies of the last four administrations. Don’t think so? Check the tag on that T-shirt or gimme cap you’re wearing. If it says MADE IN AMERICA, I’ll … well, I won’t say I’ll eat your shorts, because some of that stuff is made here, but not much of it. And what does get made here doesn’t get made by America’s small cadre of pluted bloatocrats; it’s made, for the most part, in barely-gittin’-by factories in the Deep South, where the only unions people believe in are those solemnized at the altar of the local church (as long as they’re from different sexes, that is).

Stephen King is yet another one of the super rich liberals who assuage their guilt not by action, but by insulting those who disagree with them. And King can do it as well as any of them, with all the fresh vulgarity and maturity of the average high school sophomore. Calm down Stephen, pay more taxes if you want, but how about you stick to writing gory novels that glorify blood, guts and violence...we'll keep buying them, until you start to suck.

David Mamet on Gun Control...Stephen King, are you reading this? #guncontrol

The Founding Fathers, far from being ideologues, were not even politicians. They were an assortment of businessmen, writers, teachers, planters; men, in short, who knew something of the world, which is to say, of Human Nature. Their struggle to draft a set of rules acceptable to each other was based on the assumption that we human beings, in the mass, are no damned good—that we are biddable, easily confused, and that we may easily be motivated by a Politician, which is to say, a huckster, mounting a soapbox and inflaming our passions.

Untitled

FA Cup roundup

Oldham trips Liverpool in latest Cup upset

January 27, 2013
By Press Association
Liverpool knocked out of FA Cup
ESPN commentator Steve Nicol breaks down Oldham Athletic's 3-2 win over Liverpool.
Liverpool knocked out of FA Cup

Oldham produced another shock in the fourth round of the FA Cup Sunday by dumping out English Premier League side Liverpool 3-2.

Striker Matt Smith chose the perfect occasion to score his first goals at Boundary Park as his first-half double helped npower League One Oldham produce an FA Cup upset in beating Liverpool.

Following on from the efforts of MK Dons and Luton Saturday, the npower League One side overcame top-flight opposition thanks to two goals from Matt Smith at Boundary Park.

Smith scored the opener as early as the third minute, and although Luiz Suarez equalized 14 minutes later, the Latics striker grabbed his second on the stroke of halftime.

It was the first time Liverpool had been beaten away from home in the FA Cup by a team at least two divisions below them since defeat at non-league Worcester City in 1959.

Smith had given up on professional football after being released by Cheltenham aged 18 and went on to gain a degree in International Management with American Studies from the University of Manchester.

While studying he played for the likes of Redditch United, Droylsden and Solihull Moors -- where he was spotted by Oldham.

Prior to this game, he had scored only scored seven times in 60 appearances for the Latics but none will have been as enjoyable as his two in the first half against the seven-time FA Cup winners from the top flight division.

Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers' decision to alter three of the back four among six changes proved calamitous as infrequent starter Sebastian Coates had a game to forget.

Oldham, with only one win in their last nine games, had beaten progressively higher-ranked opposition in Kidderminster, Doncaster and Nottingham Forest to reach the fourth round for the first time in five years.

But it was not fate which got them through as the Latics' no-nonsense, battling approach deservedly put them ahead.

Smith gave indication of his threat in just the third minute with the sort of goal you associate with a player of his physical stature.

Youssouf M'Changama swung over a cross from the left and the 23-year-old used every inch of his tall stature to out-muscle Coates and head past Brad Jones.

The first half had an edge to it as Oldham, having taken one point from a possible 24 in the league, tried to close the gap of 56 places with endeavour and exuberance.

However, it was Liverpool youngster Raheem Sterling who was first to be booked for challenge on M'Changama which ultimately forced the Oldham midfielder off after just 10 minutes.

Robbie Simpson, a scorer at Anfield in Oldham's 5-1 third-round defeat last season, was also cautioned for going in on Jones after the goalkeeper had failed to hold the ball - which turned out to be a pre-cursor of what was to come.

Former Everton midfielder Jose Baxter did his best to make life difficult for the red half of Merseyside, twice shooting wide from distance, but it was Suarez who was next to feature and significantly so.

The Uruguay international, captaining the side, set off on a driving run from deep and looked to pass but got a lucky rebound off defender Cliff Byrne and reacted quickly to hammer the ball inside Dean Bouzanis' left-hand post.

It was his fifth goal in six FA Cup appearances and his eighth strike in as many games.

His touch to Jordan Henderson's inswinging free-kick then diverted the ball into the net only to be denied by an offside flag.

Sterling should have scored after Suarez's pass was backheeled into his path by Fabio Borini but he shot straight at the keeper.

But Oldham remained unbowed as they took great heart from the physical battles they were winning and were rewarded with a second goal moments before the interval.

Smith, who had already had a header tipped over by Jones in added time, converted the simplest of chances after a howler by the Liverpool goalkeeper who fumbled Wabara's cross to allow Simpson to square a pass for the striker to poke home.

Borini had the chance to equalize from Jack Robinson's cross with the second half less than a minute old but he side-footed over and it proved costly.

The visitors' defensive fallibility in the air was exposed again as Carl Winchester swung a cross to the far post and Wabara rose above Robinson to head over Jones into the far corner.

Monday, January 21, 2013

The first lady... so classy... typical

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http://bit.ly/XS3Fxx Michelle Obama is NOT impressed: First Lady rolls her eyes TWICE at political foe John Boehner as he ... #MailOnline

Saturday, January 5, 2013

Cleverly scores against West Ham: Fox Soccer

The Goal from RVP: "They just don't know when they are beaten."

Check out this website I found at msn.foxsports.com

Oh that Van Persie! RVP does it again in the 90th to save United and force a replay in FA Cup #mufc #vanpersie

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Everyone is running out of superlatives to describe the impact Robin Van Persie has had on United. If Rooney gets hot, this team will literally be unstoppable. RVP is quickly becoming a United legend in his first year.

Tuesday, January 1, 2013

United too much for Wigan.... #mufc #epl

'Demand celebrities go f*** themselves': Video says stars calling for gun control are hypocrites because of their violent roles in TV and movies | Mail Online

United Dismantle Wigan to remain at the top the the EPL #mufc #wfc #epl

The Marietta Daily Journal - Marietta hands attorney mailbox bombing to Fed #angelcordle

Check out this website I found at mdjonline.com

The Marietta Daily Journal - Attorney charged in Marietta mailbox explosion

MailOnline::Vice principal 'sexually abused two female students aged 16 and 17'

http://bit.ly/Rq9UJ8 Vice principal 'sexually abused two female students aged 16 and 17' ... #MailOnline