Tuesday, May 31, 2011

Ala. town hit by tornadoes bans FEMA trailers

AP – In this May 26, 2011 photo, Cordova, Ala., Mayor Jack Scott discusses the city's decision to ban FEMA …

By JAY REEVES, Associated Press Jay Reeves, Associated Press – Sun May 29, 7:40 pm ET

CORDOVA, Ala. – James Ruston's house was knocked off its foundation by tornadoes that barreled through town last month and is still uninhabitable. He thought help had finally arrived when a truck pulled up to his property with a mobile home from the Federal Emergency Management Agency.

Then he got the call: Single-wide mobile homes, like the FEMA one, are illegal in the city of Cordova.

The city's refusal to let homeless residents occupy temporary housing provided by FEMA has sparked outrage in this central Alabama town of 2,000, with angry citizens filling a meeting last week and circulating petitions to remove the man many blame for the decision, Mayor Jack Scott.

Ruston and many others view the city's decision as heartless, a sign that leaders don't care that some people are barely surviving in the rubble of a blue-collar town.

"People have to live somewhere. What's it matter if it's in a trailer?" asked Felicia Boston, standing on the debris-strewn lot where a friend has lived in a tent since a tornado destroyed his home on April 27.

Scott has heard all the complaints, and he isn't apologizing. He said he doesn't want run-down mobile homes parked all over town years from now.

"I don't feel guilty," he said. "I can look anyone in the eye."

Located about 35 miles northwest of Birmingham, Cordova was hit by a pair of powerful tornadoes on April 27, the day twisters killed more than 300 people across the Southeast. Officials say 238 died in Alabama, the highest death toll for any state in a spring of violent weather.

An EF-3 twister with winds of at least 140 mph slammed into the town around 5:30 a.m., knocking out power and damaging numerous buildings. An EF-4 with winds around 170 mph struck about 12 hours later, killing four people and cutting a path of destruction a half-mile wide through town.

Scores of homes, businesses and city buildings were destroyed or damaged by the time the winds died down. Nearly every red-brick storefront was whacked along Main Street, which is now deserted and blocked by a chain-link fence.

Residents whose homes were destroyed assumed they would be able to live in one of the hundreds of long, skinny mobile homes that FEMA is providing as temporary housing for tornado victims. After all, the Cordova Police Department, a pharmacy, a bank and City Hall all have moved into similar trailers since the storm.

But the city enacted a law three years ago that bans the type of mobile homes provided by FEMA, called single-wide trailers. Older single-wide mobile homes were grandfathered in under the law and double-wide mobile homes are still allowed, Scott said, but new single-wides aren't allowed and a tornado isn't any reason to change the law, even temporarily.

The city's stance prompted an outcry that's not getting any quieter, especially with other cities with similar laws granting waivers. About 200 people attended a community meeting last night where some tried to shout down Scott.

"There are trailers all over here but (Scott) wants to clean all the trash out. He doesn't like lower-class people," said Harvey Hastings.

The cotton mill, brick plant and coal mine that once made Cordova prosperous shut down years ago, but native Tony Tidwell said leaders seem to believe residents are flush with cash and can afford to build big, new houses to replace the mobile homes and small frame homes that twisters blew away.

"Let the people have a place to live," he said. To make matters worse, he said, the city is imposing a mean double standard when it refuses to let residents live in FEMA trailers but is using a nearly identical structure for police headquarters.

Scott said the city can use small trailers because it's for the common good.

"It's temporary and we know it's temporary," said the mayor. "We're trying to provide services for everyone."

Storm victims are supposed to live in FEMA housing for no longer than 18 months after a disaster, yet about 260 campers are still occupied by survivors of hurricanes Katrina and Rita on the Gulf Coast last more than five years after those storms. The same thing could happen in Cordova if the city bends it rules to help tornado victims, Scott said.

Officials with FEMA have said it's a local issue and they remain ready to offer help to storm victims.

"We have several options available, and work with each community, to provide the best alternative possible for those who need housing assistance," Michael Byrne, FEMA's federal coordinating officer for Alabama, said in a statement. "We stand ready to help."

Ruston said he doesn't want to live in a mobile home forever, and he didn't want to leave Cordova to move in with a relative after his FEMA trailer was turned away.

Now, he said, it might not be worth going back.

"If we're going to have a mayor like that I'll just go elsewhere," he said.

Posted via email from Duane's Proposterous Posterous

Officials say man must tear down ‘Phonehenge’ house

Tue May 31, 11:08 am ET

Officials say man must tear down ‘Phonehenge’ house

By Liz Goodwin

- By Liz Goodwin liz Goodwin – Tue May 31, 11:08 am ET

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-phonehenge-west-20110526,0,797986.story"> Phonehenge compound in southern California

Los Angeles county officials are demanding that a creative homeowner tear down a 20,000-square-foot domicile he calls "Phonehenge West"--or face up to seven years in jail.

Former telephone technician Alan Kimble Fahey began building the structure three decades ago in Acton, http://www.latimes.com/news/local/la-me-phonehenge-trial-20110530,0,4358784.s...">the Los Angeles Times reports. Fahey, who christened the project "Phonehenge" because it sits atop pilings modified from phone utility poles, says he intends to turn the compound into a museum.

The labyrinthine network of buildings where Fahey, his wife, and teenage son live even includes a 70-foot tower covered in Italian stained-glass windows, and a barn. Fahey uses a "motorized cart" to get between buildings, http://articles.latimes.com/2011/may/26/local/la-me-phonehenge-west-20110526">an earlier report said.

The paper describes the compound as "a hodgepodge of reddish buildings braced with scores of utility poles and steel beams and connected by bridges and ramps." Inside, the castle is filled with more than 20,000 books, and a yurt--though Fahey and his wife sleep on a http://abclocal.go.com/kabc/story?section=news/local/los_angeles&id=8157725">single-sized water bed and cook on a tiny stove. Tourists come from all over to gaze at the creation, Fahey says, and Glamour magazine even staged a photo shoot there.

Fahey has attracted popular support for his labor of love. More than 1,000 people have http://www.facebook.com/PhonehengeW">liked a Facebook page called "Save Phonehenge West." And a national group that opposes "abusive" building codes, F.A.C.E.OFF (Fight Against Code Enforcement Office), is also backing Fahey. The compound has been admiringly featured http://www.homedsgn.com/2011/05/28/should-phonehenge-west-be-saved/

Cities that weathered housing bust now suffering

Cities that had escaped the worst of housing bust are hurting now

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Derek Kravitz and Alex Veiga, AP Business Writers, On Tuesday May 31, 2011, 5:40 pm EDT

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Even cities that weathered the housing market crash with relatively little damage are suffering now.

Severe price declines have spread to Dallas, Denver, Minneapolis and Cleveland, which had mostly withstood the bust in housing since 2006. The damage has now gone well beyond cities hit hardest by unemployment and foreclosures, such as Phoenix and Las Vegas.

"We didn't enjoy the highs and the lows like other cities," said Kay Weeks, a Realtor with Ebby Halliday in Dallas, where prices fell nearly 1 percent in March and are expected to keep falling. "But when we get bad news nationally, people take notice and cut back on spending and buying homes."

Home prices in big metro areas have sunk to their lowest since 2002, the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller 20-city monthly index showed Tuesday. Since the bubble burst in 2006, prices have fallen more than they did during the Great Depression.

The index, which covers metro areas that include about 70 percent of U.S. households, is updated every quarter and provides a three-month average. The March data is the latest available.

Foreclosures have forced prices down so much that some middle-class neighborhoods have turned into lower-income areas within months.

Prices are expected to keep falling until the glut of foreclosures for sale is reduced, companies start hiring in greater force, banks ease lending rules and more people think it makes sense again to buy a house. In some markets, that could take years.

The latest report points to a "double dip in home prices across much of the nation," said David Blitzer, chairman of the Index Committee at Standard & Poor's.

Prices fell from February to March in 18 of the metro areas tracked by the Standard & Poor's/Case-Shiller index. And prices in a dozen markets have reached their lowest points since the housing bubble burst in late 2006.

The overall index fell for the eighth straight month and has dropped 3.6 percent in the past year. Prices had risen last summer, fueled by a temporary federal homebuying tax credit. But they've tumbled 7 percent since then. After adjusting for inflation, the home-price index has sunk to the level of 1999.

Cities with high foreclosures such as Phoenix, Las Vegas and Tampa, Fla., are flooded with homes sitting vacant, awaiting buyers. Many banks have agreed to allow homes at risk of foreclosure to be sold for less than what is owed on their mortgages. That has pulled down prices.

In Phoenix, for example, home prices rose about 5 to 6 percent annually in the pre-boom years before exploding nearly 23 percent in 2004. The next year, in 2005, they skyrocketed nearly 43 percent. Prices there soon leveled off before plunging in 2007 and 2008. They're now back to 2000 levels.

Coastal areas, such as San Francisco, San Diego, Los Angeles, Washington and Boston, have fared comparatively better in the past two years. They have been helped by healthy local economies, desirable city centers and limited space for new housing. In New York, homes are still 63 percent more expensive than in 2000.

In the middle are cities like Dallas, Denver, Minneapolis and Cleveland, which are seen as bellwethers for the national housing market.

Before the housing boom, prices in Minneapolis rose 7 percent or more a year. Then they stalled in 2006, fell in 2007 and 2008, and rose modestly in 2009. Last year, prices started falling again and haven't stopped.

Over the past decade, Dallas has grown faster than any other metro area. Among companies that have moved their headquarters there are Comerica Inc. and AT&T. Construction surged to meet the demand.

But since the housing bubble burst, foreclosures have risen. Many homes have been sold at steep discounts. Dallas-area foreclosures bought at auction in March sold for just 57 percent of their appraised value, according to Foreclosure Listing Service.

Denver had also avoided the peaks and valleys of the bubble and bust. It enjoys a diversified local economy that has expanded to include the telecommunications, wind-energy and space-technology industries.

Foreclosures haven't flooded the Denver market. But many of Denver's potential buyers, most of whom would otherwise be first-timers, are opting to rent instead.

"When they're doing the calculations to rent versus buy, they're choosing to rent," said Gary Bauer, a broker in Littleton, Colo., outside Denver. "It's simple math, and for many people, it's too expensive to own."

As a result, falling prices have turned once-costly, newer subdivisions, including those in Aurora and Commerce City, into largely vacant neighborhoods.

"The closer to the mountains you are here, the pricier it is, so people built a lot of new, big homes during the housing boom," said Yve Roberts, a Denver real estate agent. "They thought that's where the next wave of houses would be. But many of the young people that bought there can't afford it anymore."

In the next two months, prices in Dallas and Denver are expected to reach their lowest since the housing downturn began.

In 12 other cities, prices are already at the lowest point since the end of the boom: Atlanta, Charlotte, Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Las Vegas, Miami, Minneapolis, New York, Phoenix, Portland, Ore., and Tampa, Fla.

Minneapolis fared the worst in March, with prices down 3.7 percent. They dropped 2.4 percent in Charlotte and Chicago and 2 percent in Detroit. Prices rose 0.1 percent in Seattle and 1.1 percent in Washington. The nation's capital is the only metro area in the index where prices have risen in the past year.

One obstacle to a rebound in prices: A delay in processing foreclosures. Homes in foreclosure sell at a 20 percent discount on average, which can hurt prices in the neighborhood. But many foreclosure sales have been delayed while federal regulators, state attorneys general and banks review how those foreclosures were carried out over the past two years.

Once those homes are eventually foreclosed upon, they will cause prices to fall even further. Those declines are "etched in stone," said Patrick Newport, U.S. economist at IHS Global Insight.

Falling home prices led Neil Isakson of Amery, Wis., about an hour and a half from Minneapolis, to pull his four-bedroom lakefront house off the market this spring after it went unsold for nearly two years.

Isakson chose to rent out the home rather than reduce the price further. He had listed it in June 2009 for $359,000. Last summer, he cut it to $339,000. Yet fewer than a dozen people showed up to look at the house. He's holding out for the market to recover.

"I'm willing to wait two to three years," Isakson said.

Home equity accounts for most of the wealth of typical households. So when prices fall, they have "important spillover effects on other sectors of the economy," said Yelena Shulyatyeva, an analyst at BNP Paribas. Those sectors include consumer spending and state and local property tax collections. Consumer spending fuels about 70 percent of the overall economy.

"Folks are having so much difficulty in getting financing for a home," said Mark Vitner, senior economist at Wells Fargo. "And foreclosures will likely bring about a third dip. It may be early next year before prices hit bottom."

That won't change soon. Roughly 92 percent of homeowners say it's a bad time to sell their home, according to the latest Thomson Reuters/University of Michigan index of consumer sentiment.

In the seven years before its peak in July 2006, the home-price index surged 155 percent. Since then, it's fallen 33 percent.

During the Great Depression, prices fell 31 percent. It took 19 years for the housing market to regain its losses after the Depression ended.

Posted via email from Duane's Proposterous Posterous

America's Best Affordable Places, 2011

As the old saying goes, you get what you pay for. Unfortunately in real estate, value is a trade-off. Someone in Manhattan is willing to pay $2,200 per month to rent a studio apartment so as to be near jobs and cultural amenities, sacrificing square footage. For someone in Las Vegas, where housing is inexpensive—the city's median home value is about $115,000, according to real estate site Zillow.com—and the labor market is tough, the reverse is true. What if you could have both proximity to work and quality of life at an affordable cost?

While this may sound too good to be true, it's the status quo in some places.

In an exclusive ranking for Businessweek.com, Bloomberg Rankings analyzed government-gathered data on more than 3,000 counties across the U.S. to select the best affordable place in each state. We then scored each county by state. Next we tallied the top-ranked county in each state to arrive at a national ranking. Factors that were most heavily weighted include housing cost, crime, unemployment, and educational attainment in the county, in addition to such other metrics as family income, poverty, commute time, air quality, diversity, and share of families with children.

More from BusinessWeek.com

» America's Best Affordable Places 2011

» Midwest Tops in Affordability and Life Quality

» Counties Whose Residents Pay the Most Property Tax

The Midwest made out well in the ranking. No. 1 on Bloomberg's list: North Dakota's Cass County, home to Fargo and West Fargo. Other areas with high scores include Brown County, S.D., Cleveland County, Okla. (in the West South Central region), Story County, Iowa, and Olmsted County, Minn.

Coastal states with high unemployment such as California, Florida, and Rhode Island ranked lower, as did states with a generally high cost of living, such as Hawaii.

Job Opportunities a Big Lure

Housing is a major factor in making a place affordable—and attractive. According to recently released results from the Census Bureau's 2010 Current Population Survey, housing is the main reason people relocate: Of people who moved in 2010, 43.7 percent did so for such housing-related reasons as finding a new or better home, cheaper housing, or a neighborhood with less crime.

That's just part of the picture. "People follow jobs and not low-cost housing," says Lawrence Yun, chief economist and senior vice-president of research at the National Association of Realtors. "North Dakota has been doing well because of job growth while Las Vegas and Cleveland continue to struggle—all [are] very affordable markets," he says.

About 16.4 percent of people in the U.S. who moved in 2010 did so for employment-related reasons, says the Census Bureau's survey.

Even in these best affordable places, it's wise not to expect Utopia. In Cass County, for example, flooding is common in the Red River Valley. This year, the river crested in the Fargo area at 38.75 feet in April, according to the National Weather Service, making it the fourth- highest flood on record. It has since declined slowly.

Still, when it's not flood season, Cass County can be an attractive place to live. Unlike many places with nice homes, clean air, low crime, and a strong job market, it's accessible to the average income earner, too.

Here are the 10 American best affordable places to live:

No. 10 - Cumberland County, ME.
Photo: Getty Images

No. 10: Cumberland County, Maine
Population: 276,529
Median family income: $68,707
Households spending more than 30 percent income on housing: 37.3 percent
Unemployment: 6.4 percent
Adult population with bachelor's degrees: 38.3 percent
Major cities: Portland, South Portland, Yarmouth

Luxury homes can be found in Cumberland County areas such as Freeport, Falmouth, and Yarmouth, shows a search on luxuryportfolio.com, but Zillow.com estimates the median list price in the area is about $250,000. The Portland area is the state's main economic hub and provides high-quality, affordable housing and excellent school systems, according to Maine Medical Center. It also has a low violent crime rate—not to mention great shopping: Freeport is home to L.L. Bean and numerous outlet stores.

No. 9 - Lafayette Parish, LA.
Photo: Getty Images

No. 9: Lafayette Parish, Louisiana
Population: 212,684
Median family income: $59,910
Households spending more than 30 percent income on housing: 25.4 percent
Unemployment: 6.6 percent
Adult population with bachelor's degrees: 27.7 percent
Major cities: Lafayette, Scott

The population of Lafayette Parish has expanded quickly, growing by 16.3 percent from 2000 to 2010, above its 15.6 percent growth rate from 1990 to 2000, according to U.S. Census Bureau data. The area has several communities that have been recognized for quality of life, including Youngsville, Lafayette, and Broussard.

No. 8 - Pulaski County, AR.
Photo: Getty Images

No. 8: Pulaski County, Arkansas
Population: 383,347
Median family income: $57,324
Households spending more than 30 percent income on housing: 26.2 percent
Unemployment: 7.3 percent
Adult population with bachelor's degrees: 31 percent
Major cities: Little Rock, North Little Rock, Jacksonville

The Arkansas River runs through Pulaski County, providing opportunities for boating, fishing, and hiking. U.S. Census data show that the health-care and retail sectors are major employers in the area, which is located in the geographic center of Arkansas. According to the county website, medical facilities and practices employ more than 34,000 people in Pulaski County. Little Rock is home to such major health facilities as the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, Baptist Medical Center, John McClelland Veteran's Affairs Hospital, St. Vincent Infirmary Center, and the Arkansas Heart Hospital.

No. 7 - Yellowstone County, MT.
Photo: Getty Images

No. 7: Yellowstone County, Montana
Population: 146,576
Median family income: $60,630
Households spending more than 30 percent income on housing: 28.6 percent
Unemployment: 6.3 percent
Adult population with bachelor's degrees: 27.7 percent
Major city: Billings

Home to Montana's largest city, Billings, Yellowstone County was named for the Yellowstone River that runs through it. The area has many natural park areas, including Pompeys Pillar National Monument, a sandstone rock formation, and Nez Perce National Historical Park, which spreads into Montana, Idaho, Oregon, and Washington. Billings is known for its quiet neighborhoods and business districts, the city website states.

No. 6 - Onondaga County, NY.
Photo: Getty Images

No. 6: Onondaga County, New York
Population: 455,912
Median family income: $65,458
Households spending more than 30 percent income on housing: 26.4 percent
Unemployment: 8.2 percent
Adult population with bachelor's degrees: 31.5 percent
Major cities: Syracuse, Salina, Clay

With a cost of living about 18 percent below the U.S. average, according to Sperling's BestPlaces, Syracuse is an affordable city. While its population shrank slightly in the past 10 years, according to 2010 U.S. Census data, other areas in the county have grown, including Pompey, Cicero, and Lysander. Upstate University Health System and Syracuse University are among the area's major employers, according to the county website.

No. 5 - Olmstead County, MN.
Photo: Getty Images

No. 5: Olmsted County, Minnesota
Population: 145,269
Median family income: $79,458
Households spending more than 30 percent income on housing: 25.6 percent
Unemployment: 5.9 percent
Adult population with bachelor's degrees: 39.3 percent
Major cities: Rochester, Marion

The largest city in Olmsted County is Rochester, home to the Mayo Clinic, earning the area the title, Med City. According to greatschools.org, Century Senior High School, Washington Elementary School, and Friedell Middle School are among the city's most highly ranked. The median home list price in Rochester was $145,900 in April, according to Zillow.com.

No. 4 - Story County, IA.
Photo: Getty Images

No. 4: Story County, Iowa
Population: 87,699
Median family income: $73,702
Households spending more than 30 percent income on housing: 21.1 percent
Unemployment: 5 percent
Adult population with bachelor's degrees: 45.4 percent
Major cities: Ames, Nevada

Story County, north of Des Moines, is home to Iowa State University in Ames. Education, health care, and government are the largest employers in the county, show U.S. Census data. Ames also has several highly ranked public schools, according to greatschools.org, including Ames High School, Ames Middle School, and Fellow Elementary School.

No. 3 - Cleveland County, OK.
Photo: Getty Images

No. 3: Cleveland County, Oklahoma
Population: 248,408
Median family income: $64,350
Households spending more than 30 percent income on housing: 23.3 percent
Unemployment: 5.7 percent
Adult population with bachelor's degrees: 30.1 percent
Major cities: Norman, Moore

Cleveland County is Oklahoma's third-largest in population and second-fastest-growing county, according to the Greater Oklahoma City Partnership. Farming, oil production, and horse breeding are important area industries, according to the county. The cost of living in Norman, the area's largest city and home to the University of Oklahoma, is 15 percent below the U.S. average and the district has several good schools, according to greatschools.org.

No. 2 - Brown County, SD.
Photo: Getty Images

No. 2: Brown County, South Dakota
Population: 35,779
Median family income: $57,264
Households spending more than 30 percent income on housing: 23.4 percent
Unemployment: 4.2 percent
Adult population with bachelor's degrees: 24.1 percent
Major city: Aberdeen

Brown County, in northern South Dakota, has a very low unemployment rate and the cost of living is among the country's lowest, at 23 percent below average, according to Sperling's BestPlaces. Hunting, fishing, camping, boating, cross-country skiing, bird-watching, biking, and snowmobiling are popular outdoor activities in Aberdeen, the county's largest city.

No. 1 - Cass County, ND.
Photo: Getty Images

No. 1: Cass County, North Dakota
Population: 145,303
Median family income: $67,120
Households spending more than 30 percent income on housing: 23.6 percent
Unemployment: 4.2 percent
Adult population with bachelor's degrees: 34.7 percent
Major cities: Fargo, West Fargo

Cass County is No. 1 in this year's ranking of best places. The cost of living in the area is about 12 percent lower than the U.S. average, according to Sperling's BestPlaces, the crime rate is low, and the job market is strong. The Greater Fargo-Moorhead Economic Development Corp. states on its website: "North Dakota boasts the lowest overall crime rate and the lowest violent crime rate in the nation. The air and water are clean, it's easy to navigate, housing is plentiful and affordable, and schools and medical facilities are outstanding." ACT scores in Fargo public schools are consistently higher than state and national averages, according to Fargo School District No. 1.

Click here to see all of America's Best Affordable Places 2011

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Beneath Jerusalem, an underground city takes shape

In this May 17, 2011 photo, a view of Zedekiah's Cave is seen in Jerusalem's Old City. Underneath the stone buildings and crowded alleys of old Jerusa

AP – In this May 17, 2011 photo, a view of Zedekiah's Cave is seen in Jerusalem's Old City. Underneath the …

Slideshow:Underground Jerusalem

By MATTI FRIEDMAN, Associated Press – Mon May 30, 12:09 pm ET

JERUSALEM – Underneath the crowded alleys and holy sites of old Jerusalem, hundreds of people are snaking at any given moment through tunnels, vaulted medieval chambers and Roman sewers in a rapidly expanding subterranean city invisible from the streets above.

At street level, the walled Old City is an energetic and fractious enclave with a physical landscape that is predominantly Islamic and a population that is mainly Arab.

Underground Jerusalem is different: Here the noise recedes, the fierce Middle Eastern sun disappears, and light comes from fluorescent bulbs. There is a smell of earth and mildew, and the geography recalls a Jewish city that existed 2,000 years ago.

Archaeological digs under the disputed Old City are a matter of immense sensitivity. For Israel, the tunnels are proof of the depth of Jewish roots here, and this has made the tunnels one of Jerusalem's main tourist draws: The number of visitors, mostly Jews and Christians, has risen dramatically in recent years to more than a million visitors in 2010.

But many Palestinians, who reject Israel's sovereignty in the city, see them as a threat to their own claims to Jerusalem. And some critics say they put an exaggerated focus on Jewish history.

A new underground link is opening within two months, and when it does, there will be more than a mile (two kilometers) of pathways beneath the city. Officials say at least one other major project is in the works. Soon, anyone so inclined will be able to spend much of their time in Jerusalem without seeing the sky.

On a recent morning, a man carrying surveying equipment walked across a two-millennia-old stone road, paused at the edge of a hole and disappeared underground.

Click image to see photos of Underground Jerusalem

AP Photo/Bernat Armangue

In a multilevel maze of rooms and corridors beneath the Muslim Quarter, workers cleared rubble and installed steel safety braces to shore up crumbling 700-year-old Mamluk-era arches.

Above ground, a group of French tourists emerged from a dark passage they had entered an hour earlier in the Jewish Quarter and found themselves among Arab shops on the Via Dolorosa, the traditional route Jesus took to his crucifixion.

South of the Old City, visitors to Jerusalem can enter a tunnel chipped from the bedrock by a Judean king 2,500 years ago and walk through knee-deep water under the Arab neighborhood of Silwan. Beginning this summer, a new passage will be open nearby: a sewer Jewish rebels are thought to have used to flee the Roman legions who destroyed the Jerusalem temple in 70 A.D.

The sewer leads uphill, passing beneath the Old City walls before expelling visitors into sunlight next to the rectangular enclosure where the temple once stood, now home to the Al-Aqsa Mosque and the gold-capped Dome of the Rock.

From there, it's a short walk to a third passage, the Western Wall tunnel, which continues north from the Jewish holy site past stones cut by masons working for King Herod and an ancient water system. Visitors emerge near the entrance to an ancient quarry called Zedekiah's Cave that descends under the Muslim Quarter.

The next major project, according to the Israel Antiquities Authority, will follow the course of one of the city's main Roman-era streets underneath the prayer plaza at the Western Wall. This route, scheduled for completion in three years, will link up with the Western Wall tunnel.

The excavations and flood of visitors exist against a backdrop of acute distrust between Israeli Jews and Palestinian Muslims, who are suspicious of any government moves in the Old City and particularly around the Al-Aqsa compound, Islam's third-holiest shrine. Jews know the compound as the Temple Mount, site of two destroyed temples and the center of the Jewish faith for three millennia.

Muslim fears have led to violence in the past: The 1996 opening of a new exit to the Western Wall tunnel sparked rumors among Palestinians that Israel meant to damage the mosques, and dozens were killed in the ensuing riots. In recent years, however, work has gone ahead without incident.

Mindful that the compound has the potential to trigger devastating conflict, Israel's policy is to allow no excavations there. Digging under Temple Mount, the Israeli historian Gershom Gorenberg has written, "would be like trying to figure out how a hand grenade works by pulling the pin and peering inside."

Despite the Israeli assurances, however, rumors persist that the excavations are undermining the physical stability of the Islamic holy sites.

"I believe the Israelis are tunneling under the mosques," said Najeh Bkerat, an official of the Waqf, the Muslim religious body that runs the compound under Israel's overall security control.

Samir Abu Leil, another Waqf official, said he had heard hammering that very morning underneath the Waqf's offices, in a Mamluk-era building that sits just outside the holy compound and directly over the route of the Western Wall tunnel, and had filed a complaint with police.

The closest thing to an excavation on the mount, Israeli archaeologists point out, was done by the Waqf itself: In the 1990s, the Waqf opened a new entrance to a subterranean prayer space and dumped truckloads of rubble outside the Old City, drawing outrage from scholars who said priceless artifacts were being destroyed.

This month, an Israeli government watchdog released a report saying Waqf construction work in the compound in recent years had been done without supervision and had damaged antiquities. The issue is deemed so sensitive that the details of the report were kept classified.

Some Israeli critics of the tunnels point to what they call an exaggerated emphasis on a Jewish narrative.

"The tunnels all say: We were here 2,000 years ago, and now we're back, and here's proof," said Yonathan Mizrachi, an Israeli archaeologist. "Living here means recognizing that other stories exist alongside ours."

Yuval Baruch, the Antiquities Authority archaeologist in charge of Jerusalem, said his diggers are careful to preserve worthy finds from all of the city's historical periods. "This city is of interest to at least half the people on Earth, and we will continue uncovering the past in the most professional way we can," he said.

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Spring Cleaning for Your Credit Score

by Amy Fontinelle
Tuesday, May 31, 2011

provided by

It's springtime. The chaos of the holidays is long gone, spring break is over, and summer hasn't arrived yet. Excuses are easy to come by when summer is in full-swing, so why not take advantage of this temporary lull and get your finances in order now? These six tips will help you get your finances organized and get your credit score cleaned up.

1. Check Your Credit Report

Any time you're trying to improve your credit score, your first step should be to check your credit report. You can get one free report every 12 months from each of the three credit bureaus (Experian, Equifax and TransUnion) by going to AnnualCreditReport.com. Look closely at each account on your report to make sure that there are no mistakes dragging down your score. Also, make sure that you recognize all of the accounts on your report. Unfamiliar accounts could be a sign of identity theft, though often they are just old accounts that you've forgotten about or accounts for which you are an authorized user but not the primary account holder. Don't panic until you research them further.

2. Assess Your Credit Card Debt

If you don't know the details of your debt, you probably don't have an effective plan for paying it off. Make a list of all the cards that you carry a balance on, how much you owe on each, and what the interest rate is. This way, you'll know which accounts are costing you the most and you can plan to pay them off first.

If you've living off your credit cards because you're unemployed or underemployed, assess your available balances. Also note which cards have lower interest rates and use those for your purchases if possible.

If you added to your debt last Christmas, start thinking now about how you will avoid doing the same thing this year. May isn't too early to plan for the holidays -- you still have time to gradually buy gifts over the course of the year, as you can afford them, or time to save up a holiday fund so you don't have to pay interest on 2011's gifts in 2012 and beyond. A Black Friday deal isn't a deal at 30% APR.

3. Improve Your Interest-Rate Situation

It may not be possible to qualify for a new card with a lower interest rate if you have poor credit, but it might be worth trying. If you do get approved, make sure you understand the balance transfer fees before moving your high-interest debt, and make sure you'll come out ahead even after the fees. Applying for new credit does temporarily ding your credit score, but the savings from lowering your interest rate can be substantial.

You can also try calling your creditors to negotiate a lower interest rate. If that doesn't work, see if you can at least get your card's annual fee waived (if it has one). Develop a strategy before you call because you'll need a way to convince your creditors that there's something in it for them if they give you a break.

4. Prioritize Your High-Interest Debt

Whichever card has the highest interest rate is the one you need to pay off first. Keep paying the minimum on your other cards (and pay on time), and put what you can afford toward your highest-interest balance. The sooner you knock out your high-interest debt, the more money you'll have to work with each month and the easier it will be to work your way through your remaining debts and contribute to your emergency fund.

5. Create a Bill Payment System

Thirty-five percent of your credit score is based on whether you pay your bills on time, so if you want to improve your credit score, getting on top of your due dates is a great place to start. Look at recent bills and add the due dates to your credit card list. Then, use an electronic calendar system like Outlook or an old-fashioned paper calendar to remind yourself of these due dates each and every month. A checking account with online bill pay can also help you get organized by allowing you to see and pay all of your bills in one place. Some online bill payment systems, like Ally Bank's, can be synched up with your other accounts to let you know how much you owe and when it's due.

In addition to hurting your credit score, late payments cost you money. If you avoided just one $30 late fee per month you would save $360 in a year. That's money you could put toward paying down your debt instead of adding to it.

6. Start Budgeting

If you know exactly how much money you have coming in and going out every month, not only are you likely to spend less because you will be holding yourself accountable for your spending, but you'll also know how much you can afford to put toward paying down your credit card debt each month.

The Bottom Line

In the process of improving your credit score, you'll also be improving your overall financial situation. So even if you don't plan to do anything that will require you have an attractive credit score (like open a new credit card account, take out an auto loan or apply for a mortgage), taking these actions will be worthwhile.

Posted via email from Duane's Proposterous Posterous

Monday, May 30, 2011

Willie and Joe by Bill Mauldin, A Tribute

Willie and Joe by Bill Mauldin (1921-2003,TRIBUTE)

Willie, Joe and Bill

Get out your history books and open them to the chapter on World War II. Today's lesson will cover a little known but very important hero of whom very little was ever really known. Here is another important piece of lost US history, which is a true example of our American Spirit.

Makes ya proud to put this stamp on your envelopes........

Bill Mauldin stamp honors grunt's hero. The post office gets a lot of criticism. Always has, always will. And with the renewed push to get rid of Saturday mail delivery, expect complaints to intensify.
But the United States Postal Service deserves a standing ovation for something that happened last month: Bill Mauldin got his own postage stamp.
Mauldin died at age 81 in the early days of 2003. The end of his life had been rugged. He had been scalded in a bathtub, which led to terrible injuries and infections; Alzheimer's disease was inflicting its cruelties. Unable to care for himself after the scalding, he became a resident of a California nursing home, his health and spirits in rapid decline

He was not forgotten, though. Mauldin and his work, meant so much to the millions of Americans who fought in World War II, and to those who had waited for them to come home. He was a kid cartoonist for Stars and Stripes, the military newspaper; Mauldin's drawings of his muddy, exhausted, whisker-stubbled infantrymen Willie and Joe were the voice of truth about what it was like on the front lines.

Mauldin was an enlisted man just like the soldiers he drew for; his gripes were their gripes, his laughs their laughs, his heartaches their heartaches. He was one of them. They loved him.

He never held back. Sometimes, when his cartoons cut too close for comfort, superior officers tried to tone him down. In one memorable incident, he enraged Gen. George S. Patton, who informed Mauldin he wanted the pointed cartoons celebrating the fighting men, lampooning the high-ranking officers to stop. Now!

"I'm beginning to feel like a fugitive from the' law of averages."
The news passed from soldier to soldier. How was Sgt. Bill Mauldin going to stand up to Gen. Patton? It seemed impossible.

Not quite. Mauldin, it turned out, had an ardent fan: Five-star Gen. Dwight D. Eisenhower, supreme commander of the Allied forces in Europe. Ike put out the word: Mauldin draws what Mauldin wants. Mauldin won. Patton lost.

If, in your line of work, you've ever considered yourself a young hotshot, or if you've ever known anyone who has felt that way about him or herself, the story of Mauldin's young manhood will humble you. By the time he was 23 years old, here’s what Mauldin accomplished:

"By the way, wot wuz them changes you wuz
Gonna make when you took over last month, sir?"
He won the Pulitzer Prize, was featured on the cover of Time magazine. His book "Up Front" was the No. 1 best-seller in the United States .

All of that at 23. Yet, when he returned to civilian life and grew older, he never lost that boyish Mauldin grin, never outgrew his excitement about doing his job, never big-shotted or high-hatted the people with whom he worked every day.

I was lucky enough to be one of them. Mauldin roamed the hallways of the Chicago Sun-Times in the late 1960s and early 1970s with no more officiousness or air of haughtiness than if he was a copyboy. That impish look on his face remained

He had achieved so much. He won a second Pulitzer Prize, and he should have won a third for what may be the single greatest editorial cartoon in the history of the craft: his deadline rendering, on the day President John F. Kennedy was assassinated, of the statue at the Lincoln Memorial slumped in grief, its head cradled in its hands. But he never acted as if he was better than the people he met. He was still Mauldin, the enlisted man.

During the late summer of 2002, as Mauldin lay in that California nursing home, some of the old World War II infantry guys caught wind of it. They didn't want Mauldin to go out that way. They thought he should know he was still their hero.

"This is the' town my pappy told me about."
Gordon Dillow, a columnist for the Orange County Register, put out the call in Southern California for people in the area to send their best wishes to Mauldin. I joined Dillow in the effort, helping to spread the appeal nationally, so Bill would not feel so alone. Soon, more than 10,000 cards and letters had arrived at Mauldin's bedside.
Better than that, old soldiers began to show up just to sit with Mauldin, to let him know that they were there for him, as he, so long ago, had been there for them. So many volunteered to visit Bill that there was a waiting list. Here is how Todd DePastino, in the first paragraph of his wonderful biography of Mauldin, described it:
"Almost every day in the summer and fall of 2002 they came to Park Superior nursing home in Newport Beach, California, to honor Army Sergeant, Technician Third Grade, Bill Mauldin. They came bearing relics of their youth: medals, insignia, photographs, and carefully folded newspaper clippings. Some wore old garrison caps. Others arrived resplendent in uniforms over a half century old. Almost all of them wept as they filed down the corridor like pilgrims fulfilling some long-neglected obligation."

One of the veterans explained to me why it was so important: "You would have to be part of a combat infantry unit to appreciate what moments of relief Bill gave us. You had to be reading a soaking wet Stars and Stripes in a water-filled foxhole and then see one of his cartoons."

"Th' hell this ain't th' most important hole in the world. I'm in it."
Mauldin is buried in Arlington National Cemetery. Last month, the kid cartoonist made it onto a first-class postage stamp. It's an honor that most generals and admirals never receive.

What Mauldin would have loved most, I believe, is the sight of the two guys who keep him company on that stamp.
Take a look at it.
There's Willie. There's Joe.

And there, to the side, drawing them and smiling that shy, quietly observant smile, is Mauldin himself. With his buddies, right where he belongs. Forever.

What a story, and a fitting tribute to a man and to a time that few of us can still remember. But I say to you youngsters, you must most seriously learn of and remember with respect the sufferings and sacrifices of your fathers, grand fathers and great grandfathers in times you cannot ever imagine today with all you have. But the only reason you are free to have it all is because of them.

I thought you would all enjoy reading and seeing this bit of American history!
""To laugh often and much; to win the respect of intelligent people and the affection of children; to earn the appreciation of honest critics and endure the betrayal of false friends; to appreciate beauty, to find the best in others; to leave the world a little better; whether by a healthy child, a garden patch or a redeemed social condition; to know even one life has breathed easier because you have lived. This is the meaning of success."

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Willie, Joe, And Bill