среда, 29 февраля 2012 г.

Fed: Clark to meet Rudd in Canberra


AAP General News (Australia)
02-27-2008
Fed: Clark to meet Rudd in Canberra

Closer economic ties .. climate change and the Pacific region are likely to be discussed
today .. when New Zealand Prime Minister HELEN CLARK visits KEVIN RUDD for the second
time since he took the top job.

Our PM says he's …

Ametek to Present at the Wells Fargo Securities 2011 Industrial & Construction Conference


Wireless News
05-05-2011
Ametek to Present at the Wells Fargo Securities 2011 Industrial & Construction Conference
Type: News

Ametek announced it will present at the Wells Fargo Securities 2011 Industrial & Construction Conference on Tuesday, May 10th, at the New York Palace Hotel in New York City.

Frank Hermance, President and CEO, will represent the company. Ametek's presentation is scheduled for 10:55 AM EDT.
The presentation will be simultaneously webcast over the Internet. To access the webcast and the accompanying slide presentation, visit Ametek.com.

Ametek is a global manufacturer of electronic instruments and electro-mechanical devices.

((Comments on this story may be sent to newsdesk@closeupmedia.com))

Copyright 2011 Close-Up Media, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
n/a

SA:Airline says tax to impact regional travel


AAP General News (Australia)
08-28-2011
SA:Airline says tax to impact regional travel

Regional airline Rex Regional Express says the basic maths of the carbon tax will add
just $2 to the price of every air ticket, but that could be enough to turn customers off.

The airline says the tax would cost the company $2 million in the first year.

Chief operating officer CHRIS HINE says experience has shown that small increases,
$2 here or there, could have an impact on demand and if they stopped just one person flying,
that would force tickets prices up further or threaten services.

He says cuts to regional airlines services or higher ticket prices would also push
more travellers into cars, defeating the purpose of the carbon tax.

Opposition Leader TONY ABBOTT visited the Rex operations in Adelaide today and said
one of the biggest impacts of the carbon tax on regional Australia would be on air travel.

AAP RTV tjd/ar

KEYWORD: CLIMATE REX (ADELAIDE)

� 2011 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

FED:Opp demands to see asylum funeral bill


AAP General News (Australia)
02-16-2011
FED:Opp demands to see asylum funeral bill

Liberal frontbencher Bruce Billson accused Labor of trying to incite a split within
his party over the issue.

"I'm not sure the division is as some would portray it," he told Sky News.

Parliamentary secretary David Bradbury described Mr Abbott's position as "a shameful
low" and said coalition MPs who spoke publicly against him should be applauded.

"But they must (also) be very concerned about the direction their party's going."

AAP sld/rl/cdh

KEYWORD: BOAT 2 CANBERRA (REOPENS)

� 2011 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

WA:WA Police shift policy on Taser use


AAP General News (Australia)
12-02-2010
WA:WA Police shift policy on Taser use

WA's police commissioner has announced a major policy change on Tasers .. saying the
stun guns should only be used when officers believe they're at risk of serious injury.

KARL O'CALLAGHAN also says incidents captured on CCTV will be reviewed to determine
if police accounts of the incidents match the tapes.

It comes after a Perth family had obstruction charges against them dropped .. after
CCTV footage undermined the police case against them.

AAP RTV ldj/jkl/jen/

KEYWORD: TASER WA POLICY (PERTH)

� 2010 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Qld: Jet ski tragedy was an accident waiting to happen: club


AAP General News (Australia)
04-26-2010
Qld: Jet ski tragedy was an accident waiting to happen: club

A personal watercraft organisation says a fatal jet ski crash off Brisbane at the weekend
was an accident waiting to happen.

A 26 year-old man was killed and his 22 year-old passenger seriously injured when their
jet ski slammed into a 27-foot catamaran near Scarborough at 3.30 Saturday morning.

Police say the duo was travelling without any lights on and investigations will look
at any role alcohol may have played in the crash.

Personal Watercraft Club president TIM O'NEILL has told ABC .. riding at night without
lights on in one of the heaviest populated waterways was an extremely dangerous thing
to do.

AAP RTV djb/tnf/sw/

KEYWORD: JET SKI (BRISBANE)

� 2010 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

NSW: Keneally yes and no on Catholic teachings and doctrine


AAP General News (Australia)
12-11-2009
NSW: Keneally yes and no on Catholic teachings and doctrine

New South Wales Premier KRISTINA KENEALLY says she is in utter agreement with the teachings
of the Catholic Church .. but wants female priests .. the vow of celibacy relaxed .. and
supports abortion.

The first female and foreign-born premier of the state has stood firm on her religious
beliefs and the view that she is no puppet of the Labor right faction that elevated her
into the top job.

Ms KENEALLY was born in Las Vegas and raised in Toledo .. Ohio .. before meeting her
Australian husband BEN KENEALLY at World Youth Day in Poland in 1991.

Ms KENNEALLY made her comments to the ABC in an interview to be aired on Radio National's
Sunday Profile program.

AAP RTV vpm/wz

KEYWORD: LABOR NSW (SYDNEY)

2009 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

NSW: Homicide detectives return keys to family business


AAP General News (Australia)
08-04-2009
NSW: Homicide detectives return keys to family business

Relatives are hoping to open the Sydney newsagency of the murdered LIN family today
.. after homicide detectives returned the keys to the business yesterday.

Family lawyer DANIEL SHEEN says relatives want to open the Epping newsagency .. to
raise money for surviving daughter .. 15-year-old Brenda who was away on a school trip
on the night her entire family were killed.

However he says they're still waiting for police to return a computer before the newsagency
can resume trading.

45 year-old MIN LIN .. his 43 year-old wife YUN LI LIN .. the couple's sons HENRY and
TERRY aged 12 and nine .. along with Ms LIN's 39-year-old sister IRENE YIN .. were found
bludgeoned to death in their beds .. on July 18.

AAP RTV krc/hn/sw

KEYWORD: HOUSE (SYDNEY)

2009 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Qld:Premier says she won't be intimidated by states richest man


AAP General News (Australia)
02-01-2009
Qld:Premier says she won't be intimidated by states richest man

By Gabrielle Dunlevy and Tony Bartlett

TOWNSVILLE, Feb 1 AAP - Queensland Premier Anna Bligh says she will not be intimidated
by a legal threat from the state's richest man, and chief financial backer of the opposition.

Mining magnate Clive Palmer on Friday demanded $1 million and a public apology from
Ms Bligh, after her comments in an ABC television interview.

Ms Bligh said in the interview that it was not uncommon for rich men to buy football
teams, but it was unusual for them to buy political parties, and questioned Mr Palmer's
interest in the Liberal National Party (LNP).

Labor has accused Mr Palmer of "buying" the LNP in the past, but usually with the protection
of parliament.

Opposition Leader Lawrence Springborg has said little about the billionaire's role
in the LNP, except to say he is a life member of the party, who has made available his
private jet and helicopter.

Ms Bligh on Sunday stood by her comments, saying she and all other Queenslanders were
entitled to question Mr Palmer's interest in the LNP.

"In the past week alone, Mr Palmer has issued a press release in the name of the Liberal
National Party, he has appeared on two current affair programs and been the subject of
a major profile in a national magazine," she told reporters.

"Mr Palmer obviously wants to be a player in the political field and I think it is
time that Lawrence Springborg explained to the people of Queensland the financial and
political relationship between his party and one of Queensland's richest men."

A register of donations to Queensland political parties will be released on Monday.

Although she was yet to see its contents, Ms Bligh did not resile from the view Mr
Palmer was bankrolling the opposition.

"Mr Palmer himself on the day the Liberal National Party formed, from his own mouth,
told the people of Queensland that he would be assisting the ... party financially in
every way possible," she said.

"Mr Palmer went on record yesterday in a national magazine saying he would seek to
influence a Liberal National Party government and that he believed he was entitled to
do so."

Ms Bligh called on Mr Springborg to "bring Mr Palmer to his senses" before the legal
matter progressed.

He was unavailable on Sunday, but opposition treasury spokesman Tim Nicholls said it
was a private matter between Mr Palmer and Ms Bligh.

"For the last six months Ms Bligh and her 11-year-old Labor government have engaged
in a campaign of personal smear against one of Queensland's and Australia's top businessmen
for no other reason than he doesn't support the government," said Mr Nicholls.

"If Ms Bligh wants to make personal smears then she must accept the consequences when
those smears prove to be false."

AAP gd/bart/ss/de

KEYWORD: PALMER WRAP

2009 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Oly: Australian medal winners


AAP General News (Australia)
08-22-2008
Oly: Australian medal winners

BEIJING, Aug 22 AAP - Australian medal winners at the Beijing Olympics:



G S B To

Australia 11 13 13 37



GOLD

11. Elise Rechichi, Tessa Parkinson - women's 470 sailing (Aug 18)

10. Nathan Wilmot, Malcolm Page - men's 470 sailing (Aug 18)

9. Emma Snowsill - women's triathlon (Aug 18)

8. Women's 4x100 medley relay - Leisel Jones, Emily Seebohm, Jess Schipper, Libby Trickett
(world record) (Aug 17)

7. Scott Brennan, David Crawshay - men's double sculls (Aug 16)

6. Duncan Free, Drew Ginn - men's pair (Aug 16)

5. Women's 4x200m freestyle - Bronte Barratt, Linda MacKenzie, Kylie Palmer, Stephanie
Rice (world record)(Aug 14)

4. Stephanie Rice - women's 200m individual medley (world record)(Aug 13)

3. Leisel Jones - women's 100m breaststroke (Aug 12)

2. Libby Trickett - women's 100m butterfly (Aug 11)

1. Stephanie Rice - women's 400m individual medley (world record)(Aug 10)



SILVER

13. Glenn Ashby, Darren Bundock - tornado (Aug 21)

12. Sally McLellan - women's 100m hurdles (Aug 19)

11. Anna Meares - women's sprint (Aug 19)

10. Andrew Lauterstein, Brenton Rickard, Hayden Stoeckel, Eamon Sullivan - men's 4x100m
medley relay (Aug 17)

9. Grant Hackett - 1500m freestyle (Aug 17)

8. Francis Hegerty, Matt Ryan, James Marburg, Cameron McKenzie-McHarg - men's four (Aug 16)

7. Jacqui Lawrence - women's K1 singles slalom (Aug 15)

6. Libby Trickett - women's 100m freestyle (Aug 15)

5. Leisel Jones - women's 200m breaststroke (Aug 15)

4. Eamon Sullivan - men's 100m freestyle (Aug 14)

3. Brenton Rickard - men's 200m breaststroke (Aug 14)

2. Team eventing - Clayton Fredericks, Lucinda Fredericks, Sonja Johnson, Megan Jones,
Shane Rose (Aug 12)

1. Briony Cole, Melissa Wu - women's 10m sychronised diving (Aug 12)



BRONZE

13. Australian softball team (Aug 20)

12. Emma Moffatt - women's triathlon (Aug 18)

11. Cate Campbell - women's 50m freestyle (Aug 17)

10. Jared Tallent - men's 20km walk (Aug 16)

9. Andrew Lauterstein - men's 100m butterfly (Aug 16)

8. Warren Potent - men's 50m rifle prone (Aug 15)

7. Jess Schipper - women's 200m butterfly (Aug 14)

6. Men's 4x200m freestyle relay - Grant Brits, Nick Ffrost, Grant Hackett, Patrick
Murphy (Aug 13)

5. Robin Bell - men's C1 slalom (Aug 12)

4. Hayden Stoeckel - men's 100m backstroke (joint) (Aug 12)

3. Men's 4x100 freestyle relay - Ashley Callus, Andrew Lauterstein, Eamon Sullivan,
Matt Targett (Aug 11)

2. Jess Schipper - women's 100m butterfly (Aug 11)

1. Women's 4x100m freestyle relay - Cate Campbell, Alice Mills, Melanie Schlanger,
Libby Trickett (Aug 10)

AAP cj/mo

KEYWORD: OLY08 AUST MEDALS

2008 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Fed: Alliance calls for 2020 clean coal target


AAP General News (Australia)
04-16-2008
Fed: Alliance calls for 2020 clean coal target

CANBERRA, April 16 AAP - A controversial alliance of environmentalists and the coal
industry has called for a 2020 target for low-emissions coal-fired electricity.

The target of 10,000 gigawatt/hour, the equivalent of energy produced by three power
stations, would kick-start the demonstration and commercialisation of carbon capture and
storage (CCS), the alliance says.

The grouping comprises WWF Australia, the Climate Institute, the Australian Coal Association
(ACA) and mining union the CFMEU.

It is calling on the federal government to set up a CCS taskforce to develop and implement
a nationally coordinated plan to urgently realise the technology.

Greenpeace and the Australian Greens have attacked the initiative for promoting a flawed
solution to climate change which subsidises the coal industry at public expense.

Key tasks proposed for the taskforce include setting up a national regime governing
carbon storage by September and finding ways to fund commercial-scale deployment of CCS.

Suggested funding includes tax incentives and accelerated depreciation, expanding public/private
partnerships and feed-in tariffs.

The alliance is also calling for an education campaign about CCS.

"Market forces alone aren't going to drive this, we do need government participation
via assistance to research and development to demonstration of these projects," ACA chief
executive Ralph Hillman told reporters in Canberra.

"Ultimately commercial deployment for low emission coal technology, just as for geothermal
or solar, will require a big investment by the government."

MORE pw/rl/jm/bwl

KEYWORD: CLIMATE COAL

2008 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

NSW: Mangos says he chatted to Einfeld on day his car was booked


AAP General News (Australia)
12-12-2007
NSW: Mangos says he chatted to Einfeld on day his car was booked

By Amy Coopes

SYDNEY, Dec 12 AAP - Sky News presenter John Mangos has told a Sydney court he chatted
to Marcus Einfeld at a northern beaches restaurant on the day the former judge's car was
caught speeding.

Mr Mangos told Downing Centre Local Court he and Einfeld spent less than 10 minutes
talking between 3.30pm and 4pm on January 8, 2006.

"I introduced Marcus to my wife and to the people at the table," Mr Mangos said.

"I indicated to him that we were planning a trip to Israel.

"I raised this because we first met in Israel 25 years ago at Cairo Airport."

Einfeld is accused of signing false statements saying others were driving his car,
to avoid speeding and other fines, twice implicating a friend he knew to be dead.

Einfeld's actions came to the attention of police during an investigation into the
January 8 speeding fine, which the former judge blamed on his long-deceased friend Professor
Teresa Brennan.

Einfeld said he had lent his car to the professor and was in Forster, on the NSW mid-north
coast, that weekend.

He also claimed he was driving his mother's car.

Mr Mangos told the court on the day in question, he and Einfeld had discussed a hostel
where he had stayed 25 years earlier, and which Einfeld had assured him at the time "wasn't
that bad".

"I told him this time I'm fulfilling my ambition to stay at the King David and he congratulated
me on my choice of hotel," Mr Mangos said, sending a ripple of laughter through the courtroom.

Mr Mangos said the conversation occurred between 3.30pm and 3.56pm when his table at
the beachfront restaurant Pilu was closed.

"I can't be too accurate about that other than to say that I know around that time
and clearly before we left we have had a conversation of about five minutes," he said.

Einfeld's car was snapped speeding at Mosman at 4.01pm and his lawyers have told Deputy
Chief Magistrate Helen Syme the timing of events was "critical" to putting him behind
the wheel of his car and at the speed camera at the relevant time.

Pilu manager Grant Burtenshaw said Einfeld paid the $163.35 bill for his meal with
Vivian Schenker with his credit card at 3.34pm.

His table was closed at 3.41pm but Mr Burtenshaw agreed that didn't mean Einfeld left
the restaurant at that time.

In the Downing Centre court today, two dozen seats were reserved for Einfeld and members
of his family in a larger courtroom, after a number were forced to stand yesterday because
of overcrowding.

The committal proceedings against Einfeld on traffic and perjury charges are now in
closing stages with witnesses now complete.

Einfeld's barrister Ian Barker QC, said a jury would not be satisfied that the former
Federal court judge was driving his car on four occasions when he is accused of falsely
stating someone else was behind the wheel.

Mr Barker said Einfeld could subsequently not be convicted of the associated perjury charges.

Closing submissions will be heard in the case tomorrow morning.

AAP ajc/bd/was/jt/bwl

KEYWORD: EINFELD MANGOS (PIX AVAILABLE)

2007 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

FED: Labor announces scheme to make homes greener


AAP General News (Australia)
04-29-2007
FED: Labor announces scheme to make homes greener

Families will be able to borrow up to 10 thousand dollars in low interest loans ..

under a Labor plan to boost the uptake of rain water tanks .. solar panels .. and other
initiatives to combat climate change.

Opposition leader KEVIN RUDD's announced the 300 million dollar plan to make homes
greener .. at Labor's national conference in Sydney today.

He says it's practical bread and butter stuff that the Labor Party is so good at.

MORE RTV so/jmt

KEYWORD: LABOR CLIMATE RUDD (SYDNEY)

2007 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Qld: Four arrested, search for another after assault


AAP General News (Australia)
12-29-2006
Qld: Four arrested, search for another after assault

Four people from New South Wales have been charged .. after a 22-year-old man was attacked
with knives and hockey sticks in Brisbane's north.

Three men and a 17-year-old woman were arrested over the alleged assault at Kippa Ring
at about 9 pm last night .. with police still looking for another man.

Police say the 22-year-old was assaulted and four others were threatened at a Kippa
Ring residence.

The man received bruised ribs but wasn't hospitalised.





A 22-year-old Glenbrook man and two Blaxland men aged 22 and 18 have been charged with
several offences .. including deprivation of liberty.

The 22-year-old Blaxland man has also charged with possession of a dangerous drug and
dangerous operation of a motor vehicle.

The 17-year-old woman from Carlton has been charged with receiving stolen goods.

All four are due to appear in the Redlands Magistrates Court tomorrow.

Police are searching for another man who stole a Holden Commodore from the Kippa Ring residence.

AAP RTV lc/els/rt

KEYWORD: HOCKEYSTICK (BRISBANE)

2006 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Qld: Coalition announces apprentice scheme


AAP General News (Australia)
08-21-2006
Qld: Coalition announces apprentice scheme

By Roberta Mancuso

YEPPOON, Qld, Aug 21 AAP - The Queensland coalition says it will boost apprentice numbers
in the state by offering small businesses work cover rebate incentives if it wins next
month's election.

Opposition Leader Lawrence Springborg, campaigning in the central Queensland town of
Yeppoon today, said he would allocate $16.3 million to reimburse small businesses for
the full work cover premiums of each apprentice they take on.

That could increase the number of apprentices in Queensland from 78,800 to more than
83,000 over the three years of the program's life, he said.

"This will encourage small businesses to take on more apprentices which will address
our skills shortage," Mr Springborg told reporters.

"And not only that it will give more young Queenslanders a hope for a job into the future."

Mr Springborg said businesses would receive at least $100 a year under the incentives
scheme but most would receive "thousands".

Such incentives would be delivered on a case by case basis for big businesses.

Meanwhile, Mr Springborg used a vacant piece of land earmarked as the site for a new
hospital in Yeppoon to highlight Premier Peter Beattie's "broken promises".

A large sign which read "where is our hospital Beattie" today stood at the site.

Mr Springborg, who denied planting the sign, said Mr Beattie had promised a hospital
for Yeppoon three years ago and the vacant lot was proof of his hollow promises.

"In the next three years, if Mr Beattie were to be believed we would still be looking
at this vacant site."

The Queensland election is on September 9.

AAP rm/ew/sc/ks

KEYWORD: POLL QLD APPRENTICE

) 2006 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

Fed: No go for boat people - but air arrivals fare better


AAP General News (Australia)
04-14-2006
Fed: No go for boat people - but air arrivals fare better

No asylum seeker who arrives in Australia illegally by boat can expect to stay under
a new hardline immigration regime announced yesterday.

However .. the policy does not apply if you arrive illegally by air.

The announcement has come from Immigration Minister AMANDA VANSTONE .. who says the
new policy is quite specifically targeted at unauthorised boat arrivals.

She says it also does not apply to the vast majority of people illegally in Australia
now .. who arrived on valid visas, but overstayed their welcome.

The Senator won't say how much the new regime will cost taxpayers .. but Labor already
says it'll be expensive.

The announcement follows the arrival by boat of 42 Papuan asylum seekers .. who have
been granted temporary protection by Australia.

AAP RTV shh/mfh/sp/wz/psm/

KEYWORD: PAPUA (CANBERRA)

2006 AAP Information Services Pty Limited (AAP) or its Licensors.

понедельник, 27 февраля 2012 г.

workfare

workfare A system making income support for the unemployed conditional on their performing some form of work for which they are suitable. Advocates of this policy argue that such work would benefit both society and the recipients, as it would improve their self-respect and future employment prospects. It would also reduce fraud on the social security system by those actually working in the unofficial economy while claiming benefit. Critics argue that compulsory workfare would be very expensive: determining people's ability to work and supervising work by the unwilling would use scarce resources, which would be better spent on training those who actually want work. Providing child-care for unskilled single parents could also cost more than the value of any work they might do.

Art for shopping's sake: a new concept.(Industry Overview)

Breaking shoppers of their mall habit is the current bane of a number of savvy indie L.A. retailers who have begun to mingle art with fashion-forward clothes, objects d'art and house wares.

Artsy storefronts like Shop Chuey, in an ornate Chinatown pedestrian plaza; Echo Park's Show Pony; Silver Lake's Clover; Beverly Boulevard's hip men's store KBond; and Los Feliz's Local combine a gallery-like experience and art openings with shopping.

"Our concept is an alternative to what's in the mall," says KBond's James Bond (yes, that's his real name). The minimalist store integrates art, fashion and music -- Bond was an art director and stylist for musicvideos and commercials and his wife and business partner is installation artist Karen Kimmel. Consequently, visual stimuli -- one wall of the concrete-, glass- and steel-built space is a display for art and murals, which are also for sale -- pervade the store.

Serving a "post-Internet fringe" clientele, KBond has everything for the postmodern male, from stationery to high-end toiletries to menswear lines like Paul Smith, Evisu and Rogan. Art openings are oftentimes raucous gatherings; a show last fall of Jim Jocoy's original prints chronicling the 1978-1980 punk scene brought L.A. punk fans out in full force. X lead singer Exene Cervenka was on hand for the opening night/book signing.

"We're thinking of potential customers more as an audience that needs to be entertained," says David Keeps, owner of Shop Chuey. "We can't give them a roller coaster or 50 cinemas but we can give them something a little tilted and twisted."

Keeps describes Shop Chuey as the "alternative to the alternative." The store launched with an exhibition of work by pop revisionist bad girl Niagara. More recently, the Viva L.A. Punk photo show attracted punks and nostalgic scenesters; christening the exhibit was a neo-punk concert during the Silver Lake Film Festival.

Inside the store, original art, such as SXE's "Fred & Ginger" series -- Polaroid images of the graves of Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers -- is displayed next to postcards, T-shirts and hipster tchotchkes. During the holidays, Shop Chuey will vend artist-made ornaments and host a "carol-oke" party. A theater fest is in the planning stages for next year.

Show Pony owner Kime Buzzelli likes to display themed installations of drawings, journal entries and photos along one wall of her store; often she coordinates her merchandise with the theme. During a show titled "Everything Leads to the Bedroom," she sold pillows and bedroom-related decorative items. The installations keep the store's look fresh and the merchandise ever-changing.

Creative merchandising

"Think fledgling rather than perfect," says Buzzelli of the women's clothes, such as handpainted leather skirts, on display and for sale. Most of the clothes are one-of-a-kind, made by nascent designers or stylists. She describes her customers as women who have the guts to wear kooky stuff. Musicvideo stylists frequent the store, which occupies a vintage storefront on a strip of Echo Park Avenue, next to galleries like Fototeka and Ojala Fine Arts & Crafts, all of which have appeared seemingly overnight in this rapidly gentrifying neighborhood.

'We're an outlet for creative people, a starting ground for the new and interesting," says Chandra Auget Dewall, proprietress of Local, which opened in June in Los Feliz. A commercial stylist by trade, Dewall and her husband transformed a neighborhood beauty salon into an atelier of edgy clothes, handcrafted jewelry, accessories and art. Even the handbags have a design cache: Kim White's vibrant totes are sewn from vintage car upholstery.

The store fills the downstairs of a 1920s bungalow and artwork hangs in the foyer and the woodfloored former living room, as it would be displayed in a house or apartment.

Dewall envisions Local as the ultimate neighborhood store for area artists and up-and-coming designers, a steppingstone to the boutiques of the world. Foot traffic comes from the nearby landmark Vista Theater and the hipster denizens of Rudy's barbershop across the street. Dewall likes to present two artists' work simultaneously; recently, animator Gary Smith's 3-D paper sculptures set inside television sets shared space with minimalist oils by painter Jill Simonsen.

Clover owner Drea Kadilak points out that the strip of Rowena Avenue in Silver Lake, where her ultramod general store is located, is populated more by auto body shops than retailers. Keeping a small gallery space inside the store enlarges her customer base, bringing newcomers to her destination shopping spot.

"The bottom line in retail is you have to try to make people feel good about spending their money," says the vet store owner and hat designer. A gallery space also increases word of mouth.

As with most small businesses, Clover's ad budget is limited, so postcards announcing openings are a creative form of direct-mail outreach. Shows change bimonthly. Beginning this week, Danette Riddle's handcrafted postmodern quilts will be on display.

In addition to well-priced designer duds for men and women, Clover features inexpensive toys, custom-made furniture and art books. It's a light-filled minidepartment store whether one is searching for shoes or the latest tome on architect Rudolph Schindler.

Retail spaces that are art-interested and promote individual style have a palpable provocative feel. As Shop Chuey's Keeps explains: "We wanted to see what creative waters we could stir up in Los Angeles."

RELATED ARTICLE: FIND THEM

Clover, 2756 Rowena Ave., (323) 661-4142

KBond, 7257 Beverly Blvd., (323) 939-8666, www.kbondla.com

Local, 4431 Sunset Blvd., (323) 668-2085, www.localla.com

Shop Chuey, 437 Gin Ling Way, Chinatown, (213) 625-3789, www.shopchuey.com

Show Pony, 1543 Echo Park Ave., (213) 482-7676

Oil Industry, POSC and Government Collaborate On Well Data Standards Using XML.

Business/Energy Editors & High Tech Writers

HOUSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 24, 2001

POSC, an international member consortium focused on leveraging eBusiness and Internet technology for the energy industry, recently announced that a number of key players from the European oil industry agreed to collaborate on implementing standards using XML for exchanging basic well data over the Internet.

A meeting was held in Aberdeen, Scotland, supported by senior representatives from BP, Shell, Esso, Conoco, Schlumberger, Halliburton, Paradigm, CDA, DTI and POSC. They agreed to collaborate in a project to develop and implement within three months an XML standard for well data in the North Sea.

"This is a challenging target but if successful should pave the way for a number of similar projects across a wide range of business processes," Paul Maton, European Director of POSC, said "This is, on the face of it, a simple thing but the frustration across the oil industry of not being able to easily and unambiguously identify wells hides a consequential large cost. The global oil industry, from oil and service companies to data vendors, needs standards in these areas to realize the full potential of eBusiness."

Supporting the initiative Malcolm Fleming, CEO of CDA, said, "This initiative fits neatly into CDA's key targets. A key objective of CDA is to be recognized as the definitive source for basic well data on the North Sea and we fully support this standard as a key component of that goal."

Welcoming this initiative Stewart Robinson, Director of IT and Data services at the DTI Oil and Gas Directorate, stressed, "This is not an attempt to railroad the industry to adopt UK standards. The close-knit nature of the UK oil community and the desire of the UK government to fully exploit the resources of the UKCS make the UK an ideal test bed for these emerging standards. We are working with POSC to globalise the solution and I am in contact with many other interested governments around the world."

A major challenge in the oil industry is the process of dealing with governments; obtaining consents, reporting activity and delivering information. The web is becoming a basic tool worldwide in the oil industry for data exchange amongst companies but the lack of standards is seen as a major problem.

POSC have identified the need to establish easy to use web standards between oil companies and governments worldwide as a key challenge for the next few years. The business processes that have been identified that would benefit from global standards for web delivery are:

Allocation of licences for acreage

Transfer of assets

Well and drilling consents

Well operations notifications

Environmental consents

Use of dangerous chemicals

Dispersal of produced water

Field approvals

Oil production returns

Pipeline consents

Decommissioning consents

Release of data

POSC is an international membership organization focused on the rapid development, implementation and use of Energy eStandards -- information exchange and interoperability standards in support of eBusiness for the energy industry. Founded by five major oil companies in 1990, and with a membership of over 50 energy-related companies, POSC has headquarters in Houston with an office in London.

Current activities, which leverage the industry's significant investment in information standards over the past decade, include XML-based eStandards for representing and exchanging technical information -- in particular, global standards for well header information and transportable exchange standards for well logs.

For more information please visit http://www.posc.org or contact POSC at info@posc.org.

Common Data Access Limited (CDA) is a non-profit industry regulated information utility owned by its members. Membership is open to any oil and gas company or service company owning exploration or production data obtained in the United Kingdom Continental Shelf. Currently 21 oil companies and 8 service companies have joined CDA.

CDA has two principal objectives, to reduce the cost of storing and retrieving data and to improve efficiency and accessibility to data. These objectives are met by coordinating a single source of data from which all parties who have legitimate rights of access can obtain data either electronically or by conventional means. CDA has been implemented in phases beginning with the digital wireline log data followed by hard-copy well information and seismic navigation data. Further phases will be implemented as required.

The CEO is Malcolm Fleming, +44 (020) 7802 2434, and CDA maintain their website at (www.cdal.com).

The DTI Oil and Gas Directorate has had its own website (www.og.dti.gov.uk) since 1995, and uses it to publish and exchange information of interest to the industry in line with the Government's policy of increasing the amount of communication with business conducted electronically.

The DTI have plans to establish a UK oil portal on the World Wide Web to enable all business processes associated with granting consents, approvals and regulatory reporting across all Government Departments to be undertaken electronically in a secure environment. Stewart Robinson +44 (020) 7215 5165 is the project officer for this.