Sunday, December 2, 2012

The Best Supplements to Enhance Your Fitness and Health | Thrive ...

There are hundreds of supplements available on the market that make promises of being the best supplements for fitness and health. Aside from the fact that many don?t live up to their claims, consumers also have to sort through the flurry of information on each of them in order to conclude which will actually benefit them. Depending on what you are trying to accomplish, this task can be challenging as not all products are created equal and many are tailored to produce specific results. The first thing that should be considered when choosing a supplement is gender. Men and women?s bodies are vastly different in genetic make-up and thus will respond to products differently. Typically the fitness goals of men will differ from women?s and this too will impact which supplements will work for them as opposed to women.

For Men

Multivitamins

Whether male or female, one supplement that should be incorporated into any fitness regime is a multivitamin. The key here is to choose a multivitamin that is tailored for men?s bodies and that means choosing one that has an elevated amount of iron and calcium. Iron and calcium are essential when building muscle mass and bone density and they are also helpful in fighting off heart disease.

Choose a vitamin that has as many vitamins and nutrients as possible but don?t choose one that promises more than 100% nutritional value as these are gimmicky, more expensive and won?t provide any additional benefits.

Protein

Rarely do people take in as much protein as they need, even when they think they do. Protein tablets are important in any fitness regime because it not only benefits muscles but it also helps to keep you full longer so you won?t snack in between meals. If possible choose a protein that is in powder form because it will dissolve quicker than a pill or capsule and they also have an abundance of amino acids which helps with muscle injury recovery and will strengthen muscles quicker. Choose a soy or whey based protein power.

Creatine

Creatine is a dream come true for men who are looking to build muscle mass quickly and research shows that it will assist in muscle building and healing the fibers within muscles caused by long, excessive workouts. Most nutritionists recommend three to six grams per day after each workout and you can increase that amount up to twenty grams within a reasonable amount of time.

Fish Oil

Fish oil supplements are loaded with omega 3?s and has a long history of helping the body fight off heart disease. They also have a ton of anti-inflammatory components which will assist your joints in their flexibility, help to decrease muscle aches and inflammation and help muscles heal faster.

These fatty acids are found in lean fish such as salmon and tuna as well as some nuts. If your diet already has a steady stream of these foods, you may not need an additional supplement, but few people get the recommended dose which is 300 to 1200 mg per day.

For Women

Multivitamins

Women also need a multivitamin as it will replace or offer any nutritional deficiencies that you may have and be lacking from your diet. As with men, choose one that has no more 100% nutritional value but make sure that it includes a decent amount of vitamin C and D as well as folic acid and magnesium as these are the vitamins most women are lacking in and can ward off heart disease, osteoporosis and illnesses like dementia.

Flax Seed

This is a great supplement for men as well as women but it is often chosen more by women because of the low cost and because it boasts of improving mental acuity; something that is very attractive to busy women with a lot on their plate. Flax Seed has many properties that earns it a place as a top contender for health and fitness. These include helping to lubricate joints and muscles which improves flexibility and decreases the risk of injuries, as well as metabolism boosting qualities for those looking to shed a few pounds. Flax seed has also been known to thwart heart illness and improve cardiovascular health because it contains fatty acids.

Calcium

Although most people think about bones when speaking of calcium, many new studies are showing positive results regarding calcium and weight loss, something many women contend with. It is now thought that calcium not only strengthens bones, but it also helps break down some of the fatty foods we eat and assists them in passing through the body easily, thereby increasing weight loss.

For more articles go to http://thrivefitnessandwellness.lifestyleezine.com

Source: http://thrivefitnessandwellness.com/blog/?p=143

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Great E-mail Marketing Tips To Help Your Business Grow | Paginas ...

TIP! Avoid spammy sales techniques, such as urgent messages that they need to ?Buy now!? the way you go about it. These kinds of approaches are overused, and can give your emails a spam-like feel.

Many have turned to marketing via email as part of their online business-building, but do not know exactly how to get started. Email marketing offers a variety of ways to help you build up your business and maintain open communication with your customers. With this article you can learn how to build a marketing approach for your email to help you accomplish all your goals.

TIP! Make sure you have permission to send emails to your subscribers. If you do not, you will risk losing trust of the customers and who they interact with, creating a bad name for your business.

Tie together one clear point in your email message. Customers will be quickly overwhelmed if you are trying to cover too much material in one email. Create one simple message that is short and direct to the point. Your customers will be pleased that they are not being bombarded with superfluous data.

TIP! Make sure to include an obvious, unsubscribe link. Don?t fail to provide an unsubscribe link and don?t bury it so deep in the text that it cannot be found.

Include the option of a confirmation when setting up your opt-in application. This will make it easy for someone to double check their desire for mail from your business. This might feel redundant, but you will ensure more targeted readers and fewer complaints about spam or email abuse.

TIP! Figure out what day of the week is best for sending out your emails based on the type of product you sell and the demographics of your customer base. As you might expect, business-related newsletter do best if mailed during the work week, such as on Wednesday or Thursday.

You can use email to quickly touch base with your customers. Make your emails personal. When you are sending emails, you should aim to keep them fairly brief. They should be appropriate for your own intention and the industry you are working in. Avoid long-winded, wordy, or rambling communications about your products. Include links to your website. This way, your customers will be able to get more information there.

TIP! Consider emailing without images. Images are great, but the time they take to load, or if they ever load at all, can be discouraging.

A very crucial, yet obvious, part of successful email promoting is making certain there are no mistakes in your subscribers email addresses. Remove any broken email addresses from your lists, don?t bother trying to find out what?s wrong with them. You can spend your precious time in better ways!

TIP! Remember that more and more people are reading their email with a mobile device, like a smartphone. Since the resolution is lower on these devices, you won?t have as much space.

Make the messages you send out for marketing as personal as possible. This doesn?t just mean addressing your customers by their first names. Use all the information you?ve gathered to personally market to people. Segment your subscriber list by interest or buying behavior, and create messages that are likely to appeal to that group of people.

TIP! Grow your email list naturally. That is to say that you should not buy just any old email list, since you have no way of knowing if the people on the list are interested in what you have to offer.

Create email lists organically. You should never buy or rent an email address list. Your list must be built out of people who truly want to receive your emails, such as those who subscribe to them on your website. Your list will remain relevant, while your business and profits grow.

TIP! You want your title to be strong. Because your subject line is the first thing subscribers see in their inboxes, it is important that the subject entices them to read the rest of your message ? so be clever.

It is your responsibility to ensure that your opt-in list is truly opt-in, so include an email confirmation as an added security measure. This amounts to sending new subscribers a validation email that aims to confirm that the right email address is subscribing to the list. Place two links in the email, one to confirm the subscription and one to refute the subscription. Doing so protects your client?s security and ensures that they don?t think you are spam.

TIP! Short, concise emails are the best marketing tool you can use. Nobody will read more then a paragraph or two within your email marketing message.

Always focus on the fact that the reason for marketing with email is to get more people to buy your products. What you want is for every email to entice the reader to buy. This can be done with an email that provides new product information, that goes over the benefits of an existing product or that talks about a new promotion.

TIP! Write an interesting subject line for your emails. The subject line is the first interaction you have with a customer for each mailing, and so it needs to get their attention enough to open the email.

Take the time to learn more about email marketing before starting your own campaign. Internet marketing can be an important part of successful business. The above guide could help you create a good e-mail marketing strategy focused on your business.

Source: http://www.paginaswebexitosas.com/great-e-mail-marketing-tips-to-help-your-business-grow.html?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=great-e-mail-marketing-tips-to-help-your-business-grow

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Saturday, December 1, 2012

'Not awkward': Vilma, Smith, Williams face-to-face

New Orleans Saints football linebacker Jonathan Vilma arrives at an attorney's office in Washington, Friday, Nov. 30, 2012, for a session of the pay-for-pain bounty system with the New Orleans Saints. Friday's session is part of the latest round of player appeals overseen by former NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen)

New Orleans Saints football linebacker Jonathan Vilma arrives at an attorney's office in Washington, Friday, Nov. 30, 2012, for a session of the pay-for-pain bounty system with the New Orleans Saints. Friday's session is part of the latest round of player appeals overseen by former NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen)

Former NFL commissioner Paul Tagliabue arrives at an attorney's office in Washington, Friday, Nov. 30, 2012, to take part in a hearing of the pay-for-pain bounty system with the New Orleans Saints. Friday's session is part of the latest round of player appeals overseen by former Tagliabue. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen)

FILE - In this Sept. 1, 2011 file photo, then-New Orleans Saints football team defensive coordinator Gregg Williams is seen at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans. Former NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue and lawyers for the league and the players' union have arrived on Capitol Hill in Washington, Thursday for a hearing in the Saints bounties case. Tagliabue is overseeing the latest round of player appeals in Washington. Williams has been suspended from the league. (AP Photo/Bill Haber, File)

New Orleans Saints football defensive end Will Smith, left, and linebacker Jonathan Vilma arrive at an attorney's office in Washington, Friday, Nov. 30, 2012, for a hearing on their appeals of bounties suspensions. Friday's session is part of the latest round of player appeals overseen by former NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue. (AP Photo/Cliff Owen)

(AP) ? It had been 10 months since New Orleans Saints linebacker Jonathan Vilma and defensive end Will Smith were face to face with their former defensive coordinator, Gregg Williams ? a span that included NFL suspensions for all three in connection with what a league investigation determined was a cash-for-hits bounty program.

For about four hours on Friday, Vilma and Smith sat and watched while their lawyers cross-examine Williams during a hearing that is part of the players' latest appeals of their punishments.

"We got to hear what Gregg had to say," Smith said afterward. "We wanted to make sure we were there just to hear him out."

Smith described the hearing, the third this week in Washington overseen by former NFL Commissioner Paul Tagliabue, as "peaceful" and "not awkward."

Smith, suspended four games, and Vilma, suspended for the entire current season, have been allowed back on the field while their appeals are pending, and both flew into town after playing in the Saints' 23-13 loss at the Atlanta Falcons on Thursday night. Two former New Orleans players also were banned: Cleveland Browns linebacker Scott Fujita had his suspension reduced to one game, while free-agent defensive lineman Anthony Hargrove has not played in the NFL this season but faces a two-game suspension if he signs with a team.

Smith and Vilma were not required to attend Friday, but wanted to be in the room when their former coach was questioned.

"We know what we did and know what we didn't do," Smith said. "I mean, we just wanted to be there because it was our right to be there."

The NFL has described Vilma and Smith as ringleaders ? and Williams as being in charge ? of a performance pool designed to knock targeted opponents out of games from 2009 to 2011. The league has sworn statements from Williams and former Saints assistant coach Mike Cerullo ? who testified Thursday ? saying Vilma offered $10,000 to anyone who knocked quarterback Brett Favre out of the NFC championship game at the end of the 2009 season.

They declined to discuss any details of Friday's hearing, citing Tagliabue's insistence that the contents of the appeals process remain private. The hearings ? scheduled to resume Monday in New Orleans ? have been behind closed doors. Vilma is supposed to be questioned next week.

Tagliabue and various lawyers declined to comment Thursday or Friday.

"Paul wants to keep it under wraps, keep everything low-key ... so not really much I can say right now," Vilma said.

"Of course," he added, "it felt good being able to go in there."

Vilma said it was the first time he had seen Williams since January, when the Saints' season ended with a playoff loss against San Francisco.

NFL Commissioner Roger Goodell issued the initial suspensions, which also included a full-season ban for Saints head coach Sean Payton.

Lawsuits brought by Vilma and the NFL Players Association to challenge Goodell's handling of the case, including his decision in October to appoint Tagliabue as the arbitrator for the appeals, are pending in federal court in New Orleans.

On Thursday, U.S. District Judge Ginger Berrigan gave the parties until Monday to answer questions about whether the NFL's collective bargaining agreement prevents a commissioner from handing out discipline for legal contact, and whether the CBA's passages about detrimental conduct are "ambiguous, hence unenforceable."

In March, the NFL announced that its investigation showed the Saints put together a bounty pool of up to $50,000 to reward game-ending injuries inflicted on opponents. "Knockouts" were worth $1,500 and "cart-offs" $1,000 ? with payments doubled or tripled for the playoffs, the league said.

According to the league, the pay-for-pain program was administered by Williams, with Payton's knowledge. At the time, Williams apologized for his role, saying: "It was a terrible mistake, and we knew it was wrong while we were doing it."

Later that month, Payton became the first head coach suspended by the league for any reason ? banned for all of this season without pay ? and Williams was suspended indefinitely.

Williams was known for his aggressive, physical defenses as a coordinator for Tennessee, Washington, Jacksonville and New Orleans, and during his time as head coach of Buffalo. In January, he was hired by St. Louis to lead their defense but hasn't been able to do that while suspended.

When Vilma and Smith made an earlier attempt to appeal their punishments, Goodell refused to reduce their bans.

As Vilma, wearing a gray suit, headed out of the building Friday, a reporter told him that Smith indicated the hearing was helpful.

"Yeah? Well, we said that last time," Vilma replied, "and we saw how that turned out. So we'll see what happens."

___

Connect with Howard Fendrich on Twitter at http://twitter.com/HowardFendrich

___

Online: http://pro32.ap.org/poll and http://twitter.com/AP_NFL

___

AP Sports Writer Brett Martel in New Orleans contributed to this report.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/347875155d53465d95cec892aeb06419/Article_2012-11-30-Saints-Bounties%20Hearings/id-004448b4f9994c72896b5bb9403c0266

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Turbine, shark jumping, and $50 horses | Bio Break

"This is not a joke." ~ Turbine

?This is not a joke.? ~ Turbine

There?s a lot of eyebrow-raising issues with upcoming LOTRO content, but let?s talk about the $50 hobby horse, shall we?? That?s right: Turbine?s introducing a toy hobby horse to the store (at least on the test server) that costs 5000 Turbine Points, which is mind-bogglingly expensive.

And then they asked for feedback.

Before we talk about the horse in particular, I want to quote the developer here.? This post is a masterpiece of passive-aggressive communication, and I honestly can?t believe it made it through whatever filters the company has for dev-player chat.? I mean, okay, I get that the developers don?t just want to hear nerdrage that?s completely unproductive and just vile, but the whole post starts from the assumption that that is coming and conducts some sort of pre-emptive strike that hits everyone:

?The store wizards would like your feedback (well-thought out, non-crazypants) on this item.?

?Any rants about how evil Turbine is for making store items, even those that are entirely optional and up simply for the fun of those who are willing to pay for them, will be disregarded. This item is an experiment item. We simply want your feedback on the type of item presented and what might be added to it or done to it to make it a better item. We are not forcing you to buy it. No one is forcing you to buy it. It?s something to be there and be fun for those who may want it.?

/pinches my nose and sighs

OK.? Here?s the thing.? If you want feedback, you?re going to have to accept the bad with the good.? What I?m hearing here is ?Shut up if you don?t like this, if you think it?s a money grab, if you don?t think it?s appropriate for the game.? Just shut up.? We won?t even acknowledge your crazypants existence.?? You cannot ask for feedback and then tell the people that their feedback will be disregarded if it doesn?t suit the developers.

Here?s one more thing: Taking this passive-aggressive stance with whoever is reading this is going to make everyone who reads it feel like they?re being chastised.? I don?t care what the reader would?ve said, they?re already starting from the position that Turbine?s kind of cross with them and watching them very, very closely.? It starts a ?feedback? discussion off on the wrong foot, in my opinion.

Now back to the horse.? From what I hear, it?s a normal-speed mount with no specified extra features.? Maybe that?s coming later. Lore-wise, this runs right off a cliff and does not-good things to immersion.? Perhaps we?re too late to complain about that, but there?s little room in my head for a Middle-earth where the war-hardened inhabitants are prancing around on kids? toys.

I love how this dev says ?This is not a joke,? as if they knew that that would be the very first response.? I mean, Turbine?s got to know that it?s going to get some strong pushback here.? Lo and behold, the first response is incredulity, and it goes downhill from there:

?3. What sort of features might entice you to purchase an item at this price point??
?Being an expansion??

?How long untill Flying Mounts seem like a good idea???

?2. Would you be willing to purchase this item??
?If I enjoyed literally setting fire to money in my spare time, probably.?

?1. The price is not a joke. That is the proposed price for this item.?
?The 5,000 price point is astronomical for what the in-game toy provides. You call it not a joke and you?re right. I?m not laughing.?

?My constructive question would be,
1a.Who @Turbine/WB actually proposed that price point?
1b. and have they been fired or removed from the item pricing team??

?Want me to be level headed? Stop making Store-only items that are over-priced and not available for VIPs to earn in-game.?

?I find the opening of such topic insulting toward me and the fan-base.?

?As a matter of fact I will do everything possible to not buy it and Ill personally lead a game-wide boycott on this item and any such other nonsense in the future.?

?3. What sort of features might entice you to purchase an item at this price point??
?Make it account wide. Also make it not such a humiliation.?

?I?m not sure that it?s entirely fair to set a crazypants price and then ask for non-crazypants feedback.?

How?s that for your community response?? Oh, go ahead and push it onto live, Turbine.? We all know you?re going to anyway.

Source: http://biobreak.wordpress.com/2012/11/30/turbine-shark-jumping-and-50-horses/

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WHO: 2 more cases of new virus in Jordan

(AP) ? International health officials have confirmed two more fatal cases of a mysterious respiratory virus in the Middle East.

The virus has so far sickened nine people and killed five of them. The new disease is a coronavirus related to SARS, which killed some 800 people in a global epidemic in 2003, and belongs to a family of viruses that most often causes the common cold.

The two cases date back to April and are part of a cluster of a dozen people, mostly health workers, who fell sick in an intensive care unit at a hospital in Zarqa, Jordan. Officials are investigating whether the 10 other people who grew sick in Zarqa also were infected and how the virus might have spread.

"It's too early to say whether human-to-human transmission occurred or not, but we certainly can't rule it out," said WHO spokesman Gregory Hartl.

One of the Jordanian cases was a 40-year-old female. All of the other patients to date have been men. The new virus has so far been identified in patients from Saudi Arabia and Qatar.

Scientists haven't found any links between the sporadic cases of the coronavirus so far, first detected in September. "We don't know how the virus gets around and there are more questions than answers right now," Hartl said.

Several of the patients sickened by the new coronavirus have had rapid kidney failure and others have suffered severe pneumonia and respiratory illnesses. The virus is most closely related to a bat virus and scientists are also considering whether bats or animals like camels or goats are a possible source of infection.

Scientists are also considering whether fruit contaminated by animal droppings may have spread the virus.

Still, not all of the cases had contact with animals and WHO said it was possible the virus was spread between humans in the Jordan hospital and in a cluster of cases in Saudi Arabia, where four members of the same family fell ill and two died.

WHO says the virus is probably more widespread than just the Middle East and recommended that countries test any people with unexplained pneumonia.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/bbd825583c8542898e6fa7d440b9febc/Article_2012-11-30-New%20Respiratory%20Virus/id-3f9ca7767b9c4eebabfec9fc8c4051b5

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The color of love: Zebrafish perform colorful courtship displays

ScienceDaily (Nov. 30, 2012) ? Billy Ocean may not have been thinking of fish when he wrote "The Color of Love," but Sophie Hutter, Attila Hettyey, Dustin Penn, and Sarah Zala from the Konrad Lorenz Institute of Ethology of the University of Veterinary Medicine, Vienna were able to show that zebrafish males and females both wear their brightest colours while wooing a mate.

Elaborate secondary sexual displays are often overlooked because many species attract mates through sensory modalities imperceptible to humans, including ultraviolet light, ultrasound, electrical signals, or pheromones. Also, sexual coloration may only be expressed briefly during courtship (ephemeral courtship dichromatisms) to avoid attracting predators. Zebrafish (Danio rerio) are a widely studied model organism, though there have been few studies on their mating behaviour. Like many schooling fish, zebrafish do not appear sexually dichromatic to humans; there are no obvious differences in the colour of males and females. Previous studies suggest that colour and stripe patterns influence their social and reproductive behaviour, but surprisingly, body colouration has not been quantitatively studied before in this fish.

The researchers studied sexually mature wild-derived zebrafish and a domesticated strain to compare the sexes and the two populations both in the morning, when mating and spawning occur, and again later in the day, when the fish only shoal. To assess the colour properties the scientists used non-invasive techniques such as digital photography, computer software and human observations and they photographed the fishin the water, while interacting with each other. The photographs allowed them to analyse hue, saturation, and brightness and to obtain numerical estimates of three colour properties.

They found that both males and females changed their colour (dark and light stripes) only during spawning, and that some sex differences in stripes were larger or only became apparent during this time. They also observed that individual males that appeared more colourful and conspicuous to the human eye engaged in courtship more often than less conspicuous males. These observations support the hypothesis that body colouration plays a role in the courtship and mating behaviour of zebrafish.

Both wild-derived and the laboratory strain of zebrafish showed this ephemeral dichromatism, but there were differences in the colour properties of the two populations, and reduced individual variation in the laboratory strain.

Further studies are needed to determine the underlying mechanisms and signalling functions of fleeting different colour expressions in zebrafish. Genetic analyses could help explain individual variation in nuptial colouration and provide insights into the evolutionary functions of this sexual dichromatism.

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The above story is reprinted from materials provided by Veterin?rmedizinische Universit?t Wien.

Note: Materials may be edited for content and length. For further information, please contact the source cited above.


Journal Reference:

  1. Sophie Hutter, Attila Hettyey, Dustin J. Penn, Sarah M. Zala. Ephemeral Sexual Dichromatism in Zebrafish (Danio rerio). Ethology, 2012; 118 (12): 1208 DOI: 10.1111/eth.12027

Note: If no author is given, the source is cited instead.

Disclaimer: Views expressed in this article do not necessarily reflect those of ScienceDaily or its staff.

Source: http://feeds.sciencedaily.com/~r/sciencedaily/top_news/top_environment/~3/aYkG95Q4HD8/121130094826.htm

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House votes to offer advanced-degree visas

FILE - In this Aug. 16, 2012 file photo, Joshua Montano, left, and Deborah Robles protest in front of the Capitol the day after Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer, in an executive order reaffirming Arizona state law denying young illegal immigrants driver's licenses and other public benefits in Phoenix. Organizations that advocate for immigrant rights on Thursday, Nov. 29, 2012 filed a lawsuit seeking to reverse an order by Jan Brewer that denies driving licenses to young immigrants who have obtained work permits and avoided deportation thanks to a new policy of President Barack Obama. The lawsuit alleges that Arizona's order actually classifies called "dreamers" as immigrants without permission to reside in the United States. The organizations asked a federal judge to declare unconstitutional the order because federal law takes precedence and because it denies licenses without a valid excuse. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File)

FILE - In this Aug. 16, 2012 file photo, Joshua Montano, left, and Deborah Robles protest in front of the Capitol the day after Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer, in an executive order reaffirming Arizona state law denying young illegal immigrants driver's licenses and other public benefits in Phoenix. Organizations that advocate for immigrant rights on Thursday, Nov. 29, 2012 filed a lawsuit seeking to reverse an order by Jan Brewer that denies driving licenses to young immigrants who have obtained work permits and avoided deportation thanks to a new policy of President Barack Obama. The lawsuit alleges that Arizona's order actually classifies called "dreamers" as immigrants without permission to reside in the United States. The organizations asked a federal judge to declare unconstitutional the order because federal law takes precedence and because it denies licenses without a valid excuse. (AP Photo/Ross D. Franklin, File)

(AP) ? Testing the waters of what is expected to be a turbulent battle over immigration policy next year, the House voted Friday to make green cards accessible to foreign students graduating with advanced science and math degrees from U.S. universities.

But even this limited step, strongly backed by the hi-tech industry and enjoying some bipartisan support, is unlikely to go anywhere this session of Congress, dramatizing how difficult it will be to find lasting solutions to the nation's much-maligned immigration system.

For Republicans largely shunned by Hispanic voters in the November elections, the 245-139 vote for the STEM Jobs Act was a way of showing they have softened their hardline immigration policies and are ready to work for more comprehensive legislation. A more sweeping bill presumably would deal not only with legal residents but also the estimated 11 million people here illegally.

In another gesture to Hispanics and other minority communities, lawmakers added a provision that will make it easier for those with green cards to be reunited with spouses and children now living overseas.

But for many Democrats and the Obama White House as well, this first step was more of a misstep.

Democrats, including members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, assailed the legislation for offsetting the 55,000 new permanent residency visas by eliminating a program that provided green cards to people with traditionally lower rates of immigration, particularly those from Africa. STEM stands for science, technology, engineering and mathematics.

The White House, in a statement opposing the GOP-crafted bill, said it was encouraged that Congress "appears to be ready to begin serious debate on the need to fix our broken immigration system." But it said the administration does not support "narrowly tailored proposals" that do not meet long-term objectives of achieving comprehensive reform.

That comprehensive approach includes dealing with the young people brought into the country illegally, establishing a solution for agriculture workers, creating an effective border enforcement system and worker verification program and deciding by what means those living in the country illegally can attain legal status.

The Democratic-controlled Senate is seen as likely to ignore the House STEM bill in the waning days of the current congressional session.

The partisan bickering attending the STEM bill signaled how hard it likely will be to pass more far-reaching immigration legislation. The idea of retaining foreign students with advanced degrees in the STEM fields enjoys wide bipartisan support and has long been sought by high-tech industries that have seen some of their brightest employee prospects being forced to leave the country and work for competitors abroad.

"We should staple a green card to their diplomas," said Rep. Jeff Flake, R-Ariz., a proponent of overhauling immigration law. He said that 65 percent of doctorate degrees in the STEM fields go to people who are foreign-born.

"American employers are desperate for qualified STEM workers no matter where they are from," said House Majority Leader Eric Cantor, R-Va.

But most Democrats balked at what they called the Republicans' "zero sum game" where there is no increase in the number of green cards offered.

The elimination of the Diversity Visa Lottery Program is a "slap in the face to the core value and the position of immigrants to the United States," said Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill., a leader on immigration policy with the Hispanic Caucus. "If you support this bill, then you are saying that one type of immigrant is better than the other," he said.

"It pains me greatly to say I can't support this flawed bill," because it ends the diversity program, said Democratic Rep. Zoe Lofgren, a strong proponent of STEM visas whose northern California district includes many hi-tech companies.

The House voted on a similar STEM Act in September, but it fell short under a procedure requiring a two-thirds majority. It was revived under rules needing only a simple majority. Republicans also tried to attract votes by adding a provision that makes it easier for people with green cards to bring their spouses and children to this country. But this popular concept also ran into Democratic criticism because it stipulates that spouses waiting for their own green cards to be approved cannot work and family members in the country illegally are ineligible.

The STEM Act visas would be in addition to about 140,000 employment-based visas for those ranging from lower-skilled workers to college graduates and people in the arts, education and athletics.

The Diversity Visa Lottery Program, created partly to increase visas for Ireland, has shifted over the years to focus on former Soviet states and now Africa. In 2010, almost 25,000 visas went to Africa; 9,000 to Asia and 16,000 to Europe. Applicants must have at least a high school education.

Critics say the visa lottery program has outlived its purpose because Africans and East Europeans are already benefiting from family unification and skilled employment visas, and the lottery program is subject to fraud and infiltration by terrorists. Lofgren said it was "preposterous" that terrorists would try to get into a country under a program that picks 55,000 people at random out of more than 14 million applicants.

The provision on reuniting families allows the spouses and children of permanent residents to come to the United States to wait for their own green card applications to be processed one year after applying. Currently, family members must wait more than two years before being reunited.

Associated Press

Source: http://hosted2.ap.org/APDEFAULT/89ae8247abe8493fae24405546e9a1aa/Article_2012-11-30-Congress-Immigration/id-fd8a7111539d45cd800d596fe2d71fb6

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