iOS Apps Can Run on a PlayBook, Kinda [Video]

If you somehow happen to own a BlackBerry PlayBook: we're very sorry for you. But still, don't be too sad, because apparently it's possible to port iOS apps so that they run on your awful piece of hardware! More »

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GOP mood toward Romney's fall prospects brighten

ROSEMONT, Ill. (AP) -- Republicans riding high from a string of breaks in their favor are increasingly optimistic about Mitt Romney's chances to claim the White House in November, even among conservatives who had qualms about making him the party's nominee.

The bullish take is reflected in interviews with party strategists and activists, including people who supported Romney rivals during the primary season. Mood matters because it can fuel fundraising and volunteer hustle. But some of those GOP players stress that Romney, the former Massachusetts governor, has little room for error if he expects to topple an incumbent president.

The chest-thumping follows a GOP victory in last week's Wisconsin recall election that saved Gov. Scott Walker's job. The race galvanized Republicans who saw it as an early 2012 referendum on conservative fiscal principles in an election that was likely to hinge on the shape of the economy.

Even Rick Santorum, who spent a primary season casting doubt on Romney's ability to succeed in a general election, says things are looking up for Romney.

"I can tell you, I feel a little bit better about that election since what happened on Tuesday up in Wisconsin," Santorum said Friday at a Conservative Political Action Conference in Chicago.

Some Republican voters concede they aren't as passionate about electing Romney as they are about booting Democratic President Barack Obama from the Oval Office.

"He's obviously it, and he's what is left," FBI agent David Hirtz, an active member of his central Illinois tea party, said of Romney. "Anybody is better than Obama."

In mid-May, a USA Today/Gallup poll found 81 percent of Democrats and 58 percent of independents predicting an Obama victory. Among Republicans, 68 percent thought Romney will win - about the same percentage of faith GOP voters placed in 2008 nominee John McCain at this point in his campaign.

But that was before the closely watched Wisconsin recall, the release of key campaign finance figures and the latest figures on job growth raised concerns about a slowing economic recovery, which gave Romney more fodder to pound Obama's stewardship.

Romney and his Republican allies pulled down more money than Obama and aligned Democratic Party committees in May, a notable shift in the money chase. The $76 million haul was a big jump up from what Romney and the GOP had raised the month before, and it was comfortably above the $60 million gathered by the combined Obama team.

A conservative base that was deeply splintered during the Republican primaries has coalesced around Romney even faster than some in the party were expecting.

That's the case with Bobbi Jo Rohrberg, a 36-year-old teacher and conservative blogger from southwestern Iowa who backed Santorum at the state's leadoff caucuses in January. She was worried a Romney nomination would look too much like McCain's fateful run.

Rohrberg said Romney initially struck her as someone who was "not going to have a lot of bite, not going to show the teeth, going to be very likeable and agreeable to go along and get along, which isn't going to get you anywhere if you are going to win."

But she said those concerns faded after Romney blasted Obama outside failed California solar energy company Solyndra, which received federal stimulus loans, and his recent efforts to brand the president as incapable of guiding the economy.

Virginia Procuniar, who plans to contribute money to Romney after initially holding back, said her confidence in his chances comes from seeing Obama have to play defense more regularly.

"Obama is his (own) worst enemy. As he gets more in a corner and more on the defensive, he's making gaffes that are ticking people off," said Procuniar, who at 65 recently retired from the insurance company in Chicago.

On Friday, Obama exposed himself to GOP ridicule for an ill-cast appraisal that the "the private sector is doing fine." He later clarified that he meant there was "good momentum" lately, but the earlier remark had already become GOP ad material. Romney released a Web ad Sunday slamming Obama for the remark by contrasting it with eight people who tell how they've struggled despite the recovering economy.

For the GOP, the climb to victory remains steep. Several states that Obama won four years ago would have to flip for Romney to reach the required 270 electoral votes.

"Let's be honest about it, at the presidential level, the Democrats took the Republicans out behind the woodshed a little bit in 2008. By the sheer number of electoral votes Barack Obama won last time, clearly we have our work cut out for us," said Gregg Keller, executive director of the American Conservative Union. "It's a tough map for us and no one should think this is going to be a walk in the park. It's going to be a tough race. But Republicans and conservatives believe this is an eminently winnable race."

The conservative gathering just outside Chicago - where Obama's political operation is based - focused attention on a Midwest region that could prove pivotal.

To the west, Iowa will be one of the most hotly contested states. Republicans have overtaken Democrats in Iowa voter party registration, the first time in six years they've had that pre-election advantage.

To the east, an Obama repeat in Indiana is viewed as unlikely and Ohio with its 18 electoral votes will be in play as usual. Republicans see a chance to apply pressure in Wisconsin and Michigan, too.

Illinois, the state that first sent Obama to the U.S. Senate, is hardly fertile territory for Romney. But conservative activists like Robert Baker of Princeton, Ill., said his local tea party group is already planning weekend canvass trips across the border in Iowa and Wisconsin, much like they did ahead of last week's recall. The Wisconsin win put a taste in their mouths, Baker said.

"We've demonstrated we can mobilize," the retired math teacher said. "We'll be pounding the pavement and handing out literature."

---

Associated Press Deputy Director of Polling Jennifer Agiesta in Washington contributed to this report.

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Bradley scores decision win over Pacquiao

LAS VEGAS (AP) ? Timothy Bradley promised to shock, though the biggest shock in his fight with Manny Pacquiao came from the judges' scorecards.

In a fight Pacquiao seemed to have in hand, two judges decided otherwise, giving Bradley a split decision Saturday night and ending the Filipino fighter's remarkable seven-year unbeaten run.

Promoter Bob Arum fumed, the crowd at the MGM Grand arena booed, and Pacquiao seemed stunned when the decision was announced. Arum said there would be a November rematch, though he blasted the way the decision went down.

"I've never been as ashamed of the sport of boxing as I am tonight," said Arum, who handles both fighters.

Bradley came on strong in the later rounds, winning five of the last six rounds on two scorecards and four on the third. He won 115-113 on two scorecards, while losing on the third by the same margin. The Associated Press had Pacquiao winning 117-111.

"I did my best," Pacquiao said. "I guess my best wasn't good enough."

Pacquiao tried to turn the fight into a brawl, using his power to hurt Bradley in the early rounds. But Bradley changed tactics in the middle rounds and used his boxing skills to win enough rounds to take the narrow decision for the welterweight title.

It ended a 15-fight winning streak by Pacquiao dating to 2005 that turned him into a boxing superstar and made him a national hero in the Philippines.

"I thought I won the fight," Bradley said. "I didn't think he was as good as everyone says he was. I didn't feel his power."

Ringside punching statistics showed Pacquiao landing 253 punches to 159 for Bradley, who vowed before the fight to take the 147-pound title from Pacquiao. The Compubox statistics showed Pacquiao landing more punches in 10 of the 12 rounds.

Bradley was so confident that he had oversized tickets printed up for a Nov. 10 rematch that will now likely happen.

Bradley seemed hurt in the fourth and fifth rounds, but Pacquiao had trouble landing big punches after that. Still, he seemed in control of the fight everywhere but on the judge's scorecards.

"Can you believe that? Unbelievable," Arum said. "I went over to Bradley before the decision and he said, 'I tried hard but I couldn't beat the guy.'"

Bradley said he hurt his ankle in the second round, and that trainer Joel Diaz said he could either quit or try to take the fight to Pacquiao.

"I got my second wind in the sixth round," Bradley said. "I worked the angles, sticking and moving."

Pacquiao said he studied Bradley on tape before the fight and wasn't surprised by anything he did. He said he thought he was in control of the fight and was shocked when the decision went against him.

"He never hurt me with his punches, most of them landed on my arms," Pacquiao said.

Pacquiao tried to brawl with Bradley and seemed to hurt him in both the fourth and fifth rounds. But Bradley started moving and counter punching, though he never seemed to land any shots that hurt Pacquiao.

Pacquiao had vowed to look impressive against Bradley after struggling in his last outing with Juan Manuel Marquez, a fight many thought he lost. And he did early, landing good long left hands while beating Bradley to the punch on most exchanges.

"He hurt me a couple of times with his left," Bradley said. "He's a beast."

Trainer Freddie Roach told Pacquiao after the 10th round that he had control of the fight, and urged him to fight hard the final two rounds.

"You have six minutes to go, son," Roach said. "It's your fight."

But it wasn't Pacquiao's fight, with Bradley getting credit for winning some of the close middle and later rounds. After the 11th round Bradley went back to his corner and trainer Joel Diaz told him he needed to win the final round.

"I listened to my corner," Bradley said. "I got to give him a rematch now."

Arum said there will be one on Nov. 10, though he thought Pacquiao won easily, as did most writers at ringside.

"I'll make a lot of money off the rematch, but this was outrageous," Arum said.

It was the biggest fight of Bradley's career and it came with a minimum $5 million payday. The rematch will be even richer, though Pacquiao's loss could damage any plans for a fight with Floyd Mayweather Jr.

Mayweather did not see the fight because he is serving a sentence on a domestic abuse charge at a jail a few miles from the MGM Grand.

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Ducks host NCAA Super Regional series

by Associated Press

kgw.com

Posted on June 8, 2012 at 2:00 PM

Updated today at 2:02 PM

EUGENE, Ore. -- The Oregon Ducks are preparing to host their best-of-three NCAA Super Regional series against the Kent State Golden Flashes starting Saturday at PK Park.

Oregon, in just its fourth season since reinstating baseball, is the No. 5 national seed in postseason play. That made the Ducks host for the series that will send the winner on to the College World Series in Omaha.

The Ducks (45-17) went 3-0 last weekend to advance out of the double-elimination regionals for the first time since 1954.

Kent State (44-17) has never advanced to a Super Regional before. The Golden Flashes are riding a 20-game winning streak, the longest in the nation, into Eugene.

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Many GOP Texas merch items come from China

FORT WORTH, Texas, June 8 (UPI) -- Vendors at the Republican Party of Texas state convention said they were unaware many of their goods were made in other countries, including China.

Michael Franks of TexasGOPStore.com, a sponsor of the convention, said he did not realize many of the items he is selling at the convention in Fort Worth were made in China and Nicaragua, the Fort Worth Star-Telegram reported Friday.

"I never looked at the label," Franks said of an Anvil-brand "I Palin" T-shirt made in Nicaragua.

Franks also sells the official pink convention T-shirt, which was made in Honduras.

Lisa Body of Aspen Design said she knew the 12 elephant and American flag brooches she sells were made in China, and many of her customers said they were not bothered.

"What difference does that make?" asked Harry Hingst, 63, a retired Lockheed Martin worker and a delegate from Comal County, who said he considers U.S. President Barack Obama a "socialist."

"It's one communist country versus another," he said.

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Key benefits of online Business analyst training

Business Analyst course has become a much-sought after one these days what with every person clamoring for a BA post. The demand for Business Analyst trainer has also shot up significantly since most youths hanker after a certified degree in the steam which gives them a great chance to secure a job as a BA in eminent organizations. Also, a reputed business analyst trainer in New Jersey will promise you a job after the completion of the course under the job placement guarantee scheme. If you are looking to hire the services of a BA trainer in New Jersey, then you can either opt for the onsite training method or the online training method.

With advancement of technology and widespread computerization, it has become very easy to get trained as a business analyst through the one-to-one online training method.

There are several benefits of online BA training. They are discussed below:

1. Convenience: When you opt for the online business analyst training, then one of the key benefits you get is the convenience of your home-stay. Some people do not have enough time to travel while some are not so comfortable in a classroom environment. While onsite training may be preferable to some, there are many who will find online training extremely convenient.
2. Personal training: Your business analyst trainer will devote personal attention to you when you opt for the online training mode. This is to say you get one-to-one training and emphasis is placed on your individualized requirement. You get exclusive attention and the trainer helps you convert your weaknesses into strengths. Since the job of business analyst requires you to assess the weaknesses of the company, stress is placed on your analytical abilities.
3. Hands-on approach: Another feature of BA training is the practical, hands-on approach which is used to give the students an idea about what goes on in the real corporate world.
4. Flexibility of timing: Another huge merit that your business analyst trainer in New Jersey will give you is the freedom to choose your time slot. Since you are going for the online training method, you do not need to travel to the institute at any particularly fixed time. Depending on your availability, you can choose to get trained on your preferred time slot. This is also convenient to those students who are doing any part-time job or are engaged in some other vocation.
5. Job placement: Your BA trainer in New Jersey will also help you prepare your resume and provide job placement guarantee. Post-hire job support is also provided.

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London hipsters greet long-lost Shakespeare theater

F. Brinley Bruton / msnbc.com

The Horse and Groom pub is on the same site as the Curtain, a recently discovered Shakespearean playhouse in London's trendy neighborhood of Shoreditch.

By F. Brinley Bruton, msnbc.com

LONDON - The Horse and Groom pub is known as a drinking hole and dancing venue in the heart of London?s edgy Shoreditch.

It is not known as the place where Shakespeare?s ?Romeo and Juliet? was first performed more than 400 years ago -- that is, until archeologists discovered the remains of the Curtain theater, an early Elizabethan playhouse.

?It is cool,? said 26-year-old Sophie McKay,?a writer and part-time bartender at the pub as she gazed at the patch of pebbled courtyard under which archeologists recently found remnants of the Curtain, built in 1577. ?A friend sent me the link and asked, ?Isn?t this where you work?? And I said, ?Yes it is!??

---

The Shakespeare fan -- her favorite character is Lady Macbeth -- heard that the entrance to the theater once stood near the Horse and Groom?s own front door. Pre-dating the more famous Globe, on the south bank of the river Thames, the Curtain first performed ?Henry V? and housed William Shakespeare?s company -- the Lord Chamberlain?s Men.

Shakespeare's pre-Globe theater unearthed

The remains of the open-air playhouse -- which was covered up again after its discovery?-- lies in what was once?the home of tanneries, factories, slaughter houses and bombed-out buildings.

F. Brinley Bruton / msnbc.com

Graffiti art decorates a wall on Hewitt Street outside the courtyard where archaeologists uncovered the Curtain, the playhouse where Shakespeare's 'Romeo and Juliet' was first performed.

But today it is arguably London?s trendiest?district, known for crowded bars, dance clubs, boutiques and experimental restaurants. It's an amalgam of graffiti-covered 1960s buildings, glass-fronted offices and converted Victorian factories, giving it a shabby-chic vibe.

That Shakespeare performed his tales of love, lust, ambition, betrayal and war in a place now inhabited by hipster creative-types makes sense to East London resident Trevor Howe, who was having a drink with photographer Amrita Chandradas, 24, at the Horse and Groom.

Hipsters to the rescue? UK celebrity venue in spat with auto firm Jaguar

?It?s vibrant, alive, exciting,? said the 41-year-old artist and photographer. ?It?s always changing, it never stops, there is always something new.?

Howe and Chandradas agreed it was exciting?that ?Romeo and Juliet??was first performed where they stood -- and upon realizing the tragedy about young love was a favorite of both, they embraced giddily.

Best-preserved Elizabethan theater?
The discovery of the Curtain?s walls and a yard, which came during work on a major regeneration project, is equally exciting for the experts involved in the excavation.

Over six weeks, the World Shakespeare Festival will show all of the Bard's 37 plays, each in a different language, and each by a different international company. Renowned artists and new young companies will celebrate performing Shakespeare in their own language within the architecture he wrote for -- the Globe Theatre in London. NBC News' Peter Jeary reports.

In addition to being one of only a dozen such playhouses believed to have ever been built, the site may well be the best-preserved Elizabethan playhouse, said Heather Knight, a senior archeologist from the Museum of London Archeology who helped uncover the Curtain.

?They are very rare buildings so to find anything of one of these buildings is exciting, but to find a wall that stands to its complete height is unique,? she said.

The reason the Curtain, built in 1577, and other Elizabethan playhouses are so rare is that they were razed by the Puritans after the English civil war.?

Shakespeare in Jericho echoes year of Arab strife

?The most bitter and most effective attacks on Shakespeare?s and the other playwrights? productions came from English Puritans,? leading Shakespearean scholar Hildegard Hammerschmidt-Hummel said. ?They thought the theater to be the root of evil.?

F. Brinley Bruton / msnbc.com

Graffiti art covers a building on London's Great Eastern Street close to where archeologists uncovered the Curtain, an ancient Elizabethan playhouse.

No sign of rampaging Puritans in Shoreditch these days, however.

If anything, the current rough-and-tumble creative life in Shoreditch may owe something Shakespeare, said Tom Monaghan, manager of The Queen of Hoxton, a self-described bar, club and art collective near the site where the Curtain was found.

?To think I work right opposite from were Shakespeare used to try out his material,? the 30-year-old said. ?Shakespeare could have put Macbeth through his paces over there.?

Monaghan, who interspersed the conversation with barked commands into a mic pinned to his t-shirt, stood amid people sipping European beer and wearing skinny jeans and lank hairstyles.

Then he asked:??Is it a coincidence that the area has become creative again??

More about Shakespeare:

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