This happens only in Texas....hmmm... 
This happens only in Thailand.....
This happens only in Australia
This happens only in Japan
This happens only somewhere in Africa
This happens only in India
This happens only in China
This happens only in Hawaii...!!!
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Friday, July 18, 2008
Below is a list of how each state ranks in adult obesity prevalence, along with the percentage of obese adults. The breakdown is based upon a Centers for Disease Control report.
1. Mississippi: 32%
2. Alabama: 30.3%
3. Tennessee: 30.1%
4. Louisiana: 29.8%
5. Arkansas: 28.7%
6. West Virginia: 29.5%
7. South Carolina: 28.4%
8. Georgia: 28.2%
9. Oklahoma and Texas: 28.1%
10. North Carolina: 28%
11. Michigan: 27.7%
12. Alaska, Missouri, and Ohio: 27.5%
13. Delaware and Kentucky: 27.4%
14. Pennsylvania: 27.1%
15. Iowa and Kansas: 26.9%
16. Indiana: 26.8%
17. North Dakota: 26.5%
18. South Dakota: 26.2%
19. Nebraska: 26%
20. Minnesota: 25.6%
21. Oregon: 25.5%
22. Arizona and Maryland: 25.4%
23. Washington: 25.3%
24. New York: 25%
25. Illinois: 24.9%
26. Maine: 24.8%
27. Wisconsin: 24.7%
28. Idaho: 24.5%
29. New Hampshire: 24.4%
30. Virginia: 24.3%
31. Nevada: 24.1%
32. New Mexico: 24%
33. Wyoming: 23.7%
34. New Jersey: 23.5%
35. California: 22.6%
36. Montana, Utah, and Washington, D.C.: 21.8%
37. Hawaii and Rhode Island: 21.4%
38. Massachusetts and Vermont: 21.3%
39. Connecticut: 21.2%
40. Colorado: 18.7%
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But after a large mortgage lender in California collapsed late Friday, Wall Street analysts began posing two crucial questions: Just how many banks might falter? And, more urgently, which one could be next?
The nation’s banks are in far less danger than they were in the late 1980s and early 1990s, when more than 1,000 federally insured institutions went under during the savings-and-loan crisis. The debacle, the greatest collapse of American financial institutions since the Depression, prompted a government bailout that cost taxpayers about $125 billion.
But the troubles are growing so rapidly at some small and midsize banks that as many as 150 out of the 7,500 banks nationwide could fail over the next 12 to 18 months, analysts say. Other lenders are likely to shut branches or seek mergers.
“Everybody is drawing up lists, trying to figure out who the next bank is, No. 1, and No. 2, how many of them are there,” said Richard X. Bove, the banking analyst with Ladenburg Thalmann, who released a list of troubled banks over the weekend. “And No. 3, from the standpoint of Washington, how badly is it going to affect the economy?”
Many investors are on edge after federal regulators seized the California lender, IndyMac Bank, one of the nation’s largest savings and loans, last week. With $32 billion in assets, IndyMac, a spinoff of the Countrywide Financial Corporation, was the biggest American lender to fail in more than two decades.
Now, as the Bush administration grapples with the crisis at the nation’s two largest mortgage finance companies, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, a rush of earnings reports in the coming days and weeks from some of the nation’s largest financial companies are likely to provide more gloomy reminders about the sorry state of the industry.
The future of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac is vital to the banks, savings and loans and credit unions, which own $1.3 trillion of securities issued or guaranteed by the two mortgage companies. If the mortgage giants ever defaulted on those obligations, banks might be forced to raise billions of dollars in additional capital.
The large institutions set to report results this week, including Citigroup and Merrill Lynch, are in no danger of failing, but some are expected to report more multibillion-dollar write-offs.
But time may be running out for some small and midsize lenders. They vary in size and location, but their common woe is the collapsed real estate market and souring mortgage loans. Most of these banks are far smaller than the industry giants that have drawn so much scrutiny from regulators and investors.
Still, only six lenders have failed so far this year, including IndyMac. In 1994, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation listed 575 banks that it considered to be troubled. As of this spring, the agency was worried about just 90 banks. That number may go up in August, when the government releases an updated list.
“Failed banks are a lagging indicator, not a leading indicator,” said William Isaac, who was chairman of the F.D.I.C. in the early 1980s and is now the chairman of the Secura Group, a finance consulting firm in Virginia. “So you will see more troubled, more failed banks this year.”
And yet IndyMac, one of the nation’s largest mortgage lenders, was not on the government’s troubled bank list this spring — an indication that other troubled banks may be below the radar.
The F.D.I.C. has $53 billion set aside to reimburse consumers for deposits lost at failed banks. IndyMac will eat up $4 billion to $8 billion of that fund, the agency estimates, and that could force it to raise more money from the banks that it insures.
The agency does not disclose which banks it thinks are troubled. But analysts are circulating their own lists, and short sellers — investors who bet against stocks — are piling on. In recent weeks, the share prices of some regional banks, like the BankUnited Financial Corporation, in Florida, and the Downey Financial Corporation, in California, have stumbled hard amid concern about their financial health. A BankUnited spokeswoman said the lender had largely avoided risky subprime loans.
In his “Who Is Next?” report over the weekend, Mr. Bove listed the fraction of loans at banks that are nonperforming, meaning, for example, that the assets have been foreclosed on or that payments are 90 days past due. He came up with what he called a danger zone, which was a percentage above 5 percent. Seven banks fell in this category.
An important issue for the regional and community banks will be whether they have managed to sell their riskiest loans to Wall Street firms.
And the government may have fewer failures than in the past because private investment funds might buy some troubled lenders. Regulators are considering rule changes that would allow private equity firms to buy larger shares of banks, and several prominent investors, like Wilbur Ross, have raised funds to leap in.
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Image: A bronze plaque marks a World War-II veteran's grave at Graceland Cemetery in Chicago, Illinois. | Photograph: Scott Olson/Getty Images
Image: A sign advertises prices paid for scrap metal at a recycling facility in Chicago, Illinois. | Photograph: Scott Olson/Getty Images
Scrap metal thieves are making the most of it with prices of copper, brass and other scrap metal soaring across the world.
The market prices of scrap metal in the US do not show the real value, but a growing global demand is said to be the reason for the rise in scrap values.
Some states in the United States have now passed a new law that will make theft of metal scrap a highly punishable offense. Meanwhile, cops are asking people to be more alert and keep their cars and bikes safe as they may be targeted by thieves for their scrap metal value.
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Here we present information about the world's eight biggest stock markets. They have not been ranked. Read on...
1. New York Stock Exchange: $21.79 trillion share trades
The New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) is nicknamed the 'Big Board'. This is the largest stock exchange in the world by dollar volume with 2,764 listed securities. It has the second most securities of all stock exchanges.
The NYSE originated on May 17, 1792. On that day, the Buttonwood Agreement was signed by 24 stock brokers outside New York's 68 Wall Street under a buttonwood tree.
The first office of NYSE was a room at 40 Wall Street rented for $200 a month. NYSE was gutted in the Great Fire of New York in 1835 and reconstructed soon after. In 1865, it moved to 10-12 Broad Street.
The NASDAQ is the acronym for National Association of Securities Dealers Automated Quotation System. An American stock exchange, NASDAQ is the largest electronic screen-based equity securities trading market in the US.
It is owned and operated by the NASDAQ OMX Group.
With about 3,200 companies in its ambit, NASDAQ has more trading volume per day than any other stock exchange.
NASDAQ came into being in 1971 by the National Association of Securities Dealers. The latter divested themselves of it in a series of sales in 2000 and 2001.
NASDAQ was the successor to the over-the-counter (OTC) and the 'Curb Exchange' systems of trading. As late as 1987, the NASDAQ exchange was commonly referred to as the OTC.
3. The London Stock Exchange: $7.57 trillion share trades
London Stock Exchange, or LSE, is located in London, England. It is part of the London Stock Exchange Group plc.
At present, it is situated in Paternoster Square close to St Paul's Cathedral in the City of London. One of the largest stock exchanges in the world, LSE was founded in 1801.
The trade in shares in London began with the need to finance two voyages: The Muscovy Company's attempt to reach China via the White Sea north of Russia, and the East India Company voyage to India and the east.
Unable to finance these costly journeys, the companies raised the money by selling shares to merchants, giving them a right to a portion of any profits eventually made.The Tokyo Stock Exchange, or TSE, located in Tokyo, Japan, is the second largest stock exchange in the world by market value, second to the New York Stock Exchange, but 4th in terms of worth of shares traded.
It currently lists 2,271 domestic companies and 31 foreign companies.
The Tokyo Stock Exchange was established on May 15, 1878, as the Tokyo Kabushiki Torihikijo under the direction of then Finance Minister Okuma Shigenobu and capitalist advocate Shibusawa Eiichi. Trading began on June 1, 1878.
In 1943, the exchange was combined with 10 other stock exchanges in major Japanese cities to form a single Japanese Stock Exchange. The combined exchange was shut down and reorganised shortly after the bombing of Nagasaki.
5. Euronext: $3.85 trillion share trades
Euronext N.V. is a pan-European stock exchange based in Paris with subsidiaries in Belgium, France, Netherlands, Luxembourg, Portugal and the United Kingdom.
In addition to equities and derivatives markets, the Euronext group provides clearing and information services.
Not too long ago, Euronext merged with NYSE Group to form NYSE Euronext, the 'first global stock exchange'.
Euronext was formed on September 22, 2000 in a merger of the Amsterdam Stock Exchange, Brussels Stock Exchange, and Paris Bourse.
In December 2001, Euronext acquired the shares of the London International Financial Futures and Options Exchange, which continues to operate under its own governance.
6. Deutsche Borse: $2.74 trillion share trades Deutsche Borse AG is a marketplace organiser for the trading of shares and other securities. It also is a transaction services provider. It gives companies and investors access to global capital markets.
Deutsche Borse was founded in 1992. The headquarters are in Frankfurt, Germany.
More than 3,200 employees of the exchange serve customers in Europe, the US and Asia. Deutsche Borse has locations in Germany, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Czech Republic and Spain, as well as representative offices in London, Paris, Chicago, New York, Hong Kong, and Dubai.
FWB Frankfurter Wertpapierborse (Frankfurt Stock Exchange), is one of the world's largest trading centers for securities. With a share in turnover of around 90 per cent, it is the largest of the German stock exchanges.
Deutsche Borse AG operates the Frankfurt Stock Exchange.
In 2001, Deutsche B�rse tried to merge with the London Stock Exchange, followed in 2006 by a takeover bid, both rejected by LSE.
7. Borsa Italiana: $1.59 trillion share trades
The Borsa Italiana S.p. A., based in Milan, is Italy's main stock exchange. It was privatised in 1997, and was acquired by the London Stock Exchange in October 2007.
Borsa Italiana has managing responsibility for Italy's derivatives markets and its fixed income market.
Milan's Borsa di Commercio (Commodities Exchange) opened under a vice-royal decree on 16 January 1808 and it operated under public ownership until 1998.
It was sold to a consortium of banks, and operated under a S.p. A. holding company between January 2, 1998 and an all-share takeover by the London Stock Exchange on October 1, 2007.
8. SWX Swiss Exchange: $1.40 trillion share trades
SWX Swiss Exchange is Switzerland's stock exchange, based in Zurich.
The main stock market index for the SWX Swiss Exchange is the SMI. The index consists of the 20 most significant equity-securities based on the free float market capitalisation.
The exchange also trades other securities such as Swiss government bonds and derivatives such as stock options.
The SWX is the first stock exchange in the world to incorporate a fully automated tradingsystem in 1995..
The SWX is the joint owners of the Eurex, world's largest futures and derivatives exchange along with their German partners Deutsche Borse. In July 2004, the Swiss Stock Exchange rejected a proposal of merger from the German company.
In September 2006, the Swiss Market Index crossed its previous all time high set nearly eight years ago.
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| Rank | Web Hosting Provider | Features | Bonus Features | Hosting Review |
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| 5 | Hostmonster Cheap Unix Hosting | Space/Traffic: Unlimited Price: $6.95 | Free Domain Forever, Host Unlimited Sites, $50 Yahoo Credit, $50 Google Credit | Hostmonster Review Host Rating: 96% Review Hostmonster |
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Moral of the story
If you are not well informed in your job, you might miss a great opportunity.
*********
Lesson 3:
A sales rep, an administration clerk, and the manager are walking to lunch when they find an antique oil lamp. They rub it and a Genie comes out.
The Genie says, "I'll give each of you just one wish."
"Me first! Me first!" says the admin clerk. "I want to be in the Bahamas, driving a speedboat, without a care in the world."
Puff! She's gone.
"Me next! Me next!" says the sales rep. "I want to be in Hawaii, relaxing on the beach with my personal masseuse, an endless supply of Pina Coladas and the love of my life."
Puff! He's gone.
"OK, you're up," the Genie says to the manager.
The manager says, "I want those two back in the office after lunch."
Moral of the story
Always let your boss have the first say.
*********
Lesson 4:
An eagle was sitting on a tree resting, doing nothing. A small rabbit saw the eagle and asked him, "Can I also sit like you and do nothing?"
The eagle answered: "Sure , why not."
So, the rabbit sat on the ground below the eagle and rested. All of a sudden, a fox appeared, jumped on the rabbit and ate it.
Moral of the story
To be sitting and doing nothing, you must be sitting very, very high up.
*********
Lesson 5:
A turkey was chatting with a bull. "I would love to be able to get to the top of that tree," sighed the turkey,"but I haven't got the energy."
"Well, why don't you nibble on some of my droppings?" replied the bull.
They're packed with nutrients."
The turkey pecked at a lump of dung, and found it actually gave him enough strength to reach the lowest branch of the tree.
The next day, after eating some more dung, he reached the second branch.
Finally after a fourth night, the turkey was proudly perched at the top of the tree. He was promptly spotted by a farmer, who shot him out of the tree.
Moral of the story
BullShit might get you to the top, but it won't keep you there.
*********
Lesson 6:
A little bird was flying south for the Winter.It was so cold the bird froze and fell to the ground into a large field. While he was lying there, a cow came by and dropped some dung on him. As the frozen bird lay there in the pile of cow dung, he began to realize how warm he was.
The dung was actually thawing him out! He lay there all warm and happy, and soon began to sing for joy.
A passing cat heard the bird singing and came to investigate.
Following the sound, the cat discovered the bird under the pile of cow dung, and promptly dug him out and ate him.
Morals of this story
(1) Not everyone who shits on you is your enemy.
(2) Not everyone who gets you out of shit is your friend.
(3) And when you're in deep shit, it's best to keep your mouth
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We here at Top Socialite recently saw a list of the hottest women of the 80’s, and while we found it interesting it didn’t really hit home, because we really grew up in the 90’s. Sure we were alive in the 80’s, so we get the Shannon Tweed references, but our teenage years came a decade later.
So we decided to come up with our own list, the hottest women of the 90’s. Since the last year of that decade was less than ten years ago, we thought it would be a good idea to mostly pick women who you’d recognize as being of the 90’s. So you’re not going to find say a Britney Spears or Christina Aguilera, because those women are of this decade just as much as they were of the 90’s. Not a hard and fast rule as you’ll find many of the women on this list are still working today, but in the end everyone we selected was someone we thought of as a 90’s personality, regardless of whether or not they are making B movies or crappy TV shows still today. Onto the list:
20: Carmen Electra
Best Known For: Baywatch (97-98), MTV’s Singled Out, numerous Playboy layouts
On the list because: She has uh … impressive measurements. Sure she’s more plastic than a Visa card, but that was a trend in the 90’s. The plastic surgery just wasn’t all that tasteful yet. But in the end she’s a Baywatch alum and managed to fill some pretty big shoes in her stint as host of MTV’s Singled Out which is enough to get her onto our list.
Proof of hotness:
19: Shannon Doherty
Best Known For: Being the “bitchy one” on Beverly Hills, 90210
On the list because: There were few actresses as big as Shannon Doherty in the early 90’s. She was kind of the Lindsay Lohan/Paris Hilton/Britney Spears of the day, racking up DUI’s, passing bad checks, and fighting with co-stars constantly. She was actually really intimidating and more than a little scary, but still really hot.
Proof of hotness:
18: Marisa Tomei
Best Known For: My Cousin Vinny, a pretty shocking Oscar win, and a hilarious appearance on Seinfeld.
On the list because: She was good enough to make George Costonza want to leave his fiancee, that is a pretty good indication of hotness. Kind of. I guess George kind of hated Susan …
Proof of hotness:
17: Cindy Crawford
Best Known For: Being the biggest supermodel in the world in the 90’s.
On the list because: She was absolutely everywhere in the early to mid 90’s, and it wasn’t because of her acting ability.
Proof of hotness:
16: Winona Ryder
Best Known For: Dating Jonny Depp in the early 90’s. No, seriously. There was also that shoplifting thing.
On the list because: She’s incredibly underrated when it comes to her looks. It seems like people have only recently started noticing the cleavage, but it’s been there all along.
Proof of hotness:
15: Kathy Ireland
Best Known For: SI’s swimsuit edition
On the list because: Back in the prehistoric times, when there was no internet, the SI swimsuit edition was sometimes the best thing out there when it came to soft core porn. And Kathy Ireland was usually the best thing in it.
Proof of hotness:
14: Shannon Elizabeth
Best Known For: A surprising nude scene in American Pie.
On the list because of: A surprising nude scene in American Pie. Her career pretty much began and ended with that movie (and that scene), but that was enough for her to make this list.
Proof of hotness:
13: Claudia Schiffer
Best Known For: Being a massively well known supermodel, beginning as a Guess Jeans girl back in the early 90’s. Guess Jeans really went to hell didn’t they? I guess that’s what happens when you go from having Claudia Schiffer endorse your product to Anna Nicole Smith.
On the list because: Everyone has a thing for tall blonde German chicks. That’s not me talking, that’s science.
Proof of hotness:
12: Laetitia Casta
Best Known For: Victoria’s Secret modeling
On the list because: I spoke earlier about the SI swimsuit edition, but on better pre-internet days you’d sometimes come across a Victoria’s Secret catalog, where Laetitia always looked stunning. Also made appearances in SI’s swimsuit edition though, and those were also pretty amazing.
Proof of hotness:
11: Shania Twain
Best Known For: Selling an assload of country/pop records in the 90’s.
On the list because: We can’t stand her music, but her videos were always pretty good eye candy.
Proof of hotness:
10: Heather Graham
Best Known For: A career making performance as Rollergirl in Boogie Nights.
On the list because: She never took her skates off.
Proof of hotness:
9: Christina Applegate
Best Known For: Her role as Kelly Bundy on one of the greatest shows in the history of television, Married … With Children.
On the list because: Trashiness has it’s appeal, and there wasn’t much trashier on TV in the 90’s than Christina Applegate as Kelly Bundy.
Proof of hotness:
8: Sarah Michelle Gellar
Best Known For: Buffy the Vampire Slayer and many film appearances
On the list because: Gellar still works quite a bit, but to us she peaked in 1999’s Cruel Intentions where she made out with Selma Blair. Yeah, you know what we’re talking about.
Proof of hotness:
7: Liz Phair
Best Known For: Being an indie rock queen in the 90’s.
On the list because: She’s the cutest thing ever. Phair has actually had more commercial success in this decade, but to us she’s intrinsically a part of the 90’s.
Proof of hotness:
6: Heather Locklear
Best Known For: Her role as Amanda Woodward on Melrose Place
On the list because: She was the epitome of the California hottie. Just check out the blonde hair and blue eyes.
Proof of hotness:
5: Jennifer Love Hewitt
Best Known For: Lots of crappy teen movies like I Know What You Did Last Summer, as well as her role on Party of Five
On the list because: Really, in the late 90’s were there many women you wanted to see naked more than Jennifer Love Hewitt?
Proof of hotness:
4: Tiffany Amber Thiessen
Best Known For: Moving from her role as the sweet and innocent Kelly on Saved By The Bell to playing a total slut on Beverly Hills 90210.
On the list because: Everyone wanted to date Kelly Kapowski.
Proof of hotness:
3: Alicia Silverstone
Best Known For: Her role as Cher in Clueless, falling off the face of the planet quicker than any other big name actor or actress. Until her recent PETA ad anyway.
On the list because: Ok, sure she seemed totally brainless in Clueless, but it was pretty endearing at the same time.
Proof of hotness:
2: Gillian Anderson
Best Known For: Her role as Dana Scully in The X-Files.
On the list because: Dana Scully was one of the smarter female roles in television back in the 90’s, and intelligence is hot. Plus we here at Top Socialite have a thing for red heads.
Proof of hotness:
1: Jenny McCarthy
Best Known For: Playboy appearances, host of MTV’s Singled Out
On the list because: She actually seemed like she’d be pretty fun to hang out with. One of the guys. If one of the guys had enormous breasts and blindingly blonde hair.
Proof of hotness:
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