Tag Archives: Guam

News, Politics, Government

Cameron: UK must keep nuclear defenses

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Prime Minister David Cameron says it would be “foolish” to abandon Britain’s nuclear armed submarines amid the increased threat of an attack from North Korea.

Cameron says that the nuclear threat against Britain has risen since the Cold War‘s end, citing Iran and the “highly unpredictable and aggressive regime” in North Korea as “evolving threats.”

The prime minister’s remarks were published Thursday in the Daily Telegraph newspaper, hours after North Korea‘s military warned that it has been authorized to attack the U.S. using nuclear weapons and Washington said it was moving an advanced missile system to the Pacific island of Guam.

Cameron argued that as Pyongyang develops ballistic missiles that could eventually threaten Europe, it would be “foolish to leave Britain defenseless against a continuing, and growing, nuclear threat.”

…read more

Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News

Articles of Interest

North Korea Seen Moving Missile: Report

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By The Huffington Post News Editors

SEOUL, April 4 (Reuters) – North Korea has moved what appears to be a mid-range Musudan missile to its east coast, South Korea‘s Yonhap news agency said on Thursday, quoting multiple government sources privy to intelligence from U.S. and South Korean authorities.
It was not clear if the missile was mounted with a warhead or whether the North was planning to fire it or was just putting it on display as a show of force, one South Korean government source was quoted as saying.
“South Korean and U.S. intelligence authorities have obtained indications the North has moved an object that appears to be a mid-range missile to the east coast,” the source said.
The Musudan missile is believed to have a range of 3,000 km (1,875 miles) or more, which would put all of South Korea and Japan in range and possibly also the U.S. territory of Guam in the Pacific Ocean. North Korea is not believed to have tested these mid-range missiles, according to most independent experts
South Korea‘s defence ministry declined to comment.
North Korea has threatened a nuclear strike on the United States and missile attacks on its Pacific bases, including in Guam. Those threats followed new U.N. sanctions imposed on the North after it carried out its third nuclear test in February.
The missile was moved to the coast by train. The North has a missile launch site on the northeastern coast, which it has used to unsuccessfully test-fire long-range rockets in the past.
The Yonhap report did not say if the missile had been moved to the missile site.
Japan‘s Asahi Shimbun newspaper issued a similar report on Thursday, saying the North had moved what appeared to be a long-range missile to its east coast. (Reporting by Jack Kim, Editing by Dean Yates)

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Source: FULL ARTICLE at Huffington Post

News, Politics, Government

US missile defense shield to counter NKorea threat

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The Pentagon said Wednesday it was deploying a missile defense shield to Guam to protect the U.S. and its allies in the region in response to increasingly hostile rhetoric from North Korea. The North renewed its threat to launch a nuclear attack on the United States.

The threat issued by the General Staff of the Korean People’s Army capped a week of psychological warfare and military muscle moves by both sides that have rattled the region.

On Wednesday, the Pentagon announced it will deploy a land-based, high-altitude missile defense system to Guam to strengthen the Asia-Pacific region’s protections against a possible attack.

Pyongyang, for its part, said that America’s ever-escalating hostile policy toward North Korea “will be smashed” by the North’s nuclear strike and the “merciless operation” of its armed forces.

“The U.S. had better ponder over the prevailing grave situation,” said the translated statement, which was issued before the Pentagon announced plans to send a missile defense shield to Guam.

The Pentagon had no immediate reaction to the latest statement, but earlier Wednesday Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel labeled North Korea‘s rhetoric as a real, clear danger and threat to the U.S. and its Asia-Pacific allies. And he said the U.S. is doing all it can to defuse the situation, echoing comments a day earlier by Secretary of State John Kerry.

“Some of the actions they’ve taken over the last few weeks present a real and clear danger and threat to the interests, certainly of our allies, starting with South Korea and Japan and also the threats that the North Koreans have leveled directly at the United States regarding our base in Guam, threatened Hawaii, threatened the West Coast of the United States,” Hagel said.

He said he believes that the U.S. has had a “measured, responsible, serious responses to those threats.”

Deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense System is the latest step the U.S. has taken to bolster forces in the region in a far-reaching show of force aimed at countering the North Korean threat.

In recent months, North Korea has taken a series of actions Washington deemed provocative, including an underground nuclear test in February and a rocket launch in December that put a satellite into space and demonstrated mastery of some of the technologies needed to produce a …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox US News

News, Politics, Government

Hagel calls N. Korea 'real and clear danger,' as US plans defense system in Guam

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Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel said Wednesday that North Korea‘s rising threats pose a “real and clear danger,” as the Pentagon continued to take precautions with a plan to deploy a missile-defense system to Guam.

A senior U.S. official confirmed to Fox News that the military will deploy an Army system shown as a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense battery to Guam. The system is capable of shooting down short-, medium- and intermediate-range ballistic missiles.

This follows the positioning of two U.S. destroyer ships in the region, along with plans to have two sea-based radar systems in the western Pacific.

Hagel, speaking Wednesday at the National Defense University, said the cascade of threats out of North Korea must be taken “seriously,” given the country’s nuclear and missile-delivery capacity — though analysts say the country still could not fire a nuclear-tipped missile all the way to the continental United States.

“As they have ratcheted up (their) bellicose, dangerous rhetoric — and some of the actions they’ve taken over the last few weeks present a real and clear danger and threat to the interests, certainly of our allies, starting with South Korea and Japan,” Hagel said. He also cited the “threats that the North Koreans have leveled directly at the United States regarding our base in Guam, threatened Hawaii, threatened to the West Coast of the United States.”

The Kim Jong Un regime has toggled in recent weeks between threatening the U.S. and threatening South Korea.

The latest development was North Korea reportedly announcing it had “ratified” a strike plan against the United States. Also Wednesday, it decided to bar South Korean managers and trucks delivering supplies from crossing the border to enter a jointly run factory park called Kaesong.

The Kaesong industrial park started producing goods in 2004 and has been an unusual point of cooperation in an otherwise hostile relationship between the Koreas, whose three-year war ended in 1953 with an armistice, not a peace treaty.

The Kaesong move came a day after the North said it would restart its long-shuttered plutonium reactor and a uranium enrichment plant. Both could produce fuel for nuclear weapons that North Korea is developing and has threatened to hurl at the U.S., something experts don’t think it will be able to accomplish for years.

The North’s rising rhetoric has been met by a display of U.S. military strength, including flights of nuclear-capable bombers and stealth jets at annual South Korean-U.S. military drills that the allies call routine and North Korea says are invasion preparations.

In a telephone call Tuesday evening to Chinese Defense Minister Chang Wanquan, Hagel cited North Korea‘s pursuit of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles and said Washington and Beijing should continue to cooperate on those problems.

“The secretary emphasized the growing threat to the U.S. and our allies posed by North Korea‘s aggressive pursuit of nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs and expressed to General Chang the importance of sustained U.S.-China dialogue and cooperation on these issues,” Pentagon spokesman George Little said in a statement describing the phone call.

Little also disclosed that Gen. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox US News

White House Press Office

First Lady Michelle Obama and Epicurious Host Second Recipe Challenge

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By The White House

FIRST LADY MICHELLE OBAMA AND EPICURIOUS HOST
SECOND RECIPE CHALLENGE
TO PROMOTE HEALTHY EATING NATIONWIDE

“The Healthy Lunchtime Challenge” Welcomes Children and Their Parents to Create
Healthy Lunch Recipes for an Invite to a Kids’ “State Dinner” at the White House

New York, NY (April 3, 2013) – With the overwhelming success of the inaugural Healthy Lunchtime Challenge & Kids' “State Dinner” in 2012, First Lady Michelle Obama is again teaming up with Epicurious, the U.S. Department of Education, and the Department of Agriculture to host a nationwide recipe challenge to promote healthy eating among America’s youth.

“Last year’s Kids State dinner was one of my favorite events we’ve ever done for Let’s Move! because it perfectly captured how young people, parents, community leaders and businesses can come together for innovative, healthy solutions,” said First Lady Michelle Obama. “Last year’s young chefs impressed and inspired me with their creativity, and I can’t wait to welcome a whole new group to the White House this summer and taste their creations. So kids, let’s get cooking!”

The second Healthy Lunchtime Challenge & Kids' “State Dinner” invites parents or guardians and their children, ages 8-12, to create and submit an original lunch recipe that is healthy, affordable, and tasty. In support of Let’s Move!, launched by the First Lady to solve the issue of childhood obesity, each recipe must adhere to the guidance that supports USDA’s MyPlate (at ChooseMyPlate.gov) to ensure that the criteria of a healthy meal are met. Entries must represent each of the food groups, either in one dish or as parts of a lunch meal, including fruits, vegetables, whole grains, lean proteins and low-fat dairy foods, with fruits and veggies making up roughly half the plate or recipe.

All U.S. states and territories, including Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico, Guam, American Samoa, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and the Northern Mariana Islands, are invited to participate. Fifty-six children and their parent/guardian (one pair from each of the 50 states, plus the U.S. Territories, D.C., and Puerto Rico) will be flown to the nation’s capital where they will have the opportunity to attend a Kids’ “State Dinner” at the White House this summer, hosted by Mrs. Obama. A selection of the winning healthy recipes will be served.

“In order to promote a healthier next generation of Americans, we need to encourage kids to make healthier choices now – which they can carry into adulthood,” said Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack. “USDA is thrilled to be part of the Healthy Lunchtime Challenge again this year because it inspires kids to use USDA’s MyPlate to take a hands-on approach to building healthier meal times.”

“We know healthy kids are healthy students, and healthy students are better able to engage in the classroom and excel academically,” said U.S. Secretary of Education Arne Duncan. “If we can get our children to eat healthier and exercise more, that’s a recipe for success. Kids are the best judges of what looks and tastes good, …read more
Source: White House Press Office

Business, Finance, Occupation & Industry

Walgreens March Sales Increase 2.3 Percent

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By Business Wirevia The Motley Fool

Filed under:

Walgreens March Sales Increase 2.3 Percent

DEERFIELD, Ill.–(BUSINESS WIRE)– Walgreens (NYS: WAG) (NAS: WAG) had March sales of $6.16 billion, an increase of 2.3 percent from $6.02 billion for the same month in fiscal 2012.

Total front-end sales increased 5.4 percent compared with the same month in fiscal 2012, while comparable store front-end sales increased 4.2 percent. Customer traffic in comparable stores decreased 1.3 percent while basket size increased 5.5 percent.

Prescriptions filled at comparable stores increased by 4.0 percent in March and increased 7.4 percent on a calendar day-shift adjusted basis. This year’s March had one additional Sunday and one fewer Thursday compared with March 2012. In addition, Easter fell on March 31 this year compared with April 8 last year. These calendar shifts negatively impacted prescriptions filled at comparable stores by 3.4 percentage points.

The company said the percentage of former Express Scripts customers returning to its pharmacies continued to increase in March.

March pharmacy sales increased by 0.4 percent, while comparable store pharmacy sales decreased 1.5 percent but increased by a calendar day-shift adjusted 1.9 percent. Calendar day shifts negatively impacted pharmacy sales in comparable stores by 3.4 percentage points. Calendar day-shift adjusted comparable store pharmacy sales were negatively impacted by 4.8 percentage points due to generic drug introductions in the last 12 months. Pharmacy sales accounted for 62.2 percent of total sales for the month.

Sales in comparable stores increased by 0.7 percent in March. Calendar day shifts negatively impacted total comparable sales by 2.1 percentage points, while generic drug introductions in the last 12 months negatively impacted total comparable sales by 3.0 percentage points.

The company will report combined comparable store sales for March and April with its April sales results.

Registrations for Walgreens Balance® Rewards loyalty program, which launched in September, totaled more than 64 million through March.

Calendar 2013 sales to date were $18.09 billion, an increase of 2.3 percent from $17.68 billion in 2012.

Fiscal 2013 year-to-date sales for the first seven months were $42.12 billion, down 1.7 percent from $42.83 billion in the comparable period in fiscal 2012.

Walgreens opened 12 stores during March, including four relocations, and closed one.

On March 31, Walgreens operated 8,541 locations in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and Guam. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

News, Politics, Government

US sends F-22 jets to join South Korea drills

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The United States has sent F-22 stealth fighter jets to South Korea to join Seoul forces in military drills as North Korea warns the Korean Peninsula has entered “a state of war.”

A senior U.S. official confirms to Fox News that the F-22 Raptors were deployed to Osan Air Base in South Korea from Japan on Sunday to support ongoing U.S.-South Korean military drills.

North Korea has increased its threatening rhetoric in recent weeks, including vowing to launch a nuclear strike on Washington. In a statement released Sunday, U.S. military in South Korea urged North Korea to restrain itself.

“(North Korea) will achieve nothing by threats or provocations, which will only further isolate North Korea and undermine international efforts to ensure peace and stability in Northeast Asia,” the statement said.

Meanwhile, North Korea said Saturday its armed forces, “will blow up U.S. bases for aggression in its mainland and in the Pacific operational theatres including Hawaii and Guam.”

The country’s young leader, Kim Jong Un, also threatened to shut down a border factory complex that is the last major symbol of inter-Korean cooperation, according to the Associated Press.

The threats are seen as part of an effort to provoke the new government in Seoul to change its policies toward Pyongyang and to win diplomatic talks with Washington in order to gain more aid.

The White House says the U.S. is taking North Korea‘s threats seriously, but has also noted Pyongyang’s history of “bellicose rhetoric.”

On Thursday, U.S. military officials revealed that two B-2 stealth bombers dropped dummy munitions on an uninhabited South Korean island as part of annual defense drills that Pyongyang sees as rehearsals for invasion. Hours later, Kim ordered his generals to put rockets on standby and threatened to strike American targets if provoked.

Military analysts have said a full-scale conflict between North and South Korea is extremely unlikely, noting that the Korean Peninsula has remained in a technical state of war for 60 years. But the North’s continued threats toward South Korea and the United States have raised worries that a misjudgment between the sides could lead to a clash.

In addition to the military exercise, the U.S. will fortify its defenses against a potential North Korean missile attack by adding more than a dozen missile interceptors to the 26 already in place at Fort Greely, Alaska, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has also announced.

Fox News’ Justin Fishel and The Associated Press contributed to this report.

…read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News

News, Politics, Government

US reportedly sends F-22 jets to join South Korea drills

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The United States has reportedly sent F-22 stealth fighter jets to South Korea to join Seoul forces in military drills as North Korea warns the Korean Peninsula has entered “a state of war.”

The F-22 Raptors were deployed to Osan Air Base in South Korea from Japan on Sunday to support ongoing U.S.-South Korean military drills, Reuters reports.

North Korea has increased its threatening rhetoric in recent weeks, including vowing to launch a nuclear strike on Washington. In a statement released Sunday, U.S. military in South Korea urged North Korea to restrain itself.

“(North Korea) will achieve nothing by threats or provocations, which will only further isolate North Korea and undermine international efforts to ensure peace and stability in Northeast Asia,” the statement said.

Meanwhile, North Korea said Saturday its armed forces, “will blow up U.S. bases for aggression in its mainland and in the Pacific operational theatres including Hawaii and Guam.”

The country’s young leader, Kim Jong Un, also threatened to shut down a border factory complex that is the last major symbol of inter-Korean cooperation, according to the Associated Press.

The threats are seen as part of an effort to provoke the new government in Seoul to change its policies toward Pyongyang and to win diplomatic talks with Washington in order to gain more aid.

The White House says the U.S. is taking North Korea‘s threats seriously, but has also noted Pyongyang’s history of “bellicose rhetoric.”

On Thursday, U.S. military officials revealed that two B-2 stealth bombers dropped dummy munitions on an uninhabited South Korean island as part of annual defense drills that Pyongyang sees as rehearsals for invasion. Hours later, Kim ordered his generals to put rockets on standby and threatened to strike American targets if provoked.

Military analysts have said a full-scale conflict between North and South Korea is extremely unlikely, noting that the Korean Peninsula has remained in a technical state of war for 60 years. But the North’s continued threats toward South Korea and the United States have raised worries that a misjudgment between the sides could lead to a clash.

In addition to the military exercise, the U.S. will fortify its defenses against a potential North Korean missile attack by adding more than a dozen missile interceptors to the 26 already in place at Fort Greely, Alaska, Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel has also announced.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

Click for more from Reuters.

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Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News

News, Politics, Government

NKorea orders rocket prep after US B-2 drill

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North Korea‘s leader responded Friday to America’s use of nuclear-capable B-2 bombers in joint South Korean military drills with more angry rhetoric, saying his rocket forces are ready “to settle accounts with the U.S.”

The threats, while not an indication of imminent war, are most likely aimed at coercing South Korea into softening its policies, to win direct talks and aid from Washington, and to strengthen young leader Kim Jong Un‘s credentials at home.

Kim “convened an urgent operation meeting” with his senior generals early Friday, signed a rocket preparation plan and ordered his forces on standby to strike the U.S. mainland, South Korea, Guam and Hawaii, state media reported.

It is the latest in the litany of apparently empty threats that North Korea has issued, including highly improbable ones to nuke the United States. Experts believe the country is years away from developing nuclear-tipped missiles that could strike the United States.

Many analysts say they’ve also seen no evidence that Pyongyang’s missiles can hit the U.S. mainland.

Still, North Korea remains unpredictable, and its threats do raise tensions given the kind of arsenal it has: short- and mid-range missiles that can hit South Korea. Also, Seoul is only a short drive from the heavily armed border separating the Koreas.

There are fears of a localized conflict, such as a naval skirmish in disputed Yellow Sea waters. Such naval clashes have happened three times since 1999.

Kim said “the time has come to settle accounts with the U.S. imperialists in view of the prevailing situation,” according to a report by the North’s official Korean Central News Agency. The stealth bombers’ flight indicates that U.S. hostility against North Korea has “entered a reckless phase, going beyond the phase of threat and blackmail,” Kim was quoted as saying.

Tens of thousands of North Koreans turned out for a 90-minute mass rally at the main square in Pyongyang in support of Kim’s call to arms. Chanting “Death to the U.S. imperialists” and “Sweep away the U.S. aggressors,” soldiers and students marched through Kim Il Sung Square in downtown Pyongyang.

U.S. Forces Korea said that the B-2 stealth bombers flew from a U.S. air base in Missouri and dropped dummy munitions on an uninhabited South Korean island range on Thursday before returning home. The Pentagon said this …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News

Articles of Interest

North Korea Rockets On Standby To Hit U.S. Bases On Kim Jong Un’s Orders, KCNA Reports

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By The Huffington Post News Editors

By David Chance and Phil Stewart
SEOUL/WASHINGTON, March 29 (Reuters) – North Korea put its rocket units on standby on Friday to attack U.S. military bases in South Korea and the Pacific, after the United States flew two nuclear-capable stealth bombers over the Korean peninsula in a rare show of force.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un signed off on the order at a midnight meeting of top generals and “judged the time has come to settle accounts with the U.S. imperialists in view of the prevailing situation”, official KCNA news agency said.
On Thursday, the United States flew two radar-evading B-2 Spirit bombers on practice runs over South Korea, responding to a series of North Korean threats. They flew from the United States and back in what appeared to be the first exercise of its kind, designed to show America’s ability to conduct long-range, precision strikes “quickly and at will”, the U.S. military said.
The news of Kim’s response was unusually swift.
“He finally signed the plan on technical preparations of strategic rockets of the KPA, ordering them to be standby for fire so that they may strike any time the U.S. mainland, its military bases in the operational theaters in the Pacific, including Hawaii and Guam, and those in south Korea,” KCNA said.
The North has an arsenal of Soviet-era Scud missiles that can hit South Korea, but its longer-range missiles are untested. Independent assessments of its missile capability suggest it may have theoretical capacity to hit U.S. bases in Japan and Guam.
The North has launched a daily barrage of threats since early this month when the United States and the South, allies in the 1950-53 Korean War, began routine military drills.
The South and the United States have said the drills are purely defensive in nature and that no incident has taken place in the decades they have been conducted in various forms.
The United States also flew B-52 bombers over South Korea earlier this week. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Huffington Post

Articles of Interest

North Korea Threats: China Calls For Restraint After Pyongyang Orders Units Ready To Target U.S. Bases

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By The Huffington Post News Editors

BEIJING, March 26 (Reuters) – China said on Tuesday it hopes all sides on the Korean peninsula can exercise restraint, after North Korea ordered its strategic rocket and long-range artillery units to be combat ready to target U.S. military bases on Guam , Hawaii and mainland America.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei made the comments to reporters at a daily briefing. (Reporting by Ben Blanchard, Writing by Sui-Lee Wee; editing by Jonathan Standing)

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More on North Korea

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Source: FULL ARTICLE at Huffington Post

Business, Finance, Occupation & Industry

Is North Korea Led By a Modern Day Super-Villain?

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By Steve Symington, The Motley Fool

Filed under:

Sometimes its seems like there’s just no end to North Korea‘s provocations.

To be sure, while the country has undoubtedly developed a reputation for unleashing threatening rhetoric, it seems to have achieved an entirely new level of vitriol over the past few weeks.

So far this month, for example, the reclusive nation scrapped the armistice which ended the Korean War in 1953, threatened to attack United States military bases in Japan and Guam, and — shortly before a scheduled United Nations vote on whether to enact a fresh round of crippling sanctions against the country —  vowed to launch a preemptive nuclear strike against the U.S.

That’s not to mention the country’s bizarre propaganda video last week in which it envisioned the bombing of the White House and Congress, or recent reports that its diplomats are quite literally being asked to forgo their ambassadorial responsibilities to instead sell large quantities of drugs in an effort to fill North Korea‘s coffers.

Then, just this week, North Korean hackers (now there’s a term you don’t hear everyday) are suspected in recent cyber attacks which temporarily shut down around 32,000 computers and servers belonging to South Korean media and financial companies.

So who’s protecting us?
For all intents and purposes, then, given the fact that North Korea seems bent on not playing nice with others, the country increasingly looks more like a modern day super-villain than anything else.

And that’s exactly why now is a great time to take a deeper look at a few of the companies who’ve made it their business to protect our country. 

On missile defense
For one, putting aside the fact that its shares currently trade hands for less than nine times trailing earnings, Northrup Grumman  boasts arguably the most comprehensive portfolio of defense solutions our world has to offer.

In addition to building our nation’s flagship long-range B-2 stealth bombers as well as enviable unmanned drones like the Global Hawk, Northrup maintains bleeding-edge cyber security solutions, has CBRNE detection systems (which stands for Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, and Explosives) currently placed around the U.S. Furthermore, Northrup is the prime contractor for our Missile Defense Integration and Operations Center, which plays a central role in the development of our nation’s Ballistic Missile Defense System.

On Friday, the U.S. Department of Defense also awarded Lockheed Martin  a $79.7 million contract modification for its Aegis Ballistic Missile Defense System, bringing the total value of the contract to a whopping $331.8 million. Like Northrup, Lockheed also plays great offense as evidenced by the F-35 maker’s recent $54.3 million contract win involving its Long-Range Anti Ship Missile project.

On cybersecurity
Of course, Northrup and Lockheed aren’t the only companies paid to protect our shores; Raytheon , for its part, not only maintains interceptors, radar equipment, and space sensors for its own missile defense systems, but also also recently agreed with the Department of Homeland Security to become a provider for “enhanced cybersecurity services” in response to the U.S. government‘s recent decision to further bolster …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at DailyFinance

News, Politics, Government

Earnings Bonanza Has Macy's Looking Good

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By Zacks.com, Contributor

Macy’s (M) delivered the coveted “triple play” with its latest earnings report. On February 26, the company reported: A positive earnings surprise A positive sales surprise Management guidance above the Zacks Consensus Estimate This prompted analysts to revise their estimates higher for both 2013 and 2014, sending the stock to a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). Since the Great Recession officially ended in 2009, Macy’s has consistently delivered solid same-store sales growth and expanding profit margins, which has led to annual double-digit earnings growth. And analysts expect this trend to continue over the next couple of years. Despite this, shares trade at just 10.5x 12-month forward earnings, well below the industry median of 14.0x. Tack on a solid 1.9% dividend yield, and this stock looks poised to deliver strong total returns to investors. Macy’s operates about 800 Macy’s department stores in 45 states, the District of Columbia, Guam and Puerto Rico. It also owns and operates the Bloomingdale’s brand, which has 37 department stores in 11 states. On February 26, Macy’s delivered strong results for its fiscal 2012 fourth quarter. Sales increased 7.2% to $9.350 billion, which was ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $9.327 billion. The company benefited from an extra week in the quarter, but if you strip that out, same-store sales on a comparable 13-week period still rose a solid 3.9%. Online sales were particularly strong, rising 48% over the same period last year (online sales are included in the same-store sales calculation). Meanwhile, adjusted operating income expanded 50 basis points to 14.9% of sales. This led to a 21% increase in adjusted earnings per share for the quarter to $2.05, well ahead of the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.98. It was a 21% increase over the same quarter last year. It was also Macy’s 11th consecutive positive earnings surprise; quite an impressive streak for a retailer. Estimates Rising Following the solid fourth quarter results, management provided 2013 EPS guidance of $3.90-$3.95, which was ahead of consensus at the time. Not surprisingly, this prompted several positive earnings estimate revisions from analysts, sending the stock to a Zacks Rank #1 (Strong Buy). The two biggest factors in the Zacks Rank are the ‘agreement’ and ‘magnitude’ of analysts’ estimates. And as you can see in the chart below, analysts unanimously raised their estimates off the strong quarter, and it bumped consensus estimates up for both 2013 and 2014 by a decent amount: Based on current consensus estimates, analysts project 13% EPS growth this year and 12% growth next year. If Macy’s can deliver on these projections, it would mark the company’s 4th and 5th years of consecutive double-digit EPS growth. Special Offer: What you don’t own is just as important as what investments you do own. Top investing experts named names when it comes to securities to avoid in the year ahead. Get the results in this free downloadable report, 24 Widely-Held Investments You Should Sell Now. Attractive Valuation, Dividend Despite the strong growth projections, shares trade at just …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Forbes Latest

News, Politics, Government

North Korea threatens to attack US air bases in Pacific

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North Korea is threatening to attack American air bases on Guam and the Japanese island of Okinawa in response to a series of military drills involving the U.S. and South Korea.

The U.S. Air Force has been flying B-52 bombers, which are capable of carrying nuclear weapons, over the Korean Peninsula.

“The U.S. should not forget that the Anderson Air Force Base on Guam, where B-52 bombers take off, and naval bases in Japan and Okinawa where nuclear-powered submarines are launched, are within the striking range of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea precision strike means,” read a statement from Kim Yong Chul, the spokesman of North Korea‘s army.

Pentagon spokesman George Little said Tuesday that the B-52 drills show a commitment and ability to defend South Korea from the North, Sky News reports.

North Korea has been increasing its anti-U.S. rhetoric after the United Nations imposed harsh sanctions on the country over its nuclear program.

Click for more from Sky News.

…read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox World News

News, Politics, Government

Marines killed in Nevada depot explosion were young, had lives ahead

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They’re called “leathernecks” or “Devil Dogs,” but some of the Marines killed in a desert training accident this week were just a year or so out of high school, their boyish faces not yet weathered by life’s hardships.

Just 19, Pfc. Josh Martino of Dubois, Pa., had already spent nearly half his young life dreaming of becoming one of “the few, the proud.” He had joined in July and was hoping to marry his fiancee later this year before being deployed to Afghanistan, his mother said.

“Since he was probably 8 years old he wanted to be a Marine,” Karen Perry said Wednesday after meeting with military officials to start planning her son’s funeral. “That’s all he wanted to do.”

Lance Cpl. Josh Taylor, 21, also seemed to have been born for the Corps. The Marietta, Ohio, native had talked about being a Marine since he was about 5, said his grandfather, Larry Stephens. Josh, too, was planning for a wedding, scheduled for May.

Both young men were among seven members of the 2nd Marine Expeditionary Force killed late Monday when a mortar shell exploded in its firing tube during an exercise at Hawthorne Army Depot in Nevada. Eight men were injured, some severely.

A decade after the invasion of Iraq and nearly 12 years since the United States launched the global war on terror, Americans have become wearily accustomed to the sight of flag-draped coffins being solemnly offloaded at Dover Air Force Base. But news of such loss on American soil, far from any foreign battlefield, has the power to shock.

——

During the past dozen years, barber Kenton Jones has touched the heads of many Marines and their family members. And they have touched him. Some of the men who’ve sat in his chair at Sharpe Cuts II — just up a busy highway from Lejeune’s main gate — came home from the Middle East in coffins.

Staring out his window, he couldn’t help wondering whether any of those killed or wounded in Nevada had come under his shears.

“During a time of war or whatever, the occupation … you kind of expect it,” he says. “But when it happens here, it seems senseless and it seems like a loss that could have been prevented.”

Down the road in Jacksonville, Marine veteran Guy Henry Woods led out-of-state relatives on a tour of the Beirut Memorial, built to honor the 241 Marines, sailors and other American service members who died in a 1983 truck bombing that destroyed their barracks in the Lebanese capital.

Woods, 66, was wounded twice in Vietnam and spent time in a U.S. Navy hospital in Guam. Surrounded by curved glass walls etched with the names of the fallen, Woods said it mattered not whether these Marines died in an accident here at home or on a distant battlefield.

“They put that uniform on, they gain the same respect as anybody that’s been to war,” the grizzled 20-year veteran said over the sound of the dancing water in the memorial’s fountain. “That’s the way I personally look at …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox US News

Articles of Interest

North Korea Threats: Pyongyang Steps Up Rhetoric Against U.S. Bases In Japan And Guam

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By The Huffington Post News Editors

SEOUL, March 21 (Reuters) – North Korea said it would attack U.S. military bases on Japan and the Pacific island of Guam if provoked, a day after leader Kim Jong-un oversaw a mock drone strike on South Korea.
The North also held an air raid drill on Thursday after accusing the United States of preparing a military strike using bombers that have overflown the Korean peninsula as part of drills between South Korean and U.S. forces.
North Korea has stepped up its rhetoric in response to what it calls “hostile” drills between South Korea and the United States. It has also been angered by the imposition of fresh U.N. sanctions that followed its Feb. 12 nuclear test.
Separately, South Korea said a hacking attack on the servers of local broadcasters and banks on Wednesday originated from an IP address in China, raising suspicions the intrusion came from North Korea.
“The United States is advised not to forget that our precision target tools have within their range the Anderson Air Force base on Guam where the B-52 takes off, as well as the Japanese mainland where nuclear powered submarines are deployed and the navy bases on Okinawa,” the North’s supreme military command spokesman was quoted as saying by the KCNA news agency.
Japan and U.S. Pacific bases are in range of Pyongyang’s medium-range missiles.
It is not known if North Korea possesses drones, although a report on South Korea‘s Yonhap news agency last year said it had obtained 1970s-era U.S. target drones from Syria to develop into attack drones.
“The (drone) planes were assigned the flight route and time with the targets in South Korea in mind, Kim Jong-un said, adding with great satisfaction that they were proved to be able to mount (a) super-precision attack on any enemy targets,” KCNA reported.
It is extremely rare for KCNA to specify the day on which Kim attended a drill. It also said a rocket defence unit had successfully shot down a target that mimicked an “enemy” Tomahawk cruise missile. …read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Huffington Post

News, Politics, Government

Losing an hour, gaining daylight

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Ushering in the bloom of spring, it’s time to set the clocks forward for daylight saving time.

At 2 a.m. local time Sunday, daylight saving time arrives with the promise of many months ahead with an extra hour of evening sunlight.

You lose an hour of sleep, but make sure to turn the clock ahead — spring forward — before heading to bed Saturday night to avoid the panic of a late rise.

It’s also a good time to put new batteries in warning devices such as smoke detectors and hazard warning radios.

Some places don’t observe daylight saving time. Those include Hawaii, most of Arizona, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, American Samoa, Guam and the Northern Marianas.

Daylight saving time ends Nov. 3.

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Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox US News

News, Politics, Government

Suspect in Guam crash, stabbing pleads not guilty

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A man whom authorities say killed three people in a crash and stabbing rampage in a Guam tourist district has pleaded not guilty by reason of mental illness.

Spokeswoman Carlina Charfauros (CHAR’-fer-us) of the Guam attorney general’s office said 21-year-old Chad Ryan DeSoto entered the plea during a hearing Wednesday local time.

Charfauros says Superior Court Magistrate Judge Alberto Tolentino ordered a psychiatric evaluation to be completed within 10 days. A hearing is set for March 20.

DeSoto is accused of driving onto a sidewalk and striking seven tourists in an upscale shopping area fronting the Outrigger Guam Resort in Tumon Bay. Authorities say he crashed his car into the wall of a convenience store, then got out and started stabbing people.

Three Japanese tourists were killed in the incident.

…read more
Source: FULL ARTICLE at Fox US News