Bloomberg calls NRA ad 'dumb PR'

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg says a new NRA Web video that labels President Barack Obama an "elitist hypocrite" is "dumb PR."

In an appearance Thursday on "CBS This Morning," the mayor said: "You have to be stupid to do that."

The video's narrator asks why Obama is skeptical of putting armed security in schools when his daughters are protected by armed guards in their own school.

The White House has called the NRA ad "repugnant and cowardly."

Bloomberg, who's a strong gun control advocate, said the NRA was itself hypocritical for coming out with a video shooting game app.

After the Newtown, Conn., tragedy, the NRA blamed violent video games and movies, not guns, for contributing to mass shootings.

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Florida led nation in 2012 foreclosure activity

Florida posted the highest foreclosure rate in the nation in 2012, eclipsing Nevada for the first time, according to RealtyTrac.

In Florida, 3.11 percent, or one in every 32 homes, received some sort of foreclosure filing last year, the California-based data firm said.

Much of the rising foreclosure activity represents loans that soured a long time ago, rather than a major new round of defaults.

Foreclosure activity in Florida rose 53.5 percent in 2012 from a year earlier, as lenders stepped up activity after a long hiatus during the robo-signing controversy. With the settlement last spring between 49 state attorneys general and five large banks, lenders now have clearer guidelines on how they can press foreclosures.

“With the Miami numbers we’re seeing the expected rise off the artificially low numbers in 2011 as lenders pushed through foreclosures delayed by questions surrounding proper foreclosure documents and procedures,” Daren Blomquist, vice president at RealtyTrac, said in an email.

While the rising number of bank-owned sales of homes creates a headwind for the housing market, the inventory of homes for sale has been so tight that those distressed sales haven’t proved, at least so far, to be the onerous “other shoe” that many had predicted.

The Miami Association of Realtors next week is expected to report the county posted record home sales for 2012, beating a record year in 2011. Median home and condo prices in Miami-Dade are posting consistent gains, instilling confidence that the housing recovery is on strong footing.

Realtors insist they don’t expect the continued, or even accelerated, flow of distressed properties into the market to derail that housing recovery in Florida.

In many cases, professional investors are in the wings to snap up distressed property as soon as it becomes available, making it tough for the average home buyer to get a shot at the properties.

“A lot of investors are buying at the courthouse,” said Liza E. Mendez, a broker and owner of Petro Realty International in Hialeah.

“Everyone talks about the shadow inventory,” said Francisco Angulo, a Coldwell Banker agent and regional coordinator to South America for the National Association of Realtors. “Well, there are shadow buyers to go with that shadow inventory.”

The surge in foreclosure activity in Florida came as half the states saw increases in foreclosure activity and half saw declines. Most of the increases occurred in “judicial” states, those that handle foreclosures in protracted court proceedings rather than the quicker administrative processes.

“2012 was the year of the judicial foreclosure, with foreclosure activity increasing from 2011 in 20 of the 26 states that primarily use the judicial process, and a judicial state — Florida — posting the nation’s highest state foreclosure rate for the first time since the housing crisis began,” Blomquist said.

Twenty percent of the nation’s foreclosure activity centered on Florida last year, with some 305,766 properties in some stage of foreclosure or owned by a bank. California ranked second with 14 percent of the total, followed by Illinois, which had 9 percent. Ohio and New York each had 5 percent.

Florida had eight of the 20 metropolitan areas with the highest foreclosure rate, including Miami at No. 5 in the nation; Palm Bay-Melbourne-Titusville, at No. 6; and Orlando at No. 8, RealtyTrac reported.

Within Florida, Miami-Dade County ranked second only to Okeechobee County in foreclosure activity during 2012. Foreclosure activity in Miami-Dade was up 56 percent in 2012 to 44,284 foreclosure filings.

In tallying foreclosure filings, RealtyTrac includes default notices, scheduled auctions and bank repossessions, thus a single property will log multiple events over the course of a foreclosure proceeding.

Broward had 25,935 foreclosure filings of all sorts in 2012, marking a 26.4 percent increase from a year earlier, RealtyTrac data show.

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Driver in Rickenbacker Causeway cyclist death to be sentenced

A motorist who killed cyclist Aaron Cohen in a hit-and-run crash on the Rickenbacker Causeway will learn his fate Wednesday.

A Miami-Dade judge on Wednesday afternoon will sentence Michele Traverso, 26, who earlier pleaded guilty for the crash that killed Cohen last February.

The fatality, and a similar hit-and-run wreck in 2010, has renewed calls for increased safety for cyclists and joggers on the popular causeway. Fellow cyclists staged a memorial ride and erected a billboard overlooking Interstate 95 in Cohen’s honor.

Members of Miami’s avid cycling community are expected to be on hand for the 1 p.m. sentencing.

Traverso, driving on a suspended license, struck Cohen and cycling partner Enda Walsh as the two rode in the northbound lanes near the crest of the bridge. Traverso surrendered to police 18 hours after the crash.

Though there were reports of Traverso drinking in Coconut Grove that night, investigators could not prove that his blood alcohol content level was above the legal limit because of the delay in turning himself in.

Traverso pleaded guilty to leaving the scene of an accident involving a death, leaving the scene of an accident with great bodily harm, and driving with a suspended license. He also pleaded guilty to earlier cocaine possession charge.

Miami-Dade Circuit Judge William Thomas could sentence him to as little as 22.8 months in prison, and as much as 35 years behind bars.

In May, Thomas told Cohen’s widow, Patricia Cohen, that he would be unlikely to deliver the maximum sentence, although he could consider “20 or 25 years” after hearing from her and Traverso’s own family at a possible sentencing.

The Cohen family is suing Traverso and his father, who owned the car.

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iPhone demand said to be ‘robust,’ recent cuts don’t reflect weak demand

Following recent reports from Nikkei and The Wall Street Journal that suggested Apple (AAPL) slashed iPhone 5 component orders in half due to weak demand,  the company’s stock fell significantly and opened below $ 500 for the first time in nearly a year. The reports have been called into question, however, with many believing they do not represent true consumer interest. Shaw Wu of Sterne Agee wrote in a note to investors on Tuesday, per Apple Insider, that his supply chain checks have indicated that demand for the iPhone 5 “remains robust.” The analyst believes the recent reports are a result of improved yield rates and possibly Apple’s recent supplier changes.

[More from BGR: PlayStation 4 and Xbox 720 could cost just $ 350, expected to launch this fall]

Despite the recent concerns, Wu expects Apple to post better-than-expected earnings for the December quarter led by sales of 47.5 million iPhones with a gross margin of 38.7%. Both estimates are above Wall Street’s expectations of between 46 to 47 million iPhones and a 38.3% gross margin.

[More from BGR: HTC One SV review]

Sterne Agee reiterated its Buy rating on shares of Apple with a price target of $ 840.

Wu’s expectations remain bullish compared to other Wall Street analysts. Stuart Jeffrey of Nomura is the most recent analyst to cut his outlook on Apple stock. Nomura reduced the company’s price target to $ 530 from $ 660 Tuesday morning, citing weak demand for the iPhone 5 and increased pressure on Apple’s margins.

This article was originally published on BGR.com

Wireless News Headlines – Yahoo! News

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Victim 'rolled like a bowling ball': accused subway shover

A homeless suspect charged with killing a stranger by pushing him into the path of a New York City subway train told investigators his victim "rolled like a bowling ball" after he landed on the tracks, according to court papers.

In written and videotaped statements, Naeem Davis admitted watching as Ki-Suck Han tried in vain to climb off the tracks before the train hit him, the document prepared by prosecutors says.

Davis, 30, described Han as a drunken instigator of the deadly altercation on a subway platform near Times Square. But he also wrote that he was to blame and "shouldn't have let this happen," the document says.

Steven Hirsch

Naeem Davis

The papers were made public on Tuesday as Davis pleaded not guilty to murder and manslaughter charges at a Manhattan courthouse. He's been held without bail since his arrest last month.

Davis "had not been bothering anybody" when Han "went after him," defense attorney Stephen Porkart told reporters outside court. If there was a push, it occurred out of frustration, he added.

Han's wife has said she had argued with her husband and that he had been drinking on the morning of Dec. 3. At about 12:30 p.m., Han encountered Davis, who later told police he was on a paid errand to buy merchandise for street vendors.

Davis claimed that after the men accidentally bumped into each other while entering the station, the 58-year-old Han began yelling, "I'll kill you!" He also said Han was staggering and slurring his words.

"I don't know you, you don't know me!" Davis said he responded before trying to walk away.

After Han followed Davis down the platform and tried to grab him, Davis admitted pushing him away. He described Han falling "head first onto the tracks and rolling like a bowling ball," the document says.

At least a minute passed before the train hit the victim. Then Davis said he "freaked" and made his escape.

Davis claimed he didn't intend to kill Han and was only defending himself, the document adds.

The defendant told investigators that he came to the United States from Sierra Leone in 1989, and that he once attended college in Pennsylvania.

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Miami Dolphins bill would bring state money to aging stadiums

A bill drafted by the Miami Dolphins would give Florida sports teams $3 million a year in state money to improve older stadiums, provided the owner pays for at least half the cost of a major renovation.

Under the law, the stadium would need to be 20 years old and the team willing to put in at least $125 million for a $250 million renovation. That’s less than the $400 million redo of Sun Life Stadium that Dolphins owner Stephen Ross proposed this week, which he hopes will win state approval thanks to his offer to fund at least $200 million of the effort to modernize the 1987 facility.

Miami-Dade and Florida would fund the rest through a mix of county hotel taxes and state general funds set aside for stadiums. Sun Life currently receives $2 million a year through the program, and the Dolphins want to create a new category that would give them an additional $3 million.

While the Miami Marlins and Miami Heat both play in stadiums subsidized by county hotel taxes, the Dolphins receive no local dollars. The bill would change that by allowing Miami-Dade to increase the tax charged at mainland hotels to 7 percent from 6 percent, and eliminate the current rule that limits the money to publicly owned stadiums. Sun Life Stadium, in Miami Gardens, is privately owned but sits on county land.

The bill pits enthusiasm for one of Florida’s most popular sports teams against a lean budget climate and lingering backlash against the 2009 deal that had Miami and Miami-Dade borrow about $485 million to build a new ballpark for the Marlins. Ross also must navigate a Republican-led Legislature that has twice rebuffed his requests for public dollars.

“I would be surprised if that bill even got a hearing in committee,” said Mike Fasano, a Republican representative from the Tampa area and a critic of tax-funded sports deals. “I’m a big Dolphin fan, and have been for years. But with all due respect, we’ve got people who are struggling throughout this state right now . .. The last thing we should be doing is giving a professional sports team or facility additional tax dollars.”

While the bill would open up the $3 million subsidy to other the teams, the Dolphins see it as unlikely that another owner would be willing to put up as much money for renovations as Ross, a billionaire real estate developer.

If the bill were enacted today, any stadium opened before 1993 would be eligible for the money, provided it could show the proposed renovation would generate an additional $3 million in sales taxes.

Ross and his backers are pitching the renovation as a boon to tourism, with Sun Life a magnet for the Super Bowl, national college football games and other major events. The National Football League is considering South Florida and San Francisco for the 2016 Super Bowl, and the Dolphins say approval of renovation funding is crucial to winning the bid.

Sen. Oscar Braynon, D-Miami Gardens, who sponsored the Senate bill, said the funding makes sense because when Sun Life hosts a Super Bowl, the entire state benefits from both tourism dollars and publicity.

“It’s a small price to pay for economic development, and for all the shine we get from major sporting events,” said Braynon, whose district includes Sun Life. Rep. Eduardo “Eddy” Gonzalez, R-Hialeah, is the sponsor on the House side.

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Wedgie-spree at Florida theater lands prankster in jail

Authorities say that Charles Ross is known to go around Manatee County and create situations in order to harass and annoy people while filming their reaction for You Tube.

Last weekend, Ross, 18, of Bradenton, ended up in jail after police say he went on a wedgie spree at a theater.

Deputies say Ross was at Royal Palm Theater Sunday night with a friend and began grabbing people by their pants and pulling them up hard, causing discomfort.

A victim told deputies that Ross pulled up his pants, wedgie-style, and then asked the victim if he wanted to hit him, all while his friend was filming, according to the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office.

One victim decided to press charges but others were too embarrassed, deputies said.

The deputy took the camera as evidence and both Ross and his friend were removed from the theater and told they would be arrested if they come back, according to the report.

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The Golden Globes, Starring Tina Fey and Amy Poehler and Nobody Else

We realize there’s only so much time one can spend in a day watching new trailers, viral video clips, and shaky cell phone footage of people arguing on live television. This is why every day The Atlantic Wire highlights the videos that truly earn your five minutes (or less) of attention. Today:  

RELATED: The Way the World Could Have Ended

Now, we know what you’re thinking. Forget the rest of the show. And the red carpet. And the after-parties. And Lena Dunham, and maybe even Unimpressed Tommy Lee Jones. Now if only someone could just put together all the Tina Fey and Amy Poehler bits from last night’s Golden Globes — what little their was after that fantastic monologue, anyway. Well, you’re in luck. Don’t thank us, thank Flavorwire. Oh, fine, thank us a little bit:

RELATED: The Only ‘Kiss From a Rose’ Cover You’ll Ever Need

RELATED: Let’s Get Honest with ‘The Avengers’

If you were wondering, we were totally rooting for the fish: 

RELATED: ‘Roseanne’ Predicted Internet Addiction; A Weather Alert from Hell

RELATED: Yes, Someone Turned Their Dead Cat Into a Helicopter

As you may have heard, it is very cold in Los Angeles. As you also may have heard, cold in Los Angeles is very different than cold anywhere else, and, well, it’s quite funny watching them squirm:

And, finally, here is a cat using its feline agility to maneuver itself into a hammock. Yes, we are jealous: 

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School named after heroic Sandy Hook teacher

STRATFORD, Conn. — Officials of a town near Newtown, Conn., are renaming a local school for a resident killed in the massacre there and hailed as a hero.

HoneySpot Elementary School in Stratford will be named after 27-year-old Victoria Soto who died trying to shield her students from the gunman inside Sandy Hook Elementary School.

Shooter Adam Lanza killed 20 children and six educators at the school on Dec. 14 before committing suicide. He also killed his mother at their Newtown home.

Mayor John Harkins made the recommendation which was approved Monday night, exactly one month after the shootings.

Handout

Slain Sandy Hook Elementary School teach Victoria Soto.

The mayor also is hoping to build a memorial to Soto, and a petition has been started to rename a local street after her.

Soto graduated from Stratford High School in 2003.

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Global entrepreneurship nonprofit Endeavor coming to Miami

Flawless execution helped propel Argentine Marcos Galperin’s e-auction site, Mercado Libre, above the competition to become a $3.8 billion company. Some 50,000 small businesses now use it to market their wares.

Leila Velez and Heloísa Helena Assis, cousins who grew up in the slums of Rio, started with one product and one salon. Today their company, Beleza Natural, operates 24 salons that bring in $75 million in revenues, employs 1,500 people and has an eye on U.S expansion.

Both were powered, in part, by Endeavor, a global nonprofit that selects, mentors, supports and accelerates high-impact entrepreneurs in metropolitan areas of 16 countries — and, soon, in Miami.

Endeavor and its local supporter, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, announced Tuesday that Knight is providing Endeavor with $2 million in grant funding over five years for Endeavor’s first U.S. expansion. Endeavor’s Miami office could ultimately service dozens of local entrepreneurs, but first a local board needs to be assembled, a managing director hired and offices set up.

Beginning late this year, South Florida’s innovators will be able to apply to become Endeavor Entrepreneurs, connecting them to a global network of mentors and advisors who can help grow their ventures. “We think this is a cornerstone of making Miami more of a place where ideas are built,” said Matt Haggman, Miami program director for the Knight Foundation, which has made entrepreneurship a key focus of its Miami program.

The announcement is an important milestone in Miami’s efforts to accelerate an entrepreneurial ecosystem, which has been gaining momentum, said Haggman, who led the effort for Knight, its largest investment in entrepreneurship to date. Accelerators, incubators and co-working spaces have been opening up, including Launch Pad Tech, which is receiving $1.5 million in public funding and opens for its first class next week. Last month, the first ever Innovate MIA week attracted hundreds of entrepreneurs, investors and other supporters to a packed schedule of daily events, which included the Americas Venture Capital Conference and Endeavor’s International Selection Panel.

“Miami is almost the perfect seeding ground for Endeavor,” said Peter Kellner, co-founder of Endeavor and now an Endeavor board member, an investor and South Florida resident who began discussing the project with Haggman in the spring. “There are commitments from large institutions like Knight, FIU, UM, there is capital, there are people that are interested in making things happen, there are already clusters of activity like accelerators and incubators. That’s where Endeavor thrives.”

Endeavor selects and works primarily with companies from a wide range of industries that are already earning $500,000 to $15 million in annual revenue and ready for the next stage: explosive growth.

“While the vast majority of small businesses employ two or three people, Endeavor businesses employ an average of 237,” said Endeavor co-founder and CEO Linda Rottenberg.

Launched in 1998 and headquartered in New York City, Endeavor now operates throughout Latin America, Africa, the Middle East, Europe and Southeast Asia and supports more than 750 entrepreneurs who are chosen in a rigorous selection process.

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