Mobile Miscellany: week of February 25th, 2013

If you didn't get enough mobile news during the week, not to worry, because we've opened the firehose for the truly hardcore. This week brought news of a new direction for Muve Music, the arrival of a budget smartphone at Sprint and a whole lotta LTE expansion. These stories and more await after the break. So buy the ticket and take the ride as we explore the "best of the rest" for this week of February 25th, 2013.

Filed under: Cellphones, Wireless, Mobile

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Source: http://feeds.engadget.com/~r/weblogsinc/engadget/~3/DGfaW5ckQUE/

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Obama renews offer to cut social safety nets in big budget deal: aide

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Barack Obama raised anew the issue of cutting entitlements such as Medicare and Social Security as a way out of damaging budget cuts, a White House official said on Sunday, as both sides in Washington tried to limit a fiscal crisis that may soon hit millions of Americans.

Signaling he might be ready to explore a compromise to end automatic spending cuts that began late Friday, Obama mentioned reforming these entitlement programs in calls with lawmakers from both parties on Saturday afternoon.

"He's reaching out to Democrats who understand we have to make serious progress on long-term entitlement reform, and Republicans who realize that if we had that type of entitlement reform, they'd be willing to have tax reform that raises revenues to lower the deficit," White House senior economic official Gene Sperling said on Sunday on the CNN program "State of the Union."

Republicans have long argued that the only way to tame budget deficits over the long haul is by slowing the cost of sprawling social safety net programs.

These include the Social Security retirement program and Medicare and Medicaid healthcare programs for the elderly, disabled and poor that are becoming more expensive as a large segment of the U.S. population hits retirement age.

While Obama also has proposed some savings on these programs, he has insisted that significant new tax revenues be part of the deficit-reduction formula, an idea Republicans so far reject.

Budget fights in Congress took their most serious turn in years on Friday when $85 billion in indiscriminate spending cuts known as "sequestration" began to kick in after both parties failed to agree on how to stop them.

Democrats predict the automatic cuts could soon cause air-traffic delays, meat shortages as food safety inspections slow down, and hundreds of thousands of furloughs for federal workers.

Neither Sperling nor White House spokesmen would provide further details on the Obama's conversations on Saturday with members of Congress.

Obama's mention of entitlement reform may help bring Republicans to the table to halt the cuts. Republican leaders also made soothing noises on Sunday about the need to avoid a government shutdown on March 27, when funding runs out for most federal programs.

BOEHNER'S MAXIMUM EFFORT

House of Representatives Speaker John Boehner, interviewed on NBC's "Meet the Press," said he "absolutely" would do whatever it takes to keep the government operating. Toward that end, he will seek House passage this week of a "continuing resolution" to fund the government through September 30, when the fiscal year ends.

Lately, some rank-and-file Democrats and Republicans have been sending signals that they are willing to compromise to end a two-year-old deadlock over tax and entitlement reforms.

Last week, conservative Republican Senator Lindsey Graham of South Carolina said he was open to raising $600 billion in new tax revenue if Democrats accepted significant changes to Medicare and Medicaid as part of a long-term budget deal.

A few days later, liberal Democratic Senator Ben Cardin of Maryland told Reuters that he had discussed with Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid the possibility of replacing the automatic spending cuts with a mix of entitlement reforms and tax increases.

"Democrats know we have to do entitlement reforms and Republicans know they have to do revenues (increases)," Cardin said.

Now that they are in place, the $85 billion in spending cuts must be carried out by September 30 if no alternative is found. Half of those cuts would hit the military with the rest scattered over thousands of other domestic programs.

Economists have warned that such a heavy dose of belt tightening over such a short period will slow U.S. economic growth and potentially cost 750,000 jobs.

Speaking of the search for alternatives, Boehner said on "Meet the Press:" "I don't think anyone quite understands how it gets resolved."

No matter how Obama and Congress resolve the 2013 battle, this round of automatic spending cuts is only one of a decade's worth of annual cuts totaling $1.2 trillion mandated by the sequestration law.

DEEP DIVISIONS STILL

Deep divisions between Democrats and Republicans have soured previous negotiations.

Slamming the door on Democrats' demands for new tax hikes, Boehner said that Obama "got $650 billion of higher taxes on the American people on January the first. How much more does he want?" He was referring to the higher tax rate that began in the new year on households making more than $450,000 a year.

"It's time for the president and Senate Democrats to get serious about the long-term spending problem that we have," Boehner said.

In the meantime, both Democrats and Republicans were hoping to win the immediate fight over the automatic spending cuts so that they are best positioned in any upcoming battles over long-term budget deficits.

Senate Republican leader Mitch McConnell on Sunday played down the severity of the automatic cuts, describing them as modest.

"We're willing to talk to him (Obama) about reconfiguring the same amount of spending reduction over the next six months," McConnell said on CNN. "The American people look at this and say, 'Gee, I've had to cut my budget more than this,' - probably on numerous occasions over the last four years because we've had such a tepid economy now for four long years."

At the heart of Washington's persistent fiscal crises is disagreement over how to slash the budget deficit and gain control of the $16.7 trillion national debt, bloated over the years by wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and government stimulus for the ailing economy.

Government red ink also rose over the last decade after the enactment of across-the-board tax cuts in 2001 and 2003 secured by President George W. Bush.

(Additional reporting by Will Dunham and Philip Barbara; Editing by Alistair Bell and Philip Barbara)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/spending-cut-showdown-threatens-obamas-second-term-agenda-025029989--business.html

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Death toll on Kenya coast rises to nine: police sources

PALM BEACH GARDENS, Florida, March 3 (Reuters) - Tiger Woods struggled to a four-over par 74 in the final round of the Honda Classic on Sunday, ending the week without breaking par once and left saying he need to "clean up" his play. "I just made too many penalties this week. Today is a perfect example, I didn't play that poorly. I had two water balls and a lost ball," he told reporters. "Take those away, and I missed two short birdie putts, and it was actually a decent score. ...

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/death-toll-kenya-coast-rises-nine-police-sources-071043474.html

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Video: Frustration aimed at Washington over sequester

>>> good evening. washington's unwillingness to compromise on matters of money is about to mean less money for a lot of americans who are tonight nervously watching their mail boxes for pink slips . we are barely 24 hours from the sequestration, the odd term used to describe the $85 billion in automatic spending cuts that swept across the federal government last evening with a swipe of president obama 's pen. effects will roll out over the next several weeks and range from parking war ships to furloughing potentially millions of workers whose livelihoods depend on government contracts . who is to blame? just follow the pointing fingers. there are lots of them. david gregory has new insight on the politics behind this. let's begin with kristen welker on the stalemate and its impact. good evening.

>> reporter: lester, good evening to you. the public's frustration is mounting tonight with all of washington for not doing more sooner. on the first full day of across-the-board spending cuts no negotiations just more finger pointing.

>> none of this is necessary. it's happening because republicans in congress chose this outcome over closing a single wasteful tax loophole that helps reduce the deficit.

>> reporter: house speaker john boehner home in ohio speaking to constituents and signaling that compromise is still far off.

>> as i told the president, once again yesterday, we all know what the problem is. we've got runway spending.

>> reporter: meanwhile, collective concern across the country from an army arsenal in huntsville, alabama where they're facing furloughs --

>> the sequestration will definitely affect my family.

>> reporter: to the grand canyon .

>> we're cutting travel. we're cutting training. we're reducing overtime.

>> reporter: and on the arizona border where agents could see their hours cut back.

>> cutting down the security of our nation i don't believe is the way to go at it.

>> reporter: the disruptions will be felt gradually, some furlough notifications already having gone out like at the department of justice , but the first cutbacks won't happen until april. the defense department will be hit hardest with 800,000 civilian workers bracing for furloughs. cuts to the faa could slow air travel and education occasions say as many as 70,000 children could be kicked off head start programs. but in some cases the fallout has already begun. one of the navy's warships the carrier truman is not going to the persian gulf . the air force 's world famous thunder birds have been grounded. hundreds of immigrants facing deportation have been released from prison. while polls show most americans will blame republicans, analysts say there is plenty of blame to go around.

>> right now we're stuck in a bad outcome for everybody. republicans don't get the entitlement cuts they want. democrats don't get the tax increases they want. the american people don't get the government or the economy they need.

>> reporter: now, lawmakers are hoping to work out a deal in the coming weeks to stave off the most serious cuts but, frankly, there is not a lot of hope that is going to happen and the next budget battle is looming at the end of this month.

Source: http://www.nbcnews.com/video/nightly-news/51020859/

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Cash airlift helped avert Greek bank run during debt crisis: paper

ATHENS (Reuters) - Greece's central bank had billions of euros of banknotes shipped in from other central banks to avert a bank run during the country's debt crisis as depositors withdrew their money, newspaper To Vima reported on Sunday.

Fears the debt-laden country might ditch the euro and return to the drachma led Greeks to pull out billions of euros of savings in the last three years, stashing their cash under mattresses or in safe deposit boxes.

"While many talked about a lack of liquidity in the economy, the cash circulating ... had no historical precedent," the paper said, citing central bank officials it did not name.

Central bank officials could not immediately be reached for comment.

Cash in circulation jumped to 48 billion euros ($62.32 billion), about a quarter of gross domestic product (GDP), in June 2012, from 20 billion before the crisis erupted, way above normal ranges of 6 to 8 percent of GDP in developed economies, the paper said.

To meet the high demand for cash, the Bank of Greece had loads of banknotes secretly airshipped from abroad, feeding it to banks throughout the country to avoid shortages that could have intensified worries and set off a bank run.

The Bank of Greece only prints 10-euro banknotes.

Greek banks lost about a third of their deposits after the debt crisis exploded in late 2009. Without access to wholesale funding markets, they came to depend on the central bank for their liquidity needs.

However, uncertainty has decreased over the country's future in the euro zone after a second round of elections in June last year, which led to a three-party pro-bailout coalition government and a return of deposits to banks.

Official data released last month showed 10.4 billion euros had come back to the system. Business and household deposits stood at 160.9 billion euros at the end of January. ($1 = 0.7702 euros)

(Reporting by George Georgiopoulos; Editing by David Holmes)

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/cash-airlift-helped-avert-greek-bank-run-during-152713020--business.html

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Assad accuses Britain, US of supporting terrorism

AMMAN, Jordan (AP) ? Syria's president harshly criticized U.S. and British aid to rebels and set harsh terms for talking to his opponents in a newspaper interview published Sunday, as fighting raged across the country.

On the battlefield, rebels made significant gains in the heavily contested northeastern Syrian, capturing a police academy complex west of Aleppo and storming the central prison in the city of Raqqa, as well as a border crossing along Syria's frontier with Iraq, activists said.

President Bashar Assad took a tough line against his opponents in the interview with London's Sunday Times, dialing back earlier hints of flexibility about talks.

He said he is ready for dialogue with armed rebels and militants, but only if they surrender their weapons. Recently his foreign minister offered such talks but left the question of laying down arms unanswered. Assad's regime often refers to rebels as "terrorists."

"We are ready to negotiate with anyone, including militants who surrender their arms. We are not going to deal with terrorists who are determined to carry weapons, to terrorize people, to kill civilians, to attack public places or private enterprise and to destroy the country," Assad said. "We fight terrorism."

Most opposition groups have rejected talks with Assad's regime, with some demanding that he resign before talks can begin.

Assad said that he would not step down or go into exile. "No patriotic person will think about living outside his country. I am like any other patriotic Syrian," he said.

The interview was conducted in Damascus last week and was published Sunday, coinciding with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry's first foreign tour.

Kerry met with Syrian rebels in Italy Thursday. He has announced a $60 million package of non-lethal U.S. aid to the rebels.

Assad said the "intelligence, communication and financial assistance being provided is very lethal."

Assad also bitterly criticized Britain. He said instead of pushing for peace talks, British Prime Minister David Cameron's "naive, confused, unrealistic" government was trying to end a European Union arms embargo so that the rebels can be supplied with weapons.

"We do not expect an arsonist to be a firefighter," he said, dismissing any notion that Britain could help end the civil war, which has killed more than 70,000 people.

"How can we ask Britain to play a role while it is determined to militarize the problem? How can we expect them to make the violence less while they want to send military supply to the terrorists?" he asked.

On Thursday, British Foreign Secretary William Hague promised to increase support for the Syrian opposition, including equipment supplies and humanitarian assistance.

Assad said Hague was misguided in his offer of assistance to rebels. "The British government wants to send military aid to moderate groups in Syria, knowing all too well that such moderate groups do not exist in Syria," he said.

"We all know that we are now fighting al-Qaida, or Jabhat al-Nusra, an offshoot of al-Qaida, and other groups of people indoctrinated with extreme ideologies," he said.

Assad warned that arming the rebels would have grave consequences.

"Syria lies at the fault line geographically, politically, socially and ideologically. So playing with this fault line will have serious repercussions all over the Middle East," he said.

He vowed to avenge from Israel for an airstrike on a suspected site ? which Syria said was a research center ? in Damascus last month.

"Retaliation does not mean missile for missile or bullet for bullet," he said. "Our own way does not have to be announced."

___

Associated Press writers Barbara Surk in Beirut and Maamoun Youssef in Cairo contributed.

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/assad-accuses-britain-us-supporting-terrorism-092616788.html

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Spending cuts seem here to stay

WASHINGTON (AP) ? The spending cuts are here to stay if you believe the public posturing Sunday.

The Senate's Republican leader Mitch McConnell called them modest. House Speaker John Boehner isn't sure the cuts will hurt the economy. The White House's top economic adviser, Gene Sperling, said the pain isn't that bad right now.

So after months of dire warnings, Washington didn't implode, government didn't shut down and the $85 billion budget trigger didn't spell doom. And no one has a tangible proposal for rolling back those cuts.

"This modest reduction of 2.4 percent in spending over the next six months is a little more than the average American experienced just two months ago, when their own pay went down when the payroll tax holiday expired," McConnell said.

"I don't know whether it's going to hurt the economy or not," Boehner said. "I don't think anyone quite understands how the sequester is really going to work."

And Sperling, making the rounds on the Sunday news shows, added: "On Day One, it will not be as harmful as it will be over time."

Both parties cast blame on the other for the automatic, across-the-board spending cuts but gave little guidance on what to expect in the coming weeks. Republicans and Democrats pledged to retroactively undo the cuts but signaled no hints as to how that process would start to take shape. Republicans insisted there would be no new taxes and Democrats refused to talk about any bargain without them.

"That's not going to work," said Sen. Kelly Ayotte, R-N.H. "If we're going to increase revenue again, it's got to go to the debt with real entitlement reform and real tax reform when you actually lower rates. ... I'm not going to agree to any more tax increases that are going to go to increase more government."

Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C., said any tax increases were unacceptable.

"I'm not going to do any more small deals. I'm not going to raise taxes to fix sequestration. We don't need to raise taxes to fund the government," Graham said.

All of this comes ahead of a new, March 27 deadline that could spell a government shutdown and a debt-ceiling clash coming in May.

Boehner said his chamber would move this week to pass a measure to keep government open through Sept. 30. McConnell said a government shutdown was unlikely to come from his side of Capitol Hill. The White House said it would dodge the shutdown and roll back the cuts, which hit domestic and defense spending in equal share.

"We will still be committed to trying to find Republicans and Democrats that will work on a bipartisan compromise to get rid of the sequester," Sperling said.

Obama has phoned lawmakers but it isn't clear to what end. Boehner and McConnell said they had a productive meeting with Obama on Friday, but it didn't yield a deal.

"Well, no one can think that that's been a success for the president," said Mitt Romney, Obama's unsuccessful rival in November's election. "He didn't think the sequester would happen. It is happening."

Obama and the Republicans have been fighting over federal spending since the opposition party regained control of the House of Representatives in the 2010 midterm elections. The budget cuts were designed in 2011 to be so ruthless that both sides would be forced to find a better deal, but they haven't despite two years to find a compromise.

The $85 billion in cuts apply to the remainder of the 2013 fiscal year, which ends Sept. 30. But without a deal they will continue slashing government spending by about $1 trillion more over a 10-year period.

McConnell spoke to CNN's "State of the Union." Boehner was interviewed on NBC's "Meet the Press." Sperling appeared on ABC's "This Week," NBC and CNN. Ayotte appeared on ABC. Graham spoke with CBS' "Face the Nation." Romney was a guest on "Fox News Sunday."

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/spending-cuts-seem-stay-192201079--finance.html

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