Palo Alto, CA, United States (AHN) – Stanford University became the latest Ivy League school on Friday to reinastate the Reserve Officers Training Corps.

The Palo Alto campus’ faculty senate voted 28-9 to let the military set up an ROTC program despite opposition over the ban on transgender people from service. Three members of the senate abstained.

Dozens of students protested as the senate debated an ad hoc panel’s recommendation to resume the program 40 years after it was ended.

The university will work with the military to establish a “restructured” program under a proposal that was amended to make clear the senate does not endorse the ban on trangender people.

“If the leadership of the military is drawn from communities that teach and practice true tolerance, change is more likely to occur,” University President John Hennessy and Provost John Etchemendy said in a joint statement.

“The U.S. military has demonstrated an ability and willingness to change over time, and we believe Stanford can contribute by providing leadersdoes not share capable of helping create that change,” they added.

A handful of Stanford students currently take their ROTC training at neighboring campuses, including the University of Berkley.

The decision by Stanford comes after Harvard University’s anniuncement last month that it would reinstate the Naval ROTC this summer, when a law overturning “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell,” the ban on gays in the military, takes effect.

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New York, NY, United States (AHN) – Toyota said on Friday it would maintain limited production until the end of the year. The automaker is working to resolve supply chain issues and a crisis triggered by a tsunami in Japan.

Production levels in domestic plants are currently at 50 percent, while operations outside Japan are at 40 percent. The company plans to begin restoring normal production in local facilities in July. Overseas operations will ramp up a month later due to the time it takes to deliver parts abroad.

Regular operations are set to resume November and December.

President Akio Toyoda apologized to consumers in a press conference and assured them of “unprecedented customer service.” He told dealers and suppliers, “I feel terribly sorry for the hardships we may have caused you.”

Toyota will continue obtaining parts from its usual suppliers but is considering substituting parts from other companies. There are about 150 parts affecting assembly lines for new cars. The parts are mostly electronics, rubber and paint-related.

The North America unit, which is operating at 30 percent, said there are no plans for layoffs in plants. Production in North America was not suspended after the March 11 quake in Japan. But the unit took steps to conserve parts. It also suspended overtime work and stopped operations for five days last week.

Parts for the dozen Lexus and Toyota models built in the United States are sourced from 500 suppliers in North America. The automaker last month resumed shipments of parts to the United States and began production in Japan of Prius and Lexus hybrids, for which U.S. demand is high.

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Philadelphia, PA, United States (AHN) – The Philadelphia Orchestra plans to file for Chapter 11 protection to restructure its finances in the face of a $14.5 million deficit.

The orchestra’s board of directors decided over the weekend to declare bankruptcy despite opposition from musicians who have been in talks about a new contract.

The orchestra does not have any debt but expects its operating funds to be exhausted by June. It has faced financial difficulties for more than a year due to declining ticket sales, decreased donations, contracts and pension obligations. The deficit remained despite administrative pay cuts and concessions from musicians, whose collective contract expires in September.

The bankruptcy filing ensures that the orchestra’s 2010-2011 season will not abruptly end before the scheduled closing this summer. The orchestra says no shows have been canceled or postponed due to the filing.

The 111-year-old organization is one of five nationwide that are widely recognized to be the top U.S. orchestras. Its decision to seek Chapter 11 protection comes as the Detroit Symphony Orchestra ended its six-month strike over a new contract.

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The threat: The GOP-controlled U.S. House plan to eliminate the $430 million Corporation for Public Broadcasting subsidy, which in turn subsidizes MPR.

The impact: “We could lose our ability to cover news of the region … the nation … the world,” shrieked – er, said – one pitchwoman on Thursday’s “All Things Considered.”

Skeptical listeners snark that the danger is as authentic as Welles’ 1938 radiocast – one even parodied MPR president Bill Kling’s ubiquitous come-on (audio below). The cynics argue that Republicans may be pissed about Juan Williams’ firing, but public-media-friendly Democrats control the Senate and White House. var flashvars = {}; var params = {}; var attributes = {}; attributes.id = “myDynamicContent”; attributes.name = “myDynamicContent”; swfobject.embedSWF(“/amm/swf/flash_audio_player.swf?path=/_asset/l3yh6d/BillKling.mp3″, “c_1312048_player”, “30″, “30″, “9.0.28″,”/amm/swf/expressInstall.swf”, flashvars, params, attributes);

AUDIO: Parody of MPR president Bill Kling’s membership pitch

After all, we’ve seen this particular passion play fizzle before . Then-Speaker Newt Gingrich proposed zeroing out CPB subsidies in the mid-’90s. Didn’t happen. Republicans again swung the axe during the George W. Bush years. They largely missed.

So is MPR – which famously advertises “no rant, no slant” – ranting and slanting here? It comes down to two questions: How likely are the cuts? And how profoundly would they hurt MPR’s newsgathering?

How likely are CPB cuts? The truth is, “only” $36 million in CPB cuts are on the table right now [ pdf ]. That’s for the current fiscal year, 2011, which ends Sept. 30. The GOP’s only other announced plan is to eliminate CPB funding after 2013.

There’s nothing on the table for 2012, says CPB. Given the other moves, though, it’s hard to believe that money is safe.

Later today, we may have a better idea how real the threat is. President Obama is due to release his 2012 budget, and a House Rules hearing could affect proposed 2011 cuts.

Two independent experts pegged a CPB cut – if not zeroing out – as far likelier this time around.

Stan Collender – whose ” Capital Gains and Games ” column tracks the federal budget for D.C. paper Roll Call – says Obama hamstrung himself by pledging a five-year discretionary spending freeze. “The President has some investments he wants to make, but as I remember, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting is not one of them,” Collender quips.

The freeze means Obama must cut if he wants to “invest” elsewhere. Collender says Senators will defend pet projects, but few, if any, regard the CPB as such.

Prof. Steven Smith, a former Minnesotan and Tip O’Neill aide who follows Congress from Washington University in St. Louis, also terms the CPB threat “serious.”

“Senate Democrats will not go for cuts as deep as the House, but it is possible that CPB will take a significant hit as a part of the ultimate deal,” Smith says. “Democrats may have to defend high-speed rail, the EPA, AmeriCorps, WIC , science labs, and home heating assistance before they defend CPB. I doubt that President Obama and [Office of Management and Budget Director] Jack Lew will give CPB very high priority.”

Four Senate staffers – who, in time-honored D.C. tradition, asked not to be named – noted that unlike many programs, the CPB has a two-year appropriation through 2012. Republicans would have to jump through an additional hoop, known as “rescission,” to take that money back.

However, Congress hasn’t passed a fiscal year 2011 budget. The U.S. operates via “continuing resolution,” sort of a federal auto-pilot, which expires March 4. That puts everything on the table – and Friday, the GOP specified the $36 million CPB cut.

While it’s true Gingrich and Bush-era Republicans never made good on the elimination threat, both managed to cut CPB … modestly .

CPB’s $285 million 1995 appropriation slid to $250 million by 1999 before bouncing back. The 2007 appropriation of $400 million slipped to $393 million in 2008 but then grew again.

How much pain for MPR? MPR receives about $4 million annually from the CPB, says communications director Bill Gray.

In some ways, that’s a huge number. Last fall, MPR boss Bill Kling announced a $5 million annual plan to add up to 70 reporters. His successor might need that just to tread water.

MPR has just over 100,000 members; a $4 million cut would require 66,666 new members donating $5 a month, or 16,666 donating $20 a month. Four million bucks would fund three MinnPosts (with a few hundred thousand left over).

In other ways, the figure is not as formidable. MPR and its sibling entity American Public Media reported $68 million in revenue for the year ending June 2009 (the most recent public disclosure). The CPB’s $4 million is 5.8 percent of that – one dollar in 17. It’s 6.7 percent for MPR’s Twin Cities stations.

Losing $4 mil would rock any local news operation, but MPR wouldn’t lose its “ability to cover the region.” In fact, the network just survived a bigger funding drop.

Revenues plunged $14 million from fiscal year 2008 to 2009, at the height of the financial crisis, according to MPR’s most recent federal form 990 . The newsroom took some cuts , but MPR spread the pain, even whacking some executives. I’d wager most listeners don’t think coverage has worsened.

This particular bump was smoothed by a $9 million infusion from MPR’s assets, which stood at $101 million after the transfer. As of mid-2009, MPR sat on a $15 million endowment, $38 million in restricted investments, $50 million in grants, pledges and accounts receivable; and $2 million in cash.

However, the CPB cut’s ripple effects could exceed $4 million. Fewer stations nationwide might buy APM shows such as “Marketplace” and “Being.” NPR programming could become pricier. And the state of Minnesota might cut MPR support, a governmental double whammy.

Again, though, even if CPB cuts are historically large, they’re unlikely to be the full $430 million.

There are those who argue federal spending is a small price to pay for a better-informed public. Others belive public media – especially at MPR’s scale – would be better and more independent if weaned from the government teat. (Many who feel this way are competitors, it must be said.)

It’s important to note that for smaller public stations such as Minnesota’s AMPERS network, CPB monies are a much higher share of the operating budget. CPB also funds public television; locally, TPT has urged members to contact Congress.

Straight sell or propaganda? Every sales pitch needs a call to action, but MPR risks harming the brand by putting hype into its news staff’s mouths. Newspeople regularly read promotional scripts about “profound” effects, and hosts sit idly by when other employees overreach.

I asked MPR news boss Chris Worthington about pitching standards for his newsroom, and he replied:

Reporters, hosts, newscasters are not dispassionate about the value of MPR to the region. They are some of our most eloquent advocates. They’ll typically talk about the merits of our service and ask people to become members. Most of what they say is scripted and reviewed by news leaders. In the case of the risk to CPB funding – and subsequently MPR – they’re simply pointing to next week’s House vote as yet another reason to become a member.

In other words, the straight sell. But MPR newsies aren’t telling you about the obstacles to cuts, or how limited the impact might be. Instead, the one-sided drumbeat on the CPB issue amounts to propagandizing on an issue of the day, even if it occurs during breaks instead of newscasts.

As a fellow member of the donor-supported media, I understand the need to fundraise and proclaim your organization’s honest virtues and risks. I’m not naïve that money – be it advertising, member drives or politician-headlining roasts – carries conflicts. Still, MPR managers need to demonstrate a little more shame – and spine – to protect their news staff from spinning an ongoing news story.

So should you donate to MPR? If you listen enough to be pissed off by a pledge drive, yes. Are they kidding about federal cuts? Not as much as cynics think. Would some cuts hit the newsroom? Likely. If the cuts happen, will MPR lose its ability to cover local news? No. Click to write a comment or read comments about this post. MinnPost.com Full RSS Articles brought to you by: MinnRoast 2011 — Journalists & politicians gently skewered Now up to 51 generous sponsors. BIG THANKS TO ALL!

Support high-quality journalism in Minnesota by becoming a member of MinnPost.

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Washington, DC, United States (AHN) – Federal Reserve chief Ben Bernanke says the unemployment rate in the United States will not drop to pre-financial crisis levels for a number of years.

Bernanke made that statement Thursday in answer to questions about the economy from the Congressional Committee on the Budget.

In addition, he said that it was impossible to consider the economic recovery to be established until there is a strong and sustained creation of jobs.

The U.S. economy only created 36,000 net jobs in January. That was not sufficient to cover population growth and did little to help the millions of people who lost their jobs during the recession or in its aftermath. For example, the economy needs to create from 120,000 to 200,000 jobs monthly just to absorb new workers entering the labor force for the first time.

Moreover, Bernanke said that the long-term challenges presented by the high federal deficit were “daunting” and that the present high deficit was “unsustainable.”

The total government debt is now 60 percent of gross domestic product (GDP) and forecast to rise to 150 percent of GDP by 2030. The total federal budget deficit is 9 percent of current GDP.

By contrast, European Union nations try to keep budget deficits to 3 percent of GDP.

GDP is the total amount of goods and services consumed in the nation. The budget deficit is the amount the government spends each year in excess of its income, expressed as a percentage of the national GDP.

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Amman, Jordan (TML) – Jordanian authorities have put security forces and police on red alert during the past two weeks as concern that Tunisia’s unemployment revolt which toppled President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali could ignite an already angry Jordanian public.

The army, gendarmerie and other police units have been banned from leaving their bases as concern grows that ripples of Tunisia’s political earthquake could reach the small kingdom.

A demonstration last Friday organized by the opposition to call for economic and political reform was the latest in a spate of protests around the cash-strapped kingdom.

Nearly 4,000 people showed up in an event dubbed “The Day of Rage” to vent their anger at Prime Minister Samir Refai, whom many accuse of being out of touch and imposing economic policies that impose intolerable burdens on ordinary people.

A key U.S. ally in the heart of the Middle East, Jordan is more strategically situated than Tunisia since the kingdom borders Israel, Iraq and Saudi Arabia. But in many other respects, the Jordan and Tunisia have much in common. Both have sought to build progressive and stable societies based on the rule of law, secularism, women’s’ rights and rising standards of living.

But neither has ever developed a full-fledged democracy, nor have they been able to cope with joblessness, poverty and inequality – all factors that brought down Ben Ali earlier this month. Joblessness in Tunisia is about 13% and the rate among young people is considerably higher.

“The economy in Jordan has certain contradictions. It suffers from unemployment of 14% — 150,000 who are people looking for jobs,” Jawwad Anani, an economist who served as royal court chief and finance minister for the late King Hussein, told The Media Line. “We need a strategy, a well-thought-out strategy that everybody believes in and can take this society to a higher level.”

Even before the situation in Tunisia exploded five weeks ago, Jordan was experiencing a wave of unrest amid growing tension between the country’s Bedouin tribes and its urban Palestinian population. But economic problems are looming as an increasingly important factor as global food prices rise.

Under guidance from the International Monetary Fund (IMF), Jordan’s government two years ago lifted subsidies on fuel and raised taxes to generate badly needed income that could help trim a yawning budget deficit of $2 billion. Economists estimate the government generates nearly 600 million Jordanian dinars ($900 million) in profits annually from selling fuel to its own citizens.

Meanwhile, many of the jobs that the economy is creating are going to expatriate guest workers. Anani estimated that about 750,000 jobs are filled by non-Jordanians, including a half million Egyptians and smaller numbers from Syria and Iraq.

For now, the situation in the conservative kingdom remains under control. There have been no violent confrontations between police and protestors. The government has embarked on a flurry of activities aimed at absorbing the anger of the public and the opposition.

The government last week approved a $225 million package to contain rising commodity prices and lower some fuel prices, including $28 million to subsidize prices of basic food items sold in state-run supermarkets. The government also promised to create jobs in the army and security forces to appease disenchanted Bedouin tribes, which make up the majority of the army and security forces and are the firmest backers of the royal family.

Some of the government’s most experienced politicians, including Interior Minister Saad Hayel Srour, Parliamentary Speaker Faisal Fayez and government spokesman Ayman Safadi, have opened up communications channels to opposition leaders to calm the atmosphere. But opposition leaders have greeted the campaign with skepticism.

“They have been a great many meetings with the minister of interior and the speaker of parliament, but what we want is ongoing dialogue and a genuine desire of change,” MP Ablah Abu Elbeh, who is also secretary-general of the leftist Hashed Party, told The Media Line.

The Day of Rage protestors called for the prime minister to step down. Hamzeh Mansour, secretary-general of the Islamic Action Front (IAF), the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood, called on Abdullah to dismiss the government and dissolve what he called an inept parliament.

Even in parliament, which recently gave the government a confidence vote of 111 out of 120, lawmakers last week lashed out at the government for its fuel-pricing policies. But lawmaker Jameel Nemri told The Media Line that changing the government wouldn’t solve the problem.

“It’s meaningless to call on the government to be dismissed. This will just lead to musical chairs game among influential parties in the kingdom. The core issue of helping the poor stand on their feet is what should be addressed, not who is a prime minister,” said Nemri.

Anani, the economist, warned that the kingdom could be facing uncertain future if the government continues to resort to temporary measures, like the make-work schemes it announced for Bedouin tribesmen.

“If we continue to allow the status quo to prevail, we will lose our ability to even develop crash programs to take care of emergency in difficult situations,” he said. “Putting small fires is not going to work very well.”

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Calgary, Alberta, Canada (AHN) – Alberta Premier Ed Stelmach forecast a quick economic recovery for the oil sands-producing province.

He said because of the swift recovery, Alberta will lead Canada’s recovery while the province’s books will return to black in 2011, one year ahead of previous prediction.

Alberta is only one of three Canadian provinces that did not suffer a budget deficit in 2010, but Alberta tapped into its reserved funds to balance its books. The decline in tax collection and energy royalties caused Alberta to have an actual budget deficit of $5 billion.

Stelmach is placing his job on the line by planning to call an election in early 2012. He foresees job creation as a tool to garner political support that Alberta could even end up with labor shortage and would need to recruit workers from other Canadian provinces and overseas to fill in the gap. Stelmach projects the province would need 70,000 more skilled energy workers in 2014.

The controversial oil sands are expected to be the province’s economic engine. In 2008, Canada exported over $122 billion worth of energy to the U.S., which includes oil sands crude.

To further develop Canada’s oil sands industry, the Canadian Energy Research Institutes reckon capital investment of $218 billion will pour in over the next 25 years. This in turn is expected to create 450,000 jobs across Canada, with a significant chunk in Alberta.

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Washington, DC, United States (AHN) – Fifty Pakistani students are due to arrive in the United States in the first week of 2011 under an exchange program.

Deputy Assistant Secretary for Academic Programs Alina Romanowski announced their arrival during a conference call on Thursday. She said a special effort was made to select students who have never before traveled to the U.S.

The students are part of the Global Undergraduate Exchange Program in Pakistan (Global UGRAD-Pakistan). Global UGRAD-Pakistan students engage in one semester of non-degree study and are placed at more than 35 accredited two- and four-year higher education institutions in more than 25 states.

Romanowski noted that at least one course on American History, also termed an “American Studies Course,” must be pursued by the visiting students.

The students were not screened for any “terrorist mentality,” nor for “religious backgrounds,” Romanowski told journalists. All, however, had to go through the regular visa application screening process.

She said all of the students would return home at the end of the course.

The Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs, in coordination with partner organization IREX, will host an orientation in Washington for the students Jan. 3-6, according to a State Department communique.

Launched in fall 2010, Global UGRAD-Pakistan is design to provide a “substantive exchange experience” at a U.S. college or university to emerging student leaders from underrepresented sectors in Pakistan, according to the communique. The goal of the program is to increase mutual understanding between the people of the United States and the people of Pakistan.

Due to the security situation in Pakistan, the exchange program is limited to a “welcome program” for the Pakistani students as no American students are going to terror-infested Pakistan.

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