Two climbers missing, one dead on Mt. Hood

Filed under: Climbing, North America, United States

It was a long and tragic weekend on Oregon's Mt. Hood, where search and rescue teams combed the area searching for three missing climbers. That search turned tragic on Saturday when one of the climbers was found dead high on the mountain, while his two companions remain missing as of this writing.

On Friday, 26-year old Luke T. Gullberg, Kattie Nolan, 29, and Anthony Vietti, 24, set off to climb the 11,249 foot Mt. Hood, which is a popular mountaineering destination in all seasons, although obviously more challenging in the winter months, when deep snow and unpredictable weather can cause all kinds of problems. The three climbers were due back at 2 PM that afternoon, but when they didn't arrive by Saturday, the search teams went into action.

Gulberg's body was discovered on the Reid Glacier at about 9000 feet, along with some climbing gear, but no trace of Nolan or Vietti was discovered. The recovery team said they found a digital camera in Gulberg's pack, which gave clues to the location of the missing climbers, but due to bad weather, heavy snow, and avalanche conditions, finding them won't be an easy task. That task will be made all the more difficult by an incomplete climbing registration form and conflicting reports on the route they were taking to the summit.

The search is expected to continue today, with a National Guard and Coast Guard helicopter reporting to the area. The Coast Guard aircraft comes equipped with thermal imaging that should prove helpful to SAR teams, despite the adverse weather conditions. Search teams remain hopeful that Nolan and Vietti will still be found alive.

Two climbers missing, one dead on Mt. Hood originally appeared on Gadling on Mon, 14 Dec 2009 11:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Scott Rothstein Arrested by Federal Authorities in Florida

Scott Rothstein, the disbarred Florida-based attorney who is alleged to have operated a massive Ponzi scheme, was arrested this morning by Federal authorities. He has been charged with five criminal counts, including conspiracy to violate the Racketeering Influenced Corrupt Organization (RICO) statute; conspiracy to commit money laundering; conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud; and two counts of wire fraud.

If convicted, Rothstein faces a total maximum statutory term of imprisonment of 100 years (20 years on each count).

Rothstein is believed to have operated a massive Ponzi scheme since 2005. Rothstein's law firm, Rothstein, Rosenfeldt and Adler, P.A., was located in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.

Rothstein's attorney, Marc S. Nurik, didn't return calls seeking comment.

According to an amended complaint filed on November 27th in the U.S. District Court, Southern District of Florida by the U.S. Attorney's office, Rothstein solicited clients to investment in settlements, into which putative plaintiffs in civil cases involving sexual harassment and other labor-related issues, had entered into confidential settlement agreements with putative defendants. The potential investors were told that these settlements, which existed in blocks ranging from hundreds of thousands to millions of dollars, could be purchased at a discount and repaid to the investors at face value over time. Clients who agreed to invest were directed by Rothstein or others to wire transferred funds to a trust account managed by Rothstein's firm.

For example, in September 2009, one potential investor was told that he could purchase a settlement valued at $450,000 for $375,000 which would be repaid in increments of $150,000 per month for the following three months, amounting to a yield of 20% over the period (or an annual percentage yield in excess of 80%). The FBI has determined that the investment scheme never existed and was a fraud. In reality, the investment was nothing more than a Ponzi scheme in which new investor money was used to pay previous investors, according to the civil complaint.

Rothstein used the investors' funds to fund bank accounts, purchase luxury vehicles and numerous homes, and an equity investment in Gianni Versace's South Beach mansion, called Casa Casuarina. Rothstein also used $5 million of his investors' funds to buy a luxury condominium at One Beacon Court (151 East 58th Street), coincidentally the same building where now-imprisoned attorney Marc Dreier owned a condo, and also the complex that houses Bloomberg LP. Rothstein was also brazen enough to o donated some of the funds to political campaigns, including one for the

The U.S. Attorney in Florida is suing for forfeiture of various real and personal properties, acquired, owned, obtained, funded or purchased in whole or part by Rothstein. The government is also seeking to seize numerous vehicles, including a Bentley convertible, multiple Ferrari's, several Rolls Royce's, a Hummer, a Bugatti, a Maserati and a Lamborghini. Also mentioned in the civil action are multiple bank accounts, several of which are overseas, including $16 million in cash at a Banco Populaire in Morocco.

The government is also going after Rothstein's equity investments in numerous restaurants including Bova Ristorante, Bova Cucina and Bova Prime, Cafe Iguana in Pembroke Pines, Fla. in addition to many campaign contributions he made totaling more than $151,000. Donations made to the Republican Party of Florida and a $9,600 campaign contribution made to the Florida Governor Charlie Crist, have already been voluntarily turned over to government authorities. Also targeted are Rothstein's charitable contributions, including a $800,000 charitable donation made to Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital and a $1 million donation made to Holy Cross Hospital

Alison W. Lehr, the Assistant U.S. Attorney which filed the civil complaint, declined to comment. Alicia Valle, Special Counsel to the U.S. Attorney in Florida, was not able to comment at presstime.

Filed under: Dining, Real Estate Developments

Scott Rothstein Arrested by Federal Authorities in Florida originally appeared on Luxist on Tue, 01 Dec 2009 13:32:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Stocks gain ground as energy stocks rally on Exxon Mobil's $31 billion deal

Filed under: Investing

Easing concerns over global credit problems and more signs of corporate dealmaking are giving stocks a moderate boost. Major stock indexes rose less than 1% in late afternoon trading Monday following news that Abu Dhabi had extended $10 billion to Dubai to help the Middle Eastern city-state stay afloat. Markets had been worried in recent weeks that debt problems in the struggling former boomtown could send ripples through global credit markets.

Investors were also encouraged by Exxon Mobil's (XOM) $31 billion purchase of XTO Energy (XTO), which sent energy stocks sharply higher. The deal will help Exxon tap into the growing supply of natural gas in the U.S. and could signal more consolidation in the energy industry.

Continue reading Stocks gain ground as energy stocks rally on Exxon Mobil's $31 billion deal

Stocks gain ground as energy stocks rally on Exxon Mobil's $31 billion deal originally appeared on DailyFinance on Mon, 14 Dec 2009 16:15:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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American Daily <b>Conservative</b>: 1000 eco-nuts arrested in Copenhagen <b>...</b>

(Reuters) Police detained nearly 1000 people in Copenhagen during mass demonstrations to demand that negotiators at U.N. talks agree a strong treaty to fight global warming ... Posted by American Daily Conservative at 1:05 PM ...
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Acer Liquid A1 hits the FCC with AT&T's HSDPA flavors

It's already selling in Europe with one of AT&T's 3G bands, but the prospect of a US-friendly Acer Liquid A1 just got real, governmental-involvement style. The FCC has approved a 850 / 1900MHz version of the Android device, and while this is no guarantee of an AT&T berth -- much of Canada is crowding in on this spectrum, not to mention the possibility of selling the phone unlocked and unsubsidized -- we're massaging our temples this very second with the appropriate good vibrations to get this thing out and about in the States and on the cheap.

Acer Liquid A1 hits the FCC with AT&T's HSDPA flavors originally appeared on Engadget on Fri, 11 Dec 2009 13:04:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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Sony Ericsson Elm, Hazel, and VH700 stereo Bluetooth buds beef up vegan GreenHeart line

Who says tree-hugging has to be boring? Actually, Sony Ericsson's latest sets to join the eco-friendly GreenHeart line aren't anything special, but at least they don't slouch in the specs department -- both the Hazel slider and Elm candybar announced today feature 5 megapixel cams, GPS with geotagging, LED flashes, and dual-band HSPA on top of quadband EDGE. The real news, though, might be the introduction of SE's very first GreenHeart accessory -- the VH700 stereo Bluetooth headset -- which ponies up dual mics for improved call quality and micro-USB recharging. It'll hit in the first quarter of the year along with the Elm; the Hazel follows on in the second quarter.

Sony Ericsson Elm, Hazel, and VH700 stereo Bluetooth buds beef up vegan GreenHeart line originally appeared on Engadget Mobile on Mon, 14 Dec 2009 17:02:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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WoW Moviewatch: GreatFather Winter

'Tis the season to start revelling in the glory of Winter's Veil. To help create some classic music for us all to enjoy during the holiday, Cranius wrote and produced GreatFather Winter. While this video was originally created a year ago, it remains fresh and vibrant even today. I think that Cranius nailed his goal perfectly.

Cranius has a nice story about the final creation of this film. There were fierce snow storms where Cranius lives. He obviously wanted to get his Winter's Veil classic complete by Christmas, but was very concerned about losing power due to the snow. He was rightly concerned, as his electricity went out just as he was near finished. But, thankfully, it turned out to be a very short outage -- he was without power just long enough to get a few more inspirations for some final tweaks.

Let the holiday season begin!

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Interested in the wide world of machinima? We have new movies every weekday here on WoW Moviewatch! Have suggestions for machinima we ought to feature? Toss us an e-mail at machinima AT wow DOT com.

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Filed under: Analysis / Opinion, WoW Moviewatch

WoW Moviewatch: GreatFather Winter originally appeared on WoW.com on Mon, 14 Dec 2009 12:00:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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