Karzai meets Obama: How will they shape a post-2014 Afghanistan?

Afghan President Hamid Karzai's visit to Washington this week will shape the future of Afghanistan, as he and Obama determine the number and role – if any – of US forces in Afghanistan post-2014.
After more than a decade of war and costly efforts to build infrastructure and train Afghan security forces that now number 350,000, the view from Kabul is still mixed. Many are concerned about what will happen when the bulk of the 66,000 remaining US troops will be withdrawn by the end of 2014. Others believe that Afghanistan is ready to stand on its own.
Yet worries about a collapse or a reignited civil war after the US pullout may be overblown, just as similar doomsday predictions about Iraq after the final US withdrawal in December 2011 have not come to pass.
"There is now a sense [among foreigners] that the lights are going to go out in 2014, that the sun is going to stop shining," says Martine van Bijlert, co-director of the Afghanistan Analysts Network in Kabul. "In the early years, they had this overly rosy picture, but since then there has been this decline and increasing pessimism. Both are over-estimations of the international role."
Recommended: How well do you know Afghanistan? Take our quiz.
Some fear a return to the dark days of the late 1990s, when the Taliban ruled most of Afghanistan with a centuries-old, unbending Salafi Islamist worldview. Others fear a breakdown of central government and return of warlordism, competing militias, and civil war.
A number of analysts, however, say Afghanistan has come too far since 2001 to disintegrate again into past eras of violence and lawlessness, and that those who fought over Kabul in the 1990s today have vested interests in keeping the peace in the capital.
"It's not important for us, the physical presence of Americans in Afghanistan, the numbers beyond 2014," says Hilaluddin Hilal, an Afghan Air Force general and deputy Interior minister for security until 2005.
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"The important thing is a strong partnership and the existence of the US as an ally. We don't want the Americans to take part in the frontline fight against insurgents; we have enough [troops]," says Hilal.
He ticks off a list of complaints voiced by many Afghans: rampant corruption, poor governance with limited capacity, and billions in Western reconstruction aid that often lined pockets instead of creating sustainable, tangible results.
"Now the big problem is disagreement between Karzai and the US – this can create strategic problems for the US and Afghanistan in the future," says Hilal. "Sometimes the president says the reason for insecurity is America itself.... And the Taliban, the president calls them 'brothers,' but they kill innocent people. How can that be? We have no definition of who is the enemy [so] there is no clear strategy about the enemy in Afghanistan."
Mr. Karzai's visit to Washington comes amid news from Afghanistan of yet another "green on blue" attack of a uniformed member of the Afghan Army shooting dead a British soldier on Monday – a reminder of the uncertainties and eroded trust as the US plans to withdraw the bulk of its troops. US forces are part of a 100,000-strong NATO contingent.
The killing was the latest in a surge of such attacks. During the past year, insider attacks killed 63 US and NATO troops, in 47 incidents.
'WE HAVE DONE SO MUCH'
"There is a Western point of view that we have done so much all this time, that we have tried so hard to build up this government, that it's still in such bad shape, that it must be impossible for it to roll on and continue to exist without our help," says Ms. Bijlert.
Yet, "the actual locally relevant governance and politics that went on was often not that visible to the foreigners here. This will probably continue," says Bijlert. Often classified as dysfunctional, that system "has defused a lot of the possible violence."
"The complexity of it might be uniquely Afghan. It's very much a personalized, patronage-based society.... Your relationships are the main capital you have, and also the greatest threat: Who is your friend and your enemy is the most important thing in life," adds Bijlert.
"And with all the turnovers over the decades, things have become ever more complicated, [leaving] you with layers of multiple loyalties," notes Bijlert. "Anyone who's anybody, politically or socially, even on the village level, has to engage in complicated, almost mathematical relational calculations all the time – that's what politics are made of here. Also, it's very brutal: It's easy to get killed or beaten up. So you're constantly engaging in actions to defuse that."
Much of that political dynamic bypassed US and NATO forces as they sought to stamp out an insurgency that leapt up after US forces and intelligence shifted attention in 2002 toward Iraq.
DASHED HOPES
The result has been dashed hopes that were high among Afghans, after the Taliban and Al Qaeda militants were forced from power and out of Kabul by US airstrikes and Northern Alliance fighters in late 2001. Afghans expected dramatic and positive change, spearheaded by American forces, aid, and good intentions.
"People are so disappointed; expectations were normal, but they didn't finish the Taliban," says a former translator for US and British forces, who spoke in Kabul on the condition he not be named because has been threatened because of his previous translation work.
"Before [2001], people thought of the Taliban as a military power, but now they are a political power, because they can play a game and they are doing it," says the Afghan translator.
"To be honest, [the US] lost the war. With all this effort, you expect good results, but they are not there," says the translator. "Now [US forces] are trying to reduce their casualties. If they won the war, why do they want to keep 10,000 troops? It means there are still things to do, and the threats are worse [today] than five years ago. In 2001, it was so easy to finish the Taliban, [but] now the Taliban are in an offensive position."
The translator recalls hearing repeated complaints from Afghan villagers as US troops made patrols in the less-welcoming southern reaches of the country, that it was the US presence that endangered them – not only the Taliban.
"They were hating both sides, they were harmed by both sides," says the translator. "[Villagers] would say: 'Please, for God's sake, leave! You are the main reason for the problem. From the day you arrived, there was bombing.' The American commander laughed and said, 'We are bringing security to you.' They replied: 'No, we feel insecurity with you.'"
An elder from the remote eastern province of Nuristan says he heard similar sentiments.
Yacoub Nuristani, who helped US Provincial Reconstruction Teams choose and fund projects, says there is little left to show for that work besides a few clinic and school buildings.
A key road near Kamdesh is now too insecure to use. Five years ago, the Monitor reported on Taliban killings of elders who cooperated with US forces, which later withdrew completely from the province.
"The people of Kamdesh fought against the Taliban when the Americans were there, they were threatened by the Taliban," says Mr. Nuristani, speaking in Kabul. "Now the Taliban are there, but they don't threaten because there are no US or foreign troops."
Those who supported the government and fought the Taliban, says Nuristani, now have no government support "so they had to flee."
NO 'VICTORY'
Few say they believe that the Taliban could reimpose their rule on Afghanistan before or after 2014, and some say the spate of suicide bombings in recent years – which have often targeted civilians in mosques and shops – is a sign of weakness.
However, few on the ground here use the word "victory."
"It was just a given, it was going to be a success, and if it wasn't going to be a success, it had to be made to look like a success," says Bijlert of the Afghanistan Analysts Network. "That skewed everything, so it became difficult to say, 'Actually, this is very hard, and maybe we should rethink.'
Thus emerged a pattern of expectation, that a solution was just around the corner, if this step were taken to win hearts and minds, or that troop surge was implemented. Instead, the insurgency continues.
Says Bijlert: "Some of it was almost like an evangelical belief, that something was on the verge of happening that would change everything."
Recommended: How well do you know Afghanistan? Take our quiz.

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Britain debates: What should European welfare look like?

On Tuesday, the British government pushed through a parliamentary vote to temporarily cap welfare benefits, setting down a dividing line on an issue that will be pivotal in determining who wins the UK's next general election.
But it also is the latest round of a struggle being played out across virtually every European nation facing the questions of what a welfare state should look like in the 21st century and how it can be subsidized in an era when the right (and many on the left) claim that dwindling resources mean traditional models are no longer affordable.
Recommended: Think you know Europe? Take our geography quiz.
The bill, backed by the government's Conservative and Liberal Democrat parties coalition, caps annual increases in many benefits to 1 percent – effectively a real-term cut as it is below the expected level of inflation – and passed the House of Commons easily despite opposition from both the opposition Labour Party and even from some Liberal Democrat members of the governing coalition.
DOMESTIC DEBATE OVER DEPENDENCY
The government paints the measure as necessary to fix an increase in benefits paid to supposedly work-shy “shirkers” over the past five years at a time when another group characterized as “strivers” have been unfairly shouldering the burden of paying taxes.
"Where is the fairness, we ask, for the shift worker, leaving home in the dark hours of the early morning, who looks up at the closed blinds of their next door neighbor sleeping off a life on benefits?” asked Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne last year when the measure was announced.
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But critics charge that Mr. Osborne's imagery was a classic example of Conservative Party scapegoating of the poor, meant to play to a particular strata of voters fiercely fought over by the Tories and Labour. Labour points to analysis showing seven million working households will lose out by an average £165 ($265) annually under the plan. And Sarah Teather, a Liberal Democrat member of Parliament who lost her job as children and families minister in a reshuffle in September, also said she would be voting against.
"As a constituency MP representing a very deprived area in London, I feel deeply anxious about the policy and I will be voting against the bill... very reluctantly and with a very heavy heart," she told the BBC.
By ramping up the rhetoric ahead of today's vote, Britain's Conservative Party sought to exploit perceived associations between their Labour opponents and notions of an outdated welfare state. Drawing on focus group research, one recent Conservative election attack advert featured an image of a man on sofa watching day-time television and asked if the government should support “hard-working families or people who don’t work.”
Polling last week also revealed that more than two out of five people believe that benefits were too generous, and three out of five buy into the idea that a culture of dependency had emerged. A British trade union umbrella body that commissioned the research said Tuesday that public support for measures such as the one adopted by Parliament was based on ignorance of who will suffer.
A EUROPEAN PROBLEM
But in many ways, the British debate over how to deal with its welfare state amid an economic crisis is par for the course in Europe – and one that, according to the British government, the UK is handling better than its peers on the continent.
In Portugal, Ireland, and Greece, the three eurozone countries that have suffered most from the crisis engulfing the current zone, draconian cuts in welfare have been part of the bargain for IMF bailouts. France's newly elected Socialist president, François Hollande has meanwhile been preparing the French for major changes to one of Europe's most expansive welfare states, pledging to bring down the budget deficit to 3 percent this year and announcing that “we must be ready to do better by spending less.”
Traute Meyer, a professor at the University of Southampton involved in research about the welfare state in Europe, points out that trends over the past 10 years have seen every European welfare state moving to change to their system in line with their own unique cultural and historical traditions. “Nordic countries are still those with the highest employment rates and equality measures. Systems in southern countries still tend to be the most fragile, while Germany and others on the continent are holding onto systems based on social-insurance-based income,” she says.
“But at the same time you can see certain challenges and priorities are very similar," Dr. Meyer adds. "One is that all countries are thinking more about measures that will integrate people in the labor force – welfare to work.”
“So, in most countries, benefits that deactivate workers, such as early retirement, are being phased out, while those that activate people into the workforces are being brought in. Enhanced childcare is on the table in many places.”
James Plunkett, director of policy at the Resolution Foundation think tank, notes that much political debate about welfare reform in the UK had turned on a long-running theme drawing on language such as “scroungers and strivers” – language particular to the British view of welfare.
While British workers pay a certain percentage of their income – known as the "replacement rate" – into an unemployment fund which they can tap if they become unemployed, that rate is so low that it gives the workers a sense that unemployment payments are "not meant for everyone," thereby creating a stigma against taking such payments, he says.
“In other countries," he adds, the welfare system "is seen more as a general insurance mechanism for everyone.”
“[I]n a country like Denmark for example, there is almost no stigma attached to being on unemployment benefit. It's quite common to graduate and be on unemployment benefit for a time. I suspect that is a more common experience where as here there is more stigma attached to it.”
AHEAD OF THE GAME?
When it comes to the much larger budget surrounding pensions Britain may at least be a step ahead of other continental countries, including Germany, despite an often repeated narrative that holds that past reforms by German governments to streamline labor laws and revamp unemployment benefits have put it on the kind of stable footing envied by European peers.
Meyer, whose particular area of expertise is pensions, said that reforms in Britain by Labour in the second half of the last decade, and taken on by the coalition, have improved pension benefit in the future for lower income groups.
“In contrast, arising from the German pension reforms during the late '90s and early 2000s, there is increasing recognition in the German poverty debate that changes have led to a significant deterioration in future benefits for pensioners. If you take the perspective of pension, which is one of the largest parts of the Western welfare state budget, Germany has deteriorated and future poverty risks have increased while poverty rates for British pensioners have improved."
With its latest pension reforms, Meyer says that the UK is now closer to the sort of welfare approach taken by Nordic countries and the Netherlands.
"They have a basic state pension close to the poverty line and an occupational compulsory pension on top. In that sense the UK is not ahead but catching up, however, it is ahead of those countries that have now cut their previously very generous state pensions considerably, such as Germany and Italy."

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Katusha denied wild-card entry to Giro d'Italia

MILAN (AP) -- The Russian team Katusha featuring top-ranked Joaquin Rodriguez has been denied a wild-card entry into the Giro d'Italia.
Organizers RCS announced four wild-card entries on Tuesday for the May 4-26 race: Italian teams Androni Giocattoli, Bardiani Valvole-CSF Inox and Vini Fantini, plus South American squad Colombia.
The 18 UCI Pro Teams received automatic invites.
Katusha has filed a suit in the Court of Arbitration for Sport against the UCI's refusal of its application for the 2013 World Tour.
RCS said Katusha was considered as a professional continental team. Rodriguez has said he will leave Katusha if it is not allowed to compete in the World Tour.
Last year, Rodriguez was runner-up in the Giro to Ryder Hesjedal of Canada.
RCS did invite Katusha to the Tirreno-Adriatico, Milan-San Remo and Il Lombardia.

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Oakley challenges Nike over McIlroy move

LONDON (Reuters) - American sunglasses maker Oakley has launched legal action to try to retain its sponsorship of world number one golfer Rory McIlroy who is set to become the new face of sportswear giant Nike.
U.S. PGA champion McIlroy is poised to rubber-stamp a 10-year deal with U.S. company Nike worth as much as $250 million, according to media reports.
Nike is set to supply the 23-year-old Northern Irishman's clubs and have its name or logo on his clothing in an exclusive deal.
However, Oakley, owned by Italy's Luxottica, is challenging the move and started legal action in its home state of California last month.
"Oakley's contract with Rory has a right of first refusal that permits us to retain Rory as an Oakley endorser by matching any offer he receives covering our products," the company said in a statement to Reuters.
"These types of provisions are common in the industry. Oakley values Rory and will do all it can to retain him," it added.
The Dubai-based hotel company Jumeirah Group confirmed earlier on Tuesday that its five-year sponsorship with 2011 U.S. Open champion McIlroy had ended, the latest indication that confirmation of the Nike deal was imminent.
"Jumeirah became my first corporate sponsor when I turned professional back in 2007 and I would like to thank everyone at the company for their support in helping me become the player I am today," McIlroy said in a news release.
The player, who topped the money-lists on both sides of the Atlantic last year, said in November he did not think that ditching the Titleist clubs that have taken him to the top of the sport would affect his game.
Nike is hoping a partnership with the clean-cut McIlroy will help it to move on after it dropped disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong last year over his doping scandal.
The company stuck with former world number one golfer Tiger Woods despite the bad publicity the American suffered when a series of extra-marital affairs were exposed in 2009.

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Armstrong offered donation to anti-doping agency: report

(Reuters) - Disgraced cyclist Lance Armstrong once offered to donate nearly $250,000 to anti-doping efforts, the head of the United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA) tells 60 Minutes Sports in an interview to be aired on Wednesday.
Armstrong, who was stripped of his seven Tour de France titles last year after an investigation by USADA found evidence of wide-spread doping, had a representative offer the agency a large sum of money in 2004, USADA chief Travis Tygart says in the wide-ranging interview.
"I was stunned," Tygart tells interviewer Scott Pelley, according to a statement issued by the program. "It was clear -- it was a clear conflict of interest for USADA.
"We had no hesitation in rejecting that offer."
Asked how much money Armstrong offered the agency, Tygart replied; "in excess of $150,000."
Told by Pelley that 60 Minutes had learned it was $250,000, Tygart answered; "It was around that ballpark."
Tygart also alleges Armstrong provided the International Cycling Union (UCI), a regulatory body for the sport, a gift of $100,000.
During the interview, Tygart describes Armstrong and his team of doctors, coaches and riders as similar to a "Mafia" that kept their secret for years and intimidated riders into silently following their illegal methods.
Some of those riders are considered victims by Tygart and he says they were forced to choose between following the doping program or being off the team.
Tygart tells Pelley, he was "stunned" when the U.S. Justice Department failed to charge Armstrong at the end of a two-year investigation and failed to share their findings with USADA.
"I don't know (why they failed to charge Armstrong)," says Tygart. "It's a good question and one that if you finally answer, let me know."
Armstrong has denied ever using performance-enhancing drugs but according to a recent New York Times story is considering coming clean about doping in an effort to return to competition.
He declined to be included in the 60 Minutes Sports story and his spokesman did not return calls from Reuters seeking comment.

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Worldwide Supply Appoints New Regional Business Development Executive

Veteran telecommunications sales professional to lead business development efforts for the rapidly growing recognized leader in the secondary networking hardware marketplace.

Franklin, NJ (PRWEB) January 07, 2013
Worldwide Supply, the recognized leader in the secondary networking hardware marketplace, today announced the appointment of Jeffrey Giali to the role of Regional Director of Business Development.
Giali, a 12-year sales veteran of the telecommunications industry, joins Worldwide Supply from Trimble Navigation where he led the business development efforts for its enterprise clients. "As we further expand our presence into new business segments and continue our efforts to grow market share with current clients, Jeff’s deep knowledge of our market and strong industry relationships make him a valuable addition to our team," says Jay VanOrden, CEO of Worldwide Supply.
“I’m excited to join Worldwide Supply and support our sales directors and account managers in expanding key accounts in the industry,” states Giali. “I look forward to sharing the cost-effective programs and services offered by Worldwide Supply with existing clients and with some of my long-term contacts,” continues Giali.
Prior to joining Worldwide Supply, Giali held executive sales and operations roles at Trimble Navigation, Ubee Interactive and AT&T.
Giali holds a Bachelors of Science in Business Administration degree from California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo, California.
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About Worldwide Supply

Worldwide Supply is a recognized leader in the secondary network hardware marketplace, providing and buying networking and telecommunication equipment to, and from, companies globally. Some companies sell used networking gear to Worldwide Supply. Others may be searching for items ranging from used cisco routers to optics transceivers and beyond.
Headquartered in northern New Jersey, and with offices in California, Colorado, Massachusetts, New York, North Carolina and Texas, Worldwide Supply provides a full line of certified pre-owned and new-surplus networking and telecommunication products from major manufacturers such as Cisco, Juniper, Arris, Dell, Calix, Extreme and Motorola.
Worldwide Supply backs the products it sells with an industry-leading lifetime warranty.

Worldwide Supply is TL 9000 and 9001:2008 certified. For more information, visit http://www.worldwidesupply.net.
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For additional information on this topic, about Worldwide Supply or to schedule an interview with Worldwide Supply CEO, Jay VanOrden, please contact Veronique Deblois at 973-823-6412 or via email at pr(at)worldwidesupply(dot)net

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Jersey Boys Ticket Sales Prove Just Too Good To Be True On BuyAnySeat.com

The musical Jersey Boys has been taking the world by storm since 2005, creating ticket sales that continue to be just too good to be true, said Felina Martinez at online ticket marketplace BuyAnySeat.com. The popular, Tony Award-winning play’s various productions are performing in New York, Detroit, Las Vegas, London, New Orleans, and Indianapolis this month.

Denver, CO (PRWEB) January 07, 2013
To echo a line from one of their 60’s hits, the Jersey Boys enduring popularity seems `just too good to be true'.
Based on the 1960’s rock `n roll group called The Four Seasons, Jersey Boys opened on Broadway on November 6, 2005. Since then, the show’s various productions have won Tony, Grammy and Olivier Awards for Best Musical – as well as numerous other awards around the world.
Recently, the jukebox/documentary-style production surpassed My Fair Lady with over 2,718 performances, becoming the 19th longest-running show in Broadway history. (Source: Wikipedia.com)
The musical’s various productions are currently making concurrent performances in New York, Detroit, Las Vegas, London, New Orleans, and Indianapolis this month. Productions in Boston and Wichita are scheduled to follow in February, as well as continued performances in Las Vegas, New York and London. A Singapore production, which features an all South African cast, will open in Johannesburg, South Africa in March 2013.
“Online traffic for Jersey Boys tickets has been phenomenally steady for over seven years,” said Felina Martinez at online ticket marketplace BuyAnySeat.com. “In fact, the musical’s continued popularity is still very high, as the show is currently ranked #2 on our Most Popular Theatre Tickets list.
“Not only are tickets continuing to sell out for some of the dozens of upcoming shows, the production’s pulling power is still growing each year. Since fans and their families continue to flock to Jersey Boys performances, we’re proud to be able to offer them a complete selection of Jersey Boys tickets, with a worry-free guarantee to protect their purchase,” said Martinez.
“To access the continuously updated selection of cheap Jersey Boys tickets we have available, fans can go to BuyAnySeat.com and search for Jersey Boys – then select their tickets,” said Martinez.
Jersey Boys tells the back-story of Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons, a group of blue-collar boys from the wrong side of the tracks who beat the odds – enduring jail time, bad debts, broken relationships and, ultimately a break-up – to became one of the most successful American pop music groups in history.
The Four Seasons – comprised of Belleville, New Jersey natives Frankie Valli, Bob Gaudio, Tommy DeVito and Nick Massi – shot to fame in 1962 with a song about a girl named “Sherry.” The boys wrote their own songs, invented their own sounds and sold 175 million records worldwide – all before they turned thirty.
The show, which debuted as a Broadway musical in 2005, features all of the group’s hits including “Sherry,” “Big Girls Don’t Cry,” “Oh What A Night,” “Walk Like A Man,” “Working My Way Back To You,” and “Can’t Take My Eyes Off You”, which opens with the lyrics: `you’re just too good to be true’.
In all, Frankie Valli and The Four Seasons racked up 71 chart makers, including: 40 in the Top 40, 19 in the Top 10 and eight Number One hits. The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1990.
The rags-to-riches, rise-and-fall musical sheds light on the music industry, our culture’s obsession with celebrity and the sacrifices artists make to realize their dreams. See below for a complete listing of the production’s upcoming venues and performances.

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Georgia Engineering Firms and Contract Manufacturers Recently Accepted into the MFG.com Manufacturing Marketplace

Product Manufacturers in Georgia rely on MFG.com to find top-notch suppliers that meet all of their requirements

Atlanta, GA (PRWEB) January 08, 2013
As the world’s leading online manufacturing marketplace for made-to-order parts, MFG.com proudly announced the acceptance of Georgia-based manufacturers into the MFG.com marketplace.
A few of the recent additions include:

Located in Powder Springs, GA, GTI Precision Components is an AS 9100 and ISO 9001:2000 certified job shop that has been manufacturing high-tech components for the last 28 years. Through their state-of-the-art technology and inspection equipment, GTI provides expertise in 5-axis machining, multi-axis mill turn, and wire EDM. GTI has worked with clients in the aerospace, satellite and energy industries and is proficient in machining high-speed aluminum, stainless steel and titanium.
Carbon Age Systems & Manufacturing, LLC is a custom manufacturing and mechanical engineering services firm located in Atlanta, GA. They provide a number of value-added services for their clients and it is their goal to ensure superb custom manufacturing and mechanical solutions for their clients' next projects. Carbon Age Systems & Manufacturing, LLC provides services including:
     Design development: CAD-CAM, concept development, prototyping, design for manufacturing
     Manufacturing: CNC milling and turning, 3D printing, welding, sawing
     Automated/Robotic systems: production line improvements, sensing system, PLC systems, system development & installation
     Quality: full order inspection, 5S
American Biosurgical (ABI) is a custom medical connector and cable development company specializing in surgical, patient monitoring, and diagnostics imaging cable assemblies. Located in Norcross, GA, ABI is an ISO 9001:2008, ISO 13485:2003(E) certified engineering firm that provides standard and custom turn-key solutions for global device manufacturers looking to outsource their high-reliability cabling needs. From front-end design and materials selection, to state-of-the-art manufacturing and supply chain efficiency, ABI offers a proven strategy that delivers a competitive solution without compromising on quality.
Since 1998, Murray Plastics has been offering its customers in electronics, packaging and other industries, the best in custom and plastic injection molding. Utilizing their in-house tool shop in Gainesville, GA, Murray Plastics provides injection molding and insert molding services for a wide range of plastics including ABS, nylon, polycarbonate, polystyrene, and HDPE/LDPE. The experts at Murray Plastics can also take two- or three-dimensional CAD drawings and custom-build prototype or production tooling.
“We are honored to be admitting such qualified contract manufacturers and engineering firms from Georgia into the MFG.com marketplace,” said Mitch Free, Founder and CEO of MFG.com. “Each one of these companies will be introduced to the hundreds of product manufacturers that use MFG.com every day to fulfill their sourcing needs. The product manufacturers using the MFG.com marketplace to source their made-to-order parts, have never had it easier. MFG.com has simplified the process to find the right suppliers, collaborate with them, and perform due diligence with just a few mouse clicks.”
About MFG.com

MFG.com is the largest online marketplace for the manufacturing industry, facilitating interaction between buyers and manufacturers. MFG.com enables sourcing professionals and engineers to quickly and easily locate quality suppliers for CNC Machining, Injection Molding, Metal Stamping, Metal Fabrication and many other processes through an easy-to-use online marketplace. With more than $115 billion in RFQs passing through the marketplace, MFG.com has helped thousands of manufacturers - ranging from small machine shops to large conglomerates - increase sales and grow profits. MFG.com is a global business, with offices in the U.S., Europe, Asia and Mexico.

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Tennis-Serena offers ominous warning for Australian Open rivals

BRISBANE, Jan 5 (Reuters) - Serena Williams felt she was close to accessing the sporting "zone" during her emphatic 6-2 6-1 victory over Anastasia Pavlyuchenkova in the final of the Brisbane International on Saturday.
Williams needed only 51 minutes to beat the Russian in an ominous warm-up for the Australian Open, which begins in Melbourne on Jan. 14.
"I've been in the zone a few times," Williams told reporters.
"I don't know if I was in the zone today, but I was definitely heading in that direction. I've been in the twilight zone before, where I just felt so good I couldn't do anything wrong."
The world No.3's performance was so strong that Pavlyuchenkova said afterwards: "I always feel like I don't know how to play tennis when I play against you."
Williams captured the 47th title of her career. She has won 35 of her past 36 matches while claiming Wimbledon, the Olympics, the US Open, the season-ending tour championship and now the opening event of 2013.
The 31-year-old American roared through the Brisbane tournament without the loss of a set.
She said: "I was looking at a lot of old matches on YouTube, and I feel like right now I'm playing some of my best tennis. I feel like I want to do better and play better still."
Williams said a decision to seek on-court tranquillity after a shattering defeat to Virginie Razzano at the French Open last year had triggered her career resurrection.
"I really started being more calm on the court and just relaxing more, if it's possible for me to relax," she said.
"I feel better when I'm more calm. When I'm crazy like I was in Paris, as you can see, it doesn't do great for me. I think it is a really fine line between being too calm... I think sometimes if I'm too calm it doesn't work for me, either. I can be calm and still be pumped up and really excited.
"I can't do too much of either."
Williams said she wanted to take up meditation as an off-court routine, even though it would challenge her.
"I can never sit long enough for meditation," she said. "I really want to meditate more and I want to be still and be in that quiet area. But I just pick up my iPad and start playing some games, and then next thing I know I'm watching TV.
"Hopefully I can get there."
At Melbourne Park Williams will be chasing her 16th major championship and sixth Australian Open title.

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Cricket-Australia drop Hussey, rest Clarke for one-dayers

SYDNEY, Jan 6 (Reuters) - Mike Hussey's retirement from international cricket is likely to come sooner than he thought after he was omitted from Australia's squad for the first two matches of their one day series against Sri Lanka on Sunday.
Hussey had already said that the third test against Sri Lanka, entering its fourth day at the Sydney Cricket Ground, would be his last for his country and he would step away from international cricket at the end of the Australian summer.
Australia's selection panel, however, did not give the 37-year-old the opportunity of a farewell tour in the shortened form of the game, instead opting to look to the 2015 World Cup.
"Taking a long term view towards the ... World Cup the (selectors have) decided not to include Michael Hussey in the squad for the ... series," said chairman of selectors John Inverarity.
"Michael has been a tremendous ODI player for Australia over a long period of time, a match-winner for his country and his presence in coloured clothing will be sorely missed."
Australia captain Michael Clarke, aggressive opening batsman David Warner and wicketkeeper Matthew Wade were also not considered for the squad.
Clarke has been given time to recover from a hamstring injury, while Warner and Wade are given time to rest having played all six tests so far this season.
All rounder Shane Watson, who has been struggling with a calf injury, was also not considered. George Bailey will captain the side in Clarke's absence.
The five-match one day series begins on Jan. 11 in Melbourne.

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