Theodore Roosevelt’s Childhood and Education:
Born on October 27, 1858 in New York City, Roosevelt grew up very sickly with asthma and other illnesses. As he grew up, he exercised and boxed to try and build up his constitution. His family was wealthy travelling to Europe and Egypt in his youth. He received his earliest education from his aunt along with a series of other tutors before entering Harvard in 1876. Upon graduation he went to Columbia Law School. He stayed there one year before dropping out to begin his political life.Family Ties:
Father: Theodore Roosevelt, Sr. - Wealthy merchant.
Mother: Martha "Mittie" Bulloch Roosevelt - Southerner from Georgia who was sympathetic to the Confederate cause.
Siblings: Two sisters and a brother.
Wife: (1)Alice Hathaway Lee - daughter of a banker. She died at the age of 22. (2)Edith Kermit Carow - Grew up next door to Theodore.
Children: By his first wife - one daughter, Alice, who would get married in the White House. By his second wife - four sons and one daughter.Theodore Roosevelt’s Career Before the Presidency:
In 1882, Roosevelt became the youngest member of the New York State Assembly. In 1884 he moved to the Dakota territory and worked as a cattle rancher. From 1889-1895, Roosevelt was a U.S. Civil Service Commissioner. He was President of the New York City Police Board from 1895-97 and then Assistant Secretary of the Navy (1897-98). He resigned to join the military. He was elected Governor of New York (1898-1900) and Vice President from March-September 1901 when he succeeded to the presidency.Military Service:
Roosevelt joined the U.S. Volunteer Cavalry Regiment which became known as the Rough Riders to fight in the Spanish-American War. He served from May-September, 1898 and quickly rose to colonel. On July 1, he and the Rough Riders had a major victory at San Juan charging up Kettle Hill. He was part of the occupying force of Santiago.Becoming the President:
Roosevelt became president on September 14, 1901 when President McKinley died after being shot on September 6, 1901. He was the youngest man to ever become president at the age of 42. In 1904, he was the obvious choice for the Republican nomination. Charles W. Fairbanks was his vice presidential nominee. He was opposed by Democrat Alton B. Parker. Both candidates agreed about the major issues and the campaign became one of personality. Roosevelt easily won with 336 out of 476 electoral votes.Post-Presidential Period:
Roosevelt did not run in 1908 and retired to Oyster Bay, New York. He went on a safari to Africa where he collected specimens for the Smithsonian Institute. Even though he promised not to run again, he sought the Republican nomination in 1912. When he lost, he formed the Bull Moose Party. His presence caused the vote to be split allowing Woodrow Wilson to win. Roosevelt was shot in 1912 by a would be assassin but was not seriously injured. He died on January 6, 1919 of a coronary embolism.Historical Significance: Roosevelt was a fiery individualist who embodied American culture of the early 1900’s. His conservationism and willingness to take on big business are examples of why he is considered to be one of the better presidents. His progressive policies set the stage for important reforms of the 20th century.Events and Accomplishments of Theodore Roosevelt’s Presidency:
President Roosevelt served through most of the first decade of the 1900’s. He was determined to build a canal across Panama. America aided Panama in gaining independence from Colombia. The U.S. then created a treaty with the newly independent Panama to gain the canal zone in exchange for $10 million plus annual payments.

The Monroe Doctrine is one of the keystones of American foreign policy. It says that the western hemisphere is off limits to foreign encroachment. Roosevelt added the Roosevelt Corollary to the Doctrine. This stated that it was the responsibility of America to intervene with force if necessary in Latin America to enforce the Monroe Doctrine. This was part of what became known as ‘Big Stick Diplomacy’.

From 1904-05, the Russo-Japanese War occurred. Roosevelt was the mediator of the peace between the two countries. Due to this, he won the 1906 Nobel Peace Prize.

While in office, Roosevelt was known for his progressive policies. One of his nicknames was Trust Buster because his administration used existing antitrust laws to fight against corruption in the railroad, oil, and other industries. His policies concerning trusts and labor reform were part of what he called the "Square Deal."

Upton Sinclair wrote about the disgusting and unsanitary practices of the meat packing industry in his novel . This resulted in the Meat Inspection and the Pure Food and Drug Acts in 1906. These laws required the government to inspect meat and protect consumers from food and drugs that might be dangerous.

Roosevelt was well-known for his conservation efforts. He was known as the Great Conservationist. During his time in office, over 125 million acres in national forests. He also established the first national wildlife refuge.

In 1907, Roosevelt made an agreement with Japan known as the Gentleman’s Agreement whereby Japan agreed to slow the immigration of laborers to America and in exchange the U.S. would not pass a law like the Chinese Exclusion Act.

From: americanhistory.about.com

Some players may think the boom in energy, metals, and food is rewriting the rules of investing. Don’t bet your portfolio on it

by Ben Steverman

As oil ascends above $140 per barrel, the hot—some say overheated—commodities market has become Topic A on Wall Street and Main Street.

Lawmakers worry about manipulation and excessive speculation. Market participants debate the pros and cons of government regulation, and worry that a speculative bubble is forming in key commodities like oil. Meanwhile, consumers feel the pinch as they pay much more for food and energy.

But investors face their own commodity dilemma.

In the past year, investing in commodities has provided healthy returns while stocks, bonds, and other investments have been stagnant or dropped in value.

Many investment advisers have spent the past several years steering small portions of portfolios—often 3% to 5%—into commodity index funds. Commodities offered a way to reduce risk in a portfolio, they argued. Commodities can protect against inflation and move independently of other investments, often gaining value while stocks or bonds fall (or vice versa).

As a result, pension funds, hedge funds, and individuals began to pour money into the commodities market, first in a trickle, then in a steady stream, and now in a torrent. One favored vehicle: exchange-traded funds (ETFs) that track a broad array of commodities. According to TrimTabs Investment Research, more than $38 billion is now held in commodity ETFs, up more than 30% in the past five months.

Some Drawbacks

But investors are also starting to realize the popularity of the commodities has its drawbacks.

For one thing, says Susan Elser of Elser Financial Planning in Indianapolis, "commodities have become a highly volatile investment class."

Most of Elser’s clients are in their late 50s or older, and she’s not willing to put their retirement nest eggs in an investment category prone to wild swings from month to month. Market participants disagree on whether speculators are to blame for the current volatility. But there’s no doubt that if oil can rise 40% in the first seven months of 2008, it can just as easily fall by a similar percentage at some point in the future.

Another problem with commodities is they are a poor fit for investors saving for the long term.

For one thing, the forces pushing commodity prices higher can change direction. Keith Hembre, chief economist at First American Funds, says the flow of investing dollars may be lifting prices somewhat, but the "underlying strength" of oil and other commodities is rapid economic growth in emerging markets. Low interest rates in those overseas economies have added to the demand, and sparked worries about inflation worldwide.

"Ultimately what will put a cap on prices is a tightening of monetary policy globally, particularly in emerging markets where the primary source of demand has been," Hembre says. If overseas central bankers don’t raise rates, the U.S. Federal Reserve may be forced to hike interest rates instead, pushing the U.S. into a deep recession that would in turn slow down world growth and commodity demand.

Long-Term Returns

At some point, the commodities boom will stop, and this points to another drawback to investing in commodities: The healthy returns for commodities of the last few years have been unusual. Commodities can often go for years or decades offering investors weak or negative returns.

Over the long term, "the expected return of a commodity is really zero percent," says Avani Ramnani of Athena Wealth Advisors in Jersey City, N.J. And that’s before investors subtract transaction costs.

Unlike shares in a corporation that can grow and grow, or a bond that pays out interest each year, commodities are subject to the laws of supply and demand: In past commodity booms, higher prices have eventually cut into demand or spurred more supply. Prices didn’t keep rising forever—they eventually stabilized or even fell.

"This whole trend of moving money into the commodities market, I don’t think it’s a healthy thing for individual investors," Ramnani says. An allocation to commodities does "lower the risk" of a portfolio, she says, "but it lowers the return as well." For investors putting away money for the long haul, "it doesn’t serve any purpose," she says.

Political Backlash

One more danger for commodity investors may be the hardest to predict: Investors in commodities face a political backlash that could disrupt markets. A U.S. Senate hearing June 24 showed lawmakers are seriously considering intervening to stop or slow speculation. The topic was "Ending Excessive Speculation in Commodity Markets: Legislative Options."

Michael Masters, of Masters Capital Management, told senators that speculation is artificially raising commodity prices, and backed proposals to limit or block institutional investors from directly investing in the market. "In the last five years, institutional investors have adopted the mistaken belief that commodities futures are an investable asset class, similar to capital market investments," Masters said.

Among the institutional investors, of course, are the mutual funds that invest in commodities.

The Commodity Futures Trading Commission is studying whether index funds really are inflating market prices artificially. The government agency promises to report its conclusions to Congress by Sept. 15.

It’s impossible to predict how much longer the commodities boom will continue. But for investors, this superheated investment class may be getting too hot to handle.

From: rss.businessweek.com

PrevNextGallery IndexImage 16 of 19Sarah Casha>St. Paul’s Cathedral, London, EnglandSt. Paul’s Cathedral, designed by architect Christopher Wren and built between 1675 and 1710, is the fourth church on this site overlooking London. The first wooden structure was built in 604 AD by Mellitus, Bishop of the East Saxons, burned in 675 and rebuilt ten years later (St. Paul’s #2) only to be burned again in 962, by the Vikings. In 1016, Viking King Cnut took over the city of London. Later, French Normans took over the city and in 1240 began St. Paul’s #3, which was completed in 1300. Restoration on this structure was begun in earnest by Inigo Jones in 1633; but the English Civil War and the (temporary) establishment of the republic in 1649 stopped that. Finally, twenty years after the monarchy was restablished, Wren was commissioned to build the building as it is today.

Excavations have been held during the various renovation projects, most recently by John Schofield at the Museum of London. Sources St. Paul’s has loads of information about it on the Internet, including an official home page. The best source for archaeological information is the Museum of London pages, and a piece in Archaeology Magazine online called Inigo Jones’ lost portico. PrevNext

From: archaeology.about.com

The Grizzlies made a bold trade on draft night to acquire O.J. Mayo. Now they might have added another "lottery" pick.

Marc Gasol, the younger brother of Lakers center Pau Gasol, has agreed to a three-year deal worth $10 million, according to a league source. The contract has yet to be signed, but was said to be near completion.

Gasol, 23, is considered one of the top players in Europe. Last year the 7-foot-1 center was named MVP of the Spanish League after averaging 16.2 points and 8.3 rebounds per game for Akasvayu Girona. He could join with 7-foot Darko Milicic to give the Grizzlies one of the taller frontcourts in the NBA.

Grizzlies GM Chris Wallace was not available to comment. But earlier this month he said Gasol would have been a lottery pick in the ‘08 draft.

"He was drafted 48th by the Lakers last year, but if he was in the draft this season he’d be deep in the lottery," Wallace said. "He’s one of the elite players in Europe."

Gasol joins Mayo, the talented combo guard out of USC who was drafted No. 3 overall by the T’wolves in last Thursday’s draft and then acquired in a subsequent trade for the No. 5 pick (Kevin Love) and Mike Miller, in giving Memphis two new faces for their rebuilding effort.

He also gives the Grizzlies another tangible piece to show for last February’s controversial trade that sent Pau from Memphis to L.A. in exchange for Kwame Brown’s expiring contract, two first-round picks and the rights to Marc Gasol and rookie point guard Javaris Crittenton.

Wallace was widely criticized for the seeming giveaway during the season, but thanks to Brown’s expiring deal the Grizzlies had some $12 million under the salary cap. They were able to use some of it to sign Marc Gasol. With some $9 million still left over, Memphis could get another quality player on the free agent market or make a trade that takes back more salary in return (as the Bobcats did last summer in trading for Jason Richardson).

Gasol, who turned down more lucrative offers in Europe to come to the NBA, should feel at home in Memphis. He attended high school in the area while his brother Pau played for the Grizzlies.

From: rss.cnn.com

Meet contestant Melissa Lawson!PrevNextGallery IndexImage 8 of 12© NBCMelissa LawsonMelissa Lawson, age 32, is from Arlington, Texas. Her current home is Dalworthington Gardens, Texas. The working mother of five sons is the oldest female contestant on the show this season. Melissa wants to prove that size shouldn’t matter in the music industry.PrevNext

From: realitytv.about.com