Kuwaiti journalist jailed for Twitter 'insults'

KUWAIT CITY (AP) — A Kuwait newspaper says an online journalist has been sentenced to two years in prison for posts deemed "insulting" to the Gulf nation's ruler — the second such ruling this week.The decision reflects a widening social media crackdown across the Gulf Arab states to quell perceived political dissent.Kuwait's pro-government Al Watan newspaper reported Monday that Ayyad al-Harbi, a...

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Mark Zuckerberg faces fine in Germany over Facebook privacy violations

Facebook (FB) founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg could face a fine of $26,000 for not allowing German citizens to maintain anonymous identities on Facebook, The Guardian reported. Thilo Weichert, the data protection commissioner for the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, said that Facebook is breaking a German law by requiring users to provide their identities, adding that “it is unacceptable...

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181,354 People on Twitter Think They're Experts at Twitter

Do you tweet a lot? Do you post everything on Facebook? Do you #hashtag #complete #sentences #like #this? Do you describe yourself, variously, as a social media "maven", "master", "guru", "freak", "warrior", "evangelist" or "veteran"? (Yes, a social media veteran. As if Tumblr were a deadly war you narrowly survived.) Well: you've got company! There are more than 181,000 such individuals on Twitter,...

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Global stocks, commodities rise on U.S. fiscal deal

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Global stocks jumped 2 percent or more and commodities rallied on Wednesday after U.S. legislators struck a deal to halt a round of automatic fiscal tightening that threatened to push the world's largest economy into recession.The deal reached on Tuesday to avert the "fiscal cliff" put off the immediate pain of income tax hikes for almost all U.S. households but did nothing to...

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Swiss bank to pay $57.8M in US tax evasion plea

NEW YORK (AP) — Switzerland's oldest bank became the first foreign bank to plead guilty in the United States to tax charges when it admitted Thursday that it helped American clients hide more than $1.2 billion from the Internal Revenue Service.Wegelin & Co., founded in 1741, entered the plea in federal court in Manhattan, agreeing to pay $20 million in restitution to the IRS, a $22 million fine...

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Updated: 2013 Federal Income Tax Brackets And Marginal Rates

When you file your federal income tax return before April 2013, you're filing your 2012 taxes, and the 2012 income tax brackets define the amount of tax you owe to the government before credits and after-tax adjustments. The first paycheck or consultancy fee you earn in 2013 falls under new rules, however. The 2013 income tax brackets apply to money you earn during that year, although you may not...

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More for college athletes: not if, but how

MIAMI (AP) — After decades when paying college athletes was thought to violate the spirit of amateurism, the enormous television revenue generated by sports — football and basketball in particular — and the long hours of work by the players have changed the debate.The head of the NCAA now supports a stipend for athletes to cover costs beyond tuition, books and fees, and both coaches in Monday's BCS...

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Fighting Irish vs Crimson Tide: 2 storied programs try to live up to hype in BCS title game

MIAMI - Sometimes, the buildup to a game can overwhelm what actually happens on the field.Certainly, No. 1 Notre Dame and No. 2 Alabama would have to play nothing less than a classic to live up to all the hype for Monday night's BCS championship.Before either team stepped on the field in balmy South Florida, this was shaping up as one of the most anticipated games in years, a throwback to the era...

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Money for college athletes: not if, but how

MIAMI (AP) — After decades when paying college athletes was thought to violate the spirit of amateurism, the enormous television revenue generated by sports — football and basketball in particular — and the long hours of work by the players have changed the debate.The head of the NCAA now supports a stipend for athletes to cover costs beyond tuition, books and fees, and both coaches in Monday's BCS...

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Will game live up to hype in BCS championship?

MIAMI (AP) — Sometimes, the buildup to a game can overwhelm what actually happens on the field.Certainly, No. 1 Notre Dame and No. 2 Alabama would have to play nothing less than a classic to live up to all the hype for Monday night's BCS championship.Before either team stepped on the field in balmy South Florida, this was shaping up as one of the most anticipated games in years, a throwback to the...

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