Naitifóchi não? Pode ser um "Caxinguelezindifimditarde" então.

GIBA UM - mais Daslu

Sinal dos tempos
O cartão Amex está fazendo uma promoção para clientes da Daslu: as compras (até o final do mês) podem ser divididas em até 10 vezes (!!!), com mínimo de R$ 150 (* dá pra comprar o quê? um chaveiro?) em cada parcela. Quem comprar R$ 2.000, ganha uma refeição no restaurante japonês da loja (!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!). No Iguatemi, a espanhola Zara, a loja que mais fatura no shopping, divide, em qualquer cartão, qualquer compra (sem nenhum mínimo) em até cinco vezes.

Este post de número 1996 é uma homenagem à Karina

começou a guerra

Congresso do Brasil investiga se militares argentinos vendem armas a integrantes do PCC
A munição seria entregue para traficantes vinculados a organização

Jorge Marirrodriga
Em Buenos Aires

O Congresso do Brasil está investigando uma importante rede de tráfico de armas com destino às máfias do narcotráfico de São Paulo e Rio de Janeiro, as mais poderosas do país, cujos fornecedores, segundo o presidente da comissão que estuda o assunto, são militares argentinos, paraguaios, uruguaios e do Suriname.

O embaixador argentino no Brasil afirmou nesta quinta-feira (2/2) que embora o tráfico exista não há nomes identificados e até agora os detidos são de nacionalidade brasileira. A imprensa brasileira afirma que há seis militares argentinos de alta patente envolvidos.

De acordo com a investigação da comissão parlamentar sobre tráfico de armas, estas tinham como destinatário, entre outros, o Primeiro Comando da Capital (PCC). Trata-se da organização mafiosa mais importante de São Paulo, que deu diversas demonstrações de poder com a organização de fugas maciças e revoltas nas penitenciárias mais conflituosas da capital paulista e do Estado --entre elas o motim coordenado em fevereiro de 2001 de 28 prisões, com a tomada de milhares de reféns--, assim como ataques simultâneos com granadas e metralhadoras a cerca de 500 postos policiais. Este ano o bando tentou assaltar uma prisão de alta segurança utilizando mísseis.

Embora a investigação parlamentar esteja sob segredo, a imprensa brasileira confirmou que entre o material fornecido às máfias estão armas pesadas, lança-foguetes e minas terrestres, o que contrasta com o equipamento substancialmente inferior dos agentes de polícia brasileira, que têm de penetrar nos bairros controlados por traficantes.

Nos últimos meses as autoridades brasileiras intervieram em pelo menos duas ocasiões. Em um caso, tratava-se de um caminhão carregado de armas e munições que foi interceptado na tríplice fronteira entre Argentina, Paraguai e Brasil; no segundo, de um avião de pequeno porte que levava fuzis e metralhadoras escondidos embaixo de outras mercadorias.

A ministra da Defesa argentina, Nilda Garré, comunicou-se na última quarta-feira com o vice-presidente do Brasil, José Alencar, para tratar do assunto. Paralelamente, o embaixador argentino em Brasília, Juan Carlos Lolhé, reuniu-se com parlamentares membros da comissão para lhes transmitir a preocupação de Buenos Aires pelas revelações e a disposição do governo argentino a acabar com o tráfico de armas.

Lolhé confirmou na quinta-feira a existência de um contrabando de armas "que envolve os dois países", mas salientou que na reunião que teve com parlamentares brasileiros "não houve qualquer detalhe ou informação sobre os militares argentinos envolvidos".

O diplomata confirmou que foram encontradas armas a bordo de um pequeno avião, mas que este tinha matrícula brasileira, e que as conversas telefônicas interceptadas se referiram a militares argentinos, mas não indicaram sua patente nem sua identidade.

Queda de helicóptero mata pelo menos três pessoas em São Paulo
Da Redação

Um helicóptero caiu na tarde desta quinta-feira no bairro da Lapa, na Zona Oeste de São Paulo. Segundo o canal de TV GloboNews, pelo menos três pessoas morreram no acidente.


Local em que caiu o helicóptero na Lapa, em São Paulo
As imagens de TV mostraram os destroços da aeronave, que está praticamente toda carbonizada.

Segundo a rádio Jovem Pan, o acidente ocorreu na rua do Curtume, na altura do número 100. O helicóptero, modelo Bell 203 Jet Ranger, tinha o prefixo PTHOQ.

A aeronave, ainda segundo a rádio, estava verificando linhas de transmissão na região, quando bateu em um edifício, e o piloto perdeu o controle. De acordo com informações da Jovem Pan, a aeronave prestava serviço de verificação em linhas de transmissão da região.

A área já foi isolada pelo Corpo de Bombeiros, que molhou o chão para evitar risco de acidentes. Segundo a GloboNews, 11 carros dos bombeiros foram deslocados para o local.

As imagens da TV mostram partes da aeronave presas à fiação e às árvores da rua.

Estatísticas
Segundo inforções do DAC (Departamento de Aviação Civil), desde 1997, ocorreram 92 acidentes fatais de helicóptero no Brasil. Ainda segundo o DAC, o Brasil tem 997 helicópteros -- 456 deles estão no Estado de São Paulo.

São Paulo tem a segunda maior frota de helicópteros do mundo, perdendo somente para Nova York.

Em novembro de 2005, um helicóptero da rádio Eldorado fez um pouso forçado na pista da Marginal Pinheiros, em São Paulo, mas não houve vítimas.

Média de perto de um acidente por mês! Esses caras compraram o brevê?

Na verdade, do pouco que sei sobre pilotagem, controlar um helicóptero é mais complicado que controlar um avião.

ouvi dizer que isso é doença...

No Itaim, idosa colecionava lixo em casa
Espanhola de 80 anos diz ter recolhido todo tipo de entulho durante 18 anos e guardado; ela e o filho foram detidos

Após 16 h de trabalhos, prefeitura retirou mais de 20 caminhões de resíduos; por falta de espaço, dona dormia num Fiat 147
PAULO SAMPAIO
DA REPORTAGEM LOCAL

Um gari equipado com máscara antigases sai da casa da espanhola Maria Violeta Rodriguez, 80, dizendo que é impossível ficar muito tempo lá dentro. Violeta ficou 18 anos.
Esse é o tempo que ela teria gasto para acumular mais de 20 caminhões de lixo: os garis só conseguiram chegar à sala-de-estar depois de cerca de oito horas de limpeza, segundo a Vigilância Sanitária.
"A princípio, tínhamos uma fresta de apenas 20 cm de largura para entrar na casa", explica Maria Alice Ferreira, chefe da unidade de varrição pública.
Segundo a vizinhança, Violeta costumava sair de casa à noite, sempre por volta das 22h, para explorar as latas de lixo do bairro, o Itaim Bibi, na zona oeste. Voltava com restos de comida, garrafas vazias, quadros sem molduras, panos velhos e até pólvora; o produto da coleta era entulhado pelos cômodos da casa.
Por falta de espaço, Violeta dormia em um Fiat 147 verde-metálico, ano 1980, de propriedade do filho.
Os vizinhos já haviam reclamado do forte odor para a Vigilância Sanitária, mas, dizem, nunca se tomou nenhuma providência. "Cansamos de denunciar, mas ninguém fazia nada. Há uns 15 anos convivemos com esse mau cheiro", afirma a doceira Iolanda Machado Leite, que mora ao lado.
No domingo, depois de cinco dias sem ver Violeta e temendo que ela estivesse morta, uma moradora deu queixa à polícia.
"Eu não delatei ninguém", nega a taróloga Celene Wali, propondo jogar búzios para a reportagem. "Foi ela sim!", afirmam alguns vizinhos.
A delegada Maria Aparecida Resende Corsato, do 15º DP, diz que a invasão da casa é legítima, já que o odor no local punha em risco a saúde da comunidade.
"O interesse privado não pode estar acima do público", afirma Aparecida, que recomendou aos repórteres jogar os sapatos fora, para evitar contaminação, e declarou que iria às lojas Marisa comprar "um moletom baratinho para vestir".
Quando a polícia entrou no local, Violeta estava na casa do filho, no Guarujá. Ela soube da invasão por uma neta que ouviu a notícia no rádio. Como a senhora se sentiu?
"Não estou entendendo nada, imagina. Isso é crime, vou processar", repete, indignada, Violeta, que foi detida junto com o filho, o mecânico Juan Maurício Salgado, 40, dono das cinco carcaças de motos encontradas no local.
"Eu ia fazer uma arrumação esta semana e jogar fora o que não prestasse", garante Violeta.
Muito nervoso, caminhando de um lado para o outro, Salgado se descontrola tentando justificar o entulho. "Mamãe é assim, não tem o que dizer. O que vocês querem que eu faça?"
Violeta, que guardava em casa ainda as escrituras de 16 imóveis, afirma que vasculhava o lixo porque às vezes não tinha dinheiro para comer.
"O IPTU está caríssimo", queixa-se ela, que guardava também cerca de 25 mil pesetas, moeda espanhola fora de circulação.
Segundo a delegada, Violeta e o filho já têm passagem pela polícia por pequenos furtos. Eles serão indiciados por crime contra a saúde pública, exposição da vida alheia a perigo iminente e posse de artefato explosivo.
"Pensando bem, a senhora vai ser presa!", resolve a delegada, depois de folhear o código penal e descobrir que guardar explosivos em casa dá cadeia.
Violeta examina Aparecida com expressão de pouco caso e bufa. "Mierda!"
"Mamãe nem sabe o que é isso [pólvora]. Ela catava qualquer coisa", diz Salgado. A delegada acaba voltando atrás.
A senhora não tinha medo de dormir com ratos (que, de acordo com a varrição, tinham tamanho de gatos)?
"Não tenho medo de nada."
E de ser presa?
"O quê!?"

Acharam uma violeta no meio do lixo
Pra ver como a vigilância sanitária se importa com a saúde do povo, nem sequer foi checar....

Reinaldo Azevedo

Escândalo: Príncipe Harry é heterossexual! E se a moda pega? É o princípio do fim da monarquia inglesa



Eu perdi alguma coisa nos últimos anos ou os jornais e TVs, incluindo os brasileiros, perderam mesmo o juízo? Está sendo noticiado com grande estardalhaço o fato de o príncipe Harry, o mais novo da Casa Real inglesa — e que dizem ser filho de um cavalariço (eu, hein, Charles!) —, ter sido flagrado, numa boate, dando um beijo numa mulher (meu Deus!) e, acreditem, pondo a mão direita em um de seus seios. A foto está na capa do tablóide The Sun. Ao lado da moça, ninguém menos do que o herdeiro, William, com um jeitão de que tomou todas. Se a heterossexualidade virar mais um hábito inglês, como comer batata com peixe, a monarquia, definitivamente, acaba. Mais impressionante: ao lembrarem que Harry é um garoto problema, lista-se o fato de que foi a uma festa à fantasia com um uniforme nazista. O rapaz teve de pedir desculpas por escrito. Também já confessou ter fumado maconha. E um moço sem modos! Uniforme nazista e maconha, vá lá. Agora, aos 21, gostar de mulher!? Onde já se viu? Precisava mesmo ser alguém com fama de bastardo para mudar as tradições da Casa Real Inglesa... A dona dos seios é Natalie Pinkham, 27 anos, formada em Ciências Políticas. Nessa idade, ele ainda têm o que aprender. Parece que Harry tem uma namorada sul-africana. Vai dizer o quê? Estava verificando as jóias da Coroa...

http://www.timeopinionleaders.com/blog/

Thu Aug 24, 2006
The Morning After Pill Goes OTC - Is This a Good Thing?

"Plan B" was approved to be sold over the counter this week, adding fuel to an already blazing fire of debate regarding emergency contraception. After quite a bit of deliberation, the FDA declared Thursday that the so called "morning after pill" may be sold without a prescription. This is considered to be a major victory for its supporters, who say that this decision could halve the nation's 3 million unwanted pregnancies annually. Detractors insist that easy access to the drug could lead to increased promiscuity, as well as increase the activity of sexual predators. To add another twist to the story, the ruling points out that only those who are 18 or over may buy the pills without a prescription, a caveat that the manufacturer plans on appealing. Time Opinion Leaders, what is your take on this ruling?

e a notícia da discussão acima, pra quem não viu.
------------
http://www.cnn.com/2006/HEALTH/08/24/morning.after.pill.ap/index.html


Morning-after pill to be available without prescription
Buyers must prove they're 18 or older
Friday, August 25, 2006; Posted: 1:28 a.m. EDT (05:28 GMT)

Plan B will be available over the counter to women 18 or older, the Food and Drug Administration says.

WASHINGTON (AP) -- Women can buy the morning-after pill without a prescription, the government declared Thursday, a major step that nevertheless failed to quell the politically charged debate over access to emergency contraception.

The manufacturer, lawmakers and other advocates said they will press the government to allow minors to purchase the pills over the counter.

The Food and Drug Administration said that women 18 and older -- and men purchasing for their partners -- may buy the Plan B pills without a doctor's note, but only from pharmacies.

Girls 17 and younger still will need a prescription to buy the pills, the FDA told manufacturer Barr Pharmaceuticals Inc., in ruling on an application filed in 2003.
Still at odds

The compromise decision is a partial victory for women's advocacy and medical groups, which say easier access could halve the nation's 3 million annual unplanned pregnancies.

"While we are glad to know the FDA finally ended its foot-dragging on this issue, Planned Parenthood is troubled by the scientifically baseless restriction imposed on teenagers. The U.S. has one of the highest rates of teen pregnancy in the Western world -- anything that makes it harder for teenagers to avoid unintended pregnancy is bad medicine and bad public policy," president Cecile Richards said.

Opponents contend that nonprescription availability could increase promiscuity and promote use of the pills by sexual predators.

"If the FDA thinks that enacting an age restriction will work, or that the drug company will enforce it ... then they are living in a dream world," said Wendy Wright, president of Concerned Women for America, who led the opposition.
Pregnancy risk reduced

Plan B contains a concentrated dose of the same drug found in many regular birth-control pills. Planned Parenthood estimates 41 other countries already allow women to buy emergency contraception without a prescription.

If a woman takes Plan B within 72 hours of unprotected sex, she can lower the risk of pregnancy by up to 89 percent. Plan B is different from the abortion pill: If a woman already is pregnant, Plan B has no effect.

The earlier the pills are taken, the more effective they are. Allowing nonprescription sales mean women won't have to hustle to get a prescription, something especially difficult on weekends and holidays, advocates said.

The FDA's long delay in deciding on Barr's application ensnared President Bush's nominee to head the regulatory agency. On Thursday, two senators said they would lift their Plan-B-related block on Dr. Andrew von Eschenbach.

In recent weeks, anti-abortion groups, angered that approval was imminent, had urged Bush to withdraw von Eschenbach's nomination. Bush said Monday that he supported the doctor's decisions.
Only at pharmacies

Barr hopes to begin nonprescription sales of Plan B by the end of the year. The pills will be sold only from behind the counter at pharmacies, but not at convenience stores or gas stations. Pharmacists will check photo identification.

There isn't enough scientific evidence that young teens can safely use Plan B without a doctor's supervision, von Eschenbach said in a memo. Over-the-counter use is safe for older teens and adults, the acting FDA commissioner added in explaining the age cutoff.

"This approach should help ensure safe and effective use of the product," wrote von Eschenbach.

Barr and others were disappointed that FDA imposed the age restriction. Bruce L. Downey, Barr's chairman, pledged to continue working with the agency to try to eliminate it.

The age restriction remains controversial even inside FDA, agency drugs chief Dr. Steven Galson told The Associated Press. Galson has acknowledged overruling his staff scientists, who concluded in 2004 that nonprescription sales would be safe for all ages.

"Let me be frank, there still are disagreements," Galson said in an interview. "There were disagreements from the first second this application came in the house."

The Center for Reproductive Rights said a lawsuit filed last year to do away with all age restrictions would continue.
Age-limit enforcement

As a condition of approval, Barr agreed to use anonymous shoppers and other methods to check whether pharmacists are enforcing the age restriction.

"I'm sure the FDA will follow through on that and make sure these important conditions are established and enforced," said White House spokeswoman Dana Perino.

Barr hasn't said whether it will raise the price of the pills, which now cost $25 to $40 in prescription form.

Planned Parenthood, the largest dispenser of the pills, expects some insurers to continue covering prescription sales. Whether that would be cheaper will depend on a woman's insurance.

Nine states -- Alaska, California, Hawaii, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Mexico, Washington and Vermont -- already allow certain pharmacies to sell Plan B without a doctor's prescription to women of any age.

Minors won't see any change in those states, because the pharmacist already technically writes the prescription, the American Pharmacists Association said.

The FDA approved prescription-only sales of Plan B in 1999. The quest to change its status began in 2003. That year, agency advisers endorsed nonprescription sales for all ages, and FDA's staff scientists agreed.

Higher-ranking officials rejected that recommendation, citing concerns about young teens using the pills without oversight. Barr reapplied, asking that women 16 and older be allowed to buy Plan B without a prescription. Then last August, the FDA postponed a final decision indefinitely, saying the agency needed to determine how to enforce the age restrictions.

FDA's handling of Plan B sparked a firestorm, with allegations of political meddling, high-profile resignations, lawsuits and congressional investigations.

The controversy appears to have helped Plan B sales, which are up an estimated 30 percent this year, according to IMS Health Inc., a health care consulting company. Barr estimates pharmacists dispense about 1.5 million packs a year.

Plan B vs. abortion pill

Differences between the morning-after pill and the abortion pill, which are different drugs:


* The morning-after pill prevents pregnancy but has no effect if a woman already is pregnant. Sold under the brand name Plan B, it's a higher-than-normal dose of a hormone found in regular birth-control pills and prevents ovulation or fertilization of an egg. It also may prevent the egg from implanting into the uterus, the medical definition of pregnancy, but recent research suggests that's not likely.

* The abortion pill, RU-486 or Mifeprex, can terminate pregnancy up to 49 days after the beginning of the last menstrual cycle. It's a two-pill process. First is Mifeprex, which blocks production of a hormone required to sustain pregnancy. Then a second medicine, misoprostol, to cause contractions and finish the abortion.

junior wrote:Detractors insist that easy access to the drug could lead to increased promiscuity, as well as increase the activity of sexual predators.

Meu inglês não deu conta de entender o sexual predators. Como fica isso em português? Tarados?

acho que abusadores fica melhor. e concordo com a liberação, em tese.

nada como lutar contra o sistema com muito dinheiro no bolso pra comprar marofa...

Bob Marley, Fashion Icon
The Reggae Star's Son Goes Up-Market
With Clothing Line Beyond Just T-Shirts
By STEPHANIE KANG
November 24, 2006; Page B1

At Push Emporium, a hip boutique in downtown Los Angeles, a display is devoted to denim jeans ($220), military-style jackets ($310), T-shirts ($50) and other apparel from Tuff Gong Clothing. The new, pricey fashion line was inspired by an unlikely, populist source: reggae superstar Bob Marley.

Despite the Jamaican-born icon's enduring popularity with everyone from political revolutionaries to college frat boys, Push owner Sally Daliege says it isn't easy to sell consumers upscale clothing linked to the musician. "I know what they're thinking," says Ms. Daliege, whose store is currently stocked with $10,000 in Tuff Gong merchandise. "They're thinking 'I can get this on Hollywood Boulevard for $10.' "


Tuff Gong Clothing plans to launch a new line of fashion designed for women sometime next year.
Street vendors have for decades oversaturated the market with unauthorized T-shirts, hoodies and other garments bearing poorly silk-screened pictures of the dreadlocked singer-songwriter, who died of cancer in 1981. Like Che Guevara or Jimi Hendrix, Bob Marley's image has spiraled far beyond anyone's control.

Now, the Marley family is trying to restore its authority over his image and move it up-market. Rohan Anthony Marley, one of the singer's children, and his associates have launched Tuff Gong, the first major premium apparel brand created by the Marley family. The company's name refers to one of Mr. Marley's many nicknames; it was also the name of his record label.

The new line goes far beyond the bootleg Bob Marley T-shirts: there are leather jackets, cargo shorts and denim jeans with red, green and gold stitched pockets. On the waistband of the jeans are snatches of lyrics from some of Mr. Marley's songs like "Stir It Up," "Get Up, Stand Up," and "Is This Love."

Most fashion lines launched by musicians -- like those from Jessica Simpson and Jennifer Lopez -- have midrange price points. Tuff Gong's high-end collection costs more, in part, because it uses fabrics from Japan and Europe and is made at a plant in Portugal whose labor standards meet Rohan Marley's ethical criteria. Mr. Marley, 34 years old, says he wanted to team up with factories that offer employees what he considers good wages, overtime pay, and medical benefits.


Rohan Marley (above), one of Bob Marley's children, has launched a new premium fashion line inspired by his father.
Tuff Gong's lofty aims present a host of challenges to Rohan and his partner, former Levi Strauss & Co. and 7 For All Mankind designer Stefano Aldighieri. People think of Bob Marley clothes and they "immediately think cheap T-shirts and the like," says Mr. Aldighieri, who has had a tattoo of Africa on his right calf for years and says he used to play Bob Marley's music as a DJ in Italy.

"We're not going to bastardize my dad's image, like just throw it on anything," Rohan Marley says. "We have to let the people know that this is a family product, and it's quality."

The younger Marley's new line isn't the first to feature Bob Marley-inspired fashion. Apparel company Zion Rootswear, for instance, has a license from the Marley family to make concert T-shirts and other garments with Bob Marley's image. And Cedella Marley, one of the reggae great's daughters, introduced her "Catch A Fire Clothing" line a few years ago, which features women's dresses, denim and other casual wear. But Tuff Gong Clothing is aiming at a more high-end consumer.

Rohan grew up in Jamaica and Florida, eventually playing football for the University of Miami. While he has long dreadlocks now and strongly resembles his father, he wore his hair short in college and was a business-administration major. After school, he played briefly in the Canadian Football League. In recent years, he received attention in the celebrity press for his relationship with Grammy-winning rapper-singer Lauryn Hill, with whom he has four children.


A blue sweatshirt from Tuff Gong Clothing draws from the apparel that Jamaican reggae superstar Bob Marley actually wore.
The younger Marley says he didn't seriously consider starting up a new apparel brand until one day in London, when an old friend of his father's commented that he looked just like his dad. "I looked in the mirror and said, 'yeah I do!' " he said, remembering that he was wearing a shirt and denim jeans from the European label Diesel. "I thought, 'We gotta have this.' The vibe was to create a garment that would represent my father in his image and his likeness."

Armed with start-up money from his more famous older brother Ziggy, Rohan plucked a few favorite images -- his father playing soccer shirtless and another with him sitting under a tree playing guitar -- and hired a graphic artist to sketch the denim jeans, cowboy-inspired button-front shirts and military jackets featured in the photos. Messrs. Marley and Aldighieri then added embroidery and other finishing touches that riffed off elements of Bob Marley's life. For example, 56 Hope Rd., the reggae singer's home address in Kingston, Jamaica, is stitched onto the side of some garments.

After more than a year, Tuff Gong Clothing's track record is mixed. It sells in about 30 stores, including trendy boutiques like Fred Segal and urban mall-based chains like Up Against the Wall. But the brand hasn't yet landed in upscale department stores like Saks Fifth Avenue or Barneys New York and Messrs. Marley and Aldighieri say that many buyers don't yet know the brand. The company's small budget has limited advertising to niche magazines like UNleashed.

Still, the company is planning to rapidly expand its operations, launching a women's line in the spring and a more moderate-price apparel line later next year for those who can't afford the current collection's premium prices. Messrs. Marley and Aldighieri say they are also trying to spread the message of the elder Marley's music through the Tuff Gong venture. "Our goal in the long run is to really try and do something good," Mr. Aldighieri says. To that end, a line of "Know Your History" T-shirts, inspired by Ziggy Marley, features moments of historical significance, such as the birthday of Malcolm X, or the date when the first 20 slaves landed in Jamestown.


A page from a book of sketches used in designing the Tuff Gong collection includes an image of Bob Marley.
Anoma Whittaker, a fashion editor at men's magazine Complex, is impressed with the restraint Tuff Gong has displayed in launching the new line. "It's a sellable way of doing it. The other way is touristy," she says, adding "They're not going the obvious route. You don't just see images of Bob Marley or just lions or tie-dye -- you get an element of that but it's kind of in a subtle way."

What would Bob Marley, who sang proudly of his rough roots in the Jamaican ghetto of Trench Town, think of the new high-price fashion line? "I think he would find it sweetly ironic," says Colin Channer, a Jamaican-born writer, musician and English professor at Medgar Evers College in New York. "Bob himself had a sense that a lot of the very best things cost a good penny. ... The idea that Bob Marley-branded apparel should be cheap so the masses can buy it is an easy way of trying to devalue a brand that should be judged by the same standards as all other iconic brands."

The company says it is trying to figure out how to make a lower-price line without sacrificing its manufacturing standards. "A lot of people who love Bob Marley can't afford [Tuff Gong]," says Mr. Aldighieri. "It would be worse than ironic to come out with cheap products made in a sweatshop."

In the end, Tuff Gong executives realize that the brand's ultimate success will rest on design, rather than the appeal of Mr. Marley. Ms. Daliege of Push Emporium says Tuff Gong is one of the best-selling lines at her store, and has wide appeal among "professionals, preppies and hipsters." "The spirit behind Tuff Gong is strong," she says. "But even if you forget that it's a Bob Marley connection, the designs are still there and it's good."

Write to Stephanie Kang at stephanie.kang@wsj.com

Boys Mow Lawns, Girls Do Dishes:
Are Parents Perpetuating the Chore Wars?
December 7, 2006; Page D1
I've always considered myself tuned-in to the gender politics of the Chore Wars -- the household battles between husbands and wives over who does what at home.

Imagine my surprise when I realized I'm guilty of perpetuating this conflict into the next generation. While reporting on the topic, I saw that I myself expect different things of my son, 16, and my daughter, 18: I want him to handle more fix-it jobs, while my daughter does more cleaning.

The latest research suggests I'm not alone. The way parents are divvying up and paying kids for chores suggests this is one family battle that will extend well into the next generation and beyond.

WSJ VIDEO


• Sue Shellenbarger talks about the division of family chores between girls and boys.



MORE


• Work & Family Mailbox

A nationwide study by the University of Michigan's Institute for Social Research shows boys ages 10 through 18 are more likely than girls to be getting paid for doing housework -- even though boys spend an average 30% less time doing chores. Boys are as much as 10 to 15 percentage points more likely than girls at various ages to be receiving an allowance for doing housework, says the institute's newly completed analysis of data on 3,000 children ages 10 through 18.

Boys may be handling more of the kinds of chores that are regarded as a job that should be paid, such as lawnmowing, speculates Frank Stafford, the University of Michigan economics professor heading the research. Chores such as dishwashing or cooking, often regarded as routine and done free, may fall more often to girls. (The analysis is based on aggregate samples, and doesn't compare treatment of siblings within individual families.)

Also, girls ages six through 17 perform two hours more of housework each week than boys, the institute found. That echoes previous studies showing a similar gap, and mirrors an even bigger gulf between adult women's and men's housework time. Women now do about 19.4 hours a week to men's 9.7 hours, according to research by Suzanne Bianchi, a sociology professor at the University of Maryland, and others. "Girls hang around with their moms, boys with their dads, and they follow the patterns they grow up with," says Constance Gager, assistant professor, social and family dynamics, at Arizona State University.


Like me, many parents are unconscious of any gender gap among their own kids. Ann Barlow regards her family as gender-neutral, saying she and her husband treat their son, 13, and their daughter, 16, pretty much alike. "I don't think we discriminate," the San Ramon, Calif., mother. But she acknowledges that they do different tasks.

"We stick my son with taking out the garbage," she says. "I never even thought about it. It's just, 'Chris, take out the garbage.' " Her son also cleans the garage and handles household repairs more often than her daughter. And her daughter spends about an hour more each week doing housework -- three, compared with two by her son.

He uses humor to slip off the hook, Ms. Barlow says. "He'll be the first guy to weasel out of his chores. He'll say, 'Oh, I dropped a plate, you probably don't want me to handle those any more.' "

Some research shows that as adults, women are content doing more housework if they perceive the setup as fair. If a husband is working longer hours outside the home, for example, wives may willingly shoulder more chores.

But with kids, in addition to doing more housework, daughters are spending more time than sons performing paid jobs -- 1.9 hours a week for girls, vs. 1.3 hours for boys, Dr. Bianchi and others report in a 2006 book, "Changing Rhythms of American Family Life." Dr. Gager, who found a similar pattern in a 2004 study, likens these girls to "supermoms -- they're superkids who do it all."

In many busy households, housework simply isn't a high priority any more; couples' combined housework time is down 25% from the 1960s, Dr. Bianchi says. In the resulting war against dustballs, many families value pragmatism over gender politics. Raoul and Jackie Pascual acknowledge that chores haven't been evenly distributed among their three children. A daughter, 22 and living at home, has always handled more cleaning than their son, now 19, or another daughter, 14. Their son takes out the trash and helps with such jobs as assembling furniture, says Ms. Pascual, of South Pasadena, Calif. But the Pascuals aren't concerned. "It doesn't make a difference" who does what, Mr. Pascual says, "as long as it's done."

Housework is a problem at Mike Grandin's house, but gender politics are the least of his worries. His daughter, 18, cooks meals and helps out more at home than his son, 15. But neither clean up messes to Mr. Grandin's satisfaction. The San Francisco stockbroker says he winds up doing a lot of the dishes and tidying up while his kids stay busy with extracurricular activities, studying and jobs. His response is gender-blind: "I come down just as hard on either one when they leave a mess."

• Email me at sue.shellenbarger@wsj.com. Read answers to your questions in my Mailbox column.

O vice-governador de São Paulo e secretario estadual de Desenvolvimento, Alberto Goldman, disse acreditar que o motivo da causa do acidente ocorrido nas obras da linha amarela do Metrô tenha sido uma falha de engenharia.

De acordo com Goldman, o Instituto de Pesquisas Tecnológicas (IPT) começará as investigações a respeito do acidente assim que o local for liberado e as buscas pelas vítimas sejam finalizadas. Na avaliação de Goldman, não houve menosprezo por parte do governo no tratamento do acidente das vítimas da obras e dos moradores da região. "A Secretaria de Segurança Pública, a Secretaria de Justiça, a Secretaria dos Transportes Metropolitanos e o Metrô são todas áreas do governo responsáveis, sob diversos aspectos, pelo enfrentamento dessa tragédia."

Goldman descartou a possibilidade das obras serem canceladas e o contrato com o consórcio ser rompido. "Não há porque cancelar um contrato de tais dimensões. Os responsáveis têm de pagar em todos os sentidos: do ponto de vista moral, financeiro e político", analisou. "Evidentemente, a cidade não deve sofrer com a paralisação de uma obra tão importante que já deveria ter sido feita há pelo menos 30 anos", finalizou.

(matéria completa em estadao.com.br/ultimas/cidades)