My life took an inexplicable change on this date in 2001. The struggle began that day when my loan service agent, violated federal bankruptcy law, and sold my home of 26 years to a third party. The sloppy service agent Ocwen, handled all the interaction between the borrower and the bank, Chase Manhattan, who actually owed the deed. In early March of 2003, the United States Bankruptcy Court, in a surprising reversal of position, concluded that it 'lacked jurisdiction' to hear this obvious violation of law. Over the next twelve years I have appealed through to the US Supreme Court, three times. I have still not obtained a court hearing or trial, with the opportunity to present my evidence of the facts, and let the court apply the law to these law breaking bankers and their service agents. Since this began twelve years ago, the judge, the honorable Meredith Jury, is now in addition to being a bankruptcy judge is also one of the seven member of Bankruptcy Appeals Panel, or BAP, and although she did not rule on my latest appeal to the BAP which requested a hearing, and was refused by three other members of the seven member panel.
In my favor, binding precedent law created by the same BAP, in 2006, orders that the court does not have discretion to refuse to hear these types of violations of law.
I appealed, of course, and now it's at the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. Ozenne v. Chase Manhattan 11-60039 On January 5th 2012 I submitted my Appellants Opening Brief to the panel in San Francisco.
My story and the next decade of mortgage lending described in Mike Hudson's 2010 book actually began when I took a loan from Ameriquest in April of 1998. It was one of the first 'bundled' loans, Mine was first sold to Lehman Brothers, and later Chase Manhattan. The service agent,Ocwen, was as crooked as a dog's leg, without oversight from the owners of the paper. Servicing abuses were common. Ocwen, was the service agent for both banks. My loan became a 'basic unit' of the changes taking place in how the basic mortgage of American households were held, and ultimately led to the crash of 2008. Overnight, traditional bank mortgages, were sold to Wall Street, which sold them on the world wide market as safe investments, based upon United States residential mortgages. I am hoping for a decision soon Gary Ozenne
Brett Molina, USA TODAY10:25 a.m. EDT May 15, 2013
Google kicks off its I/O developers conference on Wednesday, where it's expected they will announce several big projects on both the hardware and software fronts.
Scroll down for the latest updates:
2:09 p.m.:Google voice search on a browser is pretty incredible. A demo shows a user searching for Santa Cruz Beach using only voice commands. "How far is it from here," says the Google rep running the demo, and Search quickly pulls up details.
2:06 p.m.: Singhal chatting about Google Now, which bolsters search results using Gmail and other Google services. Users will soon be able to set reminders that appear when needed, and cards for public transit, music, TV, books and video games.
2:04 p.m.: Singhal says the company will make improvements to the Knowledge Graph used to find answers for search queries. For example, when viewing the population of India, users can get comparisons to other countries like the U.S. and China. Singhal says Google will add conversational search to the Chrome browser(it's already available on iOS and Android).
1:58 p.m.: Amit Singhal is up next to discuss improvements to Search.
1:56 p.m.: There's also an "auto-awesome" feature that does everything from automatically create collages to create special motion galleries using a series of pics.
1:54 p.m.: Photo changes require simple button presses based on how users want to enhance their images. Uses can flip between the original and enhanced photo easily, too.
1:52 p.m.: The auto-enhance feature will include several options, such as Noise Reduction and Skin Softening.
1:49 p.m.: Gundotra says Google+ will add an "easy button" to auto-enhance photos.
1:47 p.m.: Google can search through photos and pick the best ones for Highlights, weeding out blurry photos, duplicates or images with bad exposure. It can even recognize landmarks in an image. They'll also recognize important people in your life, such as family members.
1:44 p.m.: Google will offer option where users can tie their camera to the cloud. Users can backup or highlight photos through the cloud. Users will have option to store up to 15 GB of full-size photos.
1:42 p.m.: Hangouts will also feature Group Video across all devices. Demo showing feature on smartphone. Gundotra now looking at upgrades to photos.
1:42 p.m.: New Hangouts app will be available today on the Web, Android and iOS devices.
1:41 p.m.: Users can view conversations, and can keep them going for as long as they choose. All information is stored, even when changing devices, and people can choose whether to track the history of a conversation or delete content.
1:39 p.m.: Gundotra moving on to Hangouts, focused on moving technology "out of the way." It will be available as a standalone app.
1:36 p.m.: Google+ will introduce related hashtags. The social network will analyze posts and automatically add hashtags. Users can click on hashtags and view content based on rank and location. It also performs image analysis and tags images. Very cool.
1:34 p.m.: He adds Google is trying to fix "flat" news feed that appear on other social networks, with an emphasis on depth. Stream of updates uses a multi-column design that changes based on the size of your screen. It features a combination of photos, updates and other content.
1:32 p.m.: Gundotra says Google will introduce 41 new features, including improvements to feeds, Hangouts and images.
1:30 p.m.: Vic Gundotra takes the stage to discuss the company's social network, Google+.
1:29 p.m.: For those curious about the Google Play Music: All Access service, you can join starting now.
1:26 p.m.: Yerga says Google Play for Education will launch this fall.
1:25 p.m.: One of service's cool features is the ability for a teach to automatically send an app to several students with mobile devices.
1:24 p.m.: Yerga returns to reveal Google Play for Education, focused specifically on schools. It looks like traditional Google Play store, but heavily focused on education apps. Users can break it down by subject or grade.
1:22 p.m.: Pichai discussing education and Google's suite of apps. He says company investing a lot on Android and education.
1:20 p.m.: Pichai is back to talk about the Chromebook Pixel, the Google laptop that runs on a Chrome operating system. Pichal says all the developers in attendance will get their own Pixel. Nice perk.
1:17 p.m.: The colorful racing title features tiny slot-car style vehicles players race around track by tapping button. All five smartphones and tablets are lined up, so the track spans across each device. Very cool.
1:15 p.m.: Upson showcasing browser-based game Racer, which will work across multiple devices. Demo features several tablets and smartphones.
1:12 p.m.: Chrome will add feature to simplify making purchases on any platform. Users can save billing and shipping information to Chrome, and it syncs across all devices.
1:09 p.m.: Upson points out another key benefit: bandwidth. The smaller file sizes mean saving the amount of data consumed by users.
1:08 p.m.: Upson talking about photos with smaller file sizes, using a WebP photo instead of JPEG images. So, a website with more photos should load faster when using the Chrome mobile browser and photo format. Upson says similar efforts are being made to improve video quality.
1:05 p.m.: Upson says mobile Chrome will focus on speed and security, the same as desktop. He says mobile browser speed compared to last year has improved by 57%.
1:04 p.m.: Linus Upson, the vice president of engineering for Chrome, up next to break down the next wave of updates.
1:02 p.m.: Pichai prepping a preview of updates to the mobile Web browser. The browser will run exactly the same on desktop as it will on mobile. Watching a game demo on a Nexus 10. Looks really sharp.
12:58 p.m.: Pichai returns to talk about Google Chrome. He says the browser has more than 750 million active users, up from 450 million at the time of last year's I/O event. Pichai says more users are launching Chrome through mobile devices.
12:56 p.m.: Checking out a Samsung Galaxy S4 running the latest Android mobile operating system, code-named Jelly Bean. Google will start selling unlocked version of S4 with Nexus interface for $649.
12:52 p.m.: All Access will cost $9.99 a month in the U.S., or try a 30-day free trial. It's available now. Users that join by June 30 can get All Access for $7.99 monthly.
12:51 p.m.: A search field will appear at the top of All Access. Users can search for an artist, then choose to add tracks to their library. There's also Listen Now, a mix of favorite artists, radio stations automatically created and recently played tracks. It will work on smartphones, tablets and Web browsers.
12:49 p.m.: Users can break down by music genre, too. Users can play a track, and choose to turn it into a radio station related to that song. Users can reorder tracks in their queue or easily remove songs with simple swipes.
12:47 p.m.: Yerga announces Google Play Music: All Access, their music subscription service. Users can explore music based on listening preferences, featured content and new releases.
12:46 p.m.: Yerga talking about music on Google Play. Is this leading to the reported subscription service?
12:45 p.m.: Play store gives recommended content more prominence, basing it on what friends pick. Users will also be able to search for apps "designed for tablets." Users can drill down further based on top paid or top free apps as well as new releases. The Web version of Google Play will be just as clean, with a colorful navigation bar on the left side to browse content by type.
12:42 p.m.: Android engineering director Chris Yerga on stage to disucss improvements to Google Play. Yerga showcasing the revamped design of the Play store on a Nexus tablet.
12:40 p.m.: Google introducing beta testing and staged rollouts, giving developers more control over the launch of their app. Again, more tools that will help consumers get better Android apps.
12:37 p.m.: Upcoming features for Google Play developers include professional app translation and the ability to track referrals to determine what attracts the most users. Developers will also have usage metrics to view the habits of app users.
12:33 p.m.: Android talk moves to important subject for app developers: how to get more users to see your app and earn money.
12:31 p.m.: Studio has lots of interesting features for developers, including the ability to view an app across multiple screen sizes. For Android device user, it means better apps in the future.
12:30 p.m.: Developers will have access to Android Studio, creating a faster and more productive experience for making games.
12:28 p.m.: Developers struggling to connect their multiplayer game, and Google moves on. So much for the demo.
12:25 p.m.: Game services will also add a multiplayer component to mobile titles. Players will be able to invite others or find friends through Google+. Watching a match of Riptide GP 2, a jet skiing game, that demonstrates the features.
12:24 p.m.: Google will also introduce Google Play game services, which sounds similar to Apple's GameCenter. Users can save games through the cloud, earn achievements and check leaderboards.
12:22 p.m.: Google Cloud Messaging will be expanding to Google Play, allowing developers to send data from their servers to users' Android devices. The messaging feature will also sync notifications. Judging by the applause, developers seemed very pleased.
12:19 p.m.: Google also going to introduce a cross-platform single sign-on for a variety of accounts. A sampling of this shows the creation of an account on Fancy. When the user logs in with their Google account, they can choose to install the app with that same info right to their smartphone or tablet.
12:17 p.m.: Developers will have access to a fused location provider, to make it easier for apps to determine a user's location. Also, Google will add activity recognition to determine when a user is walking, riding a bike or driving.
12:15 p.m.: Event focuses on updates to Google Play, specific to developers.
12:13 p.m.: More numbers: Google Play, the Android app store, has reached 48 billion app installs, 2.5 billion in the last month alone.
12:11 p.m.: Speaking of incredible growth, Pichai says Google has reached 900 million activations as of this year.
12:10 p.m.: Pichai praises developers for creating countless third-party apps to leverage Android and Chrome. Pichai says Google activated 400 million Android devices last year, up from 100 million in 2011. Incredible growth.
12:08 p.m.: Pichai shifts talk to Android, "the most popular mobile operating system in the world," and web browser Chrome, also tops in its genre.
12:07 p.m.: Pichai discusses how consumers are using many different types of computing devices, such as desktop computers, smartphones, watches and Google Glass. He says this is "one of the most important moments in computing."
12:05 p.m.: "We hope that the things you see at this conference will continue to inspire you," Gundotra tells the audience of developers and media. Sundar Pichai, who runs Android and related apps, is up next.
12:03 p.m.: Vic Gundotra, Google's senior vice president, takes the stage to kick off I/O. "I hope you are delighted by some of the surprises we have in store."
12:02 p.m.: Google video montage time. A review featuring a variety of Google and Android products and apps. Messages such as "imagine the possibilities," are scattered throughout.
Update at 12:00 p.m. ET: We've entered the countdown clock phase of the keynote (for those watching on the live stream available at the bottom of this page). We're about to start soon.
Original story
Google kicks off its I/O developers conference on Wednesday, where it's expected they will announce several big projects on both the hardware and software fronts.
USA TODAY will have live coverage of the I/O keynote, which starts at noon ET. So, what will Google unveil? Here's a look at what we could see revealed:
Google Glass. Google's wearable computing technology has generated plenty of buzz. The big question is what will we learn -- if anything -- from today's keynote. Do they share details on potential new partnerships and apps? How soon before consumers get their hands on Glass? For more on how Glass works, USA TODAY's Ed Baig has the details.
Will Google take on Spotify?According to The Verge, Google is going to announce a music subscription service now that it's locked out three of the four major publishing labels: Universal, Sony Music and Warner. The deals would apply to both video service YouTube and Android store Google Play. What's not clear is how much Google would charge for a music subscription.
Google Maps overhaul. The Android-focused site Droid Life says they spotted a Web page that has since been removed detailing big changes to Google's mapping application. Key features reportedly included Flight Search and increased integration with Google Earth.
We'll provide continuous updates throughout Google's keynote starting at noon ET. If you're on a Web browser, you can also watch the streaming video below:
An investigation is now underway after one of the largest Maya pyramids in Belize was bulldozed to extract materials for a road project.
Stuff like this drives me batty: The Ministry of Tourism and Culture in Belize is freaking out after the the Nohmul Complex was destroyed byconstruction workers to extract crushed rock for a road project. It's now investigating to find out how it happened, calling the wrecking of the ceremonial center "callous, ignorant, and unforgivable."
Cultural landmarks like Nohmul should be protected at all costs and the "disdain for our laws and policies is incomprehensible," the statement said.
Jaime Awe, who heads the Belize Institute of Archaeology, said yesterday that the builders could not possibly have mistaken the pyramid mound for a natural hill because the ruins were well-known and the landscape there is naturally flat.
Mr Awe said the destruction at complex in northern Belize was detected late last week.
Nohmul, meaning “Great Mound,” is 20 meters above sea level and is situated on a low, limestone ridge east of the Rio Hondo between Orange Walk and Corozal. Nohmul lies among sugarcane fields and is actually the highest landmark in the Orange Walk/ Corozal area. It is about a mile from the Northern Highway between San Pablo and San Jose...
...Nohmul was first occupied in the Middle Pre-Classic Period. Occupation of the site during the Late Pre-Classic Period was associated with the use of drained fields at Pulltrouser Swamp to the east of the center. By Early Classic times it is possible that the site functioned as a regional center, and that it governed much of the area around the modern communities of San Jose and San Pablo. During the Late Classic Period the site’s fortune waned and it was gradually abandoned. During the Terminal Classic/ Early Post-Classic the acropolis was re-used as a residential area. Today the ruins of Nohmul represent a major ceremonial center with twin ceremonial groups, ten plazas and a sacbe or raised causeway. There is at least one ballcourt. The main structure is a 50 by 52-meter structure that is 8 meters high. Unfortunately the site continues to be destroyed by road construction crews who bulldoze the mounds for gravel.
Sen. Elizabeth Warren raised concerns Tuesday that negotiations over new trade agreements could be used as a backdoor way to water down financial regulations.
Speaking at a Senate confirmation hearing for Export-Import Bank President Fred Hochberg, Warren (D-Mass.) said there are “troubling indications” that negotiations over trade deals with Asia and Europe could be seen as an opportunity for banks to quietly weaken oversight of the financial services industry.
The agreements are “a chance for these banks to get something done quietly out of sight that they could not accomplish in a public place with the cameras rolling and the lights on,” Warren said.
Warren didn’t detail which rules could be weakened through trade deals, but some consumer advocates have warned they could provide new avenues for corporations to appeal regulations at home and abroad and have questioned whether trade agreements could limit the ability of countries to ban certain financial transactions or instruments.
Striking new trade deals enjoys bipartisan support in Congress. Last week, lawmakers praised the president’s nomination of Michael Froman to be the next United States Trade Representative as a sign of renewed focus on trade during the president’s remaining years in office.
Hochberg told Warren that the Export-Import Bank, which provides financing and loan guarantees for U.S. companies that want to export goods, is not involved in the negotiation of the trade agreements.
“We’re really about implementation at the Export-Import Bank, so in terms of trade policy, that really is somewhat outside of our lane,” he said.
Warren asked Hochberg to “do what you can” to make sure the agreements do not weaken financial regulations.
Hochberg said the Export-Import Bank is working closely with private banks to secure financing for businesses that want to export.
“We have probably some of the strongest banks in the world right now because of the kinds of reserves that have been put in and the fact that they have built up their balance sheets,” Hochberg said. “A stronger banking system is far better for the Export-Import Bank.”
Hochberg, who has led the bank since 2009, was nominated by President Barack Obama in March to continue as president and chairman.
At the hearing Tuesday, he touted the work the bank has done to help boost exports and make exporting easier for small businesses and their lenders, including a joint effort between the bank, Small Business Administration and the Commerce Department to streamline the export process for small firms.
“We have done more for small business in the past four years than the previous eight years combined,” Hochberg said.
Senators praised his leadership of the bank during the financial crisis, when it helped secure financing for exporters when credit was difficult to obtain from private lenders.
Banking Committee Chairman Tim Johnson (D-S.D.) said Hochberg’s continued leadership is crucial while the economy is still recovering. He urged the panel to move “expeditiously” on the nomination, which is supported by labor and business groups, including the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and National Association of Manufacturers.
“If we do not again confirm Mr. Hochberg before July 20, we run the risk of leaving the bank without a quorum to act on many of the transactions before it, which will hurt American workers and exporters,” Johnson said.
Congress reauthorized funding for the bank last year through September 2014, despite efforts to block the measure by the conservative Club for Growth. The group issued a statement last month urging Minority Leader Mitch McConnell to block Hochberg’s nomination.
“The Export-Import Bank is a slush fund for market-distorting subsidies that pick winners and losers in the private sector,” Club for Growth President Chris Chocola said.
Google announces just ahead of its I/O conference that free storage across Google services -- Gmail, Google+, and Drive -- is leaping from 5GB to 15GB. But why?
Google's capacity to store your files will jump by a factor of three, the company said Monday, rising from 5GB to 15GB shared across Google+, Drive, and Gmail.
Google made the announcement just before Google I/O developers conference begins this week. The changes will "roll out over the next couple of weeks," Google said in a blog post.
The new amount of storage space will give people who use Google services the most generous storage capacity of any player in the free online-storage game. A quick look at competitors shows that Dropbox currently starts free subscribers at 2GB, Microsoft SkyDrive users get 7GB, and Apple iCloud, Amazon Cloud Storage, and SugarSync offer 5GB for free. The announcement follows a Google Drive update from last week that allows you to save files from the Web directly to Drive.
There's no doubt that the 15GB is a game-changer in the free storage market. The question is, why did Google do it?
Nevermind "do no evil," Google -- as we all know -- is in the business of making money. If Google is offering you more storage, then there is something that extra storage helps you do that will help Google make more money.
What that is, Google is not saying -- yet.
It's possible that at I/O, Google will reveal that Drive or Google+ will incorporate a more multimedia approach. Or perhaps it's simply nothing more than a shot across the bow of Dropbox: you now get 15GB because Google can give you 15GB.
Either way, it makes Gmail, Google+, and Google Drive that much more appealing to serious Google services users.
Update, 10:47 a.m. PT: Clarified that the new storage capacity is shared by Gmail, Google+, and Google Drive.
My thought's and a tribute to Mom's Young and Old Happy Mothers Day to all the mother's I know and love. First, a big hug and kiss to the ultimate mother in my lifetime; Esther Jensen 1892 -1993. Esther, insisted to my mom, that a spiritual, as well as a practical education be given to the son's of her oldest daughter. Next, my Aunt Adeline, who I still lovingly call 'Antique'. She is the mother of my cousins; Yale, Joanne, Donna, and Larry. Antique, is very special in my life, and after my mom passed (her sister) during a lifetime low, she kept me focused on the bigger picture in life outlined by the love of Jesus Christ. Her daughters, Joanne and Donna, have raised a progeny of christian followers, steeped in christian love, service and compassion. The love of Joann and Bob Ferguson produced the next generation of this family tree. Sheri, Robert, and Casey, while sister Donna, and Tommy Haas got married and produced Curtiss and Scott. JoAnne, and Sheri, have become the earth mother combo of family love and tradition. I can see with clarity, the bright spiritual light of love, passed from Baba, to Antique, to JoAnne to Sherri and now, Clark and Sheri's daughters. These mothers of daughters, have kept the meaning of mothers day, in my mind. Teri Russell is the mother of two bright and beautiful daughters in the Pacific Northwest. Indeed, Felicia, the oldest, has a new member in the next gene pool. Beautiful! Friends Mike and Megan, just introduced a new life to this world from North Carolina. Happy Mother;s Day to Karen Rubrecht, mother of three beautiful and accomplished daughters. Their father, my cousin Stan, is smiling BROADLY, tonight as he watches his daughters make their way in this challenging world, without their loving Dad. Happy Mom's day to Marie and JoAnne Trimborn whose offspring have been such a great part of my life, and have produced the inimitable Douglas and Claire. A very tight hug, and love to the parents of Dylan, the parents of Donald, the parents of Mitchell, and the parents of Darrell. May God bless you and keep you close, for you have endured the worst imaginable. This mother's day reminds me of the sad state of affairs with women, worldwide. What ever made us think, as a society, that men were better, or more effective leaders, then women. The more powerful male has always been able to inflict his will on the generally less powerful female. It seems to me, that the current state of world affairs is a direct consequence of that naive notion. War's are everywhere. And what for ? Mother's, daughter's, sisters, the time has come. Perhaps we are at a turning point in human evolution. Enough is enough. Recent events of rape in India, the US military's unreported sex scandal, human trafficking, Cleveland, what's next? Women, do it. You truly have the power to change things The power, of course, is not in guns, like the gun nuts would like you to believe, but in the ability to quickly organize and share information. The ultimate revolutionaries tool is the tablet computer.
A special Happy Mom's day to Carol in Tennessee, my ex, and Scott's mother. So, again Happy Mother's Day to all my friends and mothers. Gary O
