The great New Year's Eve stay-away

Millions celebrate at home as freezing weather and credit crunch bite

Pubs and nightclubs are bracing themselves for a quiet New Year’s Eve due to a grim combination of freezing weather and the credit crunch.

With night-time temperatures set to plunge below zero in many regions across the country tonight, a lot of revellers are expected to stay indoors.

Coupled with the deepening economic crisis, it all seems to be pointing towards a gloomy night for venue owners, who have already faced a decline in takings as well as a rise in overheads in recent months.

Erika and Grantley Smith, who run the Red Lion, in Bonvilston, near Cardiff, fear their pub might be empty on what is supposed to be one of their biggest nights of the year.

'We're supposed to be expecting about 40 people but whether they'll venture out with the weather I don't know,' said Mrs Smith.

A survey has shown that two out of three of us do not want to celebrate the evening with the traditional night out and will stay at home instead to ring in the year with family and friends.

A spokesman for the Post Office, which conducted the poll, said it was no surprise to discover that people were staying in.

'It's been a tough year financially for many and the expense of going out, coupled with icy temperatures and transport chaos, make a night in with loved ones a very appealing option for seeing out 2008,' she said.

The sober mood is in stark contrast to last year, when mild weather and better economic prospects helped bring out the crowds.

Those brave enough to venture out for Hogmanay in Edinburgh tonight will have to rely on festive cheer to keep them warm – with the mercury struggling to get above zero.

And the following night is expected to see temperatures plummet to an icy minus 5C.

Northern England and Wales will see lows of minus 5C and the rest of the country will experience temperatures of between minus 1C and 0C.

Jennifer Aniston Arrives in Mexico for New Year's!

Jennifer Aniston and Courtney Cox spent Christmas Eve together...and now they're hanging out on New Year's!

The BFFs and pal Laura Dern were spotted at the airport in Los Cabos, Mexico on Dec. 28.

Aniston toted a light pink passport case, jeans and a scarf in the 80-degree weather.

The Mexican resort city is one of Aniston's favorite destinations.

The actress, 39, has had a whirlwind couple of weeks.

Her new flick, Marley & Me, set a Christmas day opening record (and beat ex Brad Pitt's film The Curious Case of Benjamin Button!).

While promoting the doggie drama in NYC, she was spotted in a rare act of PDA with beau John Mayer, 31.

Yellowstone Volcano

Is Yellowstone gonna blow?

A supervolcano is one that explodes in (natch) supereruptions. Definitions vary, but usually we’re talking a magnitude-eight (M8) eruption: one trillion metric tons of ash and other debris filling at least 100 cubic miles, typically upchucked over the course of about a week. Picture 1,000 Mount Saint Helenses, or 8 Tamboras. Besides causing regional devastation, supereruptions affect global climate. An Indonesian super 74,000 years ago kicked off a thousand-year drought that some contend caused a human population crash.

Yellowstone is both a supervolcano and a hotspot; the two don’t always go together. A hotspot is the business end of what’s known as a mantle plume, a stream of magma that rises hundreds of miles through a channel in the earth’s crust. The Yellowstone plume head, 50 miles underground, is several hundred miles wide. Over time, the hot head melts the overlying crust, forming a smaller magma chamber. Yellowstone’s magma chamber is just a few miles down and contains partially melted granite viscous enough to trap gas, allowing pressure to build. Periodically the pressure cracks the surface, ejecting gas and disintegrated rock into the surface world. After about a tenth of the chamber’s contents have erupted, pressure falls and the show’s over. Reheat and repeat.

The Yellowstone hotspot has produced dozens of large eruptions over the past 16 million years, the last three within the Yellowstone volcanic field: two supers and one M7.4 lightweight that created 68 cubic miles of debris. They left overlapping giant calderas, or craters, each 10 to 50 miles wide. Since filled with lava and eroded, the calderas went unrecognized till the 1960s.

Hundreds Of Earthquakes Have Yellowstone Trembling

Probably the only thing we remember from our tours of Yellowstone a couple years ago are guides telling us about the supervolcano that formed the caldera that covers a large chunk of the national park. You can't have geysers and bubbling mudpots without lots of geothermal activity underground, and so Yellowstone is used to the occasional quake. But a recent batch of hundreds of mini-earthquakes, has scientists scratching their heads.

Though even the strongest of the tremors, at magnitude 3.8, is just strong enough to be easily noticed without seismic equipment, the fact that more than 250 quakes have occurred in the past few days has geologists on high alert, one University of Utah professor tells the AP:

This is an active volcanic and tectonic area, and these are the kinds of things we have to pay attention to. We might be seeing something precursory.

Could it develop into a bigger fault or something related to hydrothermal activity? We don't know. That's what we're there to do, to monitor it for public safety.

While it's good to know someone's watching out for park visitors, it's not exactly clear what precautions could be taken if a massive earthquake were to suddenly hit. In 1959, a huge quake triggered a landslide that killed 28. The good news is that these quake swarms happen pretty often, so it could just be a little something to add some edginess to your national park visit.

Bristol Palin Gives Birth !!!

Bristol Palin Gives Birth to Baby Boy!


The 18-year-old daughter of former Republican vice presidential candidate Sarah Palin has given birth in Alaska to a son.

People magazine reports that Bristol Palin gave birth to Tripp Easton Mitchell Johnston on Sunday. He weighed 7 pounds, 4 ounces.

Relative Colleen Jones tells the magazine the baby is fine and Bristol is "doing well." Jones is the sister of Bristol's grandmother.

The father is Levi Johnston, a former hockey player at Alaska's Wasilla High School. He has said he and Bristol plan to marry.

Palin created a stir in September by announcing the pregnancy as she prepared to accept her nomination at the Republican National Convention.

The governor's office called the birth a private family matter.

Bristol Palin gives birth to son

This just in: Sarah Palin's teenage daughter, Bristol, has given birth to a son, according to an online report by People magazine.

Bristol Palin, 18, gave birth on Sunday and named the boy Tripp Easton Mitchell Johnston, the magazine reported. He came into the world weighing 7 pounds and 4 ounces.

Colleen Jones, Bristol's grandmother's sister, told People that "the baby is fine and Bristol is doing well."

Mexican Beauty Queen arrested !!!

Police detain Mexican beauty queen, seize weapons

A 23-year-old beauty queen and seven men arrested in vehicles loaded with weapons and cash near the central Mexico city of Guadalajara have been transferred to Mexico City, the state news agency said Wednesday.

Laura Zuniga and the men were traveling Monday night in two vehicles that contained AR-15 assault rifles, 38-caliber specials, 9 mm handguns, cartridges and $50,000 in cash, said Luis Carlos Najera Gutierrez de Velazco, secretary of public security for the state of Jalisco.

Police, who had received a tip that armed men were in a home, detected the vehicles in the city of Zapopan as authorities were en route to investigate the call, Najera said Tuesday.

Inside one of the vehicles, authorities found Angel Orlando Garcia Urquiza, 29, who is Zuniga's boyfriend and the brother of "one of the greatest capos [bosses] of narcotraffic," Ricardo Garcia Urquiza, a member of the Juarez cartel already in police custody, Najera said.

All eight were filed before the news media Tuesday. Zuniga, wearing blue jeans and a gray sweater, raised her handcuffed wrists to cover her face in a police picture.

US Police Bust Mexican Drug Gang, Arrest 39


U.S. authorities say they have arrested dozens of suspects and broken up a smuggling network that has hauled up to 200 tons of marijuana to the southwestern state of Arizona each year from Mexico since 2003.

The Arizona attorney general's office issued a statement Tuesday, saying 39 people were arrested on felony charges, and nearly 60 people indicted following the investigation. Officials say the network in question, the Garibaldi-Lopez drug trafficking organization, transported drug loads to Phoenix, Arizona, across the remote desert wastes of the Tohono O'Odham Indian reservation, for Mexico's top Sinaloa cartel.

It says the network moved marijuana worth about one billion dollars through Phoenix for redistribution across the United States, and it used so-called "scouts" in the desert to look out for U.S. law enforcement during the smuggling operation.

Authorities say the operation also led to the seizure of cocaine, methamphetamine, thousands of dollars in U.S. currency, vehicles - some of them stolen - and firearms.

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Beyonce Diva Video Is Out !!!

After two highly successful albums, the former lead singer of Destiny's Child and R&B's favorite diva Beyoncé recently released her third album "I Am…Sasha Fierce." While her latest installment is actually a double album displaying two different personalities of the Queen B, it does not seem to measure up to her two previous works.

"I Am…Sasha Fierce" has a split personality, for lack of a better term. The "I Am" portion of the album set displays a softer side of Beyoncé while she makes a complete 180-degree turn and reveals her alter ego in "Sasha Fierce" in the second portion.

In an October article from Reuters, Beyoncé said that she created her new alter ego to protect her from who she really is. She goes on to say that Sasha Fierce is a more aggressive and glamorous side of her mixed in with sensuality that comes out when she's performing on stage.

Most of the songs from "I Am" have a down tempo acoustic pace to it like Beyoncé's first hit single "If I Were A Boy," which follows the footsteps of "Irreplaceable" from her second album "B'Day." "Halo" provides a more melodramatic sound that you would not normally hear from Beyoncé.

She also displays her wide range through her singing ability that never fails to impress. "Ave Maria" is more of a creative gentle drum track that resembles the original melody Ave Maria, one of the many instances where Beyoncé would go the distance by trying to do so much in one song, which sometimes works against her.

Overall, "I Am" unveils a rather vulnerable version of Beyoncé with tracks that are generally slow-paced and soothing, but nothing spectacular. There aren't too many catchy choruses and you may find yourself skipping some of the tracks due to loss of attention span.

In "Sasha Fierce," Beyoncé brings out her fun side with hard-hitting, attitude filled tracks, some of which are memorable and some disastrous. "Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)" is Beyoncé's second hit single, an easy favorite for DJs to play at clubs and can get any crowd on their feet, especially the ladies.

Yes this is the same song that Justin Timberlake danced to as Beyoncé's back up dancer in a leotard and heels on Saturday Night Live. This is basically Beyoncé at her best. Watch exclusive Beyonce Diva Video here.



The video for 'Diva', one of Beyonce's two new singles, premiered a few hours ago. Directed by Melina, the video is both a hit and miss affair IMO. Raw, gritty and edgy, the clip really captures the essence of the song.

However, having seen Sasha step her game up on the choreography tip with 'Single Ladies' (and start a dance craze in the process), the choreography in this kinda left me a little salty. The word 'lacking' immediately came to mind when watching her bust moves which looked as if she made them up there and then.

Still, a good video all the same. The black and white concept was pushed a little further with the colour contrasts i.e. the fire explosion etc. Like most things Beyonce, I'm sure this one will be big - it's already taking off at radio.

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Michael Jackson - needs lung transplant ???

Michael Jackson biographer has reported the singer is suffering from a rare genetic disorder and needs a lung transplant, The Sun, a British tabloid, reported Sunday.

The report's veracity is questionable, given the tabloid source and general mystery surrounding the pop singer's health. However, if it's true, things sound dire for Jackson.

Citing information from investigative journalist Ian Halperin, The Sun writes that Jackson has alpha 1-antitrypsin deficiency, or A1AD, an inherited disorder that prevents the production of a lung-protecting protein.

The condition, The Sun reported, has left Jackson blind in one eye. The pop star is also battling emphysema and chronic gastrointestinal bleeding, and can barely speak, the tabloid wrote.

The Sun had no comments from Jackson representatives.

Pepper spray (apparently) doesn't faze porn star's appetite: Adult film actor Ron Jeremy kept eating as a member of his crew was pepper-sprayed by a paparazzo in Los Angeles early Sunday, law enforcement sources told celebrity gossip site TMZ.com.

Jeremy and his pals were chowing down at Mel's Diner on the Sunset Strip about 3:30 a.m. when the photographer started snapping pictures, TMZ.com. reported.

One of Jeremy's buddies stood up and objected, at which point the paparazzo is accused of pepper-spraying the man and at no point did Jeremy deviate from his eating, the Web site wrote.

Fumes spread throughout the diner, and the photographer was arrested, according to TMZ.com.

Aside from being a testament to Jeremy's appetite, the dinner fracas seems to underscore the recession's severity. Things must be really bad if a paparazzo is chronicling an adult film actor's early morning dining habits.

Olympian taking post at Squaw Valley: Jonny Moseley is returning to the Lake Tahoe resort where he skied as a child.

Moseley, a freestyle skier who won a gold medal at the 1998 Winter Games in Nagano, Japan, has been named Squaw Valley USA's chief mountain host.

As part of his job, he will lead ski tours of the resort for guests, VIPs and reporters.

No charges for actor in paparazzo pushing: Prosecutors say Brad Garrett was provoked into pushing a paparazzo and charges won't be pressed.

The Emmy-winning actor from "Everybody Loves Raymond" was shown pushing a man with a video camera and challenging him to a fight in a video posted last month on TMZ.com.

The photographer said Garrett broke his camera, but continued to hold it up as if he was still shooting.

Frail Michael Jackson suffering from rare lung condition

Pop music icon Michael Jackson is near death, suffering from a potentially fatal genetic disease that has affected his lungs and stripped him of vitality, Jackson-biographer Ian Halperin has claimed in a recent interview.

Speaking with the UK's Sun, Halperin has been quoted saying, 'He needs a lung transplant, but may be too weak to go through with it. He also has emphysema and chronic gastrointestinal bleeding, which his doctors have had a lot of trouble stopping. It's the bleeding that's the most problematic part. It could kill him.

Specifically, Halperin claims that Jackson, now 50 years old, has developed a rare alpha-1 anti-trypsin protein deficiency, leaving his lungs unable to protect themselves. He also claimed Jackson, who was photographed in a wheelchair earlier this year, had been battling the disease for several years. 'He can barely speak. The vision in his left eye is 95 percent gone. For years, Michael has been working with his doctors to make sure (the disease) doesn't progress.'

Jackson's usually outspoken and stridently defensive publicist and family members have not moved to deny the claim, which in turn has only fueled speculation.

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Pamela Anderson's breasts steal the show

An unexpected appearance by Pamela Anderson's breasts on a new Osbourne family show has been attracting headlines.

The Daily Star newspaper reports the former Baywatch belle was appearing on the show when her celebrated chest received a little more exposure than had been planned.

A representative of Anderson said: "I know that Pam had some issues with the zipper on the back of her dress. But as far as I saw, she remained properly covered and nothing was revealed to the audience."

This was not the impression reported by at least one eyewitness, who explained to the Star the incident occurred during a segment of the Osbournes: Reloaded show called Guess the Guest.

"The Osbournes blindfold themselves and ask the guest questions to guess who they are," the eyewitness said, referring to husband and wife Ozzy and Sharon and their children Kelly and Jack.

"Pam was sprawled on the stage, but when she got up, the top half of her dress completely flopped forward exposing everything."

Needless to say the entire Osbourne family missed the entire incident as they were blindfolded.

According to the Star the clip will be broadcast on the show at a later date. In the interests of journalistic integrity further close study of the clip is planned to establish which claims are correct.

Pamela Anderson: 'It's Good to Get Together With Your Ex'

Pamela Anderson has a Christmas message for all of Hollywood's exes - get it together for the holidays.

The former Baywatch babe - who has two children with ex-husband Tommy Lee - believes she and the Mötley Crüe rocker have the perfect approach to working together for the sake of their kids, despite their split.

She reveals, "Tommy and I are going to spend some time with the kids this Christmas.

"We have this unique situation where we might be exes but our families all get together and have a great time.

"It's good to get together with your ex. You don't have to live with someone to get along with them. All exes should give it a go."

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