Kathmandu, Nepal (AHN) – Nepali Diasporas living in New York face a language barrier, creating a major challenge that causes immigrants to miss out on jobs and other opportunities in the United States.

Most of the Nepalis who reached the U.S. in search of green pastures are at the receiving end of downward socio-economic mobility, forcing them to lower their living standards in order to survive and support family members back home, a study has revealed.

“While in Nepal, people have dreams of doing well in the U.S. However, there is a huge difference between what you think of America and when you actually come here,” says New York-based non-profit organisation Adhikaar. “People have to work really hard to survive here.”

“Even if you are educated, you won’t be able to find a job of your choice if you don’t have the [right] documents,” a Nepali worker told the group. “You can earn money here, but not respect.”

Much of the problems faced by the Nepali-speaking community in New York City are typical of those faced by emerging communities. The federal minimum wage of $7.25 is not enough to survive and support a family in New York City, the report adds. Making matters worse, migrant workers in the informal sector are often exploited by the employers and are paid below the legal minimum wage.

The report titled “Snapshots of the Nepali-speaking Community in New York City: Demographics and Challenges” reveals that language barrier has become a major challenge for most of the Nepali-speaking people in finding jobs and other services. For example, many Nepalis in the U.S. do not have health insurance, and almost three-fourths of them face challenges in obtaining healthcare.

Many Nepali migrants are unable to transfer their work experience, skills and education from Nepal. Over half of the Nepalis in New York were involved in business or a professional sector in Nepal. While most Nepali immigrants are able to find jobs in New York, they are often low-wage jobs consuming long hours and providing few benefits. While immigration status is a reason for Nepali immigrants doing low-wage jobs, it is not the only one, the report adds. “Nearly half of the respondents to survey have the legal right to work in the U.S., yet most of them faced challenges.”

The most common types of job for men are works in restaurant, gas station, taxi or limousine and moving industry, while women often work as domestic workers and at nail salons or beauty parlours. Report has it that those who intend to earn degrees find themselves unable to attain their goal due to the number of hours they must work to pay for their education and living expenses.

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Orlando, FL, United States (AHN) – Kyle Stanley put his Nationwide Tour experience to good use Wednesday at the Orange County National Golf Center and shot a seven-under par 65 to set the first round pace at the PGA Tour Qualifying School’s final stage.

Stanley, a former All-America at Clemson who finished 35th on the Nationwide money list, had nine birdies and a pair of bogeys on the Crooked Cat course. He was two shots better than Scott Weatherly and Joe Bramlett who shot 67s there.

Ben Martin had the low round on the Panther Lake course, a five-under par 66.

Tour veteran Erik Compton, a two-time heart transplant recipient was one-under par at the Panther Lake, Billy Mayfair shot 69 there while two-time U.S. Open champion Lee Janzen got off to a slow start with a three-over par 74.

Five rounds remain with the low 25 earning playing privileges for the 2011 season.

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New York, NY, United States (AHN) – President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama will sit down with Barbara Walters for a new Thanksgiving interview, set to air the night following the holiday.

It’s President Obama’s first interview since the mid-term elections, which led to a now GOP-led House. The President and his family will offer their reactions to the news, which will change how the economy, health care and other issues are handled.

It’s also only the second time President Obama and the First Lady sit down with Barbara Walters and the first time since 2008 when they were interviewed immediately following the election.

Walters’ interview with the President and the First Lady is part of an all-new, one-hour special edition of ABC’s “20/20.” The interview will be taped Tuesday, November 23rd, and will air Friday, November 26th at 10pm ET.

Of course, Walters will preview footage from the interview after its conducted on “The View,” while ABC will also share clips on “Good Morning America,” “World News with Diane Sawyer,” “Nightline,” and ABC News radio and its website.

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Jefferson City, MO, United States (AHN) – Missouri voters have passed a law requiring commercial dog breeding facilities to provide basic care for animals such as space in cages to extend their limbs and rest between breeding cycles. Other states have approved similar legislation, but the bill is the first statewide ballot initiative regulating puppy mills.

Proposition B passed with 52 percent of the vote despite opposition from a Tea Party-backed group, which warned that the measure was being pushed by a “radical” group, the Humane Society of the United States, seeking “to cripple and/or destroy all animal industries.”

The bill takes effect November next year and exempts hobby or show breeders who have 10 female dogs or fewer for breeding. It requires large commercial breeders to limit their female breeder dogs to 50, to increase the size of kennels and allow animals to stretch their legs, and to have dogs checked every year by a veterinarian.

Breeders will have to provide clean water and enough food, keep the animals in cages that are indoors to protect from rain and cold, provide unrestricted access to space outdoors for exercise, and breed them no more than twice in an 18-month period.

Enclosures will have to be cleaned once a day, and also need to have cement flooring and not floors made out of wire.

Cages in puppy mills are typically made out of wire and stacked on top of one another to save on space. Wire enclosures are also cheaper and do not require daily cleaning because urine and feces from the animals go straight out of the cage.

However, since the enclosures are stacked on top of one another, animals at the bottom live their lives in cages filled with waste, which leads to infections and sepsis. A lifetime living in wire cages also causes feet to splay, pus to form and dogs’ feet to get caught between the wires, resulting in amputation.

The bill’s passage comes two weeks after data from Missouri state agencies about dog mortality rates in licensed breeders were released and mass dog graves were uncovered.

The data from the state Department of Agriculture, released via the Freedom of Information Act and Missouri Sunshine Law, showed that Hunte Corporation, the nation’s largest broker of puppy mill dogs, disposed of 50 to 100 dead dogs a month.

In another facility, Safe Haven Puppy Rescue/Rise-n-Shine Kennels owned by Jody Craft, 18 dogs of different breeds died in four months without having been checked by a veterinarian.

Missouri has about 3,000 puppy mills, only half of which are licensed commercial breeders.

The new law was pushed by a coalition of groups, including Animal Defenders International, Best Friends Animal Society and HSUS.

It was opposed by the Missouri Farm Bureau and Tea Party-supported Allliance for Truth.

“[HSUS] seeks only to raise the cost of breeding dogs, making it ever more difficult for middle-class American families to be dog owners,” the Allliance for Truth had said. “There is no connection between HSUS and local animal shelters… Despite the ever-present dog and cat fundraising material and commercials, HSUS is not an organization that runs spay/neuter programs or takes in stray, neglected, and abused pets.”

Proponents such as Stephanie Feldstein at Change.org, argued, “Assembly line, mass-produced, factory farmed puppies are not what America is all about. Expecting a minimum level of humane treatment does not interfere with the free market. Compassion is not a liberal agenda.”

About a third of the nation’s independent pet shops sell puppies, according to HSUS. The main supplier of these stores are puppy mills. Documented conditions in puppy mills include filthy cages where dogs are overbred and permanently confined without socialization or affection from other animals or humans.

Dogs used for breeding usually have the first veterinary check-up of their lives when they are rescued. Animals rescued from such facilities are not ensured of a promising future. Nearly 4 million animals are euthanized in shelters every year.

Oregon passed a measure last year, joining Louisiana, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Washington state in capping the number of breeding dogs in puppy mills, requiring dogs to be regularly checked by a veterinarian and breeders to provide safer cages.

At least three cities in California have banned pet stores from selling dogs and cats. More than 500 pet shops nationwide have voluntarily stopped selling dogs to support the campaign against puppy mills.

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Washington, D.C., United States (AHN) – Last days of campaigning for the midterm Congressional elections were dominated on Saturday by an amazing “sanity restoration” rally as two top comedians Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert drew a crowd of more than 200,000 (very modest estimate of AHN) to the Mall in Washington, D.C.

Stewart and Colbert appeared at the “Rally to Restore Sanity and/or Fear,” along with a array of famous musicians and TV personalities on a stage, built on the opposite end of the Mall from the Lincoln Memorial steps, where conservative commentator Glenn Beck on August 28, hosted about 80,000 people (40% of this rally).

With Capitol forming the backdrop with a clearly dominating presence behind the stage made the satirical presentation complete as the duo Stewart and Colbert noted that America does not live there (in the Capitol).

Media came under attack with naming and shaming of big media houses like New York Times, AP, NPR and others who had cautioned their journalists not to attend the rally.

Lambasting media houses for manipulating news and putting a spin on news, Stewart said, “The only place we don’t is here or on cable TV. If we amplify everything, we hear nothing.”

On Saturday, the duo of Stewart and Colbert did spring surprise elements like – Kid Rock with Sheryl Crow, Jeff Tweedy and Mavis Staples – soft-spoken Yusuf Islam (formerly known as Cat Stevens) with metalhead Ozzy Osbourne to drive home a point of war and peace through interruptive and contrasting song lyrics.

The fake cleric Guido Sarducci, played by Don Novello, gave a benediction, urged God to show signs if He favors any particular religion.

The words were captivating and explanatory when Stewart and Colbert stood at podiums debating whether America should surrender to fear or cling to sanity.

Colbert: “Not all the things that I and my fellow Americans are afraid of are made up. What about Muslims?”

Stewart: “What about Muslims?”

Colbert: “They attacked us!”

Stewart: Stephen, “They did not. Some people who happen to be of Muslim faith attacked us, but there are 1.5 billion Muslims in the world. Most of them (did not).”

Colbert: “So you’re saying that there’s no reason to be afraid of Osama Bin Laden?

Stewart: “No, Osama Bin Laden is a specific persos – but there are plenty of Muslim people that are not bad and that you would like.”

Basketball legend Kareem Abdul Jabbar walks unannounced onto the stage.

“That’s not a fair example,” said Colbert. “Kareem is cool. We’re friends.”

“Well, we’re acquaintances,” Jabbar countered Colbert, adding, “A real friend knows that no matter what religious position someone plays we’re all on the same team.”

“Individuals can be scary but you can’t generalize about all people,” agreed Stewart.

This exchange is just one of the examples of the ways the duo tried to restore sanity by making fun of the fear-mongers and doomsayers in various talk-shows and media outlets supporting politicians with personalized agendas while neglecting the real issues facing America and American people.

In their closing remarks, neither Colbert nor Stewart gave any political statement.

“Your presence is what I wanted,” Stewart stated in a matter of fact way to the gathering of thousands.

Speaking to journalists after the rally, when asked what message he had sent to his constituency, Steward reiterated, “We don’t have a constituency.”

There were people, who had come from as far as California, Oklahoma, and even Alaska, and who had flown in for the event.

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Los Angeles, CA, United States (AHN) – The top-grossing DreamWorks Animation feature “How to Train Your Dragon” gets a Blu-ray release. Featuring the voices of Jay Baruchel, Gerard Butler, Jonah Hill, and America Ferrera, the film hit store shelves October 15th.

The Blu-ray package includes the usual behind-the-scenes elements and deleted scenes. Bonus features include an option to watch the film using a picture-in-picture mode that contains storyboards and interviews, a multiple-choice quiz, and the 16-minute short “Legend of the BoneKnapper Dragon.”

It is also available in DVD package.

The film is an animated action-adventure fantasy set on the Viking-inhabited Norse Isle of Berk in the eighteenth century, where the villagers live in fear of, and value the slaying of, flying, fire-breathing dragons.

The scrawny Hiccup (voiced by Jay Baruchel) is a teen misfit, a sensitive, intelligent kid among fierce warriors who, like a contemporary anti-war protester, rebels against his people’s longstanding macho tradition by refusing to slay a dragon, a heroic activity the Viking villagers have gotten accustomed to, never having looked at it as any sort of option, what with the dragons regularly raiding their livestock and burning down their homes.

None of that stops Hiccup from wondering whether those oversize reptiles, although they’re obviously not man’s best friend, are really the fearsome creatures everyone around him assumes. So he builds a contraption designed to capture, rather than kill, a dragon, utilizing his brain rather than brawn. And it works.

During battle, he downs a dragon, inadvertently slicing off part of the tail of this elusive, fire-breathing Night Fury, thus grounding it. But instead of finishing it off, which he doesn’t have the heart for, or showing off the mythical beast as his prize to prove his worth as a Viking, he considers setting it free.

Instead, he comes to befriend and bond with the wounded creature, naming it Toothless, and learns to saddle up and ride his new pet. And his appreciation for its species grows.

“How to Train Your Dragon” is one of the most delightfully entertaining films of the year and does a good job of teaching young children a lesson about challenging their preconceptions.

The film received positive reviews and earned almost $500 million at the box office. It became DreamWorks’ sixth most successful film in the U.S. and Canada, behind the “Shrek” franchise and “Kung Fu Panda.”

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If you donate a portion of your profits-say, to an animal rescue group or wildlife conservation organization-people will feel they’re giving vicariously by supporting your business. Americans are a generous people; we love to give to a good cause. And people who love animals-and have money to spend on them-also love to give to organizations that support animals. So now you can accomplish three things at once: indulge your passion for animals, make a tidy profit, and support a good cause.

Consider these trends:

–The names and logos of charitable organizations are appearing more frequently in advertisements and packaging for a variety of products and services. A 1997 study conducted jointly by Roper Starch Worldwide and Cone Communications shows that 76% of consumers would likely switch from their current brand to one associated with a charity, price and quality being equal.

–SunTrust Bank conducted a survey before launching their new promotion-offering new checking account customers either $100 to donate to the customer’s favorite charity, or a $50 gift card for customers to spend on themselves. 59% of respondents said they’d prefer to give the donation to charity.

–According to Benevolink, “e-Giving, the method of linking online businesses that donate money, charity-minded consumers, and nonprofit organizations, is a relatively recent concept. [Custmers] enjoy the benefits of online retail shopping. Your charity benefits from receiving unrestricted funds…. And businesses benefit from increased sales and brand recognition.”

Warm fuzzies all the way around.

To be sure you’re cashing in on your own generosity, make sure everyone knows you’re sharing your profits with charities. Ideas:

–Devote a page on your website to the charity of your choice.

–Create an autoresponder series around the charity.

–Submit press releases about the charity, with links sending traffic back to your site.

–Syndicate articles online about the charity, again with links to you.

–In your mail promotions, include a lift note about your relationship with the charity.

–Mention the charity in your brochure and all your print materials, using their logo.

–Tie in the charity to one of your products or services. (For example: for every cat product purchased, you’ll donate to the “save the tigers” fund; every dog food purchase will be matched with a donation to “save the wolves.”)

–Give something away-stuffed animal, t-shirt, informational product-relating to the charity. Children’s books are especially popular with this audience, as they are eager to educate the next generation.

–Start a loyalty program: after a customer has spent a certain amount of money on your business, you give a significant gift to the charity.

–Establish a referral system with another company supporting the same-or a complementary-charity.

–Hold events with all proceeds going to the charity (which also promotes loyalty).

–Enable customers to choose which charity their purchases support; use surveys and contests to discover the most popular ones.

–List specific items their purchases will support-say, improvements on a local animal shelter, lobbying for an endangered species, medical help for a feral colony-giving the dollar value of each item.

–Host a blog about your chosen charity, with links back to your various products and services.

–Post a list of people who’ve purchased a certain amount, on your website as well as in your newsletter, calling them “benefactors” and including a quote or testimonial from each about why they support your business.

The more you brand yourself as someone who’s closely involved with important events in the animal world, the more you establish a rapport with your customer base. And that’s a good thing-one that will come back to you in the form of increased profits.

Now it’s more important than ever to choose your marketing writer carefully, so work with one who:

–Loves animals.

–Has experience writing for pet products and services.

–Understands the mindset and motivations of people who donate to charity.

Marketing to pet parents can be extremely rewarding, both personally and financially. Figure in the charitable giving factor, and you have a win-win-win situation: you make a good living; your customers and their pets are happy; the wild or domestic animals you support enjoy a better life too.

Author: Lisa J. Lehr
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Coffee and Cancer

Distributor pet products, for instance is one of the new pet business opportunities that you can benefit from. There are many companies that provide pet products to veterinarians, pet hospitals, groomers, boarders, pet boutiques and pet hotels; you can take the advantage of this opportunity by contacting them with the wide range of products that the company offers. Sales are guaranteed as the demand for these products is huge. In addition to direct selling, you can also make profits by earning a percentage from distributor sales and indirect sales.

Another way in which you can start your business in pet industry is by creating you private label and then selling them to vendors etc. Though, it was very difficult in the past to have your own label as it followed a lengthy procedure, but today there are companies that can help you in getting your labels. They also provide you with a wide range of pet products that you can choose from and in accordance to the demand of each and every product. Starting your own label is a good new pet business opportunity as it gives you an opportunity to grow. You never know one day your brand may pose a competition to the already existing and famous brands.

Pet and pet product based business opportunities have gained invariable amount of popularity because the investment is low and the profits are high. It is also a kind of business opportunity the passion for which is not going to end soon, as people have always their pets and will continue to do so in the times to come.

Pet owners world wide are breathing a sigh of relief that they
have this option for their pet when they travel. In the past
when an individual would travel for business, or a family would
vacation, they would rely on grandparents or relatives to see to the needs of their pets. This is no longer an option for many people. Family’s don’t always remain in the same community. Statistics show that it is common for parents and siblings to live hundreds of miles apart. Once the family option for pet sitting evaporated, people turned to their neighbors. This was soon found to be a bad option for both the neighbor and pet owner. Neighbors felt used, and the traveller felt as if they were putting the neighbor out by asking the favor.

Some individuals tried to travel with their pets. They assumed
that it would be best for their pet to not be separated from
them. These good intentioned pet owners soon realized the folly of their ideals when they discovered that drinking water in some areas weren’t up to par, leash laws were different in each area, and the chances of finding a lost pet in a strange area were minimal. Extended car travel is not good for a pet, either. Animals can quickly become dehydrated and agitated when left in a locked car while the family is inside a restaurant, or mall. The chances that a pet could possibly get hit by an automobile rise every time a pet is taken into a public area, such as parking lots or the city. Pets do not like being kept in a crate in a hotel. They do not like being muzzled for barking or for snipping at strangers. Pets just generally do not like being away from home.

Air travel is not pleasant for a pet, either. The cargo holds on airplanes have erratic temperatures. There is no heat, and there is no air conditioning. The sounds in these cargo areas also frighten animals and make them skittish and nervous. Some pets even require medication prior to flight. Taking your pet on a plane should only be considered under extreme circumstances.

Pet owners soon realized that while they were comforted by the
presence of their pet on a trip, the pet was out of its comfort
zone and did not behave like its usual self. The route of kenneling a pet was soon taken and though it saved the day in a
tight pinch, pet owners tended to know from the start that this
was not a good option for their pet. Their pets were kept in
small quarters. They were only allowed out a couple of times a
day for a few minutes to do their business. Being crowded in an
area with other barking and whining animals would leave a pet out of sorts for days after their owner came home.

Options were limited for a traveling pet owner. Some people gave up and simply refused to have an animal if they were going to have to be away all the time. That was until the Pet Sitting business made its arrival into the small business industry.

True animal lovers were the first to recognize the need for the
Petting Sitting business. They were the ones who took it the
hardest when they were forced to see what their pets went through when they were forced to travel with their owners, or how they behaved after being picked up from a kennel after a week or more away from home. Truthfully, these individuals could not enjoy their trips for worry. These were individuals who hung a stocking for their pet at Christmas, and made them a birthday cake on the pets special day each year. These people saw the need and they stepped out on a limb. They started a Pet Sitting service. Word spread like wildfire and pet owners world wide started seeking these services in their own area.

The rapid growth and success of a Pet Sitting business come when the business owner realizes that it is a business. A love for animals is the foundation, but smart business sense is what will keep you operating. There is only a minimal amount of cost in starting up a Pet Sitting service. That is a major plus for anyone thinking seriously about going into this animal care
business. A budget should be laid out to meet the costs of the
outgoing business. Do not ever under estimate these expenses.
It is better to over estimate than to cut yourself short. Set
goals for six months, one year, three years and five years.
Try to stick to your plan to achieve these goals.

You should research other Pet Sitting services in your area.
Find out what their strengths and their weaknesses may be.
Learn what the going rate for Pet Sitting is in your area. Be
competitive in your rates. Just because you may be doing what
you love is no reason to do it for pennies. On the other hand,
no one is going to pay your Pet Sitting business a small fortune, either.

You have to be a people person. The reason you get into the Pet
Sitting business may stem from being an animal lover, but if you are not warm and friendly with people you can forget about your Pet Sitting business getting off the ground. Pet owners are particular about whom they let care for their pets. If they sense that you are uncomfortable around them, they will be wary of you. Try to develop your people skills if you lack self-confidence in that area. You don’t want your shyness to keep you from doing what you love. You don’t want to come off as a phoney, but maintaining eye contact and being able to carry a conversation with the pet owner without looking at your shoes will go a long way.

You should go out to the home and get acquainted with each pet
and design a list of duties that the client is wanting you to
perform while they are gone. The pet owner will familiarize you as to the habits, character and personality of each pet. You should know what they like to play with and what special
nicknames they have. You should also ask the pet owner for clues about their pet, or signs you should watch for in case of
illness. Some dogs may lay around and sleep all day. Others may not settle for a moment. You should know what to expect from each pet in the home. If they are not doing their usual
activities that should throw up a red flag to you. You should
make sure that the client gives you all the information on the
pets in the home. You will need history of illnesses,
vaccination records, veterinary information, as well as a place
to contact the pet owner if needed. It is important that you are given a key by the client and that you are not expected to
retrieve it from a hiding place. A possible thief could be
watching the home and may see you getting it and replacing it.
That is a disaster waiting to happen.

Besides walking the dog, feeding the bird, tending to the cat,
and playing with the pets, a client sometimes will want a Pet
Sitting service to do other things. The Pet Sitting business can offer many services for the traveler, besides pet care. The first one being home security. You can pick up the mail,
newspaper, water the potted plants, and do a thorough walk
through of the home to make sure that everything is as it should be for your client. Simply opening the curtains on one visit and closing them on the next will give the home a lived in look. These services are in addition to pet sitting. The possibilities are endless as to what a Pet Sitting service can offer the
client.

The Pet Sitting business is booming. Everyone is happy. The
small business owner gets to do what he loves for a living . . . being around animals. The traveler can enjoy their trip knowing that all is well on the home front. The pets get to stay in their own home, around their own things, eating their own food, and they get to go out and play like they usually would on their regular routine.

Copyright 2005, Ian White

Author: Ian White
Article Source: EzineArticles.com
Provided by: Digital Camera Times

Every new entrepreneurs dreams to take his business to the Forbes 100 List but most of them fail to realize realistic goals. One of the largest contributing factors to this is a lack of startup capital or initial investment. Running your own business is expensive, something that is easy to miss-judge. For this reason, the Government offers free grants that are available to boost new business here in America.

So how can I get one of these small business grants? Simple, you need to search one of the many thousand offers available to find one that fits your needs and requirements. Some guidelines regarding that process as well as some tips on what to look for in a grant offer can be found online. Once you’ve found the offer that fits your company you then need to submit a business plan/grant application.

Some important things to keep in mind when applying to offers:

1. Presentation of the business plan -

The first important step is the presentation. Any small business grant distributor will be interested primarily in how you tend to use the money if they give it to you, and also how you plan on using the funds to make a profit. The difference between a bank loan and a federal grant is you don’t have to show them how you’ll repay it (grants are cash gifts), which means you should focus on the ultimate goal of your business rather than the small steps you plan on taking to generate revenue along the way.

2. The message conveyed in the business plan -

The business plan is the cornerstone of any grant application This plan give a clear idea of your goals and vision as well as a rough timetable for accomplishing these goals. The potential in your business is shown in your business plan and it is the plan itself, which increases the confidence that the grant distributers will have in you.

3. The Eligibility for small business grants sanction -

* Small business grants are readily extended to small business industries to help them grow, only if they have a potential.

* Small business grants bodies have their own objectives and give grants money to those satisfying them in the best possible manner.

* The location of the business is one big reason for sanction of small business grants. The government wants decentralization of industries in order to avoid migration toward cities. For example, you’d have an easier time securing a government small business grant if you planned on being headquartered in upstate New York rather than downtown New York City.

Author: Tom Conrad
Article Source: EzineArticles.com