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Politics : Sioux Nation -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: altair19 who wrote (186087)	2/2/2010 6:09:30 PM
From: stockman_scott	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 362351

Apple Co-Founder Says His Toyota Accelerates Unintentionally By Mehul Srivastava Feb. 3 (Bloomberg) -- Count Apple Inc. co-founder Steve Wozniak among Toyota Motor Corp. car owners who say their vehicles accelerate unintentionally. Wozniak’s 2010 Toyota Prius can unintentionally accelerate to as much as 97 miles (156 kilometers) per hour when he uses cruise control to increase his speed, he said in an interview yesterday. Toyota and the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration haven’t responded to his complaints in the past two months on what may be a software-related glitch, he said. “It’s scary when it happens,” Wozniak, 59, said from San Jose, California. “I’ve had trouble getting both the government safety agency and getting Toyota to listen to me.” The world’s largest automaker has recalled millions of vehicles globally to fix mechanical flaws in accelerator pedals that could lead to sudden unintended increases in speed. The action led to a halt of U.S. sales and production of eight models and prompted Congress to schedule hearings. The Japanese carmaker, based in Toyota City, has recalled 5.35 million vehicles, including the 2004-2009 Prius, because of the risk of “floor mat entrapment” of the accelerator pedals, according to Toyota’s Web site. Wozniak’s 2010 model, which has a steering wheel-mounted dynamic radar cruise control, hasn’t been recalled by the company. “I have never heard of this problem with cruise control on Priuses,” a Toyota spokeswoman, Ririko Takeuchi, said by phone from Tokyo. She said she doesn’t know whether the problem has been reported by anyone other than Wozniak or whether Toyota is investigating. Cruise Control While in cruise control, flicking the lever on side of the steering wheel doesn’t always increase the speed of the car in increments as intended, Wozniak said. Instead, the vehicle would sometimes continue accelerating until one steps on the brake, he said. Believing the issue may be software-related, Wozniak, who owns four Priuses, said he took his car to a dealership, contacted Toyota and called the NHTSA about the issue. Wozniak said he believes the acceleration may be caused by a software glitch because the unintended increase in speed occurs when his feet are on the floor, he said. Wozniak said he would buy another Prius. Electronics are “not part of the issue,” Jim Lentz, president of Toyota Motor Sales USA, said during a conference call this week. The company has pinpointed the cause and has an effective solution, he said. Toyota’s American depository receipts traded in New York fell $2.33, or 2.9 percent, to $77.61 at 3:04 p.m. Wozniak made the comments after a Web log posted on the CNET News Web site reported he spoke about his Prius’s cruise control at the Discovery Forum 2010 in San Francisco. “The reason that my case is important and urgent is that it is electronic. I can cause it totally under cruise control without a foot touching the accelerator pedal,” Wozniak said. “Is my software bug also some code that is in the other Priuses and related to the deadly problem?” Last Updated: February 2, 2010 15:14 EST

To: altair19 who wrote (186087)	2/2/2010 6:30:15 PM
From: stockman_scott	Respond to of 362351

Tiger back for Masters? InTrade players bet on it reuters.com By Ben Klayman CHICAGO, Feb 2 (Reuters) - Traders are betting there is a better than even chance that top golfer Tiger Woods, embroiled in an adultery scandal, will play in a PGA Tour event before the end of April, according to online market InTrade. InTrade users seem to be investing in the belief for a return that coincides with the Masters tournament in Augusta, Georgia, scheduled for April 8-11. However, the odds dropped from 65 percent earlier on Tuesday to 55 percent around midday. Woods, who is taking an indefinite break from professional golf, has been in hiding since admitting in December that he had cheated on his wife. The Dublin, Ireland-based InTrade -- which lists contracts on such topics as U.S. troop levels in Iraq, Sarah Palin's chance of being named the Republican presidential nominee in 2012 and whether someone will be charged with the unlawful killing of pop star Michael Jackson -- added the Tiger contracts at the request of members. InTrade www.intrade.com/ accepts trades on the probability of events. Its markets are priced from zero to 100, with zero meaning investors see no chance an event will occur and 100 meaning it already has happened. "It's a hugely important subject, particularly for people like Nike and Accenture who may have had sponsorship deals with him," InTrade Chief Executive John Delaney said. "This is a very big economic issue." Such sponsors as athletic apparel and footwear maker Nike Inc (NKE.N) and video game publisher Electronic Arts Inc (ERTS.O) have reaffirmed their deals with Woods. However, Accenture Plc (ACN.N) and AT&T Inc (T.N) dropped him as their pitch man after he became engulfed in allegations of multiple extramarital affairs following a minor car accident outside his Florida home Nov. 27. [ID:nN21219185] Woods, believed to be the world's wealthiest athlete, was estimated to earn about $100 million a year in endorsement deals before his troubles. Pro golfers and analysts who follow the PGA Tour have said the sport will suffer from lower TV ratings until the world's No. 1 golfer returns. Traders do not seem to agree with speculation that Woods may come back at an event before the Masters -- the WGC-CA Championship in Miami on March 11-14 or the Arnold Palmer Invitational in Orlando on March 25-28. A March contract is at just 20.5 percent. Instead, they seem to be focusing on the Masters, which Woods has won four times. The odds of his return rise to 85 percent for the May and June contracts, 95 percent for the August contract and 96 percent for the September contract. The purchase of an April contract, which has been the most popular with 1,045 shares traded, on Tuesday cost $5.50 and would pay $10 if Woods returned by the end of that month. The month with second most volume is March, at 414 contracts. (Reporting by Ben Klayman, editing by Gerald E. McCormick)