Obama spoke of the people he has met on the campaign trial, from teachers working two jobs, students with tens of thousands of dollars of debt, veterans who did everything asked of them but need the help of their country now."All over the country I meet Americans who are proud of their country, but wonder how America's standing in the world could drop so precipitously," he said. "They love their country but they want their cherished values back."As he has been doing lately, Obama went on to mention some specific issues and his proposals, such as a plan to make health care affordable for all Americans, and doing so by the end of his first term. He mentioned raising the minimum wage every year, with inflation, continuing high standards in education but measuring success with more than a single standardized test.

Kyrgyzstan: Parliament Calls On Russia To Stem Tide Of Racial Attacks

Kyrgyz news agencies also quoted Kyrgyz diplomats in Russia as saying that police in St. Petersburg have arrested three people on suspicion of killing a Kyrgyz citizen there last month. The arrested men have reportedly admitted to murdering the Kyrgyz worker. "The motive of the killing was robbery," one Kyrgyz diplomat said, “and there is no proof so far that the crime was racially motivated."

Seasonal jobs in construction sites, markets, and agriculture in Russia and Kazakhstan have become the main source of income for many men and women in impoverished Kyrgyzstan, where unemployment is widespread.

Obits already written for new Falcon

Its faster variants are among the cars to which I'm most looking forward to driving - that is when Ford Australia ceases this insufferable dance of the veils routine and lets the car speak for itself. We can be confident that the new one will be improved in every respect. It'll still be a Falcon, though, and that's the problem.

Petrol prices haven't helped, but lousy resale is guaranteed because the majority of such cars are knocked out at a bargain price to fleets.

VIDEO: MRSA alert at the Royal Bolton Hospital

HOSPITAL chiefs have declared war on killer superbugs.

David Fillingham, chief executive of the Bolton Hospitals NHS Trust, said: "We are delighted the Department of Health is putting yet more impetus on reducing infection rates. We have already made great strides in Bolton, particularly in reducing C-difficile.

Exporters see rupee gaining against dollar

Yes Bank president financial markets and institutions Ajay Mahajan said, “The rising rupee has posed a question of survival for several exporters, especially belonging to industries which offer lower margins. Hence, it is natural for these players to think of hedging their longer-term exposures. There have been instances of exporters using dollar forwards or currency options like STRIPS to cover positions over a two-to-three year period."

For a large part of 2007, the rising rupee had proven to be a nightmarish experience for exporters. The rupee rose by a whopping 11% to the 39.16 level from over 44.25 a year ago. Of late, the Reserve Bank of India has been intervening strongly in the forex market to curb the rupee from growing strong against the greenback.

In fact, the Centre had to revise the limit for issuance of bonds under the market stabilisation route several times in 2007, in a bid to soak up the excess foreign inflows.

Recap of Saturday, March 1

This past week's Bulls & Bears: Gary B. Smith, Exemplar Capital managing partner; Pat Dorsey, Morningstar.com director of stock research; Scott Bleier, HybridInvestors.com president; Patricia Powell, Powell Financial; Eric Bolling, Independent Trader; Gary Kaltbaum, Kaltbaum & Associates, and Marc Lamont Hill, Temple University.