Sandra Lupo, Former Hooters Employee, Forced To Quit After Brain Surgery, Lawsuit Alleges

A former Hooters employee who was forced to quit after shaving her head for brain surgery is now suing the franchise in federal court for violating the Missouri Human Rights Act, according to court documents provided to The Huffington Post by the woman's lawyer.

Sandra Lupo waitressed at a Hooters in Clayton, Mo., when she shaved her head in July 2012 so that a doctor could perform a craniotomy to remove a large mass on her brain, the lawsuit alleges.

As she prepared to return to work after the surgery, a Hooters regional manager allegedly told Lupo that she would have to wear a wig.

Lupo complied with her manager's request, but found the wig irritated her head wound. The court documents say she was "forced to leave work because she could not wear the wig." Hooters then allegedly cut her hours to the point where she felt she had to quit, according to the complaint.

Hooters spokesman Scott Yates emailed HuffPost on Monday to say that the company denies accusations made by Lupo and her attorney, Larry Bagsby, and "believes the lawsuit is without foundation."

The Missouri Human Rights Act prevents workplace discrimination based on disability. Lupo's lawsuit alleges that the wound from her surgery constituted a disability.

The suit also claims that Hooters forced Lupo to quit voluntarily so she would be disqualified from receiving unemployment compensation.

Hooters has filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit, Yates said.

Read the full claim against Hooters:

Sandra Lupo VS Hooters

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Source: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/04/08/sadra-lupo-hooters-waitress-lawsuit_n_3039318.html

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Apple says iMessage and FaceTime down for some users

iMessage and Facetime are both down for some users. According to Apple, the outage started just a little after 3 PM Eastern Time. There is not yet an ETA on when the issues will be resolved. For more information, check Apple?s system status page.

Are Facetime and iMessage out for you?

Source: Apple

Source: http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/TheIphoneBlog/~3/oaLgLZGiL90/story01.htm

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A Revolutionary New Crowdfunding Plan - will Hollywood Cash Follow?

By Lucas Shaw

NEW YORK (TheWrap.com) - David Marlett knows how to ask for money. Over the past two decades, the lawyer has raised more than $100 million for oil companies, gas companies and real-estate developers to fund new projects.

Yet while those deals "put bread on the table," he describes them as his "other life." He is now dedicating his life to revolutionizing finance in another area - the movie business.

Marlett, an aspiring screenwriter with a pair of small producing credits to his name, has just launched BlueRun Crowdfund - a subsidiary of BlueRun Media, a company he founded to produce film and television projects.

Its goal: to help filmmakers manage their crowdfunding campaigns and get sufficient capital to bring their projects to fruition. For, of course, a fee.

Certainly the timing is right. While BlueRun Media's film and TV projects languish in development, crowdfunding has matured into a viable means of raising money for film projects, evinced by the recent Kickstarter campaign for "Veronica Mars." That project has raised more than $4 million over the past three weeks, the largest sum that a film project has raised on Kickstarter by far.

"When crowdfunding came along, suddenly both halves of my brain get to co-exist in the same head," Marlett told TheWrap. "Crowdfunding has matured very rapidly, and it's hard to imagine a better industry suited for crowdfunding than film. But there are two basic ways we can improve it. We can polish their campaign and bring a layer of professionalism."

And the other?

"One of the keys that made ?Veronica Mars' work so well is that, besides its massive following, you had Warner Bros. sitting there silently endorsing it as a distributor. That's a very powerful thing."

While Marlett charges a small percentage to aid filmmakers in their campaigns, his ambitions are loftier. He wants to leverage the success of a crowdfunding campaign into money from existing financiers in the indie film community.

The hitch there, so far, is that the Securities and Exchange Commission has yet to decide whether crowdfunding investors can use donations to get equity in a project, a provision of the JOBS Act Congress passed last year.

It's one reason why, when "Taxi Driver" screenwriter Paul Schrader and "Community" creator Dan Harmon raised thousands on sites like Kickstarter and Indiegogo, contributors did not receive any financial stake in the projects. They got signed DVDs.

Marlett's approach sidesteps that thorny issue by going to established investors. He believes that once he identifies an existing audience passionate enough to financially support a project, financiers will be more likely to invest as well.

He declined to identify potential financiers because of ongoing negotiations.

"It's a genius move," Matthew Lillard, an actor who used Kickstarter to fund promotion and distribution of his directorial debut, "Fat Kid Rules the World," told TheWrap.

"If you're a financier, is free capital, free money for the price of a bunch of T-shirts and people being in a movie. "

Lillard also felt the idea would be appealing to filmmakers, who would surrender a piece of the movie to get the money they need to finish a project. "You'd do it in a second because you want to get the movie made."

At the moment, Lillard is deciding how to fund a sequel to the 1998 cult classic "SLC Punk," which he starred in and narrated. The filmmakers may go to Kickstarter or IndieGoGo, or they may go to traditional financiers.

Yet just because Lillard thinks Marlett's plans is "a genius move," he isn't ready to sign up.

"It was only a matter of time before a really smart lawyer started to trade on the backs of passion," he said. "I don't want to be the guy throwing this guy under the bus, but there is something pure about a filmmaker going out, having a creative vision and reaching out into the world to raise money. Now there's a lawyer saying I want 20 percent of that."

Lillard's real doubts boiled down to value added. Why does a filmmaker need Marlett to help with his campaign? What will Marlett bring to the table?

Marlett argues that he can help with everything from figuring out a budget to helping with social-media contacts. Most filmmakers, he said, would welcome someone with a great deal of experience in the area.

To that end, he's signed up Andrew Lazar's Mad Chance Productions, the company behind "I Love You Phillip Morris" and "Get Smart," as well as directors like Matt Herron and Peter Bussian.

Various financiers TheWrap spoke with expressed doubts about investing in crowdfunded projects at all. Michael Roban, EVP of film finance at IM Global, noted that most of the crowdfunded projects have miniscule budgets and that his own company was self-sufficient in terms of funding.

Myles Nestel, co-founder and a partner at The Solution Entertainment Group, a film financing and sales company, expressed similar concerns about the size of the projects on the site, but also raised a larger issue.

What happens when a crowdfunded project makes a lot of money?

"I wonder what would happen if a crowdfunding structure raised money for 'Storm' or 'Insidious' or a movie that did $100M at the box office," Nestel told TheWrap.

Will their initial investors, who are rewarded with set visits and a thank you, remain quiet as their money makes other people rich?

Marlett, certain his idea will hold up under legal scrutiny, believes rewarding contributors with "a bottomless swag bag" will help. So will his own background.

"Financing a mall or a shopping center development is amazingly similar to a film," he said. "There's not a lot I haven't seen."

Source: http://news.yahoo.com/revolutionary-crowdfunding-plan-hollywood-cash-210857487.html

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Video: Giffords, LaPierre testify at Senate hearing on gun violence

>>> just say no? let's play "hardball."

>>> good evening. i'm michael smerconish in tonight for chris matthews . leading off, gun fight . the pictures alone were dramatic. former congresswoman gabrielle giffords nearly killed by a bullet seated at the same witness table as the nra 's wayne lapierre .

>> you must act. be bold, be courageous. americans are counting on you.

>> as the rest of the country comes to the realization, something must be done to prevent gun violence . the nra and the allies in the republican party are digging in. we'll look at what president obama can and can't accomplish on gun staft at the top of the program.

>>> plus does president obama want a deal on illegal immigrati immigration? which would be huge on his legacy. or does he want the issue hanging around so republicans get punished at the polls by latino voters. we'll get some answers tonight.

>>> and it may be last call for the tea party . consider this. republicans with national ambitions claim they want tome to stop being the stupid party. conservatives are working with democrats on illegal immigration . and fox news parts ways with sarah palin . dana milbank says it's all evidence the tea party is losing steam and he's with us tonight.

>>> plus the boy scouts of america are considering dropping their ban on gay volunteers and members. it's another sign of the progress this country has made on gay rights . but not without controversy.

>>> and finally, is the most powerful republican in the senate the next victim of the gop purity effort? we'll begin with the hearing on gun safety . mark glaze and david corn the washington bureau chief for mother jones magazine . mark, let me begin with you. you were there. were there any surprises or did everyone play their usual role?

>> there's a certain amount of kabuki to every hearing. and certainly there is on something like. is. i would say there was a fair agree of civility. and there were republican members on that committee who are not gun control fans but are quite thoughtful and showed they get the gravity of the moment and are open to rethinking the issue.

>> david corn , let's look at more of former congresswoman gabrielle giffords ' powerful testimony earlier today.

>> speaking is difficult, but i need to say something important. violence is a big problem. too many children are dying. too many children. we must do something. it will be hard, but the time is now. you must act. be bold. be courageous. americans are counting on you. thank you.

>> david , what brought it all home for me, these are the notes that gabrielle giffords wrote herself for her testimony at today's violence hearing. they were posted on the facebook page of her pac americans for responsible solutions. giffords' husband mark kelly cofounded the organization with her. he gave powerful testimony as well today.

>> we believe wholly and completely in the second amendment and that it confers upon all americans the right to own a firearm for protection, collection, and recreation. we take that right very seriously, and we would never, ever give it up just like gabby would never relinquish her gun and i would never relinquish mine. but rights demand responsibility. and this right does not extend to terrorists. it does not extend to criminals. and it does not extend to the mentally ill .

>> one more thing i want you to see. following this morning's testimony, gabby giffords and mark kelly met with president obama in the oval office . so david corn , i show you all that and i ask how can the momentum to the extent that momentum exists right now on the president and the white house side, how can it be maintain snd how do you maintain that level of emotional testimony?

>> well, it was quite an emotional moment watching gabby giffords get up there courageously and her husband who i've met in the past i have to say is damn impressive. he was a hero for going up in the space shuttle and now he's a hero for taking on this hard issue and doing it with such great aplomb. it's important, keep him and gabby giffords and the kids in newtown, keep them in the spotlight. let them have the platform they want. the only way anything happens on the gun violence prevention front is if the intensity level remains on the side of people looking to change the status quo. you know, you know on the side of the nra and extremists on that side, there is already the intensity. it's always been there. they care about this. it's often their top issue. and for those who want to change and have some common sense solutions about high-capacity magazines and other provisions, you've got to fight that intensity with intensity of your own.

>> but i -- you know, i agree with your assessment about the intensity, about the emotion. but still even in the face of it -- and mark you were there, you can speak to this. the nra not giving an inch. wayne lapierre got in a heated exchange with senators durbin and leahy over background checks . and he made clear the nra would not give an inch on that issue. let's watch.

>> we got to get in the real world on what works and what doesn't work. my problem with background checks is you're never going to get criminals to go through universal background checks .

>> mr. lapierre, that's the point. the criminals won't go to purchase the guns because there'll be a background check . we'll stop them from the original purchase. you missed that point completely. i think it's basic.

>> senator, i think you missed --

>> let there be order!

>> i think you're missing it.

>> please wait. as i said earlier, there will be order.

>> and the chair of the judiciary committee patrick leahy also tried to pin down lapierre on the same issue. background checks .

>> should we have mandatory background checks at gun shows?

>> if you're a dealer, that's already the law.

>> that's not my question. i'm not trying to play games here. but if you could, just answer my question.

>> senator, i do not believe the way the law is working now unfortunately, that it does any good to extend the law to private sales between hobbyists and collectors.

>> with all due respect, that was not the question i asked. nor did you answer it.

>> but i think it is the answer.

>> mark glaze, if we can't get it done on background checks where the polling data i see suggests seven in ten americans are supportive, what means assault weapons and clips will be game?

>> everybody should have to pass a background check because they back passed background checks . i would not take this too seriously. this is people staking out their positions. but i think wayne lapierre would find it very hard to stick until the end of this process with the position of rejecting something that 70% or 80% of his base actually thinks is a pretty good idea. so i think we can get background checks done. there's overwhelming support for it. but there's also strong support for a limit on magazines and also for a ban on assault rifles . but your initial question and david 's answer were exactly right. this is only going to happen if the american people make it happen. that means they have to call their representative, they have to write the white house , and they have to get behind the effort to make sure members are hearing about this when they go home to their districts for recess.

>> there was a heart breaking article in today's " washington post " by the parents of daniel barr don who called for action on guns. any improvement to our laws no matter how small or reasonable shall not be decried as the forward wave of an attempt to ban guns or take away rights. even though who have lost the most are suggesting no such thing. that's the argument i hear when i go to radio listeners. it's the slippery slope . if we give an inch on this, they'll come for everything.

>> like if you put a speed limit on the highway, pretty soon they're going to take your car away from you. again, this issue has been demagogued by people just like wayne lapierre and his alleys that any common sense limitation means your gun's going to be swept up by helicopters. one comment they made today over and over again, wayne lapierre and people on his side, is that we already have existed gun laws and they're not being enforced effectively.

>> right.

>> but one reason why they're not enforced effectively is because the nra and republican senators have time and time again tried to defund and handcuff the bureau of alcohol tobacco and firearms and anything else they can do to get in the way of enforcement. so there is just so much demagoguery and hypocrisy on that side that keeps the flame going, we have to just keep trying to -- like the op-ed you just quote, have to keep dousing those flames to try to get some of these modest limitations.

>> and the epidemic continues. meanwhile gun violence continues day in and day out. just yesterday 15-year-old hadia pendelton shot in a park not far from her high school . she was in washington with her high school band where she performed in the inaugural heritage music festival . mark glaze, another criticism i hear from those that don't want any change to gun laws , if you take all that being discussed and you apply it to the mass shootings that have been so much a part of the news, they would not have prevented those incidents. i'm sure you've heard and deal with that. what's your response?

>> well, it's true in some cases. i mean, no law you pass is ever going to stop killing. there are at least 300 million guns in the country and the nra is largely responsible for that. so it's true you're not going to stop everything, but this is what you do with laws. you close the loopholes you can. by doing that you can make an enormous difference. all these mass shootings are mass because of a high-capacity magazine and assault weapon involved. the tucson shooting probably did happen because loughner's records were not the the criminal background check data base and should have been.

>> mark glaze, thank you. david , i've got to run but thank you as always. we appreciate you being here.

>>> coming up, would president obama rather get a deal done on immigration or let the issue fester who she republicans continue to get run at the polls by latino voters? this is "hardball," the place for politics. textile production in

Source: http://video.msnbc.msn.com/hardball/50644671/

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Violent tornado rips through Georgia city

David Goldman / AP

Will Carter, 15, surveys the damage to his house upon arriving home from school following a tornado, Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013, in Adairsville, Ga. Read the full story

David Goldman / AP

Workers look for personal belongings following a tornado at the Daiki plant in Adairsville, Ga on Wednesday.

John Amis / EPA

Danny Odum of Marion, Illinois, reaches to untangle a pair of shoes wrapped around the mirror of his tractor trailer that was overturned by a tornado that touched down in Adairsville, Ga.

Tami Chappell / Reuters

Downed trees and debris lies in the ruins of destroyed homes after a tornado touched down in Adairsville, Georgia on Wednesday.

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Source: http://photoblog.nbcnews.com/_news/2013/01/30/16778779-violent-tornado-rips-through-georgia-city

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Video: Hagel faces heat in Thursday?s confirmation hearing

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Source: http://video.msnbc.msn.com/newsnation/50642514/

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3D Robotics Outsources to Mexico - Business Insider

Chris Anderson, the former editor of Wired and current 3D printing cheerleader, has an intriguing piece in the New York Times (Mexico: The New China, Jan 27). it deals with his experience running?3D Robotics, a maker of civilian drone aircraft. 3D Robotics competes with firms that are sourcing their production in China and hence they have had to find a way to take on competitors with low labor costs. Their answer? Tijuana, Mexico. 3D is based in San Diego so engineering is done on the north side of the border but assembly is done on the south. Labor costs may higher than in China (but, as the article notes, the gap is closing as Chinese wages rise) but Anderson sees many advantages in his firm?s ?quicksourcing? model that depends as much on speed as cheap hands.

First, a shorter supply chain means that a company can make things when it wants to, instead of solely when it has to. Strange as it may seem, many small manufacturers don?t have that option. When we started 3D, we produced everything in China and needed to order in units of thousands to get good pricing. That meant that we had to write big checks to make big batches of goods ? money we wouldn?t see again until all those products sold, sometimes a year or more later. Now that we carry out our production locally, we?re able to make only what we need that week.

This point obviously depends on owning one?s own facility in Mexico or having a very tight relationship with the Mexican supplier. If a small buyer doesn?t have much negotiating power with a supplier it will still likely face large minimum purchase quantities when buying from Mexico. Still it is an interesting observation and suggests that some start ups may be making ill-advised trade offs between cost savings and flexibility.

Second, there?s less risk. If we make an error in a design, we?ve wasted at most a few days? worth of production. If there?s something wrong in the production process itself, we can spot it fast. We control the component inventory, so we can see what?s going into our goods and know that we?re not being ripped off with used or pirated parts. And if we want to protect our intellectual property, we can do so without having to trust that other companies will uphold our interests above all others. And that?s saying nothing about political risk, environmental risk or P.R. risk, all of which companies like Apple and Walmart have learned about in China the hard way.

These are the factors that in some ways I was expecting when I started reading the article. Indeed, some of these don?t even need any kind of outsourcing story to hold. Greater flexibility in dealing with design changes, for example, is often trumpeted as one of the benefits of lean operations. That is, lots of inventory slows you down and creates problems whether it is sitting on your floor, your supplier?s floor, or the Pacific ocean.

Third, it?s simply faster. We still order some parts from China, and even though we use FedEx, it always seems to take weeks, and sometimes months, longer than we?d planned. That?s not a criticism of China; it?s merely intrinsic to any arm?s-length relationship between small buyers and big makers. If we were Apple, we?d get overnight service. But we?re not, so we wait.

This is much like the first point. Tighter integration ? whether by moving closer to headquarters or doing everything in-house ? allows for your priorities to hold through the whole process.

Finally, a short supply chain is an incentive to innovate. If you?re outsourcing the manufacturing of huge parcels of a product, you can?t change that product until you?ve sold all the ones you?ve already made (at least not if you want to stay in business). So that often means sitting on your hands, waiting for Version 1 to sell out before starting to make Version 2. But when you?re doing just-in-time manufacturing, you can change the product every day if you want ? whether to take advantage of some better or cheaper component or to improve the design.

This is the observation that I find most interesting. Here lack of speed kills. The ability to run with low inventories ? and hence little cash tied up ? means that it is easier to do the next thing. As I said above, there is then the question of how younger firms should approach this tradeoff. A large initial purchase ties up cash and enforces delay even if it can be done at a low cost. Less inventory means less time. Even if each unit costs more, the firm gets that cash back sooner so it can move on to the next project.

NOW READ: Why Pharmaceutical Companies Don't Make Any Money Off Of Flu Shots

Source: http://www.businessinsider.com/3d-robotics-outsource-to-mexico-2013-1

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