June 20 (Bloomberg) - Bloombergs Andrew Davis reports on the crisis in Iraq as pressures mount for Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki and President Obama sends military advisers to the region. He speaks to Rishaad Salamat on Bloomberg Televisions On The Move. (Source: Bloomberg)

Dick Cheney is back, warning of terrorists on the march.

Condoleezza Rice has re-emerged, urging patience in the Middle East. Even the ubiquitous John McCain has amped up his rhetoric, calling on President Barack Obama to get rid of his entire national security team.

The band of architects and supporters of the 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq that ousted Saddam Hussein is back together, many of them waging a blame-Obama media offensive as the president weighs whether to take military action against Sunni militants in the turmoil threatening to break apart the country.

The interventionist Republicans, who sometimes called themselves neoconservatives, are portraying Obama as a weak leader because of his decision to withdraw troops from Iraq in 2011 after failing to reach a security agreement with the Iraqi government for an extended U.S. presence.

Rarely has a U.S. president been so wrong about so much at the expense of so many, former Vice President Cheney said in a Wall Street Journal column on June 17 written with his daughter Liz, a former State Department official.

Meet al-Qaeda's Heirs

White House officials shrugged off the criticism.

Which president was he talking about? Obama spokesman Jay Carney deadpanned yesterday at the White House, when asked about Cheneys remark.

Former U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice Close

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Cheney Leads Iraq War Architects Back to Blame Obama

Farmhouse Inn in Californias Sonoma County has partnered with Coral Gables, Florida-based SB Architects to expand and enhance the boutique property. The $8 million renovation, to be unveiled this fall, will include nine new luxury rooms, a new spa, fitness center, property-wide landscaping, and a completely revitalized pool area.

Established in 2001, Farmhouse Inn combines the intimacy of a country inn with the sophisticated luxury of a world-class hotel. The brother and sister team of Catherine and Joe Bartolomei have joined with the design group to help create an authentic wine country experience for guests.

The essence of Farmhouse Inn is luxury and authenticity, so we enlisted a top design talent to continue its evolution as Sonoma Countys favorite destination, says Catherine Bartolomei. SB Architects is the perfect partner for us, and the added elements and thoughtful details will truly enhance the guest experience.

SB Architects is leading the renovation project along with a design team that includes ValleyCrest landscape architects, Myra Hoefer Interior Design, and general contractor Shook & Waller.

We have built a great reputation for designing award-winning resorts all over the world, but we maintain the boutique size that allows us to be responsive, flexible and collaborative, says Scott Lee, president of SB Architects. Creating an authentic experience of place is our primary goal and we have a special place in our hearts for wine country destinations. Its a dream collaboration.

A charming and romantic boutique hotel, Farmhouse Inn currently boasts a Michelin- starred restaurant, a full service spa managed by Francis & Alexander, gardens throughout the property, and vineyards on-site. Farmhouse Inn offers 25 roomsincluding 17 barn rooms and suites, eight cottage rooms and suites, and two upstairs guestrooms in the original farmhouse.

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SB Architects to Lead Farmhouse Inn Renovations

Poole, Dorset (PRWEB UK) 19 June 2014

Nowadays, with online retailing becoming more popular than ever and costs of renting a shop space continuing to soar, business landlords are now under more pressure than ever to persuade retailers to sign new leases.

Introduced by cities across the world such as Tokyo, London, Los Angeles and New York City, the concept of a pop up store allows the retailer to use a temporary space to market their products, gaining recognition and generating a buzz for the company wherever they go.

Another reason that swayed retailers to go with this new solution is the insignificant difference in cost: launching pop-up store costs 80% less than renting out a traditional retail store.

Big brands such as Ebay, Adidas, Kate Spade and Lacoste are just some of the big names that have followed the pop-up shop trend and have taken their creativity one step further.

A great example of a system that can be used by retailers to set up their very own pop-up store is The Prestige System, which is a modular and portable solution that allows clients to re-configure their stand for different retail spaces.

The system is also ideal for all exhibitions, conferences and live marketing events.

Quadrant2Design, the sole UK suppliers of Prestige based in Poole in Dorset, have adapted the system into the World's first bespoke Pop-up Shop System.

The Swiss-designed Prestige Events System is constructed from lightweight, but extremely strong, aluminium pop-up frames which are ideal for easy transportation, as pop-up shops travel around frequently. This structure bestows on Prestige the twin benefits of easy and rapid construction, without any tools or special knowledge.

Graphics magnetise to the erected framework in seconds, rapidly forming stunning, and seamless-effect graphic walling, with the option of integrated, brightly lit product showcases and floating-effect digital screens.

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Introducing the new phenomenon: The Prestige System Pop-up shop

Dallas, TX (PRWEB) June 17, 2014

Urban Design Group (UDG), an award-winning architectural firm, is pleased to announce the addition of Robert Runyon as a Principal with the firm. Runyon brings over 35 years of experience to the team including the establishment and operations management of Runyon Architects & Associates for 24 years. His extensive portfolio includes work in the design development and construction of significant entertainment, commercial, hospitality, mixed-use, urban development and redevelopment projects. As a Principal, Runyon will be involved in all aspects of UDGs operations and program development, strategic business planning, business and client development, contracts, design and project development, management and construction services.

We are delighted to welcome Robert Runyon to our team, said Ray Kahl, AIA, Principal with UDGs Dallas office. Robert brings professional experience in firm leadership, business development and architectural development skills to our company. We were impressed with the diversity in his domestic and international portfolio, similar design philosophy and recognition in the architectural market place. We look forward to having him help us identify the new and growing markets and find those opportunities which will make the most effective and successful use of this firms expertise and project history. We are eager to have Robert help us serve our growing client base and help us continue to successfully develop and position this firm into the future.

Runyon holds two degrees from Texas A&M University in College Station, TX. He earned a Masters of Architecture with a focus on Systems Development in 1976, and he was awarded a Bachelor of Environmental Design degree in 1974. He is a member of the United States Green Building Council (USGBC) and the Urban Land Institute (ULI).

Outside the office, Runyon has been involved with Canyon Creek Presbyterian Church and its building, youth and mission programs. Runyon is also active with Habitat for Humanity.

About the award-winning architectural firm UDG:

Founded in 1975, UDG offers architectural, interior design, master planning, product design, and purchasing and logistics services to its worldwide clientele from offices in Atlanta, GA, and Dallas, TX. A market leader in the application and advancement of Building Information Modeling (BIM) technology and Integrated Project Delivery (IPD), UDG's personnel work on a wide range of projects from university facilities, offices and urban mixed-use developments to hospitality, resort and gaming projects.

In the firm's 39-year history, UDG has completed more than $6 Billion in projects worldwide. The firm has received more than 80 design excellence awards and honors and 15 design competition awards, and has been featured in hundreds of magazine articles, newspaper pieces and design resource books. For more information, please visit http://www.urbandesigngroup.com.

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Robert Runyon Joins the Award-Winning Architectural Firm UDG as Principal

A dispute over the finances and control of a planned rebuild of folk legend Woody Guthrie's boyhood home in Oklahoma could put the project in jeopardy.

The spat, an ironic turn considering Guthrie's songs that railed against greed, began after two Gibson guitars crafted with wood salvaged from the iconic singer's home in Okemah failed to sell last month on eBay.

Profits from Gibson's donated guitars were to go toward reconstruction of the 1860s-era property, called London House, using piles of lumber rescued from the site when the dilapidated structure was torn down in the late 1970s.

Woody Guthrie's Hometown to Rebuild Singer's Boyhood Home

The builders had grand plans for the property: Restoration of the home from its sandstone foundation on up, then construction of a museum to house all things Woody.

They also envisioned picnic areas, gardens and RV parking to accommodate the throngs of tourists and musicians who flock to town of 3,000, about 75 miles east of Oklahoma City, each July for the Woody Guthrie Folk Festival.

It would all cost around $600,000. The home was to be finished in time for this year's festival.

The contractor, Dan Riedemann, and the man he hired last year to raise funds for the undertaking, Johnny Buschardt, banked on the guitars to sell fast so they could start building in the spring.

Riedemann and Buschardt hoped each guitar would fetch around six figures and only offered on eBay the first two of the eight made. Buschardt hoped the other six would be snapped up by museums or A-list musicians eager to own a piece of Woody history.

When neither guitar sold, the finger-pointing began. Riedemann accused Buschardt of not doing enough to publicize the sale. Buschardt accused Riedemann of being greedy.

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Woody Guthrie Home Restoration Project In Trouble Over Financial Dispute

Home furnishings retailer Restoration Hardware Holdings Inc (RH: Quote), Wednesday reported a swing to profit in the first quarter, due mainly to a 22 percent surge in revenues, with both earnings and revenues ahead of Wall Street expectations. Restoration Hardware shares rallied 12 percent in after-hours trade on the New York Stock Exchange after having lifted its full-year outlook.

Corte Madera, California-based Restoration Hardware reported a first-quarter profit of $1.8 million or $0.04 per share, compared to a loss of $0.2 million or break-even per share last year.

Excluding items, adjusted earnings rose to $0.18 per share from $0.06 per share. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expected earnings of $0.11 per share for the quarter. Analysts' estimates typically exclude special items.

Revenues for the first quarter grew 22 percent to $366.25 million from $301.34 million a year ago. Analysts estimated revenues of of $347.73 million for the quarter.

Comparable brand revenue growth, which includes direct, increased 18 percent in the first quarter. Gross margins improved to 34.0 percent from 33.8 percent last year.

Chief Executive Gary Friedman said, "RH continued to outperform the home furnishings industry by a wide margin in the first quarter of 2014."

Looking forward to the second quarter, the company expects adjusted earnings of $0.62 to $0.64 per share and revenues of $443 million to $453 million. Analysts currently expect earnings of $0.61 per share on revenues of $452.11 million for the second quarter.

For the full year 2014, the company now expects adjusted earnings of $2.24 to $2.30 per share and revenues of $1.86 billion to $1.89 billion. Analysts currently estimate earnings of $2.20 per share on revenues of $1.85 billion for 2014.

Initially, the company had forecast adjusted earnings in the range of $2.14 to $2.22 per share and revenues of $1.83 billion to $1.86 billion.

"The business momentum and strong trends we are seeing thus far in 2014 give us further confidence in our financial outlook for the year," Friedman added.

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Restoration Hardware Swings To Profit, Lifts FY Outlook; Shares Up 12%

Ray Rutledge, right, treasurer of the El Paso Preservation Alliance and alliance member Kevin Wells showed a newly restored Central El Paso bungalow-style home built around the early 1900s Tuesday. Refrigerated air is among the modern amenities added to the home. The home was restored using historic preservation guidelines and will be featured in an open house today and Sunday. (Rudy Gutierrez El Paso Times)

Photos: El Paso Preservation Alliance restores central home

For several years, the home at 2731 Portland in Central El Paso in the historic Manhattan Heights neighborhood was an eyesore. But not for Ray Rutledge, a member of the El Paso Preservation Alliance, who could see beyond the caved-in ceilings, boarded up windows and dilapidated, graffiti-covered walls.

"The interior was in bad shape, but structurally it was fine. There was really nothing wrong with the building. The homes of this era were built by craftsmen and being on this side of the mountain doesn't hurt either, because we are on very solid ground," he said.

Initially, the city was going to demolish the building. But in April of 2009, the Preservation Alliance worked with the city, which sold it to the alliance with plans to restore it to its original classic American bungalow style. The home dates back to the early 1900s.

"We generally have not done brick and mortar projects as an organization," Rutledge said. "Individually, all of us have historic homes and in some cases have done multiple restoration projects but as an organization we had not."

Rutledge said the alliance took on this project hoping to show the community that restoring a historic home is a viable and better option to tearing down buildings.

The public is invited to see the completed restoration at an open house from Saturday and Sunday.

"We didn't want to lose a historic property. If it had been demolished, nothing would have ever been built and it would just have been a vacant lot for the next 80 years." he said.

Alliance members said the work has been slow but worthwhile.

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Preservation group brings beauty back to bungalow home in Central El Paso

People stopped by Butchertown today to learn about preserving some of Louisville's oldest homes and to check out some art.

The sounds and sights of art, along with the smells emanating from food trucks, attracted hundreds to the Butchertown Art Fair on Sunday.

Experts turned out to give tips on restoring some old Kentucky homes as part of the Old House Expo.

"Preserving this architecture makes Louisville what it is. It gives us our identity and we want to help people learn how to take care of it," said Marianne Zickuhr, with Preservation Louisville.

"All of the wonderful architecture here, certainly as an artist that is something I appreciate," said artist Paul Reynolds.

Zickuhr said the Derby City has the biggest number of long, narrow houses, known as "shotgun homes," in the country, and there are a lot that could use some TLC, not only to bring out the beauty, but to make sure they're providing proper, safe shelter for their homeowners.

This summer Preservation Louisville is tackling five home renovations for people in need.

"We are really excited to be doing this on-the-ground hands-on work to help families and save shotgun houses," said Zickuhr.

Sponsors are making it happen for free, but the organization needs help with labor and is searching for volunteers.

"We need a lot of hands to help us do that and really great to help some needed people," said Zickuhr.

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Experts give home restoration tips at Old House Expo

Don Smith/staff photographer

Rick Herman of Allendale put his home of 14 years on the market two months ago. "We love the place," he says of the Victorian, "and it's kind of hard to leave. But it's five bedrooms, way too much for two people."

This spring traditionally the busiest time in the housing market buyers may find they've got fewer choices than they'd like, because the inventory of homes on the market is down, compared with last year. In Bergen County, the number of single-family homes for sale dropped 25 percent in January and February, and in Passaic County, about 15 percent.

One big reason is that many sellers have held off because of the unusually harsh winter weather, and they're likely to list their properties soon, which may bring a surge of properties to the market.

But other homeowners especially those who bought during the housing boom still can't sell without taking a loss, and those properties are likely to stay off the market, shrinking the potential pool of available homes.

"There are still sellers waiting for the market to improve in order for them to get out," said Jeff Adler, a Keller Williams agent in Ridgewood.

"A lot of sellers have been taken aback by the amount of decline from the peak to where the market is now," agreed Jorge Ledesma, a Re/Max agent in Teaneck. "It's a bitter pill to swallow when you see so much equity in your home, and through no fault of your own, you see it go away."

Home prices in the region are still, on average, about 20 percent below their 2006 peaks, so owners who bought during the housing boom may well be "underwater" that is, owing more on the mortgage than their home is worth. Others may not be underwater but still have 2006 prices stuck in their heads as the "real" value of their home, and are reluctant to sell for less.

As home prices rise, more of these homeowners will be willing and able to sell, observers say. With prices up statewide an estimated 4.3 percent last year, many homeowners are already moving out of the underwater category, said Jeffrey Otteau, an East Brunswick appraiser who follows home prices statewide.

"We will see more [home selling] activity as equity gets restored," Otteau said recently at a seminar for real estate agents in East Hanover.

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Chilly forecast for North Jersey home sales

After a week of deliberations the first government under newly-elected president Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi was sworn in on 17 June, led by Prime Minister Ibrahim Mehleb.

The new government, the third since the ouster of former Islamist president Mohamed Morsi on 3 July, 2013, increased the number of cabinet ministers from 31 to 34. Twenty members of the outgoing cabinet retained their jobs, including Minister of Defence Sedki Sobhi and Interior Minister Mohamed Ibrahim. Together with newly-elected president Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi, these two influential cabinet members comprise what t many political analysts consider the real centre of power in Egypt.

Mehleb was commissioned to form a new government on 9 June, one day after ex-army chief Abdel-Fattah Al-Sisi took the oath of office as Egypts new president. Under article 146 of the new constitution the government must resign after the results of the presidential elections are officially announced.

Mehleb, who led the swearing-in ceremony on Tuesday, told reporters he is not leading a caretaker government. The government will not act as if it is in power only until new parliamentary elections are held and new government is formed. It will make decisions for the long-term, and will be working day and night to secure a brighter future.

Mehleb said he agreed with Al-Sisi his governments priorities must include restoring stability and security, fighting terrorism, and improving public services. He dismissed rumours the controversial House of Representatives Law, ratified by outgoing president Adli Mansour on 5 June, would be amended. Instead, he said the legislative reform committee formed by Al-Sisi last week would take charge of revising legislation to ensure it conforms with the new constitution. The prime minister also promised the cabinet would also work towards promoting a religious discourse that disseminates the ideals of tolerance and moderation as espoused by Islam and Christianity.

The new government contained few surprises. The most dramatic move was the phasing out of the ministry of information, to be replaced by a National Press Council, which will oversee the regulation of audio-visual and print media as was envisaged by article 211 of the new constitution. Nabil Fahmis replacement as foreign minister by Sameh Shoukri, Egypts ambassador to the United States from 2008 to 2012, left many commentators perplexed.

Al-Ahram political analyst Hassan Abu Taleb believes Fahmi did a good job improving relations with Washington and the African Union in the aftermath of Mohamed Morsis ouster. His removal, speculates Abu Taleb, was probably a result of comments made during a visit to Washington last March that the relationship between Egypt and the US was rather like a marriage, a comparison that played badly with both officials and the public.

That both Shoukri and Fahmi served as ambassadors to the US is telling, says Abu Taleb. It signals the importance the post-Morsi leadership in Egypt gives to relations with the US.

It is also noteworthy that Shoukri was Hosni Mubaraks information secretary from 1995 to 1999.

Laila Iskandar, who served in the outgoing cabinet as minister of environment, will occupy the new cabinet post of minister of urban development. According to Mehleb the new ministry will be responsible for improving conditions in slum areas and squatter communities on the fringes of major cities.

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Not a caretaker government