The Secret Of Potter Unveils

HARRY Potter star Daniel Radcliffe has confessed in a frank interview to a gay magazine - he is a Liberal Democrat.

The handsome actor - who turned 20 yesterday - appears on the latest cover of Attitude and inside reveals his true political feelings.

He tells of his deep dislike for Prime Minister Gordon Brown and Tory leader David Cameron.

The multi-millionaire also tells how he grew up surrounded by his parents' gay pals and hates anyone with a homophobic attitude.

Radcliffe - who is not gay and is dating actress Laura O'Toole - said: "I just loathe homophobia. It's just disgusting and animal and stupid and it's just thick people who can't get their heads around it and are just scared.

"I grew up around gay people entirely. I was the only child in my class who had any experience of homosexuality or anything like that."

The actor - who battles soul-sucking Dementors as the boy wizard and is currently starring in Harry Potter And The Half Blood Prince - said he supports Lib Dem leader Nick Clegg because the other parties offer nothing to young people.

He said: "I rather like Nick Clegg. At the next election I will almost certainly vote Lib Dem.

"If all the people who liked them voted for them you could change politics overnight and we could have a proper three party system."

Asked about Gordon Brown he said: "Paul Merton said, and I agree with him, 'it's a tragedy that this man has waited all his life to do this job - and now he finds out he can't do it.'

"I don't like the New Labour thing. I never experienced the optimism of New Labour, I was too young but I hear everyone was up and it was fantastic. I've only seen the bad years of it."

Radcliffe's opinion on David Cameron is no more positive.

He raged: "No! No, no, no, no, no! David Cameron is barely distinguishable from Tony Blair."

He added: "I think the reason why people don't vote is because the politicians are all so central now, it doesn't seem to matter who you vote for."

He also blasted the BNP who won two seats in the recent Euro elections, saying: "I hate any type of prejudice."

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Barack Obama's Economic Optimism Falls On Deaf Ears

President Barack Obama spoke of seeing "glimmers of hope" in the economic outlook for the first time since the current downturn began, while Federal Reserve chairman Ben Bernanke said he was witnessing "tentative signs that the sharp decline in economic activity may be slowing".
But the pair's comments, coming on the same day as worse-than-expected retail sales and inflation figures, did little to revive investors. The Dow Jones Industrial Average index traded down 137.63 points at 7920.18 on Wall Street.

Barack Obama's words failed to boost Wall Street as the Dow Jones Industrial Average index traded down

The speeches came days after Larry Summers, the President's most senior economic adviser, suggested that America's economic "free-fall" is coming to an end.

Although the Fed remains independent of the Obama administration, the three speeches, coming in such quick succession, appear to be part of an orchestrated campaign by the White House to forge a positive attitude among the population.

Coming in a month when tens of millions of Americans will begin to receive several thousand dollars in tax rebate cheques, it appears that the White House is trying to kick-start the economy by encouraging consumers to return to spending, rather than continuing to hoard savings.

The need for such a strategy was highlighted in March's retail sales figures, which showed a 1.1pc decrease in total sales, a surprise to economists who had been forecasting a 0.3pc increase.

Goldman Sachs' chief US economist Jan Hatzius said the report puts "consumption on a weak path into the second quarter", noting that electronics sales were down by 5.9pc.

Retail sales are key as consumers account for two-thirds of the US economy.

Headline producer prices also fell, by 1.2pc month-on-month. The decline was concentrated in energy and food prices, due to weakening demand and, for energy, pipeline pressures.

But the negative economic data did not stop Mr Obama from appearing positive during a speech on the efforts taken to revive the American economy.

"There is no doubt that times are still tough" he said. "By no means are we out of the woods just yet. . . But from where we stand, for the very first time, we are beginning to see glimmers of hope."

Mr Bernanke based his assessment of the economy on recent positive data from the housing and other markets, but stressed that this is still the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression.

"A levelling out of economic activity is the first step toward recovery," Mr Bernanke said, adding that he is "fundamentally optimistic" about the US economy, the foundations of which he believes remain "strong".

But not everyone agrees. With reference to Mr Bernanke's comments last month about the "green shoots" of recovery, Ethan Harris, Barclays Capital's co-head of US economic research, said: "The green shoots are looking a little brown."

Source : http://www.telegraph.co.uk

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Is Obama Hiding His Grey ?

He was one of the youngest men ever to be sworn in as president of the United States.

Yet Barack Obama apparently believes he did not look youthful enough.

While his wife Michelle rises at 5.30am every day to hit the gym and maintain her toned arms, Obama seems to have adopted a new grooming routine of his own.

Before and after: Obama on the campaign trail in September last year, left, looks noticeably more grey than today, right

Recent photographs of the new president reveal almost jet black hair, while in pictures taken during the campaign trail Obama sports many grey hairs on the top and sides of his head.

Unless the president has discovered the fountain of youth in the Oval Office - or installed extremely flattering lighting - the change could only be down to the skills of a hairdresser or a home dye kit.While grey hair during the election campaign may have helped Obama refute Republican claims of inexperience, he could now be keen to a appeal to a younger audience.

Where's the grey gone? :) Obama smiles alongside British Prime Minister Gordon Brown during their meeting in the Oval Office.

The youth vote was instrumental in Barack's selection as Democratic candidate and eventual victory, so perhaps the 47-year-old feels the need to update his look to maintain his hold with the younger generation.

Obama, the 44th president, is the fifth youngest person to assume the office of president, behind Theodore Roosevelt , at 42, John F. Kennedy, Bill Clinton, Ulysses S. Grant and Grover Cleveland.

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