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There was no photo opportunity or traditional joint statement of solidarity after the 90-minute closed session. Neither side would comment on the talks, but it was expected that Mr Netanyahu would agree to a secret freeze on building in the area, despite his public pledges that Jerusalem would never be given up.

However, the announcement of the new apartments in a development funded by Irving Moskowitz, an American billionaire, in a predominantly Arab area set tempers flaring again and may undermine what little progress was made in Washington at soothing the diplomatic crisis.

“Israel is digging itself into a hole that it will have to climb out of if it is serious about peace,” Saeb Erekat, the chief Palestinian negotiator, said.

“There is overwhelming international consensus on the illegality of Israel’s settlements, including in east Jerusalem, and the damage they are doing to the two-state solution.”

The Palestinians have said they will not join even the indirect peace talks the US is trying to stitch together unless all Israeli construction east of the armistice line from the 1949 Arab-Israeli war is halted.

Israel announced today that it had given the green light for 20 more homes in a Jewish development in the disputed area of Jerusalem.

The announcement came after one of the frostiest meetings between a US president and an Israeli leader.

Binyamin Netanyahu, the Israeli Prime Minister, had flown to Washington for an emergency meeting with Barack Obama after a trip to the Middle East by Joe Biden, the Vice President, was wrecked by an Israeli plan to build 1,600 new Jewish homes in east Jerusalem.

East Jerusalem was captured by Israel in 1967 and is claimed by both sides in the conflict.

Bryan Cranston has made one of television’s great leaps: From goofy dad onMalcolm in the Middle to the complex Walter White on AMC’s Breaking Bad. White is man on a collision course with the dark recesses of the human soul; that may seem dramatic, but all it takes is one look in Cranston’s eyes to see the depths of his character’s tortured soul.

Earlier this week I caught up with Cranston, who has won two Emmys for his performance, to talk about what’s in store for Season 3.

TV.com: I talked to creator Vince Gilligan last season, and we both agreed thatBreaking Bad could be categorized as a comedy. What’s your take on that?
Bryan Cranston: I don’t see it that way. I look at something like Malcom in the Middle, that was a comedy. This is a well-written drama, and any well-written drama has moments of levity that provide several things: a relief for the audience, a more well-rounded experience. So no I don’t see it that way.

It is a bit of a stretch, but I just can’t get over how many times I find myself laughing at loud at the show.
Well it depends, you happen to be a person with a sick sense of humor. You probably laugh at little old ladies who fall. You bastard!

Ha! When we last saw Walt, there was a plane crashing down around him, he was watching Skylar leave him, and he had the death of Jesse’s girlfriend on his hands. How is he going to handle all this weight?
Not well. Season 1 was all about the decision that was made. Why he made it. Who this man is. What his circumstances are. Season 2 was the consequences, like you said, of that decision and realizing that he has to learn a whole new set of skills and that he’s unprepared for all of this. Season 3 really encompasses the change he is going through and the self-realization that he has to accept that he’s capable of some very dark things. It’s embracing who he really is now, and allowing himself not to put up the defenses about it, but allow it to be “This is who I am now, I’ve changed, there’s no going back. And I just want to hang on to be able to hang on to as many little threads of my family as I can before I die.”

Will we see the ramifications of Jane’s death surface?
That does come to surface in one particular episode this year. And Jesse gets suspicious and starts to probe and… I can’t tell you anymore. [laughs]

I believe you’ve said in other interviews that Skylar discovers what’s going on with Walt.
At first, even the producers said, “Wait, what are you doing, don’t give that away!” And I said, “You’re kidding, we have to tell [the media] something about the season.” And that happens in the first episode. She makes an educated guess and finds out what I’m doing. What I thought was brilliant about it is that the conceit was this man truly believes that if she found it, it’s over. That’s it, I lose everything. That was the whole series. Now they throw that out in the first episode, and it’s very compelling to be able to watch what you thought might happen may not happen. It’s a very good year for Anna Gunn. She goes through a lot of reflection, anger, and loss. It just keeps getting more complicated.

We heard about the cartel in Season 2, but never really came face-to-face with them. With Walter gaining status and territory, will we see the cartel come into play in Season 3?
[pauses for a second... as if not knowing if he should tell the truth] Yes. The cartel becomes a bigger player in Season Three, primarily because Walt steps on too many toes. It’s another example of Walt not having the skill set to understand the world that he’s in, and that when you do well, it makes others do less than well. It’s remarkable to him and he keeps scratching to make sense of it all. And he really doesn’t even know the extent of the danger around him.

Do you think Walter is a good man or a bad man?
In the first year, I can honestly say that Walter was a good man who’s made bad decisions. Now, being more specific with it, you have to admit he’s just a man. Complete with qualities that are positive and negative. And he has to embrace all of who he is in order to survive. That’s an interesting thing. When someone else fails you, you can be angry and hurt by this other person’s action and you can discontinue your relationship. And we do that often, we come in and out of relationships. Some end forever, some waiver, and a few stay strong all the way through because you learn to adapt to each other. But when you yourself disappoint you, you either embrace it or you end it, in suicide or self medication.

And Walter is starting to embrace the bad.
Walter is starting to accept it. At first he was incredibly judgmental about it and using this altruistic point of view—”This is for my family. This isn’t for me, it’s for my family.” Well there’s only so far you can make that claim. But he’s been seduced, and the knee-jerk reaction is to resist going to the dark side. There’s a scene last year where I’m giving my son drinks, that was a hard one for me, as a parent myself. It was like, “Wow, how do I wrap my head around this?” I was able to do it because I was starting to feel like the Wolfman, I could see the hair grow on the back of my palms. And you can feel the dichotomy between good and bad, and for the first time in his life, Walt was dangerous. He could intimidate people, and he was a man in some good sense and some bad sense. He was determined to resist the voice of reason, who was Hank in that instance, and I was resisting it because I didn’t want to hear the voice of reason. He was venting some self-loathing, he wants to be scolded, he wants to be yelled at. It’s a very delicate scene.

I’m a huge Bob Odenkirk fan, so I have to get a Saul Goodman update.

He plays a very key role in our show now, and I think will for a long time to come. The reason is legitimately that these two guys haven’t a clue as how to proceed on a level they need to proceed, and [Goodman] has the know how. Like Jesse says, “You don’t want a criminal lawyer, you want a criminal lawyer.” Here’s a guy who is away from the day-to-day threats of life. He’s looking paperwork and making phone calls and connections. So his point of view is free and easy. “Hey well, it’s been known to happen, a drug dealer getting killed.” Meanwhile, Walt and Jesse are tense and can’t take the pressure, and Bob just comes in with such a laissez-faire “Ehhh whatever… so you don’t like that joke.” And it’s a wonderful juxtaposition between the angst-ridden Walt and Jesse and Bob’s kind of laid-back self.

photo by Alberto E. Rodriguez/Getty Images - 2010

Sandra Bullock arrives at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards held at Kodak Theatre on March 7, 2010 in Hollywood, California.

photo by Frazer Harrison/Getty Images - 2010

Penelope Cruz arrives at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards held at Kodak Theatre on March 7, 2010 in Hollywood, California.

Meryl Streep arrives at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards held at Kodak Theatre on March 7, 2010 in Hollywood, California.

Gabourey Sidibe arrives at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards held at Kodak Theatre on March 7, 2010 in Hollywood, California.

Jennifer Lopez arrives at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards held at Kodak Theatre on March 7, 2010 in Hollywood, California.

Quentin Tarantino and Quinton Aaron arrive at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards held at Kodak Theatre on March 7, 2010 in Hollywood, California.

Zac Efron arrives at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards held at Kodak Theatre on March 7, 2010 in Hollywood, California.

Morgan Freeman with producer Lori McCreary and daughter Morgana at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards held at Kodak Theatre on March 7, 2010 in Hollywood, California.

Sigourney Weaver arrives at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards held at Kodak Theatre on March 7, 2010 in Hollywood, California.

Mo'Nique and husband Sidney at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards held at Kodak Theatre on March 7, 2010 in Hollywood, California.

Paula Patton and Robin Thicke arrive at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards held at Kodak Theatre on March 7, 2010 in Hollywood, California.

Lee Daniels and guest arrive at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards held at Kodak Theatre on March 7, 2010 in Hollywood, California.

Zoe Kravtiz and Lenny Kravtiz arrive at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards held at Kodak Theatre on March 7, 2010 in Hollywood, California.

Steve Carell and wife Nancy arrive at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards held at Kodak Theatre on March 7, 2010 in Hollywood, California.

Ryan Reynolds arrives at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards held at Kodak Theatre on March 7, 2010 in Hollywood, California.

Tyler Perry arrives at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards held at Kodak Theatre on March 7, 2010 in Hollywood, California.

Director Lee Daniels and daughter Clara, singer/actress Mariah Carey and husband actor/producer Nick Cannon arrive at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards held at Kodak Theatre on March 7, 2010 in Hollywood, California.

Anika Noni Rose arrives at the 82nd Annual Academy Awards held at Kodak Theatre on March 7, 2010 in Hollywood, California.

Photo: Bryan Bedder/Getty Images

Wow! So as at least one of our commenters and a popular hip-hop blog predicted, Lil Wayne did come out at Jay-Z’s MSG show last night, just hours after his appointment with Rikers was postponed owing to a random courthouse fire. It was supporting act Young Jeezy, though, who actually brought him out, during an otherwise slog of a set that weirdly took place in the middle of Jay’s performance. Jeezy first shouted out “the homey Lil Wayne … he went in today. Keep your head up,” before cuing up Young Money’s “Bedrock” and bringing out Nicki Minaj. Classic misdirection! Wayne sprung up next, followed by Drake (decked out in what looked like the clothes our Grandma Ethel wears when she goes walking in the mall for exercise in the mornings), and the three of them did their mixtape track “I’m Going In.” It was nuts!

Unfortunately, that’s all the Weezy we would get: Yeah, it would have been something else to see the two biggest rappers alive sharing the MSG stage days before one of them was scheduled to start a jail sentence — but it was not to be. We understand that maybe the band didn’t have proper rehearsal to do any Wayne songs, but did Jay-Z have to do his “Swagga Like Us” verse all by himself? Was there any subtext to them not doing a song together, or are we reading too much into it? Otherwise, it was another impeccable set by one of the best live acts we’ve ever seen; “PSA,” “Encore,” and “Hard Knock Life” sounded just massive, and Jay even had enough juice with the crowd to gamely get through all the Blueprint 3 clunkers he felt obligated to play. We’re pretty confident that the Spotted Pig’s Ken Friedman and beloved mixtape rapper Jay Electronica, both of whom we spotted in the hallways, enjoyed it as well.

SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Oil slipped on Thursday as the dollar strengthened, but was still trading near seven-week highs of around $81 as U.S. demand edged up with a recovering economy.

Total oil demand in the world’s top consuming nation grew 0.3 percent in the past four weeks from a year earlier, U.S. government data showed on Wednesday, raising expectations for an end to a 1-1/2-year period of sustained consumption decreases.

The dollar gained 0.13 percent against a basket of currencies .DXY, sending crude down 22 cents to $80.65 a barrel by 0523 GMT. The front-month contract touched $81.23 on Wednesday, its highest intraday price since January 12. London ICE Brent for April fell 15 cents to $79.10.

Greece’s budget-balancing pledges on Wednesday helped restore some appetite for risk, boosting the euro against the dollar. On Thursday, the spotlight focuses again on the euro zone, which will report revised gross domestic product for the fourth quarter.

“The oil market will trade in a range of $75 to $85 at least for the next two months, and it will possibly go above $85 by the middle of this year, depending on economic recovery,” said Ken Hasegawa, a commodity derivatives manager at brokerage Newedge in Japan.

China Investment Corp CIC.UL, China’s sovereign wealth fund, believes global commodity prices are outpacing the global economic recovery, fueled by loose monetary policies worldwide, a top official said on Thursday.

“Personally, I think the prices are a bit too high relative to the strength of real economic recovery,” Jesse Wang, CIC executive vice president and chief risk officer, said on the sidelines of a conference in Beijing.

DEMAND VS INVENTORIES

Prices have ranged $69 to $84 a barrel over the past few months amid uncertainty about the pace of economic recovery. But a decline in global crude inventories and the surplus held in floating storage has set the stage for an increase toward the $80-$90 range, according to Barclays Capital.

The latest data from the Joint Oil Data Initiative (JODI) implied that Asian demand has been growing by more than 2 million barrels per day from a year earlier, according to Barclays.

“If Asian demand can grow at such rapid rates when prices are in the $70 to $80 range, then prices cannot stay in that range for much longer,” Barclays analysts headed by Paul Horsnell said.

Interest rate decisions from the Bank of England and the European Central Bank are also expected on Thursday, followed by U.S. durable goods and factory order statistics for January. And on Friday, attention will turn to U.S. non-farm payrolls.

Some doubts remained about the pace of economic recovery. Newedge’s Hasegawa said it is still “slow,” adding that further oil price gains could be triggered by “short-covering” when prices reach $81.50 and $82.

U.S. crude inventories last week rose a larger-than-expected 4.1 million barrels, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said on Wednesday.

Jared Newman, PCWorld

Mar 3, 2010 3:03 pm

Weighing the potential outcomes of Apple’s patent infringement lawsuit against HTC, several IP and patent lawyers say HTC’s phones could be barred from the United States, but both sides will probably look for a licensing agreement before getting to that point.

To recap, Apple sued HTC for allegedly infringing 20 patents in its mobile phones. The lawsuit calls out popular Android phones such as the Google Nexus One and the Droid Eris, but also mentions the Windows Mobile-powered Imagio. What makes this lawsuit particularly interesting is that Apple filed with the U.S. International Trade Commission, which has the power to stop infringing products from being imported stateside, as well as the U.S. District Court in Delaware.

Of course, it’s impossible to say whether Apple can win without having an attorney spend days or weeks looking through the individual claims, but Jason Webb, patent attorney for Webb IP Law Group, thinks Apple has reason to be confident. “It makes a huge difference that it is twenty patents instead of just one,” he wrote in a e-mail. Michael Downs, a partner in the patent law firm Fincham Downs LLC, agreed, noting that Apple has used some of the same patents in a counter-lawsuit against Nokia.

So let’s just assume that Apple’s lawsuit has merit. Experts say an injunction is possible, but not guaranteed.

Alex Poltorak, chairman of the General Patent Corporation, which represents independent inventors against large companies, lays out a juicy scenario: If the trade commission rules in favor of Apple, HTC would have little choice but to license Apple’s patents. Apple would then have the option to crush HTC in the United States by refusing to license, resulting in an injunction.

Hapless footballers are always finding new ways to score on their own team, but this might be the first time overpowering winds are to blame for redirecting the ball and notching an own goal.

In the second half of a real match between German lower division sides TSV Wimsheim and TSV Grunbach last Sunday, a Grunbach player attempted to launch a booming kick against the intense winds only to have the ball hang in the sky and come right back the way it came, bounce high over the goalkeeper’s head and into the net, giving Wimsheim a 1-0 lead.

Wimsheim would go on to win 2-1, but if you’re Grunbach, I think you just have to accept that the universe was against you that day and move on. Or consider that Newton’s Laws of Motion weren’t a joke.object><a href='‘ >object>

The plush surroundings of all those Ritz Carltons and Four Seasons have disappeared. These days, Hasheem Thabeet(notes) rests his head in a two-star motel in chilly Bismarck, N.D. Gone, too, are the charter flights and all the legroom they afforded.

Eight months ago Thabeet was celebrating his selection as the second overall pick of the NBA draft. He now holds a new distinction: the highest pick ever to be sent to the NBA’s Development League. That’s not to say Thabeet has lost all his star power: In honor of his arrival, the Dakota Wizards discounted general-admission tickets for Wednesday’s game to $2.

For Thabeet, the D-League is home, at least for a little bit, and he’s determined to make the best of it.

People in the NBA are “definitely looking at it negatively,” Thabeet said. “ ‘He’s the No. 2 pick. He’s not supposed to be there. I can’t believe that guy is over there and he’s the second pick.’ But you got to go and work your way up there. I’m working my way up here, working on my confidence.

“When the time comes, I’ll be able to answer the call.”

The Memphis Grizzlies decided they couldn’t pass on Thabeet’s potential to become a shot-blocking giant when they drafted the 7-foot-3 center. A second-team All-America from the University of Connecticut, Thabeet drew comparisons to former NBA defensive great Dikembe Mutombo(notes). In doing so, however, the Grizzlies passed on more NBA-ready prospects like Tyreke Evans(notes), James Harden(notes), Jonny Flynn(notes) and Stephen Curry(notes).

Thabeet’s high draft selection earned him a $4.5 million salary for his rookie season, and he admits to feeling immense pressure to succeed immediately. His contributions, however, were much more modest: Before being sent to Dakota, he was averaging 2.5 points, 2.9 rebounds and two fouls in 10.3 minutes per game. He’s struggled to adjust to the quicker pace of the NBA and his offensive skills still need considerable refining.

“People are expecting a lot from you,” Thabeet said. “Your teammates back from high school and college. Your college coaches, everyone that knows you. They’re all expecting a lot from me. That’s a lot of pressure. But now I have to look at it as motivation to work even harder. They sent me out here. I got to show them, ‘OK, this is not where I belong.’ I just have to keep working hard and my time will come.

Google has just sent out an Email to select Android developers informing them that they are eligible to receive either a Verizon Droid or a Nexus One, as part of its ‘Device Seeding Program’.  The criteria for getting one of the phones is to have an application with 3.5 stars or higher and more than 5,000 downloads, which sounds like it could include quite a few developers.

In an odd move, Google isn’t actually allowing the developers to pick which device they’re receiving — if you’re in the US, you’ll get a Droid or Nexus One, at random. If you’re in Canada, the EU, Norway, Lichtenstein, Switzerland, Hong Kong, Taiwan, or Singapore, you get a Nexus One.  If you’re not in any of those, you don’t get a phone at all (Google explains that the phones aren’t certified in other countries).

So why is Google doing this? Android is already having to deal with fragmentation issues, as a large number of users (and developers) have older phones that aren’t running Android 2.0. Now that the Droid, which runs 2.0, comprises a big part of Android’s market share, it’s in Google’s best interest to make sure that Android’s best developers are building software that’s compatible with the latest devices. The free phones also serve as a nice carrot to entice developers to build quality applications.