Grammy-award winning singer-songwriter Billy Joel [url=http://www.giantsfootballpro.com/Lorenzo-Carter-Giants-Jersey/]Lorenzo Carter Limited Jersey[/url] , who penned hit tunes such as Piano Man and New York State of Mind, will receive the Library of Congress Gershwin Prize for Popular Song, the US national library said on Tuesday.

Joel, 65, is the sixth recipient of the prize that honors individuals for lifetime achievement in popular music. It is named after songwriting brothers George and Ira Gershwin.

"Billy Joel is a storyteller of the highest order," Librarian of Congress James H. Billlington said in a statement.

"There is an intimacy to his song writing that bridges the gap between the listener and the worlds he shares through music."

Joel, whose career has spanned 50 years [url=http://www.giantsfootballpro.com/Landon-Collins-Giants-Jersey/]Landon Collins Limited Jersey[/url] , is one of the most popular recording artists and has had 33 top-40 hits. His multiple Grammy wins include song and album of the year in 1978 for "Just the Way You Are."

He was also presented with a Grammy Legend Award in 1990 and was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1999.

"The great composer, George Gershwin, has been a personal inspiration to me throughout my career. And the Library's decision to include me among those songwriters who have been past recipients is a milestone for me," Joel said.

The New York-born singer will receive the prize in Washington, D.C. in November and will be honored at a series of events. Carole King, Paul Simon, Stevie Wonder [url=http://www.giantsfootballpro.com/Ereck-Flowers-Giants-Jersey/]Ereck Flowers Limited Jersey[/url] , Sir Paul McCartney and the songwriting duo Burt Bacharach and the late Hal David are previous recipients of the award.

BEIJING, Jan. 13 (Xinhua) -- China's national anti-graft body will maintain a tough stance against corruption, consolidating and developing the "overwhelming momentum" in the fight against corruption.

"We will continue to see that there are no no-go zones, no stone is left unturned, and no tolerance is shown for corruption," said a communique adopted at the second plenary session of the 19th Central Commission for Discipline Inspection (CCDI) of Communist Party of China which was held from Thursday to Saturday.

The CCDI said the fight against corruption will focus on officials who have shown no restraint and continued their wrongdoing after the 18th CPC National Congress in late 2012.

Priority will be given to cases involving interest groups that have both political and economic issues, the communique said.

The CCDI will fight corruption in selection and appointment of officials [url=http://www.giantsfootballpro.com/Darian-Thompson-Giants-Jersey/]Darian Thompson Limited Jersey[/url] , government approval and supervision, resource exploitation, finance, and other key areas prone to corruption.

The commission stressed efforts to address corruption that occurs on the people's doorsteps, especially in poverty relief. The fight against corruption at the grassroots level will be combined with that against criminal gangs. The "protection umbrella" behind the gangs will be removed, it said.

Officials working in discipline inspection and supervision should be loyal, resolute [url=http://www.giantsfootballpro.com/Sterling-Shepard-Giants-Jersey/]Sterling Shepard Limited Jersey[/url] , responsible and maintain discipline and the law, ensuring that power bestowed by the Party and the people is not abused, according to the communique.

SAN FRANCISCO, Jan. 5 (Xinhua) -- U.S. top tech company Apple Inc.'s offer to replace iPhone batteries at lower prices could cut sales by millions of units this year, Bloomberg reported Thursday.

The report quoted Barclays' analyst Mark Moskowitz as saying that Apple could lose 16 million iPhone upgrades in 2018, as more people would take the 29-U.S.-dollar battery offer and decide not to buy a new iPhone.

Last week, Apple apologized for slowing down the performance of old-version iPhones with older batteries [url=http://www.giantsfootballpro.com/Eli-Apple-Giants-Jersey/]Eli Apple Limited Jersey[/url] , which has already drawn multiple lawsuits.

The unannounced move by Apple has aroused anger among some Apple customers, who regarded Apple's secret handling of iPhones with older batteries as a trick to force them to buy newer but more expensive Apple devices.

In response to consumer outrage, Apple said it will cut 50 dollars from the out-of-warranty iPhone battery replacement for the next year.

by Edna Alcantara

MEXICO CITY, July 24 (Xinhua) -- Slapping economic sanctions on Venezuela, as the United States has threatened to do, would create more problems than solving them, Mexican political observer Jose del Tronco said.

Tronco [url=http://www.giantsfootballpro.com/Wayne-Gallman-Giants-Jersey/]Wayne Gallman Limited Jersey[/url] , a professor at the Latin American Social Science Institute, spoke with Xinhua about the situation in the South American country, where voters will go to the polls on Sunday to elect members of a National Constituent Assembly (ANC) tasked to rewrite the constitution.

"I believe that far from opening up the Venezuelan government, and allowing greater dialogue and greater opening towards building consensus with the opposition, it (the U.S. sanctions) would have the opposite effect and enclose the government more," said Tronco.

The U.S. government, which backs Venezuela's right-wing opposition [url=http://www.giantsfootballpro.com/Davis-Webb-Giants-Jersey/]Davis Webb Limited Jersey[/url] , has demanded Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro call off the July 30 vote.

A White House statement from President Donald Trump warned last week that "if the Maduro regime imposes its Constituent Assembly on July 30, the United States will take strong and swift economic actions."

"I am not optimistic," said Tronco, "the outcome of this type of pressure, such as sanctions, at least in the short term, can further aggravate the conflict taking place today in Venezuela."

A bitter power struggle between the ruling socialist party and conservative opposition groups has fanned increasingly violent anti-government demonstrations and made governing difficult.

While the United States and Washington-influenced organizations [url=http://www.giantsfootballpro.com/Dalvin-Tomlinson-Giants-Jersey/]Dalvin Tomlinson Limited Jersey[/url] , such as the Organization of American States (OAS), have for some time been helping the opposition's campaign to oust the socialists from power, the pressure has been recently stepped up.

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