It sounds like Harry Potter will vote for the Labour Party when the boy wizard is old enough to cast a ballot.
Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling made a rare foray into Britain's bruising political battles Saturday, donating $1.8 million to the struggling Labour Party and accusing the rival Conservatives of discriminating against poor parents trying to work their way out of poverty.
In a statement that referred back to the days when she was struggling to feed and cloth her family, Rowling said Prime Minister Gordon Brown has worked hard to reduce child poverty while Conservative chief David Cameron has proposed tax changes that would hurt working single parents
"I believe that poor and vulnerable families will fare much better under the Labour Party than they would under a Cameron-led Conservative Party," said Rowling, who has become one of the world's richest and most successful authors with the unprecedented appetite for Harry Potter stories.
The Labour Party opens its annual conference trailing the resurgent Conservatives by more than 20 points in most opinion polls with an election due within two years.
Brown, who is trying to quash a rebellion from some members of his own party, thanked Rowling for the donation, which comes at a time when the Labour Party is saddled with extensive debts. He said he was "delighted" with her help.
Rowling has generally stayed out of the political frays, but she appears to have been upset by Conservative tax plans that she said would increase benefits for married couples without helping single parents.
"David Cameron's promise of tax perks for the married is reminiscent of the Conservative government I experienced as a lone parent," she said. "It sends the message that the Conservatives still believe a childless, dual-income, but married couple is more deserving of a financial pat on the head than those struggling, as I once was, to keep their families afloat in difficult times."
British newspapers this year estimated Rowling's wealth at $1 billion.
Cucusoft DVD to iPod Converter is the easiest-to-use and fastest DVD to iPod converter software for Apple iPod Movie and iPod Video. It can convert almost any kinds of DVD to iPod Movie / iPod Video format. It is also a powerful DVD to iPod converter due to the conversion speed is far faster than real-time. You will enjoy your favorite DVDs on your iPod as a portable DVD Player. Now you can get this DVD to iPod Converter at a very competitive price!
Cucusoft DVD to iPod Converter enables you to convert DVD movies to iPod Video format (.mp4). You can convert the movie directly from the DVD, using the included ripper, or select a DVD compatible .mpeg file. After opening a DVD, you can select the video and audio tracks to convert, optionally select crop ratio and start converting your file(s). Cucusoft DVD to iPod Converter also supports conversion from DVD to VCD/SVCD.
Features of Cucusoft DVD to iPod Converter
The latest version includes two running modes, one is "Direct Mode", the other is "Batch Mode".
--"Direct Mode" means that user can directly click the DVD Menu to select the movie they want to rip. This mode is very easy for ripping a movie DVD's.
--"Batch Mode" means that user can select the DVD titles/chapters they want to rip via checkbox list. This mode is very easy for batch ripping Music DVD's, MTV DVD's and Episodic DVD's.
Support almost any kinds of DVD to iPod format
Support for Subtitle Selection, eg. English Subtitle, French Subtitle ....
--Under "Direct Mode", through DVD menu.
--Under "Batch Mode", through DVD Title list.
Support for Audio Track Selection, eg. English audio track, French audio track.....
--Under "Direct Mode", through DVD menu.
--Under "Batch Mode", through DVD Title list.
Various kinds of video crop mode. eg. 16:9, 4:3, full screen and so on.
Various kinds of video resize mode, eg. "Keep aspect ratio" and "stretch to fix screen".
Support splitting output video by DVD chapters, and titles. Fully support MTV DVDs and Episodic DVDs.
Support customize output video file size and video quality.
Provide flexible output profiles, user can easily customize the video properties.
Support DVD to MP3 audio conversion.
Support Dolby, DTS Surround audio track.
Support Apple TV as well.
Support latest iPod touch and iPod video nano. New
Minimum Requirements of Cucusoft DVD to iPod Video Converter
Software requirements:
Windows 9x, Windows 2000, Windows NT, Windows XP, Windows, Vista, Windows 2003 Server, etc.
DirectX 8.0 or later.
Hardware requirements:
MMX-enhanced CPU or more powerful
32 MB RAM or more
Any VGA card
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