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We’ve released a new exploration over on KnowledgeBlocks, titled How Big? How Fast?
What is the right size company for you? How focused on growth should you be? Should you be pursuing growth at all? There is a pressure to “succeed” by becoming big, even before your business or the market is ready, but there is no one-right-size. The answer to “How Big? How Fast?” can’t be found anywhere but within each entrepreneur. This exploration, led by a sextet of excellent books about business growth and venture scaling, will teach you how to avoid cookie-cutter advice to become, well, a cookie cutter business, and will help you determine your own definition of business-size success.
This month’s featured books are:
And using these books as a ‘jumping off’ point, we’ll explore…
A Slice of the Pie → When and how to adjust expectations in response to external factors.
The Big Enough Company →Your company, the size you need it to be, not the size they tell you it should be.
The Entrepreneur Equation →Determine what kind of company you are and if you are prepared to grow to any size.
No Man’s Land →Mind the gap as you grow between from a small business and a big business.
Build, Borrow, or Buy →Multiple pathways of growth prevent blindspots.
Scaling Your Social Venture →When you want to change the world with your social venture, scaled results as you scale up are even more important.
Members also receive access to podcast interviews with Nick Sarillo (A Slice of the Pie) and Paul Bloom (Scaling Your Social Venture), as well as a plethora of curated information about sizing/scaling your business. If you aren’t a member yet, check out these KnowledgeBlocks user subscriptions to help build your business knowledge. | <urn:uuid:f59b500a-abda-42ae-bdcf-4edd41933f50> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blog.800ceoread.com/2012/08/21/running-a-business-how-big-how-fast/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.936351 | 409 | 1.71875 | 2 |
Name: Sasuke Uchiha
Nickname: The Uchiha Avenger
Sasuke is a fair-skinned ninja who has onyx eyes and black chin-length hair. His hair is spiky in the back with bangs that lengthen as the story progresses. As a young child, his bangs hung above his eyes. Later, they would hang on both sides of his face to roughly frame his cheeks and later again return to their original style. Sasuke is considered quite handsome as most girls near his age become very infatuated with him. At the beginning of Part I, Sasuke's clothing consisted of the traditional Uchiha clothing: a blue, short-sleeved shirt with a high collar and the Uchiha crest on the back and white arm warmers, which he stopped wearing after the Chūnin Exams, along with white shorts. In the last stage of the Chūnin Exams, he wore a black, one-pieced version of this outfit with many small arm-belts adorning his left arm and similar bands around both legs. As the story progressed, the Uchiha symbol became smaller and smaller until after he defeats his brother.
Initially, Sasuke wore a short blue-clothed forehead protector with the Konoha symbol on the metallic plate. After suffering a second defeat from Itachi, Sasuke stopped wearing it for some time. He put it back on during the latter half of his battle with Naruto at the Valley of the End, only to let it drop off at the end. Since then, Sasuke hasn't worn a forehead protector.
In Part II, Sasuke has grown noticeably taller over the two and a half years and more muscular. He was first shown wearing a white long-sleeved shirt, similar in appearance to the lavender long-sleeved shirt worn by Kimimaro and which was open at the torso, with a smaller version of the Uchiha crest on his collar. He wore dark blue pants with a blue cloth hanging from halfway up his stomach to his knees. He also wore black arm-guards that covered his forearms and stretched up to reach his upper biceps. He also wore a purple rope belt around his waist, tied in a bow, in which he carries his sword.
After battling Deidara, he switched to a sleeveless dark grey shirt. His arm-guards were also removed, and he started wearing bandages on his wrists, under which he wore special armbands with seals where he stores various shuriken. He also wore a black cloak with this.
After he encountered and battled Itachi, he reverted to a grey high-collared short-sleeved shirt similar in appearance to the blue shirt he commonly wore in Part I but with a zipper. He also wears blue wrist warmers with his shuriken armbands hidden underneath. He briefly wore an Akatsuki cloak along with this. Another noticeable trait is that along with this new outfit, Sasuke began letting his hair hang over his forehead. The Uchiha crest on the back of his outfit has returned to its original size since his battle with Itachi. While adjusting to Itachi's eyes at the Mountains' Graveyard, he is seen wearing black Uchiha robes similar to those worn by Madara in his youth with a belt sash around his waist.
During his early childhood, Sasuke wore a simple long-sleeved black shirt with a raised collar and the Uchiha crest on the back, and black shorts (white in the anime). When Sasuke joined Itachi on his mission to capture the wild boar, Sasuke was wearing the ANBU uniform.
When he was a child, Sasuke was very kind, loving towards his parents and older brother and respectful to his fellow clansmen as well as his teachers. He was even very proud of being Itachi's brother and Fugaku's son — famous for being devoted protectors of Konoha, and he desired to emulate them. His original dream was to join the Konoha Military Police Force when he grew up, like his father and as such greatly sought his father's approval and acknowledgement of his abilities. After Itachi massacred the clan, Sasuke's ideals and personality changed drastically and he became cold, indifferent, cruel, cynical, somewhat arrogant, unreasonable and devoted the next nine years of his life to kill Itachi.
When first introduced to Team Kakashi, Sasuke displayed great indifference to his team-mates as well as others. Feeling superior to all of them, including his teacher, Sasuke was unwilling to cooperate with any of his team-mates, as he felt they would provide him no aid in furthering his ambition to kill his brother; this attitude affected his grades in the Academy after losing his clan, he had the lowest score in cooperation and second lowest in assertiveness. However over time, as he interacted more with his team mates on a day-to-day basis, he began to see them as somewhat of a family and Sasuke started to lose some of his hatred, caring more about his team than his revenge. Sasuke even admitted to Naruto that he almost thought that he must forget about his revenge and instead focus on Team 7. However, Orochimaru branded Sasuke with the Cursed Seal of Heaven during the Chūnin Exams to help push him back into his desire for vengeance and to give him a taste of power. Although Kakashi Hatake sealed away the cursed seal, and taught him the Chidori in the hopes of deviating him from the path of revenge, Sasuke began to draw more power from the seal in the hopes of getting stronger. This caused his previous ambition to be renewed while causing him to disregard camaraderie once again.
According to Kakashi, Sasuke has both a superiority and an inferiority complex, as he is unwilling to acknowledge when someone is stronger than him, but obsesses when he believes that they are. For example, he was complacent with his rivalry with Naruto when he believed he was the stronger of the two, but upon noticing Naruto's fast growth, showcased in his victory over Sunagakure's jinchūriki, Gaara, who had previously beaten Sasuke, and his own quick defeat by Itachi on his return to Konoha, all culminated in his defection to Otogakure to seek power from Orochimaru.
In Part II, Sasuke became increasingly confident in his newfound abilities. Constantly, he remained composed and unconcerned with the situation at hand. Even when pressured by enemies like Orochimaru or Deidara, he showed no emotional build up; ironically, acting much like his older brother and only getting worked up when it involved Itachi. Despite getting stronger, Sasuke seemed unwilling to needlessly kill in his quest for revenge displaying that he still had some morals left. Sasuke, however, retained his habit of underestimating his opponents, shown in his overconfidence in his battles. Although, Sasuke is not above admitting his mistakes on such things, as shown after his battles with Deidara and Killer B where he acknowledged that the former was stronger than he thought and that the latter had given Taka a much harder time than he expected.
Sasuke has displayed an overbearing sense of pride in his clan's name and a great sense of loyalty to it and kept wearing his clan's crest on his back proudly while refusing to wear any other symbols such as a forehead protector. Despite claiming earlier that he did not care if he had to sacrifice his own body to Orochimaru as long as it served his quest for revenge, when Sasuke felt he had grown stronger than Orochimaru he thought that to give himself up to someone weaker than himself was insulting to the Uchiha. However, despite his disrespect of Orochimaru as a person, Sasuke does have great respect for his power, going so far as to reprimand Suigetsu when he felt the latter was underestimating Orochimaru's capabilities. He also views anyone outside of the clan wielding its dōjutsu as an insult, as the eye is representative of the Uchiha clan's powers, showing disgust towards Danzō Shimura who had ten Sharingan embedded in his arm, and an eleventh one in his right eye socket and stated that Kakashi should feel grateful to the Uchiha for the power of his Mangekyō Sharingan. According to Tobi, Sasuke alone is shouldering the entire hatred of the Uchiha clan — an ideal which has been passed down for generations within the clan.
After his battle with Itachi, which concluded in the latter's death, the revelation that he had actually been ordered by the Konoha Elders to eradicate the clan coupled with the new knowledge that Itachi had truly loved him, Sasuke vowed to kill the elders for using his brother and ordering him to massacre the Uchiha clan. After he confirmed the truth, Sasuke quickly grew to loathe the village that he once called home and vowed to destroy it, thus separating any connection it had to the Uchiha clan and purify the clan's name in the process.
As time passed on with this new path of revenge and with further corruption by Tobi, Sasuke has grown much more cruel and ruthless, with the remaining morality he showed during his time with Orochimaru fading rapidly; by the time he launched an attack against the Kage Summit, he killed anyone who stood in his way, not caring about his team, and after cornering Danzō, Sasuke turned to sacrificing Karin who got taken hostage to accomplish his goals of vengeance, and attempted to kill Karin and his former team-mates and teacher whilst experiencing neither shame, guilt, nor remorse for any of his actions.
Initially, Sasuke still held onto the notion of sparing the innocent and cooperation, witnessed in his creation of a new group of shinobi. Though, as he became more consumed by his thirst for vengeance, he showed that he cared for them as no more than tools to achieve his hatred-fueled goals, quickly discarding them when they were no longer necessary. This is seen at the Kage Summit where he leaves Jūgo and Suigetsu behind, taking only Karin with him who could lead him to where Danzō was, as well as killing many samurai who stood in his way. He would later discard Karin as well, unhesitatingly piercing her just to kill Danzō and then attempted to finish her off to prevent her from being a burden in the future. Even when Sakura's childish crush turned into more serious affection, Sasuke still did not return the feelings, though before he left the village, he gave Sakura a genuine thank you. But would later, after that same battle with Danzō, when he had to fight with Team Kakashi, where he attempted to kill Sakura twice despite her showing obvious hesitancy to do the same. Despite his arrogance and brutality, Sasuke is not above giving praise (albeit in a grudging, if not sarcastic, way) to his enemies as he commended Gaara for the strength and speed of his absolute defence and admitted that Kakashi was very skilled at using the Sharingan for someone who wasn't an Uchiha.
After expressing a feeling of exhilaration that he had never before felt upon killing Danzō and even declaring that he sees that killing the members of Konoha as a high priority and satisfaction, Karin, Kakashi, Sakura, and the rest of Konoha 11 completely lost all hope for him. Upon receiving his "Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan", Sasuke's cruelty seemingly reached a new level when he killed White Zetsu simply to test out his new powers. He's also grown to be an impatient individual and reckless in battle. Despite Obito's influence being one of the main sources of Sasuke's corruption and their same path of hatred and revenge, as well as Obito being a fellow Uchiha survivor, Sasuke refused to acknowledge him as his ally, and even speaks rudely to him at times. He has also shown great homicidal rage whenever someone mentions Itachi in a negative way, even if it's indirect as shown when Kakashi tries to make him understand that there's more to his life than just his clan and his love for blood-soaked loathing only to angrily reply by saying that he wants to hear their screams and moans for laughing at Itachi's sacrifice, crushing Danzō with his Susanoo for speaking ill of his brother and ready to murder a team of ignorant Konoha shinobi for doing the same. Sasuke's hatred has also twisted any of his potentially happy memories of Konoha into negative ones in order to fuel his vengeance.
During the second day of the Fourth Shinobi World War, upon reuniting with a reincarnated Itachi, Sasuke showed a somewhat more vulnerable side to himself instead of his usual coldness. This showed just how confused and torn up he is over Itachi's decision, telling his brother that he did not understand why he was spared during the massacre and apparently implying that he would have rather died as a child than have had to deal with the grief and suffering that followed. Having to live through many lies Itachi set for him, Sasuke wanted to hear the truth from Itachi himself. While his reunion with Itachi only intensified his hatred towards Konoha, Sasuke now questions all there is about shinobi, even questioning if revenge is the purpose for his life, seemingly very confused on his purpose or goal; his desire to find the answer led him to bring Orochimaru back, a feat that everyone least expected him to do. Orochimaru noted that Sasuke's changed from how he was when being manipulated by Itachi, himself and Tobi but did not elaborate any further; he did, however, approve of his current mindset.
Village of Birth: Konohagakure
Village of Alliance: Amegakure
Ninja Rank: S-Class
- B rank
- D rank
Ninjutsu: E - rank
Upon the formation of Team 7, Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke were forced to mingle. Sasuke tried to avoid both of them, but he kept getting drawn into Sakura and Naruto's antics. Accordingly, Kakashi gave them a bell test, the three of them being tasked with taking the two bells he kept on his person. Sasuke tried to take a bell by himself, ignoring his team-mates in the process, failing regardless of having a better success rate. Regrouping with his team, they all realized that the true goal of the test was to learn to place teamwork above the single-handed completion of the mission, and, in doing so, were allowed to pass.
Land of Waves Arc
Sasuke's first major mission was escorting the bridge builder, Tazuna, to his home in the poverty-stricken Land of Waves. Soon after setting out, Sasuke showed exceptional skill when attacked by the Demon Brothers, even taunting Naruto for being shocked and useless during this encounter. When they later had a tree-climbing exercise to improve chakra control, he managed to stay ahead of Naruto for a good length of time, but as Naruto began to catch up, they started to push each others limits. His skills improved, Sasuke was almost able to compete with Haku, who was extremely dangerous because of his extreme speed and dexterity. It was during this battle that Sasuke reawakened the legacy of his clan, the Sharingan, and even selflessly put himself in the way of Haku's attack on Naruto to protect him. Although he claimed his body had moved on its own, his actions showed that he was willing to put himself in mortal danger for Naruto's sake. Although it appeared that Sasuke had died in the process, it was later revealed that he was merely put in a temporary death state.
Chūnin Exam Arc
Before the Chūnin Exams started, Sasuke fought Rock Lee, who uses his speed to defeat him with his taijutsu prowess. However, before the finishing blow could be given, Might Guy interrupted the match and punished his beloved student for using a forbidden technique in a normal fight. In the first part of the exam, Sasuke realized that, to succeed in the written test, it is required to cheat without getting caught, using his Sharingan to copy the pencil movements of a student in front of him, effectively copying the answers.
In the second test of the Chūnin Exams in the Forest of Death, Sasuke was attacked by who he thought was Kusagakure genin Shiore. However, with Naruto urging him not to surrender to the stronger ninja, Sasuke defeats who he learns is actually the missing-nin Orochimaru who implants his cursed seal on Sasuke's neck as a reward. Losing conscious from the immense pain of the seal as it attunes to his body, Sasuke suffers horrific nightmares before awakening under its influence as he mercilessly defeats Otogakure genin and breaks Zaku's arms. It took Sakura's hug and pleas to snap him back to normal. In a flashback detailed Part II, Sasuke is revealed to have met Karin while saving her from a bear, letting her be as he didn't need her scroll.
Sasuke's match up in the preliminaries was against Yoroi Akadō. Before the fight started, Kakashi warned Sasuke that, if his cursed seal got out of control, which would happen if he used any chakra, he would need to be removed from the competition. The match started with Yoroi absorbing what little chakra Sasuke had left through his hands, and with Sasuke being in constant pain from his cursed seal. Having only one option, and remembering his previous encounter with Rock Lee, Sasuke used the Lion Combo. Yoroi was knocked out, and Sasuke advanced to the next round.
Following his win, Kakashi took Sasuke away to seal the cursed seal, but made it a point to tell him that the seal would only remain active as long as Sasuke wanted it to. Not convinced that his words would deter Sasuke from using the cursed seal, and turning to Orochimaru, Kakashi used the month leading up to the final rounds to teach him the Chidori. At the same time, knowing Sasuke would be facing Gaara, he helped Sasuke to emulate some of Lee's speed. After showing up late for his match with Gaara, Sasuke demonstrated the fruits of his training, even managing to break through Gaara's defenses and injure him. Before the match could finish, however, it was interrupted by the start of Orochimaru's attack on Konoha.
Invasion of Konoha Arc
With the start of the invasion, Gaara fled the village with his siblings, and Sasuke was sent after them by Genma. Sasuke chased them and, after short battles with Kankurō and Temari, caught up with Gaara before fighting him again. However, Gaara utilizes his jinchūriki powers to overpower Sasuke before Naruto arrives and takes the fight in Sasuke's place and defeats Gaara. Later attending the Third Hokage's funeral, witnessing Naruto's strength injured Sasuke's pride as he becomes envious of him.
Search for Tsunade Arc
After the failed invasion, Sasuke went to see Kakashi, and later was seen reading the stone tablet in the Naka Shrine. When he arrived at Kakashi's house to see him again, he found his teacher in a coma. Although nobody in the room was willing to tell Sasuke of what had happened, Aoba Yamashiro soon arrived and let slip that Itachi had returned to the village in search of Naruto. Determined to find Itachi, Sasuke tracks Naruto down and finds his brother there. Despite his best efforts, including the use of Chidori, none of his attacks were able to hit Itachi. Itachi tormented Sasuke physically and mentally, belittling him for still being too weak, eventually leaving Sasuke with a broken wrist and mind. Sasuke then fell into the same Tsukuyomi-induced coma as Kakashi. Guy appeared to take Sasuke back to Konoha, however, it was not until Tsunade returned to Konoha that he recovered.
Sasuke Retrieval Arc
Motivated by anger over Itachi still being stronger, and his jealously to his team-mate for becoming stronger in a short period of time, Sasuke forces Naruto into fighting him before Kakashi stops the two as they use their strongest attacks on each other. Although thinking his Chidori did the most damage to a nearby water tower, Sasuke is shocked to find Naruto's Rasengan obliterated one whole side of it without the structure being compromised. After being lectured by Kakashi over not using Chidori on his own friends, Sasuke was confronted by Orochimaru's Sound Four, who have been sent to bring to him to Otogakure. Revealing himself and his comrades being branded with cursed seals with full mastery over them, Sakon leaves Sasuke with the offer to come with them if he wishes to use his cursed seal's true potential. Deciding to take Orochimaru up on his offer, Sasuke is confronted by a shocked Sakura as he sneaks out of Konoha. Despite Sakura's desperate pleas, Sasuke thanks her before knocking her out and joining up with the Sound Four, who soon afterwards advanced his cursed seal to its second level, a process that left him unconscious for most of their battle with the Sasuke Retrieval Team.
Soon after Sasuke woke up, he ran his way towards the Valley of the End where he is found by Naruto, who had learned Orochimaru's intent to turn Sasuke into his next host. Seeing Naruto, Sasuke reveals his intents to kill him to obtain the Mangekyō Sharingan. Naruto refused to accept that Sasuke would do this or his other reasons for pursuing Orochimaru, choosing instead to drag Sasuke back to the village by force if needed. With Sasuke gloating that Naruto can not even make a scratch on his forehead protector, he initially having the upper hand thanks to his cursed seal and Sharingan. When he managed to pierce Naruto's right shoulder with his Chidori, however, the Nine-Tails' chakra surfaces to protect Naruto, giving him a massive power increase as he attempts to knock some sense into him. Sasuke merely retorted that Naruto could never understand losing a family as he had never had one to begin with, despite Naruto feeling that Sasuke is like a brother to him and refuses to let him sever that bond. Sasuke's Sharingan evolved to its final stage at that point, tipping the battle in Sasuke's favor with Sasuke now being able to predict Naruto's movements. However, Naruto's Nine-Tails' chakra envelops him in a fox-shaped shield of chakra.
In response, Sasuke activated the second stage of his cursed seal as both he and Naruto clash with their respective empowered attacks. Clashing with the dome produced from the conflicting energies, Sasuke defeats Naruto with a punch to the chest rather than what remained of Chidori. But before the dome dissipates while losing consciousness, Naruto managed to scratch Sasuke's forehead protector as it falls off of him. Though considering to kill Naruto then and now, Sasuke begins to have second thoughts and resolves to find his own way to surpass Itachi. Leaving behind his scratched forehead protector, which had fallen off after Naruto's last attack, Sasuke made his way to Orochimaru, who decides to train Sasuke until the time to make the youth his new host comes.
Sasuke and Sai Arc
Almost three years after leaving Konoha, Sasuke meets his replacement in the renamed Team Kakashi, Sai. Despite a lack of interest in Sai, Sasuke is inadvertently provoked and subjects Sai to a genjutsu exuding a large amount of killing intent. Sai is amazed that even an emotionless person such as himself was affected by Sasuke's gaze, channelling through his Sharingan. When Sai comments on how Naruto and Sakura have been searching for him, Sasuke once again regards him with indifference in attitude. Later, when Team Kakashi infiltrates one of Orochimaru's hideouts successfully under the leadership of Yamato, Sai, acting on his own, locates and enters Sasuke's room while he was resting in a bid to assassinate him as ordered by his superior in Konoha's Root faction, Danzō Shimura.
However, after spending quality time in Team Kakashi, especially with Naruto, Sai comes to understand the meaning of bonds of friendship, and decides to help Naruto save him. However, enraged on being disturbed, Sasuke destroys the room, drawing Naruto, Sakura and Yamato to their location. Despite this being the first time in nearly three years that they had seen each other, Sasuke expresses his usual indifference towards his former team. Unperturbed of Orochimaru's intentions for him and the prospect going home to Konoha with his former friends, Sasuke engages them in battle, showing off his increase in speed and improved abilities.
Team Kakashi are ultimately outmatched against Sasuke, mostly due to the team's exhaustion with Naruto's four-tailed form (that he had previously used to battle Orochimaru), causing Naruto to begin struggling with Kurama in his mind. To the surprise of both Naruto and Kurama, Sasuke uses his heightened prowess of his Sharingan to enter Naruto's subconscious to meet the Nine-Tails itself, finally discovering the true source of Naruto's strength. Kurama appears to be impressed with Sasuke's growth and ability as it states his chakra being as "sinister" as Madara Uchiha's. Sasuke coldly dismisses knowing such a person and uses his Sharingan to suppress Kurama back into its sealed cage. Kurama concludes that this would probably be its last meeting with Sasuke, so it warns him not to kill Naruto, for he would only end up regretting it. Back outside, Sasuke decides to finish off his former team-mates, starting with Naruto, only to be stopped by Orochimaru as the prospect of them and other Konoha shinobi thinning out the Akatsuki would make his revenge easier. Accepting the notion, Sasuke leaves with Orochimaru and Kabuto.
Itachi Pursuit Arc
Some time later, Orochimaru tests Sasuke's abilities by having him battle hundreds of Otogakure ninja with no compassion or mercy, a task he completes without taking a scratch and without killing any of them. When inquired about the latter part of the scenario, Sasuke remarks that the only person he wants to kill is his brother, Itachi, and leaves to his training room. Soon afterwards, as Orochimaru reaches the limit of his present "vessel" containing his soul, which starts degrading his health, he is notified by Kabuto that the time for his ritual to take over Sasuke's body is near. As Kabuto leaves to get some medicine, a vulnerable Orochimaru is unexpectedly attacked by Sasuke, who deems Orochimaru too weak to be worthy of having his body or the Sharingan. Although Sasuke appears victorious after a brief scuffle with Orochimaru's true snake-form, he is nevertheless brought to Orochimaru's subconscious for his Living Corpse Reincarnation. Having severely underestimated Sasuke, it is Orochimaru, in turn, who is absorbed to a dormant state within Sasuke, who is able to reverse the process using his Sharingan and hence, gains access to all of Orochimaru's abilities.
With Orochimaru gone, Sasuke goes ahead with his plan to locate and kill Itachi, by first recruiting some of Orochimaru's former test subjects — Suigetsu Hōzuki, Karin, and Jūgo — on the pretext of granting them virtues for their themselves after the success of their mission (Suigetsu wants to obtain Samehada by killing Itachi's Akatsuki partner, Kisame Hoshigaki; Karin wants to be with Sasuke due to her massive crush on him since their meeting; and, Jūgo wants to see if Sasuke was indeed worth of his dear friend, Kimimaro's sacrifice), and dubs their team Hebi. And immediately afterwards, Sasuke had his team split up and learn of Itachi's potential whereabouts. While searching alone, Sasuke is found by Akatsuki members, Deidara and Tobi, with the former wanting to kill him for defeating Orochimaru himself. Using his Sharingan and lightning-based techniques, Sasuke manages to counter most of Deidara's attacks, fueling his pre-existing hatred for the Sharingan, stemming from his past encounter with Itachi, even further, which to him could not see or admire his "art". As a last ditch effort, Deidara uses C0 to try blowing himself up along with Sasuke in a titanic explosion, which obliterates everything in the nearby vicinity. Sasuke, however, summons Manda in time and uses his Sharingan to have the great serpent shield him from the explosion, at the cost of his life, later admitting to Karin that he only defeated Orochimaru because he was already weakened after the latter shows disbelief that he could have. After recovering from his wounds, Hebi continues onto one of Akatsuki's lairs, where Sasuke finds a crow clone of Itachi which expresses admiration over Sasuke's growth in power and tells him they will have their battle at the Uchiha Hideout, leaving the rest of Hebi behind to deal with Kisame.
Once inside the Hideout, Itachi tells Sasuke the cursed history of their clan, of "Madara Uchiha" being still alive as another Uchiha besides themselves, and his desire to obtain the flawless Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan by taking Sasuke's eyes. Once he finishes, the brothers first fight in a battle of genjutsu, where Sasuke demands the location of Madara so that he can kill him too, but after Itachi declares him to be "immortal", he ensnares Sasuke in a Tsukuyomi, from which Sasuke breaks free, much to Itachi's surprise, due to his immense mastery of the Sharingan. With Zetsu witnessing (and "recording") the battle, Itachi appears somewhat weaker to dodge some of the simplest attacks from Sasuke and even coughs blood. Notwithstanding Itachi's condition, Sasuke unleashes a fireball, provoking Itachi to do the same. As Sasuke's fire gains on Itachi's, the latter resorts to using his Mangekyō Sharingan technique, Amaterasu, which ignites the area in the undying black flames, and almost burns Sasuke. But Sasuke survives using one of Orochimaru's techniques, and in his cursed seal second state, launches Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique, which creates an artificial weather condition around them, perfectly suitable for Sasuke to attack Itachi with his final lightning technique that uses the power of natural lightning itself: Kirin. But Itachi barely survives, only by his use of the third and final Mangekyō technique, Susanoo.
Having used the last of chakra on Kirin, Orochimaru, who has been absorbed and suppressed by Sasuke's chakra, uses this opportunity to reappear in the outer world through one of his eight giant snakes in a last attempt to take Sasuke's body for his own. However, before this could happen, Itachi has Susanoo use the Sword of Totsuka to seal him permanently in a genjutsu realm, thereby removing every tint of Orochimaru's being from Sasuke, including the Cursed Seal of Heaven. Cornered by an incoming Itachi, Sasuke watches in horror his brother inevitably aiming for his eyes, but is flabbergasted when, instead, Itachi says a few words and collapses to his death, after poking him in the forehead- something Itachi would regularly do to Sasuke when they were younger. Shocked and exhausted, Sasuke too passes out, albeit with a smile due to the accomplishment of his lifelong mission.
Sasuke wakes up in a cave in the care of Tobi, who quickly reveals himself to be Madara Uchiha. As Tobi tries to befriend Sasuke by removing his mask and revealing his Sharingan, Sasuke's left eye reacts to Tobi's Sharingan and triggers Itachi's Mangekyō Sharingan which castes Amaterasu, setting the masked man on fire, causing him to retreat into the darkness of the cave. After dispelling the black flames with ease, an unscathed and masked Tobi appears again and begins to muse about how Itachi never ceased to amaze him. As Sasuke asks what he was talking about, Tobi reveals that Itachi had most likely implanted a one-shot Amaterasu in Sasuke's eye to attack if and when he saw Tobi's Sharingan. As Sasuke complains that he is making no sense, Tobi makes startling revelations that it had been to protect him, and, when Sasuke still didn't believe him, Tobi said how it must all sound crazy, but assured him that he was telling the truth, and introduced himself as the man who had helped Itachi to slaughter the entire Uchiha clan.
Tobi reveals to Sasuke the "truth" of Itachi: that he killed his clan by orders from Konoha, how he joined Akatsuki to keep an eye on the organisation from the inside to keep his village and his brother safe, and that everything he had done was to make sure Sasuke grew strong. Remembering his childhood of how Itachi really was a kind, good brother, Sasuke developed his own Mangekyō Sharingan. He renamed Hebi to Taka and vowed he would destroy Konoha after crying over the memories of his beloved older brother.
Invasion of Pain Arc
Before Hebi, now renamed Taka, could attack Konoha, Tobi convinced them to start working with Akatsuki. He sent them to the Land of Lightning to capture the Eight-Tails, where they found its host, Killer B. The capture attempt got off to a bad start, as Killer B swiftly overpowered both Suigetsu and Jūgo, prompting Sasuke to face B one on one. Sasuke was unable to read Killer B's unique kenjutsu and B ultimately stabbed Sasuke with six swords. Sasuke was rescued and healed by Karin, and the team decided to all attack at once. While they had more success, Killer B released a great deal of the Eight-Tails' chakra and created a chakra cloak. When Sasuke attempted to use a genjutsu to knock B out, the Eight-Tails broke him out of it and B retaliated on the unaware Sasuke with great force, using the Eight-Tails' power to blow Sasuke's neck and chest open.
While Sasuke was down, Killer B fully transformed into the beast sealed within him, leaving Taka outclassed. Jūgo healed Sasuke by fusing some of his own flesh with Sasuke's body and Suigetsu allowed the team to flee and protected them from Killer B's Tailed Beast Ball. Fearing the deaths of he and his team-mates, Sasuke unleashed his new Mangekyō Sharingan and Amaterasu to capture Killer B.
Sasuke delivered Killer B to Tobi before regrouping with Taka. While resting, they dealt with J, who had been following them. However, when Sasuke tipped over a glass of water, he learned that his eyesight was already starting to deteriorate. He opted to keep this revelation from the team.
Five Kage Summit Arc
Once Taka recovered from their battle with Killer B, they headed for Konoha, but are intercepted by Tobi. He informed Taka about the destruction of Konoha and their failure in capturing the Eight-Tails which had been revealed to be nothing more than a transformed tentacle. He also told them about Danzō Shimura becoming Hokage and the Kage Summit. Taka was led to the Land of Iron, where the summit was held, by White Zetsu.
Taka managed to infiltrate the summit without being detected, but their cover was blown by Zetsu, on orders from Tobi. Forced out of hiding, Sasuke engaged the samurai guards and slaughtered them despite his previous strict no-kill policy, revealing how deep he has fallen into darkness. The Fourth Raikage, still under the impression that Sasuke has killed his younger brother Killer B, confronted Taka together with his escorts. The ensuing fight was interrupted by the Fifth Kazekage and his escorts, but not before the Raikage had lost an arm and Sasuke was near exhaustion. After seeing how dark Sasuke had become, the Kazekage continued the fight, but Sasuke used his Susanoo to create a distraction and escaped with Karin, leaving Suigetsu and Jūgo to fend for themselves.
Karin guided Sasuke to the room where the summit was held, but before he could engage Danzō, Sasuke was confronted by Mifune. In the meanwhile, Danzō managed to escape, but the Fifth Mizukage prevented Sasuke from pursuing him. Sasuke was ready to pass out, but was reinvigorated by Zetsu's Spore Technique. He escaped from the Mizukage, only to be confronted by the Third Tsuchikage. He was just barely saved by Tobi, who pulled him and Karin into another dimension using his Sharingan, where Karin nursed Sasuke back to health.
Tobi brought Sasuke out in front of Danzō. Sasuke, overtaken by his lust for revenge, advances his Susanoo to a form able to fire arrows. Danzō, using Izanagi, avoids fatal injury and goads Sasuke about Itachi all the while. Each determined to kill the other, they clash again, Danzō relying on Izanagi to save him. Sasuke, however, had used a genjutsu to only create the illusion that Izanagi was still active, allowing him to mortally wound Danzō. Danzō takes Karin hostage in an attempt to buy time, but Sasuke had no hesitations in fatally wounding Karin in order to finish off Danzō.
With his revenge against Danzō fulfilled, Sasuke declared his plans to go to Konoha. However, Tobi pointed out that Sasuke was exhausted and near blindness. He also told Sasuke to kill Karin if she was no longer of any use, before leaving himself. As Sasuke was about to kill Karin, Sakura suddenly appeared and interrupted him. She told him that she was willing to follow him, even if it meant abandoning and even destroying Konoha. Sasuke was sceptical and told Sakura to kill Karin to prove she was sincere. However, as Sakura hesitated, Sasuke attempted to kill her with his Chidori, only to be stopped by Kakashi. Sasuke laughs at their continued attempts to convince him to return to Konoha and attacks Kakashi, with the intention of killing him. Taking Kakashi's attempt to remind him about his former comrades in Konoha as an insult to Itachi, Sasuke's Susanoo gained a layer of armour. However, this form was short-lived, as much to Sasuke's horror, his eyesight deteriorates instantly, to the point of seeing a blurred haze at most, and Sakura uses the opportunity to try and strike him down.
Sakura ultimately cannot bring herself to kill Sasuke. Though near-blind, Sasuke senses her and nearly killed her, but she is saved by Naruto. Naruto sympathises with Sasuke's motives, to which Sasuke cynically counters with his pleasure of revenge, as well as revealing his crime of murdering Danzō. When Naruto restrains Kakashi to keep him from killing Sasuke, Sasuke uses this opportunity to try once more to kill Kakashi with Chidori, but Naruto counters with Rasengan. As the two collide, he tells Naruto that his only options are to kill him or die. Naruto rejects both, stating he has a third option. As their clash sends two flying back, one of White Zetsu's clones appears and cushions Sasuke's fall. Tobi then appears and prepares to take Sasuke away, but he tells him to wait so he can hear what Naruto has to say, which is that if they fight again, they will both die together. Sasuke then becomes angry and demands Naruto to answer why he cares about him so much, to which Naruto replies he is doing it because he is his friend, leaving Sasuke shocked. Despite this unperceived event, Sasuke firmly states he refuses to go back on the path he walks. So, before leaving away with Tobi, Sasuke says that they must have a talk.
At their hideout, Sasuke asks Tobi to replace his eyes with Itachi's eyes, as his vision is almost faded due to his reckless overuse of his Mangekyō Sharingan from battling Killer B, A, Danzō Shimura and Team 7 as he wants to defeat Naruto with his full power. After transplanting Itachi's eyes, Tobi claimed that Sasuke would need time to recuperate from the operation and adjust to the new Mangekyō. Sasuke however remarked that it felt perfect and that he could feel Itachi's power flowing into him.
Shinobi World War Arc
Sasuke recovers from his surgery, and asks Zetsu if he could take off the bandages. Zetsu tells him not yet, but when he does, he'll be looking at a whole new world. After some time passes, Sasuke attacks White Zetsu with his Susanoo and sets him ablaze with Amaterasu, saying that his eyes could see just fine in the dark so he should try it outside. He then removes his bandages, revealing his Eternal Mangekyō Sharingan. Back at the Mountains' Graveyard, Sasuke carves an opening through the roof with his sword — and dressed in his old garbs — mobilises. Later, as Sasuke walks to the battlefield in the middle of a thunderstorm, he looks behind him and grins ominously.
Sasuke meets up with some of Zetsu's clones, who demand to know why he left the hideout. When the clones realise that Sasuke killed the original White Zetsu, they attack him. Choosing this time to test his new powers further, he slaughters most of the clones using a combination of Susanoo and Amaterasu. He uses genjutsu on a surviving clone to discover that Tobi has waged war and that the Allied Shinobi Forces were moving to aid Naruto in his battle. Sasuke wonders if Naruto has forgotten what true strength is. He decapitates the hypnotised clone and destroys the last Zetsu clone with Amaterasu before heading towards the battlefield to kill Naruto himself. He then reminisces about his brother and resumes his way to the battlefield. As he notices something coming by the forest, he takes his sword and goes to investigate, only to find his brother, much to his surprise. Sasuke chases after him and tries to catch him with an arm of Susanoo after he calls out to Itachi, but Itachi counters with his own. Positively identifying Itachi, Sasuke asks what he is doing there since he was supposed to be dead, to which Itachi reveals Kabuto had reincarnated him with Impure World Reincarnation. Sasuke bombards Itachi with a slew of questions and retorts his brother's later statement that since he was dead, he would not talk anymore by saying that even in death he was running away from him. Itachi then tells Sasuke that he wasn't running away but rather was focusing on doing important tasks like ending the Impure World Reincarnation.
Still pursuing his brother — who even goes as far as to summon a flock of crows in order to blind him — he manages not to lose sight of him and follows him right to Kabuto's location. After seeing him, Kabuto lets out a maniacal laugh and states that his luck was finally changing. After seeing Kabuto's form, Sasuke mistakes him for Orochimaru, but after hearing Kabuto's voice, he realises it's not Orochimaru. Kabuto then tries to take advantage of Sasuke's hatred to help him defeat Itachi. Sasuke, however, having learned the truth about Itachi, sided with his brother over Kabuto, stating that anything left of Orochimaru was his enemy as well and then told Itachi that when this was over he was supposed to keep his promise and talk to him about everything afterwards.
As Kabuto covers his face up entirely claiming that introverts weren't used to so much attention, Sasuke surmises that it's because he wanted to protect himself from the brothers' ocular-based genjutsu. Informing his brother of some of the abilities of the snake, he watches on vigilantly as Kabuto's snakes grow in size and attack them. Activating his Susanoo alongside Itachi, he beheads the snakes that attacked him. As Itachi cautions him to not be so rough, Sasuke tells his brother that with Orochimaru's powers it'd take more than that to kill him. After Kabuto manages to elude them, Sasuke listens as Kabuto tells him that the experiments on his former team-mates had allowed Kabuto to acquire new abilities. Firing an arrow at Kabuto which the latter narrowly dodges, Sasuke watches on as Kabuto emerges from the mouth of one of the snakes and declares that after finding the Ryūchi Cave and learning the way of the sage from the White Snake Sage, that he had transcended to a dragon.
As Kabuto's technique is initiated, Sasuke covers his ears and closes his eyes in pain, realising that he can't maintain his Susanoo. As the technique ends, Sasuke opens his eyes to see Itachi's Susanoo protecting him. Kabuto tries to implant doubt and mistrust amongst the two brothers, but Sasuke doesn't fall for them and attempts to hit him with his Chidori Sharp Spear, but fails. As Kabuto tells them that a mismatched pair like them could never defeat him, Itachi tells him that they'd be going with an attack pattern they had used in their youth against a wild boar. Forming his Susanoo arrows, Sasuke is able to hit Kabuto's snake-tail with his arrow, effectively pinning Kabuto to the ceiling of the cave. He later realises that Kabuto was moving to use his discarded sword to seemingly sever his snake-tail. Itachi intercepts the swing however. As Itachi returns to Sasuke, he tells him that beating a giant pig like that was probably no problem for him now, to which Sasuke replies that dealing with the snake before them was the more pressing issue.
Noticing the strong teamwork between the two brothers, Kabuto admits that he is surprised by it. Sasuke explains that he merely wants to know the truth from Itachi's own mouth. Realising that Sasuke is now aware of Itachi's secret past, Kabuto mocks Sasuke for trying to get the truth from Itachi when he has been lying to his younger brother all his life. Kabuto goes on to say it is foolish that Sasuke is helping Itachi when their personal goals are so different; Itachi's being to protect Konoha while Sasuke wants to destroy it. Pointing out that he and Sasuke share similar goals of destroying Konoha, Kabuto again tries to persuade Sasuke to join him. Ultimately, Itachi tells Sasuke not to listen as Kabuto is an even better liar than him. Itachi then admits to Konoha's dark side, but still firmly considers himself a Konoha ninja, greatly shocking Sasuke. Admitting to his own faults for how Sasuke turned out, Itachi promises to tell him something important after the battle, which he intends to finish with "Izanami", the partner technique to "Izanagi". As Kabuto attacks, Itachi blocks it, telling Sasuke the technique has begun and to stay near him.
As Kabuto attacks once again, this time incapacitating Itachi, Sasuke creates a ring of Amaterasu flames around himself and his brother in order to prevent Kabuto from getting any closer. As Kabuto begins chastising the Uchiha, Sasuke lashes out at him but is stopped by a now-regenerated Itachi. Growing impatient, Sasuke questioned Itachi about whether or not they really had to keep him alive as it was hampering them. Seeing that Kabuto was prepared to attack once more, he asks Itachi again if Izanami was ready yet. The siblings come under attack once more as a copy of Sakon — which emerged from the base of Kabuto's naval snake — transformed into Jirōbō and breached their Amaterasu barricade. Without time to retaliate, the two brothers incinerated the onslaught on web produced by the copy of Kidōmaru which appeared next. Kabuto then produced a copy of Kimimaro to barricade their exit with bones after covering their fore with more web. Realising that they were boxed in the brothers activate their Susanoo with Sasuke using his Blaze Release: Kagutsuchi to destroy the web that was in front of them whilst leaving the field of bones to Itachi. Retreating further into the cave, the brothers are afflicted by Tayuya's auditory genjutsu. Using their own genjutsu to break each other free from the technique, the brothers are able to stop the white snake form of Orochimaru from attacking them. However, Kabuto uses this opportunity to emerge from the mouth of the snake and bisect Itachi, much to Sasuke's horror.
As Kabuto attempts to reassert his control on Itachi again with his seal, Sasuke intervenes, launching his sword at Kabuto and then using his Susanoo in an attempt to capture him, forcing Kabuto to retreat. Sasuke then launches a fireball at Kabuto, only for Kabuto to easily counter it with a powerful water stream. As Kabuto then redirects his attention to Itachi, Sasuke rushes to his brother's side, where Itachi tells him once again to stay close to him. Sasuke then watches as Kabuto and Itachi seem to repeatedly clash in the same manner. It is then realised that Itachi's Izanami has finally taken effect, forcing Kabuto to repeat the same series of events with the same outcome every time. Taking the opportunity to question his brother about the technique, Itachi explained the mechanism behind Izanami and when he used it. Seemingly angered when Itachi told him why he used a technique that could be cancelled by the victim, Sasuke listens as Itachi explained his reasons for doing so, before Itachi tells him that he would be stopping the Impure World Reincarnation. Voicing his apprehension at first when he hears this, as it meant that Itachi would also be stopped once the technique was cancelled, Sasuke reacts angrily to Itachi's statement that he was proud to be able to protect his village and claiming that after all the village had done to Itachi, there was no way he could forgive them. Sasuke is later both shocked and confused following Itachi's response that he was stopping the technique in order to help Naruto's desire to change Sasuke.
Resigned to the fact that he could not change his brother's mind, Sasuke told Itachi that it was because he remembered his time with Itachi that he would not give up his vendetta against Konoha and in the same manner that Itachi strived to protect it, he would destroy it. With that, he wished his brother farewell before he noticed Itachi walking towards him with his hand outstretched. Itachi then explains to Sasuke that what Danzō and Tobi had told him had been the truth: he had been given the choice to either die along with his clan or to kill the Uchiha, protecting the village and Sasuke. Itachi reaches Sasuke and puts his hand on the back of Sasuke's head and his forehead on his, telling him that he knows that he can't change Sasuke's mind, but no matter what path he chose, he would love Sasuke forever. Sasuke then watches as his brother's soul is released from the Impure World Reincarnation, leaving him with Kabuto
With his brother removed to the afterlife, Sasuke started to question what a village was, and what shinobi truly were. While still in thought, Suigetsu and Jūgo found Sasuke, and give him the scroll they had found at Orochimaru's hideout. From what he reads in the scroll, he declared that he will find the human who knows everything, even if it means reviving Orochimaru. To this end, he uses Anko's Cursed Seal of Heaven along with a piece of Kabuto's altered flesh to revive Orochimaru, ignoring Suigetsu's vehement protests. After catching each other up with what has happened, Sasuke shows Orochimaru the scroll, making him wonder what Sasuke wanted from "them". Tired of being treated as a child by everyone, Sasuke was determined to find the truth of the past in order to find his own path. While insisting that he hadn't turned away from his desire for revenge, he stated that he wants to know what the idea of revenge really meant for him, to know if this is truly his decision. Intrigued by how much Sasuke has changed, Orochimaru takes Sasuke to a familiar place in Konoha where he will find his answers. Once in Konoha, Sasuke sensed Naruto's chakra during his battle with the Ten-Tails yet ignores it to focus on his eventual destination.
This type of Sharingan has 1 tomoe surrounding the users pupil and is gained at the moment of awakening the Sharingan. It allows the user to perceive motions and see chakra. The user's pupil turns bloody red, and gains an extra pupil, or tomoe within each eye that will surround the original, centered pupil. When active the user now has the ability to track speeds that would only be seen by a higher ranked, more experienced ninja. They also gain the ability to see through visual D rank genjutsu (visual illusions) and can follow the movement of most taijutsu moves done by normal Shinobi, even those faster than the user and the movement of most Ninjutsu, allowing one to be able to react best to the situation. To activate it the user will spend a move of his 3 per turn while he can keep it active throughout the match as long as he has chakra to fuel it.
Chakra: 30 (-10 per turn to keep active)
One of the Three Great Dōjutsu (San Daidōjutsu), the Sharingan is the kekkei genkai of the Uchiha clan. Unlike the other Dōjutsu, not all members of the Uchiha Clan possess the Sharingan. This great Dōjutsu seems to awaken only on exceptional Uchiha members and only in times of great stress. Once awaken, the pupil turns red and a single tomoe (巴) seal appears around the center pupil. As the user masters and evolves their eyes, the tomoe (巴) seals increase, topping 3 per eye. The main ability of the Sharingan, like any other Dōjutsu, is to enable the user to see the flow of chakra. This ability is further improved as the Sharingan gives color to chakra, enabling the user to differentiate chakras from different people or from different sources. Although the user can see chakra through matter, he cannot see beyond dense matter or in long distances. Coupled with the ability to see chakra, Sharingan users gain acess to an incredible clarity of perception that enables them to read insanely fast movements or minor details, enabling them the ability to foresee in an easier way, traps, incoming attacks, etc. This clarity of perception is so great that a Sharingan user can sometimes start performing a counter to an attack that is still being performed, enabling the counter to be launched only a split a second after the attack. This clarity of perception leaves Sharingan users able to track high speed movement easily as well as to read through handseals. This last ability enables them to learn techniques much faster and sometimes copy them directly from the enemy, as long as the user has the necessary chakra affinities and requirements to perform it. Finally, the Sharingan is often linked to Genjutsu and mind-manipulating illusions, mostly because the user can, mostly through Eye Contact, directly and precisely use his chakra to manipulate the enemy's chakra flow. In return, the users clarity of perception gives him the ability to more easily decipher visual illusions cast upon him and see past them. The Sharingan has a great cost to the user though. The chakra consumption disables its use for long periods of time and, even when the user grows stronger, it's still hard to keep it active for long periods of time.
Note: The user, if he hasn't gained full mastery over his Sharingan, will need to spend a move to activate it, although as long as he has chakra and enough stamina he'll be able to keep it active until the end of the match. If the user is Sannin Rank or above and has gained his 3 Tomoe Sharingan and held it for one month, he becomes able to passively activate it, meaning he'll no longer spend a move of his 3 per turn.
Note: To avoid direct Eye Contact and be able to focus only on the body movement below the chin, the opponent needs to have mastered Taijutsu to possess the necessary skill.
Note: Predicting the nature of a technique or what it exactly is requires the user to either know the technique or that its a cannon technique.
Note: Danzo and Kakashi bios activate the Sharingan by removing the covers in their respective eyes and suffer a +10 chakra consumption per turn penalty
Note: The user is bound by the abilities and limits of the stage of sharingan he possesses, stated in the rules of the KG. | <urn:uuid:9af785f8-6af6-45ab-b117-3403e6787fba> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://narutobase.net/forums/showthread.php?t=308413&p=10028218 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.984927 | 11,831 | 1.515625 | 2 |
Posted by: Administrator
on Feb 16, 2011
CB Nex is a database of information related to climate and biodiversity. Experts in the sectors have added relevant content such as documents, tools, presentations or projects for you to search and use. CB Nex has empowered users to classify, rate and review this content for you to find only what is relevant for you. In CB Nex we also encourage you to upload their preferred content, rate the documents you read or review them so that other users find it quicker. | <urn:uuid:6c5eedaa-fcab-406e-81cc-bde0d4b8a628> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.cbnex.com/blog/administrator/index.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.946511 | 101 | 1.820313 | 2 |
Denver is the capital city and a county in the state of Colorado, in the USA. It is the largest in Colorado, and is often called the Mile-High City due to its official elevation being exactly one mile above sea level. This puts Denver at one of the highest altitudes for major cities in the US.
Denver’s economy is primarily based on its location, geographically near the center of the US, and connected to the country’s major transportations systems. There is a large logistics and trucking industry in the city. Other large corporations with office space and facilities near Denver include Qwest Communications, Dish Network Corporation, Starz-Encore, DIRECTV, Comcast, EnCana, Halliburton, Smith International, and Rio Tinto Group. There is a large government sector to the economy with facilities such as the Denver Federal Center, the Denver Mint, and the National Renewable Energy Laboratory. You will also find corporations such as Lockheed Martin Corp., United Airlines, Kroger Co., Xcel Energy Inc, MapQuest, and several locations of Ball Corporation in the city.
Entertainment And Dining Out
Denver is known for its proximity to the mountains and a climate that is typically sunny. The entire state of Colorado offers a very active and outdoor lifestyle, and Denver leads the way in providing easy access to winter skiing or summer hiking, climbing, kayaking, and camping. Denver is also near a great selection of local and national breweries. Many of these breweries offer tours, restaurants, and tastings. The larger breweries in the area include Coors and New Belgium Brewing. Denver is also home to the annual Great Beer Festival, held in the fall. Dining options in Denver include Old Blinking Light, 123 Pho, Indulge Bistro & Wine Bar, and Lansdowne Arms. Salsa Brava is a fresh Mexican grill that serves up authentic cuisine in a lively setting.
Denver International Airport features international and domestic flights and is located 24 miles from the city center. Denver is extremely well connected with Interstate 25 running through the city center and intersecting with Interstate 70. Public transportation for the city of Denver is handled by the RTD bus and light rail services. The central business district is well served by the light rail network with stops at the Theatre District Station and along California and Stout Streets. Broadway Station is located south of the city center and is a main transport hub, which provides both bus and rail links to the rest of Denver.
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Available to all – they can be used by anyone, whether you require 1 or 100+ workstations. Nowadays, many companies use them as a long term alternative to conventional office space. | <urn:uuid:e75db400-0f41-4712-81fb-59257ed8f381> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.searchofficespace.com/usa/office-space/denver-executive-suites.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950531 | 906 | 1.570313 | 2 |
Beginning their career as the most popular surf band in the nation, the Beach Boys
finally emerged by 1966 as America's preeminent pop group, the only act able to challenge (for a brief time) the overarching success of the Beatles
with both mainstream listeners and the critical community. From their 1961 debut with the regional hit "Surfin," the three Wilson brothers -- Brian
, and Carl
-- plus cousin Mike Love
and friend Al Jardine
constructed the most intricate, gorgeous harmonies ever heard from a pop band. With Brian's studio proficiency growing by leaps and bounds during the mid-'60s, the Beach Boys also proved one of the best-produced groups of the '60s, exemplified by their 1966 peak with the Pet Sounds
LP and the number one single "Good Vibrations." Though Brian's escalating drug use and obsessive desire to trump the Beatles (by recording the perfect LP statement) eventually led to a nervous breakdown after he heard Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, the group soldiered on long into the '70s and '80s, with Brian only an inconsistent participant. The band's post-1966 material is often maligned (if it's recognized at all), but the truth is the Beach Boys continued to make great music well into the '70s. Displayed best on 1970's Sunflower, each member revealed individual talents never fully developed during the mid-'60s -- Carl became a solid, distinctive producer and Brian's replacement as nominal bandleader, Mike continued to provide a visual focus as the frontman for live shows, and Dennis developed his own notable songwriting talents. Though legal wranglings and marginal oldies tours during the '90s often obscured what made the Beach Boys great, the band's unerring ability to surf the waves of commercial success and artistic development during the '60s made them America's first, best rock band.
The origins of the group lie in Hawthorne, California, a southern suburb of Los Angeles situated close to the Pacific coast. The three sons of a part-time song plugger and occasionally abusive father, Brian, Dennis, and Carl grew up a just few miles from the ocean -- though only Dennis had any interest in surfing itself. The three often harmonized together as youths, spurred on by Brian's fascination with '50s vocal acts like the Four Freshmen
and the Hi-Lo's
. Their cousin Mike Love often joined in on the impromptu sessions, and the group gained a fifth with the addition of Brian's high school football teammate, Al Jardine. His parents helped rent instruments (with Brian on bass, Carl on guitar, and Dennis on drums) and studio time to record "Surfin'," a novelty number written by Brian and Mike. The single, initially released in 1961 on Candix and billed to "the Pendletones" (a musical paraphrase of the popular Pendleton shirt), prompted a little national chart action and gained the renamed Beach Boys a contract with Capitol. The group's negotiator with the label, the Wilsons' father, Murray, also took over as manager for the band. Before the release of any material for Capitol, however, Jardine left the band to attend college in the Midwest. A friend of the Wilsons, David Marks, replaced him.
Finally, in mid-1962 the Beach Boys released their major-label debut, Surfin' Safari
. The title track, a more accomplished novelty single than its predecessor, hit the Top 20 and helped launch the surf rock craze just beginning to blossom around Southern California (thanks to artists like Dick Dale
, Jan & Dean
, the Chantays
, and dozens more). A similarly themed follow-up, Surfin' U.S.A., hit the Top Ten in early 1963 before Jardine returned from school and resumed his place in the group. By that time, the Beach Boys had recorded their first two albums, a pair of 12-track collections that added a few novelty songs to the hits they were packaged around. Though Capitol policy required the group to work with a studio producer, Brian quickly took over the sessions and began expanding the group's range beyond simple surf rock.
By the end of 1963, the Beach Boys had recorded three full LPs, hit the Top Ten as many times, and toured incessantly. Also, Brian began to grow as a producer, best documented on the third Beach Boys LP, Surfer Girl
. Though surf songs still dominated the album, "Catch a Wave," the title track, and especially "In My Room" presented a giant leap in songwriting, production, and group harmony -- especially astonishing considering the band had been recording for barely two years. Brian's intense scrutiny of Phil Spector
's famous Wall of Sound productions was paying quick dividends and revealed his intuitive, unerring depths of musical knowledge.
The following year, "I Get Around" became the first number one hit for the Beach Boys. Riding a crest of popularity, the late 1964 LP Beach Boys Concert spent four weeks at the top of the album charts, just one of five Beach Boys LPs simultaneously
on the charts. The group also undertook promotional tours of Europe, but the pressures and time-constraints proved too much for Brian. At the end of the year, he decided to quit the touring band and concentrate on studio productions. (Glen Campbell
toured with the group briefly, then friend and colleague Bruce Johnston became Brian's permanent replacement.)
With the Beach Boys as his musical messengers to the world, Brian began working full-time in the studio, writing songs and enlisting the cream of Los Angeles session players to record instrumental backing tracks before Carl, Dennis, Mike, and Al returned to add vocals. The single "Help Me, Rhonda" became the Beach Boys' second chart-topper in early 1965. On the group's seventh studio LP, The Beach Boys Today!, Brian's production skills hit another level entirely. In the rock era's first flirtation with an extended album-length statement, side two of the record presented a series of downtempo ballads, arranged into a suite that stretched the group's lyrical concerns beyond youthful infatuation and into more adult notions of love.
Two more LPs followed in 1965, Summer Days (And Summer Nights!!) and Beach Boys' Party. The first featured "California Girls," one of the best fusions of Brian's production mastery, infectious melodies, and gorgeous close harmonies (it's still his personal favorite song). However, dragging down those few moments of brilliance were novelty tracks like "Amusement Parks USA," "Salt Lake City," and "I'm Bugged at My Old Man" that appeared to be a step back from Today. When Capitol asked for a Beach Boys record to sell at Christmas, the live-in-the-studio vocal jam session Beach Boys' Party resulted, and sold incredibly well after the single "Barbara Ann" became a surprise hit. In a larger sense though, both of these LPs were stopgaps as Brian prepared for production on what he hoped would be the Beach Boys' most effective musical statement yet.
In late 1965, the Beatles released Rubber Soul. Amazed at the high song quality and overall cohesiveness of the album, Brian began writing songs -- with help from lyricist Tony Asher -- and producing sessions for a song suite charting a young man's growth to emotional maturity. Though Capitol was resistant to an album with few obvious hits, the group spent more time working on the vocals and harmonies than any other previous project. The result, released in May 1966 as Pet Sounds, more than justified the effort. It's still one of the best-produced and most influential rock LPs ever released, culminating years of Brian's perfectionist productions and songwriting. Critics praised Pet Sounds, but the new direction failed to impress American audiences. Though it reached the Top Ten, Pet Sounds missed a gold certificate (the first to do so since the group's debut LP). Conversely, world-wide reaction was not just positive but jubilant. In England, the album hit number two and earned the Beach Boys honors for best group in year-end polls by NME -- above even the Beatles, hardly slouches themselves with the releases of "Paperback Writer"/"Rain" and Revolver.
The Beach Boys' next single, "Good Vibrations," had originally been written for the Pet Sounds sessions, though Brian removed it from the song list to give himself more time for production. He resumed working on it after the completion of Pet Sounds, eventually devoting up to six months (and three different studios) to the single. Released in October 1966, "Good Vibrations" capped off the year as the group's third number one single and still stands as one of the best singles of all time. Throughout late 1966 and early 1967, Brian worked feverishly on the next Beach Boys LP -- a project named Dumb Angel
, but later titled SMiLE, that promised to be as great an artistic leap beyond Pet Sounds as that album had been from Today. He drafted Van Dyke Parks
, an eccentric lyricist and session man, as his songwriting partner, and recorded reams of tape containing increasingly fragmented tracks that grew ever more speculative as the months wore on. Already wary of Brian's increasingly artistic leanings and drug experimentation, the other Beach Boys grew hostile when called in to the studio to add vocals for Parks lyrics like, "A blind class aristocracy/Back through the opera glass you see/The pit and the pendulum drawn/Columnaded ruins domino/Canvas the town and brush the backdrop" (from "Surf's Up"). A rift soon formed between the band and Brian; they felt his intake of marijuana and LSD had clouded his judgment, while he felt they were holding him back from the coming psychedelic era.
As recording for SMiLE dragged on into spring 1967, Brian began working fewer hours. For the first time in the Beach Boys' career, he appeared unsure of his direction. If SMiLE ever appeared salvageable, those hopes were dashed in May, when Brian officially canceled the project -- just a few weeks before the release of the Beatles' Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band. In August, the group finally released a new single, "Heroes and Villains." Very similar to the fragmentary style of "Good Vibrations," though a distinctly inferior follow-up, it missed the Top Ten. That fall, the group convened at Brian's Bel Air mansion-turned-studio and recorded new versions of several SMiLE songs plus a few new recordings and re-emerged with Smiley Smile. Carl summed up the LP as "a bunt instead of a grand slam," and its near-complete lack of cohesiveness all but destroyed the group's reputation for forward-thinking pop.
As the Beatles were ushering in the psychedelic age, the Beach Boys stalled with the all-important teen crowd, who quickly began to see the group as conservative, establishment throwbacks. The perfect chance to stem the tide, a headlining spot at the pioneering Monterey Pop Festival in summer 1967, was squandered. Though the Beach Boys regrouped quickly -- the back-to-basics Wild Honey LP appeared before the end of 1967 -- their hopes of becoming the world's pre-eminent pop group with both hippies and critics had fizzled in a matter of months.
All this incredible promise wasted made fans, critics, and radio programmers undeniably bitter toward future product. Predictably, both Wild Honey and 1968's Friends suffered with all three audiences. They survive as interesting records nevertheless; deliberately under-produced, with song fragments and recording-session detritus often left in the mix; the skeletal blue-eyed soul of Wild Honey and the laid-back orchestral pop of Friends made them favorites only after fans realized the Beach Boys were a radically different group in 1968 than in 1966. Sparked by the Top 20 hit "Do It Again" -- a song that saw the first shades of the group as an oldies act -- 1969's 20/20 did marginally better. Still, Capitol dropped the band soon after. One year later, the Beach Boys signed to Reprise
The first LP for Brother/Reprise was 1970's Sunflower, a surprisingly strong album featuring a return to the gorgeous harmonies of the mid-'60s and many songs written by different members of the band. Surf's Up, titled after a reworked song originally intended for SMiLE, followed in 1971. Though frequently lovable, the wide range of material on Surf's Up displayed not a band but a conglomeration of individual interests. During sessions for the album, Dennis put his hand through a plate glass window and was unable to play drums. Early in 1972, the band hired drummer Ricky Fataar and guitarist Blondie Chaplin
, two members of a South African rock band named the Flame
(Carl had produced their self-titled debut for Brother Records
the previous year).
Carl and the Passions: So Tough, the first album released with Fataar and Chaplin in the band, descended into lame early-'70s AOR. For the first time, a Beach Boys album retained nothing from their classic sound. Brian's mental stability wavered from year to year, and he spent much time in his mansion with no wish to even contact the outside world. He occasionally contributed to the songwriting and session load, but was by no means a member of the band anymore (he rarely even appeared on album covers or promotional shots). Though it's unclear why Reprise felt ready to take such a big risk, the label authorized a large recording budget for the next Beach Boys album. After shipping most of the group's family and entourage (plus an entire studio) over to Amsterdam, the Beach Boys re-emerged in 1973 with Holland. The LP scraped the bottom rungs of the Top 40, and the single "Sail On, Sailor" (with vocals by Chaplin) did receive some FM radio airplay. Still, Holland's muddy sound did nothing for the aging band, and it earned scathing reviews.
Perhaps a bit gun-shy, the Beach Boys essentially retired from recording during the mid-'70s. Instead, the band concentrated on grooming their live act, which quickly grew to become an incredible experience. It was a good move, considering the Beach Boys could lay claim to more hits than any other '60s rock act on the road. The Beach Boys in Concert
, their third live album in total, appeared in 1973.
Then, in mid-1974, Capitol Records went to the vaults and issued a repackaged hits collection, Endless Summer
. Both band and label watched, dumbfounded, as the double LP hit number one, spent almost three years on the charts, and went gold. Endless Summer capitalized on a growing fascination with oldies rock that had made Sha Na Na
, American Graffiti, and Happy Days big hits. Rolling Stone, never the most friendly magazine to the group, named the Beach Boys its Band of the Year at the end of the year. Another collection, Spirit of America
, hit the Top Ten in 1974, and the Beach Boys were hustled into the studio to begin new recordings.
Trumpeted by the barely true marketing campaign "Brian's Back!," 1976's 15 Big Ones balanced a couple of '50s oldies with some justifiably exciting Brian Wilson oddities like "Had to Phone Ya." It also hit the Top Ten and went gold, despite many critical misgivings. Brian took a much more involved position for the following year's The Beach Boys Love You (it was almost titled Brian Loves You
and released as a solo album). In marked contrast to the fatalistic early-'70s pop of "Til I Die" and others, Brian sounded positively jubilant on gruff proto-synth pop numbers like "Let Us Go on This Way" and "Mona." However idiosyncratic compared to what oldies fans expected of the Beach Boys, Love You was the group's best album in years. (A suite of beautiful, tender ballads on side two was quite reminiscent of 1965's Today.)
After 1979's M.I.U. Album, the group signed a large contract with CBS
that stipulated Brian's involvement on each album. However, his brief return to the spotlight ended with two dismal efforts, L.A. (Light Album) and Keepin' the Summer Alive. The Beach Boys began splintering by the end of the decade, with financial mismanagement by Mike Love's brothers Stan and Steve fostering tension between him and the Wilsons. By 1980, both Dennis and Carl had left the Beach Boys for solo careers. (Dennis had already released his first album, Pacific Ocean Blue, in 1977, and Carl released his eponymous debut in 1981.) Brian was removed from the group in 1982 after his weight ballooned to over 300 pounds, though the tragic drowning death of Dennis in 1983 helped bring the group back together. In 1985, the Beach Boys released a self-titled album which returned them to the Top 40 with "Getcha Back." It would be the last proper Beach Boys album of the '80s, however.
Brian had been steadily improving in both mind and body during the mid-'80s, though the rest of the group grew suspicious of his mentor, Dr. Eugene Landy. Landy was a dodgy psychiatrist who reportedly worked wonders with the easily impressionable Brian but also practically took over his life. He collaborated with Brian on the autobiography Wouldn't It Be Nice and wrote lyrics for Brian's first solo album, 1988's Brian Wilson
. Critics and fans enjoyed Wilson's return to the studio, but the charts were unforgiving, especially with attention focused on the Beach Boys once more. The single "Kokomo," from the soundtrack to Cocktail, hit number one in the U.S. late that year, prompting a haphazard collection named Still Cruisin'
. The group also sued Brian, more to force Landy out of the picture than anything, and Mike Love later sued Brian for songwriting royalties (Brian had frequently admitted Love's involvement on most of them).
Despite the many quarrels, the Beach Boys kept touring during the early '90s, and Mike and Brian actually began writing songs together in 1995. Instead of a new album though, the Beach Boys returned with Stars and Stripes, Vol. 1, a collection of remade hits with country stars singing lead and the group adding backing vocals. Also, a Brian Wilson documentary titled I Just Wasn't Made for These Times aired on the Disney Channel, with an accompanying soundtrack featuring spare renditions of Beach Boys classics by Brian himself. Just as the band appeared to be pulling together for a proper studio album, though, Carl died of cancer in 1998.
Ten years after his first solo album, Brian became aware of his immense influence on the alternative rock community; he worked with biggest-fans Sean O'Hagan
(of the High Llamas
) and Andy Paley on a series of recordings. Again, good intentions failed to carry through as the recordings were ditched in favor of another overly produced, mainstream-slanted work, Imagination. By early 1999, no less than three Beach Boys-connected units were touring the country -- a Brian Wilson solo tour, the "official" Beach Boys led by Mike Love, and the "Beach Boys Family" led by Al Jardine.
In 2000, Capitol instituted a long-promised reissue campaign, focusing on the group's long out of print '70s LPs, and updated remastering of the '60s LP followed soon after. Brian Wilson continued his solo career into the 2000s with a string of popular albums, including a live run-though of Pet Sounds (Pet Sounds Live) and, in 2004, a concert tour as well as a re-recording around SMiLE. The surviving members next united in 2006 to commemorate the 40th anniversary of Pet Sounds. Two years later, however, Jardine was forced to settle a lawsuit brought by Love and Carl Wilson's estate over the use of the Beach Boys' name in his touring band (which was renamed the Endless Summer Band
Regardless of legal actions and strained relations, all of the band's surviving members were on hand in June 2011 for a special announcement: new live dates, new recordings, and a spate of planned releases for 2012 that would feature Brian Wilson, Mike Love, Al Jardine, Bruce Johnston, and even David Marks. ~ John Bush, Rovi | <urn:uuid:51cbebb1-cf66-45dc-a38e-9774a175b480> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://bigpondmusic.com/artist/the-beach-boys | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97026 | 4,262 | 1.640625 | 2 |
File photo shows an anti-regime protest in Saudi Arabia.
Saudis have staged a fresh anti-regime protest in the central city of Buraidah to demand the release of political prisoners.
They also urged the release of women and children recently arrested in the city for taking part in a protest gathering in support of political prisoners.
On Friday, Saudi security forces arrested over 300 protesters, including 15 women, after hundreds of Saudis gathered outside the investigation and prosecution bureau in Buraidah to demand the release of political prisoners.
Protests against the ruling Al Saud dynasty have recently spread from the Eastern Province to other parts of the kingdom, with people of Buraidah threatening to stage a revolution against the regime.
Saudi activists say there are more than 30,000 political prisoners, mostly prisoners of conscience, in jails across the Kingdom.
According to the activists, most of the detained political thinkers are being held by the government without trial or legitimate charges and that they were arrested for merely looking suspicious.
Some of the detainees are reported to be held without trial for more than 16 years. Attempting to incite the public against the government and the allegiance to foreign entities are usually the ready-made charges against dissidents.
In Saudi Arabia, protests and political gatherings of any kind are prohibited. | <urn:uuid:1a7afffb-ec8f-4dc0-b713-328ff062b11a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.presstv.ir/detail/2013/03/05/292059/saudis-urge-political-prisoners-release/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962579 | 263 | 1.804688 | 2 |
The Portela de Leonte is situated in Portugal
Starting from Vilar de Veiga,
the Portela de Leonte ascent is 12 km long. Over this distance, you climb 718 heightmeters.
The average percentage thus is 6 %.
Stories, information and comments from Portela de Leonte climbers
Story by Luis Cruz from , Portugal, submitted on 21/07/2008
This ascent is situated in the beginning of the one and only National Park in Portugal, the Peneda-Gerês National Park. I have done this ascent several times but most of them where when I was still very young and using a mountain bike. Recently I have done it with my road bike and it was a bit harder than I expected. The road is generally good with a stretch of cobblestone right after the Geres village. The ascent is very scenic and has a climate of its own. Try to do it on a week day as during the weekends it gets invaded by people who seek the clean air of Geres.
The Geres village has got hot water springs and recently has become a more and more tourist destination.
During the summer you may not be allowed to stop between Portela the Leonte and the border because authorities want to prevent people from doing picnics to prevent fires in the forest. | <urn:uuid:3fd23c2b-a5af-419f-a152-f1fc5b24827f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.climbbybike.com/climb.asp?Col=Portela-de-Leonte&qryMountainID=7241 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.9652 | 272 | 1.65625 | 2 |
Wearing number 8, Brendan Morrison played the position of center while playing for the Calgary Flames during the 2010/2011 National Hockey League season. He reportedly earned $725,000 for his time on the ice. The total team salary for the Calgary Flames was reportedly $66,312,500, so his salary was about 1.1% of the team's total reported payroll. The median salary for a player on the Calgary Flames was $1,350,000. The average salary was $2,368,303. During the 66 games that he played that season, he scored 9 goals and had 34 assists - a total of 43 points. If we divide his reported salary by the number of games played, we find he earned $10,984.85 per game played. Brendan Morrison had a plus/minus of 13, 16 PIM (penalties in minutes), 3 PP (power play goals), 1 SH (short-handed goals), 1 GWG (game winning goals), and took 89 shots. He had a shooting percentage in the 2010/2011 season of 10.10%. If we want to evaluate his performance strictly on offense, we can divide his salary by the number of goals scored, as well as by the number of points (goals plus assists). His salary per goal scored was $80,556 and his salary per point was $16,860.
But then, there are taxes. Each hockey season is played during two calendar years, however, given an annual salary in the U.S. of $725,000 we can estimate that he would have to pay $229,034 in federal income taxes. That is about the same amount of tax as the tax paid by 28 median high school teachers, 32 median police officers, or 45 median fire fighters. After paying the IRS, he would have $495,966 left over. However, he may still have to use some of that money to pay state or city taxes as well. | <urn:uuid:d3ceb30d-56fe-4009-8405-ce5c887607f2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.teachmefinance.com/Sports%20Finance/Brendan%20Morrison%20Calgary%20Flames%202010-2011%20NHL%20statistics.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.991938 | 399 | 1.65625 | 2 |
The overrated Richard Linklater has a good film in Bernie (2012), which is based on a true story. He collaborated on the movie’s screenplay with Skip Hollandsworth, author of a 1998 magazine article about one Bernie Tiede of Carthage, Texas.
Acted by Jack Black, Bernie is a very nice, very benevolent Christian employed as a funeral director. He befriends the elderly, wealthy Marjorie Nugent (Shirley MacLaine) after her husband dies and accompanies her to all kinds of places, only to find out how selfish and monstrously controlling Marjorie is. Vexed, he finally shoots her to death and is astonished at what he’s done. After hiding the body, Bernie goes on with his life and, as critic Peter Rainer has indicated, remains an upstanding citizen in Carthage. Before long, however, the truth is discovered.
Actual townspeople comment on the popular Bernie throughout the film (by no means did they like Marjorie). To Linklater, Bernie Tiede is a basically good man, notwithstanding he snapped. It prompts a question: Why must human goodness, wherever it’s found, be interrupted, temporarily upended? Correlatively, why does human badness, such as that of Marjorie, simply continue?
I am motivated to raise another matter as well. It may be that Christian Bernie was wrong to spend so much of his time with a pronouncedly unworthy nonbeliever, especially when he started living the high life with her. He was right to love her, as a friend, but not to hang out with her. Food for thought.
Though its predictability keeps it from being great, Black’s performance is nevertheless smart and magnetic. McLaine’s acting is perfectly knowing, never false. Bernie is a meaningful comic tragedy, far superior to such Linklater films as Dazed and Confused. | <urn:uuid:22ae13f8-379b-4e10-8687-ca43be11ca65> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://hipopinion.com/a-crime-in-carthage-texas-bernie-a-movie-review/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962569 | 400 | 1.539063 | 2 |
4 Benefits of Weight Loss Support Groups
The purpose of weight loss support groups is like any other support group; they are there to give you support in the areas you are having problems, and in this case, it is weight loss. If you are trying to lose weight, you know how hard it is to continue and stick with a weight loss program. Most of the time, you will gain back the pounds you shed and even put on more weight. Joining a weight loss support group has many advantages.
1. Solid Support System
Weight loss support groups may offer you a solid support system with regards to your weight loss problems. The members of the support group can relate to your experiences because they are people that are going through or have actually been through a weight loss struggle. The agenda set in most of these weight loss support groups is very structured, which makes it an effective sharing ground and a place to tackle the problems you are faced with. It keeps your mind focused so that a proper game plan can be formulated for you to strictly follow in regards to your attempt to lose weight.
You may consider the weight loss support group as something or someone you can rely on. Trying to make it on your own may seem like a noble idea. However, the reality of the fact is that everyone needs somebody to pick them up when they fall. This is when the support group members come in. They are there to listen to you when you are having a bad week, and give you encouragement and cheer you on when you are having a good one.
3. Stress Relief
The interaction during the meetings of the weight loss support groups may help you relieve some of the stress associated with weight loss. Knowing that you are not alone experiencing anxiety or stress brought on by weight problems may help you cope with them. Sharing your emotions to a small group or a co-member takes some of the troubles off your shoulder. Studies show that people who attend weight loss support group meetings tend to have less cortisol hormone production than those who try to go it alone. Cortisol is a stress associated hormone.
4. Effective Strategies
Weight loss support groups, like Weight Watchers and the like, may help you strategize your diet plans, exercise routines and mind set effectively in line with your weight loss program. The right method for you may not necessarily mean it is the right weight loss method for the next person, so a personalized strategy devised by yourself with the assistance of experts may help you a great deal.
The key to losing weight is determination and a lot of hard work. You may find that joining a small informal support group may work for you, or you may prefer to join a more formal weight loss support group setting. The choice is up to you, but you will definitely gain a lot of benefits from weight loss support groups.
- 3 Types of Weight Loss Support Groups
- How to Decide if Weight Loss Support Groups are for You
- Understanding Weight Loss Support Groups
- The Best Weight Loss Support Groups for your Lifestyle
- What to Look for in Weight Loss Support Groups | <urn:uuid:6cf675fe-97ae-49ba-bd0e-9deeeaea5187> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.3fatchicks.com/4-benefits-of-weight-loss-support-groups/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967233 | 622 | 1.585938 | 2 |
Just joined the site, as is apparent, and my friend and I have a question regarding Psychokinetics/telekinetics. Don't get me wrong with the next few statements, any telekinetic activity is an accomplishment in this day and age. But with the present technology, what is the purpose of TK? I understand thousands of years ago, when a crane the size of the building being erected was not even a thought, why telekinesis and other forms of mind powers and the like were around. That being said, what is the extent, the full potential if you will, of contemporary man's TK power? If we roll a pen or so on, what are we doing wrong in comparison to the Egyptians and the Aztec/ Incan/ Mayan civilizations, who built wonders of the world, thousands of years be for the Christian's Jesus walked the Earth?
So the title question remains, what is the extent and purpose of "modern" telekinesis? | <urn:uuid:b0104555-efab-463f-ba55-5eb946024a5d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.psionicsonline.net/comment/82 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.960359 | 202 | 1.765625 | 2 |
Filmmaker Michael Moore was a part of the global audience tuning in for Democracy Now!'s live coverage from outside the Georgia prison where death row prisoner Troy Davis was executed on September 21. Moore describes how he was inspired by one of the people Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman interviewed on the scene after news of the execution was announced. The man, who introduced himself as Wesley Boyd, immediately called for a boycott of the state of Georgia in response to Davis's execution. Moore says he then asked his publisher to recall all copies of his new book from stores in Georgia, saying, "I don’t want any commerce being done in my name in the state of Georgia." When he was told the books were already on the shelves, Moore decided to donate proceeds from the sales in the state to the Innocence Project and a voter registration drive. He also discusses his previous work on the case of a death row prisoner who shares his name, a topic he writes about in the chapter, The Execution of Michael Moore, in his new memoir, "Here Comes Trouble: Stories from My Life." [includes rush transcript]
This is a rush transcript. Copy may not be in its final form.
AMY GOODMAN: Today we play the second part of my interview with one of the most famous independent filmmakers in the world, Michael Moore. For more than two decades, Michael has been one of the most politically active, provocative and successful documentary filmmakers in the business. His films include Roger & Me, Bowling for Columbine, for which he won the Academy Award, Fahrenheit 9/11, SiCKO, and Capitalism: A Love Story. He has a new book out. It’s called Here Comes Trouble: Stories from My Life. You can see part one of the interview with Michael on our website at democracynow.org.
After Monday’s program, I had a chance to ask Michael Moore about the execution of Troy Anthony Davis that took place on Wednesday, September 21st. The state of Georgia killed Davis despite significant doubt about his guilt in the killing of a white off-duty police officer, Mark MacPhail, in 1989. Seven of the nine non-police witnesses in the case later recanted or changed their testimony, and there was no physical evidence linking Troy Davis to the crime. Democracy Now! was there, reporting live from the death row prison grounds in Jackson, Georgia, when Troy Davis was executed. Davis will be buried on Saturday in Savannah, Georgia, where he grew up.
I began my interview with Michael Moore by playing a clip of Troy Davis speaking during an Amnesty International conference call in 2009.
TROY DAVIS: This is just the beginning of something that’s about to blow up to the point wherein we’re going to see some sort of success. We’re going to win this fight. We’re going to continue to open eyes. We’re going to continue to open these prison doors. We’re going to continue to hold accountable all those that are in charge of these unjust systems. And we’re going to force them, through our actions and our humanitarian work, to do what’s right, instead of just turning the other cheek, because there is no reason why innocent people should not have an opportunity to prove their innocence. Time should not be an issue, especially when someone’s life is in jeopardy. Together, we’re going to work this out. I’m going to walk free. And we’re going to have a day of celebration once again. But this time, I’m going to be on the outside of these prison walls working to help others, as well.
AMY GOODMAN: That was Troy Davis speaking from death row in 2009 in a conference call that was hooked up. Michael, you have responded to his execution.
MICHAEL MOORE: Well, first, let me say that I watched your broadcast that night live. I was actually in the kitchen at Tom Morello’s house, who’s a guitar player for a band called Rage Against the Machine, and he has his own solo thing called The Nightwatchman. And so, I was out in L.A. on my book tour, and I had stopped over to his house to have dinner. And he and his wife and their two little boys and we just stood there in the kitchen watching you on this little, tiny kitchen TV set. And we couldn’t talk. We were paralyzed by what we were watching.
And just—it was just—and then, after the execution, a man, tall man, in bibbed overalls, African-American man, came up to you. He wanted to say something. And you gave him an opportunity to speak. He’s the kind of guy that the mainstream media would never allow on camera. And he stood there and eloquently, in his own way, begged people to boycott the state of Georgia. "Do not buy Georgia peaches. Do not buy Georgia pecans," he said. Right? Do you remember this? He went down this whole list—
AMY GOODMAN: Oh, yeah.
MICHAEL MOORE: —of things, and he was just right into the camera, just reaching right out to every one of us, saying, "Please! Yes, this may hurt"...
AMY GOODMAN: Let’s go to the moment after the execution.
KRISTEN STANCIL: The court-ordered execution of Troy Anthony Davis has been carried out. The time of death is 11:08 p.m. At this time, the media witnesses will be coming out to give their firsthand account of what happened during the execution. The coroner’s van will be coming out very shortly. It will be a black van. Media will be able to move up to get video of that van. At this time, we may have some people who were at the actual execution who may come out to do interviews. We will wait for them to come out, and we will be sitting—in the same area if they do choose to do interviews. But again, the time of death is 11:08.
AMY GOODMAN: Again, prison official sharing the news that Troy Anthony Davis was executed at 11:08. That was the time of death. I’m standing with...
WESLEY BOYD: Wesley Boyd. And I’d like to say this has been a travesty of justice. And I’d like to tell the—America ought to be ashamed of yourself. And God help America. And if you’re alive in America, please don’t come to Georgia. Don’t come to Georgia. Don’t buy any Georgia pecans. Don’t buy any Georgia peaches. Don’t buy any trade with Georgia. The whole world, don’t buy anything with Georgia. God bless America. God bless Troy Davis.
AMY GOODMAN: Wesley Boyd, standing on the grounds of the death row prison, just after learning of the execution of Troy Davis. Michael?
MICHAEL MOORE: Well, as soon as he—as soon as he said that—I’m watching there, I’m sitting there in the kitchen watching that—I picked up my Blackberry, here, and wrote a note to my publisher. And I said, "I want you to stop shipping any of my books to Georgia. I want you to recall all my books from the bookstores. I don’t want any commerce being done in my name in the state of Georgia." And then I went online and asked, you know, people to—we need to participate. We need to heed this man’s call to not go to Georgia, to not participate in the state of Georgia, and anything to do with it. Now, you know, remember, this is a resident of Georgia who’s saying this, and he’s—he will be hurt by this, obviously, because that’s what happens with boycotts. If you don’t buy the products, the people that work in those fields or in those factories, you know, they may have to cut back. They may lose their job. There’s a potential of that, so... But he’s saying that, you know, he wasn’t worried about his own personal sacrifice. He was asking us fellow Americans to not participate with the state of Georgia until they change.
So, a couple—the next day or so, the publisher informed me that they would not recall the books, could not recall them at this point, and so then I responded publicly by saying, "Fine, then I’m going to donate whatever royalties I make on this book to the Innocence Project, which is a group who has got many people off death row. And I’m also going to donate to a voter registration drive." There were 600,000 African Americans in the last election that were not registered to vote in Georgia. Georgia is one of these states that is making it increasingly difficult for people to register to vote and to vote on Election Day. And so, I’m going to—I will not touch any of the money that this book makes from the state of Georgia. I just don’t want anything to do with it, and I canceled going there, to Atlanta, on my book tour. I won’t go there. I will not participate.
And myself and my website guys, we’ve been talking to the African-American students at Morehouse and some of the colleges down there. And we’re going to—there’s a number of people that are going to have a much more organized response to this with the state of Georgia. We’re going to identify those politicians, and we’re going to identify corporations in Georgia, like Home Depot and Coca-Cola and others, who contribute money to these politicians that allow this death penalty to exist.
AMY GOODMAN: Academy Award-winning filmmaker Michael Moore. When we come back, we continue speaking with him about the death penalty, about his call to reopen the 9/11 investigation, his previous films and his future plans. His new book, Here Comes Trouble: Stories from My Life, has just been published. Stay with us.
AMY GOODMAN: We’re on the road in Minneapolis, but yesterday, just before I left, I interviewed Michael Moore, the Oscar-winning filmmaker, bestselling author. His new book, Here Comes Trouble: Stories from My Life. We sat down in New York and discussed his films, among them, Sicko, and the healthcare industry’s efforts to discredit them, and Fahrenheit 9/11, and his call for a reopening of the 9/11 investigation. In this part two of our conversation, we’re going to continue now with this conversation we had about the death penalty.
MICHAEL MOORE: I come from the state of Michigan. We were the first English-speaking government in the world to outlaw the death penalty, back in the 1840s. We have never had, as a state, the death penalty in Michigan. I was raised with that, and even Republicans in Michigan, nobody would even think of putting a measure on the ballot to have the death penalty. It’s immoral. You do not have the right to take another human’s life, unless it’s in strict self-defense. And—
AMY GOODMAN: In fact, you worked on another campaign for another death row prisoner.
MICHAEL MOORE: Well, yes, I talk about this in the book. There’s a chapter called "The Execution of Michael Moore." And that execution does not refer to mine, because I’m still here, but of this man on death row in Texas whose name was Michael Moore. And one night they were showing the inmates one of my films, and he saw my name and me there in the movie, and he wrote to me, and he said, "I have your name, but they’re going to kill me, and can you help me?" So I started an internet campaign—this was about 10, 11 years ago—to get him freed from death row. He didn’t say that he didn’t commit the crime, but to be put to death was just simply wrong. It’s just—it is cruel and unusual punishment. And we got a big campaign going on the internet. A lot of letters were sent to Texas. A lot of attention was paid to it. And the appeals board, the court there, whatever, they granted him a stay. And that stay lasted for the better part of a year. I mean, this is unusual in Texas, any kind of a stay, because they’re just a—they’re an assembly line in Texas, their death row.
AMY GOODMAN: I mean, Perry, himself, has, what, proudly presided over more than 200 executions. And the cheer that—
MICHAEL MOORE: And was applauded for it, yes, right, that is correct. So, but 9/11 happened that year, and then, after 9/11, there was—you know, that was the end of that. There was—he didn’t have a chance. There was no—people did not want to stop the execution of a murderer. And we were—we, as a country, just started to sink, you know, into this bloodlust of, who can we invade, who can we kill. It was on so many levels, this sort of mean-spirited, sick nature of—it was just opposed to everything that I was raised with in that Irish Catholic household. It was just against everything I believed in.
AMY GOODMAN: Back on the Morehouse students, it was Morehouse and Spelman students that night—
MICHAEL MOORE: Yeah.
AMY GOODMAN: —September 21st, who marched on Jackson. The corrections officers only allowed like 100, 150 people inside a vigil pen, a protest pen. And we actually had to fight to be able to be near the pen—
MICHAEL MOORE: Yeah.
AMY GOODMAN: —to be able to talk to people—
MICHAEL MOORE: Yeah.
AMY GOODMAN: —because the way most people do it, the reporters, is they stand up quite a distance away, and it’s just the backdrop of the prison.
MICHAEL MOORE: Sure.
AMY GOODMAN: But, I mean, the point of television and radio is to let people speak for themselves, like Wesley Boyd, who you just heard.
MICHAEL MOORE: Right.
AMY GOODMAN: That was a mighty battle at the beginning. But the students marched and were across the street, the intersection of the prison. There were almost a thousand people there. It was hard to see, because we were inside the prison grounds, these kids from Spelman, the kids from Morehouse. And it was at about 7:00, the time of the—original time of the execution, a roar went up, and you see how grapevine information works, because everyone thought, you know, this was—I was there in the pen, Ben Jealous was there, the CEO of NAACP, and the chair of the board of the NAACP, and Larry Cox, head of Amnesty International USA, and so everyone just took that to mean there was a stay, and they were leaping on each other, laughing, crying, saying, "We have achieved it." But then, very quickly, someone walked up and said no.
MICHAEL MOORE: That was the—right, right. There was—the Supreme Court had issued a temporary reprieve, which meant that it might put it off for an hour. And that’s a—
AMY GOODMAN: Maybe someone was having dinner.
MICHAEL MOORE: Exactly. That’s right. That’s right. Can I just say, though—and if you’ll just let me say this and just accept the compliment—what’s so great about you and this show and the Pacifica stations is that you do give voice to people. And I just—when you turned to that man—I mean, here’s a guy in bibbed overalls, right? It looked like he might have had a tooth missing. I got to tell you, nobody in the mainstream media is going to go to that guy, and you just turned the microphone over. You had no idea what he was going to say. You—the fact that you exist, you’re our stand-in, really. I mean, you’re our conduit to people like Wesley Boyd, a man we’d—no one—who knew Wesley Boyd?
AMY GOODMAN: His family.
MICHAEL MOORE: Yes, well, his family, yes, and his friends. But most Americans don’t get that pulpit, don’t get that soapbox, don’t get that chance to speak to other Americans. The fact that this show, the fact that you went down there and did that, and would just generously turn the microphone over, so that I, standing in a kitchen in Los Angeles, could hear his voice and be motivated, myself, to say, "Whoa, he’s right. I’ve got to do something. I can’t—you know, I’m not in Georgia, but I have to do something."
AMY GOODMAN: Yeah, and, you know, it’s the amazing people I work with. We never would have been able to do this if I hadn’t been there with Renée Feltz, who has long covered the death penalty in Texas—
MICHAEL MOORE: Yes.
AMY GOODMAN: —with Hany Massoud, our videographer and producer who had just come back from covering the Arab Spring in Tahrir—
MICHAEL MOORE: Right.
AMY GOODMAN: —able to leap tall buildings in a single bound.
MICHAEL MOORE: Of course, everybody here.
AMY GOODMAN: Mike Burke, who had raced out to Madison, as you had, Michael Moore—
MICHAEL MOORE: Right.
AMY GOODMAN: —to make sure we brought the voices of people in the freezing streets of Madison to the world.
MICHAEL MOORE: Who was the woman there with you in Georgia, one of your people that was so choked up she could barely—-
AMY GOODMAN: Renée, who is actually sitting right behind us right now.
MICHAEL MOORE: It was Renée, OK. Oh, OK. Well, it was so moving. As she started to hold back her tears, I could just feel everybody across the country who was watching this, watching you there live, feeling the same way that Renée felt—how we could do this in our name, murder a human being like this. It just—it was such a profound and powerful moment. It is why this television, the internet, all these things can be such a force for good.
AMY GOODMAN: And folks, again, Troy Davis will be buried on Saturday morning in Savannah, Georgia. If you want to see the full coverage of that night, you can go to our website at democracynow.org. | <urn:uuid:a72e4d6d-a818-47ee-b252-4fe769fc9222> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.democracynow.org/2011/9/29/michael_moore_man_interviewed_by_democracy | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.975176 | 4,041 | 1.59375 | 2 |
Tropical Storm Debby was still hanging in there but it has weakened over the past twelve hours, a trend that has continued now for 24-hours. Debby was located about 30 mi SSW of Apalachicola, Florida and was moving very slowly to nearly stationary. Maximum wind speeds are now down to 45 mph and the minimum central pressure had risen to 992 mb (29.29").
Overall, little change is expected in the rainfall zone. More rainfall is expected for the Florida peninsula and northern Florida. Additional rainfall of 5"-10" is possible across northern Florida with 3"-8" of additional rainfall possible for much of the peninsula through Friday. Add that to the abundant rainfall that has already made the sunshine state soggy and additional flooding is very possible.
Additionally, there has been a threat for sporadic tornadoes across the Florida peninsula and that will likely continue through Tuesday. So be sure you stay safe and weather aware. Have a weather radio or other warning notification device in use. I use and highly recommend Weather Call. I would highly encourage you to check it out and subscribe.
Ok, now to what Debby will do and where she may go. Looking had how she has weaken and how she appears now in structure, I anticipate she will hold her strength, at best.More likely, she will continue to slowly weaken. If the newest modeling data is finally picking up on this trend and weaken her to Tropical Depression status by Wednesday evening.
Over the next couple of days, Debby will still not move very fast but she will slowly progress eastward. Landfall will likely occur late Wednesday night into early Thursday near Dixie County, Florida (Cross City). But by that time, Debby will either be very weak Tropical Storm or more likely just a Tropical Depression.
Debby, may get a second chance of life late next weekend into early next week once she leaves Florida and moves back over the Gulf Stream Waters. She will then likely track a bit northeastward and may re-intensify into a tropical system at that time. | <urn:uuid:a9e39415-7fd7-4f40-9fd7-fc73bf11920f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.dopplerdale.com/2012/06/ts-debby-moving-slowly-not-well.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973873 | 421 | 1.726563 | 2 |
When: August 29, 2008 (Friday, 6:00 pm)
Where: Chinese Culture Center, 750 Kearny St, 3rd Floor, San Francisco
Admission Fee: $5 public, $3 member
C4 is proud to present the US Premier “Searching for Lin Zhao’s Soul”, AKA In Search of Lin Zhao’s Soul 寻找林昭的灵魂 (2004) in Mandarin with English subtitles.
This documentary film is about the outstanding Beijing University student Lin Zhao, who was labeled a rightist when she criticized the Anti-Rightist Campaign in 1950s. She was imprisoned and later executed. In Philip Pan’s recent book “Out of Mao’s Shadow”, two chapters were written about this documentary, quoting the filmmaker Hu Jie about Lin Zhao: “(the film is) inspired by her courage, and her uncompromising sense of justice… It was extraordinary that a great woman like Lin Zhao once lived in China… I thought she was a national treasure.”
This film is co-presented by WACSF (World Affairs Council San Francisco),AAWAA(Asian American Women Artists Association), IMOW (International Museum of Women), OACC(Oakland Asian Cultural Center), CCS(Center for Chinese Study) in UC Berkeley.
For more information about C4, and a listing of the entire year’s program, visit our 2008 Film Series page.
這部紀錄片記述了北京大學一名出色的學生–林昭。 20世紀50年代，由於批判當時的反右傾，她被打成右派分子，被投入監獄並最終被處死。在潘公凱最近出版的”走出毛澤東的影子”一書中，有兩個章節是描寫 這部紀錄片的。書中引用了該片製片人胡杰對於林昭的評價：”（這部電影）的靈感來自於她的勇敢，以及對真理的不妥協態度…能有像林昭這樣偉大的女性生活在中國是在是件幸事…我認為她是國家的財富。”
Here are some excerpts from an interview with Hu Jie, the director of “In Search of Lin Zhao’s Soul.” For the full interview, please visit here. You can also read Philip Pan (China correspondent for Washington Post and Author of Out of Mao’s Shadow)’s take on the movie here.
SR: How did you discover Lin Zhao?
HJ: Actually I discovered her story by chance. One day a few friends and I were hanging out. One of them said his parents were Lin Zhao’s classmates. I asked who Lin Zhao was. He told me that Lin Zhao was a student at Beijing University in the 1950s. Because of some poems, she was arrested and put in gaol. In gaol she continued writing. She did not have any ink, so she wrote many things with her blood. In the end, she was executed.
His words were simple but very shocking to me. I had never heard this kind of story: that one was arrested for writing poetry and killed for writing books with blood. I never thought that in Mao’s China there was this kind of people who would fight against the Communist Party, literally with blood. I thought that writing with blood could only write a few characters, but I was told that Lin Zhao wrote thousands and thousands characters with blood.
This story was so shocking that I began to collect information and materials about Lin Zhao. I wanted to know her.
By then I was working at the Centre for Pictures of Xinhua News Agency. I had worked there less than three years, shooting those short films about migrant workers. After I began to conduct research about Lin Zhao, one day my boss in Xinhua News Agency talked to me and told me that I could not work there anymore. He was very serious and said, “What you are doing, you know best. We do not want to know. You have two choices. One is to be fired from your job; the other is to resign by yourself.” I thought it would be terrible to be fired, so I chose to resign. They did not tell me why, but I know clearly: I was doing research on Lin Zhao. They also told me that they did like me very much because I was one of the major hands at the Centre, but they could not allow me to continue working there due to pressure from above. Who is above Xinhua News Agency? I understand that must be The Bureau of Public Safety.
SR: What do you think about this film? How significant is it for the Chinese people?
HJ: I think that Looking for Lin Zhao’s Soul is the first documentary to record and reflect the historical periods of the anti-Rightist campaign and the Cultural Revolution in China. It is the first time that we Chinese used documentary films to reflect history. However, when I was making the film I did not think about this issue. Now I see the issue clearly. Indeed, there is a huge blank in Chinese history, such as the death by starvation for 40 million people from 1959–1962, the Cultural Revolution, and others, because in China there is neither discussion about these historical periods nor documentary films recording those historical events. Perhaps Wu Wenguang’s film, 1966: My Experience as a Red Guard (1993), is the only documentary film that touches upon these issues.
After I made the film about Lin Zhao, I realized that there is a massive resource for documentary film in China. The resource awaits us to discover. That is the history including before and after the anti-Rightist campaign, the anti-Rightist campaign itself, the Great Leap Forward, the starvation, and the Cultural Revolution. I feel we could and should have numerous films only about the Cultural Revolution, such as the massacres, the fighting among people in the Cultural Revolution. I believe that all of these can be objects for documentary film. I now go to colleges to give lectures, and I always tell students this idea. I feel that we should record this history with many, many peoples’ participation. Because the Chinese official authority does not want us to remember the history, we non-official people should remember on our own. I told students, “Go to ask your parents and grandparents how they starved, how they took part in weapon fighting in the Cultural Revolution. Go record their words. If we do this for five years, we would make a great contribution to Chinese history.” | <urn:uuid:44a23f18-9f71-44e7-8544-d4224959aa06> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.c-c-c.org/2008/08/01/82908-c4-screening-in-search-of-lin-zhaos-soul-%E5%AF%BB%E6%89%BE%E6%9E%97%E6%98%AD%E7%9A%84%E7%81%B5%E9%AD%82/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.971555 | 1,610 | 1.671875 | 2 |
UN polio vaccine doctor injured in Karachi attack
Gunmen have attacked a UN vehicle, critically injuring a doctor who was administering polio vaccines in the southern Pakistani city of Karachi.
The foreign doctor was in the run-down Sohrab Goth area of the city, officials say. His driver was also hurt.
No group has said it carried out the shooting, but the Taliban have issued threats against the polio drive and are thought to be active in Sohrab Goth.
On Monday Pakistan launched its latest polio immunisation campaign.
Officials say that the UN official has been rushed to a nearby hospital. It is not clear what his nationality is.
Local police station chief Mohammad Sultan told the AFP news agency said that the doctor had been working in the area for about three months and that he could have been targeted deliberately.
"It could be related to the polio campaign, as there is resistance in the population against it. We are, however, still investigating the motives," Mr Sultan told AFP.
Parts of the city are highly volatile and hundreds of people have been killed in recent years because of ethnic, political and sectarian violence.'Spying campaign'
Pakistan is one of only three remaining countries where polio is still endemic. The disease is also endemic in Afghanistan and Nigeria.
Pakistan says 34 million children under five will be targeted in the three-day vaccination campaign from Monday to Wednesday, AFP reports
But about 250,000 children in Pakistan's tribal areas will not receive vaccine in the drive because of a Taliban-imposed ban.
The Taliban said recently that vaccinations in North and South Waziristan were banned until the US ended drone strikes in the region.
There has been opposition to such immunisation drives from some powerful clerics while a fake CIA vaccination campaign, which helped to locate Osama Bin Laden in the Pakistani city of Abbottabad, is thought to have had a detrimental effect as well.
Militants have kidnapped and killed foreign NGO workers in the past in an attempt to halt the immunisation drives which they say is part of a scheme orchestrated by Western and local intelligence agencies for spying on them, reports the BBC's Syed Shoaib Hasan in Karachi.
Nearly 200 children contracted polio in Pakistan in 2011 - the worst figures in more than a decade, according to the Lancet medical journal. | <urn:uuid:ffd973f0-2af2-48c2-85e4-050181d6be58> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-18868267 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.976912 | 467 | 1.539063 | 2 |
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Friday, April 11, 2008
PACIFIC PERSPECTIVES ON AMERICA
The U.S. election: grounds for optimism
By TOM PLATE
LOS ANGELES — One early sign that a run of optimism may be on the way is the point at which the utility of continued pessimism is seen as utterly dysfunctional by all concerned.
It is as if things will be sucked into some enormous black hole unless there is a dramatic change in the nation's emotional direction. And so you get this burst of optimism.
This, in fact, is the point at which the American public is beginning to find itself. The growing sense is that the overall American position in the world, once a new president is sworn in early next year, is unlikely to get worse. Thus, even as virtually every opinion poll right now on the "national mood" is bleak, the baseline for pessimism has been set and things can only go up from here.
Or so we hope.
One reason for optimism — decidedly premature, of course — is the belief that the next president, whoever he or she may be, cannot bumble on the world stage any worse than the incumbent has. That's the minimum expectation. The sunnier one is that the next president will actually get this nation moving in the right direction, abroad and here.
For the most part, presidential candidates John McCain, Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton have been trying to convey foreign-policy presidential competence. Asians, though not at all ignored by the outgoing administration, have been anything but the center of Washington's attention.
McCain should know better. And he does — and the Arizona Republican increasingly wants us to believe that, as stubborn as he can be, he is no Bush-brain: "We Americans must lead by example and encourage the participation of the rest of the world, including most importantly, the developing economic powerhouses of China and India," he said. That might not seem like a gale-force wind of fresh air, but it is really refreshing to hear a candidate offer a campaign-trail perspective that actually reflects geopolitical reality. We have to lead by example, not by windy rhetoric — that certainly would be departure for the United States, whether on the issue of climate change or regime change, eh?
McCain, of course, knows communist Asia from an unusual perspective, having spent a half dozen difficult years in Vietnam, five or so of them in prisoner of war captivity. Obama also offers the world an usual Asian connection as well. With his late Kansas-born mother and stepfather, he resided in Indonesia for a quartet of younger years. A recent speech emphasized the need for "strong ties with U.S. allies such as Japan, South Korea and Australia." The 46-year-old senator — potentially the first black American president — also has proposed to help forge "a more effective framework in Asia that goes beyond bilateral agreements, occasional summits, and ad hoc arrangements."
Alas, it is not clear here whether he's proposing to morph into the second coming of Jean Monnet for Asia, the celebrated postwar European visionary who wanted the oft-divided continent to be more harmoniously structured, as in fact the European Union is today. Or whether it is the case that such Obama-flowery words are simply nice notes that flutter through a speech in a manner that registers as more White House in tone.
Be that as it may, desperate times require desperate optimisms. Give Hillary Clinton some Asiatic credit, too:
Referring to the question of whether giant India, soon to pass China in population, should be recognized as a permanent member of the U.N. Security Council, she leans positive. India deserves "an augmented voice," she says, in regional and international institutions, especially the United Nations. She is right on the issue — and no matter how much it thrills her Indian-American campaign contributors who after all paid out good money for this sort of stuff!
Hey, but what about China? The White House candidates have yet to put forth anything remotely resembling a full-blown China policy. That will come in time, of course; until then, we must remain cool in the face of the occasional silly comment, of which there have been a few already.
China must "play by the rules," offers Obama, as if Beijing's nakedly nationalistic track record in trade and other policy has been markedly worse than anyone else's — or than Japan's in past decades. And McCain, criticizing Beijing's efforts to forge regional alliances in Asia, sometimes seems to suggest that China should have a foreign policy that requires it to check with us first before doing anything. And Clinton, like the others, makes pandering noises about Chinese imports that mainly serve to keep U.S. inflation in check.
The Long March of America's endless presidential campaign has only just begun. We can go along for the ride in the depths of pessimistic despair, or focus on the bright spots and ride them to new heights of optimism. I'm all for the highs.
UCLA professor Tom Plate is a veteran journalist. Copyright 2008 Tom Plate | <urn:uuid:47637017-8783-4078-b9fb-10998339840e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://info.japantimes.co.jp/text/eo20080411tp.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.960791 | 1,107 | 1.578125 | 2 |
IBS is international to the core. It offers its students a global experience that prepares them to operate with ease across borders and cultures - in an environment that prizes diversity and the ability to bring a worldwide perspective to the study of business.
The School's curriculum is wholly oriented towards the study of global business, finance and economics. It is updated annually to take account of developments in the fast-moving world economy: about one in six courses are new each year. And all students begin their studies with a unique course on globalization, which introduces the main themes of the School and underlines its commitment to the study of world business in its broadest context.
Students and Faculty
The IBS student population is decidedly cosmopolitan. A recently graduated alumnus of IBS's MBA program has likened the School to an "Olympic Village" in the extent of its diversity. More than 75 nations are represented at IBS and, while English is a common thread, a plethora of languages may be heard every day in the School's Sachar International Center.
Faculty and Research
We thrive on the excitement that leading-edge research brings to the day-to-day life of the School in discussions, classrooms, and conferences. The faculty includes some 20 scholars specializing in international finance, economics and business. Nearly all hold PhDs from leading US institutions and many are widely known and edit journals in their fields. Faculty members focus on several disciplines, but share a fundamental interest in international issues and typically have studied or conducted research abroad.
The IBS faculty is also diverse. Many are from outside the United States, and all have academic teaching and research interests that transcend national borders. The School's two research institutes are also dedicated to global issues: the Rosenberg Institute addresses global finance, while the Asia-Pacific Center for Economics and Business conducts research, teaching and outreach on the Asia Pacific region.
Teaching is valued highly. The curriculum includes case-method and instructor-directed courses, and emphasizes classroom interaction. Classes are relatively small (40s for core courses and 20s for electives). Student evaluations average above 4 on a 1-5 scale. Our professors are not easy, but succeed by bringing difficult topics to life through skillful discussions and concrete examples.
We are not just scholars. Our faculty also includes some 20 adjunct professors with extensive practical experience, such as Chief Credit Officer of a large bank, Chief Fixed Income Strategist of a major investment firm, and Chief Budget Officer. Their popular courses connect theory to the business decisions of real firms. Entrepreneurship is one area of active involvement for several adjunct faculty members, who contribute their expertise to courses and to extra-curricular activities such as the annual Business Plan Competition.
IBS's MA and MBA programs are among the very few in the world to require students to have international experience by the time they graduate. Some of our students already have such experience when they enter Brandeis (if they have lived outside the US for at least three years, or worked abroad in a professional position for at least three months). Those who do not have such experience can take advantage of the exchange programs offered at one of our 19 partner universities, which can be seen on our Current Students Webpages.
Although study abroad is only one of the ways to meet the international experience requirement, many students see it as a uniquely valuable part of their IBS degree. Even students who already have international experience often take advantage of this option.
Centers & Institutes
The Asper Center for Global Entrepreneurship is Brandeis IBS's platform for exploring the contributions of entrepreneurship in different professions and across borders. The Center provides a wide array of learning experiences, brings entrepreneurs from around the world to the Brandeis campus, and conducts research on the structure and impact of global entrepreneurship. The Asper Center was established in 2006 by Leonard J. Asper '86.
The Asia-Pacific Center for Economics and Business, located within IBS, conducts research, teaching and outreach on business and economic issues in the Asia Pacific region and on US-Asia Pacific relations.
The Perlmutter Institute for Global Business Leadership, established by Brandeis Trustee Louis '56 and Barbara Perlmutter, will prepare IBS students for leadership positions in the global corporation of the future through a combination of theoretical and technical knowledge with pragmatic skills.
The Rosenberg Institute of Global Finance seeks to analyze and anticipate major trends in global financial markets, institutions and regulations, and to develop the information and ideas required to solve emerging problems. It focuses on the policy implications of economic globalization. To this end, it sponsors informal exchanges among scholars and practitioners, conducts research and policy analyses, and participates the School’s teaching programs.The Institute, founded in 2002, is named for Barbara C. Rosenberg '54 and Richard M. Rosenberg.
World Financial Centers Seminars
Each year IBS holds a seminar on a leading global financial center in collaboration with a local academic institution. The seminars have taken place in Paris, Frankfurt and Tokyo, and London. Taught by prominent academics and business people, they provide an exceptional insight into the workings of global financial markets and institutions. | <urn:uuid:cade4795-e8e6-4952-ac80-2c851801b9da> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.brandeis.edu/global/about/brandeis/connections.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.948758 | 1,048 | 1.515625 | 2 |
Adventuring characters gain experience through the wealth they extract from the underworld. As detailed in The First Fantasy Campaign by Dave Arneson, adventurers in the initial version of what was to become D&D were required to spend their plundered gold pursuing certain motivations in order to gain experience from it. Gold allows experienced adventurers to bring order to the wilderness on the surface through the construction of strongholds. The forces of Law desire the plundering of gold from the clutches of Chaos in the underworld that they might spread the will of man across the land.My imagination went to a slightly different place with this idea than Sham took it. He went in a metagame direction (XP), while my thinking was more economic. Both approaches are slightly different aspects of the same thing, and lead to similar outcomes.
The more gold in man's economy, the more the domain of Law expands, thereby encroaching on the domain of monsters. It's habitat destruction.
Most monsters of low and medium intelligence have no use for gold. Their "societies" are anarchies where the strong dominate the weak. They have little use for abstract currency, since their economy is based on barter—barter of goods, or the barter of favors and promises.
However, some intelligent monsters recognize the dangers posed to their habitat by man's expansionism. These monsters, particularly dragons, hope to stymy civilization by removing currency from the human economy (i.e.—hoarding treasure). They do so directly and by employing lesser agents, such as orcs, goblins, and kobolds. Goblins have no interest in gold, but they desperately want the favor and protection of a dragon or his mid-level ogre operative.
Low level adventurers are just as much cogs in the System of Capital as goblins. This is even more evident if you use the carousing rules in your game—characters acts as hoses, syphoning gold from the dungeon to the economy. Even neutral, primarily self-interested adventurers are therefore agents of Law.
Law versus Chaos is all about the flow of capital. Dragons are economic terrorists, who want the flow running away from Men. | <urn:uuid:0b797b00-9bd5-4b2e-a6d6-939f3e8f7a1f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://quicklyquietlycarefully.blogspot.com/2010/10/alignment-flow-of-capital.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963069 | 439 | 1.570313 | 2 |
[UPDATE 12/01/05: Asharq Alawsat reports on the speech in an analytical article that's actually based on what Bush said, rather than what the writer of the Arab News editorial below imagined he said.]
THE Bush administration, impaled on a hook of its own making, is beginning to turn uncomfortably as the US public loses faith in the Iraq operation and fellow Republican politicians facing midterm elections in 11 months are starting to lose faith in its leadership. The president sought to defend himself yesterday with an attacking speech at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis but his tone is changing.
Gone was the implication embedded in all the administration’s previous rhetoric that those who doubted Washington’s Iraq mission were unpatriotic, were undermining US troops and were playing into the hands of America’s enemies. Instead while still insisting that the administration would see the job through, Bush spoke of troop reductions next year. He is still counting on a successful outcome to this month’s general election and the effective training of sufficient Iraqi police and army personnel to shoulder the burden of the insurgency.
I fear the Arab News has bought in to many of the canards being offered to dispute the war in Iraq. It’s believing the rhetoric that it, itself, purveys by suggesting that Bush is saying anything different from what he’s been saying since before the war even began. This is not to say that the war has continued in a way that was predicted by the White House and Pentagon; it clearly has not.
Here’s President Bush, on Sept. 12, 2002 (thanks to Outside the Beltway):
In 1991, Security Council Resolution 688 demanded that the Iraqi regime cease at once the repression of its own people, including the systematic repression of minorities — which the Council said, threatened international peace and security in the region. This demand goes ignored. Last year, the U.N. Commission on Human Rights found that Iraq continues to commit extremely grave violations of human rights, and that the regime’s repression is all pervasive. Tens of thousands of political opponents and ordinary citizens have been subjected to arbitrary arrest and imprisonment, summary execution, and torture by beating and burning, electric shock, starvation, mutilation, and rape. Wives are tortured in front of their husbands, children in the presence of their parents — and all of these horrors concealed from the world by the apparatus of a totalitarian state.
» Continue Reading
JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia (AFP) — Two Saudi businesswomen swept to a suprise victory in chamber of commerce elections on Wednesday in the first polls in which women stood as candidates in the conservative Muslim kingdom.
“I’m happy, but I’m still under shock,†Lama Al Suleiman, one of the two winners, told AFP.
She was summing up the feelings of many election activists and watchers who had expected, at best, one woman to be elected to the board of directors of the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
“It’s a big leap for Saudi women, an answer to what people want,†said Suleiman, a 39-year-old mother of four.
Suleiman and fellow female winner Nashwa Taher ran on a list of heavyweight business people and industrialists which clinched the 12 board seats up for grabs.
With only 100 women among the some 3,880 chamber members who cast ballots, the pair’s victory was effectively handed to them by men.
This article, from the Khaleej Times in the United Arab Emirates, reports on the significant success two Saudi women have had in winning election to the Board of Directors of the Jeddah Chamber of Commerce & Industry. Their election is properly seen as a major step forward in legitimizing the place of women in both business and politics.
As this Chicago Tribune article points out, though, voting turnout among femaled members of the JCCI was amazingly low. This means, of course, that Saudi men were voting the women into their positions. It’s only a small step, but it’s an important one. It will play a role in getting women involved in the next municipal elections as well.
[UPDATE 12/04/05: According to an in depth report on this series, Asharq Alawsat states that this program was broadcast on Saudi TV Channel 1. I can only conclude that the program was orginally broadcast on Al-Arabiya, then retransmitted by Channel 1. Sorry for the confusion. ]
[Correction: The Saudi station broadcasting this series is not Saudi Channel 1, as I wrote in this and the earlier piece. Rather, it is Saudi-owned Al-Arabiya, a satellite channel broadcast out of Dubai. Happily, is has a far wider audience than Channel 1]
Repentant Terrorists Confess on TV
Riyadh, 30 Nov. (AKI) – Saudi state television has broadcast the first programme in a series dedicated to terrorism and al-Qaeda’s recruitment techniques. ‘Jihad Experiences, the Deceit’, broadcast on Tuesday night, featured the testimonies of three repentant terrorists who reveal how al-Qaeda recruits young people and convinces them to blow themselves up in the name of Islam.
The first programme showed the testimonies of former terrorists Ziyad Asfan, Abdullah Khuja and Walid Khan. They revealed that there are four main phases in al-Qaeda’s recruitment of young Muslims: brainwashing, the actual recruitment, the departure for the Jihad or holy war, and the repentance which then leads them to change their minds.
Saudi TV also spoke to religious experts who explain how al-Qaeda’s reasoning differs from Islamic Sharia law. They also explained the social and emotional situations that lead these young people to fall into the terror group’s trap, the fact that the recruiters use their passion and predisposition to extremism, as well as their desire to change the world through quick, radical solutions.
Following up on yesterday’s report, the Italian news agency AKI gives details of the first of a five-part series being broadcast on Saudi TV, documenting the process by which young jihadis are recruited. It’s an interesting series. Read the whole article.
“What really scares me is that their role as victims may just suit the Muslims.” I like this statement by the Swiss intellectual of Egyptian origin Tariq Ramadan, at a time when I see this immense rush by many Arabs to believe that Al-Jazeera Channel in Doha was really going to be bombed by the Americans. This belief comes not only from those whom we call the Arab street, or the general public, or in the language of past times, the rabble, but from people who have status and an important position, particularly in the media and the press sector.
The rumors, ginned up in British tabloids, that Pres. Bush planned to destroy the headquarters of Al-Jazeera TV are quashed in this Asharq Alawsat article by Mshari Al-Zaydi. Al-Zaydi, a Saudi expert on Islamic movements and fundamentalism, points out how ridiculous this allegation is on its face:
Let us review the issue that Mr. Al-Khazen believes is the truth: Bush was going to raid Doha, the capital of Qatar, the country that hosts the largest US military base in the region, the country from which the strategic battle against Iraq was waged, the country that held news conferences and gave media briefings on a daily basis during the day to day events of the war that toppled Saddam, the Gulf country that has warm relations with Israel, and the country that does not hide its vibrant relations with the United States. What else should we add?
This article goes in for some serious taking of names, noting the various Arabic media “heroes” who very much have feet of clay, specifically citing the slimy Mohammed Haykal who deluded generations of Egyptians, among others. It also notes that many in Iraq see Al-Jazeera as part of the problem, not the solution. Citing an IPSOS poll on Iraqi TV viewing patterns, he says that after a (nameless) Iraqi station, comes the Saudi Al-Arabiya channel; Al-Jazeera falls in sixth place. Al-Arabiya has, in fact, been attacked and bombed by “insurgents”.
Al-Zaydi sees Al-Jazeera as a mixed bag. It has demonstrably done good things for Arabic media, pushing the boundaries on what is considered “reportable” and bringing a certain degree of professionalism to the task. But it has also fallen down in its own professionalism, becoming a mouthpiece for fundamentalists and easily slipping into a populist “anti-Bush is good enough” attitude toward reporting.
This is a good article, though many of the names of journalists he cites will be unknown to most American readers. Do take a look at it.
Kingdom Signs SR512 Million Contract for Railroad Project
Javid Hassan, Arab News
RIYADH, 30 November 2005 — Minister of Finance Dr. Ibrahim Al-Assaf signed here yesterday a contract for over SR512 million ($136.8 million) with a consortium of multinational companies led by the Louis Berger Group of the US to do the complete design and construction of a 2,400 km freight and mineral transportation project linking Al-Jalamid and Al-Zabira in the north to Riyadh, with another line branching off to Ras Az-Zour in the Eastern Province.
Making use of new oil revenues, the Saudi government is extending infrastructure. The new rail lines are expected to create 75,000 jobs and to link mineral-rich areas in the north of the country to the ports in the east. Currently, there is only one rail line in the country, connecting Riyadh and Dammam, by way of Hofuf. An earlier line, linking Damascus to Mecca, was destroyed in WWI by Lawrence and his Arab Legion.
Riyadh, 29 Nov. (AKI) – A television series on terrorism, aimed at dissuading young Saudis from following in the footsteps of many of their contemporaries and joining the Jihad (holy war), is to be broadcast on Saudi Arabia’s main state-run television channel on Tuesday night. “Attempting the Jihad…the deceit” will be broadcast immediately after the news, according to the Saudi Press Agency, and is a five part documentary series which it is hoped will stem the flow of young Saudi men going to Iraq.
The special documentary will tell the stories of several young Saudis who left for Iraq to fight alongside the Jordanian leader of al-Qaeda in Iraq, Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. Their testimonies will reveal the secrets and methods used to cross the border between the two countries and contact the mujahadeen. The documentary is also said to feature the testimonies of several young men who managed to reach Afghanistan and who will explain the recruitment and brainwashing techniques used by al-Qaeda.
According to this wire story from the Italian news agency AKI, the Saudi government is using it own medium of terrestrial TV to address the problem of terrorism and recruitment for jihad. It’d be better if they could get this on a satellite channel, as most Saudis do not, in fact, watch Channel 1 due to its lack of meaningful content. But it’s a step in the right direction. Also needed is better control over the imams who do get airtime on the satellite channels. They are often at odds with government anti-terror, anti-jihad policy, as MEMRI is happy to point out. Do read the whole piece, though.
Saudi Women Leads Human Rights Delegation on First International Trip
By Omar El Okeily
Riyadh, Asharq Al-Awsat— The first delegation of the Saudi National Human Rights Association (SNHRA) left for Denmark earlier today under the leadership of Dr. Lubna al-Ansari, head of the Association’s Planning and Development department, on a visit to the human rights center based there.
The visit aims at establishing technical cooperation between the SNHRA and the center, and benefiting from the Danish center’s expertise to improve the SNHRA’s performance.
The delegation comprises of Dr. Abdul Rahman al-Annad, head of the Culture and Publishing committee; Dr. Hasan al-Sharif, supervisor of the SNHRA’s branch in the Western Region; and Dr. Bahijah Baha Izzi, member of the SNHRA’s family committee.
The head of the delegation told Asharq al-Awsat, “We will begin the first steps of cooperation with the Human Rights center in Denmark, despite the cultural differences between us. However the mechanisms for dealing with human rights are the same everywhere and these matters do not differ.”
Asked whether she is the first woman to lead a Saudi delegation abroad, she said laughing, “There is no difference between men and women in these matters.
This is a good start for the quasi-governmental human rights organization.
More Saudi Women Take to Nursing
Javid Hassan, Arab News
RIYADH, 29 November 2005 — Some 80 young Saudi girls have enrolled for the new graduate nursing program developed at King Faisal Specialist Hospital & Research Center here, according to Dr. Thelma van der Merwe, head of the Saudization and Diploma Program at KFSH&RC.
The import of this article is buried in its last line:
Asked about the social stigma associated with Saudi women entering the nursing profession, she said they were gradually overcoming the problem.
“Overcoming the problem” is a huge social change. Traditionally–and the Saudis are nothing if not traditional–nursing was a profession gravely shunned by Saudi (and other Arab) women. The job requires dealing with unpleasant things concerning the body. Usually, only foreigners would work as nurses in the KSA. Even in “socially liberal” societies like Syria, nursing was something only orphans might go into, for lack of any better prospects.
That Saudi women are now entering this profession is a major jump into responsible social behavior. And again, it will shame Saudi men who are too “delicate” to do things with their hands.
Kingdom on the Move
Roger Harrison | Arab News
If you thought the ground never moved for you, you are wrong; it does — and in the case of Saudi Arabia about two centimeters a year in a generally north easterly direction, rotating counter-clockwise about a theoretical point located in the eastern Mediterranean sea. The whole of Saudi Arabia is slowly colliding with, and sliding under, Iran which is being pushed toward the Himalayas.
According to the seismologists, Saudi Arabia and Iran are in for a clash. Of course, the seismology timescale puts this millions of years in the future…
This Arab News article is interesting to those who follow the development of geological sciences. It also has a bearing on the history of the country. A volcano in the mid-13th C., for instance, nearly destroyed the city of Medina. The geological structure of the country also explains both the abundance of petroleum and its richness in minerals. Many are now beginning to see the gold of the “Queen of Sheba” as having come from a region southeast of Mecca, a region that has archeological evidence of paleolithic goldmining. Geologically speaking, Saudi Arabia is a pretty interesting place.
Saudi Arabia is being pushed northeastward by a deep rift in the Red Sea, a continuation of the African Rift Valley. In consequence, the Persian/Arabian Gulf is gradually becoming shallower–it’s already among the shallowest seas. While the consequences of this are distant, the structures themselves are fascinating. One of the available pleasures while I was living there was the ability to travel to interesting places. All you needed was a good map (!), a four-wheel drive vehicle (preferably several in convoy), lots of gas and water, and the determination to do it.
Between Terrorism and Religious Extremism
Let me say at the outset that the gravest threat to the United States today is neither Islamic groups nor Islamic fundamentalism as such. The central threat facing the United States of America is the threat of catastrophic terror by al-Qaeda and its allies. The nature of this threat justifies the allocation of significant resources to counter the threat and defeat al-Qaeda and its allies. But we must be very careful in identifying who the core enemy is and not waste resources and energies on strategies that do not confront the primary threat, and worse yet, could backfire.
First, while we must oppose all terrorism, and we have many local enemies in various parts of the world, most such enemies do not pose the kind of catastrophic threat that al-Qaeda and , and thus do not warrant the kind of resources that could take away from our effort to directly confront the primary threat.
Second, although religious extremism is something most of us would oppose, we have to be very careful not to jump to the conclusion that the threat to the United States stems from religious extremism as such. We have extremists all over the world, as we do in our own country, but most of them do not seek to cause catastrophic harm to us and most do not have the capacity or the support to do so even if they wanted to.
This is the introduction of Shibley Telhamy’s testimony before the House Armed Services Committee. I think he correctly notes that religion–even extremist interpretations–are not the real problem. They are a problem in that they help provide the philosophical grounds for extremist acts, but in themselves they are not those act. Read the whole transcript of his testimony (PDF format).
Riyadh, 24 Nov. (AKI) – Pardoning killers has become big business in Saudi Arabia, the Al-Watan newspaper reports. Families are making millions in exchange for ‘forgiving’ the murderers of their relatives, with more than 40 million Saudi riyals (more than 10 million dollars) being paid out to pardon eight people last year alone. Now, the Saudi newspaper says, the Majlis-e-Shoura consultative council is being urged to intervene and introduce new laws to regulate the payment of blood money and stop the practice from becoming a form of extortion which bankrupts low and middle income families.
“Profit is now the motive of forgiveness,” the newspaper writes. “It is called blood money, and the families of some victims are cashing in, demanding sums beyond the reach of all but the very rich.”
One tribal leader, Hamed al-Wadie, told Al-Watan that the problem stemmed from a lack of awareness and a weakness in faith. Paying out millions to pardon a killer is too much, he said, saying rules and regulations were needed to govern such cases.
Here’s a strange piece from the Italian wire service Adnkronosinternational, about how blood money, the restitution paid by killers in order to avoid capital punishment, has become “big business” for some.
In theory, the granting of clemency by the family of a murder victim is intended to be an act of mercy, with a heavenly reward. The Shari’a law is generally lex talionis, an eye-for-an-eye proposition. But it provides an opportunity to spare the life of a murderer, placing it in the hands of the victim’s family. In addition to the moral good of waiving the right to have a killer put to death, the practice has traditionally involved the payment of “blood money,” an arbitrarily set, but usually modest sum.
This practice seems to have changed recently, however, as more and more families are seeking large sums, at least in a Saudi context. These sums are not amazing by many Americans’ standards, but neither are they settled by a court or a jury; only the family of the victim decides what the victim’s life was worth.
This is clearly another area where transparency in law would prove socially beneficial. The intent of the law is not to enrich the victims, but to compensate them. It also stresses the “enrichment” will come in the next world.
Withdrawal from Iraq ? Here Is the Timetable
In the circles opposed to the toppling of Saddam Hussein one word is making the rounds these days: timetable.
Having failed to stop the war that liberated Iraq, and with their hopes of the insurgents marching triumphant into Baghdad dashed, they are now focusing on one issue: the withdrawal of the US-led coalition forces. Some want this to happen immediately, while others are prepared to grant a few weeks or months.
Those Democrat politicians in Washington, who had backed the war with as much enthusiasm as George W Bush, are now using the issue of withdrawal as a means of distancing themselves from their initial positions. The Arab reactionaries who shuddered at the thought of a despot being toppled by foreign intervention are now clinging to the withdrawal slogan in the hope of sabotaging the process of democratisation in Iraq. In Europe, professional anti-Americans of all ilks are trying to cover their political nakedness with the “ withdrawal†fig leaf.
The truth, however, is that a timetable has been in place from the first day of the war that ended the Ba’athist tyranny in 2003. In that timetable the coalition’s military presence in Iraq is, as it should be, linked to the programme for the nation’s political reconstruction. In other words the coalition forces are in Iraq to accomplish a precise political task and not to provide the United States or any other foreign power with a forward base in the Middle East.
Writing in Asharq Alawsat, the largest circulating Arabic language daily in the world, columnist Amir Taheri lays it out pretty clearly. Progress is being made in Iraq, at a pace set by the Iraqi people and their ability to develop new political processes. The deadlines they have set for themselves to make various political steps have largely been met. And they have held for themselves the ability to order foreign troops out of the country, at any time.
As Taheri puts it:
What matters, however, is that it is up to the people of Iraq and its coalition allies to decide the moment an the modalities of the withdrawal It is a judgment that no outsider could make .. Those who opposed the liberation and those who have done all they could to undo it have no moral right to join that debate. | <urn:uuid:6ae2e4aa-051b-4e9e-b2ea-6c61ba5e3043> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://xrdarabia.org/2005/11/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.960651 | 4,761 | 1.585938 | 2 |
Credit: Lynne Damianos
After a two-year deep-energy renovation, the 500-unit Castle Square Apartments in Boston's South End received LEED-Platinum certification.
When WinnDevelopment and Castle Square Tenants Organization partnered to renovate a 540,000-square-foot property in Boston, they forged the nation’s largest deep-energy retrofit of an affordable housing community, while managing little interruption to the residents.
“Often people will say there’s little disruption, and there ends up being maximum interruption,” says Larry Curtis, president of Boston-based WinnDevelopment. "We created hospitality units on-site within a section of the project so that we could effectively hopscotch people through the building and move them one section at a time.”
Residents at Castle Square Apartments were temporarily displaced in furnished units for about a week while their units were renovated with myriad new high-efficient cooling/heating equipment and appliances.
But the driving element was the non-standard method of intensive air sealing, which helped the 500-unit building receive LEED-Platinum certification after the building reached a 72 percent reduction in energy use.
“We basically wrapped it in a blanket,” Curtis says. A 5-inch super-insulated skin coated the outside of the building, giving an added facelift to the property, which had been in poor condition and lacked proper insulation. The exterior took months to complete, and the total renovation spanned two years.
Although it can be incrementally more costly up-front to work around residents, Curtis says, in the end they were left with a fully occupied building that maintained its affordability. What’s left is the educational aspect: The developers are ensuring residents know how to use the new services and equipment to reap the most benefits from the building, which will see a $227,578 reduction in utility bills annually.
The property serves as a large-scale illustration of not only the importance of preserving affordable housing, but the possibility of doing so in a way that far improves upon the original design.
"We wanted to effectively prove a case that the existing inventory of apartments, especially inventory of affordable housing apartments, are a great candidate for rehabilitation for savings and energy,” Curtis says.
The $50.5 million renovation was financed through a series of funding sources, including MassHousing, the Department of Housing and Urban Development, Massachusetts Department of Energy Resources, Boston Redevelopment Authority, Bank of America, NSTAR, and National Grid, as well as grants from The Kresge Foundation and Enterprise. | <urn:uuid:c3756af5-d712-4ede-922e-9f11a04f214c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ecobuildingpulse.com/affordable-housing/winndevelopment-completes-nation-s-largest-deep-energy-retrofit.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959884 | 538 | 1.742188 | 2 |
Patrick Brown has been based in Thailand since 1999. His photographic forays along the rugged Thai-Burma border sparked an enduring fascination with the jungles of Asia and the events and issues surrounding them. He is currently working on a book about the pan-Asian trafficking of endangered wildlife, journeying from the jungles of Assam to the brothels of Ho Chi Minh City. In 2003 he was a nominee for the prestigious Worldpress Joop Swart Masterclass in Amsterdam. His images have appeared in Time, Der Spiegel, Independent, The Observer, Mother Jones, Foto 8, and other magazines and newspapers worldwide. He has been awarded a World Press Photo in 2005, 2005 Picture of the Year International, 2005 3p Award and Days Japan award, for his project on Wildlife trade in Asia. Patrick’s work has been screened at Reportage photo festival in Sydney and Visa Pour L’Image at Perpignan, his work is also in numerous international collections, including the Holmes a Court collection and The Photography Gallery of Western Australia collection. He is represented by Panos. | <urn:uuid:aaca2ac3-130d-4f7a-8347-2101283987da> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.lightstalkers.org/patrickbrown | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951727 | 223 | 1.632813 | 2 |
Long ago, the Internet was just a tool used by people to find out information, talk to old friends, and play games. But lately, it has turned into a war zone.
On the Internet nowadays, a person can do almost anything. They can sing the praises of that pathetic cyber-terrorism group that has the sole hobby of being trolls and attacking the wealthy, the successful, and the happy percentage of the population--Anonymous. They can personally attack a woman who poses no threat to them, a woman with a couple horrific medical conditions, a woman who was and always will be stronger, braver, smarter, and more sane than the attacker could ever hope to be--a woman such as Patricia Nicklaus. Heck, a person can easily create a false e-mail address and a second and also false Newsvine account.
What some people fail to realize, however, is that there is a barrier between real life and the Internet. Some people perceive the Internet in such a way that they wholeheartedly believe the person they are attacking is their next door neighbor. However, this perception is a false sense of security. But why should that matter to them? They'll probably never meet the person anyway.
Sometimes, I even want to meet the person who attacked Pat N over the Internet face to face.
I do not like using the Vine to send messages to people. After all, the purpose of the Vine is to discuss news and put information out to the public. Stuff like that. Not for carrying out personal grudges.
However, my message is a clear one: Please end this game. It is not helping you, and in the end, Karma will come back to haunt you. What goes around comes around. In the end, nothing is gained except for the slight swelling of an injured ego. Nothing is gained at all. Those words and those posts...eventually time will just erase them all and they will be worth less than nothing, which is what they are worth right now. So what's the point of doing all this? Is it fun? Is that all life has to offer on your end of the screen?
I don't believe for a second that life can be so dull as to create a hobby out of attacking somebody you have never seen. I believe the person who attacked her can still turn over a new leaf and see the beauty in life, and be grateful for other human beings despite all of our little flaws. I believe the person who attacked her isn't an evil person, but rather a lost and lonely person trying to find a friend but has no idea how to do so.
I believe you can actually be a good person, if you really tried.
So enough of this war. Right now, there are more important things to think about. Right now, there is a life to live. So please, go live life away from holding a grudge against a woman you will never meet. It will only accomplish nothing.
I've put my sword back in the sheathe. Please don't prove to me that I am the only mature person in this so called "game." After all...do you live in Real Life, or have you been hopelessly sucked into Internet Life? | <urn:uuid:78852003-021f-4aa8-9059-bf0a736c73bc> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://rebecca-n.newsvine.com/_news/2012/04/07/11076664-the-internet-vs-real-life | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.969748 | 656 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Times Frets: Congress Not Yet on Board Amnesty Bandwagon
Rachel Swarns, who chided Republicans for daring to use immigration as a political issue before the 2006 Congressional elections, wondered on Friday whetherany kind of immigration legislationwould pass the Democrat-controlled House.
"House lawmakers stood before the television cameras on Thursday and hailed the introduction of a new measure to secure the border and move millions of illegal immigrants toward citizenship....Key lawmakers in both chambers seem to be moving to the right to assuage conservatives who helped derail immigration legislation last year. Now there are doubts as to whether Congress will actually send an immigration bill to President Bush this year.
"Only a few months ago, Democrats and Republicans alike were predicting that immigration legislation would move relatively smoothly - with bipartisan support - through the new Democratic-controlled Congress. Lawmakers and advocates for immigrants remain hopeful that that can still happen, but they said the political environment had changed.
"'I don't know why we were so naïve to think that things were going to go so swimmingly,' said Michele Waslin of the National Council of La Raza, an immigration advocacy group, who addressed concerns about the stalemate in the Senate. 'I sincerely hope the process gets back on track very soon.'
"Democratic leaders say Republican backing is critical, both to ensure passage of a bill in the Senate and to protect newly elected moderate and conservative Democrats in the House, some of whom campaigned against legalizing illegal immigrants.
"Democrats and Republicans stood side by side at the House news conference Thursday. But the possibility of a partisan rift remains palpable, particularly in the Senate.
"Senator John McCain, the Arizona Republican who is running for president, has distanced himself from Senator Edward M. Kennedy, the Massachusetts Democrat, as Mr. McCain has faced a barrage of criticism from conservatives who oppose his support of the legalization of illegal immigrants. The two men joined forces last year to help pass the Senate bill, which would have put most of the nation's illegal aliens on a path to citizenship."
Notice the unbalanced labeling by Swarns - while her story cited conservatives on three occasions, the liberal Hispanic interest group National Council of La Raza ("the race") was simply termed an "immigration advocacy group." | <urn:uuid:2748c22c-b1e9-4629-a90c-c2f2283deb1b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.mrc.org/articles/times-frets-congress-not-yet-board-amnesty-bandwagon | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967329 | 454 | 1.640625 | 2 |
For years, Rotary’s commitment to Service Above Self has been channeled through the four Avenues of Service, which form the foundation of club activity.
Club Service focuses on strengthening fellowship and ensuring the smooth functioning of Rotary clubs.
Vocational Service involves club members serving others through their professions and aspiring to high ethical standards. Rotarians, as business leaders, share skills and expertise through their vocations, and they inspire others in the process.
Community Service is the opportunity Rotary clubs have to implement club projects and activities that improve life in the local community.
International Service encompasses efforts to expand Rotary’s humanitarian reach around the world and to promote world understanding and peace. It includes everything from contributing to PolioPlus to funding disaster relief via Shelter Box USA, to helping Rotary Youth Exchange students adjust to their host countries. Rotary’s Rotarians are members of Rotary clubs. Rotary clubs belong to Rotary International.
Fund raising activities
Throughout its history the Venice Nokomis Rotary Club has contributed thousands of dollars each year to community and international service projects. These funds, at times exceeding $50,000 annually are raised through two major fund raising events and through the efforts and contributions of our individual members.
A qualified candidate for Rotary club membership is an adult of good character and good business, professional, or community reputation. The candidate fits one of the following criteria:
Holds or has held an executive position with discretionary authority in any worthy and recognized business or profession. Serves or has served as a community leader. | <urn:uuid:aa8a96e2-696e-4d73-822d-bdb30e9bb373> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.venicenokomisrotary.org/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.944336 | 323 | 1.640625 | 2 |
Editor's Desk: Evolution of the Surveying Industry
Professional Surveyor Magazine - February 2004
The surveying industry is in a constant state of evolution. We are witnessing, possibly, the most dramatic changes this industry has ever seen. This evolution, which is being triggered by the new technologies and business opportunities, are real life illustrations of how economic Darwinism is being playing out before our very eyes. This issue of Professional Surveyor Magazine
provides a sweeping view of the evolution this industry is undergoing. The element of exploration still exists within the surveying field as Jim Moore states in his article, "Surveying Goes Underground." The novel, yet, esoteric application of mapping caves illustrates the evolution of the process of surveying-moving beyond the labor-intensive, traditional processes to take advantage of new technology to improve accuracy, efficiency, and safety.
The need for certified, surveyed positions is highlighted in a fascinating article on page 42, by Cliff Mugnier, on how surveying and close range photogrammetry helped to solve a forensic case. The accuracy of the critical locations, certified by a licensed surveyor and therefore appropriate for forensic use, combined with photogrammetry to provide the critical elements which, when put together like a puzzle, served to solve a forensic case which could have meant prison or freedom for the defendant.
In the spirit of the intrepid explorer-surveyors, read the exploits of the present day explorer-surveyors in Eric Stahlke's article, "Return to the River, Part 2… Going Nowhere." The Tanana Chiefs Conference of Fairbanks, Alaska, faces another summer on the rivers of Alaska. This article provides an exciting and entertaining first-hand perspective of the trials and tribulations of the modern surveyor operating in extreme and remote locations, and we learn that real-life adventure is not dead.
In keeping with the evolution of Professional Surveyor Magazine
, we would like to welcome a few new talented writers to our already distinguished line-up.
Joe Knetsch joins us, along with Mary Root and Greg Spies, as our new history writers. This knowledgeable group of writers will contribute on a rotating basis so that you will see a different writer each month. With this rotation, we hope to provide some different points of view on a variety of historical subjects-from around the country. Joe holds a Ph.D. in history from Florida State University and is employed as the historian for the Division of State Lands, Florida Department of Environmental Protection. Don't miss his inaugural column on the history of meandering on page 60.
Jon Purnell also joins us as our new book reviewer. Jon comes to us from Port Angeles, Washington. He is a professional land surveyor who teaches a two-year surveying-geomatics course for Peninsula College. His insightful first review on The Measure of All Things: The Seven Year Odyssey and Hidden Error That Transformed the World
by Ken Alder on page 34 brings into focus the rich history and consequence of the surveying discipline.
These insights to the history and evolution of the profession help to keep the traditions alive and creates a pride of profession that is unequaled in other disciplines. However, a message I hear repeatedly from surveyors and industry experts alike is that because of the new technologies and opportunities that are impacting the industry-the surveyor of yesterday must evolve or become extinct. Now, don't get me wrong. I am simply the messenger. I take no joy in repeating these comments-they are popping up all over the industry from conversations in the halls at surveyor meetings to letters and editorials in state land surveyor association newsletters. But, I take solace, and glean optimism, from knowing that unprecedented opportunities lie ahead for this industry.
Until next time … cheers!
» Back to our February 2004 Issue | <urn:uuid:5822a611-fc64-4a37-b9ce-2b5cba8327e0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.profsurv.com/magazine/article.aspx?i=1188 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.931337 | 780 | 1.632813 | 2 |
When is proofing done using stretch and fold?
I'm new to using the stretch and fold method and can not figure out when the bread has finished proofing? Before with traditional kneading I would knead till window pane and then let proof tildoughty doubled, or about there depending on the recipe. Im not sure with S&F if I should do one morotu cycle or shape for baking.
Thanks for the help. | <urn:uuid:39e4d93a-8434-4115-8f0b-f13c527f94d6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/31242/when-proofing-done-using-stretch-and-fold | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.933195 | 92 | 1.617188 | 2 |
Can The Papal Election Be Hacked? Not Likely: They Use Publicly Hand-Counted Paper BallotsFebruary 25th, 2013 2:39 pm Brad Friedman
Originally posted at The Brad Blog
With another papal election coming up, one might wonder how the papal elections, since 1059 or so, have managed to remain secure and unchallenged.
Here at The BRAD BLOG we’ve been calling for the same thing for U.S. elections for some time. Granted, it hasn’t been 1,000 years, it’s only beginning to feel like it. We were even recently immortalized for that effort.
Schneier’s breakdown of the voting process at papal enclaves is absolutely fascinating, particularly as the process they’ve developed over centuries mirrors much of what the process would look like if our nation ditched its secret, oft-failed, easily manipulated, unoverseeable vote-tallying computers and modeled our tabulation process on the open, public, and very rarely challenged process used by the citizens in some 40 percent of New Hampshire towns. It’s almost identical, in many ways, to the one used to select new popes.
As Schneier notes, when a new pope is elected, “Every step of the election process is observed by everyone.”
“The ballot is entirely paper-based,” he explains, “and all ballot counting is done by hand. Votes are secret, but everything else is open”
Talk about your “Holy See“?! It’s hand-counted PAPAL ballots!
“Nine election officials are randomly selected from the cardinals: three ‘scrutineers,’ who count the votes; three ‘revisers,’ who verify the results of the scrutineers; and three ‘infirmarii,’ who collect the votes from those too sick to be in the chapel.”
If that sounds remarkably familiar, then you may be one of the few who understand how “Democracy’s Gold Standard,” — publicly-overseen precinct-based hand-counting — actually works. While there are different techniques for it, one that is often used includes counting teams of four, with two people both agreeing on which candidate has been selected by the voter on each ballot (“scrutineers,” as they are known at the Vatican) and two others who write down the running count, with both agreeing that it has been recorded correctly (the “revisers”).
For papal elections, the entire counting process is transparent and happens immediately after all votes are cast, with all of the assembled Cardinals observing and authenticating the tally in the very same place where votes were cast, inside the Sistine Chapel.
In precinct-based hand-counted elections in the U.S., it all happens just after the close of polls at the very same precinct where the votes were cast, with the public, video cameras and representatives from all political parties observing and authenticating the tally as accurate. The results are publicly posted at the precinct before ballots are moved anywhere. They can also be verified for accuracy again later if there are any questions. | <urn:uuid:d087ae3e-a6e4-4055-bd07-db8503daa330> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.nationalmemo.com/can-the-papal-election-be-hacked-not-likely-they-use-publicly-hand-counted-paper-ballots/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968528 | 685 | 1.671875 | 2 |
There are many different approaches to a strategic and effective public relations campaign. However, once you have built your strategy and developed the campaign, the critical component becomes effective execution.
Keys To Executing An Effective Public Relations Campaign
There are common elements to effectively execute almost every public relations initiative. While the following is not an exhaustive list, we have listed a few mission-critical components to carry out an effective campaign.
The Right People
It is important to have diligent and responsible people heading any effort, but for PR you also need to consider the personality type of the individual executing your campaign. Some people are naturally outgoing, easy to talk to; focused yet friendly. These are your best candidates. You need people who naturally build relationships and can talk through some of the initial barriers when making new contacts.
Know Your Stuff
It is all too easy to get set a goal and start running. But before you do anything with regard to Public Relations, you need to study and compile information. You need to know everything about your campaign, inside and out; have all the details, prepare for objections; think through every possible scenario and outcome before you ever make a post, pick up the phone, or start a project. If you are in the public eye and someone asks you a simple question about your efforts that you cannot answer, the whole campaign can be damaged.
Know Your Contacts
The only thing more embarrassing than to call and asking for the wrong person is to call and ask for someone who does not exist. Do your homework, find out who your contacts are, and verify your notes. Consider what you have to say that is of interest to them. Then, tailor your communication to be as relevant and effective as possible. Taking some extra time up front can save you from burning bridges in the long run.
Be Ready For Action
You may wait for days to get in contact with someone influential. The last thing you want to do is realize that you do not have the information or the authority needed to take action right way. Some projects collapse for no other reason than delays caused by superfluous communications. Be sure you are positioned to capitalize on every call.
Good Public Relations requires hard work. These keys can help you make the most of your efforts and execute a successful strategic campaign.
There are many different approaches to a strategic and effective public relations campaign. However, once you have built your strategy and developed the campaign, the critical component become effective execution. | <urn:uuid:17c3a4f2-8414-414f-9fa5-7f4f1a3bd560> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://infinityconcepts.net/2012/07/4-keys-to-executing-an-effective-public-relations-campaign/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.960511 | 498 | 1.585938 | 2 |
Feb 15 2013
Murkowski highlights the energy and economic security the Keystone XL project would provide for the country
WASHINGTON, D.C. – U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, on Thursday participated in a colloquy on the Senate floor to urge the president to approve the Keystone XL pipeline. The colloquy was led by Sen. John Hoeven, R-North Dakota, and included a bipartisan group of eight senators.
(Click photo for full video)
“In my Energy 20/20 document, I focus on five different areas that we need to talk about when it comes to energy policy. Our energy should be abundant, affordable, clean, diverse and secure,” Murkowski said. “And when we talk about the fifth one – security – this is where the Keystone XL project really comes in to play.”
Murkowski also highlighted the ripple effect that construction of the pipeline would have throughout the U.S. economy, providing not only an ample supply of energy, but also jobs and other economic benefits that ripple from a project this level.
“It is energy security from the perspective of reducing our reliance on those countries that we don't necessarily like, removing ourselves from the need to import OPEC oil, and having the ability to control our destiny from a perspective of abundance rather than from scarcity,” Murkowski said. “We should look to our friends and neighbors. We should work with the Canadians. The president should sign the Keystone XL pipeline bill into law. He should make it happen.”
Visit our website at http://www.energy.senate.gov/public/ | <urn:uuid:9bf89618-5309-420a-8534-21e21c5bc90c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.energy.senate.gov/public/index.cfm/republican-news?ID=849b905a-9e1c-4dc9-a5d2-96ddd3acab2c | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.943574 | 342 | 1.703125 | 2 |
There's some beauty in the use of a keyboard. To watch ones hands glide over key after key and produce something, something of truth, something that can be shared with the world by a mere push of a button. It is this beauty which draws me to typing. However there is something far greater, with much more beauty held inside it. It is the illegible scrawl from ones own hand. The words which will be read by few, not many. Seen by a lucky minority, with wonder, with each ink spill, each incorrect word with a line through it or hurriedly scribbled out, each unidentical space, and letter. The formation unique to that one person. That is the greatest beauty of all, as no one, not even the original author, can come to replicate the words on that page, that scrap of paper, that reciept from the coffee shop. They will never be written in the same scrawl, never with the same passion behind the eyes, fire in the soul. Never at that moment, with that surrounding.
People tend to forget, it is not solely the author who creates the story, but every stimulus surrounding him at that time. It is not simply his thoughts put upon a page, but every experience which affected him before and during those moments of creativity. When he slept and when he woke, it was those first sounds, the first concious breath, the first thought, the first sight, smell and touch which created the precious text which one reads and loses himself to.
Along with these experiences of the author, it is every experience of the reader, the critic, which completes the story, as he reads and pulls his own memories into affect. Brings his own thoughts to weave themselves in with the lyrical words of the author. He puts the meaning to the words, he creates his character, with some direction of the author and most from himself. He creates a completely different story to the person who read it before him and the person who will read it next.
And that is the true beauty in literature, meanings change constantly, due to context, personality, environment, beliefs. A story will never be read the same way twice. A text will never be given the same analysis. There will always be one person who finds a new meaning, a new beginning, a new end, a new reasoning. And our discovery of literature will expand endlessly as we expand with it. There is always more to know, and i am keen to discover as much as I can before my time runs out. | <urn:uuid:334b0548-7d6e-411a-85aa-3bbf32cd97ee> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wattpad.com/1814540-the-true-beauty-behind-the-words | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.977763 | 518 | 1.679688 | 2 |
A 58-year-old man has died in the Netherlands of (A)H1N1 flu, the National Institute for Public Health and the Environment has announced.
The man is the second Mexican flu victim in the country; he was already seriously ill and in hospital when he contracted the disease.
Earlier this month a 17-year-old boy died of the swine flu. He likewise suffered from other serious complaints.
It is not clear how many people in the Netherlands have - or have had - the flu, because the reporting criteria were changed last week. The H1N1 precautions, including centralised registration, were scaled down, given the relatively mild nature of the symptoms. So far, 46 people have been treated in Dutch hospitals for the flu.
(Wikimedia Commons photo) | <urn:uuid:67c182c5-c975-4a38-a6b5-b6fa2c49be5e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.rnw.nl/english/article/h1n1-flu-claims-second-dutch-victim | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.984656 | 163 | 1.8125 | 2 |
Should Florida make it harder to pass the FCAT?by Opinion Staff
The state Board of Education will vote on Dec. 19th on recommendations to change the way the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test is graded.
The changes could have an outsized effect on 10th-graders, who have to pass the reading FCAT to graduate from high school.
Education Commissioner Gerard Robinson, who has been on the job 17 weeks, met with The Post’s Editorial Board on Monday and said that if the state Board of Education adopts his recommendation to raise passing FCAT scores, 15,000 additional 10th-graders could flunk the reading FCAT this school year.
Students who take the reading and math FCAT are put into one of five levels of achievement based on their numerical scores. Level 3 is considered to be “on grade level.” The state sets so-called “cut scores” to define the range of scores for each achievement level.
Education Commissioner Robinson has recommended raising “cut scores” in elementary, middle and high schools. The impact will be important in the third grade, where students must pass the reading FCAT to be promoted to the fourth grade. But the stakes are highest in the 10th grade.
Many state educators actually had recommended lowering “cut scores” for high school students taking the reading FCAT. Although FCAT scores have been steadily improving in elementary and middle schools ever since the test was introduced more than a decade ago, scores for high school students have not improved.
The results seem to show that Florida students can read just fine until they hit high school. Then, for some reason, they develop reading problems.
The educators who want lower “cut scores” say students do not get dumber in high school. They say the fault is in the grading system.
But Education Commissioner Robinson doesn’t buy that explanation and is pushing for higher “cut scores” in high school.
We think the state should not raise “cut scores” in high school until it better understands why FCAT scores drop so much in the 9th and 10th grades. Just demanding higher scores – without a good plan to achieve those scores – seems like more of the punitive approach that Jeb Bush introduced when he first used FCAT scores to label schools as “failing.”
We also think the plan, which is to use the higher “cut scores” this school year, is premature. The school year is half over, and the Legislature cut education funding 8 percent. It’s not fair to raise requirements under those circumstances.
But Education Commissioner Robinson thinks that the only way to get better FCAT results – which he says translates into better college readiness – is to keep raising the bar. And he says there never will be a perfect time to do that, so the state needs to go ahead and do it as soon as possible.
What do you think? Should Florida make it harder to pass the FCAT? Leave a comment below, and/or click on the link below to take our poll. | <urn:uuid:51f8426c-f363-4485-a983-86f06bba0b1f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blogs.palmbeachpost.com/opinionzone/2011/12/12/should-florida-make-it-harder-to-pass-the-fcat/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964212 | 637 | 1.796875 | 2 |
CALLING ALL ASPIRING FARMERS AND EVERYONE WHO EATS MEAT
Sometimes a film just needs to be seen. It is hard to imagine more important issues that those that involve our food system and amazingly, we have been blessed in this country with all kinds of eye-opening food films and documentaries, from Food Inc. and King Corn to Super Size Me. Now we can add American Meat to the list.
Here in Lanesboro we have a documentary film event on the 3rd Friday of every month during the tourist season (May-October). Since I am smack in the middle of the 10-week process of raising 8-pound pastured Cornish Cross chickens on locally sourced organic feed, when I heard about the new documentary film, American Meat, I immediately thought that the new film might be a timely, hot draw...at least for me.
Raising meat birds myself and having many friends steeped in agriculture, I am immediately drawn to anything regarding sustainable animal husbandry. One such acquaintance, Catherine Friend started out a very reluctant farmer, learned to love her rural lifestyle and wrote about her farming experiences in her best-seller Hit By a Farm. More recently she wrote The Compassionate Carnivore and gave the book an intriguing subtitle: How to keep animals happy, save old MacDonald’s farm, reduce your hoofprint, and still eat meat. I was curious to see how American Meat would fit into the conversation.
American Meat left me quite the endearing feeling towards today’s small, sustainable farmers. The movie showed the many admirable traits of the small farmer: their inventive nature, willingness to work hard, concern for the greater good, sense of humor, respect for past traditions and care for the sustainability of their land.
When I previewed the film last night, I was especially impressed by its tone. It was upbeat, yet realistic, pondering the future supply of beef, chicken and pork. It looks at innovations and attitudes that are changing farm practices and prospects across the country. More importantly for me, it posed a fascinating question: Are you one of the 4 million Americans who’ll heed the call if we all want pasture-raised beef, chicken and pork on our dinner table?
Indeed, for a subject that could be really negative I found American Meat a lift – a documentary that invites anyone and everyone--young people especially--to consider becoming happy, healthy, sustainable small-scale farmers. I loved seeing the profiles of successful farmers (including Chuck Wirtz of West Bend, IA and Joel Salatin of Omnivore’s Dilemma fame) who, against difficult odds, invented practical ways to raise pastured meat and still keep their heads above water. These farmers, like so many in Minnesota, have farmed their whole lives. They love the work that they do and the animals they raise.
The film is certainly one of the hot topics in the food world of cinema and is scheduled widely in our home state. In Lanesboro, we are set for a screening on Friday July 20, 7:30 pm at the St. Mane Theatre in Lanesboro. It’s also showing soon in many more locations in Minnesota, including Rochester, Winona, Northfield, St. Paul, Edina, Wykoff and St. Cloud. In Lanesboro our film event begins with a tasting of locally raised meat at 6:30 pm at Lanesboro Local Marketplace. Then at 7:30, the 82-minute film will be shown across the street at the theatre. Following the film, Paul Wiens of Misty Meadows Farm in Pine Island will draw on his experiences to lead a discussion of small-scale animal farming.
For a sneak peek, watch the 3-minute American Meat trailer: http://www.americanmeatfilm.com
For those of you in the Twin Cities, there is a special treat regarding the Edina Cinema showing this Thursday, the 12th. Lucia of Lucia's restaurant will be serving some great food from local farmers from 5:15-6:15 before the 7:00 screening of the film. Click here for more information.
For more information about the Lanesboro Third Friday Documentary Series leave a comment here or contact the Lanesboro Arts Center at 507-467-2446.
Kitty Baker grew up on a mixed ag farm, then in a small town, near Rochester, MN. She and husband Keith raised two daughters, living in Kansas City and Minneapolis. A professional writer, Kitty enjoys topics of lifestyle and food, especially since 1999, when they bought a farm, Root River Wilds, just north of Lanesboro, MN. The farm’s spectacularly varied acreage -- bluffs and woods, pastures and restored prairies cut with trails and wrapped in the oxbow of the North Branch of the Root River -- is rich with opportunities to discover and share ways to live abundantly. Her last article for SGT was: Straw Bale Gardening. | <urn:uuid:f897d55e-cda1-4547-90c4-a03872928312> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://simplegoodandtasty.com/2012/07/10/american-meat-a-film-focused-on-the-small-farm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.952195 | 1,026 | 1.742188 | 2 |
When the Democrats kick off their convention Tuesday in Charlotte, it will be, among other things, a naked attempt to hold on to North Carolina in the electoral college. The prize is 15 electoral votes which, in a close election, can make or break a candidate’s quest.
Just to give you a sense of how difficult that might be, consider that in 2008 President Barack Obama won here by 0.3 percent margin of victory -- only about 14,000 votes.
Now consider that Bill Clinton, son of the south and keynoter at this week’s convention, was never able to claim victory in North Carolina. In fact, the last Democrat to come out ahead in the presidential sweepstakes here was that other southerner, Jimmy Carter -- and only the first time around, in 1976.
Right now, both Talking Points Memo’s "Polltracker," which combines various polls, and Nate Silver's "Five Thirty Eight" blog in the New York Times, tip North Carolina to Mitt Romney by one or two percentage points. Silver gives Romney a better than 60 percent chance of taking the state.
So what will it take for Obama to win here? Believe it or not, Obama’s best bet is to appeal directly to North Carolina’s Latinos and to hope that, working in tandem with African-Americans, they can provide a heavy block against the GOP, whose candidates are currently ahead in the governor’s race (Pat McCory leads Walter Dalton by about 7 points) and dead even with the Democrat in the senate. Any movement in either of those races could affect the top of the state ticket.
Now, keep in mind Obama’s razor thing 14,000 vote 2008 margin and consider these numbers:
- North Carolina’s population grew by more than 18 percent since 2000, and a good chunk of those new residents are African-Americans and Latino, who doubled their population in a decade. Together, blacks and Hispanics constitute 61 percent of the 1.8 million new residents in the state. Non-Hispanic whites are only 65 percent of the population.
- About 100,000 Latinos are registered voters in North Carolina (that’s the conservative estimate -- some say twice that) -- more than 40,000 since 2008, which should make Obama’s team optimistic. A third of all registered voters in North Carolina are people of color.
- Sixty percent of North Carolina’s Latinos are of Mexican descent, and about 13 percent are Central Americans, according to the U.S. Census. More than 80 percent are under 40 years of age -- meaning that immigration, healthcare and education are strong issues here. Whatever Obama’s abysmal deportation numbers, his DREAM Act executive order, the Affordable Care Act and the Pell Grants move should all play well to Latinos here. (But working against him is a Latino unemployment rate here of 10.2, above the national average.)
- In 2008, African-Americans mirrored their population on the voter rolls at 21 percent, and about 38 percent of Democratic voters. This year, the Obama campaign has launched a massive voter registration drive in the African-American community to preserve that block of voters, but they’re also looking at 19 percent black unemployment here, which could dampen some enthusiasm.
North Carolina is about as toss-up as a state gets, and though the numbers suggest the future belongs to the Democrats, this election is just two months away. It’s absolutely anybody’s game.
This is the first in an occasional series. In the next few weeks, ’ll be looking at how Latinos -- the so-called swing vote in this year’s presidential election -- play in each of the states where the race is within a few percentage points. | <urn:uuid:8e324a63-ff79-4891-9582-df06027e2514> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wbez.org/blogs/achy-obejas/2012-09/latinos-north-carolina-are-vital-obama-and-democratic-party-102153 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.952491 | 780 | 1.539063 | 2 |
Obama, Russia, and the Reset Button
The president's team pushes aside concerns about Russian revanchist policies.
12:00 AM, Jun 18, 2009 • By GARY SCHMITT
President Obama is headed to Moscow in early July for his first ever U.S.-Russia summit. The administration, in an effort to "hit the reset button" when it comes to relations between the two countries, has in fact hit the delete button when it comes to ties with friends and allies in the region.
First, there was the news from the NATO defense ministers meeting this past week that U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates had told his counterpart from Poland, Bogdan Klich, that the Patriot air-defense battery promised to Poland last August as part of a broader agreement to increase strategic cooperation between the two countries would be rotated in and out of Poland and used exclusively for training purposes. As such, he added, there would be no need for the missiles to be live and armed. The agreement to locate a Patriot battery in Poland was of course a late Bush administration effort to reassure Poland of U.S. interest in the country's security in light of the Russian invasion of Georgia; it was also a response to Russian threats against Poland for the possible deployment of ground-based missile interceptors in Polish territory--part of the U.S.-led missile defense program aimed at addressing the missile threat from Iran. Now, for all of Warsaw's efforts to be a solid, dependable U.S. ally--which have included sending troops to both Iraq and Afghanistan--Poland is receiving promises of U.S. troops occasionally setting up shop with the military version of "potted plants" on its territory.
Then, on Monday, Russia halted efforts at the UN to extend the UN Observer Mission in Georgia (UNOMIG), following on the heels of its veto of the continuation of the Organization for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE) monitoring mission to South Ossetia, one of the two now Russian-occupied Georgian territories invaded in August 2008. With typical Russian subtly, the Russian foreign ministry noted that "extension [of the UNOMIG mandate] makes no sense because it is predicated on old realities." Well, yeah, that is certainly true since, in effect, Moscow has now effectively annexed South Ossetia and Abkhazia into its orbit with barely a peep from the new U.S. team and seemingly with no consequences for relations whatsoever.
Both the decision to slow roll the Poles and ignore Moscow's behavior in Georgia is part and parcel of an Obama administration's effort to prevent anything from getting in the way of a U.S.-Russia agreement on reducing strategic nuclear arsenals. Whether appeasing Russian behavior is likely to make negotiating an agreement any easier is a doubtful assumption when it comes to Moscow these days, however. Nor is it obvious that an agreement on cutting strategic force levels will have much, if any, salutary impact on geo-political realities. Force levels have already been slashed since the end of the Cold War--from over 12,000 warheads in the early 1980s to some 2,200 today--and further reductions are not likely to make the world appreciably safer. If anything, deep cuts now will put in jeopardy the United States' ability to maintain its strategic triad of submarines, bombers, and missiles. How that will enhance strategic stability is anybody's guess. And, finally, the other justification for the agreement is the supposed impact it would have on strengthening the non-proliferation regime. But the reality is, there is no evidence that the size of U.S. and Russian strategic arsenals has any impact at all on the decision by the likes of North Korea and Iran to pursue or expand their nuclear weapons programs. What matters to them is the deterrent value of having such weapons in light of American and allied conventional military superiority. So, unless the Obama administration's next move is to radically reduce our military footprint around the globe and toss aside our various security commitments in Europe, Asia, and the Middle East, reducing the number of nuclear warheads we have on hand is not likely to make a scintilla of difference when it comes to the problem of proliferation. | <urn:uuid:f882c433-13f8-4957-b97b-082a18df2ce7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.weeklystandard.com/Content/Public/Articles/000/000/016/644cmkls.asp | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706890813/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516122130-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958458 | 861 | 1.703125 | 2 |
Failure of the wheel tax resolution was deemed by Cleveland Daily Banner editors and staff writers to be the No. 2 local story among the Top 10 for 2012.
Approximately 75 percent of the voting public cast a ballot against the proposed tax increase.
The tax had been debated as a way to finance borrowing money needed for capital projects initially requested by Bradley County Schools in 2011. These capital projects included an academic building at Lake Forest Middle School to alleviate water-related issues, an expansion at Walker Valley High School and a new Blue Springs Elementary School.
Cleveland City Schools would have also received funding for a new elementary school.
Bradley County commissioners were not in favor of increasing property taxes to cover the financing needed for the projects. The county could not borrow the money for the projects without creating more revenue.
The Commission sought to remain neutral on the issue in order to give voters a chance to decide for themselves. Leading up to the vote, details of the levy and who could be exempt continued to draw discussion from the public and also from local government leaders.
The Commission told members of the Bradley County Board of Education and Bradley County Schools Director Johnny McDaniel that it would be up to them to convince the voting public of the need for the projects. Many schools sought voter support through use of school signs.
Both school systems voiced support for the tax at their regular meetings.
In the end, school board members were not surprised that the tax was rejected by Bradley County voters.
An additional $16 fee would have been added to registration for motorcycles. County commissioners had discussed exempting motorcycles, but eventually the fee was included on the ballot. Vehicle exemptions mandated by state law were kept intact, including motor-driven bicycles and scooters, farm tractors and self-propelled farm machines not intended for highway use. Individuals who were former prisoners of war or 100 percent service-related disabled veterans would have been exempt.
Commissioners explored the possibility of granting exemptions to low-income elderly residents, but ran into stumbling blocks.
Since car registration notifications are set by the state and not by local government, residents would have received a bill whether they were exempt or not. Reimbursing those who qualified was also discussed. The Commission discussed possibly adapting the guidelines used for the county’s property tax freeze program.
Many of the details about the proposed wheel tax were negotiated by the finance and education committees.
Opinions ran high in the days leading up to the vote with multiple “Letters to the Editor” being submitted to the Cleveland Daily Banner, and public forums addressing both sides of the debate also were held.
The Commission could have passed the wheel tax with 10 votes by its members on two separate votes in favor of the tax. However, a petition signed by 10 percent of the voting public would override the Commission’s actions. | <urn:uuid:ff70ddcf-e64d-46a3-b49c-bb07ccb8d896> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.clevelandbanner.com/pages/full_story/push?article-Failed+wheel+tax+takes+year%E2%80%99s+No-+2+spot%20&id=21279547&instance=homesecondleft | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.983604 | 579 | 1.625 | 2 |
BHOPAL: The ongoing construction work along the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) corridor, especially in Roshanpura and Polytechnic square is posing great inconvenience for the commuters as open pits covered by rain water and piles of construction material pose a serious risk.
"The pits as well as the roads are full of water making it difficult to demarcate. The problem is further compounded in the absence of proper caution or sign boards," Suresh Soni and Ramnath Tripathi, an engineer told TOI.
"BRTS work is troubling the residents as the companies engaged in construction work are giving a go by to the safety norms. The road from Roshanpura square down has a steep slope and incomplete work without proper caution and street lights are a potential risk," Nilesh Shrivastava a resident of New Market said.
There are over a dozen pits dug up by the municipal corporation along the one km road to install barricades to demarcate the corridor to run the special buses. Interestingly, none of these have any sign boards to caution the commuters.
"This is violation of Indian Roads Congress (IRC) SP 55 which states that, the civic bodies cannot leave any manhole, pot hole or dug up roads unattended. These needs barricading, Siddharth Rokde, traffic and road engineer, MANIT told TOI. "They can cause serious injuries to the commuters," he added.
"The dug up patches have steel rods needed to barricade them lying unattended and are a risk to commuters. We have asked the contractor to install caution signs or radium lights indicating pot holes or dug up patches," Rajneesh Shrivastava BMC commissioner said. | <urn:uuid:c4f08df3-c2e9-4e48-a487-a8706c555ea6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2012-08-01/bhopal/32979970_1_brts-commuters-construction-work | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.952201 | 354 | 1.726563 | 2 |
A delicate French pastry is trying to take over New York, one mouth at a time.
On Sunday, more than a dozen bakeries sent thousands of brightly colored, bite-sized macarons onto the streets, offering them free of charge to curious passers-by. The celebration even had a name, Macaron Day. Organized by the baker François Payard, it was inspired by a similar event in Paris the same day.
On the roster were established names like Jacques Torres, smaller outfits like Almondine Bakery in Brooklyn and other bakeries throughout Manhattan, Queens and Westchester County.
“The idea is to promote the macaron,” Mr. Payard said.
Marketing ploys aside, perhaps the event helped clear up an old misunderstanding. More often than not, macarons, a type of petit four, are mistaken for macaroons, the coconut mounds that are traditionally consumed during Passover.
The French macaron is far more fragile, made of crisp shells of almond flour enveloping dollops of flavored cream or chocolate ganache. As small as a button or as large as a palm, they resemble multicolored hamburger buns, with a rainbow strip of cream where the patty might be.
Creating them is a painstaking process — macarons burn easily, the shells crack for no reason at all, and, ideally, they should not be consumed until the day after they are made, Mr. Payard said. But it is this fragility, not to mention the colors and shapes, that make them so enticing.
Since September, Taryn Garcia has had a pop-up macaron business on Fridays and Saturdays at the Eva Scrivo hair salon on Bond Street in Lower Manhattan.
On Sunday, amid bottles of hair masks, she was offering cookies in neon-blue and wedding-dress white; the flavors were blueberry and verbena, and black Périgord truffle and chestnut, dusted with gold flour.
“The color spectrum is all over,” she said. “Pink, blue, yellow, white.”
The first macaron was free, everything after that was $2 apiece, though normally, she charges $3.
Ms. Garcia studied baking in Paris, a daunting undertaking because, she said, pastry chefs would not teach anyone who was not French. “The Parisians guard their recipes — they just don’t teach everyone how to do it,” Ms. Garcia added.
At the Macaron Café on the Upper East Side, the owner, Arnaud Cannone, designed his boxes to illustrate those challenges. Along the sides of the boxes — the parts that would normally be obscured by a lid — was this story, rendered as a cartoon: A woman meets a man for a date, serves him alcohol, steals the recipe and brings it to New York. “He was very drunk” to have given up the recipe, Mr. Cannone joked.
Whatever the challenges, it is Mr. Payard’s hope that macarons will one day enjoy the popularity of pies or even cupcakes. For his part, his two bakeries gave away 2,400 of the delicacies, and as the unofficial master of ceremonies, he spent the day visiting several of his competitors, moving through the bright chill on his motorcycle.
Though not popular yet, macarons seemed to be catching on, as each location saw quite a few people who were already aficionados. “We have a list!” said Stephanie Roit, who planned to visit at least seven locations with her friend, Jennifer Gong.
If all goes right for Mr. Payard, having a list won’t be enough: “Next year, they’ll have to take their bicycles,” he said. | <urn:uuid:c557cf13-67d8-4914-baeb-b5aeccb0e18f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://cityroom.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/20/with-color-and-cream-a-tiny-dessert-stakes-its-claim/?scp=1&sq=macarons&st=cse | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00020-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97255 | 797 | 1.71875 | 2 |
When I first started Greenimalist, I began with lifestyle changes that were compatible with life in the modern city. On one hand, I am amazed at how far I have come towards lowering my impact while living in the city. At the same time, however, I have always felt stifled by life in the urban jungle. Without land of my own, I could never take Greenimalist to the next level. In a small apartment, it can be a challenge to make compost, start a vegetable garden, or even test out a solar oven (we didn’t have a sunny patio for the cooker to sit on). Hsinya and I have wanted to raise poultry for several months now, but we have always hesitated to raise them indoors. A lack of space, combined with uncooperative neighbors and landlords, has made it difficult to experiment with Greenimalist living. For this reason, I had been planning to buy land of my own someday. In the meantime, however, I had little recourse but to watch other homesteaders with envy.
All this changed last week when my aunt offered me a chance to start a garden in her vacant country-house. Located in a rural farming town, this unoccupied house has a backyard over half an acre in size — plenty of undeveloped land for experiments in self-sufficiency. I was essentially given free reign to experiment with any project related to homesteading, such as organic gardening, setting up off-grid solar panels, collecting rainwater in barrels, and composting chicken poop. I could hardly contain my excitement.
I had very few expectations for the house itself. In fact, I was fully expecting to live in a low-tech, off-grid primitive shelter, more resembling a log cabin than a house. In a strange way, the idea of roughing it in the countryside seemed almost enjoyable. To my surprise, the country house was modern and luxurious for a homestead — it had electricity, refrigeration, natural gas, and indoor plumbing. I could, in fact, sign up for broadband Internet at any time — so much for roughing it. After a quick reflection, however, I concluded this was probably better anyhow. I should be concentrating my efforts on gardening for now, not on how to build an off-grid shelter.
The backyard also far exceeded my expectations. There was plenty of fertile land for subsistence farming. Having never been sprayed with pesticides, the soil was teeming with a healthy ecosystem of insects and microbial life. (In fact, some pests from this ecosystem ate my pumpkin seedlings last night.) Trees dotted the backyard, and underneath the leaf litter, there were rich layers of humus perfect for gardening. The land was definitely excellent for gardening.
Without hesitation, I knew I wanted to stay. Sure, there were minor flaws — hordes of virulent mosquitoes, the lingering smell of cow manure — but I couldn’t pass up the offer. That very night, I packed all my minimalist possessions, took the bus to the countryside, picked up the house keys, and became the new tenant.
This is a big step forward for me in my journey towards a more sustainable and natural lifestyle. As always, Greenimalist will still be about simple, green living: shopping less, owning fewer possessions, conserving natural resources, and protecting the environment. Since many of us will continue to live in the city or suburbs, I’ll definitely keep writing tips for green living in the cities. However, I’m excited about the latest saga of my Greenimalist adventure: low-impact self-sufficiency on a country homestead.
Why I Want to Homestead
Homesteading is the most ecologically-sound lifestyle possible. Unlike the modern, consumer lifestyle, homesteading is gentle on the land, good for your health, low on stress, and very cheap. It does require plenty of patience and hard work, but that’s a small price for sustainability, independence, and a healthier way of living.
A More Wholesome Life
Healthy food is difficult to find nowadays. Most supermarkets are filled with junky, processed food. Even the fresh food section is contaminated with the poisonous pesticides used by conventional farms. These toxins harm the earth, the farmer, and your health. Only unprocessed, organic food is truly wholesome. Growing my own food is one way to ensure that I will have plenty of fresh and nutritious food year-round, even in towns that don’t sell organic food.
Ultimately, I want my home to be the nucleus of a sustainable family life. A good homestead provides a retreat from all the unhealthy stressors of modernity. It’s a place to get away from traffic, smog, cigarette smoking, pesticides, and synthetic food. When we have kids, we want them to have a wholesome childhood — free from potato chips and video games.
By homesteading, I also plan to save money. Not only does growing my own food help save thousands of dollars each year, but a house in the woods represents a huge savings compared to a house in the suburbs or city. Undeveloped rural land is much cheaper than urban land; I can buy acres of land for just a few thousand dollars. If I learn how to build my own house, I can also save on housing construction costs. My goal is to continue working online while ruthlessly cutting expenses to build up savings.
I don’t expect to be totally self-sufficient this year. Instead, I plan to use this opportunity as more of a learning experience. This country house will be a sandbox for self-sufficiency experiments, including organic farming, permaculture, country living skills, and alternative energy.
Our first goal is to produce all of our own vegetables by the end of this year. I’ll also experiment with growing quickly maturing fruits like melons and strawberries, as well as rice and beans by the end of the year.
Our second goal is related to the first: we will try to process all the food we eat on the homestead. Hsinya will make everything we eat (e.g. soymilk, cheese, bread, and soy sauce) right on the country house. We experimented with some of these ideas before, but having more space allows us to process on a larger scale.
Our Homesteading Principles
Obviously, we’re not going to be using toxic pesticides and chemical fertilizers on our homestead. Not only do these poisons harm the soil, they also poison the farmers that use them. Organic agriculture, however, means much more than just abstaining from chemicals. Growing food organically is also about cultivating a richer ecosystem for the farm through building fertile soil.
As I homestead, I hope to strengthen the ecosystem in our backyard. Unlike modern farms, which destroy the soil over time with chemicals, I’m hoping to actually increase the amount of topsoil over time. I plan to compost kitchen scraps, mulch the soil, practice companion planting, sow cover crops, plant fruit and fodder trees, and encourage beneficial insects. Farming organically is like buying carbon offsets, only better: instead of paying someone to plant a tree for me, I’ll plant my own apple tree and harvest the literal fruits of my labor. It actually pays financially to make a positive impact on the environment, because it improves the fertility of each year’s harvest.
I will try to avoid shopping — not even for farming supplies. Whenever possible, I want to live off the land and be totally self-sufficient. My main motivation is to save money: it’s expensive to rent rotary tillers, import compost, and buy lumber. Many aspiring homesteaders fail because they waste too much money buying expensive farm mansions loaded with fancy appliances and equipment. Such a facade is not true self-sufficiency; even worse, it is outrageously expensive.
Whenever possible, I will opt for low-tech, simple tools on my homestead. So far, all my gardening tools require human labor rather than gasoline or electricity. It may be tempting to use high-tech machines for homesteading, but there are often cheaper, more sustainable solutions. When I lived in the city, for example, I discovered that bicycling was more cost-effective than driving. This homestead will give more opportunities to explore appropriate technology for self-sufficient living.
We’ll keep you updated on our homesteading as we learn from our mistakes. I hope these articles help provide a candid look at one ordinary couple’s journey towards self-sufficiency. Until then, our homestead awaits. | <urn:uuid:03792165-e521-4ce5-833d-d02cd59354a0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://greenimalist.com/tag/countryside/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.957037 | 1,787 | 1.617188 | 2 |
Is Narmada water being made to flow in Sabarmati not supplied to city of Ahmedabad? This has furthered the idea of river...
I have been selling glass for commercial buildings talking about light, thermal/solar heat gain etc.etc..but I...
Dear Saxena ji,
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West facing windows can be a big source of heat, first measure which you...
Averting the Apocalypse: Social Movements in India Today Arthur Bonner Publisher: Duke University Press, North Carolina Price: US $52.50 (hardback); US $17.95 (paperback)
HAVING an attractive, alliterative title is a prerequisite for popular books today, but it is Arthur Bonner's subtitle that is seriously misleading. Averting the Apocalypse is not about "social movements in India today". Rather, it is about a particular subset of activists connected with them -- the educated upper-middle class, overwhelmingly upper-caste youth, who function normally with a vague Gandhian-socialist ideology and are involved with "grassroots" (mostly funded) organisations who work with sections of the poor and oppressed.
Let me make my framework clear, because Bonner never does. There are major social movements in India today, and while nearly all their "leading activists" are educated and come mostly from middle-class and upper-caste backgrounds, their impetus comes from the upsurge of the poor and exploited against their oppression. They have not come about through a process of sections of the conscience-stricken elite joining their upsurge, nor do they primarily seek a transformation of values. But, rather, they are fighting against "hard" realities of power and economic exploitation and the destruction of natural conditions that are the basis of all human society.
If we are to include all social movements, certainly trade union movements and the Communist left would have to be confronted. Needless to say, these do not appear at all in Bonner's work, except in the guise of repentant and now nonviolent ex-Naxalites. If we are to take the concept of "new" social movements seriously, then I would argue that there are four "major" ones in India -- "major", because they have mobilised millions of people in various ways; "new" because they represent social sections who are being exploited in non-traditional ways reflecting recent developments in contemporary capitalism. The four movements are the women's movement, the environmental movement, the farmers' movement and the anti-caste (dalit and OBC) movements.
Though the reality of caste and the oppression of dalits does play a major role in the book, Bonner makes no effort to meet dalit activists except Rajshekhar, who, though he represents a vigorous journal and an ideological trend in the movement, heads an organisation of fewer than 10 members. The book has no activists from such groups as the Dalit Panthers, the Bahujan Samaj Party or the Republican Party.
Dalits and adivasis rarely speak in their own voice in Bonner's book. As a result, Ambedkar himself appears in the text in a shockingly distorted form: "Ambedkar anticipated the message of modern social activists: The solution to inequality can be found within the Hindu tradition of tolerance for all." (p 343)
There is no mention of the farmers' movement, not even a flicker of interest in the idea that peasants, especially cash crop-producing peasants, might have a cause of their own. "When I explained I was doing research on grassroots social activism, Anil (Prakash of Ganga Mukti Andolan) said I should go to Uttar Pradesh where there was a farmers' leader who held meetings of tens of thousands of people. I thanked him for his suggestion but said it was the fishermen who interested me." (p 206)
Any assessment of the women's movement would have to recognise various streams in it: urban "autonomous feminists", Communist-connected women's organisations such as Shetkari Sanghatana or the Fish Workers Federation and socialist reformist trends. Bonner seems to recognise only the last of these, which is why he can write, without any apparent need for justification or explanation, "SEWA is India's foremost women's organization." (p 177)
Even within the environmental movement there has been no effort to engage in a dialogue with its radicals, who are involved in movements on the cutting edge of the search for alternatives to the apocalypse. Bonner has met none of the activists of Chipko, the movement against the Tehri dam, or the Narmada Bachao Andolan. In the current Indian situation, where these issues have aroused great controversy in social-activist circles, Bonner pretends such debate does not exist. He takes his views on the Narmada projects from Anil Patel of the Rajpipla Sangarsh Vahini group: "Come what may, Gujaratis will not be denied the Narmada water." (p 152) And, this is another serious misrepresentation.
What then can one say about Averting the Apocalypse? The book has its good qualities: It may give non-Indians some idea of the turmoil and search for alternatives in the country. Its stress on caste, even when it is not carried far enough to examine the caste character of the activists themselves, points to a major reality of exploitation. Its documentation of torture, atrocities and police brutality will certainly boost developing pressures for democratisation.
But all this is vitiated by the biases of a pseudo-Gandhian, socialistic paternalism. "Environmentalism in India," Bonner writes, "is not an attempt to preserve picture-postcard scenery but part of the overarching effort to help the poor: the worst victims of the rape of nature." (p 107) This illustrates the book's most serious flaw: It does not see the "poor", whether dalit, adivasi, peasant or women, as actors. Middle class social activists help them, and remain the agents of transformation, even while using the language of "participation" and "empowerment".
The apocalypse in Bonner's title does not refer to the material dangers of nuclear war, large-scale environmental destruction, famine and hunger. Rather, it seems to refer to a return to feudal traditionalism via Hindu fundamentalism and a resulting break-up of India (the "unravelling of the social fabric"). Those for whom this is the greatest danger are the heirs of the traditional Hindu elite. Those for whom a "transformation of values" takes primacy, do not suffer quite so directly from exploitation and domination.
Averting the apocalypse is, in its true sense, the fight for life through reinventing and renewing the revolutionary impulse among India's exploited and oppressed.
---Gail Omvedt is a well-known Maharashtra-based academic and political activist. | <urn:uuid:3b45467e-1ea7-4fd5-820a-bbe63a26d312> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.downtoearth.org.in/node/29998 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.946353 | 1,424 | 1.796875 | 2 |
Galleri Hlemmur presents:
"What you actually saw"
an exhibition by Erla S. Haraldsdóttir
October 26th - November 10th
Saturday the 26th of October at 5 pm, Erla S. Haraldsdottir opens a private exhibition at Galleri Hlemmur. This is the second time Erla exhibits in the gallery; in the fall 2001, she and the Swedish artist Bo Melin displayed computer-manipulated photographs depicting the streets of Reykjavik. On this occasion she will be introducing a video piece situated in the main showroom of the gallery. The piece is closely related to her computer-collages, but instead of focusing on the urban society as before, she now examines the relationship between man and nature – in harmony as well as in disarray. The piece is somewhat surreal and is the artist’s attempt to stimulate the visual perception of the unconscious mind and, at the same time, the logical reality.
Erla has asked the L.A.-based artist and designer Joshua Trees to interpret in his own words one single still-frame from the video without having had the opportunity to see the video in full length. These thoughts will be printed in the exhibition programme. Furthermore, she has invited a young artist, Arngrímur Borgþórsson, to make a graffiti-piece on one of the walls in the gallery, inspired by the same picture and given the same starting point. In that way Erla opens up for other people’s interpretations of an isolated part the exhibition, which she will use as input in her show. | <urn:uuid:5de5810a-86a0-477a-b1ed-805e17283fe4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.hlemmur.is/umfjollun/frettat_erla_181102.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961262 | 337 | 1.570313 | 2 |
The University of Alabama Archives consists of materials generated by university departments and offices from its founding in 1831. These include records of administrators, faculty, and students. Records after 1920 encompass the entire operational aspect of The University of Alabama. Noteworthy items include the papers of University of Alabama Presidents and other key administrators. Some archival materials have restricted access. Users must obtain permission from the generating department before they can access these records.
The University Archives also contains a broad range of University publications that are cataloged in the Hoole Library. Notable among these are the school yearbook (Corolla), the school newspaper (The Crimson White), University catalogs, and the records of some student organizations.
To contact University Archives, please email us at firstname.lastname@example.org | <urn:uuid:a54d6af3-cc41-49e0-8690-e43e3aa44cef> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.lib.ua.edu/libraries/hoole/collections/archives.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.9309 | 155 | 1.789063 | 2 |
Hindustan Unilever, the manufacturer of Pears Traditional Soap, has clarified reports in the national press that it is abandoning the new product formulation introduced last year following a facebook campaign by users to reinstate the traditional recipe.
The facebook campaign, entitled “Bring back the original Pears Soap’ said that the formula had ‘changed considerably’, and now has a much stronger scent.
The campaign also pointed out that the product used more packaging, with the soap now enclosed in a cellophane wrapper, and the previous product claims of ‘hypoallergenic’ and ‘non-comedogenic’ were absent from the pack.
Responding to the reports, Unilever said that the Pears soap formulation launched over the past year has received a very encouraging response from consumer demonstrated by an increase in sales of the product.
“We have also, however, received feedback from a selection of consumers who have found the new perfume not to their liking” the company stated.
Reducing perfume impact
“Hindustan Unilever has taken this feedback as input to make further improvements, by delivering a scent that more closely resembles the product our consumers are familiar with while retaining all the benefits that the new formulation delivers,” it added.
Regarding the stronger fragrance of the new product, Unilever said it is in the process of modifying the level or type of fragrance used in the soap in order to make it comparable to the original product.
Changes in manufacturing process led to product improvement
Unilever emphasised that the change to the formulation of the soap lay essentially in modifications to the manufacturing process designed to make the process less energy intensive.
Taking advantage of the new process, Unilever saw an opportunity to further improve the formula by adding consumer benefits such as increasing the levels of moisturiser in the product, the company said.
As a result, the soap now contains four humectants (moisturisers) as opposed to the one humectant contained in the original formula.
Increase in ingredients and packaging
While the number of ingredients in the new formula has increased,Unilever contradicted press reports that the number had tripled and said that a complete ingredients list is now provided on the pack for the benefit of consumers, whereas only ‘key ingredients’ were declared in the original product packaging.
In addition, the company confirmed that the soap continues to be hypoallergenic and non-comedogenic, and these claims will be restored on the pack. It also emphasised that all product packaging is environmentally-friendly, with the inner flow wrap added to better protect the soap. | <urn:uuid:5ee6e2a5-0b3f-476d-940b-31fa1691a6a6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.cosmeticsdesign-europe.com/Market-Trends/Unilever-clarifies-Pears-Soap-reformulation-reports | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950528 | 547 | 1.570313 | 2 |
Oil companies' trial opens in New Hampshire
CONCORD, N.H. — A lawyer says research done by one of two major oil companies on trial in New Hampshire concluded decades ago that the additive MTBE should not be added to gasoline because it could create widespread groundwater contamination that would be costly to clean up.
The state launched its case against ExxonMobil and Citgo on Monday, seeking more than $700 million in fees to monitor and treat contaminated water systems statewide.
See full article text
Lawyers for the oil companies were to present their opening statements Monday afternoon. They have argued in court documents and during pretrial hearings that their clients have cleaned up their own sites and that contamination elsewhere was caused by third parties not named in the suit.
Attorney Jessica Grant, representing the state, displayed to jurors a 1984 ExxonMobil memo in which high-level employees recommended against using MTBE due to environmental concerns.
"A significant part of the state's case will be presented from the defendants' own documents," Grant said, showing jurors multiple ExxonMobil memos counseling against its use or warning of the staggering cost of remediation if it was used.
The lawsuit — filed in 2003 — is the only one brought by a state to reach trial on the issue of MTBE groundwater contamination. Most of the other MTBE cases nationwide were brought by municipalities, water districts or individual well owners, and all but one was settled or dismissed.
The trial is expected to last four months. Judge Peter Fauver on Monday thanked jurors for their service and acknowledged the trial would be "an imposition on your lives."
It is being held in a federal courtroom on loan to the state so as not to monopolize one of three courtrooms at Merrimack Superior Court.
More than 50,000 exhibits have been marked and the witness list numbers 230.
It was clear from a pretrial conference Friday and Grant's opening statement Monday that jurors will be confronted with an alphabet soup of acronyms for various funds and agencies, will have to grapple with complex statistical analyses and will hear contradictory testimony by expert witnesses.
MTBE had been used in gasoline since the 1970s to increase octane and reduce smog-causing emissions. While it was credited with cutting air pollution, it was found in the late 1990s to contaminate drinking water when gasoline is spilled or leaks into surface or groundwater. New Hampshire banned its use in 2007.
"MTBE is a toxic chemical that does not belong in the state's drinking water," Grant said. She told jurors that the state's experts estimate more than 40,000 wells in New Hampshire are probably contaminated by MTBE. She said MTBE is highly soluble and resistant to biodegradation. Ten gallons of gasoline treated with MTBE, Grant said, could contaminate 62 million gallons of water.
Roughly 60 percent of New Hampshire's population gets its drinking water from wells, which drives up the estimated cost to test and treat contaminated water sources. | <urn:uuid:28d9f680-a73b-4d25-8d77-f8c987c625d0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://m.capecodonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20130115/BIZ/301150303/-1/WAP&template=wapart | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973775 | 605 | 1.78125 | 2 |
The stunning example above is the work of Studio On Fire, letterpress printers extraordinaire. You can read more about the project here. It’s encouraging to know that such studios still exist and thrive and that there are designers out there producing this level of work. I had hoped to use them a while back for some letterpress business cards, but alas budgets weren’t what they needed to be. Some day though…some day…
Ogling Studio on Fire’s work got me thinking about those business cards again and I realized that I’ve been seeing some really inspiring designs of late which is somehow comforting as it seems the business cards of our more recent history have become generally dull and uninspiring. Quite unlike some of the cards that came before.
First made popular in the early 17th Century and used not only as a point of introduction but for advertising and maps as well.
More commonly known as Calling Cards, these date back as far as 15th century China, making their way to Europe by the 17th century. By the 19th century they started becoming a little more stark though they still might retain some reserved flourishes and the card cases were themselves often fairly ornate.
I don’t think we’re going to see the demise of the business card any time very soon which I’m glad of. There is something so fundamentally pleasing about holding a well designed card printed on quality stock. Smart touches such as UV spot varnishing or the tactile loveliness of letterpress register deeply with our core. | <urn:uuid:21814fba-4161-4dc5-bd59-2c56310f0870> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.biggestapple.net/archives/category/Letterpress/19/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.975261 | 321 | 1.578125 | 2 |
WASHINGTON LETTER Oct-3-2008 (1,500 words) Backgrounder and analysis. With photo. xxxn
Black Catholics see Obama candidacy as a path to racial equality
By Chaz Muth
Catholic News Service
WASHINGTON (CNS) -- As a black man who was a child in the racially turbulent 1960s, former Maryland Lt. Gov. Michael S. Steele said he is exceptionally proud that a major U.S. political party has nominated Illinois Sen. Barack Obama as its candidate for president in the November general election.
But as a Republican and a Catholic, the 50-year-old Steele said he is fundamentally opposed to Obama's political positions -- especially on life issues like legalized abortion -- and as a GOP leader with national influence he will do everything in his power to block the first black Democratic presidential nominee from becoming the nation's commander in chief.
It's the first time a black candidate has secured the nomination of a major U.S. political party in a presidential contest, proving the nation has made significant progress in how it deals with race, said Father Bryan N. Massingale, 51, a black associate professor of theology at Jesuit-run Marquette University in Milwaukee.
Racial tensions, however, surfaced during the Democratic primaries and have continued into the general election season, demonstrating the country has a long way to go before it can enjoy genuine equality, Father Massingale said.
"Surprised that racial biases still exist? No," said Shirley Harris-Slaughter, 62, a black parishioner of Presentation/Our Lady of Victory Catholic Church in Detroit. "Disappointed? Yes!"
According to an Associated Press-Yahoo News poll released in September, more than one-third of white Democrats and Independents agree with at least one negative adjective about blacks, and many voters in a West Virginia exit poll taken during the May primary election acknowledged race was a consideration when they cast their vote. Sen. Hillary Rodham Clinton overwhelmingly won that contest.
"Are there gonna' be some people who don't vote for me because I'm black? Of course," Obama told 60 Minutes, a CBS television newsmagazine, in September. "There are probably some African-Americans who are voting for me because I'm black. Or maybe others who are just inspired by the idea of breaking new ground. And so I think all that's a wash."
When Steele -- who had been the chairman of the Maryland Republican Party -- was selected in 2002 to run as lieutenant govenor on the GOP ticket with then-U.S. Rep. Robert L. Ehrlich Jr., a metropolitan newspaper ran an editorial stating he brought nothing to the partnership but the color of his skin.
While delivering a political speech during that campaign, Steele said a few audience members tossed Oreo cookies at him to make a racial statement. He also said several "ugly blogs" participated in racial name-calling.
Race will be a factor in the November general election for the mere fact U.S. voters will have their first opportunity to choose between a presidential candidate who happens to be black and a presidential candidate who happens to be white, said Steele, who lost his 2006 bid for one of Maryland's U.S. Senate seats.
Obama has dealt with racial questions since he emerged onto the political stage in the late 1990s as an Illinois state senator, Father Massingale said.
"Racial questions were raised in the primaries," he said. "Questions like, 'Is Obama too black? Is he black enough? Is he an angry black?'"
These are not questions that would be raised about a white candidate, Harris-Slaughter said.
Though black Catholics from across the U.S. told Catholic News Service they believe many black voters connect with Obama in part because of the color of his skin, they stressed that most are inspired by the 47-year-old senator for the same reason millions of Americans from many ethnic groups are enamored with him.
Many young voters of varying ethnic backgrounds are looking beyond race in this election, said Bill Green, 80, a black parishioner of St. Columba Catholic Church in Oakland, Calif.
"These kids are getting involved in the political process for the first time and they don't seemed to be energized by race, but by hope for the future of the country," Green said.
"We may get to this one day when someone's race, religion or gender isn't a factor when they run for political office," Steele said. "It's possible. It's about finding the will to make it happen.
"But, platitudes will not change the attitudes of individuals on race," he said. "A lot of the race issues in this country are taught. You aren't born not liking black people, white people or Hispanics."
Exposure to more positive black role models may provide white Americans with affirmative opinions of that segment of U.S. society, said Deacon Steven C. Rubio, a black Catholic who ministers at St. Matthew and St. Ambrose parishes in Baltimore.
"I think when you look at the images where most of us garner our information, which is mostly what is televised on the evening news, the amount of imagery that white America sees about black Americans is about crime," Deacon Rubio said. "When you are constantly fed a diet about a group of people, you are going to form a negative image of that group."
By stressing the Catholic Church's teaching that racial inequality is a sin, the church can help promote harmony among all ethnic groups, he said.
In their 2007 statement, "Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship," the U.S. Catholic bishops called for an end to racial inequality.
"It is important for our society to continue to combat discrimination based on race, religion, sex, ethnicity, disabling condition or age, as these are grave injustices and affronts to human dignity," the statement reads. "Where the effects of past discrimination persist, society has the obligation to take positive steps to overcome the legacy of injustice, including vigorous action to remove barriers to education and equal employment for women and minorities."
Though Steele said Obama's support for legal abortion is in direct conflict with the widespread pro-life position among black Catholics, several black Catholics told CNS Obama's support for civil rights and immigration reform show a deep respect for human dignity, allowing them to reconcile their support for him on life issues.
"We wouldn't see it as a single issue, but as part of an issue, because there are a lot of elements in the whole cycle of life that would be of interest to us," said Beverly A. Carroll, assistant director of cultural diversity for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops in Washington, and a black parishioner at St. Peter Claver in Baltimore. "Racism has to be considered as a life issue too."
Black voters will naturally be intrigued by Obama because of his race, but they should examine his values, policy positions, record of service and goals for the country before voting Nov. 4, Deacon Rubio said.
"Ultimately, I see a lot of pride among my fellow black Catholics about the candidacy of Barack Obama, for the same reason we are proud that Massachusetts voters elected a black governor and Maryland has now elected two black lieutenant governors," he said. "Because people, regardless of color, want to see people who look like them in certain roles. That is more life-affirming."
In 2007 Anthony G. Brown became the second black man to serve as Maryland's lieutenant governor, making the 46-year-old Catholic one of a growing number of black politicians to serve in the higher levels of public office. Brown said he sees Obama's candidacy as a natural progression in black political achievement.
"Of course African-Americans are going to be proud of these achievements and I hope it makes them realize there is a place for them in government," he said. "Other groups in our history have experienced this kind of pride, much like Catholics did in 1960 when John Kennedy became the first Catholic president."
Black pride, however, doesn't always equal support, Father Massingale said.
"There have been other black candidates -- like Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson -- who have not enjoyed wide support among blacks," he said. "There is enthusiasm for Barack Obama because people agree with his character, ability and temperament."
But Steele wanted to make it clear that a vote for Republican Sen. John McCain does not make someone a racist either, calling that judgment "wrong" and "immoral."
"I don't believe that race will be an overwhelming factor in the outcome of the election," he said.
"If Barack loses, people may misunderstand the why of his loss," Steele said. "Some will fall to the easy target of race and say it's because America is still a racist country and say it's all about race, ignoring that maybe the American voters discovered something about Barack that we didn't need or want right now in the presidency."
Regardless of who becomes the 44th U.S. president, Obama's candidacy demonstrates that Americans can envision a qualified black man leading their country, Brown said.
"I think that race is still present in American politics, society and culture," he said, but added that having a black nominee from a major party "instills a tremendous amount of pride" in the black community.
Copyright (c) 2008 Catholic News Service/USCCB. All rights reserved.
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed.
CNS · 3211 Fourth St NE · Washington DC 20017 · 202.541.3250 | <urn:uuid:b8b7f1af-b3e5-412a-9a6b-5148a06cbf8e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0805038.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.972073 | 1,988 | 1.796875 | 2 |
| Quote #10
She clung to a thread of consciousness and mentally repeated over and over again: I am, I am, I am. Precisely who she was, she was unable to say. (5.440)
You'd think that dying would be a process of unbecoming, but instead it seem like Macabéa is trying to become something in death. The repetition of "I am" emphasizes that death is giving her a new opportunity to be fully herself—and yet she can't even finish the sentence. | <urn:uuid:2816635a-09f6-4d32-b1a5-3fd0b2915a46> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.shmoop.com/hour-of-the-star/identity-quotes-4.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.98967 | 111 | 1.609375 | 2 |
Three international banking cards will be introduced in Burma by the start of 2013, domestic media reported on Monday.
The three international bank cards are VISA, CUP (China Union Pay) and Japan Credit Bureau (JCB), said 7-Day News.
ATMs of private banks operating under the Myanmar Payment Union (MPU) system will accept the three international banking cards, allowing the withdrawal of cash from an automatic teller machine (ATM) of any MPU member bank under the system, it said.
Meanwhile, on July 9, 11 private banks including Kanbawza Bank, Cooperative Bank, Myanmar Industrial Development Bank, Myawaddy Bank, Inwa Bank, Myanmar Oriental Bank, Asian Green Development Bank, Ayeyawaddy Bank, Myanmar Pioneer Bank, United Amara Bank and Tun Foundation Bank started offering foreign currency accounts in US dollars, Euros and Singapore dollars as well as FECs (Burmese foreign exchange certificate).
The banks also were permitted in November 2011 to trade three foreign hard currencies – US dollar, Euro and Singapore dollar.
There are a total of 19 private banks and three state-owned banks in Burma.
The state-owned banks are Myanmar Economic Bank (MEB), Myanma Foreign Trade Bank (MFTB) and Myanma Investment Commercial Bank ( MICB). | <urn:uuid:90a7d9b3-ef22-455e-9062-077f54bbe456> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://mizzima.com/business/7633-international-banking-cards-to-arrive-in-burma-by-2013.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.930446 | 270 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Originally uploaded by rob helpychalk.
Please keep it for future reference.
Were we in a disinterested view, or with somewhat less selflessness than ordinary, to consider the economies, parts, interests, conditions and terms of life which nature has distributed and assigned to the several species of creatures around us, we should not be apt to think ourselves so hardly dealt with. But whether our lot in this respect be just or equal is not the question with us at present. 'Tis enough that we know "there is certainly an assignment and distribution: that each economy or part is so distributed is in itself uniform, fixed and invariable, and that if anything in the creature be accidentally impaired; if anything in the inward form, the disposition, temper or affections be contrary or unsuitable to the economy or part, the creature is wretched and unnatural.
New forms arise, and when the old dissolve, the matter whence they were composed is not left useless, but wrought with equal management and art, even in corruption, Nature's seeming waste and vile abhorrence. The abject state appears merely as a way to some better. But could we nearly view it, and with indifference, remote from the antipathy of sense, we then perhaps should highest raise our imagination, convinced that even the way itself was equal to the end
Oh glorious nature! supremely fair and sovereignly good! All-loving, all-lovely all-divine! Whose looks are so becoming and of such infinite grace; whose study brings such wisdom and whose contemplation such delight; whose every single work affords an ampler scene and is a nobler spectacle than all which art ever presented!Disinterestedness enters the picture because seeing this divine order requires one to set aside earthy interests.
Since by the, or sovereign mind, I have been formed such as I am, intelligent and rational, permit me that with due freedom I may exert those faculties with which you have adorned me. Bear with my venturous and bold approach. And since nor vain curiosity, nor fond conceit, nor love of aught save thee alone inspires me with such thoughts as these, be thou my assistant and guide me in this pursuit, whilst I venture thus to tread the labyrinth of wide nature and endeavor to trace the in thy worlds.Arg, that didn't quite say what I want it to say. The passage right after might be better, but I am reading the book in google preview, and can't get the next pages. In any case, I think Shaftesbury's sub specie aeternitas approach to aesthetics, probably makes him disinterested and cognitive, rather than disinterested and noncognitive, as I had had him.
Joey Pics; Caroline Pics
Rob Pics; Molly Pics
The North Country Academy for the Excruciatingly Fine Arts | <urn:uuid:90b4c393-b96b-4b5c-aaf0-6fee4abc9317> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://helpychalk.blogspot.com/2009_03_01_archive.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961266 | 582 | 1.765625 | 2 |
The Facebook “likes” you worked so hard to earn are worth less than you think.
TechCrunch’s Josh Constine reported
“The average news feed story from a user profile reaches just 16 percent of their friends. Your actively shared links, photos, and status updates probably reach much higher than 16 percent of your friends, while more inane auto-generated posts about new friendships, wall posts, and articles you read may only be seen by your closest buddies.”
In other words, 16 percent of the things individuals and businesses post end up in their friends’ and followers’ news feeds.
That number doesn’t come from a third-party study, but instead Facebook’s
director of product marketing, Brian Boland, who spoke at this week’s Facebook Marketing Conference.
Exactly how stories land in a news feed remains a mystery, part of Facebook’s EdgeRank algorithm (which we tried to explain here
). For individuals, Facebook touts the 16 percent as a blessing; without its EdgeRank filter, news feeds would be packed with garbage. Brands on the other hand are missing out on eyeballs—which is why Facebook also unveiled its Reach Generation system
, enabling companies to buy ads in Facebook’s mobile news feed, logout page, and Web sidebar.
The result: Content from brands could be seen by 75 of their audience in a month. That’s quite a boost (and quite the sales pitch to brands).
Here’s how Facebook plans to make it happen, according to The Huffington Post
“Delivering more ads, which Facebook was careful to brand as ‘stories,’ means Facebook adjusts the News Feed and takes advantage of the real estate on users' homepages. A user will only see sponsored content from a brand in his or her News Feed if a friend has engaged with the brand's post, such as by ‘liking’ or commenting on it.
“‘When a brand wants to make sure they're going beyond that 16 percent … we optimize our systems to increase that delivery across the premium placements we talked about today,’ said [Boland]. ‘We look at ways to ensure fans will be able to see those stories that are created and it's something that's worked directly into the algorithm of our system to deliver out to fans.’
“The makeup of the advertising on Facebook is also going through a change: Rather than promoting company's slogans, banner ads or logos, Facebook will promote the content a company has posted on their page, be it a photo, status update, or poll.”
The brave new world just got a whole lot braver.
Of course, the other big news in the world of Facebook is the unveiling of Timeline for brands
. Read our first impression here | <urn:uuid:ad2793e9-d8ed-4a6f-a736-be7c37ab0dc7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.prdaily.eu/marketingEU/Articles/10980.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950777 | 592 | 1.765625 | 2 |
By Stephen Visakay and Maddy Lederman, Special to the Los Angeles Times
September 16, 2010
"Mad Men," the Emmy-winning cultural phenomenon, has sparked renewed interest in yet another quirky artifact from its era. In addition to slim suits, lunchtime cocktails and cigarettes, the 1960s mark the glory days in the history of the swizzle stick — and Don Draper's Old-Fashioned would've been considered unfinished, even uncivilized, without one.
Today, these mini-pop-culture icons are emerging as entertaining and valued collectibles. Tangible connections to the past, they're terrific conversation pieces and come in an infinite variety of dazzling shapes and colors.
The swizzle stick's origin can be traced to its first appearance on sugar plantations in the West Indies in the 1600s as a small branch used to stir a refreshing rum elixir called "Switchel." It seems we've never stopped using them. Queen Victoria was known to use a stirring rod to chase bubbles out of her Champagne, quietly avoiding any embarrassment from those pesky fizzy gasses.
The Gibson Girls and then flappers of the Roaring '20s used swizzle sticks made of glass and newly invented Bakelite plastic.
They were already a hot item when all they did was stir. But it was inventor Jay Sindler who, in 1934, revolutionized swizzle sticks with an advertising idea that would equal any marketing ploy cooked up by Don Draper at Sterling Cooper. And like Don's, his timing was perfect.
Two and a half months after the repeal of Prohibition, Sindler sat contemplating his martini at the bar in Boston's Ritz Carlton Hotel, wondering how he could remove the olive without dipping his fingers into his gin. He sketched the solution to this problem on his cocktail napkin; it was a small spear made of wood with a paddle-shaped handle. The paddle would be used as a miniature billboard imprinted with the establishment's name.
This idea would have been worthless during Prohibition when speak-easies hid from the law, but after repeal, drinking establishments wanted their names and addresses out in public. Swizzle sticks conveyed the information and were cheaper than a book of printed matches and cheaper still than the vanishing ashtrays that also boasted printed logos. Sindler was granted his patent on Feb. 19, 1935, and his invention and his company, Spir-it Inc., are still in business.
World War II and then the space race prompted growth in injection molding and plastic technologies that were good for the development of the swizzle. By the 1960s, we'd reached the golden age of the swizzle stick; any form was possible, fantasy designs were limited only by an artist's imagination and a client's request.
Swizzles became an important part of any lounge's décor. They were snapped up as soon as they were set out, and the more exciting the design, the faster they were pocketed. As playful representations of their establishments, they became more whimsical and intricate — for example, sporting a lobster for a seafood restaurant or a steer for a steakhouse. Las Vegas casinos all competed to have the most extravagant swizzle in town.
Taking swizzles as a memento was assumed and encouraged. They were saved for years. They made customers feel like they were given a gift, and the cheap but magical memories on a stick beckoned them back to an establishment again and again. A Madison Avenue dream come true.
It wasn't until the 1980s that swizzle sticks fell upon hard times. The rise of Jane Fonda workout videos and general health consciousness prompted a decline in cocktail consumption, bars and restaurants tightened their belts, and swizzle sticks practically disappeared. Remaining patrons were left with a flimsy red straw, hardly substantial enough to move the ice around their drink.
Thankfully, this didn't go on forever.
In the late 1990s, a cocktail resurgence began with new appreciation for the martini. This trend was reinforced by four sexy city girls who downed more than a few Cosmos on HBO. And the green apple martini that did its part to spike interest is now thankfully gone, replaced by properly mixed classics.
Luckily, the swizzle stick lives on, most notably in New Orleans with the opening of the Swizzle Stick Bar, the Tales of the Cocktail yearly festival and the founding of the Museum of the American Cocktail by Dale DeGroff.
Marketing manager Rachel Pantely of Spirit Foodservice (formerly Jay Sindler's Spir-it Inc.) says sales on custom designed/molded accessories are up almost 14% from last year.
The delightful swizzle stick is likely to remain popular in challenging economic times. Cocktails, a relatively inexpensive luxury, are all the more transporting when properly accessorized. | <urn:uuid:440146ec-a6f2-4b97-97a6-cd92bc998352> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.aberdeennews.com/farmforum/life/la-fo-swizzle-stick-20100916,0,4627995,print.story | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.975013 | 983 | 1.804688 | 2 |
Tea leaf reading is a highly creative, intuitive and introspective form of reading. I really connect with the practice because its relies strongly on the imagination, which I believe is the pathway to intuition. Unlike other forms of divination, tealeaf reading is easily accessible to those who are willing to trust in their creative and intuitive side.
Tea leaf reading, also called Tasseography, is little known to most people, yet it is a very practical form of divination because it can be done right at the kitchen table with nothing more than a teacup, saucer and some tea. Tough there are many traditions that accompany the art of reading tea leaves, its nothing more than seeing and interpreting symbols… along side of listening to the intuitive/psychic self.
Historically it is said to have originate in China, as part of the tea ceremony. The tea ceremony is a meditative practice that allows the practitioner to enjoy every aspect of having a cup of tea. From their it may have spread to Europe with the Gypsies or as international trade started becoming more common place and the export of tea.
Every so often I will do a reading for myself and my method of choice is to have a nice cup of tea and then read my leaves. To me it is a very magical and atmospheric experience. The cup reveals the inner workings of the psyche, as well as showing the path a person is on; past, present and future.
If you are interested in a different experience then book a tea leaf reading with me. Also, you can have a (psychic) tea party and everyone can see what his or her cup has to say. Tealeaf reading is about having fun and learning something new!
Please watch my video to learn more about the process of a tea leaf reading.
© Shaheen Miro 2/6/2011 | <urn:uuid:c25f1952-e721-402c-a2ff-ab12e9701d3c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://shaheenmiroinsights.com/2011/02/06/tea-leaf-reading/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.979027 | 378 | 1.84375 | 2 |
December 16, 2012
In response to the tragic events of Hurricane Sandy in the northeastern United States, Dot Foods is donating $61,126 to the American Red Cross and Covenant House New York to be used toward disaster relief.
“With our distribution centers in New York and Maryland, we’ve witnessed the damage firsthand,” Dot Foods Chairman Pat Tracy said in a news release. “There are people without food or shelter that need our help. This unfortunate event obviously occurred in a densely populated region and thus, there are so many in need of support.”
The funds were raised by Dot employees with a dollar-for-dollar company match and will be distributed among the two organizations.
The American Red Cross’ disaster relief efforts will receive $45,419.50.
“The American Red Cross is incredibly grateful for the support Dot and their employees have made to the relief effort,” Pam Shaffer, executive director of the American Red Cross serving Adams, Brown, Pike, Hancock and McDonough counties, said in the release. “We’d like to thank them for their support of those affected by Sandy, and for the helping hand they give us throughout the year so that we will be on the front lines of disaster response in our local communities.”
Covenant House provides support for homeless youth in the New York and New Jersey areas and is being awarded $15,706.50 from Dot and its employees.
“We’re so grateful that the employees at Dot Foods have rallied around our homeless kids during this difficult time,” Covenant House New York Executive Director Jim White said in the release. “This gift will not only help us provide desperately needed food, clothing and shelter.
It also gives us a chance to let our homeless kids know that people care. When our kids get this kind of support, there is nothing they can’t achieve.” | <urn:uuid:c74b32b1-c01f-4255-97fc-11871d846e32> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.sun-sentinel.com/business/hm-dot-foods-donating-61126-to-assist-superstorm-victims-20121212,0,7460071,print.story | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.953905 | 398 | 1.640625 | 2 |
Dr. Shivajee Kumar, one of Special Olympics Bharat’s Area Directors, was presented with the prestigious Khel Samman award from the Government of Bihar in eastern India. Dr. Kumar is lauded for his 12-year contribution to sports promotion in Bihar's intellectually disabled community.
Dr Shivajee Kumar (left) receives his award from the Bihar Government in India for his work in the intellectually disabled community.
Dedicated to Sports Promotion in Bihar
In addition to his work with Special Olympics Bihar, Dr. Kumar is the Managing Director of Samarpan, an institute for child development, mental health and rehabilitation for the handicapped, and is responsible for 36 special schools in Bihar’s districts.
Bihar has the second largest population of intellectually disabled people, with more than 1.2 million people classified as ID. Special Olympics Bihar has registered more than 68,000 athletes, 13,000 coaches and 8,000 families under Dr. Kumar’s leadership since 1995.
The program has conducted an impressive total of 19,000 sports events to date.
Dr. Kumar’s work is far from finished. He has set the task of creating greater awareness about ID and reaching out to those in the ID community to get involved with the Movement. With a goal of training 20,000 coaches and upping the number of competitions for athletes, he is sure to succeed. | <urn:uuid:6795511b-678f-4949-94bd-7ce6f5668fe6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.specialolympics.org/RegionsPages/content.aspx?id=19341&Region=SONA&RegionName=North+America&LangType=2052 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.972345 | 286 | 1.679688 | 2 |
1,000,000 children at risk in West Africa
Hopefully we're all enjoying another great bank holiday weekend with our friends and family. There's few things in life more important to us than our friends and family because we take mealtimes and health for granted.
This bank holiday, while your tucking into your Roast Beef and Yorkshire puds, spare a thought for the millions of children in need in West Africa, and all over the world who are starving and dying.
We at Locksmith Local would like to show our support for Unicef who are doing everything they can to save the one million children lives that hang in the balance after the crops have failed in eight drought-hit countries, leaving families at risk from malnutrition and starvation, with almost nothing to eat.
Please show your support too! Watch the video. Share it with Friends.
Your support could help to save 1,000,000 lives! | <urn:uuid:4d70e9da-180c-4211-a6b0-a3a8488c93e0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.locksmith-local.co.uk/news/article-432--1000000-children-at-risk-in-west-africa.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961897 | 190 | 1.78125 | 2 |
Mentor Graphics is teaming up with STMicroelectronics on a broad collaboration to develop advanced design solutions at 32nm and down to 20nm.
The three-year joint-development project, named DeCADE, seeks to build on advanced design solutions for SoC (System On Chip) development for Digital and Analog design, including system-level approaches, design methodologies, place and route strategies, optical correction for advanced manufacturing, modeling, electrical characterization and parasitic extraction. ST will significantly contribute to the development of these new SoC design tools, which will give ST a head start in its ability to deliver customer-focused semiconductor chips and platforms.
DeCADE will provide design solutions for core CMOS technologies as well as for value-added and application-specific derivative technologies that are developed from the core CMOS process. These projects can make a fundamental difference in chip capability and, performance, as well as in system-solution cost; among the value-added derivative technologies being considered by the DeCADE projects include RF (Radio Frequency) and wireless technologies, as well as 3D Packaging and chip stacking technologies. As a recognized pioneer in these technologies, ST’s participation will assure the strength of the design solutions’ foundation and ensure that its next-generation tools contribute to its maintaining product and technology leadership.
"This joint development effort will provide ST with tools to develop state-of-the-art Systems-on-Chips (SoCs) at 32-nm and below for ST's customers, taking full advantage of the strong Silicon Process, Device Modeling and Design know-how present on the Crolles Site," said Philippe Magarshack, STMicroelectronics General Manager of Central CAD & Design Solutions. "This ST-Mentor Graphics joint effort further reinforces the Crolles cooperative R&D cluster, which already gathers partners that develop and enable low-power SoCs and value-added application-specific technologies and is a great example of a project developed within the framework of the Nano2012 program." This is a strategic R&D program, led by ST, which gathers research institutes and industrial partners and is supported by French national, regional and local authorities. The program aims to create one of the world's most advanced R&D clusters for the development of new generations of semiconductor technology platforms at the nano-electronic level
“As a leading provider of semiconductor based solutions, ST is an excellent partner with whom to explore and develop the design methodologies that the market will need over the next decade," said Greg Hinckley, President of Mentor Graphics. “We look forward to this collaboration as a further extension of Mentor Graphics efforts with our long term customer ST.” | <urn:uuid:b57b68ba-0e2e-4d48-8641-70fb5ec860f5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://embeddedblog.blogspot.com/2010/03/stmicro-turns-to-mentor-for-32nm-design.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.937412 | 560 | 1.507813 | 2 |
Feast of St. John the Forerunner in Valjevo county
On the feast of the Nativity of St. John the Baptist, on July 7, 2012 the church community Paune celebrated its church slava. The Holy Hierarchal Liturgy was served by His Grace Bishop Milutin of Valjevo with the concelebration of local priests and in the presence of many believers from this county.
The feast of the Nativity of Saint John the Baptist was marked in the monastery of Jovanja.
Source: Diocese of Valjevo | <urn:uuid:afef2d9e-c31e-4149-8107-1c9396ea002a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.spc.rs/eng/feast_st_john_forerunner_valjevo_county | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967404 | 119 | 1.625 | 2 |
Japan has gained a reputation as one of the most technologically advanced countries on the planet. Its constant delivery of stunning, high-tech products means that its budget for research and development is at a colossal $130 billion per year, one of the largest in the world. Naturally, this has led to an abundance of products that are, shall we say, "memorable."
Europe and Asia have proven that high speed rail is a great way to move people, especially using magnetically levitating trains like this new Japanese prototype.
It may sound silly, but in Japan doting on your dog is serious business, which includes getting it a pedometer.
Hirobo is a Japanese company that's best known for its line of smallish remote control helicopters. So that's nice. But now, the company is thinking bigger. Not a lot bigger, but just big enough to carry you to work and back every day in a one-seater coaxial personal microhelicopter.
Kazuki Yamamoto is a latte artist in Osaka with a serious set of skills. The gent paints in coffee and steamed milk famed characters from video games, cartoons, anime, manga and the rest of your childhood.
The story of an aging Japan concocting new robots to entertain and assist its elderly populace is familiar by now, but mostly we get cute robo-pets and fragile humanoid robots. Finally, a company has come up with a robot that might actually become a staple in the homes of Japanese senior citizens.
Around here, 3D printing is a pretty popular topic, but most of us are presumably financially far from being able to have one installed in the living room. An exhibition space in Japan brings 3D printing to you with a 3D printing photo booth.
Japan is often recognized for the longevity of its citizens, but rather than a purely natural phenomenon, part of the secret of their success is a near-obsession with medical testing for even the tiniest of ailments. That laser focus on medical analysis is set to get another level of detail thanks to a new genetic testing kit being offered by Yahoo Japan.
It may be awhile before those sinister robotic drones become affordable for the rest of us, but in the meantime we can practice with other, slightly menacing remote-controlled floating devices. The Space Ball is just such a device, allowing you to control a tiny flying Death Star of your own.
Creating beautiful Japanese calligraphy is an art that requires years of practice to master, but what if a robot could mimic the exact hand movements of the artist, churning out masterpieces like a photocopy machine? That's the idea behind the Motion Copy System, developed by researchers at Keio University in Tokyo. | <urn:uuid:34e193e7-27fe-4e72-9e13-6e6979e9e5c2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.dvice.com/tags/japan?page=2 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962374 | 554 | 1.71875 | 2 |
I’m nearing completion of a double forme (colonial bench) that I’ve been working on for some time. (The absence of posts during the month of October is due to the fact that I’ve been busy in the shop.) The frame is six-legged, with stretchers and aprons being held with mortise and tenon joints which will be draw pinned.
Due to the six-legged design, the center legs must support three mortise and tenon joints. The legs are turned from 2 x 2 stock, so the tenons would be uncomfortably short if they were simply butted together, then pinned.
The solution to the problem was simple and straightforward. Half-lapping the tenons would allow for greater length, thus improved strength and stability. Draw pinning can still be used on the joints as the half-lap does not run the entire length of the tenon.
More to come… | <urn:uuid:6d74223c-7583-4ebf-b4cd-2dcdf3f41508> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://dblaney.wordpress.com/tag/hand-cut-mortise-and-tenon-joints/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706890813/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516122130-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973202 | 195 | 1.59375 | 2 |
Othello (The Tragedy of Othello: The Moor of Venice) (1952)
Description: Anyone interested in making a low-budget movie ought to see Orson Welles' screen adaptation of William Shakespeare's Othello, a striking example of how much can be achieved with very little money. For years, stories about this singularly troubled movie circulated more widely than the film itself; Welles began shooting Othello without securing full financing, so he would gather his cast, assemble a crew, and shoot until his money ran out. He would then take an acting assignment to raise some cash, reassemble his cast, and start filming again until the latest batch of money was gone. For the sequence featuring the murder of Cassio, Welles (depending on who tells the story) either couldn't pay the bill for the costumes or they just didn't arrive in time, so he reset the scene in a Turkish bath with his players wrapped in towels borrowed from their hotel. This process went on for four years; by the time Welles was done, the film was on its third Desdemona, and the director, himself, had to dub several voices, since most of the dialogue was recorded after the fact. Remarkably, the finished film not only isn't a disaster, it's a triumph, that rare example of a movie based on a Shakespeare play that's as exciting to look at as it is to listen to. While Welles pared the Bard's story of jealousy, betrayal, and murder to the bone (this version clocks in at a mere 92 minutes), the film's striking compositions and energetic quick-cutting allow the camera to tell more of the story than almost any other Shakespeare adaptation. Repeat viewers will see that Welles picked many of his camera angles to obscure the fact that Othello's mighty army was merely a handful of extras, but the unexpected bonus is a lean, muscular look that's the perfect match for the film's brisk narrative style. The spare, but powerful, visuals feel like a product of Expressionism, not a low budget, and the images have atmosphere to spare. In addition, it's truly a pleasure to hear Welles' rich baritone wrap itself around Shakespeare's dialogue; his con brio performance as the noble Moor undone by jealousy and betrayal has the impact of a fine stage rendition without overplaying its hand. Michael MacLiammoir is his equal as the conniving (and lustful) Iago, and had this film been more widely seen, it could well have sparked the successful screen career he so obviously deserved. And Michael Laurence is fine in an often witty turn as Cassio (with a verbal assistance from Welles). Only Suzanne Cloutier as the virtuous but wronged Desdemona lacks the forceful presence of the rest of the cast (though given how much of the role was edited away, it may not be entirely her fault). Welles' daughter spearheaded a campaign to restore and re-release Othello in 1992; and while the digital sheen of the re-recorded score sometimes makes for an odd contrast to the occasionally scratchy recordings of the dialogue, the new edition of the film looks better than ever (both on the big screen and on video) and is highly recommended to anyone who loves good acting or good cinema.~ Mark Deming, All Movie Guide
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Enter your email address to sign up or manage your account. | <urn:uuid:aab430d9-2304-43c8-b2d1-458d1ce95213> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://fun.familyeducation.com/movies/othello-the-tragedy-of-othello:-the-moor-of-venice-1952/35038 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973328 | 730 | 1.78125 | 2 |
BP (BP) can't help being aggressive. The company has been making new plays in both oil and gas since the tragic Deepwater Horizon spill, which should be completely paid off this year if all goes well with proposed plea deals.
But the company has not let legal troubles and settlements curb its appetite for exploration and production. The company recently helped the federal government raise $1.7 billion in a Gulf of Mexico oil auction. BP was the highest bidder on 43 leases, beating out Exxon Mobil (XOM), Chevron (CVX), ConocoPhillips (COP), Apache (APA) and Noble Energy (NBL) in the process. The leases were in waters deeper than 1,600 meters, and accounted for more than 53% of all the high bids, or $906 million, and almost 10 times more than tracts in water 400 meters or shallower. This new assertiveness is actually the result of the company's mistakes. BP's problems and mistakes of the past helped the company to come back even stronger. The company is now more safety conscious, with its own safety director reporting directly to CEO Bob Dudle. It has more drive and determination than every before, helping it to capitalize on current plays as well as future finds. With these attributes, I believe this company to be one to own and savor for the long haul.
Fighting through the challenges faced by the company, BP keeps on keeping on, but even with the company's aggressiveness, it still remembers its new philosophy on safety. The Baku-Supsa pipeline was shut down for maintenance, but is now back up and running to full capacity. The pipeline connects BP's Sangachal terminal south of Baku with Georgia's Black Sea port of Supsa.
The company recently announced the startup of its Galapagos development in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico. The company needed this breakthrough, as it marks the first major infrastructure development in the Gulf since the blowout and oil spill of the Macondo well. The Galapagos development actually includes three deepwater fields: the Isabela, Santa Cruz, and Santiago. All three fields are being developed using subsea equipment. Situated 140 miles southeast of New Orleans in 6,500 ft of water is the Na Kika, a BP-operated platform serving as the host facility, with a production capacity of 130,000 boe/d. The platform has been modified to handle output from the three fields. A new production flowline was added to carry the output of the three wells to the Na Kika. Regarding the Galapagos projects, CEO Bob Dudley said, "The start-up of this project in the Gulf of Mexico is one of BP's key operational milestones for 2012, and one of six high-margin projects we expect to come on stream this year. I expect that the operational progress we are now making will deliver increasing financial momentum for BP as we move into 2013 and 2014."
The company is more than willing to end a bad relationship and move on to the next big deal rather than wait it out. The company is in a hurry to make up for lost time as well as money lost. In June, due to a breakdown in relations, BP put its 50% stake in TNK-BP, the Russian joint venture, up for sale. In response, the Russian first deputy prime minister, Igor Shuvalov said, "In the big picture, the only thing I would regret is that BP would leave. Having such an investor on the market is a very valuable thing." BP knows when it is time to cut bait and fish. The company has had its share of bad relations over the Russian deal and feels that it would be better off severing the relationship and going elsewhere in search of oil. One option involved Alfa-Access-Renova (AAR), the other co-owner of the Russian oil company, to buy half of BP's stake in TNK-BP, but BP has stated that it did not want to be a minority shareholder in TNK-BP, which provides almost a third of its oil production. In 2003, BP paid $8 billion for its half of TNK-BP, a hugely profitable investment that has yielded $19 billion dividends.
The company is sitting nicely on solid financials for future growth. From 2010 to 2011, BP grew revenues 25.10% from $308.93 billion to $386.46 billion, while net income improved from a loss of $3.72 billion to a gain of $25.70 billion. During the same period, both dividends per share and earnings per share, excluding extraordinary items growth, increased 100% and 778%, respectively. In 2011, cash reserves at BP fell by $4.49 billion, but the company earned $22.15 billion from its operations for a cash flow margin of 5.73%. Additionally, the company generated $482 million in cash from financing while $26.63 billion was spent on investing. The company has a debt to total capital ratio of 28.05%, lower than the previous year's 32.14%. The company had first quarter 2012 revenues of $94.04 billion, 0.64% above the prior year's first quarter results.
There are some risks to investing in BP. First, BP could face further penalties from the Gulf Oil Spill. According to recent reports, BP estimated oil spill figures 20% to 50% below the government's figures. This development could set the company back further, and negatively impact the stock. Second, investors need to closely watch the relationship between BP and Alfa Access Renova. Recently, TNK-BP CEO Mikhail Fridman resigned, another sign of a troubled relationship between the two entities. This announcement is likely to negatively impact BP stock, as this will cast doubts about BP's ability to move forward with its Russian oil venture.
For a company with a lot of baggage, BP is making strides in progress of plays as well as profits. The company's strategy has not seemed to fail it since CEO Dudley took over. With a stellar leadership panel, great financials, and a full-steam-ahead approach to the exploration and production of energy sources, BP is surely one energy company that ownership will prove to be fruitful for many years to come.
Disclosure: I have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours. | <urn:uuid:28967e80-fea0-46d6-9722-4df9d9451bef> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://seekingalpha.com/article/684591-galapagos-project-will-lead-bp-higher-in-2013?source=feed | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.971096 | 1,305 | 1.609375 | 2 |
Many in this country will not trust Tariq Ramadan, especially after they have read Berman. Others, however, carry on with their own work to whitewash the Brotherhood. The most recent example comes from Foreign Affairs, in the form of a new essay by Carrie Rosefsky Wickham, associate professor of political science at Emory University. Professor Wickham too assures us we do not have to fear the group. She writes:
Those who emphasize the risk of “Islamic tyranny” aptly note that the Muslim Brotherhood originated as an anti-system group dedicated to the establishment of sharia rule; committed acts of violence against its opponents in the pre-1952 era; and continues to use anti-Western, anti-Zionist, and anti-Semitic rhetoric. But portraying the Brotherhood as eager and able to seize power and impose its version of sharia on an unwilling citizenry is a caricature that exaggerates certain features of the Brotherhood while ignoring others, and underestimates the extent to which the group has changed over time.
Unlike Ramadan, she does not accept his version of the Brotherhood’s program in the early pre-1952 era. Instead, she assures us that they have changed. Readers of PJM, having read many of Barry Rubin’s entries detailing the current Brotherhood program, are by now well acquainted with what its leaders believe in the present. Rubin has pointed to their recent gatherings, as well as the words of its leaders in our own day and age. So has Glenn Beck in this week’s programs about the Brotherhood, in which — contrary to what his critics say about him — he has accurately portrayed what they believe.
But according to Professor Wickham, the Brotherhood always had good aims. Contrary to what Berman has proved, she asserts:
It was initially established not as a political party but as a da’wa (religious outreach) association that aimed to cultivate pious and committed Muslims through preaching, social services, and spreading religious commitment and integrity by example. The group saw its understanding of Islam as the only “true” one and condemned partisanship as a source of national weakness. It called on Egyptians to unite to confront the forces of Zionism and imperialism and pursue economic development and social justice.
Who can oppose such noble goals, like fighting “Zionism and imperialism” — the two are equated — and creating “social justice”?
Professor Wickham then argues that although they eventually entered politics to change the system, the system changed them. The result: “Islamists and Arabists found common ground in the call for an expansion of public freedoms, democracy, and respect for human rights and the rule of law, all of which, they admitted, their movements had neglected in the past.” Evidently she has not read the most recent statements indicating that Brotherhood leaders are still neglecting them.
Rather, she assures us that today “its leadership is more internally diverse today than ever before.” She continues to describe the group’s three major factions, assuring readers that its “pragmatic conservatives” and the weaker yet influential “Islamic democracy activists” are the group’s real future. ElBaradei’s chief spokesman, she informs us, is part of its “reformist wing.” Thus she praises the Brotherhood’s willingness to not play a major role at present, to concentrate on joining with others to force Mubarak to resign immediately, and to create “an interim government palatable to the military and the West.”
I agree that its leaders, as she puts it, are “savvy,” and that hence it does not want to “invite the risk of a military coup by attempting to seize power on its own.” But such an understanding on the Brotherhood’s part does not show anything but a desire to wait until the moment is ripe to attain what it has always wanted — an Islamic state based on sharia law. It hardly proves that the group has changed its openly stated agenda.
Indeed, even Professor Wickham ends with some qualifiers of her own; i.e., “[i]t remains to be seen whether the Brotherhood as an organization — not only individual members — will accept a constitution that does not at least refer to sharia; respect the rights of all Egyptians to express their ideas and form parties; clarify its ambiguous positions on the rights of women and non-Muslims; develop concrete programs to address the nation’s toughest social and economic problems; and apply the same pragmatism it has shown in the domestic arena to issues of foreign policy, including relations with Israel and the West.”
Professor Wickham should not hold her breath. All indications reveal only that she and others are confusing their own wishful thinking with reality. What she says about the Brotherhood, that “the best way to strengthen its democratic commitments is to include it in the political process,” is precisely what so many pundits said about Hamas in the Gaza Strip before it seized power and instituted a mini Islamic state. What happened is exactly the opposite; it used political power to oppose not only democrats, but the secular Fatah that shared its goal of destroying Israel and creating a Palestinian unitary state in place of Israel.
Her final words are these: “With a track record of nearly 30 years of responsible behavior (if not rhetoric) and a strong base of support, the Muslim Brotherhood has earned a place at the table in the post-Mubarak era. No democratic transition can succeed without it.” She has it backwards. The truth is that a democratic transition the Egyptian people want will not succeed with the Muslim Brotherhood. Only its defeat will assure that outcome. | <urn:uuid:d4226159-6be7-4690-9f8d-89a38f034d2d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://pjmedia.com/ronradosh/2011/02/08/apologists-for-the-muslim-brotherhood/2/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.971788 | 1,184 | 1.84375 | 2 |
PEMBROKE PINES — Voters in March won't get to decide whether the city should be prohibited from seizing private houses so developers can tear them down and build new projects in their place.
The city's Charter Review Board last month voted unanimously to ask city commissioners to put the question on the March ballot.
Commissioners voted 3-2 against the request.
The issue was raised after last summer's U.S. Supreme Court decision, Kelo vs. New London. It is being interpreted as allowing cities to take private property through eminent domain even when government doesn't need the property for public purposes.
Under eminent domain procedures, a government agency files a lawsuit against a property owner and persuades a judge to issue an order allowing the immediate taking of the property. The government gets the property and the case later goes to a 12-member jury to determine how much the owner must be paid.
Although commissioners agreed they would never seize someone's house, the majority objected to the charter change proposal. They said it is too late to get on the March ballot and by next year, Congress or the state Legislature may enact a similar ban on seizures.
Also, lower courts may interpret the decision as not affecting Florida, they said.
The charter board wanted the question on the ballot to prevent the commission from using eminent domain to acquire land under the $100 million bond issue voters approved in March. The bond issue includes millions for economic development.
Commissioners William B. Armstrong and Ben Fiorendino voted for the proposal. Mayor Frank Ortis, Vice Mayor Angelo Castillo and Commissioner Iris Siple opposed it.
"I think we're moving a little too fast," Castillo said.
One reason for the charter board's recommendation was a rumor the city planned to use bond money to seize private houses to redevelop the older eastern area. Commissioners and City Manager Charles F. Dodge called it untrue.
Ortis said that even under the Supreme Court decision, the city couldn't seize property because the house must be in a "blighted" area "and we don't have that, thank God."
The Supreme Court decision, which City Attorney Sam Goren said is specific to Connecticut, also appears to require that local governments have a community redevelopment agency to handle the eminent domain procedure. Pembroke Pines doesn't have one.
The charter board acted on the request of residents including Phil McConaghey and Mike Rubinstein.
McConaghey called the Supreme Court decision "the most devastating decision since I don't know when."
Rubinstein, a former commissioner, demanded the commission put the question on the March ballot because the decision "affects the welfare of all residents of the city."
Joe Kollin can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.org or 954-385-7913. | <urn:uuid:2b86ca42-6d6a-411f-aeed-ddd27f6f16bb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/2006-01-08/community/0601060260_1_eminent-domain-charter-board-bond-issue | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954032 | 584 | 1.5625 | 2 |
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The visit is being conducted under tight security, and India has denied Pakistan's request to interview the mastermind of the attacks.
On November 26, 2008, a Pakistani assailant attacked several sites around Mumbai with gunfire and grenades, including the famed Victoria Terminus, today known as Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus, and Café Leopold.
More from GlobalPost: Promises, pitfalls await investors in Burma’s frontier economy
The Indian Express reported that the visit by the Pakistanis is being conducted under tight security. The police told the paper the Pakistani "commission was an extremely sensitive and unprecedented diplomatic exercise, and necessary precautions were being taken to ensure the safety of its members."
The police source continued, "The officials from Pakistan will not visit any of the 26/11 attack sites as such it could pose a security threat. They will be taken to the Esplanade Court and back to their accommodation with a heavy police escort team." He continued, "they are not official state guests."
More from GlobalPost: Pakistan calls for peace talks with terror groups
India has refused to allow the Pakistanis to speak to the lone remaining gunman, Ajmal Kasab, The Express Tribune reported. The "first of its kind" visit is a rare high-level interaction between the two nuclear rival countries. Pakistani investigators indicted seven co-conspirators but said they needed to visit India for evidence before they could proceed in Pakistan
Kasab has been sentenced to death by an Indian court. | <urn:uuid:570b3924-3a5b-4af2-986f-c66fbd84ab01> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/regions/asia-pacific/india/120314/pakistanis-visit-india-investigation-mumbai-attacks | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.95587 | 311 | 1.601563 | 2 |
In the summer heat, the residents of Wuhan, one of China’s four “furnace cities”, like to quench their thirst with a fizzy, lemony soda.
Xianhuoji, or Salty Buddy, is sold in fridges next to bottles of Coca-Cola, but it is made by a very different company – Wuhan Iron and Steel (WIS), the world’s fifth largest steelmaker by output.
Salty Buddy used to be given to the company’s steelworkers, to help them recoup the salt sweated out in the heat of the furnaces.
But with WIS facing a “disaster” in its core business, with profits from steelmaking plunging 96pc in the first half of this year, the soft drink is proving a valuable, if niche, diversification.
“We are selling thousands of bottles a day, at 30p for a chilled one,” said the head of the company’s No 112 distribution centre. “It tastes odd at first, but people get into it. I prefer it warm so I can taste the salt. Our warehouse empties each day.”
Nor is Salty Buddy the steelmaker’s only foray into different markets. As one of China’s government-owned champions, WIS has a long line of easy credit, money which it has diverted into 77 other businesses.
In April, Deng Qilin, the chairman, raised eyebrows when he said the company would invest 30bn yuan (£3bn) in pig farms as the price of pork was five times higher, per kilo, than steel.
In June, WIS opened a new office, in the grounds of one of its mammoth four-star hotels, to sell everything from yoga classes to landscape gardening. Its motto: “When you call, we’ll be there.”
“Our most popular service is plumbing. We get calls for plumbers 10 to 20 times a day. Also, our interior design and redecoration services are popular. We offer painting and heating installation, and removals,” said one of the purple-skirted clerks inside the office, who shyly declined to give her name. “Most of the services we offer already existed for workers within the group, but we’re now offering them to the public.”
Wuhan is China’s Detroit, a steel and automotive city. And WIS is one of the city’s oldest and largest companies, a mini-state which has, for years, provided almost everything for its workers.
Among WIS’s businesses are gyms, cinemas, karaoke parlours, restaurants, hotels, fast food restaurants, florists, old people’s homes, vets, dry cleaners, kindergartens, shoe makers, conference venues, car rental firms, architects, law firms, and advertising companies. At a site near the main plant, the company has even taken back a restaurant from a leaseholder, saying it can make a better job of it.
“Whether we provide these businesses internally, or offer them to the public, these people work here anyway,” said Yin Kewei, a spokesman for the company’s non-steel arm. “It is just a matter of how much money we make. Before, we were only covering our costs. Now we can make a profit,” he added.
That revenue has become increasingly important as China’s steelmakers have suffered. Since 2009, the price of iron ore, steel’s main raw material, has doubled; and over-investment in plants by local governments, keen to supply their own building projects, has created a glut of low-priced steel.
Benchmark hot-rolled steel traded at 3,562 yuan a tonne earlier this month, having fallen 19pc since April to its lowest level in almost three years. That has not stopped Chinese steel mills from ramping up production, however, and there are fears of a crash in the market.
“Lots of iron and steel companies have diversified as their profits have been squeezed,” said Hou Zhiyun, head of research at the Lange Steel Information Centre. “Generally there are two solutions to rising iron ore prices, and contending with losses. One is to expand into both upstream and downstream, the other is to diversify.”
She added: “Capital is not a problem for government-owned enterprises, but they cannot shed workers.”
China’s biggest mills, which are all owned by local governments, continue to churn out steel even when making losses because it would be a political disaster to cut production or jobs. China’s steel output has remained steady at 2m tons a day this year despite billions of yuan in losses. One in five people in Wuhan is on WIS’s payroll, some 2m. However, only 70,000 to 80,000 of them are still involved in steelmaking. Everyone else is now working in the non-steel businesses.
“The steel industry is capital intensive, while the service industry is labour intensive. So when technology improves and efficiency rises, labour becomes available and it can move across,” said Ms Hou. “WIS is not the first to do this. When Shougang (another steelmaker) left Beijing, almost all the local staff stayed behind and joined the service industry.”
The result is the non-steel arm of WIS now accounts for 28pc of the group’s revenues and, last year, 60pc of its profits. Its most profitable enterprises, however, are the ones most closely related to steelmaking: its metal processing, metallurgy, transport and logistics arms.
In Shanghai, almost half of Baosteel’s net profit of 18.7bn yuan last year came from non-steel businesses, which include manufacturing and telecommunications, up from 20pc the year before.
Steel prices are likely to remain depressed for the rest of the year, according to analysts, who said a mini-stimulus plan from the government was unlikely to start creating demand until the fourth quarter, or the beginning of 2013.
That is likely to encourage steelmakers to keep branching out, and more mis-allocation of capital. “Our model has been to have one core product and to gradually diversify. We have been doing this for 30 years,” said Sun Jin, a company spokesman. “But you should not judge us as a company by profits. We are in the Fortune 500 because of our revenues.”
Whether the rest of WIS’s portfolio sells as well as Salty Buddy remains to be seen.
Additional reporting by Valentina Luo | <urn:uuid:000d267f-ad29-4bc1-aa55-432caab53510> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.telegraph.co.uk/finance/china-business/9513352/Steelmaker-turns-to-Salty-Buddy-in-its-hour-of-need.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964473 | 1,428 | 1.828125 | 2 |
STORIES, BOOKS & MEDIA
THE ANALECTS - Chapter 11. Book 11
The Master said, "The men of former times in the matters of ceremonies and music were rustics, it is said, while the men of these latter times, in ceremonies and music, are accomplished gentlemen.
"If I have occasion to use those things, I follow the men of former times."
The Master said, "Of those who were with me in Ch'an and Ts'ai, there are none to be found to enter my door."
Distinguished for their virtuous principles and practice, there were Yen Yuan, Min Tsze-ch'ien, Zan Po-niu, and Chung-kung; for their ability in speech, Tsai Wo and Tsze-kung; for their administrative talents, Zan Yu and Chi Lu; for their literary acquirements, Tsze-yu and Tsze-hsia.
The Master said, "Hui gives me no assistance. There is nothing that I say in which he does not delight."
The Master said, "Filial indeed is Min Tsze-ch'ien! Other people say nothing of him different from the report of his parents and brothers."
Nan Yung was frequently repeating the lines about a white scepter stone. Confucius gave him the daughter of his elder brother to wife.
Chi K'ang asked which of the disciples loved to learn. Confucius replied to him, "There was Yen Hui; he loved to learn. Unfortunately his appointed time was short, and he died. Now there is no one who loves to learn, as he did."
When Yen Yuan died, Yen Lu begged the carriage of the Master to sell and get an outer shell for his son's coffin.
The Master said, "Every one calls his son his son, whether he has talents or has not talents. There was Li; when he died, he had a coffin but no outer shell. I would not walk on foot to get a shell for him, because, having followed in the rear of the great officers, it was not proper that I should walk on foot."
When Yen Yuan died, the Master said, "Alas! Heaven is destroying me! Heaven is destroying me!"
When Yen Yuan died, the Master bewailed him exceedingly, and the disciples who were with him said, "Master, your grief is excessive!"
"Is it excessive?" said he. "If I am not to mourn bitterly for this man, for whom should I mourn?"
When Yen Yuan died, the disciples wished to give him a ine; it belongs to you, O disciples."
Chi Lu asked about serving the spirits of the dead. The Master said, "While you are not able to serve men, how can you serve their spirits?" Chi Lu added, "I venture to ask about death?" He was answered, "While you do not know life, how can you know about death?"
The disciple Min was standing by his side, looking bland and precise; Tsze-lu, looking bold and soldierly; Zan Yu and Tsze- kung, with a free and straightforward manner. The Master was pleased.
He said, "Yu, there!-he will not die a natural death."
Some parties in Lu were going to take down and rebuild the Long Treasury.
Min Tsze-ch'ien said, "Suppose it were to be repaired after its old style;-why must it be altered and made anew?"
The Master said, "This man seldom speaks; when he does, he is sure to hit the point."
The Master said, "What has the lute of Yu to do in my door?"
The other disciples began not to respect Tszelu. The Master said, "Yu has ascended to the hall, though he has not yet passed into the inner apartments."
Tsze-kung asked which of the two, Shih or Shang, was the superior. The Master said, "Shih goes beyond the due mean, and Shang does not come up to it."
"Then," said Tsze-kung, "the superiority is with Shih, I suppose."
The Master said, "To go beyond is as wrong as to fall short."
The head of the Chi family was richer than the duke of Chau had been, and yet Ch'iu collected his imposts for him, and increased his wealth.
The Master said, "He is no disciple of mine. My little children, beat the drum and assail him."
Ch'ai is simple. Shan is dull. Shih is specious. Yu is coarse.
The Master said, "There is Hui! He has nearly attained to perfect virtue. He is often in want.
"Ts'ze does not acquiesce in the appointments of Heaven, and his goods are increased by him. Yet his judgments are often correct."
Tsze-chang asked what were the characteristics of the good man. The Master said, "He does not tread in the footsteps of others, but moreover, he does not enter the chamber of the sage."
The Master said, "If, because a man's discourse appears solid and sincere, we allow him to be a good man, is he really a superior man? or is his gravity only in appearance?"
Tsze-lu asked whether he should immediately carry into practice what he heard. The Master said, "There are your father and elder brothers to be consulted;-why should you act on that principle of immediately carrying into practice what you hear?" Zan Yu asked the same, whether he should immediately carry into practice what he heard, and the Master answered, "Immediately carry into practice what you hear." Kung-hsi Hwa said, "Yu asked whether he should carry immediately into practice what he heard, and you said, 'There are your father and elder brothers to be consulted.' Ch'iu asked whether he should immediately carry into practice what he heard, and you said, 'Carry it immediately into practice.' I, Ch'ih, am perplexed, and venture to ask you for an explanation." The Master said, "Ch'iu is retiring and slow; therefore I urged him forward. Yu has more than his own share of energy; therefore I kept him back."
The Master was put in fear in K'wang and Yen Yuan fell behind. The Master, on his rejoining him, said, "I thought you had died." Hui replied, "While you were alive, how should I presume to die?"
Chi Tsze-zan asked whether Chung Yu and Zan Ch'iu could be called great ministers.
The Master said, "I thought you would ask about some extraordinary individuals, and you only ask about Yu and Ch'iu!
"What is called a great minister, is one who serves his prince according to what is right, and when he finds he cannot do so, retires.
"Now, as to Yu and Ch'iu, they Tsze-lu said, "There are, there, common people and officers; there are the altars of the spirits of the land and grain. Why must one read books before he can be considered to have learned?"
The Master said, "It is on this account that I hate your glib- tongued people."
Tsze-lu, Tsang Hsi, Zan Yu, and Kunghsi Hwa were sitting by the Master.
He said to them, "Though I am a day or so older than you, do not think of that.
"From day to day you are saying, 'We are not known.' If some ruler were to know you, what would you like to do?"
Tsze-lu hastily and lightly replied, "Suppose the case of a state of ten thousand chariots; let it be straitened between other large cities; let it be suffering from invading armies; and to this let there be added a famine in corn and in all vegetables:-if I were intrusted with the government of it, in three years' time I could make the people to be bold, and to recognize the rules of righteous conduct." The Master smiled at him.
Turning to Yen Yu, he said, "Ch'iu, what are your wishes?" Ch'iu replied, "Suppose a state of sixty or seventy li square, or one of fifty or sixty, and let me have the government of it;-in three years' time, I could make plenty to abound among the people. As to teaching them the principles of propriety, and music, I must wait for the rise of a superior man to do that."
"What are your wishes, Ch'ih," said the Master next to Kung-hsi Hwa. Ch'ih replied, "I do not say that my ability extends to these things, but I should wish to learn them. At the services of the ancestral temple, and at the audiences of the princes with the sovereign, I should like, dressed in the dark square-made robe and the black linen cap, to act as a small assistant."
Last of all, the Master asked Tsang Hsi, "Tien, what are your wishes?" Tien, pausing as he was playing on his lute, while it was yet twanging, laid the instrument aside, and "My wishes," he said, "are different from the cherished purposes of these three gentlemen." "What harm is there in that?" said the Master; "do you also, as well as they, speak out your wishes." Tien then said, "In this, the last month of spring, with the dress of the season all complete, along with five or six young men who have assumed the cap, and six or seven boys, I would wash in the I, enjoy the breeze among the rain altars, and return home singing." The Master heaved a sigh and said, "I give my approval to Tien."
The three others having gone out, Tsang Hsi remained behind, and said, "What do you think of the words of these three friends?" The Master replied, "They simply told each one his wishes."
Hsi pursued, "Master, why did you smile at Yu?"
He was answered, "The management of a state demands the rules of propriety. His words were not humble; therefore I smiled at him."
Hsi again said, "But was it not a state which Ch'iu proposed for himself?" The reply was, "Yes; did you ever see a territory of sixty or seventy li or one of fifty or sixty, which was not a state?"
Once more, Hsi inquired, "And was it not a state which Ch'ih proposed for himself?" The Master again replied, "Yes; who but princes have to do with ancestral temples, and with audiences but the sovereign? If Ch'ih were to be a small assistant in these services, who could be a great one?
End of THE ANALECTS - Chapter 11. Book 11
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As the Sunday November 11, 2007 Veterans Day nears, our attention is called upon to focus on the past and present military service of veterans. At the forefront of tributes and ceremonies are the commitment, valor and sacrifice each and every veteran proudly represents.
On Tuesday November 6, 2007, District Department of the Environment Director George Hawkins acknowledged military veterans with his agency who are still serving the District, now as current employees of DDOE. Mr. Hawkins, not himself a veteran, expressed heartfelt sincere gratitude to attending male and female veteran employees during an intimate official ceremony at the agency's 51 N Street main office. "Recognition of our veterans ought to be done, it is the right thing to do and I have tremendous respect for those who have served," said Mr. Hawkins. Hawkins shared his sincere hope that this kind of individual acknowledgement becomes the norm rather than the exception for agencies and organizations with active veteran employees, "I am honored and humbled to honor what our veterans have done", he added.
Tuesday's District Department of the Environment (DDOE) ceremony was officially recognized and documented by the District of Columbia's Office of Veterans Affairs (OVA) as the first DC government agency to independently assemble an official ceremony honoring its Veteran DC employees. OVA representative - Barbara Pittman was on had to officiate the ceremony with a copies of the 2007 Official Mayoral Veterans Day Proclamation, a "Proudly Serving" pin, and a "Federal Benefits for Veterans and Dependents" manual for each proud honoree.
To learn more about the District of Columbia Office of Veterans Affairs, visit the OVA website. | <urn:uuid:db086f30-50bf-4304-af23-77b716a197ef> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://newsroom.dc.gov/show.aspx/agency/ddoe/section/2/release/13668/year/2007 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954531 | 331 | 1.71875 | 2 |
Stockton, California, lays claim to a lot of undesirable superlatives: it’s America’s foreclosure capital, an annual contender on the Forbes “Most Miserable” list, and the United States’ largest bankrupt city.
But the city might lose that last claim, depending on the outcome of a federal court hearing scheduled to begin Monday. Stockton would still be broke if a judge rules against it. It just wouldn’t be officially bankrupt. A group of bond insurers is arguing Stockton didn’t do everything it could to balance its books before declaring for Chapter 9 protection last June. Therefore, they say, it violated state bankruptcy laws. The insurers want the city to raise taxes and cut pension payments, among other steps.
How the federal judge rules – and how the city pays off the hundreds of millions of dollars it owes – will provide clues for how other financially stressed municipalities across California and the country will deal with pensions and employee benefit programs they can no longer afford.
How Stockton Got Here
When you visit Stockton, it isn’t always obvious you’re in America’s largest bankrupt city. The city of 300,000 boasts a gleaming riverside arena and baseball stadium. Last weekend, fans decked out in St. Patrick’s Day outfits streamed into the downtown entertainment complex to watch the Stockton Thunder hockey team take on the Bakersfield Condors.
Drive a couple of miles from downtown, though, and it’s a different picture. The Fair Oaks Public Library sits abandoned and forgotten. Its doors are boarded up, its signs are whited out, and neighbors say its parking lot attracts homeless people at night.
The city closed Fair Oaks Public Library in 2010. The closure has more in common with the downtown hockey arena than you might think.
Things were going pretty well for Stockton in the early 2000s. Revenue was up after a decade-long slump, and property values were exploding. Median home values jumped from around $100,000 to more than $400,000. It felt like a renaissance, so the city borrowed more than $100 million to build the arena, the adjoining baseball stadium, and a brand new waterfront.
“They were all excellent projects,” said City Councilwoman Kathy Miller, “but it was a huge amount of debt. “
The borrowing – along with employee benefits that grew more generous by the year – put Stockton on the hook for a lot of money.
And then the bottom fell out.
“The recession hit and revenue plummeted,” said Miller. “We went from a high of about $205 million to, last year, around $155 million. So no matter how you slice it that is a huge reduction.”
Stockton's leaders slashed and slashed, cutting $90 million from the budget between 2010 and 2012.They reduced employee pay and benefits. They shuttered the Fair Oaks Library, and cut hours at other library locations. City officials cut the police department’s staff by a quarter, and laid off more than 30 fire fighters.
But last year, Stockton still faced a $26 million dollar deficit. So it declared bankruptcy, becoming the largest American city to do so.
“You Expect That To Hold Water”
Stockton’s decision attracted international attention. Al Seibel worked for Stockton for 33 years, maintaining the city's parks and golf courses. One recent morning, he searched his shelves for a DVD as he talked to a reporter about the city’s bankruptcy. He was looking for the recording of his recent interview with a French television station. Seibel has also talked to journalists from Belgium, Japan and Switzerland.
The international press wants to talk to Seibel because he’s one of more than 1,000 Stockton retirees who suddenly lost their health insurance when the city declared bankruptcy.
In the 1990s, Stockton started offering lifetime health care benefits to city employees as part of a bargaining strategy aimed at keeping salary increases down. But Stockton never set aside the money required to properly fund the health care program. When the recession hit, it couldn’t afford the plan, and the city council voted to eliminate it.
“If we were to properly fund the program and make it available to everyone, we need to immediately set aside 30 percent of our payroll now and into the next 30 years,” read city manager Bob Deis’ letter to Stockton retirees.
The city allowed retirees to stay on its plan for another year, at a much higher rate. So Seibel had two options: pay a monthly premium of more than $1,100, for health care, or go without insurance. At age 61, Seibel is still years away from receiving health coverage through Medicare.
“I only get $2,100 a month [in pension payments],” said Seibel, who has heart and ulcer problems. “By the time I’d pay that insurance and my mortgage I’d have nothing left. It really wasn’t a choice. It was forced on me.”
The decision left Seibel and other retirees outraged and unprepared. Mark Anderson, who worked for the Stockton police department for 22 years, said his health care plan now boils down to “hoping we’re OK.” His wife Joni recently fell down the stairs.
“Luckily all I ended up with was some bruising," she said. "If I would have required surgery or something without having medical care, it would have killed us. Financially we would have lost everything.”
“If I had known 20 years before I retired, 'OK, I’m not going to have medical,' I would have started an account putting money away.”
“When you’re given something in a written contact that you’ve worked for 33 years, you expect that to hold water,” said Seibel. “If I had known 20 years before I retired, 'OK, I’m not going to have medical,' I would have started an account putting money away.”
Stockton’s city manager and mayor both turned down repeated requests for interviews. Councilwoman Kathy Miller voted to eliminate the retiree health care. She says the city didn’t have any other option.
“I think that, more than any other decision, was the toughest for the council to make," she said. "That was a budget expense that was going to go from $9 million to $14 million in 12 months and just grew exponentially.”
A Court Challenge
Stockton justified eliminating retirees’ health care by saying it was the only way to protect pension payments, which weren't cut. But the insurance companies that are holding the bag on the hundreds of millions of dollars that Stockton owes in bond payments are now challenging the city’s decision to keep pensions intact. In a federal court filing, the insurers claim that before the city filed for Chapter 9 protection, it should have cut pension payments and raised taxes.
Their argument boils down to this: the state’s public employee retirement system, CalPERS, is Stockton’s largest creditor. By refusing to negotiate reduced payments into the retirement system, Stockton is negotiating in bad faith with its other creditors.
“What the bond insurers want to say is you can't do anything to us unless you're making cuts everywhere you can,” explained University of Pennsylvania Law School professor David Skeel, a bankruptcy expert. “And the elephant in the room is Stockton's pensions, which they have suggested they're not going to cut.”
Stockton pays into three CalPERS-administered pension plans. These obligations totaled a bit less than $24 million in 2011, the last year a full financial report is available for the city. Stockton and CalPERS’ legal response to the creditors’ argument: CalPERS acts as a trustee, not a creditor, and the city has a legal obligation dictated by “a well-developed, substantial body of state law” to continue its payments.
The bond insurers are using the dispute to challenge Stockton’s eligibility for bankruptcy. Skeel doesn’t expect the argument to prevail at next week’s hearing, but thinks the insurers may be able to force the city to cut pension payments during later negotiations. Skeel said the insurers are pressing the issue hard, because they're worried about the growing number of cities going broke.
“If you're a bond insurer," said Skeel, "you say, ‘Oh my, I didn't think this could happen. It's happening in a significantly-sized city -- Stockton; it could happen almost everywhere.’”
And if a federal judge ultimately rules cities can scale back pension benefits for retirees – a move legally prohibited for decades – other financially troubled cities may take similar steps.
Skeel said local governments across the country should “take note as carefully as they can” while Stockton sorts through the major issues at the heart of its problems, and looks for solutions.
“When is it OK to go back on promises that you made to these employees?" mused Skeel. "What limitations ought there be on that? Who should be held responsible and how widely should the sacrifice be shared? These are big questions, I think.”
In the meantime, Stockton continues to negotiate with its numerous creditors. It agreed on a $22 million repayment plan with a bond insurer last month, and people involved in talks say an agreement on a more limited retiree health care plan isn’t out of the realm of possibility.
“At the end of the day nobody’s going to be happy,” said former City Manager Dwane Milnes, who has represented retirees in negotiations. “You just hope they’re all equally unhappy. I think that really is the best outcome." | <urn:uuid:37dc4710-80df-4822-93f4-93d17b7e69b9> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blogs.kqed.org/newsfix/2013/03/22/stockton-is-broke-but-is-it-bankrupt/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968086 | 2,088 | 1.515625 | 2 |
This statutory database is current through the 2004 Regular Session of the South Carolina General Assembly. Changes to the statutes enacted by the 2005 General Assembly, which will convene in January 2005, will be incorporated as soon as possible. Some changes enacted by the 2005 General Assembly may take immediate effect. The State of South Carolina and the South Carolina Legislative Council make no warranty as to the accuracy of the data, and users rely on the data entirely at their own risk.
Title 46 - Agriculture
SOUTHERN INTERSTATE DAIRY COMPACT
This chapter may be cited as the "Southern Interstate Dairy Compact Act of 1998".
Execution and ratification of compact; exchange of documents with other ratifying states.
(A) The Governor on behalf of this State may execute a compact, in substantially the form set out in Section 46-50-30, with any two or more of the states of Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia, and the legislature hereby signifies in advance its approval and ratification of the compact when the compact has been enacted into law by any three of the compact states, including South Carolina, and the consent of Congress to the interstate compact has been obtained.
(B) When the Governor has executed the compact on behalf of this State, and caused a verified copy to be filed with the Secretary of State, and when the compact has been ratified by three or more of the states named in Article VIII, Section 20 of the compact, including South Carolina, the compact shall become operative and effective as between this State and the states that have ratified the compact. The Governor shall take such action as may be necessary to complete the exchange of official documents between this State and any other state ratifying the compact, and to otherwise carry out the provisions of this chapter.
(C) Upon the compact becoming operative and effective between this State and other states ratifying the compact, it is hereby declared to be the policy of this State to perform and carry out the compact and to accomplish the purposes thereof.
Text of compact.
The Southern Interstate Dairy Compact is as follows:
STATEMENT OF PURPOSE, FINDINGS, AND DECLARATION
Section 1. STATEMENT OF PURPOSE, FINDINGS, AND DECLARATION OF POLICY.
The purpose of this compact is to recognize the interstate character of the southern dairy industry and the prerogative of the states under the United States Constitution to form an interstate commission for the southern region. The mission of the commission is to take such steps as are necessary to assure the continued viability of dairy farming in the South, and to assure consumers of an adequate, local supply of pure and wholesome milk.
The participating states find and declare that the dairy industry is an essential agricultural activity of the South. Dairy farms, and associated suppliers, marketers, processors, and retailers, are an integral component of the region's economy. Their ability to provide a stable, local supply of pure, wholesome milk is a matter of great importance to the health and welfare of the region.
The participating states further find that dairy farms are essential and they are an integral part of the region's rural communities. The farms preserve land for agricultural purposes and provide needed economic stimuli for rural communities.
By entering into this compact, the participating states affirm that their ability to regulate the price which southern dairy farmers receive for their product is essential to the public interest. Assurance of a fair and equitable price for dairy farmers ensures their ability to provide milk to the market and the vitality of the southern dairy industry, with all the associated benefits.
Recent dramatic price fluctuations, with a pronounced downward trend, threaten the viability and stability of the southern dairy region. Historically, individual state regulatory action had been an effective emergency remedy available to farmers confronting a distressed market. The federal order system, implemented by the Agricultural Marketing Agreement Act of 1937, establishes only minimum prices paid to producers for raw milk, without preempting the power of states to regulate milk prices above the minimum levels so established.
In today's regional dairy marketplace, cooperative, rather than individual state action, is needed to more effectively address the market disarray. Under our constitutional system, properly authorized states acting cooperatively may exercise more power to regulate interstate commerce than they may assert individually without such authority. For this reason, the participating states invoke their authority to act in common agreement, with the consent of Congress, under the compact clause of the Constitution.
In establishing their constitutional regulatory authority over the region's fluid milk market by this compact, the participating states declare their purpose that this compact neither displace the federal order system nor encourage the merging of federal orders. Specific provisions of the compact itself set forth this basic principle.
Designed as a flexible mechanism able to adjust to changes in a regulated marketplace, the compact also contains a contingency provision should the federal order system be discontinued. In that event, the interstate commission is authorized to regulate the marketplace in replacement of the order system. This contingent authority does not anticipate such a change, however, and should not be so construed. It is only provided should developments in the market other than establishment of this compact result in discontinuance of the order system.
DEFINITIONS AND RULES OF CONSTRUCTION
Section 2. DEFINITIONS.
For the purposes of this compact, and of any supplemental or concurring legislation enacted pursuant thereto, except as may be otherwise required by the context:
(1) "Class I milk" means milk disposed of in fluid form or as a fluid milk product, subject to further definition in accordance with the principles expressed in subdivision (b) of section three.
(2) "Commission" means the Southern Dairy Compact Commission established by this compact.
(3) "Commission marketing order" means regulations adopted by the commission pursuant to sections nine and ten of this compact in place of a terminated federal marketing order or state dairy regulation. Such order may apply throughout the region or in any part or parts thereof as defined in the regulations of the commission. Such order may establish minimum prices for any or all classes of milk.
(4) "Compact" means this interstate compact.
(5) "Compact over-order price" means a minimum price required to be paid to producers for Class I milk established by the commission in regulations adopted pursuant to sections nine and ten of this compact, which is above the price established in federal marketing orders or by state farm price regulation in the regulated area. Such price may apply throughout the region or in any part or parts thereof as defined in the regulations of the commission.
(6) "Milk" means the lacteal secretion of cows and includes all skim, butterfat, or other constituents obtained from separation or any other process. The term is used in its broadest sense and may be further defined by the commission for regulatory purposes.
(7) "Partially regulated plant" means a milk plant not located in a regulated area but having Class I distribution within such area. Commission regulations may exempt plants having such distribution or receipts in amounts less than the limits defined therein.
(8) "Participating state" means a state which has become a party to this compact by the enactment of concurring legislation.
(9) "Pool plant" means any milk plant located in a regulated area.
(10) "Region" means the territorial limits of the states which are parties to this compact.
(11) "Regulated area" means any area within the region governed by and defined in regulations establishing a compact over-order price or commission marketing order.
(12) "State dairy regulation" means any state regulation of dairy prices, and associated assessments, whether by statute, marketing order, or otherwise.
Section 3. RULES OF CONSTRUCTION.
(a) This compact shall not be construed to displace existing federal milk marketing orders or state dairy regulation in the region but to supplement them. In the event some or all federal orders in the region are discontinued, the compact shall be construed to provide the commission the option to replace them with one or more commission marketing orders pursuant to this compact.
(b) This compact shall be construed liberally in order to achieve the purposes and intent enunciated in section one. It is the intent of this compact to establish a basic structure by which the commission may achieve those purposes through the application, adaptation, and development of the regulatory techniques historically associated with milk marketing and to afford the commission broad flexibility to devise regulatory mechanisms to achieve the purposes of this compact. In accordance with this intent, the technical terms which are associated with market order regulation and which have acquired commonly understood general meanings are not defined herein but the commission may further define the terms used in this compact and develop additional concepts and define additional terms as it may find appropriate to achieve its purposes.
Section 4. COMMISSION ESTABLISHED.
There is hereby created a commission to administer the compact, composed of delegations from each state in the region. The commission shall be known as the Southern Dairy Compact Commission. A delegation shall include not less than three nor more than five persons. Each delegation shall include at least one dairy farmer who is engaged in the production of milk at the time of appointment or reappointment, and one consumer representative. Delegation members shall be residents and voters of, and subject to such confirmation process as is provided for in the appointing state. Delegation members shall serve no more than three consecutive terms with no single term of more than four years and be subject to removal for cause. In all other respects, delegation members shall serve in accordance with the laws of the state represented. The compensation, if any, of the members of a state delegation shall be determined and paid by each state, but their expenses shall be paid by the commission.
Section 5. VOTING REQUIREMENTS.
All actions taken by the commission, except for the establishment or termination of an over-order price or commission marketing order, and the adoption, amendment, or rescission of the commission's bylaws shall be by majority vote of the delegations present. Each state delegation shall be entitled to one vote in the conduct of the commission's affairs. Establishment or termination of an over-order price or commission marketing order shall require at least a two-thirds vote of the delegations present. The establishment of a regulated area which covers all or part of a participating state shall require also the affirmative vote of that state's delegation. A majority of the delegations from the participating states shall constitute a quorum for the conduct of the commission's business.
Section 6. ADMINISTRATION AND MANAGEMENT.
(a) The commission shall elect annually from among the members of the participating state delegations a chairperson, a vice-chairperson, and a treasurer. The commission shall appoint an executive director and fix his or her duties and compensation. The executive director shall serve at the pleasure of the commission, and, together with the treasurer, shall be bonded in an amount determined by the commission. The commission may establish through its by-laws an executive committee composed of one member elected by each delegation.
(b) The commission shall adopt by-laws for the conduct of its business by a two-thirds vote, and shall have the power by the same vote to amend and rescind these by-laws. The commission shall publish its by-laws in convenient form with the appropriate agency or officer in each of the participating states. The by-laws shall provide for appropriate notice to the delegations of all commission meetings and hearings and of the business to be transacted at such meetings or hearings. Notice also shall be given to other agencies or officers of participating states as provided by the laws of those states.
(c) The commission shall file an annual report with the Secretary of Agriculture of the United States, and with each of the participating states by submitting copies to the governor, both houses of the legislature, and the head of the state department having responsibilities for agriculture.
(d) In addition to the powers and duties elsewhere prescribed in this compact, the commission shall have the power:
(1) to sue and be sued in any state or federal court;
(2) to have a seal and alter the same at pleasure;
(3) to acquire, hold, and dispose of real and personal property by gift, purchase, lease, license, or other similar manner, for its corporate purposes;
(4) to borrow money and to issue notes, to provide for the rights of the holders thereof and to pledge the revenue of the commission as security therefore, subject to the provisions of section eighteen of this compact;
(5) to appoint such officers, agents, and employees as it may deem necessary, prescribe their powers, duties, and qualifications; and
(6) to create and abolish such offices, employments, and positions as it deems necessary for the purposes of the compact and provide for the removal, term, tenure, compensation, fringe benefits, pension, and retirement rights of its officers and employees. The commission may also retain personal services on a contract basis.
Section 7. RULEMAKING POWER.
In addition to the power to promulgate a compact over-order price or commission marketing orders as provided by this compact, the commission is further empowered to make and enforce such additional rules and regulations as it deems necessary to implement any provisions of this compact, or to effectuate in any other respect the purposes of this compact.
POWERS OF THE COMMISSION
Section 8. POWERS TO PROMOTE REGULATORY UNIFORMITY, SIMPLICITY, AND INTERSTATE COOPERATION.
The commission is hereby empowered to:
(1) Investigate or provide for investigations or research projects designed to review the existing laws and regulations of the participating states, to consider their administration and costs, to measure their impact on the production and marketing of milk and their effects on the shipment of milk and milk products within the region.
(2) Study and recommend to the participating states joint or cooperative programs for the administration of the dairy marketing laws and regulations and to prepare estimates of cost savings and benefits of such programs.
(3) Encourage the harmonious relationships between the various elements in the industry for the solution of their material problems. Conduct symposia or conferences designed to improve industry relations or a better understanding of problems.
(4) Prepare and release periodic reports on activities and results of the commission's efforts to the participating states.
(5) Review the existing marketing system for milk and milk products and recommend changes in the existing structure for assembly and distribution of milk which may assist, improve, or promote more efficient assembly and distribution of milk.
(6) Investigate costs and charges for producing, hauling, handling, processing, distributing, selling, and for all other services performed with respect to milk.
(7) Examine current economic forces affecting producers, probable trends in production and consumption, the level of dairy farm prices in relation to costs, the financial conditions of dairy farmers, and the need for an emergency order to relieve critical conditions on dairy farms.
Section 9. EQUITABLE FARM PRICES.
(a) The powers granted in this section and section ten shall apply only to the establishment of a compact over-order price, so long as federal milk marketing orders remain in effect in the region. In the event that any or all such orders are terminated, this article shall authorize the commission to establish one or more commission marketing orders, as herein provided, in the region or parts thereof as defined in the order.
(b) A compact over-order price established pursuant to this section shall apply only to Class I milk. Such compact over-order price shall not exceed one dollar and fifty cents per gallon at Atlanta, Georgia; however, this compact over-order price shall be adjusted upward or downward at other locations in the region to reflect differences in minimum federal order prices. Beginning in nineteen hundred ninety, and using that year as a base, the foregoing one dollar fifty cents per gallon maximum shall be adjusted annually by the rate of change in the Consumer Price Index as reported by the Bureau of Labor Statistics of the United States Department of Labor. For purposes of the pooling and equalization of an over-order price, the value of milk used in other use classifications shall be calculated at the appropriate class price established pursuant to the applicable federal order or state dairy regulation, and the value of unregulated milk shall be calculated in relation to the nearest prevailing class price in accordance with and subject to such adjustments as the commission may prescribe in regulations.
(c) A commission marketing order shall apply to all classes and uses of milk.
(d) The commission is hereby empowered to establish a compact over-order price for milk to be paid by pool plants and partially regulated plants. The commission is also empowered to establish a compact over-order price to be paid by all other handlers receiving milk from producers located in a regulated area. This price shall be established either as a compact over-order price or by one or more commission marketing orders. Whenever such a price has been established by either type of regulation, the legal obligation to pay such price shall be determined solely by the terms and purpose of the regulation without regard to the situs of the transfer of title, possession, or any other factors not related to the purposes of the regulation and this compact. Producer-handlers as defined in an applicable federal market order shall not be subject to a compact over-order price. The commission shall provide for similar treatment of producer-handlers under commission marketing orders.
(e) In determining the price, the commission shall consider the balance between production and consumption of milk and milk products in the regulated area, the costs of production including, but not limited to, the price of feed, the cost of labor, including the reasonable value of the producer's own labor and management, machinery expense, and interest expense, the prevailing price for milk outside the regulated area, the purchasing power of the public, and the price necessary to yield a reasonable return to the producer and distributor.
(f) When establishing a compact over-order price, the commission shall take such other action as is necessary and feasible to help ensure that the over-order price does not cause or compensate producers so as to generate local production of milk in excess of those quantities necessary to assure consumers of an adequate supply for fluid purposes.
(g) The commission shall whenever possible enter into agreements with state or federal agencies for exchange of information or services for the purpose of reducing regulatory burden and cost of administering the compact. The commission may reimburse other agencies for the reasonable cost of providing these services.
Section 10. OPTIONAL PROVISIONS FOR PRICING ORDER.
Regulations establishing a compact over-order price or a commission marketing order may contain, but shall not be limited to, any of the following:
(1) provisions classifying milk in accordance with the form in which or purpose for which it is used, or creating a flat pricing program;
(2) with respect to a commission marketing order only, provisions establishing or providing a method for establishing separate minimum prices for each use classification prescribed by the commission, or a single minimum price for milk purchased from producers or associations of producers;
(3) with respect to an over-order minimum price, provisions establishing or providing a method for establishing such minimum price for Class I milk;
(4) provisions for establishing either an over-order price or a commission marketing order may make use of any reasonable method for establishing such price or prices including flat pricing and formula pricing. Provision may also be made for location adjustments, zone differentials, and for competitive credits with respect to regulated handlers who market outside the regulated area;
(5) provisions for the payment to all producers and associations of producers delivering milk to all handlers of uniform prices for all milk so delivered, irrespective of the uses made of such milk by the individual handler to whom it is delivered, or for the payment of producers delivering milk to the same handler of uniform prices for all milk delivered by them;
(A) With respect to regulations establishing a compact over-order price, the commission may establish one equalization pool within the regulated area for the sole purpose of equalizing returns to producers throughout the regulated area.
(B) With respect to any commission marketing order, as defined in section two, subdivision nine, which replaces one or more terminated federal orders or state dairy regulation, the marketing area of now separate state or federal orders shall not be merged without the affirmative consent of each state, voting through its delegation, which is partly or wholly included within any such new marketing area.
(6) provisions requiring persons who bring Class I milk into the regulated area to make compensatory payments with respect to all such milk to the extent necessary to equalize the cost of milk purchased by handlers subject to a compact over-order price or commission marketing order. No such provisions shall discriminate against milk producers outside the regulated area. The provisions for compensatory payments may require payment of the difference between the Class I price required to be paid for such milk in the state of production by a federal milk marketing order or state dairy regulation and the Class I price established by the compact over-order price or commission marketing order.
(7) provisions specially governing the pricing and pooling of milk handled by partially regulated plants;
(8) provisions requiring that the account of any person regulated under the compact over-order price shall be adjusted for any payments made to or received by such persons with respect to a producer settlement fund of any federal or state milk marketing order or other state dairy regulation within the regulated area;
(9) provision requiring the payment by handlers of an assessment to cover the costs of the administration and enforcement of such order pursuant to Article VII, Section 18(a);
(10) provisions for reimbursement to participants of the Women, Infants and Children Special Supplemental Food Program of the United States Child Nutrition Act of 1966;
(11) other provisions and requirements as the commission may find are necessary or appropriate to effectuate the purposes of this compact and to provide for the payment of fair and equitable minimum prices to producers.
Section 11. RULEMAKING PROCEDURE.
Before promulgation of any regulations establishing a compact over-order price or commission marketing order, including any provision with respect to milk supply under subsection 9(f), or amendment thereof, as provided in Article IV, the commission shall conduct an informal rulemaking proceeding to provide interested persons with an opportunity to present data and views. Such rulemaking proceeding shall be governed by Section four of the Federal Administrative Procedure Act, as amended (5 U.S.C. Section 553). In addition, the commission shall, to the extent practicable, publish notice of rulemaking proceedings in the official register of each participating state. Before the initial adoption of regulations establishing a compact over-order price or a commission marketing order and thereafter before any amendment with regard to prices or assessments, the commission shall hold a public hearing. The commission may commence a rulemaking proceeding on its own initiative or may in its sole discretion act upon the petition of any person including individual milk producers, any organization of milk producers or handlers, general farm organizations, consumer or public interest groups, and local, state or federal officials.
Section 12. FINDINGS AND REFERENDUM.
(a) In addition to the concise general statement of basis and purpose required by Section 4(b) of the Federal Administrative Procedure Act, as amended (5 U.S.C. Section 553 (c)), the commission shall make findings of fact with respect to:
(1) whether the public interest will be served by the establishment of minimum milk prices to dairy farmers under Article IV;
(2) what level of prices will assure that producers receive a price sufficient to cover their costs of production and will elicit an adequate supply of milk for the inhabitants of the regulated area and for manufacturing purposes;
(3) whether the major provisions of the order, other than those fixing minimum milk prices, are in the public interest and are reasonably designed to achieve the purposes of the order;
(4) whether the terms of the proposed regional order or amendment are approved by producers as provided in section thirteen.
Section 13. PRODUCER REFERENDUM.
(a) For the purpose of ascertaining whether the issuance or amendment of regulations establishing a compact over-order price or a commission marketing order, including any provision with respect to milk supply under subsection 9(f), is approved by producers, the commission shall conduct a referendum among producers. The referendum shall be held in a timely manner, as determined by regulation of the commission. The terms and conditions of the proposed order or amendment shall be described by the commission in the ballot used in the conduct of the referendum, but the nature, content, or extent of such description shall not be a basis for attacking the legality of the order or any action relating thereto.
(b) An order or amendment shall be deemed approved by producers if the commission determines that it is approved by at least two-thirds of the voting producers who, during a representative period determined by the commission, have been engaged in the production of milk, the price of which would be regulated under the proposed order or amendment.
(c) For purposes of any referendum, the commission shall consider the approval or disapproval by any cooperative association of producers, qualified under the provisions of the Act of Congress of February 18, 1922, as amended, known as the Capper-Volstead Act, bona fide engaged in marketing milk, or in rendering services for or advancing the interests of producers of such commodity, as the approval or disapproval of the producers who are members or stockholders in, or under contract with, such cooperative association of producers, except as provided in subdivision (1) hereof and subject to the provisions of subdivisions (2) through (5) hereof.
(1) No cooperative which has been formed to act as a common marketing agency for both cooperatives and individual producers shall be qualified to block vote for either.
(2) Any cooperative which is qualified to block vote shall, before submitting its approval or disapproval in any referendum, give prior written notice to each of its members as to whether and how it intends to cast its vote. The notice shall be given in a timely manner as established and in the form prescribed by the commission.
(3) Any producer may obtain a ballot from the commission in order to register approval or disapproval of the proposed order.
(4) A producer who is a member of a cooperative which has provided notice of its intent to approve or not to approve a proposed order, and who obtains a ballot and with such ballot expresses his approval or disapproval of the proposed order, shall notify the commission as to the name of the cooperative of which he or she is a member, and the commission shall remove such producer's name from the list certified by such cooperative with its corporate vote.
(5) In order to ensure that all milk producers are informed regarding a proposed order, the commission shall notify all milk producers that an order is being considered and that each producer may register his approval or disapproval with the commission either directly or through his or her cooperative.
Section 14. TERMINATION OF OVER-ORDER PRICE OR MARKETING ORDER.
(a) The commission shall terminate any regulations establishing an over-order price or commission marketing order issued under this article whenever it finds that such order or price obstructs or does not tend to effectuate the declared policy of this compact.
(b) The commission shall terminate any regulations establishing an over-order price or a commission marketing order issued under this article whenever it finds that such termination is favored by a majority of the producers who, during a representative period determined by the commission, have been engaged in the production of milk, the price of which is regulated by such order; but such termination shall be effective only if announced on or before such date as may be specified in such marketing agreement or order.
(c) The termination or suspension of any order or provision thereof shall not be considered an order within the meaning of this article and shall require no hearing but shall comply with the requirements for informal rulemaking prescribed by Section four of the Federal Administrative Procedure Act, as amended (5 U.S.C. Section 553).
Section 15. RECORDS, REPORTS, ACCESS TO PREMISES.
(a) The commission may by rule and regulation prescribe recordkeeping and reporting requirements for all regulated persons. For purposes of the administration and enforcement of this compact, the commission is authorized to examine the books and records of any regulated person relating to his or her milk business and for that purpose, the commission's properly designated officers, employees, or agents shall have full access during normal business hours to the premises and records of all regulated persons.
(b) Information furnished to or acquired by the commission officers, employees, or its agents pursuant to this section shall be confidential and not subject to disclosure except to the extent that the commission deems disclosure to be necessary in any administrative or judicial proceeding involving the administration or enforcement of this compact, an over-order price, a compact marketing order, or other regulations of the commission. The commission may promulgate regulations further defining the confidentiality of information pursuant to this section. Nothing in this section shall be deemed to prohibit (i) the issuance of general statements based upon the reports of a number of handlers which do not identify the information furnished by any person, or (ii) the publication by direction of the commission of the name of any person violating any regulation of the commission, together with a statement of the particular provisions violated by such person.
(c) No officer, employee, or agent of the commission shall intentionally disclose information, by inference or otherwise, which is made confidential pursuant to this section. Any person violating the provisions of this section shall, upon conviction, be subject to a fine of not more than one thousand dollars or to imprisonment for not more than one year, or both, and shall be removed from office. The commission shall refer any allegation of a violation of this section to the appropriate state enforcement authority or the United States Attorney.
Section 16. SUBPOENA, HEARINGS, AND JUDICIAL REVIEW.
(a) The commission is hereby authorized and empowered by its members and its properly designated officers to administer oaths and issue subpoenas throughout all signatory states to compel the attendance of witnesses and the giving of testimony and the production of other evidence.
(b) Any handler subject to an order may file a written petition with the commission stating that any such order or any provision of any such order or any obligation imposed in connection therewith is not in accordance with law and praying for a modification thereof or to be exempted therefrom. He shall thereupon be given an opportunity for a hearing upon such petition, in accordance with regulations made by the commission. After such hearing, the commission shall make a ruling upon the prayer of such petition which shall be final, if in accordance with law.
(c) The district courts of the United States in any district in which such handler is an inhabitant, or has his principal place of business, are hereby vested with jurisdiction to review such ruling, provided a complaint for that purpose is filed within thirty days from the date of the entry of such ruling. Service of process in such proceedings may be had upon the commission by delivering to it a copy of the complaint. If the court determines that such ruling is not in accordance with law, it shall remand such proceedings to the commission with directions either (1) to make such ruling as the court shall determine to be in accordance with law, or (2) to take such further proceedings as, in its opinion, the law requires. The pendency of proceedings instituted pursuant to this subdivision shall not impede, hinder, or delay the commission from obtaining relief pursuant to section seventeen. Any proceedings brought pursuant to section seventeen, except where brought by way of counterclaim in proceedings instituted pursuant to this section, shall abate whenever a final decree has been rendered in proceedings between the same parties, and covering the same subject matter, instituted pursuant to this section.
Section 17. ENFORCEMENT WITH RESPECT TO HANDLERS.
(a) Any violation by a handler of the provisions of regulations establishing an over-order price or a commission marketing order, or other regulations adopted pursuant to this compact shall:
(1) Constitute a violation of the laws of each of the signatory states. Such violation shall render the violator subject to a civil penalty in an amount as may be prescribed by the laws of each of the participating states, recoverable in any state or federal court of competent jurisdiction. Each day such violation continues shall constitute a separate violation.
(2) Constitute grounds for the revocation of license or permit to engage in the milk business under the applicable laws of the participating states.
(b) With respect to handlers, the commission shall enforce the provisions of this compact, regulations establishing an over-order price, a commission marketing order or other regulations adopted hereunder by:
(1) Commencing an action for legal or equitable relief brought in the name of the commission in any state or federal court of competent jurisdiction; or
(2) Referral to the state agency for enforcement by judicial or administrative remedy with the agreement of the appropriate state agency of a participating state.
(c) With respect to handlers, the commission may bring an action for injunction to enforce the provisions of this compact or the order or regulations adopted thereunder without being compelled to allege or prove that an adequate remedy of law does not exist.
Section 18. FINANCE OF START-UP AND REGULAR COSTS.
(a) To provide for its start-up costs, the commission may borrow money pursuant to its general power under section six, subdivision (d), paragraph four. In order to finance the costs of administration and enforcement of this compact, including payback of start-up costs, the commission is hereby empowered to collect an assessment from each handler who purchases milk from producers within the region. If imposed, this assessment shall be collected on a monthly basis for up to one year from the date the commission convenes, in an amount not to exceed $.015 per hundredweight of milk purchased from producers during the period of the assessment. The initial assessment may apply to the projected purchases of handlers for the two-month period following the date the commission convenes. In addition, if regulations establishing an over-order price or a compact marketing order are adopted, they may include an assessment for the specific purpose of their administration. These regulations shall provide for establishment of a reserve for the commission's ongoing operating expenses.
(b) The commission shall not pledge the credit of any participating state or of the United States. Notes issued by the commission and all other financial obligations incurred by it shall be its sole responsibility and no participating state or the United States shall be liable therefor.
Section 19. AUDIT AND ACCOUNTS.
(a) The commission shall keep accurate accounts of all receipts and disbursements, which shall be subject to the audit and accounting procedures established under its rules. In addition, all receipts and disbursements of funds handled by the commission shall be audited yearly by a qualified public accountant and the report of the audit shall be included in and become part of the annual report of the commission.
(b) The accounts of the commission shall be open at any reasonable time for inspection by duly constituted officers of the participating states and by any persons authorized by the commission.
(c) Nothing contained in this article shall be construed to prevent commission compliance with laws relating to audit or inspection of accounts by or on behalf of any participating state or of the United States.
ENTRY INTO FORCE;
ADDITIONAL MEMBERS AND WITHDRAWAL.
Section 20. ENTRY INTO FORCE; ADDITIONAL MEMBERS.
The compact shall enter into force effective when enacted into law by any three states of the group of states composed of Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, and West Virginia and when the consent of Congress has been obtained.
Section 21. WITHDRAWAL FROM COMPACT.
Any participating state may withdraw from this compact by enacting a statute repealing the same, but no such withdrawal shall take effect until one year after notice in writing of the withdrawal is given to the commission and the governors of all other participating states. No withdrawal shall affect any liability already incurred by or chargeable to a participating state prior to the time of such withdrawal.
Section 22. SEVERABILITY.
If any part or provision of this compact is adjudged invalid by any court, such judgment shall be confined in its operation to the part or provision directly involved in the controversy in which such judgment shall have been rendered and shall not affect or impair the validity of the remainder of this compact. In the event Congress consents to this compact subject to conditions, said conditions shall not impair the validity of this compact when said conditions are accepted by three or more compacting states. A compacting state may accept the conditions of Congress by implementation of this compact.
Compact to be administered by Commissioner of Agriculture; appointment of delegates.
The State Commissioner of Agriculture shall act as compact administrator for the State of South Carolina, and shall also be a member and serve as chairman of the state's delegation to the Southern Interstate Dairy Compact Commission. With the advice and consent of the Senate, the Governor shall appoint four additional delegates to represent the State on the Southern Dairy Compact Commission provided for in Article III of the compact. The four additional delegates must include two dairy producers actually engaged in the production of milk at the time of their appointment or reappointment, one milk processor actually engaged in the processing of milk in this State into milk products for public consumption at the time of his appointment or reappointment, and one consumer representative from the public at large. Each delegate appointed by the Governor shall serve for a term of four years and shall diligently and conscientiously strive to achieve the purposes of the Southern Dairy Compact. Vacancies in the state's delegation shall be filled in the same manner as the original appointments for the unexpired term. Delegates whose expenses are not paid or reimbursed by the Southern Interstate Dairy Compact Commission may submit claims for travel and per diem to the Department of Agriculture. Upon approval of the claims by the Compact Administrator, or his designee, delegates shall receive per diem not to exceed thirty-five dollars for each day of service plus reimbursement at the prevailing state rate for travel expenses incurred in the performance of their duties as delegates. The Commissioner of Agriculture may provide funding and facilities as necessary to support and enable the delegation to perform its mission under the compact from funds appropriated to the Department of Agriculture.
Adoption of rules and regulations to enforce compact; grant of power to Commissioner and delegation; grant of right to obtain information relating to purposes of compact.
The Commissioner of Agriculture, as compact administrator or acting through the Department of Agriculture, may adopt rules and regulations pursuant to the Administrative Procedures Act as are necessary to carry out the purposes of the Southern Interstate Dairy Compact, to provide for the revocation or forfeiture of dairy industry licenses issued by any agency of the government of South Carolina held by persons violating the compact and related rules and regulations, and to otherwise enforce the provisions of this chapter. In addition, there is hereby granted to the Commissioner of Agriculture, as compact administrator and chairman of the state delegation to the Southern Interstate Dairy Compact Commission, and to the appointed members of the delegation, all powers provided for in the compact and all powers necessary or incidental to carrying out the compact in every particular. All officers of this State shall do all things falling within their respective provinces and jurisdiction necessary or incidental to assist the Commissioner of Agriculture, as compact administrator, and the state's delegation to the compact, in carrying out the compact in every particular. Upon request of the compact administrator on behalf of the state's delegation to the compact, all officers, departments, employees, and other persons of and in the executive branch of the state government shall, at convenient times, furnish available information and data relating to the purposes of the compact possessed by them to the compact administrator or the delegation. They may further aid the compact administrator or the delegation to the compact by loan of personnel, equipment, or other means, in carrying out the purposes of the compact and this chapter. In addition, the Commissioner of Agriculture, as compact administrator, may obtain any information, not privileged, which he considers necessary to carry out the purposes of the Southern Interstate Dairy Compact and the provisions of this chapter from the federal government, other state governments, and, by lawful means, from private persons having information or data relating to the dairy industry or to the purposes of the compact. Such information may be utilized by the Commissioner of Agriculture, as compact administrator, the delegates, and the Southern Dairy Compact Commission for the purposes of carrying out the provisions of the compact. Any powers granted in this chapter to the Commissioner of Agriculture, the Department of Agriculture, or any other agency or employee of the state government, shall be regarded as in aid of and supplemental to, and in no case a limitation upon, any of the powers vested in the Commissioner of Agriculture, the Department of Agriculture, or any other agency or employee of the state government, by other laws of the State of South Carolina or by the laws of Congress or of any state ratifying the Southern Interstate Dairy Compact, or by the terms of the compact itself.
Violation of compact as offense; penalty.
A person violating any provision of this chapter, or the provisions of the Southern Interstate Dairy Compact, or any rule or regulation adopted pursuant to either this chapter or the compact, is guilty of a misdemeanor and, upon conviction, may be punished by a fine of not less than one thousand dollars nor more than five thousand dollars or by imprisonment for a term of not more than one year, or both, for each separate offense. Each day upon which a violation occurs or continues constitutes a separate offense. | <urn:uuid:bc7e1303-f186-4648-8f67-314f0d440b9e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.scstatehouse.gov/archives/CodeofLaws2004/t46c050.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.938759 | 8,616 | 1.578125 | 2 |
What Day-to-Day Detox
When Introductory class March 17; month-long program starting in April
Where Yoga Loft, Table Mesa Shopping Center, Boulder
Cost Class $15 for members, $20 nonmembers; month-long program $297 for members, $347 non-members
Info 720-612-4321, visit yogaloftboulder.com
It's that time of year. Once, the image of spring cleaning was airing out the house and polishing the furniture. Nowadays, it's just as likely to be a cleanse or detoxification program that has to do with food -- or lack thereof -- and sweating out toxins.
While many traditional doctors and nutritionists throw cold water on the benefits of a cleanse -- they argue that the liver does that work all on its own -- cleanses are not considered by most people as alternative medicine anymore. They have hit the mainstream to the extent that it's even hard to define what a cleanse is. They range in intensity and duration from the old-school Master Cleanse of lemon juice, water maple syrup and cayenne to a vegetable heavy clean diet that eliminates the major food allergens.
It's the latter type of diet that gets kudos from most practitioners.
In March, Louisville Nutritionist Pam Vagnieres runs a three-week cleanse through classes and her website, nutriphysique.net.
"In springtime, people are in the mood to cleanse," Vagnieres says. She adds that motivations among clients vary from weight loss to releasing environmental and food toxins to an elimination diet to pinpoint food allergies.
Last week, Vagnieres held a class that included recipes and tips on the healthy way to cleanse. She divides cleanses into phases. In the first, which is often all people want to do, she eliminates common allergens and other foods that put strain on the body. These include gluten, dairy, soy, egg, corn, sugar and alcohol.
"It's just a clean diet with lots of antioxidants and nutrients on board to help the liver," she says.
The classes and online program teach about myths about detoxing such as the idea that it's for sick people. Vagnieres stresses that only healthy people should try a cleanse.
A cleanse also doesn't mean one must sacrifice taste.
"My thing is to make it delicious," she says. "There's no reason to eliminate (healthy) fats."
In her classes, for example, she teaches participants to make a cilantro pesto, as well as a beet and apple salad. The diet also includes organic fish and chicken.
For those who want to go further into a phase two, she tells them to eliminate animal products, but continue to eat nuts, seeds and antioxidant-rich vegetables. Participants also drink protein shakes. In the third phase, people drink alkaline broths and protein shakes.
Vagnieres says many people choose to do only the first phase.
"I always caution if you're feeling good and want to stay here, stay here," she says. "If you're not feeling good (in the second or third phase), go back. Not everyone feels good in phase three."
Some cleanses consist of only vegetable broths and fruits and vegetables. It's these, done over a period of time, that can be harmful to some people.
Mary Shackelton, a Boulder naturopathic doctor, says she has seen the result of people doing extreme cleanses that have no fats or protein. She has seen two people in what she describes as a "health crisis" as the result of "aggressive" cleanses.
"One woman had an autoimmune condition that she had had before. It came back," Shackelton says. "The other one had profound fatigue."
She says some people are not suited to cleanses.
"Most people can do a moderate cleanse. They're probably fine." But, she adds, "There's a whole group of people who can be triggered. There are too many toxins there."
The risk can be worsened when people combine an extreme cleanse with a lot of hot yoga or saunas to cause them to sweat.
"The person I saw was doing extremely hot yoga, sweating out electrolytes and went to a broth diet," she says.
The person wasn't taking in enough nutrients to support the elimination of toxins, Shackelton says.
She is teaming with the Yoga Loft studio to offer an introductory class and a monthlong series called Day-to-Day Detox.
Shackelton says that a crucial, but often overlooked, aspect of detox is getting rid of toxic body products as well as cleaners in the home.
"This cleanse looks at exposures on a daily basis, starting when your feet hit the floor in the morning," says Shackelton, who has a master's degree in public health. "When you do a cleanse, but don't remove toxic exposures, you have not done anything."
She recommends using hot yoga and infrared saunas, a type of sauna present in naturopathic offices, to help with the cleanse, as long as participants have been evaluated and are receiving the support they require through their diet and supplements.
Jeff Bailey, who owns the yoga loft with his wife, says he and Shackelton came up with the idea for the joint classes.
"I personally have experimented with a couple of different programs," Bailey says. "I felt wiped out afterward or during."
He said when Shackelton started talking about the role of fats in detoxification, it made a lot of sense to him. Bailey was also impressed by the emphasis on environmental toxins along with food.
"Detoxification is a journey, not a destination," he says.
Orange, Apple and Beet Salad
Beet greens (use what came with your beets)
3 medium (or 2 large) raw beets, outer shell scraped or scrubbed well
4 raw carrots, scraped or scrubbed well
1 large (or 2 small) granny smith or pink lady apples
2-3 cloves garlic
1 jar or can mandarin oranges, drained or one large orange, peeled and sectioned
3-4 tablespoon nuts (sunflower seeds, cashews, hazelnuts, coconut, almonds, walnuts, toasted lightly or raw)
Fresh parsley or cilantro
4 tablespoons high quality olive oil
3 tablespoons raspberry or pomegranate balsamic vinegar
11/2 teaspoons xylitol or dash of stevia
1 teaspoon sea salt
Directions: Scrub or peel beets and carrots quickly using a vegetable peeler. Wash beet greens in salad spinner. Spin to dry. Using the blade attachment, pulse beet greens until finely chopped. Using the shredding blade, shred raw beets and carrots. Chop apple and garlic by hand.
In large bowl, whisk together dressing ingredients. Add shredded salad ingredients to the dressing and toss well. Top with orange sections and seeds or nuts. Garnish with fresh parsley or cilantro and serve.
Beets have phyto-nutrients that help cleanse the blood of impurities.
Beets contain betaine, which promotes the regeneration of liver cells and the flow of bile. It also has a beneficial effect on fat metabolism. Increasing the flow of bile is an important part of detox because bile carries stored fat-soluble toxins away from the liver to be excreted in the stools.
Signs of poor bile flow include constipation aggravated by fiber supplements, flatulence, dry skin and hair, indigestion 1-2 hours after eating, indigestion after fatty foods and small, hard stools.
Garlic is rich in sulfur-containing compounds. Involved in sulfation, the main detox pathway for environmental chemicals and certain drugs and food additives. Helps with the elimination of harmful heavy metals from the body.
Source: Pam Vagnieres, ww.nutriphysique.net | <urn:uuid:634d51bb-0f91-4853-9008-fc7726d0f6c6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.coloradodaily.com/news/ci_22773465/spring-cleanup | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959486 | 1,679 | 1.648438 | 2 |
FRANKFORT, Ky. (AP) - State lawmakers agreed late Thursday night on a bill that would provide incentives for companies that build high-tech coal plants in Kentucky.
Senate President David Williams said he expects the General Assembly to convene on Monday afternoon to begin the legislative process to enact the measure.
Legislators met behind closed doors for much of the day Thursday trying to iron out details of the bill, which is aimed at enticing Peabody Energy to build a coal gasification plant in the state.
"It is a comprehensive energy bill, it really is not a coal bill at all," said House Speaker Jody Richards, D-Bowling Green, said. "This bill, the more I read it, the more I see about the green aspects of it ... it's in many ways an environmental protection bill."
Once the major details were ironed out, lawmakers asked Gov. Ernie Fletcher to call a special legislative session. Fletcher was unavailable Thursday evening, and his press secretary, Jodi Whitaker, didn't immediately return a phone call seeking comment.
The proposal would provide a number of financial incentives for Peabody and other energy companies to build plants in the state, including breaks on sales taxes, income taxes and coal severance taxes.
State lawmakers have spent much of the summer considering a proposal, which, by some estimates, would provide about $300 million in tax breaks for Peabody. Williams said Thursday night that he wasn't sure how much the final package of incentives agreed to on Thursday would total.
Fletcher called the General Assembly into a special session last month to deal with the proposal. The Senate passed an energy tax-incentive plan, but the House did not address Fletcher's legislative agenda and adjourned.
Lawmakers had said they were hoping to ask Fletcher to call a special session to begin this past Monday. But certain undisclosed issues remained unresolved.
Richards said Thursday that he was optimistic a plan could get done. The proposal addresses issues about capturing carbon emitted from the coal gasification process, and emphasizes use of renewable resources, Richards said.
"This is all about a new direction for energy in Kentucky that emphasizes renewable energy," Richards said.
House Majority Floor Leader Rocky Adkins, D-Sandy Hook, has been involved in the negotiations and said he considered it a "well-balanced energy policy." The public would be informed of the details once the legislative leaders agree on a plan, Adkins said.
Adkins, who is the director of public affairs for Appalachian Fuels in Cannonsburg, said he did not have a conflict of interest being involved in the negotiations and working for an energy company.
"This effects all energy companies in many different energy fields. I don't think it is (a conflict) at all," Adkins said. "I have tried my best to come with a well-balanced policy, a good policy that I think will have very positive impacts on the commonwealth of Kentucky."
(Copyright 2007 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Enter your number for a chance to win great prizes!
Message and data rates may apply | <urn:uuid:97507fc3-07e2-4d07-a5ec-14e16d3c600e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wkyt.com/home/headlines/9209107.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967962 | 641 | 1.773438 | 2 |
Gillard’s “Fair Work” act will push unemployment to 6%, Sheehan predicts
Labor rode to victory in the 2007 federal election on the back of a massive WorkChoices scare campaign run, in part, by the ACTU.
The real scary thing is what’s happening in the workplace under the Gillard Government’s so-called “reforms”, if the Sydney Morning Herald columnist Paul Sheehan is right.
In a piece headlined “Labor’s job-killing machine”, Sheehan says unemployment will rise as the the act’s new provisions kick in.
He predicts that unemployment this year “must rise to 6 per cent, not the 5.5 per cent forecast by Treasury”.
“Expect unemployment to rise, job insecurity to rise, union power to increase and the federal bureaucracy to expand for the duration of the Labor-Greens-Windsor-Oakeshott government, while it blames everyone but itself,” Sheehan writes.
“If you want to see why, go to the real world of small-business entrepreneurship, which is so alien to the culture of the federal government, and talk to the owners of retail stores who have been visited by inspectors from Fair Work Australia and given dozens of pages of new regulations with which they must comply.”
Liberal Party federal director Brian Loughnane warned in a speech on Saturday, “We can expect to hear more from Labor, like a tired broken record, about WorkChoices … we should expect the campaign on this to intensify.
“The central question about workplace relations policy in this country today is how does the Government reconcile its rhetorical commitment to economic growth and productivity with the changes Julia Gillard made when she was Minister which abolished not just the changes of the Howard government but also the reforms of the Keating government?
“It is clear from the growing numbers of comments from both senior business leaders and small business operators that these changes are directly affecting Australia’s productivity,” Loughnane said.
In related news, Ken Phillips, executive director of Independent Contractors Australia, reports that Scouts and other volunteers are being hit with the new Occupational Health and Safety laws.
As “a dramatic demonstration of the bad design of the new national OHS laws”, Phillips points to a memo issued by the NSW Scout Association to all its volunteer leaders and committee members.
In effect, volunteers are now expected to have the same OHS expertise and resources as a senior manager in a large corporation, Phillips said.
“This has never been required before. Volunteers now face huge risks.” | <urn:uuid:2baca754-1d33-4855-b0e6-41c3704964af> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://australianconservative.com/2012/01/gillards-fair-work-act-will-push-unemployment-to-6-columnist-sheehan-predicts/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.944043 | 561 | 1.523438 | 2 |
Pablo Picasso once said that art is the lie that tells the truth. Michael Putegnatwould probably agree. The Brownsville public policy and computing consultant chose to write a novel to explain how oil politics affect Wall Street, Washington and Small Town, USA.
"All I could show was the numbers coming in," Putegnat says on why he didn't write a nonfiction book. "And nobody seems to pay attention to facts anymore."
His debut novel, Laguna, is the story of the heir to a Texas oil dynasty torn between his personal ethics and the spread of his family's empire.
"It's really about the Shakespearean themes of greed and corruption," says Putegnat. "I just put it in that setting so Texans would relate to it." Still, Laguna is meant to reflect the current political and business climate, where greed and corruption are cynically accepted, he says.
"We just smile and nod so much anymore," Putegnat says. "When politicians get trips to Scotland to play golf, we pretend it's not a bribe. We know they're lying and we accept it. We suspend our disbelief like we would reading a novel." See Putegnat actually read a novel, when he reads from Laguna at Murder by the Book.
Sat., July 29, 4:30 p.m. | <urn:uuid:2c4e130a-9b89-424c-999c-c95ba9f5450b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.houstonpress.com/2006-07-27/calendar/stranger-than-fiction/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.978032 | 281 | 1.601563 | 2 |
PIT BULL LEGISLATION
Polite Calls Needed for Maryland's Dogs
You’re probably aware that the Maryland General Assembly (MGA) has appointed a task force to study the recent Maryland Court of Appeals ruling that all pit bull-type dogs are inherently dangerous. However, this task force is divided in its views about how to best to address this situation. Since the MGA reconvenes in January, it is critical that they immediately develop a compromise position.
Please make a brief, polite phone call today to Senate President Mike Miller at 410-841-3700 and Speaker Mike Busch at 410-841-3800 and urge them to find a compromise. Then email the following message to
Sen. Miller and Del. Busch: "End BSL Now!"
Marylanders across the state are being adversely impacted by the recent Maryland Court of Appeals ruling designating all pit bull-type dogs “inherently dangerous.” In fact, the ruling is affecting owners of not only pit-bulls, but other dogs as well. The ruling has even been extended to service dogs of other breeds. For instance, a Baltimore woman is being denied subsidized housing because she has a Rottweiler service dog.
In another case, a lawsuit is being filed in federal court after Tenants at a major cooperative in Baltimore were given notice to get rid of their dogs. This case will have a massive negative impact on Maryland landlords, homeowner's associations, insurance companies, animal shelters, dog owners, vet clinics, and other small businesses.
Please send this email to the President of the Senate and Speaker of the House and tell them to work together to fix this serious problem.
Please include your Contact Info. Why do we need all this?
Your name and address are mandatory for any emails to the Governor's office or Legislature. Emails without this information are disregarded by those offices.
THE ANIMALS THANK YOU! | <urn:uuid:f316af46-0c75-42a4-9631-1ddd062ceb49> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://gaithersburg.patch.com/blog_posts/pit-bull-legislation | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955432 | 401 | 1.5 | 2 |
From the very beginning of our government the nation has been in a constant state of change. We have progressed in nearly every area of our human existence; except we seem to have forgotten or lost the true meaning of our countries creation -- freedom. Our nation was founded on the concept of individual freedom, where the individual was sovereign and the government was the servant.
With individual freedom came individual responsibility. One of those responsibilities was to control errant government actions and the courage to hold the government accountable when they stepped beyond their enumerated powers. For without checks and balances of that power, well meaning men will seek to enlarge power in an effort to protect our freedoms. But, as the scales of justice shows, in order to maintain a balance between freedom and governance the roles of master and servant cannot change and still maintain balance. For once the government steps beyond its bounds the only power that can be taken is from the rights of the people.
In an effort to help spark a renewed understanding of what we have lost and the expansion of government beyond constitutional authority I wrote "Unalienable Rights."
Help keep Constitution Denied website alive. The ever increasing costs of keeping this website up and running is becoming monitarily taxing. Please help by making a donation to keep the web site and blog available for everyone to ejoy and learn. Though your contribution is not tax deductible it will go a long way to keep my writings alive and a very heart fealt Thank you.
Within this site I have brought together many of my writings, as well as writings of other authors, with their permission, which are provided to assist readers seeking the truth of our nations belief in individual liberty.
I also offer autographed copies of my book, only through this website, at no additional cost for the autograph or for shipping and handling. The book is 307 pages in length and includes a copy of the Declaration of Independence, The Articles of Confederation, The Constitution, and the Bill of Rights. For those ordering from the web site I also include a pocket Declaration of Independence and Constitution as well as a book mark all at no additional cost to the reader.
In the links section I provide links to other sites that you may find of interest or that has helped me in my search for truth. These links are provided as an aide to you, the reader, but I do not necessarily endorse or agree with ALL that may be presented to you. I ask that you take what I, or any writer, may present to you as a basis for understanding but I encourage you to search out the truth in all things. This is why throughout my writings I try, whenever possible, to use authoritative sources, original writings, legal case documentation, or writings form the source to derive my conclusions. But once again, this is just one source of information and you should seek others as well.
Please enjoy your stay here and if you are so inclined I can be reached through the contact section of this site or by email at firstname.lastname@example.org. | <urn:uuid:13f3ea07-2698-4442-b3f1-ddb5d4403f4c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.constitutiondenied.com/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963498 | 610 | 1.828125 | 2 |
In the first part of this article, we looked at the initial considerations when it comes to hiring [...]Read more »
We all have the same problems; not enough hours in the day to do everything we need to ensure our business thrives and with the birth of social media sites like like Facebook, Twitter, Digg, LinkedIn etc the list of daily tasks just gets longer.
I help businesses every day with the set up and management of their social media strategies, here are some of my tips to help you along your way into the exctiting world of social media:
- Before launching into using social media, first think about your strategy. No point in launching into using social media if you have no idea who its targeted at and what you want to achieve. Is it greater brand awareness, do you want to promote specific products, promote an action?
- Which sites are your clients using? Do not launch into anything until you know if your customers are using these sites. The easiest way is to just ask. Why not send them a survey or next time you are speaking to them ask what they are doing on the Internet and make note of each clients response. This will very quickly allow you to gauge which sites will work best for you. You can also profile your customers by using The Social Technographics Profile, simply input in your customers age profile, gender and location and this nifty tool will show you whether your clients are Creators, Critics, Collectors, Joiners, Spectators or Inactive.
- Now that you have decided which social media website to use, the next step is to sync them together. It will depend on which sites you are using but the most popular I come across are Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, Digg, IGOPeople, YouTube and Flickr. There are many more and it is normally quite easy to sync them so each time you update one site the update feeds into any others they are synced with it. Every time I update my blog, it feeds into my Facebook page, which updates in Twitter which in turn updates my LinkedIn and IGO People accounts.
- Managing multiple account from one place – use websites like Hootsuite, Ping.fm, TweetDeck to manage multiple accounts and update multiple social media websites from the one platform. There are many more but these are my favourite. They will certainly save you a lot of time.
- Mobile applications – you should ensure that you are current with your information, nothing worse than seeing posts with old information. If you cannot post from your mobile phone upgrade to a phone that allows you to post while you are on the move, there are a range of great applications available for all phone types that will enable you manage your social media while on the move.
- Make yourself viral – remember to post things that are of interest to your followers, if they are interested its likely they will pass it onto to their followers and so on. Remember its called “social” media so do not always go in with the hard sell, you should enjoy the interactions as much as your followers do.
- Repeat posting – people are online at different times of the day and may miss your most recent posts, try reposting some (not too many don’t want to look lazy) at different times. Gauge when you get the most interaction from your followers and keep a few minutes aside at this time each day to work on your social media.
- Monitoring – remember to monitor interaction, you don’t want to miss an important comment or question | <urn:uuid:8edfcf27-3ecd-46fd-8d0a-ee107172b871> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://bedynamic.ie/blog/facebook/manage-your-social-media/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.949637 | 722 | 1.53125 | 2 |
- Online Shop
- Our Designers
The collection is inspired by elements from sci-fi, eco politics and the notion of a suggested dystopian future where independence is paramount to survival in a somewhat standardized society. Use of materials includes weaves that you would find in industrial greenhouses to aid the growth of plants by allowing through it a specific amount of light and heat. The transparent pod-like coat structures are supported by parachute inspired harnesses that carry a skeletal function. The outfits are built in layers that are connected by metallic mesh covered hand-knitted cords and metal silver snakes that propose a representation of fluid organisms, or live gentle machines. The greenhouse factor has lead to the inclusion of tie dye and bright floral colors that now exist within the collection as a uniformed aesthetic, allowing the overall look to be an opposing mix that gels together a perforated see-through slick finish with eclectic colorful elements. Photography: Louise Damgaard
About the Designer
Anna is based in New York, United States. She studied at Central Saint Martins. Her collections are produced in United States.
Anna Holvik graduated from Central Saint Martins in 2008. In 2006 she won the L'Oréal Professionnel Talent Spotting Titel. She has worked for Richard Nicoll in London and at Lanvin in Paris. Texts by Orwell and Huxley, along with science fiction cinema and eco politics initially inspired her graduate collection concept and led to the use of industrially engineered materials and ideas of protection, transparency and the human experience. Anna live and work in NYC. | <urn:uuid:60b23309-0dbc-4ba0-b027-f46209fd1171> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.notjustalabel.com/anna_holvik | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.938832 | 318 | 1.632813 | 2 |
Letting go is something that is difficult for all of us, regardless of where we are in life. Here are some tips and ideas to make it a bit easier to move on to something you know deep down is a better choice for you.
1) Moving on means letting go -- Try to think of what you're doing as going after something new, instead of losing out on something that is gone. Do mourn your loss fully (whether that is a job, living situation, friendship, relationship, etc.). But keep in mind that you are mourning in order to create balance and space in your life to bring in new fulfillment, happiness and rays of sunshine -- life can't stay dark for very long before light sneaks in!
2) Your arms can only carry so much -- think of your arms as holding your old situation. Your hands are full! And you have no way to grasp onto anything new. You must first put down and let go of what you have now, in order to have room in your hands to pick up something new for your life! You may think you can hold onto your existing job, or mindset, or date, or friends while you look for new ones, but you really can''t. It is impossible. You must first let go of what isn't working in order to create space for what will work. This includes space in your mind and old thoughts you are holding onto.
3) Focus on the new things you will soon have -- this will keep your attention positive and happy (especially during this in-between time where your hands are empty). Reminding yourself why you are letting go of something (so that you can bring what you really need into your life) will keep your focus where it should be. Visualize what you want, make lists, get down to the fine detail of what it is you really desire. See yourself as already having it. What does it feel like to already have it? What will your life be like? Relax into this thought and "live" in this new space you have created in your mind as often as you can. Then you will keep your attention focused on what you want -- which will help you to bring about the right changes quickly and easily.
Combining these tips together will make it easier to transition from where you are now, to where you will soon be. The future is almost here -- might as well create what you want with it.
Want to find the best life coach for you and your goals? Need a new life? Career or personal dreams? Find out more about Life Coaching. I'm a NYC Certified Life Coach serving professional, ambitious clients -- I coach financial traders, attorneys, entrepreneurs, artists and anyone creating a big, brand new life. | <urn:uuid:bf0053d6-21b7-4693-a5b5-aca503314e80> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://yourdreamslifecoaching.blogspot.jp/2008_10_01_archive.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968558 | 557 | 1.835938 | 2 |
This timeline traces the timing of court proceedings in one contested adoption proceeding — that of Robert Manzanares, who first initiated a paternity action in Colorado and then in Utah after learning his daughter had been born in that state. Some court observers say protracted cases could be avoided by adopting a rule that expedites the hearings.
Created by SaltLakeTribune on Apr 1, 2012
Last updated: 04/01/12 at 06:26 PM
Tags: adoption putative fathers
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Third District Judge Paul Maughan agreed to dismiss the adoption petition, as requested by the birth mother and prospective adoptive parents, so the custody case can be heard in Colorado. He also ordered that Robert Manzanares' name be added to his daughter's birth certificate, something that had not happened despite previous orders. Robert and his mother attended the court hearing in Utah.
On Jan. 27, 2012, the Utah Supreme Court issued its opinion that Robert Manzanares had improperly kept from intervening in the adoption proceeding for his daughter. It sent the case back to the trial court.
The Utah Supreme Court heard arguments in the case, known officially as "In the Matter of the Adoption of Baby B," on November 4, 2010. The link below takes you to the audio recording of the hearing.
Robert Manzanares appealed the trial court judge's decision on Sept. 4, 2009.
The trial court judge signed his decision, ruling against Manzanares, on Aug. 10, 2009.
Third District Judge Robert Faust issued a memorandum decision, finding that Manzanares had not adequately protected his parental rights under Utah's adoption statute and his consent to his daughter's adoption was not necessary.
The trial court asks attorneys to provide additional briefs on the effect of vacating Carie Terry's relinquishment and whether or not Robert Manzanares complied with the qualifying circumstances of Utah's adoption statute.
Presiding Judge Paul G. Maughan denies adoptive parents' motion to disqualify 3rd District Judge Robert Faust.
3rd District Judge Robert Faust referred the prospective adoptive parents' motion to have him disqualified to the associate presiding judge for review.
The prospective adoptive parents filed a motion on Jan. 28, 2009, seeking to have Faust disqualified.
As the legal wrangling continued, Robert Manzanares filed a motion requesting that he be granted visits with his daughter. Manzanares has seen his daughter once, when she was 10 months old, at a court hearing.
On Oct. 31, 2008, Carie Terry filed a motion in Utah's 3rd District Court seeking to intervene in the adoption case and have her relinquishment reconsidered.
The prospective adoptive parents also filed a motion on Oct. 31, 2008, supporting Carie Terry's effort to re-enter the custody dispute.
On Oct. 28, 2008, Robert Manzanares filed a new motion in 3rd District court asking that the adoption petition be dismissed, that he immediately be given custody of his daughter and that further proceedings be transferred to the Colorado court.
The Utah Court of Appeals rejected the prospective adoptive parents' appeal.
Robert Manzanares filed an objection to the appeal filed by the prospective adoptive parents.
The prospective adoptive parents filed an appeal with the Utah Court of Appeals.
On Aug. 20, 2008, 3rd District Judge Robert Faust issued a new decision, vacating Judge Hilder's acceptance of Carie Terry's relinquishment because of her misrepresentations to the court. Faust also ordered that Manzanares' name be added to his daughter's birth certificate.
Third District Judge Robert Faust hears evidence during a two-day hearing in late July, 2008.
Following a telephone conference call with attorneys, 3rd District Judge Robert Faust vacated his July 1 decision and set a two-day evidentiary hearing for July 28-29, 2008.
Robert Manzanares filed an objection to the prospective adoptive parents' effort to delay returned of his child to him.
The prospective adoptive parents filed a motion on July 3, 2008, asking the court to delay its order returning the child to Robert Manzanares pending a decision on the case from the Utah Court of Appeals.
At the end of a July 1, 2008, hearing on Robert Manzanares' petition to dismiss the adoption petition, 3rd District Judge Robert Faust ordered that the then 4-month-old baby be turned over to her father on or before July 7, 2008
According to court records, both Robert Manzanares and the prospective adoptive parents tried to get a court date between April 3, 2008, and June 2008, but were not able to get before a judge until July.
Robert Manzanares filed a motion in 3rd District Court to dismiss the adoption petition filed by the prospective adoptive parents on March 10, 2008.
The Denver County District Court judge issued a supplemental order addressing venue and jurisdiction for the paternity action. The Colorado judge rules that Utah is not the proper forum for the paternity action. During this hearing the Colorado judge spoke by telephone with 3rd District Judge Robert Hilder, who said Utah would recognize the Colorado order and require Manzanares' name to be placed on his daughter's birth certificate.
The Denver County District Court judge issued an order addressing Manzanares' paternity, rights and responsibilities and addressing jurisdiction. He finds that Colorado has jurisdiction in the matter, that Manzanares is the biological father and that Manzanares' name should be added to the child's birth certificate after its birth.
Hearings took place on Robert Manzanares' paternity action on Feb. 27 and Feb. 29, 2008, in Denver County District Court.
Robert Manzanares filed an emergency motion with the Colorado court requesting a hearing on his paternity action.
Robert Manzanares learned through mutual friends that Carie Terry had given birth. At this point, he did not know where the birth had occurred.
On Feb. 20, 2008, minutes before a scheduled hearing in Colorado, Carie Terry appeared before 3rd District Judge Robert Hilder and relinquished her rights to the infant. The baby was temporarily placed with her brother and sister-in-law, who planned to adopt the child.
Fifteen minutes before the scheduled 9 a.m. hearing, Carie Terry called the Colorado Court and said she would not be at the hearing because she was out-of-town visiting a sick relative. Terry did not mentioned that she had given birth and relinquished the baby.
The prospective adoptive parents, who are related to the birth mother, filed a petition for adoption on Feb. 19, 2008, in Utah's 3rd District Court.
Carie Terry gave premature birth on Feb. 17, 2008, to a baby girl while in Utah.
Carie Terry traveled to Utah to visit her ill father.
Carie Terry filed a response with the Colorado court on or about Feb. 12, 2008, according to court documents. A hearing was then set for Feb. 20, 2008.
Carie Terry, who also lived in Colorado, received a copy of Manzanares' verified petition for paternity and to enjoin an adoption two weeks after he filed it in a Colorado court.
Concerned that girlfriend Carie Terry might place their unborn child for adoption, Robert Manzanares, shown with his son in this photo, files a paternity action in Denver County, Colorado. | <urn:uuid:1f30f487-8164-4e90-881b-a4aa88d4e331> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.dipity.com/SaltLakeTribune/Anatomy-of-an-adoption-proceeding/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.960709 | 1,525 | 1.632813 | 2 |
Are Animals People?, the exhibition by Peter Fischli (Zürich, 1952) and David Weiss (Zürich, 1946) organised by Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina Sofía
, focuses on a selection of works featuring Bear and Rat. Iconic avatars from some of their earliest works, this duo has made a comeback in recent works.
Played by the artists themselves, Bear and Rat stand in as projections of their roles in their own artistic practice. Through this distancing device, Fischli/Weiss ironically manifest an idea of art as an alternative system of knowledge that creates manifold ties between reality and fiction; these roles also embody the conversational style undergirding their collaborative work. The exhibition at the museums main facility comprises films from this ongoing saga, and related works. Functioning like a kind of museum devoted to Bear and Rat, it is presided over by vitrines containing the costumes used to play the characters. The Palacio de Cristal, the museums site in the Retiro Park, contains their latest work based on the two animals. The presentation of this series offers an excellent chance to acquaint ourselves with the artists creative universe.
Peter Fischli and David Weiss have been working together since 1979. Their earliest collaboration, executed immediately prior to the first film featuring Bear and Rat, consisted of a series of photos, their Wurstserie (Sausage series), portraying everyday scenes made from sausages and other ordinary objects. Using everyday materials to counter the solemnity and weight of traditional art genres it proposed an amateurish aesthetic closer to childrens handcrafts, and so brought into play many different aspects that would prove central to their later work.
In their sculptures, installations, photographs and films, Fischli/Weiss couple an exploration of their immediate surrounding environment with a signature deadpan wit, in order to generate far-reaching reflections, which uncover the pettiness subsumed in theoretically sublime concerns. In this fashion, they implement a systematic dehierarchisation that posits new subjective orders and classifications in what surrounds us. In their films, the artists acknowledge certain similarities with educational cinema, yet, by contrast, their works offer no explanations. In fact, far from analyzing, they show their contents with a laconic directness. They also frequently put the spectator in an uncomfortable predicament, sometimes by dint of the disproportionate quantity of stimuli included and other times because of the ambiguous or striking character of what is shown.
Rat and Bear made their first appearance in 1981. Shot on an 8 mm film in Los Angeles, Der Geringste Widerstand (The Point of Least Resistance) is an experimental and burlesque fable strewn in equal parts, with clichés and philosophical observations, as the two animals try to make their way in the art world. Their mission to become artists underpins various escapades, after which, now much wiser, they construct a pseudo-encyclopaedic system, a global image of the world. The series of drawings, diagrams and charts they create to illustrate their newfound system was published in a book titled Ordnung und Reinlichkeit (Order and Cleanliness, 1981) which was then sold at the première of the film. According to curator Nancy Spector it outlines their conceptual program, offering a glimpse of their future vision of the world, albeit in inevitably fragmentary and eccentric terms. This film and booklet marked the beginning of a body of work with a linguistic and interrogative philosophical focus, which became even more pronounced in Kanalvideo (1992). Seemingly a hypnotic trip to the depths, the video was actually filmed in Zurichs sewage system (Fischli/Weiss, who classify sewers as among the most beautiful public constructions alongside railways and motorways, earlier touched on parallels between sewage workers tasks in sorting waste and the ways that artists work with reality in Kanalarbeiter (Sewer Workers), 1987). Another work in this series, Der Rechte Weg (The Right Way), 1983, a 16 mm film transferred to DVD, traces a journey through landscapes comprised of caves, forests, lakes, fields and glaciers.
Fischli/Weiss trajectory has been largely predicated on a succession of different thematic projects. To a certain extent, the Rat and Bear works are exceptional insofar as they have appeared and reappeared intermittently in their oeuvre. With the final venue of a touring retrospective Flowers and Questions, 2006-2008, shown in UK, Switzerland and Italy, Fischli and Weiss returned to Bear and Rat with a threescreen installation. Twenty five years after Der Rechte Weg, Parts of a Film with Rat and Bear, 2008, shows Bear and Rat as mannikins playing in the frescoed and stuccoed halls of the Palazzo Litta in Milan where they encounter reflections and images of themselves as both cubs and as adults.
The mannikins used in Parts of a Film with Rat and Bear are at the core of the installation in the Palacio de Cristal. On the ground, the two animals are apparently sound asleep while, up above, they soar weightlessly in the space. The installation was conceived in collaboration of Stephan Wittwer, who created the onomatopoeic sound. When entering the space we try to connect with the animals which may be sleeping and, perhaps, dreaming. In a book filled with questions published some year ago Fischli/Weiss asked themselves: Can I rediscover my innocence?... Are animals people? | <urn:uuid:89ea7a83-ad4a-4db6-9148-f1b79ebf8d24> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.artdaily.com/index.asp?int_sec=11&int_new=30644&int_modo=2 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.942912 | 1,142 | 1.773438 | 2 |
My main instrument is the guitar but here are some (if not all) of the other instruments I've been playing. Many are stringed but recently I got a recorder which has been more challenging than I originally thought. It felt good when I was talking with a friend who has a Native Indian flute and expressed he was having the same issues.
There is no particular order to the list.
Non-Pedal Steel Guitar
Lap Steel Acoustic (Weissenborn Style)
Cumbus (pronounced joom-bush)
The way I look at other stringed instruments is through the tunings. Once you understand the tunings and can begin building various chord shapes and scale diagrams its the matter of putting it to practice. Different instruments tuned to similar tunings makes it easier to go from one to the other.
IMO, the mandolin is an excellent choice if you are interested in trying out another instrument while staying within the plucked string family.
I played recorder when I was a teenager - and that's how I learned the basics of music thoery and notation by the way. Today, besides my guitars, I sometimes play ukulele, and I've been back to harmonica. I had some notions, mostly learned on my own, on harmonica when I was younger, and now I've bought a method to learn it more seriously. But guitar play takes most of my musical time though.
About other fretted instruments I'd like to play, I'd go for mandolin and banjo. But for the moment I have neither the time to practice new instrument, nor the budget to get them. But anyway, it's always enriching to play various instruments and styles of music. Guitar is very much this way through the large number of types of guitars that exist. | <urn:uuid:fdd619e5-cc06-4124-80b1-900ff2d9438a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.acousticguitarcommunity.com/forum/topics/playing-other-instraments?commentId=2161554%3AComment%3A346102&xg_source=activity | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97592 | 370 | 1.546875 | 2 |
The stories listed below are true – they are just a few examples of how the Caregiver Support Centers have already helped people just like you!
Rose has been caring for her husband since he had a stroke 8 years ago. She hasn't been to a doctor in years. Although she is having more trouble bathing and dressing her husband, she feels uncomfortable about letting strangers do this. Now Rose's son is worried about her health.
When Rose and her son spoke to a social worker at one of the Caregiver Resource Centers, she helped them locate a neighborhood agency which worked with the family on a care plan. Rose hired an experienced home attendant who helps with her husband's care. Rose is also regularly seeing a doctor in her neighborhood.
Inez, a mother of two young school-aged children, has been caring for her elderly father for five years. She has trouble balancing the needs of all family members.
When Inez called one of the Caregiver Resource Center's, she spoke with a social worker who listened. Her father is now attending a day program three afternoons a week. He enjoys the program and Inez gains some free time. Inez also joined a caregiver support group where she's able to express her feelings, shares ideas, and gets the understanding she needs.
Mr. R first approached the Caregiver Resource Center on a hot September afternoon, when one of its' social workers came to visit the assisted living facility where Mr. R lives. In tears, Mr. R related how he simply could not "adjust" to life at the facility. The social worker took Mr. R aside to speak more privately. In a cool corner of the community room, Mr. R shared how, at the age of 89, he came to find himself living at this facility and assuming the role of primary caregiver for his 87-year-old wife. Mrs. R suffers from Alzheimer's and Mr. R had become increasingly saddened both by her decline and their departure from their home of 32 years. After listening to Mr. R's frustrations, the social worker explained to Mr. R the services that the Caregiver Resource Center provided - information and referral, supportive individual counseling, caregiver trainings and support groups, assistance with benefits and entitlements, and limited respite care. The two exchanged phone numbers and the social worker informed Mr. R that the Caregiver Resource Center would be in touch.
Over the next five months Mr. R accessed an increasingly broader range of services through the Caregiver Resource Center. Numerous home visits between the Center and Mr. R revealed that, as with many care givers, Mr. R's health was of primary concern. The Center's social worker encouraged and eventually assisted Mr. R in arranging a doctor's appointment to assess his fluctuating blood sugar levels. With Mr. R's active participation, the social worker referred Mr. R to GMHOS (Mental Health Services) so that he could receive more focused counseling and treatment for his depression. In order to allow Mr. R greater freedom of movement and a rest from the strain of care giving, the Caregiver Resource Center instituted respite care for 4 hours, once a week. As the situation stabilized and unfolded, Mr. R expressed increasing interest in finding engaging activities for his wife and himself outside of the assisted living facility. The social worker therefore facilitated Mrs. R's admittance into an Alzheimer's day program, 2 days a week. At the site of the day program, Mr. R was able to participate in other activities offered for seniors.
Presently, Mr. R has begun to express interest in long term financial planning, even as his daughter encourages her parents to move a number of states south so that she might better care for them. Mr. and Mrs. R celebrated their 64th wedding anniversary this past week. Whatever their future plans - regardless of where Mr. and Mrs. R will celebrate their 65th anniversary - the Caregiver Resource Center will remain a resource for them as they continue on the caregiver's journey.
Ms. L. is a 52-year-old single female who first contacted one of the Caregiver Resource Center's in March of 2003. At that time, she was struggling to care for her elderly mother who suffers from advanced dementia and requires total assistance with her daily living needs.
Ms. L is ill herself. She has a degenerative condition and her ambulation is impaired. She is unable to secure long term, permanent employment and works per diem. At the time of the initial contact, she did not have any health insurance and was unable to attend to her own medical needs.
The Caregiver Resource Center provided case management, respite care, information and supportive counseling and helped Ms. L obtain 24-hour home care for her mother through Medicaid. Ms. L. receives ongoing caregiver training and group support through the Center, learning how to better care for her mother and participating in a peer mutual support group. The Center program also assisted her in securing health insurance for her own health care and has provided emergency funds during crises to pay for food, transportation, legal fees and utility bills.
With the support of the Caregiver Resource Center, Ms. L has been able to sustain a much more stable living situation for her mother and herself.
The Family Center (TFC), which specializes in working with Grandparents raising grandchildren, is working with Mary, a grandmother caring for her 8 year old grandson, Adam. Adam's mother Nikki died of cancer in 1999. Prior to Nikki's death, she made her mother Mary the standby guardian for Adam. When Nikki died, TFC worked with the family through the adjustment period. We conducted a grief and loss assessment with the family, specifically for Adam. Adam is adjusting well to the loss of his mother. Prior to her death, Nikki had an open and honest discussion with Adam about her dying and what death meant. Mary was present during these discussions. Adam wanted and was allowed to participate in the planning of his mother's funeral and feels free to talk with his grandmother about his mother.
Additionally, we worked with the family in accessing entitlements on Adam's behalf including the transferring of the lease to Mary to ensure continuity for Adam in terms of his home life. Although the death of Nikki was traumatic for the entire family, our work with them during the grief and adjustment period has been instrumental in helping both Mary and Adam cope with their newly configured family.
Joan is the 65 year old caregiver for her three grandchildren ages 11, 12, and 13. She has been caring for the 12 and 13 year olds since they were born and for the 11 year old since her mother died in December. Joan suffers from depression, high blood pressure, diabetes and arthritis. The Family Center (TFC), which specializes in working with Grandparents raising grandchildren, worked with Joan to assist her in drafting her own will naming a caregiver for her grandchildren in the event she is no longer able to care for them. In the process of drafting the will, Joan disclosed that she had a difficult time raising her own children when they became teenagers striving for more independence. She is fearful of reliving these same experiences with the raising of her grandchildren. TFC staff has helped Joan deal with her feelings of failure while developing a plan for the children should her health prevent her from continuing as the primary caregiver. | <urn:uuid:403009ce-e073-4751-a265-e961ded52338> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.nyc.gov/html/caregiver/stories.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.980857 | 1,508 | 1.835938 | 2 |
The depths of man’s depravity are without limit. Some of us love our sin so much, we take God-breathed Scripture, manipulate it like clay, and fashion it into the most monstrous of creations.
We fallen humans can justify absolutely anything. We’re prone to blaming our sinful behavior on third parties and other factors, including parents, spouses, bosses, co-workers, the weather, poverty, wealth, and low self-esteem. Some of us want to remain in our sin and ignore the parts of the Bible that condemn it. The deeply depraved go so far as to alter the Word of God to justify sin and call wickedness good.
The latest installment of the Perversion Chronicles is the Queen James Bible. Someone or a group of someones changed inconvenient Bible verses to remove the condemnation of homosexuality. (The editor claims King James I, who commissioned the King James Bible in the early 1600s, was a bisexual, hence, “Queen” James. Get it?)
For example, the editor claims the sin of Sodom and Gomorrah was the “power-dominating” act of rape, not specifically men wanting to sodomize men. Genesis 19:5 in the KJV reads: “And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? bring them out unto us, that we may know them.” The perverted version reads: “And they called unto Lot, and said unto him, Where are the men which came in to thee this night? Bring them out unto us, that we may rape and humiliate them.”
Although Leviticus 18:22 in the KJV reads: “Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination,” the editor of the perverted version claims pagan worship, not homosexuality, was in view. So the condemnation becomes: “Thou shalt not lie with mankind as with womankind in the temple of Molech: it is an abomination [emphasis added].
The editor notes that before 1946, the Bible contained “no mention of or reference to homosexuality … only interpretations have been made.” Matt Slick, president and founder of Christian Apologetics & Research Ministry, points out that although the word “homosexual” first appeared in the English language in the late 19th century, it wasn’t a common part of the lexicon before 1946 to appear in Bible translations. Regardless, the Bible’s original Hebrew and Greek make it clear that the passages refer to two men lying with each other as they would lie with women. The Bible condemns what we English speakers call “homosexuality.”
I suspect one day, someone will rewrite Revelation 22:18-19 to justify rewriting the Bible and completely miss the irony:
“For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.” | <urn:uuid:0f6b9802-5757-40c1-975c-761dc4acd283> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.worldmag.com/2012/12/making_truth_less_inconvenient | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.944081 | 684 | 1.726563 | 2 |
By Debra Wood, RN, contributor
October 26, 2012 - Do you feel comfortable reporting to your superiors about patient safety concerns, errors and near misses? If not, you’re not alone. Incident reporting is still an issue in some health care settings, but major efforts are being made to change things--to encourage transparency, improve the flow of information and reinvent processes that result in improved safety for everyone involved.
Organizations must build a culture of safety, and nurses and other clinical staff must be held accountable for achieving quality improvements and reporting potential safety risks, according to the National Association of Healthcare Quality’s “Call to Action: Safeguarding the Integrity of Healthcare Quality and Safety Systems.”
Susan Goodwin announced the NAHQ’s Call to Action.
“[The call to action] focuses on the importance of developing a strong safety culture within health care systems,” said Susan Goodwin, MSN, RN, NAHQ immediate past president and assistant vice president at HCA in Nashville, Tenn., at a press conference announcing the report.
“Studies show vibrant safety cultures are essential to recognize and mitigate sources of potential error and harm, and a strong safety culture can improve outcomes,” added Cindy Barnard, MBA, NAHQ volunteer and task team leader, director of quality strategies at Northwestern Memorial Hospital in Chicago and research associate professor at Northwestern University in the Institute for Healthcare Studies at the Feinberg School of Medicine.
Amy Clarke, BSN, RN, decentralized quality improvement specialist at Texas Children’s Hospital’s Newborn Center in Houston, agreed, saying, “Creating a culture of safety is crucial in any health care organization. The Neonatal Intensive Care Unit at Texas Children’s has made great strides to establish this goal.”
Jody Porter, DNP, RN, is creating an environment at Greater Baltimore Medical Center in which nurses feel it is safe to report errors and near misses.
Greater Baltimore Medical Center (GBMC) also has made significant progress in creating a safety culture, where people feel comfortable reporting errors and near misses, said Jody Porter, DNP, RN, vice president of patient care services and chief nursing officer at GBMC. The medical center surveyed staff about perceptions of the culture and then leaders addressed concerns raised and educated staff at all levels of the organization about the need for reporting and that they would receive a nonpunitive response.
“Patient safety is our top priority, and we are doing the stuff we need to get there,” Porter said.
Clarke credits participation in the Comprehensive Unit-Based Safety Program, a five-step, evidence-based program designed to permanently change a unit’s workplace culture and enable teamwork, with giving the NICU a jumpstart toward reaching that goal.
“This is achieved by empowering staff to assume responsibility for safety in their environment through education, awareness, access to organization resources and implementing teamwork tools,” Clarke said.
About the Call to Action
NAHQ convened a group of thought leaders from the American Nurses Association (ANA), the American Medical Association, The Joint Commission and other professional organizations; they polled members and drafted the call to action.
Maureen Dailey, DNSc, RN, CWOCN, a senior policy fellow with ANA’s National Center on Nursing Quality, represented the nursing association on the development of the paper. Dailey said the project was consistent with prior ANA efforts associated with ethical practice, including the Code of Ethics for Nurses, the Scope and Standards of Practice, the position statement on Just Culture and the Center for Ethics and Human Rights.
“We have a long history of promoting patient safety,” Dailey said. “A positive culture, or a just culture, supports a positive climate, which supports multiple micro climates, such as a safety climate, and a just climate for safety reporting at the unit level in which teams work."
The call to action offers five practical suggestions to ensure the integrity of quality processes. They include:
1. Create a focus on accountability for quality and safety as part of a strong and just culture by educating employees about reporting and publicizing ethical responses to errors and catches.
2. Ensure that protective structures are in place to encourage reporting of quality and safety concerns, with policies that support error reporting and penalize reprisals in response to reporting.
3. Ensure comprehensive, transparent, accurate data collection and reporting to internal and external oversight bodies.
4. Ensure effective responses to quality and safety concerns but immediately respond to concerns.
5. Foster teamwork and open communication and ensure effective oversight.
Barnard encourages organization leaders to read the paper, share its findings and advance the culture changes.
“The actions recommended in the paper will serve to protect quality and patient safety, protect the integrity of the process of reporting and evaluating concerns and raise awareness among leaders and policymakers,” Goodwin added.
In order to improve safety and quality, nurses and other professionals must speak up when they are concerned. The Institute for Safe Medication Practices has reported that 40 percent of clinicians either keep quiet or remain passive after witnessing an improper patient care event to avoid possible reprisals.
“Some health care organizations still lack protective infrastructure to promote and safeguard responsible reporting of safety concerns,” Barnard said.
David Maxfield promotes better communication to improve safety.
The Silence Kills study from VitalSmarts, an evidence-based corporate training company, in partnership with the American Association of Critical-Care Nurses, found in 2005 that 84 percent of nurses surveyed said 10 percent or more of their colleagues took dangerous shortcuts. Yet less than 10 percent spoke up about their concerns. Lead researcher David Maxfield suggested establishing a team of staff and physicians to identify crucial moments when problems occur and strategies to address them.
That requires people identify areas of concern.
Goodwin added that the process by which an issue is raised is as important as the query itself. Not every concern about patient safety or quality of patient care will ultimately be deemed valid, but every reported concern deserves serious consideration.
Near misses must be reported as well as errors, so steps can be taken to evaluate processes and make improvements. Organizations must make it easy for nurses to report safety concerns.
GBMC implemented a new electronic reporting system and rolled out a reporting campaign.
At Texas Children’s, NICU nurses have numerous avenues to report their concern. Besides the online reporting system, Safety Scoop, boxes have been placed on the unit and in the lounge where they can jot down their concerns and solution ideas.
“We then feed that information and progress back to them in the staff meetings,” Clarke said. “I also round frequently in the unit to do a pulse check. I ask the nurses if they have any concerns and if they have recently recognized any way their patient can be harmed. This openness fosters teamwork and communication.”
Another barrier, Clarke added, is concern that the reporting system is punitive.
“Now, after every event reported, we email the person who reported it and thank them for their contribution to quality improvement and patient safety,” Clarke said. “We also have the Great Catch Award. This award promotes accountability for quality and patient safety and recognizes the nurses for their contribution.”
Nurses often fail to report due to a lack of feedback about the event and the organization’s response. GBMC creates monthly reports with information about errors and near misses, how it evaluated the event and when it resulted from a system error, what has been done to correct the process to reduce the risk of it happening again. The reports not only are distributed to managers and staff but also to the board of directors.
“It gives staff a sense of comfort that we heard what they said and we are looking out for them and our patients,” said Porter, adding, “We believe there is a need for transparency.”
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© 2012. AMN Healthcare, Inc. All Rights Reserved. | <urn:uuid:15aa20ca-aeee-4c83-87d0-369d6187d412> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.nursezone.com/nursing-news-events/more-news/Healthy-Safety-Cultures-Encourage-Nurses-to-Speak-Up_40697.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955126 | 1,718 | 1.640625 | 2 |
TransLink hasn’t raised transit fares in nearly five years but you wouldn’t know it from the cacophony of criticism it’s been receiving since announcing Tuesday that fares will rise in the new year.
There’s no doubt a 10- or 12.5-per-cent increase all at once can sting, especially for people of modest means. But when you consider that it represents just a two-per-cent annual hike when spread out over the five years between fare hikes — or just 25 cents per single-zone trip — how can anyone take seriously people who think the increase is “an outrage?”
The reality is that TransLink needs more money to operate and to expand services and the already heavily-subsidized riders must do their part. Drivers, residential and business property owners and others are already paying more than their fair share to support transit.
With the planned Evergreen Line to the Northeast Sector and increasingly vocal demands for improved transit south of the Fraser River and rapid transit out Broadway to the University of B.C. in Vancouver, the money has to come from somewhere. Transit isn’t free and everyone must do their part.
Editorials are unsigned opinion pieces that represent the views of The Province editorial board, a group of senior editors. | <urn:uuid:7605c096-37fb-43d1-9653-a98718f7aea8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blogs.theprovince.com/2012/11/14/editorial-fare-hike-is-fair-and-critical-for-transit/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.957679 | 267 | 1.640625 | 2 |
Q: There hasn’t been an “atheist” book in the “Dummies” line yet. Why?
A: It’s only been about eight to 10 years since the freethought movement (atheists, agnostics, humanists and skeptics) began to move off the cultural margin in a significant way, and fewer since most of the public has become aware of atheism as an organized presence in the United States. Between the explosive growth of nonreligious self-identity and the more regular presence of the organized religious voice, people naturally have questions about what atheism is and what this growing presence means for them.
“Atheist” is one of those words that people first hear as a whispered accusation, like “communist” was when I was growing up. It was, and often still is, a label that captures their darkest fears. Knowledge is the antidote for fears of all kinds, and a book that sheds light on what atheism is (and what it isn’t) is likely to diminish the fear of it. Everybody wins when we’re less fearful of each other.
Q: What are the most important things “dummies” need to know about atheism?
A: That religious doubt has a long and thoughtful pedigree, and that many of the most intelligent and ethical people in every generation have been religious nonbelievers. But the most important single message is that atheists differ from religious believers in fewer ways than either generally realizes.
Q: What things do religious believers and atheists have in common?
A: They all love their children, they all laugh and cry, they all want a better future. Most atheists, like most theists, feel compassion for those less fortunate and want to help. Most want to coexist with people who believe differently. Most think it is better to be actively involved in changing the world than to be passive or indifferent. In many ways, both sides are more accurately represented by their quiet majorities than by their loudest advocates.
Q: How does Foundation Beyond Belief fit into that?
A: Foundation Beyond Belief is an organization through which over 1,000 humanist members contribute to a rotating slate of charities. The idea was to give the nonreligious a collective means of expressing the compassionate values inherent in their worldview. We are driven to care for others and for this world because there’s no supernatural power to do it for us. In the 30 months since our launch, our contributing members have donated over $300,000 to 110 charities working to alleviate poverty, improve health and education, and protect and defend the natural world.
Q: Why does the freethought community need its own charitable organizations?
A: There’s something especially powerful and motivating about coming together with others who share your worldview in compassionate action as an expression of those shared values. It’s also helpful to have a regular, systematic means of giving, so our members sign up for automatic monthly donations in the amount of their choice and distribute among our cause areas as they wish.
Copyright: For copyright information, please check with the distributor of this item, Religion News Service LLC. | <urn:uuid:71c17d99-da3d-44e3-8810-805feba7dc8b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.washingtonpost.com/national/on-faith/what-dummies-need-to-know-about-atheism/2012/07/09/gJQAtKZvYW_story.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968277 | 652 | 1.65625 | 2 |
3:24 pm May. 30, 20124
Today, Governor Andrew Cuomo and representatives from the ad firm BBDO unveiled a new tourism campaign in which New Yorkers are encouraged to mess up the most successful tourism brand the state has ever managed to create.
The idea is to create a series of "logos" for New York in which the famous heart symbol in "I ♥ NY," centerpiece of the "I LOVE NEW YORK" campaign that began in the late '70s, is replaced with whatever they feel like putting in there.
An ad showing people doing that, which began airing today, has already showcased some unfortunate results, like "I [BALL] NY." But a double meaning is better than no meaning at all, which is what we get with "I [LIGHTHOUSE] NY" and "I [PIZZA] NY."
Of course it's supposed to be about what these people love about New York. But the pizza replaces the love, rather than becoming its object. The object in the puzzle, when you resolve it into a sentence, is New York. (If you love lighthouses, why not replace the letters "NY" with the letters "LIGHTHOUSES"? Because that's not what BBDO wants you to do! Also, no photographs and nothing lewd, please.)
Glaser's design was precise, and serious brand innovators are, too. There's a flawless internal logic to the best brand identities. The new campaign gives the I ♥ NY logo a personality disorder.
In marketing materials over many years, New York State has described Milton Glaser's famous "I ♥ NY" logo as a rebus. It isn't, and that's the source of my problem.
Technically speaking, a rebus is a picture or symbol that is inserted in place of a syllable or a word. Often the picture has nothing to do with the word. "H + [a picture of an eye]" thus reads as "Hi" or "High." Not "Aitch See."
Glaser's brilliant logo for the old "I LOVE NY" campaign uses a heart in place of the word love. The confusing part, if you are stuck on the idea that it is a rebus, is that it seems like it's meant to be read "I HEART NY." Intuitively, people understood—and the use of "heart" now as a verb, which dates to Glaser's logo, is actually therefore a joke, and not a misunderstanding.
It's worse than that, of course, because when letters do appear in a rebus on their own (not "plussed" or "minussed" to a picture), they stand for the name of the letter. That's why you'd never see "H" on its own in a rebus, except in the rare instance in which the puzzler is meant to work the sound "AITCH" into the solution. If Glaser's logo were a rebus, the solution would be "I HEART EN WHY."
In fact, in 1977, when Glaser did two weeks of work on the logo on a pro bono basis, rebus puzzles were extremely familiar to audiences, having been at the center of the popular television game show "Concentration," which ran on NBC and was syndicated daily at the time. For what it's worth, "Concentration" played a little loose with the idea of the rebus, as you can see from this picture of host Bob Clayton standing in front of the puzzle with the solution "The Jimmy Stewart Show."
Glaser's logo is better than a rebus, though. It invented a new relationship to the heart symbol. The heart always symbolized love; now, it was replacing the word.
Since 1977, the number of occasions on which an effort has been made to insert corporate logos, other pictograms, really anything at all into that "heart" spot in Glaser's logo has resulted in a wide variety of visual spam, stuff that for years has irked me.
I was thrilled some time ago to come across a Tumblr from local designer Dan Redding, who solicited from readers (for a short time anyway) examples of manipulations of Glaser's logo. A quick search of your own on "I HEART ?" in Google will bring up lots more crap for you too (advice: Activate safe search).
There's the T-shirt in which the heart is replaced with a shamrock and the NY with a glass of Guinness. (What does "I SHAMROCK GUINNESS" mean? It means you're an idiot. Even if you don't read it as a shamrock—"I LUCK GUINNESS?" "I IRISH GUINNESS?"—it's a mess.)
There's the Kiehl's tote bag that reads "I ♥" and then, a capital letter K next to a silhouette of a sample bottle?
The Converse store in Soho made a large neon sign for its window in which the heart is replaced with a Converse symbol. I suppose every brand would like to believe that its logo is synonymous with ... something. But it's wishful thinking: The logo just means "CONVERSE," and this sign resolves to the meaningless and upsetting "I CONVERSE NY."
In case you think New York State, which has both copyright and trademark on the logo, is indifferent to these sorts of things, consider the extremely long 2008 document admonishing designers of travel literature on the correct and incorrect use of the logo. The one thing specifically not allowed: The replacement of the heart with some other symbol. The example used of a misuse of the logo is the replacement of the heart with a shamrock, in fact.
They did make one exception to the ban on mucking around with the "I ♥ NY" logo, which was to allow paying customers to do so. In 1994, the state began licensing the symbol, and made $1.8 million pimping it out during fiscal year 2011.
BBDO won a $50 million marketing contract for New York State's new "Open for Business" campaign. Tourism marketing is a small sliver of the effort ($5 million), because tourism is after all not the main business Cuomo wants to lure back to the state.
For any amount of money, I don't think I would want to take on a project where the job is to "refresh" what was arguably the most powerful logo in the history of advertising campaigns. I am sympathetic to the participants in the "innovention" meetings where everyone said over and over again that the most salient quality of that logo is that people like to reappropriate it in stupid ways. It's a meme that existed before the internet existed; before the word "meme" even existed, for most of us. But that's precisely what makes it so annoying.
As Cuomo knows, people are willing to pay for the pleasure of defacing the "I ♥ NY" logo. He didn't need to pay $5 million for the indignity.
It's said that Glaser made the original logo pro bono because he expected the campaign to last for a couple of months at most. Here's hoping this one actually does die off that fast. | <urn:uuid:4ab42522-b117-46d7-a50b-af2da240ea5a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.capitalnewyork.com/article/politics/2012/05/6006962/i-hate-new-yorks-nonsensical-new-tourism-campaign | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973788 | 1,507 | 1.75 | 2 |
March 26, 2009
School of Education held its Carol Gresser Forum last evening
with Bishop Frank J. Caggiano serving as guest lecturer.
Bishop Caggiano, the Vicar General of the Diocese of Brooklyn
addressed faculty, students and alumni, on a topic dear to the
nearly 160 in attendance, the importance of Catholic
Following the presentation, St. John’s University Provost, Dr.
Julia A. Upton, RSM, presented Bishop Caggiano with the
Centennial Medal, awarded by the School of Education during its
centennial celebration to those who have made key contributions in
the field of education.
Bishop Caggiano was welcomed to the podium by Jerrold
Ross, Ed.D., Dean of The School of Education and Carol Gresser,
former President of the New York City Board of Education. His
inspiring talk focused on his reflections of the strategic planning
process he has been spearheading for the Diocese of Brooklyn on how
to preserve the vision of Catholic elementary education within the
diocese, especially during this time of great change in the
education system throughout the country.
The goal, he said, is to “not only to preserve, but to re-imagine
what Catholic elementary education could be in the 21st century.
The first step in this process is to ask the important question,
‘what is this mission of Catholic education that we wish to
Bishop Caggiano outlined what he believes are the factors that are
often mistaken for those that make Catholic education unique. A
quality education, service to the poor and disadvantaged, a safe
environment, discipline, and the teaching of the Catholic faith are
all things that are found in Catholic schools, but, according to
Bishop Caggiano, are not unique to those schools and can be found
in many other types of institutions.
“Catholic education exists because it is in direct
response to a divine command,” Bishop Caggiano explained.
“Jesus of Nazareth…he made it clear it is a mandate to teach the
good news to all people of good will. The mandate at the
heart of all Catholic education is to proclaim a person, more than
catechism and creed; it is an event, which we believe is the person
of Jesus, the Lord.”
Piecing this together, Bishop Caggiano shared will reveal what is
unique to Catholic education.
“The answer is the word ‘And’. The genius of Catholic
education is never ‘either/or’ but always ‘and.’ God and human,
reason and faith, individual and community.”
“It’s more than reading, writing and arithmetic…it’s more than
pedagogy and methodolocy, it’s an encounter that is meant to
transform a human life.”
Following his lecture, Bishop Caggiano took time to answer several
questions about the Diocese of Brooklyn’s strategic plan and how it
will affect the schools, the students and their families and the
teachers and administrators, all the while reassuring those in
attendance that Catholic Elementary education in the Diocese will
The School of Education at St. John’s University established the
Carol Gresser Forum in 1998. Held twice a year, the forum is
named for the former President of the New York City Board of
Education and Queens resident, who now serves as a professor of
education at St. John's.
Interested media representatives can contact Elizabeth Reilly,
Assistant Director of Media Relations at St. John’s University by
calling (718) 990-6185 or e-mail inquiries to email@example.com. | <urn:uuid:079f080c-2482-461c-a039-6615ffbf5de7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.stjohns.edu/about/news/items/pr_uni_090326.news_item@digest.stjohns.edu/about_us/pr_uni_090326.xml | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950276 | 806 | 1.695313 | 2 |
Food Service and Nutrition is a division of the Community
Services department of the Lester B. Pearson School Board. We
are diverse in servicing the needs of our students,
administrators and colleagues in the many areas of the Food
Service business, such as student dining in cafeterias, hot
lunch delivery (Caf-Mobile), and business/conference/meetings.
In addition, our department oversees milk & food programs at the
elementary level, as well as managing the Hungry Kids program at
the high school level. | <urn:uuid:6f5818cd-be72-49b3-8289-65d7c2ef00b6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://foodservice.lbpsb.qc.ca/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.947371 | 111 | 1.554688 | 2 |
Telemark skiing is a particularly physically demanding sport, especially on the quadriceps, hamstrings and gluteal muscles. If you’ve never heard of it, here’s a video clip of me in action or a brief introduction courtesy of the Telegraph. Not surprisingly, an internet search pulls up various recommendations of barbell squats and lunges as ways of recreating the appropriate muscle action and overload for gym training. However, there is a danger that conventional squats tend to favour the quadriceps and are thus prone to produce muscular imbalance. Also, if your knees are not tracking straight to begin with (i.e. they tend to move outwards or inwards as they bend), any squat or lunge type exercise you do is going to reinforce your existing posture and could hasten your progress towards chronic or acute injury. One way to check this on yourself is to do a series of single leg squats each side in front of a mirror and watch what happens to your knee.
So, if you’re a Telemark skier who wants to improve, or someone who’d like to give it a go, here are a few thoughts on useful preparation.
1. Have your static and dynamic posture assessed by a suitably qualified person, preferably one who has experience of Telemark skiing. Everyone tends to favour one side of their body over the other and this can produce some pretty dramatic postural variations. To ski well, you need to be able to reproduce the same movement pattern evenly with both sides of your body and if you have a fundamental postural issue, no amount of lessons will correct it and training will tend to reinforce it; you may also be leaving yourself open to injury.
2. Aim for balance between your quadriceps and iliopsoas (knee extension and hip flexion) and your hamstrings and gluteals (knee flexion and hip extension). People tend to naturally over-use their hip flexors and quadriceps, which are also prone to shorten because we spend so much time sitting down. This encourages a level of muscle tension which causes their antagonists, the hamstrings and gluteals, to relax and in some cases become ineffective. Other muscles then have to take on a greater workload, which can cause issues such as knee or lower back pain.
3. Build strength and endurance for eccentric contraction (when the muscle is contracting yet lengthening rather than shortening). A lot of the time your muscles are in eccentric contraction as they act to control a movement: for example your quadriceps as you flex your knee and react against gravity pulling you downhill. Eccentric contraction is far more demanding, particularly when the muscle is pushed to the extremes of its length/tension relationship, and preparing your muscles for that unexpected slip off the edge of a mogul or going over a particularly steep drop could save you from damage. Plyometrics (essentially jumping, skipping, hopping type activities which can be intensified by including depth jumps off benches etc) are good for this, and if you’re doing weights, bear in mind that lowering the weight steadily and under control is doing as much good as picking it up in the first place.
4. Make sure your muscles are able to move with fluidity and efficiency. The quadriceps, hamstrings and gluteals are muscle groups consisting of a series of separate muscles, each of which exerts a subtly different directional force on the joints. They have a tendency to become literally ‘stuck’ together by fascial tissue meaning they lose their individual movement properties and work as a single unit instead. Good separation between the medial and lateral hamstrings for example, is particularly helpful for skiers as they control rotation in the flexed knee (think of your edging). A good sports and remedial masseur will release adhesions, and rehabilitate scar tissue that will hamper efficient muscular contraction. They may also be able to identify problems that could lead to injury if unresolved.
5. Work on building a strong core with good spinal and hip stability. The forces generated by powerful leg and arm movements need the firm support of your abdominal core and the deep postural muscles of your vertebral and hip joints. Telemarking involves a good deal of twisting and side bending, so the deep, short transversospinalis muscles and the multifidus must be effective at creating and moderating this. Your piriformis and other external hip rotators are stabilising your sacro-iliac (SI) joint on your inside ski side as you increase pressure on your outside ski and accelerate it when turning. If they’re not doing this effectively and evenly on both sides, you are set up for SI joint pain. Targeting some of these small postural muscles with some relatively innocuous looking exercises can make a big difference to your overall movement efficiency. Working with a gym ball also helps increase the percentage muscle fibre recruitment over the same exercise performed on a fixed surface because you have to control your balance at the same time.
PDF download: ALL ROUND EXERCISE PROGRAMME FOR POSTURAL STABILITY AND RANGE OF MOVEMENT
PDF download: ADVANCED CORE AND HIP STABILITY EXERCISES
6. Include multi-planar exercises in your training. Many of the exercises recommended for Telemarkers are single plane, such as squats and lunges. In reality though you ski over natural and varied terrain with your body constantly adjusting its balance and applying forces in all directions in order to accommodate bumps, dips, slope camber, changes in snow depth and condition etc. Here’s a nice variation on the lunge to add to your repertoire.
7. Take up yoga. You don’t have to get into the happy-clappy, meditative stuff to get a great deal of benefit from yoga. It’s great for balance, strength, flexibility and overall movement control. It will also help improve your awareness of any differences in strength and range of movement between one side of your body and the other. I recommend Sage Rowntree’s book ‘Yoga for Runners’ as the poses are just as appropriate for Telemark as they are for runners. I also like her phrase: “Comfort with the discomfort of intensity” – something to bear in mind next time you’re keeping the turns flowing when your thighs are burning! | <urn:uuid:703ea421-df32-4e3b-a476-192592859f89> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.mbsportsmassage.com/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.943318 | 1,313 | 1.820313 | 2 |
London 2012: Afghan female boxers hope to compete in 2012 Olympics
Under Taliban rule, women in Afghanistan were forbidden from participating in any sports. But a decade later some of them are wearing boxing gloves and dreaming of Olympic glory.
The first Afghan female boxing team is training to compete in the 2012 Olympic Games in London, where this sport has been introduced for the first time.
Taekwondo fighter Rohullah Nikpai became a national hero after he won a bronze medal at the 2008 Beijing Games. Afghanistan's female boxers now hope to walk in his footsteps.
Mehvish Hussain reports. | <urn:uuid:3ec931ba-2916-4228-9d8d-5c689f9f11e9> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-16402143 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.969847 | 123 | 1.625 | 2 |
Ferrari has once again changed the name of their 2011 Formula One race car in the wake of Ford’s legal efforts to keep people from confusing a pickup truck with a single-seat sports car. But they’re doing it with a sense of humor.
The F1 car, originally known as the Ferrari F150 before Ford’s lawsuit spurred Ferrari to change the car’s name to F150th Italia, shall henceforth be known as the Ferrari 150° Italia. In spite of what you might think, this is not an instruction as to what temperature you should cook your Ferrari at; the degree symbol is the Italian equivalent of the “th” in English, according to Ferrari, so the car should still be pronounced “Ferrari 150th” by those of us who prefer the Queen’s tongue. Astute readers will also notice Ferrari has dropped the “F” prefix for the car’s name.
In a statement on their Horse Whisperer blog announcing the name change, Ferrari made no bones about sticking it to Ford for dragging both parties through the legal minefield over the matter. “In order to avoid the slightest risk of anyone confusing a Formula 1 car with a pick-up truck, for their part, the men from Maranello have decided that the car will lose the F that precedes the number 150,” it reads.
The release goes on to add, “It appears that this could have caused so much confusion in the minds of the consumer across the Pond that, at the same time as losing the F, the name will be completely Italianised, replacing the English “th” with the equivalent Italian symbol. Therefore the name will now read as the Ferrari 150° Italia, which should make it clear even to the thickest of people that the name of the car is a tribute to the anniversary of the unification of our country.” For what it’s worth, we think they picked the “°” because it’s almost impossible to find on American keyboards. [via Ferrari]
Pictured: The Ferrari
F150 F150th Italia 150° Italia | <urn:uuid:a4ddd8a3-e455-45d2-ade6-d0cd9d272c9d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.0-60mag.com/news/2011/03/cars-ferrari-re-renames-their-f1-car/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950142 | 456 | 1.632813 | 2 |
If you've been reading for a while, you may have noticed that I almost never swear. I tend to think that there's a more accurate way than swearing to express anything, but today I couldn't think of a more fitting word.
What is bullshit? Well, it's watching TV. It's browsing the internet mindlessly. It's partying. It's doing busy work. It's hanging out with people not so much because you like them, but because you don't want to be alone. It's eating for the sake of filling time.
Now, none of these things are pure evil. That's what makes this tricky. You can watch TV and learn something interesting, or enjoy the relaxation it brings. You can stumble upon cool sites that you wouldn't have found if it weren't for mindless browsing. You can meet new people while partying. Busy work leads to a paycheck sometimes. Occasionally those random low-key hangouts whose primary purpose is to avoid loneliness elevate into great conversations. And hey, you've got to eat sometime-- why not now?
These silver linings are blessings and curses. They embed some merit into otherwise bullshit activities, but at the same time that merit gets over-inflated and allows us to engage in these sorts of things without the mental repercussions that may come from something like, say, smoking crack. Even now, I imagine that your brain is objecting by saying, "Well, I met ____ when I was partying, so he's wrong about that one. And the other day on Reddit I learned about ______, so that sort of browsing is fine."
It's important to consider the opportunity costs of these activities. What are we giving up in exchange for a remote chance of stumbling across some sort of interesting article?
In the past six to twelve months, I've made a really hard push towards eliminating this sort of bullshit from my life, and wow-- what a difference it has made. For the first time ever, I feel like I'm way ahead on the productivity curve, shipping tons of work, and holding way more in reserve. I write seven blog posts per week, which takes half an hour a day. You don't have to eliminate much bullshit from your day before you have a free half hour. I listen to a Chinese lesson, which takes twenty minutes. I was never much of a TV watcher, but in the span of time someone might watch a single hour-long show, I've written a post and learned some Chinese. Then I spend the rest of the day working on SETT. The types of features that I would have previously taken a week to do get done in a day and a half. The irony is that I'm not even an excellent programmer-- I just don't engage in bullshit.
As a little side project, I'm working on writing a novel. Once every couple weeks I take most of a day off from SETT and I sit down and write 7000-8000 words. On the surface that sounds like a lot, but when you eliminate things like flicking over to Reddit and taking two hour long breaks for dinner, you have time to put that many words down. Whereas in time past it was a serious effort to get down 1000 words per day, now it's par for the course to do seven times that.
I also read around one hundred books a year now. Sounds like a lot, but to replicate this, all you have to do is cut out ninety minutes of bullshit from your day. Rather than browse the web at night like I used to do, I turn off the computer at midnight and read for an hour and a half. On average it takes me about 45 seconds to read a page, which translates into one hundred and twenty pages per night. Probably more like 90-100 if it's a non-fiction book and I'm highlighting as I go. Let's say 110 average. That's 40,000 words per year, and the average book is about three hundred and fifty pages.
Reading and writing are two measurable things that benefit from the elimination of bullshit, but there are more difficult to define good uses of time, too. Habitually hanging out at a bar to avoid feeling lonely is bullshit, but spending time with your friends is probably a good use of time. So is actively going out and meeting new interesting people. So is watching a great movie or documentary once in a while. So is cooking a meal with your wife. I don't mean to say that all non-productive activities are bullshit, because that's clearly not the case.
I'm also not trying to suggest that everyone should eliminate bullshit from their lives. I'm an ambitious guy in his early thirties who has a lot of big goals, so I don't have the luxury of engaging in bullshit. I can't imagine that the point will ever come in my life where I believe that bullshit is a good way to spend my time, but I also wouldn't criticize someone else for doing it. We all have our own life situations and goals. If someone burnt themselves out working and raising a family, and now wants to kick back and watch a bunch of TV, well, I'm not sure I'm in a position to judge that.
On the other hand, if you have a lot you want to accomplish and you don't feel like you're totally on top of those goals, take a look at how you're spending your time. My guess is that a lot of it is going towards bullshit, and it's up to you to decide whether that's a good use of your time or not.###
Heading to Boston/NY for Christmas/New Years! It's going to be cold...
The picture is technically a water buffalo, but I thought a guy (Didimo the Panamanian Cowboy) triumphing over it was perfect.
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The ABC drama “Curtin” put into focus the life of John Curtin – one of Australia’s greatest Prime Ministers.
Like so many people, alcohol was Curtin’s greatest challenge. He had grown up around it with his father running several pubs. But it was during his time as the Victorian Secretary of the Timber Workers’ Union that Curtin’s fondness for the demon drink grew into a major disability. According to his biographer David Day: “the culture of the male-dominated union movement was steeped in beer” and Curtin was steeped in the culture.
Suddenly in November 1915 Curtin resigned his post. He went briefly to work for the Australian Workers’ Union and then was appointed the organiser of the anti-conscription campaign being run by the Congress of Australian Trade Unions. The work was stressful and intense and his drinking continued and became worse.
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An old newspaper can work like a telescope into the past, the details sharp but the whole picture a little shaky and blurred, and the newspaper on my wall is like that. It’s the front of the Melbourne Argus for Sunday, September the third, 1939, and it contains only one story, told in a series of blaring headlines.
BRITAIN AT WAR
DECLARED AT 8.20 P.M.
‘OUR CONSCIENCE CLEAR’ – MR CHAMBERLAIN
A DECLARATION THAT A STATE OF WAR EXISTED BETWEEN BRITAIN AND GERMANY WAS MADE BY THE PRIME MINISTER, MR CHAMBERLAIN, TO THE NATION FROM NO. 10 DOWNING STREET TO-NIGHT.
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Good morning Punchers. After four years of excellent fun and great conversation, this is the final post…
I have had some close calls, one that involved what looked to me like an AK47 pointed my way, followed…
In a world in which there are still people who subscribe to the vile notion that certain victims of sexual… | <urn:uuid:59e18fd8-57b5-4a4b-9cea-1a299bcf697f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.thepunch.com.au/tags/john-curtin/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955779 | 492 | 1.84375 | 2 |
The New York Times parade of meat-defenses is in -- let's have a look. One of them is a defense of eating lab meat, not natural meat, so let's throw that out, no matter how well written it is. I also happen to know who the author is, and she's actively seeking votes. I think that's a no-no in a contest like this. The idea is to find out which of the six essays appeals most to Times readers, not who has the most friends and supporters.
Then there are essays that make some use of philosophy - perhaps written by philosophers. For What Shall We Be Blamed -- and Why? grants that not eating animals is morally ideal, but says all evils don't have "equal claim to our energies." Inevitably, we'll do some bad things ("the moral world is tragic") and we need to avoid the worst things first. So when many things are vying for attention, we may make avoiding meat-eating less than our first priority. A single mother with two jobs and three kids may serve her kids chicken instead of trying to figure out how to make lentil stew. A young vegetarian may eat the roast beef his mother prepared when he goes home for a family visit. I hope the judges don't pick this essay, because it gives people a pass to eat meat in pretty rare circumstances. What's wanted is a more general, frequently applicable defense.
Meat is Ethical. Meat is Bad. makes use of philosophy too, but I think not well. The author says there's a difference between harming someone by making her worse off during some time period and "making her worse off in some way in her life considered as a whole." The author then says "It is only by harming someone in this second way that something can count as bad." But this is seriously nonsensical, so we don't need to bother with the paragraph that comes next--on why we should think animals can't be harmed in the second way. Obviously you can
More philosophy. Sometimes It's More Ethical to Eat Meat Than Vegetables. turns on a principle from Aldo Leopold's land ethic: "A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability and beauty of the biotic community. It is wrong when it tends otherwise." On that basis, the author thinks it's sometimes going to be right (in fact, obligatory) to eat meat, but often wrong. "A well-managed, free-ranged cow is able to turn the sunlight captured by plants into condensed calories and protein with the aid of the microorganisms in its gut. Sun > diverse plants > cow > human." So--you can treat individuals any way you like, so long as you aren't haring the "biotic community." This will make no sense to people who take animals seriously as individuals--like most people do, when it comes to their dogs and cats. So I think this fails to make an effective defense of meat-eating.
And now let's talk about the two manure essays. I think one of these is going to win. This is the Deal We've Made is nice and straightforward. The author says "the domestication of animals and the cultivation of vegetables go hand in hand." You have to enrich the soil to grow vegetables, and animal manure plays a crucial role. Then there's an argument about "the deal" we've made --"we humans create an environment in which the plant or animal can thrive, we encourage reproduction and, in exchange, we harvest a portion of the crop." The author wisely points out that we have to live up to our end of the deal. "It's not enough to simply ensure the safety and survival of my animals. As fellow sentient creatures with whom I am engaged in a partnership, I have a responsibility to show both respect and benevolence, in life and death." So: no factory farming allowed, but it's ethically defensible to eat meat from well-treated animals. If you're eating vegetables grown in manure, your diet depends on meat-eating, even if you don't eat meat. So how could a vegetarian diet be any more ethically defensible than a meat diet? I think this is a good question.
We Require Balance. Balance Requires Meat. makes some manure points too, but I prefer "This is the Deal" for two reasons. One is that the "deal" talk is essentially ethical, so the "deal" author does a better job of making an ethical case for eating meat. The other problem is that in the "Balance" essay focuses explicitly on organic farming, whereas the "Deal" argument centers on any plant farming that uses manure at all. The "Balance" reasoning is: we must confine ourselves to organic farming; organic farming requires manure; manure comes from the animals we eat. I don't think we can really feed 7 billion people with organic-only farming, because the yields per acre are too low. So this defense of meat eating rests on an unstable foundation.
So: "This is the Deal" gets my vote. But here's the question I'm left with. What percentage of plant farming involves animal products as fertilizer? What would manure-free conventional agriculture be like? (Let's not add the restriction "organic" -- as I said above, I don't believe the world can go all-organic.) Could we work toward a world in which plant farmers don't depend at all on animal agriculture? Would a future like that be viable? If plant agriculture not only does depend on animal agriculture, but must depend on animal agriculture, then I think "This is the Deal" makes a pretty formidable argument.
So: which essay did you like best?
p.s. Some people don't care for this contest, but I do. Most people who think about meat eating a great deal are against it, particularly people who write about it (as journalists or philosophers), so it's interesting to have an airing of possible defenses. It's also useful to have the winnowing of defenses done by people like Peter Singer and Michael Pollan. This raises the level of discussion, eliminating defenses that are flat-out speciesist, or wrapped up in hopelessly unimpressive ideas about human privilege. None of the final six essays say anything like "Humans are rational and self-aware; so they have rights and animals don't; so animals are on the menu. " Thank God! With long and careful thought, most people will ultimately not find that sort of thing to be a convincing or satisfying defense of meat-eating. I think the final six essays do include some of the thoughts that stand the best chance of surviving careful reflection about the ethics of meat. | <urn:uuid:ad01d200-e9e2-4e6b-a44e-bee7582c22ac> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://kazez.blogspot.jp/2012/04/case-for-meat.html?showComment=1335164765726 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.969526 | 1,370 | 1.710938 | 2 |
Speech by EP President Buzek to event: 'European Citizens Voices for an ambitious EU-27 plan of action to achieve Millennium Development Goals' - receiving e-card
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Helen Clark, the head of the United Nations Development Programme came to the European Parliament last week to speak to the Members of our House about Europe's development policy, our commitments to achieving the Millennium Development Goals, our efforts to combat climate change together with developing countries. She also brought us a UN report entitled "Improving Lives: results of the UN/EU partnership in 2009".
It was yet another opportunity for the European Parliament to send a strong message of solidarity with the developing countries. A message that Europe needs to be ambitious, regardless of short-term challenges, not only in fulfilling its obligations towards developing countries, but in creating a global partnership, partnership based on solidarity, a partnership to eradicate poverty.
But we also heard, in plain terms, something that we all hope for. We heard that, especially today, multilateralism needs a success story. Put in simple terms, it means that we the people, all people of this planet, need a success story. A success story which we all would be a part of.
Perhaps - and I do hope so - we can all imagine a more ambitious success story than finally fulfilling a commitment that we took on ourselves some 40 years ago. The commitment, which Europe repeated in 2005, of dedicating 0,7% of our Gross National Income to Official Development Assistance, and assuring the effectiveness of our development aid.
I know that we can all imagine a more ambitious success story than meeting the Millennium Development Goals, which bring us a step closer to making the world a better place, which bring us closer to fulfilling our pledge of solidarity, but which still leave us far from eradicating poverty in the world.
It is not our imagination that limits our ambitions, and neither are the short-term economic and financial difficulties a justification for being less ambitious.
Our ambitions will be fulfilled only when we show the will to support them with our own efforts. And our political elites have to know that they have the strong support of the public in turning those ambitions into reality - in making solidarity with the developing countries a reality. For that, we need such initiatives as the EU-wide e-card campaign organized by the UN Millennium Campaign together with many NGOs.
The results of this initiative, together with the European Parliament's report on the progress towards achieving the Millennium Development Goals, which was adopted in the plenary today, are a strong signal to our heads of governments. They were the addressees of those e-cards, and Prime Minister Zapatero, as the head of the Council's Presidency, has received all the results.
This clearly shows that European citizens still hold dear the values which are an important part of our European heritage - such values as solidarity, responsibility for others' well-being, belief that we have the will and ability to make the world a more peaceful and prosperous place for all.
To stand strong on our commitments, in spite of temporary challenges - we owe that much to our citizens. Standing strong on fulfilling the Millennium Development Goals - we owe that much not only to ourselves, but to those who are our future. We the people, really need this to be a success story, a success on which new ambitions will be build.
Thank you for this initiative. | <urn:uuid:aec3c597-8674-4b1c-9d7e-7370efc3ef2d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.europarl.europa.eu/former_ep_presidents/president-buzek/en/press/speeches/sp-2010/sp-2010-June/speeches-2010-June-5.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.952473 | 700 | 1.75 | 2 |
Did you know that the annual energy trade between the United States and Canada exceeds $100 billion, forming the largest integrated energy market in the world? Today, Opower is excited to announce a new kind of energy export with our friendly neighbors to the north: one that will help them save energy.
Opower is partnering with Efficiency Nova Scotia – a nonprofit organization that helps homeowners and businesses use energy better – to bring our Home Energy Reports to 90,000 homes and apartments across the province. In addition to educating households how their energy consumption compares to their neighbors and varies over time, the reports will provide customized tips and links to Efficiency Nova Scotia programs to help reduce household electricity consumption.
The program is scheduled to run for three years, during which participants will receive their Home Energy Reports throughout each year. A customer web portal will also be available later this spring on Efficiency Nova Scotia’s website, featuring even more detailed energy use data, tips and tools.
As Opower’s international presence continues to expand – we now have partnerships in England, France, Australia, New Zealand and more to be announced soon – we are thrilled to be launching a program just across the border. We look forward to growing our impact across Canada and helping more utility customers save energy in the future.
Check out the full press release on the Efficiency Nova Scotia program here. | <urn:uuid:cdc7649e-a098-458f-b6d5-46a1f283d581> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blog.opower.com/2009/10/page/2/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954888 | 273 | 1.695313 | 2 |
Included in the panel of experts will be County Engineer Marcus Jones, who will speak about components of the new transfer station upgrade, and how the county foresees reducing its future waste by 20%, Mayor Barbara Volk who will speak about the City’s changeover to collecting its own recycling, it’s new Main Street recycling bins, and future plans, Stan Kumor, chair of the County’s Solid Waste Advisory Committee, who will share his family’s waste reduction study that showed a 70% waste reduction by just utilizing the current available services and Ron Moore with American Recycling Inc., who will speak about their new regional material recovery facility (MRF), and what it will do to help with local waste reduction.
According to ECO Recycling Committee Chair, Katie Breckheimer, “Waste reduction is everyone’s business. Reducing trash in the system saves the county money, protects our streams and creates a more sustainable way of life for the county. This forum should help local residents better understand the current state of recycling and where we’re headed.”
Learn how we can all reduce our waste, and how the City and County intend to support their citizens in an effort to generate less waste. If you have questions regarding waste and recycling in our area now is time to ask them! The Waste Reduction Forum will be held on Tuesday, November 8th at 7:00 Pm at the CityOperationsCenter located at located at 305 Williams St. in downtown Hendersonville. For more information about this event or ECO’s work, contact ECO at 692-0385 or www.eco-wnc.org.
ECO is a non-profit organization working locally to promote Recycling, Green Infrastructure, Sustainable Energy, and Water Quality. | <urn:uuid:b78ea3d5-fdc4-466a-aa3e-20c2b0c8b0fa> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.mountainx.com/article/37114/Waste-reduction-forum-to-focus-on-recycling-solid-waste-challenges-Nov.-8 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.936594 | 371 | 1.835938 | 2 |
2012 Roundup: The Good, Bad and Ugly of Business in Burma
By WILLIAM BOOT / THE IRRAWADDY On Wednesday, December 26, 2012 @ 5:06 am
A mixed year is probably the most generous way to describe Burma’s economic developments in 2012. The country made good progress from a pariah state to an increasingly welcomed member of the global business community, but some things remained bad—and others downright ugly.
This year witnessed the lifting of economic sanctions by the United States and the European Union, a potential key trading bloc, plus Australia, New Zealand and Canada. Washington ordered an end to its ban on imports from Burma.
At home, Parliament finally passed a new foreign investment law in November after delays and revisions spanning most of the year; the banking system started to liberalize; Rangoon and Mandalay, the country’s two biggest cities, became far more connected to the outside world with new services by major foreign airlines; and tourism flourished.
Asia’s biggest financial donor country, Japan, canceled Burma’s debts accrued by the former military regime, and some major Japanese corporations made commitments to invest in electricity, industry and financial infrastructure. The World Bank and the Asian Development Bank returned to offer help, although past debts remained unresolved.
But some bad aspects of the old regime era did not get better: Land theft continued and may have even intensified, as military-linked Burmese firms made grabs to expand their businesses; basic rights were ignored in many places amid complaints of families forced off their land and moved against their will, or coerced to work for little or no money; and tainted old-regime agencies remained unreformed.
One of the best potential sources of national income to finance future growth is the gas and oil resources off Burma’s coasts, but the continued involvement of the Myanmar Oil and Gas Enterprise (MOGE) stymied investment this year from major Western companies.
In mid-year, calls from Aung San Suu Kyi, the US Chamber of Commerce and the US ambassador to Burma, Derek Mitchell, for the government to disband or reform MOGE seemingly went unheeded.
MOGE is very closely linked with the former regime’s secret agreements to sell gas to China and Thailand, and is associated with the controversial Chinese pipelines being built through Burma to China.
The continued presence of MOGE is believed to be the chief reason why the Ministry of Energy in September postponed a licensing auction for new offshore exploration blocks. The delayed auction was supposed to take place by the end of this year, but nothing more has been heard of it.
“As [Burma’s] upstream petroleum sector has now started entering the international community, it will need time to make many considerations before launching any more international bidding rounds,” Deputy Energy Minister Htin Aung said after Royal Dutch Shell, ConocoPhillips, and Chevron and Nippon of Japan participated in an industry conference in Rangoon.
On the positive side, the government said Burma would join the Norway-based Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, which monitors industry activities, to give international oil companies more confidence for investment.
This year saw rising public protests over pay, power blackouts and a lack of compensation for compulsory seizures of land. Government ministries and private firms made a number of shadowy deals over supposedly protected colonial buildings or prime downtown plots in Rangoon. All signs point to piecemeal redevelopment without any overall infrastructure strategy.
Electricity supply may improve slightly in 2013 in some areas of Rangoon and Mandalay, but most of the country remains years away from uninterrupted national grid supply.
Burma’s notoriety as an opium producer and exporter grew rather than declined this year, with land use for poppy cultivation expanding 17 percent to 51,000 hectares, according to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime, which blamed farmers’ debts and continuing instability in northeastern states for promoting the growth.
Angered by increasing land losses to an expanding Chinese-run copper mine, farmers, villagers and supporting monks in the northwest near Monywa suffered an old-regime-style backlash in late November, with dozens injured by tear gas and incendiary devices.
The incident helped Burma earn a spot in a league of extremely risky countries for investors, landing among the league’s 10 riskiest spots due to its poor human rights standards.
The only consolation in the league, published by British business risk assessor Maplecroft, was that the new public spotlight on Burma meant the police avoided killing anyone.
“The government did not authorize the use of lethal firearms, resorting instead to tear gas and rubber bullets,” Maplecroft’s principal Asia analyst, Arvind Ramakrishnan, told The Irrawaddy. “This is a sign that, while determined to assert its authority, the government is cautious about the potential for international condemnation that could lead to a reversal of growing international aid, diplomatic support and promises of investment.”
It remains to be seen whether the Burmese government will continue reforms and enhance human rights in 2013 to justify receiving the chairmanship of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) for 2014, commented Pavin Chachavalpongpun of the Center for Southeast Asian Studies at Kyoto University in Japan.
The professor said that while reforms so far were positive “it is too soon to celebrate.”
“Despite the current round of political reforms in Burma, critics continue to wonder whether the changes are real or just cosmetic,” he wrote in the December issue of Global Asia, a journal of the East Asia Foundation. “Burma could use [the ASEAN chairmanship] opportunity to further boost the reconciliation process in the country and improve the livelihoods of different ethnic minorities while showing them the benefits of integrating with the region.”
Meantime, despite warning that Burma still faced “significant challenges,” the World Bank last week forecast the economy would grow by 6.3 percent during the 2012-13 financial year, compared with 5.5 percent during the previous year.
“The government is moving ahead with reforms, but significant challenges remain for [Burma] to reach its potential, including addressing infrastructure constraints, improving financial and telecommunications sectors and sustainable management of natural resources,” the bank said.
Article printed from The Irrawaddy Magazine: http://www.irrawaddy.org
URL to article: http://www.irrawaddy.org/archives/22203
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Senators Martin Looney and Toni Harp have introduced legislation calling for the creation of "a more sensible state policy regarding marijuana possession by classifying the possession of a small amount of marijuana as an infraction." Such a law would effectively decriminalize the possession of small amounts of the drug, as Massachusetts did late last year. The massive state budget deficit has prompted lawmakers to scrutinize every spending category—including law enforcement.
Proponents of reform say that the cost of arresting, investigating, and prosecuting, low-level users outpaces the benefits of a zero tolerance policy. Critics say that decriminalization leads to confusion, both for young people, and law-enforcement officers trying to fairly enforce marijuana laws. Coming up on Where We Live, we’ll consider the question with State Senator Martin Looney. We’ll get a law enforcement prospective from a Massachusetts officer and talk about the latest research on drug policy.
Leave your questions and comments below. | <urn:uuid:9e565d65-0ad5-46ca-b603-8bb9b7a6a702> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.cpbn.org/program/where-we-live/episode/wwl-more-sensible-state-policy-marijuana?mini=calendar/2013/02/all | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.930136 | 209 | 1.6875 | 2 |
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