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Cape Town - The contract to build the 64 antennas for South Africa’s new MeerKAT radio telescope has been awarded to a South African company that is backed by a world leader in antenna supplies.
Although the design for the antennas is being done in Germany and the US, South Africa owns all the related intellectual property rights.
Two contracts due to be awarded before the end of March are for the foundations for the 64 antennas, or radio signal receiving dishes, at the telescope’s home site near Carnarvon in the Great Karoo, and a site security contract.
Another big contract – the on-site installation of 200km of optical fibre cabling – should be awarded during the second quarter of the year.
This was revealed on Thursday at SKA SA’s Pinelands offices by MeerKAT project manager Willem Esterhuyse during an industry information session for potential suppliers.
MeerKAT is the precursor instrument for the giant Square Kilometre Array (SKA) radio telescope, more than 70 percent of which South Africa and its eight African partners have won the right to host. - Cape Argus | <urn:uuid:3ff197ba-3691-4dce-8b65-1f389b02419f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.iol.co.za/scitech/science/space/ska-antennas-to-be-built-by-sa-firm-1.1466567 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.947196 | 238 | 1.765625 | 2 |
On July 26, ECB President Mario Draghi set the tone for the rest of 2012 when he told the world, "Within our mandate, the ECB is ready to do whatever it takes to preserve the euro. And believe me, it will be enough."
In August, the ECB followed through on that promise with the introduction of a new bond market intervention program dubbed "Outright Monetary Transactions," or OMT, designed to remove the "convertibility risk" premium the central bank saw reflected in the spiking sovereign bond yields of the beleaguered nations on the euro area periphery.
These mere pronunciations have sent borrowing costs for those countries decisively lower, and the ECB hasn't even had to actually purchase a single bond:
In other words, there isn't much pressure on the central bank at the moment, and you can bet Mario Draghi is feeling pretty good about that.
Interest rate predictions
As for today, 55 of the 61 economists polled by Bloomberg expect no change to the benchmark refinancing rate from tomorrow's interest rate decision, which currently stands at 0.75 percent. And of the 35 economists who sent in predictions on the deposit rate, which currently stands at 0.00 percent, the result was unanimous: no change.
However, the ECB will also release updated macroeconomic forecasts at today's meeting, and given a continued string of weak eurozone economic data, the central bank's staff projections are subject to significant downgrades.
Morgan Stanley is among the six that went against the consensus and predicted that the ECB will lower the refi rate to 0.50 percent today. The bank's economists also say the ECB will cut the deposit rate, taking it negative for the first time ever.
Below is the explanation given to Morgan Stanley's clients:
On balance, we continue to think that the ECB will cut its key interest rates at the December meeting by 25 bp. If our forecast turns out to be correct, this would take the deposit rate into negative territory for the first time in ECB history. We acknowledge that the risks to our out of consensus call are material. Indeed, we see a risk that the ECB might prefer to wait until 1Q to execute this unprecedented step in the light of potential operational considerations ahead of year-end. But we believe that the ECB cannot ignore again what will likely be another significant downward revision to its staff's growth projections for 2013 without seriously contemplating taking fresh policy measures.
Given that the deposit rate is the more relevant rate for money markets in the current environment, cutting only the refi would run the risk of being ineffective. Breaking through the zero-bound is more pressing for the ECB than for other central banks, we think, given that the strong commitment to OMT has likely increased the hurdles to full-blown QE. Back in September the Council was clearly focused on designing OMT. But this has been done now and the cumulative downward revision in the staff projection for 2013 GDP since the summer of around one percentage point on our estimate (bringing 2013 GDP growth to zero) as well as the muted inflation projection for 2014 should be sufficient to tip the balance towards a rate cut.
Citi economists, who have long expected the ECB to put off cuts to interest rates until today's meeting, have recently backed away from their call. In a note issued after the ECB's November meeting, Citi wrote, "Given the tone of the press statement and the improvement in market conditions, our economists indicate that a rate cut in December – while still possible – is now less likely."
Instead, like many others, Citi expects further rate cuts to be postponed until sometime in the first quarter of 2013.
Greek buyback deal
The other hot topic at today's meeting will be the ECB's take on the recent deal among EU authorities to effectively grant Greece another bailout by extending the repayment timeline and lowering the interest rate on previously issued loans to the insolvent country.
Deutsche Bank economist Gilles Moec explains how the ECB fits into the deal:
The ECB is involved (indirectly) in the new financing modalities via the contribution of “income on the SMP portfolio” – more specifically, member states commit to paying into the Greek segregated account an amount equivalent to the income on the Greek portion of the SMP portfolio from 2013 (ECB profits in any case accrue to the national central banks which in turn is payable to national governments).
However, the details are unclear. Reuters correspondent Eva Kuehnen confirms that the Greek deal should be high on the agenda:
A euro zone central bank source told Reuters the Governing Council would also discuss a possible rollover of Greek debt held by some national central bank in their investment portfolios...Asked whether the issue would be discussed on Thursday, the source said "definitely".
While it was up to the individual national central banks to decide to replace the Greek bonds they hold with new Greek paper as the debt matures, the Governing Council would likely agree on a common line on Thursday, the source said.
The ECB announces interest rates today at 7:45 AM ET, followed by a press conference and subsequent Q&A session at 8:30. We will have LIVE coverage on Money Game > | <urn:uuid:5b41406f-4941-42c7-94c5-511852218e02> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.businessinsider.com/ecb-december-meeting-preview-2012-12 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951868 | 1,061 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Institute of Nichiren Buddhist Studies
At this institute, a wide range of researchers, including teaching staff in the Department of Nichiren Buddhism, conduct comprehensive research on the doctrines and history of Nichiren and religious orders founded on Nichiren’s teachings. Their activities receive considerable attention from related academic societies.
Institute of the Comprehensive Study of Lotus Sutra
Teaching staff in the Department of Buddhist Studies conduct basic research on the Lotus Sutra and related cultural elements. This institute of international research aims to advance scholarship in this area and contribute to global culture. It has issued publications containing many years of research findings, and these have been well received by scholars in Europe and the United States.
Institute of Humanistic Sciences
Teaching staff in the Faculty of Letters take opportunities to brainstorm with one another through research meetings and lectures. The institute supports research in various ways, including the provision of financial aid. It contributes to the field of humanities by publishing research findings in the Annual Bulletin of the Institute of Humanistic Sciences. Joint research findings are also published in other publications.
Institute of Economic Studies
This institute promotes research in a wide range of fields, including global economic systems environmental economic systems, and information, language and cultural systems, all grounded in basic economic research. The central activities of the institute include the publication of research findings and the organization of lectures and research conferences.
Institute of Business and Management
This institute promotes independent research by the teaching staff in the Faculty of Business Administration as well as collaborative research with researchers from other universities, companies, and government institutions based on industry -government-academic partnerships. The institute aims to identify practical ways for its research findings to be applied in society and to ensure that its findings are reflected in the research and education conducted within the university's graduate and undergraduate programs.
Institute of Legal Studies
This institute publishes the Annual Bulletin of the Institute of Legal Studies, which is intended to promote the research activities of teaching staff in the Faculty of Law. It also conducts ongoing research and educational activities including various symposia that it cosponsors with the Faculty of Law in which a large number of legal specialists from both inside and outside the university participate.
Institute of Social Welfare
Teaching staff and guest researchers from both inside and outside the university work together to promote research and surveys on a wide range of fields related to social welfare in order to develop relevant technologies and contribute to the development of practical solutions.
Institute of Environmental Science
This institute aims to conduct research on a variety of problems related to the global environment, local environment, local planning, environmental planning, environmental management, and disaster management. Also, the institute contributes to the development of solutions to related issues. At environmental discussion sessions organized by the institute, leading researchers from both inside and outside the university present their research findings and strive to share research and information.
Institute of Psychology
With specialized professors from the Faculty of Psychology as its key members, this institute investigates a diverse ayah of research topics related to clinical psychology and interpersonal and social psychology. These research projects are conducted by researchers affiliated with the university, sometimes in cooperation with researchers from other institutions. | <urn:uuid:0b819a92-f9b7-4557-82a7-0195a8562073> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ris.ac.jp/en/research/index.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.937005 | 639 | 1.835938 | 2 |
“All of us in the Brooke community are thrilled by our results because they are a reflection of all the hard work put in by our scholars and their teachers,” said Kimberly Steadman, the school’s co-director.
The charter school was founded in 2002 with just 88 fifth-graders. Today, it has 475 students in kindergarten through grade 8 and is an open enrollment Boston public school. According to the school, 98 percent of students are black or Latino and 78 percent qualify for free and reduced lunch.
Steadman said the results are no surprise to the faculty and staff.
“We know that what it takes to get great results is great teaching -- it's not a trick or an easy formula,” she said. “It's just daily hard work by teachers to constantly push themselves and their students to learn more and perform at higher and higher levels day after day, week after week, and year after year. When teachers and students get into their work and deeply believe in their own self-determination, they can accomplish great things.”
In addition to the eighth grade scores, Brooke seventh-graders ranked first among all districts in the state on the ELA test and second on the math test, while its fifth-graders ranked first among all districts in the state on the ELA test and third on the math test. | <urn:uuid:c8b2d4fb-8be6-41d5-b529-fc9d1ed3b6fd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.boston.com/yourtown/news/roslindale/2011/09/roslindale_charter_school_goes.html?camp=pm | 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 | 0.98129 | 282 | 1.71875 | 2 |
A June 2000 trip
to St. Petersburg by Danner
Quote: A Journey Around The Former Communist Centre Of The World, The Place Where It All Started. A City Of Contrasts, Extreme Beauty And Extreme Reality.
Member Rating 2 out of 5 on January 21, 2002
Lermontovskiy pr. 43/1
St. Petersburg, Russia
As we walked along the Nevsky Prospect, the city’s central ‘vein’, the city was beginning to wake up and the cultural differences were beginning to show themselves. One contrasting scene that made for 'artistic' photography, was down a side street. There was this pale blue and white, clean church set right in the middle of these disused and rundown housing blocks with piles of debris and rubbish outside. It was either a visual metaphor for the church being an oasis in the desert of poverty, or a visual metaphor of how wealthy the church and how far removed from the people in poverty it has become.
Just off the prospect is 'The Church of The Bleeding Saviour', one of the places I wanted to see. Now to clarify, this church is not like a 'normal' church, this one is similar to the Kremlin. The church looks like an ice cream decorated with hundreds and thousands. It has gold plated,(signifying that it is Russian Orthodox) swirly domes at the top of its towers, this was enough to invoke awe, but a closer look at the exterior walls and you'll see that it's made up of square mosaics, like someone's vinyl collection with each cover being a story from the bible, there were at least 250 of these, placed next to the gold drapes and outlines it was a truly beautiful sight. The church was built upon the site where the Tsar Alexander II 'the liberator' was assassinated in 1881, which makes it all the more amazing given that it is only 120 years old. The interior makes this unbelievable as the entire inside is covered with different mosaics of different saints, disciples, and of course, Jesus. In the centre of the church there is a memorial to Alexander, I stood quietly, looked at his face and thought a little bit about the history.
Across the River Neva is the Peter And Paul Fortress. The main attraction of the fotress is the cathedral, whose spire shines with gold across to the main centre but it is only covered on one side, the side facing the city, to show the Tsar's people the wealth they had. Inside the cathedral the Tsars and their families eternally rest, gathered together in family groups. It was amazing at first to think the bones are inside the marble cases and so I went off to look for the 'famous' tsars only to find that the writing is, of course, in Russian so I didn't know who was who, so I just took pictures of them all. Peter The Great was obvious by the bust on the top of the coffin. Nicholas II, the last Tsars was there, he arrived in 1998 after the discovery of the bones outside of St. Petersburg at the place of execution, but I also think there was some politics associated with his transportation.
Walking back towards the centre we went via St Isaak’s Cathedral which has an amazing view at the top, well worth a look. We headed towards the Winter Palace and Palace Square. I was more interested in the Square and disappeared to take pictures of the place where the Marxist ideals were first applied in practice. I was definitely not bowing to any pressure to keep moving. I was going to stand and think about what happened in 1917. The Bolsheviks entered through the archway and gathered outside the Palace, which was home to the provisional government after the February Revolution in which the Tsar's dynasty had ended. The battleship 'Aurora' fired an empty shell over the palace which both scared the government and signalled the Bolsheviks to storm the palace. I could almost hear the shouting and the organised chaos of that day in October 1917. The square was also where Catherine II (the Great) was crowned Tsarina. The centre point is the Alexander Monument, a tall column created by De Monterrand again, to celebrate Russia's defeat of Napoleon in 1812. There is an angel carrying a cross at the top, it faces the palace and maybe if it had been facing the arch the Bolsheviks may not have succeeded, with it facing the palace it is symbolically supporting the actions of the revolution. However, I was slightly disappointed that the historical square was now home to beer tents and ice cream stalls but I suppose that is 'progress'. I had my 5 minutes of reflection time, whilst the others hurried to get inside the Winter Palace.
On the second day I set off by myself to investigate and explore the city by myself. I made for the Lenin Statue on the Fortress side of the River Neva. When I got there I sat underneath his outstretched arm and smoked a proletariat cigarette and then photographed it and paid my respect to the man with the right ideas which Stalin messed up.
While having a cigarette and a rest, I noticed that it's maybe not so much that there are a lot of immigrants in St. Petersburg, but rather that Russia is so big that it contains many different races of people, the Turkish Quarter may well have been the refugees from the Russian regions near to the Middle East. I reflected upon the past two days, I had seen just about everything, including a statue of the writer, Pushkin, who died in a dual with a French officer who was cracking onto his ballet dancer wife, Natalaya. One of my friends had commented on how I take a lot of photographs of statues but to me they're not just statues, they're living history and proof that these things happened and that these people were alive. Being here now, in this city is being in history. The history comes alive through the memorials, the buildings and the statues. The statues are the people who made history and changed the world, they're not just bronze or metal structures they're real, living history.
Its sad that for a city so steeped in wealth and history there are many forgotten people, gypsies, beggars, people with no legs and wheelchairs, and people with just no legs. It's so shocking and sad but maybe this is the history of these people and now they have progressed from the serfs and poverty to city dwellers and poverty. This was no more apparent than when we got on the bus that would take us back to the 'western world'. While my friends were sorting their bags out, a man on crutches was begging for money, pleading with us "please give me money, no one cares about me, no one looks after me." I wondered just how much truth was in that statement. The truth is that Russia has too many people and not enough money, I wonder how the country would have been had Stalin not messed with the ideas and plans of Lenin and Trotsky.
While my friends were filling in the customs form all I wanted to do was to say goodbye to the history, to this city, I think I'd become more attached to it because I knew its past and I'd spent more time amongst its baroque and neo-classical buildings, I'd soaked up the atmosphere and mingled with its people, I was an historian not a tourist.
Sheffield, United Kingdom | <urn:uuid:16aa156c-357d-465d-9a97-e860d615654f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.igougo.com/journal-j8424-St._Petersburg-Midnight_In_St_Petersburg.html | 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 | 0.983097 | 1,529 | 1.796875 | 2 |
In an attempt to build his post-debate momentum, Mitt Romney gave a speech on foreign policy this morning. The overall consensus is that it was a whole lot of nothing new: Writing at Foreign Policy, Daniel Drezner notes that there is “almost no new policy content” in the speech. Indeed, it was mostly the usual laundry list of complaints against President Obama for lacking “resolve,” while Romney pledged to pursue the same policies that have defined the Obama administration’s approach to foreign policy. Wired’s Spencer Ackerman points out the similarities:
On Iran, he’ll propose “new sanctions” and to “tighten the sanctions we currently have,” which is the cornerstone of Obama’s Iran policy (along with cyberattacks). On Afghanistan, he “will pursue a real and successful transition to Afghan security forces by the end of 2014,” which is the cornerstone of Obama’s Afghanistan policy. On Libya, Romney will “support the Libyan people’s efforts to forge a lasting government that represents all of them,” which is the cornerstone of Obama’s Libya policy. Perhaps most surprisingly, Romney will recommit to negotiating peace between Israel and Palestine, which was a cornerstone of Obama’s Mideast policy before it crumbled into dust.
It’s that final point—Romney’s commitment to peace between Israel and Palestine—which should raise eyebrows. It’s almost forgotten, but the full “47 percent” video at the private fundraiser included remarks on everything from the advantages of being Latino—it would be “easier” to win as a minority—to how Palestinians are incapable of building peace. Here’s what he said then about the peace process:
I look at the Palestinians not wanting to see peace anyway, for political purposes, committed to the destruction and elimination of Israel, and these thorny issues, and I say, “There’s just no way.” And so what you do is you say, “You move things along the best way you can.” You hope for some degree of stability, but you recognize that this is going to remain an unsolved problem.
Much like Romney’s promise to cut taxes, preserve spending and balance the budget, these are mutually exclusive views. Either Romney believes that the peace process is hopeless, or he doesn’t. Today’s speech doesn’t give us much insight into what Romney believes, other than that he sees himself as better equipped to pursue Obama’s foreign policy goals.
It’s this ambiguity—combined with the fact of the video and Romney’s history of shapelessness—which will complicate his attempts to remake himself into a moderate in the home stretch of the election. The public has seen what Romney says behind closed doors, and even if it isn’t the “real Mitt,” it feels authentic—in some sense, we associate “truth” with privacy. My guess is that voters will come back to that viedo whenever they’re faced with the question of Romney’s beliefs: “I like what he’s saying now, but I know what he said when no one was watching. I can’t trust him.”
Romney’s debate performance may have pushed “47 percent” out of the news, but it will continue to affect how voters perceive the former Massachusetts governor—and it won’t do him any favors.
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(If there's one thing we know about comment trolls, it's that they're lazy) | <urn:uuid:2a5cfbae-189e-4d43-b35f-125503f1e0e7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://mailto:editors@prospect.org/article/tale-two-mitts-foreign-policy-edition | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961487 | 776 | 1.671875 | 2 |
Google Drive terms of service spark privacy concerns
Posted: Apr 25, 2012 3:43 PM ET
Last Updated: Apr 27, 2012 10:32 AM ET
Google policy indicates that people could lose control over content they store on the company's new "cloud" storage service, so they should read the terms carefully to determine if they're comfortable uploading files, an independent technology analyst in London, Ont., says.
The internet giant already mines data provided through email and other services to serve up ads that are specific to what people are doing online, and its updated terms of service announced in early March will now also apply to Google Drive, Carmi Levy told CBC News on Wednesday.
"[Google] wants to have a really good look at our information, to learn more about us, and then customize the online experience to us. That's pretty much what it's aiming at. It doesn't necessarily want to take that secret PowerPoint [file] that I've created for the future of my company and share it with the world," Levy said.
It's an issue that is moving into the spotlight as more and more consumer and corporate information moves into "the cloud," which basically means that it's stored online on third-party servers rather than direclty on local machines like personal computers, laptops and smartphones.
People are asking questions about the following section of Google's terms of service:
"When you upload or otherwise submit content to our Services, you give Google (and those we work with) a worldwide licence to use, host, store, reproduce, modify, create derivative works (such as those resulting from translations, adaptations or other changes we make so that your content works better with our Services), communicate, publish, publicly perform, publicly display and distribute such content."
It's a very broad set of permissions. What's more, the permission you give Google to use those files continues even if you stop using the services.
Meanwhile, another part of the same terms of service document states that, "Some of our Services allow you to submit content. You retain ownership of any intellectual property rights that you hold in that content. In short, what belongs to you stays yours."
This has generated debate over how the terms of service should be interpreted when it comes to the hold Google has on the data stored on Google Drive.
In contrast, Google Drive's established competitors, DropBox and Microsoft SkyDrive, make no direct ownership claims to user content in their terms of service.
"They basically say your stuff remains your stuff, and they do not make any claims to it," Levy said.
But critics point out that there are still grey areas in the terms of service for these and many other cloud-based services, and that users should read the terms carefully.
Meanwhile, the policy also notes that Google and those who manage the company's services may be allowed to view user account information. "If your Google Account is managed for you by a domain administrator (for example, for Google Apps users) then your domain administrator and resellers who provide user support to your organization will have access to your Google Account information (including your email and other data)." Among other things, it says the domain administrator may be able to "access or retain information stored as part of your account."
Critics have noted that part of the privacy issue around Google Drive springs from the fact that the company has privacy and terms of service agreements that cover many products and which use broad wording, rather than being written specifically for a given service.
The advice for users of cloud-based storage services is to have a clear understanding of privacy and ownership policies before storing sensitive or proprietary information online.
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- Astronaut Chris Hadfield adjusts to 'earthling' life | <urn:uuid:3952f769-7e7d-4e09-b7f7-70e5ac5ce073> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/story/2012/04/25/google-drive-cloud-storage-terms.html?cmp=rss | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.946313 | 1,386 | 1.59375 | 2 |
Let me start by disabusing you of the notion that Rockbox is Linux of some flavor, or that it started out that way. It's not. You are, of course, reading Linux Journal, so you could be forgiven for thinking it is, but I just want to make sure you are aware right from the get-go that it isn't. With that small formality out of the way, let me get on to what it actually is, which is a replacement firmware for a growing number of digital audio players.
Back in 2001 or so, Rockbox started life as a replacement firmware for just one digital audio player (DAP), which was the Archos Jukebox (sometimes referred to as the Archos Player, Figure 1). A few owners of this very early device were left feeling dissatisfied with the buggy firmware that came with the device, and also felt it was lacking some important features. Those folks decided they could do better, and so Rockbox was born. That original device was very limited in what it could be made to do when compared with modern DAPs. It featured a very slow 11MHz CPU and, therefore, had to include a dedicated chip for decoding MP3 audio. This meant that in the early days of Rockbox, the only music format it could play was limited to MP3 or uncompressed PCM Audio (WAV). These days, that list has expanded greatly, and the firmware now plays some 27 formats. Those of us associated with the project are fairly confident (not to say a little smug) that this is way more than any other firmware made by anyone, be it open or closed, anywhere in the world.
Of course, in addition to now supporting this rather large and, in not a few cases, esoteric list of formats, Rockbox runs on a vastly larger variety of players these days too. The list of supported DAPs has grown steadily over the years, with the iRiver H100 series being the first software codec target that was added sometime in 2004, and from there growing to include other players made by Apple, Archos, Cowon, iRiver, Logick, Meizu, MPIO, Olympus, Onda, Packard Bell, Philips, Samsung, SanDisk, Tatung and Toshiba. Among these players, the architectures on which Rockbox has to run necessarily has been extended too, from the original SH1 in the Archos player, to ColdFire, ARM and even MIPS hardware.
Porting Rockbox to new players is a time-consuming business, and doing so varies from just plain hard to nearly impossible. Where a player falls in this scale of difficulty depends on a number of factors, but the main influences tend to be how easy the manufacturer has made it to get custom code running on the device and how much documentation exists for the underlying hardware. On a great many of the players on which Rockbox runs, reverse engineering of the hardware has been done purely by Rockbox hackers; however, a large hat tip in the direction of the iPodLinux (IPL) Project is due, without whose extensive reverse engineering of the early range of iPods running on PortalPlayer hardware, the current Rockbox port to those players probably would not have been possible.
The PortalPlayer platform is notorious among embedded hackers as having no publicly available documentation, so each and every piece of functionality on those devices using it has had to be painstakingly worked out, and the IPL hackers spent a great deal of time doing this. Coming back to the first point, about how easy it is to run custom code at all, the more recent iPods (since the second generation of the iPod Nano, in fact) have raised the bar still higher, because the device requires the code it executes to be both signed and encrypted in hardware before it will run. Back when Apple launched this device, hope was very low in the Rockbox community that it ever would be possible to get a port running on it. However, a flaw in the original firmware turned up last year that allowed some very talented folks to get code running, and now there's a port of Rockbox running on that device too. Other platforms have proved somewhat easier—for instance, the Toshiba Gigabeat F had hardware for which documentation was relatively simple to come by.
Rockbox's driving philosophy always has been to provide the best portable music player experience that it can. As mentioned previously, 27 codecs is just part of that. Although it allows end users to navigate their music collection via a database based on the music's metadata content these days, it originally started with just a file browser—a feature that remains a firm favorite with the core of the Rockbox Project team. Every action to play back music requires a playlist, as this is how Rockbox works. Creation of playlists can be done on the fly where the end user isn't even aware it has happened. Or, they can be constructed manually either within Rockbox itself or in the user's favorite music management program, assuming it can generate standard M3U format files.
Another key feature the firmware offers is bookmarking—invaluable for those who listen to audio books and need to keep track of where they are within the file when they shut down their players. Rockbox allows users to keep many such bookmarks, letting them skip around between multiple files with ease.
One of the oldest features in Rockbox, which has only improved over time, is the customizable While Playing Screen (WPS). In the very early text-only versions of Rockbox, this allowed users to choose what information about the currently playing tune they wanted displayed. In the most recent versions of Rockbox, this now allows users to decide where, or indeed if, they want Album Art displayed, along with all the various pieces of metadata, or have a colorful backdrop and pretty much anything they want (Figure 2).
Another favorite feature, particularly with Rockbox users who are sight-impaired, is the implementation of a voice feedback system. Once this is turned on, all menus within the Rockbox interface announce themselves to the user, so the entire interface can be navigated without needing to see the screen. In its default state, this also allows the player to spell out filenames, so users can navigate their music collection. This can be enhanced further with the use of speex format .talk files, which are pre-generated with a PC-based tool and allow the player actually to speak the names of files and directories.
A somewhat more recent feature, added in the last couple years, has brought movie playback to a large quantity of supported Rockbox players. Once you have transcoded your movie of choice and resized it to fit on the device's screen, you can watch MPEG1 and MPEG2 movies at your leisure, all made possible by Rockbox's rich plugin API.
The features I've highlighted here barely scratch the surface of what is possible with Rockbox, and if you are at all interested in discovering more, check out the rather comprehensive manual available on the Rockbox home page (www.rockbox.org). The project couldn't possibly provide all the features it does without standing on the shoulders of a number of other open-source giants. A great deal of the codecs that Rockbox uses are derived from other open-source codebases. The folks that provide that code have helped by providing countless hours of their own work that Rockbox has built on. Libmad, ffmpeg, flac, vorbis, speex, wavpack, libmpeg2 and libmtp are just a few of the other teams that all deserve the heartfelt gratitude of the current Rockbox user base, because without them, virtually all of their favorite music wouldn't play back as well on the Rockbox platform.
Rockbox has been fortunate enough to have been accepted to the Google Summer of Code program during the last few years, and this year is no exception. Perhaps one of the most interesting projects that is being kindly funded by Google's deep pockets is that of “Rockbox as an Application” or RaaA.
Increasingly, consumer electronics devices that are capable of music playback are shipping with very capable operating systems already, and it makes little sense to replace an entire operating system just to get superior music playback on such a device. Because there has been code in the Rockbox repository for a long time to build a “Rockbox Simulator”, which runs on a PC using SDL, an opportunity to turn this into a real application that could execute on Android, Symbian, Maemo or even Windows Mobile (god forbid!) already existed, and now is being put into action. The aim of this project is to separate the playback engine from the firmware portion of the code, allowing you to install Rockbox on your phone without sacrificing its ability to make phone calls or surf the Web. It's thought that this is a better idea than trying to add a network stack and all the other goodies you'd need to make Rockbox a convincing alternative OS on your mobile phone. In actual fact, someone forked Rockbox's simulator a few years ago to the Motorola RockR series of phones in just this way, but sadly, the folks responsible for this port never gave the project any decent code back, and that particular set of targets remains unsupported in the trunk of the Rockbox codebase.
The majority of Rockbox's codebase is written in C, but there's a smattering of routines written in assembly code where it makes sense to squeeze the absolute last ounce of performance out of the player. Most of those routines are in the codecs, where every clock cycle counts, especially with some of the heavyweight formats like Monkey's Audio, which even the most powerful Rockbox players struggle with at maximum compression.
The Rockbox kernel has been written from the ground up, and among its features there are two things that probably will stand out as substantially different to people who are familiar with other modern OS kernels. First, because the vast majority of Rockbox-capable DAPs do not possess an MMU, Rockbox's kernel does not feature any method of dynamic memory allocation. This has been a contentious issue in the Rockbox community for a long time now, and new developers constantly bring it up. The lack of MMU is, of course, not a complete showstopper. It's perfectly possible to come up with a malloc implementation that does not require an MMU, and this is often the point they make. The reason the project has resisted it historically, and continues to do so to this day, is that any implementation requires a pool of free memory from which to allocate. The Rockbox old guard all argue that this is a waste of precious resources on the often extremely memory-constrained platforms on which Rockbox executes, and that every piece of available memory should be used to buffer as much music as possible. This means people coming to programming for Rockbox for the first time have to get used to thinking about statically allocating all the memory they need at compile time, a mode of programming foreign to most developers these days.
The second interesting feature in the Rockbox kernel is the threading model, which is cooperative rather than preemptive. This is mainly a historical artifact these days, and there has been repeated discussion about moving to a preemptive model, which so far has failed to reach a conclusion. In the meantime, this means, again, that anything designed to run on the Rockbox kernel has to have its execution thought about carefully and must consciously yield to other threads at opportune moments if it is to play nicely with the rest of the system.
As highlighted previously, Rockbox provides a rich plugin API that can be used via either compiled C code or in up-to-date versions via a growing library of LUA functions. A few support programs also go with Rockbox, not the least of which is the Rockbox Utility, a multiplatform installation tool. This is written in C++ using the Qt toolkit, and a version for all three major PC operating systems is maintained in statically linked form to make using it as easy as possible. There are some 92 people currently listed as having commit access to the central Subversion repository for Rockbox, with 40 of those active at the current moment. In addition to them, there is a sizable community of patch authors, artists and general helpers contributing to both the project's health and also to its vibrant and friendly atmosphere.
For those not skilled with a text editor and compiler, additions to and maintenance of the documentation are always welcome. Although it would be foolish to claim that the documentation is perfect, most of those involved in the project would say that as far as most open-source projects go, the documentation is pretty good. In addition to the manual and the wiki, which provide the static documentation for the project, there are numerous other ways for people to find and receive help. There are two active mailing lists, one aimed at the end user, which has proved to be perhaps the most popular support option for the community of blind users, and another where those who are interested in Rockbox development can exchange ideas. The Rockbox forums also are extremely active, and indeed, a lot of the Rockbox “staff” have made their entrance into the community by helping out others here. As with most other open-source projects, there is also an extremely active IRC channel on the Freenode network (www.freenode.net)—#rockbox is active for most of the day due to the community's diverse geographical (and some might say insomniacal!) nature. The channel is logged to make sure all discussions are searchable in case a developer misses something critical or otherwise interesting, and these logs are published on the project's Web site. Also, never let it be said that the Rockbox community is slow to adopt new technology. Recently @rockboxcommits has made its debut on Twitter for those who are keen to keep track of every change in the source code repository!
Bryan Childs is a systems manager at a financial services software house in London. He likes cocktails and behaving in a disreputable manner whenever he's out of the office. He can throw a frozen egg over a ten-story building.
|Designing Electronics with Linux||May 22, 2013|
|Dynamic DNS—an Object Lesson in Problem Solving||May 21, 2013|
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|Making Linux and Android Get Along (It's Not as Hard as It Sounds)||May 16, 2013|
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|Home, My Backup Data Center||May 13, 2013|
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Enter to Win an Adafruit Pi Cobbler Breakout Kit for Raspberry Pi
It's Raspberry Pi month at Linux Journal. Each week in May, Adafruit will be giving away a Pi-related prize to a lucky, randomly drawn LJ reader. Winners will be announced weekly.
Fill out the fields below to enter to win this week's prize-- a Pi Cobbler Breakout Kit for Raspberry Pi.
Congratulations to our winners so far:
- 5-8-13, Pi Starter Pack: Jack Davis
- 5-15-13, Pi Model B 512MB RAM: Patrick Dunn
- 5-21-13, Prototyping Pi Plate Kit: Philip Kirby
- Next winner announced on 5-27-13!
Free Webinar: Hadoop
How to Build an Optimal Hadoop Cluster to Store and Maintain Unlimited Amounts of Data Using Microservers
Realizing the promise of Apache® Hadoop® requires the effective deployment of compute, memory, storage and networking to achieve optimal results. With its flexibility and multitude of options, it is easy to over or under provision the server infrastructure, resulting in poor performance and high TCO. Join us for an in depth, technical discussion with industry experts from leading Hadoop and server companies who will provide insights into the key considerations for designing and deploying an optimal Hadoop cluster.
Some of key questions to be discussed are:
- What is the “typical” Hadoop cluster and what should be installed on the different machine types?
- Why should you consider the typical workload patterns when making your hardware decisions?
- Are all microservers created equal for Hadoop deployments?
- How do I plan for expansion if I require more compute, memory, storage or networking? | <urn:uuid:c8793e40-fe22-47ad-9337-563a55deeb63> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.linuxjournal.com/article/10835 | 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 | 0.951107 | 3,627 | 1.679688 | 2 |
POINT PLEASANT — Despite what his critics are saying, U.S. Sen. Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.) says he’s not trying to take away anyone’s right to bear arms.
Manchin spoke exclusively with the Point Pleasant Register about his support of the Second Amendment and his stance on gun control Tuesday, during his visit to the Annual Mason County Area Chamber of Commerce Dinner.
Manchin, who has promoted himself as a sportsman, a gun owner and a National Rifle Association member with an “A” rating, has been taking heat lately for supporting what he calls a “common sense measure” to keep guns away from criminals and those deemed mentally ill by a court.
“This isn’t about taking guns away,” Manchin said, explaining the legislation he supports doesn’t ban any type of gun or bullets.
What it does do, he said, is require a criminal and mental health background check to purchase a firearm without infringing on the Second Amendment rights of law-abiding citizens. Manchin has said the legislation he supports will not take away anyone’s guns; will not ban any kind of firearm; will not ban or restrict the use of any kind of bullet or any size clip or magazine; will not create a national registry (saying, it clearly makes illegal the establishment of any such registry); and lastly, it will not, in any fashion, infringe upon the rights of law-abiding citizens.
Manchin said he was affected, as most of the country was, by the more recent shootings in Colorado and Newtown, Conn. For this reason, another aspect of his legislation is to create a National Commission on Mass Violence to bring together experts from a variety of fields, including school safety, mental health, the video and entertainment industry, gun rights and law enforcement to discuss “meaningful action” that can be taken to prevent more incidents of mass violence. Manchin has said incidents like the one in Newtown were a failure of multiple systems and not simply a gun issue.
However, some of Manchin’s critics claim these background checks are a slippery slope leading to gun bans, national registries and simply making it harder for law-abiding citizens to exercise their Second Amendment rights.
Manchin strongly disagreed with the criticism and misinformation about where he stands on gun control and the right to bear arms, saying he remains a gun owner and a strong supporter of the Second Amendment. He said his critics are “muddying the waters” because he is speaking out on this issue. | <urn:uuid:8c243035-f90d-4c60-a627-59ee767f64ac> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.mydailyregister.com/pages/home/push?class=next_page&x_page=19&rel=next&per_page=5 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968119 | 539 | 1.5 | 2 |
The following links come from an email alert from The Women’s Media Center.
Misogyny Cuts Across All Cultures: Oppression in the West and Arab World
Huffington Post:Are women in the Arab world “worse-off” than in the West? An editorial examines the ways in which oppression and misogyny cut across every culture, and how media handles the issue.
I do not want to live in a country that forces me to smother myself in veils, a country that threatens me with violence for an inch of visible wrist, a country that does not allow me to vote or drive.
For the record, I also do not feel safe in a country with a House of Representatives that is capable of canceling all funding for Planned Parenthood — which happened in the House just a day ago. I do not feel safe knowing that in South Dakota, Republicans proposed a bill that could make it legal to murder a doctor who provides abortion care to women.
The state legislature of Georgia would like to change the legal term for victims of rape, stalking and domestic violence to “accuser” — in effect, denying victims their right to accurate representation by description.
In Congress, Republicans have put forward a bill that would force hospitals to let a woman die rather than perform an abortion that would save her life.
Programs for low-income women and children are being slashed left and right and MoveOn reports that there is a move to eliminate all funding for the only extant federal family planning program — though there is a bill that promotes contraception for wild horses. (For human women, they are neigh-sayers.)
Misogyny keeps this country’s brutality to women — rape, murder and domestic violence — at staggering levels, along with the pitched battle against a woman’s right to control her own body, her right to choose.
That women often do not support each other or offer sympathy for abusive treatment of other women is indeed part of the problem — witness the reaction of some female journalists to the attack on Lara Logan.
Men bounce back faster from recession’s unequal blows
Miami Herald: After the recession of the late 2000s, the early stages of the economic recovery are benefitting men far more than women. While men have gained438,000 jobs since June 2009, women have lost 366,000 over the same period.
African-American Women Less Vulnerable to Media-Driven Body Dissatisfaction
University of Florida News: As National Eating Disorders Awareness Week gets underway, a University of Florida researchers emphasizes a 2010 study that shows African-American women are less susceptible to pressure from mainstream media about their body image. | <urn:uuid:dcdf3725-5695-402c-8f44-2bf81be0604c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://mediamisses.wordpress.com/tag/eating-disorder/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.942449 | 548 | 1.804688 | 2 |
by Roger Pynn
Pity the PR team at Shell. Their brand has been hijacked. Their creative has been stolen. Their message has been distorted. There’s hardly anything they can do about it.
Julian Assange hasn’t been in custody because of his leaks. These guys likely won’t be either … unless someone accuses them of other crimes, as with Assange, because there seems to be little corporate or government appetite for fighting people who steal intellectual property these days, or those who smear your reputation.
Assange, who worked on a book on Internet subversion with an academic, was described by his co-author as “quite interested in the concept of ethics, concepts of justice, what governments should and shouldn’t do.”
What do you think? Should there be any protection for the Shells of the world? Have they been wronged? Does disagreeing with a large, well-funded organization give protest groups a free pass to commit assault with a digital weapon?
An equally interesting question would be, given the potential to be mugged this way, how will communicators find safe information highways to deliver their messages if not via the Internet? And, who will own the responsibility for scrubbing every message to prevent it from becoming another victim of intellectual terrorism? | <urn:uuid:3610bd2b-df30-4c76-adab-182a67c7dbae> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://thestrategicfirm.wordpress.com/2012/06/14/does-safe-exist-anymore/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963684 | 269 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Companies and entrepreneurs spend a lot of money advertising their wares, with often mixed results. Often the purpose of such advertisements is to increase the mind-share of the customers. The objective is to win the customer’s trust and to sell the business concept’s to them.
There is often an ignored side of any business that is already “sold to” and probably talk about your business more than anyone else. They are your employees. Employees are your “customers” who will not need any advertising dollar to be spent to be converted. Why is that so?
#1 : They already work with you
They spend their large part of lives in your office. There could be two reason they choose to do so
a) they find working at your place worth it
b) probably they can’t( or don’t want to ) find job anywhere else ;)
I am positive that most employees fall in ( a ) category. They enjoy working at your place that is why they are sticking with you
#2: They are selling products that your company makes
Its really hard to sell products that your employees don’t believe in. Sure they could sell lousy products but in the long run it will not be all good. Employees who have a long association and feel proud about working often sell more than others.
#3: They explain your business to their family and friends
At one of the company I worked at, it was hard to explain about the product because it was quite technical. However it did not stop me talking to my friends , families and relative about it. It was not easy to make them understand but they learned something new and enjoyed it. I was thus able to extend the reach of the brand. I am sure other employees are happy to talk about the place they work in and don’t mind a little “show-off”.
#4: They talk about your products to prospects and future customers
Nothing is like an employee confident about his company he is working at. When an employee invested in your product speaks to customers, vendors and everyone else, it is from his/her knowledge and not from a written script. This helps a lot in raising the brand value.
#5: They get the feedback for you
Usually employees are the first to know if there is anything wrong or right with the product. If your company is open to feedback, you will get it from your employees. You may use this to improve your product.
#6: They might become buyers
If your employees like your product and they can afford them, they will be the most willing buyers. They will do it repeatedly because they believe in it.
It is really hard to ignore such a great customer segment. You may do so at your own peril.
What do you feel about this theory? Let me know in the comments below.
Free images from FreeDigitalPhotos.net
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Panzer VOR! #4 - German Armor at War 1939-45
Readers will be pleased to know that the "Panzer Vor!" saga continues with this fourth volume in the mini-series! Following on with the successful formula seen in his previous books, the author, Frank De Sisto, presents a series of inspirational photos of German armored vehicles in WWII. It is full of rare photos that have not been seen in a lot of books. The content includes a commendably wide range of German vehicles, with a welcome proportion of mainstream Panzers, including the StuG III, Hetzer, Panzer III, IV, Panther, Tiger and King Tiger. Rarer vehicles such as the Sturmpanzer IV and 10.5cm K (gp.Sfl.) also make an appearance. Foreign tanks in Wehrmacht service are also featured in glorious detail, including the Bulgarian T-11 light tank, Czech Pz.Kpfw.38(t), French Somua S-35, and Russian T-34/76. This is a veritable feast for armor junkies addicted to WWII tanks!
As usual for Concord's "Armor at War Series", there are sixteen color plates included as a centerpiece. These have been masterfully produced by Laurent Lecocq and show some attractive paint schemes that will be of interest to model-makers. Another feature of this book is the introduction, which breaks with tradition by forming an annotated glossary. This is very helpful, as there are a myriad of German language technical terms associated with Panzers and such like vehicles. The author has done a superb job of explaining many of these terms in an understandable and informative way. Readers will want to include this book in their collection, especially if they already have the earlier editions! | <urn:uuid:f07ac2c3-2205-45a1-92c7-713567c90bf6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.hobbybuy.com/us/prodi.asp?pid=CON7061 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962701 | 366 | 1.601563 | 2 |
Over time, using standard keyboards can be hard on your eyes. In addition, inputting the wrong keys can take you to web and sites you don’t want to go to. These new EZ Eyes keyboards are great for anyone who is visually impaired, uses a keyboard for long stretches of time, or just likes the fun, attractive style of the keys.
With letters 4x larger and higher contrast colors than a regular keyboard, the ZK-520 keyboard suits your eyes perfectly. The keyboard uses and easy USB interface and is plug and play compatible with both PCs and Mac computers.
For a limited time only, we are offering them here at Geeks@Site for only $10.00 a piece. Stop buy our shop and pick one up today!Read More
Computer repair technicians are a dime a dozen. Here are a few hints to help you find the right one:
1. Make sure your technician is certified. CompTIA is the industry trade association for computer professionals. Their basic certifications are A+ and Net +. These are difficult certifications to get, but are a great assurance that your technician has at least minimum competency.
2. Computer professionals working out of a shop are always a better bet than someone working out of their home. Having a physical location adds an extra layer of legitimacy to the operation.
3. Ask around. Who are your friends going to? Are they happy?
4. Check with your local Chamber of Commerce. They often have great recommendations for computer professionals that live and work in your community.Read More
When running virus software, you should never have two programs running at the same time. They end up spending more time fighting with each other than actually killing the viruses. If you are unsure which virus software is best, then we recommend Microsoft Security Essentials. It is free and generally does a great job of removing viruses for the average user.
There are a number of other things you can do to keep your computer from becoming infected from viruses. Always keep your firewall turned on, automatically have your system perform Microsoft updates and download or click on anything that doesn’t come from someone or a business that you already know.
Refurbished computers are gently used computers that have been fixed up by a qualified professional. Many refurbished computers come with a warranty. But here are a few things to watch out for when purchasing a refurbished computer:
1. Make sure your refurbished computer comes from a reputable source. Many refurbished computers sold on Craigslist do not have legitimate licenses for Windows. You will generally not find this out for 30 days, long after the seller is gone.
2. Make sure you have a warranty of at least 30 days. This way if anything goes wrong, you have some recourse.
3. Unless you have experience with Ubuntu, don’t buy a refurbished laptop only running Ubuntu. In the end, you will find yourself buying a Windows License, which can be as expensive as the laptop itself.
4. We strongly recommend buying your refurbished computers from Microsoft Certified shops as they must pass higher quality standards.Read More
The right computer can make or break a small business. Picking the right computer can be a daunting task. Here are a few things to consider:
1. Laptop or Desktop? Is the computer going to stay at the office or do you need something more portable? Desktop computers tend to be less expensive with more power. But try carrying your desktop to you next appointment at Starbucks.
2. Do you need an Ultrabook? Ultrabooks are lightweight but powerful laptops. If you travel a lot, they can be great. But expect to pay a premium. Ultrabooks generally start at about $800.
3. Do you need a Toughbook? If you routinely beat up your computer or work in construction, Tough Books are a great choice. But be prepared to pay. Tough books generally start at about $2500.Read More | <urn:uuid:9aed1088-4cc8-494f-b563-bb586e5e6724> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://geeksatsite.com/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.947755 | 810 | 1.585938 | 2 |
When animals at the California Shelter require veterinary procedures that cannot be administered in our barns or hospital building, we take them to the University of California-Davis Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital, where they receive expert care in state-of-the-art facilities. We often rescue animals in dire condition, and many of them have undergone lifesaving procedures performed by UC-Davis staff. It is not only Davis’ veterinarians, technicians and nurses, however, who save lives at the hospital. Some special animal residents also do their part. For several years, two cows named Prissy and Knobby were among them, providing crucial aid to ailing cattle.
In 2004, Prissy, a Charolais was brought to Davis for a major operation to ameliorate a hip injury. She later became a blood donor there. Knobby, a Holstein whose original role at Davis was to teach veterinary students how to work with cattle, became a blood donor in 2005. A friendship grew between the two. They spent most of their time relaxing together and enjoying TLC from the staff, but when blood was needed for emergency transfusions to bovine patients, Prissy and Knobby patiently allowed their caregivers to extract donations from them. They were, of course, amply rewarded with treats afterwards.
After several years of saving lives, the time came for Prissy and Knobby to retire. The hospital wanted to make sure that these two special girls had a wonderful retirement, so they contacted us to help find a home where they could live in peace and safety for the rest of their lives. We were excited to be able to arrange for such a home: Sanctuary One at Double Oak Farm, a care farm in southern Oregon “where people, animals, and the earth work together for mutual healing,” and where some adoptees from Farm Sanctuary were already living the good life. We also gladly agreed to be Prissy and Knobby’s chauffeurs to Oregon.
So we drove to Davis to pick up the two retirees. Though neither had been in a trailer in a long time, they both calmly climbed up and settled in for their road trip. Starting a new life can be scary, but it helps to have your best friend with you: Prissy and Knobby stayed close by each other’s sides all through the journey. Upon arrival at Sanctuary One, they climbed down and immediately began exploring their new home together.
Now named Cookies and Cream, the cows are living it up among the horses, llamas, pigs, goats, sheep, ducks and geese who also call Sanctuary One home. Cream is fond of head scratches, and both girls love to lick treats from the hands of their caregivers, who are thrilled to look after these two who have helped so many others.
This is just one of the many happy endings made possible through our national Farm Animal Adoption Network (FAAN), through which we connect needy animals with safe, loving, permanent homes. The collaboration made possible when we work with the amazing individuals, families, and sanctuaries that make up this network, the largest of its kind in North America, magnifies what any of us could do alone. Together, we are giving the gift of a happy life to so many animals. If you’d like to learn more about joining FAAN, please visit our website today! | <urn:uuid:c0bf3543-b344-483b-89c4-0cf9d2fa8d69> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://farmsanctuary.typepad.com/sanctuary_tails/leanne-cronquist/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.976624 | 686 | 1.664063 | 2 |
In terms of product design how large a weight could people in the 95th Percentile (Men & Women) lift in KG, per hand, without overly exerting themselves? This is in regards to anthropometrics, and the data would be used with 95th percentile hand sizes, etc.
As for defining overly exerting themselves, I'd say in terms of being able to hold an object for a prolonged period of time, without showing any noticeable signs in terms of biology that they were doing this, e.g. Sweating, Feeling Uncomfortable. For example, a phone is below this lift, a normal television is above. | <urn:uuid:8a788bdc-a37d-43b1-ba18-7976063310b9> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://fitness.stackexchange.com/questions/6394/how-much-can-the-95th-percentile-lift-without-overly-exerting-themselves | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964601 | 131 | 1.703125 | 2 |
Why the Next iPhone Should Skip LTE
Battery life will be the undoing of the next generation of smartphones, warns Farhad Manjoo at Pando Daily. He’s right, and that’s why for the next version of the iPhone, probably due out in the fall and probably not to be called the iPhone 5, Apple should pass on the opportunity to add fourth-generation LTE wireless.
At least with current radio technology and networks, LTE is a terrible battery drain, a situation not likely to change much over the next few months. In the history of wireless, most new radio technologies have initially hurt battery performance and LTE is worse than most. Apple was smart to put LTE into the new iPad and will be smart to leave it out of the iPhone. (Daring Fireball’s John Gruber also speculates that Apple might skip LTE.)
Why different treatment for the iPad and iPhone? Apple could satisfy the power demands of both LTE and the new high-resolution display by making the iPad a tad thicker and adding what iFixit calls “a hulk of a battery.” That’s a less attractive an option on the iPhone. Any increase in thickness would be much more noticeable on a phone than on a tablet. If Apple enlarges the height and width of the iPhone to accommodate a larger screen, it would gain some room for a bigger battery, but would also need more power for the display. In addition, an iPhone would probably spend far more time active on the LTE network than the more sedentary iPad, which can often do fine on Wi-Fi, which is much easier on the battery.
More significantly, the iPhone really doesn’t need LTE the way the iPad does. The iPad has a PC-like appetite for data. It takes a lot of bits to use all the pixels on that lovely screen to their maximum advantage and you want the screen to fill fast. There’s a big payoff for faster wireless. The iPhone is more of a data-sipper and does very well on a 3G connections, especially of the HSPA+ variety (which AT&T now confusingly calls 4G.)
The smaller the device, the greater the tradeoffs that have to be made in design. Personally, I’m not willing to sacrifice battery life for faster data on my iPhone, which can just get me through a long, busy day now. Nor do I want a bulkier phone to support a radio technology I don’t really need. The main pressure for LTE is coming from carriers, especially Verizon Wireless, that want to shift traffic to their newest network. Apple should resist, at least for one more generation. | <urn:uuid:59c98304-d7d9-4ef8-9588-069645713695> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://techpinions.com/why-the-next-iphone-should-skip-lte/6013 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950612 | 551 | 1.71875 | 2 |
What would it take for you to give up your life for someone else?
If you’re a parent, you probably would do anything necessary to save the life of a child, even at the risk of your own. A husband or wife might also perform a heroic deed if their spouse were in dire straits.
We have heard stories of soldiers undertaking extraordinary steps of courage to protect or save fallen comrades. Police officers and firefighters frequently are called to put their lives on the line for the sake of others.
But what would it take for you to offer your life on behalf of a stranger?
Occasionally we hear a news account of a individual putting their own life in harm’s way to assist someone they’ve never met – perhaps a person drowning, in a car accident, or similar calamity. But more often we hear about people choosing to stand passively by, watching while a person’s life is in jeopardy, perhaps being beaten or attacked. “Why get involved? It’s none of my business.”
That by far is the more common course.
Perhaps this is one reason Jesus said, “Greater love has no one than this, that he lay down his life for his friends” (John 15:13). Self-sacrifice is not the natural order of things. Rather, we ask, “What’s in it for me?” and if the answer is not enough, we defer.
But that’s not what Jesus did. His great love, far beyond anything we can comprehend, motivated Him to carry out the greatest act of self-sacrifice ever recorded . As the apostle Paul wrote, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us” (Romans 5:8).
Jesus’ death on the cross was not because we deserved it, as if we were worthy of His atonement. He did it out of love, offering His mercy and grace. By definition, mercy means not receiving what we do deserve, and grace means receiving what we do not deserve.
Thankfully, as we will observe this Friday, He gave His life for each of us, rag-tag sinners and self-absorbed hypocrites, so that we might receive forgiveness, new life, and the promise of life after death.
If it were not for what we call Good Friday, there would have been no Easter. And without Easter, there would be no cause for celebrating Christmas.
But this weekend we do mark both Good Friday and Easter, all because Jesus chose to give His life for someone else – for you and for me. As 2 Corinthians 5:21 tells us, “God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God.” | <urn:uuid:5dcbaa98-12ac-48f2-9afd-7e83a34663d2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.bobtamasy.blogspot.com/2012/04/one-life-for-another.html | 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 | 0.975035 | 590 | 1.742188 | 2 |
Imagine this: Mere minutes after a lengthy bilateral meeting with European counterparts, you step on to the stage and take your place behind a microphone. You have been asked, alongside a “top official” from the United States, to represent Germany at a press conference on the latest developments in the Eurozone. Palms sweating, you take the first question, hoping that they will be easy on you. A journalist turns on his microphone and starts out with a tough one, “Germany has been imposing austerity measures across the Eurozone, but are you considering the effects these drastic measures might have on working class Europeans?”
For 68 European and American high school students representing 42 different countries, this scenario became reality, if only for a few hours, in a simulation conducted at the State Department as part of the Benjamin Franklin Transatlantic Fellows… more »
About the Author: Ann Stock is the Assistant Secretary of State for the Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA).
The Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs (ECA) had a busy and exciting 2011, marked by a bevy of accomplishments, quick responses to foreign policy challenges, and a swath of new people-to-people exchange programs that help advance American standing and interests around the world.
Many of our most exciting programs responded to the needs and opportunities generated by changes in the Middle East, North Africa, and Central Asia. Throughout these regions, ECA bolstered English teaching and the Fulbright Program. We also added new International Visitor Leadership Programs to give rising leaders in countries like Tunisia and Libya a look at American entrepreneurship and democratic, transparent governance.
Our cultural and historical preservation work also helped raise the U.S. profile abroad. For instance we restored the historical citadel of Herat, our… more »
More than 8,000 educators, advisors, scholars, and counselors attended theAssociation of International Educators’ 63rd annual NAFSA conference from May 31 to June 3. The conference offered dozens of workshops and seminars on international education, providing an unparalleled forum for hammering out agreements between educational institutions, spotting new trends in international education, and plain, old-fashioned networking.
There is burgeoning understanding that educational advising and international academic exchanges are increasingly recognized as important tools for building long-term relationships between citizens of the United States and other countries. Caryn Danz, Branch Chief for Educational Advising in the Department of State’s Bureau of Educational and Cultural… more »
“U.S.A. Weekend” Brings the United States to Bolivia
About the Author: E.J. Monster serves as the Cultural Affairs Officer at the U.S. Embassy in Bolivia.
If you were Bolivian and wanted to learn about U.S. exchange programs, where would you go? To the mall!
The U.S. Embassy partnered with the Bolivian-American Center to hold an exciting “USA Weekend” at a popular shopping mall and cinema in Cochabamba, Bolivia, May 13-15. Nearly 10,000 Bolivians attended the three-day event, experiencing American culture and learning about the educational and cultural exchange programs we offer.
To bring the United States to Cochabamba, we organized nightly concerts featuring performances by Bolivian artists of American hip-hop, jazz, and pop music and dance. Crowds cheered, sang, and danced to impressive tributes to American musical favorites. Enthusiastic teenagers formed long lines for photographs with our Statue of Liberty and Uncle Sam mimes, as well as the life-size cutout of President Barack Obama. … more »
“I am heartened that your good experiences in our country — whether decades ago or only last year — bring you together as a community, as a group motivated to do good in Pakistan. We admire you and your work,” said Ambassador Richard Hoagland, Deputy Chief of the United States Mission to Pakistan.
The Pakistan-U.S. Alumni Network, established in 2010, has chapters in every province in Pakistan, including AJK and Gilgit-Baltistan. Inspired by their experiences in the United States, the alumni help make their communities… more »
Forty years ago this week, a small U.S. delegation visited China to help ease tensions between Washington and Beijing through rather unorthodox means. On April 10, 1971, nine American table tennis players, four officials, two spouses, and 10 journalists crossed a bridge from Hong Kong into mainland China to usher in the age of “Ping Pong Diplomacy.” Eight days of cultural exchange contributed to a thaw in bilateral relations. In February 1972, President Richard Nixon traveled to the People’s Republic of China. At a welcome banquet in Beijing, Premier Zhou Enlai praised the U.S. table tennis team for opening “a new chapter in the relations of the American and Chinese people.”
New chapters in this relationship are being written every day. During the second annual U.S.-China Consultation on People-to-People Exchange (CPE), Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and… more »
About the Author: Alberto Rodriguez serves as Spokesperson at the U.S. Embassy in Islamabad, Pakistan.
Over 35 students and their parents gathered April 17, 2011, at the National Library to kick off their pre-departure orientation for the U.S. government funded 2010-11 Kennedy-Lugar Youth Exchange and Study (YES) Program. This is the ninth group of YES students from Pakistan to go to the United States. This orientation program, which is organized by the iEARN Society for International Education, plays a key role in preparing students with the required skills, attitude, and knowledge to spend a successful year in the United States.
“I am excited to see these outstanding students go to the United States,” said Cultural Attache Brent Beemer. “They will be studying in U.S. schools, living with American families, and becoming part… more »
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton shakes hands with Chinese State Councilor Liu Yandong at the closing session of the U.S.-China Consultation on People-to-People Exchange, at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C., on April 12, 2011. [State Department photo/ Public Domain]
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Chinese State Councilor Liu Yandong pose for a photo with students during the U.S.-China Consultation on People-to-People Exchange, at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C., on April 12, 2011. [State Department photo/ Public Domain]
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton co-chairs the closing session of the U.S.-China Consultation on People-to-People Exchange (CPE) with Chinese State Councilor Liu Yandong, at the U.S. Department of State in Washington, D.C., on April 12, 2011. [Go to http://www.state.gov/video for more video and text transcript.] | <urn:uuid:b5191166-a99b-4cb9-a645-62f7b08b679e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://statedept.tumblr.com/tagged/exchanges | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.939193 | 1,468 | 1.515625 | 2 |
Capital District citizens step up to help out those downstate.
Posted at: 11/04/2012 11:41 AM
| Updated at: 11/04/2012 12:32 PM
By: Cadence Acquaviva
Many people in the Capital Region are doing whatever they can to help the storm victims in the New York City area. One local fire safety consultant loaded his pickup truck with essentials today as he heads down to the Big Apple. Dan Bazile has the story.
His pickup truck overflowing with goodies at a parking lot on Central Avenue in Albany as Pete Lattanzio gets ready to head south.
“There are several of us leaving from the Albany area. We've been deployed. We're going down to Suffolk County. We've been sent to the town of Babylon,” Pete Lattanzio, Fire Safety Consultant.
Lattanzio was deployed as a fire safety consultant to head down to New York City and survey the damage. Homes and businesses in the Big Apple an on Long Island took a big hit from hurricane sandy. Lattanzio says there are about five thousand buildings that need to be inspected for structural damage. A program through the state is allowing code enforcement officials from other areas like Lattanzio, to go into the city and help with the inspections.
“We're going to look to see how badly damaged these buildings are, whether they can be rehabilitated, people can move back in, or if the buildings are so badly damaged they will have to come down,” Lattanzio
But the trip has taken a different turn. Lattanzio figured since he's going anyway, he didn't want to show up to a storm ravaged with an empty pickup truck. A quick post on facebook and family, friends and others showed with all kinds of merchandise, water, flashlights, hand sanitizer, paper towels -- things they say the storm victims desperately need.
“A lot of people have no gas. It's cold outside. They have no food. They have no fresh water. They have no shelter. We have to do something for these people. They're our neighbors,” Todd Leach, TJ’s Café.
“We'll drop it off to one of the shelters when we get down there. And hopefully we can make somebody's life a little bit better for the next couple of day,” Lattanzio
Then he'll get to work over the next few days to figure out if their homes are safe to live in. In Albany, Dan Bazile Newschannel 13. | <urn:uuid:ce15cfc7-51bf-41ff-bca0-9ea773cef4a0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://wnyt.com/article/stories/S2822988.shtml?cat=10114 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966003 | 535 | 1.71875 | 2 |
This series of articles has been a search for something inimitable, matchless and superlative. Coffee contains more than 800 flavor and aroma compounds.* That’s more things to taste and perceive than in wine, which is thought to be a rather complex beverage. To get things consistently right, it takes a person with a mind for chemistry and engineering.
Clay Eiland, owner of Coffee Eiland, won’t tell you he’s a scientist, but since 1998 he’s kept up with technological innovations and helped direct his industry to offering fairer prices to farmers. You can tell that Coffee Eiland is serious about their coffee when their wholesale customers have won three D Magazine“Best of” awards. Clay is no arcane philosopher, keeping his secrets locked away; instead, he is an educator. His shop in Richardson is part roastery, part laboratory and part classroom.
“What we try to build our business on is quality coffee first and foremost, and then making sure that that coffee is extracted [well], making sure that our customers are trained. It’s not just selling the coffee to wholesale customers. And even retail customers come in and we try to teach them to do certain things to make their coffee better at home. A lot of times once they know what to do or once they see it, they can duplicate it. But if they’ve never really seen it it’s hard for them to do it. Sometimes it’s just one simple thing and they come back the next week and they’re like, ‘My coffee tastes sweeter and it doesn’t need sugar!’”
Coffee Eiland isn’t a sit-down coffeehouse, but if you want to taste what they have to offer before you buy, Clay, Connor North or Corey Adams are happy to brew a few to help make a choice. Between the three they’ve built up 32 years of experience, building up an extensive ken of coffee knowledge. Twenty-six-year-old Connor alone has 10 years experience of being a barista and a manager, and now roasts coffee; Corey has been a barista, manager and has started a shop. Taking coffee education to a new level, Clay invites people to try their hand at pulling their own shot on his machine.
Inside the shop there’s a cupping table and a few chairs surrounded by some of the best brewing equipment available. Unlike depressing graduate school labs, there’s vibrancy in the décor and mood of this small space. This space is for learning, making mistakes and educating the curious who come in and ask to buy a few bags of coffee. Digital scales, reverse osmosis filters, precise grinders and glassware that spirals, curves and bows share counter space with a three-headed Cerebrus of an espresso machine.
“Espresso” is Italian for express, and it is just that brevity that creates dozens of factors that must be precisely controlled. Throughout the history of espresso, various technological advances have helped make the drink more consistent and tastier. Coffee Eiland’s Synesso hybrid, considered the “holy grail” of espresso machines and the first in Texas, helps isolate and precisely control variables like pressure through a four-stage pressure-profiling technique.
“PID” systems digitally control the temperature of water in each boiler of the Synesso, allowing baristas to find a temperature “sweet spot” for the espressos they brew. In addition to temperature control through PID, the Synesso’s computer can change pressure in such a way that it follows a sort of bell curve throughout the pulled shot—starting with little pressure to pre-infuse the espresso with water before ramping pressure up, then dropping it down again to finish the shot. A major advantage that the Synesso was first to offer is that each head has a dedicated boiler and pump system, which allows baristas to calibrate temperature and pressure to suit various espressos. For all of this and more the Synesso will be used at a new concept called Ascension Coffee—owned by Russell Hayward and opening within a month in the Design District—and is gaining favorability in Texas as it already enjoys in Portland and Seattle.
Next to the laboratory is the roastery, where a vintage 1969 cast-iron Probat UG-22 (22 kilogram capacity) roaster sits commanding like an ancient locomotive. Cast-iron is the envy of coffee roasters for its even heating and rarity. The UG-22 stopped being manufactured in 1972, making it rare and well sought after as it considered one of the best roasters ever made.
Clay’s philosophy to roasting coffee is to create a perfect synergy between acidity, sweetness, body and overall balance. A few other roasters have begun roasting their coffees lighter and lighter, but Clay tends to roast to a “peak roast.”
“What we do is a peak roast. It’s almost like what they do in Seattle. They take it to where everything is perfectly balanced in the cup—that there’s not too much acidity, it’s tamed, it’s just the right amount of acidity for the sweetness and the body and the overall roundness…We want to do great coffee, so we’re going to roast it where we think it’s going to taste the best…[Roasting that light] is interesting, which is why I think a lot of people might be doing it that way, but my question is ‘Is it a great cup of coffee? Would you have another cup and then another cup?’ And really the answer to that is no.”
Part of being a roaster is sourcing beans and making sure that farmers are being taken care of. Clay says his mission is not to focus on labels or regions, but to find good coffee and pay the fairest price for it, adding that this is a moving target that roasters and shop owners have to keep their eyes trained on.
“One of the things that I think you’re going to see with Ascension Coffee is that it’s going to go way beyond that. The fair trade coffee mark is good, and it’s good for certain reasons, but it’s not what is the future. I think the specialty coffee industry has been getting better at making sure that everything’s taken care of at the farm level. You can take care of the farm level, but outside that farm level things may be falling apart. Schools might be falling apart. So the key is to help out at the farm level but also help out the community at the same time, not just the farmers. I think that’s the key that Russell brought with Ascension. He doesn’t want to just sell coffee, he doesn’t want to just be direct trade, he wants to make a difference. And that’s what our philosophy is too, so it’s a lot of synergy. I think that’s probably the next level of coffee for us and that kind of thing on that level has never been done in Dallas.”
Throughout the past few years the proliferation of specialty coffee shops in Dallas has proved that brewing coffee is as much of a science as it is an art form, demanding attention on details that are commonly overlooked but create noticeable differences in taste. Yet we haven’t even scratched the surface of what coffee can be in Dallas. The exacting standards for brewing coffee are the shared responsibility of the barista and the roaster. The end product of all of this effort and coordination is a drink that will make stay in the back of one’s mind throughout the day.
* From Mhyrvold & Bilet, Modernist Cuisine, Volume 4 | <urn:uuid:fbbd7040-fb93-40a2-b9a8-690906227788> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.entreedallas.com/coffee-eiland/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963747 | 1,652 | 1.585938 | 2 |
the report got picked up by Slashdot.
"In Honduras, according to breaking Catalan newspaper reports (translations available, USA Today mention), authorities have seized 45 computers containing certified election results for a constitutional election that never happened. The election had been scheduled for June 28, but on that day the president, Manuel Zelaya, was ousted. The 'certified' and detailed electronic records of the non-existent election show Zelaya's side having won overwhelmingly."
Related: What happens if Automated voting system is run by the same Arroyo and Garci lieutenants? | <urn:uuid:ad57b7fa-782c-4f8d-8ab4-e0441ee915b3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://politicaljunkie.blogspot.com/2009/07/still-want-to-put-your-faith-on.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.957728 | 118 | 1.515625 | 2 |
International Programs Offered
The fee paying International programs that are offered to overseas students at Brighton Secondary School:
- Intensive Secondary English Course (ISEC)
- High School Study Abroad Programs
- High School Graduate Program
- Short Term Visits
- Exchange Programs
International students who study at Brighton Secondary School are supported by a committed team of staff comprising of an International Student Coordinator, Manager, Bilingual School Support Officer, the School Counsellors and highly experienced caring teachers.
We endeavour to build strong relationships with students, parents and homestay families to ensure the positive engagement and successful achievement of all international students.
Special orientation and pastoral care, enables International Students to get to know each other and to feel welcome within the school community.
Intensive Secondary English Course (ISEC)
The ISEC program is offered in a learning environment that nurtures social cohesion and intercultural perspectives for students before they enter the mainstream. This class usually consists of no more than fifteen students, who have a program specially designed to assist in developing their English proficiency, their knowledge of Australia and Australian lifestyle and introductory courses designed to familiarise students with schooling Australia.
High School Study Abroad Program
These students come as fee paying students, usually for three, six or twelve months and live in government organised and approved homestay accommodation. Study Abroad students can choose from academic or experiential programs suitable for their interests and needs. Many of our Japanese, German, Swedish, Norwegian, Italian, French, Chinese and Brazilian students come to us under this program. For further information please visit International Education Services at www.internationalstudents.sa.edu.au and express a preference for Brighton Secondary School. To view entry requirements into Brighton’s Special Interest Music and Volleyball Programs click on the licks below.
High School Graduate Program
This is our largest group of students. If you come to us in this program you will probably want to complete all your secondary studies and maybe your tertiary education in Adelaide or elsewhere in Australia. Students have come from China, Japan, Vietnam, Korea, Hong Kong SAR, Lao and Germany. For students who have a limited command of English, an ISEC (Intensive Secondary English Course) program where students improve their general English language skills while also learning the specialist language of different academic areas can be offered. On completion of the ISEC course, students move into mainstream classes with local students while continuing to study ESL (English as a Second Language).
On average, over the last 4 years, 90% of graduating Year 12 International Students have gone onto further study in Australia or their home country.
Home stay is coordinated by International Education Services and is support by the school. For further details about application processes and Home stay services go to: www.internationalstudents.sa.edu.au
Short Term Visits
The school also hosts short term visiting student groups, usually for up to 14 days. While here, students stay with Australian families to experience our lifestyle.
This program includes English classes, experiential programs of mainstream lessons and excursions in and around Adelaide.
Schools may negotiate with International Education Services to have a two week program at Brighton Secondary School.
Brighton Secondary School manages its own home stay program for short-term visiting students. Our home stay program is one of a kind and has been recognised for its high quality and success.
Host families are carefully screened and selected by our International Program Manager who ensures that the best quality of care and safety is provided at all times. Home stay accommodation is available with selected families in locations close to the school. Host families transport students to and from the school and other venues and provide packed lunches and drinks during the school week.
Weekend activities are left to the discretion of the host families and these often include family picnics and barbecues, trips to the beach (weather permitting) or trips into the hills or country areas or to entertainment and shopping complexes.
If you would like to know how to become a Host Family please contact the school on 83758238 or Debbie Parsons at firstname.lastname@example.org
Our school has an enviable reputation for continued academic success with international students.
Many courses at our school are very popular and fill quickly. To help us better provide subjects of choice we;
1. Ask that you click on the following link to our School Curriculum Handbook and research courses that you might be interested in studying at Brighton Secondary School.
2.Fill in the subject preference sheet.
(N.B. Please provide 10 preferences as some courses may be unavailable.)
3.Email your course selection to email@example.com
For more detailed information (offered in a variety of languages) about studying in Adelaide please click on the following link: www.studyadelaide.com
South Australian Government Schools can help you enrol to study abroad at our school. For other enquiries about studying abroad please contact the International Education Services office at firstname.lastname@example.org or +61 8 8226 3402
Education Services for Overseas Students (ESOS) Legislative Framework | <urn:uuid:da9ad5d3-3dbf-4fa2-9d93-29a7762aba7e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.brightonss.sa.edu.au/international-program/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.942955 | 1,066 | 1.539063 | 2 |
Many new cars have a Continuously Variable Transmission or CVT, the Honda Accord EX is one of them. In most driving situations, our Accord EX feels remarkably powerful without being excessively noisy; that's essentially the real-world benefit of a CVT. Now, if you really jam your foot on the gas pedal and hold it there, there's definitely some engine noise, but it's not terrible. Around town, the Accord is smooth and quiet. Typically, when there's a car with two engine choices, we suggest opting for the more expensive and more powerful V6. That's because V6 engines are usually smoother and quieter. You might not care about different transmission types, but the benefit of the Accord's CVT is that you can opt for the less expensive, less thirsty, smaller engine in the Accord without having to live with a car that's underpowered and noisy. Basically, this makes the Accord EX a better value than other cars because you can get a car that acts and feels more expensive than it really is. Our Accord is priced at about $30,000 but is equipped and feels more like a typical $35,000 car.
In case you're unfamiliar with the CVT, it's a type of transmission that doesn't use gears so you don't feel the typical shifting of a normal automatic transmission. A CVT is a different, less common type of automatic transmission. The benefit is that CVTs help small engines work more efficiently. The result might be slightly better fuel economy along with slightly better acceleration. Popular cars like the Nissan Altima and Murano have used a CVT for years. The Subaru Impreza has an available CVT, the Toyota Prius has one and so does the Honda Accord EX so long as you get the Accord with the smaller 4-cylinder engine.
But not all CVTs are the same. Just like engines, seats and in-car audio systems, the way they work varies. For example, the CVT in the Nissan Altima works well, so good most people don't notice it. However, in cars like the Toyota Prius, it can result in excess engine noise as the transmission continuously keeps the engine in the best range for power and fuel economy. The problem is, that sweet spot might not sound so pleasant to the driver. Thankfully, the feel of the Accord with a CVT is more like the Nissan's than the Toyota's.
Finally, we really like that you can opt for a more traditional manual transmission in the new 2013 Honda Accord just in case you're the kind of person who really wants to shift gears yourself.
What do you think, have you taken a test drive in a car with a CVT? How did you like it? | <urn:uuid:219f914a-63b8-4522-a9f7-35813eb10ceb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.autotrader.com/research/article/car-reviews/204037/2013-honda-accord-ex-cvt.jsp?rdpage=NEWSREVIEWSCONTENTRCLP_05 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00020-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967714 | 556 | 1.820313 | 2 |
were one of the most popular and innovative bluegrass groups of the post-war era, taking the music into new directions and gaining a large audience. Among their most notable achievements are their pioneering, inventive use of amplification, twin harmony banjos, steel guitars, and drums -- they were the first bluegrass group to expand the genre's sonic palette in such a fashion.
and Sonny Osborne
were born in Hyden, KY, but raised in Dayton, OH. As children, their father instilled a love for traditional music. Bobby
picked up the electric guitar as a teenager, playing in various local bands. A few years after his brother began playing the guitar, Sonny
picked up the banjo. In 1949, Bobby
formed a duo with banjoist Larry Richardson
. The pair was hired by a West Virginian radio station and stayed in the state for a while, eventually hooking up with the Lonesome Pine Fiddlers
. During their stay with the Fiddlers
, they helped change the group's sound to bluegrass and made four singles for Cozy Records. Bobby Osborne
left the band in the summer of 1951, forming a band with Jimmy Martin
that fell apart shortly after its inception. After making a one-shot single, "New Freedom Bell," with his siblings Louise
, he joined the Stanley Brothers
for a short while before being drafted into the Army. Sonny
spent some time with Bill Monroe's Blue Grass Boys
in the early '50s, appearing on several sides on Decca Records. He also cut some covers of popular Monroe
and Flatt & Scruggs
songs for the budget label Gateway. After Bobby
returned from the Army, he and Sonny
formed a band. Initially, they supported Jimmy Martin
on his RCA session while they had their own spot on a Knoxville radio station. In 1956, they joined the Wheeling Jamboree; they would stay with the radio program for four years. In March of that year, Red Allen
joined the brothers -- four months after his arrival, they recorded their first session for MGM Records. For the next year, they toured and recorded, steadily gaining a large audience. In the spring of 1958, "Once More" became a number 13 hit on the country charts. Its success helped push the band into the mainstream.
Shortly after the success of "Once More," Allen
left the band, and the Osbornes
filled his vacancy with a string of musicians and vocalists, including Johnny Dacus and Benny Birchfield
. The duo stayed with the Wheeling Jamboree and MGM Records into the early '60s. The Osbornes
became the first bluegrass act to play a college campus in 1960, when they played Antioch College in Yellow Springs, OH. That appearance ushered in a new era for bluegrass, creating a new, younger audience for the music. The Osbornes
left MGM in 1963, signing with Decca Records. On their mid-'60s records for Decca, the duo began experimenting more with their music, adding piano, steel guitar, and electric instruments to their music. Their adventurousness made them more accessible to a mass audience, as their string of late-'60s and early-'70s hit singles proves. Although their experimentation angered many bluegrass traditionalists, the Osbornes
were the only bluegrass group to consistently have country hits during this time, even if all their singles were only minor hits.
In 1975, the Osbornes
left Decca but continued to play the Grand Ole Opry and bluegrass festivals across America. Later in the '70s, the duo returned to a more traditional sound. Throughout the '80s and '90s they stuck to this sound, playing concerts and festivals frequently and recording albums for CMH, RCA, Sugar Hill, and Pinecastle. Forty years after their formation, the Osborne Brothers
remained an active act in the mid-'90s. | <urn:uuid:8aeabb84-4b49-49f5-8ebe-b765e067f20b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://calgary.virginradio.ca/Music/Artist.aspx?id=672 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97881 | 821 | 1.828125 | 2 |
Golden Gate Park is an enormous city park located in San Francisco, California. There are 1017 acres of beauty along with some fun activities awaiting those who visit. Around 13 million visitors come to the park each year to enjoy all it has to offer, 75,000 of them on an average weekend. There is such a wealth of activities available here that those traveling to this vicinity may want to book accommodations at one of the discount hotels near Golden Gate Park in San Francisco so that they can be as close as possible to all the fun.
There are more than one million trees in Golden Gate Park. Surrounded by all of this greenery, visitors can visit the Conservatory of Flowers, a flower museum reminiscent of a rainforest, the De Young Museum of Art, and the Strybing Outdoor Arboreteum, which features plants from around the world. On the weekends, visitors can rent bicycles and rollerblades and enjoy them in all areas of the park, as cars are not allowed in the park during this time. The Japanese Tea Garden is the oldest of its kind in the United States. The windmills and Tulip Garden, free concerts at the Spreckels Temple of Music, and boat rentals for leisurely rides on Stow Lake are all great attractions. Cheap hotels in San Francisco near the Golden Gate Park can possibly place you within easy walking distance of this glorious park. | <urn:uuid:b6632c34-4ab0-478b-a6b9-116dcceee603> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.easytobook.com/en/united-states-of-america/california/san-francisco/landmarks/golden-gate-park-hotels/?currency=ILS | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961666 | 283 | 1.546875 | 2 |
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On the Words, And in One Holy Catholic Church, and in the Resurrection of the Flesh, and the Life Everlasting.
The hand of the Lord was upon me, and carried me out in the Spirit of the Lord, and set me down in the midst of the valley which was full of bones.
1. The root of all good works is the hope of the Resurrection; for the expectation of the recompense nerves the soul to good works. For every labourer is ready to endure the toils, if he sees their reward in prospect; but when men weary themselves for nought, their heart soon sinks as well as their body. A soldier who expects a prize is ready for war, but no one is forward to die for a king who is indifferent about those who serve under him, and bestows no honours on their toils. In like manner every soul believing in a Resurrection is naturally careful of itself; but, disbelieving it, abandons itself to perdition. He who believes that his body shall remain to rise again, is careful of his robe, and defiles it not with fornication; but he who disbelieves the Resurrection, gives himself to fornication, and misuses his own body, as though it were not his own. Faith therefore in the Resurrection of the dead, is a great commandment and doctrine of the Holy Catholic Church; great and most necessary, though gainsaid by many, yet surely warranted by the truth. Greeks contradict it22412241 Acts xvii. 32; xxvi. 24., Samaritans22422242 Cf. § 12, below. disbelieve it, heretics22432243 Tertull. De Resurr. carnis, cap. 2: “They acknowledge a half-resurrection, to wit of the soul only.” Compare Iren. I. xxiii. 5, on Menander’s assertion that his disciples attain to the resurrection by being baptized into him, and can die no more, but retain immortal youth: ib. xxiv. 5. Basilides taught that “salvation belongs to the soul alone.” On the other forms of heresy concerning the Resurrection, see Suicer, Thesaurus, ᾽Ανάστασις. mutilate it; the contradiction is manifold, but the truth is uniform.
2. Now Greeks and Samaritans together argue against us thus. The dead man has fallen, and mouldered away, and is all turned into worms; and the worms have died also; such is the decay and destruction which has overtaken the body; how then is it to be raised? The shipwrecked have been devoured by fishes, which are themselves devoured. Of them who fight with wild beasts the very bones are ground to powder, and consumed by bears and lions. Vultures and ravens feed on the flesh of the unburied dead, and then fly away over all the world; whence then is the body to be collected? For of the fowls who have devoured it some may chance to die in India, some in Persia, some in the land of the Goths. Other men again are consumed by fire, and their very ashes scattered by rain or wind; whence is the body to be brought together again22442244 The objections noticed in § 2 are discussed by Athenagoras, De Resurr. capp. ii., iv.—viii.; Tatian. Or. ad Græcos, cap. vi., Tertull. De Resurr. Carn. cap. 63.?
3. To thee, poor little feeble man, India is far from the land of the Goths, and Spain from Persia; but to God, who holds the whole earth in the hollow of His hand22452245 Is. xl. 12., all things are near at hand. Impute not then weakness to God, from a comparison of thy feebleness, but rather dwell on His power22462246 On the argument from God’s power compare Athenagoras, De Resurr. c. ix; Justin. M. De Resurr. c. v; Theophil. ad Autolyc. c. xiii.; Iren. V. iii. 2.. Does then the sun, a small work of God, by one glance of his beams give warmth to the whole world; does the atmosphere, which God has made, encompass all things in the world; and is God, who is the Creator both of the sun, and of the atmosphere, far off from the world? Imagine a mixture of seeds of different plants (for as thou art weak concerning the faith, the examples which I allege are weak also), and that these different seeds are contained in thy single hand; is it then to thee, who art a man, a difficult or an easy matter to separate what is in thine hand, and to collect each seed according to its nature, and restore it to its own kind? Canst thou then separate the things in thine hand, and cannot God separate the things contained in His hand, and restore them to their proper place? Consider what I say, whether it is not impious to deny it?
4. But further, attend, I pray, to the very principle of justice, and come to thine own case. Thou hast different sorts of servants: and some are good and some bad; thou honourest therefore the good, and smitest the bad. And if thou art a judge, to the good thou awardest praise, and to the transgressors, punishment. Is then justice observed by thee a mortal man; and with God, the ever changeless King of all, is there no retributive justice22472247 The argument from God’s justice is treated by Athenagor. De Resurr. c. x. and xx.–xxiii.; Justin M. De Resurr. c. viii.? Nay, to deny it is impious. For consider what I say. Many murderers have died in their beds unpunished; where then is the righteousness of God? Yea, ofttimes a murderer guilty of fifty murders is beheaded once; where then shall he suffer punishment for the forty and nine? Unless there is a judgment and a retribution after this world, thou chargest God with unrighteousness. Marvel not, however, because of the delay of the judgment; no combatant is crowned or disgraced, till the contest is over; and no president of the games ever crowns men while yet striving, but he waits till all the combatants are finished, that then deciding between them he may dispense the prizes and the chaplets22482248 τὴν στεφανηφορίαν. Roe. Cas. A. Cf. Pind. Ol. viii. 13; Eurip. Electr. 862.. Even thus God also, so long as the strife in this world lasts, succours the just but partially, but afterwards He renders to them their rewards fully.
5. But if according to thee there is no resurrection of the dead, wherefore condemnest thou the robbers of graves? For if the body perishes, and there is no resurrection to be hoped for, why does the violator of the tomb undergo punishment? Thou seest that though thou deny it with thy lips, there yet abides with thee an indestructible instinct of the resurrection.
6. Further, does a tree after it has been cut down blossom again, and shall man after being cut down blossom no more? And does the corn sown and reaped remain for the threshing floor, and shall man when reaped from this world not remain for the threshing? And do shoots of vine or other trees, when clean cut off and transplanted, come to life and bear fruit; and shall man, for whose sake all these exist, fall into the earth and not rise again? Comparing efforts, which is greater, to mould from the beginning a statue which did not exist, or to recast in the same shape that which had fallen? Is God then, who created us out of nothing, unable to raise again those who exist and are fallen22492249 Athenag. De Resurr. c. iii.: “If, when they did not exist, He made at their first formation the bodies of men, and their original elements, He will, when they are dissolved, in whatever manner that may take place, raise them again with equal ease.” Lactant. Institt. VII. 23 fin.: Apost. Const. V. 7.? But thou believest not what is written of the resurrection, being a Greek: then from the analogy of nature consider these matters, and understand them from what is seen to this day. Wheat, it may be, or some other kind of grain, is sown; and when the seed has fallen, it dies and rots, and is henceforth useless for food. But that which has rotted, springs up in verdure; and though small when sown, springs up most beautiful. Now wheat was made for us; for wheat and all seeds were created not for themselves, but for our use; are then the things which were made for us quickened when they die, and do we for whom they were made, not rise again after our death22502250 An eloquent statement of the argument for the resurrection from the analogies of nature occurs in Tertull. De Resurr. c. xii. That it was not unknown to Cyril, seems probable from the concluding sentence: “And surely if all things rise again for man, for whom they have been provided—but not for man unless for his flesh also—how can the flesh itself perish utterly, for the sake and service of which nothing is allowed to perish.” Tertullian himself was probably indebted, as Bp. Lightfoot suggests, to Clemens. Rom. Epist. ad Corinth. xxiv. Cf. Lactant. Div. Inst. vii. 4.?
7. The season is winter22512251 Cf. Cat. iv. 30. These passages shew that the Lectures were delivered in a year when Easter fell early, as was the case in 348 a.d., as thou seest; the trees now stand as if they were dead: for where are the leaves of the fig-tree? where are the clusters of the vine? These in winter time are dead, but green in spring; and when the season is come, there is restored to them a quickening as it were from a state of death. For God, knowing thine unbelief, works a resurrection year by year in these visible things; that, beholding what happens to things inanimate, thou mayest believe concerning things animate and rational. Further, flies and bees are often drowned in water, yet after a while revive22522252 In such cases there is, of course, no actual death.; and species of dormice22532253 The μυοξός is supposed by the Benedictine Editor to be the toad (“Inventusque cavis bufo,” Virg. Georg. i. 185), by others the marmot (mus Alpinus). More probably it is the dormouse (myoxis glis), which stores up provisions for the winter, though it sleeps through much of that season., after remaining motionless during the winter, are restored in the summer (for to thy slight thoughts like examples are offered); and shall He who to irrational and despised creatures grants life supernaturally, not bestow it upon us, for whose sake He made them?
8. But the Greeks ask for a resurrection of
the dead still manifest; and say that, even if these creatures are
raised, yet they had not utterly mouldered away; and they require to
see distinctly some creature rise again after complete decay. God
knew men’s unbelief, and provided for this purpose a bird, called
a Phoenix22542254 The story of the Phœnix as told by
Herodotus, II. 73, is as follows: “They have also another
sacred bird called the Phœnix, which I myself have never seen,
except in pictures. Indeed it is a great rarity even in Egypt,
only coming there (according to the accounts of the people of
Heliopolis) once in five hundred years, when the old phœnix
dies.…They tell a story of what this bird does, which does not
seem to me to be credible; that he comes all the way from Arabia, and
brings the parent bird, all plastered over with myrrh, to the temple of
the Sun, and there buries the body.”
The many variations and fabulous accretions of the story are detailed by Suicer, Thesaurus, Φοῖνιξ, and by Bp. Lightfoot in a long and interesting note on Clemens Rom. Epist. ad Cor. xxv. Cyril borrows the story from Clement almost verbally, yet not without some variations, which will be noticed below. The legend with all its miraculous features is told by Ovid, Metamorph. xv. 392, by Claudian, Phœnix, and by the Pseudo-Lactantius in an Elegiac poem, Phœnix, included in Weber’s Corpus Poetarum Latinorum, and literally translated in Clark’s Ante-Nicene Library. See also Tertull. De Resurr. Carn. c. xiii.. This bird, as Clement writes, and as many more relate, being the only one of its kind22552255 μονογενὲς ὕπαρχον, Clem. Rom. ubi supra. Cf. Origen, contra Celsum, iv. 98: Apost. Const. V. 7: “a bird single in its kind, which they say is without a mate, and the only one in the creation.” Pseudo-Lactant. v. 30.
“Hoc nemus hos lucos avis incolit unica, phœnix,
Unica, sed vivit morte refecta suâ”, arrives in the land of the Egyptians at periods of five hundred years, shewing forth the resurrection, not in desert places, lest the occurrence of the mystery should remain unknown, but appearing in a notable city22562256 “By day, in the sight of all” (Clem. R.) The city was Heliopolis, according to Herodotus and the other ancient authors. But Milton, Paradise Lost, V. 272—
‘A phœnix gaz’d by all, as that sole bird,
When to enshrine his reliques in the Sun’s
Bright temple to Ægyptian Thebes he flies.’
Why does Milton despatch his bird to Thebes rather than Heliopolis?” (Lightfoot)., that men might even handle what would otherwise be disbelieved. For it makes itself a coffin22572257 Ovid, Met. xv. 405: “Fertque pius cunasque suas patriumque sepulcrum.” See the Commentaries on Job xxix. 18: I shall die in my nest, and I shall multiply my days as the sand. Margin R.V. Or, the phœnix. of frankincense and myrrh and other spices, and entering into this when its years are fulfilled, it evidently dies and moulders away. Then from the decayed flesh of the dead bird a worm is engendered, and this worm when grown large is transformed into a bird;—and do not disbelieve this, for thou seest the offspring of bees also fashioned thus out of worms22582258 The mode of reproduction in bees was regarded by Aristotle as mysterious, having in it something supernatural (θεῖον): De Generatione Animal. III. 10. 1, 27. In the story of the phœnix Herodotus makes no mention of the “worm.”, and from eggs which are quite fluid thou hast seen wings and bones and sinews of birds issue. Afterwards the aforesaid Phoenix, becoming fledged and a full-grown Phoenix, like the former one, soars up into the air such as it had died, shewing forth to men a most evident resurrection of the dead. The Phoenix indeed is a wondrous bird, yet it is irrational, nor ever sang praise to God; it flies abroad through the sky, but it knows not who is the Only-begotten Son of God. Has then a resurrection from the dead been given to this irrational creature which knows not its Maker, and to us who ascribe glory to God and keep His commandments, shall there no resurrection be granted?
9. But since the sign of the Phoenix is remote and uncommon, and men still disbelieve our resurrection, take again the proof of this from what thou seest every day. A hundred or two hundred years ago, we all, speakers and hearers, where were we? Know we not the groundwork of the substance of our bodies? Knowest thou not how from weak and shapeless and simple22592259 μονοειδής. elements we are engendered, and out of what is simple and weak a living man is formed? and how that weak element being made flesh is changed into strong sinews, and bright eyes, and sensitive nose, and hearing ears, and speaking tongue, and beating heart, and busy hands, and swift feet, and into members of all kinds22602260 For a similar argument, see Lactant. De Resurr. c xvii.? and how that once weak element becomes a shipwright, and a builder, and an architect, and a craftsman of various arts, and a soldier, and a ruler, and a lawgiver, and a king? Cannot God then, who has made us out of imperfect materials, raise us up when we have fallen into decay? He who thus flames a body out of what is vile, cannot He raise the fallen body again? And He who fashions that which is not, shall He not raise up that which is and is fallen?
10. Take further a manifest proof of the resurrection of the dead, witnessed month by month in the sky and its luminaries22612261 Clem. Rom. Epist. ad Cor. xxiv: “Day and night shew unto us the resurrection. The night falleth asleep, and day ariseth; the day departeth, and night cometh on.”. The body of the moon vanishes completely, so that no part of it is any more seen, yet it fills again, and is restored to its former state22622262 Tertull. de Resurr. Carnis, xii.: “Readorned also are the mirrors of the moon, which her monthly course had worn away.”…“The whole of this revolving order of things bears witness to the resurrection of the dead.”; and for the perfect demonstration of the matter, the moon at certain revolutions of years suffering eclipse and becoming manifestly changed into blood, yet recovers its luminous body: God having provided this, that thou also, the man who art formed of blood, mightest not refuse credence to the resurrection of the dead, but mightest believe concerning thyself also what thou seest in respect of the moon. These therefore use thou as arguments against the Greeks; for with them who receive not what is written fight thou with unwritten weapons, by reasonings only and demonstrations; for these men know not who Moses is, nor Esaias, nor the Gospels, nor Paul.
11. Turn now to the Samaritans, who, receiving the Law only, allow not the Prophets. To them the text just now read from Ezekiel appears of no force, for, as I said, they admit no Prophets; whence then shall we persuade the Samaritans also? Let us go to the writings of the Law. Now God says to Moses, I am the God of Abraham, and of Isaac, and of Jacob22632263 Ex. iii. 6. Cf. Matt. xxii. 32: “He is not the God of the dead, but of the living.”; this must mean of those who have being and subsistence. For if Abraham has come to an end, and Isaac and Jacob, then He is the God of those who have no being. When did a king ever say, I am the king of soldiers, whom he had not? When did any display wealth which he possessed not? Therefore Abraham and Isaac and Jacob must subsist, that God may be the God of those who have being; for He said not, “I was their God,” but I am. And that there is a judgment, Abraham shews in saying to the Lord, He who judgeth all the earth, shall He not execute judgment22642264 Gen. xviii. 25.?
12. But to this the foolish Samaritans object again, and say that the souls possibly of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob continue, but that their bodies cannot possibly rise again. Was it then possible that the rod of righteous Moses should become a serpent, and is it impossible that the bodies of the righteous should live and rise again? And was that done contrary to nature, and shall they not be restored according to nature? Again, the rod of Aaron, though cut off and dead, budded, without the scent of waters22652265 Job xiv. 9., and though under a roof, sprouted forth into blossoms as in the fields; and though set in dry places, yielded in one night the flowers and fruit of plants watered for many years. Did Aaron’s rod rise, as it were, from the dead, and shall not Aaron himself be raised? And did God work wonders in wood, to secure to him the high-priesthood, and will He not vouchsafe a resurrection to Aaron himself? A woman also was made salt contrary to nature; and flesh was turned into salt; and shall not flesh be restored to flesh? Was Lot’s wife made a pillar of salt, and shall not Abraham’s wife be raised again? By what power was Moses’ hand changed, which even within one hour became as snow, and was restored again? Certainly by God’s command. Was then His command of force then, and has it no force now?
13. And whence in the beginning came man into being at all, O ye Samaritans, most senseless of all men? Go to the first book of the Scripture, which even you receive; And God formed man of the dust of the ground22662266 Gen. ii. 7.. Is dust transformed into flesh, and shall not flesh be again restored to flesh? You must be asked too, whence the heavens had their being, and earth, and seas? Whence sun, and moon, and stars? How from the waters were made the things which fly and swim? And how from earth all its living things? Were so many myriads brought from nothing into being, and shall we men, who bear God’s image, not be raised up? Truly this course is full of unbelief, and the unbelievers are much to be condemned; when Abraham addresses the Lord as the Judge of all the earth, and the learners of the Law disbelieve; when it is written that man is of the earth, and the readers disbelieve it22672267 The anomalous construction ὅταν γέγραπται .…καὶ ἀπιστῶσιν may be explained by the consideration, that the uncertainty expressed in ὅταν attaches only to the latter Verb. See Winer’s Grammar of N.T. Greek, P. III. sect. xlii. 5..
14. These questions, therefore, are for them, the unbelievers: but the words of the Prophets are for us who believe. But since some who have also used the Prophets believe not what is written, and allege against us that passage, The ungodly shall not rise up in judgment22682268 Ps. i. 5: The wicked shall not stand in the judgment (R.V.)., and, For if man go down to the grave he shall come up no more22692269 Job vii. 9., and, The dead shall not praise Thee, O Lord22702270 Ps. cxv. 17.,—for of what is well written, they have made ill use—it will be well in a cursory manner, and as far as is now possible, to meet them. For if it is said, that the ungodly shall not rise up in judgment, this shews that they shall rise, not in judgment, but in condemnation; for God needs not long scrutiny, but close on the resurrection of the ungodly follows also their punishment. And if it is said, The dead shall not praise Thee, O Lord, this shews, that since in this life only is the appointed time for repentance and pardon, for which they who enjoy it shall praise the Lord, it remains not after death for them who have died in sins to give praise as the receivers of a blessing, but to bewail themselves; for praise belongs to them who give thanks, but to them who are under the scourge, lamentation. Therefore the just then offer praise; but they who have died in sins have no further season for confession22712271 As to the bearing of this passage on the doctrine of Purgatory and prayer for the dead see note on xxiii. 10..
15. And respecting that passage, If a man go down to the grave, he shall come up no more, observe what follows, for it is written, He shall come up no more, neither shall he return to his own house. For since the whole world shall pass away, and every house shall be destroyed, how shall he return to his own house, there being henceforth a new and different earth? But they ought to have heard Job, saying, For there is hope of a tree; for if it be cut down, it will sprout again, and the tender branch thereof will not cease. For though the root thereof wax old in the earth, and the stock thereof die in the rocky ground; yet from the scent of water it will bud, and bring forth a crop like a new plant. But man when he dies, is gone; and when mortal man falls, is he no more22722272 Job xiv. 7–10.? As it were remonstrating and reproving (for thus ought we to read the words is no more with an interrogation22732273 There is no indication of a question in the Septuagint version of the passage, which means in the Hebrew, and where is he? (A.V. and R.V.): Vulg. ubi, quæso, est?); he says since a tree falls and revives, shall not man, for whom all trees were made, himself revive? And that thou mayest not suppose that I am forcing the words, read what follows; for after saying by way of question, When mortal man falls, is he no more? he says, For if a man die, he shall live again22742274 Job xiv. 14: For if a man die, shall he live again? (A.V. and R.V.). By omitting the interrogation here, and inserting it above in v. 10, Cyril exactly inverts the meaning.; and immediately he adds, I will wait till I be made again22752275 Ib. v. 14: (A.V.) All the days of my appointed time (R.V. of my warfare) will I wait, till my change (R.V. release) come.; and again elsewhere, Who shall raise up on the earth my skin, which endures these things22762276 Job xix. 26: (R.V.) and that he shall stand up at the last upon the earth: and after my skin hath been thus destroyed, &c. Cyril, as usual, follows the Septuagint.. And Esaias the Prophet says, The dead men shall rise again, and they that are in the tombs shall awake22772277 Is. xxvi. 19.. And the Prophet Ezekiel now before us, says most plainly, Behold I will open your graves, and bring you up out of your graves22782278 Ezek. xxxvii. 12.. And Daniel says, Many of them that sleep in the dust of the earth shall arise, some to everlasting life, and some to everlasting shame22792279 Dan. xii. 2..
16. And many Scriptures there are which testify of the Resurrection of the dead; for there are many other sayings on this matter. But now, by way of remembrance only, we will make a passing mention of the raising of Lazarus on the fourth day; and just allude, because of the shortness of the time, to the widow’s son also who was raised, and merely for the sake of reminding you, let me mention the ruler of the synagogue’s daughter, and the rending of the rocks, and how there arose many bodies of the saints which slept22802280 Matt. xxvii. 52., their graves having been opened. But specially be it remembered that Christ has been raised from the dead22812281 1 Cor. xv. 20.. I speak but in passing of Elias, and the widow’s son whom he raised; of Elisseus also, who raised the dead twice; once in his lifetime, and once after his death. For when alive he wrought the resurrection by means of his own soul22822282 2 Kings iv. 34.; but that not the souls only of the just might be honoured, but that it might be believed that in the bodies also of the just there lies a power, the corpse which was cast into the sepulchre of Elisseus, when it touched the dead body of the prophet, was quickened, and the dead body of the prophet did the work of the soul, and that which was dead and buried gave life to the dead, and though it gave life, yet continued itself among the dead. Wherefore? Lest if Elisseus should rise again, the work should be ascribed to his soul alone; and to shew, that even though the soul is not present, a virtue resides in the body of the saints, because of the righteous soul which has for so many years dwelt in it, and used it as its minister22832283 “The worship of relics, and the belief in them as remedies and a protection against evil, originated in the 4th century. They first (?) appear in writings, none of which are earlier than the year 370: but they prevailed rapidly when they had once taken root” (Scudamore, Dict. Chr. Antiq. “Relics,” p. 1770). Bingham (Ant. xxiii. 4, § 7) quotes a law of Theodosius, “that no one should remove any dead body that was buried, from one place to another; that no one should sell or buy the relics of Martyrs: but if any one was minded to build over the grave where a martyr was buried, a church to be called a martyrium, in respect to him, he should have liberty to do it.” The law wholly failed to suppress a superstition which was sanctioned by such men as Cyril, Basil, Chrysostom, Ambrose, and Augustine.. And let us not foolishly disbelieve, as though this thing had not happened: for if handkerchiefs and aprons, which are from without, touching the bodies of the diseased, raised up the sick, how much more should the very body of the Prophet raise the dead?
17. And with respect to these instances we might say much, rehearsing in detail the marvellous circumstances of each event: but as you have been already wearied both by the superposed fast of the Preparation22842284 ἐκ τῆς ὑπερθέσεως τῆς νηστείας τῆς παρασκευῆς, Ed. Bened. “The ecclesiastical term τῆς ὑπερθέσεως we have rendered, according to the interpretation received among the Latins, by the word ‘superpositio.’ The ancients meant by it a fast continued for two or three days without food. Moreover, since the great week was observed with severer fastings, there were many who passed either the whole week or four, three, or two days, namely the Preparation and the Holy Sabbath (Easter Eve), entirely fasting as is testified by S. Irenæus (Euseb. Hist. V. 24) and others. The continuance of the fast throughout the Friday and Saturday was highly approved, as may be seen from the Apostolical Constitutions, V. 18.” The passage referred to is as follows: “Do you therefore fast on the days of the Passover, beginning from the second day of the week until the Preparation and the Sabbath, six days, making use only of bread, and salt, and herbs, and water for your drink: but abstain on these days from wine and flesh, for they are days of lamentation and not of fasting. Do ye who are able fast throughout the Preparation and the Sabbath entirely, tasting nothing till the cockcrowing at night; but if any one is not able to combine them both, let the Sabbath at least be observed.”, and by the watchings22852285 The fast of the Great Sabbath was to be continued through the night, as prescribed in the Apost. Const. V. 19: “Continue until cock-crowing and break off your fast at dawn of the first day of the week, which is the Lord’s day, keeping awake from evening until cock-crowing: and assembling together in the Church, watch and pray and beseech God, in your night-long vigil, reading the Law, the Prophets, and the Psalms, until the crowing of the cocks: and after baptizing your Catechumens, and reading the Gospel in fear and trembling, and speaking to the people the things pertaining to salvation, so cease from your mourning.” A chief reason for the watching was that Christ was expected to return at the same hour in which He rose. On the meaning of “superposition” see Routh’s note on the Synodical Epistle of Irenæus to Victor of Rome (Rell. Sac. ii. p. 45, ss.), and the passage of Dionysius of Alexandria there quoted., let what has been cursorily spoken concerning them suffice for a while; these words having been as it were sown thinly, that you, receiving the seed like richest ground, may in bearing fruit increase them. But be it remembered, that the Apostles also raised the dead; Peter raised Tabitha in Joppa, and Paul raised Eutychus in Troas; and thus did all the other Apostles, even though the wonders wrought by each have not all been written. Further, remember all the sayings in the first Epistle to the Corinthians, which Paul wrote against them who said, How are the dead raised, and with what manner of body do they come22862286 1 Cor. xv. 35.? And how he says, For if the dead rise not, then is not Christ raised22872287 Ib. v. 16.; and how he called them fools22882288 Ib. v. 36., who believed not; and remember the whole of his teaching there concerning the resurrection of the dead, and how he wrote to the Thessalonians, But we would not have you to be ignorant, brethren, concerning them which are asleep, that ye sorrow not, even as the rest which have no hope22892289 1 Thess. iv. 13., and all that follows: but chiefly that, And the dead in Christ shall rise first22902290 Ib. v. 16..
18. But especially mark this, how very pointedly22912291 μονονουχὶ δακτυλοδεικτῶν. Paul says, For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality22922292 1 Cor. xv. 53.. For this body shall be raised not remaining weak as now; but raised the very same body, though by putting on incorruption it shall be fashioned anew22932293 μεταποιεῖται. The meaning of this word as applied to the Eucharistic elements is fully discussed, and illustrated from its use by Cyril and other Fathers, by Dr. Pusey (Real Presence, p. 189).,—as iron blending with fire becomes fire, or rather as He knows how, the Lord who raises us. This body therefore shall be raised, but it shall abide not such as it now is, but an eternal body; no longer needing for its life such nourishment as now, nor stairs for its ascent, for it shall be made spiritual, a marvellous thing, such as we cannot worthily speak of. Then, it is said, shall the righteous shine forth as the sun22942294 Matt. xiii. 43., and the moon, and as the brightness of the firmament22952295 Dan. xii. 3.. And God, fore-knowing men’s unbelief, has given to little worms in the summer to dart beams of light from their body22962296 Cyril refers to the glow-worm (πυγολαμπίς, Aristot. Hist. Animal. V. 19, 14), or some other species of Lampyris (Arist. de Partilus Animal. I. 3. 3)., that from what is seen, that which is looked for might be believed; for He who gives in part is able to give the whole also, and He who made the worm radiant with light, will much more illuminate a righteous man.
19. We shall be raised therefore, all with our bodies eternal, but not all with bodies alike: for if a man is righteous, he will receive a heavenly body, that he may be able worthily to hold converse with Angels; but if a man is a sinner, he shall receive an eternal body, fitted to endure the penalties of sins, that he may burn eternally in fire, nor ever be consumed22972297 Cf. Cat. iv. 31.. And righteously will God assign this portion to either company; for we do nothing without the body. We blaspheme with the mouth, and with the mouth we pray. With the body we commit fornication, and with the body we keep chastity. With the hand we rob, and by the hand we bestow alms; and the rest in like manner. Since then the body has been our minister in all things, it shall also share with us in the future the fruits of the past22982298 τῶν γενομένων. With the reading γινομένων (Codd. Monn. Vind.), the meaning will be—“share with us in the future what shall happen to us then.” On the argument of this section compare the passages quoted on § 4, note 7..
20. Therefore, brethren, let us be careful of our bodies, nor misuse them as though not our own. Let us not say like the heretics, that this vesture of the body belongs not to us, but let us be careful of it as our own; for we must give account to the Lord of all things done through the body. Say not, none seeth me; think not, that there is no witness of the deed. Human witness oftentimes there is not; but He who fashioned us, an unerring witness, abides faithful in heaven22992299 Ps. lxxxix. 37., and beholds what thou doest. And the stains of sin also remain in the body; for as when a wound has gone deep into the body, even if there has been a healing, the scar remains, so sin wounds soul and body, and the marks of its scars remain in all; and they are removed only from those who receive the washing of Baptism. The past wounds therefore of soul and body God heals by Baptism; against future ones let us one and all jointly guard ourselves, that we may keep this vestment of the body pure, and may not for practising fornication and sensual indulgence or any other sin for a short season, lose the salvation of heaven, but may inherit the eternal kingdom of God; of which may God, of His own grace, deem all of you worthy.
21. Thus much in proof of the Resurrection of the dead; and now, let me again recite to you the profession of the faith, and do you with all diligence pronounce it while I speak23002300 Cat. V. 12, notes 7 and 4. Cf. Plat. Theaet. 204 C: ἐφ᾽ ἑκάστης λέξεως, “each time we speak.”, and remember it.
22. The Faith which we rehearse contains in order the following, “And in one Baptism of repentance for the remission of sins; and in one Holy Catholic Church; and in the resurrection of the flesh; and in eternal life.” Now of Baptism and repentance I have spoken in the earliest Lectures; and my present remarks concerning the resurrection of the dead have been made with reference to the Article “In the resurrection of the flesh.” Now then let me finish what still remains to be said for the Article, “In one Holy Catholic Church,” on which, though one might say many things, we will speak but briefly.
23. It is called Catholic then because it extends over all the world, from one end of the earth to the other; and because it teaches universally and completely one and all the doctrines which ought to come to men’s knowledge, concerning things both visible and invisible, heavenly and earthly23012301 Bishop Lightfoot (Ignatius, ad Smyrnæos, viii.) traces the original and later senses of the word “Catholic” very fully. “In its earliest usages, therefore, as a fluctuating epithet of ἐκκλησία, ‘catholic’ means ‘universal,’ as opposed to ‘individual,’ ‘particular.’ In its later sense, as a fixed attribute, it implies orthodoxy as opposed to heresy, conformity as opposed to dissent.” Commenting on this passage of Cyril, the Bishop adds that “these two latter reasons, that it (the Church) is comprehensive in doctrine, and that it is universal in application, can only be regarded as secondary glosses.”; and because it brings into subjection to godliness the whole race of mankind, governors and governed, learned and unlearned; and because it universally treats and heals the whole class of sins, which are committed by soul or body, and possesses in itself every form of virtue which is named, both in deeds and words, and in every kind of spiritual gifts.
24. And it is rightly named (Ecclesia) because it calls forth23022302 ἐκκαλεῖσθαι. Cf. Heb. xii. 23. and assembles together all men; according as the Lord says in Leviticus, And make an assembly for all the congregation at the door of the tabernacle of witness23032303 Lev. viii. 3: ἐκκλησίασον.. And it is to be noted, that the word assemble, is used for the first time in the Scriptures here, at the time when the Lord puts Aaron into the High-priesthood. And in Deuteronomy also the Lord says to Moses, Assemble the people unto Me, and let them hear My words, that they may learn to fear Me23042304 Deut. iv. 10.. And he again mentions the name of the Church, when he says concerning the Tables, And on them were written all the words which the Lord spake with you in the mount out of the midst of the fire in the day of the Assembly23052305 Ib. ix. 10: ἐκκλησίας.; as if he had said more plainly, in the day in which ye were called and gathered together by God. The Psalmist also says, I will give thanks unto Thee, O Lord, in the great Congregation; I will praise Thee among much people23062306 Ps. xxxv. 18; Heb. ii. 12..
25. Of old the Psalmist sang, Bless ye God in the congregations, even the Lord, (ye that are) from the fountains of Israel23072307 Ps. lxviii. 26: ἐν ἐκκλησίαις.. But after the Jews for the plots which they made against the Saviour were cast away from His grace, the Saviour built out of the Gentiles a second Holy Church, the Church of us Christians, concerning which he said to Peter, And upon this rock I will build My Church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it23082308 Matt. xvi. 18.. And David prophesying of both these, said plainly of the first which was rejected, I have hated the Congregation of evil doers23092309 Ps. xxvi. 5.; but of the second which is built up he says in the same Psalm, Lord, I have loved the beauty of Thine house23102310 Ps. xxvi. 8: Sept. εὐπρέπειαν . R.V. and A.V. “habitation.”; and immediately afterwards, In the Congregations will I bless thee, O Lord23112311 Ib. v. 12.. For now that the one Church in Judæa is cast off, the Churches of Christ are increased over all the world; and of them it is said in the Psalms, Sing unto the Lord a new song, His praise in the Congregation of Saints23122312 Ps. cxlix. 1.. Agreeably to which the prophet also said to the Jews, I have no pleasure in you, saith the Lord Almighty23132313 Mal. i. 10.; and immediately afterwards, For from the rising of the sun even unto the going down of the same, My name is glorified among the Gentiles23142314 Ib. v. 11.. Concerning this Holy Catholic Church Paul writes to Timothy, That thou mayest know how thou oughtest to behave thyself in the House of God, which is the Church of the Living God, the pillar and ground of the truth23152315 1 Tim. iii. 15..
26. But since the word Ecclesia is applied to different things (as also it is written of the multitude in the theatre of the Ephesians, And when he had thus spoken, he dismissed the Assembly23162316 Acts xix. 14.), and since one might properly and truly say that there is a Church of evil doers, I mean the meetings of the heretics, the Marcionists and Manichees, and the rest, for this cause the Faith has securely delivered to thee now the Article, “And in one Holy Catholic Church;” that thou mayest avoid their wretched meetings, and ever abide with the Holy Church Catholic in which thou wast regenerated. And if ever thou art sojourning in cities, inquire not simply where the Lord’s House is (for the other sects of the profane also attempt to call their own dens houses of the Lord), nor merely where the Church is, but where is the Catholic Church. For this is the peculiar name of this Holy Church, the mother of us all, which is the spouse of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Only-begotten Son of God (for it is written, As Christ also loved the Church and gave Himself for it23172317 Eph. v. 25., and all the rest,) and is a figure and copy of Jerusalem which is above, which is free, and the mother of us all23182318 Gal. iv. 26.; which before was barren, but now has many children.
27. For when the first Church was cast off, in the second, which is the Catholic Church, God hath set, as Paul says, first Apostles, secondly Prophets, thirdly teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, governments, divers kinds of tongues23192319 1 Cor. xii. 28., and every sort of virtue, I mean wisdom and understanding, temperance and justice, mercy and loving-kindness, and patience unconquerable in persecutions. She, by the armour of righteousness on the right hand and on the left, by honour and dishonour23202320 2 Cor. vi. 7, 8., in former days amid persecutions and tribulations crowned the holy martyrs with the varied and blooming chaplets of patience, and now in times of peace by God’s grace receives her due honours from kings and those who are in high place23212321 1 Tim. ii. 2., and from every sort and kindred of men. And while the kings of particular nations have bounds set to their authority, the Holy Church Catholic alone extends her power without limit over the whole world; for God, as it is written, hath made her border peace23222322 Ps. cxlvii. 14.. But I should need many more hours for my discourse, if I wished to speak of all things which concern her.
28. In this Holy Catholic Church receiving instruction and behaving ourselves virtuously, we shall attain the kingdom of heaven, and inherit eternal life; for which also we endure all toils, that we may be made partakers thereof from the Lord. For ours is no trifling aim, but our endeavour is for eternal life. Wherefore in the profession of the Faith, after the words, “And in the resurrection of the flesh,” that is, of the dead (of which we have discoursed), we are taught to believe also “in the life eternal,” for which as Christians we are striving.
29. The real and true life then is the Father, who through the Son in the Holy Spirit pours forth as from a fountain His heavenly gifts to all; and through His love to man, the blessings of the life eternal are promised without fail to us men also. We must not disbelieve the possibility of this, but having an eye not to our own weakness but to His power, we must believe; for with God all things are possible. And that this is possible, and that we may look for eternal life, Daniel declares, And of the many righteous shall they shine as the stars for ever and ever23232323 Dan. xii. 3, Sept.. And Paul says, And so shall we be ever with the Lord23242324 1 Thess. iv. 17.: for the being for ever with the Lord implies the life eternal. But most plainly of all the Saviour Himself says in the Gospel, And these shall go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into life eternal23252325 Matt. xxv. 46..
30. And many are the proofs concerning the life eternal. And when we desire to gain this eternal life, the sacred Scriptures suggest to us the ways of gaining it; of which, because of the length of our discourse, the texts we now set before you shall be but few, the rest being left to the search of the diligent. They declare at one time that it is by faith; for it is written, He that believeth on the Son hath eternal life23262326 John iii. 36., and what follows; and again He says Himself, Verily, verily, I say unto you, He that heareth My word, and believeth Him that sent Me, hath eternal life23272327 Ib. v. 24., and the rest. At another time, it is by the preaching of the Gospel; for He says, that He that reapeth receiveth wages, and gathereth fruit unto life eternal23282328 Ib. iv. 36.. At another time, by martyrdom and confession in Christ’s name; for He says, And he that hateth his life in this world, shall keep it unto life eternal23292329 Ib. xii. 25.. And again, by preferring Christ to riches or kindred; And every one that hath forsaken brethren, or sisters23302330 Matt. xix. 29., and the rest, shall inherit eternal life. Moreover it is by keeping the commandments, Thou shalt not commit adultery, Thou shalt not kill23312331 Ib. vv. 16–18., and the rest which follow; as He answered to him that came to Him, and said, Good Master, what shall I do that I may have eternal life23322332 Mark. x. 17.? But further, it is by departing from evil works, and henceforth serving God; for Paul says, But now being made free from sin, and become servants to God, ye have your fruit unto sanctification, and the end eternal life23332333 Rom. vi. 22..
31. And the ways of finding eternal life are many, though I have passed over them by reason of their number. For the Lord in His loving-kindness has opened, not one or two only, but many doors, by which to enter into the life eternal, that, as far as lay in Him, all might enjoy it without hindrance. Thus much have we for the present spoken within compass concerning the life eternal, which is the last doctrine of those professed in the Faith, and its termination; which life may we all, both teachers and hearers, by God’s grace enjoy!
32. And now, brethren beloved, the word of instruction exhorts you all, to prepare your souls for the reception of the heavenly gifts. As regards the Holy and Apostolic Faith delivered to you to profess, we have spoken through the grace of the Lord as many Lectures, as was possible, in these past days of Lent; not that this is all we ought to have said, for many are the points omitted; and these perchance are thought out better by more excellent teachers. But now the holy day of the Passover is at hand, and ye, beloved23342334 τῆς ὑμετέρας ἐν Χριστῷ ἀγάπης. Cf. Cat. xvii. 1, note 1. Athan. Epist. ad Epict. § 2: παρὰ τῇ σῇ θεοσεβείά. ad Serap. iv. 1: παρὰ τῆς σῆς εὐλαβείας. in Christ, are to be enlightened by the Laver of regeneration. Ye shall therefore again be taught what is requisite, if God so will; with how great devotion and order you must enter in when summoned, for what purpose each of the holy mysteries of Baptism is performed, and with what reverence and order you must go from Baptism to the Holy Altar of God, and enjoy its spiritual and heavenly mysteries; that your souls being previously enlightened by the word of doctrine, ye may discover in each particular the greatness of the gifts bestowed on you by God.
33. And after Easter’s Holy Day of salvation, ye shall come on each successive day, beginning from the second day of the week, after the assembly into the Holy Place of the Resurrection23352335 The place meant is not the Church of the Resurrection in which the Service had been held, but the Anastasis or actual cave of the Resurrection, which Constantine had so enlarged by additional works that a discourse to the people could be held there: for Jerome (Epist. 61) relates that Epiphanius had preached in that place in front of the Lord’s sepulchre to clergy and people in the hearing of John the Bishop (Ben. Ed.)., and there, if God permit, ye shall hear other Lectures; in which ye shall again be taught the reasons of every thing which has been done, and shall receive the proofs thereof from the Old and New Testaments,—first, of the things done just before Baptism,—next, how ye were cleansed from your sins by the Lord, by the washing of water with the word23362336 Eph. v. 26.,—and how like Priests ye have become partakers of the Name of Christ,—and how the Seal of the fellowship of the Holy Ghost was given to you,—and concerning the mysteries at the Altar of the New Testament, which have taken their beginning from this place, both what the Divine Scriptures have delivered to us, and what is the power of these mysteries, and how ye must approach them, and when and how receive them;—and at the end of all, how for the time to come ye must behave yourselves worthily of this grace both in words and deeds, that you may all be enabled to enjoy the life everlasting. And these things shall be spoken, if it be God’s pleasure.
34. Finally, my brethren, rejoice in the Lord alway; again I will say, Rejoice: for your redemption hath drawn nigh23372337 Phil. iii. 1; and iv. 4; Luke xxi. 28., and the heavenly host of the Angels is waiting for your salvation. And there is now the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Prepare ye the way of the Lord23382338 Is. xl. 3.; and the Prophet cries, Ho, ye that thirst, come ye to the water23392339 Ib. lv. 1.; and immediately afterwards, Hearken unto me, and ye shall eat that which is good, and your soul shall delight itself in good things23402340 Ib. v. 2.. And within a little while ye shall hear that excellent lesson which says, Shine, shine, O thou new Jerusalem; for thy light is come23412341 Is. lx. 1.. Of this Jerusalem the prophet hath said, And afterwards thou shalt be called the city of righteousness, Zion, the faithful mother of cities23422342 Ib. i. 26.; because of the law which went forth out of Zion, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem23432343 Ib. ii. 3., which word has from hence been showered forth on the whole world. To her the Prophet also says concerning you, Lift up thine eyes round about, and behold thy children gathered together23442344 Ib. xlix. 18.; and she answers, saying, Who are these that fly as a cloud, and as doves with their young ones to me23452345 Ib. lx. 8.? (clouds because of their spiritual nature, and doves, from their purity). And again, she says, Who knoweth such things? or who hath seen it thus? did ever a land bring forth in one day? or was ever a nation born all at once? for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children23462346 Ib. lxvi. 8.. And all things shall be filled with joy unspeakable because of the Lord who said, Behold, I create Jerusalem a rejoicing, and her people a joy23472347 Ib. lxv. 18..
35. And may these words be spoken now again
over you also, Sing, O heavens, and be joyful, O earth; and
then; for the Lord hath had mercy on His people, and comforted the
lowly of His people23482348 Ib. xlix.
13.. And this
shall come to pass through the loving-kindness of God, who says to you,
Behold, I will blot out as a cloud thy transgressions, and as a
thick cloud thy sins23492349 Is. xliv. 22.. But ye who
have been counted worthy of the name of Faithful (of whom it is
written, Upon My servants shall be called a new name which shall be
blessed on the earth23502350 Ib. lxv.
15.,) ye shall say with
gladness, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
who hath blessed us with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly
places in Christ23512351 Eph. i. 3.: in whom
we have our redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of our sins,
according to the riches of His grace, wherein He abounded towards
us23522352 Ib. v.
7., and what follows;
and again, But God being rich in mercy, for His great love wherewith
He loved us, when we were dead through our trespasses, quickened us
together with Christ23532353 Ib. ii.
4., and the
rest. And again in like manner praise ye the Lord of all good
things, saying, But when the kindness of God our Saviour, and His
love towards man appeared, not by works of righteousness which we had
done, but according to His mercy He saved us, through the washing of
regeneration, and the renewing of the Holy Ghost, which He shed on us
abundantly through Jesus Christ our Saviour, that being
justified by His grace, we might
be made heirs, according to hope, of eternal life23542354 Tit. iii. 4.. And may God Himself the Father
of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of glory, give unto you a
spirit of wisdom and revelation in the knowledge of Himself, the eyes
of your understanding being enlightened23552355 Eph. i. 17, 18.,
and may He ever keep you in good works, and words, and thoughts; to
Whom be glory, honour, and power, through our Lord Jesus Christ, with
the Holy Ghost, now and ever, and unto all the endless ages of
eternity. Amen23562356 “At the end of this Lecture in
the older of the Munich mss. there is the
following addition: Many other Lectures were delivered year by
year, both before Baptism and after the neophytes had been
baptized. But these alone were taken down when spoken and written
by some of the earnest students in the year 352 of the advent of our
Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. And in these you will find partly
discussions of all the necessary doctrines of the Faith which ought to
be known to men, and answers to the Greeks, and to those of the
Circumcision, and to the Heresies, and the moral precepts of Christians
of all kinds, by the grace of God. The year 352 according to the
computation of the Greeks is the year 360 of the Christian era”
The date at which the Lectures were delivered cannot possibly be so late as is here stated. See the section of the Introduction on the “Date.”.
|« Prev||On the Words, And in One Holy Catholic Church,…||Next »| | <urn:uuid:19e826a6-dc7c-4d9c-b580-408e425d67d4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://m.ccel.org/ccel/schaff/npnf207.ii.xxii.html?scrBook=Luke&scrCh=21&scrV=28&device=mobile | 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 | 0.955024 | 13,642 | 1.648438 | 2 |
For Immediate Release
On June 27, 2012, Save the Children, a partner of USAID’s “Azerbaijan Strengthening Health Systems through Integrated Programs” (AZ SHIP) Project, organized a one-day training on community fundraising for 7 members of the Community Action Group in Yengiyan Village of Zagatala District. The leader of the local religious community and the head of the municipality of the neighboring village also participated in the event.
The participants learned the principles of community fundraising, the role of fundraising in addressing community needs, financial sources and management of the fund, and preparation of transparent financial reports. They also learned how to raise funds with different donors and individuals.
AZ SHIP Project works with 40 communities in Gakh, Sheki, Agdash, Ismayilli, Zagatala, and Gabala Regions. Town hall meetings are held to inform community members about AZ SHIP, highlight how communities may be mobilized around health issues, and describe the role of Community Action Groups (CAGs) in empowering communities and individuals to develop and implement local strategies to improve the health of their communities. The objective is to build the CAG’s organizational and technical capacity. Community mobilization, which includes the training of CAGs on participatory rapid appraisal techniques, community fundraising, and proposal writing, will continue through October 2012.
The communities are expected to implement health-related micro-projects starting in August 2012.
AZ SHIP is a two-year project that works with the Ministry of Health to advance their healthcare reform agenda, including healthcare financing, quality of services, and technical assistance in developing guiding documents. Special attention is paid to reproductive health/family planning, maternal and child Health, and tuberculosis.
Last updated: January 24, 2013 | <urn:uuid:df7bce41-6192-4ac4-92cd-0f09a8a5b653> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.usaid.gov/azerbaijan/press-releases/usaid-mobilizes-communities-implement-health-related-projects | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.948936 | 368 | 1.6875 | 2 |
22 April 2013 by Permi Krishna
The best cameras for low light selection includes those with a big sensor size (atleast 10 mm) and capable of high ISO shooting (atleast 1000 ISO). The best cameras for low light are the ones which work best on higher ISO's. ISO measures your cameras sensitivity to light - the higher you can go on your ISO rating the lower you can go on your lighting. Our list of some of the best cameras ever 2013 also deal with capturing photographs in very low light.
Best Digital Camera for Low Light Buying Guide Video
Most compacts and ultra-compacts perform well in normal lighting for their price, but are not the best and tend to sputter when it comes to low light and night photography at higher ISO's with a lot of grainy images.
The standard point and shoot model performs well till ISO's of 400. If you are looking at taking a lot of indoors or night photos as in museums or concerts etc. then you need to invest in a high end compact or a mirrorless interchangeable lens camera which performs well at ISOs 800 and above.
The best digital cameras for low light conditions have larger sensors and better lenses which handle more light and have a higher dynamic range. Many of the high-end compacts perform well in low light as well as the new mirrorless interchangeable lens cameras which are more sophisticated with larger sensors. However they are more bulky than the ultracompacts, since lightweight cameras do not perform well in low light as they tend to shake. You can also never go wrong with a dSLR which has better sensors and a host of manual settings for better night photography shots. | <urn:uuid:d5a6048c-8a15-43d4-8869-942faa07c0b7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.reviewgist.com/best-low-light-digital-camera | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951592 | 339 | 1.5 | 2 |
The IDPP is a network of university and outreach partners focused on the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) region and based at American University in Washington, DC. We offer the world's first virtual Master's degree in disability policy through American University's School of International Service.
The IDPP contributes to the overall vision of an ASEAN region that is inclusive, barrier-free, and rights-based, where persons with disabilities are leaders in the determination of their own destinies.
The IDPP strives to be the preeminent institute for: 1) partnering with governments to foster public policies that promote persons with disabilities entering society to compete on a par with their non-disabled peers; 2) preparing disabled leaders in the field of public policy.
The IDPP promotes the analysis and understanding of public policies for persons with disabilities. The IDPP has four key objectives that it has been specifically designed to meet in cooperation with its university and outreach partners:
- Master’s Degree: Offer the world’s first virtual Master’s degree at the intersection of disability studies and public policy using advanced cyberlearning techniques
- Continuing Education and Certificate Program: Offer certificate and non-degree programs in the areas of disability studies and public policy
- Outreach and Capacity Building: Engage in outreach and capacity building activities to enhance awareness of and address disability and public policy issues
- Collaborative Research: Facilitate research on comparative and international disability policy issues as they relate to the ASEAN region
The IDPP was established in accordance with the ASEAN Vision 2020, which states that ASEAN will:
(1) enhance human resource development in all sectors of the economy through quality education, upgrading of skills and capabilities and training...[and]
(2) [have] all people enjoy equitable access to opportunities for total human development and where the civil society is empowered and gives special attention to the disadvantaged, disabled and marginalized and where social justice and the rule of law reign...
The IDPP was established in full partnership with the ASEAN Secretariat and within the context of The Nippon Foundation—ASEAN Strategic Partnership Agreement, for the purpose of improving the circumstances of persons with disabilities in ASEAN countries. | <urn:uuid:75f2b9db-0438-4299-b111-a84e9c0bddf8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.aseanidpp.org/about-us | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.933028 | 457 | 1.601563 | 2 |
Windows Mobile gets encrypted phone calls
Chat securely, says Cellcrypt.
By John Dunn | Techworld | Published: 11:52, 28 November 2008
UK outfit Cellcrypt has updated its voice-over-IP (VoIP) call security software for mobile phones to support Windows Mobile hardware for the first time.
Users on that platform are now able to run a special application in advance of making a mobile phone call, and take advantage offend-to-end encryption as long as the person they are calling also has it installed.
Calls are scrambled using RSA 2048 or AES 256-bit encryption, securing them from eavesdroppers to the same security standards were the call being made using a VoIP client on a PC. The communications channel used - GSM, 3G, GPRS or Wi-Fi - is irrelevant to the security or, the company claims, call clarity.
"It is common for organisations and individuals to protect their valuable computer data using encryption technologies; but by and large sensitive voice conversations are only lightly protected and vulnerable to eavesdropping," said Cellcrypt's Lauri Monroy.
"Use of Cellcrypt Mobile provides the confidence that phone calls, whether in the mobile or office environment, at home or overseas, within or between departments and with partners, suppliers and friends, are all protected end-to-end," he said.
The company's Cellcrypt Mobile 3.2 has supported Nokia/Symbian 9.1 handsets since its quiet launch earlier this year, now widened beyond that base in version 4.0. Future versions are promised to support the BlackBerry.
With the core market of government in mind, the company is also submitting the software for NIST FIPS 140-2 certification, necessary to win contracts in that sector, especially in the standard's home territory, the US.
Pricing starts at £695 for a single-user license (two are required for each call), coming down for larger volumes of users. | <urn:uuid:79713b86-95cb-4d86-bfe0-a0d91352b2a4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://news.techworld.com/security/107775/windows-mobile-gets-encrypted-phone-calls/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.939374 | 403 | 1.734375 | 2 |
2012 is a transition year for pharma, one of the most important in the industry's history of product cycles that spin from
plenty to penury. On the positive side, the fires of drug discovery are finally being stoked by a growing understanding of
how genomics shape the biology of disease. This is leading to promising new treatments that target critical areas of unmet
medical need while also increasing the efficacy of interventions geared to the individual patient. Evidence that these next-generation
innovations can advance the science while improving outcomes will hopefully lead to ready acceptance in the market, despite
the growing leverage of a much more skeptical and discerning customer base.
Getty Images / Jason Hawkes
The challenge is that many new treatments may not complete the move from 'bench to bedside' in time to plug the yawning revenue
gap from a second record year of patent expiries. This year's drop off the patent cliff is the longest and steepest, with
a $50 billion loss coming on top of the $30 billion ceded to generics in 2011. Most companies will struggle to play catchup,
with margins under intense pressure due to the immediate fallout from genericization of the product base; in the U.S. alone,
off-patent penetration has reached 80 percent of all scrip, and IMS forecasts this figure will rise to 86 percent by 2015.
Meanwhile, the fiscal crisis in Europe has voided the entire concept of patenting as a reward for innovation in providing
a temporary period of price exclusivity. Therapeutic reference pricing is clustering brands with the cheapest generics, and
some countries in the region are now moving toward a straight bulk procurement model for drugs reimbursed through state-sponsored
systems. Quality? Innovation? These are yesterday's questions.
Trade Winds Go Generic
The erosion of patent cover means that 2012 will be a golden harvest for the generics industry. While it is premature to condemn
all new medicines to the slashing scythe of the grim reaper, innovators, at least for the near term, must adjust to a world
where only slightly more than one out of every 10 U.S. prescriptions will be written for products with the potential to obtain
a real price premium against the competition. Who will pay for innovation is a question deferred—but it will loom large as
the cycle shifts back toward large biologics and the discovery payoff from the genomics revolution begins to empower the patient
seeking a cure or a better quality of life.
So what is the preferred Big Pharma strategy to manage through this year of transition? Pharm Exec contacts with a range of industry players reveals that the dominant theme for 2012 is a relentless focus on managing costs.
Pressures to cut back are mounting, not just in the expected areas such as R&D or field force management, but also through
the rich incentives that companies are laying out to breach the access barriers and contract pricing ultimatums imposed by
payers exercising their market clout. These payer tactics now incorporate the specialty segment, oncology, and other high-margin
categories, which have, to date, been largely immune to pricing constraints.
Trim the Sails on Costs
As far as the investor community is concerned, one number counts. "Wall Street will be looking for evidence that companies
know how to manage their expenses, and the best gauge of progress here is the difference between gross and net sales," says
Amundsen Group managing director Mason Tenaglia. That view is echoed by St. Joseph's University Business School Professor
Bill Trombetta, author of Pharm Exec's annual industry audit series, whose latest report in our September 2011 issue makes "lean management" a key theme. "2012
is all about the edge that will go to companies that achieve operational excellence against their peers. The logic is that
the best way to cope with the uncertainties of a complicated business climate is by mastery of the internal environment, where
management can exercise a stronger degree of control."
Slashing costs is necessary to minimize the immediate impact of the patent cliff on revenues. It also represents a welcome
change in mindset, away from the complacency and tolerance for bloat that characterized the industry response to market churn
in the previous decades. And as the pharma workforce is trimmed—a bloodletting long deferred—it provides fresh opportunity
to revise the skill set required to prevail against the competition. Financial planning, manufacturing, competitive intelligence
(the new costume for traditional market research), and IT have all been elevated to status as strategic functions rather than
an operational activity. | <urn:uuid:981ecb9e-aff6-4eb5-854a-7749da3275d7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.pharmexec.com/pharmexec/Global/Pharma-2012-Hard-Times-Before-the-Harvest/ArticleStandard/Article/detail/755087?contextCategoryId=48159&ref=25 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.931757 | 949 | 1.5625 | 2 |
Three years before publication of Alexis de Tocqueville’s Democracy in America in 1835, Frances Trollope, mother of Anthony (then not yet twenty), saw her Domestic Manners of the Americans reach print. It’s a delightful book, though not particularly kind to the people of the young republic. Nonetheless, Mrs. Trollope had quite the eye, and wit to match.
This is a guest post by Donna Potts, chair of the AAUP’s Assembly of State Conferences and a professor of English at Kansas State University.
On May 24, when the president of the University of Missouri, Tim Wolfe, announced plans to close the University of Missouri Press, my first reaction was deeply personal. I immediately thought of Clair Willcox, the editor-in-chief, who was a graduate student in English when I first entered the program at the age of 21. Clair probably didn’t know it at the time, but he was an important mentor: long before I learned to take myself seriously as a teacher and a scholar, Clair did.
By Marjorie Heins, founder, Free Expression Policy Project
The current controversy over Yale University’s planned campus in Singapore is, at bottom, an argument over how much compromise on free speech is justified in exchange for the presumed benefits of locating branches of U.S. universities within authoritarian regimes. Although the champions of global ventures like Yale’s often claim that academic freedom will be available at the foreign outposts, the fact is that such freedom, at best, will be limited to the classroom and will bear no resemblance to what we have come to expect on U.S. campuses.
In an April 2012 resolution, the Yale faculty expressed concern over the Singapore venture and urged administrators “to respect, protect and further principles of nondiscrimination for all, including sexual minorities and migrant workers” and “to uphold civil liberty and political freedom on campus and in the broader society.” Yale, in response, pointed out that its new university is a joint venture with the National University of Singapore (“N.U.S.”); it will not grant Yale degrees and will be paid for entirely by the host regime.
But Yale is lending its name; Yale faculty will teach there; the Yale-N.U.S. president, Pericles Lewis, is a former Yale professor, and the first dean, Charles D. Bailyn, currently teaches at Yale. Although Lewis told reporters that “we expect students to express all kinds of opinions on campus,” he also acknowledged that off-campus, “students will have to abide by the laws of Singapore.” Those laws include the strict censorship of films, broadcasting, print media, and the Internet, a Sedition Act, and a Public Order Act which requires a police permit to meet for any “cause related activity.” As the New York Times noted, Singapore is “an autocratic city-state where drug offenses can bring the death penalty, homosexual relations are illegal and criminal defamation charges [against people who criticize public officials] are aggressively pursued.”
One of the interesting things about fishing in unknown waters is that you never quite know what will come up when you reel in the line.
It has only been a few weeks since my first post here, but I am already getting intriguing responses. One on Tuesday follows my post with the tongue-in-cheek title Reminder to Self: Get Out More. It is called Ivory Tower Cabin Fever and comes from a blog that calls itself “Accuracy in Academia” (AIA). It starts off:
Apparently at least one denizen of the Ivory Tower thinks he’s been cloistered too long.
The things we get most exciting about, the things we find most enticing and revolutionary, are also things most likely to be old–once you strip away the new skin. They are the familiar wrapped up in shiny new presentations.
The MOOCs (Massive Open Online Classes) are a case in point. When you look at them closely, they are little more than the lectures of the lyceum movement of ‘self culture’ of almost two centuries ago–but with an electronic sheen.
In the December 23, 1869 edition of The Nation, Francis Parkman wrote:
The New England man of letters… was apt to be a recluse, ignorant of the world, bleached by a close room and an iron stove, never breathing the outer air when he could help it, and resembling a medieval monk in his scorn of the body, or rather his utter disregard of it. The products of his mind were as pallid as the hue of his face, and, like their parent, void of blood, bone, sinew, muscle, and marrow. That he should be provincial was, for a long time, inevitable, but that he was emasculate was clearly his own fault. As his scholarship was not fruitful of any very valuable results, as it did not make itself felt in the living world that ranged around it, as, in short, it showed no vital force, it began at length to be regarded as a superfluous excrescence. (558-559)
The same, unfortunately, could be said of too many of us who are involved in scholarship today. Teaching aside, little of what we do or say has observable impact on the world outside our universities. Yes, there are technological and scientific breakthroughs that clearly do, but these are rare—and are far removed from the efforts of most of us.
Ron Lipsman, a former senior associate dean at the University of Maryland, writes at Minding the Campus attacking tenure: “In effect, the only tenured professors who get the sack are those who have robbed a bank, raped a co-ed or pistol-whipped a colleague.” This is nonsense. Plenty of tenured professors do get fired every year for legitimate reasons. And many other tenured professors get fired for illegitimate causes.
But Lipsman’s understanding of tenure is quite strange: “while many professors (perhaps most) do fine work, the vast majority are not engaged in research that could expose them to firing without cause.”
In a New York Times opinion piece that appeared last month, Jeff Selingo of The Chronicle of Higher Education lays out ’urgent needs’ for American colleges and universities. There are many; we are not in a position where coasting along on old assumptions will suffice. But Selingo completely ignores one area where change must come, the physical layouts of our learning spaces. These, too, must be changed if higher education’s changes are to be successful.
Selingo’s ‘needs’ are but one list among many, of course. None of us is going to agree with them all, or with his rankings. They are:
- Improve usage of technology in the classroom;
- Offer more online instruction;
- Make ‘academics’ the top priority;
- Cut back on the quest for ‘research’ status;
- Make sure all courses a student takes count for the degree.
The last three I agree with, but would change their focus and wording. The first two? Well, they are laden with assumptions that I am not sure I can accept. They are built upon current visions of the structures of education, structures that center on the traditional classroom and sage-on-the-stage extension into the digital world (what is a Massively Open Online Course, or MOOC, without the concept of the lecture?). Second, they assume that technology in the classroom and online instruction are two different things, assuming the classroom walls as barriers that need not be broken down.
A couple of months ago, someone sent me a link to an article from The Washington Post by David Levy called “Do College Professors Work Hard Enough?” It still rankles. Levy writes:
Though faculty salaries now mirror those of most upper-middle-class Americans working 40 hours for 50 weeks, they continue to pay for teaching time of nine to 15 hours per week for 30 weeks, making possible a month-long winter break, a week off in the spring and a summer vacation from mid-May until September.
He says this may be fine for research institutions, but at teaching institutions? Nah:
Critics may argue that teaching faculty members require long hours for preparation, grading and advising. Therefore they would have us believe that despite teaching only 12 to 15 hours a week, their workloads do approximate those of other upper-middle-class professionals. While time outside of class can vary substantially by discipline and by the academic cycle (for instance, more papers and tests to grade at the end of a semester), the notion that faculty in teaching institutions work a 40-hour week is a myth.
A myth, huh?
This is a version of a piece I posted six years ago on my own blog, One Flew East. I am offering it again now as a way of introducing myself to the Academe blog:
How can we in academia make the case for “academic freedom” to the broader public and move our own understanding forward, back towards the old function of academic freedom within the public sphere?
Too many of us in academia, and for too long, have looked upon “academic freedom” as a right, forgetting that it carries specific responsibilities. | <urn:uuid:8859c2f1-fac4-4340-8982-b1f51ceb1fed> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://academeblog.org/2012/07/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.960515 | 1,961 | 1.53125 | 2 |
JOPLIN, Mo. | Carrying small American flags and wearing T-shirts bearing the names of friends and loved ones who died when a massive tornado tore through Joplin one year ago, thousands of people made a somber march Tuesday through some of the town's hardest-hit neighborhoods.
By ALAN SCHER ZAGIER
The Associated Press
Residents and officials are dedicated to remembering their losses but are also committed to what is certain to be a long, slow recovery from a tornado that killed 161 people and injured hundreds of others. The storm last May wiped away entire neighborhoods in the city of 50,000, destroyed Joplin's only public high school and left behind a ghastly moonscape of block after city block of foundations wiped clean of their structures.
"It's been a roller-coaster type year. Extremely high highs and lots of low lows," said Debbie Fort, the principal of Irving Elementary School, which has been operating out of temporary facilities.
"It's important that we take a moment to reflect and remember," she said. "But it's a new chapter in our lives. This really signifies our future, the future of Joplin."
Signs of the challenges ahead were plentiful on the four-mile "Walk of Unity," from the glaring absence of century-old trees in the city's central neighborhoods to the ghostly shell of St. John's Regional Medical Center, which formed a stark backdrop at a late afternoon memorial service marked by a moment of silence at 5:41 pm. the exact time the tornado hit.
"There is not a handbook out there that says, 'Here's how you develop a community that has an 8-mile-long, 25- to 30-city-block-wide swath of area that has basically lost everything,'" said David Wallace, a Texas developer whose firm was hired by the city to oversee Joplin's rebuilding plan. He estimated the recovery will cost nearly $2 billion, about half of which has already been pledged by private sources.
Throughout the day, residents, hospital workers, volunteers and politicians gathered across the disaster zone to mark the May 22, 2011, tornado, mixing somber remembrances with steely resolutions to rebuild.
"It is so fitting to begin this day, this anniversary, by reflecting on our faith as dawn breaks over a renewed Joplin," Missouri Gov. Jay Nixon said at a sunrise service at Freeman Hospital, which is eight blocks from St. John's but was undamaged. "Scripture tells us that the path of the righteous is like the first gleam of dawn, shining ever brighter till the full light of day."
The afternoon procession started in neighboring Duquesne, where more than one-fourth of the community's 750 homes were destroyed and nine people died. The Joplin portion of the walk began past a Walmart where three people were killed and 200 survived by huddling together in employee break rooms, bathrooms and other designated safe zones.
City officials estimated the number of people who took the somber walk at 5,000 to 6,000. They ended at Cunningham Park, which has been rebuilt and is across the street from what is left of the St. John's hospital.
The medical center hasn't yet been torn down because it sits atop the mining tunnels that made Joplin an early 20th century boom town. The hospital has been operating out of a succession of temporary facilities while construction continues at its new permanent location, where it will reopen under the name Mercy Hospital Joplin.
Along the route, some residents sat in lawn chairs and beneath shade umbrellas outside their partially rebuilt homes, offering bottled water to the walkers.
The unity walk featured several stops, including a groundbreaking ceremony for the rebuilt Joplin High. Juniors and seniors will spend the next two years attending school in a converted department store in the city's sole shopping mall.
"The sound of hammers has replaced the sound of sirens," said C.J. Huff, Joplin's school superintendent.
A community theater where three people died after a Sunday matinee performance will be rebuilt nearby. Those on the walk included former co-workers of Randy Mell, a 49-year-old Jasper County custodian who died while trying to save some of the more than 50 audience and cast members trapped inside the Stained Glass Theater.
Insurance policies are expected to cover most of the $2.8 billion in damage from the storm. But taxpayers could supply about $500 million in federal and state disaster aid, low-interest loans and local bonds backed by higher taxes. Almost one-fifth of that money was paid to contractors who hauled off an estimated 3 million cubic yards of debris.
In January, elected officials and other members of a 45-person recovery committee endorsed a long-term recovery plan that calls for the creation of four new business districts that would allow residents to live and shop nearby and a unified approach to rebuilding that ensures new construction meets certain design standards.
In March, the city hired Wallace Bajjali Development Partners of Sugar Land, Texas, as its "master developer" to oversee the rebuilding plan. Wallace, the company's chief executive officer, said he has secured commitments from builders who want to bring a minor league baseball stadium, a convention center and a public performing arts center to the city near the borders of Arkansas, Oklahoma and Kansas. One interested developer is a group led by former Dallas Cowboys star Emmitt Smith that envisions transforming Joplin's Main Street business corridor into a mixed-use neighborhood with high-end lofts built atop retail space.
"Everybody's heart in America is pouring out to Joplin right now," he said. "There's a desire to be able to come and make a difference in this community." | <urn:uuid:b6374de4-d206-4cd4-b608-24e82137cfd2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.kansascity.com/2012/05/22/3622955/one-year-later-joplin-remembers.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970994 | 1,189 | 1.6875 | 2 |
This video shows the demolition of the Gasworks building. While we are sad to see it go (it’s an old building, after all), we are excited about the prospect of green space right along the river.
Whenever possible, we like to keep old buildings (even those not designated “historic”). They have history, they’re part of the fabric of our towns and our communities, and they have a lot of stories to tell and a lot of life to give.
In this case, however, the building was in very bad shape, contained hazardous materials, and would have been nearly impossible to rebuild with the community’s resources. The hazardous materials, unfortunately, meant that the building materials could not be reused–hence the demolition instead of deconstruction.
What will replace this building will serve as a community resource: a park bordering the river with easy access to downtown. Visitors to Brattleboro will be welcomed by green space; those returning home will see the river that’s defined this town since it’s beginning. We are excited for the future even as we mourn the loss of this part of our past. | <urn:uuid:20891591-62b5-4281-915f-ef48a5c066f3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.stevens-assoc.com/2012/03/21/gasworks-building-demolition/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96253 | 238 | 1.804688 | 2 |
Buried in a Reuters article about the gay enthusiasm gap in today's elections is this interesting tidbit:
Donations to federal candidates from gay interest groups have taken a hit this year, according to the Center for Responsive Politics. Gay groups have donated $849,410 to federal candidates during the 2010 election cycle, down from $1.8 million in 2008 and $2 million in 2006.[...]
As for the drop in donations, it is the economy, rather than voter disappointment, that is mostly to blame, said Andy Szekeres, a political consultant who specializes in gay rights ballot measures. Nevertheless, he said, political donors in the gay community feel they have been treated like a "gay ATM" by the Democratic party.
I didn't know that donations were down by that much, but it makes sense that the economy would be to blame. LGBT orgs have been cutting jobs right and left and reducing programming because they just don't have as much money coming as they did before. People just aren't donating to the orgs as they used to, and the drop in donations started at about the same time as the real estate bubble burst a few years ago.
Here's another interesting fact that Karen Ocamb reported yesterday:
You might want to sit down for this bit of news: a record four BILLION dollars is expected to be spent on this year's midterm elections, according to an Oct. 27 estimate by the non-partisan watchdog group, Center for Responsive Politics.[...]
The "major milepost in influencing U.S. political elections" surpasses the money spent in the 2004 election cycle with Republican President George W. Bush seeking re-election against Democratic Sen. John Kerry - not to mention all the congressional races and antigay state initiatives that year. "Overall this cycle, outside groups, including the national party committees, unions, trade associations, nonprofits and "super PACs" such as American Crossroads, have so far favored Republicans. Conservative-oriented groups have spent $1.34 for every $1 liberal-affiliated groups have spent, the Center's data show," a story on the Center's website reports.
"And the Republican outside spending advantage is even more pronounced: Republican-aligned and conservative groups so far this election season have spent $2.12 for every $1 that Democratic-aligned and liberal groups have spent, according to the Center's analysis."
Well, the economy isn't keeping everyone from donating to political campaigns, apparently.
It's becoming clear now that we're not in what could really be described as a recession. It seems to be just a new normal for the economy, a new balance of power. 10% unemployment is high for the US, but it's in the normal range compared to other countries. Real incomes might be down in the US, but they're still far above the global average. There's no reason to think that it will be decreased in the future, especially as we watch our government unable to make even the investments necessary to fight unemployment and our politicians unable to make the basic arguments about why and how the government should be responding to unemployment.
At the same time, the incomes of the uber-wealthy continue to climb, and corporations are seeing record profits and claiming a larger percentage of the GDP for themselves than they were just a few years ago. It doesn't feel like a recession for them, so they see no reason to try to turn things around.
Sure, everyone is less wealthy when the poor are poorer. The rich don't get richer as the poor get poorer, they just get richer in comparison to everyone else. A large population that's able to purchase their products and strong infrastructure to make their work easier and an educated, efficient work force actually make the people who earn their living off capital richer. But isn't it nicer if everyone else is out of work and desperate to do what you want them to do and too uneducated to fight back?
It's a self-perpetuating cycle as the wealthy then spend money on campaigns to protect and increase their wealth and power. Folks like Robert Rowling aren't spending $2 million (in just the cash that was reportable) to buy elections for nothing - they want to protect themselves from the pitchfork and torch-wielding masses they know would be going after them if they understood what was going on in their country. | <urn:uuid:b583df8f-8a63-425d-81a3-80d60e741c46> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.bilerico.com/2010/11/is_the_economy_doing_badly.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.975769 | 892 | 1.570313 | 2 |
By Sgt. Uriah Walker, RC(S) Public Affairs:
KANDAHAR AIRFIELD, Afghanistan - Seven Soldiers and two Marines injured during combat operations traveled to several locations in Afghanistan, including Kandahar Airfield and Camp Nathan Smith, to see the progress being made in the country that changed many of their lives forever.
Prosthetics and scars are physical reminders of the sacrifices service members make nearly every day in the ongoing overseas contingency operations. What can't be seen, are the mental and emotional scars endured by the brutal lessons of combat that can be as debilitating as a missing limb.
Through Operation Proper Exit, an initiative of Feherty's Troops First Foundation which provides support for wounded warriors injured and medically evacuated out of theater, service members who are capable of returning are afforded the opportunity to see the progress first hand and exit the country again on their own terms.
Of the nine service members visiting with OPE II, Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Glen Silva is the only one on his second trip with the organization. Silva suffered an above-knee amputation of his left leg, along with several other injuries, Oct. 12, 2010, when he stepped on an improvised explosive device in Helmand Province, Afghanistan.
Silva describes the event as frustrating, "I started yelling at my men to set up a perimeter as I tried to get up. I remember getting mad at myself because I couldn't get to my feet and I didn't know why."
That's when one of his Marines jumped on top of him to keep him from moving, and the reality of the event started to set in.
"I started to assess myself and as I looked around I could see my leg about 20 feet away," he said. "I closed my eyes for a moment and told myself to remain calm. I opened my eyes and calmly told my Marine to start applying tourniquets."
Silva's recovery at Bethesda National Military Medical Center wasn't certain at first. His heart stopped on one occasion, and he recounts the episode by saying, "Kill me or let me live, I don't want to put my daughter through this."
The faded silhouette of his daughter at his bedside set his mind to live.
After numerous surgeries, physical therapy and being fitted for a prosthetic leg, Silva is doing everything he can to get the most out of life.
"I live life to the fullest and I make the most of what I have," he said. "I still ride my Harley and I still jump out of airplanes. Every day is a new challenge and I wake up happy every day."
For retired Army Sgt. Brian Flemming, Kandahar Airfield is a mere 7km from where a vehicle borne improvised explosive device detonated three feet from him.
"When I awoke in a ditch on the side of the road in Kandahar, Afghanistan -- burned and bloody -- and thought my life was at its end, I asked myself two questions," Flemming says on his website. "'What did I do for others? Did my life matter?'"
"That suicide bomber was the best thing to happen to me," he continued.
The blast left Flemming with 2nd and 3rd degree burns to his hands, neck and face. He spent 14 months at Brooke Army Medical Center in San Antonio, recovering from his physical, emotional and mental wounds. What he discovered while there is that there is no such thing as a mass produced solution.
What he has concluded is that, "Post-traumatic stress is an individual event. Everyone deals with it differently. Familiarity breeds contentment. Help someone get to a place where they can discover their own answers."
This statement is what drives Flemming to help other injured service members every day. He reaches out through his website and public speaking. According to his website, to date, he has personally mentored over 1,000 combat veterans from the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, in the areas of business, marriage and family, how to effectively battle post-traumatic stress, faith and resiliency.
Resiliency was a common theme among all nine wounded warriors on this trip. Regardless of the severity of their physical injuries, each one repeatedly echoed how important it was to stay connected and remain positive always moving forward.
Medal of Honor recipient Sgt. 1st Class Leroy Petry spoke about his injuries; physical, emotional and mental.
"Everyone sees my prosthetic hand, but most don't know that I was also shot in the leg," said Petry. "My leg gives me more problems than my arm. Coming back here has really helped me. It's twofold. It helps me and I can take what I've seen and experienced back and share."
During a discussion with Silva about the mental recovery of injured service members, he stated that staying connected and not losing a sense of who you are remain the two largest factors to successfully move forward with recovery.
He went on to explain the hardest thing about the process is not having a sense of being.
"Your place at the dinner table is taken away," said Silva. "You're treated as a patient instead of a Marine, Soldier or service member. The doctors would call me 'Mr. Silva.' One day I looked at one of them and told them, 'My name is Staff Sgt. Silva.'"
He also offered two pieces of advice when working with wounded warriors.
"Support from the unit is vital, they are your family," he said. "Don't be afraid to approach a wounded warrior. That's how they learn (to deal with their injury) and don't treat me like a patient." | <urn:uuid:6a528151-5a6c-4bc0-a323-66522eb1ca6e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://soldiersangelsgermany.blogspot.com/2013/03/operation-proper-exit-ii-afghanistan.html | 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 | 0.982494 | 1,159 | 1.515625 | 2 |
A Farewell to Mario Luis Bracamonte (1945-2009)
We have just received word from our correspondent and cattle mutilation researcher Raul Oscar Chaves that Mario Luis Bracamonte, director of the Circulo Ovnilogico Riocuartense (Rio Cuarto UFO Research Circuit - C.O.R.), has passed away after battling an unspecified pulmonary malady. Our thoughs are with the Bracamonte family and members of the C.O.R.
Mr. Bracamonte founded his UFO research group in November 1978 and was instrumental in reporting on UFO cases from his region of Argentina. His bulletin - SIO - provided interesting and useful information on various aspects of UFO and high strangeness phenomena, particularly during the 2002 cattle mutilation wave in that country.
"The C.O.R.," wrote Bracamonte in his group's website, "understands that the UFO phenomenon must be faced with an open and alert mindset, avoiding all sensationalism and anything that may represent a subject that eschews scientific scrutiny. We are all aware that from 1947 onward, thousands of persons throughout the world have engaged in a conscientious analysis of the UFO enigma, and they have contributed the most significant investigative results. From Rio Cuarto, in the south of the province of Córdoba, a handful of civilian researchers created this organization 21 years ago, and have consolidated their domestic and foreign networks with an enterprising spirit that is worthy of imitation."
[Note: Daniel Enrique Lewis informs us that the cause of death was a cerebro-vascular hemorrage resulting from a hypertensice crisis without the possibility of a surgical resolution] | <urn:uuid:85bc9c14-0345-4fe2-ac8d-3ecac8f929a9> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.inexplicata.blogspot.com/2009/07/farewell-to-mario-luis-bracamonte.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.936286 | 345 | 1.523438 | 2 |
Archive for January, 2012
I recently reported on how a lobby group was formed in Australia that aims to take out all alternative medicine degrees from universities. Well now Congress is trying to restrict your access to research so that you will only learn what the mainstream medical establishment wants you to learn. This legislation seeks to limit access to research that is paid for with your tax dollars, and could virtually censor your right to health research – that is until we find a way to rise above.
Does the term ‘all natural’ really mean anything when it comes to food labeling? Increasingly, the evidence says absolutely not. A new lawsuit launched from New York highlights the real lack of meaning behind the ‘all natural’ marketing stunt, stating that Frito-Lay’s popular ‘all natural’ snack foods like Tostitos and SunChips are actually made with genetically modified ingredients. Chris Sakes leads the suit against the mega snack corporation, filing a class-action lawsuit that sheds light on the ‘all natural’ labeling scam. Shake said that Frito-Lay products are not natural at all, as they contain corn oils and genetically modified plants.
Dioxin is the most toxic man-made chemical known regarding damage to health and the environment. The EPA has withheld a study about dioxin for decades in order to protect large industries that produce dioxin while manufacturing herbicides and pesticides, plastics, chlorine, bleach, and other chemicals. In addition, industrialized agriculture (Big Ag) has pressured the EPA to withhold the report because dioxin becomes concentrated in animal products like meat, eggs and dairy.
Who needs alternative or natural treatments when there is already a fantastic medical system put in place aiming to ‘better’ the world? At least that’s what more than 400 doctors, medical researchers, and scientists who want to shut down all alternative medicine degrees seem to believe. The mainstream medical practitioners in Australia seem to think that alternative medicine has no place, and chose to form a powerful lobby group to pressure universities to get rid of any alternative medicine degrees.
While there is no perfect diet, people are starting to realize that many of the health complications they currently face are actually a result of consuming way too much sugar. More health experts are voicing their concern regarding the over-consumption of fructose, which has been pinpointed as America’s number one source of calories. New research mirrors what has been found in the past, connecting fructose to cardiovascular disease and an increased diabetes risk.
Turmeric and curcumin have been highlighted as powerful anti-cancer substances in the past, but research has now shed even more light on the amazing ability of both turmeric and curcumin to actually block cancer growth. This is due to the unique ability of a main component in turmeric that is actually able to block an enzyme that promotes the spread of head and neck cancer. Researchers at UCLA found that curcumin exhibited these cancer-blocking properties during a study involving 21 participants suffering from head and neck cancers.
The number of uncovered benefits from exercising seem to just never cease. Recent research, which can actually be linked back to research conducted many decades ago, shows exercise can be utilized as a powerful tool in reducing the risk of breast cancer. It is estimated that nearly 12 percent, or about 1 in 8 women in the United States will develop invasive breast cancer over the course of their lifetime.
Bill Gates, the heavy Monsanto investor who purchased 500,000 shares of the biotech giant in 2010, has been toting Monsanto’s genetically modified creations as a tool that is necessary to prevent starvation in poor nations. The same poor nations where thousands of farmers routinely commit suicide after being completely bankrupt by Monsanto’s overpriced and ineffective GM seeds.
How would you react if I were to tell you that you or your child were forced to participate in experimental vaccine trials? A paper published by the American Medical Association’s Virtual Mentor wants to do just that. It seems that the amount of current participants in current experimental vaccine trials is a bit too low, so why not create a federal law forcing each person to need to “opt-out” of experimental vaccine trials in an attempt to better society?
A new Greek scientific study has demonstrated how frequency electromagnetic fields, namely cell phones, portable phones, WiFi, and wireless computer equipment, alter important protein changes in the brains of animals. Exposure to electromagnetic frequencies is the result of our advancing technologies, but it is important to study these effects so people know exactly what they’re dealing with in order to take the necessary precautionary measures. | <urn:uuid:d7feae60-3268-414f-8e67-804c12c5731e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://naturalsociety.com/2012/01/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958486 | 942 | 1.5625 | 2 |
Holiday movie-viewing season probably means that you undoubtedly will catch one of the most talked about films of the year, Spielberg’s “Lincoln.” I saw the movie a few weeks back and it’s pretty grand. Yet, I had a healthy amount of skepticism going in, because it is a Spielberg jawn, which would mean there would be a douse of self-righteous audience pandering hoakieness, but muted by the powerful script from screenwriter and Pulitzer Prize winning playwright Tony Kushner. “Lincoln” as a title is kind of a misnomer: it’s a legislative drama, watching white men wrest, insult and struggle with each other over the legality and morality of human bondage while the Civil War dragged on.
I’m a descendant from all of that work. And for a moment, because the screenwriting was so damn good I wasn’t too sure that tthe 13th amendment would pass. I know the outcome. My president is black. I voted for him. I have the right to vote and get paid to work. I don’t have to pay poll taxes. No one asks me for papers when I travel across state lines or who I belong to. But I did laugh at myself because I got shook. That is the power of film, my friends.
Still, I winced at four scenes in the film (no spoilers) that– as some have pointed out– were missed opportunities of illustrating the plurality of mid-19th-century America, and how blacks were active actors in shifting the tide of public opinion that ultimately led to full emancipation. Images of free blacks, newly arrived in DC during wartime as a backdrop to much of this legislative drama, rather than the pacified silent observation of a few carefully-placed black actors would have enhanced my viewing experience, giving me a more fully realized vision of the period.
For that kind of complexity, I’d have to go back to basics. Thankfully, a new book from historians Deborah Willis and Barbara Krauthamer, Envisioning Emancipation: Black Americans and the End of Slavery (Temple University Press), provides the narrative and images, filling in gaps that the film and previous scholarship hasn’t been able to. Abolitionist and suffragist, Sojourner Truth, according to Willis/Krauthamer understood the power of photography, and actively distributed photographs of herself:
Those pictures were meant to affirm her status as a sophisticated and respectable “free woman and as a woman in control of her image.” The public’s fascination with carte-de-visites, small and collectible card-mounted photographs, allowed her to advance her abolitionist cause to a huge audience and earn a living through their sale. “I Sell the Shadow to Support the Substance,” proclaimed the famous slogan for these pictures.
Truth was not alone in her understanding of the power of photography. A host of other African-Americans, both eminent and ordinary, employed the medium as an instrument of political engagement and inspiration. “Envisioning Emancipation” argues that photography was not incidental but central to the war against slavery, racism and segregation in the antebellum period of the 1850s through the New Deal era of the 1930s.
Truth understood the power of images was just as powerful a weapon as any. Even the composition of the photograph of Truth (noted above) has a subliminal power, appropriating classic European portraiture in her seated posture, her resolute gaze, showing a black body as American. Human. It’s a significant detail to the story of understanding that the emancipation of blacks was more than just the benevolence of white men in a lame duck session of congress. There is a poignant scene where Lincoln finds his young son asleep in the office amid daugereotyps photographs of abused slaves that Lincoln looks through himself before lying asleep on the floor next to him. The truth-telling photography and empathy that photography conjures isn’t new but understanding it as a mode of cultural and social activism during the Civil War era is and certainly worthy of a look back. It’s why this photo of President Obama in the Oval Office is so overwhelmingly meaningful:
photo cred: Pete Souza | <urn:uuid:8b1bdcb1-70e4-4ae6-99fe-33e7d44b7fff> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://feministing.com/2012/12/20/sojourner-truth-a-woman-in-control-of-her-image/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.969075 | 897 | 1.828125 | 2 |
THE GOLDEN BOOK was an outlier: a serious fiction magazine published by the REVIEW OF REVIEWS CORPORATION, and packaged and sold as a pulp. It had some stunning covers and carried stories by famous names, mostly as reprints and/or translations of from European authors. It began in 1925, with full-color covers, but by 1931, as the Depression deepened, it dropped its pictorial covers and simply listed the contents on the cover. But by 1935 it had resumed some artistic elements on the covers, and later that year went to pictures in round frames. Its last issue seems to have been September, 1935; it was merged into FICTION PARADE (begun May, 1935) with the October issue. The combined title lasted until February, 1938 (Library of Congress catalog information). A good short history of this magazine can be found at the eNewsstand project.
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Public Employee Advocate
Loud and Clear
State employees like Ron Franz believe North Dakota United will help make the public aware of the essential role they play and their contributions to the state's quality of life.
IN FEBRUARY, the North Dakota Public Employees Association and the North Dakota Education Association merged to form North Dakota United, making it the state’s largest public employee union, with more than 10,000 members. North Dakota’s state employees and educators will now have a louder, stronger and more united voice.
When longtime NDPEA activist Mike Stebbins heard about the proposed merger, he was one of the first to sign on.
“The bottom line is that teachers and state employees here in North Dakota have been having the same fights with the Legislature,” says Stebbins, who says he’s long been a believer in unions and the concept of strength in numbers.
Those fights include opposing legislative proposals to limit public employee pay raises and retirement benefits, he points out. The two unions have also come together to mobilize against efforts to pass statewide initiatives that would reduce tax revenues.
Stebbins, who works for the state’s Department of Transportation, also worries that the union-busting he’s seen in other states will find its way to North Dakota. “So far, they are not trying to bust our unions, but we need to stay one step ahead because of what has happened in places like Wisconsin.” | <urn:uuid:184e93a9-0545-45fa-8223-45f95c94b36e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.aft.org/newspubs/periodicals/pea/index.cfm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959046 | 306 | 1.703125 | 2 |
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Iraq Conference: Iraq and host countries promise to aid Iraqi refugees
News Stories, 17 April 2007
GENEVA, April 17 (UNHCR) – Iraq promised a US$25 million programme of support for its citizens who have fled abroad and countries hosting some 2 million Iraqi refugees promised to continue providing asylum as the UN refugee agency convened an international conference on Tuesday to address the humanitarian crisis facing those driven from their homes in Iraq.
In a news conference after the first day of the two-day meeting, UN High Commissioner for Refugees António Guterres announced key progress in the major challenges facing representatives of the 60 countries that had assembled – the Iraqi government assisting its citizens who are displaced inside and outside Iraq, the neighbouring countries keeping borders open to refugees and the rest of the world acknowledging the burden on the hosting states.
"I am very happy to announce that during today's session the Iraqi government has committed itself to a very meaningful programme of support for refugee communities abroad," Guterres told reporters. "This, together with the commitments to improve the work and the capacity of working together in relation to internal displacement, has been a very relevant moment in today's session."
Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshyar Zebari – who pledged: "We will not abandon these people" – announced the Iraqi government would spent US$25 million on a programme that would include setting up offices in host countries to help Iraqi refugees. It would provide education and medical services, helping to maintain the links to their homeland.
"It is also clear that the countries of asylum have pledged that they will go on granting protection to Iraqis, that they consider to send Iraqis forcibly into the country against their will is not acceptable, is not an option," Guterres said. "Protection will be granted, hoping that in the near future voluntary return in dignity and safety will be possible."
The bordering countries have borne the brunt of the refugee crisis, especially Syria which is hosting 1.2 million Iraqis and Jordan with 750,000 Iraqi refugees. But Guterres said the conference – attended by 450 representatives of governments, international and non-governmental organisations – had shown it appreciated the burden on host countries.
"There was very clear consensus in relation to the recognition of the extremely important generosity of the host countries, namely Syria and Jordan, and of the need for the international community to be able to support not only Iraqi displaced but also the host countries that are facing a huge challenge with an enormous impact on their economies and societies," Guterres said.
The conference had opened with Guterres appealing for a sustained, comprehensive and coordinated international response to the humanitarian crisis facing millions of people uprooted by the conflict in Iraq – 2 million outside Iraq and nearly as many inside.
"The humanitarian dimension of the problem can no longer be overlooked," he said. "Almost 4 million Iraqis are watching us today. Their needs are as obvious as the moral imperative to help. All of us – representatives of governments, international organisations and civil society – are now compelled to act."
Many Iraqis were displaced prior to the fall of the previous regime in 2003. Between 2003-2005, more than 300,000 Iraqis had returned home to begin rebuilding their lives, he said. But the trend has now dramatically reversed, particularly since the Samarra bombing in February 2006. About 750,000 people are estimated to have fled their homes since that incident, with up to 50,000 more displaced each month.
"The scale of the problem speaks for itself," Guterres, who chaired the conference, said in his keynote address. "In the most significant displacement in the Middle East since the dramatic events of 1948, one in eight Iraqis has been driven from their homes."
"If this massive population movement has gone largely unnoticed, it is partly because most of those fleeing are not going to highly visible camps, but are being absorbed by host communities, in Iraq and in neighbouring states. It is the largest urban caseload UNHCR has ever dealt with," Guterres said. "But those host communities are straining under this extraordinary burden, while the suffering of the displaced grows by the day."
Guterres stressed the humanitarian focus of the meeting, but also noted that humanitarian problems are "symptoms of a disease whose cure can only be political."
"This conference is only a first step in what we hope will be a sustained dialogue and comprehensive, coordinated response to the humanitarian crisis in Iraq," he said. The humanitarian needs of the Iraqis and the challenges faced by host countries required urgent, meaningful and genuine support from an international community committed to sharing the burden, he added.
"That includes financial, economic and technical support, but also expanded resettlement opportunities for the most vulnerable," he said. "The generosity of host countries must be matched by that of the entire international community."
The High Commissioner said that given the huge numbers of uprooted Iraqis, it was evident their permanent integration in countries of asylum was not a solution. And resettlement to third countries could only be provided to the most vulnerable of the Iraqi refugees.
"Clearly, the best solution for the overwhelming majority of Iraqi refugees will be their voluntary return in safety and dignity – once conditions allow," he said, adding that in the meantime it was essential that they maintain their links with their country.
While acknowledging the difficult security environment, Guterres said humanitarian agencies must find ways to tackle specific needs inside Iraq and noted that UNHCR itself was scaling up its activities in the country as well as in neighbouring states.
"Inside Iraq, everything possible must be done to prevent further flight," he said. "We know only too well the devastating consequences of uncontrolled sectarianism. Efforts must be made now, rather than later, to prevent protracted displacement and an exile without end." | <urn:uuid:15ee498b-a196-4f99-9525-7eb2e72634a9> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.unhcr.org/4624b0814.html | 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 | 0.969877 | 1,178 | 1.773438 | 2 |
Washington — The Obama administration now seems poised to ease its public pressure on Israel following Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s acceptance of a two-state solution to his country’s conflict with the Palestinians.
Following Netanyahu’s much awaited June 14 speech addressing America’s concerns about the policies of his new government, Israeli diplomats said they sensed a new willingness within the administration to “find creative solutions” to the issue of Jewish settlement activity in the Israeli occupied West Bank that would allow some limited building to continue.
Former senator George Mitchell, the administration’s special envoy to the Middle East, seemed less confident than his Israeli counterparts that a solution to the dispute was imminent. Speaking at a Washington press conference June 16, Mitchell said he was not aware of an agreement that would allow Israeli building for “natural growth” in established West Bank Jewish settlements, a right upon which Netanyahu insisted in his speech.
But after a long period of public criticism of Israel by Washington, discussions over the settlement issue are now shifting to quiet working-level talks between American and Israeli officials. The main channel for these discussions is expected to be Mitchell’s newly established Israel office. The office will be headed by David Hale, a career diplomat with vast experience in the Arab-Israeli field. From his Jerusalem headquarters, Hale is expected to involve himself deeply in the detailed negotiations surrounding Israel’s demand to continue building in established settlement blocs.
“We intend to bring these discussions to a very early conclusion,” Mitchell said at his press conference, expressing hope that direct Israeli–Palestinian talks will be launched in the near future.
Administration officials have been adamant in demanding that Israel take down illegal settlement outposts, as it has long promised to do, and cease all settlement expansion, including what Israel calls “natural growth” in established settlements regarded as legal under Israeli law, but illegal by most of the rest of the world. The so-called Middle East road map to peace, forged by the Bush administration with international partners in 2002, also prohibits such growth. Israel accepted the road map, but not the section barring natural growth.
In his speech, given at Bar-Ilan University, a bastion of support for the settlements, Netanyahu once again rejected the demand to curb natural growth, even as he formally acceded to another Obama administration demand: the concept of a Palestinian state as a goal of negotiations, as agreed to by earlier Israeli governments.
“I’m sure Bibi’s speech helped,” said Israel’s deputy foreign minister, Danny Ayalon, in a June 16 interview with the Forward. “Now that we are united about the vision [of a two-state solution] we can focus on the practical issues and work quietly on how to resolve them.”
In his speech, Netanyahu defended his rejection of the American demand for a complete settlement freeze.
“There is a need to enable the residents to live normal lives, to allow mothers and fathers to raise their children, like families elsewhere,” Netanyahu said. “The settlers are neither the enemies of the people nor the enemies of peace.”
Speaking two days later with reporters at the White House, President Obama flatly rejected Netanyahu’s insistence on a right to “natural growth” in West Bank Jewish settlements. Obama warned that despite the “tendency to try to parse” the exact meaning of “cessation of settlements,” he believed that all parties understand that “if you have a continuation of settlements that, in past agreements, have been categorized as illegal, that’s going to be an impediment to progress.”
Israeli sources who deal closely with the issue say that despite Washington’s unchanged public insistence on a “complete freeze” formula, in recent discussions American officials seemed open to a more nuanced approach. The Israelis argue that the administration understands now that private contracts for building new homes in the settlement blocs are hard to break and that in some cases there is room for leniency.
Israel has suggested the establishment of a “reporting mechanism” in which it would provide, for the first time, full information about all the building going on in the West Bank. This mechanism is expected to serve as a forum in which “extraordinary cases” would be discussed. Israeli officials said they believe that in some cases, such as when there is a need for a new classroom, the Americans will allow a certain amount of flexibility.
“I’m confident that we will be able to reach an agreement in the near future that will enable us to put the settlement issue aside,” Israel’s ambassador-designee to Washington, Michael Oren, said in a June 15 interview with Reuters news agency.
While agreeing to move the settlement debate to private negotiations from the public sphere, the administration was careful not to be seen as forgoing the issue.
Observers on the dovish side, such as former Israeli peace negotiator Daniel Levy and Amjad Atallah of the New America Foundation, believe that maintaining a tough stance on the settlement issue is crucial for success of the process. “The Obama administration needs to stick to its principle of a total freeze, whether in public or private conversation,” they wrote in an analysis of Netanyahu’s speech. “There can be only one place for a discussion of the future of settlements and that is delineating a permanent status border between Israel and Palestine.”
In its early reaction to Netanyahu’s speech, the American administration chose to focus on its positive aspects and showered praise on Netanyahu for what White House spokesman Robert Gibbs called “a big step forward,” referring to the Israelis’ acceptance of the concept of a Palestinian state.
But the administration pointedly declined to adopt two key conditions that Netanyahu attached to recognition of a Palestinian state, at least in advance of Israeli-Palestinian negotiations. In his speech, the Israeli leader demanded that Palestinians formally accept Israel as a Jewish state as part of any final peace agreement. Obama, like previous American presidents, made a point of mentioning the term “Jewish state” when talking about the two-state solution. But he did not adopt the demand that the Palestinians make this recognition.
Netanyahu’s second condition, that the Palestinian state be demilitarized, also has been accepted in principle by the past three administrations, but is viewed by Obama and his team as an issue that needs to be part of the direct negotiations between the sides, not a precondition.
Contact Nathan Guttman at email@example.com | <urn:uuid:4ea31071-e75b-403e-8320-dd425939bc55> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://forward.com/articles/108006/after-bibi-s-speech-a-shift-to-quiet-talks/ | 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 | 0.964784 | 1,374 | 1.835938 | 2 |
The situation in Tokyo is surreal at the moment because on the one hand you have trendy ladies shopping in the capital but on the other hand you have reports about radiation in tap water. It is difficult to fathom what reality is at the moment because some people feel deeply anxious while others are just getting on with life and enjoying the usual luxuries that Tokyo provides.
During March 23 you could feel the power of further earthquakes in the Fukushima region in the morning but is seems so natural these days because of the frequency. It is factual that Japan is hit by earthquakes throughout the year but many are minor and cause no damage; however, since March 11 it appears that it is never ending.
The earthquake of March 11 caused fear and alarm in Tokyo and this was despite escaping relatively unscathed unlike the tragic tragedy which hit Fukushima, Iwate, Miyagi, and other coastal regions in this part of Japan.
However, the recent earthquakes in Fukushima and so many other places are not creating the same fear because they are not so potent and destructive. Also, the 9.0-magnitude earthquake which struck on March 11 is very rare and the tsunami it unleashed was beyond my imagination.
Yet the daily tremors are adding to the surreal nature of life in Tokyo because each tremor reminds you about the tragedy of Fukushima, Iwate, Miyagi and coastal regions which were hit by the tsunami. However, when you visit the centre of Tokyo you see people shopping, buying new fashion clothes, eating out, chatting with friends, and the usual things that happen during times of normality.
One minute I am in Lumine in Ikebukuro and browsing around many fashion shops and the next minute I am checking my computer and reading about radiation in tap water in Tokyo. At the same time I meet a client who is a little anxious but the next client cares little and says that things will get back to normal.
Therefore, confusion reigns and this applies to over-hype and under-hype and the Fukushima issue is the same. The British Embassy in Tokyo issues directives which state that currently the situation in Fukushima is not dangerous to Tokyo. However, other embassies have told or warned their nationals about the threat of radiation and other side effects from the earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear plant crisis in Fukushima.
Officials today announced that tap water is unfit for babies because the radioactive iodine level in parts of Tokyo, have reached around twice the recommended safety level. Therefore, this news will set off new alarm bells to parents with babies and the knock on effect will generate fresh fear in some adults.
Of course the situation in Fukushima is much more dangerous and officials have announced that certain vegetables must be avoided. It is difficult to know if this announcement is based on real heightened concerns or if it is a precautionary measure because the pundits once more appear to have “no single voice.”
In Fukushima the radioactive iodine is around three times the usual level and this applies to the exclusion zone part of Fukushima. While contamination outside the 20km zone applies to milk and some vegetables but according to government officials the current levels do not pose a threat to health
Ibaraki is also causing concerns and milk and parsley have been forbidden from being sent to the open market. While in Fukushima local producers have been told to keep their goods and not to send them to market because of radiation factors.
Yukio Edano, the Japanese Cabinet Secretary, commented that “Even if these foods are temporarily eaten, there is no health hazard.”
“But unfortunately, as the situation is expected to last for the long term, we are asking that shipments stop at an early stage, and it is desirable to avoid intake of the foods as much as possible.”
The government is also trying to make it clear that safety limits for radiation is extremely low and because of this it is essential that people do not come up with exaggerated claims or fears.
However, several nations are worried about the radiation factor and possible contamination therefore different nations are responding to the ongoing crisis in Fukushima.
The United States announced that milk, milk products, fresh fruits and vegetables are to be stopped from entering the market of America and this applies to four prefectures in Japan. The prefectures that have been listed are Fukushima, where the nuclear crisis is ongoing, Gunma, Ibaraki and Tochigi.
Other nations have also issued statements related to Japanese food imports. Nations in northeast Asia have began rigorous checks and the ongoing crisis in Fukushima is clearly going to be detrimental to local producers of food and other goods which are generating concerns.
However, turning back to Tokyo and the surreal nature of life it often appears that nothing ever happened to Japan. This applies to ladies dressed amicably, fashion stores being full of shoppers, watching children playing football or baseball, and enjoying a cup of coffee in Seijo and a delicious chocolate cake.
Also, while residents in Fukushima are worried about radiation and eating local produce I have just entered the Odakyu Ox shop in Seijo, Tokyo. All around I can see high quality produce in the supermarket and happy shoppers.
Life is certainly surreal because while Seijo in Tokyo is a wealthy area I know full well that around half a million people have been made homeless by the destructive earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis in Fukushima.
I also know that so many people are in shellshock in Fukushima, Iwate, Miyagi, and in coastal areas of other prefectures which were hit by the earthquake and tsunami on March 11. Therefore, you have mass numbers of grieving people and of course some towns and villages have been erased from the map along the coast.
The surreal nature of events can be found in the reality that while thousands of bodies are still missing in the worst hit areas of Japan; it is business like usual for millions of other people and buying the latest fashion brands in high quality shops can be seen all over Tokyo.
http://www.globalpost.com/webblog/japan/seijogakuenmae (Good photo images of Seijo)
http://www.seijo-corty.jp/shop/ (Seijo Shopping Centre | <urn:uuid:5337642a-2221-44f0-bf47-c67c4b22400b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://leejaywalker.wordpress.com/tag/odakyu-ox-in-seijo/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967227 | 1,263 | 1.664063 | 2 |
The organizations of any parish play an important role in shaping the core of the parish community.
Perhaps even more so in a small parish where parishioners not only demonstrate their faith, but as active members of the parish organizations support our parish and surrounding community, making Richwoods a better place to live.
We invite everyone to join our members
in these organizations.
The quilters donate their time and talent to produce beautiful
hand-made quilts that are used for parish support throughout the year.
All are invited to join us for quilting and friendship on Tuesdays. Bring a sack lunch.
This is a wonderful way to learn how to quilt if you don't know how or share your talents if you are an old pro.
We always looking for additional quilters, please join us.
St. Vincent DePaul Society
St. Vincent de Paul Society is the oldest Lay Catholic organization in our country whose sole purpose is to help those in our parish community who are need of help.
It was founded by Blessed Frederic Ozanam, a young man of 20, in 1833 in Paris, France. The founding group consisted of six men, who placed themselves under the patronage of St. Vincent de Paul - the "Apostle of Charity " - and derives its inspiration from his thinking and work.
From these humble beginnings, the Society of St. Vincent de Paul has grown to an international organization, headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri.
The St. Stephens St. Vincent de Paul Society runs a Thrift Store in what was once the Suiter's General Store on State Highway A in Richwoods.
Through the store, the society provides merchandise to shoppers at reasonable prices, generating income and other necessary help for the needy. The Store relies on donations from the community for its stock and the community has been has been very generous.
We can always use helpers in the store. The ladies are looking for more volunteers to help a little. If you can spare a Saturday a month from 9 A.M. to 2 P.M., please call Helen Boyster, Aurelia Valle or Juanita Shaftner or the Rectory.
The Society also collects Aluminum cans which can be dropped off by the uphill side of our garage. May God bless you for your cooperation and efforts.
We are always looking for Choir Members to add a Sound of Music to
our Christmas Mass, weddings, funerals, special functions, or Sundays.
So, please come join us in praising God in song.
We practice each Sunday after 10:00 A.M. Mass for about 30 minutes.
The Parish Council is the coordinating and unifying structure of the
parish community. The Council works in cooperation with the Pastor
and the total parish in setting policy and establishing goals,
objectives and action plans. The Council attempts to reflect the
viewpoints of all the people of St. Stephens Church Richwoods Mo.
Our hall is a place for meetings,
socials and has a full kitchen area.
Volunteers are always needed for cleaning, minor repairs, grass cutting,
landscaping. If you would like to volunteer a few hours a week to
help, please call the office.
St. Stephens cemetery is located behind the church and rectory. For more information on the cemetery,
contact the parish office.
Information on St. Stephen Church - Father Robert Liss - (573) 678-2207 | <urn:uuid:d537bdff-5b56-4022-a980-23d45e5bbd7f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ststephenchurchrichwoodsmo.org/organizations.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.943655 | 715 | 1.53125 | 2 |
4 October 2012
Categories: Zoo Check Campaign News
Yesterday at the European Parliament, the European coalition of animal welfare NGOs, ENDCAP, launched its new publication on ‘Wild Pets in the European Union’ to a packed room of Members of the European Parliament, Representatives of EU countries and officials from the European Commission. Speakers: Daniel Turner (Born Free Foundation); Clifford Warwick (Emergent Disease Foundation); Rachel Hevesi (Wild Futures), spoke passionately, and provided evidence as to why there should be a ban in the trade of wild animals for pet keeping.
Parliamentarians were quick to add their support. South East England MEP, Catherine Bearder, chaired the meeting, and openly supported a ban on the trade in wild-caught and threatened animal species; Chris Davies MEP was alarmed to hear of the high mortalities in animal trade and the economic losses; whilst Kriton Arsenis MEP of Greece, expressed his concern about the risks of disease transmission in the keeping wild animals in the home and called for a complete ban on all wild pet keeping. Under fire, the Commission responded to a series of questions regarding inconsistency in EU trade regulation, evidence of limited knowledge by enforcement agencies, and requests to provide detail on their policy-making concerning wild animal trade.
There is much work to be done by Born Free and our EU partners, and now it has become clearer as to where efforts must be focused. A strategy will be developed and executed over the next six months with the aim ultimate to limit the trade in wild animals for pet keeping and furthermore, to seek opportunities to improve knowledge and training of enforcement agencies in countries throughout the EU.
Supporters are encouraged to express their concerns to Claudia Olazabal (Claudia.firstname.lastname@example.org), Deputy Head of Biodiversity for the European Commission, asking that all EU Member States record and monitor ALL animals (and numbers of animals) imported into their country and seek to tighter trade restrictions to limit, as much as possible, the keeping of wild animals as pets. | <urn:uuid:7efa22d1-7aff-4bb0-84af-5e407d92f67a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.bornfree.org.uk/news/news-article/?no_cache=1&tx_ttnews[tt_news]=1129 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.945671 | 419 | 1.828125 | 2 |
If you are new to the internet, there are many essential things you must know especially if your desire is to make money. Understanding web hosting tricks is very vital in order to be ahead of competitors in today’s world. Master these five tricks and see yourself on the top.
1. Get a domain name: The smart way to begin an online venture is to register a domain name. However, in choosing a name, you must make sure that your keyword is included. This will give it an edge in promotion and with search engines. If you want to get smarter, you can look out for web hosting companies with free domain names in their packages. This way, you would be killing two birds with one stone.
2. Look for a reputable hosting company: As soon as the domain name is ready, the next step is to host the site. In order to choose the right web host, you should carry out an adequate investigation. There are many hosts around and they have different plans. By carefully investigating these providers, you would be better guided in choosing the one that will meet your requirements.
3. Get a good design for your site: If you are familiar with basic web design languages like HTML, PHP, CSS, etc., you can design your website by yourself. But if not, you can hire an expert to do the job for you. In fact, there are lots of freelancers out there who can do a good job for you at a cheaper rate. Your web design must be splendid or else your visitors won’t appreciate it. You don’t have a second chance to create a positive first impression and it is your design that you will use to achieve this.
4. Create good contents for your site: The only thing that can turn your site visitors to customers is its contents. Hence, you should spend a lot of time to create great contents for your site. Your contents must be unique, original, informative, keyword-rich but not keyword-stuffed, etc. Carry out a lot of research before writing, so that you can come up with rich contents. If you want search engines to rank your site very well, pay attention to quality copy writing.
5. Promote your site: In order to attract visitors to your site, you must promote it. There are several ways to promote a website; you can promote it through search engine marketing, pay-per-view advertising, pay-per-click advertising, social networking, email marketing, banner advertising and so on. In fact, there are web hosting companies that offer free pay-per-click advertising on reputable search engines in their packages. If you can find one of the companies offering such packages, you are definitely going to put your website on a sound footing.
Visit a reputable web hosting company for various hosting plans. | <urn:uuid:0bfc60fe-0db6-4b00-a9c4-69c614ad6760> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://joomla-admin.com/5-web-hosting-tricks-for-beginners-2/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.95081 | 575 | 1.671875 | 2 |
Magazine gives Cold Lake top spot 0
The Canadian financial magazine Venture has rated Cold Lake as one of their Top 25 places in Western Canada to do business.
In their June 4 issue, Cold Lake was noted for its business-friendly environment as part of its annual listing of Western cities.
The magazine said part of the reason was because the city was generating billions of dollars in new economic activity, with its growth expected to continue with future oilsands development, including Imperial Oil's $2 billion Nabiye expansion.
Cold Lake Mayor Craig Copeland said that the move did not come as a surprise, given the region's growing economy.
"We're the economic engine of northeast Alberta," he said. "It was pretty exciting to get Cold Lake recognized in a prominent magazine like Venture."
The Cold Lake Chamber of Commerce executive director, Sheri Bohme, said that she believed Cold Lake made it high on the list because of its lack of services to a growing population, which made it easier for new business owners to start up.
She described Cold Lake as a smaller Fort McMurray with cheaper rental rates, which she said helped businesses grow.
The magazine wrote that the average lease rate for office space is considerably cheaper in Cold Lake than Fort McMurray, at $12 and $40, respectively.
As well, there are still a number of areas, including hospitality industry, retail, and others that are still lacking service within Cold Lake that would make it easier for business owners to step in.
She added that more 4 Wing members are retiring in Cold Lake, and are opening businesses and keeping their money inside the community.
Bohme said that as long as provincial attention and Cold Lake's own self-promotion continues, she expects there to continue to be opportunities for business owners.
The magazine said that the biggest employer in the city was the Government of Canada, which runs 4 Wing.
The magazine notes that the oil and gas industry could soon overtake 4 Wing as the largest employer in the area.
Copeland says that this is a "very accurate" description of the city's economic future.
While he said that the city was not completely at the point where oil and gas could overtake 4 Wing as the largest employer, he believed that would change with the amount of development expected to take place in the region.
He said that both of them, working together, provided a one-two punch economically.
Copeland noted that the Air Force base provides a cushion to the city should oilsands project slow down.
He also praised city council for their work in promoting the city's business opportunities.
In addition, Cold Lake was also rated by the magazine as one of the three best communities for energy resources, including Calgary and Red Deer. | <urn:uuid:46762c34-db24-4afd-9122-2b83e419b42a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.coldlakesun.com/2012/06/13/magazine-gives-cold-lake-top-spot | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.983776 | 563 | 1.53125 | 2 |
Congolese rebels took control of the eastern city of Goma and part of the border with Rwanda on Tuesday after days of heavy clashes, a Congolese reporter there said.
The rebels took control of the government radio station in Goma and were seen walking through town, entering government and police buildings, said the reporter, who could not be named for security reasons.
The rebels are part of the M23 rebel group, which has been engaged in heavy fighting with Congolese army forces in the region since last Thursday.
Though 1,500 United Nations peacekeeping troops are in Goma and have control of the airport there, a U.N. spokesman said the situation is at a "critical stage."
"Reports indicate that the M23 has wounded civilians, is continuing abductions of children and women, is destroying property and is intimidating journalists and those who have attempted to resist their control," said Eduardo del Buey, the deputy spokesman for the U.N. secretary-general.
A total of 6,000 troops from the U.N. mission in Congo, MONUSCO, are in the wider region of North and South Kivu, patrolling areas of particular insecurity, del Buey said.
The United Nations, the African Union and countries in the region are demanding that M23 immediately stop its attacks, Buey said.
France and Britain expressed their concerns Tuesday. The British Foreign Office said its minister for Africa, Mark Simmonds, was traveling to Rwanda, Congo, and Uganda to support efforts to end the crisis.
"I am deeply concerned by the current crisis and I urge the M23 to stop their offensive and for all external support to the M23 to cease," Simmonds said in a statement ahead of the visit.
The conflict spread over the border Tuesday when several shells hit Rwanda, killing two people and wounding several others, Rwandan Foreign Minister Louise Mushikiwabo told CNN. | <urn:uuid:30569f5b-b666-4145-9fc7-1e3c78680944> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wdsu.com/news/money/technology/Dem-Rep-of-Congo-rebels-seize-Goma/-/9853214/17483020/-/item/0/-/bckn97/-/index.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.971302 | 396 | 1.609375 | 2 |
Good lesson - it's always nice when you learn something new.
Julienne, chiffonade, emince...? Fancy names. Simple concepts. Find clarity here.
Great lesson, thank you.
I'm hoping for a whole lesson on grilling fish in the future, but in the meantime, how do you grill fish so it doesn't stick. I tried trout on my BBQ many times and pretty much always I loose the skin and the presentation is... well, you know.
Grilling will definitely be in Rouxbe's future; however, for now, the best advice I can give is to use a well-oiled fish basket or a fish grate. This makes it much easier to turn the fish during cooking and makes the fish less prone to sticking. If you don't have either, you need to make sure the hot grill is as clean as possible and is brushed well with oil. You can also brush the fillets with additional oil before placing them onto the grill. Hope this helps! Cheers!
For sure cast iron would work over higher heat. It would also likely work over low heat if it is a well seasoned cast iron pan as it will be somewhat non-stick anyways. In either case you will need to monitor the heat. Cheers!
The water test in the meat pan-frying lesson was very useful for me.
Is there some sort of pan temperature test trick for cooking fish ?
Rouxbe is a great site ! Just after studying a few lessons I greatly improved my cooking. Thanks for everything.
i did the water test and ensured the pan was high enough and yet the salmon stuck and when it did finally pry loose the skin peeled right off. this has been a problem not only for salmon but other types of meat and fish in a stainless steel pan. can you please help me? thanks
Make sure that the skin and flesh side of the fish have been patted dry really well. You might also want to apply a very thin layer of oil to the skin before placing it into the pan. Remember to let the fish cook and develop a crust before trying to move it. Also, make sure your pan is very clean, as sometimes a film or any sort of debris can latch on to the food. Keep practicing - you will get it. Keep us posted on your progress. Cheers!
The pan has to be hot. If you have a good pan that has been properly heated and you add properly-prepared fish, the skin will crisp up and you'll be able to turn the fish without anything sticking. It is possible - it just takes practice and patience.
I've been cooking for 20 years...at home...mostly self taught,Rouxbe is what I have been looking for...thanks a million (my wife thanks you too). After porperly heating the pan...water test...I cooked salmon. It came out great...thank you for being here for me.
I cook fish mostly with skin.
The first problem I have is that the skin cause the fish to contract and curl so the skin does not get crispy evenly. So I made a few cuts across the skin but it still curls up. Then I try to pan fry it without the cuts but use the spatula to slightly press the fish flat onto the pan. But I can only get the edges really crispy but the middle part not so. What should I do? Should I add more oil so that the hot oil can reach all the skin surface evenly?
Second, the oil around the outside of the pan tend to get oxidized like old cooking fat with that look and smell even though I did not heat the oil to the smoking point. I used Canola oil and I also had the fish in the middle of the pan and not on the hottest outer part. Any hint I can prevent the oil from getting that smell and look which ruined the fish in a way. The fish I cooked was Pike with skin.
With regards to the skin, you are right to score the skin to help it from curling. Make sure to score the skin of the fish from side to side. If only done in the middle of the skin this can cause it to curl. Also, keep in mind that a thin filet has a tendency to curl as there is not enough weight to hold it down like with a thick piece of fish. Make sure that both the fish and skin side is very dry - pat well with paper towels before pan frying. This will help to crisp it up. You can use a touch more oil in the pan and you could also apply a thin film to the skin of the fish. Season just before frying so moisture isn't drawn to the surface, which will prevent a good sear.
Now, it sounds like your pan is far too hot. Heat the pan as shown in the video. The oil around the fish should not discolor during the cooking process. You also might be using too large of a pan for the amount of fish that you are cooking. Pan-frying fish takes a lot of practice to perfect. Don't give up. Pay attention to the small tweaks you make each time and you'll get it right. Cheers!
You are in luck then...here is an entire lesson on How to Make a Butter Sauce and here is a lesson called Cooking Fish Fundamentals. Also be sure to check out the lesson on Pan Frying Fish as it doesn't matter what kind of fish it is, it can all be pan fried according to the lesson. Good luck and happy practicing. Cheers! | <urn:uuid:71689d98-e3ea-4888-8958-dacfc827686d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://rouxbe.com/community/forums/7-cooking-school/topics/792-how-to-pan-fry-fish | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970901 | 1,139 | 1.632813 | 2 |
Tunisia will need to secure $5 billion in external financing this year to fill the gap in its balance of payments as well as refinancing some of its debt, the central bank governor said.
The country will depend on international financial institutions—the World Bank, the African Development Bank and European Investment Bank—and bonds to fill the gap in the balance-of-payments deficit of about 7% of economic output this year, Mustapha Kamel Nabli told Dow Jones Newswires in an interview Saturday.
The country also will secure $500 million from Qatar, and the U.S. may offer some financial help, too, he said.
Davos Live provides updates from the World Economic Forum’s annual talkfest in Davos, Switzerland, which draws more than 2,500 business, political and academic leaders for a five-day program of workshops and panel discussions. A team of reporters and editors from The Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones Newswires is on the scene, and will be posting news, commentary and gossip as the conference unfolds. | <urn:uuid:adbd0a0d-6457-4929-bfbf-8f6f8893bc29> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blogs.wsj.com/davos/tag/arab-spring/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.937138 | 221 | 1.601563 | 2 |
Building the seat collar was a fun job. Pretty simple, and only one day’s work. First step was to figure out dimension.
I drew on cardboard, and made the correct amount of space for the bolt. Starting with 1″ mild steel, the drawing was transferred by scribing on layout dye.
The rotary table really was invaluable when building the Whippet. The combination of lathe, mill, rotary table, and digital readout is REALLY quite powerful.
OK, there were a few steps in between these two photos. After milling the radius (above), the seat collar went into the lathe, and the centre was bored out, leaving a step. Then back into the rotary table, and a 1/4″ endmill relieved the radius (top and bottom) to be used as a guide for hand filing. Next the slot, followed by the bolt hole. Radius around the bolt hole. File and shape to suit. The hard part is the blending from radius to flat; that’s where you need patience.
Thanks for taking the tour, | <urn:uuid:a6317bc3-5aeb-4ae1-99c6-64355a01b40f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://flashbackfab.com/other-vintage-antique-projects/the-whippet/whippet-seat-collar/ | 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 | 0.965964 | 225 | 1.609375 | 2 |
I think it best to avoid using pop-psychology terms, what some call “psychobabble.” It puts my teeth on edge when I hear terms such as “paranoid,” “schizoid,” and “bi-polar” thrown about with abandon.
It is not that I have a great respect for psychological analysis and want to ensure that these terms do not lose their precise meanings. It is just that, more often than not, I find their insertion into a discussion of political and cultural matters to be pretentious and trendy, rhetorical cheapshots that muddy the waters more than they clarify the issue at hand.
That said, I am going to make an exception: “Cognitive Dissonance” what psychologists call the uncomfortable tension brought about from holding two conflicting thoughts at the same time describes perfectly my reacton to what we routinely hear these days from theologians, the American bishops and parish priests on the question of immigration. You know the drill: The hierarchy and the clergy tell us we must be open to immigration, welcome the poor and the downtrodden to our shores, not put materialistic concerns above our duty to love our neighbors as ourselves, the least of our brethren. My heart tells me I should be with them on this one.
Yet when I look around the world, especially at the rapidly increasing and increasingly militant Muslim populations in Europe, my head tells me otherwise. We can’t go on like this. I suspect that a good number of the theologians and clergy who scold us for not being open to immigration feel the same way, even if they are reluctant to admit it in public. I don’t think they ever imagined it would come to this, to the likelihood that Muslims will be the majority in most of the countries of Western Europe and that Catholics in the not-so-distant future will find themselves living under laws shaped by the kind of people who are burning embassies and issuing death threats because of cartoons in a Danish newspaper that they found offensive.
Christ’s call is to teach all nations in the name of the Father. St. Paul tells us to remake all things in Christ. How can permitting demographic changes that will turn Catholics into a beleaguered minority aid in that mission? Martyrs can be powerful examples that draw men to Christ. But we are not supposed to deliberately seek martyrdom. We are certainly not called to wish it on our descendants. There is nothing noble in that.
The wave of protests over the Danish cartoons forces us to confront what will happen to a society where Muslims become the dominant segment. We are not talking about a handful of Islamic kooks. We saw waves of street protests, death threats to Western reporters, burned embassies. Libya, Syria, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait withdrew their ambassadors from Copenhagen. Several commentators noted the irony of Muslim demonstrators burning the Danish flag, which features a prominent Christian cross, because of their anger over a lack of respect by Europeans for their religious symbols.
But highlighting this hypocrisy will make little impact on the Muslim extremists. They feel no obligation to be consistent in these matters. They see nothing out of line in demanding respect for Islam from Westerners, while at the same time prohibiting the display of the Christian Cross or the Star of David in Saudi Arabia. Infidels are not entitled to equal justice under the law in societies governed by Islamic fundamentalists. Muslim fundamentalists do not shrink from admitting that they seek supremacy for Islam. They are proud of their militancy.
Is there anything to prevent the demographic changes that will give Europe’s Muslims the power to decide how much religious freedom to grant the Christians living in their midst? Sad to say, maybe not. We may have passed the tipping point. But there is a possibility that the rioting over the Danish cartoons and the rise in crime and Islamic militancy in Europe will provide the jolt needed to wake the Europeans out of their torpor.
In Our Culture, What’s Left of It, Theodore Dalrymple paints a chilling portrait of what is happening these days in France. Crime has risen dramatically in recent years, from 600,000 incidents annually in 1959 to 4 million today. Reported cases of arson have increased 2,500 percent in the last seven years. Robbery involving violence has increased 44.5 percent since 1996.
Everyone agrees about where these increases have come from, says Dalrymple: “the public housing projects that encircle and increasingly besiege every French city or town of any size, Paris especially. In these housing projects lives an immigrant population numbering several million, from North and West Africa mostly, along with their French-born descendants, and a smattering of the least successful members of the French working class. From these projects, the excellence of the French public transport system ensures that the most fashionable arrondissements are within easy reach of the most inveterate thief and vandal.”
The hatred of these immigrants for the host culture is so intense, Dalrymple continues, that the local street thugs “greet the admirable firemen (whose motto is Sauver ou périr, save or perish) with Molotov cocktails and hails of stones when they arrive” to put out “the fires that they themselves have started.” The French now live with a numerous and ever-increasing Islamic sub-culture, biding its time until it can remake France to its liking.
And it is not just France. In one of those curious coincidences that some time come about, during the same week that the rioting over the Danish cartoons broke out, the New York Times ran a story (one that had to have been written at least weeks before) by Christopher Caldwell in its Sunday magazine entitled “Islam…on the Outskirts of the Welfare State.” Caldwell describes how Swedish factory towns, such as Bergsjon, built in the mid-20th century to provide a comfortable middle-class life for Swedish workers, are now inhabited mostly by Muslim immigrants. “Seventy percent of the residents were either born abroad or have parents who were. The same goes for 93 percent of the schoolchildren. You see Somali women walkng the paths in hijabs and long wraps.”
A woman of Turkish background, a former member of the Swedish Parliament assimilated into Sweden’s way of life, was interviewed by Caldwell. She is uncomfortable with the cultural forces at work brought on by the wave of modern immigrants:
People are using Islam to distance themselves from Swedish society. Ten years ago when I was a member of Parliament, people would see me on the tiniest cable stations. Now, when I’m on big national programs, only one or two people will ever say they’ve seen me. Everybody else is watching Al Jazeera.
Caldwell cuts to the chase:
Sweden’s biggest immigration problem may be a matter not of crime, unemployment and Islamic radicalism, but of something else altogether: that its newcomers understand perfectly well what this system erected in the name of equality is and have decided it doesn’t particularly suit them.
Tell me again: Why is it a Catholic responsibility to call for an immigration policy that will facilitate the process through which they will construct a society that does suit them?
(This article originally appeared in The Wanderer and is reprinted with permission. To subscribe call 651-224-5733.)
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GAO, Mali — With his finger on the trigger and a menacing look, a 14-year-old recruit ordered a vehicle to pull over on the road from the Niger border to Gao, the biggest city in northern Mali, now under control of Islamist armed groups.
"We have decided to reinforce security here and take the necessary steps to do so," Malian teenager Aziz Maiga told AFP at this checkpoint in Labezanga, about 200 kilometres (125 miles) from Gao, before he joined in a search of the waiting vehicles.
The rifle-toting Islamist fighters, wearing turbans and military uniforms or fatigues and dusty black combat boots, inspected all the passengers and their baggage.
Perhaps the most startling thing about these fighters along this frontier route is that nearly all of them are from sub-Saharan Africa rather than the Maghreb.
"Me too, I am surprised," Nigerien Hicham Bilal, who is leading a katiba (combat unit) to Gao, admitted to AFP. "Every day we have new volunteers. They come from Togo, Benin, Niger, Guinea, Senegal, Algeria and elsewhere."
Since all of them want to go to war, Bilal said, the fighters are no longer divided into separate Islamist movements.
"We are all mujahedeen," he declared. "Here, there's no more MUJAO (Movement for Oneness and Jihad in West Africa), Ansar Dine (Defenders of the Faith) or AQIM (Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb)."
A young Ivorian, clearly a new recruit, boasted: "We are ready for battle. We are waiting for the French or African troops to arrive."
His battle cry referred to a military force that West African nations are planning to deploy in Mali, with logistical aid from France, to help Bamako take back control of the north which was seized by Islamist groups following a March coup. The deployment is awaiting authorisation from the United Nations.
In Gao, the new arrivals present themselves at the Islamist police headquarters. The fresh fighters showing up there appear younger and younger.
"I am Khalil, an Egyptian, and I came to help my mujahedeen brothers," said one man in Arabic, speaking through a translator from Sierra Leone.
Another volunteer said in English that he is Pakistani. "Islam has no borders," he added.
While these two work with the police, several dozen Algerian fighters have taken up positions on the frontline to the south of the city on the road that leads to the Malian capital Bamako.
According to one witness, the Algerians are part of the combat unit of powerful AQIM chief Mokhtar Belmokhtar, alias Belaaouar, who controls the Gao region.
The Islamists have divided northern Mali into three regions: Belmokhtar in Gao, Algerian Abdel Hamid Abou Zeid in charge of Timbuktu, and Malian Tuareg rebel Iyad Ag Ghaly, the leader of Ansar Dine, in his native Kidal area.
At Gao's airport, the Islamists have parked broken-down vehicles on the runways to prevent "enemy" planes from landing there.
Residents near the airport claim there are two training camps for new fighters.
"I saw some of them training. There were two sessions on shooting and military tactics. A lot of them are very young, they say they are ready to die," said a civil servant in Gao, who requested anonymity.
Around the nine districts in the city of Gao, locals say "camouflaged" fighters are setting up in the houses.
"I saw two heavy weapons in one house in the fourth district of Gao. It's the first time I've seen that," said one young resident named Djenakou.
Life for the citizens of Gao has become harder after the Islamists recently imposed strict sharia law in the region. On September 10, five men accused of robbery each had a hand and foot cut off.
Around the city, private radio stations can no longer play music. Women must wear a veil or face punishment including being sent to prison. And it is rare to see someone dare to smoke in public.
To discreetly buy tobacco, people use a code name: "paracetamol".
One man complained that everyone in his village of Bamba is out of work "because Bamba is the main area for growing tobacco, which is now banned from being sold."
The Islamists, who were tolerated by the local population when they first took control, appear to have become more and more unpopular. Still, the city market is bustling with people and basic foodstuffs can be found in the stalls.
And the shoppers say they are opposed to any military intervention by foreign troops.
"When elephants fight each other, it's the grass that suffers. The elephants are the (Islamist) fighters here and the army from Bamako with outside support. The grass is the poor civilians, us," lamented Mahamane, a retired civil servant.
Copyright © 2013 AFP. All rights reserved. More » | <urn:uuid:ac5085e5-154c-42a9-b258-1291f32cc596> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.google.com/hostednews/afp/article/ALeqM5hXT_UhF3YQAZQ4_bPbytBlTxPxyg?docId=CNG.92f8e882d0cac04a70810207085ab1e2.581 | 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 | 0.966772 | 1,067 | 1.507813 | 2 |
With the Cubs holding the Astros hitless for 15 consecutive innings over two games on Sunday and Monday, here is a look at some other exceptional and rare no-hit feats in baseball history.
Johnny Vander Meer is the only pitcher in Major League history to throw no-hitters in consecutive appearances. The Reds left-hander threw his first vs. the Boston Bees on June 11, 1938, then followed it up on June 15 with another no-no vs. the Brooklyn Dodgers. Including his two starts before and after the no-hitters, Vander Meer pitched a total of 21 1/3 no-hit innings over four games.
Though no team in history has tossed a no-hitter in consecutive games, the feat has been done in consecutive days. On May 5, 1917, Ernie Koob of the St. Louis Browns threw a no-hitter against the Chicago White Sox, winning 1-0. The next day, in the second game of a doubleheader, teammate Bob Groom did the same thing, winning 3-0.
According to the Elias Sports Bureau, the last time a team pitched or succumbed to a streak of 15 consecutive no-hit innings was June 2-3, 1995, when the Expos held the Padres without a hit for that span. On Sept. 25-27, 1981, the Astros held the Dodgers without a hit for 16 consecutive innings.
Cy Young holds the Major League record with 23 consecutive scoreless innings pitched, although some sources list this streak to be as high as 25 1/3 innings.
Cincinnati's Ewell Blackwell nearly matched Vander Meer's feat in 1947. He threw a no-hitter vs. the Boston Braves on June 18, then fell two outs shy of duplicating that effort vs. Brooklyn four days later.
In September 1968, no-hitters were thrown in back-to-back games during a series between two teams. On Sept. 17, Gaylord Perry of the Giants no-hit the Cardinals, 1-0, at Candlestick Park. On the following day, Ray Washburn duplicated the feat for the Cardinals with his 2-0 win over the Giants.
In 1969, Houston and Cincinnati traded no-hitters on consecutive days: on April 30, Jim Maloney of Cincy no-hit Houston and won 10-0; the next day, Don Wilson of Houston no-hit the Reds and won 4-0.
On June 29, 1990 two no-hitters were thrown within hours of each other. Dave Stewart of the A's pitched a no-hitter in Toronto against the Blue Jays. Later in the day, the Dodgers' Fernando Valenzuela pitched a no-hitter at home against the St. Louis Cardinals.
The Yankees' Don Larsen became the first to throw a no-hitter in the World Series with his Game 5 gem vs. the Dodgers in 1956. He remains the only pitcher to record a no-no in the postseason.
The only Opening Day no-hitter in baseball history took place on April 16, 1940, when Indians Hall of Famer Bob Feller shut down the White Sox.
In 1953, Bobo Holloman of the St. Louis Browns pitched a no-hitter in his first Major League start.
Bob Forsch and Ken Forsch are the only pair of brothers to both pitch official no-hitters. Bob pitched two no-hitters while with the Cardinals, the first in 1978 and the second in 1983. Ken pitched one for the Astros in 1979. Brothers Pascual Pérez and Melido Pérez both pitched rain-shortened, unofficial no-hitters; Pascual for five innings for the 1988 Expos and Melido for six innings for the 1990 White Sox.
Boston's Jason Varitek has caught four no-hitters, the most of any catcher: Hideo Nomo (2001), Derek Lowe (2002), rookie Clay Buchholz (2007) and Jon Lester (2008).
Boston's Babe Ruth and Ernie Shore combined for one of the more unconventional no-hitters in baseball history in the first game of a doubleheader on June 23, 1917. Ruth walked the leadoff batter, then was promtly ejected for arguing balls and strikes. Shore came in to replace him, watched his catcher throw out the runner on an attempted steal, then retired the next 26 batters.
Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan holds the Major League record with seven no-hitters. The first came in 1973 during his tenure with the Angels, and the last took place in 1991, when he was a 44-year-old with the Rangers.
This story was not subject to the approval of Major League Baseball or its clubs. | <urn:uuid:d1ee52a7-da02-4a27-b860-4f234e95d975> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://cleveland.indians.mlb.com/news/article.jsp?ymd=20080915&content_id=3481250&vkey=news_mlb&fext=.jsp&c_id=mlb | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962876 | 979 | 1.773438 | 2 |
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- President Barack Obama broke out his pens Wednesday to sign legislation reauthorizing the Export-Import Bank, which makes it easier for U.S. companies to sell their goods overseas by providing financing for exports.
In a rare bipartisan vote, Congress passed the legislation in mid-May.
"There are a number of things that my administration can do on our own and we're gonna keep on doing them, but it gets a whole lot easier if we get some help from Congress, and this is a great example and great model of what can happen," said Obama at the Eisenhower Executive Office Building signing ceremony.
The Export-Import Bank, which dates back to the Roosevelt administration, is tasked with providing loans and other support for both large and small businesses to ply their products outside the U.S. borders. These loans are generally considered to be more risky due to the volatility of the overseas marketplace.
In the Senate, the reauthorization passed by a vote of 78 to 20. One of those "no" votes came from Sen. Mike Lee, a Republican from Utah.
"We need to end the corporate welfare that distorts the market and feeds corny capitalism," Lee said on the Senate floor on May 15. "The corporations that largely benefit from the Ex-Im Bank should have no trouble marshaling their resources to compete in today's economy."
The legislation Obama signed allows the bank to approve new financing until September 2014. It also permits the bank to increase its lending limit to $120 billion immediately. In the longer term, that limit can be raised to $140 billion if the bank submits a business plan and continues to maintain a low default rate on its loans.
During the signing ceremony, the president listed other goals he would like Congress to work toward, including providing a $3,000 credit for Americans who refinance their homes, supporting clean energy, and working to create a better job market for veterans.
Also on his congressional "to-do" list is help for small businesses.
"Congress still has the opportunity to do more to help small-business owners, who create most of the new jobs in America so we want to give them a tax break for hiring more workers and providing those workers higher wages," he said.
According to a White House fact sheet on the bill signed Wednesday, Export-Import Bank authorizations last year reached $32.7 billion, "supporting $40 billion in export sales and 290,000 American jobs at more than 3,600 U.S. companies."
The president used 10 pens to sign the export-import legislation, a common White House practice that allows each of the pens to be either displayed or distributed as a souvenir. | <urn:uuid:ad453568-5da1-4e01-9b77-483a96384c96> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wibw.com/home/nationalnews/headlines/President_Signs_Into_Law_Bill_That_Helps_US_Exports__155827245.html?site=full | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958802 | 554 | 1.804688 | 2 |
Working in social media means my own accounts sometimes lag behind in maintenance. I just finished a major follow back effort yesterday in my Twitter account. I spent a fair amount of time Sifting through the 1,000 or so people who I have yet to follow back making split second decisions on whether or not I should click on the follow button. I came out of the experience thinking several things:
- There are a lot more brands and companies using Twitter than in the past.
- There are a lot more spam bots and less than worthy accounts than in the past.
My decision process for following people back is pretty rapid. I don’t have a lot of time to spend on this task, so a few things become very important. These are things that you should consider for your own account to ensure you get the people you want to follow you back.
- Post a real picture of yourself – This helps make the experience much more personal. I find that I quickly skim past accounts that do not appear to have a real picture. I am looking for real people to follow on Twitter. My main reason for being on social media is to connect with real people, so branded accounts get less attention. I do look at branded accounts to see if I have interest in what they “sell”, but those accounts get much less attention than the accounts with a picture of a person.
- Your name matters – I look at the account name immediately after scanning the Twitter handle and picture. I often make a decision on following based on the name the person provides. If they don’t provide a name I will often pass them by.
- Location matters- I love following people from around the world. It is one of the things that make Twitter so sexy. But let’s be honest, we all like to connect with people in our backyard. I quickly follow back people who are in Minnesota. They are my neighbors and I want the opportunity to get to know them better.
- Your profile is important – Use the 140 characters to tell me something valuable about you. I like to know who a person is, what they do for their livelihood and what they are about. If you don’t give me something substantive here I most likely will pass you by.
- Your tweets matter- Make sure you are tweeting and retweeting. I like to see that people are active and using Twitter to connect. If their page is full of broadcasting type tweets it is easy for me to pass them by.
What are some tips you can share about increasing Twitter follow backs? | <urn:uuid:3353e913-fbde-4cf0-b345-a7873d74b085> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://socialnicole.com/5-tips-increase-twitter-follow-backs/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958691 | 525 | 1.679688 | 2 |
FORT WALTON BEACH — With a smile on every face, some 50 protesters pressed to the edge of the sidewalk Saturday as they waved and chanted at cars passing on Beal Parkway.
Their signs calling for the end to racism and the spread of love almost covered up the signs they were protesting against.
Signs posted on Larry Ford’s property near the corner of Yancey Drive have raised eyebrows for several years for what many people say are racist messages. A one-woman protest by Melanie Alexander in December helped spark Saturday’s gathering.
“This is a different way of bringing unity,” said Mikey Noechel, one of the protest’s organizers.
Armed with signs, flags, a bullhorn and their voices, protesters coaxed honks, peace signs and waves from motorists.
There also were a few negative reactions. A few protesters recalled seeing a thumb-down sign and an unintelligible remark from a passing pickup truck.
Attempts to reach Ford on Saturday were unsuccessful.
Sarah Velverton said she was surprised to see so many positive reactions from residents. Ford has a right to post the signs, Velverton said, but she also had a right to make her voice heard.
“They make me sick,” Velverton said of the signs. “I have four kids and I want them to grow up in a community without hate.”
Dawn Heald wanted to combat the signs’ negativity. She thought it was important to bring her two daughters, 8-year-old Genny and 13-year-old Mary, along Saturday.
“I hope that they take that they can make their voices loud,” Heald said. “The only way to change it is to voice your opinion.”
Friends Cay Burton and Carol Dorsey decided to attend the protest together. The world needs more love and peace, not those signs, Burton said.
“Hate is illogical,” Dorsey said, quoting a sign featuring the “Star Trek” character Mr. Spock.
“How do you argue with love? How do you argue with Spock?”
Daily News Staff Writer Lauren Delgado can be reached at 850-315-4445 or email@example.com. Follow her on Twitter @LaurenDnwfdn. | <urn:uuid:db87a1db-15aa-439e-ab5a-d59db6add030> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.nwfdailynews.com/local/a-sign-for-a-sign-video-gallery-1.85159 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.972088 | 500 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Balance is hard. Imagine walking on a tight-rope for 18 hours a day; it's just not possible. So you need to re-frame what work-life balance actually means, and how you will achieve it realistically within your own life and career.
1. Redefine balance. There's no shame if you want to focus on your career or attend a friend's barbecue. We all define work-life balance differently, and your first step to achieving your own bit of bliss is to accept that your version of balance may be different than your friends, family, and society. This is your life and you decide how you allocate your time.
2. Choose one priority. Perhaps it's the time to exercise three times a week. Or maybe you want a promotion. Or the ability to have sit-down dinners with your kids, partner, or friends. Don't get wrapped up in trying to "have it all." Instead, decide if you want to focus on your life or work. You can't do both; balance happens over time, not all at once. Maybe you hunker down and work for three months, and then lighten up for the following few months. When you dedicate your time to pursuing your priorities and what's important to you, you'll automatically reduce any strain.
3. Plan ahead. It may not be spontaneous to schedule life, but you're more likely to be successful at managing your priorities if they're on your calendar. Don't just talk about a date night, make it a recurring appointment. Then take a few minutes to book three months of restaurant reservations in advance. Or partner with a friend and schedule an ongoing activity for every Saturday. Your partner will keep you accountable and you'll have something to look forward to during the week. When it's time to work fun into your schedule, you won't have to worry about a thing.
4. Work at work. Even though careers are a bigger part of our lives than ever before, resist bringing work into every moment of your life. Try tracking your time, and you'll discover you don't actually work the entire time you think you are. Even workaholics vastly overestimate the number of hours they put their nose to the grindstone. You'll be more productive (i.e., spend less time on Pinterest and Facebook) if you limit your workday to the time you're in the office, not to mention have more time for hobbies at home.
5. Change something. You have to make sacrifices to achieve balance. In most cases, small changes will produce big results, but sometimes you'll need to prepare to do something more drastic. If your commute is unbearable, consider moving. If you want a promotion, you may have to put dance classes on hold. If you can't leave your job when your child is sick, try to find a new one. These choices aren't easy, but making big decisions will allow you to improve the quality of your life or career immensely.
Work-life balance is often elusive, but if you are honest with yourself about your priorities and time, and dedicate some real energy toward the cause, you'll be able to discover your own personal equilibrium.
Rebecca Thorman's goal is to help you find meaningful work, enjoy the heck out of it, and earn more money. Her blog Kontrary offers career, business, and life advice that works. She writes from Washington, D.C. | <urn:uuid:e08fa90a-daca-4a55-9710-81b01b56b8f4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://money.usnews.com/money/blogs/outside-voices-careers/2012/08/23/how-to-realistically-achieve-work-life-balance | 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 | 0.967433 | 702 | 1.828125 | 2 |
Courtesy of National Review Online.
Lest we forget why we have been fighting the al Qaeda terrorists and are now ready to invade Iraq, we should remember some basic facts about the present war.
What is its immediate cause?
About a year and a half ago, Middle Eastern terrorists -- at a time of peace and without provocation -- simply murdered 3,000 Americans. They blew up four airliners together with their crews and passengers, toppled the World Trade Center, and attacked the Pentagon. In addition, they caused billions of dollars in damage to the American economy, threw millions out of work, and forever changed the daily lives of an entire country and of much of the world besides.
Why did they attack us in such a manner?
Our enemies struck at icons of American economic and military power and used terror in lieu of conventional weapons and tactics. Knowing they could not defeat the United States military or appeal for support to the American people, they thought to create a climate of horror and fear to further their own political agendas. Perhaps we were supposed to quietly withdraw our troops from the Middle East, insist on concessions for Yasser Arafat, and grant de facto spheres of influence to al Qaeda, Hezbollah, Hamas, and other terrorist groups. Yet just as the fundamentalists gave us no thanks for saving Muslims in Kosovo, Bosnia, Kuwait, and Somalia, so too they would have looked at such dispensation as decadent compassion and been emboldened rather than appreciative.
But who exactly are our enemies?
Without at least tacit support from civilians, the terrorists could not exist.
The hard-core group of Islamic fascists, known as al-Qaeda, involves perhaps no more than 10,000 or 20,000 loosely coordinated killers. But like the Italian fascists, German Nazis, and Japanese militarists, their largely pampered leaders hope to capitalize on latent anger against the West among Islamic populations at large -- to bully, threaten, or hijack weak regimes in the Middle East to obtain de facto political power. Post-9/11 cheering on the West Bank or amused smiles in the salons of Beirut and Cairo were seen as initial successes. Without at least tacit support from civilians, the terrorists could not exist.
What do they really want?
It is hard to tell, inasmuch as their grandiose schemes are as illogical as Hitler's -- but no less dangerous. But if we take them at their word, their Middle East would look something like the Taliban's Afghanistan or the mullahs' Iran -- a vast tribal, patriarchal, and theocratic society on a continental scale. It would be run by zealots and religious extremists who would institute a medieval sort of Islamic law, even as the leaders themselves, like Ottoman grandees of old, would continue to be parasitic on the West -- importing their own eyeglasses, medicines, videos, and electronic technology. Politically, they would hope to expand on the model of Iranian theocracy and terror, using vast oil revenues to buy missiles and eventually components for nuclear weapons -- first to obliterate Israel, then to either blackmail or attack us. The ultimate goals of demented thugs like a Mullah Omar or bin Laden are, of course, contradictory and absurd -- how can one hate and wish to destroy the West, when it is the only source of everything one uses -- from oil-drilling equipment and SUVs to machine guns and cell phones? So they are a lot like the Visigoths and Vandals who liked the appurtenances of Rome yet on their own accord could not create, but only ransack them. Take a look at present-day Iran and recent Afghanistan to ponder the ruin and barbarity that their rule could bring to hundreds of millions in just a few years.
Do they have any support?
Criminals like these at first never have real support. But if, like a Hitler or Mussolini, they demonstrate success in stirring up resentments and winning concessions from supposedly weak enemies, then they can win over the masses through their ardor and ?lan. Most people usually welcome a sense of increased national importance and pride on the cheap -- as long as it does not entail real costs. So al Qaeda is like the Nazi party circa 1926, in a high-stakes game for the hearts and minds of the so-called Arab street, which so far likes the rhetoric but is not yet sure of the eventual price tag. Blowing up Jewish kids in schools or shooting a few unarmed Americans is easy and plays well, but being barred from traveling to Europe or America, earning ostracism from the World Bank, and having your entire military obliterated in mere hours -- all that and more requires some careful consideration. Wearing a bin Laden T-shirt or bragging that Saddam Hussein stands up to a strong America afraid to use its power is one thing; seeing GPS bombs glide through the windows of mansions in Lebanon and Syria is another.
But why would any in the Middle East follow such a pitiful band of cutthroats?
Fear, for starters -- the terrorists can murder newspaper editors, government officials, or military officers who oppose them. Despair plays a role too among the Arab dispossessed. Over 300 million in the Middle East live under regimes that are corrupt and tribal, dysfunctional autocracies without elections or the rule of law. With rising populations and failing economies, despots can only defer reform by using their state-run presses to vent tension against those more successful, such as Israel and the West. Hating the Jews is old stuff for the weak and envious, and so apparently is despising the country that gives you Star Wars, 757s, and vaccinations. A mass, crybaby adolescence has infected the Middle East. At first this pathetic, passive-aggressive view of the West intrigued Americans, then it disturbed them; but now it has become not merely tedious, but downright repellent to us. There are root causes for the spread of terror, but they are entirely self-induced.
So who are we really at war with?
We fight first the terrorist nucleus, and so must hunt all of them down in a global chase where there is little quarter asked for or given. Further, radical regimes that in the past have harbored terrorists, stockpiled frightening weapons, and are either openly or covertly aiding al Qaeda must be confronted to change or be vanquished. In the past where would an Abu Nidal or Abu Abbas have gone without a haven in Syria, Libya, or Iraq?
Who is winning?
It is not even close so far. After little more than a year, and at a cost of fewer than 100 American casualties, al Qaeda is about half ruined. The Taliban is gone. Iraq is terrified. And equally awful regimes like those in Syria, Iran, and Libya are apprehensive precisely because they know they are guilty of spreading murder and mayhem against Western innocents. We know where the terrorists thrive -- in outlaw states like an Afghanistan, Somalia, or Sudan, theocracies like Iran, or dictatorships like Iraq. When those regimes are either gone or reformed, the world of our enemies shrinks.
Could we lose?
Militarily, no. Their only hope is to frighten or demoralize us to such a degree that in our wealth and leisure we feel too afraid, smug, or distracted to take them seriously. So far only about 10 percent of Americans -- naively hoping that compromises could guarantee our security -- would throw in the towel, withdraw, hand over a sixth of the world to them, and thus grant them the power to do the greater evil that they wish.
How will we know when the war is over?
When Europeans and Americans are no longer rounding up terrorists in their countries, when mullahs and sheiks are quite afraid to broadcast calls to kill Americans, and when so-called allies volunteer their help without our own bribes and coercion. I might add, also, when an American diplomat, without qualification or embarrassment, says publicly that he has nothing but support for Israelis who hunt down killers and terrorists. In other words, we will win when a sense of deterrence -- lost during the last decades -- is reestablished, one that sends the message to our would-be enemies that the killing of Americans is synonymous with their own near-instantaneous destruction. The Nazis and the Japanese militarists alike came to realize the Americans were not necessarily pacifistic and malleable people, but rather scary and unpredictable; al Qaeda's supporters must come to the same conclusion.
But won't they just attack us again and again?
War is tragically endemic to the human condition. We can only do our best in our own time as befitting our station and pass on our lessons to the next generation -- even though we sometimes forget such precepts ourselves. Just as the collapse of the Soviet Union created an entirely new climate in eastern Europe, so too the defeat of al Qaeda, the new government in Afghanistan, and a post-Hussein Iraq will send a powerful message to the lunocracies of the Middle East: join the world of democracy, freedom, law, and prosperity -- or perish trying to destroy it. | <urn:uuid:d4d50659-e557-4edc-aa0e-f81f92a4b7da> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.aish.com/jw/me/48899142.html?s=raw | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.956041 | 1,864 | 1.773438 | 2 |
A little boy, a little girl, little toy car, or pretty curl;
"Don't think you're ready? Just give it a whirl."
What have I learned from my parent's so dear?
What have they taught me from being so near?
One thing for sure that I'll never outlive...
Is when Mother taught me always to give.
Assigned a talk at the young age of three;
One that has left an impression on me:
"I had a little smile, and I gave it away, to make someone else happy, you see?
But, what do you know, at the end of the day? That smile came right back to me."
She had me memorize every last line Told me it would be a very good sign
Said it would help me all through my life.
reduce by struggles, lessen my strife...
You know, looking back, I agree with her now.
Everyone smiles if you just show them how.
So, thanks alot Mama, & you Papa too;
I'll try to teach all this message so true... | <urn:uuid:251e77bf-06ce-4e78-a19e-061ab47c1615> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.booksie.com/religion_and_spirituality/poetry/spyguy/musings-of-a-tyke/print | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973222 | 232 | 1.585938 | 2 |
Opinion: Keeping NOVA Nation’s Most ‘Data Center Friendly’ Location
Delegate Comstock highlights work done to keep the region, Loudoun in particular, responsive to the industry.
The Northern Virginia region clearly faces economic threats and challenges as a result of sequestration and government downsizing. The national economy continues to stagnate. If you are looking for a bright sign on our local horizon, the data center industry – which is expected to still grow by hundreds of millions over the near future – is a sector to double down on.
That is why, once again this year, I worked with the Northern Virginia Technology Council and local business leaders to pass another bill to promote this important industry that is thriving in Northern Virginia and throughout the Commonwealth – and particularly in Loudoun County. Our aim is to be one of the most “Data Center Friendly” places in the country.
Each day, 70 percent of the world's Internet traffic passes through Loudoun County. Virginia has the highest concentration of technology workers per capita in the nation. In 2012, data center companies such as Equinix, Raging Wire, Latisys and DuPont Fabros have expanded in Virginia along with industry leaders: Facebook, Microsoft and Amazon. As The Washington Post reported last year, the county now has about 40 centers comprising roughly 4 million square feet of space, which is equivalent to 22 Wal-Mart Supercenters.
As Buddy Rizer, Loudoun’s Assistant Director for Economic Development has made clear: “Loudoun County remains one of the strongest data center markets in the country, and we expect this to continue for some time to come.”
And the county still has lots of property for new centers. Data Center Knowledge recently reported, “’This industry has helped drive one of America’s great economic development success stories. The tax benefits to Loudoun County have been incredible. We are very focused now on continuing to grow the data center cluster’, according to Rizer.”
We in the General Assembly are also committed to growing the data center cluster. With broad bipartisan support, we passed my bill HB 1699, which creates a separate tax classification, for purposes of permitting localities to set a lower personal property tax rate, on computer equipment and peripherals used in a datacenter. We worked closely with Loudoun officials to make sure this would be helpful in their economic development efforts in attracting more business in this sector. I partnered with a rural Senator, Ryan McDougle, on the bill because this industry is ideal for rural communities with space availability for the large centers and the need for anchors to attract business. This kind of partnership also gets all regions of the Commonwealth committed to and invested in this growing industry. The Governor has recently signed the legislation and it will go into effect on July 1 of this year.
This year’s legislation will build on my successful legislation last year, HB216 that provided state tax incentives to keep this important industry here in the Commonwealth and to counter growing competition in other states. We have already had companies relocate or expand here in Virginia as a result of our legislation last year and we are working to increase our promotion efforts throughout the country to attract new businesses.
Both of these measures will help Virginia continue to be a leader in this 21st century marketplace. Data center expansion and investment are a critical element in diversifying Virginia's technology economy and attracting private sector jobs and local revenue as federal spending and procurement decreases. Data center projects bring substantial investment but don’t make a lot of demands on our schools or social services so it is one of those unique win-win propositions.
Local industry and business leaders now are looking at Loudoun County as “the Silicon Valley of the data center industry.” The growing Data Center industry can in turn serve to attract a broad array of technology companies and make Loudoun a center of innovation where all kinds of dynamic 21st entrepreneurs, industries and jobs can flourish and grow.
With the Commonwealth and Loudoun County uniquely situated to benefit from this industry growth, we will continue to work with our tech community and industry leaders to make sure we at the state level promote and protect this vital industry that will enhance and enrich our community for years to come.
Delegate Barbara Comstock (R-34) | <urn:uuid:9ccb73a7-d43e-457a-a468-9389c684b618> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://leesburg.patch.com/articles/opinion-keeping-nova-nation-s-most-data-center-friendly-location | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.944925 | 884 | 1.539063 | 2 |
Obama's Plan for Averting the Fiscal Cliff
President Obama is making political hay with his vow to allow tax cuts for the wealthiest to expire as he jockeys for post position right out of the starting gate of fiscal-cliff budget talks with the GOP leadership.
Ideally, Obama is looking for about $4 trillion in deficit reduction over a decade through a combination of deep spending cuts and a hefty revenue stream that he says should include a long-shot hike in the top tax rate from 35% to 39.6%. That’s where the rate was before President George W. Bush slashed it a decade ago.
To achieve his aim, Obama must pony up himself, agreeing to give House Speaker John Boehner (R-OH) significant entitlement reforms, including adjustments to Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid.
The bartering isn't likely to be fully resolved during the lame-duck session of Congress set to stretch into mid- to late December. So the grand deal on fiscal-cliff issues won’t occur until next year. It'll be another punt, but not a permanent failure.
At stake is the state of the American economy: Economists warn that if the fiscal cliff is not avoided, the U.S. will sink back into recession next year, unemployment will rise and the financial markets will tumble.
Take a look at the biggest issues that make up the cliff:
-- A series of tax cuts and deductions worth $395 billion next year that have expired or are set to expire, including the Bush-era tax cuts and the reduction in the Social Security payroll tax.
-- The so-called sequester, with $65 billion in automatic spending cuts next year that will be triggered if action is not taken by the end of this year. The cuts would amount to $1.2 trillion over 10 years.
-- Raising the debt limit above the congressionally approved $16.39-trillion limit.
-- Extending emergency unemployment benefits, which could cost as much as $34 billion next year.
A temporary agreement is expected to come before the end of the year, with pledges to placate the markets and credit-rating agencies to avoid plunging over the cliff. It will include revival of a series of tax breaks that expired after 2011, chiefly a fix for the alternative minimum tax.
There are likely to be short-term extensions of all expiring tax cuts, buying time for a longer-term deal sometime in 2013, with a pledge to retroactively address the estate tax to restore favorable rates scheduled to end December 31.
Obama and Boehner also will have to sidestep the sequester deadline set for New Year's Eve, which triggers huge automatic defense cuts and automatic spending reductions. They'll agree to defer that action for at least a few months and perhaps up to a year, along with promising to raise the debt ceiling.
Then comes the hard part: closing the deal next year. It will happen as rancor yields to reason. When the alternative is another recession, Democrats and Republicans will find ways to compromise.
One way or another, businesses and the wealthy will pay more taxes. But despite his line in the sand, Obama might back down on higher tax rates for big earners. His victory gives him enough political capital to back the GOP into a corner with a threat of letting tax cuts for everyone expire, rather than just for high earners. But that might not sit well with lawmakers who have to run for reelection in 2014.
If he bends, he’ll want a lot in return, like an infrastructure bill and jobs package, along with a new extension of jobless benefits. Combined, these measures could cost hundreds of billions of dollars. In essence, it's another stimulus package, though the White House will try mightily not to call it that.
Obama will also work for immigration reform early next year, and he’s likely to get it. Republicans, fresh off Mitt Romney’s narrow losses in Colorado, Nevada and other battleground states where Hispanics voters turned out at historic levels, are wary of burning any more bridges with minorities, so they’re likely to go along.
There are more than 50.5 million Hispanics in the U.S., a 43% increase since 2000. That trend will remain in place, putting states such as Arizona and eventually Texas in play for Democrats. The president will think big: eliminating red tape for legal immigration, a path to citizenship for many illegal aliens, an expanded guest worker program, and swift citizenship for aliens who serve in the U.S. armed forces.
His position on immigration issues is far stronger than the Republicans’. He’ll either burnish his relationship with Hispanics by delivering on immigration reform or, if he fails, he'll surely remind the fastest-growing voting group that it was the Republicans who again blocked his try.
There is also room for bipartisan trade deals with Pacific Rim countries and the European Union.
There will be setbacks, of course, especially in the GOP-controlled House. Obama doesn’t have a mandate, but Mitt Romney’s defeat and the GOP’s failure to win a Senate majority will spur Boehner to engage in an ambitious bit of horse trading.
Boehner will have to corral his feisty tea party caucus, but it will happen this time. Unlike the failed grand bargain of 2011, this rodeo will be driven by the carrot, not the stick.
With reporting by Senior Political Editor David Morris and Senior Associate Editor Richard Sammon. | <urn:uuid:887f4717-b61b-410a-851a-e90c6ced1e09> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.kiplinger.com/article/business/T023-C021-S001-obama-s-plan-for-averting-the-fiscal-cliff.html?topic_id=45 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958186 | 1,133 | 1.71875 | 2 |
Jamie's Great Britain
In this new six-part series Jamie Oliver travels the length and breadth of the country in search of new ideas and inspiration for recipes and to find out what makes British food great.
Jamie discovers that many of the dishes we think of as British classics aren't `British' at all, but full of influences from around the world through invasion, exploration, colonisation and immigration.
Over six programmes, Jamie visits Yorkshire, The Heart of England, Essex and East London, Bristol and Somerset, South Wales and Scotland, and cooks delicious classic dishes with a twist, combining the traditional with the new including apple pepperpot pudding, tandoori roast chicken with Bombay roasties, and Yorkshire pudding with potted smoked trout.
Restaurants and cooking are in Jamie Oliver’s blood, as his parents own and operate a successful pub/restaurant in Clavering, where he grew up. He attended Westminster Catering College at 16, where he completed his formal training. Jamie began a food revolution in Britain with Jamie’s School Dinners, prompting the British government to publicly commit to improving the quality of the country’s school meals. Jamie married his childhood sweetheart, Jools, in 2000. They live in London with children Poppy, Daisy, Petal and Buddy. | <urn:uuid:d8b21bab-6ac7-4519-a8e9-eeef6827a83c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.foodnetwork.ca/ontv/shows/jamies-great-britain/show.html?titleid=293731 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951602 | 268 | 1.78125 | 2 |
The 2012 Atlantic Hurricane season begins - 6/1/2012
Good afternoon and welcome to my tropical weather update for Friday, June 1st, 2012. Tropical Depression Beryl has lost all tropical characteristics and is no longer a threat, but did come ashore as an extremely impressive 70mph tropical storm. It's extremely impressive as in the fact no other system has made landfall in the USA before June at that intensity, and more so that it was the 2nd named storm of the year. Anyways, today marks the first day of the Atlantic Hurricane season and I will be discussing my thoughts on what to expect this season.
CSU's analogue years.
The CSU team in Colorado has picked a set of analogue years for the 2012 Atlantic Hurricane season, they include 2009, 2001, 1968, and 1953, an interesting blend of inactive and active years. Analogue years are basically years that have similar ENSO setups and patterns in the Atlantic that might contribute/not contribute to an active hurricane season. The CSU has also for the June 1st, 2012 predictions to go with 13 named storms, 5 hurricanes and 2 majors, which is slightly above average. 2009 however appears to have been selected based solely on ENSO which I personally do not agree with 100%.
The majority of the models have come to agreement that we will be seeing a weak-moderate El Nino this year, the question will be when it will appear. Often when El Nino's develop the atmosphere tends to lag, such as years like this with a cold PDO, the atmosphere will still tend to act like we're in a La Nina state, which might help to pad numbers out. However, El Nino years regardless will cause increased shear over the Atlantic, in more specific possibly the Eastern Atlantic, knocking down the number of Cape Verde storms we will see.
(figure 1. ENSO anomalies for the Pacific reveal a developing El Nino)
A/B high and Atlantic setup
The A/B high looks to be in a dangerous position this year. While the pattern will probably change, generally speaking the high will lock in place by mid-late June for the season. The A/B high is much farther south that usual and will cause tropical waves that come off the coast to be forced more westward, including more than likely hurricanes as well. The pattern is reminiscent of previous dangerous hurricane seasons that had hurricanes go into the Caribbean. However, I will not go as far to assume that they will.
SST and TCHP in the Atlantic.
Currently the TCHP (Tropical Cyclone Heat Potential) and SST's (Sea Surface Temperatures) in the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico is far above average, and gives storms more availability to tap into the warm waters and really strengthen. This could prove to be a huge problem this year, and where we will see most of our storms. If shear is low in the Caribbean and in the Gulf of Mexico we might see powerful storms develop in the Caribbean.
(figure 2. Current TCHP in the Atlantic)
(figure 3. TCHP on May 31st, 2009, our most recent analogue year.)
(figure 4. SST's currently in the Atlantic)
(figure 5. SST's in 2009, our most recent analogue year)
Summary and final season predictions.
Based on all the factors combine, I believe we will see a less active Atlantic Hurricane season than in 2011 and 2010 but a potentially more deadly one. The main problem this year will as the El Nino develops, more shear will develop over the Eastern Atlantic - that will cause tropical waves to not intensify as quickly and wait until they reach the Eastern or Western Caribbean to develop or the Gulf of Mexico, where Sea Surface temperatures are far above average. However, because a lot of our named storms develop off the Cape Verde islands, that will knock down the seasonal totals.
CybrTed's June and final predictions.
12 named storms.
3 major hurricanes. | <urn:uuid:01ae51d0-ff3f-4c73-b44f-998808c3caef> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://api.wunderground.com/blog/CybrTeddy/comment.html?entrynum=230 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706890813/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516122130-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958569 | 825 | 1.710938 | 2 |
When Pets Alive Westchester’s Animal Caretaker, Anna, arrived to work at the no kill shelter early morning on February 15th she was surprised to find an old beat up back pack sitting in front of the entrance. As she got closer to the bag she was stunned to see a small puppy lying near the bag freezing and incredibly scared. Anna did what any one of the Pets Alive family would do; she scooped up the petrified furry guy and brought him inside for some warmth, food, water and love.
The Pets Alive team quickly realized that this pup was not just an abandoned animal but had suffered a severe injury to his hind leg in what appeared to be neglect or abuse. Because the group is not an animal control agency they will typically report found animals immediately, however, in this case they decided it was best to address the injury without delay. While waiting for medical attention the staff took turns holding the tan and white pup letting him know that he was safe now and they would be sure to take care of him. The team decided to name him Cowboy, knowing he would need to be tough and resilient to recover from his injuries.
After being examined by the rescue group’s full time veterinary assistant it was determined that Cowboy had a fractured back leg that would need further attention. The Pets Alive staff put on a temporary splint and brought the little guy to the veterinary hospital for x-rays. It was soon confirmed that he had closed transverse fractures of the tibia and fibula, both of the two lower leg bones. The vet believed that injury was induced by trauma but was unable to determine if it was accidental or intentional.
Pets Alive, one of the oldest and largest no kill animal rescue groups in the country, receives no government funding and relies solely on the public for financial support. Every day the rescue is forced to make hard monetary decisions to determine how to best utilize their resources. Cowboy’s medical expenses were no exception. The vet explained there were two options. The first would be to splint the fractured leg for 8-10 weeks and hope that it would heal properly. While this treatment would be much less costly, the risks of skin infections were great and there were no guarantee that the leg would heal properly. The second option was an orthopedic surgery that would make certain Cowboy would be off to a healthy and speedy recovery but also carried a hefty price tag - $2,500 for just the surgery! There would be additional costs as well for regular x-rays and follow up visits.
“Cowboy’s eyes showed hope and determination. He looked at me and I knew we had to do the surgery. At just 10-12 weeks old he deserved immediate relief from the horrific trauma he experienced” said Jen Taylor, Executive Director of Pets Alive Westchester.
Less than one week later Cowboy is healing well and showing signs of improvement every day! Soon he will be ready for adoption and the Pets Alive team is certain he will find a loving family quickly.
The no kill animal rescue is now turning to the public to ensure that they can afford major medical expenses in the future. “We see cases like Cowboy’s all too often and struggle each time to make the best decision for all of our animals. In many of these cases we are the only hope these guys have. Without our supporters we would never be able to give these animals the second chance at life they deserve,” says Taylor.
To make a donation to Pets Alive Westchester’s Major Medical Fund please visit www.petsalivewest.org or mail your donation to Pets Alive Westchester, P.O. Box 131, 100 Warehouse Lane South, Elmsford, NY, 10523. | <urn:uuid:96b54f08-dcb6-4af0-bec7-40ab6076100c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://rivertowns.patch.com/groups/pets-alive-westchesters-blog/p/bp--cowboy-the-puppy-given-a-second-chance-at-life | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.981341 | 764 | 1.726563 | 2 |
publication date: Mar 25, 2008
author/source: Fiona Beckett
Just as Delia turns up on our screens advocating the use of expensive pre-prepared products here’s Jamie pulling in the opposite direction and launching a ‘Feed your Family for a Fiver' campaign.
Sainsbury’s who is (of course) backing the initiative points out that many ingredients are cheaper in real terms than they were at the beginning of the last century. Having checked their own archives they discovered that a pound of beef cost £1/6 in 1903 or £4.28 in today’s prices whereas now you can buy 500g for £1.55. What they don’t mention is how much their own prices have gone up recently.
Two tins of chopped tomatoes, they point out were 10 1/2d or 88p for a small tin in 1920 and now cost the same amount for 2 x 400g tins. But not so long ago you could buy a tin of tomatoes for less than 20p. (They’re also cheaper if you buy them whole rather than chopped. )
Also - forgive me for being a cynic - but you can be sure in these hard times that what Sainsbury’s is offering with one hand it will take away with the other. While you’re in the shop watch like a hawk for the prices of other staples you buy regularly such as cucumbers which are currently on the Sainsbury’s website for 99p or red peppers which are 78p each. Stop by your local greengrocer or fruit and veg market and you'll pay at least a third less for them.
Good on Jamie, though, for encouraging people to make simple freshly cooked, meals for their families - or fellow students, of course. His heart's in the right place. The first recipe, which will apparently be aired on telly tomorrow night, is for spaghetti and meatballs. You can find it on the Sainsbury's website though bear in mind you can save yourself 40p or so if you follow my advice here. | <urn:uuid:1db7a515-3e4c-4692-8c6f-3ceb3bce6902> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://beyondbakedbeans.org/articles/20080325 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.965659 | 437 | 1.585938 | 2 |
Version Date: March 2013
This list of answers to frequently asked questions in physics was created by Scott Chase in 1992. Its purpose was to provide good answers to questions that had been discussed often in the sci.physics and related Internet news groups. The articles in this FAQ are based on those discussions and on information from good reference sources. They were later maintained and enlarged by Michael Weiss and Philip Gibbs. Others who have written for the FAQ are credited at the top of the items they submitted, while many more who have made smaller contributions have been thanked privately.
Most of the entries that you'll find here were written in the days when the Internet was brand new. But rather than showing their age, this means that they were written in a time when most contributions to the Internet came from authors who had a lot of knowledge of their subject. The same is no longer true of the modern-day Internet, where a vast number of authoritative-looking wiki-type pages are written by anyone who wants to, regardless of their knowledge.
So because of their age, the FAQ entries that you'll find here have a great deal of academic credibility—but they are not always perfect and complete. If you have corrections, updates or additional points to make, please send an email to the editor, (his CV is here). If you want to write an article on a frequently asked question in physics, feel free to suggest it to the editor.
This document is copyright. Please read the copyright notice for copyright details and archival information.
There are many other places where you may find answers to your question. Here is a list of other FAQs and answer archives that might be useful.
Thanks go to John Baez, Ronen Ben-Hai, Jay Brown, Jon Butterworth, Alan Cairns, Dave Edsall, Harald Falkenberg, Philip Gibbs, Amarendra Godbole, Chris Hillman, Chung-rui Kao, Matt McIrvin, Joe Mirando, Matthew Parry, Han-Tzong Su, Vishal Telangre, Nathan Urban, Johan Wevers, Sam Wormley, and the various organisations for hosting us! If any other non-commercial sites would like to mirror this FAQ, please contact the editor. | <urn:uuid:66774c66-9a2e-46f6-b28e-00a508b6af8e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.edu-observatory.org/physics-faq/index.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966179 | 461 | 1.789063 | 2 |
With Pot Legal in Two US States, Latin American Leaders Call for Review of International Drug Policy
Photo Credit: Shutter Stock
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The election that legalized recreational marijuana in Washington and Colorado looks to be a historic moment in American democracy. It has already been widely regarded as the beginning of the end of marijuana prohibition in the United States, but recent developments suggest legal weed's importance could stretch beyond American policy to international significance. Today, Latin American leaders of four nations called for a review of international drug policies.
"It has become necessary to analyze in depth the implications for public policy and health in our nations emerging from the state and local moves to allow the legal production, consumption and distribution of marijuana in some countries of our continent," Mexican President Felipe Calderon said this afternoon after meeting with Honduran President Porfirio Lobo, Costa Rican President Laura Chinchilla and Prime Minister Dean Barrow of Belize.
The US is currently backing a bloody war in Mexico, where marijuana is estimated to be a significant, if not majority, percentage of cartel profits. Since Calderon declared war on the cartels in 2006, more than 60,000 Mexicans, many of them innocents, have died in the carnage. Drug war violence has devastated much of Latin America, and prompted to many leaders to speak out in support of reform. Now, it seems, legalization in WA and CO will lend support to international voices for drug war alternatives.
Some leaders, such as Guatemalan President Otto Perez, have openly proposed legalizing or "decriminalizing" certain drugs. Others have pushed for less dramatic changes such as legalizing only marijuana or, like Mexico's Felipe Calderon, have spoken in vague terms of a "less prohibitionist" approach.
Uruguay has gone furthest, proposing a bill this year that would legalize marijuana and have the state distribute it. That move was regarded as too extreme by many in the region, although this week's decision by voters in Washington and Colorado states to legalize marijuana for recreational use showed that, even in the United States, the status quo is changing fast.
These shifts in policy may give progressives in the US some needed leeway to change policy.
Moises Naim, a senior associate at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, told NewsMax.com
"The taboo is broken," adding that "2012 will go down as the year when Latin American governments became assertive and began making changes of their own accord."
Marijuana legalization in Washington and Colorado may very well provide the evidence of drug war failure and popular opinion necessary for the United States to recognize Latin America's increasing calls for change. | <urn:uuid:c9273a8a-bfff-4158-9f91-6b26b3797682> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.alternet.org/pot-legal-two-us-states-latin-american-leaders-call-review-international-drug-policy?qt-best_of_the_week=1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.953901 | 546 | 1.695313 | 2 |
Little attention was paid last week when the last auto assembly plant in California closed, apparently forever.
A red Toyota Corolla sedan was the last vehicle produced at the New United Motor Manufacturing, Inc. (NUMMI) plant in Fremont, a sprawling San Francisco Bay suburb located between Oakland and Silicon Valley. A week earlier, the last Tacoma pickup truck produced for Toyota Motor rolled off the assembly line at NUMMI.
Those events marked the end of good-paying jobs for some 4,700 people at the massive plant, and for more than 20,000 others who worked at NUMMI suppliers in the area. The UAW employees of NUMMI received severance payments from Toyota and other benefits from their union and the federal government. The remainder got a handshake and a goodbye, if that.
The big headlines were made last year, when the bankrupt General Motors said it would pull out of the NUMMI joint venture with Toyota, leaving the plant’s fate in the hands of the Japanese carmaker. Akio Toyoda, grandson of Toyota Motor’s founder and the president of the company, once was the general manager of NUMMI, yet he made the unsentimental decision last summer to close the facility. That last Corolla came out of the factory on April Fools’ Day.
Toyota, of course, was reeling at the time from the worst downturn in the automotive industry since the Great Depression. Now, it’s struggling to rebuild its public image as a manufacturer of reliable, safe vehicles. On Monday the US Department of Transportation proposed to fine Toyota $16.4 million for failing to notify the federal government of reported problems with its accelerator pedals on a timely basis.
The end of NUMMI was reminiscent of the 2008 shutdown of GM’s SUV plant in Moraine, Ohio, an event documented in the elegiac film The Last Truck: Closing of a GM Plant, which was nominated this year for an Academy Award. Say what you will about SUVs (you won’t hear a good word from me) and GM — what the film shows are the very personal losses when such factories close. Not just incomes and jobs, but also friendships, built over decades and now fraying, and manufacturing expertise, scattered to the wind.
Once the tears dry, the City of Fremont will have to work on what to do with the 380-acre site, which lies in a prime location between two interstate highways. The Oakland Athletics last year gave up on their plan to relocate to a new ballpark in Fremont.
This is the face of creative destruction in the automotive industry. Economists may argue that such moves are necessary in rebuilding the worldwide car business. Those economists, however, still have jobs as the worst recession in decades painfully winds up. | <urn:uuid:8efdab7a-a9c1-4cd3-b55c-7e6eef14a5d3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://bizmology.hoovers.com/2010/04/09/thats-all-there-is-for-nummi/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.960158 | 567 | 1.773438 | 2 |
Born Christopher Battaglia on February 18, 1908 in Hartford, CT, Battalino won the 1927 National AAU featherweight championship. He made his pro debut later that same year and within two years would reign as world champion.
On July 26, 1929 he met bantamweight champion "Panama" Al Brown and scored a 10-round win that took him from relative obscurity to the world stage. His next bout was a featherweight title go with Frenchman Andre Routis at Hartford's Hurley Stadium. In front of 25,000 spectators the 21-year old Battalino defeated Routis over 15 rounds to win the world title. Prior to his first title defense he engaged in several non-title bouts including a loss and a win to Charles "Bud" Taylor and Bushy Graham respectively. In 1930 he successfully defended his crown over Ignacio Fernandez, avenged his loss to Taylor, lost to "Kid" Kaplan and closed out the year with a 15-round title defense over Hall of Famer Kid Chocolate. 1931 saw three more title defenses over Earl Mastro (W10) and Hall of Famers Fidel LaBarba (W15) and Freddie Miller (W10). He also split two more bouts with Graham (L10, KO1) and registered a TKO win over Al Singer.
Battalino's title reign came to a close in 1932 following a controversial title bout with Miller. He vacated the belt and moved up in weight to campaign as a lightweight. As a lightweight, he lost bouts with Hall of Famers Billy Petrolle (TKO by 12, L10) and Barney Ross (L10) and continued to box until 1940.
Known as a courageous and rugged fighter with good inside boxing abilities, Battalino retired with a 57-26-3-1NC (23KOs) record. He died in Hartford, CT on July 25, 1977.
Born: Feb. 18, 1908
Died: July 25, 1977 | <urn:uuid:42e20800-f4e7-4609-90af-cdbd355ae3fb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ibhof.com/pages/about/inductees/oldtimer/battalino.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970336 | 407 | 1.507813 | 2 |
German Shipping Company Sentenced in Puerto Rico to Pay $800,000 Penalty for Intentional Cover-Up of Oil Pollution.
WASHINGTON – Uniteam Marine Shipping GmbH, a German corporation, was sentenced in federal court in San Juan, Puerto Rico, for violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships (APPS) and making false statements to the U.S. Coast Guard, announced Assistant Attorney General Ignacia S. Moreno and U.S. Attorney Rosa Emilia Rodriguez-Velez.
The company was sentenced to pay an $800,000 criminal penalty, to include a $200,000 payment to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation to fund a community service project in the District of Puerto Rico. In addition, the company was placed on three years of supervised probation and will have to implement a comprehensive advanced training and verification program to continuously monitor vessel operations and train crewmembers to prevent pollution from any ship it operates.
“The Department of Justice will continue to prosecute shipping companies who break the laws that protect our oceans,” said Assistant Attorney General Moreno. “The penalty imposed by this sentence not only holds Uniteam Marine fully accountable for violating the Act to Prevent Pollution from Ships, but also will fund projects that rehabilitate damaged marine ecosystems in Puerto Rico.”
Uniteam Marine Shipping GmbH operated a 16,800 ton, 603 foot ocean going container ship named the M/V CCNI Vado Ligure that was engaged in global commercial trade. On May 10, 2010, the U.S. Coast Guard in San Juan, conducted an inspection of the vessel and discovered an excessive amount of oil in the discharge lines of the vessel’s oil water separator, a pollution prevention device designed to prevent the discharge of oily waste. When the device is operated properly, there should be no oil in the discharge lines. Subsequent investigation revealed that from Jan. 8, 2010, until May 10, 2010, the crew on the vessel manipulated the oil water separator so that is failed to function properly and allowed the illegal discharge of oily bilge wastes directly into the ocean.
All discharges of oil or oily bilge waste from a vessel are required to be recorded in the vessel’s oil record book. However, none of the illegal discharges were recorded in the oil record book for the M/V CCNI Vado Ligure.
“This sentence should serve as an eye opener to vessel owners and operators that choose to violate federal and international environmental laws that destroy our marine environment," said Capt. Drew W. Pearson, Sector San Juan Commander. "The U.S. Coast Guard is committed to protecting the maritime environment and works closely with our dedicated interagency partners and the U.S. Department of Justice to bring criminal environmental offenders to justice. This outcome would not have been possible without the outstanding investigative efforts and professionalism put forth by Sector San Juan pollution investigators and the Coast Guard Investigative Service who worked diligently with Department of Justice prosecutors to properly resolve this case.”
“Because we live on an island, the sea is without a doubt one of our most precious resources. This case should send a strong message that the Department of Justice and the United States Attorney’s Office will prosecute any entity which pollutes our environment to the fullest extent allowed by the law,” said Rosa Emilia Rodríguez-Vélez, U.S. Attorney for the District of Puerto Rico.
The National Fish and Wildlife Foundation will receive $200,000 to fund projects aimed at the restoration of marine and aquatic resources in the District of Puerto Rico, including projects intended to protect and rehabilitate marine mammals and their habitat, including manatees.
During the period of probation, Uniteam will be required to implement an advanced training and verification program which will ensure that any ship operated by Uniteam complies with all maritime environmental requirements established under applicable international, flag state, and port state laws. The program ensures that Uniteam’s employees and the crew of any vessel operated by Uniteam are properly trained in preventing maritime pollution. An independent monitor will report to the court about Uniteam’s compliance with its obligations during the period of probation.
This case was investigated by the U.S. Coast Guard Investigative Service. The case was prosecuted by Marshal Morgan in the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of Puerto Rico and by Ken Nelson in the Environmental Crimes Section of the Environment and Natural Resources Division of the Department of Justice. | <urn:uuid:6475ff59-5dd0-4d2a-8acf-7f50b63b36ad> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.marinelink.com/news/pollution-shipping340343.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.946263 | 930 | 1.773438 | 2 |
MEIGS COUNTY — While lack of electricity remains a major concern throughout the area, lack of water is also a problem.
A statement released on Monday by the Tupper Plains-Chester Water District dispelled rumors of potential problems with water services.
The statement read, “the Tuppers Plains Chester Water District has ‘fixed in place’ back-up power at our Water Treatment Plant and at all remote pump stations throughout our water distribution system. The District has 20 backup generators, and they are all running and have been since the storm. At many of our tank sites we use solar power, and at one tank site we use a wind turbine and solar.”
“They are all automated and started directly after power was lost. Fuel can last many days, and we have already arranged and received fuel at the locations that needed the fuel. It is anticipated that no customers will lose service throughout this emergency.”
“The many calls to the office are concerning rumors that we are going to stop pumping — these are false.”
Leading Creek Conservancy District, which supplies a portion of Meigs and Vinton counties, is also running on generators at the present time with no problems as of Monday afternoon.
Despite rumors, Rutland village will not be shutting off water to customers as long as the Leading Creek Conservancy District remains up and running.
Middleport Mayor Michael Gerlach said the village experienced no problems with the water system pumping stations which are connected to generators for use in emergencies. He stressed that while some communities are experiencing water problems, Middleport’s system is just fine.
Syracuse Mayor Eric Cunningham echoed the same statement, saying that a backup was put in place following the ice storm a few years ago.
The village of Pomeroy is experiencing water problems in some areas, with lack of power to some pump stations. Stations effected early Monday were in the areas of Lincoln Hill, Ann Street and Mulberry Heights, according to the water office. | <urn:uuid:0aadd13d-17e4-4cca-952f-0d3eb7c8b125> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.mydailysentinel.com/view/full_story/19178702/article-Water-service-up-and-running-in-most-of-county?instance=commented | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.971488 | 415 | 1.5 | 2 |
Faculty Resources Page
Welcome to the new faculty resources page on the DREAM webpage. I hope that you will find the information useful as we work together to create an inclusive community for students with disabilities on the campus.
I wanted to take a moment to share the reason the university has decided to add these resources at this time. The first reason, in all honesty, came from the faculty members who asked for information to be distributed in a way that didn't lead to an overwhelming amount of paper in an already complicated information-driven culture. Many of you have worked at Gonzaga for years and know the processes that students use to secure accommodations well. Placing implementation assistance and other information of note on the web allows the faculty member to find the data on a need to know basis rather than redistributing the same information semester after semester to an already informed audience.
The second reason is driven by the strategic planning initiatives on the campus and recommendations on the national level authored and endorsed by the Association for Higher Education and Disability (AHEAD). The new AHEAD Program Standards and Performance Indicators will be used as part of the benchmarking process in the creation of an accessible environment at GU. The Standards are indicative of a paradigm shift in the expectations of enforcement agencies and the disability community now that we are 30 years post the enactment of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Section 504 and 15 years post the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990. The emphasis has changed from one of reactive accommodations and retrofits to one of systematic design and inclusion in all areas of the campus from the physical environment to program and course development to student life. A sample set of the recommendations included in the AHEAD Program Standards and Performance Indicators is listed below:
- Work collaboratively with academic affairs on policy regarding course substitutions and foster an institutional commitment to promoting student abilities rather than a student's disabilities.
- Disseminate information through institutional electronic and printed publications regarding disability services and how to access them and ensure access to information about disabilities to students, administration, faculty and service professionals.
- Promote universal design in instruction and communication.
- Provide faculty/staff awareness training to enhance the understanding of faculty's responsibility to provide accommodations to students and how to provide accommodations and modifications as well as enhancing the institutional understanding of the rights of students with disabilities.
An up and coming issue for disability inclusion in campus communities is the development of online programs and courses for distance education.
In addition to the information we are offering, I plan to visit with many of you in your departments this year to gain access your perspective and collective wisdom as we move toward greater inclusion for students with disabilities in the classroom and on the campus.
Thank you for your ongoing assistance and cooperation in providing an accessible academic environment to students with disabilities. | <urn:uuid:0a606607-262e-4b73-b06b-05cc78ea933e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.gonzaga.edu/campus-resources/Offices-and-Services-A-Z/Disability-Resources-Education-and-Access-Management/Faculty-Resources/default-print.asp | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.944981 | 563 | 1.835938 | 2 |
Unity College Team and Author Bill McKibben Plan Solar Road Trip to White House
UNITY, Maine, Sept. 1 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Fresh from being named to the list of "greenest" colleges in the United States by The Princeton Review, Unity College will send a team on a solar road trip to the White House with environmental author and activist Bill McKibben .
The objective of the road trip is to raise awareness of the potential that solar power has to reindustrialize America, address Global Warming, and create new industries.
On Tuesday, September 7, McKibben will join a team from Unity College outside Unity House, the net zero, LEED Platinum solar home of Unity College President Mitch Thomashow and his wife, Cindy, on the campus of Unity College. The group will depart at noontime with a solar panel formerly atop the White House during the administration of Jimmy Carter . Billed as a "Put Solar On It" Road trip, McKibben and participants hope to hand deliver the solar panel to the White House, encouraging President Barack Obama to reinstall solar atop the White House.
During an August 31 appearance on the Late Show with David Letterman , McKibben urged President Obama to place solar once again atop the White House.
In 1979, President Jimmy Carter installed solar panels atop the White House as a symbol of the innovation that could be achieved not only by the pursuit of solar, but by seeking the development of a wide array of alternative energy sources. The panels were removed during the administration of President Ronald Reagan and placed in storage. In the early 1990's Unity College, a small environmental college in Maine, relocated the panels to their campus as a symbolic gesture. Sixteen of the panels were refurbished and heated water in the cafeteria at Unity College until 2003, when they reached the end of their functional lives.
In recent years the former White House panels have come into the public eye once again, and became the focus of a 2010 documentary film entitled A Road Not Taken, by Swiss filmmakers Christina Hemaner and Roman Keller . The documentary has been screened at film festivals in the United States and Europe.
McKibben is challenging President Obama to install his new set of panels on October 10 as part of 350.org's 10/10/10 Global Work Party, a day when millions of people across the planet will get to work on climate solutions.
For more information on the road trip visit http://PutsolarOn.It/road-trip.
SOURCE Unity College
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Unity College Becomes First in Higher Education to Make Climate Change Central Focus
Jan 29, 2013, 14:58 ET
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Request more information about PR Newswire products and services or call us at (888) 776-0942. | <urn:uuid:aa7444ab-4e6a-4722-b278-39c4c5217f3b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/unity-college-team-and-author-bill-mckibben-plan-solar-road-trip-to-white-house-101979103.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.936959 | 602 | 1.804688 | 2 |
The bill is coming due for those who asked the IRS for a six-month extension on their federal income taxes.
“A lot of people file for the extension because they don’t have the money to pay,” said Anita Karle, a federally licensed tax practitioner. “But the extension is really to get your information together.”
Karle, who specializes in planning, budgeting and the preparation of individual and small business tax returns for military and civilian families, said there are several reasons someone would need an extension. Many of her clients have been deployed or recently moved around the time of the April deadline. Plus tax documents are being sent out later and later each year, she said.
Those who did file for an extension should have already met with their tax preparer, said Adam Barth, who has been a CPA for seven years at William M. Rogers, a public accounting firm founded in 1982 in Jacksonville by Buddy Rogers. Barth handles taxes for individuals, partnerships, businesses and other entities.
“They should have already given their all their information to their tax preparer,” he said.
This month, Barth, like many accountants, is rushing to meet the Monday, Oct. 15 filing deadline facing his clients who sought a six-month extension to file their federal and state income tax returns.
More than 11 million U.S. taxpayers filed for an extension this year before the annual April income tax deadline — about 263,000 were in North Carolina — and officials with the Internal Revenue Service recently announced the end of the extension is coming up fast.
IRS officials encouraged taxpayers to electronically file their returns in a news release sent out this week.
“IRS e-file is fast, accurate and secure, making it an ideal option for those rushing to meet the Oct. 15 deadline,” agency officials stated. “The tax agency verifies receipt of an e-filed return, and people who file electronically make fewer mistakes too.”
The IRS also encourages taxpayers who owe taxes to make their payment in April even if they file for an extension, or they risk accruing interest and late penalties.
Payments are accepted electronically over the phone or the Internet. Taxpayers can pay either through the IRS’ Electronic Federal Tax Payment System, electronic withdrawal from a bank account, or using a debit or credit card.
Many taxpayers who seek an extension have either been procrastinating, or want to avoid the hectic tax season during the first three-and-a-half months of the year, according to local accounts.
“Most just didn’t have all their information together by the April deadline,” Barth said.
Members of the military serving in Iraq, Afghanistan or other designated “combat zones” have 180 days after they leave the combat zone to file a return and pay any income taxes they owe.
Free Press reporter David Anderson contributed to this article. Contact Daily News Senior Reporter Lindell Kay at 910-219-8455 or email@example.com. Follow him on Twitter and friend him on Facebook @ 1lindell.
The IRS encourages taxpayers to remember the following credits when they file returns this week:
The Earned Income Tax Credit and others for those with low and moderate incomes — the EITC Assistant is available through irs.gov to help determine if you qualify
Savers credit for low and moderate-income people who contributed to a 401(k) or other retirement plan — see Form 8880
Parents and college students can claim the American Opportunity Tax Credit — see Form 8863
For more information call 1-800-829-1040, 7 a.m.-7 p.m. Monday to Friday, or visit irs.gov
Call 1-800-829-4059 if hearing impaired | <urn:uuid:d1302ea9-fe0a-42bd-9c3b-312adbfe9923> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.jdnews.com/news/local/deadline-for-six-month-extension-to-file-taxes-is-oct-15-1.26939 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.956425 | 799 | 1.8125 | 2 |
Trial began on 25 September 2006; closing arguments by defence and prosecution in Januray 2008; sentenced to life inprisonment for genocide and crimes against humanity on 24 September 2008; sentenced to 40 years imprisonment for genocide, extermination, murder and other inhuman acts as crimes against humanity on 18 March 2010 by the Appeals Chamber
Siméon Nchamihigo (also known as Nshamihigo) was born on 8 September 1960 in the prefecture of Cyangugu in Rwanda. At the time of the events described below, he was public prosecutor in the prefecture of Cyangugu.
Siméon Nchamihigo was alleged to have organized and participated in a campaign against the Tutsi population and political enemies in the prefecture of Cyangugu. This campaign included: compiling lists of influential Tutsis and members of the opposition; identifying the persons to be executed according to the list; surveying and restricting the movements of these people, in order to facilitate attacks on them; supervising road blocks and handing out weapons to the militia.
Siméon Nchamihigo was also said to have organized and supervised the military training of the militia in the prefecture of Cyangugu. This militia later on participated in attacks on Tustis who had sought refuge in the communes of Hanika, Mibirizi, Nkanka, Shangi and Nyamsheke, in which many people died.
In April 1994 Siméon Nchamihigo allegedly supervised the setting up of road blocks, and ordered the killing of any Tutsis that passed by, on occasion mentioning by name those who were to be killed.
On 14 April 1994, Siméon Nchamihigo was said to have expelled Tutsis and moderate Hutus from the school in Gihundwe, where they were relatively safe. Subsequently, the weakest of them died of hunger, thirst and illnesses.
On 15 April 1994, Siméon Nchamihigo was said to have forcibly expelled Tutsis who had taken refuge in the cathedral in Cyangugu, sending them to the Kamarampaka stadium. Most of these people were never seen again and are presumed to be dead.
At the end of April 1994 Siméon Nchamihigo reportedly attended a meeting that was arranged to discuss and decide upon security measures. At the meeting, Nchamihigo was said to have asked if there were any Tutsis left in hiding who were still to be killed.
On several occasions during the months of April and May 1994, Nchamihigo was said to have ordered the killing of individuals, notably that of a young student (between 13 and 15 April), and an accountant from the prefecture, a business man and a Catholic priest (all between 28 and 30 April).
In July 1998, Siméon Nchamihigo found a job, working under the name of Bahati Weza and with false identity papers, as an investigator for the defence of Samuel Imanishimwe at the International Criminal Tribunal for the Rwanda (ICTR) in Tanzania.
Nchamihigo was arrested in Arusha by Tanzanian authorities on 19 May 2001 at the request of the ICTR Prosecutor. He was transferred to the Tribunal’s Detention Facility on 25 May 2001 | <urn:uuid:51b9aef6-aa93-47d7-8df3-2df399fc9833> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.trial-ch.org/en/ressources/trial-watch/trial-watch/profils/profile/357/action/show/controller/Profile.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.980604 | 677 | 1.648438 | 2 |
Whenever I’m tasked with chatting up potential donors, partners or volunteers for the Raspberry Pi project, I’m asked what really makes us stand out from other computer companies. There are lots of answers: the charity business model; the unusual price point we’ve picked; the open-source software; the transparency about process; the focus on education.
But for me, what I consider the biggest thing we have going for us, and the thing I tend to rattle on about most in meetings, is the community that’s grown around the project. The MagPi, a free online magazine dedicated to the Raspberry Pi, whose first issue was released a few days ago, is a perfect example of that. It’s been put together entirely by volunteers, guided by Ash Stone, Jason “Jaseman” Davies, Meltwater and other names you may recognise from the forums and comments on this site. I was broadly aware they were up to something, but I was amazed at the scope of what they sent me to look at earlier in the week, and I’ve been really, really impressed by the first issue. There are Debian and Puppy guides, articles on computing history, ideas for robotics projects, tutorials in Scratch and Python (with code you can type in yourself, just like in the good old days), features about the Raspberry Pi itself, and other goodies to dig into. I really can’t recommend it enough, and if you haven’t been lucky enough to get to the head of the queue, you don’t need a Raspberry Pi to find it useful (you might actually find the magazine good preparation before yours arrives). So go and download a copy, have a flick through, write to the guys if you think you can contribute to future issues, and let us know what you think! | <urn:uuid:cbd6ba97-842f-43d6-805f-4f79cba31db1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.raspberrypi.org/archives/1162 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959336 | 380 | 1.625 | 2 |
Russia now ‘very unlikely’ to join Kyoto extension in Doha
By Olga Dobrovidova
Russian officials continue to dismiss any possibility of joining the second commitment period of the Kyoto Protocol, and RTCC understands that hopes of Russia changing its mind are now virtually over.
Deputy Prime Minister Dvorkovich after his meeting with stakeholders on November 27 told RIA Novosti that the government’s position has not changed so far – a comment which many experts were at first quick to label as ‘downplaying’ necessary for the delicate lobbying to continue behind closed doors.
That comment, however, went on to bring Russia its second ‘fossil of the day’ award, for climate laggards, in the first week of talks.
Meanwhile, officials still insist that a U-turn is out of the question. Oleg Shamanov, a senior Russian negotiator in Doha, told Reuters Point Carbon on Wednesday that Russia will not take on a second legal target to cut emissions under the Kyoto Protocol.
Several senior government officials who took part in the Dvorkovich meeting on Tuesday also claimed that a ‘U-turn over the Atlantic’ will not happen, referencing a famous 1999 incident when then-prime minister Yevgeny Primakov cancelled his visit to the US mid-air above the Atlantic ocean after getting a phone call from Al Gore about NATO airstrikes against Yugoslavia.
The course of events during the last few days prompted a top business daily, Kommersant, which rushed to claim a Kyoto comeback in September, to publish a rather pessimistic article.
Entitled “Fossil of Yesterday”, it states that some positive signals from Dvorkovich about Joint Implementation projects did not in fact make it into the official record of the meeting.
That, in Kommersant’s view, means last traces of hope for a KP second commitment period in Russia have now vanished.
Considering a generally negative fallout from the meeting, most experts still allow for the possibility of an unlikely ‘divine invasion’ on the matter – that is, President Putin intervening in the discussion.
Ironically, the battle over Kyoto continues in Moscow amid unprecedented snowfall, heaviest in 50 years – it has been snowing for nearly two days, and meteorologists expect the weather to improve only by Sunday. | <urn:uuid:500dbd08-990f-42b9-a40e-85491171260e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.rtcc.org/russia-now-very-unlikely-to-join-kyoto-extension-in-doha/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.952083 | 486 | 1.554688 | 2 |
Soggy San Diego County got another jolt of rain overnight. But the core of the Alaskan storm that arrived Sunday afternoon has moved east. The region will mostly get scattered showers through about 2 p.m. There are some towering cumulus clouds in the area that can produce brief downpours. The clouds extend 15,000 feet high and are very cold (about minus 12 degrees at the top). But they'll blow out soon. Forecasters originally thought that up to 8'' of snow would fall in the upper reaches of the local mountains. But the weather service estimates that only 1'' to 2'' fell above the 5,000 foot level. Snowfall was much heavier in the San Bernardino Mountains.
And please take a look at our new Science and Environment portal on the U-T homepage. You'll find 16 stories, livestreaming from UCSD-TV, videos from the Scripps Institution of Oceanograpy, Twitter and Facebook feeds, Dennis Mammana's sky photography, and an assortment of space and nature images, including some taken in San Diego County. | <urn:uuid:a4e46bac-2ea2-45bf-bc4a-24de20595570> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2011/jan/03/scattered-showers-last-until-afternoon/?sciquest | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.936222 | 221 | 1.578125 | 2 |
Niall Dickson is the Chief Executive of the King's Fund, an organisation which seeks to find ways in which the health system in England can be improved. Here he considers what challenges lie ahead for the National Health Service given the current financial climate, ahead of a Newsnight special on the issue later on Monday.
The politicians know that life for the National Health Service is about to become very difficult indeed. Yet they are reluctant to talk about it.
The NHS was founded in 1948 to bring free healthcare to all
In the case of the government this is because they would prefer we dwell on the successes of the past decade rather than the pain of the next one.
In health, perhaps more than other areas of the public sector, Labour can point to real advances, with patients being treated more quickly, services such as accident and emergency transformed, and improvements in survival among heart and cancer patients.
A debate about how much health care will suffer because of the recession is not an attractive proposition in ministerial ranks.
Likewise, this side of an election the Conservatives are reluctant to spell out the gloom.
The Tories are in a similar position when it comes to health as Labour was in relation to the City in the mid-90s.
Nigel Lawson called the NHS the closest thing the English have to a religion
It is an area where traditionally they have not been trusted and where the aim must be to reassure, not to frighten.
The former chancellor Nigel Lawson once remarked that the English only had one national religion - the NHS - and that unfortunately, the Tories were seen as non-believers.
Conservative leader David Cameron has worked hard to counteract this, promising to match government funding for the NHS and embracing its underlying principles as defined by Labour in its NHS Plan of 2000.
The last thing he wants to suggest is that a Conservative government might have to preside over swingeing cuts.
However, the reality is that even if the next government protects healthcare from the axe that will fall elsewhere in the public sector, future demand means the system will struggle.
In particular, unless it is able to drive up productivity, health care needs will not be met and gains made in reducing waiting times may be reversed.
Whatever does happen it looks inevitable that unpopular decisions will have to be made and staff numbers will fall.
The NHS has just passed through a phenomenal and unprecedented period of growth - nearly 7% real additional funding each year since 2000.
In some ways then it should be better prepared for a downturn. And it will need to be, it is about to enter a period where it could grow less than at any time in its history.
The numbers are stark. Since it was founded the NHS has had, on average, real terms growth of between 3-4% a year. This has enabled it to provide a more or less comprehensive service to the British people.
But rising expectations, new technology and changing demographics require even greater increases just to stand still - changes in demography alone, particularly an increasing ageing population, could cost the NHS in England between £1bn billion and £1.4bn extra each year from now until 2017.
Under the less optimistic scenario in
The King's Fund/IFS report
the gap between what the system needs to maintain and improve quality and what it might get could be £20-30bn, or 30% of the budget.
It should be possible to close at least some of that gap by increasing the efficiency of the system.
There is enormous scope still to redesign services and reduce variations in performance - such as making sure all areas are following best practice and investigating why areas with similar populations appear to spend widely varying amounts on services such as mental health and cancer care.
The challenge for the health service then is to meet growing demand, maintain the quality and safety of care and save money all at the same time.
It would help if politicians signed up to help deliver that message.
Watch a special edition of Newsnight on the future of the NHS in an age of austerity on Monday 27 July 2009 at 10.30pm on BBC Two. | <urn:uuid:9935f1be-eb48-40d2-9c37-be35f81f3391> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/programmes/newsnight/8170468.stm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968697 | 837 | 1.84375 | 2 |
OK, one more post...But then I'm gone for the week. For real this time!
That said, the release of Chrome has brought back the age old question of "will the browser kill Windows" and I wanted to say something on that. I first saw this story on Drama 2.0's website where he said...
Now I thought he was just playing word games at the time. Trying to make Mr. Arrington look dumb through semantics. But then I read this article in the NY Times and it gave me new perspective. In it Joe Nocera says...
I’ve long believed that the key moment in the modern history of Microsoft can in the mid-1990s, when two key executives battled over which direction the company should go. Brad Silverberg argued that the company should stop trying to protect Windows at all costs, and embrace the Internet. James Allchin, who led the Windows team, said that the operating system was the company’s bedrock, and its biggest source of profits, and that the Windows monopoly had to be protected no matter what. (This battle is wonderfully recounted in David Bank’s much underrated 2001 book, “Breaking Windows.”)
Seeing things from that old perspective made me realize something. "Drama" wasn't playing word games he just didn't get what was being said by the original question. The argument back in the day of the Allchin/Silverberg rift only made sense because Windows was the only place to really develop applications for the mass market. If you wanted your app to reach more than a few rabid Mac users Windows was the way to go.
So "The OS" really meant "The APIs used to reach the mass market" in an abbreviated manner. When people said "Will the browser kill Windows" what they were really saying was "Will the browser become a way to break Windows' hold on the mass market"
But in looking at it that way you realize that Windows, in that way, is already dead. No one talks about Windows Forms or WPF (Microsofts desktop development models) anymore. Its ASP.NET and Silverlight and beyond that Ruby on Rails, Php, JQuery, et al.
Microsoft doesn't dictate how you reach the mass market anymore and that was the whole point of "Will the browser kill Windows" in the first place. So the battle's already been won. The desktop app may never fully die but the browser has already declared victory over it by becoming a viable alternative to it. | <urn:uuid:9194d3e1-75b2-407a-968d-8867142813c0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://tomstechblog.com/?tag=/windows | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.972965 | 517 | 1.515625 | 2 |
[Todd Gordon. Imperialist Canada. Winnipeg: Arbeiter Ring Publishing, 2010.]
Few features of the political culture in this country are more likely to set my teeth on edge than the devotion not only of the right and centre but of much of the left as well to the myth of Canadian benevolence. It has perhaps been a bit less frequently proclaimed in the last couple of years, what with us having Harper and them having Obama, but its existence in the form of nostalgia rather than contemporary condescension is perhaps even more grating and even more resistant to being countered with fact. For this reason, I find Todd Gordon's relentless dismantling of some of the central pillars of that myth to be very satisfying -- still surprisingly emotionally challenging to read in parts, mind you, precisely because it is so relentless in demonstrating the violence in which Canada and so by extension all Canadians of relative privilege are complicit, and predictably disappointing in certain respects because of its framework, but still politically on point in many important ways.
Gordon, a political scientist at York University, uses the first chapter to present the analytical approach of the book. It seems to be quite conventional political economy with a sprinkling of inputs from other traditions. The framework chapter draws heavily on folks like David McNally, David Harvey, and Ellen Meiksins Wood, with a smattering of references to Leo Panitch and Patrick Bond, and one or two each for Sherene Razack, Sunera Thobani, Nandita Sharma, David Roediger, Howard Adams, and others (though mostly his references to this last group are not to works of theirs that I've reviewed and linked here). The book continues with a chapter looking at the colonization of northern Turtle Island, including lots of attention towards how settler assaults on indigenous people have proceeded unabated in recent decades. Then it looks at the role of the Canadian state in promoting neoliberal capitalism abroad, a chapter on awful things that Canadian corporations (particularly but not only in resource extraction industries) have done around the globe, a chapter on the Canadian military's oppressive history, and a chapter with specific case studies of Canadian participation in imperialism in Afghanistan, Haiti, and Latin America. The book ends with a conclusion that talks about what must be done to challenge Canadian imperialism.
There's a lot here that's valuable. Integrating the historical and contemporary colonial realities of what we call "Canada" into any broad analysis of this part of the world has become more expected in radically critical circles than a generation ago, but it still isn't always done and certainly isn't always done wholeheartedly or well. In line with my broader concerns with the framework, I think the chapter on colonial oppression underplays dynamics not clearly attributable to the capitalist drive to accumulation. Still, that drive is important, and the book's account of the larger trajectory and of a number of high profile recent instances in which settler state relations and capital have worked to contain, erode, deny, and destroy indigenous self-determination is useful and enraging.
In the book as a whole, the sheer volume of examples does important work. It is heavily documented and patiently presented, and it makes it very hard to resort to one common evasion that appears whenever any single example of Canadian corporate or state nastiness enters many conversations -- that said example is an unfortunate exception in an overall pattern of good deeds. This is, of course, part of the larger agenda of the book to take aim at the firmly entrenched notions that Canada is a force for good in the world and that, to the extent it isn't, we can just blame the U.S. He shows clearly in the ways in which political economists measure such things that there is still distinctly Canadian capital. He shows that while U.S. pressure to do this or that can be important, it does not magically erase the decision-making capacity of Canadian capitalists and agents of the Canadian state. He shows clearly that a big part of why so much of Canadian activity on Turtle Island and around the world is in line with what the U.S. wants is because it is in the interest of Canadian elites to do those things too. However, there are other situations where the interests of Canadian capital are not quite the same as U.S. capital, and in those instances Canadian corporations and the Canadian state can at least sometimes pursue their own path. Continually pointing out active Canadian complicity in everything from the recolonization of Afghanistan to the Western project of forcing neoliberalism on the world is an essential part of any radical politics in this part of the world, and Gordon does the Canadian left a service by providing us with this resource to help us do it.
As I alluded to above, though, I have mixed feelings about the framework that organizes the book's arguments. I obviously can't disagree too much -- after all, I was able to link to reviews written by me of works by many of the people cited in the framework chapter, and I've read things by all of the others I list too. And as far as political economy goes, it isn't a bad version, what with its attention to colonization and to at least some aspects of racism. However, as important as I think capital is in organizing our current world, I think there is more than enough evidence from the work of people in other traditions (including some other flavours of marxist, some of the once-or-twice citees above, and lots of others) that however they originated, oppressive social relations along other axes have important autonomous dynamics today. Yes, they all interpenetrate and are shaped by the rest, including capital, but accumulation is not the only source of energy in this web of relations. A framework that makes it look like it is doesn't do us any favours when it comes to figuring out how we need to act (across a range of scales) to challenge Canadian complicity in empire. It's a problem that this book ignores sexuality completely, has very little to say about gender, and deals with some important aspects of social relations of white supremacy but not others.
Related to this problem is the tendency for political economy and political science to use certain categories in ways that encourage us to see them as natural, stable, and thing-like. And I know it's hard not to do this regardless of the framework you are using. That's why I think it is incumbent on authors to simultaneously use and attempt to destabilize core analytical categories, particularly in ways that keep the reader more closely focused on what is actually going on. So, for instance, talk about "the state" can be a useful shorthand, but it can also end up misguiding us because it can obscure the way the phenomena under that banner are actually socially produced -- that is, by the everyday practices and relations of particular people socially organized in particular ways. Among other things, this can contribute to misconceptions about how we should orient ourselves towards the state, and give us an inflated sense of what can be achieved if we 'seize' it in one sense or another. And when it comes to well-worn debates, like whether the changes labelled "globalization" are making the state less relevant or more relevant, or whether it makes sense to talk about a distinctly Canadian capital or not, this refusal to make strange such well-worn categories means we get stuck in unhelpful binary oppositions. If we make the space to actually explore what is going on here, to figure out what are the practices and relations underlying these complicated phenomena that we rush past in a single reifying phrase, then I think we'll find that the most important debates are different than some of these that occupy our attention now, and that there are better ways to frame our questions.
The final problem with political economy frameworks is that they tend to make it very hard to think and talk about our agency in the world. Again, the version in this book is not a bad one, what with its attention to resistance on the ground in lots of different contexts. But I think part of why I found reading this book emotionally challenging in parts went beyond the ways in which I haven't quite been able to purge deep-down sentimental attachment learned in childhood to the myth of Canadian benevolence. It was also because the political economy framework, even when it includes stories of resistance, has a tendency to make it all seem quite futile -- it obscures how our actions create the world, so it's not integral to its premise that our actions can change the world. Not that I'm arguing for sunshine and lollipops when things really are pretty bleak in our world, but I know we can find ways to present hard truths that aren't quite so paralyzing. The frequent detachment of political economy from actual organizing on the ground was made clear to me in the book's final chapter, "Conclusion: Challenging Canadian Imperialism." It makes a number of quite valid points that I agree with, but makes them in ways that offer little that can easily be appropriated and applied on the ground. It's not bad, it's just detached.
So I repeat: This is an important book engaging in an important project, and it is a supportive resource for all of us who are committed to chipping away at the stranglehold that delusions of Canada as an inherent force for good in the world hold over many people who otherwise prioritize things like social justice. However, I think we need to continue to explore ways of talking about the world that can capture the many different axes of oppression and resistance through which social relations are energized and organized, that refuse to reify the social world, and that place our agency at the centre of how the world is made and how it can be changed.
[For a list of all book reviews on this site, click here.] | <urn:uuid:74cb18e7-7edc-4af5-9076-2517e6c35375> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://scottneigh.blogspot.ca/2011/04/review-imperialist-canada.html | 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 | 0.967244 | 1,985 | 1.726563 | 2 |
$A higher on US 'fiscal cliff' hopesPUBLISHED: 20 Nov 2012 08:04:18 | UPDATED: 20 Nov 2012 08:04:18PRINT EDITION: 20 Nov 2012
The Australian dollar has rallied past 104 US cents amid growing hopes the US will avoid a `fiscal cliff' of spending cuts and tax hikes which could send the country back into recession.
At 0700 AEDT on Tuesday, the currency was trading at 104.09 US cents, up from Friday's close of 103.67 US cents.
Overnight, the currency reached a high of 104.19 US cents after US President Barack Obama said he believed a budget deal will be reached between Democrats and Republicans.
The positive sentiment saw global stock markets rally, with London's FTSE 100 up 2.36 per cent and Paris' CAC 40 finishing 2.93 per cent higher.
At 0700 AEDT New York's Dow Jones Industrial Average was 1.32 per cent higher, while the S&P 500 was up 1.74 per cent.
But LTG Goldrock director Andrew Barnett said the Australian dollar's rally was likely to be short-lived.
"The market was always going to have a bit of a dead-cat bounce following the sell-off last week," he said.
"But I'd be careful buying into this rally, purely because nothing has been resolved with the fiscal cliff," he said.
Mr Barnett said the major local event for the Australian dollar on Tuesday would be the release of minutes from the Reserve Bank of Australia's (RBA) November board meeting and a speech by RBA Governor Glenn Stevens.
He said markets would be looking for signs the RBA was considering cutting the cash rate in December. | <urn:uuid:ed1f248a-0141-49a1-b48d-80ee65ec7e8a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.afr.com/p/markets/higher_on_us_fiscal_cliff_hopes_qgnzaE7n2doJJja3OSF99J | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962755 | 363 | 1.507813 | 2 |
Everything online journalists need to protect their legal rights. This free resource culls from all Reporters Committee resources and includes exclusive content on digital media law issues.
A federal court in Florida refused to order the U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration to withhold videos and photographs depicting a SeaWorld trainer’s death, explaining that it would not intervene before the agency reached a decision regarding the release of the materials.
The family of animal trainer Dawn Brancheau, who was pulled underwater by an Orlando SeaWorld whale and drowned, filed for an injunction to prevent OSHA from releasing graphic videos and photographs of the incident to the public. They contended the materials should be withheld under the Freedom of Information Act and the Privacy Act.
But U.S. District Judge Gregory Presnell ruled that the federal statutes did not permit the court to block OSHA before the agency had a chance to decide whether it would release the documents. The court also held that the definition of "records" in the federal Privacy Act did not include the requested materials.
OSHA, which investigated the incident and obtained photographs and video recordings depicting the rescue efforts and death, received three requests for the death scene materials. The agency stated that the requests “would be processed” in compliance with FOIA regulations, but did not immediately issue a decision on whether it would release the materials.
In the interim, the victim's family sought to force the agency to notify them if any more requests for the materials were received.
The court did not agree with the family and said that “[t]he legal basis for the Plaintiffs’ request is murky, to put it mildly.”
The court also noted that FOIA does not contain a mechanism allowing a private party to prevent a government agency from disclosing materials. Brancheau's family argued that this was, however, possible under the Administrative Procedure Act, a federal statute which establishes guidelines for agency procedures. The court explained that under that act, it only had the authority to review final agency action. Because OSHA had not yet decided whether it would release the death scene materials, the court lacked jurisdiction to review the case.
The court concluded that given the nature of the requested materials, it was “highly unlikely that they would qualify as ‘records.’” The Privacy Act defines records within its reach as those containing certain educational, medical, criminal, employment-related, or financial information about an individual.
Attorneys for the family could not be reached for comment as to whether they will renew their motion if OSHA determines the records are subject to release. | <urn:uuid:92d6578c-2fe2-4c9b-99b4-2a44ab692730> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.rcfp.org/browse-media-law-resources/news/judge-denies-request-force-osha-withhold-records | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964231 | 531 | 1.75 | 2 |
Whale, dolphin beached again after mass stranding
More animals have again stranded themselves on an island off Tasmania's north-west coast, a day after about 80 whales and dolphins beached themselves there.
Yesterday 60 pilot whales and 20 bottlenose dolphins were found on New Years Island, just a day after 13 other dolphins beached in Quarantine Bay on nearby King Island.
Of the mammals beached on New Years Island, crews saved six dolphins and just two whales.
Eight of the dolphins that beached on King Island were able to be saved.
Wildlife biologist Rachel Alderman says one of the rescued dolphins has re-beached and died and crews are now focussed on trying to save a whale which has stranded again.
"We've got the animal cool and wet, we're getting more people out there to try and move it into the water and just see how the animal is and it will dictate our next move," she said.
"We've had a pretty rewarding success given the circumstances. It's not at all uncommon for some individuals to come back and re-strand after going through such a traumatic, physically traumatic and I guess psychologically traumatic ordeal.
"We do the best that we can for them and hope that they can make it through."
Saturday's stranding is one of the largest in Tasmanian waters since 2009, when about 200 whales and dolphins beached on King Island.
King Island ranger-in-charge Shelly Davison says the mammals may have spent two nights on the beach before rescuers got to them.
"Most of the animals unfortunately were deceased," she said.
"We believed that they may have been there for two nights - given the remote location you don't always get these things reported."
Ms Davison says it has been a challenging experience for rescue crews.
"It is emotional but we've still got a job to do," she said.
"We're still focused on what we're doing and doing our job at the moment."
Ms Davison is hoping samples they take from the dead mammals will shed some light on what went wrong.
"It's not that common to get that stranding of both pilot whales and bottlenose dolphins but it did happen at the last stranding on King Island which is quite interesting," she said.
"We'll be collecting samples and doing a few autopsies on the deceased ones .
"We'll put all that information together so one day we might be able to work out why they do it." | <urn:uuid:27dc6ea0-90d1-448e-b425-4aff863ac737> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.abc.net.au/news/2012-11-04/crews-investigate-mass-whale-dolphin-strandings/4351714 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.976636 | 519 | 1.796875 | 2 |
New England Prep Cross Country Camp is designed for individual boys and girls entering grades 8 through 12 who are interested in racing cross country. Although training groups and workouts are determined by a runner's ability and needs rather than by team affiliation, team members are welcomed and encouraged to attend camp together for the added benefit of team growth. The director, lecturers, and counselors provide a total learning experience as well as a training camp. Topics to be covered are included below.
All runners are placed into training groups according to their own abilities thereby allowing them to better optimize their workouts.
Discussions of recent training theory allow the runners to gain an understanding of how they may best train for cross country racing.
Groups discuss the value of goals and goal-setting and have the opportunity to create goals for the upcoming season.
Relaxation & Visualization
This session introduces the runners to the other most important aspect of "the athlete:" the mind.
Care & Prevention of Injuries
Through individual consultation and presentations by the on-staff trainer, runners can learn more specifically about their own running-related injury issues.
All runners are introduced to various racing tactics and strategies.
Proper Running Technique
During training runs, the staff are able not only to discuss proper running techniques but also to demonstrate the techniques, where appropriate.
After each runner is videotaped early in the week, time is set aside to review each camper's segment with the goal of highlighting the efficiencies and inefficiencies of his/her biomechanics.
Runners participate in workouts that utilize varying game formats in order to lighten up the sometimes strenuous nature of conditioning.
Runners learn how to utilize the pool as a training resource during learn-by-doing pool workouts.
Runners practice and learn about the benefits of working out in ways that compliment their running to achieve overall fitness and strength.
Volleyball, ultimate frisbee, basketball, and swimming tend to be the activities runners participate in—sometimes for competition, sometimes simply for fun.
Running Beyond High School
Discussions led by our staff, with experience on all NCAA division levels, offer varying viewpoints on the ins and outs of intercollegiate athletics.
Running Beyond College
Discussions led by our post-collegiate staff offer insight into the possbility of running after graduating from college. | <urn:uuid:466397e4-6678-4cfe-84c4-8d16eb38b87c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.timfoto.com/nepxc/program.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.949425 | 480 | 1.773438 | 2 |
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NPR around kids? - Page 5
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all this is so subjective. not all children are like that. and that is the part we have to acknowledge. my dd is far more upset that her father and i don't get along, that a group of boys are bullying her best friend. anything else is so not that important. it is us as parents who have to decide what is best for our children. not others telling us how we should be bringing up our children (not saying that that is what you are doing). i recall asking my mom so many questions about things i heard. and she would keep telling me i was too young. so i would try and find out from others. and i'd get all convoluted answers.
my dd is the kind for whom 'too early' is so ideal for her. if she hears about violence that's bad. but if she develops an interest in shakespeare oh that's great. *shrug* the radio is such a better medium to hear that than watching on tv. dd heard the word sexy from a song when she was 3. she knew it was not a term society approved of young people knowing so she first asked her 5 year friend and then came to me. i could have told her just like my mom but that would have made her seek the answer elsewhere.
at 3 was my dd listening to blood and gore? no she wasn't. she found NPR boring at that age and always asked to change that station till she was 5.
some children need to know. by 5 i could not 'shelter' my super curious child anymore coz she was getting exposed to stuff from elsewhere - like the news paper from passing the kiosk or even from the library, or passerby's discussion or the tv news from the store we had stopped at or the restaurant we were eating at. i'd rather she hear stuff around me and have me there to answer questions than elsewhere.
worse than news or NPR were books. dd didn't 'know' about monsters or worry about them till she 'discovered' them when her dc/ps read where the wild things are when she was 2. the pictures frightened her. other toddlers introduced her to other 'scary stuff' like a disease that kills you, machines that kill you. so really news is so not the only source children get info. some kids are oblivious to it. dd's bf's family also had NPR going in the kitchen all the time. he totally didn't pay any attention to it like dd did.
so i feel there is no one easy answer. one size fits all doesn't work either.
in our life - did my dd need to know? yes she did coz i was involved in activities around the stuff she 'shouldn't' hear. coz her friend in K lost his dad in the Iraq war and he wrote about his dad any chance he got in class. coz in first grade a friends parents were splitting up and it was going terribly with knives and the police involved and he was changing as a student and friend. coz another friend had to move in with her gma so they moved far away which reduced the number of play-dates we could have. all of this in first grade. she had to understand why her bf's family was so into stranger danger. why her bf refused to talk to strangers and even look at them. her brother had been kidnapped from her mothers arms for a v. short while thankfully.
I agree that we parents need to decide what is best for our children. Simplicity Parenting spoke to me because I already had those parenting philosophies. It was nice to read a comprehensive and detailed explanation for these parenting philosophies, as this is an uncommon way to raise children. My husband and I do not know anyone else IRL who limits media the way we do. When my son starts asking questions about sensitive subjects, I will answer them honestly and to the best of my ability and in an age appropriate way that is specific to my son's sensitivities. I don't see the need to expose a young child to news when people we know and meet in our daily lives have issues that we need to explain to our children. i.e. we go to the grocery store and my son asks why someone is using a cane, an electronic cart, has a cast on their leg, has tattoos, why the ambulance is in a hurry, etc. The heavy stuff will come, but I prefer to allow my son to be a child for as long as possible (he is only 2). My mother did watch the news and listen to NPR, so I was exposed to a lot stuff that really did bother me at a young age. But, it didn't help that I had a very rough childhood. I know my own experience is determining how much media I will allow for my child during his young childhood years. I did, however, start reading the newspaper when I was 9 and was obsessed with going to library starting at age 10 to read encyclopedias front to back as well as other reference books. I do remember having an appetite for information about the world. Eight is kind of young in my opinion for the scary news stories on NPR, but other non-violent news and programs would be fine to me at that age. We filter our son's reading at this time, but I love books and research and plan to share all of that with him. Yes, other people, our kids friends will expose our child to things that we may find inappropriate, but we don't always have control over those moments, where as we do have control over the radio. I think we underrate children's attentiveness to what they hear on the radio. Just because a child does not react or ask about what they hear does not mean that they are not paying attention. They still may not be able to shut it out of their minds. | <urn:uuid:58f19b80-7618-4aba-8c77-2bfb68f386bf> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.mothering.com/community/t/1331862/npr-around-kids/80 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.989123 | 1,246 | 1.578125 | 2 |
Creating A Circular Frame-Help
Posted 13 January 2010 - 10:58 AM
I am new to this wonderful site!! I am hoping to find an answer to my question that I have been trying to figure out for days. I am creating a birthday invitation for my daughter and I want to make a circle frame and insert her picture into the frame. I have Elements 5.0 and CS3.
I am drawing a blank on how to do this!! It's driving me crazy because I cannot figure this out!!
Thank you so much!!
Posted 13 January 2010 - 12:23 PM
I love Dinny's ScrapSimple Embellishment Templates: All Stitched-Circles, Straight Biggie. I can always find the right size circle to clip my photo to and the next size up creates a perfect border. I don't always use the stitched just the circle base. They can be used in either of the programs you currently have.
God, grant me the serenity to accept the things I cannot change;
the courage to change the things I can; and the wisdom to know the difference. reinhold niebuhr
Posted 13 January 2010 - 01:07 PM
We're glad you found us!
You can use the shape tool to cut a circle out of paper and to crop your photo - just be sure you are working off a copy.
There are always lots of ways to accomplish something in PSE and PS, so you will probably get other suggestions. But Dee's would be the easiest.
Posted 13 January 2010 - 09:06 PM | <urn:uuid:2ceda5d3-3fb6-4d4a-9175-3a9ab05ec86e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://scrapgirls.net/forum/topic/44237-creating-a-circular-frame-help/page__pid__785517?forceDownload=1&_k=880ea6a14ea49e853634fbdc5015a024 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706890813/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516122130-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.937129 | 330 | 1.835938 | 2 |
One of my favourite characters is Lance Corporal Jones, played by Clive Dunn (seen here on the far left of the picture), whose stock phrase of "Don't panic, don't panic!" always brings a smile to my face. You can't help but like the elderly soldier - kind, gentle, loyal, bumbling but always well-intentioned. So successful was he as an 'old man' that he actually had a number one hit single "Grandad" in 1971, where he sang with a children's choir. They couldn't have chosen a better person for the song - he looked every inch a loveable, wise, gentle grandpa!
Many of us, perhaps, have not been fortunate enough to grow up with a grandfather around (both of mine died long before I was born), but we can still learn from them and be inspired by them as we look at old photos and listen to our parents. I have grown up listening to my mother talk of her father, whom she adored. I would have loved to have met him - he was hardworking, intelligent, generous, kind and loving to his family (though stern when he needed to be), a great sailor and swimmer, had a wonderful singing voice and was very gifted with his hands.
He was every inch the family man, so when he was called up at the end of the Second World War by Hitler (he was German and lived in East Prussia), it must have been heartbreaking for him to leave his family. He was too old for active service, of course, but what could he do? It was his duty. He was sent off to Leningrad, where he knew immediately that the situation was hopeless. He wrote a letter to his wife and children in which he explained that there was really no hope - the Russians were due to attack the next day and defeat was certain to happen quickly - and, indeed, soon afterwards my grandmother received the fateful telegram. And with the Russians on the advance, she decided that the family had to flee to West Germany.
There are times, perhaps, in life where we have to put personal interests and wishes second to some greater cause or purpose. Whilst I abhor the way my grandfather lost his life - it was so futile, because whether he had fought or not fought, the outcome of the war would have remained unchanged - I admire him for his sense of duty and, as a loving partner and parent, he set a wonderfully positive example to others.
One thing, of course, that grandparents can contribute to our lives is a wealth of knowledge and experience. I wasn't able to get that from my grandparents, but I did get that from my father, who was 50 when I was born, so he had a lot of great advice and knowledge to give me as I grew up into my teens and early twenties. My maternal grandfather and father have had a great influence on me, even though one of them was long since gone when I was born, and I have paid my own tribute to them in my book Family & More - Enemies or Friends? It is important, I think, that their stories are told so that others can learn from them.
What about your family stories? What have you learnt from your grandparents? Why don't you write down what you know? The written word will help their stories live again and educate others. Perhaps leaving a comment on this post would be a start or sharing something on my Family & More facebook page. Don't let the stories of your grandparents disappear into the mists of time - they are too precious... | <urn:uuid:361e3176-35e4-4ad9-8b2a-75a247ff9279> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://helenaharpersblog.blogspot.com/2011_09_01_archive.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.993574 | 727 | 1.679688 | 2 |
A high-flying Kent hot air balloon pilot is celebrating another happy landing – but this time it’s the arrival of a cuddly four-legged new born with a famous name.
When Damon Bridger, from Gillingham, isn’t taking people on champagne balloon rides over Kent for Virgin Balloon Flight, he’s busy with his other unusual occupation; breeding and rearing alpacas. Damon, 50, and partner Clare West bought their first two alpacas two years ago with plans to breed more and sell them or to use their soft fleeces for wool products.
They set up Great Oak Farm Alpacas near Maidstone and now have six of the animals including the recent new addition, a black coloured baby or ‘cria’ which they’ve called Richard, after famous entrepreneur and adventurer Sir Richard Branson.
Damon said: “We’ve decided to call the new ones after famous airborne adventurers and, having been a pilot with Virgin Balloon Flights in Kent for 15 years, Sir Richard was obviously top of the list.
“The new cria was quick to explore his surroundings and seemed naturally inquisitive, so the name was perfect. Two more cria are due soon and we plan to name a girl after American pilot Amelia Earhart.”
Damon, who has flown balloons all over the world and now takes passengers up from Maidstone’s Mote Park, Wadhurst, Headcorn and Sutton Valence, said balancing both jobs was hard work, but meant every day was exciting.
“Nothing can beat the feeling of flying in a hot air balloon, but alpacas are amazing animals and seeing one being born is always a special experience,” Damon said.
A duck, a sheep and a cockerel were on board the first recorded hot air balloon flight in France in 1783, but despite the adventurous alpaca’s name, Damon has no plans to take Richard skywards.
“It’s a funny idea, but I’m not sure what the other passengers would think!” he added.
Visit the Virgin Balloon Flights website for more information or to book a balloon ride in Kent with Damon. | <urn:uuid:dcf98b13-a734-4f96-8292-fbf8fc4b90b6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.virginballoonflights.co.uk/blog/kent-balloonist-celebrates-happy-landing-of-a-fluffy-kind/ | 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 | 0.957124 | 468 | 1.515625 | 2 |
The United States Supreme Court has ruled that the use of unwarranted GPS trackers in police investigations is a violation of the Fourth Amendment. "I couldn't agree more with the Court." said local Bay City Attorney Jason Gower.
The case in question was "United States v. Jones." Antoine Jones was accused of drug dealing, and investigators placed a GPS tracking device on his vehicle with an invalid warrant, according to the New York Times. He was initially found guilty, but the verdict was overturned by the United States Circuit Court because of the potential Fourth Amendment violation. The United State Supreme Court affirmed the Circuit Court. Justice Antonin Scalia, writing for the majority, said that as conceived in the 18th century, the Fourth Amendment's protection of "persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures" would extend to private property such as an automobile.
"The Government physically occupied private property for the purpose of obtaining information. We have no doubt that such a physical intrusion would have been considered a 'search' within the meaning of the Fourth Amendment when it was adopted," Justice Scalia wrote. Emphasizing the Fourth Amendment's "close connection to property," Justice Scalia wrote that even a small trespass, if committed in "an attempt to find something or to obtain information," constituted a "search" under the Fourth Amendment.
The Supreme Court's decision stems from a narcotics operation that turned up nearly 100 kilograms of cocaine and $1 million when authorities raided a house in suburban Fort Washington, Md., in 2005. District of Columbia police and FBI agents watched Mr. Jones, a nightclub owner, for months with an array of surveillance techniques, including tapping his cellphone under a warrant from a federal judge. The appeals court in Washington voided Mr. Jones's conviction, because police followed his movements for four weeks by putting a GPS tracker on his Jeep Grand Cherokee without a valid warrant. Police had a warrant for the District of Columbia, but it had expired before the GPS device was installed in Maryland.
In an effort to preserve Mr. Jones's conviction, the government argued that no warrant was needed in the first place. "The United States Supreme Court has said quite clearly warrants are needed for these types of searches, end of story." Said Gower. | <urn:uuid:35881945-b714-43ee-a8d8-ef6596eff3d2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.mybaycity.com/scripts/P3_V2/P3V3-0200.cfm?P3_ArticleID=6701 | 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 | 0.976423 | 458 | 1.75 | 2 |
At this point I am still learning to throw pots, so I do mostly hand building. What I find especially on "harder" to form bowls, etc. is that I push too hard and get finger impressions in the clay, then they are basically impossible to remove. I have tried to gently press the clay down, and I "feel" that I am using only the needed pressure to mold the clay down to meet the surface of the bowl, but I still get finger marks. Once they are there, I can't seem to get them out -
How does a person learn to avoid tis (obviously less pressure) but I feel that I am only using enough to adhere to the object....
AND - once there are there, how do you work them out? You can only work the sponge over an area so many times before the area gets thinner than the rest of the area around it -
Some of these pictures are not that great, and the marks are not as bad as they appear in the pictures, but will give you an idea what I am referring to! | <urn:uuid:2f86444f-7725-4749-9467-2501177e3dbd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://ceramicartsdaily.org/community/topic/3344-finger-indentations-when-handbuilding-oops/page__p__27244 | 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 | 0.973286 | 220 | 1.796875 | 2 |
Got an electric ride? Live in east Multnomah County? Well, get ready to charge up in Gresham.
The city will unveil its first electric vehicle station next Tuesday as part of Portland General Electric's new network of charging stops in the region. Gresham is the third city in Oregon to install a plug-in station and the eighth location in PGE's growing network.
Laura Bridges-Shepard, a Gresham city spokeswoman, said there will be no charge to use the station at City Hall. Drivers simply park their cars and plug them in the same way a household appliance plugs into the wall.
The city paid $15,000 for the hook-up, half of which it expects to get back from state business energy credits, Bridges-Shepard said.
While the number of electric vehicles in the Portland area is still relatively small and confined to early adopters or owners of converted Priuses, automakers are expected to roll out a new generation of electric vehicles, including the Chevy Volt and the Tesla, within the next few years.
Gresham is inviting electric vehicle owners to plug in to the station at 1333 NW Eastman Parkway during the 11 a.m. event. Bridges-Shepard said the station isn't intended to provide full charges, which can take hours. Rather, she said, it will be "an in-between stop" for vehicles that need a boost of power. "Sort of like topping off your car at the gas station," she said.
Recently, Gov. Ted Kulongoski, PGE and Nissan Motor Co. reached an agreement that makes Oregon one of just a few sites worldwide to pioneer electric cars, starting in 2010.
Even if there is a surge in electric vehicles in the near future, Elaina Medina, a PGE spokeswoman, said the current power grid can handle the load. "We anticipate that 90 percent of charging will occur at night, during off-peak hours," Medina said.
-- Joseph Rose; email@example.com | <urn:uuid:468e6269-ebe6-48e2-8f5c-1a2e801e9ffd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blog.oregonlive.com/commuting/2008/12/gresham_becomes_a_stop_in_the.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964175 | 421 | 1.734375 | 2 |
The failure of pro-democracy forces to mount an effective show of force on the June 12 anniversary of the bloody repression of protests against last year's stolen election shows how well Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has consolidated its creeping coup d'etat and augmented its power throughout the last year.
In his Friday prayer sermon on June 18, after the anticipated anniversary demonstrations failed to materialize, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei stressed, "Iran is not Georgia," and therefore Western powers cannot "unleash a velvet revolution" there. To make sure this does not happen, Khamenei has mobilized the IRGC officer corps to crush the Green Movement. For now, Khamenei's reliance on the IRGC seems to have paid off; the Green Movement, despite twelve months of brave civil disobedience and peaceful campaigns, has been reduced to limited outbursts of anti-regime protest. But increasing IRGC intervention in politics has also weakened Khamenei and his clerical regime and paved the way for the rise of the officer class of the IRGC as the new masters of the Islamic Republic.
Authority in the Islamic Republic has traditionally rested upon a fundamental alliance between the revolutionary Shiite clergy and the IRGC. Within the alliance there has always been a clear division of labor between the clerics and the IRGC officer corps, which is constitutionally mandated to "safeguard the revolution and its achievements" against internal and external enemies. But IRGC support of Khamenei has not come cheap, and in return for its assistance against reformist groups such as the Green Movement, Khamenei has had to bribe the IRGC with political, economic, and even ideological influence. The ultimate price of Khamenei's victories over successive reformist efforts, with the Green Movement as only the latest example, may be the transformation of the Islamic Republic into a military dictatorship led by the Revolutionary Guard, a development that would leave Khamenei a hostage in the hands of his own praetorians. . . .
Ali Alfoneh is a resident fellow at AEI. | <urn:uuid:1af004bb-2db8-45d7-9bb5-5314f70a3ef5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.aei.org/article/foreign-and-defense-policy/regional/middle-east-and-north-africa/all-the-guards-men-irans-silent-revolution/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706890813/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516122130-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.95817 | 415 | 1.507813 | 2 |
Montana Receives ‘No Child’ Waiver as Congress Moves to Reauthorize the Law
Dissatisfied with the pace of No Child Left Behind reauthorization in Congress, the Department of Education announced it will waive some of the law’s penalties for individual states, provided the states make unspecified policy changes in return. Montana has already received a waiver, after declaring it would ignore NCLB requirements this year.
“The president has directed us to move forward with an administrative process to provide flexibility within the law for states and districts that are willing to embrace reform,” said Melody Barnes, director of the White House’s Domestic Policy Council.
Quid Pro Quo
To receive a waiver, a state must implement education reforms the Obama administration prefers. Education Secretary Arne Duncan promised to publish waiver requirements in September, noting only that waivers will be granted to states “that are prepared to address our educational challenges." He has not said what steps Montana will take in exchange for its waiver.
The waivers contrast proposals put forth by the House Education and the Workforce Committee and congressional conservatives to provide an alternative to NCLB.
The Setting New Priorities in Education Spending Act (H.R. 1891) and the State and Local Funding Flexibility Act (H.R. 2445) would provide states more flexibility with NCLB funding and eliminate and consolidate ineffective NCLB programs. The Academic Partnerships Lead Us to Success Act (H.R. 2514), would allow states to opt out of the law entirely.
The Obama administration is instead pushing for full NCLB reauthorization with increased education funding, and says it plans to issue waivers until then. Ranking congressional Democrats, including Senate education committee Chairman Tom Harkin (D-IA), have said the House reauthorization bills will gain no traction in the Senate.
Worries about Constitutionality, Rule of Law
States are increasingly expressing concern about NCLB’s fast-approaching 2014 deadline when the law requires them to have all children rating “proficient” in math and English on state tests. Most states set student proficiency targets along a curve, with lower benchmarks early on and steep jumps later, expecting Congress to change NCLB before 2014.
The Obama administration’s yet-to-be specified conditions for receiving waivers have some education experts on both sides of the political spectrum concerned about federal overreach.
“There has been nothing good about this waivers threat—no details, more expected arm-twisting to get states to adopt national curriculum standards, and worst of all, a blatant disregard for constitutional separation of powers,” said Neal McCluskey, associate director of the Cato Institute’s Center for Educational Freedom. “But this is what we get for ignoring the Constitution and letting Washington into education in the first place. Once the overall rule of law dies, it's dead everywhere.”
NCLB does allow the Department of Education to issue waivers, but does not allow to the DOE to tie them to changes in state education policies.
“The Obama administration's waivers go way beyond the NCLB waivers granted by the Bush administration to the extent that it violates the separation of powers and constitutes back-door lawmaking by the executive branch,” said Bill Evers, a fellow at the Hoover Institution and former U.S. assistant secretary of education. “Using waivers to lock in national curriculum is coercive central planning.”
Better Plan: School Choice
Other reformers argue the waivers prove that government cannot produce meaningful education reform.
"The entire waiver fiasco underscores once again that Americans cannot rely upon governments at any level—federal, state, or local—to fix government-run public schools,” said Lance Izumi, senior director of education studies at the Pacific Research Institute. “The Obama administration's issuance of waivers to states is frank admission that the whole notion of government-inspired self-improvement of public schools is a dismal failure.”
Izumi argues the nation’s schoolchildren would be better served if the administration supported school choice measures like those newly implemented in Indiana, Ohio, and Wisconsin instead of trying to control public education through NCLB.
“The only solution for parents of children attending failing government schools is to give them an immediate exit ticket in the form of a voucher scholarship, a tuition tax credit, or some other school-choice tool,” Izumi said, rather than “wasting everyone's time with more ‘trust-the-government’ hokum.” | <urn:uuid:2e7f0d2d-a17a-4002-b150-530601b96175> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://news.heartland.org/newspaper-article/2011/08/17/montana-receives-no-child-waiver-congress-moves-reauthorize-law | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.944598 | 952 | 1.601563 | 2 |
|By Marketwire .||
|March 6, 2013 05:03 AM EST||
NORTH CHESTERFIELD, VA -- (Marketwire) -- 03/06/13 -- Dr. Jan-Eric Esway, a Richmond orthopaedic surgeon, values the doctor-patient relationship and believes patient education is a key component to clear communication. To assist in his endeavor in finding innovative ways to increase his patients' orthopaedic knowledge, Dr. Esway has incorporated the use of iPads into the waiting rooms and operating rooms of his practice.
According to Dr. Esway, iPads provide an additional method to interact with patients and facilitate dialogue. By using an assortment of iPad apps, he is able to enhance patient knowledge, provide visual guides at the touch of a finger, and quickly access patient-specific information regarding their unique circumstance. In the operating room, Dr. Esway is able to give patients an interactive experience with fast access to x-ray images, 3D anatomical models, arthroscopic pictures, and clinical photographs to more clearly illustrate procedures including foot and ankle surgery.
Dr. Esway believes his patients' time is valuable. For this reason, iPads are provided for patient use even before they enter the exam room. His patients use this technology to:
- "Meet Dr. Esway" through his website
- Learn more about their specific concerns by clicking on an interactive foot and ankle image ("Where does it hurt?")
- Browse the internet
- Check email
- Play games
Patients are given access to apps such as NOVA Foot and Ankle Pro 3 -- a 3D anatomy program that allows the user to examine each layer of the foot and ankle from the skin to the bone. 3D4 Orthopaedic Patient Education is a 3D video app that explains and explores common conditions such as arthritis, as well as common treatments like arthroscopy.
In response to the iPads, Dr. Esway's Richmond orthopaedic surgery patients have provided positive feedback, reporting such statements as:
- "I was able to ask better questions during my visit with Dr. Esway."
- "I was able to get more out of my visit with Dr. Esway. We spent more time talking about my goals because I knew more about my problem."
- "After Dr. Esway recommended arthroscopic surgery, I watched a 3D video which showed me exactly what he would be doing during surgery. This made me feel much more at ease about setting up the surgery."
Dr. Esway ultimately hopes that his patients can be more involved and educated in the decision-making process about their care. He believes the iPads provide a much more efficient and clearer method of communicating complicated medical procedures than a sketched drawing on a piece of paper and a lengthy explanation. In the end, Dr. Esway says he feels the use of iPads enhances the entire level of care he is able to provide and helps him establish stronger relationships with his patients.
About Jan-Eric Esway, MD
Dr. Jan-Eric Esway is a graduate of Harvard University and earned his medical degree at the University of Pittsburgh's School of Medicine. He has been practicing medicine since 2000 and has established himself as a leader in the latest methods of foot and ankle care. Dr. Esway is available for interview upon request.
Image Available: http://www2.marketwire.com/mw/frame_mw?attachid=2248630 | <urn:uuid:d2f652d9-c04f-4890-a1f5-8fbdec2c25eb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.sys-con.com/node/2567113 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.957049 | 716 | 1.8125 | 2 |
KABUL — On a recent Friday afternoon, with the doors and windows shut tight against the gray November weather outside, a group of musicians sat in a circle at the Venue, a restaurant and recording studio that serves as the focal point for Kabul’s burgeoning rock scene.
But the melodies that filled the low-ceiling room that day had the harmonics of South Asian classical music, with the twang of the sitar, the loping beat of the tabla drum and the sweet assonance of Urdu lyrics. And the group was composed of two distinct parts: playing the sitar, tabla, and the rubab, an Afghan lute, were three men in shalwar kameez and loose-fitting blazers; strumming an electric guitar and a bass were Ali Noor and Ali Hamza, with shaggy haircuts and designer glasses. The tableau illustrated the creative tension between tradition and innovation inherent in folk music.
Noor and Hamza are brothers and the founding members of Noori, a Pakistani rock band with a massive following at home. Along with their drummer, Gumby, they were visiting Kabul to play several concerts and collaborate with Afghan folk artists from the musicians’ quarter in Khairabad, the old city of Kabul, like Mohammed Erfan Ehsan, Rahim Sakhizada and Faraida Miayi. In Khairabad, musical skill is still handed down within families from generation to generation and students take the title of ustad, or teacher, as their lifelong last name.
Noori is one of the biggest regional bands to visit Kabul as part of the capital’s recent rock-music revival. It came at the invitation of Humayun Zadran, the proprietor of Venue. He and his partner Robin Ryczek, a classically trained cellist, have been central to the renaissance of Afghanistan’s contemporary music scene.
The post-2001 period has been a mixed bag for the traditional arts in Afghanistan.
“We believe it is very necessary to be in touch with musicians from the neighboring countries,” Zadran said, referring to Pakistan, which has small but vibrant contemporary and traditional music scenes that often cross-fertilize, as in the case of Noori. Their cross-border efforts are a nice contrast to the fraught relations between Afghanistan and Pakistan these days.
The post-2001 period has been a mixed bag for the traditional arts in Afghanistan. The era of President Hamid Karzai has brought general economic buoyancy (in the cities, at least) and relative permissiveness (that is, relative to the mujahedeen and Taliban, who were against music), as well as a chance to reconnect with international currents in art and technology. Some of the money flowing in from abroad to support state reconstruction and security has found its way to local culture.
But even such initiatives have sometimes been questionable: one international organization, for example, spent tens of thousands of dollars bringing in a German abstract artist to hold an exhibition and “teach” Afghan students painting for a few days.
And the new, spendthrift era has brought vulgar aesthetics. So-called poppy palaces litter the wealthy areas of Kabul, their shoddy and garish turrets and balustrades emphasizing loud proclamations of wealth over architectural harmony. The weddings of Afghanistan’s nouveaux riche — the most lucrative venue for musicians — feature almost exclusively Afghan pop music, a saccharine derivation of Indian and Iranian pop, with heavy electronic effects distorting the singer’s voice, and the traditional instruments synthesized on a keyboard. “Our knowledge of Afghan culture has become weak,” said Ehsan, the sitar player who practiced at the Venue last week. “People go for the electronic stuff these days.”
The musicians of Khairabad, in contrast, see themselves as the guardians of the Afghan soul, whose flame they’ve kept alive through a long period of darkness and which they now wish to pass on to a new generation.
Last Friday evening, after Noori had finished practicing, we drove out to the old quarter of the city for a lavish dinner put on by the local musician Ustad Hassan Khan, followed by a concert by six of Khairabad’s most accomplished masters. In addition to the rubab, tabla and heavy dohol drum, there were two harmoniums and, in front of the white-bearded, senior-most ustad, the dilruba or “heart stealer,” a sort of upright lute played with a bow. The musicians sang folk classics like “Shomali” while we clapped along to keep the beat.
Seeing men and women reclined in a haze of smoke, cradling cups of tea and speaking in pidgin Dari and English with their Afghan friends made me think of how frequent scenes like this must have been in the 1960s and 1970s, when young people traveled in droves from the West to hang around Kabul. After the performance, I asked Mohammad Hashemi, the rubab player, what that era had been like. “That was a good time,” he said, pointing out that he had met Cat Stevens in Kabul then. “Maybe it will come again.”
Matthieu Aikins is a magazine writer living in Kabul. You can follow him on Twitter. | <urn:uuid:bbce1600-2493-40a3-85e2-f922418676a0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://latitude.blogs.nytimes.com/2012/11/21/reviving-afghan-folk-music-thanks-to-pakistani-rock/?hpw | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967293 | 1,138 | 1.59375 | 2 |
Nkandla splurge a betrayal of taxpayers and constitution: iLIVE
The Nkandla splurge debacle is a litmus test of the core values of the constitution ("Key points fig leaf too small to hide Nkandla splurge", yesterday).
Democrats and constitutionalists cannot take refuge in apartheid legislation for the sole purpose of looting public resources. It should not be forgotten that the ANC cannot and should not simply lay its hands on the apartheid state, but has an obligation to transform it.
Since when has a private residence of a mortal become a key national point?
The controversy unleashed by the Nkandla revamp undermines a core function of the president mandated by the constitution, namely to promote "the unity of the nation and that which will advance the republic".
Our point of departure is South Africa's democratic constitution, not the relics of apartheid misrule. This is a matter of public interest and principle and overrides crass materialism. - Mzukisi Gaba, Cape Town
DO THE president and the Department of Public Works believe the majority of the population cannot count or don't know how much R220-million is ("Scopa to study Nkandla bill," yesterday)?
The security system at Nkandla must be the most expensive for one of the most inefficient presidents in the world.
If Zuma finds his official residence in Pretoria too large, maybe he should not have accepted the job in the first place and would not have had to put up with it. The territory comes with the job.
Zuma's call for freezing of salaries sounds hollow if we take his immense waste of taxpayers' money into account.
That the whole matter of disclosure is shrouded behind the National Key Points Act and security is highly unacceptable. - E Schwentzek, Randburg
IT IS worrying that Nkandlagate was kept secret for long enough for roads and buildings to be completed, meaning that whatever comes to light from the investigation is pointless (are we going to knock down the buildings?). - Rene Marx, by e-mail | <urn:uuid:97c0b04e-9993-4344-9a0f-2c1a3dbce5d8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.timeslive.co.za/thetimes/2012/10/31/nkandla-splurge-a-betrayal-of-taxpayers-and-constitution-ilive | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950874 | 429 | 1.8125 | 2 |
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