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Space is a repetition of the process we see happening in our own atmosphere during the day.
No..... and yet................ no. Just not OK? I admit that I did once try to draw a parallel between the red appearance of a sunset with redshift but it was only an analogous comparison, and had no actual practical basis beyond that. So no space is not ... absolutely NOT a repetition of the process we see happening in our own atmosphere during the day .......ever.
What we are naming the Higgs field is a space cloud/gas. Our galaxy is contained in a cloud. Our planets are the particles within it.
Now if you are going to invoke the Higgs Field in such a manner could we at least stick to an established concept such as the ether? Please??? Pretty please?????
This tornado creates gravity for everything within our space cloud.
Win-tiggly, span-faggy... putozy numble.. spokeltopics.. nimbles perglebot.
Makes just as much sense.
Ditto Mr.S etc.
Actually I am rather pleased with the progress towards establishing the existence of the Higgs Boson as we now have what I presume (and please correct me if I'm wrong) to be something that could be viewed as an ether field? No? | <urn:uuid:479d7fba-5227-4872-83ff-0c2bd5677e78> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://sciencefocus.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=19&t=2779 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955066 | 271 | 1.734375 | 2 |
The Garrard County Water Association has issued a county wide boiled water advisory. The advisory began about 1:00 p.m. Monday.
Officials advise water to be boiled for three minutes to be safe enough to drink or used in food.
Officials say it happened when a water line broke. It is unknown at this time how long the advisory for Garrard County will be in effect.
We'll keep you posted with new information as it becomes available.
Enter your number for a chance to win great prizes!
Message and data rates may apply | <urn:uuid:16311343-da4d-466a-9c62-2a623c4fc89a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wkyt.com/home/headlines/4458827.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959251 | 112 | 1.609375 | 2 |
Company tax and stamp duty will trash budgets
Swan won't deliver his surplus, and neither will Wells, says Gavin R. Putland.
As the ABS has recently updated “Taxation Revenue, Australia” (ABS 5506.0), I can update the post of Sep.17. In so doing, I have extended the national graph back to 1999, added a curve for gambling taxes, and produced a separate graph for Victoria. In each graph, the colour codes in the legend are in the same order as on the right-hand edge of the plot.
As Mr Swan attempts to balance the Federal budget, his biggest revenue problem is company tax, whose revenue yield plunged $11 billion between 2007-8 and 2009-10 (see the graph below). In 2010-11 the yield had not climbed a third of the way back to the nominal pre-GFC level — let alone returned to trend. Perhaps Mr Swan's second-biggest revenue problem is income tax from superannuation funds, whose yield fell about $6 billion between 2007-8 and 2009-10. Revenue from personal income tax declined less and recovered more strongly.
Revenue from company tax is volatile because the tax base is the difference between gross income and expenses, and a small fractional change in either will cause a larger fractional change in the difference. When companies make losses, the loss of tax revenue is prolonged because losses are carried forward against later profits. Mr Swan is proposing to redistribute the tax effect by allowing loss-making companies to claim refunds of tax paid on earlier years' profits. Income tax from superannuation funds is volatile as the taxable income depends on the profitability of companies in which the funds invest. Concerning the direction of profitability, one might consider the three AIG indices for April, which David Llewellyn-Smith describes as “indicative of strong recession”.
The various indirect taxes — GST, excises and tariffs — were the most reliable of the taxes imposed at Federal level. The major indirect tax imposed by the States, namely payroll tax, was similarly reliable, but differs from other indirect taxes in that it has no apparent rationale except to raise revenue. Unlike the GST, it counteracts Federal tariffs by taxing the labour content of locally-produced goods but not of imported goods.
Of the revenue sources normally classified as direct taxes, the most reliable in terms of national aggregate revenue was land tax, which was imposed at State/Territory level. The most unreliable State/Territory tax was conveyancing stamp duty, whose nationwide yield dropped by almost a third in the “GFC” and only partly recovered under the influence of the Federally-funded First Home Owners' Boost and its State-funded supplements.
Concerning the future of stamp-duty receipts, one might consider the GFC-like levels of mortgage lending and house/unit sales. Last time the rate of dutiable transactions fell so low, it was turned around by the Federal First Home Owners' Boost, assisted by Victoria's First Home Bonus. This time around, Canberra is promising austerity while Victoria is about to end the Bonus. Speaking of Victoria, where Treasurer Kim Wells is predicting a surplus for 2012-13, the following graph shows the revenue from the big four State taxes for Victoria alone, with a time line ending at June 2011.
For the latest trend in Victorian stamp-duty receipts, see the recent graph of Victorian home transfers offered by Leith van Onselen (free subscription required).
Falling turnover in the property market is not only the direct cause of falling revenue from stamp duty, but also a leading indicator of falling activity in the “real” economy, hence lower revenue from Federal taxes.
[Edited May 8, 2012.] | <urn:uuid:f9bfcd1a-0c1d-477f-bd4c-5df26da6073b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blog.lvrg.org.au/2012/05/company-tax-and-stamp-duty-will-trash.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96133 | 771 | 1.84375 | 2 |
Some Bloggers were recently taken to task when they published a sponsored Blog posting about a shopping spree they took with a major retailer. It is an amazing view into what marketing and advertising is in this new media channel (especially one where everyone can be a pundit and critic).
The idea of being paid to post is a fascinating and recurring topic (shall I trot out the dead horse now?), and one that needs to be removed from these specific incidents and looked at with a more macro perspective. The reality is that there are many great Bloggers out there who are seen as leaders. People want to connect to them and, more importantly, some companies see them as an opportunity to connect their brand to that community, or to build credibility and create awareness for their brands, products and services. Also, because there are no clear advertising and sponsorship models in many of these newer social channels (beyond buying banners), we're seeing a ton of experiments to figure out "what works." It's very interesting and somewhat confusing - but that's the amazing part of being in the Marketing, Advertising and Communications business right now.
Real interactions between real human beings.
Advertising works when it's the right brand in the right environment with the right audience. The general comments on these Blogs are all focusing on the levels of transparency and whether or not the Bloggers are entitled to take money in exchange for a Blog posting. I think this is the wrong conversation to have (all of these Bloggers were very transparent). Marketing and advertising works when there is trust between the content provider and the audience. It's not just about that relationship of trust, it is extended towards two very different sides of publishing - the content and the economy behind it. On the one hand, the audience trusts that that the content creator will stay true by providing valuable content, and on the economic side, the audience continues to play along knowing full well that all of this great content comes at a cost - advertising, sponsorships, consulting gigs, book deals, speaking opportunities, and everything else. No matter what, both sides have to live up to the audiences expectations, meaning the content must be strong and the advertising must be relevant. That's how all successful publishers across all of the media channels have won to date.
Trust in non-transferable.
We expect Bloggers who post - and are paid to do so - to be transparent. Transparency is table stakes. We expect people to disclose what is an advertisement, what is sponsorship and what - if any - affiliations are had with other things that are mentioned within these social environments. But, there is something more profound going on here. When a company pays someone to post, they are hoping that the trust people have for that Blogger will be transferred to them. No chance. Trust is non-transferable. We have companies who have little-to-no social community credibility riding the coat-tails of Bloggers who have spent a long while building up their community and, if there was no prize at the end of the rainbow (meaning the community also gets a chance to "win" something - not just the Blogger), it would probably leave everybody feeling a little icky. The only way for that not happen is when the company that is paying to post has equal or more trust within the community.
You can't buy trust.
The best advice a Digital Marketer can give a client who is asking them if they would accept money to post about them, etc... would be to help them understand that a brand can't buy trust, but they can - over time - build community and earn reputation. And, by going through with a program of this nature, it's also not very social media at all - it's just advertising (whether a Blogger yaps about it or they run a banner ad on their site). Someone is being paid to write about something. The advertorial has been around forever (well, at least, since the 1960s). There's nothing all that experimental with this format. But there's a problem if it doesn't work: the bigger brands can chalk it up to experimentation and simply move on, while the Bloggers now have to rebuild something that is incredibly frail and impossible to buy from their audience: trust. Many Bloggers react with an, "I don't ask my readers for money, I give readers all of this great content for free, so what's wrong with a little money from someone else along the way to cover some costs and put shoes on my babies' feet?" statement. There's nothing wrong with that, if it's the understanding of the community from the get-go. There might be something weird about it if it just suddenly appears out of nowhere.
Ultimately, everyone has to figure out what works best on their own spaces - be it a Blog, Podcast, Twitter or Facebook. The real challenge is in knowing your community well enough to decide if it's a good fit and, if it's not, is it worth the advertising dollars over the community trust and engagement?
What do you think? | <urn:uuid:81538a1c-f009-4a25-8ef0-604f571a699f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.twistimage.com/blog/archives/trust-is-non-transferable/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97658 | 1,029 | 1.65625 | 2 |
It is the presence of the honor code that makes Kerren such an interpersonal drama (soap opera). Everyone follows it, to some degree. Only Ryders are held to it.
To self: Since you have to be honest with your self, you find yourself doing and acting on feelings, that other societies would normally suppress (by lying to yourself about their importance)
To everyone: You are supposed to be honest with everyone, yet we we all know how too much honesty can be a problem. This rule is often in conflict with Duty and Cooperation
Co-Operation : Kerren society is built upon the foundation of cooperation. You are bound to help people in need, to do what you can for the wing/ ward/ cluster/ society as a whole. You may hate someone's guts, but when the Zhan are falling, you work with them as a full part of your team. Sometimes people repress honesty to make cooperation possible. Sometimes your need to do what is best for the group, you have to toss personal loyalty out the window.
Duty : Every person has a job to do and they should do it, no matter what. Kerren's cooperative society, everyone does there part. If you have been given a duty, you have to do it... everyone is counting upon you. Some people see this as a need for excellence, however.. the code implies you just need to do the job well... not better.
Loyalty : Loyalty to ones's crew, one's "captain", and one's friends is a very important ideal. However, it creates the conflict when dealing with duty, cooperation, and honest.
"Word" : This is not technically part of the "code". It is a bi-product. It is one's reputation. In a society and as stratified and small as Kerrens, your reputation is how people see you. Since many of the laws and rules are subjective to the Warden (head of the ward), the ward's opinion of you becomes very important. that is why when someone is a bit too honest, duels will often errupt to defend one's word.
Cool little honor system. In theory, a perfect one. Like all honor systems, when you take them a bit farther than they were designed, they can create some strange results. | <urn:uuid:328fc5b3-9114-4105-90fa-0f4fd44559aa> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://strolen.com/guild/index.php/topic,737.msg12357.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.974659 | 476 | 1.523438 | 2 |
The fund is called California FreshWorks and is supported by 18 non-profits, health providers and banks.
The California Endowment helped spearhead the initiative.
They say research shows four million people in California live in areas that need more affordable nutritious food.
Tina Castro of the Endowment says they want to create healthy choices and jobs.
CASTRO: We're hoping that there are some entrepreneurs out there that we can challenge to really come up with some really interesting innovative ideas, and then provide them with the financing and the capital to really pursue those.
OBAMA: We can talk all we want about calorie counts and recipes, and how to serve balanced meals...
First Lady Michelle Obama applauds the fund. She says it's part of a nationwide effort to help families put fresh food on the table.
OBAMA:... If their only options for groceries are at the corner gas station or the local mini-mart, then all of that is just talk.
Funders hope California FreshWorks will generate 6,000 jobs throughout the state. | <urn:uuid:e49e9df0-360b-43b3-9acc-7ecda7184f43> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.capradio.org/163160 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.956277 | 217 | 1.726563 | 2 |
creative bookkeeping that the study did (very successfully) raised the interest of the European Commission in PSI—and especially its potential value.
Nearly five years later, we did the MEPSIR study. You would expect that the value would be higher by that time, because even with a modest growth of 3 percent, the EU’s €68 billion would now be €80 billion, but we actually arrived at a lower number, a base number of €27 billion. To be honest, that was still pretty much an overestimate. One of the things we asked for was the market size, which is different from the value added and much larger. Because all the studies had used estimates of value added, it was important in this study to use it as well in order to make comparisons.
Another issue was that it seemed the small countries tended to overestimate the value of the market significantly. Compensating for that, we divided the numbers by two. Finally, in order to fill in the missing values, we had to correct the method used. Just as Pira had done, we had used GDP as a base. But that really does not make sense because you are dealing with some big countries, such as Poland, that just do not have a vibrant information industry. So it is probably better to use the economic value of the publishing industry as a distributor of PSI, and if you do that, you arrive at lower numbers again. When we make all of these corrections, we drop from €27 to €5 billion or even €3 billion—truly a big difference. Obviously, these are not precise numbers, but they give us an order of magnitude—about 15 to 20 times less than the Pira study estimated.
Now let us look at the more recent OFT study, which covered only the United Kingdom. It arrived at an overall number of almost £600 million. If you take away all the distortions—due to trading tricks and so on—you arrive at a value of £1.1 billion, or almost double the original figure. If you then use this method to calculate a value for the European Union as a whole, you arrive at a total of €3 to €5.5 billion—pretty close to the MEPSIR figures.
Finally, let us return to the initial 2001 Dutch study. It was rather detailed, but it was focused only on geo-information and covered only the Netherlands. Extending this to all PSI sectors for all of the European Union is, of course, a very tricky business, but if you do so you end up with values of between €5 to €7 billion. Again, that is much lower than the €68 billion that was mentioned by Pira. If we take a new look at Pira, it basically said that the United States has a much stronger private information industry. Furthermore, Pira’s number included IT software, hardware, Hollywood—you name it, they added everything up. But that begs the question—and this is really the key question—of to what extent this difference is due to differences in pricing policy, that is, to the difference between an open access model and a closed access model. The assumption was that there would be a more vibrant information sector if PSI were more readily available.
It is actually possible to argue the other way around. Because the United States has a much stronger private information industry, there is more of a mature demand for PSI. And there may another factor: that Americans are just better at exploiting information services, whether in the private or public sector. Or there may be no relationship whatsoever. Honestly, I do not know, and there been no research in this specific area. Gerhard Wagner from Austria is probably one of the few who has done in-depth empirical research making comparisons between countries. He has found some | <urn:uuid:79335349-c9ae-4532-bf21-954189372a91> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.nap.edu/openbook.php?record_id=12687&page=26 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.972441 | 783 | 1.664063 | 2 |
You might not be aware that VICE UK has its own bar. It’s called The Old Blue Last and it used to be a brothel before we acquired it. Still, it was a bar for 300 years before that, and even Shakespeare used to hang out there. It stands imperiously on the corner of Great Eastern Street and Curtain Road in London, dominating Shoreditch like a gigantic ancient rock that sells beer. To celebrate their magazine’s tenth anniversary, our English counterparts hired an incredibly famous historian who wished to remain nameless to find out all about it.
East London has been horrible and messy for a very long time. The Floralia, the ancient Roman festival of flowers, celebrated Flora, a hooker who’d been turned into a goddess. When the week-long festival came to London, scores of half-naked prostitutes gathered outside the city walls, in what is now Shoreditch, to exchange milk, honey, and invent all the STDs we have to worry about these days.
In the 16th century, everyone got into theater, which might sound wimpy but it was actually a lot more boozy and fighty back then. Plays were banned in London, but because Shoreditch remained conveniently just outside the city limits, in 1576 a venture capitalist named James Burbage built a venue called The Theatre where The Old Blue Last currently stands.
This illicit, out-of-town theater turned Shoreditch back into the godless pleasure garden it had been in Roman times. It was a place for gentlemen to bathe, play lawn bowls (which might sound wimpy but it was actually a lot more boozy and fighty back then), and fitfully rub their genitals against the wenches and rent boys who populated the area. Oh, and Bill Shakespeare hung out there all the time too, kicking back with John Webster and losing his shit to whatever the Elizabethan version of “She Bangs the Drums” was.
Eventually Burbage pulled down The Theatre and moved it south of the river, where it became The Globe. Shoreditch, meanwhile, remained an iniquitous pit of bowls and sex, and in 1700 a bar was built on the site of the old theater. It was called The Last, which, remarkably boringly, refers to a wooden block that a shoemaker uses to mold a shoe. The Last was owned by a brewer named Ralph Harwood, who went on to achieve a small level of fame when he was pronounced bankrupt one day by Gentleman’s Magazine. In these early years, men carrying powderpuffs used to frequent the pub. Anyone familiar with the coded body language of this era will know that “man with powderpuff = man who wants to fuck other men.”
THE OLD BLUE LAST
In 1876, Truman’s brewery took over the pub. They pulled The Last down and rebuilt it as The Old Blue Last, which means “the old blue wooden pattern that is used to mold the shoe.” Gents came to dine here, ladies took their tea here, everyone wore flat caps, well-made shoes, and called each other “squire” in a way that wasn’t irritating because Guy Ritchie and Pete Doherty hadn’t been born yet. There’s still a massive mirror hanging in the main bar that dates back to this time and has somehow managed to never get smashed. Eventually Truman’s went down the toilet and Grand Metropolitan Hotels took over the OBL (which, let’s face it, proves that they were never really that grand at all).
Throughout the 1970s and into the 90s, Shoreditch was still full of strip joints and violent gay bars (Freddie Mercury is said to have landed his helicopter on top of the building that is now The London Apprentice, formerly the 333). At that point, The Old Blue Last was a rough place full of rougher men and people who were afraid of being beaten up by them. It housed an illegal strip club and brothel, which was on the second floor. The room was divided into cubicles, with no walls, made up of single beds. Next to each bed was a small table, and that was pretty much it.
Weirdly, on every bedside table there was a bowl of peanuts. I guess East End gangsters were into throwing nuts at prostitutes? Apparently, once some pissed-off tough guys turned up to settle a score with a bouncer, put a gun in his mouth and pulled the trigger. Lord knows how, but somehow he lived (if anyone can be described as “alive” when half their head is missing). | <urn:uuid:48e56167-4a86-49cb-9784-b2e6f3e81bf4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://closeandstrange.tumblr.com/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.981479 | 976 | 1.53125 | 2 |
CfER has had several long-term campaigns for state legislation. Here is a
differently organized list that may be more or less up to date.
- Local option to use ranked voting --
would allow cities or counties to use ranked voting systems to elect
their representatives, even if they do not have a charter. The
bill would allow these jurisdictions to use Instant Runoff Voting for single-winner elections or Choice Voting (a ranked voting system similar to IRV) for
multiple-winner elections. It would also add to the state Elections Code the guidelines and procedures registrars and equipment
vendors need to count and report ranked voting elections. Visit CfER's resource page on this bill for historical info that will aid our
AB 1121 from the 2009-2010 session by Assemblymember Mike Davis (D-48) would have been a pilot program for 10 cities or counties.
The path to AB 1121 started with AB 1039,
introduced by Assemblymember Loni Hancock (D-14) in 2003. In 2005, Senator Debra Bowen introduced SB 596, coauthored by Hancock. Both bills
would have allowed all California cities and counties to adopt alternative voting methods, not just those with charters like San Francisco. In 2007, the
AB 1294, by
Assemblymembers Gene Mullin (D-19) and Mark Leno (D-13), only to have it vetoed by the governor.
- Ranked ballots for overseas vote-by-mail voters --
It would require that overseas voters -- including active members of the military -- be able to use ranked ballots when voting in
elections that might lead to a runoff. When the first and second rounds of a two-round runoff election occur close together, it can be difficult for
absentee voters located overseas to receive their second-round ballots (which aren't printed until the first-round results are known) and return them in
time to be counted. Only a small number of California cities have second rounds within 45 days of the first round, but a larger number have second rounds
60 to 70 days after the first.
AB 308 was introduced by Assemblymember Paul Cook
(R-65) and would do this.
Learn more on our archived AB 308 action page.
- IRV for special elections -
introduced by former Assembly Speaker Hertzberg in 2001, would use IRV to
fill vacancies in the U.S. House or state legislature. It did not make it
through its committee, but it may be possible to reintroduce it in a future
session. Our volunteer lobbyists worked with Hertzberg's staff and others to
develop and promote the bill. We have a resource page. We are also working to build a coalition
in support of the bill.
A variation on this would apply to recall elections. Currently, if the governor or other officer is
recalled, his or her replacement is elected in a wide-open "most votes wins"
election - and that winner is very likely to not have many votes. IRV is the perfect fix.
Here is a draft of a bill.
is a good example letter.
- Multi-member districts for US House seats - A longer-term
priority is federal legislation allowing use of
multi-member districts in the election of a state's delegation to
the U.S. House of Representatives. This would permit the use of a
proportional method within each district. Bills in the 107th and 106th
Congresses could have accomplished this.
- We would like to see an amendment to the California constitution that
would allow for the use of a full (proportional) representation method to
elect the state legislature.
- IRV for statewide executive offices -
here is a rough draft (pdf) of a ballot
measure that would implement IRV
statewide. We have another version of such a bill.
How to take action
- Read the above information about the bill(s) you are interested in.
- Check to make sure you know who your
assemblymember and state
- Find out how to contact your
and state senator.
- Using the sample letter for help, write a letter
and fax or mail it to your chosen legislators in Sacramento.
- Please consider a followup call to Sacramento or a visit to your district office.
Ask us or send a note to an election reform email list to find people to join you on your visit.
- Ask civic groups you're associated with to send letters of endorsement to the
Elections Committee (or comments via the above link to the comment form).
- Please email us to let us know what you've accomplished.
We need your help, and it will make a difference!
Click here to read about bills that CfER supports or opposes.
The California Legislative Counsel's website contains up-to-date versions of all bills being considered in the legislature, along with votes and other status information for each bill, and a form that can be used to contact legislators about each bill. The current government and election codes also appear there.
Maps of assembly, senate, and house districts are in the Berkeley Statewide Database.
The Assembly and
Senate websites can help you find your legislator and the membership of the committees on elections in each body. Because these committees act on behalf
of the entire state, it is justified to send letters to any or all committee members. Most of them
aren't very familiar with IRV, so contacting them will help!
The California Elections Code is
here. If you want to view the whole thing (as of 2001) as a single file for easier searching, it's
Here are links to the
League of Cities and its
as well as the
Association of Counties and its
The support of these groups would be of great help to any election reform legislation.
House and Senate Phone Numbers (CA) |
House and Senate Addresses (CA)
Return to CfER home page
Page last revised June 11, 2013 | <urn:uuid:ddec6a26-e11e-4e1c-b15b-a6a1268357cb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://cfer.org/legislation/index.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.944836 | 1,253 | 1.8125 | 2 |
This book is a store of knowledge from 20 years of flying sport aircraft. If you've ever wondered why the air behaves as it does, this book is for you. The greatest emphasis is on small-scale effects--excatly where we fly. Details are provided on everything from turbulence to thunderstorms. The chapters on lift sources and flying efficiency alone are worth the price of this book. Understanding the Sky is your key to complete comfort in the air. | <urn:uuid:06e074d0-f4db-4f1b-9589-6c8fc446a411> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.airbornewings.co.uk/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=39 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.952359 | 92 | 1.671875 | 2 |
iREPORTERS SIGNED UP
Created August 8, 2012 by
Torrential rains in and around the Philippine capital, Manila, have caused widespread flooding and killed several people.
The effects of the monsoon are being exacerbated by Typhoon Haikui, which hit the eastern coast of China on Wednesday.
Water up to 2.4 meters (around eight feet) deep has left parts of metropolitan Manila completely flooded, with roads and transportation systems blocked and scored of residents fleeing their homes.
Local officials have urged residents to move to higher ground from affected neighborhoods.
Are you affected by the rains and flooding in the region? Send us your story, photos and videos but please remember to stay safe.
|Last 24 Hours||//||Last Week||//||All Time| | <urn:uuid:276ef16d-d989-4313-8f18-83e55924db16> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://ireport.cnn.com/topics/826354/shared | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961845 | 158 | 1.625 | 2 |
Life without Life Insurance
What if you were no longer here to provide for your family and loved ones? What if you couldn't watch your children grow, graduate from college, and begin their own families? What if your spouse couldn't afford the home, car, college tuition, or unanticipated medical expenses, all because you hadn't planned for the unexpected? Life is full of "what ifs," and we don't always have the answers to every question. That's why it's important to put a plan in place that will protect your family if you're not here. Life insurance can be an essential part of that plan.
How much do you need?
Life insurance can provide financial resources at your death for your family or business, or for charities and other interests. The amount of life insurance you need depends on a number of factors, including the size of your family, the nature of your financial obligations, your career stage, and your goals. The answers to these questions may help you determine how much life insurance you should consider:
- What immediate financial expenses (e.g., debt repayment, funeral expenses) would your family face upon your death?
- How much of your salary is devoted to current expenses and future needs?
- How long would your dependents need support if you were to die tomorrow?
- How much money would you want to leave for special situations, such as funding your children's education or gifts to charities?
- What other assets, including existing life insurance, do you have?
What if your spouse dies first?
If you're the primary breadwinner in your marriage, it's easy to overlook the financial and emotional strain your family will face if your spouse should die before you. Your income might be diminished if you have to work less in order to spend more time with your children. Or, you may have to work longer hours to cover unanticipated expenses for daycare, house cleaning, meals, etc. To your young children, losing one parent may seem like losing both. If your spouse should die before you, insurance on his or her life can offer financial security for your family, allowing you to spend more time providing emotional support for your children.
Even if you're single
Just because you're single doesn't mean you don't need life insurance. If you died tomorrow, what financial obligations would remain? Do your parents or other relatives depend on you for support? Do you want to leave something to people close to you such as siblings, other relatives, or close friends? How will you provide for your favorite charities? Do you have pets that will need care in your absence? Life insurance is an important part of any financial plan, even if you're not married.
Don't let hard times be an excuse to cancel your insurance
During tough economic times, you might be tempted to stop paying your life insurance premium. However, a recent study reveals that 4 in 10 households with children under age 18 would have trouble meeting their everyday living expenses if the primary breadwinner died. Yet 30% of U.S. households have no life insurance, and of those that do, over half (58 million) say they need more life insurance (Life Insurance and Market Research Association 2010 Trends in Life Insurance Ownership). Cancelling your life insurance to save a few dollars when money is tight may jeopardize your family's financial future.
Review your plan
Whether you have life insurance through your employer or purchased privately, have you reviewed your coverage recently, especially in relation to your current circumstances? Do you have enough coverage to meet your changing needs and goals? If you change jobs, can you take your insurance with you? Lives change over time and your financial needs may change as well. Review your present coverage with your insurance professional to ensure it's keeping up with your changing financial needs and goals. | <urn:uuid:ab85fb1b-12ea-423d-ba4d-b16dc85e5985> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.360financialliteracy.org/Topics/Insurance/Life-Insurance/Life-without-Life-Insurance?fpath=99 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973273 | 777 | 1.539063 | 2 |
View Full Version : How do you sweeten plain yogurt?
02-08-2004, 10:45 PM
I have tried in the past to get Sarah to eat plain yogurt with stuff in it (fruits, etc.) to no avail. (I am cursing the day I ever started with YoBaby!) So since she turned two, we have been using the "toddler" yogurts: Danimals, Yumsters, Stonyfield organic and the new organic toddler yogurt by Horizon.
Well, today I was eating MY yogurt, which is usually plain, nonfat yogurt to which I add vanilla and Splenda. She wanted some, so I gave her a taste and she LOVED it! So I got her some plain, lowfat (not nonfat) yogurt and mixed in vanilla and she didn't like it. I added Splenda and she thought it was grand.
But afterwards, I felt a little funny. Should I be giving her artificial sweetener? I know that they are controversial for some and I have absolutely no qualms about using it for ME. But I wasn't sure what to do for her. Splenda? Sugar? Honey? Does anyone know why one would be better than another and why?
02-09-2004, 02:51 AM
Personally, I try to stay away from artificial sweeteners in general. I would use sugar or honey if you really want her to eat the plain yogurt. I'm wondering why it's so important to have her eat plain yogurt this way, though. Seems to me the reason for eating plain is that the fruited yogurt has more sugar, but if you are adding sugar to get her to eat it.... kwim? I think it's better to sweeten with fruit/fruit juices than sugar(crystalized cane juice), but better sugar than artificial stuff. JMO. HTH.
02-09-2004, 03:02 PM
Well two main reasons. One, it is much cheaper, and we eat a LOT of yogurt! And secondly, its part of my overall food re-vamp campaign, LOL! :) I am trying to get us all eating more naturally. I don't always use sweetener for me, but I do if the yogurt happens to be especially tart and I'm not using fruit (which was the case here). I am avoiding any added sugar for ME, but I didn't know if there was any particular reason to avoid sugar for a toddler, YKWIM?
Today I used 1/4 teaspoon of sugar in her yogurt (1/2 cup plain) and that seemed sweet enough for her. I am hoping to be able to gradually decrease it and get her used to the more tart taste.
02-09-2004, 05:19 PM
I usually combine the plain yogurt with some of traditional toddler yogurts. One container of the toddler yogurt tends to last two or three snacks. I keep hoping he will eat it plain or with our own fruit, but not yet. I will fool him someday!
Mom to Nicholas 10/01/01
& Baby #2 due 4/23/04!!!!
02-10-2004, 02:03 AM
Ah. Okay, that makes sense. I don't think there is any reason to avoid sugar for a toddler, either, especially such a small amount. It all just goes toward their vast amount of energy and growth! LOL! My DS loves plain yogurt, but then, he eats the soy yogurt, so that is a different taste altogether. I don't think that stuff is tart at all.
02-10-2004, 10:31 AM
I've also started giving my daughter plain yogurt since I have it around for me now. I usually add some frozen blueberries, vanilla, and sugar--not sure how much but less than a teaspoon. I don't have any problem with adding that amount of sugar since if I'm converting from grams to teaspoons correctly the Yobaby had nearly 4!
Personally I wouldn't use the Splenda, but I don't use artificial sweeteners myself. To me it seems that toddlers are so in tune with how many calories they need to take in that adding the sweetness without the calories at that age might somehow throw off their sensors--but that's my own twisted logic!
We've tried the Brown Cow brand yogurt that I think is sweetened with honey and I just didn't like the taste.
02-11-2004, 03:48 PM
Instead of adding just fruit, what about jam or preservatives? Less than a tablespoon usually does the trick. It will have less sugar and "stuff" than a pre-flavored yogurt, but more than just the plain fruit. My mom did this with us and to this day I prefer it that way. I tried it with Dante and he loved it just grand.
Then again, this is the boy who tonight wouldn't eat his chicken so I hid it in large spoonfuls of creamed spinach. I just sat there shaking my head in awe as he opened his mouth wide.
Mama to Dante, 8/1/02
02-12-2004, 03:38 PM
Oh that's a great idea! I'll try that!
02-13-2004, 11:51 PM
Yep, that's what we grew up with. I am cursing YoBaby because it's so expensive!! $3.49 for a 6-pack? I'd rather get the big tub of plain or vanilla and add jam. Now, if only he would eat it on a regular basis...The kid is so moody about food! :)
02-14-2004, 03:40 PM
Just wanted to add that we tried the yogurt and jam for breakfast this morning and it was a big hit! :)
And Joanne, it also suddently stuck me that I was paying $3 for a 6 pack of toddler yogurt and asked myself, WHAT am I doing???? LOL!
02-14-2004, 03:52 PM
Yippee!! And to think, little ol' me was able to suggest something to Beth? :) You just made my month!
Glad to help out. And now, of course, if you're anything like me you'll end up obsessing over jams. So many flavors, so little time.
Mama to Dante, 8/1/02
02-14-2004, 04:43 PM
LOL! Actually this works out really well! Since DH and I are no longer eating jam (for the most part), I now have a way to use up the two jars taking up room in my refrigerator! :)
02-14-2004, 05:34 PM
One of my favorite combinations for myself is vanilla yogurt with wheat germ and maple syrup. I've never done it with plain yogurt, but I would imagine it would still be good.
I also wanted to mention that to me the Sonyfield Farm whole milk plain yogurt tastes infinitely better than nonfat plain yogurt. It's less tart and all of us (DH, DD, and I) will eat it plain.
02-16-2004, 03:40 AM
My ds loves the plain yogurt! I mix it 1/2 yogurt, 1/2 applesauce and then throw in a banana. But, this is the only kind of yogurt he's ever had. So, he doesn't know what he's missing I guess!
Try that & let me know what you think... :)
02-22-2004, 05:44 PM
You can also make your own yogurt--It's really easy,MUCH cheaper, and tastes great! You bring 1 quart of milk to almost boiling, cool it slightly, stir in some yogurt (either store bought plain or leftover yogurt from your last batch, then let it sit about 6 hours in a warm area. I use the yogurt maker from Salton. It's like a low temp crock pot. It comes with the specific directions and temperatures for heating and cooling. A gallon of yogurt costs the same as a gallon of milk! It tases great plain or with a little sugar and vanilla. I also like it with sugar and lemon extract or some strawberry jam. I bought the yogurt maker at Target but they also have them online and at Salton outlets in the mall.
03-05-2004, 05:39 PM
I love love love Brown Cow, Low Fat, Fruit on the Bottom. Not the honey kind, but the kind flavored with fruit juice. It has a yellow top and only comes in strawberry, lemon, and blueberry. We both just eat the yogert off the top, without mixing it up. Perfectly slightly sweetened, firm and wonderful. Just an idea.
03-27-2004, 11:02 AM
I was told to flavor plain yogurt with maple syrup too. I'm going to try it.
Proud Mommy to Martie 4/6/03
03-29-2004, 01:32 PM
I just bought Wheat germ for the first time. Are there different kinds?
03-29-2004, 10:15 PM
There are, but I don't know too much about them. I've always bought the kind that comes in a jar at the regular grocery store (a blue label ... name starts with a "K" I think). DH recently bought some in bulk at a natural foods store and I don't like it as much (weird flavor and too mushy when mixed w/ yogurt). He said that it's not toasted, and that's why it probably tastes different than what I am used to. I know there are other variations as well, but that's the extent of my experience with wheat germ!
04-01-2004, 12:24 AM
I use Mother's toasted wheat germ & think it's way better than the non-toasted. I mix it in dd's yogurt & applesauce.
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- One of the major tourist destinations of India, popularly known as the Pink City. It is an abode of extensive boulevard and beautiful gardens. Jaipur was founded by Sawai Jaisingh II, in 1727 AD, still preserves its glory of rich history and culture. The past comes alive in its impressive forts, majestic palaces and in its royal building which for centuries was the abode of royal families. Rajasthani jewelry, art and fabrics maintain an ageless feature and are surely a treasure-trove for the shoppers. These exquisite items are of great demand in the international market. Jaipur with its romantic grace takes one to an era of kingship and heritage.
Major Tourist Attractions
- The Hawa Mahal, City Palace, Jaigarh Fort, Jantar Mantar, Amber Fort, Nahargarh Fort
Distance from Delhi to Jaipur
- 258 kms (Approx).
Volvo Coach India runs daily Volvo Buses to and from Delhi to Jaipur. For ticket booking or any enquiry, please mail or call. | <urn:uuid:779489cc-b9ce-4d45-bf44-aeb750e1b32d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.volvocoachindia.com/dailyvolvobusservice/delhitojaipur.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.932056 | 230 | 1.65625 | 2 |
Six-month deal reached to avoid government shutdown
This story has been updated.
Congressional leaders and the White House have reached a deal to adopt a stopgap spending bill after the August recess that would fund the government through the first quarter of 2013, Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev., said Tuesday afternoon.
The agreement allows lawmakers to avoid engaging in an ugly spending fight during what is already expected to be an extraordinarily hectic post-election work session.
"It will provide stability for the coming months," Reid said of the funding extension. "This is very good because we can resolve these situations that directly affect the country as soon as the election is over."
The six-month continuing resolution, which Reid said would contain no policy riders, would be prorated at the 2013 spending level set by the Budget Control Act last August. Neither chamber will take up a continuing resolution bill this week; House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, said in a statement that the legislation would be crafted during the August recess. Congress will have eight legislative work days in September before the current fiscal year ends on Sept. 30.
House Appropriations Chairman Hal Rogers, R-Ky., isn't thrilled about the half-year plan, though, because of the complications inherent in stopgap funding; appropriators would like to return to regular order or at lease keep any stopgap bill brief. Earlier speculation centered on whether Congress would adopt a two-month or six-month extension.
"From our perspective it would be better to have a short-term CR," said Rogers spokeswoman Jen Hing, noting the bills "are meant to be short-term Band-Aids."
Aides expected earlier this week for the resolution to be consistent with current funding levels rather than the BCA cap of $1.047 trillion. The Congressional Budget Office has not updated its score for 2012's spending rate but it is expected to show a slightly higher spending rate than the $1.043 trillion discretionary cap enacted for the fiscal year, thanks to the delay of some rescissions.
By announcing a deal on a six-month resolution this week, congressional leaders are giving agency officials time to put together requests for "anomalies," specific technical exemptions that would extend certain programs and activities, like the permission for D.C. to use its locally collected funds, not covered under a CR.
One senior Democratic appropriator last week told National Journal that he and some of his colleagues would push for sequestration legislation to be attached to the bill in exchange for giving up some of the Democrats' leverage going into the lame-duck. Reid said such requests did not come up in conversation when it came time to make a deal. | <urn:uuid:ead5b635-8127-47b5-96bc-eeca105ca4ae> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.govexec.com/oversight/2012/07/six-month-deal-reached-avoid-government-shutdown-aides-say/57140/?oref=dropdown | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.960859 | 549 | 1.570313 | 2 |
And Speaking of Buttons.....
Over two and a half thousand buttons of all shapes and sizes ranging in date from the late 14th to the late 19th century have been generously given to the museum by Tony Pilson. Pilson has dedicated 30 years to finding, accumulating and storing the buttons, all of which come from the banks of the Thames.
And the best part?
Hazel Forsyth, Senior Curator of the Post-Medieval Collections said, "We’ve started to record each piece and longer term, we hope to produce an online resource with a small exhibition." The proposed online resource, the first of its kind in the world, would allow scholars and the general public to explore this vast collection of buttons, essentially creating a searchable online typology. | <urn:uuid:b6a3ed79-e17b-44ba-9a1c-96f84163059e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://onlydollquilts.blogspot.com/2009_07_01_archive.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.935463 | 159 | 1.8125 | 2 |
Boxwood Winery is located on site of the National Historic Landmark, Boxwood Estate. It is one of the earliest established farms located in the historic village of Middleburg.
Boxwood Winery produces red wine in three styles in the Bordeaux tradition from seven varieties of grapes certified by the French government.
Visitors are welcome by appointment for a tour and tasting. Tours last approximately 45 minutes and are limited to 12 people per tour.
A satellite tasting room is located in downtown Middleburg.
Last Updated: 5/30/2008 11:27 AM | <urn:uuid:585be876-c8df-4a21-9b59-e12c4846fa2c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.virginia.org/Listings/WineriesAndBreweries/BoxwoodWinery/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967177 | 116 | 1.609375 | 2 |
GOOGLE has stopped offering its web-based office software, including Gmail, for free to small businesses as it aims to increase revenues outside its core web advertising business.
Previously, Google Apps, a web-based attempt to challenge to Microsoft Office’s dominance of everyday enterprise tasks such as word processing and spreadsheet editing, was free of charge to firms with 10 or fewer staff.
Google said that by charging approximately €40 per user per year, it would be able to provide better support to businesses.
“Businesses quickly outgrow the basic version and want things like 24/7 customer support and larger inboxes,” it said.
Individual consumers will still be able to use Google Apps, including Gmail and Google Drive, for free, it added, and the change will have no impact on existing business customers.
The new separation will allow Google to introduce new features, that may not be “business-ready” to its consumer products more quickly, said Clay Bavor, director of product management for Google Apps.
Google Apps, created from 2006 onwards with a series of acquisitions and new developments by Google, and using Gmail as a foundation, is used by more than five million firms according to the web giant, although it has not disclosed how many were subscribed to the free version.
Google also does not disclose the revenue the software, but the company has signalled its hopes that it will become an important part of its overall business. In July, senior executive Nikesh Arora described serving businesses as a "future growth engine" for Google. Web advertising currently accounts for virtually all Google's $38bn annual revenues.
Some advocates of web technology predicted Google Apps would quickly loosen Microsoft’s profitable stranglehold over office software, but there has been scant evidence to support them. Office remains Microsoft’s most lucrative product, with a market share of more than 90 per cent, according to industry analysts.
Microsoft has however added a range of Google Apps-style online features to its software in response to the rise of the web, however.
By Christopher Williams Telegraph.co.uk | <urn:uuid:8038e609-3e8b-4470-8af5-84a2ee5c9220> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.independent.ie/business/technology/google-to-charge-small-businesses-for-gmail-28944619.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968784 | 432 | 1.640625 | 2 |
Have you tried to sign into your hotmail account only to get the message “incorrect password”?This should not worry you since there a are some simple procedures which you can use to recover your account and take charge of it again. We all know that this is a frustrating experience especially when you cannot access that important email that have been send to your inbox.
You can use your mobile phone to unblock your Hotmail account at any time of the day. You should go to the “Add a phone page” and insert your mobile number. Before you do this, there are certain instances which you may be asked to sign in prior to keying the mobile phone number. You will be sending a verification code which you can use to unblock your email, account. The reason why you are asked to provide a working telephone number is that there are many spammers out there, so there is need to verify beyond doubt that you really own the account. If you cannot use your phone to verify the account, you can opt to contact support.
Things you Should Know when using a phone to Verify your Account
- You should understand that the message service is not always available in all countries. Also, your network provider may be prohibiting you from receiving such messages
- You should understand that the messages that have been sent could be subject to network delays. You may have to wait for some time before the message comes in. However, if it takes more than 15 minutes, you should ask the message to be resend. If you do so, another verification code will be send to your phone.
- You need to know, however, that there is specific number of times which you can ask for the verification codes. If you exceed the quota that is set for those who got their hotmail account blocked, you will have no choice, but to wait until the following day. You will be forced to wait for at least 24 hours before you are allowed to ask for another code.
Regardless of the reason that got your hotmail account blocked, you should not worry since there is always a way out. If you use the above procedures, you can be at a position to regain control of your account. If you think you cannot, emailing the Hotmail support center should do the trick!
Even when you have the strongest password possible, you may not be able to get keep hackers at bay. There are those hackers who will do everything to ensure that they take over the control of your email account. But in the first place, how will you know that your account has been hacked? Well, you could ask your friends if they have received certain funny or weird messages from your account.
In most cases, the hackers will use your Hotmail or MSN account to send advertisements and other messages that would normally be classified as spam. Depending on the amount of violations that are committed using your Hotmail account, you will get it blocked by the service provider. This is because it is regarded to have gone against the conditions that have been set for
To prove the occurrence of hacking further, you should check your sent items and determine if there are certain emails that have been sent without your knowledge. You can actually be at a position to know of this if you still have access to your hotmail account. But if you cannot actually access your account, you should make sure that you use other account recovery methods such as contacting support and other methods.
If you log to your email account and you cannot access it, you will find that there are some options that will be made available to you. Press the buttons that you have been given and follow the recovery procedures. At the end of it all, you will definitely be able to access your account. Choose” I think someone else is using my id” and follow the series of steps that will be made available to you. At the end of it all, you will definitely be able to get back your email account.
You should also know that Windows Live has made available a validation page to be used by people whose hotmail accounts have been hacked. Even those who cannot access login can still use the validation page to solve the problem. This page can actually be used as last resort by anyone whose account has been phished/hacked.
You will be asked about key questions relating to your account and if you answer them correctly, you will be able to get back the hotmail account hacked. You will need to provide as much information as possible since this can enhance the chances of getting back the account.
There are certain instances where you can log in to your Hotmail account and get the message “account temporarily blocked“. This could be a little frustrating especially when you really were expecting an important message to come in through the email address. Microsoft disables all accounts when they detect that an account is used to send junk messages.
If an activity that is not normal is detected in the email, friend’s invitation and instant messages, triggers are activated hence making the account disabled. The process is fully automated, so an account can be blocked at any given time. This is one of the best protection measure that is accorded to the people who are using this email service.
What happens after you have been blocked?
You need not worry after you receive a notification that your account has been blocked. You can actually use your mobile phone number to get the account unblocked. There is a verification code which is sent to your mobile phone number and which you will need to enter into a space that is provided.
To be able to enter the mobile phone number, you should go to a page named Add a phone page. But, to access the page, you may be asked to sign in at first. The message that is send to your phone helps to ensure that you are indeed not a spammer.
What happens if you can’t verify your account after entering the verification code? Well, you will need to get in touch with support on the contact support page. They will be able to provide you with the support which you badly require.
Important things to note
You should indeed understand that a request of a verification code to a mobile phone isn’t available in all countries. Also, not all mobile phone service providers offer this kind of a service. You need to ask your service provider if indeed the service is supported. Also, there are certain instances where the message that has been send to your phone number gets delayed. The duration of the delay could indeed be determined by the network which you are using. It is normal for you to wait for the message to be delivered to your mobile phone number for 15 minutes and if it doesn’t come through, you should ask for another one.
There is a limit regarding the number of times which you can ask for a verification code within a day. After reaching the maximum number of days that is required within a day, you will need to wait for another 24 hours before you start requesting for a another code.
Moreover, you should understand that there are other issue that could lead to your account getting blocked. Whatever it may be, you should not panic since you can easily get your account within the shortest time possible. You can just use the above mentioned steps to get your account back. There is nothing hard when it comes to getting this done in the easiest way possible.
Have you, at any one time failed to sign into your hotmail login account? Also, have you got the message-your account is blocked? If this happens, have you been asked where a verification code should be sending to?
Also, when you try to send an email and get the reply- an unusual activity has been noticed in your hotmail account.Well,these could be signs that your hotmail account has been blocked.
Also, there are certain names which, if you have as your hotmail user name could be treated to be receiving or sending spam messages. This may not augur well with Microsoft and you will find the account blocked. Among such names is PammyBabe which could be associated with pornographic content.
Also, accounts that remain inactive for quite some time are closed by Microsoft. However, this should not worry you since there are recovery procedures w which you could use to get back your account.
Sending many junk messages is definitely a violation of terms of service of hotmail.Also, if you do anything else that could violate the terms of service of Microsoft, you should expect your account to be blocked.
So is there a solution?
Well, there are a few s steps which you could use to verify your hotmail account. After you have done the verification, changing your password details would actually be the right thing to do. The unblocking process is quite simple and could just take a few minutes.
There are certain instances where you will need to get your account settings cleaned. This happens when someone has linked your account to hotmail auto replies. This may not be good at all. Also, any accounts which you had before and which were linked to your main account will be removed.
Hotmail account blocked could also be because of hacking. The internet has exposed many hotmail accounts to dangers. There are many villains out there who do this just to steal information or for financial gain. You can know that you have been hacked if you get a message that states that your account have been blocked because of sending junk message and then asking for password information.
If this happens, you can get in touch with hotmail/MSN support. This could take some weeks to come through hence the need to be patient. You should know that there is no shortcut to achieving your goals. With the help which hotmail support team will provide, you can get back your hotmail account.
However, you should take note of the fact that the MSN support team will ask you to provide as much information as possible. They will only unblock the account when you have proved beyond doubt that you are the actual owner of the hotmail account blocked.
- Windows® XP How to connect to a printer on a network
- Windows® XP How to change date, time and time zone settings
- Microsoft® Word 2003 How to insert a sound file in Windows® 7
- Microsoft® Outlook 2003 Open a specific e mail profile in Windows® XP
- Microsoft® Outlook 2003 How to create a vCard in Windows® 7 | <urn:uuid:d3598361-1c47-47bd-a9d5-9ff7927dcece> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.oshitechsupport.co.uk/blog/tag/online-pc-support/ | 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 | 0.961113 | 2,127 | 1.5 | 2 |
What makes AgeSong at Lake Merritt so special? It’s our unique philosophy expressed throughout our community that believes growing old is an opportunity for learning, having new experiences, and engaging in community life. One of the ways we do this is through our AgeSong Academy.
AgeSong Academy brings stimulating speakers, discussion groups, and classes to AgeSong at Lake Merritt. These programs are tailored to the interests and needs of our residents as well as the public at large. We bring people together — young and old — to learn, discuss, and explore a wide range of topics, from health promotion to social and environmental issues and concerns.
AgeSong at Lake Merritt also provides resources and support that enable you to expand your life experiences and continue to discover new possibilities as you get older.
Our residents continue to be creative and stay connected. For example, Tom Roberts has been an active miniature builder for over 50 years. Many of his pieces are in museum and private collections. Visit TomRobertsMiniatures.com to learn more.
“The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes.” — Marcel Proust | <urn:uuid:b9678d39-b394-44d9-8ec6-646fca41b679> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.agesonglm.com/lifestyle/index.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.95243 | 240 | 1.53125 | 2 |
What is Freeside?
Freeside is a Georgia nonprofit corporation, organized to develop a community of coders, makers, artists, and researchers in order to promote collaboration and community outreach. Learn more »
By Richard on Tuesday, November 16, 2010
I finally had some time (around 2 hours or so) to sit down with the Egg Bot and work with straighting everything up and finally getting a good egg out of it. Trying to go to high or low on the egg just stretches the image out and makes the design on the egg look terrible. (see our first try of the FreeSide Logo on an egg )
Different colors are done by creating layers in your image (like in photoshop), The software allows you to print one layer, change the color marker and then print the next layer, while remembering where it's at on the egg. As you can see in the above video, it works pretty well.
There was an error in this gadget
- ► 2012 (35)
- ► 2011 (13)
- ▼ 2010 (50) | <urn:uuid:7120f00b-39f9-491b-90aa-091fe028c266> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blog.freesideatlanta.org/2010/11/egg-bot-is-alive.html?showComment=1291778353317 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.931419 | 220 | 1.796875 | 2 |
The Baldwin County Health Department today lifted the public swimming advisory for the waters of Bon Secour Bay at Mary Ann Nelson Park.
The Health Department issued the warning Wednesday after tests revealed elevated bacteria levels, according to a news release. The advisory stated that swimming in the area carries "an increased risk of illness."
Results from new tests Wednesday found enterococcus bacteria levels had dropped back below the Environmental Protection Agency's threshold of 104 colonies per 100 milliliters.
The park is near the intersection of Baldwin County 27 and Baldwin County 1, south of Point Clear.
For more details, see Friday's Press-Register. | <urn:uuid:6f6f45c2-5b65-49d1-9b80-bf6c702437b3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blog.al.com/live/2008/07/water_advisory_lifted_for_bon.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.932952 | 126 | 1.507813 | 2 |
1.8 mile trail, begins on Ky 3497, trail drops 300 ft through gorge, several stream crossings, large beech and buckeye trees found near end of trail, ends at Rockcastle campground, easy if hiked from raod to campground, strenuous if hiked from campground uphill to road
Located along the Cumberland Plateau in eastern and southern Kentucky, the forest encompasses over 707,000 acres of rugged terrain. Over 600 hundred miles of trails are scattered all throughout the forest for hikers, mountain bikers, horseback rides, and ATV/OHV riders. Note that all ATV/OHVs in the forest must be less than 50 inches wide. Attractions located in the London Ranger District include: Laurel River Lake, sections of the Sheltowee Trace National Recreational Trail, Cumberland and Rockcastle Rivers, Camp Wildcat Battlefield, and plenty of natural habitats and scenic areas to keep visitors captivated. Escape to some of the most inviting areas of Kentucky as you travel through the Daniel Boone National Forest. | <urn:uuid:3e2bb081-bfa8-4c7d-b917-72ea7323be89> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.kentuckytourism.com/outdoor-adventure/trail/trails/neds-branch-/363/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.93548 | 216 | 1.53125 | 2 |
Mobile Tools | Feature
Mobile Apps That Make IT's Life Easier
Six IT professionals share their favorite tools for tackling both tech and everyday tasks.
- By Dian Schaffhauser
Platform: Google Android
Matt Edwards, operations manager for IT at Tri-County Technical College in Pendleton, SC, uses PRTGdroid, a free app from Paessler that connects to the company's network monitoring application (PRTG Network Monitor, which is in use at Tri-County), "so I can look at live or historical details on any monitored device on our network."
But perhaps the most used apps on his HTC Inspire are mail and the calendar. "Getting e-mail notifications immediately about any network or system changes is critical to keep everything running smoothly," he notes.
All of the apps he relies on "help keep me informed of our network and systems in near real-time and help to keep things running 24/7."
Platforms: Apple iPhone and iPad
Network and Systems Manager Matt Barber, at Morrisville State College in Morrisville, NY, has found pTerm for the iPhone "extremely helpful sometimes." As he explains, "It is just a [secure shell] client, but often that is all I need to troubleshoot network issues or make quick changes. I do most of my network changes and quick monitoring with SSH, so being able to do that from anywhere is very valuable."
Besides providing a channel for secure data communication, this app from Instant Cocoa also does xterm terminal emulation.
Wayne State Mobile
Platforms: Google Android and Android Jelly Bean, Apple iPhone and iPad
Rob Thompson, in the Computing and Information Technology organization at Wayne State University (MI), finds his own university's mobile app the most useful for his job as director for academic and core applications.
"Wayne State Mobile lets me check my e-mail, query my work calendar, search for WSU people, find any location on campus, check real-time parking space availability, query my parking balance, read our student newspaper, access secured library resources, view daily campus dining menus, directly contact public safety, and much more," says Thompson. "I use it many times on a daily basis to keep me informed and connected with the greater Wayne State community, and it has become an invaluable tool."
Thompson runs the app on his Galaxy Nexus running Android Jelly Bean.
Platforms: Google Android, Apple iPhone and iPad
Like most people, Purdue University (IN) Director of Informatics Kyle Bowen uses a passel of mobile apps everyday: e-mail, Dropbox, and Evernote.
But the one he highlights above the others is Adobe Ideas, which helps him capture and share visual concepts on his iPhone and iPad.
"Adobe Ideas is a drawing tool with simple controls," Bowen says. "It makes it easy to capture and share visual information. Like the virtual version of doodling on a napkin, this can be helpful for explaining a complex process or planning a presentation." The layers feature is helpful, he adds, "for overlaying yet separating visual concepts." On a tablet the app can be used in a makeshift "pass-and-play" style where multiple people share the same device to build on each other's annotations. "Adobe Ideas also provides a vector output that is efficient for sharing and editing in other tools," he notes.
Platforms: Apple iPhone and iPad, Android, Windows Mobile; BlackBerry edition available in beta
Michael Belote, chief technology officer for Mercer University in Macon, GA, hasn't really found any mobile app that helps him in his IT-related tasks. "There's still a long way to go on that," he says.
But one app he's come to rely on for both work and personal use is Waze from waze Mobile, a GPS traffic and navigation service. The idea is that users share what's happening on the road by keeping the app open on their phones while they're driving. Data that's passively collected is automatically relayed back to the company, which tracks the GPS points of its user drivers. The mapping application offers route options based on traffic conditions.
"I use it multiple times per week, and it has saved me a lot of time and wasted miles," Belote says. "It's free and it has a social aspect that really increases the value." He runs it on both his iPhone and his iPad.
Apple iPhone and iPad, Blackberry, Android, Nokia Symbian S60
Price: $9.99 for Apple, $6.99 for Symbian
George Alaimo, senior multimedia specialist in Information Services at John Carroll University in University Heights, OH, has come to rely on DocumentsToGo, which he runs on his iPad 3.
This mobile and tablet app from DataViz "covers all of the office suite features that I use," he says. This all-in-one application allows users to view, edit, and create Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint files; view PDFs; and work with files stored in Google Docs, Box.net, Dropbox, iDisk, and SugarSync.
But Alaimo's app choices don't stop there. He recommends a number of tools to his university's mobile user community, including: | <urn:uuid:5624c72a-5adf-45ef-83e8-db274b876389> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://campustechnology.com/articles/2012/12/06/mobile-apps-that-make-its-life-easier.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.939546 | 1,086 | 1.664063 | 2 |
Owner: U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) Sacramento National Wildlife Refuge, Willows CA (530) 934-2801
Ownership: Public (No Access)
Public Access: no
Location: Click Here
Fishing Regulations: Click Here
Fishing Supplement: Click Here
This site is located at River Mile 201-R, approximately 2 miles north of Hamilton City and the intersection of Highways 32 and 45.
This 67 acre unit, located in Glenn County, is owned by USFWS. The property originally consisted of 50 acres of walnut orchard and 21 acres of existing riparian habitat, but has lost approximately half of these acres to erosion.
The riparian habitat consists mostly of mixed riparian forest, with some herbland cover. Special wildlife use includes multiple bank swallow colonies.
Current Land Use
This unit is designated as a sanctuary and is closed to public use.
Land use changes are currently not being considered for this unit due to its proximity to the J-levee, upstream of Hamilton City. | <urn:uuid:27001fab-0510-4391-ae74-286335f19006> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.sacramentoriver.org/access_site.php?access_site_id=45&view=all&Strangecode=op9e6rpic6u211859qopbpm934 | 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 | 0.94016 | 219 | 1.75 | 2 |
US 3933147 A
An electrical applicator for applying currents that cause repeated involuntary contractions of the pubococcygeous muscle. The repeated current applications are used to treat muscle structures that have been damaged during childbirth and/or weakened from disuse, and which have contributed to the pathological formation of cyctocoel, rectocoel, uterine prolapse, and bladder malfunctions. A probe is provided which is connected to a pulse generator that applies trains of pulses at intervals such as every two seconds, every train lasting for about one second and containing pulses of a repetition rate such as 200 pulses per second. The apparatus further includes means for sensing the intensity of muscle contractions.
1. Apparatus for treating a muscle in the pelvic region comprising:
a probe of a width on the order of an inch to permit insertion into the adult human vagina, said probe having spaced electrode means thereon for applying currents to the body and strain gauge means for sensing the intensity of muscle contractions that tend to compress the electrodes;
a generator coupled to said electrode means, said generator constructed to generate trains of pulses at a repetition rate within the range of 100 per second to 400 per second; and
meter means coupled to said strain gauge means for providing an indication of the level of intensity of muscle contractions.
1. Field of the Invention:
This invention relates to electrical applicators and to apparatus and methods for treating disorders in the pelvic muscle supporting structures of the female body.
2. Description of the Prior Art:
The urethra, vagina, and rectum are largely supported by the pubococcygeous muscle. This muscle originates from the symphsis pubis, a bone structure at the front of the abdomen, extends posteriorly, encompassing the urethra, the vagina, and the rectum, and inserts in the coccyx and inferior portion of the sacrum. The pubococcygeous muscle is sometimes damaged during childbirth or becomes weakened from disuse. This contributes to the pathological formation of cyctocoel (hernial protrusion of the urinary bladder through the vaginal wall), rectocoel (hernial protrusion of part of the rectum into the vagina), uterine prolapse (protrusion of the uterus through the vaginal orifice), and bladder malfunctions. It has been found that these pathological conditions can be helped when normal muscle tone is established in the pubococcygeous muscle.
One procedure for improving the tone of the pubococcygeous muscle is for the patient to repeatedly voluntarily contract the muscle. However, while the pubococcygeous muscle can be voluntarily contracted, patients sometimes find it difficult to perform such contractions or to perform them with substantial intensity. This may be due to the weakened state of the muscle and to long periods of disuse that lead to unfamiliarity in control of the muscle. Some types of voluntary exercises have been prescribed, such as the exercises developed by Dr. Arnold Kegel of the University of California, where the patient tries to repeatedly cease the outflow of urine. However, the voluntary exercises alone may not improve muscle tone sufficiently, particularly where the patient does not comprehend the intensity of contractions required.
One object of the present invention is to provide apparatus for improving the condition of the pubococcygeous muscle.
In accordance with one embodiment of the present invention, apparatus is provided for treating disorders arising from a condition of a weakened pubococcygeous muscle. The apparatus includes a probe for insertion in the vagina, and an electronic generator connected to electrodes on the probe for carrying currents to it that are applied to the pubococcygeous muscle to contract it. The currents comprise trains of pulses at a frequency such as 200 pulses per second, the envelope of each pulse train rising gradually from zero volts to about 10 volts in about one quarter second and continuing at this level for about three-quarters of a second. Thus, each train of pulses lasts for a period such as 1 second, which is sufficient for the pubococcygeous muscle to substantially fully contract. The current is then stopped for a period such as 1 second, for the muscle to substantially fully relax. Another train of pulses is then delivered to the probe to repeat the cycle.
One method for treating pathological conditions of the pelvic supporting muscle structures, and particularly a weakened condition of the pubococcygeous muscle, involves coating the prove with an electrically conductive lubricant, inserting the probe into the vagina, and retaining the probe therein for a period such as 20 minutes while the apparatus is repeatedly cycled, to provide many involuntary contractions. Such treatment is repeated at intervals such as every several days. In addition, exercises are prescribed involving voluntary contractions of the pubococcygeous muscle, to be performed between visits to the physician where the probe treatment is given. The involuntary contractions during probe treatment not only tone the pubococcygeous muscle, but make the patient aware of the type of contraction and intensity which may be employed during voluntary exercise, or during use of the muscle in normal bodily functions including urination, defecation and intercourse.
The novel features of the invention are set forth with particularity in the appended claims. The invention will be best understood from the following description when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.
FIG. 1 is a sectional side view of a portion of the female human body, showing the location of the pubococcygeous muscle relative to the urethra, vagina, and rectum;
FIG. 2 is a view of a probe and generator constructed in accordance with the invention;
FIG. 3 is a circuit diagram of the generator of FIG. 2;
FIG. 4 is a representation of waveforms in the generator of FIG. 3;
FIG. 5 is a detailed view of a portion of the output waveform shown at 58 in FIG. 4;
FIG. 6 is a sectional perspective view of a probe and sensor for measuring the strength of muscle contractions, constructed in accordance with another embodiment of the invention; and
FIG. 7 is a view taken on the line 7--7 of FIG. 6.
As shown in FIG. 1, the pubococcygeous muscle M originates from the symphsis pubis P, extends posteriorly encompassing the urethra U, the vagina V, and the rectum R, and inserts in the coccyx and inferior portion of the sacrum S. While other muscles are employed in the support and functioning of the urethra, vagina and rectum, the pubococcygeous muscle is the main or most powerful muscle in this region of the female body. The pubococcygeous muscle often works in conjunction with other muscles, for example, the sphincter urethrae can work in conjunction with the pubococcygeous muscle to control urination. Many pathological conditions such as cystocoel, rectocoel, uterine prolapse, and bladder malfunctions may be caused by a weakened condition of the pubococcygeous muscle. While exercises involving voluntary constrictions of this muscle can help improve its condition, such exercises may be difficult to perform by a patient whose muscle is in a very weakened condition and/or who does not know how to correctly contract it. In addition, patients generally will not exercise for long, regular periods at substantial intensity, which is required to significantly improve the tone of the muscle.
As illustrated in FIG. 2, a probe 10 is provided to apply electrical currents from a generator 12 to the pubococcygeous muscle. The probe 10 is constructed of an electrically insulative material such as an ordinary plastic, but has a pair of ring-shaped electrodes 14, 16 thereon which are substantially flush with regions of the probe in front and behind them along the length of the probe. A pair of electrical conductors 18, 20 lead from the generator 12 and into the probe, where they are connected to the electrodes thereof. When the probe is inserted into the vagina V, the electrodes 14, 16 make electrical contact with spaced portions of the pubococcygeous muscle M. Currents supplied to the muscle M cause it to contract involuntarily, but in a manner similar to the manner in which it may be voluntarily contracted.
The generator 12 is constructed to provide currents in repetitious cycles, each cycle having a duration T such as two seconds. During a first portion of each cycle, which may last for a period D.sub.1 such as one second, the generator delivers a train of pulses at a rate such as 200 pulses per second. During the last portion D.sub.2 of each cycle, the generator does not deliver a current. These cycles may be repeated for many minutes, until the treatment is terminated.
A physician may administer a treatment by first coating the probe 10 with a lubricant which is of moderate electrical conductivity, such as a mixture of an ordinary medical lubricating jelly and a saline solution. He then turns on the generator 12, and adjusts a voltage control 24 to zero volts and a period control 25 to the longest period. The physician inserts the probe into the vagina and has the patient thereafter hold the probe in place with her hands. The physician then adjusts the voltage control 24 to a level which produces strong contractions without pain, such as 10 volts, and adjusts the period T of each cycle to about the shortest period that is still comfortable to the patient. Generally, the rest period D.sub.2 of each cycle must be sufficient to enable substantially complete muscle relaxation, in order for the treatment to be as comfortable as possible. After a period of at least several minutes, such as twenty minutes, the treatment is stopped.
Such treatments may be repeated at intervals such as every two or three days. The physician generally prescribes voluntary exercises to be performed between probe treatments. For example, the patient may be directed to contract the pelvic area muscle structure ten times in succession each morning before getting out of bed. The physician may advise that the muscle structure should be contracted to approximately the same tightness, or intensity, and in the same region of the body, as is achieved during probe treatment. The patient learns what effect should be sensed when the pubococcygeous muscle is contracted substantially, by her experience with the probe treatment. In addition, the probe treatment itself will have exercised the muscle structure.
The current pulses delivered through the probe are at a repetition rate such as 200 pulses per second. It has been found that with a pulse rate less than about 100 pulses per second, the effect on some patients is to induce a feeling that they must urinate. This feeling can become stronger as the pulse period decreases towards an unmodulated or constant level pulse. It also has been found that with a pulse rate greater than about 400 pulses per second, many patients experience a burning sensation. Thus, it is preferable to utilize a rate within the range of about 100 to 400 pulses per second. A rate of about 200 pulses per second or 200 Hz. is generally preferred. The maximum voltage of each pulse train should be high enough to induce moderately strong contractions. In many cases, after insertion of the probe, the physician immediately increases the voltage to about 8 or 9 volts (for a probe with electrodes 14, 16 separated by about 3/4 inch). After about 15 minutes at this level, the voltage may have to be increased to 101/4 or 11 volts in order to maintain strong contractions. If the pubococcygeous muscle is initially very weak, the physician may have to begin (after insertion in the vagina) with about a 12 volt level. In any case, the voltage should not be so high as to produce violent contractions. The envelope of each pulse train preferably rises smoothly from zero to maximum voltage, in an appreciable period, such as one-quarter second, and preferably during at least one-tenth of each pulse train (i.e., during at least five pulses in a 200 Hz pulse train that lasts for only one-quarter second). This is to induce smooth muscle contractions and avoid sudden jolts of muscle contraction.
The duration of each current pulse train should be long enough to substantially completely contract the muscle structure. A train of at least about one-quarter second duration is generally desirable to substantially completely contract the pubococcygeous muscle, although a longer duration such as up to about 11/2 seconds may be desirable in some individuals. In a similar manner, the rest time in each cycle, when no pulses are delivered through the probe, should be long enough to allow the muscle to substantially completely relax. A rest period of at least about one-quarter second is generally preferred to permit such relaxation, although a longer time up to about 11/2 second may be necessary in some individuals. Thus, each complete cycle will generally range from about 1/2 to 3 seconds. A longer cycle period than three seconds will generally still be comfortable, but it wastes time. The cycle period may be adjusted to the shortest period which is comfortable to the patient, to best utilize the time. It may be noted that even for a 3 second cycle, there will be approximately 400 muscle contractions in a 20 minute treatment.
FIG. 3 illustrates the circuit of the pulse generator 12 which generates the pulses delivered to the probe. The circuit may be considered as having three major portions, these being a low frequency square wave generator 30 operating at a rate of approximately 1 Hz (1 pulse per second), an emitter follower 32 which shapes the square wave, and a higher frequency oscillator 34 which modulates the shaped square wave by a higher frequency signal of approximately 200 Hz (200 pulses per second). The cycle rate, which is determined by the low frequency generator 30 can be varied within a predetermined range, such as between about 2 Hz and about 0.3 Hz (1/2 second per cycle to 3 seconds per cycle) by adjusting the control 25 that moves the wipers of potentiometers R.sub.1 and R.sub.5. The maximum voltage of each pulse train can be varied by adjusting the wiper 24 of a potentiometer R.sub.4. The generator can be turned on and off by the switch 22. The circuit may be operated by a low voltage battery 36 such as one of 12 volts. The use of a low voltage battery instead of the common 110 volt household supply, not only reduces the possibility of harmful shock in case of a short circuit, but can ease any worry of the patient about the possibility of a large shock.
Considering the circuit in detail and beginning with the square wave generator 30, potentiometer, or variable resistor R.sub.1 supplies bias current to transistor Q.sub.1 while resistor R.sub.2 serves as the collector load of Q.sub.1. Similarly, potentiometer, or variable resistor R.sub.5 supplies bias current to the base of transistor Q.sub.2, while resistor R.sub.4 serves as the collector load of Q.sub.2. Resistor R.sub.3 and diode D.sub.1 form an isolation circuit to isolate the charging path of a capacitor C.sub.1 from the output of Q.sub.2. Capacitors C.sub.1 and C.sub.2 are connected to provide positive (regenerative) feedback to cause oscillations.
When switch 22 is closed, transistors Q.sub.1 and Q.sub.2 will both start to conduct, since their base resistors R.sub.1 and R.sub.5 supply bias current. One of the transistors Q.sub.1 or Q.sub.2 will start to draw slightly more collector current than the other, and that transistor will provide a signal tending to turn off the other transistor and tending to turn itself further on. This rapid regeneration action results in one transistor turning completely on (to saturation) and the other turning completely off. During the time one transistor such as Q.sub.1 is completely on, the capacitor C.sub.2 coupling its collector to the base of the fully off transistor discharges through the base resistor R.sub.5 of the fully off transistor. When that capacitor C.sub.2 is fully discharged, the off transistor Q.sub.2 will start to conduct and supply a signal through capacitor C.sub.1 tending to turn off the transistor Q.sub.1, and turn itself fully on. The alternate conduction and cutoff of the transistors is at frequencies determined by the capacitors, the time of a first half of a cycle being determined by the discharging time through C.sub.1 and R.sub.1, and the time of the second half of a cycle being determined by the discharging time through C.sub.2 and R.sub.5.
The voltage waveform on the collector of Q.sub.1 (see waveform 50 in FIG. 4) is a square wave with an exponential rise on the positive-going edge due to the charging of capacitor C.sub.2 through R.sub.2. However, the voltage waveform on the collector of Q.sub.2 (shown at 52 in FIG. 4) is a square wave with very fast rise and fall times. The positive-going edge of the signal at the collector of Q.sub.2 will not be exponential because the charge current for C.sub.1 is supplied by R.sub.3 and not by R.sub.4. During the charging of capacitor C.sub.1, diode D.sub.1 is back-biased (non-conducting), since this diode conducts only when Q.sub.2 is conducting. The square wave generated by the circuit portion containing Q.sub.1 and Q.sub.2 is taken from the wiper of the potentiometer R.sub.4, and it passes to the emitter follower portion 32 of the generator where it is shaped.
The square wave taken from the wiper of potentiometer R.sub.4 is carried through resistor R.sub.6 to the base of NPN transistor Q.sub.3 and PNP transistor Q.sub.4. The resistor R.sub.6 also couples the square wave to an integrating capacitor C.sub.3. It should be noted that the C.sub.3, R.sub.6 combination determines the rise and fall times of the square wave voltages at the bases of Q.sub.3 and Q.sub.4. The waveform across capacitor C.sub.3 is duplicated across capacitor C.sub.4 by reason of emitter follower operation of transistors Q.sub.3 and Q.sub.4. C.sub.4 serves as a storage capacitor for supplying the output transistor Q.sub.5 and associated components of the following higher frequency oscillator portion 34.
The oscillator portion 34 provides a higher frequency (e.g. 200 Hz) signal that modulates the signal across capacitor C.sub.4. During the last half of a cycle period, when the voltage across C.sub.4 is zero, there is no power to transistor Q.sub.5 and it does not deliver pulses. However, at the beginning of the next cycle, when a voltage begins to appear across C.sub.4, transistor Q.sub.5 starts to conduct. Base current to Q.sub.5 to supplied through R.sub.7 and diode D.sub.2. When Q.sub.5 starts to conduct, its collector voltage starts to drop. The transformer 38 is wound so that when the end 42 drops in voltage, the opposite end 40 goes positive, thus increasing the current through Q.sub.5. This regenerative action continues until Q.sub.5 is fully saturated. Q.sub.5 remains saturated only so long as its collector current can increase. However, when the collector current of Q.sub.5 reaches a maximum the voltage at 40 begins to fall, this drop being coupled through C.sub.5 and R.sub.7. Diode D.sub.2 then becomes non-conducting (back-biased) and Q.sub.5 is turned off. Q.sub.5 remains off until C.sub.5 discharges through R.sub.7. As soon as C.sub.5 is fully discharged, Q.sub.5 starts to conduct again, and the cycle is repeated. These cycles continue as long as there is a voltage across C.sub.4.
In the output of oscillator 34, whose waveform is shown at 58 with one pulse of a pulse train shown in FIG. 5, the width W.sub.1 of the modulating pulses is determined by the inductance of the transformer winding between end 42 and the point connected to C.sub.4. The spacing W.sub.2 between pulses is determined by the discharge time of C.sub.5 through R.sub.7. The final output delivered to the probe is taken across the ends of transformer 38, by conductors 18 and 20 that connect to the probe.
A variety of circuits can be employed to generate pulse trains for application through the probe to the body. For example, a sinusoidal oscillator can be used to modulate the output of a low frequency generator, to provide trains of sinusoidal pulses. However, a square wave type of oscillator or pulse generator of the type shown in FIG. 3 at 32, generally can be produced at lower cost.
The generator 12 therefore provides trains of current pulses of a repetition rate on the order of 200 Hz, each train lasting for a period such as one second and being followed by a rest period such as one second when no appreciable pulses are delivered. The envelope of each train of pulses rises gradually so that there are at least about five pulses of a voltage less than 90% of the maximum envelope voltage in each train. The maximum voltage of the pulse trains is adjustable from zero to about 12 volts, the pulse level used during treatment generally ranging between about 8 volts for patients with a moderately well toned muscle structure (for a probe with electrodes spaced about 3/4 inch) to about 12 volts for patients with a very poorly conditioned muscle structure or for use near the end of a treatment cycle. The time of each cycle, which includes a pulse train and a rest period, can be readily altered by the physician to what is comfortable to the patient, and typically ranges from about 1/2 second to about 3 seconds.
A diameter X for the probe of about 1 inch generally readily enables insertion into the vagina while allowing for good electrical contact of the electrodes 14, 16 with the vagina walls. A length Y of about three-quarter inch for each electrode, and a spacing Z of about three-quarter inch between them has been found to provide good current applications.
FIGS. 6 and 7 illustrate a probe 70 constructed in accordance with another embodiment of the invention, which not only allows the application of contraction-inducing currents, but enables measurements to be made of the strength of the muscle contractions. The probe 70 includes one electrode 72 constructed of a thin band of resilient material such as 0.002 inch thick stainless steel. A strain gauge 74 disposed between the core 76 of the probe and one side of the band 72, enables measurements to be made of contracting forces applied to that portion of the band. Strain gauge leads 78, 80 extend through the probe to a contraction intensity meter 82. This meter 82 can be a bridge which employs the strain gauge as one bridge arm, or even a battery and voltmeter combination. The probe assembly also includes conductors 84, 86 that lead from the generator 12 to the electrodes to apply currents to them, as described above.
The prove 70 should be inserted so that the strain gauge 74 is oriented in the direction in which the walls of the vagina contract to the greatest extent. This probe can be used to measure voluntary contractions as well as involuntary contractions, and can be employed to measure the muscle tone before and in the course of a series of treatments.
While the probes are generally inserted in the vagina, they could be inserted in the rectum, since the pubococcygeous muscle also extends around the rectum. However, application to the vagina is generally more comfortable.
Although particular embodiments of the invention have been described and illustrated herein, it is recognized that modifications and variations may readily occur to those skilled in the art and, consequently, it is intended that the claims be interpreted to cover such modifications and equivalents. | <urn:uuid:42fac40a-4f2d-4c29-8806-e8eb8530b407> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.google.co.uk/patents/US3933147 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94257 | 5,047 | 1.78125 | 2 |
Much Ado About Nothing
To tax or not to tax indirect transfers, that is the issue.
In the landmark Vodafone case, the Supreme Court ruled in January that there was no provision for such taxation, as the law did not provide for it. The law has since been retrospectively amended in the Finance Act, 2012, to address situations where the transfer of the underlying capital assets situated in India took place overseas between non-residents , hence indirectly. Much is at stake, including thousands of crores in capital gains tax. But also under watch is the proper implementation of ‘commonly-recognised principles’ of taxation , such as levying tax as per the law and not arbitrarily and retrospectively.
Now, a draft expert committee report on retrospective amendments on indirect transfers has opined that the changes in the Finance Act have flaws of a technical nature, as the relevant sections in the Income-Tax Act, 1961, have not been amended in tandem. The panel has called for avoiding fundamental changes in the tax provisions including retrospectivity that seek essentially to widen the tax base. The Centre may want to solicit legal opinion on the comprehensiveness or otherwise of the retrospective changes in the Finance Act, and take a call. But the committee’s core recommendation that retrospective application of tax law as a rule is best avoided seems unexceptionable.
In parallel, going forward, we need to set right the apparent lacuna and shortcoming in the law and provide for taxation of indirect transfers and similar Vodafone-like transactions prospectively . For an increasingly globalised economy like ours, we do need to follow global tax practice and formulate and implement commonly-recognised norms and cannons of taxation. The committee has sought to analyse two related factors relevant to the debate: that of retrospectivity in tax law and indirect transfer.
On the former , the panel’s report states upfront that retrospective application of the tax law should occur in ‘exceptional cases’ , with the changes carried out mostly to correct mistakes , anomalies and defects. Retrospectivity is also warranted if there is highly abusive tax planning and avoidance . The report suggests that the big-ticket 2007 Vodafone transaction, conducted via complex offshore structures , was not of the latter variety . In its earlier report on general anti-avoidance rules, the panel has differentiated between tax mitigation measures (which are welcome), avoidance (not so welcome) and evasion (plain illegal).
As for indirect transfers, the report calls for taxation with prospective effect albeit with conditions — that the value of local assets of the foreign company meet a threshold level of its global assets — as such a provision is very much as per international norms. The suggested prospectivity in the tax law would also be as per the Direct Taxes Code, 2010. It is notable that even when it comes to prospective taxation of indirect transfers, the panel has sought to keep away minor stake sales (up to 26%), or those of corporates listed on stock exchanges — hence presumably heavilytraded — from the purview of levy and taxation.
More important, the panel wants future transactions routed through tax jurisdictions where we have doubletaxation avoidance agreements not to be amenable to, say, capital gains tax unless there is specific provision for such tax in India in the relevant tax treaty. This would defeat the purpose of even prospective taxation here unless we amend the corresponding law in tax treaty regimes like Mauritius. So, what is averred is that it is not enough to simply amend section 9(1)( i) of the Income-Tax Act, 1961, as has been resorted to in the Finance Act; far from being clarificatory , it would perversely widen the tax base. The report has cited several sections in the law, as it stands, which imply that indirect transfers only provide for taxation of immovable property or preclude foreign currency deals or even outrightly exempt sale of shares of a foreign company.
In hindsight, as soon as UK based Vodafone bought telecom assets in India, there ought to have been ‘exhaustive and transparent’ consultations between the revenue authorities here and both the buyer and the seller, in this case, Hutchison based in Hong Kong. And soon after, it could have been par for the course to carry out exhaustive changes in the Income-Tax Act to tax indirect transfers, even retrospectively.
Vodafone is the world’s largest service provider and the adverse reactions from investors , including those abroad, have made the Centre chary of implementing the retrospective amendment. We ought not to be so dependent on foreign portfolio investors. Hence the imperative to bring down the current account deficit and reduce dependence on capital inflows. Also, policy flip-flops , say, in telecom, but generally as well need to be avoided. We can then do without tax sweeteners like no tax on indirect transfers of capital assets so as not to unduly penalise exits.
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A blog on economics broadly defined with a particular focus on public policy. | <urn:uuid:f77a83b8-36ff-44da-a3bf-de984330e35c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blogs.economictimes.indiatimes.com/figuringitout/entry/much-ado-about-nothing | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950935 | 1,217 | 1.734375 | 2 |
Posted Nov 14, 2011
David Sloan was shocked, as anyone would be, when he found out he had Multiple Sclerosis in the fall of 1998. Despite the diagnosis, Sloan keeps a positive outlook — one he hopes will inspire others.
Sloan, who is from Highlands Ranch, has self-published a book called “One Day at a Time.” It’s the true story of his life with MS. All profits from the book will go to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society.
Sloan’s book is available to purchase for all major e-readers like Kindle and Nook, and is also in paperback.
You can learn more about David Sloan’s journey on his book’s fan page on Facebook.
Video by Anne Herbst. Read more about David Sloan’s battle with multiple sclerosis.
Police received a report of a gunman at Thornton High School on Friday, May 24, 2013 prompting an evacuation.
Youths rioted in several different suburbs around Stockholm, Sweden for a fifth consecutive night on May 24, 2013.
Photos of tokens and mementos left on headstones in section 60 of Arlington National Cemetery on Memorial Day in Ar | <urn:uuid:a53e6cdc-985c-430d-9416-c89b86be2e38> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://photos.denverpost.com/2011/11/14/man-writes-about-life-with-multiple-sclerosis/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.956127 | 250 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Fact – too many businesses still need to wake up and realize that social media is not “one of these Internet fads” that will disappear.
Fact – because of this mindset, too many businesses are potentially missing out on extra business that could mean the difference between staying afloat and going under. So why the problem?
One of the main reasons is that businesses – whether it’s the CEO, top-tier management or otherwise – are looking at social media as an individual medium, much like PR or marketing.
This is where the cracks start to appear. Social media benefits companies the most when it’s used as part of an integrated campaign.
Social media is also perfect for reaching out and connecting with your audience, as opposed to just selling them something. Sure, you’re still selling your brand or product – but this time, it’s in an “encouraging to ask questions” approach instead of “this is us and you’ll like it” one.
Accepting that social media needs to be approached as an integrated strategy rather than a standalone campaign is the first step businesses need to take. After that, the job gets a little bit easier.
Define Your Audience
Just like any market or product, social media is made up of different audiences. As a business owner, you wouldn’t launch a new product onto a more traditional marketplace without some in-depth market research first – don’t ignore this on social media.
Knowing your audience is key to succeeding in business social media. You need to know if your audience are participants or promoters. Why the need to differentiate? Simple -
- Participants are social media users that may use numerous social media sites and applications, but don’t really “take part” in the medium. They’re like the visitors to your business website that may purchase something and then interact with you no further. There’s nothing wrong with this – but as a method of expanding your brand, you may need to look elsewhere.
- Promoters are the users that like to share information – whether it’s recommending something via Twitter or their blog, if they come across something they like they will pass that information on. This is where your use of social media can help build your name. Just remember that social media works both ways. Don’t try and cheat the system – give back just as much (more, even) as you receive.
Have a Clear and Defined Goal
Another area where businesses are failing to adapt social media to their needs is that they don’t have a clear goal on what they want to achieve. Many hear the phrase “social media” and immediately feel they need to be a part of this buzz, jump straight in without any forward thinking, and are then disappointed with the (lack of) results.
Ask yourself who you want to connect with and why, and then research the areas of social media that are most relevant to your needs. Demographics are one of the key points of knowledge for any campaign – make sure you know where your demographics are playing online. A social map can help here.
Again, though, don’t try and play the system – cheaters will soon be found out, and your brand can suffer irreparable damage if seen as merely a self-promotional company on social media.
Tools of the Trade
Once you have your audience and your goal set out, you need to use the tools that will help you the most. There are numerous available, and this is where building your social media connections can help, by advising what ones they use and what results they achieve.
Some of the best free examples of business tools include Monitter (which allows you a view on Twitter discussions of keywords); Google Alerts (giving you insight into what’s being said about you); and Social Mention (letting you gauge social reactions and reach to your topic or keywords and allowing you to jump in on conversations elsewhere).
Getting into social media shouldn’t be a hard decision for businesses to make – it’s either right for you or it isn’t. Social media is a long-term strategy, not a short-term fire sale.
Understand that, and you begin to understand social media. | <urn:uuid:c20fcf92-8915-4c0b-bd81-57416e4f6dfc> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://dannybrown.me/2011/11/19/introducing-social-media-to-your-business/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706890813/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516122130-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950229 | 893 | 1.703125 | 2 |
You'll certainly fill the bucket faster with both taps on than you will just using one tap, so t < c < h must be true. So I) is definitely true, and II) is definitely false. Now, c/2 is the time it would take two cold taps to fill the bucket. We don't have two cold taps -- we have one cold tap, and one slower tap. So t > c/2. Similarly, h/2 is how long it would take two hot taps. We don't have two hot taps -- we have one hot tap, and one faster tap. So t < h/2. So III) must also be true.
Nov 2011: After years of development, I am now making my advanced Quant books and high-level problem sets available for sale. Contact me at ianstewartgmat at gmail.com for details.
Private GMAT Tutor based in Toronto | <urn:uuid:a353d87f-2ea1-4896-9676-bcc1bfe45f6a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://gmatclub.com/forum/rate-question-i-think-77698.html?fl=similar | 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 | 0.947339 | 191 | 1.625 | 2 |
Home > Career Services > Cooperative Education > International Students > Curricular Practical Training
Curricular Practical Training
For Students in F-1 Status
What is Curricular Practical Training?The U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service (USCIS) defines "curricular practical training" as employment that is an integral or important part of curriculum, including: "... alternate work/study, internship, cooperative education, or any other type of required internship or practicum that is offered by sponsoring employers through cooperative agreement with the school." At Manchester Community College, the term co-op, internship, and field experience are used to describe opportunities for Curricular Practical Training.
What jobs qualify?To be considered Curricular Practical Training, the work must be related to your current major field of study AND must also be an integral or important part of your studies. Your academic department must determine if the job qualifies for the Curricular Practical Training.
- Employment that is required for your degree program always meet the requirement for curricular practical training, regardless of whether or not you receive academic credit for your work.
- Employment that is not required for your degree program may meet the requirements for curricular practical training if you receive academic credit for the employment experience and if it is an important part of your study.
How do I qualify?
Employment that is a required part of your degree program.If:
- you are a graduate student, and
- you are maintaining lawful F-1 status, and
- the proposed employment is the required part of your studies, and
- you meet all academic criteria set by your academic department,
Employment that is not a required part of your degree program.In order to be eligible to apply for permission to work in a job which is not a required part of your study program, you must:
- be in lawful F-1 status and
- have been a full-time F-1 student for at least one full academic year and
- meet all academic criteria set by your academic department.
When may I start work?You must not start work until you receive a new I-20 form with specific written permission on page 3. Working improperly or without authorization is a serious violation of your F-1 student status. You should consult with the Designated School Official before taking up any employment. The DSO will advise you regarding your responsibilities; however, it is your responsibility to comply with all immigration regulations that apply to F-1 students.
How many hours per week may I work?Your academic department must approve your request for curricular practical training including how many hours per week you are approved for work. Part-time Training: Employment for 20 hours or fewer per week while you are also enrolled full-time is considered part-time Curricular Practical Training. The employment authorization written on the back of your I-20 form will specify permission to engage in part-time training and you must be careful to limit your work to no more than 20 hours per week. There is no limit on the number of semesters that you may participate in part-time Curricular Practical Training, but you must be simultaneously enrolled ful-time in order to maintain lawful F-1 status. Full-time Training: Employment for more than 20 hours per week is considered full-time Curricular Practical Training and the employment authorization written on the back of your I-20 form will specify permission to engage in full-time training. There is no limit on the number of semesters that you may participate in full-time Curricular Practical Training, but if you participate for twelve months or more, you will not be eligible for Optional Practical Training (see next paragraph).
How long may I participate in CPT?Your academic department may have limits on the number of credits of Curricular Practical Training that you may register for. However, if you participate for twelve months or more of full-time Curricular Practical Training, you lose eligibility to apply for twelve months of Optional Practical Training. Participation in part-time Curricular Practical Training does not affect your eligibility for Optional Practical Training.
Application and Authorization ProceduresBring the following to the DSO:
- a letter from your prospective employer that describes the position
- a recommendation from the Director of Co-operative Education (attached to this information sheet)
- proof that you have registered for co-op, internship, or field experience
What paperwork do I need to do when I start work?When you begin work, you and your employer must complete a form entitled Employment Eligibility Verification (USCIS form I-9), which the employer retains. The I-9 must be updated each time you receive a renewal of your work permission. Your I-20 will have a specific employment authorization on page 3. In general, F-1 students who have been in U.S fewer than five years are exempt from Social Security and Medicare (FICA) taxes. See IRS Publication 519, U.S. Tax Guide for Aliens, for detailed information. This publication is available on-line at www.irs.gov. Your earnings are subject to applicable federal, state and local income taxes. A tax return is due on or before April 15 each year, which will determine if any of these taxes may be refunded.
Last Update: April 09 2009
For additional information, contact: Robert Henderson
For additional information, contact: Robert Henderson | <urn:uuid:b9e05d93-a432-4679-83cf-3f4735fbc129> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.mctc.commnet.edu/students/career/coopInternationalCurricular.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.938825 | 1,114 | 1.570313 | 2 |
Over a year and a half later we finally received the new Facebook app, after much moaning and alot of complaining, for the new, well old iPad 2, and now, we discover why Facebook, a multi billion pound organisation, took so long to release such a simple app, to its 700 million plus users. Abit [...]
Over a year and a half later we finally received the new Facebook app, after much moaning and alot of complaining, for the new, well old iPad 2, and now, we discover why Facebook, a multi billion pound organisation, took so long to release such a simple app, to its 700 million plus users.
Abit of history, we can tell you now that Facebook is accessed everyday atleast 20 times by a user, and is the most popular and common app across all platforms, from iPad 2 to the iPhone 4S. But, a free iPad app for Facebook has been much awaited, well since the dawn of time, if you can say that time began when the iPad was released. And eventually, over time, many users became anxious and frustrated at the fact that there was no official Facebook app, especially when the iPad began dominating the tablet market.
However, we can reveal to you now, that Facebook were not that pro-active, and did not immediately set to work on their free iPad application. But, the reason Facebook were not hasty, was because, this was over a period where Facebook was rapidly growing, and investing in an application would take away Facebook engineers from the core site, to work on a spin off, and it was something Facebook at the time simply could not do.
Ethan Beard, the Director of Platform Partnerships at Facebook said in a statement:
“One of the challenges anyone has working on mobile experiences, is that there are a lot of different technologies and a lot of different platforms,”…“I remember when the iPad came out, we started saying ‘let’s cook up a team to work on this,’ but then we took a step back. We had PC Web, mobile Web, a low-cost site for emerging markets, an Android App, iPhone app, and BlackBerry app. We would’ve had more people inside Facebook translating Facebook from the app that we’d built, into all those other platforms than we did have working on the core experience.”
Therefore, from this statement we can see that Facebook was just being run ragged, as they tried to appeal, and to reach out to users on all emerging platforms. Thats what caused delays, and much to the annoyance of iPad users, after the free iPad app was set to be released, there were a number of hiccups. Reportedly completed in May and ready to be used by the wider world, Facebook did not release the app, possibly because they were trying to time it right with their mobile apps platform, or sync it with the iPhone 4S launch. Although, Steve Jobs death did hinder the release by a further 2 or so weeks.
All in all, the free iPad Facebook app has been released, and even though there are a few problems here and there, the app itself is beautiful, gives the user an easy experience, is back to basics, and implements simplicity. Going hand in hand with the Apple iPad. | <urn:uuid:47bba67e-af72-4b8a-a180-beef82e93e21> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.fastfreeipad.com/free-ipad-facebook-app-was-delayed/ | 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 | 0.984157 | 680 | 1.710938 | 2 |
Published: Friday, October 20, 2006
Page 2 of 4
The light-and-colour-filled central atrium viewed from one of the upper galleries, with a detail of the glass elevators and the half-vaulted ceiling.
The hotel is part of the new Ria 2000 masterplan for the City of Bilbao, Spain. Located several distant blocks from the Guggenheim Museum, it is the last property on the Victoria Maria Boulevard before approaching the river.
The property is a small site of 17,650sq.ft. The hotel was designed as a compact volume in harmony with the context that surrounds it. The plan of the City indicated construction upto the bordering limits of the property, with a height of 10 levels and one extra set back of 3 meters.
Inspired by the work of the artist Chillida and the solid roots, history and culture of the Spanish Basque Country, the building is treated like a sculpted block of solid stone, to which certain perforations have been tilled.
The building within its context - with the corner tower.
The perforations were studied from a "sculptural point of view on the exterior," the architects state. Depending on the different views, the lower levels open towards the park and the upper levels towards the mountains; once the height has surpassed the adjacent commercial building, the volume ends with a tower which converts itself into a lighthouse at the corner.
The facade is treated like a lattice window with 9 squares per room to induce a sense of intimacy and at the same time, to achieve a sense of a massive volume by articulating the exterior facade.
Architecture-Page is an online design resource, featuring architecture and product design from the world over. More
Architecture-Page is brought to you by Page Productions | <urn:uuid:ad6514d0-35e9-42ec-9c71-fda2f6e84b78> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.architecture-page.com/go/projects/sheraton-abandoibarra-hotel-bilbao__2 | 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 | 0.954826 | 374 | 1.5625 | 2 |
More material from a recent talk I gave at Disney: this is a bit of basic staging and storyboarding knowledge that people tend to disregard and ignore. It's one of those things that seem so simple and obvious that it seems almost unimportant but it makes a big, big difference!
Okay, here it is: when you're staging and/or storyboarding a dramatic scene (meaning an action scene, a mysterious scene, a scene of tension, an emotional acting type scene, etc.), it will always work better if you follow these rules: 1) create depth within your staging, 2) place the "camera" in such a way as to avoid symmetry and to create diagonals within the frame, avoiding straight lines within the composition completely, and 3) whenever possible, use a darker and more limited palette without a lot of bright colors.
These are from "3:10 to Yuma" and they are a great example of how to create depth and diagonals, however they are very bright in color and tone. Unfortunately I don't have any from a good action film with a limited palette. a good example would be "Aliens", the James Cameron film, which uses a very limited palette and has a lot of great action scenes.
Look at how the camera is placed to create dynamic angles within the frame. Many times when filming an action scene or other kind of dramatic scene a director will tilt the camera a bit to the side to eliminate any horizontals and turn them all into diagonals which are much more dynamic.
These ones from "Touch of Evil" are a good example of how a darker, more limited palette and frames with a lot of depth can help create more of a somber and/or dramatic mood.
This Bill Peet drawing is a good example of how a somber mood can be created by the way tone is used. The staging here isn't necessarily that dramatic - it's staged pretty flatly - but the dark tones give a real sense of a somber scene. You could take this same scene and color it brightly and it would have a totally different feel.
The second part of the rules go like this: when you're staging and/or storyboarding a comedic scene, the opposite applies: 1) look for ways to create movement that is either parallel or perpendicular to the camera, 2) look for ways to create flat staging, including symmetry, and remove as much depth as possible from the frame, and 3) use a bright palette of colors.
These screengrabs are from Steven MacLeod's awesome blog FRAMEFILTER, which is full of great screengrabs from a wide variety of films.
Look at how flat all the staging is. With these characters, their movement is all either moving straight away from the camera or moving parallel to where the camera is placed. For whatever reason, creating a sense of flattened space cues us that something is funny and greatly enhances the feeling whenever you are trying to present a comedic idea. Also bright colors seem to cue us that something is funny while muted and darker hues seem to tell us that something is serious and dramatic.
I'm not really sure why these rules work, and maybe it's so obvious already to everyone that you may wonder why the heck I bother bringing it up. A lot of what I talk about seems so simple that I guess it can seem pointless to talk about, but this concept can really make the difference between whether a sequence works or not.
I've seen it countless times in other's work and my own: when you board an action scene (or any other dramatic type of scene) and make the mistake of drawing flat staging, it always ends up detracting from the feeling that you are working hard to convey. And I've seen people who draw really, really well do a humorous scene and somehow it has so much depth in it that it's not as funny as it would be if it was flattened out. When I catch myself making these same choices that detract from the scene, time and time again it always helps when I go back and follow these "rules" more vigorously.
Also distance can play an important part in both of these types of sequences. When you put the camera far back enough, even the most extreme action can become humorous. Even watching someone get hit by a rocket from a bazooka and fly through the air could be humorous from far, far back, whereas seeing that happen up close could be handled humorously or dramatically, depending on the way it was handled.
On the other hand, putting the camera far back from the action when a scene is supposed to be dramatic can really hurt the tone of the scene because being far back from something has the (obvious) effect of making you look at it in an uninvolved, dispassionate way. Just like close-ups make us feel connected to actors in a movie seeing them from far away can make us feel separated from them and make the audience conscious of the fact that they're detached observers. So use that knowledge to put your camera where it will have the desired effect. Always be aware of where you are placing the camera, and why. Don't just place it wherever it feels right; where you put the camera (and where that puts the audience) has a lot of meaning and can help you get the emotional response you want the audience to have, or it can totally undermine what you are trying to do.
One last set of examples: without reading the dialogue here or even knowing what the situation is, just by glancing at these two you get an immediate feeling of drama from one and a feeling of comedy from the other. | <urn:uuid:52903d07-a633-453c-99bc-99e5233e5091> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://sevencamels.blogspot.com/2009/01/flat-is-funny-depth-is-dramatic.html?showComment=1257355820937 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96328 | 1,150 | 1.71875 | 2 |
President Michael D Higgins launched the European Year for Active Ageing and Solidarity between Generations in Ireland during an event which took place in Dublin Castle on February 9th.
“If ageing is to be a positive experience it must be accompanied by opportunities to realise the potential of all people and to participate in all facets of society. This is the essence of active ageing” the President said.
Speaking to delegates from all over the country, who will be celebrating the Year with an impressive number of events, he continued with the message: “The Year also provides an opportunity to send a clear and strong message that active ageing is not meant for older people alone, it is of relevance to everyone in Ireland no matter what age he or she may be”.
President Higgins said that, during his 14 months campaigning for the Presidency, nobody, younger or older, had asked for anything at the expense of another generation. “There is in the people a fine ethical balance of wanting inter-generational solidarity, he said. “This is something that is natural. The year enables us to have a vision celebrating ageing and valuing contributions from all ages.”
Ronan Toomey, Office for Older People, National Coordinator of the Year said the opening event was just one of a number of national seminars his office will host throughout the Year. “We will be encouraging people of all ages to take part, enter into dialogue with each other and ultimately foster and build on the contact and support between generations that already exists in Ireland”, he said.
“While the Office for Older People in the Department of Health is responsible for organising the Year, we wanted this to be a collaborative process. The response from the NGO sector and colleagues in other Government Departments has been very encouraging. There is a real sense of partnership in the planning and delivery of events taking place around the country throughout the Year”, he continued.
Mary Cunningham, Director of the National Youth Council of Ireland, said that this was just the beginning of an exciting year of events celebrating the great work carried out by younger and older people together. “This intergenerational contact is so positive. It leads to more realistic images of older people and younger people and puts young people at the forefront of challenging ageism”, she said.
People of all ages can enjoy an extensive programme of events taking place in Ireland throughout the year. Details are available at www.activeageing.ie.
Pictures of the launch event are available here. | <urn:uuid:6212724b-fa3c-42b5-8f74-56a462263ca5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://europa.eu/ey2012/ey2012main.jsp?langId=pl&catId=970&newsId=1187&furtherNews=yes | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963787 | 516 | 1.601563 | 2 |
|The Stolen Jools|
|Director:||William C. McGann|
Edward G. Robinson
|Released:||4 April 1931|
|Internet Movie Database entry 0022402|
The Stolen Jools (1931) is a short comedy film produced by the Masquers Club of Hollywood, featuring many cameo appearances by the film stars of the day. They appeared in the film to help raise funds for the National Variety Artists Tuberculosis Sanitarium.
When the film was shown in theaters in 1931, a person would appear after the film to ask the audience for donations. Because the film was made for charity, it has an unusually large cast of actors from different studios, such as Warner Bros., RKO, MGM, and Paramount Pictures.
This film was known by the name The Slippery Pearls in the United Kingdom. It was thought to be a lost film until a print was found in the UK in the 1990s. Another print was then found in the US under the alternate title. | <urn:uuid:b4a5863f-8f85-43d0-991f-9e7c062b1e63> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://everything.explained.at/The_Stolen_Jools/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.93932 | 211 | 1.75 | 2 |
Sonoma County's homeless and hungry often hidden
Published: Sunday, November 25, 2012 at 8:00 p.m.
Last Modified: Monday, November 26, 2012 at 7:12 a.m.
Sonoma County's vineyard-covered hills, tidy subdivisions and busy shopping malls convey an abundance of well-being that masks an uncomfortable reality: overflowing homeless shelters, thousands of hungry people and a growing number of impoverished families.
"Everybody thinks it is someplace else," said David Goodman, executive director of the Redwood Empire Food Bank, the county's largest hunger-relief organization.
The Santa Rosa-based nonprofit distributes food every month to 78,000 children, seniors and working families, which amounts to one out of six county residents.
Meanwhile, Catholic Charities is recording "unprecedented numbers" in the homeless shelters it operates, with the cold-weather season just beginning.
Sam Jones Hall, a 120-bed shelter for adult men and women in southwest Santa Rosa, has been at capacity 15 to 20 times in the last three months.
"It's only going to get worse," said Jennielynn Holmes, Catholic Charities' manager of shelter and housing, with winter beginning in three weeks.
The agency's family shelter, with 138 beds in downtown Santa Rosa, has maintained a waiting list since July, now numbering 28 families. A family consists of at least one person over 18 and a child under 18.
Lonnie Gerolaga and his partner, Marisol Lara, got into the family shelter in March, after a month on the waiting list and "moving up" in priority with the birth of their second daughter, Angel.
The couple had previously lived for a time in their car while their older daughter, Angela, 3, stayed with relatives.
"It wasn't a comfortable way to live," said Gerolaga, who said he lost his security guard's job in 2007 and subsequently found occasional construction work.
Homelessness "doesn't have race," he said. "You can be anybody and something can happen to you and you're homeless."
The family just moved into transitional housing, sharing a four-bedroom house on Morgan Street with another family, a single mother with two children.
Now that he feels stable, Gerolaga said he hopes to resume work as a security guard, while Lara enrolls in a phlebotomy technician's program at Santa Rosa Junior College.
The area's tight housing market, combined with a depressed economy, has created a surge in "first-time homeless families," Holmes said.
Many are people who were living paycheck to paycheck and were pitched out of their homes by some financial setback. "They were barely making it, and now their safety net has dropped," Holmes said.
Bank foreclosures, which have displaced more than 10,000 county homeowners since 2007, have contributed indirectly to homelessness by depleting the supply of rental housing, she said.
Hard times also have pushed more families into poverty and hunger.
When money is tight, people will cut back on food in order to pay rent and utilities and put gasoline in the car, food bank director Goodman said. Many of those calling for help in recent years "never thought they would be seeking food assistance," he said.
"They are upset," he said. "Ashamed to be out of food."
Forty-five percent of Sonoma County students qualified for a free or reduced-price lunch in 2010-11, up from 23 percent in 2000-01, and they are predominantly elementary-age kids.
The percentage of Sonoma County families with children living below the federal poverty level last year was 13.4, up from 9 percent in 2009, according to the Census Bureau.
The federal poverty level for a family of four was about $23,000 last year, about one-third of Sonoma County's median income of $61,000.
Goodman contends that the poverty level statistics are misleading because the figure is "just a point on an economic scale" and doesn't include any of the families living marginally above the line.
"Hunger is closer than ever for many people," said Billy Bartz, food drive and event coordinator at the food bank.
The nonprofit's Winter Food and Funds Drive aims to collect 200,000 pounds of food and $200,000, twice as much as five years ago, officials said.
Holiday programs are also expanding with the hard times.
The Secret Santa program, managed by the Volunteer Center of Sonoma County, aims to fill more than 15,000 gift requests from schools and nonprofits throughout the county.
Last year, donors enabled the program, known for its red plastic hearts bearing personalized gift wishes from children, adults and seniors, to fulfill about 13,000 requests, said Marty Wait, Secret Santa coordinator.
The Salvation Army's corps of volunteer bell ringers hit the streets with their red kettles last week hoping to collect $169,000.
Last year the effort raised about $153,000, said Jennifer Freitas, volunteer services coordinator.
You can reach Staff Writer Guy Kovner at 521-5457 or firstname.lastname@example.org.
All rights reserved. This copyrighted material may not be re-published without permission. Links are encouraged. | <urn:uuid:9ced0157-87ce-4e66-8e67-022313fa7cce> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.pressdemocrat.com/article/20121125/ARTICLES/121129776/0/PhotoLifestyle | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970322 | 1,095 | 1.5 | 2 |
Pope: Easter Triduum "Fulcrum" of Liturgical Year
Offers Reflection at General Audience
| 2079 hits
VATICAN CITY, APRIL 8, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI reflected on the Easter triduum at the general audience today, which he called the "fulcrum of the entire liturgical year."
Holy Week, the Pope said, "offers us the opportunity to be immersed in the central events of Redemption, to relive the Paschal Mystery, the great mystery of the faith."
"How marvelous, and at the same time amazing, is this mystery," the Pontiff said. "We can never meditate this reality sufficiently. Jesus, though being God, did not want to make of his divine prerogatives an exclusive possession; he did not want to use his being God, his glorious dignity and power, as an instrument of triumph and sign of distance from us.
"On the contrary, 'he emptied himself' assuming our miserable and weak human condition."
Benedict XVI noted that the Easter triduum begins Thursday afternoon with the Mass of the Lord's Supper: "The Church commemorates the institution of the Eucharist, the ministerial priesthood and the new commandment of charity, left by Jesus to his disciples."
Holy Thursday, he said, is "a renewed invitation to render thanks to God for the supreme gift of the Eucharist, to be received with devotion and to be adored with lively faith."
Good Friday, the Pontiff continued, is the "day of the Passion and crucifixion of the Lord. Every year, placing ourselves in silence before Jesus nailed to the wood of the cross, we realize how full of love were the words he pronounced on the eve, in the course of the Last Supper."
"Jesus willed to offer his life in sacrifice for the remission of humanity's sins," the Holy Father reflected. "Just as before the Eucharist, so before the Passion and Death of Jesus on the cross the mystery is unfathomable to reason. We are placed before something that humanly might seem absurd: a God who not only is made man, with all man's needs, not only suffers to save man, burdening himself with all the tragedy of humanity, but dies for man.
"Christ's death recalls the accumulation of sorrows and evils that beset humanity of all times: the crushing weight of our dying, the hatred and violence that again today bloody the earth. The Lord's Passion continues in the suffering of men."
He added, "If Good Friday is a day full of sadness, then it is at the same time all the more propitious a day to reawaken our faith, to strengthen our hope and courage so that each one of us will carry his cross with humility, trust and abandonment in God, certain of his support and victory."
"Hope," said Benedict XVI, "is nourished in the great silence of Holy Saturday, awaiting the resurrection of Jesus. On this day the Churches are stripped and no particular liturgical rites are provided. The Church watches in prayer like Mary, and together with Mary, sharing the same feelings of sorrow and trust in God.
"Justly recommended is to preserve throughout the day a prayerful climate, favorable to meditation and reconciliation; the faithful are encouraged to approach the sacrament of penance, to be able to participate truly renewed in the Easter celebrations."
Following the "recollection and silence of Holy Saturday" is the solemn Easter Vigil, which the Pope called the "mother of all vigils."
"Proclaimed once again will be the victory of light over darkness, of life over death, and the Church will rejoice in the encounter with her Lord," he added. "We will thus enter into the climate of the Easter of Resurrection." | <urn:uuid:806c71f3-ccad-4a4c-a643-2a41fb625778> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.zenit.org/en/articles/pope-easter-triduum-fulcrum-of-liturgical-year | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951244 | 788 | 1.671875 | 2 |
Airlines call to remind you of your next flight. Medical offices call to remind you of your next appointment. Now the state Department of Motor vehicles will be doing the same.
The DMV has launched a reminder service for people who have chosen to make appointments, rather than stand in line for hours at the local office.
Three days before an appointment, DMV customers will now get an automated dial-up with the date, time, field office location and type of appointment. A voice mail will be left if no one answers.
As many as 16,000 automated calls a day will be made to ensure DMV customers get there to deal with driver licenses, driver tests and the like.
In March, the DMV launched an Android phone app called DMV NOW that helps users locate a nearby DMV office, lists wait times, provides alerts and sample tests and instructional videos.
A similar app for iPhones was launched more than a year ago, according to the DMV.
But then, why go to a DMV office at all, if you can avoid it?
Customers can go online to handle a number of transactions, including including vehicle registration and driver license renewals, selection of personalized license plates, changes of address and payment of fees via secure debit transactions. | <urn:uuid:b094c3f3-f5a9-4c5a-93d5-356b8ff8a57a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2011/apr/27/dmv-adds-appointment-reminders-its-customer-servic/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.938918 | 254 | 1.59375 | 2 |
Best-selling cars of all time
Every year since the first modern automobiles were produced in the late 19th century, car manufacturers have rolled out new body designs and internal technologies. Most fall out of favor nearly as quickly as they were conceived.
But some car manufacturers hit on so timeless a design, strike so critical a trend in consumer preference, build a sales network so fast, or manage to evolve so deftly with a vehicle model that it remains popular with consumers for years. These models become all-time best sellers.
In early 2012, business news site 24/7 Wall St. culled resources from industry analysts and compiled a list of the world's 10 best-selling cars of all-time. Newsday has reproduced that top-10 list and supplemented it with 11 more cars that have reached the 10 million-sold mark, according to press releases from their makers. These additions appear in alphabetical order after 24WallSt.com's formal list.
Newsday also added the number of models sold in the U.S. in 2012 through October from industry data compiled by GoodCarBadCar.net.
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- 14 cars to restore your faith in American makers | <urn:uuid:fa6bc5b7-973b-484b-a590-9929f6309c0e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.newsday.com/classifieds/cars/best-selling-cars-of-all-time-1.4269980 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.932512 | 397 | 1.578125 | 2 |
FYI: Heritage WebMemos are now called Issue Briefs.
One of the troublesome aspects of President Obama’s State of the Union speech was that the much-hyped housing section was little more than a slightly revised version of a proposal from last fall. While last fall’s plan was limited to homeowners whose mortgages were held by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac, the newly announced version allows homeowners whose mortgages are held by private-sector lenders and entities other than Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to refinance their mortgages. The new plan uses the Federal Housing Administration (FHA), an entity that is already on the verge of needing a major taxpayer bailout. All homeowners, regardless of who owns their mortgages, would have access to streamlined refinancing methods and lower fees. Like several earlier housing refinance plans that failed to work, this version is unlikely to be any more successful.
Before the speech, there had been speculation that the President would announce a program that allowed homeowners to have their lenders reduce the amount of their loans. Some speculated that this reduction would be mandatory for lenders, but after the Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA) noted that such a plan would cost taxpayers an additional $100 billion in subsidies to Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, that idea seems to have been dropped for now. The much smaller measure is simply the newest version of a poorly considered loan refinancing program.
The Newest Version of a Refinancing Plan
The latest version of the Obama refinancing plan is very similar to previous versions. As with the others, a homeowner must have a mortgage on a single-family, owner-occupied principal residence and be current on the mortgage for at least the past six months with no more than one late payment during that time. He or she must also have a FICO score (a measure of a borrower’s credit worthiness) of at least 580. The FICO score measures the borrower’s overall debt and credit history, and about 90 percent of borrowers have at least a 580. In addition, the homeowner must have a mortgage that is below the FHA loan limit in the area. Depending on the location, the FHA limit ranges from $271,050 in the lowest-cost areas to $729,750 in the highest.
Finally, the borrower’s home may not have a loan for more than 140 percent of the current value of the house. The Administration talks of additional measures that could include requiring the lender to forgive amounts above 140 percent of the current home value, but those measures would require congressional approval, which is not likely. Refinanced mortgages would use simplified criteria that eliminate the need for an appraisal and certain other items to speed the approval process.
Refinanced mortgages would be insured by the FHA. Supposedly to protect the already unsound FHA from additional losses, a separate fund would be set up within the FHA, with the cost of losses being covered by a tax of some sort on financial institutions. Both the new FHA fund and the new tax would require congressional approval, and both would be poor policy. The new fund is just an admission that many of these refinanced loans will subsequently fail. If they went into the normal FHA fund, they would eliminate its little remaining capital. A new fund is simply creative accounting designed to hide the program’s certain impact on the FHA and that program’s shaky finances. On the other hand, the new tax is based on a desire to punish banks, and it serves little purpose other than to tap a source of funds to pay for the refinancing program’s inevitable losses.
The newest plan also fills a gap in that previous plans included only mortgages owned by Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac. This one is specifically for mortgages owned by some private-sector entity. It also overlaps with the earlier versions in that all borrowers, no matter who owns their mortgages, would be able to take advantage of the streamlined procedures and lower fees. However, this new plan shares the same weaknesses of its predecessors: It promises much more than it can deliver.
There are a few positive features amidst the weaknesses. For one, the Obama plan adopts a version of a simplified disclosure statement, an idea that was developed by the American Enterprise Institute’s Alex Pollock. This simple disclosure would make sure that borrowers actually understand the terms of the agreement they are signing. In addition, the plan gives a homeowner who owes more on his home than it is currently worth an avenue to pay enough on the mortgage so that the loan will be less than the reduced value of the house in about five years. Taking advantage of historically low interest rates, the plan would encourage people to refinance into a 20-year mortgage instead of the standard 30-year mortgage. Doing so would further reduce the interest payment, and a 20-year mortgage sends less of the payment to interest costs. The added amount that goes to repaying the principal on the loan would shrink the amount outstanding rapidly enough to equalize the outstanding loan and the current home value.
Further Weakening an FHA Already on the Brink of Bailout
The latest Obama homeowners’ refinancing program would cause the FHA to suffer new losses at a time when the agency is almost out of capital. Supposedly creating a new account to hold the mortgages refinanced under the latest proposal would do nothing to change this situation. The agency’s latest annual report shows that it has about $2.6 billion in capital to pay for possible losses in its $1.1 trillion mortgage portfolio. This equals about $1 for every $400 of insured mortgages—far below the legally required $1 of capital for every $50 of insured mortgages. The report notes that in the past year alone, the agency saw its capital drop by $2.1 billion, and there is a 50 percent likelihood that the agency will need as much as a $43 billion bailout as soon as next year.
Since it was created in 1934, the FHA has focused on assisting moderate-income and low-income home buyers by providing them with insured mortgages and allowing them to make down payments as low as 3.5 percent of the purchase price. However, since 2007, the FHA has moved from insuring about 5 percent of new mortgages to about one-third of all new mortgages, as the size of its insurance portfolio tripled. Although the agency’s leadership confidently predicts that a recovering housing market will keep it from needing a taxpayer bailout, other experts make a convincing case that the agency is already underestimating the amount of risk in its portfolio, and a bailout is all but certain.
The latest housing refinancing plan would only make this situation worse. Close to half of those who received refinanced mortgages in earlier versions of the Obama mortgage refinancing program have ended up defaulting, and there is no reason to believe that this version centered on the FHA will do any better. Hiding the new losses in a separate fund is just accounting subterfuge. As the losses mount from this effort, the FHA’s tiny remaining capital cushion will disappear, and it will need a taxpayer bailout. All that the proposed new tax on banks would do—if it was approved—is fund part of that bailout. The rest of the bailout would come out of the same taxpayers who have had to prop up Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac.
No Government Magic Bullet Will Work
As with earlier versions, the newest Obama home refinancing plan is more hype than substance. This version also requires several features, including a new tax on financial institutions, that are bad policy and would do nothing to help revive housing. The fact remains that there is no magic government solution that will make the current housing mess go away. The industry will have to grow out of the current slump over time.
David C. John is Senior Research Fellow in Retirement Security and Financial Institutions in the Thomas A. Roe Institute for Economic Policy Studies at The Heritage Foundation. | <urn:uuid:fd45b25b-9601-4d17-9418-59aa5947c68b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.heritage.org/research/reports/2012/02/housing-policy-obamas-homeowners-refinancing-program-endangers-fha | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.974157 | 1,629 | 1.609375 | 2 |
Fragrance Tester Strips
In order to sample aromatic oils we recommend using these paper test strips rather than smelling directly from the bottle. This is particularly important if you are comparing several different oils of the same type, or if the oil you are evaluating is in a large bottle. While the nose and your sense of smell is one of the most important tools of the aromatherapist and natural perfumer, it is an imperfect instrument. By using fragrance test strips you will be able to more accurately evaluate oils for quality, adulteration and lasting power. | <urn:uuid:0f4bafbe-4da4-4d5e-a05f-d8e40cd35dfd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.edenbotanicals.com/products/containers-small-soaptone-rosewood-boxes/fragrance-tester-strips.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.930897 | 112 | 1.5625 | 2 |
I had to scratch my head as I read these words: "These neutral-toned protagonists riff on Rockwell's normalcy—everyday folks who've somehow pierced the veil and grapple with a decidedly non-normal, post-gravitational experience." Seems too much effort went into making meaning out of nonsense there.
That aside, I think Rockwell gets short shrift by many, including The Independent Weekly's reviewer, and probably always will. I've always considered Rockwell to be the first true illustrator who was able to transcend the label, or elevate the vocation, by creating images so pregnant with backstory that they rival the great masterpieces of Western iconography.
His potraiture doesn't merely reveal a faithful snap-shot of human emotion, a difficult enough aim, but unveils a robust and complex personal history -- and does so without making the viewer feel like a voyeur or accidental witness to a private moment. He takes the personal and makes it public, but does so without eroding the dignity of his subjects. On the contrary, his subjects are imbued with dignity.
I also think, and said as much to my 10-year-old son as we left the exhibit, that Rockwell was a master at representing the richness of American ethnicity. He captured the Irish-American or the Italian-American or the African-American as truthfully as any artist living or dead.
Finally, some of his images (for example, the little African-American girl beying escorted to school by the U.S. deputy marshalls in "The Problem We All Live With") are so powerfully iconic that they seem to have become what we remember of the historic event -- displacing images from print and electronic media in our mind's eye.
No other American painter I can think of comes close to making this kind of lasting impression on our psyche, save for Andrew Wyeth and Edward Hopper.
Indy Week • 302 E. Pettigrew St., Suite 300, Durham, NC 27701 • phone 919-286-1972 • fax 919-286-4274
RSS Feeds | Powered by Foundation | <urn:uuid:050c6b62-e42b-493d-9636-0b4c4a67aff0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.indyweek.com/indyweek/Profile?oid=1920953 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964186 | 438 | 1.632813 | 2 |
Tango was nominated for the 2012 American Humane Association’s Hero Dog Awards, which were created in 2010 to honor dogs nationwide for serving as companion animals, service and therapy animals, first responders and search and rescue dogs.
Tango, a champion show dog, was donated to Hilton by Mac and Lori Finlayson of Tulsa in 2008 because the couple was familiar with the Keep Kids Fire Safe Foundation.
“We travel each year to Celia Clinton Elementary in Tulsa demonstrating fire safety,” Hilton said. “The Rotary Club sponsors our trip and Mac saw first-hand the impact the dogs had on the school children.”
In 2008 Hilton received a call from the principal of Celia Clinton Elementary telling Hilton about 5-year-old Angelica’s story.
Angelica awoke to a smoke-filled room and remembered to crawl low to the door and actually helped her father safely leave the house.
“She remembered to crawl low because of our program and said her daddy was standing in the hall and Angelica even remembered to tell him to crawl low,” Hilton said.
Angelica’s father was disoriented from the smoke and the little girl safely led him to the door. Firefighters later told Hilton the home flashed, or was completely engulfed in flames, immediately following the exit of Angelica and her father.
“I became interested in fire safety after learning that Arkansas ranked seventh in fire related deaths and injuries,” Hilton said. “I started the fire safety programs to try and reduce that statistic. Angelica and her daddy are living proof that fire safety programs work.”
Hilton said the affect of the dogs is tangible and more effective than if just she were giving a program.
Hilton said at each program the children learn the sound and purpose of smoke alarms, that firefighters are helpers and friends, the importance of crawling low and the need to not only have an escape map, but the importance of practicing home fire drills.
Visit www.herodogawards.org to vote once per day for Tango. Voting ends June 30.
Learn more about Tango and how to Skype with him for free at www.keepkidsfiresafe.org | <urn:uuid:69e07572-7a75-4f50-8069-be615cb7af71> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.couriernews.com/pages/full_story/push?article-A+dog-s+life%20&id=18126453 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.975333 | 457 | 1.617188 | 2 |
Homemade rose syrup, how about that?
Rose, or “golden flower” in Azerbaijani, is traditionally used as flavoring and jam material in both my native Azerbaijan and the surrounding countries, and both rose water and rose syrup can be purchased from Middle-Eastern ethnic grocers. Being the kind of
snob person that I am, I made a batch of homemade earlier this summer with the petals of the incredibly-fragrant roses from my prolific climbing bush, thereby bypassing the shipping charges and the potential preservatives. The results were simply spectacular, if I do say so myself.
How is one to use rose syrup, you might wonder? In a variety of ways! You can pour it over your pancakes, use it as a mild sweetener, drizzle it over ice-cream, or reduce it to the soft-ball stage for some rose-flavored French buttercream.
Myself, I envisioned it as a kind of a drink concentrate that could be added in small quantities to a pitcher of water I put on the table at suppertime, much like throwing in cucumber slices or lime wedges or a bunch of mint. My kids absolutely love this “roseberry juice.”
As far as preparation, the process couldn’t be more straightforward – just pick a few handfuls of unsprayed rose petals, throw them in a pot with sugar and water, bring everything to a simmer and cook for about five minutes before adding lemon juice (important for both the color and the flavor!), removing from heat, and allowing everything to infuse overnight. All you have to do the next day is strain it.
Alternatively, you could leave the petals in and reduce the syrup-petal mixture to a spreadable consistency, giving you rose jam. Although I haven’t done it this time, the taste of rose jam is still one of my most persistent childhood food memories.
If, after straining your syrup, you decide that you would like it a little more viscous, simply put it back in the pan and reduce it to your desired consistency (just remember that hot syrups and jams are much thinner than they would be after cooling – run a freezer test by drizzling a small amount onto a plate and sticking the plate in the freezer for a few minutes to cool it quickly and give you an idea of the final result).
While the absolute exact proportions are less important than the method itself, here is what I used:
- approximately 3 cups loose, unsprayed rose petals
- 5 cups cold water
- 3 cups granulated sugar
- 2 tablespoons lemon juice
Just follow the above directions and enjoy! | <urn:uuid:738cc734-53d1-43a4-880f-4074c824ea89> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://girlsguidetobutter.com/2012/06/homemade-rose-syrup-rose-jam-and-rose-drink-concentrate/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.942541 | 555 | 1.625 | 2 |
The thoughtful and mathematical structure of Villareal’s BUCKYBALL is visually interesting in itself, but its constantly changing programmed light sequences are what really mesmerize. Using the same kind of programmable pixels as his other NYC work, HIVE, Villareal is able to choose from 16 million different colors to illuminate bulbs located every 1.2 inches throughout the sculpture. After it opens tonight, BUCKYBALL will also be surrounded by zero-gravity couches that will allow viewers to lie under the artwork and see it from an entirely different perspective.
“I am thrilled to be presenting BUCKYBALL in Madison Square Park,” says Villareal. “My new light sculpture takes the form of a Carbon 60 molecule and expands it to monumental scale. It also explores self-similarity through the use of two identical nested spheres, the outer at 20 feet in diameter and the inner at 10 feet. Lined with LED tubes, these structures are activated through sequenced light driven by custom software. This public artwork reinterprets many of the traditional elements found in the park such as seating and historic monuments in a fresh and exciting way.”
BUCKYBALL will remain on view from October 25, 2012 through February 1, 2013 in Madison Square Park. For more about this enlightening new piece of public artwork, please check out our previous coverage of Leo Villareal’s BUCKYBALL. | <urn:uuid:799f2621-a258-4411-90b1-63132c36fd8d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://inhabitat.com/nyc/leo-villareals-giant-led-buckyball-lights-up-the-night-at-madison-square-park/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.953997 | 295 | 1.554688 | 2 |
I have to confess, first and foremost, that this is the first Truman Capote novel I can recall reading. I've probably partaken in a few of his short stories (not that any particular ones come to mind), but I wasn't sure that qualified me to read and review SUMMER CROSSING, his latest, first, and "lost" novel.
The four notebooks and 62 pages of notes that comprise the manuscript were found in an assortment of boxes that Capote had left behind in a basement apartment in Brooklyn after catapulting to fame with his novel OTHER VOICES, OTHER ROOMS (1948). The house sitter, instructed to put it all out for the garbage, opted instead to hold onto the boxes, and eventually died. His estate, upon opening boxes of letters and writings belonging to Capote, immediately contacted Sotheby's, who got in touch with Alan U. Schwartz, Capote's attorney. Ultimately, the papers were purchased by the New York Public Library to become part of their Truman Capote Papers and, after much rumination and discussion, was decided that SUMMER CROSSING should be published. There is a very good afterword by Schwartz detailing this account and his relationship with Capote that definitely should be included in the reading.
So here is Capote's first novel, begun in 1943 when he is 19, has been a New Yorker since the age of nine, and presumably is working on what would become his first success, the aforementioned OTHER VOICES, OTHER ROOMS. I will tell you that SUMMER CROSSING can be read in probably a little more than (or a little under) an hour, depending upon the reader. There's nothing particularly "heavy" about the book and, in fact, some of it is rather predictable, but I did find myself going back and reading it a second time. This was done partly to recall details for this review and partly to confirm what I found after my first read --- that the naïve, clumsily written, unedited-in-its-contemporary-form novel I was expecting really was nowhere to be found. Instead, SUMMER CROSSING is a clever, ironic little package that clearly demonstrates Capote had already honed his skills of observing both the upper and lower tiers of New York society.
Grady McNeil is Capote's "heroine." She is an 18-year-old socialite who has just been left "home alone" for an entire summer by her overly wealthy (yes, you really can be too rich), overly uninvolved parents whose transatlantic trip to Europe is the basis for the book's title. In fact, moments before the ship sails, her mother, Lucy McNeil, whose main concern is checking on the house in Cannes to which they've not been since the war and deciding which Parisian couture house she will seek out to design Grady's debutante gown, suddenly realizes what a TERRIBLE idea it is to leave her young, innocent daughter alone and unaccompanied in New York City for three months. Alas, her lack of common sense prevails and off they sail.
After seeing her parents off, and seeing her older sister Apple back off to her married home in the Hamptons (summer home, I'm sure), Grady immediately high-tails it to a graveled parking lot near Broadway where we meet her urgent reason for staying in New York all summer --- Clyde Manzer. Clyde is everything Grady is not. He is not from Manhattan (Brooklyn), not a WASP (Jewish --- to which, upon hearing, Grady replies, after an interminable silence, "And am I supposed to care? I really don't, you know."), and he is not familiar with doormen, society or wealth. His speech is sprinkled with "Hiya's" and "bastards" and "aawwws" and "ain'ts." Grady and Clyde are both rather stereotypical, but as it is all part of Capote's plan, it doesn't matter and is soon forgiven.
Grady has decided that she is in love, is misunderstood by her parents (incidentally, her mother's second child was a stillborn boy whom she named Grady. Seven years later, she gives her second daughter the same name as if to remind herself and her daughter daily of the boy she was cheated of), and doesn't really want all the trappings of a society lifestyle, yet proceeds to play house with Clyde in the McNeil's Fifth Avenue penthouse all summer. She learns to tolerate his loud, mouthy friends and their blowsy girlfriends, and even learns to ignore the fact that, according to Clyde, he is engaged to another girl. Despite the fact that she has realized her childhood friend, Peter Bell, is in love with her and could prove to be her salvation (if she has to marry within her circle, she could do a lot worse than taking on her long-time partner in crime as a mate), Grady continues speeding down a very curvy and possibly dangerous road with Clyde.
Now, as I mentioned before, this is not a long book and has a few surprises in it. I am not going to ruin the book for you by revealing any of them here, so at this point all plot discussion is over.
Capote's characters are a bit too absurd to be totally believable, but then again, this was his first attempt. Grady's supposed naivete, at times hard to swallow, is made up for by her innocent arrogance and her attempts at trying not to be an 18-year-old in love with an older, unsuitable boy. Clyde's hector-macho-camacho exterior is forgiven during the instances when we see that he really is just a 23-year-old unsuitable boy who knows he's not worthy but still feels a semblance of love for his society gal. Clyde's friends --- Mink and Gump, Winifred and more --- all appear instantly annoying but quickly garner sympathy for their childlike view of the world.
There is no doubt in my mind that Capote was a champion observer (which got him into such hot water some decades later) --- for it is the little details of each character, each conversation, each subplot that prevent all from being trite and threadbare. He reminds me much of Dorothy Parker because she too could create a character whom you dislike, know you should despise, and feel a great amount of superiority to, but then they can both throw in one sentence that changes everything and makes you feel bad for all those previous feelings because, really, the poor dear just couldn't help being who she/he was.
I like SUMMER CROSSING very much and already know that there is a third and fourth reading of it in my future as well as first readings of more of Capote's work. Whether you are an established Truman Capote fan/reader or not, put this book on your holiday reading list as it will provide a lovely little interlude between parties, dinners and oh! Just being young and free and lively!
Reviewed by Jamie Layton on January 23, 2011
- Publication Date: October 25, 2005
- Genres: Fiction
- Hardcover: 142 pages
- Publisher: Random House
- ISBN-10: 1400065224
- ISBN-13: 9781400065226 | <urn:uuid:2fecba5b-a099-465d-8d71-e8353618492c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.bookreporter.com/reviews/summer-crossing | 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 | 0.981248 | 1,516 | 1.632813 | 2 |
Google is famous for the brilliance of its algorithm for searching web pages. While the company looks at dozens of factors in determining which results to display, the heart of the search engine is using links between pages to rank their relevancy. We have come to depend on Google to give us exactly what we want.
But what about when the company has to reach outside the web? The printed volumes represented on Google Books form a completely different kind of problem. Google's famous algorithm can't be deployed to search through books because they don't link to each other in the way that webpages do. There is no perfect BookRank corollary for PageRank.
All of which made me wonder: How does Google Books work? What makes it tick? It turns out that it's actually a great place for the company's engineers to learn how to function in a linkless, physical world.
"There is a meaningful effort to say, how do we tune for books? We've got a lot of people doing very focused on the web. How do we take the lessons from what we learned on the web and invent new things that are unique to books?" Matthew Gray, lead software engineer of Google Books, told me.
The system they've come up with has become increasingly sophisticated, as highlighted by their latest tweak, Rich Results, which begins rolling out this afternoon. The feature selectively presents you with one extra-large result when it detects that you're probably searching for an individual title and not a specific mote of information or general topic.
Rich Results is the latest in a series of smaller front-end tweaks that have been matched by backend improvements. Now, the book search algorithm takes into account more than 100 "signals," individual data categories that Google statistically integrates to rank your results. When you search for a book, Google Books doesn't just look at word frequency or how closely your query matches the title of a book. They now take into account web search frequency, recent book sales, the number of libraries that hold the title, and how often an older book has been reprinted.
So, if you search "Help" now, you get a big blow-up of Kathryn Stockett's 2009 book, not one of the dozens of other books with the same title. Or if you search "dragon tattoo," you get Stieg Larsson's blockbuster, not the 2008 children's book actually called Dragon Tattoo.
"One of the fundamental things we've learned is that the whole is greater than the sum of the parts," Gray said.
This is deeply Google thinking but without the dominant algorithm. It's a Google subspecies that evolved by feeding on a different corpus. There is less data about books than web pages, but there is more structure to it, and there's less spam to contend with. Yet the focus on optimizing an experience from vast amounts of data remains. "You want it to have the standard Google quality as much as possible," Gray said. "[You want it to be] a merger of relevance and utility based on all these things."
The most difficult part of making Google Books work, said James Crawford, the team's engineering director, was determining the intent of the service's heterogeneous user base. Scholars who search Google Books have very different wants and expectations from casual users looking to find a trade fiction title.
"Sometimes they are looking for a preview. Sometimes they are looking for information about that book. Third, they want to buy a copy of that book," Crawford said.
Rich Results will help people who are looking specifically for a title, but Crawford said that they aren't ruling out other presentations or features for other user types (e.g. quasi-scholars like myself.)
All the Google Books tweaks I've noticed are small. Earlier this year, they introduced a sidebar for customizing your search. This summer, they added a Books-specific "Suggest" function, so when you type "sh" you get the suggestion of "Sherlock Holmes" instead of "Shoppers," which is what you get on the web. Now you can sort by date, too, or restrict your queries by subject.
But you add them all up and apply them to the 15 million books Google has scanned and the truly unprecedented nature of Google Books starts to emerge. It's not perfect -- and the Google Books Settlement is a whole separate issue -- but it is unique.
"We're in the middle of doing something radical. No one has ever pulled together this whole collection, scanning books from 40 different libraries," Crawford said. "I would say our general approach here has been to just get the books scanned because until they are digitized and OCR is done, you aren't even in the game. As we get more and more content on line, the work that Matthew's team gets to be more and more important and more and more doable."
This article available online at: | <urn:uuid:a62b6e0d-18b6-48bc-8d1e-0de8333d6512> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.theatlantic.com/technology/print/2010/11/inside-the-google-books-algorithm/65422/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.960671 | 999 | 1.710938 | 2 |
This article by Peter Berkowitz in the Weekly Standard brings us up to date on the situation in Lebanon, where an election was held in June, but a new government is only now being formed. In the election, a moderate, pro-Western, pro-democracy coalition — led by Saad Hariri, son of the linfluential anti-Syria eader whose death by car bombing in 2005 sparked the “Cedar Revolution” — exceeded expectations and obtained a small parliamentary majority. The overriding issue, according to Peter, was “whether Lebanon would submit to Hezbollah and the political authority of Syria and Iran, or build a free and democratic state.”
Although the voters opted for the latter alternative, the winning coalition was unable to form a government for five months because Hezbollah blocked it — formally, by means of the powers it obtained through the Doha Agreement (a deal reached after Hezbollah forces took over Beirut in 2008), and informally, through threats and intimidation. But the stalemate has finally been broken, at least for now, by the formation of a “national unity government” in which 2 of the 30 ministerial portfolios will go to Hezbollah politicians.
Conventional wisdom holds that Israel is the key to undermining Hezbollah’s influence. The idea is that if the Israelis would only abandon the small strip of land they control in Southern Lebanon (Shebaa Farms) and negotiate the creation of a Palestinian state, Hezbollah would lose its status as the heroic resistance.
It’s a convenient analysis inasmuch as it relieves the Lebanese of responsibility for their own fate, but Peter rejects it. In his view, “resistance does not refer merely to armed struggle against Israel’s occupation of this or that piece of land, or even the battle against Israel’s very existence, but a fight to the death against the claims of liberty and democracy in Lebanon and throughout the region in the name of Islamic law as dictated by the Iranian mullahs.”
What should the United States do?
First, the Obama administration can stop encouraging the widespread view, rooted in decades of pan-Arab rhetoric, that the key to Middle East peace is solving the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Peace between Israel and the Palestinians should be assiduously pursued, but to suppose that the absence of a final agreement between them is what stands in the way of security and stability in the Middle East is to play into the hands of Arab governments that cynically use the conflict to shift their people’s attention from their own countries’ internal failings and destabilizing ambitions.
Second, the United States can expand programs to support civil society in Lebanon, particularly K-12 education, and also economic development, particularly in the south, since one way to loosen Hezbollah’s grip is to enable the Lebanese government to better provide the social services and financial support that, thanks to Iranian financing, Hezbollah now delivers.
Third, the administration can redouble efforts to degrade Iran’s ability to deliver cash and transfer funds electronically to Hezbollah.
Fourth, it can place at the heart of engagement with Syria an insistence on cutting off the enormous flow of ammunition, machine guns, bombs, rockets, and missiles that Iran pumps through Damascus to southern Lebanon.
But ultimately, the future of Lebanon depends “most of all on crafting strategies to thwart Tehran’s export of Islamic revolution” which, in the near term “depends most of all on thwarting Iran’s drive to acquire nuclear weapons.” | <urn:uuid:de502e81-df7b-4c80-be51-0a15421cb7cb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.powerlineblog.com/archives/2009/11/025032.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.957301 | 719 | 1.679688 | 2 |
Great training is the lifeblood of a great a company, and the best in the world implement a superior learning management sytem into their business model. Even the most well-respected brands would crumble from the inside out without the right training strategies. An American Society for Training and Development (ASTD) study reports, “companies that invest in learning outperform the market by more than 45%. Companies that do not, under perform by 22%.” In short, investing in employee training means investing in the strength of a company, and an increasing number of organizations are applying this knowledge across all management levels. Here’s how some of the best in the world are doing it:
A Strong Foundation
Making learning management a company asset means teaching employees to operate on company-specific standards across all platforms. Employees come from different professional backgrounds and working environments. For example, the phrase “customer service” can mean two very different things to two different employees. Even more dangerous is to assume that all employees are familiar with basic customer service skills. If this is an important part of the company, coaching the desired standard of customer service from the beginning is a must. Some companies will rely on IT and systems like Cornerstone learning management software to execute the right training to a sizeable employee base.
A three-day corporate training course won’t produce results if those days are the only time employees practice their new skills. That’s why companies who successfully invest in employee training do so repeatedly, and over an extended period of time. Behaviors and skills don’t develop overnight, which is why training over multiple sessions, and often repeating or reiterating the same information is so vital. Dedicate a certain number of hours each week, or day, to focusing on training specific skills. Few people will use the new computer software purchased, regardless of how helpful it is, unless they’re given structured, supervised time to practice. Ideally on a regular basis. The more knowledgeable employees are, the more power they’ll contribute to the company as a whole.
Optimal Training Times
Training anyone to do anything under rushed or stressful circumstances is an ineffective approach to learning management. Employee training is no different. Cramming training sessions in at the end of a long workday or during the busiest quarter is completely counter-productive. Employees are more likely to retain information when they have sufficient time to process and digest the data they’re learning. Conducting longer sessions during the slower periods of the year, and limiting training when employees are more likely to be stressed, will make it more probable that they’ll retain the information.
Train All Levels
One of the best ways learning management can strengthen an entire company is when it’s applied to all management levels. In addition to marketing and sales training, seminars and case study sessions on communication and interpersonal skills are an effective way to strengthen communication throughout a company’s chain of command. Successful companies disseminate information among employees in a way that makes sense. For example, training all employees on the new software within a few days of each other creates a much more efficient operation than if you train various groups over a several weeks.
Continued Learning Management
Learning is a process. In order for employees to absorb training, resources and tools for them to seek assistance or clarification must be provided. This can be in anything from liability contracts to shipping standards. The point is, if employees can’t ask questions, they won’t retain the training, and a company won’t benefit on its investment.
The Importance of Employee Training is a Guest Article courtesy of Jon Dean | <urn:uuid:d9aa50fb-9d98-4bdb-835a-64504593d516> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://spiritcompany.com/author/spirit/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706890813/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516122130-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.940736 | 748 | 1.796875 | 2 |
Sometimes there is a mix between performance and scalability, but they are different dimensions. Changing your code from blocking to non-blocking yields scalability at the cost of a complexity. In this talk I show how Python, Ruby and JS do that, the differences between their async toolkits and some basic building blocks for web and high load applications.
We produce gorgeous LaTeX reports while harnessing the power of R on the backend. The data is pulled from our PostgreSQL database, the analysis and visualizations are fast and distributed thanks to Redis. We'll talk about weaving together open source tools to build powerful analytics reporting engines that rival the commercial alternatives.
Redis is an entry in the new breed of nosql databases. But it takes a different approach that makes it much more interesting then most of the other key/value stores in the same category. Come learn what makes redis so useful that it seems everyone is adding it to their toolbox. | <urn:uuid:79d2d92b-d82f-46e0-a876-62bf29c63f09> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.oscon.com/oscon2011/public/schedule/tag/redis | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.945964 | 194 | 1.609375 | 2 |
Why we call the massacre “senseless”
coverage and commentary on the Virginia Tech massacre I see no signs that America has learned the lesson it needs to learn if such events are to be prevented in the future. Thus President Bush and many others call the crime “senseless.” But there was nothing senseless about it. A young man, deeply alienated and isolated and filled with hatred, was descending ever deeper into demonism and openly revealing his homicidal imaginings and impulses to the people around him. This is a well-known phenomenon. Something very similar happened just a few years ago at Columbine High School in Littleton, Colorado. The pattern is understood. There was nothing senseless about the killer’s behavior. It was entirely intelligible
The horror crying out to be explained here is not the killer’s motives and actions, but society’s failure to stop him even though he had clearly and repeatedly manifested his sick and murderous thoughts. People don’t want to try to explain society’s failure to stop him, because that would require criticizing the ruling beliefs of society that precluded his being stopped: the belief that there is nothing higher than the self and its desires; the belief that everyone should be free to express himself; the belief that we should not judge people; the belief that institutions have no legitimate authority in themselves but exist only to serve the needs of individuals.
Thus, while several students and teachers were concerned about Cho Sueng Hui,—he was so scary that some students avoided coming to a writing class he attended—no one did anything beyond asking that he be “referred” for “counseling.” True, one teacher, according to Andrea Peyser in today’s New York Post, went so far as to try to have him “removed” (though Peyser, showing the outstanding reportorial and thinking skills so typical of today’s journalists, doesn’t make it clear whether she means removed from the class or removed from the school), but the administration refused to do so because that would violate Cho’s “freedom of speech.” Now if you were in that situation, with a student who you thought might be a school shooter, would you accept that answer? I know I wouldn’t. I would go back o the university administration, I would go to the university president, I would go to the local police, I would say, here is a young man who is a danger to society, you must do something about this. But no one did that. Because our liberal attitudes and laws militate against doing anything to restrain an obvious menace to society until he has actually committed a crime.
We call Cho’s act “senseless” because we don’t want to acknowledge that evil exists, and that society has a duty to take forceful action to prevent it. To see these truths would require that we give up our nonjudgmental belief system; so we choose not to see them. Instead we talk about the “senselessness” of the crime, thus giving ourselves a complete pass from thinking either about the reality of evil or about our liberal beliefs that make it impossible for us to oppose evil. The maintenance of the liberal order requires that people not think.
What would our society have done if it did not subscribe to its present liberal beliefs? Very simply, it would have isolated this person from the community by committing him to a mental institution, just as it would have done in, say, 1950—without hesitation, embarrassment, or apology. Pre-1960s America did not impotently call homicidal insanity “senseless”; it called it a danger to society, a danger from which society must protect itself by means of decisive and authoritative action.
The commonsensical, non-liberal measures I have pointed to are beyond the imaginings of modern people, including most conservatives. Unable to conceive of the only step that could have blocked the fiend Cho on his path to mass murder, mainstream opinion-makers in the wake of that atrocity are left tossing off and contentiously debating an endless series of nostrums and bromides, all of them absurd in themselves and irrelevant to the actual problem at hand. Recalling the insight that liberalism requires people to be irrational, we realize that this futile, distracting, and depressing discussion is nothing other than a core ritual of liberal society, by which it renews its very essence: every time some new atrocity is committed that was licenced by the liberal permissiveness that no one in liberal society dreams of challenging, liberals and conservatives alike begin running around like chickens with their heads cut off.
—end of initial entry—
Maureen C. writes:
Brilliant. It’s your basic message, but one can only hope that if it is repeated often enough in varied situations, perhaps its truth will utlimately break the spell of irrationality that has held this country in its grip since the crazed 70s.
The inability to contain Cho despite his stalking and verbal threats is a fractal version of 9-11. Just as the university could not put Cho in a mental asylum, after the 1993 bombing of the WTC, neither the Justice dept nor the FBI could expel the Islamic sheikh whose hate rhetoric and whose mosque ultimately organized the second bombing attempt on 9-11. Individuals whose acts are borderline criminal acts are consistently protected at the expense of the survival of college students—and ultimately the nation.
Your analysis is right on. At the core of what defines the difference between liberals and traditionalists is what one believes about man’s inherent nature. Does one accept the biblical view that man has an inherited sin nature, in need of redemption from God, and finally, a requirement to subordinate ourselves to his thinking (the word of God). Or, does one accept the belief that man is basically good and that man can evolve into a God-like state. Thus, we don’t need God or his teachings because we can deify ourselves and create our own “theology.”
This is why George Bush has no problem with the Hispanicization of the U.S. and the demise of our Judeo-Christian culture; that our enemy is terrorism rather than Islam; and that all mankind can be advanced to the good by introducing “good hearted” people to democracy (and, in the case of Mexico, an opportunity to feed their families). He is incapable of seeing human nature as IT IS rather than through his delusional belief system. Every issue boils down to this fundamental difference about man’s inherent nature.
M. Mason writes:
One of the other things that has irritated me during the last two days has been the insensitive, immoral, mind-numbing foolishness that’s been displayed by some toward the surviving victims most traumatized by the horror of this event. These absolutely broken people have been urged by university officials and mental health professionals to quickly “begin the healing process” and “get closure” for their immense grief and righteous anger, and the televised convocation that was quickly arranged for them seemed at times to resemble some sort of bizarre pep rally. It’s as though the institutionalized liberal culture expects their perfectly normal and completely justified feelings to be somehow either quickly suppressed or magically transformed soon into something more acceptable called “healing” so people don’t dwell on them too much. And to add insult to injury, we now have the major television networks falling all over themselves to air the psychopathic shooter’s own multi-media massacre porn, giving him a world-wide stage to rant even in death. More shameless indecency, more idiotic bilge thrown in our faces; every year it gets worse.
Steve R. writes:
“What would our society have done if it did not subscribe to its present liberal beliefs? Very simply, it would have isolated this person from the community by committing him to a mental institution, just as it would have done in, say, 1950….”
But, of course, the America of 1950 was indecribably oppressive to blacks, women, Mexicans, Native Americans, the mentally ill, homosexuals and everyone else except white heterosexual males. It was only a little bit better than Nazi Germany. A past that must be completely rejected.
I’d like to see someone actually defend the America of 1950 in a major public venue as being inevitably flawed (we’re talking about human institutions after all), but actually morally superior to what we have today. He or she would get the Imus treatment.
David B. writes:
On Tuesday night I was watching the coverage of the Virginia Tech massacre. At one point, a man identified as the VT student body president came on the screen. He said something like, “We don’t want to blame anyone. We just want to heal.”
What he’s saying is, “We don’t object to what was done to us, and we don’t want to do anything to prevent it from happening again to us or anyone else. As many times as it happens, we just want to heal. So, you Forces of Evil out there, you keep killing us, and we’ll keep ‘healing.’”
Charles T. writes:
Lawrence: This selection from your post is an excellent summary about the problem we face, “Instead we talk about the “senselessness” of the crime, thus giving ourselves a complete pass from thinking either about the reality of evil or about our liberal beliefs that make it impossible for us to oppose evil. The maintenance of the liberal order requires that people not think. ”
Most people I know do not want to admit the existence of evil. To do so means we have to respond to it. And, our liberal culture actually renders us incapable of responding to evil.
Randy: Your post is exact. The fallen nature of man is neglected as an explanation of the evil that humans are so prone to do. It is probably one of the most important doctrines in the Christian church………and also one of the most neglected. If we are not fallen, then why do we need to be redeemed and forgiven? Unfortunately, it is simply not taught very much anymore. As a result, even Christians are left shaking their heads and wonder why humans are so prone to evil. The neglect of this doctrine has left Christians incapable of understanding and responding properly to evil.
Here is a post on the meaning of Ismail Ax. The linked source in the Right Truth article is here.
Mark P. writes:
What would our society have done if it did not subscribe to its present liberal beliefs? Very simply, it would have isolated this person from the community by committing him to a mental institution, just as it would have done in, say, 1950—without confusion, embarrassment, or apology. Pre-1960s America did not impotently call homicidal insanity “senseless”; it called it a danger to society, a danger from which society must protect itself by means of decisive and authoritative action. Oddly enough, this is exactly what Michael Savage was saying on his radio show yesterday.
I’ve listened to Savage a total of maybe one hour, a year or two ago. I don’t like talk radio, though I’ve heard Savage has views similar to mine on some issues.
Mark P. replies:
Savage’s radio show is on for three hours a day, five days a week. He does have some filler segments that do kill time and you may have listened in on one of them.
I don’t know how much time you have, but I would suggest spending about a week listening to his show. I would even encourage you to call. Getting through is not that hard.
Savage is the third largest radio show in the country, after Limbaugh and Hannity. Savage is, however, far, far different from those two, whom I consider unlistenable. He is actually the closest to VFR thinking, though somewhat less cerebral and less systematic than you. Nevertheless, listening to Savage is very encouraging and hearing much of what you say spilling out on the airwaves is a very positive sign.
I actually discovered Savage only 8 months ago. Before that, I completely dismissed him as well.
Paul Cella writes:
Well said on how Liberalism abetted the whole unfolding of the slaughter prepetrated on Monday. I have a particular annoyance with the inevitable misuse of the term “tragedy,” as I wrote here: . A calculated massacre of strangers is the very farthest thing from a tragedy.
And have you noticed, even lots of “conservatives” on TV are now using the word “tragedy” as well? We need many more articles attacking this horrendous misuse of the language which is a major tool in the implantation of non-judgmental liberalism into the mind of our society.
Also, it’s a perfect example of the way liberalism works. People don’t come out and say on TV, “I don’t believe in right and wrong, I think we should be completely non-judgmental toward acts of evil.” If they said that, it would arouse a response and a debate. Instead, they simply refer to a mass murder as a “tragedy,” and by so doing, they destroy people’s ability to view an act of evil as an act of evil.
Alan Roebuck writes:
Larry: Your words here are a thing of beauty. I believe one of the poets said “truth is beauty and beauty truth”, or some such. I don’t know what he meant by it, but in a time of turmoil, especially emotional turmoil, words of truth have a healing beauty to them. And I recall hearing that Plato said “Whenever someone speaks the truth, the cosmos resonates.”
Just to add one point: another, lesser way society can defend itself from homicidal monsters is for more people to be armed. If Cho had had reason to believe that some of his intended victims would shoot back, he probably would never even have gone on his rampage. Ironically, this means that the situation of more people being armed would have had more compassion on Cho than the situation we actually have.
To M. Mason and others who may be tempted to despair: Take comfort!
This is a war of ideas, which can be fought with ideas. Write to blogs, newspaper editors, whomever. Express the false ideas, and correct them. I’m not sure of copyright issues, and he may need to correct me, but use Lawrence Auster’s words if necessary. Do battle with the enemy; his ideas are false so his armor is thin.
That’s John Keats, in the last stanza of “Ode on a Grecian Urn,” perhaps the most beautiful poem in the English language:
O Attic shape! fair attitude! with brede [embroidery]I have a funny relationshp with that line. All through my life (and I first read the poem when I was about 13), I never understood what Keats meant by “Beauty is truth, truth beauty.” Then about ten years ago I finally “got” it. It was a great discovery. But then I forgot it again! I didn’t write my thoughts down at the time, and I can’t remember what my explanation was.
Of marble men and maidens overwrought,
With forest branches and the trodden weed;
Thou, silent form! dost tease us out of thought
As doth eternity: Cold Pastoral!
When old age shall this generation waste,
Thou shalt remain, in midst of other woe
Than ours, a friend to man, to whom thou say’st,
‘Beauty is truth, truth beauty,—that is all
Ye know on earth, and all ye need to know.’
“Because our liberal attitudes and laws militate against doing anything to restrain an obvious menace to society until he has actually committed a crime.”
Isn’t that what innocent until proven guilty is all about?
It seems to me the best solution, that does the least damage, is also the simplest. Allow those who wish to, to be armed, and let Americans think and act like free men instead of government dependents. He would have been stopped at the first classroom, and nobody else’s freedom to act a little strange would be at risk.
(Even leaving out the guns, there is the question of mindset. I can’t imagine not throwing chairs, books, everything at him, and rushing him while he was distracted and his aim was off.)
Basing punishment on how people feel about how threatening or disturbing someone is seems to me to be a very dangerous road to travel—a lot of people, seemingly ever more of them, treat minor issues as far greater than they should be, so individual judgements are not always reliable.
Please. I’m not talking about a criminal indictment, trial, and conviction. I’m talking about institutionalizing a homicidally dangerous insane person. According to you, we have to wait until the maniac actually starts shooting, our only hope being that someone with a gun will be happen to be there just at the moment the fiend attacks.
Comments like these are what gives libertarianism a bad name, not that it needed any help in that department.
There are many issues here that you seem to be glossing over.
First of all, how does one decide that someone is homicidally dangerous? Is it a judgment call every time—“I know it when I see it”? Why is this not an unprincipled exception?
Second, why is institutionalizing someone not equivalent to a prison sentence? They are being locked up for something they have not done, but may do. I do not claim one should never do this, but what changes to the existing principles of when and how to do so would you advocate? The laws about making death threats and stalking and the like exist for precisely this reason; to handle cases where someone may become a threat before they actually act, and to do so on a principled basis. What improvements would you suggest?
There’s a letter from a VT professor posted at the Corner today. Based on what is said there, they did everything they should have—sent him to a mental health place, had the police look into him, and so on—and Cho cooperated fully. The doctors decided he was maybe suicidal but not murderous. Their judgment may well have been incorrect, but that is a separate issue. If we trust the mental health people—which is the entire purpose of institutionalizing someone—do we then second-guess them when they say someone is not a threat to others and lock them up anyway? What principle are you advocating here?
As for your last sentence, that’s unwarranted sneering. Please refrain. I’m not talking about libertarianism specifically, I’m talking about the founding principles of this country and whether they are indeed what we should be living by and to what extent they might need to be refined. Can you answer on that basis? Do you claim I have the principle wrong? Are there exceptions to it?
“First of all, how does one decide that someone is homicidally dangerous? Is it a judgment call every time—“I know it when I see it”? Why is this not an unprincipled exception?”
The plain implication of this statement is that no one could ever be judged as homicidally dangerous for the purpose of separating him from society. It’s a standard liberal-relativist argument: How can we know anything?
“why is institutionalizing someone not equivalent to a prison sentence? They are being locked up for something they have not done, but may do. I do not claim one should never do this … “
To me it sounds as though Rollory is saying that one should never do this. Rollory seems not to be aware that in the 1960 and ’70s, based on the principle that the state did not have the right to deprive individuals of their freedom, there was a vast “de-institutionalizing” of mentally ill people in America, in which people who had been kept in mental institutions were released on society. Were there some people who had been incorrectly or unfairly institutionalized? I’m sure there were. But the de-institutionalization had catastrophic effects on society. It was one of the major steps in the transforming of America from the orderly and safe society it had been up to the 1960s to what it became afterward. This is a huge subject about which much has been written.
“they did everything they should have—sent him to a mental health place, had the police look into him, and so on”
No they did not. They made their complaints, they made their referrals, and when NOTHING was done about it, they did nothing further. They gave up. As I wrote above, if I was in the position of one of those teachers or students, I would not have accepted the fact that this frightening, mentally ill, and obviously dangerous person was allowed to live among us. I would have raised high heaven to get something done. I would have gone to everyone in a position of authority I could think of, saying “This person does not belong here.” Maybe I wouldn’t have succeeded. But these people did not do that. They registered their complaints and concerns, but they didn’t follow through. They glanced off the problem; they didn’t wrestle to the ground.
“If we trust the mental health people—which is the entire purpose of institutionalizing someone—do we then second-guess them when they say someone is not a threat to others and lock them up anyway?”
A false choice. This is not about whether or not we have some metaphysical “trust” in mental health professionals. This is about seeing with our own eyes that a person in front of us is a danger, and doing everything we can to remove that danger.
“As for your last sentence, that’s unwarranted sneering. Please refrain. I’m not talking about libertarianism specifically, I’m talking about the founding principles of this country and whether they are indeed what we should be living by and to what extent they might need to be refined. Can you answer on that basis? Do you claim I have the principle wrong?”
Rollory has, as everyone does today, incorrectly equated the Founding principles of our country with some abstract liberty that is to be applied systematically and universally to all situations. In reality, the Founding principles of our country said that the states governed all their internal affairs, including the ordinary police powers, and that the federal government only dealt with issues beyond the natural purview of the states. There were mental hospitals or insane asylums in late 18th century America. Somehow Rollory has equated post 1960s America with the Founding principles, when in reality the post 1960s is when the Founding principles were perverted into radical liberalism.
James N. writes:
I’m not sure you realize how little can be (legally) done anymore about incipient killers.
In 30 years of medical (nonpsychiatric) practice, I’ve been in the situation half a dozen times of identifying an instantly potential killer. Despite all the “studies”, it’s surprisingly easy. Everyone who met this kid Cho was scared, right away. Just like really depressed people make you sad if you spend a few minutes with them, homicidal maniacs make you scared.
Most people believe that “somebody” is empowered to do “something” when a homicidal patient is referred. Within certain strictly defined parameters, that’s true. If the threat is immediate and confirmed by 2 physicians, a person can be detained for “treatment”. Within 48 hours, they get a court hearing—which almost certainly results in their release.
In the unusual circumstance when they are detained for 28 days, they are given some drugs which they stop immediately when discharged.
If they are really, really delusional (as opposed to bad), and can’t cover it up because of low IQ, there is a chance that they will be kept longer. Almost always, however, they must have committed an horrific crime first, which “proves” dangerousness to a skeptical therapeutic community.
This is all, of course, backwards (or better, inverted). The proper order of business in a healthy society is 1) Found to be crazy, 2) Locked up, and then 3) Let the psychiatrists get to work—but don’t let the helping doctors decide if or when you get out.
Psychiatrists are out of that business, and have no interest in getting back into it.
Most of the VT defenses about privacy, accommodation to handicap, and lack of police power are absolutely true. Of course, those laws and regulations are much more inhibitory to liberals, who believe that reality is constructed out of words rather than imbedded in the flesh and in the world.
During my lifetime, with a much smaller (and much more stable) population, we had hundreds of thousands of crazy people in State mental hospitals, most for long-term involuntary commitment. Since 1960, over 90% of state mental hospital beds have been closed.
Despite rhetoric about treatment in the community (as if we know what to do with these poor souls), most of them wander the streets. Some starve, some freeze, and some kill.
Long term detention of the next killer like Cho will require a judgmentalism which liberal society cannot and will not provide.
What else could the VT administrators do, except kvetch?
“I’m not sure you realize how little can be (legally) done anymore about incipient killers.”
I know that. That was my point. That’s why people want to say it’s “senseless,” because the liberal rules of our society made this atrocity possible, and no one wants that fact to be exposed.
At the same time, I would not have accepted that, I would have said that this person must be institutionalized and at the very least should be suspended from the school and prevented from entering the campus.
Which brings up a key point that hasn’t been discussed here yet. Even if the university had failed (which it didn’t really try to do) to get Cho committed, they still had the power to expel him from the school, as a person who did not belong in the university environment. Did anyone demand that he be expelled? I’m not aware of it. So, getting back to Rollory, let’s drop this idea that “everything was done that could have been done.”
James N. replies:
It’s good that you would have done that. However, it’s not good that your doing that would have accomplished nothing.
It would have shown that people were alive!
Instead of Eloi, or (since they did try to do some things before giving up) half-Eloi.
Alan Levine writes:
Despite my criticisms of your earlier remarks, I agree with those in the present thread.
I might add, that, at the risk of shocking you, I happen to favor handgun control—as a crime control measure, not because I “don’t like guns.” I am simply not a second amendment absolutist, just as I am not a first amendment absolutist.
That said, it is obvious to me, as it no doubt is to you, that many of the gun control fanatics are phonies. When it is clear that people oppose all conceivable anti-crime measures, or even the right of self-defense, and then harp on gun control as the way to stop crime, we have a right to doubt their motives.
M. Mason writes:
I thank Alan Roebuck for his encouragement; of course one must keep trying to get through to others about these important issues. Let me expand just a bit on what prompted my exasperation above. I have been both perplexed and very disappointed over the years with the responses of many conservatives and moderate liberals when a simple, cogent line of questioning is put to them in a cordial manner about the logical implications of what they write and say when some terrible and defining event like this occurs. Again and again I have seen that as soon as one begins to uncover the relativism that’s really at the core of their beliefs and how destructive and irrational it is, he is met with either a blank, glassy-eyed stare, some sort of flippant evasion, an abrupt petulance or a sullen, defensive silence calculated to let the questioner know that such a probing interrogation is not welcome.
In a different way, it’s quite apt (and somewhat amusing) that the 1950s have been brought up here, because I’m sometimes reminded of the classic sci-fi movie “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” from that era. Though, admittedly, referring to that film and its underlying political message has been over-used, it’s still a nice allegory about the strange transformation that comes over otherwise intelligent, normal individuals who, at a certain point, are “taken over” and then mentally shut down—in this case, precisely because “the maintenance of the liberal order requires that people not think.”
One need never apologize for using the “Invasion of the Body Snatchers” to make a point. It is a great movie with a theme that goes to the heart of our time, though of course liberals claim it for their own as well, imagining it’s about McCarthyism (though perhaps it could be seen as being about Bushism, given what I’ve said about Bushism reducing the conservative movement and the Republican party to a mindless phalanx).
Josh has a different angle on this: He says Cho’s behavior was not threatening and that Cho was discriminated against by the liberal university environment. This doesn’t make sense to me but I’ll let others react.
Here is a link to the two plays that are causing so much second-guessing. Frankly, I don’t read “psychotic plays filled with murderous violence” that “invoked insane homicidal rage.” These plays pale in comparison to what is seen on a daily basis on TV and movie screens across the nation. I’m sorry, but I just don’t see it if one is to view these plays outside the events that followed. Secondly, of all the people I’ve actually seen interviewed, none that I can recall has said they thought he was scary or dangerous. All said the same thing which was he barely spoke and walked with his head down. That’s it. Even the teacher Giovanni that had him expelled only said he was “mean,” but that was mainly due to his non-communication and provides almost no detail of his actual behavior. Not one person has come forward to say this kid was threatening or violent in anyway. Even the “stalking” incident in 2005 seems exaggerated as the first girl that complained claimed his contact was “annoying” while the police said his contact with the second girl was non-threatening. After these incidents that included only one personal contact and an unknown series of IMs and phone calls, Cho never contacted the girls again which leads one to ask why were law enforcement officials even contacted in the first place? And was this really a case of stalking as is being widely reported? Again, I am not defending this killer, but it seems to me that a lot CYA is going on amongst many officials, teachers and students at the school who are trying to claim both a foreknowledge of the potential actions of Cho while claiming to have never imagined the eventual outcome.
Like others I am merely trying to make sense of what many others are calling “senseless.” When commentators talk of this kid’s evilness and sickness they me be correct in their analysis, but I think his alienation and isolation are far more important factors to be considered when trying to assess why he committed this massacre. After all, how does one become so alienated and isolated in an atmosphere lauded for its openness and inclusion? You say that, “the liberal rules of our society made this atrocity possible, and no one wants that fact to be exposed.” I read this as the liberal rules of our society enables and compels the potential murderers amongst us. But how does it do such a thing? You seem to claim it’s because those rules are nonjudgmental and nondiscriminatory and such an inclined murderer feels no compunction to act out his will and desire in this type of atmosphere. I don’t think this is entirely correct in this particular situation. I think this killer acted out his revenge because the atmosphere he was in WAS entirely discriminatory and judgmental and to his perception unfairly and diabolically so. He didn’t mass murder because he was treated liberally. He mass murdered because he was treated aggressively and discriminately for things that were perhaps nothing more than a young alienated and isolated kid trying his best to reach out and find acceptance by those that preached the liberal dogma, showed compassion for strangers on the other side of the world and seemed to accept all kinds of perverse and strange behavior. This is what I see. I see a kid that was fed the lie of liberal nondiscrimination and inclusion. A lie that seems to be glaring in the invocation by the very teacher that had him expelled for his “mean” behavior.
“The Hokie Nation embraces our own and reaches out with open heart and hands to those who offer their hearts and minds” (my emphasis).
How exactly did the Hokie Nation (an Indian sounding phrase) reach out with “open heart and hands” to this killer? Expulsion from class…? Calls to police over exaggerated stalking claims…? Referrals to mental hospitals…?
Here’s just one tiny detail from a story in the New York Times, telling the account of a female fellow student of Cho’s:
Beyond that, he simply acted strange. On the first day of class the teacher asked everyone to stand up and introduce themselves.Now, maybe I’m wrong, but it seems to me that that is not acceptable behavior for someone who is in a university. In fact it strikes me as the behavior of a person who is at least deeply disturbed and who in any case is incapable of participating in a learning community.. In the pre-1960s world, a student who behaved like that would have been brought into speak to a Dean. If the disturbing and frightening behavior persisted, I think he would have been suspended from the school. I’ve yet to see any indication that any of the people who were alarmed by Cho sought to have him suspended.
“When it was his turn, he didn’t stand up and he said his name was Question Mark,” she said.
David B. writes:
Last night I watched a little of Hannity & Colmes. Mark Fuhrman was one of the guests. Hannity mentioned the stalking by the VT killer as well as his anti-social behavior. Hannity said, “It raises the question of why he wasn’t kicked out of school.” Fuhrman then said, “That’s a great question. Just what does it take to get kicked out of school? Do you have to bring guns and just miss a few people?”
A former NYPD detective then started talking about Berkowitz (Son of Sam). Colmes then said, “How do you know what to do?” The NYPD detective felt you “can’t blame anyone in law enforcement or the university.” Colmes then said, “I don’t think you can blame the university either, for not shutting down the campus.”
I have heard no one but Hannity and Fuhrman say that the killer should have been expelled.
David L. writes:
Contrary to actor Kevin McCarthy’s remark in an interview a few years ago that he felt that Invasion Of The Body Snatchers was not about Communism but about Americans’ apathy about their future and the world and the “soullessness” of America’s society, I believe the film was describing precisely the taking over of the power structure of the society by the Communist ghouls, where everyone is a zombie, where everyone is alike, where there is no love, no feelings, no religion, no freedom of expression, no individuality, just the desire to survive and the need to spread this Communism across the land. I felt McCarthy (who of course is a liberal) was completely mistaken when he stated this wasn’t the case. It’s one of my favorite films. I’ve seen it hundreds of times. There is no doubt in my mind what it’s about. Of course, the presumptive interviewer didn’t do McCarthy or the film justice and he was clearly a leftist, at the very least.
Anyone, especially any traditionalist, who has not seen this great movie should see it.
Has David ever researched the making of the movie, and what the screenwriters said was their intention and so forth?
Ken Hechtman writes from Canada:
Be careful what you ask for. You might get it.
You’re talking about a non-liberal regime that locks people up, not for anything they did but simply for what they are, not because they’re proven dangerous as individuals but because they’re members of a group statistically more likely to be dangerous than the average.
Think about it … How sure are you this kind of profiling couldn’t be used to preventively lock people up for potential “hate crimes”? How sure are you that the first-order profile of the “violent racist” couldn’t be broad enough to include you?
For what it’s worth, many American high schools did bring in a profiling scheme after Columbine. We called it “geek profiling.”
W.A.V.E., a profit-making program ramping up in the southern U.S. and soon to go national, will use Web sites, toll-free numbers, T-shirts and cash to encourage students to anonymously turn in classmates they consider depressed, dangerous or potentially violent. This horrifically stupid Geek Profiling would be blatantly unconstitutional if applied to adults.I imagine the school shrinks called it something else. It had all the same problems as other profiling schemes and those go beyond the simple “it’s discrimination.”
1. Is “fitting the profile” used as probable cause to look for actual evidence of an actual crime or is it taken as if it were evidence itself?
2. How many false positives does the profile alone generate? Most hijackers are Arabs. Most Arab passengers are not hijackers. If airport security assumes every Arab is a hijacker, they’ll be wrong a lot more often than they’re right. Same way, most mass murderers express violent fantasies. Most writers of violent fiction do not commit mass murder.
3. How much inconvenience are the false positives put to? If every English Lit major who’s seen Reservoir Dogs once too often has to spend an hour talking to the school shrink to prove that’s all he is, that’s a small problem. If he has to spend the rest of his life in a locked ward, that’s a big problem.
The basic problem you’re pointing to is that America no longer has upright, decent, law-abiding men running its institutions. It now has a mixture of immoral lawless leftists and brainless quasi-totalitarian bureaucrats running its institutions. Consider Waco and Ruby Ridge. Consider the persecution of Richard Jewell. Consider the way the VT administration jumped to the wholly baseless conclusion that boyfriend and gun enthusiast Karl Thornhill was the murderer of Emily Hilscher. Therefore your concerns about abuses resulting from expanded police powers have validity.
Posted by Lawrence Auster at April 18, 2007 09:38 PM | Send
All I can say is: the reform of society that is needed to make it possible to remove dangerous maniacs from society—something which is absolutely essential—is the same reform that is needed to remove the leftists and quasi-totalitarian bureaucrats running our institutions. In short, as with all my issues, since liberalism controls modern society, true reform in a traditionalist direction assumes the overthrow of liberalism. | <urn:uuid:2bf30a13-dc68-41bc-b998-34997a7f0398> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.amnation.com/vfr/archives/007683.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973055 | 8,621 | 1.773438 | 2 |
The weather is hot, the labor market is not. Employers around the country posted 3.0% fewer job openings in June as compared to May. So far this year, demand for workers is below the same period of last year. Labor demand depends on consumption which has not returned domestically nor internationally. In addition, employers now can do more with a smaller workforce thanks to information technology. Growth has to come from new products and services driven by innovation which requires higher skills in specialized areas like manufacturing, technology and health care.
Job postings in June were on the same trajectory as year ago. The summer decline is more pronounced than last year. These conditions indicate that employers continue to wait for better times before they will expand.
Note: A weekly update on the United States Job Openings (Online Postings) is available on this blog every Tuesday.
Legend for week-over-week change of labor demand:
|slow||0.1% – 0.5%|
|moderate||0.6% – 1.5%|
Methodology: SkillPROOF surveys the inventories of job openings at direct employers. Job openings are counted and verified every 24 hours. All data sources have been verified for timely removal of filled or closed positions. No data from job boards or search firms is included.
For this report SkillPROOF estimates the counts of job openings. Estimates are calculated directly from SkillPROOF’s actual daily counts of job openings. As part of its calculations, SkillPROOF uses data and findings from reports of the Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) (http://www.bls.gov). | <urn:uuid:5d851200-bcba-48e8-ad11-5844f7970678> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.recruitingblogs.com/profiles/blogs/us-online-job-market-declines-3-0-in-june-2012 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.953335 | 337 | 1.695313 | 2 |
A Gulfstream passenger jet at the center of a U.S.-Russian military exercise was about to cross the International Dateline on Tuesday for the second time in three days, and some of the seven passengers seemed dulled by the dash across the Pacific and back.
But they all perked up and the mood turned jovial when Air Force Tech. Sgt. Paul Shoop called out, "They're here!"
Two Russian Su-27 fighter jets had come into view behind the chartered Gulfstream and were closing fast. The Gulfstream was playing the role of a hijacked airliner crossing Russian airspace on its way east across the Pacific, and the fighters had been sent aloft to track it.
It was part of a precedent-setting exercise called Vigilant Eagle to see how well Russia and the North American Aerospace Defense Command, once bitter Cold War enemies, could coordinate in an international hijacking.
The Gulfstream took off from Alaska on Sunday, sent a mock distress signal indicating it had been "hijacked," and then flew west across the Pacific pursued first by fighters from NORAD — a joint U.S.-Canadian command — and then by fighters from Russia.
On Tuesday, the pursuit was in the opposite direction as the plane headed back to Alaska.
The Gulfstream, code-named Fencing 1220, carried U.S., Canadian and Russian officers. The Associated Press had exclusive access to the plane during the exercise.
As the Su-27s drew near, the passengers raised their cameras to the Gulfstream's windows, taking stills and video. One of the Russian pilots appeared to be pointing his own camera or binoculars back at them.
Greg Locke, the Gulfstream's maintenance director who was aboard for the exercise, fired off a string of photos with his automated camera and then played out an imaginary conversation between the pilot and his wife.
"What did you do today, Honey?" he asked. "I shadowed a (Gulfstream) G-4 with a bunch of Americans pointing cameras out the windows."
The fighters were so close that the pilots' orange flight suits and white helmets were clearly visible under the cockpit canopies. One waved.
One Su-27 banked toward the Gulfstream, dropped slightly and swooped underneath, emerging on the other side.
A steady chatter in Russian and English poured out of Fencing 1220's radio speakers.
"My Russian's not very good, but it sounded like he said, 'I could take that right wing off with about a 5-second burst of a cannon,'" pilot Ben Rhodes quipped, to laughter in the cabin.
All the planes were unarmed, a condition of the exercise, said Canadian Forces Col. Todd Balfe, the NORAD observer aboard the Gulfstream.
"It's just unbelievable that we're able to fly (in) formation at 33,000 feet with a pair of Russian fighter jets," Rhodes said. "It's pretty amazing to me. I love it."
Rhodes, who has logged more than 15,000 hours of flying time over 40 years, said he has seen a Russian-built fighter up close only once before, when he was flying near Cuba.
"That was a little more hostile," he said with a chuckle. "So at least this time my heart's not racing because I know that this is part of a script."
Asked to describe the incident over Cuba, Rhodes cleared his throat and paused. "That's kind of classified," he said with a laugh.
Details of Vigilant Eagle were carefully scripted, including some of the radio communications, but Fencing 1220 co-pilot Daniel Moore had to ad-lib when a Russian air traffic controller asked, "How many hijackers are on board and what are their demands?"
"That's not on the script anywhere," Moore said, so he replied, "We have two hijackers and they want to go to Anchorage."
Moore said he didn't think the Russian controller believed the hijacking was the real thing instead of a drill.
"Maybe that's on his checklist, that's one of the things he has to ask," he said.
Terrorists have repeatedly targeted the U.S. and Russia, sometimes with tragic and catastrophic results, and both nations are looking for ways to steel their transportation systems against attack. Vigilant Eagle was the first-ever international hijacking drill, NORAD said.
It also showed how far the former Cold War enemies have come. Despite continued suspicions and disputes, they embarked on a complex exercise requiring close cooperation and communication.
About 3 1/2 hours into Tuesday's flight, the Su-27s banked steeply and flew away, and Russian military controllers handed off responsibility for Fencing 1220 to NORAD.
Three hours later, two NORAD F-22 fighters barreled past in the distance from the opposite direction, banked so steeply they seemed to turn on their wing tips and then pulled in close on either side of Fencing 1220.
Like the Russian fighters, they edged in close, and the pilots could be seen turning their heads toward the Gulfstream, the setting sun glinting off their helmets.
The F-22s pulled away as the Gulfstream descended through clouds and landed at a rainy Ted Stevens Anchorage International Airport in Anchorage, Alaska.
Balfe, the NORAD observer on Fencing 1220, said the handoff on Tuesday went smoothly, as it had on Sunday.
"It reinforces the success (of the first handoff), but it also proves the point that it can occur from the U.S. side to the Russian side and now from the Russian side to the U.S. side," he said. "So the two-way communication flow has been proven to be successful."
A full review is planned next month, but Balfe said the exercise has already helped make civilian airline travel safer from terrorist attack.
"I think any time that we increase our cooperation and our coordination, we harden ourselves against further events," Balfe said.
© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. | <urn:uuid:edc7a6df-4ffa-4c6c-bb0b-dc4d17d1ee80> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.newsmax.com/Newsfront/US-Russia-Hijack-Exercise/2010/08/11/id/367181 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.975384 | 1,276 | 1.585938 | 2 |
We travel all over the forty-eight states, so we see a lot of life. This does not make us experts, but we want to attempt to show how our culture is on a downhill slide, mostly because of sin and secular humanism. There are people who don’t speak English and don’t intend to learn, people who want space for their religion but don’t want us to have any for ours, people who are infected with the deadly diseases of damnation-directed thinking, don’t know it, and won’t be convinced of it. They think they’re ok, and we’d be ok too if we could just shut up about that Bible stuff. Sorry, no can do. It’s the only thing that matters.
I say “we” when I talk about my husband and I and what our future holds because I consider our lives to be united and our goals and plans to be intertwined. Charles Dickens, in David Copperfield, has a young female character who married a much older man. When asked about the state of their marriage by a person who tried to make her worry about potential gossip and speculation, she said simply, “We have a unity of mind and purpose.” Women who talk about being truckers’ wives usually point out the separation, the loneliness and the need for them to be apart yet to trust and wait. These women are simply enduring, and it sounds like their lives together are on hold, stagnant. I think that’s a bit selfish, with all due respect for the truth of these points. The two of you are one. Isn’t he lonely, too? Doesn’t he need to trust you? Men have been leaving their wives alone for necessary careers for centuries: Military, diplomatic, evangelistic missions and pioneering are just a few. And for centuries women have been guilty of betraying trust and deciding they couldn’t handle the loneliness as well as men.
The first thing you must do is stop being selfish. Don’t think you aren’t. Don’t believe you’re sacrificing so much just by agreeing to be a trucker’s wife in the first place. Think again. You agreed to get married, and that took you out of the category where you get to say, “I” very often. You have a husband. You may have children. Responsibilities keep expanding, such as a house, a car, and other things you own or have and have to pay for. If you own the truck he drives there can be a whole new set of responsibilities. These things are the responsibility of both members of the marriage, yet women pour out their resentment, saying, “He went away and left me to handle all this.” The problem is magnified exponentially in a bad economy where you may not be making enough money to handle anything except collection calls.
Here comes my “I” paragraph. I said a wife doesn’t get to say “I” much but here are the things that are just “me” things, the stuff I do that I have to do myself or to keep the crazies away and that he doesn’t really take part in. While I was living at home and he was on the road, I found many things to occupy my time. I always worked, at least part time, usually full time with overtime, as a book editor, childcare and eldercare giver, teacher, factory worker, office assistant, receptionist, clerk, and other occupations. I write, obviously, producing puppet scripts, short stories and novels. I have written scripts for Cable TV commercials, a local museum video tour and an in-store infomercial as well as church programs. I draw, and create craft items, and serve in churches, making puppets, putting on plays, designing bulletin boards and decoration for programs as well as writing and test-teaching original church teaching materials and creating the crafts to accompany them. I also polish and convert my husband’s writing to book format or video scripts. Our dream is still alive, of course, to make the video work a reality in the future.
Let me return to the reality of the near-present. My husband was on the road. I had a 3rd shift temp job which I took after two years of “stable” but health-wrecking 12 hr shift factory work. My changing jobs helped our older children out with transportation since we would all be working at the same place. Our youngest had just gone into the military. It became clear that I was not going to be hired on permanently at the place I worked. Our elder two children, while still living at home, had jobs and our daughter’s car as backup to get to work.
My husband and I decided to go on the road together, especially since attending our son’s graduation from boot camp required a trip to Fort Leonardwood, MO and it was the only way I was going to get there. I elected not to get my CDL but to support him by helping with all the paperwork I was legally allowed to do and assisting in trip planning, handling phone use and load finding. I have talked to many husband and wife team drivers and the women always agreed with my decision not to drive. We have met many teams who cannot get enough work to support both of them. Besides, I freely admit to being a basket case when it comes to backing up and that’s pretty much the bulk of a trucker’s job, with a giant rectangle tagging along behind.
This also gave us the opportunity to work on writing and researching the books and videos we want to produce, to be together to brainstorm and polish ideas, and to restore the unity of mind and purpose that flags when you’re apart. We read Scriptures, comment on what we’ve read, deal with the bill collectors together, and it is in all ways better. The economy is still bad, and may be getting worse. Our house is in danger of forclosure, our daughter wrecked her car trying to travel on icy roads and ended up with our car, and both our older children were laid off and had to move to find other jobs and housing. It looks like soon the truck will be our only home. That simplifies life, in some ways. No utility bills, except the cell phones and computer to look for loads and do research for our projects. We are newly returned to being owner operators, which makes for a much less simple life, but we hope it will soon begin to pay off. Our last truck blew the engine with one payment left but once again company driver was not for us.
Life in the truck is not easy. The bed is small and so are the cabinets. Eating on the road is expensive but so is an electrical system that supports a microwave and a refrigerator, as well as making the space to install them. Chances to get to a regular store, even a Walmart, are scarce. We shower and do laundry at truckstops.
Several women have bitten their tongues as they asked me how I like living in the truck because they want so badly to tell me what my opinion should be.
My opinion is that I am better with him than without him, whatever the hardships might be. And he keeps saying he is better with me than without me. I get cranky and resent all the stuff that I have to do and he puts up with that. He gets so focused on the job and the mileage and the performance of the truck and I have to put up with that. He talks to everybody he meets, mechanics, other truckers, any people who can add to that staggering store of knowledge he’s got in that head of his. I hate to talk to people but I realize how much this habit of his has helped us. We see a lot of countryside, even if we do spend a lot of time walking through oil and smelling diesel and listening to idling trucks and whining reefers. We’ve been to places in Canada and back and forth across this country. We’ve listened to volunteers in truckstop churches doing their best to minister to some hard cases. We’ve been in churches where people praised God for truckers.
So, to truckers’ wives who need to vent, I say it works both ways. Except your husband’s too busy driving, so instead of venting, take every chance you get to run him up, not run him down. Love him, instead of resenting him. Dwell on what makes him great, not what makes you miserable. Sure, I’m with mine and you’re not with yours, and it may not be possible for you to go, because your children are still young. I was there, too, but I still had to stop people and my own mind from making me resent the way things were and are. Help him and help yourself by refusing to rise to the temptation of complaining or of sounding like a martyr. Focus on what you are together, what good married couples have always been, stronger together than apart. Unified in mind and purpose. Together, always, whatever, forever. | <urn:uuid:aebe4553-8084-4a56-b4c7-feab06a1db38> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://elkjerkyforthesoul.wordpress.com/2012/01/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.982369 | 1,913 | 1.6875 | 2 |
Department of English, Indiana University, Bloomington
Terence Martin joined the Department of English at IU in 1954 with a doctorate from Ohio State. Within a decade he had efficiently advanced in rank and gained recognition as a notable teacher. Additionally, he had filled visiting positions at the University of Dijon, the Universities of Mainz and Frankfurt, and the University of California at Berkeley. During the following years he taught summer sessions at Hawaii and Hyderabad and lectured widely at American universities.
From his early research efforts to projects that have continued beyond his formal retirement, Professor Martin has investigated the cultural implications of beginnings. His first book, The Instructured Vision: Scottish Common Sense Philosophy and the Origins of American Fiction, has become a classic study of how Americans wrote fiction in a society deeply suspicious of the imagination. With a wide array of influential essays, an edition of The Scarlet Letter, and a full-length study of Hawthorne's career, he has established himself as an indispensable scholar of American literature and culture.
Professor Martin has received fellowships from the American Council of Learned Societies, the Guggenheim Foundation, and the Huntington Library. He has served on selection committees for the National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Humanities Center, and the Guggenheim Foundation. As part of his professional work, he served two terms on the editorial board of American Literature and is currently a member of the board of Nineteenth-Century Literature.
In recent years, Professor Martin has been made a part of three
major projects: The Columbia Literary History of the United
States, The Columbia History of the American Novel, and the
twenty-volume American National Biography. Meanwhile,
his teaching and his scholarship continue. In 1995-96, he was
a Visiting Professor at the Free University of Berlin. With Parables
of Possibility he has explored provocatively the implications
of the American fascination with making a fresh start.
Home: (812) 336-6927; E-mail: firstname.lastname@example.org | <urn:uuid:3412de68-6bb5-4e18-9aff-0df8d4fcc912> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.indiana.edu/~alldrp/members/martin.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961433 | 422 | 1.59375 | 2 |
Sacrosanct tax breaks, including deductions on mortgage interest, remain on the table just weeks before the deficit commission issues recommendations on policies to pare back with the aim of balancing the budget by 2015.
The tax benefits are hugely popular with the public but they have drawn the panel's focus, in part because the White House has said these and other breaks cost the government about $1 trillion a year.
At stake, in addition to the mortgage-interest deductions, are child tax credits and the ability of employees to pay their portion of their health-insurance tab with pretax dollars. Commission officials are expected to look at preserving these breaks but at a lower level, according to people familiar with the matter.
The officials are also looking at potential cuts to defense spending and a freeze on domestic discretionary spending. It is unclear if the 18-member panel will be able to reach an agreement on any of the items by a Dec. 1 deadline.
Even if they do reach an agreement, any curbs on current tax breaks would likely face tough sledding in Congress. The banking and real-estate lobbies have fiercely rebuffed efforts to rescind the mortgage-interest deduction in the past.
Still, officials have found there aren't any easy ways to balance the budget, and they are expected to steer clear of more polarizing issues like Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security and a broad rewrite of the tax code in their short-term recommendations. The panel could still make long-term recommendations to change these issues, but they would be less concrete.
"My concern is that the talk of tax expenditures is couched as 'tax reform,' but it's not tax reform," said Alison Fraser, director of the Thomas A. Roe Institute for Economic Policy Studies at the conservative Heritage Foundation. "It's simply a revenue-raising exercise."
Committee officials plan to try to broker a deal in November, after the midterm elections. They have until Dec. 1 to win the support of 14 of the commission's 18 members to endorse a final report. It is possible that the panel's Democrats and Republicans would issue separate reports if they can't agree, people familiar with the process said.
President Barack Obama created the National Commission on Fiscal Responsibility and Reform in February, amid concern from lawmakers and economists that the growing budget deficit could damage the country's long-term fiscal condition. The bipartisan panel, made up mostly of lawmakers but also business and labor leaders, has met for months, at times more constructively than many expected.
"There's a lot of potential for agreement on the committee," said panel member Alice Rivlin, a senior fellow at the liberal-leaning Brookings Institution.
If the commission reaches a consensus, House or Senate leaders could agree to bring some of the changes up for a vote, perhaps early next year, although there is no deadline.
To balance the budget by 2015, excluding interest payments on debt, means officials would need to find roughly $240 billion in annual savings, according to commission documents. Panel officials also hope to issue recommendations that would "meaningfully improve" the country's long-term fiscal situation.
Even though officials are focusing on issues where they believe they can get broad agreement, they will likely face stiff resistance from certain lawmakers and interest groups. Some Republicans are expected to label any caps on tax breaks as a backdoor way of raising taxes. Several lawmakers' offices declined to comment on specific proposals as negotiations aren't yet under way.
Committee officials have also focused on the $700 billion in annual defense spending, which accounts for more than half of domestic discretionary spending. Critics say the government could cut some of the $400 billion spent on outside contractors. But many conservative groups have said cutting military spending would be a mistake, citing national security risks.
Changes to Medicaid and Medicare are unlikely to be recommended despite their looming presence in the U.S. budget. The Congressional Budget Office has estimated that if laws don't change, federal spending on health care alone will grow from 5% of gross domestic product in 2010 to 10% in 2035.
Commission officials looked closely at making short-term changes to Social Security, but talks shifted in recent weeks toward incorporating those ideas into a longer-term plan. This is in part because any changes would probably have to be phased in over years, delaying the budgetary impact for at least a decade.
"My sense from talking to members of the commission is that's where they are focusing [on the long-term recommendation], Social Security reform," said Martin Feldstein, an economics professor at Harvard University who served as a senior official in the Reagan administration.
It remains unclear whether the panel will reach a consensus with negotiations taking place right after the midterm elections, when Washington tends to buzz with political jostling. The imminent debate over whether to extend all or part of the Bush-era tax cuts could also complicate its efforts. The panel isn't expected to weigh in on this issue.
The White House said this month that the budget deficit for the last fiscal year was $1.3 trillion, the second highest in 60 years. The government's revenue was roughly $2.16 trillion in the year ended Sept. 30, compared with $3.46 trillion in outlays.
The White House hasn't signed off on any of the potential proposals as it's waiting for the panel to complete its work.
Mr. Obama "expects that the fiscal commission will continue the process of discussing and analyzing a wide range of ideas and it is premature to describe any specific idea as a conclusion of a commission that has not even voted yet," White House spokesman Amy Brundage said.
The commission "is the last best hope right now for getting some substantive movement on the issue of the deficit, the debt, and the financial disaster we're facing," Sen. Judd Gregg (R., N.H.), a member of the commission, said in a recent interview.
Write to Damian Paletta at firstname.lastname@example.org | <urn:uuid:f89e1b9c-38f8-4137-b639-d3074fe983bc> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304354104575568643889337142.html?mod=WSJ_hp_mostpop_read | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967932 | 1,217 | 1.5 | 2 |
- What not to do with PowerPoint - Electrical engineer turned stand-up comedian Don McMillian will you help your students avoid major PowerPoint errors in this short, hilarious video clip.
- AACU 2008 Business Leader Survey - Association of American Colleges and Universities surveyed business leaders and found, among other things, that projects and internships were a better way to assess learning than multiple choice tests (well, duh). The web site Inside Higher Ed offers additional commentary here.
- Is there an IT skills shortage? - The January 12th edition of InformationWeek featured a debate between believers and the skeptics. CIO Insight weighed in on the believers side. I am on the side of the believers, if only because I believe there is going to be a skills shortage in all fields as baby boomer retirements start rising.
- Computer knowledge undervalued in UK - Microsoft seems concerned that a poll of 500 UK business managers put IT skills #7 in a list of top business skills. I'm not so sure that IT skills deserves to be any higher, the first six are pretty important.
- CSTA Podcasts - The Computer Science Teachers Association (CSTA) is an organization of K-12 computer science and computing instructors sponsored by the Association of Computing Machinery (ACM). They just released a collection of podcast where leaders, students and practitioners talk about their passions in IT.
Sunday, January 27, 2008
Saturday, January 26, 2008
Let's start, however, with a short video 3 minute video called Blogs in Plain English from the Common Craft Show. Click on the big "play" button in the middle of the image below and, assuming your school doesn't block everything useful on the web, you'll see a quick explanation of blogs in the browser window.
So, like I said, I had a change of heart about blogs. In the summer of 2006 my wife Eva was teaching a week-long class in Web2.0 tools for teachers at Bellevue CC. One night she brought home a book called Blogs, Wikis, Podcasts and Other Powerful Web Tools for the Classroom by Will Richardson. She plopped it down in front of me and said "I need to review this by tomorrow, when can you start reading". (Nearly 30 years ago I typed a couple of her term papers for her and I've been paying for it ever since.)
Working through the examples in the book forced me to blog right. I read Will's blog and then followed the links in his blog roll to other related blogs that he reads. I set up a RSS feed reader account so I received notice when new content was available and added several of the most interesting blogs to the feed reader. And while I did not immediately start posting comments to any of the blogs, I did start discussing them with friends and family. Today my feed reader has about 30 news feeds, half that I read regularly and a quarter that I am "trying out". Often I read my blog on my internet-enabled cellphone while I'm killing time. And now I have my own blog and I am introducing you to blogging.
It was a pretty big change in a relatively short time, but I am finding that if you don't fully embrace the new tools of the web and cellphone then you won't really be able to assess their usefulness to you. So if you are ready, I'd like you to try getting into blogging, at least for a month or so. Here's what I'd like you to try:
- Comment on a blog. At the bottom of this post you will see my name, the time I posted this entry and the number of comments. Click that link and leave me a comment. Tell me what you thought of the video clip or the color scheme or your previous experiences in blogging. Generally you want to follow a blog for awhile before you start commenting, so this will give you a safe experience for posting a comment. However, your comment will be read by everyone, so don't me about that troublesome rash or give me your home phone number.
- Share a blog. Once you're done with your comment, go back to the same area of the post and you will see a little envelope icon. Click it and you can email a link to a friend or co-worker. Add a little comment so they know what you are doing or send it to yourself for practice.
- Visit sites in my blog roll. My blog roll is a list of blogs I read, enjoy and respect. It's in the white section of my blog on the right-hand side under my bio. Navigate to a couple of the blogs on my list and then try linking to some on that author's blog roll. Don't forget to read some of the comments too. I would recommend 2 Cents Worth and Dangerously Irrelevant for those thinking about education at more general level. U Tech Tips and Cool Cat Teacher are written by folks in the classroom every day. Marketing and business instructors might want to try Micro Persuasion. Fellow board members in the business world might find Kirkland-based Futurist.com or the Long Tail interesting. If you like the newest toys try Engadget and if you wonder how those cool maps are made try Google Maps Mania. If none of those sound interest you can go to Technorati and search for your favorite topic. You might be surprised how many blog posts there are about chindogu.
- Use a RSS Feed Reader. Okay, this one you don't have to do right away, but a RSS feed reader reader improves the experience because you don't have to remember to return to each site and you don't have to figure out what's new. I use Bloglines, but many people like Google Reader. You don't need a gmail email account to use Google Reader, but if you do have gmail you might find it the easier to setup. Liz Davis has created three videos, or screencasts, on using Google Reader which you can find at her professional development YouTube playlist. Once you have the reader setup, come back to Advisory Bored and at least two other blogs to your reader (for now).
Tags: blogging, blogs, Will Richardson, Common Craft Show
Thursday, January 17, 2008
If you are teaching IT, particularly at a community college where course content needs to be aligned with business, you should be adding Vista training to your programs now because corporate America isn't embracing Vista at this very moment (article 1, article 2, article 3, article 4).
Oh, you heard me right. I'm suggesting you need to add training for a product that isn't being widely used and which many are actively resisting. Let me explain.
The primary reason to teach Vista is that while corporate IT did not want to jump in with both feet upon initial release, they will eventually upgrade to Vista. The planning for Vista migrations will start in earnest in 2008 with actual implementations running through 2009 and into 2010. So organizations will need Vista-savvy staff in the very near future to handle the assessment and planning phases of the project.
Read that last sentence again. Corporate IT needs people who are familiar with Vista and can help them survive the conversion. Simply put, you should be teaching the transition. That would included methods, tools, project management and analysis (finally a tangible reason for general CIS students to take systems analysis).
I manage application development, so I'm not an expert in desktop management (please jump in with comments if you work the desktop), but it is my experience that it would be extremely valuable to have staff that could, among other things:
- prepare an organizational readiness assessment to determine if and when in-house and vendor applications; hardware and peripherals; and the user community are ready for Vista.
- describe and use new Vista features that might offer a real benefit to the organization (BitLocker, widgets or Windows Defender) so that the whole conversion isn't done solely out of fear of "falling behind".
- use tools that simplify the assessment, testing and implementation process. These would include, but are not limited to, the application capability toolkit (ACT), Virtual PC and SMS/Operations Center.
- create a business case for either moving or waiting, weighing organizational needs against the costs of migrating (both time and money for the migration and the opportunity cost of projects not done because of the migration).
Let me close by going back to the beginning. If you want to align your educational programs to my business needs, then transitions are the name of the game. In addition to XP/Vista, we are dealing with SQL Server 2000 to 2005, Office 2003 to 2007; SharePoint Portal Services to MOSS and SMS to Operations Center. Those institutions that are ahead of the curve - prepared with programs as the need emerges - will be able to deliver a valuable educational experience for their students.
Tags: Vista, XP, operating system | <urn:uuid:6e4cc627-dddf-4031-afcc-fb0a4e9dfea0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://advisorybored.blogspot.com/2008_01_01_archive.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954431 | 1,824 | 1.734375 | 2 |
[Chris Nafis] crunched the numbers and found out he could get filament for his 3D printer in bulk for about one-fifth the cost of the cartridges the company sells. This led him to print a feeder for his Cube 3D printer.
We’re skeptical about the Cube 3D printer’s cartridges. They contain a spool of filament, but also include a chip which reports back the filament color and length remaining. We’re sure this provides some nice functionality for those looking to press a button and walk away. But we see it as an annoyance like the laser toner cartridges that stop working based on page count rather than remaining toner.
The solution [Chris] went with still uses the cartridges to ‘trick’ the machine into printing. Basically the interface will tell you that you don’t have enough filament left, but as long as there’s a cartridge in place you can tell it to print anyway. The green adapter he printed has a pass-through for the stock cartridge as well as the bulk spool you see to the left. | <urn:uuid:dba138ad-276a-4a02-b048-4dc6501bb954> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://hackaday.com/tag/cube/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963132 | 229 | 1.773438 | 2 |
Strangling Democracy and the Rule of Law in Honduras
posted at 6:23 pm on September 22, 2009 by Jimmie Bise, Jr
This is a developing story, from CNN (via @MarkImpomeni on Twitter).
WASHINGTON (CNN) — The U.S. Embassy in Tegucigalpa, Honduras, has closed because of the “fluid” situation there, State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said Tuesday.
What Ian Kelley did not say is that the “fluid” situation, which today means near riots in the streets that the government is having to handle with tear gas and water cannons, is something the State Department and the Obama administration caused. Without our attempts to force Honduras to reject its own laws and Constitution, there would be no aborning crisis right now.
Presently, the former President of Honduras, Mel Zelaya is holed up in the Brazilian Embassy in the Honduran capital. His supporters had surrounded the embassy before law enforcement dispersed them. The Honduran authorities have issued an arrest warrant for Zelaya and are asking that Brazil either turn him over to them or grant him asylum. It is very clear that Zelaya’s presence inside the country, after a unanimous Supreme Court decision ordered the military to remove him, is exacerbating the situation and our government has only been heaping the kindling higher each day. Secretary of State Clinton’s claim that putting Zelaya back in office would “get Honduras back to constitutional and democratic rule” ought to stick in the craw of anyone who can read the plain and incontrovertible language of the Honduran constitution. That we will allow a leading member of the wicked Burmese junta to enter our country, but have banned law-abiding members of the Honduran government from doing the same is shameful.
Here is truth. Until the Obama administration, standing alongside Hugo Chavez and Fidel Castro, tried to force the de jure government of Honduras to ignore its own laws, the country was stable and as peaceful as one could be that was being condemned by petty tyrants and their lickspittle in Washington. Today, it is not and the United States of America is to blame.
Recently in the Green Room: | <urn:uuid:c1dd3f87-c90c-40f3-8baa-bdb7dcdf2609> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://hotair.com/greenroom/archives/2009/09/22/strangling-democracy-and-the-rule-of-law-in-honduras/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.969425 | 459 | 1.742188 | 2 |
Elounda is a small village 12 km from Agios Nicholaos, I tell you about this charming town in my next travel page.
First some info about Elounda.
You can reach Elounda by bus from the airport Heraklion that takes about an hour drive.
I think Elounda is still famous because the movie "who pays the ferryman" is recording here.
The restaurant still has lovely pictures on the wall of the movie and on top of this restaurant is a big neon "who pays the ferryman"sign so you can’t miss it.
To our nice surprise the former owner was still present in this restaurant, he helps his son who has taken over the restaurant.
Walking in the opposite direction of the restaurant, you pass a lovely small harbour with lovely painted boats, making a picture their you see the church along the shore.
This small church is worth a visit, my children light a candle for all their beloved ones.
This track leads up to the higher part of the island, where there are further defensive ruins and some spectacular views out across the bay, as well as a birds-eye view of some of the ruins of the old leper hospital.
When you get off the boat you have 1 hour to see the island. You're faced with a choice of which direction to set off in - either through a tunnel to who-konws-where or up a path that leads onto the curtain wall of the fortifications. The second route looks (and is) the most picturesque, but the first route leads directly to the ruined town. This is potentially more interesting, and you could look at this and then dash around the rest of the island. We did it the other way, and strolled around the island taking in great views and interesting architecture before having to hurridly look at the town. More time would be better, or two trips. Choose what it is you want to see the most and keep an eye on the clock.
The island of Spinalonga was once a defensive fort and later a leper colony and it still retains a lot of evidence of both. The fortifications are still very impressive and the ruins of the leper town are poignant as well as picturesque.
Some parts of the village are better preserved than others - one of them being the church of course. Another part is the row of tourist shops that opens up in high season (they weren't open when we were there in spring). There are some lovely arches and tunnelways around here, and one of the tunnels is the one you could have come in through right at the start of the walk. As I said then, the village is quite intersting and picturesque and if you think you'd like to spend a while there, either do the walk clockwise or else don't dally on the walls part of the walk too much.
Back down at "ground level" you'll come across the ruins of the old leper hospital and village - they're quite picturesque. For a while this village was also a Turkish enclave until they finally left.
A couple of more views across the gulf of Elounda. The colour of the water here is divine and so, so tempting. In the distance are some exclusive apartment and hotel developments. I'm not 100% convinced by the aestheticness of their architecture
This is one of the first sights you see if you take the anti-clockwise route around the island. It's the church of St. George dating from 1661. Like most churches, it's still well maintained and in use, even if infrequently.
This is the track up to the castle walls. Ultimately it leads right round the island and you will end up at the village last. You can also branch off it to get to the highest point of the island and some more of the fortifications. The views from the walk are lovely, especially with the spring flowers.
Here we are on the boat to Spinalonga Island - or rather here's a view of Elounda looking back as we speed away. The trip to the island takes only about 10 minutes and you get lovely views of Elounda, the hills behind and the surrounding bay. And of course, good views of the island as you approach it. | <urn:uuid:5bd4a9c7-f436-4bed-8138-40dab5047ccd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.virtualtourist.com/travel/Europe/Greece/Elounda-425352/Things_To_Do-Elounda-TG-C-1.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.976786 | 884 | 1.609375 | 2 |
It’s a rarity to see the 5th Avenue Apple Store closed. It’s usually open 24 hours a day 365 days a year and, typically, only…
It’s been a heck of a week for those impacted by Hurricane Sandy, and relief efforts are likely to last well into next year. But…
The tech community really seemed to come together to help victims of Hurricane Sandy. Wireless carriers cut fees, teamed up together and even allowed free phone calls. Now, Apple said that it is helping Sandy victims with a $2.5 million donation to the Red Cross.
“For the past week, our thoughts have been with those affected by Hurricane Sandy and its aftermath,” Tim Cook said in a letter obtained by 9to5Mac. “And Apple employees and customers the world over have raised millions of dollars toward the relief so far. But we can always do more. That’s why, on behalf of all our employees, Apple is making a donation of $2.5 million to the American Red Cross to benefit Hurricane Sandy relief. We hope this contribution will help families, businesses, and communities recover and rebuilt.”
Nicely done, Apple. | <urn:uuid:dc7e79c6-b21c-4947-9a45-a1a0e90e9740> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.technobuffalo.com/2012/11/09/apple-donates-2-5-million-to-red-cross-to-benefit-hurricane-sandy-victims/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.947486 | 247 | 1.539063 | 2 |
It used to be the bane of travellers’ lives and the butt of our jokes: bags we waved goodbye to at the airport and never saw again. But the great strides in technology seem to be making the horror stories a thing of the past.
According to SITA, the airline-owned technology company, the industry has halved the rate of lost or mishandled bags per 1000 passenger trips in the past five years.
The 2012 SITA Baggage Report shows that 99.1 per cent of checked baggage was delivered on time to the passenger during 2011 – the highest rate of successful delivery since the report was first produced and represents a saving of $US650 million to the air transport industry over 2010.
But lost or mishandled baggage still costs the industry an estimated $US2.58 billion a year, according to SITA, which reckons it costs about $US100 per mislaid piece of luggage.
“SITA's report shows that the mishandled rate has more than halved since 2007, down 52.4 per cent from 18.88 bags per thousand passengers in 2007 to 8.99 bags per thousand last year,” the report says.
“During 2011, even though we saw a rise in the number of passengers travelling to 2.87 billion passengers, the industry achieved a reduction in mishandled bags to 25.8 million. This is 6.5 million fewer bags mishandled than 2010's figure of 32.3 million,” says SITA chief executive Francesco Violante.
“Of course, 2011 was less challenging than 2010 when adverse weather and volcanic ash clouds caused major disruption but the fact that the industry has halved the mishandled rate over the past five years is an enormous achievement which has benefited millions of passengers and directly delivered improvements to airline earnings.”
In its rush to congratulate itself, however, SITA glosses over the fact that many major airlines are now charging for baggage that used to be in the ticket price, which has had a huge impact on the number of bags the airlines are carrying below the cabin floor.
Part of the problem has simply been transferred upstairs as passengers are encouraged to stuff the overhead carry-on bins with small suitcases and large items of gear like baby pushers.
The net effect of all of this has been to free up more of the cargo holds for paid freight, which now includes a tariff on passenger bags.
“Despite the great strides made by the air transport industry to improve mishandling over the last few years, the main - and growing - contributor to the problem is transfer bags,” the SITA report says. “Typically, these bags go astray when passengers and their luggage are moving from one aircraft to another, and often from one carrier to another, en route to their final destination.
“In total, transfer bags account for 53 per cent of all delayed luggage and costs the industry at least $US1.36 billion per annum.”
“If this trend continues, by 2020 transfer bags will represent over 60 per cent of all delayed bags. This is an issue that point-to-point carriers (the majority of low cost carriers) tend not to have, and is perhaps one reason why they can boast lower losses than the hub-and-spoke network carriers.”
Yet SITA is upbeat about the technology now in the works. “In the future, as part of the online check-in process, SITA says, passengers will be able to print their own bag tags off-airport,” the report says. “Or they may use radio frequency identification (RFID) bag tags for example, frequent flyers of carriers like Qantas offers Q Bag Tags.
“At the airport, a self-service bag drop machine will scan the printed tags or read the RFID tags to match bags with the passenger’s flight details, weigh the luggage and process any charges for overweight or oversized items.
“It may even take a picture of the bags and send it to the passengers’ mobile phone as a receipt of acceptance. In the near future, if a bag is mishandled and is not on the same plane as the passenger, the system will alert the ground handlers at the originating airport, who will then initiate the bag recovery and process it in the (SITA) WorldTracer system.
“On the other hand the baggage handling system may automatically route the bag onto the next available flight to the destination airport, and generate an advisory message to the airline.
“Or the airline cabin crew may be updated via air-ground communication links so they can inform the passenger and perhaps offer an in-flight travel voucher or frequent flyer miles as compensation.”
Are bags still the bane of your life? We know that people now forgo checked baggage on domestic flights but what about international flights? Are there repeat offenders among the airlines in your experience? Which airlines are the best on dealing with luggage? | <urn:uuid:6bf56f75-3f2c-496b-8a4a-fb92823e5ec9> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.standard.net.au/story/205505/the-end-of-lost-luggage/?cs=34 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.9445 | 1,038 | 1.789063 | 2 |
|photo credit: chadmill|
So here’s what went down after you logged off.
Richard Garriott is going to space this October – for $30 million, you can, too. (Garriott was recently at HMNS to celebrate the 20th anniversary of the development of the world’s first Challenger Learning Center here – and announce that he’ll be blogging his mission at www.challenger.com)
In creating an oxygen-filled atmosphere in which life on Earth could thrive, it turns out that bacteria had help.
If you missed the original – now’s your chance: the Woodstock Museum has opened on the site of the original 1969 concert.
How much energy do your microwave, computer, and toaster use when you’re not home? We’re not really sure. Enter: smart metering. | <urn:uuid:ea70ccc0-2b01-4c1d-9ab3-4c92d10ba956> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blog.hmns.org/tag/dinosaur-eel/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.939725 | 180 | 1.703125 | 2 |
Office fridge from hell: Smell sends 7 to hospitalby The Associated Press on May. 13, 2009, under Nation/World, Special, Taste
SAN JOSE, Calif. – An office worker cleaning a fridge full of rotten food created a smell so noxious that it sent seven co-workers to the hospital and made many others ill.
Firefighters had to evacuate the AT&T building in downtown San Jose on Tuesday after the fumes led someone to call 911. A hazmat team was called in.
What crews found was an unplugged refrigerator crammed with moldy food.
Authorities say an enterprising office worker had decided to clean it out, placing the food in a conference room while using two cleaning chemicals to scrub down the mess.
The mixture of old lunches and disinfectant caused 28 people to need treatment for vomiting and nausea.
Authorities say the worker who cleaned the fridge didn’t need treatment – she can’t smell because of allergies. | <urn:uuid:e4e3709d-cceb-4694-91c9-ed9cff66d224> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://tucsoncitizen.com/morgue/2009/05/13/116402-office-fridge-from-hell-smell-sends-7-to-hospital/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955194 | 200 | 1.515625 | 2 |
The Correct Stance of Every Muslim on the Film about Muhammed (peace be upon him) – Shaykh Saalih as-Suhaymee
Published on 20 Sep 2012 by DaarusSunnah
Shaykh Saalih as-Suhaymee – Teacher at the Prophet’s Masjid in Madeenah
Bismillaah Al-Hamdulillaah wa salatu wa salaamu ‘ala rasulullaah
Shaikh Saalih as-Suhaymee (hafidhahullaah Ta’aala) said:
“Firstly, there is no doubt that abusing the Prophets is not tolerated by any religion or intellect, and I do not think those intellectuals in those non-Islaamic countries accept this (film) either. And Allaah has raised the mention of our Prophet (salallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam), so we are not in need of anyone to clarify his status for us after (what has been stated) about his mention in the Qur`an and Sunnah.
[Allaah said to His Messenger ('alayhi as-salatu wa salaam:]
وَرَفَعْنَا لَكَ ذِكْرَكَ
And (have We not) raised high your fame? (Ash-Sharh, ayah 4)
No one approves of this behavior, and I do not think that even those countries would approve of such acts as this. The Mufti has issued a clarification in the Kingdom of Sa’udia Arabia, denouncing that vile film – which does not harm anyone except those who produced it. It does not harm the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) at all, for indeed Allaah Tabarak wa Ta’aala has honored him and revered him.
Therefore, if anyone abuses the Prophets (such as Muhammad, Jesus, Moses, Abraham, Noah, etc…), then that does not mean the Prophets are harmed due to it; rather the person (who abuses them) is harmed and he will receive the evil repercussions. So it is upon us as Muslims to deal with such events according to the Islaamic legislation.
Therefore, the demonstrations and the storming of the embassies or the killing of innocent people – who are not involved in these affairs – is an evil deed according to us Muslims. We do not approve of this in any circumstance, and this is not from our religion and it is not from our legislation. Thus, the storming of the embassies is not from our religion nor is the killing of so and so ambassador nor is assaulting others a part of our Religion, al-Haneef (The [only] Monotheistic Religion [Islaam]).
Our religion is a religion of peace; our religion is a religion of goodness. Our religion prohibits assaulting others. Our religion prohibits abusing others. Our religion gives the due right to its people (whether) Muslim or non-Muslim. And that which we hold to be from our Religion is that these chaotic actions that are carried out by some of the youth do not represent the religion of Islaam or the Muslim population.
Rather, these actions are the result of their emotions and that is not tolerated from them. And we denounce such actions with every kind of denouncing. Just as we have extremely denounced this film and its likes which was produced by those rabbles from those countriesm whom have only harmed themselves before harming the Messenger (salallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam).
The disbelieving Quraish used to abuse the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam), the would call him blameworthy, a poet, and sorcerer and called him whatever they called him (from the vile nicknames), they wounded his head, they broke his molar tooth, and they placed the intestines of a camel on top of his head. They did what they did, however the Muslims (the companions) did not protest or storm or kill, because this does not serve the Religion of Allaah, Subhanahu wa Ta’aala.
So I want the youth to understand that they should return back to the scholars who are well cultivated in this issue, those who refute the distortion of the extremists and (refute) those who (distort) the text (Qur`an and Sunnah) to suit their desires, and likewise the ignorant who misinterpret the text.
There is no doubt that the killing of the innocent – whether a Muslim or non-Muslim – is prohibited, and our Religion does not tolerate it, especially if there is a treaty between us and them, like peace treaties or an agreement between us and them.
This is the Sunnah of Allaah with His creation. So the ambassador serves as an emissary to another country, and the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) did not kill (the emissaries) of Caesar and the king of Persia and other than those who were upon the same religion as them. So it is obligatory upon us to understand these affairs. Protests are not from the Religion of Allaah, Subhanahu wa Ta’aala; rather it is a symbol of demagogism which the Religion of Allaah does not tolerate.
And we – by Allaah – love Allaah’s Messenger (salallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) more than we love ourselves and our families and our parents and our children and all the people together. However, this love should not cause us to go beyond the boundaries which (Allaah) has laid down for us from the legislated rulings of Islaam. (It should not make us) enter into the religion that which is not part of it.
The Prophet (salallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) warned against killing the one who holds a covenant with the Muslims, or the one who is under the protection of the Muslims, or the one who is under a peace treaty with the Muslims.
The ambassador is considered to be just like the one who is under a peace treaty with the Muslims, and assaulting him is in opposition to the guidance of the Prophet (salallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam), who said: Whoever kills a person under a covenant will not smell the fragrance of Paradise.
And that ruling is also applicable to the one who is under the protection of the Muslims and Dhimee (Jews and Christians who live under the law and protection of the Muslims).
So those people are under our protection in our lands; it is not permissible to violate them with any type of violence. It is obligatory to return to the scholars in this affair as I have said, those who will judge according to the truth and justice. As for dealing with this matter with uncontrolled emotions, then we should place boundaries upon this and free ourselves from it and from its practitioner.”
Via SalafisOfFlorida Mailinglist
Published on 18 Sep 2012 by ahlulsunnahwaljammah
نزول الملائكة في سوريا
“We saw the Angels in Syria!”
للشيخ د. فلاح بن إسماعيل مندكار
Shaykh ad-Doctor Falāh bin Ismā’īl Mundikār
This is the full answer
Translated by Nader Bin Muhammad
بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَٰنِ الرَّحِيمِ
تَبَارَكَ الَّذِي نَزَّلَ الْفُرْقَانَ عَلَىٰ عَبْدِهِ لِيَكُونَ لِلْعَالَمِينَ نَذِيرًا
Blessed be He Who sent down the criterion (of right and wrong, i.e. this Quran) to His slave (Muhammad sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) that he may be a warner to the ‘Alamin (mankind and jinns). 25:1
All praise is for Allaah, Lord of all the Worlds, who ordered us to follow His Messenger (sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam) and to call to His Way, and may Allaah send praises and blessings of peace upon our Prophet Muhammad (sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa sallam), and upon his family, his Companions, and those who truly follow them until the Day of Judgment.
ImaamAbu Muhammadal Barbahaaree (d. 329 H rahimahullaah), said in his Sharh Us-Sunnah :
May Allaah have mercy upon you! Examine carefully the speech of everyone you hear from in your time particularly. So do not act in haste and do not enter in anything from it until you ask and see: Did any of the Companions of the Prophet, may Allaah’s praise and salutations be upon him, speak about it, or did any of the scholars? So if you find a narration from them about it, cling to it, do not go beyond it for anything and do not give precedence to anything over it and thus fall into the Fire.
In Explanation to the above Shaykh Saalih al-Fawzaan (haafidthahullaah) mentioned :
Do not be hasty in accepting as correct what you may hear from the people especially in these later times. As now there are many who speak about so many various matters, issue rulings and ascribing to themselves both knowledge and the right to speak. This is especially the case after the emergence and spread of new modern day media technologies. Such that everyone now can speak and bring forth that which is in truth worthless; by this meaning words of no true value – speaking about whatever they wish in the name of knowledge and in the name of the religion of Islaam.
It has even reached the point that you find the people of misguidance and the members of the various groups of misguidance and deviance from the religion speaking as well. Such individuals have now become those who speak in the name of the religion of Islaam through means such as the various satellite television channels. Therefore be very cautious!
It is upon you O Muslim, and upon you O student of knowledge individually, to verify matters and not rush to embrace everything and anything you hear.
It is upon you to verify the truth of what you hear, asking, ‘Who else makes this same statement or claim?’, ‘Where did this thought or concept originate or come from?’, ‘Who is its reference or source authority?’
Asking what are the evidences which support it from within the Book and the Sunnah? And inquiring where has the individual who is putting this forth studied and taken his knowledge from? From who has he studied the knowledge of Islaam?
Each of these matters requires verification through inquiry and investigation, especially in the present age and time. As it is not every speaker who should rightly be considered a source of knowledge, even if he is well-spoken and eloquent, and can manipulate words captivating his listeners.
Do not be taken in and accept him until you are aware of the degree and scope of what he possesses of knowledge and understanding. As perhaps someone’s words may be few, but possesses true understanding, and perhaps another will have a great deal of speech yet he is actually ignorant to such a degree that he doesn’t actually possess anything of true understanding. Rather he only has the ability to enchant with his speech so that the people are deceived. Yet he puts forth the perception that he is a scholar, that he is someone of true understanding and comprehension, that he is a capable thinker, and so forth. Through such means and ways, he is able to deceive and beguile the people, taking them away from the way of truth. Therefore what is to be given true consideration is not the amount of the speech put forth or that one can extensively discuss a subject. Rather the criterion that is to be given consideration is what that speech contains within it of sound authentic knowledge, what it contains of the established and transmitted principles of Islaam.
As perhaps a short or brief statement which is connected to or has a foundation in the established principles can be of greater benefit than a great deal of speech which simply rambles on, and through hearing you can’t actually receive very much benefit from.
This is the reality which is present in our time; one sees a tremendous amount of speech which only possesses within it a small amount of actual knowledge. We see the presence of many speakers yet few people of true understanding and comprehension.’
Transcribed from : ‘A Valued Gift for the Reader of Comments Upon the Book Sharh Us-Sunnah‘, page 102-103 | Shaykh Saalih Ibn Fawzaan al-Fawzaan (haafidthahullaah)
Post Courtesy: Abu Mariyah Junaid Bin Munwar Bin Ali Al-Hindee
Post Link: http://wp.me/p1VJ3-1ov
[Point 8 of 170] Sharus-Sunnah of Al-Barbaharee Explained by Shaykh Muhammad bin Ramzaan
You can now watch recitation in Al-Masjid Al-Haram, Makkah live in a hopefully safer way (no need to go to YouTube, no links to other videos etc).Go here: http://www.sayingsofthesalaf.net/index.php/watch-makkah-live/
Q&A With Shaykh Ahmad Bazmool
Author: Shaykh Ahmad ibn ‘Umar Baazmool (hafidhahullaah Ta’aala)
Questions posed by Anwar Wright & Abu Yusuf Khaleefah, Translated by Anwar Wright
What is the ruling on benefitting from the books of the scholars which are translated into English, however the translator is not known or he has errors in manhaj?
If the book is a Salafee book, however the translator is unknown or he has errors in manhaj, it is not permissible to benefit from these books, it is not permissible to benefit from these translated books. This is because they take the ruling of the translator.
So if it said that the author of the book is Salafee and the translator, even if he is a hizbee, “he is just a mere translator”; we say the wisdom behind this is that we cannot be sure that this translator will not distort the meanings to coincide with his falsehood. And we have been trialed and have found many translators translating live for some of the Salafi scholars, translating that which is falsehood. It has been related of one Salafi scholar that he was teaching Tawheed and with him was a translator whom he did not know, so he (the scholar) was affirming Tawheed (in the lesson) whilst the translator was affirming shirk, as if it was the words of this scholar until someone let the scholar know what was happening!
So look how these individuals deceive. Then we will give you an example; the people of innovation explain the book of Allaah and the Sunnah of the Messenger of Allaah – salla Allaahu alayhi wa sallam – and with this we do not accept from them. So likewise the translator, if he is in opposition (to the truth) or unknown, we don’t accept from them.
Q&A With Shaykh Ahmad Bazmool
Author: Shaykh Ahmad ibn ‘Umar Baazmool (hafidhahullaah Ta’aala)
Questions posed by Anwar Wright & Abu Yusuf Khaleefah
Translated by Anwar Wright
Published on 5 Jun 2012 by SalafyInk
If a person forbids someone from an evil, the one who is being forbidden from doing this evil says, “You do not know what is in my heart,” or they say “Who are you that you judge me?” So what do you say in regards to this?
In the name of Allaah, all praises are for Allaah, and may peace and salutations be upon the one [Muhammad] sent as a mercy to all of mankind and upon his family and all of his companions.
As to proceed: So before answering this question I would like to mention one thing related to your previous statement when you said: “The noble Shaykh Ahmad ibn ‘Umar Baazmool.” I am – may Allaah reward you – a student of knowledge, and I am not amongst the ranks of the major scholars. However, this is from your good thoughts (concerning me); and related to what was said, I would like that our Salafi brothers in Makkah, America and everywhere else, learn the affair of putting people in their proper places. They should not treat the students of knowledge as if they were on the level of the scholars. So I am a student of knowledge, and I ask Allaah – the Mighty and Majestic – to aid me in answering that which you are asking.
So I say – may Allaah bless you – this person who says this type of thing, we say to him that you are upon error, because the Prophet – salla Allaahu alayhi wa sallam – said:
“Whoever from amongst you sees an evil then let him change it with his hands, if he is unable then with his tongue and if he is unable then with his heart, and that is the lowest of faith.” [Muslim]
The point we are referring to in this hadeeth is the statement of the Prophet – salla Allaahu alayhi wa sallam: “Whoever sees.” So the evil which is seen with the eyes has to be stopped with the hand, and this is if a person has an authority and he has the ability to do so. If he is not able to stop it with his hand, he does it with his tongue. So he should say to the person, “this is an error,” “this is haraam,” “this is in opposition to the truth,” etc. This is the first thing.
The second thing is that the statement of this person “You don’t know what is in my heart,” we say just as Hasan al Basree – rahimahullaah – said:
“Eemaan (faith) is not outer decoration, nor mere hope. Rather it is what settles in the heart and what is affirmed by actions. Whoever spoke good and did righteous actions, it will be accepted from him. But whoever spoke good but did wicked actions, it will not be accepted from him.”
So if you have within you something which is good, but your action is erroneous, it is a must that this error be spoken against.
Then, thirdly, we say to these individuals:
we were not commanded to look into what is in the hearts of the people. We were not commanded to ask the people, is this or that in your heart? However, the actual error that was done is rejected and clarified.
The final matter is that we remind you of the hadeeth of the Prophet – salla Allaahu alayhi wa sallam – in which he said:
“Verily the most detested speech to Allaah, the Mighty and Majestic, is that a man says to another man ‘fear Allaah,’ so the (other) man says: ‘Leave me alone!‘”
[In another narration, he says: "Worry about your own self." Al-Albaanee authenticated it in Silsilatul-Ahaadeethis-Saheehah (2598).]
That which is meant by this statement is that he is asking the person not to disapprove of what he does. So I fear that this statement (mentioned in the question) falls under this hadeeth, thus it will be trying to reject those who command the good and forbid the evil. And it is upon the Muslim who fears Allaah, if an evil that he committed is refuted, that he remembers and takes admonition, and that he leaves this evil, and completely stop.
Published on 3 Apr 2012 by SalafiCentreUK
Question to Shaikh Abdur-Razzaaq Al-Badr:
”How is the elderly person dealt with, if he does not establish the prayer or if he commits some of the (acts) of disobedience?
We know from what has preceded (i.e. in the lecture) that the elderly person has rights due to his old age; the rights of the elderly, even if he is not a Muslim, then how about the one who abandons the prayer completely?
This (person) is a disbeliever due to the saying of the Messenger (‘alayhi salat wasallam): ‘‘the covenant between us and them is the prayer, so whoever abandons it has disbelieved. ” And the ahaadeeth regarding this affair are many.
*[Note: Listener/Reader: The scholars differ with regards to the affair of the person who abandons the Salaah out of laziness, as to whether he is a disbeliever or not; so refer to the different arguments of the scholars on the topic. See the arguments of Shaikh Uthaymeen, Shaikh Bin Baaz, Shaikh Al-Albaanee (rahimahumullaah)]
However, regardless of this (i.e. this elder’s abandonment of the prayer), the rights of the elderly remain; so he is shown kindness and is dealt with in accordance with what such rights necessitates, in winning over his heart, and with the hope that Allaah (Tabaaraka-Wata-Aalaa) will guide him and return him to correctness, especially if he is a father or a near relative, then a person should deal with him in the worldly life with goodness and kindness. In this also is winning over his heart, and perhaps Allaah (Subhaanahu wa ta’ala) will grant him guidance and success.
And we did come across (i.e. in the lecture) the saying of Allaah:
”But if they (both) strive with you to make you join in worship with Me others that of which you have no knowledge, then obey them not, but behave with them in the world kindly.’‘ [Luqmaan: Ayah: 15].
He (Allaah) did not say: disrespect both of them, or cut off the relationship (between you and them), rather He said: ”but behave with them in the world kindly.” So, (you) behave kindly even if he is a disbeliever or polytheist; and even if he is caller to polytheism and disbelief, the father is (still) treated with kindness, also the mother and the close relative; so that this kindness becomes a means to winning over his heart and to draw it close to the truth and goodness.
And if he is from the sinful believers, then also he is to be dealt with in a good way and at the same time give him advise with etiquettes, without raising oneself above him, arrogance or what is similar to that; rather you him advise with etiquettes, gentleness and wise mannerisms, and perhaps Allaah (Tabaaraka-Wata-Aalaa) will bless him with guidance and bestow him steadfastness.
Having Eeman and Befriending Those Who Oppose Allaah and His Messenger Cannot Exist in the same Person (or Jinn)
Bismillaah Al-Hamdulillaah wa salatu wa salaamu ‘ala rasulullaah
Allaah, Subhanahu wa Ta’aala, said:
لاَ تَجِدُ قَوْما ً يُؤْمِنُونَ بِاللَّهِ وَالْيَوْمِ الآخِرِ يُوَادُّونَ مَنْ حَادَّ اللَّهَ وَرَسُولَه ُُ وَلَوْ كَانُوا آبَاءَهُمْ أَوْ أَبْنَاءَهُمْ أَوْ إِخْوَانَهُمْ أَوْ عَشِيرَتَهُمْ أُوْلَائِكَ كَتَبَ فِي قُلُوبِهِمُ الإِيمَانَ وَأَيَّدَهُمْ بِرُوح ٍ مِنْهُ وَيُدْخِلُهُمْ جَنَّات ٍ تَجْرِي مِنْ تَحْتِهَا الأَنْهَارُ خَالِدِينَ فِيهَا رَضِيَ اللَّهُ عَنْهُمْ وَرَضُوا عَنْهُ أُوْلَائِكَ حِزْبُ اللَّهِ أَلاَ إِنَّ حِزْبَ اللَّهِ هُمُ الْمُفْلِحُونَ
You (O Muhammad) will not find any people who believe in Allaah and the Last Day, making friendship with those who oppose Allaah and His Messenger (Muhammad), even though they were their fathers, or their sons, or their brothers, or their kindred (people). For such He has written Faith in their hearts, and strengthened them with Rooh (proofs, light and true guidance) from Himself. And We will admit them to Gardens (Paradise) under which rivers flow, to dwell therein (forever). Allaah is pleased with them, and they with Him. They are the Party of Allaah. Verily, it is the Party of Allaah that will be the successful. (Al-Mujadilah, ayah 22)
The grandson of Muhammad Ibn ‘Abdul-Wahhab (rahimahumullaah), Sulaymaan Ibn ‘Abdullaah Ibn Muhammad Ibn ‘Abdul-Wahhab said:
“Allaah ‘Azza wa Jall said that you shall Not find a person who believes in Allaah and in the hereafter befriending those who oppose Allaah and His Messenger, even if they were the closest people to him, and that is against Eeman and opposite to it since it cannot exist along with Eeman except in the way water and fire coexist (it is impossible).”
[Source:Ad-Durar As-Saniyyah 8/140, via the footnotes of Shaikh Saalih al-Fawzaan's Issues Pertaining to Eeman]
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(1) Hold tightly to the rope of Allaah and the guidance,
And do not be an innovator, so that you might be successful.
(2) And practice your religion based on the Book of Allaah and the Sunan which
have come from the Messenger of Allaah so you will be saved and earn reward.
(3) And say: Not a created thing is the Speech of our great King,
Such was the religious position of the pious ones (before us) which they clearly expressed.
(4) And do not be a person who takes no position on the Quran,
As did the followers of Jahm, and they had been too lax (to take the right position).
(5) And do not say that the Quran is created, meaning: its recitation,
Since the Speech of Allaah, through its recitation, is made clear.
(6) And say: Allaah will make himself visible to the creation, openly,
Just as the full moon is not hard to see, and your Lord (will be seen) more clearly.
(7) And He was not born, nor has He fathered anyone,
Nor is there anything similar to Him, exalted be the Glorified One.
(8) A Jahmee rejects this, however, we have
As a testimony to the truth of what we say – a hadeeth that clarifies it.
(9) Jareer narrated it, from the words of Muhammad,
So say what he said about that, and you will be successful.
(10) And certainly a Jahmee will deny His Right Hand as well,
While both of His Hands are giving out all kinds of bounties.
(11) And say: The Ever-Compelling descends each night,
Without asking how, magnificent is the One God and most worthy of praise.
(12) Down to the lowest heaven, granting bounties from His Grace,
As the gates of the heavens are opened and spread widely.
(13) He says: Is there anyone seeking forgiveness who would like to meet a Forgiver?
Or anyone seeking bounties of goodness and provisions, so he could be given (what he requests)?
(14) A group have reported this whose reports are not to be rejected,
But sadly some have went wrong and did not believe them, marring themselves.
(15) And say: Indeed the best of the people after Muhammad
Were his two deputies of old, and then ‘Uthmaan, according to the most correct position.
(16) And the fourth of them was the best of creation after them,
‘Alee, the companion of goodness, through goodness he was successful.
(17) Those are the people, those who we have no doubt about,
Upon the great camels of Firdows, shining brightly and roaming about.
(18) Sa’eed, Sa’d, Ibn ‘Awf, Talhah,
Aamir of Fihr, and Zubayr the praiseworthy.
(19) And speak with the best terms about the Companions, all of them,
And do not be one who speaks ill of them, pointing out their faults and criticizing,
(20) Since the clear Revelation has spoke of their excellence,
And in (Soorah) al-Fath are verses about the Companions, praising them.
(21) And regarding the pre-ordained Qadr, be convinced, since it is
The pillar that combines many affairs of the Religion, and the Religion encompasses much.
(22) And do not reject, out of ignorance, (belief in) Nakeer and Munkar,
Or the Pool or the Scales, surely you are being advised sincerely.
(23) And say: Allaah, the Great, will remove, from of His Grace,
Out of the Fire, people, burned severely, who will then be tossed
(24) Into the river in Firdows, wherein they will regain life by its water,
Like a seed taken by a flood that comes and wipes things away with its abundant water.
(25) And surely, the Messenger of Allaah will intercede for the creation.
And speak about the punishment of the grave, that it is the truth, made clear.
(26) And do not make takfeer of those who pray, even if they commit sins,
Since all of them commits sins, while the Owner of the Throne forgives graciously.
(27) And do not hold a belief like that of the Khawaarij, for it is
A position held by only those who desire it, and it is destructive and disgraceful.
(28) And do not be a Murji’, one who plays games with his religion,
Surely, the Murji’ is joking about the religion (ie. not taking it seriously).
(29) And say: Eemaan (faith) consists of statements, intentions (i.e. belief of the heart)
And Actions, according to the explicit statement of the Prophet.
(30) And it decreases sometimes, due to disobedience, and sometimes
Because of obedience it grows, and on the Scale it will outweigh (other things).
(31) And keep yourself from the opinions of people and their stances,
Since the stance of the Messenger of Allaah is more befitting and comforting to the chest.
(32) And do not be from those who play games with their religion,
Attacking the people of hadeeth and reviling them.
(33) If you keep the belief contained within this poem all your life, O my companion,
You will be upon goodness, day and night. | <urn:uuid:173cc517-74eb-45aa-8beb-52f0dfe1a05f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://salaf-us-saalih.com/category/youtube/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951849 | 7,208 | 1.664063 | 2 |
Recently, I noticed this quaint backyard in a small town in Madison County. Looking old, yet a bit lonely, with its mature apple tree and a vintage two-car wooden garage, it enticed me to stop and snap a few pictures. Scattered on the ground, dropped from its mature tree, were lots of apples that I could tell had not been sprayed this year.
The gnarled apple tree had lots of bare branches that looked like old grey bones.
Sitting together, the apple tree and garage, reminded me of how backyards looked before plastic swimming pools, large garages, patios, decks, and all other types of outdoor paraphernalia came about.
I let my imagination kick in -- I could easily see my great-grandmother sitting under this tree peeling apples into a large granite dishpan. | <urn:uuid:b02f1a97-3f7c-476b-ae96-6d60ef7cb0da> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://folkwaysnotebook.blogspot.com/2011/09/small-town-backyard.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.972781 | 170 | 1.570313 | 2 |
Guillermo Regino, a senior at Premier High School of North Austin, addressed the members of the Texas Senate Education Committee on April 12. He testified at a hearing on Senate Bill 1872 – a bill aimed at increasing the state’s capacity to recover high school dropouts and to move them towards graduation.
Regino, 19, often known at his school as “Willie,” enrolled in PHS North Austin last year. Prior to enrolling in PHS, he had attended his local traditional public high school but felt discouraged. When he left his traditional school, Regino was still considered a freshman by credits earned even though he had attended a school since 2006. He said he tried to go to another school in North Austin but felt overwhelmed to find too many students, not enough teachers, and long school days.
He dropped out and started working in construction with his brother-in-law to help his family. While looking for other forms of employment, he realized he needed his GED or high school diploma to get hired. Soon after, he enrolled in PHS North Austin.
“I have recovered three years worth of credits in a year and a half,” Regino told the members of the Education Committee. Prior to being accepted in PHS, he was first placed on a waiting list for six months.
Regino continued to point out that there were only a couple of dropout recovery high schools in the Austin area, and they all had waiting lists.
“If more schools like Premier High School were available 10 -15 years ago, there would be less dropouts in Austin,” Regino said, explaining the need for more dropout recovery schools.
Regino was born in Austin and raised by his mother who was a single parent. She attended school in Mexico until the 6th-grade. After moving her family to the United States and because she valued education, she completed her GED while she continued to raise Regino and his two siblings.
“My brother dropped out of school, but these kinds of schools weren’t available in his high school years,” Regino said. He further explained that his older brother completed his GED while he was incarcerated.
Now close to graduation, Regino said he felt proud to be the first high school graduate in his family. | <urn:uuid:5d2cf26b-03f1-47ed-9959-3e163a824f57> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://premierhighschools.com/2011/05/phs-north-austin-student-addresses-texas-senate-education-committee/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.993799 | 488 | 1.820313 | 2 |
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|Sincerity, kindness, and unsentimental wit.
Written by Rachel G
(8/25/2011 1:52 p.m.)
in consequence of the missive, More precious..., penned by gianni
I too am delighted to find so many examples of JA's humour in her letters. She can be wry, ironic, and sometimes very caustic indeed. Her lack of "trite sentimentality" (as you put it) is one of the reasons why I love her work so much.
I find your second quote very telling. Here's the passage in full:-
"I have taken your hint, slight as it was, and have written to Mrs. Knight, and most sincerely do I hope it will not be in vain. I cannot endure the idea of her giving away her own wheel, and have told her no more than the truth, in saying that I could never use it with comfort. I had a great mind to add that, if she persisted in giving it, I would spin nothing with it but a rope to hang myself, but I was afraid of making it appear less serious matter of feeling than it really is."
I infer that Mrs Knight wishes to give her spinning wheel to JA, and that there is some considerable personal significance about that particular wheel which makes JA uncomfortable at the idea of taking it.
We see a flash of JA's propensity for biting humour in "spin nothing but a rope to hang myself". JA uses similar expressions elsewhere in her letters (eg Brabourne XIV and XXVII), and I read them as simply a bit of dramatic overstatement for the sake of a laugh, rather than having any really dark significance.
But JA is aware that her humour can wound and is sincerely tender for Mrs Knight's feelings, so she shares the thought only with her sister, as she recognises that Mr's Knight's offer involves matters of deep feeling.
Here, in one sentence, I find the essence of JA - unsentimental wit combined with sincere kindness and consideration for others' feelings. It cannot have been an easy combination to live with. I suspect that JA leaned to 'edit' herself a good deal in her day-to-day dealings with others, and that her novels and her letters to Cassandra gave her an outlet for her sharp, perceptive intelligence and caustic humour.
Groupread is maintained by Myretta with WebBBS 3.21. | <urn:uuid:30e08a7f-d5b7-47d3-8d97-67371a931451> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.pemberley.com/bin/library/letters6.cgi?read=51363 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970458 | 510 | 1.570313 | 2 |
Мгновенно подписывайтесь на посты с тегами #war, #peace и #history.Зарегистрироваться
“The missile hits, and after the smoke clears there's a crater there and you can see body parts from the people. [A] guy that was running from the rear to front, his left leg had been taken off above the knee, and I watched him bleed out. These guys had no hostile intent. In Montana, everyone has a gun. These guys could have been local people that had to protect themselves. I think we jumped the gun.”—
Former drone operator Brandon Bryant, on his first drone strike.
Bryant quit the drone program after realizing its disregard for life and how numb strikes made him feel, saying he “couldn’t do it anymore.”
War is not fucking cool. Stop glorifying it. There is nothing romantic about people killing each other. There is nothing heroic about bombs and tanks and fighter jets - it all represents money stolen from people, and people’s sons and daughters sent to kill people they’ve never met and never had a problem with, all because the people stealing the money said so. Stop. | <urn:uuid:e701355f-5c33-4f29-b8a1-074d7beb09fe> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.tumblr.com/tagged/war?language=ru_RU | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970819 | 302 | 1.742188 | 2 |
The Community of Disc Golfers and About All Things Disc Golf
I always thought a stable disc was one that flies straight.
I always thought an overstable disc was one that has a tendency to turn left, RHBH.
I always thought an understable disc was one that has a tendency to turn right, RHBH.
I've seen a lot of people throw a disc RHBH that goes hard left, then come up with a comment like, "Man, that thing is super stable!" or "Man, that thing is ultra stable!" or "Man, that thing is extra stable!"
Am I the one that's confused or is it them? If it turns hard left RHBH, shouldn't it be super-, ultra-, extra-OVERstable? Doesn't what they're saying effectively mean that the disc flies super-, ultra-, extra-straight, which isn't true?
Correct. The majority of people do not understand disc stability.
I only disagree that a more stable disc is "more straight". And saying stable when you mean straight is the cause of most people's confusion.
Yeah what Donny Said! Overstable on a RHBH goes left, Understable turns Right and Stable is down the center.
Why is this thread still going? It is obvious that people use conflicting terminology. I will refer to a disc that goes perfectly straight as a stable disc and if someone doesn't like that they just shouldn't discuss discs with me. There is no consensus on this issue.
Mostly because I simply cannot drag myself away from an argument. I'm done now, though.
This is alot like the topic of "what does flippy mean" that was on here a few months back. Just as long as we all know that I'm right, everything is ok ;) | <urn:uuid:efedb2d2-0e97-49cc-876f-7eb9fe15e063> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://discgolfer.ning.com/forum/topics/semantics-stable-vs-overstable?page=4&commentId=1809917%3AComment%3A2508291&x=1 | 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 | 0.971472 | 373 | 1.578125 | 2 |
The subject of the main exhibition is African photography. At the Fries Museum, Noorderlicht presents an overview of the diversity and the quality that exists in contemporary African art, featuring poetic series made by photographers from several countries.
The exhibition aims to provide the viewer with an introduction to photographers that are largely unknown in the Netherlands. These are images of Africa 'from within', the everyday eye of people who live and work in Africa. This is very different from the much better known images made by western journalists and documentary photographers, outsiders whose field of view is mostly restricted to problem situations. This is the first time that a large exhibition on African photography is being curated in the Netherlands. | <urn:uuid:ad014888-d2ba-4396-8924-4b66bc1face5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.noorderlicht.com/en/photofestival/africa-inside/exhibitions/africa-inside/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.978879 | 137 | 1.71875 | 2 |
In 2011, PBS presented America in Primetime, a documentary in four parts about the history of television. Focusing on the evolution of the Independent Woman, the Man of the House, the Misfit and Crusader, each episodes offered a look back at the beginning of mainstream television in the 1950s until today. Blessed with a great variety of popular interviewees, America in Primetime was an ambitious project with names such as Dick Van Dyke, Mary Tyler Moore, Ron Howard, David Lynch and Shonda Rhimes attached to it. Unfortunately however, the series did not live up to its potential and rarely offered controversy about contemporary perception. For years, it’s been in vogue to bash the 50s and idealize the 1960 and 70s, for example, but from the announcement of this PBS production I had expected otherwise.
It’s always easy to look at a bygone era with modern eyes without looking underneath the surface. But no matter how much I am personally tickled by Lucille Ball, the 1950s had more to offer than just I Love Lucy, The Donna Reed Show and Leave it to Beaver. I was surprised, to say the least, when I didn’t hear a mention of Betty White and her already flourishing career and bewildered, like so often, when Mary Richards was called the first single working girl on television. Whatever happened to Connie Brooks and Della Street? After all, not every female character (despite their feminine appeal) was “just” a housewife, a job many (post-)feminists still seem to wrestle with.
Male characters of that era weren’t appraised more adequately either. I mean, Ralph Kramden may have been a prototype for characters like Fred Flintstone or Homer Simpson, but he was already a caricature back in his time and not just a regular guy. Jim Anderson from Father Knows Best, as another popular example, was also more flawed than critics often depict him today. His wholesome attitude and simple answers may have fostered the image of the omnipotent father, but only on the surface – he was wrong too often with his fatherly assessments to call him a picture perfect patriarch.
But America in Primetime doesn’t like to dig deeper and rather creates an odd summary of female liberation (and correlated emasculation of male role models) on TV. Murphy Brown, Sex and the City and Grey’s Anatomy serve as notable examples along with The Good Wife‘s Kalinda Sharma. Positive role models such as The Cosby Show‘s Clair Huxtable, Maggie Seaver from Growing Pains, Designing Women or The Golden Girls don’t even get a mention and I wonder if it’s their grace and domesticity or their love for men that interferes with the desired image of women who favor their careers over everything else.
All in all, America in Primetime – like other documentaries before – celebrates the evolution of television from the simple, archaic days of the 1950s to a supposed golden age of the 2000s (predominantly on pay TV). By celebrating the creation of broken and disturbed characters whose complexity supports the audience’s alleged desire for drama and realism, the program may appeal to anyone who enjoys shows like Nurse Jackie, The Sopranos, Mad Men or Breaking Bad. For anyone who prefers dignity, subtlety and moderation in storytelling, the documentary may draw the wrong conclusions about a bygone era and leave a taste of bias in your mouth. Personally, I was dissatisfied with the fragmented glimpse into TV history and the overwhelming number of present-day TV makers as a primary interview source. But with my fondness for vintage that may not come as a surprise. | <urn:uuid:d53bcf2d-0c4a-43d5-b6a4-aa8a7f3cf1e5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://talkingclassics.wordpress.com/tag/our-miss-brooks/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96399 | 761 | 1.625 | 2 |
by Daniele Giovannucci
As more food industry leaders adopt visible sustainable procurement, private firms weigh the value of their own in-house approach versus partnering with existing public initiatives – even competitiveness guru Michael Porter is talking about it.
A common groan sounded recently when Andrea Illy, the chief executive of the esteemed Italian coffee roaster (Trieste-based illycaffé S.p.A.) announced they were to launch yet another private sustainability certification scheme onto the market. Some in the sustainability community see the move as counter-productive. I have not met Andrea but have had the pleasure of knowing other leaders in the firm and I do not doubt that there are some good intentions behind this but I cannot help but agree with those that think this may hurt farmers, particularly small and poor ones, more than help them.
Coffee farmers face more standards that demand certification (or verification) than any other commodity producers. There are currently eight that are widespread, six public and two private:
Each has its own level of difficulty, depending on a farmer’s starting conditions. Each has its own standards, certification criteria, and procedures. Each has its own costs of learning, adaptation, and inspection. There was talk nearly a decade ago that having four distinct standards was more than necessary when only Organic, Fairtrade, SMBC, and Rainforest Alliance were around. Unlike the later addition of Utz and the 4C, the standards set by a private firm are typically only accepted and remunerated by that firm’s own buyers. If you want to sell to somebody else, the new buyer cannot use the private certifications and is unlikely to offer any remuneration for it.
As a producer, this can force you into a costly bind. Which certification do you seek? What will it cost if you guess wrong? Make no mistake, it is a guess because very few producers have more than an inkling of what the implications of their choices are. In fact, I know only a few who can clearly articulate the differences. To make matters worse, achieving certification, any certification, does not guarantee that your coffee will be purchased.
Until the work of the Committee on Sustainability Assessment (COSA) captures the actual costs and benefits of the many certifications under different conditions, farmers are left to figure it out themselves. It is already clear that some poor choices could easily diminish their sustainability rather than enhance it. But even when farmers are better informed, they will still face risks with these initiatives because each has somewhat different outcomes depending on the application context. In other words, the results can be different from farmer to farmer especially when you have a different agro-ecological zone, farm size, production method, country, etc. Early results from COSA efforts in a number of countries indicate that there is a considerable cost, in both time and capital, for farmers to adopt a new standard and its accompanying certification or verification process.
So why does a notable 76 year-old business undertake to create its own certification? Ernesto Illy, the noted coffee scientist that led the company from a modest regional business in Italy to a globally recognized brand, and a US$ 300 million company, before his recent death was not a big fan of sustainability certifications. He sent me erudite notes on the shortcomings of one or another. He felt that cultivating, processing and harvesting a high quality coffee was basically all that was really needed for sustainability (I hope he would forgive this oversimplification). The rest would take care of itself. Well, we disagreed, but not that much and I always respected him for his candid views and his willingness to discuss; he was a good scientist, always willing to look at facts and data. I find it harder to muster respect for the company’s current move.
Sure, companies need to grow and evolve and I am glad to see Illy more actively considering sustainability issues But does the coffee world need another certification claiming sustainability? It is likely that one or more of the six existing public certifications have adequate sustainability criteria for any occasion since they cover the range of options quite thoroughly. Illy notes that it wants strict quality criteria as well, something not explicit in the public standards. Fair enough. But do you need a certification for that? The buyers always apply quality criteria anyway, and this is somewhat standardized within the firm’s purchasing guidelines already. Why not just widely publish that – so folks in their supply chains know whether they can meet the grade or not? What is the point – if producer sustainability is the objective – of requiring farmers to take on the costs and effort of yet another certification process, particularly when it applies to only one buyer?
Illy notes that this certified coffee will be marketed with a distinct label that they also plan to license to other roasters. I wonder how many competitors would want to use that label. Does anyone really believe that it will become a new public standard to be used by more than one company? Of the firms that have recently moved toward the use of certifications in their purchasing, all of the food industry leaders have all elected to use public, not private, certifications.
Very recently, Mars, one of the world’s largest and most profitable food companies, made announcements about its commitments to public sustainability certifications such as Rainforest Alliance and Utz Certified for both its coffee and chocolate-based brands. Similarly, Kraft Foods, the world’s second-largest food and beverage company, has partnered with Rainforest Alliance for its certification needs. Cadbury, a leading global chocolate and confectionary brand recently announced that its flagship product will be Fairtrade certified. Even Wal-Mart, the world’s largest food retailer – and a leading seller of certified products – has chosen to go with public certifications such as organic, Fairtrade and Rainforest Alliance. Perhaps these firms’ strategic thinkers know something about the value of working with public systems when they want consumers to believe that they have an interest in the public good.
In a paper with Stefano Ponte (Food Policy Journal) we suggest that in this age of global capitalism, public–private partnerships with civic organizations or NGOs provide the normative framework that corporations use for social legitimacy. Leading firms have been researching the issues for years and nearly all elect to support existing public approaches. They go this route not only for the credibility that these offer but also because they realize the burdens that come with managing a certification transparently. Similarly, most pundits in the sustainability arena understand that adding yet another certification only makes a small producer’s life harder.
One could have taken a lesson from the experience of Starbucks, the world’s largest private coffee firm that is using its own certification. They get kudos from consumers, media, and the sustainability community when they increase their purchasing of a public certification such as Fairtrade. As the largest buyer of Fairtrade coffees in the world this recognition is well-deserved. But few give Starbucks credit for getting farmers to meet its private C.A.F.E. Practices standard. And there is certainly plenty of grumbling in the field about it.
This is unfortunate because the investments of Starbucks and Nespresso — the only two firms seriously mounting their own standards — have been substantial. And I believe that leaders in both firms had good intentions when these approaches were designed. Even the ongoing administrative costs alone are a considerable and perhaps unnecessary burden to the firms. Nespresso’s management is already shifting its sustainability focus toward having farmers certified by Rainforest Alliance. The discussion of the value of its C.A.F.E. Practices program has come up within Starbucks as well. When firms take the time to independently measure their real impacts, they can better understand how their sustainability investments could yield higher returns in terms of farmer relations, sustainability, and public credibility. Consumers may trust a corporate claim to quality and the long-term growth of Illy, Nespresso and Starbucks attests to that. Yet it would be foolish to assume that such trust extends to issues of corporate social responsibility. Most consumers have long ago stopped trusting firms’ own claims about their goodness or their commitment to sustainability.
An FAO report on coffee certifications co-authored in 2008 notes that such essentially private standards are seldom credible because they are under the private control of firms that can at any time alter, dilute, or simply not fully use the standard (Chapter 3). Most are formulated for corporate needs perhaps more than for farmer sustainability and give rise to accusations that they are designed by well-off northerners that have little empathy for the producers that supply them in a developing country.
I wonder if there are any credible voices suggesting there ought to be more certification standards. Taking the available lessons, is there a good business case to be made for such a decision? A sustainability case? In fact, after a recent presentation and discussion by noted Harvard Business School professor and competitiveness expert Michael Porter, I would venture to say that the consensus is that having more sustainability standards will make it more difficult for farmers and for firms. So, is this going to be Illy’s contribution to sustainability? I hope not. They have a talented and very creative team and surely they can come up with a bolder and better idea. | <urn:uuid:4623698f-3262-4ddc-b90e-71a0c368dc76> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blog.coffeereview.com/sustainability-and-coffee-causes/certifications-illy/comment-page-1/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.971251 | 1,895 | 1.71875 | 2 |
Published : 2013-01-30 20:35
Updated : 2013-01-30 20:35
MOSCOW (AFP) ― Russia said Wednesday it was pulling out of a decade-old drug control agreement with the United States in the latest sign of a deterioration in ties since President Vladimir Putin’s return to the Kremlin last year.
The Russian government website published a decree from Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev saying Moscow had informed Washington it was withdrawing because the deal “does not address today’s realities and has exhausted its potential.”
Moscow said it lacked the money to fight drugs effectively on its own when it struck the deal in September 2002 at a time of warming relations that followed the September 11, 2001 attacks on the United States.
It added that Washington had “regularly provided ... financial assistance for the implementation of anti-criminal projects” during this time.
The statement implied that Russia ― whose economy grew in the past 10 years on the back of high global energy prices ― was now sufficiently rich to tackle the fight against drugs on its own.
But the decision’s timing suggested that Moscow intended for the move to be interpreted as reprisal for recent U.S. actions against Russia aimed at punishing those responsible for rights abuses.
The announcement came just days after the United States informed Moscow it was quitting a joint commission on civil society in protest at Putin’s record since his return for a third term as president in May.
U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Thomas Melia said at the time that Putin’s restrictions “called into serious question whether maintaining that mechanism (the civil society working group) was either useful or appropriate.”
Putin returned to the Kremlin in May after serving four years as premier in the face of the first concerted swell of protests in the past two decades.
The former KGB spy then quickly enacted legislation making it more difficult for the protest movement to organize and limiting its ties with the West.
But the strongest action came after U.S. President Barack Obama signed legislation freezing the assets and barring the entry of officials implicated in the death in a Moscow prison of the whistle-blowing corporate lawyer Sergei Magnitsky.
Russia responded by banning all U.S. adoption of Russian children -- a highly contentious decision that partially prompted Washington to pull out of the civil society group.
Russia remains an important conduit for the heroin grown in Afghanistan heading for consumers in Europe. It has also suffered through its own drug epidemics in the years since the Soviet Union’s collapse. | <urn:uuid:3cd592b4-a430-406c-bcbd-0dee02b80e1c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://nwww.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20130130001025 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00020-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96129 | 526 | 1.664063 | 2 |
Which way will Armenia tilt?
On February 18, Armenians will cast their ballots for president. Although eight candidates have registered, victory and a new five-year term for incumbent Serzh Sargsyan are a foregone conclusion. Still, this election is not meaningless.
The conduct of this poll is important, as will be Sargsyan's choices after the poll. If the international community gives the election a clean bill of health, it will increase Sargsyan's legitimacy. He will have the opportunity to enact much needed reforms in order to move closer to the West or, perhaps as likely, avoid tough reforms and move Armenia -- already broadly sympathetic to Russia -- further into Moscow.
Upon first winning the presidency in February 2008, Sargsyan faced a legitimacy crisis. Some have claimed that he has used his position and connections -- he was sitting prime minister and had served previously as secretary of the national security council and defense minister -- to rig the election against Levon Ter-Petrossian, a former president. At least ten died in the ensuing protests.
This year, Sargsyan faces little resistance, with Sargsyan's slide towards authoritarianism and Armenia's lack of democratic institutions leaving the opposition fractured and divided. His most formidable opponents -- Ter-Petrossian and wealthy businessman Gagik Tsarukyan, chief of the Prosperous Armenia party -- both declined to run.
That Sargsyan effectively gets a free pass does a disservice to Armenia, which faces formidable obstacles to its development. When Georgian President Mikheil Saakashvili inherited a corrupt and inefficient state in 2004, he stamped out government corruption and reformed Georgia into a Western-leaning economy. On January 31, 2013, the World Bank issued a report, "Fighting Corruption in Public Services: Chronicling Georgia's Reforms," praising Georgia for tackling corruption and noting that Georgia can serve as an example for other countries facing similar challenges.
Armenia will find no such praise. Its government remains corrupt and inefficient. The country was among the worst hit during the 2008-2009 economic crisis, with GDP shrinking by 14 percent in 2009, according to the IMF. Since then, Armenian GDP has grown slowly -- at an average annual rate of approximately 3.5 percent between 2010-2012. In contrast, Georgia grew by an average annual 6.6 percent in the same three years. In 2010, according to official statistics, 35.8 percent of Armenia's population was living below the poverty line -- an increase from 27.6 percent in 2008. And, while neighboring Georgia and Azerbaijan welcome foreign investors, organized crime keeps most foreign investors out of Armenia. The Armenian Diaspora -- who care deeply about Armenia's success -- have long ago concluded that investing in their homeland is a thankless task that will pay dividends neither individually nor for Armenia.
Hundreds of thousands of Armenians now flee the country for better prospects. Younger, more educated Armenians head to the West, while their older, blue-collar compatriots head north to Russia. The Russian government has welcomed these migrants, and has helped place them in areas of Russia facing population decline. While Russia might use these Armenians to mitigate its own demographic problem, the same migration merely exacerbates Armenia's.
Last April, the European Commission estimated that one-third of Armenia's population had emigrated since Armenia's independence in 1991. Visiting Armenia in December 2012, one young Armenian told me that if she or her peers had even small hope that the economy would improve, they would stay. But few see such hope.
Meanwhile, a full sprint into Russia's embrace may compound Armenia's problems. In recent years, Armenia has become Russia's primary foothold in the South Caucasus. Russia's influence in Armenia is vast not only political and economic, but also military and cultural. Armenia depends on Russia for gas; Russia owns Armenia's communication and railway networks, and has extended a lease for a Military Base in Gyumri until 2044.
The Kremlin also hopes to bring Armenia into a Russia-led Customs Union -- a precursor to the so-called Eurasian Union, which Russian president Vladimir Putin hopes will be a counterweight to the European Union.
With aid, however, the West has leverage.
Since 1992, the United States has provided Armenia with approximately $2 billion in development and humanitarian assistance, the highest aid per capita among the former Soviet states. Although the U.S. reduced funding in 2011, when the Millennium Challenge Corporation penalized Armenia for failing to enact political reforms, the European Union compensated with an augmented aid package and is currently negotiating a free trade accord.
It is now up to Armenia to choose which direction it wishes to go: Will it join the West and a community of democracies and liberal economies, or will Sargsyan tilt Armenia more toward a Kremlin-led community of increasingly autocratic former Soviet states. | <urn:uuid:c656da73-e311-43d7-98f5-031b94a35f55> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.kjct8.com/news/Which-way-will-Armenia-tilt/-/163152/18572116/-/view/print/-/qd1xp6z/-/index.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955725 | 995 | 1.804688 | 2 |
Mid GA EMT Saves a Life in Hawaii
"EMTs and paramedics are never really off duty," said Middle Georgia EMT Andrew Werkheiser.
Even when on vacation in Hawaii. Werkheiser was on a family vacation in Oahu in late December, when he noticed a crowd of people surrounding an unconscious man, whose face and lips were blue. That's when Werkheiser sprung into action.
"I noticed he wasn't breathing and I also noticed that he didn't have any pulses so I immediately began CPR," said Werkheiser.
Werkheiser would spend over 10 minutes on his hands and knees pumping into the victims until paramedics arrived, but he wasn't done helping yet.
"I helped them put pads in place with the AED, we shocked him."
Werkheiser said it's something that comes natural to the MGA crew.
"When someone is in need like that, it's something that we have a hard time not stopping and helping," he said.
Once the victim was taken to the hospital, Werkheiser called the local hospitals until he found where the man was being housed and left his contact information to keep updated on the man's status.
The victim is recovering at home in Michigan and since then his family has used the contact information to make contact with Werkheiser. Thanking him for his quick thinking and special training.
"They keep thanking me and that's honestly more than enough."
Werkheiser is planning to make the trip to Michigan to meet with the survivor. He urges everyone to take a CPR class which Mid Georgia Ambulance offers on the third Saturday of every month.
Here's the link to sign up: http://www.midgeorgiaambulance.org/hand-2-heart-cpr | <urn:uuid:98d09c70-0aa5-4540-a436-c385ba25784e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.newscentralga.com/news/local/Mid-GA-EMT-Saves-a-Life-in-Hawaii-188105981.html?m=y | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.980107 | 379 | 1.609375 | 2 |
UNODC Assists Guatemala to Fight Organized Crime
Vienna, 17 March 2010. Today in Guatemala City, President Alvaro Colom of Guatemala and the Executive Director of the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC), Antonio Maria Costa, launched the National Integrated Programme on the Strengthening of the Rule of Law, Security and Justice in Guatemala. The three year programme, worth $US 16 million, is designed to strengthen Guatemala's capacity in the areas of criminal justice, police reform, anti-corruption, firearms control, prison reform, cyber-crime, and human trafficking.
The Programme will be jointly implemented by the government and UNODC, and complement related activities being carried out by the International Commission against Impunity (CICIG) and the Central American Integration System (SICA). Mr. Costa appealed to funding partners to provide the resources needed to implement the full range of activities designed to strengthen security and justice.
"Corruption, poverty and poor criminal justice capacity make Guatemala extremely vulnerable to organized crime", said Mr. Costa. "In turn, crime scares off investors and tourists, deepening the under development that attracts crime. It's time to break this vicious circle before its breaks Guatemala", said Mr. Costa.
Guatemala's geography exacerbates the problem as the country is caught in the cross-fire between the world's biggest producers of coca (the Andean countries) and the world's biggest consumers of cocaine (North America). A growing share of the 200 tons of cocaine that flow north every year is transiting Central America, and sowing a path of death and destruction. The same routes are also being used to traffic irregular migrants and weapons. In 2009, 15.7 tons of cocaine were seized, including 10 tons found on a mini-submarine off the coast.
The lucrative drugs trade, estimated to be worth twice Guatemala's GDP, is a major source of corruption, it undermines the rule of law, and threatens security. Drugs are also a source of revenue for youth gangs ( maras). The police, drug enforcement agents, and senior officials are coerced by the bullet and the bribe. Some provinces along key trafficking routes have the highest murder rates in the world (around 100 murders per 100,000 inhabitants).
Mr. Costa announced that UNODC will establish a Centre of Excellence on Organized Crime in Guatemala City. The Centre will support the development of applied research, data collection and analysis on crime trends, and provide training to national and regional authorities on counter-acting organized crime. It will be part of a regional network of Centres of Excellence including on: urban crime prevention (in El Salvador); maritime security (in Panama); and drug demand reduction and prison reform (in the Dominican Republic).
As a first symbolic step in the implementation of the national anti-crime programme in Guatemala, Mr. Costa and President Colom presided over the destruction of over 6,000 illegal firearms. According to government estimates, there are around 400,000 registered weapons in the country. It is estimated that there are 1.6 million illegal weapons in circulation - more than one gun for every ten inhabitants. Almost 80 percent of homicides in Guatemala are committed with firearms. In 2009, there were more than 5,300 homicides. A high number of women (722) and children (591) were among the victims. "Destroying these guns can reduce violent crime in Guatemala, but there are plenty more swords to turn into ploughshares", said Mr. Costa.
Images for broadcasters will be available on 18 March 2010 at 15:00 GMT on the following links:
* *** *
For further information, please contact:
Spokesman and Speechwriter, UNODC
Mobile: (+43-699) 1459-5629 | <urn:uuid:fa4be21b-5267-4790-b25d-25997804395f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.unodc.org/unodc/en/press/releases/2010/March/unodc-assists-guatemala-to-fight-organized-crime.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.931271 | 769 | 1.710938 | 2 |
Visitors to Ushaw College walking around the grounds soon come across the derelict junior seminary building. It was completed in 1859 to the design of Edward Welby Pugin. In my time as a student it was used for youth employment scheme. It now stands empty. I once had the opportunity of visiting the chapel. I can`t remember how but I stumbled across a site which has pictures of the interior. It is so sad to see the buildings in this state. Pictures courtesy of 28Days Later urban exploration site where more can be found. | <urn:uuid:7e770f63-9b46-4164-8665-f82d0f273586> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://forestmurmurs.blogspot.com/2010/07/ushaw-decays.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.965038 | 112 | 1.5625 | 2 |
In Philip K. Dick's novel 'Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep' there are key aspects of the plot of the novel that are completely excluded from Blade Runner, including:
That animals have almost died out, and people keep one or more animals as pets, including farm animals. This feeds into the elements of empathy and the Voigt Kampff test.
That many people in the world follow a technological religion - Mercerism - where people commune with an enigmatic figure through a virtual reality device called an 'empathy box'.
That a shadow Police force exists in L.A. almost entirely staffed by replicants, and that they use an entirely different test for human/android. A blade runner from that outfit directly wonders which one of them (Deckard or himself) are real.
In the novel, LA and indeed most of the planet is now vastly underpopulated, which is another reason why people use empathy boxes and pets to make themselves feel part of a community. This is hinted in the movie in the scenes where J.F.Sebastian lives in a deserted condo, but many of the street scenes and bars are very crowded.
Why did the writers and Ridley Scott exclude these aspects of the original source material, despite them being core to the plot of the novel. | <urn:uuid:09d027d0-a767-4c00-96f9-13ba66f0a05e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://movies.stackexchange.com/questions/2719/why-did-blade-runner-deviate-from-the-source-novel-so-significantly/3225 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961692 | 268 | 1.773438 | 2 |
|Plot||Snuffy's Invisible, part 2|
|Air date||April 22, 2004|
| || My Favorite Sesame Street Moments: Maria Torres|
Torres speaks about the diversity on Sesame Street inspiring her as an aspiring dancer and choreographer. A clip of Celia Cruz and Big Bird is shown.
| ||Elmo welcomes the viewers to Sesame Street as he rides on Snuffy, who is still invisible from last episode. Big Bird says that they are going to the Mail It Shop to see if the magic ukulele is fix so that Snuffy can be visible again. When they arrived and ask Maria, she says that the ukulele isn’t back from being fixed.|
| ||Maria gives Tiny Tim’s Ukulele Repair a call and Miss Vicki answers the phone. Maria asks her if Snuffy’s ukulele has been fixed, but Vicki replies that it needs a Super-Molecular-Spanader and she can’t find it. When she does find it, she will let Maria know. Maria tells Snuffy the bad news and replies that she needs to get back to work.|
| ||To passed the time, Elmo suggested that they can sing the Alphabet song. Snuffy excitedly couldn’t wait to sing because he loves the alphabet, but then he wonders if an invisible Snuffleupaguse could sing the song? Big Bird suggested they find out and they all sing the song. After they sang, they realized he can sing the song. At that moment, Elmo's Mom calls Elmo that they are going to the library now. Snuffy helps Elmo get off him by having Elmo slide down his back. As Elmo goes off, Big Bird suggests that they go back to the Mail-It shop to see the ukulele has been fixed.|
| || ||
When they learned that the ukulele is still not fixed, Snuffy wonders how he looks like invisible. He asked Maria for a mirror and she brings him one that Alice was going to send to Wonderland. After looking through the mirror and not seeing himself, Snuffy didn’t like being invisible. At that moment, the phone rings. It was Miss Vicki with some bad news. She cannot find a Super-Molecular-Spinator and tells her she cannot fix the ukulele. When Maria tells Big Bird and Snuffy the bad news, they realized that Snuffy would be invisible forever. Maria tells them not to worry while she goes check the internet for a solution.
| ||Snuffy becomes sad and he and Big Bird starts to sing, “Forever you and me.” Big Bird assures Snuffy that they are still best friends, no matter if Snuffy is invisible forever.|
| || ||
Just then, the phone rings and Maria answers it. It was Miss Vicki and she told Maria that she found a Super-Molecular-Spinator and that the ukulele is delivered right now. After the Tiny Tim's Uke Repair delivery man gives Maria the fixed ukulele, Snuffy plays it again and is now visible. After that, Snuffy says he doesn’t want to be invisible again and gives Maria the ukulele. Then Big Bird and Snuffy go back to their game of tag.
| || ||At that moment, Bob comes out of his apartment and notices the ukulele. He plays it and becomes invisible, but he plays it again and becomes uninvisible. Not knowing the magic of the ukulele, he comments that it’s a nice ukulele and goes off.|
| || Cookie Monster sings “What is Friend?, over scenes of a kid playing with his friend. |
(EKA: Episode 3886)
| || Bobby's dog narrates why Bobby is sad.|
(EKA: Episode 3540)
| || The Letter of the Day: O|
Prairie Dawn assures Cookie Monster that the letter O is not a cookie and does her best to intervene, but he eats it anyway as a means of "making sure." Oh!
| || Soul O |
(EKA: Episode 3688)
| || The letter O is in the house tonight! A man break-dances around the letter O.|
(First: Episode 4030)
| || || Journey To Ernie: Beach|
Big Bird searches for Ernie at the beach.
(EKA: Episode 4039)
| || Ernie and Bert: Bert is reading a book about air, and tells Ernie that air moves things. Ernie decides to verify that with his electric fan, which blows Bert's book away - so that Bert can play baseball with Ernie.|
(EKA: Episode 3695)
| || || Global Grover: G'day! Grover returns from Australia. In his film, Emily and her family fulfill the role of wildlife rescue volunteers.|
Afterwards, Grover looks for an animal he can assist and rescue. All the animals rebuff him, however, and he collapses from frustration. Soon, he finds himself the one being rescued!
| || || Global Thingy|
The globe is making bread for himself. When his bird pal looks at it hungrily, the globe gives it to him. When more of the globe’s friends come back hungrily for the bread, the globe teaches them how to make the bread so that there is enough bread for all of them to have.
| || Erykah Badu introduces herself to Elmo, Baby Bear, Zoe and Rosita, who are hesitant to join her at first, but they end up singing "We're All Friends."|
(EKA: Episode 3712)
| ||Crayons play together.|
(EKA: Episode 3105)
| || The Number of The Day: 14|
The number 14 emerges from a cannon after The Count learns that it is the number of the day.
(First: Episode 3988)
| ||Traction Jackson makes 14 baskets.|
| || Kid mural painting #14|
(EKA: Episode 3676)
| || Elmo's World: Getting Dressed|
(EKA: Episode 4027)
| || The Adventures of Trash Gordon:|
Planet Oink: Trash is bothered by a gang of oinking pigs, until he puts on his earmuffs.
|Previous episode:||Next episode:|
|Episode 4069||Episode 4071| | <urn:uuid:4c16f62a-051c-4204-8956-4381e3c67b9a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://muppet.wikia.com/wiki/Episode_4070?diff=prev&oldid=652432 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.944133 | 1,387 | 1.617188 | 2 |
A Perfect Day for Bananafish Section I (Muriel in the Hotel) Summary
At a hotel filled with New York advertising men, a young woman in room 507 has to wait over two hours to get a phone call through. (This is the 1940s.) While she waits, she reads a magazine article called "Sex is Fun–or Hell," and takes care of some trivial matters (like painting her nails).
When the phone finally rings, she waits to finish painting her nails before picking it up: "She looked as if her phone had been ringing continually since she reached puberty" (1.2).
Finally, the operator puts her through to her mother, whom she had been trying to reach. We find out that the girl's name is Muriel, and that her mother is of the over-protective, domineering type.
The conversation reveals that Muriel has just arrived in Florida for a vacation with her husband Seymour. It becomes clear that Seymour is not well, mentally, and that Muriel's mother disapproves of him.
She asks if Seymour tried any of that funny business with the trees while he drove; Muriel assures her that he drove just fine, and asks if Daddy fixed the car.
Laughing, Muriel reveals that Seymour has a nickname for her: "Miss Spiritual Tramp of 1948."
Muriel asks if she left a book of German poetry behind, given to her by Seymour. She explains that Seymour called this particular writer "the only great poet of our century" and told her she should learn German to read him (1.42).
Muriel's mother goes back to actively disapproving of Seymour. She says that Muriel's father talked to Dr. Sivetski (probably a psychiatrist) about all the strange things Seymour has done lately (like that business with the trees, that business with the window, the horrible things he said to Muriel's grandmother about dying, etc.).
And Dr. Sivetski thinks that Seymour was released too soon from the Army hospital (where we gather he was being treated for mental problems). They all fear he may lose control of himself completely.
Muriel responds cavalierly. There is a therapist at the hotel, she says. She can't remember his name or anything, but he's "supposed to be very good" (1.56). She's clearly not as worried about Seymour as is her mother, and she starts complaining about the terrible sunburn she's gotten.
Her mother brings the conversation back to the therapist at the hotel. Muriel gabs about his wife, whom she saw last night wearing an unflattering dress. She (the therapist's wife) kept asking if Seymour was related to Suzanne Glass.
The small talk continues. The two women discuss fashion and the hotel in which Muriel and Seymour are staying.
Muriel's mother keeps asking her if she's all right, if she wants to come home, if she feels unsafe, and if she wants to stay alone for a while instead of with Seymour. Muriel insists that she's fine. Her mother laments that Muriel waited for Seymour all through the war so faithfully.
Muriel tries to end the conversation; Seymour might come in from the beach any minute, she says. Her mother worries that he's out there on the beach unsupervised, and she hopes that he will behave himself.
Muriel says he's fine; he won't even take his bathrobe off – because he doesn't want people to see his tattoo, his says. Muriel then admits that he has no tattoo.
After promising to call if anything goes wrong, Muriel finally gets off the phone. | <urn:uuid:7995070f-de9d-4381-bef9-bce6b45e2ce8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.shmoop.com/perfect-day-for-bananafish/section-1-summary.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.982183 | 759 | 1.796875 | 2 |
NY1 For You: SI Residents Say Marsh Continues To Serve As Debris Dump In Sandy Aftermath
Staten Island homeowners say an area of marsh that was once a peaceful wildlife sanctuary and has turned into a dump covered with debris from Hurricane Sandy continues to cause a whole host of issues for the neighborhood, more than one month after an NY1 For You report. NY1's Susan Jhun filed the following NY1 For You report.
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More than a month ago, NY1 For You told viewers about a littered lot, once home to thriving wildlife, that neighbors say became a breeding ground for pests when a ton of trash was brought in from the surge of Hurricane Sandy and was never cleaned up.
"Prior to Hurricane Sandy, this was basically a refuge," said homeowner Paul Bosco. "You had the reeds and you had all natural wildlife. And since Hurricane Sandy, it's like a dumping ground. The wildlife has left because there's nothing there for them, and nobody's coming in here to clean this. So what it's turning into, it's turning into an infestation."
"The rodents are terrible," said homeowner Theresa Connor. "There's so much garbage in the wetlands that the surge brought in that it has to be cleaned."
Another concern for residents is the lack of drainage in the wetlands, which they believe is caused by all of the debris. It brings the threat of more flooding and, as the weather gets warmer, standing water and mosquitoes.
Back in January, NY1 For You tried but was unable to contact the owner of the private property. NY1 For You also called the New York City Office of Emergency Management and a spokesman said they were looking into the situation.
Now, several weeks later, the situation is the same. NY1 called OEM to find out what's going on, and a spokesman told us inspectors were sent to the location and determined that the debris on the wetlands does not present a health and safety hazard. He went on to say that because it's private property, the city won't clean it, which puts neighbors at a loss as to how to deal with the situation.
NY1 For You is continuing to try and reach the owner of the property and will keep you updated. | <urn:uuid:a6084500-1187-4014-97cf-1e497db7c824> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ny1.com/content/features/ny1_for_you/178214/ny1-for-you--si-residents-say-marsh-continues-to-serve-as-debris-dump-in-sandy-aftermath | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.980955 | 488 | 1.679688 | 2 |
I spent a little time chatting with an MIT economics professor, who has noted that the administration’s economic policy is now evident–it entails using Professor Harold Hill’s Think Method. In short, if you believe that the economy is improving, then it will. Submitted as evidence, he noted, is the consumer confidence index. this is a strange devise by which people are asked if they are feeling confident enough in the economy to go spending, and then the number of people who say “yes” somehow are expected to indicate a general mood of the economy. The problem with this index is that it doesn’t account for mass delusion and the madness of crowds. As the Professor was pointing out, the people who feel that they want to go out and shop, and who are certain that jobs are on the way, may not be reacting to reasonable indices, but rather to a sense of euphoria unrelated to the economy. If 53% of the people feel like going out to shop, it may reflect the same 53% who voted for the administration, and the surge of confidence may be based upon a deluded sense that the administration has a plan to make things better, and that jobs will magically appear as a result of an election. the problem is, that this 53% tends not to be the people who generate economic activity. So if 47% of Americans are down on the economy, and those are the 47% who create the jobs, and create the economic factors for recovery, no amount of “confidence” amongst consumers has any meaning whatsoever. But it is a great idea if all else fails–let’s just think jobs, and maybe they will appear. | <urn:uuid:98c6ed6b-6beb-4d4c-8054-fcf92ed681bf> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ncnewspress.com/article/20121127/BLOGS/311279987 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966013 | 344 | 1.765625 | 2 |
James Bartholomew Gowen
Brigadier General, United States Army
up in New York City, James Bartholomew Gowen knew as a child he wanted
to attend West Point. He entered the class of 1898 at the age of 21 and,
being older than most of his classmates, was allowed to attend Catholic
mass without parental permission.
“Jimmy” participated in the war with Spain, serving in both Cuba and the Philippine Insurrection.
During World War I he fought on both French and British fronts and received the Purple Heart.
Gowen taught at and attended the Army War College and commanded the 29th Infantry from 1925 to 1927. He was promoted to Brigadier General in 1929 and was the Commanding General of the 1st and 11th Field Artillery Brigades as well as the 21st Infantry Brigade.
General Gowen retired in 1936. He died on 9 August 1958 at Walter Reed Army Hospital at age 85.
GOWEN, JAMES B
GOWEN, HELENE B WIDOW OF JAMES BARTHOLOW
Posted: 7 September 2006 Updated: 24 September 2006 Updated: 18 October 2006 | <urn:uuid:7e9113ff-047e-4e4a-a7c9-b8e4e3043da2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/jbgowen.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973253 | 239 | 1.742188 | 2 |
In its coverage of what are assumed to be the first airline carbon surcharges, the international press has been quoting “industry watchers” and “analysts” who apparently believe that ticket prices may rise by up to $90 per seat on a typical long-haul flight under Europe’s new carbon scheme.
How credible are these claims? And if they are true, why is Delta Airlines apparently only hedging itself against a maximum of $3 per ticket of costs? Delta has not officially linked a $3 fee announced on Jan. 2 to Europe’s carbon scheme which started the day before.
At $3, Delta’s surcharge does not look unreasonable, given that the price at the exchange of carbon allowances isn’t the end of the story when an airline covers its exposure under the Emissions Trading System (ETS).
Airlines have had a host of costs associated with monitoring and measuring in the run-up to the scheme. On March 31, airlines will have to report their emissions for 2011, for example. Software has been purchased. In some cases, entire desks of compliance and carbon trading expertise have been hired.
Even an airline attempting to deal as deftly as it can with the regulations, faces fees for over-the-counter purchases of carbon allowances from banks, for example, or for carbon exchange fees. The ETS implies a higher holding of euros for many airlines, and that implies an added element of foreign exchange hedging, with its own associated broking and OTC fees. Added to that, carbon prices have dropped recently and the allowances may have been bought at the higher earlier price.
According to a spokesman for the Aviation Environment Federation, it has “nothing against airlines imposing a surcharge that includes a reflection of their administration costs for participating in the carbon trading system.”
Airlines for America has put the cost of complying with the ETS between 2012 and 2020 at $3.1 billion. This is a difficult number to unravel. But when Delta’s surcharge was reported by Reuters journalists yesterday — a story that instantly went global — it was accompanied by this, now massively disseminated, forecast.
“Some industry watchers predict airfares between the United States and Europe could rise $50 to $90 as airlines attempt to pass along the expense.”
In OPIS’s own analysis, Delta’s team is much closer to the money than the un- named observers above.
On Wednesday, Jan. 4, the December 2012 EU Allowance carbon futures contract settled at €6.57/mt ($8.49) and the December 2012 Certified Emissions Reduction future ended at €3.83/mt ($4.95/mt).
Using the above numbers, an aircraft carrying 300 passengers and using 50 metric tons of jet fuel on a long-haul flight would need to pay $1,337 to meet the cost of carbon locked in as December 2012 EU allowances. If the airline were to receive no free allowances, then the implied cost on the flight would be $4.46 per passenger.
However, most airlines will receive the majority of their allowances for free. With a 65% free allocation, the cost of carbon for the flight falls to $1.56 per passenger.
As for that $90/ticket estimate, until 2020 airlines will continue to receive a large part of the allowances needed to meet their 2005 historic emissions for free. If the free proportion of a growing airline’s emissions fell from, say, 65% today, to just 30% in 2020, then for that price-hike to be accurate, carbon prices would need to soar.
A $90/ticket carbon surcharge in 2020 would imply a carbon price of $245/mt, and that assumes airlines achieve no improvements in fuel economy and that biofuels flop.
So what do Reuters’ own carbon analysts say about the price of carbon in 2020? Its respected Point Carbon team says that in 2018-2020 it expects carbon prices, which have lost half their value in the last year, to reach a relatively meager 16 euros ($20)/mt.
Rather than a $90/mt surcharge, that suggests that one of perhaps $3.80/ ticket, excluding administration charges, rounded up to $5, might be more appropriate in 2020.
The price for clean jet fuel, as assessed by OPIS on Wednesday, stood at $1,039.51/mt for Rotterdam jet fuel in barges on Wednesday. | <urn:uuid:168d8a3e-20fe-4876-87cc-fe4f78845164> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://cleanjet.opisnet.com/archives/636 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961487 | 935 | 1.84375 | 2 |
Finland, Denmark, Germany and Sweden have successfully reformed their labour markets in the 2000s
In the 2000s, Finland, Denmark, Germany and Sweden have waged an active labour market policy. They have continuously reformed their labour markets in order to balance supply and demand. All four countries have succeeded fairly well in this demanding task, at least when comparing their achievements with other EU Member States. In these four countries employment rates are higher and unemployment rates lower than in EU Member States on average.A new study*, commissioned and published by the Ministry of Employment and the Economy in Finland (MEE), analyses labour market reforms in these four countries from 2000 to 2010.
The findings and conclusions of the 106-page study are summarized by the authors as follows.
"In Denmark, especially innovative is the combination of broad activation policy, relatively generous unemployment benefits and loose employment protection regulation, known as the Danish flexicurity model. Denmark has been especially successful in integration of young people, the general employment rate is high and the labour market dynamic."
"Germany has experienced a continuum of systematic reforming. Germany has, due to the broad reforms, improved the overall labour market performance."
"Fostering the long-term labour supply and effective integration of the difficult groups of people to the labour market has been emphasised in Sweden. In Sweden the general and elderly employment rates are high and the labour market dynamic."
"The Finnish transition security and education on ones own initiative with unemployment benefits can be considered as innovative reforms. Finland has succeeded in improving the employment of the elderly and also the female employment rate is high."
*Study indicates that long-term approach is needed on labour market reforms MEE 10.5.2012
Helsinki 21.5.2012 - Juhani Artto | <urn:uuid:f601532d-99e5-42d9-830c-9de8f72932d2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.akava.fi/en/current_issues/finland_denmark_germany_and_sweden_have_successfully_reformed_their_labour_markets_in_the_2000s.html?fontsize=0.9 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.95817 | 360 | 1.796875 | 2 |
CEO, African Aviation, Nick Fadugba
In spite of the hiccups associated with aviation development in Africa, experts have designated the continent as the fastest growing air transport market in the world, as the region beckons with emerging economic growth.
Aviation experts who met at Addis Ababa, Ethiopia on Tuesday at the 22nd Annual African Aviation MRO Supplies and Stakeholders Conference organised by CEO of African Aviation and former Secretary General of Africa Airlines Association (AFRAA), Nick Fadugba, acknowledged that Africa held irresistible attraction in air transport but lamented that Africans were not benefitting from this bourgeoning market due to poorly established airlines.
Managing Partner of Ernst and Young, Dr. Zemedeneh Negatu, reeled out gory facts about airlines operation in the content, disclosing that about 95 per cent of airlines established some years ago in the region are either moribund or have become extinct.
He noted that the African airlines’ share of the global market was paltry four per cent.
Negatu therefore suggested that the only way out of the low performance and profitability of African airlines was for them to go into merger and have economy of scale, remain competitive and also deploy higher operational fund.
He noted that combined resources of Africa’s three leading airlines of Ethiopian Airlines, Kenya Airways and South African Airways was just a third of Emirates Airlines, urging African airlines to de-emphasise the ownership syndrome and all the ego associated with it and go into merger as quickly as possible, stressing that that is the only way they would survive and grow.
“Merger is the way to go in present day aviation development. Over 95 per cent of African airlines are distressed. It is impossible for any airline to go it alone. Look at the two major airlines in the US and the world, American Airlines and United Airlines merging for the purposes of survival.
“The combination of SAA, Ethiopian and Kenyan Airways is just one-third of Emirates and these are the biggest airlines in Africa. They’re small compared to competition. Ownership is irrelevant, what is important is partnership and collaboration,” Negatu said.
Also, Dr John Tambi of NEPAD said that since aviation remained a major contributor to Africa’s GDP, creating direct and indirect employment of over six million, governments should harness the sector’s potential effectively.
“Transport cost increases the price of African goods by 75 per cent and Africa still lacks the necessary infrastructure to ensure rapid and radical economic growth and development,” he said, blaming African governments for neglecting the sector over time.
Tambi remarked that issues of safety and security in African aviation sector could only be guaranteed through efforts by governments to encourage establishment of Maintenance, Repair and Overhaul (MRO), centres across the continent.
According to him, African airlines were spending a huge chunk of their revenue on aircraft maintenance overseas that increases their cost of operation and limits their capacity to compete with non-African airlines.
Fadugba in his opening speech at the conference said that African governments would assist the airlines in the continent if they invested in MRO facilities, lamenting the huge resources the airlines spend on overseas maintenance checks, which also takes time, thus making the airlines to lose huge revenue.
He particularly urged the Federal Government to ensure that MRO centres were set up in the country to reduce the burden of domestic airlines.
Ethiopia’s Minister of Transport, Ato Diriba Kuma, appealed to other governments in Africa to emulate his country’s example in having viable MRO centres and aviation training schools to assist their airlines and promote economic growth in the continent. | <urn:uuid:e536b361-7a20-400a-97eb-1767f7aa4a14> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.thisdaylive.com/articles/fadugba-africa-world-8217-s-fastest-growing-air-transport-market/140880/ | 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 | 0.955646 | 761 | 1.539063 | 2 |
Back to Main Page / Back to List of Rules
Rule 10. Attorney of Record
An attorney of record is one who has appeared in the case, as evidenced by his name subscribed to the proceedings or to some agreement of the parties filed in the case; and he shall be considered to have continued as such attorney to the end of the suit in the trial court, unless there is something appearing to the contrary in the record.
Source: Texas Rule 46 (for District and Count Courts), unchanged.
Oct. 29, 1940, eff. Sept. 1, 1941.
July 15, 1987, eff. Jan. 1, 1988
April 24,1990, eff. Sept.1, 1990 | <urn:uuid:10252d6e-c746-4cca-8b96-51a83a3f754d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.stcl.edu/library/TexasRulesProject/rule101941.htm | 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 | 0.975214 | 142 | 1.773438 | 2 |
News In Brief
Disarmament group urges freeze on deploymentsSkip to next paragraph
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The Independent Commission on Disarmament and Security Issues, a panel which includes Soviet and American experts, urged the two superpowers Sunday to freeze deployment of nuclear weapons for one year.
Olof Palme, Swedish prime minister and chairman of the group, described the suggestion as ''remarkable, at a time when international negotiations are breaking down.''
Former British Prime Minister Edward Heath blocked an attempt to issue the proposal as a joint conclusion of Palme's group and a commission chaired by former West German Chancellor Willy Brandt.
''The Palme commission was playing entirely into Soviet hands,'' Heath said. Heath told reporters later that Georgi Arbatov, a member of the Soviet Communist Party Central Committee, had originally proposed a freeze on research, production, and deployment of all nuclear weapons for one year. | <urn:uuid:d3273ab0-232a-4445-bdd7-a2d250634624> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.csmonitor.com/1984/0123/012340.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958514 | 186 | 1.734375 | 2 |
This clip has been making the rounds. Watch it if you must. But note that I'm not intent on making unkind jokes.
Here's how I transcribed the clip--leaving out all the 'um's 'er's and 'uh's.
Aimee Teegarden: Recent polls have shown a fifth of Americans can't locate the U.S. on a world map. Why do you think this is?
Lauren Caitlin Upton: I personally believe that U.S. Americans are unable to do so because some people out there in our nation don't have maps and I believe that our education--like such as in South Africa and the Iraq everywhere--like such as--and I believe that they should (our education over here in the us) should help the U.S....or should help South Africa and should help the Iraq and the Asian countries so we will be able to build up our future for our...
Issue #1: Its disturbing to see the questioner given a name while Lauren Caitlin Upton is simply "South Carolina." She has an identity other than her home state. This is just one of the problems I have with pageants.
Issue #2: Or rather the non-issue here is intelligence. This is probably all about nerves and a temporary collapse in fluency. I've been there. We've all been there. Some of these disfluencies are clearly more than a simple stammer--there's evidence of extreme emotion affecting her speech. Repeating "like such as" is the type of halt that comes from a profound confusion regarding such simple phrases as "such as" and "like so" or "like such." Probably temporary.
My disfluencies are commonly the repetition of a frozen murmur like "and uh..." or "but uh..." or "and so..." The phrases usually end in a meaningless extension. The mumbly uhhh... or a word like "so" that often leads into an unstated implication. Something like "I'm...uh...really hungry. Uh...so..." But she ends the phrase "like such as" with a clear sense of the completed thought. Just because it's fresh in her memory it becomes her tie-over phrase even tho it doesn't work.
Her confusion reminds me of the odd responses I've often uttered when nervous and confused and anxiously anticipating the importance of a specific appropriate response. Many many years ago I took a phone call from a pretty young lady and I expected she was going to say she missed me. She opened with "How are you?" and I responded with "Good. Me too!" She said "What?" and I shot back with "Yeah...I know!"
With enough charity of interpretation her thoughts might reasonably be paraphrased as "The educational system here in the US has gaps just like those that exist in other countries. Remedying these gaps would help not only the US but would allow us in turn to help other countries."
Say what you will about about clichés and simplistic arguments. But if she had used those words to express the same ideas no one would be saying anything about Lauren's intelligence. | <urn:uuid:4abbc441-f496-4fca-ba6e-2e0bea42c2b4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://wishydig.blogspot.com/2007/08/you-should-have-heard-it-before-i-said.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967602 | 646 | 1.640625 | 2 |
I just found this message from Upasaka Culadasa
in the 'jhana insight' yahoo! group from 2009
, and it's absolutely brilliant and relevant to the original topic of this discussion:Matheesha writes: Would you be able to expand upon
1) how a magga-phala moment can be identified
2) how a sotapanna has changed (you briefly note this above) Culadasa:
...your second question involves the changes that subsequently take place in a sotapanna, I want to take this opportunity to share with you some questions I have with regard to the relationship between magga-phala and sotapanna. I assume that for the most part what we are talking about here are magga-phala experiences that are the culmination of an extensive period of intense practice according to one of the traditional Buddhist paths to Awakening, and as such, the individual becomes a Sotapanna following the magga-phala event. But there are two questions I want to raise here. First, are magga-phala events always and exclusively the result of Buddhist practices? And second, does an individual always become a Sotapanna following a magga-phala event? I have come to think that experiences identical to what we call magga-phala can and sometimes do occur in consequence of non-Buddhist methods of training; that they can spontaneously occur without any formal training at all as a result of intense periods of profound suffering, compassion, or devotion for example; and further, that it can even happen unexpectedly with no apparent cause. I am sure not everyone agrees with me on this, but please consider it for the moment as a hypothesis. I have also become convinced that in order for a magga-phala experience to constitute stream entry, it is essential that the experience saturate to the very core of the yogi’s mind, and that requires either or both of a prolonged abiding in phala and a frequent repetition of the phala experience in order to make a sufficiently lasting imprint on the mind. If this doesn’t happen, the ‘magga-phala’ event becomes a one-time, memorable, peak experience that may perhaps permanently change the person in certain ways, but without irrevocably setting them on a path to eventual full Enlightenment.
It would seem from the scriptures that, once knowledge has replaced ignorance through direct experience, an irreversible change has been rendered such that even if death follows immediately after magga-phala, full Enlightenment is assured in a future rebirth. I don’t know, and so I can’t speak to that, but experience and observation tell me that the fruit of the original magga-phala experience must be firmly established and carefully nurtured through repetition if it is not to become smothered over time, and if true Stream Entry is to occur. Any habitual patterns of egocentric behavior and thinking that were not destroyed prior to magga-phala will reassert themselves afterwards whenever the right conditions are present, and so the work of the Stream Entrant is to apply Path Knowledge to their recognition and eradication. Desire and aversion are still present, and the Stream Entrant must therefore apply his/her understanding of sunnata and annata to their attenuation. This is where the ‘saturation of the mind’ with the experience of phala comes in. The advantage of traditional Buddhist trainings is that they are systematic and results are repeatable, therefore the phala experience can be achieved again and again, and if the yogi is trained in Samatha, even the initial experience can last long enough to make a very deep imprint on the psyche.
Another important advantage the Buddhist yogi has is in the nature of the conceptual formations by which s/he will understand and interpret his/her experience, due to the training that led up to it. S/He will be more inclined to focus on the emptiness of perceived phenomena rather than spending time reflecting and conceptualizing in search of the ‘absolute’ and the ‘ultimate’ within the experience; to reflect on the direct experience of the absence of any inherent sense of self, rather than projecting a new self-identification upon reflections of the experience; and to be mindful of the unsatisfactoriness and suffering of all conditioned states, rather than dwelling on the desirability of the bliss of Nibbana. I think this is essential for full Stream Entry as opposed to just dallying in the eddies at the edge of the Stream.
If I am correct in thinking that some of these experiences occurring outside of the Buddhist paradigm are in fact magga-phala, then it seems possible that magga-phala may not always result in achieving Stream Entry, or at least a Stream Entry that manifests in this lifetime. And if that is true, then it also raises the possibility that even some Buddhist practitioners may experience magga-phala, but without sufficient foundation and guidance for it to result in Stream Entry. Particularly vulnerable are yogis whose meditative skills are inadequate in terms of sustaining and repeating the experience of Fruition consciousness, or who lack the opportunity to practice phala samapatti subsequent to the initial experience.
So, having done with that digression, let’s now see what sorts of comments can be made with regard to how a magga-phala ‘event’ might be identified. This is not, unfortunately, something that has been often enough discussed. Of limited value are those often terse and archaic descriptions that have been translated from other languages, those descriptions that are rife with hyperbole and mystical nuance, and also those that are so laden with flowery language and poetic metaphor that they can’t possibly say the same thing to any two individuals, all of which are difficult to interpret in a particularly useful way! Although this is a topic that has become almost taboo to speak openly about, I strongly agree with you that there is a legitimate need to do so. Not uncommonly, some person will have an unusual and profoundly transforming experience that they think may have been magga-phala, but either do not have access to a teacher from whom they can seek guidance, or else their teacher lacks the right combination of knowledge and personal experience to able to help them. And anyone in the role of teacher who has a student who may have had a ‘real’ or ‘valid’ magga-phala experience would certainly like to be able to advise them and will welcome any additional information. In either case, whether it is our own or someone else’s experience, the situation is that we are trying to evaluate an experience based on a description of the indescribable. This description will inevitably be a reflection more than anything else of the words, concepts, views and expectations of the person who has had the experience, and we need to keep that in mind.
To begin with, we must be very sensitive to just how closely the description echoes those pre-existing expectations, because the closer they are, the better the fit with expectations, the more likely what has occurred is not magga-phala, but rather a projection by the ever-hopeful mind onto some other kind of strong psycho-emotional experience. In particular, if the basis for thinking that the experience might have been magga-phala is that it is ‘just like what I have read and heard about”, it probably is not. Far more likely it is that one will say “Despite what I have read and heard, it’s not at all what I was expecting”. A sense of awe and surprise, even consternation is appropriate, and especially some astonishment at the unexpected simplicity of what has been experienced.
But I suggest this only as sort of a guideline, not as a hard and fast rule. I am convinced, for reasons I won’t go into here, that there are individuals whose depth of Insight is so great and has become so well established in their intuitive understanding of themselves and the world that magga-phala is a ‘non-event’ for them. It is as though they have been peeking under the curtain for so long that when it is finally lifted, they are not at all surprised by what they find.
And then, also, there are those instances where an event that seems in retrospect to have been magga-phala does not register that strongly and clearly, leaving the yogi only with the vague and uncertain feeling that something very unusual has happened, but completely unable to say quite what it was. | <urn:uuid:5a6a4d30-19e8-42ed-84bf-f82de7c8c28d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.dhammawheel.com/viewtopic.php?p=194826 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966894 | 1,778 | 1.703125 | 2 |
The Ohio Supreme Court has agreed to hear an appeal on behalf of John Freshwater, the loony science teacher who burned a cross into a student’s arm and has a long history of abusing his position to proselytize for Christianity. The Columbus Dispatch reports:
The Ohio Supreme Court agreed yesterday to hear an appeal filed by a Mount Vernon teacher fired for teaching creationism and religious doctrine in his middle-school science classroom.
The 4-3 decision allows for oral arguments before the court later this year.
John Freshwater says that his rights to free speech and academic freedom were violated when he was fired by the Mount Vernon school board in January 2011 following allegations that he failed to remove religious materials from his classroom and burned crosses on students’ arms during science experiments.
The court ruled that Freshwater can argue his case on two points: Whether it is unconstitutional to fire a teacher without giving him a clear indication of which materials or teaching methods are acceptable; and whether expressing one’s personal religious beliefs are grounds for dismissal.
Hmmm. So they said he can argue those two points, but those were only very minor factors involved in his firing. The fact that he improperly used a piece of equipment and burned the skin of students alone justifies the firing, but when you add in all of the other things he did that were clearly designed to push his religious views on students, this is a no-brainer. That guy shouldn’t be allowed anywhere near a public school classroom. | <urn:uuid:5c2a547a-c997-4879-a9d5-5f1ffdf5d0f9> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://freethoughtblogs.com/dispatches/2012/07/13/ohio-supreme-court-to-hear-freshwater-appeal/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.984503 | 304 | 1.515625 | 2 |
Job Skills Trainings
Certified Nurse Assistant (CNA) Training
St. Louis’ health care sites have a great and growing unmet need for qualified health care support staff. Because of this we are helping immigrants enter jobs in the health care field, which has many career ladders and opportunities.
In our CNA Program, we train immigrants for careers in hospital and nursing home settings. Fourteen-week classes are offered in winter and fall, and an intensive 8-week class is offered during the summer. Training is team-taught by state certified nursing professionals along with a qualified ESOL instructor. Classroom and lab sessions are offered at our training site at 4131 S. Grand Blvd. Clinical training takes place at Green Park Senior Living Community. The program is certified to operate by the Missouri Department of Higher Education.
To qualify for CNA training, applicants must be able to pass an English entrance exam. Low-income, work-authorized immigrants, including refugees, are eligible for enrollment. If applicants meet income and length of residence requirements, they can enroll without cost. Costs are underwritten by a variety of public and private sources, including the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education (DESE) - Employment Training Section of the State of Missouri as well as the Office of Refugee Resettlement (ORR) of the US Department of Health and Human Services .
Industrial and Alterations Sewing Training
Some refugees bring sewing skills with them and are eager to utilize this skill for self-employment or outside work. Several area employers hire the graduates for the program for their industrial sewing operations and some have small alterations businesses which attract these graduates. The course is 6 weeks long and is taught by an experienced instructor accustomed to working with immigrants and refugees. Students learn on professional machines and in the process learn terminology, measuring and fine motor skills needed to work in the field. The class is limited to 6 people per course, and morning and afternoon courses are offered.
Hotel Housekeeping Training
Some refugees come to the United States without work experience or transferrable vocational skills. The one week training program allows us to offer refugees and immigrants an opportunity to develop a skill for entry-level hotel housekeeping work. The program is designed to meet the needs of various area hotels to fully staff their housekeeping departments. It also provides many low-skilled refugees with a pathway to initial employment.
All classes are located at the Institute’s Training Center at 4131 S. Grand.
All three programs are certified to operate by the Missouri Department of Higher Education.
314-773-9090, ext. 229
|Click here to go to:||Workforce Solutions Program||Job Training and Placement| | <urn:uuid:80af41a5-4d29-4b9c-ba2e-062c45fe0848> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.iistl.org/certnurseassist.html | 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 | 0.961988 | 551 | 1.5 | 2 |
10.22.12 Gone To Seed
photos by gluttonforlife
A recent visit to our friends' farm
up near the Vermont border yielded several delightful items from their bountiful garden, including a curvaceous butternut squash and a great big, beautiful sunflower head. Birds (or mice?) had already had their way with some of the purplish seeds but there were still plenty left. I lopped the yellow-fringed head off the tall, top-heavy plant, ferried it home and left it to dry in the porch for a few days. Then I turned it upside down, banged and clawed all the seeds out and looked into the proper roasting technique.
It suddenly came to me that I had eaten a lot of sunflower seeds in junior high. They were sort of a craze then. Maybe this was just in hippie Santa Cruz? I remember my mother saying it was not ladylike to spit out the shells. Classic. My affection for these seeds has been renewed. I enjoy the complicated dance tongue and teeth must do to winnow out that little nugget of roasted deliciousness. And if the shells are imbued with some addictively salty flavor, so much the better.
Sunflowers are small masterpieces, from afar and up close. One day I would like to see a whole field of them, stretching away like a blanket of sunshine. The seeds make a great snack. They're full of polyunsaturated oil and are an excellent source of vitamin E. This is the body's primary fat-soluble antioxidant and it helps prevent cardiovascular disease. They are also rich in phytosterols, plant-based compounds that have a chemical structure very similar to cholesterol but actually help reduce it, as well as enhance immune response and decrease risk of certain cancers. All in all, nothing to sneeze at. The little yellow protuberances are the stamens, which are evidently edible, if you believe Atera's chef Matthew Lightner (see image #6 in this article
). Sadly, I discovered this too late to sample them.
field of seeds
It's recommended that you soak sunflower seeds in a brine overnight before roasting them, so they are imbued with salt. I did that, but I also added a bit more seasoned salt after roasting. The whole thing is a very simple process, once you've gone through the slightly arduous task of removing them from the flower head.
A batch of roasted sunflower seeds is like money in your snack bank. They travel well, especially by car, as you can spit the shells out the window.
the essence of bacon
After a half hour or so in the oven, I removed my seeds and sprinkled them with a vibrant bacon bbq salt
, which actually contains no bacon whatsoever. It's a scintillating blend of smoked salt, brown sugar, smoked paprika, chipotle and a bunch of other non-animal stuff that mimics the taste of smoked pig. Go figure.
Consider rediscovering the sunflower seed. If they seem like too much bother, you can always buy them already roasted, shelled and salted, and snack on a handful now and then, or toss them into salads and stir-fries. Or get some shelled raw ones and make this sunflower seed butter
, which seems like just the thing to spread on toast or stir into your oatmeal on a cold, foggy morning. And that, my friends, requires absolutely no unladylike spitting.
Sunflower Seeds, Roasted & Seasoned
— raw sunflower seeds in the shell
— sea salt
— seasoned salt
Place your sunflower seeds in a large bowl and make enough brine to cover them, combining 1/4-1/2 cup sea salt to every 3 cups water. Soak overnight.
In the morning, drain well and spread out in a single layer on a baking sheet, patting the seeds dry with a paper towel. Roast in a 300-degree oven for about 30 minutes, stirring halfway through. Test a seed to make sure it's done to your liking.
Remove from oven, cool slightly and toss with the seasoned salt of your choice. Store in an airtight container. | <urn:uuid:3966a4bb-99fb-4c83-9d73-90482d27bc6b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://gluttonforlife.com/2012/10/22/gone_to_seed | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.960599 | 880 | 1.554688 | 2 |
Here is the bestselling audiobook that will give you the know-how you need to be more effective with your children -- and more supportive of yourself. Enthusiastically praised by parents and professionals around the world, the down-to-earth, respectful approach of Faber and Mazlish makes relationships with children of all ages less stressful and more rewarding.
Their methods of communication offer innovative ways to solve common problems. You'll learn how to:
• Cope with your child's negative feelings -- frustration, disappointment, and anger
• Express your anger without being hurtful
• Engage your child's willing cooperation
• Set firm limits and still maintain goodwill
• Use alternatives to punishment
• Resolve family conflicts peacefully | <urn:uuid:6e698c24-f5e9-4ac7-a0e5-60a88cb2a5b2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.americanpoems.com/store/1052-1000-1853407046-How_to_Talk_So_Kids_Can_Learn.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.939814 | 147 | 1.835938 | 2 |
This will probably be outrageously simple when someone who has read the novel explains it, but the ROCH '83 series and the comics adaptations leave it nebulous.
At the end of RETURN OF THE CONDOR HEROES, the Golden Wheel Monk had Gwok Seung tied up on a tower outside of Seung Yeung Fortress. So well-guarded was the tower by the Mongol army that even the power of four Greats (Gwok Jing, Chow Bak Tung, Wong Yerk See, 1 Deng), numerous first-class fighters (Wong Yung, Yeh Lut Chai, Ying Goo, Ching Ying, the disciples of 1 Deng, etc.), and a large force of Sung soldiers, beggars, and Cheun Jen Sect Taoists using Wong Yerk See's specially-designed battle formation could not fight their way through the Mongol defenses to rescue Gwok Seung. Yeung Gor, however, was able to swoop in and pull off the rescue. How was he able to approach the tower so easily?
In the TVB adaptation, it was simple: the Divine Condor could fly, and Yeung Gor and Little Dragon Girl were riding on its back. Hence, Yeung Gor was able to skydive onto the tower, bypassing the Mongol army. In the novel, however, the Divine Condor *cannot* fly. Did Yeung Gor use the Ancient Tomb Sect's superior hing gung to approach the tower? Did he strike from the back (all the Mongols' resources were focused on stopping Gwok Jing, etc., in the front)? | <urn:uuid:045149dc-9c45-43a8-bf0c-17b60d16e583> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.spcnet.tv/forums/showthread.php/9286-Yeung-Gor-approaching-the-tower-to-rescue-Gwok-Seung?p=286571&viewfull=1 | 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 | 0.966377 | 331 | 1.8125 | 2 |
Lagoa do Vento
Climbing down to the wind pond, quite a few spatters of water covered my camera's lens, thus preventing me from taking pictures closer to the waterfall.
The route is tiring, but the view is rewarding. To view more photos and videos of this island, please...
Inspite of dark wheather on this sunday, lots of visitors are bound for the levadas of Rabaçal and 25...
This levada has a natural creek bed, the elevation is approx. 1346m - nearly at the top of Paúl da Se...
This fine levada is easy to access and easy to walk. It is little-used, although close to Rabaçal. Co...
The beginning of the road taking to one of the most popular levada walks of Madeira. The walk itself ...
I normally don't like to stand on crossroads snapping panoramas, but I decided to make an exception i...
Ferns and furze, as far as the eye can see.
Following the Levada Nova from Lombada da Ponta do Sol, you come across this thundering waterfall
Waterfall in Madeira Island.
Welcome to Earth! It's a planet having an iron core, with two-thirds of its surface covered by water.
Earth orbits a local star called the Sun, the light of which generates the food supply for all the millions of species of life on earth.
The dominant species on Earth is the human being, and you're one of the six billion of them! Humans have iron in their blood, and their bodies are composed of two-thirds water, just like the planet they live on.
The physical composition of the Earth, its people and everything on it contains an electro-magnetic field which is not yet fully understood.
Theories and legends about the origin of Earth, people and life itself abound, however they are not commonly discussed. The bulk of earth's people spend their time immersed in daily activities, leaving the big questions for later.
"Who are we? Where did we come from? Where are we going? How will we get there?"
Many religions and philosophies have attempted to answer these questions over the years, but so far none has given an answer that everyone on the planet can accept.
In contrast to all the disagreement, the similarities among people on earth are far, far greater than any differences.
Welcome again to Earth! Enjoy your stay, and try to stay calm. | <urn:uuid:3c450f92-1b92-476b-892e-f38812923493> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.360cities.net/image/121203-0048-49-50-lagoa-do-vento | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950174 | 516 | 1.796875 | 2 |
In this edition of Steam Sales I’ll be relooking one of my favorite games, Company of Heroes. The whole series of games went on sale about 3 months ago. Each game was a standalone game selling for $3.33 each. The total price for all three games was $10. I felt getting a game for nickels and dimes was going to be worthwhile no matter what game it was, little did I realize I was picking up one of my favorite titles.
History of the Game
To cover the first the game is based around three distinct nations in the war.
The first part of the game to be released was based on the American involvement in the war. The specific focus is around Omaha Beach front. In World War 2 there were six distinct beach landings, Omaha, Sword, Utah, Juno, Gold and Pointe du Hoc. Omaha remained the most important of all of these fronts because Omaha would link up the British Juno Beach and the American Gold Beach. All subsequent beach fronts would land after these first three (except Pointe du Hoc which was a failed front).
Sword Beach was another front that was going on during all of this. Sword Beach was the original main front. The purpose of Sword was to land quickly and moves on Caen. General Montgomery was in charge of Sword Beach and was well known as a failure only put on board to give the British a hero. Montgomery was in charge of the whole operation and his moves in Sword beach would apparently make or break the whole invasion.
Montgomery’s failure would have to be picked up by Omaha Beach. Omaha Beach was a nasty front. It required a specially trained airborne unit that would jump into enemy territory with heavy losses and eliminate gun positions. This would be tied in with a beach front push into the same machine gun pushes. This same airborne would mingle in with the rest of the army and become a frontline push for the remainder of the war.
Caen was of particular strategic interest. Montgomery’s failures would resonate throughout the war as Baker Company was constantly asked to push ahead and secure locations. Caen was a crossroads that would allow the British and American troops easy access to all fronts in France. This was essentially a place where the Allied forces could make hasty decisions based on enemy troop movements.
It was after the successful capture of Caen that two major events happened. The first (and in the game) is American paratroopers are asked to secure a V1 rocket launch site that is bombing London. This heroic act would save London from millions of lost lives. Ironically the Americans would steal this very technology to create the modern battleships. The other important aspect is General Patton (who was grounded up until this point) pushes deep into Germany and is within feet of conquering the Reich.
The campaign focuses around the single supporting airborne unit and Baker Company who are constantly asked by Montgomery and Patton to do all of the dirty work in securing locations so that their pushes can go smoothly. Montgomery and Patton were often left with token resistance while these brave men are asked to do the impossible. The first chapter focuses around these few men.
The third chapter would of course focus around tank battles between Montgomery/Patton and Rommel. Everything in the third campaign will focus around British deployments. While the first chapter gives an American view on history, the British chapter shows us that it wasn’t exactly all that easy for the British.
The second history in the game revolves around the game design itself.
Company of Heroes is not the first game like this. This game’s gameplay is based off of the largely successful Warhammer 40,000 Dawn of War, or simply Dawn of War. Dawn of War was a largely successful real time strategy game that offered something different. Before this most RTS games focused on gathering resources, building units and killing your enemy. Dawn of War went a different path; they removed the gathering of resources. Instead of building bases to invade your enemy you would collect strategic points that would grant you more sway with the emperor and give you another forward position.
The game offered two distinct types of strategy. There was the macro strategy where you would look at a map and make decisions as to what points you should take and what ones might be harder to defend. The second was the micro strategy where you are taking multiple armies and attempting to flank the enemy the best you can
The Dawn of War series was often considered flawed. When playing as the human faction people often just made Space Marines since Space Marines were an all-in-one unit. Space Marines could be anti-anything causing a serious problem. After so many patching attempts they just gave up on trying to balance it. There are so many tournaments in Dawn of War that just illustrated these infuriating balance problems. The main problem with Dawn of War ended up being that there was seemingly no benefit to go beyond your first tier of unit.
Company of Heroes fixes this. They make specialized infantries strong against a large number of things but give them drastically less hit points than tanks. This means that means that when a person with tanks runs into a person without there are dire consequences for the person without the tanks. Of course tanks are not immortal and there are anti-tank weapons (assuming you have spotters). This gave the game a growing complexity of range, utility and itemization.
When Company of Heroes first came out people just saw it as a better Dawn of War. It probably upset some people to realize they were only buying 1/3 of the game. As it turns out the plan was to release the game and two expansions as standalone games. Each standalone game would give you the option to play a single campaign while telling you to get the other games to unlock the rest of the games.
Company of Heroes is truly a game that told a story that is so unbelievable you find it hard to believe it is true.
Has It Lived up to the hype?
When this game launched there were so many Warhammer fan boys running gaming websites that it received a 10/10. It received so many perfect reviews it was sickening. Every single RTS nerd jumped out and grabbed this game. Unlike 99% of RTS games out there this game provided a game that was not based out of outer space. This caused some creative problems looping in with some historical issues.
The first big issue is the strength of the World War 2 armies and balance in the game. Historically (and ironically) the strongest and most powerful army during all of World War 2… was the French. Even after the French were conquered by the Germans with the Vonschlieffen Blitzkrieg plan they still had the most powerful tanks and best weaponry. This of course is why Britain was shocked by the conquering of France and it caught everyone off guard. It would be the same thing as Mexico conquering America in 7 days. These sort of fast victories always shock everyone.
So keeping that fact in mind considering that the second generation of World War 2 tanks that are developed during the war are also reworked French tanks. It means that the tanks that Germany defends with are the strongest in the world (the Russians build a tank at the end of the war that successfully trades two panzers for one tank).
The Americans had the worst tank in the world. The only people who might have had a worse tank were the British who invested heavily in an air force instead of a ground force. So obviously as far as armies go the most powerful ones should be (in this order): Germany, America, and Britain. But when you get into the campaign what you find is that America has the most powerful army, the British have the best tanks and the Germans have the best fortifications.
Moving along with that when you play as Germany it should feel like you are almost invincible. The problem, is the campaign. The German campaign is feeling somewhat misplaced. The Germans during the Normandy Invasion were always on the defensive. There was never a point during the American attacks that the Germans were actually winning a battle. There are no ‘tales of heroism’ either because all they were doing on the retreat was burning buildings down and destroying bridges. The German campaign was one entirely of slowing down the American advance in hoping that winter would hit and slow them down. There was nothing daring or heroic about it.
A better choice of a campaign would have been the creation of Germany… that is taking on Poland, Netherlands, Belgium, France and Britain in the Blitzkrieg. It is one with a powerful victory with a smaller army.
The British campaign was not much better.
When you look through the course of British military history it is filled with excitement and interesting characters. During the Napoleonic years Wellington put Britain’s place on the Earth. Similarly in World War 2 the British had no shortage of interesting chipper commanders. Instead you are lead to believe all British commanders were just bumbling idiots who always drink tea.
Worst yet the style of the game did not carry over so well in tank combat. In this game you’re supposed to feel like a commander, not a tank pilot. The great tank commanders were positioning tanks, not physically using the tanks. In the British campaign you are taught to flank panzer tanks and aim for rear armor. That’s where it gets kind of odd. It just always felt like inferior play to what was presented in infantry-play.
In the end that is the only problem with this game, the first section of it (Company of Heroes) is better than the German campaign (Opposing Fronts) and the British campaign (Tales of Valor). This is largely because it will always be more fun to attack with a weaker force and weaker units into stronger units and a stronger force (and winning). That is, it’s better to have weaker units (soldiers) over stronger units (tanks) and better to be attacking (Americans) than defending (Germans).
The main problem is that you need all of these aspects of the game to win (soldiers, tanks, and defense). Multiplayer relies heavily on the development of these three facets of the game. It is a classical RTS game that requires tears of units and precise counters in order to win a battle. With that in mind each campaign only reflects a section of the multiplayer. You can compare this to getting to try out everything in every campaign… it just makes for a poorly crafted game.
Is this a better game than Warhammer 40,000 Dawn of War? Absolutely! But is this the 10-point game it was lead to be? Absolutely not! After you finish the main campaign of Company of Heroes you will be bored to tears by Opposing Fronts and Tales of Valor. After finishing everything you will wonder where the Russian campaign is, which is the most interesting out of all of the World War 2 situations.
It was most definitely worth the $10 I paid for all three games but dear god I would not have bought this again in it’s prime. | <urn:uuid:c1ee28eb-824d-4ff0-a523-7df03c56fa43> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://thegameguru.me/2011/11/06/steam-sales-4-company-of-heroes/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.980116 | 2,255 | 1.75 | 2 |
Co-Active Life Coaching as a Treatment for Adults with Obesity
International Journal of Evidence Based Coaching and Mentoring
This study evaluates the impact of one-on-one coaching on the waist circumference, BMI, self-esteem, self-efficacy, physical activity, and functional health status of adults with obesity. A one-group within- subjects, pre-test post-test study design was used. The study took place at the University of Western Ontario from June-October 2007. A total of 20 men and women aged 35-55, with a BMI ≥ 30 participated in the study. Each engaged in six to eight 35-minute sessions with a Certified Professional Co-Active Coach during which they explored desired changes and how to achieve them. Paired t-tests were used to analyse the pre- and post-quantitative data and inductive content analysis was used to assess the qualitative interviews. Significant decreases in waist circumference and increases in self-esteem and functional health status were found. Qualitatively, participants reported an increase in daily physical activity and healthier dietary choices, feelings of optimism, and greater self-acceptance. Thus life coaching shows promise as an obesity intervention, although more research is needed. | <urn:uuid:7dd7ca57-9215-4ec5-9911-a5aea855dc0a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://ir.lib.uwo.ca/healthstudiespub/42/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.948219 | 244 | 1.640625 | 2 |
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