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Review of Rework
What does “less is more” mean?
This book challenges a lot of assumptions, for example they take to task the phrase “learn from your mistakes” and say you should learn from your successes. They also want to ditch words like “startup” and “entrepreneur”, and mock the idea that starting a business with an exit strategy by saying it is setting yourself up to fail.
They also have a go at people who are saying that they don’t have enough time to do something – you do have time but you don’t want whatever it is enough to spend it differently. Try something for an hour a day and if it doesn’t work, fine. The cost of doing something new is minimal, the only problem is your own fear dressed up as a lack of time.
I titled this review as I did because it occurred to me as I listened to it that they are describing how you can have a business or enterprise without having lots of commitments and spending a lot of other people’s money from their own experiences. You hear “less is more” a lot and everyone strokes their chin and stares off into the middle distance and carries on as they were. This book actually describes how some very creative people show us all what the phrase means. Create half a useful product that’s well put together and delivers enough to be of value. Ideas are cheap, making them real is difficult, so take the path that makes them work.
Oh, and if you’re a workaholic, you won’t like what they say about you. And meeting addicts, hmm, you won’t like it either.
37 Signals site for the book Get an excerpt, look at the vids, you know the drill. | <urn:uuid:57f130c2-c7e3-4f62-951b-c71d8dcd8c07> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.pharmarketeer.com/2010/03/12/rework-review.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.977111 | 382 | 1.703125 | 2 |
Apple and Samsung infringed patents, court rules
A SOUTH Korean court has dismissed claims by Apple that Samsung Electronics copied the design of its iPhone, but banned the sale of more than a dozen tablets and smartphone models made by both companies over patent infringements.
In a ruling that comes ahead of a keenly anticipated decision in a parallel case in the US, the Seoul Central District Court said yesterday that Apple had infringed two of Samsung’s patents related to mobile broadband technology.
It also ruled that Samsung had breached an Apple patent with a feature that makes the interface appear to “bounce back” when a user scrolls to the edge of the screen. But the court dismissed nine other claims by Apple, including its allegation that Samsung copied the distinctive shape of the iPhone.
“The rest of [Apple’s] claims [on design patents] are invalid because most features already appeared in previous inventions by Japanese companies and European firms,” judge Bae Joon-Hyun said.
Apple was ordered to pay 40 million won (€28,000) in damages while Samsung was told to pay 25 million won. The court also ordered an immediate block on sales in South Korea of affected products including Apple’s iPhone 3G, iPhone 4, iPad and iPad 2, and 12 models of Samsung’s Galaxy smartphones and tablets.
A person close to the situation said there were “procedural steps before the injunction order is physically enforced” and both firms could appeal against the decision.
The sales ban does not cover the companies’ most recent models, including Apple’s iPhone 4S and iPad 3, which had not been released when the suit began, and Samsung’s Galaxy SIII, which does not have the “bounce back” feature. However, the older models affected are still popular among consumers unwilling to pay a premium for the latest product.
Mark Newman, an analyst at Sanford C Bernstein in New York, said the “bounce back” feature would be easy for Samsung to fix through a software upgrade of the smartphones and tablets affected.
In contrast, the communications technology that prompted the injunction against Apple would be “very difficult to design around”, he said.
Larger payouts are expected to result from the hearing in California, where Apple is seeking $2 billion (€1.6 billion) in damages from Samsung, which in turn is seeking $500 million. The jury retired on Tuesday to deliberate.
– (Copyright The Financial Times Limited 2012) | <urn:uuid:a6332683-f125-4830-a3fb-6d69d481efc5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.irishtimes.com/business/sectors/technology/apple-and-samsung-infringed-patents-court-rules-1.542766 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.957322 | 524 | 1.648438 | 2 |
Saturday, January 06, 2007
San Carlo da Sezze
One of the few positive results about Epiphany being moved to the Sunday following January 6th is that today I can celebrate the feast of a good friend of mine, San Carlo da Sezze (Saint Charles of Sezze).
He's not a well known Saint outside of Italy, and from what I can gather outside of Sezze and Rome either.
He is another Saint I pretty much stumbled upon in Rome when I was visiting San Francesco a Ripa where is body is in a side altar.
I was just visiting the church because of my devotion to Saint Francis and this was one of the churches he would stay at in Rome.
I hear you can also visit San Carlo's cell at San Francesco a Ripa, but unfortunately I have never had any of the friars there be helpful in this. The sacristan would send me to the office, the office would send me to the sacristan (this is a textbook example of Italian bureaucracy, LOL). Thankfully his body is in the main church, so the only thing you have to worry about is if the church is open (and as most small churches in Italy, they do take siestas).
Although San Carlo was an uneducated lay-brother of the Franciscans, God gave him quite a spiritual insight and apparently wrote several books. He had a great devotion to Saint Theresa of Avila who was his inspiration and intercessor for spiritual knowledge.
He lived a very austere life and had a great love for the Blessed Sacrament. He even received the stigmata in the form of the wound in Christ's side when he devoutly prayed at the door of a church where the Blessed Sacrament was being exposed for adoration. A ray of light came forth from the Host and pierced his side. I believe the church was San Giuseppe a Capole Case if my research is correct, which is in the area between the Spanish Steps and the Trevi fountain in Rome.
San Carlo's writings are hard to find in English, but I did manage to obtain a copy of his autobiography. It is a fascinating book as it not only tells of his life, but also gives us a glimpse of Franciscan religious life back in the 1600's. Wow! Talk about penance and austerities.
I'm not sure why there are so many varying dates for his feast day. The current Roman Martyrology has his feast as today. I'm not sure why the patron saints index has his feast listed as tommorrow and I have even less understanding of why Butler's has him listed on January 10th. January 6th is the most reasonable since it is the day San Carlo died.
Anyway, I present another friend for you to get to know. As Pope John Paul II said, we must encourage a LIVED theology of the Saints. Go out and read some lives of the Saints, find one you like, and pray to them. They will help you out.
And if you can obtain a copy of San Carlo's autobiography, I highly encourage you to read it. | <urn:uuid:8f531564-54ad-4074-996b-58974c4cb597> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://romansacristan.blogspot.com/2007/01/san-carlo-da-sezze.html | 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 | 0.98747 | 644 | 1.804688 | 2 |
Today is the last day to enter a competition to win a copy of the fabulous Short Circuit, the guide to the art of short story writing just out from Salt. Head on over to Salt's blog and get your entry in - it's a nice easy quiz for literary types! Here's Salt's information about the book:
Short Circuit is the first textbook written by prize-winning writers for students and more experienced practitioners of the short story. The 288 page guide brings together twenty-four specially-commissioned essays from well-published short story writers who are also prize winners of the toughest short story competitions in the English language, including five essays from winners of The Bridport Prize. There are interviews with Clare Wigfall, winner of The National Short Story Award — and with Tobias Hill whose short story collection won the PEN/Macmillan Silver Pen Award.I've contributed a chapter on the issue of turning real life into fiction, focusing on the story from Balancing on the Edge of the World, 'Condensed Metaphysics'. Editor Vanessa Gebbie had read the post on this blog about this story, and asked me to elaborate for Short Circuit, deconstructing the precise process whereby I turned a real-life incident into a fiction story. I'm very pleased to be in the book alongside such short story luminaries as Alison McLeod, Tania Hershman, Nuala Ni Chonchuir, Carys Davies and many others, and very much looking forward to reading their insights into the process of story writing.
And if you don't win, there's 20% off at the moment if you order via the Salt site. | <urn:uuid:1f4cd8fe-1a4f-45b2-81ab-36571f09c25a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://elizabethbaines.blogspot.com/2009/11/today-is-last-day-to-enter-competition.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706890813/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516122130-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.948999 | 336 | 1.640625 | 2 |
As a young, Japanese-American child, I was held in an internment camp out of prejudice and war hysteria. America can't make the same mistake again.
Arizona's notorious anti-immigrant crusader is about to become the first State Senate president in US history to be recalled.
Why my disagreement with Cornel West about Obama's presidency generated so much excitement.
As a black man, Obama's confident knowledge of his lineage is precisely the thing that makes his American identity dubious.
What makes it so lethal is that it has broad appeal—from the far left to the far right.
The Cross of Redemption tells the story of James Baldwin as a working writer: casual, lax and preachy, but also honest, angry and brilliant.
With all due respect to the First Amendment, we need to be careful about incendiary public speech.
Republicans have created popular anxiety about public services by linking them with highly stigmatized members of our society.
A tribute to the recently departed scholar Manning Marable, by a close friend.
More and more Americans are learning what it feels like to be unsafe and unprotected. In other words, they're learning what it's like to be black. | <urn:uuid:7c1c02f2-bee5-45e1-9ee2-a9dc43ec75c5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.thenation.com/section/racism-and-discrimination?page=9%2C1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963344 | 241 | 1.6875 | 2 |
Posted in computers, Wedding, tagged bride, design, fiance, gift list, groom, iweb, mac, web, web design, website, Wedding, wedding website, winter wedding on August 13, 2009 |
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Everyone seems to be doing it and initially both my fiancé and I dismissed the phenomenon of the wedding website as a fad. But for other friends wedding I have found myself using their wedding websites to find the location of the wedding, accommodation recommendation and the link to the gift list. It is a handy place to store lots of important information for the wedding so we decided to create a simple site for ourselves.
There are many free wedding website sites with ready made templates which make it easy to set up a site without too much fiddling.
We wanted to make our website a little more personal and so a friend had recommended iWeb to me. Since neither my fiancé and I are technical people I was a bit worried that it would be too tricky and too much effort to get to grips with designing a website. But though I don’t want to sound like an Apple representative, with iWeb it is so easy! It is literally a case of experimenting for a bit and then you just load a template and drag photos onto the page, type your info, choose your font etc. How much you manipulate and personalise the website is up to you.
This is a little preview of part of our website – a work in progress.
There is a fantastic step by step guide on how to create a wedding website using iWeb by Mrs. Cupcake on Wedding Bee.
Also here is how one bride created her own website after reading the how-to on Wedding Bee.
There are some great example of wedding websites out there to give you ideas for your own site
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Posted in Comic, computers, Food, games, gaming, geeks, love, Wedding, tagged anniversary, baking, bride, bride and groom, cake, computers, computing, consoles, couple, discworld, email, ewok, ewok village, Food, fun, gamers, games, games console, gaming, geek, geeky, groom, hans solo, ideas, LCD, mom, mum, nitendo, princess leia, puzzle, reception, romance, scrabble, silly, star wars, terry pratchett, tetris, Wedding, wedding cake, wedding cakes, wedding reception, wedding topper, winter wedding on June 6, 2009 |
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Today is the 25th anniversary of Tetris. To celebrate here are a selection of wedding cakes made out of pure geek!
It was given to a Tetris fan by his sister and friends who left spaces so that he would have to solve the puzzle before cutting the cake. Very sweet!
A giant console! Apparently the groom is a big Nintendo fan…would never have guessed!
Of course its not just the grooms who love their games consoles…
Sometimes the couple love of computers equals their love for each other. The bride and grooms here have decided to go for traditional cakes with geek-inspired wedding toppers
Do you prefer paper to LCD? Snail mail to email? You wordy couples shouldn’t feel left out. There’s a wedding cake for all the types of geeks out there.
Get the cake here
This wedding cake inspired by the Discworld series of books by Terry Pratchett is incredible.
Kudos to the bride’s mum who made it.
My fiancé loves Star Wars. I wouldn’t let him have an ewok village wedding cake though.
There were 50 small chocolate cakes to serve as Ewok huts. Hans Solo and Princess Leia are on the bridge of the cake. The bride writes: “Mr. Hum was insistent on Han holding his blaster so he picked some fresh wildflowers from his father’s backyard for Leia to hold. Plus, he made the Ewoks all do silly celebratory dances which totally made me smile.” I love it!
The cutest geek cake ever?
Read Full Post » | <urn:uuid:af6a3142-736e-44be-bcc4-7f0de616564e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://sevenweddings.wordpress.com/category/computers/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.937756 | 859 | 1.585938 | 2 |
Feb 7, 2003
Stories of people trying to save the world one person at a time, and stories of sudden truths delivered by complete strangers.
- Susan Drury reports from Tennessee on a test that provides sudden truth from a stranger. It's based on a science whose goals could not be grander—to aid in the fight between good and evil. It was invented by a guy named Robert Hartman, who was nominated for the Nobel Prize for his work back in the 1970s. What's most amazing about the test is how effective it is. (16 minutes)
Learn more about the personality test mentioned in the show, the Hartman Value Profile. Or, contact the testing company featured in our story, Axiometrics International. | <urn:uuid:609294da-814a-463a-a7df-c97f4c481330> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.thisamericanlife.org/radio-archives/episode/231/time-to-save-the-world?act=4 | 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 | 0.963383 | 152 | 1.734375 | 2 |
(NEW YORK) -- A civil rights group that tracks extremist organizations in the United States says the number of anti-government groups is at an all-time high.
The Southern Poverty Law Center, a non-profit civil rights advocacy group based in Montgomery, Ala., says it has seen an 800 percent rise in so-called "patriot" groups in the last four years. Senior Fellow Mark Potok says in 2008, there were 149 patriot organizations, but by 2012, that number reached 1,360 groups.
Potok says it’s the fourth straight year of explosive growth on the part of anti-government patriots groups, and he believes the fervor is fueled by the re-election of President Obama and the current debate on gun control.
The center says patriot groups are made up of people who believe the federal government is conspiring to confiscate Americans' guns and curtail liberties to create a socialist government or "new order." Most are non-violent citizens groups, but the center says there are some militias, which arm themselves and conduct military-style training.
“The whole situation seems to me reminiscent to the run-up to Oklahoma City and the terrible bombing that took the lives of 168 people in 1995,” Potok declared.
Conservative critics say the organization uses rhetoric to undermine right-wing and conservative groups.
Cornell University law professor William Jacobson is skeptical of the Southern Poverty Law Center’s findings and Potok’s opinion.
“I think to say that it's a run-up to another Oklahoma City, I think, is highly irresponsible and it's simply the Southern Poverty Law Center playing politics,” Jacobson says.
He adds, “The notion that asserting one's constitutional right to bear arms in accordance with Supreme Court decisions somehow renders you dangerous, I think, represents a political outlook of Mr. Potok and the Southern Poverty Law Center.”
Jacobson says he believes people who represent a true threat of violence should be identified and monitored, but “to turn it into a political vendetta against, quote the ‘right wing’, I think is very irresponsible.”
He says the Southern Poverty Law Center is making the claim simply to "justify its continued existence and to try and drum up contributions."
Copyright 2013 ABC News Radio | <urn:uuid:a18a39fa-aa1e-424b-8c95-cb79706d74bb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.buzz.fm/common/more.php?m=58&ts=1369284501&article=667945C4864111E286DEFEFDADE6840A&mode=2 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94807 | 478 | 1.6875 | 2 |
For anyone who has ever wondered what the view is like paddling down a waterfall, jumping out of an airplane or exploring underwater caves, help is here.
Sure, you're willing to risk life and limb on extreme sports. But risk thousands of dollars in camera equipment? Maybe not.
Still, extreme sports call for extreme cameras, and now there are HD camcorders designed to take action shots in the most challenging conditions (or on family vacations). But how tough are they, really? And how clear are the resulting images?
Consumer Reports compared the GoPro Hero3, which retails for about $400, and the Sony Action Cam, with a list price of $270, dropping them in water and spinning them in a tumbler to test their mettle. Take a look at the results.
Credit cards can come with a temptation to live beyond your means -- and that can quickly lead to trouble. But manage your cards well, and you can reap rewards later.
American college students tend to have a rough time with credit cards. Without much real-world personal finance experience, many spend beyond their means and graduate with credit card debt. And even for those who are lucky enough to complete school without debt, the threat continues to loom after graduation.
So how can recent graduates enjoy the convenience and security of credit cards without getting into trouble with debt? Here are a few tips:
1. Keep it simple. It is easy to get caught up in the hype promoting credit card perks and rewards, but these benefits are not worth it if they lead to debt. Instead, recent graduates should focus on finding cards with the fewest fees and the simplest terms.
2. Always pay your balance in full. This is the single most important piece of advice that can be offered. Those who pay their entire statement balance each month avoid costly interest charges, and there isn’t a better time to get in this habit than after graduation. And the lesson of living within your means, instead of on hoped-for future earning, applies well beyond credit cards.
The winner of last weekend's jackpot of nearly $600 million now has to decide whether to take a lump sum or annual payments. An expert weighs in with advice.
This post comes from Ross Kenneth Urken of partner site MainStreet.
One lucky person at a Publix supermarket in Zephyrhills, Fla., purchased the winning ticket for the highest Powerball jackpot in history, estimated at $590.5 million.
After winning with odds at 1 in 175.2 million, the person has done the hard part, but whether to take a lump-sum cash payout or to collect the winnings in annual payments is the cushy but difficult decision the lucky duck will now have to make.
Most winners go for the lump sum in order to be in control of the money from the get-go, and with fears of continued rising tax rates, it might be better to take a softer blow from the Internal Revenue Service now than a harder one in the future.
"The immense size of this particular jackpot can make things a bit more straightforward," said Doug Walker, the president of AfterLotto, a company that provides legal, financial and personal assistance to lottery winners.
Whereas a person may be reluctant to take about half of the total pot for the instant gratification of a lump sum -- the lump-sum payout here would be about $300 million -- the difference between $300 million and $600 million is more negligible at those amounts. It's a question of whether to have golden toilet seats in your yacht.
Concerts, bowling, filmmaking camp, small-plane rides -- these and other activities will get your kids out of the house without breaking the bank.
Kid-centric activities, that's what -- and these fun and/or enriching diversions need not break the bank. In fact, they may even be free.
A certain amount of unstructured play time is a great boon for the imagination. But two and a half months is a long time to go without at least some planned activities.
How about bowling, movies, concerts, museums or a filmmaking class, all without paying a dime?
Can't bother with the gym? Get fit on your own using these tips from fitness experts.
With the onset of spring comes the prospect of wearing a lot less clothing. And that, for many of us, means rigorous commitment to an exercise routine. But don't be deterred by thoughts of a pricey gym membership or in-home exercise equipment, because all you need is motivation.
We spoke with Kira Stokes, a personal trainer and founder of Stoked Method, and learned how to master fitness on your own. Her focal point is transforming both body and mind. Here is her approach to fitness on your own:
1. Start moving
That means picking up your pace and getting out of your comfort zone. If it normally takes seven minutes to walk around the block, says Stokes, aim for five. Run from one street sign to another and then walk to the next few.
2. Set goals
Setting and then reaching new goals will keep you motivated. Write down both short- and long-term goals, and make the former reachable. Doing 10 knee push-ups during TV commercials is a good short-term goal; losing 15 pounds is not. "If you're feeling frustrated by your inability to reach your goal, change your goal," Stokes says. Don't just give up.
You might think Americans have the corner on retirement worries. But you'd be wrong.
If misery really does love company, then America's aging baby boomers are due for a global group hug. Citizens in a 12-nation survey overwhelmingly reported they are not ready for retirement and expect retirement outcomes to be worse for future retirees than for those who have already retired. The survey was conducted earlier this year and polled about 12,000 people. It was sponsored by Aegon, a large global financial services firm, and the Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies.
"The situation has become more dire than just a year ago," Aegon said in its 2013 Retirement Readiness Survey. "People in general feel less prepared for retirement and do not adequately understand the steps they need to take."
The survey presented a retirement readiness index and said none of the dozen countries fared well.
German citizens are in the best shape for retirement, but Germany's national score was only in the upper range of the lowest-ranking category. And readiness was worse in 2013 for all countries compared with last year, due primarily to rising levels of uncertainty about the economy and investment performance.
On a scale of zero to 10, the average index rating for all 12 nations was 4.89 in 2013, down from 5.19 in 2012. Here are the individual index readings for each country:
Summertime, and the gas prices are rising. Watch this video to learn easy tips on making the most of your summer motoring budget.
Granted, forecasters say this year's summer price hike isn't as high as in years' past. But with the national average hovering near $4 a gallon, gas can still take a sizable bite out of your travel budget.
But no need to stay home. We offer a handful of easy tips that can help keep your gasoline bill in check as you travel this summer. These include everything from keeping your tires inflated (increase your MPG by 3.3%) to using smart phone apps to find the cheapest gas nearby.
For example, did you know you can save money if you fill your tank before a certain day of the week? Watch this video to learn more, and hear other tips for saving money on gasoline this summer.
Happy trails, and be safe out there!
Or do you? The FTC shuts down two alleged tech support scams, reminding consumers to watch out for this con job.
If you own a computer, there's a good chance at some point you're going to run into a problem you can't fix on your own. And that's enough of an opportunity for phony tech support companies to inject themselves into your situation and try to take your money.
Just in case you don't have a problem, they've got that covered, too. Many of the scams revolve around phony websites that promise a scan of your computer, which is actually a trick to load viruses and malware so you actually do end up with a problem.
The Federal Trade Commission announced today two of six cases the agency filed after a crack-down against alleged tech support scammers ended with the defendants agreeing to give up "their ill-gotten gains" and to never run such a scheme again.
But the scams still abound.
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Remember when real estate was so hot there were homebuyer lotteries and bidding wars? And people so desperate to buy that they'd make an offer sight-unseen? In some markets, they're back. | <urn:uuid:761056d8-4c98-458f-a7cc-c4f0ce57200a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://money.msn.com/saving-money-tips/?post=1816391&page=4 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954551 | 1,976 | 1.625 | 2 |
If you’re a Back to the Future trilogy fan, then you’re very aware that, according to the film, 2015 is the deadline for the creation of the Mr. Fusion Home Energy Reactor. That's fast approaching, and there hasn't been much hope of it actually existing. At the Diamond Select Toys booth at this week’s Toy Fair in New York City, we found Mr. Fusion — the replica — and while it won't turn trash into energy, it will be coming to a store near you in 2013.
DST Marketing Supervisor Zach Oat tells us that, following the success of the company's Flux Capacitor replica in 2008, DST moved on to Mr. Fusion as it appeared in Back to the Future 2. "The original was based on a coffee maker [like Mr. Coffee]," Oat laughs. "A lot of people started making it for their own replica cars. You can still find people selling the original coffee makers on Ebay."
DST went back to the film prop itself to create the scale replica, and Oat showed off its working parts, such as its lift-up lid. You can dump a banana peel and a Miller can inside, too, but Oat doesn't suggest it: you'll have some cleaning up to do.
Still in the advanced design stage, Oat reveals that "right now, we're working on a smoke feature. We're hoping when you open it up it will make the noise [from the film] and smoke will come out from a small smoke machine."
Mr. Fusion has a street date for the last quarter of 2013 with a price point that's still to be determined. If you can't wait, check out this DIY video for instructions to make one of your own.
Photography for DVICE by Bill Edwards. | <urn:uuid:9170ac75-e8cd-4775-a732-66d4a179a50a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.dvice.com/2013-2-15/spotted-toy-fair-faithful-mr-fusion-replica | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966235 | 376 | 1.570313 | 2 |
A few years ago, before the Iraq war, even before 9/11, Southwest's analysts looked at fuel prices and saw all arrows pointing north. Guided by then chief financial officer Gary Kelly, the airline assembled a strategy to gird against potentially calamitous surges in oil prices. Two full-time oil specialists at Southwest's Dallas headquarters spent most of their time just watching oil markets and crunching numbers. By the time financial disaster struck the industry, Southwest had signed contracts guaranteeing the airline a certain price for fuel in the future, no matter how high the market climbs.
It's no coincidence that Kelly is now Southwest's CEO. While oil prices are currently bobbing around $55 per bbl., this year Southwest is paying just $26 per bbl. for 85% of its oil, thanks to the aggressive hedging strategy he put in place several years ago. The industry overall lost about $4 billion as a result of higher oil prices last year; in contrast, Southwest's hedging reduced its energy costs by $455 million, helping bump its 2004 earnings to $313 million. According to Vaughn Cordle of Airline Forecasts, oil would have to shoot past an average of $65.30 per bbl. this year to affect Southwest's bottom line--not a likely scenario. "You have to have foresight, wisdom and some courage to hedge," says Tammy Romo, Southwest's treasurer.
In this age of soaring oil prices, hedging has become a crucial part of business for the most successful airlines--the smaller, upstart carriers that aren't burdened by the legacy costs of the old majors. Since energy is usually an airline's second highest cost (after labor), any tweaks in fuel costs or use can turn into big savings. All the major airlines have hedged fuel prices since the 1980s, but as the major carriers have run into financial difficulties in recent years, they have no longer had the cash--or the creditworthiness--to play the oil-futures market. Last year Delta held positions but was forced to sell them in a short-term cash crunch. Those hedges would have protected about a third of its fuel needs. Continental has no hedges in oil-futures contracts this year. United Airlines, which filed for bankruptcy protection in December 2002, has 30% of its fuel hedged at $45 per bbl.
The major airlines aren't commenting on why they don't have more aggressive hedging positions--or any positions at all in some cases. But there is no question that higher energy prices are crippling the industry, which will spend $6.8 billion more on jet fuel this year than last year's $21.4 billion. Since 2001, prices have increased 91%. "Without the doubling of oil prices over the last three years, the industry would not be in the economic crisis we find ourselves," Air Transport Association president James May told Congress last month. "And the future doesn't look any brighter." | <urn:uuid:af11bbf3-cdd9-4f19-882a-323c55318387> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,1074147-1,00.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.975246 | 603 | 1.632813 | 2 |
Probably more than once there’ve been times when you’ve thought you knew what was going to happen. You were absolutely, positively, take-it-to-the-bank sure of it. Only to find out later your assumption wasn’t so accurate. Maybe not even in the same hemisphere.
That’s what happens a lot with weather forecasts, as it relates to affecting every day life. You see the weather forecast in TV in the AM as you’re rushing to get the kids ready for school and yourself out the door for work. You focus on the “big picture” for the day – is it gonna be sunny or cloudy? Is it gonna rain? Snow? How windy? How hot/cold? Then you take the generalized forecast and off you go.
Then you get to your kid’s soccer game after work, or meet up with a colleague for a quick 9 holes of golf. Or get in your car to drive to that fund raiser across town, or another town an hour away. And the weather ain’t anything like what the TV weather person said it was gonna be 8 hours earlier.
This happens to us all the time, because the TV weather person or gal, earnest and good as she or he is, can’t tell you what the weather is likely gonna do at the EXACT locations where you will be, in the time frames you will be there. That’s because they don’t have the geo-spatially accurate forecast tools that gives them the locational accuracy you need. Furthermore, the weather they’re regurgitating is for fixed weather reporting sites that may be miles from where you are or plan to be.
We’re different. We have the geo-spatial tools to give you the forecast for the places you actually want to know about, and we’re not bound by fixed-site forecasts either. And all this is inside WxFix, which you can use throughout you day, every day, to know the forecasts for the places YOU and your family are going be. Only you know what you’ll be doing, where and when. With WxFix, you have an app at your beck and call that syncs the weather with your day, you week, your life.
So, listen to the weather person as you drink your morning coffee. Then have WxFix give you the real scoop on the weather the rest of the day, for wherever you are or plan to be going. | <urn:uuid:33471d33-ee66-409f-b202-ce3082e38df6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.eeliosinc.com/going-going-gone/ | 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 | 0.961661 | 526 | 1.796875 | 2 |
rning. On his part he drew forth a large handkerchief and began to rub the palms of his hands with awkward timidity.
"How-dy?" he said.
I confess that at the moment I was covered with confusion. I who was a teacher of English, and flattered myself that I wrote and spoke it fluently did not understand. Immediately, however, it flashed across my mind that the word was a species of salutation. (Which I finally discovered to be the case.) I bowed again and thanked him, hazarding the reply that my health was excellent, and an inquiry as to the state of Madame's. He rubbed his hands still more nervously, and answered me in the slow and deliberate mariner I had observed at the Louvre.
"Thank ye," he said, "she's doin' tol'able well, is mother--as well as common. And she's a-en-joyin' herself, too. I wish we was all"--
But there he checked himself and glanced hastily about him.
Then he began again:--
"Esmeraldy," he said,--"Esmeraldy thinks a heap on you. She takes a sight of | <urn:uuid:df46c023-dbcf-4d2a-93b6-68b68efd0ca5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://manybooks.net/titles/burnettf2332823328-8.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00020-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.992835 | 252 | 1.710938 | 2 |
March 8th is Blog Against Sexism Day
Why March 8?
Because it’s International Women’s Day. Because it’s the Global Women’s Strike. Wimmin in more than 60 countries will be participating in the global strike. Why not add dozens or hundreds or thousands of more voices to this struggle through the growing world of blogging?
Only 2 or 3 Days Left To Submit To The Next Carnival of Feminists!
Suffragettes and Disability Rights
Michael Bérubé discusses the historic ways suffragettes were abused with, and committed abuses with, anti-disabled rhetoric. This is a must-read post, imo, as is an earlier post discussing the intersection of race and disability in American history.
Greatest Hits from Antonin Scalia’s “living textualist originalism”
Terrific post from LGM reviews some of Scalia’s more striking hypocrisies.
How To Steal An Election
Entertaining and historically-informed article actually an excerpt from Andrew Gumbel’s book Steal This Vote! about cheating in American elections. Gumbel is a lefty, but that doesn’t prevent him from recognizing that the “Bush stole the 2004 election” claims don’t have much substance to them.
Walking Women To Their Destination After Dark
Happy provides an excellent feminist analysis of this social habit.
One Good Day
I felt like I had to cram six years of talking to him into this one day, because I didn’t know if I’d ever have it again. I had one day to find out if he liked Tae Kwan Do, if he had any friends at school, what he did in gym class, if he was having difficulty in any area. One day to help him with reading and tying his shoes, one day to tell him how much I loved him before he disappeared back inside himself. Which he did, today. That sweet little stranger that curled up in my lap yesterday morning and sang “Rich Girl” and showed me his fancy dance moves and looked right into my face and laughed and smiled is gone today. Is that what parents of normally functioning children have every day? And, if that’s what you have every day, why would there be a rush to put that kind of kid on Ritalin?
Why Health Savings Accounts Will Suck
Hilzoy of Obsidian Wings makes the case very well.
Comparative Funerals: Coretta Scott King and Betty Friedan
The turnout of politicians to one funeral and not another was not a measure of either woman. It was a matter of whose followings could do more for the politicians in the future.
About Those Danish Cartoons. No, Really – About The Cartoons Themselves.
Offensive Cartoons From America
Who’da thunk it? Something funny in Cracked. Curtsy: Crooked Timber.
The Dark Side of Public Sectarian Schools
So the question is whether Christians who are pro-sectarian public schools are honest in their desire for mere democratic choice, or are fair-weather fans of the doctrine who support it only when it yields Christian majorities.
White Teacher Suspended For Saying “Niggah” In Classroom
I think the suspension is justified – not because the teacher is necessarily racist, but because he displayed such staggeringly bad judgment. Incompetence is justification enough for the suspension.
Cathy Young on False Rape Accusation
Good post discussing the implications of a beyond-any-doubt false rape accusation.
Mary Schweitzer has a webpage on Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Also known as Myalgic Encephalomyelitis (M.E.), or Chronic Fatigue and Immune Dysfunction Syndrome (CFIDS). Mary Schweitzer, a CFS sufferer’s advocate, is one of the best writers about CFS on the internet; even if you think you have no interest in CFS issues, her essays may change your mind.
Sweden Plans To Be “Oil-Free” by 2020
Keeping Men’s Jobs Male
How do you prevent more women from becoming firefighters, police officers, etc.? You refuse to hire or promote them. You compel them to take physical tests unrelated to job qualifications, such as requiring women to lift more than the Occupational Safety and Health Administration permits. You refuse to train women, subject them to hazing or hold them to higher performance standards than their male peers. Curtsy: Feministe
Then I said that a woman’s right to choose was nobody else’s goddamn business. This got their attention.
Western Union Quits the Telegraph Business
Past Bush Administration Cheerleader Admits Guantanamo Is Inexcusable
Bush has pledged that the Guantanamo detainees are treated “humanely.” At the same time, he has stressed, “I know for certain that these are bad people” – all of them, he has implied.
If the president believes either of these assertions, he is a fool. If he does not, choose your own word for him.
Belle, Pandagon, Ezra, Lawyers Guns and Money, Matt and Majikthise weigh in. Apologies to those I missed. Of all of these, Amanda’s is the most “must-read,” in my opinion.
PrisonSucks.com: Links to research about abuse of women in prisons
I’m putting the link in here because I think there might be a future post in it, and I don’t want to lose the link.
Holocaust Denier Professor Creates Stir at Northwestern
My breasts, in and of themselves, have no meaning. They are not inherently sexualized. They are not inherently beautiful. Or objectifiable. They, themselves, do not say, “Hey, I’m a female! Come, objectify me, rape me, fuck me, look at me, stare at me, penetrate me!” Outside of the discourse, they mean nothing. They’re just lumps of fat and tissue and muscle and nerve endings and whatnot.
On Ambivalence Towards Critical Thinking
When I teach moral theory to students or critical thinking skills for that matter how to spot fallacies, construct valid/sound arguments, evaluate evidence, I rarely change a student’s perspective on the world, or make that student more empathetic to other peoples’ situations. I usually make them smarter at articulating the worldview that they inchoately held before. [...] My sense is that critical thinking doesn’t make people better people, it just makes them better at playing the game. (Curtsy: The Reaction
Israel plans to build ‘museum of tolerance’ on Muslim graveyard
Are they really that clueless, or just incredibly sarcastic? Via Jesus’ General.
The Happy Feminist on “Ladies First” and the Titanic
New To The Blogroll: Beyond Choice
Alexander Sanger Margaret’s grandson has an interesting blog about abortion politics.
Michael Bérubé Rips Apart David Horowitz
If I were a better person, I wouldn’t have enjoyed it so much.
Warren Ellis and Joss Whedon Provide Fan Service, Oh My Yes They Do
If you don’t know who both those people are, then I’m geekier than you. Curtsy: Crooked Timber.
FAT RELATED LINKS
What the heck, there were a bunch of these – mostly swiped from Big Fat Blog – so I thought I’d give ‘em their own section.
New JAMA Study Finds No Link Between Obesity and Lifespan In Americans Over 50
The State of The F-Word
Interesting article takes a look at the various books that have used the word “fat” in the title in the past year. Curtsy: Big Fat Blog.
FatShadow on Celebs Who Lose Weight
Yet another smart, sensitive, and annoyingly difficult to sum up in a single sentence post from Tish.
The Average Sized Privilege List
AKA “The Thin Privilege List.” This isn’t new, but I’m not sure I’ve ever linked to it, and I should have.
A Modest Proposal: The Next Viagra
“We have perfected the weight-loss drug. Enipaznalo not only takes off those excess pounds, it makes you beautiful. Movie-star beautiful. There’s just one catch; it also makes you crazy.”
“Obesity Epidemic” Overblown, Conclude UCLA Sociologists
The link is to a press release about this interesting and nuanced study pdf link by Abigail Saguy. Her webpage includes links to a number of interesting-sounding papers, including a few about sexual harassment and this one pdf link about media coverage of fat and health issues. Curtsy: Big Fat Blog.
New To The Blogroll: Fat Chicks Rule
How did I not know Lara Frater had a blog?
- Link Farm and Open Thread #4
- Link Farm and Open Thread #9
- Link Farm and Open Thread
- Link Farm and Open Thread #3
- Link Farm and Open Thread #7 | <urn:uuid:5a098b70-f270-4bb8-ad7f-ed042e51ea0b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.amptoons.com/blog/2006/02/17/link-farm-and-open-thread-10/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.938981 | 1,954 | 1.578125 | 2 |
The Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation (OPRHP) put forward a recommended list of closures and service reductions in order to achieve its 2010-11 agency savings target and help address the State's historic fiscal difficulties. Among them are two Erie County Parks, among five in the Niagara Region
Governor David A. Paterson's statement is as follows:
"New York faces an historic fiscal crisis of unprecedented magnitude. It has demanded many difficult but necessary decisions to help ensure the fiscal integrity of our State. The unfortunate reality of closing an $8.2 billion deficit is that there is less money available for many worthy services and programs.
"In an environment when we have to cut funding to schools, hospitals, nursing homes, and social services, no area of State spending, including parks and historic sites, could be exempt from reductions. We cannot mortgage our State's financial future through further gimmicks or avoidance behavior. Spending cuts, however difficult, are needed in order to put New York on the road to fiscal recovery. Going forward through the budget process, I look forward to a productive dialogue with the Legislature on parks and historic sites, as well as other issues."
OPRHP Commissioner Carol Ash issued the following statement:
"The 2010-11 Executive Budget included reductions to every area of State spending. As such, the Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation has today put forward proposed closures and service reductions to meet its agency savings target. These actions were not recommended lightly, but they are necessary to address our State's extraordinary fiscal difficulties." | <urn:uuid:4d6ee135-0395-43e6-9225-621c43e4cef7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.buffalorising.com/2010/02/recommended-state-park-closures.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96055 | 316 | 1.601563 | 2 |
Wabi Sabi: The Japanese Art of Impermanence
“Wabi sabi is an intuitive appreciation of transient beauty in the physical world that reflects the irreversible flow of life in the spiritual world. It is an understated beauty that exists in the modest, rustic, imperfect, or even decayed, an aesthetic sensibility that finds a melancholic beauty in the impermanence of all things.”
Art of Edo Japan: The Artist and the City 1615-1868
“This beautifully illustrated survey examines the art and artists of the Edo period, one of the great epochs in Japanese art. Together with the imperial city of Kyoto and the port cities of Osaka and Nagasaki, the splendid capital city of Edo (now Tokyo) nurtured a magnificent tradition of painting, calligraphy, printmaking, ceramics, architecture, textile work, and lacquer. As each city created its own distinctive social, political, and economic environment, its art acquired a unique flavor and aesthetic. Author Christine Guth focuses on the urban aspects of Edo art, including discussions of many of Japan’s most popular artists—Korin, Utamaro, and Hiroshige, among others—as well as those that are lesser known, and provides a fascinating look at the cities in which they worked.”
“Robert Hughes has trained his critical eye on many major subjects, from the city of Barcelona to the history of his native Australia. Now he turns that eye inward, onto himself and the world that formed him. Hughes analyzes his experiences the way he might examine a Van Gogh or a Picasso. From his relationship with his stern and distant father to his Catholic upbringing and school years; and from his development as an artist, writer, and critic to his growing appreciation of art and his exhilaration at leaving Australia to discover a new life, Hughes’ memoir is an extraordinary feat of exploration and celebration.”
A Worldly Art
The Dutch Republic, 1585-1718
I just finished this excellent book on Hieronymus Bosch.
“Of course I doubt myself all the time, but I must obey my instincts, they are the only things I can trust. I was thinking last night as I sat by the stove reading the journals of last year how suspicious I am of whatever “procedure” I’m involved with at a certain period in painting. When I was working from “master” reproductions I was afraid I’d never do anything original. When I was painting from photographs I was afraid I’d never work from nature again. When the work was more agitated I hated its “expressionism” and wanted more calm. And now that it’s more calm I fear it’s not emotional enough. When I take a long time on a picture and struggle a great deal I hate the agony and suspect I’m over-working. And when it comes easily I fear facility.”
Continuing on my New York School reading binge, I recently finished The Extreme of the Middle: Writings of Jack Tworkov. Superbly edited by Mira Schor, this collection of his writing, from published works to more private musing in journals and letters, comes highly recommended.
“My hope is to confront the picture without a ready technique or prepared attitude—a condition which is nevertheless never completely attainable; to have no program and, necessarily then, no preconceived style. To paint no Tworkovs.” – Jack Tworkov, from a journal entry dated March 3, 1958
I find this website very timely, as I am currently reading a collection of van Gogh’s letters.
The Van Gogh Letters Project
“All the surviving letters written and received by Vincent van Gogh (1853-1890) are contained in this edition of his correspondence…”
“The consciousness of the personal and spontaneous… stimulated the artist to invent devices of handling, processing, surfacing, which confer to the utmost degree the aspect of the freely made. Hence the importance of the mark, the stroke, the brush, the drip, the quality of the substance of the paint itself, and the surface of the canvas as a texture and field of operation – all signs of the artist’s active presence….. The impulse . . . becomes tangible and definite on the surface of a canvas through the painted mark. We see, as it were, the track of emotion, its obstruction, persistence or extinction…. (E)lements of so-called chance or accident [are] submitted to critical control by the artist who is alert to the rightness and wrongness of the elements delivered spontaneously, and accepts or rejects them.”
quoted by Irving Sandler in A Sweeper-Up After Artists: A Memoir. | <urn:uuid:f5b56ed1-372b-48c6-9657-7e390ef948c0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://gregstephens.info/category/reading | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.956297 | 1,006 | 1.773438 | 2 |
A few weeks ago, I heard about someone proposing marriage to someone inside a bookstore. It happened at a cookbook store down in San Francisco, called Omnivore Books. It sounded like the basic setup for a romantic comedy: Man proposes to Woman, Woman says yes while crying, happily ever after. Not that interesting to a passerby like me.
But then I saw a Tweet that had been written about it, by a woman named Eliane Wigzell: “Can’t do this on Amazon.”
That one line shook me more than the rest of the story, because of how simple and true it was. This past January Amazon announced that they’ve sold 120 e-books for every 100 paperback books so far in 2011 (for hardbacks, the ratio was 3 to 1). This scares people who love bookstores, a group of which I am a part. Will there ever come a day when a person will only be able to purchase books over the Internet? Will the bookstore no longer exist in the next generation?
Where I live, the answer to this seems to be: Not if we can help it! The Pacific Northwest has a long tradition of preserving and honoring bookstores. There are over 20 in my town alone. Portland, Oregon, is home to the largest bookstore in the United States — measuring out a full city block, Powell’s Books remains a popular destination for people looking for anything bound inside a spine.
The main location on Burnside Street is referred to as the City of Books (really!). I’ve been there, and I have to say, it’s easy to get lost amongst all the shelves. Nowadays, you can download a turn-by-turn map for the store for your smartphone! The influence of technology upon the world of books is growing. But to me, all this app says is that there’s still a group of people in the world who love bookstores.
It’s sometimes incredible to think about how long Powell’s has existed within Oregon, but in truth, it’s because they do more than sell books. Their store is littered with items like action figures, purses, and coffee mugs in addition to the classic bookstore items like journals and calendars.
But the planning for the future (and economic downturns) doesn’t just end at the main location. There’s a specialty store for books only centered on home and garden subjects. Powell’s also buys books from customers, either through the mail or in person. In order to stay alive in the economy, the store has needed to diversify.
Powell’s Books has a very active website. It posts events taking place at the store, publishes a book blog, and even (gasp!) sells e-books. But it’s safe to say that they’re still best known for their stores on the ground, for the color-coded sections and wooden stairs. People remember the enormous shelves, the book clubs, and the ever-mysterious Rare Book Room.
So for right now, I’m not worried about the future of bookstores. At this point, it’s still all about the paperbacks. And maybe a few hardbacks too. | <urn:uuid:715f76c7-7652-48f5-90a3-3133b2f2f8f8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://stateofthereunion.com/tag/importance-of-bookstores | 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 | 0.946579 | 680 | 1.515625 | 2 |
In an effort to save money, the city has laid off its police chief and four police officers for six months — longer if Alto's finances don't improve.
In the meantime, the county sheriff's department will take over law enforcement duties for the town of 1,200, according to the AP. The sheriff's department is already responsible for policing the nearby city of Wells, which laid off its sole police officer last year.
Alto residents fear that crime will rise in the absence of a local police force. The town's crime rate is already above the state average; there were 66 crimes in Alto last year, according to the WSJ, compared to 51 the previous year.
"Everybody's talking about 'bolt your doors, buy a gun,'" Alto Mayor Monty Collins told the WSJ.
Across the country, cash-strapped cities like Alto are making public safety cuts in the face of revenue losses and growing personnel costs. Small towns have found that law enforcement is easier to pass off to county or state agencies than other city services.
In Alto, reduced sales and property tax revenue, have tightened the city's budget. City officials project a budget deficit of about $185,000 for the fiscal year ending Sept. 30. The City Council was forced to choose between funding the police department and making much needed repairs on the city-owned natural gas distribution system, which generates most of the city's revenue. | <urn:uuid:d101b1f8-11f7-4b93-b564-62f2ee621f54> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.businessinsider.com/texas-mayor-warns-residents-to-bolt-your-doors-after-city-lays-off-entire-police-force-2011-6?pundits_only=0&get_all_comments=1&no_reply_filter=1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962841 | 288 | 1.726563 | 2 |
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Record Support as Roe v. Wade Turns 40
GOP assault on women's rights galvanizes movement
As today marks 40 years since the landmark women's rights decision Roe v. Wade that legalized abortion across the country, a new poll finds that for the first time a majority of Americans support the ruling, indicating that the recent GOP assault on reproductive rights has only renewed the importance of the pivotal ruling.
The NBC/Wall Street Journal poll found that seven out of 10 Americans support the Jan. 22, 1973 decision that declared women have a constitutional right to abortions, the highest number since the poll began tracking it in 1989.
A similar Pew survey found that a record 54 percent of Americans think abortion should be always legal or legal most of the time.
Despite the clear and overwhelming support, anti-abortion advocates have been on the attack. Seizing on the results of the 2010 election when Republicans picked up roughly 675 legislative seats, the anti-choice movement has implemented a furious piecemeal strategy attacking women's rights at the state level.
According to the Guttmacher Institute, a think tank that favors abortion rights, opponents of abortion won passage of a record 92 measures restricting the procedure in 24 states in 2011—more than double the restrictions passed in any other year—and an additional 43 in 19 states last year.
Summarizing the ways in which opponents, through a series of state-wide court decisions, have narrowed the scope and effectiveness of Roe v. Wade, the Associated Press reports:
A majority of states now impose a waiting period for patients wishing to obtain an abortion, and three-quarters require parental involvement before a minor can obtain an abortion, according to the New York-based Guttmacher Institute, which researches reproductive health issues. Almost all allow physicians to refuse to participate in abortions.
The result is that there are fewer clinics and abortion providers now than there were in 1973. The Daily Beast has compiled a map of the 724 remaining abortion clinics in the US.
The battle carries on at this moment. As Mississippi toys with closing their last remaining abortion clinic, Texas Governor Rick Perry is pushing new legislation banning abortions after 20 weeks of gestation.
In fact, the GOP has embraced the anti-choice stance and bedevilment of women's reproductive rights as a new party line. According to an examination by The Guardian of Republican and Democratic party platforms over the past 40 years, the GOP has "padded their pro-life credentials more than ever in 2012."
Through extremist legislation and revealing media gaffes (think: Todd "Legitimate Rape" Akin), GOP lawmakers have demonstrated that they are as removed from the reproductive rights zeitgeist as ever, revitalizing the pro-choice movement.
Despite recent Pew findings that the level of support for Roe v. Wade has remained consistently high in surveys conducted 10 and 20 years ago, the number of respondents who said abortion “is not that important compared to other issues” is on the rise.
“It’s a challenge and an opportunity for women’s health advocates because a lot of women aren’t aware of how those rights can be chipped away until they are nonexistent,” said Anna Scholl, director of ProgressVA. “We are looking to get back on offense because we’ve been really pushed back on our heels.”
Following the slew of anti-choice legislation, protestors broke out from "Virginia to Michigan to Oklahoma to Idaho." And, the Nation reports, "in the 2012 elections, pro-choicers received a much-needed boost in Congress, adding twenty to their ranks in the House and two in the Senate, which now boasts nine women senators backed by the pro-choice powerhouse EMILY’s List."
What had begun for Republicans as a punitive and frivolous congressional “investigation” of Planned Parenthood culminated in an electorally calamitous war on women that has tarnished the GOP’s name for a new generation of women voters.
Americans...still believe in the principle of Roe: that abortion is a decision best left to a pregnant woman and her doctor. | <urn:uuid:28018e88-84ed-42f5-95ff-fd7b9e205a36> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2013/01/22-4 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.945189 | 858 | 1.820313 | 2 |
Like many people I was raised in a milieu with more than the usual amount of sexism and racism. I often say “I got better”, but the truth is, I’m getting better. I strive to learn more every day. To be empathic and listen to the experiences of people who are different with me. I work to be a better, more accepting and less horrible person. I’m an able-bodied, cisgendered, straight, white man. I may be poor and fat, but I have a lot of privilege. I have the privilege given to me by society to be blind to the casual racism, sexism, ableism, and homophobia all around us.0 Comments Continue reading
‘Diversity’ is one of those words that people can get tired of hearing very quickly: it makes them feel guilty and insensitive, and it almost always raises acrimonious discussion until it fizzles out, leaving bitter emotions in its wake. A quick perusal of comment threads (such as here, here, and here) might lead one to think that there is a small number of privileged minorities who have nothing better to do then to complain, insult, and derail conversations towards their pet project: complaining about a problem that was solved years ago.
After all, equal rights legislation is on the books, and science is a process that requires equality of voices. So what do these people mean by ‘diversity,’ and why do they keep insisting we all use skeptical channels to talk about it so much?0 Comments Continue reading
[Sasha here. One of the main points of More Than Men is to get regular guys talking about why diversity matters to them. Here's our first guest post making that happen.]
In the recent past our society has been making incremental steps towards the universal acceptance of diversity and the equality of all flavours of humanity, whether it be gender, race, sexuality, blood type or the amount of hair on your knees.
However, it would seem that for some people we have now reached an impasse, a point where we have moved on enough. Intertwined perhaps with a fear that further acceptance of diversity will cause some sort of societal degradation, a fear that has no basis in fact or logic, and one that when applied can have dangerous consequences. When in our most comfortable of habitats it’s easy to forget that there are still bigots of all colours, shapes and sizes out there, and that the problems of discrimination some would like us to believe have completely disappeared are still around today, and are still a problem.0 Comments Continue reading
- Stephen Hawking is Mystified by Women. In related news we’re mystified by people who pay attention to experts talking out their asses about things outside their specialty.
- Y U Mad, Whiteboy? This is Sasha’ new favorite non-naked Tumblr.
- Rick Santorum has something for you ladies. (While we’re on the topic of Tumblr memes.)
- The Invisible Backpack of Able-Bodied Privilege Checklist. Because privilege isn’t just about men and women, folks.
It’s come to our attention that there are some people who are a little confused by what the More Than Men project is all about. Perhaps because our original About was not as clear as it should have been, perhaps because a group of white guys gathering together for something that’s not horrible is such a novel concept, but somehow there are people who either have the wrong idea about us or who are skeptical about what we will actually be doing. So let me break it down.
- We’re a group of men (at present straight, white, and able-bodied men) who want the world to be a better place.
- We believe that the world will be a better place when everyone can participate regardless of their gender identity, race, sexual orientation, or ability.
- We recognize that we have social privilege that makes it easier for us to ignore or not notice injustices in the world and that people who have different experiences in the world almost always know more about what their life is like than we do.
- We want to learn how to be better, more empathic people and we want to learn how to include everyone in our communities.
- We want to talk to other men so that they can see the benefit in joining us, so that they can value diversity, and so that they can have the tools to make a difference in their world.
Here are a few things we aren’t:
- We are not aiming to “mansplain” what sexism, racism, homophobia, transphobia, or ableism are really all about to victims of those things.
- While all of us have friends in our communities, we are not dedicated to being a faction for any particular clique, faction, or person.
- We are not jerks.
Hopefully that makes things a little more clear, and hopefully it’s inspired you to follow along and join us. It’s nice to be on the right side of history.
- Sasha Pixlee0 Comments Continue reading
Greta Christina has written about the “Yes, but…” problem many of my fellow dudes have when listening to women talk about sexism and misogyny. I want to talk about a specific “Yes, but…” here: “Yes, but that’s not sexist because he/I/they don’t hate all women, just that one!” The argument is that since the person slinging gendered slurs doesn’t hate women as a class, they aren’t a misogynist, therefore they’re just a jerk and we we can shut up about this problem and go talk about how dumb Christians are again.
There are a few problems with this approach:
- Being a jerk is still a problem.
- People don’t know you don’t hate all women.
- Even if you really aren’t technically a misogynist, you’re definitely still a sexist.
I’m a straight, white man and the subcultures I am a part of are dominated by straight, white men. I’m a gaming and science fiction nerd. I am an atheist, and I am a skeptic. Any time you attend gatherings of those groups you see a lot of white faces, a lot of male bodies, and those dudes – like me – prefer women for sex partners. Despite the fact that I should fit right in to these groups I often feel uncomfortable in them because of their homogeneity.
We live in a diverse world and I think we can all agree that any time a group’s makeup is less diverse than the world at large there are reasons for it. Here in the United States we have more diversity than most places, but when attending nerd events, atheist events, and skeptic events I keep finding myself in the majority. Why is that? I believe it is because something about those groups is making women and racial and sexual minorities feel like the group is Not For Them or are experiencing things that make them feel uncomfortable and unwelcome. I would like to change that.
I was raised with conservative and backward views about gender, sexuality, and race. I rejected those in my teenage years but it took a lot of work to actually realize and overcome the default “common sense” assumptions I had internalized. Taking a cold, hard, skeptical look at what I thought about those issues was often uncomfortable, frequently embarrassing, and humbling. It was work, but I did it because I didn’t like the life and the community that those beliefs had allowed me to have. I still work every day to overcome the privilege to not think about differences that society has given me because I am white, male, straight, cisgendered, and able-bodied. I think there are a lot of men like me who would be a lot happier in life if they did the same, and I know that that sort of empathy and kindness is the truly humanistic thing to do.
So, welcome to the More Than Men Project. This is a forum for People with privilege to talk about diversity, why it matters, and how we can make it happen. I don’t want to get all “White Man’s Burden” on you, but it’s a little ridiculous that the only people consistently talking about (for example) sexism are women. These issues matter to every one of us because we need more than men to make a community.
We will be blogging regularly and are developing a podcast and a video campaign. Please take a moment to learn about the guys who are making this happen and please read about how to contribute. We need your help.
- Sasha Pixlee | <urn:uuid:d7b0bb98-574f-4c73-b056-63d97ec83f3c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.morethanmen.org/page/13/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967797 | 1,829 | 1.59375 | 2 |
From New Jersey, USA:
I am a 33 year old man who just got told I had diabetes. I have no history in my family. However, I was involved in a bad car accident back in autumn, 1994 [2 years ago]. My blood sugar went up after this incident. My question is: Is there any information on this type of situation: onset of diabetes (elevated blood sugar) after a major accident and can I correct it?
I don't know what kind of treatment you had after your accident, but such major stresses (and their treatment) can cause blood sugars to rise temporarily. They can also uncover "glucose intolerance" which can be a very early sign of diabetes to come.
Original posting 18 Dec 96
Last Updated: martes abril 06, 2010 15:08:51
This Internet site provides information of a general nature and is designed for educational purposes only. If you have any concerns about your own health or the health of your child, you should always consult with a physician or other health care professional.
This site is published by Children With Diabetes, Inc, which is responsible for its contents.
© Children with Diabetes, Inc. 1995-2013. Comments and Feedback. | <urn:uuid:32e3fa65-46df-44de-ad98-4c01ab302034> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.childrenwithdiabetes.com/dteam/1996-12/d_0d_1f8.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.949859 | 251 | 1.554688 | 2 |
One of the greatest of jazz drummers passed recently—Paul Motian. I didn't get a chance to post 'til now.
He played with many of the greatest jazz musicians and innovators of our times, like Carla Bley, and had his own groups for many years. But I first discovered him when he was part of The Bill Evans trio that included the legendary bass player Scott LaFaro.
LaFaro tragically died while they were still a trio, in his mid-twenties. Evans died closer to fifty, but still too young. Motian lived to eighty, for which those who loved his work are grateful.
There's no telling how even greater LaFaro might have been had he lived as long as Evans, let alone Motian. We got to see Evans develop into one of the greatest jazz piano innovators ever, way beyond his first record with Motian and LaFaro which I believe was around 1954.
But on those early recordings, we see who LaFaro and Evans and Motian were becoming, already illustrating some of their signature moves, uniquely their own, a sound that would soon become the sound of the late 1950s and early '60s for me captured best in their 1961 LP WALTZ FOR DEBBIE.
Here's Evans, LaFaro and Motian playing the Miles Davis' tune "Milestones" live, just to give you a taste of how original a drummer Motian already was. I love it and am grateful Motian lived so long and left behind so many great recordings that demonstrate his unique artistry: | <urn:uuid:adc6c7ed-fac5-4f8d-9850-dfe5562ba4fe> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://lallysalley.blogspot.com/2011/11/paul-motian-rip.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.990848 | 327 | 1.5 | 2 |
The JRC research programmes are decided by the Council of the European Union and funded by the EU budget with additional funding from associated countries.
The JRC multi-annual work programme, running from 2007 to 2013, focuses on clearly defined themes, reflecting a coherent approach to user needs.
The main customers of the JRC are the policy making Directorates General of the European Commission. Depending on the subject matter, the JRC’s scientific-technical support covers the complete policy cycle or parts of it: the JRC anticipates policy needs, assesses policy options and their impacts, and monitors and contributes to the implementation of policies. It also provides operational support in certain cases, for example in anticipating environmental disasters, providing assistance to managing crises and assessing any consequential damage and their impact on human life and/or the environment. The ultimate beneficiaries of these activities are the EU Member States.
In July 2010, the JRC published its strategy for 2010 - 2020 with the intention to focus its efforts on seven thematic areas, which respond to major EU and global challenges and take into account the JRC's proven competences:
- Towards an open and competitive economy: by contributing to the goals of the Europe 2020 Strategy by providing integrated socio-economic and policy support on macro-economic policies, structural reform, employment, education and skills, research and innovation ("Innovation Union").
- Development of a low carbon society: by addressing energy, transport, clean production technologies and consumption patterns, issues that will be pivotal to the progressive transition of the EU towards a 'low carbon society'.
- Sustainable management of natural resources: by addressing issues related to the sustainable management and use of strategic resources such as food, water, air, minerals and land.
- Safety of food and consumer products: by providing S&T support to EU policies on safety of food and feed, and other new consumer products.
- Nuclear safety and security: by providing independent and reliable S&T assessment in the fields of nuclear safety, safety of the new generation of reactor technologies, and nuclear safeguards and non-proliferation.
- Security and crisis management: by contributing to the development of new technological approaches to enhance the security of the citizen, including support to crisis management.
- Reference materials and measurements: by maintaining a strong reference role in the area of standards and reference measurements.
In keeping with its mission, the JRC strives to play a role as a centre of reference in its key competence areas through extensive networks with the relevant organisations in the Member States and, where appropriate, international organisations.
In addition to these institutional activities, the JRC co-operates closely with external organisations. In line with a strategic approach to the JRC's role as a partner, several high level agreements have been set up with large scientific and industrial communities on new networks and research collaboration. | <urn:uuid:0193da13-f8c9-40d0-8143-12e39626c94f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://ec.europa.eu/dgs/jrc/index.cfm?id=1390 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.93172 | 580 | 1.757813 | 2 |
Complete a Library Card Application form and bring it along with identification that shows your current address to any Bay County Library System branch or the bookmobile. Examples of acceptable identification include a valid driver’s license, current utility bill with your address, or a check with your name and address.
A parent’s or legal guardian’s signature is required for minors under the age of 18.
Items can be requested or placed on hold either online or by calling any of the branches. To request or place on hold on an item in the Library Catalog, start by clicking on “My Account.” Type in your library card number (without the A or B) and your PIN to log-in to your account. Click on the “Search” tab and perform your search. When you find the item you would like to request click on “request item.” A screen will confirm your request. Click on “Place a Hold” to complete the process. If you call, you will be asked for the title and your library card number.
With the exception of videos and DVDs, materials belonging to the Bay County Library System can be renewed a maximum of two times, provided they have not been requested by another patron. New materials can only be renewed once. Items borrowed from other libraries are subject to their circulation policies. You can renew items in person, online, or by calling any of the branches. To renew online, go into our Library Catalog, and click on “My Account.” Type in your library card number (without the A or B) and PIN, then renew your items. If you call, you will be asked for the title(s) and your library card number. Renewal of items borrowed through the Michigan Electronic Library Catalog (MeLCat) varies depending on the loaning library. In many cases, they may be renewed if within 7 days of the due date.
Click here to learn how to borrow eBooks/eAudiobooks from the library. You must both be a resident of Bay County, Michigan and own a valid Bay County Library System library card.
Many people are contented browsing library shelves for books, magazines or newspapers to read. Or, you can search our collection on the Library Catalog, which includes other local libraries as well as ours, by title, author, subject or keyword(s). If you do not find what you are looking for on the Library Catalog, you can search the Michigan Electronic Library catalog (MelCat), which includes collections from many libraries across the state. All of the branches and the bookmobile have staff available to help you find material or advise you on how to find books of a particular genre, similar to favorites you have already read, or about subjects of interest.
Your feedback is important to us. Your comments and suggestions help us improve the service and products we provide for you. If you have a suggestion for material you would like to see added to the collection, please complete and submit a Library Materials Purchase Suggestion Form. If you have a comment or suggestion on any other aspect of our facilities, services, or products, please complete and submit a Please Tell Us What You Think… form.
First, check to see if the item is available locally by searching the Library Catalog. If it is not available locally, search the Michigan Electronic Library Catalog, or MelCat, and find the item you are looking for. If the item is available for loan a link called “Get this for me!” will appear. Click on it. A window asking “Which library card/account do you want to use?” will appear. Select “Bay County Library System” and click on “Submit above information.” Type in your name and your library card number, without the A or B at the beginning and end of your number. Choose a pickup location (one of our branches). Click on “submit.” A screen will confirm the title and your request. Be sure to click on “Logout” to close out your account. You will be notified when the material arrives.
You can become a “Friend” of the Bay County Library System by joining “The Friends of the Bay County Libraries.” Envelopes, which include registration and membership fee information, are available at any of the branches. Or, you can print out a form, fill it out and mail it, along with a check, to our administrative office.
Most exhibits and displays are welcome as a means of public expression by groups and individuals in the community. Temporary and limited space is available for exhibits or displays of an informational, educational, cultural, intellectual, civic, charitable, or recreational nature, and not for advertising, commercial, fund raising or political purposes. Interested parties are encouraged to read the exhibit policy and complete an application by filling out an exhibit form, which can be submitted at any branch.
On occasion the library has need for volunteers. Interested persons should contact the Managing Librarian at the branch in which they would like to volunteer. | <urn:uuid:08c5ec1e-06bf-44b6-8be5-3f6b3a53cde9> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.baycountylibrary.org/category/how-do-i/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.931207 | 1,042 | 1.539063 | 2 |
Judith Crawley, "Judy," film producer, director, scriptwriter (b at Ottawa 21 Apr 1914; d there 15 Sept 1986). She was close collaborator and wife of Frank "Budge" CRAWLEY
, and her contribution to their company was extensive throughout its history. They made their first film, Île d'Orléans
(1938), on their honeymoon, and shortly thereafter formed Crawley Films, which became one of Canada's foremost independent production companies. She directed a number of documentaries in the 1940s and 1950s, many of which dealt with child care, most notably the Ages and Stages
series (1949-57). After 1961 she gave up directing and concentrated her energies on producing and writing. These activities culminated in the Academy Award for best documentary film the couple won for producing THE MAN WHO SKIED DOWN EVEREST
(1975). While "Budge" turned his energies to producing feature films, she continued to produce educational documentaries. From 1979 to 1982 she was president of the Canadian Film Institute. | <urn:uuid:fcdf9530-c498-4429-8826-da9a5cd4aec5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.com/articles/judith-crawley | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.981681 | 215 | 1.773438 | 2 |
Pioneer. Maverick. Innovator. These are words you could throw at Richard Branson and they would stick. He’s our intrepid rebel billionaire. When you think ‘Richard Branson’, you think hot air ballooning in Africa; you think company launches replete with bikini-clad models; you think management by phone from Necker Island. You don’t think ‘communication’, and you certainly don’t think ‘details’. But, as he explains in his latest book Business Stripped Bare, when you’re talking about delivery – executing in your business – it all comes down to details and communication.
All About the Details
According to Branson, “it’s the attention to detail that really defines great business delivery.” It’s that simple. He advises every company owner or manager to travel with a notebook to jot down things that need doing. It doesn’t matter what you’re doing – whether you’re listening to staff or customers, inspecting your product, or even just wandering through your office – it all needs to be captured in the notebook. Or else you’ll forget it.
For example, when Branson was on Virgin Atlantic’s inaugural flight to Japan he made a point of paying particular attention to cultural differences and the Japanese sense of respect and formality, as his notebook entry demonstrates:
“Need slippers in Upper Class, not socks. Need Japanese beers. Only one kind of newspaper from London: English. Need Japanese too. Japanese tea from London, not good. Japanese food from London. Tastes good but must be better presented. Looks like fish and chips. Saucers for Japanese teacups.”
Now, many leaders would balk at this micro-level focus, but Branson believes it’s imperative if you want to deliver the best to your customers (again and again). And the Virgin brand continues to do this better than almost every company in the world. It’s Branson’s near constant practice of putting himself in the shoes of his customer that gives Virgin the edge.
With so many competitors and options today, if you can nail customer delight and keep them coming back, you’ll blaze past your rivals.
Talk to Me
In Virgin’s early days, Branson would pen candid letters to his employees, telling them about everything that was going on with the company.
For Branson, this was a vital form of communication, in that the letters ensured a sense of intimacy in a rapidly growing company. Today, he admits that he finds it difficult to write the frank letters of the past, because they inevitably hit the press, but he still advocates that companies somehow communicate the overall picture of what’s going on to their employees.
Branson also has a message for all the business owners and managers out there: be brave. Hand out your e-mail address and phone number. It’s a psychological boost for those who work with you. It shows you trust them and that you’re there for them. If it’s urgent, you’re only a phone call away. “People aren’t stupid,” urges Branson, “they know not to misuse it or badger you.”
Staff also need to be heard, says Branson. There is nothing more frustrating for employees than to explain the same problems again and again and to have nothing done about them.
Branson recounts how he was on a Virgin flight and a member of the cabin crew told him that the sugar had run out. This person also explained that this wasn’t the first time, the sugar had run out on other flights too. Branson immediately put into effect the policy that flight staff reports are action-ed IMMEDIATELY.
Because the Virgin brand hinges on customer delight, Branson knows that flight staff reports are gold and should be dealt with right away. Consequently, the staff are happy and so are the customers.
For Branson, boiling a business down to its essentials is an important exercise and business strategy. On the point of delivery, it’s all about details and communication. That’s it.
What do you think about Branson’s ‘stripped bare’ approach to delivery? | <urn:uuid:542d8715-4ef1-4819-8823-749754ec6eca> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.finerminds.com/career-entrepreneurship/richard-branson/ | 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 | 0.959788 | 910 | 1.5625 | 2 |
Between 1954 and 1957, one of the most prestigious programs on American television was the monthly “Producers’ Showcase” on NBC. This big-budget offering served up all-star versions of classic dramatic works, musicals, and even special entertainments such as concerts and ballets. All of the programs were broadcast live (which was not uncommon in those days) and in color (which was very unusual since relatively few color televisions were installed at that time). Such luminaries as Audrey Hepburn, Katharine Cornell, Margot Fonteyn and Alfred Lunt and Lynn Fontane made their first TV appearances under the “Producer’s Showcase” aegis.
The most famous title of the series was the Mary Martin version of “Peter Pan,” but this week’s column focuses on something which not as well known but far more intriguing: the “Producers’ Showcase” presentation of “The Petrified Forest” starring Humphrey Bogart, Lauren Bacall and Henry Fonda. Broadcast on May 30, 1955, “The Petrified Forest” is a true curiosity which deserves attention as being a noble and distinguished failure.
“The Petrified Forest” is based on the play by Robert Sherwood, which is primarily remembered today for being the vehicle that gave Bogart his first taste of stardom. His performance as the gangster Duke Mantee electrified Broadway, and even his co-star Leslie Howard was in awe – so much that when Warner Bros. set about making the film version, Howard refused to star in the movie unless Bogart was also cast.
The fact “The Petrified Forest” is remembered for Bogart’s performance and not for the text itself is telling. Quite frankly, the Sherwood play is lousy. It is a talky, claustrophobic and credibility-free drama about the unlikely denizens of an isolated Arizona diner being held hostage by Duke Mantee and his gang of snarling miscreants. The central focus is the struggle between Mantee’s brute force and the romantic view of life by an idealist intellectual played by Leslie Howard. Casting Bogart as the tough and Howard as the intellectual helped immensely, as both actors injected their considerably talents into their respective one-dimensional roles.
Bogart was naturally fond of the Duke Mantee character and expressed an interest in reprising it for television. However, his nostalgia came with a price: $50,000, which for the time was the highest fee given to an actor for a single performance on the small screen. Sweetening the deal was casting Bogart’s wife Lauren Bacall in the role of the daughter of the diner, who has her own dreams of escaping to Paris to study art. Rounding out the cast was Henry Fonda in the role of the intellectual who challenges Duke Mantee during the hostage crisis.
Unfortunately, the dream casting proved fatal on all counts. Bacall was 31 when she appeared in “The Petrified Forest” and, quite frankly, she was too mature and too sophisticated to be credible as the daughter of a small-town diner owner. With her distinct diction and trademark poise, she seemed as if she had returned from living in Paris for years rather than being an isolated girl seeking an adventure in France.
Complicating matters was Henry Fonda, who was unable to make sense of the romanticized mumbo-jumbo that Leslie Howard turned into gold in the stage and screen versions. Whereas Howard specialized in the guise of a world-weary idealist, Fonda’s middle American persona and voice cruelly exposed Sherwood’s text for being rot. His visible discomfort throughout the production could either be attributed to his unease at being on live TV or his slow dawning knowledge that he was miscast.
If one expected Bogart to save the day, forget it. Bogart appeared to be ill during the production – for the bulk of the show, he is seated and nearly immobile. Director Delbert Mann tried to hide Bogart’s lethargy by shooting him primarily in close-up, and the great actor did his best sneery growl in delivering his lines. But the menace and animalistic force of the character was absent; the enervated Bogart was as threatening as a 10-year-old doing a Bogart imitation. Bogart died less than two years after “The Petrified Forest” from cancer, and it is possible the disease was already draining his energy when “The Petrified Forest” aired.
There are some noteworthy trivia items here: “The Petrified Forest” was the first time a helicopter shot was incorporated into a live TV broadcast. And future sitcom icons Jack Klugman and Natalie Schafer had small supporting roles. Delbert Mann would graduate later in 1955 to the big screen by directing “Marty,” and he won the Academy Award for his direction of that classic.
The disappointment of “The Petrified Forest” ensured it would be quickly forgotten. Indeed, over the years all notions of the production faded from memory – to the point that when people tried to locate a copy of the broadcast in the decades after it was broadcast, it was considered lost. In the pre-video era of 1955, live television was preserved on something called a kinescope, which was basically a movie print made by aiming a 16mm camera at a TV monitor and recording the broadcast. It was an imperfect solution (if you ever see vintage TV shows, you can see the poor visual quality of the kinescopes), but it was better than nothing.
A kinescope of “The Petrified Forest” was located in the 1970s, albeit in black-and-white and without the soundtrack. The production was considered lost forever until Lauren Bacall located an extant 16mm black-and-white print in her private collection. It has since been determined that no color kinescopes exist of any of the “Producers’ Showcase” titles, so the original color broadcast is forever lost to us.
In 1992, a company called Producers’ Showcase Inc. (which claimed ownership of the 1950s productions) secured a new copyright certificate for “The Petrified Forest”; prior to that, there was confusion whether the production was in the public domain. Producers’ Showcase Inc., however, has not officially licensed this title for commercial home video release due to problems in talent clearance rights. According to the company’s web site, it is in negotiations with NBC to determine a commercially viable and mutually beneficial distribution deal.
However, “The Petrified Forest” has been circulating quietly for years as a bootleg video. The quality is okay, given the circumstances of its preservation. While it is not a great work (or even all that good, truth be told), it does offer Bogart fans a rare glimpse of the mighty performer at the twilight of his career and it is special as the last Bogart-Bacall teaming. And while one could wish it was a better work, even second-level Bogart is better than a lost production.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The unauthorized duplication and distribution of copyright-protected material is not widely appreciated by the entertainment industry, and on occasion law enforcement personnel help boost their arrest quotas by collaring cheery cinephiles engaged in such activities. So if you are going to copy and sell bootleg videos, a word to the wise: don’t get caught. The purchase and ownership of bootleg videos, however, is perfectly legal and we think that’s just peachy! This column was brought to you by Phil Hall, a contributing editor at Film Threat and the man who knows where to get the good stuff…on video, that is.
Discuss The Bootleg Files in Back Talk>>>
Posted on April 15, 2005 in Features by Phil Hall
If you liked this article then you may also like the following Film Threat articles:
- THE BOOTLEG FILES: “THE PETRIFIED FOREST”
- DUKE CITY SHOOTOUT COMING YOUR WAY
- EDWARD R. MURROW: THE BEST OF PERSON TO PERSON (DVD)
- STOCKHOLM FILM FEST CROWNS ONLINE WINNER
- SALMA HAYEK…
Popular Stories from Around the Web | <urn:uuid:61002a4c-6096-468c-a1b3-3040e8aaa7ec> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.filmthreat.com/features/1418/ | 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 | 0.974634 | 1,762 | 1.695313 | 2 |
Brazilian manufacturing firm Weg is attracting analysts' attention. The 50-year old electric motor, equipment and paints global conglomerate set its sights on the local wind sector in 2011 when it signed a technology-licensing agreement with MTorres Olvega Industrial (MTOI), an Egyptian-owned turbine manufacturer based in Spain.
The joint venture with MTOI, in which Weg initially invested BRL33 million ($15.5 million), gives it responsibility for facilities and projects in Brazil, while MTOI handles technology transfer.
Its prospects have been boosted further since last summer when Brazilian development bank BNDES delisted several of its biggest competitors, including Vestas and Suzlon, for failing to meet its strict local content rules that give access to cheap finance. Under the rules, at least 60% of content - in terms of weight and price - needs to be made in Brazil.
Weg, it seems, was ready to take advantage of its local presence and new international relationship with MTOI. According to a Weg sales representative, the BNDES delisting resulted in a surge in requests from wind-farm developers and, in September, Weg landed its first turbine sales contract for 90MW for a wind farm in north-eastern Brazil. No more details about the deal were released, except that delivery would be made by 2015, with the wind farm due to start operating in 2016.
Weg is not new to the energy sector; it already supplies transmission, distribution and small-scale hydro and biomass generation equipment. It has facilities in Mexico, Argentina, the US, Portugal, China, Austria and India. But in wind energy, it saw the growth opportunity in a fast-developing and prosperous market that fitted into its diversification strategy.
Weg offers turbines of 1.65MW, 2.3MW and 2.5MW. It moved its transmission equipment production facilities to Sao Paulo state to make room for the production of nacelles at its factory in Jaragua do Sul. This can produce 65 nacelles a year, built using MTOI technology - the company aims to double this by 2015.
Weg is tight-lipped about its first deal. "This first contract shows that we managed to develop an interesting portfolio of products that will give us the conditions to increase - gradually and methodically - our presence in the market," Luis Francisco Oliveira, the company's investor relations officer, said in November.
And that was all that was said about the new contract. Neither Oliveira nor any of the other company official was prepared to discuss further the company's plans for the wind sector. Weg's press office turned down interview requests, saying the silence is part of the company's strategy.
Strategy is vital for a new entrant in a big market, especially when burdened by licensing royalty payments of at least 5% for each sale in a market where price is crucial to compete for the 8GW of wind power - almost 90 times Weg's maiden contract - that is expected to be commissioned in the next decade.
Weg is up against powerful competition: GE, Vestas, Alstom, Suzlon, Gamesa, Enercon (with Wobben Wind power), Acciona, Impsa and Fuhrlander. These companies together are investing about $200 million in new factories in Brazil.
However, Weg has several competitive advantages. Although it does not own the more specialised wind technology such as blades, towers and nacelles, it can make electric motors, electronics and control parts locally. This makes it possible to source up to 80% of content locally, according to Mauricio Aredes, wind power and technology transfer researcher at the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro 's Coppe Engineering Research Center.
Additionally, a licensing agreement gives local firms access to patents and allows equipment to be adapted to local conditions, another competitive advantage that other players are concerned about in Brazil.
"All licensing agreements result in local innovations because you have access to the 'blueprints'", says Mauro Luz, co-ordinator of the technology transfer department at the Brazilian National Industrial Property Institute.
According to Aredes, the model adopted by Weg is similar to the approach taken in China in the early 2000s, albeit under tougher market-access control.
"China's local content rules were much stricter than Brazil's, and in two years they were able to launch innovation in new turbines and, later on, to open up the market. Of course nobody was able to compete internally with Chinese companies," says Aredes.
Weg is already an expert in licensing agreements in other sectors and has strong capacity for research and development, allocating 2.5% of its revenue to its development laboratories. It can use this to adapt MTOI's turbines to local conditions.
During the Brazil Windpower conference in August 2012, Weg stated that its TWT-2.3MW turbine was more efficient for local winds, claiming it can reach a higher generating capacity at lower wind speeds. "It's a small percentage increase from the previous model but, over the thousands of hours, it makes all the difference," a Weg sales representative told Windpower Monthly.
Weg's efforts so far have drawn mixed views from industry commentators. "The strategy adopted by Weg seems to be aimed at capturing specialties and to become an important player in the all sectors," says Mario Bernardes, industrial sector analyst at Banco do Brasil. "I already had a positive view about Weg, but with the decision to enter the wind sector, this view has become even more positive."
Convince the market
Bernardes expects Weg shares to outperform, predicting that by the end of 2013 they will have risen 34% from 2010 prices. Looking at the company's overall capacity and revenues, he notes that the foreign currency royalties due on MTOI's wind turbines will be compensated for by Weg's 45% foreign-currency sales revenues.
Daniel Gewehr, a Sao Paulo-based analyst at Spanish banking group Santander. is more conservative - he suggests Weg's shares will hold their value, saying that the revenue of the first turbine deal is still small in comparison to the group's overall earnings.
To guarantee margins for wind-turbine manufacturers, Aredes says that prices need to be around BRL 120/MWh. Yet, strong interest and competition is one reason for the sharp power price decline across Brazil, from BRL 300/MWh in the contracts of early 2000, to around BRL 100/MWh at the last auction in 2011.
Although the first contract shows that Weg can play the market, the company now needs to build on this convincingly, increasing sales significantly, and at a fast pace, to gain scale production and counteract the low wind power prices in Brazil.
According to Gewehr, Weg's annual sales revenue was expected to have risen by 16% in 2012 from 2011's BRL5.2 billion and to BRL20 billion by 2020.
"I guess 90MW is better than nothing, but Weg has to do much better than that to pay off the royalties," Aredes concludes.
OUTLOOK EXPRESS - THE GOVERNMENT'S CONSUMPTION FORECAST ENTAILS GROWTH IN WIND
Brazil's wind-power sector woke up in 2009 when the government abandoned its incentivised clean-energy programme, Profina, and decided to introduce wind in competitive auctions - where firms that offer the lowest prices win 20-year power sale contracts.
This move was perfectly timed to coincide with a slowdown in the world economy that affected wind-turbine demand, and Brazil now boasts 2GW of installed capacity, more than a tenfold increase in seven years.
One of the world's fastest-growing wind markets, Brazil now has a manufacturing capacity for 4GW of turbines a year from 11 international players producing locally.
The country's wind-power market is driven by significant economic growth and the government is projecting a 4.7% average increase in yearly power consumption by 2021 according to its ten-year energy plan.
To supply this demand, Brazil's overall installed capacity needs to reach 182GW, a 65MW increase in ten years. The government has signaled its intention to see that the extra wattage comes from clean energy sources: 15MW, or 24% will come from wind and 50% will come from hydroelectric plants.
CONTENT CONTROL LOCAL-LEANING FINANCE
- Tough line In June, national development bank BNDES delisted Vestas, Suzlon, Acciona, Fuhrlander and Clipper from its Finame cheap finance programme. It said that these companies had failed to meet its local content rules, which state that all manufacturers must produce 60% of content locally within five years of entering the programme
- Restoration The manufacturers are now working with BNDES to be reinstated to the programme. There has been speculation that some will buy local companies in order to meet the rule
- More restrictions The bank has indicated that it will regularly review and tighten these rules | <urn:uuid:4671f7c1-2812-47a2-8e4a-84316ad62e1f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.windpowermonthly.com/article/1164650/brazilian-firms-use-local-edge-gain-ground | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.957278 | 1,892 | 1.515625 | 2 |
Introducing...Zak the Yak!
“Who is Zak?” you may cry
With ear-piercing clatter.
“And what is a yak?”
“And why do they matter?”
As for Zak, well this yak
He is one of a kind,
With a big friendly smile,
And a razor-sharp mind.
- Excerpt from Zak the Yak With Books on His Back
John Wood, Room to Read founder and Board Chair, proudly announces the publication of his first children’s book, Zak the Yak With Books on His Back.
In fun and rhythmic prose, Wood tells the story of sturdy, lovable Zak, a yak whose determination and strength help to bring thousands of books to a rural village in Nepal. With his two young Nepali sidekicks, Arul and Manju, Zak sets out on a quest to rally the support and generosity of others to help provide much-needed resources to a school high in the Himalayan Mountains.
Illustrated in vivid colors by award-winning Nepali artist Abin Shrestha, the book highlights the challenges faced by students in resource-deprived countries like Nepal.
The trio’s trek through Nepal introduces the reader to the breathtaking landscapes of Nepal, from the isolated, steep mountains to the capital city, Kathmandu. Through Zak’s marvelous journey, readers will learn not only to value their own education, but also the importance of taking action and becoming agents of change in their own lives.
Thanks to the generosity of our friends at The Republic of Tea, who have underwritten the printing costs of the book, every dollar raised from the sale of Zak the Yak With Books on His Back supports Room to Read programs. With support from kids, adults, and yaks around the world, Room to Read can help bring education to more children like Arul and Manju.
Be one of the first to own a copy of Zak the Yak with Books on His Back. Every dollar supports Room to Read.
To learn more about how The Republic of Tea has helped support Room to Read with its line of Little Citizens’ Herb Teas, please read the press announcement. | <urn:uuid:d9a44574-8bc1-4a54-a8e5-41574422e419> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.roomtoread.org/page.aspx?pid=719 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.938934 | 460 | 1.78125 | 2 |
Rohinton MistryArticle Free Pass
Rohinton Mistry , (born July 3, 1952, Bombay [now Mumbai], India), Indian-born Canadian writer whose works—in turns poignant, stark, and humorous—explored the everyday lives of Indian Parsis (descendants of Persian Zoroastrians).
Like many of the characters in his stories, Mistry was of Parsi origin. He obtained a degree in mathematics and economics from the University of Bombay (now the University of Mumbai) before moving to Canada in 1975. In the early 1980s he enrolled at the University of Toronto to pursue a degree in English and philosophy. He began writing short stories and won the university’s literary competition two years in a row. Mistry attracted wider attention when he won Canadian Fiction Magazine’s annual Contributors Prize in 1985. His collection of short stories, Tales from Firozsha Baag (1987; also published as Swimming Lessons and Other Stories from Firozsha Baag), was warmly greeted by critics and general readers alike for its insights into the complex lives of the Parsi inhabitants of Firozsha Baag, an apartment building in Mumbai.
Mistry’s debut novel, Such a Long Journey (1991; film version, 1998), is an intricate tale of the triumphs and disasters of a kindhearted bank clerk’s friends and family set in India in 1971, a time of domestic turbulence and war with Pakistan. The book received the Governor-General’s Award, the W.H. Smith/Books in Canada First Novel Award, and the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize for best book. A Fine Balance (1995), which also received the Commonwealth Writers’ Prize as well as the Giller Prize for best Canadian novel, was another study of Parsis living at close quarters in varying degrees of harmony during difficult times, in this case India’s 1975 state of emergency. Mistry’s third novel, Family Matters (2002), was set in a tiny two-room flat in modern-day Mumbai and presented a compelling portrayal of a family of Parsis living in exigent circumstances. His novella The Scream (2008) is narrated by an aging, isolated resident of a Mumbai apartment building.
What made you want to look up "Rohinton Mistry"? Please share what surprised you most... | <urn:uuid:6e713c34-d3be-488a-a2e6-80c76ee7af92> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/385868/Rohinton-Mistry | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963378 | 484 | 1.75 | 2 |
$22.00 donated in past month
Sea Shepherd Ship Farley Mowat Has Been Illegally Stormed and the Crew Assaulted
At 0700 Hours (PST) and 0800 Hours Atlantic time the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society vessel Farley Mowat was attacked by officers from two Canadian Coast Guard icebreakers the Des Groseilliers and the Sir Wifred Grenfell.
Captain Alex Cornelissen informed the boarders that the Farley Mowat is a Dutch registered ship in international waters and that Canada had no legal right to restrict the free passage of the vessel through international waters. The ship was in the Gulf of St. Lawrence well beyond the Canadian twelve mile territorial limit.
Captain Paul Watson was speaking by phone with Farley Mowat communications officer Shannon Mann when he heard the voices of men screaming for the crew to fall to the floor. The men carried guns according to Mann and could be heard by Captain Watson threatening the Farley Mowat’s crew. As Captain Watson was speaking with Shannon Mann, the Satellite phone went dead and nothing more has been heard from the Sea Shepherd crew.
The Farley Mowat was documenting violations of the humane regulations and gathering proof that the seals were being killed in an inhumane manner. The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society is assuming that the video tapes will be seized by the Canadian authorities. There are 17 crewmembers onboard the Dutch registered Farley Mowat from the Netherlands, the United Kingdom, France, Sweden, South Africa, Canada and the United States.
The Sea Shepherd Conservation Society has been cut off from communication with the crew and has no information on where the vessel will be taken. Sea Shepherd has no information on the condition of the crew and the Society is deeply concerned for their crew.
“This is an act of war,” said Captain Paul Watson. “The Canadian government has just sent an armed boarding party onto a Dutch registered yacht in international waters and has seized the ship. Considering that the mission of the Farley Mowat was to document evidence of cruelty by sealers to support a European initiative to ban seal products, I can predict that the Europeans will not be very pleased with this move and most likely this move by Loyola Hearn will guarantee that this bill is passed. In other words the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans has just handed us the victory that we were looking for.”
About Sea Shepherd Conservation Society
Established in 1977, Sea Shepherd Conservation Society (SSCS) is an International non-profit conservation organization whose mission is to end the destruction of habitat and slaughter of wildlife in the world’s oceans in order to conserve and protect ecosystems and species. Sea Shepherd uses innovative direct-action tactics to investigate, document, and take action when necessary to expose and confront illegal activities on the high seas. By safeguarding the biodiversity of our delicately-balanced ocean ecosystems, Sea Shepherd works to ensure their survival for future generations. Visit http://www.seashepherd.org for more information. | <urn:uuid:f316607b-2468-4739-a31b-213ff1dc23a1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.indybay.org/newsitems/2008/04/12/18492355.php | 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 | 0.935684 | 619 | 1.765625 | 2 |
Elon senior shares story of Haiti quake survival
Elon University senior John McGreevy flew to Haiti over Winter Term as part of a research project. Within days he found himself helping the wounded, the widowed and the children made orphans following the impoverished nation’s largest natural disaster in generations. The environmental studies and biology double major from the Philadelphia region recently spoke with E-net about his experience.
ENET: Can you share with readers why you traveled to Haiti over Winter Term?
JM: I have been trying to return to Haiti ever since I first visited the country four years ago and fell in love with the Haitian people. The purpose of my trip was two-fold. First, I was performing research on the implementation of simple solar ovens in rural villages. The many aspects I explored included cultural issues, the willingness of Haitian women to use the device, and the effects of this on women’s health and workweeks.
The other aspect of my time in Haiti was service to the community in which I stayed, working on their water purification systems, and acting as a liaison for the Parish Twining program that has fostered sustainable development in the rural village of Layaye.
ENET: Tell readers about the moment the quake hit. Did you know what was happening?
JM: Confusion and denial followed my initial instincts, but this what I wrote about the thoughts that passed through my head in my personal journal:
“I sat down on my bed. Almost immediately there was chaos. What it a bomber?... it sounded like it. Was that the roof bending? Whatever it was, it was an entirely unique feeling. I had never felt ground, which I am so dependent on and used to staying still, begin to move. And not just that, but convulse, fold, sway. The doorway morphed, the bed slid on its wheels, the distances between objects changed for a few moments, not drastically but definitely. Earthquake, I knew.”
ENET: When did you first realize the magnitude of the disaster in Port-au-Prince?
JM: It was not until later that evening that I was informed through text messages from the U.S. that the quake was not a small, isolated incident as I previously thought. The people of the village had no idea that their capital city and many of their family members were in peril. No phone calls could be made domestically. For days, the only news gathered came in through phone calls from the U.S.
ENET: Describe your response to the quake. When did you first get to the capital, and what did you do there?
JM: My first trip back to the capital came two or three days later. Men were going to look for loved ones they had not yet got in contact with and I decided to join. I really did not do much in terms of assistance on my first visit. It was far too chaotic and fresh to have significant impact given the lack of resources we possessed. Minimal aid, if any, had reached the country, and I saw only a handful of Americans in the city.
ENET: You returned to Port-au-Prince shortly after your first visit, and in various newspaper accounts, you recalled witnessing terrible conditions. What sticks out the most to you?
JM: Because I can’t explain it better than I could the day of, here is what I wrote about that night, which I sent out to friends and family the following day:
“I was handed a mask as we pulled into the city. ‘Oh yes, for the dust probably,’ I thought in my naivety. When I asked, the answer was not as easy to swallow. ‘The bodies… it has been three days.’ And so it had been, the smells began to seep in through the windows.
“It is Armageddon here. Everything you could imagine in a Hollywood production, but worse. Televisions only attack your sight and hearing. News cannot portray the screams, the death. It is a death that fills your lungs and seeps into your skin. Before today, I had never seen a dead body. Of course, I have been to a few wakes. But the same is always said, 'Oh, how they look so peaceful.' … We drove past pickup trucks leaving the city, men throwing families into pickup trucks, motionless. We passed buildings, rubble, wounded. I took some pictures. Some things were too horrific to, I did not want to capture.
“And then we reached where the hospital once stood. The sidewalks (or at least where sidewalks should be) supported lifeless figures, naked, blank. People walked by without a turn of the head. This was not a spectacle, and in the last three days they had seen much worse. The medians of only four feet in width transformed into campgrounds for families, both wounded and healthy. Parks harbor tens of thousands. There is no water.
“And still the American response here is not as glorious as I hear from domestic news in the States. America is deceived. Yes, supplies have arrived, and the support is amazing from the American people, but little has been distributed. It waits at PAP airport, sitting there until the movie stars can arrive in their private jets to take pictures and get their publicity. I doubt they walk out of the parking lot.
"Despite this news, my view of the human race is improving drastically. As an American, this is so foreign to me. I have been here for weeks and I still am floored by the faith of the Haitian people. You hear that? Amidst the cries and gunfire of the night? That is praise. That is thousands of wounded singing to God hymns of worship, drenching the concrete with their own blood.
“I have awoken to a shining sun in the rural village of Layaye. It is almost as if the world has decided to stretch, yawn, and awake after three days of slumber. And yet, the rays bring no peace. The increased visibility only shines light on the amount of destruction of the days passed. Some of the phone lines are opened, finally. For some, sighs of relief are audible as they hear that everything is fine with their families. For others, the ineffable mourning has begun.
“Father Illric’s sister is alive. His cousin, cousin’s wife, and two small children have left the world. Franz’s house, which he has been saving for his whole life, is destroyed. His wedding will have to wait more years. Many, many lives are lost. Many children, many mothers, many people with souls, blood, flesh.
“Dear God, may this not be just another tragedy in the history of Haiti. It is a dark history, where hints of light are snuffed out before they may ignite into flames.
"As the sun rises today, may the world turn its eyes to the western third of this island, rays illuminating mountains and valleys slowly with the rotation of our planet. May the cries be answered and may the existence of this land be acknowledged. May the food, clean water, health care, and shelter these people have needed for their entire lives finally be met by Christian brothers and sisters around the world. Today, with sun showing all, exposing the scars and new gashes in her body, may America and the world not turn their eyes away. Today, for the first time, the world sees her sister Haiti.
“I love you and am thinking of you all,
ENET: How did the Haitians themselves react to the quake? You’ve noted that they are spiritual people. How does that help them?
JM: While there were indeed isolated incidences of violence, as there would be with any country, the response of the Haitian people appeared to me to be far different than would be expected from people in such a position. What was so strangely beautiful to me was that the default response of the people I encountered was praise. Had I had my house collapse, my nation’s capital destroyed, my family and friends injured and dead around me, my first cowardly thought would be “Why me? How could you God?”
The Haitian men, women, and children I came to know sang out “How Great is Our God” in their darkest hour, rejoicing for what little they have left in material possessions, and how blessed they were in other aspects of life, not focused on in American society.
ENET: How did your faith assist you in Haiti?
JM: Countless ways. The sole reason I was there was because I have tried to make myself happy through self-centeredness, and that lifestyle was pointless, misleading, and empty. I believe that we humans are created in brilliant ways: That we are broken when we try to live for ourselves, that in order to be truly joyful we must provide love-driven service to others, and that we can learn far more from the children and impoverished of the world than we do from the rich, powerful and intellectually gifted individuals that claim to hold the purpose to life.
ENET: What do you recommend readers do if they have interest in helping the nation?
JM: In terms of practical ways to help, the only worthwhile and beneficial form of aid is sustainable. The best ways I have seen this done are through organizations dedicated to specific communities and participatory development, such the Periclean Scholars program.
In Haiti, the best work is being done by organizations like Parish Twinning through the Catholic Church, similar programs in other faiths, and school-to-school connections, not just in Port-au-Prince but also in the surrounding countryside where refugees now reside. In my ideal world, every church and school in the United States would create lifelong partnerships with churches and schools in Haiti, with each gaining and learning more than they could have ever imagined.
Action is not worthwhile unless it is filled with love. By understanding this, we will be able to open our minds and hearts to the people of Haiti, making sure that our actions are not for personal gain, recognition, or anything more than the improvement of the lives of those less fortunate than ourselves. | <urn:uuid:664f328e-4afb-4757-8c80-fcaccc4e243b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.elon.edu/e-net/Article/48572 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.980744 | 2,114 | 1.53125 | 2 |
I would like to see an ehhancement to an answer i.e. in how a solution is applied on Stack Overflow to someones existing code example/s. Maybe right next to the users suggestion where you increase their score there is a button that says, "Apply This Solution" to the original question. When clicked the solution would show the chosen users code's solution with the suggestion. On the popup it then allows you to click "With Solution" and "Without Solution" so you can see the difference and maybe also see different resulting output as a secondary feature.
The reason this would be useful is because there are a lot of new programmers out there and this would attact a larger user base to see what the results looked like before and after. In addition, this type of solution would allow seasoned developers to explain complex behavior allowing more detailed explanations to be utilized in a with/without scenario which would greatly include a larger community of users and differentiate the answers willing to go in greater detail. This would also differentiate stack overflow more from other types of q/a sites with better code examples. | <urn:uuid:731b4661-f909-4d92-a857-5d77aea01012> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://meta.stackoverflow.com/questions/146793/in-a-stack-overflow-answer-allow-for-code-examples-to-show-a-before-and-after-so?answertab=active | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961883 | 223 | 1.5625 | 2 |
So, this pops up in my inbox this afternoon, and it’s the most beautiful bit of writing I have seen in a long while. Nobody writes like this these days–who is it? I ask.
To give an adequate exposition of the Philosophy of Atheism, it would be necessary to go into the historical changes of the belief in a Deity, from its earliest beginning to the present day. But that is not within the scope of the present paper. However, it is not out of place to mention, in passing, that the concept God, Supernatural Power, Spirit, Deity, or in whatever other term the essence of Theism may have found expression, has become more indefinite and obscure in the course of time and progress. In other words, the God idea is growing more impersonal and nebulous in- proportion as the human mind is learning to understand natural phenomena and in the degree that science pro- gressively correlates human and social events.
God, today, no longer represents the same forces as in the beginning of His existence; neither does He direct human destiny with the same Iron hand as of yore. Rather does the God idea express a sort of spiritualistic stimalus to satisfy the fads and fancies of every shade of human weak- ness. In the course of human development the God idea has been forced to adapt itself to every phase of human affairs, which is perfectly consistent with the origin of the idea itself.
The conception of gods originated in fear and curiosity. Primitive man, unable to understand the phenomena of nature and harassed by them, saw in every terrifying manifestation some sinister force expressly directed against him; and as ignorance and fear are the parents of all super- stition, the troubled fancy of primitive man wove the God idea.
Beautiful, beautiful writing. As the “new atheists” keep reminding people, the ideas are not new.
Have not all theists painted their Deity as the god of love and goodness? Yet after thousands of years of such preach- ments the gods remain deaf to the agony of the human race. Confucius cares not for the poverty, squalor and misery of people of China. Buddha remains undisturbed in his philosophical indifference to the famine and starvation of outraged Hindoos; Jahve continues deaf to the bitter cry of Israel; while Jesus refuses to rise from the dead against his Christians who are butchering each other.
The burden of all song and praise “unto the Highest” has been that God stands for justice and mercy. Yet injus- tice among men is ever on the increase; the outrages com- mitted against the masses in this country alone would seem enough to overflow the very heavens. But where are the gods to make an end to all these horrors, these wrongs, this inhumanity to man? No, not the gods, but MAN must rise in his mighty wrath. He, deceived by all the deities, be- trayed by their emissaries, he, himself, must undertake to usher in justice upon the earth.
Could have been written today. Well, if people used such beautiful language any more.
The philosophy of Atheism has its root in the earth, in this life; its aim is the emancipation of the human race from all God-heads, be they Judaic, Christian, Mohammedan, Buddhistic, Brahministic, or what not. Mankind has been punished long and heavily for having created its gods; nothing but pain and persecution have been man’s lot since gods began. There is but one way out of this blunder: Man must break his fetters which have chained him to the gates of heaven and hell, so that he can begin to fashion out of his reawakened and illumined consciousness a new world upon earth.
Only after the triumph of the Atheistic philosophy in the minds and hearts of man will freedom and beauty be real- ized. Beauty as a gift from heaven has proved useless. It will, however, become the essence and impetus of life when man learns to see in the earth the only heaven fit for man. Atheism is already helping to free man from his dependence upon punishment and reward as the heavenly bargain- counter for the poor in spirit.
Please read the whole thing–I have just shown a bit, and the whole is worth reading. I’ll leave with the last sentence, which deserves to be the next atheist billboard (I’ll forgive the sexist phrasing, as the product of her era):
Atheism in its negation of gods is at the same time the strongest affirmation of man, and through man, the eternal yea to life, purpose, and beauty. | <urn:uuid:38f08d67-800a-47b4-ae07-c05198a2732d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://freethoughtblogs.com/cuttlefish/2012/07/19/the-philosophy-of-atheism/ | 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 | 0.96338 | 967 | 1.789063 | 2 |
The morning walk is one of the most common forms of weight loss exercise. When I sit at my table in the morning and look out the window I see scores of women going for walks with their dogs, husbands or a group of friends. And while we have approached the question of “does walking burn fat” before, in this post I want to give you a few ways to super charge your morning walk so you can burn more fat in less time.
How to burn more fat on your morning walk
While I think walking has its merits (it is relaxing, low impact, etc.) I do think there are a lot better ways to burn fat. High intensity exercise like sprinting, skipping, hill climbs, kick boxing classes and weight training are all far superior in my opinion. But for some women these choices just aren’t options. And sometimes a walk is a nice start to the day – it is definitely a lot better than doing no exercise at all. Here are a few ways to super charge your morning walk.
1. Walk for at least 45 minutes
There have been several studies done on the topic of whether walking actually burns fat. In these studies it was found that you need to walk for at least 25 minutes before you actually start burning fat stores in your body. And while I am not so sure if this science still stands up, the principle remains the same. You need to walk for more than 25 to 30 minutes if you want to burn a good amount of fat.
Why is this so? Well the main theory is that when you walk before breakfast you have no available energy from food and as such you will tap into stored fat reserves. Apparently you need to walk for at least 25 minutes before this process begins to take place. This is not entirely true because glycogen energy remains ready for action for a long time. A more likely reason, in my mind, is that walking is not very likely to lift your heart rate and as such you need longer to get to a point where you are actually doing some damage to the energy stores in your body.
Whatever the reason, make sure you are walking at a good pace for at least 45 minutes in the morning. If you can’t bare to be out for that long at least try to get half an hour.
2. Hit the hills
Walking, as we mentioned, is a very low impact form of exercise that doesn’t do much in the way of pushing your boundaries. For this reason it is a great idea to change the terrain a little bit so that your muscles are doing some work that they might otherwise miss out on. The hills is a great place to start.
Walking hills has been one of the best forms of exercise for a long time. It is an exercise that tones your butt and legs, gets your heart rate up a lot higher and is far more interesting and challenging than just walking on the flats. Now, you don’t have to find some gigantic mountain in order to get a good workout. Most of you don’t live near mountains. But almost all of you will have some form of hill near your house. It might be an actual hill in a park or reserve or it might just be a sloped street that you can walk up and down. Hit it.
At the end of the session you will feel more energetic and vibrant because you would have actually worked out a large part of your body. Hill walks are a really good way to super charge your morning walk and burn more fat.
3. Drink a black coffee before you leave
I can hear all of you breathing a sigh of relief. A fitness website telling us to actually drink coffee! What a great idea. In fact, if you want to burn more fat on your morning walk you should drink a cup of black coffee. Isn’t that great news? The bad news – you aren’t allowed to have any milk or sugar. Just coffee and water. Add anything else and you won’t get the benefit.
So why does coffee help you burn more fat? Well many people believe that it allows you to access fat stores instead of carbs. Others believe that the stimulant aspect of coffee assists in its fat burning. To be honest, however, neither of these things makes much scientific sense. In fact, talking to nutritionists and doctors who have looked at studies around this issue and not many of them agree with the above assertions. So why am I recommending it? Because I have seen results in myself and my workout buddies. A bit of caffeine before a morning workout seems to have a positive effect on our weight loss progress. Bodybuilders have been saying the same thing for years.
One last reason; a morning coffee can help to wake you up and get your head in the right place for a workout. I can’t tell you the number of times I got up for a workout and then went straight back to bed because I couldn’t wake myself up. A coffee can help to prevent that. Give it a go and see how it works for you. If you don’t see any results after a couple of weeks chuck it in.
4. Take some weights
Another great technique to super charge your morning walk to to take along some hand weights to give your arms something to do. While your legs do all the walking it is great to do some work for your upper body. This effectively means you will get a full body workout which will, of course, burn more calories.
So what do you do with the weights? Well, if you are a little self conscious you could just hold them by your sides to provide some resistance for your arms. This is good enough and will give you a little mini bicep workout. But if you want to spice up the walk a bit more and perhaps even do some arm toning then why no do some full on bicep curls or slow punches or overhead presses? That way you can workout your shoulder, biceps and triceps – all on your morning walk!
Give it a try and see how you go. If you feel stupid, embrace it!
5. Wear a backpack with some weight in it
You have to be a little bit careful with this one because it can produce some back and shoulder injuries. This tip is only for super hard women who are not afraid of a little bit of pain. Be warned though, if you don’t take it easy and do this one carefully you are probably going to wind up with some sort of injury.
This idea actually comes from the army. One of the main things you do in the army is walk. In fact, you walk a lot. And I’m not just talking about walking around in the park. No sir. These guys carry massive guns that weigh as much as your upper body, ammunition that would squash your dog and, you guessed it, backpacks full of supplies. And they burn a lot of fat. You will never see a fat person in the army on active duty.
Fill up your backpack with some light weights and go for a walk. If you have any pain you should stop but over time you will find that your legs and butt get a good workout and you have to push yourself extremely hard just to finish the walk. It is an army style workout that also helps you become very tough mentally.
Any more ideas?
We loving hearing your ideas and experiences. Talking on the blog is a great way to meet new people and learn new things. If you know of any other ways to super charge your morning walk please leave a comment and let us know. | <urn:uuid:eb532fe6-ab0a-4b89-a40c-92a3b3633ffb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://freewomensfitness.com/tag/walking/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961773 | 1,560 | 1.664063 | 2 |
Facebook tracks user activity on sites affiliated with its Beacon advertising program, even when those users have opted-out of the program and logged off Facebook. So say security researchers at Computer Associates, who offers the following screenshots for proof.
CA's experts found that code embedded into Beacon-affiliated sites sends Facebook information about users' planned purchases. And if the user has ever selected "remember me" when logging into Facebook, the affiliate site sends Facebook the user's name.
If the member is logged into Facebook, a popup box will then offer the user an opt out. But CA says that by this point, private data has already been transmitted. Facebook executives dispute this claim and argues that the code only serves to check if the member is logged in. But Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg has been caught dissembling about Beacon before. | <urn:uuid:c24db2d2-ea03-4339-938f-61d998d16d76> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://gawker.com/329419/does-facebook-beacon-spy-on-you-without-asking?tag=valleywagtechyourprivacyisanillusion | 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 | 0.953257 | 165 | 1.570313 | 2 |
Hwang Bo Yoon thought that Jang Chae Ohk must have been able to see how strongly he felt about her; not only was she a great asset to law enforcement in Korea, acting as an undercover agent for the police, known as a damo, she was also an excellent sword fighter, she was brave and full of resolve, and she knew much of nature from having been raised in the mountains as a little girl. She understood many things about the world and was straightforward and honest; in her heart of hearts, she could not stand other people's lies and misdeeds and believed that a person should not have to and that there should be an avenue through which to go to put a stop to such deeds and behaviours, an avenue through which to better society.
Bo Yoon, a police commander who had rose through the ranks very quickly, felt and thought much the same way that Chae Ohk did. He was very loyal to his country and its government, and he loved the people of his country like his own family, like his mother and father and brothers and sisters; like his children, had he had children. Though he was hardworking and diligent, he also did not easily express his feelings, and, as a result, found himself feeling very lonely.
His only wish for himself, apart from the continued health and prosperity of his country, was that Chae Ohk could see how much he cared for her, and that, in some small way, she could acknowledge this and perhaps allow for a friendship between the two of them to build up.
He had often felt that she was lonely like him, and he felt very badly to see her so alone; it would be his dearest wish, he thought, to see her happy. | <urn:uuid:5ddc9782-b13f-4ef0-9847-e97466596f3b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://archiveofourown.org/works/111606 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.997425 | 359 | 1.78125 | 2 |
A fundamental principle of any democracy, and liberal society, is private property. We are free to own and control the land. It liberates us from public ownership, which is a method to control the lives of the occupants; it’s why I disagree with social housing.
But importantly, as owners of the property, how do we respond to a violation of our home? The intruder is not welcomed nor invited, and used aggression to gain entry. You and your family might be facing injury or, potentially, death.
The response is not premeditated; it is a reaction to a intrusive antagonist. Of course, every action has a consequence and individuals have duties and responsibilities. I assert, though, our lives are sacred and free from any form of coercion; if endangered, it is natural to defend yourself and your home. Whilst acknowledging the consequences.
In a true liberal society, self defence is mandatory and a necessity. | <urn:uuid:d29dab6d-9da8-44d8-94bb-76eb7dbc7770> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://danielfurr.wordpress.com/2011/06/25/a-liberal-view-defending-your-home/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954859 | 189 | 1.820313 | 2 |
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
This is quite easy to prove by considering the trace of both sides. The Trace of a square matrix is simply the sum of it's diagonal elements. Hopefully you can see that if
, and that
. If you can't see where these identities come from then please email back.
Ok, The matrix
is given by the formula
and the trace of a matrix
So the trace of
Doing a similar calculation for
Now you can either acccept that these are the same expression ie
or you can read my discussion in green of why we're assuming it is.
Now you've not told me what the elements of and are, if they were matrices(making A a matrix of matrices) then we would be in trouble, because we wouldn't have commutivity, but I'm gonna assume that we are working with some nice subfield of hence . I'm also assuming our matrices are finite which allows us to change the order of summation(else we need to worry about absolute convergence on compact subsets - what fun!) So now you are happy that
Well this is it, we're done. The trace of the LHS must be zero, and the trace of the RHS (the trace of the identity) definitly isn't zero, it's
. So unless
(doesn't make sense) there are no matrices that can satisfy this.
Hope that helps. | <urn:uuid:d4a3186e-c14f-45bf-b70a-f8ea3c95d9a3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.algebra.com/algebra/college/linear/Linear_Algebra.faq.question.25058.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955764 | 300 | 1.609375 | 2 |
One of the many reasons I'm so excited and so bullish on the nuclear industry is that we are seeing a cycle of innovation - something akin to the industry lifecycle - playing out in the nuclear sector (NUCL). I believe we are in the early stages of the innovation phase, and are going to see many innovations in nuclear technology that enable the industry as a whole to meet the challenge created by a world demanding more scalable, cost-effective power without fossil fuels. For investors, I believe this will create an abundance of opportunities.
One of the opportunities I'm most excited about - in addition to breeder reactors and uranium sea mining, which I discussed previously - are modular nuclear reactors. These devices have the ultimate effect of making nuclear power feasible on a smaller scale. They have lower upfront costs, and thus have the potential to reach customer segments that were previously locked out of the market due to the high upfront costs required in building a conventional nuclear power plant. Any innovation that enables price reduction so that a new class of customers can participate is a low-end or new market disruption - an opportunity that, if it gains sufficient traction and an innovation cycle of its own, can be the foundation for a much larger transformation in the entire industry. The pioneering writings of Dr. Clayton Christensen are essential reading for those looking to understand how cost-savings innovations transform markets and create outstanding investment opportunities.
The developer of the modular nuclear reactor is Generation mPower, a joint venture between Babcock Wilcox (BWC) and the Bechtel Group. BWC's decades of experience and status as incumbent in the nuclear power industry are what gives me concern; the modular nuclear reactor is a product that needs to find new customers rather than mold itself to conform to the existing industry customers if it is to have a truly revolutionary impact. From this perspective, BWC simply has the wrong DNA to bring a modular nuclear reactor to the market. This is a classic example of what Christensen refers to as "the innovator's dilemma."
For instance, Generation mPower may find it all too tempting to shape the product's innovation road map based on the needs of BWC's current clients, as that is an easy to reach marketing outlet. But doing so may cause the company to fail to reach more compelling market opportunities, such as developing infrastructure in environments of extreme poverty like Nuru International is doing.
Likewise, it may fail to see other emerging trends it can grow with (like solutions by which solar power can complement nuclear during peaking hours - perhaps a strategy to make nuclear even more cost-effective on a small scale). Because of this line of thinking, I'm not totally convinced that BWC is a great opportunity in spite of coming from the viewpoint that modular nuclear reactor technology is a sorely needed technology.
With that said, though, BWC is a company with growing earnings and a P/E ratio of under 19 at the time of this writing - while the average of the S&P 500 is still over 22. I think U.S. equities are headed to all-time highs so there are lots of good opportunities out there, and as an incumbent in the nuclear industry with a market cap of over $3 billion, a case can be made that BWC should be a part of any well-developed nuclear portfolio.
However, it's not the kind of disruptive strategy - which is always what I'm really looking for - that can open up a new market of customers and be a part of an emerging value network. From that perspective, BWC is on my watchlist - but only as one I'll be consider in the event of an extreme drop in price. For growth plays, which is primarily what I'm interested in the stock market for, BWC isn't as compelling as I'd like it to be at these prices.
Disclosure: I have no positions in any stocks mentioned, and no plans to initiate any positions within the next 72 hours. | <urn:uuid:f0943e79-dcfc-4fdf-a6b1-0023b3f3e7ac> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://seekingalpha.com/article/408491-can-babcock-wilcox-change-the-game-with-the-modular-nuclear-reactor?source=nasdaq | 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 | 0.961742 | 802 | 1.679688 | 2 |
Written by Marilyn Simmons
Where do you find adults bursting with pride, full of chatter, working with and for each other? There is such a bubbly group at the Waxahachie Senior Center Community Gardens. In the early Fall Season, the Senior Center hosted Garden Inspirations for a vegetable gardening educational program. The Senior Center was a blessing to work with and the facility has a wonderful and welcoming appeal with friendly staff members who were more than willing to help with the vegetable session.
The Waxahachie Senior Center had several raised growing vegetable beds with easy water access. The garden area was not only flourishing with vegetables in the end of the summer heat, but there were garden stools in between the rows that provided a resting place for the ambitious gardeners. The composting area was an impressive sight to see that has become the gardeners’ gold, rich, and loamy compost that has provided the community gardeners with rich nutrients from their own property.
It was very obvious that the community gardens were taken care of in great pride with the growing beds bursting with harvest. One gardener showed off her prolific okra and says she harvests daily. The tomatoes were tall, green, and waiting for cooler temperatures to start producing again, but one tomato bed was full of red Juliets. One concerned community gardener was worried that something was wrong with her tomato vine, since the tomatoes seemed to be a little cracked. After showing our excitement of her incredible tomato vine and that her tomatoes were cracked from the uneven watering, she was happy to know she could start feasting on the overloaded Juliet vine.
The community garden was in full harvest swing, cucumbers, squash, Swiss chard, basil, okra, sweet potatoes – the love of the community garden showed through the abundance of harvest and how well cared for the garden was. We had walked into the Senior Center to educate on vegetable gardening and left full of admiration for the avid vegetable gardeners’ they had become, through the community garden program.
Community gardens have sprung up all across America; Waxahachie has the opportunity to share the benefits of this wonderful, worthwhile trend. The Waxahachie Senior Center Community Garden is directed by Kathy White, a local Master Gardener who helps oversee the community project. She says you have to be a member of the Waxahachie Senior Center to participate and a Waxahachie resident, but the startup fee is minimal to have access to the community garden spot year round.
Even though this story took place at the beginning of the Fall Garden Season, it is inspirational to know that the effect and benefits of community gardening can be stretched through all demographics. As a garden educator myself, I want to encourage you to locate a community garden in your area and join in on all the digging and harvesting fun! Spring is around the corner and now is the time to begin your garden prepping to enjoy your own bountiful harvest season, as these gardeners had in the late summer this year.
Marilyn Simmons is the owner of Garden Inspirations, a garden education company. You can learn more about her work and programs at www.gardeninspirations-tx.com or email email@example.com | <urn:uuid:feba9827-f48f-4b42-b38b-f7bbb0e02c2a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.eatgreendfw.com/community/garden_inspirations2/type/discussion/date/12-01-2011/page/1 | 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 | 0.975315 | 665 | 1.539063 | 2 |
I was mad. One Saturday, my mom sent me up to the attic to bring down warm winter clothes. All I wanted to do was play videogames. But my mom insisted so I pulled down the attic stairs and climbed up. The attic is dark, dusty, and always has a strange moist smell.
As I climb over boxes to get to the winter clothes, I knock over a small cardboard box and its contents spill out. Letters, notebooks, and tons of yellowed photographs wrapped in twine. While the letters and notebooks were interesting (in fact – I learned A LOT about my ancestors) that’s a story for another time. But I couldn’t tear myself away from the pictures. There were tons of them. Filled with people I didn’t recognize. In a few, a serious young man with my grandfather’s eyes peered out at me – but most of the people I saw were strangers. Figuring out who these people were was made doubly difficult because the pictures had seen an enormous amount of wear and tear.
Rain drops formed potholes of color. Coffee stains turned the already yellowing paper a deep ochre. Some of the pictures were torn. The years faded the color in every one of them. One even had someone cut out of it. (my ancestors were romantics)
Almost an hour later, my mom called me from downstairs. I had lost track of time. I quickly wrapped up the photos again and brought them downstairs with the winter clothes my mom asked for. But I didn’t tell her about the pictures. I had plans for them.
I’d spent almost all of my money on a Nintendo video game. And Christmas was approaching. What better gift to give my parents than an album filled with these pictures – after they had been restored.
So on Monday, I brought the pictures with me to school. After class ended – I headed over to the local photo studio. I placed the entire stack of them on the counter and told the clerk I’d like to have all of them restored. The man chuckled, “each photo costs $40 to restore.” I was crushed. I didn’t have enough money to restore even two of the pictures, it would have cost me $4960 to restore all of those photos, there were 124 of them. And a photo album with a single picture in it was a terrible Christmas gift. I left that store and went to the other two places in town – the answer was the same.
I was down. I guess I’d have to get my dad a tie and mom slippers for Christmas. Again. As I rode the bus back home – I realized I had almost a month before Christmas– I could learn how to restore photos myself. So I downloaded the photo editing software available back then and spent the next month learning how to restore antique photographs. Christmas morning I gave my parents an album of twenty different antique family photos.
My mom cried. She’d never seen these pictures before but she could point out most of the people in them. I saw my great-grandparents for the first time. My long-passed great aunts and uncles and all the cousins I knew only as old people. It was the best gift I gave my parents.
I was hooked. After Christmas I spent the entire break restoring all of the old photographs I found in the attic that November afternoon. By the middle of January, I’d filled up the album I bought for my parents and still had more photos to restore. It frustrates me now – my restoration attempts were amateurish then and I’d love to pull them out of the laminated pages and give them another treatment. But my mom won’t let me.
It gets even more interesting. My mom brought the album out at Christmas dinner that night. And my older relatives started filling in the blank spots in my mom’s memory. By the end of dinner, after the wine, food, and coffee were done – my mom and I listened to our grandmother tell stories of the people in those old photos until after midnight. We’d identified almost everyone in those pictures but a middle-aged couple and their two young children.
While I was in school that winter, my mom did a ton of genealogical research. That couple was our cousin Johan. He’d married a Jewish woman. And in the late 1930’s, as Hitler’s war machine grew larger and his hate-filled speeches more common, my uncle (who lived in Norway at the moment) fled the country in fear. To America. My mother heard the whole story from her relatives, now living in Florida. I never knew I had relatives in America. Since then, we’ve reconnected. All because of my discovery and restoration of those photographs from long ago.
Photo restoration is dear to my heart. And I want to teach you how to do it, just as the student below learned how to restore his photos.
The above photo was restored by one of my earliest students. Look how he took that beat-up, scratched, grainy and damaged photograph and restored it. Awesome.
How To Easily Restore and Repair Your Photos For Free
I’ve spent hundreds of hours in front of the computer, restoring and repairing photos for more than eight years since I found those old pictures in the attic.
After seeing the high prices that most photo restoration services charge, and the joy in the faces of my grandparents when they saw the photos I restored, I came up with a program filled with everything I know about photo restoration. It will teach you to become an amazing antique photo restorer.
This 5-module online course offers a systematic, structured and easy to learn method for restoring your antique photos. Even better than simple restoration, I’ll teach you to make them better than new.
What You’ll Learn in This Course
Quick Diagnosis Guide: Before I start any restoration project, I sit down and diagnose the damage to the photographs. This guide will speed up your photo restoration because it shows you real examples of various photo conditions and links to the corresponding module. For example – think your photograph is faded? – this guide will show you examples and lead you directly to Module 1 which covers fading restoration techniques. The guide guarantees you’ll start in the right place on your own family photo project.
Module 1 – Here, I’ll introduce you to the entire process of antique photo restoration. In this overview, you’ll be introduced to all the free software you’ll need to begin. Beyond that I’ll be giving a brief outline of the various strategies that are explained in later modules. Value $20
Module 2 – In this module, you’ll learn how to restore faded, dull, and lifeless photos. It doesn’t matter if they’ve been faded by age, the sun, or anything else, I’ll show you how to inject new life and energy into your antique photographs. Value $20
Module 3 – Here you’ll learn how to restore the natural colors of your family photos. I’ll show you how to restore your photos to their original color. I’ll show you how to make them look better than new. And I’ll show you how to avoid many of the pitfalls that come with color restoration. Many retail restoration services claim to be able to do NATURAL color restoration and they return your family photographs with BIZARRE and UNNATURAL color schemes. I’ll show you how to avoid this common mistake. Value $20
Module 4 – Your photos are ripped, torn, or scratched? This module teaches you how to quickly repair this kind of damage. I’ll show you the best methods to line up and reattach the pieces so your photos look natural – not like a collage. Value $20
Module 5 – After you’ve done all the repair and restoration you desire – this module will show you how to put the finishing touches on your photo. I’ll discuss how to remove and reduce noise. I’ll also show you how to sharpen your images and bring clarity and focus to any antique photograph. Value $20
Here’s what the current students say about Photo Restoration School:
“I am so happy to learn how to use the histogram and you made it so easy.” J.R.
“That is excellent, clear and concise, I have only ever used half of the procedure, and not with these great results. I will be following this again and again until I get it set in stone in my grey matter. Thank You”
“Good and clear explanation of what is needed, but most important is the recommendations on which tools we should use.”
“As a retired Army Officer, I’ve learned to be structured in the learning process. This outline is well structured giving a great overview of this course.”
In these step-by-step modules you’ll learn everything you need to know to restore and repair your photos to their original condition and beyond. Each module has both written and video instruction from me.
The Whole Package
I could sell this course for $150(in fact there are others selling similar courses for $200). But as I always try to deliver way more value than you invest you’ll get access for only $29.95.
I’ll say that again. For ONLY $29.95 you can learn how to restore photos, for yourself or professionally. Compare that to paying $40 per picture at a photo restoration service.
Why the low price?First of all, I’m working hard on improving and adding content to the course and want to give my first couple students a good deal for supporting my work. Another reason is that I use the same cost saving strategies that IKEA use(the Swedish furniture retailer). They let their customers assemble the furniture and can thus pass on a lot of savings to their customers. Well the same principle apply here. Instead of me spending tons of time on restoring every single photo for $40 a piece I can instead teach you how to do it yourself.
When you sign up, you can access the online member’s area immediately. The member’s area contains all the training modules and bonus materials. So you can get started with your restoration project today!
If you take action today, you’ll also get:
To reward those of you who decide to make this small investment TODAY I’m including the bonuses below. I just want to thank you for giving Photo Restoration School a chance.
Photo Restoration Case Study #1 – Value $40
I don’t know about you, but I always learn best by example. So not only will I tell you how to restore photos – I’ll show you how I do it myself. Step-by-step, I’ll take you through the entire antique photo restoration process. I’ve taken a family photo of my grand mother that was in quite awful condition and I restore it to better than original. Getting this done by a photo restoration clerk costs more than $40. I do it far better and I’ll show you how to also.
GIMP Simplified Video Series – Value $27
This stand-alone video series teaches you the basics of GIMP as photo-editing software. This series contains 28, few-minutes long, videos that cover all the basics. I’ve added this stand alone course, available as immediate download, as a bonus to cover all the fundamentals of GIMP so I can get you up to speed quickly and ready to start restoring your antique photos. This course contains over 200 minutes of instructions – but I’ll show you which videos you MUST watch so you can get started faster.
If you want to delve deeper, the rest of the videos are there for you to explore. The videos show you how to install GIMP, how to navigate the interface, how to use the various tools, how to use layers, and much more.
Even without watching these videos, you’ll be able to master photo restoration using my modules. So consider them an added bonus to help you expand your antique photo restoration knowledge further.
Retail Photo Restoration vs. Antique Photo Restoration School
Let’s compare retail photo restoration services and the Antique Photo Restoration School. Here’s a sketch of the choices you have.
High Quality and Reputable Photo Restoration Services
There are countless photo restoration services online, if you Google “photo restoration” you’ll get more than 29 million hits. Let’s imagine you’ve found one that has numerous positive reviews, seemingly great customer service, and a quick turnaround. What will you pay for this service? Most charge between $40 and $80 PER PHOTO. And that’s only for pictures that have MINOR or MODERATE damage. Even photos that take less than 5 minutes to restore will cost you more than my entire course. Using these top-notch services gets expensive quick.
Low-End Photo Restoration Services
It’s tough to tell who actually has your family photos when you use online restoration services. Many places outsource the restoration of your pictures to India or other low-cost countries. They pocket the difference and make a pretty profit – all while you get lower-quality service. These services are fairly cheap, ($15-$30 per photo), but it still gets expensive fast and the quality is poor.
Photo Restoration School
I want you to use Photo Restoration School to restore your antique family’s photographs and create great NEW memories while doing it.
Whether you want to restore just a single photograph or hundreds of pictures, you can’t lose! By signing up for my school – you’ll save hundreds of dollars and learn how to restore your cherished heirlooms.
I believe that you won’t find a better and more valuable photo restoration course than Photo Restoration School. I’ve been doing photo restoration for years and I’ve distilled all my knowledge into this course. So here’s my promise to you…
Use the Antique Photo Restoration School for 60 days. Anytime, if you don’t feel the school is for you, then simply let me know and I’ll give you a FULL refund.. No questions asked.
Let’s Sum Up My Offer to You
First, let’s see how much it would cost to hire someone to restore your photos: average cost per photo is $40, even if it just takes a few minutes to restore. $40 per picture. That’s far too much to spend for just a few minutes of work. Especially when I’ll show you how to do it yourself for free. My entire package is worth more than $150 but you’ll get it for far cheaper.
After you order, you’ll get instant access to the 5 training modules, the quick diagnostic guide, the video guide to GIMP, and my photo restoration case study. No need to wait for shipping – you’ll get all the information you want seconds from now!
Right now, if you order the Antique Photo Restoration School, your one time investment is
$150 $39.95 $29.95.
But this is a special launch offer only. I’m constantly improving the course and I plan to soon raise the price.
Your investment is $29.95 and it’s risk-free for 60 days. If you order today, I’ll send you all future updates for FREE!
By taking action today, you’ll get:
- Instant access to ALL the photo restoration tutorials, case studies, and bonus materials.
- Including the streaming video tutorials and resources.
By taking action now, you’ll pay the low investment of $29.95. There are NO monthly payments and NO hidden fees.
You’ll be backed by the 100% Risk-Free Money Back Guarantee. In fact, if you’re not amazed at the knowledge you learn from my tutorial – I INSIST that you write me and get your money back. No questions asked.
On that basis, to get these materials – I want you to click on the secure order link below and get your instant access NOW!
See you on the inside,
P.S. Feel free to email me at dan(at)photorestorationschool(dot)com. You can’t lose by learning to restore your own antique family photos. You’ll save both time AND money doing it yourself.
P.P.S. Remember . . . you have my 100% Risk Free Unconditional Money-Back Guarantee. I am certain your family photos will look AMAZING when you follow the step-by-step tutorials inside. Your investment is guaranteed for a full 60 days. Enroll now!
P.P.P.S. This is a TIME SENSITIVE OFFER! As I’m constantly improving the course the price is going up soon and you won’t be able to get this great discount again. Give my Antique Photo Restoration Course a try right now! | <urn:uuid:f2f49d12-1902-4623-9874-bb6f361a3949> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://photorestorationschool.com/enroll3/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94718 | 3,625 | 1.5 | 2 |
While I am away on a book tour of Australia - I'm promoting the Oz version of Watermelons - I learn to my horror that one of London's most magnificent tourist attractions, the glorious sailing ship Cutty Sark, has been completely trashed in a botched restoration job by ambitious petty officials with too few brain cells and too much public money.
Once it was recognisably a ship. Now it's some kind of ghastly synthetic visitor experience with elevators and glass bubbles.
I wonder if there are any US equivalents of this kind of cultural vandalism. I remember on my first visit to the Natural History Museum in New York being blown away by the old dioramas of stuffed animals in mock-ups of their natural habitat. Then I was appalled to discover that London's own Natural History Museum had had similarly splendid Victorian dioramas which had been stripped out by trendy curators in the Eighties in a bid to make the museum more modern, more relevant...
Sometimes, oftentimes, the best thing to do with historical artefacts is leave them well alone. | <urn:uuid:eb0ef6cb-d62a-4a30-9a56-96f06213d1b5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://ricochet.com/main-feed/Goodbye-Cutty-Sark | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96461 | 218 | 1.507813 | 2 |
Hi I bought some Heros in Denmark in the spring. They should come from the " Rio Magdalena", but i`ve tried to find something about this, and it seems like this can`t be thru? There should not live any Heros.
Anybody who know anything about them ? They are a litle darker in the colours than normal efasciatus. And one of them the smallest, have what I can see, 10 stripes, one thoug are a double. The third I think, but it separetes in the top and bottom. I have not seen the stripes on the 2 others. And they seem to have longer finns, the one on the back, and the one on the stomach and back to the tail. Sorry do not remember the names of these fins.
One time the smallest ( about 7/8 cm)had babies with a male 15/16 cm He was bought as a notatus, but this I am not shure about. He do not have the spot`s. But he is very beatyfull with a very blue face. | <urn:uuid:6369aa68-6773-4860-99ea-35f87e80fe90> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.cichlidae.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=40952 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966139 | 226 | 1.617188 | 2 |
Animations in a roundhouse
Visitors have flocked to the Celtic Village over the last couple of days to join with us in celebrating the Festival of British Archaeology. For me so far there have been several highlights. On Sunday people found shelter from the rain in the stone roundhouse, where in the dark the artist Sean Harris projected his animation film Dadeni onto the earth beaten floor. People are used to experiencing animations on TV, computers or in a cinema. Such an experience proved moving, eerie and played upon the senses. The moving images evoked past mythologies. You almost felt as if you had gathered with the ancestors around a warm fire and cauldron to share their stories, safe from the rain.
Tim Young and his team built a forge outside the Village. Their experiments in recreating the lost art of making Early Christian handbells drew the crowd. Tim felt, ‘It was a successful weekend. We were trying to understand the technique not to produce a finished product. If we were going to do this for ten day's solid we'd be getting it right completely by the end. As it is we've cracked how to do the hearth - that's great, I like it - but we need to build on it.’
Mark Rednapp, from the archaeology department here, was with them. I asked him about his thoughts, ‘The wonderful thing about experimental archaeology is that you leap from one idea to the next, one experiment to the next. Many things have passed through my mind: the skill needed to judge the temperature and timing, the amount of manual labour involved in keeping the bellows going, which remind us of early medieval slavery, but also of the apprenticeships learning from an early age by experience.’
The Festival continues until 2nd of August. Come and join my workshops ‘Colouring the past’ in the Celtic Village this weekend, the 25th and 26th of July.
Leave a comment | <urn:uuid:4a0e700d-2558-4e1d-8b41-d1fbe7591516> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/blog/2009-07-21/Animations-in-a-roundhouse | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970827 | 403 | 1.804688 | 2 |
“No, no, let me be, I’ll stay.”
She saw now that from the place of Vronsky’s accident an officer was running across the course towards the pavilion. Betsy waved her handkerchief to him. The officer brought the news that the rider was not killed, but the horse had broken its back.
On hearing this Anna sat down hurriedly, and hid her face in her fan. Alexey Alexandrovitch saw that she was weeping, and could not control her tears, nor even the sobs that were shaking her bosom. Alexey Alexandrovitch stood so as to screen her, giving her time to recover herself.
“For the third time I offer you my arm,” he said to her after a little time, turning to her. Anna gazed at him and did not know what to say. Princess Betsy came to her rescue.
“No, Alexey Alexandrovitch; I brought Anna and I promised to take her home,” put in Betsy.
“Excuse me, princess,” he said, smiling courteously but looking her very firmly in the face, “but I see that Anna’s not very well, and I wish her to come home with me.”
Anna looked about her in a frightened way, got up submissively, and laid her hand on her husband’s arm.
“I’ll send to him and find out, and let you know,” Betsy whispered to her.
As they left the pavilion, Alexey Alexandrovitch, as always, talked to those he met, and Anna had, as always, to talk and answer; but she was utterly beside herself, and moved hanging on her husband’s arm as though in a dream.
“Is he killed or not? Is it true? Will he come or not? Shall I see him today?” she was thinking.
She took her seat in her husband’s carriage in silence, and in silence drove out of the crowd of carriages. In spite of all he had seen, Alexey Alexandrovitch still did not allow himself to consider his wife’s real condition. He merely saw the outward symptoms. He saw that she was behaving unbecomingly, and considered it his duty to tell her so. But it was very difficult for him not to say more, to tell her nothing but that. He opened his mouth to tell her she had behaved unbecomingly, but he could not help saying something utterly different.
“What an inclination we all have, though, for these cruel spectacles,” he said. “I observe...”
“Eh? I don’t understand,” said Anna contemptuously.
He was offended, and at once began to say what he had meant to say.
“I am obliged to tell you,” he began.
“So now we are to have it out,” she thought, and she felt frightened.
“I am obliged to tell you that your behavior has been unbecoming today,” he said to her in French.
“In what way has my behavior been unbecoming?” she said aloud, turning her head swiftly and looking him straight in the face, not with the bright expression that seemed covering something, but with a look of determination, under which she concealed with difficulty the dismay she was feeling. | <urn:uuid:b0b72270-5806-4ac6-af5d-776ee8f707bc> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.bookrags.com/ebooks/1399/176.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.993037 | 733 | 1.671875 | 2 |
One popular strategy for people who are decorating their home for the first time is to take a room by room approach. This can be less overwhelming than jumping headfirst into a decorating project for the entire house, and can be done in installments rather than all at once.
But occasionally, it seems like the rooms you decorated first don't match the style conveyed in the ones you designed later, and it could feel like your house doesn't go with itself.
But if this happens to you, don't feel as if you have to launch back into a redecorating project right after you've finished one. There are a few other options that can serve to unify the look of interconnected spaces in your home.
If your different-looking rooms have even just one element in common, they will start to look more cohesive. One great way to go about this is to change your window treatments. Simply Pick a color or texture that will work in each of your rooms. In order to make this work, it's probably best if you decide to go with a neutral. Something simple like a linen drape will look nice in rooms that are next to each other, and this simple design gesture can help to unite the look of the space.
If your color scheme is such that you can't find one hue in your drapes that would work for every space, you can still make these different rooms go together. Pick the same style of window treatment, and your whole house can feel more cohesive. You will have to think about what style of drape works in every space, but a valance or Roman shade will look great anywhere.
Don't think that you have to start over if the design of your home doesn't all go together. Simply choosing the same window treatments will help to make the space fit together better. | <urn:uuid:f91c2a00-cae6-4f2e-afa4-35afa010857f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blog.halfpricedrapes.com/diy-design/unite-the-disparate-looks-in-your-home-with-drapery/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.971704 | 371 | 1.5625 | 2 |
|SEE Students Gain Real-World Experience in Business
|Date published: Mar 31 2008
Every year the School Economic Education programs most successful students intern with JAA partner companies. From July to September 2007, thirteen SEE students (winners of the Student Companies, Global Business Ethics, and National Management and Economics competition) worked with career advisors at Statoil Azerbaijan, McDermott Caspian Contractors, Exxon Azerbaijan, AIG and KCA Deutag to gain a first-hand look at what opportunities are available in the business world. The internships range from one-week job-shadow opportunities to two-month extensive internships.
Javid Veliyev, student from School #95 in Baku who joined the School Economic Education Program in 2006, applied for the internship program after winning third place at the annual Student Companies competition in 2007. His interest in the oil sector brought him to Exxon Azerbaijan Limited. There are many opportunities for students after graduating from school and sometimes its challenging to choose the area where your knowledge and skills can be applied, says Javid.
During the internship, Javid assisted the administrative department and learned about the companys operations in Azerbaijan, corporate ethics standards, accounting, documentation, reporting, human resources and public relations procedures. At the end of each day Javid maintained the companys database by entering office administrative reports. Javid was interested in how businesses connect with potential partners and clients and was enthusiastic to learn what skills were needed for running a business, says Aygun Tanriverdiyeva, Javid mentor at Exxon Mobil.
The oil sector in Azerbaijan is booming and more business opportunities related to this field will be opening up as the industry continues to grow, explains Javid. I am lucky to have this chance to intern at Exxon Azerbaijan as this experience is invaluable for me.
Since 2005, the School Economic Education program has provided 23 students with professional experience at local and international businesses. The initiative assists the students in determining their career objectives and helps prepare them to take the step from student of economics to business professional. Junior Achievement Azerbaijan invites more companies to provide economics students with the lifetime opportunity to learn about careers and to enjoy the experience of hosting students.
- News Archive 2011
- News Archive 2010
- News Archive 2009
- News Archive 2008
- News Archive 2007
- News Archive 2006
- News Archive 2005 | <urn:uuid:0bbf0424-afd9-4b2a-bb1c-670fc4ff748b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://jaazerbaijan.org/web/pages/posts/see-students-gain-real-world-experience-in-business92.php | 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 | 0.943034 | 477 | 1.570313 | 2 |
I was surprised that Rav Noach, zt"l, took my phone call at all. He didn't know me, and he had just returned from an overseas trip. Given his exhausting schedule, anybody else would have either not taken the phone call or at least kept it short. But Rav Noach spent a half hour on the phone going over the basics with me. I was in the middle of a challenging situation in my life, and I needed advice.
"Do you know what you're living for?" Rav Noach asked me. I had thought that I knew but hearing the question articulated made me pause. Did I really know what I was living for? Suddenly, I wasn't so sure. But I wanted a practical solution.
"Tell me what I should do," I said to the Rav.
I was silent on the other end of the line. I'm not a teacher. Who would I teach? "Whatever we know we can teach. We all have an obligation to share what we learn." After I hung up the phone I re-learned the six constant mitzvot, and I spent that month reviewing them and integrating them into my life:
- Know there is a God
- Don't believe in other gods
- God is one
- Love God
- Fear God
- Don't be misled by your heart and eyes
Learning and reviewing the six constant mitzvot did help me deal with the particular challenge at the time, but then life became busy. I got distracted by all the urgent matters of daily life, and I forgot to teach what I had learned. Anytime I would remember that I was supposed to share what I had learned I let the old, familiar protests take over. Who would I teach? I don't really know it well enough anyway. Maybe tomorrow I'll do it. Maybe next week. Maybe next month. And soon I forgot not only about teaching but about the six constant mitzvot themselves.
When I heard of Rav Noach's passing I felt a wave of grief wash over me followed by a pang of regret. I tried to remember the whole conversation that I had been blessed to have with the Rosh Yeshiva. What had he told me to do? Why couldn't I remember? And then a day after he passed away, like a free gift directly from Rav Noach in Heaven, I remembered. The six constant mitzvot -- learn them, teach them, live them.
That Saturday night a neighbor passed away, and I found myself standing for the first time at a funeral in Israel. I had known that there are no coffins here, but actually seeing this was shocking. In the end our bodies literally go back to dust. In the funeral parlor I saw the famous sentence: "When a person leaves this world he does not take with him his money or jewelry or possessions. All we take with us are the words of Torah that we have learned and the good deeds that we have done." But as we were driving home, I looked out at the hundreds of tiny lights dotting the Judean Hills and I suddenly realized what Rav Noach had been telling me months before on the phone. It's not just when we die that we only take with us our Torah and our good deeds. It's also all we really have when we're alive. That is why Rav Noach always said: Identify with your soul, not your body.
Rav Noach Weinberg lived this wisdom until his last day. His shining example and teachings are still with all of us. And now more than ever, I can hear the echo of his words. You need to learn. You need to teach. You need to live with what you know. And you need to ask yourself every day: What am I living for? Take care of your body but live with your soul. | <urn:uuid:f493c784-efa7-4706-ad23-5adeb03958d7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.aish.com/rn/s/48971636.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.987727 | 794 | 1.757813 | 2 |
Former judge remembered for fairness, longevity
JANESVILLE Longtime Rock County Judge Mark J. Farnum was born on Sept. 17—U.S. Constitution Day.
Farnum, who served three decades as a judge in Rock and Dane counties, once spoke to a Janesville Noon Kiwanis Club on his birthday, telling the group that the U.S. Constitution was "the Bible of the government."
The judge, who kept a copy of the Constitution on his office wall, lived by a doctrine of fairness, equity and the American values of right and wrong, his colleagues said.
Farnum, former U.S. Navy radio operator, county prosecutor and deputy chief judge, died Friday in Beloit. He was 84.
Rock County Judge James Daley, 63, said Farnum kept a courtroom running smoothly using two simple ingredients: preparedness and courtesy. He called Farnum "a blessing."
"He trained a whole generation of lawyers about what right looks like," Daley said.
Farnum, a Janesville native, served as a judge in Rock County from 1962 until 1988, when he retired and became a reserve judge.
Dane County Judge Daniel Moeser, 64, said he knew Farnum as circuit judge and later as a reserve judge. As a reserve judge, Moeser said, people would beg to have Farnum hear their cases.
"There wasn't a better judge in the state of Wisconsin during my years. He combined intelligence, common sense and grace," Moeser said.
Farnum continued working as a reserve judge until a few years ago. Moeser recalled once asking Farnum when he planned to slow down.
Farnum's reply: "If you don't do this a lot, you lose your touch, and I don't want to lose my touch. This is all too important."
In a 1984 interview with the Gazette, Farnum said he found it a challenge to sentence criminals "because each case is as different as a set of fingerprints."
Daley said he knows Farnum truly believed that. Daley said once, when he was a newly- appointed judge, he confided in Farnum about the enormous pressure he felt when sentencing criminals.
Daley said Farnum just shook his head and gave this advice:
"Understand that people sentence themselves. They sentence themselves with their body of history, and especially with the latest crime that they committed. It isn't you that sentences them."
"That was that one thing that helped me to understand my role as a judge," Daley said.
Daley said Farnum also taught others to seek the good in people.
"Some people, judges included, only see the negative side of people in situations," Daley said. "Judge Farnum always saw the positive in people. That came through in how he treated others. He was just a fine, fine man." | <urn:uuid:c88d18af-8cfb-4e33-9c94-98f9436f1063> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://walworthcountytoday.com/news/2010/nov/09/former-judge-remembered-fairness-longevity/ | 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 | 0.987965 | 604 | 1.515625 | 2 |
Contact: Johnny Hagerman
New Community Health Assessment and Implementation Strategies Guide Community Benefit ProgrammingColumbia, MD – MedStar Health published its first system-wide Community Health Assessment (CHA) that allowed hospital leaders and community stakeholders to participate in a structured process to better understand and respond to the health needs of underserved communities.
Community engagement was a cornerstone of each hospital’s CHA. Each hospital’s assessment was led by an advisory task force (ATF), comprised of a diverse group of grassroots activists, community residents, faith-based leaders, hospital representatives and public health leaders. ATF members reviewed quantitative and qualitative data, and provided recommendations for hospitals’ health priorities, specifically as they related to the needs of underserved and low-income communities. Priorities were based on community need as determined by quantitative data and community input, as well as on hospital expertise, strengths of existing programming and partnerships, and alignment with national, state and local health goals.
Three-year implementation strategies with measurable objectives were developed for each hospital’s community benefit service area - a specific community or target population of focus.
“The implementation strategies serve as a roadmap for how community benefit resources will be allocated and deployed. Most importantly, we will be able to measure our contribution to improving the health of underserved and vulnerable populations in the region,” said Christopher J. King, assistant vice president of Community Health.
In addition to the assessments and implementation strategies, MedStar Health partnered with the Healthy Communities Institute to launch a web-based platform providing access to more than 100 health indicators. Data exist for counties within the MedStar region. Features include a dashboard methodology that allows for local comparisons to other counties as well as comparisons to Healthy People 2020 goals. A disparities dashboard can be used to examine differences in health status based on race/ethnicity, age and gender. The site also contains a repository of nationally recognized evidence-based and promising practices that may be tailored and replicated in other communities. Information is provided as a community service and can be accessed by anyone seeking community health data.
View the full needs assessments and implementation strategies for all of the MedStar Health hospitals at: http://www.medstarhealth.org/CommunityBenefit
About MedStar Health:
As the largest healthcare provider in Maryland and the Washington, D.C., region, MedStar Health’s nine hospitals, MedStar Health Research Institute and 20 other health-related organizations are recognized regionally and nationally for excellence in medical care. MedStar combines the best aspects of academic medicine, research, innovation and treatments with a complete spectrum of clinical services to advance patient care. MedStar has one of the largest graduate medical education programs in the country, training more than 1,100 medical residents annually and is the clinical research partner of Georgetown University. As a $4 billion, not-for-profit, regional healthcare system based in Columbia, MD, MedStar is one of the largest employers in the region. Our 27,000 associates, including more than 6,700 nurses and 5,600 affiliated physicians, support MedStar’s patient-first philosophy that combines care, compassion and clinical excellence with an emphasis on customer service. Visit us at medstarhealth.org | <urn:uuid:3f1de6fb-bfe4-4d14-af4b-4c6e9b69a6ad> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.unionmemorial.org/npt.cfm?xyzpdqabc=0&id=564&action=detail&ref=201 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.940792 | 657 | 1.734375 | 2 |
Our inspiration: the story of the Hummingbird underpins the Godiva Awakes Project because it is about ‘Determination’ one small bird trying to put out a huge forest fire by dropping droplets of water from its beak. All the animals in the forest ask the Hummingbird what it is trying to do and he answers “I’m doing the best I can”.
This is an important metaphor for human endeavour. This beautiful tiny bird hovering represents the fragility and transience of human life, a life where it seems impossible for one 'ordinary' person to make a difference. The story tells us however that we can all make a positive impact in the world if we want to, with an action that might at first seem very small or even insignificant.
At Imagineer Productions we heard Wangari Maathai tell the story of the Hummingbird on film – it was her inspiration for the work she did in Kenya and throughout the world in combating the efforts of deforestation.
The Hummingbird accompanies Godiva on her modern day quests hovering above her as a symbol of determination and desire to make a positive difference in any way that you can. It will become an intrinsic part of the new brand image for Godiva Awakes.
The Hummingbirds joyously appeared in the Godiva Carnival Procession in 2012.
Godiva Awakes is a piece of public art the like of which has never been seen before; running on sustainable energy through cycle power Godiva will... | <urn:uuid:a009b557-72f0-457d-a59a-c99adb8b5ccf> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.imagineerproductions.co.uk/content/7460/godiva/making_godiva_real/the_hummingbird/the_hummingbird | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94547 | 309 | 1.796875 | 2 |
Remember: Don’t do anything
When a baseball team is struggling, I always think back to the surfing lesson in “Forgetting Sarah Marshall,” where the teacher tells the student to do less… but then at some point you’re just boogyboarding. It’s a similar philosophy to Michael Scott’s approach to business. The point is, baseball isn’t like other sports, where trying to bulldoze your way through a rough stretch works. In football, trying to hit people harder is usually a productive thing. In baseball, trying harder means you usually end up overswinging and corkscrewing yourself into the ground. To me, it’s the sport where it’s easiest to get yourself into a funk because there’s so much failure and there’s so much time to think between pitches.
Example: Check out some of the quotes from the Padres after their 13-run, 23-hit outburst yesterday in Milwaukee.
Jason Bartlett, when asked if the team was looking forward to getting away from the pitcher-friendly Petco Park: “Definitely.”
Chase Headley: I think the difference between last year and this year is I’ve made a lot of hard outs, more consistent, hard contact. Do the fans in San Diego see that? Probably not. Because all they’re doing is looking at the box scores. But my manager sees it. He tells me. And my teammates see it.”
Sounds like things are getting negative in that clubhouse. I’m not using this to pick on San Diego, I’m just using it as an example of how things can go sour in the clubhouse in a big hurry if things aren’t going well.
What’s the answer to the problem? To quote another legendary philosopher, “Don’t think. It can only hurt the ballclub.”
- TinCaps OF Rymer Liriano has now scored from second base on a wild pitch, TWICE. Probably the most exciting plays of the season so far.
- The Padres’ relievers are pretty good, but here’s an eye-opener: After 8 p.m. at Petco Park, the marine layer sets in and the ball doesn’t fly. It’s to the point where managers are telling their hitters to keep the ball out of the air after dark.
- With that in mind, should the Padres try to leverage some of those pitchers (using the numbers they accrued in the pitcher-friendly environment) to trade for hitters?
- Big Fat Bartolo Colon used stem cell treatment to get back to the top of his game? This is something MLB and the players’ union will keep its eye on as a possible PED.
- Nationals RHP Stephen Strasburg is close to returning to the mound. Literally dozens of Nationals fans are pumped.
- Royals 1B Eric Hosmer (who was in the MWL in 2009) made his MLB debut last week and hit his first homer last night. Literally dozens of Royals fans are freaking out.
- Mariners RHP Michael Pineda: A self-made phenom. He seems very similar to former TinCaps RHP Simon Castro as far as his demeanor and development path, only Pineda has better velocity on his fastball.
- Angels 1B Kendrys Morales: Out at least two and a half years thanks to a walk-off home run celebration. Incredible.
- Read this during the past week: Dennis Eckersley was traded from the Indians at least partially thanks to Eck’s wife leaving him for another member of the team. That other guy is now a TV broadcaster for the Indians. So what you’re saying is, Cleveland traded a future Hall of Famer and got a color commentator out of the deal. Sigh…
- We’re going to Lake County next week. And by that, I mean I get to go home next week. I’m so excited, I’m about to lose control and I think I like it.
Musical guest… Black Joe Lewis and The Honeybears! | <urn:uuid:4dea5244-c960-4430-bb84-758641a9143d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://tincaps.mlblogs.com/2011/05/12/remember-dont-do-anything/?like=1&source=post_flair&_wpnonce=4e28c04ab9 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955327 | 875 | 1.773438 | 2 |
Joe Kennedy, chief executive of Pandora, told weekly technology law podcast OUT-LAW Radio that the Copyright Royalty Board does not understand the medium he claims they are about to destroy.
"These are three older gentlemen with legal and economic backgrounds and quite honestly I don't think they even understand what internet radio is," said Kennedy. "It was quite evident throughout the proceedings that in all likelihood these three individuals had never even accessed internet radio in their lives before."
The fees that internet radio stations must pay in the US to play recorded music have been changed, and earlier this week the judges of the Copyright Royalty Board, which reports to the US Library of Congress, threw out an appeal against the changes.
From 15th May the structure of payments will change and stations will pay far more for licences. Internet stations argue that for smaller stations the charges are more than they earn in advertising in total, and that because they are backdated to cover 2006 many will go instantly bankrupt.
"The judges adopted the proposal to triple the rates for large webcasters, and for small webcasters it's actually closer to a 12-times increase in the rates that they pay," said Kennedy. "It's an extraordinary increase in the rates that will effectively kill internet radio as we know it today."
Kennedy said that the changes will wipe out the net radio industry. "Small webcasters are now going to be hit with back[dated] bills that are literally greater than their revenue," he said. "The vast majority of internet radio sites will be bankrupt.
"Over 90% of internet radio will simply be gone. The net result will be a huge loss of diversity, a huge loss for music artists and a loss of virtually all of the internet radio that exists," said Kennedy.
A similar process is ongoing in the UK, where a dispute over rates is about to be settled. A number of multimedia and mobile network companies have objected to changes to the UK internet music licensing regime proposed by the body in charge of the licensing of recordings, the Mechanical Copyright Protection Society and Performing Rights Society (MCPS-PRS) Alliance.
The changes are not as radical, said Ralph Spencer, a technology law specialist with Pinsent Masons, the law firm behind OUT-LAW.COM. But the decision in the US, which favoured the major record labels over the emerging industry, could affect the UK decision, which is expected in the coming weeks.
"I don't believe it should [affect the UK decision]," said Spencer. "It was a different set of arguments, and a different commercial and licensing landscape, but equally there are similarities so they may well look to this." | <urn:uuid:6a4ca995-9afd-4b8e-9524-231d3c2b4cc7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.out-law.com/page-7975 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97186 | 545 | 1.632813 | 2 |
Wole Soyinka: You Must Set Forth at Dawn
by Ikhide R. Ikheloa
A Reprint: First published April 2006 in various outlets.
“Far too many details in personal memoirs are not even slips of memory but self-serving fiction.”
-Professor Wole Soyinka, You Must Set Forth at Dawn
I have just finished reading Professor Wole Soyinka’s new book, You Must Set Forth at Dawn. My first thought is that it is an important book for various reasons and I would encourage those with an interest in learning about the struggle for the heart and soul of Nigeria, albeit from Soyinka’s perspective, to go buy the book and read it. Soyinka has a lot to say in this book and I suspect that he is not finished yet despite this hefty tome (exactly 500 pages, if you count the Acknowledgments page). Age has not slowed The Man down one bit.
You Must Set Forth at Dawn is a dizzying tour de force in many ways; Soyinka has led a very busy and charmed life. There is hardly any road he has not taken and his international passport must be an immigration officer’s nightmare. Soyinka is a renaissance man who comes across as extremely comfortable in the company of fine wines, fine women and generally the good life. Despite his travails and they are many, he has been treated well by an adoring world and deservedly so. And boy is he busy! Soyinka manages to situate himself in every major event in Nigeria’s troubled history. I mean, this man is everywhere. He was actually at Dodan Barracks the day Gideon Orkar’s coup rattled Nigeria; indeed he had met with Nigeria’s Dictator Du Jour, Ibrahim Babangida shortly before the coup started. For Soyinka, roads are everywhere and they open up for him and take him everywhere, sometimes to places he has no business being in the first place.
The book is a celebration of Soyinka’s indomitable spirit. This was an intimidating display of his power of mental recall from the deep recesses of his memory. Age has not slowed Soyinka’s brain cells one bit. Either that or Kongi keeps a detailed journal every day of his life. He seems to remember verbatim whole conversations that happened decades ago. People would be interested in his re-telling of many escapades of his that have attained mythical status – the hijacking of Chief Samuel Ladoke Akintola’s speech in place of his at the radio station in Ibadan, his role as emissary in various seminal events in Nigeria, and I might add all over Africa. The book is a fascinating story told chapter after chapter. The language is not as dense as I am used to which is nice. Soyinka’s pen is getting gentler in the dusk of his life; one can actually be engaged in the book for the most part.
I liked Soyinka’s inclusion of maps of Nigeria that were really time stamps of her changes over time beginning with the regions and then the genesis of the states. There is also a useful chronology of important dates in our nation’s history. He also narrates his escape from Sani Abacha through Nigeria’s borders and there is a chapter on Kenule Saro-Wiwa’s murder. My favorite chapter is By the Waters of Babylon, where he tells with the deft use of robust prose and powerful imagery his final escape from Abacha’s Gulag (through Nigeria’s border with Benin). His description of his friendship with the late Femi Johnson was genuinely moving, a poetic ode to the strong bonds of friendship.
Those with an interest in Nigerian history should read this book. Those with an interest in the January 1966 coup and the ensuing civil war would be extremely interested in Soyinka’s narrative in the chapter titled Uncivil Wars: The Third Force and the Midwest Incursion (Strangely, Soyinka dispenses with the use of numbered chapters, making the book a challenge to follow as it wanders all over the roads, waterways and airways of the world).
Soyinka says of the January 15, 1966 coup. “Several of the killings, objectively considered, were not remotely essential to the success of the coup.” And then he goes on to say:
“In the West, however, the “wild, wild, West,” where the people had inhaled nothing but flames at close quarters for most of the preceding years, the coup was a hand of salvation, and they did not care by what means or how bloodstained it was. Mostly there was jubilation to the South – in the East, West, and Midwest – while the North was plunged into mourning and a deep, visceral distrust of the South, The Eastern Region earned the greatest loathing from the stricken North, since it soon became noticeable that the leadership of the coup was mostly Igbo, the dominant population of the East. In addition, the Eastern political leadership had been left untouched.”
Of Biafra’s motive for secession he says:
“The discovery of oil in huge reserves in the East, largely in the Niger estuary, played a role, unquestionably, in the propulsion of the Biafran leaders toward secession, but it would be a distortion of history and an attempt to trivialize the trauma that the Igbo had undergone to suggest, as some commentators have tried to do – that it was the lure of the oil wealth that drove them to seek a separate existence. When a people have been subjected to a degree of inhuman violation for which there is no other word but genocide, they have the right to seek an identity apart from their aggressors’.”
He talks about his trip to the heart of Biafra and his subsequent arrest and imprisonment. He talks about meeting Christopher Okigbo in Enugu for the last time before Okigbo perished in the war. He talks of meeting Odumegwu Ojukwu and Victor Banjo. And he talks of Banjo sending him back to the Federal side with a message the crux of which was this:
“Let them understand in the West that I am leading not a Biafran army but an army of liberation, made up not only of Biafrans but of other ethnic groups. Make the governor of the West and other Western leaders understand this. Urge them not to be taken in by any propaganda by the federal government about a Biafran plan to subjugate the rest of the nation, especially the West.”
This is heady stuff. It gets even more intriguing. Soyinka talks of his role in the war, his relationship with Banjo, his serving as an emissary between Banjo and Olusegun Obasanjo asking Obasanjo for easy passage for Banjo’s troops through his command and into Lagos. He talks about the existence of a “Third Force” of populists and he asserts a solemn pledge in stating Banjo’s true motive for his role in the civil war:
“I owe it to the memory of Victor Banjo to contest such dishonorable, even unsoldierly, distortions of his motives and conduct; to testify, above all, that he had not acted to promote Biafran secession or aid Ojukwu’s takeover of power in Lagos. If anything, Banjo felt that he himself should take over power, and, confronted with the two discredited combatants who were propelling the nation toward a bloodbath, those of us who were self-described as the Third Force had no doubt whatsoever that Banjo represented the most viable corrective.”
In summary Soyinka provides some important and new insights about his relationships with almost every key player (civilian and military) in the experience that has been Nigeria to date. For example, he reveals that after the death of Sani Abacha, the Abubakar Abdulsalami administration wanted him to run for President (yes, of Nigeria, not of a theatre company!). He wisely declined after thinking it over (Soyinka as President! That would have been something!).
Unfortunately, from my perspective, there are whole chapters missing from Soyinka’s story. There are key players missing who do not feature even in Soyinka’s shadows as he tells his version of the struggle for Nigeria. They will have to write their own books. One key player missing in Soyinka’s book is the Internet. Too bad. Whatever were the strengths of the pro-democracy movement, the Internet amplified them with startling force. The Internet was a leveler; you did not need a boatload of money to “fight” the enemy. Suddenly one could create a one-man army and suddenly Nigeria’s conventional forces of evil found that they had no choice but to fight these new rag-tag armies of strong-willed individuals. And the term “Internet warriors” was born. Unfortunately, whatever were the weaknesses of the prodemocracy movement, the Internet also amplified with startling clarity. The prodemocracy movement did fritter away its energies in high decibel bickering while Nigeria burned. Meanwhile its numerous and frequent communiqués confidently proclaimed to the world the coming end of Abacha’s dictatorship. I used to half-joke that Sani Abacha would die of old age and the prodemocracy movement would claim credit for his demise. Regardless, the Internet does not get credit in Soyinka’s book for a lot of the work that went into fighting the dictatorship. A lot of people did not get credit for their contribution to any attempts to free Nigeria from her harvest of locusts. Rather Soyinka treats them as if they were mere props in a badly written play or if they were unlucky, hapless sidekicks in Soyinka’s restless quest for what seems to elude him each time he charges out on yet another journey of search and rescue.
I will say this about Professor Wole Soyinka: In his own inimitable way, Soyinka has put a lot of his own time and resources into the struggle for the heart and soul of Nigeria, most especially in terms of the pro-democracy struggle of the nineties. And in his own inimitable way. All of Nigeria ought to be forever grateful to this giant of giants. However, his book comes across as mostly all about his exploits in the struggle for Nigeria and oh there was a supporting cast of hangers -on and side-kicks. Even by his own admission, he is not a team player, Kongi. There is a quixotic streak to his adventures and he unwittingly reveals himself as a brilliant, perhaps eccentric loner with little patience for disciplined processes. In a revealing part of the book he derides Chief Anthony Enahoro as fixated on processes and procedures and so on:
”Chief Tony Enahoro… thrived on endless meetings, copious minutes, points of order, standing orders, and the moving and seconding of motions, counter-motions, and amendments to motions…. I began to avoid meetings that should normally have enhanced our collective efforts, since they led nowhere and only ate up scant time and resources – flying across the Atlantic Ocean or the American landmass deserved some concrete justification in planning and results!”
Chief Enahoro will not be amused at Soyinka’s unnecessary roughness but it is hilarious and when you stop laughing you go, this is one cat that doesn’t like a leash! My own analysis is this: Soyinka’s strength, Soyinka’s allure lies primarily in his stature as an international figure and in the eloquence of his powerful voice. He also has access to powerful people and places. All these attributes were precious money in the bank for the pro-democracy movement. But when it came to organization, even in his book, you come away dizzy wondering what all that drama was all about. Everything is long on high drama and poetic license but short on follow through. There was a lot of thunder but rain hardly came.
Soyinka is brutal in his treatment of those who accepted assignments with military dictators but attempts rather unconvincingly and awkwardly to rationalize his controversial relationship with Ibrahim Babangida, arguably Nigeria’s most evil dictator; a man Soyinka once termed the listening president. Babangida gets a good, well-deserved dose of abuse from Soyinka’s pen but the uninitiated reader would not know the full extent of his relationship with Babangida. Similarly, the late Chief M.K.O. Abiola was no angel. However, Soyinka’s treatment of him in the book was basically a hagiography. It would have been useful to briefly explain the context in which Nigerians decided to support en masse this generous-hearted but flawed leader.
His description of the disarray within the prodemocracy movement in the Diaspora is spot on. The pro-democracy movement did great things with whatever limited resources were at its disposal. But it was certainly an odd gathering of odd fellows who seemed to relish the fine art of bickering while Nigeria burned. The bickering was high decibel and largely unnecessary. Sadly Soyinka clutters his analysis when he resorts to personal attacks and ridicule against those who disagreed vehemently with him and the movement. A lot of people, some very young folks who incurred Soyinka’s wrath have now paid for it by having their names immortalized in unflattering ways in his book. Sadly, in at least one instance, in Soyinka’s re-telling of the incidents that earned his detractors his fiery wrath, some facts got lost in the translation. The personal attacks did not belong in Soyinka’s book. He should have stuck to issues and left these folks alone.
The book could have used several edits by other people who were in the thick of things with Soyinka, people he rarely mentions in the book. In talking about the book with my friend Professor Bolaji Aluko, he vigorously disputed Soyinka’s version of many events that happened during the pro-democracy period, as well as much earlier in his father Professor Sam Aluko’s house on at least two occasions in Ibadan and Nsukka. Bolaji would know; he was there at the time. Indeed, Bolaji points out that Soyinka’s latest version of the stories have changed remarkably from the first narration in Soyinka’s Ibadan: The Penkelemesi Years. Bolaji intends to fully read the book and respond in his own memoirs. One thing is for sure, Soyinka’s new book is going to get him a lot of attention from his friends and detractors – which is probably his intention in the first instance.
Yes, the book could have used a different set of critical eyes. For one thing, a book of this size and complexity should have been indexed. There are some errors that should have been caught. For example, he locates the making of the brew pito in Sapele (not true – every Nigerian worshipper of Bacchus should know that. He does footnote it correctly as beer made from millet. Millet and Sapele, an unpardonable contradiction in terms!). In his telling of it, gwon gwon, that delectable dish of the gods made of animal intestines becomes “ngwam-ngwam” and he footnotes it as “an Eastern Nigerian delicacy made from the chopped up head of a sheep or goat.” Our revered Soyinka was probably referring to isi-ewu. During the war, the name Gowon was turned into an acronym for “Go On With One Nigeria”; Soyinka remembers it as “Go On With One GoWon.” Finally, I cannot resist but comment on his awkward use of Pidgin English; it is cutely atrocious, as if written by a white man and it exposes Soyinka’s privileged upbringing. A pet peeve of mine: Soyinka faithfully footnotes every Nigerian word with detailed explanations but neglects to footnote his lavish use of French words and obscure English terminologies that tend to show off his erudition and worldly sophistication (those French wines!). I guess when it comes to Western culture the Nigerian reader has to do his research!
Taken together, these errors as sloppy as they are are not fatal and they do not diminish the book. In my estimation, what diminishes the book, and Professor Soyinka, are the relentless personal attacks on those he happens to disagree with. And they are legion in the book. The tyranny of the pen is just as devastating as that of the gun. As Soyinka would probably say, it concedes power to no one but the owner of the pen; it assigns wrongs to everyone except the wielder of the pen. Also, Soyinka’s tendency to employ unflattering character sketches and caricatures on the unsuspecting (for example on Professor Sam Aluko) is unnecessary, rude, and mean-spirited. Most of these people are still alive and I suspect he will be hearing from them. Soyinka is a brave man.
The legacy of our dysfunctional society has introduced a cultural pathology – a perverse culture of abuse which manifests itself in a debilitating inability to engage in civil discourse. That is a serious problem that needs to be fixed before we engage in any serious talk of nation-building. The book is an unsettling reminder of the complexity of the Nigerian problem, of constantly changing relationships among powerful brokers, relationships that are at once mutually parasitic and symbiotic, each one seeking the ultimate prize – power. It is a soupy, sweaty mess – of greedy, thieving, conniving self-serving agbada-clad politicians, academicians and soldiers, all aided and abetted by a populace long accustomed to the art of survival by apathy. And the beat goes on. | <urn:uuid:b3e78b4f-81e7-4b14-ac81-d812168300b6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://xokigbo.wordpress.com/2012/08/01/wole-soyinka-you-must-set-forth-at-dawn/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.976642 | 3,758 | 1.703125 | 2 |
Update September 2009
A recent trip to France just confirmed my view that the Gare du Nord needs a serious makeover inside. The queues for the Eurostar home were incredible, and incredibly badly organised (not really organised at all, actually), and signage is still poor. The contrast with St Pancras is painfully acute.
In the Eurostar terminal, there were long queues for the women’s toilets, and only two of the three urinals in the gents’ toilet was in service, and only one of the three washbasins. Not great when you have 800+ passengers waiting.
The metro station has been spruced up a little but, with only two ticket machines, queues for metro tickets after a Eurostar has arrived can be very long, not helped by the beggars working the queues.
After the other reviews, I’m a bit torn by the Gare du Nord. I’ve experienced some of the practical problems others have, but it’s also undeniably impressive as a building.
Including the RER tracks below, it is claimed to be Europe’s busiest station, with 180 million passengers a year going through its 44 platforms. It has all the facilities you’d expect for such a large station.
The station was originally opened in 1846, and served the Chemin de Fer du Nord railway, to Amiens and Lille. It rapidly became too small for the growth of traffic, and so was rebuilt to the present design 1861-65. The architect was J I Hittorff, better known for the fountains he designed in the Place de la Concord, and the houses in the Place d’Etoile around the Arc de Triomphe.
The classically-inspired main façade is one of the best railway stations in Europe, in my book, with a large central pavilion flanked by a matching pair of pavilions, connected by long wings. Long rows of Doric pillars are set off by larger Ionic pilasters, although the overall effect is rather spoiled by the iron canopy running the length of the building, which cuts through the lower tier of pillars. The whole thing is set off by such copious statuary that we could only be in France. The design is not quite as attractive inside in my view - I prefer arched glass roofs to pitched ones, but it’s still impressive enough.
Unfortunately, I too have encountered the haphazard service and long queues in the Eurostar terminal, which really does seem to have been designed as an afterthought. It’s OK once you are past check-in, but the facilities are not spectacular, and the food is mediocre - a poor advert for the one of the world’s gastronomic capitals. I’ve always found the toilets in the main station slightly seedy too - lots of shifty looking types hanging around. It felt like that when I was Inter-Railing in 1984 and still feels like it now. Signage is also poor, and it’s not easy to find your way around.
The cavernous RER station below can have the same slightly intimidating feel too - for a modern construction it’s quite dark and, although it is undoubtedly spacious (the UK could take notes on that), it’s not that easy to navigate. It has always felt distinctly unpleasant late at night, although security has improved of late.
As well as the Eurostar to the UK, it is the terminus of Thalys services to Brussels, Cologne and Amsterdam, and domestic services to Lille, Amiens, Arras, Calais and Boulogne. The RER (lines B and D) serves the northern suburbs, the Stade de France and the airport at Roissy-Charles de Gaulle. | <urn:uuid:01bca102-d4ca-47ef-a1b2-423cac4be700> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.qype.co.uk/place/58092-Gare-du-Nord-Paris | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96736 | 788 | 1.578125 | 2 |
War & WikiLeaks
"A universal peace, it is to be feared, is in the catalogue of events which will
never exist but in the imaginations of visionary philosophers, or in the
breasts of benevolent enthusiasts."
-- James Madison
the overall tenor of these leaks is like the last, which confirmed just how wildly Lancet and other activist-captured bodies had exaggerated the death toll in Iraq. They tend to confirm that the perils the US confronts are real, and the claims made by its enemies tend to be false.
In this case we get further evidence that the Saudis indeed are financing al Qaeda; that Iran and North Korea are indeed are in an axis of evil, trading missiles; that Iran really is using Red Crescent ambulances to ferry arms to Hezbollah, as Israel has long claimed; that Iran is seen as not only a threat by the West, but the Arab world; that China was a conduit for the arming of Iran; that Russia is in a new authoritarian phase, and that China is sabotaging computer systems in the West and hacked into Google’s.
Like it or not, the world is still a dangerous place. Even Rachel Maddow agrees.
Strip out the gossip and the diplomats-as-spies and the please-attack-Iran parts, and what you get from Wikileaks's latest is the very scary news that the Iran probably has the weaponry it needs to attack European cities.
Which is why the non-response of of the U.S. president to cross-border murder by North Korea is so dangerous, since it says to the world’s many potential aggressors of today that they will meet no serious opposition from this occupant of the White House.
We can recall how Neville Chamberlain’s agreement to back down over Czechoslovakia famously emboldened Hitler and led to world war. We might recall how (not quite to famously) US ambassadorial assent to turn a blind eye to Saddam Hussein’s view that Kuwait was really a province of Iraq emboldened that aggressor, and led to the First Gulf War. So how to take Obama’s response to North Korea’s unprovoked attacks on the U.S.’s military ally, which barely amounts to a stiffly-worded memo.
How did the White House respond to North Korea's shelling of South Korea [asks columnist Paul Greenberg]? Our president is said to be 'outraged' -- according to his spokesmen. That'd be a first. For has Barack Obama ever shown more than Thoughtful Concern on any matter, foreign (Iran's nuclear program) or domestic (the national debt)?
Early on Tuesday morning, as the Koreans were collecting their dead, the president's press secretary, Robert Gibbs, issued a statement calling on North Korea 'to halt its belligerent action and to fully abide by the terms of the armistice agreement' signed in 1953. ...
Dispatches from Washington Tuesday evening said President Obama wasn't planning to speak publicly about the shelling on the peninsula, preferring to issue a written statement later on.
Why rush? It'll doubtless be neatly typed.
Can you imagine a Harry Truman, or, for that matter a Reagan or Kennedy or Eisenhower or either Roosevelt just having an aide issue a press release when an ally comes under fire? Isn't it time for the current occupant of the White House, officially acclaimed a great statesman by the Nobel committee, to say something to both enemies and friends to assure the peace? Or do we have to sit through another yawner from his soporific press aide? ...
As I write these lines, the current occupant of the White House remains silent, as in Silence Gives Consent. In this case, to war…
[Hat tip for James Madison quote to the Patriot Post] | <urn:uuid:d18807a0-c9b1-42e7-a456-3125d97f37ae> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://pc.blogspot.com/2010/11/war-wikileaks.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950163 | 782 | 1.789063 | 2 |
This one went to “subscriber’s only archives” quickly. Anyway, here it is.
May 18, 2009
SMALL TOWN MATTERS
One man’s quest to prove there’s plenty to do
While doing research on state museums the other day, I came across a remarkable gem on the Web. It’s called Connecticut Museum Quest (www.ctmuseumquest.com).
What first struck me was how thorough it is, far more informative than any other site I could find on the subject. It lists more than 500 museums in the state.
That averages about four per town, although they’re not so evenly distributed. I had no idea we were such pack rats.
But even more striking was to learn that the site is the product of just one person, a private citizen with a mission. The site’s motto: “Destroying the myth that there is nothing to do here.” Indeed. Just reading every entry on the site, much less visiting everything, could take years.
Connecticut Museum Quest is the work of Stephen Wood, a 36-year-old West Hartford resident who just visited his 100th museum in the state. To honor that feat, his wife baked him a cake that said “20 percent done!”
I had to call this guy.
Bracing myself for a blast of adrenaline over the phone line, I was surprised to find a rather soft-spoken and diffident fellow.
“I’d rather talk about the site than about me,” he said. “Fine,” I replied, “but first tell me why you’re doing this.”
He chuckled, and explained that he is fascinated by arcane facts and artifacts, loves to explore, enjoys writing and is enamored with lists – the highest this, the oldest that, and the like. His site is full of such stuff, along with reviews and photos of every museum he has visited.
A former insurance executive, Wood left his job late last year to concentrate on the project he started for fun in 2006 and to take care of his son, Damian, who, now 3, has special needs. A native of Delaware, Steve attended the University of Connecticut and decided to stay on after graduation in 1995. He met his wife, Hoang, on the job, and she remains the breadwinner. On weekends, they head out together to visit places they’ve never been, sometimes hitting seven or eight in a day.
The more he has learned about his adopted state, the more he likes it. “With its colonial history, industrial past and big money, Connecticut is a perfect museum storm, so to speak.”
Understanding how curious this fellow is, I still wondered why an apparently healthy man in his 30s who majored in biology would want to spend his life traipsing through museums.
It turns out, that’s not all he does. Once a competitive bicyclist, Wood has hiked and biked all over the state, and his Web site lists a formidable number of Connecticut’s 800 miles of “blue-blazed”trails he has trekked in the past decade.
There’s a point to all this. He wants people to know “all the things to do close to home that are free or very cheap.” Side note: The state has scores of well-paid employees humming the same tune.
Wood estimates that he and his family have spent a total of no more than $250 in admission fees visiting all those museums over the past three years. “Of course, there is the cost of gas,” he added.
I admitted to a mission of my own. Looking at his blog, it is apparent he has yet to make a significant dent in Northwestern Connecticut. No Mattatuck, no Glebe House, no Sloane Stanley. “They’re all on my to do list,” he said, while not quite saying he was saving the best for last.
The other thing this super-blogger can’t keep up with is all the changing schedules at museums that are feeling the economic pinch and cutting back on hours. “I always advise people to call or e-mail ahead,” he said. “The guidebooks are out of date.”
I hesitate to tell you Steve Wood’s 10 favorite museums, because he has 400 to go. But it won’t do any harm to tell you that he really liked the Stone Museum in Barkhamsted, primarily because “they’ve got the coolest bear display in the state.” His number one choice is a sentimental one: New Britain’s Industrial Museum. A sign he saw while driving through New Britain one day four years ago pointed to that museum and gave him the idea for starting Connecticut Museum Quest.
“People my age either leave the state or complain all the time about it,” he said. “If they got out of the bar or away from the TV, they’d see what they’re missing.”
George Krimsky can be reached at firstname.lastname@example.org. His column can be heard at www.rep-am.com. | <urn:uuid:e63e1ded-91b8-4799-8e0c-2d88a88cb956> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ctmuseumquest.com/?page_id=4951 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.974045 | 1,116 | 1.5 | 2 |
There has been a lot of stories in the news lately about homicides committed in hospitals. Just out of curiosity, I went to the Bureau of Labor Statistics web site and pulled some data from their Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries. It confirmed what I suspected, that homicides of workers in hospitals have increased at twice the rate as correctional facilities, where worker homicides have remained stable. Here's the graph I was able to make from the BLS data:
OK, I'm in a hurry and the graph is small and fuzzy. I'll try again later, but the upshot is that the red bars (hospital murders) are up to 6 and 7 homicides per year while the blue bars (correctional facility murders) have remained stable at about 3 per year. This is only for the employees who have been murdered, not all murder victims. When I get a chance I'll go to the Bureau of Justice Statistics and see if I can find data for all murder vicitms in hospitals versus correctional facilities, not just employee victims.
When we consider the cost and repercussions of increased hospital security, think about this trend. We people wonder if it's safe to be a forensic psychiatrist in corrections, I will bring out these numbers. It does seem to be safer to work in prison than in a hospital. | <urn:uuid:9470e68c-54f4-4a59-bfef-93f4c8b88b17> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.psychiatrist-blog.blogspot.com/2011/01/year-in-homicide.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970887 | 263 | 1.648438 | 2 |
Vote for Cats Site of the Month. Visit each Site of the Week page for the months indicated, then support the site you feel is most deserving for each month by voting. Results will be published on this page for each month, and the Cats Site of the Year will be chosen from among the monthly winners.
Thousands of animal advocates struggle with lives of selfless sacrifice in order to support the work they do in rescuing, nurturing, spaying and neutering, and fostering the innocent creatures they eventually hope to place in permanent loving homes. If one were to venture into the dreams of any one of these noble souls, one would find the fantasy of a life fully devoted to their rescue work without the necessity of the day to day scramble to supply enough money to continue. Cat food, veterinary care, spaying and neutering, vitamins, and kitten formula all cost money, and most of these individuals and organizations are self-funded, supplemented from time to time by small donations from other caring souls.
In steps Maddie's Fund, established in 1994 through the Duffield Foundation by Cheryl and Dave Duffield, PeopleSoft co-founder and Board Chairman. In 1998 Maddie's Fund announced its intention of spending $200 million to establish a no-kill nation, a thrilling concept to animal lovers. To head up this endeavor, Richard Avanzino, formerly President of the San Francisco SPCA, a forerunner in the no-kill concept, was appointed President of Maddie's Fund. Avanzino is in good company-- the staff of Maddie's Fund reads like a Who's Who in animal advocacy.
Maddie's Fund is not trying to reinvent the wheel. The concept behind its philanthropy is to work hand-in-hand with existing organizations by supplying the desperately needed funding to support ongoing work as well as to develop new programs. Existing projects include:
- The California Veterinary Medical Association Feral Cat Altering Project,
recipient of a $3.2 million grant for the neutering of 60,000 feral cats over a three year period
- The Pet Rescue Project
of Contra Costa County, California, in conjunction with local advocacy groups and the county animal services, with the goal of making Contra Costa County a no-kill area within 5 years. (As a resident of Contra Costa County for over 40 years, I am particularly gratified by this endeavor.)
- No More Homeless Pets in Utah
A joint effort with Best Friends Animal Sanctuary (previous Site of the Week), 19 other no-kill shelters/humane groups, and 54 animal control facilities, with the massive goal of ending the killing of dogs and cats through the entire state of Utah within five years.
Does your organization qualify for funding by Maddie's Fund? The criteria includes a cooperative effort involving rescue groups, veterinarians, and local animal control agencies. This may seem like a daunting challenge at first, but by reading the FAQs, the reasoning will become clear.Maddie's Fund has taken a leadership position in corporate responsibility toward those creatures who have to depend on humans for their voice. I pray others will follow their lead so the future will hold no more homeless animals.
See the previous Sites of the Week here:
The permanent URL for Site of the Week is:
Click Here To Visit Other Pet & Animal Sites At About.com. | <urn:uuid:2933156a-933b-4a33-87ff-450241b1b4e4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://cats.about.com/library/weekly/blsow071000.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.936741 | 682 | 1.617188 | 2 |
How We Present
Radio station KHOE back online
The M.U.M. Review Translate This Article
22 February 2006
Listeners around the world can hear Maharishi's latest knowledge now that campus radio station KHOE (90.5 FM) is back on the Internet at http://www.khoe.org.
Soon after it went live, station director Stan Stansberry began receiving comments, including those from listeners in Canada and Japan.
The schedule is currently being revamped so that popular programs, such as the Global Family Chats, will also be played during the night, making them more conveniently available to listeners in other time zones around the planet.
The station uses a new approach to streaming audio: simply click on the link, and the audio stream will play in whatever software is available on the computer, such as Windows Media Player, Quicktime, Real Player, or iTunes. Macintosh users should note that it may not work in OS 9. And in OS X, it downloads a file which, when clicked, opens iTunes and the station begins streaming.
The station had been online in the past, but experienced a hiatus after the FCC decided that web radio broadcasters must be licensed. But now that the license application is being processed and technical glitches worked out, the station is online.
Playing a major role in setting it up were student Joseph Schneekloth, faculty member Gurdy Leete, and staff member Ken Woodward.
'There were challenges, but Joseph loved the adventure of making KHOE available worldwide,' Mr. Stansberry said. 'He stuck with it.'
KHOE offers world music, campus news, readings from the Vedic Literature, lectures by Maharishi, and more.
Copyright © 2006 Maharishi University of Management
Translation software is not perfect; however if you would like to try it, you can translate this page using: | <urn:uuid:c5158d7b-5ca7-4ed0-8466-8c854a3e05ef> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://globalgoodnews.com/education-news-a.html?art=11421289919796606 | 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 | 0.950294 | 384 | 1.71875 | 2 |
by KRIS DEYOUNG
Every now and then, as a teacher when you introduce a new class project, students don’t always react with the great joy and excitement you picture playing out in your mind. However, when you share with the kids that it is a contest, and that the top winners take home $1,500 for their school as well as $250 gift cards for each winning team member, well, things change.
Students of Rockford High School (RHS) TV Studio’s Beyond The Rock team recently took home a first-place finish in a statewide public service announcement (PSA) contest put on by the Michigan Rural Water Association (MRWA), a nonprofit organization. This competition is the second annual high school video contest put on by the MRWA. The task given to school groups was to create a 30-second PSA that promoted the importance of preserving our water, and being socially responsible stewards of this life necessity. The MRWA created this project in order to get the younger generation to understand the importance of this topic, and to spread the word to their peers, their families and their communities.
The group consisting of RHS juniors Molly Doren and Jenna Severson and sophomore Mitchell Peterson took home the first prize and were extremely thrilled upon hearing the news.
“I was thrilled beyond belief when I heard we won,” Doren commented.
Severson shared in the excitement, but was also taken a bit off guard. “I was completely surprised we won, because there were so many great entries.”
All three students gained a respect for the proper care of this limited and life-sustaining resource. “I believe strongly that humanitarian issues need to be brought to attention in our society. This PSA gave us a chance not only to learn, but too show why safe water is so vital,” Severson shared with a concerned heart.
The students were also quite excited to be receiving quite a hefty gift card.
“Jenna had a plan for the money within minutes. If I remember correctly, much of it involved clothes and food,” instructor Kris DeYoung chuckled. “It was a great project, and a great reminder to us all not to take our clean water for granted, and to do our part in being proper stewards of this valuable resource. So many in the world go without clean drinking water, we need to not only be thankful, but also look to how we can help those who aren’t as fortunate.”
For more information on the MRWA, visit www.mrwa.org. For more information on RHS TV Studio, visit “Beyond The Rock” on Facebook. | <urn:uuid:f9736f4b-685d-44a3-880b-411473aa3b03> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://rockfordsquire.com/2012/05/10/rockford-tv-studio-students-win-big-in-psa-contest/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973052 | 558 | 1.640625 | 2 |
The legend of Robin Hood is given a grand retelling in this popular and long running series made for television (1955-58). Filmed in Great Britain with the handsome and dashing British actor Richard Greene as Robin, the "outlaws" of Sherwood Forest watch over the people of England and protect them from the cruelty and greed of the ruling aristocrats.
Errand of Mercy: Plague has struck Nottingham, and rare herbs from Sherwood forest are the only way to bring relief to the poor. But when Robin and Little John arrive to deliver the medicine, the Sheriff vows that the only way the outlaws will leave the city is in a coffin.
Secret Mission: A visiting pilgrim informs Robin Hood that the Sheriff is collecting a list of allies against King Richard. This list could be a valuable weapon in the Merry Men's fight against the Sheriff, but first Robin must uncover the identity of the strange visitor.
Ransom: A baron's son is being held for ransom after committing a crime in a neighboring kingdom. Rather than pay the ransom, the baron taxes his village to the point of starvation. Unable to suffer such injustice, Robin Hood sets out to teach the baron a lesson.
Children of the Greenwood: Accused of a crime he didn't commit, an honest farmer goes on the run and his children are forced into servitude by a tyrant. Determined to reunite with their father, the children escape and lay a trap for the true criminal. | <urn:uuid:770a7489-525d-4bf2-bfcd-132fafef6407> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.radiospirits.com/detailsv2.asp?mbprodid=55749&Svr=.62&l=1&source=,&scode=G01CY100 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.943378 | 302 | 1.679688 | 2 |
Post general kiteboarding discussion topics here!
So I've been making treks out to Pond A4 out in Santa Clara. There are a couple threads on here on the spot, this being one of them.
A guy at my company was kind enough to volunteer to help me get the water tested.
The company called on Friday and told us it tested positive for E. Coli. Now, unfortunately they only left a message, we don't know what strand of it is. For all we know, it's just from the bird crap that's probably in every single pond in the area, or it could be something more serious. We get the full results back sometime this week and I'll post them here.
However, considering the kiters I see out there on a consistent basis, I figured it might be worth putting it out there, just in case. I guess the Bay probably isn't much better, but at this point better safe than sorry.
Full results are here:
https://docs.google.com/open?id=0B6JaN- ... EpVcWI3TXc
Last edited by dontfeedthenerd on Wed Sep 12, 2012 12:38 pm, edited 1 time in total.
Thanks so much for this. Not surprising, really; as you say it's a small pond in the middle of a bird sanctuary with little water flow. I commute by it daily and ride it from time to time... looks like it was good last Friday.
Can be one of several tertiary treatment lagoons from Santa Clara wastewater.....
Benicia Kite and Paddle Sports
238 1st Street
Benicia, CA 94510
Wainman - Shinn - Cabrinha - JN - Underwave - Hyperflex
kitenaked, I asked around and there were several different stories regarding what the exact purpose of the was. Nobody seemed to know for sure.
Like I said though, we still don't know what strand of E. Coli it is, some strands are harmless, and I don't think any kiters have gotten really sick riding it, otherwise we probably would've heard about it already.
To be honest, I was more concerned about mercury or some other heavy metals, but we won't know about those until later this week.
It's a pity, the place is buttery smooth, enclosed and gets decent winds. A couple of the people who rode here seemed a bit territorial about their "Secret spot", but I figured in the interest of public health it was more important to get the word out about the E. Coli than it was to keep their preferred low-traffic riding spot hush hush.
If anybody has friends that ride this spot, but don't read this forum please do let them know about the test results. As I stated above, I'll post a full copy of the results once I receive them.
And shred_da_gorge, don't thank me. Thank my friend from work who was kind enough to fork out the cash for the test kit. I'm merely the messenger(and I guess the grunt who went out and got the water samples for the test).
I'm guessing it's actually less exposed to wastewater than Turd Ave, but I would also guess it'd be higher in mercury than 3rd due to closer proximity to the quicksilver mines and less tidal cleansing. I've kited there with some regularity for the past few years (it's two blocks from one of my offices) and haven't gotten sick. I suspect we're all subject to the kind of sicknesses that may show up years from now, though, simply due to the fact we play in water surrounded by high population and diverse pollutants.
The other thread said it's not a refuge, but I thought it was part of Don Edwards?
E coli is everywhere. It's at 3rd. It's at sherman, it's at Crissy, it's in my stomach, it's in yours...
until he says the strand and the concentration, this is like saying there's water in the bay.
Definitely curious to hear more. I know one guy who got sick from kiting there...
Liquid Force Kites/Boards
Sorry but i perceive this thread as alarming and it shouldn't be. What's the big deal with Ecoli in this country? i thought we naturally have it within us, helps us, and its all around us in just about everything we eat too. Very minute chance that you'll take in a strain that produces something bad for you and even then youre body is most likely capable of dealing with it and you won't even notice you ever had it. i'm not microbiologist.... but my mom is.
would be interested to see the report for sure, but not worried about mercury either. Just don't drink the water. You can swim even in mercury advisory areas without threat. Just don't ingest (usually through eating fish) or breathe (usually a release bi-product from burning coal not applicable here). kite on gentleman
Not meant to be alarming, more of a.. this is the information I have, do what you will with it post.
Notice, I said nothing about stopping kite activity there, or anything along those lines. Just figured it was something that people should know about, sooner than later.
Hopefully within the week, we'll find out it's just low concentrations of a harmless strand, however considering it was urgent enough for the water testing company to pick up the phone and call us, I figured the you guys would want to know about it. I guess I'm not pro enough to assure myself that I wouldn't be accidentally drinking some of that water during a session.
Not meant to be a huge OMGWTFBBQ kind of thread, my apologies if it came across as that. I equate this to the thread about the Great White at Waddell. Nobody is telling you to stop kiting there, however it's also nice to know the risks involved, however minute they may be statistically speaking.
No worries i know you mean well. You're about to provide us with some VERY useful information. Thought i'd put some useful info to ago along it too. I think sometimes people read "E.coli", blank out and think about the movie Outbreak (w Wolfgang Petersen, Morgan Freeman and the little f.monkey killing everyone with some mysterious disease)
yeah, I always suspected the water in A4. SUPER curious to hear what you find out!!
Liquid Force Kites/Boards | <urn:uuid:1735709f-5c2e-4966-8067-c91c23c32bee> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.bayareakiteboarding.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=78550 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973095 | 1,356 | 1.664063 | 2 |
Applying for a new position can be a fun and rewarding experience, but many people cringe at the thought of having a background check run. Background checks are quite commonly used for local employment screening services. With the heightened security measures being taken, many companies require that a background check be run until the person can be officially hired. Other jobs are mandated by state or federal laws to run such employment screening services. Often times, people do not have anything to hide, they simply just do not like the thought of an employer tapping into their personal past. After all, a federal background check goes way beyond a criminal history and looks at other things, such as credit and court records. One of the most basic things that a background check form looks at is a person's criminal history. A criminal record search pulls up any information that has to do with previous arrests, court appearances, incarceration records, or allegations of abuse or neglect. Knowing if a person has a criminal history is important since companies need to take the proper steps to protect themselves and their employees. This is especially true in such companies where employees work with children or senior citizens. Many people believe that if they do not have a criminal report, nothing of relevance will show up on their federal background check. There are a multitude of other factors that businesses look at however. By running a background check, employers can see if any previous worker's compensation claims have been filed, along with past employers. Background checks also look at property ownership, education records and vehicle registration. They can also run a credit check to see if you have over extensive debt or have filed for bankruptcy in the past 10 years. Internet searches are a modern-day fix to the previously dragged out process of background checking. With all the social networking sites available, an employer can do a quick search to see how the person is viewed by friends and family. That is why it is important to watch what is posted online about you, as once this information is posted, it is nearly impossible to fully delete it. | <urn:uuid:cc0cc007-29cb-4dc7-acab-aca2847b9cd6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.pointcom.com/ID/Lewiston/business-search/Employment%20Screening%20Services/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967424 | 404 | 1.835938 | 2 |
“I got involved in what some people call activism, but I really don’t like that term,” Tim Lewis says. The tall, thin 55-year-old with piercing eyes prefers to simply be called a videographer. Lewis and his video camera have been everywhere when it comes to documenting protests and police wrongdoing in the Northwest — the WTO riots, the Warner Creek Blockade, the pepper spraying of downtown tree-sitters, the Tasering of pesticide protester Ian Van Ornum — Lewis documented all of it. The Tasering incident led to a grand jury subpoena that was later dropped, and the pepper spraying led to the Eugene Police Department being chided by human rights group Amnesty International.
These incidents, as well as some of his wayward ways, have made Lewis not the most popular person with the EPD. But it’s both his videography and his involvement in Eugene’s activist scene that led to Lewis’ appearance in the Oscar-nominated documentary If a Tree Falls: A Story of the Earth Liberation Front. Lewis’ work is much like he is: One minute it’s high-level commentary on social issues, the next minute, it’s raw and a little rough for a general audience.
Lewis documented the almost yearlong Warner Creek blockade, in which activists prevented the Forest Service from logging a forest that had been burned by a deliberately set fire. At one point it was protected from logging, but then the “salvage rider” signed by then-president Bill Clinton opened it up to be clearcut.
Warner Creek marked the debuts of the careers of several mainstream environmental advocates. It was also where many of those later affiliated with Earth Liberation Front became frustrated with the fight to save the environment and turned to stronger measures, like arson. Daniel McGowan, the subject of If a Tree Falls, went on to become a little of both, but his involvement with ELF actions landed him a terrorist label and seven years in federal prison.
McGowan and Lewis are not the only appearances of Eugene or Oregon-linked activists in the film — Civil Liberties Defense Center attorney Lauren Regan, Earth First!er Jim Flynn and other familiar figures, including local law enforcement, lend their voices and experiences to the documentary. These appearances allow the film to question why environmental activists who didn’t physically harm anyone are labeled terrorists, while allowing those affected by the arsons to speak as well.
Tim Lewis sat down with EW before leaving for the Academy Awards.
How did you get involved with the movie?
A friend of mine was actually trying to find me some work. I needed some cash and so he went on Craigslist, looking under video and shit like that, and saw this listing of someone looking for a cameraman to video some court hearings that were happening.
I sent them an email and I said, “I think I know what you guys are doing and I think you want to get a hold of me because I have some footage you might be interested in.”
We started dialoging, Sam Cullman (co-director/cinematographer) and I, and Marshall Curry (director). Our working relationship started then and has continued these five or six years.
They had to get my trust the first couple weeks and then they got it because they were very genuine and very real. They became my friends. It’s been a joy to work with them.
How did you actually become part of the film? You were in quite a bit of it.
I was, and that sort of surprised me. They were sort of trying to find the direction I think when they came to Eugene. I was just one of those people that they interviewed. But I guess with my knowledge of the ’90s and of Eugene and having participated in or filmed some of those events, they just felt that my ability to tell that background story was integral to their movie, so they used me.
So, probably off the record, but did they have to edit out a lot of your cursing?
Oh, that doesn’t have to be off the record. I really did try not to curse because Marshall did say that this will be on PBS. I said, “Ok I’ll try my best.”
There were a couple things. I did say “balls,” “fuckers” and “up his ass,” and that was about it (pauses). I think. Yeah, I toned it down for the production. But I think they probably did edit a lot of stuff out.
How did you get involved in activism, the forest protests and documenting the police?
I don’t like to be called an activist videographer. It started at Warner Creek. I was primarily a video producer and a film producer. I wasn’t an activist; I wasn’t involved with any politics. I knew it was a good story.
We only thought it would take a week but it lasted a year. I sort of got sucked into it at that point; I didn’t want to be a bystander. I didn’t want to be some reporter objectively reporting.
I Gonzoed, I guess, and dove in to be part of the Warner Creek campaign. I wanted to tell their story. I got to know the people. When the ruling came down, I was in a bar getting drunk and they were going “We gotta go; we’re setting up a blockade and everything. We gotta go up there and you have to come with us — we need a camera.”
I was like, “No, I have no sleeping bag. I don’t have any clothes.” They got me a sleeping bag and clothes and put me in the beat-up old truck with a canopy over the top they called “The Dolphin” and threw me in the back. And I just laid there going down Franklin Boulevard heading toward Hwy. 58, and I just realized my life had changed forever. I was drunk and going to some place I had no idea where or what kind of people they were going to be. But I just knew it was the kind of adventure that would probably change my life. And it did.
So you weren’t always politically involved? What was your background?
I was always trying to be normal. Growing up I always wanted to be responsible; I always tried to have my own businesses — worked on, videotaped on cruise ships, traveled the world, tried to make hundreds of thousands of dollars, tried to do the American dream.
But I never really gave a shit that much about money, and I never really liked being told what to do by pretty much anybody, and I didn’t know why. I was trying to do all these things the right way. I felt something must be wrong with me but I couldn’t continue to do these kinds of jobs.
But when I did move into the Whiteaker neighborhood in the early ’90s, Icky’s (a now-defunct anarchist tea house) was around and I started hearing “fuck work, fuck jobs and fuck the car culture,” and it was totally new to me.
Didn’t you mention once something happened with your brother that made you dubious about the cops?
There are different stories on how Roger died when he was 23. The story we were told was that it was malnutrition and a drug overdose in Amsterdam in 1971 or 1972. His body was cremated; we never saw his body.
We knew that he was running drugs from Afghanistan and Morocco; he was a pretty dynamic cat. He used to beat up cops when he was young and was thrown in jail in Cottage Grove and Lane County a few times.
Friends of his would talk to me and said the DEA killed Roger for the drug running. So it was questionable in my mind. He was huge, 6-foot-7, and really intelligent. He was not the kind of guy who was going to die of malnutrition in Amsterdam. He was the black sheep of the family at the time. I was 16 when he died.
I’m fourth generation in Oregon, born in Roseburg, grew up in Eugene, I think we moved here in ’63, when I was like 7 or 8, went to North Eugene High School. Prefontaine was my hero as well as my mom and dad. Five boys and one girl in the family. My dad played semi-pro baseball and was an insurance salesman. My mom was an RN. They were ass-kicking parents.
My mom died last year in January, while I was at Sundance Film Festival for If A Tree Falls. She died Jan. 24. And Jan. 24 this year was the morning my sister called and said, “Tim, you’re going to Hollywood.” That was an omen; maybe we’re going to kick ass in Hollywood. My mom was definitely excited about the whole Sundance thing. It’s sort of a drag she can’t see what’s going on now, but that’s the way it works.
How was Sundance?
What I can remember of it! Micah, my running buddy from PictureEugene, our YouTube site — we decided we’d drive the beat-up old Toyota truck there, and just tear it up, and we did. We went for five days, went to four or five showings of If a Tree Falls. It was like a big ego stroke because people would come out and recognize me and go “That’s the dude” and I’d just go “Yeah, that’s me, man.” It was fun. Got a lot of drinks bought for us. Got wasted and did that for five or six days. The truck broke down on the way back.
So are you going to the Oscars?
Yes, it’s a once in a lifetime thing. We’re going down in Micah’s greasemobile. It’s sort of an outside chance we’re going to get into the show, but Marshall Curry said he’d try.
I want Blair (his daughter) to go down there. As much as I hate Hollywood and what they do in creating memories and creating stories for people instead of people creating their own stories, this is something I can do with Blair and these kids. At least it’s our memories we’re creating.
Oh, and Blair will say “there was that time my dad was in the Academy Award-nominated film …”
Yeah, and “he was hanging from the balcony and we scooped him up and he almost died!”
What did you think of the film?
Sam Cullman showed me a rough cut at my house about four or five months before it was ready for Sundance. I was disappointed. I felt like it was really weak, and I didn’t realize it was going to be showing so much of Daniel; I thought it would be showing the overall scene.
So initially I didn’t like it that much, but Marshall and I talked for about three hours and we talked about some of my views. I started to realize that I was too close to it.
I hear someone talking about burning down a mill and for me it’s not such a huge step. But for someone in Iowa, for someone in middle America, that’s a huge step and it probably intrigues them. For me, it’s just something we talked about back in the day about whether that’s a good tactic or not.
Daniel, obviously while they were filming him, didn’t know if he would go to prison for life. He played it close to the chest. He didn’t really want to own what they did. And also he’d transitioned into a different period of his life.
I wanted him to own what they did. Because that was a period of time people were trying to make things happen and had the courage to make the next step. It was hard for me to see people backing off from that period of time and not really owning it. Then after I saw it at Sundance and saw a little but more about how this character, this sort of average Joe could go from graduating college in business and go to what’s called sabotaging mills throughout the Northwest, and how that would intrigue people.
Objective reporting to me is just bullshit, frankly, but I think Marshall did it in a pure way, allowing each side to tell their story and letting the viewers decide for themselves.
You sort of leave the theater thinking, instead of feeling hate for the mill owner or hate for the saboteurs. You’re sort of confused a little bit — most viewers — and I like that. I think that’s maybe the power of it; maybe that’s why it was nominated.
So one thing that comes up in the film is Daniel waiting being told by Eugene-based federal judge Ann Aiken that he and the other eco-saboteurs were terrorists. What did you think about that?
It’s just so silly these kids, in their 20s, being tagged with this. We all know why — it’s just to put pressure on anybody who’s thinking about doing anything like this, and trying to convince the public who terrorists really are.
Classifying these kids and this type of thing as terrorism is totally absurd. As Americans, or just average Joes on the street just trying to make it, we all know who the real terrorists are. I mean the big bankers and like they say in the film about the oil spills in the Gulf, these CEOs, they aren’t threatened with life in prison or with any of this stuff. And they are the ones causing this planet to go and just be fucked, for the lack of better term.
You almost have to go and own the motherfucker. If they’re calling us and these kids terrorists then we have to own it. Country folk own “redneck”; gay people own “queer”; black people call themselves “niggers.”
Take it away from the Ann Aikens, and go, “Yeah, fuck you. I am a terrorist.” We know who the real terrorists are, but it’s all part of the system. I think we should own it.
Freedom fighter, that’s almost too poofy. Terrorist sounds a lot better. It’s got a real punch to it. Domestic terrorist. It’s got a nice punch.
Do you think what Daniel and the others did changed anything?
We need to create change in our own little world, our own little areas, our family, our friends, our land. I try to stay focused on that but also instigate a little here and there. But it also requires good homegrown beer and homegrown pot.
I’m raising Blair and an couple other kids; I like being around kids and their directness. Adults have lost their ability to say what they think. Schools, give me a break they are just prisons. Schools and cell phone use, and videogoames, it’s just child abuse that’s the way I look at it.
I guess what I’ve been trying to do with my daughter is create a sense of place … where she knows that tree or where her dog is buried. When I look out the window and see three dogs, four kids run down a trail and over a creek and up the other side, I know I’m doing something right.
I’m not trying to live with this tunnel vision of these “isms” any more. Politics, radicalism, anarchism, liberalism, Occupyism. Fuck all those isms, man. I mean, I’m not saying fuck ’em. I mean they’re great, but you have to able to look outside that tunnel and live your life.
Did it create change? It created change in people’s individual lives and we still see all sort of ELF actions still going on. As people get poorer and poorer and thrown out of their homes maybe we will see a lot more of this kind of shit. Creating real change. Or at least more prisons.
I really do like that quote from the movie: “One man’s freedom fighter is another man’s terrorist.” I think that’s pretty accurate. | <urn:uuid:58c677fb-cb58-455c-bb46-53d95b530fad> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://eugeneweekly.com/article/activists-or-terrorists | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.985728 | 3,493 | 1.507813 | 2 |
16-year-old Helena Muffly wrote exactly 100 years ago today:
Sunday, May 28, 1911: Ma and Pa went away to store all day. Tweet was here all night and staid till evening. Went to Sunday school this morning. Carrie was over this afternoon. Heard this evening of the arrival of a girl cousin born on May the 18th.
Her middle-aged granddaughter’s comments 100 years later:
From reading the diary—I now know that “Tweet” was Helen Wesner–with a nickname like Tweet she must have been a blast as a teen. I just knew her as an elderly woman who had never married.
Grandma and Helen would see each other on Sunday’s for much of their lives. After Grandma married, she attended Messiah Lutheran Church in McEwenville which was the church Helen attended.
When I was a child in the middle of the 20th century, the children’s Sunday School classes were in the basement, but the adult classes were spread out in various corners of the main church sanctuary. I remember that sometimes my Sunday School class would end before the adult classes, and I’d come up the stairs into the narthex and peek through the doors into the sanctuary.
There were four adult classes: the men’s class, the women’s class, and the old ladies’ class, and the old men’s class. (Maybe the classes had another name—but I always called them the old ladies’ and old men’s classes).
I can remember Grandma and Helen sitting in the old ladies’ class. It was a small class—maybe seven people on a good Sunday—most Sunday’s there probably were about 5 people. My memory is that all had gray hair, wore loose-fitting dresses that seemed to lack any sense of style, and were bent over in weariness.
After reading the diary—I now wonder what those elderly women talked about on those Sunday mornings.
What do people talk about who’ve known each other for most of their lives? The good old days? . . their families? . . . gardening? . . . their health? . . . their deepest secrets (which may not really be secrets to people who’ve know each other for 50, 60, or 70 years)?
Filed under: Other | <urn:uuid:4ff27edd-e502-471a-a2e7-82271d6d0a18> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://ahundredyearsago.com/2011/05/28/2023/?like=1&source=post_flair&_wpnonce=d0199d491e | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.98339 | 496 | 1.640625 | 2 |
… with 4 different sized wheels.
* 1953 because function is so primitive
* 4 different sized wheels because stubborn browser developers can’t agree upon common formats.
Yes, this is a rant … by a recovering web purist. (1)
Before I rant, a HUGE THANK YOU to a great group of folks who answered the plea in the previous post and tested a series of videos for us. They proved we were making progress with all sorts of PCs, tablets, and even some phones. THANK YOU Patrick Anderson, Brander “Badger” Roullett, David Taylor, Daniel in Austrailia, Steve Longley, Kevin Wilkinson, Marge, Doug F., Rick Hayhoe, Jim Marsh, and Shannon Rogers.
The 1953 Ford pickup truck
So….. what’s wrong with video on the web? It would be easier to answer what’s not wrong.
It has about as much function as that ole 1953 truck. Just play. No fast forward, no rewind, no slow motion, full screen works sometimes, sometimes not, just like the windshield wipers.
OK, OK, I get it that some of those things need complex encoding and require lots of bandwidth and more vacuum than the engine produces. We’ll suffer some inconvenience in the name of slow networks and constrained bandwidth. Right?
Hey, have you noticed how fast networks are running these days? (hint: Google “dark fiber”)
Flash – R.I.P.
As a little preface, the best way I know to describe Flash to woodcarvers, especially traditional / classic woodcarvers, is to think of Flash as a Dremel tool. ‘Nuf said?!
Steve Jobs killed Flash (2) … and for purists, that’s a very good thing. Oooops, almost forgot; I’m a recovering purist. Well, in reality, I’m just someone wanting to make a decent video-centric web site and am da*ned irritated with the state of web video affairs.
The first 4 versions of HTML had no special accommodation for video. We survived 20 years of cramming inefficient arcane bulky (and balky) code into a nondescript container called an “object” and then duplicating it in a container called “embed.” Along with the bulky code came clunky slow running players and equally inefficiently encoded video data. We put up with duplicating code in both “object” and “embed” containers because 2 browser developer were at war for world domination and neither would yield to a common standard. We put up with Flash and all of its energy sucking inefficiency because Adobe (nee Macromedia) managed to get the plugin bundled “free” with virtually every browser on the planet. Flash gained dominance and still holds dominance in certain ways.
The dominance started to crumble about 10 years ago with the emergence of a “better” encoding technology, H.264. Coincidentally, some web standards purists started lobbying for a real “video” container in HTML. It would be a lot more flexible than either “object” or “embed” and a whale of a lot more efficient. Long story short, HTML5 has a video container and we’re all happy. Right?
BZZZZZZT!!! The new found video container offered browser developers a path for building video players right into the browsers. No more plugin video players!!! No more waiting for player shells to download!!! Fast, quick, wam, bam!!! … and we’re all happy. Right? All we need are some simple “video” statements and video material comes screaming out through built-in video players. Eureka!
BZZZZZZT!!! Guess what the browser developers can’t agree upon? That’s right, encoding methods. Some like H.264. After all, there are now hardware co-processors that ecode H.264, making things easy for some developers. Yet, others are concerned that H.264 is patent encumbered and the patent holder really is collecting royalties. Two of those developers want a patent free encoding method and and have chosen two completely different encoding methods (WebM and OGG).
There goes the idea of easily playing video. If we want to play videos in the native players built into the latest browsers, we need at least 4 versions of each video, one for each of the stubborn browser variants (mp4, webM, ogg) and a Flash version (still!) to fall back to for the older browsers that people (one of my younger brothers, for example) still have on their old feeble computers.
But still, those built-in players alleviate downloading all sorts of other players, and really streamline video delivery. Right?
BZZZZZZT!!! Try playing H.246, mp4 files, encoded as “Baseline” (the very simplest) on my Samsung Galaxy 10.1 tablet (OS=Honeycomb). When the player isn’t stalling and sputtering, it crashes in the middle of a video. We tried videos coded at high bitrates, which re-buffered every 30 seconds, videos with moderate bitrates which really stuttered during re-buffering, and videos with low bitrates that played OK but crashed when their buffer space was filled before playback consumed the content. However, abandoning purity and playing those very same videos (all 3 bitrates) in Flash mode with JW Player worked perfectly.
OK. Be a purist and encode in 4 different versions, OR… wait for it… encode only ONE version nicely in H.264 mp4 format and distribute it with JW Player which will wrap it in Flash and play it on almost anything but iPads, and will intelligently serve the raw mp4 file to the iPads, iPhones, and MacBooks.
So there, Mr Jobs! The dreadful Flash is dead … but it’s going to hang around for a very long time.
Have you ever seen a business cycle “S-curve?” It talks to the cycle of innovation, how the next generation replaces the previous, sometimes very slowly. The S-curve cycle is directly relevant to what’s happening with web video. Casual reading here.
OK, rant ends. —–=====*****=====—–
1. Let’s explain “purist.”
My 40 years of computer engineering gave me many opportunities for honing high skills. I was incredibly fortunate in spending my last fifteen years in IBM’s highly regarded Research division. There, I had access to the brand new ‘world wide web’ thingy way back in 1992 (go check the date of HTML1). I merely followed that interest for a few years, but got more deeply involved over time. I ended up developing world class skills in 2 areas: HTML / CSS, and Accessibility (enabling technology for people with disabilities). My interest in both of those areas, the skills I built, and the place I worked all came together so that I ended up directly on standards committees, or working directly with colleagues who were on standards committees for web and accessibility technologies.
There are two sorts of people on standards committees, those who have ideas about “the right way” of doing things (the purists), and those who are representing a business interest that wants “their way” adopted as the standard. For the areas where I was engaged, IBM didn’t have a “my way” interest. I was there as the purist.
Been there! I’ve seen how the standards are made, how the compromises are arrived at, and how agonizingly long it take for new technology to develop, be agreed upon, be embodied in a standard, be implemented in the real world (first with a lot of interpretation errors, then with corrections (1a)), and actually become common.
1a. Early in the life of new standards, interpretation errors are often made. The unfortunate reality of these errors is that they hang around for a —very— long time.
For example, a bug in Apple’s iOS version 3 (first iPad) prevents a video from being played if there is a “poster” image included in the HTML5 video container. (fixed in iOS4) The “poster” is the still image that is displayed when the player first appears. We like posters because they provide extra visual information about the content. So we really like including them.
The dream of most coders is to have a single block of code serve the most clients. Yet, bugs like this crash that dream. Include the poster and millions of early iPads fail to show the video. Remove the poster, for the sake of “backward compatibility,” and punish all the other millions of browsers that get it right. Which leads to using patches, bandages, and tourniquets (or increasingly complex <script>s) to make up for early injuries that take forever to cycle out of the universe.
2. Steve Jobs killed Flash!
Well, not directly, but he effectively engineered the death blow. Walter Isaacson tells us in his biography about Jobs that 1999 was the year Jobs wanted to tie video cameras and computers tightly together with Firewire connectivity. One of the things he needed was good video editing software. He approached his “old friends” at Adobe and asked them to make a version of Adobe Premiere for the Mac. They refused, saying the Mac market wasn’t big enough. Jobs went furious, which he apparently did several times a day anyway. He settled the score by forbidding Flash on the iPad. Condemning an already dying technology by forbidding it on one of the most popular devices on the planet is a great way to kill it. Ding-dong the witch is dead! (but not really; we still need it for my little brother’s ancient computer.)
Long live the 1953 Ford pickup truck! | <urn:uuid:e2046dfd-a0cb-4b3b-9be5-652821b2f850> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.bob-easton.com/blog/category/uncategorized/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94146 | 2,103 | 1.632813 | 2 |
December 18, 2009
If you weren’t at the GothamSchools party last week, then you missed a real treat: Diane Ravitch reading publicly for the first time from her forthcoming book, ”The Death and Life of the Great American School System: How Testing and Choice are Undermining Education.”
Reading from a selection titled “What I Learned About School Reform,” Ravitch explained why she has reversed her position on policies from test-based accountability to school choice.
“Where once I had been hopeful, even enthusiastic, about the potential benefits of testing, accountability, choice, and markets, I now found myself experiencing profound doubts about the same ideas,” Ravitch said.
“What was the compelling evidence that prompted me to reevalute the policies I had endorsed many times over the previous decade? Why did I now doubt ideas I had once advocated?” she asked. “The short answer is that my views changed because I saw how these ideas were working in reality.”
For the long answer, watch the video of Ravitch’s reading (and pre-order her book).
Ravitch read from her book to support GothamSchools. Here’s how you can support us, too. | <urn:uuid:c2504d33-0804-44c6-b8aa-8a05172ee0b6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://gothamschools.org/2009/12/18/diane-ravitch-explains-why-she-changed-her-mind-about-reform/ | 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 | 0.968862 | 263 | 1.515625 | 2 |
Here are step by step instructions and pictures that will show you all how to plant a large grouping of tulips. Keep in mind that tulips in large groups can offer a very stunning spring display. Here are a few basic guidelines:
First, realize that there is no hard and fast rule about how far apart to plant spring bulbs. A general rule of thumb is to keep them 3 or 4″ apart, but I have found that leaves your display looking sparse. Trust me, it is ok to put tulips in rows right on top of each other!
Secondly, you don’t necessarily have to plant them point side up! They are pretty smart and know which way to send up the chute next year. However, I figure that I will plant them right side up anyway just to make their little lives easier!
Next, plant your tulips around 4 or 5″ deep unless they are in a raised bed (like in these pics) then plant them a good 6″ deep. Raised beds are more apt to freeze in winter for obvious reasons.
When you are covering your tulip bulbs with dirt, be sure to lightly tamp down each layer because it you don’t, the dirt will settle over the winter. We want those little bulbs to be snug under that fresh soil and not have a bunch of air pockets in between.
It is also a good idea to buy tulips from a professional grower and not from your local big box store. Many times the tulips you buy at Home Depot or Menards are old and rotted. Professional growers like Breck’s Bulbs will get you quality, fresh stock.
Click here to check out premium Dutch Tulips at Brecks
Lastly, when planting bulbs en-mass like this, get some that are said to bloom early, some mid-spring and some late spring. This way your show will be extended and every developing as the spring goes on and on.
See the pics for more info on planting groupings of tulips.
DIY Lawn Care tips and tulip tips brought to you by Life and Lawns!____________________________________________________________
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You can start at ANY time during the year... I wrote the book so it is easy to get into lawn care no matter what time it is... Just start NOW! Lawn Care, Step By Step | <urn:uuid:c7e461dd-af70-4f85-9cce-1fc2552fdc6e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.lifeandlawns.com/2008/10/12/how-to-plant-300-tulips-in-one-hour/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950712 | 530 | 1.742188 | 2 |
It's late, I'm tired, but I've just read John Dale on Laptops in Lectures and it reminded that I meant to post about my experience of blogging the OU Learning and Teaching Conference a couple of weeks ago.
So, for what it's worth, here's an off the top of my head list that I'll try and tidy up if I get a chance:
1) slides with lots of text on are a killer - you try and read the text, you try and listen to the speaker, you're trying to type notes. Confusion results and the blogging is painful.
2) slides with just a couple of words or a short phrase are a joy - they give you a sub-heading and are easily copied; this leads into:
3) it's easier to type while listening than copying stuff from presentation slides; it's also difficult to type everything the speaker says, so donlt even try; listen for key points, summarise and add short asides/private notes to yourself as well as things to pick up on/develop/challenge.
4) screenshots of websites, and websites demonstrated live, need the URL visible. That way, the audience can play along, take a bookmark and so on. A quick play might also give you inspiration/ammunition for a question;-)
5) In the link mentioned above, John Dale wondered:
t's possible in principle, I suppose, that a wifi–equipped laptop could be useful in allowing the student to look up additional content relating to the lecture via Google or whatever. But I bet nobody actually does this effectively; it would be too difficult to multi–task the searching, the listening and the note–taking.
One of the things that comes out from the above is that lectures and conference presentations are perhaps different beasts. But I wonder if the idea of a lecture delivering a litany of facts to receptacle students is another model of communication that will be disrupted by technology and the ease with which students can access linked information (I seem to remember it was always a chore going off to the library for a short library loan... but where's the problem if the paper I need is online?)
In seminars, too, I wonder if having occasional sessions where everyone brings a laptop could be a useful exercise, particularly if the discussion involves ambiguous claims that can be checked (via the web), but often aren't...
(Are political press conferences changing, I wonder, with the press being increasingly able to look up facts and challenge podium claims - or is wi-fi banned from them?;-)
Anyway - my take home for presenting to bloggers was: go for few and simple words on each slide (these provide cheap and easy subheadings); make URLs known (especially if you don't mind the audience wandering off their. On a couple of occasions, I found it quite enjoyable browsing through a site while the presenter was talking about it, each complementing the other. (Hmmm - there's (here's?!;-) that partial attention thing raising it's head again (here in the sense I'm minded to go off an have a quick refresher on it, paying attention to revising my notion of partial attention, as well as to finishing this post. A partial attention aside, no less!) It'd be neat if I could have a collapsible element button in Performancing/my blog for this asides...)
Anyway - back to the main thread. Perhaps not surprisingly, there are some strong similarities in the list of things that I perceived made life easier for me as a blogger of a conference presentation to the things I've been bookmarking as exemplars of presentation+bestpractice. Certainly in my own presentations I've started trying to keep the word count down.Posted by ajh59 at May 7, 2006 11:32 PM | <urn:uuid:51bd0523-3d8d-47a3-bfb1-eb7dac70a002> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://ouseful.open.ac.uk/blogarchive/006180.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.953379 | 781 | 1.6875 | 2 |
This book considers the presence and ministry of the Holy Spirit as he transforms the cracked canvases of our lives into becoming living portraits of grace. Jesus did this with his disciples while he was here on earth and his Spirit continues to do this now that Jesus has ascended to heaven. Once we realize just how committed God is to paint grace in our lives we discover fresh hope. We may have thought that we would have to figure out the Christian life on our own. But now we discover that God has never left us alone at all. In fact his Spirit's work in us has guaranteed that the portrait he is painting will reflect his presence forever! We also realize that there are countless others who have also been called to be part of God's living portrait. He is painting in all nations on the earth and one day believers will join the hosts of heaven who have cheered us on since God first took up his brush to paint in our lives.
Christians have no problem understanding that they were created in the image of God. They read the first few chapters in Genesis and realize that man was uniquely created to fulfil God's purpose on earth. But for that to happen it required that they clearly see the portrait of grace he has painted in the pages of Scripture so that they understand what glorifying God looks like.
The Old Testament is a record of what happens when men choose to either follow God's painting or ignore it. In that record it also shows the consequences of either experiencing God's presence or of what happens when men choose to ignore him and strike out on their own. And if the latter choice is made it always results in an ugly portrait of sin, self-interest and death. The colors go from bad to worse until hardly any colors of life remain. The dark colors of sin have tainted the original colors that God painted as his image in man. Without grace being painted man can be hardly recognizable as man at all. But God is not deterred in his painting through men reject him and his artistic call to life.
In the New Testament we see how God continued to paint with Jesus in the centre of the canvas (Hebrews 1:1-4). He is the One in whom all the promises of God from the Old Testament are fulfilled. It is through the crimson colors of Jesus' blood that the worse canvas we could ever paint is mysteriously transformed (Isaiah 1:18). It is as if there were no stains on our canvas at all. But we know better. It is much harder for us to forget the stains that plague our memories than it is for God to remove them from his (Psalm 103:12). And if we were to be brutally honest about what God had done for us in Christ we would never complain about anything else again. We would be speechless as to any reason for him to paint in us at all (Romans 3:19). But at the same time we would be so profoundly grateful that he did (1 John 4:19).
Yet as marvellous as all of this is...it is only the beginning of what Jesus is painting. The portrait was begun before the foundation of the earth so you wouldn't expect that it would end with Jesus' time on earth (Ephesians 1:4). Many portraits have already been painted over the years of Jesus and his earthly ministry. These are classic and inspired masterpieces describing in great detail his life and the impact of his ministry while here on earth (Matthew 1:18; Mark 1:1; Luke 1:1-4; John 20:30-31). These portraits are full of artistic realism and glory. But what is often forgotten is that Jesus is still painting now from heaven (Acts 1:1-5).
Before Jesus ascended into heaven he made sure that his disciples understood that they were to continue his painting for him. This was to happen as they continued the work of making disciples. Essential elements of this portrait required that they paint by their "going, baptizing, and teaching" as he directed them (Matthew 28:19-20). Yet it was not enough for the disciples to simply know what to paint and how to paint. If that was all there is to painting a God canvas it would be much the same as painting by numbers. You would end up with a picture and could have even done a reasonable job with it, but in the end everyone would know that it really wasn't the work of an artist. It was just the work of someone who followed a painting program.
Jesus told them that there needed to be a living quality to the portrait. But he also told them that they could not bring this quality to the portrait themselves. To insure that the end result would be just as powerful and persuasive as any portrait Jesus painted in the disciples lives, he told them that he would send his Spirit to empower them to paint the way he had painted in them (Acts 1:8).
He even told them that some of their portraits would be more powerful than the ones he had painted. And as hard as that was to believe...it was true (John 14:12). When the disciples realized this, it was not so hard for them to wait for what Jesus wanted to paint through them. They wanted their painting to actually be God's. They wanted their brush strokes to actually be the ones God's Spirit had made by controlling the very movement in their lives. They wanted their portraits to be full of grace and alive with the presence of God.
This book considers how important the presence and ministry of the Holy Spirit is in that portrait. It is the Spirit of God who has continued to paint the living portraits of grace in the lives of God's people. And it is through our discovery of what that picture looks like that we also begin to see our place on the canvas.
We will discover that we have become part of the portrait that God has been painting from the beginning. This will be achieved by our considering various portraits painted on the pages of Scripture as we reflect on snapshots from Adam to Moses, from the Psalms to the Prophets and from Jesus to the Spirit's outpouring at Pentecost. And we will no longer feel alone because we will realize that their story has become part of ours (Hebrews 11:39-40).
There are countless others from all nations who are experiencing God's painting in their lives (Psalm 87; Matthew 28:18-20). They will also experience more grace than any of us could have imagined (Ephesians 3:20). And one day believers will join the hosts of heaven who have cheered us on since God first took up his brush to paint in our lives (Hebrews 12:1). May God give us eyes to see a glimpse of his portrait of grace in us so that we can stir the hearts of others who long to know that he is still painting in them (Ephesians 1:18).
Donald A. Broadwater has served congregations in both the United States and Australia. Having graduated from both Covenant College and Westminster Theological Seminary he has combined his teaching gifts with a passion to communicate the Bible in practical ways. This has included his speaking at the international "Fire on the Mountain" Conference on Mount Tambourine, Queensland. www.journeyinjesus.com
"Someone has said that the church is often 'like a radio with the batteries gone dead.' Read this book and you’ll see why and what God has done to fix it. What a great book! Donald Broadwater writes with clarity, Biblical insight and great power. It the power of the Holy Spirit of which he writes so eloquently. Read this book. When you do you’ll 'rise up and call me blessed' for recommending it and Donald Broadwater for having written it." Dr. Steve Brown, Professor of Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando, Florida and Bible Teacher for Key Life Network. | <urn:uuid:69896203-6480-475e-89fc-1a0e0c8f57de> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://bookstore.balboapress.com/Products/SKU-000525792/living-portraits-of-grace.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.987075 | 1,614 | 1.71875 | 2 |
When I’m not thinking about The Civil War I sometimes think about Winston Churchill. I like his quote “Never , never , never , never give in ” And to the French he declared ; ” Whatever you may do , we shall fight on forever and ever and ever. “
This may seem an extreme motto for a yarnbomber but it’s more about going on and making art every day under all circumstances. I know Churchill was probably racist and anti Semitic but he was so wonderfully undefeatable. He invented the tank and he was a tank .
I love this quote too” Even though large tracts of Europe and many old and famous states have fallen or may fall into the grip of the Gestapo and all the odious apparatus of Nazi rule , we shall not flag or fail . We shall go on to the end . We shall fight in France , we shall fight on the seas and oceans , we shall fight with growing confidence and growing strength in the air , we shall defend our island , whatever the cost may be , we shall fight on the beaches , we shall fight on the landing grounds , we shall fight on the fields and in the streets , we shall fight in the hills ; we shall never surrender . “
Ok I hope you’re feeling strengthened
I was really worn out on Wednesday and I accidently slept until 12 . I wanted to yarnbomb the Temescal library in Oakland as part of my Oakland Library series so I shoved my clothes on , ate some dark chocolate with cherries and stomped off to the Temescal Library .
The library is actually pretty fine , it’s a graceful old brick building on Broadway and 52 . There’s a bus stop right in front of it with a bench and a pretty little lawn . I stood in front of the Library and looked for things to yarnbomb . The railings were shapely and alluring but I was not in the mood to do any thing nerve racking or questionable . I wanted to make a gift to the library not vandalize it . I decided to yarnbomb the 3 loop bike rack on the left . It took a long time to sew it up by myself but it was an enjoyable self contained task.
When I was done the manager of the library came out and was wildly enthusiastic . That’s always nice . And the thing was – the knitting did change the whole street . It looked like their was art present . It made the street and the library look interesting , colorful , disconcerting and new.
Yarnbombing works !
I have a friend Maria Mortati who has a mobile museum . I want a mobile museum . She has a blog here with a bit about yarnbombing. | <urn:uuid:c05c8cc8-02fa-47a0-957d-633b006506d3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://streetcolor.wordpress.com/2011/08/13/yarnbombing-and-winston-churchill-the-temescal-library-oakland-ca/?like=1&source=post_flair&_wpnonce=d42062ed33 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.960772 | 562 | 1.765625 | 2 |
Kayak in the Pool
"Whoa! I could like, die," said Sophomore Jeremy Anderson. "That wouldn't be any fun."
That's a thought that some people may have when they wonder what it would be like to kayak on Lake Superior. Anderson has seen people out on the lake and decided to try it. He's glad, however, that he decided to learn the necessary skills first.
Maybe you've seen kayakers out on the lake and wondered where you could learn to do what they're doing, but you don't want to look stupid trying to figure it out. Or maybe you've seen kayakers on Lake Superior, and wondered why they're not scared to death of tipping over and getting lost forever in the cold, dark water. Well, there's a group here at UMD that can help you get past those fears.
The Kayak and Canoe Club meets at the UMD pool in the Sports and Recreation Center every Monday afternoon from 3-5:00, and Thursday nights from 9-11:00. Your first session is free. The group averages about five to 15 people; the busiest night being Thursdays. Freshman Elizabeth Shmikler, who has canoed a lot before but hadn't tried kayaking, has been to three of the club's meetings so far.
"The instructors are really nice guys. They'll help you out."
There are six certified instructors, which makes it easy to get individual help when it is needed. A few of the participants in the club's activities are also quite knowledgeable in the art of kayaking, and are eager to help out.
"It's one of those things that gets in your blood, and you want to explain it to people," said Laura Schroeter, a junior who is also a kayak guide in the Apostle Islands.
The first time you go to a kayak meeting, the instructors teach you how to roll your kayak and to get back up again. Then they'll teach things like play boating (tricks), and how to go over small waterfalls.
"Sometimes the guys will put on shows. It's pretty cool," said Schroeter.
The club will take beginners out on a river, but if they want to do well, it's suggested that they have at least two sessions in the pool first.
"The learning curve isn't too steep," said Scott Ewen. "Kayaks are kind of spinney, so it can be hard at first, but you learn something new every time you try."
The Canoe and Kayak Club is also going to be co-sponsoring a big fall event for Friday, October 5th. It's called the Reel Paddling International Film Festival. It will be held on campus in Bohannon 90. Ewen, one of the officers of the Kayak Club, is pretty enthusiastic about the upcoming event.
"There'll be about six hours of film showing, and there'll also be awesome door prizes," he said.
Tickets are on sale now for this event. For more information on the club, and its events, call the Recreational Sports Outdoor Program at (218) 726-7128 or e-mail them at firstname.lastname@example.org. | <urn:uuid:13679b05-24b0-4fe8-96e9-d6769730c28a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blog.lib.umn.edu/buswe005/Buswell/2007/09/kayak_in_the_pool.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.980652 | 673 | 1.585938 | 2 |
Bias's Legacy Lives on With His Mother
Sunday, June 18, 2006; 9:30 PM
Some have forgotten him over the years, and there's a generation of children who have never heard of Len Bias. Some people say his sudden death 20 years ago changed college sports and drug use and the way society viewed both.
But maybe his mother, Lonise Bias, knows best what his legacy really is: "From the ashes," she said, "life came."
It's easier to make sense of it all now, faith and cocaine and love and bullets, the cheering crowds, the testimony, and the insistent beat of a basketball on pavement.
It started with one death, and then another came, just a few years later. Jay Bias, a basketball player like his older brother, was shot and killed.
"In the beginning, it is as if someone puts a knife in the middle of your chest and you can't breathe," Lonise Bias said, "you just can't catch your breath."
Today she'll be talking about drug prevention, as she does so often now as a speaker and consultant, this time with the White House drug czar. "God has given me strength," she said, and the conviction that "Len died to save other young people from drugs."
Every year, the 19th of June will come, and the 20th, Jay Bias' birthday, and the NBA draft. But it's gotten easier for the Bias family, a large close-knit mannerly church-going circle of kin in the Washington area, who still sing in the choir, still take family vacations at the beach, still watch basketball together.
Over the years, some changes have settled in.
Lonise Bias stopped working at a bank, and became, bit by bit, the speaker she is today, while her husband and two children prefer privacy. They all got stronger, friends said, and closer.
After the funerals longtime friend Curlie Williams saw a new tradition begin out of loss: When children came in the door, and before they left, they would say another prayer at the door. "Whenever you enter those streets," Williams said, "you have to bless your children."
As time passed, trials came to an end, and TV cameras left. The Biases took down the medals and trophies the boys had won from the family room wall.
This winter, James and Lonise Bias left the house they had lived in for decades with their four children, where their sons would dribble and shoot out back, the place where neighbors would holler or stop in for advice, the place with all the games watched and flowers tended, and the cookouts.
It was the place Len Bias -- nicknamed Frosty by their good friend and pastor Rev. Gregory Edmond because he was "tall and cool and quiet and unassuming" -- would come home from college, pull out the hose and wash family and neighbors' cars. Then he'd sit down with Williams' elderly mother on her front porch, and they would share an orange soda together.
And it was the place people would drive by, pointing. That's where it happened. Two sons . . .
It wasn't hard for Lonise Bias to leave. "It was the past," she said. "It was the season."
Most of the old photos are packed away in tubs now. "I will see them again," Lonise Bias said of her elder sons; she has faith. "I never have to say goodbye."
And there's another thing: four grandchildren, four laughing, teasing, Uno-playing, splashing-in-the-pool grandchildren nearby.
The oldest one loves to play basketball, loves to win. Keeps getting better. Keeps growing taller. Friends see it, too. "Oh my goodness, when you look at him, it takes your breath away," Lonise Bias said, her face lit with a smile, her eyes shining with tears, her hands crossed over her heart. "How he reminds you of the boys." | <urn:uuid:c4473eb5-eeff-4cb6-a8f8-e5804838c15d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/06/18/AR2006061800852.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 | 0.984532 | 846 | 1.757813 | 2 |
The violent killing of 12 people and wounding of 58 in Aurora, Colo., has, not surprisingly, prompted national attention. And while the concern and unease are understandable, I ask why this moment compels national conversations about life and death, about guns, about safety, about mental health, and about tragedy, when countless other horrific moments don't elicit similar sadness and outage. Clearly, all of these emotions, the shock and the desire to understand how/why this happened stem from a belief that such violence is not supposed to happen "there," that it is not supposed to impact suburban communities, that it is not supposed to involve shooters who look like James Holmes. Although the media imagines this act of domestic terrorism as "unthinkable" and "beyond explanation" -- since Holmes is just a normal (white, middle-class) kid -- it also portrays the violence as extraordinary, as fostering fear and anxiety where it didn't exist before.
Ian Landau epitomizes this sense of innocence lost that pervades the media coverage with "Colorado Movie Theater Shooting Shatters Our Sense Of Safety": "Traditionally in America movie theaters are a safe, family environment where everybody goes and settles down into the dark," notes New York psychiatrist Alan Manevitz. "You can watch a scary movie because you know you're safe in the movie theater and can enjoy the experience. The Aurora shooting has suddenly turned that upside down. That presumption of safety gets shattered and you feel the vulnerability at that moment."
Beyond the erasure of cinematic violence and a larger history of racist images on screen, the imagination of lost innocence speaks to the powerful ways that race and class matters. For communities of color, innocence remains a dream deferred. In America, only certain kids are entitled to "innocence," so much so that denied innocence and systemic exposure to violence is both normalized and accepted.
Normalizing the experiences of (white) middle-class suburbia, the media response has not only privileged this idealized space but has imagined it as a tragedy of immense proportions because of the shattered innocence that is predicated on an assumption of white privilege. "Is there anything more innocent than a child eating popcorn and sipping Coke with the lights of a movie screen reflecting off his face?," writes Bert Weiss. "Is there any place I can feel my children are totally safe? Rather than being excited to share this movie together, now I'll spend a considerable amount of time addressing what happened in that theater with my sons. Frankly, I wish someone could explain it to me. As a parent, I wish I could postpone the reality of conversations like this for just a little longer; keep my kids innocent for as long as possible." Would Mr. Weiss describe a movie theater within America's inner cities as "safe places"; would he paint such a rosy picture if his children ran the risk of being stop and frisked on their way to the movies? Within the national imagination, there remains a dividing line whereupon violence at certain premiers and at certain theaters is both expected and accepted.
Erasing the fears produced by racial profiling, stop-and-frisk policies, political brutality, extrajudicial killings and the violence that plagues communities throughout the United States, the heightened media and political concern points to the power of whiteness.
"The horror is touched, inflected, by the way that the killings now intertwine with the everyday details of our lives," writes Adam Gopnick in The New Yorker. "The killings will go on; the cell phones in the pockets of dead children will continue to ring; and now parents can be a little frightened every time their kids go to a midnight screening of a movie designed to show them what stylized fun violence can be, in the hands of the right American moviemaker. Of course, there have been shootings at school, too. We're a nation of special effects."
While the sentiment offered in The New Yorker is not one that I disagree with, given the impact of gun culture, this sort of argument also erases the many forms of violence that plague communities of color as well as the terror that results from sexual violence, domestic violence and a culture of violence. To conclude that "NOW parents can be a little frightened every time their kids go to a midnight screening of a movie designed to show them what stylized fun violence can be, in the hands of the right American moviemaker" is to erase how racial profiling, state violence and other forms of violence produce terror and fear within many communities. In doing so, this also erases the larger culture of violence and punishment that provides the rationale for abusive practices and police state tactics in certain communities.
Kismet Nunez brilliantly illustrated the wages of whiteness (white privilege) in this way:
I have nightmares around scenarios like this. And when I heard this was happening in New York, I didn't feel better. I felt worse. There is no question that all of my thoughts and prayers are with the families of the victims, the survivors, their kin, and with the city itself. But there is also no question that in a city where the mayor and police department are under fire for using 'Stop and Frisk' to harass, beat, and kill young black and Latin@ residents, increasing the police presence doesn't make me feel safe. It makes me feel terrorized. Who do we think they will target first if they (think they) see something amiss at the movies this weekend? How many young people will be killed and how many more will be frisked, placed in handcuffs, or publicly intimidated and made to feel violated and shamed in the name of public safety?
What happened in Colorado is a great tragedy; what happened in Colorado is yet another symptom of a culture of violence; what happened in Colorado should compel change; what happened in Colorado was an act of terrorism. Yet, let's be clear, the consequences of gun violence, the feelings of terror and anxiety, and the struggles with senseless death are a daily battle for communities of color. Rather than elevate what happened in Aurora as exceptional, as worthy of reflection, introspection and explanation, can we not talk about the fears resulting from police violence, the anxiety ushered in by racial profiling, and the shattered communities stemming from systemic neglect, poverty, and divestment? The tragedy of Colorado is that the death, the fear, and the pain that are all too common.
However, the rendering the shooting as an "exceptional" media event not only erase the systemic violence facing communities of color/poor people, but also provides a ready rationale for expansion of the police state. As evident in the aftermath of Columbine, this enhanced power will invariably lead to greater policing, surveillance, and abuse of youth of color. White racial profiling, metal detectors in suburban movie theaters, and stop and frisk at the mall are clearly not in the future, so whose innocence will be truly lost?
Follow Dr. David J. Leonard on Twitter: www.twitter.com/drdavidjleonard | <urn:uuid:0a1b2260-6a10-4cb5-a4c2-df769e27c057> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.huffingtonpost.com/dr-david-j-leonard/innocence-lost-in-colorad_b_1695956.html | 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 | 0.956143 | 1,435 | 1.78125 | 2 |
Tee Lor Su in the Karen language means the black waterfall or the great, awesome waterfall which is very appropriate. It originates from a stream called Huai Klo Tor and is about 900 metres above average sea level and is 500 metres wide and runs down in steps approximately 300 metres high. The first level is enclosed by lush green forests and an expanse of rocky ground fit for relaxing and walking around. The secound level is a cliff of grand yellow limestone covered with a curtain of water running down to the bright green pond. The third and highest level is simply unapproachable for visitors due to the very strong rapids. Alternatively, tourists may also trek to the beauty spot at another hill that is located right opposite to this fall, where one can have a whole view of the fantastic Tee Lor Su Waterfall.
- Open days
Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, Sunday
Umphang, Umphang, Tak 63170 Thailand | <urn:uuid:b3b75d9e-9786-4913-a30b-f433a30969f8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.bangkokpost.com/travel/5424_info_tee-lor-su-waterfall.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.937164 | 196 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Another Polish city is about to pump some serious money into an international TV campaign to promote itself.
Poznan, one of the oldest Polish cities, for decades recognised as an important trade centre favoured by many Polish entrepreneurs, will be showing a series of ads across a number of TV channels in Britain and elsewhere.
Those behind the “Eastern energy, Western style” campaign want to make the city more recognisable abroad. But also, presumably, they want to present it as an important acedemic and cultural hub, on a par with Warsaw, Krakow or Gdansk.
And it is an important city, after all this is where Mieszko I, the first Polish ruler, was linked to Poznan and the first Polish cathedral was built here ten centuries ago. Poznan has always been seen as a dynamic, successful city and last year it launched a new logo and a new promotional slogan: “POZnan: the city of know-how”. (The capitalised POZ is how the city is recognised internationally in aviation).
The city’s mayor, Ryszard Grobelny, said the slogan reflected the character of the city’s inhabitants, their ability to do things skillfully and professionally.
The newest campaign is supported by a 3-minute long video shot by Xawery Zulawski, the son of Wojciech Zulawski, the famous Polish director, and his wife, Malgorzata Braunek, an actress.
You can watch the full version above, while shorter versions will be shown on Sky News, Sky Sports and CNBC in the UK, CNN internationally and on various channels in Germany, Spain and other countries.
Oh and if you ever wonder how to pronounce Poznan – or any other major Polish city – you know where to look for help | <urn:uuid:7f0079f4-5cfb-45e4-8caa-012dd129637d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://thepolskiblog.co.uk/2010/11/poznan-eastern-energy-western-style/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.941713 | 385 | 1.640625 | 2 |
Read & respond: It's a function of the newspaper 2011.10.19
A couple of recent articles in the Observer brought out a reaction among some Fayette readers. Village council members may not have appreciated the response, but as we see it, everything played out the way it should—well, almost.
An article was published about a proposal to change the speed limit on Main and Fayette streets, and that drew a letter to the editor and some opinion expressed at a meeting.
Similarly, an article about a sidewalk repair proposal also brought some members of the public into a council meeting.
In each case, council members received some feedback from residents that helped form their view of the topic. That’s the way it should work: float a proposal—or in this case, discuss someone else’s proposal—and see what the public thinks.
Perhaps council will pick up a new idea or appreciate hearing another view about a topic. Or if it’s something that no one seems to like, at least council members will have something to help back up their decision.
There’s one way where this process can fall apart, and that’s what happened recently. Sometimes the discussion proceeds merely on rumor rather than on fact. Some complaints about the sidewalk proposal were based totally on hearsay and not on information given in the newspaper. That’s when an angry citizen walks in to complain about something that doesn’t exist.
We’ll continue to cover the discussions of area governing bodies, but unfortunately, we can’t make people read the words.
|< Prev||Next >| | <urn:uuid:34e7202b-e24c-4dad-92eb-b7593a2181bf> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://statelineobserver.com/editorials/4809-read-a-respond-its-a-function-of-the-newspaper-20111019 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.957319 | 336 | 1.765625 | 2 |
The Buddhist Channel: Why the imposed "silence" on the Wat Pah Pong / Bhikkuni Ordination issue
by Lim Kooi Fong, Editorial, The Buddhist Channel, Nov 8, 2009
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia -- On November 6, 2009, the Buddhist Channel imposed an editorial decision which contravened its mission statement, which is "Free Inquiry, Right Speech, One Dharma".
On that day, we made a decision to "cease the publication of any further news or updates with regards to the Wat Pa Pong / Western Buddhist Sangha situation."
The reason we gave was that "since the situation from both sides have already been made known, and views from many others already explicitly expressed, we feel that more than enough have been said. Talking more about it will never produce a resolution, but may even create new unnecessary situations. Since a probable solution is no longer in sight, we feel it would be best for everyone concerned to emulate the Buddha's example to impose "Noble Silence"."
As expected, we received quite a bit of flak for our decision. Nonetheless, given the latest turn of events, we sincerely believed the decision that we took was a correct one. Please let us explain.
The expulsion of Ajahn Brahmavamso (Ajahn Brahm) from the Sangha of Wat Pah Pong involved two basic incidents: the expulsion itself and the issue of bhikkhuni ordination.
With regards the expulsion of Ajahn Brahm from the Sangha of Wat Pah Pong, the act was not performed as a Sangha kamma (ecclesiastical acts, relating to disciplinary actions or disputes), but an ex-Vinaya action. Ajahn Brahm's monastery, Bodhinyana was simply removed from the register of recognised branches of Wat Pah Pong. With that, Ajahn Brahm was therefore no longer recognised as a member of their community. In lay terms, what simply happened was that a senior monk was told that he is no more a member of his old buddies club. Though unprecedented in the Sangha of Wat Pah Pong, it was just a storm in a tea-cup.
The decison to expel Ajahn Brahm from from the Sangha of Wat Pah Pong was predicated upon Ajahn Brahm's decision to ordinate four bhikkunis in Perth on September 22, 2009. The disagreement to the ordination by the Wat Pah Pong Sangha and the reasons behind their decision have already been documented. (http://www.buddhistchannel.tv/index.php?id=70,8661,0,0,1,0)
Rightly or wrongly, in view of the intimate communal structure of the Wat Pah Pong Sangha and the close bonds between the abbots of the monasteries belonging to this tradition, it is not for us (lay people) to say how their affairs should be managed.
This leads us to the second issue, which was the bhikunni's ordination. When the matter was seen as "interwined with Ajahn Brahm's expulsion", the "storm in a tea-cup" essentially turned into a full blown public "hurricane".
A survey of the views published in blogs and forums between November 3 to 5, 2009 revealed strong emotions and partisan backing (list of the blogs and forums are listed below this editorial for reference). This was not a matter, or something that one can take a neutral stand. It was either yes or no, an "either you are with us or against us" kind of situation.
And because the situation was still in a flux, views published in blogs and forums were speculative at best. Some of the discussion were carried out dissecting information based on hearsays, half truths and some, non existing imaginary tracts. Senior Ajahns were disparaged and the Wat Pah Pong Sangha was painted as though they were a bunch of retrogressive, conservative old monks, bound to death by archaic traditions.
Many of the discussions involved lay people. This was aptly demonstrated in Bhikku Bodhi's letters to Ajahn Sujato, who first wrote a letter of full support for the bhikkuni's ordination on November 3, only to have it retracted three days later. And if this had happened to a learned Buddhist scholar like Bhikkhu Bodhi, what does it say about the lay followers?
But the brutal fact of news publication in public media platforms is that they inadvertantly lead to formation of perceptions based on available information at that time (and of course, the slant taken by the media owner or moderator). When certain perceptions are played over and over again, the momentum generated can easily build up "mob psychology". Once a critical mass like this is generated, the perception of certain views become beholdened to the majority.
And when the person involved in the "storm in a tea cup" concerned happens to be a favourite tea cup of many people (especially in East Asia), then the perfect storm is created: one that is potentially partisan, divisive, enstranged and hostile.
Already just a day after November 3 when the news first broke, a lady participant who registered for a camp in Malaysia led by a very senior Ajahn pulled out after hearing that he was a party who voted for Ajahn Brahm's expulsion. Not only that, she wrote an open letter exhorting other participants to do likewise in support of the bhikunni ordination.
And in blogs, there were talks of "schism" within the Sangha, the death of Theravada Buddhism, the rise of Australian Theravada and that Ajahn Brahm has become the new "Mahayanist", none of which were remotely associated with the expulsion.
History has proven that Buddhist schisms were not created by people involved in the initial disagreement. They merely provided the chip in the armour. But these people are not just two or three mere mortals, but those who commanded a great number of followers. The first ever major rift within Buddhism, as happened in the Second Council 130 years after the Buddha's Parinirvana is an apt reminder of this fact (see here: http://www.onmarkproductions.com/html/early-schisms.html). It is the followers that pull the armour apart.
And given the above situation, what could we have done? What action would deem as the wisest and most appropriate?
In the midst of information flux and rising temperatures, we decided that for once if indeed "silence" could used as a communication tool. If we had kept to the first two parts of our mission statement, that is "Free Inquiry and Right Speech", then it would have been probably an "anything goes" situation. But we had a third factor, which is "One Dharma". Free Inquiry and Right Speech stands for nothing if it leads to deconstruction and denigration.
And so we took a pause.
We paused because intimately we knew that we were dealing with a group of one of the most sincere, mindful people on this planet. These were not just simple monks, but highly developed "Ajahns" - Thai for teachers - who lives on one meal a day, speaks when only necessary and whose robes are worn exactly like that of the Buddha 2550 years ago. They were not politicians, and does not have an inkling on how to handle propaganda. They do not own huge monasteries, do not carry money and lives by the forest, away from civilization if possible.
True to form, once the Sangha made the decision to expel Ajahn Brahm, they issued just one official statement, and an extended appendix explaining their reasons. To date they are no further communications from the Wat Pa Pong Sangha, except for a personal letter by Ajahn Chandako to the Western Australian Buddhist Order (http://www.buddhistchannel.tv/index.php?id=8,8666,0,0,1,0) and Ajahn Bramali's response (http://sujato.wordpress.com/2009/11/07/from-ajahn-brahmali-the-bodhinyana-sangha/) to his letter. Then on November 7, Ajahn Brahm officially posted his open letter, explaining his situation of the event (http://www.buddhistchannel.tv/index.php?id=70,8667,0,0,1,0).
But we knew that as mindful practitioners, they are also well aware of the implication of their actions. On the day the Buddhist Channel issued its self imposed silence, we received news that Ajahn Brahm contacted Ajahn Chandako about his letter. Some changes were made to the content but the point was that the ajahns were talking.
Given the developing scenario, we realised that the matter has already been resolved among the Sangha members. The Sangha of Wat Pah Pong has made its stand, and given its tradition and structure, it is only right to respect the position taken by them.
As for Ajahn Brahm's Bodhiyanna, the decision of the bhikkuni's ordination stays, and the expulsion from Wat Pah Pong may actually spur the rise of the Bhikkuni Sangha. As he is no longer encumbered by traditions imposed by Wat Pah Pong, he could now be the catalyst to forge the establishment of this much neglected fourth fold of the holy assembly while maintaining the highest required standards and discipline. As a senior monk, well experienced in Dharma practice and versed in the Vinaya, we have no doubt that this will happen.
We would like to believe that by our act of "silence", we inadvertantly missed the publications of many views from our readers who may not have the privilege of certain key information when they wrote in then. We hope that by doing so, we avoided the creation of unnecessary situations and played a part in the healing process between all parties involved. We implore our readers to view the matter objectively, given the information published above.
The Sangha of Wat Pah Pong has played an immense role of preserving the Buddha's teachings in its pristine and original form admirably for more than a century. They have demonstrated that mindful living, and that of breathing the Buddha's life as it originally was, can be emulated in this time and day. It is not a feat to be looked down upon, although their stance on bhikkuni ordination may not rhyme in this time and age. If you ever get a chance to meet these mindful beings, please remember to bow to them.
As for Bodhiyanna Monastery, a new chapter beckons in the Theravada tradition. May it lead the way for the true inclusion of the Bhikunni Sangha into mainstream Buddhism. May it demonstrate that in this time and day, and indeed in the generations to come, women in the holy order can and will be an indispensible cog in the four fold assembly, preserving and disseminating the Buddha Dharma to all beings, seen or unseen, large or small, far or near, those born and yet to be born. Sadhu!
List of news outlets discussing the Wat Pah Pong / Ajahn Brahm situation: | <urn:uuid:7757151e-41c9-492a-9f5b-9c6b24bb7297> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://buddhistchannel.tv/index.php?id=70,8668,0,0,1,0 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967468 | 2,345 | 1.703125 | 2 |
But there’s no point in pushing for a raise that great when no one expects the government to give up that kind of money, despite a routinely ignored law requiring the gap to be no more than 5 percent. Given the current climate, the best federal employees can hope for is that a half-percent increase would be made retroactive to January 2013, after a freeze of at least 27 months.
President Obama has proposed the token increase for when the freeze, extended beyond its original two years, ends. Getting it paid at all, much less retroactively, is not a sure thing even if Obama wins reelection.
But if Mitt Romney wins, Frankie and Flo Fed can kiss good-bye any hope of getting a retroactive increase, and probably any 2013 raise. With Romney, federal employees would have a boss-in-chief who thinks they are overpaid, including benefits, by about the same amount as the salary council says they are underpaid.
His Republican presidential campaign Web site says “federal compensation exceeds private sector levels by as much as 30 to 40 percent when benefits are taken into account. This must be corrected.”
And Rep. Paul Ryan (R-Wis.), running to be Romney’s vice boss-in-chief, is the architect of a House-passed budget that says the freeze should be extended through 2015.
So with all this reality, the 35 percent figure seems meaningless.
It’s a good bet a gap that size will never close.
“Never say never,” said Jacqueline Simon, the American Federation of Government Employees representative on the council, an advisory group that includes labor representatives and outside pay experts.
“We’re required to calculate the average nationwide pay gap in order to comply with the law. We’re using new data this year, and the use of this data combined with the two-year pay freeze explains why the gap grew so much,” she said. “We’re happy to make progress toward closing the gap. When the gap grows because of improvements in data, that’s one thing. But when the gap grows because of a freeze — we’re stuck in place while jobs in the private sector and state and local government are associated with salaries that are going up — that’s a big problem.”
The whole pay gap issue is problematic and highly controversial. There probably aren’t too many taxpayers who think the average federal employee is underpaid by 35 percent. Yet, when it comes to some highly skilled, extensively trained, incredibly innovative federal workers, they are woefully underpaid compared with their private counterparts.
This issue is one of several the National Academy of Public Administration and the American Society for Public Administration covered in their Memos to National Leaders Project. The memos present recommendations on a variety of challenges facing the president and Congress.
The memo on “Moving Towards a More Strategic Federal Pay Comparability Policy” includes a table using 2010 data indicating that federal employees at the lower end of the pay scale are overpaid compared with private-sector employees, while those at the higher end of the scale are underpaid. Folks in the middle, at the General Schedule 8 grade level, making about $51,600 in 2010, are about on par with the private sector.
One suggestion in the memo would “expand the pay ranges within the existing GS pay system to allow for greater pay progression within GS grade levels.”
Another recommendation calls for ending across-the-board pay raises and allowing “pay increases for those GS grade levels found to be the furthest below the private sector labor market in an effort to boost the recruitment, retention, and performance of federal employees. However, it would also allow for general cost-of-living adjustments for all grade levels.”
Union leaders don’t object to expanding the GS pay ranges, but the other idea would mean the lowest-paid workers would get the lowest pay rate increases.
“That approach is reflective of a race to the economic bottom that would serve our country poorly,” said Colleen M. Kelley, president of the National Treasury Employees Union. “This proposal and others like it would create serious morale problems in the federal workforce, as well as potentially increasing turnover within the ranks of lower-graded employees.”
Previous columns by Joe Davidson are available at wapo.st/JoeDavidson. | <urn:uuid:e62000bf-1b53-43b9-ad3d-21930145a6dd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/federal-salary-councils-call-for-35-percent-pay-hike-unrealistic/2012/10/24/76c27bea-1e09-11e2-9cd5-b55c38388962_story.html?wprss=rss_national | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.949928 | 916 | 1.765625 | 2 |
Seattle Partners for Healthy Communities
Seattle Partners for Healthy Communities (Seattle Partners) was established in 1995 as a CDC-funded Urban Research Center. This was a multidisciplinary collaboration of community agencies, community activists, public health professionals, academics, and health providers which had a mission to improve the health of urban, marginalized Seattle communities by conducting community-based collaborative research. The goal of our research was to identify promising approaches through which communities and professionals can address the social determinants of health and thereby prevent disease and promote healthy behaviors and environments.
Seattle Partners worked to improve the health and quality of life of urban, disadvantaged Seattle communities by promoting activities which are effective in preventing disease, promoting healthy behaviors and environments, and influencing the underlying social factors that affect health such as education, income, housing and economic development.
Community collaboration principles
Community collaboration was an essential element of the Center’s activities. The Center has adopted the following principles to guide this collaboration:
- Community involved in plans and development from the beginning
- Community partners have real influence on Center direction and activities
- Community involved with specific projects in objectives and selection, implementation and evaluation
- The values, perspectives, contributions and confidentiality of everyone in the community are respected
- Research process and outcomes will serve the community by sustaining useful projects, producing long-term benefit for the community, and developing community capacity (training and jobs)
Board of Seattle Partners
The Board of Seattle Partners, after carefully reviewing options for sustaining our work, has decided to end the Urban Research Center phase of our work and Board structure. We will complete a report of accomplishments and continue involvement in the Association of Schools of Public Health/CDC project "Examining Community-Institutional Partnerships for Prevention Research". | <urn:uuid:09cab5f7-d334-48d2-a0f5-af362a1f0240> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.kingcounty.gov/healthservices/health/partnerships/sphc.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.946158 | 352 | 1.820313 | 2 |
I can think of some reasons why we use
Die Queen in German, but refer to
Königin Beatrix der Niederlande.
Most people in Germany understand a fair amount of English, at least in ex-west-Germany. We say
President Obama as well, for example.
We had a time of occupation were the English language could greatly influence our own, and there is the British national anthem
God save the Queen that is, at least for its title, known to some degree in Germany.
So yeah, if you talk about
Die Queen in Germany, you are talking about Elizabeth. | <urn:uuid:2b93c016-e772-44bb-a5e1-a67710ba9d41> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://german.stackexchange.com/questions/2002/queen-vs-konigin | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.975195 | 129 | 1.726563 | 2 |
You are here: Home / Blogs at Gustavus / Geography Blog / DSC00738 Posted on January 20th, 2013 by Anna Versluis Haiti 3 years after the quake » DSC00738 DSC00738.jpg This entry was posted on Sunday, January 20th, 2013 at 9:27 am and is filed under . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site. Leave a Reply Click here to cancel reply. Comments Name (required) E-mail (required, will not be published) Notify me of followup comments via e-mail. You can also subscribe without commenting. | <urn:uuid:faf5a014-bfc2-4954-a2ad-ac38c2a2d7d3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://geography.blog.gustavus.edu/2013/01/21/haiti-3-years-after-the-quake/dsc00738/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.931526 | 145 | 1.53125 | 2 |
The Department of Defense's Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA) has
successfully pioneered the use of technology development "agreements" or "other
transactions" in recent years, and today announced that it had signed 100 of
them since 1990.
"Other transactions" are contractual arrangements that support research and
development without using standard procurement contracts, grants, or
cooperative agreements, and ARPA received authority for their use under 10
U.S.C. 2371. In 1993, Congress broadened the use of "other transactions" from
the original research and development efforts and encouraged ARPA to experiment
with using "other transactions" to carry out military technology demonstrations
and prototype projects that would normally require a formal contract.
In keeping with the DoD's effort for acquisition reform, "other transactions"
do not follow the sometimes inflexible government policies and standards found
in the usual government procurement system and the Federal Acquisition
Regulations. They are based on commercial practices rather than government
standards. Government patent rules, accounting and business practices, for
example, are not imposed on participants in "other transactions" but rather are
ARPA has found that the use of "other transactions" encourages firms that
normally refuse to conduct research and development for the government to
become participants in Defense projects. Many companies are reluctant to adopt
the government accounting and purchasing systems necessary to enter into
government contracts because of the added cost burden they impose. Companies
that adopt the government-required systems sometimes find themselves
non-competitive in commercial markets, leading to the perpetuation of the
separate Defense and commercial industrial bases. ARPA's "other transaction"
authority is one way DoD can leverage the best of commercial technology for the
use of the military, even if that technology is found in companies that do not
normally do business with DoD.
ARPA has been working with the Military Services to encourage the use of these
agreements throughout the DoD. Many of the efforts sponsored under ARPA's dual
use initiatives use "other transactions," and Service acquisition personnel
involved in managing these efforts are gaining valuable experience in their
The growth in ARPA's use of "other transactions" has been dramatic. In Fiscal
Years 1990 to 1993, ARPA entered into 19 "other transactions," making "other
transactions" over eight percent of the number and 26 percent of the value of
the financial instruments used by ARPA during that period. In Fiscal Years
1994 and 1995, ARPA entered into 81 "other transactions," which constituted 39
percent of the number and 72 percent of the total value of financial | <urn:uuid:48e02579-8a6f-46e0-885a-e5ebd1432891> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.defense.gov/releases/release.aspx?releaseid=630 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.93756 | 546 | 1.65625 | 2 |
|« Prev||Matthew XVII. 10.||Next »|
“And His disciples asked Him, saying, Why then say the Scribes that Elias must first come?”
Not then from the Scriptures did they know this, but the Scribes used to explain themselves, and this saying was reported abroad amongst the ignorant people; as about Christ also.
Wherefore the Samaritan woman also said, “Messiah cometh; when He is come, He will tell us all things:”22152215 John iv. 25.and they themselves asked John, “Art thou Elias, or the Prophet?”22162216 John i. 21. For the saying, as I said, prevailed, both that concerning the Christ and that concerning Elias, not however rightly interpreted by them.
For the Scriptures speak of two advents of Christ, both this that is past, and that which is to come; and declaring these Paul said, “The grace of God, that bringeth salvation, hath appeared, teaching us, that, denying ungodliness and worldly lusts, we should live soberly, and righteously, and godly.”22172217 Titus ii. 11, 12. [The Homily omits “to all men.”] Behold the one, hear how he declares the other also; for having said these things, he added, “Looking for the blessed hope and appearing of our great God and Saviour Jesus Christ.”22182218 Tit. ii. 13. And the prophets too mention both; of the one, however, that is, of the second, they say Elias will be the forerunner. For of the first, John was forerunner; whom Christ called also Elias, not because he was Elias, but because he was fulfilling the ministry of that prophet. For as the one shall be forerunner of the second advent, so was the other too of the first. But the Scribes, confusing these things and perverting the people, made mention of that other only to the people, the second advent, and said, “If this man is the Christ, Elias ought to have come beforehand.” Therefore the disciples too speak as follows, “How then say the Scribes, Elias must first come?”
What then is the solution, which Christ alleged? “Elias indeed cometh then, before my second advent; and now too is Elias come;” so calling John.
In this sense Elias is come: but if thou wouldest seek the Tishbite, he is coming. Wherefore also He said, “Elias truly cometh, and shall restore all things.”22202220 Matt. xvii. 11. [R.V., “Elijah indeed cometh,” etc.] All what things? Such as the Prophet Malachi spake of; for “I will send you,” saith He, “Elias the Tishbite, who shall restore the heart of father to son, lest I come and utterly smite the earth.”22212221 Mal. iv. 5, 6, LXX.
Seest thou the accuracy of prophetical language? how, because Christ called John, Elias, by reasoning of their community of office, lest thou shouldest suppose this to be the meaning of the prophet too in this place, He added His country also, saying, “the Tishbite;”22222222 [The Hebrew does not have this; the argument rests on the inaccurate rendering of the LXX.]whereas John was not a Tishbite. And herewith He sets down another sign also, saying, “Lest I come and utterly smite the earth,” signifying His second and dreadful advent. For in the first He came not to smite the earth. For, “I came not,” saith He, “to judge the world, but to save the world.”22232223 John xii. 47.
To show therefore that the Tishbite comes before that other advent, which hath the judgment, He said this. And the reason too of his coming He teaches withal. And what is this reason? That when He is come, he may persuade the Jews to believe in Christ, and that they may not all utterly perish at His coming. Wherefore He too, guiding them on to that remembrance, saith, “And he shall restore all things;” that is, shall correct the unbelief of the Jews that are then in being.
Hence the extreme accuracy of his expression; in that he said not, “He will restore the heart of the son to the father,” but “of the father to the son.”22242224 See LXX. For the Jews being fathers of the apostles, his meaning is, that he will restore to the doctrines of their sons, that is, of the apostles, the hearts of the fathers, that is, the Jewish people’s mind.22252225 As to Elijah’s future coming, see St. Just. Mart. Dial. adv. Tryph. p. 268, ed. Paris, 1636: Tert. de Anim. 35; de Resur. Carnis, 22; Origen (more doubtfully) in St. Matt. tom. 13, iii. 572; in St. Joan. tom. 3, iv. 92. St. Jer. in St. Matt. xi, 15, (t. 7, 70. Vallars. 1771), but doubtingly; in loco, p. 132, more positively; St. Aug. in St. Joan. Tr. iv. 5, 6. de Civ. Dei, 20, 29: who speaks positively of his coming to convert the Jews, as being “a most common topic in the mouths and hearts of the faithful.”338
“But I say unto you, that Elias is come already, and they knew him not, but have done unto him whatsoever they listed. Likewise shall also the Son of Man suffer of them. Then they understood that He spake to them of John.”22262226 Matt. xvii. 12, 13.
And yet neither the Scribes said this, nor the Scriptures; but because now they were sharper and more attentive to His sayings, they quickly caught His meaning.
And whence did the disciples know this? He had already told them, “He is Elias, which was for to come;”22272227 Matt. xi. 14.but here, that he hath come; and again, that “Elias cometh and will restore all things.” But be not thou troubled, nor imagine that His statement wavers, though at one time He said, “he will come,” at another, “he hath come.” For all these things are true. Since when He saith, “Elias indeed cometh, and will restore all things,” He means Elias himself, and the conversion of the Jews which is then to take place; but when He saith, “Which was for to come,” He calls John, Elias, with regard to the manner of his administration. Yea, and so the prophets used to call every one of their approved kings, David;22282228 This refers apparently to such texts as Jer. xxx. 9; Ezek. xxxiv. 23, 24, xxxvii. 24; Hos. iii. 5.and the Jews, “rulers of Sodom,”22292229 Isa. i. 10.and “sons of Ethiopians;”22302230 Amos ix. 7.because of their ways. For as the other shall be forerunner of the second advent, so was this of the first.
2. And not for this only doth He call him Elias everywhere, but to signify His perfect agreement with the Old Testament, and that this advent too is according to prophecy.
Wherefore also He adds again, “He came, and they knew him not, but have done unto him all things whatsoever they listed.”22312231 Matt. xvii. 12. What means, “call things whatsoever they listed?” They cast him into prison, they used him despitefully, they slew him, they brought his head in a charger.
“Likewise shall also the Son of Man suffer of them.” Seest thou how again He in due season reminds them of His passion, laying up for them great store of comfort from the passion of John. And not in this way only, but also by presently working great miracles. Yea, and whensoever He speaks of His passion, presently He works miracles, both after those sayings and before them; and in many places one may find Him to have kept this rule.
“Then,” for instance, it saith, “He began to signify how that He must go unto Jerusalem, and be killed, and suffer many things.”22322232 Matt. xvi. 21.“Then:” when? when He was confessed to be Christ, and the Son of God.
Again on the mountain, when He had shown them the marvellous vision, and the prophets had been discoursing of His glory, He reminded them of His passion. For having spoken of the history concerning John, He added, “Likewise shall also the Son of Man suffer of them.”
And after a little while again, when He had cast out the devil, which His disciples were not able to cast out; for then too, “As they abode in Galilee,” so it saith, “Jesus said unto them, The Son of Man shall be betrayed into the hands of sinful22332233 [“Sinful” (ἁμαρτωλν) is omitted in some mss. of the Homily. It does not occur in Matt. xvii. 22, but is taken from Luke xxiv. 7. Comp. Homily LVIII. at the beginning.—R.]men, and they shall kill Him, and the third day He shall rise again.”22342234 Matt. xvii. 23.
Now in doing this, He by the greatness of the miracles was abating the excess of their sorrow, and in every way consoling them; even as here also, by the mention of John’s death, He afforded them much consolation.
But should any one say, “Wherefore did He not even now raise up Elias and send him, witnessing as He doth so great good of his coming?” we should reply, that even as it was, while thinking Christ to be Elias, they did not believe Him. For “some say,” such are the words, “that Thou art Elias, and others, Jeremias.”22352235 Matt. xvi. 14. And indeed between John and Elias, there was no difference but the time only. “Then how will they believe at that time?” it may be said. Why, “he will restore all things,” not simply by being recognized, but also because the glory of Christ will have been growing more intense up to that day, and will be among all clearer than the sun. When therefore, preceded by such an opinion and expectation, he comes making the same proclamation as John, and himself also announcing Jesus, they will more easily receive his sayings. But in saying, “They knew him not,” He is excusing also what was done in His own case.22362236 Comp. Luke xxiii. 24.
And not in this way only doth He console them, but also by pointing out that John’s sufferings at their hands, whatever they are, are undeserved; and by His throwing into the shade what would annoy them, by means of two signs, the one on the mountain, the other just about to take place.
But when they heard these things, they do not ask Him when Elias cometh; being 339 straitened either by grief at His passion, or by fear. For on many occasions, upon seeing Him unwilling to speak a thing clearly, they are silent, and so an end. For instance, when during their abode in Galilee He said, “The Son of Man shall be betrayed, and they shall kill Him;”22372237 Matt. xvii. 22, 23.it is added by Mark, “That they understood not the saying, and were afraid to ask Him;”22382238 Mark ix. 32.by Luke, “That it was hid from them, that they might not perceive it, and they feared to ask Him of that saying.”22392239 Luke ix. 45.
3. “And when they were come to the multitude, there came to Him a man, kneeling down to Him, and saying, Lord, have mercy on my son, for he is lunatic, and sore vexed;22402240 [R.V., “for he is epileptic, and suffereth grievously.”]for ofttimes he falleth into the fire, and oft into the water. And I brought him unto Thy disciples, and they could not cure him.”22412241 Matt. xvii. 14–16.
This man the Scripture signifies to be exceedingly weak in faith; and this is many ways evident; from Christ’s saying, “All things are possible to him that believeth;”22422242 Mark ix. 23.from the saying of the man himself that approached, “Help Thou mine unbelief:”22432243 Mark ix. 24.from Christ’s commanding the devil to “enter no more into him;”22442244 Mark ix. 25.and from the man’s saying again to Christ, “If Thou canst.”22452245 Mark ix. 22.“Yet if his unbelief was the cause,” it may be said, “that the devil went not out, why doth He blame the disciples?” Signifying, that even without persons to bring the sick in faith, they might in many instances work a cure. For as the faith of the person presenting oftentimes availed for receiving the cure, even from inferior ministers; so the power of the doers oftentimes sufficed, even without belief in those who came to work the miracle.
And both these things are signified in the Scripture. For both they of the company of Cornelius by their faith drew unto themselves the grace of the Spirit; and in the case of Eliseus22462246 2 Kings xiii. 21.again, when none had believed, a dead man rose again. For as to those that cast him down, not for faith but for cowardice did they cast him, unintentionally and by chance, for fear of the band of robbers, and so they fled: while the person himself that was cast in was dead, yet by the mere virtue of the holy body the dead man arose.
Whence it is clear in this case, that even the disciples were weak; but not all; for the pillars22472247 Gal. ii. 9.were not present there. And see this man’s want of consideration, from another circumstance again, how before the multitude he pleads to Jesus against His disciples, saying, “I brought him to Thy disciples, and they could not cure him.”
But He, acquitting them of the charges before the people, imputes the greater part to him. For, “O faithless and perverse generation,” these are His words, “how long shall I be with you?”22482248 Matt. xvii. 17.not aiming at his person only, lest He should confound the man, but also at all the Jews. For indeed many of those present might probably be offended, and have undue thoughts of them.
But when He said, “How long shall I be with you,” He indicates again death to be welcome to Him, and the thing an object of desire, and His departure longed for, and that not crucifixion, but being with them, is grievous.
He stopped not however at the accusations; but what saith He? “Bring him hither to me.”22492249 Mark ix. 21. And Himself moreover asks him, “how long time he is thus;” both making a plea for His disciples, and leading the other to a good hope, and that he might believe in his attaining deliverance from the evil.
And He suffers him to be torn, not for display (accordingly, when a crowd began to gather, He proceeded to rebuke him), but for the father’s own sake, that when he should see the evil spirit disturbed at Christ’s mere call, so at least, if in no other way, he might be led to believe the coming miracle.
And because he had said, “Of a child,” and, “If thou canst help me,” Christ saith, “To him that believeth, all things are possible,”22502250 Mark ix. 23.again giving the complaint a turn against him. And whereas when the leper said, “If Thou wilt, Thou canst make me clean,”22512251 Matt. viii. 2.bearing witness to His authority Christ commending him, and confirming His words, said, “I will, be thou clean;” in this man’s case, upon his uttering a speech in no way worthy of His power,—“If Thou canst, help me,”—see how He corrects it, as not rightly spoken. For what saith He? “If thou canst believe, all things are possible to him that believeth.”22522252 Mark ix. 23. [The word πιστεσαι is read here; The R.V. has a briefer reading. The entire passage in Mark shows many variations of text.—R.] What He saith is like this: “Such abundance of power is with me, that I can even make others work these miracles. So that if thou believe as one ought, even thou thyself art able,” saith He, “to heal both this one, and many others.” And having thus said, He set free the possessed of the devil.
But do thou not only from this observe His providence and His beneficence, but also from that other time, during which He allowed the 340 devil to be in him. Since surely, unless the man had been favored with much providential care even then, he would have perished long ago; for “it cast him both into the fire,” so it is said, “and into the water.” And he that dared this would assuredly have destroyed the man too, unless even in so great madness God had put on him His strong curb: as indeed was the case with those naked men that were running in the deserts and cutting themselves with stones.
And if he call him “a lunatic,” trouble not thyself at all, for it is the father of the possessed who speaks the word. How then saith the evangelist also, “He healed many that were lunatic?”22532253 Matt. iv. 24. [σεληνιαζομνου; the same term occurs here, and is the basis of the comment.—R.] Denominating them according to the impression of the multitude. For the evil spirit, to bring a reproach upon nature,22542254 το στοιχεουπαραφερομνη.by wine? For the weaker the vessel, the more entire the shipwreck, whether she be free or a slave. For the free woman behaves herself unseemly in the midst of her slaves as spectators, and the slave again in like manner in the midst of the slaves, and they cause the gifts of God to be blasphemously spoken of by foolish men.
For instance, I hear many say, when these excesses happen, “Would there were no wine.” O folly! O madness! When other men sin, dost thou find fault with God’s gifts? And what great madness is this? What? did the wine, O man, produce this evil? Not the wine, but the intemperance of such as take an evil delight in it. Say then, “Would there were no drunkenness, no luxury;” but if thou say, “Would there were no wine,” thou wilt say, going on by degrees, “Would there were no steel, because of the murderers; no night, because of the thieves; no light, because of the informers; no women, because of adulteries;” and, in a word, thou wilt destroy all.
But do not so; for this is of a satanical mind; do not find fault with the wine, but with the drunkenness; and when thou hast found this self-same man sober, sketch out all his unseemliness, and say unto him, Wine was given, that we might be cheerful, not that we might behave ourselves unseemly; that we might laugh, not that we might be a laughingstock; that we might be healthful, not that we might be diseased; that we might correct the weakness of our body, not cast down the might of our soul.
God honored thee with the gift, why disgrace thyself with the excess thereof? Hear what Paul saith, “Use a little wine for thy stomach’s sake, and thine often infirmities.”22552255 1 Tim. v. 23. But if that saint, even when oppressed with disease, and enduring successive sicknesses, partook not of wine, until his Teacher suffered 341 him; what excuse shall we have, who are drunken in health? To him indeed He said, “Use a little wine for thy stomach’s sake;” but to each of you who are drunken, He will say, “Use little wine, for thy fornications, thy frequent filthy talking, for the other wicked desires to which drunkenness is wont to give birth.” But if ye are not willing, for these reasons, to abstain; at least on account of the despondencies which come of it, and the vexations, do ye abstain. For wine was given for gladness, “Yea, wine,” so it is said, “maketh glad the heart of man:”22562256 Ps. civ. 15.but ye mar even this excellence in it. For what kind of gladness is it to be beside one’s self, and to have innumerable vexations, and to see all things whirling round, and to be oppressed with giddiness, and like those that have a fever, to require some who may drench their heads with oil?22572257 Lightfoot, Harmony, A.D., 43. t. i. p. 333, seems to show from Talmudic writers, that anointing was regularly used among the Jews, either as a remedy or as a charm, in complaints of the head especially; and he uses the fact to explain St. James v. 15.
6. These things are not said by me to all: or rather they are said to all, not because all are drunken, God forbid; but because they who do not drink take no thought of the drunken. Therefore even against you do I rather inveigh, that are in health; since the physician too leaves the sick, and addresses his discourse to them that are sitting by them. To you therefore do I direct my speech, entreating you neither to be at any time over-taken by this passion, and to draw up22582258 ἀνιμθαι.as by cords those who have been so overtaken, that they be not found worse than the brutes. For they indeed seek nothing more than what is needful, but these have become even more brutish than they, overpassing the boundaries of moderation. For how much better is the ass than these men? how much better the dog! For indeed each of these animals, and of all others, whether it need to eat, or to drink, acknowledges sufficiency for a limit, and goes not on beyond what it needs; and though there are innumerable persons to constrain, it will not endure to go on to excess.
In this respect then we are worse even than the brutes, by the judgment not of them that are in health only, but even by our own. For that ye have judged yourselves to be baser than both dogs and asses,22592259 [The Oxford edition reads “apes,” obviously a typographical error. The Greek word is ὄνωντν γνσιν.revealed to Peter, He doth hereby again confirm. And neither at this did He stop, but by His very condescension declares this self-same truth; an instance of exceeding wisdom.
For after thus speaking, He saith, “But lest we should offend them, go thou and cast an hook into the sea, and take up the fish that first cometh up, and thou shalt find therein a piece of money;22602260 Literally, a stater, = 4 drachmas. [R.V., “shekel, Greek, stater.”]that take, and give unto them for me and thee.”22612261 Matt. xvii. 27. [Slightly abridged.]
See how He neither declines the tribute, nor simply commands to pay it, but having first proved Himself not liable to it, then He gives it: the one to save the people, the other, those around Him, from offense. For He gives it not at all as a debt, but as doing the best22622262 διορθνμενο .for their weakness. Elsewhere, however, He despises the offense, when He was discoursing of meats,22632263 Matt. xv. 11.teaching us to know at what seasons we ought to consider them that are offended, and at what to disregard them.
And indeed by the very mode of giving He discloses Himself again. For wherefore doth He not command him to give of what they have laid up? That, as I have said, herein also He might signify Himself to be God of all, and the sea also to be under His rule. For He had indeed signified this even already, by His rebuke, and by His commanding this same Peter to walk on the waves; but He now again signifies the self-same thing, though in another way, yet so as to cause herein great amazement. For neither was it a small thing, to foretell that the first, who out of those depths should come in his way, would be the fish that would pay the tribute; and having cast forth His commandment like a net into that abyss, to bring up the one that bore the piece of money; but it was of a divine and unutterable power, thus to make even the sea bear gifts, and that its subjection to Him should be shown on all hands, as well when in its madness it was silent,22642264 Matt. viii. 26.and when, though fierce, it received its fellow servant;22652265 Matt. xiv. 29.as now again, when it makes payment in His behalf to them that are demanding it.
“And give unto them,” He saith, “for me and thee.” Seest thou the exceeding greatness of the honor? See also the self-command of Peter’s mind. For this point Mark, the follower of this apostle, doth not appear to have set down, because it indicated the great honor paid to him; but while of the denial he wrote as well as the rest, the things that make him illustrious he hath passed over in silence, his master perhaps entreating him not to mention the great things about himself. And He used the phrase, “for me and thee,” because Peter too was a firstborn child.
Now as thou art amazed at Christ’s power, so I bid thee admire also the disciple’s faith, that to a thing beyond possibility he so gave ear. For indeed it was very far beyond possibility by nature. Wherefore also in requital for his faith, He joined him to Himself in the payment of the tribute.
3. “In that hour came the disciples unto Jesus, saying, Who then is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven?”22662266 Matt. xviii. 1. [R.V., “Who then is greatest (Greek, greater).” Compare the comment.—R.]
The disciples experienced some feeling of human weakness; wherefore the evangelist also adds this note, saying, “In that hour;” when He had preferred him to all. For of James too, and John, one was a firstborn son, but no such thing as this had He done for them.
Then, being ashamed to avow their feeling, they say not indeed openly, “Wherefore hast thou preferred Peter to us?” or, “Is he greater than we are?” for they were ashamed; but indefinitely they ask, “Who then is greater?” For when they saw the three preferred, they felt nothing of the kind; but now that the honor had come round to one, they were vexed. And not for this only, but there were many other things which they put together to kindle that feeling. For to him He had said, “I will give thee the keys;”22672267 Matt. xvi. 19.to him, “Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona;” to him here, “Give unto them for me and thee;” and seeing too in general how freely he was allowed to speak, it somewhat fretted them.
And if Mark saith,22682268 Mark ix. 34.that they did not ask, 342 but reasoned in themselves, that is nothing contrary to this. For it is likely that they did both the one and the other, and whereas before, on another occasion, they had had this feeling, both once and twice, that now they did both declare it, and reason among themselves.
But to thee I say, “Look not to the charge against them only, but consider this too; first, that they seek none of the things of this world; next, that even this passion they afterwards laid aside, and give up the first place one to another.” But we are not able to attain so much as unto their faults, neither do we seek, “who is greatest22692269 [μεζων “greater.”]in the kingdom of heaven;” but, who is greatest22702270 [R.V., “Except ye turn, and become as little children,” but Chrysostom substitutes “this little child.”—R.]in the earthly kingdom, who is wealthiest, who most powerful.
What then saith Christ? He unveils their conscience, and replies to their feeling, not merely to their words. “For He called a little child unto Him,” saith the Scripture, “and said, Except ye be converted, and become as this little child, ye shall not enter into the kingdom of heaven.”22712271 Matt. xviii. 2, 3.“Why, you,” He saith, “inquire who is greatest, and are contentious for first honors; but I pronounce him, that is not become lowest of all, unworthy so much as to enter in thither.”
And full well doth He both allege that pattern, and not allege it only, but also set the child in the midst, by the very sight abashing them, and persuading them to be in like manner lowly and artless. Since both from envy the little child is pure, and from vainglory, and from longing for the first place; and he is possessed of the greatest of virtues, simplicity, and whatever is artless and lowly.
Not courage then only is wanted, nor wisdom, but this virtue also, humility I mean, and simplicity. Yea, and the things that belong to our salvation halt even in the chiefest point, if these be not with us.
The little child, whether it be insulted and beaten, or honored and glorified, neither by the one is it moved to impatience or envy, nor by the other lifted up.
Seest thou how again He calls us on to all natural excellencies, indicating that of free choice it is possible to attain them, and so silences the wicked frenzy of the Manichæans? For if nature be an evil thing, wherefore doth He draw from hence His patterns of severe goodness?
And the child which He set in the midst I suppose to have been a very young child indeed, free from all these passions. For such a little child is free from pride and the mad desire of glory, and envy, and contentiousness, and all such passions, and having many virtues, simplicity, humility, unworldliness,22722272 ἀπραγμοσνην .prides itself upon none of them; which is a twofold severity of goodness; to have these things, and not to be puffed up about them.
Wherefore He brought it in, and set it in the midst; and not at this merely did He conclude His discourse, but carries further this admonition, saying, “And whoso shall receive such a little child in my name, receiveth me.”22732273 Matt. xviii. 5. [“one such little child,” rec. text; so R.V.]
“For know,” saith He, “that not only, if ye yourselves become like this, shall ye receive a great reward; but also if for my sake ye honor others who are such, even for your honor to them do I appoint unto you a kingdom as your recompence.” Or rather, He sets down what is far greater, saying, “he receiveth me. So exceedingly dear to me is all that is lowly and artless.” For by “a little child,” here, He means the men that are thus simple and lowly, and abject and contemptible in the judgment of the common sort.
4. After this, to obtain yet more acceptance for His saying, He establishes it not by the honor only, but also by the punishment, going on to say, “And whoso shall offend one of these little ones, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea.”22742274 Matt. xviii. 6. [R.V., “but whoso shall cause one of these little ones which believe in me to stumble, it is profitable for him that a great millstone (Greek, a millstone turned by an ass) should be hanged about his neck, and that he should be sunk in the depth of the sea.” The Greek text of Chrysostom agrees very closely with the received, but omits “which believe in me.”—R.]
“For as they,” saith He, “who honor these for my sake, have heaven, or rather an honor greater than the very kingdom; even so they likewise who dishonor them (for this is to offend them), shall suffer the extremity of punishment. And marvel thou not at His calling the affront “an offense;”22752275 [σκνδαλον, “stumbling block.”]for many feeble-minded persons have suffered no ordinary offense from being treated with slight and insult. To heighten therefore and aggravate the blame, He states the mischief arising therefrom.
And He doth not go on to express the punishment in the same way, but from the things familiar to us, He indicates how intolerable it is. For when He would touch the grosser sort most sharply, He brings sensible images. Wherefore here also, meaning to 343 indicate the greatness of the punishment they shall undergo, and to strike into the arrogance of those that despise them, He brought forward a kind of sensible punishment, that of the millstone, and of the drowning. Yet surely it were suitable to what had gone before to have said, “He that receiveth not one of these little ones, receiveth not me;” a thing bitterer than any punishment; but since the very unfeeling, and exceeding gross, were not so much penetrated by this, terrible as it is, He puts “a millstone,” and “a drowning.” And He said not, “A millstone shall be hanged about his neck,” but, “It were better for him”22762276 [συμφερε ατ, “it is profitable for him.”]to undergo this; implying that another evil, more grievous than this, awaits him; and if this be unbearable, much more that.
Seest thou how in both respects He made His threat terrible, first by the comparison with the known image rendering it more distinct, then by the excess on its side presenting it to the fancy as far greater than that visible one. Seest thou how He plucks up by the root the spirit of arrogance; how He heals the ulcer of vainglory; how He instructs us in nothing to set our heart on the first honors; how He persuades such as covet them in everything to follow after the lowest place?
5. For nothing is worse than arrogance.22772277 ἀπονοα. This even takes men out of their natural senses, and brings upon them the character of fools; or rather, it really makes them to be utterly like idiots.
For like as, if any one, being three cubits in stature, were to strive to be higher than the mountains, or actually to think it, and draw himself up, as overpassing their summits, we should seek no other proof of his being out of his senses; so also when thou seest a man arrogant, and thinking himself superior to all, and accounting it a degradation to live with other people, seek not thou after that to see any other proof of that man’s madness. Why, he is much more ridiculous than any natural fool, inasmuch as he absolutely creates this his disease on purpose. And not in this only is he wretched, but because he doth without feeling it fall into the very gulf of wickedness.
For when will such an one come to due knowledge of any sin? when will he perceive that he is offending? Nay, rather he is as a vile and captive slave, whom the devil having caught goes off with, and makes him altogether a prey, buffetting him on every side, and encompassing him with ten thousand insults.
For unto such great folly doth he lead them in the end, as to get them to be haughty towards their children, and wives, and towards their own forefathers. And others, on the contrary, He causes to be puffed up by the distinction of their ancestors. Now, what can be more foolish than this? when from opposite causes people are alike puffed up, the one sort because they had mean persons for fathers, grandfathers, and ancestors; and the other because theirs were glorious and distinguished? How then may one abate in each case the swelling sore? By saying to these last, “Go farther back than your grandfather, and immediate ancestors, and you will find perchance many cooks, and drivers of asses, and shopkeepers:” but to the former, that are puffed up by the meanness of their forefathers, the contrary again; “And thou again, if thou proceed farther up among thy forefathers, wilt find many far more illustrious than thou art.”
For that nature hath this course, come let me prove it to thee even from the Scriptures. Solomon was son of a king, and of an illustrious king, but that king’s father was one of the vile and ignoble. And his grandfather on his mother’s side in like manner; for else he would not have given his daughter to a mere soldier. And if thou wert to go up again higher from these mean persons, thou wilt see the race more illustrious and royal. So in Saul’s case too, so in many others also, one shall come to this result. Let us not then pride ourselves herein. For what is birth? tell me. Nothing, but a name only without a substance; and this ye will know in that day. But because that day is not yet come, let us now even from the things present persuade you, that hence arises no superiority. For should war overtake us, should famine, should anything else, all these inflated conceits of noble birth are put to the proof: should disease, should pestilence come upon us, it knows not how to distinguish between the rich and the poor, the glorious and inglorious, the high born and him that is not such; neither doth death, nor the other reverses of fortune, but they all rise up alike against all; and if I may say something that is even marvellous, against the rich more of the two. For by how much they are less exercised in these things, so much the more do they perish, when overtaken by them. And the fear too is greater with the rich. For none so tremble at princes as they; and at multitudes, not less than at princes, yea rather much more; many such houses in fact have been subverted alike by the wrath of multitudes and the threatening of princes. But 344 the poor man is exempt from both these kinds of troubled waters.
6. Wherefore let alone this nobility, and if thou wouldest show me that thou art noble, show the freedom of thy soul, such as that blessed man had (and he a poor man), who said to Herod, “It is not lawful for thee to have thy brother Philip’s wife;”22782278 Mark vi. 18.such as he was possessed of, who before him was like him, and after him shall be so again; who said to Ahab, “I do not trouble Israel, but thou, and thy father’s house;”22792279 1 Kings xviii. 18.such as the prophets had, such as all the apostles.
But not like this are the souls of them that are slaves to wealth, but as they that are under ten thousand tutors, and taskmasters, so these dare not so much as lift up their eye, and speak boldly in behalf of virtue. For the love of riches, and that of glory, and that of other things, looking terribly on them, make them slavish flatterers; there being nothing which so takes away liberty, as entanglement in worldly affairs, and the wearing what are accounted marks of distinction. For such an one hath not one master, nor two, nor three, but ten thousand.
And if ye would fain even number them, let us bring in some one of those that are in honor in kings’ courts, and let him have both very much wealth, and great power, and a birthplace excelling others, and distinction of ancestry, and let him be looked up to by all men. Now then let us see, if this be not the very person to be more in slavery than all; and let us set in comparison with him, not a slave merely, but a slave’s slave, for many though servants have slaves. This slave’s slave then for his part hath but one master. And what though that one be not a freeman? yet he is but one, and the other looks only to his pleasure. For albeit his master’s master seem to have power over him, yet for the present he obeys one only; and if matters between them two are well, he will abide in security all his life. But our man hath not one or two only, but many, and more grievous masters. And first he is in care about the sovereign himself. And it is not the same to have a mean person for a master, as to have a king, whose ears are buzzed into by many, and who becomes a property now to this set and now to that.
Our man, though conscious of nothing, suspects all; both his comrades and his subordinates; both his friends and his enemies.
But the other man too, you may say, fears his master. But how is it the same thing, to have one or many, to make one timorous? Or rather, if a man inquire carefully, he will not find so much as one. How, and in what sense? Whereas that slave hath no one that desires to put him out of that service of his, and to introduce himself (whence neither hath he any one to plot against him therein); these have not even any other pursuit, but to unsettle him that is more approved and more beloved by their ruler. Wherefore also he must needs flatter all, his superiors, his equals, his friends. For where envy is, and love of glory, there even sincere friendship has no strength. For as those of the same craft cannot love one another with a perfect and genuine love, so is it with rivals in honor also, and with them that long for the same among worldly objects. Whence also great is the war within.
Seest thou what a swarm of masters, and of hard masters? Wilt thou that I show thee yet another, more grievous than this? They that are behind him, all of them strive to get before him: all that are before him, to hinder him from coming nearer them, and passing them by.
7. But O marvel! I undertook indeed to show you masters, but our discourse, we find, coming on and waxing eager, hath performed more than my undertaking, pointing out foes instead of masters; or rather the same persons both as foes and as masters. For while they are courted like masters, they are terrible as foes, and they plot against us as enemies. When then any one hath the same persons both as masters, and as enemies, what can be worse than this calamity? The slave indeed, though he be subject to command, yet nevertheless hath the advantage of care and good-will on the part of them who give him orders; but these, while they receive commands, are made enemies, and are set one against another; and that so much more grievously than those in battles, in that they both wound secretly, and in the mask of friends they treat men as their enemies would do, and oftentimes make themselves credit of the calamity of others.
But not such are our circumstances; rather should another fare ill, there are many to grieve with him: should he obtain distinction, many to find pleasure with him. Not so again the apostle: “For whether,” saith he, “one member suffer, all the members suffer with it; or one member be honored, all the members rejoice with it.”22802280 1 Cor. xii. 26. And the words of him who gives these admonitions, are at one time, “What is my hope or joy? are not even ye?”22812281 1 Thes. ii. 19.at another, “Now we live, if ye 345 stand fast in the Lord;”22822282 1 Thes. iii. 8.at another, “Out of much affliction and anguish of heart I wrote unto you;”22832283 2 Cor. ii. 4.and, “Who is weak, and I am not weak? Who is offended, and I burn not?”22842284 2 Cor. xi. 29.
Wherefore then do we still endure the tempest and the billows of the world without, and not run to this calm haven, and leaving the names of good things, go on to the very things themselves? For glory, and dignity, and wealth, and credit, and all such things, are names with them, but with us realities; just as the grievous things, death and dishonor and poverty, and whatever else is like them, are names indeed with us, but realities with them.
And, if thou wilt, let us first bring forward glory, so lovely and desirable with all of them. And I speak not of its being short-lived, and soon put out, but when it is in its bloom, then show it me. Take not away the daubings and colored lines of the harlot, but bring her forward decked out, and exhibit her to us, for me thereupon to expose her deformity. Well then, of course thou wilt tell of her array, and her many lictors, and the heralds’ voice, and the listening of all classes, and the silence kept by the populace, and the blows given to all that come in one’s way, and the universal gazing. Are not these her splendors? Come then, let us examine whether these things be not vain, and a mere unprofitable imagination. For wherein is the person we speak of the better for these things, either in body, or in soul? for this constitutes the man. Will he then be taller hereby, or stronger, or healthier, or swifter, or will he have his senses keener, and more piercing? Nay, no one could say this. Let us go then to the soul, if haply we may find there any advantage occurring herefrom. What then? Will such a one be more temperate, more gentle, more prudent, through that kind of attendance? By no means, but rather quite the contrary. For not as in the body, so also is the result here. For there the body indeed gains nothing in respect of its proper excellence; but here the mischief is not only the soul’s reaping no good fruit, but also its actually receiving much evil therefrom: hurried as it is by such means into haughtiness, and vainglory, and folly, and wrath, and ten thousand faults like them.
“But he rejoices,” thou wilt say, “and exults in these things, and they brighten him up.” The crowning point22852285 κολοφνα.of his evils lies in that word of thine, and the incurable part of the disease. For he that rejoices in these things, would be unwilling however easily to be released from that which is the ground of his evils; yea, he hath blocked up against himself the way of healing by this delight. So that here most of all is the mischief, that he is not even pained, but rather rejoices, when the diseases are growing upon him.
For neither is rejoicing always a good thing; since even thieves rejoice in stealing, and an adulterer in defiling his neighbor’s marriage bed, and the covetous in spoiling by violence, and the manslayer in murdering. Let us not then look whether he rejoice, but whether it be for something profitable, lest22862286 [The Greek text has διασκεψμεθα, which the translator has ignored: “Let us consider well, lest,” etc.—R.]perchance we find his joy to be such as that of the adulterer and the thief.
For wherefore, tell me, doth he rejoice? For his credit with the multitude, because he can puff himself up, and be gazed upon? Nay, what can be worse than this desire, and this ill-placed fondness? or if it be no bad thing, ye must leave off deriding the vainglorious and aspersing them with continual mockeries: ye must leave off uttering imprecations on the haughty and contemptuous. But ye would not endure it. Well then, they too deserve plenty of censure, though they have plenty of lictors. And all this I have said of the more tolerable sort of rulers; since the greater part of them we shall find transgressing more grievously than either robbers, or murderers, or adulterers, or spoilers of tombs, from not making a good use of their power. For indeed both their thefts are more shameless, and their butcheries more hardened, and their impurities far more enormous than the others; and they dig through, not one wall, but estates and houses without end, their prerogative making it very easy to them.
And they serve a most grievous servitude, both stooping basely under their passions,22872287 [Some mss. insert here: κα το συνδολου τπτοντε φειδ, “and beating the fellow servants unsparingly.” But it is put in brackets by Field.—R.]and trembling at all their accomplices. For he only is free, and he only a ruler, and more kingly than all kings, who is delivered from his passions.
Knowing then these things, let us follow after the true freedom, and deliver ourselves from the evil slavery, and let us account neither pomp of power nor dominion of wealth, nor any other such thing, to be blessed; but virtue only. For thus shall we both enjoy security here, and attain unto the good things to come, by the grace and love towards man of our Lord Jesus Christ, to whom be glory and might, with the Father and the Holy Spirit, world without end. Amen.
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Not all weapon malfunctions (i.e. anytime you pull the trigger and the gun doesn’t go bang) are created equal and sometimes you’ll find a quick fix isn’t just not possible, it’s not safe. Remedial action is different than ‘immediate action’ in that remedial action should only be taken when you know the malfunction is going to take a bit longer to address, the classic example being a double feed.
Apart from malfunctions that could be addressed with an immediate action (e.g. empty chamber, bad ammo) which occur far more frequently, a double feed malfunction is the most common type of malfunction you’ll come across that necessitates the less common (though not less important) remedial action for support.
The Double Feed and its many Faces
Double feeds occur when either the brass or ammo fails to extract and becomes stuck in the chamber, but as to what happens after that there are many different things that can happen.
If the bolt grabs two rounds at the same time—what is known as a ‘true double feed’—the system will attempt to chamber both. Obviously, two rounds can’t go into the chamber at one time so the bolt will jam the rounds together, side by side or one on top of the other, forming a “V”.
Another thing that can happen is one round will get stacked up behind the chambered round with the bullet tip touching near the primer, which is needless to state quite dangerous.
There’s also such thing as a triple feed. This is when you have a V-shaped double feed and an empty shell casing stuck higher up inside the upper receiver. This condition impinges the charging handle from going forward making the gun inoperable.
Likely culprits? An empty shell casing can get back into the inside of the upper receiver if the shooter is in crowded cover, for instance, with shells being ejected about in tight spaces. Shell casings can bounce off of walls and actually end up lodged in your gun, especially if you’re delivering high firepower environments.
But a more likely culprit for civilian operators is a weak ejector, a light load of powder in a particular round or a dirty or unlubed weapon.
These types of scenarios can cause what is known as a stove pipe. A stove pipe occurs when an empty shell casing interferes with the bolt in the cycle of operation. The shell casing sticks out and the weapon fails to go into battery, resulting in some form of double feed.
With a deep stove pipe—one where the casing is really blocking the receiver—pulling the trigger will not cause the gun to fire because the bolt is not in battery and this trigger pull will have what shooters call a “mushy” quality to it. With light stove pipes—which often occur when the casing becomes caught in the receiver at an angle by a corner—the trigger may even still give you a “click” when you pull it, even though the bolt is not fully seated.
Sometimes an immediate action will clear this type of malfunction, but not if there’s been a failure to extract too, like a round still stuck in the chamber.
When do I Perform a Remedial Action?
As I stated before in my article on immediate action, the moment your trigger goes “click,” you should automatically perform an Immediate Action Drill (IAD):
1.Tap the magazine
2.Rack the charging handle
3.Ready yourself to engage the threat
If you conduct an IAD and pull the trigger again, but nothing happens, that’s one way you’ll know you’ll need to perform a remedial action.
The other way you might know whether or not to perform remedial action is if your trigger is “mushy”. With practice, you can hear and feel a malfunction requiring remedial action. Failure to extract, failure to feed and failure to eject are the specific weapon operating reasons for failure in the cycle of operations. It’s also important to look at the bolt face to see what the weapon’s doing. Left handed shooters have an advantage since they can see the bolt face without tilting the gun.
How do you perform remedial action?
Though the Army Field Manual for the M4/M16 says to rip the magazine first, I believe locking the bolt to the rear first gives the advantage of taking the pressure off the rounds in double feed malfunctions. Pulling the bolt back additionally allows the shooter to do something very important to remedial action—see the bolt face and thus really know what the weapon is doing (or doing wrong). It also allows any spent casings or jammed up ammunition to simply fall out of the gun once the magazine is ripped out.
It’s also important to seek cover when possible. This might not always be possible, so practice remedial action slow at first, but then speed it up to ensure you are returning to the firefight as soon as possible. Here are the steps:
1.Lock the bolt back, but always attempt to push the charging handle forward first. Sometimes this is all it takes to send the round into battery.
2.Rip the magazine out
3.Observe the bolt. This may reveal the need to jam two fingers up the magazine well to free the double feed.
4.Rack the charging handle two times
5.Reload with a fresh magazine. Be sure to charge the weapon if you reload on a closed bolt.
Keeping the muzzle on target or higher (especially keeping the muzzle high when running to cover, or ingress/egress—which is to say entering or leaving—a property) helps maintain tactical advantage and will allow gravity to help the situation, forcing the stuck rounds to fall from the chamber and out of the mag well.
If you’re on target and you pull the trigger, but nothing happens, you’ve just experienced Murphy’s Law–if it can go wrong, it will go wrong. You need to get back in the fight. Quickly! Keep your head up, eyes up and gun up! This is necessary for maintaining tactical advantage; you’ve got to see the threat.
Often tactical scenarios make it difficult to literally see problems, particularly a round stuck in the chamber so getting familiar with these conditions can greatly increase your chances of success in combat. It’s also why it’s important to ensure you rack the charging handle two times during a remedial action.
When you practice, get in the habit of performing malfunction drills from behind cover, moving to cover, in the dark and with a handheld flashlight. These should be high stress environments as remedial actions represent a moment in battle when you may have to balance focused thinking and problem solving with extreme “distraction”. Also, be sure to do these drills from 25 yards from a target/threat and greater, because if you have a secondary weapon, you should transition at this distance.
Finally, practicing malfunctions is absolutely essential. As my friend, retired Delta Force commander Dalton Fury once told me, enough people practice shooting drills, not enough people practice malfunction drills.
Until next time, continue to hone your skills and keep adding to your tactical toolbox. | <urn:uuid:839413d7-fe04-4411-b00a-5290ab03aa47> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.guns.com/2012/03/15/double-feed-malfunction/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.930824 | 1,527 | 1.789063 | 2 |
(LOS ANGELES) -- After a long build up about Microsoft's mystery announcement, CEO Steve Ballmer showed off the company's new Windows 8 tablet, called "Microsoft Surface," Monday night in Los Angeles.
The Surface is just 9.3mm thick, has a scratch-resistant magnesium exterior, weighs less than 1.5 pounds and has a 10.6 inch screen, which is slightly larger than that of the iPad. With a built-in USB port, a kickstand and cover that doubles as a physical keyboard, the Surface is more than just a tablet -- it's a PC, the tech giant says. Microsoft says the device is "designed to seamlessly transition between consumption and creation" and will function as a full PC that will run programs like Photoshop and Office.
The Surface is clearly meant to compete with Apple's iPad and other tablets already on the market, and Microsoft demonstrated several features existing tablets only have as accessories, if at all. Engadget's Tim Stevens says other developers working on their own Windows 8 tablets should be worried.
"Microsoft has set the bar very high for Windows 8 tablets with these Surface devices. They look great, they're very thin, they look to be very well-engineered," Stevens says. "And for companies like Aesus and Lenovo, people who are working on their own Windows 8 tablets … they've just had to rethink some things, I imagine."
Some critical specifications were not mentioned at Monday's unveiling such as price, screen resolution, battery life or the specific release date.
There are currently two models -- a basic Surface and a higher-end "Surface Pro." The basic version will be available with 32 or 64 GB of memory. The more powerful Pro will be configured with 64 or 128 GB. Stevens says the Pro version could be priced similar to their UltraBook range of laptops, which cost anywhere from $700 all the way up to $1,400 or $1,500. The basic Surface will likely be cost comparable to other Android tablet in the $400 to $600 range, he says.
So when will gadget lovers be able to purchase Microsoft's new tablets? Stevens says the lower-end Surface will be available around October and will launch at the same time as Windows 8. The Pro version, he adds, won't be released for another three months after the initial Surface release -- which could be in early 2013.
Copyright 2012 ABC News Radio | <urn:uuid:5ccd138a-6e19-4f69-931a-0a8205185640> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://abcnewsradioonline.com/business-news/microsoft-unveils-new-surface-tablet.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 | 0.960488 | 494 | 1.539063 | 2 |
November 28, 2002
A Holiday Hits the Big Time
Fetes, flowers and films mark Chanukah: Is the spirit of the holiday lost or strengthened?
At Universal Studios, all the usual characters -- Spider-Man and the Rugrats -- were out in force on Sunday, Nov. 24. But they weren't just there for photo ops with children. Instead, they were lighting menorahs, spinning dreidels and eating the world's biggest latke at the Chanukah celebration in Universal City.
Joining them were Los Angeles Mayor James Hahn, Justin Burfield of "Malcolm in the Middle," the Los Angeles Dodgers' Shawn Green and Remedy of the Wu-Tang Clan, who performed "Chanukah Rap."
"We were looking for a way to bring Hollywood magic and star power to Chanukah," said Brian Pope, Universal vice president of marketing services, who said he hopes that the event will become an annual one.
"We thought that Chanukah was one of the best Jewish holidays that lent itself to the fun family entertainment, and so we worked with a consultant and spoke with a number of rabbis from a variety of groups to create this event," he said.
Pope noted that Universal Studios is the first major theme park to put on a Chanukah event.
That Chanukah has gotten its own event at Universal Studios shows how far it has come: The little-known Jewish holiday -- which once had to fight for display space next to Santa -- is now a major event on its own, even when it comes a month before Christmas.
From movies to malls, from sitcoms to shopping, Chanukah has gone mainstream; and while some see it as a sign of the resurgence of Jewish identity and the acceptance of Jews in American society, others wonder if the holiday's success has come at the expense of its spirituality.
This Chanukah, if you head down to your local multiplex you can see Adam Sandler belching his way through "Eight Crazy Nights," an animated Chanukah comedy (see story, page 37). If you turn on the radio, you might hear Sandler singing, "Put on your yarmulke/It's time for Chanukah," or Tom Lehrer crooning about "spending Chanukah in Santa Monica."
On television, Chabad's "Chanukah, the Miniseries," will be broadcast on KCAL-TV each night at menorah-lighting time (between 4:15 p.m. and 4:30 p.m.). Two Chanukah shows will be presented on KCET-TV: a special Chanukah episode of "Alef...Bet...Blastoff," followed by "A Taste of Chanukah." They will be shown on Dec. 1 starting at 8:30 a.m.
You might also see Chanukah pop up on some sitcoms. Last season on "Friends," for example, an episode had Ross trying to teach his son, Ben, about Chanukah. "Saturday Night Live" featured a character, Chanukah Harry, who dressed in a blue-and-white Santa Claus suit and had a black beard instead of a white one.
For children, Disney has a Chanukah book out, "Winnie the Pooh and the Hanukkah Dreidel," and there is "A Rugrats Chanukah" video.
There are other reminders of Chanukah. Every Ralphs supermarket will display a large menorah, courtesy of Chabad, and most banks will put a small plastic menorah in their windows. Chabad is also sponsoring a number of public menorah ceremonies, such as the lighting of a 35-foot menorah in Beverly Hills Gardens, the Third Street Promenade in Santa Monica and at the Nixon Library in Yorba Linda.
For shoppers there is an abundance of Chanukah items. Hallmark offers 119 different Chanukah cards. Online flower sellers, such as proflowers.com or 1800-Flowers.com, offer Chanukah bouquets for $39.99 and gift baskets, complete with dreidel cookies, for $69.99.
Godiva sells a $23 Chanukah Ballotin box of chocolates. Kmart has a 20-piece Hanukkah Lights dinnerware set for $19.99 and Avon sells a $14.99 Festival of Lights Bear that lights an accompanying menorah when its paw is pressed.
For those who have the urge to splurge for Chanukah, Neiman Marcus has a $4,000 Steuben crystal menorah with silver-plated candle cups.
The proliferation of Chanukah products has led retailers to focus less on the fact that the holidays are solely about Christmas. "I have noticed over time that it has gone from being the Christmas season to holiday season," said Tom Holiday, president of the Retail Advertising and Marketing Association, a division of the National Retail Federation, which represents 100 trade organizations. "In retail, there is always a conscious effort to be aware of the dates of Jewish holidays, but I see a more ecumenical approach in general."
All of this has taken Chanukah out of the Talmud and into the mainstream. Jews started celebrating Chanukah 2,000 years ago, when a small band of Jewish fighters led by Judah Maccabee emerged victorious in their battle with the Hellenists, who, led by King Antiochus, wanted to sway the Jews away from God and turn them into idol-worshipping hedonists.
After the battle, the Jews found their Temple desecrated, and only one vial of pure olive oil remained, enough to light the menorah -- a daily ritual in the Temple -- for one day. A miracle occurred when the oil lasted eight days, which provided enough time for new oil to be pressed.
Since then, every year beginning on the 25th of the Hebrew month of Kislev, Jews have been commemorating the occasion by making a blessing and lighting a menorah for eight nights and by eating foods that are cooked in oil, such as latkes.
Today,while many people don't know the details of the correct way to light the menorah (halacha dictates that the candles/oil must be the same height and lit from right to left, using a shamash servant candle, and that the lights must burn for at least half an hour), thanks to the the ubiquity of its symbols, Chanukah is a significant holiday on the Jewish calendar, and one that Jews can easily identify with.
The fact that Chanukah usually occurs around Christmastime -- although this year it coincides with Thanksgiving -- means that Jews don't have to co-opt another religion's holiday as an excuse to give each other gifts (although traditionally gelt -- money -- is given on Chanukah), and they don't have to feel left out during the holiday season.
Chanukah is not the only Jewish holiday or practice that has over time accreted aspects of the larger culture.
"Jewish tradition has generally been responsive to the various cultures that Jews live; that adds up to the idea of minhag [custom] that varies from locale to locale," said UCLA professor David N. Myers, who teaches Jewish history. "[Jewish] language, culinary habits, dress norms all change according to the different environments [in which] they find themselves."
"In the modern period," Myers said, "the forces of acculturation are very powerful, and one of the reasons Chanukah has been so malleable is because it is not a major festival, and therefore the ritual stakes not as high when you modify its meaning or significance."
Rabbi Alan Flom of Burbank's Temple Emmanuel said, "Most rabbis think that Chanukah is a very minor holiday, but in our culture we have had to make it a bigger holiday to compete in the marketplace. If we didn't, I think that Christmas would be so overwhelming, it would be even more difficult to keep our people Jewish in this kind of an environment."
However, many see the mainstreaming of Chanukah not as a de facto response to Christmas but as a positive resurgence of Jewish identity.
"Chanukah has become front and center in Jewish life, and it's a way for a lot of people to discover a bridge to their heritage," said Rabbi David Eliezrie of Chabad of Orange County. "The subjective message in the mainstreaming of Chanukah is that its OK to be Jewish, and I think that's good."
Others think that having Chanukah symbols everywhere actually does have a religious significance, and not just a Jewish feel-good one. "The Talmud says that one of the key ways to observe Chanukah is through pirsumei nissah, publicizing the miracle," said Rabbi Chaim Cunin, public relations director for Chabad-Lubavitch on the West Coast. "That means lighting the menorah, spreading the beautiful message of Chanukah. And thank God, you can open your newspaper now and find that everyone is helping to publicize this beautiful miracle."
However, others believe that Chanukah has become a kind of Jewish Christmas -- a holiday whose religious significance has been almost overshadowed by its commercial possibilities and universal appeal.
"The commercialization of Chanukah is particularly tragic," said Rabbi Yitzchok Adlerstein, director of Project Next Step of the Simon Wiesenthal Center. "Commercializing Chanukah is a contradiction of its very essence. If you take Jesus out of Christmas, you have a holiday where people are nice to each other, feel upbeat. Although it's missing the point, it is not a violation of what Christmas is.
"Commercializing Chanukah is the opposite of the point. Chanukah is not a liberation story -- [under Antiochus] the Jews could have lived in their country as free people without any other problem, other than being asked to renounce their faith. The story of Chanukah is not one of being asked to throw off the yoke of a foreign oppressor, but it is the issue of the spiritual prevailing over the might of the decidedly unspiritual."
"Chanukah is the story of the spark of Judaism striving to be united with its God and its Torah and its mitzvot," Alderstein added. "It is not a substitute for the gift-giving of prevailing culture. Chanukah is about the resistance of Jews to the prevailing culture of modernity and aesthetic beauty."
Claudia Wolf, an educator and program director for the Shalom Nature Center in Malibu holds a similar view. "It is bad that Jews feel like they have to compensate by becoming almost like Christians," she said. "One student at my program told me that she was going home for Thanksgiving/Chanukah, and her mother told her that she was not going to get any gifts until Christmas, because that is really the gift-giving season."
Rabbi Shlomo Holland, the director of development at Los Angeles Kollel, agreed. "When we portray Chanukah in a superficial, shallow and trivial way, in a sense we are ingraining in ourselves a new version of Chanukah that was never meant to be, and we celebrate a holiday that is not the essence of that holiday," Holland explained.
"When we commercialize it, we don't portray that, we just portray a cute holiday where we light the menorah," he continued. "Which, in the eyes of the world, is not too different than a cute holiday where you light up a tree-and you give presents here, and you give presents there, and rather than looking for the obvious difference, one is looking for the similarities and the sameness."
Holland said that the essence of Chanukah is the message of the light of Torah. "That light could break through what appeared to be the wisdom of the Greek Hellenists, but was truly the darkness of illusion," he said. "The only thing that shines so powerful a light, that shows you what is real, and what isn't real, is the light of the Torah. If anything, that is really the essence of Chanukah." | <urn:uuid:ec96c2f8-0090-4818-b913-5a2711980826> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.jewishjournal.com/chanukah/article/a_holiday_hits_the_big_time_20021129 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963196 | 2,543 | 1.5 | 2 |
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2012 Advent(ure) Calendar
It's that time of the year - it's when BBC begins the "Doctor Who" Adventure Calendar.
For those of you who don't know - an advent calendar is a special calendar that has little windows for each day leading up to Christmas, that gives a little treat in anticipation of the upcoming holiday.
The "Doctor Who" website has set it up so that when a window is opened on their calendar it will take you to a new surprise. One day could be a new video, the next day a screen saver, a new picture or gallery from the series, or even a chapter of a story.
This year's calendar can be found here:
What surprises await? Open each day and find out! | <urn:uuid:38486e87-383f-49ff-add4-e312a9b4979c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://gallifreyanembassy.org/vortex/node/2546 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.931086 | 173 | 1.734375 | 2 |
Western Wind Energy Corporation has switched on the newest addition to its wind power portfolio.
Ten months after breaking ground on 1,850 acres of land in Tehachapi, California, RMT has completed construction and Gamesa is set to commission the first 106 megawatts of wind turbines for the $255.5 million Windstar I wind energy facility.
The remaining 14 MW is expected to come online in February of next year. The first phase of the Windstar I installation alone more than doubles Western Wind's entire operational wind energy capacity. Commissioning Windstar I will likely cap an end to a busy three months for the Vancouver-based wind energy developer.
In September, the company announced it's Kingman Wind farm had become operational. Kingman represents the first fully integrated combined wind and solar energy generation facility in North America. This news was followed two weeks later by an unsolicited take over bid from Ontario-based Algonquin Power and Utilities Corp., which caused Western Wind's stock to skyrocket nearly 70%.
In response to the bid, which Western Wind asserted was a "low ball offer," the company quickly formed a special committee "to consider any formal offer, if any, that may be put forward and to consider other alternatives that may be available to Western Wind Energy."
At the end of October, the company began negotiating a 100 MW wind project located in the southern United States. Finally, in a relatively quiet November, Western Wind released its Q3 2011 financials that revealed revenues in the year's first nine months just slightly above the same time period in 2010.
Now, in December, Western Wind will begin delivering clean, renewable energy to Southern California Edison through a long term power purchase agreement and, perhaps more importantly, generate more revenue.
Image Credit: OliBac via Flickr
Any opinion contained in this article is solely that of the writers, and does not necessarily shape or reflect the editorial opinions of Energy Boom. Energy Boom content is for informational purposes only and is not intended to be advice regarding the investment merits of, or a recommendation regarding the purchase or sale of, any security identified on, or linked through, this site. | <urn:uuid:a167dd46-ad47-4135-85dd-9b7cd5fed25e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://energyboom.com/wind/western-wind-energy-corp-opens-106-mw-wind-farm-california | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.948475 | 436 | 1.726563 | 2 |
Happen to have an old FM Radio and a smartphone sitting around collecting dust? DIY electronics blog The Daily Life of a DIY Person shows how you can combine an HTC Hero phone with an old FM Radio for a cheap and portable media center.
The idea was to find a use for both an old radio and an old smartphone to create a miniature media station for the kitchen. The hack itself is pretty simple. The FM radio's control panel is removed and its parts gutted to just leave the amplifier and speaker. Then the phone is stuffed inside and an audio cable is patched into the speaker. If you have an old phone collecting dust this is a great way to put it to use and get a new little stereo in the process. | <urn:uuid:f12df6bf-5b56-4d73-84a7-4c29596a0c1e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://lifehacker.com/5891875/hack-an-old-android-phone-into-a-fm-radio?tag=digital-music | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.936868 | 148 | 1.789063 | 2 |
If you are heading out on a cross-country car trip this summer, why not take the dog? Most dogs love to travel and all dogs love to be with the family, no matter where it goes. With a few extra preparations, traveling with the dog is a great experience.
AAA and other travel services have motel directories which let you know where pets are allowed.
Red Roof Inn and Motel 6 allow dogs, although sometimes there are size restrictions. If you are polite and your dog is well behaved, you should not have a problem.
Locally owned motels in small towns most often take pets and if they do not, they can direct you to one that does.
It is annoying when you cannot find a place to stay with your pet. However, dogs destroy property, their owners do not clean up after them and the dogs are left alone in the room and bark constantly. In an effort to win back the confidence of motel folks, we must be very courteous, always let them know we have a pet and clean up any messes. Some motels charge a fee for a pet. Sometimes it is refundable if the room is clean when you leave. It is annoying to pay extra, but when you realize the losses suffered by these motels because of pets, it is understandable.
Roadside rest areas are everywhere and offer a great opportunity to walk and relax. Dogs must be leashed and kept in a restricted area. These restrictions have been applied because of people's failure to clean up. So it is important that we, as responsible dog owners, go out of our way to leave a good impression.
If you travel alone with a dog, it forces you to stop more often and the dog provides protection. If someone approaches you in the car, let the dog know whether it is friend of foe. Letting a stranger know you have a dog is a great deterrent.
Dog parks are located throughout the country. Check with the local chamber of commerce for dog parks or log on to www.dogpark.com for a constantly increasing listing. City parks are great for a leisurely walk and picnic, but dogs must be kept on leash. Ball parks and game fields offer opportunities for the dog to run free if he is trained to come when called.
Carry a copy of your dog's health records including all shots, the veterinarian's name and phone number and a supply of any medications. Know what dangers lurk in the area of the country to which you are headed. Lyme disease, flea-infested areas and high mosquito populations require extra precautions. Discuss with your vet where you are going and what you will need. If you are traveling into Canada, a health certificate is required.
Pack your pet's duffel bag. Include a food and water dish, leashes, tie outs, his blanket, a stuffed toy and a couple of chew toys, brushes, treats, paper towels, a towel to clean muddy feet and a good supply of clean-up bags. Also carry a supply of food and water as changes can cause stomach upset. A quart of water and a bowl within reach eliminate digging around during a quick rest stop. Keep a collar on your dog with rabies information and a number to call if he gets lost. This should not be your home number but a relative with whom you can keep in touch.
Dogs travel more safely when restrained either in a pet seat belt or crate. A crate can take up a lot of space, but comes in handy while visiting friends. The seat belt allows the dog to move around. The front passenger seat is the least safe place for a pet to travel.
Summertime or any time, take your dog traveling and experience a whole new world. You will meet nice people and be forced to stop and smell the roses and the wild flowers while relaxing under a shade tree. And the dog will never ask, "Are we there yet"?
Christy Wrather is a columnist for the Payson Roundup. She can be reached by e-mail at firstname.lastname@example.org, or by mail at HC1 Box 210, Strawberry, AZ 85544. | <urn:uuid:4e6a7674-82fe-45c0-bd5c-f35c15ff8079> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.paysonroundup.com/news/2003/jun/23/travel_with_your/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.957247 | 849 | 1.554688 | 2 |
The message of Deirdre McCloskey's mammoth Bourgeois Cycle is that good old bourgeois culture and ideas are a mammoth blessing on humankind. Whatever middle-class people say about middle-class prudence, the bourgeoisie is not a One Big Thing class. It practices all the virtues, devoted to the sacred as well as the profane. And it is the triumph of bourgeois dignity, the success of innovation and the good old college try--over aristocratic pride and peasant doggedness--that has elevated humankind from a perilous life consuming $3 per day to the present US consumption rate of $120 per day, a change that has particularly benefited the poor.
But what about the messenger? Deirdre McCloskey is perhaps more interesting than her message, for Deirdre McCloskey started out life in 1942 as Donald. Only in the 1990s did s/he take the plunge and decide to become a woman.
Thus we have the most unapologetic apology for the bourgeois culture and capitalism being written by a transsexual. The conservative heroine of our time is a GLBT chappie or chappette.
And not just that. McCloskey is a multi-disciplinary writer, an economist, expert in economics and economic history who is also well-read in philosophy and literature and culture. On top of that, she affects a girlish style that no woman-writer-wanting-to-be-taken-as-seriously-as-a-man would ever dare to essay.
In my view, we conservatives have needed a Deirdre McCloskey for decades. We have needed a serious political philosopher that knew the foundations of the grand western project but also knew all the ins and outs of recent cultural thought, the modernisms and post-modernisms that leaves most conservatives non-plussed and resentful.
The great question of the coming years is what comes after the century of big government and the centralized administrative state. Its ruling class has been, in McCloskey's words, the post-1848 clerisy, the cultural and intellectual movement that appeared on the radar in the revolutions of 1848 and has dominated culture and politics ever since. Our task is to delegitimize this cruel, corrupt, unjust, wasteful and deluded movement and substitute something else in its place. We cannot do this without thinkers that "know the best that has been said and thought in the world" in the words of Matthew Arnold, and are not afraid to shout it from the mountain-top.
Something tells me that the utterly shameless Deirdre McCloskey is just what the world has been waiting for. God does indeed play dice, and He does indeed like a cosmic joke. So the idea that the conservative future should be midwifed by a flaming transsexual girlishly arguing for a return to the virtues and a celebration of bourgeois culture and dignity is so crazy that it must be right.
And Deirdre McCloskey has only just begun. Volume three of the Bourgeois Cycle is already written, and three more volumes are planned.
McCloskey calls her books "The Bourgeois Era," but I think she is mistaken. Her project is of Wagnerian scope, and her bourgeois project is just as over-the-top as the Ring Cycle. So, for me, her bourgeois project is nothing less than "McCloskey's Bourgeois Cycle." | <urn:uuid:2964b76b-a31f-44d5-88ea-66cb54ca1736> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://americanmanifestobook.blogspot.jp/2010/12/mccloskey-week-messenger.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954856 | 695 | 1.648438 | 2 |
Are Webkinz Safe For Your Kids When They're Online?
Question: My kids love their Webkinz toys and collect them - they each have several of them, and they play with them online a lot. Are they safe though, or should I be concerned?
Answer: My kids have tons of Webkinz too, and so do all of their friends. They even gave one to their 5th-grade teacher for a Christmas present this year!
Webkinz are completely safe, and are one activity that I am completely comfortable with my kids doing online. Believe me, I checked it out thoroughly and had them walk me through the things you can do online with their Webkinz.
Webkinz are fluffy stuffed animals that come with a unique ID on each one's collar tag. That ID lets them log into the Webkinz web site where they can do fun things like play games with their pets, buy their pets toys, and feed their pets.
They also can interact with other Webkinz owners in a controlled instant messaging chat environment. They can initiate chat sessions or reply to IM messages, but they're only allowed to select from a list of predefined topics.
There's no free-handed typing allowed, so there's no need to worry about exposing your kids to inappropriate adult conversations.
Millions of other parents agree. Ganz - the makers of Webkinz - claims that more than 2 million units have been sold to retailers and 1 million users have registered on the Webkinz site.
My kids have fallen in love with Webkinz. They frequently come up and tell me what they did with their pet online, what they learned, what they bought, what they taught their pet. It's as close to really owning a pet that I have seen yet.
You'll probably find that Webkinz are already sold out at your local toy store, but you can still get them online. Amazon has a good selection of Webkinz, and they're also available at Jake's Dog House. In fact, here's a coupon for 15% off your Webkinz order from Jake's Dog House (just use code first15 during checkout).
I have never been more impressed with a toy as much as I am with Webkinz by Ganz (even more than Nintendogs). They're little stuffed animals that each come with a unique ID that can be entered on webkinz.com to create a personalized and secure pet management account.
I asked my kids what they liked to do the most with their Webkinz, and here's what they said:
"I like to dress my pet."
"I like to play games with my pet, and she tells me when he gets tired and yawns so I know to let her rest for a while."
"I like to play games with my pet and win money and cool stuff for my pet's room."
As a dad, I love the interactivity they built into these pets, and the fun that they have with them online. But I also dig that they actually get tired after a while and you have to let them rest.
That's like having a built-in timer feature, which helps ensure that my kids don't spend too much time in front of the computer screen.
Webkinz are definitely safe for your kids, and will give them hours of fun online performing a wide variety of educational and entertaining activities. | <urn:uuid:93f1d97f-8172-4a72-a415-caa58719e135> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.rickysays.com/are-webkinz-safe-for-kids | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.978144 | 704 | 1.757813 | 2 |
Another interesting tidbit from the upcoming Steve Jobs biography by Walter Isaacson quotes Jobs telling President Obama, 'You're headed for a one-term presidency', reports the Huffington Post.
According to the book, Jobs nearly missed meeting Obama in 2010 because he wanted a personal invitation from the President. The standoff lasted for five days before Jobs relented and they met at the Westin San Francisco Airport.
"You're headed for a one-term presidency," he told Obama. He insisted that the administrator needed to be more business friendly and cited the ease with which companies could build factories in China unlike the U.S. where regulations and unnecessary costs make things difficult.
Jobs also criticized the education system in America, saying it was "crippled by union work rules."
"Until the teachers' unions were broken, there was almost no hope for education reform." Jobs reportedly proposed allowing principals to hire and fire teachers based on merit, that schools stay open until 6 p.m. and that they be open 11 months a year.
Finally, Jobs suggested that Obama meet for dinner with six or seven other CEOs who could help express the needs of innovative business. When the White House began adding too many names to the list of attendees, Jobs said that it was growing too big and that "he had no intention of coming." Exhibiting his notorious attention to detail, Jobs also complained the menu was far too fancy and objected to a chocolate truffle dessert. He was overruled by the White House which cited the president's fondness for cream pie.
Though Jobs was not that impressed by Obama, later telling Isaacson that his focus on the reasons that things can't get done "infuriates" him, they kept in touch and talked by phone a few more times. Jobs even offered to help create Obama's political ads for the 2012 campaign. "He had made the same offer in 2008, but he'd become annoyed when Obama's strategist David Axelrod wasn't totally deferential," writes Isaacson. Jobs later told the author that he wanted to do for Obama what the legendary "morning in America" ads did for Ronald Reagan.
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- Posted using my iPhone 4 | <urn:uuid:4bd27542-9d8d-4dbc-be90-bf98aaa744aa> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.limerain.com/2011_10_21_archive.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968147 | 513 | 1.617188 | 2 |
I know that you are going to tell me that I have told you, somewhere along the line, that there are no simple answers. If I didn’t tell you that, then your aunt, doctor, teacher, high-school counselor, marine drill sergeant, psychotherapist, drug-dealer (scratch that), coach, prison warden (scratch that one as well) or favorite bartender did.
Well, I make an exception and bow to the wisdom of the late Jean Shepherd. Jean Shepherd (1921 – 1999) was probably best known for his film A Christmas Story (1983). It’s a story of Ralphie, a young boy growing up in the 1940′s, who dreams of owning a Red Rider BB gun, which he sees as a perfect gift for Christmas. Shepherd was also a radio raconteur and a writer of humorous short stories about growing up in northwest Indiana and its steel towns, many of which were first told by him on his radio programs. The stories were later assembled into books titled In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash, Wanda Hickey’s Night of Golden Memories: and Other Disasters, The Ferrari in the Bedroom and A Fistful of Fig Newtons.
In one of his radio monologues, he supplied a simple straightforward explanation for all the perplexing and illogical events that occur on TV shows and movies. For example,
- Why does the hero/heroine always go after the bad guy alone and not wait for backup?
- Why do the same bombs that blow up half the earth only put the smallest scratch in our hero’s/heroine’s car?
- Why do investigators use those little flashlights to search an eerie house in the dark instead of turning on all the house lights?
- Why does the hero/heroine return to the same, unaltered house in the same, unaltered neighborhood 30/40/50 years later and always finds someone (within minutes) who remembers what happened (in detail) 30/40/50 years ago?
- Why does the protagonist/antagonist always encounter the same investigators/doctors/lawyers throughout the story whether it is days or weeks or months or years later? And at any time of the day or night?
- Why do people in reality TV shows, who allow themselves to be filmed day and night to gain notoriety (and cash), suddenly demand privacy?
The answer to all of these questions, my friends, is – BECAUSE IT’S A TV SHOW!
If you are like me – and I pray that you are not – you spend any time in front of a TV set or in a movie theatre annoying all the people around you by saying “Don’t go in there alone, you fool!” or “Turn on the lights so you can see the evil alien coming at you!” or ”Don’t you hear that background music that says that shark is about to jump out of the water and cut you in half?”
So now you can just relax, kick back, suspend disbelief and watch all the TV shows, DVDs or films that you like while reciting this simple mantra. You can apply this simple rule to everything else – your financial investments, your relationships, your career, your life. Of course, you’ll end up abandoned, destitute and broke but then some creative producer will turn you into a reality series of your own and when someone watches and start to object about how this could happen, you just reply:
“BECAUSE IT’S A TV SHOW!” | <urn:uuid:cd33646f-3dde-4458-b836-767b2b5619bb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://curmudgeon-at-large.com/tag/tv/ | 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 | 0.947892 | 754 | 1.8125 | 2 |
Jerusalem • A new Israeli government report leaked to local media on Thursday concludes that international sanctions are hitting Iran hard, adding a new wrinkle to Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's claim that tougher action is needed to prevent the Islamic Republic from developing nuclear weapons.
The Foreign Ministry report which surfaced on the same day Netanyahu was to make his case before the U.N. General Assembly adds to the cacophony of voices coming out of Israel over the showdown with Iran.
The prime minister argues that an attack on Iran's nuclear facilities may be the only answer to what he calls a fanatical and intransigent Iranian leadership. President Shimon Peres and others want to give punishing measures more time to persuade the Iranians to enter negotiations.
Tehran denies it is seeking atomic weapons.
Netanyahu has acknowledged that sanctions against Iran are biting but says they have not deterred Tehran from abandoning its nuclear program. He has instead urged the U.S. to draw "red lines" that would make clear which conditions would provoke an American strike on Iran's nuclear facilities a demand that Washington has rejected.
Netanyahu is expected to reiterate his position on the global stage at the U.N. on Thursday.
The report, according to details published in the Haaretz newspaper, found that Iran's oil exports declined by more than 50 percent in the past year from 2.4 million barrels a day to 1 million and oil revenues dropped by $40 billion since the beginning of the year.
An Israeli foreign ministry official confirmed the report but refused to elaborate on it. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to discuss internal government documents. The Foreign Ministry based the findings on data received from countries that have embassies in Iran, according to Haaretz.
The report also claims that sanctions on Iran's central bank have made it difficult for the regime to access its foreign currency reserves, and bread, meat and electricity prices have soared because of the sanctions.
It tracks other findings on the effect of sanctions.
According to the International Energy Agency, Iran's crude oil production fell from nearly 4 million barrels a day in May to 2.9 million barrels a day in July. Imports of Iranian oil by major consumers dropped to 1 million barrels a day in July from 1.74 million barrels a day in June.
Iran relies on crude oil exports for about 80 percent of its foreign revenue.
Speaking on an Iranian TV talk show earlier this month, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad admitted that the West's sanctions have curbed oil exports and limited banking and the banking embargo has made it difficult to supply meat and other basic needs.
"There are barriers in transferring money, there are barriers in selling oil," said Ahmadinejad. "We are going ahead, and God willing we will succeed."
In Tehran, food prices have risen sharply since the summer, with a 1.5 kilogram (52-ounce) tub of yogurt doubling in price to about 24,000 rials (87 cents) since early September.
On Wednesday, the moderate Shargh newspaper used Central Bank reports to estimate the prices of meat and rice, both staples of Iranian kitchens, have risen 48 percent and 34 percent, respectively, since last year.
Parliament speaker Ali Larijani said inflation has risen to 29 percent, newspapers reported Wednesday.
According to Haaretz, Israel's Foreign Ministry believes that Iranian citizens are blaming their leaders for the sanctions, and believe another round of sanctions could tip the balance and push Iran to negotiate a compromise on its nuclear program. The anonymous senior Israeli ministry official quoted in Haaretz did not explain how the ministry had reached those conclusions.
A poll published in Haaretz Thursday underlined jitters in Israel over the possibility it may strike Iran's nuclear program to prevent it from advancing. Fifty percent of Israelis polled said they feared the existence of their country was in danger if a war with Iran erupts, and 56 percent said they thought there was a high or medium chance that war could break out next year.
The survey, conducted by pollster Camile Fuchs, questioned 502 Israelis and had a margin of error of 4.2 percent. | <urn:uuid:2c215f12-9af7-42c3-8823-72a2d8e5647a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://archive.sltrib.com/printfriendly.php?id=54979982&itype=cmsid | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96454 | 841 | 1.5625 | 2 |
Most newspaper stories about the election written in 2012 — including all those endless and often redundant pieces on how housewives feel about the two presidential candidates — were reported by men, according to a new 4th Estate Project and Women's Media Center study. Good job, newspaper editors; Aaron Sorkin is surely super thrilled.
Researchers surveyed national and state newspapers with high circulation rates, including The New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Los Angeles Times, and USA Today, and found that 76 percent of articles written between January 1 and April 15 (during the GOP primary period) and 72 percent of articles written between April 16 and August 25 (during the general election period) were written by dudes.
"In this so-called 'Year of the Woman,' this study just goes to show that when it comes to presidential elections it's still a ‘boys on the bus' world," Women's Media Center President Julie Burton said in a statement. The results aren't all that surprising — you might remember the 4th Estate's last study on how even "pink" stories about issues like abortion and birth control quote men more often than women — but they're certainly frustrating.
Image via wavebreakmedia ltd /Shutterstock. | <urn:uuid:ff611ba4-6918-48dd-ab93-6956facb9eeb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://jezebel.com/5938544/that-election-story-youre-reading-was-probably-written-by-a-dude?tag=%23media | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.974249 | 251 | 1.664063 | 2 |
Books or e-Books?
Who cares as long as people are reading
SALES of paper books have plunged to a nine-year low as Brits turn over a new leaf and buy e-Readers.
Price can be an issue as we show, yet traditionalists hate the idea of dust gathering on empty bookshelves.
But here best-selling chick-lit writer Adele Parks argues that how we read doesn’t matter – just as long as we ARE reading.
"I USED to swear blind that I wouldn’t buy an eReader.
"I’m an English graduate and have always loved books and bookstores. I like the feel of books, enjoy the way they look in my home and have a lot of emotional attachment to them.
"But when my last book came out in hardback I learned I was selling a lot of e-Books — 60 per cent on top of “real” book sales. So I began to wonder what it was that made them so appealing.
"This convinced me to give Kindle a chance so I bought one — and I have used it constantly since.
"I took it on holiday last year and loved that I could finish a book and download another without even moving off my sun lounger.
"I also had space in my suitcase for clothes for the first time in years — it was a real novelty not to have a case full of books and literally nothing to wear.
"I use my Kindle when I’m commuting too — it’s so slim it fits easily into the smallest bag.
"However, at home I would always choose a “proper” book.
"I don’t have an emotional attachment to my Kindle but for certain generations the eReader is the only way in which to read.
"So we need to just accept that and rejoice that youngsters are devouring books.
"A load of people are reading who probably wouldn’t have before.The e-Book has reignited literature.
"I think it will evolve further and I hope that someone somewhere is working on children’s text books for school kids. My son leaves for school with a heavy bag every day and that’s the same for kids everywhere.
"We’re a nation that likes convenience and an eReader is that. They’re smaller, lighter and easier all round.
"Additionally they break down geographical barriers. Sometimes a book may come out in another country before it does in the UK but that doesn’t matter now.
"That instant gratification will appeal to the younger generations.
"I don’t really think price is a factor as an e-Book is still more expensive than a paperback.
"I think people have a barrier that books are expensive which is unfounded.
"So I don’t think we need to be discouraged by falling book sales.
"It doesn’t mean that people aren’t reading any more because they are — just in a different way. | <urn:uuid:5c89cf05-147c-4bcd-9fc2-c1411fdca289> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/features/4115245/Books-or-e-Books-Who-cares-as-long-as-people-are-reading-says-best-selling-writer-Adele-Parks.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.972983 | 639 | 1.539063 | 2 |
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