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Winning At Office Politics Without Selling Your Soul
I'd love to think we get ahead purely on the merits but, alas, that's naive. Even the most meritorious employee is wise to play office politics. That means taking steps to ensure you're liked, especially by people in a position to affect your career. Plus you must at least neutralize enemies, for example, someone who is jealous of you.
Some people will find the approach I'm about to recommend too planful. Fine. You make your choices, you take your chances.
PreventionsMake a list of everyone in your workplace who could help or hurt you. For each, ask yourself what would further ingratiate yourself to them:
- Make them look good?
- Take work off their plate?
- Help them get ahead?
- Listen to their complaints?
- Chat about their favorite topic?
- Help them solve a personal problem?
- Flirt with them?
- Ask to work on a project with them. For instance, "I've heard you're a great person to work for. If you ever find yourself needing a little extra help on a project, I'd be delighted if you'd ask me."
- Note when and where they go to lunch or hang out during breaks. Manage to be there.
- Invite them to lunch, a ballgame, shopping, a party, etc.
- At company events, for example, an all-staff meeting, prepare a conversation starter to use when you say hello to them. For example, "I hear you've been working on a native advertising project for our new 3D sensors. (Note: I just gave you an example of native advertising, the hottest thing in ads.) That's interesting. Mind telling me a little about it?"
- Interview them for an article in the in-house newsletter, intranet or trade publication.
CuresSo OK, all your non-random acts of kindness were insufficient. Someone's out to get you, for example, because they'd like your job or beat you out for a promotion.
It's safest to start mild, although occasionally going straight to the nuclear option can yield a big benefit -- a reputation of "Don't mess with Jane." Here are increasingly potent responses:
1. Do nothing. Sometimes, confronting the person or going to the boss is more likely to hurt than help you. And sometimes, your assumption of sabotage are wrong. Do you need to verify? Or perhaps that denigration of you is justified. Look inward or solicit feedback on yourself from trusted colleagues.
2. A question: "John, I heard you withheld information I needed to know. Is that true?" Whether it is or isn't, he'll probably deny it. Don't push it. The unspoken message is, "You do that again you sonofabitch and I'll hang you by your ... collar."
3. A warning: "Jane, you told the boss that my idea was yours. I know you want to beat me out for that promotion, but if you unfairly sabotage me one more time, I'll go to the boss, make sure you don't get that plum assignment, whatever."
4. Exert the punishment. Especially if you've given a warning and the perpetrator refuses to relent, follow through. For example, if you threatened to tell the boss, do it. Your complaint may gain additional gravitas if another employee with a similar gripe against the perpetrator accompanies you to spill the beans.
If you play preventive office politics, you may rarely need to pull out your curative weapons, let alone the big guns. But I'd be remiss if I told you that all you need do to win at office politics is play nicey-nice. Rule of thumb: Be nice when you can, tough when you must. It doesn't take that much effort and should help you get judged on your merits.
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More From Marty Nemko
- Practical Ways To Stop Procrastinating
- How To Get Ahead At Work: What I Wish My Parents Told Me
- Best Jobs For 2013 And Beyond
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The San Francisco Bay Guardian called Dr. Nemko "The Bay Area's Best Career Coach" and he was Contributing Editor for Careers at U.S. News where he now also blogs. His sixth and seventh books were published in 2012: How to Do Life: What They Didn't Teach You in School and What's the Big Idea? 39 Disruptive Proposals for a Better America. More than 1,000 of his published writings are free on www.martynemko.com. He posts here weekly.
Add Marty to your Google+ Circles. | <urn:uuid:e3c4be8c-34cf-485f-bd96-982d857cc47d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://jobs.aol.com/articles/2013/02/07/office-politics-promotions-tricks/ | 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 | 0.956308 | 991 | 1.5 | 2 |
Horsemeat Scandal Goes Global As World's Largest Food Maker Pulls Tainted Pasta From Spain And Italy
First it was Ireland, then the entire UK, then Germany, and gradually it spread to all of Europe (except for France of course, where it was always a delicacy). But it was only once its finally crossed the Alps and made its way to the Swiss factories of Nestle, the world's largest food maker, did the horsemeat scandal truly go global. The FT reports that "the escalating horsemeat scandal has ensnared two of the biggest names in the food industry, Nestlé, the world’s number-one food maker, and JBS, the largest beef producer by sales. Switzerland-based Nestlé on Monday removed pasta meals from shelves in Italy and Spain and suspended deliveries of all processed products containing meat from German supplier, H.J. Schypke, after tests revealed traces of horse DNA above 1 per cent. Nestlé said it had informed the authorities....Nestlé withdrew two chilled pasta products, Buitoni Beef Ravioli and Beef Tortellini from sale in Italy and Spain. Lasagnes à la Bolognaise Gourmandes, a frozen meat product for catering businesses produced in France, will also be withdrawn."
And now we wait as the panic spreads across the Atlantic to the US, where every food purist, who until recently stuffed themselves full of pink slime and still eats bucketfulls of the mysterious "meat" known as KFC, will accuse their retailer of horseplay, and demand that every burger be triple tested at massive bottom line losses to already profit-strapped food producers everywhere (but will certainly help Madison Avenue as horse ads become the latest advertising meme).
From the FT:
“We are also enhancing our existing comprehensive quality assurance programme by adding new tests on beef for horse DNA prior to production in Europe,” said Nestlé, which just last week said products under its labels were not affected.
The European food industry has already been crippled as the horsemeat scandal unfolds:
Nielsen, the consumer research group, said sales of frozen burgers in the week to February 2 fell 40 per cent, and more than two-thirds of British adults said they would be less likely to buy frozen meat products in the future.
Two people who attended the meeting described it as “constructive”. However, the minister was challenged by several people on how quickly the Food Standards Agency and the Department of Environment acted on intelligence it had received on the food supply chain. One retailer also said an attack by David Cameron on the supermarkets on Friday “had not necessarily been helpful”.
The testing, which some supermarkets already carry out, will mean extra costs for retailers at a time of weak consumer confidence.
Suppliers reckon they will end up bearing the brunt of the cost – adding to the pressure on margins which, some say, caused the problem in the first place.
“The people who in the end will suffer are the food manufacturers, because they will be forced to undertake testing. And the people with the power in this relationship on the whole are the food retailers,” said one industry player.
Many believe equine testing is just the tip of the iceberg. “I am sure this will rapidly move on to other species,” said Adam Couch, chief executive of Cranswick, a meat and pastry goods supplier, which has not been implicated in the scandal.
This is good news for KFC, because once the testing spreads to Yum's restaurant chain, half the DNA that is consumed on the premises will be found to have no earthly basis, and thus, well, "you must acquit".
As for those who are still a lap behind the latest newsflow in the race for the horsemeat-free trifecta, the Guardian has conveniently released the definitive guide to the Equine scandal.
With the Europewide scandal over the contamination of meat products, from beefburgers to lasagne, showing no sign of abating, study the issue in depth and learn all you need to know about how it came to this with our essential guide.
1. Where did the horsemeat scandal begin?
The Food Safety Authority of Ireland tested a range of cheap frozen beefburgers and ready meals from supermarkets last November for the presence of DNA from other species which were undeclared. It found horse DNA in over one-third of the beefburger samples, and pig in 85% of them.
The majority of the beef ready meals also contained pig DNA but not horse. One beefburger sample from Tesco turned out to be 29% horse instead of beef. Until then supermarkets and enforcement bodies had not tested for horse in beef products, because no one expected it to be there.
There are conflicting reports as to whether the agency began its investigation as random surveillance or after having been tipped off. Because the findings were so serious and likely to do huge damage to commercial interests, the FSAI then spent two months retesting before announcing its findings on 15 January.
The Irish and UK supermarket supply chains are highly integrated. FSAI says it alerted the UK Food Standards Agency in November since what was on sale in Ireland would also be on sale in the UK; the FSA told MPs that it only found out in January. No one knows how long the adulteration has gone on.
2. Where did the horse and pig found by the Irish in beef products come from?
The Irish survey identified three factories as the source of beef products that had been contaminated or adulterated: Silvercrest Foods in Ireland, Dalepak in Yorkshire and Liffey Meats in Ireland. Silvercrest and Dalepak are both subsidiaries of ABP Food Group, one of the largest beef processors in Europe.
ABP pointed the finger of blame at its continental suppliers, with the FSAI saying these were in the Netherlands and Spain. It later said the horsemeat had entered its chain through suppliers in Poland. The Polish government checked its horse slaughterhouses and found no irregularities in labelling. Five weeks into the scandal and the links in the Irish chain have still not been fully established.
Huge blocks of frozen meat at a cold store in Northern Ireland, Freeza Foods, which had been quarantined by officials suspicious of its labelling and state of packaging, were found to contain 80% horse. Freeza Foods said the meat blocks had been delivered to its store by meat broker McAdam Foods but that it had rejected them and only continued storing them as a "goodwill" measure for McAdam. McAdam said it in turn had been sold them by a meat trader in Hull, Flexi Foods, which imports from Poland and elsewhere. ABP confirmed it had been supplied materials by McAdam but the two companies have given conflicting accounts of what the deliveries have been.
ABP has also confirmed that it has been supplied with beef by Norwest Foods, based in Cheshire, with operations in Poland and Spain, which is now also part of FSA inquiries.
The first case of horsemeat being found in fresh beef surfaced this week, when Asda withdrew its fresh beef bolognese. Its supplier was the Irish company Greencore, which said it had in turn been supplied the meat by ABP.
3. Why did some products contain so much more horse than others?
Industry sources and food safety officials believe there are different types of adulteration taking place. Where trace levels of DNA of the wrong species, particularly pig, have been found in beef, the most likely explanation is that they have been contaminated either by failure to clean production lines thoroughly enough between different processing, or that the DNA is present in protein additives widely used in the industry to bulk out cheap so-called value or economy ranges. An economy beefburger can legally contain as little as 47% beef.
Manufacturers add other cheap ingredients including water and fat, and use concentrated proteins to bind the water and fat in. They may appear on labels as "seasoning". One of the cheapest sources of these protein additives is pork rind. It is possible that horse hide is now also being used. The widespread adulteration of cheap chicken breast with pig and beef proteins and water has been uncovered in previous scandals. The beef proteins were derived from hydrolysed cattle hides. It is not illegal to use these protein concentrates so long as they are identified correctly to the manufacturer.
Where horse has been found above trace levels, however, experts believe they are looking at fraudulent substitution of horse for beef. Where horse has been found in high concentrations, they say it suggests industrial scale adulteration.
4. How did the rest of Europe get involved?
Once the Irish authorities had reported their findings, the UK FSA asked industry to test all its beef products for horse. The next round of tests revealed that the "beef" in frozen lasagne and spaghetti bolognese made for Tesco, Aldi and Findus by a French manufacturer, Comigel, was up to 100% horse.
Comigel was making cheap beef meals for supermarkets and branded companies in 16 different countries so the scandal spread rapidly, with horsemeat meals being withdrawn in Germany, Sweden, Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland, as well as Ireland and the UK.
5. Is the source of the Irish horsemeat the same as the French one?
The trail of the French manufacturing scandal has taken a different route to the Irish/British one so far. Comigel had subcontracted its ready meal production to a factory in Luxembourg, Tavola. It was supplied with meat by a company called Spanghero. Spanghero had bought meat from a Dutch fraudster already convicted of passing horse off as beef, Jan Fasen.
The Dutch trader ran a company called Draap, which spelled backwards is paard or Dutch for horse. It was registered in Cyprus in 2008, with an offshore vehicle in the British Virgin Islands. It emerged during Fasen's trial in Holland that he had supplied French companies with horsemeat imported from South America and Mexico fraudulently labelled as Dutch and German "beef" going back to 2007.
The horsemeat found in the recent tests on ready meals exported from France was said to have been sourced by Draap from Romania. The Romanian government has said its meat was legally exported correctly labelled as horse. The French government said Spanghero was the first agent to stamp the horse as beef; Spanghero has denied doing so deliberately. Fasen says Spanghero and French manufacturers were in on the deception from the beginning.
6. Why are the supply chains so complex?
The food and retail industries have become highly concentrated and globalised in recent decades. A handful of key players dominate the beef processing and supermarket sectors across Europe. They have developed very long supply chains, particularly for their economy lines, which enable them to buy the ingredients for processed foods from wherever they are cheapest at any point, depending on exchange rates and prices on the global commodity markets. Networks of brokers, cold stores operators and subcontracted meat cutting plants have emerged to supply rapidly fluctuating orders "just in time". Management consultants KPMG estimate there are around 450 points at which the integrity of the chain can break down.
7. Why has it happenened?
Supermarket buyers and big brands have been driving down prices, seeking special offers on meat products as consumers cut back on their spending in the face of recession. The squeeze on prices has come at a time when manufacturers' costs have been soaring. Beef prices have been at record highs as has the price of grain needed to feed cattle. The cost of energy, heavily used in industrial processing and to fuel centralised distribution chains, has also soared. There has been a mistmatch between the cost of real beef and what companies are prepared to pay.
8. How is the meat industry regulated?
Licensed slaughterhouses across Europe are required to have an official vet in attendance when slaughtering takes place – in the UK most used to be directly employed by the government but many are now supplied under contract to the Food Standards Agency by the private company Eville & Jones. Plants over a certain size are also required to have a meat hygiene inspector. A trend to deregulate and leave industry to police itself, begun under the last government, has seen numbers of inspectors fall from 1,700 at the height of the BSE crisis to around 800 now. Smaller cutting plants are no longer subject to daily inspection. The Food Standards Agency has limited powers – it has depended on industry alerting it to the results of tests voluntarily. Enforcement largely falls to individual local authorities and their trading standards officers, and their budgets have been slashed.
9. What about industry claims that it has full traceability?
The industry has previously boasted that it has full traceability of its supply chain which it audits frequently. The current scandal shows that that traceability is not worth the paper it is generally written on. Most of the factories caught up in the scandal have accreditation with mainstream auditing schemes such as that run by the British Retail Consortium but it failed to spot the problem.
10. What happened to government control of food safety and standards?
The Food Standards Agency was set up in the wake of the BSE crisis when it became clear that one agency that co-ordinated all regulation on food safety and quality was needed. Political memories have been short, however. The coalition government broke up much of the FSA in its bonfire of the quangos, so that responsibility in the current scandal is split. The FSA is still in charge of food safety; the Department of Health is responsible for nutritional standards, and the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs covers labelling and veterinary medicines.
11. Where do the horses come from?
The Polish and Romanian governments have not only protested their innocence of exporting horse as beef but also pointed out that their horse slaughtering industries are not large enough to account for the scale of adulteration that is emerging. Respected animal welfare organisations have warned governments for several years about the growing trade in knackered horses both between Ireland, the UK, France and Belgium, and between North and South America, and continental Europe. Much of the latter is landed via Belgium. The welfare charities have documented horses in the thousands that have been moved by networks of horse dealers without proper passports. They are a mixture of horses bred for racing and pets.
12. What part do UK horse abattoirs play?
There is an established transport corridor for horses for slaughter from Ireland through Scotland or Wales to England and on to Europe. Last week a horse abattoir in Yorkshire, Peter Boddy, was raided along with a Welsh meat trading company. Three men have been arrested on suspicion of offences under the Fraud Act. The Peter Boddy abattoir, now closed, was small, with official records showing it slaughtered 44 horses last year.
13. Why are governments talking about organised crime?
Previous convictions of dealers and traders along with intelligence suggest a link between the horse trade, meat laundering and various forms of trafficking. Lorries transporting horses have been used as cover for smuggling large quantities of cannabis between the UK and Northern Ireland and lorries transporting horsemeat to the continent are believed to be used for people smuggling on the return journey.
14. Is it a health problem?
The government said at first that there was no health risk from horsemeat, but a leading government public analyst pointed out that it could not be sure until it knew the source of the horsemeat. The latest advice from the chief medical officer is that there is a risk but that it is very low.
Horses are routinely treated with an anti-inflammatory drug called phenylbutazone, or "bute". Bute is banned from the human food chain, because it can in rare cases cause a potentially life threatening illness, aplastic anaemia, or bone marrow failure. Since it is not known what triggers the illness, it has not been possible to set any safe level for bute residues in human food. Doses from horsemeat are likely to be very low. Horse passports are supposed to record any bute administered so that animals can be excluded from going for food, but with large numbers of fake passports in circulation, some horses containing bute have been eaten.
Since the scandal the government has changed the rules so that horse carcasses may now only be released for consumption once they have been tested for bute. The first batch of tests found around 4% of horse testing positive. The horse trade from the Americas has similarly been bedevilled by problems with horse passports and drug contamination.
- advertisements - | <urn:uuid:2f5f0f61-27cc-44cb-bcb5-306b079235eb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.zerohedge.com/news/2013-02-18/horsemeat-scandal-goes-global-worlds-largest-food-maker-pulls-tainted-pasta-spain-an?page=3 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.977054 | 3,425 | 1.65625 | 2 |
Think of the smartest person you know. Would you want to work for that person. The person I know with the highest IQ sits in meetings playing around with and braiding a ball of yaks hair. All the while rocking like a psycho.Now, we could discuss MENSA, the brightest 1% who in general do not use the gift they were given, why's that?
What I would ask is "Why would a demographic vote En Masse for a party that does not want to see their children get a fair shake?" The D's know they have the black vote but they need to be careful that they don't make the Teachers Union unhappy or they will be drummed out of office. Hence, minimal opportunities for the children stuck in bad schools to leave that environment. TMO
It is certain that the number of those who reason well in difficult matters is much smaller then the number of those who reason badly ........ reasoning is like running & unlike carrying, hence one Arab steed will outrun a hundred jackasses.
Everyone's friend is No One's friend
It is easy to blame the color of the skin of the voters. It is much more difficult for the Party Leadership to take the good long look in the mirror and see real problem...and then have the courage to take their party back.
Ray Charles Can See The Problem And He Is Blind And Dead Regards,
"Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one's courage." - Anais Nin | <urn:uuid:1fb4f959-3c32-47c5-a6a8-0dc1d52fe126> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.retrievertraining.net/forums/showthread.php?32862-Hey-Remington/page6&p=362577 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.957331 | 300 | 1.546875 | 2 |
April 2012 Archives
NEUCS is supported by the Empowering Leadership Alliance to celebrate outstanding undergraduate accomplishments in computer science.
Five members of the Engaging Computing Group at UMass Lowell attended the conference. There were more than 140 participants from regional universities, including Brandeis, WPI, Wellesley, Tufts, and others.
Events included a career panel, a keynote presentation from MIT faculty member Fox Harrell, and student poster sessions. Students learned the market for software engineering is currently thriving—a panelist noted, “Cambridge is like a mini Silicon Valley due to the abundance of established and emerging industry.”
Three UMass Lowell undergraduates presented projects during the poster sessions. These students talked about Android applications they have developed to send data to iSENSE (Internet System for Network Sensor Experimentation)—an online system that promotes collaborative scientific analysis by providing accessible ways to upload, share, and visualize data.
The projects were:
- Jeremy Poulin’s Data Walk App, which “records GPS coordinates once every ten seconds and pushes it to iSENSE.”
- Evana Gizzi’s Toxic Tour App, which “facilitates data collection regarding environmental conditioning and uploads this information to the iSENSE website.”
- Michael Stowell’s Car Ramp Physics App, which “records y-accelerometer data at a rate of 20 Hz and upload it to iSENSE” for classroom physics experiments.
Full abstracts for the students’ posters are on the NEUCS site.
NEUCS provides students with the opportunity to explore diverse areas in computer science, network, and embrace a creative environment of math and science. UMass Lowell plans to continue its participation in the years to come.
Thanks to Kaitlyn Carcia for authoring this article.
This was the evening that ITA Software by Google hosted the second annual Massachusetts Aspirations in Computing Affiliate Awards (MACAA) in partnership with the National Center for Women and Information Technology (NCWIT). The event was hosted at the new Google headquarters in Cambridge at Kendall Square.
The award ceremony included addresses by Ruthe Farmer, NCWIT Director of Strategic Initiatives, and Julie Farago, Manager of Google+.
Each award recipient was presented with the Aspirations in Computing award for herself and her school.
A featured part of the evening was the presentation by Prof. Jesse Heines (Computer Science), who awarded $10,000 scholarships to three of the 40 Aspirations in Computing recipients. These scholarships will be disbursed should the recipients come to UMass Lowell and remain in good academic standing.
These scholarships not only recognize the young women’s achievements to date, but also encourage them to apply to UMass Lowell and enhance our programs with their energy and creativity.
The three women receiving the scholarships are:
- Elizabeth Wu, a junior at AMSA Charter School (Marlborough, MA)
- Ramya Ravindrababu, a junior at Shrewsbury Senior High (Shrewsbury, MA)
- Serena Thomas, a junior at Bay Path Regional Vocational Technical High School (North Brookfield, MA)
We offer all three students our congratulations on their achievements, and we wish them the best in their future careers! | <urn:uuid:e8e8b773-4e3f-44f4-9b94-b42ee438a253> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blog.uml.edu/cs/2012/04/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.936862 | 694 | 1.59375 | 2 |
In China the English language is a fickle thing where the normal rules of grammar, punctuation and general comprehensible sentence structure do not seem to apply. So prolific is this phenomenon that they even have a name for it: Chinglish. Today’s post is a homage to this most wonderful of Frankenstein languages which keeps foreigners chuckling all day long and undoubtedly has sign makers busy when hapless proprietors realise their English faux pas (or not as the case is usually).
The following collection of shop sign shots were taken around the Haiya area of Nanshan District, Shenzhen nearby where I live:
No Right Just Suitable – a clothes shop where you’ll never find exactly what you’re looking for but it’ll be suitable nevertheless.
Hot Enticement – selling all manner of spicy foods to entice you into its fiery lair. Very reasonable prices too!
A Slight Fever – just what this is supposed to mean I don’t know. Is that a dog? A place to catch Swine Flu? Confusing.
Dolci & Vita – not content with getting the spelling wrong the use of “&” also seems rather unnecessary but when you’re living the sweet life who cares (it’s a cake shop).
More after the break…
King Kong – shoes for people with big feet perhaps or just a homage to the fictitious ape?
Hello Good – say no more.
Money Worship – ironically appropriate for China but probably lost on its owner.
Xin An Easy Money – perhaps not strictly Chinglish but clearly the money at this particular bank was a bit too easy!
This is just the tip of the iceberg – Chinglish can be found on t-shirts, advertisements, books, you name it… I could start a whole blog on this subject but I think you’ve got the picture. If/when I start my own company in China I’m going to give it an equally wacky name. Any suggestions? | <urn:uuid:422bb92f-6981-4cdd-ab89-3a95f7826bb6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://randomwire.com/chinglish-shop-signs | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.942667 | 421 | 1.601563 | 2 |
"I think we in government have great capacity, but we are constrained, as your questions suggests, by the Second Law of Thermodynamics when it comes to entropy." [Larry Summers, in response today to a question from a representative of the LaRouche Youth Movement]
Economic Profitability Versus Ecological Entropy
Quarterly Journal of Economics, February 2000, Pages 237-263
There is a long-standing trade-off in bioculture between concentrating on high-yield varieties and maintaining sufficient diversity to lower the risks of catastrophic infection. The paper uses a simple ecology-based model of endogenous disease to indicate how a local decision to plant more of a widely grown crop creates negative externalities by increasing the probability that new pathogens will evolve to attack the crop globally. Society's basic issue concerns where to locate on an efficiency frontier between economic profitability and a standard formula for ecological entropy-proved here to be a rigorous measure of "generalized resistance" to crop-ecosystem failure.
The Changing Relationship between Theory and Experiment in Economics
Philosophy of Science, December 2008, Pages 621-632
Until recently, economics was generally understood to be a nonexperimental science with a hypothetico-deductive methodology. This article considers how the methodology of economics has changed with the spread of experimental methods. Initially, most experimental economists saw their work as testing pre-existing theories. However, a method of systematic inductive enquiry in which theory plays a less central role is now evolving. This method is structured around the discovery and progressive refinement of regularities. "Exhibits" - experimental designs that generate significant regularities - are taking over some of the functions formerly performed by theoretical models.
(nod to Kevin L)
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About ECCO Walkathon
ECCO takes social responsibility – and leaves a footprint!
ECCO® Walk for Life is a charity programme developed by ECCO. Our ECCO Walkathon events are an important part of Walk for Life. They are sponsored walks that take place in several cities in Denmark, Poland and other countries on an annual basis. For each kilometer walked by each participant, ECCO donates 1 euro to a partnering charity organization.
In 2010, ECCO donated nearly 400,000 euros to SOS Children’s Villages, the WWF and various local health projects in Denmark, Poland and Germany. To date, ECCO Walkathon participants have raised 3.3 million euros with their feet – money which ECCO has donated to a variety of good causes in Europe, Africa and Asia.
ECCO and social responsibility
We have always been involved in our community, and in the past 12 years ECCO Walkathon has been the most palpable proof of our commitment. When thousands of people walk for children with heart disease, for life-threatened animals or for giving a better future to children in Africa, this does not go by unnoticed.
Social responsibility is not a new initiative for ECCO. Actually, we have employed social responsibility in our company for more than 45 years, starting way back in 1963 when Karl Toosbuy founded ECCO Sko A/S. On the whole, ethical rules and social responsibility were on our agenda long before terms such as Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) were invented.
Our social responsibility comprises much more than the ECCO Walk for Life program. Apart from donating money to charity projects we make sure that all our employees have good working conditions and that the environment is taken into consideration. On the whole, we contribute to making the world a better place to live in. | <urn:uuid:346c3e07-67ee-4855-8ef3-91bb5d4c06d6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ecco.com/en-AU/Events/Walkathon/About-ECCO-Walkathon | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.949554 | 381 | 1.5625 | 2 |
Tuesday, June 7, 2011
Oswald Had The Wrong Weapons
Certainly the wrong ones from what he allegedly ordered. Take for example the .38 Smith & Wesson pistol. The company it was ordered from, Seaport Traders, had two models available. An expensive one known as the S&W .38 Special Commando and another version that was ten dollars cheaper. All the paperwork on this from Seaport Traders, since none was found in Oswald’s things, has him ordering the cheaper model. But when he was arrested in the movie theater, he had on his person the more expensive, Special Commando model.
Conversely, the alleged assassination weapon, the Mannlicher-Carcano is the wrong model too. Oswald is supposed to have ordered the rifle from Kline’s Sport Goods in March of 1963. At that time Kline’s was only selling the 36” length model. But found on the sixth floor of the Texas School Book Depository building was the 40” model that Kline’s was no longer stocking.
With one weapon, say the pistol, one can chalk it up to a clerical error; obviously mistakes happen. But this happened with the purchase of both weapons? Note also that Oswald is never known to have visited any local gun shop and bought any bullets. (It should be noted that the rifle came with no clip–where did he acquire it?) In his personal effects there were no receipts for their purchase or spare ammo boxes. Very odd since all gun owners have boxes of ammo about. It is intriguing to consider that when visiting the shooting range Oswald was seen to have plenty of ammo to practice with. Yet when he supposedly did the “deed” he only used four bullets in a six round clip. Maybe not so much would be required of the patsy in this event. And when using the pistol to allegedly murder police officer Tippit, he was using different brands of bullets, as marked on the brass. Of course, they are not sold individually. They have to come in boxes. Yet he has none. No one ever saw him buy any.
(Another curious fact at the shooting range was that Oswald was seen collecting spent hulls and pocketing them. I’ve wondered if Oswald never fired a shot that day, evidenced by no nitrites in the paraffin test, and he just simply tossed the spent rounds from the range on the floor to make it appear he took the shots.)
So here is another mystery in and already puzzling affair. And this is just a tiny fragment in a much larger display of fragments in the case. The paperwork is a mess too. In another article of mine, Who Bought The Guns?, I go into greater detail all the problems with that. Once you start down the rabbit trail you see how problematic the assassination is and how strange it all gets. Probably the most strangest thing is in the most simplest of acts, such as Oswald buying a money order to purchase a rifle. This is fastened with a multitude of complications.
I think the only viable explanation is that Oswald was provided the guns. A phony paper trail was created, and not a very good one at that, as conspirators probably had established methods to control a future investigation. The good ones plan ahead but were eventually sloppy and could afford to be. As sloppy as using for proof, a money order lacking the routing stamps to show it had been processed through the banking system (all three were missing) and then presented this flawed item for verification. So bad, it’s devoid of the alleged shooter’s fingerprints. It’s later found in the National Archives and nobody explains how it got there as that is a place for important documents to be stored and in the March of 1963, Oswald’s money order was just another instrument in circulation (though apparently not in the proper circulation as it should have ended up in the postal facility in Kansas City). In this last bit, it is as if they were safely compiling evidence before the crime was even committed! I don’t fancy that but one does wonder about such curious events.
The important thing with the guns is this: They were both upgrades. Call it an order error, a simple twist of fate or whatever you will, but Oswald won better guns out of this deal. He got a better quality pistol and in regards to the rifle, a longer barrel provides improved accuracy and range. It’s a short barreled weapon anyway, as the Mannlicher-Carcano was an Italian copy of a German Mauser carbine, the sort of short-barreled weapon that harkens back to the days of cavalry.
While Lee Oswald may have been a bit player in Cold War theater, and this can be discerned through his many peculiar actions, it has never let up. It’s called “Psyops” now for psychological operations. We see it today in the actions of Adam Gadahn, the alleged “American Al-Qaeda” spokesman spewing forth internet videos calling for violence upon the West. (For some odd reason also called the American Taliban but there is no evidence he speaks for them.) None of the mainstream media will tell the public what a faker this guy is. Even the New Media such as the Huffington Post referred to him as “a highly influential al Qaeda figure born in America…” Real name–Adam Pearlman. He’s not Arabic but Jewish and his grandfather was on the board of the Anti-Defamation League. Highly influential? Says who, the U.S. government? Who in al Qaeda says that about him? Remember who founded al Qaeda–elements of the CIA and MI6.
Gadahn/Pearlman supposedly converted to Islam in 1995 at the age of 17 but that may have been as real as Lee Oswald playing a Marxist on TV in 1963. (These players start out young–Oswald had his purported interest in communism under way by this same age.) As usual, it all amounts to one big deception by the major players.
So the smoke clears and it’s the same old thing we’ll never know about for certain. But there sure are a lot of footprints around here.
Armstrong, John, Harvey and Lee; Mars, Jim, Crossfire; The Warren Report | <urn:uuid:be642128-937f-482c-8fa1-15c92bcbe490> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://oswaldsmother.blogspot.jp/2011/06/oswald-had-wrong-weapons.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.975804 | 1,310 | 1.5 | 2 |
Memorial service and movie to observe 9/11
The UTC campus and Chattanooga community are invited to attend a ceremony to observe the fifth anniversary of the September 11, 2001, attacks. Beginning at 8:46 a.m. in Patten Chapel—the exact time a plane hit the first of the World Trade Towers—a brief ceremony will be held followed by a reading of the names of all of those who died at the four sites. At noon, the UTC Campus Ministries and others will lead a service of remembrance in Patten Chapel. A brief reception will follow in Founders Hall lobby.
“The events of September 11 create one of the defining moments in our history,” said Chuck Cantrell, assistant vice chancellor for university relations. “Most of our students were in high school at the time of the attacks, and they have grown into adulthood with this as a backdrop for their lives. It has definitely shaped their view of the world, and that is what we hope to do with the observance. To take a moment for our students and our community to stop and think about how our lives have changed and what the events of that day mean for us now.”
Later that evening and the next night, the Departments of Theatre and Speech and Philosophy and Religion have joined together to sponsor the showing of “Faith and Doubt at Ground Zero,”an extremely powerful “Frontline”(PBS) documentary.
The documentary examines such issues as: “Where was God on 9/11?” “Why does evil exist?” “What place can faith have in recovering from such a traumatic event?” Various people who were directly affected by 9/11 from a variety of religions are interviewed about these and other questions.
There will be two opportunities for the campus community to watch:
Monday, 9/11 - 6 p.m., Raccoon Mountain Room (UC)
Tuesday, 9/12 –6 p.m., Raccoon Mountain Room (UC) Free admission.
Viewers may bring their dinner and eat while they watch the documentary.
March 15, 2007 | <urn:uuid:a9b7fbde-4644-4826-b23a-01ea69bd5e4b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.utc.edu/news06/911.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966711 | 441 | 1.796875 | 2 |
I NTERFOREST, LLC CONSULTANTS
BRUCE C. LARSON is currently on the faculty of forestry at the University of British Columbia. Previously he was at the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies, where he held the positions of Director of School Forests, Lecturer in Forest Management, and Associate Professor of Silviculture. Before coming to Yale in 1982, he was a Post-Doctoral Fellow in Silviculture at Duke University. He has an A.B. degree (magna cum laude) in biology from Harvard, and a Master of Forest Science degree, with emphasis in silviculture and forest genetics, from Yale University. He has a Ph.D. from the College of Forest Resources, University of Washington, Seattle, with the dissertation title, "Development and growth of even-aged and multi-aged mixed stands of Douglas-fir and grand fir on the east slope of the Washington Cascades." His primary expertise is in quantitative silviculture, and he is co-author of the leading textbook on forest stand dynamics, and is a co-author of the most widely used textbook on silviculture in North America. For nearly a decade he has been responsible for all aspects of the Yale forests, and has developed innovative approaches to both management planning and operations. He has consulting experience in most regions of the United States, and has extensive experience in Canada and Germany, has published on silviculture topics in Bangladesh.
1990 - (with Oliver) Forest Stand Dynamics. McGraw-Hill, Inc. 467p. ( a textbook on the growth and development of forests.)
1993 - (with Burschel and Kursten) Present role of German forests and forestry in the national carbon budget and options to its increase. Water, Air and Soil Pollution. 70: 325-340.
1994 - (with Aston and Ducey) Landscape processes and forest management: linking theory, model, and practice. In: Proceedings of Symposium on Modeling Sustainable Forest Ecosystems, held November 18-20, 1992 in Washington, D.C. LeMaster and Sedjo, eds. Published by the Society of American Foresters.
1994 - (with Ducey, Dalla Rosa, Vernegaard, Knoettner, and Ashton) Effect of a small wood-fired power plant on the atmospheric carbon balance: a preliminary assessment. In: Proceedings of Symposium on Use of Forest and Biomass Residues in Energy Production, held February 22-23, 1992 in New Haven, CT. Published by Winrock International.
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There is a lot of emphasis today on sports in general and on team sports in particular. We are in the heart of college and professional football season and baseball is busy deciding which two teams will compete in the 2009 World Series.
Football and baseball are team sports. Football has eleven players on both sides of the ball while baseball has nine players in the field and in the dugout. Both sports are considered to be “team sports” but when you think about it, both sports depend on a one on one matchup. When a quarterback drops back to pass, looking for the open receiver, football becomes a one on one sport between the quarterback and the receiver. When the quarterback releases the ball, the one on one shifts to a contest between the receiver and a cornerback or safety.
The same is true for baseball. It takes all nine players in the field playing defense for a baseball team to be successful but the outcome of the game comes down to a one on one dual between a pitcher and a batter.
Evangelism is a team effort that should involve every member of the Body of Christ working together to see the lost come to Christ. But no matter how much teamwork is involved in planning an evangelistic event or how many witness teams fan out to win a city or a community to Christ, eventually evangelism comes down to a one on one encounter between a person who is following the Way and a person who is following their own way.
Acts 8 tells the story of Philip the evangelists’ one on one encounter with a seeker in the desert. Acts 8:25-40 has six action phrases that give us a guide for effective one on one evangelism. In verse 26 the angel of the Lord told Philip to “get up and go…” The first task of anyone who wants to share the Gospel is to “get up and go” where God leads. The Great Commission begins with the command to “go.” Before we can go we have to be willing to “get up”, that is to be ready to respond to opportunities for sharing God’s Word. The Church in America today has a “come and see” approach to sharing the Gospel. But the invitation to “come and see” needs to be extended by people who have left he comfort of the church pew in favor of the challenge of engaging people in the culture. People will come and see if we are first willing to get up and go where they are, meet them where they are, and persistently refuse to leave them where they are.
Verse 27 tells us Philip, “got up and went.” Philip must have thought the command of the angel of the Lord was strange. He was in the middle of a reformation that was taking place among the Samaritans who were coming to Christ in great numbers. He must have wondered why God would take him out of a revival and send him to the desert. But while Philip had winning a group of Samaritans in view, God had a winning a continent on His mind. Even though he knew almost no one travels through the desert in the heat of the day, Philip walked where he could not see because he trusted the view of God. Many church historians believe the witness of Philip to the Ethiopian eunuch marked the beginning of the witness of the Gospel on the African continent.
Verse 29 says Philip was commanded to “go up and join” the chariot. Philip closed the gap between himself and the Ethiopian by running alongside the chariot and calling out to him. We will never win the lost of our world from a distance. We can’t simply shout the Good News through a megaphone and expect lost people to come to the sound of our voice. If we are going to win people to Christ we have to be willing to get close enough to build a relationship.
Dr. Delos Miles was my evangelism professor at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. His definition of evangelism was “building a bridge from your heart to the heart of a lost person so Jesus can walk across.” Bridge building requires close contact. It requires a radical commitment to relationship building. Jesus practiced up close, one on one evangelism with the woman at the well; the woman caught in adultery, and Matthew the tax collector. He was criticized by the religious elite of the day but He rejected their taunts in favor of spending time with lost people. We must be willing to do the same.
Verse 31 has the invitation from the Ethiopian to Philip to “come up and sit.” Philip had to climb over a lot of barriers when he climbed into that chariot. He had to climb over the race barrier, the class barrier, the culture barrier, and the barrier between Jew and Gentile. None of those barriers mattered to Philip and they must not matter to us. We must be willing to go up and sit, to spend time with those who are hungry to know God. We should be willing to pour out our lives for their sake.
Verse 35 really holds the key to the entire witness experience. Philip “opened his mouth and beginning from this Scripture he preached Jesus to him.” It isn’t our clever stories or our preaching method that will win the lost to Christ. It isn’t enough to live our lives in front of lost people hoping they will catch our faith through some kind of spiritual osmosis. We must be willing to preach Jesus Christ crucified, dead, buried, and raised again to new life.
Finally, when Philip and the Ethiopian came to place where there was water, verse 38 says they “both went down into the water.” This speaks of walking with a new believer through the early stages of his new faith. Christ called us to “make disciples” not count converts. Disciple making requires a willingness on our part to become a mentor for new believers. One who is willing to pour into their life the goodness God has poured into our life.
Evangelism one on one…it worked with a seeker in the desert. It will work with lost people today.
Dr. Tony Beam is Vice-President for Student Services and Director of the Christian Worldview Center at North Greenville University in Tigerville, South Carolina. | <urn:uuid:7068a7bd-61a6-4746-8e97-d5878b34663c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.christianpost.com/news/evangelism-one-on-one-41565/ | 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 | 0.972788 | 1,296 | 1.710938 | 2 |
Did you know that the red color makes you hungry?
It has to do with the way it affects your brain. Red releases endorphins into your system that stimulate the appetite. So, it is no surprise that many companies in the food industry are using that color.
In the fast-food industry, look no further than McDonalds, Wendy’s, or Burger King as prime examples of this.
Red also instantly attracts attention and it also makes you excited, energetic, and increases the heart rate. | <urn:uuid:02708eee-fdb4-4b40-8ba5-b7f521fb7e2a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://dailypicksandflicks.com/2011/06/30/did-you-know-of-the-day-3/ | 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 | 0.963463 | 105 | 1.742188 | 2 |
Watching the things these people have to deal with on a day-to-day basis, one cannot help but to wonder how each of us (our society having coddled us so) will adjust as things become more and more unhinged and strife becomes more and more a part of everyday life.
Part 1: Highlights the near-TEOTWAWKI atmosphere of crime, violence, and corruption that pervades Ciudad Juarez, Mexico. I discussed it previously here.
Suggested reading: "Murder City: Ciudad Juarez and the Global Economy's New Killing Fields" (Kindle edition)
Part 2: Follows a photojournalist who was injured (two of his colleagues were killed) in a mortar shelling in Libya during the revolution there in April 2011. He talks about how the rebels weren't trained soldiers, but rather just regular people and how the conflict split the country ideologically between supporters of the rebellion and those who remained loyal to Gaddafi's regime. Both sides are accusing each other of having committed war crimes, and whole populations -- of especially dark-skinned peoples -- have been displaced and are not being allowed to return to their homes, because they are considered not to be true Libyans. They live in refugee camps.
Suggested reading: "Libya: Murder in Benghazi and the Fall of Gaddafi" by Luke Harding and Martin Chulov
Part 3: Follows French photojournalist Veronique de Viguerie in South Sudan with a militia made-up of simple farmers as they fight the forces of Joseph Kony and the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), who have spent years terrorizing the area where the borders of the Republic of Uganda, the Republic of South Sudan, the Democratic Republic of Congo, and the Central African Republic meet. In their wake, they have left thousands of murders, abductions, and mutilations.
This mad genius, Joseph Kony has his LRA march into villages and round everyone up, abducting the children to make them his soldiers. If anyone gives them any trouble, they force one of the abducted kids to kill them, thereby creating a situation where the victims become the victimizers. They force the children to either kill or be killed, and, subsequently, they stay loyal to Kony because they feel that they can never go home after the atrocities they've committed under his orders. With others, the LRA simply murders their entire family, so that they have nowhere else to go. Some do eventually escape, sometimes after years in the bush, returning home -- hostile, hollow-eyed, and having long ago lost count of how many people they'd been forced to murder and rape. Young girls, on the other hand, are victimized by being taken as "Bush Wives," which are basically nothing more than sex slaves.
The military does little to protect the people; they conduct manhunt-type operations in the bush to try to ferret-out LRA forces, but there is little or no defending of the villages by the army. Now, though, locals farmers and villagers have taken-up arms to defend themselves, and it is with them that the photojournalist imbeds herself.
Perhaps the most terrible thing about it all is that it is all for nothing. Joseph Kony and his thugs are no longer any kind of military threat to the government, but he will never surrender because he knows that his years of committing atrocities will result in a trip to The Hague to be tried for war crimes. And, because of this, it just goes on and on with him and his forces hiding in the bush, hounded by various army units, and terrorizing the general population.
Suggested reading: "Lord's Resistance Army (LRA) and Joseph Kony: American Efforts to Counter the LRA in Central Africa, Uganda, Central African Republic (CAR), Congo, and South Sudan"
Suggested viewing: "The Children's War" (DVD)
Part 4: Again, in this final episode, we follow Eros Hoagland (from episode 1) as he ventures into the favelas (slums or urban shanty-towns) of Rio de Janeiro to document the war there between the police forces and numerous gangs that have basically ruled the favelas as their own separate State and stronghold for years. The authorities are taking a hard line now in the wake of the announcements of both the World Cup Finals and the Olympics coming to Rio in the next few years (2014 and 2016, respectively).
They are attempting to oust an entrenched criminal element from among throngs of at-risk civilians, and two of the gangs have joined forces to fight back. It is a particularly dangerous place for a photojournalist; the criminals don't like being filmed and are not above shooting reporters, and the authorities are sometimes less than fastidious about protecting them -- the images they're capturing are not the picture Rio wants the world to see with the Cup and the Olympics just around the corner.
Corruption is everywhere. Homicide rates are kept artificially low, while missing persons numbers have exploded. A member of the military police, appearing on film only with his face completely covered, admitted that the authorities are taking justice into their own hands and murdering people. They then dump the bodies out in the country, in rivers, and in the ocean, and sometimes, he says, they burn them. No body = no homicide investigation. | <urn:uuid:e367c798-18ef-492d-8555-8dfb5cca826d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.backwoodssurvivalblog.com/2013/01/hbos-eye-opening-witness-documentary.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968382 | 1,112 | 1.539063 | 2 |
USCA, Ruth Patrick to host SEED day
The annual Science Education and Enrichment Day will be held on the USC Aiken campus Saturday, Oct. 13, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m.
More than 3,000 adults and children are expected to participate in the family-oriented event, that will include more than 60 hands-on activities from companies, nonprofits and other organiziation. The event is intended to promote STEM – science, technology, engineering and math.
The event is free and open to the public. | <urn:uuid:2460f45b-40e7-40da-a2fc-7d6b4f2abd1e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.aikenstandard.com/article/20121004/AIK0101/121009768/0/AIK0201/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962504 | 114 | 1.5 | 2 |
NATO warns Serb paramilitaries to disarm or face KFOR
June 27, 1999
BRUSSELS (CNN) -- As NATO monitored the demilitarization of the Kosovo Liberation Army, the alliance's supreme military commander vowed that Serb paramilitaries who remained behind will also have to turn in their weapons or face KFOR action.
"In a number of locations, it's clear that Serb paramilitaries, some with connections with intelligence organizations and others, have remained behind," Gen. Wesley Clark said on NBC's "Meet the Press."
"Whether this is some effort to report on situations there, whether it's the seeds for a future conflict to contest control of the province, no one knows.
"But it is a violation of the MTA for these groups to be there," Clark said, referring to the military-technical agreement governing the Yugoslav withdrawal from Kosovo. "They're going to have to disarm and convert or they're going to have to leave."
The general said the KLA's demilitarization is set to begin Monday.
"They'll be putting their weapons into joint custody with KFOR forces, and I think this is a program that's timely," said Clark. "It's been well-handled thus far by KLA leadership, and we're hoping for full compliance with the undertaking they've made with NATO."
The problems of maintaining the fragile peace became more evident as NATO peacekeepers Sunday reported the shooting deaths of two people in Pristina.
KFOR officials told CNN that both victims were a man and a woman. The man was a former member of the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, the monitoring agency that pulled out of Kosovo prior to NATO's air campaign; the woman was his interpreter, KFOR spokesman Louis Garneau said.
Both were shot outside an apartment building at close range, with eight or nine shots fired from what is believed to be two different-caliber guns. There has been no word on who may have perpetrated the attack.
The president of CARE USA said such acts of violence, especially among returning refugees and displaced persons, also poses a threat to those who are trying to provide humanitarian aid.
"We're very troubled by this news. It just underscores the fact that security for the refugees, the displaced persons, humanitarian workers needs to be a first concern," CARE president Peter Bell told CNN.
Relief workers and KFOR troops alike have their hands full after the end of NATO's 11-week bombing campaign against Yugoslavia. NATO's purpose in targeting Yugoslav troops and Serb paramilitaries was to stop what it called Yugoslavia's systematic policy of "ethnically cleansing" the Kosovo region of ethnic Albanians.
But now that Kosovo's Albanians are returning to their homes, the province's Serbs have begun to flee, fearing reprisals.
In some cases, those fears have proven true. Italian soldiers found the body of a Serb woman in Belo Polje, a burning village being looted by Albanians. The woman's mother said uniformed Albanians killed her daughter.
In other villages, widespread looting has been reported by frightened Serbs. But many of the Albanians say they are only doing to the Serbs what was done to them.
"The Serbs took everything from us and I have to have something to feed my eight children," said Gjyste Gjokaj.
Brig. Gen. John Craddock, commander of the U.S. forces in Kosovo, said his troops had been working to settle disputes between Serbs and Albanians over property ownership.
And in Kosovo's second city, Prizren, German Brig. Gen. Fritz von Korff said his troops were imposing a curfew to help control the looting and stealing that have hampered their efforts to impose order on their sector of the shattered province.
While NATO forces struggled to bring peace to a unsettled province, Yugoslavs in the country's capital made clear they were not happy with their leader, President Slobodan Milosevic.
Milosevic, who has ruled Yugoslavia with an iron hand for a decade, was the target of Belgrade soccer fans' displeasure Saturday. About 35,000 shouted slogans calling for Milosevic's resignation while gathered at a stadium for the match.
The Yugoslavs blame Milosevic for the virtual loss of Kosovo, which they consider the cradle of Serbian civilization. And NATO blamed Milosevic for bringing the air war on Yugoslavia by persisting in the "ethnic cleansing" of Kosovo.
U.S. Marines kill gunman in Kosovo firefight
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PCs could cost more in the months ahead because memory will be in short supply. The iSuppli trackers reckon that DRAM supply could undershoot demand because some manufacturers won't be able to get the semiconductor lithography tools they need. They note that ASML Holdings NV, the main supplier, should be able to supply 33 …
Time to upgrade
Well, looks the time to upgrade and get the DDR3 I need.
This is has been going on for years...
... when I was buying the 4M RAM for my 386 (to upgrade it from 1M) there was going to be a spike in memory prices (taking it to £30/meg from £25), blamed on a fire in a factory in Hong Kong that made the glue used to glue the tops on the chip packages. Turned out to be bunkum then as are most of the "manufactured shortages" do - simply a mechanism to hike the prices against the long-term falling trend.
Yeh I was about to write the same
Every couple of years theres some new reason memory prices are going to go through the roof.
I'm sure the memory manufacturers do it now and then to get people/companies to go out and rush buy it...
I think the Nascom 2 started it.
"The board was designed to take 8 x 4118 1K RAM devices. However, a world shortage of these devices forced Nascom to supply memory via DRAM memory card"
Happy Days! Where's the nostalgia icon?
My memory shortage
can only be blamed on alcohol.
That'll learn ya for buying those cheap alcohol-soluble DIMMS! But even so, why are you wasting good alcohol by pouring it into your bloody PC?? Some people...
And of course
The chip maker's customers get a revenue boost from the "buy now" scare tactic.
I forgot the title. Must be that memory thing.
Some years ago there was an earthquake in Taiwan that was supposed to cause global chaos with memory prices... it never really happened. Instead, prices go up for the new stuff when you move to new technology, and the old prices drop. Eventually, you run out of the old stuff, and the prices skyrocket. Same ol', same ol'.
Meanwhile, back in the real world...
"slashing the projected annualised growth rate from 49 per cent to as low as 45 per cent"
I'd hardly call a reduction from 49% to 45% growth "slashing".
I reckon someone is scare mongering, trying to talk up the price of memory. I'm sure this type of thing has a name. Oh yes "Pump and dump" And, um, isn't it illegal ?
If Memory Serves...
... isn't it about time for another price fixing scheme? It's been so long, I can't recall...
"In September, Infineon Technologies AG, headquartered in Munich, Germany, agreed to plead guilty ... agreed to pay US $160 million in fines"
Isn't it time for the pirates in silk ties and suits to start paying their debts back to society?
As mentioned,sounds familiar
I build custom PCs, and it seems nearly EVERY year around AUGUST the price of memory starts rising and then falls to a low around APRIL.
Funny that, nothing to do with Christmas period at all!
Maybe instead of rising the price of PCs they should just put less RAM in them. I for one have 512MB in most of my systems and 1GB in the rest. This is ample for Ubuntu and for gentoo. If I'm running some large jobs I do go into the swap (I have 1 or 1.5GB swap so the systems have 2GB total virtual memory), but it seems to page out gently rather than thrashing and slowing me down any. Just ditch bloaty systems like Windows and you don't need 3GB, 4GB, or more in a system.
I can feel
a new memory format coming on.
I always hoped we'd get the QIMM one day.
Luckily there is a double recession looming just to stop us from buying RAM. so there's no need to worry.
So does the Memory industry think its customers have amnesia?
I, for one, heard it all last year.... there is always a memory shortage.
way to go shoehorning a linux rant into this report, how sad | <urn:uuid:47b9c29a-73dd-4409-b121-63a21cb92377> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://forums.theregister.co.uk/forum/1/2010/08/10/dram_isuppli/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.957996 | 921 | 1.617188 | 2 |
The Minority Student Achievement Advisory Committee (MSAAC) is dedicated to work in partnership with the Loudoun County Public Schools (LCPS), parents and community to further the academic, social and cultural development of every student and to ensure that the needs of all minority students are met.
MSAAC supports School Board and staff initiatives, and parent efforts to ensure that our school community becomes culturally competent, providing the corner stone to ensure fair and equitable instruction to all LCPS students.
We encourage the development of school cultures where every minority student is afforded the opportunity to achieve his or her full potential, feels welcome and is recognized as an integral member of the student body.
All meetings are held at the Loudoun County Public School Administration Building in the School Board Meeting Room.
For questions, please contact the Outreach office directly at (571) 252-1460. | <urn:uuid:51e769b7-de45-49f6-9b7d-cf8780bcc942> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://lcps.org/domain/4283 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955929 | 175 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Autom robot keeps you motivated to lose those last few pounds
When you're trying to lose weight or keep fit, one of the hardest things to do isn’t always the diet itself, but sticking with it longer-term. Sometimes, all you need is a little motivation from someone to keep you going. For a slimming geek, the Autom robot could come in handy.
Autom is a tabletop robot that's designed to help you lose weight with on-screen advice and motivation, and it also learns what works best for you over time. The robot learns by asking questions and holding conversations with you regarding your progress. In addition to motivational conversations, Autom will log your progress and meals and help you plan your goals, and it also works as a calorie-count database with information on 75,000 foods.
Aside from the slightly creepy face, the little robot has a large touchscreen on the front so you can search through the food database, browse meal suggestions and cooking tips, and answer Autom’s questions.
The robot receives updates every month, ranging from new things to talk about to additions to its food database.
Of course, there are limitations. For instance, Autom needs an Internet connection in order to get fresh information. Also, while the robot only costs $199, you also have to sign up for a $20 monthly subscription plan to receive the updates.
If you're serious about improving your eating and exercising habits, though, you might find that it’s a small price to pay to help you stick to your plan. Autom doesn’t ship until 2013, but you can pre-order from the My Autom website. | <urn:uuid:d8670605-b7bf-4e1e-b3a4-733768fbd19f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.techhive.com/article/2012302/autom-robot-keeps-you-motivated-to-lose-those-last-few-pounds.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 | 0.95446 | 336 | 1.625 | 2 |
Christmas is my favorite time of the year.
It is a time where we get to enjoy the spirit of giving and sharing great moments with our loved ones. I remember being a kid and loving Christmas because of the presents I would receive.
As I got older and wiser, I realized the true meaning of Christmas.
It is to be appreciated because we are allowed to spend time with our loved ones and celebrate the spirit of family and giving.
The best feeling in the world is giving somebody something that they genuinely want or need.
This feeling cannot be duplicated by anything in the world.
Many people think of Christmas the same way I do.
Some however, think about it as a break from work and the everyday stress. I cannot blame them for feeling like this.
It is usually a couple days or a week of free time that you get to spend with those who matter the most and away from the stress of school or work. These couple of days allows us to evaluate the reasons why we do what we do. All I asked for last xmas was new solar shades with somfy and guess what? I got exactly what I wanted!
It is great to get time to do what you really want. As you can see, Christmas is very important to all of us. | <urn:uuid:6e0f31a8-f8f0-41f2-a571-ff55450f6763> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://occupyxmas.net/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.976829 | 265 | 1.71875 | 2 |
View PDF / Listen Audio / Spanish / Portuguese / Czech /
.:SECTION ONE: QUESTION THREE B:
CINDY: Karen, last week, you mentioned that your mom is concerned about the fact that you are studying with Jehovah’s Witnesses because she is afraid that the Watchtower organization is a cult. I showed you the February 15, 1994 issue of The Watchtower in which the Society describes what cults are and proves that Jehovah’s Witnesses are not a cult.
KAREN: Yes, Cindy, you had brought up the fact that the Society states: “Cult leaders are known to use manipulative methods to control the minds of their followers”1. and we had discussed how even though the Watchtower denies using manipulative methods to control the minds of their followers, they control what Jehovah’s Witnesses think and believe by claiming that “independent thinking is evidence of pride.”2. I had asked, if personal judgment of determining Scriptural truth is viewed as pride against God, how can this not be a means of controlling what people believe?
CINDY: Yes, Karen, last week we had a good discussion on that, but there are other issues in this Watchtower article that we still need to cover. One of them is found here on pages 4 and 7. The Society states: “Many of these cultic groups actually isolate themselves in communes. Their devotion to a self-proclaimed human leader is likely to be unconditional and exclusive. Often these leaders boast of having been divinely chosen.…Is there evidence that Jehovah’s Witnesses do this?… It is precisely because of this close adherence to Bible teachings that the veneration and idolization of human leaders so characteristic of cults today is not to be found among Jehovah’s Witnesses.…They follow Jesus Christ as their Leader and as Head of the Christian congregation.”
KAREN: Cindy, is the Society saying that they are not a cult because they teach the Bible and are not “following…a human leader”?
CINDY: That’s right, Karen. While cults often follow the teachings of a man, Jehovah’s Witnesses do not look to a human to lead them, but rather to Jesus Christ.
KAREN: Cindy, does the Watchtower Society discourage Jehovah’s Witnesses from reading and studying the Bible apart from their literature?
CINDY: Well, yes, Karen, they do. The Society says: “…the Bible is an organizational book and belongs to the Christian congregation as an organization, not to individuals, regardless of how sincerely they may believe that they can interpret the Bible. For this reason the Bible cannot be properly understood without Jehovah’s visible organization in mind.”3.
KAREN: Cindy, why does the Watchtower teach that Christians cannot understand the Bible apart from their literature?
CINDY: Well, it’s because the Society says that “We all need help to understand the Bible, and we cannot find the Scriptural guidance we need outside the ‘faithful and discreet slave’ organization.” 4.You see, Karen, the Watchtower leadership of Jehovah’s Witnesses is not just some ordinary group of men who study the Bible. Back in 1914 when “Jesus Christ was enthroned in heaven” the Society says: “Jehovah poured out his spirit upon them and assigned them the responsibility of serving as his sole visible channel, through whom alone spiritual instruction was to come.” 5.
KAREN: That’s very interesting, Cindy. Is the Watchtower teaching that the leadership of their organization was “appointed” by God to serve as His only “visible channel” of “spiritual instruction”?
CINDY: Why, yes, Karen. The Society claims that the facts prove that: “…Jehovah’s organization must henceforth be guided and directed by Jehovah’s spirit through the visible governing body made up of those servants whom Jehovah himself would appoint.”6.
KAREN: Cindy, how is this any different from cults whose “leaders boast of having been divinely chosen” and whose leaders require “exclusive” devotion to their teachings?
CINDY: I - I don’t know, Karen, but doesn’t the Bible teach in Matthew 24, that Jehovah would appoint a “faithful and discreet slave” organization to give His people spiritual “food at the proper time”?
KAREN: Cindy, if you look at the context of these verses here in Matthew 24, you will see that this passage is not talking about an organization being setup to dispense spiritual food; but rather, it is talking about every individual Christian who is faithful in sharing the Word of God to the people God has placed in his life. It is because of their service, that in the last days Jesus will call them “faithful servants” of His kingdom and give them more responsibility. But do you see anything in this passage that suggests that these believers belong to an organization that requires of its followers “exclusive devotion” to its teachings?
CINDY: Well, no, Karen, but what about the story of Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch at Acts 8? Why would Jehovah send Philip to teach the Bible to the eunuch if he didn’t need help in understanding the Bible?
KAREN: Cindy, was the eunuch a Christian at the time when Philip went to teach him the Bible?
CINDY: No, Karen but what difference does that make?
KAREN: It makes a big difference when you consider the fact that according to the Bible, a person receives the spiritual guidance of the Holy Spirit only after he accepts Christ. Of course, the eunuch at Acts 8 needed help in understanding the Bible because he was not a Christian yet. But notice, Cindy, after Philip baptized the eunuch, what does the Bible say happened to the eunuch?
CINDY: In Acts 8:39, it says: “When they had come up out of the water, Jehovah’s spirit quickly led Philip away, and the eunuch did not see him anymore.…”
KAREN: Cindy, if true Christians need someone other than God’s Holy Spirit to teach them the Bible, why did God choose to leave the eunuch all alone without his teacher after he became a follower of Jesus Christ?
CINDY: I don’t know Karen. That’s a good question.
KAREN: Cindy, did you notice the statement the Society made regarding the members of cults described on page 3 of this issue of The Watchtower? They said: “Significantly, most of these people claimed to be Christians and professed belief in the Bible.”7 Since cults often claim that their teachings are from the Bible, how do we know that the Watchtower organization is not a cult when it requires exclusive devotion to the teachings of its leaders who also claim to have been “divinely chosen” by Jehovah God?
CINDY: I don’t know, Karen, but the Society did bring up good point when they said: “Cult members often isolate themselves from family, friends, and even society in general. Is that the case with Jehovah’s Witnesses?…they do not live in communes, isolating themselves from relatives and others.”8.
KAREN: Cindy, didn’t you tell me that your mom left the Watchtower organization several years ago? When was the last time she was able to see her grandchildren?
CINDY: You’re right, Karen. I haven’t talked to my mom since she left the organization ten years ago, but the reason Jehovah’s Witnesses do not associate with worldly friends and relatives is because the Bible warns that “bad associations spoil useful habits.”9. This is also the reason why new people who come into the organization leave their worldly friends and seek to develop new friendships among Jehovah’s Witnesses. It’s because Jehovah wants His people to be clean and the way to do that is by being separate from the world.
KAREN: So let me sum this up, Cindy. First, the Watchtower Society claims that Jehovah’s Witnesses are not a cult because they do not use “manipulative methods to control the minds of their followers,” but then we discovered that the Society controls everything Jehovah’s Witnesses believe on spiritual matters. Next, the Watchtower denies that they are a cult because they do not follow “a human leader” who claims to be “divinely chosen,” but when we examined the Society’s publications, we found that the Watchtower leadership is made up of a group of men who claim to be exclusively appointed by Jehovah God as His only “channel of communication” to mankind. And last of all, the Society claims that Jehovah’s Witnesses are not a cult because they do not “isolate themselves from friends, family,” and “society in general,” but then you admitted that Jehovah’s Witnesses are not allowed to associate or even communicate with friends and family members who have left the organization, and that they are not allowed to have close friendships with people who are not Jehovah’s Witnesses. I’m confused! You tell me Jehovah’s Witnesses are not a cult, but they control their followers in many of the ways that regular cults do. What is the difference?
For more information see:
They are all there for me!
“I had Jehovah’s Witnesses visiting for six years. … The sad thing is now I have their beliefs in my head. So I put myself into God’s hands and asked for direction. …Well, the feeling of freedom is amazing. I am like a child, learning again for the first time. The reason I had to write to you was the Karen and Cindy conversations. Instead of me asking for help, one question at a time, they are all there for me!! It seems as if ‘Karen’ could read my mind.It’s so lovely for things to fall into place, mainly that ‘What happens when we die?’ This was a very big issue for me. I was scared while I did not understand even the tiny bit I do now. It’s such a joy. Instead of feeling unworthy(were all sinners I know) and feeling I would never be saved or go to Heaven. So, please thank God and Jesus with me for such help.”
I have to tell you how your website saved my life.
“I have been a baptized Witness since 1995, and I have to tell you how you have saved my life. Every couple of years I get this gnawing sense that this is not quite right, that I am not 100% vested in what the Watchtower Society says. …Lately, I have stopped attending meetings and my daughter, 13, has begged me not to make her go back. So I have been praying and chatting with friends outside the organization……I can’t tell you my sense of relief when I stumbled upon your site and started to read the articles. I want to cry, but I’m at work. I can’t wait to get home because I am so excited I can barely stand it! Please, please, how can I meet others who feel this way? I sure could use the fellowship. Again, thanks for the work you do.”
God bless you for the difference you are making.
“My brother and I were raised by a Jehovah's Witness mother. I am 52 years old now and still haven't been able to shake the stigma of the experience. My brother wasn't as lucky as me and ended up taking his own life at 17. I have been through everything ... I can't express how much I appreciate what you are doing... God bless for the difference you are making.”
I do not feel so alone!
“Thank you for creating this website. After reading stories of former Jehovah's Witnesses, I do not feel so alone. My resolve to stay out of that religion has also strengthened. I have also come to realize that my depression, anxiety, and many other emotional scars inflicted by the organization and those in the ‘truth’ will take time to heal. But your website has also come to help me ... Thank you.”
Just as I was about to enter the Jehovah’s Witnesses again, God led me to your website.
“Hi…I am an Ex-Jehovah’s Witness from South Africa. ...I left the Jehovah’s Witnesses not because I did not agree with their beliefs, but because my wife could not handle it with me being a Jehovah’s Witness and she not. I became an anti-religious person. Then, just as I was about to enter the Jehovah’s Witnesses again, God led me to your website… Today, I prayed to Jesus for salvation after I read your article on your website…”
I’m so glad that I have run across this site.
“After reading the article that David Reed wrote on your site, I’ve looked at things in ‘a new light’ so-to-speak. ...I’m so glad that I have run across this site. I’m sure that it was the Holy Spirit that directed me to all of you!”
Your website is a great source for truth
“Your website is a great source for those seriously seeking the truth.… The Jehovah’s Witness elders shun me. I’ve known these guys for 30 years... Well, when I walk into the Hall they turn their backs to me. I have not seen my Jehovah’s Witness ex-wife, or daughter for two years. ...They hide my family from me. When I go to their homes, they smile with arms folded and say nothing.
The stories I read at your website were loud and clear - conditional love by the ‘brothers’! I have learned more in the Christian Church about unconditional love than 30 years as a Witness. When I accepted Christ, who He really is, the Holy Spirit opened my eyes to see both sides clearly. ...Without the Holy Spirit it is impossible to know the real TRUTH! Keep up your good work.” | <urn:uuid:e70b75f1-58b3-441b-b53b-d2a14d72430b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://4jehovah.org/wdgrs01q03b.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968983 | 3,071 | 1.554688 | 2 |
By Liz Schott
On this day in 1883, the first edition of The Gazette was published. Several months later, my great-great grandfather, Clarence Miller, and his brother-in-law, Fred Faulkes, bought the fledgling newspaper, The Gazette Company, which has become an institution in service to our community for five generations.
Back in 1883, there were many daily newspapers in this budding town of entrepreneurs on the edge of the frontier. The Industrial Era was ramping up, and innovators thrived, creating businesses, institutions and enterprises, many of which remain strong today. My forefathers respected and understood that our company’s role was both to reflect and to shape our community in service to the greater good — a weighty responsibility.
That service has taken many shapes and forms over the years, from literally announcing verdicts of important trials from the balcony of our downtown office generations ago, to creating a new form of local news with the start of KCRG-TV9 60 years ago, to sending news and weather text alerts today over mobile networks.
The more things change, the more they stay the same — connecting people with the information they need to live informed and fulfilling lives.
As we move into this Digital Information Age of information overabundance, our value proposition to you, dear reader, is a very different one than it was even a generation ago, when information was relatively scarce, and we were comfortably in the Industrial Age.
But the core service remains helping you — our friends, family, neighbors and colleagues — make sense of this wonderful and crazy world.
We are committed to evolving our traditional institutional roles — government watchdog, champion of regional economic development, and booster for the arts and culture — for the Digital Information Age as it unfolds.
This means finding new ways of developing a collective understanding and facilitating community conversations around important and complex issues (many of which have no one “correct” answer). Specifically for 2013, they include:
l Flood protection.
l Watershed management and economic development for our Cedar and Iowa River neighborhoods.
l Development of world-class entertainment options, which may include a Linn County gaming casino.
l Transforming education to unfold the potential of every child.
l The 2013 state legislative session.
These issues are each in an information flow of their own, but also are, in many ways, interrelated. With your help, we will endeavor to put each of these issues into greater context in the coming months.
It is hard work to make sense of it all, but just because it’s challenging doesn’t mean it’s not worth doing. In generations past, simply writing and broadcasting reports of what happened, or was going to happen tomorrow, was enough to create a community dialogue, spur people to action and strengthen our democracy. Today, not so.
We are experimenting and exploring new methods of storytelling and information sourcing, some of which will be wildly successful, and some of which will end up being lessons in how not to proceed. Your feedback will guide us, as it always has.
As we look forward to our next 130 years, I offer an update to our 100th year motto, which was “A past to remember, a future to report.” Today, we still have a past to remember, but we also have a future to create, together, not just report.
We are a vibrant, world-class, transformational community and becoming more so every day. Thanks for being part of the journey.
Liz Schott is Director of Community Relations for The Gazette Company and a member of The Gazette Editorial Board. Comments: email@example.com or (319) 368-8520
Liz Schott, Director of Community Relations, discusses The Gazette Co.’s heritage and strategies for the digital age:
Noon Friday, at www.thegazette.com | <urn:uuid:ad04a369-9a89-4abc-ace8-1b089a0cfcb3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://thegazette.com/2013/01/10/happy-130th-birthday-to-us/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955737 | 811 | 1.578125 | 2 |
James Gabbard worked as a laborer most of his life and didn’t have a lot of time or money for life’s luxuries.
As he worked as a logger and in the tobacco fields he always, in the back of his mind, dreamed that one day he just might see the ocean.
But, he said, time and money aside, a lack of education kept him from trying on his own.
“I couldn’t read and write and couldn’t figure how to get myself there,” he said, explaining that he figured he couldn’t navigate the road signs.
But the 77-year-old, who lives in a Lee County nursing home following a series of strokes, had his dreams come true, as part of a trip arranged by Lee County Care and Rehabilitation Center, which is owned by Signature Healthcare.
Quality of life director Wayne Phillips said Signature Healthcare asked its nursing homes in Kentucky, Tennessee and Florida to raise $1,800 each to send a resident to the beach. The Lee County facility held a golf scramble to raise the money, Phillips said.
Gabbard got to make the trip to Myrtle Beach, S.C., on the Atlantic Ocean, in part because he’d never seen the ocean before but also because he was one of the few residents mobile enough to enjoy the trip.
Gabbard, Phillips and a nurse, Rachel Steele, went on the trip in late September along with 41 other residents from Signature Healthcare facilities.
Gabbard and the others spent two days enjoying the beach, building sand castles and shopping, as beach-goers do, for T-shirts. He also bought a conch shell so he could hear the ocean after he returned home.
He got into the water up past his ankles.
It was memorable, Gabbard said recently.
“If I die,” he said, “I’d be satisfied.”
Phillips said Gabbard has a new energy since the trip and has spent plenty of time telling his buddies at the home about his trip. Pictures of the ocean are on the wall in his room.
Phillips said the trip had a purpose, beyond fulfilling a wish. Too often, he said, people think of a nursing home as a place were people go to die. But, he said, “we need to get them out doing new things.”
As for Gabbard, Phillips said, he’s seen a difference.
“A lot of the staff has talked about it, he’s just full of energy. He was just tickled to do death with the whole trip.”
So what did he think, standing on the balcony of his hotel when he finally got to see the ocean, an expanse of blue that stretched to the horizon?
“Golly,” he told Phillips, “that is a big outfit.” | <urn:uuid:acda4018-e4e5-4f72-b5da-a5496e31d19b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.myrtlebeachonline.com/2012/11/13/3167716/nursing-home-makes-77-year-olds.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.986296 | 617 | 1.570313 | 2 |
The annual woman's interfaith event drew perhaps 600 women for the theme "Love in Action," and Armstrong was the keynote speaker calling for all world religions to recognize compassion as their common root.
A really real cathedral
The soaring cathedral took my breath away. I had forgotten that this is a really real Cathedral which was perhaps shown off to its best by the contrast of classic stone pillars as backdrop for childrens' art and colorful displays from world religions. A portrait of First Lady and President Obama's inauguration day visit graced the entryway.
But it was the pageantry of the evening itself that most struck me. And I have to say that my appreciation was heightened ten-fold by a conversation I had a few hours earlier with my fellow Ken Wilber fan James Jones of the Personal Awareness Institute. James knows everybody and everything in personal and spiritual growth. He had just been telling me over coffee that all religious rituals can be identified with one or more of the levels of consciousness described in Spiral Dynamics (similar to the chakra system).
- from the archaic level, use of the body
- from the magic level, recognition of good and bad forces
- from the power level, sacrifice for protection from enemies
- from the mythic level, joining with God in an agreement to work together
- from the higher levels, calling forth God from within ourselves
Next came Anglican scholar Esther de Waal wearing black and gold with a necklace that appeared to be a large iron cross. In a formidable Teutonic voice she called forth the Celtic gods. (I am mis-remembering some of the theologic details, but you get the idea.) And finally came a beautiful bald woman in dangling, red earings and cream-colored robes that appeared Buddhist but for the starburst on the back. This was Rabbi Phyllis Berman who told us she lost her hair as a young person because of an allergy. After 20 years of hiding under a wig, she learned that facing the world as she is brought her the gift of being able to see others as they are, as well. With a radiant smile she led us in a Hebrew chant she translated as "Expand the boundaries of my tent."
Walking up the chakras
I felt exactly as if I had just walked up the chakras --except, of course, for intellect, the hole filled by Karen Armstrong. She told us of her project with TED to create a worldwide charter for compassion. And she told us of her journey: from failed nun, to producer of British TV shows that mocked religion, to time in the silence that drew her to study the monotheist tradition in a whole new way--from within its own perspective. She said that when she studied the prophet Mohammad, she worked to see the world through his eyes. As a result, she began to see all people with more compassion. And that's where I wanted to stand up and shout, because that was exactly my experience in the two-year dialogue with a fundamentalist bishop that led to my book.
The final speaker was an elfin Muslim woman from Afghanistan. Peeking out from a softly flowered headscarf, Sakena Yacoobi told of facing death threats and armed blockades to bring education to girls in her country. Her story reminded me of the thrilling and amazing book "Three Cups of Tea" which tells the similar adventure of an American man overtaken by desire to provide education to Afghani girls. I was struck by the difference that the miracles he achieved appear secular while Sakena credited God for hers.
Not a blessing, just a wish
Just before the evening ended, Armstrong got up to scuttle out a side door--the door that I was sitting beside. I stood, smiled, and reached out the postcard that desceibes my project. She took it and paused just long enough for me to tell her that she had inspired me and that I would love to have her blessing. "I don't do blessings," she said. "but I will wish you well on your spiritual journey." And with that, she gave me a hug, and she was off. | <urn:uuid:911b58c9-0358-43d4-a62b-2387319b8efd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.transcendinclude.com/2009/02/meeting-karen-armstrong-at-sacred.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.981289 | 845 | 1.617188 | 2 |
Is Art Mightier Than War?
John Cusack on Hitler, politics and his new movie 'Max.'
BY: Interview by Paul O'Donnell
This article was originally published in 2003.
John Cusack's boy-next-door characters have, since the appearance of Lloyd Dobler in "Say Anything," had an obsessive side, usually brought out by the love of a young woman. In his new movie, "Max," Cusack plays the title role with the same urgency, but what's at stake is not the heart of a teenaged beauty, but the fate of civilization. An artist who lost his arm in the First World War, Max Rothman is determined to transform his world by fostering modern art as a gallery owner. The film shows how Max's hopes and life are powerfully determined by a struggling young artist he befriends named Adolph Hitler. Beliefnet talked to Cusack recently about his faith, his politics, and his new movie.
You were raised Catholic, but in your new movie you play Max Rothman, who is Jewish. How did you prepare for the role?
I was raised Catholic until I was old enough, you know, to say no. My father was great friends with [peace activist] Phil Berrigan, who just passed away. So obviously, I was informed by his kind of radical, left-wing, Jesuit mindset.
But growing up, the Irish, the Italians and the Jews, we all hung out together. Those groups seem to get it going pretty well. And research-wise, I did a little work. I read a book by a Yale professor Paul Mendes-Flohr, a history of the different manifestations of German Judaism. Some people saw themselves as Germanic, rather than Jewish, and some saw their identity as Jewish first and Germans second.
So Max is kind of like me: I was raised Irish Catholic but I don't consider myself Irish Catholic: I consider myself me, an American. Max probably didn't even think of himself as Jewish. He thought of himself as German. That was probably the only naïve thing about him.
Max has just returned from the First World War, and he seems lost. What is he looking for?
He captures that modern spirit you read about in "All Quiet on the Western Front." All these young men who went off with a very romantic vision of war came back totally shattered. It created this hungry, restless, wandering, kind of ghostlike energy. Max wants to recreate the 20th century. Everything his father taught him is wrong. Everything he learned is wrong. We all believed a certain way, he says, and look where it led us. We were in the trenches and we saw horses wearing gas masks. Whatever we did, it didn't work. | <urn:uuid:fdcf4ec1-beac-4349-af70-a1840386a0cb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.beliefnet.com/Entertainment/Movies/2003/01/Is-Art-Mightier-Than-War.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.988149 | 570 | 1.820313 | 2 |
When Global Associated News reported that Brad Pitt died in a snowboarding accident in Switzerland and then placed a small disclaimer at the bottom that the headline is merely for entertainment purposes, it is almost as if such a thing is fun to do. It was placed with the intention to shock and to earn from such a shocker and then invoke its role to provide entertainment to the public at the expense of a named celebrity. The practice itself doesn’t seem to be a shocker in any way judging from the long list of celebrities targetted by previous celebrity death hoaxes.
There were many other celebrities who have been victimized by similar death hoaxes such as Eddie Murphy, Paul McCartney, and Jeff Goldblum, just to name a few. Apparently, they are all still alive and kicking up to this day. But what is it that makes celebrities such fun targets for this kind of hoax? What else,but their popularity.
Any newspaper will sell like hotcakes when a big name in showbusiness is reported as dead in its front page. The natural reaction of the public is to find out how it happened, where it happened, and why it happened. Before they get to the truth that the death news is simply a hoax and has even been admitted as such, they would have already bought the newspaper.
What is most puzzling about this whole scenario is not that media will find extraordinary news about well-known personalities. It is how some sectors of media take pride in making use of a strategy to sell their ware using bad news about other people and faking it. Is this because a large part of the audience is gullible to whatever piece of information is thrown their way even if they are obviously erroneous? I’m sure the celebrities who have been cast off as dead for a day don’t enjoy such publicity.
There are celebrities and there are icons. Celebrities come and go but icons have etched their names forever in Hollywood history. They will always be referred to every time a subject area which they have managed to conquer is talked about. These people did not purposely set out and aimed for iconic status but rather found their place in it by being the best that they can be in their department.
Audrey Hepburn for one is considered a fashion icon. With her familiar pared-down elegance, she has managed to reach the pedestal by being herself. Of course, the little black dress she wore in Breakfast at Tiffany’s proved to be an iconic dress in itself.
Marilyn Monroe is an icon of female sexuality. No other sex symbol continues to capture the interest of the audience even now when she has long gone. She is always a basis of comparison for all the female celebrities who dare to walk in her shadow.
Elvis Presley is more of a music icon who happened to have several movies to his credit. His gyrating hips will always be original. The rest who followed remain pretenders to the throne of the King of Rock and Roll.
Grace Kelly is the fairy-tale icon of Hollywood. An actress who turned into a real-life princess provides hope that this kind of story is not only found in story books. She is also considered a fashion icon.
There are many others who have managed to build an iconic following such as Jackie Kennedy Onassis, Madonna, and Michael Jackson. Many more are expected to follow. | <urn:uuid:5f1d0a2b-0aca-4cdd-abb3-45d086d09e6b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.hollywood-blog.net/2012/07/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97754 | 685 | 1.835938 | 2 |
Philly Schools Superintendent shares vision of public education during Mt. Airy visit
November 30, 2012By Jana Shea for NewsWorks
Philadelphia School Superintendent William R. Hite Jr. received a warm welcome Thursday night from a group of teachers and concerned residents who gathered in Mt. Airy to hear about his vision for the city's beleaguered school system.
The intimate event, organized by The Philadelphia Alliance of Black School Educators, welcomed folks from across the city.
Observing what happens when Dr. Hite meets with educators rather than civic leaders is what brought Sylvia Simms to the event. "It's a different conversation," noted Simms, a North Philadelphia resident who runs Parent Power, an advocacy group.
Margaret Mullen, principal of The Promise Academy at Germantown High School, said she came to find out more about Dr. Hite's intentions for the school district.
"It's a little bit personal," she disclosed, noting that recent consolidations and closures have her concerned for her school's future.
'Smart is something you become'
Hite told attendees, assembled inside 7165 Lounge on Germantown Avenue, that students should be viewed through a lens of high expectations for their future, irrespective of their background.
He said thinking about his 10 month-old grandson's future plays a part in shaping that view and his larger one of the role of public education.
"He's going to grow up, he's going to become a black boy, then he's going to become a black man," Hite said in a sobering tone, as he explained to a rapt audience how important it is to ensure that each person who comes into his grandson's life have his best interest in mind.
Hite said he feels the same about the nearly 150,000 children in the school district. "I need to think about every last one of them just like I think about my grandson," he stated.
The school district's top administrator also spoke of how vital it is to expose children to opportunity and create an environment conducive to learning. Every person can become smarter when given the right tools and motivation, he said.
"Smart is something you become, it's not something you are," he stressed, noting that educators play a key role in teaching students respect, high expectations and a passion for learning.
Hite said his duty is to establish conditions where such lessons can be imparted.
"We are responsible for the mandate" of access and opportunity for every student, Hite asserted.
Hite, who spoke for about 15 minutes, also took time to assure attendees that the Philadelphia School District will increase its number of Gates Millennium Scholars.
The scholarship program, established in 1999 by Bill and Melinda Gates, rewards students with an un-weighted GPA of 3.3 who demonstrate community service and leadership by providing full scholarships to the university of their choice.
"We're going to at least do better than Prince George's County, and then we're going to begin targeting Chicago," he exclaimed.
Hite, the former superintendent of Prince George's County School District in Maryland, stated that about 30 students there have been awarded the scholarship.
Chicago leads nation in recipients with over 100.
There have been 14 Philadelphia's School District students who have earned the scholarship.
PABSE is part of a city-wide initiative to assist students in applying for the Gates Millennium Scholarship, free of charge, through writing coaches and walking them through the scholarship process.
A lifetime of educating youth
During the evening event, PABSE also presented a certificate of appreciation in recognition for the achievements of educator Cred Dobson.
A math teacher for 47 years, Dobson is an ambassador for the First in Math online education program. He told attendees that his goal in life is for the Philadelphia School District to make Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP).
He expressed hope that with Dr. Hite in charge, his dream may finally become reality.
Others seemed equally as impressed with the new superintendent.
"Very promising," said Connie Bullock, a retired teacher from West Philadelphia. | <urn:uuid:aab20cf5-3917-4007-9773-f6a87c601b61> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.newsworks.org/index.php/homepage-feature/item/47684-philly-schools-superintendent-willliam-hite-shares-vision-of-public-education-during-mt-airy-visit?Itemid=1&linktype=hp_featured | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973814 | 845 | 1.703125 | 2 |
August 29, 2012
CMN faculty members help organize bullying conference
Two members of Eastern Illinois University's Communication Studies faculty are part of the "Bridging Voices in our Community" (BVC) team that is organizing an upcoming conference on campus to address bullying.
Dr. Melanie Mills (BVC Assistant Chair) and Dr. Mildred Pearson (BVC Chair) received a 2012 EIU Faculty Development Partnership Grant to help support a conference that addresses bullying in schools. Other sponsors are also joining the BVC group to bring the conference to Illinois educators. Communication Studies faculty member Dr. Angela Jacobs is also a member of the interdisciplinary planning team. The BVC group has worked hard to bring this conference to educators free of charge. Both teachers and education students can receive professional development credit for attending.
The Bridging Voices in our Community's "Beyond Awareness: Strategies to Eliminate Bullying" conference is aimed at K-12 teachers. It will be held on Eastern's campus on Friday, October 5th, and has nationally recognized experts as part of the program along with several local speakers. Jennifer Roscoe, WCIA TV "Beyond Bullying" spokesperson, will be kicking off the conference and introducing the keynote speaker, Dr. Dorothy Espelage. Organizers expect that 350 teachers, community members, and interested students will attend the conference, and that more teachers will participate via Skype.
Both Communication Studies faculty members will present programs at the conference. Dr. Mills is presenting "The Dark Side of Interpersonal Communication", while Dr. Jacobs is presenting "Equipping Teachers: Strategies for Parent/Teacher Interactions", as well as chairing a panel of EIU students who will present narratives on bullying experiences.
The conference is designed to serve as a catalyst to help educate and equip learning communities in the area of bullying prevention. More information about the conference speakers and links to registration can be found at http://bvcbullyingproject.org/. | <urn:uuid:966d29e4-e9ed-4488-921e-629c6db3f26f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.eiu.edu/commstudies/n_bullyinggrant.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.957785 | 396 | 1.820313 | 2 |
August is finally here; weather patterns are still strange and unpredictable, but let's hope the month is warm and sunny. This morning I read for inspiration in "The Art of French Vegetable Gardening," by Louisa Jones. Then I spent the rest of the day under fair summer skies in my vegetable garden, red-tailed hawks soaring overhead, their piercing calls filling the air.
A primary objective was folding over the onion tops. These onions are grid-locking the garden. I need their space. In a couple of days I will pull them and put them to cure, done by leaving them on the ground in the sun for a couple of days more. The outer layers of the bulbs dry and the necks shrivel. If the weather is uncooperative I can take them into the barn, but an airy shed, mudroom, or porch is fine if you have no barn. The usual recommendation is to braid them or store them in mesh onion bags, after sorting out any with double centers or imperfections. Use these immediately because they will not store.
I set up some black leaky hose around the eggplants. I grew 'Listada di Gandia' this year, a beautiful lavender and white Italian heirloom that has been pining, I suspect, for more hot, sunny degree-days than it has been receiving. It will be miraculous if I have any to enter in the Fair.
I transplanted tiny Batavian lettuce seedlings from the 20-row tray into the ground. I "dug" (rolled back hay and picked up) some tasty, four-inch 'Yukon Gold' potatoes and boiled them, served with butter and chopped flat parsley, for lunch. Sweet peas' requirements are the opposite of eggplants' - it is getting too warm for them. I gave them water and combed them over for deadheads. I stripped the 'DeCicco' sprouting broccoli of florets to cook with.
Weeds are always a factor. My practice is never to go into the garden to harvest anything without pulling at least three weeds. I keep a large bucket handy that they go into, and from there they go into the compost tumbler. The soil is in good enough tilth that it weeds and cultivates easily and the green matter helps heat the compost. I weed as I work, making piles then collecting them.
Health of the soil
Every gardener needs to think constantly about improving the garden's soil. Many of our gardens are new, mere infants, but in large parts of the world, garden plots have been in use for hundreds if not thousands of years. Consider for a moment the terraced agriculture/gardens of Peru, Bolivia, France, Italy, India, China, and of course the rice culture throughout Southeast Asia and the wine culture of Europe.
While different crops have differing requirements, in all cases, these sites are maintained over long periods of time, not depleted and abandoned. Lazy, old-time farmers used to like virgin soil, or "new ground," because it has few problems; with use, plots acquire their measure of pests and contaminations. Soil needs to be cared for by working it and constantly improving it.
One of the strengths of organic gardening is this attention to the needs of the soil, treating it almost like a parallel crop to the one that is being grown to eat. Consider that the very basis of our food chain is the soil beneath our feet. Its quality affects everything that comes from it, including us. A book of traditional skills, "Back to Basics," edited by Abigail R. Gehring (Skyhorse Publishing, 2008, 456 ppg.) describes it: "The ideal gardening soil is soft, loose, and crumbly. It should be rich in organic matter and free from stones, roots, and debris." Elsewhere in the volume, Gene Logsden, a garden writer and farmer, says: "Organic gardening is not just gardening.... It's bringing your life into mental and physical harmony with the world around you."
One way to view diseases and pests is as stress opportunists. They attack plants that are stressed in different subtle ways. There's a problem? They'll find it. Soil quality, or lack of it, is a "ground-floor" (root?) cause. If you have been having a difficult season in the garden due to soil-borne diseases or insects, take a critical look at what you have been doing and how you can do better in future.
Soil splash leads to many different types of foliar problems and may be controlled by use of mulches, either organic materials or man-made, such as plastic or landscape cloth. Organic mulches help build better soil structure that pays off in healthy, vigorous plants better able to live with insect and disease infestations.
Take soil samples and send them in, so that you can act on the recommendations you receive before next summer. Plan to renew and improve the soil by sowing sanitizing cover crops in fall and incorporating them into the soil early next season. Hairy vetch is recommended for mitigating diseases of tomatoes, and mustard crops are showing promise in mitigating soil-borne diseases of strawberries. Manure the garden with well-aged horse or cow manure, or start composting. It is not a question of what you can spray on your plant to make it healthy, but how healthy your soil is.
Polly Hill Arboretum
Early-bird readers of today's MV Times may just catch the talk that last night's David H. Smith Memorial lecturer, Prof. Doug Tallamy, gives today, Vineyard Oak Appreciation, from 10 to 11:30 am.
Dan Hinkley, well-known plantsman, is featured in two events at the arboretum next week. On August 19 his program Plant Hunting in Asia begins at 7:30 pm; $10/$5 for PHA members. On August 20 the arboretum is pleased to present Wine, Cheese... and Trees with Mr. Hinkley, 5-7 pm, $50. Please call 508-693-9426 for more details. | <urn:uuid:6756f4ad-dcd2-4f1f-8add-4650827cbdf5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.mvtimes.com/marthas-vineyard/news/2009/08/13/garden-notes.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962467 | 1,275 | 1.6875 | 2 |
Presidents Michel Martelly (Haiti) and Dilma Rosusseff (Brazil) discussed migration and cooperation-related issues in this capital before visiting the squadron of Brazilian UN blue helmets deployed here.
According to a communiqué of the Haitian presidency, the presidents reviewed a bilateral agenda, placing emphasis on the process of reconstruction and economic and social development in Haiti.
According to the program of the visit, Martelly and Rousseff would also discuss the migration issue in the wake of adoption by Brazil of a new mode of visa issued exclusively for Haitian citizens.
The measure stemmed from a mass wave of Haitians heading for Brazil after the quake, reaching some 5,000 people early this year, according to Brazilian official figures.
At the end of the meeting, Rousseff headed for the barracks of Brazilian troops that are part of the UN Stabilization Mission in Haiti.
Brazil currently leads the UN contingent with more than 2,000 troops, deployed in Haiti since 2004. Rousseff arrived in Port au Prince this morning from Cuba, and was welcomed by president Martelly. She is scheduled to return to her country tonight. | <urn:uuid:e51ad443-6fbd-46c0-8b88-7ccc5b935c69> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://en.cubadebate.cu/news/2012/02/01/presidents-brazil-and-haiti-discuss-cooperation/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.945726 | 230 | 1.539063 | 2 |
Welcome to CBU's Financial Aid Department
CBU's team of financial aid counselors are committed to helping you find and secure the resources you need to finance your educational investment. Find out more about how CBU Financial Aid serves students like you.
Financial Aid Award
Several factors determine the amount and type of financial aid you are offered.
- Your financial need as determined by FAFSA
- Your williingness to accept various types of aid
- Availability of funds
A financial aid award consists of gift aid (such as scholarships and grants which do not have to be repaid) and self-help aid (such as student loans and work study which must be borrowed or earned).
What is a FAFSA? Submitting the Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is the starting point for accessing most forms of federal and state aid. Click here to go to the application Web site. Remember to use the free government website.
Students and parents may request an appeal of the student's financial aid award if there has been extenuating circumstances resulting in a significant change to the total family income since the previous year's income. To move forward with an appeal of your financial aid award, please submit a letter of to the Financial Aid Office explaining the change.
All appeals are reviewed on a case-by-case basis according to the guidelines set forth by the U.S. Department of Education. The Financial Aid Office will contact you directly after an appeal is submitted. | <urn:uuid:2cda4961-89c3-4ea3-aa22-03840f1ca3b7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://calbaptist.edu/explore-cbu/offices/financial-aid/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.942006 | 303 | 1.539063 | 2 |
Two Texas senate committees Monday heard testimony from contrasting perspectives on the issue of school safety and how to ensure schools are safe havens for students.
Superintendents from three small districts were invited to testify on their policies of relying on teachers with concealed guns to provide protection for students in case of an armed attack like the deadly one in Newtown, Connecticut last month. They said the option of relying on armed peace officers was too impractical or too costly for their communities.
Spokespersons for the state associations of superintendents and school boards said each school district is unique and the matter should be decided locally. Senators such as Houston Republican Dan Patrick, chair of the Senate Education Committee, seemed to welcome that message.
The Texas chapter of the American Federation of Teachers (Texas AFT), the Dallas ISD chief of police, and a spokeswoman for the Texas PTA took a different stance. To varying degrees all three argued that arming teachers and administrators with guns and expecting them to serve as adequate substitutes for trained officers is bad policy. Hence they strongly urged reliance on trained law-enforcement personnel instead. The discussion on all sides stayed at a fairly general level, with no specific legislation having been introduced as yet.
Testifying on behalf of 65,000-plus members in more than 800 school districts, community colleges, and universities in the state, Texas AFT legislative counsel Patty Quinzi said:
Our members have always been concerned about campus safety and security, and their concern is especially acute in light of the recent incidents in Newtown, Connecticut, and right here in Texas at Lone Star College.
Texas AFT is currently conducting a survey of members regarding school security and other safe-schools concerns [see survey.texasaft.org]. We will share our findings with the committees once the analysis is complete. But we can already share with you what we are hearing from many of our members and local leaders.
Teachers are saying:
· They want to focus on their core mission of teaching rather than trying to serve as armed guards against armed assault.
· Public officials should follow the "first, do no harm" principle. Applying that principle, they think proposals to arm teachers in response to the threat of school shootings would hurt rather than help, creating new risks and dangers. Guns, except in the hands of trained officers, do not belong in our schools.
· The state should make sure school districts have real, well-thought-out action plans for dealing with security threats, not just paper plans.
· Teachers and other school employees want to have a voice in working out new policy initiatives to keep schools safe.
· School-safety initiatives should include school-based responses such as increased attention to students' emotional and social development through enhanced counseling, social work, and health services. In this regard, Texas AFT's recent surveys of superintendents have shown that the state's education funding cuts enacted in 2011 have reduced school staffing, inflated class sizes, and eroded the capacity of our schools to maintain safety and order and to give students the individual attention they need.
· School-based responses alone are not going to solve all the problems caused as the ills of society are brought into the schoolhouse. Other measures are needed, including measures to restrict access of unstable individuals to weapons and to improve mental-health services in the community at large. The issue is community safety, not just school safety.
· If new resources are to be made available to school districts to address school-safety concerns, those resources should be made available on an equitable basis to all districts, not in a manner that makes school-safety improvements depend on local wealth.
Texas AFT believes that creating safe communities and safe sanctuaries for our children to learn and grow will require a balanced approach, from measures to prevent gun violence to increased mental-health services and resources for schools. We stand ready to assist your committees and our local educational authorities to make sure our schools and communities are safe for all Texans." | <urn:uuid:ac97f6a2-3c47-4b5a-a83d-4c8f34f3a455> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://thecontributor.com/guns-schools-texas-senate-hearing-school-security | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968094 | 808 | 1.617188 | 2 |
Tongues speaking heresy.
Honest question (not trolling): Who were the orthodox proponents for continuation of spiritual gifts in the early church? I’m not seeing it.
From what I’ve read of Warfield, he doesn’t seem to think there were any either. I haven’t read the writings of the 2nd century so exhaustively that I can say anything definitively, but it does seem that the proponents of continuation weren’t generally the most sound people. The Montanists, Tertullian being the most famous alum, were strict ascetics who followed a former Phyrigian priest claiming to have a direct revelation called the “age of the Paraclete”. This was bolstered by the visions of “prophetesses” Priscilla & Maxilla who claimed to have been given revelation of the end times. They subsequently left their husbands to devote their lives to the church and taught that holding church offices was bueno for women. So yeah, not a lot of orthodoxy present, but a familiar picture when compared the founding of some modern charistmatic churches.
What’s my point? Well… my thinking is framing up issues like continuationism & credo-baptism (to a lesser extent) as ideas that are assumed as facts by their adherents. These are questions begged to a level I like to call “Well, duh. Of course that’s true.” But early proponents of continuationism all seemed to be theologically jacked up. The modern day rank & file, eager for a life reflective of the clear teaching of Scriptures are moving towards a Reformed & Covenantal theology (hooray!). But they’re bringing a few things with them and reinterpreting Scripture to justify themselves along the way. So I’m seeing continuationism not as a good apostolic teaching which has been faithfully carried on by those devoted to sound doctrine from the earliest NT church until now, but as an idea that came hand in hand with unorthodox teaching. Just like Isildur wouldn’t destroy the One Ring in the fires of Mount Doom after defeating Sauron, so modern adherents of continuing spiritual gifts won’t let go of “the precious” even though they’ve dropped the bad theology it rode into town upon.
Then there’s guys like this, who haven’t dropped the bad theology or the “precious”. | <urn:uuid:a2e7a00b-aef9-408c-a89c-8019167c24d9> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://jonspach.com/2010/06/16/tongues-speaking-heresy/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964594 | 512 | 1.523438 | 2 |
Summer is practically here and you might have plans to take the family to an amusement park of some kind.
I remember being at amusement parks and city fairs as a kid. The lines would sometimes be long, and only a set number of riders were permitted on a given ride at a time. I remember how riders would inch closer and closer trying to be among those counted to get their turn to ride, but it didn't matter. As soon as the designated number of riders had occupied the seats, there would be a gate or some barrier preventing any more riders beyond that point.
I remember seeing riders turned away because they did not meet the height requirement to ride a particular ride. As I waited in line, I would always read the huge signs posted with the rules to ride and warnings to riders.
I thought about my years at Six Flags and the various fairs and had a bit of a revelation. We, as individuals, must learn to have similar control over our inner circle.
So often we let anything and anyone go. Mooching friends, negative co-workers, unsupportive family and disloyal significant others all get a pass through the gate right into our inner circle.
Distasteful or meaningless music and television programs alike are given unlimited access into our inner circle.
The reason the amusement parks and the city fairs have certain restrictions and guidelines is so that they protect both themselves as well as the public.
We ought to embrace this same idea when it comes to our inner circle or special dwelling.
People and things should have to meet certain standards before being permitted into our inner circle.
No negativity permitted beyond this point. No liars permitted beyond this point. No degrading messages permitted beyond this point.
These should be the signs we have up in order to protect ourselves. We have to guard against people and things that do not serve us well. In other words, if it means us no good, we cannot allow it to permeate our inner space.
We cannot be afraid to put up a gate or a sign prohibiting certain people and certain things. When we fail to do this, we allow whatever negativity and unfruitfulness attached to those people or things to take root in our inner place.
This is why people who associate themselves with one another often think alike, act alike, and care about the same things. This is why people who listen to certain kinds of lyrics and watch certain things on television convey the messages they hear and portray the images they see.
At any given point, we will all encounter people and things that should not be permitted into our inner place. To be around gossiping, complacent or disgruntled folks is sometimes unavoidable because you may work with them or live with them. The key, however, is knowing how to put up a gate or a sign to protect them from invading your inner place.
Listen to music that uplifts, encourages, and inspires. Watch television programs that motivate and ignite creativity. Associate with ambitious, engaging, giving, and productive people. Read material that educates, enlightens, and empowers.
So, just what is this inner circle, inner place, or special dwelling? Here, I define it as the place between our minds and our spirits. Things, messages, good or bad, constructive or not, fruitful or barren can take root and inevitably cause us to take on their characteristics.
In essence, we have to be careful of who and what we allow "beyond this point."
Will you deny entrance? What does your sign say?
Contact columnist LaTonya Dunn at firstname.lastname@example.org. | <urn:uuid:dcb5014d-784c-416a-be38-4aecfde2e0b5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.albanyherald.com/news/2010/jun/07/keep-problems-away-from-the-inner-circle/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962826 | 738 | 1.679688 | 2 |
The Committee of Human Rights Reporters once again by maintaining the path that it has taken and by supporting other human rights organizations, emphasizes that it will continue its decisive activities in reporting human rights conditions on both national and international levels through collaborations with independent and credible international human rights organizations.
NEW Iran Labour Front: Minimum Wage, “Unprecedent Poverty and Hunger”, and Strikes
NEW Iran Analysis: What Does the Fire Festival Mean?
NEW Latest Iran Video: Two Views of the Fire Festival (16 March)
Iran Document: Mousavi Speech on “Patience and Resistance” (15 March)
Latest Iran Video: The Attack on Karroubi’s House (14 March)
Iran Breaking: Ban on Reformist Political Party
The Latest from Iran (16 March): Fire and Politics
2115 GMT: Karroubi's Big Line. Here's the stinger statement from Mehdi Karroubi as he addressed the (banned) Islamic Iran Participation Front: "Why is it that the justifications of the Shah for his actions were wrong but the very logic and content of his words coming from you is to be considered right?"
1945 GMT: Political Prisoner News. Documentary maker Mohammad Rasoulof, who was arrested in the raid on director Jafar Panahi's house, has been released. Panahi is the only person from the incident who remains in detention.
1915 GMT: Picture of the Day. Mohsen Mirdamadi, the head of the Islamic Iran Participation Front, on his release from detention:
1910 GMT: Economy Watch. Iran has cut the cheap petrol ration by 25% to 60 litres per vehicle per month from 21 March. Currently, each vehicle is allowed a quota of 80 litres of fuel at 10 cents a litre, with any amount needed on top of that priced at 40 cents.
Now is the move part of President Ahmadinejad's subsidies reduction plan or a response to tightening fuel supplies with the prospect of reduced imports? Or both?
1900 GMT: Labour News. We've posted an interview with Jafar Azim Zadeh, the head of the Free Assembly of Iranian Workers, about the minimum wage, inflation, and the prospect of "poverty and hunger" for Iran's labourers.
1745 GMT: Reformist Relay. Once again, prominent opposition figures are putting out a series of statements. There is Mir Hossein Mousavi's speech to the Islamic Iran Participation Front, Mehdi Karroubi's "Let Us Rally" statement (see 1600 GMT), and Mohammad Khatami's address to members of the Islamic associations of Tehran universities.
Khatami insisted that the government "does not have the right to defy the constitution" and declare that its opponents are "adversaries of the regime". He asked the Iranian judiciary, "How is it that baseless accusations against some people are pursued fiercely by the judiciary whilst deviant groups are free to insult and slander any Shiite leader they might dislike?"
Khatami emphasized that the establishment can resolve problems by releasing political prisoners and upholding liberties that are the people's legal right.
1600 GMT: Karroubi Watch. The Facebook site that supports Mir Hossein Mousavi is carrying a statement from Mehdi Karroubi, "Let Us Hold a Rally".
1345 GMT: Rafsanjani Watch. The reformist Parleman News declares "One Step Forward" for former President Hashemi Rafsanjani in his political manoeuvres.
1245 GMT: I'm Not Sure You Get It, Dude. At a news conference, Minister of Oil Masoud Mir Kazemi has warned that Tehran will blacklist companies which stop their gasoline exports to the country.
With respect, Mr Kazemi, I think the point here is not that you might blacklist them but that they are blacklisting you (since Iran imports 40 percent of its consumption of gasoline). As Khabar Online, which carries the report, notes, "It's not clear how Iranian government is to punish the companies which cut off gasoline delivery to the country."
1235 GMT: Another Death Sentence. Amidst chatter, some of it from the regime, about capital punishments, the International Committee for Human Rights in Iran claims a confirmed case. Abdolreza Ghanbari, accused of "mohareb" (war against God) for participation in Ashura protests, has been sentenced to death.
1230 GMT: We Will Not Be Silent (2). The wife of Mostafa Tajzadeh. former Deputy Minister of Interior and senior member of the Islamic Iran Participation Front, has declared that he "will talk to the people on a convenient occasion". Tajzadeh was released without bail for the Iranian New Year.
1210 GMT: We Will Not Be Silent (1). The Mojahedin of Islamic Revolution party has issued a statement: Ahmadinejad has erased freedom and taken the bread from people's tables.
1205 GMT: Etemaad To Re-Open (at a Cost)? Aftab News is reporting that the ban on Etemaad will be lifted after payment of a "bail" (we are confirming whether 100 billion or 100 million toman, which corresponds to either $100 million or $100,000), with the newspaper reappearing in the Iranian New Year.
1025 GMT: Happy New Year, "Rioters". Under the heading of not-very-surprising news, Press TV reports:
Sentences have been handed down to 86 detainees of Tehran's Western-led post-election unrests on charges that include taking part in illegal riots and disrupting public order....
According to the statement, the sentences were issued for charges such as "conspiring against national security, spreading propaganda against the establishment, membership in hostile and anti-Revolutionary groups, taking part in illegal gatherings, and disrupting public order."
0848 GMT: Rafsanjani Watch. A poor attempt at analysis, simplifying a complex politician, in Foreign Policy. The magazine headlines a piece by Genevieve Abdo, a front-line writer on Iranian politics, "Iran's most independent politician finally casts his lot with the hard-liners."
There's a huge difference between giving support to the Supreme Leader, which Rafsanjani has clearly set out in recent months, and giving support to the Government. Abdo's evidence for the latter consists of this: Rafsanjani and Ahmadinejad were both at a celebration on 4 March of the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad.
Hmm.... Might want to set this against the steady sniping at the Government from Rafsanjani allies like Hassan Rohani. And it might be useful to speak with someone in the opposition before telling readers:
The green movement is taking Rafsanjani's return to the fold as a setback. With his independent voice now subsumed into the hard-line camp, there is no doubt this development will lead him to curtail his recent criticism of Ahmadinejad and Khamenei.
(Normally I wouldn't put such a poor analysis in the updates. But Foreign Policy is a front-line website for the Washington networks, so assertions like these can be read by US officials and journalists as the "hot intelligence" on Iran.)
0844 GMT: Mousavi's New Year. Mir Hossein Mousavi has already set down a marker for "a year of patience and steadfastness" in his speech to the Islamic Iran Participation Front. Now he and his wife, Zahra Rahnavard, announce they are putting out a video message, addressed to the people of Iran, for the Nowruz (the Iranian New Year).
0840 GMT: Political Prisoner Watch. An activist reports that Saeed Nourmohammadi, a leading member of the Islamic Iran Participation Front, has been released on bail.
0830 GMT: We begin this morning with a look at last night's Chahrshanbeh Suri (Fire Festival) celebrations. There are two videos with different visions of the evening, and we have an analysis: "Sometimes a celebration should be considered first as a celebration....Sometimes a celebration should then be considered political." | <urn:uuid:35d6653c-8f1d-4b2e-9545-032fd0e3f5d2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.enduringamerica.com/march-2010/tag/ashura | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951522 | 1,682 | 1.710938 | 2 |
Why all these are not applicable to Tuticorin port or the one planned in AP or WB ?
What an eye opener! As an environmental engineer,disposal of sanitary napkins has always been a concern during waste...
Gap's contentions are quite ridiculous, to say the least. Good to know that GTG is going to fight the case! More power to such...
All you want to know about hottest red chilli in India
An uncle once took my family out for a meal to one of Delhi's Chinese restaurants, known for its Peking duck and a range of other dishes. Just as our food was being served, his wife pulled out a small tiffin box from her handbag and kept it next to her plate. All through the meal I saw her mixing her food with a pinch of the mysterious ingredient in the box. I later learnt it was chutney made of red hot chillies. She apparently got those fiery red chillies parcelled all the way from Manipur every season. It turned out that she cannot have her meal without a pinch or two of her chilli chutney.
It’s not just my aunt who can’t seem to do without these chillies. People in the Northeast consider a meal incomplete if there’s no chilli chutney, preferably prepared with these red hot chillies, indigenous to the region. In Manipur, people call it umorok and sap malta among other names. In Nagaland, people lovingly refer to it as raja mirchi (king chilli), thus giving it a prominent position in their cuisine. To the Assamese, it is bhut jolokia, the name by which it is globally recognised.
A variety of chillies of different shapes, sizes and varying degrees of heat quotient can be found in the Northeast, but the bhut jolokia is one of the most popular varieties. It grows in small shrubs and has been scientifically proven to be one of the two hottest chillies in the world. According to a report I read, it’s 400 times hotter than tabasco sauce. The chilli's taste and the spiciness may vary depending on the soil.
For instance, in Manipur, the ones that come from Tamenglong district are far more fiery than those found in Churachandpur or Ukhrul district.
Due to its extraordinary spiciness, one whole chilli is enough for a family per meal. The Nagas love it in most of their dishes, especially with bamboo shoots. The Manipuris don’t mind that fiery spiciness even if they have to eat sugar soon after a hearty meal spiked with the chilli, which is either dried or consumed raw. One common dish that is prepared with bhut jolokia in Manipur is ironba, a typical Manipuri dish which is prepared with different vegetables like potato, beans, bamboo shoot, all of which is mashed with this chilli. Students studying out station will invariably carry a bottle or two of the chillies preserved in mustard oil and salt. I have it in my kitchen and use it sparingly. Some people pickle it; some make a paste or chilly flakes out of it and use it for cooking. These chillies have multiple uses.
Two seasons and many reasons
Sometimes its aroma is extracted for use in cosmetics, confirms Leena Saikia, who runs the Frontal Agritech Private Limited in Assam and is the only known professional chilli grower in the region. She has clients who place orders for the chilli for several purposes other than culinary. Some of her clients use it for cosmetic purposes, some for preparing pepper spray, used for self-defence. In the Northeast, a kilo of the dried chilli costs Rs 1,600 to Rs 1,700. In Assam, vendors in local markets sell five chillies for Rs 10. In places like Imphal, a single fresh chilli can cost up to Rs 5.
But growing these chillies is not easy.
Saikia says she would not have succeeded if it hadn't been for her determination. She and her husband started the chilli farm venture in 2004 and today supply the chillies to different parts of the world. But what has made it easy for the lady who is equipped with a masters in food technology from Mysore’s Central Food Technological Research Institute (CFTRI) is her desire to grow something different and experiment. The chillies need a lot of care. For one, they are quite disease-prone and need constant attention. If it rains, for instance, one has to ensure that there is no water logging in the farm for that would spoil the quality of the chillies. Second is the steep price of the raw materials.
It’s expensive and difficult to speculate if it would yield enough fruits and be profitable. Leena shells out anything from Rs 150 to 200 per kg for the raw material. And to make one kilogramme of the dry chilli, one requires 7.5 kg raw chillies. That’s because of the high moisture content in the chilli.
The Saikias supply over 25 tonnes of dried bhut jolokia around the world, her biggest market being the US which buys about five to 10 tonnes of the chillies annually from her.
Another interesting thing about bhut jolokia is watching the harvest; it reminds you of the grape harvest in a vineyard with all its buzz and activity. There are two harvest seasons for bhut jolokia: one starts in May and lasts till end of August or first week of September. But this is mostly in the plain areas like Assam. The second harvest begins in September and goes on till January. This happens in hilly areas like Nagaland and Manipur.
The chillies are hand-plucked by villagers who arrive in hoards during harvest. Once plucked, they are left to dry as they tend to spoil really fast. There are two methods of drying. The first is smoke drying, in which the chillies are spread out in a woven basket over the fireplace; sun-drying is not recommended because that can make the chillies lose colour. In the second and modern method, the chillies are kept in an oven for 24 to 30 hours at a low but constant temperature. It’s important to let the chillies retain colour and texture.
The Nagas have found an interesting way to incorporate this chilli in their social life. In one of the annual Hornbill festivals usually held in December, organisers had a rather unique competition: raw Naga king chilly eating competition. And sure enough, there are far too many candidates participating in this event. | <urn:uuid:6d3dbe76-15fa-49b3-afef-ee4ee11fd3cb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.downtoearth.org.in/content/spice-it-bhut-jolokia | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964132 | 1,404 | 1.6875 | 2 |
Vladimir Putin Bans Americans From Adopting Russian Children
December 28, 2012
Russian president Vladimir Putin signed into law a controversial bill Friday that bans Americans from adopting Russian children.
The immediate effect of the law prevents 52 children from joining pre-assigned parents in the US.
Americans adopted close to 1,000 Russian children last year, according to U.S. State Department figures. More than 60,000 Russian children have been adopted by Americans over the course of the past 20 years.
The harsh measure was condemned as "politically motivated" by the State Department, and widely viewed as retaliation for U.S. legislation relating to the case of Russian corruption lawyer Sergei Magnitsky.
Magnitsky died in a Russian prison in 2009 after being arrested by the officers he was investigating over fraud. Outcry in the U.S. led to a ban on all officials implicated in the case from travelling to, or holding bank accounts in, the US.
"The Russian government's politically motivated decision will reduce adoption possibilities for children who are now under institutional care," the State Department said in a statement it released Friday.
"We are further concerned about statements that adoptions already underway may be stopped and hope that the Russian government would allow those children who have already met and bonded with their future parent to finish the necessary legal procedures so that they can join their families."
The Russian measure, which will go into effect on January 1, also bars any political activities by nongovernmental organizations receiving funding from the United States, if such activities could affect Russian interests.
It also imposes sanctions against U.S. officials thought to have violated human rights. | <urn:uuid:f2cfa0e2-9ac7-46c2-9162-8b8de1e44fb8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.parenting.com/blogs/show-and-tell/brian-parentingcom/vladimir-putin-bans-americans-adoption-russian-children | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.972891 | 339 | 1.835938 | 2 |
A 10-year-old female was admitted to a regional children’s hospital because of headache and hypertension. The headaches had been present intermittently for 1 week but were not increasing in intensity. They were relieved with rest and ibuprofen. She complained of some intermittent leg pains also. About 3 days prior to admission, her mother noted increased puffiness of her face and abdomen. She had no changes in urination. On the day of admission, the headache returned with increased intensity and she had emesis x 3. Her primary care provider noted a blood pressure of 156/108 and periorbital edema. Urine dipstick in his office showed marked protein and blood. She was then referred. The past medical history was negative. The family history was positive for several family members with lupus, but no other autoimmune, nephrology or gastrointestinal problems. The review of systems showed at least a 10 pound weight gain per mother’s estimate, but no fever, chills, rashes, eye changes, or mucous membrane changes. She denied recent illnesses or travel.
The pertinent physical exam showed a child with moderate pain secondary to headache. Blood pressure was 131/85, pulse of 90, and respiratory rate of 32. She had periorbital and peripheral edema. Lungs had mild crackles at the bases. Heart was tachycardic with a flow murmur. Abdomen was soft and slightly tender throughout, but the abdomen was not tense. A fluid wave was inconsistently present. The rest of her examination was negative. The laboratory evaluation included a urinalysis which showed a specific gravity of 1.030, pH = 6, with +1 ketones and bilirubin, and +3 blood and protein. The microanalysis showed numerous red blood cells but no white blood cells. There were some red blood cell casts. Electrolytes showed a sodium of 143 mEq/l, potassium of 4.4 mEq/l, BUN of 44 mg/dl and creatinine of 1.7 mg/dl. Total cholesterol was 126, high density lipoprotein of 36 and low density lipoprotein of 79. C-reactive protein was < 0.5 mg/dl. C3, C4 and CH50 were significantly low. CBC and bleeding profile laboratories were normal. Her antistreptolysin O titer was 738 IU/ml (normal 0-240).
The diagnosis of presumed acute post-infectious glomerulonephritis was made. Additional history revealed treatment for streptococcal pharyngitis 3 weeks before admission. The patient’s clinical course showed that she was treated with fluid restriction, diuretics and anti-hypertensive medications. Within 3 days, the BUN and creatinine began to decrease toward normal. She had no oliguria. Because of the strong lupus family history, additional rheumatological testing was done which was all negative. The patient was discharged on day 4 still on antihypertensive medications. At followup 6 weeks later, she was reported to be back to her normal self including no edema, headache and was her normal weight. She still had slightly high, intermittent blood pressures but her electrolytes and urine were normal with a creatinine of 0.6 mg/dl. She was to stop her anti-hypertensive medication and monitor blood pressures at home with telephone followup in 1 week.
Post-infectious glomerulonephritis (GN) is very common and 80-90% of cases are caused by acute poststreptococcal glomerulonephritis (APSGN) which is an immune-complex mediated problem.
- Infection precedes the nephritis generally by a few weeks and may be difficult to identify. It can be caused by nephritogenic strains of Group A, Beta-hemolytic Streptococcus from both pharyngitis and dermatological infections, other bacteria, viruses and parasites. Interestingly, usually acute rheumatic fever and APSGN do not occur together.
- Abrupt onset of edema, hematuria, usually hypertension, with usually mild renal failure.
- Patients begin recovering usually starting within 1 week for edema and 2-3 weeks for hypertension. Urinalysis may be abnormal for several years though, especially microscopic hematuria.
- C3 level low (< 50% normal) and generally returns to normal in 3-6 weeks
- C4 levels usually are normal (if low, consider other causes)
- Antistreptolysin O titre is positive in ~80% of children
- Other tests are often ordered to eliminate other disease causes and to help treatment
Supportive care is the mainstay of treatment with careful fluid management including fluid restriction and diuretics, electrolyte management (including sodium restriction) as necessary, antihypertensive medications to control hypertension, and antibiotics only if an infection is identified.
If the clinical presentation does not support an initial diagnosis or clinical course consistent with the diagnosis of APSGN such as having increasing hematuria or anemia, uncontrollable hypertension, progressive renal insufficiency such as oliguria, azotemia or worsening laboratory tests, then renal biopsy may be necessary to identify other potential causes of GN.
Hypocomplementemic glomerulonephritis is caused by one of 4 diseases:
- Acute post-infectious GN (usually APSGN)
- GN associated with chronic infections such as shunt nephritis or bacterial endocarditis
- Membranoproliferative GN
- Lupus GN
Questions for Further Discussion
1. What are indications for a renal biopsy?
2. What are indications for renal dialysis? Review a previous case here.
3. What are the components of nephrotic syndrome?
- Age: School Ager
To Learn More
To view pediatric review articles on this topic from the past year check PubMed.
To view current news articles on this topic check Google News.
To view images related to this topic check Google Images.
Rudolph CD, et.al. Rudolph’s Pediatrics. 21st edit. McGraw-Hill, New York, NY. 2003:1677-1681.
Singh GR. Glomerulonephritis and managing the risks of chronic renal disease. Pediatr Clin North Am. 2009 Dec;56(6):1363-82.
Bhimma R. Acute Poststreptococcal Glomerulonephritis. eMedicine.
Available from the Internet at http://emedicine.medscape.com/article/980685-overview (rev. 1/7/10, cited 10/11/10).
ACGME Competencies Highlighted by Case
1. When interacting with patients and their families, the health care professional communicates effectively and demonstrates caring and respectful behaviors.
2. Essential and accurate information about the patients’ is gathered.
3. Informed decisions about diagnostic and therapeutic interventions based on patient information and preferences, up-to-date scientific evidence, and clinical judgment is made.
4. Patient management plans are developed and carried out.
6. Information technology to support patient care decisions and patient education is used.
7. All medical and invasive procedures considered essential for the area of practice are competently performed.
8. Health care services aimed at preventing health problems or maintaining health are provided.
9. Patient-focused care is provided by working with health care professionals, including those from other disciplines.
10. An investigatory and analytic thinking approach to the clinical situation is demonstrated.
11. Basic and clinically supportive sciences appropriate to their discipline are known and applied.
24. Cost-effective health care and resource allocation that does not compromise quality of care is practiced.
Donna M. D’Alessandro, MD
Professor of Pediatrics, University of Iowa Children’s Hospital | <urn:uuid:58f51c5e-0449-4be0-9de5-fd296b9b78d7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.pediatriceducation.org/2010/11/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.938766 | 1,657 | 1.570313 | 2 |
- Last Updated: 1:53 PM, January 27, 2013
- Posted: 12:03 AM, January 27, 2013
An “anti-Israel event” hosted by Brooklyn College is not kosher, some students protest.
A Feb. 7 forum titled “BDS Movement Against Israel” is co-sponsored by the college’s political science department, along with student and community groups that support an international boycott of Israel for alleged violation of Palestinian rights. BDS stands for boycott, divestment and sanctions.
According to organizers, speakers will include Omar Barghouti, a founder of the Palestinian Campaign for the Academic and Cultural Boycott of Israel, and Judith Butler, a professor at the University of California who has supported campaigns to boycott Israel.
The college’s welcoming role will “condone and legitimize anti-Jewish bigotry” and “contribute significantly to a hostile environment for Jewish students on our campus,” say students quoted on the Jewish news site Matzav.com.
Brooklyn College spokesman Jeremy Thompson said the event was initiated by a campus chapter of Students for Justice in Palestine.
“We have not had any calls for the event to be canceled,” he said. “We have people asking whether it’s appropriate for the political science department to be sponsoring this event.”
The sponsorship “does not signal an endorsement,” he added.
"As a university, we are committed to academic freedom and the free exchange of ideas. We don’t tell student groups or academic departments what topics they can or cannot discuss." | <urn:uuid:e3c0bc0e-3dcc-4313-9d13-919496e161b1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/brooklyn/mideast_war_in_brooklyn_c3cX2I7lN3cLgrkIQcGTKN | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.945509 | 335 | 1.65625 | 2 |
One reassurance I heard in the U.S. Postal Service's recent notices about putting the New London post office building up for sale is that it would not be left vacant in the event no buyer comes forward.
Christine Dugas, a postal service spokeswoman, repeated this promise when we spoke last week.
Actually, it is a two-part promise.
The postal service won't leave the building empty, and they won't sell it unless there is another, smaller retail space in the city to move the post office to, Dugas said.
The Masonic Street post office is a magnificent building, from its handsome stone and brick exterior to the art deco interior and Depression-era lobby murals depicting the city's glory days of whaling.
There is good reason it is on the National Register of Historic Places.
Still, the building is an ark, a giant sop of maintenance attention and money. The upper office floors are largely empty. And there is considerable interior damage on those upper floors from what appears to be extensive water leaks.
The building sits on a huge lot, what must be one of the bigger downtown parcels.
So, really, who would buy an enormous, albeit beautiful, largely empty office building in a downtown full of enormous, largely unrented office buildings?
It is a white elephant in a city with a herd of white elephants, many of them also for sale.
And so, I thought, the postal service, if they are good for their word, will never be able to sell the Masonic Street building and will, however reluctantly, retain its historic use, as the city's post office.
I know the postal service is hitting the revenue wall with shrinking mail volume. But it seems like the federal government would be good for the cost of keeping this iconic downtown building open and intact.
And if they need to consolidate mail sorting in the region, how about closing the bland building in Waterford and moving that operation to New London, instead of the other way around, as they are suggesting?
But just as I was getting comfortable with Dugas' assurances that the postal service won't close the New London building unless a buyer materializes, I learned that the city itself has expressed an interest in buying it.
Kristin Clarke, director of the city's Office of Development and Planning, confirmed Friday, when I called to ask, that she did indeed call the postal service earlier this month to express the city's possible interest in buying the Masonic Street post office.
Clarke said she couldn't recall where the idea of possibly buying the building originated from, but she said it was part of a general discussion of how the city might eventually reorganize its offices. She said she told the postal service the city might be able to help it relocate its retail postal office elsewhere in the city.
"It's something that has been kicked around as an idea," she said. "The idea we had was that it is across from City Hall, and the city has a lot of offices spread through the downtown, so we thought maybe we could consolidate things."
She said the idea has not developed beyond her phone call to the postal service, expressing the city's general interest.
Meanwhile, on Friday, the Savings Institute Bank & Trust of Willimantic officially moved out of the ground space in the Masonic Street building next to the post office that is owned by the city.
Clarke said she doesn't know what's planned for the space that had been leased by the bank, but she said moving the post office there has been discussed.
Clarke said no decisions about moving forward with any of this have been made, which was reassuring, kind of.
She noted, too, that the postal service has not even set a price for its Masonic Street building.
A spokesman for U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney, D-2nd District, said Friday the congressman stands by his pledge to make sure the public has a chance to be heard in the event the postal service makes a decision to move the New London post office.
That's reassuring, too.
The last thing New London needs is to get sucked into responsibility for a big abandoned property, one that has been neglected over the years, by a larger government that has many more resources to deal with it.
Just ask people in Preston about how taking the Norwich Hospital property off the state's hands has worked out.
This is the opinion of David Collins. | <urn:uuid:1bcf3b21-4673-47bf-8f82-78177f9341be> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.theday.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20121216/NWS05/312169933/-1/NWS14 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97665 | 910 | 1.5 | 2 |
A-League capturing the minds of Australians
Since the demise of the National Soccer League – previously run by Soccer Australia – the rebirth of the A-League, now run by Football Federation Australia, has taken vast strides in the development of football, its overall status and how the game is seen by today’s society.
The first step was recognising that although football, also known as soccer in Australia, should be returned to its original birthright name of football.
Unfortunately, depending on the group or person you associate yourself with, debate still rages among those who believe it to be Soccer and those who believe it to be football.
Prior to the A-League’s first season, Australian football was not always recognised and highly regarded in the Australian sporting landscape. So no longer would football fans sit idly by listening to other sports lovers say, “Football may be the world game but not in Australia, mate.”
Soccer or football, Australians today are starting to wake up from their winter hibernation of AFL and NRL and realise summer is around the corner. The A-League is ready to once again capture the minds of sleeping giants who have yet to experience 90 minutes of emotion and the feeling of ‘We Are Football.’
The avid football fan who lives and breathes the sport will understand the feeling of watching their team continually persist with the ever reliable goal to break the deadlock or grasp a win in the dying moments of a match.
When 90 minutes of frustration and emotion builds up to a boiling point in which 35,000 or 42,000 fans, in the case of Sydney FC versus Newcastle Jets and Melbourne Victory vs Melbourne Heart respectively, become so overwhelmed with emotion that they embrace the nearest person to which they may have never met before.
In the most extreme and high pressure moments in football, when 90 minutes of football are not enough, you could be a part of history and witness along with 50,000 other fans a clash for the ages in which you come back from literally the jaws of defeat and win the most amazing match in the A-League’s history – Brisbane Roar versus Central Coast Mariners, 2010-2011 grand final.
No matter the supporter, venue, home or away, team or opposition, you feel what I feel. I feel what you feel and slowly the Australian public are starting to feel what we feel.
After a previous seven seasons of A-League drama, action, suspense and highs and lows, four rounds have passed in the current season eight of the A-League.
The standard of the A-League is continually improving and as the season wears on we will bear witness to some spectacular moments of brilliance in which upsets will occur, comebacks will happen and players will rise above the pack to etch their name into A-League history.
Since the start of A-League season eight, we have seen a Round 1 attendance rate be broken along with the overall A-League attendance record.
Round 2 attracted the largest attendance rate in which Melbourne Victory did not play at home.
Round 3 saw another fair turnout for A-League clubs and although down on last year’s attendance for the round, 2011-2012 Round 3 had the Newcastle Jets versus Central Coast Mariners (F3 derby), Melbourne Victory versus Melbourne Heart (Melbourne Derby) and Brisbane Roar versus Gold Coast United (M1 Derby).
Round 4 was up on last year’s attendance rate and Round 5, going off the previous four rounds, should be just as successful.
Television viewing is at an all-time high and with a new broadcast deal announcement imminent, these numbers can only mean one thing: the future of the A-League is looking bright.
The overall focus will now be to draw more fans in, convert them into members, gain free-to-air television viewing, and in the near future, who knows where the A-League will be.
All I know is that ‘We are Football’ is a great advertisement from the FFA!
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Looking to join The Roar team? We're searching for an experienced Group Sales Manager to lead our team in Sydney. Yes, this does mean you get to work with the site all day long! If you're a digital media sales star, we want to hear from you. Apply now. | <urn:uuid:ba9db1ea-e441-47d0-a94c-ee917f86f956> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.theroar.com.au/2012/10/30/a-league-capturing-the-minds-of-australians/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954112 | 937 | 1.507813 | 2 |
An Anzac story rarely told
Anzac Day, 2011 and this morning I was proud to again accompany my Dad to the Dawn Service, to remember those who served, including those who paid “the ultimate sacrifice”.
I want to speak of my Dad’s military service, someone who fortunately returned home again, but who was part of a group that has received very little acknowledgement.
My Dad was a member of BCOF, the British Commonwealth Occupation Forces. He joined the Royal Australian Air Force (RAAF) as soon as he was old enough, but he was just finishing training when “cessation of hostilities” was declared. When he was sent overseas, it was to Japan, as part of the occupation forces. He served 3 years in Japan, including time in and near Hiroshima, very shortly after that city was hit by a nuclear bomb. He too saw and had to do some horrific things as part of that service (only once has he really opened up and spoken about some of them).
He too has health issues as a result of that military service, but there has been very little acknowledgement for military service “after the war was over”. Only fairly recently was BCOF service even acknowledged at the War Memorial. After his return from Japan Dad joined the Citizen Forces and, when it formed, the Citizen Air Force, as “an original” (one of those who joined in 1948).
Our first thought at Anzac Day may rightly be for the Diggers and the debacle and lives lost in 1915 at what is now known as Anzac Cove. We remember also too many other battles when our young men and women served and perhaps died for their country.
But we should remember also the contribution of all those others who also “answered duty’s call” and served in other ways, the peace makers and the peace keepers.
Lest we forget.
Entry filed under: Military. Tags: . | <urn:uuid:6d0e708e-ea02-43a5-a8b6-532b38d89be9> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://famresearch.wordpress.com/2011/04/25/an-anzac-story-rarely-told/?like=1&source=post_flair&_wpnonce=ba53fcffb3 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.992381 | 405 | 1.703125 | 2 |
Returning adult students, incoming college freshmen and students exiting grades six through 11 are invited to take a five-day, interactive Study Skills class offered by St. Clair County Community College in July in Port Huron or Peck. The one-credit Reading 075 course is being offered in an accelerated format to allow students to complete it prior to the start of the school year. The class focuses on the study skills necessary to help students process, acquire and maintain information. Students can choose to take the class in St. Clair County or Sanilac County. Both options run from 9 a.m. to noon Monday through Friday: July 9 to 13 on SC4’s Port Huron campus: July 16 to 20 at the Sanilac Career Center in Peck. Professor James Berry, who has taught at SC4 since 1987, will be instructing the class. Berry has been teaching similar study skills classes for nearly 40 years. To register for the class, visit www.sc4.edu/wave or call Enrollment Services at (810) 989-5500. | <urn:uuid:30e895f1-0090-40d0-9354-00325834e0fb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wgrt.com/news/2012/06/12/sc4-offer-day-study-skills-class-2/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955525 | 218 | 1.578125 | 2 |
The FBI has suffered a dramatic setback in its use of hyper-secret gagging orders in the name of national security to obtain the private data of US citizens, after a federal court struck down the practice.
A judge in a California US district court ordered the US government to stop issuing what are called "national security letters". Susan Illston said the letters, which have mushroomed since 9/11 under the Patriot Act, were unconstitutional as they breached the first amendment rights of the parties being served the orders.
NSLs have been an increasingly important part of the US government's approach to counter-terrorism, though their growing use has been matched by mounting unease on the party of civil libertarians. Last year the FBI sent out more than 16,000 of the letters relating to the private data – mainly financial, internet or phone records – of more than 7,000 Americans.
Previous court action has led to the FBI being accused of abusing its powers under the NSL statute by issuing the letters far more extensively than in the limited counter-terrorism situations for which they were devised. | <urn:uuid:b96ca352-21c4-4de4-b66a-8e135699a899> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.tvnewslies.org/tvnl/index.php/news/911-related/27600-fbis-demands-for-private-data-struck-down-by-federal-court.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97047 | 218 | 1.585938 | 2 |
Publicado el 30 30MET Junio 30MET 2009 1 comentario
The video showing the reasons given for the dismissal of Carlos Lage and Filipe Perez Roque has been exhibited on a restricted basis. It’s said that there are two versions, a longer and more detailed one that’s been shown only to the senior leaders, and another synthesized one shown to military officers and Party members. According to some, the video tape (or perhaps the disc) is handled only by trusted people and in order to enter the projection room one must leave phones, cameras, recorders and even purses outside. Proof that they’ve taken extreme measures is the fact that not a single scene has filtered out.
Biological memory, however, has allowed some viewers to retain the most interesting details and, thanks to some indiscretions, these have come to be known by those lacking permission to hear the truth, or at least one part of the truth. The oral narratives have been transcribed and posted online.
All this reminds me of an experience I participated in two years ago, when a friend invited me to a performance of cinema for the blind. In a small video room where there were twenty sightless people, the movie Gandhi, dubbed into Spanish, was projected. A woman with a clear voice and enviable diction described the faces and landscapes and narrated the action. At one moment I closed my eyes and now I didn’t want to open them until the end of the film, despite the fact that on more than one occasion I suspected that something else was happening on the screen.
The narrated adaptation of the famous video of Lage and Perez Roque is a victory against censorship and an indispensable chapter for students of information technology. I don’t doubt that in this era of postmodernism a new literary genre arises from this custom: apocryphal versions on altered filming of facts that never existed.
Publicado el 15 15MET Junio 15MET 2009 3 comentarios
Cubans have read with optimism Barack Obama’s speech in Cairo where he focused on the new American philosophy of international politics.
The center of gravity of that philosophy seems to be the tendency not to be a prisoner of the past and to focus more on what unites us than on what divides us, with the objective of finding a common space in which to live and work together in peace.
The American president used this constructive thinking to illuminate current conflicts of critical importance, particularly with regards to ethnic or religious differences.
On the theme of democracy, Obama said, “No system of government can or should be imposed by one nation by any other.” He then elaborated on the basic ingredients of a democratic government adding, “And we will welcome all elected, peaceful governments — provided they govern with respect for all their people.” He was not explicit, however, about how his country would act towards those governments it does not welcome.
Clearly (and as he should) Obama outlines an international policy in accord with the interests of his country, understanding that among those interests global peace predominates. He stayed away from concerns stemming from the collection of nations grouped under the banner of Marxist-Leninist ideology. The socialist camp, the Warsaw Pact, no longer exists and the conflict between capitalism and the communist system, which seemed so often to be the most antagonistic conflict of all times and one which could only be solved by the disappearance of one of the contenders, has ceased to be a first order concern for the United States.
The case of Cuba remains as a remnant of the Cold War. No one here uses the old language of the “dictatorship of the proletariat,” and even in his speech for the 50th anniversary of the Cuban Revolution Raul Castro omitted any allusion to Marxist ideology or remembered to comment on its role in building socialism. At the same time, he has made no public renunciation of those postulates, which end with the desired purpose of sweeping capitalism from the face of the earth.
The common ground that might be of interest to both the governments of Cuba and the United States is reduced to the problems of migration, the fight against drug trafficking, and collaboration in the event of national disasters. The recent rudeness from the Cuban government about the possibility of joining the OAS shows how far we are from regional integration.
Maybe that’s why we can’t get the garment that was exhibited on the catwalks of Cairo. Because for the Cuban government, which continues to measure its relations with its northern neighbor by our differences, the cycle of suspicion and discord shows no sign of coming to an end. Nor is there any sign of even wanting to turn the page on a history whose principal source of glory is in the chapters on confrontation. We are prisoners of the past because only it legitimizes our rulers’ permanence in power.
Publicado el 7 07MET Junio 07MET 2009 Sin comentarios aún ...
More and more often, we Cubans choose to define ourselves by that substantive that for so long has carried a pejorative sense: citizen.
Already in 1973, in Manuel Pérez’s film El hombre de Maisinicú, we hear Sergio Corrieri, offended, respond to a law enforcement officer, “Not citizen, rather comrade,” because the term is taken as an insult by all those who refused to accept the distance implied. In a country where, “Everyone is willing to die for the same cause,” in a nation where, “We are all one in this hour of danger,” the authority calls the alleged criminal “citizen” while the one who helps to capture him is called “comrade.” But it’s a very different thing to distance oneself from power—when the police call the person they are summoning “citizen”—and another to do it from citizenship if a person calls himself by this title to reclaim his rights. Among brothers, among comrades, among the partners in an indivisible couple, it’s almost bad taste to talk of rights. Only by being conscious of the separation can one demand them without feeling guilty.
Amid the perennial provisional state in which we have always lived, there has been a call at “this historic moment in which our country is living” urging a momentary forgetting of rights to pay more attention to the fulfillment of duties. This incitement only works between comrades sworn to a cause, between leaders and led, but it is, at the very least, inappropriate between rulers and citizens. Especially if the rulers are obliged to account for their management and the citizens have the power to change their rulers if they do not comply.
Obviously an enormous difference exists between declaring oneself a citizen and exposing oneself as opposition. But for the fundamentalists—with their narrow conception—this distancing, this separation of “us” in which we are conscious of our citizen identity, in order to demand something from that power whom we place in the third person, is, after all, an act of treason.
Publicado el 2 02MET Junio 02MET 2009 4 comentarios
I often ask myself about the Cuba that I imagine in the future. Almost without batting an eye I answer, “I dream of a nation difficult to govern.” A country with a pluralist parliament in which each paragraph of each law requires hours of discussion and lobbying, with many viewpoints and divided opinions. In such a nation there would be no unanimous votes, nor would it have charismatic leaders with their speeches of easy metaphors pulling in unconditional followers. There would be no applause or standing ovations, but there would probably be whistles of disapproval and the boos of the discontented.
The education of citizens to live in a nation like the one I imagine would probably be autodidactic, because I have the impression that there is not a sufficient formal bibliography for this. We must now learn the rules of the future.
The least one would expect from a democratic assembly is that it would not come to the point of a vote or accept consensus around a proposal until it had heard different ideas. Each demand, each goal, would have to be elaborated and discussed before becoming a proposal. Meanwhile, the more groups, subgroups and individuals involved the better.
To aspire to unity is an aberration, whether from power or from the opposition. There are people who claim that unity builds itself around them, unity around them is the first thing that happens, without stopping to think if that is what everyone really wants.
Cuba is sick and the solution to her problems will not appear until all Cubans, those inside and outside the country, have the opportunity to calmly discuss the many options, the many priorities that present themselves. I have my own personal recipe which is summarized in three words: “Decriminalize political dissent.” Who doesn’t? But I don’t dare to launch a program, nor to indicate priorities for a plebiscite, nor to invite a chorus of supporters to join my proposal.
I am absolutely certain that it is necessary to release all political prisoners, but I would dare to suggest that a demand of this nature would get lost in a competition with one to take bread off the ration or reduce the price of eggs. I would give years of my life for the establishment of free expression but I understand those who want freedom of travel are more numerous.
I am not becoming bureaucratic nor do I believe that conventionality must stop the spontaneous initiatives of citizens, but we must not waste opportunities. When we call on the government for something, whether it be the price of bus fares or the complete waiver of them, first let us consult, listen to everyone, then draw it up together, and then we will have the right to say: “We want this, that or the other.”
Publicado el 1 01MET Junio 01MET 2009 2 comentarios
A call to a “common action,” supposedly launched by assorted Cuban websites and blogs, requested that we open our pages this Monday with a text which calls on the Cuban government and the world to free political prisoners, lift migratory restrictions, and abolish the prohibitions on Internet access.
I don’t join this initiative because none of the Cuban bloggers I know within the Island (and I know almost all of them) were aware of the call, so I suspect that someone, without denying their good intentions, has hijacked the right to declare a common opinion without even checking whether or not there was a consensus for it.
I don’t join this initiative because making an appeal of this magnitude should take into account that the list of demands to be made is long, and choosing three, in some way, is to diminish the importance of the missing ones. The same thing happens with the way they are ordered in the list.
I do not join this initiative because it sets a precedent that breaks one of my personal rules that can be reduced to a principle, if I want to be egotistical: I don’t like anyone dictating to me what I have to write.
Nevertheless, I will not be the water in the wine nor the fly in the ointment, and I tell my few and respectable readers that some bloggers here want people to know this, on Monday:
APPEAL TO THE CUBAN GOVERNMENT AND THE WORLD
We call upon all persons and institutions defending civil rights in the world to contribute and we call on the Cuban government to:
- Free the political prisoners in Cuba.
- Lift the prohibitions that keep Cubans from entering and leaving their country.
- Lift the prohibitions on Internet access for Cubans. | <urn:uuid:c5149cc4-0d55-4cba-8bd4-363268a3760c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.desdecuba.com/reinaldoescobar_en/?m=200906 | 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 | 0.956774 | 2,419 | 1.5625 | 2 |
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Suggestions for Syllabus Statements for Faculty regarding Students with Disabilities
SUGGESTIONS FOR DISABILITY SERVICE SYLLABI STATEMENTS
It is important that students with disabilities at Corcoran College of Art and Design know that they need to discuss their accommodation needs with their professors. Students also need to know that the Learning Specialist in Student Affairs determines eligibility for accommodations and assists in the provision of disability services. The following are key ideas to emphasize in a syllabus statement:
You want your students to benefit as much as possible from your class and are willing to discuss their needs with them. The students are responsible for advocating for themselves and making their needs clear.
*The Learning Specialist in Student Affairs is the best resource at Corcoran College of Art and Design for disability service and information. You respect the confidential nature of disability information.
*The Learning Specialist will help determine appropriate accommodations and must be part of the process to review disability support services.
*The following statements present options for outreach to students with disabilities at the Corcoran College of Art and Design.
Suggested Syllabi Statement 1)
If you have specific learning, attentional, psychological or physical disabilities and require accommodations, please let me know early in the semester so that your learning needs may be appropriately met. All discussions will remain confidential. If you have not already registered with the Learning Specialist in Student Affairs, you will need to register and provide documentation of your disability to Amanda Kleinman, Learning Specialist, whose office is located in the first cubicle of Student Affairs, Downtown Campus. To request an appointment please contact Amanda via email at email@example.com or by phone 202-639-1865. You can also stop by Student Affairs in the downtown campus.
Suggested Syllabi Statement 2)
If you need academic accommodations because of a disability, please inform me as soon as possible. See me privately after class, or during my office hours for a confidential conversation. To request academic accommodations, students must first consult the Learning Specialist, Amanda Kleinman, in Student Affairs.
The Learning Specialist is responsible for reviewing documentation provided by students requesting accommodations, determining eligibility for accommodations, and helping students request and use appropriate accommodations. To request an appointment please contact Amanda via email at firstname.lastname@example.org or by phone 202-639-1865. You can also stop by Student Affairs in the downtown campus.
Suggested Syllabi Statement 3)
I believe in providing reasonable accommodations for students with documented disabilities on an individualized and flexible basis. If you are a student with a documented disability, the Learning Specialist determines appropriate accommodations through consultation with you. Before you may receive accommodations in this class, you will need to make an appointment with the Amanda Kleinman, Learning Specialist, located in the first cubicle of Student Affairs, Downtown Campus. After you have made arrangements with the Learning Specialist, please arrange a meeting with me to discuss accommodations in this course. To request an appointment please contact Amanda via email at email@example.com or by phone 202-639-1865. You can also stop by Student Affairs in the downtown campus. | <urn:uuid:c0a353ea-3b60-4351-bbd4-9c116a3e7da7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.corcoran.edu/resources-faculty/suggestions-syllabus-statements-faculty-regarding-students | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.93658 | 683 | 1.59375 | 2 |
Captain James E. Wilt, Troop B, Macon, announces on April 15 Troop B officers will be joining statewide efforts for an aggressive "Click It Or Ticket" mobilization to get more motorists to buckle up — and save more lives.
Despite evidence proving the benefits of wearing a seat belt, nearly one in four Missouri motorists are still not "making it click." Preliminary 2012 stats show 64% of those killed in Missouri traffic crashes were unrestrained.
"Local motorists should be prepared for stepped up Click It Or Ticket enforcement," stated Captain Wilt. "We will be out there to remind you that seat belts can and do save lives."
The patrol encourages motorists and watercraft operators to protect themselves by making sure everyone is properly restrained in a seat belt or child restraint and everyone in the vessel is wearing an approved life jacket. Click It 4 Life and Wear It!!! | <urn:uuid:222de370-fb58-4309-9c76-8ce51028e164> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.moberlymonitor.com/article/20130321/NEWS/130329770/1008/OPINION | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950043 | 179 | 1.710938 | 2 |
MIDDLE EAST: Al Jazeera English coming to the U.S.?
American fans of Al Jazeera English, most of whom until now have had to go online to access the channel, may soon get greater TV access to the network described by many as a leading source of news on the protest movements erupting across the Middle East and North Africa.
The Doha, Qatar-based network announced Tuesday that the managing editor of Al Jazeera English, Al Anstey, was in New York meeting with cable TV operators about making the channel available to more U.S. viewers. In Los Angeles, KCET-TV provides online streaming coverage from the network and includes an Al Jazeera English report in its broadcast lineup.
Al Jazeera is available in neither English nor Arabic throughout most of the country, but interest seems to spike every time a major event happens in the Middle East. Following the recent uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt, the network said its website saw a 2,500% increase in visitors, half of which were logging on from the U.S.
-- Meris Lutz in Beirut
Photo: Al Jazeera English's Doha newsroom. Credit: CMDavid via Wikimedia Commons | <urn:uuid:5ebefdeb-994e-4641-8009-5b84093f554d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/babylonbeyond/2011/02/middle-east-al-jazeera-english-coming-to-the-us.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950861 | 243 | 1.59375 | 2 |
April 25, 2003
Recovery limps along with continued weak growth
The economy shows few signs of a robust recovery, as inflation-adjusted gross domestic product (GDP) rose only 1.6% in the first quarter of 2003, according to today’s report from the Bureau of Economic Analysis. This small growth follows an even smaller 1.4% increase in the last quarter of 2002. Growth in the first quarter of 2003 was driven largely by a decline in foreign imports and increases in personal consumption spending, residential investment, and total government spending. Dampening growth were declines in durable goods orders, business investment, exports, and state and local government expenditures. Price inflation, measured by the GDP deflator, climbed to 2.5%, up from 1.8% in the last quarter of 2002.
The single largest contributor to growth in the first quarter of 2003 was a decline in foreign imports, which fell 7.9% last quarter after increasing 7.4% in the fourth quarter of 2002. The falling imports helped narrow the trade deficit in real terms from the record level of the previous quarter, as it fell from $532.2 billion to $508.2 billion, which is still higher than any level of growth before the end of 2002. In addition, falling foreign imports were accompanied by a 3.2% decline in exports. While there has been much talk in the business press lately about the decline in the dollar, it seems unlikely that this is driving these trends in trade. While the dollar has declined substantially against the Euro, the most appropriate measure of exchange rates (the real, broad index compiled by the Federal Reserve) remains within 5% of its February 2002 peak. Until there is evidence that something fundamental (such as significant exchange rate changes) is driving the import decline, it would be unwise to expect this to bolster GDP growth in the coming year.
The falling imports were likely the result of continued weak growth in overall consumption spending, which rose only 1.4% last quarter. This is the smallest increase in consumption spending since the first quarter of the recession of 2001. Furthermore, spending on durable goods registered a second straight decline, falling by 1.1%, following an 8.2% decline in the fourth quarter of 2002. This may indicate that the surge in durable goods spending that kept the economy afloat over the past year was not sustainable; essentially, firms offering low-cost financing for durable goods orders (like automobiles) poached demand growth from the future by inducing consumers to move up these expenditures. The past two quarters point to softening consumption growth, driven largely by weak labor market conditions.
Residential investment remained strong, as spending on new homes, construction, and renovation increased 12%, following a 9.4% increase in the last quarter of 2002.
Probably the most worrisome data in today’s report concern business (nonresidential) investment, with declines recorded in structures, equipment and software, and inventory investment. Equipment and software investment fell the farthest, declining 4.4%. This decline follows a 6.2% increase in the last quarter of 2002, which spurred what now appear to be premature hopes of an investment rebound. Investment spending on structures fell 4.2%, marking the sixth consecutive quarter of decline.
Another troubling sign is the negative contribution of state and local government spending to GDP growth. State and local expenditures declined by 0.1% in real terms, suggesting that the predicted crunch from state fiscal crises is hurting economic growth. Furthermore, state and local government expenditures registered the smallest year-on-year advance (0.4%) since the first quarter of 1993.
This level of overall growth is nowhere near high enough to spur job creation. Productivity growth (how much GDP each worker can produce) has increased by an average of more than 2.5% over the past two years, implying that GDP needs to grow at least this fast just to keep employment from shrinking. The anemic growth of this last quarter will likely result in poor labor market conditions in the near future.
—by Josh Bivens
To view archived editions of GDP PICTURE, click here.
The Economic Policy Institute GDP PICTURE is published quarterly upon release of the Bureau of Economic Analysis’ quarterly GDP report.
EPI offers same-day analysis of income, price, employment, and other economic data released by U.S. government agencies. For more information, contact EPI at 202-775-8810. | <urn:uuid:9fb0d50c-da61-4587-92ae-6f09c6e5cb0b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.epi.org/publication/webfeatures_econindicators_gdppict_20030425/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.95983 | 912 | 1.789063 | 2 |
WELLESLEY ISLAND — The owner of a goose-control business that operated briefly at the Thousand Islands Country Club is questioning whether the club and federal wildlife officials exhausted their options for removing Canada geese from the property before calling in federal officials to have the birds destroyed.
“It's discouraging to know they didn't try something that works before going to a lethal method,” said Ann E. Mazur, president of Green Acres Goose Control, Clayton. “I wish they had tried another effective humane method first.”
The club, in coordination with the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Wildlife Service, had about 120 Canada geese from Densmore Bay and the club's marina removed. The birds, collected during a molting period when their lack of wing feathers prevented them from flying, were put in poultry crates and taken to a food processor in the western part of the state. The processed meat then was donated to food pantries.
William H. Bartlett, the club's manager and course superintendent, said crews had exhausted all viable options before proceeding with the roundup, including addling the birds' eggs and using loud shell-cracker shotgun blanks.
However, Ms. Mazur said, her company was successful in nonlethally clearing the birds in 2010, after it offered the club free service for a week to demonstrate the work it could do.
She said her company cleared the geese by circling the club on golf carts with border collies, and allowing the dogs to chase geese spotted on the property, both on the grass and in ponds where the birds initially would shift.
“The dogs act as pseudo-predators, and make the geese feel uncomfortable,” Ms. Mazur said.
The dogs also would accompany company staff on kayaks and small boats to scare birds populating in waters close to shore.
She said that the work was successful in clearing the birds from the property, and that she received positive feedback from both residents of properties close to the course and the club's president, JoAnn F. Schwalm.
Despite the positive results, Ms. Mazur said, the club owners declined to continue her services, suggesting their decision might have been linked to the price of the work. Declining to specify the exact quote she offered the club, Ms. Mazur said the cost of her company's services for the summer was a midlevel four-digit figure.
Despite her disagreement about the roundup, which she called “secretive and knee-jerk,” Ms. Mazur did concede the island is facing a rapidly growing population of Canada geese that could present problems. She said that managing goose populations is done better through full-time management, instead of one-time clearings.
“You can't just do it one day late in June,” Ms. Mazur said. “It's something that requires a lot of time and maintenance to make it work.” | <urn:uuid:051e9c9c-036d-41dc-9b1f-42010216a4ee> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.watertowndailytimes.com/article/20120712/NEWS03/707129823/0/NEWS03 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970727 | 616 | 1.6875 | 2 |
Casey: A Warrior of the Heart
A special dog brings love to a nursing home.
By Pat Eisenberger
When a Sheltie (Shetland Sheepdog) chooses a human companion, he or she will stick with the person through thick and thin. Some shelties see no reason to acknowledge the presence of anyone other than their chosen person, except to warn them to keep away. So I was shocked when one day my Sheltie, Casey, joyfully ran over to an elderly couple he did not know. He danced about them and cuddled up for their attention, ignoring me as I called for him to come back.
After that incident, I began carefully watching Casey’s behavior around other people. Casey didn’t care for strangers who were in their twenties, thirties, or forties, and he even ran away from children. But let someone with gray hair walk by, and Casey ran to greet him or her enthusiastically. Since this was not typical Sheltie behavior, I began to think that maybe Casey was intended to accomplish something greater with his life. And maybe I could help him.
I contacted my church’s nursing home and found out that they welcomed anyone, including dogs, to visit the residents. I felt confident that Casey could brighten the day for many of the people at this facility, but I was uncertain how I could handle taking him there. Most of the residents of this nursing home were Alzheimer’s patients. How could Casey and I communicate with them? I had been observing Casey become so much more than his Sheltie temperament dictated. I hoped that I, too, could step outside my comfort level and try to bring a little joy to people in the nursing home who needed it. So I arranged for Casey and me to make our first visit to the elderly.
The minute Casey stepped into the nursing home, people greeted us with smiles and laughter. Casey happily did his tricks for them. He stayed at the end of the hall until I called him, then came barreling around past people in wheelchairs. Having this furry bullet bolt by made them laugh. He sat, laid down, rolled over, crawled, weaved through my legs as I walked, and caught his tennis ball. After Casey finished entertaining the patients, he wagged his tail, cuddled up, and listened to his elders, especially when they called him “pretty dog.” Casey accepted every hand that reached out to him with a friendly lick and a wag of his tail.
The next thing I knew, people who couldn’t tell where they were or even who they were began to glow with a light in their eyes and reminisce about the dogs they had loved. When a nurse saw that one old gent had started talking to Casey, she pulled me aside and whispered, “He hasn’t said a word since he got here–until now!” Someone else asked me to take Casey to a woman who was unable to move from her bed or even speak. As the woman petted Casey’s head and hummed at him, I observed indications of a sharp and active mind behind her bright eyes. She happily responded to my questions with a smile and a nod or an elegant wave of her hand.
I left the nursing home that day feeling very grateful to Casey for the lesson he had taught me. I had been afraid to step outside the boundaries I had placed around myself and worried about how I would communicate with these people. But I learned that no one ever forgets the language of love. Casey and I continued visiting nursing homes for another two years until Casey retired from this form of service.
Casey and I would like to challenge you to step outside your boundaries. We think that you’ll find the experience to be awesome!
From the book ‘Angel Dogs.’ Copyright c 2005 by Allen and Linda Anderson. | <urn:uuid:2b0268e4-064c-479c-af52-64252c36121c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://sheltienation.com/tag/angel-dogs/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.99056 | 804 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Remarks by the First Lady at the Launch of the Africa Education Initiative Textbooks Program
WASHINGTON, Jan. 17 /PRNewswire/ -- The following are remarks by the First Lady at the launch of the Africa education initiative textbooks program:
AccraTeacher Training College Accra, Ghana 8:45 A.M. (Local) MRS. BUSH: Thank you, Mr. President. Thank you very, very much for your welcome to your beautiful country. And thanks to everyone in Ghana for their very, very warm welcome.
Elizabeth Ohene, the Minister of State for Education, thank you so much for your warm welcome, as well, and for your introduction. Chief, thank you for letting us be here in your beautiful part of the country. And I also want to thank the Presidents of the American universities who have joined us today who will be working in partnership with African countries on this textbook project.
I'm especially happy to be at the Accra Teacher Training Institute. As a teacher and librarian myself, I know what a joy it is to help children learn to read and write, to become proficient in mathematics, and to develop a love of history and science. A pioneering American teacher named Christa McAuliffe famously said, "I touch the future. I teach." Each of you touches the future of your country by teaching Ghana's children.
As teachers, as parents, and as citizens, all of us have the responsibility to ensure that every child has access to education, an education that will lead to a happy and healthy life. And when we say "every child," we must mean every child, whether boy or girl, rich or poor. Educated children grow up to be adults who have more opportunities to work, to support their own families, and to fully participate in the life of their country. It's so important to educate boys and girls, because boys and girls can make important contributions to our world.
Education produces many social benefits, and perhaps none greater than better health. Education is our greatest ally in the effort to stop the spread of HIV/AIDS. The United States is working with governments and private organizations throughout Africa to achieve this goal. We know from experience that educated girls and boys are more likely to know what HIV is, and how to avoid infection. Girls who are educated have more economic and social resources to rely on, and, therefore, have more power to negotiate their own sexual lives. In fact, educated young women have lower rates of HIV/AIDS, healthier families, and higher rates of education for their own children.
Sadly, too many children around the world do not have access to education or schooling. The problem is particularly acute in sub-Saharan Africa. More than one-third of primary school-age children are not enrolled in school at all, and of those who do enter the first grade, fewer than half will complete primary school.
In Ghana, more children are going to school today than ever before. The enrollment rate for school-age children has risen from 73 percent in 1998 to more than 86 percent in 2004. This is a very positive development. (Applause.)
Of course, there are many problems and challenges that every country still faces. Books and other learning materials are often in short supply. It's not uncommon in rural areas to see just one textbook for a whole classroom. Girls, especially girls in rural villages, are much less likely than boys to attend schools. And students who live in poverty have few opportunities for schooling because their parents cannot afford the school fees or buy uniforms or books.
The people of the United States believe in Africa's future. We know, as you do, that education is vital to a better future for all of the world's children, and we're working with you to make education available and accessible to more children in Africa.
Representatives from six American universities are here today because their schools are now partners in education with six nations in Africa. In the United States, our higher education institutions welcome students from around the world. Their campuses are filled with men and women who strive to improve life for people everywhere.
I'd like to introduce you to the university Presidents:
Dr. Elnora Daniel, the President of Chicago State University. (Applause.) Chicago State University will partner with Ghana. (Applause.)
Dr. Mickey Burnim, the President of Elizabeth City State University in North Carolina. (Applause.) Elizabeth City State University will partner with Senegal.
Dr. Beverly Hogan, President of Tougaloo College. (Applause.) Tougaloo College is part of the Mississippi Consortium, and they'll partner with Zambia.
Dr. Andrew Hugine, President of South Carolina State University. (Applause.) South Carolina State University will partner with Tanzania.
Dr. Richard Romo, President of the University of Texas at San Antonio. (Applause.) The University of Texas at San Antonio will partner with South Africa.
Dr. Mary Spor, the Program Coordinator for Reading and Literacy at Alabama A&M. (Applause.) Alabama A&M University will partner with Ethiopia.
These schools and nations will work together as partners in the Textbooks and Learning Materials Program to produce and distribute 15 million primary school textbooks for African students. (Applause.)
These textbooks will be created in Africa so they will represent the unique experiences of African students. The text will be written with African cultures at the center, and the illustrations will depict African scenes. The subjects will include reading, mathematics, science and language arts. We emphasize these subjects because it's essential that every child learns how to read, learns how to add, subtract, multiply and divide, and learns about the world around us. Teaching materials, such as flash cards, charts and teaching guides will supplement the books and will give teachers more options in their classroom work.
The Textbooks and Learning Materials Program is part of President Bush's efforts to expand access to education in Africa. His African Education Initiative is a $600 million commitment to provide books, scholarships, school uniforms and teacher training so that more children can attend school. The African Education Initiative includes funding to train 920,000 teachers in 20 countries in sub-Saharan African. As of December, more than 300,000 new and experienced teachers had received training.
In addition to the textbook program announced today, the African Education Initiative has already facilitated the shipment of over two million books to African schools and libraries. When I visited Tanzania and Rwanda last summer, I announced the donations of books in those countries. And today, I'm pleased to announce the donation of 25,000 books for school libraries in Ghana. (Applause.) And by the way, these are new books that are carefully selected and vetted to be appropriate for school-age children in Africa.
A major goal of President Bush's African Education Initiative is to enroll more girls in school. To meet that goal, the United States sponsors the Ambassadors Girls' Scholarship Program, which will provide 550,000 scholarships to girls at the primary and secondary school level. So far, 120,000 scholarships have been provided in 40 countries. The scholarships pay for tuition, fees, books, uniforms, and other essential supplies.
The American people support these scholarships because we believe that investing in a child's education will produce benefits many times over in the future. An educated woman is better able to provide for her family economically, and to be an advocate for her own children's education. She has the knowledge and the skills to find new ways to improve life in her community. She's prepared to be an active participant in society, and perhaps even a national leader.
Yesterday, I attended the inauguration of Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf, Liberia's new President. President Johnson-Sirleaf is the first woman to be elected President of an African nation. (Applause.) This is a historic time for Liberia, for Africa, and for women everywhere. President Johnson-Sirleaf is an example for young women around the world of a woman who has risen to the very top of her government through hard work, faith in democracy, and belief in the power of education.
Children everywhere need positive role models, and they need the love, support and advice from caring adults. Girls and boys will look to teachers in this room as role models. They'll see that you value education, and because you value education, they'll value their own education.
I hope that when you reach the classrooms where you'll teach, you and your students will benefit from the partnership with Chicago State University that we're launching today. The people of the United States stand with you as you help more students fulfill their dreams. Together, we can build a future of peace and prosperity for both of our countries.
I wish you success in your studies at Accra Teacher Training College, and great happiness in your careers that lie ahead. Thank you very, very much. Source: White House Press Office | <urn:uuid:f3dd5829-ef34-462d-a3b7-b2da64b4d8f9> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.humanservices2.org/hsri.news01.17.06.2.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962197 | 1,824 | 1.695313 | 2 |
Posted by Emily Gian on Thursday 22 March 2012 at 5:30pm:
On Monday evening, Melbourne time, we heard the devastating news that four French Jews had been murdered outside Ozar Hatorah, a Jewish school in Toulouse, France. The four victims were Jonathan Sandler a rabbi and teacher at the school, his two children Arieh and Gavriel, aged five and four respectively, and seven year old Miriam Monsonego, the daughter of the school’s principal. They were murdered by a lone gunman, who was dressed in black and was riding on a motor-scooter.
The murders were immediately linked to two earlier attacks in France where three French soldiers of North African descent were shot at and killed in similar circumstances and with the same kind of weapon.
As the news made our local papers on Wednesday, the Age featured an article entitled ‘Hunt for ex-soldiers after massacre at Jewish school’. The article focused on the information that French authorities had at the time, which seemed to suggest that the attacks had been carried out by former French paratroopers who had been fired from the 17th Parachute Engineer Regiment after a photo emerged of them back in 2008 making Nazi salutes and swathed in a swastika flag. The search was on, it seemed, for far-right Neo Nazis with many in the media commenting on what a racially motivated crime might do for the parties involved in the upcoming French elections. The Age also published an Op-Ed entitled ‘French right caught up in the storm it helped create’. The Australian also carried some articles on the issue with ‘Kids “killed like dogs” as terror arrived at the school gate’, ‘Gunman may most murders on the net’ and ‘Attacks bring jolt of déjà vu for nation with painful past’.
For statements from Israeli officials, please click here.
While condemnations came in from around the world, including from our own Prime Minister here in Australia, High Representative of the European Union Catherine Ashton made some rather regrettable comments at a conference called ‘Engaging youth – Palestine Refugees in the changing Middle East’. She declared “And the days when we remember young people who have been killed in all sorts of terrible circumstances - the Belgian children having lost their lives in a terrible tragedy and when we think of what happened in Toulouse today, when we remember what happened in Norway a year ago, when we know what is happening in Syria, when we see what is happening in Gaza and Sderot and in different parts of the world – we remember young people and children who lose their lives”(see more).
Initially however, the official transcript of her speech omitted any mention of Sderot. The attempt to compare different situations led StandWithUs France to issue a statement declaring that Ashton’s “record regarding diplomacy and the Israeli-Arab conflict has been checkered (sic) at best, but these comments are beyond the pale. She should apologise immediately or resign her position.” It continued “The attack that took place in Toulouse is in no way similar to the situation in Gaza. Since Israel pulled out of Gaza, Palestinian terror groups have fired tens of thousands of rockets on Israeli cities indiscriminately killing and maiming children and adults” (see more).
The following day, the corrected transcript was released as well as a second statement from Ashton declaring that she condemns “unreservedly the terrible murders at the Ozar Hatorah school in Toulouse yesterday and extend my sympathy to the families and friends of the victims, to the people of France and to the Jewish community.” She continued, “At yesterday’s event I drew no parallel whatsoever between this tragedy and events elsewhere in the Middle East” (see more).
The outrage over her statements shows that the omission of Sderot in the initial release is irrelevant. As one commentator from Yediot Achronot noted, “even at a time of such sorrow for the Jewish people, her obsessive bias against Israel shines through” (see more). Please read Barry Rubin’s article entitled ‘The true perpetrators of the anti-Semitic attacks in Toulouse and throughout the world’. Ashton’s bias has also been pointed out by the ZCV on occasion, see here and here.
Move forward another day and the circumstances have changed again. Mohammed Merah, a 24-year-old French citizen of Algerian descent who is claiming to have links to al-Qaida has apparently admitted to carrying out the attacks. He apparently called in to a French television station and gave very specific information about the attacks. A few hours later, the police located the apartment block where he was living. As they attempted to break down the door, he opened fire, and since then, police and special forces have been negotiating with him to end the siege, which has now entered a second day.
French Interior Minister Claude Gueant stated that Merah had been under surveillance for many years and had also spent time in Afghanistan and Pakistan. He said that Merah “wanted to avenge Palestinian children and take revenge on the French army because of its foreign interventions” (see more).
Palestinian Prime Minister Salam Fayyad declared that “it is time for these criminals to stop marketing their terrorist acts in the name of Palestine and to stop pretending to stand up for the rights of Palestinian children who only ask for a decent life” (see more). Please also read Honest Reporting’s piece entitled ‘Time to end the incitement against Israel’.
Today’s local papers both continued their coverage with ‘Toulouse suspect cornered’ from the Australian and ‘French police trap suspected killer’. The Age’s sister paper, the Sydney Morning Herald also featured an editorial about the incident entitled ‘Another mass killer strikes’. Interestingly, the Age chose not to run with the same editorial, though in this case they probably did the right thing because the SMH piece clearly showed no knowledge of the updated situation. The Australian also featured a touching piece by Middle East correspondent John Lyons entitled ‘Greatest heartbreak the smallest body’, which tells a bit more of the story of the victims of this horrendous incident, and the journey to take their bodies to be buried in Israel.
We will continue to follow this story as it unfolds.
May the memories of Jonathan Sandler z”l, Arieh Sandler z”l, Gavriel Sandler z”l and Miriam Monsonego be blessed, along with all other victims of terror, wherever that terror may occur.
Agree / Disagree with something that is written here? Have your say by
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A bill proposed this week could change the nature of driving in bicycle-friendly D.C.
Two D.C. Council members proposed a bill that would add points to a driver’s record if they are charged with bicycle-related traffic violations, reports my colleague Tim Craig at D.C. Wire.
Points could be assessed for failing to yield to or striking a bicycle that has the right-of-way. Drivers ticketed or charged with such infractions could be assessed three to six points, Craig reports, which is similar to what they’d get for speeding or other major traffic violations.
The legislation would also require people applying for a D.C. driver’s license to show that they know how to safely share the road with pedestrians and bicyclists.
The bill, proposed by council members Mary M. Cheh (D-Ward 3) and Tommy Wells (D-Ward 6), is the first in “what could be a series of bills in the coming years aimed at making bicycling easier in the city,” Craig writes. Head to D.C. Wire for more. | <urn:uuid:ce6238f6-614a-49a2-9c49-674e9669487a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/dr-gridlock/wp/2013/02/20/d-c-drivers-could-face-points-for-bicycle-related-traffic-violations/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973485 | 231 | 1.679688 | 2 |
I have been teaching similar age groups for a couple of years and I find that the trick is keeping it lively and not allowing even a minute to pass where the kids are not moving from one thing to another. We will try to mix it up a bit with games that relate to karate (RyuKyu Kempo to be specific)like dodge ball where the object is to get out of the way of the ball, not catch it thus building agility, and obstacle courses where they may jump or crawl through some things but then need to stop and execute techniques at another "obstacle". I try to get the upper ranking students involved in "teaching" as well since it seems to give the younger kids something to aspire to while giving those upper ranks a feeling of progress and pride. When there are multiple instructors around - setting up "stations" where the kids cycle through a punching, kicking, blocking, moving, kata, etc. station keeps them interested.
I also find that when the class atmosphere is "tired" which happens sometimes especially in evening classes during the summer after the kids have been swimming and out in the sun all day, that getting loud seems to get their adrenalin pumping - lots of kias - katas where you kia every move and stuff like that - kids seem to wake up when someone tells them its okay to be as loud as you can. In short - teaching the kids is just about the hardest form of Martial Arts training there is - you have to really love teaching to do it. | <urn:uuid:3f97eecf-e428-419b-a863-ea6a5142d793> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.fightingarts.com/forums/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=134910 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.974796 | 313 | 1.5625 | 2 |
Events and Entertainment
Actress Mélanie Laurent of the film Inglourious Basterds is joining Greenpeace on a trip to Indonesia this week to see the incredible beauty of one of the most important and threatened tropical forests on the planet. The purpose is to publicly highlight the importance of protecting these amazing forests in the run up to critical UN climate talks this December in Copenhagen, Denmark.
Melanie will witness first hand the destruction and burning of the forests and the underlying carbon rich peat. She will meet local communities who are dependent on the forest for their survival. We may also be able to see endangered biodiversity, for example we may be able to visit a Sumatran elephant refuge or a rehabilitation centre where orangutans are being introduced back into the wild.
One in eight people don't have access to safe, clean drinking water. In fact, 5,000 children die each day due to inadequate access to clean water. Pete Wentz, a new dad himself, won't stand for it.
Wentz stood up to the water crisis alongside Jessica Biel, Angelique Kidjo, Alexandra Cousteau, and others in announcing the largest worldwide water initiative on record to combat the global water crisis.
Live Earth is pleased to announce the largest global water initiative in history to help solve the world water crisis with Global Water Challenge and Dow.
Taking place on April 18, 2010, the Dow Live Earth Run for Water will feature concerts and water education activities aimed at igniting a massive global movement to help solve the water crisis.
The launch of the Soyuz TMA-16 with Guy Laliberté, on board, will mark the beginning of the Poetic Social Mission, the world’s very first social and artistic mission to be carried out from space. Guy Laliberté, founder of Cirque du Soleil, will fulfill the Mission during his 12-day stay aboard the International Space Station. The purpose: to raise everyone’s awareness of water-related issues by drawing inspiration from the ONE DROP Foundation’s dream, “Water for all, all for water.”
Seeking to help advance the movement in favor of water for all, Moving Stars and Earth for Water is part of the scheduled awareness activities. This one-of-a-kind global event, broadcast on the One Drop home page Friday October 9, will be a beautiful 2-hour artistic event.
350.org is at it again! They want to get groups all around the world acting all on one day – Saturday, October 24th. They have claimed this day as The International Day of Climate Action. This is our chance to take a stand for the climate and show leaders how important this is. This will serve to make a strong, direct statement to the world prior to Copenhagen and let the world know just how many of us care about what happens there!
Brad Pitt was recognized with an award for his efforts to rebuild New Orleans with sustainable housing at the Clinton Global Initiative last week.
State and city leaders from around the world have gathered in California for the Governors' Global Climate Summit, which runs through Friday.
Former UN secretary-general Kofi Annan and Archbishop Desmond Tutu joined dozens of musicians on a cover of Midnight Oil's 1987 hit "Beds Are Burning" to draw attention to the urgency of the UN Climate Change Conference this December in Copenhagen. | <urn:uuid:55c5c0ee-8419-4cfc-92ff-47e24b05d581> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://liveearth.org/de/liveearthblog/events?page=5 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.936762 | 693 | 1.742188 | 2 |
People show support for Newtown across MA
BOSTON (WHDH) -- People across Massachusetts have been showing their support for everyone in the Sandy Hook community.
In Peabody, the high school distributed more than 600 ribbons in green and white-sandy hook's school colors.
In Jamaica Plain people lined crosses with stuffed animals and American flags at the soldier’s monument.
Each one representing a life lost in the Newtown shooting.
The Providence men's basketball team honored the victims of the shooting by wearing green and white uniforms during last night's win over Colgate.
Green and white are Sandy Hook Elementary colors. | <urn:uuid:e290fb37-8bd7-41bb-92f3-05652241298a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www1.whdh.com/news/articles/local/boston/12009362983999/people-show-support-for-newtown-across-ma/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.937153 | 130 | 1.601563 | 2 |
GC2012: Traditional Episcopal Church Bishops Blast Gay Blessings
Michael Heidt in Indianapolis
July 11, 2012
A group of traditionally minded bishops have released a statement condemning the Episcopal Church's authorization of a provisional rite for same-sex blessings. Taking the form of a Minority Report, the statement blasts the Episcopal Church for abandoning the Faith and Morals of the Church as they have stood for 2000 years.
The Report was introduced by the Rt. Rev. Michael Smith, Bishop of North Dakota, who addressed the House of Bishops on the penultimate day of the Episcopal Church's 77th General Convention in Indianapolis.
Speaking for a conservative group of Episcopal Church bishops known as the Communion Partners, and for traditional minded Episcopalians in general, Smith explained the ethos behind the Minority Report. On the one hand, the conservatives represented by Smith view the actions of the Episcopal Church as an egregious departure from evangelical faith, but on the other, they feel bound to "resist the temptation to leave" that church for the sake of "catholic order":
"We find ourselves between the proverbial 'rock and a hard place'. We struggle to hold together the evangelical faith of the Church, from which we see this Convention as departing, and the catholic order of the Church, which causes us, for the sake of the unity for which Jesus prayed, to resist the temptation to leave this fellowship."
In light of this tension, the traditionalist bishops have expressed their dissent from the Episcopal Church's ratification of resolution A049 and its commitment to introduce same-sex blessing rites into the church. They clearly state that this is contrary to Scripture and the teaching enshrined in the Book of Common Prayer. Accordingly, the first of the Statement's seven sections is grounded in Scripture, stating:
"Our commitment to the biblical witness includes its teaching on sexuality. We believe that the Scriptures clearly teach that God's vision for sexual intimacy is that it be exercised only within the context of marriage between a man and a woman."
The second section focuses on the Prayer Book. This unambiguously teaches that marriage is between a man and a woman, "that God established marriage in creation;" that our Lord "adorned this manner of life" during his earthly ministry; and that marriage points beyond itself to the "mystery of the union of Christ and his Church."
However, the bishops believe that this is contradicted by the newly authorized same-sex blessing rite. Though not described as marriage, the bishops believe it is, in all but name. This is because the rite contains key elements of the marriage ceremony, such as vows and the exchange of rings. As such, it "subverts the teaching of the Book of Common Prayer." More than this, it places the Episcopal Church outside of the "mainstream of Christian faith and practice, and creates further distance between this Church and the Anglican Communion along with other Christian churches."
Section four sums up. The dissent outlined in the Indianapolis Statement is grounded "in the historic biblical and theological witness upon which those teachings rest; and in the wider context of the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church and our conviction that no part of the Church is free on its own to alter basic Christian teaching."
The final three sections of the Statement express gratitude that same-sex blessings, or marriages, are not obligatory, declare respect for gay and lesbian persons and express a firm desire to remain within the Anglican Communion and the Episcopal church itself. "(We) will do all in our power," the bishops write, "to 'maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace'" (Ephesians 4:3). The Statement then concludes with an invitation for likeminded bishops to join the twelve existing signers, "We invite all bishops who share these commitments to join us in this Statement, as we seek to affirm our loyalty to our beloved Church even as we dissent from this action."
What are we to make of this? In the first instance, traditionally minded Anglicans should applaud the bishops' bold stance. They have affirmed orthodox Christian teaching on marriage and sexuality in the face of the majority opinion of their colleagues. They have done so clearly and in accordance with the title deeds of the Church, arguing from Scripture, the Prayer Book, and the universal Apostolic tradition of the church catholic.
In the context of six of the signing bishops being currently under investigation for disloyalty to the Episcopal Church under an anonymous Title IV disciplinary complaint, the Indianapolis Statement is undoubtedly brave. It may well also act to serve as a rallying point for conservative, or even moderate bishops who feel that the Episcopal Church has gone too far down the labyrinthine road of the pansexualist agenda. Let's hope so; it would send a powerful message of hope to Anglican Christians in North America who want nothing more than to believe and practice the Faith that has been revealed by God and held by the faithful everywhere, at all times and in all places.
Let's also be very clear that the dissenting minority who signed on to the Indianapolis Statement are just that, a minority, and a small one at that. It seems unlikely at best that the Episcopal Church will change its transgenderist trajectory, despite the most cogent arguments from Scripture, the Prayer Book and Apostolic Tradition. That boat has sailed. Likewise, precedent argues that the Statement Bishops will receive no meaningful support from the so-called Instruments of Communion, namely the Archbishop of Canterbury, the Lambeth Conference, the Primates of the Anglican Communion and the Anglican Consultative Council.
These things will not ride to the rescue of traditional Episcopalians, as evidenced by the failure of the Windsor Report, the Dar es Salaam Communique, and now the Anglican Covenant itself. To put it bluntly, there is no mythical 7th Cavalry to ride to the rescue of beleaguered traditionalists in the Episcopal Church.
At present, as with the ordination of women in the 1970s, there is a "conscience clause" written into A049, the resolution which introduced gay-marriage into the Episcopal Church; bishops who do not want to make use of gay-marriage rites do not have to do so. With that in mind, the Indianapolis Statement Bishops must ask themselves how long it will be before that clause, as it was with the ordination of women, is removed. On that day, if it comes, may they have the courage of their convictions to leave a church that has ceased to be Christian in all but name.
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As technology advances and our lives get busier, the desire to make our lives more convenient grows stronger. With the rise and rapid evolution of smartphones, everyday tasks that used to require physical action now frequently need just the touch of a button.
Instead of purchasing a postcard and writing out a message by hand, we typically snap a photo on our phones and share it with our social networks. Instead of taking the time to make and pack a lunch, we can simply open an app and have food delivered right to our desks.
While we certainly are excited about the changes and global reach that technology brings to our lives, we wanted to use this week's Mashable Photo Challenge to focus on things that are closer to home. Specifically, we're thinking about the things in our lives that are homegrown.
While homegrown could mean something you grew in your backyard — such as the bundle of carrots at the top of this post, or the completely homemade Mr. Potato Head above — you could interpret homegrown in many different ways. A handwritten postcard or a sandcastle is homegrown in its own way.
Another important element of this challenge is location. You could send us a meaningful moment or location from your hometown. Anything that is homemade in any way — or something that you've built from scratch — is perfect. Just snap a photo and send it to us!
How to Enter the Challenge
Take a picture that shows us something homegrown.
Tweet your photo to @mashablehq with the hashtag #MashPics. If you need more than one tweet to write your caption, just send us another tweet. OR
Drop your photo into the picture widget below.
We will choose images based on composition, originality and overall appeal.
Submit your photo by Wednesday, June 6 at 12:00 p.m. EST. We'll feature some of our favorite photos on Mashable, as well as on our Facebook page. We can't wait to see your photos! | <urn:uuid:bf54a4d5-1706-4e0f-92b8-19c86b319c05> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://mashable.com/2012/06/01/mashable-photo-challenge-homegrown/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94724 | 401 | 1.585938 | 2 |
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As the fall salmon run winds down, steelhead activity picks up. In the rivers, water levels are up a bit after all the rain. Those with a good current should have a fair to good number of steelhead moving in. This is the time of year to catch muskie and pike because they go on a feeding frenzy. Inland lakes are usually good for panfish this time of year.
SOUTHEAST LOWER PENINSULALake Erie: Most anglers are targeting perch from Brest Bay to the E Buoy in 18 to 22 feet of water. A couple bigger perch were taken around the Raisin River buoys in 14 feet of water. Catch rates for walleye were slow but try straight out from Luna Pier in 16 feet of water. Those launching boats out of Sterling State Park need to watch for shallow water coming out of the channel as some of the buoys have been removed.
Detroit River: Walleye fishing in the upper river has been good. Catch and release sturgeon fishing has also been good. Not much on bass fishing but the action should still be good for smallmouth. Muskie fishing has been good.
Lake St. Clair: When boats can get out, fishing was very good. Perch fishing has been consistent with good catches off the Mile Roads, down to the Grosse Point Yacht Club and from Ontario waters. Muskie fishing has been very good.
St. Clair River: Port Huron seems to be the only place producing fish. Shore anglers caught steelhead and the occasional chinook when using red eye spoons. A few walleye are still being caught at night.
Lexington: Anglers are seeing more brown trout and salmon in the harbor but the bite was slow. Those casting spoons, rapalas or spawn have caught the occasional brown trout, steelhead or chinook salmon. A few perch were caught on minnows.
Port Sanilac: Had a few brown trout in the harbor but the fish were not biting.
Harbor Beach: Walleye were caught off the north wall by those casting at night.
Port Austin: A few perch were caught on minnows. Those casting did catch a couple chinook salmon.
Saginaw Bay: Perch anglers have done well out near Spoils Island, in the old shipping channel and out near Buoy 18. A few are going out to the Spark Plug. Catch rates were slow from Quanicassee to Caseville except for a few small perch. Bluegill action in the marinas was hit-or-miss.
Saginaw River: Is producing some perch at the mouth and out from the Bay City Yacht Club. Most are using perch rigs with shiners. A few walleye were taken at the mouth by those using jigs and minnows.
SOUTHWEST LOWER PENINSULA
St. Joseph: Pier anglers caught steelhead and whitefish on spawn.
St. Joseph River: A good number of steelhead passed through the fish ladder at Berrien Springs. Shore anglers caught fish when drifting spawn bags while boat anglers picked up a few when casting plugs. The fish cam is back on line.
Paw Paw River: Has more steelhead than salmon. Shore anglers are drifting or floating spawn bags.
South Haven: Pier and shore anglers are casting spawn or body baits for steelhead.
Kalmazoo River: Steelhead fishing is on and those drifting spawn bags are catching fish.
Grand Haven: Is producing a couple steelhead and menominee whitefish off both piers. Still-fishing with spawn is the key. For whitefish try a single egg or spikes on a small hook. Catch rates were hit-or-miss.
Grand River at Grand Rapids: Has steelhead and the occasional brown trout being caught all the up to the Sixth Street Dam. Some are using a pink or chartreuse spawn bags while others are trying a jig and wax worm. Hot-n-Tots seem to work well off the Fulton Street Bridge. Those fishing off the parks have caught crappie and bluegill on minnows, leaf worms or wax worms.
Grand River at Lansing: Coho are still being caught but the action was starting to slow. Some are using small spinners while others are using small spawn bags. Pink and chartreuse were the hot colors.
Muskegon: Anglers are steelhead fishing off the south pier however no fish were caught. One boat out trolling in 40 to 100 feet of water caught one steelhead on a gold and orange spoon.
Muskegon River: Is producing steelhead and the occasional salmon below Croton Dam. Try casting small spoons, crank baits and spinners or drifting spawn.
Whitehall: Anglers still-fishing with spawn have caught steelhead off the pier but the bite was slow. A few whitefish were also caught.
NORTHEAST LOWER PENINSULA
Cheboygan River: Anglers are still catching some fresh chinook salmon at the Cheboygan Dam. A couple steelhead were also caught by those using spawn. The run could go for two more weeks.
Rogers City: Brown trout are in the harbor in good numbers and anglers are just starting to catch them. There should be some excellent brown trout fishing in and around the marina and Calcite Harbor for the next few weeks. Try casting spoons, rapalas or rattle traps. Lures that agitate the fish seem to be working best early to mid-morning or late afternoon into the evening. Windy and nasty days were also a good time to fish. The few boats that are still going out have caught smaller chinook, steelhead and Atlantic salmon in 50 to 90 feet of water. Lake trout are numerous but the season is closed. Good colors are green, blue, orange and silver, black and white or purple. Use anything that glow early and late.
Alpena: Yellow perch have been caught in the marina when using leaf worms and minnows. Early or mid-morning was best. Very few boats have been out.
Thunder Bay River: Salmon are being caught near the 9th Street Dam and the bridge. Rapalas and spawn worked best. Some steelhead were taken on spawn. Yellow perch were caught near the 2nd Street Bridge.
Harrisville: Salmon are still trickling into the harbor as well as the occasional steelhead. Small boats are still launching. They have caught a couple steelhead and walleye when long lining with spoons, body baits or J-plugs. Shore anglers are floating spawn or casting spoons.
Au Sable River: Salmon continue to make their way up to the dam. Most anglers are drifting spawn or casting spoons. Recent rain has caused the water levels to come up and the current is moving swiftly. This will encourage more fish to come in. Look for the number of steelhead to increase as fall progresses.
Tawas: Had a large crowd of perch anglers fishing off the pier. Some limit catches of 7 to 10 inch perch were taken. A few salmon and brown trout were caught at night.
Tawas River: A few salmon were caught by those drifting spawn.
Au Gres: When boats can get out, they caught some perch in the shipping channel, south of Pt. Au Gres and near the Rifle Bar in 25 feet of water.
Au Gres River: Is producing some small perch. A few salmon are still being caught near the Singing Bridge.
NORTHWEST LOWER PENINSULA
Petoskey: Anglers harvested some fish past the mouth of the river, but many were thrown back because they were in pretty bad shape. Waders and anglers fishing off the rocks near the “bobber hole” were using spoons, flies, spawn bags, and skein. Most were fishing in the river, but some are fishing off the beach near the breakwall and off the piers with spoons or spawn. They have caught chinook, a couple pink salmon and coho.
Bear River: The number of anglers as well as the number of salmon has declined. Water levels were up and the current was fast after the rain. Anglers using spawn, skein, artificial eggs or yarn have caught coho and pink salmon. A couple steelhead were taken but anglers are still waiting for that run to get started. Pink salmon were caught near the mouth and a 27 inch lake trout was caught on pink yarn at the dam.
Charlevoix: Fishing was slow but steelhead and menominee whitefish were caught on a single egg just off the bottom near the Cement Plant. A few boats that were out just off the pier may have been targeting perch. The area near Medusa Creek has slowed down quite a bit. The few anglers out there were using spoons, spawn bags, and single eggs.
Traverse City: Anglers were mostly targeting perch, smallmouth bass, whitefish and cisco. Perch anglers were still-fishing with minnows, wigglers or shrimp. Most of the fish caught were small but those willing to sort out the small ones can still get enough fish to take home. Cisco were caught by those jigging 50 to 100 feet down in 80 to 120 feet of water.
Elk River: Chinook, coho, steelhead, and lake trout have been caught near the power dam by those using spawn bags. Many of the coho are fresh but most of the chinook are deteriorating. More steelhead are starting to show up. The fish are averaging 6 to 8 pounds.
Boardman River: The weir has been lifted. Anglers were targeting salmon, steelhead, and lake trout. Most of the remaining chinook salmon are in poor condition. The coho are in good shape and anglers should see more steelhead coming into the river very soon. Skein and spawn bags are producing the best.
Frankfort: Both the Elberta and Frankfort breakwalls have been producing good catches of steelhead ranging 8 to 10 pounds. Most are using chartreuse and pink spawn bags with glow floats. The early morning bite was best as the action was hit-or-miss throughout the day. Those able to get out to the Bank did find three year old chinook, coho and steelhead 40 to 100 feet down in 150 to 200 feet of water.
Onekama: The North Pier is still showing activity for coho and steelhead. They are hitting on spawn bags in the early morning. Those casting glow spoons in the pre-dawn have caught a couple steelhead.
Portage Lake: Water levels are very low so the fish are in much deeper water. Bass and panfish were caught in 18 to 22 feet.
Manistee: Pier anglers and those surfcasting are catching steelhead when conditions are right. They are fishing off the piers and the beaches.
Manistee River: Salmon are on the definite downslide. Fish are still there but most are actively spawning and therefore not biting. Recent rain did bring some nice chrome steelhead into the river.
Ludington: Pier and surf anglers are catching steelhead when using salmon spawn.
Pere Marquette River: Rain did push steelhead up into the river. Most fish were caught on spawn. Those looking for salmon will still find a few fish however they are almost done spawning so they are not hitting anything.
Pentwater: Pier anglers still-fishing with spawn are targeting steelhead however catch rates were very slow. Those surfcasting with spawn seem to be doing better.
Keweenaw Bay: Those trolling have caught a mix of coho, chinook, steelhead and lake trout. The bite was slow but those putting in the time have caught a few fish 25 to 60 feet down in 30 to 70 feet of water up from the Falls River, Sand Point and north to Carla’s. Anglers fishing from the pier in L’Anse have done very well at times. Near the South Portage Entry, lake trout were caught on the southwest side of Big Reef. In Traverse Bay, lake trout were taken in 25 to 50 feet of water near Buffalo Reef.
Fall’s River: Is producing coho and steelhead for those casting spoons and spinners or drifting crawlers and spawn bags.
Marquette: Surface water temperatures were at 52 degrees. Boat anglers were averaging two to four lake trout with the occasional coho or steelhead mixed in. They are fishing primarily east of the White Rocks and from the Carp River to the Chocolay River in 60 to 150 feet of water. The lake trout had not yet moved in for spawning. Shore anglers caught a few coho. A couple steelhead were taken on spoons.
Dead River: Angler activity was low. A few chinook salmon could be seen. Try drifting flies. Water levels are currently low.
Menominee: Pier anglers at the marina and the lighthouse are still catching a few salmon but the fish are turning dark. Brown trout and steelhead have also been caught. Anglers are casting spoons and twister tails or jigging and still-fishing with spawn bags. Walleye fishing seems to be done. Those targeting them near the Cedar River caught smallmouth bass instead.
Menominee River: Walleye fishing was very slow for the few boats going out. Night anglers fishing off the Cat Walk near the Hattie Street Dam caught a few walleye and smallmouth bass but not without putting in their time. Most were drifting rapalas in the current. During the day, those fishing off the rocks near the first dam at Hattie Street caught a few brown trout, steelhead, chinook and pink salmon. Some are drifting yarn or spawn while others are casting spoons, rapalas or twister tails.
Little Bay de Noc: Walleye reports were mixed with most anglers fishing the northern bay and going as far south as the Black Bottom. The best reports came from those trolling stick baits in the evening between the Second and Third Reefs in 14 to 23 feet of water. Day anglers did best from the Black Bottom to the lighthouse when trolling or drifting crawler harnesses in 20 to 35 feet. Perch fishing was fair north of Butler Island in 14 to 25 feet. Good perch fishing in the Escanaba Yacht Harbor when still-fishing crawlers around the boat slips. Those fishing east and south of Butler Island caught northern pike on spinners or crank baits in 10 to 15 feet of water. Water clarity has been very good but water temperatures are still warm.
Escanaba River: Shore anglers caught salmon up near the First Dam. Even though the run seems to be winding down, anglers reported the best catches of the season so far when using spoons, crank baits and J-plugs up near the active turbans.
Big Bay de Noc: Reports have been few but some were still targeting smallmouth bass in Snail Shell Harbor. They are fishing 25 to 30 feet down off the drop or in shallow waters 8 to 10 feet deep. Most are using crawlers or minnows. The perch action in Garden Bay should start to pick up soon.
Munising: Small boats were staying near the mouth of the Anna River and targeting coho, splake and whitefish. Catch rates were slow and most of the splake were sub-legal. Pier fishing decreased as catch rates were slow. The fish averaged 2 to 3 pounds and some were turning dark. A couple steelhead were caught but splake fishing continues to be unusually slow and the fish are running small.
Grand Marais: Few anglers were out. Mild weather allowed a couple boats to go out trolling in the bay and near the Sucker River. Steelhead was the main catch along with the occasional coho. Light winds slowed the shore fishing for steelhead. No limit catches to report and most were lucky to leave with one or two fish. Boat and shore fishing around the bay have been impacted by the construction of the new breakwall. The water between the end of the new wall and shore is very shallow.
St. Mary’s River: Smallmouth bass have been caught off Rocky Pointe and Birch Pointe by those jigging tube baits with skirts. Walleye are starting to bite on the north end of Munuscong Bay. Use planer boards with crank baits in 8 to 14 feet of water off the rock piles around Moon Island. This is also a good area for smallmouth bass when using minnows. A few muskie in the 38 and 40 inch range were caught east of Kemps Point near Tea Cup Island and the shipping channel. Anglers did best when trolling large crank baits or black rubber bodied shad.
Detour: Walleye have been caught one mile north Swedes Pointe by those trolling planer boards with crank baits in the early morning. As water temperatures drop and the light levels get lower, bigger fish are being harvested. Young salmon can still be found at the Detour Reef and Lighthouse. Yellow perch effort at the marina has not been good possibly because of the dredging and installation of the new docks. Off Drummond Island, yellow perch were caught in 10 to 12 feet of water on the south end of Ashman Island and Rutland Island. Some 9 to 11 inch fish were mixed in with the 7 to 8 inch fish.
Cedarville and Hessel: Have fair perch fishing. Bush Creek and Beaver Tail Creek have salmon thanks to the higher water levels.
Carp River: Still has a few chinook salmon and steelhead are also moving in and hitting on spawn. Water levels have come up so salmon are staging at Nunn’s Creek. Anglers have a great opportunity to cast out into Lake Huron for salmon when standing near the mouth. | <urn:uuid:882013e4-e976-4d47-acc7-dcaedc08df01> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.dailytribune.com/article/20121024/SPORTS06/121029738/steelhead-activity-picking-up-in-michigan-waterways | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.974363 | 3,799 | 1.5 | 2 |
In these tough economic times, our relationship with money–the way we spend it, save it, even think about it–has changed. In the process, this relationship may have become strained. Inner Economics wants to help you improve that relationship. Inner Economics is hosting two 1-day workshops on January 30th and February 26th that targets the current relationship you have with your money. This workshop is designed to help you gain awareness around this relationship and to create a foundation for positive, long-term change to your relationship. For more details, check out Inner Economic’s website.
Archive for November, 2009
Before fall is officially over and winter is upon us (in all its holiday-music-glory), be sure to check out the Oakland Youth Orchestra’s Fall Concert this Sunday, November 8th, at 3 PM at the Allen Temple Baptist Church. Admission is free, so why not check out some live classical music for a relaxing Sunday afternoon? For more details, visit their website.
The Women’s Initiative is hosting their Taste of Success event on Monday evening, November 9th, at the Claremont in Berkeley. This event will honor the 2009 Woman-Owned Business award winners and graduates entrepreneurs from the Women’s Initiative program. You’ll want to come to check out the goods and services these new women-owned businesses have to offer, as well as the food and drink! Click here for more details.
Juice for a just cause? Yes, please! OneCalifornia Foundation partner organization, the Wall Street Wizards, is having a tasty Jamba Juice fundraiser this week until Sunday, November 8th. Purchase any item(s) from any of the four participating Jamba Juices (Oakland City Center, Hegenberger, Emeryville, and Bayfair), bring the fundraiser flyer or mention the Wall Street Wizards, and 20% of your purchase will benefit this organization! You can download the flyer here. Please spread the word to all of your friends and family!
The Wall Street Wizards is a financial and capital markets literacy program designed to teach urban youth money management skills and expose them to jobs in the financial sector. The Wall Street Wizards program core focus in on the areas of money management, investing, math, economics, and the preparation for youth to make adult level financial decisions. For more information on this innovative program, check out their website. “If there was ever a time for our youth to begin learning about finances, it’s now!” | <urn:uuid:5a0059be-8e40-4f86-a594-8989a49c71b0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://onecalfoundation.org/blog/?m=200911&paged=2 | 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 | 0.948244 | 514 | 1.734375 | 2 |
Read below to see how you can join the cause. (You don’t want to donate to a nonworthy organization, of course)
Senator Yee, PhD:
Here’s the release from his conference this afternoon at La Casa de las Madres on Valencia Street:
Local Community Launches Relief Efforts for Haiti
Senator Yee donates to effort, urges local residents to help people of Haiti
In response to the earthquake in Haiti, Senator Leland Yee (D-San Francisco) joined several local organizations and members of the local Haitian community today to highlight relief efforts in the San Francisco Bay area. In addition to urging local residents to help provide assistance, Yee also donated $1,000 to the relief effort.
“The enormity of this disaster is indescribable,” said Yee. “The people of Haiti, who were already extremely underprivileged, need the world’s help. I urge everyone in the Bay Area to give what they can, even if that is $5 to help save lives.”
The 7.0 earthquake that devastated Haiti earlier this week has left hundreds of thousands of people dead, missing, or hurt. The nation’s already weak infrastructure has been crippled.
“We have unfortunately seen many disasters around the world, but this may be the most catastrophic we have ever seen,” said Yee. “Considering the poor condition of Haiti prior to the earthquake, coupled with the complete collapse of what they had, this is truly a dire situation. As a child psychologist, my heart cries out for the children of Haiti, who have lost mothers, fathers, sisters, and brothers, and in some cases their entire family.”
Even prior to the earthquake, Haiti was one of the world’s poorest and least developed nations, and the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere. It had a gross domestic product (GDP) of only $7 billion in 2009 (San Francisco alone as a GDP of nearly $300 billion). Per capita GDP was $790 (San Francisco has a per capita GDP of $62,300).
Haiti’s 9.7 million people have the lowest literacy rate in the region (65.9%). Only half of Haiti’s children are unvaccinated. Prior to the earthquake, nearly half the causes of death were attributed to HIV/AIDS, respiratory infections, meningitis and other diseases (World Health Organization). Approximately 30,000 people each year suffer from malaria, and tuberculosis is ten times higher than any other Latin American country.
Haiti was the first independent nation in Latin America, the first post-colonial independent black-led nation in the world, and the only nation whose independence was gained through a successful slave rebellion.
Today, Yee recognized several organizations for their relief efforts and urged local residents to make contributions to the following:
California Nurses Association
NNU Haiti Disaster Relief Fund
2000 Franklin, Street
Oakland, CA 94612
American Red Cross Bay Area Chapter
85 Second Street, 8th Floor
San Francisco, CA 94105
Direct Relief International
27 S. La Patera Lane
Santa Barbara, CA 93117
Haiti Emergency Relief Fund
East Bay Sanctuary Covenant
2362 Bancroft Way
Berkeley, CA 94704
Partners In Health
P.O. Box 845578
Boston, MA 02284-5578 | <urn:uuid:12a528cb-bab5-4bdb-b56b-fd6cc654c8f9> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://sfcitizen.com/blog/tag/haiti-emergency-relief-fund/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.933958 | 717 | 1.773438 | 2 |
Will Life-Saving Emergency Care Be There When You Need It?
The National Report Card on the State of Emergency Medicine assesses the support that each state and the District of Columbia provides for their emergency care systems. A wake-up call for policymakers, the report underscores the challenges facing patients who need emergency care and recognizes efforts to address these needs. This report should motivate state and national policy support for improving emergency care systems. With a financial crisis and failing health care system, never before has the emergency department been more vital to everyone. | <urn:uuid:90b7db7d-7d7c-488f-99ec-f1eba031457f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.emreportcard.org/ | 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 | 0.936614 | 108 | 1.695313 | 2 |
After leaving Glacier and Waterton, we drove south to Helena through open plains with a small city occasionally along the road. Two such cities were Bynum and Choteau (Cho-toe). It turns out both had something to offer in the way of fossils. Bynum was really small, and it wasn't until we got to Choteau some 30 miles south that I found Bynum had a pretty large display of fossils. In fact, it turns out that this area of Montana and the plains to the east into the Dakotas contain many fossils, including some very large dinosaur remains. I went into the Old Trail Museum in Choteau that I realized this. The museum offers paleontology courses, day camps, and field trips. You can find more about the OTM by clicking here. Unfortunately, we weren't really prepared for this discovery, but I can certainly see going back there next summer. Actually, I had planned on taking a paleontology field trip with our local Sierra College geology department this summer, but had a schedule conflict. The trip would have gone to a site near the Montana and N. Dakota border.
Helena turned out to be an interesting place. Lots of history. We stayed there overnight. We toured the places mentioned below and went off to an area called the Gates of the Rockies about 20 miles north of Helena to the mouth of the Missouri River.
We took 89 and another road down to Helena.
In Helena, we toured the capitol building and the historic museum nearby. The museum contained a number of C. M. Russels's paintings and sculptures of the West. We also took a nice leisurely history tour of Helena on the auto (wheeled) train.
State Capitol at Helena The Unabomber was kept here for awhile
The St. Helena church was not only interesting for its architecture, but for an incident that took place there many years ago. The incident involved an inebriated pilot who flew (sideways, I hope) between the two towers. He was eventually fined for the stunt, and became a pilot for the presidential plane Air Force One!
The auto tour train. Cathederal of St. Helena
I took a cruise on the Missouri from the Gates of the Rockies. There is lots of wildlife along the river; however, our mid-afternoon trip revealed only one bald eagle and some other birds.
Floating down the Mighty Mo. I got a turn at the wheel. Hang on!
The scene along the Missouri of an infamous disaster, Memorial plaque
which killed a number of fire fighters in the forties.
Off to Spokane where we departed back to Sacramento. We spent a good part of a day in the area, revisiting the site of the 1974 World's Fair we attended back then.
River front area and site of fair Need a ride?
Japanese gardens at Manito Park.
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Changes last made on: August 11, 2002 14:00:00 2002 | <urn:uuid:f5d1ee4a-7551-4263-97c6-566084d59d19> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.speckledwithstars.net/Helena.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97493 | 616 | 1.585938 | 2 |
The lovely Rachel of Book Snob sent me Diana Tutton’s Guard Your Daughters, a book that is reminiscent of, but not nearly as good as, I Capture the Castle. The five Harvey sisters have grown up rather isolated, with their invalid mother and their father, a famous mystery writer. The eldest, Pandora, was recently married, and now the next two girls, Morgan (our narrator) and Thisbe, are sort of on the lookout for men to marry, even though they have basically never met a man before. Two men show up in pretty short order, and everyone goes into a tizzy.
It’s not better than I Capture the Castle. I didn’t want to compare them, but you can’t not compare them. I kept thinking that Diana Tutton should have put some sort of “inspired by” notice in the front of Guard Your Daughters, because the basic structure of the book is so much like I Capture the Castle. Instead of crazy Topaz (wonderful Topaz!), there’s the frail, affectionate Harvey mother; instead of the failing Mortmain father who has not written anything in years, there’s the successful mystery novelist Harvey father. But in both cases it’s a group of girls living strange lives in isolated rural parts of England, wishing they would have a chance to meet men and get married and be taken away from all this.
Like I Capture the Castle, the book is, in the main, extremely charming. Morgan and Thisbe and Cressida are all fun characters to spend time with. I loved it that Cressida was the put-upon sister, and the way Morgan and Thisbe know they should pick up some of the extra chores but then don’t bother because they know Cressida will do it. That is a true thing from real life, y’all. I am okay about doing chores, yet when I lived with a girl who was a neat freak I never did anything. Because she was going to do it better, and with fancy cleaning tools. I also loved it when Pandora would come home from London and talk to Morgan about how strange and isolated their life was — you could see Morgan’s dilemma exactly, how she was hurt by what Pandora was saying, and also how she recognized that there was an extent to which Pandora is right.
What made it work less well for me than I Capture the Castle was that it came off a little affected. Cassandra Mortmain could have come off affected too, except that Dodie Smith very sensibly had another character accuse her of being self-consciously naive early on; and then the reader didn’t have to worry about it anymore. I like knowing that the writer knows more than her characters. That’s how it should be! The writer shouldn’t be taken in by the character’s quirks! I didn’t feel that Tutton was in control in the same way. Not Thisbe and not really Pandora, but the other three sisters are affected in the way they think and talk, and nobody ever really talks about it. I kept worrying about that instead of focusing on the story.
My other small gripe was the way characters dropped in and out. The dashing Gregory — spoiler alert! — we scarcely hear from again. Patrick is in and out; Pandora is in and out; I don’t know, it made it difficult to know what the thrust of the story was. But when they were in, they were really fun. Diana Tutton draws wonderful characters, and I enjoyed them one and all. I could have done with more from Gregory, who was entertaining, and more from Pandora, who was serious and engaging and could have been fun interacting with her sisters.
Overall very good! Recommended. | <urn:uuid:6d1362b7-bdc1-499c-8be3-26238fab8500> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://jennysbooks.wordpress.com/2012/12/02/review-guard-your-daughters-diana-tutton/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.981516 | 790 | 1.53125 | 2 |
2008-2009 MESPA Minnesota School of Excellence
|Darren Schuler, principal, Delano Elementary School|
Delano Public Schools, ISD #879
“Our district’s vision states that ‘Educational Excellence is our
Foremost Goal.’ This statement resonates with our staff, parents and
community who work together to promote continued academic excellence.”
Darren Schuler is the principal of Delano Elementary School, a preK-4 institution located 27 miles west of the Twin Cities, serving approximately 770 students. From the Children Are Learners murals in the centrally located media center space to the organization of grade level commons and classroom areas, the school’s bright and modern facility provides a positive, caring, and exciting environment where learners flourish. Delano Elementary takes its mission—to educate individuals into lifelong learners possessing the skills, knowledge, creativity, self-worth, and citizenship necessary to succeed in a rapidly changing society—very seriously.
In acknowledging the MN School of Excellence recognition, Schuler said: “Our district’s vision states that ‘Educational Excellence is our Foremost Goal.’ This statement resonates with our staff, parents and community who work together to promote continued academic excellence. Delano Elementary’s tradition of academic success is truly a team approach. We have a supportive school community and a dedicated teaching staff that take pride in providing the best possible educational experience for its children.”
Delano Elementary’s Minnesota Comprehensive Assessment scores, that consistently rank among the highest in the state, reflect the outstanding academics achieved by students and staff. The skilled staff is committed to delivering a high quality educational program in a well-organized and disciplined climate. That educational program offers a coordinated curriculum including math, reading, written language, spelling, social studies, and science. Beyond these basics, students also receive instruction from specialists in physical education, music, media skills, and in technology.
The curriculum and special programs at Delano Elementary reflect a commitment to providing educational experiences that prepare learners for the world beyond school doors. Emphases on advancing education through technology and providing educational opportunities to expand global awareness are two initiatives that demonstrate those values. Over a five-year span, the elementary school is in the process of installing SMART Boards and sound-field systems. With a teacher-in-residence from China, Delano Elementary has incorporated Mandarin Chinese language instruction and cultural exposure opportunities to students in every grade level through short specialist units. Some examples of innovative and collaborative practices geared toward student achievement are: the Fathers Read Every Day (FRED) program, a Title I initiative implemented to promote a culture of readers; a subscription to the Reading A-Z online program to provide leveled readers to students at a variety of reading competencies; the Adventure Club after school and summer school targeted services programs; visiting author/illustrator lyceums each February; and a school-wide residency cycle that brings programs and resources into the building and encompasses every area of the curriculum.
The Talent Development program at Delano Elementary serves gifted and talented students in grades k-4. Students are provided opportunities through school-wide enrichments and pullout units, with participation maintained through teacher recommendation and parent referral and formal identification completed in fourth grade. Several programs are available to challenge high potential students across a variety of content areas, such as math, reading, writing, reasoning, and creative expression.
Delano Elementary fosters a strong relationship with its parent and community members. The staff, students, and parents work together to create partnerships essential for learning, resulting (among other benefits) in better attendance, improved behavior, increased educational outcomes, and a safer learning environment. Many of the elementary teachers take advantage of a program called “Lunch with Seniors.” This community-outreach program schedules one classroom per month to visit the community senior center at lunch and socialize with the senior citizens of the community. The luncheon usually ends by students reading to the seniors, performing a reader’s theater skit, or performing a short music concert. In addition, monthly trips are taken to the local long-term care facility, where the students and residents engage in reading, crafts, games, singing, and interviews.
to the school’s mission is a parental support program provided through the local parent-teacher organization, as well as a large cadre of parent and community volunteers. The Tiger's Tale Publishing Center, staffed and maintained by community volunteers, allows students to turn their own creative stories into books that have a professionally-published look. The Math Lab extends and enriches skills taught through classroom instruction. Volunteers contribute in a variety of essential opportunities, from administering differentiated spelling tests, providing supplemental learning supervising the Math Lab, performing for students in various readers’ theater and guest reader programs, as well as helping teachers with photocopying, hanging up student artwork, and other classroom-based jobs. Delano Elementary School averages over 6,000 hours of volunteer time per year.
|May 15, 2009: Matthew Dorschner (l), chair, MN School of Excellence Program, presents Darren Schuler (principal, Delano Elementary) with a plaque announcing the school's endorsement as a MN School of Excellence.|
Delano Elementary Minnesota School of Excellence Celebration:
May 15, 2009
Delano Elementary School will hold a celebration to honor its Minnesota School of Excellence validation on Friday, May 15 at 1 pm in the Delano Tiger Activity Center. This will be a vibrant, active event – with children, families, school staff, and community dignitaries. Parents are being asked to arrive early to form a welcoming line for Delano Elementary students and staff as they enter the gymnasium.
In addition to the entire elementary student body and community of school parents, special dignitaries include: Minnesota State Senator Amy Koch, Delano Mayor Joe McDonald, Delano Superintendent Dr. John Sweet, school board members, city council members, and Minnesota Elementary School Principals' Association MN School of Excellence Program Chair Matt Dorschner. Dorschner will present Delano Elementary with their Minnesota School of Excellence plaque.
In addition to the Minnesota School of Excellence validation, the program will include presentation of the Minnesota School Spotlight award, and a Change for Kids award for the school's designation as the second highest fundraiser. Students will be central to the celebration with each grade level performing two songs accompanied by the high school band.
Special Minnesota School of Excellence t-shirts, donated by Landscape Structures of Delano, will be given to all students and staff. | <urn:uuid:99e4abcc-1f23-4571-ae89-0925a8522d4c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.mespa.net/printview/Delano_Elementary.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.938519 | 1,357 | 1.828125 | 2 |
Where Your Dreams Become Reality
You are reporting the following post to the moderators for review and possible removal from the forum|
Poster: Billy the Kid
Subject: RE: Wisconsin father found guilty in prayer death case
this is not true. subatomic particles behave randomly and their position can only be predicted with some level of probability.[/quote]
Fair enough. It is true that I simplified earlier.
However, the fact that there is a probabilistic component to the future paths of particles does not seem to really impact the core issue raised. That is, the notion that anyone has any such thing as a free will, that there are free choices made, etc is all 100% illusory. All of it, everyone, and again every thought and action taken are determined by physical laws (including the random events at the subatomic level).
In particular we (the posters here) each have no real choice in this discussion - every keystroke is determined by physical laws and randomness. Indeed "we" don't really exist in the commonly understood sense of beings possessing a free will.
I would posit that no one ( not 'Noone' :D ) is truly capable of believing this about themselves.
Hit the submit button below if you want us to review the post. If you feel this is urgent or want a reply, email us at firstname.lastname@example.org about the post and please include a link to the thread the post is on and what page number/post on that page it is | <urn:uuid:8ed7d8db-a44b-4c1d-8500-8afe777124fe> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.letsrun.com/forum/report.php?board=1&id=3150224&thread=3145708&page=5 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.95005 | 311 | 1.539063 | 2 |
A high surf advisory is in effect for the Labor Day weekend, meaning dangerous riptides and strong waves could threaten throngs of beachgoers. Janet Kwak reports from Newport Beach for the NBC4 News at 11 p.m. on Aug. 31, 2012.
As Labor Day weekend approaches, the National Weather Service has a warning for beachgoers: beware high surf and dangerous riptides.
High-surf advisories were issued for Los Angeles, Orange and Ventura counties. The OC advisory lasts until 6 p.m. Monday, while the others expire Sunday at 6 p.m.
"Surf and swell conditions could be hazardous to anyone entering the water late this week and this weekend, with dangerous rip current potential," according to the NWS.
Breakers along the SoCal coast will range between 4 and 8 feet, with sets up to 10 feet possible in some areas. Water temperatures should stay between 63 and 72 degrees.
High surf also brings flooding concerns in low-lying areas like the Balboa Peninsula, where sand berms have been put in place in an attempt to keep the water back.
Beachgoers are being warned to stay off jetties and out of the water along stretches of Huntington Beach and Baby Beach at Dana Point due to high bacteria levels.
The NWS recommends that beachgoers planning to swim talk to a lifeguard before entering the ocean.
"The lifeguard is familiar with the beach and can tell you where the safest places are to swim," according to the NWS.
Around noon Friday, dozens of body surfers were catching waves at The Wedge, a popular yet dangerous section of the Newport Beach coastline. Some ocean enthusiasts say these are the days that make or break body surfers.
"It's just the power of the ocean. It's unique and a lot of fun," said surfer David Green of Long Beach.
Lifeguards said they were concerned about possible crowds during the weekend. All lifeguard towers are expected to be opened. | <urn:uuid:7125bb88-30b1-4d6a-87eb-d619d7fff5e7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.nbclosangeles.com/news/local/Weekend-Weather-High-Surf-Riptide-Advisory-168179416.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961234 | 411 | 1.78125 | 2 |
Sand Hills State Park
4207 E. 56th
Hutchinson, KS 67502
GPS: N38 07.372 W97 50.746
In 1974 the Kansas Park and Resources Authority acquired 640 acres of land from Kansas State Industrial Reformatory. These 640 acres bacame the 22nd State Park in Kansas by a House Bill signed by Governor Robert Docking. Shortly after this transfer, the Dillon Family of Hutchinson donated an adjacent 320 acres. With the donation, the Park and Resources Authority was able to acquire another adjacent 163 acres with Federal Land and Water Funds, thus establishing the present 1,123 acre Park.
Sand Hills State Park, a 1,123 acre natural area, has been preserved for its sand dunes, grasslands, wetlands, and woodlands. Popular activities at the park are hiking and horseback riding. Other activities include hunting, bird watching, wildflower walks, jogging and just simple relaxation in the country. There are 8 distinct trails within the park which are broken down into interpretive, hiking and horseback riding trails. There are 14 miles of trails which weave in between 10 to 40 feet high sand dunes, through grasslands and trees, and around ponds. Modern facilities are limited to two vault toilets.
Sand Hills State Park is primarily a trails park but we do have a Special Upland Game Hunt in bird season and that application is now done online and will be available to apply for in July.
Vehicle permits are now required on vehicles parked in the parking lots at Sand Hills. We no longer require trails permits. To purchase an annual permit, go to any Wildlife & Parks vendor, or to our office at Cheney State Park. To purchase a daily vehicle permit, check the self-pay station at each entrance. Seniors are Kansas residents 65 years of age and older.
We have construction under way for the new campground at Sand Hills State Park. It will be in construction for some time with a 10-acre pond going in and 50 campsites, some with corrals for horses. Road work has begun and the major construction part is underway. Plans are in the works to add rental cabins at some point in the future also. Our patrons really seem to enjoy the horse trails, and we receive many calls asking when the campground will be done. We are doing things as the budget allows so patience is what we are asking for.
The Trails at Sand Hills are used quite often by groups of horseback riders and hikers that enjoy the rolling terrain, wildlife viewing, and scenery. The park patrons will notice a new bridge that was constructed over the winter.
Annual vehicle permits are also available through the Cheney State Park office. Unfortunately, we are no longer able to process annual permits from the self pay envelopes as we require more information now in order to purchase them. Contact for Sand Hills State Park needs to be made through the Cheney State Park office, phone 316-542-3664 or e-mail us at firstname.lastname@example.org for more details.
Deer permits are now on sale at Wildlife and Parks locations, and Archery Deer hunting is available at Sand Hills by special permit by contacting Cheney State Park at 316-542-3664. | <urn:uuid:f33d27a7-e47c-4622-a775-a7f004192437> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://ksoutdoors.com/news/State-Parks/Locations/Sand-Hills | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950321 | 666 | 1.507813 | 2 |
Senate conservatives last week waged a hard-fought and principled battle to protect both U.S. taxpayers and the integrity of the free market against the Washington establishment that favored a government bailout of General Motors and Chrysler. By late Thursday it appeared they had won. But within hours of the end of negotiations in the Senate, the White House undercut conservatives by announcing it would consider using taxpayer money from the Troubled Assets Relief Program (TARP) to bailout the Detroit automakers. Sadly, this wasn’t the first time the White House felt entitled to use TARP funds in a manner inconsistent with how the program was sold to the American people. TARP has morphed into political slush fund and now is the time to end this program by canceling further Treasury authority to allocate funds.
Even assuming the the purest of motives and perfect application, the justification for TARP was always precarious at best. As a cardinal principle, the federal government should not intervene to save firms from the consequences of bad business decisions. But in rare cases, a second principle comes into play: When the basic functioning of a market is breaking down, with potentially disastrous consequences for the entire economy, there can be a case for government to act to help restore a functioning market. The accelerating turmoil in the financial markets in the early fall, with the prospect of the entire credit system seizing up and a spiraling economic collapse, provided an urgent case to apply the second principle.
At that time, it appeared the critical step was for the U.S. Treasury to purchase “toxic assets” (consisting of mortgage-backed securities of uncertain value) so that credit markets could function smoothly again. TARP was created to address this necessity. Treasury has since concluded that the purchase of toxic assets is no longer practical and has embarked on a troubling pattern of potentially harmful ad hoc policymaking and mission creep. A major example of this was Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson’s announcement on Nov. 12 to suspend the original purpose of TARP and to use flexibility granted under the law to explore a wide range of alternative uses of the funds, from guaranteeing securities backed by student loans and credit card debt to using TARP to refinance problem mortgages. This step confused markets, reintroduced uncertainty into the pricing of mortgage-backed securities, and triggered a lobbying frenzy for ever-more “flexible” uses of the TARP funds.
The only way to prevent further misuse of the program is to end it. Congress should not only say “no” to any request to use the second half of TARP funds, but it should repeal TARP entirely. Specifically, the authority to spend the second $350 billion of TARP funds, and any remaining uncommitted funds from the program’s first $350 billion, should be revoked. Huge dangers still remain in the financial markets, but the Federal Reserve has sufficient existing powers to address short-term dislocation in the financial system. Congress should also investigate the origins of the crisis, including the role of private entities like the credit rating agencies as well as the role of government institutions like the Fed, the Securities and Exchange Commission, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac. Government will always have a role ensuring a free market system, but TARP is hurting, not helping, that cause. It must be eliminated.
- Contrary to comments by unions, automakers and Congress, buyers wouldn’t shun products from a U.S. automaker that filed for bankruptcy, according to a USA Today/Gallup poll.
- Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) is demanding the White House help homeowners facing foreclosure before she approves the use of any more TARP funds.
- The United Auto Workers gave more than $ 1 million to pro-bailout congressmen.
- Real estate agents in rural areas are now using an obscure home-loan program offered by the U.S. Department of Agriculture to move buyers into homes.
- In a move that will probably not affect his day-to-day duties all that much, Time magazine’s Washington bureau chief has agreed to become Vice President-elect Joe Biden’s director of communications. | <urn:uuid:51902c87-9aa5-4398-8f46-4365ae8e42f1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blog.heritage.org/2008/12/16/morning-bell-time-to-end-the-tarp-bailout-parade/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.948801 | 848 | 1.75 | 2 |
New York Times Exposes Chinese Hackathon
Why would The New York Times admit Thursday that Chinese hackers had a go at it for four months? To show that it got the story -- one that involves military-style cyberattacks, possible retaliation for reporting on China's ruling family, and the fact that the hack wasn't caught by the newspaper's computer security provider.
The New York Times reported on Thursday that it was the victim of a four-month cyberattack that originated in China. The intrusions may have been part of a shift by Chinese hackers to apply the same sophisticated infiltration techniques on foreign media that have been used in recent years to steal data from international corporations.
The attackers cracked passwords and gained access to a number of computers, the newspaper reported, although it had a Symantec security system in place.
"Advanced attacks like the ones at The New York Times underscore how important it is for companies, countries and consumers to make sure they are using the full capability of security solutions," said Symantec spokesperson Candice Garmoe. "The advanced capabilities in our endpoint offerings, including our unique reputation-based technology and behavior-based blocking, specifically target sophisticated attacks."
Forty-five pieces of custom malware were installed; however, only one was identified and quarantined by the Symantec antivirus product.
"Turning on only the signature-based antivirus components of endpoint solutions alone are not enough in a world that is changing daily from attacks and threats," Garmoe told TechNewsWorld. "We encourage customers to be very aggressive in deploying solutions that offer a combined approach to security. Antivirus software alone is not enough."
The New York Times did not respond to our request for further details.
China's Response to Negative Coverage?
While the Chinese government denied that it was behind the attacks, the newspaper said the methods used have been associated with the Chinese military in the past.
"The CPC is very sensitive to criticism, especially during a leadership transition wracked by scandal due to the Bo Xilai affair," said Jon Lindsay of the University of California Institute on Global Conflict and Cooperation. "The hackers were likely looking for evidence and names of Chinese sources, presumably to punish them.
"Their technical tradecraft was a bit sloppy, which is typical of Chinese hacks," Lindsay told TechNewsWorld, "yet there has been little incentive to improve in the absence of any real political consequences from the U.S."
The attacks also seemed timed to specific news coverage and could be the CPC's way -- via the hackers -- of responding to what it saw as negative press coverage. An Oct. 25 Times report found that relatives of prime minister Wen Jiabao had accumulated several billion dollars through business dealings.
"Chinese government officials said the reports would have consequences, and the attacks began shortly thereafter," said Charles King, principal analyst at Pund-IT
This is not the first time that China's government has been linked to cyberattacks, and the evidence gathered suggested it almost certainly originated in Beijing.
"China's government has steadfastly insisted that such activities are prohibited by law," King told TechNewsWorld. "By carefully monitoring the attacks, comparing their methodologies to known past attacks emanating from China, and tracking them over time to amass and solidify its evidence, the Times is essentially calling China's bluff and labeling its official claims of innocence as bogus posturing."
Seeking Out Opposition
Given China's previous crackdown on any vocal opposition within its borders -- including those online -- this attack appears to be consistent with government policies.
"It is there if you go back and read Sun Tzu," said Alan Webber, industry analyst and managing partner at Altimeter Group. The attack may not only be China's way of silencing the press, but in an ominous development could also be an attempt to edit what is said about the country.
"This is very much a way for China to see what is being written and to get ahead of the news cycle," Webber said, "but what happens if they can get into the news sites and modify the story a little bit -- make it a little more positive about China? That is just one worry."
Another concern is that Chinese citizens who have spoken out against the government might not believe that the media can protect them, even with information given on background or as an anonymous source.
"They could be looking to find out who the sources are in the anti-China movement, such as in places like Tibet," Webber told TechNewsWorld. "The New York Times from that perspective is a viable target."
How the Newspaper Responded
If the hack could scare off some sources, why would the paper announce that it was hacked for so long? One possibility: to reassure those same potential sources.
"One of the reasons they did report this was to highlight how well they responded to the incident," said Irv Lachow, director of the program on technology and national security at the Center for a New American Security. "They stressed that no sensitive email was compromised and personal data was not taken."
The Times noted that the hacking was detected early on, and then the bad guys were tracked and monitored as they moved through the network.
"This was a way of ensuring that no harm was done," Lachow told TechNewsWorld. "One reason to put the story out was to highlight these efforts, and put out the story before others reported on it."
It may come down to credibility, something that the Times has long been careful to protect. That doesn't mean, however, that all the sources will still feel comfortable spilling secrets or opinions the next time.
"It will make some sources think twice about talking to reporters -- for good reasons, but that is kind of sad," Webber said.
Nor will it just be China that should be monitored for such attacks on the free press. Any foreign government that doesn't want dissent in the media could unleash hackers on journalists.
"There are a lot of national and non-national efforts into this," said Webber. "This is going to be perpetual and ubiquitous across a number of avenues, and this is just the tip of what we can expect." | <urn:uuid:afc35bad-4f95-4051-95ca-3ea5f8ee511e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.linuxinsider.com/story/cyber-security/77212.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.976741 | 1,268 | 1.773438 | 2 |
20th October 1995 Articles
Lord Salisbury was Prime Minister and Foreign Secretary. William Gladstone was his own Chancellor. If Tony Blair enters Downing Street, he should appoint himself Education Secretary
This may sound nonsensical. After all, education is only one of the challenges facing Britain; to tackle it, Tony Blair no more needs to be Education Secretary than Margaret Thatcher needed to be Employment Secretary to take on the unions. How could a prime minister possibly devote himself to one issue at the expense of all others? How could he ignore economic and foreign issues-issues which seal the fate of governments? And anyway, wouldn’t it be unconstitutional? Even if it wouldn’t be, should the prime minister really spend his time deciding the fate of village primary schools?
The constitutional and practical objections-neither of them of much consequence-will be addressed later. Yet there is no denying that the proposal involves a strategic change in the role of the prime minister. That is its rationale. Without such a change, any Blair premiership is likely to prove as unfocused and ultimately unfruitful as those of Harold Wilson and James Callaghan.
If you’re a prospect Magazine subscriber, click here to read more. | <urn:uuid:ce1e0e81-c8e4-4cee-84af-57d9628f7336> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://andrewadonis.com/1995/10/20/jobs-for-the-boy/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968655 | 246 | 1.8125 | 2 |
Did You Know:
Every Nine And a Half Minutes Somebody in the U.S. is infect with HIV.
Please keep checking back as the website will be getting updated on a regular basis.
Did You Know:
Every Nine And a Half Minutes Somebody in the U.S. is infect with HIV.
Please keep checking back as the website will be getting updated on a regular basis.
CDC recently launched a Spanish-language version of the HIV awareness and anti-stigma campaign, Let’s Stop HIV Together. The campaign—Detengamos Juntos el VIH—features HIV awareness and testing information in Spanish through a new website. New campaign materials, including videos, posters, and brochures, are now available on the English- and Spanish-language websites.
Nowadays, among the best financial solutions that offer immediate money involve the cash advance loans. These are the popular payday loans and they provide easy loan plan for many qualified borrowers. With the advancement of the Internet, they became more accessible that guarantee the best monetary solutions. The entire procedure is ready online and within few minutes only, the lender can make decisions on whether to approve the borrower or not.
If you are one of these millions of payday loan borrowers out there, you definitely can benefit from a payday cash loan. By simply visiting the website of a trusted lender, it will be easy to review the information and complete the application form with ease. Filling out the form may only take you 5 minutes and after submitting it, you can already expect a call from the lender about your application. By the way, it does not matter if you have negative credit rating as long as you adhere to the rules of the lender, you can qualify.
Because of this advantage, many individuals who have poor credit scores are not hesitant to apply for the offered cash advance loans. They know that these are the best solutions that can help them overcome their financial woes immediately. Lenders who offer these loans do not perform credit checking and this is the most interesting advantage that these loan seekers are considering today.
In most cases, the important factors that lenders consider will be your monthly income, age, job, bank account and home address. They do not make direct calls from your company just to ask your employment status. They always depend on the information you included on your application form. This is the reason why you must not include false details about your personal information.
Once you completed the form and think that you qualify for the loan, it is possible to get the loan approval. After few minutes only, the lender will notify you on how to obtain the money. Of course, this is the importance of your bank account because the releasing officer will make a direct transfer of the funds through your account. This procedure usually takes place within the day of completing your application.
One click cash Payday cash loans or cash advance loans are certainly the fastest ways to get instant money from reliable lenders. Again, the procedure does not involve any third party before getting a loan approval. This means that you will have a direct transaction with the lender and if you qualify, they transfer the money directly to your bank account within 24 hours. The approvable loan amount usually depends on your paycheck. If you are earning decent income, you can apply for a decent loan value. As expected, you have to follow the exact repayment date to close out your loan on time without any delay.
Due to the continuing popularity of these types of loan options, it is very important to evaluate the lender you choose meticulously. Remember that some lending companies are promising their clients reasonable loan deals. However, some of them include hidden charges that they never explain to their clients. As expected, this kind of disappointing transaction may lead to a serious debate involving the borrower and the lender. In order to avoid this scenario, you must determine the reputation of your lender before you finalize the loan transaction.
Lastly, if you can ask a referral from a trusted friend or relative who worked with a reputable lender before, this can definitely help you make precise decision. Still, you have to determine if you really need to apply for a loan or not.
Payday loans are becoming popular by the day when it comes to short term financial help. However, these payday loans, also known as cash advances are not quite a rosy picture when it comes to the reality. In fact, there are many payday loans companies that are simply minting money at the expense of your needs. The cases of exploitation of customers by the payday loans companies are quite common. They charge very hefty interest rates on their loans which can be as high as $30 per $100. Moreover, in case of non repayment the APR charges reach 400 percent on an average and well beyond it if the payday loans companies desire. Therefore, you must always look forward to not falling prey to these companies and manage your finances yourself. Here are some ways in which you will maintain a healthy distance from oneclickcash.com payday loans companies.
Maintain an emergency cash fund- You must have a few hundred dollars in cash at home for emergency needs. This cash will normally be of help when your liquidity is zero and when you need to make small payments immediately. You can even chose to get a piggybank like saving option so that you are never short of cash.
Maintain a separate savings account- You must always maintain a separate savings account wherein you may be able to save a small portion of your monthly income aside and don’t touch it unless you really need it. This would help you save in the long run and even if you have to get some money immediately, you can use an ATM right then and get the cash.
Never spend more than you can afford- Our income levels cannot always afford everything that we might desire. Therefore, it is better to stick to the minimalist thinking and get only what you can buy.
Plan your finances- When you plan your finances in advance, you make sure that there is at least something that you can depend upon on a later date. Moreover, you will be more in control of your finances and this way, it will become easier for you to spend money whichever way you like.
Always avoid debt- Planning your finances properly and saving for a rainy day are always great options for anyone who wishes to keep it simple and clean. Once you get a debt, you will hardly be able to recover. So learn to live on what you have or increase your income by fair means.
Payday loans have now become the mandate when it comes to getting short term financial liquidity. However, we see that as with any other loan options, there is quite a lot of discrepancy and advantages when it comes to payday loans as well. Though 37 states accept such kind of business, 13 of them consider payday loan as illegal or simply don’t have any provisions for such kind of a business in their geographical boundaries. Here is a critical review of these loans as we see what are the advantages and disadvantages of the payday loans.
Advantages of Payday Loans
Fast- These loans are processed really fast and you don’t have to do stand in a queue or talk to loan representatives about your needs. A simple online application form is generally enough typo secure you a loan within a day. They don’t take much time in processing your application which is great for those who want instant loans.
Easy- It is very easy to get an ameriloan.com payday loan. You only need to be 18 years of age with a bank account and an income of $1000 per month. This is the only condition that is required. There are no cumbersome formalities to be followed and once you get through these types of loans, it is very easy to repay as well. Your bank account will be debited automatically with the principal amount plus the interest and you would not have to worry much about anything else after that.
No good credit score- Though No Fax Payday loans require a very high credit score; other loans are available to anyone. You do not need a very high credit score and even if your credit score is negative, you can get a payday loan easily.
Disadvantages of Payday Loans
Very high rates of interest- these type of loans have a very high rate of interest which can be as high as $15 to $30 on every $100. When it comes to repayment, it becomes quite difficult to pay these loans with the interest.
They have very aggressive collection policies- many of the payday loan companies would go for legal notices, legal suing and even taking the help of collection agencies in order to get their money back.
Not a long term solution- payday loans are only for a short duration and you never get a solution to long term financial problems. They are only good for some instant cash needs.
It has become really important to get a payday loan these days. Whether you are working in a company or have your own small business, there will be times when you have to spend more than your monthly budget and you will not be able to get some instant cash at the moment. Certainly, those are very problematic times and one does not simply understand how or why he should not get some instant cash liquidity. These are exactly the times when you need a payday loan. If you don’t opt for it, you will have to try to regulate your spending and also get to make a new savings plan. However, these things normally do not show results immediately and you have to feel sad about this lack of money.
Let us take an example. Suppose you have to buy a new smartphone on the 25th of this month and you have already pre-ordered it. It is now 23rd and you have to spend the money on the new school trip of your kids. To buy the smartphone you had saved $250, but now the whole reserve has been eaten up. What would you do now? It is just two days left for the order to arrive and you do not have anything to depend upon. Cancelling would not be possible at the moment or you will lose the money you paid in advance as well. In such a situation, you can always get a ameriloan payday loan.
You don’t even have to worry much about it. Simply go the website of a payday loan company and they will ask a few simple questions like your personal details, contact details, income and employment details, the amount that you need for the loan and your next payday. You can submit the documents of your car to them by email or by fax. Within a few minutes your request will be acknowledged. After that the payday loan company would verify all the details and send you another email. When you receive this email, simply confirm your agreement to the loan terms and conditions and the loan amount will be deposited in your bank account on the very same day. This is the reason why you will be able to make all the payments that you need to and buy the new smartphone as well. Your loan amount and interest will be automatically debited from your bank account on the next payday.
You might experience a tight situation that pressures you to spend money even if you have few bucks left. This is a very disheartening scenario, especially if you are expecting your salary at least 14 days from now. If you have other financial burdens, you will definitely experience the most frustrating monetary problem that can even affect your normal life. In order to defeat this condition, you have to spend time researching online and locating the best creditor who offers no fax payday cash loans.
We call these no fax because when submitting a loan application form, it is not necessary to fax actual requirements to the creditor. By simply filling up the form with the exact information, the processing officer will scrutinize it carefully and if the borrower is eligible, they prepare the money for deposit through the bank account of the borrower. If you apply for a no-fax payday loan, you can have the money within 24 hours regardless of not submitting collateral or presenting your credit record. The creditor approves a loan without investigating your credit scores or asking you to present a security/collateral.
To become an eligible loan seeker, you need to provide the exact information about your bank account, employment and salary, home address, phone number and age (must not below 18 years old). Your employment and salary will help the creditor determine your capacity to pay back the money. On the other hand, your bank account is important when the releasing officer transfer the money directly to your account.
Nowadays, it is not only in America that these types of financial loans are popular. If you spend time doing research online, you will find out that countries like Australia, Canada and UK are as well offering cash advance loans to countless loan seekers. Just like in the US, there are certain guidelines that they need to follow before approving the loan. Of course, payday loans worldwide feature the same requirements and conditions.
Majority of the possible urgencies can include hospital payment, car repair, home restoration, insurance payment and utility bills. These are the usual obligations of many loan seekers and without extra cash before the end of the month; it is somehow difficult to deal with these issues. However, it is very important to apply for the exact loan amount to avoid losing the whole paycheck only to settle different expenditures.
As opposed to borrowing money from the bank, it is advisable to consider a no-fax 500 fast cash payday cash loan. This type of loan is the most favorable solution that can offer you quick cash even your salary is not yet available. Without a doubt, this is the exact option that you have devoid of wasting your time because you have the money within the day already. Unlike if you apply for an ordinary loan, the lender often approves the loan after few days or so.
If you have poor credit rating because of your existing debts, a payday loan creditor will not reject your application. Nonetheless, you have to follow the exact requirements and submit an error-free application form. Of course, using the Internet is the fastest and easiest method to apply for a cash advance loan because the transaction is very convenient and only needs few minutes to finish the submission.
Without a doubt, a payday loan application online is the best option to get an easy loan approval. Because of the advantage of not presenting formalities when you apply, you can complete the transaction even while at home. It is not necessary to travel just to visit the lender because once your loan is approved; the lender deposits the money direct to your personal bank account within 24 hours.
With the use of the Internet today, it is now easier for us to determine the best loan options online. It is not difficult to locate many dependable loan providers by researching with care. By doing this, it is not impossible to find the most trusted loan provider that offers satisfying payday loans.
These types of loans are becoming the first options of many people who want to get instant cash. They do not want to waste their time visiting a private lender and line up with hundreds of applicants inside the office. These people want immediate money to handle their financial concerns in the middle of the month. This situation usually occurs before their monthly paycheck and they need money to settle different household expenditures.
For many individuals who are getting decent monthly paycheck, it is always possible to enjoy the benefit of these cash advance loans. Applying is easy because an applicant must be 18 and up, with fixed monthly salary, certificate of employment, phone number, permanent address and personal bank account. These are actually the basic requirements when submitting a loan application. The whole process is ready online without visiting the location of the lending firm.
Although these types of loans offer fast approval to many borrowers, the loan amount is not that big and the repayment term is shorter. That means if an applicant gets the approval within 24 hours, he/she needs to prepare the payment within 30 days period. The good thing however is that the money will be available immediately after the lender granted the loan. There is no delay when releasing the money if an applicant presented complete requirements.
Without a doubt, the opportunity to apply for a one click cash payday advance loan provides the exact comfort through eliminating stress. Another important factor about this loan is that the creditor does not inquire anything about negative credit rating like arrears, insolvency, defaults or IVA. This kind of advantage is what many people are considering why they choose to submit applications from the best payday loan creditors.
It is also possible to apply for a cash advance loan without presenting any security/collateral. In addition, this particular loan does not require faxing or emailing actual documents. Once finishing the application form and evaluated it without mistakes, submitting it to the creditor through online transaction is easier. If the loan officer examined the application and approved the loan, they will prepare the money for deposit to the bank account of the lender.
For many people who need quick cash to cover their unexpected finances, they will surely take advantage of these payday cash loans. The payment term is flexible and despite including interest rates, these are reasonable while assuring a fast loan approval at the right time. This is the reason why they consider these financial aids as great support in eliminating burdens in life.
Again, with the different possible urgencies that we may experience, the offered cash advance loans can be the best solutions to consider. Through getting a loan approval from a reputed lender, it is easier to manage different unwanted finances like sudden accident, budget for an important gathering, school expenditures or medical bills. Well, a reliable payday loan lender can surely help a borrower to defeat these uncertainties positively.
There are actually different types of payday loans today and they offer different repayment terms as well. Because of this, it is very important to choose the exact loan amount to apply. Lastly, proper research and evaluation is necessary to assure the best loan option available through the Internet.
Getting a payday loan may look like a blessing. Most of the times the formalities involved are quite less and some loans are even paperless. Moreover, you can get them easily within just 24 hours and that is why such loans are quite popular amongst all the sections of the workforce. There is always a problem in making ends meet and when it has to be about an emergency cash need, you always find a payday loan company ready to lend you some cash. However, the payday loans are always questionable due to the very nature of paying it on the next payday. How can such a great financial instrument be damaging your finances? Read on for the top reasons why getting a payday loan must not be looked upon with rose spectacles.
They are ‘very’ expensive- Though it might seem a good idea that you get a loan as fast as 24 hours and everything happens through your bank account and your own involvement is quite less with everything, it is not always great to see a sizeable chunk of your income go to the payday loans company. They normally charge $15-$30 on every hundred dollars and you might not be very happy to pay this amount if your income is $1000 dollars, which is the minimum required in this case. If you have borrowed more than $100, you better get ready for a hefty interest.
They are not long term financial solutions- it’s okay to get a ameri loan payday loan if you need some emergency cash which can easily be met by your ext payday. However, it is not always a good option for those who want long term financial solutions. Payday loans themselves don’t last for more than a month and do not offer much money to the borrowers. Therefore, it becomes important that you only get payday loans when you really need cash that can be repaid on the next payday.
Perennial Borrowing- This is one of the greatest disadvantages of getting a payday loan. Even if you can pay the loan by the next payday, you will always find an excuse to get another payday loan. If you are able to pay the loans and find yourself in trouble in the next month as well (remember you have already paid a huge amount to them already). You would again take a loan and become a perennial borrower. Some companies even have incentives for second and third time borrowing and so on.
Payday loans have become the talk of the town as the best means of getting some fast cash for immediate needs. The younger people are more attracted towards this option but there is a general trend in the whole workforce to get a payday loan. Here are some of the top facts that you need to know before opting for a payday loan.
Payday loans are all short terms loans. You get a loan on a specific day of the month and have to pay the principal amount as well as the interest on the loan on the next month’s payday. This is where the loans have received their name.
Payday loans are generally taken for less than a month and it is a great option for those who want some instant cash but their liquidity is quite less.
There are not many restrictions on who can get a payday loan. You just have to be a US citizen and 18 years of old. Your monthly income should be at least $1000. Plus, a bank account is necessary. Therefore, there is not much that is needed for these loans.
You don’t really need to have a good credit standing in order to get a usfastcash payday loan. Even if you are a newbie or if you have had a bad credit history in the past, you can get a payday loan.
Though payday loans are generally unsecured, you may be asked for collateral. It is only in the advertisements that they show that you don’t need anything to get a payday loan. In reality, having a house or a car is always better for securing the loans and candidates with nothing in hand are generally not considered.
You can apply online for your payday loan. The payday loans companies have their own websites where you can easily visit and apply for a new payday loan. You will instantly receive an answer form the company regarding the submission of your application.
You can get a payday loan in as less as a day. Normally, the loans are processed really fast and the money is deposited directly in your bank account. Therefore, you can get some real ‘instant’ cash without much hassle.
Payday loans have very high rates of interest. You might have to pay as much as $15 to $30 for every $100 of loan.
Payday loans are either banned, illegal or not a recognized activity in 17 states.
The Best Alternative Financial Aid – 90-Day Payday loans
If you are considering a loan that will not pressure you to repay within a month or less, it is best to consider a 90-day payday instant loan. This option is probably more advantageous than applying for a 30-day loan option. Although the term is longer, the interest rates are still considerable while getting immediate cash on hand.
Typically, you can apply from $150 up to $2,000 loan amount that is payable within 90 days or 3 months period. If you qualify for the loan, you can easily deal with your finances even without using your paycheck yet. On the other hand, your paycheck plays a huge role when repaying the loan amount by the end of the month.
Probably one of the most interesting features of payday loans is that they never require actual document submissions. If you need instant cash without wasting your time preparing actual documents when applying for a loan, a us fast cash payday loan is a surefire option for you. The lender releases the money on time for your spending as long as you follow the exact conditions.
Compared to typical loan options also, payday cash advances are unsecured loans. What do we mean when we say unsecured loans? This simply means that you will not present any collateral when applying for a loan. The lender is not going to ask you about submitting a security or collateral before evaluating your application. Because of this, many loan seekers are considering these types of loans as no document faxing loan options. Today, even people living in Canada, Australia and United Kingdom are taking advantage of these loans not only in United States.
Definitely, if you need extra dollars before your paycheck becomes available, you can always depend on the different offered payday cash loans. For the past few years, these loan options are the most popular solutions of many minimum wage earners out there. They immediately submit a loan application when they need urgent cash before the end of the month. Of course, these men and women understand the exact rules of lending companies that offer such loans. They do not just submit their application without evaluating the terms and conditions of the lending firm.
We have to admit that today; the online world can lead us to the numerous lending firms that offer us fast cash payday loans. Because of the continuing economical drawbacks worldwide, more and more people are depending on these loans. For them, applying for a payday loan and getting a loan approval is the most effective way to defeat their unpredictable urgencies. Moreover, they know that even if they have undesirable credit scores from other lending firms, lenders who offer payday loans do not scrutinize much on this particular issue. That means that they are more aware on checking the exact paycheck of an applicant and if it is suitable to cover the applied loan amount.
We may also consider these loans as straightforward loan solutions. One reason is that the entire loan procedure online is easier than ordinary loans. To illustrate, if you submit your application early, you can expect a feedback within the same day. In case the lender granted your loan, the will be sending you the money through your personal bank account. However, you have to make sure that your account is active to prevent any inconvenience.
Without a doubt, whatever types of financial needs you have to manage, you can overcome your worries having the best payday loan provider to help you. Nevertheless, you have to guarantee that you will be presenting the exact requirements to the lender to get a 90-day payday loan approval.
There are lending companies that do not accept loan seekers who have negative credit history. Even if an applicant is earning considerably and can present expensive collateral, these companies will never entertain his/her loan application. Is it still possible for this type of applicant to apply for a loan despite having bad credit history?
With the introduction of the latest payday loans no credit checking, many individuals who have poor credit records get the chance to apply for a loan during emergencies. Lenders who offer these types of united cash loans accept bad creditors if they can meet the exact criteria. As expected, the criteria are easy and after completing the requirements, the money will be available in time for financial emergencies.
Always remember that despite accepting loan seekers who have poor credit rating, payday loan lenders perform thorough evaluation before they release the funds. They see to it that these borrowers have the capacity to repay the money using their monthly paycheck. Lenders are smart when collecting the money, as they require an applicant to submit post-dated check. This check serves as an assurance to collect the money direct to the bank account of the applicant.
Despite the great advantage that these payday loans no credit check offer, it is very important to determine the exact rates of interest too. It is not difficult to do with the help of the Internet today. By simply visiting the website of a reliable payday loan provider, an applicant can immediately check the rates and other possible charges. There are actually numerous cash advance loan lenders out there and it is very convenient to locate the best option through proper analysis.
Although majority of the payday loan companies require higher rates of interest, the exact repayment term is shorter, which make them more advantageous. Meaning, despite presenting higher rates, they release the money faster within 24 hours and payable within a month or less. As opposed to typical lenders, they include higher rates and long-term repayment schemes. This is actually more inconvenient if you analyze the benefit of a payday cash loan. Moreover, banks and private lenders in no way will accept loan seekers who have bad credit scores.
Although no-credit checking payday loans offer fast loan approval to many borrowers, they only offer small amount of loan. In most cases, the available amount starts from $100 up to $2,000 and repayable within a month or less. However, they do not just approve a maximum loan amount as part of their rules. These types of loans provide urgent cash based on the paycheck of the borrower.
For loan seekers who want to apply for huge amount from a payday cash loan without credit checking, they can offer valuable collateral or security to the lender. The usual reason why these people need huge amount of cash is not just to settle minor financial emergencies. They often spend the money for a special event like wedding or baptismal party. Sometimes, there are folks who apply for huge amount to invest for a new vehicle too. Anyway, regardless of the exact reason, the important thing is that the borrower must repay the money on the right time.
Definitely, there are great benefits when submitting an application to a reputable payday loan no-credit checking lender. It is not necessary to present any report about the past credit history of the borrower. There is no need to submit any collateral and actual documents when completing the application. It is simply as following the guidelines and expecting the loan amount in less than one day already. Lastly, the repayment term is shorter and the borrower must never overlook the exact date to repay. | <urn:uuid:a9a0c927-5a86-4d1d-9afe-4bf3348cb0d3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.nineandahalfminutes.org/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966117 | 6,007 | 1.5 | 2 |
Does your child have lower blood sugars when it is hot out, regardless of physical activity?
Every year when the weather gets warmer, I find I have to back off on insulin settings for my T1D 7 year old, and then when it gets really cold I have to increase insulin settings.
I think the heat in the summer affects all of us and our insulin use. I go back on mine too and so does my daughter but in winter we both wind up taking more. Just saying..............
Yes, heat causes insulin to absorb faster. You're more likely to go low in hot weather. At the start of the summer, I typically decrease all my basal rates across the board. During cold weather, not only are you less active, but the cold makes absorption slower. The thing I like about summer is if I'm running high, I can just do a small correction and go for a brisk walk and I'll usually come right down.
I love to share this story:
I was living in a very temperate part of Guatemala and took a trip for a weekend to a beach town that was quite hot and humid. I had heard that a restaurant right on the beach served incredible homemade ravioli and decided to treat myself to something I rarely eat. I ordered and when I went to bolus my pen needle broke and I didn't have any spares on me! The hotel was a hot 15 minute walk each way back up the beach. So I decided to just enjoy the ravioli and correct later for the intense high I knew was coming. I got back to my room and tested - normal....one hour later...normal...two hours later...normal, etc. Huh? I finally guessed it was the heat and for the rest of the weekend bolused very little and fought lows even when I did!
For the last four years I've lived in first Guatemala and then the SF Bay Area where it rarely hits 80 degrees. Now I've moved back to an area where we have triple digits in the summer (though with very low humidity). It's already been up to 90 and I've been suntanning in my hammock and no sign of a change in insulin. Darn! I can't help but wonder if the beach experience had to do with a combination of humidity and more walking! Sigh.
Thanks for your responses; I didn't think I was going crazy! I've heard others say the lower readings in the summer are due to increased activity, but there are days where I really don't think she is more active and she still runs lower when the weather is hot. We live in Washington State, so it is hard to decide when to change her settings due to weather. It has been really nice here consisently for over a week, so I guess it is time! I already lowered her basal a tiny bit a couple weeks ago, but I guess it was not quite enough!
Same here I get very insulin sensitive in the summer...and the insulin resistence really kicks in in the winter, lol now IM not recommending this..cause I know what all the Dr's say about D and heating pads, but for me I've noticed sleeping with my heating pad in the winter kinda helps with the resistence some. | <urn:uuid:69a8549c-256b-434c-aaa5-8ed7e9df77f8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.tudiabetes.org/forum/topics/does-heat-affect-blood-sugar?page=1&commentId=583967%3AComment%3A2677439&x=1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.976675 | 665 | 1.546875 | 2 |
A scourge of the mainland
The Polynesians are loving and giving, and family is important to them. They come here to better their children, and find they have to work too many jobs to spend as much time with the children as they could in the Islands. The children make their own family among their cousins and friends, and often get into trouble.
If you had lived in the Islands, as I once did, you would see nothing like these gangs. It is a product of the mainland. How many strong, smart, beautiful young people must die before we find a solution?
Provo Daily Herald Web site | <urn:uuid:00c69f0f-97bd-4739-aed5-57c344568085> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.hcn.org/issues/305/15755 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.992097 | 126 | 1.5625 | 2 |
Twenty years after he was arrested, Pakistani microbiologist Mohammed Khalil Chisti is at last free to go home.
A Supreme Court bench of Justice P Sathasivam and Justice Ranjan Gogoi on Wednesday acquitted the 82-year-old of murder charges and allowed him to return to his homeland without any restrictions.
Commenting on the verdict, external affairs minister Salman Khurshid said such “gestures” could contribute to the “sense” between the two neighbours.
“We have to be pleased with the final judgement whether the judgement convicts or acquits. I think we have to salute the system. The system is objective, fair, transparent and effective,” he added.
Chisti got embroiled in a murder case in 1992 when he had come to India to visit his ailing mother in Ajmer.
After spending a few months in jail he was granted bail but not allowed to leave Ajmer ever since. He moved Supreme Court this year after the Rajasthan High Court rejected his appeal.
After Wednesday’s verdict, Chisti told HT: “The justice system in our countries (India and Pakistan) is a very lengthy one and something should be done to check human sufferings due to such delays.”
He also said he hoped the Pakistan Supreme Court would take up the cases of Indian prisoners who were languishing in jails there. | <urn:uuid:a7705b5e-b983-4c7e-b317-403aaf5ecd93> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.hindustantimes.com/India-news/NewDelhi/SC-allows-Chishti-to-return-to-Pak-without-restriction/Article1-971756.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.975816 | 293 | 1.710938 | 2 |
Washington (CNN) -- Delta Air Lines faces almost $1 million in fines for allegedly flying two jetliners without making required repairs, including repairs to the chipped nose cone of a Boeing 737, the Federal Aviation Administration said Wednesday.
In the case of the 737, an FAA inspector noticed the chips during a pre-flight inspection of the aircraft in February 2010, and brought it to the attention of the plane's captain. The chips -- in the radome, which houses weather radar and navigational equipment -- were deep enough to show the underlying fiberglass, the FAA said.
When the captain notified the airline's maintenance center in Atlanta, maintenance officials told the FAA inspector the damage was acceptable and no more maintenance was required.
After conducting additional research, the FAA inspector concluded that repairs were required, and said Delta had wrongly flown the plane 20 times in the five days following the discovery of the damage.
The FAA has proposed to fine Delta $687,500 for the alleged infraction of FAA rules.
The FAA also is proposing a $300,000 fine against Delta for operating an Airbus A320 on 884 flights in 2010 and 2011 after it allegedly deferred repair of a broken cockpit floodlight socket. Maintenance procedures allow one of the four dome lights in the assembly to be inoperative for no more than 10 days, but the airline flew the plane for seven months with the broken equipment, the FAA said.
"Safety is our highest priority," FAA Acting Administrator Michael Huerta said in a statement about the proposed fines. "Operators must follow the proper procedures to maintain their aircraft."
Delta issued a statement Wednesday saying, "The safety and security of our customers and crew is Delta's highest core value. At no time was either of these aircraft operating in an unsafe manner. Once Delta verified the concerns of the FAA, Delta initiated immediate and necessary actions to ensure that the aircraft were in full compliance with the regulatory requirements."
CNN's Dave Alsup contributed to this report. | <urn:uuid:ed2dbc81-01e2-4052-a733-9ade42ba97a2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.cnnwirestore.com/2012/07/11/travel/delta-faa-fines/index.html?hpt=hp_t2 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.960856 | 401 | 1.742188 | 2 |
It's been over 100 years since the families of many Old Forge residents immigrated here from Italy, but for one weekend every year those individuals get a sense of what home felt like for their ancestors.
The Felittese Association will put on its annual Felittese Festival Friday through Sunday, Sept. 7 through 9, at the Felittese Chapel grounds. This year marks the 25th anniversary since the festival was revitalized in 1987.
"The founding families came over here with their faith…and they had a chapel built, and the first picnic was a celebration in 1907," said Joe Terruso, Felittese Association board member.
The festival is modeled after one that is being held the same weekend in Felitto, a town in the province of Salerno, Italy.
Both festivals are held to honor Our Lady of Constantinople, who has been venerated in the town of Felitto since 1790. The Felittese Festival in Old Forge is designed to bring descendants of Felitto together for a weekend of good food, music and prayer, with a Mass scheduled for Sunday, Sept. 9, at Prince of Peace Parish at 10 a.m., followed immediately by a procession of the carrying of the statue of Our Lady of Constantinople to the chapel grounds.
"It goes back to the old days, after the procession…everybody used to make a dish and take it. It was kind of a festive gathering," said Charles Saleski, Felittese Association member.
Those involved were forced to halt the festival in 1939, due largely to World War II. Terruso said that even though they could no longer hold the festival, members of the association still honored and celebrated Our Lady of Constantinople.
"Prayer still went on at the church during those years," said Terruso.
The fact that the festival is rooted in something more than just entertainment is what Terruso believes has kept it going as long as it has.
"That's the only reason it's lasted. If it wasn't God, it wouldn't last. Things don't last when they're just quick and not steeped in religion, not steeped in the faith," said Terruso.
While those in the association still continued the Mass, there were many who missed the camaraderie that the festival created, and when the land that the Felittese Chapel grounds is currently located on became available in 1987, the association assumed ownership of it and brought the festival back to the delight of those living in Old Forge, and some who have left the area.
"People from the town, former residents, that are actually Felittese origin, they come from all over the United States just to come back, see people in the town, meet people and families, there's a lot of local interest in it," said Saleski.
Having the festival has also created an interest in the celebration from those in the community who do not belong to Felittese Association.
"The whole community, not just members of the association, is behind it. Tens of thousands of hours have been donated over the last 25 years by volunteers who have given their free time," said Terruso. "Everyone gives as much as they can, and that's the fuel that makes it go."
In addition to members of the Felittese, members of the Sons of Italy, Prince of Peace Parish and the community will be donating their time this weekend to the event. Many began volunteering as early as last year, helping to plan and prepare this year's menu, which includes tripe, sofritto, gnocchi, meatball platters, porketta sandwiches, sausage and pepper sandwiches, portabella mushroom sandwiches, pasta fagioli, as well as Italian pastries, including cannolis, biscotti, cheesecake, cookies and the pizza fritta.
The extensive menu is designed to satisfy the estimated 15,000 people who will be stopping by over the weekend.
"It gets very busy," said Christina Mordente, vice president of the festival.
Mordente and the other volunteers are confident they'll have enough food to cater to the crowd, having most of the cooking done, with 2,400 pounds of gnocchi, 7,000 meatballs and 600 pounds of tripe all ready to go.
The homemade dishes, as well as the live entertainment, have helped make the festival a success over the last two decades. This year's lineup includes performances by Fuzzy Park on Friday, Gold Dust on Saturday and The Poets on Sunday. All performances begin at 6:30 p.m.
And, even though the association is confident this year will be as successful as in year's past, they aren't resting on their laurels.
In an effort to improve on the yearly event, this year the festival will include the inaugural Race for Our Lady of Constantinople.
"I wanted to do this way back," explained Lou Terruso, race coordinator. "This year I finally decided I want to try it."
The two-mile race and fun walk will be held on Sunday, Sept. 9, beginning at the Old Forge High School football field, located at 301 1st St., and ending at the Felittese Chapel grounds, 145 3rd St., Old Forge.
Prizes will be given to the top finishers in each age group.
Registration will begin at the high school at 8 a.m., with the race scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. Cost to participate in the race is $15.
Proceeds from the race and the festival will benefit Our Lady of Constantinople Chapel, Prince of Peace Parish and local charities.
For more information on the Felittese Festival, visit http://www.facebook.com/mobileprotection#!/events/110422559104909/
For more information on the race, email [email protected].
What: 25th annual Felittese Festival
When: Friday through Sunday, Sept. 7 through 9
Where: Felittese Association, 145 3rd St., Old Forge | <urn:uuid:3fe7235e-6117-4b70-92c2-2843fa538036> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.golackawanna.com/stories/Steeped-in-tradition,199884 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970869 | 1,246 | 1.75 | 2 |
I have never imagined these verses to mean either of the two options you have identified, so I guess I must post the third which is the one that I have always believed.
Whenever I encounter the read ‘perfect’ as a description of a believer I have always considered it to mean simply ‘mature’ or ‘well rounded’ because there is no such thing as Christian perfection in this world in the ‘sinless’ sense.
Upon looking up the Greek translated as perfect in this verse it is τέλειον (teleios) which according to Strong’s is (a) complete in all its parts, (b) full grown, of full age, (c) specially of the completeness of Christian character.
So Paul is saying these offices were given until we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a matured faith. This would be in contrast to with what is latter written in the letter as “infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming” (Ephesians 4:14-15)
Therefore Paul meant a matured faith when he says ‘unity of the faith’ not a perfect faith in heaven, or a ridged forced external faith on earth. He meant a real faith that genuinely joins believers in love to one another even if outwardly there are many divisions. These type of believers he calls men.
It does not matter how divided in our visible profession, by the many differences among
us, or differenced by the several measures of gifts and graces we have received, so long as by faith and love we are brought to the perfection aimed at. Until we are brought there we are just children and babes in Christ. Actually those who force external unity through their traditions upon others, causing those divisions among us to increase, would are deemed by Paul as being still infants in Christ and carnal on account of it:
Brothers and sisters, I could not address you as people who live by the Spirit but as people who are still worldly —mere infants in Christ. I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready. You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere humans? For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not mere human beings?
What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building. (1 Corinthians 3:1-9) | <urn:uuid:6c23390f-21c9-49c7-9bbf-90686bf61717> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://hermeneutics.stackexchange.com/questions/2147/were-offices-given-to-produce-unity-of-the-faith-or-to-hold-things-in-place-un | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.978663 | 692 | 1.757813 | 2 |
Taking the reins of the Georgia Solar Energy Association (GSEA) is an exciting opportunity. My recent arrival coincides with the results of GSEA’s effort to amass a comprehensive snapshot of solar development so far in Georgia. The picture it creates is impressive.
More than 900 solar installations now cover the Georgia landscape, with many more in the planning stages. The state’s total solar capacity has now topped 15 megawatts, which is enough energy to power 2,000 homes.
Significantly, this acceleration of solar development in Georgia has increased awareness of what renewable energy can mean for our state. We have taken a great stride forward in energy diversity, security and innovation.
The best news of all is that we are only beginning to realize our widely recognized and academically analyzed solar potential. A 2010 analysis by an Arizona State University professor ranked Georgia third in the nation in solar potential.
Solar development’s pace and promise in Georgia is not the only bright sign of what our energy future holds. Our research also reveals that solar installations are currently operating in 82 of Georgia’s 159 counties. From wineries and schools in North Georgia to farms and manufacturers in Middle Georgia to homes and small businesses in Coastal Georgia, solar is becoming a more prominent feature of our energy portfolio.
Georgia’s solar industry continues to grow rapidly, and firms are hiring workers in manufacturing, installation, sales and distribution, as well as a variety of other roles. The Solar Foundation’s 2011 Census places Georgia in the top 20 nationwide with more than 1,700 solar jobs.
And Georgia-made products, Georgia-based companies and Georgia workers have created this trend.
What does this tell us? The proliferation of solar development in Georgia is not an isolated, urban phenomenon. Solar energy can be applied in every geographic region of the state and in every sector of the state’s economy. Solar energy is making Georgia’s farms more viable, its small businesses more efficient and homes statewide more affordable and valuable for their owners.
The Georgia Solar Energy Association’s membership includes acknowledged experts in solar manufacturing and installation, academia, finance, energy conservation, and the law. GSEA leads the effort in Georgia to promote the economic and environmental benefits of solar energy through education, advocacy and industry support. Working together, we can make Georgia a leader in sustainable energy and green job growth because increasing our use of solar energy in Georgia just makes good sense.
We believe that Georgia should benefit from the global solar investment that is defying the economic malaise gripping so many other sectors of the market. According to January 2012 figures released by Bloomberg New Energy Finance, the total worldwide investment in solar reached new heights in 2011 at $136.6 billion. In 2011, the U.S. invested $55.9 billion in solar development, up 33 percent from the previous year, according to Bloomberg.
Given Georgia’s abundant sun and robust business environment, our state should be a much larger part of that investment trend than we currently can claim. Georgia can be in the top tier of the U. S. solar economy with its innate solar advantages, a number of significant projects in the pipeline, common-sense policies that create a fair competitive environment for solar, and the amount of innovative talent available here to bring it to fruition.
GSEA is working with business, civic and political leaders to create a business and regulatory environment in which the promise of solar to make affordable, safe, renewable energy widely available is fully realized. On June 15, we will host our 3rd annual Solar Summit at GTRI on 14th Street, where we assemble the region’s most respected experts to talk about the latest in policy, opportunity, technology and best practices in a day-long forum. Last year’s Summit, as well as our Annual Meeting in December, sold out.
In October, we will once again offer our annual Solar Tour, where solar projects around the state, including many new and exciting developments, will open for close-up inspection. This offers everyone from the casual curiosity seeker to the sustainability professional a chance to learn more about individual projects in their own communities.
Like many Georgia residents, I have been unaware until now of the remarkable advances in technology that have made solar energy more reliable and more affordable than ever. With high-quality solar panels now available at prices more than 30 percent below what they cost just a year ago, solar energy has never been more of a bargain. And once installed, its fuel source is perpetually available for a price we all can afford – free – and it will never rise.
How much money you save on your energy needs with solar is up to you in consultation with a solar professional. Solar energy provides endless possibilities for using clean energy in Georgia to make businesses more productive, taxpayer dollars more effective and homes less costly to operate.
In 2012, the Georgia Solar Energy Association will be working harder than ever to bring the good news of solar to the residents of this state and to make its benefits as widely and easily available as possible. GSEA’s dedicated group of knowledgeable professionals is moving Georgia forward with cutting-edge technology, job creation and sustainable, domestic energy. If you want to join us, visit our website, www.gasolar.org. | <urn:uuid:d80a61ad-a8a7-4c57-b9ee-e4b6c59d05dd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.renewablesb2b.com/ahk_united_kingdom/en/portal/index/news/show/40e62ba9eb1a4cc9 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.943767 | 1,077 | 1.84375 | 2 |
By John Solomon
How the government's punishing of the exposure of official wrongdoing can linger for years
Independent voices from the TWT Communities
Liberal groups such as Greenpeace and Ralph Nader's Public Interest Research Groups (PIRG) have trained their crosshairs on a new target in Calvert County, Md. At issue is whether Unistar Nuclear, a joint venture of Constellation Energy Group and the French-owned company Areva, should build an additional nuclear reactor on the site of two existing reactors at the Calvert Cliffs plant in Lusby. Thus far, their efforts seem to have encountered little acceptance, though activists are hoping their rumblings will generate a national public backlash against the clean and safe source of energy that is nuclear power. | <urn:uuid:fb4dee15-05ea-4089-9ff5-742e72ca8b68> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.washingtontimes.com/topics/greenpeace-nader/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.943488 | 153 | 1.554688 | 2 |
Editor's note: CNN does not usually identify children of alleged abuse, but in this case the girl and her family gave CNN permission to tell her story and use her name.
Nujood Ali, 10, has been chastised by some in Yemen for speaking out about her arranged marriage.
SANAA, Yemen (CNN) -- Nujood Ali is 10 years old, but she already has been married and divorced. It was an arranged marriage in which she said a husband three times her age routinely beat and raped her.
"When I got married, I was afraid. I didn't want to leave home. I wanted to stay with my brothers and sisters and my mom and dad," she said, speaking to CNN with the permission of her parents.
"I didn't want to sleep with him, but he forced me to. He hit me, insulted me."
As she plays marbles with her brothers and sister, Nujood is a portrait of innocence, with a shy smile and a playful nature.
But what happened evokes anger and shame. Asked if what she went through was torture, she nods quietly. Watch Nujod describe what happened »
Nujood's parents married her off in February to a man in his 30s whom she describes as old and ugly.
Her parents said they thought they were putting her in the care of her husband's family, but Nujood said he would often beat her into submission.
Nujood then turned to her family for mercy.
"When I heard, my heart burned for her; he wasn't supposed to sleep with her," said Nujood's mother, who asked not to be identified.
But, initially, she also told her daughter she could not help her -- that she belonged to her husband now.
Nujood's father, Ali Mohammed Ahdal, said he is angry about what happened to his daughter. "He was a criminal, a criminal. He did hateful things to her," he said. "He didn't keep his promise to me that he wouldn't go near her until she was 20."
When contacted by CNN, the girl's former husband declined to comment.
Nujood's parents, like so many others in Yemen, struck a social bargain when they decided to have their daughter wed. More than half of all Yemeni girls are married off before the age of 18, according to Oxfam International, a nonprofit group that fights global poverty and injustice.
Many times girls are forced to marry older men, including some who already have at least one wife, Oxfam said. According to tribal customs, the girls are no longer viewed as a financial or moral burden to their parents.
"There is always a fear that the girl will do something to dishonor the family: She will run away with a guy, she will have relations with a boy. So this is always the phobia that the families have," said Suha Bashren of Oxfam International.
Bashren calls the tradition of child brides in Yemen a national crisis. She works with young girls to protect them from early marriage, abuse and one of the highest maternal mortality rates in the world.
The Yemeni government is holding legal and religious workshops to try to deal with the issue of early marriage. But experts say marrying off a young daughter is generally still seen as the right thing to do.
"A lot of people in the public don't think that this is wrong or that what happened to her was abuse," Bashren said.
In Yemen, there is nothing new or extraordinary about Nujood's story because children have been married off for generations. The country's legal minimum age for marriage was 15 till a decade ago, when the law was changed to allow for children even younger to be wed.
But what is most unusual is that this young girl took such an intensely private dispute and went public with it.
Nujood said she made up her mind to escape from her husband, describing how on a visit to her parents' home she broke free and traveled to the central courthouse across town and demanded to speak to a judge.
"He asked me, 'What do you want?' And I said, 'I want a divorce.' And he said, 'You're married?' And I said, 'Yes,'" she recalled.
What unfolded in those few days in April gripped the country on the southern tip of the Arabian Peninsula.
Nujood got her divorce, but based on the principles of Islamic Sharia law, her husband was compensated, not prosecuted. Nujood was ordered to pay him more than $200. The human rights lawyer who represented her donated the money.
But for this determined spirit, it was still a sweet victory.
"I did this so that people would listen and think about not marrying their daughters off as young as I was," she said with a shy smile.
Now back at the family home, she said she won't go outside to play -- that all the attention bothers her. Some still condemn the young girl for speaking out, believing that she shouldn't have challenged convention.
Human rights advocates said it will take more than a generation if this practice is to change in Yemen for other children.
"These girls are living in a misery that no one is talking about," Oxfam's Bashren said.
|Most Viewed||Most Emailed||Top Searches| | <urn:uuid:9e192216-50c3-48ef-b7dc-15f4d293c3c7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.cnn.com/2008/WORLD/meast/07/15/yemen.childbride/index.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.989673 | 1,104 | 1.53125 | 2 |
Graham Smith took a Facebook road trip for his grad school thesis project, and with help from pal Josh Baron made a 15-minute thought-provoking documentary about going "on a journey to bridge the gap between relationships."
The pair traveled over 1800 miles in less than a week to literally and physically traverse Graham's Facebook social graph. They met up with an assortment of present and past friends and acquaintances, some unseen for 15 years, to explore how the social networking medium affects our social interactions.
There was a "strange emotion that developed as we met up with friends we'd made over an entire lifetime, compacted into less than a week." The video explores some of the awkwardness mixed with re-connection and emotion that characterized the trip. They even delivered what may be the world's first analog Facebook message.
"Before Facebook they were friends that were starting to fall to acquaintances and acquaintances that were starting to fall to strangers. But when I reconnect with them they start to become a little bit more.
This trip has really led me to see that these people I've lost contact with aren't a series of updates and bits of information on a computer. They're actually people living their lives.
I recommend anyone take a social network road trip."
Check out the video below. Have you ever taken, or thought about taking, a social network road trip? | <urn:uuid:6391558b-a958-48fc-a28d-e792f84cb359> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://mashable.com/2009/08/14/the-facebook-road-trip/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.977303 | 277 | 1.617188 | 2 |
State Department Begins Switch to RFID Passports
Only 1 percent of the public responding earlier this year to the governments proposed rule to equip U.S. passports with required RFID chips supported the idea, but the Department of State finalized the rule this week nonetheless.
"In order to protect the security of U.S. borders, it is essential that the Department implement the electronic passport program as soon as possible," the agency wrote in the final rules published Tuesday in the Federal Register. "In addition, a prompt launch of the program will increase our credibility and good will with other countries, which are implementing similar biometric passport programs."
In December, the State Department plans to begin implementing the electronic passport program with a pilot test of government employees who use official passports for work. Early next year, it will begin issuing the electronic ID to citizens generally, and by October 2006, all U.S. passports, except emergency documents issued by U.S. embassies, will be outfitted with RFID.
The electronic passport will follow standards set by the International Civil Aviation Organization, which prescribes the use of chips and Public Key Infrastructure to protect the data, the department said. The chip will contain the name, nationality, sex, date of birth, place of birth, and digitized photograph of the holder, as well as the passport number, issue date, expiration date, and type.
Only electronic readers within inches of the chip will be able to read the data, according to the published rules. An anti-skimming material will be included in the cover and spine to diminish the threat of skimming the data from a distance farther than 10 centimeters.
To leave open the possibility of adding other biometric data, such as fingerprints or iris scans, in the future, passports will contain a 64KB chip with plenty of storage capacity. However, the department issued an assurance that before requiring any such additional data, it will give the public an opportunity to comment.
Check out eWEEK.coms for the latest news, views and analysis of technologys impact on government and politics. | <urn:uuid:d3786684-3605-4256-b30f-a0b452748ab8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.eweek.com/print/c/a/Government-IT/State-Department-Begins-Switch-to-RFID-Passports/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.937808 | 425 | 1.71875 | 2 |
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22 May - 12:29 pm NZ
Updated at 6:51 am on 20 August 2012
A parliamentary investigation in Britain into the rigging of rates at which banks lent money to each other has strongly criticised Barclays Bank for a lack of internal controls over several years.
The scandal emerged in June when British and US authorities fined Barclays £290 million for fixing a key inter-bank interest rate.
The Treasury Select Committee blames bank bosses for "disgraceful" behaviour which damaged the UK's reputation - the bank says it knows changes are needed.
The MPs criticise the FSA and Bank of England's regulatory supervision and accuse ex-Barclays chief executive Bob Diamond of giving them "highly selective" evidence.
The MPs said that the rate-rigging had done "great damage" to Britain's reputation.
They firmly blamed the bosses of Barclays bank for the way their staff tried to manipulate the Libor rate-setting process at various times between 2005 and 2009.
"(The actions) were made possible by a prolonged period of extremely weak internal compliance and board governance at Barclays, as well as a failure of regulatory supervision," Mr Tyrie said.
Mr Diamond resigned as Barclay's chief executive the day before he gave evidence to MPs.
In a statement, Mr Diamond said he answered every question of the parliamentary committee truthfully.
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Help on using online audio: formats, software, podcasts, downloading, and troubleshooting. | <urn:uuid:5ec32eb2-a8b8-499e-8df6-59de1cc11129> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.radionz.co.nz/news/business/113615/parliamentary-investigation-critical-of-barclays | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.956397 | 410 | 1.632813 | 2 |
Mike Humberd wants to avoid future complaints, but there is little he can do to stop the residential growth.
Idaho Falls Airport Director Mike Humberd doesn't know who will buy homes in the Heritage Hills subdivision, a mile northeast of his main runway. Or who will rent new apartments less than a mile to the southwest.
He does know what they will hear:
Planes. Lots of them - from military crafts to single-engine Cessnas, taking off and landing 100 to 200 feet above their homes at all hours.
Humberd also knows the noise will cause problems, which is why he would rather not see Heritage Hills, apartments or any other housing built nearby, even though they technically mesh with the airport's master plan.
"We need to put something in there compatible with the noise," Humberd said.
But unless the city buys up land around the airport, there's little he or other officials can do about the encroaching housing. And that's not likely to happen.
"If it comes down to the choice between spending money on repairing my runway and buying land across the river, I'm going to spend it on the runway," he said.
The Federal Aviation Administration shares Humberd's concerns. An Aug. 31 letter from FAA engineer Sandra Simmons laid it out: "We discourage residential development in and around the airport environs."
Preventing the development she wrote, "would demonstrate a serious commitment on the part of the city of Idaho Falls as both a neighbor and beneficiary of the airport."
The United States has scores of cities with airports hemmed in by housing.
Humberd pointed to John Wayne Airport in Newport Beach, Calif., a popular alternative to Los Angeles International for commuters.
John Wayne Airport started as a private airstrip in the 1920s. But by the 1980s, there had been enough complaints about noise from nearby homeowners that the airport adjusted takeoffs so planes fly nearly straight up to 2,000 feet and then level out, giving passengers' stomachs a lesson in G-force physics.
Humberd worries that 20 years from now, Idaho Falls could be in the same situation if city officials don't carefully address the planning issues surrounding the airport.
To him, it's an issue of pay now or pay later.
"Airports have spent billions of dollars to insulate homes, schools and you name it," he said.
But city planning director Renee Magee said that short of buying easements, the city's options are limited. If the City Council had refused to annex the land for Heritage Hills, for example, developers would have simply built on the same ground, in unincorporated Bonneville County where the city has no say.
There already are city and county subdivisions in the flight path, but they're further from the airport, so the noise isn't deafening.
"It worried me when we first moved here, but it wasn't as bad as I thought it might be," said Stephanie Gifford, who has lived in the subdivision north of Heritage Hills for 20 years.
"Sometimes certain aircraft come in lower, and you think, 'What the heck?'"
The jets flying into Idaho Falls are a lot quieter than they used to be. They're regional planes, which aren't as noisy as the 737s that landed when Delta and American flew into Idaho Falls. And even on bigger jets, engine noise has been tamed somewhat with new technologies.
Still, Humberd said, the amount of air traffic is only going to increase as Idaho Falls grows. It's something city leaders are going to have to weigh as more development is proposed.
The airport is a huge economic force in the community, generating millions of dollars.
"We're trying to protect the ability to do business the way we do it today and protect developers, too," he said.
Did you know?
Developers have proposed building two separate housing projects within a mile of the Idaho Falls Regional Airport. Here are some details:
- The city of Idaho Falls has OK'd the first phase of the Pacific Communities' apartment complex on Old Butte Road.
As of June 8, United Airlines will partner with Skywest to offer direct flights from Idaho to Denver twice a day.
Three Democratic lawmakers criticized the Metropolitan Airports Commission for daring to throw a $150,000 party to inaugurate the new north-south runway.
City leaders are planning to expand the centrally located airfield in the next few years, which could lure business from other airports in Pierce and King counties.
United Airlines now offers jet service between Idaho Falls and Denver. | <urn:uuid:119821e7-eda4-4f56-8caf-dc27a2c3d9b4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.aviationpros.com/news/10396675/idaho-falls-housing-not-airport-noise-compatible | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.971256 | 952 | 1.640625 | 2 |
- Last Updated: 1:56 PM, October 10, 2012
- Posted: 1:56 PM, October 10, 2012
The MTA’s $47 million budget surplus this year really was too good to be true, according to the Citizens Budget Commission.
The transit agency is actually operating over $2.194 billion in the hole, according to an analysis by the fiscal watchdog agency released today.
That deficit will grow to over $2.6 billion by 2016, according to the report.
The MTA, by contrast, predicts a more modest budget hole of $233 million in 2016.
The discrepancy between the MTA’s budget and the CBC’s stems from different accounting principles.
The CBC’s projections stems from an audit of MTA financial statements and takes into account the agency’s high levels of debt, rising energy costs, and payments for health care for employees and retirees.
The MTA’s budget is largely based on cash needs in a given year.
To help plug the multi-billion budget gaps and pay for capital costs, the CBC recommends that the MTA increase transit fares by at least 21 percent by 2016.
The MTA has said it will increase fares by around 7.5 percent next year, followed by another 7.5 percent hike in 2015.
The CBC also wants motorists to chip in at least a quarter of the costs to run the MTA’s mass transit system.
That would mean not only substantially higher tolls, but also a portion of the fees on driver’s licenses, and vehicle registration to foot the bills.
It also recommended congestion pricing to fund mass transit.
The MTA is not required to institute the CBC’s recommendation.
Chairman Joseph Lhota thanked the CBC for taking a “serious” look at the agency’s finances.
“The MTA has made great strides in cutting costs and stabilizing its finances, and has regularly said we need a stable and reliable funding source for the sake of all our customers and the entire New York economy,” he said.
“However, the CBC’s choice of budgeting methods would create the appearance of a phantom deficit, instead of reflecting our fully balanced budget as required by law.”
MTA Board member Allen Cappelli said he would not support any plan that would add onerous tolls to the region.
“It adds a tremendous cost to small business in the city,” he said.
“It becomes a tax increase on a small group of people.”
He said adding higher tolls to support mass transit is particularly unfair to many motorists in the region who drive because they have to.
“Many people who drive do so because there is no public transportation options,” he said. | <urn:uuid:38fcc875-3ce7-4993-9701-38af3f19a4a5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/mta_has_more_than_billion_deficit_Ijr6ocPCsOljKxVCDtVLeM | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958133 | 581 | 1.71875 | 2 |
For many people, Christmas can be a very stressful time of year. Crowded shops, children bored with their gifts by Boxing Day, and the expectation that you should be festive and jolly can all take their toll. According to Beating Anger, nearly one in two adults say that an argument over Christmas has made them want to end their relationship. And one in four feels that their relationship is under pressure over Christmas. If you find this time of year something to endure rather than enjoy, the staff at Anxiety UK have the following helpful tips to see you through to 2nd January!
- Anxiety UK’s CEO, Nicky Lidbetter, says that she tries to stick to her usual routine as much as possible, whilst still making time to enjoy time with her family at Christmas. “For me, the biggest part of reducing my stress and anxiety is going for a run. I will make time in all of the busyness to ensure I have that bit of time for myself and it really does make a huge difference for me.” Making time for yourself, whatever you enjoy doing, is very important. Don’t let the pressure of the day make you ignore your need to look after yourself. Even if it means 5 minutes on your own reading a magazine, it is worth doing to ensure the pressure of the season doesn’t get on top of you.
- Andrew Kearins, Anxiety UK’s Services Manager, advises that it’s OK to say no to an invitation to a party or get-together if you are not up to it. “There is the expectation this time of year that people should have plans every day over the Christmas period and that saying no to, for example, mince pies and tea with the neighbours is somehow rude. If you feel like it’s all getting a bit too much, cut back on your commitments and say no once in a while.”
- “I’m a planner at the best of times and this is particularly important during Christmas,” advises Terri Torevell, Anxiety UK’s Communications Officer. “I make lists so that I don’t forget things, buy an extra box of chocolates or two just in case someone pops round and I don’t have a gift for them and I shop online where possible to avoid having to fight the crowds.”
- Anxiety UK’s Administrator, Hannah Maycraft, advises that sharing the load is important. “The success or failure of Christmas is not just down to one person. Ask for help and share the responsibilities with those around you to ensure that no one person feels over-burdened by everything.”
- “Take time to enjoy what the Christmas period includes,” advises Membership Coordinator, Pete Nunes. “It’s a great time to indulge, within reason of course, and allow yourself a bit of a break.”
- Susana Castro, Anxiety UK’s Mentoring Coordinator, advises getting out of the city if possible. “I live in Central Manchester and find it very important to get out of the city to retreat to somewhere with more space, especially in the build up to Christmas. For this reason, I try to get all of my Christmas shopping done well in advance so that I don’t fight the crowds in the run up to Christmas.”
- “Our final tip is that giving back this time of year can lift mood and increase your spirit. Giving to Anxiety UK has become even easier with our new Text to Donate service. Just text ANUK13 to 70070 to donate £1. Funds will ensure that our helpline is able to continue to provide support to those affected by anxiety well into the future. Many thanks for any gift you can give.”
We hope that all of our members and supporters will take the time to enjoy Christmas and celebrate with friends and family. If you need our support during this time, click here for a full listing of our opening hours and other helpful numbers to ring.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! | <urn:uuid:7a16e447-d964-44f8-8719-2c4560eeeb3d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.anxietyuk.org.uk/2012/12/keep-stress-at-bay-this-christmas/ | 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 | 0.962315 | 852 | 1.6875 | 2 |
Indianapolis and the Importance of Mayoral Control of Schools
As the worst school district in the Midwest outside of Detroit, Indianapolis Public Schools has exemplified everything that is wrong with traditional school districts. Last August, Indiana Supt. Tony Bennett seized six of the district’s worst-performing schools and handed them off to a group of charter school operators charged with overhauling them. This included Emmerich Manual High School, a subject of past Dropout Nation reports, which has been an abject failure for most of the past four decades. Meanwhile the seven-year regime of the district’s superintendent, Eugene White, already marked by rampant nepotism and incompetence, garnered even more negative attention last month when he proclaimed that the district was failing because it educated special ed kids he called “blind, crippled, crazy”; the district’s do-nothing school board merely let him off the hook by letting him apologize for his callous remarks. (His remarks and his failures were featured in this month’s Dropout Nation Podcast on transforming school leadership.)
So it isn’t shocking that Indiana state officials and school reform organizations such as former Indianapolis mayor Bart Peterson’s Mind Trust are looking to put the district’s status as an independent entity into education history’s proverbial glue factory. Under proposals being bandied around the Hoosier State’s legislative halls and along the Indianapolis’ Monument Circle, IPS would be placed in the hands of the Circle City’s mayor, Greg Ballard, either allowing him to appoint members of the school board, or make the district a city agency whose superintendent would be a mayoral appointee.
Either way, by next year, Indiana may end up bringing back the conversation about handing over traditional districts to mayors and other municipal and county chief executives, who can then lead much-needed reforms. And that is a good thing. It is important to continue ditching the outdated concept of independent school districts that lack accountable, central leadership.
Thanks largely to last year’s defeat of Adrian Fenty for a second term as Washington, D.C. mayor, the idea of mayors taking control of big urban school districts has quieted down. Even though Fenty’s defeat had far more to do with his arrogant demeanor and general incompetence as mayor in areas out side of education, the prospects of using considerable political capital on overhauling traditional districts– especially amid quality of life concerns — has made mayoral control less interesting an idea. While mayors are still active in pushing for reform, and some mayors (notably San Antonio’s Julian Castro) may still be willing to take over of traditional districts, mayoral control hasn’t been the major topic of discussion that it was last year.
Meanwhile education traditionalists such as Diane Ravitch have argued that mayoral control hasn’t been a success at all. Ravitch, in her usual disingenuous and intellectually dishonest manor, attempted to paint New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s efforts as being little more than “smoke”; while Nation writer Dana Goldstein attempted the same feat with far too many more words in her own recent tome against reform. Affiliates of the National Education Association and the American Federation of Teachers are also geared up to make sure that mayoral control doesn’t happen elsewhere, arguing that mayoral control is somehow undemocratic (even though mayors are elected by the same voters and, generally, in far greater numbers). They also attempt to argue that mayor-led reforms are failures.
Yet, oddly enough, mayoral control has largely succeeded in spurring much-needed reforms. Under Bloomberg and his chancellors — including Joel Klein — the percentage of fourth-graders reading Below Basic, as measured on the National Assessment of Educational Progress, declined from 53 percent in 2003 to 38 percent in 2009, while the percentage of students reading at Proficient and Advanced levels increased from 19 percent to 29 percent within the same period. The average fourth-grader in 2009 was reading at a grade level ahead of a peer six years earlier. The percentage of eighth-graders scoring Below Basic in math declined from 46 percent in 2003 to 40 percent in 2004, while the percentage of students scoring at Proficient and Advanced levels increased from 21 percent to 26 percent in that period. The average eighth-grader scores half a grade level higher in math in 2009 than a similar student six years earlier; the average black male fourth-grader reads at a grade level higher in 2009 than in 2003. Meanwhile, the Big Apple’s graduation rates increased from an abysmal 37 percent at the time Bloomberg took over the district in 2002 to a slightly less-horrifying 50 percent.
The story of improvement under mayoral control isn’t atypical. In D.C., the percentage of fourth-graders who were functionally illiterate declined from 61 percent in 2007 to 56 percent in 2011, while the percentage of kids reading at Proficient and Advanced levels increased from 14 percent to 19 percent over that time. The percentage of fourth-graders in the district performing Below Basic in math declined from 51 percent in 2007 to 40 percent in 2011, while the percentage of fourth-graders performing at Proficient and Advanced levels increased from 14 percent to 22 percent in that same period.
Then there’s Boston, which came under the control of the mayor’s office two decades ago. Between 2003 and 2009, the percentage of fourth-graders reading Below Basic declined from 52 percent to 39 percent, while the percentage of kids reading at Proficient and Advanced levels increased from 15 percent to 24 percent. The average Boston fourth-grader reads at a grade-and-a-half level higher in 2009 than a similar student six years earlier; the reading score for the average black male fourth-grader was a grade point higher in 2009 than six years earlier.
Even Chicago, whose reform efforts under former mayor Richard Daley and his former schools czar (and now-current U.S. Secretary of Education) Arne Duncan, have been much maligned as of late, showed progress. The percentage of functionally illiterate fourth-graders declined from 60 percent to 55 percent between 2003 and 2009, while the percentage of students reading at Proficient and Advanced levels increased from 15 percent to 24 percent during that time. While Chicago didn’t succeed under the latter half of Daley’s reign at the stunning levels displayed in New York, D.C., and Boston — the average scale score for black males barely budged — graduation rates for the city (based on eighth-grade enrollment) increased from 55 percent to 63 percent within that period; the five-year promoting power for black males (based on eighth-grade enrollment) increased from 47 percent to 62 percent over that same period. And when one takes the longer view and considers that most of the work began under Duncan’s predecessor Paul Vallas, Chicago has made rather amazing progress under mayoral control.
This isn’t to say that mayoral control has been an unquestioned success as a school reform strategy. The fact that so many of the districts still struggle in improving student achievement for black males — even amid the successes overall — remains problematic. The fact the array of state laws and policies — including near-lifetime employment policies and reverse-seniority layoff rules — that contributed to making districts servile to AFT and NEA affiliates also limits the reform efforts mayors can undertake.
Then there is the reality that mayors can succeed in continuing reform efforts on the school front only if they master the other aspects of their job: Keeping crime low; attending to quality of life issues; efficiently managing city government; and artfully keeping opponents (and sometimes, even allies) divided or placated. Fail in any of these areas, let alone all of them, and the mayor may not have much time to overhaul school districts — or anything else.
Yet, in spite of these issues, mayoral control has proven effective as a reform strategy. Why? Start with the fact that, unlike the traditional (and mostly unaccountable) board structure, there is one elected official who is in charge of schools, who is accountable for its success and failure of schools in providing high-quality instruction and curricula to children whose taxpayers are also voters. Given a mayor’s chief role of improving the city’s quality of life, the critical role of schools in economic and social development, and the bully pulpit that comes with the job, a mayor can be the standard-bearer for systemically reforming schools.
This reality can force mayors to wisely pick school chief executives, who will have plenty of time (so long as the mayor remains in office) to do the hard work. While Fenty’s tenure — and that of Michelle Rhee, who served as his schools czar — was rather short, most mayoral control arrangements have involved tenures far longer than the three year average for superintendents in traditional district arrangements. In New York City, for example, Klein remained in charge for eight years, while Tom Payzant in Boston held his job for 11 years; in Chicago, Duncan and Vallas held their jobs for, respectively, seven and six years.
Another lies with the fact that mayors can stand up to AFT and NEA locals more-effectively than any school board. After all, unlike school board members, who are dependent on the endorsements of locals (and their campaign cash), mayors can count on a wider array of donors and political alliances that can sustain them during the inevitable battles over revamping teacher compensation and revamping curricula and instructional practices. As seen in the case of Bloomberg and Klein, the mayor can play the proverbial good cop role even as his education czar does the dirty work. Sometimes this may mean mayors will hold off on more-radical reforms (or, as in the case of Bloomberg when he essentially took over the negotiations with the AFT’s Big Apple local in 2005, undercut their school leaders altogether). But more often than not, teachers’ union bosses know that any effort being undertaken by the district is one that has been vetted and blessed by the mayor.
Then there is the budgetary value of mayoral control, which is quite considerable. One of the reasons why urban districts such as Philadelphia and Bridgeport, Conn., generate so little in local tax dollars (even when, as Contributing Editor Michael Holzman noted yesterday, their tax rates are higher) is because of the dysfunctional fiscal policies — including tax abatements given to developers for costly real estate schemes that siphon off dollars from district coffers. In those cities, politicians who run the rest of government can ignore the fiscal needs of the school district, whose operations they don’t oversee. The fact that state governments also fund most of the district’s expenditures (often as much as 80 percent of the annual spend) also makes it easier for city leaders to not concern themselves with school funding.
When districts are under mayoral control, city officials have to be more-thoughtful about the impact of their fiscal decisions on schools. It also forces mayors to think more about the high cost of traditional teacher compensation — including the pension deficits and unfunded retired teacher healthcare liabilities that will be a drain on taxpayer coffers for decades to come.
Finally, mayors can be the leading forces for pushing systemic reforms at the state and national level. Daley proved this during his tenure, especially during his final months in office as he successfully pushed for a modest revamp of Illinois’ teacher evaluation system, while Bloomberg has been even more effective, fostering a school reform culture within the Empire State where there was once none. Even mayors who don’t have significant control of school systems have proven to be leading agitators for reform. In Indiana, Peterson’s successful push to get power to authorize charter schools helped foster a reform-minded culture in the Hoosier State upon which the school choice and teacher quality efforts of state superintendent Bennett and Gov. Mitch Daniels has been built. And in California, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa’s agitation for reforming the Los Angeles Unified School District — including his unsuccessful effort to get Golden State legislators to hand him control of the school system — has helped sustain other school reformers, including the group of parents that have recently filed suit against L.A. Unified to force overhaul of its teacher evaluations.
There are plenty of cities and counties in which more mayoral activism is needed. And Indianapolis is one of them. While IPS is particularly abysmal — a 37 percent graduation rate for its Class of 2009 based on Dropout Nation‘s analysis of eighth-grade enrollment — its sister districts in Indianapolis’ townships are not much better. Just 67 percent of Decatur Township’s eighth-graders in the original Class of 2009 graduated five years later, while 64 percent of Perry Township’s eighth-graders made it to graduation. And when one looks at the performance of black male students throughout the Circle City, the extent of the education crisis is astounding.
While the charter schools effort begun under Ballard’s predecessor, Bart Peterson, have provided some higher-quality options, the low number of the schools, the lack of charters in the districts outside of IPS, and the approach of Ballard and Peterson to emphasize quality over quantity of charters has meant that neither IPS nor its sister districts have had step up and actually overhaul their operations.
Reform must start with overhauling IPS, which account for more than a fifth of all of the city’s students, and operate most of the city’s failure mills. In many ways, Ballard would already be prepared for such a move. After all, he oversees charters, which, though command just 6.6 percent of all students in Indianapolis, would be considered the city’s eighth-largest school district if they were consolidated into one entity. The fact that Ballard had proposed earlier this year to take over IPS’ worst failure factories before the state proceeded with handing off those schools to charter school operators also shows that he has the capacity to run the district.
If Hoosier State officials hand over the district to Ballard, it could also spark a new round of mayoral takeovers. Seattle, for example, would be one possibility; there, the current mayor, Mike McGinn, has already said he wants to take control of the district. Another would be St. Louis, where current mayor Francis Slay has unsuccessfully fought to place reformers on the district’s school board. Newark Mayor Cory Booker is already active in pushing for reform of that city’s woeful school district; it wouldn’t be surprising to see him team up with New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie to push for mayoral control. And Atlanta still remains ripe for takeover; even as Georgia’s education officials, has finally removed the scandal- and dysfunction-tarred district off probation, it is likely that Mayor Kasim Reed can persuade Gov. Nathan Deal and the Republican-led legislature to hand him control of the woefully-run schools.
Another possibility may lie in countywide takeover of districts. This is especially possible in states such as Virginia, Maryland, Georgia, and Tennessee, where countywide districts (save for areas surrounding cities such as Baltimore and Atlanta) and county government chief executives are already the norm. In the first two states, the districts have to have their budgets approved by county and independent city governments. One can imagine a situation in which the dysfunctional DeKalb County school district near Atlanta is taken over by the county’s chief executive, Burrell Ellis. The newly-formed Memphis-Shelby County district in Tennessee, featured in this week’s Dropout Nation Podcast on expanding school choice, could, in theory, end up under the control of county Mayor Mark Luttrell Jr., if the Volunteer State’s governor, Bill Haslam, pushes the legislature into that direction.
What may happen in Indianapolis in the coming year may mean the return of mayoral control. And this wouldn’t be a bad thing at all. | <urn:uuid:969583a4-8f38-4528-b001-f9d6c4cda979> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://dropoutnation.net/2011/11/29/indianapolis-and-the-importance-of-mayoral-control-of-schools/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964313 | 3,304 | 1.695313 | 2 |
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Review: Red Plenty by Francis Spufford
Combining real and imagined characters, politicians like Khrushchev, mathematicians and economists like Kantorovich and Nemchinov with fictionalised minor characters, it gives a gripping and apparently realistic picture of life in the USSR during the 50s and 60s. It is not a single narrative as one expects from historical fiction. Instead it gives us a series of snapshots from the lives of individuals, separated by years. The common link is the project of the Cybernetic economic reformers, and the ambitions of Khrushchev to attain communist plenty.
The author shows real skill as a science populariser, explaining such diverse topics as how the Pentode valve logic of the early BESM computers worked, to the molecular mechanics of the carcinogenesis mechanism that eventually killed its designer. He vividly portrays the enthusiasm and self confidence of the USSR in the late 50s when Khrushchev’s boasts that they would overtake the USA by 1980 and achieve communism seemed plausible. He gives a good didactic account both of the basic mechanisms of the Soviet Economy, and, through the lives of incidental characters paints a picture of its real operation that is more detailed and convincing than any academic history.
He traces the idea of cybernetic economic management from the hope of the 50s and early 60s to its sidelining under Kosygin, and the eventual relegation of Kantorovich to the less ambitious task of optimisating steel tube output for the oil and natural gas industry. Ironically, says Spufford, as growth rates slipped in the 70s, it was only the exploitation of petroleum for export that allowed Soviet living standards to rise.
This is a book that should be read by anyone who is seriously interested in the possibility of a different sort of economy from the one we now have. It shows both the strengths, and the hidden weaknesses of the most serious attempt so far to construct an alternative to capitalism, an attempt that was born when the idea of a communist future was taken very seriously by a whole society. To read it is to be convinced that whatever the truth of standard leftist criticism of the USSR as being undemocratic and bureacratic, there was much more than that at issue in this tragedy.
It raises real political and philosophical issues that would have to be faced by any future socialist project, and draws attention to a forgotten history that today’s socialists ignore at their peril.
The bulk of what we read and hear about the USSR focuses on the 20s and 30s. The remaining 50 years of its history fade before the glamour, grandeur and horror of the early years. But the early 1960s, when Russia was already an industrial country, with many areas of internationally competitive technology in aviation, space, computing holds more relevant lessons for the European left than its early years.
It is clear what lesson orthodox economists will draw:
"It’s a timely exploration, now so many people have gone off the idea of markets, of why the alternative is worse."
But such conclusions betray an unjustified and callous smugness. It is a smugness not justified by the elegaic last paragraph of the book. The restoration of the market mechanism in Russia was a vast controlled experiment. Nation, national character and culture, natural resources and productive potential remained the same, only the economic mechanism changed. If Western economists were right, then we should have expected economic growth and living standards to have leapt forward after the Yeltsin shock therapy. Instead the country became an economic basket-case. Industrial production collapsed, technically advanced industries atrophied, and living standards fell so much that the death rate shot up by over a third leading to some 7.7 million extra deaths.
If you were old, if you were farmer, if you were a manual worker, the market was a great deal worse than even the relatively stagnant Soviet economy of Brezhnev. The recovery under Putin, such as it was, came almost entirely as a side effect of rising world oil prices, the very process that had operated under Brezhnev.
But this does not excuse us from seriously considering the problems so vividly raised in the book. Spufford recounts how the attempt to follow the reformers' recomendations and raise the price of food to provide more income for farmers provoked strikes by industrial workers, which were suppressed with great brutality. The same scenario played itself out in Poland in the 70s and 80s, when any attempt to raise the ridiculously low subsidised meat prices led to strikes.
Spufford brings out the disconnection between the recomendations of the reform economists and the real lives of the people that the reforms would impact on. Food subsidies were the bad conscience of inequality. They were necessary because without them, those on the lower wage rates could scarcely have survived. Marx had advocated that in the first stage of communism everybody would be paid in labour vouchers not money - 1 hour's work getting 1 hour's vouchers. Goods would be directly priced in terms of the labour required to make them and social expenditure would be met out of a tax or time-levy on incomes. Soviet prices deviated considerably from labour values for two reasons:
- The well known subsidies on essential foods and housing.
- The turnover tax was, I think, calculated on the basis of total turnover not just wages, as such it was similar to the fixed percent markup Marx posited for prices of production. Given that due to subsidies, wages underestimated the real value of labour power, this sort of markup would mean that the deviation of prices from labor value would actually have been bigger than under capitalism.
To have furthered Khrushchev’s avowed aim of communism, Kantrovich would have had to propose egalitarian pay rates and a shift in state finance from turnover taxes to income taxes, before prices could be rationalised.
Spufford gives greatest emphasis to the policies of those around Kantorovich and Nemchinov, who were advocating price reforms as part of a programme to allow optimal operation of the economy. Kantorovich argued that these prices - objectively determined valuations - arose out of the objective technical structure of the economy. If actual prices corresponded to objectively determined values, then the signals that these prices provided would guide individual factories to produce in accordance to what the plan needed.
There is of course a strong similarity between this argument and that put forward by Western economists about the role of prices in guiding resource allocation in a market economy. It is probably no accident then that Kantorovich was the only Soviet economist to get a Nobel Prize for economics.
But there was a fatal paradox in this whole notion, one that Spufford brought out in a meeting between Kosygin and a leading reformer: how were these optimal prices to be calculated? The maths was well understood, but the technical problems of handling that much data with 1960s computers were vast. And if Gosplan could concentrate the information and could have done the computations, then the indicative prices would have been unneccessary - the whole process of calculation could have been done in-natura with the Objective Valuations only having a fleeting existence as coefficients within the matrices of the planning computers.
So the programme of Kantorovich ended up requiring the same level of computing resources as that of his rival cyberneticist Victor Gluschov who apparently advocated the complete abolition of money - something superficially closer to Krushchev's vision of communism. In this context it is worth reading InterNyet: why the Soviet Union did not build a nationwide computer network by Slava Gerovitch. It would have been interesting had Gluschov appeared as a character in the book, rather than just as someone who is refered to indirectly. In the afterword it becomes clear why Gluschov remains such a shadowy figure to Spufford. Spufford reveals that he relied entirely on English language sources. What he knew of Gluschov came from Gerovitch’s brief account.
All in all, let me say again, this is a book that should be read by anyone with a serious interest in economic alternatives. | <urn:uuid:62a44fd0-58c8-42d2-ab44-7663819faf56> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://21stcenturysocialism.com/article/review_red_plenty_by_francis_spufford_01992.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.969848 | 1,673 | 1.664063 | 2 |
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As spring arrives - meteorologically speaking - on March 1, here are some top tips to brighten up the season and help you feel the benefits of a healthy lifestyle.
By remembering a few simple steps this winter, you can help to look after you and your family’s health.
As the temperature starts to rise, it is important that you start thinking about protecting you and your family's health from sunburn and heat exhaustion
Have you made a New Year's resolution to eat better, get fit and feel well in 2013?
Curb those tempting treats to prevent weight gain over the festive season. | <urn:uuid:b3daf428-34c7-4ddb-9f2c-5ecb0e6c2a0a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://programmes.stv.tv/health-centre/healthy-living/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955328 | 128 | 1.648438 | 2 |
From Peter Okell MANCHESTER
PROPOSALS to abolish
Manchester's week-long holiday festival at Whitsun are seen by the city's Catholics as a possible threat to their annual "Whit Walk" procession through the city.
On Whit Monday, Manchester's Anglicans hold a procession which has been going on since 1801. Four days later, the Catholics hold their procession, a 119-year old tradition, on Whit Friday, a local holiday. On the intervening days, factories and businesses should open as usual, but Manchester businessmen say that the effect, on a working week, of having a holiday at either end, is one of "chaos and confusion".
The proposals to transfer the Whit Friday holiday to a more convenient date are contained in a report issued by the Manchester Junior Chamber of Commerce, which sent a questionnaire to 1,600 firms in the city over an 18-month period. The report concluded that "firms would prefer generally to take two days holiday together in one long weekend".
The report refers to a plan, before the present Parliament, to fix Bank Holiday Monday as the second Sunday in lune, and says that, whenever the Monday holiday falls, the Friday holiday (and, therefore, the Catholic Whit Walk) should come before, and not after.
"Manchester has been the cairntry's foremost commercial centre outside London for many decades," says the report. "Is it necessary to have such confusion of interests in a modern city?"
It points out that on any particular working day in Whit Week, up to 30 per cent of Manchester firms are operating at reduced efficiency, that seven different Whitsun holiday arrangements operate in the vicinity of the city, and that massive traffic dislocation is caused throughout the area.
Parish priests in the Salford Diocese have condemned unanimously any suggestion that Whit Friday should be moved. They give as their reason the fact that for thousands of Catholics in Manchester and Salford. the procession is inseparable from Whit Friday. The Anglican clergy have agreed to assist any general rationalisation attempt "provided that all sections of the community agreed".
Assurances that the Junior Chamber of Commerce is not trying to put an end to the Whit Walks have been given by the Chamber's president, Mr. Alan Parker, a cotton magnate. "We are all in favour of them," he said. "All we want is to get an agreed holiday." The Chamber will now initiate discussions with Manchester Corporation and the transport authorities, with a view to obtaining a basis of agreement with the Churches.
Evidence Guild's seaside mission SOUTHWARK Catholic Evidence Guild is organising an Open-air Mission Week on the front at Brighton, June 23-30. Priests and lay speakers will address the crowds and answer questions on the Faith. All meetings will begin at 8 p.m. On the weekday evenings, they will be held between the two piers at the Fish Market. On the two Sundays they will be held on the Prom at the Brighton-Hove boundary. | <urn:uuid:205d3ae3-9cb2-44b9-bc99-bb2516e02673> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://archive.catholicherald.co.uk/article/21st-june-1963/1/threat-to-a-citys-whit-walk | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958235 | 620 | 1.835938 | 2 |
I remember a student asking a teacher about a problem which was different in nature, but which was about the anxiety she felt about one of her parents, resulting from a lot of dysfunctional problems that they had when she was growing up.
He said that a lot of people have problems, and that includes parents. Before they became our parents, they already had problems (we don't usually think of our parents being like us, full of anxieties, terrible secrets, and things like that). Unfortunately, that is how the situation is. Buddha said that beings are tormented by all kinds of suffering, and parents make a lot of mistakes.
For the most part, everything people do, even really awful things, they do because they think it will bring them happiness. You mom sounds like a perfect candidate for this description. But their actions only bring more suffering. It sounds like your father is really suffering, or may be suffering more in the future. But when you think about it, your mom is really suffering! I am not trying to dismiss the importance of what you have told. Both my parents are gone, and my mother passed away very slowly and with a lot of mental breakdown. This is a big crisis for millions of people right now. At least your father will have people to (maybe) take care of him. It doesn't look as bright for your mom. Who wants to take care of an abusive, self-absorbed person like that?
There is a great quote by Shantideva, something like "Suffering comes from seeking happiness for oneself. Happiness comes from seeking happiness for others." If you think about it, this is really true. I feel bad for your father (my dad grew up on a farm) and also for you. But for your mom, maybe just pity. So for your own sanity it will help to have compassion for her as well as love for your father.
On the practical side, talk to an attorney. And discuss living wills and power of attorney. Also, if all of this is taking place in the United States, see if you can get your dad to give you all of his money and property now. No, I am not telling you this so you can cash in early. But unless your dad is broke, all of his savings will be drained to pay for his expensive needs that will bre coming up. It's better if you are keeping his money, for his needs, in your name.
Profile Picture: "The Foaming Monk"
The Chinese characters are Fo (buddha) and Ming (bright). The image is of a student of Buddhism, who, imagining himself to be a monk, and not understanding the true meaning of the words takes the sound of the words literally. Likewise, People on web forums sometime seem to be foaming at the mouth. Original painting by P.Volker /used by permission. | <urn:uuid:0b57f762-eb48-4dc1-990d-e259bcb534f1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.dharmawheel.net/viewtopic.php?p=96712 | 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 | 0.988118 | 587 | 1.671875 | 2 |
The project focuses around tracks recorded during a pivotal and turbulent four-month period in 1969.
Valleys of Neptune unveils the original Jimi Hendrix Experience’s final studio recordings, (Hendrix, drummer Mitch Mitchell and bass player Noel Redding) as the trio lays down the foundation for its follow-up to Electric Ladyland, alongside first sessions with bassist Billy Cox, an old army buddy he’d recruited into his new ensemble.
Valleys Of Neptune is previously unreleased Hendrix music, originally recorded and mixed for this historic release by Hendrix’s longtime engineer Eddie Kramer, who first worked with the guitarist on his debut Are You Experienced? album in 1967.
Valleys Of Neptune reveals an audio view of what Hendrix was up to musically in the critical period between the release of Electric Ladyland in October 1968 and the 1970 opening of his own Electric Lady Studios in Greenwich Village, the state-of-the-art facility where he would begin his final project, the album First Rays of the New Rising Sun.
Valleys Of Neptune is produced by Janie Hendrix, John McDermott (who contributes detailed liner notes to the album) and Kramer.
“The idea was to look at a really interesting period of Jimi’s career,” presents John McDermott. “It’s about the Jimi Hendrix legacy. We look at it as an important piece of the puzzle. We had spent the last few years sort of enhancing and improving the classic iconic live things like Woodstock and Monterey and so here let’s turn back towards the studio. Let’s again focus on a time period that is really important in terms of the development of Jimi’s career.
“You discover the root is the songs. The songs are wonderful. They connect and continue to inspire. They’re great. The cool thing about Jimi Hendrix that particularly young fans should understand is that he had the foresight to own his own master recordings. He did not record at his record company’s studio like The Beatles did, for example. He did not have an engineer who was a union employee and who would look at a clock, ‘OK Jim, you got to go. Somebody else is coming in at 11.’ He was a guy used the studio as a tool to write and create.”
About his product collaborations with Janie Hendrix and Eddie Kramer, McDermott also adds, “We have the benefit of continuity. And that Janie, Eddie and I have worked together now for 12 years. And we’ve been able to not only plot out releases that we want to focus on but cast the net to find cool things. And so we’re not beholden to anybody to put records out. So in this process we mixed some things, kept going, found like a couple of gems, and said, ‘This fits perfectly here. That’s going to be part of the record.’ ‘Ships Passing Through The Night’ is one such example. That is what informs a lot of the decision making. You get gifts like that,” reflects McDermott.
Housed in the Valleys of Neptune album are songs that include the final studio recordings birthed by the original Jimi Hendrix Experience (after Electric Ladyland, in addition to capturing Hendrix’s initial efforts to forge a new sound equation with drummer Mitch Mitchell and bassist Billy Cox).
The 2010 March release includes unearthed studio covers of Elmore James’ classic “Bleeding Heart” and Cream’s “Sunshine of Your Love” as well as original Hendrix compositions like the aforementioned “Ships Passing Through The Night,” “Lullaby For The Summer” and the original un-dubbed Jimi Hendrix Experience rendition of “Hear My Train A Comin’.”
Also included in Valleys Of Neptune is “Mr. Bad Luck,” a Jimi Hendrix Experience track produced by Chas Chandler during the 1967 Axis: Bold As Love sessions. There’s also a recording of “Stone Free” that Hendrix produced with vocal overdubs courtesy of Family’s Roger Chapman and Andy Fairweather Low.
“Jimi would re-visit songs — like ‘Stone Free,’” McDermott explains. “The cool thing is, which I think people have to understand, is that it’s a signature song to the audience at large. No doubt about it. It was the first song he wrote for The Experience and [it’s] on the B-side of ‘Hey Joe’ but not included in the debut U.S. Reprise Records U.S. Are You Experienced? album.
“He did it quickly because it was all that they could afford. And by 1969 he had brought it back to his live set and said, ‘You know what? America and the world have not really heard this song.’
“And ‘Stone Free’ also shows the role of Eddie Kramer. I think the wonderful thing about Eddie — and he is such an asset to the work we do; we’re grateful to have him — is that I’ve been through every tape in the library. And when Jimi wanted to be serious about something, you can tell it’s a session Eddie is involved with, because there’s a communication between the two of them. You can hear it on the session tapes. They are working towards something. Like ‘Stone Free,’ for example. When they brought Billy (Cox) in, they did a few sessions with Billy playing with other people, jamming a little bit, but when it was time to get serious, Jimi called Noel in and called Mitch in and they cut ‘Stone Free.’ And you know it’s time to get to business.”
The first wave of products for the Jimi Hendrix Catalog Project, Legacy Recordings released on March 9 new deluxe CD/DVD editions of Are You Experienced?, Axis: Bold As Love, Electric Ladyland and First Rays of the New Rising Sun, also available on vinyl.
Each of the subsequent titles in the Hendrix catalog planned for reissue on Legacy will feature a bonus DVD featuring newly created documentaries directed by Grammy-award-winning director Bob Smeaton [“Beatles Anthology,” “Festival Express,” “Beatles: The Studio Recordings”] and featuring interviews with Experience members Redding, Mitchell and Cox, original producer Chandler and engineer Kramer. | <urn:uuid:280b1222-7d52-4efd-8d83-afc88eba0c6a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.goldminemag.com/article/experience-jimi-hendrix%E2%80%99s-%E2%80%98valleys-of-neptune%E2%80%99 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964323 | 1,411 | 1.648438 | 2 |
Agartala: The 724 MW gas-based thermal power project at Palatana in South Tripura district, set up by ONGC-Tripura Power Corporation (OTPC) would start generation by June.
Chairman-cum-Managing Director of ONGC, Sudhir Basudeva who reviewd the progress of work at the project with OTPC officials yesterday, told reporters today that the first phase of the project would be operational by June.
ONGC has also decided to set up a Rs 5000 crore urea fertilizer manufacturing unit at Khobal in North Tripura district and six big investors have expressed their interest in investing in the project, he said.
The site for the urea manufacturing project has been selected at Khobal considering its close proximity to the Khobal gas field from where the natural gas (hydro carbon) would be supplied.
ONGC last year discovered huge gas reserve at Khobal, near the Assam-Agartala National Highway (NH-44).
With the commissioning of the project demands for urea from not only Tripura but the entire north east region would also be met.
Besides, a large chunk of the fertiliser manufactured could be imported to neighbouring Bangladesh, he added. | <urn:uuid:6056d047-d8e1-4bf5-b35c-2c0ea0ac1971> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://post.jagran.com/palatana-power-project-to-start-generation-by-june-ongc-1335264751 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954757 | 254 | 1.53125 | 2 |
Welcome to the tumblr of positivity! If you're having a rough day and don't think you should be here, just hold your horses and stay a while before you go poo-pooing your life.
Sawako in japanese means "lively child" and that's exactly what Sawako, the main character from Kimi ni Todoke, really is. People often miss it, but she's a very happy person.
The goal of this tumblr is to make us realize that we have a lot of things to be thankful for no matter how small they are. This is not a tumblr where you brag about situational stuff. According to science only 10 percent of your happiness relies on situational stuff. So you can write something like, "I got a raise!" but not "I make $XX per hour," which is situational, and just might sound like bragging. XD So nothing situational. Just stuff that happened that day.
For example, you could have the perfect job, car, mate, and looks, but if you're the type of person that gets mad when someone uses up all the toothpaste, then chances are, you're not very happy.
Also, this'll help us be able to share the joy of little things with others. I don't know about you, but I'd love to hear about how your day went.
I implore you to leave a list of at least 10 things in the ask and we'll post them as well as other posts of positivity. We want you to have a better outlook on life. | <urn:uuid:7695d16d-eb3e-4358-99ac-6549958efdff> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://sawako-bu.tumblr.com/tagged/believe | 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 | 0.976489 | 326 | 1.796875 | 2 |
Are you a teamwork project manager? Here are some websites that can help you find more resources for the creation of strong teams and teamwork development.
Molly Rushing is the founder of the The Fox Hall Group. Molly has been publishing on LIKE A TEAM since the beginning of the site. She has some great resources on Organizational Development, Leadership Development and Conflict Resolution. Be sure and check Molly's new site out!
Good leadership skills can be learned with practice. The site is designed for people who are new to the supervisory ranks and for those who mentor, teach, and train them. It introduces simple leadership concepts and seeks to build the reader's confidence that he/she can learn effective leadership skills and obtain better results.
Are you involved in a destructive conflict? Do you want to find out how effective communication can resolve conflict? Do you want resources you can use to teach yourself and others how to manage conflict? Communication and Conflict - Mindful communication, growth through conflict.
Christian Resources Today - is an online Bible study resource tool that deals with, biblical stories, quotes, prophets, martyrs, biblical meaning of numbers and names, and so much more. www.christian-resources-today.com
Teams can achieve extraordinary results. Discover practical advice, business tested team building techniques, and useful tools for leading, growing,motivating, and sustaining your team.
Workforce development means developing people so that your organization delivers a better service. Workforce-development-Advice provides tools & best practice some of which are based on National Occupational Standards.
A good resource of online leadership tools to propel you and your team quickly and easily toward your goals.
Action Wheel Leadership Resources offers leadership articles and business resources based on the Action Wheel Leadership Model and the acclaimed work of Dr. Robert Terry.
Explore the Winston Churchill Leadership traits, speeches and quotes. We compare his leadership principles with current management and leadership training. What are the lessons?
Discover here at leadership and motivation training the tools to accelerate your career and personal growth. Motivate and transform with these ideas, insights and systems to bring world-class performance to your organization.
Effective project management skills can supercharge your career. In today's business environment, work gets done through projects. We focus on the project management, interpersonal, and personal effectiveness skills that will help you get results on any type of project.
The Happy Manager, information, ideas and tips for all managers looking for a better way to manage. Managers are best placed to create happiness in the workplace. This site is a resource both for those who wish to become happier at work, and for those who are already well on their way.
Team building ideas, effective communication, and leadership. How to gain more influence and alignment with less resistance from your team. How changing the way your team talks can change the way it thinks and acts, creating a more cohesive and unified force that needs less management not more.
The Motherlode of Corporate Team Building Ideas. We aim to be the richest independent source of teambuilding ideas and inspiration on the internet. Our mission is to help build high performance teams and effective teamwork.
Leadership Tools - for leaders focused on getting quality results. Providing free leadership tools and resources for the aspriring leader.
A dynamic, practical approach to management training by and for today’s business woman that coaches new managers to build a skills portfolio to get the job done in a changing workplace.
Leadership consulting, customized team building, training, executive coaching; helping organizations increase accountability, cross- functional coordination, performance and earned trust.
Find solutions. Beat burnout. Regain life-work balance. We help leaders and professionals continue to advance significant projects, programs and causes while improving their capacity to work and lead with less stress in a more sustainable way. We provide written and recorded resources, courses, programs and personal and group coaching. | <urn:uuid:a444186d-f36d-4fda-8b19-62a29ac13da2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.likeateam.com/team-building-resources/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.944994 | 797 | 1.578125 | 2 |
Two high-profile Senate Democrats introduced a proposal Tuesday that if passed would set domestic requirements on solar installations looking to qualify for the 30 percent Investment Tax Credit.
The proposed legislation from Sen. Sherrod Brown of Ohio and Sen. Charles Schumer of New York comes on the same week that the Department of Commerce is expected to make a preliminary determination on an anti-dumping tariff on panels coming into the United States from China. If illegal dumping is found, the new tariff would be added to the countervailing tariff that was already implemented to offset subsidies coming from the Chinese government. The latest ruling is expected to be announced on May 17.
Brown and Schumer’s proposal would require that 70 percent of the parts of a solar panel must be American made if the developer using that panel wishes to take the Investment Tax Credit. If the panel is shipped to be manufactured in the United States, then 50 percent of the parts would have to be American-made in order to qualify for the credit.
According to Sen. Brown’s office, the standalone legislation was just introduced today, so the wording of the bill has not yet been made public. Because of that, several key points are still unknown. It remains unclear how the 70 or 50 percent thresholds would be measured. Also, it’s uncertain whether a timetable for implementation would be set within the legislation and whether domestic requirements would be targeted only for panels coming in from China.
A vast majority of bills that are introduced never make it out of committee, and at this point it’s impossible to say what level of support it would have. But the timing clearly indicates that key Democrats are watching the U.S.-China trade case closely, and that perhaps they’re willing to eliminate the tax benefits that have helped the industry flourish in order to boost domestic production.
“We can’t trade our dependence on foreign oil for a dependence on Chinese-made solar panels,” Sen. Brown said. “We went from a solar trade surplus with China to a solar trade deficit in a matter of years. Ohio workers can compete with anyone in the world, but they deserve access to a level playing field. When the Chinese government provides direct export subsidies to its solar manufacturers, that’s not competing – it’s cheating. And it’s costing American jobs in solar manufacturing. The American tax code should not make matters worse by encouraging the purchase of Chinese-made solar panels. Our plan will ensure that American tax incentives support American solar panel manufacturers.”
“The federal government has to take China’s stranglehold on the solar power industry very seriously, and U.S. manufacturers must have every arrow in their quiver to fight back,” said Schumer. “This proposal is tough, but it’s needed to successfully counter China’s unfair trade practices. This hard-hitting plan will level the playing field for U.S. solar producers so that they can compete, create jobs and become a global leader in this rapidly-growing industry.”
While U.S. manufacturing dominated a young solar industry, China has emerged as a manufacturing leader during recent years. The country now manufactures about 60 percent of all solar panels, and it’s done so with strong government support. The U.S., meanwhile, manufactures about 6 percent of the world’s panels, though it remains vital source of many of the components that go into each panel and system.
When Ontario implemented its Feed-in tariff in 2009, a domestic manufacturing requirment was put in place prompting many companies to locate manufacturing plants in the region.
We'll add updates once details of the U.S. legislation are announced. | <urn:uuid:f603dfe2-44ca-4f14-bcfa-29607a8bf387> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.renewableenergyworld.com/rea/news/article/2012/05/senate-democrats-exclude-chinese-solar-panels-from-itc | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954342 | 763 | 1.765625 | 2 |
blog response 2
A person should not be afraid to be good at something. If they are good at something then people should except that.
She could be teased because she is smart and her mom is a teacher.
Article posted September 17, 2009 at 02:18 PM •
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Your right people shouldn't get picked on just because they r smart or a teachers kid.
Comment Posted on September 22, 2009 at 02:29 PM by
Conditions of Use | <urn:uuid:f41af7ee-430b-4564-8525-fb4f6ddb61a0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://classblogmeister.com/blog.php?blog_id=960395&mode=comment&blogger_id=276822 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954634 | 114 | 1.710938 | 2 |
The Broadway Melody (1929)
Directed by Harry Beaumont
100 min; U.S.A.; Black and White; Mono
The Broadway Melody (1929) is a backstage drama centered around a love triangle between a sister song-and-dance act and a singer/songwriter named Eddie Kearns (Charles King). Kearns has just penned the theme song for Florenz Ziegfeld, I mean, Francis Zanfield's (Eddie Kane) latest Broadway revue. It's his big break, and he wants his friends the Mahoney sisters to perform it with him. The trouble starts when the sisters, after spending ten years on the road circuit, arrive and Eddie discovers he's fallen out of love with Hank (Bessie Love) and in love with Queenie (Anita Page) and they're both in love with him. What's more, after blowing their audition for Zanfield its not the talent of the former sister but the long-legged blonde looks of the latter that gets them a part in the show. The tangled triangle is further complicated by the arrival of rich playboy Jack Warner, sorry, Jacques Warriner (Kenneth Thomson) who wants to play Stanford White to Queenie's Evelyn Nesbit and install her in a Park Avenue apartment as his mistress. But this is MGM's "all-talking, all-singing, all-dancing" picture so in spite of Eddie, Hank and Queenie's personal struggles the show must go on. As the title song by Nacio Herb Brown and Arthur Freed says, "Your troubles there are out of style / 'Cause Broadway always wears a smile."
You were meant for me: Queenie, Hank and Eddie form a tragic love triangle in The Broadway Melody.
Audiences in 1929 came to hear the singing and see the dancing but they got something extra: the original release featured a song-and-dance sequence in Technicolor. Sadly this sequence is missing from the Warner Home Video DVD version that I saw. It didn't really mar the experience, after all I don't know what I'm missing, but I'd like to see how color developed since The Toll of The Sea (1922). The Broadway Melody received an Academy Award for Outstanding Picture 1928/29. From all accounts the film was extremely popular. Motion Picture Almanac 1934-35 lists the film as one of the most successful rental's up to that time and it enjoyed box office success in the U.S. and abroad, particularly in England.
I think it's fair to assume that a major reason for the success was the picture's use of sound. In 1929 the major competing sound systems were sound-on-disc and sound-on-film. MGM and the rest of the Big Five studios chose the more versatle sound-on-film system over sound-on-disc, but some exhibition houses were wired for sound-on-film, some for sound-on-disc, some still unwired. Comments made by Harry Beaumont, director of The Broadway Melody, about sound recording for the film confirm that his crew recorded for both sound systems, apparently keeping in mind those theaters that had not yet updated: "we make an A and B sound track recording and an A and B wax recording of the same scene. Then we play back the poorer wax record...if it is all right, the better wax is treated so as to harden it, and the better sound track is used, and we are all set."1 The advantage of using the sound-on-film system became apparent to Beaumont when his engineers were able to record and replace a dropped "s" in the sound track. A similar edit could not be done with a sound-on-disc recording without a retake of the entire scene—which means that the two types of soundtracks for this movie are at least slightly different (Beaumont didn't mention any other edits). Beaumont's skillful sound team was led by Douglas Shearer, brother of star Norma Shearer; he previously worked on the part-talkie White Shadows in the South Seas (1928) and would earn a total of fourteen sound recording and technical Academy Awards over the course of his career. An oustanding moment in sound occurs in the opening sequence of The Broadway Melody. Inside Gleason Music Publishing Co. four disparate musical acts practice different song material, and we hear all the musicians singing and playing at the same time. Shearer and his team guide our ears through this chaos of music until they settle on the stand-out title song of the picture (already familar to us since it's played in a medley with George M. Cohen's "Give My Regards to Broadway," from the 1904 production of Little Johnny Jones, over the credits) as Eddie Kearns runs through it.
When Kearns performs the song with a small combo of musicians the limitation of recording for both sound systems becomes obvious because the song has to be performed in a single take as edits cannot be made on the sound-on-disc system. A whole song performed in a single shot can be very boring— watch the rendition of "Truthful Deacon Brown" later in the movie for an example. Beaumont might have wanted to break up the stable image by moving the camera, but the limitations of the early sound technology got in the way. To keep the sounds of the motion picture cameras from being picked up by microphones the cameras were placed in large soundproof booths with limited mobility. Beaumont and cinematographer John Arnold (who worked with Victor Sjostrom the previous year in The Wind (1928)) appear to have developed a creative answer to this problem: have the actors and musicians change positions during the number to break up a static shot without cutting or moving the camera (see images below). There is only one cut (compare photo at top with those below) that occurs at the completion of the song but this performance doesn't grow stale thanks to the change in position. I should add that capturing a complete take can sometimes result in a superior performance of a song. Just compare the warm energetic feeling of Eddie's opening peformance of "The Broadway Melody," accompanied by just piano, guitar and clarinet, with the lame orchestral version later in the movie and you'll hear what I mean.
The free-flowing dialogue in this film is a refreshing change from the slow mumbling in Lights of New York (1928). On the other end of the spectrum the speaking parts don't rival something as slick as the witty banter in Lubitsch's The Love Parade (1929). Still, the quick unpredicatable language was enough to make some contemporaneous critics bristle with indignation. Mordaunt Hall complained in the Times, "it is..rather disappointing to hear Miss Page's none-too-bell-like tones ejaculating word barrages in which there may be: "Boloney," "guy," "lay off," "hot dog," "gee," "wow," "big sap," "kinda," "gonna" and other such classical epithets."2 Perhaps Hall was one of those yearning for the talkies to increase the audience's vocabulary and teach proper pronounciation. I think the use of slang helps us to better imagine a Broadway backstage in 1929.
Harry Beaumont directing on the set of A Man and His Money (1919).
Director Harry Beaumont was more qualified than we might expect to helm MGM's first talking musical. Before working on The Broadway Melody he directed Joan Crawford doing the "Charleston" in Our Dancing Daughters (1928). That film featured synchronized music and sound effects and was successful enough to spawn sequels. I did a little more digging and discovered something fascinating about Beaumont's history with sound pictures. Beaumont directed movies for Edison, Essanay, Warner Brothers, Sam Goldwyn and MGM, directing since 1914, but he also worked as a writer and actor for the Edison Company. Waaaay back in 1913 he performed in a talkie, a Kinetophone film, that was shown at Union Street Theatre by the Edison Company when that firm was taking a (ultimately unsuccessful) stab at marketing synchronous sound films for projection. Beaumont reflected on the film to the Times in 1929, "my recollection of the world premiere of the first all-talking piece of work is that I was very thankful that I was in blackface so that no one would recognize me as the chap who sang, 'When That Midnight Choo-Choo Leaves for Alabam.'"3 None of Beaumont's acting jobs listed for 1913 on IMDB agree with his recollection, but maybe the list is incomplete. What was this early sound film he's talking about? One of the Kinetophone films listed in the Edison archives is titled Minstrel Show-first part. That film is not included on the Edison: The Invention of the Movies four DVD set, I checked, but the title does jibe with Beaumont's description of the film he sang in. There is a film listed for the Edison company at IMDB as A Minstrel Show(1913) but it doesn't list Beaumont in the cast. A check through the archives of the Times uncovers a review of the aforementioned Kinetophone exhibition on February 17, 1913: "The second number was a minstrel show [my emphasis] with orchestra, soloists, end men and interlocutor, large as life and quite noisy."4 I'm going to take a leap and suggest that this is the same film listed in Edison's archive, listed on IMDB and mentioned by Beaumont. If so, what a strange and winding path Beaumont's career had travelled. He'd gone from singing in an all-but forgotten music film to directing one of the most popular musicals of his time.
1. "Film Plays Then and Now,'" New York Times (10 February 1929): 117.
2. Mordaunt Hall, "Fair Faces and Wild Slang,'" New York Times (17 February 1929): 119.
3. "Film Plays Then and Now,'" New York Times (10 February 1929): 117.
4. "New York Applauds the Talking Picture,'" New York Times (18 February 1913): 3.
Rosalind Rogoff, "Edison's Dream: A Brief History of the Kinetoscope" Cinema Journal 15, no. 2 (Spring 1976): 65.
John Belton, "Awkward Transitions: Hitchcock's 'Blackmail' and the Dynamics of Early Film Sound,'" The Musical Quarterly 83, no. 2 (summer 1999): 227-236.
Photo of Harry Beaumont reprinted from J. Berg Esenwein, Writing the Photoplay, 258. © 1919 by The Home Correspondence School. | <urn:uuid:4469e065-342e-465d-bd48-c55f25a5d33b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://filmyear.typepad.com/blog/19201929/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963049 | 2,234 | 1.570313 | 2 |
Citrix have finally made their much touted bare metal hypervisor for desktop devices – XenClient – available for download. This release closely follows that of Virtual Computer, the market leader in distributed desktop virtualization announcing the availability of NxTop Connect. And indeed, only recently Neocleus, makers of NeoSphere signed a technology licensing agreement with BigFix a leading solutions provider.
Both Virtual Computer and Neocleus are small organizations in comparison to Citrix: why would Citrix extend their wide virtualization portfolio to include a bare metal hypervisor for desktop devices? What features would be necessary to make this such a service viable? Where is Citrix’s normal sparring partner VMware? Could such a solution help organizations deliver their IT services more effectively?
Why is a Bare Metal Hypervisor for Desktop Devices Useful?
A core problem in managing distributed computers is that the workspace is tied to the device: the applications are tied to the operating system, the operating system is tied to the device and the user data is melded in there too. While it is relatively straightforward to separate out the applications and the user data – extracting the operating system is harder. An operating system requires specific device drivers to interact with various hardware components – be it the video card, the network card, or the motherboard. Change the device – be it because you need a newer one, or a desktop needs to be a laptop, or vice versa, or a Dell laptop is replaced with an HP Laptop for whatever reason.. and the operating system build needs to change.
Of course, you can deploy a Desktop Virtualization and/or Presentation Virtualization environment to resolve this. But, such an environment needs data center infrastructure to host the virtual hosts/sessions. This is an expensive undertaking: and it is not always possible to use these services to serve all your users: mobile users who need off-line working for instance. Moreover, the user experience – especially for intensive processing or graphics – can be difficult to deliver without using local client resources.
With a bare metal hypervisor on the client device you can make use of centralization technologies to reduce management costs of your infrastructure – while at the same time being less dependent on binding the operating system to the device directly. A virtual host is delivered directly to the device and can be run using almost the device’s full resources. This reduces the hardware required in the data-center to host virtual machine and allows devices to be used off-line.
This is of greatest benefit when supporting laptop users who have long had devices that have caused IT managers to want to throw in the towel. Laptop builds give you a number of headaches:
- Maintaining a standardized image – often one device doesn’t suit all users: supporting different models is cumbersome in terms.
- Deploying updates & changes – as they’re for mobile users, it figures that those users are not always in the office.
- Providing backup/restore function - which means they’re often on the road and more likely to fall foul of losing/damaging their device – devices can be replaced – without a back-up data cannot.
- Securing the end device – in which case its important to ensure that the data stored on the device is encrypted and that the end device can’t readily be used to connect to your network unknown to the authorized user.
Yet, the benefits are not simply for laptops – with a bare metal hypervisor you can:
- deploy a standardized image to end devices – regardless of that device – be it a laptop, a standard desktop, a blade – your devices could be managed from a central location with common builds – across the estate.
- monitor and manage a workspace outside of the operating system – its all very well having an agent that operates within the OS to provide updates and management when the OS is working; but having a bare metal hypervisor can allow you to offer management functions in the event of a failed OS, possibly to allow deployment to a new device
- run multiple workspaces on one device – excellent for testing, or development, providing access to different services (e.g. two workspaces during a merger) from the same device..
- enable virtualization without a data-center – hosting desktop sessions in a data-center can be a costly undertaking – a bare metal hypervisor allows you to utilize distributed computing while making use of the management and reliability savings virtualization is able to deliver.
Why The Importance all of a Sudden?
Why would Citrix extend their wide virtualization portfolio to include a bare metal hypervisor for desktop devices? Because, while they can allow access to existing devices via their XenDesktop agent, while they can deliver high density workspaces on servers using XenApp, while they can provision virtual and physical devices with Provisioning Services … delivering and managing a device that could operate both on, and off, the network – that was a missing piece.
Virtual Computer and Neocleus have understood this – and delivered solution. Both Citrix and VMware realize the potential.
Yet, while the advantages to your organization are plentiful, bear in mind that not all end devices support this technology. Citrix XenClient has been released with less than a dozen ‘fully tested’ devices – mainly from Dell and HP. Virtual Computer have a more extensive list – and a utility that can determine if a device is suitable. Both have a similar core requirement but neither, yet, support AMD chipsets.
Bare metal hypervisors is a service that is incredibly useful – but may require you to replace existing user devices to hardware that supports the core technology.
So, this is a Facilitator for BYOC?
To be fair – yes and no. A bare metal hypervisor solution requires that you wipe the existing device – in order to install the hypervisor client. Sure, you can stipulate that only compatible devices are ‘supported’ (although, as discussed at the moment that’s a limited range) , and sure you could take an image of the device “before” and enable it after: a benefit of this technology is to support multiple operating systems. But now, who ‘owns’ the core management of the device? The business? The BYOCer?
Would you trust that device if the user has control or access to the hypervisor console? Would you user trust you not to blow away their laptop with their hard fought Call of Duty scores saved on it?
For BYOC a better option for using local devices would be to use a solution such as Moka5 or VMware ACE. Here, the virtual machine runs in an environment hosted within an existing operating system. BYOC may absolve the organization from purchasing a specific device – but you still have to deploy a service that users can connect to. An advantage of these such solutions is that, you don’t have to radically change the existing environment.
On the other hand a bare metal hypervisor offer advantages over those that rely on an operating system.
- Improved Security and reliability – because the image is not running on top of a operating system that may, or may not be properly secured and maintained
- Improved Performance – as the resource demands of a bare metal hypervisor are less than that of a type 2 hypervisor + local operating system
- Reduced Management – and if managing devices yourselves – don’t need to be concerned about maintaining the host OS – because host os is the core #1 hypervisor – very different beast to traditional desktop OS.
Thus, while bare metal hypervisor for desktop devices can be used in a BYOC service they may currently be too limiting in terms of management and choice of device than alternatives.
Is a Hypervisor Enough?
Citrix XenClient is of course, the client component – the bit that sits on the tin. Obviously, that client is only useful when its got something to run – such as a virtual machine.
In deploying a such a client what other functions would you need to deliver a viable service to users? The sum is 0nly as good as its parts. Its should be more than an imaging service – it should be able to:
- Backup & Restore user data – your data is your most important asset – this service should protect that.
- Revoke access to device – you no longer employ this person; you’ve lost the device: how do you prevent access
- Revoke access to an image – perhaps you don’t control the device – but you should at least control access to your corporate desktop
- Encrypt remote image – your data is your most important asset – this service should protect that; its on a device outside of your network
- Deploy applications to remote users – this solution is primarily about mobility: what is the saving if your staff have to return to base for updates as before.
- Remotely update the core client – a hypervisor is an operating system: its less likely to change – but change is a constant – how will you be able to manage that?
- Collect Diagnostic information from the device – the advantage of a client device hypervisor is that it can provide diagnostics of the virtual hosts themselves – but how do you retrieve that information and how is it displayed?
- Easy migration – can you convert your existing desktop images, or do you have to start again?
- IT or user select OS/application – this is perhaps the most interesting consideration. The Company provides you with the funds to purchase your own laptop, The Company permits you to install your own OS. For a developer, for a tester, for a home user this may well be aboon. Yet, what functions and security are available to ensure a separation between the different operating systems running on that device. Is it possible for a home image to utilise resources on a work image? If so, what risks are exposed to your corporate environment?
A client side hypervisor has the capacity to be a powerful tool – there will be a temptation to create a number of features that are incorporated into the core hypervisor. Firewalls, anti-virus, intrusion detection, virtual networking – yet, the advantage of such a light core operating system is that it becomes a bloated operating environment with a cost of ownership that matches the environments it hosts.
Where is VMware?
It was suggested that VMware’s View anticipated 4.5 release, reportedly released Q4 2010, would include a bare metal hypervisor for desktop device. We understand this is no longer the case. In fact, you can read about their decision on VMware’s own blogs http://blogs.vmware.com/view/2010/05/real-byoc-and-view-client.html
In that article, VMware have a valid point, as I’ve already mentioned, bare metal hypervisors for desktop devices aren’t a great enabler for a BYOC service. While I personally disagree with the suggestion that staff can be recruited or retained solely on the availability of a BYOC model – the functions of the service can be useful .
Yet, this service is not a BYOC solution. This is a solution to negate needing different image builds on end devices while using the resources on that end device: this is a solution to change the way you deliver desktop services, reduce costs yet – not have to rely on a centralized data center infrastructure.
Should I buy it, or hold off a while?
What do you need to do? This is a technology that Citrix offer more as a ‘laptop solution’ – but both Virtual Computer and NeoCleus have realized can be a more comprehensive desktop solution.
Virtual Computer appear to have an edge on providing a client and management interface for now, but given XenClient’s appearance Virtual Computer need to capitalize on their Hyper-V solution and better publicize their supported device list; possibly even offer a ‘developer/limited use’ version for free.
Xenclient is getting/will get a lot of publicity. Citrix are good at that. Are they likely to struggle because of a reliance on XenServer? The advantage that Citrix has is that they are embedded in a lot of organizations – they have a name IT administrators trust – provided no one mentions printing – but even XenApp users are using ESX/Hyper-V. At the same time – Citrix have developed relationships with Dell and HP – if this type of service is embedded into a laptop at buy time there is a great potential there not only for businesses to manage their assets better, but for consumers to treat their laptop devices like iPhone users treat their SmartPhone.
VMware have a product that Citrix doesn’t have in their VMware View Client – arguably a “better” resource for BYOC model because it allows you to work offline, yet doesn’t require you to introduce a different core OS.
Neocleus’s model is very interesting – especially with buy in from a service provider – manage the operating environment outside of the operating system, and be (relatively) independent of device. That is a great advantage for anyone managing a number of devices.
So.. Should I buy it, or hold off a while?
Well – you’re persistent I’ll give you that.
Bare metal hypervisor for desktops device enable your organization to change the way you think about your PC lifecycle management. XenClient’s offering is not yet a full solution – there are more complete alternatives available now. Neocleus have gained the buy in of a service provider and Virtual Computer have a feature rich product based around Hyper-V.
You can deliver savings to your organization with this technology: but bear in mind you will need to have compatible devices and most likely have to change the way you support users.
Bare metal hypervisor for desktops devices, as a solution to reducing management costs and improving the user experience is undoubtedly a contender. | <urn:uuid:e1098698-07b2-4693-80ee-8b03888643a6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.virtualizationpractice.com/citrix-xenclient-enters-the-ring-5607/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.939344 | 2,878 | 1.6875 | 2 |
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