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Afterwards, I had the opportunity to ask Espada a few questions about the budget and his reelection campaign. |
"I’ve been a CEO for 30 years," he told me. "Missing deadlines is never good. The state budget should not have been late. But worse than a late budget is a irresponsible budget, a budget that would have done more harm to programs, like this [Tolentine]." |
Before Espada arrived at Tolentine that morning, one of Espada's staffers had been handing out "Vote Espada 2010!" flyers, which listed a few reasons Espada thinks his constituents should reelect him. A copy is attached below. I asked him what else he would be talking about during the campaign and he bought up his majo... |
"The poorest community in the state finally got one of the top political positions in state government," Espada said, adding, "I think all Bronxites should be proud of that, that we’ve finally got a real voice at the table." |
One final note: you can get another take on Espada's visit to Tolentine at http://www.thebronxtruthnewsline.com/, a newish Bronx blog that exists solely, it seems, to portray Espada in a positive light. The blog, which is written by a "Robert Taft Lincoln," which we're assuming is a pseudonym, makes frequent references... |
According to Jeanette Reed, a spokesperson for the city’s Department of the Aging, the Title 20 funds (money allocated to city seniors in one of the state’s emergency budget extender bills) didn’t impact Tolentine or the 49 other centers Mayor Michael Bloomberg has slated for closure. “That [money] really doesn’t affec... |
But if the Title 20 funds hadn't been secured, a different group of senior centers would have ultimately faced closure. The Council of Senior Centers and Services of New York City's website has more on this. |
"By the way, in their letter, Espada and Diaz cite the Tolentine-Zeiser Senior Center in the Bronx as an example of a center in danger of closing because of the mayor’s supposed diversion of Title 20 money for other uses. |
That center wasn’t among the set of 60 centers affected in any way by the Title 20 funding. It was on the set of 50 centers that had been on the chopping block until last night’s city budget deal." |
It appears as though this was an act of the City Council, at least according to the facts. |
You are so right. Espada had nothing to do with the saving of this center or Baily center. It is truly sad how Espada took the credit which belongs to City Councilmen Fernando Cabrera and the rest of the Council. I guess Espada is really hard press for votes. |
The founder of easyJet has opened a discount food store that is selling everyday groceries for 25p each. |
Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou has launched easyFoodstore in an attempt to take advantage of the fast-growing discount market in the UK, which is led by Aldi and Lidl. |
The venture could eventually be another threat to the “big four” supermarket chains – Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s and Morrisons. |
They are already battling dramatic changes in shopping habits as families turn away from the weekly trip to a supermarket in favour of buying food online, in convenience stores and with the discounters. The supermarket chains also face the threat of Amazon expanding into groceries in the UK. |
Haji-Ioannou first announced plans to open a discount food store almost three years ago in August 2013. A mock easyFoodstore was built in Croydon a year later, but the tycoon’s plans then appeared to stall, with no shops opening for customers until now. |
EasyFoodstore will sell a range of grocery items including pasta, biscuits and beans. However, the list of initial products does not include fresh meat or fruit and vegetables. |
When he first announced the idea, Haji-Ioannou said he had been inspired to launch easyFoodstore by the widespread use of food banks. |
Haji-Ioannou and his family still own about 35% of easyJet and are the biggest shareholders. He has already expanded the “easy” brand into a string of other industries, creating easyCar, easyHotel, easyGym and easyProperty. |
Since creating the budget airline he has had mixed success. EasyBus and easyHotel have generated profits, but easyCinema was a failure and easyInternetcafe lost more than £100m. |
Eric Joseph Lasalle, 26, 101 Westwood Drive, Houma, two counts failure to appear, domestic abuse battery. |
Ronald James Hebert Sr., 44, 1910 Langdon St., Houma, possession schedule II drug, unlawful possession drug paraphernalia. |
Brian Keith Redmond, 44, 320 Johnson Ridge Lane, Thibodaux, parole violation. |
Bobby R. McCray, 54, 5000 Bayouside Drive, Chauvin, domestic abuse battery, resisting an officer. |
Jean Paul Falgout, 42, homeless, theft of goods more than $500. |
Cierra Franklin Bruce, 27, 201 Woodburn Drive, Houma, two counts aggravated assault with firearm. |
Lee Adonijah Ruffin, 34, 2949 Express Blvd., Houma, domestic abuse battery, resisting an officer, criminal trespass, introducing contraband into correctional facility. |
Lindsey Michelle Deroche, 25, 201 Eureka Drive, No. 1, Gray, DWI (child endangerment), possession schedule II drug, improper lane usage. |
John Emery Landry Jr., 40, 106-D Moss Lane, Houma, DWI, careless operation. |
Alfred Jaon Turner, 27, 400 Westside Blvd., Houma, speeding, driving under suspension. |
Barry Mcdaniel, 24, 1911 24th Ave., Gulfport Miss., fugitive warrant. |
Troy Adams, 36, 146 Cassady Lane, Lockport, violation of protective order. |
South Africa completed a 3-0 whitewash over Ireland's women thanks to a six-wicket victory in Wednesday's T20 international at Moseley in England. |
Ireland were reduced to 18-3 before Isobel Joyce hit 45 from 48 balls to help her team to a modest 109-8. |
South Africa cruised to victory, reaching 111-4 in 18.5 overs with Andrie Steyn scoring 35 runs while Mignon du Preez added 37 from 35 balls. |
Kim Garth and Laura Delany picked up a wicket apiece for the Irish. |
South Africa won Tuesday's two games at the same venue, first by 56 runs followed by a 46-runs win. |
The games are Johnston's last with the side, as he is taking up a coaching post with New South Wales. |
The calm November weather will be changing tack this weekend, as strong winds will whip up and down the country, according to the German Weather Service (DWD). Rainfall will, however, remain minimal and localised. |
On Friday night, light rain will begin to fall in southern Germany and along the coastline in the north. Strong winds will pick up along the coast and in higher regions. In more exposed mountainous areas, warnings have been issued of gale force winds during the night. |
“A low pressure system over the Atlantic has developed into a serious storm. It will be battering northern Scandinavia on Saturday, but we will feel the effects, as stormy gusts hit Germany” said Dorothea Patzold of the DWD. |
In the southeast, temperatures will reach lows of -2 degrees Celsius. Over most of the country, however, temperatures will hover around the zero degree mark. |
By Saturday, the patches of rain in the south will ease, with only sporadic showers falling on coastal areas. Temperatures in the north may reach a practically tropical 10 degrees. The rest of the country will enjoy a chillier weekend, as temperatures in predominantly cloudy areas will barely go above freezing. |
Coastal regions will remain damp over Saturday night, with a sprinkling of rainfall in many areas. The of the country will be clear with patches of fog. In the clearest areas there will be a risk of frost, as temperatures dip below zero. In areas covered in cloud, night time highs of 6 degrees have been predicted. |
Sunday night may see a light frost in colder regions, giving way to a fair day on Monday, where only very light rain will fall south of the Danube. |
Monday daytime will be a pleasant 11 degrees in much of the country, but temperatures will plummet below zero as the sun sets. |
On the job: From the time she got here, Luna has been so calm and loves people and other dogs. I work for a design center in Mooresville and bring her to work with me. She loves being in the office because everyone loves to have her there. Luna also has a lot of “friends” in the neighborhood. We have a fenced backyard ... |
It is not skepticism that is at fault for science’s lack of movement into the future… It is fear, conservatism, and dogmatism. It is pseudoskepticism which clings to a scientifically disproved belief system, a triumvirate of ancient philosophies: materialism, rationalism and naturalism.” — Ralph Abraham, Professor of M... |
This article will challenge a relatively recent group of Skeptics that identify themselves as the advocates of Science-Based Medicine (SBM), which is not to be confused with the widely accepted approach to decision-making in medical practice known as Evidence-Based Medicine (EBM). Although SBM’s most vocal leaders are ... |
During the course of over forty-five years I have been an advocate for natural healing and have counselled numerous people in wellness, lifestyle and behavioral modification, nutrition and diet, physical exercise training, and mind-body therapies. I have witnessed numerous successes including remission from terminal ca... |
What Skeptics criticize as magical thinking and placebo effects, particularly in the eradication of life-threatening diseases by alternative medical modalities or traditional healers, are in fact based upon laws of physics and biophysics that have yet to enter mainstream medical thinking. Much remains unknown or misund... |
Although Skeptics repeatedly chant the mantra that reason should be the sole means to determine the efficacy or failure of a medical intervention, their arguments are in fact surprisingly irrational and often comical. On the one hand, SBM followers acknowledge the health benefits of a wholesome diet; yet they oppose fu... |
But perhaps our favorite is SBM’s incessant diatribe that the countless successful treatments from natural and alternative therapies, which has been used for several millennia, are nothing more than placebo effects. Worse, the placebo effect is framed as a terrible thing although it has been intrinsic to healing since ... |
Researchers in the neurocognitive sciences and immunology have uncovered reproducible evidence that what we think and feel triggers biological changes. We no longer need further proof that this occurs. What we do need to explore are the underlying physical laws that contribute to these changes. However as Dr. John Ioan... |
For example, if an elderly person forgoes the influenza vaccine but lives a remarkably healthy life, eats plenty of fresh produce, takes supplements, exercises and daily meditations for stress reduction and doesn’t come down with the flu, Skeptics will argue that the person was lucky because she or he was not exposed t... |
The fundamental dichotomy underlying the entire SBM ideology is that prior scientific plausibility ultimately trumps scientific evidence. In an earlier essay we noted that SBM supports Evidence-Based Medicine while also correctly recognizing EBM’s shortcomings. For example, many Cochrane Collaboration reviews of certai... |
In a damning Guardian opinion editorial critique about Richard Dawkin’s BBC special “Enemies of Reason,” a two-hour assault on religion and non-conventional medicine, Dan Hind lectures Dawkin’s about his hypocrisy in opining humanity’s entrance into an age of “endarkenment.” Dawkins is the principle architect of the Ne... |
And it is with certainty that SBM’s leading voices are simply unable to wrap their minds around biophysical and quantum properties that support the efficacy of many alternative, natural medical systems, such as acupuncture, homeopathy and energy medicine. It is simply outside their profession’s paradigmatic way of thin... |
Quantum mechanics, pioneered by Max Planck, Albert Einstein, Erwin Schrodinger, Werner Heisenberg and others, should have ushered humanity into the post-materialist world. Unfortunately modern medicine, and other sciences hijacked by private corporate interests, have lagged dismally behind. And worse, the Skeptic propo... |
She also worries about the enormous financial interests and influence drug companies have with medical school faculties. The integrity of medicine is being completely lost and SBM Skeptics’ denial and failure to put more attention towards this trend and simply continue with its witch hunts against natural health displa... |
The majority of clinical evidence published in the peer-review literature, according to a 2007 survey conducted by the British Medical Journal, is of “unknown effectiveness” or “likely to be ineffective.” Only 15 percent of treatments approved by the UK’s Health Services were definitely “beneficial” and 22 percent were... |
Skeptics repeatedly argue that more evidence is necessary before they will accept the validity of a natural supplement or herb. Homeopathy and most acupuncture claims are rejected outright. But how much evidence is required. The SBM doctrine was founded in 2008, yet throughout the decade of its existence, the rhetoric ... |
SBM Skeptics become religiously monotheistic when the only measure to determine the health of person is that which can be medically supervised and validated by clinical or cohort statistics. Whether we follow a meat- or plant-based diet, eat organic or chemically laced foods, supplement our nutritional needs when we ar... |
They are frequent contributors to Global Research. |
2 Gorski DH, Novella SP. “Clinical trials of integrative medicine: testing whether magic works?” Trends Mol Med. 2014 Sep;20(9):473-6. |
6 Culliton BJ. “Medicine as business: are doctors entrepreneurs.” Science. 1986 Sep 5;233(4768):1032-3. |
7 D’Arcy, Moynihan R. “Can the relationship between doctors and drug companies ever be a healthy one?” PloSMed. 2009 Jul 21;6(7):e1000075. |
8 Kirsch I. The Emperor’s New Drugs: Exploding the Antidepressant Myth. Bodley Head: London, 2009. |
Featured image is from MedPage Today. |
GALION — On May 17, Galion Public Library will switch to a new circulation system which looks to be a step forward for their patrons and staff. |
The new system will be part of a larger system coordinated with 11 other libraries known as the Consortium of Ohio Libraries, or COOL. The Marvin Memorial Library in Shelby and the Mount Gilead Public Library are also part of COOL. |
Starting on Monday, May 14, access to the library catalog or any patron accounts will not be available to staff until the switch-over is completed Thursday, May 17. |
While patrons will be able to check out selections during the conversion, staff will not be able to check in books that are returned until the Evergreen system goes live next Thursday. |
Eckenrod is quick to point out that while the new system may look a bit different, there are some great advantages. |
Another advantage for patrons will be the convenience of using a personal computer to put holds on books that are in at Galion, rather than have to come in and hope that no one else has taken it out. If a copy is unavailable at Galion Public Library, the system will automatically order you the same title from another l... |
I do a lot of reading. I read books (a list of my favorites from 2011 here). I read magazines. I read newspapers. And, I read blogs. I love having a rich set of contemporaries - some are line leaders and some are customer experience practitioners. Even a pundit or two. I learn something from them most days (recently, V... |
So, it came as no surprise to me as I looked back on some of the more notable posts I've read and bookmarked that certain statements started to stand out. Quotes that really summarized what brands big and small need to think about from a customer experience standpoint in today's frantic business climate. |
Today I thought I'd share with you a number of those quotes. It's a good list from a number of blogs and business people I read regularly and respect. Enjoy! |
"(Bruce) Temkin's research has found that…customers actually want good customer service more than they want low prices…but companies often treat customer service as an unwanted stepchild." MarketingProfs, "How to Keep Your Customer Experience Efforts on Track" |
Ever notice that while price and service are both part of your customer's experience, in their minds, how they feel often trumps what they pay. We see it every day. How do you deliver on both the tangible (product, price) and emotional parts of your customer experience? |
"When a brand connects with their customer, that in some ways is the easy part, the hard part is keeping the customer at the center after the success/profits comes flooding in. Success can breed complacency, success can breed arrogance." Anna Farmery, The Engaging Brand, "Focus on Customer Experience Delivers Profit" |
To me, this gets at the role of experience in customer retention. Too many firms abdicate their responsibility to anticipate the next need a customer may have. After all, in many ways, it's more important to retain a customer, increase share of wallet and create an army of brand advocates than it is to acquire new cust... |
"The most valuable resource you can give customers is your time. Listen to them to uncover their real needs. Only then can you find a way to solve their problems or meet their expectations. Treat the cause, not just the symptoms." Ginger Conlon, Think Customers: 1 to 1 blog, "5 Ways to Build Customer Engagement" |
I love Ginger's thinking here because she gets at the heart of a key business principal for me: Solving the customer's problem—and only that problem. Everything we do - from choosing which people to hire to product strategy to fulfillment operations decisions - should be geared toward solving a need your customers will... |
"You can acquire some measure of knowledge from various research techniques, but nothing beats living, breathing, and feeling the same things your prospect (customers) do." John Jantsch, Duct Tape Marketing Blog, "5 Elements of a Can't Miss Business" |
Think about the airlines industry. The best way for those companies to get a true feel for the complete customer experience is to hop on one of their planes themselves. Buy a ticket online. Use an iPad to check in.Try to use frequent flyer miles. Business-to-business experiences may be more difficult to walk, but just ... |
"It is no longer good enough to simply satisfy your customers or to have a product that works. No longer can you merely deliver a service within the timescale you have set. All these are important and we have to do them. But what will really make the difference is when the customer asks: when I went through that experi... |
I think the stakes have been raised. The bar is set higher than just about any time in history in terms of the experiences your customers have with your brand. So, again, listening to your customers is absolutely key. But, don't stop there. Engage, and then solve. |
"The way to a customer's heart is much more than a loyalty program. Making customer evangelists is about creating experiences worth talking about." Valeria Maltoni, Conversation Agent, "Customer Loyalty Comes from Conversation" |
Valeria nails it here. It's not about creating a killer loyalty program with points and rewards. It's about delivering an experience that solves their need so well it almost forces your customers to share it with friends, families and colleagues. And, as a business, that's something you really can't put a price tag on ... |
"Organizations that implement learning relationships are better able to understand and anticipate a customer's unique needs. Learning organizations understand that great customer experiences start with listening to the customer to learn instead of talking to the customer to sell. Customers in a learning relationship ex... |
I typically start each first client meeting with a question or two. I don't preach or teach—I probe. I typically don't do a lot of talking at those first meetings—I want to hear about their pain points. Their struggles. Where they see opportunities. All that information helps me learn, and in turn, starts our relations... |
Note: photo by FinancialAidPodcast.com and ChristopherSPenn.com via FlickR Creative Commons. |
We might have seen as the adorable Alfie Moon on Eastenders, but Shane Richie is about to undergo a transformation unfamiliar to the soap audience. |
He appears in The Perfect Murder at Cambridge Arts Theatre from Monday March 21 to Saturday March 26 alongside fellow Eastender star Jessie Wallace. |
And he had a clear idea about how to play the part. |
Shane said: “I play Victor who is in a loveless, soulless marriage and he and his wife detest each other. We are always rowing with each other. |
“But it has been good working with the director Ian Talbot. I came in with quite a clear idea on how I was going to play it and he has been very encouraging. I have been able to grow a beard and a moustache. |
“I based the performance on Anthony Hopkins in the film Magic, he starts off quite normally but then the descent, you really start to see the character change quite dramatically. |
It was the radical departure from the happy-go-lucky soap character that motivated him to play the part. |
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