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Now, when, as you think of how you had refused to give up, does your memory of Dr. King and his preaching have anything to do with that, do you think?
Mm hmm. Yeah. And, and, when I, when I went to Washington, D.C. for the first time for the Welfare Rights Conference, two weeks conference, that's changing my whole life. Cause there was so many new hurdles. I never thought, you see where I come from in the country, I come from Atlanta in 1950 and my father wasn't allowed to talk about poverty. All I heard him, my father would talk about at night, was how early he had to get up the next morning to catch Mr. Charlie's mule and go to the field. And I went to, ah, Washington, D.C., I heard some things I had never heard before. Because I didn't know Black peoples had a right at that time. I didn't know we had a right. And, I was just like going to school. Those two weeks was just like going to school. I got educated. And they said we had a right. And ever since then I come back and I taught my peoples that they had a right. And I tell them, "Look, we don't have money but we have a right and that's the best thing in the world." All of us need money but there is some things money won't buy, that's happiness, love, health. But we need money to live on. But that's, I came back and I taught my peoples that they had a right just as birthright as anybody else had. And I come back and told them that, man, a handle would be put on their names and that's what they did. | <urn:uuid:7c29432d-af5a-40de-847d-921fc8b61c82> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://digital.wustl.edu/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=eop;cc=eop;rgn=div2;view=text;idno=mat5427.0331.105;node=mat5427.0331.105%3A1.31 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00030-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.996131 | 367 | 1.585938 | 2 |
Lightening Wing Ribs
received an e-mail from a person who wanted more information about the
strength of a rib that had large internal sections removed. It is a
legitimate concern simply because nobody wants to build a model that
self-destructs in flight.
I have used ribs similar to this in several of my
models and have had no problems. To date not a single rib has broken
in flight or from handling. However, you do have to be careful when
handling the wing. For example the ribs used for
Great Gonzo have a 1/4" outline. The
wing must be lifted by grasping the spars or the
center section sheeting.
There is a good possibility that the rib would break if the wing were lifted
by supporting it under a rib.
I have had to repair
Great Gonzo three times due to damage that occurred on the ground on
exceptionally windy days. The first damage was caused when Great Gonzo
blew off a table at the field and fell several feet to the ground. It
flipped over in the air and landed upside-down directly on the wing which flexed and
tossed the model back into the air. Damage incurred was a broken
leading edge near the
The other two times both occurred during
take-off. Great Gonzo was blown over when it turned cross-wind (pilot
error) and cart-wheeled several times. The first time this happened a
main spar was broken as well as the leading edge. The second time the
tail end of the fuselage had a minor crack and the leading edge of the wing
broke again. Notably, no wing ribs were broken in any of these
My Stik 30 has
smaller cut-outs because the model was designed for higher performance.
As I mentioned on the My Stik 30 page, the ailerons can deflect up to 45° in
each direction on high rates. The roll rate is so fast I can not count
them. Additionally, when the Webra .32 was mounted on it I put the
model in several full-throttle, terminal-velocity dives of several hundred
feet. The airframe had no problems with this.
My Stik 30 uses the same wing that was on the
first version that I crashed on take-off at full throttle. That crash
was due to putting a wing tip in the ground and cart-wheeling the plane (my
favorite way to break airplanes apparently) across the field.
was subjected to a significant torsion load but the only damage to it were a
couple dents in the wing tips and a broken turbulator spar. None of
the ribs were damaged. The fuselage was totaled.
As far as weight savings goes, it is all
relative. If you are trying to shave every ounce of weight from your
then the effort to remove weight from the ribs is worth it. On the
other hand, the weight savings of the ribs alone probably is only an ounce
or so for a .40 size ship assuming the use of contest balsa. If the
ribs are made from heavier wood then the weight-savings will be greater.
The following images show the wing construction
of My Stik 30. Again, this wing survived a full throttle cartwheel
across the field and is still in use.
My Stik 30's wing has turbulators on the top
and bottom of the forward portion of the wing and cap strips on the aft
portion of the wing.
Note the shallow
grooves in the spars (a little deeper than 1/64"). These make it
very easy to align the shear webs between the spars and provide
additional gluing area. The grooves can be cut on a
table saw or
The black items you see on the T-pins are
called Pin Clamps and are manufactured by Rocket City.
Another view of the wing
under construction. The wing is light and strong. There are
twelve one-piece, full-span wood strips in the construction:
3/8" x 3/4" Leading edge (1)
1/8" square Turbulators (6)
1/4" x 3/8" Main Spars (2)
1/16" x 1-1/2" Trailing edge sheet (2)
3/8" square Trailing edge (1)
The completed wing. | <urn:uuid:322b88f8-39c9-4568-8854-755b01c5f2c7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.airfieldmodels.com/information_source/how_to_articles_for_model_builders/construction/make_constant_chord_wing_ribs/index.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.965709 | 937 | 1.507813 | 2 |
Although a highly-accomplished conventional doctor, David Agus has embraced the future of medicine and is constantly exploring ways that new technologies can help in the fight against cancer.
David Agus is a medical doctor and a Professor of Medicine at the University of Southern California. However, he is also the founder of a couple of game-changing medical initiatives. In 2006, he co-founded Navigenics with Dietrich Stephan, Ph.D., to form a company that would provide people with their individual genetic information, allowing them to act on any predispositions to disease that they might have and prevent onset. He also founded Oncology.com which was the largest cancer Internet resource and community.
Dr. Agus’ research is focused on the application of proteomics and genomics in the study of cancer, as well as developing new therapeutic treatments for cancer. He serves as Director of the USC Center for Applied Molecular Medicine and the USC Westside Prostate Cancer Center. Agus is also the recipient of several honors and awards, including the American Cancer Society Physician Research Award, a Clinical Scholar Award from the Sloan-Kettering Institute and the International Myeloma Foundation Visionary Science Award.
"I believe in educating the next generation about science and medicine. We need new human capital to fight disease."Dr. David Agus | <urn:uuid:3cf9b4d8-75e8-4131-ba8e-e0f66fc27046> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ted.com/speakers/david_agus.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962447 | 273 | 1.671875 | 2 |
“Roll on Thou Deep and Dark Blue Ocean, Roll”
Over my four years in Mill Bay, several friends have asked me why I chose to stay at Brentwood – what is it about this particular place that makes it so different from others? There are several quick answers to this question: the unrivaled academics, rigorous athletics, graceful, disciplined arts, the thriving boarding house culture, the high quality of facilities, the nurturing faculty – but the one answer that has and always will remain central for me is the ocean.
Yes – the ocean! The sparkling world of blue and green and all the shades in between, sometimes seemingly - deceivingly - still, but always rippling with movement, sometimes seemingly shallow but always infinitely deep. It seems so silly to base such an important life decision on Mother Nature – but in a way, this ocean has been a symbol of what life – and Brentwood is about. The ocean is a timeless motif of a long exploration, a challenging journey, and a beautiful link - as well as a divide - between continents.
Travelling through the Brentwood curriculum is a long exploration. Whether you came in Grade 9 or Grade 12, time moves mysteriously in the Brentwood bubble: a week feels like a month, a month is a year, then all of a sudden, you’re at the end of June, and then you find yourself asking – “How did we get to the end so fast when everything was moving so slowly?” The Brentwood life feels long, but it feels this way because every single day is an exploration into the world – an exploration of knowledge, of other people, and an exploration of oneself.
But swimming through these exploratory waters does not come without challenges. Every journey has its ups and downs, because nothing worth anything is ever just ‘easy’. Brentwood is as challenging as the stormy sea is to a boat – but from that, the boat – and the sailor – come out stronger and wiser, as do the students of fair Brentwood! Through the expectations of Number One Inspections and countless assignments, students conquer these challenges one stroke at a time, building personal strength and maturity as they go.
Let us not forget, however, how this ocean of life can toss us from one home to another. We leave the familiar grounds of childhood by way of the ocean, and the further we go, the wider the ocean stretches out as the mediator: some of us travel long distances to partake in the Brentwood journey, and telephone calls, no matter how closely you press the receiver to your ear, can never completely extend the nuances of a voice over the sparkling waves of the Pacific. Distance is not for the faint-hearted, but rest assured, the ocean gathers as much as it divides: as the waves churn towards Brentwood’s shore, they bring with them students from all over the world - India, China, Thailand, Vietnam, Germany, Australia – and this comingling of cultures, languages, and perspectives expands our horizons.
Cherrie Kwok, Hope House Captain, 2011-2012
< An Invitation From the Mad Hatter | <urn:uuid:c937f619-62c9-4e6b-9a06-fd21b61c6dd8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.brentwood.bc.ca/blog/blog-articles/article/roll-on-thou-deep-and-dark-blue-ocean-roll.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94962 | 648 | 1.804688 | 2 |
Thursday, February 16, 2012
It seems like hardly a week goes by without one literary writer or another hyperbolically decrying the way we're all going to hell in an electronic handbasket.
First Jonathan Franzen argued that e-books are damaging society and suggested that all "serious" readers read print.
Last week Pulitzer Prize winner Jennifer Egan complained of social networking, "Who cares that we can connect? What’s the big deal? I think Facebook is colossally dull. I think it’s like everyone coming to live in a huge Soviet apartment block, [in] which everyone’s cell looks exactly the same."
Zadie Smith has written of Facebook: "When a human being becomes a set of data on a website like Facebook, he or she is reduced. Everything shrinks. Individual character. Friendships. Language. Sensibility. In a way it’s a transcendent experience: we lose our bodies, our messy feelings, our desires, our fears. It reminds me that those of us who turn in disgust from what we consider an overinflated liberal-bourgeois sense of self should be careful what we wish for: our denuded networked selves don’t look more free, they just look more owned."
This of course comes on the heels of Ray Bradbury complaining in 2009: "They wanted to put a book of mine on Yahoo! You know what I told them? ‘To hell with you. To hell with you and to hell with the Internet.’ It’s distracting. It’s meaningless; it’s not real. It’s in the air somewhere."
And of course there's a long and storied history of writers eschewing technology and returning to nature, such as Henry David Thoreau and Ralph Waldo Emerson.
I don't have any stats to prove this definitively, and to be fair, there are some modern literary writers who definitely embrace tech. Colson Whitehead is tremendous on Twitter and wrote reminded everyone that the Internet isn't the reason you haven't finished your novel. Susan Orlean, William Gibson, Margaret Atwood and others have embraced Twitter.
But doesn't it seem like there's some nexus between literary writers and technophobia? Are literary writers more likely to fear our coming robot overlords and proudly choose an old cell phone accordingly (if they have one at all)? Do they know something we don't?
Even when a writer really does use tech as either an artistic mode of expression or as a relentless self-promotion engine (or both), like Tao Lin, he's derided (or praised, depending on one's POV) as "a world-class perpetrator of gimmickry."
Have lit writers become our resident curmudgeons? Or are they just like any other cross-section of the population? Is it tied to deeper fear of the transition in the book business? Is it just not interesting to think new stuff is cool?
What do you make of this? | <urn:uuid:f5acdddd-9ee2-4ddd-a012-126bae371c71> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blog.nathanbransford.com/2012/02/why-are-so-many-literary-writers.html?showComment=1329495105057 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00037-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.95508 | 626 | 1.515625 | 2 |
Former Rep. Gabby Giffords (D-AZ) delivered a desperate plea for lawmakers to “be bold” and “act” to prevent further gun violence in America. The testimony was delivered at the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing on gun safety. A video of Giffords’ remarks, along with a transcript, via Talking Points Memo, can be seen below.
"Thank you for inviting me here today. This is an important conversation for our children, for our communities, for Democrats and Republicans. Speaking is difficult, but I need to say something important. Violence is a big problem. Too many children are dying. Too many children. We must do something. It will be hard but the time is now. You must act. Be bold. Be courageous. Americans are counting on you. Thank you."
Giffords still displayed the effects of the gunshot would she suffered on January 8, 2011. Giffords said, “Speaking is difficult, but I need to say something important.” Giffords then said bluntly, “Too many children are dying. Too many children.” Though her words were few and simple, Giffords testimony may be the most powerful delivered at today’s.
Later, Giffords’ husband Mark Kelly said that that the Second Amendment rights also “demand responsibility” and that the rights do not extend to criminals, terrorists, and the mentally ill.” Kelly’s testimony seemingly supported President Obama’s proposal to institute a universal background check on all gun purchases in an attempt to keep guns out of the wrong hands. | <urn:uuid:2ae4aec4-d39c-4dd5-bafc-4b2123b1745d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.examiner.com/article/gabby-gifford-delivers-emotional-appeal-at-hearing-on-gun-safety?cid=rss | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00042-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964848 | 335 | 1.570313 | 2 |
Four police departments are taking part in a program to hand out more than 2,000 free gun locks.
Police chiefs and mayors from Waterbury, Bridgeport, Stratford and Fairfield are expected to make the announcement Tuesday.
Since the mass shooting at Sandy Hook Elementary School in Newtown, Bridgeport's mayor said the city has taken more than 700 guns off the street through its gun buyback program. Now the Park City and a few others are hoping to save more lives by keeping the guns, which will remain in homes, safe and locked up.
The 2,500 free gun locks are coming from the Newtown-based National Shooting Sports Foundation.
That's the same group that helped sponsor Monday's gun lobby day in Hartford on Monday.
Thousands of gun owners and manufacturers headed to the capitol to have their voices heard.
While gun rights groups lobbied lawmakers, Gov. Dannel Malloy continued to take his show on the road. He's been meeting with mayors and pushing his plan for gun reform.
Malloy was in New London on Monday where more than 200 guns were collected as part of a gun buyback program.
Malloy has called for limiting magazine sizes, mandatory background checks along with banning assault weapons.
He said he would like to see lawmakers pass legislation as soon as next week, or at least by the end of the session in June.
If you live in Waterbury, Bridgeport, Stratford or Fairfield and would like a free gun lock, contact your local police department.
Copyright 2013 WFSB (Meredith Corporation). All rights reserved.
A 13-year-old boy from a New Orleans suburb was charged with second-degree murder in the death of his 5-year-old half-sister after investigators said he told them he repeatedly struck her with wrestling moves...More >
A 13-year-old boy from a New Orleans suburb was charged with second-degree murder in the death of his 5-year-old half-sister after investigators said he told them he repeatedly struck her with wrestling moves imitated from...More >
A heartbreaking photograph is making its rounds on the Internet that shows a child in a wheelchair that has been separated fro the rest of his classmates in a class photo.According to The Province, motherMore >
A heartbreaking photograph is making its rounds on the internet that shows a child in a wheelchair that has been separated from the rest of his classmates in a class photo.More >
Wednesday, June 19 2013 10:36 AM EDT2013-06-19 14:36:52 GMT
A Connecticut gun manufacturer is moving to South Carolina after Connecticut state lawmakers passed stricter gun control laws after the Sandy Hook School shootings. PTR Industries will make the formalMore >
A Connecticut gun manufacturer is moving to South Carolina after Connecticut state lawmakers passed stricter gun control laws after the Sandy Hook School shootings.More >
Wednesday, June 19 2013 6:28 AM EDT2013-06-19 10:28:50 GMT
Cap'n Crunch may have a mutiny on his hands.A writer at foodbeast.com pointed out something fishy up the Cap'n's sleeve: Three stripes.According to the United States Navy, the rank of captain carries fourMore >
Cap'n Crunch may have a mutiny on his hands.More >
Wednesday, June 19 2013 1:51 PM EDT2013-06-19 17:51:37 GMT
Watertown police are searching for a man, who allegedly shoplifted from a Rite Aid store on Wednesday. The man, described as Hispanic and in his twenties, allegedly stole $300 worth of Breath Right Strips.More >
Watertown police are searching for a man who allegedly shoplifted from a Rite Aid store on Wednesday.More >
Wednesday, June 19 2013 3:53 PM EDT2013-06-19 19:53:24 GMT
An Enfield man has been sentenced to 30 days in jail in the deaths of 3 hunting beagles that were shot and killed by his son. John Lake was not with his 13-year-old son when the boy shot the beagles inMore >
An Enfield man has been sentenced to 30 days in jail in the deaths of 3 hunting beagles that were shot and killed by his son.More >
Wednesday, June 19 2013 6:44 PM EDT2013-06-19 22:44:09 GMT
East Hartford police arrested a woman they said assaulted her child.Few details were released by police, but they said Karla Bloom, of Pratt Street, was arrested and charged with first degree assault andMore >
An East Hartford woman was arrested after she was accused of shaking her infant daughter to the point she caused a brain injury to the 7-week-old child.More >
Wednesday, June 19 2013 9:03 PM EDT2013-06-20 01:03:58 GMT
Connecticut State Police said they were assisting Winsted police in investigating a standoff Tuesday morning.The incident was reported in town before 10 a.m.It's unknown what led to the standoff.PoliceMore >
A kidnapping suspect was arrested following a two-hour standoff with police in Winchester on Tuesday morning.More > | <urn:uuid:90b1f6a0-393d-4108-a887-87470a0b06d7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wfsb.com/story/21581711/police-departments-hand-out-gun-locks | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00034-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.978987 | 1,066 | 1.695313 | 2 |
Eye-Fi Eyes a Fight Over Wireless SD Cards
Would new standards for wireless SD cards create more options for camera users — or more confusion?
In case you missed it, last week a battle started brewing between Eye-Fi, maker of wireless memory cards, and the SD Association, which represents more than a thousand companies that set industry standards and promote SD (Secure Digital) standards acceptance.
The argument stemmed from this: At the Consumer Electronics Show earlier this month, the SD Association announced plans for a new Wireless LAN SD standard, formally named the iSDIO specification, for full-sized and micro SD/SDHC/SDXC cards. The SD Association said this will enable consumers to send pictures, videos and other content more easily from existing digital cameras to online cloud services and other SD devices in home networks.
Eye-Fi, which has been baking wireless technology into SD memory cards for several years — many consumers are familiar with the Eye-Fi cards, which bring Wi-Fi capabilities to cameras — says that this new set of standards violates the company’s intellectual property.
While both parties have declined to provide details as to which technical specifications are in question, Eye-Fi CEO Yuval Koren has put up a blog post staking Eye-Fi’s claim in the matter.
Eye-Fi is also miffed that the SD Association went ahead and put out a public statement on the new set of specifications. Eye-Fi says the statement suggests the new standards have already been adopted, when, in fact, they were submitted for approval on Nov. 28, 2011, and the 60-day IP review process is still underway. Eye-Fi told AllThingsD that normally there’s no public disclosure during this stage, because it’s not yet a ratified standard.
The SD Association, meanwhile, told AllThingsD that it routinely announces new standards during IP review, and didn’t change its practices for this announcement.
The SD Association IP review period is set to close in two days.
So, with that out of the way: How might all of this impact consumers?
To start: It’s generally agreed upon that more options for consumers are a good thing. The SD Association is presenting more options, and it says it’s doing so to respond to market demand, as wireless accessibility becomes more important.
But Eye-Fi argues that, in this case, more options will create more fragmentation.
While the actual documents that detail the new iSDIO standard haven’t been made public yet, the SD Association has confirmed that the proposed specifications would set standards for cards that fall under two types of devices: Type W and Type D. “W” stands for Web, and that kind of SD card would support peer-to-peer wireless functions. The home network interface would be designated by a “D” symbol, and would support home network communication functions. A wireless LAN SD memory card could provide both of the wireless types, and would carry both symbols.
Eye-Fi’s Koren told us that in Eye-Fi’s view, the SD Association has the potential to confuse and set back the camera industry just as the industry moves forward with sharing. “In the name of standardization, what seems to be happening is more in the way of fragmentation more than anything else,” Koren said. He also questioned whether compatibility issues could arise as a result of the two different device types.
Kevin Schader, the SD Association’s director of communications, issued a statement, saying, “Products made using SD standards will work together, as they have for the past 12 years.”
It’s important to keep in mind that this flap is coming at a time when consumer adoption of smartphones is surging, and many consumers are using their smartphones for photo-taking — and for immediate sharing. Meanwhile, more consumer electronics makers are introducing cameras that have a variety of Wi-Fi capabilities, cloud services and apps for sharing built directly into the cameras — eliminating the need for additional, external Wi-Fi cards.
Eye-Fi already works with 10 top camera manufacturers and dozens of photo sites; it also licenses its technology to SanDisk, the world’s largest provider of flash memory. Koren points to Kodak’s new wireless camera, announced at CES, as an example of a camera maker that’s introducing more wireless sharing capabilities while still relying on Eye-Fi cards.
In some ways, Koren said, Eye-Fi’s platform has been similar to smartphones in that it is driven by operating systems, and that makes Eye-Fi technology more adaptable to changes than Wi-Fi technology that is built into cameras. As Wi-Fi standards advance and change, Koren argued, it’s easier for consumers to put in a new card — the way they might update a phone’s operating system — than it is to invest in entirely new hardware, or in this case, a new camera.
So what’s the next step? The SD Association’s IP review process is set to wrap up on Jan. 27 — this Friday. Either the SD Association will vote to adopt the new iSDIO standards, or it will narrow the scope of the specifications or rewrite them in some way.
Eye-Fi, which is a member of the SD Association, says it hopes the association comes to the right decision. Which, in Eye-Fi’s eyes, would mean no new set of iSDIO standards — and less of a chance for competition that could possibly encroach on Eye-Fi’s intellectual property.
“I think for the SD Association to proceed with this, whether implicitly or explicitly, their members or anyone adopting the specifications would be made aware of the fact that there are some essential IP claims wrapped up in that standard,” Koren said. “And they’d be operating at their own risk.”
(Photo courtesy of bfishadow/Flickr) | <urn:uuid:2ea69d45-b397-4fab-b3c3-330758b05297> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://allthingsd.com/20120125/eye-fi-eyes-a-fight-over-wireless-sd-cards/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00033-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94615 | 1,249 | 1.726563 | 2 |
NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. (AP) - It's an audiotape the New York Police Department hoped you would never hear.
A building superintendent at an apartment complex just off the Rutgers University campus called the New Brunswick Police 911 line in June 2009. He said his staff had been conducting a routine inspection and came across something suspicious.
"What's suspicious?" the dispatcher asked.
"Suspicious in the sense that the apartment has about - has no furniture except two beds, has no clothing, has New York City Police Department radios."
"Really?" the dispatcher asked, her voice rising with surprise.
The caller, Salil Sheth, had stumbled upon one of the NYPD's biggest secrets: a safe house, a place where undercover officers working well outside the department's jurisdiction could lie low and coordinate surveillance. Since the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks, the NYPD, with training and guidance from the CIA, has monitored the activities of Muslims in New York and far beyond. Detectives infiltrated mosques, eavesdropped in cafes and kept tabs on Muslim student groups, including at Rutgers.
The NYPD kept files on innocent sermons, recorded the names of political organizers in police documents and built databases of where Muslims lived and shopped, even where they were likely to gather to watch sports. Out-of-state operations, like the one in New Brunswick, were one aspect of this larger intelligence-gathering effort. The Associated Press previously described the discovery of the NYPD inside the New Jersey apartment, but police now have released the tape of the 911 call and other materials after a legal fight.
"There's computer hardware, software, you know, just laying around," the caller continued. "There's pictures of terrorists. There's pictures of our neighboring building that they have."
"In New Brunswick?" the dispatcher asked, sounding as confused as the caller.
To watch a YouTube video from the Associated Press with the 911 audio, click on the video player below. (Note to mobile and tablet users: Open story is a web browser to watch video.)
The AP requested a copy of the 911 tape last year. Under pressure from the NYPD, the New Brunswick Police Department refused. After the AP sued, the city this week turned over the tape and emails that described the NYPD's efforts to keep the recording a secret.
The call sent New Brunswick police and the FBI rushing to the apartment complex. Officers and agents were surprised at what they found. None had been told that the NYPD was in town.
At the NYPD, the bungled operation was an embarrassment. It made the department look amateurish and forced it to ask the FBI to return the department's materials.
The emails highlight the sometimes convoluted arguments the NYPD has used to justify its out-of-state activities, which have been criticized by New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie and some members of Congress. The NYPD has infiltrated and photographed Muslim businesses and mosques in New Jersey, monitored the Internet postings of Muslim college students across the Northeast and traveled as far away as New Orleans to infiltrate and build files on liberal advocacy groups.
In February, NYPD's deputy commissioner for legal matters, Andrew Schaffer, told reporters that detectives can operate outside New York because they aren't conducting official police duties.
"They're not acting as police officers in other jurisdictions," Schaffer said.
In trying to keep the 911 tape under wraps, however, the NYPD made no mention of the fact that its officers were not acting as police. In fact, Lt. Cmdr. William McGroarty and Assistant Chief Thomas Galati argued that releasing the recording would jeopardize investigations and endanger the people and buildings.
Further, the apartment, No. 1076, was rented by an undercover NYPD officer using a fake name that he was still using, New Brunswick attorneys told the AP.
"Such identification will place the safety of any officers identified, as well as the undercover operatives with whom they work, at risk," Galati wrote in a letter to New Brunswick.
The city deleted that name from the copy of the tape that it released.
Reached by phone Tuesday, McGroarty declined to discuss the New Brunswick operation. But the recording offers a glimpse inside the safe house: a small apartment with two computers, dozens of black plastic boxes and no furniture or clothes except one suit.
"And pictures of our neighboring buildings?" the dispatcher asked.
"Yes, the Matrix building," Sheth replied, referring to a local developer. "There's pictures of terrorists. There's literature on the Muslim religion."
New York authorities have encouraged people like Sheth to call 911. In its "Eight Signs of Terrorism," people are encouraged to call the police if they see evidence of surveillance, information gathering, suspicious activities or anything that looks out of place.
New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg has defended the police department's right to go anywhere in the country in search | <urn:uuid:ce2e38d0-e2a3-4985-9024-ba8f0df384b5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wcpo.com/dpp/news/national/confused-911-caller-outs-nypd-spying-in-nj | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.969418 | 1,003 | 1.546875 | 2 |
UNCSA Mourns Death Of Mary D.B.T. Semans
School Co-Founder Dies Wednesday Morning
The University of North Carolina School of the Arts is mourning the death of one of its founders.
Mary Duke Biddle Trent Semans, 91, died Wednesday morning. She is remembered as a beloved friend, patron and benefactor of the school that she helped found. Semans was preceded in death by her husband, Dr. James H. Semans, who died in 2005.
The funeral for Mary D.B.T. Semans will be Monday at Duke Chapel in Durham. The time of the service has not been announced.
Perhaps best known for carrying on the legacy of Duke University's founding family, Semans became one of the state's greatest philanthropists, supporting the arts and education.
?Mary Semans was the mother of UNCSA, and like the great mother she was, her love for the school was unconditional,? said UNCSA Chancellor John Mauceri. ?That she led, supported and inspired this school from the moment it was imagined to the cusp of its 50th birthday was in and of itself miraculous. It is hard to imagine going forward without her.
?Now it is our responsibility to carry on as she demonstrated every day of her life, with passion, kindness, wisdom and determination,? Mauceri continued. ?If there was one word to describe Mary Semans it would be ?beautiful? in every sense of that word.?
Mary D.B.T. Semans was a trustee at UNCSA for more than 20 years and was serving as an emeritus trustee at the time of her death. She was also serving as an emeritus member of the UNCSA Board of Visitors. Her grandson, Charles C. Lucas III, is chairman of the UNCSA Board of Trustees.
The Semanses served a variety of volunteer leadership roles at the school. James Semans was selected in 1964 by then-Gov. Terry Sanford as first chairman of the school's board of trustees. He served as chairman for 17 consecutive years, when his wife succeeded him on the board. Mary D.B.T. Semans served on the board from 1981 until she was no longer eligible to serve, in 1989, when she was named an honorary trustee.
?Mary Semans has been the heart and soul and most passionate champion of the University of North Carolina School of the Arts," said Chancellor Emeritus Alex Ewing. "Ever since it was founded nearly half a century ago, she believed in it, fought for it, supported it day after day, year after year, never relenting in her conviction that it served a vital function in the life of the community, the state, and the nation.
?She loved, and in turn was truly and deeply loved, by the students and faculty and staff and all who cared for the school. As we grieve our loss, even more we will always cherish her memory.?
See Breaking News? Upload Pictures, Video | [email protected] Mobile | WXII Facebook Page | WXII On Twitter | WXII Email Alerts | WXII Traffic Page | WXII TV Schedule | More Local NewsCopyright 2012 by WXII12.com. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. Contact Us | <urn:uuid:e777f730-0951-4eb5-a581-26eb819705e0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wxii12.com/UNCSA-Mourns-Death-Of-Mary-D-B-T-Semans/-/9678472/11884126/-/view/print/-/rljnh1z/-/index.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.979994 | 699 | 1.539063 | 2 |
Unconfirmed reports which suggested a coup against the leader have been rubbished by experts in Seoul citing no unusual military movement in the country.
SOUTH KOREA – North Korea on Sunday dismissed Seoul’s offer of dialogue as a “cunning gimmick,” darkening hopes for defused tension and normalizing the suspended joint industrial park anytime soon. President Park Geun-hye proposed talks with Pyongyang on Thursday to resolve the dispute over the Gaeseong industrial complex sparked by the North’s ban on South Koreans’ entry and withdrawal of its workers.
SEOUL, South Korea — As North Korea warned foreigners on Tuesday that they might want to leave South Korea because the peninsula was on the brink of nuclear war — a statement that analysts dismissed as hyperbole — the American commander in the Pacific expressed worries that the North’s young leader, Kim Jong-un, might not have left himself an easy exit to reduce tensions. “His father and his grandfather, as far as I can see, always figured into their provocation cycle an ‘off ramp,’ ” the commander, Adm. Samuel J. Locklear III, said during testimony before the Senate Armed Services Committee.
WASHINGTON (AP) — North Korea is widely recognized as being years away from perfecting the technology to back up its bold threats of a pre-emptive strike on America. But some nuclear experts say it might have the know-how to fire a nuclear-tipped missile at South Korea and Japan, which host U.S. military bases.
US officials have played down the threat of war on the Korean peninsula, after weeks of bellicose statements from Pyongyang.A White House spokesman said the US “would not be surprised” if North Korea launched a missile, while a top US military officer said recent threats appeared to fit a familiar pattern. | <urn:uuid:6020cf2f-60ba-4b43-9ba6-172bf0165888> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://aworldchaos.wordpress.com/tag/south-korea/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00029-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962905 | 385 | 1.554688 | 2 |
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'Think Like A Man," the surprise hit staring Chris Brown, did the unthinkable, dethroning Hunger Games in theaters across the US.
After several weeks in the No. 1 slot at the US box office, “The Hunger Games” was finally ousted by two romantic comedies: “Think Like a Man,” based on Steve Harvey’s bestselling book, earning $33 million in its opening weekend and “The Lucky One,” starring Zac Efron, which made $22.8 million, according to the Washington Post.
The dating-advice, ensemble film features Michael Ealy, Taraji P. Henson, Chris Brown and Gabrielle Union.
"The Hunger Games" still took in $14.5 million, raising its domestic total to $356.9 million.
The Associated Press reported that "Think Like a Man" was produced for about $13 million and took in nearly that much on its opening day, Friday, with ticket sales increasing the following day.
The numbers even surprised Sony executives, AP wrote, who were expecting the film to earn about $17 million. Instead, it made nearly double that.
"It was a wild ride. It just got better and better as the night went on Friday. Then to be up so much on Saturday," said Rory Bruer, head of distribution at Sony.
Disney's nature documentary "Chimpanzee" opened at No. 4 with $10.2 million and "The Three Stooges" took No. 5 with $9.2 million.
Hollywood.com wrote so far this year domestic movie theater revenues are toping $3.1 billion, up 16.6 percent from last year's.
More from GlobalPost: College graduate job market: Half of people with bachelor's degrees can't find work | <urn:uuid:620bc518-bafc-44ac-9820-99690b58ac37> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.globalpost.com/dispatch/news/culture-lifestyle/entertainment/120423/think-man-surpasses-hunger-games-at-the-box-off | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00036-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.972979 | 385 | 1.59375 | 2 |
Twitter co-founder Biz Stone, has quite fittingly, tweeted that the United States Patent and Trademark Office has granted Twitter a patent on — wait for it — Twitter itself.
If you want to get into all the nitty gritty details of the patent, you can find the USPTO page here. [...]Read More »
Remember when North Korea’s only 3G carrier, Koryolink, planned to let foreigners use cellphones? It looks like they weren’t kidding, and international phone calls aren’t the only thing you’ll be able to do. Instagram-ing and tweeting from North Korea is now possible!
Read More »
My first tweet using #Koryolink’s new mobile #Internet
Is China innocent? New reports claim cyber attacks on Facebook, Twitter, and Apple came from Eastern Europe
After recent cyber attacks on high-profile companies like Facebook, Twitter and then Apple, everyone seemed to be pointing fingers at China. But now reports have surfaced claiming that the attacks on those companies originated from Eastern Europe.
An Eastern European gang, that is determined to sell company secrets like research [...]Read More »
No one’s really safe from hackers these days, with Twitter joining the New York Times as one of the recent victims of security breaches recently. Twitter announced in a blog post that it detected unusual access patterns during the week, which led them to discovering attempts to access user data. [...]Read More »
Remember Vine? Twitter’s newly launched app that lets you embed quick six-second videos in your tweets? Well, it’s only been out for a couple of days and they’ve already made the quite the blunder. And of course, it involves porn.
When Vine launched with the ability to shoot video, I’m [...]Read More »
Companies, specifically tech companies, may not be people in and of themselves but they do have characteristics (or personalities, if you will). Because of these characteristics, it is often enticing to compare the companies to other things, like celebrities or popular personalities. In the case of the following comic, tech [...]Read More »
2013 is — quite literally — around the corner. Indeed, a few hours from now the world will slowly start to move from 2012 and rollover to 2013, starting in the East first and then eventually ending with the West. If you were a major tech company, or the CEO [...]Read More »
According to The Verge, users are beginning to report that a new option labelled ‘Your Twitter Archive’ has shown up on the site’s settings page with a button to ‘Request your archive’. Users that request for their archive are then sent a link to a zip file that contains [...]Read More »
All companies (minus the patent trolls) offer some sort of product or service. Often times these companies have slogan which attempt to reflect their value or what they stand for. If Google, Apple, Twitter, and Wikipedia were to think of corporate slogans that match what people really use their products [...]Read More »
According to Wikipedia “douchebag” could refer to “device used to administer a douche”. However, when a person calls someone (or something, in the case of companies) a douchebag, s/he typically isn’t calling them a “device used to administer a douche” but rather referring to the more common usage of douchebag [...]Read More »
WordOut is a neat little app for users that post frequently to Facebook and/or Twitter. When you add your Facebook and Twitter accounts to the app, you will notice that they are placed at the bottom of your screen (as shown in the screenshot) with an ON/OFF button next to [...]Read More »
With Google I/O 2012 scheduled to start on June 27th, the world is looking forward to see what BIG announcements Google is going to make. At the same time, Firefox had also announced that it’s also having something BIG ready for Firefox for Android. And now, on June 26th, Firefox [...]Read More » | <urn:uuid:c9e3a699-c200-4517-af7b-2624987b316d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://dottech.org/tag/twitter/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00036-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.931969 | 854 | 1.554688 | 2 |
Sweet Chutney served after a full course meal is an integral part of Bengali cuisine. Every single day while I was growing up, we would end end our meal with some kind of sweet chutney which would be polished of the plate with fingers & later the fingers licked off clean. I guess that served as a kind of dessert… the Bongs as everyone knows are famous for their “sweet teeth”.. not just a “tooth”. The chutney would be made of any seasonal ingredient. In summer it would be raw mangoes or pineapples, in fall & winter – the irrestible red tomatoes.
My mom would often make this raw papaya chutney (we had abundance of papayas growing in our garden), and use the “mango ginger“( its a ginger which has the flavor of raw mango – we grew this too), and the distasteful raw papayas would magically taste like raw mango chutney. Often times, the guests in our home got tricked, because my mom would make this “plastic papaya chutney“(It would be transluscent & sticky and probably the name was derived) in peak winter and everyone would wonder where she found raw mangoes to make the delicious chutney. It was a delicacy in winter. I will post that sometimes…
Chutneys bear different strains and traits & are enjoyed in different ways in different parts of the world. Be it be an after meal spoon, or a scoop on the cheese, or as any side… they are pretty versatile in their nature. With the abundance of so many different kinds of fruits & berries here, I make chutney with almost every fruit/berry I can get my hands on.
Apricots are beautiful fruits! They taste delicous fresh, or canned or sundried.. in any form. I have never cooked anything with them before….But,..
here is an Apricot Chutney… I have used Jalapeno & Mint with it to make it a Sweet & Spicy combination with the freshness of the mint. Sending this for AFAM:Apricot hosted at Siri’s Corner,, a brainchild of dear Maheshwari of ‘Beyond the Usual’.
- 1.5 Cup Dried or Fresh or Canned Apricots (I used dried ones)
- 3 Jalapeno Peppers (More or less as per your Taste)
- 1/2 Cup White Wine (Any Fruity Flavored Wine will do)
- 1/2 Cup Sugar
- 1 Inch Ginger Peeled and Very Finely Sliced
- Zest & Juice of 1 Lime
- 1 Teaspoon Oil ( I used Canola Oil)
- 2 Dry Red Chillies
- 3/4 Cup Water
- 3 tablespoons of finely Chopped Fresh Mint
Note: If you do not want to use wine… just use any light juice.
Roughly chop the Apricots & the Jalapeno peppers. Keep the jalapeno aside.
Add the apricots & the ginger to the wine and let them soak for a couple of hours.
Strain the apricots & ginger and keep the wine aside.
Heat the oil, and add the red dry chillies to the oil. When they change color to brown, add the Jalapeno peppers. Stir fry for a couple of minutes and add the apricots & ginger that you had saved. Toss for another few minutes.
Add the lime juice & zest, sugar, water and wine & boil at medium heat till a corn syrupy consistency is reached.
Discard the red chillies after the chutney is done.
Serve with crackers or bread topped on your favorite cheese.
This is also an excellent side dish with poultry , meat or any thing you grill !
It is great for parties, as it can be prepared a few days before you want to serve. The taste actually matures in a few days time. I served it on Whole Grain Crackers, topped with Pepper Jack Cheese, … & saw it quickly disappear!
And I also licked my fingers clean when I had a scoop of this after my meal:-) Like long time before…
Sending this to Culinarty’s Original Recipes. | <urn:uuid:89479b79-025e-492f-94c4-e81fedab4f2e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ecurry.com/blog/condiments-dips-and-sauces/apricot-jalapeno-chutney/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.933784 | 910 | 1.601563 | 2 |
Wild About Bed Bugs
Call him the ‘Bed Bug Czar.’ Jon Wild is a property manager with Home Forward, a public housing provider in Portland, Oregon.
Among the many responsibilities of managing multiple, high occupancy apartment buildings, there is the constant task of looking out for rodents, roaches, and the like. It goes beyond complying with health and safety codes, it’s a matter of maintaining healthy spaces and keeping residents happy. A big job.
This job got a lot harder for Jon Wild and other property managers when bed bugs moved into major cities all across the country.
They aren’t known to carry diseases, but most folks have a justified knee-jerk reaction when faced with the prospect of sharing their beds, and blood, with these pillaging creatures. This fear, coupled with the intense itching and burning that can result from bites, makes it easy to grasp why the tolerance level for bed bugs is low. So what are property managers to do?
Some of them start spraying. But the infrastructure of an apartment building allows bed bugs to move from unit to unit, escaping pesticide treatments. Pest controllers are then forced to chase them unit by unit, spraying all the while and to no avail. It’s a bit like Ahab in pursuit of the whale, and about as unhealthy for everyone involved. Since apartment buildings are densely populated, pesticide exposure is virtually certain.
That’s what sets Jon apart.
As the proud ‘Bed Bug Czar’ for Home Forward, he’s exploring a range of options for bed bug control that are both safer and more effective. This includes heat and cold probes that shock bed bugs with temperature extremes, heating rooms to prevent importing bed bugs on incoming furniture and personal items, and a least toxic cedar oil product that stops bugs on contact.
Jon’s approach is creative, safer, and more effective.Through work with NCAP and our partners, Jon is not only reshaping how Home Forward deals with bed bugs, he’s demonstrating to property managers everywhere that urban pest management is completely possible, even preferable, with alternatives to pesticides. | <urn:uuid:51dffde4-af22-4722-af35-0da7183ed5f6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.pesticide.org/the-buzz/2011/12/21/wild-about-bed-bugs | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.934911 | 441 | 1.828125 | 2 |
Unemployment causes corruption, insecurity
Thu Jul 19, 3:22 pm
Members of labor, social affairs, martyrs and disabled commission of the lower house stated their belief that the best way to fight against corruption and insecurity in Afghanistan is to provide employment opportunities for its young people.
Dr. Tawfiq, head of labor and social affairs in the lower house of the Afghan parliament, spoke at the convocation for 130 vocational trainees who finished their vocational training. He emphasized that if the government wants to stop corruption and reduce armed insurgents’ activity, employment opportunities must be provided to youth.
He added, “When this ministry handles their responsibilities in a manner that will help to reduce such high unemployment, the government’s problems will be greatly diminished.”
He emphasized that this ministry has built required mechanisms for graduates of the vocational training courses and has introduced them to the ministries who should now help them gain access to the jobs for which they are trained according to industry norms and requirements.
Numerous Kabul residents and citizens in outlying districts who come to seek jobs in Kabul complain about the lack of job opportunities.
Foreign leaders have recently promised to help Afghanistan provide greater opportunity to improve work skills and to build capacity for creating a more prosperous future and to foster an increase in employment among young people. | <urn:uuid:4b25cb89-5bef-455f-8ad0-040f1cce9813> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://ariananews.af/regional/unemployment-causes-corruption-insecurity/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00039-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955219 | 268 | 1.664063 | 2 |
The Franklin Park Chapel Of The Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter Day Saints (LDS) is a worship and community center for members of the LDS church who reside in the suburbs north of Pittsburgh.
The Church Of Jesus Christ Of Latter Day Saints (whose members are commonly known as Mormons) was founded in 1830 by Joseph Smith Jr (1805-1844).
Built in the 1970s, the Franklin Park Chapel is a dynamic, contemporary red brick building with a modern steeple climbing toward Heaven. Inside, members enjoy a chapel for worship, a small research center and multiple classrooms.
The church also has a large mutli-purpose room that can be used for everything from a gym to a conference center.
Hours vary; call for information.
Free, on-site parking is available. | <urn:uuid:91e0fc93-afce-4dd3-b0a0-b419839e5670> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://old.post-gazette.com/events/venueinfo.asp?id=2337 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00040-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.957477 | 162 | 1.757813 | 2 |
For first time in 6 years, Richfield Schools attract more students than they lose
For the first time in six years, the Richfield School District is keeping more of its resident students through open enrollment than it loses.
That was among several findings outlined by District Business Manager Michael Schwartz on Monday, Jan. 7, during his annual enrollment presentation before the Richfield School Board.
The district saw a net gain of 119 students due to open enrollment this school year, with 454 district residents opting to attend school elsewhere while 573 students living outside the district chose to attend Richfield schools. The gain represents a rapid improvement over last school year, when the district had a net loss of 28 students due to open enrollment. In the past 10 years the district has had net losses of as many as 104 students.
Elementary school students accounted for most of the net gain from open enrollment. Grades kindergarten through fifth are the primary entry point for non-resident students entering the district, explained Supt. Robert Slotterback. The goal now, he added, is to keep those students.
“If we do our job they’ll stay with us,” he declared.
Slotterback credited a diversifying set of options within the district for the net gain, including all-day kindergarten and the two “choice schools” that have been established in recent years — Richfield Dual Language School and the Science Technology Engineering and Math School. It also helps keep students in the district, Slotterback said, that free transportation is provided to those schools no matter where in Richfield a student lives, a feature many districts do not offer.
Statistically, however, there is not a clear explanation for the net gain because the data has not been parsed deeply enough, Schwartz explained.
Slotterback said he was not surprised to see the net gain in open enrollment numbers. “We’re pretty confident here we’re doing a good job and we think it will just continue,” he said.
Making open enrollment work in the district’s favor has been one of Slotterback’s priorities as superintendent. “When I first came here one of the goals was to attract and retain Richfield resident students,” he said.
Slotterback brought with him some principals of capitalist thinking in that aim, introducing the term “market share” to the district. Dividing the number of resident students in Richfield Public Schools by the total number of students in the district’s territory, the district’s “market share” has increased from 72 percent to about 76 percent.
The term aptly alludes to the cutthroat business world. “It’s hugely competitive,” Slotterback said of different districts’ efforts to attract students from outside their borders while holding on to resident students.
To illustrate, Slotterback estimated there are 30-40 elementary schools within eight miles of the center of Richfield. The most successful districts keep around 90 percent of their students, Slotterback said, noting that an expanded selection of types of schools lures students away from their home district.
The Richfield School District’s student population increased by 106 students this school year, beating a projection of 75. The district educates 4,388 students based on the 2012 Oct. 1 enrollment count.
Elementary schools are welcoming 94 more students this year than last year. STEM School was the only elementary school to see a drop — of 51 students. Richfield Middle School increased its population by 57 students, while Richfield high School lost 29.
Part of the reason for the High School decline is students moving out of the district, Schwartz said, expecting the number to grow based on projections.
“We’re having this bubble move through that hasn’t gotten to the high school yet,” he said.
Elementary and high school class sizes are up, with an average of 25 for kindergarten through fifth-grade. In recent years, class sizes were as low as about 21 — in 2005.
The average class size for the high school is 28, a number that has increased each year since 2009, when the average class size there was 25.
Average class sizes at the middle school held at about 26. That category has been up and down in recent years at RMS.
Keeping class sizes from being higher yet, the district uses compensatory funds it receives based on the number of district students who qualify for free-and-reduced-price school lunch, a statistic commonly used as an indicator of a district’s wealth. That number has increased over he past several years, but remained at about 65 percent from last school year to the current year. In 2008, about 56 percent of students qualified for free-and-reduced lunch.
Meanwhile, the number of students with limited English proficiency declined from the previous school year. Thirty-one percent of students are classified as such, down from 33 percent. A change in the way English proficiency is evaluated was a main factor in the change, Schwartz said.
Contact Andrew Wig at [email protected] | <urn:uuid:8968e07c-183c-44a8-88bd-41aa838cd148> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://current.mnsun.com/2013/01/for-first-time-in-6-years-richfield-schools-attract-more-students-than-they-lose/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00038-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.971592 | 1,068 | 1.742188 | 2 |
As we all know, copywriters no longer just write copy and art directors don't just art direct. The blurring of disciplines and work processes has been a big part of the evolution of ad making in recent years, particularly as advertising has moved beyond traditional media formats to become more complex and multidimensional. If you're trying to create a rich experience or develop an expansive platform -- and these days, what brand doesn't want that? -- then a clever line and a nice layout won't necessarily get you there.
What does get you there? In a word, design. More and more, today's marketing campaigns are starting to resemble complex design projects. Think of NikePlus or, more recently, the Pepsi Refresh Project. Or consider just about any campaign with lots of diverse moving parts. Design is what connects all those parts to create synthesis.
Which is why, as the ad business struggles to come up with new ways to describe what it does, we must not underplay the importance of the "d" word. However an agency may choose to label itself ("We're not ad guys, we're branded content creators"), it wouldn't hurt for everyone in the business to begin thinking of themselves, at least on some level, as designers.
For many in advertising, this may require a radical shift in how they perceive and define "design." Historically, ad agencies have thought of design in a limited sense -- mostly in terms of logos, packaging and typefaces. The designer has been seen as the slightly fussy person down the hall who puts the final decorative tweaks on an idea.
But today's cutting-edge companies know that design, in the larger sense, is not just about decoration. It's a methodology and an approach to creative problem solving that can ultimately produce innovation. The process varies among designers, but there are some shared key principles and practices that include:
• Questioning basic assumptions
• Using lateral thinking to come up with fresh ways of doing things
• Using deep-dive empathic research to probe how consumers are living today and what they really need
• Testing and refining new ideas through constant prototyping
The endeavor to better understand and utilize this process, sometimes referred to as "design thinking," has emerged as a major trend in business. CEOs of Fortune 500 companies, MBA programs, a wave of new books -- are all engaged in an important conversation about design thinking.
But the ad industry has been largely absent from this conversation. Many ad people I've spoken with are not familiar with design thinking, nor with basic design principles. And they're only vaguely aware of the more central role design is playing in business today.
I think there are two reasons why the ad business should give itself a crash course in design. No. 1, if ad agencies are not part of the current conversation on design that's going on at client companies, then they will not be part of the design-driven transformation of those companies (and that transformation is already under way at powerhouses like Procter & Gamble).
Continue to next page → | <urn:uuid:05c863f9-a631-4933-9567-34278fc03a8f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.adweek.com/news/advertising-branding/grand-designs-102435 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00024-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963118 | 620 | 1.757813 | 2 |
A digest of important news from sources selected by our local editors. Delivered weekday mornings.
Legislation passed in Nashville last week that could clear the way for mixed martial arts leagues such as the Ultimate Fighting Championship to hold events in Memphis as early as 2009.
The legislation will create an independent athletic commission to oversee boxing and mixed martial arts. Currently, the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance legislates boxing.
"A study committee looked at it and what we heard from promoters and competitors is they don't come to Tennessee because there isn't a degree of professionalism in the way boxing is regulated," says state Sen. Doug Jackson, D-Dickson, a member of the subcommittee exploring the legalization of MMA.
"We didn't have professionals in the sport serving and the bureaucracy was a deterrent. We hope to have a commission with rules that are friendly to the sports."
Jackson says the state has been missing out on potential revenue under the old system. He says the new commission will be knowledgeable and serve as ambassadors for the state in the boxing and MMA communities.
Steve Zito, vice president of operations and entertainment for the Memphis Grizzlies, says the Grizzlies have already spoken to UFC officials and other promoters wanting to bring events to the FedExForum in Memphis.
Zito says the Grizzlies took the lead in working toward getting the legislation passed because of the popularity of MMA events. Both FedExForum and Memphis stand to benefit.
"Our business is to run and operate this building, and it is our job to find what makes good business sense and bring it here," Zito says. "We legally couldn't bring this here and it is the hottest sport there is. There were other initiatives, but those bills weren't going to pass, so we got our team together, talked and decided to go for it. We felt that if we didn't do it, there was no way anyone else would do it."
[email protected] | 259-1722 | <urn:uuid:f90e435e-103b-4a0a-b15f-6ed9dca076b2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.bizjournals.com/memphis/stories/2008/06/02/story13.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00030-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.976059 | 404 | 1.648438 | 2 |
You must do the thing you think you cannot do.
This public art and civic journalism project will produce and collect stories tied to physical locations throughout Atlanta. Signs with Echo phone number and location ID will invite pedestrians and cyclists to access a story about that site via cell phone, podcast or the Web. “When a space becomes inscribed with cultural or personal stories, it transforms into a place of significance,” said project leaders Lila King and Karyn Lu, movers behind CNN’s user-generated site iReport.com. Follow their progress here. Visit Their Website
Happy new year!
Thursday, January 08, 2009
Happy new year from the Echo team! We hope that everyone had a fantastic holiday. Both of us took some much-needed time off at the end of December, but we did manage to get a bunch of content to our developer and designer so that they can begin their work in earnest this month. We finished editing our first batch of stories (about a dozen from the Lake Claire neighborhood) and sent off the audio files and accompanying metadata. We also put together wireframes and content for the first release of our site. Adam (our developer) and Ronnie (our designer) are both now hard at work, and we hope that by the time we post our next blog entry, we will have some preliminary designs or even a prototype of the voicemail system to share with you.
• Posted by Karyn Lu on 01/08 at 01:35 PM
KARYN LU works in the Design Experience Group at CNN.com, and is the User Experience Lead on iReport.com, CNN's citizen news initiative. She is passionate about creating a great user experience across multiple disciplines and platforms.
LILA KING is an online media producer living in Atlanta. She's pretty sure everyone's story is fascinating if you listen well enough. Echo is all ears.
Click for full bios. | <urn:uuid:44589994-8c7b-4f33-bbba-eb5d5d66b978> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.newmediawomen.org/echo_blog/happy_new_year/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.943656 | 391 | 1.5 | 2 |
IIn Daniel Spoerri’s endless collection of objects was the shirt
of a Central African Ashanti chief. It was richly outfitted with little
leather packets, strength-giving amulets. Spoerri used these for a series
of square, small-sized collages, which he calls “batakari”,
in accordance with the African term for these “shirts of war”. | <urn:uuid:dfc2d38b-0df6-4f32-aef3-4a3f08d06a1d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.danielspoerri.org/web_daniel/englisch_ds/werk_einzel/41_batakari.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00025-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.938598 | 91 | 1.804688 | 2 |
Fine set, cast live on 'Quality Street'WORTHINGTON — Nineteenth century romance is in the air at Okoboji Summer Theatre while James Barrie’s “Quality Street” fills the stage.
By: Katherine Hedeen, Worthington Daily Globe
WORTHINGTON — Nineteenth century romance is in the air at Okoboji Summer Theatre while James Barrie’s “Quality Street” fills the stage.
No finer set has been designed for OST than this week’s handsome drawing room. As the curtains parted for “first nighters” to take a look, “ohs” and “ahs” could be heard from the audience. Lovely ladies in their gowns of the early 1800s matched the room in elegance.
By today’s standards, “Quality Street” impresses one as a “talky” comedy-drama, especially during the first quite brief act. This play was written in four acts, a format popular in years past. However, at OST Director Beth Leonard keeps the show moving with four relatively short scenes and just one intermission, winding up under two hours.
The play in 1905 starred the legendary Maude Adams in its New York opening with an even more successful run following in London. Later, about 1939, Hollywood produced a movie with Katharine Hepburn and Franchot Tone. Playwright Barrie from Scotland is best known for his ever-popular book and play “Peter Pan” and for his sentimental writings, which reflect strong emotions and a keen sense of humor.
“Quality Street” tells about two unmarried sisters who live together at their large, comfortable home on Quality Street in an English village. Miss Phoebe, the younger sister, is awaiting a marriage proposal, and the two ladies are already making happy plans. Miss Susan, the older, offers her own dress, which she has preserved after her wedding was cancelled.
Other residents of Quality Street, who live for gossip and wait for either good or bad news, watch the windows and listen at the door for signs of activity from within. But when Mr. Brown, Phoebe’s suitor, calls at the house, he announces that he’s joining the military to fight in the Napoleonic Wars.
Ten years pass while the sisters resign themselves to spinsterhood and open a school for “genteel children.” Captain Brown returns from war, having lost an arm or a hand in battle, but he’s still impressive in his traditional red British uniform.
Unfortunately he finds Miss Phoebe already old and tired at age 30. As Phoebe laments to her sister, “Ten years ago I went to my room and bed a pretty girl and woke up with this cap on my head. Where is my youth? Oh, where are my pretty curls?”
Phoebe, grown weary from those years of patient waiting, creates a daring plan to masquerade as her fictional niece, Miss Livvy, removing her cap to show her curls and behaving in a thoroughly enchanting, flirtatious fashion.
Livvy charms Captain Brown, along with other younger officers who claim dances at the balls and show interest in marriage. Phoebe’s impersonation of a coquettish Livvy gives opportunity to take revenge on Captain Brown. When he asks for her hand, she tells him he’s too old for her. However, Miss Livvy, once created, is hard to dispose of, and the solving of that dilemma comprises the rest of this romantic tale.
The two leading ladies, Emily Schackelford and Kyra Koelling, delight as the sisters, easily bridging the transition from younger to older. Shackelford’s portrayal of her niece is exactly right. Because of our close-to-the-front seats, we could catch every appropriate expression.
Kyle Groff makes a believable British officer and just happens to bear a strong resemblance in his slender build and facial features to Franchot Tone of the Hollywood version. Ann Hagedorn plays a comic house maid. Each member of the large cast serves the production well.
“Quality Street” continues through Sunday to be followed by a farce “Enter Laughing.” Variety is good, and the Okoboji theater company does so well providing that. | <urn:uuid:5cd45cb1-370a-450e-9f2d-0af885d66525> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.dglobe.com/event/article/id/13316/ | 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 | 0.953618 | 917 | 1.53125 | 2 |
Prior to this spring, the Heartland Institute was a relatively obscure think tank that was primarily known for organizing an annual conference of people who take issue with mainstream climate science. That changed when an environmental researcher tricked the group into sending him internal documents, setting off a public drama that ended up leaving both parties worse off (Heartland lost sponsors, while the researcher had to resign a number of his positions).
Apparently, the experience left Heartland craving more public controversy, and it responded with what can best be described as a bit of trolling. In advance of this year's climate-skeptic conference, Heartland paid for a billboard that showed a picture of the Unabomber accompanied by the text "I still believe in Global Warming. Do You?" In a press release, Heartland said future iterations would feature Charles Manson, Fidel Castro, and possibly Osama bin Laden.
Instead, the campaign was stopped after 24 hours as prominent conference speakers threatened to cancel and a number of the Institute's financial backers threatened to depart.
Teach Use the controversy
How did Heartland justify the comparison between murderers and tyrants and anyone who believed in global warming? "Because what these murderers and madmen have said differs very little from what spokespersons for the United Nations, journalists for the 'mainstream' media, and liberal politicians say about global warming," according to the press release that announced the ads. It went on to claim that "[t]he people who still believe in man-made global warming are mostly on the radical fringe of society."
This has not gone over well. Several of the speakers, including Representative Jim Sensenbrenner (R-WI), threatened to withdraw unless the ads were pulled. So Heartland backed down and pulled them after only the first had run, claiming they were just an "experiment," one that only set the institute back $200. “This billboard was deliberately provocative, an attempt to turn the tables on the climate alarmists by using their own tactics but with the opposite message," the latest statement claims, going on to say, "We do not apologize for running the ad."
Their lack of apology may be the most sincere aspect of the entire effort.
A single billboard on the outskirts of Chicago, no matter how visually arresting it may be, would reach a very limited number of people. Heartland was clearly counting on the controversy associated with it to ensure that its message went much further than the billboard would take it.
Losing its grip on reality and sponsors
Although most of the outrage has focused on the comparison between those who accept the evidence for climate change and murderers, many of the statements in the release are simply false. Many of the people and groups who do accept the evidence are anything but "the radical fringe of society." And, despite what Heartland would like to think, there's absolutely no evidence that "[s]cientific, political, and public support for the theory of man-made global warming is collapsing."
In many cases Heartland has suggested that their difference with climate science is primarily an issue with scientifically questionable "alarmism" of the sort typified by James Lovelock. With these ads and the accompanying announcements, however, it's clear that Heartland's issue is with the very basics of climate science and anyone who accepts it.
This is now creating a problem for the Institute as a whole. Heartland is ostensibly focused on offering free-market solutions for various policy issues and has attracted a wide range of backing from corporations that favor limited regulation. But for both secondhand smoke and climate change, it has decided to attack the scientific evidence that is driving policy rather than offering a solution. And that is causing some of its backers to rethink their involvement with Heartland. Several of them dropped support when the internal documents were leaked, and others are doing so now. One report indicates that an entire initiative done in cooperation with the insurance industry is at risk.
Heartland's continued efforts in this area seem to risk turning it into a single-issue think tank. And that may actually make sense; the leaked financial documents indicate that some of its largest donations come from single individuals who are targeting money for climate efforts.
In any case, the Institute's climate conference will occur towards the end of this month and, now that the ads have been pulled, most of the planned speakers will still attend. If years past are any indication, it will feature opinions ranging from questioning of basic facts (some speakers have claimed temperatures and sea levels haven't gone up) to a general sense that the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change estimates of temperature changes are probably overstated. About the only common theme among the speakers is the belief that scientific mainstream is wrong. | <urn:uuid:f8c1b229-e056-4338-8667-0da8a96d58b1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://arstechnica.com/science/2012/05/anti-climate-science-group-experiments-with-trolling/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.971747 | 958 | 1.703125 | 2 |
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SOURCE U.S. Census Bureau
WASHINGTON, Feb. 27, 2013 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The rate of employment-based health insurance coverage declined from 64.4 percent in 1997 to 56.5 percent in 2010, according to a U.S. Census Bureau report, Employment-Based Health Insurance: 2010, released today.
Among employed individuals, employment-based coverage declined from 76.0 percent in 1997 to 70.2 percent in 2010. During this time period, the employment-based coverage rate for those not in the labor force declined from 45.4 percent to 38.6 percent and for unemployed individuals declined from 33.5 percent to 30.8 percent. Individuals not in the labor force are people without jobs who are not currently looking for work, while unemployed individuals are people without jobs who are actively seeking employment.
During the same period, among employed individuals without coverage the rate increased from 14.7 percent to 18.0 percent, and the rate for those not in the labor force increased from 12.4 percent to 14.4 percent. A higher proportion of unemployed individuals were uninsured in 2010 (46.2 percent) than in 2005 (39.8 percent) and 2002 (43.1 percent).
"The report highlights the prevalence of employment-based health coverage among various socio-economic groups including coverage obtained outside the workplace," said Hubert Janicki, an economist with the Census Bureau's Health and Disability Statistics Branch. "Unemployed and individuals not in the labor force with employment-based coverage were generally covered by a previous employer's plan or someone else's, such as a spouse's or a parent's employer."
Today's report uses data from the Survey of Income and Program Participation to examine the characteristics of people with employer-provided health insurance coverage as well as the characteristics of employers that offer health insurance. The economic and demographic characteristics studied in this report include sex, race and ethnicity, age, family income and insurance status.
The report finds that the likelihood of working for an employer that offers any health insurance benefits increased with family income. Individuals with family income less than 138 percent of the federal poverty level were the least likely to work for an employer that offered health insurance benefits. Among these low-income workers, 43.3 percent were employed in firms that offered health insurance benefits. In comparison, workers with family income 401 percent and above of the federal poverty level were the most likely to work for an employer that offered health benefits (80.9 percent). For reference, 100 percent of the federal poverty level for a family of four was $22,113 in 2010.
The report details reasons for nonparticipation in an employer's health insurance plan. The report finds that the fraction of workers that reference "ineligibility" as the main reason for nonparticipation in an employer's health insurance plan decreased from 37.1 percent in 1997 to 32.2 percent in 2010. Nonparticipating employees were not eligible to participate in the employer's health insurance plan typically because they were temporary, worked part time or had not completed their probationary period.
--In 2010, 71.1 percent of employed individuals age 15 and older worked for an employer that offered health insurance benefits to any of its employees.
--42.9 percent of individuals who did not complete high school worked for an employer that offered health insurance to any of its employees, compared with 78.9 percent for individuals with a college degree.
--75.7 percent of workers age 45 to 64 worked for an employer that offered health insurance benefits, compared with 60.0 percent for workers 19 to 25.
--Among married couples with only one member employed in a firm that offered health insurance benefits, 68.7 percent of married couples provided coverage for the spouse.
--While 37.6 percent of firms with 0 to 24 employees offered more than one health insurance plan, 65.6 percent of firms with 1,000 or more employees offered more than one plan.
--About 1.1 percent of nonparticipating workers whose employer offered health insurance benefits were not insured by their employer because they were denied coverage.
--Among nonparticipating workers whose employer offered health insurance benefits, approximately half (50.4 percent) declined coverage by choice.
--The two most common reasons among workers who chose not to obtain health insurance coverage through their employer were health insurance obtained through another source (66.4 percent) and cost (27.4 percent).
Public Information Office
©2012 PR Newswire. All Rights Reserved. | <urn:uuid:f81f20f6-9db8-4f25-9450-db4a623c3da5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.kswt.com/story/21413512/census-bureau-news-employment-based-health-insurance-2010-census-bureau-reports-decline-in-employment-based-health-insurance | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973335 | 972 | 1.796875 | 2 |
On a bright, cold day in mid-January, 1998, I stood with a group of Turkish journalists at the water’s edge on Haifa Bay. A shape appeared on the horizon. It was a Turkish warship, beginning its approach to the Israeli coastline. One of the journalists handed out cigars as the ship slowly drew nearer. We toasted the friendship between Israel and Turkey — and the transformation of the Middle East’s strategic balance.
I was a young official of the Israel Prime Minister’s Office at the time. The Turkish journalists were our guests. They were in Israel to cover the Reliant Mermaid naval exercise. Reliant Mermaid, a joint maneuver involving the Israeli, Turkish, and U.S. navies, launched the strategic alliance between Turkey and Israel which formed a lynchpin of the pro-western dispensation that marked the post-Cold War Middle East.
How things have changed. Turkish navy ships may soon once again be sailing to the eastern Mediterranean. This time, however, they will do so with the real possibility of a clash with their former Israeli comrades in arms. This sentence sounds absurd even as I write it. Yet it is accurate. What has transformed these friends into enemies?
Profound changes are under way in the Middle East. In recent years, the key strategic process in the region was a Cold War-type system, placing the U.S. and its regional allies in a contest with a rival alliance led by the Islamic Republic of Iran.
The series of upheavals known as the “Arab Spring,” however, have cut across this picture, weakening both the rival sides. The United States lost a key lynchpin of its alliance with the fall of the Mubarak regime in Egypt.
Iran, contrary to its early expectations, has not yet been able to successfully take advantage of the travails of its enemies. The uprising in Syria and Tehran’s determination to preserve the dictator Bashar al-Assad at all costs have left Iran with the image of an oppressive, alien power supporting violence against Sunni Muslim Arabs.
The weakening of both the U.S.- and Iranian-led regional alliances has left a power vacuum into which Erdogan’s Turkey is now trying to step. Ankara used to pride itself on its “zero problems with neighbors” policy. Today, under the leadership of the Islamist AKP, Turkey is simultaneously picking fights with a long array of enemies, while trying to propose itself as a candidate for the leadership of the region.
Thus, Ankara is playing the key role behind the scenes in aiding and organizing the Sunni opposition in Syria. It has in recent days been enthusiastically bombing Kurdish targets in northern Iraq (with the loss of a number of civilian lives). It is threatening Cyprus against beginning to drill for gas in its own territorial waters. | <urn:uuid:d4cf442e-b34b-4b92-bb1e-65fdaf8a757f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://pjmedia.com/blog/understanding-turkeys-policy-of-confrontation-with-israel/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.969141 | 577 | 1.703125 | 2 |
Over the years, the concept of concocting one’s own treat by twisting and twirling various flavors of frozen yogurt with an assortment of toppings has captured the stomachs and taste buds of many health-conscious U.S. consumers.
This weekend, East Windsor jumped ahead of the game with the opening of Let’s YO! East Windsor, a futuristic-looking, all-natural frozen yogurt shop that marries a local hang-out atmosphere with technology and healthy dessert options.
“There’s something here for everyone,” said franchise owner Jim Emrich.
Like many frozen yogurt shops before it, Let’s YO! specializes in nutritious frozen yogurt made from fresh dairy and fruit purees, as well as healthy toppings such as fresh strawberries, blueberries, and bananas, and other toppings like chocolate covered pretzels, gummy worms, or granola, all situated in self-serve stations.
Flavor offerings can range anywhere from classic chocolate, strawberry, and vanilla, to pumpkin pie, pink lemonade sorbet, and pomegranate energy, which comes with a vitamin boost formulation.
Unique to the frozen yogurt industry, however, Let’s YO! is open for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, and the shop offers dark, light, and decaf brews of coffee. Let’s YO! opens every day at 11 a.m., and closes no earlier than 10 p.m.–midnight on Fridays and Saturdays.
“It’s somewhere for the families to come,” Emrich said. “It’s a destination.”
Emrich said he was drawn to the company because Let’s YO! offers a healthy snack alternative for people of all ages.
“The problem in America is a lot of these things are fast food and junk food, and it’s too easy to take the short cuts,” he said.
“We like the idea that this is still healthy, yet it’s a snack that you don’t feel guilty eating it,” Emrich said. “You can put some of the toppings on that aren’t 100 percent healthy, but it’s up to you to be as good or as naughty as you want to be.”
Emrich believes the business is poised for success with its forward-thinking business model, not to mention an ideal location right next to a movie cinema.
“We think it’s a really good location,” Emrich said. “We’re really happy with it.”
Within five weeks, builders overhauled the formerly dark and dingy location at 319 Route 130 North and opened up the space with bright colors, a tall ceiling, abundant light, and epoxy floors, Emrich said.
The shop is somewhat reminiscent of an Apple store–that serves frozen yogurt. The interior design is complete with Apple iPads embedded into its tables, which are hooked up to flat-screen televisions, providing a live, constantly-updated feed of the company’s social media networks. Guests are encouraged to interact with friends, family, and Let’s YO! through these platforms while watching their posts appear on the screen.
“It’s not just for the kids–the parents seem to love it too,” Emrich said.
Let’s YO! Yogurt was founded last year by entrepreneur and Retro Fitness owner Eric Casaburi. The company has 20 locations currently in operation and already has plans for an additional 50 units slated to open throughout the East Coast within the next year.
Emrich said there will be a ribbon cutting ceremony Monday night with East Windsor Mayor Janice Mironov. For up to date information on the shop, visit Let’s YO! East Windsor’s Facebook page. | <urn:uuid:589b8d10-b121-4a9b-8f7f-f0f14d324c10> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://eastwindsor.patch.com/articles/let-s-yo-east-windsor-frozen-yogurt-of-the-future?logout=true | 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 | 0.947404 | 819 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Colleges cut programs, staff to cope with budget woesby Tim Post, Minnesota Public Radio
St. Paul, Minn. — The budget ax is starting to fall on academic programs at Minnesota colleges, as administrators try to cut spending in anticipation of big state funding cuts.
At Minnesota State University at Mankato, officials have decided to cut 28 programs. Almost twice as many more will see reductions in size.
That will result in the loss of 80 full-time faculty positions, about 13 percent of the full-time faculty.
"It's a very sad day because we're losing a lot outstanding faculty, and that's very hard for the institution," said Scott Olson, provost and vice president of academic affairs at MSU in Mankato.
Olson said school leaders are making the cuts in anticipation of a $6 million to $10 million cut to their budget next year.
"We thought it was better to look at what we thought was a realistic, worst-case scenario and plan toward that scenario," he said. "Hopefully it won't be as bad as that, but we'll have at least planned for what the worst thing might be."
Colleges are constantly evaluating their programs. In better days, Olson said, officials at the Mankato campus might have invested more money to prop up a program with lagging enrollment. Now they're more likely to cut those programs.
"This is the worst situation I think we've seen since the 1970s," he said.
Job and program cuts are happening at colleges nationwide.
That's not only because of declining state funding during a recession, but also because colleges are preparing for tough budget years ahead, said Dan Hurley, a policy analyst for the American Association of State Colleges and Universities.
"Most economic data out there suggests there is not going to be any quick turn around in state appropriations for higher education any time in the next two or three years," he said.
Smart college administrators are planning now for the budget challenges to come in the next 12 to 24 months, Hurley said.
After several months of evaluating their academic offerings, officials at St. Cloud State University decided to eliminate 26 programs.
The programs span the class catalog. A major in geology is on its way out. A master's program in physical education will no longer be offered. A minor in Soviet and Eurasian studies will be phased out.
"These are very tough choices," said Devinder Malhotra, provost and vice president of academic affairs at St. Cloud State. "They are tough choices at all levels."
At St. Cloud State, programs slated for closure will no longer admit new students, Malhotra said. Students already in the programs will be allowed to get their degrees. By the time they graduate though, the programs will be phased out.
Malhotra said the university evaluated each program on its enrollment, cost of delivery, and how viable it is to the state's future workforce. The cuts are an effort to save $6 million.
"The university could no longer afford to do all that it was doing and yet be responsive to the changing environment and context of the society around us," he said.
So far St. Cloud State has evaluated half of its programs. The other half will be investigated soon, with more cuts likely to follow. There will be layoffs, but at this point college officials say they don't know how many.
Plenty of students don't want their programs cut, student government president Michael Jamnick said.
Jamnick said even if students are able to get their degrees, they will worry about the value of their degree if it comes from a program that no longer exists.
"'Well, I've got this degree from this institution that decided my program didn't make the cut,'" he said. "That's one of the concerns the students have."
Some students at St. Cloud State worry the cuts will reflect negatively on the university as a whole.
The cuts on college campuses come as school officials worry about another tight state budget next year, when lawmakers are expected to face another deficit, nearly $6 billion. That has all colleges in the state taking a hard look at their programs.
- Morning Edition, 03/30/2010, 7:25 a.m. | <urn:uuid:2441495f-b215-4bba-8a65-9cb8cf9cf3fa> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://minnesota.publicradio.org/display/web/2010/03/30/higher-education-budget-woes?refid=0 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00041-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97438 | 882 | 1.5 | 2 |
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When President Barack Obama and Vice-President Joe Biden walked into Ray's Hell Burger in Arlington, Va., last year, they weren't just grabbing a greasy lunch. To hear some tell it, their choice of condiments revealed their souls. Biden got his burger with Swiss cheese, jalapeños, and ketchup while Obama asked for one with cheddar and Dijon mustard. Yes, Dijon. Viewing this condiment preference as a sign of elitism, conservative pundits attacked. Fox News' Sean Hannity decried "President Poupon," and bloggers warned that Obama was hell-bent on colonizing the American palate with subversive foreign flavors.
They manned the ramparts 20 years too late. Dijon mustard, it turns out, is now as American as freedom fries. "Dijon is actually outpacing the overall mustard category," says Justin Parnell, brand manager for Grey Poupon, owned by Kraft Foods (KFT), which makes its mustard entirely from North American ingredients. According to Chicago-based research firm SymphonyIRI Group, Grey Poupon is the second most popular mustard in America—and growing. In July 2010, sales were estimated at $76 million, up 7 percent from the previous July. "Back in the early '80s, Dijon was a sign of having real aspirational tastes," says David Kamp, author of The United States of Arugula. "Now it's entirely assimilated. That's the best of American food curiosity. At first it's considered too elitist, and then everyone says there's nothing to be afraid of."
We are now living in the golden age of condiments. The confluence of the recession and our ubiquitous food snobbery has touched off an arms race on shelves from Whole Foods (WFMI) to Wal-Mart (WMT). Where there was once merely Gulden's and Heinz (HNZ), there is now Robert Rothschild Farm's Lemon Wasabi Sauce and Melinda's banana ketchup. With budget-conscious consumers more likely to eat at home, a decade of exposure to fine dining and ethnic flavors—and Iron Chef reruns—has created a need for spreadable flavors at affordable prices. Condiment sales grew 9.4 percent from 2007 to 2009, becoming the second largest category in the specialty foods market behind the perennial stalwart, cheese. "Condiments are probably the biggest rotation of new products we have," says Mike McMahon, food buyer for Bristol Farms, a chain of 14 gourmet grocery stores in California. "There's always new flavor profiles, new diets, international influences, and ideas. The sky's the limit!" Chicago-based market research firm Mintel International Group notes that 36 mayonnaises have already entered the market this year—nearly three times as many as in all of 2009.
Condiment mania has now gone mainstream. Mintel values the U.S. market at $5.6 billion. Driven by its core audience, 18- to 34-year-olds, that market will swell to $7 billion by 2015, Mintel anticipates, as new whole-grain mustards, spicy ketchups, fruit-flavored salsas, blended aiolis, chutneys, and hot sauces hit grocery aisles. Like Reaganomics, high-end condiments trickle down—from glass bottles in specialty shops to squeeze bottles in supermarkets. Most make their entrance in the market at the biannual Fancy Food Show, which bestows the equivalent of an Oscar on the best branded spreadable sandwich toppings. Last July, Dulcet Cuisine's Mild Indian Curry Ketchup took home the condiment gold medal; the Oregon company's Moroccan Mustard nabbed silver. "A flavor will become popular, and other smaller companies will make that same flavor for their own products," explains Ron Tanner, spokesman for the National Association for the Specialty Food Trade. "Larger companies such as Kraft will then notice it and keep an eye on sales. Once big companies see 10 to 20 small producers doing this, they'll pick it up." On average, Tanner says, it takes three to five years for a condiment to go from niche product to mass market. "When you look at the extra cost per serving," says Tanner, "it's not very much at all. It's not like you're buying smoked salmon or caviar."
One company on the front lines is Springfield (Ohio)-based Woeber's, a family business best known for yellow and spicy brown mustards. Now enjoying a Pabst Blue Ribbon-like renaissance, the 105-year-old mustard maker has expanded by 50 percent with flavors such as jalapeño, cranberry, and wasabi. It has launched a line of organic mustards and another of premium mustards—which it sells in glass jars—and acquired such beloved regional brands as New Jersey's Mr. Mustard.
This April, Woeber's also launched a line of the latest spreadable craze: flavored mayonnaises. Called Mayo Gourmet, it comes in varieties such as Kickin' Buffalo, Toasted Garlic, and Cool Dill. "I would say it's probably double or triple our expectations," says condiment scion Christopher Woeber, the company's operations manager and great-grandson of its founder. "Flavored mayo is fairly new, so we expected some mixed response. But it's been positive almost all across the board."
Woeber's private-label operation, which makes and packages condiments for other brands or retailers, has grown to 60 percent of its business. Private labels now make up nearly one-quarter of the U.S. condiment market and are growing faster than any other segment, according to Mintel. "People want cheaper, more specialized gourmet products," says Woeber. "It's like fashion. We're the H&M of condiments."
The current craze doesn't sit well with some condiment purists. Barry Levenson, curator of the National Mustard Museum in Middleton, Wis., sees promise in newly released blue cheese and raspberry mustards. However, he draws the line at chocolate mustard. "I can't see that going into grocery stores," he says. "It's just not going to happen." Let's give it three to five years. | <urn:uuid:069bc8ad-b0d9-45c7-8d5a-6ffc8755b4a0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.businessweek.com/magazine/content/10_42/b4199096744538.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.960795 | 1,327 | 1.5625 | 2 |
A center volunteer was driving to work on Monday when she saw something moving inside the tied-up sack along a road in Mead Valley.
She untied the sack, looked inside and saw the dirty, shivering dog.
It's unclear how long the dog was abandoned in the sack.
Mary S. Roberts Pet Adoption Center spokeswoman Carrie Ridgeway tells the Riverside Press-Enterprise (http://bit.ly/PRHxTl) that the dog's ears were caked with mud and there were insect bites on its body.
Adoption center workers have named the 3-year-old dog Angel.
Information from: The Press-Enterprise, http://www.pe.com | <urn:uuid:ae7dd7b0-f900-4a05-a2da-04b3b2b1da3a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.contracostatimes.com/california/ci_21986488/dog-stuffed-into-burlap-sack-dumped-along-road | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00026-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958872 | 145 | 1.804688 | 2 |
A casita is a small house or bungalow. It may be the main house or set in the back of the main structure, like a carriage house. Casitas are usually a one bedroom/one bath arrangement with a small kitchen and a storage room. Today’s developers are creating village casitas in Nicaragua on a grand scale, offering extra bedrooms and amenities found in higher priced homes in the United States.
As more retirees and young families discover the benefits of making their home in Nicaragua the need for homes has increased. Developers have created planned communities in the most desired locations in Nicaragua. The communities are often centered around the interests of the homeowner, such as golf, surfing, or those who are interested in preserving the ecology of their new homeland.
No matter where we live there seems to be lines running overhead for one utility or another. Not so in the planned communities in Nicaragua. Everything is underground to preserve the beauty of the country.
Village casitas in Nicaragua (like the ones found here: http://www.granpacifica.com/village-casitas.html)are clustered together in a neighborhood usually bordered by a golf course or park-like grounds. Most casitas are built using designs chosen and approved by the developer but in certain planned communities lot owners may submit a plan of their choosing for review by a planning commission.While cookie cutter homes are not the plan for the casita villages the community does want a homogenous grouping of homes.
Each planned community will offer its own brand of amenities from basketball courts equestrian arenas, swimming pool, restaurants, grocery delivery, Spanish lessons, and almost any other convenience conceivable.
Property owners pay an association fee in these planned communities and if they need to be away everything on their property will be maintained as needed.
Village casitas in Nicaragua vary in size from about 800 square feet to around 2000 square feet. The 800 square foot casita would be a one bedroom/one bath home. The largest casita could have two or three bedrooms and and two or three of baths. All casitas have a front porch for sitting and most a small lot but some villages offer half acre or larger building lots.
Casitas are built to strict specifications, finished with fine hardwoods and ceramic tile. They come equipped with all appliances, furniture if you want it, and you can even arrange to have linens and housewares provided.
What do village casitas in Nicaragua cost? Not nearly what you would think. Construction costs are far less in Nicaragua and you get a lot of home for your money.
Looks And Location
The village casitas in Nicaragua featured by developers are unique and stunningly beautiful homes. The building standards are unsurpassed and the communities are planned to blend into the landscape.
Casitas villages are located in many parts of Nicaragua and finding just the right location for your new home could be more difficult than you would think. No matter which village casita you choose you will be surrounded by the incredible beauty of Nicaragua. | <urn:uuid:c986efd0-2235-430b-965d-fdc7ea2ce187> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.granpacifica.com/blog/nicaragua-real-estate/village-casitas-in-nicaragua/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00033-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.952906 | 617 | 1.5625 | 2 |
Washington Post Staff Writer
Wednesday, January 24, 2007; A13
In his State of the Union address last night, President Bush presented an arguably misleading and often flawed description of "the enemy" that the United States faces overseas, lumping together disparate groups with opposing ideologies to suggest that they have a single-minded focus in attacking the United States.
Under Bush's rubric, a country such as Iran -- which enjoys diplomatic representation and billions of dollars in trade with major European countries -- is lumped together with al-Qaeda, the terrorist group responsible for the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. "The Shia and Sunni extremists are different faces of the same totalitarian threat," Bush said, referring to the different branches of the Muslim religion.
Similarly, Bush asserted that Shia Hezbollah, which has won seats in the Lebanese government, is a terrorist group "second only to al-Qaeda in the American lives it has taken." Bush is referring to attacks nearly a quarter-century ago on a U.S. embassy and a Marine barracks when the United States intervened in Lebanon's civil war by shelling Hezbollah strongholds. Hezbollah has evolved into primarily an anti-Israeli militant organization -- it fought a war with Israel last summer -- but the European Union does not list it as a terrorist organization.
At one point, Bush catalogued what he described as advances in the quest for freedom in the Middle East during 2005 -- such as the departure of Syrian troops from Lebanon and elections in Iraq. Then, Bush asserted, "a thinking enemy watched all of these scenes, adjusted their tactics and in 2006 they struck back." But his description of the actions of "the enemy" tried to tie together a series of diplomatic and military setbacks that had virtually no connection to one another, from an attack on a Sunni mosque in Iraq to the assassination of Maronite Lebanese political figure.
In his speech, Bush argued that "free people are not drawn to violent and malignant ideologies -- and most will choose a better way when they are given a chance." He also said that terrorist groups "want to overthrow moderate governments."
In the two of the most liberal and diverse societies in the Middle East -- Lebanon and the Palestinian territories -- events have undercut Bush's argument in the past year. Hezbollah has gained power and strength in Lebanon, partly at the ballot box. Meanwhile, Palestinians ousted the Fatah party -- which wants to pursue peace with Israel -- from the legislature in favor of Hamas, which is committed to Israel's destruction and is considered a terrorist organization by the State Department.
In fact, many of the countries that Bush considers "moderate" -- such as Egypt and Saudi Arabia -- are autocratic dictatorships rated among the worst of the "not free" nations by the nonpartisan Freedom House. Their Freedom House ratings are virtually indistinguishable from Cuba, Belarus and Burma, which Bush last night listed as nations in desperate need of freedom.
Bush also claimed that "we have a diplomatic strategy that is rallying the world to join in the fight against extremism." But Monday, a poll of 26,000 people in 25 countries was released that showed that global opinion of U.S. foreign policy has sharply deteriorated in the past two years. Nearly three-quarters of those polled by GlobeScan, an international polling company, disapprove of U.S. policies toward Iraq, and nearly half said the United States is playing a mainly negative role in the world.
In his State of the Union address a year ago, Bush said that progress in Iraq meant "we should be able to further decrease our troop levels" but that "those decisions will be made by our military commanders, not by politicians in Washington, D.C." Bush now proposes to increase troop levels, after having overruled the concerns of commanders. In his speech last night, he sidestepped this contradiction, saying that "our military commanders and I have carefully weighed the options" and "in the end, I chose this course of action."
On domestic policy, Bush at one point said that "the recovery" has added more than 7.2 million jobs since August 2003. But the net number of jobs created since Bush became president in January 2001, is much lower -- just 3.6 million. The Bush administration's performance is fairly mediocre for the sixth year of a presidency, according to historical statistics maintained by the Bureau of Labor Statistics. Nearly 18 million jobs were added by the sixth year of Bill Clinton's presidency -- and nearly 10 million were added at this point in Ronald Reagan's presidency.
Bush claimed credit for cutting the budget deficit ahead of schedule and proposed to eliminate it over the next five years. He did not mention that he inherited a huge budget surplus -- $236 billion in 2000 -- compared with a $296 billion deficit in the 2006 fiscal year, largely as a result of Bush's tax cuts and spending increases. Bush claimed that the No Child Left Behind Act has helped students to "perform better at reading and math, and minority students are closing the achievement gap." But states made stronger average annual gains in reading during the decade before the law took effect, education researchers have found, and half a dozen recent studies have shown little progress in narrowing the test-score gap between minority and white students. | <urn:uuid:57e49b44-108d-47fa-8f48-39dd9085876d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://mparent7777.blogspot.com/2007/01/presidents-portrayal-of-enemy-often.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00023-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967115 | 1,053 | 1.789063 | 2 |
Coastal Carolina University will celebrate Alcohol Awareness Month with the events scheduled during the week of Monday, Oct. 12 through Saturday, Oct. 17. The events are intended to educate students on the responsible use of alcohol. The week long event is sponsored by the University's Alcohol Coalition, Smart Choice Campaign and Counseling Services.
The presentation of the HBO Documentary, "Addiction: Why They Can't Just Stop," from 7 to 9 p.m. on Thursday, Oct. 14, is free and open to the public. The film will be presented in the E. Craig Wall Sr. College of Business Administration auditorium and is a part of the Psychology Film Series.
The film explores the hidden American epidemic of addiction through the use of personal narratives, statistics and interviews with experts on the subject. The film counters the myth that addicts are weak and immoral, discusses research that shows the effects of chemical dependency on the brain, and asserts that it is virtually impossible for addicts to simply quit.
For more information call University Counseling Services at 843-349-2305. | <urn:uuid:6a23524d-c2b5-49e0-bb7d-25f41da0b32d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.coastal.edu/newsarticles/story.php?id=2424 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00021-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.933091 | 219 | 1.789063 | 2 |
Ohio Motorcycle Accident Attorney Serving Toledo, Swanton and Bowling Green
Vehicle Accidents : ATV & Motorcycle Accidents
The average car, truck or SUV driver is now fortunate enough to have any number of safety devices protecting them when they are out on the road. Seat restraint systems, airbags, and automatic communication with an emergency operator come as standard features for several makes and models of cars. Passenger cars are tested vigorously with teams of engineers and crash test dummies before they are even allowed to be put on the assembly line. For auto manufacturers and drivers, there has never been a safer time to drive a car.
On the other hand, motorcycle riders don’t have nearly that many options. We don’t have seatbelts, or anything to keep us on our bikes in the event of an accident. Because of this lack of built in safety devices, motorcycle riders place a much higher premium on safety than people that drive cars. The great majority of bikers do all the right things; they obey the helmet laws and wear protective clothing, and they are constantly alert to their surroundings and other drivers. They maintain smart and safe intervals between their bikes and other cars. They stay within the speed limit and make sure that their paths are clear before switching lanes. Many of them even keep their headlight on in broad daylight. Unfortunately, others don’t exercise the same caution, and as a result, Ohio is a pretty dangerous place for motorcycle accidents.
In 2004, there were 4,267 motorcycle crashes in Ohio, which resulted in 133 fatalities and 3,543 injuries. There are plenty of cases where distracted drivers have crashed into a motorcyclist that was doing everything right. According to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, 51% of all motorcycles involved in fatal crashes collided with another vehicle in motion.
Despite all these alarming statistics, it’s safe to say that motorcycle use isn’t going to decline. With gas prices going up on an almost weekly basis, more and more drivers are switching to motorcycles to simply save money on gas and maintenance. With more motorcyclists on the road, the odds of getting into a serious and life changing accident increase exponentially.
Charles Boyk: Your Ohio Motorcycle Accident Attorney Fighting for Fair Treatment for Ohioans
Insurance companies know all about the inherent dangers of riding a motorcycle. This is why your premiums are so high, even if you have a flawless record of safe riding. While the insurers have no issues with accepting monthly premiums, their equanimity has a tendency to decline when its time for the money to flow the other way. Considering that most motorcycle accidents involve medical treatment, it’s important to have someone on your side that is familiar with insurance company stalling tactics so you can get your medical bills paid quickly and completely. You’ll also need counsel on your side when it comes to recovering lost wages or getting your bike repaired.
If the accident resulted in a brain, spinal cord, or other serious debilitating injury, you can bet that the insurance companies will do all they can to avoid accepting responsibility, even if you clearly weren’t at fault. Tactics such as digging into your background, offering lowball settlements after long delays, and painting you as a careless and thrill-seeking biker are just some of the methods that insurers use to keep from fulfilling their obligations.
The first step towards getting your expenses paid and your life back on track is to take prompt action. If you or a loved one has been involved in a motorcycle accident due to the carelessness or recklessness of another driver, obtaining the services of experienced legal counsel as soon as possible can be the difference between waiting years for inadequate compensation and waiting months for a settlement that is reasonable and fair.
Do you need an Ohio motorycycle accident attorney now?
Charles Boyk has years of experience in helping motorcyclists get through the legal system, as well as getting them back on their feet again. Contact our offices for a free legal consultation today. | <urn:uuid:9d3a8b35-a019-47f8-b95d-ef5a7686a3b1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.charlesboyk-law.com/practice_areas/motorcycle-accidents3.cfm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00030-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.969414 | 821 | 1.515625 | 2 |
The Flying Nun
Who could have guessed that a show once considered to be a flop by its own developer would not only thrive for three seasons on television, but would still be treasured by thousands of loyal fans 30 years later? September 7th will mark the 30th anniversary of The Flying Nun, which first premiered in 1967. Starring Sally Field, fresh from her stint on Gidget, the show's premise about a nun who flies seemed too unbelievable by Bernard Slade who developed the series from Tere Rios' novel The Fifteenth Pelican. "I had no faith in The Flying Nun and left as soon as we got Sally off the ground," he explained. But Screen Gems Producer, Harry Ackerman, best known for I Dream of Jeannie and Bewitched, thought differently. It so happened that Ackerman was looking for a vehicle for Sally Field after the demise of Gidget. He pitched the idea to the president of ABC-TV. The enormous popularity of magical characters like Jeannie and Samantha proved that even improbable events could become TV success stories. As a result, The Flying Nun was scheduled to air the following season.
When the pilot episode was being developed, Sally Field was considered a favorite for portraying the flying lead character, Sister Bertrille. Her petite 5' 2" frame and enthusiastic charisma were the perfect blend to fill the habit and wing-tipped coronet. In order for the audience to believe in the concept of a flying nun, Bernard Slade felt that Sally was needed to bring a human quality to the role. Sally wasn't exactly thrilled about jumping into another television project after Gidget, however, and initially declined the part. She was 19 years old and took the early demise of Gidget very hard. Nevertheless, Screen Gems decided to film the pilot with their second choice, actress Ronnie Troup, best known for her role three years later in My Three Sons as Polly Williams. Before the series aired, however, Sally was persuaded to accept the role and soared into TV history.
The original pilot was never used and was re-shot with Sally as the unique nun assigned to the Convent San Tanco in San Juan, Puerto Rico. With her strong determination and creative problem-solving skills, Sister Bertrille set out to face earthbound dilemmas and leave an indelible mark on the citizens of the community. The San Juan citizens, as well as the other occupants of the convent, weren't quite prepared for the magnitude of her sudden talent. Each episode was centered around Sister Bertrille's capability of taking flight whenever the San Tanco winds stirred up. The combination of her light 90-pound body weight, lengthy coronet wingspan, and powerful wind current allowed her to soar like a bird. The unlikely phenomenon was explained as a simple case of aerodynamics and "lift plus thrust." Whenever the wind was just right, she simply tilted her coronet and let the current carry her off.
In the beginning, Sally Field didn't want to play the part. "I didn't want to play a nun," she stated. "I thought Gidget was the best show there ever was. I still want to be Gidget." Sally wasn't thrilled that Sister Bertrille wouldn't be "allowed to kiss or show her belly button." It was completely opposite of the care-free, teenage portrayal of the role she loved.
Studio executives knew Sally wasn't enthusiastic about her role and tried to lift her spirits whenever possible. When she mentioned casually that she would someday like to drive around in a Ferrari, Screen Gems surprised her with a Midnight Blue Ferrari 330 convertible on her birthday.
In retrospect, Sally recently said playing the part was a "good experience."
"I was 19, 20, and 21 years old at the time and was dressed in a nun's habit all day long. I didn't want to be a nun. How much fun could that be?" she said. She did, however, like being on the set during the late sixties. "It was the end of a fabulous era in television. First there was Bewitched, then The Flying Nun, I Dream of Jeannie, The Monkees, and the Partridge Family. And we were all in a line. It wasn't like today when you have your own motorhome as a dressing room and never see anybody. When we went to the makeup department, we were all in a big room where everyone came in around 6:00 a.m. You knew what everyone ate for breakfast and what they did the night before."BIRDS OF A FEATHER With the release of The Flying Nun on Columbia-Tristar Home Video and reruns soaring onto cable TV, many fans have become reacquainted with the series. There are some viewers, however, who have remained loyal enthusiasts ever since the show was originally on the air. Jeff Michael has been a devoted fan of the show since its inception. He is a singer/songwriter from New York and has made an award-winning music video inspired by The Flying Nun called "I Want to Fly." Captivated by earlier tales of human flight, such as those in Peter Pan and Mary Poppins, Jeff was immediately drawn to Sister Bertrilles' airborne antics. As an 8-year-old his passion was so strong, he regularly received Flying Nun merchandise in lieu of an allowance.
"When I was a kid, I didn't get an allowance. My mother would buy me something she knew I'd love, like the Flying Nun comic book. One of the most vivid and colorful memories I have as a child was when my mother bought me one of the comics and left it on the piano. When I saw it, I got so excited that I locked myself in my room and read it three times."
Jeff's passion for the show eventually led him to start "The International Flying Nun Fan Club," which is currently celebrating its 10th anniversary. "I never thought about running a fan club because I didn't know what to do," he said.
"The club came about back in 1986 when I had a theme party for a group of about 75 people. I'm an entertainer by profession, so I wanted the party to be entertaining and raise a few eyebrows."
As a result, Jeff decided to invite his guests to his 1st Annual Flying Nun Party. "I took out my memorabilia, made hats, buttons, and balloons just for the event," he explained. "Everyone had a great time, and several people wanted to join the fan club. I told them there wasn't one, and a guest suggested that I start one. I thought it was a great idea."
Jeff ran an ad in a local collectibles' magazine to get in touch with other Flying Nun fans, because he had no idea how to start a fan club. He received dozens of responses, one of which outlined how to contact the National Association of Fan Clubs.
"I didn't think it was going to be so much work," Jeff admits. "It is definitely a labor of love. I don't do it for the money or recognition. I do it because I like it."
As a prerequisite to beginning the club, Jeff
was advised to contact Sally Field directly and ask for permission.
Jeff has never met Sally Field, but is proud to mention the numerous letters he has received from the star. One letter in particular stands out above the rest. "She was extremely pleased when I told her I was using the novel The Fifteenth Pelican as a learning tool for a local children's reading program. She wrote back and was thrilled. I show children how books can inspire them as a reader. I read the novel and became absorbed in it. I based my music video "I Want to Fly" on that experience.
"The kids can see the connection between
my reading a novel and turning my ideas into a video. When they read, maybe they too
can get an idea and do something creative with it. Imagination is the best gift
because they can do anything with it."
Sally Field was so touched by his involvement, she sent Jeff a large packet with enough signed photos for every child in the program. Jeff may very well be Sally Field's biggest fan, but doesn't collect memorabilia from any of her other television or movie projects.
"I'm a huge fan and enjoy watching her mainly in interviews because she's so funny. I've always seen her as a comedic actress. I'm not trying to pigeon-hole her because she's a wonderful dramatic actress as well. She does both fabulously, but I enjoy her when she's funny and campy, like her character in Soapdish. I do have to say she can also be deadly dramatic. She's got the best cry in the business."
Jeff Michael doesn't consider himself a devoted fan simply because he resides as the fan club's president. He also prides himself as the head of The Flying Nun preservation society. "I probably have the biggest Flying Nun collection, but I'm still looking for original props and costumes from the show. I want to preserve and archive them," he explains.
When asked what his family and friends
think about his hobby, Jeff paused and thought for a moment. "Deep down they're
very supportive. They think it's bizarre and wacky, but not in a bad way. I
make them laugh, like when I was on the Joan Rivers' Show. How many people
get the chance to go on TV in full Flying Nun garb?"
The three other dolls stand at 11", 14" and 18", all of which feature the same white habit and coronet with a generic face that was not modeled after Sally Field's likeness. The 11" doll was actually featured in episode #48 were Elsie's (Sister Bertrille) old boyfriend, Randy, visits the convent and gives her a doll version of herself as a parting gift. The doll seen on the show had a jet motor on its back because Randy wanted to market a flying doll. The rare 11" Hasbro doll recently sold mint-in-box for a staggering $1,000 in Toys Scouts 2nd Annual Movie and TV Auction. If you're a fan and have extra money to spend, you may find some additional memorabilia for auction in the future. You can contact Toy Scouts at 137 Casteron Ave, Akron Ohio 44303.
Hasbro also produced a bagatelle game, Marble Maze Game and a Stitch-a-Story embroidering kit in 1967. The bagatelle game is a hand-held pinball game with a clear plastic front and an illustrated background. A ball is launched from a pullback spring lever and can land in a variety of receptacles for scoring. One of the more difficult collectibles to find, its value is $80-$100. The Marble Maze Game is similar in style, except the ball is moved freely by tilting the game's base. The object is to follow the numbered receptacles in sequence from 1 to 40. It is worth $60-$80. The Stitch-a-Story kit includes two colorful pictures to embroider with multi-colored thread and a needle. It's value is $50-$75.
Lunch pails are certainly a popular collectible today and fans will have to scour antique malls, collector swap meets and toy shows to find the three different versions produced by Aladdin in 1968. The most common of the three is the metal style, which features beautiful color illustrations of scenes from the pilot episode. With a matching metal thermos it can be found for $100-150 in excellent condition. A very different box is the all-vinyl white version that sports a cartoon drawing of Sister Bertrille flying over the town of San Pueblo. The thermos contains the same illustration as the box, with a white background and light blue top. The square vinyl box and thermos are very scarce and together can easily fetch over $300. The last version is a light blue vinyl brunch bag. It is similar to the vinyl box, but is an oval-shaped cylinder with a long black handle and zipper top. It's more readily found and is valued at about $200.
THE SOUND OF MUSIC
"Who Needs Wings to Fly?" That is the name of the instrumental theme that began each of the 82 episodes. What many people don't know is that Sally Field actually recorded a vocal version of the song that didn't make it onto television. Fans of the show have seen many episodes with Sister Bertrille singing her way through a scene. For example, in the pilot episode she was faced with the difficult task of teaching a group of orphan children, but didn't have the proper tools or supplies. When all else failed, she broke into song and took the children through the streets of San Pueblo singing the happy tune "Felicidad."
"Felicidad" was released as a single by Capitol Records with a picture sleeve of Sally Field in full costume. The single is also featured on a full-length album with many additional songs from the show. "Sally Field, Star of The Flying Nun" can be difficult to find, even in used record stores and is worth about $30-40. There is also sheet music for "Felicidad" valued at $15-$20, and a songbook with the music and lyrics from the album valued at $30-40.
The singles "You're a Grand Old Flag"/"Golden Days" and "Month's of the Year"/"Gonna Build a Mountain" were recorded, but never made the cut for the final album. The later of the two contains additional vocals by Madeleine Sherwood (Reverend Mother Plaseato) and Marge Redmond (Sister Jacqueline). Despite the album's catchy tunes and Sally Field's notable efforts to push her vocal abilities to the limit, Sally's recording career crash-landed and she never released any other songs.A CONVENT OF MEMORABILIA Several other toys were made that include a board game by Milton Bradley, four comic books by Dell, five paperback books by Ace Books, View-Master reels and a set of 66 trading cards by Topps. All of these items can be found without much effort. The most valuable of the bunch is the set of trading cards. Originally sold in 5-cent wax wrappers, the cards contain color photos taken from early episodes during the series' first season. Each card is outlined in blue and contain puzzle backs. If found individually, each card is worth $2-3, with a set selling for $150-$200.
Other paper products include a boxed paper doll set, three paper doll booklets, and a coloring book by Saalfield. The 11" x 14" boxed set contains five paper dolls - Sister Bertrille, Mother Superior, Sister Jacqueline, Sister Sixto, and Carlos Ramirez. The three booklets are very similar, except for the variations in artwork on the covers. The coloring book was printed and distributed in the United States, but a Spanish version entitled "La Novicia Voladora" was marketed as well. The paper doll box and booklets are worth about $30-$50 each, while the coloring books are valued at $25-$30.
Summing up the rest of the over 50 different collectibles made is a blonde Sister Bertrille Halloween costume and a flying toy by Rayline. Of all the memorabilia, the Halloween costume is perhaps the most disturbing to collectors. Sister Bertrille with blonde hair? Despite the obvious error, the costume still demands a hefty sum at $80-$100.
The flying toy is also in demand by collectors mainly due to its function. It's always fun to find toys that actually relate to a program. Unlike the View-Master, lunch boxes or paperback books, this toy actually flies. Advertised as "easy to operate, simply pull the string and up she goes," the 4 ½ " plastic figure could dip, soar, and glide just like the character on television. The toy comes packaged in a colorful photo window box and contains the caption "Come Fly with Me" signed by Sally Fields - obviously not authentic, considering Sally doesn't spell her last name with an "S". Unfortunately, the mistake is forever marked on this collectible as well as a few of the trading cards.
Production mistakes aside, the overall collectibility of Flying Nun memorabilia remains steady and has actually seen an increase in recent years. Jeff Michael cites the recent release of the show on video as a catalyst for the popularity. "I've always had a love for the show," he says. "When the videos were released I was excited. The show is fun-filled fantasy and people get a lot of enjoyment out of it."
Who says no one would believe that a nun could fly?From the publication Toy Trader. | <urn:uuid:2d2f104e-b2b9-4d59-9ab7-f31648812171> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.tvtoys.com/library/flying_nun/index.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.980284 | 3,472 | 1.53125 | 2 |
Please pray for the 376 monks and nuns from Prajna Monastery to have peace and solidity. Please do not let hatred and despair awaken in us because of the violence that has taken place at Prajna Monastery. We would like you to enjoy a poem written by Thich Nhat Hanh "Recommendation". Written in 1965 for the young people in the School of Youth for Social Service who risked their lives every day during the war, recommending them to prepare to die without hatred.
promise me this day,
promise me now,
while the sun is overhead
exactly at the zenith,
Even as they
strike you down
with a mountain of hatred and violence;
even as they step on you and crush you
like a worm,
even as they dismember and disembowel you,
man is not our enemy.
Last Updated (Tuesday, 29 September 2009 17:38) | <urn:uuid:185e3a2f-3537-4fc3-905c-2f3e674cb91f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.plumvillage.org/poetry.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951004 | 193 | 1.632813 | 2 |
Credit unions gain as an alternative
Shopping for a new loan, or a savings or checking account? You have more options than you think. Banks are the predominate place people park their money or get their loans, but credit unions are growing in popularity as consumers thumb their noses at credit unions' big brother.
According to a March 2012 survey of 5,000 consumers conducted by Pleasanton, Calif., market research firm Javelin Strategy & Research, 11 percent of respondents indicated they would switch their main financial institution during the year. For the first quarter of 2012, membership increased by 667,000, reports the National Association of Federal Credit Unions, an Arlington, Va., trade association.
Although credit unions are an alternative to banks, a decision to switch depends on what you want out of your financial institution. For some consumers, low rates on loans and higher rates on savings accounts are all that matters. For others, it's all about convenience or accessibility.
"Banks may offer a better opportunity if you need a more sophisticated lending product or investment product," says Gene Kirsch, senior financial analyst at Weiss Ratings, a ratings firm in Jupiter, Fla. "For everything else, you're best to shop around. Credit unions are very competitive."
Who owns banks and credit unions?
One of the major differences between a bank and credit union is its corporate structure. Banks are for-profit institutions, which means they are in the business to make money and have shareholders to placate. Credit unions are nonprofit and are owned by the members of the credit union, which means their focus is on serving the members.
Banks are conflicted because they have to manage what's best for the customers with what's in the best interest of shareholders, says Alix Patterson, chief operating officer at Washington, D.C., research firm Callahan & Associates Inc.
"Banks are designed to maximize shareholder value, which leads to different decisions than credit unions," she says.
In the past, the corporate makeup of a credit union or bank wouldn't matter to a consumer who simply wants the best rates, but that has changed in recent months. Fed up with the fees and seemingly bad behavior on the part of banks, consumers pulled money out of banks and into credit unions Nov. 5, 2011, on what has become known as bank transfer day.
That one day demonstrated consumers do care about more than just rates, says Mark Schwanhausser, Javelin director of multichannel financial services.
How do you join?
To join a credit union, you have to be part of a specific group, whether it's working for a certain employer, living in a particular town, or being part of a church or organization. On the other hand, banks are open to anyone.
"Anyone can walk in off the street and join a bank, but as far as a credit union you have to have some common bond to belong," Kirsch says.
Since you have to have some affiliation to the credit union, it means you may not be able to join the one you want. But it doesn't mean you can't become a customer of a credit union, as credit unions increasingly become region-specific rather than group-specific.
"Not everybody can join any credit union, but there's a credit union for everybody," says Patrick Keefe, a spokesman for the Washington, D.C., and Madison, Wis.-based Credit Union National Association.
Most credit unions charge a one-time membership fee to join, which runs from $5 to $20, Keefe says. Banks don't charge a one-time monthly service fee, but some require a minimum amount to open an account.
Are rates better at credit unions or banks?
For people who care solely about savings, checking and loan rates, a credit union may make the most sense. On average, credit unions do better on the rates than banks do.
"Credit unions can offer higher deposit rates and lower interest rates on loans than banks because they don't have to worry about profits," Kirsch says. "Profits at credit unions are plowed back in and returned to members in the form of dividend payments, lower fees or lower interest rates."
Still, while credit unions typically beat banks on rates, it's only on the advertised rates, says Keith Leggett, vice president and senior economist at Washington, D.C.-based trade association American Bankers Association. "Banks are willing to beat the credit union, but you do need to go in and ask," Leggett says.
Because the rates can vary from bank to bank and credit union to credit union, banking experts say it pays to shop around if the best rate is what you are after. Bankrate's comparison rate tool lets you check current rates at credit unions and banks on banking products across the country.
Does convenience trump rates?
One of the knocks against credit unions is the lack of convenience. While some banks have a branch on every corner, credit unions typically only have one or two branches. At the end of the day, the convenience and accessibility are what truly matter, says Schwanhausser.
On bank transfer day, credit unions succeeded in gaining new members, but many consumers didn't unplug from the giant banks altogether, Schwanhausser says. For many people, switching means changing their direct deposit, canceling their bill pay and giving up access to branches pretty much wherever they are.
"The main reason is consumers are looking for convenience. Yes, fees do matter, but they are not mad enough to switch," he says.
That's not to say credit unions aren't trying to catch up. While you'll never see a credit union branch on every street corner of a major city, there is a network of 24,000 ATMs across the country, and credit unions are starting to set up shop in places where consumers frequent, such as the supermarket or convenience stores.
"Credit unions deal with accessibility with shared networks and technology," Patterson says. | <urn:uuid:a9a18c25-2bc0-4e20-81be-a14bba222d1a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.bankrate.com/finance/credit-unions/switch-from-bank-to-credit-union.aspx?ic_id=Top_Financial%20News%20Center_link_3 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.971302 | 1,234 | 1.789063 | 2 |
- Special Sections
- Public Notices
In most any situation or circumstance, the people best qualified to help others are those who have been through the same or very similar situations or circumstances. That’s why Leslie Murphy, a disabled veteran of the United States Marine Corps, founded the Carolina Veterans Commission, a non-profit organization based in Lancaster.
According to a recent public service announcement put out by the organization, the mission of the CVC is for veterans to support veterans and help combat some of the “glaring ills” that cause veterans to “fall through the cracks” once they have completed their military service.
“A lot of times, it isn’t really made clear to a veteran all of the benefits that they really have access to,” Murphy said. “That’s where we come in. We want to educate these veterans on services available to them that will help them in all areas. One of the most important things we can provide is information, and we want to be a resource to all veterans.”
CVC will support existing veteran services and, according to the announcement, augment and create new services through program implementation. CVC has five key components on its roster staffed by volunteers. One component is the Veteran’s Self-Management Benefit Education Program, which is training designed to assist veterans in becoming their own advocates for benefits and services. Another program is ABLE (A Better Living Environment), which is a continuum care homeless program. CVC also offers an AIDD (Attack In a Different Direction) Substance Recovery program; a healthcare program entitled AM/PM (Active Management/Preventative Management – 24 hour care); and a family-reuniting based program entitled “Camp Veteran for Kids.”
“One of the most important things about this organization is that it is our intention to be completely transparent,” he said. “We definitely want the community – and community leaders – to know exactly what we’re doing so awareness of our programs can reach the highest levels. Ultimately, we want to become a best practice model in North and South Carolina for veterans. We want to be the type of organization that lets everyone see what we do, so people will see that we do what we say we will do.”
The outreach of the organization isn’t limited to those who have already served their country. CVC is always on the lookout for ways to help active duty personnel. A chance encounter a few months ago led to an opportunity to do just that.
“I was at the Employment Security Commission and started a conversation with a guy who happened to be a member of the 178th Engineering Battalion which was deployed to Afghanistan,” Murphy said. “When he told me they were shipping out, I immediately told him to let us know if there was anything we could do for them while they were over there.”
In the course of exchanging emails, Murphy said the soldier sent him a list of some items that the battalion was really in need of, and Murphy said CVC wasted no time in putting some boxes together.
“The thing about sending stuff to our troops overseas is that you have to move quickly,” he said. “You can’t wait until you have a tremendous amount of money or things to send. You do what you can as quickly as you can; otherwise, by the time you send it, they’re on their way home.”
By using the organization’s Facebook page, Murphy said they were able to gather enough resources to put together 19 boxes to send to the unit, called “Pieces of Home”, which included the asked-for items such as athletic socks, Robitussin, Snickers bars, Q-tips and ramen noodles. Volunteers put the boxes together at the Buford Fire Department on Sept. 15 and were mailed out to the unit on Wednesday.
“Providing services for our veterans and active duty military personnel is one of the most important things we can do, and it should be a top priority,” he said. “Being a disabled veteran, I know what they are feeling and thinking, and I want to make every resource available to them that I possibly can. I want them to know that it’s okay to ask for help. There was a time I wouldn’t ask for help, but now, I’m not too embarrassed or proud to do it. We are interested in helping our own to eradicate some of the negatives that are associated with military men and women who serve our country with honor and dignity only to come home and find themselves caught up in veteran related crimes, homelessness and substance abuse.”
“We aren’t pointing a finger at anyone or at any one thing,” said CVC secretary Willie Fuller. “We just believe that veterans helping veterans will give us a window view that sometimes gets lost in bureaucracies.”
“I’ve had my share of bureaucracies that Willie speaks of, and I would not want anyone to have to go through what my family and I went through,” Murphy added.
For more information, please find Carolina Veterans Commission on Facebook or call Murphy at (877) 474-2552.
To volunteer or refer a veteran, please call Murphy, secretary Willie Fuller at (803) 608-0416, parliamentarian Randolph Brooks, Jr. at (803) 420-2458 or member Cedric Thompson at (803) 415-9448. To make a tax-exempt donation contact treasurer Lynda Burke at (803) 287-5930. CVC may be reached by email at [email protected]. | <urn:uuid:67c64069-4573-4eed-a042-101f8f9c7acc> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.thelancasternews.com/content/pieces-home | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00040-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968789 | 1,196 | 1.734375 | 2 |
BERLIN - A so-called flame mail (critical or abusive email) is probably what ex-CIA director David Petraeus’ ex-mistress Paula Broadwell sent in a fit of anger (about exactly what remains unclear) to Jill Kelley, a socialite with ties to the MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa.
Of course saying Broadwell “sent” mail to Jill Kelley isn’t quite correct since we’re talking about electronic mail here. But what is true is that we often write and send emails in the heat of the moment instead of cooling down and thinking things through.
The missives – or at least this is what Kelley told General John Allen, with whom she exchanged an impressive volume of emails – were unwelcome and inappropriate. You could say that is the case with the vast majority of the 300 billion emails sent worldwide every day, except that these are mainly advertising, not private, messages. But they are no less pushy and annoying than the constant repetition of the word spam in the famous Monty Python sketch that ended up giving such messages their name.
If private emails represent a tiny fraction of all emails sent today, they originally weren’t meant to exist at all. Email was developed 50 years ago – in 1962 – so that universities doing research for the U.S. Department of Defense could exchange information. A U.S. research group came up with the Internet’s predecessor – the ARPANET, standing for Advanced Research Projects Agency (ARPA). The system made it possible to send small packets of information by phone. For research purposes only, of course.
However, the fact that Broadwell’s nasty message campaign came to light shortly before the medium’s 50th birthday has definite timeliness. It didn’t only open up the whole Petraeus/Broadwell affair and Kelly/Allen entanglement up to public view – it turned out to be a Pandora’s box about email, its uses, and security, and offers a marked contrast between what the medium was originally intended for and what it has become.
Staying serious and professional
The iconic @ sign didn’t come along until 1972, when ARPANET programmer Ray Tomlinson implemented an email system. Such were things at the time that when a group of science fiction-loving researchers created a group they dubbed "SF LOVERS" to exchange information, it was frowned on by ARPA as lacking the requisite seriousness and professional nature.
But there was ultimately no way of stopping the burgeoning force of email, even if for a long time it stayed among academics. The first email to Germany was sent in 1984 on August 2, arriving on August 3, from CSNET to the University of Karlsruhe. It was addressed to Internet pioneer Michael Rotert (rotert@germany) and read: "Michael, this is your official welcome to CSNET."
Thirty years later, Petraeus’ hundreds of considerably wordier emails to Broadwell show that the medium has evolved among other things into a universal tool initiating, carrying on, and ending relationships. Even for CIA directors – begging the question as to where high-ranking men with a lot of responsibility find the time for all this, not to mention their blatant ignorance about just how traceable all emails are.
Unfortunately, none of Petraeus’ words have made their way (yet) into the public arena. Nor have any of the 10 million words Allen and Kelley exchanged over a two-year period. Although the Kelly/Allen relationship was supposedly platonic, and the tone of the mails just friendly, the sheer volume of things they had to say to each does suggest some sort of erotic twist.
A final note: The expression flame mail – like nastygram – meaning “ugly messages,” never really caught on. Today any net attack is likely to be referred to as a shitstorm: The expression was originally used to describe exchanges among officials in the Kremlin and the White House – non-private ones, needless to say, and in an on-going Cold War, anything but hot. | <urn:uuid:95497b46-963b-448d-a5ae-399a197cc535> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://worldcrunch.com/tech-science/email-turns-50-comes-full-circle-from-pentagon-origins-to-petraeus/flamemail-jill-kelley-paula-broadwell/c4s10238/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00025-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.957169 | 845 | 1.8125 | 2 |
Excerpts from an article in the fine City Journal (http://www.city-journal.org/
The Professional Panhandling Plagueby Steven Malangahttp://www.city-journal.org/2008/18_3_panhandling.html
...Over the last several years, the urban resurgence has proved an irresistible draw to a new generation of spangers. And while New York City’s aggressive emphasis on quality-of-life policing under two successive mayors has kept them at bay, less vigilant cities have been overwhelmed. Indeed, panhandling is epidemic in many places—from cities like San Francisco, Seattle, Austin, Memphis, Orlando, and Albuquerque to smaller college towns like Berkeley. “People in New York would be shocked at what one encounters in other cities these days, where the panhandling can be very intimidating,” says Daniel Biederman, a cofounder of three business improvement districts in Manhattan, including the Grand Central Partnership, which grappled effectively with homelessness in the city’s historic train station in the early 1990s. “Panhandling has gotten especially bad in cities that have a reputation for being liberal and tolerant. They have tried to be open-minded, but now many of them see the problem as out of control."
...In Orlando, panhandlers have started entering downtown offices and asking receptionists for money, prompting businesses to lock the doors. San Francisco police have identified 39 beggars who have received five or more citations for aggressive panhandling, racking up a total of 447 citations. Tourist guidebooks and online sites are replete with warnings from travelers. A business visitor to Nashville, sharing his experiences on Fodor.com, writes: “Every day I was there I was not just approached but grabbed or touched by folks asking for money.” A traveler to San Francisco, describing his trip on Virtualtourist.com, warns prospective tourists about the pervasiveness of persistent beggars: “If you come to San Francisco and are not hit up for change, you have spent too much time in your hotel room.”
...Yet even as cities experiment with new approaches, those traditionally opposed to restrictions on panhandling are fighting back—notably, civil liberties groups and some homeless advocates, who oppose any actions that might criminalize conduct by even a minority of the homeless. In 2003, San Francisco residents overwhelmingly passed a ballot proposition authored by then-supervisor (and now mayor) Gavin Newsom outlawing in-your-face panhandling. But the ordinance has been ineffective because scores of volunteer lawyers, many from the city’s biggest law firms, have fought every citation. People cited for panhandling don’t even need to appear in court. They simply drop their citations in boxes at various advocacy groups, and the lawyers pick them up and appear in court, where judges have ruled that cops must file lengthy reports in order to get a conviction. The courts are dismissing about 85 percent of all tickets handed out under the ordinance, frustrating police, prosecutors, politicians, and residents who voted for it. “If you had been here several years ago, before the ordinance passed, and came back today, you wouldn’t see a difference in the level of panhandling. There’s as much as ever,” says supervisor Sean Elsbernd. | <urn:uuid:ba8fe863-234b-46be-8c15-2d05ca4e6a4c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://district5diary.blogspot.com/2008_08_29_archive.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00022-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959754 | 697 | 1.734375 | 2 |
Features » December 6, 2004
Cutting Our Benefits
Bush begins second term by attacking Social Security
November 2 was just the beginning of the bad news. Two days after the election, before most of us had even recovered, President Bush told the country that he would use his “political capital” to privatize Social Security.
This declaration of war was smart strategy. Social Security is by far the country’s most important and successful social program. Over the last seven decades it has provided a decent retirement to tens of millions of workers and their spouses. It also provides disability and survivor insurance to almost the entire working population—nearly 2 million children are currently receiving survivors’ benefits. For these reasons, Social Security enjoys enormous public support, regularly getting approval ratings of close to 90 percent in public opinion surveys.
If Bush is going to privatize Social Security, he must move hard and fast—as he has. And if we are going to save it, progressive forces will have to mobilize quickly.
Fact vs. fear
The key to stopping this drive for privatization will be to educate the public about the basic facts on Social Security. For two decades, the right has been working overtime to undermine confidence in the program. Groups like the Concord Coalition have been telling the country that Social Security is a Ponzi scheme that will inevitably collapse once the baby boomers retire.
The fearmongers have been largely successful. Many workers, especially those under 40, are convinced that Social Security will be bankrupt before they see a dime in benefits. For these people, the promise of a private account sounds pretty good, since they don’t believe they will ever get anything from Social Security anyhow.
Progressives must use every means available to tell people that they have been lied to about Social Security. The program is unambiguously healthy. The Social Security trustees’ report (available on the Social Security Administration’s Web site) shows that the program can pay every penny of benefits through the year 2042, with no changes whatsoever.
Even after 2042, the trustees’ projections show that while the program won’t have enough to pay currently scheduled benefits—which are approximately 40 percent higher than current benefits—it will still have enough money to pay benefits higher than those that current retirees receive, even when indexed for inflation. The changes necessary to allow full scheduled benefits to be paid throughout Social Security’s 75-year planning period are smaller than the changes to Social Security—increased Social Security taxes and benefit cuts—that were made in each of the decades from the ’50s through the ’80s.
Last June, the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office (CBO) made an independent assessment of Social Security’s finances and concluded that the program could pay all benefits even longer—until 2052—with no changes whatsoever. According to the CBO, the changes needed to keep the program fully funded through its 75-year planning period are less than half as large as the Social Security tax increases put in place in the ’80s.
Just to be clear, neither of these projections is based on a rosy scenario about the future. In fact, the Social Security trustees assume that over the next 75 years the economy will experience the slowest pace of productivity growth in its history—there’s no “new economy” in this story.
In short, the claims that Social Security is in imminent danger of bankruptcy are just like the claims about Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction—politically motivated lies.
One such claim that gets frequently repeated is that the Social Security trust fund has been “raided,” “spent,” or is just worthless pieces of paper. In fact, the Social Security trust fund holds almost $2 trillion of government bonds. Under the law, the government must repay these bonds to Social Security from general revenue—this means it will be repaid primarily from progressive personal and corporate income taxes, because workers have already paid for their Social Security benefits. In other words, the government is obligated to tax wealthy people like Donald Trump and Peter Peterson (the founder of the Concord Coalition) to pay for the Social Security benefits that the rest of us have already earned.
The Social Security system lent money to the government to buy these bonds. (This is by design—the trust fund was built up to help pay for the retirement of the baby boomers.) The fact that the government spent the money is meaningless—just as it is meaningless if the government spends the money it borrows by issuing any other bond. The government is still legally obligated to repay the bond. In short, the people who say “there is no trust fund” are misleading the public. There is a trust fund with $2 trillion (growing at the rate of $200 billion a year) unless we let Congress eliminate it.
Privatized pipe dreams
Are private accounts a remedy?
The Bush privatization plan proposes to couple newly created private accounts with large cuts in current basic Social Security benefits. Under this scheme each retiree will get benefits from both these sources.
First, it is important to realize that the privatizers are making implausible claims about the potential returns available from investing in the stock market. Remember, these are exactly the same people who at the peak of the Internet bubble in 2000 promised that workers would get great returns from investing their Social Security money in the stock market.
No privatizer has yet been able to document in numbers how the privatizers will get their projected stock returns (showing annual dividend payouts and capital gains). When it comes to simple arithmetic, involving trillions of dollars of workers’ Social Security money, the privatizers flunk the test.
While private accounts won’t do much to increase returns, they will certainly increase risk and add hugely to administrative costs. A worker who happens to retire during a market slump will see much of their benefit disappear. In countries that already have private accounts, like England and Chile, the administrative fees are between 15 and 20 percent of annual benefits. By comparison, the administrative costs of Social Security are less than 0.6 percent of annual benefits. In addition, retirees who want to buy an annuity (an inflation-protected life-long annual payout, like that provided by Social Security) will typically have to pay a fee of at least 10 percent of their private account to convert their account to an annuity.
The bottom line is that under Bush’s proposal, workers can expect to see considerably reduced benefits, since private accounts will not come close to making up for the accompanying benefit cuts. Under the plan that would provide the basis for Bush’s privatization scheme, an average 15-year-old today who retires in 2055 will lose more than 35 percent ($160,000) of his currently scheduled benefit over the course of his retirement. He stands to gain back less than one-third of this $160,000 loss from a private account.
Social Security privatization does not look good for most workers because they can expect large benefit cuts, but it is likely to be especially bad for those in lower-income brackets. While Bush’s privatization plan actually provides modest benefit increases for low-end workers, it also puts in place a structure that will force the middle class to depend less on the traditionally defined Social Security benefits and more on private retirement accounts.
Bush’s plan gradually reduces the size of the traditional benefit received by middle-class workers, while increasing the size of private accounts until finally the defined Social Security benefit will become almost irrelevant to anyone but the poor. Under the Bush plan, a child born today who earns an average wage during his working lifetime would get a defined benefit equal to just 10 percent of his wage when he retires. As the middle class depends less and less on Social Security, the benefits pledged to the poor would enjoy about as much political support as welfare does today. Now that would really be a “Mission Accomplished”!
The privatization of Social Security can be stopped. Bush may no longer have to worry about reelection, but members of Congress do. There can be no more important battle. If Bush is stopped on Social Security, then his political capital will have been spent, and he will be the lamest of lame ducks. On the other hand, if he wins … well, that’s not going to happen.
ABOUT THIS AUTHOR
Dean Baker is co-director of the Center for Economic and Policy Research and co-author of Social Security: The Phony Crisis (University of Chicago Press, 2000). | <urn:uuid:3e2f4e4d-74fd-4469-85f9-3ace5fd0d870> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://inthesetimes.com/article/1738/cutting_our_benefits/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00033-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966177 | 1,761 | 1.6875 | 2 |
Lionel is selling its first-ever subway train set, modeled after the New York MTA’s R-27 subway cars that were in service up until the early 1990s. These are the same cars that were re-painted red in the ’70s and ’80s in an effort to discourage graffiti, earned them the nickname “Redbirds”. (Other cars were painted the “Deep Gunn” red, too.)
According to Wikipedia, the R27s were “‘Protestant’ married pairs, which means that they were coupled together as pairs.” The Lionel replicas are Protestant pairs, as well.
The “O” scale cars are finished in a kale green enamel, have real working opening doors and also speak out the subway stops recorded from the subway itself. The four-car (two pairs) set can be had for around $600.
Image: Chang W. Lee/NYTimes | <urn:uuid:d393d591-04b8-4096-8649-7ff61d2d275f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://gadgets.boingboing.net/2008/11/24/lionel-nyc-mta-subwa.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00030-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.989039 | 202 | 1.796875 | 2 |
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East Side Story: Many original homeowners have had to leave East Austin, but government officials and nonprofits are working on ways to help people stay. YNN’s Jess Mitchell shares more in part five of our series “East Side Story.”
07/20/2012 12:22 PM
East Side Story: It's called "gentrification,” and as YNN's Jess Mitchell found out, it's at the center of big changes in East Austin. Our “East Side Story” series continues with a look at how neighbors have labeled -- or chosen not to label -- change.
07/19/2012 11:24 AM
Getaway: Not far away: Thousands of animals live at Cameron Park Zoo. It’s a large facility for a city the size of Waco. The zoo has more than 2,000 animals that live on 56 acres. YNN's Bonnie Gonzalez shares more.
Getaway: Not Far Away At Longhorn Caverns State Park in Burnet, you can embark on a spelunking adventure the whole family is sure to enjoy.
Getaway: Not far away: You can experience a wild African safari without leaving Texas. Topsey Exotic Ranch & Drive Thru Safari near Copperas Cove is home to more than 50 species of animals that you can see from your own car.
Before it was home to the largest inpatient medical center in the defense department, Fort Sam Houston was also home to the first ever military flight. In part two of our series “Healing Heroes,” learn how one of the oldest Army installations came to play such a large role in military medicine.
Family can provide service members something even the latest technology and medicine can't offer--emotional support. In our series “Healing Heroes,” YNN's Chie Saito tells us about a special place at Fort Sam Houston.
Before any lifesaving tools end up in the hands of troops deployed overseas, they're reviewed and tested at the U.S. Army Institute of Surgical Research which is based at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio. As we continue our series “Healing Heroes,” YNN’s Chie Saito shows us what researchers are working on to prevent more deaths on the battlefields of tomorrow.
The burn center at Fort Sam Houston is the only one of its kind for the U.S. Department of Defense. However, as the war begins to wind down in Afghanistan, fewer wounded warriors are coming through their doors. In part four of YNN’s "Healing Heroes" series, Chie Saito tells us about the burn center's changing mission.
YNN’s Ed Keiner takes you to a local auto shop that’s doing its part to operate environmentally friendly.
From being an account executive at UPS to running a hot rod shop, Marty Feher has turned his passion for cars into a second career. He gives YNN's Ed Keiner a tour of his shop in this "Automotively Austin."
YNN’s Ed Keiner takes a deeper look into the latest in the auto industry during our week-long series, “Automotively Austin.”
The Austin Auto Show kicks off Friday and it may have you gearing up for a new ride. Our Automotively Austin series ends with a breakdown of leasing versus buying.
A military judge has decided Maj. Nidal Hasan will face trial at Fort Hood on July 1, denying a motion by the defense for a change in venue.
Updated 03/20/2013 01:25 PM
Military Judge Col. Gregory Gross has ordered the accused Fort Hood shooter to be either clean shaven, or forcibly shaved, for future court appearances. Maj. Nidal Hasan has refused to shave for months, in violation of Army grooming standards. The defense now has a chance to file an appeal with the Army Court of Criminal Appeals.
Updated 09/06/2012 03:17 PM
The soldier accused of opening fire on a Texas Army post appeared in court for the first time since an appeals court lifted its stay of the case.
Updated 08/30/2012 04:03 PM
The next pretrial hearing for Hasan has been set for 10 a.m. Thursday. Military Judge Colonel Gregory Gross will consider defense motions challenging the government's intent to introduce evidence about motive and premeditation.
08/29/2012 12:07 PM
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PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AP) -- It may not attract the attention of the "fiscal cliff," but cities across the U.S. are facing a precipice of their own caused by failures to properly fund decades of retirement promises to public workers.
Collectively, American cities face nearly $600 billion in unfunded pension obligations. Longer-living retirees and rising health care costs have driven retirement costs higher, even as cities lost billions in pension fund investments during the economic downturn.
In Philadelphia, pension costs went from $200 million a year to more than $500 million in a single decade. Cities in Rhode Island dimmed streetlights, raised taxes and put off road repairs.
Attempts to unilaterally cut pensions often result in court battles with unions and retirees, but in Providence, Mayor Angel Taveras has shown it's possible to negotiate concessions with unions to avert fiscal collapse. | <urn:uuid:7b58041a-9430-484d-9c6c-4d3e6baf7214> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.auroraadvocate.com/ap%20financial/2013/01/02/cities-chart-course-through-pension-morass | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963529 | 184 | 1.78125 | 2 |
The First Rule of Holes
At some point someone made a promise. Now the team is in a bad position and struggling hard to meet the deadlines of the original plan.
I’ve been in that position more than once, and as a Scrum Master I have used the same strategy:
- Working with the customer to lower expectations and make the plan more aligned with reality.
- Find more time for the team to do its work.
The second part would make me cancel everything not immediately helping the team accomplishing its short-term goals. The retrospective meetings were always the first thing that went out the window, and I felt like I was helping the team by doing it.
That was before the first rule of holes was brought to my attention (by Henrik Kniberg).
The first rule of holes: When you’re in one stop digging.
That wonderful quote by Molly Ivins really got me thinking. To bring a derailed train back on track, the solution is not to make the engines run faster. Instead we need to make a careful evaluation of the situation, and find solutions that will help us achieve the end goal of getting the passengers and cargo reach its destination on time.
In software development terms, when the going gets tough, we need our retrospectives the most.
Another way I’ve violated the first rule of holes is the thing I wrote about in my previous post. Although I know that automated tests is one of the best ways to increase productivity, I came up with all sorts of excuses why “it wasn’t for us”. So, I’ve let my teams dig deeper holes and making a bad situation worse.
Yet another common violation is the building up of technical debt. We’re so busy digging for new features that we forget that we have to be able to ascend from the pit. We need to stop digging and clean the small messes before they become drainers of effort.
What holes have you created or ended up in? What did you do about it? I’d love to hear your stories. | <urn:uuid:d1012215-803d-41cf-97a1-693b8a15f7f6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.hans-eric.com/2011/01/26/the-first-rule-of-holes/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706890813/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516122130-00038-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962381 | 433 | 1.664063 | 2 |
While newspaper advertising has taken a beating over the last few years, there are still some decent results being seen by contractors who pick their spots and market themselves locally. Sure, a full-page ad in the New York Times has gone from 80k to 50k, but I still don’t think most of you reading this are dropping that kind of coin into the advertising fountain, and if you are, I sure hope you are getting the return you need to make that viable!
The only way to be successful advertising in the newspaper-repetition!
The golden rule of newspaper advertising – Repetition! If it takes the average consumer 7-15 exposures to and ad before they remember it, then you need to have a newspaper campaign running everyday for AT LEAST a month before you can really gain any meaningful results. You are certainly not going to do that in the New York Times.
It’s all coming back to local marketing
One hundred years ago everyone did business locally; with their neighbors and the other people in their community. Fruit stand guys sold to carpenters who did work for shop owners and so on. The world outside your door was all you needed. Then big business told us that the only way to compete was to think globally, and huge conglomerates like Dial and ITT ruled the world. And then the internet was born which truly stripping away the barriers to commerce and trade. But you know what? Small is the new big. Local is the new global and many businesses realize that working around the corner is just as good if not better than working around the world.
But contractors always knew that
Face it, most contractors work within a 15 mile radius of their homes or shops. And that means you need to market your company locally, in your local newspapers. If you take a look around, there are far more newspapers in your area than you might think. In my area, there are 10 papers or circulars to advertise in, and many are very reasonably priced. As I have said before, it doesn’t matter how much any advertising costs, it has to provide a return on the investment, which is why you need to make sure you are putting the best ads forward regardless of the cost.
Contractor tips for local newspaper ads
- Use coupons giving a dollar amount off, not a percentage. People hate doing the math!
- Don’t let the newspaper people have total control of your ad design. You may not be an artist, but you KNOW how you want your company portrayed to the market.
- Make sure you have 1st class graphics since this will be the only visual distinction you can provide the reader about your business.
- Buy the biggest ad you can afford, full-page being the best. It may be expensive, but it will pull the best by far.
- Go with color if you can afford it. Given a choice, consumers pick color ads over black 82% of the time.
- Ask the paper if they have specific days that more of your type of buyer reads their paper. For example, guys usually read the sports sections on and women usually check out the entertainment sections on Fridays.
- If you have a hit ad on your hands, make it into a circular or door-hanger to extend the life of the offer.
- Don’t change your ad because you are getting tired of looking at. I can’t tell you how many times a contractor has asked me to change an ad simply because they were tired of looking at.
And finally, before you advertise in any paper make sure you get a media kit from the publisher. It will be chock full of demographic information as well as their reach and distribution, information you need to know BEFORE you spend your hard-earned dollars! Tomorrow I am going to give you some tips on successful newspaper advertising for contractors so make sure you stay tuned! | <urn:uuid:59acc767-5b60-4889-ac46-0a07a33c2fc7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://darrenslaughter.com/contractor-tips-for-successful-newspaper-advertising-part-1/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00037-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.972978 | 798 | 1.71875 | 2 |
A THOUSAND SPLENDID SUNS tells the wonderful, intensely moving story of how two modern Afghan women overcome the great challenges that have faced women in Afghanistan and rise above their victimization. Khaled Hosseini has succeeded in capturing many important historical and contemporary themes in a way that will make your heart ache again and again. Why will your reaction be so strong? It's because you'll identify closely with the suffering of almost all the characters, a reaction that's very rare to a modern novel.
In Part One, you meet Miriam at age five as she learns that she is a harami (an illegitimate child). Miriam's wealthy father, Jalil, had seduced a housekeeper, Miriam's mother, Nana, six years earlier and now provides for both of them in a remote shack where he can keep a low profile. Despite his concern about his reputation, Jalil adores the attention that Miriam devotes to him. All proceeds in an artificial and harsh way until one day Miriam decides to demand her father's attention. The consequences shape her world for the rest of her life.
In Part Two, the story moves to focus on Laila, who was born to Miriam's acquaintance, Fariba, at the end of Part One. Laila's rearing is almost totally the opposite of Miriam's. Laila is loved by both her parents with whom she lives and has many chances to develop her knowledge and skills. Laila lives in Kabul while Miriam grew up in the countryside outside of Herat. Laila is beautiful while Miriam is plainer. They also grow up in different times: Miriam is old enough to be Laila's mother. Miriam never had a male friend while growing up, while Laila is fascinated by the one-legged Tariq. All is going well for Laila until the war intrudes to send her life off into an unexpected direction.
In Part Three, the two women begin to share a destiny and develop a relationship. Their lives are more fundamentally changed by this relationship than by anything else that has happened to them. The magic of the story is most evident in Part Three.
In Part Four, we come into the present, when Afghanistan is once again opening itself to possibilities.
The time span of the book is from 1964 to the present. In the background, you are kept up-to-date on political events that shake the entire country. In some cases, those political events turn into revolutions and wars. In many cases, the violence intrudes into the lives of the book's characters. It's like reading War and Peace as adapted to modern Afghanistan.
The book also deals with issues of class, religion, sexual roles, child rearing, work, education, and community. These issues are highlighted in terms of the different regimes and attitudes of the controlling male characters. For Afghanistan was a world where the men called the shots, unless they chose not to do so.
Although the issues that are raised and the way that they are raised are pretty predictable, it's a tribute to Mr. Hosseini that you won't see them coming. He moves his characters and action around in such a way that you won't see much foreshadowing of what's to come. Part of that skill comes in making each page so interesting and engaging that you are pulled away from thoughts like "I wonder where he's going next with this plot." I found myself deeply inside the story throughout. That's rare for me, especially in a story that focuses on female characters.
It's early in the year, but I wouldn't be surprised if A THOUSAND SPLENDID SUNS turns out to have been one of the very top novels of 2007.
I highly recommend this book and encourage you to discuss it with your friends. This novel would be a great choice for your book club. | <urn:uuid:e996e058-5e7a-4da5-a65f-8c11ae0acb51> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.amazon.ca/Thousand-Splendid-Suns-Khaled-Hosseini/dp/0670064912 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.977688 | 794 | 1.734375 | 2 |
Earlier this week we launched the Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food Compass, a digital narrative with stories, pictures and video about USDA’s support for local and regional food systems, and interactive map with datasets displaying the various ways and places where the initiative has made an impact.
We didn’t want to limit the launch to those within the Beltway, so we opted for a virtual launch via live web-stream and took questions through Twitter. The response was overwhelming. It was great to see so many individuals from across the nation share our content, ask questions and make comments on the Compass and KYF effort.
To keep the conversation going, we’ll come together again this Monday, March 5 at 2:30 pm ET to have a broader virtual conversation about the KYF initiative and Compass. Deputy Secretary Kathleen Merrigan will lead the conversation with partners and others interested in local and regional foods, and we’ll also watch tweets with #KYF2 and answer questions from virtual participants. The virtual conversation will be streamed live at www.whitehouse.gov/live.
In addition to some of the questions we weren’t able to answer on our launch webinar, we want to talk about the impact you’re seeing with local foods in your community today, and how the Compass can inspire and inform your work and community tomorrow.
As you explore the Compass and use the Know Your Farmer, Know Your Food map – go ahead and post your questions or observations to Twitter with hashtag #KYF2, or on our blog. | <urn:uuid:f476acf1-c540-4eb7-b16c-b71666c3e124> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blogs.usda.gov/2012/03/02/interested-in-local-and-regional-food-systems-jump-into-the-twitter-conversation-using-kyf2/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00023-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.932813 | 318 | 1.671875 | 2 |
Judge Dan Mancini is trying to catch his breath.
"I'm not sure if I'm unhappy because I'm not free, or if I'm not free because I'm unhappy."—Patricia Franchini
Throughout the 1950s, a group of young Frenchmen with a passion for cinema (especially American cinema) began to change movie history with their insightful film criticism, published primarily in the journal Cahiers du cinéma. They were on a mission to destroy the perception that movies were throwaway entertainment; movies were art—or so these critics claimed. Their writing resulted in, among other things, the creation of the auteur theory that elevated the reputations of popular Hollywood directors like Alfred Hitchcock, John Ford, and Howard Hawks, and the coinage of the term "film noir" to describe postwar Hollywood B crime pictures that contained more intellectual and artistic substance than initially met the eye. By the end of the '50s, these critics were no longer content writing about cinema. They wanted to make cinema. They set a new goal for themselves: The creation of a cinematic voice unique to France, one that appreciated the enormous impact of American pictures but didn't merely rip off their style. One of the most influential international film movements was born.
The French New Wave hit the scene with the force of a hurricane, due in large part to the release of two films: François Truffaut's The 400 Blows in 1959 and Jean-Luc Godard's Breathless (based on a scenario written by Truffaut) in 1960. Breathless, in particular, self-consciously challenged the language of cinema, while also making a case for the artfulness and intelligence of Hollywood genre pieces, and establishing a hipster chic style of European film in the 1960s.
Facts of the Case
After gunning down a police officer in the French countryside, Humphrey Bogart-obsessed petty crook Michel Poiccard (Jean-Paul Belmondo, A Woman is a Woman) absconds to Paris. There he meets up with Patricia Franchini (Jean Seberg, Bonjour Tristesse), an American journalism student and aspiring novelist with whom he had a brief fling. The two hole up in Patricia's apartment where they engage in existential conversations and lovemaking. Their future as a couple is uncertain. When Patricia realizes that Michel is not the man he claims to be, she takes decisive action.
Any plot description of Breathless makes it sound like a pastiche. It is not. The movie is one part loving homage to American crime dramas and one part critical examination and deconstruction of the methodology of filmmaking. Based as it is on a scenario written by Truffaut, Breathless is one of Godard's most straight-forward features from a narrative standpoint. The emotional stakes in Michel and Patricia's relationship feel very real—surprisingly so, given Godard's later, more intellectually abstract work. Though he acts like a cad, we feel sympathy for Michel because what we see appears to be an invention of his own imagination, based on the tough guys he's seen in American crime movies. Little that he tells us about himself is reliably true, other than that he is a small-time crook and that he did murder a police officer. He plays the sexually liberated rugged individualist, but there's a naiveté in his interactions with Patricia that suggests it's mostly an act. When he tells Patrician that he slept with two women (who did not meet his standards) since the last time he saw her, it may be true or it may not. Either way, there's an underlying insecurity in his bragging, just as there is earlier in the movie when he (too) casually claims he wouldn't mind working as a gigolo. Michel is a poseur, a kid who plays at being the sort of world-weary man Humphrey Bogart made a career of playing, but who has little real experience in the world. We learn quickly enough, however, that there's nothing illusory about Patricia's embrace of free love. Her sexual options are plentiful. In one scene, she attends a press conference and is hit on by a world-renowned novelist (played by Jean-Pierre Mellville—director of Bob le Flambeur and Le Cercle Rouge—whose embrace of American genre forms was a major inspiration for the French New Wave). If Michel pretends to be worldly, then Patricia actually is worldly—at least by comparison to Michel. She's from New York (a city Michel considers far more cosmopolitan than Paris), and is a student of journalism educated in literature (Michel, who only knows cinema, is so ignorant of books that he's never heard of William Faulkner). In genre terms, Patricia's greater sophistication relative to Michel makes her a femme fatale by default if not by intent. But unlike the dames in classic films noir, it's not Patricia's malice or remorseless sense of self-preservation that prove to be Michel's undoing; it is her casual amorality. In the end, Michel falls prey to the very American style of amoral individualism that he so romanticizes throughout the rest of the picture.
Despite the movie's crime storyline and use of light suspense, Godard's artistic sensibilities and tendency towards postmodern tomfoolery are on full display in Breathless (though not as developed as in his later work). From a technical perspective, the film is renowned for the director's aggressive and playful (and sometimes downright intrusive) use of jump cuts. In some scenes, a single stretch of dialogue by a single character stretches across a half dozen jump cuts. The audio delivers a flowing continuity that contrasts sharply with the jarring quality of the visuals. It's a conceit that Godard uses to remind viewers that they are watching a movie, a contrivance that relies on a defined vernacular of editorial tricks. Godard has made a career of such reminders. In one particularly self-conscious sequence, Michel and Patricia drive through Paris in a stolen car. As Michel delivers a long soliloquy meant to seduce Patricia, the camera is trained exclusively on her, shooting her in three-quarter profile from the back seat so that we mostly see her graceful neck, the back of her head, and the Parisian cityscape whizzing by. The sequence is punctuated by a series of rhythmic jump cuts that emphasizes the technique's conventional use in demonstrating the passage of time by blatantly violating that convention: Though the city streets repeatedly change in the shot's background, Michel's speech flows uninterrupted. The disconnect between what we see and what we hear reminds us of the artifice of cinema. Whatever our emotional attachment to Michel and Patricia, they are not real and neither are their problems. This competition between the movie's crime plot and its deconstructive tendencies might have resulted in an incoherent mess, but Godard's intelligence and youthful energy resulted in a movie that is both a heartfelt entertainment and an insightful examination of cinema as a narrative medium. Breathless' groundbreaking style was imitated by moviemakers all over the world throughout the 1960s, but none of the imitations had the same potent mix of style of substance. Godard would go on to make better films than Breathless, but none as important.
Throughout the early years of DVD, North American fans of Breathless had to content themselves with a Fox Lorber DVD release of the movie that offered up a mediocre (at best) transfer of the film. The Criterion Collection rectified that situation with a fine two-disc Special Edition DVD released in the autumn of 2007. That DVD release is the basis for this Blu-ray. The 1080p/AVC transfer is sourced from the same high definition master used for the DVD. Breathless cinematographer Raoul Coutard approved the master, which, according to Criterion's liner notes, was sourced from a 35mm fine-grain master positive and treated to a full digital restoration. The image displays subtle contrast, excellent detail, and a fine patina of grain unmarred by digital noise reduction or other processing techniques. A few isolated scenes show weakness in the source in the form of muddy contrast, but overall Breathless looks excellent in high definition—certainly the best it has ever looked in a home video format (and likely better and more consistent that it has even appeared in theatrical exhibitions).
There is but one audio option: a Linear PCM two-channel mono presentation of the movie's original analog audio track, in French. The track is flat with cramped dynamic range, but is also clean and free of hiss. It sounds about as good as a French New Wave movie from 1960 can.
The set's dual-layered Blu-ray disc contains all of the supplements from the previously released two-DVD release, all of which have been treated to a high definition upgrade:
Coutard and Rissient
Pennebaker on Breathless
Breathless as Criticism
Chambre 12, Hôtel de Suède
Charlotte et son Jules
The disc also contains a French trailer for Breathless.
Finally, a hefty 80-page insert booklet contains a lengthy and informative essay by film scholar Dudley Andrew, a collection of Jean-Luc Godard interview excerpts, a translation of François Truffaut's film treatment which Godard presented to producer Georges de Beauregard and which eventually became Breathless, Godard's expansion of Truffaut's treatment, detailed notes about the audio and video transfer, and information about the feature's cast and crew.
What do you expect me to say? It's Breathless, one of the most significant motion pictures ever made. If this Blu-ray doesn't qualify as a must-own for every cinephile with high definition gear, nothing does.
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What's "fair"? Whether positive or negative, our reviews should be unbiased, informative, and critique the material on its own merits.
Scales of Justice
Review content copyright © 2010 Dan Mancini; Site design and review layout copyright © 2013 Verdict Partners LLC. All rights reserved. | <urn:uuid:c8994018-8f57-46ab-a59d-3f4703956022> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.dvdverdict.com/reviews/breathlessbluray.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00039-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.947766 | 2,088 | 1.679688 | 2 |
Say an Obama State of the Union address is expected to question American trade relationships. Imagine, then, David Cameron placing a stern call to the president beforehand, insisting the UK "values a strong US in a strong Nafta". This on the heels of a British minister having asserted paternalistically that America must remain in Nafta and must prevent American voters from having a choice in the matter if only because this policy course is "in the British interest".
Now, there's no point being naive about asymmetrical power dynamics, so the prospect of any UK politician bullying an American president to pursue a particular domestic agenda solely in concern for "the British interest" is clearly farcical. Nevertheless, the Obama administration's pouring cold water on Cameron's plans for an In/Out referendum on UK membership of the EU bespeaks an old-style imperialism unbefitting a modern Democratic president. UK to US: butt out.
On Joe Biden's London visit in February, the Vice President may have conveniently echoed Cameron's own desire for Britain to remain in the EU, but the voice of support comes at a cost. This unambiguously selfish concern for "a strong UK in a strong EU" implies that America primarily values the UK as an obedient proxy in the larger, more important body of the EU — thus evoking all those tired, unfortunate metaphors about yappy breeds of dog.
Yet what's most striking about that Nafta analogy is its staggering inadequacy. In fact, it's a terrible analogy, though I challenge you to find another one that works. The US is not a member of any alliance remotely equivalent to the EU, making it pretty rich for Washington to compel Britons to remain under its heel. The US dominates Nato, and has often regarded WTO obligations as mere suggestions. America enjoys a veto in the UN Security Council, and has blithely opted out of the International Criminal Court. The US surrenders its sovereignty unconditionally to no higher power, and Americans would be outraged were the majority of their laws drafted in Mexico, Quebec, or Guatemala.
Yet among American liberals, about the EU one cannot utter a discouraging word. Right-on Yanks perceive the EU as a beacon of benevolence, an icon of peace, fairness, and equality. This laudable diet of the kind, the rational, and the wise presides over a utopia to which in fantasy left-wing Americans retire. Criticising the EU in these circles is like drawing horns on Nelson Mandela, or making lewd thrusting hand gestures at Aung San Suu Kyi. | <urn:uuid:3e5cdd9c-c2a1-4f5c-8904-b2d301a2a65f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.standpointmag.co.uk/march-13-on-the-contrary-uk-to-us-butt-out-lionel-shriver-eu-membership-joe-biden | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00020-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.935027 | 523 | 1.804688 | 2 |
North Korea threatened to take ‘stronger measures’ against its enemies than the nuclear test which it has recently announced. Meanwhile a North Korean propaganda videos has emerged showing a man dreaming of a devastating missile attack on the United States of America.
“The DPRK (Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea, or North Korea) has drawn a final conclusion that it will have to take a measure stronger than a nuclear test to cope with the hostile forces nuclear war moves that have become ever more undisguised,” said the state news agency KCNA.
Tensions have been running high since a recent UN resolution condemning N. Korea, which sparked an angry response from the secretive communist state which included promises of a third nuclear weapons test which it said was aimed at the US.
There has so far been no indication what the ‘stronger measure’ may be. The timing of the new nuclear test is also unknown, but a consensus seems to have emerged amongst experts that February 16, the anniversary of former leader Kim Jong-il’s birth, is the most likely date (or at least sometime close to then).
North Korean Propaganda Video Shows Dream of Missile Attacks on U.S.
North Korea is not currently thought to possess the necessary missile technology to launch a direct attack on the United States, however they are capable of launching attacks on South Korea, and Japan. | <urn:uuid:10cf1fc3-d9c3-45ea-831d-c34e44aeddb7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://worldnewscurator.com/2013/02/05/north-korea-dreams-of-missile-attack-on-usa/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00034-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967465 | 281 | 1.773438 | 2 |
2010 European Grand Prix
|Race 9 of 19 in the 2010 Formula One season|
The Valencia Street Circuit
|Date||June 27, 2010|
|Official name||LIV Grand Prix of Europe|
|Location||Valencia Street Circuit, Valencia, Spain|
|Course||Temporary street circuit
5.419 km (3.367 mi)
|Distance||57 laps, 308.883 km (191.931 mi)|
|Driver||Sebastian Vettel||Red Bull-Renault|
|Time||1:38.766 on lap 54|
|First||Sebastian Vettel||Red Bull-Renault|
The 2010 European Grand Prix (formally the LIV European Grand Prix) was a Formula One motor race held on the June 27, 2010 at the Valencia Street Circuit in Valencia, Spain. The race, contested over 57 laps, was the ninth round of the 2010 Formula One season. It was won by Sebastian Vettel of Red Bull Racing, who led every lap of the race after starting on pole position. The McLaren team-mates of Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button finished second and third respectively, to complete the podium. Button also set the fasest lap of the race.
As a consequence of the race, Hamilton extended his lead of the World Drivers' Championship to seven points over Button. This ensured the pair would enter the next, and their home race - the British Grand Prix - as first and second in the championship. Vettel's second race victory of the season moved him up to third in standings; he became six points behind Button after surpassing the totals of teammate Mark Webber and Fernando Alonso. By gaining the most points from the race, McLaren extended their lead in the World Constructors' Championship to thirty over Red Bull. Race winners Red Bull also extended the gap, as third placed Ferrari became fifty-three points behind in the standings.
Several of the leading teams introduced upgrades for the race, most notably Ferrari, who after a poor start to the season pinned their hopes of a resurgence on the Valencia upgrade. This package included a version of Red Bull's "blown diffuser" design, which involved channeling hot air from the exhaust through the diffuser. Mercedes and Renault had been less-public about their upgrades, both of which included blown diffusers, and in Mercedes' case, an F-duct. Red Bull also experimented with the system again, and were quick to downplay the effects of the blown diffuser concept. Reigning World Champion Jenson Button speculated that the teams would struggle with blown diffusers if they had been rushed into development in time for the race, and the hot exhaust air had the potential to cause overheating problems.
After running the device in Friday practice, Red Bull decided to use their interpretation of the F-duct for the rest of the weekend, the first race of the year where they did so.
The first free practice saw several line-up changes, with Paul di Resta fulfilling driving duties for Adrian Sutil at Force India as team-mate Vitantonio Liuzzi had never driven the Valencia circuit before, and Christian Klien taking Karun Chandhok's place at Hispania to provide set-up feedback.
The session was clean and incident-free, save for a minor stoppage early on after Bruno Senna lost a rear vision mirror and the debris was cleared away; the circuit was re-opened within five minutes. Nico Rosberg claimed the fastest time, ahead of the McLarens of Lewis Hamilton and Jenson Button to give Mercedes–engined cars the fastest three times of the session. Robert Kubica claimed fourth ahead of Felipe Massa, whilst Massa's Ferrari stablemate and local favourite Fernando Alonso could only manage ninth place behind Michael Schumacher, another newcomer to the circuit. Heikki Kovalainen was once again the fastest driver from the new teams as Lotus continued to close the gap to the established teams, with the Virgin of Timo Glock also standing out, a second slower than Kovalainen, but two and a half seconds faster than Senna.
The second session was interrupted when Massa stalled on the circuit in the first sector, bringing about another temporary halt to the proceedings. Alonso went on to set the fastest time of the session, edging out a constant challenge from the Red Bulls of Sebastian Vettel and Mark Webber, and by the end of the session, the top ten drivers were covered by less than a second. Sutil and Chandhok resumed driving duties, with Sutil breaking into the top ten; Chandhok, on the other hand, languished down in 24th place after mechanical problems had limited his car – at the time being driven by Klien – in the morning session. After claiming the first session's fastest time, Rosberg kept Mercedes in the top four as Schumacher failed to make the top ten, while Glock caused a minor disturbance when his Virgin stopped on the circuit.
The first session very nearly saw the early elimination of Michael Schumacher as the German driver wrestled with a suspected power steering problem. After several untidy laps, Schumacher needed to find a few tenths of a second that had so far eluded him in the session on his final lap. He narrowly succeeded as one of the last cars to cross the line, and relegating Kamui Kobayashi to the elimination zone. Kobayashi joined the familiar line-up of Lotus, Virgin and Hispania, with Jarno Trulli out-qualifying his team mate to be the best of the newcomers. Lucas di Grassi out-qualified team-mate Timo Glock for the first time in 2010, leaving Renault's Vitaly Petrov as the only man who had failed to out-qualify his own team-mate.
Schumacher was fighting a losing battle in the second round of qualifying, and was ultimately able to do no better than fifteenth, one of his worst qualifying performances since his debut. Precisely how much of this was down to the driver and how much was down to the car is open to debate, as team-mate Nico Rosberg also failed to make the grade, qualifying his Mercedes W01 in twelfth, no more than half a second faster than Schumacher. Toro Rosso's Sébastien Buemi blamed Williams driver Rubens Barrichello for impeding him on his final lap and thus denying him in a place in the final session, though the incident was not investigated by the stewards and the Swiss driver qualified eleventh ahead of Rosberg. Also eliminated were the two Force Indias of Adrian Sutil and Vitantonio Liuzzi in thirteenth and fourteenth respectively, with Pedro de la Rosa and Jaime Alguersuari qualifying between Schumacher and the new teams.
The elimination of Mercedes left the door open for other drivers, with Petrov and Nico Hülkenberg seizing the advantage and qualifying in Q3 for the second time in the season, and Hülkenberg's first time in the dry. Fernando Alonso was the early pace-setter, but a scruffy second lap – and a similarly crude follow-through by team-mate Massa – handed the advantage to anyone willing to take it. The Red Bulls showed their true pace in Q3, once again locking out the front row of the grid and denying Alonso pole in his second home race at the same time. Mark Webber took second after claiming provisional pole from Alonso early on, but Sebastian Vettel prevailed, claiming his first pole since Shanghai on a circuit he has never scored points on. Lewis Hamilton beat Fernando Alonso to third, whilst Felipe Massa qualified one place behind his team-mate in fifth. A late run from Robert Kubica was only good enough for sixth place despite setting a time similar to the first qualifying session, which would have been good enough for pole position if the grid were decided after Q1. Jenson Button had an anonymous Q3 to take seventh, while Hülkenberg and Barrichello claimed eighth and ninth place on the grid by setting identical – to the thousandth of a second – lap times. Petrov filled tenth place, the Russian driver just under a second off Vettel's time.
The race began with Hamilton beating Webber off the line and attempting a brave pass down the inside of Vettel at the first corner that result in contact. Hamilton's car was slightly damaged in the process, though he was able to continue racing. Further down in the field, Jarno Trulli tangled with one of the Virgins and damaged his front wing, whilst Nico Rosberg was forced wide at the fourth corner and strayed into the no-man's land of the run-off. The first lap was otherwise clean, with Vettel establishing a large lead.
Drama unfolded on the ninth lap when Mark Webber attempted to pass Heikki Kovalainen on the approach to turn thirteen. The Red Bull made contact with the back of the Lotus, resulting in Webber's car flipping. The Australian landed upside-down before bouncing back over and careering into the tyre wall in an accident similar to Josef Král's in the GP2 support race earlier in the day and Webber's incidents at the 1999 Le Mans 24 Hours, in which his Mercedes-Benz CLR twice became airborne. Webber emerged from the accident unscathed, whilst Kovalainen, who had spun off into the wall, drove slowly back to the pits where he retired with collision damage.
Webber's accident triggered a controversial moment in the race. The safety car was deployed onto the circuit as the leaders finished the lap, but too late to pick up first place Vettel. Hamilton, in second, also had the opportunity to beat the safety car before it joined the track. However Hamilton initially hesitated prior to committing to going by and the delay meant that the safety car had just crossed the official pit-exit line. The two Ferraris and the Renault of Kubica became the first cars to queue up behind the safety car, while the rest of the field had enough notice to divert to the pitlane for their first stop. The significance of these events was that both Vettel and Hamilton were able to make their first stops before their advantage over the rest of the field was cancelled out by catching the safety car, while Alonso, Massa and Kubica fell down the order. After Alonso/Ferrari complained, the 2008 World Champion was served with a drive-through penalty. However, it took the stewards twenty minutes to settle on a verdict, and when Hamilton served his penalty from second place, he suffered no change in position; Alonso complained to his garage that he felt it was unfair and Ferrari concurred as they felt they should have been racing Hamilton. In a related incident, nine drivers—Jenson Button, Rubens Barrichello, Nico Hülkenberg, Robert Kubica, Vitaly Petrov, Adrian Sutil, Vitantonio Liuzzi, Sébastien Buemi and Pedro de la Rosa—were all cited for speeding on their in-laps in the wake of the Webber-Kovalainen crash.
The biggest winner from the carnage was Sauber's Kamui Kobayashi. In stark contrast to Montreal, where tyres were rapidly degrading, Kobayashi was able to set the then-fastest lap of the race after spending forty laps on the harder prime compound. As he did not pit under the safety car, he was promoted to third on the road, and would emerge in ninth when he pitted. He would later catch Alonso at the bottom of the circuit as he enjoyed the additional levels of grip the softer option compound offered, and moved on to take Buemi at the final corner of the final lap, finishing seventh for his efforts.
A similar accident to the Webber-Kovalainen collision was narrowly avoided when Timo Glock challenged Bruno Senna late in the race. The Hispania and the Virgin collided, causing a puncture on Glock's car that very nearly threw him into the wall and forced him to pit, though his crew were not ready for him and he lost several seconds as the tyres were brought out. Senna remained out on the circuit with a damaged front wing, but pitted on the next lap. With Kovalainen out, Lotus's hopes rested on the shoulders of Trulli, but a gearbox problem after his early altercation almost ended his race. His team managed to get him back out and racing again, but he lost three laps to the leaders in the process. Elsewhere, Nico Hülkenberg was forced into retirement when his exhaust system exploded, damaging his rear bodywork and tyre.
Although serving a penalty had put some distance between them, Hamilton's pace in the later phase of the race meant that catching and passing Vettel, who had so far led the race unchallenged, was a possibility, but as the two drivers moved into the final laps of the race, Hamilton's grip peaked too soon and he was forced to settle for second place. Kobayashi's pit stop meant Button was promoted to third, followed by Barrichello, Kubica and Sutil twenty-five seconds adrift. Kobayashi's last-corner move on Buemi saw him home seventh, with the Swiss driver edging out Alonso. Pedro de la Rosa took the final point.
The stewards issued a five-second penalty to the nine cars that had been flagged for speeding under safety car conditions. Sébastien Buemi was demoted to ninth place, whilst the penalties to Pedro de la Rosa and Vitaly Petrov demoted them to eleventh and twelfth, respectively. Timo Glock was also given a twenty-second penalty for ignoring blue flags.
The aftermath was also the subject of controversy, with Fernando Alonso claiming that the outcome of the race was "manipulated" by the stewards with their late decision regarding a safety car infringement by Lewis Hamilton. Alonso had been following Hamilton at the time of the safety car was deployed and reported Hamilton to the stewards, who took twenty minutes to issue their ruling of a drive-through penalty. Alonso claimed that his chances of finishing on the podium were "ruined" by the ruling. Other teams – including Red Bull, Lotus and McLaren – rejected Alonso's accusations, with Lotus' technical director Mike Gascoyne stating "changing the safety car regulations had opened up a set of scenarios that had never been anticipated before. Hamilton passing the safety car is the only recorded example of a driver doing so in the modern era of Formula One." Ferrari have subsequently argued for a change of safety car rules to prevent a similar situation occurring again.
|Pos||No||Driver||Constructor||Part 1||Part 2||Part 3||Grid|
|1||5||Sebastian Vettel||Red Bull-Renault||1:38.324||1:38.015||1:37.587||1|
|2||6||Mark Webber||Red Bull-Renault||1:38.549||1:38.041||1:37.662||2|
|11||16||Sébastien Buemi||Toro Rosso-Ferrari||1:39.096||1:38.586||11|
|13||14||Adrian Sutil||Force India-Mercedes||1:39.021||1:38.851||13|
|14||15||Vitantonio Liuzzi||Force India-Mercedes||1:38.969||1:38.884||14|
|16||22||Pedro de la Rosa||BMW Sauber-Ferrari||1:39.003||1:39.264||16|
|17||17||Jaime Alguersuari||Toro Rosso-Ferrari||1:39.128||1:39.548||17|
|18||23||Kamui Kobayashi||BMW Sauber-Ferrari||1:39.343||18|
|21||25||Lucas di Grassi||Virgin-Cosworth||1:42.086||21|
- 1.^ – Button, Barrichello, Kubica, Sutil, Buemi, de la Rosa, Petrov and Liuzzi were given five-second time penalties for exceeding the safety car-in lap time. Hülkenberg was also given a five-second penalty, but he retired from the race.
- 2.^ – Glock was given a 20-second time penalty for failing to observe blue flags.
Standings after the race
- Note: Only the top five positions are included for both sets of standings.
- "Sebastian Vettel beats Lewis Hamilton in European GP". BBC Sport (BBC). 2010-06-27. Archived from the original on 27 June 2010. Retrieved 2010-06-28.
- Elizalde, Pablo (2010-06-27). "Angry Alonso says race 'manipulated'". Autosport (Haymarket Publications). Archived from the original on 30 June 2010. Retrieved 2010-06-28.
- Noble, Jonathan (2010-06-28). "Teams rubbish 'manipulated' race talk". Autosport (Haymarket Publications). Archived from the original on 1 July 2010. Retrieved 2010-06-28.
- "Valencia results; Qualifying: Saturday, 26 June 2010". BBC Sport. BBC. 2010-06-26. Archived from the original on 28 June 2010. Retrieved 2010-06-26.
- "Valencia results; Race: Sunday, 27 June 2010". BBC Sport. BBC. 2010-06-27. Retrieved 2010-10-15.
- "Nine drivers given five-second penalties". Autosport (Haymarket Publications). 2010-06-27. Archived from the original on 30 June 2010. Retrieved 2010-06-27.
|Wikimedia Commons has media related to: 2010 European Grand Prix|
2010 Canadian Grand Prix
|FIA Formula One World Championship
2010 British Grand Prix
2009 European Grand Prix
|European Grand Prix||Next race:
2011 European Grand Prix | <urn:uuid:dcdde990-8e70-4201-9fe9-212ebdee9f93> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2010_European_Grand_Prix | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00035-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.940943 | 3,781 | 1.65625 | 2 |
WASHINGTON, Dec. 6 (Xinhua) -- Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, the two major U.S. mortgage-finance companies, had prevented nearly 2 million foreclosures since the start of conservatorship in 2008, said a report released Tuesday by the U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA).
The two mortgage giants' completed foreclosure prevention activity increased slightly in the third quarter, pushing the total foreclosure prevention actions up to nearly 2 million since they were under conservatorship by the federal government, according to FHFA's Foreclosure Prevention and Refinance Report.
During this period, about 1.7 million of these actions have allowed borrowers to retain homeownership, with more than one million being permanent loan modifications, said the report.
The FHFA, regulator of Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac, said that the improvement of completed foreclosure prevention activity in the third quarter was driven primarily by loan modifications and repayment plans. Two-thirds of all borrowers who received loan modifications in the quarter had their monthly payments reduced by over 20 percent, the agency added.
In addition, the cumulative refinancings through the Home Affordable Refinance Program (HARP) increased 11 percent during the third quarter to nearly 928,600 loans, according to the report.
While serious delinquency rates continued to decline, the percentage of loans that have missed one payment increased during the quarter, noted the FHFA.
Fannie and Freddie have survived on Treasury aid since September 2008, when they were put under conservatorship by the federal government after suffering from the collapse of the subprime mortgage market.
The two mortgage giants own or guarantee about half of all mortgages in the U.S., or nearly 31 million home loans. Along with other federal agencies, they provide more than 5.7 trillion dollars in funding for the U.S. mortgage market, nearly 90 percent of new mortgages over the past year.
Special Report: Global Financial Crisis | <urn:uuid:02670539-c66d-47f1-834d-39a01b5b2989> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://news.xinhuanet.com/english/business/2011-12/07/c_131291942.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00030-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.969269 | 400 | 1.585938 | 2 |
Here’s the thing about bike commuting, especially in Alaska: Sometimes, the weather is far from perfect. And that’s OK. You can ride anyway.
Friday is Bike to Work Day, and the amazing people at Bicycle Commuters of Anchorage are already giving pep talks and encouraging riders not to give up just because the weather forecast looks cold and wet. We should all do the same. If you know someone who is second-guessing his or her plan to ride, give them The Speech. You know what it is.
Bike commuting looks cold when the weather sucks and you’re looking out a window at someone else on a bicycle. Remind your friends and co-workers that with good clothing and a healthy attitude, they’ll be plenty warm enough to enjoy the fun of being part of the crowd in bike lanes and bike paths, and stopping at Bike to Work Day stations for coffee and snacks.
Plus, as BCA already pointed out in its Facebook pep talk, anyone who can toughen up a little and ride on wet days will find the perfect days that much sweeter.
The revolution will not be motorized. Get on your bikes and ride. | <urn:uuid:76376285-20d5-46ce-85e2-18042c306a17> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://alaskabikeblog.blogspot.com/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00021-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959299 | 247 | 1.554688 | 2 |
First victim of health care overhaul?
- Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius (left) speaks with various state insurance commissioners and insurance industry executives in the Roosevelt Room of the White House. AP Photo
In an interview with POLITICO, Kitchen said the impact of health reform on his business is twofold.
First, it created an uncertain future. With regulations yet to be written and rules constantly forthcoming, he said, “everything felt beyond our control.”
Second, Kitchen is apprehensive about a more regulated insurance market. The health reform law requires insurance companies to spend a certain amount of premium dollars on medical costs and, in many cases, bans lifetime limits on medical coverage. Kitchen said he was uncertain whether nHealth would be able to comply.
“The rules changed in the middle of the game,” Kitchen said. “We’re not willing to wander into that environment.”
The White House aide agreed that the rules will change, but in ways that benefit consumers. Stricter regulations will ultimately guarantee better coverage for subscribers. The medical loss ratio regulation, for example, will ensure that insurers spend a certain percentage of subscriber dollars on medical costs rather than administrative expenses.
“The Affordable Care Act sets new standards for insurance coverage that protect consumers and ensure they get the most for their premium dollar,” the aide said. “Insurers should have no problem meeting those standards, which do not require action until 2012. And starting in 2014, the insurance industry will have millions of new customers.”
Even without the health reform law, small health insurance firms were operating in a financially challenging landscape. Employers have become increasingly likely to consider dropping coverage as premiums have risen, according to annual surveys by the National Small Business Association. As far back as 2008, a Citigroup survey showed “more insurers were raising premiums at a faster rate than those who reported slowing increases,” according to a Wall Street Journal article at the time. | <urn:uuid:c49d6fc0-8b3c-4eee-9066-3bcc74a0a0a6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0610/38194_Page2.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958917 | 406 | 1.640625 | 2 |
But my heart has always been drawn to those flowers that are often overlooked or are just not used as much anymore — like those once found in mom and grandma’s gardens.
As a child, I spent a lot of time at both my grandparents’ houses, especially in the summer. Most of that time there, I was playing outdoors. Chasing butterflies and collecting insects in quart jars was one of my favorite hobbies. (Even today, I am still curious about bugs.)
I soon learned that the best way to catch bugs was to position myself near flowers, especially around Maw Maw Kistler’s row of pink thrift or creeping phlox.
That childhood experience is why I added samples of Maw Maw’s thrift to my personal garden. Maw Maw Kistler’s memory and garden lives on, plus it gives me and my young sons, Blake and Clay, the chance to watch and chase bees and butterflies.
Other flowers that I have added to my garden over the years are bearded irises and daffodils. People seem to have forgotten about irises and daffodils; you just don’t see them in new landscapes, only in older gardens where someone’s grandma lives.
I like them, and associate them with mom’s flower garden. My mom, who is still living, has been growing bearded irises and daffodils as long as I can remember. She has irises and daffodils planted everywhere, and would always have bouquets of them in the house throughout the spring and summer.
I began my collection from my mom’s flowers. She not only passed along plants, but memories as well. Many gifts to my mom over the year have been flowers, such as a new iris variety.
One day, my two sons will look back and likely associate gardenias and blue big-leaf hydrangeas with their mom — my wife, Susan. That is what she likes, so that is what I have planted.
Even if my sons do not know it now, memories of their grandma and their great-grandmothers are there, too, planted and living on in our backyard.
Happy Mother’s Day.
Shane Harris is an extension agent for the Alabama Cooperative Extension System. For help on other home and garden questions, contact your local county Extension office. | <urn:uuid:ca87dacd-1604-4f48-baee-76f66d460d59> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://annistonstar.com/view/full_story/18474115/article-On-Gardening--Remembering-mom-with-a-garden-of-flowers?instance=life_secondary | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968536 | 495 | 1.640625 | 2 |
When planning for your golden years, it's important to educate yourself on the best ways to achieve financial freedom. Sometimes it can be tough to know where to begin. We've asked Lee Baker, a Certified Financial Planner, Board of Standards Inc.® planner in Atlanta, to answer five of the questions about investing he gets most often from the African American community.
See also: 10 Steps to Get You Ready for Retirement
Q: My friends tell me to invest in real estate instead of the stock market. Are they right?
A: Studies have shown a high tendency for African Americans to invest in real estate more than other asset classes. Never forget what Momma said about putting all of your eggs in one basket. Don't do it!
It's really not a question of real estate or stocks but how much of each. When you hear people talk about asset allocation this question gets to the heart of it. For most of us, we should have a little bit of a lot of different things. Stocks of companies based in the U.S. and around the globe have a place in our investment baskets. In addition, we need to look at bonds as well from the same perspective. Your friend is right to tell you to look at real estate. One thing to keep in mind is that all of the asset classes you would want to have in your portfolio can be accessed using mutual funds. For most individuals this is the best option to get you the diversification that you need.
Q: I'm participating in my company 401(k) plan but I started late. How should I invest my assets?
A: The important thing is that you started, so give yourself a pat on the back. A recent study by the Vanguard Group showed that participation in 401(k) plans increased significantly for African Americans who were in plans with auto enrollment. Participation in plans with voluntary enrollment stood at 59 percent but increased to 90 percent with auto enrollment. If you started contributing late and are fairly close to retirement, you don't have the luxury of time in the market to help build up your nest egg. You want to focus most of your attention on the amount that you can put away for retirement. The more you can put in, the more you can make up for the loss of time in the plan. With that being said, you want to lighten up on the amount of equities in your 401(k) plan. This does not mean don't have any stocks or real estate funds but not nearly as much as you would if you had many years until retirement. I don't like rules of thumb, but I will say that very few of my clients nearing retirement have more than 65 percent of their portfolio in equities. | <urn:uuid:b7ffaceb-193d-425a-be0c-2dac33c44150> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.aarp.org/work/retirement-planning/info-12-2011/5-tips-to-find-financial-freedom-in-retirement.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.975429 | 555 | 1.632813 | 2 |
Agriculture.com values your opinion
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On Wednesday, USDA will be releasing some big crop numbers, including its annual Crop Production report as well as monthly supply/demand and grain stocks figures.
So, what will they all mean for the trade? Analysts are split on where the government will peg domestic soybean crop and supply, though there's more agreement that soybean supplies abroad -- especially in South America -- will be on the lower side.
Meanwhile, farmers say they expect USDA's corn numbers to keep the market from sliding too much, though some feel it's better not to get too bullish just yet. | <urn:uuid:697789aa-1d54-41b3-86f6-bd86eb7078a7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://m.agriculture.com/news/rept-days-on-its-way_2-ar13726 | 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 | 0.934118 | 151 | 1.664063 | 2 |
Chelsea’s nearly neighborhoodwide Wi-Fi builds on efforts by the Bloomberg administration to make the city more tech friendly, even in outdoor spaces. AT&T currently provides free Wi-Fi service in 20 city parks, and other private companies are laying fiber and opening learning labs that give residents access to computers.
The network cost $115,000 to set up and will need another $45,000 to run, with Google picking up the tab.
The secured network will also be used by businesses, residents and students in the area, and will cover the outdoor areas of the Fulton Houses, a housing project owned by the New York City Housing Authority.
Google worked with Boingo this year to provide free Wi-Fi at more than 4,000 hotspots across America as part of a collaboration with Google Play. The Google sponsored Boingo Wi-Fi locations include 15 airports, such as New York’s John F. Kennedy, Chicago O’Hare and Seattle-Tacoma, Boingo-enabled Manhattan subway stations, and thousands of hotels, shopping malls, cafés and recreational areas. Boingo Wireless and Microsoft also sponsored free Wi-Fi access at high-traffic New York and San Francisco over the holidays. | <urn:uuid:e1970b83-0fff-444c-80b6-498c37f4c87f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.dailywireless.org/2013/01/08/google-free-wifi-for-nyc-chelsea-neighborhood/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00037-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94077 | 252 | 1.640625 | 2 |
Getting to Boston
Logan International Airport services approximately 1,400 domestic and international flights daily. There are 47 airlines that offer connections from every major city in the world.
Boston is part of the Amtrak railroad system serving the Northeast, and connects passengers to downtown New York, Washington, Philadelphia, Baltimore, and other cities across the country. Acela high-speed rail service cuts travel times between Boston and New York City to three hours at speeds of 150mph. Passengers can pick up Amtrak service in Boston at South Station, just minutes from the BCEC.
Boston has local, East Coast and national bus service to and from the South Station bus terminal which is only a 10-minute walk from the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center.
For meeting attendees who want to drive to Boston, the BCEC is only minutes from two major interstates-Interstate I-90 (Mass Turnpike) and I-93/95.
Boston is home to North America’s first Subway system, better known as “The T”-connects all of Boston and its suburbs by subway, standard rail, bus and commuter boat. Subway trains and trolleys run along four connecting lines, making transfers and getting from place to place via the “T” easy and inexpensive.
The new Silver line offers quick and convenient public transportation to and from the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center.
Getting Around Boston
- As “America’s Walking City” virtually all of Boston’s historical, entertainment and shopping sites are within walking distance of convention centers and hotels
- Boston’s famous “T” trains, trolleys and buses make point-to-point travel convenient and inexpensive.
- The New “Silver Line” connects the South Station train station to the BCEC with the most technologically sphisticated Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) service available today! | <urn:uuid:62833ebc-f00f-488e-bdd3-c5dad47d08a5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.isscr.org/home/annual-meeting/hotel-travel/getting-to-boston | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00025-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.934802 | 392 | 1.671875 | 2 |
From the same link on TM Homepage;
THE BLASPHEMY OF THE HOLY GHOST
The passages that relate to this subject are in Matt. xii:31,32:"Wherefore I say unto you, all manner of sin and blasphemy shall be forgiven unto men; but the blasphemy against the Holy Ghost shall not be forgiven unto men. And whosoever speaketh against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him; but whosoever speaketh against the Holy Ghost, it shall not be forgiven him, neither in this world, nor the world to come." Mark iii:28-30: "all sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men, and blasphemies wherewith soever they shall blaspheme; but he that shall blaspheme against the Holy Ghost hath never forgiveness, but is in danger of eternal damnation; because they said, he hath an unclean spirit." Luke xii:10: "And whosoever shall speak a word against the Son of man, it shall be forgiven him: but unto him that blasphemeth against the Holy Ghost it shall not be forgiven."
What is this sin? It consisted in ascribing the power by which Jesus wrought his wonderful works to Satan. He was accused of being aided by Beelzebub, of having an unclean spirit, and of working his miracles by the power of an evil spirit. From this it follows that but very few persons are exposed to the doom here threatened, inasmuch as very few have ever committed this sin.
But if we take this language literally, we must hold that all other sinners, of every character and kind, will be saved, because just as positively as the Scripture declares that these blasphemeies shall never be forgiven, it declares that all others literally and absolutely shall be forgiven. "Verily I say unto you all sins shall be forgiven unto the sons of men, and blasphemies wherewith soever they shall blaspheme." The sin against the Holy Ghost is the only sin that shall not be pardoned. All other sinners. thieves, liars, murderers, all except that very small number that accused Jesus of receiveing diabolical help, shall be forgiven. Does not this show that the terms of the passage are not to be taken literally? Does it not appear that men must either believe that all kinds of sinners, and all of them, except this small number, must be pardoned, or else that the rest of the language is not to be taken literally? It is asserted just as positively that all others shall be, as that these few shall not be forgiven.
If the "shall" and "shall not" are to be understood literally, then the number of the damned is entirely limited to the very few who actually saw Christ's miracles, and ascribed them to Beelzebub. No one since, and no one hereafter can be damned, for all other sin but that shall be forgiven. This saves all mankind except those few persons who said, "he [Christ] hath an unclean spirit." This reduces hell to a mere mote in the universe, and excludes all now living, or who hereafter shall live, from any exposure to it.
What does that language mean? Campbell says this is "a noted Hebraism;" that is, a term of speech common among the Jews, to teach that one event is more likely to occur than another, and not that either shall or shall not occur.
Dr. Newcome says: "It is a common figure of speech in the oriental languages, to say of two things that the one shall be and the other shall not be, when the meaning is that the one shall happen sooner, or more easily, than the other."
Grotius and Bishop Newton are to the same purport. For illustration, when Jesus says, "Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away," he does not mean that heaven and earth shall actually pass away, but they will sooner fail than his words. It is a strong method of asserting that his words shall be fulfilled. This is common in the Bible.
Prov. viii:10: "Receive my instruction, and not silver; and knowledge rather than choice gold." Matt. vi::19,20: "Lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, and where thieves break through and steal; but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and where thieves do not break through nor steal." Luke xiv:12,13:"Then said he also to him that bade him, When thou makest a dinner or a supper, call not thy friends, nor thy brethren, neither thy kinsmen, nor thy rich neighbors; lest they also bid thee again, and a recompense be made thee. But when thou makest a feast, call the poor, the maimed, the lame, the blind." John vi:27: "Labor not for the meat that perisheth, but for that meat which endureth unto everlasting life, which the Son of man shall give unto you; for him hath God the father sealed."
The plain meaning is, all other sins are more easily forgiven than this. The words "never," "neither in this world nor the world to come," do not change the sense, but only strengthen and intensify the Savior's meaning that this is of all sins the worst.
The popular impression that 'the world to come" here means the life after death is an error.
Dr. Clarke well observes: "Though I follow the common translation, yet I am fully satisfied the meaning of the words is, neither in this dispensation, viz., the Jewish, nor in that which is to come. Olam ha-bo, the world to come, is a constant phrase for the times of the Messiah, in the Jewish writers."
Wakefield, Rosenmuller and Hammond also give the same opinion. And it should be added that the word "never" is no part of the original Greek. That is, not under either dispensation, or age (aion--mistranslated "world"), will this inexcusable sin be less than the greatest of transgressions.
Bishop Pearce declares: "This is a strong way of expressing how difficult a thing it was for such a sinner to obtain pardon. The Greek word aion seems to signifyage here, as it often does in the New Testament (see Matt. xiii:40; xxiv 3; Col. i:26; Eph. iii:5,21) and according to its most proper signification. If this be so, then 'this age' means the Jewish one, and 'the age to come' (see Hebrews vi:5 and Eph. ii:7) means that under the Christian dispensation. The end of the world took place during the time of the apostles. 'Now once in the end of the world hath he [Christ] appeared to put away sin by the sacrifice of himself.'--Heb. ix:26. 'Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples; and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.' I Cor. x:11."
Gilpin observes, "Nobody can suppose, considering the whole tenor of Christianity, that there can be any sin which, on repentance, may not be forgiven. This, therefore, seems only a strong way of expressing the difficuolty of such repentance, and the impossibility of forgiveness without it. Such an expression occurs Matt. xix:24: 'It is easier for a camel to go through the eye of a needle, than for a rich man to enter heaven;' that is, it is very difficult. That the Pharisees were not beyond the reach of forgiveness, on their repentance, seems to be plain from verse 41, where the repentance of Nineveh is held out to them for an example."
Clarke says: "Any penitent may find mercy through Christ Jesus; for through him any kind of sin may be forgiven to man, except the sin against the Holy Ghost, which I have proved no man can now commit."--Clarke on I. John v:16. And again: "No man who believes the divine mission of Jesus Christ, ever can commit this sin."
These are all "Orthodox" commentators, whose opinions were certainly not formed by prejudice in favor of our views of the passages in question. They agree with what seems the meaning of the Savior, that this sin is of all others most inexcusable. But that any sin is literally unpardonable, by a God and Father of infinite love and mercy, is nowhere expressed or implied in the Bible.
Mark's language "hath never forgiveness" should read "has not forgiveness to the age," but is liable to aionian judgment; that is, to an indefinite penalty. See the word aionios, explained in subsequent pages of this book. | <urn:uuid:395ae5bd-f15a-4906-af70-a69c3992e1ea> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://tentmaker.org/forum/discussions-on-universal-salvation/1-john-516-meaning/msg97708/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00037-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.940883 | 1,872 | 1.671875 | 2 |
In Japan, the related third-generation Toyota Soarer, with which the first generation SC originally shared body design and multiple components, featured a separate lineup of vehicle configurations and different powertrains. The fourth generation Soarer, largely identical to the SC 430, was superseded by its Lexus counterpart in Japan when the Lexus marque debuted there in 2005. At present, the SC is the sole coupe in the Lexus lineup and carries a U.S. base price of $65,455 and a UK base price of £54,880 (approximately $112,000).
In the summer of 1990, following the successful debut of Lexus a year earlier, Toyota decided that work would begin on a mid-size Lexus coupe to compete with the luxury coupes of other marques like Mercedes-Benz and Acura. At that point, Toyota had no genuine luxury coupes in existence. Initially, the existing Japanese second generation Toyota Soarer was selected to serve as the basis for the new Lexus coupe, much like the Lexus ES 250 was based on the Toyota Camry. However, the Soarer's design at the time was considered "boxy"-looking and outdated. Since the coupe was going to be targeted towards the American market, the project was handed over to the Calty Design Research center in California. | <urn:uuid:4b3cc26d-7c21-4010-9d74-27d8a9697436> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.cars-directory.net/gallery/lexus/sc400/1991/lexus_sc400_2917692_2_orig.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00037-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964399 | 274 | 1.664063 | 2 |
19 September 2006 -- During the meeting, the JISC took up the last outstanding JI project submission
formats and guidance documents, as well as the JI accreditation procedures and application forms, which are
required to allow JI Track 2 to become operational.
Industrialized countries can use allowances earned through joint implementation projects –
emission reduction units, or “ERUs” – to meet their emission reduction commitments under
the Kyoto Protocol.
Whilst the JI’s Track 1 process may only be applied if the host Party fully meets all eligibility requirements, the Track 2 provision allows Parties to
issue and transfer ERUs if only the basic eligibility requirements are met, provided the projects go
through the verification procedures under the JISC
(Track 2). The official launch of the JI Track 2 process is scheduled for October 26. As of that date,
independent entities will be able to submit project design documents to the UNFCCC secretariat via a
dedicated interface on its JI website.
The JISC agreed that although the accreditation procedures of independent entities were approved at this
meeting, they would only enter into force as of 15 November in order to allow time for preparation of
applications from the Designated Operational Entities (DOEs) under the CDM acting provisionally under JI at
present (in accordance with decision 10/CMP.1). The JISC indicated the need to seek measures to
reduce cost and time needed for accreditation of DOEs, but decided not to adopt a formal “fast
track” accreditation procedure for DOEs after taking into account inputs from its Accreditation
Panel. The committee also decided on the provisions for charging fees to cover the administrative
costs of its work. The structure and levels of the fees agreed were similar to those under the CDM
(proportional to ERU generation, preferential treatment for small-scale projects).
Finally, the JISC agreed on its Management Plan, however noting the significant shortfall in supplementary
funding. In this regard, the committee recognized the need to further encourage contributions from Parties
in order to sustain the work of the JISC. | <urn:uuid:241b6c36-bf81-4866-a113-6e1f43d99d64> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://unfccc.int/press/news_room/press_releases_and_advisories/items/3782.php?normal=j | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.934466 | 452 | 1.507813 | 2 |
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FORT DRUM, N.Y. -- Retired Capt. Gary F. Ossinger received two Distinguished Flying Crosses during his tour as an aviator in Vietnam from 1969 to 1970. He pinned the prestigious award onto the uniform of his son during a ceremony July 16 at Wheeler-Sack Army Airfield.
"It's kind of becoming a family tradition," said the elder Ossinger, a former OH-6 Cayuse helicopter pilot with 22 years of service, who earned his awards for heroic actions taken when his aircraft was shot down and for extracting a Soldier from a vulnerable location.
His son, Chief Warrant Officer 4 Gary S. Ossinger, earned his award for his brave actions under fire May 25, 2011, in eastern Afghanistan, as the pilot in command and air mission commander of a flight of two CH-47 Chinooks.
According to the award citation, the mission involved transporting troops to the Do Ab Valley to conduct reconnaissance of the area. Ossinger, his crew, and his sister ship descended toward the landing zone deep inside the steep canyon walls of the valley and dropped off the reconnaissance Soldiers. Despite it being the middle of spring, the temperature was already more than 100 degrees.
"On this particular day in a remote area of Afghanistan, we received reports that this city center was about to be overrun by insurgents," said Col. Pedro G. Almeida, then 10th CAB commander. "About 60 U.S. and Afghan Soldiers were transported to the area without issue. But soon after, these Soldiers started to receive fire."
Shortly after his aircraft departed, the landing zone erupted with enemy mortar, machine-gun and small-arms fire in an ambush by an estimated 200 to 400 Taliban members.
"Now these 60 Soldiers were in a precarious situation," Almeida said. "They were in a narrow valley, and no one was coming in from any roads. We knew we had to reinforce those 60 Soldiers who were pinned down."
Ossinger and his team received the mission to bring reinforcements and supplies to the ongoing battle, and they launched into deteriorating weather conditions.
En route, Ossinger's aircraft began to receive accurate, effective small-arms fire from both sides and from the mountains above them.
"(He) and his crew courageously flew into that buzz saw," Almeida added.
Due to the highly constrictive terrain of the valley, Ossinger's ability to maneuver was extremely limited.
He soon realized his communication systems and global positioning system were disabled, and the crew was now unable to communicate to other aircraft and with each other.
Despite being unable to talk to his crew, Ossinger made the decision to continue to the landing zone. Under heavy fire, the aircraft touched down and the reinforcements disembarked.
But as the helicopters departed, ominous weather and darkness began to engulf the valley. Still unable to communicate with each other or the other ship, the crew soon was forced to land in an unsecure area due to decreasing visibility.
Additionally, mechanical issues became evident due to battle damage. Through the superior skill and efforts of Ossinger and his crew, they were able to overcome these challenges and safely return to Bagram Airfield.
"They got shot at and lost communications," Almeida said. "They had to land in the middle of nowhere. He kept an extremely level head. If we hadn't reinforced them, we don't know what might have happened to those 60 on the ground."
This was not the first time Ossinger, a former Ranger, had taken fire. But he said it was the closest he had come to being shot down.
"I'm honored to receive this award, but I feel like I don't want another," Ossinger said stoically.Ossinger has deployed three times with 10th CAB. He served with 2nd Ranger Battalion from 1991-1999 and deployed to support Operation Uphold Democracy in Haiti in 1994.
When asked why he decided to become a pilot after having been a Ranger for eight years, a wry smile slowly surfaced on Ossinger's face.
"I don't know. I guess because my dad was a pilot," he said. "And rucksacks are heavy." | <urn:uuid:b205a3f3-a68e-47d7-ab53-1c24742d545d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.military.com/daily-news/2012/07/26/aviator-presented-award-by-his-father.html?comp=7000023468004&rank=3 | 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 | 0.987264 | 881 | 1.671875 | 2 |
Avril Lavigne, a pop artist, has produced at least 3 albums of music, so here are 3 pen and ink drawings of her. Drawings of celebrities, also called “Fan Art”, usually take memorable poses or photographs and attempt to replicate them. These drawings mirror that idea, but try to be original and not rely on a famous face for their structure. Attention was given to the eyes, and using the white of the paper more than the pen. This technique provides a striking and delicate effect in each portrait. | <urn:uuid:ff028ba2-3153-43f1-aab9-a91401ad79ed> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.mde-art.com/art-blog/avril-lavigne-fan-art-drawings/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00027-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968863 | 108 | 1.757813 | 2 |
Having personally built pure, self-managed work teams and consulted with companies on the same, the definition of self-managed work teams in your September 2009 article [How does one build a self-managed team?, also part of our Clean Show coverage here] is not accurate.
According to your article, “A self-managed team is one that has the ability to act, take responsibility for and take ownership of its service when management isn’t there.” The main question then is why would a self-managed team need management?
The answer is obvious. A pure, self-managed work team does not need management. They have been highly trained to handle all of their own issues, including hiring, discipline, firing, motivation, performance measurements, and training.
Additionally, the self-managed team does not have an appointed leader. Different persons lead as the needs of the team demand. All are equal. The self-managed team reports to a Guidance Team. The purpose of the Guidance Team is to define the “broad parameters” for the self-managed team, clear the path in the organization for the team, and offer advice and counsel as needed.
A self-managed team in full operation is a sight to behold. It is difficult to accomplish, not because the team can’t do it, but because management usually will not get out of the way. Most consulting firms that train about self-managed teams have never built one, according to anything close to a pure definition. Any definition indicating the need for or presence of management negates the term “self-managed.” Most managers, in their pride, cannot possibly believe that a team could do better without them.
The results of a self-managed work team: 30% labor reduction, 60% increase in productivity, and immeasurable increase in customer satisfaction (Marietta Corp., 1992).
Thank you for your articles.
Randy J. Widrick, Director of Sales & Marketing
Bates Troy Inc., Binghamton, N.Y. | <urn:uuid:48439358-1ae0-4108-8354-98258e80757a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.americanlaundrynews.com/article/reader-challenges-%E2%80%98self-managed-team%E2%80%99-definition | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.977812 | 424 | 1.53125 | 2 |
Everybody knows that humans and animals live close to each other in India, and sometimes they even share the same places, the same houses and the same feelings.
One likes animals because animals look like us and at the same time, they don’t judge us and have the innocence of young children. I met some of them during my only but wonderful trip to India.
All the pictures were taken by myself. Click on them to see them bigger.
1- In this photo, the animal is on the left. A beautiful and peaceful zebu walking in the streets of Nawalgarh. The creature next to him is not a strange colourful bird but an old lady who was very “successful” during our trip in India. I think Indian people still remember her. No wonder Westerners have the reputation for being indecent when old ladies dress like punks to go to Asia!
2- This man looks perpexed, as well as the monkey at his feet. What are they pondering on? What are they looking at? I was there but I don’t remember anything wrong…
3- I was on the air-conditioned bus when I saw this man who wanted to show us his monkey against money. It was just before entering Uttar Pradesh, in the traffic jams. The monkey was lucky as some of us had bananas. But as you can see, the owner was not as satisfied as the poor animal.
4- In Pushkar, monkeys go free on the ghats of the sacred lake. They don’t mind pujas or holy bathing. They are attracted to the rose petals which float on the water. Brahmanes try so chase them by casting stones at them but they keep on coming back. (Do you remember my article about Pushkar?)
5- Less dangerous, goats are real pets in some towns and villages. I find them so cute. They look as if they were smiling! They often live with the families in the houses. Look!
6- Now, let’s go to Jaisalmer where a cow is used as a watchdog?
7- Now, this is a real dog who hangs around the Mughal emperors ‘ palaces in Agra. It seems to be David Bowie’s dog, look at his eyes!
8- And in Mandawa, if you look up, you can see owls! If you look down, you can see donkeys! | <urn:uuid:05bf260d-37ce-4c22-80d5-74ed0c8e9060> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://amessagetoindia.com/2013/01/02/meeting-animals-in-india/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00037-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.983597 | 508 | 1.65625 | 2 |
Addressing the issue and Missing the Opportunity.
The 29th November 2012 will be one of those days when people ask where were you when the Leveson Inquiry outcome was announced.
To give it its full title An Inquiry into the Culture, Practices and Ethics of the Press. The Inquiry had all the makings of a soap opera what with the great and the famous giving evidence such a Hugh Grant, Sienna Miller and Charlotte church whilst the World’s greatest media mogul, Rupert Murdoch under scrutiny as well as the politicians.Sadly there were those witnesses who were their dint of tragic circumstances such as the Dowler family.
As was apparent from the the evidence to the Inquiry’s findings that the Newspaper world is in poor shape, and has allowed suspect practices to invade its culture. The Inquiry has helped reveal that there is at times an unhealthy relationship between the media, politicians and the Police.
The issue for the Inquiry has to help identify the errors, why they occurred and suggest ways of preventing repetition and allow the public confidence to be restored.
When does genuine investigative journalism become voyeurism and unlawful?Ethically where does one draw the line.
The Press on the whole have been keen to portray Sir Brian Leveson as wanting to introduce political control of the media which is nonsense.
Even reading the Executive Summary let alone the great tome of the Inquiry report itself, Leveson has no intention of state control of the media. Leveson wants the industry to construct its own regulation and sanction, but then given them the teeth to properly enforce any remedy and provide a useful deterrent by enshrining the media’s new rules with statutory clout.
“The legislation would not establish a body to regulate the press:it would be up to the press to come forward with their own body that meets the criteria laid down”
What the legislation would achieve is create for the first time a legal duty on the Government to protect the freedom of the press.
Leveson wants the press to create a new self regulatory body, but backed by statutory might.
The Lord Justice Leveson made it clear that he he did not want political involvement or influence and no sooner is the report published then Prime Minister Cameron disses the report saying he would not support the necessary legislative underpinning and plans now to meet with newspaper editors to try and create a scheme that negates the need for state intervention. The irony must be lost on Mr Cameron as what does he regard his actions as doing other than some form of state intervention. It begs the question why Cameron opposes legislation. Lord Justice Leveson did his job without fear or favour; the Prime Minister is at risk of being perceived as doing his job in fear of the next headline or wanting to carry favour with Fleet Street; and in doing so is flying in the face of the Leveson Inquiry’s findings not to mention public opinion.
The Leveson Inquiry has effectively recommended the equivalent of the USA’s First Amendment; a significant first and should give encouragement to good journalism rather than derision.
Leveson is giving the print media the opportunity to set out its own regulation and rules, but to ensure that it does not come across as toothless or just going through the motions, a criticism often thrown at the existing PCC.
The fear amongst editors is that any whiff of Parliament being involved will give rise to further creep by Westminster in curtailing the activities of journalists and the right to free speech. The sentiment is understandable, but the substance to this argument is shallow.
As mentioned Lord Justice Levenson has made clear that legislation be would enacted to protect the freedom of the press. Further many bodies are underpinned by statute, but remain free of the state such as the legal profession and the judiciary. It is ironic that newspapers do not want statutory underpinning to their self regulation, and some such as The Times would like to see the self regulation overseen by a legal panel appointed by the the Lord Chief Justice and such panel to hear appeals arising from complaints. A judicial panel that has its own underpinning and independence enshrined in statute. It does seem the kettle is calling the pot black.
The other fear is that if there was some statutory underpinning that the rules would be prescriptive and rigid unable to take account of the nuance of the hard pressed time challenged news room having to make snap decisions and judgment calls. Interestingly, this flags one of the keys tensions between the law, lawyers and journalist, in fact I would be so bold to say many within the creative industries. Bizarrely the law and lawyers are seen as threat and impediment ( a view disturbingly shared by many politicians). All of them fail to appreciate that the law and justice has flexible walls to accommodate the unusual and changing mores. One only has to look at medical law and ethics to see how nuanced standards of care can exist differentiating between a young doctor in a manic A and E department as compared to a senior consultant luxuriant in his consulting rooms. The law recognises that one hat does not fit all.
The Leveson Inquiry is offering a great opportunity to develop the whole concept of freedom and speech and how to operate it in a fair, open and ethical way. This should give encouragement to those around the World who crave our freedom and serve as a benchmark, instead of a being for a green light to vile despots.
Politicians and journalists are at risk of talking down the currency and value of Leveson and I hope that the editors will embrace it as an opportunity for good .
However, one serious omission of the Leveson Enquiry is the failure to include the Internet and Social Media. If this was the early 20th Century and someone was reviewing transport policy then it would be the equivalent of saying that because many still use horses we will ignore cars and their increasing prevalence.
As has been illustrated in many headline cases the same laws apply to the Internet as it does to the print or TV such as defamation, and clearly illustrated by the Lord McAlpine / BBC debacle. If the same laws apply to the Internet then why not the same ethics and regulation. The Internet is pervasive and the Leveson Inquiry not helping to create gold standards makes it the wild west of culture and civilisation.
As I have expressed in Blue Pencil before, the weaknesses of the domestic law are exposed when trying to sanction someone blogging in another jurisdiction. This is why international standards need to be created and Levenson had an ideal opportunity to have been the vanguard for this cause.
We have international standards (and laws) for many things such as aviation, telecommunications, shipping, post and so forth- why should the Internet be any different.
As we know more and more people use the Internet to access information, entertainment, communIcate with one another. Paper journalism will diminish and surely it cannot be right that what is written on paper is regulated, but when sent electronically could evade ethics and standards.
The United Kingdom is seen as a great bastion of fairness and has a well developed legal system so much so many people seek to have their disputes heard in its courts and tribunals. The Levenson Inquiry could have laid down the gauntlet and started the discussion at an international level as to how do we balance free use of the Internet, and at the same time ensure protection against abuse and provide some ethical code. Admittedly, there are various initiatives looking at this already, but the Leveson Inquiry has captured the worldwide gaze and could be the benchmark to galvanise the initiative. There is talk of a Leveson Two; let’s hope that this is given consideration and the United Kingdom is seen at the forefront of embracing new technology and helping it develop a fair and just backbone.
Today, 3rd December, sees the world’s first registrable Personality and Image Right registry open today in Guernsey pursuant to the grandly entitled The Image Rights (Bailiwick of Guernsey) Ordinance 2012, which allows people to register and protect their image rights such as Mo Farrah’s iconic Mobot gesture. Only a few months ago I spoke with the head of Guernsey’s Intellectual Property Office, and he explained how they intend to develop themselves at being at he forefront of IP protection and registration. With no disrespect to the good folk of Guernsey, but there does seem to be some bitter irony that a small island is embracing a changing world whilst The Leveson Inquiry despite all its theatre, decency, sense of fair play and constructive thoughts has committed one damning omission; it looked back and not forward and as such unless there is to be a follow up we could in a few years time when paper newspapers are a curiosity we are no further forward in having a a free, but also a responsible press. I hope I am wrong.
The Leveson Inquiry
Addressing the issue and Missing the Opportunity. | <urn:uuid:2d8ab05d-0ce7-406a-99fa-a83c76ef08ae> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.bluepencilset.com/index.php/component/k2/item/69-the-leveson-inquiry | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967065 | 1,829 | 1.523438 | 2 |
Jewish LGBT organizations stake claim in SF
by Heather Cassell
San Francisco's Jewish LGBT community is filled with pride this year as it appears that the city by the Bay is emerging as a hub of LGBT Jewish leadership nationally and internationally.
Keshet opened its new office doors June 1 and in May A Wider Bridge was named an UpStarter by UpStart Bay Area.
UpStart is a social justice Jewish entrepreneurial organization for innovative and new Jewish groups that was founded by former Bureau of Jewish Education director Toby Rubin in 2006. Similar to venture incubators, it provides a variety of organizational development opportunities, professional training, and support with a unique Jewish perspective and purpose.
Both organizations are housed with a number of other nonprofit Jewish organizations in UpStart's San Francisco office.
"We are at a really exciting moment for LGBT inclusion and equality in the Jewish community," wrote Idit Klein, executive director of Keshet, in an email interview. Klein pointed to the recent ordination of the first openly gay rabbi by the Jewish Theological Seminary, the flagship seminary of the Conservative movement, and the outpouring of support from the Jewish community for a pledge to end homophobic bullying that the organization circulated last fall.
"It's vitally important for us to be in the Bay Area – some of the most vibrant, creative, dynamic queer Jewish culture and community life is here," Klein added. "By having a presence in the area, we can help strengthen and build on this energy at this key time."
San Francisco is the home of the third largest metropolitan Jewish community in the U.S. There are approximately 36,000 queer Jews in the Bay Area, according to the LGBT Alliance Study published in 2010 by the Jewish LGBT Alliance of the Jewish Community Federation of San Francisco, the Peninsula, Marin and Sonoma Counties. It only makes sense that LGBT Jewish organizations congregate in the heart of the "gay mecca," queer Jewish leaders expressed.
Keshet is a national organization that provides support, training, and resources to ensure that LGBT Jews are fully "included in all parts of the Jewish community," according to its website.
Lisa Finkelstein, director of JCF's LGBT Alliance, sees Keshet's presence in the Bay Area as a sign that the queer Jewish community is thriving and only is going to grow stronger to "create a healthier sustainable community."
Rebecca Weiner, education director of Congregation Sha'ar Zahav, agreed.
"It symbolizes that we've really created an infrastructure in the Jewish LGBT world" that provides an opportunity for real "measurable impacts in terms of inclusion and addressing homophobia and really educating," said Weiner, a 25-year educator.
The two organizations join a network of established queer Jewish institutions that include: the Bay Area Jewish Healing Center, Congregation Sha'ar Zahav, Jewish LGBT Alliance of the JCF, and Nehirim.
Keshet's new office steps into the place of Jewish Mosaic's former satellite San Francisco office, which closed when Boston-based Keshet and the former Denver-based Jewish Mosaic merged in June 2010.
The new office is headed by out lesbian Sasha T. Goldberg, 30, the former associate director of Nehirim, a queer Jewish culture and spirituality organization that hosts retreats and other programs. Goldberg, who took the position in May, has lived in the Bay Area for more than a decade after moving from Chicago. She earned her master's degree in Judaism from the Graduate Theological Union in Berkeley and was a consultant to educators on LGBT issues.
Arthur Slepian, executive director of A Wider Bridge, understands bridges. The organization that works to bring queer Jews in North America and Israel together to learn from each other and build relationships became the first to be accepted into the UpStart program, according to both organizations' leadership. It is also the only LGBT program selected by the committee out of the competitive process this year, Rubin pointed out.
"I'm really proud that we have been selected," said Slepian, who has orchestrated bringing queer Israeli Orthodox and youth leaders to tour the U.S. and spoke to more than 1,000 individuals during the past year. He said he looks forward to taking the opportunity to build upon creating "opportunities for organizations in the U.S. and Israel to work together."
Slepian is currently planning an LGBT trip to Israel later this year with several other organizations. Additionally, the organization is planning a series of programs for college campuses, Slepian said.
"Our organization is about education, engagement, and experience. That's what really we are trying to bring to LGBT Jews and the broader LGBT community in terms of being able to connect with Israel [either for] the first time or to strengthen the connections that one might already have," said Slepian.
The three other organizations that were selected by UpStart: Amir, the Kitchen, and Urban Adamah. The organizations already started working with six UpStart alumni organizations and alongside each other for the next three years on their respective projects. | <urn:uuid:c0bc0d5e-d6c2-4f0c-b333-a46c7a47bbff> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://ebar.com/news/article.php?sec=news&article=5839 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00029-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968542 | 1,037 | 1.539063 | 2 |
I have spent hours, even days researching whole house fans, and have found them to be one of the most cost-effective energy-saving home improvements one could choose to make.
After sorting through all of information out there, Here's what I'd look for:
Quiet operation - This allows you to run the fan during the coolest hours of the day (the nighttime, while you sleep) and get the maximum cooling effect. Dual speed operation is also nice, because the low speed is in many cases much quieter. Exchanging the air is important, which high speed can do quickly, and low speed can be used over night to cool the thermal mass of the structure down to the core. This way you can use your structure as a 'shield' against the heat the following day, and you can actually get more of a cooling effect with less airflow.
High Efficiency - If you are considering installing a whole house fan, you are most likely trying to save energy by reducing A/C use. So finding the most efficient whole house fan seems only logical. Some manufacturers have begun using ECM (electrically commutated motor) technology, which allows for AMAZING efficiency numbers -- and also extremely low noise levels -- especially on the lower speed settings.
Automatic, Insulated Doors - Unless you like crawling into your attic every season to insulate the hole in your ceiling (or if you live in a mild climate) you'd be better off finding a product that features mechanical insulating doors. Keep in mind that the seal created when closed is as important, if not more important, than the insulation level (R-level) provided. When shopping, ask whether or not the seal is maintained when the unit is off. Without a seal, it does not matter what the R-level is, and the insulation can not do its job.
Good luck in your search, and keep these features in mind when shopping. | <urn:uuid:f7b3e663-032f-4fa4-9aa0-4d0abdfbf834> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://diy.stackexchange.com/questions/2012/what-should-i-look-for-in-a-whole-house-fan | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00027-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.952011 | 392 | 1.539063 | 2 |
SECC, UTSA volunteers aid local food bank
By Lynn Gosnell
Special Projects Writer
(Nov. 5, 2008)--From its modest beginning in 1980, the San Antonio Food Bank (SAFB) now serves 16 counties surrounding Bexar County. From its location on Old Highway 90 West, the food bank receives and distributes donated food and produce to nearly 400 area social service agencies who in turn make these items available for people in need.
- La Prensa Foundation is newest member of UTSA Lone Star Society
- UTSA alumna Jordan Kaufmann wins $50K for new stent-graft start-up
- UTSA begins new way-finding sign installation this summer at Main Campus
- USA Today: UTSA long jumper Tyler Williamson rescues three-year-old boy
Churches, neighborhood centers, senior centers, rehabilitation facilities, family crisis shelters, hospice programs, orphanages and low-income daycare facilities are among the organizations that partner with SAFB.
Visitors to the spacious warehouse and volunteer headquarters, which opened in 2007, also will learn that the food bank's methods for fighting hunger go far beyond traditional food distribution. Staff also procure and distribute prepared food from restaurants and caterers through its Second Helpings Program. In recent years, SAFB has helped assist people with food stamps, children's health insurance and WIC applications. And, they operate a busy commercial kitchen.
The kitchen is where meals are created and distributed to 18 after-school Kids Cafés, where youth receive a warm meal, mentoring and tutoring. And, up to 6,000 kids each day are served breakfast, lunch and a snack through the Summer Food Service Program.
The full-service kitchen also helps train and certify people in culinary skills, which make trainees employable in local restaurants. On average, 15,000 meals per month are sent out to various locations in San Antonio.
Volunteers remain essential to the food bank's ability to carry out its mission. The organization's new facility has a workroom and lounge area designed specifically for volunteers who sometimes work up to six-hour shifts on weekends, noted Erica M. Benavides, policy and advocacy manager for the San Antonio Food Bank. The UTSA student organization VOICES (Volunteer Organization Involving Community, Education and Service) regularly sends volunteers to SAFB.
WWe do different projects," said Jennifer Castro, VOICES president. "Sometimes we sort food or hygiene products. We fill the big boxes that are going out to clients."
The San Antonio Food Bank is one of the organizations supported by the State Employee Charitable Campaign [SECC agency code 415077]. Benavides notes that each dollar donation leverages $13 worth of food for local families.
"In the past year, we've seen a 67 percent increase in need, but donations have increased just 3 percent, said Benavides. Spiking transportation costs also have stressed the organization's capacity for 'Fighting Hunger... Feeding Hope.'"
The San Antonio Food Bank Web site is full of statistics about hunger in Texas, making it clear that the need is great.
Here are a few of those statistics:
- Texas is most food-insecure state in the nation (16.4 percent) Defined, food insecurity is when you are so limited in resources to buy food that you are running out of food, reducing the quality of food that your family eats, feeding your children unbalanced diets or skipping meals so your children can eat.
- The rate of children living in poverty in Bexar County is more than 25 percent; the national rate is 17 percent.
- 12 percent of Texas seniors are living in poverty.
- Each week, approximately 25,000 people receive emergency food assistance from an agency in the San Antonio Food Bank network.
SECC extended through Friday, Nov. 7
As of Nov. 4, UTSA has 66 percent employee participation in the State Employee Charitable Campaign. If you have not made a donation, it's not too late! The campaign was extended through Friday, Nov. 7.
Donate online to SECC, or turn in your form to your Area Delegate or send it to the Office of External Affairs.
For assistance, contact your Area Delegate or the UTSA Office of External Affairs at (210) 458-5102. | <urn:uuid:8f70e59f-ba23-4259-a02d-4a5879d67dde> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.utsa.edu/today/2008/11/foodbank.cfm | 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 | 0.937778 | 899 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Can We Learn What Made Him "Go Cho?"
As bits and pieces of his manifesto are released by NBC, an astonishing realization takes hold: Finally, we have a fully documented tour of the cruel insanity of the spontaneous grudge killer. Cho didn't feel he owed any of us anything; in fact he felt the opposite ...
“You had a hundred billion chances and ways to have avoided today. But you decided to spill my blood. You forced me into a corner and gave me only one option. The decision was yours. Now you have blood on your hands that will never wash off.”... but he actually left us something that will help us better understand his sickness and perhaps identify its hallmarks in others before they "go Cho." Don't think those last two words were typed lightly. I fully expect the phrase to appear again in some future multi-media manifesto left by someone who evilly replicates the evil Cho left behind.
From the limited amount of the manifesto I've read so far, there are no big surprises; just confirmations. Loneliness, anger, feelings of superiority contrasting sharply with the harsh rejection of others. Educators and counselors will pore over this fare and try to apply it. It won't be easy because educators and counselors are, by and large, a nonjudgmental lot. It will force them to deal with making evaluations based not just on actions, but on the morality expressed in the actions, something that will make them more uncomfortable still.
Cho's stuff is not that different from the testosterone-drenched male teenage angst that's common fare in high schools and colleges, so I imagine a lot of not particularly dangerous young men will get caught in the new "safety nets" we'll see in the post-Cho era. That's tragic; in fact, it could push some poor guy who's nowhere near going Cho over the edge.
Still, the opportunities for stopping tragedies far outweigh the chances of inadvertently creating one. I just don't have any confidence that those who have been trained in education or psychology any time in the last few decades will be able to do it well, since their minds have been filled with meaningless academic pablum. | <urn:uuid:418b058d-b4f6-4fac-965f-1445aa6ce296> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://cheatseekingmissiles.blogspot.com/2007/04/can-we-learn-what-made-him-go-cho.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.971273 | 447 | 1.710938 | 2 |
While the LP revival is still in full swing you rarely hear about the other 12-inch, grooved vinyl record format, the RCA VideoDisc.
It was a grooved, carbon-loaded PVC disc. The grooves were 48 times smaller than an LP groove, but they were still tracked with a diamond "needle"! That was possible because unlike an LP's zigzag grooves the CED's grooves were hills and dales. That difference also minimized groove wear, so the discs could be played hundreds of times. VHS and Beta tapes would wear out faster than that. The VideoDisc also had stereo soundtracks.… Read more | <urn:uuid:5a69302a-2911-423f-96c3-90e8361fa5a4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.cnet.com/8300-5_1-0-4.html?keyword=laser | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00040-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.981265 | 134 | 1.726563 | 2 |
Let’s say three months ago you convinced your boss to let you put up a page for the business on Facebook. Then a couple of weeks later, the boss gave you the go-ahead on spending a few minutes a day on Twitter.
But that was three months ago. And you’ve been spending more and more time on Facebook and Twitter, and the boss is noticing. So tomorrow, the boss is going to mention all this to you, how he’s noticing that the 5 mins a day you used to spend on Facebook has ballooned into an hour a day.
He’s going to ask you the logical business question: What are we getting for that hour a day you spend on Facebook and Twitter?
Choose your next words VERY carefully. The natural thought process may be to tell the boss that the company has X number of Likes on Facebook, and X number of Twitter followers. But the problem is, your boss doesn’t care about the conversation.
If you want to be successful at social media, you pick the strategy first, then the tactics. You can’t pick the tactics first, then the strategy.
Here’s some examples of strategies for companies that want to use social media:
- Establish thought leadership
- Build brand awareness
- Generate sales
- Lower customer service costs
And here are some examples of social media tactics:
- A blog
- A Facebook page
- A Twitter presence
- A YouTube channel
See how the strategy has to come first? The tactics flow from the strategy.
Now comes the fun part: “Mack this is great information that I wish I’d had 3 months ago. Now I have a Facebook page and I think we should have launched a blog. What should we do?”
First, let’s start with this: How are you measuring the impact of your social media efforts? How are you ‘moving the needle’? Your strategy will tell you what you should be measuring. Let’s go back to the strategies, then look at the metrics you could be measuring:
- Establish thought leadership (Inbound links, Search Traffic, Coverage on Industry Sites/Blogs)
- Build brand awareness (Online mentions, Search Traffic, Comments)
- Generate sales (Sales, Calls/Emails about Products, Email Newsletter subscribers)
- Lower customer service costs (Customer Service issues resolved via social media, Volume of customer service calls/emails)
And here’s a tip: Make sure the metric you measure is helping you reach your goals. For example, a lot of companies think traffic is a good metric to measure. But traffic only indicates people that have visited your blog (for example). You still need for these people to perform an ACTION. So you don’t measure metrics associated with the people (such as traffic), you measure metrics associated with the actions you want the people to take. Such as signing up for an email newsletter, leaving a comment, or emailing you about a product.
So to review:
1 – Pick the strategy for what you want to accomplish via social media
2 – Pick social media tactics based on the strategy you have chosen
3 – Measure your efforts by choosing metrics that tie back to the desired outcomes, based on your strategy. BONUS: Baseline your metrics if at all possible. For example, if you decide that you want to use social media to build brand awareness and you want to measure online mentions. Wouldn’t it be helpful to know what your volume of online mentions was when you LAUNCHED your social media strategy? Then 3 months later you could look at the CHANGE in online mentions, and report back to your boss that your strategy to build brand awareness via social media had netted a 27% increase in online mentions.
4 – Don’t be afraid to tweak, adjust, or outright change your strategy. You should constantly track, measure and study your efforts, and the results you are seeing. As you start to execute your strategy, you might see that you need to shift gears and move in a slightly different direction. There’s no harm in changing, all you’re really doing is improving your efforts.
Does this help? What did I miss? Have some questions about how your company can fix its social media strategy? Please ask in the comments, or if you want, email me. | <urn:uuid:1a1dea56-a588-4cbb-ad20-4ec4b56bf024> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.mackcollier.com/how-to-fix-a-broken-social-media-strategy/comment-page-1/ | 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 | 0.94189 | 917 | 1.609375 | 2 |
Ten Ways to Lower Perceived Risk and Finance Rates within Utility Contract
Federal agencies use various methods to lower perceived project risk and finance rates to get the best value from utility energy service contracts (UESCs). Ten such methods are outlined below. Each should be discussed during project negotiations:
- Time is Money
- Communicate with Finance Companies
- Compare Rates
- Use Standard Terms and Conditions
- Negotiate Buydown and Prepayment Formulas
- Structure Appropriate Measurement and Verification
- Include Explicit Language to Minimize Risk
- Avoid Unnecessary Hedge Costs
- Bundle Energy Conservation Measures
- Show Project Importance
1. Time is money
Money can be saved anywhere you reduce processing time and facilitate quick closure of your deal. A short turnaround reduces the administrative cost for the utility and subcontractor teams. Delays also impact the interest rate especially as finance companies lose the ability to hold interest rates during grace periods. The sooner the project is implemented, the sooner it begins saving energy and money for your facility. Every delay is an opportunity lost for cost savings. Chronic late payments can also result in compensating increased interest rates, so it is important to the entire program for payments to be made on time.
Shopping for the Best Rates
At least one utility active in this market has conducted its own competitive process to establish a list of pre-qualified finance firms for Federal energy projects. Each time a new project is designed and ready to fund, a standard form is used to share project data with the pre-qualified firms, who can give a quick response to the utility looking for the best value for construction and term financing. A recent $3 million project elicited quotes that varied by about 100 basis points with final term financing at 7%. Savings compared to the highest interest rate quoted were approximately $580,000 over a 10-year term.
2. Communicate with Finance Companies
Most finance companies are happy to discuss the rates, adders, and costs associated with funded projects. This provides an opportunity to reduce risk and obtain the lowest possible rate for a specific project. Many agencies leave all communication up to the utility or contractor, but there is no prohibition against asking the utility to invite the selected finance company to project negotiation meetings to answer questions and provide clarity.
Most UESC payments flow directly to the finance company, and those finance costs often represent more than half the total project costs for the Government. It makes good business sense to get acquainted with the details of financing and ensure that you've done all you can to get the best possible rate for your project. Ask your finance company to identify financial costs separately and to clarify the specific rate impact of individual contract terms and conditions that are significant. You can then evaluate the importance of those clauses individually. Similarly, ask for a breakout of the net present value of the finance company's fee, both at closing and during the payment period, to compare it with similar projects.
What are a few basis points worth over the term of your loan? The amount depends on the capital investment financed and the length of the term. With a 10-year term, an increase of just 30 basis points from 7.0% to 7.3% has the following impacts:
|Project Funding||Additional Interest (0.3%)|
These interest dollars could be better spent on facility improvements.
3. Compare Rates
Once the basic parameters of your project (size, type of equipment, expected annual savings) are known, it is possible to get rate comparisons by calling active firms in the market. A relatively small number of reputable finance organizations specialize in energy projects at Federal facilities. Formal competition for financing (particularly for smaller projects) may result in administrative costs that exceed the value of the competition. Consider a comparison of rates rather than formal competition.
Ask your utility for a comparison of rates for recent projects funded at similar dollar amounts. FEMP can provide guidance based on other projects and can help identify sources for comparison.
4. Use Standard Terms and Conditions
Contract clauses and formats unfamiliar to the finance company increase risk because they are different from what has been tried and proven. They may also lead to significant increases in transaction costs and longer timetables for execution. To keep costs low, use standard terms and conditions and contractual forms already established in the areawide energy services annex and model agreements with your utility and finance company.
5. Negotiate Buydown and Prepayment Formulas in Advance
Standard language for buydown, prepayment, and termination (for convenience or otherwise) with pre-negotiated terms and conditions can, in some cases, hold finance costs down. If these terms are not clearly set forth in the contract, it significantly increases risk and could cause the Government serious problems with future contract administration.
6. Structure Appropriate Measurement and Verification
Cost-effective measurement and verification of energy efficiency improvements and savings, coupled with a performance guarantee, is strongly recommended and can be achieved through alternatives to a contractual cost-savings guarantee. Finance companies reportedly establish the interest rate primarily on the basis of the experience and expertise of the utility and its subcontractors. This is done by relying on their credibility to evaluate the risk of specific technologies. While the margin for specific technologies set by the utility can be reduced by negotiating reasonable measurement and verification criteria, interest rates should not be affected by the complexity of the energy conservation measures.
7. Include Explicit Language to Minimize Risk to the Finance Company
A payment structure that minimizes risk to the finance company is the central element of reducing perceived risk and obtaining a lower interest rate. To keep rates low, include clear terms for how and when payments will be made, demonstrated ability to comply with those terms, and standard clauses to protect the finance company from offsets and future claims related to performance (assignment of claims).
8. Avoid Unnecessary Hedge Costs – Do Not Buy an Interest Rate "Lock"
To keep Government costs and the long-term interest rate low, it is not necessary to require a guaranteed or fixed interest rate long before the date of award. Instead, a formula based on an index rate (e.g., T-bill or swap rate) and adders should be negotiated and set forth in the contract stating how the final rate will be established on or near the day the delivery order contract is signed. Letting the finance company set the interest rate as close to the actual contract date as possible reduces the risk of rising rates and eliminates the hedge cost.
9. Bundle Energy Conservation Measures
Bundling many energy conservation measures (ECMs) together can result in lower rates and more conservation for each dollar invested. This portfolio approach offers additional benefits by reducing contract and administrative burdens and optimizing energy savings.
More ECMs and greater facility improvement can be included when those with longer-term payback periods are bundled with and offset by those with quick payoff terms. Just as some finance companies are bundling projects to attract lower interest rates from a portfolio risk management perspective, facility managers can spread out perceived performance risk by combining a portfolio of ECMs.
10. Show Project Importance to the Facility
Most finance companies see a Federal Government contract as a secure investment. Any uncertainty about the future operation of the facility where the project is implemented can increase the perceived risk of premature contract termination and finance costs, or put the deal in jeopardy during negotiations. Ensure that the finance company understands that this project is an important asset for the facility, and that the facility is expected to have an ongoing mission that will outlive the project's contract period. Provide documentation if necessary.
Savings may be possible by ensuring that the payment stream to the finance company will not be affected by performance guarantees. As an example, contract language in a Department of Defense project helped ensure that the payment stream to the finance company would not be interrupted though the utility included an energy savings performance guarantee in the contract. This reportedly helped obtain a discount of nearly 100 basis points (1%) in financing. The project was signed in 1999 for $15 million at 7.0% interest. The estimated benefit to the Government of a 100 basis point reduction in interest, given the 10-year term and total investment, was near $2 million. | <urn:uuid:88710ace-79c2-415c-9b3e-018c4d74ef42> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www1.eere.energy.gov/femp/financing/uescs_tenways.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00042-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.941775 | 1,667 | 1.710938 | 2 |
Resources for the Repair and Maintenance of your Honda Accord
Honda Accord Models:
Honda Accord Problems
The front brake rotors can warp and cause a vibration when braking. The rotors will need to be machined or in cases where they are worn to thin, replaced to correct this issue.
Automatic transmission failures are common, Automatic transmission failure on these vehicles will generally require overhaul or replacement of the transmission. In the event of a failure, it may be worthwhile to check with Honda to see if they may offer assistance for this repair. As these vehicles age, Honda has become less likely to help out with these transmission related repairs.
Front compliance (lower control arm ) bushings tend to crack and break requiring replacement.
The radio and climate control display can go dark on some models. It will be necessary to replace the affected unit to correct this concern. Some customers have reported receiving help from Honda regarding this repair.
Power door locks can activate intermittently due to a faulty door lock actuator in the driver's door.
Honda Accord Recalls (Recent)
RepairPal Expert Overview:
Honda and Acura are recalling numerous 2001–2004 vehicles to inspect for an internal automatic transmission fault. This fault could result in gear failure, which can cause the transmission to lock up. If the transmission were to lock up with the vehicle in motion, a crash could result. If the inspection reveals internal transmission damage, the transmission will be replaced. If no internal damaged is noted, the transmission oil cooler return line will be revised in order to increase fluid flow. For more information, please call Honda at 1-800-999-1009 or Acura at 1-800-382-2238.Learn more »
Summary: VEHICLE DESCRIPTION: PASSENGER VEHICLES (HONDA ACCORD SEDANS MANUFACTURED FROM SEPTEMBER 18, 1997 TO JANUARY 10, 1998; COUPES MANUFACTURED DECEMBER 11, DECEMBER 15, 1997, AND JANUARY 5, 1998; ACURA 2.3CL MANUFACTURED OCTOBER 22, 1997 THROUGH JANUARY 7, 1998). DURING MANUFACTURING, THE CASTING DIE CAUSED AN IRREGULARITY IN THE RIGHT-SIDE TRANSMISSION COVER. THIS IRREGULARITY CAN LIMIT THE MOVEMENT OF THE PARKING PAWL ACTUATION LEVEL AND PREVENT ADEQUATE ENGAGEMENT OF THE PARKING GEAR PAWL. THIS DOES NOT COMPLY WITH FMVS NO. 114, "THEFT PROTECTION."Learn more »
RepairPal Expert Overview:
Honda has recalled 1998-1999 Accord and Acura CL, and 1999 Odyssey and Acura TL vehicles because the ignition cylinder body may be worn, which can cause the shift interlock not to function properly. If the vehicle does not securely lock in "Park" due to a worn ignition cylinder, the vehicle may roll, which can cause a safety issue. Dealers will inspect the cylinder body for wear and replace the cylinder body, collar, and latch plate if necessary. If there are no signs of wear and all is operating as designed, dealers will replace the latch plate.Learn more »
Honda Accord Questions and Answers
When I turn my passenger side tire area makes a loud squeaky sound. this occurs when driving or when still. It also squeaks when I push up and down on the car. Can it only be a front strut beari...
i need a book where should i go online?
honda dealership they said the fuse blow when they start the car i need to re Wire the electric system
I have a 90 Accord LX 5 speed, 2.2 motor. It has 300,xxxmiles and recently it started spraying oil up onto my hood while driveing. It is in the general area of the distributer and this site menti...
Honda Accord Reviews
Just purchased a 1990 Accord LX coupe with 58k miles. I've had Hondas in the past and find the 1990-93 the best model ever built. Have a small water leak coming from the driver's side automatic seat belt track area. Anyone looking for a GREAT used car, I would HIGHLY RECOMMEND a 1990-93 Accord.
horrible, horrible brakes, particularly the rear pads, caliper design. front brakes a bit better, but much worse than what i expected from honda. had rear rotors and pads replaced before it reached 25k miles. dealership tried to tell me it was due to driving in the snow and salt....i almost died laughing, eventually had honda replace them, but ran into problems again within 15, miles. rear defroster is anemic, barely strong enough to take care of fogging, cannot handle ice or frost. OEM battery a joke, finally replaced with non OEM. seat heater buttons are placed poorly and there are two setting, not warm enough and burn my ass off hot. sunroof controls should be placed on roof rather than hidden on dash near driver window. other than that, it's a great car.
I am currently driving CIVIC that I was loaned when my 2009 Accord engine light started flashing 120 miles from home. Since purchased new, Honda has replaced the battery, the rear brakes(and they didn't tell me there was a recall) and spark plugs twice. I was told the second time that if the plugs went again, I would need a new engine.
I am home and my car is 120 miles away. They say they are going to charge for the loaner but I plan to argue. They also implied that I would have to pay for the machining that was done by a machine shop. I have no idea what they are actually doing to the car and when I have to drive 120 miles to get it. They have had it for 1 week today!
I have a 2004 Honda. I am the only driver and take very good care of my car and always have routine main. done on it. The bushings are worn and torn right now. Only 102,000 miles on it. Their is a problem right now with the axle maybe. It is in the shop now. Told by another shop Honda is notorious for problems on the car that wear your tires out. I have been told their is a problem. The doors lock on me at times without notice and have read their were transmission problems on the 2004. The Honda dealer prices are way up there and there should be a recall on the bushings and the axle if it is indeed a problem now. Don't think I will buy another Honda. I am furious that this car has these problems when it is suppose to be such a good car and I have taken such good care of it.
I have replaced a oxygen cecsor,brakes not too often.Sometimes I get cool air coming from the right side and warm from the left.I have had something wrong like it may be the tort in transmission.My car shakes at about 40 miles an hour.Honda want change the transmission fluid,they says it may not drive after.No one can really say what is wrong.It gets good gas mileage.I am pleased with it other wise.My right seat belt is off don't know what is wrong. | <urn:uuid:bf6b5084-468e-4f7d-b961-9550f664d8dd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://repairpal.com/honda/accord | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.952048 | 1,516 | 1.835938 | 2 |
A high-level delegation of the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR), headed by the Commission's Director General, Mr. Antonio Guterres, Monday held discussions with President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf at the Foreign Ministry in Monrovia.
Mr. Guterres extended thanks and appreciation to the Government and people of Liberia, particularly Liberians residing at the border for the warm reception accorded Ivoirians fleeing the political crisis in their country.
According to an Executive Mansion release, the UNHCR official expressed regrets for the delay by the Commission to respond to the refugee crisis along the border. The Commission, he admitted, did not move fast enough in responding to the refugee crisis along the border. The UN official, however, assured the Liberian President that UNHCR is totally committed to providing support in buttressing the Liberian Government's effort in dealing with the situation. "We are not waiting for donor's money to do what we have to do," he emphasized.
Mr. Guterres expressed concern over the humanitarian and security situation in Cote d'Ivoire and spoke of the need for the international community to take the necessary steps to end the political statement in that country, which he described as a threat to Liberia and the sub-region.
President Johnson Sirleaf thanked the UNHCR delegation for the visit, describing it as one which reassures the government and people. The President said the refugee situation poses greater risks to Liberia and hoped all efforts would be made to address the crisis. The President said the refugee situation along the border has stretched the already limited resources of Government. The President welcomed the UNHCR's visit and promised government's cooperation in working with the UN Agency to address the situation near the border. The Liberian leader also spoke of the plight of Liberians residing in Cote d'Ivoire and said Government would welcome back home any of its citizens who wishes to return, but cautioned that a thorough screening process must be put in place to ensure that those concerned are not returning to infiltrate the process.
The President said the infrastructure challenges in rural Liberia were making it difficult to reach all refugees along the border, but efforts were being made to provide access.
More than 60-thousand refugees have reportedly fled to Liberia since the political crisis in neighboring Cote d'Ivoire.
The UNHCR Director-General is in Liberia on a two-day visit to assess the refugee situation along the Liberian-Cote d'Ivoire border. The Resident Representative of the UNHCR, Mr. Ibrahima Coly, the Executive Director of LRRRC, Mrs. Wheatonia Barnes, and the Ministers of Foreign & Internal Affairs, participated in Mondays' meeting with the President. | <urn:uuid:72472abb-0b56-485c-a5f0-b4a1f002b971> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://allafrica.com/stories/201103230013.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00035-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961106 | 548 | 1.570313 | 2 |
Professor Thomas McCraw
BOSTON — Thomas McCraw, the Isidor Straus Professor of Business History Emeritus at Harvard Business School, has received the biennial award from the International Joseph A. Schumpeter Society (ISS) for his book Prophet of Innovation: Joseph Schumpeter and Creative Destruction (The Belknap Press, 2007). The prize was recently awarded at the Society's 12th conference, "Technological Innovation and Development," in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
Prophet of Innovation is the biography of Harvard University Professor Joseph A. Schumpeter (1883 -1950), who made his mark as the prophet of incessant change and is arguably one of the most significant economists and business theorists of the past century.
McCraw's book chronicles Schumpter's tumultuous life spanning two world wars, the Great Depression, and the early Cold War. Drawing on all of Schumpeter's writings, including many private diaries and letters never before used, McCraw paints the full portrait of a magnetic figure.
As the book details, Schumpeter regarded "creative destruction" as the driving force of capitalism. According to this theory, nearly all businesses fail, victims of innovation by their competitors. Businesspeople ignore this lesson at their peril; to survive, they must be entrepreneurial and think strategically. In Schumpeter's view, the general prosperity produced by the "capitalist engine" far outweighs the wreckage it leaves behind.
McCraw's biography has also been honored by the Business History Conference and the History of Economics Society.
Read the HBS Bulletin's review of Prophet of Innovation: http://www.alumni.hbs.edu/bulletin/2007/june/schumpeter.html
Founded in 1986, the International Joseph A. Schumpeter Society aims to further research in the spirit of Joseph A. Schumpeter, particularly the scientific study of the problems of development in advanced economies. Headquartered in Germany, ISS has 412 members from 40 countries. Additional information can be found here: http://www.iss-evec.de/
About Thomas McCraw
In addition to Prophet of Innovation, McCraw has authored or co-authored a number of books, including American Business, 1920-2000: How It Worked (2000), The Intellectual Venture Capitalist: John H. McArthur and the Work of the Harvard Business School (1999), and Creating Modern Capitalism: How Entrepreneurs, Companies, and Countries Triumphed in Three Industrial Revolutions (1997). His book Morgan Versus Lilienthal: The Feud Within the TVA (1970) won the William P. Lyons Award. Prophets of Regulation: Charles Francis Adams, Louis D. Brandeis, James M. Landis, Alfred E. Kahn (1984) won both the Pulitzer Prize for History and the Thomas Newcomen Award, which is given for the best book on the history of business published over a three-year period. At Harvard Business School, McCraw served as a Director of Research (1984-86) and chair and co-chair of the Business, Government, and the International Economy Unit (1986-97). He was associate editor of The Encyclopedia of the United States in the Twentieth Century (1996) and has been a member of the Council of the Massachusetts Historical Society,
Founded in 1908 as part of Harvard University, Harvard Business School is located on a 40-acre campus in Boston. Its faculty of more than 200 offers full-time programs leading to the MBA and doctoral degrees, as well as more than 80 open enrollment Executive Education programs and more than 60 custom programs. For more than a century, HBS faculty have drawn on their research, their experience in working with organizations worldwide, and their passion for teaching to educate leaders who have shaped the practice of business and entrepreneurship around the globe.
Harvard Business School
Boston, MA 02163 | <urn:uuid:7f802282-6fd7-466b-bcc9-8f13f88d5ce1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.hbs.edu/news/releases/Pages/schumpetersociety.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.937811 | 797 | 1.726563 | 2 |
Renovation projects have left a lot of junk around our house. Bits of wood, lengths of metal studs, screws and the like. It would cost a fair chunk of money have all of the potentially useful crap hauled away. Instead, I turned it into a greenhouse.
I built a new wall in the kitchen shortly after moving in, we had a number of spare metal studs. These things are AWESOME. They are flexible, they can be bent to shape. They're cheap (more than a wood 2x4) but a fraction of the weight and they can be manipulated with tin snips and a pack of metal screws.
I had some other bits around-- some wood, some screws and the like. I thought I could turn it into a greenhouse on the cheap. I needed plastic to cover the greenhouse, so I had to buy that (about $30 and I used only 2/3 of the roll). I bought some more screws ($12). I bought some hinges ($9). Otherwise, I had what I needed from scraps.
I needed help to build the walls-- the long walls were 6 foot X 6 foot. The short wall was 4 foot wide and 6 feet tall. With some help, I was able to screw the walls together. They were kind of parallelogram, but that was okay. I eventually squared them up enough that they worked, using cross beams.
I used three lengths of metal studs to form up the roof. I intended on making this cool rounded roof. I got impatient and tired, so I just went for basic roof with a few bends in it. I did buy a little vent and I have a fantasy of installing this funky way to open the vent when the temperature rises (yeah, my fantasies are lame).
Wherever I had a sharp or pointed edge, I wrapped it in duct tape. While the photos will show that I was not using gloves, that is a MAJOR mistake. Use gloves if you try this. I implore you. But really: when in doubt, use duct tape to soften and defang the edges. I was foolhardy enough forego the gloves-- my hands are slashed six ways from Sunday and I was good enough to puncture myself with the drill a few times. Always fun!
I wrapped it in the plastic sheeting. I screwed up the length, so I had to cut an additional piece to get around the whole of the greenhouse. I locked down the plastic with screws. Each screw had a cushioned washer to make a nice snug hold on the plastic without tearing it (we'll see what happens in November). I kind of screwed up the wrapping job, but I was able to lock down the plastic at the front with a spare piece of wood.
I filled the big hole with a door I built out of the last of the metal studs. Because of the funky angles to the greenhouse, I positioned the door and then put in a couple cross beams to position the frame and lock it down. Next, I wrapped the door in plastic, screwed down the plastic and used duct tape judiciously. With some struggling I was able to mount those hinges and voila! A door!
To seal the door, I took two of the burls I had cut from a branch that fell in our back yard during the winter. I mounted the off center with a spacer so that I could spin it in to block the door, or out to let the door swing open.
Inside, I used a workbench I built 18 months ago to house some of the plants. I want to grow tomatoes and peppers in the greenhouse. Again, with the cheapness / thrift, Instead of buying planters, I used some plastic cat litter bins as planters. To hold in the heat, I spray painted the outside of the planters black.
My niece and I transferred some seedlings into the planters to give them their new home.
Cheapness by the numbers:
- Metal studs : 27 pieces at about $7 each ($189)
- Sheet metal screws : 1 box at $12
- Plastic sheeting : $35
- Duct tape : $3
- Bits of wood : (if bought new) $12
- Hinges : $9
- Planters : free (thanks to cat litter)
- Teaching children that they can grow their own food : priceless
Keep in mind that I was able to scrounge most of the stuff from other projects. The key to this is to scrounge. Did you reno your house leaving you with old windows? Work them in! Found 2x4s? Bring them to the party. I had left over metal studs, so I spent about $60 on bits that I didn't have. | <urn:uuid:fbfc573d-e976-4b9c-a6a4-b1137c5f9856> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://mike.dewolfe.bc.ca/resources/how-to-build-greenhouse.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00021-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.974893 | 987 | 1.539063 | 2 |
Based on prior student performance, a new set of ramped-up performance targets for Wisconsin schools appears virtually impossible for most students to meet over the next six years, a new analysis says.
The flip-side: A new federal waiver that frees Wisconsin from certain mandates of an unpopular federal education law means that schools won't be punished for missing those targets.
That nuance is one of many that have entered the complicated - and shifting - education scene in Wisconsin over the past year. Detailing those changes and projecting their future effect on the region's schools is the annual Public Schooling in Southeast Wisconsin report released by the Public Policy Forum Tuesday.
The latest schooling report, which has been conducted annually for 26 years by the nonpartisan, nonprofit forum, analyzes:
New academic goals and whether they're achievable. As part of the state's new accountability system that replaces the federal No Child Left Behind law, Wisconsin adopted new "annual measurable objectives" for student subgroups. But based on prior year-to-year performance gains, white students seem to be the only subgroup headed toward the state's new goal of about 67% statewide proficiency in math and about 51% proficiency in reading by the year 2016-'17, according to the report.
Other subgroups would have to make up more ground in the next six years than they have ever made before.
For example, black students would need to increase proficiency by an average of 6.2 percentage points and 8 percentage points annually in reading and math, respectively, to meet the state's new goal. But between 2007 and 2012, black students' proficiency rates increased by only 0.6 of a percentage point in reading and 1.1 percentage points in math, the report says.
Anneliese Dickman, forum research director, notes that missing the objective isn't that significant, as it won't figure into a school's index score, or a score from 0 to 100 that each school will receive on new annual report cards. The first set of those report cards are due out next month.
Patrick Gasper, spokesman for the state Department of Public Instruction, said Monday that schools are still expected to pay attention to those objectives. Low-income schools that miss the goals will be provided with information about suggested improvement strategies, he said.
Enrollment declines. The 0.8% enrollment decline in southeast Wisconsin during the past year is the largest one-year decline in enrollment in the region for the past five years, according to the report, which analyzed data from Milwaukee, Waukesha, Ozaukee, Washington, Racine, Kenosha and Walworth counties.
Smaller budgets. The forum's analysis shows overall declines in state aid, federal aid and local property taxes - the three main pillars of school funding - for area schools. The budgets for the region's school districts in 2011-'12 averaged $665 less per-pupil in total expenses and $525 less per-pupil in instructional expenses, compared with the previous year. Those budgets reflect the slight decline in student enrollment in the region, as well as state legislation that curtailed collective bargaining with teachers unions.
Student engagement improvement. Attendance in the region rose and truancy rates dropped, though remain higher than the state average. Dropout rates in the region fell more locally than across the state.
Better college readiness measures. More students in southeast Wisconsin are taking the ACT, and the region's composite ACT score declined only slightly in 2011 from the previous year. The percentage of AP exams passed by Wisconsin students increased by 1.3 percentage points, and the region's high-school completion rate rose by 0.8 percentage points over the past year.
Poverty increases. Almost half the students in southeast Wisconsin - 46% - received government-subsidized lunches during the 2011-'12 year. That standard indication of poverty is up 11.6 percentage points from six years ago. | <urn:uuid:f89ea795-c7c2-4574-a4e9-5d192bcf42c7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.jsonline.com/news/education/school-performance-targets-tough-to-meet-analysis-says-b46vtaj-171092561.html | 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 | 0.961011 | 797 | 1.726563 | 2 |
Where's the Progressive Agenda for the Great Recession?
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One major difference between the Great Depression and the Great Recession is the death of a visionary progressive movement. Yes, the Republicans and the media like to call liberal Democrats "Left," but that just means they are slightly more moderate than Attila the Hun.
Many in the 1930s believed that capitalism needed a major overhaul. From there it got vague and contentious. The Communist Party, of course, was in love with the Soviet Union, which seemed to be the workers' paradise on Earth, in part because it had avoided the worst of the Depression. American socialists and Lafollette progressives looked more to a mixed system where government would not eliminate private capitalism but instead would heavily control it, even to the point of setting up its own key enterprises.
In general, the consensus view was that capitalism had run amok. Wall Street and the failing banking system were under fire. Serious change was in the air and progressives provided the agenda: unionization, public enterprises like the Tennessee Valley Authority, social security, minimum wage and overtime laws, public housing, controls on banking, public employment projects like the Works Progress Administration and the Civilian Conservation Corps. In addition there were experiments in alleviating debilitating competition, controlling prices and overproduction, soil conservation and a host of others, many of which failed.
The reason we don't have bread lines now largely is due to programs that progressives jammed through the under the rubric of the New Deal.
But you would think our Great Recession might be severe enough to at least conjure up a coherent set of reforms. After all, 29 million are unemployed or underemployed and we have poured about $13 trillion in cash and asset guarantees into Wall Street. Only a few months ago, we were all aghast at the incredible casino that was Wall Street. We couldn't believe that billions poured into junk fantasy finance instruments that got AAA ratings. We were really going to do something about those astronomical compensation packages. Our outrage knew no bounds but had no focus, no organization. We were, and maybe still are deeply angered, but we do so in private.
The banks that were too big to fail have actually gotten bigger. No one is even talking about regulating specialty derivatives that were so instrumental in the crash. The consumer financial protection agency is getting watered down by bank lobbyists funded indirectly by our bailout. And to name just one overcompensated financier, Andrew J. Hall, an oil speculator working for CitiGroup, is about to make a mockery of wage constraints by walking off with a $100 million payday -- from a bank that we virtually own.
Still no progressive movement. Still no national agenda for reforms. Still no compelling vision for what needs to be changed. Still no collective action to build our sense of empowerment.
If we are ever to form a coherent reform effort, there are two fundamental changes that should guide us:
1. We must move money from the top of the income ladder to the middle and the bottom. This crisis was the result of near-sighted, selfish tax "reforms" that encouraged money to accumulate in the hands of the top fraction of one percent. Those folks literally ran out of real world investment opportunities that satisfied their demands for high returns, so they poured their excess capital into the fantasy finance casino. We have the worst income distribution since 1929 - no coincidence, I would argue. When money is more fairly distributed we will dry up much of the demand for fantasy finance. | <urn:uuid:c6d1b91d-891b-46a0-b2c0-b8555b424feb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.alternet.org/story/142896/where's_the_progressive_agenda_for_the_great_recession?qt-best_of_the_week=1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00023-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964086 | 724 | 1.75 | 2 |
It seemed to be a simple request and an interesting one to boot.
Family friend Bob Clements approached me after Sunday church services a few weeks back and we were visiting in the parking lot. As we started to depart he causally said I should write an article about the jail cell at Claremore Lake.
Whoa, wait a minute. There is no jail cell that I know about and my parents have lived on that lake going on now almost a half century.
Oh yes there is. It is in the old rock boathouse and it has an interesting history, he corrected me with a wide smile across his face.
There would be no reason for this wise gentleman to make up such a tale. He didn’t have all the details and I am positive he was never incarcerated in the cell. Still what he told me was enough to start a fact-finding journey to learn more. Bob said to watch out for the water moccasins. That was an attention-getter also.
First step was to see the structure for myself. I had to know a little more detail before seeking additional information. The lake attendants on duty when I arrived said yes, the boathouse certainly did have a cell; no, they didn’t know why or when it was used; and yes, I could see it.
The jail cell is directly under the former lake office. The solid steel door had been removed and now is leaning up against the wall nearest the boat ramps. The only window was about 12 inches square. Encased in concrete were one-inch rebar pipes, crisscrossing the opening. This allowed the only light into the cell. The 40-watt light bulbs over the docks didn’t produce much light to start out.
The floor was concrete and covered with lake water. This has been the case since the level of the lake was raised back in the 1970s.
About two feet of pitch black water was in the cell that day. The rangers said they had removed the snakes, but I noticed one of them still carried a long pole in case it was needed. I stayed behind him during my visit, only peeking around him to take a few pictures.
Telephone calls and personal visits followed. Surely someone would know the building’s history.
A Stagecoach Stop?
One local historian said an old stagecoach line ran across that area before the lake was built. It was used to store food and weapons.
Another said the jail was used by Judge Isaac Parker’s deputies back before statehood. It was a resting point as they returned prisoners to Ft. Smith for trial.
Both were great stories, but they were not true. The lake wasn’t formed until 1930-31 for the purpose of supplying drinking water to the city of Claremore. The building housing the boat dock and jail wasn’t constructed until 1938.
This key information was furnished by current Claremore Police Officer Jamie Starling. She is currently gathering records and other facts concerning past and present officers who have served the city as law enforcement officers.
Her research revealed Claremore’s first jail was built between 1901 and ‘03 near Cherokee and Fifth Streets. When the first city hall building went up on the corner of Muskogee and Main, it contained a six cell jail beneath the southwest corner.
In later years the police department had a holding cell, but most lawbreakers were taken to the Rogers County jail at the court house.
What about the cell at the lake?
Continuing her search, Starling found papers showing it was used by city officers as a jail. This confirmed what Clements had told me earlier.
This came from information used in 1985 in an apparent unsuccessful bid to get the boat house on the National Register of Historic Places.
The building was described as a two-story structure constructed of cut native stone. Entry into the building is actually the second floor that has one small room with a chimney. Stairs off to the side lead to the lower level that contains a pair of boat ramps and “…a small room that Claremore policemen once used as a jail.”
The 1938 builder and architect are apparently unknown today. We do know the construction was a Works Progress Administration project. It enabled the WPA to infuse wages of some 16,200 man-hours of labor into the local economy.
It was one of the few WPA-built boathouses in Oklahoma. It may be the only one still standing.
Two questions remain about the cell: Why was it part of the boat house? Was it really used to house prisoners?
The reason of it being included in the boat house remains a mystery.
Both John Dudley and Chester “Hoopie” Baldwin, retired local policemen, said they knew the cell was at the lake. They agreed it was never used during their careers, or had they heard of it used by officers before them.
Claremore Mayor Mickey Perry, former police chief, said the same thing.
According to stories from long time residents, Clements was told the policemen would use it only for “troublesome” prisoners. If a person was causing serious problems while being arrested or jailed, he was simply transported to the lake for an overnight stay.
It’s said that one dark night visiting the catfish and water moccasins was all it took for a remarkable improvement of attitude. | <urn:uuid:d62789c0-3b36-4dbd-bc39-6f1a9791cdf6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://claremoreprogress.com/columnists/x850289302/Boathouse-Jail/print | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.985913 | 1,128 | 1.523438 | 2 |
Word of Mouth
Mon December 17, 2012
Will Politics Influence Gun Laws?
At an interfaith vigil last night, President Obama offered the love and prayers of the nation to community members in Newtown, Connecticut. The President also promised political action designed to prevent future tragedies, saying our society will be judged by how we care for our children. For the Obama administration, it was a timely but vague first foray into the gun control debate.
Adam Winkler is a professor at the UCLA School of Law and author of “Gun-Fight”, which traces the history and current status of gun control in the United States. | <urn:uuid:abb2fff5-7c40-4e3e-89fd-fb0bcb11c71a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.nhpr.org/post/will-politics-influence-gun-laws | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00033-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.935383 | 127 | 1.570313 | 2 |
After almost two years of shooting film nonstop and more than $1,000 worth of expenses on processing and prints, I needed to reconsider my budget and find a way of being able to shoot more and pay less. I thus began to process my C-41 rolls at home. It’s extremely easy to do and I‘ll show you today how to do it, step by step.
First off, this is what you‘ll need (after you incur these small first expenses, processing at home is almost for free):
- A film-developer tank (a lot of people trust Jobo Tanks, I got an AP because they are cheaper)
- A trash bag (or another nice-sized bag that doesn’t have any dust in it)
- The film you want to process
- Measuring tools
- A funnel
- Tetanal C-41 Rapid Kit (they come in liquid and powder form for 1 or 5 litres of working solution. I guess the liquid one is easier to work with but I don’t know since I only used the liquid one)
- Chemistry bottles (I have plastic ones but I‘d rather go for 500ml glass bottles because they are heavier)
- A thermometer
- An aquarium heater
- A timer (I used my cellphone, every cellphone has a timer)
- A water bucket in which you can fit the three bottles and the development tank
Ok, first of all, you need to know that C-41 is a normed process. This means that all films, whichever ASA they are, take the same amount of time to process. This helps if you want to process two films at one go and they have different speeds.
There are different ways to process C-41. The standard is at 100°F, but this is too hot for me and pretty fast, there is the 113°F express process and the 86°F slower process. I will show you the 86°F way, because you can easily control this temperature: it is nice to handle and it is not too fast.
Second, the chemicals will weaken pretty fast. This means the more film you processed already in this solution, the more time it will take. But don‘t worry, each Tetanal pack has a manual in it with a nice chart and processing times.
Third, try to avoid useless air-contact with your chemicals. They will oxidate and go bad faster if you leave bottles open and so on. You can slow this process down if you get yourself a Tetenal Protectant Spray, which puts a film of gas (heavier than air, lighter than water) on top of your chemicals without affecting their ability to process.
Now, lets begin.
Mix your chemicals. I use 500ml working solution, which means I can keep the 1 liter kit for twice as long. Mix them according to the manual in the package and pour each part (CD for Color Developer, BX for Bleach/Fix and Stab for Stabilisator) into one bottle. Close it and label it accordingly. Put them into the water bucket. Also, put the thermometer and the aquarium heater into it and fill the bucket with warm water. It’s crucial that you keep control over the water’s temperature, because there is basically no tolerance in temperature for the process.
You’ll have to wait a little while until everything in the bucket is 86°F. After doing this a few times, you will likely know how warm it has to be and you will be able to guesstimate the exact temperature. You can speed up this process by adding hot water or adding cold water, but I like to just naturally heat up the water using the heater.
Load your film into the development tank. You take the scissors, the film and the tank, put them into the trash bag, and then put the trash bag under your bed’s blanket. I only use the trash bag because I can trust that there is no dust in it. You do not need it, but better be safe than sorry. As you probably know, no light should get to the film. I won‘t explain the rest since there are tons of tutorials on this out there. After you’ve loaded up the film, put the tank into the water bath as well.
We skip the part where you wait to get the right temperature. This can vary between minutes and an hour, depending on various factors. You will have your manual at your side, so you will always be able to check how long each part of the process will take.
First off, pour the CD into your tank. The time starts when you start pouring it. Close the tank and put the funnel in the bottle. Put the tank back into the water bath and just move it around there gently. You can rotate it a bit as well. Do this the entire time. This will first help you use all the chemicals, not only the parts next to your film. It will also help the water in the tank flow around and stay same temperature — your heater is of no use if you only heat up the still water around the heater while the rest cools off. About 10 seconds before time runs out, pour the CD back into its bottle, put the tank down, close the bottle, and put it back if you want to do a second roll later (or put it into storage).
Pour in the BX and do the exact same thing as before. When you put the BX back into its bottle, you‘ll need warm, running water. Rinse the film for about 6 minutes. I normally proceed this way: fill the tank, inverse it 10 times, pour out the water and repeat. I normally do this 12 times, since it takes about 30 seconds each time. After this, it’s Stab time! No! No daggers, no knives. Sorry for that lame pun! Put the tank on a steady surface and pour in the Stab. Just leave it like this for about a minute. Stab foams so much, I never move it because I think there would just be more foam. After this minute, put the Stab back and go rinse the film again.
Now you can open your tank and take a look. I now normally add some drops of wetting agent, but this is up to you. The booklet in the Tetanal kit says nothing about a final rinse and some people just hang the film to dry with the Stab foam still on it. I like it better with wetting agent.
Open up the reel, take the start of your film (in the center), use a clamp (like the kind used for laundry), and hang it to dry. I normally hang two more clamps/clothespins at the bottom end to straighten the film.
Now you can wash out all your processing stuff and really, really dry it. You do not want any calcium residue (due to hard water) in your tank, this could falsify the results for next time. If you want, you can blow-dry your negatives or just let them sit there for about two hours. After that, cut them, put them into sleeves, and press them for a few hours (for best results). At this point, you can also just go ahead and scan them if you need to.
I know, this method is not the cleanest and not the most professional, but it turned out to suit my needs the best. What I found after a while was that you will need lotion for your hands — the water dehydrates your skin so much! I started to wear rubber gloves, which helps retain.
I hope this was a help to some of you, or that at least it helped you decide whether you want to take the next step or not. All in all, it is a great way to save money and to learn something about your film. And of course, it is a great excuse to spend a lot more time with photography.
Here are some examples of my home-processed films:
P.S. One last little addition: I ended up doing about 12 rolls of film per 500ml solution. This almost doubles what is written in the booklet. So you do about 25 rolls with 1 liter of solution instead of 16. | <urn:uuid:f7b204a0-fe8e-4afe-b621-8f08b62317d2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://petapixel.com/2012/10/26/how-to-process-your-c-41-film-at-home/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00030-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.952785 | 1,718 | 1.796875 | 2 |
Pakistan's most wanted: Baitullah Mehsud
Baitullah Mehsud is a Pashtun from the Shabikhel sub-tribe of the Mehsud tribe. He was born in the early 1970s in a village called Landi Dhok in the Bannu region of the North West Frontier Province, which is some distance from the Mehsud tribe's strongholds in South Waziristan.
With a reputation based on his record as a fearless fighter willing to die for the cause, Baitullah's lack of a religious title has not held him back. Although he is the most powerful militant commander in Pakistan, he remains a shadowy figure with perhaps a larger-than-life reputation.
Such was Baitullah influence that the government signed a peace deal with him at Srarogha in February 2005. Under the terms of the agreement, the army withdrew from the areas controlled by Baitullah and agreed to deploy only paramilitary Frontier Corps personnel - who are drawn from the Pashtun tribes - at the five forts there. In return, Baitullah agreed not to harbour foreign militants, attack government officials or block development projects.
The Srarogha agreement virtually handed control of the area to Baitullah as all the checkpoints on the roads were removed and he and his fellow tribesmen were compensated for the human and material losses they had sustained as a result of military operations. Baitullah seems to have taken the opportunity to build up his power base and probably has several thousand battle-hardened fighters.
The peace accord collapsed in August 2007, when Baitullah announced that the military had violated the terms of the agreement by deploying regular troops back into the area and renewing attacks on him. His forces took more than 200 regular soldiers captive on 30 August, apparently without much resistance. They were held hostage until November, when they were released in exchange for 25 detained militants.
While the government was still prepared to cut deals with Baitullah, he was increasingly accused of playing a major role in the escalating violence after the storming of Islamabad's Red Mosque in July. On her return from exile in October, former prime minister Benazir Bhutto said she had been warned that Baitullah was one of several enemies who had sent suicide bombing squads to kill her. One such squad succeeded on 27 December 2007.
Baitullah is close to the Afghan Taliban, having fought with them in the 1990s, and remains a major commander of the current Afghan insurgency, according to the US military. Although a Pakistani, he has publicly declared his allegiance to Mullah Omar, the self-styled emir al-muminin (commander of the faithful) of the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan.
There is little reliable information about Baitullah's relations with the Arab jihadists affiliated to Al-Qaeda. However, Al-Qaeda would almost certainly have wanted to befriend him so that they could use his swathe of territory as a sanctuary. Indeed, Abu Laith al-Libi, an Al-Qaeda commander, was reportedly killed on his way to a meeting with Baitullah.
As the most powerful militant commander in Pakistan's tribal areas, Baitullah was an obvious choice to head a new coalition of pro-Taliban groups. The formation of the Taliban Movement of Pakistan (Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan: TTP) was announced on 14 December 2007 from groups of all seven of the Pakistan's tribal agencies, as well as several districts of the North West Frontier Province.
Baitullah's tenure as TTP leader was short, according to The Asia Times. On 24 January, the newspaper cited contacts in the Taliban as saying that Mullah Omar had sacked Baitullah as the leader because he was overly focused on fighting the Pakistan military, rather than foreign forces in Afghanistan. However, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid subsequently told journalists the mullah did not have the authority to sack Baitullah because Mullah Omar had not elected him.
In January, Baitullah's forces launched a simultaneous offensive against several Frontier Corps forts in South Waziristan, quickly capturing the one at Srarogha, where he had signed the peace deal nearly two years earlier. This seems to be first time that one of these fortified positions has been overrun by militants and would have alarmed the security forces, although they only managed to hold it for a few days. 683 of 3,002 words
- Russia drafts law to fine companies for failing to meet defence orders
- US Army seeks to end its Individual Carbine competition
- US to arm Syrian rebels in response to sarin attacks
- Raytheon to test laser-guided Excalibur rounds
- Indian Scorpene programme faces further delays
- USN performs first hard-kill SSDS test from carrier
- F-35 officials say production increase likely
- F-35 officials say production increase likely
- Hungary issues tender for transport aircraft
- UK warns Scottish defence industries of loss of 'privileged' access to US market | <urn:uuid:82b03afb-dcff-47d1-9891-a2db81db1ab1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.janes.com/products/janes/defence-security-report.aspx?ID=1065927589 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00027-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.982208 | 1,033 | 1.84375 | 2 |
Annie Get Your Gun
The Rockwall Summer Musical Season!
June 14th, 15th, and 16th at 7:30 PM
Rockwall High School
1201 T.L. Townsend Drive
Rockwall, TX 75087
Music and Lyrics IRVING BERLIN, Book by HERBERT AND DORTHY FIELDS
Annie Get Your Gun is a musical with lyrics and music written by Irving Berlin and a book by Dorothy Fields and her brother Herbert Fields. The story is a fictionalized version of the life of Annie Oakley (1860–1926), a sharpshooter who starred in Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show, and her romance with sharpshooter Frank Butler.
The 1946 Broadway production was a hit, and the musical had long runs in both New York (1,147 performances) and London, spawning revivals, a 1950 film version and television versions. Songs that became hits include “There’s No Business Like Show Business”, “Doin’ What Comes Natur’lly”, “You Can’t Get a Man with a Gun”, “They Say It’s Wonderful”, and “Anything You Can Do.”
In the story, Annie Oakley is a poor, but spirited and happy, county girl who lives by her native sharp-shooting skills which quickly makes her the star of Buffalo Bill’s Wild West Show where she meets and falls in love with expert rifleman, Frank Butler. Unfortunately, the tough, outspoken Annie is not Frank’s idea of what a wife should be and the two remain at competitive odds. Then Annie is initiated into a Indian tribe whose Chief, Sitting Bull, gives her advice on how she can win Frank. In the end, Annie lets Frank win in the sharpshooting contest. As a result, he falls in love with Annie and the two sharpshooters get married.
“Any woman who does not thoroughly enjoy tramping across the country on a clear frosty morning with a good gun and pair of dogs does not know how to enjoy life.” – Annie Oakley | <urn:uuid:5646c69b-ef73-415d-8e54-996ec8f92919> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.aplayforfood.org/annie-get-your-gun.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00033-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.933019 | 455 | 1.648438 | 2 |
|T O P I C R E V I E W|
|Hart Sastrowardoyo||Short of calling Rockwell, is there a website where one can ask them, "I saw a tile with serial numbers XXXX-XXXX and was wondering if you could tell which orbiter and what flights it had flown, if any?"|
|Robert Pearlman||The numbers on a tile reference where on the orbiter the tile should be installed. |
When a tile is beyond reuse, technicians use the number to order an exact (to shape and size) replacement.
Unless whoever recovered the tile also recovered its corresponding scrap paperwork, the chances of identifying when a tile last flew are very low.
If s/he does have the paperwork then one indicator would be to look for the OV number and the date of removal. Though not always the case, you can sometimes determine a most recent flight by comparing the date of removal to the orbiter's mission dates and finding the closest match.
|garymilgrom||Why do some tiles not have the OV number on them? Is there a place to enter the tile number and find out what location it is located in on the orbiter?|
|Robert Pearlman||Tiles without markings can be for several reasons, from the numbers having been worn off to their never being added. |
There is not, to my knowledge, a publicly accessible guide or database by which tile numbers can be researched. I have seen paperwork that offers specific information for particular orbiter and flight configurations, but nothing online.
|j0s9||I bought this tile a few months ago and I have seen pictures of flown tiles, but I'm curious about this one since it has some brown spots on the front as well as on the back. Do you think this tile could be flown or why does it have those brown spots? |
|Robert Pearlman||collectSPACE Resources: Locating space shuttle tiles by number |
Think of the space shuttle orbiter as a big puzzle with each of its heat shield tiles a puzzle piece.
All space shuttle thermal protection system (TPS) tiles are assigned a serial number identifying where on the orbiters they are to be installed. Each tile is individually made to fit a specific location...
quote: If it had flown, the back of the tile would have been 'glued' with a red room temperature vulcanizing substance to a felt like strain insulator pad. The back of the tile would probably not have come off this clean, with engraved numbers still visible.
Originally posted by j0s9:
Do you think this tile could be flown or why does it have those brown spots?
|Joel Katzowitz||I recently acquired a flown tile with it's supporting paperwork and I have a few questions regarding it's history.|
With all of the recent controversy over FOIA inquiries to NASA concerning tiles, should I even open that can of worms?
I read online that the TPS NO. "AFT-4-21-119" on my paperwork can be decoded as the -4- indicates the orbiter number (OV-104) and the -21- indicates the next sequential mission for that vehicle. Obviously inferring that the tile was removed following the 20th mission (STS-86). According the tile maps I've seen, my tile was removed from the top surface of the body flap hence AFT. Can anyone confirm this theory?
The tile surface is coated with a black silicone material as opposed to a hard shell. The surface of my tile feels soft and spongy like rubber or silicone. It has "blisters" raised on it with what appear to be wear marks. I read a description on line regarding a similar tile that mentioned the coating was there to mitigate airflow issues over the tile.
I have been independently researching these questions but have haven't uncovered any satisfying answers. Thanks for any input.
Editor's note: Threads merged.
|Joel Katzowitz||I've been able to uncover some additional information about this tile which I'll be happy to share.|
There are a couple of areas on the top of the body flap where tiles have been damaged by impingement from the down-firing RCS thrusters. To reduce the degradation, NASA has coated the surface of those susceptible tiles with black RTV. The RTV maintains it's elasticity after ascent and provides protection from the plumes. The blistering and pitting on this specimen is a result of long term thruster activity.
|brody1140||I have an early shuttle tile with the following codes on it: |
V070 - 193017-438 Can anyone please tell me which shuttle it was flown on?
|garymilgrom||There is no way to tell. All we can know is that it's from the lower elevons.|
More information here
|Skuz9c1||Sorry, to hijack this thread a little, but I have a tile where the numbers don't match up to the list NASA put out above.|
It is Black if that makes a difference.
|Greggy_D||I believe that since your tile starts with VT, it is actually a test article.|
|garymilgrom||Yes that's a test piece which sounds similar to this one:|
|Skuz9c1||Thanks Gregg and Gary, I had a hunch that's what it was. But, since it wasn't on the NASA list, I wanted to make sure.|
|Spaceguy5||I have a VT tile as well. Assumed that it was a test piece, good to know that I was right.|
|garymilgrom||Anyone know what the NFI or NF1 stands for? Perhps not for installation? |
I have some other test pieces where these letters are marked on the rear of the tile too (most tiles have the entire number marked on both sides of the tile).
|dragon001||Curious if someone can confirm that VT are actual test articles... I found this site, about half way down: |
I'm trying to locate VT70-191037-027, I see that it is on the wing but I would like to see if I can get a picture of exactly where. In the general location anyway... ...to which someone replied:
This is an more interesting tile than average. Its located on the door that normally covers the orbiter's left-hand main landing gear - specifically towards the front of the door and towards its outer edge where the door hinge is located. The tile is of a type know as LI-900 which covers the bulk of the underside of the orbiters, and is a High-temperature Reusable Surface Insulation (HRSI) black tile.
|garymilgrom||I cannot confirm that ALL tiles marked VT were used for testing but here is another one, different from the black one above. I believe this tile was used during transport of Columbia (the first orbiter) to KSC before tile installation was complete. These "delivery tiles" ensured smooth airflow so as not to disrupt thermal tiles already in place. The back of this tile has the SIF pad and red RTV glue.|
|garymilgrom||Columbia showing what I believe are "real" thermal tiles plus delivery tiles and untiled areas while under construction in Palmdale.|
|garymilgrom||Here are photos of the left landing door of Atlantis. First is overall, second is closer view of the hinge area and LH identification, last is close up showing markings. I can see no tiles marked VT in this area.|
Finally - Joel here are some tiles labelled AFT that are near the fuel line door:
|Rocket Chris||LWNG = Left Wing| | <urn:uuid:2e412866-974f-460e-b26a-b5e2bebcf200> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.collectspace.com/cgi-bin/postings.cgi?action=reply&forum=Hardware+%7CAMP%7C+Flown+Items&number=14&topic=000534.cgi&TopicSubject=Identifying+space+shuttle+thermal+tiles&replyto=10 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.956833 | 1,626 | 1.734375 | 2 |
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) - Dominion Virginia Power is asking Virginia regulators for permission to convert its oldest coal-fired power station in Fluvanna County to natural gas.
The Richmond, Va.-based energy provider said Wednesday that it filed an application with the Virginia State Corporation Commission for the conversion of its Bremo Power Station.
Dominion had previously announced plans to close or convert some of its power stations, as well as open new ones, as part of its blueprint to meet growing energy demands in the state.
The company also says that new environmental regulations and the low price and availability of natural gas have made operating smaller, older coal-fired stations uneconomical.
If regulators approve the estimated $53.4 million conversion, the company said it would cease burning coal at the station in the fall of 2013. | <urn:uuid:9c107fee-05cf-4724-bba8-34012d3f0aea> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wusa9.com/news/green/article/220262/175/Dominion-Asks-Virginia-Regulators-To-Convert-Power-Plant | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964954 | 171 | 1.789063 | 2 |
What I hope for from Davos
The imperative for designing a new reality has never been clearer. Put simply we will need to decouple consumption from scarce natural resources in order to help reboot the economy and put the breaks on climate change.
At Nike we believe that creating more sustainable business models, transforming our products to become closed loop and our supply chain to be lean, green and equitable, will enable us to thrive and win in a future sustainable economy. Our work done on this front is already paying dividends through risk abatement, efficiencies and competitive differentiation in sustainable design and innovation.
At Davos, we work with a group of other progressive companies who are innovating with the same urgency and determination. For the past three years we have grappled with the issues of reducing or eliminating the use of water, decreasing our reliance on fossil fuels and how to turn waste into renewable material. It’s given birth to the GreenXchange, an online network to share green innovation, and to three key reports issued by the World Economic Forum and Deloitte & Touche.
But one word continues to challenge us as we map our journey from here to there – scale. Without scale this work will, at best, produce shiny examples, at worst we will only take incremental steps.
We live in an intertwined, complex mesh of industries, regulation, marketplaces and communities. For the type of scale the world needs to see, we need not only the early business leaders to be doing what they do best – investing in innovation and shaping market forces – we need government to play a crucial role in enabling policies, legislation and regulation that will encourage the scaling of transformative change.
Right now we need policy innovations and public-private partnerships that will enable a rapid, scalable transition to a green economy. We need co-investments in R&D to fast track technical innovation; we would benefit from government procurement strategies that create certainty and demand for green products; trade policies with sustainability-based incentives; innovative loan and financing mechanisms for manufacturers which would help transition supply chains to become greener and leaner; take back legislation that would help accelerate recycling and recovery infrastructure which in turn would create jobs. These are just some of the policy innovations that could help propel us collectively toward scale and a sustainable economy.
So I go to Davos, as chair of the Consumer Groups “Sustainable Consumption Initiative”, to sit with policy makers and talk about how we build a place of trust and dialogue that will spur policy innovation.
With other companies and under the auspices of the World Economic Forum, we will propose creating a platform where innovative policy makers and committed businesses can meet to talk of what is possible when it comes to scale, collaboration and innovation.
Wish us luck.
Hannah Jones is Vice President of Sustainable Business and Innovation at Nike.
The comments to this entry are closed. | <urn:uuid:c93ccfd7-c0ff-4946-84bf-25287de010f4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://voices.washingtonpost.com/davos-diary/2011/01/what_i_hope_for_from_davos.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00024-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.935791 | 586 | 1.6875 | 2 |
So what's the deal with "Irene"? Meaning, how'd she, I mean it, I mean the hurricane end up being called Irene, specifically? Why not another female name, like ... Sarah? Or Michelle? (Heh heh). Seriously, though, how does a hurricane acquire an identity?
I'll admit, I never imagined the process of naming hurricanes to be a very regimented one. In fact, I always pictured a little room filled with mad scientist types throwing darts at a list of randomly chosen names: Esmerelda, Bernice, Eunice, Vera. The weather wizards would argue bitterly over every decision. And of course there would be stray cats everywhere, as the scientists would acquire and name a new feline companion after every storm of note.
Turns out I was mistaken, however ...
Back in the day -- meaning, like, the 1940's -- Army and Navy meteorologists got to name tropical cyclones after their wives or girlfriends. (The ultimate revenge!) But since 1979, the National Weather Service has rotated through a list of alternating (male and female) names which get recycled every six years.
Variations are made to the list only in the event of a particularly devastating hurricane. In that case, the name will be removed from the sequence. Katrina, for example, has been retired. Interestingly enough, Irene is from the same cycle Katrina was on back in 2005.
This being just the beginning of hurricane season, the odds are good that we'll be meeting at least a few of the other potential characters allocated for 2011 storms. Should we actually get to 11 hurricanes, we'll be shaking hands with Katrina's replacement, Katia. (Argh, I'm already confused!!)
I bet you're just dying to know who's waiting in the wings, aren't you?? I really shouldn't spoil the surprise ... but, well, alright. Twist my arm, why don't ya?
Here they are ...
Arlene, Bret, Cindy, Don, Emily, Franklin, Gert, Harvey, Jose, Katia, Lee, Maria, Nate, Ophelia, Philippe, Rena, Sean, Tammy, Vince, and Whitney.
Which one is your favorite?
Image via NASA/Flickr | <urn:uuid:32bc31b5-f82d-4b5d-b4de-edb367e05111> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://thestir.cafemom.com/in_the_news/125136/hurricane_names_are_picked_in | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954893 | 464 | 1.820313 | 2 |
Developers get early look at Google Glass
SAN FRANCISCO (KGO) -- Google gave a select group of developers their first look at its new high-tech glasses Monday at an event wrapped in a cloak of secrecy.
Last spring at Google's IO conference, co-founder Sergey Brin announced Project Glass in a publicity stunt complete with skydiving before unveiling the real surprise.
"This is a really new technology and we really want all of you to help shape it," he said.
Developers lined up to pay $1,500 each, for an early version of the smart glasses that photograph your life and feed you relevant information through a little display right above your eye.
Forget tablets and cellphones -- analyst Paul Saffo says this is something new.
"I think Google Glass is going to really capture consumers' attention because it's been awhile since we've been offered a completely new gizmo," he said.
Now those developers who signed up are getting their first chance to play with glass at a top secret event in San Francisco. Word is they've signed such an air-tight agreement that they may not be allowed to take the devices out of the building or use them with their personal Google accounts, let alone show them to the media.
Despite the shroud of secrecy, plenty of people are talking about Project Glass. You might even argue the deafening silence coming out of Google's San Francisco office has only made the speculation louder.
"I just think it would allow you to be more interactive with your environment because you're always sort of staring at your phone and you're never realizing what's around you," aspiring Glass owner Ritu Kumar said.
But if you do look around you, you might spot Brin wearing glass on BART or Muni. Last week he was spotted wearing them on the New York subway.
To Saffo, it all looks like a calculated public relations plan.
As just about every tech company seems to be working on some sort of glasses. Google and its developers are working on giving you a reason to buy theirs.
"What kept everybody from commercializing this is figuring out the secret sauce that would make ordinary users want to wear these things and Google must think that they're getting close," Saffo said.
google, silicon valley, technology, jonathan bloom
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- abcnews: Hero teacher covered students with body
- roundup: SF bank robbery; Search for survivors
- weather: Bay Area weather forecast for Wednesday | <urn:uuid:0756378d-4194-4232-a0ea-47fdbe3ef847> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.abclocal.go.com/kgo/story?section=news/technology&id=8971753 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00035-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.95706 | 638 | 1.578125 | 2 |
Blackmagic Design - Da Vinci on Mac Demonstration: MacVideo Expo 2010
Blackmagic Design EMEA Resolve Specialist, Dan Moran demonstrates the world's most advanced colour correction software. Using raw video files, Dan takes everyday clips through the colour correction process and demonstrate key features such as primary and secondary correction, tracking and keying. Prior to Blackmagic Design takeover of DaVinci, you could only buy bespoke systems which started at $100,000.00 for your most basic system with systems costing $200 - $250k. Now you can step into this technology for less than $1000 USD.
The new DaVinci Resolve 7.0 for Mac now reads and writes all the common Apple ProRes file formats including 4444, 422, 422(HQ), 422 (Proxy) and 422 (LT) directly on the timeline with no conversion required. Colorists can just select the clips in their media storage and DaVinci Resolve will play and grade them in real time, even if there are mixed resolutions and formats on the timeline.
Prior to the Blackmagic acquisition, DaVinci Resolve systems were pre built and priced from $200,000 for a 1 GPU based system, to over $800,000 for a 16 GPU top of the line system. Even though this was in line with industry standard practice, it meant professional color correction was way too expensive for most people to afford.
Blackmagic Design has now introduced 3 models of DaVinci Resolve. These models include a new Mac based software only version, a Mac based version that includes the incredible DaVinci Resolve control surface, and a high end Linux version that lets you build multiple GPU supercomputer based systems for unlimited power. Blackmagic Design has also worked hard to give colorists affordable and easy upgrade options as needed.
When running on a Mac, DaVinci Resolve is limited to a single GPU based solution because of slot availability and lack of InfiniBand for Mac, however this does not mean it's limited on power! In the company's performance testing, the single GPU performance on Mac is similar to the single GPU Linux systems that cost $200,000 only 2 years ago.
This means DaVinci Resolve on Mac is a fantastic solution for SD and HD, and even 2K. Colorists can rotate images, re-frame, add corrections, blurs and trackers, and then just hit play, and it's all real time. Plus, because no features are disabled on this software only version, when faster GPU cards are released in the future, customers can simply plug them in for more power. This really is a true high end color correction system.
DaVinci Resolve requires customers to add a third party control panel such as the Tangent Wave™, and a single CUDA capable GPU card. If video I/O is required, then DaVinci Resolve currently requires a DeckLink HD Extreme 3D card. Blackmagic Design will also be working hard to open DaVinci Resolve up to other brands of control panel, capture cards and GPUs as fast as possible.
The midrange DaVinci Resolve model includes both the Mac DaVinci Resolve software as well as the DaVinci Resolve Control Surface. This control surface lets colorists adjust settings in DaVinci Resolve with over 60 knobs and buttons. Colorists can work incredibly fast while keeping their head up and looking at the grading monitor while working. Customers get the power of a single GPU system with the simplicity of the Mac for a fast and easy to use grading solution. DaVinci Resolve with control surface is US$29,995.
When customers are working with heavy color corrections in HD, 2K, 4K or even 3D, then the top model thats sold as a software upgrade for the DaVinci Control Surface lets customers move to a Linux based system that allows multiple GPUs and CPUs for faster processing. This Linux license is US$19,995.
When customers need faster processing, then the Linux version lets them upgrade simply by adding GPUs as they need. All GPUs work together to increase the resolution that can run in real time, as well as the number of corrections that can be done in real time. DaVinci Resolve is a real time system, so being able to add extra GPUs and CPUs gives customers virtually unlimited power while fitting tight budgets.
Customers can keep adding hardware such as GPUs and CPUs which are pre-certified by Blackmagic Design and available from DaVinci Specialist Resellers. Because it's a full Linux license, customers don't need to pay anything more for the software. In price checking done by the company, we have found that the most powerful system that's possible to build would still be less than $150,000 including all hardware and software. A system with this large amount of processing power would give colorists dozens of real time corrections even in stereoscopic 3D at 2K, or even 4K. | <urn:uuid:5ffe4c7b-6ffc-4b2e-9b9b-2afbd2dc0431> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.macvideo.tv/encoding/features/?articleId=3248808&pagType=samechandate | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00030-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950906 | 1,039 | 1.671875 | 2 |
May 19th, 2013 Pentecost May 20th, 2013 Whit Monday May 21st, 2013 World Day for Cultural Diversity May 22nd, 2013 World Biological Diversity Day May 22nd, 2013 National Maritime Day May 25th, 2013 African Liberation Day May 26th, 2013 Trinity Sunday May 27th, 2013 Jefferson Davis Birthday May 27th, 2013 Memorial Day May 29th, 2013 International Day of United Nations Peacekeepers May 30th, 2013 Corpus Christi May 31st, 2013 World No Tobacco Day June 1st, 2013 Statehood Day June 3rd, 2013 Jefferson Davis Birthday June 4th, 2013 World Day for Child Victims of Aggression June 5th, 2013 World Environment Day June 6th, 2013 Isra and Mi'raj June 8th, 2013 World Oceans Day June 11th, 2013 Kamehameha Day June 12th, 2013 World Day Against Child Labour June 14th, 2013 Flag Day June 14th, 2013 World Blood Donor Day June 16th, 2013 Father's Day June 17th, 2013 World Day to Combat Desertification June 17th, 2013 Bunker Hill Day June 19th, 2013 Juneteenth June 20th, 2013 West Virginia Day June 20th, 2013 World Refugee Day
2 Vintage China Head Dolls Hand Painted Faces W/ Handmade Clothing 10" & 12" For Sale
This sale is for 2 Vintage China Head Dolls.
Both I believe are reproductions of the originals. Possibly made from kits that were popular in the late 60's early 70's. Head / Arms and Feet are china/porcelain. Bodies are filled with sawdust. The clothes are made with such detail with a mix of machine and tiny hand stitching. I opened up the back of one of them to see inside the head and there were no markings. The gal in the brown wool dress has her dress sewn on the back and I couldn't take it off to inspect her well. Her cloth legs have some old repairs. China parts of both dolls are in great shape. Garments have some soilingand small holes consistent with age. They stand approx. 10 & 12 inches tall. Please refer to pictures for further details.
Any questions just ask.
This item has been shown 137 times.
2 Vintage China Head Dolls Hand Painted Faces W/ Handmade Clothing 10" & 12" : $45 | <urn:uuid:00c17a8a-12ab-4ba0-9123-0052e4034a35> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.holidays.net/store/2-Vintage-China-Head-Dolls-Hand-Painted-Faces-W-Handmade-Clothing-10-%26-12-_181085757288.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950676 | 482 | 1.84375 | 2 |
And the rotation policy, too, did not seem to diminish combat effectiveness
among the Marines. Rather, quite the opposite was true (so claimed the 1st Mar Div
anyway). "[The rotation policy] has been successful and is a most important factor in
maintaining morale and efficiency. . . ." In fact, the rotation program was such a success
in the division's eyes that it elected not to participate in EUSAK's Rest and
Rehabilitation Program that rotated personnel to Japan for leave. (Marines usually
stayed in the division for about nine months).4
There was one caveat to this. The rotation policy did not apply to the KMC
Regiment. Their only rotation, at least for the enlisted personnel, was on a stretcher.5
For the 7th Marines at least, the rotation policy led to unit pride in one respect.
"We didn't do much but sleep and eat the first few days and then we heard the 13th draft
would be coming in to replace our losses. I heard someone say, 'That's what the
Chinese call the 7th Regiment the Ghost Regiment. They think they have killed most of
us off two or three times, but we keep coming back with new Marine replacements.' The
7th Marines also carried the flag for the First Marine Division since they had fought the
rear echelon against several Chinese divisions in the Chosin Reservoir pull back. We
had a lot of pride to live up to for the men who went before us."6
Several problems existed concerning the 1 Mar Div. One problem, according to
MajGen Frank E. Lowe, USAR (an advisor and close friend of President Truman who
was sent on an evaluation trip to Korea in late 1950 through early 1951), was that
whereas in the Army there was an abundance of specialists and few fighters, the 1st
4 U. S. Pacific Fleet, "Third Interim Evaluation Report," 15-3 to 15-27.
s Interview with Colonel KIM Yun Gun, Historical Branch, Headquarters Marine Corps, 22 December,
1958, in file labeled "transcripts," Marine Corps Korean War document collection, CD #14, page 5.
6 Oral memoir of Jon Charles Genrich.
Montandon, Joshua W.. Battle for the Punchbowl: The U. S. 1st Marine Division 1951 Fall Offensive of the Korean War. Denton, Texas. UNT Digital Library. http://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc3938/. Accessed June 20, 2013. | <urn:uuid:56e0c527-7d5a-4f3b-8db2-17adf2a6fa67> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://digital.library.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metadc3938/m1/54/ocr/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955852 | 540 | 1.796875 | 2 |
Nearly half of homes are participating in Clinton’s revamped curbside recycling program, and in excess of 5 tons of recyclable items have been collected through just two days, according to early information from the city’s Public Works and Utilities officials.
“It’s looking like probably 45 percent,” Public Works manager Tony Steffen, judging from rough tallies and information from crews, said Wednesday. “I think we’re a little shy of half.”
He said late Wednesday that 5.4 tons of recyclable items were hauled to Fayetteville, representing the contents of carts picked up Tuesday and Wednesday, along with the collections made from city buildings and the lone convenience site on West John Street.
Recycling collection began on Tuesday following an extensive lead-up to the return of Clinton’s curbside program.
City crews delivered 96-gallon blue roll-out containers to addresses at the beginning of this month, tagging and dropping the containers off to single-family and duplex homes across the city. Each cart will remain property of the delivery address and is electronically identified with a microchip to its delivery address.
“They’re still putting roll-out carts out as they call and request them. And if they don’t want them, we can go pick them up,” said Steffen. “We encourage them to call us. It lets us establish information on who’s using them, and gives us needed information on who wants to participate.”
At the end of last year, the City Council approved entering into a state grant program that would pay half of the $150,000 cost of purchasing 3,000 96-gallon containers. The other $75,000 will come from the city, however that cost is being offset by discontinuing a $55,000 annual contract with Onslow Container Service, which rented and hauled off 30 yard roll-off containers at all four convenience drop-off sites.
Those sites are now completely gone, with the exception of the West John Street location, which now consists of a dozen blue carts like the ones placed at homes across Clinton. The site has been getting continual use since it was set up earlier this month.
“We’re having to service that every day,” said Steffen, “and we placed four more carts out there.”
With two collection days in the books, Tuesday and Wednesday, high curbside participation rates have been seen on Johnson Street, Park Avenue and Stewart Avenue, as well as in the Bellfield community, which Steffen said was the site of “dominant participation” at well over 50 percent. However, a few streets over from areas of high participation, he said, there may be streets with just a couple blue carts dotting the curb so the 45 percent figure could stay fairly steady.
Steffen noted that the convenience site previously stationed near the Sampson Center on Barden Street received the lowest of participation and Steffen said it will be interesting to see if curbside, to be collected in that area Thursday, gets more play. Even if it does not, high participation is expected when homes at Fox Lake and Coharie Country Club are serviced Friday.
Along with single-family and duplexes in Clinton, the recycling service has been extended to local business and other entities as resources — and carts — allow. Steffen said that churches, apartments, city buildings and Schindler Corporation are to be picked up on Mondays. The curbside service is expected to extend regularly to commercial enterprises and other city addresses as the program becomes more successful and grows.
“We’ll keep incorporating them as we go along,” said Steffen.
While the figures are only being estimated at this point, the 45 percent participation number would be a good start if it proves accurate.
“That percentage is strong for just beginning,” Steffen remarked. “You’ve got to bear in mind, we’re still pushing the education piece and trying to get is publicized.”
The city, which began curbside recycling in 1993 using the shallow 18-gallon containers, began exploring other recycling options at the end of 2005 due to contractual issues, increased costs and low participation dipping under 20 percent.
Public works director Jeff Vreugdenhil has said he is confident the city will see a successful program this time around, having learned lessons from other municipalities and traded in small containers for the 96-gallon roll-out carts. He said public education and participation is key.
In the past couple weeks, Public Works crews have distributed pamphlets, brochures, even refrigerator magnets, detailing everything residents need to know about the city’s new program, from what items can and cannot be recycled, how the single-stream collection works, a comprehensive calendar identifying the every-other-week regular collection schedule and holiday schedule, as well as general know-how and positive environmental and fiscal benefits that come with recycling.
Local participation is not mandatory, but is encouraged. While the state average for curbside recycling is around 20 percent, some towns see upwards of 40 percent. That is what city officials want to see.
Steffen said this week has been a good kick-off thus far.
“I think we are transitioning very well,” he said. “I think we’re going to have a good success rate when all is said and done.”
Chris Berendt can be reached at 910-592-8137 ext. 121 or via email at [email protected]. | <urn:uuid:2efcd5e5-89f6-4a63-8a37-86e2ffe131ca> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://clintonnc.com/view/full_story/21966416/article-Recycling-under-way-in-Clinton | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.953638 | 1,182 | 1.632813 | 2 |
MINOT, N.D. — The flooding Souris River appears to be leveling off in Minot.
National Weather Service meteorologist Patrick Ayd says only slight changes in the river's level are expected Sunday. He says a storm that hit Minot on Saturday night had little effect.
Ayd says a river crest may not be declared until late Sunday.
Early Sunday the river was less than 7 feet above major flood stage. The river's levels didn't change during the night by more than fractions of an inch.
North Dakota National Guard soldiers are monitoring a submerged pedestrian bridge to make sure it doesn't break loose in the river channel.
Guard commander David Sprynczynatyk says the bridge has been trapping debris and could harm nearby levees. If it comes loose, soldiers will remove it.
© Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. | <urn:uuid:4b3407c5-44e6-48a4-b436-2f4be3ae4161> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.newsmax.com/US/NorthDakotaFlooding/2011/06/26/id/401461 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951772 | 192 | 1.570313 | 2 |
Economists: Intellectual Whores
Since the early days of recorded history there have always existed a class of people who will sell their intellectual prowess to those in power. The exceptions seem so rare that they are talked about for centuries afterwards. The most famous being Socrates.
More typical are those who come up with reasons that the status quo is the appropriate organization of society and that those in power are the perfect persons to be running things. Starting in the "Dark Ages" and up through the 18th Century religious leaders played a prominent role. They were able to find justifications for concepts like the "divine right of kings" and the "just war". As religion became less pervasive there were secular advisers that replaced them, Machiavelli for example.
We now live in the "Age of Enlightenment" or the "Scientific Age" and the arguments used in the past don't have the same weight. What is needed is a "scientific" rationale for the organization of society. This role has now been taken over by economists. Using statistics and mathematical theories they have been able to produce whatever justification was desired by those employing them. Proof of their intellectual dishonesty is easily found. For every economist who can "prove" the effectiveness of, say, trickle down economics there is another who can demonstrate that such policies are a complete failure. Science is based upon the concept of testability. A set of conditions is set up and the outcome is observed. If the outcome is as predicted then the hypothesis being tested is considered more likely to be correct. If the outcome is different a new hypothesis must be found to replace the failed one.
In any given society there are so many factors operating at once that it is impossible to determine which are the significant forces. There is also no way to rerun an experiment. So what happens is that economic developments which occur sequentially are stated to have a causal relationship where no such thing can be proved. I'm in the middle of a book which claims to prove that the rise in the size of the payroll tax as a replacement for tariffs has led to a fifty year decline in the growth rate of the US economy. Others claim that tax cuts for corporations and the wealthy have led to economic growth, but they can't demonstrate how much growth there would have been if a different tax structure had been in place.
It is time to start evaluating economic policy from a humanistic perspective. Are policies making things better for everyone? If there are losers as a result of a policy can their losses be mitigated in some other way? Do the policies increase wealth disparity, political power or ecological harm? These things don't require economic models, just dispassionate observation. If the number of people in the US who are poor and/or lack health care is increasing then the present policy is a failure. If the oil drilling in Nigeria is ruining the local ecology and destroying the surrounding communities then the policy is a failure.
It is time to stop debating economic theories and recognize them for what they are, the modern equivalent of the divine right of kings argument. If things are getting better and the ecosystem is being treated in a sustainable way, then the policies are working, regardless of what the economist's "theories" say. How to move from a society dominated by a wealthy elite is a difficult problem. In most cases it has required a violent disruption in the social structure. The classic examples are the French and Russian revolutions. But, recently many Eastern European and Latin American countries have been able to transform their economic systems with a minimal level of disruption.
The question is whether the Western industrialized countries are willing to face their current challenges or whether they are going to let world affairs overtake them with uncontrolled consequences. Economies where the working population is declining in wealth and where employment opportunities are shifting from productive work to speculative services and militarism have always collapsed in the past. Their rivals are not hampered by a self-serving elite and its intellectual whores and can and will make decisions which make them more productive and competitive.
Moral: Replacing self-serving intellectualism is necessary for a
more humanistic society. | <urn:uuid:845112ef-7648-488a-9113-ad02a9efff6f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://robertdfeinman.com/society/whores.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968303 | 835 | 1.71875 | 2 |
India 'warned' of Pakistan missile test
India received advance notice from Pakistan of today's test of the Ghauri (Hatf V) nuclear-capable missile, an official Indian source said.
Pakistan's High Commission in New Delhi had informed India's foreign ministry about the possible tests "a couple of days ago," the source said.
The ministry however had no immediate comment on the test of the missile, capable of striking deep into India.
In Islamabad, military spokesman Major General Shaukat Sultan said the 1,500 km range missile, part of Pakistan's Ghauri series of missiles, had been "successfully tested".
The test came just a few days after a new government took office in India.
The new administration has pledged to continue a peace process with Pakistan but postponed talks aimed at easing nuclear tensions, saying it needed time to settle in.
Pakistan says its weapons program is a response to that of India, with which it has fought three wars since both countries won independence from Britain in 1947. | <urn:uuid:3988cc43-f14e-4004-8c3e-083a2b5ef2c7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2004/05/29/1085641755388.html?from=storylhs | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963231 | 207 | 1.570313 | 2 |
Presidential rivals Obama and Romney prepare for first debate
Obama was huddling with top advisers at a desert resort in Nevada, while Romney was practicing in Massachusetts before heading to Colorado, the site of the first debate before the U.S. elections in November.
Republican Mitt Romney was hoping to change the trajectory of his campaign Monday as he and President Barack Obama studied for their first debate on Wednesday, one of Romney's best, and last, opportunities to stop Obama's rise in the polls.
Adding to the performance pressure was the growing momentum in early voting, with the most important of the battleground states that will decide the November 6 election, Ohio, starting to take ballots Tuesday.
Obama was huddling with top advisers at a desert resort in Nevada. Romney was practicing in Massachusetts before heading to Colorado, the site of the debate and another of the handful of states that will determine the election.
Polls show Romney trailing Obama in many of those nine battleground states, which do not reliably vote Democrat or Republican and have been deluged by campaign ads and visits. All but two of them have early voting.
The first of the three presidential debates is focused on domestic issues like the economy, which remains voters' top concern. Romney has a chance to convince the public that he's the better candidate to turn the country's high unemployment around.
"What I'm most concerned about is having a serious discussion about what we need to do to keep the country growing and restore security to hardworking Americans," Obama said during a rally in Las Vegas Sunday night. "That is what people are going to be listening for. That's the debate you deserve."
Republicans were keeping up the pressure on Obama on international issues, namely his administration's handling of the attack on a U.S. consulate in Libya that led to the death of the U.S. ambassador and three others.
The Obama administration has called it a terrorist attack. It came amid violent protests in the Muslim world over an amateur anti-Islam film made in the U.S.
Romney, in an opinion piece in The Wall Street Journal, repeated his criticism of Obama for having called the attack and other unrest in the Middle East "bumps in the road."
"Our country seems to be at the mercy of events rather than shaping them," Romney wrote. "We're not moving them in a direction that protects our people or our allies."
Romney's running mate, Paul Ryan, on Sunday shot down the idea that Romney needed to have a breakthrough performance in Wednesday's debate, saying he didn't think one event would make or break the campaign.
Romney's team has made no secret of the fact that the former Massachusetts governor has been practicing intensely for several weeks.
Obama aides have kept quiet about how and when the president is practicing. | <urn:uuid:163bd889-f9a9-4810-ac81-58eee728a465> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.haaretz.com/misc/article-print-page/presidential-rivals-obama-and-romney-prepare-for-first-debate-1.467702?trailingPath=2.169%2C2.216%2C2.315%2C | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00025-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.979268 | 570 | 1.632813 | 2 |
The first thing you notice when you travel from southern Cameroon to the Far North is that suddenly, everyone seems a little bit taller and a whole lot thinner. The people of the Far North remind me of the Masai – long, impossibly lean, and elegant beyond description, with cheekbones that could cut glass.
The second thing you notice is color – the total lack of it in this parched dun landscape aching for water at the end of the dry season, and the raucous surfeit of it in the robes, scarves and head coverings of the women. Even in the withering heat, they look amazing.
But the day I visited Mordok village outside Maroua, instead of blazing sun, we had cool, rainy weather. We were traveling with Heifer‘s aptly titled Animator, Robert Ndouwountang, a local organizer who speaks both French and the tribal language of Guiziga, and he is a force of nature all by himself. Robert has been responsible for training, implementing, overseeing and motivating Heifer’s project in Mordok since 2007, as part of Heifer‘s large umbrella project that will benefit 1,270 farm families of 10,160 people here in Cameroon’s Far North.
The Mordok group -actually 2 groups – is 100% women and the project’s goal is food security for the village. In this region with 38% malnutrition in children, and about 9 children per household (2-3 of them usually adopted from other families or relatives), that’s no small undertaking.
Take the energy stove. Each woman built one using local clay in about 30 minutes (with the animator’s guidance), and now the firewood laboriously collected in the bush & hauled home lasts five days, instead of 1 ½. To prove that to her daughter, one woman did a side-by-side test and found the energy stove used 70% less firewood and cooks faster. (Plus, the women can cook outside during the 9-month dry season, shielding the whole family from dangerous indoor smoke.)
The sheep the women received from Heifer have not just added protein and income to families’ lives, their manure is collected to produce compost that has doubled the production of their fields. And by using retaining walls and terracing, as Robert has encouraged them to do, farmers are protecting the region’s soil from erosion and degradation and conserving precious water.
Women’s groups in several villages have even banded together to build water-tight storage facilities for their grains and onions, so they will last through the wet season, instead of counting on traditional handmade straw structures to keep out the rain and moisture. The impact of that improvement? An 80 kilo bag of onions that sells for 5000 francs ($10) at harvest time will bring in 120,000 ($240) at the end of the wet season. And these joint efforts are a direct result of the leadership and organizational trainings the women are putting into action.
And yet, life is still very difficult here. The children are too skinny, and some of the women looked so fragile. When I asked what the family eats in a typical day, the women say they have pap, or bui, (cooked grains) for breakfast. For lunch, it’s sauce and cous-cous, the ubiquitous fu-fu of cassava, yams or plantains, boiled and pounded into dough. And more cous-cous and sauce for dinner. Once a month, the family will have meat. And once a week, fruit.
Yet somehow the women’s group here, organized since 1998, has found a way to give to others — passing on the gift of knowledge and animals to another women’s group – and they are happy that the gender trainings have encouraged their husbands to help out more around the household (women do 90% of the farming and 70% of the livestock care).
No mother should ever have to see her children go hungry. | <urn:uuid:69427124-7718-4c2a-be05-bc5f348fe5df> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://heifer12x12.com/tag/gic-djounoukoum-ay/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00025-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958448 | 833 | 1.84375 | 2 |
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