text
stringlengths 211
22.9k
| id
stringlengths 47
47
| dump
stringclasses 1
value | url
stringlengths 14
371
| file_path
stringlengths 138
138
| language
stringclasses 1
value | language_score
float64 0.93
1
| token_count
int64 54
4.1k
| score
float64 1.5
1.84
| int_score
int64 2
2
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
We’ve avoided piling on to the George Will kerfuffle, partly because this was not a new story for us (we’d commented on very similar distortions in previous columns in 2004 and 2007), but mostly because everyone else seems to be doing a great job in pointing out the problems in his recent columns.
We are actually quite gratified that a much wider group of people than normal have been involved in calling out this latest nonsense, taking the discussion well outside the sometimes-rarefied atmosphere of the scientific blogosphere (summary of links). Maybe RealClimate has succeeded in its original aim of increasing the wider awareness of the scientific context? However, like many, we are profoundly disappointed in the reaction of the Washington Post editors and George Will himself (though the ombudsman’s column today is a step in the right direction). It would have been pleasant to see an example of the conservative punditocracy actually learning something from the real world instead of resorting to ever-more unconvincing pseudo-legalistic justifications and attacks on the messenger to avoid taking their head out of the sand. Nonetheless, in a moment of naive optimism, we have allowed ourselves to indulge in a fantasy for how a more serious columnist might have dealt with the issue:
The scientific method in journalism
Feb 29th, 2009, Washington post
This column recently reported and commented on some developments pertinent to the debate about whether global warming is occurring and what can and should be done.
It is no secret that I am a critic of sensationalism in the coverage of environmental issues and that I have a philosophical preference for reality-based policies over those based on the ideologically-based fantasies of those I critique.
In my last column, I reported on a statistic concerning sea ice extent – that global sea ice extent is unchanged since 1979 – that was trivially shown to be untrue, and for that I apologize. Rather than throw the fact checkers in my office or at the Washington Post under the bus, I take full responsibility for the mistake. However, as with good scientific practice, this provides an example of how journalism too can learn from its mistakes.
The source of the original quote was a Daily Tech blog post published in early January. While that post itself was heavily criticized as being misleading, it did use data from a reliable scientific source which was technically accurate at the time. My error was in assuming that scientific ‘facts’ don’t change over a month or two and thus it was not necessary to revisit the source of the original data before writing my column. What was true in January would still be true in February, right? Wrong.
What I didn’t consider was that in complex and noisy data there are always going to be outliers, and in heavily politicised subjects there will always be people who will want to exploit a chance occurrence for a sound-bite. I should of course have known better since I decry this practice on a regular basis in discussions of economic issues. Through a combination of wishful thinking and time constraints, my failure to recognize a piece of classic cherry-picking lay at the heart of this problem.
However, sometimes old dogs do learn new tricks. The surprising fact (to me at least) that the difference in global sea ice between two single dates 30 years apart can change so radically in such a short space of time, implies that it is not a particularly good measure of long term climate change. It is a bit like looking at a single stock to gauge the health of the economy. Unfortunately (for me at least), it also validates the scientific consensus about the original article. It was indeed a misleading statistic, and I was indeed misled. Next time I will try and be more careful.
There continues to be a pressing need for an informed conservative discussion of the issues of climate change. Voices such as Senator John McCain, and businessman Jim Manzi (writing in the
Nation last yearNational Review in 2007) can perhaps show the way. The distraction of the last week over exact parsings and interpretations of technical data are just a sideshow while real decisions are already being made every day in Washington. In order for conservatives to have a voice at those tables, we need to be seen as serious contributors. Every time we are mislead by amateur bloggers, we lose another chance to influence policy. This may have been useful as a delaying tactic in the past, but now that there is clear leadership in the White House, this serves only to marginalize conservatives even further. Unlikely as it may seem for me to quote President Obama approvingly, it may be time for us to put aside childish things. | <urn:uuid:5ea4f520-aa5f-4a50-b1ca-cca6f5b2da7e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.realclimate.org/index.php/archives/2009/02/what-george-will-should-have-written/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.965213 | 944 | 1.664063 | 2 |
SOUTH CHARLESTON - Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin hinted Thursday that an ethane cracker still could be built in West Virginia.
"The Commerce Department continues to talk with those interested," Tomblin told reporters during the Associated Press Legislative Lookahead at Marshall University's South Charleston campus. "We still have a great deal of confidence we will have one here in the future."
Tomblin smiled broadly as he made the statement, prompting requests for more specific information about a potential cracker plant.
West Virginia Gov. Earl Ray Tomblin speaks to state media during the Associated Press Legislative Lookahead Thursday at Marshall University’s South Charleston campus. -- Joselyn King
"I wish I could tell you more," he responded. "The talks are ongoing."
Hopes that the Upper Ohio Valley would become home to a cracker plant were high in late 2011 and early 2012, but local sites ultimately were rejected by Royal Dutch Shell in favor of a potential location in Monaca, Pa. Shell still has not committed to building a cracker at that site, however, and other companies have expressed interest in building plants to process, or "crack," ethane produced from natural gas wells in the Kanawha River valley.
State lawmakers, meanwhile, don't think legislation requiring voter identification will surface in 2013, though Republican lawmakers believe such a measure is needed.
Senate President Jeff Kessler, D-Glen Dale; House Speaker Richard Thompson, D-Wayne; House Minority Leader Tim Armstead, R-Kanawha; and Senate Minority Leader Mike Hall, R-Hurricane, also took part in Thursday's event. The Legislature convenes for its regular session Wednesday, with Tomblin set to give his State of the State address that evening.
"It's an important issue," Armstead said of voter identification. "It won't keep anyone from voting. The way it is set up now, it wouldn't deny the person the right to vote. It just should make certain the person is who they say they are. ...
"How can we say it's fine to have to show identification to cash a check, but isn't fine to assure one of the most important rights a person has?" he added. "With the history we have here in West Virginia, we have to make sure."
Thompson said 2,000-3,000 bills will be introduced by the 100 House members during the session, and each has to be considered on its merits.
"We have to look at each bill and think, 'How much does it cost?' ... " he said. "If the costs outweigh the benefits, we won't run it."
Kessler said if a voter identification bill comes up as a "voter suppression bill," he will oppose it.
"If they can demonstrate fraud is happening, it's a whole different story," he added.
Kessler spoke of complaints he received following the state's implementation of the "Real ID" driver's license law requiring residents to show multiple official proof of their name and to have official documentation regarding any name changes in order to renew their licenses. People don't want to go through such a process again to register to vote, he continued.
"We don't know if we have a problem" with voter identification fraud, Armstead said. "We have no way of policing it ... none."
Kessler also doesn't believe bills pertaining to abortion or drug testing for welfare recipients will move through the Legislature this session. And he said it is unlikely a gay marriage bill will be considered.
"You will likely see that resolved at the U.S. Supreme Court," Kessler said. "We can't get an equal rights amendment passed in this state, so I'm not sure you would ever see a gay rights amendment."
He added he would be interested in legislation pertaining to gay rights to ensure homosexuals are not discriminated against in such areas as employment or housing.
Armstead rejected the notion that the question of gay marriage should be decided at the federal level.
"The people of West Virginia have the right to decide," he said. "They would want the traditional definition of marriage" upheld. | <urn:uuid:fedeeb17-0dc6-4344-8c54-7074df896c3c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.weirtondailytimes.com/page/content.detail/id/594887/Tomblin-says-cracker-plant-still---.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00023-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.974433 | 853 | 1.625 | 2 |
Byrd detailed his programs for members of the Greater Rome Chamber of Commerce Education and Workforce committee Friday at the facility on the grounds of the Richard B. Russell Regional Airport.
“It’s all about math,” Byrd said. “We go from basic math to basic trigonometry in five days.” He stressed the importance of calculations impacting everything from the physics and electricity to fundamental weights and balances that are critical to keeping an aircraft in the air.
Byrd said that he has enjoyed a 100 percent placement rate for students who have completed the two year programs and gone on to receive their certification from the Federal Aviation Administration.
The demand for certified aviation and avionics maintenance personnel is as strong today as it has even been, according to Byrd who has supervised the program for GNTC since it’s inception. He said that there are still more aircraft maintenance personnel over the age of 60 than under the age of 30 and that as those senior, skilled aircraft engineers are retiring, companies are learning that it frequently takes two people to replace them.
The guy that comes over Saturday and changes the oil in your car for a beer, he’s not going to touch an airplane,” Byrd said.
Forty-eight students, the maximum allowed by the FAA, are currently enrolled in the program at GNTC, which has a waiting list of about a dozen students at this time.
Byrd told the Chamber group that about 60 percent of the students who enter his program actually graduate but estimated that only a third of them go on to obtain their certification. “Certification is not a walk in the park,” Byrd said. “They have to take nine tests and I think that just intimidates them.” It also costs between $1,200 and $1,500 to take the battery of certification examinations.
Byrd said that recruitment of a large-scale maintenance, repair and overhaul facility to the airport grounds would be a tremendous boost to his program. “That’s what the students are trained to do here,” Byrd said.
Talking a little bit about Russell Airport and its impact on economic development in the community, Byrd also suggested that the greater airport community would also benefit from a nicer hotel and a few more restaurants in the vicinity. “This is the front door to the community,” Byrd said. | <urn:uuid:1ee63498-8d33-4c98-9a03-25133ee3e093> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.romenews-tribune.com/pages/full_story/push?article-Considering+aviation+maintenance-+It-s+all+about+math-%20&id=20161304 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97934 | 494 | 1.5 | 2 |
I think it makes sense to try using a combination of Grandma's Original molasses and brown sugar. That thought crossed my mind when I was at the supermarket recently, as I reported, and saw the light and brown sugars and wondered whether they were refined sugars. It was the "refined white sugar(s)" versus "refined sugar(s)" issue that led me to call MM.
Where we are missing useful information is in relation to the protocol for the frozen dough balls. I saw a video yesterday where the MM pizza maker mentioned placing the frozen dough balls into the cooler to let them defrost. However, he didn't say whether it was one day, two days, or maybe even three days--or maybe something different. From a fermentation standpoint, it makes a big difference whether you are using one, two or three days of defrost/fermentation. For example, if the fermentation time in the cooler is long, say, three days, the protease enzymes can attack the gluten structure and cause release of the water from its chemical bond. That could make the dough more extensible even though it might look like it is quite dense, and the dough might open up more easily even if it is cold. I'm guessing here. Also, knowing the defrost/fermentation protocol could also tell us more about the amount of yeast, and maybe other ingredients, one might start out with to fit the fermentation period. As we speculated before, maybe the defrost/fermentation period determines how sweet the finished crust is. Before I forget, I am going to pose some questions to GlennC. for when he visits the Decatur, GA MM store soon.
In your case, you might try using a fair amount of Grandma Original molasses with either light or brown sugar, with the goal being to end up with a final dough color that is close to the color of an MM dough. There is no easy mathematical way of determining how much of the two ingredients to use to achieve that objective. So, some experimentation will be required. Maybe something like 7% Grandma's Original molasses and about 4% brown sugar will work. You can also lower the nominal hydration by a percent if you think that is called for based on your recent observations at the DD MM location. You might skip the wheat germ this time also. I am thinking of making an MM clone dough ball and just watch it go over a cycle of two or three days after moving it from the freezer to my refrigerator compartment to see how it changes over the entire period. | <urn:uuid:2f9dadd0-c3c4-4a96-9b1a-d011c46ece7f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.pizzamaking.com/forum/index.php?topic=3940.msg157723 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00038-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.957284 | 518 | 1.695313 | 2 |
- Story Ideas
- Send Corrections
MOSCOW (AP) — As many as 300 anti-Putin protesters took over a Moscow square for most of the day Tuesday until hundreds of helmeted riot police swept in to disperse the young crowd, detaining some of them seemingly at random.
The impromptu rally had moved to the Chistiye Prudy square after police broke up a demonstration by hundreds of opposition activists who had spent the night outside the presidential administration offices to protest Vladimir Putin’s return as Russia’s president.
Two prominent opposition leaders were detained by police in the early hours of Tuesday but later released. They then joined up with dozens of their supporters who had moved on to Chistiye Prudy, or Clean Ponds, where they vowed to continue the roving protest.
“If we are pushed away from here, we’ll move to other squares,” said Sergei Udaltsov, the leader of a leftist movement. “The objective is to have people on the squares every day who are struggling for freedom, for change. It is a very simple tactic, and I think it has a chance to bring a successful result.”
The cat-and-mouse game between protesters and police began on Monday, the day of Putin’s inauguration at a formal ceremony inside the Kremlin. Hundreds of activists tried to protest near Red Square and along the route Putin’s motorcade took to the Kremlin, but they were turned back or detained by thousands of riot police.
Police said they made about 300 detentions on Monday, but in some cases the same people were detained and then released more than once.
On Tuesday, police reported at least 30 detentions.
At Chistiye Prudy, the protesters gathered peacefully without any posters or flags, braving a heavy rain and singing along as a young man strummed a guitar. As soon as the approaching riot police were spotted, the protesters cleared out and headed for a third square.
In Washington, U.S. State Department spokesman Mark Toner said “we are disturbed by images of police mistreatment of peaceful protesters, both during the protests and after detentions.”
The U.S. and Russia had made significant process in their relationship, he said, but “we’re going to continue to raise human rights issues when we have concerns, and this is one of those cases.”
Tens of thousands attended anti-Putin protest rallies in the months before the March election. Since then the numbers have dwindled, but the protest movement has shown an unexpected resilience. A demonstration on the eve of the inauguration drew well more than 20,000.
Putin has been in power since 2000, first as president and then for the past four years as prime minister. He has just begun a six-year term and would be eligible for a fourth term. | <urn:uuid:756369dc-49b5-4478-ac72-03a357fb1bd5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.dailytribune.com/article/20120508/NEWS05/120509600/-1/news/police-keep-anti-putin-protesters-on-the-run | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00038-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.976586 | 602 | 1.515625 | 2 |
I was once paid a very good compliment.
'What you do isn't Taekwondo'
Most people wouldn't view that as a compliment and it would have probably earned the person saying it some 'firm words'. But the way I interpret patterns is to look at the movements as well as the techniques.
For example, let's look at the lead or reverse front punch and the possible applications;
1) Punch them. Easy.
2) Grab them, return your fist to the hip and punch them. Better than above and still easy.
3) Use the punch to enter in close, punching past their head and rolling your arm so that you steal their balance, take them to the ground. Again, still easy and still the technique from the pattern.
4) Use a palm heel. More socially acceptable (after all you only slapped them) but not the technique. However it's still the movement.
5) Turn the movement into an eye jab. Again, it's the movement that counts, not the technique.
6) Ad infinitum!
I find that if you try to stick with 'just' the pure techniques contained within the pattern, then you're very limited as to how you can make the pattern work for you (something which is also very important). | <urn:uuid:2e5f9cd8-fc62-4c7d-9e96-212247770e03> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.iainabernethy.co.uk/content/how-do-you-believe-forms-should-be-interpreted | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.9671 | 267 | 1.671875 | 2 |
Depending on who you ask, Twins' legend Harmon Killebrew will truly be a part of Major League Baseball forever. Not just because of his abilities on the field or his candor and charity off of it, but because he was, from most accounts, literally the symbol of Major League Baseball.
Yes, according to an Arizona Republic interview, the iconic logo of Major League Baseball was, indeed, based on Harmon Killebrew, much the same as the NBA logo was based on Lakers' legend Jerry West. Even though the powers that be in baseball would never actually come out and say as much, Killebrew knew that it was him.
"You know, I was in the commissioner's office when the mock-up for that logo was being done," Killebrew once told me. "But for some reason, they won't admit it's me. It's an interesting thing, and I don't know why."
But in typical, graceful Killebrew fashion, he never raised a stink or made a big deal about it.
Another interesting story from the Arizona Republic piece. He was the first player ever to hit a home run over the left field roof at old Tiger Stadium in Detroit. . .no small feat, considering that the roof was 94 feet high and three decks off of the ground. When he got back to the team hotel after the game, there were messages from six different people claiming that they had the ball and wanted to sell it to Killebrew.
Of course, none of them knew that the Tiger Stadium groundskeeper had gone out behind Tiger Stadium, found the ball next to a drain pipe, and simply gave the ball to Killebrew free of charge.
We'll have more stories of Harmon Killebrew's legend for you as the day goes on. We hope that you enjoy them. | <urn:uuid:c6521505-b608-43d5-8cc7-93a32ecdf18d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://minnesota.sbnation.com/minnesota-twins/2011/5/17/2175579/harmon-killebrew-was-inspiration-for-mlb-logo | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00031-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.986284 | 374 | 1.539063 | 2 |
Scotland is the most affordable area in the UK
MORTGAGE payments for new borrowers have plummeted to their lowest level as a proportion of disposable earnings for 15 years, with Scotland the most affordable area in the UK, according to a new study.
Typical payments for both first-time buyers and home movers taking out a new loan north of the Border stood at 20 per cent of take-home pay in the second quarter of this year compared a UK-wide average rate of 26 per cent, the Bank of Scotland found.
Typical mortgage payments in Scotland as a proportion of earnings have fallen from 37 per cent in autumn 2007, putting the nation at the bottom of the league table alongside Northern Ireland, where payments have dropped by around two-thirds.
Along with Wales, Yorkshire and the Humber, payments in Scotland have nearly halved since the peak of the market five years ago.
Neil Harrison, marketing manager for the Edinburgh Solicitors’ Property Centre, attributed the trend to stricter lending criteria by banks, and the fact that salary levels have remaining largely constant despite the drop in house prices.
He said: “The days of someone taking out a relatively unaffordable mortgage are over, and that has helped bring this rate down. Historically, house prices in Scotland have been lower than elsewhere, and while prices are down from their peak while there hasn’t been a corresponding drop in salary levels.”
The study put the increased affordability down to static and falling house prices coupled with low mortgage rates by long-term standards as the Bank of England maintains the base rate at a historic 0.5 per cent low.
Even in London, where house prices have remained relatively strong due to strong overseas buyer demand, potential payments for a new borrower have reached around 35 per cent of disposable earnings compared with 56 per cent five years ago.
The ten most affordable areas are all in Scotland, with potential mortgage payments in East Ayrshire standing at around 15 per cent of disposable earnings.
Nitesh Patel, housing economist at Bank of Scotland, said: “Mortgage payments in Scotland account for a lower proportion of disposable earnings than anywhere else in the UK. In addition, all ten of the most affordable local authority districts are in Scotland, with East Ayrshire the most affordable.
“Lower house prices and reduced mortgage rates have led to a significant improvement in housing affordability for those able to fund the necessary deposit to enter the market over the past five years. As a result, mortgage payments for a typical new borrower currently account for the lowest proportion of earnings for ten years.
“The low level of mortgage payments in relation to income is providing support for Scottish house prices. The prospect of interest rates remaining at low levels for some time yet is expected to continue to be a key factor supporting the demand for homes, helping to keep house prices around their current level during the remainder of 2012.”
Search for a job
Search for a car
Search for a house
Weather for Edinburgh
Sunday 26 May 2013
Temperature: 8 C to 16 C
Wind Speed: 15 mph
Wind direction: West
Temperature: 8 C to 12 C
Wind Speed: 18 mph
Wind direction: South | <urn:uuid:6979a0fc-9b21-45b8-b575-ecb78f9b200b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.scotsman.com/emarket/property-news/scotland-is-the-most-affordable-area-in-the-uk-1-2491002 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706890813/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516122130-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.946295 | 658 | 1.515625 | 2 |
LightSquared has offered to give up control of part of the frequency spectrum it owns in exchange for unconditional use of another part of the L-band frequency for its controversial proposed broadband network. In a proposal to the FCC (PDF), LightSquared says it will cede veto power over the use of half of its spectrum to government agencies that form the National Space-Based Positioning, Navigation and Timing Executive Committee if the FCC will remove conditions on its use of the other half for its nationwide 4G wholesale broadband network. The principal condition of its license with the FCC is that it prove the broadband signals don't disrupt GPS communications. LightSquared says there are only minor and easily overcome interference issues in the lower half of the 20-Mhz swath of spectrum it owns but the GPS industry says interference is a problem across the whole sliver of spectrum. LightSquared says it will also limit the power of its signals in the lower band to further mitigate interference if the FCC goes for its deal. Meanwhile the start-up broadband provider reacted aggressively to leaked reports earlier this week that suggested GPS interference remains a major concern.
In a conference call with reporters, LightSquared claimed it was the victim of a systematic campaign of leaks of partial results from interference tests. "This most recent leak continues the pattern of premature release of data to reporters for the sole purpose of damaging LightSquared, influencing public opinion and inflaming political opposition," the company said in a news release. "And it is a part of the multi-million public relations/lobbying campaign being coordinated by GPS manufacturers, who have a financial interest in the outcome of this debate." LightSquared said the resulting media reports "falsely assume that LightSquared will operate at 32 times its authorized power levels." LightSquared further said that at the frequencies and power levels proposed, the performance of none of the GPS devices tested was affected, although it did say about 4 percent of the devices did register interference. LightSquared also says the tests, which concluded Nov. 30, have not been properly analyzed by the National Telecommunications and Information Administration. | <urn:uuid:424a8517-cae3-4102-bfe6-001e36717cb3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.avweb.com/avwebbiz/news/LightSquared_Offers_FCC_Deal_205871-1.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959104 | 427 | 1.679688 | 2 |
South African mine dispute erupts in violence
February 18, 2013 -- Updated 1622 GMT (0022 HKT)
- Nine employees were shot with rubber bullets, the company says
- Three security personnel sustained minor injuries, it adds
- Workers Committee members are contesting the legitimacy of the National Union of Mineworkers
Johannesburg, South Africa (CNN) -- Nine mine employees were hurt Monday when Anglo American Platinum security guards shot rubber bullets to break up a confrontation between rival union groups at a mine in northwest South Africa, the company said in a statement.
The incident occurred at the company's Siphumelele mine in the Rustenburg area and involved members of the Workers Committee and shop stewards for the National Union of Mineworkers.
"As they were attempting to evacuate the NUM shop stewards who were trapped in their offices, three security personnel sustained minor injuries during this incident," the statement said.
All 12 injured employees received medical attention; none of the injuries was life-threatening, it added.
Police spokesman Brig. Thulani Ngubane said those hurt were taken to Bleskop Hospital. The shootings did not involve police, he said.
South African miners face uncertainty
"Workers committee members are contesting NUM's legitimacy at the mine and demanding that NUM vacate its offices," the company statement said. The company said it is trying to validate union membership at Rustenburg and the mines north of the Pilanesberg National Park.
Anglo American Platinum Limited, a member of the Anglo American plc Group, describes itself as the world's leading primary producer of platinum group metals, accounting for 40% of the world's newly mined platinum. Its mining, smelting and refining operations are based in South Africa.
Last fall, several major South African mining companies, including Anglo American, were involved in labor disputes with their miners that erupted in violence.
In October, police repeatedly clashed with protesters near one of Anglo American's mines, and the company fired about 12,000 striking workers who refused to attend disciplinary hearings.
The union did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
CNN's Kim Norgaard reported on this story from Johannesburg, and Tom Watkins wrote it in Atlanta.
Part of complete coverage on
June 19, 2013 -- Updated 0059 GMT (0859 HKT)
A man who silently stood in Taksim Square and stared at a portrait of the founder of the modern Turkish state, drew hundreds to his vigil.
Among the more intriguing pieces of history in Chinese coastal province Fujian are the tulou: large, round, rammed-earth buildings dating back centuries.
June 18, 2013 -- Updated 1539 GMT (2339 HKT)
NYU did a great favor not only for the Chinese dissident but also for both the U.S. and Chinese governments, writes James Millward.
June 19, 2013 -- Updated 1211 GMT (2011 HKT)
As Afghan forces formally take over security of the country, what is likely to be on the table when the U.S. and the Taliban meet for talks?
June 18, 2013 -- Updated 0314 GMT (1114 HKT)
Former NSA contractor Edward Snowden is laying low, but that's becoming increasingly difficult. CNN's Ian Lee reports.
June 17, 2013 -- Updated 1036 GMT (1836 HKT)
Snipers are doing most of the fighting in one war-torn Damascus suburb in Syria. CNN's Fred Pleitgen finds that death can come any minute.
June 19, 2013 -- Updated 0337 GMT (1137 HKT)
Countries in the Middle East that have been spared political upheaval find themselves enmeshed in a different sort of battle of late...
June 18, 2013 -- Updated 0214 GMT (1014 HKT)
Chris Kreis talks exclusively to CNN's Piers Morgan about his trip on a whale shark's back.
June 18, 2013 -- Updated 1252 GMT (2052 HKT)
From Charles Lindbergh's record-breaking landing to his solar flight, CNN takes a look back at the Paris Airshow's most memorable moments.
June 13, 2013 -- Updated 1040 GMT (1840 HKT)
Scenes of violent clashes between protesters and police may make visitors to Istanbul think twice. Is it time to cancel your trip?
Today's five most popular stories | <urn:uuid:d2c885b6-7d99-4c92-b4af-58c163b3230f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://edition.cnn.com/2013/02/18/world/africa/south-africa-mine-shooting/index.html?hpt=wo_c2 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.952999 | 906 | 1.578125 | 2 |
Earthquake between Ft. Worth & CleburneNews Friday, June 15th, 2012
CLEBURNE, Texas (AP) _ Experts say North Texas has had a 3.1 magnitude earthquake.
The U.S. Geological Survey says the quake happened just after 2 a.m. Friday.
USGS says the earthquake was centered 11 miles north-northeast of Cleburne, or about 16 miles south of Fort Worth.
No damage or injuries were immediately reported.
(Copyright 2012 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
Short URL: http://wtaw.com/?p=44148 | <urn:uuid:bab2ab79-4965-48c7-925d-b8d79204ccf4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://wtaw.com/2012/06/15/earthquake-ft-worth-cleburne/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00037-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951949 | 129 | 1.632813 | 2 |
Arson Ruled “Probable” At Dairy Farm, Two Other Ohio Farms
Mysterious fires break out at three Ohio farms on the same night.
In the early morning of April 5th in rural Ohio, fires were set at three nearby farms. All three targeted buildings were completely destroyed. Investigators ruled one of the fires arson, while arson was ruled the “probable” cause of the other two. One of the targeted farms was a dairy farm.
All three buildings were considered a “complete loss,” with destruction of farm equipment, hay and straw. Media coverage pointed out that no animals were hurt, and that none of the targeted buildings housed animals.
One farmer had this to say:
“What people don’t understand is that for a farmer, that barn is sometimes more important than your house,” Skinner said. “Thank God we didn’t have any animals in the barn, thank God!”
The fires occurred at these addresses:
- 15253 Woodtown Rd., in Sunbury, at 6:08 a.m.
- 1915 state Route 605, in Sunbury, at 6:26 a.m.
- 4855 Miller-Paul Rd., in Westerville, at 6:52 a.m.
Although all the fires targeted only buildings where no animals were housed, there was nothing to immediately indicate they were the work of someone with an animal liberation motive. | <urn:uuid:43c35821-8db4-4251-b306-03431984f228> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.animalliberationfrontline.com/arson-ruled-probable-at-dairy-farm-two-other-ohio-farms/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00028-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.983051 | 303 | 1.734375 | 2 |
We can help you protect all your confidential data and give you peace of mind making online purchases by installing Internet Security applications which proactively scan your online activity. Important updates are installed automatically so you dont need to do anything and you can schedule a scan when you are likely to be using your machine. While online, viruses such as Adware, Spyware and Malware can be appear on your PC unknown to you.
Also there is a build up of temporary files for every web page you look at, clogging up your computer's hard drive. We can provide a solution which clears your profile of un-necessary files on your hard drive and make your machine run more efficiently. We can provide virus detection and cleaning applications keeping your online experience as fast and safe as possible. We can also retrieve any important files when things go wrong. | <urn:uuid:ee4fbca6-c2b9-4b20-9bd1-b705faff0447> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.bmtechrepairs.co.uk/securityav.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00036-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.932014 | 167 | 1.523438 | 2 |
Michigan: Fertile ground for recalls
The political unrest sparked by passage of Michigan’s new right-to-work law could lead toward a familiar destination: recall hell.
Joshua Spivak, who runs the excellent Recall Elections blog, writes that the state is fertile ground for recalling officeholders at the state and local level.
The state is almost the ground zero of the recent recall boom -- last year it was home to almost 20 percent of the recalls around the country that made a ballot. This year saw a drop off, but it was still home to 24 recalls. Michigan has also been the home of numerous recalls of state legislators. Four state legislators have faced recalls (two in 1983, one in 2008 and one in 2011). Three of those legislators were removed.
Organized labor and Democrats are already exploring various recall options, though there appears to be a degree of reluctance to go that route, as opposed to pursuing outright repeal of the legislation and ballot box payback in 2014.
Despite the state’s recent history with recalls, Spivak notes that there would be serious procedural hurdles to either a recall of GOP Gov. Rick Snyder or attempts to recall individual legislators -- hurdles that make recall efforts less likely to occur than in Wisconsin, which saw recall elections for GOP Gov. Scott Walker, Lt. Gov. Rebecca Kleefisch and 13 legislators between 2011 and 2012. | <urn:uuid:346426dd-d108-4eb0-9e17-f6a50de17b3e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.politico.com/blogs/charlie-mahtesian/2012/12/michigan-fertile-ground-for-recalls-151766.html?hp=l11_b5 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96543 | 282 | 1.5 | 2 |
I may be a bit late to the party, but I have just discovered that the entire In Our Time archive is available to download as podcasts. They've divided the episodes into five categories: History, Culture, Philosophy, Religion, and Science. You can subscribe via the links provided or by searching for In Our Time on iTunes.
Bragg does not appear to have done any episodes on migration of any sort, but there are five about Scotland, plus one that might include Scottish "bits":
- The Glencoe Massacre (with Karin Bowie, Murray Pittock, and Daniel Szechi)
- The Enlightenment in Scotland (with Alexander Broadie, Karen O'Brien, and Tom Devine)
- The Jacobite Rebellion (with Allan Macinnes, Murray Pittock, and Stana Nenadic)
- The Battle of Bannockburn (with Fiona Watson, Matthew Strickland, and Michael Brown)
- David Hume (with Peter Millican, Helen Beebee, and James Harris)
- The Enclosures of the 18th Century (with Murray Pittock, Rosemary Sweet, and Mark Overton)
This is one of my favorite podcasts as I like the format and that he covers such a wide variety of topics. I particularly enjoy the ones he does on the ancient world (e.g. the Neolithic and beyond) as I find this time period fascinating, but wouldn't actually want to do ancient history. Previously, you could listen to the archived episodes only via the iPlayer; but podcasts are so much better. Search around and I'm sure you'll find something to listen to during you daily commute or workout. | <urn:uuid:904a16cb-fd30-490c-a7cd-154583b7cf9f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://scottishemigration.blogspot.com/2011/11/scotland-on-in-our-time-with-melvyn.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955266 | 339 | 1.703125 | 2 |
Here is the only picture I could find of the grade school I attended and the church that it was part of...St. Mary's Cathedral Basilica in Galveston and the Cathedral school. The picture of the school was taken in the 1880s right after it was built.
I attended St. Mary's school from the time I started Kindergarten in 1954 until right after I started in 7th grade in 1961, when the school was destroyed in Hurricane Carla. To raise money to build a new school, Father Dan (O'Connell, who the new co-ed high school was named after in 1969 after combining the all-boys' school and the 2 all-girls' schools, from the Dominican and Ursuline convents and the Christian Brothers' boys school) collected all the bricks from the old school building, signed each one with a Marks-A-Lot, and sold each brick for $5.00...he raised around a million bucks and the parish was able to build a new, modern school. I have 2 of them sitting here on the piano next to my workstation.
I was fortunate to have been there while Fr. Dan was around. He was a great leader and a great man. He never backed down and he never gave up when times got tough.
The church is the oldest cathedral in Texas, built in 1847. When Nicholas J. Clayton the architect designed and built the school in the 1880s, (his work reminds me of giant gingerbread houses), he kicked in some of his creativity and added spires and towers to the church. The statue of Mary, Star of the Sea atop the bell tower (visible behind the palm trees in the picture...pretty spooky place) was for years the tallest structure in Galveston and served as a beacon for incoming ships and has withstood all hurricanes including the 1800s, 1900, 1915, 1943, 1961, 1983, and 2008. Below is a list of Texas hurricanes, pre-1900:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Texas_hurricanes_(Pre-1900)
The lighter-colored base around the school appears to have been added as an afterthought, kind of like a pedestal, raising the entire structure another 12 feet to prevent it from being flooded on the main floors in the event of a catastrophic tide surge that comes with a hurricane. In 1961, Carla was a Category 5...the water didn't quite reach the top of that bottom section, but the wind blew more than half of the building down.
Neither the church or the shcool were air-conditioned when I went there. The school had piped-in hot water to those accordian-looking radiator-type deals, and we used fans and kept the windows open during the hot months. The church got air conditioning some time in the early 60s as I recall...
Here are pictures of the church and school, and the link to Mr. Clayton's Wikipedia page. His daughter, Mary Clayton, took all of our school pictures all the way through my high school graduation in 1967.
With my family living in the Historical District in Galveston, these were some of the buildings that I was in from the time I was born until the time I started high school. More later. | <urn:uuid:df782887-a287-42b5-b012-f7288a8d4f14> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.draglist.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=5&t=5149&p=103508 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.985236 | 674 | 1.5 | 2 |
Hang Xiao, assistant professor of Food Science, received one of the 2012 International Life Science Institute Future Leader Award.
The award is given annually to two early career nutritionists or food scientists who show exceptional promise to become future leaders in foods and health. The award provides research funding to new investigators to expand an existing project or to conduct exploratory research that might not receive funding from other sources.
Xiao was recognized for his research in the field of cancer prevention by diet-based strategies. He has worked on cancer preventive effects of multiple bioactive dietary components, such as polyphenols from green tea, tocopherol isoforms (vitamin E), sulfur/selenium compounds from onions and garlic and polymethoxyflavones from orange. Xiao’s research with polymethoxyflavones is considered especially important as these dietary phytochemicals are metabolized by the microbiome and the liver into powerful anticarcinogenic and anti-inflammatory agents.
His research is funded by the National institutes of Health, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, American Institute of Cancer Research and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Agriculture and Food Research Initiative.
Xiao’s research excellence has also been recognized by the Agricultural and Food Chemistry Division of the American Oil Chemist Society. | <urn:uuid:e64c066c-95f5-4b21-a0fa-6135a58400ad> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.umass.edu/loop/content/xiao-receives-ilsi-future-leader-award | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00041-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.940965 | 269 | 1.664063 | 2 |
Interview with Olivier Roy; “Full Equality before the Law for All Religions”
by Eren Güvercin
French political scientist Olivier Roy is one of the foremost European experts on Islam. His new book, “Holy Ignorance. When Religion and Culture Diverge”, will soon be published in English. Eren Güvercin spoke with Roy about the current Islam debate in Europe.
In Switzerland, a majority votes for a ban on minarets; in France and in Belgium, Islamic headscarves are heavily debated; in Italy, crucifixes are under fire. And also here in Germany, the debate about the Muslims is often very hysterical. Why do Europeans fear religious symbols or “foreign” religions so much?
Olivier Roy: The debate in Europe has shifted in some 25 years from immigration to the visible symbols of Islam. Which means a paradoxical thing: even people who opposed immigration acknowledge now that the second and third generations of migrants are here to stay and that Islam has rooted itself in Europe. So now the debate is about the status of Islam. And here we have a strange phenomenon: while anti-immigration feelings were mainly associated with the conservative right, anti-Islam feelings are to be found both on the left and on the right, but on two very different grounds.
For the right, Europe is Christian and Islam should be treated as a tolerated but inferior religion. There is – unfortunately – no way to ban it, because of the principle of “freedom of religion”, inscribed in our constitutions, international treaties and UN chart, but there are means to limit its visibility without necessarily going against the principle of freedom of religion – for instance the European court of human rights did not condemn the banning of the scarf in French schools.
For the left, the issue is more generally secularism, women’s rights and fundamentalism: it opposes the veil not so much because it is Islamic but because it seems to contradict women’s rights. Hence the debate on Islam hides a far more complicated issue: What does a European identity mean, and what is the role of religion in Europe; and of course on these two issues the left and the right have very different positions. But we see the rise of a new populist movement – like Geert Wilders in Holland – mixing both approaches, basically siding with the right but using leftist arguments.
In your book you say that fundamentalists like Al Qaida have nothing to do with the tradition of Islam. But for the people in Europe they appear very traditional ... Are Al Qaida and similar organizations and movements a modern phenomenon?
Olivier Roy: The kind of terrorism perpetrated by Al Qaida is unknown in Muslim history as well as in Christian history. So in any case it is a recent phenomenon. If we consider some of its main characteristics – suicide attacks, execution of hostages, targeting civilians – they all have been put into practice recently, before Al Qaida, by other organizations: the Tamil Tigers for suicide attacks, the Italian extreme right in Bologna bombing in August 1980, and the Italian Red Brigades. If you look at the video of the execution of foreign hostages by Al Qaida in Iraq, it follows exactly the “staging” of the execution of Aldo Moro by the Red Brigades: banner and logo of the organization, hostage hand-cuffed and blindfolded, a group of “militants” staging a mock trial, the reading of a “sentence” and execution.
By its modus operandi, its form of organization, its target: US imperialism, and recruitment: young Western-educated Muslims or converts to Islam, it is obvious that Al Qaida is not the expression of a traditional or even fundamentalist Islam, but of a recast of Islam under the cloak of Western revolutionary ideology.
Are there similar Christian organizations? Can we find similar developments in Christianity?
Olivier Roy: It depends what you call “Christian”, and that is the same issue for Islam, too. Is violence motivated by faith or by a political ideology? I argue that in both cases the motivation is driven far more by ideology, even claiming a religious legitimacy, than by faith. There has certainly been a “white” Western terrorism, for instance at the Oklahoma bombing in 1995. But in fact there is no real symmetry: the present struggle looks more like asymmetrical warfare; Islamic radicals have no air force or air carrier. A radical Christian crusader who wants to fight Muslims does not need to enter a terrorist organization: he can just enlist in the US Air Force and become the pilot of a fighter-bomber. The US media have closely documented the fact that the US Air Force Academy of Colorado Springs is a hotbed of Christian evangelicalism, at the expense, by the way, of Jewish or atheist cadets.
How do you explain the success of such radical movements or ideologies? Are poverty and exclusion really the reasons?
Olivier Roy: No. All studies show that there is no correlation between poverty and radicalization: there are far more Saudis than Bangladeshis (in fact almost no Bangladeshis) among radicals. I think that the present struggle is a continuation of the old fault-line of anti-imperialist, third-worldist movements against the West and specifically the USA. Bin Laden says little about religion, but mentions Che Guevara, colonialism, climate change etc. It is also clearly a generational movement: Al Qaida is a “youth” movement of young people who split with their families and their social milieus and are not interested even in the home country of their family.
Also, there is an astonishing number of converts among Al Qaida, which is now acknowledged but not taken into account. The converts are rebels without a cause who would have joined the Red Army Faction or the Red Brigades thirty years ago but now go to the most successful movement on the anti-imperialist market. We are still in the midst of a mostly Western revolutionary millennialism that has turned away from the concept of establishing a new and just society. The new movements are profoundly sceptical about building a good society, hence their suicidal dimension.
Today some Europeans maintain that European culture is essentially a Christian culture, and hence that everything Islamic is problematic and alien for Europe. What do you think of this position?
Olivier Roy: They say that at the same time that Pope Benedict, following John Paul II, is saying that Europe is rejecting and ignoring its Christian roots. The debate on sexual freedom, abortion, gay rights is not one of Europeans versus Muslims, but rather of secularists on the one hand – and there are Muslim secularists – and conservative believers on the other, who could be Muslim, Catholic or Orthodox Jews. In fact, Europe is highly divided about its own culture, between secularists who consider the Enlightenment with human rights, freedom, democracy as the real birth certificate of Europe, and the “Christian culturalists” who believe that the Enlightenment also led to Communism, atheism and even Nazism.
Is there a real risk of Islamophobia in Europe?
Olivier Roy: The problem is how we define Islamophobia: Is it just another term for racism, and specifically racism against people with a Muslim name, whatever their real degree of belonging to a faith community, or is it the rejection of a religion? There are anti-racist militants who cannot stand the veil – that is the case among feminists. There are racist people who do not oppose the veil – because they think that anyway these people are too different from us. The issue is complex because we do not try to disentangle two issues: ethnicity and religion.
Of course in Europe most Muslims have a foreign ethnic background, but the disconnect between ethnicity and religion is increasing: there are converts both ways; there are atheist “Arabs” and “Turks”; and more and more Muslims want to be acknowledged as believers belonging to a faith community, but not necessarily as members of a different cultural community. We need to distinguish between “ethnic communities” and “faith communities”, because both suppose a different approach, and because “ethnicity” is less and less meaningful in terms of culture, but is more and more linked with skin colour.
In an interview you say that for example the biggest campaign against Darwin in Europe is being conducted by a Turkish Muslim, on the basis of translations of books written by evangelical Americans, and that there is then a convergence of values and norms, but also of the manner in which those religions translate their convictions into political action and intervention. How can the political world find a way to deal with this “drifting, deculturalized and globalized religion”?
Olivier Roy: I think that the “successful” religions are the global and deculturated religions like evangelicalism, Salafism, cults etc., not the traditional churches like the Catholic Church. This trend is dominant now. It does not make sense to fight against it, particularly in countries where constitutions prevent the State from interfering with beliefs. On the contrary, I think we should accentuate the separation of Church and State by implementing full equality between religions, but not on a basis of “multi-culturalism”; we should consider religions as “mere religions”, whatever they say about themselves.
The issue is not ‘what does Islam say’, ‘what does the Pope say’, but under which conditions a faith community can freely exercise its rights. Government should contribute to the unlinking of religion and culture, but rejecting the multi-culturalist approach to religion in favour of a neutral and strict freedom of religion within the framework of existing laws.
In the media we often have a dialectic of “liberal” vs. “radical” Islam. Is there a “liberal” or “radical” Islam? When we look at the five pillars, is it possible to do the prayer “liberally” or “radically”? Is this terminology actually applicable on this matter?
Olivier Roy: No. I think the mistake is to consider that to be a good citizen in society, a believer has to choose a “liberal” theology. The debate on the “reformation” of Islam is irrelevant. People who advocate a Muslim Luther never read Luther: he was not a liberal, and quite anti-Semitic by the way. The “formatting” of Muslims into a Western environment has nothing to do with theology. It is done by the individual practices and endeavours of the Muslims themselves. They try to reconcile their practices with the Western environment, and they find in this environment tools to do that, rethinking norms in terms of values for instance. In the long run these changes will certainly translate into a theological rethinking, but anyway it does not make sense to associate modernity with theological liberalism: to think like that means either distorting history or relying on wishful thinking.
Interview: Eren Güvercin
© Qantara.de 2010
Editor: Lewis Gropp/Qantara.de | <urn:uuid:723106a8-0995-4e5f-82eb-be231e80bfd7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://theamericanmuslim.org/tam.php/features/print/interview_with_olivier_roy_full_equality_before_the_law_for_all_religions | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00022-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955248 | 2,316 | 1.8125 | 2 |
"Rura Penthe is the fourth planet". Where's that bit of information from? Also, is Rura Penthe an asteroid, planetoid or planet?
If you know the source, please add proper references to the article. -- Cid Highwind 21:04, 30 Aug 2004 (CEST)
- I believe the location is based on the Operation Retrieve tactical plan - it shows RP as the fourth planet in its system. I haven't seen the ENT episode in which it features, so don't know whether they clarify it further. -- Michael Warren | Talk 21:15, Aug 30, 2004 (CEST)
- you forget, at the time of Operation Retrieve, Kirk was on the Klingon worlds, not Rura Penthe. So that map is of the Klingon Home system. at the end of the trial, The Judge says he is sending Kirk to the Penal Asteroid Rura Penthe. Also the map can be found on my website, (I had to remove your website because it's blocked by the spam filter) --TOSrules 23:03, 30 Aug 2004 (CEST)
- I think the first paragraph is in major error too. It assumes Rura Penthe is in the fourth planet, mainly because of the aforementioned map. We also need to change the top to no longer saying it is a planet because all of that is the map that clearly does not apply. --TOSrules 17:25, 11 Aug 2005 (UTC)
OK. Rura Penthe is called an "asteroid" twice, never "planet" or "planetoid". I'm changing everything to "asteroid". -- Cid Highwind 19:26, 11 Aug 2005 (UTC)
How is it possible that an asteroid could have sufficient gravity to hold a significant atmosphere (thin and cold as it is) and allow 1G-like walking? Maybe the when it was called "asteroid" it was a mistranslation from Klingon. -The Wraith 19:30, 28 Nov 2005 (UTC)
- How can a ship have any gravity at all? The most logical explanation is an artificial gravity generator at the center of the asteroid. Or perhaps the asteroid is large enough to generate such a gravitational field, and everything else in that particular solar system is of similar enormous size. But the atmosphere indicates heavy terraforming - asteroids don't normally have breathable atmospheres - so I believe the most logical explanation is a certain amount of terraforming, including artificial gravity generators and atmosphere converters. --The Rev 20:01, 4 May 2006 (UTC)
Confirmed Rura Penthe? Edit
I saw a discussion (which now I can't find...) yesterday questioning whether the "Klingon prison planet" was Rura Penthe or not, and someone suggested they call it that during the Uhura-undressing scene. I saw the movie again last night -- and I didn't hear them call it Rura Penthe. So this seems like speculation, likely speculation admittedly, but still. - AJ Halliwell 19:19, 12 May 2009 (UTC)
Alternate Timeline HistoryEdit
- In 2258, Nyota Uhura intercepted a signal from the vicinity of Rura Penthe where 47 Klingon vessels are destroyed in battle. It is implied that the vessel the Klingons engaged is the Narada although this may have been used by Kirk to convince Pike that they are taking the USS Enterprise into a hostile situation.
This should probably be rewritten as a background note as it's non-canon. — Morder 05:57, 19 May 2009 (UTC)
- Oh, if only Uhura had specified a name rather than just "the Klingon prison planet." :) --From Andoria with Love 22:37, 19 May 2009 (UTC)
Yeah, the writers suck, don't they? — Morder 22:40, 19 May 2009 (UTC)
- In etymology terms, Rura Penthe means "wasteland of misery" coming from roots shared by the words "rural" and "Nepenthe." | <urn:uuid:85405397-6d3d-4df5-8488-f29858956a5f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://en.memory-alpha.org/wiki/Talk:Rura_Penthe | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.934595 | 840 | 1.742188 | 2 |
The biblical 10 commandments are discriminatory and if taken literally, go against religious liberty. It's not American to "prohibit worship of other gods or to have a certain one." Same for "prohibiting graven images" or "making a specific day a holy day". Those rules are the opposite of religious liberty. Not allowing people to take a certain gods name in vain is the opposite of freedom of speech, and thus its not what America is all about.
Nope, the 10 commandments can be on your body, your clothes, your house, heck, carve them into your yard and wallpaper them on your business. But the government-run entities should be neutral when it comes to religion. The government should either post all the religion's sets of rules or none. "No religious tests" is part of our constitution and the spirit of that rule goes beyond how we elect people. Same for the first amendment.
Chris Carroll listed Autism Society of MIDDLE Tennessee (ASMT) as a local resource for people in the greater Chattanooga area. As all the readers surely recognized, ASMT is a Nashville-based chapter serving middle TN and is also not in the business of providing diagnostic, evaluation, or therapy services for people. While ASMT is a fantastic organization, it's not a relevant, nor a local resource in this case.
I'm unsure why Autism Society of America -East Tennessee Chapter (ASA-ETC) or the Chattanooga Autism Center (CAC) were not listed instead? These are similar organizations to ASMT, but are local. Both are great organizations/programs and work together, and the CAC is a program of the TEAM Centers. To clarify, neither provide evaluation or therapy as the Outpatient Clinic does. They provide education and support to parents looking to create programs beyond what is provided clinically.
A quick web search found several children's hospitals who benefit from Lawn Mower Racing fundraisers. Here's one of many:
"**Benefit [lawn mower] Race for Shriners Childrens Hospital (All proceeds go to The Shriners Childrens Hospital.) " | <urn:uuid:f43e4f1b-1236-46c9-b79d-890f4cb48aa1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.timesfreepress.com/users/davebuck/comments/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00041-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.93852 | 431 | 1.539063 | 2 |
[Book Review of:
Explaining Consciousness: The Hard Problem.
J. Shear (Ed.) Bradford/MIT Press 1997
To aspire to do justice to the problem of consciousness in 900 words would be unconscionable, so all I can offer is clipped koans and aphorisms: This book is edited by Jonathan Shear, but reprinted from the Journal of Consciousness Studies and focused on a "target article" by David Chalmers, followed by 26 commentaries and the author's response. Chalmers sets the agenda with what he has singled out as the "hard" problem of consciousness, not to be confused with the easier problems, such as modelling it and finding its basis in the brain.
Chalmers is right: the hard problem is indeed that of explaining why and how it feels like something to be conscious . I'll say that again, backwards: If we were unconscious Zombies, but otherwise identical to the way we are now in deed, word, and (unconscious) thought [2, 3], then the hard problem of consciousness would vanish, leaving only the "easy problems" of reverse-engineering our remarkable capacity for thought, word and deed (including, just to set your scale: chess playing, novel writing, and "worrying" -- unconsciously, but verbally -- about the hard and easy problems of consciousness).
Some idea of what those Zombies would be saying about all this is conveyed by the contributors themselves: Pat Churchland thinks the hard problem will evaporate as we find and piece together the easy bioengineering solutions; those will be all there is or needs to be known about why and how we are not Zombies; the rest is just philosophers giving us a hard time. But although Churchland -- and perhaps Dan Dennett, for whom whatever distinction we make between ourselves and real Zombies is at best just a theoretical convenience, so that we can predict and explain one another better -- may sound like model Zombies, duly denying the existence of the hard problem, or at least its hardness, other contributors do not, instead reminding us vehemently that feelings do exist, that we are not Zombies, and that the easy answers (when they come) will not solve the hard problem. In a Zombie world, their curious locutions -- Zombies with delusions of grandeur -- would somehow have to be explained too.
But of course we are not Zombies, as Chalmers, the champion of the hard problem, reminds us. Does he think the hard problem can be solved? At bottom, I think not, but he does insist that the easy solutions will go a long way: After all, there is an undeniable correlation between our feelings and the doings of our brains and bodies. If that correlation is tight enough -- Chalmers calls it an "isomorphism" -- then even the most subtle bits of our consciousness, the minutiae of feeling like this rather than like that, will have brain engineering correlates that are fully analysable and explicable -- except for the fact that they feel like anything at all.
Can't we just take that as a brute fact, a law of nature? Chalmers, quite common-sensically, says we must: There must be something about those engineering features of ours that inexorably carries feelings with it, for whatever reason. Chalmers vacillates between declaring this primary law of nature to be peculiar to living creatures (which could mean that, unlike other laws of nature, which are manifest all over the universe, this one is local to little more than a handful of entities in one thin layer of one minute planet), and what he evidently finds a more plausible alternative: that everything in the universe may be conscious, including galaxies, solar systems, meteorites and electrons.
But, regrettably (though it does not seem to trouble Chalmers), any arbitrary part or combination of the things in the world or their respective parts could then have feelings too. And worse (though Chalmers seems to welcome this consequence, seeing it as a manifestation of the causal character of the correlation in question): every computer-simulation of any of those entities, or their parts, or combinations of their parts, could likewise have feelings (thereby demonstrating the ultimate form of dualism, with (1) the consciousness of the computer itself, as a member of the universe like the rest of us, plus piggy-backing on top of that, (2) the consciousness of all the virtual entities in the piece of reality that the computer happens to be simulating ).
Perhaps this would put too much emotion in the world (leaving vegetarians like myself, who try to avoid ingesting sentient creatures, in rather more of a Zeno-Paradox than the one already posed by our own intestinal fauna and flora). Other contributors have other radical solutions, including (1) assigning to consciousness one of the most fundamental and mysterious causal roles in physics, that of "collapsing the wave packet" in physical measurement (Stapp); or (2) assigning to quantum mechanics a causal role in brain function (Hameroff & Penrose).
For what it's worth, I rather hope none of these heroics proves necessary, for they would solve the hard problem of cognitive science only at the cost of creating all sorts of hardship for other sciences that really should not have to be worrying about feelings.
Last, some niggles: Abstracts of the target article, 26 commentaries and Response would have been helpful in navigating this volume. Addresses and affiliations of the contributors would have given us a better idea of who they are and what disciplines they represent. An index is never a bad idea either. And the many typos -- many of which appear to have been introduced from scanning in the pages of the prior journal version -- might have profited from being proofed.
1. Nagel, T. (1974) What is is like to be a bat? Philosophical Review 83: 435-451.
2. Harnad, S. (1995) Why and How We Are Not Zombies. Journal of Consciousness Studies 1: 164-167. http://www.cogsci.soton.ac.uk/~harnad/Papers/Harnad/harnad95.zombies.html
3. Harnad, S. (1998) Turing Indistinguishability and the Blind Watchmaker. In: Mulhauser, G. (ed.) "Evolving Consciousness" Amsterdam: John Benjamins (in press) http://www.cogsci.soton.ac.uk/~harnad/Papers/Harnad/harnad98.turing.evol.html
4. Hayes, P., Harnad, S., Perlis, D. & Block, N. (1992) Virtual Symposium on Virtual Mind. Minds and Machines 2: 217-238. http://www.cogsci.soton.ac.uk/~harnad/Papers/Harnad/harnad92.virtualmind.html | <urn:uuid:40c675e1-dc35-40ff-b665-25279976b067> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://cogprints.org/1610/1/harnad98.explaining.consciousness.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00024-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.934461 | 1,449 | 1.734375 | 2 |
Netanyahu's 'Lousy Idea' Makes Front Pages
How we learned to stop worrying and love Bibi's bomb chart.
11:59 AM, Sep 28, 2012 • By MICHAEL WARREN
During his address to the United Nations General Assembly on Thursday, Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu used a drawing of a bomb to illustrate the threat of Iran's nuclear program. Several media types pooh-poohed Netanyahu's chart, including the Atlantic's Jeffrey Goldberg. "It is precisely because Iran's nuclear program is such a threat to Israel that turning to cartoon bombs to explain the issue is a lousy idea," Goldberg tweeted yesterday.
But if Netanyahu's goal was to bring attention to the Iranian threat, he seems to have done just that. Here's a picture of the front pages of the country's major newspapers, including the New York Times, the Wall Street Journal, the Washington Post, the Washington Times, and USA Today, all of which feature a photo of Netanyahu's chart:
And as Zeke Miller shows at Buzzfeed, papers around the world noticed Netanyahu's chart, as well. | <urn:uuid:ec9b69f7-89fc-441e-a231-906d4ca02156> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.weeklystandard.com/blogs/netanyahus-lousy-idea-makes-front-pages_653187.html?nopager=1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951978 | 225 | 1.757813 | 2 |
I am all about goal setting. At home, at work – I firmly believe that there has to be a light at the end of the tunnel in order for us to get through the darkness. There has to be some foreseeable end result to reward us for all of the hard work we’ve put in. Without a goal, without a purpose, we have nothing.
Setting goals for your life
This was the theme of my life last year – setting goal after goal was what I lived for. I told myself I had to quit my job and get myself to Chicago – and I did it. I told myself I had to find a job once I got here, surviving on VERY limited funds while living in my in-laws basement – I did it. I told myself I’d pay off my credit by the end of 2009 – I did it. I pushed myself to develop freelance business as a realistic and reliable source of income – and today it very much is. I told myself (and my fiance) that I’d get married on May 8, 2010…and well, it looks like we’re well on pace toward making that a reality as well.
Now, this isn’t a big ol’ pat on the back for yours truly – I’m proud of where I am but you could probably care less. Instead, it’s to prove a point – a point that you have to give yourself something to strive for, something to conquer and achieve. By doing so, you create path for yourself, your give yourself a light at the end of the long and winding tunnel, you define a purpose for the day, week, and months ahead.
One step at a time
But what’s the one thing you notice? For starters, none of these are MASSIVE goals. I didn’t tell myself I was going to make ten-million dollars and move to Fiji – I told myself I’d muster up the courage to quit my job, move to a new city, relieve myself of some debt. Goals are there to motivate you, but the easiest way to lose that motivation is when you set goals that are unrealistic and unachievable.
You have to set small goals - achievable benchmarks throughout the journey. Do I want to start my own business? Open up a coffee shop? Write a book? Write more books? Start a family? Of course – we all have “life” goals – those “big hairy” ones that we work toward throughout our lifetimes. But it’s the little ones along the way that keep us going – that maintain our drive, motivate to keep us pushing onward and putting one foot in front of the other. Even if we lose sight of our big goals, the little ones keep us grounded, they keep us sane, they keep us hustling.
Should you set big goals? Should you write down a “life list” of things you want to accomplish? Should you forecast your business for the years ahead? Sure. But if you’re constantly focused on the big picture, you won’t be thinking about how to get there. And without benchmarks to measure your success, you won’t know whether or not you’re on the right track.
What big (and small) goals have you set for yourself this year and beyond?
(This post originally inspired by a post/comment/discussion over at Rebecca Denison’s place) | <urn:uuid:2ca1180c-8ffd-4fa8-8604-dbdc3c3c1137> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.lifewithoutpants.com/big-goals-start-with-baby-steps/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967348 | 721 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Vital Work Empowering Young People And How It’s Connected To Our Mission As A Campaign
Opportunity Nation is so proud to work closely with World Vision, a member of our Steering Committee. Below their Vice President for U.S. Programs, Romanita Hairston, shares about their vital work empowering young people and how it’s connected to our mission as a campaign.
For over 20 years, I’ve welcomed the opportunity to work with young people and the individuals and organizations that support them. In my travels around the United States for World Vision, I engage a diverse cross-section of our 3,000 partners, including schools, churches, and community-based organizations, and our 2 million beneficiaries. They work on issues ranging from education to homelessness. Over and over, I find the words of Albert Einstein to be true: “All that is valuable in human society depends upon the opportunity for development accorded the individual.”
If you asked most Americans to name the world's top economic and military power, most probably would say the United States. And if asked which country did the best job of ensuring child well-being, many would give the same answer. Why would you want to live anywhere else? People risk their lives to find the dream called America.
But for too many young people in the United States, particularly those of color, this hope is not the reality. During a trip to Washington, D.C., I met a young girl named Maria. Her dream is to become a teacher. She was inspired by a summer school science teacher who taught her that learning could also be fun. She is smart, funny, and caring. Can Maria’s dream become reality? What is ability without opportunity?
We trail the world’s most developed countries in child well-being, ranking just above the bottom. Over 16.4 million American children, or one in five, live in poverty, and 8.3 million children lack health care. Many more fail to meet U.S. education standards. Those one in five impoverished children have limited opportunity to develop and carry the values, ideas, and worldview that makes our country great and brings out the best in all of us.
The Center for Children in Poverty estimates that we have lost all of the gains we made over the past 50 years in child well-being. We’ve lost opportunity. We are facing a crisis that demands an urgent response in these politically charged and polarized times.
How do we respond? I have seen the powerful impact that access to a quality education and the tools needed to learn can have on breaking the cycle of poverty. The education of all our children opens the door to opportunity. It is one key to breaking the economic crisis we currently face. We can learn from the history of the modern Olympics, which were revived in 1896 by a French nobleman, the Baron de Coubertin. He believed that the education system could be reformed through sport.
World Vision is rebuilding hope at home by empowering young people through: effective educational and developmental programs, building the capacity of our partners, public policy advocacy, disaster response, and mobilizing over $60 million in resources to improve child well-being. We choose to remain hopeful, to work strategically, to measure outcomes and to work with others to make a difference. Like Coubertin, we believe the well-being of children can be improved through the right resources and opportunities.
For this reason, we are a partner in Opportunity Nation, a bipartisan national campaign made up of more than 250 nonprofits, businesses, educational institutions, faith-based organizations, community organizations, and individuals. We know that together, we can achieve the shared plan to restore opportunity and social mobility in America. We know that young adults can boost our global competiveness and economy, create more opportunity in their communities, and help us avoid the financial and societal costs of marginalizing them. We know that we can all make a difference working together.
Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. said that “in spite of the difficulties and frustrations of the moment, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream.” Ralph Waldo Emerson said, “America is another name for opportunity.” My dream is of an America ripe with opportunity. I’m excited to lead World Vision’s work in the U.S. and I’m excited about our connection to Opportunity Nation. Together, we can help young adults live the Olympic motto—"Citius, Altius, Fortius,” Latin for "Swifter, Higher, Stronger"—in every facet of their lives.
Romanita Hairston, Vice President, U.S. Programs, World Vision
For more information on World Vision’s U.S. Programs, go to www.worldvision.org/usprograms.
blog comments powered by Disqus | <urn:uuid:551b9859-28bd-48a3-89cb-4422379ac44d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.opportunitynation.org/blog/entry/vital-work-empowering-young-people-and-how-its-connected-to-our-mission-as | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.953689 | 1,012 | 1.8125 | 2 |
Catalogue number: WP1/8/53(1)
Letter from anthropologist Albert Gilbertson to Wallace sending 90th birthday congratulations and praise for his work as a scientist and a socialist, dated January 1913.
This birthday greeting arrived from Clark University, Massachusetts, USA. Anthropologist Albert N Gilbertson wrote that he was inspired by Wallace's scientific achievements and 'services to mankind' through Wallace's 'advocacy of the cause of socialism'. Gilbertson expressed 'most heartfelt wishes for many years of life and health' on behalf of his faculty and students, and hoped Wallace would continue his services 'to truth and humanity'.
Wallace received many letters and telegrams on his 90th birthday, illustrating the respect and admiration he gained from around the world.
For enquiries about the Wallace Collection please email the library
View high resolution scans and transcripts of Alfred Russel Wallace's correspondence, including all surviving letters between him and Charles Darwin. | <urn:uuid:c93de671-4165-440f-8646-e5a84db259bd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.nhm.ac.uk/nature-online/collections-at-the-museum/wallace-collection/item.jsp?itemID=81&theme=Biography | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955991 | 199 | 1.796875 | 2 |
US preparing for military invasion in Syria: IsraelQuicklink submitted by Sheila Samples Permalink
Become a Fan
|A senior Israeli official says the United States is gearing up for a possible military intervention in Syria to prevent Syria's alleged chemical weapons from being used against civilians or falling into wrong hands. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu secretly met with Jordan's King Abdullah in Amman to discuss Syria's alleged stockpile of chemical weapons. During the meeting, Netanyahu proposed a coordinated Israeli-Jordanian lightning air strike to destroy Syria's alleged stockpile of chemical weapons. Jordanians, however, have reportedly declined the option over concerns that it would cause chemical fallout around the target sites.|
The time limit for entering new comments on this Quicklink has expired.
This limit can be removed. Our paid membership program is designed to give you many benefits, such as removing this time limit. To learn more, please click here. | <urn:uuid:0d7f0798-ec76-4c29-bf0f-231bea9cc366> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.opednews.com/populum/link.php/US-preparing-for-military-in-Best_Web_OpEds-121227-67.html?f=US-preparing-for-military-in-Best_Web_OpEds-121227-67.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.930917 | 183 | 1.585938 | 2 |
October 29, 2012
Ukrainian Boxing Champ Enters Parliament
Vitali Klitschko, the reigning world heavyweight boxing champion, is about to engage in a different kind of fight.
He is set to enter Ukraine's parliament as a lawmaker and the head of the UDAR party, following Sunday's parliamentary elections. UDAR stands for Ukrainian Democratic Alliance for Reforms. The word also means "punch" in Ukrainian.
The over 2-meters-tall athlete conducted a campaign in which he was critical of corruption and cronyism in the government of Ukraine President Viktor Yanukovych. Klitschko said after preliminary voting results that he would join the opposition alliance.
Klitschko is not an entire newcomer to the political process. He has twice staged unsuccessful runs to become the mayor of Kiev. In a statement on his website, he says he has entered politics because he wants to help his country "toward a better future." He says his country continues to lag behind its Eastern European neighbors. Ukraine is the second largest nation after Russia to emerge from the former Soviet Union.
Klitschko is only the fourth boxer - besides Muhammad Ali, Evander Holyfield and Lennox Lewis - to win a heavyweight belt for the third time. | <urn:uuid:7ad8e40c-24df-40b4-9592-75fa727e7078> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.voanews.com/articleprintview/1535176.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00041-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973632 | 255 | 1.570313 | 2 |
The topic of whether to cold crash or not is an interesting topic. Bill Pierce wrote an article in BYO (Mar/Apr 2006 issue) entitled: The Lowdown on Lagering: Advanced Brewing. In that article:
“Some brewing texts recommend slowly reducing the temperature by no more than 5 °F (3 °C) per day until the temperature is at the desired setting for lagering. However, many homebrewers ignore this advice and achieve excellent results. There is agreement that in order to achieve the maximum effect the lagering needs to be done cold, with the temperature no more than 40 °F (5 °C). Many commercial breweries lager at nearly freezing temperatures, in the 32–34 °F (0–1 °C) range.”
So, in my homebrewing I have done the slowly reducing temperature method and I have also cold crashed. In both cases the beers have turned out just fine. I agree 100% with Bill concerning: “However, many homebrewers ignore this advice and achieve excellent results.”
As regards the topic of how long to lager, Bill writes in his article:
“For medium to high-gravity beers, Greg Noonan — brewpub owner and author of “New Brewing Lager Beer” (1996, Brewers Publications) — recommends 7–12 days per each 2 °Plato of original gravity. (One degree Plato is roughly equal to 4 specific gravity “points.”). For lower gravity lagers the time is reduced to 3–7 days. According to those guidelines, a 1.064 O.G. German bock should be lagered for 56–96 days, while a 1.040 American lager would be lagered 15–35 days.”
I personally utilize the ‘rule’ of 7 days for each 2° Plato for lagering my homebrewed beers.
I would recommend that the OP download Bill’s article since it is a very helpful article. | <urn:uuid:a2fae7d2-29de-44bf-b253-7f327d98c7d1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.homebrewersassociation.org/forum/index.php?topic=14668.msg186366 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.944395 | 413 | 1.703125 | 2 |
Bondage rope harness
A bondage rope harness, sometime also referred to as a bondage web or rope web, is a bondage technique involving the tying of an intricate structure of rope around the body in a complex web-like fashion. Similar in effect to a leather bondage harness, it is not in itself normally used to immobilise a person, but it does apply pressure over the area bound and can be used as a securing point for other bondage techniques.
It is not normally used to bind the limbs but you can bind the arms into the harness by simply going around the arms rather than under them. A rope dress is often used with, or integrated with, a crotch rope and/or a shinju breast harness.
A bondage rope harness can also be used in various forms of suspension bondage.
A rope dress typically takes around 10-15 metrrs of rope to tie. It involves multiple passes of rope from front to back around the body to build up the characteristic diamond-shaped rope pattern, typically starting from a rope halter and moving down the body. In some cases, a rope harness may extend beyond the torso, into diamond-patterned webs that extend down the length of the arms or legs.
The Japanese term karada means simply "body". Traditionally, a distinction was made between kikkou ("turtle-shell" pattern; hexagonal) and hishi (diamond) patterned ties, although many modern sources just use the term kikkou to refer to any rope body harness. | <urn:uuid:515ae4bb-ea37-4296-bf44-d057fb7471bd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.londonfetishscene.com/wipi/index.php/Rope_harness | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00021-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.935972 | 310 | 1.804688 | 2 |
Nothing makes more of a statement than a three dimensional marble sculpture, or bronze sculpture, wether in a public place or in the home. Reproduction marble sculpture started with the Victorians who thought that if your home was void of sculpture you were not educated, so they made bringing art into the home a family affair, and a boom in interior decorative art had began.
Sculptured Arts Studio specialise in making the finest exact copies of marble sculpture originals, for people who understand the joy of bringing a piece of quality art into the home. Yet since the time of Parian ware 1840-90, authentic high quality sculpture has been extremely hard to find. Until now, because Sculptured Arts Studio have developed a unique dry marble forming process, and over the past 20 years Sculptured Arts have lead the way with no body coming close to the quality and finish of our reproduction sculptures.
Reproduction marble sculpture in modern times has mostly been made from resins, but these materials have limitations and can deteriorate quickly, and they feel plastic to the touch, not to mention the environmental damage they can cause. With the technical expertise and support of the artists and craftsmen employed by Sculptured Arts Studio we set about to produce a sculpture range, made in limited numbers and when finished each piece would stand within the finest of interiors or collections, authentic to the eye, smooth and cold to the touch, with fine crisp detail, exactly like an original.
We manage this by dry casting white Carrara marble, this means over 90% of the finished sculpture is natural marble. Architects, Interior designers, Film & T.V studios, Restorers, Antique & Interior shops, Department stores and retailers make sure they get the highest quality sculpture and professional advice by specifying Sculptured Arts Studio. Many of our reproductions are on display in stately homes, where originals have had to be sold; such is the standard of our work. We now have the largest collection of sculpture in Europe , along with compliment ranges of bronze sculpture, marble vases, glass ware and marble inlaid tiles.
This website shows only a small portion of our complete range, so if you do not see what you are looking for please contact us; we could well have it, or even make it for you. | <urn:uuid:4d763172-c359-4c6a-a889-344449f27010> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.marble-sculpture.com/pages/about-us | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00024-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96048 | 468 | 1.59375 | 2 |
If there is an incontestable compulsion to invest in shoes you aren't alone. Surely you're confident you know that actually though : all you decide to do is consider around to work out we're a fabulous society keen. But that was not new whether. More when compared to 200 long ago, the known Marie Antoinette is believed have done her delivery wearing two-inch high heel. Even for everybody who is really tired of shoes, you will have to admit, him / her footwear incorporated a terifficly cheeky come near.
Although there is millions about options, styles and additionally brands one could use these months, we won't place the equivalent type of focus on shoes like some within the ages had. Ladies athletic shoes weren't always the very first focus whether. For scenario, did you're confident you know that 700 long ago the capacity of shoe paws were symbolic of state and show up among men of all ages? The longer appropriate, so to make sure you speak, and a lot of kings featured shoe tips as high as 30 ins. They couldn't had been very comfortable since it seems discomfort on the name about fashion always has been practised, and / or they happen to be simply overcompensating? About the more effective note, heeled hunter wellies for men of all ages became trendy on the 1500's as long as they were manufactured to keep all the foot right from slipping out from stirrups. Down the road, Louis XIV prepared heels elegant Red Bottom Shoes by exercise shoes by means of five micron heels which usually depicted significant battle scenes in it.
Shoes were a necessary part about society much previously than which usually though, rather than because individuals looked wonderful on little feet. In 1000 MARKETING CAMPAIGN, brides received away just by their fathers who'd then a few groom amongst the bride's shoes in the form of symbol about transference about authority. And besides throwing a fabulous bouquet, allChristian Louboutin the ultimate approve of disrespect : remember all the shoe-throwing ıncident involving George Plant?
Starting shut off as important but introducing status, high class, comfort and additionally artistic expression in the operation, shoes experience literally been area of human history from very starting off. The most ancient pictures about shoes are offered on give paintings for locations all over. We'll do not know who the most important person to make sure you ever use something on the feet was first, but some are convinced Leonardo da Vinci was the most important person to make sure you invent all the heel. Approximately 70 many after the person invented the software, people initiated using heels to earn themselves glance taller. Quite popular first example from this was eighteen year-old Catherine d' Medici so, who wore high heel at him / her wedding can help provide two inches high - and it is been done moment.
Heeled athletic shoes, although quite popular ever since invention, took a fabulous knock for France subsequently after Marie Antoinette's intense love to them put a fabulous dampener relating to the trend http://www.redbottomshoeswebsite.comChristian Louboutin usually in the French War, and we were holding made smaller for other century. While other sorts of popular styles found the forefront in that time, it was eventually only a fabulous matter of your respective before high heel made a fabulous sharp return. In all the 50's all the stiletto, made in Tuscany and followed by girls like Marilyn Monroe, took everybody by tempest and changed the manner we donned heels without end.
Considering which usually shoes started out as treats like leather held alongside lace to give up feet right from getting scuffed, it will be impressive ways they've developed over time. These months shoes perform identical function, still with Christian Louboutin Veil Bootie White pizzazz. We've found Manolo Blahniks and additionally Jimmy Choo's, Stuart Weitzman's (in which literally amount millions manboobs) and additionally red soled Stacee Louboutin's. Let's not just begin relating to sneakers, high heel platform sandals, clogs, loafers, sling buttocks, mules and additionally sandals. .. the directory is continual and region buy athletic shoes, you certainly shouldn't get stuck just for options this approach century! | <urn:uuid:e0332b80-cda3-47f4-9d6b-3d55883ef653> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.r8ny.com/comment/reply/249924 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00028-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968958 | 880 | 1.59375 | 2 |
St. Pete Pier design proposal: "The Lens" by Michael Maltzan Architecture (image courtesy City of St. Petersburg)
St. Petersburg, Florida -- After years of debates and proposals, St. Pete is set to approve the contract build a new pier based on the "Lens" design. But some in the public will push against it.
Expect members of the St. Petersburg City Council to confirm they can cap the cost of the new pier project at the budgeted $50 million before they sign off on a contract to build it.
The council has been nearly unanimous in its support of moving forward with demolishing the city's decades-old inverted pyramid pier, then designing and building a new pier based on the contest-winning "Lens" concept.
Photos: St. Pete pier finalists' design proposals
But many members of the public continue to want something else: keeping the existing design or removing the pier and leaving nothing in its place.
Several people are expected to weigh in at Thursday's 3 p.m. City Council meeting at City Hall.
The proposed cost to build the new pier isn't set in the contract that council members will consider Thursday. The new project and its price tag will be scaled up or down depending on what's left in the budget after the existing pier is removed.
Designers and city planners say the new pier is still much more of a concept than a blueprint, and the final details will be shaped by several sessions of public input over the next several months.
The undersea garden that was a highlight of the initial plan is not included in this contract. Some marine scientists have come forward and said the idea wouldn't work. It could be added back in later at an added cost.
The contract does include fees to designer Michael Maltzan Architecture of $4.7 m, spread across five phases of work. There will also be an independent construction manager who will watch the work and keep it within its $50 m budget.
There is evidence the many people in the city are not convinced the sweeping walkways of the Lens design are the best plan for the pier. At the start of May, a poll by stpetepolls.org of 2,670 registered voters in the city asked:
Do you support the new Maltzan Lens Pier design, do you support remodeling the existing inverted pyramid pier or do you think the city does not need a pier at all?
Build Lens Design: 29.6%
Remodel Inverted Pyramid: 58.6%
No Pier: 11.8%
Keeping the existing design would be extraordinarily expensive, according to city staff. The building is in a decaying state structurally. Just replacing the wide pier that leads out to the building would take the whole $50 m budget.
And the current pier loses money -- costing taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars a year.
There's also an ongoing petition drive to put the question of what to do with the pier as a referendum on a ballot for city voters to weigh in. That drive is organized by voteonthepier.com.
The city's timetable for the pier project calls for closing the existing pier a year from now, and starting construction on the Lens in 2014.
Grayson Kamm, 10 News | <urn:uuid:1f77bda7-96c0-448d-99ed-28bd17c740b1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wtsp.com/news/reporter/article/255592/79/St-Pete-Council-set-to-sign-deal-for-new-Lens-pier | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00038-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.952913 | 667 | 1.773438 | 2 |
Found in translation
Canon's new electronic dictionary is both a product and a symbol of Japanese-Chinese economic cooperation.
(FORTUNE Magazine) - If you want to take the temperature of Japan's economic relations with China, forget recent heated exchanges over Japan's World War II legacy. Focus instead on something cool--really cool: the tiny Wordtank V90, the latest entry in Japan's electronic-dictionary market.
Introduced in April by Canon (Charts), the Japanese camera and copier company, the V90 is to electronic dictionaries what the Ferrari is to racecars. Smaller than a paperback book, it is the most advanced Japanese-English-Chinese dictionary ever made. Its main selling point is that it provides the Japanese--the more than 100,000 living in China and the three million who travel there each year--with a supersmart tool to talk turkey with the Chinese. The V90 is such a hit that even at $350 it's flying off the shelves.
The device is both a product of the burgeoning Sino-Japanese economic relationship (trade between the two countries has increased fivefold in the past decade) and a metaphor for it. You need only flip over the sleek device to get the point. There, next to the model number, are the words MADE IN CHINA. Although Canon doesn't officially say so, the V90 is made under contract at a Taiwanese-owned plant in Dongguan, where 2,500 workers, most of them women in their early 20s, assemble pocket calculators and electronic dictionaries on a factory floor the length of three football fields. The plant reportedly makes one-fifth of the world's pocket calculators, which are marketed under a variety of Japanese brand names.
Although electronic dictionaries are a tiny part of Canon's business--an estimated $70 million out of $32 billion last year--sales of advanced models have been increasing by nearly 20% a year, says Teruo Nagahata, who heads the Canon Hong Kong subsidiary that developed the V90. The growth can largely be attributed to innovative features, such as the ability to read handwritten input. A user can draw an unfamiliar character with a stylus on a touch-sensitive screen, and the dictionary will serve up the meaning. If it doesn't recognize the character, it offers its 20 best guesses. That's a lot faster and easier than leafing through a phone-book-sized dictionary of thousands of Chinese characters. The V90 can also pronounce words and display the correct sequence of strokes for each character.
China is the fourth place the pocket-calculator industry has hung its hat since it was pioneered in the U.S. in the 1960s. It migrated to Japan in the 1970s, and the Japanese outsourced it to Taiwan in the 1980s. With Japanese approval, the Taiwanese subcontractors made the jump to mainland China in the late 1990s.
While the final assembly of the V90 is done by low-cost Chinese labor, most of the serious value is created elsewhere, not least in Japan. The most important component, the CPU, is manufactured in Japan by Seiko Epson (Charts). Meanwhile the V90's SDRAM is made in South Korea, and its flash memory and touch-sensitive screen are made in Taiwan. As the Koreans and Taiwanese depend in turn on Japan for high-tech materials, and the factory in China is full of equipment made by Matsushita and Fuji Machine, the Japanese win at all levels.
That Sino-Japanese economic relations are a two-way street comes as no surprise to Shenzhen consultant George Zhibin Gu, author of China's Global Reach. He points out that the Japanese in China, as elsewhere, follow highly centralized policies. Any time they can influence the choice of equipment or components in Chinese manufacturing, they tend to favor those they know, which more often than not means Japanese suppliers. The relationship is seen on both sides as win-win. Indeed, it is not that different from how imperial Japan's Greater East Asia Co-Prosperity Sphere of the 1930s was supposed to work. Oddly, "co-prosperity" is one word the V90 can't handle. | <urn:uuid:e800a0d0-771f-40f4-a190-5fe0215ff5e3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2006/06/26/8380012/index.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00032-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961188 | 865 | 1.695313 | 2 |
I'm a little tired of debate navel gazing, so let's look around for other topics to talk about. Glenn Greenwald must have one. Let's take a look:
Wednesday night's debate between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney underscored a core truth about America's presidential election season: the vast majority of the most consequential policy questions are completely excluded from the process....In part this is because presidential elections are now conducted almost entirely like a tawdry TV reality show....But in larger part, this exclusion is due to the fact that, despite frequent complaints that America is plagued by a lack of bipartisanship, the two major party candidates are in full-scale agreement on many of the nation's most pressing political issues. As a result these are virtually ignored, drowned out by a handful of disputes that the parties relentlessly exploit to galvanise their support base and heighten fear of the other side.
Most of what matters in American political life is nowhere to be found in its national election debates. Penal policies vividly illustrate this point.
Damn. Even Glenn is talking about the debate. He thinks that allowing third-party candidates to participate would "highlight just how similar Democrats and Republicans have become, and what little choice American voters actually have on many of the most consequential policies." Maybe. But keep in mind that the topics of last night's debate were chosen in advance by Jim Lehrer. Here they are:
- The Economy – I
- The Economy – II
- The Economy – III
- Health Care
- The Role of Government
Penal policy wasn't there, so it wouldn't really matter much if Gary Johnson had been on the stage. The problem here was the moderator, not the two-party system.
However, there will be a stronger case for a third-party presence in the next debate, which includes foreign policy topics. Even if Candy Crowley sticks to the big-ticket topics — Iran, Afghanistan, China, etc. — a third-party candidate like Johnson would have genuinely different things to say. At the same time, I wouldn't expect too much from this. Ron Paul participated in all of the Republican primary debates, and he didn't noticeably move the public opinion needle on foreign policy issues. I'm not sure Gary Johnson would either.
Still, maybe he should have a chance to try. So here's a question for the hivemind: what's fair here? The current threshold is that candidates have to score at least 15% in selected polls to be invited to the debates, and this year no one has qualified. Gary Johnson is around 3% nationally. But maybe that's the wrong threshold. I'm violently opposed to a really small threshold, like 1% or so, because it has the potential to turn the debates into a circus. (Well, more of a circus.) The public really does deserve to get a good close look at the two major-party candidates, since one of them is certain to win the election, and having half a dozen true-believing obsessives on stage doesn't help that.
So here's another idea: the debates should always feature three candidates. Two of them would be the major party candidates and the third would be whoever polls the best among all the minor party candidates. If there were literally no minor party candidates who even appeared on enough state ballots to be serious contenders, then maybe we'd be stuck with two debaters after all. Otherwise, though, we'd always make room for at least one more. Maybe the debate commission would commission its own polls, or maybe it would rely on existing polls. Either way, it would publish the ground rules, and a week before the first debate it would announce who the best performing third-party candidate was.
This system has the virtue of ensuring that the non-mainstream has at least some representation, but without turning the debates into a free-for-all. Comments? | <urn:uuid:8e534557-dcd9-4bf4-b7c6-78b87f194a79> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.motherjones.com/kevin-drum/2012/10/magnumfoundation.org/emergencyfund?page=14 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.975794 | 794 | 1.523438 | 2 |
As new parents, we get a lot of questions about baby walkers. They usually come from people from around my parent's generation who raised their kids with them. The question is usually: Do they still have those things?
Well, not really.
Then they always lament at how we coddle our kids too much these days and that all of their kids survived just fine and then they mumble something about nut allergies and walking to school barefoot uphill both ways. Well, there was a nice little blog posting on the New York Times website today regarding the danger baby walkers pose, and it was eye-opening for a few reasons.
The posting reads: Back in 1994, when baby walkers were still extremely popular in the United States, the Consumer Products Safety Commission declared that baby walkers were responsible for more injuries than any other children’s product. (Italics added)
Now if that doesn't make you wonder how we all survived a world rife with baby walkers, I don't know what will. I think I'd rather make Olive walk to school barefoot than put her in a baby walker now. Apparently the walkers were seen as the cause of broken bones, burns, broken teeth, and even death. I do understand that a possible knee jerk reaction could be to say that the baby walkers weren't necessarily to blame, but parenting was to blame. This is the old, guns don't kill people, people kill people argument. But the walkers do allow the child to move pretty quick, and often faster than the parent expects or can react. Plus, I don't let Olive play with guns either. So, we have settled it. Baby walkers = death trap.
This was all well and good, but I kind of knew this before. I mean, if Babies R' Us isn't selling 27 of them then there must be something REALLY bad about that product. What was really interesting, especially for me, was that baby walkers actually delay gross motor development AND mental development. Baby's learn to walk and move by exploring the world around them and figuring stuff out. Throwing them in a walker skips a few steps and so, apparently, they don't learn to crawl, walk, or roll as quickly as kids who aren't put in walkers. Also, their mental development is slowed fairly significantly (my guess is because they don't have to do the work of figuring out how to get from point A to point B).
Now, Olive has never been in a walker. But for the past couple weeks, she has been walking around the house by holding on to our hands. We constantly are doing laps of the house bent over while she leads us from one interesting point to another. We have realized recently, however, that she isn't exactly keen on trying to do any of this on her own. Olive needs mommy and daddy to be there all the time. She is nearly helpless when put on her back and her tummy. She cruises well, but gets frustrated quickly and spends most of the time trying to figure out loud she needs to yell before someone comes and helps her. Are WE doing the same thing as the baby walker? Are we, by giving in and letting her hold on to our hands and motor around, keeping her from figuring all this out on her own? Maybe. Maybe not. But it definitely makes me think.
Now we are trying to be better at not immediately jumping to her rescue if she gets frustrated trying to reach a toy or move around a room. She isn't crawling, but she is doing a sort of half crawl/half walk maneuver where she puts both hands in front of her, gets on one knee and then pushes herself along the floor with the other foot. It makes her look a little bit like Quasimodo, and it isn't the most efficient of transportation options, but it is effective -- and she is doing it without anyone's help.
So we'll see how the next few weeks go. I'm sure we will still give in and shuffle along behind our little girl (I mean, it IS fun) but we will also be doing our best to let her be an independent baby and happily (hopefully) limp around on her own. | <urn:uuid:677ec1f3-4585-4556-875a-2dc441cc4082> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://theeducationofanewdad.blogspot.com/2010/02/scourge-of-baby-walker.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.985733 | 873 | 1.554688 | 2 |
Surface preparation is one of the most important factors in how good your paint job will look and how long it will last. Make sure the surface is clean and dry. Since your goal is a smooth finish, that's how the surface should be before you start. A layer of paint is very thin, and even tiny bits of dust will show through. If you've sanded the surface, and need to remove sawdust before you paint, most paint departments will offer a product called a tack cloth. This is a piece of cheesecloth treated with a substance that makes it sticky. Rubbing it over the surface removes bits of dirt. Keep folding the cloth over to expose fresh areas, and you can get a lot of use out of a single cloth. For walls and other areas where a textured finish is in order, it doesn't have to be smooth, but it still has to be clean. Oily areas should be primed with shellac (* shel-LACK) or other sealer to prevent bleed-through. Sand glossy areas lightly to dull the finish so the new paint can grip. Once the surface is ready, it's time to protect the things you don't want to paint. Inside, remove furniture from the room you'll be painting, or move it into the center of the room. Use drop cloths to protect floors and anything else in the room where you'll be painting. You can paint around wall plates, or you can remove them. If you take them down, put them in plastic bags along with the screws that attach them. Finally, read the instructions on the paint can. All paint isn't the same, and the manufacturer knows best what conditions are needed for optimum results. | <urn:uuid:b53349e8-8a02-4499-982c-33dd51341e47> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.cwarkansas.com/guides/home/household/story/Preparing-to-paint/Tl7UzHpiVkmH_vGs8K4xHg.cspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964041 | 345 | 1.84375 | 2 |
Worcester Ranks Fifth In Irene Damage
BERLIN -- Verisk Analytics, a leading national risk assessor, this week released a report on the preliminary estimate of insured property damage by county for Hurricane Irene in late August, and somewhat surprisingly, Worcester County was ranked fifth in the country.
The Verisk Catastrophe Index supplies highly detailed insured property loss estimates, by county and line of business, after catastrophes. The Verisk Catastrophe Index estimate for Hurricane Irene was prepared for the District of Columbia and the 13 states and 191 counties within them affected by Irene.
New Jersey, New York and North Carolina were the top three states with sustained insured property damage topping $500 million from Hurricane Irene, with Virginia and Maryland completing the top five. Suffolk County, New York, followed by Dare County, North Carolina, with more than $200 million of insured property damage in each, ranked first and second by insured damage among the 191 counties affected by Hurricane Irene.
Completing the top five worst hit counties from an insured property damage standpoint, with more than $150 million in damages in each, are Nassau County, New York; Monmouth County, New Jersey; and Worcester County. Eight counties in total had estimated insured property damage in excess of $100 million.Coastal Cleanup A Success
OCEAN CITY -- Volunteers picked up approximately 31,000 pounds of trash from beaches and rivers throughout Delaware, Maryland and New Jersey during the 25th annual Coastal Cleanup in September.
The amount collected represented an increase from the estimated 19,000 pounds of trash collected last year, and event organizers believe that could be because extra debris washed ashore during Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Lee.
The event, co-sponsored by Delmarva Power and area environmental, governmental and business organizations, attracted over 2,700 volunteers at 50 sites. Delmarva Power was the primary corporate sponsor for the 21st consecutive year, providing commemorative T-shirts for participants.
“Judging by the number of volunteers who participated, I think it is evident that Coastal Cleanup continues to be an annual environmental tradition in this area,” said Delmarva Power spokesman Matt Likovich. “We appreciate the volunteers’ time and energy in cleaning up our beaches and rivers.”Clean Project Launched
ANNAPOLIS -- Governor Martin O’Malley last week announced the state is seeking proposals for the purchase of electricity generated from animal waste as part of the “Clean Bay Power” project to promote the use of renewable energy, reduce Maryland’s contribution to agricultural runoff in the Chesapeake Bay, and encourage job creation.
The state’s renewable energy portfolio standard requires that electric suppliers purchase 20 percent of their power from clean energy sources by 2022. Maryland is seeking to purchase electricity from manure-based fuels in an effort to reduce the amount of nutrients, specifically nitrogen and phosphorus, which enter the Chesapeake Bay. These nutrients are partly responsible for the declining health of the Bay.
“It is only through a diverse, renewable fuel mix that we will be able to reach our aggressive goal of generating 20 percent renewable energy by 2022, create jobs through innovation, and protect our precious environment,” said O’Malley. “With projects like ‘Clean Bay Power,’ together, we can work toward a more sustainable future for our children and create jobs in this changing new economy.”Striped Bass Thriving
BERLIN -- The Maryland Department of Natural Resources (DNR) this week announced figures for the 2011 spawning class of striped bass, which suggest the species is thriving in the Chesapeake.
DNR officials announced on Tuesday the 2011 Young of the Year (YOY) Striped Bass Survey is 34.6, well above the long-term average of 11.9, and exceedingly higher than 2010’s result of 5.9. This year’s survey marks the fourth highest measure of striped bass spawning success in the Chesapeake Bay in the survey’s 58-year history.
“This reinforces our understanding that when conditions are right, the striped bass population is capable of producing robust year classes of young rockfish,” said DNR Fisheries Service Director Tom O’Connell.
During this year’s survey, DNR biologists counted more than 59,000 fish of 47 different species while collecting 4,565 YOY striped bass. Typically, several years of average reproduction are intermixed with the occasional large and small year-classes.
“We are extremely pleased to see this year’s results,” said DNR Biologist Eric Durell. “It is interesting to note that the four largest year classes on record have occurred since the moratorium was lifted in 1990.” | <urn:uuid:198970ed-b52a-4218-b4f7-90125c790439> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.mdcoastdispatch.com/articles/2011/10/21/Top-Stories/Worcester-Ranks-Fifth-In-Irene-Damage | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.938899 | 989 | 1.554688 | 2 |
The best features in recycling
AfOR members vote on merger with REA
Members of the Association for Organics Recycling (AfOR) are being asked to vote on proposals to merge with the Renewable Energy Association (REA).
The result of the ballot will be announced at an Extraordinary General Meeting (EGM), to be held on 4 September. Corporate members of the biodegradable waste management trade association will be asked to vote either in person or by proxy.
The AfOR was set up in 1994, with the aim of working on behalf of its members to raise awareness of the recycling of biodegradable resources and relaying their interests to policy makers.
The REA, meanwhile, represents professionals in the renewable energy industry. Having been in operation for the past 10 years, it consists of around 960 corporate members, and it is hoped that the merger will create a stronger and more influential presence in the industry - allowing greater pressure to be placed on government to work in the associations’ interests.
Addressing AfOR’s members, Managing Director Jeremy Jacobs, wrote: ‘At a time of uncertainty and increased regulation, it has never been more important for the biodegradable resource sector to have a strong, unified and influential trade association working on behalf of industry, ensuring that a sense of proportionality is maintained by the regulators and influence can be exerted within Government at the highest level.
A criticism levelled at our sector in the past has been that there is too much fragmentation. This can at best confuse the listener and at worst dilute the strength of the message which is being conveyed. In order for a trade association to work effectively on behalf of its members, it must be unified if it is to convince government of the case for change.‘
The letter, entitled 'Time for change - Creating a stronger and more influential trade association' also outlines the role of REA’s subsidiary (Renewable Energy Assurance Limited - REAL) describing the company’s Green Gas Certification Schemes and Biofertiliser Certification Scheme (BCS), which certifies anaerobic digestion (AD) plants against the PAS 110 industry standard, as a ‘balanced match’ for AfOR’s ‘technical skills’.
The letter also hints that a merger had previously been considered with the Anaerobic Digestion and Biogas Association (ADBA), but that AfOR considered the REA ‘a better match’ on account of its wider remit.
More information on the proposed merger can be found on AfOR’s website.
- Local Authorities
- About Us | <urn:uuid:febf439d-409e-4af7-bdf5-722c5d734cf5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.resource.uk.com/article/UK/AfOR_members_vote_merger_REA | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00039-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.942061 | 548 | 1.804688 | 2 |
Originally published in September 2002 icon
Colon Cancer Concern (CCC) is a major national charity dedicated solely to colorectal cancer (cancer of the large bowel). Over 33,000 people are diagnosed with this form of cancer annually in the UK, and it is the second biggest cause of cancer fatalities.
Yet, it is highly treatable if caught in the earlier stages of development.
CCC has taken a lead in assisting people to make fully informed decisions and choices about their treatment, management, care and support. This is fundamental in todays health climate where shared decision-making between healthcare professionals, patients and their carers is fast becoming the norm.
Bowel Cancer Forum
This CCC inititiative is a collaboration of ten national charities. Their Awareness Month this year focused on the patient experience and ran a series of national Patient Parties as part of their awareness-raising activities. The parties gave patients an opportunity to talk about their experiences and discuss how colorectal services could be improved in their area. This information will help us to identify patient needs, region by region and to develop a stronger CCC presence around the UK.
It is highly treatable if caught in the earlier stages of development
CCCs lnfoline is expanding. In the spring we moved it into larger premises and will soon have enough staff available to man the phones from 8 till 8 every weekday. This will enable us to meet the increased demand anticipated as a result of all the new initiatives and as a consequence of us actively seeking referrals from NHS Direct
This year CCC is liaising directly with the Government and opposition parties, the NHS, and other key political audiences. We are using these links to raise awareness of the various issues surrounding colorectal cancer and to inform these audiences about what we are doing to combat the disease. Above all, we are seeking to ensure that colorectal cancer becomes a priority particularly in terms of increasing the choice and availability of treatments and services for patients across the UK.
Colon Cancer Concern
Address: 9 Rickett St, London, SW6 1RU
lnfoline: 08708 50 60 50 | <urn:uuid:d52d1393-cf51-44a3-8f86-b94f4574d065> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.canceractive.com/cancer-active-page-link.aspx?n=358&Title=Colon%20Cancer%20Concern | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94853 | 436 | 1.703125 | 2 |
For those unfamiliar with avocado, it can be challenging to understand how exactly to incorporate this healthy fruit into the diet. Does it need to be cooked? What are the best ways to prepare it?
The avocado has been gaining in popularity in recent years largely because of the publicity it has received from being included on the list of super foods. These foods are hailed as being the superstars of a healthy diet because of their vast array of vitamins, minerals, and phytonutrients.
Fortunately, adding avocado to your diet plan couldn’t be easier. Most people eat avocado raw, without any cooking or preparation. The taste of a ripe Haas avocado is wonderfully lush, with a nutty flavor and a smooth, creamy texture.
I prefer to eat my avocado with only a dash of sea salt, which brings out the flavor. If you find that you enjoy the taste of fresh avocado, as most people do, eating it raw and without preparation will probably be your favorite way to eat it, as well.
If you find the taste of avocado less agreeable, it will be a bit more difficult to get it into your meal plan, but there are a few tips I can give. First, you can spice up avocado by using it as the main ingredient in a guacamole dip. The extra ingredients such as lime, cilantro, onions, tomatoes, etc. will help to diffuse the taste of the avocado.
You can also partially hide the avocado in a sandwich or dish. A sliver of avocado goes perfect on almost any type of sandwich or burger, and can almost go unnoticed. In addition, avocado can be mixed into many dishes and casseroles to enhance the flavor and increase the health benefits.
No matter how you choose to include avocado in your diet, you will likely reap health benefits by doing so. The effect it has on lowering LDL cholesterol is well-documented. Avocado tastes lovely raw and all by itself, but don’t be afraid to get creative if you need to in order to help your family to eat it. | <urn:uuid:18bd8f78-9af7-4734-ae57-5de23de5c019> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://quirkbrain.com/7881-add-avocado-to-your-diet/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00037-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954453 | 419 | 1.804688 | 2 |
Pediatricians also counsel parents to watch for teachable moments in the headlines. "I think this is a great opportunity with your teen to say, 'Be cautious about what you put online, in an e-mail or a text. There is the possibility that it will live forever -- and be passed much farther than you had hoped,' " offered Hill.
A growing number of college recruiters review young applicants' Facebook pages as part of a highly selective admissions process. Otherwise well-qualified students sometimes are rejected for reckless posts on sex or substance abuse. While applicants might bristle at the prospect, university officials do not view the checks as an invasion of privacy.
"If I post anything inappropriate, borderline or even just having fun, that could potentially put me in a position where I might not be admitted," said Atlanta International high school senior Olivia Soultz, who is applying to more than a dozen colleges. "Ten years ago, you couldn't look at a student's Facebook page and know what they look like or how they spend their time outside of school."
"Here's what I tell my teenage daughters about privacy," remarked Hill: "Quoting a line from the movie 'Princess Bride,' 'I don't think that word means what you think it means.' "
About six weeks after going digitally dark, my daughter quietly reactivated her Facebook account with newfound self-restraint. She has discovered on her own that discretion is the better part of valor. | <urn:uuid:dd37022e-e2be-4130-a804-53f0c3a09b4b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wlwt.com/news/health/Pitfalls-of-youth-and-social-media/-/9837732/17527802/-/item/2/-/tewk15z/-/index.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00041-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.969477 | 300 | 1.625 | 2 |
The future Battle Building will dwarf the former 12th Street Taphouse building on West Main.
Design plans for the Battle Building include small park-like landscaping around the building.
Seven stories right on West Main.
Work has finally begun on the massive $141 million, 180,000 square-foot Battle Building at the University of Virginia Children’s Hospital, which will take three years to build and set the tone for future development between the Corner and the Downtown Mall. On April 27, Richmond-based general contractor Kjellstrom and Lee got the building permit for $12.8 million of foundation work on the former parking lot between the Blake Center and the building housing the defunct 12th Street Taphouse. Construction barricades went up earlier this month.
Architect for the University David Neuman has called the structure a "prototype" for West Main, the central road whose redevelopment has been discussed for at least two decades.
Named after Barry and Bill Battle, longtime champions of children’s health, the structure will serve as outpatient surgery and rehabilitative care facility for children and their families. Bill Battle, who died in 2009, was a former chair of the Ivy Foundation, which donated $15 million to the project– $45 million in all to the UVA Health System. The building will also include a Teen Health Center, a children’s therapy garden, and park-like green space around the building.
Eventually, the Battle Building will take over the corner at West Main and Jefferson Park Avenue, as the similarly tall Blake Center– which currently anchors that corner– will get demolished to make way for additional green space. But Neuman says Blake won't fall for several years.
Originally, Neuman said he was be shooting for a "gold" LEED certification (the system by which the quality of the sustainable construction is measured), but that has been adjusted to a "silver" goal. The project required special-use permits to deviate from City's goals for West Main, which allow by-right building heights only to 70 feet. Under the permit, the building's total height was raised to 90 feet and four inches (to accommodate six above grade stories plus a mechanical equipment penthouse), while the sidewalk-hugging exterior wall was lowered to 32 feet from the allowable 40. In keeping with other aspects of West Main planning, the Battle Building will feature pedestrian-friendly retail spaces along the sidewalk.
The building is being designed by Richmond-based architecture and design firm Odell, which specializes in medical buildings. The firm– which claims to create "environments of healing for mind, body, and spirit"– will be handling the landscape design as well. Their most striking design element: multi-story walls of glass on the front and north-west side of the building.
"It's evolved a bit since our original discussion," says Charlottesville Board of Architectural Review vice-chair Syd Knight. "The facades have been simplified. For example, the short, vertical fins that extend perpendicular to the façade are now gone. Still, it's going to be a very nice building." | <urn:uuid:722bc519-251e-430f-b76a-dd1ceda5688c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.readthehook.com/90781/battle-ready-west-main-begins-transformation?quicktabs_1=2 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963753 | 637 | 1.734375 | 2 |
> If the DWR has to work for the membrane to work, why even have a membrane?
Well, if you follow that train of thought you end up with a soft-shell jacket. Yes, these work great under the right conditions.
If you are standing around directing traffic, a long (bright orange) PVC coat is ideal. You might sweat a little bit inside it, but it WILL keep the rain out forever.
If you are exercising hard under moderate rain/mist/snow but very cool conditions, a soft-shell jacket (EPIC, DWR, pile, whatever) will work wonderfully. The heat gradient will drive your sweat out through the jacket fabric, while you are working.
If you working under torrential rain in mild conditions ... try an umbrella, a big hat, or just get wet. It's all the same in the end. (Yes, we often just get wet.)
If you are trying to work hard under cold torrential rain ... you have a problem. with no solution. About all you can do then is to wear a poncho OVER your pack and hat to deflect the rain. You will get sweat condensing inside, but you are guarranted to get wet anyhow, to misquote one of our betes-noir. At least the poncho will largely prevent the cold rain from washing away your body heat. (Tested down to freezing with success.)
Any claims by manufacturers to have the perfect solution for all conditions are just lies. You have to adapt to the conditions. | <urn:uuid:7414324c-063d-4ba5-b20e-943686d47d49> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.backpackinglight.com/cgi-bin/backpackinglight/forums/thread_display.html?forum_thread_id=61061&skip_to_post=524167 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00026-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.930547 | 318 | 1.570313 | 2 |
The Chattanooga Housing Authority approves a contract to clean up asbestos and lead paint at the Emma Wheeler homes.
It's part of the rehab project on one of the City's oldest public housing developments.
Nearly 60 units have already been done.
Today CHA authorized a $315,000 contract to clean up the remaining 240 plus units over the next two and a half years.
CHA says the asbestos involves old tiles from the 50's and 60's.
Naveed Minhas, Chattanooga Housing Authority, "We are required really by law to remove them and that's what we're doing, in the process of removing the asbestos. Then at that time there was lead paint used on the doors, especially in our site, so we are abating the lead paint."
Asbestos and lead can cause health problems.
The clean up takes place as residents are displaced for ongoing renovations. | <urn:uuid:afdc4a9f-34b4-4ebd-bf02-55d1ce87eb22> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wdef.com/content/news/government/story/Chattanooga-Housing-Authority-Approves-Contract/3a59fECZP0abeH7lIvY5RA.cspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00023-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950204 | 180 | 1.523438 | 2 |
Tiens Group, a China-based global consumer product and service company, will
pour huge investment into establishing up to 1,000 direct-selling supermarkets
around the world by 2009, to sell its flagship products to further cement its
global business foothold.
The fledgling African market will occupy a crucial position in Tiens'
gigantic expansion plan, sources from the group announced, prior to the Forum on
China-Africa Co-operation being held in Beijing from November 1 to 6.
"We aim to implement a new approach to further drive our business forward
globally. Backed by our worldwide customer pool, we will channel substantial
daily consumer products and services through us and our global partners to make
one-stop shopping possible," Li Jinyuan, chairman of Tiens Group, revealed to
"Emerging and promising markets, such as Africa, Southeast Asia, Eastern
Europe and Latin America, will play an important role in our ambitious global
expansion plan," Li added.
The actual investment for the 1,000 direct-selling supermarkets amounts to
hundreds of millions of US dollars, and dozens of new supermarkets will be
established in Africa, according to the Tiens chairman.
"We attach great importance to the African market. Currently, we have
branches in about 30 African countries. The figure will be expanded to 40 next
year," Li elaborated.
According to Tiens' plan, to set up 1,000 direct-selling outlets is expected
to differentiate the company's strategy from its global competitors'.
"It is a gigantic project, which will give us a competitive edge. In fact, we
believe we will outpace our competitors by adopting such a business model," Li
The first such supermarket is to be built in Tianjin municipality, where
Tiens' China manufacturing facility is located.
Products available in Tiens' future supermarkets will include Tiens'
traditional healthcare products, daily consumer commodities, small medical care
equipment and products and services of the firm's global partners.
"Besides traditional products from us and our global partners, we will even
try to provide value-added tourism and financial products and services in our
future supermarkets. Because of our huge consumer pool, service providers, such
as financial institutes and tourism agents are enthusiastic about co-operating
with us on our supermarket project," Li introduced.
Besides manufacturing products, Tiens also looks for high-end global
suppliers to share its new business model with. Tiens' partners come not only
from China but from around the world. Among them, many are global giants
scattered in various business segments.
Multinationals such as L'Oreal, Pfizer Pharmaceuticals and Shiseido have
hammered out long-term partnerships with Tiens, serving as high-end original
equipment manufacturers (OEM) and original design manufacturers (ODM) for Tiens.
"It is true that it is not cheap to find partners at that level. However, by
co-operating with these high-end global OEM and ODM partners, we can guarantee
the quality of our brand products and our brand value will be enhanced. Brand
power is the most important asset in our philosophy," Li explained.
In return, OEM and ODM suppliers of Tiens can benefit from such partnerships
because of Tiens' extensive global sales networks and large customer pool.
"We can have our brand power boosted, while our partners can sell products
they made through our business channels. It is actually a win-win situation," Li
More importantly, by doing that, extra expenses and risks such as tariffs,
anti-dumping charges, foreign exchange costs and transportation costs will be
avoided, Li emphasized.
"This is exactly what we expect from our new business model," Li added. Tiens
adopted the strategy of finding high-end global OEM and ODM partners from 2001,
when many privately owned Chinese enterprises were still enthusiastic about and
satisfied with serving as OEM suppliers for multinationals.
Founded in 1995, Tiens Group has grown into a global enterprise with business
operations in more than 190 countries and regions, with a customer pool of over
Since its foundation, Tiens has managed to maintain a fast but steady growth
with its anchor business concentrating on the advanced biotechnology industry.
The group has successfully developed more than 1,000 products, which are
based on advanced biotechnologies, in-depth research of Chinese traditional
medicine and the Chinese philosophy of healthcare. The group is also involved in
financing, real estate development, education, cultural exchanges and modern
The group marched into the international arena in early
1998, with an internationalized paradigm catering to its own development. So
far, there are 50,000 franchised outlets around the world selling its products, and the group
has set up branches in 104 countries and regions.
(China Daily 11/03/2006 page16) | <urn:uuid:9aedac5a-b939-41a1-bb47-d179070746f0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/cndy/2006-11/03/content_723382.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.943083 | 1,040 | 1.59375 | 2 |
Originally Posted by nycindie
Please note that, in the sentence you quoted, the author stated, "Multiple relationships are viewed as positive, in part, because no one individual “can meet all your needs.” " In part. It's part of why poly can be viewed positively. That is just one of many reasons why polyamory can work for people. Straussberg is not saying it is the only reason for everyone. There are all types of people who live polyamorously and many reasons why that is what works for them.
over the week I was thinking about about meeting all the needs. Then it flashed in my mind that "Yes now Me and my SO is and can meet all of each other's known needs. As our relationship is expanding, our personalities will also grow We might come across some new needs in future which we are unaware of now, then there is a possibility that we might or might not be able to fullfill, In that situation the other couple in our polymorous relationship might hep us. | <urn:uuid:678b321a-3263-4166-96bc-4329afd6cfe3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.polyamory.com/forum/showpost.php?p=128384&postcount=15 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00031-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.982524 | 214 | 1.570313 | 2 |
Updated 05/08/2012 12:27 PM
Oswego boy saves mom with CPR
An Oswego boy knew just what to do when his mother collapsed last month. YNN's Erin Clarke shares his story and the reason why he's now being hailed as a hero.
To view our videos, you need to
install Adobe Flash 9 or above. Install now.
Then come back here and refresh the page.
FULTON, N.Y.-- It was a scary day in April.
"She's just getting a cup of water and then she just froze and fell down. Wouldn't breathe or nothing," said Austin Blance.
Kara O'Neil collapsed because of a bacterial infection. Her 8-year-old son took action.
"I breathed in her mouth and pushed on her chest," said Blance.
Performing CPR immediately on a person who isn't breathing increases their chance of survival. Rescue workers say Austin's quick thinking is the reason Kara is here today.
"I never could imagine in a million years that he had the strength and the courage to be able to do something like that and the composure. There's a lot of adults out there that I think would freeze," said Kara O'Neil.
Kara doesn't know CPR herself. Austin says he learned it from a show on the History Channel. His mom now thinks if the life saving skill is that easy to acquire, everyone should learn it.
"I think it should be something that everybody is taught, maybe in Kindergarten," said O'Neil.
Because you never know who may need your help.
"I love him. He's the best kid in the whole universe and my little hero," said O'Neil.
If you're interested in learning CPR, a number of organizations offer classes, including the American Heart Association. Visit www.heart.org. | <urn:uuid:5f6c88ae-1860-42ef-b630-f5a93bd835dc> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://centralny.ynn.com/content/top_stories/583148/oswego-boy-saves-mom-with-cpr/?ap=1&Flash | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.977283 | 388 | 1.71875 | 2 |
NORTH Shore youths are among approximately 300 from the Lower Mainland counting down the days until they get on the baseball field for the first time.
Representatives of the Vancouver Canadians Baseball Foundation believe that every child has the right to play ball regardless of conditions that are beyond their control. According to a written statement, starting Thursday, July 5, in association with the Boys and Girls Clubs of South Coast B.C., the foundation will bring more than 300 children from across the Lower Mainland to Scotiabank Field at Nat Bailey Stadium to play baseball.
Over a seven-week period, six games will be played in an atmosphere that promotes collaboration and a spirit of fair play. Participants will be coached and mentored by local sports personalities and community figures and will receive free equipment (glove, bag, helmet, etc.), meals, transportation and a weekly talk geared to the promotion of self-esteem and leadership skills.
The life lessons and confidence developed through team sports such as baseball are invaluable to a child's development, says Jeff Mooney, foundation chairman, in the statement. The mini baseball league is intended to remove all barriers and allow children to play, grow and make memories that will last a lifetime.
The response received from children wanting to be part of the program has been overwhelming, says Carolyn Tuckwell, president and CEO of the Boys and Girls Clubs of South Coast B.C., adding she can't wait to see participants' faces when they get onto the field for the first time.
The mini league is the first of its kind by any major or minor league club in North America and will consist of two divisions: children ages six-eight will be in the "TBall" division; and those nine to 11 will be in the "CoachPitch" division.
For more information, visit the foundation website: atmilb.com/LpgGFY. | <urn:uuid:87a4a58e-c085-404e-b3d9-d4c68fcb256c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.nsnews.com/sports/league+helps+kids+play+ball/6869130/story.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00036-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959412 | 384 | 1.523438 | 2 |
We recently came across an interesting informal poll conducted by Fiercebiotech to assess sentiment about a federal bailout of biotech firms. Participants in the poll were asked ‘Does the U.S. biotech industry deserve a bailout?’ Fiercebiotech does not give any details about the size of the poll or the profile of the respondents but 51% of responders indicated there should not be a bailout while 44% said there should be a bailout. Five percent indicated they were unsure.
Be a long time coming anyway. The banks were bailed out because they are part of the economic infrastructure that cannot be allowed to collapse. The motor industry is going to be bailed out because of the jobs at stake. What would be the grounds for a bailout of the biotechnology industry?
Partnerships are a crucial lynchpin in Obama’s economic stimulus plan. Alliances between the public and private sector are given centre stage in the implementation of several elements of the stimulus plan including housing, healthcare, transport and energy. Local educational agencies and schools, for example, in order to expand are expected to ‘work in partnership with the private sector and the philanthropic community… to identify and document best practices that can be shared’ (House Democrats 1/23/09 Bill Text, Page 247: and Senate “Compromise” 2/7, Page 380). In housing partnerships between non-profit organisations and real estate agencies are seen as an important tool to prevent more foreclosures (House Democrats 1/23/09 Bill Text, Page 224).
Using partnerships to stimulate the economy makes sense. Non-profit and private sectors have different sources of knowledge and expertise which, if shared, can be a tremendous vector for rejuvenating the economy and building consumer confidence. As the Stimulus Package makes clear partnerships can enhance the effectiveness of each grant given under the package. Partnerships also prevent the duplication of efforts (H.R. 1: Final Stimulus Version, page 294).
For Kaiser’s take on the Stimulus Package for healthcare click here
I have just came across a recently released academic paper titled Small Firm-Large Firm Alliance Dynamics: The story of David and Goliath Retold. The paper by Gautam Kasthurirangan of Deloitte & Touche LLP and Daniel Robeson of the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute argues that, as the authors put it:
.. high power differences between the alliance partners [in biotechnology alliances] negatively affect the value which the small firm may gain from the alliance operations.
Apart from the fact that, like much academic research, the paper’s conclusions simply do not fit our experience of working in the area of alliances, two aspects of the paper caught my attention: the dataset used to form the basis of analysis and the method the authors used to estimate the value that a small firm may gain as a result of entering into an alliance.
The data the authors used was extracted from the Security Data Company’s database of domestic alliances or alliances between listed companies based in the US. The alliances that were selected were signed over a 14 year period between 1992 and 2006. The final sample size used by the authors consisted ’143 alliances between small firms and large firms’. No definition of large or small are given and no attempt was made by the authors to explain why these 143 alliances were representative of the thousands of other alliances signed between companies across the world every year. Nor did the authors, as they could have done, taken a similar number of alliances between large firms to compare the impact of alliances. This is unfortunate given that the conclusion of the paper can be restated as follows:
Partnerships between companies of the same size, when all other variables are excluded, generate more value for the partners than partnerships between companies of different sizes and that additional value results from lower power differentials as opposed to other factors, for example cultural similarities, similar processes and so on.
The stock market response to the small firm’s stock due to the alliance announcement was used to measure this variable value which the small firm gained from the alliance. However, as recent events have shown us markets are far from rational and the immediate stock market response to any event is at best a very weak indicator of the long term impact of that event on a company. This is all the more so where the company in question is a small company with a thinly traded stock that will over-react to any major news announcement coming out of the company.
From our experience of working with companies with large portfolios of alliances the relative size of the partners in an alliance is not a predictor of the value or otherwise that the alliance partners believe that they are getting from the alliance.
The failure rate of a typical portfolio of alliances that should, in the ordinary course of events, be expected to fail is a fascinating subject. Well fascinating to those, like us, who analyse alliance portfolios and those alliance managers whose bonuses depend upon convincing senior management that, as a result of their skills, the company has a lower than expected alliance failure rate.
So what is the expected failure of rate of the typical portfolio of alliances? Well various figures ranging from 30% to 70% are frequently thrown around in articles and presentations of the subject. But where do these figures come from and why the astonishing disparity between 30% and 70%? Are these figures based on empirical research or are they estimates based on somebody’s subjective experience in the area? In search of the answer to these questions we thought that we would conduct some meta-analysis (well, that’s what our academic colleagues call it anyway) and go off and find the source of these figures.
So what did we find? Well, we found that most of the estimates originate in research conducted by consultants. For example, the following estimated failure rates were quoted by the Corporate Strategy Board in a report titled Institutionalizing Alliance Capabilities (August 2000):
|McKinsey & Company
|The Darden School
|Coopers & Lybrand
|The Lared Company
So that’s where the 30-70% range came from. But, can we rely upon these surveys to produce a reasonable expected failure rate of around 50%? Probably not. These surveys were conducted in a very different economic environment than that which exists today. The business environment has changed out of all recognition since 1993 and today, the discipline of alliance management has changed beyond all recognition and information technology has fundamentally altered the way in which relationships are managed both within and without the enterprise. Given those facts, it seems difficult to believe that those surveys provide a reliable guide to a reasonable expected failure rate today. So does more current data exist? Apparently not. Since 2000, other than the bi-annual surveys conducted by Silico Research and IBM in the biopharma space, we seem to have encountered a dearth of other surveys exploring this area. Of course we may be overlooking research so we would appreciate any links to more recent empirical data.
A growing consensus emerging amongst industry executives that we talk to is that the half-life of research data, including alliance and partnering related data, is shortening dramatically. Executives relying upon data collected before the crisis when making decisions in the post-crisis era will introduce a significant element of additional risk into those decisions. So we are advising clients to collect important data from external and internal partners more frequently than they would have done previously if they want to rely upon that data to any meaningful extent.
Roche has got its $16 billion issue away successfully. The bond issue was the largest US dollar-denominated corporate bond sale in history, topping the $10.99 billion sold by General Electric Capital Corp in 2002, according to Thomson Reuters’ data as quoted by Reuters. Reuters also said that the Roche offering was heavily oversubscribed.
Andrew Updegrove, partner at Gesmer Updegrove LLP explains why the venture funding that is out there is going into areas like biotechnology, biofuels and solar energy. In summary, they are the few areas left where new companies can produce the home run-scale exits that venture capitalists need to justify their existence, and their fees.
We’re currently running our annual survey of sentiment among senior executives in the biotechnology and pharmaceutical sectors. What is striking from the responses coming in is the level of gloom amongst respondents about the financial prospects for the life science sectors generally. Respondent after respondent cites a lack of access to capital due to the credit crunch as causing real difficulties for biotechnology and pharmaceutical companies. Relatively few respondents are upbeat about the prospects for the sector.
Could it be that the gloom is overdone? Venture capital investment in the sector appears to be holding up well. The latest PWC biotech venture capital investment report released in October 2008 reports that investment in the third quarter of 2008, after the turmoil in the financial markets began, was over $7 billion, down just 7% from same period in 2007. The more up-to-date OnBioVc.com website, which tracks venture capital investment in the sector, reports that venture capital investment in the sector was $534 million in January. This figure was down 17% on the previous year; not great but hardly cataclysmic in the current environment.
At the end of the day, venture capital companies have to do something with their funds. And the turmoil in other sectors, combined with the positive long-term outlook for the pharmaceutical and biotechnology industries probably means that biotechnology appears quite attractive to the average venture capitalist at the moment.
One thing is for sure, a sector overplaying the short term gloom is going to throw up some very attractive acquisition opportunities to deep-pocketed pharmaceutical and biotechnology companies. Or those with a good credit rating, which amounts to the same thing in the current market. And it may make sense for pharmaceutical companies to make lots of smaller acquisitions that do not affect their credit rating than a few large acquisitions that are put under the watch of the credit analysts.
We heard an interesting talk via podcast between John Cochrane, of the University of Chicago, talks with EconTalk host Russ Roberts about the financial crisis. John makes the point that highly rated companies are having no problems raising money as the markets fly to quality. Companies with a lower credit rating are having real problems accessing funds. Pfizer has an Aa1 rating, the second-highest rating possible which explains why they were able to raise the funds for the deal.
According to Bloomberg the lenders on the Wyeth deal may act if Pfizer’s rating falls below A2 which shows the reliance placed by lenders on the company’s credit rating.
Roche’s debt is rated as investment-grade but is on review for downgrade because of the Genentech bid. Moody’s currently have GSK and Nycomed on a negative outlook with a view to a downgrade.
The reliance by investors on the rating agencies is a bit odd given the way that the rating agencies let investors down so badly in the sub-prime debacle. | <urn:uuid:662a1eee-25a6-4242-8d42-90c07a3eb79d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://silico.wordpress.com/2009/02/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00034-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.957037 | 2,260 | 1.601563 | 2 |
From September 15 to October 15 the nation will celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month a time when all people are asked to pay tribute to the many Latina based cultures who make up our fine country. Incidently, September 16 is the day Mexico claimed it's independence from Spain. Â
I'm not exactly sure when the holiday started or rather, when the nation decided to acknowledge it, but for as long as I can remember, there was always a celebration in my hometown, Port Arthur. (okay, technically it started around the time I turned six.)
Every third weekend in September my family (and I mean everyone in my family) would attend a three day "Mexican Fiesta" held by the Mexican Heritage Society in Port Arthur. At that time, it was held in the parking lot of the local strip mall (can't remember what the name was, but there was a Woolco there...Geez, how old does that make me?)
Anyway, the festivities would start on Friday evening and consist of mostly food booths....what better reason to go to a fiesta I ask?? The food was so totally awesome! made by local families and the money raised for the Heritage Society and the Hispanic community. They also had a pagent to crown a queen (done on Saturday evening), mariachi players, Calpuli dancers, tamale eating contests (which my brother Dave won once) and a street dance (literally since we were in a parking lot) performed by bands from Victoria Texas or Corpus Christie and other towns. Most of the people attending either sat on the gates of their pickup trucks or brought lawn chairs to sit on, making a large circle around an area designated the 'dance floor'. My brothers and sisters and cousins and I used to jump in when the band played The Cotton-eyed Joe....one of the few dances we could do without a partner. Occasionally we were allowed to work a food booth or drink cart...always fun when you're a kid. (and on a side note, I had my first kiss at the fiesta, but I won't say who he was or my age at the time.) ;-P
Nowadays the fiesta is held at the Port Arthur Civic Center and (imo) isn't the celebration it used to be. It's lost a lot in it's transition (mostly the tradition). Sadly though, because of Hurricane Ike, the fiesta was canceled this year.
Anyway, if you've never been to an actual Mexican Fiesta, you should go. Aside from the one in Port Arthur, Brownsville also holds a week long celebration called Charro Days. It's held yearly at the end of February to celebrate the sister cities of Brownsville, Texas and Matamoras, Mexico. I've never had the opportunity to attend this party, but one of these days I will. Especially since I've introduced it in my current WIP, House of Cards (soon to be sold...uh...once I finish it. )
So, how do you plan to celebrate Mexican Independence Day and National Hispanic Heritage Month? I know....why not curl up with a hot Latina Romance? Set in the Rio Grande Valley in Texas Her Will His Way is a lovestory you won't want to put down with characters you won't want to let go.
Available now at Cobblestone Press for only $3.99
(oh, come on, you knew I was going to pitch my book) ;-) | <urn:uuid:87059be8-da1f-474c-8d76-435c78baad66> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.action?articleId=281474977450593 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.979076 | 707 | 1.710938 | 2 |
Last night while watching The Daily Show, where the first segment was on Gore’s winning of the Nobel Peace Prize, I noticed a familiar image used in one of the graphics. Several of the websites we’ve created (I work at Special Collections at OSU Libraries) feature one or both of Linus Pauling’s Nobel medals, and I’ve either created the images myself or prepared them for the web (I think Eric did the best one we have and I’m using it here). On the show they used an image of a Nobel medal along with Gore for one of the graphics, and I believe the Nobel medal image they used was ours (again).
It’s hard to be 100% sure that they used our images, but they’re one of the few high-quality Nobel medal images available online and we’re also the 3rd result for a Google Image search of ‘nobel prize‘. None of the other images available really look like ours, and there’s a few telltale signs (highlighting on the chin, slight leftward slant of ‘Nobel’). And, at least this time around, they didn’t use a Peace medal (which is quite different from the others). I wish I had higher quality images to compare, but these are the best I could find.
Here’s our image of the medal, followed by screenshots of the two specific episodes (most recent first). See for yourself:
Exhibit A: Linus Pauling’s Nobel Chemistry medal (1954) from our website, Linus Pauling and the Nature of the Chemical Bond: A Documentary History.
Exhibit B: The Daily Show, October 10, 2007
Exhibit C: The Daily Show, November 11, 2004
I’m very pleased that one of my favorite shows used something I had a part in. You never know what being highly ranked on Google will get you. Now I just have to get something on The Colbert Report… | <urn:uuid:c08ffb8f-a797-4e2f-9236-c6f8de2486aa> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://ryanwick.net/category/web/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00023-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.934998 | 425 | 1.773438 | 2 |
The Super Bowl is back in the Big Easy, finally, after 11 years, giving New Orleans a spotlight of global proportion to showcase how far it has come since Katrina left the city on its knees and under water in August of 2005.
New Orleans has celebrated plenty of milestones on its slow road to recovery from Hurricane Katrina, but arguably none is bigger than hosting its first Super Bowl since the 2005 storm left the city in shambles.
A local paper hammers GOP Rep. Steve Palazzo, who represents a Katrina-ravaged district, for a 'cold-blooded' vote.
Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid says he “simply misspoke” when he compared the damage from Hurricane Sandy to 2005’s Hurricane Katrina that devastated the Gulf Coast.
A three-judge panel of the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals threw out David Warren's 2010 convictions, saying a judge should have separated his trial from that of four other officers charged in the September 2005 death of 31-year-old Henry Glover.
The former FEMA chairman says Obama should have let local leaders deal with the storm for longer.
“I call total BS on the President’s comments."
They're concerned about re-litigating Wright’s role.
Here are 10 facts about what Washington did and didn’t do to help New Orleans.
Commentators on the left and right clash over a 2007 videotape.
He jokes that if Republicans want to "defend" Bush's response to Katrine, Obama will gladly give them his time.
The hurricane damage shifts attention to lagging responsibilities of the Army Corps of Engineers.
Obama said less aid given to minorities in Katrina.
The president suggests that the storm response was more successful than some of those past.
President Obama is set to visit the area on Monday before heading to the convention.
Opinion: Residents remain to protect their homes, lacking trust in authorities that was shaken in 2005.
Party officials and convention planners are increasingly anxious about a split-screen broadcast.
As Hurricane Sandy approaches, it's likely to disrupt a presidential campaign between two candidates separated by the thinnest of margins. But it wouldn’t be the first time that Mother Nature has derailed the best-laid plans of politicians. Here are 13 other instances.
The court says shoddy work on a shipping channel caused billions of dollars in damage in the storm.
East Coast leaders weather the storm unscathed. | <urn:uuid:23eba57a-b533-4fdd-b00c-458ec60f0101> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.politico.com/tag/hurricane-katrina | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00024-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.956668 | 511 | 1.617188 | 2 |
Thus begins Teresa of Avila's Interior Castle, one of the most celebrated books ever written by a mystic on abiding in union with Christ. Writing in obedience to the requests of two of her superiors, the humble 16th century Spanish sister protests "...for the love of God, let me get on with my spinning and go to choir...like the other sisters...I am not meant for writing; I have neither the health nor the wits for it."
However, in her pre-coffee-house conversational style, Teresa of Avila charmingly proves to her listeners that she does have the wits for conveying that "the most essential thing is that we should love God..." as she takes us by the hand and lead us on a visually beautiful spiritual journey into the soul, that Interior Castle where Christ abides, and where we may abide with Him in holy, intimate communion.
Christian Classic! This is the measuring stick I read every few years. It's not to be read as a measure for achievement for bragging or boasting but a cultured humility garnered through failing and surrendering into the arms of grace.
It is as if a beautiful peaceful and loving grandma is being ever so truthful and so humble in her writing, you can't help but listen and know she is speaking from a power higher than us. She is not once trying to think she knows anything, but knows the truths from God. Her insights get a little bit too complicated, but at the same time soothing to the soul.
In many ways, yes. You still need the printed book to study, and make notations, but the reader makes it seem as if St. Teresa herself is reading to you.
It is hard in a spiritual classic like The Interior Castle to pick a most memorable moment, for each insight is worth thought and contemplation. Pressed to answer, I have to say the explanation of intellectual visions.
No, I have not, but I will look for her in the future.
The entire book moves me. This is the fourteenth reading for me.
Remember, this was written in the 16th Century, and the frequent references to humans as worms and unworthy is very much 'of the time.' Also, when she says,
Report Inappropriate Content
If you find this review inappropriate and think it should be removed from our site, let us know. This report will be reviewed by Audible and we will take appropriate action. | <urn:uuid:fbec6dc3-4cfd-4219-ba6d-09b79e6ab498> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.audible.com/pd/ref=pd_sim_narr_1?asin=B002V5GZLK | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00029-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973231 | 497 | 1.757813 | 2 |
Colette Harris. Control and Subversion: Gender Relations in Tajikistan. London: Pluto Press, 2004. xii + 212 pp. $95.00 (cloth), ISBN 978-0-7453-2168-4; $29.95 (paper), ISBN 978-0-7453-2167-7.
Reviewed by Akim Elnazarov (Central Asian Studies Unit, Institute of Ismaili Studies)
Published on H-Gender-MidEast (June, 2005)
Complexity and Contradictions in Gender Relations
Not often does one come across a book which so meticulously depicts the process of ethnographic research as Colette Harris's Control and Subversion: Gender Relations in Tajikistan. It is particularly remarkable that this attempt has been made to study such important phenomena in the transitional societies as gender relations in Tajikistan.
Tajikistan is the most impoverished of the former Soviet Republics which inherited poor economic infrastructure and strongly entrenched traditional and cultural values from the Soviet Union. Decades of Soviet rule and attempts to change the social and cultural fabric of the Tajik society did not yield desirable results. Gender relations stood at the heart of the social resistance to the modernization efforts undertaken by Soviets in the country and continue to exert influence on the emerging social, economic, and cultural transformations.
In current studies on Central Asian societies during their transition from socialist to a new form of society (which is yet difficult to define), gender relations in Tajikistan are often overlooked and at best are considered secondary and supplementary to the studies on civil society, security, politics, etc. Colette manages to bring this into the forefront and illustrates the importance of gender relations in the understanding of and the formation of Tajik society.
The author employs life histories to grasp the nature and the subtleties of gender relations in Tajikistan. The narrations and stories of the lives of the research participants are supplemented by theoretical literature that allows her to elaborate and conceptualize her observations. Narrating the life stories of the research participants, the author manages to demonstrate the complexity and at times contradictions in Tajikistan gender relations. There is a good attempt to explore the historical and cultural foundations of current gender relations that provides profound insights into the social and cultural makeup of the Tajik society. In that sense the book can serve as a fine guidebook for students and researchers interested in getting into the depth and breadth of the phenomena under study.
Colette is an insightful scholar who does not limit herself to the description of the findings of her research alone, but also places herself in that context and tries to relate the stories of the research participants to her own experiences while inviting the readers to do the same. The detailed description of her research methods and analysis of the literature related to gender in Muslim societies as well as Soviet and pre-Soviet periods at the outset of the book provide a conceptual framework that adds to the strength of the research and enhances its validity. This is well reflected in the first chapter of the book on the conceptual background of the research.
In the second chapter, "The Bolsheviks Attack but the Tajiks Resist," the author succinctly illustrates the historical background of the gender issues in Tajikistan starting from the conquering of Central Asia by the Russian Empire to the rise of the Bolsheviks. Colette manages to provide a balanced description of the so called "hujum" (assault against veils) in the 1920s which was characterized by social and political contradictions, psychological dislocation for the women and both positive and negative consequences for the transformation of Tajik society under the new regime and ideology.
In the following two chapters, Colette presents the current post-Soviet affair of gender norms in terms of community and family control. She demonstrates the role of society and community in forging the gender norms and how communal "tools of repression" as the surveillance of members by other family members leads to what she calls "auto-repression." In this theory individuals do not appear submissive, passive recipients of social norms, but actively engage with the prevailing norms, manipulating them and trying to subjugate the situation for their own benefits. A similar approach is taken in family relations, where members of the family, though undertaking clear roles and positions, find ways of escaping the norms but remain largely dependent on the overall family structure and established norms.
An important theoretical basis for Colette in these chapters is an honor-and-shame system that the author claims to be the base of the moral system in Tajikistan and other Muslim countries in gender relations. In this regard the author delineates Islam as a juridical religion which adjudicates how people should lead their lives. As such, Colette concludes that "it is this that allows female seclusion and veiling to be incorporated into religious practices." This generalization leaves many significant factors unaddressed and reflects the type of stereotyping which is often observed in the western context. It is not apparent from the study how the tenets and principles of Islam manifest themselves in the actions of the family and community members. How such concepts as "respect for parents and elders," "brotherhood," "social responsibility," etc. define the behavior of the community and family members and whether the social norms are strictly determined by manipulation, power struggle, auto-surveillance, etc. The spiritual and religious dimensions of the human actions would have certainly shed light on the contextual understanding and appreciation of the honor-and-shame system, as well as the formation of gender identity in Tajikistan.
The author tries to develop a relevant theoretical framework for each phenomenon which she insightfully observes. In the process Colette seems to overemphasize the theoretical underpinnings and at times diminishes the role of research participants to passive objects of study. Their voices and interpretations of their actions and behavior remain largely unheeded. There are rare indications of the reasons and actions of the research participants from their own perspectives. How do they perceive their behavior in terms of gender relations? For example, how would Dila (a research participant) elaborate her relation with her father? How would she explain her attitude and actions in different situations in her relations to her father and mother? The insight of the participants in their own words, though tacitly narrated through the narration of the researcher, would have illuminated many aspects of cultural and traditional values.
The last chapter, addressing couple relations and marriage, is probably the most provocative and stimulating part of the book. The author lucidly describes the most intimate aspects of gender relations including marital relations, love, and sex. Without much theoretical background, she provides insight into the complex marital relations of each case, which leaves very little room for generalization on family life in Tajikistan. This in itself is of profound value and allows looking at the situation and in this case the gender relations with an open perspective and to draw conclusions with full appreciation of the contextual, cultural, social, religious, and political factors which shape and reshape human actions.
Control and Subversion is a significant step towards a better understanding of Tajik society in general and its gender relations in particular. The book is of educational and methodological value to a range of scholars and students studying gender and a wider public interested in understanding gender issues in the post-Soviet context. The book also has valuable implications for development workers in Central Asia and the creation of a civil society in Tajikistan.
If there is additional discussion of this review, you may access it through the list discussion logs at: http://h-net.msu.edu/cgi-bin/logbrowse.pl.
Akim Elnazarov. Review of Harris, Colette, Control and Subversion: Gender Relations in Tajikistan.
H-Gender-MidEast, H-Net Reviews.
Copyright © 2005 by H-Net, all rights reserved. H-Net permits the redistribution and reprinting of this work for nonprofit, educational purposes, with full and accurate attribution to the author, web location, date of publication, originating list, and H-Net: Humanities & Social Sciences Online. For any other proposed use, contact the Reviews editorial staff at [email protected]. | <urn:uuid:2156f61b-1aea-4401-ad8c-bcff1a7282ed> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=10658 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.939177 | 1,673 | 1.625 | 2 |
You need to define god before you can ask these questions. Most of the gods I've heard about are self contradictory. Also, proponents for specific gods rely heavily on misinformation, logical fallacies and even blatant lies.
i was pointing about jesus christ,
is jesus christ a god? if this is the question then you need to rewrite your question or else you must first define what you mean by a god so we can tell whether such a thing/ being would exist.
Jesus Christ is a clear example of legend. There may have been a man but you know literally nothing about him now.
How can you say that God didn't exist? Does God exist?
I think you need to give us a bit more to go on. Which god, why that particular god?
But, here is how we can say that god didn't exist, and that he doesn't exist.
I posted a image of this on my page, but it is a 3 point scenario of god's existence.
1. All 2000+ gods in our history exist.
2. One god exists. (It just happens to be the one you believe in)
3. No gods exist.
Which one of those 3 seems the most likely?
maybe the third.,
can you answer this one..
here is the link
I'll take a look at it.
You have to remove the "edit" at the end of your link, in order for it to work.
sorry for that, it's in my other discussion.,
No I don't believe so.
I've never seen any evidence that makes me think that gods exist. I look at them as super powered pixies.
The scientific ignorance and immoral savagery of the bible (pick a version) makes me certain that the biblical god does not exist, and would be something to oppose if it did. The same it true with the Koran to a slightly different degree, while the Mormon bible is like the comic book of bibles and just makes me shake my head the way Scientology does.
Best answer ever. | <urn:uuid:5862392b-b07c-4e07-8b35-f0cda70b3598> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.thinkatheist.com/forum/topics/how-can-you-say-that-god-didn-t-exist-does-god-exist?commentId=1982180%3AComment%3A1210311 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00028-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96202 | 431 | 1.578125 | 2 |
Professor Hadley Arkes a dozen years ago made a terrific
proposal to revive the faltering pro-life movement -- and his efforts
finally paid off last week, although hardly anyone noticed.
In 1990, when many pro-lifers were still hoping for the home
run -- a constitutional amendment to ban abortion -- the Amherst political
philosopher proposed bunting for a single: Have Congress go on record as
supporting the right to life of any child who is born alive following an
That's what now has happened, and the Austin American-Statesman
was typical in giving the result one paragraph in a roundup of the Aug. 5
news: "Bush Signs Fetus Status Law. President Bush signed a bill that
declares a fetus that survives an abortion procedure a person under federal
That description would be laughable were it were not so sad.
Sometimes it's hard to avoid talking back to a newspaper: "The creature
protected by that newly signed Born Alive Infants Protection Act could not
possibly be a fetus. The abortion procedure has expelled him from the womb.
He is born. He's a person. What else could he be?"
But some judges in recent years did not grasp that elementary
fact, and some doctors and nurses sadly left born-alive survivors of
abortion to die in cold steel pans.
Ironically, the reluctance to come to grips with reality made
passage of the Born Alive Act possible: Democrats agreed not to oppose the
bill, and Republicans agreed not to give speeches about it. Democrats did
not want to alienate their virulent pro-abortion backers when a high-profile
discussion of just-born life turned to an examination of the same life
several minutes earlier, but they also did not want to go on the record for
For a time, it seemed that President Bush might sign the bill
into law without comment. He came through on Aug. 5, though, saying, "Today,
through sonograms and other technology, we can see clearly that unborn
children are members of the human family. ... They reflect our image and are
created in God's own image. The Born Alive Infants Protection Act is a step
toward the day when every child is welcomed in life and protected in law. It
is a step toward the day when the promises of the Declaration of
Independence will apply to everyone, not just those with the voice and power
to defend their rights."
The president also thanked by name individuals who had made the
act possible, including Arkes, who never gave up on the idea. I remember
Hadley speaking at meetings of pro-life leaders, displaying his Jewish
intellectual style amid a coalition of somber evangelicals and Catholics.
With a mischievous glint in his eyes, he would pepper his talks with
humorous, Damon Runyonesque remarks, and then arch his eyebrows like Groucho
The lines that could have come from "Guys and Dolls" kept Arkes'
arguments from becoming arcane. The force of his logic was hard to dispute.
He spoke then and has continued speaking about the "animating principle"
behind what Congress (even if through a silent scream) has enshrined in law:
"The child marked for an abortion is recognized now as an entity that comes
within the protection of the law."
The next legislative step, of course, is for Congress to extend
protection from the fully born to the three-fourths-born by passing a
partial-birth abortion bill that will withstand judicial challenge. That
should happen soon, and President Bush will sign it into law. Steps to help
young women make better-informed choices between life and abortion also are
needed. The president referred to the power of sonograms, and the
administration and Congress should work together to help pregnancy centers
purchase the equipment that will allow more women to see pictures of the
babies they are carrying.
So Arkes' content and style have led to one victory and paved
the way for bigger efforts. Unsurprisingly, none of the nation's news pages
(judging by a Lexis-Nexis check) mentioned him the day after President Bush
signed his bill into law, and most were like Austin's newspaper in almost
entirely ignoring the development. But future historians should notice, and
some abortion survivors certainly will. | <urn:uuid:caa08a7c-51ab-408a-b381-9363dc2d7b3d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://townhall.com/columnists/marvinolasky/2002/08/13/a_little-noticed_pro-life_victory | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.964771 | 917 | 1.84375 | 2 |
PANTHER HALL. Panther Hall was a live music performance hall at the intersection of East Lancaster and Collard in Fort Worth. The establishment was opened in 1963 by Bill and Corky Kuykendall as a bowling stadium. Within a couple of years the 32,000-square-foot hall was converted from bowling to rock-and-roll, and then from rock-and-roll to country. Country Music Reporter photographer Wayne Beckham recalled, "It started off as rock 'n' roll...but then they decided to go country because they couldn't draw a big enough crowd."
Panther Hall gained statewide fame and exposure with a Saturday television broadcast, Cowtown Jamboree, which came before the live concert. The move to country music not only brought additional music fans to the hall at night, but also a large television audience on Saturday evenings. Channel 11, KTVT, an independent station at that time, aired Cowtown Jamboree as part of its Saturday evening lineup, which included other popular syndicated country shows such as the Wilburn Brothers, Charlie Louvin, and Porter Wagoner.
The Jerry Lee Lewis and Charley Pride show drew a crowd of 3,000 people. Other famous performers who played to the enormous dance floor at Panther Hall included Bob Wills, Loretta Lynn, Buck Owens, George Jones, Ray Price, Tanya Tucker, Johnny Rodriguez, Porter Wagoner, Dolly Parton, Johnny Cash, Lefty Frizzell, and even the Grateful Dead. Tanya Tucker made her first appearance there at the age of fourteen.
In Willie Nelson's autobiography (with Bud Shrake), Willie: An Autobiography (1988), many colorful experiences of Willie's life and music take place at Panther Hall. In 1966 Willie recorded a live album entitled Live Country Music Concert at Panther Hall on RCA. The legendary and now rare album includes live versions of such classic hits as "My Own Peculiar Way," "Night Life," "Mr. Record Man," and "I Never Cared for You." Jerry Lee Lewis also recorded a live album at the hall in 1966. It was released in 1967 as Jerry Lee Lewis: By Request—More of the Greatest Live Show on Earth. In 1969 Charley Pride released his live album recorded at Panther Hall—In Person on RCA. Despite hosting many country legends, Panther Hall closed in 1978.
Fort Worth Star–Telegram, December 20, 1999; February 11, 2001. Panther Hall, Fort Worth, Texas (http://pantherhall.com/), accessed November 10, 2011. Panther Hall Collection, Southwestern Writers Collection, Wittliff Collections, Texas State University-San Marcos.
The following, adapted from the Chicago Manual of Style, 15th edition, is the preferred citation for this article.Jahue E. Anderson, "PANTHER HALL," Handbook of Texas Online (http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/xdp01), accessed May 23, 2013. Published by the Texas State Historical Association. | <urn:uuid:8dda26f7-2782-440f-998b-779a67b3e001> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/online/articles/xdp01 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00034-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.945856 | 633 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Boy, 12, arrested for punching teacher in face
ORANGE PARK, Fla. -- Deputies in Clay County arrested a 12-year-old boy who punched a teacher in the face.
It happened last month during the lunch hour at Lake Asbury Junior High School.
Investigators say the teacher tried to separate the boy from two other students in the lunch line that he wasn't supposed to be with.
The boy turned around and punched the teacher in the face. She suffered swelling to her jaw.
The boy was arrested and taken to a juvenile detention center in Jacksonville.
Copyright 2013 Cox Media Group, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. | <urn:uuid:650dbbda-3636-44ab-ae63-fc4d651a66c2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.actionnewsjax.com/content/topstories/story/Boy-12-arrested-for-punching-teacher-in-face/d7UEl-vhkker2b6ppdv9Mg.cspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00029-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.957783 | 145 | 1.734375 | 2 |
Oleg, a 3-year-old Belgian Malinois, joined the force in September. He rides the beat with his handler, Officer David Riddle, and assists in trailing suspects and locating evidence. He’s also trained to pursue suspects in foot chases and apprehend suspects, sparing officers from employing deadly force.
“Oleg is a special dog,” Oakley Police Chief Bani Kollo said. “He’s unique. He’s full of energy and loves attention, but when it is time to get down to business, he’s a tough worker. He’s been a great addition to the team and he has a great future in Oakley.”
When Kollo says Oleg is a hard worker, it’s not an exaggeration. When Riddle began training with Oleg, the dog was so focused on tracking a scent that he collided with a bush and took a thorn in the eye. Luckily, Oleg suffered no permanent damage.
“Oleg is far different from any other dog I’ve ever known, and I’ve been around dogs all my life,” Riddle said. “He’s so relaxed at home, but take him out in the patrol car and he gets jacked up. He’s so animated.”
Sometimes too animated. In his first weeks with Riddle, Oleg would get so excited he’d beat his tail against the metal grate in the patrol car until he broke the skin. The vet finally decided to dock Oleg’s tail so that he wouldn’t hurt himself further or get an infection.
Aside from a few extra trips to the vet, Oleg is proving to be a valuable addition to the department and has already assisted in cases in Oakley and Antioch. When he’s not on duty, he stays with Riddle and his family, which includes a German shepherd that has taken a liking to Oleg. But even during his down time, Oleg can’t take his mind off work. He has his own kennel, complete with a dog bed, but sleeps in the patrol car on oaccasion.
“It’s funny,” Riddle said. “I tuck him in with blankets to make sure he’s comfortable. I check on him to see if he wants to come out, but he loves to sleep in the car. He’s a unique personality. He’s a great dog.”
But what makes Oleg truly special is that he’s a gift from the Oakley community. When Kollo learned that Riddle had training in the K-9 division and was interested in becoming a handler, Kollo spoke to Jim Frazier, who was Oakley mayor at the time. Frazier, president of Friends of Oakley, helped organize fundraisers and spread the word about Oakley’s need for a second K-9 unit – and the community responded. Local businesses and residents contributed more than $12,000 to bring Oleg over from Germany and send him through K-9 training.
“It was a real grass-roots effort to bring Oleg on board,” Kollo said. “He is Oakley’s dog. We wouldn’t have Oleg if it wasn’t for kind-hearted people in this community, and he’s out to make them proud.”
Oleg is Oakley’s second police dog. Shadow, a 7-year-old Belgian Malinois, is in the prime of his K-9 career, and Kollo said by the time Shadow is ready to retire, Oleg will be in his prime, ready to take over as top dog. | <urn:uuid:d826b17c-31da-4a0a-876d-895498995d7c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.thepress.net/pages/full_story/push?article-New+police+dog+on+the+Oakley+beat%20&id=17054304 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.978429 | 793 | 1.585938 | 2 |
In its zeal to kowtow to business, the Bush administration is dismantling a century of regulations that protect middle class consumers from financial fraud and health hazards.
By Merrill Goozner
CORPORATE AMERICA’S IDEOLOGICAL ASSAULT ON government regulation has undermined middle America’s understanding of why these rules exist in the first place. It is true that some regulations have lived past their prime, protecting monopolies and stifling innovation. But the free-market ideologues of our era were not content to adjust those regulations to accommodate new economic realities. Instead, they preferred wholesale deregulation. The results are predictable.
The most spectacular market disaster of recent times — the accounting and stock-analyst frauds that robbed large swaths of the middle class of its retirement savings and misallocated trillions of dollars of investment capital — was a direct result of the deregulation of financial markets that began under Ronald Reagan and intensified during the Bill Clinton years. If you weaken the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and limit investors’ right to sue accountants and corporate managers for fraud, you get Arthur Andersen and Enron, Bernie Ebbers and WorldCom, Dennis Kozlowski and Tyco. If you repeal the Depression-era Glass-Steagall Act, you get a financial world where stock analysts publicly tout the products of investment banks while whispering to holders of big shares that it’s time to sell.
Even after these events led to the most significant re-regulatory legislation in decades, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, the SEC failed to uncover the mutual-fund scandal in which fund managers systematically robbed 85 million ordinary customers in order to please their corporate clients. If it weren’t for Eliot Spitzer, the crusading attorney general in New York, the public still wouldn’t know about the fraud.
Men and women of moderate income who are trying to clamber up the economic ladder are frequently victimized by a Wall Street-financed predatory lending industry that caters to car and home buyers with poor credit ratings. Neighborhood-based payday lenders prey on lower-middle-class people who live from paycheck to paycheck. Yet the Bush administration’s response — issued earlier this year through the Treasury Department’s Office of the Comptroller of the Currency — is to seek rules preempting aggressive state regulators who have taken the lead in policing the industry. “This [is a] blatant attempt to shield banks from legitimate state law enforcement,” says Connecticut Attorney General Richard Blumenthal.
While the deregulatory movement has been a bipartisan affair greased by campaign contributions, the assault of the Bush administration has taken it to a new level. Indeed, the headlines about the market failure may even suggest a way to challenge the prevailing orthodoxy in this election year.
Consider the meatpacking industry. Upton Sinclair’s The Jungle led to an age of regulation a hundred years ago. Yet today’s protectors of the nation’s food supply, officials in the Agriculture Department, failed to prevent the first case of mad-cow disease from entering the United States. Within weeks of the incident, scientists on the inside admitted that the agency had ignored warnings that a spot inspection system was flawed — and was an accident waiting to happen. Even today, Ann Veneman, the former meat-industry lobbyist who heads the agency, continues to drag her feet on implementing universal testing on animals heading for slaughter.
Meanwhile, officials with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) have ignored a decade of mounting evidence of the dangers of over-the-counter stimulants. They only overcame industry pressure when a major-league ballplayer died last year after using ephedra. Meanwhile, the agency has pursued policies that could appear on a Big Pharma wish list: working to prevent senior citizens from importing cheaper Canadian drugs, opposing price controls or even price negotiation by Medicare, moving slowly on warning consumers about potentially dangerous drugs, and doing nothing to regulate the vacuous and confusing drug ads aimed directly at consumers.
At the Justice Department, Federal Trade Commission, and Federal Communications Commission (FCC), their watchdogs sit around as cable rates go up, telephone competition is stifled, and the ownership of media is concentrated. In fact, FCC Chairman Michael Powell has even relaxed rules concerning cross-ownership and media concentration — despite widespread opposition to media conglomeration.
On the energy front, the effort by Vice President Dick Cheney to bend policy and regulations in an effort to promote an industry wish list — renewed nuclear power, coal, oil drilling in pristine regions — was too much even for Republicans. Unfortunately, the media’s focus on that effort has meant not enough attention is being paid to the fleecing of the energy-buying public, a move that has been tacitly condoned by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC).
The effects of energy deregulation are widespread and can be seen in a series of price gougings by oligarchies. And in recent months, we’ve experienced the California electricity crisis, skyrocketing natural-gas rates, and the current gasoline-price spike. In every sector where deregulation has been tried, energy pricing became unhinged from supply and demand, not more responsive to market forces as promised by its proponents. Instead of regulators policing prices, we have producers colluding with one another in an effort to withhold supply and drive up prices. Yet the political appointees to FERC won’t admit that energy deregulation is a failure.
Don’t forget the environment. Not only does the Bush administration work hard to meet the demands of corporations, it also uses Orwellian doublespeak to gull the public. Polls show overwhelming support among the middle class for policies to protect the environment and move America toward a clean-energy future. So the Bush administration’s plan to log in national forests far from fire zones is called the Healthy Forests Initiative. Eliminating pollution controls on power plants becomes the Clear Skies Initiative. Defiling Alaska becomes Energy Independence.
Not surprisingly, the administration and its oil-industry patrons are alarmed by the growing public awareness that environmental and national-security issues are converging. Even the Pentagon has begun planning for worst-case scenarios, such as a coastal deluge caused at least in part by global warming. In last year’s State of the Union address, the president spoke about a clean-fuel technology 20 to 50 years down the road. Meanwhile, he ignores things that could be done immediately to reduce greenhouse gases and diminish our dependence on Middle Eastern oil, such as raising the fuel-efficiency standard, eliminating the SUV — is-a-small-truck loophole, and providing tax credits for buying and producing hybrid vehicles.
When it can’t bend the rules, the administration has sought to manipulate and degrade science in an effort to achieve dubious goals. The Union of Concerned Scientists has rounded up 60 scientists, including 20 Nobel Prize winners who served on advisory panels that date back as far back as the Eisenhower administration, to sign a public letter of protest. “I don’t recall it ever being so blatant,” Princeton University professor Val Fitch, who served under Richard Nixon and won the 1980 Nobel Prize for physics, told a news service. “It’s just time after time after time, the facts have been distorted.”
By manipulating science, the administration is catering to its political base of religious fundamentalists and corporate clients. For the religious right, the administration placed anti-abortion and anti-contraception opponents on an FDA advisory panel evaluating the scientific merits of an over-the-counter morning-after pill. Even after the committee gave the product a 23-to-4 nod, the FDA extended its review for 90 days to investigate potential adolescent use that might bolster opponents’ charges that the pill promotes promiscuity.
Then, in February, the administration pushed out three prominent biologists who had opposed a restrictive stem-cell research policy on a bioethics panel headed by Leon Kass. In response, an array of scientists has attacked the panel for undercutting U.S. efforts in this medical arena.
The administration also pulled out of the Kyoto Protocol on global warming, citing industry-funded studies that claim scientific understanding of the phenomenon is “incomplete.” A National Academies of Science review has debunked the charge and affirmed a scientific record on global warming that has been embraced by scientists worldwide.
Amid mounting concern that obesity will soon become the leading cause of death in the United States, Health and Human Services (HHS) Secretary Tommy Thompson has lectured the American people about their waistlines and told them to go on a diet. Behind the scenes, though, HHS officials have responded to concerns about sugars, beverages, processed foods, and restaurants by casting doubt on the link between obesity and addictions to soft drinks and fast food. When the World Health Organization issued a report embracing these linkages, for example, HHS officials sent a 28-page memo to Geneva attacking the report.
That’s not all. An Agriculture Department official’s warning about the meat-inspection system was ignored. A Center for Medicare and Medicaid Services official with realistic cost estimates for the prescription-drug bill was threatened with dismissal. And EPA enforcement chiefs resigned after the agency abandoned its suits against major polluters. Their protests are a warning to every professional whose career intersects with the government regulatory process: Expertise counts for nothing when arrayed against political and economic clout.
Regulation in the public interest once protected the middle class from short-term economic reversals. The cost-benefit crowd overstates the costs and understates the benefits in costs saved. Mark Cooper, the director of research at the Consumer Federation of America, which has done yeoman-like work on many of these issues, has compiled estimates: $ 90 billion from natural-gas price gouging, $ 40 billion in gasoline prices, $ 30 billion in cable rates.
The few crumbs of the Bush tax cut that went to middle-class households have been eaten up by the unregulated rip-offs that take place every month when folks pay their gas, electric, telephone, and cable-TV bills (not to mention health-insurance costs). That may not be a tax increase per se, but it drains the financial resources of average consumers and helps explain why in this profit-rich but jobless recovery, most middle-class Americans feel like they are losing ground.
MERRILL GOOZNER, author of The $ 800 Million Pill: The Truth Behind the Cost of New Drugs, directs the Integrity in Science project at the Center for Science in the Public Interest.From The American Prospect | <urn:uuid:d46c1ebf-b636-4da9-92ca-45662a134631> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://gooznews.com/?paged=452 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00023-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.942729 | 2,187 | 1.648438 | 2 |
All Articles Tagged "alia jones-harvey"
By Darralynn Hutson
Not very many African American women are producing plays on Broadway these days. And fewer of those Broadway productions are featuring an all-black cast. Alia M. Jones-Harvey, 38, of Front Row Productions is working to change all of that. Collaborating with veteran investment banker Stephen C. Byrd to produce Cat on a Hot Tin Roof in 2008, Front Row Productions made history selling over $700,000 in tickets opening week, largely to African American audiences. Before previewing the company’s encore production of another Tennessee Williams classic, A Streetcar Named Desire, starring Blair Underwood and Nicole Ari Parker, Alia Jones-Harvey sat down with madamenoire.com to fill in the blanks of her path to Broadway.
Madamenoire.com: What does it take to produce a Broadway play?
Alia Jones-Harvey: Producing a play is like starting a new business. Each time you are selling the concept, engaging the right cast members, getting investors, optioning the rights and most important, building a team of people that will make the show happen.
MN: Your partner at Front Row Productions is also new Broadway, Stephen Byrd. How did you two meet?
AJH: He was introduced to me while I was in NYC Business School. After school, I’d gone into consumer producer and financial services but always kept a love for the arts in my heart. In 2006, I called him and he became a business mentor. He’d been working on the production (Cat on a Hot Tin Roof) for many years and like the world of theater, all of the stars were aligned. It was the right time.
MN: What skills did you tape into for your first production; having no production experience?
AJH: I had a wealth of confidence and determination. I always say that people aren’t investing in the production as much as they’re investing in us as people.
MN: What were the steps involved with producing Cat on a Hot Tin Roof?
AJH: First we had to option the rights to the material from Tennessee Williams’ estate. Then we had to confirm the ideal cast members. James Earl Jones and Phylicia Rashad came aboard first. Terence Howard was more of a challenge because he needed to be convinced that theater was the right way to go in his career. Anika Rose just felt right as a member of the cast. Then we secured Debbie Allen to direct and we felt that we had a strong team. Building the right team is vital to any production.
MN: How did you appeal to investors?
AJH: We reached out to investors in our own community. A lot of the investors were first timers to Broadway. We tapped into our business relationships and targeted people that were always curious about entertainment and the arts but had never gotten an opportunity. Because Tennessee Williams’ work is recognizable and the cast was exceptional, we were able to raise the money.
MN: Why do you believe Cat on a Hot Tin Roof was such a success?
AJH: We were able to carve out our position. An all black cast of classic work was our selling point. I attribute our success to the cast. Theater audiences had seen the work and it was successful to the general market. People were just curious to see the all black cast. Most of the cast members had huge fan bases and that always helps. We were able to bring in both traditional Broadway patrons as well as new audiences. General markets are being courted by every other play on Broadway. We believed that there was an authentic audience for our production and we targeted those people. | <urn:uuid:89f20124-1475-4027-adcb-e83f31d5fbfc> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://madamenoire.com/tag/alia-jones-harvey/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00022-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.980795 | 777 | 1.578125 | 2 |
Koh Lanta Island
Koh Lanta is actually a group of 52 islands that form the southernmost district of Krabi Province. The two largest islands, Koh Lanta Yai and Koh Lanta Noi (literally “Big Lanta” and “Little Lanta”) are separated by a narrow strait which also includes the small island of Koh Klang. Fifteen of the islands in this group are included in the Koh Lanta National Marine Park. This has allowed development to be checked to some degree though like elsewhere in Thailand, developers have encroached on protected land. When using the name Koh Lanta most people are only referring to Koh Lanta Yai were all the development is concentrated.
Koh Lanta has only recently been promoted as a tourist destination, therefore much of the infrastructure is not as good as other resort islands. There are few roads which are mostly dirt tracks which lends the island an undeveloped feel. This makes it very attractive for those seeking a beach paradise without the fast food chains and brand name stores.
The two main Lanta islands are quite mountainous and are covered in dense jungle. There is a large variety of wildlife, making it ideal for trekking. The sea surrounding Koh Lanta is dotted with small islands and coral reefs. These provide lots of opportunities for diving or snorkelling.
Although the beaches on Lanta do not compare to other islands in Krabi province, such as Phi Phi, they are beautiful and clean. The best beaches are along the north and south of the Koh Lanta Yai’s west coast. There are two main settlements on the island. Ban Koh Lanta, in the southern part of the island’s east coast, is the administrative centre. It boasts a post office and police station although not much else. The other is Ban Saladan, a village at the northern tip of Lanta Yai. This is where the ferry pier is located and where you will find most of the restaurants, shops, dive shops, banks and tour offices.
Like other areas along Thailand’s Andaman coast the best time to travel to Lanta is between November and April. This is the dry season, although by April there are occasional downpours. The period May to October is the rainy season. The seas become quite rough restricting boat trips and ferries. Diving visibility usually suffers as well. Many of the smaller resorts actually close down during the rainy season due to the lack of guests and re-open in late October, or early November.
As more and more visitors discover Lanta new places are springing up all the time. There is a good selection hotels, resorts and beach bungalows on the island to suit all budgets.
For more information see Koh Lanta accommodation.
Koh Lanta is great if you just want to laze by the beach but its equally good for an active holiday. There is lots on offer, including elephant trekking, 4wd safaris, boat tours to neighbouring islands and fishing trips.
Koh Lanta is close to popular dive sites in Andaman Sea such as Hin Daeng and Hin Muang, which has a very high incident of whale shark sightings. Lanta is a good base for divers that want to spend quality time visiting Southern Thailand’s best dive sites.
There are many dive shops and diving centers on the island which can arrange dive trips. These also provide internationally accredited training.
For more information see scuba diving.
Snorkeling is one of the most popular activities on Koh Lanta. Since the island group comprises many islands, each offering beautiful underwater scenery, there are plenty of day-trips or longer trips for snorkelling around the nearby islands. The most popular destination for snorkelling is Koh Rok, comprising two islands that shelter between them a square kilometer of spectacular coral reef. A snorkelling trip to Koh Rok should be part of every Koh Lanta holiday.
This is a nice way to explore the scenic beauty of the island. Paddling through the mangrove forest, the towering cliffs and exploring the caves. The best place to enjoy kayaking is on Koh Talabeng.
Travelling to Koh Lanta
Koh Lanta Yai is can be reached by a 2 hour passenger ferry from Khlong Jiraj pier in Krabi. The pier is 20 minutes by car from Krabi Town. Ferries depart at 10:00 and 13:30. Krabi Town itself has an airport with daily flights from Bangkok.
Koh Lanta can also be reached from Koh Phi Phi and Railay Bay by express boat.
Alternatively, if you have your own transport, you can drive across the causeway from the mainland to Koh Lanta Noi. There is a small car ferry to Ban Saladan on Koh Lanta Yai at Ban Lang Sawt, at the south-eastern tip of the island. The roads can be pretty bad on Lanta Noi so a 4wd vehicle is recommended.
Koh Lanta - Best Hotel Deals
Things To Do
Search Phuket Hotels
Subscribe to our Newsletter
If you did like to stay updated with all our latest news please enter your e-mail address here.
Whatever you do, wherever you are, we make sure customers find you
Our comprehensive business directory gives your customers all they need. Who you are, what you sell, where you are, when you open and how to contact you. All your information is there in a nice, clean, clear and friendly fashion. | <urn:uuid:c6748f93-816f-4e77-ac10-590edc3b1ae3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.phuket.net/visit-phuket/about/islands/lanta-island/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955722 | 1,150 | 1.65625 | 2 |
No Military Solution in Mali, Emira Woods Says
"There cannot be a military solution to this crisis in Mali," Emira Woods said on the PBS NewsHour. "The crisis has its roots in political and also economic processes, with people in the northern part of the country feeling completely marginalized from the rest of the country."
Woods is the co-director of Foreign Policy in Focus at the Institute for Policy Studies. You may read the full transcript of her comments on the NewsHour's website.
"So clearly what you had was an opportunity because of the intervention, the NATO intervention in Libya, unleashing weapons, both from Qadaffi's coffers as well as from the international community, weapons flowing from Libya, across borders of Algeria, into northern Mali, to be able to actually create a crisis, and further destabilize northern Mali," said Woods. "So I think what you have is a situation where unilateral intervention could create complications down the road, both for civilians that could be targeted in these airstrikes, as well as for further complicating a political crisis that may not be resolved militarily." | <urn:uuid:89218654-bd41-4b1b-823f-73651f2cf021> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.fpif.org/blog/no_military_solution_can_solve_crisis_in_mali_says_emira_woods?q=Tag%3AArms+Sales | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.981001 | 225 | 1.65625 | 2 |
An affiliate of the Erie County Industrial Development Agency is forming a new loan fund that could provide financing for local businesses that have been hurt by disasters that occur elsewhere.
The idea for the loan fund, which was approved on Monday on a one-year trial basis, was the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy, which disrupted the relationships that many Erie County businesses have with suppliers and customers in the hard-hit New York City, New Jersey and Connecticut areas.
While businesses in declared disaster areas are eligible for disaster relief loans through the U.S. Small Business Administration, local companies that were hurt by the ripple effects from the disruption the storm caused to businesses in that area are not eligible for disaster aid because the storm did not cause extensive damage here.
But the economic damage still can be painful for local companies, which is why the Buffalo and Erie county Regional Development Corp. is setting aside up to $2 million for a loan fund that can be used to provide financing to companies that have been harmed by declared disasters, both here and elsewhere.
“We were concerned about how it would affect our companies,” said Deputy County Executive Richard Tobe.
The agency launched the loan fund on an experimental basis through the end of next year. At that point, the agency’s board will evaluate how effective the loan program has been and make a decision on whether it should be extended. Over the past 19 years, the agency has launched 10 different experimental loan plans, with three eventually becoming part of the RDC’s standard loan offerings and the rest being dropped.
The disaster relief fund can offer loans of up to five years to businesses that have been in operation for at least two years. The loans can range in size from $5,000 to $250,000.
“I don’t know how much this is going to be used, but it can’t hurt to have it as a stand-by authority,” said John J. LaFalce, the agency’s chairman.
In the future, the fund also could be tapped for declared disaster situations within Erie County.
“Today, it’s New York City, Connecticut and New Jersey. Tomorrow, it could be a snowstorm in Buffalo,” said Alfred Culliton, the IDA’s chief operating officer. | <urn:uuid:3240503f-93c9-4c52-acdc-1699b2ebd66b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.buffalonews.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20121119/BUSINESS/121119116/1005 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.974234 | 476 | 1.71875 | 2 |
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
BTW, K-STATE GRAD HELPS PUT AN END TO TXTING WHILE DRVN
MANHATTAN -- When Brian Bookwalter was preparing his thesis project for his master's from Kansas State University he had no idea it would turn into a major campaign in the state of Kansas -- and possibly elsewhere.
Bookwalter, Topeka, designed five anti-texting-while-driving posters and a website as part of his thesis project for his Master of Fine Arts. He said the main focus of his thesis was to explain how emoticons and Web speak could be used to more effectively communicate a message to the public. Using familiar texting acronyms his posters display various images, such as a pair of feet with a toe tag that says "NT BSY JUST DRVN" and a tagline along the bottom that reads "What will your last text message say?"
"I knew it was a hot-button topic, texting while driving, and I'd had personal experiences with it, including almost being hit by a texting driver and also doing it myself," he said. "I realized how risky it was, so I thought what if I could use my graphic design ability to somehow create a campaign against texting while driving. It wasn’t a real original idea in terms of doing a campaign against texting and driving -- those exist -- but I felt mine embraced how we actually communicate with our cell phones, which I put in a print form."
The Kansas Department of Transportation agreed. Department officials contacted Bookwalter in April after seeing his posters displayed in the William T. Kemper Foundation Art Gallery in the K-State Student Union for his thesis show. The posters soon became part of the department's statewide campaign to remind drivers not to text while driving and were on display for three weeks this spring at the state Capitol. They also have been credited with helping to get a law passed that bans texting while driving in Kansas.
"It was great," Bookwalter said. "My intention was just to get my degree. It blossomed into something much more than I had intended when the Kansas Department of Transportation called to ask if they could use my artwork to pass a law. This is way beyond any mission I had at the outset."
Bookwalter's designs will be featured on a line of postcards distributed at the Kansas State Fair in September, and he said the Iowa Department of Transportation has contacted him about possibly using his designs.
Bookwalter, who graduated from K-State in May, does website design for CivicPlus in Manhattan.
He hopes his anti-texting posters will be around awhile. He said he's learned his lesson about texting while driving.
"I think the best way to put it is that I join the millions of hypocrites who know that it's dangerous but who have done it," he said. "I think the best thing I can do is not only eliminate texting while driving but also take responsibility for limiting all distractions when driving. I think texting and driving is extremely dangerous, driving drunk is extremely dangerous, and putting on makeup or reading behind the wheel is very dangerous."
Under the state's new texting while driving ban, which Gov. Mark Parkinson signed into law May 25, drivers caught texting will receive warnings until Jan. 1, 2011. After that, $60 fines will be issued for violating the law.
More information about Bookwalter's participation in the Kansas Department of Transportation's anti-texting-while-driving campaign, including his poster series, is available at http://www.bookwalterdesign.com. | <urn:uuid:9af6908d-2997-4da6-ad68-7f7846317405> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.k-state.edu/media/newsreleases/jun10/texting62910.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.983175 | 740 | 1.554688 | 2 |
Reader [Philippe] tipped us off about this video showing a set of subway steps being turned into a piano keyboard (english translation). The creators wanted to make taking the stairs rather than riding the escalator a bit more fun. They added pressure sensors to each step, then covered them with white and black keys to resemble a keyboard. When a passenger puts their weight on a step, the corresponding pitch is played out loud.
We may have lied in the title as this doesn’t really compare to hearing Josh Bell play for pocket change at your train stop. But coming across this setup on an otherwise mundane commute would really brighten up our day. | <urn:uuid:6c852325-756b-4018-b9e1-453930d5d6b2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://hackaday.com/2009/10/07/the-subway-never-sounded-so-good/?like=1&source=post_flair&_wpnonce=1a35c759c1 | 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 | 0.950914 | 132 | 1.625 | 2 |
During his whole life, the Greek author Nikos Kazantzakis (Zorba, The Last Temptation of Christ) was an absolutely coherent man. Although he touched on religious themes in many of his books – such as an excellent biography of Saint Francis of Assisi – he always considered himself a confirmed atheist. Well, this confirmed atheist wrote one of the most beautiful definitions of God that I have ever come across:
“We gaze with perplexity at the highest part of the spiral of force that governs the Universe. And we call it God. We could give it any other name: Abyss, Mystery, Absolute Darkness, Total Light, Matter, Spirit, Supreme Hope, Supreme Despair, Silence.
“But we call it God, because only this name – for some mysterious reason – is capable of making our heart tremble with vigor.
“And let there be no doubt that this trembling is absolutely indispensable for us to be in contact with the basic emotions of the human being, emotions that are always beyond any explanation or logic”.
Hey, like this post? Why not share it?Tweet | <urn:uuid:75feac52-ada9-404e-a3ef-8d4cad67acc0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://paulocoelhoblog.com/2012/11/21/kazantzakis-and-god-2/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00025-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.947019 | 229 | 1.828125 | 2 |
From one of our most influential journalists, here is a timely, vital, and illuminating account of the next stage of China’s modernization—its plan to rival America as the world’s leading aerospace power and to bring itself from its low-wage past to a high-tech future.
In 2011, China announced its twelfth Five-Year Plan, which included the commitment to spend a quarter of a trillion dollars to jump-start its aerospace industry. In China Airborne, James Fallows documents, for the first time, the extraordinary scale of China’s project, making clear how it stands to catalyze the nation’s hyper-growth and hyper-urbanization, revolutionizing China in ways analogous to the building of America’s transcontinental railroad in the nineteenth century.
Completing this remarkable picture, Fallows chronicles life in the city of Xi’an, home to 250,000 aerospace engineers and assembly-line workers, and introduces us to some of the hucksters, visionaries, entrepreneurs, and dreamers who seek to benefit from China’s pursuit of aeronautical supremacy. He concludes by explaining what this latest demonstration of Chinese ambition means for the United States and for the rest of the world—and the right ways for us to respond.
About the Author
James Fallows is a national correspondent for The Atlantic. He has reported from around the world and has worked in software design at Microsoft, as the editor of U.S. News & World Report, and as a speechwriter for President Jimmy Carter. He is currently a news analyst for NPR’s Weekend All Things Considered and a visiting professor at the University of Sydney.
Praise for China Airborne: The Test of China's Future…
“That is the new book by James Fallows. On the surface it is a book about aviation in China, but it is also one of the best books on China (ever), one of the best books on industrial organization in years, and an excellent treatment of economic growth. It is also readable and fun.” —Tyler Cowen
“Not only does the book benefit from Fallows’ keen observations as a journalist in China, but also it is enriched by his technical knowledge as a passionate aviator. The result is informative and lively.” —The Economist
“What sets China Airborne apart from other books on China's rise is Fallows' remarkable ability to analyze both China's unprecedented achievements in economic modernization and its inherent limitations. . . . The story so brilliantly told in China Airborne, a metaphor for the much bigger story of China's rise, suggests that no one should take its future as a superpower for granted.” —San Francisco Chronicle
“It is worth the reader’s time to obtain it and read it. It is a timely look at a country in a newly dangerous economic and political situation. Understanding that situation is of utmost importance to the rest of the world.” —Asia Sentinel
“Fallows has an earthy, engaging style, and he sees the human stories of government officials, entrepreneurs, workers and intellectuals all pursuing the dreams they have for themselves and their country as they take off together into the skies…The book is accessible in different ways to different people. Sinologists and aviation geeks like me will happily pore through Mr. Fallows' detailed endnotes, trapped at the back where they won't bother casual readers. People looking for a grab buy at the airport will find something light that will also make them think. Businesspeople, students, or tourists going to China can pick this up and get a good grip on the Chinese zeitgeist.” —Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
“Fallows keeps the reader engaged by weaving personal stories and lively personalities into his depiction of the changing aerospace landscape…his book makes for an intriguing read, looking at both sides of the picture: reasons for why China might succeed, as well as those for why the country might struggle.” —Publishers Weekly
“Prescient. . . . Highly readable and significant, Fallows’ book should not be missed by those seeking to understand America’s relationship with this global power.” —Booklist, starred review
“Precise yet accessible. . . . An enjoyable, important update on an enigmatic economic giant.” —Kirkus
“Will China change the 21st century, or be changed by it? China Airborne describes a country ambitiously soaring to fantastic new heights even as its destination remains perilously uncertain. James Fallows reports elegantly on the puzzles and paradoxes of this massive nation and its quest for global prominence.” —Patrick Smith, author of Somebody Else’s Century
“James Fallows has found a brilliant metaphor for China, and he is uniquely qualified to unspool the tale. Based on years of firsthand experience on the ground in China—and in cockpits around the world—this book showcases his gifts for deep reporting and analysis. Fallows doesn't simply bear witness; he unravels and dissects. For this vast country to achieve a leading role in the aerospace industry, it must attain standards of innovation, efficiency and precision that would signal a new era in the rise of a superpower. Has it attained that level? There is no better writer to find the answer, and Fallows has done it.” —Evan Osnos, contributor to The New Yorker
“In China Airborne, Fallows tells the story of China’s efforts to become a global leader in aviation and aerospace, a story that reveals the economic and political tensions in contemporary China. China’s past economic success has been built on a combination of massive investment and labor force mobilization—what Fallows calls “hard” economic power and autocratic political control. But success in aerospace, like success in other industries that depend on innovation, requires what Fallows calls “soft” economic power—things like trust, honest and transparent regulation, coordination between civil, commercial and military organizations, and a culture of free research and exchange of ideas. Anyone interested China’s future economic, technological and political developments should read Fallows’ fascinating and insightful new book.” —Laura Tyson, Former Director of the National Economic Council and Chair of the Council of Economic Advisors in the Clinton Administration, professor and former dean of the Haas School of Business at UC Berkeley
Praise for James Fallows
“Fallows is refreshingly aware. . . . A shrewd observer of human foibles and political quagmires with the eye for detail of an experienced journalist, he gives us panoramic views of China that are both absorbing and illuminating.” —Jonathan Spence, The New York Times Book Review
“Fallows represents the best of American journalism—honest, fearless, and hard-hitting. Moving easily among Chinese, from the ordinary to the high-ranking, he reports from China as an American observer, with the same questions and frustrations that most Americans feel but without either the prejudices of some or the ideological pixilation of others.” —Sidney Rittenberg, Sr., coauthor of The Man Who Stayed Behind
“Postcards from Tomorrow Square offers some wonderful snapshots of the contradictions of modern China. As always, Fallows writes from the front lines with insight and flair.” —Rob Gifford, author of China Road
“James Fallows’s insatiable curiosity and clear narrative make his China journey a real reward.” —John Sculley, former CEO of Apple Computer | <urn:uuid:93a2b3fd-abd1-4e40-bdc5-b46d829cda8a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.bookpassage.com/book/9781400031276 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.935769 | 1,579 | 1.828125 | 2 |
Letter to the editor
The Michigan Department of Education (MDE) is withholding $5 million dollars of federal money from the Detroit Public Schools after finding them in substantive violation of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, our federal law that mandates a “free appropriate public education” for students with disabilities. This is outrageous when the very same Department gave ALL Michigan school districts, including Detroit a “meets requirements” for their so-called performance on the special education programs and services delivered during the 2008-09 school year. Solely to allow them to reduce their special education budgets by 50% of the one-time federal increase in special education funding through the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
Education Secretary Arne Duncan referred to Detroit Public Schools as “Ground Zero” and the Michigan Department of Education still gave them a “meets requirements” for special education as recently as June 2009 in a memo from Dr. Jacqueline Thompson, the recently retired State Director of the Office of Special Education.
Parents are now supposed to believe Dr. Eleanor White, the State’s newly installed Director when she says, “It is completely unacceptable for students not to receive the services they’re supposed to… These children have a constitutional right to a good education. It’s an entitlement. We take that very seriously.”
The Michigan Department of Education under the leadership of Governor Granholm and Superintendent Michael Flanagan have done anything but take the education of our state’s 237,000 K-12 students with disabilities seriously. It is not only Detroit that continues to fail in its obligation to provide a free appropriate public education to the students with special needs. Why is the MDE ignoring Highland Park, Hamtramck, River Rouge, Ferndale, Inkster, Pontiac, Saginaw, Flint, Lincoln Park, Southfield, Ferndale and Oak Park? And yes there are many more. Detroit children with disabilities are not the only students being denied their civil right to a public education that prepares them for post secondary education and the global workforce. More than 28% of Michigan students with a disability drop out of school after entering the 9th grade. The achievement gaps are better than 50% points by the time these students reach the 8th grade.
Detroit children with and without disabilities grab the daily, weekly and monthly headlines due to more than 40 years of educational neglect and abuse, but they are far from the only K-12 students suffering in school districts, public academies and charters across a state that has not cared about a crumbling and archaic public education system in almost 50 years. Our children with special needs are egregiously underserved…so why is only Detroit losing federal funds? How can the U.S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education give the State of Michigan a “meets requirements” when Detroit has been found so out of compliance that $5 million in federal funds have been withheld? When you have an answer will you please explain this to our 237,000 K-12 students who go to school and wonder when the day will arrive that their education and future will matter?
Michigan Alliance for Special Education | <urn:uuid:bc32cbe9-6209-4b9e-8553-48aef21e49b5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://ideamoneywatch.com/states/mi/?cat=1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00042-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96381 | 651 | 1.71875 | 2 |
Gas Mythbusters for 2012
AAA evaluates some of the myths about gas prices floating around.
Myth [mith] = noun = “A traditional or legendary story, usually concerning some being or hero or event, with or without a determinable basis of fact or a natural explanation.” Well, you really don’t need a dictionary or thesaurus to know that they abound whenever the price of gasoline and diesel fuel spikes.
Myths, urban legends, old wives’ fables, and tall tales about the cost of gas are circulating with mad abandon. They range from the sublime to the ridiculous and from conspiracy theories to rumors of price gouging. They fly around in the ether and they run amok on the Internet and at the water cooler. “If there’s somethin’ strange, in your neighborhood...Who ya gonna call?” Gas Mythbusters, that’s who. All the histrionics, hysterics, hot air, hype, and all things hyperbolic can be downright confounding and confusing, cautions AAA Mid-Atlantic.
“The run-up in gas prices in 2012 is no exception, and consumers are desperate, they will try anything and do anything to try to save money, including falling for the latest rumors and myths,” said Jenny M. Robinson, AAA Mid-Atlantic’s Manager of Public and Government Affairs. “They range from 'it is more fuel-efficient to turn off the car's air conditioner (false),' to ' buying gasoline in the morning, when the air is cool, rather than in the heat of the day' will save you more (false), to keeping your tires properly inflated will enhance your fuel economy (true, by up to 3.3 percent ).”
Whether you believe “drilling more domestically is the fastest way to lower prices at the pump,” or “tapping into the Strategic Petroleum Reserve is the best means of reducing gas prices,” or changing the occupant of the Oval Office will cause gas prices to fall to $2.50 a gallon, always weigh the claim with a skeptic’s critical eye. If you hear anyone saying the latter, just whip out your myth-buster’s “dematerializer” myth-popper gun with its built-in “b.s. (ahem, hogwash and hokum) meter” and shout: “Oh yeah, if you can do it then, why you can’t do it now?”
As always, motorists should strive to separate fact from fiction, and the wheat from the chaff. For the benefit of motorists, AAA Mid-Atlantic is rounding up the usual suspects and debunking them.
Gas prices will hit $5 a gallon this summer. False. No way. No how. Unless Israel and the United States strike Iran’s nuclear facilities, and then that's the doomsday scenario. The saber-rattling aside, this is the proverbial Chicken Little “the-sky-is- falling,” psychological effect. Catch that acorn if it falls on your head at the gas kiosk and put your emotions and spending in check. Although pump prices have already spiked above four dollars in some retail markets in California, along the west coast and the east coast, and in Washington, D.C., most American consumers won't pay nearly that much for gas this spring and summer. AAA and OPIS gas guru, Tom Kloza, continue to believe U.S. gasoline gas prices will average $3.75-$4.25 per gallon this spring. On the other hand, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) now expects the “monthly average regular-grade gasoline retail price to peak in May at $3.96 per gallon, 32 cents per gallon higher than forecast in last month's STEO and 6 cents per gallon higher than May 2011.” If this holds true, prices will fall like the leaves of autumn - between 75 cents and a dollar per gallon - between the Fourth of July and Labor Day.
Pump Prices Will Continue To Rise Because of the forces of Supply And Demand. False. As always, consumers have a knee-jerk reaction to the high cost of gas, and they have a visceral disdain for such price spikes. As proof, consumer demand for motor fuels in the United States fell to a ten-year low in February, signaling “demand destruction” will continue. The ancient theory of supply and demand will reign supreme at the gas kiosk and that means “the greater the supply and the lower the demand, the lower the price will be.” Even so, 84 percent of Americans say they are already changing their driving habits or lifestyles because of the high cost of gas, according to a recent nationwide survey by AAA. Accordingly, gas demand is off 7.8 percent for the last four-week period, and total US oil demand is down 6.1 percent for the same time frame. If the trend line continues, sooner rather than later, pump prices will begin to fall in the absence of demand.
Gas station owners and operators are making a killing at the gas pump. False. Whenever gas prices soar, some consumers vent their anger and their spleen at the neighborhood filling station operator. They want to burn the grease monkey in effigy. It's misplaced rage. Average Joe Gas Station Owner makes more money selling snacks, sandwiches, and soda pop than he does selling a gallon of gas. As one service station manager recently told a reporter, “Where we used to make 14 or 15 cents, some of us are down to 4 or 5 cents a gallon right now.” Well, is that true? The markup on motor fuel sales averaged 18.5 cents per gallon in 2011. However, profit margins in 2011 typically were 3 cents to 5 cents per gallon (average breakeven on fuel sales is around 14 cents), explains the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS). “Retailer profit margins over the past five years have averaged 15.4 cents per gallon” for the industry, which sells the bulk of gas in the USA.
Refinery closures on the East Coast will have little impact on what we pay for gas and diesel fuel this spring. False. It boils down to cause, effect and the wellhead. The retail price of gasoline is more expensive on the East Coast this year and one big reason for that is the shutdown of refineries in the region. It’s “Lord have mercy on us” if the Sunoco refinery in South Philadelphia closes in July. It’s the “big enchilada,” producing a fourth - 24 percent - of the refining capacity on the East Coast. Established in the 1860’s, it’s the “oldest continuously operating refinery in the world,” yet it’s operated by “the world’s least profitable owner of refineries,” reports Bloomberg.
During 2011, northeast refineries supplied more than a third – 38% - of the gasoline consumed in the Northeast gasoline market, and in-region refineries supplied nearly two-thirds - 61% - of the low sulfur diesel (ULSD) consumed on the East Coast, the EIA is reporting. Pennsylvania, Delaware, and New Jersey are “hot spots” for high gasoline prices so far this year, analysts say. Even Washington, D.C., Maryland and Virginia are seeing unnaturally high prices.
But will the trend last, and what’s behind it? Blame it on geography and the loss of production on these shores. Like falling dominoes, 18 refineries have been shuttered in the U. S., the Caribbean, and Europe during the past three years, taking more than two million barrels of oil out of production per day. We’ve lost two refineries that contribute about 360,000 b/d to middle Atlantic supply, and a once huge refinery in the Caribbean closed forever this month. Throw in the closures of a half dozen or so European refineries, and you have a recipe for a spike, albeit a brief one. Even more ominous for area motorists, five refineries supplying the east coast have ceased production.
During 2011, two refineries in Pennsylvania were idled and are still awaiting sale. They are: the ConocoPhillips refinery in Trainer (capacity: 185,000 barrels per day) and the Sunoco facility in Marcus Hook (capacity: 178,000 bbl/day). Going dark the year before, 2010, were the Sunoco refinery in Eagle Point, New Jersey (capacity: 145,000 bbl/day) and Western Refining in Yorktown, Virginia (capacity 66,300 bbl/day). The latest victim of the surcease is HOVENSA, a major refinery in St. Croix in the United States Virgin Islands, which boasted a 350,000-barrel-a-day capacity. All of this is exerting pressure on retail gasoline prices up and down the East Coast. But the contagion is not expected to spread across the USA, energy analysts forecast. The Department of Energy says: “While retail gasoline prices have generally followed the rise in crude oil prices, time will tell whether refinery closures in the Philadelphia area and other parts of the Atlantic Basin will have a further impact on prices.” The operative phrase is “time will tell.”
A Whole Lot Of Speculating Is Going On/Speculators are driving up gas prices. True. Gasoline prices have risen more than 50 cents a gallon since the beginning of the year. Once again, many people are pointing the finger of blame at a nebulous coterie of Wall Street investors and “noncommercial traders” at the NYMEX known as “speculators,” who continue to have an outsize impact on prices in the oil and gas markets. Back in July 2008, crude oil futures soared to a record high of $147 a barrel. Prices doubled from a low of $69 a barrel some three months earlier. Pump prices followed suit, and skyrocketed to all-time record highs of $4.11 a gallon nationally in July. A subsequent 60 Minutes investigation on CBS in 2009 revealed, “Approximately 60 to 70 percent of the oil contracts in the futures markets are now held by speculative entities.”
But are they blameworthy for the recent spike in gas? In February, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission’s (CFTC) Commitment of Traders report revealed: “There’s a ‘speculative premium’ of as much as $23.39 a barrel in the price of NYMEX crude oil.” That translates into “a 56 cent a gallon increase at the pump,” as CFTC Commissioner Bart Chilton recently explained. Even so, “‘managed money’ held net positions in NYMEX crude oil contracts equivalent to 233.9 million barrels.” The next time you pull up to the pump you do the math.
The USA imports more oil than its exports. False. On an annual basis, the country exported more crude products during 2011 than it imported. That’s the first time it’s happened in six decades, since 1949, to be exact. That's according to the February “Petroleum Supply Monthly” from the Energy Information Administration (EIA). The agency explains: “The increase in foreign purchases of distillate fuel contributed the most to the United States becoming a net exporter of petroleum products.” U.S. gasoline and diesel exports to Brazil jumped 29.27% last year, the EIA reports, and they are expected to double this year, says OPIS. It's further proof of the role reversal of the U.S. as a net exporter for petroleum products.
OPEC has the United States over a barrel, of oil, that is. False. While Saudi Arabia is the second largest supplier of crude oil to the United States, nearly half – 49 percent - of U.S. crude oil and petroleum products imports came from the Western Hemisphere, primarily Canada (number one), Mexico (number three), Venezuela (number four), rounding out fifth place was Nigeria, and then Columbia. That was the case in 2010 and in September of 2011, according to the EIA. Even so, only about "18% of our imports of crude oil and petroleum products come from the Persian Gulf countries of Bahrain, Iraq, Kuwait, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, and United Arab Emirates," the agency explains.
Most consumers purchase name-brand gasoline. False. Instead of going green, more motorists are going generic, for gas, that is. Gas-brand loyalty is a thing of the past, and we are shopping for gas with our steering wheel, due to the high cost of fuel, and opting for unbranded (generic) gas. As a result, a market inversion is taking place, with more consumers flocking to no-name, no-tell gas kiosks. Here’s why. “Branded product often carries a premium to unbranded product,” says OPIS, “since it can be sold under a branded ‘flag.’” Even so, branded gasoline can be sold as unbranded product, but the reverse is not true. Eighty percent of the gasoline purchased in this country in 2010 was sold by the convenience store industry, not by retail filling stations. That year convenience stores rung up $385 billion in motor fuel sales on their cash registers. In fact, during 2010, “the average convenience store posted $3.98 million in motor fuels sales and sold 123,449 gallons per month,” according to the National Association of Convenience Stores (NACS). Don’t get branded or burned at the pump, and chances are, your car can’t tell the difference.
Old habits die hard, but I can save gas money if I change the way I drive. True. One of the easiest and most effective ways to conserve fuel is to change driving styles. Instead of making quick starts and sudden stops, go easy on the gas and brake pedals. If there is a red light ahead, ease off the gas and coast up to it rather than waiting until the last second to brake. Once the light turns green, gently accelerate rather than making a quick start. The U.S. Department of Energy reports aggressive driving can lower a car’s fuel economy by up to 33 percent. | <urn:uuid:f0a67494-65c6-4652-8537-ad2ab39f1498> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://westchester.patch.com/articles/gas-mythbusters-for-2012 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00024-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.93027 | 3,031 | 1.78125 | 2 |
Why is being a loner characterised as a ‘social disorder’? It makes me never want to speak to anyone again. It makes me annoyed to be labelled as ‘antisocial’/ socially anxious. I am in fact very comfortable in social situations, I just have a truthful and realistic view of the meaning of friendship and relationship - That you cannot get on ‘really well’ with everyone, you cannot even really ‘like’ everyone (though most people pretend to.) In reality, each individual probably finds they don’t have a real ‘connection’/ chemistry with no more than 5 real people at any one time in their lives.
I feel like if you don’t get on really well with someone, there is little point in spending time socialising with them. Most events are full of people talking about nothing and this makes me feel even worse than staying at home, alone. Or perhaps I am just jealous of the people talking about nothing and cant step out of this godforsaken bubble that makes me want to never go out again.
Some people need time alone to process thoughts/ events and some people don’t. I will probably always be this way. Every boyfriend I have ever had has been a loner. I wish people wouldn’t make introversion into a personality flaw. | <urn:uuid:8b170ead-88a8-4f4a-875d-05fdb7f92e5c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://redemancy.tumblr.com/tagged/ugh | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.980118 | 279 | 1.507813 | 2 |
The Keep is about family- the little words in which customs, traditions and habits become entrenched over many years. ‘Mam’ is long dead when the play opens but her portrait gazes down on her five sons and one daughter who continue to live at home with their elderly father; the action concerns their response to an opportunity that could change the way of life they’ve fallen into.
Directed by Simon West.
The house of the title is the family ( and the family home) of an ageing and increasingly mentally-fragile mother and her three adult unemployed children – Sid, Boyo and Gwenny – who enjoy playing American music. House of America has been translated into French, Galician, Catalan and Croatian, and as such seems to resonate with many cultures. This script-held performance is directed by Dean Damjanovski, a director from Macedonia.
Directed by Dean Damjanovski.
Everything Must Go is mainly set in Blackwood, where five friends explore what modern Britain, and the abandonment of Bevanite socialism, has done to their generation.
Directed by Michael Kelligan.
Francis was one of Wales’ first professional and most popular dramatists who more or less invented Welsh ‘kitchen drama’. Sarah Argent casts a beady Scot eye on a radical play that’s nearly a century old.
Directed by Sarah Argent.
The story of Eileen, one of life’s survivors. An emotional soap about a lonely woman or an allegory of Wales?
Directed by David Britton
In the 1920s and 1930s Evans’ work was savagely attacked by Welsh critics – he was known for a while in the Welsh press as ‘the best hated man in Wales’ – but he can now be seen as perhaps the first genuine exponent of ‘Anglo-Welsh literature’.
Directed by Steve Fisher | <urn:uuid:3523231f-e2e1-4bb5-ac0e-f8c7f8405dfc> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.welshfargostagecompany.com/category/archive/state-of-the-nation-2006/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00042-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97336 | 400 | 1.804688 | 2 |
Revelation given to Joseph Smith the Prophet and Oliver Cowdery, at Harmony, Pennsylvania, July 1830. Though less than four months had elapsed since the Church was organized, persecution had become intense, and the leaders had to seek safety in partial seclusion. The following three revelations were given at this time to strengthen, encourage, and instruct them.
1 Behold, thou wast called and chosen to a the Book of Mormon, and to my ministry; and I have b thee up out of thine afflictions, and have counseled thee, that thou hast been delivered from all thine enemies, and thou hast been c from the powers of Satan and from d!
2 Nevertheless, thou art not excusable in thy a; nevertheless, go thy way and sin no more.
3 a thine office; and after thou hast b thy fields and secured them, go speedily unto the church which is in c, Fayette, and Manchester, and they shall d thee; and I will bless them both spiritually and e;
4 But if they receive thee not, I will send upon them a a instead of a blessing.
5 And thou shalt continue in calling upon God in my name, and writing the things which shall be given thee by the a, and expounding all scriptures unto the church.
6 And it shall be given thee in the very moment what thou shalt a and b, and they shall hear it, or I will send unto them a cursing instead of a blessing.
7 For thou shalt devote all thy a in Zion; and in this thou shalt have strength.
8 Be a in b, for thou shalt have many; but c them, for, lo, I am with thee, even unto the d of thy days.
9 And in temporal labors thou shalt not have strength, for this is not thy calling. Attend to thy a and thou shalt have wherewith to magnify thine office, and to expound all scriptures, and continue in laying on of the hands and b the churches.
10 And thy brother Oliver shall continue in bearing my name before the a, and also to the church. And he shall not suppose that he can say enough in my cause; and lo, I am with him to the end.
11 In me he shall have glory, and not of himself, whether in weakness or in strength, whether in a or free;
12 And at all times, and in all places, he shall open his mouth and a my gospel as with the voice of a b, both day and night. And I will give unto him strength such as is not known among men.
13 Require not a, except I shall b you, except c out d, e the sick, and against f serpents, and against deadly poisons;
14 And these things ye shall not do, except it be required of you by them who a it, that the scriptures might be b; for ye shall do according to that which is written.
15 And in whatsoever place ye shall a, and they receive you not in my name, ye shall leave a cursing instead of a blessing, by casting off the b of your feet against them as a testimony, and cleansing your feet by the wayside.
16 And it shall come to pass that whosoever shall lay their hands upon you by violence, ye shall command to be smitten in my name; and, behold, I will a them according to your words, in mine own due time.
17 And whosoever shall go to law with thee shall be cursed by the law.
18 And thou shalt take no a nor scrip, neither staves, neither two coats, for the church shall give unto thee in the very hour what thou needest for food and for raiment, and for shoes and for money, and for scrip.
19 For thou art called to a my vineyard with a mighty pruning, yea, even for the last time; yea, and also all those whom thou hast b, and they shall do even according to this pattern. Amen. | <urn:uuid:fee76d20-cbc9-410c-b0e5-1bbae4773fd8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.lds.org/scriptures/dc-testament/dc/24.1-9?lang=eng&country=brespero | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00035-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958249 | 840 | 1.75 | 2 |
With Israel's ten-month moratorium on West Bank settlement construction now expired, Arab League foreign ministers are expected to convene on October 4 to discuss whether the Palestinian Authority (PA) should continue the peace talks. These developments have created a flurry of behind-the-scenes activity in a bid to keep the process alive. For the moment, the settlements issue is central, with challenges related to refugees, Jerusalem, and Gaza set aside.
The Obama Draft Letter
At the center of the diplomatic activity has been an intensive effort by the Obama administration to secure Israel's support for a sixty-day moratorium extension. In anticipation of the potential for impasse on the issue, these efforts began over the summer, continued with Secretary of State Hillary Clinton's recent visit to the region, and reached top pitch last week when the parties attended the UN General Assembly session in New York. According to senior U.S. officials, the administration's efforts culminated in a draft letter negotiated with Israeli defense minister Ehud Barak and chief Israeli peace negotiator Yitzhak Molcho, and ultimately sent from President Obama's desk to Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu.
At its core, the draft letter offers a string of assurances to Israel in return for a two-month moratorium extension. More specifically, U.S. officials indicate that the document makes commitments on issues ranging from current peace and security matters to future weapons deliveries in the event that peace-related security arrangements are reached.
Regarding policy issues, the draft letter guarantees that Washington will not ask for a moratorium extension beyond sixty days. Rather, the future of settlements is to be settled at the table as part of territorial negotiations. Second, the draft letter promises that the United States will veto any UN Security Council initiative -- Arab or otherwise -- relating to Arab-Israeli peace during the agreed one-year negotiating period. Third, Washington pledged to accept the legitimacy of existing Israeli security needs and not seek to redefine them. In this context, the draft letter explicitly mentions the need to ensure a complete ban on the smuggling of rockets, mortars, arms, and related items, as well as the infiltration of terrorists into Israel. This touches on one of the most sensitive aspects of negotiations: averting infiltration into Israel from the eastern border of a Palestinian state. In this context, the draft letter offers to help maintain a transitional period for Jordan Valley security that is longer than any other aspect of a negotiated peace -- an apparent allusion to keeping Israeli troops in that region for an extended period of time.
Finally, Washington pledges to engage Israel and Arab states in discussions of a "regional security architecture," addressing the need for more consultations on Iran. Although such a structure would not be formalized until a peace deal is reached, the United States would begin preparing the groundwork in advance. These efforts would not constitute commitments on the part of the PA or Arab states, but they would be important for Israel as unambiguous articulations of U.S. policy, which could in turn bear heavily on how the peace talks unfold.
Finally, the draft letter explicitly discusses the need to enhance Israel's defense capabilities in the event that the parties reach security arrangements. Even if a security deal fails to materialize, Washington's offer creates the baseline for Israel's defense needs in a post-peace era. These needs reportedly include a range of missile systems and aircraft (e.g., additional F-35s), layered missile defense, and multiplatform early warning means, including satellites. The Obama administration realizes that these needs would mean an unspecified increase in U.S. security assistance to Israel once a peace agreement is concluded.
Early indications reveal that Netanyahu likes the inducements of the U.S. package but is not inclined to accept it. This could be a case of brinkmanship regarding the terms, or Netanyahu might simply prefer to reject the offer outright, since backtracking on his earlier insistence that the moratorium would expire could harm his credibility.
The prime minister has put forward three arguments defending his unwillingness to extend the moratorium, relating to the issues of reciprocity, consistency, and relevance. First, he says the original U.S. idea to halt settlement activity in 2009 required reciprocal actions from Arab states, which were not forthcoming. Second, the Palestinians did not initially deem the moratorium as significant, wasting nine out of the moratorium's ten months by not opening direct talks. In Netanyahu's view, why would a matter originally deemed insignificant become suddenly indispensable? Finally, he argues that the focus on settlements is excessive, since the parties will be dealing with the far larger issue of reaching the contours of an overall territorial solution within the next year. Beyond these arguments, it is also clear that Netanyahu fears losing elements of his coalition over the moratorium issue.
If Israel rejects Washington's offer, the United States may seek other steps -- possibly moving in the opposite direction -- in order to salvage the peace talks before the October 4 Arab League meeting. Such steps could include asking Israel to take confidence-building measures toward the Palestinians in the absence of a moratorium.
Another approach would be for Washington to explicitly adopt a position favored by Abbas, who argues that the 1967 border should be the baseline for talks, with minor modifications allowing Israel to trade for settlement blocs adjacent to its cities in exchange for land from within the 1967 border. Other Arab states would also like the United States to formally adopt this position. It is unclear whether Washington would articulate such a position as part of a broader package that would be acceptable to Israel as well.
Challenges for All Parties
Netanyahu will undoubtedly be asked why he was willing to forego strategic benefits for Israel for reasons that relate in no small measure to retaining his political base. This could pose a very serious challenge for him. Moreover, the Israeli public will wonder how the two leaders' personal relationship may be affected beyond the U.S. midterm elections. And Obama may wonder whether Netanyahu's current reluctance implies an unwillingness to concede on bigger issues in the future.
For his part, Obama will be asked whether his longtime focus on settlements put the United States in a more difficult position than he anticipated. Although much of this focus was vocalized during the first six months of his presidency, it has cast a shadow that, according to Abbas's public admissions, forced the PA to be more maximalist than it would otherwise be. Abbas believes that he cannot allow himself to be outflanked by Washington. Although Obama remained mute on the issue for a long time, he surprised many by publicly endorsing a moratorium extension in recent weeks instead of saying it was up to the parties to work out their differences.
Obama will also likely be questioned about the wisdom of launching peace talks before sorting out the moratorium issue. In response, he will likely point to the various Arab and European initiatives at the Security Council he would have been faced with had the vacuum in peace talks persisted. Netanyahu urgently called for direct talks, and Obama joined hands with him this summer.
Abbas is sure to face questions about his actions as well. Among them is his strategy of insisting on Arab support before every move, believing that past failures are connected to Arab states standing at arms length and not providing adequate backing for the substance of peace talks. Yet the flip side might prove to be equally problematic -- his new approach could be more cumbersome, forcing him to take positions that could collapse the peace talks.
Both Israel and the PA will seek U.S. support in adopting positions that they hope will tip the balance of negotiations in their favor. Meanwhile, the settlements issue continues to overshadow other aspects of the negotiations and could even scuttle the talks entirely. It would be a bitter irony if a final peace resolution and the demarcation of a two-state solution were derailed due to problems with managing the lesser issue of the moment.
David Makovsky is the Ziegler distinguished fellow and director of the Project on the Middle East Peace Process at The Washington Institute. | <urn:uuid:8e375c3b-2aa4-4fa0-9837-ba00b2460ecd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.washingtoninstitute.org/policy-analysis/view/dear-prime-minister-u.s.-efforts-to-keep-the-peace-process-on-track | 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 | 0.956615 | 1,600 | 1.835938 | 2 |
Herman Miller Teams Up with UICA and ArtPrize to Work with Youth
October 10, 2011
Herman Miller, Inc. collaborated with the Urban Institute for Contemporary Arts (UICA) and ArtPrize to give students opportunity to design art that expressed their own unique perspective. They were invited to address four major topics, including sustainability, cultural diversity, arts and community, and volunteerism. The students worked with an unusual canvas—a set of the company's Meridian lateral files. The young artist's designs were then displayed at "The Hub" during ArtPrize, an annual, international art celebration and contest that ran from September 21-October 9, and were ultimately donated to the Grand Rapids Public School (GRPS) District.
"People were excited," said Dave DeBoer, ArtPrize's Venue Relations Director. "They became a great conversation piece. A lot of people have seen a file cabinet, but it's different to see one that lives."
The youth were selected from a summer arts program at the UICA. In affiliation with ArtPrize they were tasked with designing a series of bubbles that spoke to a particular topic. After being given two weeks to complete their designs, the young artists were invited to Herman Miller's Design Yard to take a tour and apply their designs onto several Meridian Lateral Stacking files for display. After seeing the kid's artwork displayed at The Hub, many came away in awe.
"It's impressive," said Dr. Bernard Taylor, GRPS's Superintendent. "Artistic expression comes in so many forms. Kids are sometimes thought of as superficial, but if you give them time and opportunity they will most often thoroughly impress."
The Hub served as ArtPrize's headquarters and the central location for the international event. A high-traffic area, people used the Hub to vote for their favorite art piece, buy merchandise, get information and support, and see ArtPrize's 2010 grand prize winner.
About Herman Miller, Inc.
Herman Miller works for a better world around you—with inventive designs, technologies and related services that improve the human experience wherever people work, heal, learn, and live. Its curiosity, ingenuity, and design excellence create award-winning products and services, resulting in more than $1.6 billion in revenue in fiscal 2011. Innovative business practices and a commitment to social responsibility have also established Herman Miller as a recognized global company. In 2011, Herman Miller again received the Human Rights Campaign (HRC) Foundation's top rating in its annual Corporate Equality Index and was also cited by FORTUNE as the "Most Admired" company in the contract furniture industry. Herman Miller trades on the NASDAQ Global Select Market under the symbol MLHR. | <urn:uuid:daf7e486-8949-4fdf-aaa6-cd34397bd106> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.hermanmiller.com/content/hermanmiller/english/about-us/press/press-releases/all/herman-miller-teams-up-with-uica-and-artprize-to-work-with-youth.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.975577 | 559 | 1.554688 | 2 |
Feelings I thought were long relegated to my younger days surfaced this past week as I watched Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor’s Senate confirmation and subsequent swearing-in ceremony. (Photo above courtesy of Wikimedia Commons) When I went to law school in the mid-1970′s, ingesting a steady diet of legal opinions penned by men, my few female classmates and I could not even begin to imagine what it might be like to be the judicial authors of decisions that future law students would ponder some day. My class at Georgetown was about 25% women in those days — and that was considered quite a substantial breakthrough. But women judges were few, and none were on the Supreme Court. For most of us young women deconstructing the nuances of famous and infamous legal opinions, the justices were gray, stern old men, all white except the legendary Justice Thurgood Marshall.
We dreamed anyway. We hoisted beers or cokes after finals, toasting the smart girls among us who might make it to the Supremes. Most of my classmates then packed up their dreams and picked up their briefcases and sashayed off to clerkships or big law firms, primly correct in the pin-striped Brooks Brothers suits, white tailored shirts and floppy bow ties of the era. (I went into public interest law, where suits and ties were just about banned…) A few years later, Sandra Day O’Connor made history when President Reagan named her as the first woman Supreme Court Justice, and suddenly it seemed that maybe those old dreams were not so exotic. We were excited… and waited… and waited… and the years went by and the dreams dissipated again. The women retired their ridiculous ties and prim blue suits, and perhaps more significant, many retired their other professional dreams as well, stopping out or leaving the firms that once seemed like Emerald City when it turned out that too many were more like sweatshops. New generations of women law students dreamed of more balanced lives, opportunities to have it all without losing their minds; the big jobs seemed farther away than ever. Today, while about half of all law school graduates are women, only about 20% of law firm partners are female. Meanwhile, as women lawyers right-sized their dreams, it took 12 years after Justice O’Connor for another woman to make it to the Supreme Court — Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg took her oath of office in 1993 — and now we have seen another 16 years pass by until this moment, the ascendance of Justice Sonia Sotomayor.
Something kept nagging me the whole time I listened to those male Senators moan and complain about Sotomayor’s “wise Latina” speech. I get it about conservatives and politics and the threat that some segments of the population feel when they hear that by the Year 2050 the white majority will be gone; we’ll be a nation with no racial majority, instead, we will be truly a pluralistic country. I get it about the unspoken fears about social change, and the latent racism and sexism that lead to taunts about temperament and an unseemly fixation on casual rhetorical flourishes when what matters in a Supreme Court nominee is her or his clear knowledge of the law, which Sotomayor displayed in abundance.
I finally decided that what really nagged me about those guys who couldn’t let up on the “wise Latina” comment was their willfully clueless attitude toward the tremendous educational importance of role models and big dreams to encourage the rising generations. This cluelessness may well be the best evidence of the persistence of the gender and racial gaps in this society — evidence of the gap between the powerful and the powerless that has fueled revolutions and inspired political theorists since Plato. Those who believe that power is rightfully theirs by dint of birth or personal privilege often do not understand the sheer frustration, abject despair, and raging fury of those who believe that they will never have power. Even when social and political revolutions changed the laws that protected white male power over all women and all people of color, the de facto culture continues to repress, put down, intimidate, discourage too many women, too many people of color who stop out, drop out, give up rather than face impossible odds every day.
Role modeling is an essential educational tool to combat such despair, such feelings of powerlessness. The “wise Latina woman” is NOT an attack on white men, but rather, it’s a call to action — a provocative turn of the phrase, a verbal slap shouting, “You CAN do it!” —- intended to encourage the audience that feels powerless to stop it, cut it out, get up and start moving, stand up and shout, take control of your own destiny.
A girl MUST dream! I’m reading the freshwomen essays again, the powerfully revealing statements of the young women who are about to start their college careers at Trinity. These are stories of powerful dreams, great courage, incredible heartache, longing for success, searching for security and fulfillment. These are young women for whom the powerful role models of women’ s achievement mean so much — from Sonia Sotomayor to Oprah to Michele Obama to Nancy Pelosi to their hard-working mothers who have inspired them every day.
A girl must dream. Justice Sotomayor is the latest example of what a powerful dream can do for a girl once dismissed as unworthy of big achievement. Yes — persistence in school, hard work, savvy contacts — all of those are vital to make that dream come true. But it all starts with a dream, and the skilful encouragement of great role models that show her how to walk right past those taunting boys to get ahead and stay ahead. Success is the best revenge! | <urn:uuid:e193263e-e4ab-4736-a083-57a913ae0b1c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.trinitydc.edu/president/2009/08/a-girl-can-dream/ | 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 | 0.963433 | 1,184 | 1.59375 | 2 |
For six hours on September 11, the American compounds in Benghazi, Libya, stood siege. When the attack was over, J. Christopher Stevens’s body was pulled from the wreckage—the first U.S. ambassador killed by militants in over thirty years. Since then, his death has been politicized and the details of the attack distorted. Sean Flynn straightens out the story of Stevens’s last days in Libya—and reveals the true believer we lost that day:
“Chris was the single most important voice,” says Jeffrey D. Feltman, who at the time was the assistant secretary of state for Near Eastern affairs. “That didn’t mean he was the only voice, and it didn’t mean everything he said was acted on. But his was the single most important voice.”
What made Stevens good at his job was his ability to get people to trust him. That is not something that can be faked: It is possible to manipulate people into confiding in you, of course, but it is not sustainable, especially for an outsider in a foreign land. “He understood,” says Tek, “that you have to express empathy in a genuine way. And he defied the stereotype of an American diplomat who was equal parts arrogant and ignorant. He was honest and human.
“To me,” Tek says, “he was the kind of diplomat I want to be. He wielded American influence through respect rather than intimidation and swagger.” | <urn:uuid:1f7de822-18b0-4a56-a934-d0ac98ddb079> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://gq.tumblr.com/tagged/j.-christopher-stevens | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.985619 | 314 | 1.765625 | 2 |
Children get their thumbs marked with ink to prevent duplication as they queue up for relief goods being distributed at an evacuation center Thursday, Dec. 22, 2011 following the last Friday's flash flooding brought about by Tropical storm Washi in Cagayan De Oro city, southern Philippines. Tens of thousands of residents continue to be housed in evacuation centers in the two cities of Cagayan De Oro and Iligan after the floods that killed more than a thousand people and washed away their homes.
ILIGAN: Two southern Philippine cities devastated by flash floods that killed more than 1,000 people look like they have been hit by a tsunami, a United Nations official said Thursday as he appealed for $28 million in aid to help half a million people affected by the disaster.
U.N. humanitarian coordinator Soe Nyunt-U also voiced concern about the possibility of disease outbreaks among the thousands living in evacuation centers after their houses were washed away last Friday when a tropical storm unleashed flash floods.
"It was as if the cities were hit by an inland tsunami," Nyunt-U told reporters in Manila. "Entire areas were completely flattened. Only a few sturdy buildings remain standing, and these had sustained a lot of damage."
"Debris from houses, buildings and other structures that had been destroyed by the storm was all swept out to the sea, leaving huge areas devoid of all traces of habitation," he said.
Nyunt-U said he was hopeful donors and foreign governments will respond to the appeal despite the global economic crisis. An appeal launched following a 2009 typhoon that killed about 500 people in Manila collected only half the funds needed.
"It's the Christmas season and the willingness of the international community is high," he said, adding that "no country can stand alone."
About 45,000 displaced are inside evacuation centers, most of them in worst-hit Iligan and Cagayan de Oro cities in the southern Mindanao region. Another 266,000 are being assisted outside temporary shelters. Nearly 30,000 houses were destroyed and damaged. The two cities are home to nearly a million people.
Local authorities and grieving relatives were moving ahead with dozens of burials each day, after a handful of funeral parlors complained they were overwhelmed and could no longer accept bodies, which were still being retrieved from the sea or mud almost a week after the disaster struck.
Aid workers rushed in relief supplies, but a lack of running water was a major concern.
"We must improve this situation at the soonest possible time to avoid disease outbreaks that will further compound the hardships of the people already weakened by hunger and grief from loss of family and friends," Nyunt-U said.
He mentioned a cholera type virus that may occur due to problems stemming from congestion in the evacuation centers, where poor sanitation and hygiene posed a health risk. | <urn:uuid:913dc9e8-ddce-4a77-95fb-0aeaf689e009> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.thehimalayantimes.com/fullNews.php?headline=UN%3A+Philippine+flood+destruction+like+tsunami&NewsID=313577 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00037-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.979068 | 583 | 1.804688 | 2 |
Bottled water industry giants are taking an unprecedented back seat to relative newcomer Trinity Springs Ltd., according to SPINS (Spence Information Systems), the national sales data tracking service.
They recently released their April report, which shows that the best-selling packaged still water in natural food stores throughout America is the TRINITY 1.5 liter bottle -- placing it at No. 1 -- ahead of Evian, Poland Springs and Volvic.
Trinity Springs Ltd., which only started marketing TRINITY in August 1998, has taken its TRINITY brand nationwide and to the top of the charts by doing to their water what no one else does: Nothing. No processing. No disinfection. No additives.
All bottled waters in America are disinfected before they are bottled. TRINITY is the only spring water bottled and sold in the United States without any disinfection -- leaving the water in its live, organic state. The water comes from a rare, naturally pristine source in south central Idaho that is free of pathogens, so the water does not require processing before it is bottled.
Consumers seem impressed, as evidenced by TRINITY’S fast, steady climb in popularity over 1 1/2 years.
The brand loyalty behind TRINITY flies in the face of the recent rhetoric around Aquafina from Pepsico that "their research" shows that Americans don’t care about source. On the contrary, Trinity Springs Ltd. believes its slogan "Source Matters" says it best. As the SPINS data indicates, American consumers appear to agree.
TRINITY is ancient, geothermal spring water (more than 16,000 years old) that is protected from modern pollutants by its environment. It comes from the 23,000 square mile, 20-mile deep massive granite structure called the Idaho Batholith.
"Our analysis shows that Trinity Springs is a completely protected source of water of great age, depth and purity. Water of this quality is extremely rare," said Dr. William Turner, Registered Professional Geologist, President/CEO, American Groundwater Consultants, of Albuquerque, NM.
Trinity Springs Ltd. was founded in 1990 and completed its state-of-the-art small container bottling plant at the spring source in 1998.
The largest natural food distributors in the country -- Mountain Peoples Warehouse, Rainbow Natural Foods, Cornucopia-Stow Mill, Tree of Life, Food for Health and Nature’s Best sell TRINITY. TRINITY is available in .5, .75, 1.0 and 1.5 liter bottles at natural food stores and other grocery outlets throughout the United States. TRINITY is priced below European premium waters. Suggested retail prices range from 89 cents to $1.89.
SOURCE: For Trinity Springs Ltd. | <urn:uuid:cfbde08d-b650-418c-a42c-834949065199> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wwdmag.com/source-does-matter-bottled-water-drinkers | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00016-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.930366 | 571 | 1.796875 | 2 |
As a new or even semi-new associate at a law firm, you will take on many assignments with varying degrees of difficulty and sometimes conflicting deadlines. Assignment management -- time management in law firm speak -- is probably the key to success for a junior associate.
The stories of the following three associates at a fictional firm illustrate the traps of taking on too much work, blowing deadlines, failing to adequately communicate, and missing the mark on the assignment instructions.
Jen is a new associate at the firm who did a public interest fellowship for a year before starting in the fall. She received an assignment from Jane, a sixth-year associate in the litigation department, to perform research and submit a memo at the conclusion of her research. She was given a week to complete the assignment.
Jen met with Jane, took notes on their conversation, and then began her research. She utilized the library and Westlaw to guide her search and submitted the assignment on time. Jen misunderstood one sub-issue that Jane had not clearly explained, but that issue ultimately did not affect the conclusions in Jen's memo. After Jane reviewed Jen's memo, which was written clearly and concisely, she was able to provide it, with little revision, to the partner and client manager, who in turn provided it to the client.
Jim is a first-year associate who came to the firm in the fall immediately after graduating from law school and taking the bar exam. Jim was a summer associate the previous year and maintained relationships with a few associates that he had befriended during his summer, so he had a sense of what cases were active at the firm and who was working on them.
Jane also gave an assignment to Jim, similar to the one she had given to Jen. Jim discussed the assignment with Jane and left her office thinking he knew where to begin his research. After talking to another junior associate on the case, Jim had some follow-up questions for Jane, so he went back to her to get clarification on two issues. He handed in his memo a day before the deadline, told Jane how much he enjoyed working on the case, and asked if she had any follow-up assignments that he could handle.
John is a new associate who clerked after law school graduation, immediately prior to joining the firm. John enjoyed the pace of his clerkship but was excited to begin his career of practicing law at a firm. John was also placed in the litigation department, where he received a research assignment from Jane similar to those given to Jen and Jim.
John's assignment was a bit more complicated and in-depth, so he was given two weeks to complete it. John checked with Jane a few days after he began to ensure he was on the right path. A week before his assignment was due, the assignment manager in the department called him to see if he could work on a document review that the partner estimated would require a significant amount of time over the next few weeks. John, without mentioning how complex his research was for Jane, agreed to work on the document review. He began the document review and continued to work on his memo for Jane.
The following week, the deadline for the document review was moved up by a few days and John had to allot more time than he originally anticipated to it. At that point, he was working extremely long hours around the clock. John went to Jane the afternoon before his deadline and asked for an extension to finish her assignment over the weekend, rather than Friday, the original due date.
WHO DID BEST?
Jen, Jim, and John were each able to answer the questions presented to them and complete solid research memos. However, they managed their assignments in different ways. Only one associate was subsequently assigned to the case team and given follow-up assignments; not surprisingly, that associate was Jim.
Jim did exactly what senior associates and partners are looking for in new associates: He utilized other junior associates on the team to get some additional background information; he followed up with Jane throughout the process to make sure he was on the right track; he submitted the research on time; he expressed interest in the project; and he offered himself for further matters on the case.
Jim's use of colleagues is commendable. Even though there is no such thing as a "dumb question," you can still run the risk of sounding dumb if you, for instance, ask a senior partner who assigned you work for the phone number of the Westlaw hotline or other questions you could easily answer on your own.
Learn to use the firm's resources wisely. Find out who the secretaries are and get client-matter numbers from them. Find out who the other associates are on the case and go to them when you have a factual question, when you want to discuss a legal argument you are considering, or even when you just want to commiserate after a difficult day. Make friends with the librarians to help you guide your research. Talk to your neighbors near your office, as they are going to be some of your best resources to learn about which partners come in early, work late or have specific preferences when it comes to working with them. Use your assigned and unassigned mentors to navigate the ropes.
WHAT WERE THE MISTAKES?
Jen did not make any serious errors, but her failure to follow up with Jane during the entire week she was given to complete the assignment made Jane question if Jen was interested in the assignment. This lack of communication also prevented Jen from realizing that she had misunderstood a small part of the assignment -- a mistake that could have been easily rectified. In the end, Jen's work product was quite good and her error was minor, but because she did not discuss the work with Jane over the week, she ran the risk of handing in the assignment on time but having it completely wrong.
The error (although minor) also may have caused the partner to believe she (or the assigning attorney) did not pay attention to detail or engaged in sloppy analysis, while a client receiving the memo may have relied on the mistake or interpreted the mistake to mean that the firm did not understand the client's business. Further, since Jen did not express any enthusiasm for the subject of the assignment or offer to work on any follow-up assignments on the case, she potentially signaled to Jane -- whether intentionally or not -- that she was not interested in getting further work on the matter or in working further with Jane.
John, on the other hand, started out on the right foot, but when he was asked to work on another assignment, he should have told the assigning partner the due date for his memo and the amount of time he anticipated that it would take. His critical mistake, however, was waiting until the last minute to tell Jane that he needed an extension. When John's other assignment changed scope, he should have gone to both assigning attorneys and talked through the conflict. He probably could have gotten someone else on the document-review team to take a greater portion of the documents so that he could complete his memo on time, or he could have spoken to Jane earlier in the week about an extension.
For this reason, it is likely that Jane would be reluctant to work with John again. Deadlines are not arbitrary. Whether there is a deadline for the court, the client or the partner on the case, deadlines are given for a reason. As a junior associate, it is your job to make use of your resources -- Outlook, paper calendars, the firm's docketing system, task bars, to-do lists, etc. -- to ensure deadlines are met. If the assigning attorney does not give a concrete deadline, it is your job to ask when the work product is due. This is the first step, and you must follow it for absolutely every assignment that you are given. If possible, get into the habit of submitting your work product before the deadline, which will reinforce your reliability and motivation to those with whom you work.
WHAT TO TAKE AWAY
Because Jim managed his assignment better than Jen or John, he earned the currency that is key to law firm success: credibility and repeat work. Although as a junior associate you may not be working directly for clients, get in the practice of treating every senior associate and partner as if they were your clients.
The best client is always a repeat client, and your job as a new associate is to cause senior associates and partners who gave you one assignment to give you the next assignment, too. You do that by producing quality work product free of any mistakes on a timely basis. You should not submit a "rough draft"; everything you hand in should be your best possible work.
A rule of thumb is to act like your work product is going straight to the client or the court and in that respect, there is no room for errors -- especially grammatical ones that will cause the reviewing attorneys to question your analysis, reliability and attention to detail. Partners remember when they must perform an extensive re-write of an associate's work, especially when that work impacts other deadlines they have.
There is even more advice that new associates should seek out to succeed in the often-confusing game of associate life at a law firm, but assignment management is still probably the key to success. All other tactics -- like seeking out mentors, taking ownership of your career, asking questions, working hard, building trust -- are second to learning how to manage your assignments and turn in a quality work product every time. If you master managing your assignments and hitting your deadlines, you are on your way to winning. First prize? More assignments.
Colleen P. France is the director of associate recruitment and development for Schnader Harrison Segal & Lewis. She is responsible for the firm's hiring of incoming associates, managing associate assignments for the business services and litigation departments, and the training and professional development of associates firmwide. France was ecently elected to serve as the NALP regional coordinator representing law firms in the Mid-Atlantic region.
Joseph J. Anclien is an associate in the firm's litigation department. His practice focuses primarily on issues and appeals. He has drafted briefs to the U.S. Supreme Court, the 3rd Circuit, and the Pennsylvania appellate courts. Anclien is also active within the firm, serving as a member of the firm's hiring and summer committees and as a mentor to junior associates.
This article originally appeared in the "New Associates" supplement to The Legal Intelligencer [paid subscription required]. | <urn:uuid:b5bed942-7dbe-49aa-9d2b-3e8a1353abd4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1202464821574&How_to_Handle_Assignment_Management_as_an_Associate&slreturn=1&hbxlogin=1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.982942 | 2,129 | 1.554688 | 2 |
To stand in the main gallery at Orlando Museum of Art is to be surrounded by greatness.
Playwright Edward Albee, of "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf" fame, looks out from one wall; artist Robert Rauschenberg from another. There's "Tales of the South Pacific" author James A. Michener; over there is Marjory Stoneman Douglas, the writer and environmentalist.
Pulitzer Prize winners, critical darlings, innovators and thinkers: The exhibition is a snapshot of the artistic and literary minds that have graced Florida through the decades.
Actually, it's a lot more than a snapshot. It's an unparalleled collection of black-and-white photographic portraits by Jimm Roberts, the longtime Orlando resident who from behind his camera has created an archive of Florida's cultural royalty.
"There are a lot of healthy egos in this group, that's for sure," Roberts says with a chuckle — and an undertone of genuine respect.
"Southernmost Art and Literary Portraits: Fifty Internationally Noted Artists and Writers in Florida by Jimm Roberts" is the final exhibition in Orlando Museum's of Art "Made in Florida" season. The museum also presented a retrospective of Orlando artist Barbara Sorensen's work, paintings of Florida landscapes and a Florida photography exhibit this season.
The OMA exhibition is the first time Roberts' life work has been pulled together in this way.
Roberts' subjects all spent time in Florida, where he photographed them, many as part of Key West's literary heyday.
"In the winter months, Key West was home to more Pulitzer Prize nominees than any other city in the world," says Roberts, 72. "It was a time no one thought would end — but it did."
Roberts is sensitive to history. He fell in love with his first home in Orlando — an old-fashioned barbershop when he first saw it, the sort with the proprietor's lodgings over the business.
When the city considered tearing down the distinctive building in the 1980s as part of a street-improvement project, he spoke up, and the building was saved.
Roberts, a former Navy sailor who was raised in North Carolina and Georgia, has lived and worked in that building, on Orange Avenue north of downtown, for 40 years. Near the intersection of Princeton Street and Orange, Roberts' studio is easily recognized by the large sign bearing his name; he adapted the two-m spelling of Jimm because he thought it "looked good" when he signed his work.
Roberts began the "Southernmost Art and Literary Portraits" project in the early 1980s as a tribute to those who had inspired him. His first subject was artist John Chamberlain in 1983; the portraits were taken until 1999, when he photographed writers Ann Beattie and Annie Dillard. In 2006, the collection was published by Mercer University Press.
"I had no great aspiration for a published book or museum exhibition," he says. "It was just going to be for my own enjoyment."
It took one of his subjects, writer John Malcolm Brinnin, to point out the historical value of his collection.
"We were watching the sun set and he turned to me and said, 'Jimm, you know your collection's becoming a unique record, a portrait of a passing generation?'" Roberts recalls. "That was a prophetic observation because four months later he was gone."
More than 60 percent of the collection's subjects are no longer living.
"A lot of it gets emotional for me," he says. "When I first saw all those faces in one place at one time…" His voice trails off.
The emotion is compounded by the fact he maintained friendly relations with many of subjects.
Shakespeare scholar Philip Burton, who died in 1985, always invited Roberts for a glass of sherry on Shakespeare's birthday each spring. Roberts recalls swimming in the Gulf of Mexico with artist James Rosenquist on a whim — though neither had suits.
He says he doesn't know how he was able to forge bonds with his subjects — through surely his gently Southern, soft-spoken manner had something to do with it.
"The idea of letting someone invade their peace and quiet with a camera is not always appealing," he muses. "Most of them came to Florida to get away from everyone."
The results are striking.
In contrast with the large-scale commercial work that was his bread and butter, these portraits are more like mementos from a family album — if you had a master of scene and light in your family.
"I wanted smaller, more intimate images you'd walk up to, like photographs in your home," he says. "You'll notice I'm very conscious of, very sensitive to, very aware of hands. They're an indication of the subject's comfort level."
Roberts processed and printed all the photographs, shot on film, himself. He had his subjects sign the photos' mats and answer questions about their work and their relation to Florida. That information accompanies the exhibited works.
Others represented: pop artist Roy Lichtenstein; thriller writers John D. MacDonald, Robert Ludlum ("The Bourne Identity"), Dick Francis and Elmore Leonard ("Get Shorty"); along with Miami Herald writer Carl Hiaasen and Alison Lurie ("Foreign Affairs").
Roberts gave his subjects questionnaires as part of his vision for the book. He didn't want to be in the limelight, as so many other photographers seemed to be in their photography books.
"They often got between the image and the viewer because they were so busy talking about how inspired they were," he says. "I wanted the subjects to speak for and about themselves."
In a companion exhibit, Orlando Museum of Art has arranged works from its own collection by Roberts' subjects, including Rauschenberg, Lichtenstein, Chamberlain and Jerry Uelsmann.
"This is about the 50 subjects," he explains. "It's a personal photographic tribute to them and their work and the time they spent in Florida. There's a world out there bigger than me."
He's slowly coming around to the idea that this collection is his legacy.
"Nothing stays the same, certainly the world we live in has changed. Kids don't seem to have the appreciation for excellence or appreciate the achievements of the past. Everybody's their own celebrity," he says. "It may be idealistic in thinking this collection will be of interest to future generations. I hope it will."
'Southernmost Art and Literary Portraits'
• Where: Orlando Museum of Art, 2416 N. Mills Ave., Orlando
• When: 10 a.m.-4 p.m. Tuesdays-Fridays, noon-4 p.m. Saturdays-Sundays; through Oct. 28
• Admission: $8; $7 seniors and students; $5 children ages 4-17; free for members, active-duty military personnel and children younger than 3
• Call: 407-896-4231
• Online: omart.org
Events are at the Orlando Museum of Art, unless otherwise indicated.
• 2 p.m. Saturday: OMA curator Hansen Mulford interviews Jimm Roberts at the Orange County Public Library.
• 2 p.m. Wednesday: Roberts leads a gallery talk.
• Noon Aug. 29: The OMA Book Club will discuss works by the exhibition's authors.
• 1:30 p.m. Sept. 5: Jan Clanton, associate curator of adult programs for OMA, leads a gallery talk.
• 2 p.m. Sept. 9: Photographer Dawn Roe leads an "Art of Conversation" program.
• 2 p.m. Sept. 22: Artist James Rosenquist, one of Roberts' subjects, speaks and signs books.
• 2 p.m. Sept. 23: "Art, Literature and a Sense of Place," a roundtable discussion with Roberts, Mulford, portrait subjects Ann Beattie and Jerry N. Uelsmann, Rita Bornstein and Dr. Maurice J. "Socky" O'Sullivan, Moderated by Chauncey Mabe.
• Noon Sept. 26: OMA Book Club discusses works by the exhibition's authors
1:30 p.m. Oct. 3: Clanton leads a gallery talk
2 p.m. Oct. 7: Maurice O'Sullivan leads an "Art of Conversation" program
1 p.m. Oct. 13: Rollins and Valencia college professors lead a creative-writing workshop for high-school students and adults
2 p.m. Oct. 21: Jack Lane leads an "Art of Conversation" program | <urn:uuid:5c0f7a19-c4b2-46ec-bfde-b095d3e95211> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.courant.com/topic/entertainment/os-cal-jimm-roberts-orlando-museum-of-art-20120731,0,6638206,full.story | 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 | 0.976664 | 1,796 | 1.8125 | 2 |
Some fear ill effects from new FPL meters
Published: Saturday, November 24, 2012 at 1:00 a.m.
Last Modified: Friday, November 23, 2012 at 9:22 p.m.
WEST PALM BEACH - Earlier this year, Elke Lawrence wondered why her usually healthy 6-year-old son Alexander had been sick so much.
Then the West Palm Beach resident heard some people in a health food store talking about smart meters and about how hard a time they were having getting Florida Power & Light Co. to remove the newly installed meters.
The meters transmit and receive data remotely as electricity is used and are considered essential to modernizing the electric grid. They replace old-style analog meters and end the need for meter readers.
"I went home and spent the next few weeks researching this. I was shocked to hear that this was going on all around the country. California was on the forefront and millions of people have refused the new smart meters due to health and privacy issues," Lawrence said.
She found out that in late 2011 FPL had installed 45 smart meters at Flagler Yacht Club and Towers, the condominium complex where she lives.
"I had 45 meters right outside my door, which happens to be across from my son's bedroom," Lawrence said.
In June, Lawrence moved her son into another bedroom away from the meters, and he hasn't been sick since. There's no way to prove a connection between the illnesses and the meters, but she's not taking any chances.
"I don't want my son to be the guinea pig. I want to err on the side of caution and have one less thing to worry about," Lawrence said.
Lawrence and others who reside at the condo complex have asked neighbors to have their meters replaced with the older versions. So far, FPL has removed 13 meters.
As FPL nears completion of its smart meter installations, a fraction of its customers are among consumers across the country and around the world who are questioning whether the radio frequency (RF) waves the devices emit are harmful.
On Oct. 4, more than 35 demonstrations against smart meters took place throughout the U.S. and Canada, according to the national Campaign to Stop Smart Meters and Wireless Radiation Protection Coalition.
FPL has installed nearly 4.1 million meters throughout its 35-county territory and has activated 3.3 million of them, said FPL spokeswoman Elaine Hinsdale. About 19,000 of FPL's 4.6 million customers, fewer than a half of 1 percent, have refused the meters.
Whether radio waves transmitted by smart meters, cell phones, cordless phones and baby monitors cause health problems is being debated.
In one camp are those who believe the meters cause symptoms such as headaches, tingling, tinnitus, extreme fatigue, sleep difficulties, nausea and heart palpitations. They say they have electromagnetic hypersensitivity.
Those who say smart meters are safe include the utility industry, many medical professionals and groups such as the World Health Organization, Health Canada, and the California Council on Science and Technology.
"There's a lot of misinformation on the Internet and being circulated, so we want to assure our customers that FPL's smart meters (and the radio frequency exposure) comply fully with Federal Communications Commission health and safety standards," Hinsdale said.
A recent letter from the FCC to Florida Sen. Bill Nelson said: "The FCC has set limits on the maximum permissible exposure for emissions at RF-emitting devices. The smart meters being installed by FPL operate at levels that are hundreds of times lower than the FCC limit."
FPL's meters only transmit data in short bursts, just a few seconds each, Hinsdale said.
"Our meters are inactive as much as 99 percent of the time, so they give off a fraction of RF emissions compared to cell phones or other common household devices. No credible study has ever showed that an RF-emitting device operating within the limits set by the FCC has caused adverse health effects," Hinsdale said.
Harvard-educated Dr. Peter A. Valberg, a principal for environmental health for Gradient Corp. of Cambridge, Mass., said, "You would have to be exposed to the RF from a smart meter for 375 years to get a dose equivalent to that of one year of 15-minutes-per-day cell phone use.
"Their weak signals resemble those of many other ordinary devices we use every day, including not just our cell phones and wireless handsets, but also baby monitors, microwave ovens, laptop computers, and WiFi routers. The fact that we can receive a multitude of radio and TV stations inside our homes illustrates another common source of RF for everyone," Valberg said.
For now, FPL is allowing customers to put smart meter installation on hold,. Eventually, those who want to keep the old mechanical devices could be charged an additional fee as is being done in states such as California, Maine and Vermont.
This story appeared in print on page BNV3
Reader comments posted to this article may be published in our print edition. All rights reserved. This copyrighted material may not be re-published without permission. Links are encouraged. | <urn:uuid:2cbdd634-ce7c-44f8-8080-e0f19396eb6a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.heraldtribune.com/article/20121124/ARCHIVES/211241039/0/BLOG38 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00024-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968053 | 1,075 | 1.648438 | 2 |
Chuck Swindoll tells this story:
A young fella rushed into a service station and asked the manager if he had a pay phone. The manager nodded, "Sure, over there."
The boy pushed in some change, dialled, and waited for an answer.
Finally, someone came on the line. "Uh, sir," he said in a deep voice, "could you use an honest, hardworking young man to work for you?"
The station manager couldn't help overhearing the question.
After a moment or two the boy said, "Oh, you already have an honest, hardworking young man? Well, okay. Thanks just the same." With a broad smile stretched across his face, he hung up the phone and started back to his car, humming and obviously elated.
"Hey, just a minute!" the station manager called after him. "I couldn't help but hear your conversation. Why are you so happy? I thought the guy said he already had somebody and didn't need you?"
The young man smiled. "Well, you see, I am the honest, hardworking young man. I was just checking up on my job!"
“Honest, hardworking employees are tough to find, and when you toss in competence, a positive attitude, teachability, punctuality, proper attire, a team spirit, loyalty, confidentiality, honesty, and an ability to get along well with others, wow! No wonder every boss I talk to answers my question "What is the key ingredient of your organization?" the same way: PERSONNEL.”
Chuck Swindoll, ‘It’s More than a Job’, Insight for Living, 21 September 2010. | <urn:uuid:dea29e70-750b-4837-8db7-2dac09cb75dd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://storiesforspeakers.blogspot.com/2010/09/key-ingredient-to-every-organization.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00027-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973827 | 354 | 1.5625 | 2 |
Landfill Gas to Medium Btu Gas
The simplest and often most cost-effective use of LFG is as a medium-Btu fuel for boiler or industrial process use (e.g., drying operations, kiln operations, and cement and asphalt production). These projects pipe gas directly to a nearby customer where it is used in new or existing combustion equipment as a replacement or supplementary fuel. Only limited condensate removal and filtration treatment is required, however some modification of existing equipment may be necessary. Before LFG can be used by a customer, a pipeline must first be constructed to access the supply. Pipeline construction costs can range from $500,000 to $1,000,000 per mile, therefore, proximity to the gas customer is critical for this option. Often, a third party developer is involved in the project who will assume the cost of installing the pipeline. The customer's gas requirements are also an important consideration when evaluating a sale of medium-Btu gas. Because there is no economical way to store LFG, all gas that is recovered must be used as available, or it is essentially lost, along with associated revenue opportunities. Therefore, the ideal gas customer will have a steady, annual gas demand compatible with the landfill's gas flow. For customers with larger energy needs, LFG may still be used to supply energy for specific equipment or burners dedicated to LFG.
As general guidance when comparing boiler fuel requirements to LFG output, approximately 8,000 to 10,000pounds per hour of steam can be generated for every one million metric tons of waste in place at a landfill.
Equipment modifications or adjustments may be necessary to accommodate the lower Btu value of LFG, and the costs of modifications will vary. Costs will be minimal if only boiler burner retuning is required. However, boiler burner retrofits are typically customized, and total installation costs can range from $120,000 for a 10,000 lb/hr boiler to $300,000 for an 80,000 lb/hr boiler.
Operation and maintenance costs associated with using LFG in boilers, kilns, dryers, or other industrial equipment are typically equivalent to costs when using conventional fuels. In general, operation and maintenance costs will depend on how well the equipment is maintained and how well the gas collection system is controlled. | <urn:uuid:3bf844a9-dfbc-4378-ad0c-c85e18e19750> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.besch4.com/processes_medium.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00029-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.933836 | 473 | 1.84375 | 2 |
HARRISBURG - Sen. Mike Brubaker (R-36) announced recently that the spring 2013 Student Challenge program would encourage students to share their thoughts on an individual who has served as a personal inspiration.
Students are encouraged to submit an essay of 500 words or less describing how an individual has influenced them in a positive way to accomplish their goals. The deadline to submit an entry is May 3, and winners will be announced on May 13.
“Almost every individual can point out at least one person who has helped make their life better and brighter,” Brubaker said. “Recognizing the qualities of individuals who inspire us is one of the best ways we can improve ourselves, and that is the goal of this project.”
The Student Challenge program features periodic competitions and is open to all K-12 students in the 36th Senatorial District, including the school districts of Cocalico, Columbia, Conestoga Valley, Donegal, Eastern Lancaster County, Ephrata, Hempfield, Manheim Central, Octorara, Pequea Valley, Twin Valley and Warwick. Home school and private school students from the district are also encouraged to apply.
Winners will be selected from each age group by an independent panel. Winners will receive an award certificate from Brubaker and a visit to Harrisburg for lunch and a tour of the state Capitol Building with a guest.
Entries may be dropped off or mailed to Brubaker’s district office at 301 E. Main Street, Lititz, PA 17543, or students may submit essays on Brubaker’s website at senatorbrubaker.com. | <urn:uuid:ce8ad500-26ac-4fae-8c81-56dc8f18f53f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.tricountyrecord.com/article/20130212/NEWS01/130219969&template=printart | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00021-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.954428 | 343 | 1.601563 | 2 |
Book Review: Joy Harjo’s Crazy Brave
Recalling the vision of her birth, the acclaimed poet and performer Joy Harjo declares, “I was not brave.” Born in Oklahoma of uprooted tribes and European wanderers, oil money and hard times, the fire spirit of her mother and water spirit of her father, she had to navigate the dualities of her life. At once self-assured and faltering, she deeply loved those whom she also feared.
But she was conscious of her gift. “I was entrusted with carrying voices, songs, and stories to grow and release into the world, to be of assistance and inspiration. These were my responsibility.”
Harjo honors this responsibility in her new memoir, Crazy Brave, relating memories, dreams and visions along her journey to find her creative voice and fulfill her destiny. Understated yet forceful, her narrative starts with her childhood, reaches back to the struggles of her Mvskoke/Creek ancestors, and onward to the hope she at last gains through poetry.
Harjo recounts the shadowy realms of her history and the sparks that illuminated her journey. Her white stepfather’s violent dominance of the family tormented Harjo through adolescence, but she found refuge in books, art, and theater at school, and in the rare peaceful moments she shared with her mother and young siblings. An Indian arts boarding school in Santa Fe allowed Harjo to explore her creativity and escape brutality at home. Surrounded by other artistic classmates from tribes across the nation, she bonded with peers over common hardships that were the enduring results of oppression.
While still a teenager, Harjo gave birth to her first child alone. Scraping by as a single mother and enduring abusive relationships, she strayed far from her gift. Even as she found liberation in the fight for peace and justice for her people, abandoning her voice left her disoriented. After years of living apart from her dreams, Harjo felt she was at the edge of death, caught between panic and love.
Finally finding the strength to pull away from fear and trust the visionary spirituality she calls “the knowing,” Harjo walked through a doorway into a new phase of her life. It was the psychological and emotional breakthrough she needed to focus intently on her creative work.
Harjo’s memoir is a gift that urges us to enlist our own crazy bravery to step through the doorways in our lives, following the knowing that exists within us all.
Rebecca Leisher is a freelance journalist and former YES! intern. She is teaching literacy to youth in the Dominican Republic with the DREAM Project.
- Portraits of Courage: Americans Who Tell the Truth
These aren't just people in paintings. They are people imploring you to listen and act.
- Eve Ensler: Freedom Starts With a “V”
The “Vagina Monologues” author on why knowing your body can shake up the world.
- "Life is What You Make It": Fran Korten Interviews Peter Buffett
Peter Buffett, Warren Buffett’s son, on his family wealth, his music career, and his commitment to social justice.
That means, we rely on support from our readers.
Independent. Nonprofit. Subscriber-supported. | <urn:uuid:1aba09b8-e12b-41ea-867f-9af8ca54793a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.yesmagazine.org/issues/its-your-body/crazy-brave?icl=email_nov12&ica=tnJoyHarjoCrazyBrave | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702448584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516110728-00029-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.972253 | 683 | 1.6875 | 2 |
by Caren Crane
WARNING: This post is about MOVIE MUSICALS. Many of those overburdened with testosterone despise them (though a few openly admit to their charm, wit and magic), so remember you were warned.
I know many Banditas adore a musical. I could totally get the whole Lair singing "How Do You Solve a Problem Like Maria". As a matter of fact, that may or may not have happened at a certain Bash at the RWA conference. And Mary Poppins? Our Golden Heart winner, Susan Seyfarth, would knock some people out of the way to be the one who gets to dance with Bert. Don't let her pixie-like looks and size fool you, folks. She is SERIOUS about her Mary Poppins.
But why? Why do we love our musicals so?
My youngest and I went to see WALL-E last night. What a great movie! If you haven't seen it, you must know that WALL-E is a fan of the musical "Hello, Dolly". This is the 1969 version starring Barbra Streisand and Walter Matthau. WALL-E watches "Hello Dolly" often and, apparently, learns about love from the song "It Only Takes a Moment." In the song, the clerk, Cornelius, expresses his feelings to Irene. At then end of the song, they join hands and head off, strolling through the park. Poor WALL-E joins his little robot fingers together to simulate hand-holding. Heartbreaking! Though there is no dialogue, you feel all his pain and loneliness, his longing for love.
For me, the musical is a great ride because the music encapsulates the mood of a scene perfectly. As writers, we struggle for the perfect words to set the stage, create the mood, immerse the reader in our character's angst or joy. In a musical, the character simply bursts into song and takes us there.
I have noticed that musicals, like romance, are often marginalized by reviewers and the movie-going public. There are those who loathe them simply because they are what they are. Romance is regarded this way by lots of readers who don't understand, much less read, the genre. Fie on both those fickle groups!
I am proud to say I am totally immersed today in Loretta Chase's "Your Scandalous Ways". It is delectable! And tomorrow, my youngest and I have decided we MUST watch "The Sound Of Music" and, naturally, "Hello, Dolly". Of course, a side trip into "The King and I" or "Thoroughly Modern Millie" is likely. I have thoroughly corrupted my offspring.
So, are you a musical lover or does "Shall We Dance" leave you cold? If you love them, what is your favorite? And most importantly, was Dick Van Dyke cuter as Bert in "Mary Poppins" or as Caractacus Potts in "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang"? Or am I the only dork who will admit to thinking Dick Van Dyke is totally adorable? | <urn:uuid:f85c1b6a-0853-4052-84b9-d4a238f7e90c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://romancebandits.blogspot.com/2008/08/ode-to-musicals.html?showComment=1218860340000 | 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 | 0.958224 | 655 | 1.75 | 2 |
Sean, as usual, presents some great points on the subject of theme week. However, I do have to disagree with his point that priests (or religious figures of other kinds) should be actively worrying about the sinfulness of their colleagues and comrades; I believe he used the word ‘crucial’, which is mainly where my opinions deviate.
First of all, let me go on a brief tangent. I have a close friend, whose father is a High Church Anglican minister. I’ve only met him a few times, but I really think he is a great guy on a personal level. I was told a story about him once that I think relates back to this well and summarizes my point very aptly.
There was a meeting of High Church Anglican ministers from a variety of churches to discuss the matter of homosexual parishioners and whether they should be permitted to take communion.
It wasn’t long until my friend’s father just walked out, as he felt they were arguing about something completely nonsensical. When asked about it, his exact response was apparently a somewhat more colloquial form of, “Of course they should.” with the justification that either a minister would think they were sinners and thus want to accept them and include into the church in the effort to get them closer to ther other parishioners and to Jesus, and thus they should be allowed to take communion and not excluded from any part of the proceedings – or that it wasn’t a sin, and therefore they’re just like any other parishioner and should be allowed to take communion.
Now, I don’t actually know whether he thinks homosexuality is sinful (judging from his phraseology, I’d say he thinks it’s not), but his point did shed some light on his view of sin in general – that the so-called sinful should not be preached to about their ways, nor worried about behind their backs, nor excluded from any part of the proceedings, but accepted into the fold with open arms and without judgement in the hope that this acceptance of them as a person and not as a sinner would in turn help them to accept God.
In World of Warcraft terms, I’m sure you can see where I’m going with this: a priest of the Light, for instance, in this mold would not fret quietly about whether someone in their party is behaving in a sinful manner, but would accept them for who they are in the hope that they would eventually come to see the Light themselves.
Admittedly, this is a viewpoint that can come across as quite condescending in some ways – if you’re accepting them for who they are, then why are you also hoping that they would come to see the Light/your religion of choice? Well, this again ties back into Sean’s post – because they sincerely believe that their religion is the right one. If they didn’t, they wouldn’t follow it. A priest of the kind I’ve suggested here seems more likely (to me, anyway) to be a bit more flexible about their religion – I know that the actual minister I’m basing this on doesn’t care what path you take, but he does believe that Jesus is the ideal end to that path. The Abortion-Clinic Bomber and even the Father Mulcahy types that Sean talked about would be more inclined to say that their way is the one, even over other similar paths – this type wouldn’t.
Odds are, I’ll probably talk more about this type in play during a Do It Different at some point – for now, my point is that there are many different ways to play a religious person (be that a priest or a fellow parishioner), that don’t involve the limited characteristics we assign to the religious, be that in good faith or bad. | <urn:uuid:2ea6ca37-a490-45ad-9924-52d008750c2b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blogatelle.wordpress.com/2008/09/08/theme-week-religion-the-good-priest/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00038-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.982862 | 810 | 1.539063 | 2 |
Survey: Americans find religion reporting too sensationalized
Americans in a telephone survey conducted in 2010 said they believe news media coverage of religion is sensationalized.
The survey findings, released only April 5, also revealed different types of audiences for religious news, including the "focused" and "specialized" consumers of religious news who make up about one-fourth of all media consumers.
In the survey authors' definition, focused consumers are those with strong religious leanings and who are regular consumers of media, while specialized consumers have a weaker desire to consume media.
The majority in these categories are women, are "more likely to live in the South, and are less affluent and older, than the public as a whole," said the report, a joint project of the Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism at the University of Southern California and the Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics at the University of Akron in Ohio.
The survey also interviewed reporters, and found differences between them and their audiences in their perception of what constitutes religion news.
"Things have changed from 2010 to now, obviously, but things between 2000 and now have changed astronomically in terms of the online news universe," said one of the study's principal authors, Diane Winston of the University of Southern California.
Just in the past two years, Winston told Catholic News Service in an April 10 telephone interview, "there's been a proliferation of online sites, specialized sites where people can read different kinds of religious commentary. ... There are probably more (content) aggregators now than in 2010 that specialize in religious news."
John R. Green, Bliss Institute director at the University of Akron and the other co-author, said the people who "care most" about religious news are the ones who complain most about sensationalized coverage. They would prefer that religion coverage focus on individuals' religious experiences, spirituality, practices and beliefs, he said.
"The highly religious people who were not regular consumers of the news media tended to be the most critical" of coverage," Bliss told CNS. "Who knows why that is? Maybe they don't use the media a lot because they don't like what they see and read."
The survey reached 2,000 Americans by telephone, and has a margin of error of plus or minus 3 percentage points. The survey also interviewed 800 reporters, with an error margin of plus or minus 4 percentage points.
Among the reporters, one-sixth said religion coverage was central to their job and one-fifth said it came up frequently in their work.
One big difference between the reporters and Americans at large was in their view of religion's role in society.
The public is "sharply polarized" on the issue; 52.6 percent said religion was on balance a force for good in the world, while 43.6 percent it was a source of conflict. But among reporters, 56.1 percent reporters said religion is a mix of good and conflict, compared to 3.8 percent of the public who see it that way.
Reporters, in contrast to consumers of news, said religion news should emphasize religious institutions, activities, events and personalities.
Only one-fifth of the reporters said they were "very knowledgeable" about religion. Green told CNS that most reporters based their religion knowledge on what they knew and practiced growing up.
Green said reporters complained about not having enough time and resources to do stories on religion, or having too few contacts in the field. He added that one surprising element of the reporters' responses was a lack of interference from editors for the articles they did write.
"There is no one media world," Winston told CNS. The Washington Post "has really had to step up its game" with its On Faith blog, she said, to compete in the blogosphere.
Sectarian media, Winston added, "tend to cover their issues fairly well, if not aggressively. If you want to read diverse Jewish opinions on Israel, you're not going to get it in the Jewish media," but readers would find "minutiae on Jewish life. In the same way the Catholic media may not give you the most insider information on global sex scandals, but it will give you the most up-to-date information on what the pope is doing."
Still, Winston said, "you can get what you want if you look for it. If I wanted to find out what's going on in Catholic life and did not get a Catholic newspaper, I would have a hard time." | <urn:uuid:79c8291b-c1c1-44cd-a428-b1604da0ffe7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.the-tidings.com/index.php/viewpoints/columnists/1996-survey-americans-find-religion-reporting-too-sensationalized?FontSize=font-small | 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 | 0.972998 | 916 | 1.796875 | 2 |
A New Breed of Hybrid - “The Karma makes a statement about how good-looking an alternative vehicle could be, and essentially redefines luxury.”
The Karma cuts a dramatic profile – with its long hood, short rear deck, low roofline, and wide stance anchored by 22-inch wheels and tires. A continuously formed glass solar panel roof, the world’s largest on an automobile, harnesses additional energy from the sun and lends a cool eco-aesthetic. Exclusively offered Diamond Dust exterior paint gets its glimmer from crushed recycled glass and highlights the car’s sculptural form.
The spacious interior incorporates conventional hallmarks of luxury sedans, rendering them through innovative solutions aligned with the car’s environmentally conscious attitude. For example, inlaid wood trim is fashioned of naturally fallen trees recovered from forest fires and lake bottoms, and sumptuous leather is processed using a 100 percent sustainable manufacturing strategy. The battery pack nestled between, rather than underneath, the passengers allows for a lower rear seating position and maximizes the interior package for first-class, private jet-style comfort.
Leonardo DiCaprio Believes In Karma
Leonardo DiCaprio is teaming up with Fisker Automotive to promote global sustainability!
The 37-year-old actor and an equity investor in Fisker Automotive announced on his Foundation on July 3rd that he will be working closely with the luxury hybrid and electric car company to bring attention to sustainability and environmental awareness.
“My foundation supports efforts to secure a sustainable future for our planet and all its inhabitants,” Leo said in a statement. “I am delighted to be working with Fisker Automotive to promote this shared vision.”
The Inception actor, who received a Fisker Karma back in 2011, will promote the sedan as an environmentally friendly vehicle.
According to Fisker Automotive website, “the Karma is the world’s first premium electric plug-in hybrid representing the company’s firm belief that environmentally conscious cars need not sacrifice passion, style, or performance”.
PHOTO CREDIT: Max Shelton/Getty
Shocker: An electric car company actually meets production goals (and yes, it’s Tesla)
#SuryaRay #Surya Once again electric car pioneer Tesla Motors is the lone firm out of its electric car peers that says it’s going to do something, and then actually (usually) does it. According to Automotive News, Tesla has now reached its goal of producing 400 Model S electric cars per week, or around 20,000 cars per year.
This rate of production has been Tesla’s goal for months — if not years — and it’s a big step on the company’s path to profitability this year. Back in November, during its latest quarterly earnings, Tesla said it was on track to reach this milestone after having to scale back its original production goals a couple months earlier in September. It also means that all those customers on the waiting list to get their Model S cars — there were 13,200 as of the third quarter — will get their cars sooner, rather than later.
However, as I’ve written before, Tesla seems to be the exception rather than the rule in the struggling world of independent electric car makers and batteries made for electric cars. Electric car infrastructure maker Better Place shuffled out its second CEO in as many months last week, and laid off a big chunk of staff in the face of very slow adoption of its electric car service in Israel.
Electric car startup Fisker hasn’t made any of its hybrid electric Karma cars in months, and is looking for a Chinese partner, investor or acquirer with deep pockets to offer it a lifeline. Fisker’s original production goal at the beginning of its life was 5,000 Karmas in 2011, and it’s made around 1,900. A123 Systems, which has been making batteries for Fisker’s Karma, went bankrupt last year and then was bought by Chinese auto tech giant Wanxiang.
For the auto giants like GM and Nissan, which have been making their own mainstream electric cars, production isn’t a problem. It’s just that sales are a little slow. GM sold a total of 23,461 Volts in 2012, up from the 7,671 sold in 2011, and Nissan sold 9,819 Leafs in 2012, according to AutoblogGreen. GM originally wanted to sell 45,000 Volts in 2012.
So why is it so hard for independent electric car companies to meet their targets, and large auto makers to hit sales targets? For the auto giants, the market is only just emerging. GM’s Volt and the Nissan LEAF are the first mass produced plug-in battery cars on the market in the U.S. Auto exec Bob Lutz, who kickstarted GM’s Volt and is now on the board of some startups, says the transition to electric cars will be very slow.
For independent car startups, commercial scale production can be daunting and take a lot longer than expected, too. Many things can go wrong, and the it can take months to streamline the process of auto manufacturing. Tesla was founded back in 2003, and its pilot car — where it made errors and suffered delays — was the original Roadster. It’s taken Tesla this many years to get to its closer to mainstream auto maker status just pushing out 400 cars per week.
Sorry I’m spamming so much but I have things to say. Dave works for an automobile company called Fisker Automotive (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fisker_Automotive) working on the computers for their cars, specifically the Karma. Leonardo DiCaprio and Colin Powell have received their Karmas so that’s totes cool. :B I’m so proud of my science-y smart Dave.
“But it is clear that the remaining managers face grim circumstances, not the least of which is an April 22 deadline to repay a portion of a $193 million low-interest loan from the United States Department of Energy. Although Fisker was granted a $528.7 million loan in late 2009, that money was frozen after Fisker fell short of its production targets.”—Yet another Solyndra debacle to be paid for by U.S. taxpayers. Fisker Automotive Lays Off Majority of Employees - NYTimes.com
The Office of Workers' Compensation Programs
Seal of the United States Department of Energy. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
http://ping.fm/9Wuoc The Office of Workers’ Compensation Programs (OWCP) is publishing a list of Department of Energy (DOE) facilities covered under the Energy Employees Occupational Illness Compensation Program Act of 2000, as amended (EEOICPA). This notice revises and republishes the listing of DOE facilities that was last published by OWCP on November 24, 2010 (75 FR 71737) to include additional determinations made on this subject through March 6, 2012.
LaSorda, Former Chrysler boss named CEO at Fisker
LOS ANGELES — Fisker Automotive, the electric vehicle maker struggling to find its next round of funding, has shaken up its top executive ranks and appointed veteran industry leader Tom LaSorda as its CEO.
LaSorda, 57, Chrysler’s former CEO, had been named vice chairman of the automaker late last year.
Company co-founder and CEO Henrik Fisker will become executive chairman, the company said in a statement.
“I will be taking a new role…building the brand and creating brand awareness, styling and design and future vision of the company,” Fisker said.
Although it has launched its $103,000 Karma extended-range hybrid vehicle, the company recently missed milestones to collect its next round of funding from the U.S. Department of Energy.
Development of its lower-priced Project Nina has been placed on temporary hold.
However, LaSorda said that Fisker Automotive will be profitable in 2013 from Karma sales alone. Hopefully, that revelation will be enough to spur the next round of financing, either from the DOE or other sources, LaSorda said.
LaSorda also hinted at the possibility of forming an alliance with another automaker.
“If any auto company would call, we would be open to that,” LaSorda said. “But we are not out in the marketplace pushing that.”
Fisker has built — through the Valmet Automotive assembly plant in Finland — about 2,000 Karmas. About 840 have been delivered to U.S. and Canadian dealers. European dealers started receiving Karmas last week.
As for Project Nina, LaSorda said, “I really can’t say when production would start and what’s going on in Wilmington.” Late last year, Henrik Fisker said that prototype production at Wilmington would begin in the second half of 2012.Automobile News | <urn:uuid:76f1e7ea-14a6-4793-97ad-eff81af8450a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.tumblr.com/tagged/fisker%20automotive?language=en_US | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00013-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.953605 | 1,918 | 1.539063 | 2 |
Commuters on the busy I-5 freeway near Seattle will get a daily reminder that an effort to legalize marijuana in Washington state is underway. Sensible Washington, the group behind this year's initiative effort that failed to make the ballot, has put up a billboard saying "Because Drug Dealers Don't ID... Legalize in 2011," with the group's web address and a pot leaf superimposed on a state map.
The huge, bright yellow billboard is installed at mile marker 138 in Fife, Washington, between Tacoma and Seattle. The double-sided sign faces both north- and south-bound traffic and will be seen by more than a quarter-million vehicles per day.
The billboard will remain up through the November 2011 election. That means commuters passing it twice daily will have seen the message more than 400 times each by Election Day.
"Thanks to generous donations from two Sensible Washington volunteers and support and cooperation of the billboard company, Gotcha Covered Media (thank you!), we now have North- and South-facing billboards at this location through the November 2011 election," the group announced on its web site. | <urn:uuid:738ad180-faaf-4a01-b8c4-593126ea79d1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://stopthedrugwar.org/chronicle/2010/dec/19/marijuana_legalization_billboard | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.95794 | 227 | 1.523438 | 2 |
Guess what the second most popular name in England is? Nope, it’s not Jeeves, it’s Mohammed. And yes, this does signal the end of civilization as we know it. Europe is being invaded by a people whose culture is antithetical to everything they stand for. But as long as the news stories coming out of Europe are about cute and cuddly things like baby boy’s names and not about radical mosques warping the minds of Europe’s immigrant youth there will be no response from Europe’s politicians. Eventually those boys named Mohammed will become politicians named Mohammed and they will be the ones setting policy. Maybe now that Tom Tancredo has abandoned his presidential run in America he could turn his ire towards Europe’s immigration problem for a while.
Oops, another Spears girl did it again. Britney’s younger sister, 16-year-old Jamie Lynn, got impregnated by her 18-year-old boyfriend. The media wants to make this out as some sort of rallying cry to legalize teenage intercourse. But what I find the most sad about this story and every other story about a Disney kid’s fall from grace is the feeding frenzy it creates in the media. Once you decide, as a parent, to make your kid a “star” the kid’s life is basically null and void. They are controlled by everyone around them and manipulated by the media. When they screw up they become the poster child for whatever their screw up was. Focusing on this type of story, though, distracts everyone from important things… like the efficacy of sex ed classes and black holes.
In order to not disappoint you, I happen to have stories for both. First, sex ed. A story out today by ABC tells us how sex ed programs help delay sexual activity and leads to safer sex practices (at least on their first sexual encounter). But, as is expected from the MSM, they devote a good portion of the story to making sure the reader understands that abstinence only sex ed is really dangerous and the best option is “comprehensive” sex ed. Even though they did a poor job in hiding their biases here, ABC did point out that this study contradicts previous studies and may not be all that useful.
Earlier studies conducted in the 1970s through 1990s, however, seemed to suggest that sex education had little or no effect on the likelihood of young people engaging in sexual intercourse.
Until this report, there had been no recent national studies conducted to assess the effect of sex education on the sexual behaviors of youth — a situation that health experts say begs for further research to evaluate the most effective content and implementation of sex education.
Wow, this is shocking. A study that contradicts a bunch of previous studies. In America we let studies do our thinking for us. Instead of being logical about sex ed, for example, we put all of our trust into a bunch of studies we haven’t read and in all likelihood are faulty and/or misleading. It makes complete sense to me that sex ed just doesn’t work. It can’t. What do you think happens when you get a bunch of hormonal teenagers in a room together learning about the thing they aren’t suppose to be doing? If you didn’t know what happens, I’ll tell you. They go and get their abstinence wristbands and then head straight for the football bleachers and get it on with that cutie from math class.
Parents need to raise their children. If parents continue to hand over their children’s upbringing to largely unaccountable parties that is when you get pregnant teens. Look at Spears. Her mom probably hasn’t been around her for more than a few hours at a time for a bunch of years now. Is it really all that surprising when a starlet goes down the wrong path? Why should it be surprising when your teen, who you only see a couple hours a day because you work and because you believe they should be having “fun”, why is it surprising when they come home with a hangover, a drug habit, or with baby? If limiting the number of teen pregnancies is important to you why don’t you make sure your kid does the right thing.
Now onto black holes. How does this make you feel?
If a jet were to hit Earth, Evans said, it would destroy the ozone layer and collapse the magnetosphere that blankets the planet and protects it from harmful solar particles. Without the ozone layer and magnetosphere, he said, much of life on Earth would end.
Scary stuff. Luckily, however, that’s billions of years off and by then the world will be a shriveled mass thanks to global warming. Basically, what is going on is an intergalactic mugging. One black hole has sent out a burst of cosmic radiation and it is crashing into another galaxy. Unfortunately for the little green men who inhabit that galaxy, they are now probably all dead. Here’s the picture of this horrible event.
In other black hole news, the black hole known as liberalism has scored a big win today. The Federal Reserve has decided to enact lending regulations in an abrupt about face to its previous stance. I guess the relentless onslaught from the moron branch of economics, the branch that says whenever something goes wrong it can be fixed by legislation, won out in the end.
A while ago I wrote a piece called Capitalism’s Sledgehammer that dealt specifically with this branch of economics. Failure, like the failure of the subprime mortgage market, is one of the things capitalism is really good with. If you’ve been doing something wrong then capitalism will tell you with a loss in profits. But if you bring the government in to “protect” you and make things “better” you will get a bastardized form of capitalism that has a hard time telling you something is wrong. Furthermore, government regulations prevent people from taking risks, which puts a restrictor plate on our economy’s engine. In the end we give away our economy’s upside for a false sense of protection.
And what about our economy, is it dying? Well, Morgan Stanley posts a loss for the first time in its 72-year history. But Oracle’s profit soared and NetSuite’s IPO did better than expected. Personally, my portfolio has been hit quite hard but during the third quarter our GDP went up over 4%, so it would seem that there is still some steam left in our economy’s engine. Let me put it this way, I would never bet against American ingenuity.
TO wants to KO Jessica Simpson.
Al Qaeda still a threat in Iraq, duh.
“Don’t Tase Me, Bro” is most memorable.
Magna Carta worth a lot of money.
Hillary has a lot to hide.
Tell Your Friends! Bookmark Me!
Take Me To Your Homepage! | <urn:uuid:214bda22-8c92-4b14-a3c3-48d6f33bf1c0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://conservativeinc.com/category/roundupalooza/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00025-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.957697 | 1,453 | 1.703125 | 2 |
By Christine Stebbins
CHICAGO (Reuters) - Expiration of U.S. farm law on October 1, shutting off dairy supports and putting 2013 crop subsidies in limbo, will cause pain for some farmers and frustration for many but programs like food stamps and crop insurance will roll on, analysts said.
Government funding is assured through March 2013 for many programs based on a July deal to extend budget authority reached by feuding Republicans and Democrats ahead of the November elections.
Analysts said that the expiration will not affect food stamps and nutrition programs -- about 75 percent of the USDA budget -- and crop insurance, the biggest "safety net" tapped by farmers in this drought year.
But dairy farmers will be hit financially.
"Immediate impact will be felt by dairy farmers because the supplemental payment many of them have been receiving, the Milk Income Loss Contract Program, expires on September 30," said John Blanchfield, senior vice president for agricultural and rural banking at the American Bankers Association.
"Since milk check payments run 30 days behind the delivery of milk, dairy farmers will notice the suspension of these payments with the November milk checks," he said.
Dairy farmers and livestock producers have been hit hardest this year by drought. Crop losses have been covered to a great extent by insurance, supported by USDA programs. But soaring feed prices have squeezed livestock producers, prompting herd liquidations and financial failures.
"Congress has to got to do something in November," said Jackie Klippenstein, vice president of industry and legislative affairs for Dairy Farmers of America. "The farm bill provided a measure of hope. The fact that Congress went home without addressing it has really deflated a lot of folks out there who are struggling."
"There's been so much equity lost," said Ray Souza, a California dairy farmer. "Many dairy farmers have had to borrow against their equity to stay afloat."
After the November 6 election, Congress will return to work on the farm bill. The House of Representatives was splintered over how deeply to cut food stamps and farm programs. The Senate passed its version in June but both chambers must reach agreement before it can become law.
"The best angle I've heard is that if Obama wins, a farm bill completed during the lame duck is more likely; if Romney wins, they'll extend and save changes for 2013," Gary Blumenthal, head of Washington-based agricultural consultancy World Perspectives, told the Reuters Global Ag Forum this week.
For crop farmers and their bankers, the main question has been about decisions to plant fall-seeded crops like winter wheat and purchases of fertilizer or other crop inputs.
"Right now the main issue is the uncertainty," said Dale Moore, public policy deputy with the American Farm Bureau Federation. "The biggest thing by not knowing what the new farm program is when they are sitting down with their bankers to get their credit while planning for next year -- they don't know what they are going to be dealing with."
Chris Hausman, a corn/soy farmer near Champaign, Illinois, said: "Without having a Farm Bill in place it leaves that uncertainty, especially when it comes to crop insurance."
LAME DUCK AND BEYOND?
Analysts said they expect a deal on farm legislation before January 1.
"If Congress does nothing, we go back to this permanent law, called the 1949 Act. I think most in DC believe that won't happen," said Klippenstein. "That takes us to a time in policy that no longer exists in real life and doesn't have programs or policies that reflect modern agriculture."
Analysts said reversion to the 1949 law would bring back old concepts of "price parity" from the last century that would sharply hike support prices and restrict planting and marketing.
To avoid those headaches, many politicians and farmers believe the lame-duck Congress will either pass the stalled 2012 Farm Bill or extend the 2008 law before year-end.
"One or the other, I think you'll get," Iowa Senator Chuck Grassley, a Senate Agriculture Committee member, told reporters. "I think it will be handled in the lame duck."
Farmers like Hausman were hopeful but by nature skeptical.
"It could happen but I'm not going to hold my breath," said Hausman of prospects for a new farm bill by Christmas.
(Additional reporting by Chuck Abbott. Editing by Peter Bohan and David Gregorio) | <urn:uuid:006f56b5-c227-4424-9d54-8e931575b612> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://wtvbam.com/news/articles/2012/sep/28/farm-law-to-expire-but-many-programs-funded-through-march/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.969836 | 908 | 1.59375 | 2 |
The Statesville City Council is poised Monday evening to adopt more stringent rules governing water and sewer connections.The rules would require that all habitable buildings connect to the city’s public water system and that all new nonresidential buildings and subdivisions with more than 10 lots must connect to the city sewer system. Previously, only buildings located within 400 feet of an existing sewer main were required to connect. If the regulations are adopted Monday, as expected, any exceptions will have to be approved by the council itself before development plans are approved. The changes were requested by the council in the wake of a recent hearing on a new Dollar General Store, which sought approval to install septic tanks instead of connecting to the city sanitary sewer system. “This law reflects the stated sentiment of the council’s majority,” said Planning Director David Currier. “That is, if you are going to build in our city, then you should be using the city’s water and sewer systems.”Not everyone agrees with the city’s approach. At the first reading on the new measure held Jan. 14, builder Howard Bryan urged the council not to adopt the new law. “This will only complicate the current system, which is working well. It will be confusing to businesses and cost them more time ... just another impediment to bringing new business into Statesville.”However, the council voted unanimously to approve the new law and scheduled the final reading for Feb. 4. If approved, it will go into effect immediately. Also at the January meeting, the council:• Approved spending $5,376 from insurance proceeds to repair a damaged Statesville police car. The vehicle was involved in a chase on Broom Street in November, and as it approached the dead end, it slid on leaves in the roadway, rolling over. The officer was not injured. • Adopted the State’s Department of Cultural Resources Records Retention and Disposition Schedule. According to Assistant City Manager Lynne Smith, without approving this schedule, the city would be obligated to obtain the state’s permission to destroy any record, no matter how insignificant. | <urn:uuid:3c0f31c3-c54b-44ea-89ba-e460a09a9b1b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2013/02/04/3833136/city-to-tighten-watersewer-connection.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959332 | 438 | 1.523438 | 2 |
Issue 193, page 3
|Search||Home||FAQ||Links||Site map||Book Store||New||Ask Us||Theory||About|
Guestmudgeon Dean Moblo thinks he might as well complain about
Nope. Melanie actually said that as a kid before figuring out exactly what the words were. It's interesting that the t of might mutates to an n.
Might as well dates in the written record from 1440! The sense is one of equivalence of one action with another. "We might as well go to the movies as stay home". The two actions are both qualified as "well".
Have you heard or read similar or equally distressing usages?
Read this before commenting on this week's Curmudgeons' Corner
additions? Send to Melanie & Mike: [email protected]
DO NOT SEND QUERIES TO THAT ADDRESS. Instead, ASK US.
Copyright © 1995-2003 TIERE
Last Updated 01/08/06 02:05 PM | <urn:uuid:e7669d3f-7153-4ebf-a9b0-5d1175908a59> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.takeourword.com/TOW192/page3.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00029-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.931575 | 216 | 1.773438 | 2 |
If your company is one of the many companies currently going through annual open enrollment period, then you have probably read the term “eligible life events” or “qualifying life events” a couple dozen times by now. It’s important to know and understand which life events qualify, because many people only have one chance per year to elect their health benefits unless they have a qualifying life event, which gives them an opportunity to change their benefits elections.
Why do qualifying life events matter?
Most companies negotiate group health insurance costs once per year, and it’s more cost efficient for both the insurance company and the employer to keep a relatively steady number of people in the plan they elect at the beginning of the year. Insurance companies agree to lock in rates for the year in exchange for keeping people from switching plans at will. However, it wouldn’t be fair for the insurance companies not to allow people to change plans when they have a major life event that changes their needs. So there is a built in clause that allows people to change their health care coverage when they experience certain qualifying life events.
What are qualifying life events?
As mentioned above, qualifying life events are major events in your life that qualify you to change your health care coverage outside of the open enrollment period. Major life events include:
- Marriage, civil union, divorce, annulment, legal separation.
- Birth, adoption, taking in a foster child, or becoming a legal guardian.
- Change in spouse’s work status.
- Death of spouse or dependent.
- Change in status of dependent’s eligibility (e.g. change of student status or becoming too old for coverage).
- Possibly more, depending on plan.
These are common qualifying life events, so be sure to read the fine print in your benefits enrollment package. Also keep in mind that you usually only have 30 days from the date of the qualifying life event in which to make a change in your health insurance plan. Insurance companies or your Human Resources department may also require proof of the qualifying life event, so be ready to fax a copy of a birth or marriage certificate, death certificate, adoption papers, etc. Specifics vary from plan to plan, so be sure to read your plan thoroughly before electing your benefits plan. You may also wish to get insurance rate quotes from another insurance source before automatically assuming your group plan offers the best rates. My wife and I discovered we could save a couple thousand dollars per year with a comparable individual health plan. | <urn:uuid:ee87f09f-fc81-460d-a917-8bdf84f468f9> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://cashmoneylife.com/qualifying-life-events/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00025-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958134 | 517 | 1.664063 | 2 |
SAN DIEGO - The image is known around the world - a Marine Corps tank commander, borrowed cigar in hand, reveling in the taking of Baghdad during the invasion of Iraq.
Now-retired Gunnery Sgt. Nick Popaditch, immortalized in the April 2003 photograph taken by Associated Press photographer Laurent Rebours, became forever known as "The Cigar Marine."
In fact, he launched his own special line of premium cigars in November to help raise money for the Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund.
He wrote a 2008 memoir, Once a Marine, that's a must-read, according to Commandant Gen. Jim Amos, who put it on his reading list. And he's run twice, in 2010 and 2012, for a congressional seat in Southern California.
But Popaditch, now 45, isn't about to slow down. Taking a break in a San Diego bagel shop recently, he spoke about his latest project, a book about Marine recruit training.
His signature black patch covers the right eye he lost when a rocket-propelled grenade struck his helmet during the first Battle of Fallujah in April 2004, also destroying his sense of smell and taste. But his wounds don't dash his resolve or his love of the Corps.
With his latest book, The Ultimate Marine Recruit Training Guidebook, Popaditch shares his enthusiasm with readers - particularly high school students considering the Marine Corps. The 178-page book draws from his experiences as a boot camp and drill instructor to explain Marine vernacular, tell a bit of history and explain the process of becoming a Marine.
Marines, particularly noncommissioned officers, are "the custodians of Semper Fi," responsible for teaching and showing what that means to new Marines and second lieutenants, he said.
Forget what you think you know about Marine Corps boot camp from Hollywood: Listen and learn. Have faith in the chaos, he said.
"Engage all your senses to obtain and process information; look at (but not directly - use your peripheral vision) posted signs; observe the drill instructor's hand and arm motions; and feel the direction the rest of the group is moving," he wrote. "Calm down. Consciously control your breathing to slow your heart rate; focus on thinking clearly."
They're the same core skills that have helped Marines survive and win in combat and uphold the values essential to becoming part of the Corps, he said.
Copyright 2013 USATODAY.com
Read the original story: 'Cigar Marine' offers advice to recruits | <urn:uuid:370da4d4-045e-4aa2-b4fb-698c9e360de5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.marshfieldnewsherald.com/usatoday/article/1566112 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00030-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.96865 | 528 | 1.539063 | 2 |
I’m not sure this infographic really explains why you have to wait, but it’s interesting statistics nonetheless. The infographic is created by SignatureMD which is a large scale concierge medicine company.
” … researchers recruited 19 volunteers with various amounts of body hair and shaved one of each of their arms. They then asked the subjects to look away while they dropped bedbugs onto their arms.”
This is actually an important study when it comes to overcoming the bedbug infestation the U.S. is currently dealing with. This study also shows that how much hair you have on your body can determine how long you can “bear” a pest on your skin. | <urn:uuid:f9b9b92b-bd7c-4597-b160-65a025de4158> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://healthofamerica.tumblr.com/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706890813/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516122130-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968013 | 142 | 1.734375 | 2 |
Children journey into a new world with new bikes
In the fast-moving digital age, it's safe to assume that video game consoles, MP3 players and cellphones might be at the top of most children's wish list. But those devices probably have not eclipsed the excitement children have when receiving their first bicycle.
More than 30 children gathered Friday afternoon at Beacon House to receive a new bicycle from the Rail-to-Trail Conservancy, a nonprofit group dedicated to creating public trails, and their enthusiasm could hardly be contained.
"I know you guys are excited, but we're going to get to the bikes," said Morissa Hargrove, a coordinator for teen programs at Beacon House, a community-based organization in Northeast Washington.
The nonprofit group provided 40 bicycles, locks and helmets through its Metropolitan Grants Program, which is funded by the Coca-Cola Foundation.
After a lesson on helmet safety, Malik Lawson, 11, was first in line to make his choice. He picked a black, eight-speed mountain bike. With some assistance from Hargrove, he sat on his new bicycle and quickly took off.
"Squeeze your brakes," shouted Glen Harrison, a safety instructor for the Washington Area Bicyclist Association, as the remaining cyclists followed Malik. "Make sure the brakes work!"
Aaron Williams, 9, didn't have a problem with the brakes on his bicycle. He had a more pressing concern. "Excuse me? Can someone help me put my seat down?" he asked.
As soon as Keith Laughlin, president of the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, adjusted the seat to a suitable height, Aaron took off to join the others who had left him behind.
Laughlin said the bicycles were given to encourage use of the newly constructed Metropolitan Branch Trail, an eight-mile walking and bicycle trail from Silver Spring to Union Station.
"Part of our mission is building these trails," Laughlin said. "People fully appreciate the value of these trails."
A quarter-mile segment of the trail from Franklin Street to the Rhode Island Avenue Shopping Center opened this month. The remaining portion, between Rhode Island Avenue and R Street, is scheduled to be completed next month, according to the D.C. Department of Transportation.
The Rev. Donald E. Robinson, founder and president of Beacon House, said access to the trail should benefit the District's newest cyclists. "For some of them, it's the first bike that they've owned," Robinson said. "They can get downtown without costing them money."
Neither getting downtown nor to the trail was the immediate choice for some cyclists. One had a specific place in mind.
"Can we go home now?" Malik asked.
After getting a nod of approval from a volunteer, he took off once again, this time to a more familiar destination.
"I'm excited for these kids," said Jan Feuchtner, 30, co-owner of Oasis Bike Works in Fairfax, who provided the wheels.
Feuchtner said his shop will provide free monthly maintenance on the bicycles at Beacon House for one year. "Where was this when I needed a bike?" he asked. | <urn:uuid:6d2fbba5-da3f-4e76-8d98-9035f9e1221a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/10/28/AR2009102801830.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00022-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.975443 | 656 | 1.679688 | 2 |
SALUTATIONS TO SHRI SHRAVAK-SHRAVIKAS
Next, I beg forgiveness from the Shravak-shravikas, the lay followers of true faith, who are numerable within Adhi Dweep (two and a half islands) and innumerable outside Adhi Dweep. These Adhi Dweeps are Jambu Dweep, Dhatakikhand Dweep and half of Pushakarvar Dweep. Each Dweep consists of three Kshetras (regions), which are Bharat, Mahavideh and Airavat Kshetras.
How are these Shravaks and Shravikajis? They exceed you and me in charity, character, austerity, virtues, etc. They do Pratikraman inclusive of six essentials, twice a day. In a month, they do two, four or six Poshadhs, or live saintly lives. With true faith, they bear the 12 vows, 11 meditations, and 3 aspirations. They have sympathy towards all weaker lives.
They know the 9 fundamentals of life. They bear the 21 virtues of the Shravaks.
They consider others’ wealth and possessions as totally useless to them like stones, they consider all men and women except their spouses as father-sons or mother-sisters. They are firmly religious, and are unshakable even by deities. Their spirit of religion is marrow-deep.
If I have indulged in any disrespect, misbehavior, or offence to such Shravak and Shravikas, then with folded hands, shunning pride, and bowed head, I repeatedly beg for their forgiveness. TASSA MICHCHHAMI DUKKADAM.
I apologize to Shravak-Shravikas. I apologize to those who bear true vision. I apologize to the obliging brothers and sisters. I apologize to the parents.
I also apologize to the 8.4 million types of lives which are as under:
700 thousands Earth-bodied
700 thousands Water-bodied
700 thousands Fire-bodied
700 thousands Air-bodied
1 million Vegetable-bodied
1.4 million Ordinary vegetable and plant bodied
200 thousands Beindriya (souls with 2 senses)
200 thousands Teindriya (souls with 3 senses)
200 thousands Choindriya (souls with 4 senses)
400 thousands Hellish beings
400 thousands Heavenly beings
400 thousands Beasts and Panchendriyas (souls with 5 senses)
1.4 million Human beings.
While trespassing, getting up or sitting down, knowingly or unknowingly, if I have slain or have gotten them slain, pierced or cut, pained or tortured any of these living beings, then in the presence of Arihants, and infinite Siddha Lords, I pray for my sins being dissolved. TASSA MICHCHHAMI DUKKADAM.
I forgive all, may all forgive me, I am friendly to all, I have enmity for none. | <urn:uuid:f98d137d-7353-4d7c-b1d7-1460ebbe9e54> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.jainworld.com/jainbooks/images/29/SALUTATIONS_TO_SHRI_SHRAVAK.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.933314 | 646 | 1.804688 | 2 |
Subsets and Splits
No saved queries yet
Save your SQL queries to embed, download, and access them later. Queries will appear here once saved.