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
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Underground Undergrads: UCLA Undocumented Immigrant Students Speak Out
Featuring Stories by:
- Mario Escobar: A former child soldier from El Salvador who recently attained asylum in this country.
- Tam Tran: A UCLA graduate who testified before the U.S. Congress on the status of undocumented students.
- Grace: A Korean student who gave up her student visa to qualify for AB 540 so she could attend UCLA.
- Antonio: A Mexican immigrant who arrived in this country at the age of four and who struggled to finance and complete his college education.
This student publication, Underground Undergrads: UCLA Undocumented Immigrant Students Speak Out, features the growing student movement around access to higher education for undocumented students. Written by the students themselves, eight moving stories of undocumented immigrant students from UCLA provide the focal point of Underground Undergrads. The stories are unique and diverse, but they all demonstrate the pain, financial hardship, and emotional distress these students face as well as their ultimate triumph when they graduate from UCLA. Underground Undergrads also serves as an educational and research tool by providing a summary of the history of legislation impacting undocumented students in higher education as well as a resource guide of organizations that advocate for student rights. | <urn:uuid:c57c6c13-34bf-49ca-a0ca-a03e61bcd3a7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.labor.ucla.edu/publications/books/underground.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00037-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958161 | 252 | 1.835938 | 2 |
Ensure citizen input in redistricting
"Whether through legislation or a blue ribbon governor's panel, Bob McDonnell will ensure bipartisan citizen involvement in the state legislative and congressional district redistricting process in 2010-2011."
More talk than action on redistricting
Updated: Friday, September 16th, 2011 | By Warren Fiske
Bob McDonnell was accused of flip-flopping in the 2009 gubernatorial campaign when he promised steps to ensure "bipartisan citizen involvement” in the drawing of new legislative and congressional districts.
Few events are more brutally political in Virginia than redistricting, which occurs every 10 years after the U.S. Census reports come out. The ruling party in each legislative body uses the process to expand its majority by drawing districts that favor friends and punish foes. That often results in gerrymandered districts that split localities and precincts.
McDonnell had long defended legislators' right to control the process. In 2004, as a member of the Republican majority in the House of Delegates, he voted against an unsuccessful bill that would have established a bipartisan commission to study alternative ways of redistricting.
As attorney general in early 2008 and 2009, he was silent when the House killed bills to create a bipartisan citizens panel that would propose redistricting maps for the General Assembly. The measures were introduced by state Sen. Creigh Deeds, D-Bath, who would become McDonnell's opponent for governor.
But in May 2009, McDonnell changed his stand on redistricting and made a promise.
"Whether through legislation or a Blue Ribbon Governor's panel, Bob McDonnell will ensure bipartisan citizen involvement in the state"s legislative and congressional redistricting process in 2010-2011,” McDonnell's campaign declared in a policy paper.
"Legislative boundaries must be drawn in a way that maximizes voter participation and awareness and the lines should reflect commonsense geographic boundaries and a strong community of interests,” the campaign statement added.
Deeds dismissed McDonnell"s shift as "election-year pander.” McDonnell acknowledged his position had changed. "In the past I have not been supportive of this issue,” he said during a conference call with reporters, adding that redistricting "should not be left solely to the political whims of the legislature.”
And on Jan. 10, 2011 -- almost one year to the day after his inauguration -- McDonnell named an 11-member, bipartisan citizens" commission on redistricting. True to its mission, the panel held public hearings across the state and encouraged a competition among college students that produced 55 redistricting plans. It also drew its own set of maps that largely ignored political considerations and created districts based on the on the ideals of compactness and keeping communities together.
But that's where it all ended for the commission. McDonnell made no effort to advance its final work. "The recommendations of the commission are theirs alone; they are not the recommendations of the governor,” Tucker Martin, the governor's communication chief, said in March.
Legislators essentially ignored the commission's work. The General Assembly passed and McDonnell signed bills that keep 90 percent of legislators in districts unoccupied by another incumbent. The plan increased the number of localities and precincts that are split into different legislative districts.
The commission's recommendations would have reduced the number of split localities and precincts. It offered less protection to incumbents than the General Assembly"s plan. Several members of the panel lamented that McDonnell did not promote their final work.
The General Assembly is still haggling over a new maps for Virginia's 11 congressmen.
So McDonnell pledged to create a commission that would "ensure bipartisan citizen involvement in the state"s legislative and redistricting process.” And he indeed appointed a panel. But largely because the governor was indifferent to it's recommendations, the group never influenced the nitty-gritty of the redistricting process. The real map drawing remained solely in the hands of politicians
And McDonnell turned his promise into a Compromise.
Legislative Information System, House Joint Resolution 165, 2004.
Legislative Information System, Senate Bill 38, 2008.
Legislative Information System, Senate Bill 926, 2009
McDonnell for Governor, Government Reform, 2009.
Richmond Times-Dispatch, McDonnell reverses on redistricting, May 23, 2009.
Richmond Times-Dispatch, Advocates criticize population criteria for Va. redistricting, March 29, 2011.
Independent Advisory Commission on Redistricting, The Public Interest in Redistricting, April 2, 2011.
We want to hear your suggestions and comments. Email the Virginia Truth-O-Meter with feedback and with claims you'd like to see checked. If you send us a comment, we'll assume you don't mind us publishing it unless you tell us otherwise. | <urn:uuid:f51f6d95-0c72-4748-be26-e86bc1609097> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.politifact.com/virginia/promises/bob-o-meter/promise/986/ensure-citizen-input-in-redistricting/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00023-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.947549 | 985 | 1.78125 | 2 |
Laser Eyelid Surgery – Explained
Laser eyelid surgery is also known as blepharoplasty. This cosmetic procedure brings on a more youthful appearance by reducing the typical aging condition resulting in puffy and saggy skin surrounding the eyes. With laser eyelid surgery you look younger and more refreshed, taking years off your face. Some people receive this surgery because they are unhappy with their genetics which causes them to develop large bags around their eyes. This laser eyelid surgery has now outgrown in popularity the previously popular upper and lower eyelid surgery.
Laser Eyelid Surgery – Advantages
One of the advantages of laser procedures is their minimum trauma to the patient. Laser eyelid surgery is usually conducted on an outpatient basis. Laser procedures on the whole are safer and less intrusive and traumatic to the patient than conventional plastic surgery. Sometimes the process takes place in a surgery clinic or in right on sight at the medical office. You are immediately sent home after the procedure. Being able to have laser eyelid surgery done on an outpatient basis also helps keep the overall cost down.
Laser Eyelid Surgery – The Procedure
The length of the procedure usually runs around one to three hours. This is dependent on each individual case and the condition of the skin around the eyes. The patient usually receives a combination of sedative and local anesthesia.
No knife is used. No incisions are made during laser eyelid surgery. The laser is directed to make a very small but accurate incision. The laser cauterizes the blood vessels which means a blood free procedure which is better for the patient. With no bleeding the medical professional is able to see the eyelid area more clearly. Laser eyelid surgery also helps to eliminate the chance of infection from the procedure as the laser literally kills bacteria.
Excess skin and tissue are removed and then the area is closed up with sutures.
Traditional cosmetic surgery for the eyelid area left small scars from the incisions that were needed. With laser eyelid surgery there is usually no sign of scarring after the area has healed.
The recovery time of laser eyelid surgery is much less than traditional eyelid surgery. The typical side effects experienced after surgery are much less with laser treatment. There is less swelling and bruising in the days following laser treatment.
Sometimes the benefits from blepharoplasty are permanent and sometimes a touch up will be needed some time in the future. Laser eyelid surgery is a big improvement over traditional eyelid surgery. | <urn:uuid:a046b69c-a968-417a-a531-062645d5bc20> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.fixitwithlaser.com/wrinkles/laser-eyelid-surgery/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00030-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963566 | 511 | 1.632813 | 2 |
Number 4 – Get the Technology right
There are a lot of options when it comes to technology; some people will embrace every new thing and others will just get by with the basics.
So what are the essentials for taking your business away with you?
- A laptop
- A planned way of accessing a regular, reliable supply of high speed Internet
- A smart phone
- A file storage system so you can retrieve information you need
- A system for backing up your files
- Electricity plug adaptor for the country you are in
There are other items which you may wish to have e.g.
- An external mouse if you don’t like your laptops touch pad
- A set of headphones if you plan to use Skype a lot
- A strong, padded laptop bag
- A decent size memory stick
The key is in the preparation, you need to know that when you arrive in your destination you will be able to access everything you need to be able to work. The internet lifestyle only works if you can continue to earn money while getting to explore a different country, for 99% of people internet access is their number one priority.
What is the 1 piece of technology that will allow you to access the internet anywhere?
Mobile internet uses the mobile phone network to connect to the internet; pretty much all worldwide networks provide some kind of data service which you can sign up to. The network providers (like Vodafone, O2, AT&T, Sprint etc.) will provide you with a sim card (just like a mobile phone) which connects you to that network.
Warning! If you can access the internet on your mobile phone, do not use this in any other country than your home country. Mobile phone companies will charge you a lot for data access from outside of their network. Always buy a local sim card for that country as this keeps the costs down.
Speeds do vary depending on the network and your location; however our experience has shown that other countries from Thailand to Australia have a better mobile data network than most European countries.
The first step to this internet option is buying a device which can connect your laptop to the mobile phone
network; you will need to get one that needs to be ‘unlocked’ which means it can work with any sim card from any worldwide network. You may have to pay slightly more for this than a ‘locked’ version but it will save you money in the long run.
Tri-Band 3G USB Mobile Broadband Modem
You can buy one of these from under $100, simply plug into your laptop through the USB port and add in a sim card from your local network.
Make sure you purchase the ‘unlocked’ version of this type of USB modem; this will allow it to work with any sim card (no matter what the network) – perfect when you travel from country to country.
If you already own a USB modem, there are many websites (we have successfully used this site in the past http://www.dc-unlocker.com) which provide you with software to unlock the modem.
3G Mobile HotSpot Broadband Modem
Similar to above (although slightly more expensive), this device creates its own WIFI network; this allows several devices like a laptop, mobile phone with wireless etc to connect to the mobile data connection.
Whichever device you decide to go for, make sure it works with your laptop before you leave your home country. For example –
- USB Modem -make sure laptop can recognises the USB modem when it is plugged in. Install the supplied software and confirm you can access the modem menus.
- HotSpot Modem – install the supplied software on your laptop and create a WIFI network for the modem (remember to secure your WIFI network!). Confirm your laptop can successfully connect to this network and you can access the modem menus.
Which mobile network shall I sign up to?
There are often several companies to choose from when it comes to deciding on which mobile network to join when you arrive in a different country. The best way to decide should be based around where you will be spending most of your time; you want to have the strongest 3G signal in your area.
Once you have decided on the best network, sign up to a ‘Pay as you go’ plan as this will not tie you into a contract. You will just need to top-up your balance as and when your credit expires.
There are many internet resources that can guide you through choosing the right network for that country, signing up to a ‘pay as you go’ plan etc. We found a great blog post which helped us out when we arrived in Thailand.
From this we knew the mobile network we had to sign up to, found the shop in Bangkok and was advised which solution was correct for us. It cost roughly $15 for a month’s access and could be topped up, as required, in many local shops around Thailand.
Want to know more?
You can get instant access to all this expert knowledge, all for only $27. Start your business abroad now! -
- The technology you need to access the internet anywhere;
- The best smart phone apps that you can’t live without when travelling and working;
- The key systems you need so that all your files can be accessed and backed up;
- How you can stay entertained with your favorite TV programmes while you travel;
- How to stay in phone contact with your clients while you are away;
- The ‘must have’ technology that will get you working anywhere;
- Plus, ask us any questions you have through our forum.
Powered by Facebook Comments | <urn:uuid:210af122-0847-4ed4-a53f-97233770e955> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.loveplaywork.com/the-travel-work-manifesto/number-4-get-the-technology-right/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.937804 | 1,185 | 1.648438 | 2 |
Burns has been helping to keep the machines running for 17 years, and Nolan has been volunteering his services for 11 years. With more than 300 machines in use, the two work on from eight to 26 machines each week for an average of 20 hours. Lydia Peters, library reader advisor, said 1,500 patrons in 21 counties use the service. Many have their own machines, but they’ll send them in for service when needed, she said.
Library Director Delana Hickman said the Talking Book service is free to visually impaired patrons. Information is available by calling 706-236-4618. The materials are sent free through the U.S. Postal Service and may be returned the same way. | <urn:uuid:24e9c2f7-dec0-4d11-9de6-3a39ec0862c4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.romenews-tribune.com/view/full_story/21991473/article-Volunteers-keep-Talking-Books-talking-?instance=a&e_page | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.967241 | 145 | 1.617188 | 2 |
Post-Newtown gun legislation will hinge on 'Heller'
The National Law Journal
If Congress opens a serious debate on new federal restrictions on firearms in the wake of the Newtown school shootings, the U.S. Supreme Court's landmark Second Amendment decision will be fodder for proponents and opponents.
Not surprisingly, both sides in the gun control debate, at loggerheads for decades, disagree on how much room the 2008 District of Columbia v. Heller decision offers for new regulations, particularly of the assault-type rifle used to kill 20 children and six adults on December 14.
However, they do agree that it is only a matter of time before the Supreme Court steps back into Second Amendment debates, which currently are playing out in litigation around the country over various state and local gun regulations.
The Heller decision offers "a lot of room" for Congress to act, said Jon Lowy, director of the Legal Action Project of the Brady Center to Prevent Gun Violence.
"The Supreme Court was clear in Heller that while law-abiding, responsible citizens have the right to a gun in the home for self defense, there is a wide variety of sensible gun laws that remain constitutional," explained Lowy. "Assault weapons and background checks for all gun sales and other sensible restrictions would clearly be permitted by the Second Amendment."
A proposal to ban so-called assault weapons, such as promised recently by Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), would raise "serious problems" under Heller, countered David Kopel, research director of the Independence Institute, who was part of the legal team challenging the District of Columbia's gun restrictions in the Heller case.
"The Second Amendment does protect weapons typically possessed by law-abiding citizens for lawful purposes," he said. "There's just a matter of logic here. These [assault] guns are cosmetically different but not functionally different; they fire one bullet every time pressed, just like any normal gun."
The gun used in the Newtown school shootings was the AR-15, "one of the most popular firearms in the U.S. these days," he added. "It probably outsells every other model. Is it occasionally misused in crimes? Yes, but certainly at a lower rate than handguns as a class are misused in crimes. Therefore, Heller appears to forbid a ban on such guns."
In Heller, a 5-4 majority, led by Justice Antonin Scalia, held that the Second Amendment protects an individual right to possess a gun unconnected with service in a militia, and to use the gun for traditionally lawful purposes, such as in the home for self defense. The decision invalidated the District of Columbia's handgun ban considered the strictest in the nation and its requirement that firearms kept in the home be disassembled or have a trigger lock.
However, the majority also said the Second Amendment right is not unlimited, and gave examples of some limits.
"From Blackstone through the 19th-century cases, commentators and courts routinely explained that the right was not a right to keep and carry any weapon whatsoever in any manner whatsoever and for whatever purpose," wrote Scalia. "For example, the majority of the 19th-century courts to consider the question held that prohibitions on carrying concealed weapons were lawful under the Second Amendment or state analogues."
Nothing in the Heller ruling, he said, should be read to cast doubt on "longstanding prohibitions on the possession of firearms by felons and the mentally ill, or laws forbidding the carrying of firearms in sensitive places such as schools and government buildings, or laws imposing conditions and qualifications on the commercial sale of arms."
Another "important limitation," explained Scalia, was contained in the justices' 1939 decision in Miller v. U.S. "Miller said, as we have explained, that the sorts of weapons protected were those 'in common use at the time.' We think that limitation is fairly supported by the historical tradition of prohibiting the carrying of 'dangerous and unusual weapons,' " he wrote. Based on Miller, the Second Amendment does not protect weapons not typically possessed by law-abiding citizens for lawful purposes, such as short-barreled shotguns, he added.
The federal assault weapons ban, enacted in 1994, expired in 2004. That law had two bans: one on assault guns and another on high-capacity magazines holding more than 10 rounds of ammunition. Feinstein, the sponsor of the 1994 law, said her latest proposal will again ban both.
"Even before Heller, there were assault weapons bans challenged both on Second Amendment grounds and state right-to-bear arms provisions, and the bans were upheld," said Lowy of the Brady Center. "Connecticut, which has an assault weapon ban, does not ban high-capacity magazines."
But Kopel said the Second Amendment protects firearm accessories that pass the Heller test as well as firearms. He noted that New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg is advocating a ban on magazines holding more than 10 rounds.
"About three-quarters of all handguns sold in the U.S. today are semi-automatic as opposed to revolvers," said Kopel. "A great many modern semi-automatics have magazines which hold between 11 and 19 rounds. These would also seem to pass the Heller test because they are commonly used by law-abiding citizens for lawful purposes and extremely common."
Magazines of 30 to 40 rounds are also commonly possessed for rifles, he said, and 50-round magazines for rifles or 35 rounds for handguns also are "overwhelmingly" possessed by law-abiding citizens for lawful purposes, although not as "ubiquitous."
The language in Miller about "commonly used by law-abiding citizens for lawful purposes," is not entirely clear, acknowledged Kopel. Must the weapon be popular and commonly used by law-abiding citizens for lawful purposes, or just mainly used for lawful purposes, he said. But he said he would argue that all of the different magazine rounds pass the Heller test.
Last October in a speech before the Brady Center, retired Justice John Paul Stevens weighed in on Heller and recent shootings.
"Even though a sawed-off shotgun or a machine gun might well be kept at home and be useful for self-defense," he said, "neither machine guns nor sawed-off shotguns satisfy the 'common use' requirement. Thus, even as generously construed in Heller, the Second Amendment provides no obstacle to regulations prohibiting the ownership or use of the sorts of automatic weapons used in the tragic multiple killings in Virginia, Colorado and Arizona in recent years. The failure of Congress to take any action to minimize the risk of similar tragedies in the future cannot be blamed on the Court's decision in Heller."
The Supreme Court has passed up opportunities to revisit the Second Amendment since its last pronouncement in McDonald v. City of Chicago in 2010. That decision applied the Second Amendment to the states.
Since then, courts have been "all over the place" in their analyses of state and local gun regulations under challenge, said Alan Gura of Gura & Possessky, who successfully argued the Heller and McDonald cases in the Supreme Court.
"Right now there are a variety of Second Amendment disputes working their way up to the Supreme Court," said Gura. "We're having conflicting opinions by appellate courts on the extent to which local governments can regulate the carrying of guns outside the home for self defense."
Last week, a 2-1 panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit struck down Illinois' statewide ban on carrying concealed weapons. A unanimous Second Circuit panel last month upheld New York's law requiring individuals to demonstrate a special need to carry a concealed weapon in order to get a permit.
Gura is involved in both cases and said he intends to file a petition for review of the Second Circuit decision in the Supreme Court. "It doesn't have that much immediate relevance to what happened in Connecticut," he said.
The Brady Center's Lowy noted there are cases involving restrictions on the carrying of guns in public now pending in the Fourth, Ninth, Seventh, First and Tenth circuits. "Within the next few months, when those decisions come down, we'll have a much better sense of whether there is serious disagreement among the circuits," said Lowy.
Gura said the disagreement over the scope of the Second Amendment should not be portrayed as between those who care about what happened in Newtown and those who are oblivious to it.
"I agree with the president that something should be done to stop this madness," said Gura. "We may disagree about what it is that should be done. There is consensus we need to do something so that this is less likely to occur."
Marcia Coyle can be contacted at [email protected]. | <urn:uuid:f9580514-ed5d-4573-9cf8-670e2e368a6f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ctlawtribune.com/PubArticleFriendlyCT.jsp?id=1202581822870 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.969975 | 1,781 | 1.765625 | 2 |
If you haven’t heard …according to vaccinews.net, but contrary to conventional medical literature, the CDC, and leading vaccine experts – “the anti-vaccine movement is the cause of the worst whooping cough epidemic in 70 years.” The population has only been increasingly vaccinated for pertussis over the past 70 years, so this headline automatically flies in the face of reason. Please read and pass on this very important blog by Hilary Butler on the truth behind pertussis vaccine failure, and the continuous and ever morphing spin that goes along with the pipe dream that the pertussis vaccine could to lead to real herd immunity. We agree with her analysis that “Everything written about the whooping cough vaccines is “biased”… period. Not just with “observer” bias, but with language bias and interpretation bias.”
Whooping Cough and Chameleons
Following on from the medieval war of words on measles …lies, emotional blackmail, weasel words and chameleon science is also being purveyed in the whooping cough battle.
Starting with the most obvious, is Vaccinet’s TRUMPETING HEADLINE about a Washington whooping cough outbreak recently that: “Anti-vaccine movement causes the worst whooping cough epidemic in 70 years.” Meanwhile other pro-vaccine sites, while taking the line that everyone should have their pertussis shots with breakfast, no matter what age, at least have the decency not to lie in the text, even if the videos are outright blackmail. Who in their right mind would leave a baby coughing, on their backs? THE MEDICAL PROFESSION SAYS ABOUT THE WASHINGTON OUTBREAK THAT:
Tom Skinner, a spokesman for the CDC, said that although it may come to mind, the outbreaks are probably not the result of the increase in the number of parents choosing not to vaccinate their children from certain diseases. …..
“It’s not likely that vaccine refusal is having a large role in this,” he said. “Pertussis is a bacterium that’s cyclical in nature. We see these outbreaks from time to time as immunity wanes in our populations.”
It only ‘comes to mind,’ because they say it does and have programmed people to believe it does, with people like Offit constantly using the term “how the anti-vaccine movement threatens us all.” However, the war of words goes much deeper than that. It permeates the medical literature as well, and is partly a measure to cover their tracks.
LINK TO FULL ARTICLE HERE | <urn:uuid:470df70a-694e-4aaf-873a-bebedcd4eb0d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.vaccinationcouncil.org/2012/08/20/anti-vaccine-movement-causes-the-worst-whooping-cough-epidemic-in-70-years-oh-really/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.957932 | 554 | 1.671875 | 2 |
Website, Identity & Business Papers, Graphic Standards Guide
Satellite Affordable Housing Associates (SAHA) was created from the union of two dynamic affordable housing organizations in the Bay Area. It was imperative to create a logo and brand identity as bold and inspirational as the organization, and to create a website that conveyed their strong foundation to garner community support.
Identity & Website
Actors' Shakespeare Project (ASP) was doing groundbreaking work within the Shakespeare world, and needed their identity and website to help communicate not only their strength on stage, but in the community as well. The logo is comprised of many little dots creating the asp/“S” shape in the logo representing the many facets to come together in their community.
The website was designed to show that their plays are their core that informs all of their outreach and education programs within the community.
Viewbook & Website
The Cambridge School of Weston, a progressive high school near Boston, sought a viewbook that captured their pedantic rigor and arts-learning philosophy. After exploring the school we were deeply impressed by its unapologetic individuality which radiated through their faculty and students—each bright, confident and spirited—it became clear that the story needed to be told by the CSW community. The viewbook, titled by the campus jargon MODS WAR FATE & CSW An Insiders' Guide to The Cambridge School of Weston, is layered with student quotes, lists, notes, photography, artwork, even varying haikus in each of the footers. The hardest part was trying to accommodate all of the exciting elements.
When designing the website, everyone wanted to keep the hand done approach that gave the viewbook it's clean-collaged look. We worked closely with the design and programming team at Whipple Hill throughout the design process to learn how to achieve code-based elements within the very flexible Podium, a CMS for schools.
A new website was designed to bring a stronger presence for MIT’s Office of Minority Education, making it easier for the Office to feature their countless events and student resources.
Stembook is a website that combines research news and research protocols for stem cell research for the Harvard Stem Cell Institute and UMass Medical School.
The Multiple Sclerosis Discovery Forum was created to advance progress towards a cure for MS by creating an online hub for MS activity. The site enables open collaboration via news, research, online forums, and in depth professional and research resources, allowing members to stay relevant, and collaborate to find a cure.
The Raising Teens website was designed to communicate a large body of research on how the media, practitioners, parents, families and adolescents can guide their teens into healthy adulthood. | <urn:uuid:efaa1208-ccdb-4248-b7ad-110d9250468e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://work.laurenvajda.com/filter/interactive | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00034-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.965757 | 553 | 1.625 | 2 |
Critics oppose fire department's squirrel kill in Holley
HOLLEY, N.Y. (AP) — A weekend squirrel-shooting contest in upstate New York is a sell-out, with all 1,000 tickets spoken for, organizers said, despite a push by animal rights groups and others to cancel the event.
The 7th annual "Hazzard County Squirrel Slam" will raise money for the volunteer Holley Fire Department, the event sponsor.
Prizes ranging from $50 to $200 will be given out Saturday for the largest squirrel shot and the heaviest group of five squirrels. Five rifles and shotguns are to be raffled off, according to a flier on the western New York fire department's website.
Critics have sought to stop the event through online petitions and protests, calling the event cruel and a bad example for children. The contest targeting red and gray squirrels is open to anyone over age 12 with a hunting license.
"Declaring someone a winner for killing the most animals influences children and the wider community to believe that wildlife is unimportant and killing for a monetary prize is meritorious," Brian Shapiro, New York state director of the Humane Society of the United States, wrote in a letter to Holley Fire Chief Pete Hendrickson.
Supporters say hunting is just part of life upstate, including in the largely rural village of 1,800 people on the Erie Canal.
"This is a community of hunters and they're going to hunt anyways. Why not hold a fundraiser that will reach our community," the event's chairwoman, Tina Reed, told the Democrat and Chronicle of Rochester. She said the event has grown each year: This year, 1,000 tickets were made available after it sold out of 200 tickets last year.
Participants must abide by New York's hunting regulations, hunting only where it is permitted and killing no more than six squirrels in a single day. Shooting will be followed by a weigh-in, then a dinner.
State Sen. Tony Avella, a Queens Democrat, called the contest insane during an Albany news conference with the group Friends of Animals earlier this week. The group planned to protest outside the Holley Fire House on Saturday afternoon.
Avella's upstate colleague, Sen. George Maziarz, a Democrat who represents Holley, defended the fundraiser, saying hunting, fishing and shooting sports are part of the region's lifestyle. Continued...
"It's like a fishing derby but it's squirrels, not fish," Maziarz spokesman Adam Tabelski said Friday.
Neither the fire department nor members of its board of directors returned telephone and email messages from The Associated Press.
See inaccurate information in a story? Other feedback and/or ideas for us to consider? Tell us here.
Location, ST | website.com
National News Videos
- CNY weekend events April 25 - 28 (173)
- DOC: Full agreement between Oneida Indian Nation, New York state, and Madison and Oneida counties (4)
- Members of UCE, CERA and the Oneida County Legislature speak against the proposed agreement with the Oneida Indian Nation (3)
- Fred L. Stevens (3)
- Police: Verona man stole CD player, cooking wine from Utica Walmart (3)
- Meeting Wednesday in Sherrill to address deal with Oneida Indian Nation, state, counties (UPDATE) (3)
- Oneida native Jessica Froelick tells inspiring story of defeating cancer, sharing hope (2)
Recent Activity on Facebook
Editor Kurt Wanfried shares his view of the news in Madison County and Southern Oneida County.
Sports stories from Central New York and beyond.
Mary Messere, the former Madison County historian, describes herself as historian/writer/photographer who loves music, history, making videos, poetry, art and travel. Her entertaining blog covers all that and more. | <urn:uuid:f7e5644b-2c5a-45bf-838d-c272fee8179e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://oneidadispatch.com/articles/2013/02/16/news/doc511f7360b70ac252164031.txt?viewmode=2 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00011-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.942947 | 806 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Canada announced that it has cut ties with the governments of Iran and Syria, shutting down its embassy in Tehran and expelling diplomats from Canada. But Canada is notorious on the human rights of its Middle Eastern immigrants.
Iranian Americans now know what Italian Americans felt when Jersey Shore hit the scene. Ryan Seacrest has compiled a less-than-impressive sample of one of America's most highly educated and financially successful minorities, to showcase the cosmetically-altered soul of Tehrangeles.
If you understood Nowruz, you would understand the people of Iran. And you would understand what the economic sanctions, covert operations, and the words -- yes, the words -- of war are doing to a people on the brink of renewal.
It is a sad state of world affairs when there is only one person who takes the UN and its handful of leaders to task when given the opportunity. It is even sadder that that one man's words will change nothing for the devastated majority of this world who suffer from those leaders' sins.
For most Iranians, the Green Movement is what the international media is calling the massive mobilization to dismantle the Islamic Republic of Iran. The hope is that change will finally open the door to serious reform.
Fallout from Egypt rattled cages at the pan-Arab, Saudi-owned satellite channel Al Arabiya when presenter Hafez Al Mirazi threatened to quit if he was not allowed to discuss the revolution's impact on Saudi Arabia.
Sadly, the intense publicity surrounding Wikileaks diverts attention from serious injustice and continuing human rights violations. A good example is the state-sponsored persecution of Baha'is in Iran.
Since the hostage crisis in 1979, Iranian Americans have experienced the scorn and derision of bigots who reduce a proud and ancient heritage to the reprehensible actions of Iran's theocratic government.
This week, Mehdi Karroubi came under fire for stating what for decades has been public knowledge in Iran: The systematic rape of political prisoners as a means of permanently disabling them from society, let alone from political activity. | <urn:uuid:5889784e-9534-4215-8080-7e61a474abd2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.huffingtonpost.com/tag/iranian | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704392896/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113952-00041-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.940616 | 420 | 1.65625 | 2 |
'She knew she was to be beheaded ... we were helpless'
Robert Fisk, Middle East Correspondent, in the second report of a series on women victims of Islamic 'justice', tells the tragedy of Leonarda Akula
"We went to see her in the Dammam prison after the verdict and she was often crying or silent," one of the local Philippines embassy staff said. "She seemed very sleepy every time we saw her. She would reply to our questions, but otherwise she would say nothing. She just kept saying that she was very, very sorry." The diplomat paused in his painful story. "Yes, we made an appeal for clemency through the lawyer we hired, a Yemeni. But they went ahead with the execution. She knew she was going to die - they'd told her that. But she didn't know the time or the date. That was a complete surprise to her."
Thus on the morning of 7 May 1993, dressed in an abaya gown and a scarf, Leonarda Akula was led from her cell and driven to the Dammam market place. There she was ordered to kneel before a crowd of Saudis - all of them men - where an executioner with a sword tore off her scarf. He then cut off her head.
"They never reveal the date of the beheading for what they call 'security reasons'," the Philippines diplomat said. The Philippines Labour Secretary, Nieves Confesor - the woman ultimately responsible for all Filipinos working abroad - was by chance in Riyadh on an official visit on the day of Akula's execution. "I felt like going home," she said later.
But of course, she did not. Poor, underdeveloped countries cannot afford to break relations with Saudi Arabia, from where 600,000 Filipino workers - half of them women working as housemaids - send home millions of dollars in remittances. Leonarda Akula's tragedy - and her fate - went unrecorded outside Saudi Arabia. "There was nothing we could do," the Philippines diplomat said. "We were helpless in this matter."
No one, it seemed, asked what had driven a 35-year-old Filipina housemaid to commit so dreadful a crime. Before her execution, she had told Philippines diplomats that her employer - a Syrian who was regarded locally as a religious leader - had kept her imprisoned in his house, that she was never allowed out, that she was not given enough to eat. These are common enough complaints from tens of thousands of foreign housemaids in Gulf countries. And Akula said that the 18-year-old son tried to rape her. She never denied that she had taken a knife to all three of them at night, killing first the alleged would-be rapist and then his parents.
Saudi authorities claim that she never left the house after the murders; she was apparently too mentally confused to understand what she had done and spent much of her time pouring salt over the corpses in a vain attempt to prevent their decomposition in the fierce Saudi heat. When Saudi neighbours smelled the bodies, they called the police; Saudi security men found Akula sitting near the corpses, drinking coffee.
"Later, we were told she had killed two other people," a Philippines source said. "But I ask you - how could this lone woman kill three people on her own, let alone five? This is not possible. Was she taking the blame for others? Were there accomplices? We shall never know." Philippines government officials admit that Saudi courts do not always condemn to death Filipinos accused of murder. In 1983, they stated that courts had approved 185 out of 280 requests for clemency, though few of these involved the death penalty. In one case, Ms Confesor was later quoted as saying, a sharia court found the accused acted in self-defence. Another found grounds for judging a Filipino defendant insane.
Since Akula's beheading, another eight women have been executed in the Gulf - one of them by firing squad, the rest decapitated - for crimes ranging from murder to drug smuggling. Hundreds have been lashed by male prison officers for alleged sexual misdemeanours and theft. If courts have sometimes shown mercy, they have often demonstrated their ruthlessness.
None of this helped Leonarda Akula, whose own behaviour must surely have required some questions about her mental stability. Although she was brought up a Christian in the Philippines capital of Manila, the Saudis took her body for secret interment to a Muslim cemetery in Dammam where she was buried - according to Wahhabi custom - in a grave without a marker. The Philippines embassy subsequently wrote to the Saudi Ministry of the Interior, officially requesting the repatriation of her remains to her family. The Saudis did not even bother to reply.
Stand by for another DECADE of wet summers, say Met Office meteorologists
'Jail reckless bankers': Report urges the Government to introduce new criminal offence for reckless management
Feat of engineering: Incredible photographs show construction beneath New York's Second Avenue
World news in pictures
Google challenges US surveillance gagging order
- 1 Disability campaigners celebrate 'victory' after government rethink over plans to make it more difficult to claim disability benefits
- 2 'Jail reckless bankers': Report urges the Government to introduce new criminal offence for reckless management
- 3 Breaking the Silence: In the reality of occupation, there are no Palestinian civilians – only potential terrorists
- 4 We never knew Nigella Lawson - and we still don’t
- 5 Vice pulls 'breathtakingly tasteless' fashion shoot glorifying the suicides of famous female authors from Sylvia Plath to Virginia Woolf
£33000 - £35000 Per Annum: The Green Recruitment Company: The Green Recruitmen...
£110 - £135 per day: Randstad Education Chelmsford: Teaching opportunites in t...
£21000 - £32000 per annum: Randstad Education Chelmsford: Primary Teaching opp...
£21000 - £32000 per annum: Randstad Education Chelmsford: Primary School teach... | <urn:uuid:8f4e72e0-5984-499a-b125-790f32166fcd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/she-knew-she-was-to-be-beheaded--we-were-helpless-1576867.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00033-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.979412 | 1,245 | 1.757813 | 2 |
Under the Comprehensive Environmental Response and Liability Act and similar state laws, the facility operator is strictly liable for the cost of the removal and legal disposal of the hazardous materials if the tenant cannot be found or cannot pay the disposal costs. This rule may not seem fair, but it is the law. Storage operators should operate their facilities with this potential exposure in mind.
Not only does the law unfairly penalize innocent landowners, but if hazardous materials are discovered, few storage operators have insurance to cover the costs of removing them. Standard property and liability package policies exclude hazardous-material-cleanup claims. Some of the self-storage specialty insurers have endorsements that cover this risk, but few storage operators carry this coverage. The cost of rectifying even a minor hazardous-materials incident can be several thousand dollars, and the removal and disposal of more dangerous chemicals can cost tens of thousands of dollars. Failure to deal with a problem when it is discovered can lead to hefty fines and even criminal prosecution.
So how do you protect your facility from becoming a toxic-waste dump site? Obviously, the best approach is prevention. There is no perfect system that can be adopted to prevent tenants from storing illegal materials at your facility, but there are some simple things you can do that will reduce the risks:
- Make it clear to your customers that they may not store hazardous or toxic materials in their storage spaces. This policy should be stated in the rental agreement. Signs prohibiting the storage of hazardous materials should be posted in the office and around the facility.
- Identify your customer. When you rent a storage unit, request positive identification, including a driver's license and Social Security number at a minimum. A good skip tracer can find most individuals if it has these two pieces of information. Also insist on a physical address from your customer--a P.O. box is not sufficient. This may discourage some customers from renting from you, but it may deter potential dumpers from renting space at your facility.
- Quickly verify the personal information provided by the tenant. A letter should go out to the addresses provided by the customer and calls should be made to the phone numbers. This contact can be made with a pleasant welcome letter and phone call. If the information is incorrect or false, remove the tenant's gate code from the system until the discrepancy is corrected. If you are lucky, you may catch the error before the tenant even stores any property with you. This procedure will also correct inadvertent errors that could impact your lien rights.
- Have a very public policy that every vehicle is subject to search upon entry into the facility. This policy should be enforced whenever an unmarked covered truck enters the premises. Large quantities of hazardous materials are not teleported into self-storage spaces--they arrive in trucks. It does not take an extensive search to determine something potentially dangerous is being brought onto the premises.
- Make sure prospective customers understand your policies against storing hazardous materials. They should also be aware you will report all incidents to the appropriate government authorities. The goal is prevention. You want to scare off potential toxic dumpers. If you make it difficult for them, they will go elsewhere.
While following these suggestions can have a deterrent effect, some storage operators take even more aggressive measures. One tactic is to photograph all tenants upon the execution of the rental agreement. Many facilities get a thumbprint from all new tenants. Such measures may not only discourage potential toxic dumpers from renting a unit at your facility, but also customers considering renting space for other illegal reasons.
There is no perfect system for preventing a self-storage space from becoming a depository for hazardous materials. However, you can reduce the odds your facility will be chosen by toxic dumpers. Dumping toxic materials in a self-storage facility is a crime and, like most criminals, dumpers want to remain anonymous. If they believe you know who they are and are watching what they are doing, they may look for an easier site to practice their illegal trade.
D. Carlos Kaslow is an attorney in Berkeley, Calif., and is the founding partner of the Self Storage Legal Network and author of the Self Storage Legal Review, a bimonthly newsletter covering self-storage legal issues. He is also general counsel for the national Self Storage Association. For more information, visit www.selfstorage.org. | <urn:uuid:58f51325-77e6-402c-8671-e5c9baca06bf> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.insideselfstorage.com/articles/2002/03/hazardous-waste.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.93884 | 881 | 1.601563 | 2 |
I am so happy with this work that Eileen Clegg and I designed for the Innovation Journalism conference at Stanford - See the video as journalists and others reflected and then told the story which you may have missed in the earlier blog post I made below back in May
The story continues with the recent conference I attended in Barcelona on Knowledge Federation, The New Journalism.
a) little actions bring big changes: a little story, like a butterfly, can create a positive change storm
b) People tell a what (their story) and share it with the rest in search of a why that explains how a bigger effect took (or can take) place. Different people connect in the process to do and action in the world. They see what the effect of the action (doing) was and that is the beginning of another cycle, that could expand to another (meta)level, plane or world.
c) The lower part of the vertical infinity eight hints at the process of working on scanning of potentially good pieces of knowledge (or stories) and people ("spikes") ,data gathering, knowledge creation, debate, argumentation, data and knowledge visualization,.
d) The second part of the vertical infinity eight hints at the action in the world, and the observation of its consequences.and the gathering of knowledge of this process at a different level.
d) If you think about journalism, the lower part is devoted to writing the story. The upper part with telling the story AND creating action in the world as well. So we see the media as place to come up with solutions to questions, which include creating actions in the world to solve them.
e) If you thing about systemic innovation, then the lower part is about gathering knowledge and actors and starting a process The upper part is devoted to actually launch the process into the world and observe its consequences, and then gather new knowledge, specially knowledge about the process of ... systemic innovation.
f) The different colors refer to this different "levels", "planes" or "worlds". The main idea to convey is that the processes is the same everywhere but it creates different effects and different types of knowledge: one level is the metalevel of the other, one world can act as a metalevel for other. In the present logo I have just used the worlds of journalism, education and systemic innovation. So in has some type of fractality into it. | <urn:uuid:e5354295-c83c-4495-8e11-380112a9791a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.meilinfung.blogspot.com/2011/12/ij-8-blog-great-transformation.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00027-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950588 | 487 | 1.757813 | 2 |
Mckinney Courier-gazette > News
Senior citizens get peek into McKinney ISD's multicultural, career-prep landscape
Chris Beattie/Staff photo - Caldwell Elementary students show off their computer programs to MISD Senior Tour participants, who shared with the students about how education has changed since they were in school.
It was fitting the third annual MISD Senior Tour was held at Caldwell Elementary School, perhaps McKinney's most evolved campus.
Just like for tour participants - those in their 50s and older - a lot has changed.
"It's been a long time since they were in a classroom," McKinney ISD Superintendent J.D. Kennedy said. "It's a great opportunity for them to see what's happening in our schools, at every level."
This year, the tour began at Caldwell, previously a MISD high school and middle school. Now, it's the school district's dual-language school, vibrant in cross-cultural curriculum.
About 70 tour guests - the max allowed at the yearly event - filed first into Caldwell's library, and were greeted by a Spanish-heavy choir performance. Second-graders serenaded a surprised crowd with song and poetry, switching between languages.
Their older schoolmates then led a stationed tour around campus, showing off their English-Spanish dichotomy, cultural understanding and the technology that helps them learn it all. Participants' smiles shined brighter than the smart boards and iPads they glanced upon, young children their sudden teachers.
"For me, it's seeing the changes that have taken place in the way education is today as opposed to just a few years ago," said George Bradford, a McKinney resident on his second straight Senior Tour. "One of the biggest things I've seen is the different cultures, the blending. When I was in school, there wasn't any."
McKinney ISD Partners in Education helped organize the tour three years ago after Kennedy brought the idea from another school district for which he previously worked. Kennedy, MISD board members and central office staff joined their fellow citizens in touring the campuses they serve.
"It's all been positive," Kennedy said of Senior Tour feedback. "Not only from the senior citizens but also from the students who get a chance to talk to them about what they do. They're just as excited."
The tour stopped next at McKinney North High School, where guides gave senior participants the rundown of classes available to help students get certified in technical trades by graduation. At Scott Johnson Middle School, the final stop, they learned about Advancement Via Individual Determination (AVID) and other programs that spur students toward college from an early age.
New technology and a greatly expanded educational landscape were obvious to tour participants, some of whom remembered one-room schoolhouses. For others, classroom changes were simpler than that.
"We weren't allowed to talk, at all," said Nannetta Ellis, on her first Senior Tour. "And if we did, Mom would know about it by the time we got home."
Participants, who receive Senior Tour t-shirts and goodie bags before their first stop, reside all over Collin County, said Nancy Cowlishaw, Partners in Education director. Other local school districts don't offer such a tour tailored to showing off the latest at each level, so they come each February to McKinney's.
For all of them, no matter where they live, MISD represents a newness similar to that around Texas and the country. Education is constantly changing.
And going back to school for a day seems worth it.
"Some people are already trying to sign up for next year, so we had to start a waiting list," Cowlishaw said. "The interest and buzz of how much fun it is, is definitely out in the community."
For more MISD Senior Tour information, contact the Partners in Education office at 469-302-4108. | <urn:uuid:ab4513d5-7264-4ec2-8c85-05fa912f3747> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://lewisvilleleader.com/articles/2013/02/10/mckinney_courier-gazette/news/8785.prt | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.983327 | 809 | 1.757813 | 2 |
Kathy Cobb - Associate Editor
David S. Dahl - Regional Economist
David Fettig - Editor
Published January 1, 1995 | January 1995 issue
Winona, Minn., residents who bank with Norwest in Winona and work across the river in La Crosse, Wis., cannot deposit their paychecks at a Norwest banking office in La Crosse. They could if Norwest banking offices in Winona and La Crosse were branches of the same Norwest bank, but current banking regulations prohibit Norwest Corp.'s banking affiliates from branching across state lines.
Soon, however, bank customers may be able to bank across state lines and across the country. The Riegle-Neal Interstate Banking and Branching Efficiency Act of 1994 allows banks to branch across state borders if states concur. States can "opt out" of the law's provision for national interstate branching, which becomes effective June 1, 1997, or they can "opt in" earlier. Therefore, before this date, Ninth District state legislatures must decide whether to go along with interstate branching.
States began enacting interstate banking laws in 1975 and today all states except Hawaii have enacted some form of interstate banking legislation. These laws enabled bank holding companies (BHCs), the corporations that own commercial banks, to acquire banks, subject to various restrictions, outside their home state.
Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota have national reciprocal interstate banking laws. A BHC with headquarters in any other state can acquire banks in these three states if its home state allows acquisition of that state's banks by Minnesota, North Dakota and South Dakota BHCs.
Montana and Wisconsin interstate banking laws also require reciprocity, but in Montana out-of-state acquisitions are restricted to BHCs from seven states and in Wisconsin to BHCs from eight states.
Next fall, however, BHCs from any state will be able to acquire Montana and Wisconsin banks. For as of September 29, 1995, a BHC will be able to acquire a bank in any state, according to Riegle-Neal. Those banks must be at least five years old, unless the host state specifies a shorter time, and the acquisition must not leave the BHC in control of more than 10 percent of nationwide deposits or 30 percent of deposits in the state, unless the state specifies otherwise.
The legislation also topples the last remaining obstacle to interstate banking, the McFadden Act's 67-year-old prohibition to interstate branching. Beginning June 1, 1997, BHCs may consolidate their interstate bank affiliates into branch networks, and free-standing banks may branch interstate by merging with another bank across state lines. State legislatures, however, can opt in to interstate branching before then. They also can decide to opt out. A bank whose home state opts out, however, cannot branch beyond its state's borders.
"It's (interstate branching) about allowing banks to serve our customers wherever they are, wherever they want to be, and doing it faster, better and at a lower cost. No matter where they live, work, move or travel, consumers will be able to bank there, too," said Richard Kovacevich, president and CEO, Norwest Corp., when he introduced President Clinton at the signing ceremony for Riegle-Neal.
Furthermore, proponents argue, consolidating affiliate banks into branches would provide savings to some BHCs, for only one bank must be examined, one set of regulatory reports filed, and separate boards of directors for each bank would be eliminated.
State legislatures are also hearing that "interstate branching is bad public policy; it provides no benefits for community bankers; and it is little more than special interest legislation to allow our nation's biggest banks to consolidate their empires," according to an Independent Bankers Association of America statement. Consolidation, they claim, would cost communities jobs. Plus, "branching would make it easier to drain funds from deposit-rich states to lend elsewhere."
Members of the Montana Independent Bankers (MIB) and the Montana Bankers Association (MBA) have taken two different approaches to the issue of interstate branching. As a result, the Legislature had a choice of opting out of interstate branching or making no decision now and studying the impact of the federal legislation. As this fedgazette went to press, a bill to opt out had passed the House, while the study resolution had been killed. Although the Montana Legislature meets only biennially, interstate branching could be easily addressed in 1997 before the federal law goes into effect.
"Support [for opting out] is unanimous," says MIB executive secretary Keith Colbo of his organization's members. "If I had my druthers, I'd opt out of the whole interstate banking law," Colbo says.
On the other hand, when the MBA polled all Montana banks, including branches, the response was two to one to opt in early or wait until 1997, according to John Cadby, MBA executive vice president. Cadby says that while it's possible for the state to opt out now and still study the issue over the next two years, the Legislature would need to address the issue again in 1997 should the state choose to opt in.
Montana's mixed reaction to the new law comes as no surprise since the state was the last to pass a regional interstate banking law in 1993 and has allowed limited intrastate branching only since 1990. "With 28 percent of the state Legislature [occupied as] ranchers or farmers, there's plenty of empathy with community bankers," says Don Hutchinson, state commissioner of banking and financial institutions.
But regardless of interstate branching, national interstate banking becomes law in Montana this September, and Cadby expects to see some new banking activity. "Western Montana has become a hot spot in the nation," Cadby says, referring to an influx of new residents, many from California.
Hutchinson says he's heard rumors about a few large Western banks expressing interest in Montana. But he adds that Montanans have no identity with large metropolitan institutions. "Our whole state isn't even [the equivalent of] a big city."
While other states have nearly two years to consider the opt-out provisions of the new interstate banking and branching law, North Dakota must make that decision now.
The state's Legislature, currently in session, doesn't meet again until 1997, and bills from that session won't become law until after the June 1997 deadline. That means if North Dakota wants to make its own decision on the matter, it must do so this year. And, while that decision was still in doubt when this issue of the fedgazette went to press, bank officials say that they expect the state to opt out of interstate branching this year, with the intention of reviewing the matter and possibly reversing that decision in 1997 or beyond.
"Let's help our bankers get ready, then opt in any time," is how Arlene Melarvie, executive director of the Independent Community Banks of North Dakota (ICBND), describes the mood of many bankers.
ICBND and the North Dakota Bankers Association (NDBA) polled their banks on this subject and have been working with the state banking commissioner's office to prepare a bill. That hasn't been easy, considering how fast the bankers have had to work: Bills for the current Legislature had to be introduced by mid-January. The process has proven too hasty for some bankers' tastes, according to Jim Schlosser, executive director of the NDBA. Many bankers wouldat the leastlike more time to consider all the provisions of the new federal law, andat the mostwould like to address other issues in the state bill, such as intrastate branching. "The problem is time," says Schlosser, who suspects that some bankers are still uncertain about the federal law's many provisions. "We're really at a disadvantage."
If this matter proves difficult for some bankers, it may vex the Legislature even more, Schlosser says. Most legislators are looking to the banking industry for guidance on the issue, and somewho were present for the passage of the state's 1991 reciprocal interstate banking lawwill wonder why they must address the issue again so soon. "You talk to 10 legislators, and nine probably couldn't tell you the difference between interstate banking and branching."
To that end, Melarvie and Schlosser say that banks must not only educate the legislators, but they must agreeat least for the most parton the message. "We have to find a unified voice," Melarvie says.
The state's bankers are taking a deliberate, incremental approach to the legislation, says Truman L. Jeffers, executive vice president, Minnesota Bankers Association (MBA). Immediately following the passage of Riegle- Neal, the MBA and the Independent Community Bankers of Minnesota formed a joint task force to study the issue. It is dealing with the law in stages, says William Wilkening, president, Citizens Independent Bank, St. Louis Park, and task force chair.
For the 1995 legislative session, the task force will have recommendations on the BHC acquisition of banks across state borders which go into effect Sept. 29. Although its recommendations have not been finalized, it will probably go along with the 30 percent deposit cap in the legislation, and ask that out-of-state BHCs be prohibited from acquiring newly chartered banks, but recommend that the age of the charter be less than the five years Riegle-Neal specifies, says Truman Jeffers.
One reason for having the Legislature hold off consideration of interstate branching until 1996 or 1997 is that Minnesota bankers do not see Riegle-Neal having any immediate impact on the state, according to industry officials.
The legislation will have significant long-term effects but it is too early to tell what they will be, says Allen I. Olson, president, Independent Community Bankers of Minnesota. The interstate branching provision could be attractive for Minnesota banks in border counties, Wilkening says. Pierce and St. Croix counties in Wisconsin, for example, are part of the Minneapolis/St. Paul metropolitan statistical area (MSA), and interstate branching would enable Minnesota banks to expand there.
Regardless of whether Minnesota permits interstate branching, bank consolidations will continue in Minnesota. In 1983 Minnesota had 530 state banks with $13 billion in assets, in 1994 the state had 424 state banks with $19 billion assets. The pace of bank mergers has been steady. In the mid-'80s banks merged because of the farm crisis, and more recently with the liberalization of Minnesota's branching law, bank mergers have been prompted by business opportunities, according to James G. Miller, deputy commissioner, Minnesota Department of Commerce.
The state's bankers have not had enough time to assess the impact of either opting in or opting out of Riegle-Neal's interstate branching provision, says Jeffrey J. Rodman, executive vice president, South Dakota Bankers Association. This year they would oppose legislation that would do either. But in 1996 South Dakota may opt in, or wait until 1997 and let Riegle- Neal's interstate branching provisions kick in, says Richard A. Duncan, director, South Dakota Division of Banking.
South Dakota's population is concentrated along its borders, and interstate branching could provide a business opportunity for banks in those communities, Rodman says. For example, Pipestone Bankshares, Inc., a Minnesota BHC with a bank in Pipestone, recently acquired a bank in neighboring Garretson, S. D.
Moreover, supporting interstate branching is consistent with the state's previous efforts to remove geographic barriers to bank expansion. In 1969 the state permitted statewide branching by merger. Then, in March 1980 Gov. Bill Janklow, who was reelected governor last fall, persuaded the Legislature to pass an interstate banking bill, which allowed out-of-state banks to obtain a charter for a special-purpose bank. The next year Citibank (South Dakota), N.A., a credit card processing center, opened in Sioux Falls.
With regard to BHC acquisition of banks across state borders, this year South Dakota will likely go along with the requirement that a BHC cannot control more than 30 percent of a state's deposits. But it will enact a provision, which Riegle-Neal permits, to waive that on a case-by-case basis, Duncan says. For example, South Dakota has banks processing national credit card transactions, and the deposit increase could come from national credit card transactions.
"Interstate banking won't change the face of banking in Wisconsin," says Harry Argue, executive director, Wisconsin Bankers Association (WBA).
Argue's views are based on what he hears from WBA members who, he says, have already experienced a lot of change resulting from a 1987 interstate banking law, the ag crisis of the '80s, the fallout from the S & L crisis and the challenges imposed on them by FDICIA (Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Improvement Act of 1991). After all that, Argue says, "those still in business are survivors and don't see a major impact" from the new legislation.
David Glomp, executive director of the Independent Community Bankers Association of Wisconsin (ICBAW), isn't so sure. "I think it will affect the state; there will be a lot more players," Glomp says. But the ICBAW, like the WBA, is taking a wait-and-see stance on interstate branching. "This is not a simple issue and ought not be decided this year," Glomp says.
The ICBAW scheduled information sessions around the state in January to make sure bankers understand the federal legislation and their options. Glomp expressed concern that some large banking organizations might syphon off business from community banks, leaving them with insufficient deposits with which to provide loans. In addition, "the state isn't ready to deal with the tax implications of branching," Glomp says.
The ICBAW hopes the WBA shares its opposition to early opt-in legislation. While Glomp currently is unaware of any legislative plans, he thinks it's important to use the time that the federal act has built in. "Let's take this one step at a time," Glomp says. "Let's see how going from eight states to 50 works first," he adds, referring to the current interstate banking agreement.
Since that law was enacted, 11 out-of-state bank holding companies have transacted business in Wisconsin, according to Richard Dean, Wisconsin's commissioner of banking, and since statewide branching went into effect in 1989 the number of branch banks has tripled.
Dean sees the new laws merely as part of an evolutionary process in the financial services industry, and he thinks the consumer may be the winner. "If new entities come in, they must find the state attractive and will likely bring new ideas, for example, home banking or new lending products," Dean says. | <urn:uuid:81c5068f-8ef3-4f83-a814-1c1d5fa105eb> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.minneapolisfed.org/publications_papers/pub_display.cfm?id=2759 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958008 | 3,056 | 1.78125 | 2 |
Seed-funded startups often believe in the fallacy of quickly ramping up their hiring to scale the company.
This thinking is prevalent because the investor expects you to grow the company with a business model that is expected to work right away. In all honesty, startups at the seed stage have not figured out how to do that yet.
In the book “The Startup Owner’s Manual” by Steve Blank & Bob Dorf, a startup is defined as a temporary organization in search of a scalable, repeatable, profitable business model. Even if you have raised money to assemble a team and build a product, you should not go on a spending binge with the hope that the product will bring you customers.
The typical mentality is to “hire fast, fire fast”. But having learnt from my past experiences, I now prefer to hire slow and fire fast. Read more
Whenever I teach the Entrepreneurship course in NTU, I often made the point that my aim is not to teach people how to start companies, but rather to impart some best practices on how successful people build their companies.
Finally, I found a book that echoed exactly the same view. “The Start-up of You” by Reid Hoffman (Co-founder of LinkedIn) and Ben Casnocha describes in detail on how one can map the lessons of successful entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley into their own careers in an uncertain global economy out there. It might be interesting to draw out some of the important ideas sketched out in the book. Read more
The Founder Institute is opening its doors to more applicants once again. To qualify, applicants must be passionate about building a technology company, regardless of whether they have started their enterprise.
The program supports a wide range of technology industries: Digital media, software, biotech, cleantech, ecommerce, advertising, consumer electronics, and more. Read more
The Shell LiveWIRE Awards 2011, which recognizes young entrepreneurs in Singapore, is on again. But this year, it is introducing a new category, the Shell LiveSPARK Awards, for secondary, junior college, ITE, and polytechnic students. Read more
Neoteny Investor and Entrepreneur, will be heading down to Singapore to conduct business clinics for local entrepreneurs.
The aim of the clinic is to allow participants to engage in casual discussions with Sean around their business idea/plan/model.
The clinic is organized by JFDI and is fully sponsored by MDA therefore participation is absolutely free. Click here to stand a chance to be handpicked by Sean to meet him! Read more
The talk focused on how start-ups can quickly work out whether their ideas are feasible and we offer 7 tips to do that. This presentation was given during the SPRING Young Entrepreneurs Event and Idea Generation Workshop in Asian Civilizations Museum on 29 March 2010. Here are some tips which I spoke about during the presentation which you will need to get things started: Read more
Other than the food and beverages industry, education is one of the hot areas in Singapore given it’s aim to become an education hub for the region. How about running a school for kids between six months old and six years old? It may sound impossible, but Simran Kaur, founder of Stage and Such found a niche in the education sector with her company, Stage and Such. We interviewed her on what inspired her to set up Stage & Such, why the company offers services for a niche market and her thoughts on the education industry in Singapore. Read more
During my trip to Monte Carlo for the first Nokia Developers summit 2009, the Nokia-Adobe Open Screen Project announced the first five recipients, and surprisingly, one of them is BreakDesign, a Singaporean based company developing the Barking Seed platform for Flash-lite games on the mobile phone. In the next few months, I have asked around for this interesting stealth start-up and finally, in the recent Nokia One Connected World event in Kuala Lumpur, I managed to meet up with Rick Treweek, one of the co-founders of this interesting company. So, I spoke to Rick and he is generous to give us some time to be interviewed about the Barking Seed platform which they are developing for the Open Screen Award, the first flash lite game – Dawn of the Fly, his thoughts about the mobile apps space and experience working as a partner to Nokia’s developer ecosystem. Read more
If you walk past the lane opposite Boat Quay in Singapore and look, you will see that one of the shophouses there displayed a logo called “Wego.com”. Wego is the name of a travel search portal made in Singapore and used to run by the name of Bezurk. In fact, if you talk to a lot of frequent business travelers, they will frequently refer you to this site to find hotels, flights and even good deals on travel. Ross Veitch and Craig Hewett started this enterprise some years back and brought Martin Symes, an experienced veteran into the company as CEO. They have been featured on the press from WSJ to many travel magazines such as Expat Living and Time Out Singapore. What’s the story behind Wego.com? So, we brought in Ross Veitch, one of the co-founders to share their story with us. Read more
Yesterday, Chris Evdemon (board member, BANSEA and partner, Eastern Bell Venture Capital) gave a interesting presentation about investing and doing business in China. Organised by the Business Angel Network – Southeast Asia (BANSEA), Chris has now uploaded into slideshare. There are some interesting notes about how to set up in China. For SG Entrepreneurs who might plan to move to China, this is a good set of presentation slides for reference particularly about who to seek for early stage capital investing, infrastructure and what needs to be done. Read more | <urn:uuid:bd44144f-eb01-4430-ba41-fdf3712bc84a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://sgentrepreneurs.com/tag/entrepreneurs/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.956932 | 1,205 | 1.648438 | 2 |
Mr. President, Ladies and Gentlemen,
Nearly 62 years ago, the United Nations recognized the right of the Jews, an ancient people 3,500 years-old, to a state of their own in their ancestral homeland.
I stand here today as the Prime Minister of Israel, the Jewish state, and I speak to you on behalf of my country and my people.
The United Nations was founded after the carnage of World War II and the horrors of the Holocaust. It was charged with preventing the recurrence of such horrendous events.
Nothing has undermined that central mission more than the systematic assault on the truth. Yesterday the President of Iran stood at this very podium, spewing his latest anti-Semitic rants. Just a few days earlier, he again claimed that the Holocaust is a lie.
Last month, I went to a villa in a suburb of Berlin called Wannsee. There, on January 20, 1942, after a hearty meal, senior Nazi officials met and decided how to exterminate the Jewish people. The detailed minutes of that meeting have been preserved by successive German governments. Here is a copy of those minutes, in which the Nazis issued precise instructions on how to carry out the extermination of the Jews.
Is this a lie?
A day before I was in Wannsee, I was given in Berlin the original construction plans for the Auschwitz-Birkenau concentration camp. Those plans are signed by Hitler?s deputy, Heinrich Himmler himself. Here is a copy of the plans for Auschwitz-Birkenau, where one million Jews were murdered. Is this too a lie?
This June, President Obama visited the Buchenwald concentration camp. Did President Obama pay tribute to a lie?
And what of the Auschwitz survivors whose arms still bear the tattooed numbers branded on them by the Nazis? Are those tattoos a lie? One-third of all Jews perished in the conflagration. Nearly every Jewish family was affected, including my own. My wife's grandparents, her father?s two sisters and three brothers, and all the aunts, uncles and cousins were all murdered by the Nazis. Is that also a lie?
But to those who gave this Holocaust-denier a hearing, I say on behalf of my people ... Have you no shame?
Yesterday, the man who calls the Holocaust a lie spoke from this podium. To those who refused to come here and to those who left this room in protest, I commend you. You stood up for moral clarity and you brought honor to your countries.
But to those who gave this Holocaust-denier a hearing, I say on behalf of my people, the Jewish people, and decent people everywhere: Have you no shame? Have you no decency?
A mere six decades after the Holocaust, you give legitimacy to a man who denies that the murder of six million Jews took place and pledges to wipe out the Jewish state.
What a disgrace! What a mockery of the charter of the United Nations!
Perhaps some of you think that this man and his odious regime threaten only the Jews. You're wrong.
History has shown us time and again that what starts with attacks on the Jews eventually ends up engulfing many others.
This Iranian regime is fueled by an extreme fundamentalism that burst onto the world scene three decades ago after lying dormant for centuries.
In the past 30 years, this fanaticism has swept the globe with a murderous violence and cold-blooded impartiality in its choice of victims. It has callously slaughtered Moslems and Christians, Jews and Hindus, and many others. Though it is comprised of different offshoots, the adherents of this unforgiving creed seek to return humanity to medieval times.
Wherever they can, they impose a backward regimented society where women, minorities, gays or anyone not deemed to be a true believer is brutally subjugated. The struggle against this fanaticism does not pit faith against faith nor civilization against civilization.
It pits civilization against barbarism, the 21st century against the 9th century, those who sanctify life against those who glorify death.
The primitivism of the 9th century ought to be no match for the progress of the 21st century. The allure of freedom, the power of technology, the reach of communications should surely win the day. Ultimately, the past cannot triumph over the future. And the future offers all nations magnificent bounties of hope. The pace of progress is growing exponentially.
It took us centuries to get from the printing press to the telephone, decades to get from the telephone to the personal computer, and only a few years to get from the personal computer to the internet.
What seemed impossible a few years ago is already outdated, and we can scarcely fathom the changes that are yet to come. We will crack the genetic code. We will cure the incurable. We will lengthen our lives. We will find a cheap alternative to fossil fuels and clean up the planet.
I am proud that my country Israel is at the forefront of these advances -- by leading innovations in science and technology, medicine and biology, agriculture and water, energy and the environment. These innovations the world over offer humanity a sunlit future of unimagined promise.
The greatest threat facing the world today is the marriage between religious fanaticism and the weapons of mass destruction.
But if the most primitive fanaticism can acquire the most deadly weapons, the march of history could be reversed for a time. And like the belated victory over the Nazis, the forces of progress and freedom will prevail only after an horrific toll of blood and fortune has been exacted from mankind. That is why the greatest threat facing the world today is the marriage between religious fanaticism and the weapons of mass destruction.
The most urgent challenge facing this body is to prevent the tyrants of Tehran from acquiring nuclear weapons. Are the member states of the United Nations up to that challenge? Will the international community confront a despotism that terrorizes its own people as they bravely stand up for freedom?
Will it take action against the dictators who stole an election in broad daylight and gunned down Iranian protesters who died in the streets choking in their own blood? Will the international community thwart the world's most pernicious sponsors and practitioners of terrorism?
Above all, will the international community stop the terrorist regime of Iran from developing atomic weapons, thereby endangering the peace of the entire world?
The people of Iran are courageously standing up to this regime. People of goodwill around the world stand with them, as do the thousands who have been protesting outside this hall. Will the United Nations stand by their side?
Ladies and Gentlemen,
The jury is still out on the United Nations, and recent signs are not encouraging. Rather than condemning the terrorists and their Iranian patrons, some here have condemned their victims. That is exactly what a recent UN report on Gaza did, falsely equating the terrorists with those they targeted.
For eight long years, Hamas fired from Gaza thousands of missiles, mortars and rockets on nearby Israeli cities. Year after year, as these missiles were deliberately hurled at our civilians, not a single UN resolution was passed condemning those criminal attacks. We heard nothing ? absolutely nothing ? from the UN Human Rights Council, a misnamed institution if there ever was one.
In 2005, hoping to advance peace, Israel unilaterally withdrew from every inch of Gaza. It dismantled 21 settlements and uprooted over 8,000 Israelis. We didn't get peace. Instead we got an Iranian backed terror base fifty miles from Tel Aviv. Life in Israeli towns and cities next to Gaza became a nightmare. You see, the Hamas rocket attacks not only continued, they increased tenfold. Again, the UN was silent.
Finally, after eight years of this unremitting assault, Israel was finally forced to respond. But how should we have responded? Well, there is only one example in history of thousands of rockets being fired on a country's civilian population. It happened when the Nazis rocketed British cities during World War II. During that war, the allies leveled German cities, causing hundreds of thousands of casualties. Israel chose to respond differently. Faced with an enemy committing a double war crime of firing on civilians while hiding behind civilians, Israel sought to conduct surgical strikes against the rocket launchers.
That was no easy task because the terrorists were firing missiles from homes and schools, using mosques as weapons depots and ferreting explosives in ambulances. Israel, by contrast, tried to minimize casualties by urging Palestinian civilians to vacate the targeted areas.
We dropped countless flyers over their homes, sent thousands of text messages and called thousands of cell phones asking people to leave. Never has a country gone to such extraordinary lengths to remove the enemy's civilian population from harm's way.
Yet faced with such a clear case of aggressor and victim, who did the UN Human Rights Council decide to condemn? Israel. A democracy legitimately defending itself against terror is morally hanged, drawn and quartered, and given an unfair trial to boot.
By these twisted standards, the UN Human Rights Council would have dragged Roosevelt and Churchill to the dock as war criminals. What a perversion of truth. What a perversion of justice.
Delegates of the United Nations,
Will you accept this farce?
Because if you do, the United Nations would revert to its darkest days, when the worst violators of human rights sat in judgment against the law-abiding democracies, when Zionism was equated with racism and when an automatic majority could declare that the earth is flat.
If this body does not reject this report, it would send a message to terrorists everywhere: Terror pays; if you launch your attacks from densely populated areas, you will win immunity. And in condemning Israel, this body would also deal a mortal blow to peace. Here's why.
When Israel left Gaza, many hoped that the missile attacks would stop. Others believed that at the very least, Israel would have international legitimacy to exercise its right of self-defense. What legitimacy? What self-defense?
The same UN that cheered Israel as it left Gaza and promised to back our right of self-defense now accuses us -- my people, my country -- of war crimes? And for what? For acting responsibly in self-defense. What a travesty!
Israel justly defended itself against terror. This biased and unjust report is a clear-cut test for all governments. Will you stand with Israel or will you stand with the terrorists?
Will you stand with Israel or will you stand with the terrorists?
We must know the answer to that question now. Now and not later. Because if Israel is again asked to take more risks for peace, we must know today that you will stand with us tomorrow. Only if we have the confidence that we can defend ourselves can we take further risks for peace.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
All of Israel wants peace.
Any time an Arab leader genuinely wanted peace with us, we made peace. We made peace with Egypt led by Anwar Sadat. We made peace with Jordan led by King Hussein. And if the Palestinians truly want peace, I and my government, and the people of Israel, will make peace. But we want a genuine peace, a defensible peace, a permanent peace. In 1947, this body voted to establish two states for two peoples -- a Jewish state and an Arab state. The Jews accepted that resolution. The Arabs rejected it.
We ask the Palestinians to finally do what they have refused to do for 62 years: Say yes to a Jewish state. Just as we are asked to recognize a nation-state for the Palestinian people, the Palestinians must be asked to recognize the nation state of the Jewish people. The Jewish people are not foreign conquerors in the Land of Israel. This is the land of our forefathers.
Inscribed on the walls outside this building is the great Biblical vision of peace: "Nation shall not lift up sword against nation. They shall learn war no more." These words were spoken by the Jewish prophet Isaiah 2,800 years ago as he walked in my country, in my city, in the hills of Judea and in the streets of Jerusalem.
We are not strangers to this land. It is our homeland. As deeply connected as we are to this land, we recognize that the Palestinians also live there and want a home of their own. We want to live side by side with them, two free peoples living in peace, prosperity and dignity.
But we must have security. The Palestinians should have all the powers to govern themselves except those handful of powers that could endanger Israel.
That is why a Palestinian state must be effectively demilitarized. We don't want another Gaza, another Iranian backed terror base abutting Jerusalem and perched on the hills a few kilometers from Tel Aviv.
We want peace.
I believe such a peace can be achieved. But only if we roll back the forces of terror, led by Iran, that seek to destroy peace, eliminate Israel and overthrow the world order. The question facing the international community is whether it is prepared to confront those forces or accommodate them.
Over 70 years ago, Winston Churchill lamented what he called the "confirmed unteachability of mankind," the unfortunate habit of civilized societies to sleep until danger nearly overtakes them.
Churchill bemoaned what he called the "want of foresight, the unwillingness to act when action will be simple and effective, the lack of clear thinking, the confusion of counsel until emergency comes, until self-preservation strikes its jarring gong."
I speak here today in the hope that Churchill's assessment of the "unteachability of mankind" is for once proven wrong. I speak here today in the hope that we can learn from history -- that we can prevent danger in time.
In the spirit of the timeless words spoken to Joshua over 3,000 years ago, let us be strong and of good courage. Let us confront this peril, secure our future and, God willing, forge an enduring peace for generations to come. | <urn:uuid:8c3f7312-d2c8-494c-857c-0d742b3b2566> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.aish.com/jw/me/Netanyahus_UN_Speech.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.953388 | 2,877 | 1.820313 | 2 |
Handbook of Green Chemistry, 3 Volume Set, Green Processes
This price is valid for United States. Change location to view local pricing and availability.
Paul T. Anastas joined Yale University as Professor and serves as the Director of the Center for Green Chemistry and Green Engineering at Yale. From 2004-2006, Paul Anastas has been the Director of the Green Chemistry Institute in Washington, D.C. Until June of 2004 he served as Assistant Director for Environment at e White House Office of Science and Technology Policy where his responsibilities included a wide range of environmental science issues including furthering international public-private cooperation in areas of Science for Sustainability such as Green Chemistry. In 1991, he established the industry-government-university partnership Green Chemistry Program, which was expanded to include basic research, and the Presidential Green Chemistry Challenge Awards. He has published and edited several books in the field of Green Chemistry and developed the 12 principles of Green Chemistry. | <urn:uuid:67eca3f6-798b-408f-babf-c47396eb09e0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-3527315764,descCd-authorInfo.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.947576 | 193 | 1.820313 | 2 |
No. 345: $1.35 billion
Youngest of 5 boys, Plank was a walk-on special teams player with the University of Maryland football team when he noticed that sweat-soaked T-shirts were weighing down players. So, in 1996, he created a skintight, sweat-wicking synthetic shirt, working from his grandmother’s basement. He called the company Under Armour and sold $17,000 worth that first year to teammates and other college athletes. Revenues in 2012 are expected to reach $1.8 billion. Nearly all of his fortune is in Under Armour stock, which is up more than 60% in the past year. | <urn:uuid:dd4735c8-2b97-44c5-96fe-1b1e31f04a65> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.forbes.com/pictures/eigl45fhek/kevin-plank/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97965 | 138 | 1.554688 | 2 |
Earlier this month, the Anti-Malware Testing Standards Organization (AMTSO) published new guidelines on the delicate topic of testing anti-malware products. Since then, many experts in the anti-malware industry have been commenting on the said guidelines. Many of these comments (including some from myself), have been summed up by tech blogger Kevin Townsend here.
After reading the article, you will appreciate that everyone has the right to express different points of view. However, we all came to the same conclusion—measurement and comparison are indispensable and essential in guiding competition. Competition in the anti-malware industry is truly ethical and based on conducting research on and mapping out user needs and requirements. Only with these in hand can we offer customers the most effective solutions to solve their problems.
All industries undergo testing and benchmarking to gauge how much their products have improved over previous versions, and how they compare to the competition. Without testing, improvements or innovation will not be possible, as nobody will see the need to change the way things are done.
Trend Micro particularly approves of the latter. As early as 2004 or 2005, our researchers had recognized that the detection rate on a static collection of files could no longer be considered a viable benchmark. At the same time, improving file scanning would not solve the new generation of malware threats.
That has since proven to be true. Malware threats change and evolve so quickly that everyone is forced to admit that waiting for new patterns is no longer good enough. File scanning became only part of a greater whole, a module of a greater threat protection concept.
Since threat protection is a concept expressed in a program suite, it is only fair to test the whole product, not independent parts of it. For some environments, it may be important to figure out how effectively each module works (e.g., intrusion detection, file scanning, email scanning, anti-phishing, etc.). For end users, however, what matters is that the threat is stopped preferably before it arrives on any of their devices.
Testing bodies (individuals and companies alike) saw that change was needed. In 2007, they started to discuss (at AVAR where Andreas Marx presented) and develop new concepts and methodologies for whole-product testing. Some of the pioneers in this area were NSS Labs and Dennis Technology Labs. Back in 2009, both showed the first results of new approaches that focused on how whole product testing can be conducted.
Whenever you see a new set of anti-malware software testing results, keep the methodology used in mind. See if you can identify any of the top ten testing mistakes frequently made by testers and prepare to question the conclusions in the report.
Share this article | <urn:uuid:966abb65-ccb2-491d-81fa-6794e6415479> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blog.trendmicro.com/trendlabs-security-intelligence/what-the-new-amtso-guidelines-mean-for-users/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00041-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.952861 | 550 | 1.789063 | 2 |
via rememo, funeral
‘Through the wormhole, the scientist can see himself as he was one minute ago. But what if our scientist uses the wormhole to shoot his earlier self? He’s now dead. So who fired the shot?’
To learn more about what Stephen Hawking has to say concerning time travel, the fourth dimension and wormholes, click on the diagram. | <urn:uuid:ea0f44c0-a5cd-49c3-8a97-c598329aa272> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://kylielearnsthings.tumblr.com/post/567035352/grayskymorning-via-rememo-funeral-through | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704713110/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516114513-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.950121 | 82 | 1.5625 | 2 |
After launching its new 3D imagery on mobile a few months ago, Google today finally brought these 3D buildings in select cities in the U.S. and Europe and its new tour guide feature to Google Earth 7 on the desktop. With this update, Google is also bringing its 3D imagery to five new cities: Avignon, France; Austin, Texas; Munich, Germany; Phoenix, Arizona and Mannheim, Germany.
This is one of Google’s larger 3D imagery updates since the launch. When Google first announced its 3D maps, the company said that its new maps would cover “communities of over 300 million people” by the end of the year, so chances are we’ll see quite a few more updates like this in the near future.
When Google first launched its 3D imagery, quite a few consumers and pundits were surprised that the company decided to launch this on mobile first. The desktop app, after all, has access to faster and more powerful hardware than the Android and iOS devices these 3D maps first appeared on.
As for the tour guide feature, Google says it now features more than 11,000 popular sites around the world that you can explore through virtual flyovers that combine Google’s 3D imagery with facts from Wikipedia. The tour guide serves, in Google’s words, “as a local expert, suggesting nearby places you might want to explore and helping you learn about those locations.”
You can now download Google Earth 7 for Windows, Mac and Linux here.
Nasdaq quotes delayed at least 15 minutes, all others at least 20 minutes.
Markets are closed on certain holidays. Stock Market Holiday List
By accessing this page, you agree to the following
Press Release Service provided by PRConnect.
Stock quotes supplied by Telekurs USA
Postage Rates Bots go here | <urn:uuid:defde5b3-78e5-45d8-a92d-c6df3a142cf7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.wnd.com/markets/news/read/22642350/google_brings_its_3d_imagery_to_5_new_cities_and_to_the_desktop | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.937194 | 384 | 1.671875 | 2 |
- Last Updated: 12:58 PM, March 10, 2010
- Posted: 4:52 AM, March 10, 2010
New York's Mary Poppinses typically earn $12 to $15 an hour and don't pay taxes, according to a new survey of city parents.
Only 9 percent of city parents pay their nannies completely on the books, with another 14 percent paying them partially above board, the annual study by the group Park Slope Parents found.
Of the more than 800 families surveyed across the five boroughs, most said they dodged the IRS at the request of the nannies.
A nanny from Poland who cares for a 3-year-old Park Slope boy and is paid $11 an hour off the books, said the student visa she wants allows her to work 20 hours per week. "That's not enough for me because I wouldn't be able to pay for my school, my apartment," she said. "The parents asked me which way I prefer and I said this way is better for me. Most nannies I know, they are paid off the books."
Some nannies say they'd prefer to be on the books, and be eligible for Social Security. According to IRS rules, any child-care employee paid more than $1,700 must have Social Security withheld.
"It's really unfair because we are taking care of those kids to the best of our ability," said Dyker Regis, 40, who looks after two children. "We need that support from the parents because we're doing a great job. We need a union."
Her $16-an-hour wage is too low, she added. "In the city they pay but not in Park Slope," she said.
Nannies paid on the books typically earn an additional $2 an hour, which is necessary to offset the taxes.
Briget Mitchell, 55, is paid $16 an hour on the books to care for a 15-month-old boy.
"I am a good nanny, that I can tell you, and I found a good employer. They are honest and up-front," she said. "I used to be a kindergarten teacher in my country [Grenada]. Basically, I love children -- children is my life."
Of the 9 percent of parents who paid their nannies fully on the books, less than a third said they did so for fear of getting caught. Most insisted "it's the right thing to do," the survey found.
Despite the fact that most nannies were compensated under the changing table, most received benefits such as paid vacation and sick time, and many are given MetroCards and health-care supplements, the survey found.
Nanny pay dropped slightly from 2008 with 39 percent of those surveyed saying they cut back in one way or another. | <urn:uuid:76956b45-37b0-4162-a3b5-1f365b6f3c73> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.nypost.com/p/news/local/itting_pretty_wBdHhGCifWrHWfuhaOV9AN | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.983254 | 591 | 1.632813 | 2 |
Toll Free:(800) 836-7372
Opera has been part of island culture for more than a century. Its connection, which stretches back as far as the 1850s, still has a strong foothold even today, attracting a diverse audience of young professionals, families and traditional opera patrons along with new-to-opera supporters who believe this artform must continue to help define the artistic fabric of Hawaii's cultural community. Queen Emma sang in the chorus of Verdi's Il Trovatore while her husband, King Kamehameha IV served as the stage manager! Queen Liliuokalani is said to have composed her own opera. Today, over 400 volunteers dedicate their time and talent to help stage Grand Opera in Hawaii. Many international cast members compete up to three years in advance for HOT's coveted roles and the chance to perform in paradise, while escaping some of the coldest months of the year elsewhere in the world. | <urn:uuid:d04bda9c-3436-4b86-ada0-f240703ae6bc> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.gohawaii.com/listing/Activity/85497900_HawaiiOperaTheatre?mIslandId=statewide | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706890813/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516122130-00031-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.940822 | 194 | 1.757813 | 2 |
Q. What lessons should employers take from the Supreme Court’s decision in City of Ontario v. Quon? That’s the case about the texting police officer. We want to ban personal texting at work.
A. In June 2010, the Supreme Court held that the Ontario (Calif.) Police Department’s review of police Sgt. Jeff Quon’s text messages on his city-issued pager was reasonable.
Private-sector employers should learn three key lessons from Quon.
First, it’s imperative to have broad, carefully drafted and detailed communication policies. Employees generally presume they have a reasonable expectation of privacy in their personal communications (even on employer-issued devices). Thus, employers must draft policies that effectively limit their employees’ expectation of privacy.
Second, communication policies are effective only if they are clearly communicated and consistently implemented. It’s important for employees to be fully aware of existing communication policies and their applicability to their personal and work-related communications. Further, employers should ensure that their communication policies are kept up-to-date and that any changes are promptly communicated.
Finally, keep in mind that the reasonableness of an employer’s actions can get them into—or out of—hot water. Accordingly, any review of employee communications should be limited, reasonable and conducted in accordance with existing policies.
Diligently applying these lessons will help employers avoid costly privacy litigation.
Like what you've read? ...Republish it and share great business tips!
Attention: Readers, Publishers, Editors, Bloggers, Media, Webmasters and more...
We believe great content should be read and passed around. After all, knowledge IS power. And good business can become great with the right information at their fingertips. If you'd like to share any of the insightful articles on BusinessManagementDaily.com, you may republish or syndicate it without charge.
The only thing we ask is that you keep the article exactly as it was written and formatted. You also need to include an attribution statement and link to the article.
" This information is proudly provided by Business Management Daily.com: http://www.businessmanagementdaily.com/13022/can-we-prohibit-texting-at-work-based-on-the-supreme-courts-recent-quon-decision " | <urn:uuid:43bf642b-c263-4e2e-8ce2-a8de951c401a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.businessmanagementdaily.com/13022/can-we-prohibit-texting-at-work-based-on-the-supreme-courts-recent-quon-decision | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00042-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.942417 | 493 | 1.710938 | 2 |
What if there is a site my child likes that is not listed?
Just write down the address and give it to the children's librarian. If the site is educational, entertaining and appropriate for children it will be added to the site.
The Goal of PCDL Kids' Zone
To provide links and information for children between the ages of 3-7 that are both entertaining and educational.
Children can now listen to books read by the computer with headphones created just for them. These new headphones, fit snuggly and comfortably, so they can comfortably enjoy storytime.
Keep visiting this page to find out about story time registrations and other children's programing that is coming up. | <urn:uuid:b3babf1c-2f09-4820-a65d-9daf34c0e360> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.pcdl.lib.oh.us/PCDLKids/forparents.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00030-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959736 | 140 | 1.828125 | 2 |
Help For The Helpers
Donations are down, but needs continue to grow.
Holiday Collections: The Salvation Army’s Atlanta Area Commander Major James Seiler and the familiar red kettle at the Kroger in the Edgewood Retail District
Behind the familiar Salvation Army bands and the colorful red collection kettles that appear during the holiday season, evoking Norman Rockwell-like images of humility, good will and charity, is one of America’s most powerful organizations.
The “Christian Army,” which came to the United States from England in the late-19th century, now operates in more than 100 countries. Its Metro Atlanta Area Command is a $16 million annual operation.
The charity is known for offering help without strings, often to those who cannot find such help anywhere else. It operates emergency shelters, provides social services to youths and the elderly, offers drug and alcohol recovery programs, dispenses aid to the needy and assists in disaster relief.
The Salvation Army works throughout Georgia, often tailoring its efforts to specific local needs – working with homeless men in Albany, helping homeless children in Gwinnett County. After the devastating floods in September, the Salvation Army gave out meals and bottled water to displaced victims in Carroll and Gwinnett counties and in Toccoa.
Yet this unique organization is not insulated from the problems affecting other area nonprofits and charitable endeavors – flat donations and a growing population in need of its services. The Atlanta command alone gave out $665,000 more in emergency aid the first few months of this year than it did in the corresponding period in 2008.
“The needs are rising faster than we can keep up [with],” says Atlanta Area Commander Major James Seiler. “I’ve been an officer 25 years, and I’ve never seen this. There is a tremendous amount of stress on our frontline people. “
Over the last few months, the Salvation Army has seen the number of individuals and families seeking its services in Metro Atlanta increase by 15.6 percent. Many of those are new to hard times. In Clayton County, 1,400 of the 6,000 requests for help last year were from first time cases.
The Salvation Army relies on a combination of private donations – often coming in very small amounts, proceeds from its annual holiday red kettle collections and, in many communities, funding from United Way or other local agencies.
Typically, the charity’s yearly growth, measured by donations and collections, is about six percent nationally. Last year the metro area command’s holiday Red Kettle Campaign was short $20,000. To compensate for the shortages, the command reduced its workforce by 10 employees. Staffing facilities and events has become particularly difficult.
“That’s true for nonprofits everywhere,” Seiler says. “The vast majority of our expense is people – not that they’re overpaid. They make less working for us than they would in the private sector, but they’re working for love of the people.”
He says the Salvation Army is dedicated to spending 83 cents of every dollar on direct programming, leaving little left over for increased staffing needs.
A case in point: the new addition to the downtown Red Shield Lodge that will house the Metro Area Command’s Family Room Project, scheduled to open in early November. The addition offers 21 family spaces, each with a bathroom.
“It’s the only place a family in crisis can stay together in Atlanta,” Seiler says. “In most shelters, the men are kept separately from the women. Red Shield was designed to keep the family together and give them some privacy. Being able to wash your baby in private is very important. We also have computers to help the parents get jobs, and an addition to the dining room so the families can eat together.”
But those families need a lot of support staff to keep going. “When the same people are cooking 82 meals a day, they need help in the kitchen,” Seiler says. A maintenance and cooking crew need to be on hand as well as caseworkers and night monitors, and Red Shield will cost $50,000 a month to operate.
“We think we’ve raised enough to keep it running the first six months, but after that it’s an ongoing challenge,” Seiler says.
A recent Back to School Bash at the Salvation Army Gwinnett Corps Com-munity Center saw a significant increase in parents seeking backpacks and school supplies for their children.
Nearly a thousand families showed up, says Lafeea Watson, communications officer for the Metro Atlanta Command. “That’s triple the amount from previous years,” she says. “We had to reach out to the additional corporations for support when we saw how great the need and requests were for the school supplies. “
In Gwinnett, the problem of homeless children is particularly acute. The Gwinnett Daily Post reports that 60 percent of those displaced by foreclosures in a recent year were children; the local school system accommodated some 3,000 homeless students.
“Homelessness in Gwinnett just keeps rising and rising,” says Captain Bobby Westmoreland of the Gwinnett Salvation Army Corps. “At the same time bricks and mortar are hard to get up here. We have a couple of transition housing projects, but no homeless shelter, and a lot of families are becoming homeless without a safety net of extended family to fall back on.”
The county would not let the Army build a homeless shelter on its property on Sugarloaf Parkway, but several churches got involved in the effort, and seeded Home Sweet Home Gwinnett, a different approach to homelessness that has become a national model.
“Debbie Wengrow, who runs our Family Emergency Services Depart-ment, thought if we put them [homeless families] in an actual address instead of a shelter, with intensive case management, it would be easier for them to get a job,” Westmoreland says. “Then a coalition of religious groups called Churches United, lead by Chip Sweeney, got behind the idea.”
Home Sweet Home Gwinnett, which started in October 2008, involves renting existing units for the family near or in their former neighborhood. “The idea is that we don’t separate people as though they were folks with a disease,” Westmoreland says. “Our first client now has two jobs, a car, and is in the process of buying a home.”
The program also includes a caseworker who seeks out needy families, including those often locked into a cycle of moving from hotel to hotel – a form of “transitional homelessness” – living from week to week. The program enables them to rent apartments at a reduced rate for nine months to a year before moving to transitional housing (a subsidized community like Rainbow Village in Norcross), or directly into their own apartment or home.
“Debbie has gotten some amazing letters from families that have moved on,” Westmoreland says. “The things they said about the program were so powerful – like that they’re so happy to have furniture for the first time. That gives us a boost, and lets us know we’re on the right track.”
The program has helped seven families to date, a small dent in a big problem. “As far as we’ve come – from nothing to something – we’re still not where we want and need to be,” he says. “We need to go to 20 apartments, which would require two more caseworkers, because that one on one attention is the secret to our success. We just received a small amount from stimulus funding to help us bring on another caseworker, and we’re very encouraged about that. “
Such alternative funding sources are now becoming more common.
“The lion’s share of our donations come from our wonderful friends, those who send us $25 or $100 a month, and that’s the area [where] we’ve really taken a hit,” Seiler says. Many longtime donors are no longer able to contribute. “Some are even coming to us for help.”
“We’re now going to area foundations and corporations that are un-tapped, and partnering with other nonprofits – we’re open to ideas,” Watson says. “We’ve also increased our number of volunteers through online engagement, to offset the loss of staff.”
“Volunteering adds the biggest fuel to our fire,” Seiler says, “especially the kettles. We depend so heavily on that.” When a volunteer is helping out with kettle duty, “it not only prevents us from having to hire, but increases the giving because most of the time, you have friends who walk by, and thus you can put more pressure on donors. Those nickels and dimes really add up. A million and a half [dollars] is raised that way in the Atlanta area alone [each year], accounting for 10 percent of our annual donations.”
That amount could expand as the Army reaches out to younger generations with its Online Red Kettle effort. “We’ve tried it for two or three years, but this is a concerted effort we’re making to promote it this year,” Seiler says. “We want to reach younger generations that get their news in a different way. We don’t have a big public relations budget and not a lot of people know about our services.”
The average online credit card donation is $135, he says, compared to a $2 average for individual kettle donations.
Meanwhile, the Salvation Army will depend on corporate partners – some new, some existing – to make up for the flat donations. Coca-Cola donated $10,000 toward the Family Room Project at the Red Shield Lodge. In July, Autotrader.com sent 107 people from its National Update Meeting in Dunwoody to renovate the Army’s West End Boys & Girls Club for a day.
“We worked with the Salvation Army and Boys & Girls Club staff to identify the greatest needs of the Boys & Girls Club, what projects would utilize our employees’ talents and how our financial donation could make the largest impact. Our goal was to help make this club a comfortable, fun and motivational place for kids to spend their afternoons,” says Jennifer Ander-son, community relations coordinator for AutoTrader.com.
Another corporate partner, Publix, recently increased its donation levels to the Army. “It’s the only category we increased this year,” says Brenda Reid, media and communications manager for Publix. “Usually we maintain our level of giving, but this year we recognized that based on what’s going on across the country, this was an opportunity to have a real impact. Business has been bad, so our foundation hasn’t been able to grow; but this year we really wanted to make a difference.”
The giving translates to 1,000 turkeys for Red Shield, two pallets of canned food items from their annual Food for Sharing program, and manpower to load and warehouse food during the 11Alive Canathon in December.
“This saves us thousands of dollars which we would have to use to purchase food for the shelter,” Watson says. “Publix also donated $5,000 toward the Red Shield’s new Family Room Program.”
“We’ve made a number of requests to different foundations that typically support us through capital, to give us cash instead – it’s helped alleviate the seriousness of the situation. They’ve acknowledged that these are unusual times,” Seiler says. “I’ve sensed that the real estate market is coming back, and a growing realization that our needs are so great. We’re sensing there is some hope on the horizon.”
In Albany, the Salvation Army’s struggle mirrors that in other communities.
“Our funding from United Way has been cut by 50 percent, or $35,000,” says Doug McClure, Albany command officer. “Our mailings [mailed donations] have been down in last six months close to 14 percent. At the same time we’re helping 160 people a day – twice as much as our previous year. We operate a 42-bed homeless shelter that’s one of just a few in Albany, and only one of two for homeless men. Men are our primary focus because our male population is very high.
“We have had to make staff cutbacks,” he says. “We’re down to two in administration, two part time cooks, and two shelter monitors. But the phone is ringing off the hook. We get 30 to 40 utility calls a day, and have to turn away 75 people a week. Volunteers have helped, but we can’t have volunteers doing casework and processing confidential files.”
“Southwest Georgia needs help this Christmas,” he says. “The Albany Command serves nine counties, so we’re really trying to get word out. It’s a huge area. Our mandate this year is to stay open, and continue doing what we do – no matter what – and be the people God wants us to be.”
The Metro Atlanta Command’s Seiler says forecasting donations is “more art than science. We wind up budgeting at a certain level, then if the income creates more resources, we can go to the next level. It’s not an easy thing to do, but then we’re in a faith business. And we believe the Lord will provide for our needs.”
Editor’s Note: Online donations can be made via the Salvation Army’s website at www.salvationarmyatlanta.org; information about volunteering is available by calling 800.SAL-ARMY. | <urn:uuid:1bdcbc92-5420-40a5-87e7-ca40dd9763f3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.georgiatrend.com/November-2009/Help-For-The-Helpers/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00028-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961659 | 2,980 | 1.757813 | 2 |
Cracking down on plea bargains
Pleading down a speeding ticket to a lesser charge could get a lot harder if Governor Andrew Cuomo has his way. It's part of a plan to drum up more revenue. But as our Lori Chung reports, some say there could be unintended consequences for courts throughout the state.
To view our videos, you need to
install Adobe Flash 9 or above. Install now.
Then come back here and refresh the page.
ALBANY, N.Y. -- "We'll do about 18,000 traffic tickets a year here, one of the busiest courts in the state of New York," said Peter Crummey, Colonie Senior Town Justice.
But Crummey says plea bargaining, like knocking down a speeding ticket to parking violation, helps keep the docket running
"It is a handy tool to move through the volume and it's a case by case basis," Crummey said.
Usually up to prosecutors, but now Governor Andrew Cuomo says the state has been shortchanged. When a driver is issued a speeding ticket, part of the intended revenue is meant for local municipalities, the other for the state. But if it's reduced to a non-moving violation, often the state gets nothing. Part of his 2013-2014 budget calls for limiting prosecutors' ability to offer those kinds of deals.
"It could result in a surge of clients not taking pleas and going to trial," said Tully Rinckey Managing Partner Greg Rinckey.
That prediction coming from attorney Greg Rinckey who handles a lot of traffic cases.
"Most clients don't even know where the money is going. All they know is I have to pay a fine," Rinckey said.
And some judges see the same unintended consequences.
"We might see an increase in the trial schedule because if people won't necessarily want to plead to the charge itself if there is no alternate disposition, then they may just as well take the matter to trial," Albany Justice Gary Stiglmeier said.
In Colonie traffic violations generated $1.3 million for the state in 2012. Overall, though, Cuomo says the state will pick up $16 million in this budget and $25 million each year to follow and he also plans to add an $85 surcharge to parking violations.
Crummey said, “What's the purpose of a penalty in the justice system? Is it to discourage repeat behavior or is it to add all these other fees?"
Fees Crumey says can make it hard for people to pay. | <urn:uuid:3c4ee5d7-827b-4930-84cf-29d60501ff7c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://berkshires.ynn.com/content/top_stories/632807/cracking-down-on-plea-bargains/?ap=1&MP4 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.957305 | 529 | 1.601563 | 2 |
Bilbo's Soft Little Woman
1. Bilbo's Soft Little Woman
"The nights were the worst...They...took it in turns to watch; and when it was Bilbo's turn he would see gleams in the darkness round them, and sometimes pairs of yellow or red or green eyes would stare at him from a little distance, and then slowly fade and disappear and slowly shine out again in another place. And sometimes they would gleam down from the branches above him; and that was most terrifying." -The Hobbit, "Flies and Spiders"
Eru knows what hunted in Mirkwood's darkness and Bilbo, peering at what he could not see and what might not be helped, felt small and powerless and alone. Why, oh why, did Gandalf lead him out of his hobbit-hole? In his hole it might be pitch-dark, but only small things threatened. Here, he saw large eyes and gluttonous eyes and downright hateful eyes. The worst were the insect-eyes, pale and emotionless.
When the most evil of these disappeared he thought of his cat's sweet eyes, two green orbs shining in the recesses of his smial. He'd kept it a guilty little secret that even as an adult, he was afraid of the night. Many times when he went to bed, he thought of rats and mice biting him and gnawing on his bones. How had he shuddered at rats and mice, when he'd faced old Gollum? But that was why he'd got his pretty little kitten, to be his guardian.
He wished she were still his little ball of warm softness next to him while he slept.
The Mirkwood nights were cold. Near some of the dwarves countless pairs of red eyes were staring, staring, waiting for Bilbo knew not what. Red eyes, patterns in the dark, darkness all around. Where was his woman? Sometimes, she'd jump on his bed at this hour and tickle him with her whiskers. How he loved to wake up in the middle of the night and hold that purring one, such a pretty little one all covered in fine velvet!
Should he wake the dwarves?
No. They needed their strength and their wits, to get through this accursed forest fast.
Maybe he'd disappear into the dark maw of some strange creature. Bilbo shivered. He was glad he'd made sure his soft little woman would be all right. That little girl might now be curled up on Drogo and Primula's couch, looking like a small round pillow.
Drogo and Primula were decent respectable folk who didn't appreciate fanged hunters of the night, but that one had looked at Primula with her imploring round eyes and miaowed. Then Primula had looked at Drogo with her imploring round eyes, and the two of them would always keep the cat well fed and well scratched whenever business called Bilbo to a different part of the Shire.
Those were the days, before Bilbo had stupidly listened to the dwarves' taunts and acted on instinct rather than reason. The only other thing he could think about, in the ten minutes he'd spent running from Hobbiton to Bywater to meet his companions on time, was what to do with the cat.
If Drogo and Primula hadn't been home, perhaps Bilbo would have missed the quest.
Maybe Gloin was right about him not being fierce enough. It certainly felt that way, with the darkness all around.
Facing a pair of pale eyes that had suddenly appeared above him, Bilbo thought he could be at least as brave as his soft little woman.
This is a work of fan fiction, written because the author has an abiding love for the works of J R R Tolkien. The characters, settings, places, and languages used in this work are the property of the Tolkien Estate, Tolkien Enterprises, and possibly New Line Cinema, except for certain original characters who belong to the author of the said work. The author will not receive any money or other remuneration for presenting the work on this archive site. The work is the intellectual property of the author, is available solely for the enjoyment of Henneth Annûn Story Archive readers, and may not be copied or redistributed by any means without the explicit written consent of the author. | <urn:uuid:7ea694e5-bdf5-40e9-98ac-5577dd39347c> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.henneth-annun.net/challenge/chapter_view.cfm?ngid=483&stid=7199&spordinal=1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368710006682/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516131326-00042-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.987472 | 901 | 1.8125 | 2 |
Profile: Gary C. Schroen
Gary C. Schroen was a participant or observer in the following events:
Special CIA paramilitary teams enter Afghanistan again in 1997. [Washington Post, 11/18/2001] Gary Schroen, head of the CIA’s Pakistan office during the late 1990’s, will later comment, “We had connections to the Northern Alliance, Ahmed Shah Massoud’s group of Tajik fighters up in the north. The CIA was sending teams into northern Afghanistan from ‘97 up until about 2000 to meet with Massoud’s people, to try to get them involved.” [PBS Frontline, 1/20/2006] (The CIA’s anti-Soviet covert operations officially ended in January 1992. [Coll, 2004, pp. 233] ) Around 1999 there will be a push to recruit more agents capable of operating or traveling in Afghanistan. Many locals will be recruited, but apparently none is close to bin Laden (see 1999). This problem is not fixed in succeeding years. [Washington Post, 2/22/2004; 9/11 Commission, 3/24/2004]
The governor’s mansion in Kandahar, Afghanistan. [Source: CBC]On December 18, 2000, CIA receives a tip that bin Laden will be staying overnight on December 20 at the governor’s mansion in Kandahar, Afghanistan. Missile strikes are readied against him. [9/11 Commission, 7/24/2004, pp. 130-131] Gary Schroen, head of the CIA’s Pakistan office, e-mails CIA headquarters with the message, “Hit him tonight—we may not get another chance.” However, principal advisers to President Clinton agree not to recommend a strike because of doubts about the intelligence and worries about collateral damage. The military estimates the attacks will kill about 200 people, presumably most of them innocent bystanders. Schroen will later recall, “It struck me as rather insane, frankly. They decided not to attack bin Laden because he was in a building in fairly close proximity to a mosque. And they were afraid that some of the shrapnel was going to hit the mosque and somehow offend the Muslim world, and so they decided not to shoot on that occasion. That’s the kind of reason for not shooting that the policy maker, anyway, came up with endlessly.” [9/11 Commission, 3/24/2004; CBC, 9/12/2006] Later intelligence appears to show that bin Laden left before the strike could be readied, but some aware of the intelligence felt it was a chance that should have been taken anyway. [9/11 Commission, 7/24/2004, pp. 130-131] In the wake of this incident, officials attempt to find alternatives to cruise missiles, such a precision strike aircraft. However, US Central Command Chief General Anthony Zinni is apparently opposed to deployment of these aircraft near Afghanistan, and they are not deployed. [9/11 Commission, 3/24/2004]
CIA managers Gary Schroen, of the Near East division, and Richard Blee, responsible for Alec Station, the agency’s bin Laden unit, meet Northern Alliance commander Ahmed Shah Massoud in Paris, France. [Coll, 2004, pp. 560] Massoud, who is in Europe to address the European Parliament (see April 6, 2001), tells Schroen and Blee “that his own intelligence had learned of al-Qaeda’s intention to perform a terrorist act against the United States that would be vastly greater than the bombings of the American embassies in East Africa.” [Wright, 2006, pp. 337] Declassified Defense Intelligence Agency documents from November 2001 will say that Massoud has gained “limited knowledge… regarding the intentions of [al-Qaeda] to perform a terrorist act against the US on a scale larger than the 1998 bombing of the US Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania.” They will further point out he may have been assassinated two days before 9/11 (see September 9, 2001) because he “began to warn the West.” [PakTribune (Islamabad), 9/13/2003; Agence France-Presse, 9/14/2003] Blee hands Massoud a briefcase full of cash. [Vanity Fair, 11/2004] Schroen and Blee assure Massoud that, although he has been visited less by the CIA recently, they are still interested in working with him, and they will continue to make regular payments of several hundred thousand dollars each month. Commenting on the military situation in Afghanistan, Massoud says his defenses will hold for now, but the Northern Alliance is doing badly and no longer has the strength to counterattack. [Coll, 2004, pp. 561-2]
In the CIA’s Near East Division (NE) front office suite on the sixth floor of the agency’s headquarters in Langley, Virginia, everyone thinks Osama bin Laden is to blame as soon as they see the second aircraft hitting the World Trade Center. Gary Schroen, a former CIA station chief in both Afghanistan and Pakistan, is in the NE office suite, where several people have been staring at the television showing the burning North Tower. As Schroen later recalls, “We were getting calls from CTC [the CIA’s Counterterrorist Center], friends of the CTC in and around the building, that the World Trade Center, one of the towers had been struck.” According to Schroen, there are “like, 30 of us standing around,” and “as soon as the second aircraft smashed into the second tower, everyone said, ‘Bin Laden. It was bin Laden.… This is the attack that bin Laden’s been promising.’” [Schroen, 2005, pp. 12-14; NPR, 5/2/2005; PBS Frontline, 1/20/2006] When CIA Director George Tenet learned of the first WTC attack, he reportedly said immediately that he thought bin Laden was responsible (see (8:50 a.m.) September 11, 2001). [Woodward, 2002, pp. 4]
In a television interview, Vice President Cheney is asked how the US will respond to the 9/11 attacks. He first replies that there will be a military response. But he adds an oblique comment indicating the secrecy in which he and the administration intend to operate after the 9/11 attacks: “We also have to work, though, sort of the dark side, if you will. We’ve got to spend time in the shadows in the intelligence world. A lot of what needs to be done here will have to be done quietly, without any discussion, using sources and methods that are available to our intelligence agencies, if we’re going to be successful. That’s the world these folks operate in, and so it’s going to be vital for us to use any means at our disposal, basically, to achieve our objective.” [Meet the Press, 9/16/2001; Unger, 2007, pp. 221] In 2006, former CIA official Gary Schroen will be asked about Cheney’s comment, and he replies: “My impression at the time was that the administration was trying to send a message, and certainly CIA leadership was trying to send a message, that the gloves were off. I think what [Cheney] was probably saying was, we’re going to do things like assassination operations; we were going to go into places and not try to capture these guys, but just kill them, and that… there would be a lot of people who would object to those kind of tactics.” [PBS Frontline, 1/20/2006] In 2007, author and reporter Charlie Savage will write, “Many interpreted Cheney’s vague remarks to have been a reference to brutal interrogation techniques.” [Savage, 2007, pp. 154]
Gary Schroen. [Source: CBC]Long-time CIA operative Gary Schroen is assigned on September 13, 2001 to lead a small team into Afghanistan to link up with the Northern Alliance and prepare for the US bombing campaign. His team totalling seven officers and three air crew land in Afghanistan on this day. This team will be the only US forces in the country for nearly a month, until special forces begin arriving on October 19 (see October 19, 2001). Schroen will later comment, “I was surprised at how slow the US military was to get themselves in a position where they could come and join us.” During this month, Schroen’s team gives the Northern Alliance money and assurances that the US is serious with their attack plans. They also survey battlefields with GPS units to determine where opposing forces are located. [PBS Frontline, 1/20/2006]
Veteran CIA officer Gary Schroen and his team of CIA operatives known as “Jawbreaker” is helicoptered into the Panjshir Valley of northeastern Afghanistan. This area, about 70 miles north of Kabul, is controlled by the Northern Alliance. The team of about 10 operatives carries communications equipment so they can directly communicate with CIA headquarters back in the US. Schroen also carries a suitcase containing $3 million in non-sequential $100 bills. That same evening, Schroen meets with Muhammed Arif Sawari, known as Engineer Aref, head of the Northern Alliance’s intelligence service. He gives Aref $500,000 and promises much more money and support soon. The Jawbreaker team will remain the only US forces on the ground in Afghanistan until about the middle of October. [Washington Post, 11/18/2002] Before the Jawbreaker team deploys, J. Cofer Black, the CIA’s Washington coordinator for Jawbreaker, gave the men instructions that author Jeremy Scahill will later call “direct and macabre.” Black told the men: “I don’t want bin Laden and his thugs captured, I want them dead.… They must be killed. I want to see photos of their heads on pikes. I want bin Laden’s head shipped back in a box filled with dry ice. I want to be able to show bin Laden’s head to the president. I promised him I would do that” (see September 19, 2001). Schroen will later say it was the first time in his career he had been ordered to assassinate an enemy rather than attempt a capture. [Nation, 8/20/2009]
By late September 2001, the CIA covert plan to conquer Afghanistan is in place but it needs the US military to work. CIA official Gary Schroen will later recall, “We were there for just about a month by ourselves in the valley. We were the only Americans in the country for almost a month.” According to a PBS Frontline documentary, at some point around the middle of October, “there was a fiery NSC [National Security Council] meeting. The CIA had been complaining [Defense Secretary Donald] Rumsfeld was dragging his feet in Afghanistan. It was said Rumsfeld didn’t like taking orders from the CIA.” Lt. Gen. Michael DeLong will later say, “Rumsfeld went to the president and said, ‘The CIA has to work for me, or this isn’t going to work.’” President Bush finally agrees and places Rumsfeld in charge of the Afghanistan war. A short time later, on October 20, the first US Special Forces are put into action in Afghanistan, calling in precision air strikes. The Taliban fold in the face of the attack and the capital of Kabul will fall in mid-November. But according to Schroen, “I was absolutely convinced that that would happen and that the Taliban would break quickly. That could have happened in October, early October,” had the US military arrived to assist the CIA sooner. [PBS Frontline, 6/20/2006]
CIA official Gary Schoen will later say, “I can remember trying to take issues about Afghanistan to the National Security Council (NSC) during 2002 and early 2003 and being told: ‘It’s off the agenda for today. Iraq is taking the whole agenda.’ Things that we desperately needed to do for Afghanistan were just simply pushed aside by concerns over in Iraq. There just wasn’t the time.” [PBS Frontline, 1/20/2006] A former senior NSC official will similarly recall that the Bush administration turned its attention to Iraq and “discussions about Afghanistan were constrained. Here’s what you have now, you don’t get anything more. No additional missions, no additional forces, no additional dollars.” This official adds that “the meetings to discuss Afghanistan at the time were best described by a comment Doug Feith made in one meeting, when he said we won the war, other people need to be responsible for Afghanistan now. What he meant was that nation building or postconflict stability operations ought to be taken care of by other governments.… To raise Afghanistan was to talk about what we were leaving undone.” [Risen, 2006, pp. 154]
Fifth Group Special Forces—an elite group whose members speak Arabic, Pashtun, and Dari—is pulled from its mission in Afghanistan and sent to Iraq where the group is assigned the task of locating Saddam Hussein. Members of Fifth Group, who spent six months developing a network of local sources and alliances and who believe they were close to finding Osama bin Laden, are upset with the orders. “We were going nuts on the ground about that decision,” one of them will later recall. [Guardian, 3/26/2004] They are replaced by the Seventh Group Special Forces, who are Spanish speakers experienced mostly in Latin America. They have no local rapport or knowledge. [Guardian, 3/26/2004; Newsweek, 8/28/2007] They are also replaced by the Third Group Special Forces, which is trained to operate in sub-Saharan Africa. They speak French and various African languages. [MSNBC, 7/29/2003] CIA official Gary Schroen will later comment, “Well, you could see changes being made in the US military staffing in Afghanistan, that the Green Beret units, the Fifth Special Forces group, for the most of it, were being pulled out to refit and get ready for Iraq. And it was clear that the kind of guys that I think a lot of us believed were essential US military personnel with special operations capabilities were being pulled away.” [PBS Frontline, 6/20/2006]
Receive weekly email updates summarizing what contributors have added to the History Commons database
Developing and maintaining this site is very labor intensive. If you find it useful, please give us a hand and donate what you can.
If you would like to help us with this effort, please contact us. We need help with programming (Java, JDO, mysql, and xml), design, networking, and publicity. If you want to contribute information to this site, click the register link at the top of the page, and start contributing. | <urn:uuid:a205a237-dfa1-4343-837e-544100facd90> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.historycommons.org/entity.jsp?entity=gary_c._schroen_1 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696383156/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092623-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970845 | 3,176 | 1.640625 | 2 |
Teenage vampire Eve has never known what sunlight is. Everything the 13-year-old knows about the world is derived from what her sister Tabby has told her. She has never left her darkened room and has just one living, breathing human to cuddle. She lives in a world crammed with story book characters. In Eve's world Harry Potter, Bilbo Baggins and the cast of Dante's Inferno are real; where princes with adjectives instead of names seduce beautiful princesses against the odds. Eve does everything a good little vampire girl should, including drinking her (human) sister's blood. But one day, Tabby tires of opening her veins and, in a breath, Eve's whole world changes Running time: 80mins approx. (no interval)
"We live off sandwiches - we, as in the Royal We" spills Rendah Haywood's Tabby in Cuddles. The Royal We, or "Margaret Thatcher's We" as is commonly reported, has been the topic of much conversation since the death of the former Prime Minister, who famously - or infamously - ciphered her introductions with this Royalist wordplay.
All of Joseph Wilde's directorship - the script, the surrounding mise-en-scene and Cuddles' thematic concerns - are as of-the-moment as the Royal We in spring 2013. The play bares shockingly close relation to the Berry captivity case currently in the news as it documents the life of Eve, who lives caged in her sister's attic.
Eve is a repressed teenager who exists in her mind as a vampire; but her real past tells a more earthly, albeit equally disturbing tale. Her sister is Tabby, who, when not supplying Eve with blood, works in the city, bloodsucking in a conventional, corporate way in order to better her career prospects. All the while she's traumatised by her own slice of insular familial repression.
She's admittedly as much of a "monster" as Eve; although her bloodsucking tendencies extend to more social-realist spaces: she plays dirty at work and, as a rather predictable final plot twist reveals, clearly manages her sociopathic disposition badly.
In this sense, Cuddles is less fantasy and more a documentation of disillusionment - and its methods work well. Wilde, like his namesake, is a dab hand at comic one-liners, managing to negotiate comedy and tragedy with force which feels classic in origin: "You don't have to drink blood! - You can drink Fanta!" Tabby, at one point, yells frustratedly.
Cuddles is also damningly hellish. Eve's penchant for feeding time reaps bold on-stage imagery: she aggressively bites Tabby's neck at her refusal to give more blood, and devises her own method of obtaining "dinner dinner, not dinner" - eating a blood-soaked tampon which roused the most significant audience response of the evening.
Wilde has created a casual dictator in Tabby, the power of her moves akin to the precision of a cat on a hunt. Sadly, her character falls short by the conclusion, which in its briskness becomes quickly bogged down by the weight of knackered symbolism and an over-wrought sense of needing to tie things up which should have been left tantalisingly open.
Staging the horror of child imprisonment could so easily misfire, but, despite the conclusion, Wilde largely succeeds. This is thanks to brilliant writing and experimental uses of fantasy - which juggle comedy and tragedy alongside delusion and reality.
It's set against the backdrop of a deeply troubled young professional who takes her own problems and molds a new generation of horror.
Whatsonstage.com - Discount London theatre tickets, theatre news and reviews, Theatre videos, Theatre discussion, National Theatre Listings. Covering London's West End, all of Theatreland and all UK theatre. The best
for London Theatre Ticket Discounts. | <urn:uuid:76e7776c-b067-4414-8da7-0ec20bd1eccd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.whatsonstage.com/tickets/theatre/london/V239/The+Oval+House.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.952349 | 821 | 1.515625 | 2 |
Illinois House OKs ban on cellphones while driving
SPRINGFIELD – Drivers would not be allowed to use their cellphones while on the road under a measure the Illinois House endorsed Friday.
The measure would force drivers to use hands-free devices or a speaker-phone feature for calls while motoring. A 64-46 vote sent the legislation to the Senate.
Such a law could prevent accidents and fatalities by keeping drivers focused on the road, supporters said.
Only the most recent 7 days of articles are available for free. For articles older than 7 days there is a small fee for retrieval from our archive. If you are a registered member of the site, the content is free just by signing in below.
To allow for flexibility, we offer a variety of options for purchasing articles:
If you have any technical difficulties, either with your username and password or with the payment options, please contact us by e-mail at [email protected] | <urn:uuid:c423afbb-e25d-4730-b4e4-e17a6a15e98e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.nwherald.com/2013/03/02/illinois-house-oks-ban-on-cellphones-while-driving/ayuey9k/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.931222 | 199 | 1.679688 | 2 |
Audits of Local Governments and School Districts
Town of Lewisboro – Financial Condition and Activities (2011M-279)
Released: April 13, 2012 -- [read complete report - pdf]
Purpose of Audit
The purpose of our audit was to examine the Town’s financial condition and selected financial operations for the period January 1, 2009, to May 31, 2011.
The Town of Lewisboro is located in Westchester County. The Town is governed by a Town Board, which comprises four elected Board members and an elected Town Supervisor. The general fund’s budgeted expenditures for 2011 were approximately $7.2 million.
- The Town’s general fund balance declined from $3,094,491 in 2006 to two consecutive years of deficit fund balances totaling $655,312 in 2009 and $338,100 in 2010. Similarly, the sewer fund showed a continual decline in fund balance from 2006 to 2009, and a deficit fund balance in 2010. While the highway fund maintained a positive fund balance from 2006 to 2010, fund balance declined substantially from $743,876 in 2006 to $36,921 in 2010. The steady decline in fund balance and eventual deficits mainly resulted from poor budget estimates.
- The Board did not audit claims against the Town, or ensure that interfund transfers were properly authorized, accurately recorded and repaid as required by General Municipal Law.
- The annual update documents (AUD) were consistently filed after the due date.
- Request periodic status reports to monitor the budget so that corrective action can be discussed and implemented in a timely manner. Modify the budget in a timely manner to avoid budget shortfalls.
- Audit all claims and not assign this responsibility unless it establishes a Town Comptroller position. Ensure that interfund transfers are properly authorized, accurately recorded and repaid in a timely manner.
- Ensure that the Town’s AUD is filed in a timely manner and in accordance with statutory requirements.
Local Government and School Accountability Contact Information:
Phone: (518) 474-4037; Email: [email protected]
Address: Office of the State Comptroller, Division of Local Government and School Accountability
110 State Street, 12th Floor; Albany, NY 12236 | <urn:uuid:dc385b18-b852-41e7-9f56-1caea472b195> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://osc.state.ny.us/localgov/audits/towns/2012/lewisboro.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00041-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.939437 | 465 | 1.5625 | 2 |
Discussion of all aspects of cellular structure, physiology and communication.
8 posts • Page 1 of 1
I am trying to assess my cell proliferation by using a CFSE assay, however I can't obtain more than one single pic on the flow cytometer after 5 days, even if I know that my cells did proliferate.
Does anyone have an idea about it?
Thanks a lot
The most obvious reason is that there's something wrong in the CFSE staining you've done. Double-check your protocol that you did all correctly. If I recall correctly, CFSE is very sensitive to light, so you must protect it or else some few hours exposure can spoil it.
Btw, what methods you use to ensure that your cells have prolified? Do you just check them under a microscope or count them in a chamber, or just look at the colour of your medium?
What cells do you use? For example T cells need proper stimulants to make them divide (e.g. PHA if you want unspecific proliferation), as well as the feeder cells. It is easy to think your cells proliferate, when the actual metabolism and medium colour change is caused by the feeder cells, not the cells you want to study. (And you cannot count the T cells directly because of the feeders)
You could provide me some more information about your cells and the protocol, and I can try to come up with alternative solutions.
Thanks a lot for your reply.
I am using primary T-cells indeed, but I tried with some MM6 macrophages and K562 (to check if the cell type might make a difference). I am stimulating my T-cells with PMA instead of PHA, but as these twomitogens are pretty similar, I don't think this make a huge difference.
I am counting my cells on a Neubauer chamber with trypan blue, and I am also using a nucleocounter to get the number of cells/their viability.
I wasn't aware of the CFSE light sensitivity. I will protect it from the light from now.
About the CFSE concentrations, I diluted it quite a lot (down to 500 times the lowest concentrations proposed by the manufacturer) and also used it highly concentrated, but it doesn't make any difference (well apart from the GMFI of my single pic obviously).
If you have any ideas, please let me know, because I really have no other clue.
P.S: I bought two kits as I was supposed to use it quite a lot, and I have the same results with both batches
This is Avinash, PhD student at QUT, Australia. I have been doing PBMCs proliferation using CFSE. I stain my cells with 5uM CFSE (5mM stock). In my unstimulated control cells, I cannot see any proliferation under microscope when compared to my antigen stimulated and ConA stimulated wells. Even there is color change between unstimulated and stimulated cells.
However, when I analyze them on CFSE, I get more than one peak in my unstimulated histogram. My ConA looks very good (with 4 peaks minimum). But there is not much difference between my vaccinated antigen stimulated and unstimulated ones.
Could anyone please help out with this.
I do a proliferation assay after pulsing PBMCS with CFSE (5micromol for 2-10million cells) and then staining with CD3. I sort the cells and then stimulate them for proliferation with PHA(2microlitre). I also stain the cells with CD4 and CD8 on the day of analysis. I add PI jus before running the cells on the flow cytometer to discriminate for live vs dead cells.I am worried because I only get a single peak for each day (1-5 days expt). am i using too much CFSE? is that making it difficult to discern the peaks? Can somebody help with the trouble shooting. I also apply single compensation controls for the first day and find no spill for the rest of the days by using the same settings.
Thanks in advance
How does the single peak relate to your negative control? Do all your cells have full or lowered CFSE intensity? Does the intensity go down each day?
Having too much CFSE should not be the cause, because even high concentrations diminish quickly due to the cell divisions. In my experience, high CFSE concentrations easily shoot the cells off the axis but does not affect the peaks once the cells start to divide - except that their intensity is high in general. Rather, you might have too much PHA. It is a very powerful mitogen and chances are that it makes all the cells divide -> all cells have undergone equal amounts of cell divisions -> one peak.
You could try to control this by comparing your unstained cells, fresh CFSE stain and one sample from, say, day 4 or 5. If the day 4-5 sample is between the two others, it most likely indicates that the case is like I mentioned above.
I typically use 1 µl/ml of PHA if I just want the T cells to multiply - even that, I think, is plenty. For CFSE staining I may use even less (0.5 µl/ml or so) in order to be able to discriminate each cell division (=peaks) properly.
Thanks a lot for your reply
I did MLR proliferation assay with 10micromole of CFSE and did not see any division till day 5 but there was a slight movement in the original peak.
On day 8 i saw a popultion which was completely negative for the CFSE and also one small peak which was slightly positive for CFSE but the cells were dead almost should i consider as divided cells.
Please help me regarding the post analysis of cfse proliferation, Do I have to use any special softwares for that? or any gating strategy can be used? On day 8 I get some extended population from the original population, but unable to differentiate them as individual cell divisions and finally gating them becomes impossible. Please help me regarding the gating strategies that can be used.
8 posts • Page 1 of 1
Who is online
Users browsing this forum: Google [Bot] and 0 guests | <urn:uuid:24387fa7-b2db-460b-9b74-844289e4599d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.biology-online.org/biology-forum/about13859.html?p=143336&hilit=Movement | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.957206 | 1,298 | 1.632813 | 2 |
A singer, actor, and jockey who became a teen idol in the '60s and '70s, David "Davy" Jones' chief claim to fame was his career as a Monkee and his vocal rendition of "Daydream Believer." Jones was born in Manchester, England to a railway fitter and a homemaker. He was raised in a family with four children, three sisters and himself. Jones developed an interest in entertaining at a young age with his first play, Tom Sawyer. It was not until after his mother's death from emphysema in 1960 that Jones lost his interest in school and left home to become a horse-racing jockey.
Basil Foster, the jockey Jones apprenticed with, recognized Jones' acting and singing ability, and encouraged him to pursue his acting career. His persistence paid off, and Jones had television parts in Coronation Street and June Evening, and a part in the BBC radio play There Is a Happy Land. It was these appearances, a part in the London and American musical Oliver!, and an appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show that led Colpix Records/Columbia Pictures to sign a contract with Jones. At the age of 20, Jones had produced his first album, called simply David Jones.
In September of 1966, The Monkees first aired. Along with Peter Tork, Micky Dolenz, and Michael Nesmith, Jones came into the households of thousands each week. Nine albums were released and included songs such as "Daydream Believer," "A Little Bit Me, a Little Bit You," and "Valleri," which featured Jones singing. The Monkees, although popular with teenage girls, aired only until 1968.
After the Monkees disbanded, Jones pursued a solo career, signing with Bell Records. He released several singles with Bell and performed two Japanese tours before signing with MGM in 1973. He made cameo appearances on The Brady Bunch and Love American Style. In the mid-'70s, Jones teamed up with songwriters Tommy Boyce and Bobby Hart and ex-MonkeeMicky Dolenz to produce an album and perform on tour. Jones joined a group called Toast in the early '80s and toured Japan extensively. After the rejuvenation of the Monkees on MTV and Nickelodeon, three of the original Monkees (Jones, Dolenz, and Tork) got together to do the album Pool It! and a Christmas medley video. The group also did a 20th anniversary tour in 1986 and then regrouped to do another tour in 1989. The final Monkees reunion album (this time including Michael Nesmith in addition to the trio of Jones, Dolenz, and Tork), Justus, arrived in 1996.
During the '90s, aside from the last brief Monkees reunion, Jones pursued his solo music career and acted mainly in the theater, starring in Oliver! and Grease. His love for horse racing was still very much alive, and in 1996 in Lingfield, England, he won his first amateur race. A resident of Pennsylvania in the U.S., Jones wrote two autobiographies, They Made a Monkee Out of Me and They Made a Monkee Out of Me...Again!, which recount Jones' days as a Monkee, his family, his marriages, and his touring experiences. He also made appearances on several popular late-'90s television shows, including The Single Guy and Sabrina, the Teenage Witch. Jones compiled demos, outtakes, and other rare material for the four-volume Just for the Record CD series released in 1999, and after the turn of the millennium, he also issued two new independent solo albums, Just Me (the title a play on the aforementioned Justus) in 2001 and Just Me 2 in 2004. She, a collection of standards including "Fly Me to the Moon" and "Are You Lonesome Tonight?," followed in 2009. Just over two years later, he suffered a heart attack and died at his home on February 29, 2012. ~ Kim Summers, Rovi | <urn:uuid:3ead398c-a758-49c1-af1d-99079a13db8a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.pandora.com/davy-jones | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700958435/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516104238-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.982136 | 835 | 1.757813 | 2 |
Mining regulation changes shouldn’t be rushedThere are great job opportunities across Wisconsin if open-pit iron mining is allowed.
There are great job opportunities across Wisconsin if open-pit iron mining is allowed.
That fact was obvious in the days following Gov. Scott Walker’s State of the State address last week. Walker made mention of the great potential mining has in the state and elected officials and business interests scrambled to weigh in on the idea.
The legislature considered mining legislation in 2012 that would have allowed the opening of iron mines and other mines in northern Wisconsin. The plan failed to gain approval, but backers of the idea vowed to bring the idea back for a second go-around.
This time there seems to be more traction for the proposal.
While the expectation is that thousands of jobs could be created if the mining industry expands in the state, and billions of dollars of capital investment will also result, there is some wisdom in the idea that legislation should be considered fully prior to final approval.
There’s no reason to rush into approving a pro-mining proposal. The idea should be fully debated and any legislation should be tweaked to ensure that Wisconsin’s greatest resource, our environment, isn’t compromised by full-scale mining operations.
Whatever decision is made concerning mining, the landscape of Wisconsin will be forever changed. Let your legislator know that voters expect the mining plan to move through the proper committee and approval channels so every aspect of the law can be debated.
In the end, a mining law may still be approved, but some additional protections may be generated that will safeguard our environment for generations to come. | <urn:uuid:26399a2f-0940-4838-8a28-a6ade6f78cb2> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.newrichmond-news.com/event/article/id/38309/group/Opinion/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.947935 | 335 | 1.578125 | 2 |
U.S. Accuses China Of Causing 'Massive Distortions' In Rare Earths Trade
Saying that "America's workers and manufacturers are being hurt in both established and budding industrial sectors" by Chinese trade policies that cause "massive distortions and harmful disruptions in supply chains," U.S. Trade Representative Ron Kirk confirmed this morning that the U.S. is challenging China over its alleged restrictions on trade of some materials that are important in the manufacture of cellphones, hybrid car batteries, electronics, cars and other products.
The U.S. is joining Japan and the European Union in seeking "consultations" with China at the World Trade Organization over trade in "rare earths." President Obama Just outlined his administration's case at the White House.
The Financial Times says that "China produces more than 90 percent of the world's rare earths. Its stranglehold on global supplies caused alarm in 2010 when it temporarily halted exports to Japan after a diplomatic dispute. Beijing on Tuesday rejected the claims by the US, EU and Japan, saying China would 'continue to implement effective management of rare earths exports in accordance with WTO regulations.' "
The U.S. is also accusing China of unfair trade involving tungsten and molybdenum.
According to the Mother Nature Network, rare earths get that collective name because of "their elusive nature, since the 17 elements rarely exist in pure form. Instead, they mix diffusely with other minerals underground, making them costly to extract."
What are the 17 elements? The network has the list here. How many have you heard of? | <urn:uuid:14d1f893-6ebb-4a7e-a98e-dcb1615aa54f> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://wvasfm.org/post/us-accuses-china-causing-massive-distortions-rare-earths-trade | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00002-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.946308 | 331 | 1.742188 | 2 |
That's right, there is a riot going on in my potager because I've had it up to here *points to a place 10 feet above her head or would do if her arm was that long* with colour coordinated borders. Because frankly why bother? Why should you have colour coordinated borders? Who says so and who are they when they are in the garden dancing the polka? Exactly, there is no such thing as the Garden Police so stuff the whole colour coordinated thingy as it's overrated anyway.
So last year I decided to run riot in my potager and as I had just created a new bed there and was wondering what to do with it so I thought I'd go utterly bonkers (technical term) with plants and bulbs. And here's the result:
- buy tulips in many different colours and in vast quantities
- make sure quite a few of them flower at the same time but also see to it that you have enough early, middle and late flowering tulips to continue rioting in your garden for at least 2 months
- put all the bulbs in a big bag or pot and give it a good shake, mix them well
- go out into your garden and start throwing the bulbs about with gay abandon in the area where you want them to flower next spring
- plant them where they fall, no smuggling!
- after planting your tulips, bung in loads of Forget-me-nots in white, blue and pink, Aubrietas in many colours and some Phloxes subulata too
- stand well back and wait a few months
- come Spring put on helmet and safety goggles and watch your Spring garden explode!
Colour Is Its Own Reward from Fingers of Love by Neil Finn (Crowded House)
Apart from running amok in the potager I've been writing about gardening on other websites as well. On ThinkinGardens you will find my article : The Gardening Animal, the biology of its behaviour here and today on The Guardian website you will find Tulips, Are They Really That Difficult to Grow? here. On the Guardian site you can leave comments so please do if you feel so inclined.
Copyright 2010 Y.E.W. Heuzen | <urn:uuid:b284aa0d-a3f5-49a2-a02c-c2d80e8e7f69> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blissyo-elgarden.blogspot.com/2010/04/riot-in-potager.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00020-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966705 | 461 | 1.664063 | 2 |
What makes a good backup solution?
Part 3 of 4
Three more topics
If you have not read part one and part two you may want to start there.
In this section we will look at three more topics. First we will look at what kind of disaster we want to protect ourselves from. Then we will look at protecting the backups themselves and finally we will look at backup media.
What do we hope to protect ourselves from?
There are a few different risks that backup can protect us from. What risk you wish to mitigate will influence many of the choices you make in designing your backup strategy.
Recovery from accidentally deleted files: As I have mentioned before the most common form of recovery is recovering accidentally deleted or corrupted data files. The ideal solution for recovering from accidental deletions should probably be online with an offline solution backing that up. Online backups have the advantage of being quick to recover and depending on the solution may even allow the end user to recover their own files. If you plan to use an online backup you will also want an offline backup for resilience as we have discussed earlier but equally important an offline backups will allow you to hold a repository of older backups going further back allowing recovery of missing files that are not noticed for a period of time.
Recovery from maliciously deleted files: To be able to recover from maliciously deleted, corrupted or modified files you will need an offline backup solution. As has been mentioned previously, if an attacker can get to your production files the risk that they can get to your online backups is too great to rely solely on online backups.
Recovery from a disaster: A disaster can be anything from the failure of a drive or a server to the complete destruction of your data center. To be protected from this type of disaster you will need an offsite backup solution. The backup can be online, offline or a hybrid of both. The important item here is that the backup is not going to be in the same location as the disaster. The definition of the same location depends on the risk you want to mitigate. If you are only concerned with the possibility of a server failing a different location may be backing up to another system in the same room. If you are concerned about fire a few buildings away may be sufficient. If you are concerned about natural disaster you need to start considering geographic dispersion. Recovery from disaster really comes down to which disasters do I need to be able to recover from? In all likelihood you need to be able to recover from any disaster that might befall your datacenter.
Protecting offsite backups:
Once the backups are made they need to be protected from their own disasters.
The simplest form of sending backup offsite is to have a trusted employee to take the backups home with them. This meets the minimum requirements but really creates as many problems as it fixes.
The employee may loose the tapes.
The employee’s home/car may be robed and the tapes might be stolen.
You may have a disaster and not be able to get in contact with the employee who holds the tapes to get them back and start a recovery.
If you are using hard drives for backups it is trivial for the employee to make copies of the backed up data in the privacy of their own home. It’s slightly less trivial with tape media since most employees won’t have a tape drive at home but it is possible.
Many companies take tapes or other backup media offside and store it in a bank vault or similar secured location. This is relatively convenient and cheap while providing a fairly high level of security. There are a few downsides to this solution that must be considered. Assuming you keep the most recent full backup in the vault you can only start a recovery when the bank is open. For this to be a convenient solution you may not have a great deal of geographic distribution between the business and the bank.
There are a number of companies that specialize in secure off site storage of data backups. These companies can be contracted to pickup and drop off backups on a regular basis and in an emergency out of normal business hours access can usually be made available. The real downside to this solution is trust and cost. You are trusting a third party to protect your data so investigate the company, their history and what type of liability they are willing to accept. Since these services are taking a fair amount of liability and manpower costs you should expect to pay a fair price for their services.
Encryption: Much of the risk mentioned above can be mitigated by encrypting your backups. Many backup solutions will allow you to encrypt your data as it is written to backup media. On thing to keep in mind is that encrypted data does not compress so you will use more backup media but that’s a small price to pay for protecting your data.
There are a number of different backup media that can be used. Let’s look at the common ones.
Tape: Tape is the old standby.
To Good: It’s relatively inexpensive. It has a fairly high capacity per gigabyte of storage. Compared to spinning disks tapes are much less prone to shock damage. Tapes are easy to transport.
The Bad: Tapes are relatively slow. Tapes wear out faster than disk.
Removable Disk Cartridges: Removable Disk Cartridges are ruggedized removable hard disks. They can be useful in small organizations or for single server backups but they do not scale well for larger backup sets. I think of these in terms of being a replacement for DAT backup tapes only much faster.
USB Disks: I know a number of people who use USB disks for backups. They are relatively inexpensive. USB is not exceptionally fast for sustained transfer so they are a little slow. The biggest issue is that USB disks can only scale so far before they become to large to easily take offsite and they are not as rugged as tape. USB disks can be a really good online backup solution if the slow transfer rate is now an issue. I have used USB in a few circumstances and the price per GB can’t be beat.
D2D: Disk to Disk (D2D) backups are all the rage right now. This mostly has to do with backup windows getting shorted while the amount of data to back up continues to grow. D2D does a good job of mitigating this issue and is the only effective way to do online backups. D2D should not be the only form of backup for reasons that I have already explained. Since D2D is usually fast it is possible to have continual backups meaning we are moving from point in time backups to any point in time recovery or at least much more granular recovery.
D2D2T: Disk to Disk to Tape (D2D2T) takes D2D and then spins the data to tape while it is finishing the backup to disk. Think of the backup disk as a cache for the tape if that helps. This is a best of both world solution. This is very cool but it’s still mostly hanging out at the top end of the market so it is not cheap. D2D2T can be done on the cheap by backing up to disk and then backing those backups to tape. That’s not quite as seamless but it’s also cheaper. | <urn:uuid:1119185f-d4a6-4f54-a228-405d8bfb9552> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://danielowen.com/good_backup3 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699881956/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516102441-00014-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958862 | 1,496 | 1.820313 | 2 |
How should I manage my VAOs and VBOs?
I'm sure you've heard this question a lot, and I've read thoughts on other forums but I haven't found anything in my search here.
My question is, how should I separate objects among different VAOs and VBOs?
In learning how to use OpenGL, I have been working on modeling objects in 3DS Max, exporting them into the COLLADA format, and I am now working on rendering them in my OpenGL application.
If I have an object such as a car which is made of different parts that are their own geometries in the exported COLLADA file, how should I distribute them into VAOs and VBOs?
Should I make a VAO for each part? (The body, each door, each wheel, etc..) And a VBO for each part?
Should I put all the vertex data into one big VBO? Then use only one VAO?
Should I use only one VAO and then a VBO for each part?
In essence, what is best practice in organizing the separate parts of an object and then in organizing a collection of objects? (multiple cars?!)
Thanks for your help! =)
My 2 cents. If you're not going to use NV bindless on the VBOs, use one big VBO and stream the data to the GPU with it and use display lists for the static stuff. Binding VBOs is expensive, so you want to minimize the amount of that you end up doing.
I'll let someone else take the VAOs question. Bindless gets you that speed-up and more.
Tags for this Thread | <urn:uuid:6d9a88a5-8b70-4391-96ee-c77bf918ebb1> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.opengl.org/discussion_boards/showthread.php/178286-How-should-I-manage-my-VAOs-and-VBOs?mode=hybrid | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.938814 | 349 | 1.671875 | 2 |
12/19/2012 4:00 PM ET|
Welcome to the new recession
It may not have felt like it, but stocks have been in a 4-year bull market. That's coming to an end as a new recession nears -- and in fact, may already be here.
It may be hard to believe, but the bull market is turning four years old. And from the looks of things, it isn't going to make it to its fifth birthday.
That's because, despite the nice little Santa Claus rally Wall Street's been enjoying over the last few weeks and rising hopes of a "fiscal cliff" deal in Washington, some serious warning signs for both the market and the economy are emerging. In fact, one of the most respected economic forecasters in the business believes we're already in a new recession.
If true, now's no time for aggressive optimism. Instead, it's time to move to cash and batten down the hatches for what looks to be a rough 2013.
I'll explain why in a moment, but first, let's review how we got here.
Following the Fed
Just as a wintry chill was setting in, between Thanksgiving and Christmas 2008, the economy faced an imploding housing market and financial-system meltdown. At the Federal Reserve, desperate policymakers decided to start using freshly created dollars to buy mortgage securities. This drive, which came to be known as "quantitative easing" or QE1, was expanded in early 2009 to include Treasury bonds.
Corporate bonds, which have been an area of focus for the average investor this cycle, responded right away. Stocks, initially disappointed by President Barack Obama's election, found their footing in the spring, and the bull market was on. The economy didn't respond until the summer, while the job market took a full year to begin turning around.
The year that followed was promising until a government bond crisis in Dubai revealed that developed governments were overextended. Then, the impact of U.S. stimulus spending faded. That was followed by Greece kicking off the ongoing eurozone woes. Central banks kept the economic ball rolling with an alphabet soup of programs that all amounted to the same thing: more cheap money.
Things slowed, job growth leveled off, and stocks have pretty much been sliding sideways since the Fed ended its second round of quantitative easing, known as QE2, in mid-2011. Investors have pulled out since then. The U.S. economy is barely moving forward.
So while the Standard & Poor's 500 Index ($INX) climbed more than 120% from its March 2009 low to its September 2012 high, there is evidence that the current bull market has run its course.
And now, the drag
With rich-world governments collectively set to tighten their budgets by 1% of combined gross domestic product, according to the International Monetary Fund (1.3% here at home, worth nearly $180 billion next year) more weakness lies ahead.
This fiscal drag is already baked in. It could be made worse by any turmoil related to the process, from a fiscal cliff breakdown here at home to ongoing political tension in Europe or a bond market revolt in Japan.
What's scary about all this is that the recent slowdown has happened despite very aggressive action by the major central banks. The Fed is currently engaged in unlimited quantitative easing (QE3 plus QE4) of $85 billion a month, saying it will continue until the unemployment rate falls below 6.5% or the inflation rate rises above 2.5%. The European Central Bank has threatened unlimited bond purchases if a country -- such as Spain -- requests help and commits to a budget-cutting plan. Prime Minister-elect Shinzo Abe of Japan has said he will push the Bank of Japan to engage in unlimited bond-buying. The Bank of England is pushing hard, too.
It seems the global economy just isn't responding to cheap-money stimulus anymore as the credit channel remains constrained. Governments and households are focused on paying off debts, not borrowing more cheap money, while banks are busy rebuilding their capital reserves.
The stock market doesn't seem impressed, either: The Dow Jones Industrial Average ($INDU) actually finished with a loss on the day the Fed announced QE4 -- the first time stocks have moved lower in response to a new round of quantitative easing.
Welcome to the new recession
In fact, the folks at the Economic Cycle Research Institute, who have made some remarkably prescient calls on the business cycle over the last few decades, believe we are already in a recession that started in July.
Corporate executives have pulled back on capital expenditures in a big way, sending ripples throughout the supply chain. Industrial production is on a downward glide path despite a temporary lift from Superstorm Sandy rebuilding. Small-business confidence has collapsed. Personal income is down. All are consequences of the fact that real equipment and software spending -- a proxy for capital spending -- has suddenly sliced into recessionary territory.
According to UBS economists, the recent lift in the job market is at odds with this, which is one reason I've been hammering on about the questionable veracity of the recent drop in the unemployment rate to 7.7%. A better measure of the job market, the employment-to-population ratio, is flat-lining near early 1980s levels. The disconnect is illustrated in the chart above.
Surprise, surprise. The drop in corporate investment and overall stupor of the global economy is starting to negatively impact corporate earnings -- which had been a rare bright spot over the past few years, thanks to strong foreign demand (from consumers in emerging-market nations) and the ability to make deep, harsh cuts to the jobs, wages and benefits offered to American workers.
You can see this in the way unit labor costs -- a measure of labor expense -- have stalled near prerecession levels despite the fact the economy has grown $312 billion over its prerecession peak to help push corporate profits to record highs.
That is what threatens the bull market.
MORE ON MSN MONEY
VIDEO ON MSN MONEY
Whenever you read incindiary "I-Reporting" crap like this just think weathermen: they can measure a thing - but don't confuse that with an ability to understand, let alone control, the thing they can measure.
Do your own homework. Be clear on what you are willing to risk. Be contet to play smallball and take your opportunities where you can find them. Sometime you just don't make a bunch of birdies in your round - take your par and get outta there.
If they want to fix our "the peoples" money troubles........ Get the gas prices down to a dollar a gallon. you will see a turn around begin in one month.
This should not come as a surprise. I'm waiting for farmland values to crash, talk about unsustainable. $10,000 or more per acre of farmland? Insanity.... The next drought may speed that along.
Having read that,
I still see malls and many other stores full of costumers getting ready for a nice and warm Christmas season. I can see home improvement stores with clients making lines at the cashiers late into closing time. People are driving brand new vehicles, cars and trucks, I can see houses decked out with color lights in a pagan celebration of the Nativity, which is not an inexpensive thing to do. Mothers are buying presents for kids and other family members...In short even if we are still in a recession or about to go into another, people are not showing it..
Maybe they got a hold of a new credit card and they will max it out before being arrested for CC fraud...But one way or another, vendors are smiling from door to door.
Copyright © 2013 Microsoft. All rights reserved.
Quotes are real-time for NASDAQ, NYSE and AMEX. See delay times for other exchanges.
[BRIEFING.COM] The major averages ended modestly lower with the S&P 500 shedding 0.3%.
The benchmark average saw an opening loss of 1.2% after Japan's Nikkei tumbled 7.3%. Japanese stocks sold off amid continued volatility in Japanese Government Bond futures as the 10-yr yield spiked almost 16 basis points to 1.002 before the Bank of Japan's JPY2 trillion liquidity injection caused yields to retrace their gains.
Adding insult to injury was news out of China where the HSBC ... More
More Market News
|There’s a problem getting this information right now. Please try again later.| | <urn:uuid:a52f1a39-aee1-410b-8259-00a28d912ea5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://money.msn.com/investing/welcome-to-the-new-recession?_p=28117c60-09c4-45f4-8629-6819af5566ae | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368704132298/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516113532-00040-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959299 | 1,766 | 1.570313 | 2 |
The Family Institute of Neve Yerushalayim was established in 1999 on the campus of Neve Yerushalayim as a pioneering initiative to elevate the level of professional mental health services for Israel's Orthodox community. It is a community faced with the challenges posed by modern society, affected by life in a country where terrorism is a constant threat, and where poverty has exacerbated the mental and emotional problems of individual and families alike.
The mission of the Family Institute is to address the burgeoning mental health needs of Israel's Dati/Charedi community by offering direct low-cost counseling services, while at the same time training religious professionals to fill the critical shortage of competent, culturally sensitive therapists.
How does The Family Institute of Neve Yerushalayim fulfill its mission?
The Family Institute provides for the mental health needs of Israelís Dati/Charedi community through:
A Masters-level academic program providing the opportunity for religious students to pursue a successful career as a family and mental health counselor, | <urn:uuid:44ca9a9c-a18e-41e5-aade-4f262485838a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.nevefamilyinstitute.org/about/about2.php | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00039-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.953282 | 210 | 1.664063 | 2 |
KENNEWICK, Wash. — You may have had your fill of turkey and all the trimmings this past week, but, one thing you may not have had enough of is thankfulness.
Being grateful can be good for your health -- especially your mental health.
That's what A Simple Act of Gratitude author John Kralik related in Parade magazine last winter. I clipped the article for my file since I thought the premise might help others, including me.
With gray skies and shorter days upon us here in the northwest, there's a good chance "the blues" may be gathering to create a dark mood. It's referred to as seasonal affective disorder or SAD -- and sad is what many people feel to one degree or another.
In the article, Kralik tells of the depression he felt because of difficulties in both his personal and professional life. However, on a New Year's Day walk in 2008, he discovered his first step to an unexpected path.
"On my hike," Kralik writes, "I heard a voice. It said I shouldn't focus on what I wanted or had lost but should be grateful for what I had."
And then a thought followed that changed his life, "The idea of a year of thank-yous popped into my head," the once-despondent man recalls.
Kralik vowed to write 365 thank you notes -- one each day -- although, it took a little more than a year. Nevertheless, he told friends, colleagues -- even a Starbucks barista -- and many others how grateful he was for their kindness.
"I saw how much I had been blessed by so many people in different ways, Kralik says in the magazine, "and acknowledging their blessings seemed to make them multiply."
Not only did his circumstances improve, but his thank yous also subtly affected his happiness quotient.
"With my thank-you notes, I was trying to tell people how much their kindness meant to me," Kralik explains. "As they responded, that same message was reflected back."
And when it rained, it poured -- enough to fill a book with his year of thank-yous, a journey that has inspired countless readers.
Perhaps for you and me, this is the season to follow Kralik's recipe of writing daily thank you notes. It may up our gratitude and fill us with peace -- not to mention lifting the winter grayness in our hearts. | <urn:uuid:725790cb-de18-46f3-8df2-c37b2fde7814> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.tri-cityherald.com/2012/11/25/2183187/writing-thank-you-notes-can-stamp.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00028-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.98337 | 508 | 1.664063 | 2 |
FORT WAYNE – Members of Congress are reviving legislation to train workers for skilled manufacturing jobs that are going unfilled.
There are job opportunities available, and we need to have the people who have the skills that can take these opportunities, Sen. Joe Donnelly, D-Ind., said Thursday during a conference call with reporters.
Donnelly is a co-sponsor of the America Works Act, which would direct federal training programs to emphasize math, science, engineering and technology skills.
Those are areas that are going to be a real driving force in Indianas economy in years to come, Donnelly said.
The freshman senator said he recently toured a Jasper transmissions manufacturer that could not find skilled workers to fill 25 job openings. Foundries and machine tooling companies in South Bend cannot find qualified applicants for available jobs, Donnelly said.
He cited a 2011 study by the Manufacturing Institute and consulting firm Deloitte that reported a shortage of capable candidates for 600,000 manufacturing jobs across the country.
The revenue-neutral America Works Act would establish nationwide, industry-recognized certification for certain skills. Separate bills have been filed in the Senate and the House and have bipartisan support.
The House approved the legislation in 2010, but it did not receive a vote in the Senate. Versions that were filed in both chambers in 2011, including one introduced by Donnelly, then a House member, did not receive committee hearings.
Donnelly said prospects have improved.
This is not an election year, so that really helps people focus on just the merits of the bill as opposed to any political implications of it, he said.
Donnelly also is co-sponsoring a Senate bill, announced Thursday, that would repeal the 2.3 percent excise tax on medical devices, which took effect in January. Sen. Dan Coats, R-Ind., is among the bipartisan group of nine sponsors and co-sponsors of the legislation.
The tax will jeopardize jobs, increase costs on consumers and impede innovation, Coats said in a prepared statement.
Backers include both senators from each of three states – Indiana, Minnesota and Pennsylvania. Those states have large numbers of jobs in the medical device industry.
Tax-repeal legislation was introduced a day earlier in the House and attracted 175 co-sponsors, including Rep. Marlin Stutzman, R-3rd.
Its really picking up steam, Donnelly said of the repeal effort.
The tax is expected to raise about $30 billion over 10 years to help fund the federal health care law. A repeal bill passed in the Republican House last year but was not considered by the Democratic Senate. | <urn:uuid:94a325e0-0cfa-4c63-8f92-fc3358addee0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://journalgazette.net/article/20130208/BIZ13/302089945/1185 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00038-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.971648 | 547 | 1.820313 | 2 |
Ding-ding bus, a very traditional bus in the old time while still be well-kept till now, is more like a window to see the old Hong Kong lifestyle than a transporting vehicle. If you plan to have a trip to Hong Kong, Ding-ding bus tour is one of the top recommendations from me.
About Ding-ding bus
Ding-ding bus is a nickname of Hong Kong people to call their streetbus. With more than 100 years history, ding-ding bus for them is a representative of their lifestyles. Ding-ding bus was once the cheapest vehicle served for them, only HKD 2 in that time. In the pasting 107 years, ding-ding bus is always going thought the Hong Kong Island from the east to the west, without resting. And for tourists, ding-ding bus is more like flowing scenery. It takes travellers to appreciate not only the modern streets but also the ancient lanes in Hong Kong.
The first time I say ding-ding bus was on the Qianmen Street in Beijing, while the ding-ding bus in Hong Kong is more like a collation than the former one.
After dinner, I strolled on the street. When I planned to take the subway, an ideal suddenly came into my mind – why not had a ding-ding bus trip?
Ding-ding bus was a two-floor bus with hard wooden seats, no air condition but very cool because all the windows were open. Till now, I think the ticket for ding-ding bus is still the cheapest one, only HKD 2.5!
The bus went through the most prosperous areas including Causeway Bay, Happy Valley, Choong Wan, etc. I just took this bus on the Sheugwan station. The distance between two stations was short, very convenient. Most passengers on the bus were old people and tourists. Because the trace of ding-ding bus was on the pavement, so the speed was slow to avoid accidents.
Got on from the latter door and got off from the front door, ticket fee was charged when you got off. Although ding-ding bus had experience more than 100 years, it was still the necessary transporting vehicle in Hong Kong. May be more like a symbol of Hong Kong.
This place was in the Causeway Bay, too many people on the square in fashionable
The driver of ding-ding bus, the front door just on the left side of the driver.
铜锣湾” Chinese characters on the right side?
Prosperous streetHave you see the “
The station of ding-ding bus was set in the middle of the road, so people need to went through the street and got up the bus there.
In this picture you can see the station in the middle of the road
The place to get off the bus
Scenery on the second floor was great!
Wooden window frame
Another ding-ding bus followed mine
The distances between each others are close, it was another way to prove the high skill of dirver | <urn:uuid:bb8958ab-3831-4919-9d4d-9af9d60bd60e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.topchinatravel.com/community/blog/my-hong-kong-tour-on-the-ding-ding-bus.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00001-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973993 | 628 | 1.664063 | 2 |
Barbarians at the Gate: “Welcome!”
by Keith Hampson
Earlier this spring, 800 or so people converged on the Skysong campus of Arizona State University to discuss education. However, reports from the event note that the majority of participants, and almost all of the speakers were not educators, but entrepreneurs, technology company executives and investors. The Education Innovation Summit, now in its third year, has quickly become a key event for vendors to network, generate interest, and raise funds.
Demand for higher education is at record levels, public funds are tight, operating costs are rising, and the move to digital education offers the potential to scale-up services economically. Not surprisingly, private investment is at levels not seen since the dot-com era.
Also not surprising is that the reception within higher education to private investment ranges from indifference to outright hostility. Higher ed has a long history of managing its needs internally, and is especially resistant to commercial interventions – due to the ideal of free inquiry and the political sensibilities of faculty, among other factors. This tone tends to flavour all discussions of commerce’s role in higher education.
The tension between commerce and higher education isn’t likely to get less provocative over the next few years. While campuses have become accustomed to having vendors assume responsibility for functions like bookstore management, catering and building maintenance, the current focus of education investors is on creating technologies that serve instructional functions – matters that were once seen as the exclusive territory of academics.
But higher education may need to get over its discomfort with vendors if it wishes to continue its migration toward technology-enabled education. There are very real limits to how effectively higher ed can meet it own needs for technology. Like end users in other sectors, universities are very good at the early stage work of identifying needs and crafting initial product designs. Many of the LMS in use today started in universities. But universities are less equipped to take these products to market, scale-up production/service, and drive down costs. It simply isn’t what the institutions were designed to do.
If we are going to have educational technology available that is as good as those in the consumer markets, we will need considerable involvement of the private sector. It’s not logical to put up with a clunky LMS in our schools, but expect to have the latest iPhone at home.
Educators have started voting with their feet. More and more are integrating tools like Youtube, Facebook, WordPress and Twitter into their teaching and course management practices. Vendors, too, have moved away from building their own applications to using popular ones from the consumer market. See, for example, Inigral and Facebook, Google and Pearson, Instructure/Canvas and Twitter.
Educational technologies need to be just as good and just as inexpensive as technology in the consumer market. We are moving in this direction – not because we are being forced by evil vendors – but because these tools are familiar, simple to use, and inexpensive. | <urn:uuid:ed253943-7fbe-4430-ad53-410d567ffa80> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://alstonroadgroup.com/2012/04/23/barbarians-at-the-gate-welcome/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00039-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970567 | 612 | 1.710938 | 2 |
Beyoncé aims to reach 1 billion people today on behalf of the United Nations' campaign to promote humanitarian work around the globe. The video for "I Was Here," directed by Sophie Muller and Kenzo Digital and produced by Ridley Scott & Associates, was recorded live at the United Nations General Assembly Hall in New York on August 11th, but the clip was just released today in honor of the U.N.'s World Humanitarian Day.
"'I Was Here' says I want to leave my footprints in the sands of time, and that is leaving our mark on the world," Beyonce told Anderson Cooper in a behind-the-scenes interview. "We all want to know that our life meant something, and that we did something for someone else, and that we spread positivity no matter how big or how small."
The video will be projected on huge public screens in Geneva, Dubai, and Times Square in New York.
Picks From Around the Web
blog comments powered by Disqus | <urn:uuid:2f7b4335-4884-4837-aac1-6cba554cf50a> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.rollingstone.com/music/videos/beyonce-performs-i-was-here-for-world-humanitarian-day-20120819 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368700264179/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516103104-00028-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.965639 | 203 | 1.632813 | 2 |
Last Doughboy Frank Buckles Dies
Frank Woodruff Buckles, a Missouri farm boy and America's final living link to The Great War, died Sunday at his home in Charles Town, W.Va.
With the death of Mr. Buckles, the War to End all Wars has now been relegated to the pages of history.
No living American participant is left to describe the stories, the trench warfare, and the horror of thousands of soldiers dying as they strode out across French battlefields.
Mr. Buckles, born in 1901 on a farm near Bethany, Mo., lived with his daughter, Susannah Flanagan, on an historic 330-acre West Virginia cattle farm he purchased in 1954.
The United States entered World War I in April 1917, sending Gen. John J. "Black Jack" Pershing and two million soldiers of the American Expeditionary Force to France. Mr. Buckles, who lied about his age, enlisted in the Army Aug. 1, 1917, and was ordered to Fort Riley, Kan., to train with the 1st Fort Riley Casual Detachment.
He drove an Army ambulance and although he was many miles from the horrific combat of World War I's Western Front, he witnessed its results and aftermath.
Over his last years, Mr. Buckles became a national celebrity and sought after for interviews. He was named grand marshal of the National Memorial Day Parade in Washington in 2007. Also on Veterans Day in 2007, he was a guest at Arlington National Cemetery during a wreath-laying ceremony at the Tomb of the Unknowns.
In March 2008, Mr. Buckles was a guest of President George W. Bush at the White House.
I was fortunate to be able to interview Mr. Buckles at his home in Charles Town in 2007.
At the time, he was 107 years old and looking forward to more years. Many in his family had lived long, long lives.
Though stooped and frail, his memory was just excellent. He could recall minute details from his war, and was very proud of his service, as well as his life growing up near Bethany.
"If called upon, you should serve your country," he told me. He believed that deeply.
Called "Papa" by his daughter, close friends and townspeople, Mr. Buckles was a gentleman and a soldier. He will be missed more for who he was than what he did.
"Papa was a gentleman," says Susannah Buckles Flanagan.
Indeed. Mr. Buckles was also a national treasure who deserved our respect and gratitude.
A great generation has exited the stage now. We can only read about them and what they did to save the world, those doughboys in spats and boots.
The guns fell silent some 93 years ago. And so now, too, have the first-hand accounts. | <urn:uuid:d993b4a0-779e-4db1-ab2e-027c01bd4b08> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blogs.knoxnews.com/fredbrown/2011/02/last-doughboy-frank-buckles-di.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.987881 | 594 | 1.835938 | 2 |
Can Amtrak Afford Its New NYC Home?
The shortcomings of New York's Penn Station are clear all year round, but they come into view most painfully during the holiday rush. At the current Penn Station, intercity passengers traveling on Amtrak pack into the same inadequately sized waiting area with New Jersey Transit commuters, hoping to get a jump on the track announcements. Travelers arriving at the station must push through the crowds to reach a street exit or weave through the station's catacombs to find a subway connection. According to a 2010 report by the state of New York [PDF], Penn Station is the "busiest, most congested, passenger transportation facility in North America" on a daily basis — with a greater traffic flow than all three of New York City's airports combined.
The situation is expected to improve considerably with the construction of the new Moynihan Station. The project — named for Senator Daniel Patrick Moynihan, its original proponent — has been in the works since the early 1990s. Moynihan Station will occupy part of the massive Farley Post Office building just across Eighth Avenue from Penn Station. Once completed the station will be the new intercity rail hub for New York and the fulcrum of travel in the lucrative Northeast Corridor. The only problem is that Amtrak now says it can't afford to leave Penn Station unless it can occupy Moynihan "effectively rent-free," reports Bloomberg.
Moynihan Station is being built in two phases. The first phase will provide better egress for passengers arriving into New York. That phase, which is almost fully funded, began in October of 2010 and is scheduled for completion in 2016. It will certainly alleviate some of the crowding. Right now passengers exit Amtrak trains on platforms below the Farley building but must walk a ways to exit at Penn Station. The first phase will poke 19 direct new access points onto the street level, and "will significantly ameliorate platform and access congestion throughout the Penn Station complex as a whole," according to the 2010 report.
It's the second phase that will result in Amtrak's main passenger facility leaving Penn Station. That phase — still unfunded and expected to cost about $1 billion — would create an impressive new railroad hall and shift all intercity travel into Moynihan Station, separating it entirely from commuter traffic. The station is critical to expanded rail traffic along the Northeast Corridor and would serve as an anchor to high-speed rail travel in the Northeast; at the present time Penn Station is operating over capacity.
But Amtrak can't occupy the new Moynihan Station if the move results in anything but a "modest increase" in operating costs, an Amtrak official told Bloomberg earlier this month. While Amtrak had a record ridership of more than 30 million passengers [PDF] in 2011 — with ridership in the Northeast leading the way — the federally funded passenger service remains on shaky fiscal ground. In fiscal 2010, for instance, Amtrak posted a net loss of roughly $1.3 billion [PDF]. Amtrak also had its 2012 funding cut and saw President Obama's high-speed rail program, through which the Moynihan Station could potentially get financial support, receive no funding at all.
The rent discussion may become moot if officials can't raise the money for the second phase of Moynihan. Some money could come through the Port Authority, which is overseeing the project, but so far other fundraising efforts have fallen flat. In April New York Governor Andrew Cuomo requested about $50 million in federal funding to pay for design plans, but was rejected.
Images courtesy of the Moynihan Station Development Corporation | <urn:uuid:083eb36b-8641-4c5e-b2df-06f7b11bdbfe> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.theatlanticcities.com/commute/2011/12/can-amtrak-afford-its-new-nyc-home/791/ | 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 | 0.962229 | 735 | 1.679688 | 2 |
"The chicken that is searching for food in the rain must be very hungry" is a Nigerian proverb the Chinese hope won’t become their fortune. China is not yet hungry but it is looking to get in front of the rain that is sure to come in the form of a Western rush. The Chinese footprint in Nigeria is expanding quicker than most would think or admit. While oil and other natural resources are essential to Western economies, there is more to Nigeria and the region. There are other business opportunities the West in general, except for French Alcatel’s lucrative partnership with China, are missing out on.
Let’s say you’re charged with finding the path to partnership with a few dozen African countries that have resources you want and need. How would you approach the them to establish a relationship to establish a partnership? This might be especially important if you are locking for priority treatment or even to lockout a competitor. A blocking strategy would really entail developing a deep partnership of trust, or coercion. If you want to go with the trust route, believing that it will cost less in the long run (i.e. soft power vs hard power) it would make sense to establish and build trust and understanding. Perhaps even a spirit of mutual assistance since. A little give, a little take. Making governments and people comfortable with your overtures would require a coherent policy, right? What might that policy look like?
Relationships begin with dialogs. The goal is to build trust. Trust cannot be manufactured, it has to be earned. On a personal level now, how did you come to trust your best friend? Was a bond of trust "created" or did it evolve over time? It probably built up over time through actions by both you and the other person after some initial, perhaps small, amount of trust was placed in the both of you by the other. We build trust, we do not "create" trust. We can build and maintain trust just as we can "fritter" it away, to quote Martin Rose of the British Council.
So, in this hypothetical let me add something. Let’s say you’ve had a presence in the region for a few decades. Nearly fifty years ago you initiated a program to assist, convert really, the peoples and governments to your way of thinking. This established contacts in the region. It didn’t go over the way you really wanted, but it didn’t end up in flames either. The reasons for that original approach are now in the pages of history and the contacts have been maintained and in the last few years, you reactivated them to get to a new level. So, with the knowledge that you have at least some amount of trust built up with these countries. What would you do next?
You might consider documenting a policy to share with Africa. This would describe how important sincerity, friendship and equality are to you. It would also put you on a moral high ground when contrasted with other global players. It would emphasize your belief in the mutual benefit of economic and social development and cooperation, especially focusing on reciprocity and common prosperity. This would probably sound like a good, if not great, deal to the Africans, corrupt or not. There is something of a track record that leans toward the positive side, if not completely positive.
The idea of riches to be made in global economy might be appealing, or even just being heard when you suggest how you will help them strengthen their role in global institutions through coordination and support. Those are great words to use, in fact. Non-threatening, friendly, and reciprocal. All key in building trust and deepening ties.
This relationship you’re seeking to build upon and expand would cause each side to learn and develop. So you would suggest cultural, civic, and educational exchanges to deepen understanding and awareness of each other as you learn from each other and create a sustainable world. Well, you can hope for a sustainable world, which is what you want to try for, right? You do not want to pollute. You want a moral high ground, especially when considering the beautiful African continent. Perhaps you might suggest something to your friends on this? There is money to be made in eco-toursism, after all.
How about cooperation on resources, tourism (means $), debt reduction ($ — offering assistance with the global institutions), infrastructure (goods, people and tourists have to get around), agriculture ($ greater crop density and quality), education, media, consular affairs (helping in the international community, did I mention you’re a big country with pull?), disaster reduction, relief and humanitarian assistance, military training, police, courts, and more.
Sounds pretty fancy. Too much to lay out in a document, isn’t it? I mean, who would really go so far to do this? Africa does have all that oil, natural gas, and plenty of other fantastic resources, energy and otherwise.
Does it sound too fantastic if you have already been building prestige buildings on Africa? You’d offer the people the choice of a sports stadium or a government building. Most of the time they picked stadium, but once the bureaucrats got lucky and a government building was built. Africans might see the friendly side you’re trying to promote, right?
They might also see a friendly culture if you’re broadcasting the English language TV into Africa. That would be great, wouldn’t it? Let’s say you’re doing that already.
Does it sound like I’m trying to sell you a bridge or ocean front property (sorry, US-centric joke)? I’m not. The policy document I described exists and was published January 2006. China reportedly gets over a quarter of its oil from Africa, so it is not surprising it’s interested in building up and maintaining relations on the continent. In 2000, Beijing established the China-Africa Cooperation Forum (CACF) to promote trade and investment with 44 African countries. In 2003, Prime Minister Wen visited several oil-producing African states accompanied by Chinese oil executives, and President Hu toured Algeria, Egypt, and Gabon. China has been working closely with governments in the Gulf of Guinea, from Angola to Nigeria, as well as with the Central African Republic, Chad, Congo, Libya, Niger, and Sudan. (See Sep/Oct 2005 Foreign Affairs: China’s Global Hunt for Energy)
In mid-January 2006, China issued an African Policy Paper. The strategy China has laid out, besides being laid out open for all to see, should cause concern at State. This paper is divided into six parts:
1. Africa’s Position and Role
2. China’s Relations with Africa
3. China’s African Policy
4. Enhancing All-round Cooperation Between China and Africa
5. Forum on China-Africa Cooperation And Its Follow-up Actions
6. China’s Relations with African Regional Organizations
The document is easily available as html, making accessibility as universal as possible. The English is simple and straight forward, making it easy to read for those who first, or even second or third, language is not English. This document is public diplomacy at its finest. The Chinese are doing a bang-up job in the region. China’s connection with the public goes beyond building prestige buildings for the public. Offered the option of a sports stadium or government building, the public gets to chose, only once did a public group chose the government building. Television in the region is also becoming largely English language broadcast from China. In the culture war, the West, and the US specifically, is losing.
The most visible American presence in the area is a multinational military base on the Horn and corporate oil on the Gulf of Guinea. The rhetoric out of Washington is militaristic and focused on counter-insurgency (COIN) and counter-terrorism. Efforts at public diplomacy, economic and cultural connections are not heard when they are spoken at all. They are drowned out by louder actions and lousy follow through.
The African Policy Paper is quite impressive. It is a great piece of propaganda (in the pure sense) and a tremendous example of what public diplomacy can look like. Working from an equality in partnership, establishing two-way communication and understanding is done through exchanges and commitments to build trust through assistance in all sectors of the civil sector. Textbook.
With established relationships with nearly all the countries on the continent, including expanding cultural and economic ties, this policy could very easily be seen as likely steps the Chinese would fulfill. The Chinese are not perfect, despite the appearance of The Policy. Holes in both reality and the document will be discussed in a follow up post. As well as the importance of China in the 2006 Quadrennial Defense Review.
The international military on the Horn is an effective fighting force working with some USAID elements, but where is the full frontal effort on public, cultural, and diplomacy diplomacy to build deep relationships and trust? Building schools, roads, economies, and social structures is the best way to prevent terrorism and to assure a resource supply that will be steady and sure. The Chinese seem to know that. Does the United States want to sit back and see if the plan works? Countering such a plan is just like countering and preventing terrorism: a long and steady effort. Will it happen? We’ll have to see, unfortunately, I doubt Las Vegas bookies will give me good odds on it.
The United States is becoming increasingly dependent on oil from a region beset by official corruption, tottering governments, violent criminal syndicates and religious and ethnic strife: West Africa….
"We can’t afford to have a ship there 365 days a year," said Rear Adm. D.C. Curtis of the U.S. 6th Fleet, which oversees naval responsibilities in Europe and Africa from its headquarters in Naples, Italy. "The days of getting an aircraft carrier off the coast are gone."
That leaves most security in the hands of local forces clearly not up to the job. U.S. officials said thieves each year steal at least $1 billion worth of oil from Nigeria’s coastal pipelines; perhaps twice that much is siphoned off by official government corruption.
In one recent case, two Nigerian admirals — since fired — arranged for the hijacking of the African Pride, a rust-streaked, Greek-registered coastal tanker laden with 11,000 tons of Nigerian crude worth some $4 million. The ship was seized by the Nigerian navy on suspicion that its cargo had been stolen. But the navy escorted the African Pride to sea, where its cargo was pumped to another tanker, which disappeared.
The American and British presence on the Horn is sneaking into the news more often. The secrecy over military operations in the region is slowly being lifted. From the rescue of cheetah cubs to this AP story, a new front is being readied in an area International Crisis Group lists as a "Conflict Risk Alert":
News from the Horn of Africa is diverse and found along many paths. To start, US troops in the Ogaden area rescued two abused and endangered cheetah cubs late last month (Nov 2005) while the Taipei Times is reporting the Chinese navy is "flexing its soft power" as part of an "assertive foreign policy…connecting Chinese seaports with the Middle East and the Horn of Africa. Its strategy: to build up sea power, measured in ships, bases and alliances. Energizing a populace accustomed to thinking of China as a land power is one crucial element of Beijing’s new maritime diplomacy." The sea-based public diplomacy is integral to Chinese expansion in the Middle East region as Iran seeks to seal a deal with China next month (Jan 2006):
The TopCat situation becomes ever the more fascinating as each day passes. More information from the blogosphere surfaces as amateur and not so amateur investigative reporters seek out details. Most of the speculation is most likely wildly off the mark either negatively (almost like the Black Helicopters that hover overhead) or positively (the world will be saved by one merc at a time). Still other commentary is not. It is simply restatements of "facts" and facts, as a quick review of Technorati will show, including some information found in posts on this website.
Background information I've posted on oil may be foundational or it may not. Time will tell if it goes to the motive of the TopCat debacle. I've made other comments wondering if the contract and insertion of Western military people and equipment might be related to a inadvertent payload ejection back on 3 Feb 1991, in other words a Project Jennifer II. That may not be accurate as there are some reports, valid or not, the payload was already recovered by somebody else. | <urn:uuid:58e8588f-d1d3-4273-898b-d82808ff34af> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://mountainrunner.us/tag/oil/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.959957 | 2,646 | 1.648438 | 2 |
Someone on the R mailing list (link) asked: how can you easily (daily) collect data from many people into a spreadsheet and then analyse it using R.
The answer people gave to it where on various ways of using excel. But excel files (at least for now), are not “on the cloud”. A better answer might be to create a google form that will update a google spreadsheet that will then be read by R.
If my last sentence wasn’t clear to you, then this post is for you.
Before heading home for the holidays, I had a large data set (1.6 GB with over 1.25 million rows) with columns of text and integers ripped out of the company (Kwelia) Database and put into a .csv file since I was going to be offline a lot over the break. I tried opening the csv file […]
Recently I have been working with GNU R optimization routines a lot. Function optim has a nice trace option that allows to monitor optimization progress. Another standard function optimize has no such feature but it is pos... […]
Merry Christmas is.R() readers! Thanks for accompanying us through an excellent first semester of R blogging, and for your feedback and enthusiasm. To celebrate, we’ve built an image mosaic from the shiny, happy avatars of our over 600 (!) Twitte... […]
The Wheel of Time is a series of books started by Robert Jordan. Unfortunately he died too early. Like all fans of the series I feel very lucky that Brandon Sanderson was able to continue these books. The first book Sanderson wrote was the Gathering St... […]
The is.R blog has been on a roll in December with their Advent CalendaR feature: daily tips about R to unwrap each day leading up to Christmas. If you haven't been following it, start with today's post and scroll down. Sadly there isn't a tag to collect all these great posts together, but here are a few highlights: December 4: Reading and writ […]
An explanation of quartiles, quintiles deciles, and boxplots. Previously “Again with variability of long-short decile tests” and its predecessor discusses using deciles but doesn’t say what they are. The *iles These are concepts that have to do with approximately equally sized groups created from sorted data. There are 4 groups with quartiles, 5 with quintil […]
On an airplane the other day, I learned of a method called latent class (transition) analysis, and it sounded like an interesting thing to try in R. Of course, as with everything R, There is a Package for That, called poLCA, written by none other than... […]
I show how to position the vertical axis label of an R plot above the axis and orient it horizontally as suggested by Stephen Few. I encourage you to share this with others and contribute to the conversation at Labeling the Vertical Axis in R Plots, which first appeared at carlislerainey.com. For more of my thoughts and ideas, subscribe to my blog and follow […]
A number of news outlets have reported a peculiar quirk that arose during Friday’s Champions League draw. Apparently, the sport’s European governing body, UEFA, ran a trial run the day before the main event, and the schedule chosen during this event was identical to that of the actual draw on Friday. Given this strange coincidence, […]
End-of-year posts are corny but, what the heck, I think I can let myself delve in to corniness once a year. The following code gives a snapshot of what and how was R for me in 2012. So one can … Continue reading → […] | <urn:uuid:f1a8d6de-0986-46d8-8e61-c1d94297b4c5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.r-statistics.com/2010/03/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698924319/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516100844-00000-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.960023 | 765 | 1.710938 | 2 |
Heart Attack Survivor
Marjorie is a good example of the fact that you can't live in a state of denial at any age, and that heart disease can surface at any time.
If you don't believe these two facts, you could lose your life. Fortunately, Marjorie paid attention to her symptoms and medical knowledge and is alive today.
When experiencing severe chest pain, Marjorie called the paramedics to take her to the hospital.
She was diagnosed with coronary artery disease, admitted for five days and was given a stent to open a clogged artery and prevent future clogging.
Marjorie is alive and strong today because upon experiencing chest pain, she called the paramedics, instead of deciding for herself that it was only indigestion or some other fleeting discomfort. Her willingness to make a call that many people rationalize against making, is why Marjorie is among The Medical Center of Aurora's Heart Healthy Heroes. She was treated by the Cardiac Rehabilitation Team at The Medical Center of Aurora and follows their program as closely as possible, ensuring that she stays active so that she can avoid any other heart attack episodes.
Another contributing factor to Marjorie's health at 84 is due to her willingness to follow the advice of her medical and rehab teams. She follows a heart-healthy diet and exercises as much as possible. Her advice to others is to realize your lifestyle will change with heart disease, but for the better as you will be healthier and gain a more positive outlook on life.
Patient written permission obtained prior to the posting of this story. | <urn:uuid:d07f66cd-d933-41cf-8e19-5dd7f1387100> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.auroramed.com/conditions_we_treat/heart_care/heart_survivor_stories/heart_survivor_marjorie.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973183 | 323 | 1.796875 | 2 |
With the days and weeks of the Syrian government appearing numbered, the Central Intelligence Agency is scrambling to get a handle on the locations of the country's chemical and biological weapons before it’s too late.
While assessing the composition, loyalties, and background of the rebel groups poised to take power in the event President Bashar al-Assad falls.
Obama administration officials tell The Daily Beast that the CIA has sent officers to the region to assess Syria’s weapons program. One major task for the CIA right now is to work with military defectors to find out as much information on Syria’s weapons of mass destruction.
According to one U.S. official with access to Syrian intelligence. Another focus will be to sort through reams of intercepted phone calls and emails, satellite images, and other collected intelligence to find the exact locations of the Syrian weapons, this official said.
This task has become more urgent in recent days. Last week, The Wall Street Journal reportedthat the Syrian military was moving its chemical weapons out of storage. On July 17, Nawaf Fares, Syria’s ex-ambassador to Iraq, told the BBCthe regime would not hesitate to use chemical weapons against the rebel fighters.
On Wednesday, a bomb killed the Syrian defense minister and the brother-in-law of President al-Assad in Damascus. The blow to the al-Assad cabinet raised the prospect that the Syrian regime may be on its last legs.
Rep. Mike Rogers, the Republican chairman of the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, declined to provide details on what intelligence assets have been sent to Syria or to say whether the CIA has sent officers on the ground there.
He said that the administration had recently deployed "the resources necessary to collect the information that we need to make a good decision on chemical and biological [weapons], opposition groups and leadership transition strategies." But, he added, "We don’t know nearly what we need to know to be completely effective if the regime were to implode tomorrow."
Colonel Kassem Saadeddine, a spokesman for the Free Syrian Army’s Joint Command, said that his forces would not halt their latest campaign until the city had been conquered.
“We have transferred the battle from Damascus province to the capital,” he said. “We have a clear plan to control the whole of Damascus. We only have light weapons, but it’s enough.” The fighting dubbed Damascus Volcano by the rebels — has moved close to the city centre for the first time since the violence began 17 months ago.
The Government used helicopters to strafe parts of the city centre, witnesses said. There were conflicting reports that a helicopter may have been shot down by rebels in the Al-Qaboun district.
“The streets are completely empty, the shops are closed. People are terrified of what’s next,” said Omar Qabouni, an activist. He said that eight people were killed by regime mortar and tank fire.
As fighting spread close to key government and security quarters, there were fears that the regime could resort to using chemical weapons. In any case, with rebels fighting reinforced regime units, the Free Syrian Army’s push is expected to take a long time to make gains.
Mr Fares, a former senior security official in Damascus, told the BBC that his former boss was like “a wounded wolf, and cornered”. He added: “There is information, unconfirmed, that chemical weapons have been used partially in the city of Homs.
“I have absolute conviction that if the circle of the Syrian people became tighter on the regime, the regime will not hesitate to use chemical weapons.”
Mr Fares also accused his Government of using al-Qaeda suicide bombers against its own facilities to scare the West into thinking that Syria could become an Iraq-style quagmire should it intervene.
Syria is believed to have one of the largest stockpiles of chemical weapons in the world, including the nerve gases VX and Sarin as well as mustard gas and cyanide.
Israel is worried that Hezbollah, the powerful Shia militia in neighbouring Lebanon, could take control of the Syrian regime’s chemical weapons and has warned that such a development could force it to take military action.
Syria never signed the 1992 Chemical Weapons Convention, the treaty that bans the use, stockpiling, or production of chemical weapons. Steven Heydemann, a senior adviser for Middle East initiatives at the U.S. Institute of Peace, a nonpartisan think tank, said he understands Syria’s stockpiles to be “massive.”
The rest of the stories. | <urn:uuid:0236251d-a0c8-4d33-ad3b-574a90eeb6cd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://forums.winamp.com/showthread.php?p=2873131 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963259 | 963 | 1.710938 | 2 |
Pork producers in New York had 66,000 hogs and pigs on hand Dec. 1, according to King Whetstone, U.S. Agriculture Department National Agricultural Statistics Service, New York office director.
The total was a 27 percent decrease from the 91,000 head on hand a year earlier. Of the current inventory, 6,000 hogs are for breeding purposes, a 5,000 head decrease from the previous December. The remaining 60,000 hogs and pigs, raised for home use or the slaughter market, decreased by 20,000 head from a year ago.
U.S. inventory of all hogs and pigs on Dec. 1 was 66.3 million head, a slight decrease from December 1, 2011, and a 2 percent decrease from Sept. 1, 2012. Breeding inventory, at 5.82 million head, increased slightly from last year and from the previous quarter. Market hog inventory, at 60.5 million head, decreased slightly from last year, and decreased 2 percent from last quarter.
The September-November 2012 pig crop, at 29.4 million head, increased slightly from 2011. Sows farrowing during this period totaled 2.90 million head, a slight decrease from 2011. The sows farrowed during this quarter represented 50 percent of the breeding herd. The average pigs saved per litter was a record high 10.15 for the September-November period, compared to 10.02 last year. Pigs saved per litter by size of operation ranged from 7.60 for operations with 1-99 hogs and pigs to 10.20 for operations with more than 5,000 hogs and pigs. | <urn:uuid:dd10ad6f-4e7a-48a0-82fe-e4abc89ac6c0> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.westfieldrepublican.com/page/content.detail/id/519809.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368711005985/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516133005-00026-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.939523 | 336 | 1.84375 | 2 |
Students Work Together for a Healthy Chicago
Five Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine students were selected to join the Chicago Department of Public Health's (CDPH) Students for a Healthy Chicago committee. These students will take part in creating a community health project with 37 other graduate students studying law, medicine, and journalism from Northwestern University, Rush University Medical Center, University of Chicago, University of Illinois at Chicago, Loyola University, and John Marshall Law School.
“Public health is key to improving American healthcare and needs to be a joint effort on the part of many people from different disciplines,” said Byron Ho, a first-year medical student. “I think this is a great opportunity to improve health while working with people outside of medicine.”
During the one-year commitment, members of the committee will participate in policy development and community projects, and share feedback on program development with the CDPH. Last year, the group was instrumental in developing PlayStreets, a program that gives children and adults supervised spaces to enjoy outdoor activities such as sports, games, and dancing.
“I was excited to learn I was accepted to a position on this committee,” said Jasmine Rassiwala, a third-year medical student. “When I met the rest of the team, I was thrilled to see my fellow peers so passionate about making a change in our beautiful city. I was instantly inspired.”
Rassiwala, one of five Feinberg students on the committee, applied to the program because it offered her the opportunity to expand her interest in public health beyond the classroom.
“The CDPH Students for a Healthy Chicago committee encourages students to build public health policy within a real-life framework,” she said. “In medical school, we learn about barriers to adequate healthcare and what solutions are needed, but this committee offers the unique experience to be a part of that change and learn about the obstacles to developing health policies.”
Started in 2011, Healthy Chicago initiated projects to improve the health of Chicago through 12 areas, including tobacco use, obesity prevention, HIV prevention, adolescent health, access to care, and violence prevention
“By offering healthier school lunches to making bars smoke-free to providing flu vaccines, the city of Chicago is making its citizens healthier,” said Ashima Singal, a third-year medical student. “The committee offers me an opportunity to make an impact on my community by picking a project that serves the folks of Streeterville.” | <urn:uuid:c562028c-8b42-45aa-aceb-4efb20ee6cfc> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.feinberg.northwestern.edu/news/2012/12/students_healthy_chicago.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00022-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.961906 | 524 | 1.835938 | 2 |
Accessibility, Affordability, Innovation
From the initial days of its legislative authorization in 2009 to the present, driving themes behind the UNT Dallas College of Law have been accessibility, affordability, and innovation in legal education. These themes will continue to drive the UNT Dallas College of Law as it builds its curriculum, faculty, and infrastructure.
The legal market has experienced dramatic changes in recent years, and a serious national conversation about legal education is ongoing. The UNT Dallas College of Law will seek to incorporate and advance the best thinking on these important themes, which include:
- The cost and benefits of a legal education
- Methods and feasibility of changing the traditional teaching law school teaching model
- The heavy influence of input-weighted rankings on law schools
- Diversity in and access to legal education
- The need for more and better assessment of students during their legal education | <urn:uuid:8e1c557f-a879-438a-8fac-54d1c4b23230> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://lawschool.untsystem.edu/our-philosophy | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00004-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958793 | 178 | 1.757813 | 2 |
I made a big trip to the grocery store last week. Over small-talk with the chatty clerk, I paid with my debit card, requesting $20 back in cash. After several minutes discussing the interminable Oregon rain, I picked up my bags and drove home.
As I put away the groceries, I realized that I’d never received the $20 cash back that I’d requested. I cursed myself for being a fool and then drove back to the store. “Your forgot to give me my $20,” I told Mr. Chatterbox, showing him my receipt.
“No I didn’t,” he said. “I never forget to give change. You must have misplaced it.”
“I don’t think so,” I said. “You never gave me the cash.”
“I’m sure I gave it to you,” he said. “Besides, I’m busy.” He waved his hand to indicate the long line at his checkstand.
But I wasn’t going to back down — not over $20. The clerk called over a manager, who closed the register, pulled out the cash box, and then took it to the back room to count it. She came out five minutes later and handed me a $20 bill. “You were right,” she said. [time-link title="(Read about why many online shoppers in Russia still use cash)" url=http://techland.time.com/2011/05/18/why-do-most-online-shoppers-in-russia-still-pay-in-cash/]
I used to be bad with money. As part of that, I would have let this slide. Instead of driving back to the store and standing my ground, I would have written off the $20 as lost.
Over the past few years, however, I’ve become my own most vocal supporter. In fact, one of my mantras is: Nobody cares more about your money than you do. I’ve learned to take responsibility for my own financial situation instead of trusting that others have my best interests at heart.
From talking about money with hundreds of people, it’s clear that I’m not the only one who’s been afraid to stand up for himself. If you’re ready to take some small steps toward self-reliance, try these tips:
- Check every receipt and bill you receive. This can be tedious, and most of the time everything will be fine. But errors occur more often than you’d think. It only takes a few seconds to scan a bill or receipt, so make it a habit.
- Ask questions. If something seems wrong, ask about it. If you’re at a store, talk to a manager. If you’re at home, call customer service. Last winter, I noticed I was being charged for text messages sent to my mobile wireless modem. When I called to question this, I learned I’d accidentally changed one of the default settings on the device. Switching it back saved me a couple of bucks per month.
- Get a second opinion. When you receive financial advice — whether it’s from a friend, a financial adviser, or even a personal finance blog — don’t just blindly accept what you’re told. Do more research. Listen to advice, but make up your own mind.
- Never make a financial decision under time pressure. If somebody tells you this is a limited-time offer and you need to act fast or you’ll miss out, then miss out. That’s almost always the best choice. (Creating time pressure is one of the oldest tricks in the book, and an easy way to get people to go against their own best interest.)
One final note: Fair is fair. While you should absolutely take a stand when you’re overcharged, be willing to admit when a mistake is made in your favor. If you buy three potted petunias at the garden store but are only charged for one, be honest about it. [time-link title="(Read about Visa's digital wallet system)" url=http://techland.time.com/2011/05/11/visa-unveils-digital-wallet-system/]
From my experience, most stores are shocked and appreciative when a customer reveals such an error. And, in fact, it’s not uncommon for a merchant to say “don’t worry about it” and let you keep those extra two petunias for free. | <urn:uuid:7c2a9d43-2e02-4b7d-8de4-5f60355dbb27> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://business.time.com/2011/06/03/nobody-cares-more-about-your-money-than-you-do/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00024-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.958827 | 990 | 1.726563 | 2 |
The Great Mindset Shift
Every dentist who goes from average to exceptional reaches a point in their training where they undergo a fundamental shift in thinking. When this mindset shift happens, they never look at patients the same way again. In most cases, it marks the beginning of a new maturity in their evolution as dentists.
It’s the moment where they take responsibility for the “no.”
Before that mindset shift occurred they found it easy to rationalize why certain patients were rejecting treatment, and the reasons they found usually centered on the patient. “He can’t afford it.” “She is too insurance-minded.” “He doesn’t care about esthetic issues.”
These reasons are often true on the surface but they don’t tell the whole story. These reasons don’t acknowledge the possibility that the patient might be capable of changing that perspective. As a dentist, you play a crucial role in helping your patients change how they think about dentistry.
When you come to this realization, everything changes. You start to look at the “no” in a different way. You realize the value process is a journey and that “no” doesn’t necessarily mean never, it can also mean that the patient doesn’t see the value right now. So you give them the best care for where they are in their journey today, with an eye on what you can do to move them to a better appreciation tomorrow.
The other part of this realization is that you have time; time to build the relationship; time to get patients to see the value. Every patient interaction is an opportunity to move them a step forward to “yes.” For some this decision will come in a single leap, and for others it’s a slow evolution over years. The important thing is, you have to take responsibility, because the patient doesn’t know how to move forward from “no.” You do. | <urn:uuid:7ade4cf9-a1ec-480f-bafb-77369d1a0177> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.speareducation.com/spear-review/2013/02/the-great-mindset-shift/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.948895 | 417 | 1.515625 | 2 |
Consumers unsure about broader sales tax
Kevin Gross, a senior at Ohio State University, knows he’ll have to do his laundry and pay more for it if Gov. John Kasich persuades the General Assembly to expand the state sales tax.
Sitting in a salon chair with her hair over her face, Sylvia Stevens wondered if Ohio consumers would win or lose should Gov. John Kasich get the tax overhaul he wants.
“Where do I benefit?” asked Stevens, a client at Ambushed Salon in the Short North.
Stevens’ question is one of many surrounding Kasich’s state budget proposal, which includes decreases in income- and sales-tax rates but broadens the sales tax to include businesses and services such as haircuts, coin laundries, parking, in-state bus tickets, cable television, dating services and some concert and sporting-event tickets. The change would bring the state an estimated $2.6 billion a year in new revenue.
Organizations representing service-based industries, such as the Ohio Chamber of Commerce and the Ohio Society of CPAs, are still unsure how Kasich’s proposed tax reforms would affect business in the state.
“These reforms affect every company in our membership, and virtually all of them in a different way,” said Dan Navin, associate vice president of the Ohio Chamber of Commerce.
Paying a 5 percent tax — plus what sales tax each county levies — to do his laundry might not break Kevin Gross’ back, but he said he’s not sure the tax is needed.
Gross, a senior studying psychology at Ohio State University, said Kasich’s broadening of the sales tax is unfair. He comes to the Blue Bubble Wash on High Street regularly to get his wash done because it’s his most-convenient option. The facility near campus is used mostly by students.
“Is it going to kill me? No, because I can’t let it,” Gross said. “I need to do this, and they know it.”
Kasich said on Monday that cutting the sales tax by half a percentage point while making it applicable to more services, such as hiring lawyers and accountants, would shift a tax burden away from low-income Ohioans.
But hiring a lawyer is not only applicable to higher-income residents, said Stevens, a legal assistant at a Columbus law firm.
“I’ve seen how much legal counsel can cost, and 5 percent of that can add up,” she said.
Five percent on haircuts can add up, too, said Amy Bush, the owner of Ambushed, where some clients’ checks can be more than $60.
“I have some people who drive in two hours to see me, and for them, 5 percent ... might make a difference,” she said.
If Kasich’s proposal passes, other states that do not tax services will start trying to woo businesses to move their operations there, said Tony Ehler, head of state and local taxes at the law firm Vorys, Sater, Seymour and Pease. The savings from the lowered income and sales taxes are immediately outweighed by the increase from 0 to 5 percent on services, he said.
“This makes businesses in Ohio less competitive,” Ehler said. “Either (businesses) leave the state or they lose work — either way, Ohio loses out.”
But Kasich contends the change in taxes will make Ohio more economically competitive.
Bush said she has two options if Kasich’s budget is passed as proposed: She can incorporate the tax into her rates, or she can have the tax shown on an itemized receipt, as is done at most restaurants.
Absorbing the tax for her clients is not an option for the employer of five because doing that could keep her from paying her overhead.
And when it comes to Kasich’s planned 50 percent cut to small businesses, Bush said she’ll wait and see more details of Kasich’s budget before deciding if the tax cut is a good idea.
“I could immediately say, ‘I’d love to get my taxes cut by 50 percent,’ but that’s what makes our (state) run,” she said “They don’t just give money away — they’ve got to get their money from somewhere.”
Joshua Jamerson and Ryan Clark are fellows in Ohio University’s E.W. Scripps School of Journalism Statehouse News Bureau. | <urn:uuid:8da15793-5cda-4f0e-a016-d7e54217586d> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.dispatch.com/content/stories/local/2013/02/06/consumers-unsure-about-broader-sales-tax.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00009-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.966614 | 961 | 1.507813 | 2 |
Professional development & training
The Africa, Europe and Middle East regional office provides educational practitioners and schools with training to build and enhance their professional development.
Workshops are designed to deliver IB educational standards, to address the complex challenges emerging in the different areas within the region and to integrate relevant experiences and in-depth investigation into a vibrant exchange of knowledge.
3 different categories depending on your needs
Our offering of workshops, seminars and conferences is structured in 3 different categories depending on your target audience and goals. It is critical that participants attend the correct category of workshop and is available here.
Still confused? Use these helpful scenarios to help you select the right professional development experience.
The majority of workshops are in English. However, Spanish and French workshops are also available throughout the academic year.
All participants must be sufficiently fluent in the language in which the workshop is offered to allow for full and unaided participation.
Choosing the right workshop
To help you select the workshop that is right for your needs, descriptions of the various workshops are available.
- Primary Years Programme workshop descriptions
- Middle Years Programme workshop descriptions
- Diploma Programme workshop descriptions
- Cross Programme workshop descriptions
What forms of professional development do we offer?
- These events bring together teachers from across the region. They are a unique opportunity for teachers to exchange best practice, develop their networking, and enhance their IB knowledge from experienced workshop leaders in a dedicated place and time.
- In-school workshops are designed around the specific needs for the ongoing professional development of your school community.
- IB online professional development workshops have been developed to complement regional face-to-face workshops, widening access for teachers from all IB regions.
- Cluster Events are in pilot in 2013 and is Professional Development training officially recognized by the IB and which is for training educators on a specific IB programme at a Host School’s premises for at least 2 participating schools. The Cluster Event pilot is being offered to accommodate gaps within the AEM region where our current PD offerings do not fully meet schools needs. Guidelines available here, Terms & Conditions available here . Apply here .
IB Educator Network (IBEN) training opportunities
The IB is continually looking for more educators to carry out the various IB-related tasks the organization is responsible for. More information on Educator Network opportunities and training is available here.
Have you considered hosting a workshop as 'PD Provider'
The regional office is seeking effective and experienced partners with whom it can organize professional development events in addition to those organized directly by the regional office. Applications will be considered from:
- IB Association of IB World Schools
- Colleges, universities, governmental agencies and non-profit organizations.
Consult the guide for organizing IB workshops.
Contact the regional office for further details.
Global Catalogue of Workshops
Find descriptions of all workshops available > here
Regional Workshops Programme
Wall calendars of workshops will be available soon.
Simple steps to register on-line
Consult our wide selection of
on-line workshops > here
In pilot in 2013 and officially recognized by the IB. They are for training educators on a specific IB programme at a Host School’s premises for at least two participating schools. The Cluster Event pilot is being offered to accommodate gaps within the AEM region where our current PD offerings do not fully meet schools needs. Guidelines available here, Terms & Conditions here. Apply here
Professional Development fees & payment Download here
New Category 3 workshops
Want to propose an idea for a new Category 3 workshop? Send proposals between September and December using the form available here .
Professional Development IBAEM [email protected] | <urn:uuid:5358e606-06e4-43e0-8348-52f8b15c5625> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ibo.org/ibaem/workshops/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00029-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.931039 | 747 | 1.726563 | 2 |
Explorations by Erdene Resource Development Corp. of the Zuun Mod molybdenum/copper project have revealed 400-metre wide deposits of molybdenum in various locations at the site.
This new information adds to an initial resource estimate, reported in May 2008, which totaled 110 million tons averaging 0.061% molybdenum, which is an essential element added to strengthen iron for use in commercial products.
Providing an update on its principal projects in conjunction with the release of its 2009 first quarter financial results, the company has said it has “continued to make progress on the completion of the updated resource estimate” at the project, located within 200 km of China’s border in Bayankhongor Province. The project, wholly owned by Erdene, measures 12 km in circumference and hosts broad zones of molybdenum/copper mineralization.
Popularity: 4% [?] | <urn:uuid:272ecc59-f51b-4406-b765-cee87a5f09e5> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.business-mongolia.com/mongolia/2009/06/02/new-molybdenum-deposits-found-in-bayankhongor/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.93459 | 199 | 1.507813 | 2 |
Accent walls, once the go-to decorating accent for every room created on design TV, are not always the perfect design solution. In fact, sometimes they are just plain wrong. Read on to find out my tips for deciding if an accent wall is the best solution for your home…
An accent wall is a wall that has been painted a different color or different shade from the rest of the room, or one that has been otherwise changed from the other walls in the space – through the installation of wallpaper, tile, stone, wood or other design feature.
While accent walls can be an inexpensive way to perk up a boring space, they aren’t the right solution for every room. Following are my rules-of-thumb concerning accent walls:
- Does your room have a wall that should be featured? An accent wall should reinforce the focal point of the room, not compete with it. So, in a room with a fireplace, which is the natural focal point, the accent wall should serve to enhance the fireplace – not take focus away from the fireplace. The accent wall, therefore, should be the wall on which the fireplace is located. Other likely accent walls include walls with large, beautiful windows, walls with other architectural details (exquisite cabinetry, art niches, architectural trim, etc) or the wall behind a bed (in the case of a bedroom). If your room doesn’t have a definite focal point, an accent wall can be used to create one; just make sure the wall you choose makes sense. An accent wall should not be a wall that doesn’t have any business being a focal point in the room. Examples of walls that shouldn’t typically be highlighted include walls leading upstairs or downstairs, walls with numerous doors and other nondescript areas such as hallways.
- Is your room large enough to support an accent wall? Surfaces of the same color tend to make a room look larger and more expansive. So, painting all the walls in a space the same color typically makes that room look bigger. Painting one wall a different color breaks up that continuity, making the space feel chopped up and smaller. In a huge space, this can be the desired effect – to break the room up and keep it from feeling cavernous. In a small powder room, however, it can simply serve to make a small space feel even smaller. Small bedrooms can also be poor candidates for accent walls, while larger spaces such as great rooms or family rooms can offer great options for adding accent walls to your home.
- Does your room need additional color, pattern or texture? In spaces with numerous solid surfaces – painted walls, solid color carpet, plain ceiling, solid-color furniture – the addition of pattern and texture may be just the shot in the arm you need to inject life into your space. In this case, consider adding wallpaper, architectural stone, slate tile, wood planks or other materials to your accent wall. While this is a more permanent accent wall solution, the addition of textured or patterned wall materials enhances the focal point of any room – provided you choose the right wall to accent (see rule #1).
- Remember that dark colors on a wall will tend to bring that wall into the room visually. Again, this can be a positive effect in some cases. Painting the end wall in a long, narrow space a dark color will serve to shorten the space visually, as the dark paint will make the wall feel closer to you. However, the effect can be overwhelming in a narrow room if you paint the wrong wall in a dark color, making it feel even narrower than before!
- If you choose to paint an accent wall in a darker shade of the color you are using on the remaining walls, be sure that your accent color is at least 2 shades darker than the original hue. If you choose a color too close to your main wall color, your eye will likely not decipher the difference due to natural shading and shadows in the room.
- If you would rather paint an accent wall in a completely different color than what you have on the remaining walls, look to the decorative accents in the room for cues. You could use the fabric on a decorative pillow, a color in your area rug or a hue from a favorite painting as inspiration for the color of your accent wall.
- Remember, too, that design rules are meant to be broken. If you aren’t sure whether an accent wall will be right for you, give it a try! Start with paint as a test run if you plan to install wood, stone or another permanent material on your accent wall. Paint the accent wall a hue similar to the material you will install to give you a good idea of how the new wall will change the look of the room. It’s much easier to change a coat of paint that to change a permanent installation!
What do you think about accent walls? Let us know how you have created style in your home with accent walls – or without!Pin It | <urn:uuid:747ad5d2-7964-42d9-99c9-2bdc4a708175> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://alittledesignhelp.com/accent-wall-love-it-or-leave-it/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696382584/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092622-00026-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.93134 | 1,024 | 1.554688 | 2 |
My Grandfather was born in Cade, so I thought it interesting to run across this little item. Cade was located in northeastern Bryan County. It was named after Cassius M. Cade, an early political figure. The last time I was there- many decades ago- there was a small store and gas station left. Most people don’t even remember that it ever existed.
The Caddo Herald
January 4, 1929
Cade News Notes
We are glad to report that the flu epidemic is subsiding.
The weather being so fine during the holidays we’ll be unable to report all goers and comers, but will note a few.
W. G. Ruth’s mother and two nieces returned home at Gainesville Thursday.
Mrs. Pauline Gray, who has been visiting relatives in Dallas, returned home Monday.
Miss McCann, her mother and Lee McCann, spent the holidays with relatives in Bennington.
F. E. Holloway and family, Mrs. Tom Odom and children and Roy Tillett of Altus, spent a few days with L. E. Roberts and family.
J. T. Hale and children James and Mary Janice motored to Bonham Wednesday where they met Mr. Hale’s mother, of Lubbock who was there on a short visit.
W. T. Trout and family entertained relatives and a few friends at their home Christmas day. The bird of the season graced the table.
W. G. Ruth is moving to the Samson McKinney farm this week.
W. F. Everett moved to Cade from the Hail community the past week.
T. R. Smith was in our community threshing peanuts Friday the 28th.
Fred Wigley and family were guests of H. H. Darough and wife of the Buffalo locality Friday to Sunday. | <urn:uuid:0b4b0cbb-395c-4fdc-99fb-ed1618f484f6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://mem55.typepad.com/caddo_my_home_town/2011/04/cade-1929.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00027-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.974902 | 391 | 1.5 | 2 |
Delcam’s new ArtCAM Pro makes complex artistic designs easy
The new release of Delcam’s ArtCAM Pro CADCAM software for artistic applications has made it much easier to create complex designs, especially those that include repeated elements that are similar but not identical within the design.
Unlike most other CADCAM systems, ArtCAM Pro is aimed at skilled artisans rather than engineers and requires little knowledge of engineering or computing. It has been particularly successful in the signmaking, woodworking and engraving industries. In these areas and in other artistic applications, ArtCAM Pro allows users to increase productivity, improve quality and deliver new designs more quickly, by combining their craft skills and creativity with the power and precision of computer-aided manufacturing.
The main addition in the latest release of ArtCAM Pro is a new way of working called ‘Free Relief Modelling’. This technique allows previously-created reliefs to be selected and then moved, rotated, rescaled and copied, either individually or as part of a group. Any part of the design can be isolated, edited and then recombined into a group for duplication or further editing within the group. At any stage in the process, either individual items or a group of items can be saved within ArtCAM Pro’s clipart library for use in future projects.
The overall result is much more natural than simply duplicating a single shape across the design, while also being much quicker than modelling each item individually. Examples where the technique could be used include creating the feathers in a model of a bird or designing a forest of similar trees without them all appearing identical.
A related development that will also make it easier to create more complex designs allows the interaction between different layers to be viewed in real time. This will make it much faster to choose the optimum combination of the different layers as the effects of changing the overlap can be seen instantly.
Sketching in ArtCAM Pro has been made easier by giving the designer the freedom to alternate between straight and curved vectors whilst drawing. Once created, vectors can now be added to or closed, and any nodes within them can be edited or deleted, at any time, either in the 2D or 3D view.
The ability to add textures to designs has always been an important feature within ArtCAM Pro. This ability has been extended with a new patent-pending ‘Texture Flow’ tool to create more natural organic textures, such as hair, fur and scales.
More natural effects can also be obtained with an addition to the sculpting tools. Sculpting effects can now be scattered randomly across the design as well as placed systematically. More control is available over all the sculpting options as these can now be limited to a specific area or to a set height. Of course, the "undo” option is still available if the results aren’t as expected.
All of these new capabilities can be displayed with even more realistic renders of designs created in ArtCAM Pro. The software now comes with POV-Ray ray-tracing technology, allowing high-quality images to be generated for customer approval or marketing materials.
06 December 2012 | <urn:uuid:68ed1a18-4c70-4cbc-b4c0-5a110ada6d2b> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.delcam.com/languages/es/news/press_article.asp?releaseId=1479 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00008-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.946159 | 653 | 1.75 | 2 |
February is Heart Health Month which brings awareness to the fact that cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death for both men and women. Heart disease is preventable and controllable so take care of your heart, get educated and fit.
Most people associate February with Valentine's Day, but did you know that February is also Library Lovers' Month? Check out this website to print some great bookmarks, send some online postcards, get library-inspired ideas for things to do with kids, and even see a list of movies involving librarians. Then come visit the library to check them out! | <urn:uuid:9bd627ef-9408-4cb2-90e7-c96474b62408> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.cantonpl.org/tags/february | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00034-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.973252 | 122 | 1.773438 | 2 |
Be sure not to miss the Gaylord Car located in our Gaylord Information Center at the corner of South Otsego Ave. and First Street.
The Gaylord Motor Company (GMC) was started in 1910. The car was first assembled in Detroit and returned to Gaylord. It was called the Gaylord Model 30. About 50 cars were produced the first year. In 1911 the company produced a D-S Touring Car and the R-20 Utility roadster. Cars ranged in price from $1,000 - $1,500. | <urn:uuid:57047edd-55eb-4619-bf53-b39effd9c1ad> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.gaylordmichigan.net/member-profile/100/3133/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00042-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.981619 | 112 | 1.609375 | 2 |
She asked me to tell her the story of the birth of Venus again.
We talk about what we believe and what other people believed long ago. She asks about other gods the Romans worshipped.
(Just wait until I introduce Aphrodite and the Greek posse. That'll blow her mind.)
We talk about what we believe today and what other people believe today.
And then, a Moment of Parental Reckoning: E asks if we believe in Santa Claus.
I don't want to mislead her and I also don't want her to ruin the magic that may sparkle in her friends' eyes. I speak carefully: I tell her some people believe there is a Santa Claus (who is not entirely unlike the Tooth Fairy) who descends into homes and leaves gifts for Christian kids. I tell her some people believe there was a real man once a long time ago, but today he's nothing but a story. I remind her (oh so gently) that Jewish people don't generally believe in Santa Claus or other Christian-based beliefs.
Well...I believe in him, Mama.
Tomorrow is the annual holiday party where I work, and because the girls' daycare is in my building, the daycare kids are trotted out every year to the middle of the party. They will hang ornaments that they will have decorated on the large tree and they will entertain the crowd with their off-key but very enthusiastic "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" and "Jingle Bells." There will be a jolly man in a Santa suit who will distribute small gifts to any child who sits on his lap. They both sat on his lap last year.
Is there a Santa Claus? This girl takes such big bites out of the world and loves the challenge of digestion. For all that I know her age sometimes I forget that she's just three. If a white-bearded man in a velvet red suit with a large black buckle shows up and hands her a present every time she hangs a Christmas ornament on a tree and sings "Jingle Bells," of course she believes in Santa Claus. After all, tomorrow he'll be right in front of her.
"Okay," I tell her. "It's okay for you to believe in him."
"You can always believe whatever you want. I'm always going to keep telling you what I believe, but you should always take everything you've ever learned and figure out all by yourself whatever it is you believe."
I will, Mama. And today I believe in Santa Claus. But even though I believe in him I'm NOT sitting on his lap. | <urn:uuid:96068188-d8ed-479e-8d59-d7df6e98b5ff> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.noteverstill.blogspot.com/2009/12/yes-virginia-there-is-santa-claus.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00026-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.97549 | 542 | 1.578125 | 2 |
Christmas in Sarajevo as a Catholic holiday.
I have been living in Bosnia and Herzegovina for the last six months. Since I first arrived here in June, I have travelled a lot, both in the country and in the neighbouring countries. This was a very intense period, and as the holiday season approached I found myself with no energy left to travel away for Christmas, and decided to spend this period in Sarajevo instead. That proved to be a very fortunate decision, not so much because of the airport chaos in Europe, but because it gave me the chance to be part of a very special environment in a city which, despite being now overwhelming populated by Muslims, is nevertheless determined to preserve its multicultural character and traditions. It also allowed me to better understand how religion as a cultural phenomenon works in Bosnia as a marker of difference among the Bosnians.
When I first told one of my closest friends in Sarajevo that instead of joining my family I would would spend Christmas alone in Sarajevo, he immediately offered to accompany me to the Midnight mass in one of Sarajevo’s Catholic churches. What I first thought was an act of hospitality based on friendship turned out to be a very old practice among the Muslims of Sarajevo. “We always go, every year. In Sarajevo everyone goes to the ‘ponocka’, not only the Catholics.” And his mother added that it has always been like that, even during communist rule.
When I asked around, this was confirmed by everyone. People even seemed to be surprised when I replied that I had never heard of such a thing, believers of a different religion celebrating in this way a holiday that they acknowledge not to belong to their own religious practice. For the Muslims with whom I spoke this is an established tradition that has become part of their own identity, while not at all diminishing their attachment and respect to their own religious tradition.
I chose to go to the Midnight mass at the Cathedral, in the centre of Sarajevo. When I got there, around 22h 30, the doors were still closed, but there was already a small crowd outside waiting. Much more people were walking along the main streets, between Bascarcija and the Marshall Tito street, killing time before the mass. The crowd gathered in front of the doors was composed by Catholics, who were keen on getting a good seat and rather anxious for the doors to open, although the night was not particularly cold, while the apparently more relaxed attitude of the Muslims reflected in fact their concern not to deprive the Catholics of the best available places, as that would not be a respectful thing to do.
When the doors finally opened I was very lucky to find myself a seat. In a matter of a few minutes the church was totally full, with people standing even on the main way, something I had never seen before, and many people remained outside, and followed the mass thanks to the loudspeakers installed at the square. On the front, in the seats reserved for representatives of other religions, the presence of Orthodox priests indicated that this tradition of attending the ‘Ponocka’ was not exclusive to the Muslims. The Cardinal Vinko Pujic, who celebrated the mass, on his homily acknowledged and made a note of appreciation for the presence of non-Catholics at the Mass, before addressing the Catholics, in a speech that extorted them to recognise Bosnia as their homeland, concluding that ‘Ova je nasa zemlja’. That this is also the land of the Catholics (that is of the Bosnian Croats) is also stated by the non-Catholics, nowadays mostly Muslims, that attend the midnight mass.
This is not to suggest that the coexistence between Bosniaks and Croats is devoid of tension in Sarajevo. Tensions do exist, and are revealed, on the one hand, by the Croats’ anxiety about becoming a residual minority in the city, and on the other by some Bosniaks’ resentment against the system of quotas in access to public jobs which grants the Croats a larger share than their demographic proportion. I will deal with these tensions in another post, but for now it is important to highlight that in any healthy society the coexistence among different groups (whatever may be the criteria of differentiation) is marked by occasional conflicts and very often by persistent latent tensions. The level of cohesion of a society is most accurately measured not by the presence of absence of tension, but by the consensual mechanisms that help manage difference on people’s every day lives. One of such mechanisms has just been described in this post.
The ‘Ponocka’ is lived by the inhabitants of Sarajevo as an event that is part of their identity as Sarajevans, an identity that transcends the barrier of religion, while at the same time framing Christmas as a specifically Catholic commemoration (I heard a foreign of protestant faith complaining about feeling discriminated by the fact that before 24th December people greet only the believers of Catholic faith).
The Christmas holiday season is marked marked in Sarajevo by a surprisingly successful juxtaposition of different traditions that goes beyond the Catholic dimension. However, the coexistence of different traditions is not always devoid of controversy. The main focus of this controversy has been, in recent years, the figure of Djeda Mraza, a controversy which I will elaborate upon on my next post, the second of a series of three posts dedicated to the holiday season in Sarajevo.
(A photographic coverage of this event can be seen here) | <urn:uuid:aa5523f5-e545-48dc-ba12-d0082728fd34> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://cafeturco.wordpress.com/2011/01/01/christmas-in-sarajevo/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00036-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.981531 | 1,162 | 1.664063 | 2 |
Vote for Cats Site of the Month. Visit each Site of the Week page for the months indicated, then support the site you feel is most deserving for each month by voting. Results will be published on this page for each month, and the Cats Site of the Year will be chosen from among the monthly winners.
Thousands of animal advocates struggle with lives of selfless sacrifice in order to support the work they do in rescuing, nurturing, spaying and neutering, and fostering the innocent creatures they eventually hope to place in permanent loving homes. If one were to venture into the dreams of any one of these noble souls, one would find the fantasy of a life fully devoted to their rescue work without the necessity of the day to day scramble to supply enough money to continue. Cat food, veterinary care, spaying and neutering, vitamins, and kitten formula all cost money, and most of these individuals and organizations are self-funded, supplemented from time to time by small donations from other caring souls.
In steps Maddie's Fund, established in 1994 through the Duffield Foundation by Cheryl and Dave Duffield, PeopleSoft co-founder and Board Chairman. In 1998 Maddie's Fund announced its intention of spending $200 million to establish a no-kill nation, a thrilling concept to animal lovers. To head up this endeavor, Richard Avanzino, formerly President of the San Francisco SPCA, a forerunner in the no-kill concept, was appointed President of Maddie's Fund. Avanzino is in good company-- the staff of Maddie's Fund reads like a Who's Who in animal advocacy.
Maddie's Fund is not trying to reinvent the wheel. The concept behind its philanthropy is to work hand-in-hand with existing organizations by supplying the desperately needed funding to support ongoing work as well as to develop new programs. Existing projects include:
- The California Veterinary Medical Association Feral Cat Altering Project,
recipient of a $3.2 million grant for the neutering of 60,000 feral cats over a three year period
- The Pet Rescue Project
of Contra Costa County, California, in conjunction with local advocacy groups and the county animal services, with the goal of making Contra Costa County a no-kill area within 5 years. (As a resident of Contra Costa County for over 40 years, I am particularly gratified by this endeavor.)
- No More Homeless Pets in Utah
A joint effort with Best Friends Animal Sanctuary (previous Site of the Week), 19 other no-kill shelters/humane groups, and 54 animal control facilities, with the massive goal of ending the killing of dogs and cats through the entire state of Utah within five years.
Does your organization qualify for funding by Maddie's Fund? The criteria includes a cooperative effort involving rescue groups, veterinarians, and local animal control agencies. This may seem like a daunting challenge at first, but by reading the FAQs, the reasoning will become clear.Maddie's Fund has taken a leadership position in corporate responsibility toward those creatures who have to depend on humans for their voice. I pray others will follow their lead so the future will hold no more homeless animals.
See the previous Sites of the Week here:
The permanent URL for Site of the Week is:
Click Here To Visit Other Pet & Animal Sites At About.com. | <urn:uuid:2933156a-933b-4a33-87ff-450241b1b4e4> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://cats.about.com/library/weekly/blsow071000.htm | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00019-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.936741 | 682 | 1.617188 | 2 |
Inspiration comes from the strangest places.
Last weekend, for example, I took my inaugural trip to a science fiction/comic book convention. For the first time in years, I was immersed in the science fiction that I used to love in college—“Star Wars” and “Star Trek,” to name a few.
Here’s a look at the best lines uttered by one of the greatest sci-fi characters of all time: Jean-Luc Picard (Patrick Stewart) from “Star Trek: The Next Generation.” How do these tie in to corporate communications? Perhaps I’ll use one or two of these in my next staff meeting.
10. “I am Locutus of Borg. Resistance is futile.”
9. “You may test that assumption at your convenience.”
8. “There are four lights.”
7. "The line is drawn here! This far, no farther!"
6. "Let's make sure history never forgets the name . . . Enterprise
5. “No, I am not dead. Because I refuse to believe the afterlife is run by you. The universe is not so badly designed!”
4. “If we're going to be damned, let's be damned for what we really are.”
3. “Reports of my assimilation are greatly exaggerated.”
2. “Shut up, Wesley”
1. "Time is a companion that goes with us on a journey. It reminds us to cherish each moment, because it will never come again. What we leave behind is not as important as how we have lived."
readers, care to share any of your favorite science fiction quotes?
Laura Hale Brockway is a medical writer and editor from Austin, Texas. She is also the author of the writing/editing/random thoughts blog, impertinentremarks.com. | <urn:uuid:c8f8b66b-2b32-49d8-b30d-fd6d8ef1fdd8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.prdaily.com/Main/Articles/13081.aspx | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00018-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.945036 | 410 | 1.539063 | 2 |
By Lester Holt, NBC News Anchor
Lately, I've spent a great deal of time researching China in preparation for covering this summer's Olympics. While China's history and culture are fascinating, it is the numbers—a population of 1.3 billion people—that I find hard to wrap my mind around. China makes up twenty percent of the world's population, more than four times the population of the United States.
By extension, I find the casualty numbers from the May 12th earthquake equally tough to comprehend. Tonight we will be reporting on a strong aftershock that has rocked the Sichuan region, collapsing another 70,000 homes, and leaving 200,000 other structures at risk of destruction. Officially, the death toll from the original quake stands at 62,664, with 23,775 people still missing. Officially 5,000,000 people are homeless. There is nothing in our experience in this country that compares to the scope of devastation and suffering there, and so I suppose it is understandable that we look on with both sympathy and a sense of awe. Tonight our Beijing-based correspondent Mark Mullen continues his excellent reporting on the disaster, including word of yet another "miracle" rescue of a quake survivor.
We're of course following up yesterday's deadly and damaging round of tornadoes in Kansas and Oklahoma. CNBC's Sharon Epperson will lay out what the summer will look like in terms of gasoline prices. Lee Cowan is on top of the Democratic presidential race, including what Barack Obama told Wesleyan University grads at their commencement, and Hillary Clinton's latest response to the flap over her "Robert Kennedy" remarks.
A quick thanks to my colleague Amy Robach for sitting in for me last night while our family celebrated my youngest son's high school graduation. You know what that means; stay tuned for lots of stories in the coming months on "empty nest syndrome."
Thanks for checking in on the blog. I hope you can join us later for NBC Nightly news. | <urn:uuid:954284a7-1186-4999-8f7b-77e69739ea02> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://dailynightly.nbcnews.com/_news/2008/05/25/4372826-disaster-by-the-numbers?lite | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00023-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.945702 | 410 | 1.53125 | 2 |
Backyard bat house news...
We installed one of your bat houses in our little piece of woods last spring, and it was occupied in the summer and fall. In the fall we were having drinks with a backyard neighbor who remarked: "You know, suddenly I'm seeing bats. I wonder where they're coming from." When I said, "From us," he was amazed. "You mean you keep bats purposely?" he asked. That gave me an opportunity to tell him what good people bats are, explode myths, etc. We left him a convert to BCI.
BAT-O-GRAM: Early this evening I saw six bats around the bat houses I put up last summer. My bat houses are a neighborhood project, so when I saw the bats I called the neighbors that helped put up the houses. We are ardent backyard sitters, but have never seen bats in the area. I was watching purple martins and trying to determine how many I had this year when I saw the first bat. I do not know if they are staying in my houses, but I will keep watch and let you know. The arrival of the bats caused as much excitement as the arrival of the purple martin scouts. I hope I have just established the first bat colony in this area.
Letters to the Editor may be edited for length and clarity. | <urn:uuid:2d51c449-5adc-4f88-a76b-d17bf5321221> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://batcon.org/index.php/media-and-info/bats-archives.html?task=viewArticle&magArticleID=401 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368709037764/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125717-00029-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.980688 | 274 | 1.617188 | 2 |
Written by Adam Czech, Public Information CoordinatorThere’s a unique story behind each home loan and home repair project financed by USDA Rural Development in Minnesota. On June 9, State Director Colleen Landkamer and her staff visited three homeowners to celebrate June Homeownership Month and learn more about their stories.
“I think it is amazing how many people we are able to help become home owners and remain in their homes each year through our programs,” Landkamer said. “Visiting with the people that use our programs really highlights the importance of home ownership in strengthening our rural communities.”
Landkamer and staff were joined at each home by staff from Congressman Collin Peterson’s office. Each home owner received an American flag that flew above the U.S. Capital as a gift from Congressman Peterson.
Below is a brief recap of what makes each person’s story unique.
After almost 10 years of renting, Melissa Miller is finally a home owner. Melissa, along with her two children moved into her first home in Brandon, Minn., in late April using a USDA Rural Development direct home loan.
“I never dreamed I would own a home,” Miller said. “It’s still kind of surreal, but we did it.”
Melissa put herself through school and works two jobs to support her family. Rural Development partnered with the West Central Minnesota Community Action agency to build Miller’s home. “Right now I am loving life,” Melissa said. “Being a home owner means a lot to me and I couldn’t be happier.”
Jessica Botten’s daughter McKenna, 5, had just one request after moving into her new home: She wanted a pink room.
Jessica closed on her home in Alexandria, Minn., on Dec. 10. A phlebotomist at a nearby clinic, Jessica previously rented an apartment next to a motor racing track, not exactly the most peaceful location to live.
“The home is ideal for McKenna and I,” she said. “She can play in our yard, there’s more room for her toys. I really feel like I’m home now.”
And, yes, she was able to paint McKenna’s room pink.
Dorcella Hagen keeps a guest book in her home in Cyrus, Minn., so she will always remember who came to visit her. One night after a dinner party, one of her guests noticed a moisture spot on her ceiling. It turned out that Dorcella’s roof needed to be replaced.
On a fixed income after a car accident left her disabled, Dorcella used Rural Development’s home repair program to fix her roof, remove the moisture from her ceiling and stay in the home she’s owned since 1994.
“When I told people that some folks from the USDA were going to come visit me today, they wondered why I was having meat inspectors to my house,” Dorcella said. “I told them the USDA works with housing, too. And I couldn’t be more grateful for the program.”
For more information about USDA’s home loan programs click here.
New homeowner Melissa Miller (Left) and Colleen Landkamer, State Director, USDA Rural Development, celebrate Miller’s accomplishment. | <urn:uuid:7befd5d1-ef84-4a5b-a7fd-ebbfd46b6d05> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://blogs.usda.gov/tag/collin-peterson/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703298047/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112138-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.970187 | 711 | 1.507813 | 2 |
ST. LOUIS -- A top National Rifle Association official levied sharp criticism against the national media on Saturday, accusing it of sensationalizing the Trayvon Martin case and ignoring other crimes that happen across the country every day.
NRA Executive Vice President Wayne LaPierre didn't mention the Martin case by name during his speech at the group's annual meeting in St. Louis, but he accused the media of "sensational reporting from Florida." The 17-year-old Martin was unarmed when he was fatally shot Feb. 26 in Sanford, Fla., by neighborhood watch volunteer George Zimmerman, who claimed self-defense.
Police initially didn't charge Zimmerman, prompting nationwide protests. Zimmerman was charged with second-degree murder last week.
The case has drawn new attention to self-defense laws that give people a broad right to use deadly force without having to retreat from a fight. The NRA strongly supports such statutes, known as "stand your ground" or "castle doctrine" laws, which are in effect in about 30 states.
Until Saturday, LaPierre had declined to comment on the Martin case, citing a need to learn all the facts. During the NRA gathering, he called the news media "a national disgrace." LaPierre said violent crime is an everyday fact of life in every American city.
"But the media, they don't care," LaPierre said. "Everyday victims aren't celebrities. They don't draw ratings, don't draw sponsors. But sensational reporting from Florida does. In the aftermath of one of Florida's many daily tragedies, my phone has been ringing off the hook" with calls from reporters.
Some gun-control advocates have seized on the shooting to renew debate about guns. Officials with the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence have pledged to use the case to fight proposed federal legislation that would force states with strict gun laws to recognize concealed weapons permits granted in other states that have fewer requirements.
"George Zimmerman is the NRA," the group's president, Dan Gross, said in a statement earlier this week. "And Florida's `Shoot First, Ask Questions Later' law and the paranoid mentality it promotes are products of the NRA's vision for America, where just about anybody can get and use a gun just about anywhere."
Messages left with the group Saturday weren't immediately returned. Rallies against Missouri's "stand your ground" law were held ahead of and during the NRA gathering, though efforts to overturn the law seem unlikely given its strong backing in the Republican-controlled Legislature.
NRA Executive Director Chris Cox defended such self-defense laws during Saturday's meeting, recalling the case of Sarah McKinley, who was alone with her baby in her rural Oklahoma home when an intruder armed with a hunting knife broke down the door. McKinley shot and killed the man.
"Castle doctrine can literally save your life," Cox said.
Zimmerman, 28, told police that he was attacked by Martin and believed he had no choice but to shoot him in self-defense. The teenager's family believes Zimmerman singled out Martin as suspicious because he was black. Zimmerman's father is white and his mother is Hispanic. | <urn:uuid:498bea0c-9a2e-4a37-8a05-f95327f4a5fd> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/04/15/nra-trayvon-martin-media_n_1426637.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00028-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.977286 | 638 | 1.617188 | 2 |
If you’ve been a reader of my blog for a while, you should already know my opinion on the use of the r-word.
If you’re new here, let me sum it up for you:
Don’t use it.
Don’t ignore it when someone else uses it.
Don’t be afraid to speak up and make it known that using the r-word is outdated, and more importantly, incredibly offensive.
Don’t assume someone else will do it for you.
Don’t minimize – in your head or your heart – the damage using the r-word can inflict. Words have the power to lift others up, and they most certainly have the power to tear others down. The r-word falls in the latter category.
Don’t underestimate the population the r-word is so often and so cruelly used to describe. They are wise, loving, kind, intuitive people and they know a derogatory slur when they hear one.
Don’t forget: When we know better, we DO better.
So now, in case you didn’t already, you KNOW better. You’re already halfway there.
And, I’m going to stop right here. Because rather than reinventing the wheel, I’m going to provide you with some amazing content relevant to today’s “Spread the Word to End the Word” campaign.
These are words of wisdom from some pretty awesome folks, so make it a point to stop by and read what they’ve got to say. I dare you to walk away unaffected.
and last but not least, a piece I recently did when I heard a young child use a word that is so incredibly demeaning and hurtful: | <urn:uuid:158354f8-632b-4bb6-999b-fa686b1053ec> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://joashline.com/2013/03/dont.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00023-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.93384 | 376 | 1.515625 | 2 |
Anne-Marie Slaughter wrote a provocative piece in The Atlantic entitled “Why Women Still Can’t Have It All.” It inspired a lot of discussion. Some were upset that she would put a damper on the ambitions of so many young women. Others praised her for telling it like it is.
My friend Nora Ephron, who died last week, gave the commencement speech in 1996 at Wellesley, her alma mater. In her speech, she said, “This is the season when a clutch of successful women – who have it all – give speeches to women like you and say, to be perfectly honest, you can’t have it all. Maybe young women don’t wonder whether they can have it all any longer, but in case any of you are wondering, of course you can have it all… It will be a little messy, but embrace the mess. It will be complicated, but rejoice in the complications.” And she added: “you can always change your mind. I know. I’ve had four careers and three husbands.”
Nora wasn’t kidding about the mess and the complications. This is why the whole question of “having it all” is irrelevant. I don’t even know what it means. My interpretation, and I think that of most women, is that it means having a great marriage, being a terrific mother and having a successful career all at the same time. I don’t know a single woman who has ever been able to manage all of this simultaneously without putting something or someone first some of the time.
The interesting thing is that in the nearly 45 years that we were friends, through all of the mess and complications of both of our lives, Nora and I never had a conversation about whether we could have it all. We did the best we could. It became clear that throughout much of that time we were both trying to “do” it all but we rarely “had” it all. There’s a big difference. We had husbands, we had children, we had careers. I think the biggest meltdown Nora and I ever shared with each other, (separately) was over nannies gone bad.
Certainly for me there were times when I put one before the other.You have to choose. Before I had my son, Quinn, I would alternate between putting my marriage first and my career first. After Quinn was born with a hole in his heart, had surgery at age 3 months, then developed medical problems and learning disabilities, my choices were obvious. Quinn came first, then my husband, whose support I desperately needed, and then my so-called career, which languished for sixteen years. Most women don’t have to face choices quite so dramatic. Some might have had different priorities which worked better for them. This is what worked for me.
I think where this whole argument went off the rails is when women began to judge each other for their different choices. I don’t understand why one way is better than another. We are all different and nobody should tell another woman how to live. Slaughter talked about how she used to feel smug about being able to have it all and looked down on other women who couldn’t see to make it work. Then she said she was criticized by other women when she quit her state department job and moved back to her family in Princeton because she had supposedly let the side down by choosing her family first. I have to say that Slaughter’s circumstances are so rare than even the most high-powered women couldn’t relate. She took a job with Hillary Clinton in Washington and left her family behind in Princeton, commuting home on weekends. Of course she couldn’t have it all. Duh!
During the height of the feminist movement, when Gloria Steinem and Betty Friedan were duking it out over the importance of marriage and a family. Gloria made a now famous statement that “a woman needs a man like a fish needs a bicycle.” A lot of young women were completely traumatized by the whole notion that there must be something wrong with them if they wanted families and children and, God forbid, wanted some time to stay home when they had kids. I remember in the newsroom, a friend of mine came over to me, red faced, to tell me she was expecting. She was just beginning to show. “I know it’s not politically correct,” she said, “but my husband and I really wanted a baby.” There was a sort of “macho” quality among some women with children to see who could work the longest hours, the wife or the husband, in an effort to intimidate the men into sharing equal time with the kids. And I wouldsay that not one female friend with a career didn’t take the greater share of childcare and housekeeping.
Today, I’m happy to see now that so many younger women are confronting choices with a much more realistic view of life. Many are taking their partner’s name in marriage. (In a million years I wouldn’t have changed my name and still wouldn’t today.) Many are taking time off from work to stay home with their children. Many are working flexible hours. Some are in high-powered jobs and have nannies and baby sitters. I look around the newsroom and see some of the smartest people are women. All are making different choices. I respect them for whatever choices they make. Some will go to the top; some will decide not to. Some will wait and do it later. Fine. For me, it helped going to a women’s college. I went to Smith, as did Friedan and Steinem. All of the smartest people there were women, so it never occurred to me that women were anything but.
I have always believed that women can do anything, I have always believed that one day women will rule the world. When my son says “Mom, you should be president of the United States,” he’s only half joking. He could say that about most of the women I know.
Slaughter’s solution is totally unrealistic, certainly any time soon. She says to close the leadership gap we should “elect a woman president and 50 women senators to ensure that women are equally represented in the ranks of corporate executives and judicial leaders. “ Great idea. Only problem is it doesn’t solve our immediate problem. It will take time.
Yes there should be more women in the upper ranks, especially since women are graduating from law, medical and graduate schools at increasing rates. These women are not “opting out” though, a really dirty phrase in feminist language. They are simply living their lives the way they want to live them. Gradually they are finding ways to be able to have the marriages, careers and families they want at the times they want them. The more women in power the more women will have the options to design their own lives.
Slaughter points out, rightly, that she is writing for a certain demographic. We are talking here about women who have the luxury of making choices. Most women in America don’t. They have to work.
One of the worlds in which “opting out” not being allowed, is in the world of religion. There is hardly any religion which does not treat women as second-class citizens and, consequently, that has to have an effect on the thinking of both sexes. When religions accept us as equals it will make a huge difference in the way women view themselves and the world around them.
As Nora said at the end of her Wellesley speech, “Did I say it was hard? Yes, but let me say it again so that none of you can ever say the words, nobody said it was so hard. But it’s also incredibly interesting. You are so lucky to have that life as an option.”
So it’s time to stop whining and moaning about how we can’t have it all or boasting that we can. I once knew a psychologist whose mantra was, “You get what you want.” The point is that we can have the lives we want. And we should glory in the fact that we are women.
Sally Quinn | Jul 5, 2012 6:40 PM | <urn:uuid:0fae7bb0-0569-44f9-85bf-79ff1df7082e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/on-faith/post/women-might-not-have-it-all-but-its-up-to-them-to-get-what-they-need/2012/07/05/gJQAi5kLQW_blog.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00034-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.985676 | 1,747 | 1.65625 | 2 |
Charitable giving is getting a boost from mobile marketing, as nonprofit organizations and brands trying to raise money are utilizing the platform's immediacy and direct response.
Television networks are now using social media and their websites to create rewards programs for viewers. NBC, ABC Family and USA Network have launched such programs since May.
Discovery Communications is one company planning a social game for later this year to promote the Discovery Channel's Deadliest Catch show.
Marketers are increasingly using web-based sweepstakes and contests in their integrated marketing campaigns, bringing a classic direct marketing tactic to consumers via the Internet.
Direct marketers and e-commerce merchants taking the iPad for a test drive are still feeling out the popular mobile product's marketing capabilities.
Marketers are incorporating Zynga's Facebook games, including FarmVille, YoVille and Mafia Wars, into campaigns that link product purchases to in-game redemptions.
To reach consumers where they are — literally — marketers are adding location-based technologies to their loyalty and couponing programs.
Major brand marketers, such as Coca-Cola and Walmart, are giving consumers some control over their corporate giving campaigns through the use of social media.
Marketers are finding new ways to employ user-generated content, especially video and photos, in their campaigns.
A diverse range of marketers, including Calvin Klein and Valpak, have recently used augmented reality ads to add interactive digital elements to their campaigns.
As more companies use Facebook as a marketing platform, they are demanding measurement tools to gauge consumer interaction on the site.
With more consumers viewing online video, advertising in the channel is also gaining traction as marketers, publishers and agencies establish standards for it.
Last year, Skittles got an aftertaste it didn't expect from a social media experiment. Critics pounced after Skittles launched a stream of social media comments about the brand on its site. The brand found itself hosting many negative — and less-than-tasteful — opinions about its product.
Marketers continue to dedicate greater portions of the marketing budget to social networking and Web-based channels, at the expense of traditional media.
Since 2007, brands have created Facebook fan pages that users can join or check regularly. However, the social network has given marketers more opportunities for increased engagement in the past year.
When Bigelow Tea wanted to attract more visitors to its Web site and better engage them, it launched the Tea Talk blog and corresponding social network presence on MySpace, Facebook and Twitter. The social media presence especially came in handy last year, when a subset of customers was outraged at the discontinuation of the Fruit and Almond Tea, and Bigelow — the person — answered.
Despite plateauing this year, Web banner ads remain a major source of advertising revenue for marketers. However, their creators are working to improve their effectiveness and interactivity with consumers.
Twitter will play a larger role in retailers' marketing plans this year than in the past, and not only because the social site is much more prominent than it was last year.
For NBC Universal, the explosion of online video has opened up creative opportunities to promote its on-air lineup.
For Sherwin-Williams, introducing an iPhone app was a natural extension of its online and in-store efforts.
Social network membership is growing among Americans, according to a recent Forrester Research study. The most rapid growth has occurred among consumers 35 and older; however, all ages and demographics use social networking sites regularly.
Business-to-business marketer Janus Capital Group launched a Web site last month as part of a digital strategy to reach customers and prospects one-to-one.
In a crowded online retail market, Web analytics have become essential. But visitor counts alone aren't cutting it anymore for e-commerce firms looking to provide ultra-personalized shopping experiences.
More brands are looking to add the mobile channel to build relationships and be a part of the CRM mix.
E-books still represent a small percentage of overall online book sales. But this could soon change, thanks to several recent and upcoming developments in this category. In a new report, How Big Is the Reader Opportunity, Forrester Research forecasts that the US market for e-readers will rise from 1 million to 2 million users in 2009.
On May 26, Nokia launched its Ovi Store, an online software and content repository, to an estimated 50 million Nokia device owners worldwide.
Following Apple's announcement of 1 billion iPhone app downloads in just nine months, Compete released its quarterly Smartphone Intelligence report, indicating 28% of smartphone users have spent $5 to $50 on a mobile application. These early signs of ancillary revenue have marketers asking what it takes to build a successful mobile application — and what the price is.
Analytics can play a key role in optimizing any campaign, and for brands Channel 4 and HowStuffWorks, tying analytics to their ad network buys is a new way that both publishers are optimizing their display ad campaigns. Earlier this month, data services firm Omniture and ad network 24/7 Real Media formed a strategic partnership with these and other publishers to track visitor site behavior and tie this information into their display ads.
With last week's announcement that Owen Van Natta, a Facebook alum, would replace Chris DeWolfe as CEO of MySpace, the social networking giant still finds itself quickly losing more friends to Facebook.
Over the past decade, self-publishing platforms, such as blogs and YouTube, have made it significantly easier for a marketing manager to both craft the message and press "send."
Database company D&B is launching a new media property it says will allow marketers to reach consumers searching for businesses, business services and products when they are looking to buy. With the newly created unit, D&B Digital, marketers can reach business decision-makers as they are looking to purchase a product or service, said Mark Walters, VP of D&B Digital.
As Google's YouTube and AOL and Yahoo videos gain popularity, brands are looking for ways to monetize online video. "Advertisers who used to get a lot of reach by buying spots on prime time TV are finding that they are reaching less of an audience, so they are looking for new opportunities, especially with younger audiences," said Usha Srinivasan, VP of product marketing at Vobile, which helps advertisers identify user-generated content to ensure that ads are safe against the content.
If you thought the days of sponsor mentions were in the past, guess again. Advertisers, such as Warner Brothers and Janome, have found that custom content integration with Next New Networks can successfully reach targeted communities online.
As social media marketing remains in its nascent phase, many brands have been trying to figure out the best way to engage consumers in this ever-popular medium. Skittles, the fruity-flavored bite size candy produced by Mars Snackfood, last week decided to throw itself fully into, and at the mercy of, social media when it launched a revamped Web site.
As the Web gets more social, online property rental companies are optimizing their listings with social components.
What happens when semantic and behavioral technologies are introduced to display advertising? The medium can achieve the relevance and performance of search engine marketing. That's the opinion of Paul Knegten, head of marketing for Dapper.
When television broadcasts switch from analog to digital, untold new opportunities for digital and mobile marketing will be available, because the Federal Communications Commission voted to make the unused TV spectrum, commonly referred to as "white spaces," available to the public.
This winter, some marketers are getting a rare glimpse at a growth market: The US-based online Latino population. According to the Pew Hispanic Center, most regions of the US are experiencing a growth in Latino population, a population that Global Insight's Hispanic Market Monitor says has a disposable income that is growing 8% per year.
With this year's weak economy, the holiday season has become more important than ever to retailers, who earn most of their profits in the fourth quarter. To maximize the customer experience in a year when customers have less money to spend and more retailers are competing for attention, some retailers are finding that optimizing their digital experiences is a way to catch a customer's eye.
With the holidays quickly approaching, it's no surprise that retailers in the online space are using e-mail marketing to reach the ever-increasingly digital consumer. "Holidays present a dangerous time for e-mail marketers, because consumers' inboxes are just inundated with marketers hoping against good sense that more mail means more orders," said Michael Dickerson, GM and SVP of e-marketing solutions for Premiere Global Services.
As mobile marketing meanders through its early stages, experts say that businesses should learn to take advantage of the unique platform it offers, rather than transposing marketing methods from other channels onto it.
Despite what some believe, television content is anything but dead. Earlier this year, Nielsen reported that even in today's digitized world, the average American consumer watches more linear television per week than ever. What is up for debate, however, is the future of linear television advertising.
With the holiday season approaching, consumers are flocking to retail locations — and now, more than ever, online — to find gifts. This time of year is especially important for search marketers looking to connect online shoppers to their clients. "We know people are doing more and more shopping online," said Alex Porter, VP of Internet marketing firm Location3 Media.
Late last month, the long-awaited Google Android G1 phone went on sale. T-Mobile is selling the phones, and Motorola is running the Google software on its devices — it also has plans for its own social networking phone.
In a slow economy, marketing and advertising budgets are often among the first to be "restructured" or "scaled down" by companies. However, marketers should view these times as a strategic opportunity to reach consumers in new and alternative methods, specifically mobile SMS marketing, said Mike Romano, VP of SmartReply, a voice and mobile marketing services provider.
Although still in its infancy, machinima — animated films created by using a number of different game or virtual world engines — is rapidly emerging as a surprisingly effective new tool for marketers.
People are spending more time on social networks, blogs and the so-called long tail of the Web, so more advertisers are turning to widgets because of their interactive and viral qualities.
Operating an e-commerce store is not just about having products for sale on a Web site. Savvy online retailers are finding that using data to create targeted campaigns can personalize the shopping experience and increase sales.
While some economists fear that the US economy borders on recession, especially in the wake of the Federal Reserve's bailout of AIG last week, there is little doubt that the marketing and media industry is already suffering.
The launch date is near for HTC's Dream, the first handset running Google's new Android mobile operating system — which could mean the first serious competition to Apple's iPhone.
Company of the week
R2C creates, produces, distributes and measures messages that inspire and compel consumers to do something with a brand to drive commercial advantage. The full-service advertising agency specializes in creative, production, media, analytics and performance.
What's in our mailbox this month: fitness postcards from Retro Fitness, American Woman Fitness Centers, Union's United Taekwondo Academy, and Bally Total Fitness. (We're totally pumped.)
Social data can improve a brand's bottom line and customer relationships. Just ask brands Infiniti and Diamond Nexus.
Here are three must-have data sets that every marketer should include in his or her email strategy. | <urn:uuid:52cca89d-e10d-451b-8da4-2cf03d8c54c3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.dmnews.com/optimized/printsection/128/0/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705953421/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120553-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.946648 | 2,410 | 1.546875 | 2 |
Polish Museum of America
Polish Museum of America Events
Polish Museum of America Information
Friday–Wednesday: 11:00a.m.–4:00p.m., Closed Thursdays
When to Go:
Fun All Year Round
- The Chicago Polish Museum offers several collections and exhibitions
- Guided tours are available on request
- Features an impressive library with over 60,000 titles
984 N. Milwaukee Avenue
Chicago, IL 60622
User Average ReviewOverall:
Based on 0 reviews
0.0 out of 5 Stars
0.0% recommended it
Polish Museum of America Reviews
There are currently no reviews!
Be the first to write a review!
Polish Museum of America Photos
Polish Museum of America Hotel
Polish Museum of America
Do you agree?
The Polish Museum of America Offers Insight into Polish History and the Polish Immigrant Experience in America
- Adult Price$7.00
- Senior Price$6.00
- Student Price$6.00
Features: The Chicago Polish Museum, founded in 1935, is one of the oldest and largest ethnic museums in the United States of America. Located in the heart of the first Polish neighborhood in Chicago, it promotes the knowledge of Polish history and culture, especially promulgates Polish and Polish American art in its paintings, sculptures, drawings and lithographs by well-known artists. It offers numerous exhibits in addition to cultural programs such as lectures, concerts, movie and slide presentations, theatre performances, meetings with scholars, artists, and people dedicated to Polish culture from all over the world.
With its 60,000 volumes, 250 periodicals, collections of Polish music records and cassettes, the Museum Library ranks as one of the best, outside of Poland. The archives preserve documents pertaining to Polish and Polish American history. Many scholars from varied parts of the country come here to complete their research and many students receive their first introduction to knowledge of Polish history and culture through the Polish Museum archives. The Polish Museum of America Chicago has an interesting gift shop that offers many imported items from Poland, including Polish dolls, amber jewelry, designs from wood shavings and hand-carved wooden items.
Why We Go: The Polish Museum Chicago offers a fascinating insight into the history and culture of Polish Americans.
- Educational: Learn about Poland's rich past and the history of the Polish immigrant in Chicago.
- Inspirational: Discover how many Polish people escaped Poland in search of a new life in America through first hand accounts and oral histories.
- Convenient Location: The Polish Museum Chicago is situated near many ethnic - including Polish - restaurants and cafes - allowing you to make the most of your cultural experience.
Inside Knowledge: The Polish Museum Chicago regularly holds cultural and family friendly events, so you may want to check their online calendar to see what's on before you visit.
Do's and Don'ts:
- Do Take a Tour: Guided tours are available if requested in advance, and these can really help you soak all the information in and have your questions answered.
- Do Explore the Library: The library at the Polish Museum Chicago boasts over 60,000 titles and should not be missed.
- Don't Forget the Kids: Kids will enjoy this museum, especially as it regularly provides kid friendly activities and events.
- Don't Ignore the Area: The Polish Museum Chicago is located near many restaurants and stores, so make sure you explore the area a little on your visit. | <urn:uuid:d2db789e-f092-45fb-81d0-4b39c0e30932> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.chicagotraveler.com/attractions/polish-museum-of-america.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701459211/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105059-00020-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.930025 | 716 | 1.835938 | 2 |
Stockbridge Valley, Madison schools discuss merger options, cost at meeting Wednesday
MUNNSVILLE- The Joint Community Advisory Committee looked at “what if” scenarios built by the SES Study Team for the potential reorganization of Madison Central and Stockbridge Valley Central School districts Wednesday. The study team focused on broad views of possible transportation, staffing, and finances for a merged district.
All of the “what if” scenarios are based off the idea that kindergarten through fifth grade students will stay in their current district buildings; sixth through eighth would attend classes at Madison and high school students would attend classes at Stockbridge Valley.
The SES Study Team rounded many figures up and didn’t stretch costs in order to provide a conservative view. The “what if” scenarios are a template that the reorganized board would expand on should a merger look favorable.
Transportation was the first item addressed at the meeting, setting up how the districts would reallocate busing for students. The new route would have high school pupils picked up between 6:40-7:40 a.m., with grades K-8 students picked up between 7:40-8:40 a.m.
Currently, the districts combined have 21 round trips per day. Redistricting through the projection would require 32 daily round trips. This number would most likely be reduced due to the proximity of the two districts.
The projected transportation will cost the reorganized districts' tax payers around $176,571 annually, around $64,254 more than what the districts currently pay collectively. Paul Seversky of the study team said it was important to remember that these numbers are conservative and that the report adds a 10 percent increase to all costs in case of fuel or service inflation.
Doug Exley and Sam Shevat provided a look at the possible staffing for a merged district, which would see a similar number of full-time employees the districts collectively have currently. The projection does show an increase in costs to pay for staff around $69,188. This increase is to provide additional programs for the merged district that the Community Advisory Committees sought throughout the study, including Advanced Placement classes.
The study team worked out some examples for the district to save money and effectively utilize the 60 percent state aid increase they would receive from the Department of Education. This includes putting some of the money into reserves for things like unemployment insurance, as well as paying off the current debt the schools have.
Exley, Seversky and Shevat stressed that these projections are not only conservative in that the prices are overestimated in some cases, but this study is a broad overview. The study is more of a guideline for the school to follow should they choose to merge.
From this point, the study will be sent to the State Department of Education for review. This study which is not public record will then be sent back for the districts to mull over and adjust and potentially present to their populace for a straw vote. If a merger were to take place it wouldn’t take effect until at least 2014-2015.
See inaccurate information in a story? Other feedback and/or ideas for us to consider? Tell us here.
Location, ST | website.com
National News Videos
- Police Blotter for June 18 (1032)
- Utica Police to use public's searching for missing baby Levon (324)
- Oneida Indian Nation gives Verona Fire District $100,000 (178)
- Thousands gather in Albany to protest hydrofracking (171)
- Utica Police seek public's help in search for missing 9-month-old (167)
- Top 3 at Holy Cross Academy find faith, values most important (162)
- Oneida Indian Nation screening new short film at Syracuse Film Festival on Thursday (81)
- Father and son running for Lenox office (3)
- Owera Vineyards officially opens in Cazenovia (2)
- Damp weather doesn't stop Boxing Hall of Fame weekend festivities (2)
- Your Neighbor: Donald Dymes has seen plenty in 60 years of volunteer firefighting (1)
- Sherrill Mom raises autism awareness through blog (1)
Recent Activity on Facebook
Editor Kurt Wanfried shares his view of the news in Madison County and Southern Oneida County.
Sports stories from Central New York and beyond.
Mary Messere, the former Madison County historian, describes herself as historian/writer/photographer who loves music, history, making videos, poetry, art and travel. Her entertaining blog covers all that and more. | <urn:uuid:7e39ccdb-421f-4fb7-80af-cc95ee6eccbf> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://oneidadispatch.com/articles/2012/12/12/news/doc50c93e411a43c409106330.txt?viewmode=fullstory | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368707435344/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516123035-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.951013 | 947 | 1.640625 | 2 |
DAY ONE: Reporter's Notebook: Pilots are focused on material
I had a virtual reality visor over my head and I saw myself 2,000 feet above the ground with a parachute on. Below me, in a clearing between the trees, a big red "X" marked the spot I needed to land.
In front of me, Kevin Wagner, a survival, evasion, resistance, escape instructor watched my descent on another monitor and coached me on how to steer the parachute by telling me to pull ropes on my left and right sides.
I landed 87 feet away from my target. Not bad for my first try, I thought. Moments later I watched KCRA reporter Mike Tercell miss his landing spot on an aircraft carrier by more than 100 feet. He sank 100 feet down.
The exercise was a demonstration to show some of the training that U-2 pilots with the 9th Reconnaissance Wing at Beale Air Force base in eastern Yuba County go through before they fly solo missions. But for Majors Blane Kilpper, and Howie Robinson, and Capt. Alex Castro, the training was necessary.
I watched as the three walked around a warehouse-like room with 35-pound pressure suits on as they moved from one training exercise to the other. I could see they were hot inside the suits, but it didn't detract them from training.
Part of their training had them in a U-2 cockpit simulator where they would practice the motions of ejecting from the aircraft. Instructors watched to their side and instructed them on procedures to eject.
The U-2 pilots-in-training took their training very seriously. Their lives depend on it. They sat in the simulators and practiced ejection procedures until they had them down.
Earlier, I watched as they climbed a flight of stairs to a platform, were hooked to harnesses in their pressure suits and moved out on a hoist to simulate being caught in a tree. They detached themselves and then lowered themselves with a special wire to the ground.
I was amazed at how quickly the material was covered and how well these pilots followed along.
The thought of parachuting from the altitudes where these planes fly - above 65,000 feet, or 12 miles above sea level - seems terrifying and tempting at the same time. I try to imagine what the earth looks like from that altitude. The world below must take on a surreal appearance, where large cities like San Francisco appear like small blotches and places like Yuba City are barely noticeable.
Some U-2 pilots I have spoken with say the view is unlike any other that most people will ever see in their lifetimes. Some say they can see the earth's curvature from up there, others say they can't. I think it would be worth the look either way.
I envy these three pilots for taking the chance to fly where no one else in the world can go, except astronauts. What would you do for a chance to fly that high, even just once?
Of course, the downside is the U-2 pilots go on long deployments and fly above dangerous areas.
But these pilots know the work they do could someday soon land on the president's desk. They also know that their work could someday save the lives of soldiers on the ground. That alone makes the work worthwhile.
Appeal-Democrat reporter Daniel Witter can be reached at 749-4712. You may e-mail him at [email protected]. | <urn:uuid:0d3000eb-d7b6-4ea7-87ec-64a963c16efc> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.appeal-democrat.com/articles/pilots-13238-training-feet.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00029-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.977722 | 718 | 1.796875 | 2 |
Last month Magistrate Judge Andrew Peck, of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, issued an opinion in a gender discrimination case that had this to say about computer-assisted review: “Computer-assisted review is an available tool and should be seriously considered for use in large-data-volume cases where it may save the producing party (or both parties) significant amounts of legal fees in document review.”
In doing so, he just also may have made a case for the legal profession to do some more investigation of semantic technology in order to cope with its own Big Data challenges. In the mid-2000s, the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure were amended to take into account electronic discovery, so that both sides in a legal challenge would have to confer within sixty days of filing to disclose how they handled digital data. The beauty of the American legal system is that it requires each party to pony up information that is meaningful and responsive to the facts of the case. The dark side is that the proliferation of data inside businesses means employees are creating more and more data in lots of different ways, which means legal staff has to spend a lot more time sifting through digital realms of structured and unstructured information to discover what may have to do with a lawsuit or government investigation, what is responsive to the other party’s document request, and what is privileged information, too.
“It’s created a cottage industry in temp staffing – now there are temp lawyers, contract attorneys who work from $30 to $75 an hour,” says Jay Leib, Chief Strategy Officer at kCura, which makes the Relativity Assisted Review e-discovery text analytics software based on latent semantic indexing technology. “Just like we outsource factory workers, there are outsourced attorneys overseas doing document review to combat the amount of data that’s sprung up.” There is so much data out there that it’s entirely possible that a $3 million lawsuit could cost $6 million to litigate, he says. | <urn:uuid:4b0289ac-58a4-4e8a-8d2d-8a5e90802384> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://semanticweb.com/tag/ediscovery-challenges | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697380733/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516094300-00038-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.960408 | 423 | 1.59375 | 2 |
BOOK: Toowoomba to Torokina
AUTHOR: Bob Doneley
PUBLISHER: Big Sky Publishing
RRP: $34.99 hardback
WARWICK-BORN author Bob Doneley worked as a veterinarian for almost 30 years.
He enlisted in the Army Reserve and served as an infantry officer with the Queensland University Regiment, the 9th Battalion Royal Queensland and the 25th Regiments, retiring in 1996 as a major.
Now living just outside Toowoomba, Bob has devoted 12 years to the writing of his book, following an earlier one on the 25th Battalion: 1915-1918.
His second book follows the battalion's history through to 1945 and encompasses the most important events in its illustrious history, including the Battle of Milne Bay, equal in significance to Kokoda.
It feels a privilege and a cause for great pride to be introduced to these historic events and to meet face to face the men whose motto was, "Never a Backwards Step".
Structured around official records and newspaper reports, Bob also draws on interviews with and letters from the men.
With the bulk of the AIF fighting in North Africa and Singapore, it was left to a few of the militia units to halt the onslaught of the Japanese in New Guinea and Bougainville in atrocious conditions.
It was these hardy determined few who virtually saved the mainland from falling into Japanese hands.
A clear labour of love, Bob's very moving book gives us an engrossing insight into the courage and endurance of the men of the Toowoomba and Darling Downs region.
An appendix lists the complete 25th Battalion's role of honour. Milne Bay Day is observed to this day. | <urn:uuid:89863de3-5558-481f-9fc4-cd9118a0ea23> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.qt.com.au/news/book-review-toowoomba-torokina/1508781/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706890813/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516122130-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.955179 | 358 | 1.84375 | 2 |
Posts Tagged ‘Music’
So why didn’t I think of this!
An idea so blindingly obvious that music lovers everywhere will be kicking themselves senseless. mflow takes the ‘follower’ paradigm from Twitter and applies it to music. The users get to publish a track, or an album, with a comment. Their followers can listen to the track and optionally buy it, in which case the referrer gets a commission, which they can spend on other tracks.
It’s not just about cash though, this is about sharing and recommending music. The library is far from comprehensive, but decidedly not mainstream. I uncovered tracks by Alan Vega, The Creatures and Neu! for example. This is more personalised than Spotify and has a better interface than lastFM. They promise widgets for embedding in blogs, Facebook connectivity and more and more music. Well worth keeping an eye on. Launches on 15 April.
Who killed the recorded music industry? In the light of Apple’s veiled threat to shut down iTunes in the face of demands from the music publishing industry for a larger slice of the pie, this question is suddenly a lot more relevant. The central issue is not about Apple, it is about the way that society rewards artists and the failure of the free market to keep up with technology.
Before the gramaphone (ignoring the wax cylinder) there was no recorded music industry. Musicians made a precarious living by playing real instruments, live, in front of real people. Songwriters had a share of the sheet music sales from popular songs. as I said, the living was precarious.
The music industry as we know it, evolved during the sixties – by this I mean the infrastructure of the industry, the distribution channels, the manufacturing, recording and marketing instruments, the fundamental structure of a recording contract that tied an artist into promoting records on tours underwritten by the record companies, ultimately paid for by the royalties on successful records. and by records, I mean the physical vinyl artifact.
This arrangement suited the record companies very well, so well that when CD’s and digital file formats arrived, they completely failed to see the writing on the wall. It was abundantly obvious to anyone with the wit to look, that recorded music would be passed from person to person via computer networks. In one fell swoop, the record companies lost control of the medium and some would say, the industry.
Napster, the peer to peer file sharing service was the first to really get under the record companies skin – hugely successful, the companies invention, a peer to peer music sharing system created a model for a decentralised distribution channel that has proved impossible for the traditional industry to control. It took a federal government to close down Napster, but there are a host of similar enterprises still in semi legal business.
This is why it has been so difficult for the industry to deal with. For each track there is an owner of the sound recording, the record company. There is also a separate work, the musical composition – the song the artist sings. By law, each track of the CD is also considered a reproduction of the musical composition. On a typical CD, there may be 12 sound recordings and 8 separate music publishers. Multiply that times 3,000 record companies in the US, and 25,000 music publishers, times 27,000 new CDs per year. Separate individual negotiations for all these rights are simply not a viable option.
With CD sales falling last year by 20% to ($7.4bn (£4bn)), the record companies now have a major problem. The artists do too, but the good ones are now making up the shortfall by playing live – this has to be good for the long term health of the art. By which i mean that new technology has been seen by the record companies as primarily a means of reducing recording costs – to the detriment of the quality of the product, as the art of songwriting took a back seat to the art of sampling. In the current climate, forcing acts to play live may encourage the use of technology to entertain the audiences again. But it’s not that simple.
Traditionally, the audience / society, pays the piper – prices are hiked and artists, record companies and publishers all live happily ever after. Now however there is a problem. Apple don’t own the medium, they are just the de facto owners of the largest share of the market. Rivals include Sony, who as a record and hardware company themselves, would be very well placed to mount a strong competitive alternative. So Apple will not want the price of recorded music to rise. The record companies, watching their profits dwindle daily are unlikely to want to take the hit, which leaves the publishers and the artists themselves.
Interesting times ahead. Should songwriters be paid for writing songs? Is it reasonable for the record industry to seek to sustain its profit levels when they no longer own the medium? What does the record industry do in these days of digital recording technology, to justify its profit? Should Apple simply raise the price of digital music?
What if the artist retains control of the recording? Is there any point in recording 12 song albums any longer? What are the implications of selling less songs? Would a tour the size of Madonna’s for example be sustainable on the back of the profit gained from a couple of singles? Actually the answer to that one is yes, ditto The Rolling Stones, but what of the middle ranking acts that depend on touring to shift albums?
But back to the central issue – we have an audience, millions of music hungry people with money to burn, who are quite happy to spend it. We have a computer company, Apple, capitalising on the digital format to charge the audience for the music at 99 cents per track. We have a music industry desperate to play ball with Apple because they no longer own the medium. We have a music publishing industry asserting its right to gain a higher percentage of the digital rights – so who loses?
Answers on a postcard please!
With the notable exception of Laura Barton, who impresses me more with every article she writes, I have declared the practice of Music Journalism to be dead.
The game was effectively up when the first sinister rustlings of electro made their entry some time during the late seventies. Practitioners struggled manfully on, filling pages with turgid hagiography on Kraftwerk and god forbid, Amon Duul, but the death knell was effectively sounded by one of the best electro records ever made – ‘Set it off’ by Strafe. To a lyric consisting entirely of the repeated phrase
“Set it off on the left
Set it off on the right
Set it off”
With the occasional interjection of “Let’s Get This Party Started!” Strafe ushered in the ecstasy generation – the air now well and truly let out of the ‘rock criticism as cultural commentary” balloon, scribes had to fall back on their writing skills. Predictably the few that could actually write – Jon Savage springs to mind, shifted their attention to writing books and journalism proper, the rest shrivelled and died.
So what has this to do with MiniBlogs?
I write, a lot, I also listen to music a lot and have collected records for nearly forty years. However mindful of Frank Zappa’s comment that “Writing about music is like dancing about architecture”, I have studiously avoided any sort of comittment to writing about music. I’ve no doubt I could fill pages with turgid dross, but frankly what’s the point?
So the miniblog – it occured to me that if I restricted the length of the review to say 150 words, it would focus the pen and might even make the whole exercise useful – so my newest blogging venture is Chimera Obscura. This will consist of mini reviews of albums that I feel fall into the category of cult or wilfully obscure. It will inevitably reflect the contents of my own collection to an extent, and will also feature books, films and photography in the fullness of time.
The miniblog provider I’m using is Tumblr, a setup of such startling simplicity that posting a new article takes minutes or even seconds. So far I’m impressed, it’s not a blog, it’s a tightly themed litany. Let’s see how it goes…
So, at this point, we have set up our equipment and cleaned the record – now to capture that music and digitise it!
The output from the record deck will need amplifying before it gets to the PC. This may come as a surprise to anyone who has set up a mid range hi-fi, those amplifiers carry a separate circuit to deal with record players.
I use the ART accessories USB Phono plus – this is extremely simple to set up, phono connections out to the sound card (1 Nikkai Stereo 3.5mm Jack to Twin Phono Lead), or USB connection out to the PC, select Phono and Flat output on front panel and adjust output to the top end of the green signal – it should flicker red on loud passages. Solid red will result in the signal being clipped and the recording compromised.
If the equipment is properly set up, you should be able to hear the output coming though the PC sound system. We now need to use some software to capture the signal. Art Accessories kindly package Audacity with the pre-amp, however Audacity is fiddly to use, particularly when it comes to splitting the tracks.
I use Vinyl Studio, available from AlpineSoft – this excellent utility allows you to capture the signal from the LP, store it as two .wav files (one for each side), filter any scratches, clicks and pops, and finally split the two files into individual tracks. It will also retrieve song titles from the internet!
First job is to create a project and an album in Vinyl Studio – this sets up a directory structure for the recorded files.
Create the project using the file – New menu, then in the ‘Record’ tab, select ‘Prepare to record a new album’.
Fill in the Artist and Title – take care as it will use the content here to search for the track titles.
Click on ‘Create Album’.
The next step is to check levels. Again, we don’t want to overload the signal.
Note that the software has worked out that we’re using the USB Audio codec to digitise the analogue audio stream. It is a feature, so I’m told, that certain devices are listed as microphones – the Art Accessories USB plus being one!
Adjust the volume from the USB plus (preamp) until the peaks are registering red, but not butting up against the top of the scale. This is quite fiddly with some records – set the level on the loudest part. Also be aware that back in the seventies, mastering technology was not what it is today, so it’s not unusual to find two sides of the same record mastered at different volumes – set the level for each side to be sure of getting the best results.
Finally we’re ready to go – select record, place the needle on the record and move on to the ‘Split Tracks’ tab while the music is being digitised. Here you can send the software off to retrieve the track listing from a variety of sources, chosen from a drop down list. Again, be careful as different editions of a record may have extra tracks. You can also fill in the track listing by hand. Once this is done, return to the ‘Record’ tab, when the record ends, hit stop, flip the disk and repeat the process.
Once we have the LP digitised, then we need to split the tracks. Remember we currently have one huge .WAV file for each side of the album. Return to the ‘Split Tracks’ tab.
In this screen, hit ‘Scan for Trackbreaks’ – the software will make a pretty reasonable stab at finding the breaks between tracks – it will warn you if you have more breaks than tracks, or less – if this happens, chances are you have a quiet passage which has been mistaken for a track break – simply locate it in the graph and delete the break. This is made simple, by being able to play the track from the software – just put the pointer in the place you think may be mistaken for a break (you can zoom in on the graph), and press play.
If you accept the default sensitivity settings, you will find it gets 90% of track breaks right, but will need adjusting to deal with fade outs. Same principle as above – navigate to the beginning of the fade out and press play, then move the beginning of the break to the place where the music becomes inaudible.
In the next tab, we can clean up the audio – you can utilise the automatic scan which locates every pop, crackle and click on the record and zaps it, or you can painstakingly locate each audible blemish and zap it – your choice!
So now we take the final step – converting our two large files into several smaller ones. nothing easier! Select the ‘Album’ menu (top of the screen) and choose ‘Save Tracks as MP3′ or ‘Save Tracks as WAV’.
Personally I choose to save the tracks as WAV, on the basis that I can then convert them into FLAC for Hi-Fi and MP3 for mobile listening, later. That will be the topic of the next article!
After many false starts, blind alleys etc, I think I’ve more or less got this sorted so – this post and several more will attempt to document the exact process, hardware and software used to create high quality digital audio files from vinyl.
- VP1 Record Cleaner
- Technics SL 1210 MkII Turntable
- ART Accessories USB Phono plus
- 1 Nikkai USB A to USB B Cable
- 1 Nikkai Stereo 3.5mm Jack to Twin Phono Lead
- 1 Soundblaster Live! Sound Card
- Dell Dimension PC 256mb Memory
- Altec Lansing Multimedia Speakers
- Vinyl Studio (www.alpinesoft.co.uk)
- dbPowerAmp Music Converter
Most of the hardware I already owned – but I heed the words of a wise old sound engineer from my DJ’ing days – ‘Garbage in, Garbage out’ he would mutter, as I insisted on soundchecking the newest Alien Sex Fiend 12 inch… he had a point, though it took me quite a while to appreciate it.
The VP1 record cleaner is therefore first on the list. You might think £450 is a lot to pay for a record cleaner, but this device is the closest thing to magic I’ve come across – the secret is in the vacuuming, using conventional bristle or cloth cleaners on a recored simply moves the dust around or worse, pushes it deep into the grooves. Unless a record is actually scratched, this device will pretty much restore vinyl to its original condition. As an ex DJ, much of my vinyl is severely manhandled, nightclubs are not the most vinyl friendly environment, so this device is worth it’s considerable weight in gold.
The Technics SL1210 is similarly a souvenir of the DJ’ing days – still the turntable of choice in the DJ’ing trade due to extreme robustness and simplicity – you simply can’t go wrong with a deck of this quality.
Art Accessories USB Phono+ is the pre-amp that the record player requires to amplify the signal enough to make it usable. This handy device is very straightforward to set up – connect the deck to the inputs, the outputs to your sound card using the Nikkai Stereo 3.5mm Jack to Twin Phono Lead, which takes stereo output from the Technics into a single stereo input for your soundcard. The Device can be powered from the USB port of the PC.
The Art Accessories product comes with a music editing package called Audacity. This I found to be effective, but tedious to use. I elected to use Vinyl Studio instead, for the simple reason that Vinyl Studio will estimate the track breaks, edit out the ‘thump’ of the needle dropping and download the track listing from amazon if it’s available. The reason this is important is that recording the vinyl gives you two humongous .wav files – one for each side. These need to be split into individual tracks before converting to the format of your choice. Vinyl Studio outputs to .wav and .mp3 only. This is where dbPowerAmp Music converter earns it’s crust.
That explains the components – next post will start detailing the process. | <urn:uuid:7ee89133-da2e-4c78-86f2-ba378dc26594> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://magicandlies.wordpress.com/tag/music/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368699273641/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516101433-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.944605 | 3,534 | 1.671875 | 2 |
Superintendent Huppenthal tutors under-privileged student
PHOENIX -- It wasn't long ago 10-year-old Jesus Martinez was homeless. He and his family lived in a shelter before moving out a couple of years ago.
Now living under a roof of his own, Martinez attends Children First Academy, a school in Phoenix for underprivileged kids. At a recent groundbreaking for the school's new building, Martinez met Arizona Superintendent of Education John Huppenthal.
"Mr. Huppenthal asked me what I wanted to be when I grow up, so then I said, 'An electrician.'"
Little did Martinez know that Huppenthal had worked in the electrical field for over 30 years with Salt River Project.
"He went up to the stage and started talking, then he announced my name and I stood up," Martinez said. "I felt a little shy."
After the groundbreaking ceremony, Huppenthal reached out to Martinez and told him he would help him achieve his dream. The two had their first learning session on Wednesday at the Arizona Science Center.
"I indicated to him that if he's interested in becoming an engineer, I'd be willing to give him a certain amount of tutoring on a personal level," Huppenthal said.
At only 10-years-old, Martinez has an edge over his young competition. Not only does he earn As and Bs in all of his classes, but Arizona Public Service also gave him an engineering starter kit and he'll be able to tour the SRP plants.
"He's just a great student, he's engaging, and he's got a great smile. We think he has a great future ahead of him and we're going to do what we can to make sure he has a real good trajectory," said Huppenthal.
Aaron Granillo, News Editor | <urn:uuid:71095cb7-7629-4675-9034-552829124681> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.ktar.com/22/1611929/Huppenthal-tutors-underprivileged-student?nid=64 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705195219/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115315-00017-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.984159 | 379 | 1.578125 | 2 |
Former CIA agent-turned novelist, Joseph Weisberg recently had his exciting, unusual spy novel optioned by Paul Haggis and Michael Nozik with Hwy61 Films, based at Paramount.
The LAT calls An Ordinary Spy “a modern spy novel that doesn’t tell the reader who the characters are, where the story takes place or even the kind of food they eat.”
“All of these details are heavily redacted, marked by extensive blacked-out sections of type in the book, which switches back and forth in time. … The author didn’t delete all these facts as a writer’s trick. As a former CIA officer, Weisberg would have been required to submit his novel to the agency, and he solved this literary dilemma by creatively censoring his own material.”
FBLA talks with Weisberg, a John le Carre fan, about the CIA and Hollywood and everything in between. Here is the part of the interview that we’re allowed to show you:
1. When did you work for the CIA? 1990-1994.
2. Why would you have had to submit a novel to the CIA for approval? Or is this work more fact than fiction? When you join the CIA, you’re required to sign a secrecy agreement. Among other things, this agreement obligates you to submit anything you write about intelligence matters to the CIA for review. The CIA then determines if what you’ve written contains any classified information, and if it does, you have to take it out.
Fiction and non-fiction both have to be submitted. Non-fiction is held to a tougher standard, meaning they’ll let you write some things in a novel that you cannot write in a memoir or an editorial. But a fair number of things can’t be written about in any form.
What constitutes classified material is in itself a complicated question, and I think the best answer is, nobody really knows. Classified does not mean secret. In fact, most of what the CIA had me take out of my book was information that is widely known. It’s classified not because it’s secret, but because they don’t want the information confirmed by an ex-Agency employee. | <urn:uuid:107fa353-0256-4583-aeb1-df1f514b46af> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.mediabistro.com/fishbowlla/tag/michael-nozik | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368702810651/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516111330-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.969172 | 475 | 1.5625 | 2 |
AHMEDABAD: Amid a battle with some of his police officers over the 2002 riots, chief minister Narendra Modi used his Independence Day message to berate critics and project Gujarat as the land of peace and development.
Modi hailed the state as a place in which people from all corners of the country worked, realized their dreams, and lived in peace. He remarked that some forces were engaged in a sort of a competition to mislead people and spread lies about Gujarat. "Recently, the Supreme Court praised the land policy of Gujarat," Modi said. "This came as a slap on the faces of those who have tried to mislead the people of the state." He went on to elaborate how Gujarat had become an example of an economy where industrial and agricultural growth go hand in hand. "Normally, where there is industrial development, farming land is on the decline," he said. "But in Gujarat, there is industrial growth and a rise in the volume of tillable land." Modi said that while the national agricultural growth average hovered around 2-3%, Gujarat had managed to maintain 10% growth in the last decade. He said Gujarat was the land blessed by Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Patel and it was the people's responsibility to ensure that the state's development meant India's development. "There was a time when farming land did not sell for even Rs 3,000," he said. "But now, it is going for Rs 3-7 lakh, on farmers' terms and conditions." He attributed the change to industrial and infrastructure development. "Had we not protected our livestock, could we have increased milk production by 60% in the last decade?" Modi said. He will unfurl the national flag on Monday at Nadiad, close to Anand, which is the milk capital of the country. "Gujarat has 6% of the country's population, but has 56% of the country's employment share, so says the central government," Modi said. | <urn:uuid:5466051d-09a3-4fea-b7b7-bb45e5bf73de> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://articles.timesofindia.indiatimes.com/2011-08-15/ahmedabad/29888857_1_narendra-modi-gujarat-industrial-growth | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368696381249/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516092621-00028-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.982558 | 397 | 1.757813 | 2 |
November 5, 2006 - March 4, 2007
The Quest for Immortality: Treasures of Ancient Egypt features the largest selection of antiquities ever loaned by Egypt for exhibition in North America. It includes objects that have never been on public display and many that have never been seen outside of Egypt. Ancient Egyptian beliefs and practices based on the afterlife journey of pharaohs will be dramatically illustrated through approximately 115 magnificent objects from Egypt and a life-sized reconstruction of the burial chamber of the New Kingdom pharaoh Thutmose III (1479-1425 BC). The exhibition is organized by United Exhibits Group, Copenhagen, and the National Gallery of Art, Washington, in association with the Supreme Council of Antiquities, Cairo. Objects are loaned by the Egyptian government and come from the Egyptian Museum in Cairo, the Luxor Museum and the sites of Tanis and Deir el-Bahari. | <urn:uuid:9dc607eb-2ccf-4153-a323-ba0267165300> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.kingtutone.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=20806 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00012-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.953625 | 182 | 1.742188 | 2 |
Cato Institute health care policy expert Michael Cannon testified recently before the Missouri Senate’s Interim Committee on Health Insurance Exchanges on why that state should not create an Obamacare exchange. His arguments apply just as much to Michigan, including this excerpt describing how creating an exchange will help entrench Obamacare.
From testimony delivered on Sept. 15, 2011
Some opponents of the law nevertheless argue for creating an exchange so that states can be prepared in case the law is not overturned or repealed. Yet creating an exchange would entrench the law and make it less likely to be repealed or overturned.
• First, creating an exchange lends a veneer of legitimacy to the law. The Obama administration heralds the creation of each new exchange as proof that the law is gaining acceptance, and heralds states accepting the federal grants available under the law in the same manner.
• Second, declaring the law unconstitutional but then accepting the funding it offers and creating an exchange undermines the credibility of state officials seeking to overturn the law and also undermines the lawsuits themselves. One federal judge who overturned the law wrote that the fact that some of the plaintiff states are themselves implementing the law undercuts their own argument that he should order the federal government to halt implementation.
• Third, to create an exchange is to create a taxpayer-funded lobbying group dedicated to fighting repeal. An exchange's employees would owe their power and their paychecks to this law. Naturally, they would aid the fight to preserve the law.
• Fourth, both Congress and the courts are less likely to eliminate actual government bureaucracies that have assembled dedicated constituencies than they are to eliminate theoretical ones. The more disruptive repeal would be, the less likely it becomes.
• Fifth, many knowledgeable observers believe few exchanges, state or federal, will be operational by 2014. If states like Missouri create their own exchanges, they will begin handing out billions of taxpayer dollars sooner than if the federal government creates them. Creating a state-run exchange will hasten the day when the private insurance companies that receive those subsidies plow much of the money back into fighting repeal.
• Sixth, and perhaps most important, due to a recently discovered glitch in the statute, the new health care law only authorizes premium assistance in state-run exchanges — not federal exchanges. States thus have the collective power to deny the Obama administration the legal authority to dispense more than a half-trillion dollars in new entitlement spending, to expose the full cost of the law's mandates and government price controls, as well as to enforce the law's employer mandate — simply by not creating exchanges. If Missouri joins other states in refusing to create an exchange, it can essentially force Congress to reconsider the law. If Missouri instead creates an exchange, it will increase the federal deficit and debt, hide the full cost of the health care law, expose Missouri employers to penalties and reduce the likelihood of repeal.
The Obama administration is offering financial inducements to states to create exchanges because the administration knows that every new exchange helps them shield the law from Congress, the courts, and the American people. Creating an exchange is not a hedging-your-bets strategy but a sabotaging-your bets strategy.
Full text of eye-opening testimony here. | <urn:uuid:c3113c26-f4b7-4430-8f9a-03023cf7d179> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://mackinac.org/15767 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708142388/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516124222-00015-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.941983 | 653 | 1.554688 | 2 |
The recent data breach reported by e-mail marketing service provider Epsilon that exposed names and e-mail addresses for customers at dozens of companies comes four months after an Epsilon technology partner warned about targeted phishing attacks on e-mail service providers and on its own network.
Return Path said in late November that thousands of e-mail addresses had been stolen from its system after one of its employees clicked on a link in a phishing e-mail message. Epsilon uses Return Path's e-mail monitoring technology in the e-mail marketing services it provides to other companies.
"The employee's system was properly scrubbed, but in the short time between infection and scrubbing, the perpetrators of the phishing campaign had obtained a list of 13,000 email addresses registered in our system by our clients for system alerts," Return Path Chief Executive Matt Blumberg wrote in a blog post on November 26. "The list consists of employees at Email Service Providers as well as many email marketers at client companies."
In an earlier blog post Return Path had warned that e-mail service providers (ESPs), direct mailers, and gambling sites had received spam e-mails over the past five weeks with links leading to malware, keyloggers, and a remotely controlled Trojan as part of spear phishing attacks. (Spear phishing attacks target specific organizations or key people within a company.)
"This is an organized, deliberate, and destructive attack clearly intent on gaining access to industry-grade email deployment systems," said the post, signed by Neil Schwartzman, senior director of security strategy for Return Path's e-mail intelligence group, who is no longer with the company.
A Return Path spokeswoman told CNET today that she could not say whether Epsilon had been affected at all by the phishing attacks last year and that Return Path had no insight into or comment on the breach Epsilon disclosed late last week.
Spokespeople at Epsilon and its parent company, Alliance Data, did not return a call and e-mails seeking comment today. So far, the only key information the company has provided about the incident is that names and e-mail addresses of a "subset" of its 2,500 customers were exposed in the breach, which was detected on March 30.
It's unclear how many of Epsilon's clients and how many of their customers are affected, but a tally being kept at Databreaches.net was up to 57 this morning and it includes big names like Best Buy, Citibank, Chase, Capital One, Walgreens, Target, Best Buy, TiVo, TD Ameritrade, and Verizon.
"The unauthorized entry into an Epsilon email system was limited to email addresses and/or customer names only. No personal identifiable information (PII) was compromised, such as social security numbers, credit card numbers or account information," Alliance Data said in a statement last night. "Since the discovery of the unauthorized entry, rigorous internal and external reviews continue to confirm that only email addresses and/or names were compromised."
Epsilon is working with federal authorities and outside forensics experts on the investigation and has reviewed its security protocols controlling access to the system and further restricted them, the company said. Marketing campaigns were restarted, e-mail volumes are not expected to be significantly affected, and the impact of the incident to the company's financial performance or guidance are expected to be minimal if any, the blog said. "The greatest risk is the potential loss of valued clients," the company said.
"We are extremely regretful that this incident has impacted a portion of Epsilon's clients and their customers," said Bryan J. Kennedy, president of Epsilon. "We take consumer privacy very seriously and work diligently to protect customer information."
Ed Heffernan, chief executive of Alliance Data, said: "We fully recognize the impact this has had on our clients and their customers, and on behalf of the entire Alliance Data organization, we sincerely apologize. While we can't reverse what has already happened, we are taking every measure necessary to protect our clients and their most valuable assets--their customers. Once detected, we took immediate action to implement additional safeguards and launched a full investigation. We will leave no stone unturned and are dealing with this malicious act by highly sophisticated cyber-thieves with the greatest sense of urgency."
Who is Epsilon and why does it have my data?
Were you affected by Epsilon data breach?
How far did McDonald's-tied data breach ripple?
While it is unclear whether Epsilon was affected by the phishing attacks last year or how it was compromised in the latest incident, there is some indication that this may not be the first data breach at the company.
In December, Walgreens disclosed that its customer e-mails had been exposed in a breach, and a spokesman told CNET that the data compromise was not related to a breach at Silverpop revealed around the same time, but the company did not name its e-mail service provider that was compromised. (Silverpop also said it was only one of "several technology providers targeted as part of a broader cyberattack.")
Last weekend, Walgreens named Epsilon out right in its warning and when asked by DataBreaches.net if Epsilon was its provider that was breached last year, a spokesperson responded: "After the incident last year, Walgreens requested that Epsilon put a number (of) additional security measures in place. Apparently, that expectation was not fully met." (A Walgreens spokesperson has not responded to a request for comment from CNET.)
Anatomy of a phishing attack
The Return Path blog posts from last year provide some interesting details on how an Epsilon-type of company, or any company for that matter, could get compromised by attackers.
The spear phishing e-mails were aimed at more than 100 ESPs and gambling sites, typically using the employee's name and pretended to be from friends or co-workers, Return Path had said. The messages were sent numerous times, over different systems including the facility of the ESPs, via online greeting card sites, or by using a botnet of thousands of random compromised computers. The list of e-mail addresses was "very small" at less than 3,000 and all were aimed at employees who were responsible for e-mail operations, according to the original blog post. One example given twice by Return Path reads:
"Hey Neil, it's Michelle here, it has been a long time huh ? how're you doing ? how's your work with Return Path ? Is everything ok there ? Hey, can you believe it! I got married to Brian ! Yes I did. I tried to call but you did not answer. You have changed your number, haven't you? Just give meyour current telephone number if you read this mail. It's really a pity that we did not see you in our wedding. I wanted to invite you so much. Well, here I'm sending you a few pics taken in our wedding: (link removed) Let's keep in touch then. Love, Michelle & Brian"
The link was fake and instead directed people to a Web site hosting malware dubbed Win32.BlkIC.IMG, which disables antivirus software, a keylogger that steals passwords called iStealer, and a remote administration tool called CyberGate that "lets the criminals control the computer moving forward," Return Path said.
The spam later was changed to be a fraudulent e-mail for Adobe products, Return Path CEO Blumberg said in one of his posts.
Updated April 11 at 11:06 a.m. PT to remove reference to American Express from list of companies affected. | <urn:uuid:d272fd04-7b28-4161-835a-638829b95cab> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://news.cnet.com/8301-27080_3-20051796-245.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368703682988/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516112802-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.974471 | 1,584 | 1.59375 | 2 |
Lone Star Mod: Midcentury Houston ArchitectureSam Wainwright Douglas
4 West Burton Place
Chicago, Illinois 60610
Alongside New York, Chicago, and the West Coast, Houston, Texas, is a hub for mid-twentieth-century modern architecture. It's all there: stunning homes, sleek office buildings, churches, schools, banks, museums, hotels—the Astrodome Architectural Record has designated many modern Houston homes as record houses, and the AIA has bestowed numerous awards upon local buildings. Houston has hosted many talented architects whose work is critically acclaimed, but not well-known by the general public. Design Onscreen partners with director Sam Wainwright Douglas to produce Lone Star Mod: Midcentury Houston Architecture, a documentary film on modernist architecture in Houston and the effects of the city's controversial lack of zoning on the preservation of mid-century modern landmarks. This project's significance to the field of architecture lies in its exploration of these issues through an entertaining, engaging, and enlightening film that will reach a far broader audience than traditional written scholarship in this area.
Sam Wainwright Douglas is a documentary film director and producer. His most recent film, Citizen Architect: Samuel Mockbee and the Spirit of the Rural Studio, was nationally broadcast on PBS and has screened internationally at theaters, museums, universities and film festivals since its premiere in 2010 at the prestigious South by Southwest Film Festival in Austin, TX. Douglas also directed The Holy Modal Rounders: Bound to Lose, a chronicle of the infamous bad boys of 1960's folk rock. The film played at theaters and festivals worldwide and was released on DVD in 2007. As a producer and editor, Douglas has worked on projects for HBO, PBS, BBC, A&E, and The Food Network.
Heather Purcell is the executive director of Design Onscreen and will serve as producer for Lone Star Mod: Midcentury Houston Architecture. Purcell has previously produced the documentaries Journeyman Architect: The Life and Work of Donald Wexler; William Krisel, Architect; and Contemporary Days: The Designs of Lucienne and Robin Day. Before joining Design Onscreen in 2008, she spent twelve years as an attorney specializing in media and entertainment law, representing independent producers, as well as print, cable, radio, television, and internet companies. Purcell is a graduate of Stanford University, the University of Texas Law School, and the Lyndon B. Johnson School of Public Affairs.
Founded in 2007, Design Onscreen is a nonprofit foundation dedicated to producing, promoting and preserving high-quality films on architecture and design. Design Onscreen distributes its programming widely, via multiple media formats and public screenings, to national and international audiences; promotes a greater general understanding and appreciation of post–World War II design; informs and elevates the ongoing "conversation" among professional architects and designers; works in a collaborative manner with museums, schools, universities, professional design groups, film societies, and other educational organizations; and supports only the highest-quality programming utilizing the most creative minds in film production.
Copyright © 2008–2010 Graham Foundation. All rights reserved. this site is in beta | <urn:uuid:f44e43ec-7919-4ef1-8000-e284dc842ac8> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.grahamfoundation.org/grantees/3999-mod-houston | 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 | 0.931219 | 642 | 1.585938 | 2 |
 Nadine Henley Even before heading to New Orleans on an "Alternative Spring Break," Cal State Long Beach senior Nadine Henley knew she was heading to a truly devastated area where visitors' emotions can often get the best of them when they see the remaining destruction left behind by Hurricane Katrina in 2005.
Still, she wasn't completely prepared for what she saw and experienced on the weeklong sojourn.
 Henley was one of 35 students, faculty and staff from California State University, Long Beach (CSULB) who made the trek to Louisiana. The group members did not use their Spring Break to hit the beach or the slopes, lay in the sun or just relax in preparation for the end-of-the-school-year push. Rather, they used their time off to help others, and they did it laying down a roof, putting up interior walls and working on exterior siding.
 "Hurricane Katrina hit the area nearly four years ago, but there were still so many abandoned homes and businesses. I thought the situation would be a little better by now," said Henley, a senior sociology major who graduates from CSULB in May. "To me, they (the empty homes and businesses) were a constant reminder to the people of the tragedy that they all went through."
 But it was the spirit of the people who returned to the devastated area and are working to rebuild their lives there that inspired Henley over the course of the week.
 "It was amazing to see the people so full of life despite the hardships they are facing, and it was wonderful to hear the thanks and appreciation in person from the survivors of the area," she explained. "Additionally, working alongside a survivor from one of the most hard-hit environments was phenomenal, just experiencing that underlying faith."
 This is the fourth straight year that CSULB students, faculty and staff have made the Alternative Spring Break trek to Louisiana. In fact, Henley's older sister, Monique, was a member of the very first CSULB group that went four years ago, which had a role in Nadine's decision to go.
The 2009 CSULB Alternative Spring Break team worked with Habitat for Humanity's Collegiate Challenge Program, which provides opportunities for college students to spend a week building a house in partnership with Habitat for Humanity affiliates.
Arriving late in the afternoon on Sunday, the students received a tour of the greater New Orleans area on Monday - the good, the bad and the ugly -- including the wards most devastated by Hurricane Katrina, the levees that gave way to the rising waters and, of course, the other more "touristy" sites of New Orleans -- Bourbon Street, the French Quarter, etc.
 From Tuesday through Friday, the work day began at 7:30 a.m. and lasted to about 3:30 p.m. as the group worked on four homes in the Musicians Village area of New Orleans. Members of the group also worked two full days at the Habitat ReStore Store, unloading a dozen trucks of goods and materials and organizing all the merchandise in the store. The ReStores are retail outlets where quality, used and surplus building materials are sold at a fraction of normal prices. Materials sold there are usually donated from building supply stores, contractors, demolition crews or from individuals who wish to show their support for Habitat. Proceeds from ReStores help local affiliates fund the construction of Habitat houses within the community.
 The CSULB team was housed at Camp Hope in St.Bernard, La., which is about a 30-minute drive from downtown New Orleans. The camp is a converted school used by Habitat for Humanity as basic housing for volunteers. It provides a place to sleep, recreation space and three meals a day, including a bag lunch for each work day. Meals are provided daily by an AmeriCorps team. The rooms are divided by gender and are dormitory style, and each volunteer must bring his/her own bedding, sheets, pillows, blankets and/or sleeping bag.
 To take part in the Alternative Spring Break, CSULB students were required to take a class - "Political Science Special Topics 493: Politics, Culture and Disaster." Taught by Liberal Studies Professor Dan O'Connor, the course examines the events surrounding Hurricane Katrina and its impact on the Gulf Coast and the rest of the nation with a particular emphasis on the city of New Orleans.
The service-learning course was originally developed by Tim Caron, a CSULB English professor who has made three of the four Alternative Spring Break trips to Louisiana (He missed the trip two years ago because of the birth of his son). Caron had nothing but praise for the students who volunteer their time to make the trip.
"From the beginning, I was completely overwhelmed by our students at Cal State Long Beach. They are whip smart, compassionate, kind, caring, and they are great ambassadors. It's really humbling to spend so much time with them each year and to see how hard-working they are on behalf of others," Caron pointed out. "They are giving up one of a college student's most valuable assets--their Spring Breaks--for the privilege of working for others, taking cold showers, and living in some pretty crowded conditions. I can't really say enough about these young people and the service spirit that they all have in abundance."
 Henley mentioned the cold showers, too, but in a much different context.
"The most important thing I took home with me from this experience is not to take anything for granted and to be the change I wish to see," she said. "I found myself being grateful for our cold showers because, yes, they were ice cold constantly, but those in the storm didn't even get to shower. And if they did get to bathe, they had the same cold experience I did only with a hose, if they could even find one, according to a man I worked alongside in the Habitat Restore Store.
"I also realized I need to be the change I wish to see because being an example to others shows that your act of kindness can be easily duplicated as long as it comes from the heart," Henley added. "I realized that ordinary people can do extraordinary things like rebuild a home to restore hope in hearts of despair. These lessons will forever resonate with me."
Having returned to Southern California and looking back on the experience, Henley said there were two highlights from the trip in her mind. The first came even before they stepped off the plane as a male flight attendant who had himself been through the storm that devastated the area thanked the student and express his appreciation.
 "He asked the others in the plane to allow us to get off first the way he normally does if there are service men on board. He stated that we were going to serve this country as (the service men) do, helping people we don't even know while giving the most precious thing -- our time," Henley recalled. "He truly impacted me and made me realize the true essence of what we would be doing.
"Another highlight for me was being at our orientation day on the first day and listening to survivors Chris and Johnny tell their stories," she continued. "Their thoughtful, heartfelt thanks were so sincere. They said that we, the young volunteers, give them hope and are the best therapy they could ever receive."
 The Alternative Spring Break experience helped solidify one of Henley's future aspirations -- to establish an organization that creates homeless centers for people and helps them restore their lives such as assisting them in finding jobs, providing free counseling services, collecting donations of clothes, including suits from high-end places, to help build confidence in these individuals who are attempting to get back on their feet.
 For the immediate future, however, Henley wants to do what she can to encourage other students to take part in future Alternative Spring Breaks.
 "If a fellow student asked me about going on an Alternative Spring Break, I would tell them to just go. You will get back tenfold what you put into it, and the trip makes what you've learned in the classroom much more concrete," she said. "I would tell them that giving up their Spring Break is the least they can do for humanity, and the course and trip will be the most rewarding, life-changing experience of their college career because for me, it definitely was...without a doubt." | <urn:uuid:dc66cc71-1cf7-4d18-b329-585dc4e26df7> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://lasentinel.net/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=6242:csulb-student-finds-alternative-spring-break-most-rewarding&catid=60&Itemid=150 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00007-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.978889 | 1,744 | 1.84375 | 2 |
WASHINGTON — A member of the U.S. Navy SEAL team that killed Osama bin Laden has written a firsthand account of the operation, triggering more questions about the possible public release of classified information involving the historic assault of the terror leader's compound in Pakistan.
U.S. military officials say they do not believe the book has been read or cleared by the Defense Department, which reviews publications by military members to make sure that no classified material is revealed.
The book, titled "No Easy Day" and scheduled to be released next month on the 11th anniversary of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks, comes amid a heated debate over whether members of the military — both active duty and retired — should engage in political battles.
"I haven't read the book and am unaware that anyone in the Department has reviewed it," said Pentagon press secretary George Little. White House and CIA officials also said the book had not been reviewed by their agencies.
The book announcement comes just as a group of retired special operations and CIA officers have launched a campaign accusing President Barack Obama of revealing classified details of the mission and turning the killing of bin Laden into a campaign centerpiece. The group complains that Obama has taken too much credit for the operation.
Their public complaints drew a rebuke from Gen. Martin Dempsey, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, as well as other special operations forces, who called the partisan criticism unprofessional.
Dempsey said that such public political involvement by members of armed services erodes public confidence and trust in the military.
The author of the upcoming bin Laden book, who has left the military, is using the pseudonym Mark Owen. And in a news release from publisher Dutton, an imprint of Penguin Group (USA), Owen describes the book as an effort to "set the record straight about one of the most important missions in U.S. military history."
He said the book is about "the guys" and the sacrifices that the special operations forces make to do the job and is written in the hope that it will inspire young men to become SEALs.
If the book sticks to his personal thoughts about the job and the mission, Owen may be in the clear. But often special operations forces must sign nondisclosure agreements. And they are not allowed to release classified information, such as intelligence data or military tactics and procedures used to ensure success of the May 2011 raid. | <urn:uuid:7e1d4525-6f6f-4b7c-8459-3567aa828a12> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.tcpalm.com/news/2012/sep/02/book-on-bin-laden-raid-coming-out-sept-11/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368705559639/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516115919-00006-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.968016 | 481 | 1.617188 | 2 |
While reporting on Mexico’s falling drug violence, BBC news talked recently about Mexico’s bad press and the exaggerated fears about Mexico that have caused tourists to avoid the country in recent years.
While Mexico is on the list of travel warnings issued by the US state department, along with Iran, Algeria and Syria, it is still the number one destination for US citizens travelling abroad. Reports the BBC:
If Mexico were a stock, now might be the time to buy. The country has been severely under-valued in recent years. Despite high rates of crime and violence elsewhere in Latin America, the media tend to focus relentlessly on Mexico’s drug war….According to the latest analysis by the Trans-Border Institute, drug-related homicides were down by some 19% compared with the same time last year.
The article also talks about how Mexico is bouncing back, not just politically but economically as well. The country remains a number one tourist destination for Americans, with more than 20 million visitors last year, and an estimated one million U.S. citizens who reside permanently in Mexico.
Read the full article here. | <urn:uuid:418b9f0e-b1bb-4e5f-8633-0f9ea10e04d6> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://isitsafetotraveltomexico.com/2012/06/15/despite-bad-press-mexico-continues-to-bounce-back/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368708766848/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516125246-00037-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963601 | 228 | 1.703125 | 2 |
Skills Minister promotes green skills in Wales
30 Nov 2011
Deputy Minister for Skills, Jeff Cuthbert AM, is to deliver the keynote speech at the Green Deal Connections event in Cardiff on Thursday 1st December 2011.
It is the fourth in a series of events to raise awareness of the new skills required by energy assessors, energy advisors, solar panel installers and loft and cavity wall insulators as part of the forthcoming Green Deal.
The Welsh Government has already demonstrated commitment to the energy efficiency challenge in property through its Fuel Poverty and Arbed programmes.
The Deputy Minister for Skills said: “The Green Deal gives us a real chance to help achieve low carbon targets. This event is the ideal place for people to come and learn about the new skills needed to ensure its success. Programmes like this are helping us to deliver the skilled workforce that the Welsh economy needs to thrive.”
The Green Deal Connections events are free and present a chance to make significant progress in tackling the wider green agenda and cutting fuel costs. They are organised by the Green Deal Skills Alliance, made up of three Sector Skills Councils (SSCs) - Asset Skills, ConstructionSkills and SummitSkills.
Keith Marshall, OBE, Chief Executive of SummitSkills, said: “There has been so much talk recently about Green Deal that not surprisingly many employers tell us they are unsure of where to start to prepare their people and their organisations to support and take advantage of the initiative. These events will guide visitors through the mass of information towards exactly what potential installers of environmental technologies need to know.”
Richard Beamish, Chief Executive of Asset Skills, said: “It is crucial that people attend this event if they want to remain at the forefront of the Green Deal. Only those with the right qualifications will be able to secure work from the Green Deal so it’s essential the workforce is aware of the training and accreditations that will be required.”
Mark Farrar, Chief Executive of CITB-ConstructionSkills, said: “The Green Deal Connection events are an important way for SMEs to understand what skills and training they will need to prepare for the forthcoming Green Deal, which rolls out in less than a year. The time to prepare for the future is now and it is vital that firms, particularly SMEs, are able to meet demand for the construction of low carbon technology, as well as knowing how not to fall foul of changing regulations.”
The Green Deal Connections events are nationwide. For more information please email [email protected] or call 0845 678 2888. | <urn:uuid:8e2d1910-1479-4c70-b35d-30161d2288c3> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.summitskills.org.uk/cgi-bin/go.pl/news/article.html?uid=694 | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706499548/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516121459-00027-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.94691 | 546 | 1.5625 | 2 |
The mission of Emerge, Inc. has been “to inspire women and children, who are homeless survivors of domestic violence, to transform their lives by providing safe housing and support services.”
All proceeds from this Quilt Raffle will support Emerge’s safe housing, counseling for both mothers and their children, financial planning and household budgeting, employment/job skills assistance, support groups, parenting skills and post program follow-up. Since 1995, Emerge has provided services to 37 women and 69 children. The group said its success rate is 98%.
The grand prize of the Quilt Raffle is a 4-foot by 5-foot machine-pierced and hand-quilted “Noah’s Ark” quilt designed and created by Fairfield artist Cecily Zerega. Featuring Noah, his wife and 25 pairs of intricately made animals, the quilt is valued at $500.
Zerega, a graduate of Rhode Island School of Design, has focused on textiles for many years and has been designing quilts for the Christmas Tree Festival since its inception more than 30 years ago. Her work has also been displayed in many venues and has benefited a variety of causes.
Second prize in the Quilt Raffle is a machine-pierced and hand-quilted “Noah’s Ark Misfits,” valued at $150.
Third prize is a 14-inch by 30-inch handmade holiday table runner designed and created by Edie Faile, which is valued at $75.
The Quilt Raffle is sponsored by Lesko & Polke Funeral home.
There will be two opportunities to purchase quilt raffle tickets prior to the Festival opening. Tickets will be sold at the Fairfield University Bookstore, 1499 Post Road, on Saturday, Nov. 10, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m., and at the “Santa Comes To Fairfield” event on Sherman Green Saturday, Nov. 24, from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Quilt raffle tickets are $5 each and can be purchased during the festival, Nov. 30 to Dec. 2 at the Burr Homestead.
Information on Emerge, Inc., is available at 203-375-8610, on Facebook or at emerge-inc.org.
Information on the Christmas Tree Festival is available at FairfieldChristmasTreeFestival.org, on Facebook or by sending an email to [email protected]. | <urn:uuid:c28adec6-ba7d-41b5-a91b-78291cef8080> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.fairfield-sun.com/5344/emerge-inc-named-beneficiary-of-christmas-tree-festival-quilt-raffle/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00039-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.962134 | 530 | 1.585938 | 2 |
Here is Tommy’s placement interview:
What’s your name?
How old are you?
How long have you studied English?
Since I was 13.
Tell me about Taiwan.
It’s dirtier than America. The air is very polluted. And I think the schools are better. I want to go to the university here in California. Then, I’ll join the army back home. I can get a better career in Taiwan if I get a degree from America.
Here is Tommy’s writing (see above):
- What do you know about Tommy based on the information given?
- If Tommy were enrolled in your school what placement decisions would you make?
- Is he operating at grade level for his age?
- What assumptions can you make about his ability to succeed with the grade-level curriculum based on his fluency?
- Can you assume that he will be able to function without any assistance at all? If not, what sort of help might he need and should you give? | <urn:uuid:9afd8db2-9ec0-4752-9baa-a51e1bd4eebf> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.portageandmainpress.com/blog/2009/03/case-study-tommy/ | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368697974692/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095254-00024-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.976037 | 217 | 1.648438 | 2 |
Fifty-sixth Regular Session of the IAEA General Conference
Statement by H.E. Dr. Michael Spindelegger Vice-Chancellor and Federal Minister for European and International Affairs of the Republic of Austria
First of all let me first express my deep and sincere condolences for the victims of the shocking events last week in Libya.
Having the privilege of being the representative of the host country, let me continue my tradition of starting with a hearty welcome to all delegates to Austria. We are proud of hosting such an important organisation, and I congratulate you, Mr. President, on your election to preside over the 56th General Conference. In addition, let me also very cordially welcome the Republic of Trinidad and Tobago that has recently decided to join the Agency.
At this General Conference, I would like to highlight Austrian positions on three thematic areas:
1. First: Austria stands for responsible uses of nuclear science and technology.
2. Second: Austria supports all efforts to prevent the proliferation of military uses.
3. Third: Austria calls on all States to join in creating a nuclear weapon free world quickly
Let me expand on these three points:
(1) On the peaceful uses of nuclear power, I would like to stress that, also in times of increasing demand for energy and while respecting international law and national sovereignty, Austria feels obliged and entitled to voice its concerns regarding the safety and security of nuclear installations. The protection of the Austrian population and the environment is of paramount importance for the Austrian government. In all cases of nuclear installations that might have a negative impact on Austria, we will use all legal means available to protect our safety interests. This also means supporting all measures to ensure maximum transparency and participation. I reiterate that a key objective of Austrian nuclear safety policy remains the creation of high and binding safety standards for nuclear power plants and other fuel cycle facilities. We take note that - even after and despite the "Fukushima nuclear catastrophe" - there is still interest in nuclear power in a number of countries. We follow the discourse and the pertinent developments with great attention. However, if a country decides to use nuclear power, we are of the firm conviction that it has to do this under the highest safety, security and non-proliferation standards.
On the peaceful uses of nuclear science and technology, I would like to add that Austria has - for a very long time - been home to nuclear scientists, physicists and researchers, including Nobel prize winning ones like Erwin Schrödinger. Another scientist, Lise Meitner, refused to bow to political pressure to work on the atomic bomb. Nowadays, it is clear that Austrian nuclear scientists work “to harness the atom for peace”, to use a phrase we are all familiar with.
This year’s scientific forum on “Food for the Future”, which high-lights joint activities of the Agency with the FAO in Rome, gives another good example of the many peaceful applications of nuclear energy. Other applications in climate science, health and related to water management also show the valuable contribution nuclear science can make in addressing the world’s pressing social, environmental and development needs.
Over the years that I have been in office, I have come to highly appreciate the central role this organisation plays in global nuclear developments. I am very conscious of the central role which the host country of an organisation can play in assuring the smooth functioning of its work. Therefore, Austria has continuously been providing in-kind contributions for the Agency’s facilities in Vienna and at the laboratories at Seibersdorf. Today, Austria also pledges to continue to support the Technical Cooperation Fund in full and on time with its assessed contribution in 2013.
(2) “Harnessing the atom for peace” also means preventing its use for military purposes. We cannot afford to add to the existing risks of civil nuclear energy those related to growing global nuclear weapons arsenals and a rising number of nuclear armed states. Alongside the continuous efforts to remove the root causes of nuclear proliferation, we must extend the existing non-proliferation tools, in particular also the additional protocol to comprehensive safeguards agreements, to all countries around the globe. We must ensure their implementation without any loop-holes and thus eliminate any possibilities to break away from civilian uses and turn to a military night-mare. On this way, we will need to take several hurdles, find creative solutions for the interim in specific situations and contexts; but the final commitment must be equally strong for each and every country.
Austria fully endorses the positions of the European Union also in this context. One area of particular concern that I would like to mention is the situation regarding the nuclear programme in the Islamic Republic of Iran. It is frustrating and disappointing that uncertainties about the peaceful nature of this programme still remain after so many years of negotiations and attention. The tools necessary to be able to assure the world of Iran’s peaceful intentions exist. I appeal to Iran to allow the Agency to make substantive progress in its verification work to be able to close this deeply worrying file soon.
(3) Let me now turn to my last point. The arguments I used for non-proliferation hold also true for nuclear disarmament. The only guarantee against the risk of proliferation of nuclear weapons is their complete elimination. Moreover, the arguments in favour of non-proliferation, and the support by the international community for such measures, depend on credible steps towards nuclear disarmament. Nuclear disarmament and non-proliferation must go hand in hand.
The catastrophic accidents at the power plants at Chernobyl and recently at Fukushima have demonstrated clearly that Murphy’s law is applicable also in the nuclear field: “Whatever can go wrong, will go wrong.” However, we cannot afford to wait until something goes wrong with nuclear weapons. The humanitarian costs would be overwhelming. There is no justifiable reason why the whole world should continue to be exposed to such a risk.
The path to a world without nuclear weapons may be complex and difficult but reason demands that we take this path. We already have legal instruments like the NPT and strong institutions like this Agency and the CTBTO that help us in this endeavour. We also have growing global support for nuclear disarmament and the goal of a world without nuclear weapons. Furthermore, there is hope that the countries of the Middle East will follow the examples of nuclear weapons free zones and be able to start a process towards the creation of a zone free from nuclear weapons and other weapons of mass destruction in the Middle East. Austria strongly supports this process. There is no reason why such a project should not be extended to the whole world.
The General Conference of the Agency, and in fact the Agency itself, represent unique opportunities, unique global forums for all of us Member States to discuss and negotiate important nuclear issues in a constructive manner. We cherish such a unique forum. We have seen on numerous occasions, how constructively we can work together and achieve results. I am fully aware that delegates will have a week full of hard work ahead of them. Therefore, let me conclude by expressing my best wishes to all delegates for a successful General Conference. | <urn:uuid:05268a09-3718-4b28-8692-891dba16223e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.bmeia.gv.at/aussenministerium/pressenews/reden-und-interviews/2012/fifty-sixth-regular-session-of-the-iaea-general-conference.html?ADMCMD_editIcons=yebfzhfsghz | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368706153698/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516120913-00005-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.93577 | 1,465 | 1.546875 | 2 |
“This terrible decision from the 9th Circuit ignores the growing body of evidence that late-term abortions are dangerous for women” noted AUL’s Dr. Charmaine Yoest. “And yet a woman receiving an abortion at 20 weeks is 35 times more likely to die than she was in the first trimester.”
WASHINGTON, D.C. (05-22-2013) – Ignoring the growing body of evidence detailing abortion’s harms to women, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals struck down Arizona’s prohibition of abortion after 20 weeks of pregnancy, despite the fact that the risks to maternal health dramatically increase with such later-term abortion procedures. The troubling ruling involved a unique piece of model legislation from Americans United for Life that limits abortion later in pregnancy because of the health risks of abortion for women, as well as the pain inflicted on the unborn infant during the abortion.
“Once again, we see unelected judges ignoring the troubling medical evidence about the impact of late-term abortions on women,” observed Americans United for Life President and CEO Dr. Charmaine Yoest. “Instead, such judges continue to act as a self-appointed and unelected ‘Abortion Control Board’ and insist on allowing unregulated, unmonitored and dangerous later-term procedures.”
In the faulty ruling, the Ninth Circuit three-judge panel claimed that no state can prohibit abortion before viability (around 23 to 24 weeks), regardless of whether later-term abortion substantially increases the mother’s risk of death. Most of the 195 nations in the world limit abortion between 12 and 20 weeks, in part because of the dangers of such later-term procedures. Only the United States, North Korea, China and Canada allow abortions through all 9 months of pregnancy, for any reason whatsoever (including sex-selection), and sometimes with taxpayer subsidies.
Dr. Yoest commented: “Two weeks ago, a jury of Americans in Philadelphia expressed their horror at late-term abortions; today, three judges said that late-term abortions must continue despite the deliberative action of the Arizona legislature, the elected representatives of the people of the state. This is an extreme disservice to the women of Arizona.”
“Substantial medical data—utilized even by the pro-abortion Guttmacher Institute—demonstrates that a woman seeking an abortion in Arizona at 20 weeks is 35 times more likely to die from abortion than she was in the first trimester. At 21 weeks or more, she is 91 times more likely to die from abortion than she was in the first trimester. But these judges incorrectly decided that the ‘abortion right’ is so enshrined in Supreme Court precedent that states cannot even enact restrictions aimed at protecting maternal health. The message is clear: abortion is more important than protecting women’s lives.”
In a concurring opinion, Judge Andrew J. Kleinfeld indicated that his hands are tied by the “viability rule,” but noted that it is an “odd rule” because viability changes as medicine improves—meaning that there is no threshold rule for states to follow that can withstand the test of time.
The law was based in substantial part on AUL’s “Women’s Health Defense Act,” and AUL’s Senior Counsel Clarke Forsythe testified in the legislature on behalf of the bill. AUL expects the state of Arizona to request that the U.S. Supreme Court review the case. The 20-week prohibitions of abortion in several other states remain in effect.
For more information on AUL’s cutting-edge model legislation found in Defending Life, click here | <urn:uuid:6715473d-9f44-4530-8919-d20e3be7b165> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.aul.org/Blog | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368701852492/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516105732-00003-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.943551 | 765 | 1.703125 | 2 |
How will you ensure that the educational toy you purchase will be right for the child?
As with everything you can find no guarantees with children. There are a couple of points to consider when selecting children's educational toys that will improve the chances that the choice will be nicely received. First, evaluate the developmental stage that a child is at. Select educational toys of which target skills and abilities for that stage. An educational toy that's too advanced may bring about frustration, and one that is too simple are not challenging enough to bring about attention.
Below is a general guideline for kinds of children's educational toys are better suited to developmental stages from newborn through three years old. This is only meant to become guide to start you thinking inside the right direction. Use these guidelines plus your knowledge of your child's interests to your account help make your informative toy purchases.
Feel free to surf to my web site jigsaw puzzle kids | <urn:uuid:a05eab68-ef0c-46de-8ac0-fcf6eadbbd31> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://bit-wiki.de/index.php?title=Benutzer:TylerN2 | 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 | 0.944836 | 184 | 1.78125 | 2 |
The Urban College of Boston, through struggling financially, is not beyond repair. The mission of the college — higher education for older students with low incomes and difficult lives — remains intact. There is no evidence of financial wrongdoing. Yet the New England Association of Schools and Colleges is unfairly pressing the tiny downtown college to relinquish its accreditation and stop holding classes because of its failure to meet financial standards, including adequate cash reserves. Institutions that serve unique student populations are almost bound to face greater financial challenges than the typical college, and they deserve special consideration if they are demonstrably meeting students’ academic needs.
Urban College is a no-frills institution offering two-year degrees in early childhood education, human services, and general studies. Many of its 600 students are working mothers who sought help from the social services nonprofit Action for Boston Community Development, which founded the college. As a rule, Urban College students need more intensive attention from faculty than can be found in crowded community college classrooms. More than half of the students, for example, have been out of high school for more than 10 years.
The college hit a financial rough patch when it lost federal grants that it had been relying on. It needs a seal of approval from the New England Association of Schools and Colleges to accept federal student aid. But the accrediting agency is insisting that Urban College lacks the financial wherewithal to “undertake another instructional term.’’ Yet the school has several promising grant applications out, and it has some breathing room: Action for Boston Community Development is also the college’s landlord and is being patient while the college regains its fiscal footing. And concerned philanthropists are stepping forward, college officials maintain.
The accreditation agency need not let Urban College off the hook entirely, and would be wise to place the school on probation. The college does need to show that it can reliably muster enough money to support its mission year after year. But the college can’t make its case by failing to admit a new class of students in the fall. If the New England Association of Schools and Colleges really wants what’s best for Urban College, it will dial back the pressure and give the college a fair chance to regain its financial footing. | <urn:uuid:97846423-5eb2-4ed9-84b8-e9d2dacedc4e> | CC-MAIN-2013-20 | http://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/editorials/2012/07/27/urban-college-deserves-chance-fix-its-finances/Ul34pKZnC2g2gdvJsi0uBO/story.html | s3://commoncrawl/crawl-data/CC-MAIN-2013-20/segments/1368698207393/warc/CC-MAIN-20130516095647-00010-ip-10-60-113-184.ec2.internal.warc.gz | en | 0.963284 | 455 | 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.